Model-based home budget / Hamidah Mat

At present, the use of expert systems has become a trend. There are so many systems related to budgeting system or quantitative modeling but there is no specification on home budgeting systems that formulate and construct a model. In order to overcome the described problems, three objectives are going to be achieved in this project. The first objective of the research is to identify the home budget planning based on priority and uncertainty factors according to the period. Second objective is to analyze and calculate the expenditures of the home user. The last objective is to formulate and construct a model for home budget planning using the defined factors and priority. The rules and formulation for the expenditures were created from the knowledge data. A Bayesian approach was proposed as a formulation in calculating the home budget. The present system applies model to develop home budgeting for quantifying uncertainty in the establishment of the system. As an output for the users, the expenses will be displayed through the bar graph model. The model showed the percentage for each expenses factor. The developed system is then used for the short and long term prediction and modeling of home budgeting. On the other hand, model-based home budget has concluded that future expansion in home budgeting should concentrate on getting more accurately prediction of the budge

THE RELEVANCE OF ARABIC LANGUAGE IN ISLAMIC STUDIES PROGRAM: A CASE STUDY OF OPEN UNIVERSITY MALAYSIA (OUM)

Numerous studies have been carried out to identify the relevance of Arabic language to Islamic studies subjects. As a medium of communication like other languages, Arabic has its own function in conveying Syariah knowledge. This is mainly because Arabic is the language of the Holy Quran and Sunnah, which are the primary sources of Islam. This study attempts to analyze the relevance of learning the Arabic language amongst Open University Malaysia (OUM) students. This research involves students of two programs in OUM, Bachelor of Islamic Studies and Diploma in Islamic Studies. A survey was conducted to identify a relationship between student’s Arabic language proficiency and their learning process on courses taught. It is also intended to know student’s perception on the relevance of Arabic language to Islamic studies courses. The study found that most respondents agree on the importance of mastering the Arabic language in Islamic studies. [Abstract by authors

Historical development of the sunnah reform ideology in the state of Perlis Malaysia

Since the arrival of Islam in Tanah Melayu or Malaya, traditionalist scholars have dominated the Islamic discourse through their close relations with the rulers (Sultans). Their domination over the religious authorities and the Islamic educational institutions has shaped the state-version of Islam in Malaysia. However, in Perlis, the northernmost state in Malaysia, Middle-Eastern graduate reformists, also known as Kaum Muda were already preaching the earliest version of Salafism in the early 20th century. They found political patronage from the rulers of the state, hence, imposing their version of Islamic teachings as the prevailing Islamic discourse of the state, which is also known until today as the ‘Sunnah Perlis’ teachings. The widely presumptuous masses and researchers point that the dominating influence of the reform agenda or ‘Sunnah’ in the state of Perlis is due to the state authority’s patronage based on historical facts that the ‘Sunnah’ itself first emerged in Perlis in the early 20th century with the blessings of the ruler. This paper attempts to look at the historical development of the ‘Sunnah Perlis’ and to scrutinize the state authority’s patronage and influence in the state of Perlis. In order to achieve this, it employs a historical method of study to look at important milestones in the historical account of the Sunnah reform agenda in Perlis and its development at different periods hitherto through literatures, reports, interviews and focus group discussions

The learning styles amongst lifelong learners in Sekolah Pondok according to KOLB learning style inventory (KLSI) in Penang, Malaysia

Lifelong learning and experiential learning, two separate terms but relatively having the same meaning. The nature of the learners in lifelong learning is well received as enjoying the journey towards the pursuit of knowledge for both personal and professional purposes. Experiential learning involves experiences in the learning process supported by reflection. At OUM, most of the learners are working adults. Lifelong learning is well connected with experiential learning regarding the learning process. This study intends to observe the views of lifelong learners from the perspective of experiential learning by Kolb (2017). The study aims to determine the types of learning styles practiced by lifelong learners in Sekolah Pondok Sg. Bakap, Seberang Prai. The views from the lifelong learners in Sekolah Pondok Pondok Tuan Guru Haji Yusoff, Sg. Bakap, Seberang Prai are gathered and fit in the Nine Learning Styles of the Kolb Learning Style Inventory Version 4.0 (KLSI 4.0). Qualitative approaches are used by triangulation techniques to ensure that the information obtained is more accurate, valid and reliable, then measured through the determiners adapted from Kolb & Kolb (2017). The findings based on the qualitative data shows that the learning styles have fulfilled most of the KLSI, some of the evidence seems to be unique due to the nature of the programme. It enables us to understand the process of learning and their unique method of learning. By strengthening the realisation of how they learn will create insights on the level of metacognitive control of their learning process, hence will enable us to create the rubric as a guide in designing the lesson on online learning at OUM. (Abstract by authors

Entry Location and Entry Timing (ELET) Decision Model for International Construction Firms

This paper proposes a model for entry location (EL) and entry timing (ET) decisions to guide construction firms in accessing targeted international markets.  Neglecting to properly choose the right combination of the entry location and entry timing (ELET) decisions can lead to poor performance of the firms’ international ventures.  The sampling frame was from the Malaysian construction firms that have undertaken and completed projects abroad.  Survey questionnaires sent to 115 firms registered with Construction Industry Development Board (CIDB) Malaysia, operating in more than 50 countries, achieved a 39.1 per cent response rate. Based on a comprehensive statistical analysis of survey data it was found that the mutually inclusive significant factors that influenced the firms’ ELET decisions were: the firm’s ability to assess market signals and opportunities, international experience, financial capacity, competencies and capabilities (project management, specialist expertise and technology), resources (level of knowledge based on research and development), experience in similar works, financial support from the home country banks, technical complexities of projects and availability of funds for projects.  Hence, the present research builds on and extends the literature on the ELET decisions in a more integrated way. Keywords: Entry location, entry timing, resource-based view, international markets, Malaysian construction firms

Strategies for international market expansion: Strength, Weakness, Opportunity and Threat (SWOT) attributes of Malaysian construction firms / Che Maznah Mat Isa, Hamidah Mohd Saman and Christopher Nigel Preece

The competitive and saturated construction industry has led many domestic firms to expand internationally. Therefore, in today’s global industry, the construction firms must adopt a superior and an effective strategy to endure the increasing dynamics and uncertainties in the foreign markets. In the early stage of strategic planning, one of the basic but important steps is the need for firms to identify their strength, weakness, opportunity and threat (SWOT) attributes before they expand internationally. The aim of this study is to identify the important SWOT attributes to help the firms to manage and ease the inherent complexities and difficulties within international market domain. Survey questionnaires were sent to 115 Malaysian construction firms listed under Construction Industry Development Board Malaysia 2013 record resulted in 48.7 percent response rate. The relative importance index (RII) was used to rank the SWOT attributes. The findings revealed the following highest ranking of SWOT attributes: the ability to produce good quality products/services (strength), lack of research and development (weakness), mergers (opportunity), and policies, laws and regulations of host country (threat). The correlation analysis reveals a strong positive relationship between the opportunity and the threat attributes which indicates that the abundant opportunities are also accompanied by the inherent threats in the international markets. Thus, this study illustrates the identification of the most significant SWOT attributes related to the firms’ international operations. It is hoped that the findings would offer valuable information and practical guidance to construction firms in their preparatory works to internationalize

Development of OLI+S Entry Decision Model for Construction Firms in International Markets

The paper aims to provide a holistic approach to address how construction firms make decisions covering all three domains (location, timing and mode) across country, market, firm and project factors within the Ownership, Locational and Internalisation plus Specialty (OLI+S) paradigm. Questionnaires were administered to 62 project managers based on a sampling frame provided by the Construction Industry Development Board Malaysia. The findings provide empirical and theoretical insights on how the OLI+S model addresses firms’ entry decisions to penetrate international markets. It suggests that the ownership-entry decision factors focus on firms’ internal transferable advantages. The locational-entry decision factors emphasise attractiveness of certain locations where firms decided to invest and operate. The internalisation– entry decision factors emphasise the extent to which firms were able to manipulate their internal competitive assets (firm’s resources and capabilities). Finally, the specialty-entry decision factors emphasise on firms’ competency in project management and specialist expertise to handle complex projects based on their previous project experience. An example of construction firms’ unique characteristics, namely, specialty advantages based on the original Dunning’s OLI eclectic paradigm has been adopted. The established OLI+S entry decision model could be investigated to further refine other related internationalisation theory

Effectiveness of digital learning on students’ higher order thinking skills

In the realm of education, learning and instructional activities play a crucial role in cultivating lasting and meaningful comprehension among science students. This research aims to evaluate the effectiveness of the i-Genius module in enhancing students’ performance in science. The i-Genius module’s development adhered to the ADDIE model, and two specific research questions were formulated: i) is there a statistically significant difference in mean scores between the experimental and control groups? and ii) to what extent can i-Genius contribute to students’ conceptual evolution compared to traditional methods? To address these questions, a sequential mixed-method approach involving interviews, pre-tests, and post-tests was implemented in two distinct schools in the Seremban District. The experimental group comprised 35 participants, and the control group also included 35 students with similar characteristics. Student performance, assessed through pre-test and post-test mean scores, revealed that students exposed to i-Genius achieved significantly higher scores than those exposed to traditional methods in the post-test (t(68)=8.37, p<0.05). This study’s implications lie in its practical application within the school context, offering an alternative instructional tool for teaching science and presenting an instructional model to guide teachers in formulating strategies that encourage problem-posing within the science curriculum