Students engagement in Open University Malaysia graduate centre (OUM GC): Does information seeking behaviour plays a role?

The objective of this study is to examine the relationships between Information Seeking Behaviour (ISB) and engagement of students in Open University Malaysia Graduate Centre (OUM GC). A literature review was undertaken to develop the instrument. Face-to-face data collection method was adopted. A total of 89 respondents from convenient sampling was analysed to answer the research hypotheses. A factor analysis was performed on the independent variable to manage the items and discover new constructs as a way to contribute to the area of study. The Kaiser Meyer Olkin figure is reported to be 0.77, indicating validity of the model. Cronbach Alpha for all variables are reported to be above 0.70, indicating reliability. There is a relationship between information seeking behaviour and student engagement as designated in the regression model. This paper will also give more information to ODL universities which can help them in their decision making process and ability to allocate resources. (Abstract by authors

Bankers’ perception on the roles of whistleblowing: Demographic evidence from Malaysia / Nurmazilah Dato’ Mahzan, Mohamad Afzhan Khan Mohamad Khalil and Anuar Nawawi

The purpose of this study is to develop a reliable and valid construct for roles of whistleblowing and to assess the association between respondents’ demographic characteristics and their perception on whistleblowing. The fraud triangle and deontology theories underpin the development of the survey instrument. Survey questionnaires were administered to 553 respondents in the Malaysian financial sector using face to face data collection procedure. A total of 334 questionnaires were usable for the final analysis. Cochran’s method was adopted for sample size determination. The data collected were cleaned and issues on reliability, validity and normality of distribution were resolved. The confirmatory factor analysis (chi square = 4.15; GFI = 0.90; CFI= 0.91; NFI = 0.89; TLI = 0.89; RMSEA = 0.10), normality (skewness < 1.50) and reliability (Cronbach alpha = 0.90; composite reliability = 0.92; average variance extracted = 0.54) results were convincing. Subsequently, a one way ANOVA was employed to test for significant associations between the respondents’ demographic characteristics and their perception on the roles of whistleblowing. It was found that respondents’ age (p = 0.01), position (p = 0.01) and working experience (p = 0.03) had significant bearings on their perception of the roles of whistleblowing within the Malaysian financial sector

Learners’ Perception of an Institution’s Reputation: Quantitative Evidence from the OUM 2014 Tracer Study

The objective of this paper is to examine the relationship between curriculum, assessment system, teaching staff, facilities, knowledge and skills, effectiveness of study programmes against the learners' perception of the institution’s reputation at Open University Malaysia (OUM). The data was derived from an online tracer study conducted by the Ministry of Education (MOE), Malaysia via a set of standard questionnaire, which in part, evaluates the responses from Malaysian graduates on the reputation of their alma maters. This paper presents the results of the study conducted on a total of 1,273 respondents of the 2014 batch of OUM graduates. A total of 933 usable data from the online survey was used for analysis. Focus group discussion was undertaken to provide justification for the content validity of the instrument. A regression analysis was conducted and the result shows that assessment system, teaching staff, and effectiveness of study programmes have a significant effect on learners' perception of the institution’s reputation. [ABSTRACT BY AUTHORS

HARNESSING THE POWER OF SERVICE QUALITY TO ATTRACT AND RETAIN STUDENTS: AN OUM EXPERIENCE

The increase in the number of open and distance learning (ODL) providers in Malaysia has provided potential students with bigger opportunities to access tertiary education. However, the challenge faced by the providers is that they have to compete with each other to capture the largest number of students. Getting a good intake is a necessity, retaining the existing students is equally critical as these two factors determine the financial sustainability of the institution. As in any service industry, service quality is key to the success of any higher education including ODL institution. Past studies have proposed that satisfaction is one of the key competitive advantages for a HEI as it will lead to profitability and customer loyalty. In this light, this study examines the relationship between service quality and satisfaction of Open University Malaysia (OUM) students. A performance-based instrument called SERVPERF developed by Cronin and Taylor (1992) was used as a guide for this study, some modifications were made to suit the context of OUM. The instrument consists of two sections, one of which contains 15 demographic questions and the other 65 questions measured on a 5-point Likert-type scale ranging from 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree). Out of 22,000 active students population, 4062 (18.5%) responded and 3290 completed questionnaires were used. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics, correlation and multiple regression. The results indicated that ‘programme’, ‘teaching & learning’, ‘assurance’, ‘responsiveness’, ‘empathy’ and ‘reliability’ explained 77.9% of the variation in student satisfaction. ‘Empathy’ and ‘responsiveness’ have the greatest impact on satisfaction in the students’ perception of service quality rendered by OUM. The overall satisfaction level measured falls at 77.0% with a mean score of 3.85 on a 5 point Likert scale

Mediating effects of generation Y work values’ in human resource practices and employee retention in Malaysia

Employee retention has received much attention especially in Western world. However it has generated limited empirical research in Malaysia despite its perennial importance. Employee retention can improve the organisation’s competitive advantage which is currently one of the biggest challenges faced by organisations. Low employee retention or in other words, high employee turnover in Malaysia hovered around 16%from 2009 to 2016 and out of which, 78% of the total turnover was contributed by the manufacturing sector. The working environment in the manufacturing sector is generally more hazardous and strenuous in nature comparatively with other sectors. Additionally, Generation Y representing over 50% of the total work force and hold predominant role in the employment market in Malaysia are known to have different work values as compared to their predecessor generations thus making employee retention even more complex. Therefore, organisations should not structure a one-sizefit- all and generic employee retention practices. Instead careful planning and implementation of human resources practices will be required with the aim to retain Generation Y at their workplace. Moreover, it has been argued that monetary human resource practices i.e. compensation and pay is no longer sustainable and instrumental for employee retention. Hence, in this light, this study focuses on non-monetary human resource practices such career development, succession planning and work life balance to prove its 7 research hypotheses where there are other human resource practices beyond compensation which could retain employees. The Generation Y work values do have mediating effect in the relationship of the human resource practices and employee retention. Additionally, the population of this study will be individuals employed in the electrical and electronics manufacturing organisations and the sample size will be a minimum of 384. A mixed method research will be employed to integrate the quantitative and qualitative research with the aim of providing a more complete understanding of the research problem. (Abstract by authors

Accreditation of prior experiential learning and democratisation of education: empirical evidence using multiple regression analysis

Access to education is still a worldwide problem due to various inequalities. The Malaysian Qualifications Agency (MQA) introduced the Accreditation of Prior Experiential Learning (APEL) mechanism which enables individuals who have work experience but lack in formal academic qualifications to pursue their studies at higher educational institutions. APEL Centre is an approved assessment centre for MQA. The main purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between service quality provided by APEL Centre, awareness on APEL and democratisation of education. A literature review to build the research instrument. Survey questionnaires were administered and a total of 168 were usable responses from Open University Malaysia (OUM). Face-to-face data collection procedure was adopted. A total of 63% of the respondents were aware of the entry requirements using APEL whereas 27% needed more clarification. The candidates who obtained the services from APEL Centre were interested to gain admission in Diploma (3%), Degree (58%) and Master (39%) programmes in Malaysia. The data collected were cleaned and issues related to data normality (Kurtosis < 3.00; Skewness < 1.00) were primarily resolved. The Cronbach Alpha for service quality of APEL Centre (a = 0.97), awareness on APEL (a = 0.94) and democratisation of education (a = 0.96) were far above acceptable. The reported R square (0.54) indicated goodness of fit of the total regression model. Service quality provided by APEL Centre (p = 0.01) and awareness on APEL (p = 0.02) were both significant variables when examined against democratisation of education in OUM. The empirical evidence given clearly implies that APEL can help increase access to education. The role of informal and non-formal education can heighten global citizenship of the candidates. Future researchers are recommended to validate the existing measurement by performing confirmatory factor analysis and qualitative interviews to narrow the methodological gap available. (Abstract by authors

Accreditation Of Prior Experiential Learning As A Catalyst For Malaysian Higher Education: Empirical Evidence On Performance Of Students

There are growing appeals for recognising prior learning in academic institutions. This paper addresses the relationship between demographics, competency and performance of students who enrol through the Accreditation of Prior Experiential Learning mechanism in Open University Malaysia. A review of literature was conducted to identify empirical gaps. This research contributes in two ways: 1) Adding new theoretical knowledge; and 2) Providing information to stakeholders to aid them in decision-making. One out of four Open University Malaysia students are enrolled through Accreditation of Prior Experiential Learning. Records of students who graduated between 2007 and 2017 were used and the sample size of this research is 2,598. The data was generated from the university’s database. The results showed a positive outcome for the first objective where the majority of graduates completed their studies within the time frame of five years. The second objective is to examine the relationship between demographic variables and performance of the students. The relationship between gender (p < 0.05), age (p < 0.05), cluster (p 0.05) and performance of Accreditation of Prior Experiential Learning graduates were reported through multiple regression analysis (R square = 0.42). Majority of students (32%) obtained an average Cumulative Grade Point Average between 3.00-3.66. The results clearly proved that Accreditation of Prior Experiential Learning is a catalyst in democratising higher education by giving opportunities to the masses to use their working experience for admission. Six practical implications are given in this paper to promote Accreditation of Prior Experiential Learning