Influence of Mobile Learning Training on Pre-service Social Studies Teachers’ Technology and Mobile Phone Self-Efficacies

Current instructional deliveries favour the use of mobile technology because of its inherent potentials and benefits such as portability, ease of use cost and others. Despite these benefits, many teachers especially in Sub-Saharan Africa still prefer the conventional method and use mobile phones for social engagements such as texting, chatting, callings and others. Though, these teachers use mobile phones for these social activities, using it for instruction is somewhat problematic for them without adequate training on its pedagogical implications. This is also because there are dearth of trainings in this area. Some factors that could however affect this type of specialised training include Technology Self-efficacy, Mobile Phone Self-efficacy, attitude, age and others. The sample of this present study was 101 pre-service social studies teachers in two Universities in Nigeria. The influence of the Mobile learning training on Technology/Mobile Phone Self-efficacies was explored. The results indicated that the pre-service social studies teachers have high Technology/Mobile Phone Self-efficacies after exposure to the training. Keywords: Technology self-efficacy, Mobile Phone Self-efficacy, Mobile learning, trainin

Designing a Framework for Training Teachers on Mobile Learning in Sub-Sahara Africa

Mobile technology has the potential to enhance the capabilities of students and educators in effective teaching and learning process. Understanding the factors that hinder integration of mobile technology in instructional delivery is key to the effective uptake of mobile technology for instructional purposes. The benefits of using mobile technology in the classroom can only be fully harnessed when teachers and other educational stakeholders are guided by framework that captures factors that enhance and hinder it use. It is against this background that this study seeks to design a framework for training teachers in the uptake of mobile learning in classrooms in Sub-Sahara Africa. The interactions among the factors considered suggest that Personal and Societal beliefs, Ownership of devices, Cost of devices and Type of devices contribute significantly to the teachers’ technology self-efficacy, mobile phone self-efficacy and readiness to use mobile learning for instruction. Training on pedagogy could also enhance uptake, likewise, technical, and instructional support need to be considered in content development, delivery and evaluation. Feedback constitutes an important variable throughout the process leading up to uptake. Therefore, these factors need to be properly considered in the uptake of mobile learning in classrooms in sub-Sahara Africa. This would engender seamless integration of mobile learning in instructional delivery at different levels of education. Keywords: Mobile learning, readiness, pre-service teachers training, mobile learning model, self-efficacy DOI: 10.7176/JEP/11-32-07 Publication date: November 30th 202

Exploring Critical Media Literacies in Youth Media Production: Tackling Falsehoods Through Media Creation

This Mixed Method Research (MMR) study, using a convergent parallel design, explores the practices of middle school students as creators and consumers of false information-free media. It investigates their ability to identify falsehoods, explores the impact of false information on various aspects of their lives, and introduces an innovative media production boot camp to foster awareness, detection, and prevention of false information dissemination in their media creations. The research, conducted with six participants, employs a combination of qualitative and quantitative data collection methods, including video and in-person observations, interviews, surveys, and artifacts. Integrating quantitative and qualitative data enables a comprehensive exploration of the research questions. Quantitative results provide statistical evidence of knowledge improvement in creating false information-free media, while qualitative insights offer context and personal perspectives, reinforcing overall conclusions. Findings indicate that middle schoolers significantly improved their knowledge, awareness, and skills in identifying false information through interest-driven media creation activities during the boot camp. Activities such as media deconstruction, storytelling, media literacy games, and hands-on media projects contributed to enhanced self-efficacy in identifying false information and positively influenced media creation and sharing behaviors. While the study showcased numerous successes, it also highlighted challenges, including time constraints, minor technological issues, and occasional peer collaboration difficulties. Participants recognized the substantial impact of false information on individuals, spanning financial, psychological, and political dimensions. Additionally, the research offers practical guidelines for middle schoolers to create false information-free media. In conclusion, this study underscores the effectiveness of conducting media creation and media literacy activities beyond traditional classroom settings. It recommends structured yet flexible frameworks, creative freedom, source questioning, peer collaboration, educational games, detection guides, diverse media formats, and sustained engagement for middle school educators aiming to cultivate media literacy, responsible media consumption, and false information detection skills among middle schoolers

Pre-Service Teachers' Ease of Use and Intention to Use Selected E-learning Technologies in Designing Instruction

Abstract The process of teacher preparation and training is core to producing good and quality teachers in the classroom. This process is complex and demanding because teachers are agents of change that help shape the skills of future generation. The world is changing so also is the education system and studies have established the importance of using new and digital technologies in the teacher training process. However, the training of teachers, especially pre-service teachers in Nigeria to utilize these tools remain scarce. This study, therefore, examined the ease of use and intention to use new and digital technologies such as Interactive Whiteboard, Camstasia, Mindmapping tools and Microsoft suites in an Instructional Technology course in the Faculty of Education, University of Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria. The study adopted an expo facto research design and purposive sampling technique was used to select 273 teacher trainees in five departments (Adult Education, Teacher Education, Guidance and Counseling, Special and Kinetics and Health Education). Three research questions were raised and answered in the study. The findings revealed that ease of use is 83%, which means that the teacher trainees find these technologies easy to use for the teaching and learning process. The result also indicated that the intention to use is 81.7%, which means that the teacher trainees intend to use these technologies in their future classroom. The teacher trainees are motivated to use these technologies, they feel it can enrich their teaching if adequate and proper training is given to them. They find these technologies exciting and flexible to design instructional activities

Exploring the Influence of Social Presence on Workers’ Attitude and Productivity in Remote Work Settings.

As remote work becomes increasingly prevalent, understanding the influence of social presence on workers' attitudes and productivity is crucial for optimizing remote work environments. Research shows that social presence is often diminished in remote work settings, which can negatively affect productivity and job satisfaction. This study aimed to investigate the impact of social presence on workers in the United States' attitudes and productivity toward remote work. In this study, 196 full-time employees from different industries, such as Healthcare, Education, and Computer Science in the United States, responded to an online questionnaire assessing their attitudes toward remote work and determining the relationship between their perceived social presence and their productivity. The findings of the study suggest that social presence positively influences workers' output and enhances their attitude toward work in a remote setting. The study recommends strategies for organizations to foster social presence, such as establishing clear communication channels, providing opportunities for social interaction, and promoting a positive work culture. These findings contribute to the growing body of research on remote work and highlight the importance of social presence in facilitating successful remote and technology work arrangements. The study is significant as it can help organizations design and manage remote work environments that enhance collaboration, communication, and engagement among remote workers. Keywords: social presence, healthcare, virtual work, remote settings, attitude, technology DOI: 10.7176/NMMC/104-08 Publication date: May 31st 202

Influence of Age and Training on Planning Instruction Using Mobiles Phones by Pre-service Social Studies Teachers

Abstract Effective planning of instruction enables the teacher to set out different strategies that can make both teachers and students achieve stated objectives. Teachers are expected to put a lot of effort into planning their instruction, and with the emergence of different technologies (hardware/software), planning can be done with considerable ease. These technologies such as computers, mobile phones, tablets, Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs) and so on create a platform for teachers to explore, gather facts, sort, edit and re-arrange information about a topic before teaching it. Therefore, in this study, pre-service social studies teachers were trained on how to plan instruction using the Mobiles, this was done using a Mobile Learning Lesson Plan (MLLP) template, the influence of age on how pre-service teachers plan instructions using mobiles was also examined. The template is a blueprint of what is to be taught using the mobile phone, it enables teachers to organise, plan, design, and evaluate the lesson effectively. The results show that after the training, the pre-service social studies teachers were able to acquire requisite skills to plan instruction using mobile phones. Also, age does not significantly influence on the ability of pre-service social studies teachers to plan instruction using mobiles

Collaboration, Creativity, and Learning Analytics: Student Created Content in a Higher Education Course

This presentation will discuss undergraduate student experiences with the creation of an online textbook through the lens of social constructivism and the connected learning framework. To do this, a comparison was made to the previous experiences of students with online content creation tools to their experiences using them during a course. It also includes information about student perceptions of their creativity and collaboration. Surveys and reflections are examined to determine the level of student perceived creativity and collaboration that took place over the course of the semester and how that impacted engagement in the course

Bop or Flop?: Integrating Music and Data Science in an Elementary Classroom

The importance of data literacies and the shortage of research surrounding data science in elementary schools motivated this research-practice partnership (RPP) between researchers and teachers from a STEM elementary school. We used a narrative case study methodology to describe the instructional practices of one music teacher who co-designed a data science curricular unit during a summer professional development program and implemented it in her 5th-grade music classroom. Data collected for this study include in-person and video observations, reflective journals, artifacts, and interviews. Findings suggest that this teacher integrated data science literacies into her classroom by supporting multiple avenues for data storytelling and relying on learners’ everyday discourse and experiences. Our study details a practical example of implementing data science with non-STEM domains in elementary classrooms

Exploring Elementary Teachers’ Perceptions of Data Science and Curriculum Co-Design through Professional Development

Data science and computational thinking (CT) skills are important STEM literacies necessary to make informed daily decisions. In elementary schools, particularly in rural areas, there is little instruction and limited research towards understanding and developing these literacies. Using a Research-Practice Partnership model (RPP; Coburn & Penuel, 2016) we conducted multimethod research investigating nine elementary teachers’ perceptions of data science and related curriculum design during professional development (PD). Connected Learning theory, enhanced with Universal Design for Learning, guided ways we assisted teachers in designing the data science curriculum. Findings suggest teachers maintained high levels of interest in data science instruction and CT before and after the PD and increased their self-efficacy towards teaching data science. A thematic analysis revealed how a data science framework guided curriculum design and assisted teachers in defining, understanding, and co-creating the curriculum. During curriculum design, teachers shared the workload among partners, made collaborative design choices, integrated differentiation strategies, and felt confidence towards teaching data science. Identified challenges included locating data sets and the complexity of understanding data science and related software. This study addresses the research gap in data science education for elementary teachers and assists with successful strategies for data science PD and curricular design