Enriching Learners’ Learning Experiences through Virtual Learning Environments in Open University Malaysia

Open University Malaysia (OUM), the country’s premier open and distance learning institution has undergone continuous improvements since its establishment in 2000. This paper describes some of the initiatives designed by OUM to support these improvements. The paper provides an overview on the migration and implementation of a new e-learning model that have been executed and progressed since May 2010. This strategic move constitutes the development of web-based modules, e-schedules, i-lectures, online learning resources, online submission and grading of assignments. As do any implementation process of this magnitude, the progress so far came with constraining challenges. This paper further highlights these challenges, and concludes with OUM's provisions to overcome them. (Abstract by authors

Lifelong Learning Opportunities For Elderly In Malaysia: Present And Future (Extended abstract)

Population ageing is one of the current global challenges. The United Nations Population Division (released at the end of February 2002), among its conclusions, highlighted that by 2050 the trend towards an ever elder population will affect every continent, not only developed countries. For example, this division estimated that the proportion of elder population is more than double from 10 percent to 22 percent globally. In addition, the number of persons aged 60 years or over will triple in 45 years’ time, charting a rise from the 672 million in 2005 to more than 2 billion by 2050. The statistical data on the observed and forecasted percentages of the elder population in selected areas, regions, and countries of the world for 1950, 2000 and 2050 is shown in Figure 1. Although the ageing population is not growing as fast as in other neighbouring Asian countries, Malaysia cannot be shielded from having to face similar issues and challenges. According to the 2000 Census, by 2020, 9.5 percent of Malaysia’s population will be aged 60 or over, which would be roughly 3 million of its population (Gavrilov and Heuveline, 2003). Therefore, it is imperative that measures must be taken to ensure that the elderly will lead quality and productive lives either through formal, informal or non-formal lifelong learning. (Abstract by authors

The Effects of Pre-Instructional Support on ODL Learners in a Blended Learning Environment on the Learning of Mathematics

Open Distance Learners at Open University Malaysia (OUM) are generally mature working adults who have left school for a considerable number of years. They may not remember the basic foundations in mathematics that they have learnt in school. Furthermore, mathematics being generally perceived as a tough subject and quite unpopular makes studying it again difficult after so many years; and this can result in anxiety among most learners. This is apparent in the low GPA of students taking basic and introductory mathematics at OUM. With this in mind, a study was conducted to provide this OUM Online Distance Learners (ODL) initial support to better prepare them for further understanding of mathematics in their future course of study. A one-day workshop was conducted to provide pre-instructional support to selected OUM learners. The workshop which was attended by 22 students, focused on the following: basics of numbers, algebra, logarithms and exponents. A pre-test was administered at the beginning of the workshop, the contents were then taught and finally a post-test was administered towards the end of the workshop. Further, an analysis was carried out to assess the impact of pre-instructional support on the long-term enhancement of student knowledge, motivation and sustenance for the course. At the end of the semester, students’ results were analyzed and compared with results of those students who did not attend the workshop. In addition, comparison of results was also made between students who were under the workshop instructor (current tutor) and students under another tutor. Results obtained showed that the pre-instructional workshop has an impact on the students’ ability to understand and apply what was taught. There was a strong correlation between workshop participation and final exam score. Independent samples t-test conducted showed that there was a significant difference between the mean score of online discussion ratio and final examination between participants attached to a tutor conducting the workshop and extended coaching compared to participants attached to another tutor using the normal teaching guide

The Development of an Online Math Learning Resource and Support Center for ODL Learners

As an open and distance learning university and leading provider of flexible learning, Open University Malaysia (OUM) caters to its learners and strives to be learner-centered. There are continuous efforts to enrich the learning experiences of all its learners, whereby providing support to learners is one of them. OUM has been providing support in different capacities and in different areas, all with the aim of improving student retention. There has been a continuing concern with the success rate of learners enrolled in math courses at OUM. There may be several contributing factors including lack of preparedness and lack of basic math skills. There is clearly a need for providing additional support in that area to help learners improve their math skills and be better prepared, and in turn help increase their chances to succeed in their early math courses at OUM. Being an ODL institution, providing support online seems practical and by doing so OUM can reach out to its learners wherever they are and provide help whenever needed. This paper highlights the development of an online math learning centre to provide such support for independent study to OUM learners. (Authors' abstract

E-mathematics : pre-instructional and supplement instruction and their impact of student's online participation and final exam score

Open University Malaysia(OUM),Malaysia's first open and distance learning with over 70,000 students, offers more than 51 programsto-date. More than 90% of its students are working adults who are unable to leave their jobs or families behind to pursue their dream of getting a degree.The blended learning approach adoptedby OUM provides the flexibility for working adult's to obtain the required paper qualification and to upgrade their knowledge. One of the important elements of blended learning is the use of online discussion forum where learning takes place beyond classroom. Mathematics,a traditionally difficult course,forms part of thepre-requisite for students to obtaina business degree at OUM. The adult learners at OUM generally have left school for at least five years and most of them have low grades in Mathematics at O'Level. Thus it is a big challenge for these adult learners to undertake a Mathematics course via online with minimum Face-to-Face contact with their tutors. This paper focuses on the implementation of pro-instruction workshop and supplemental instruction to find its impact on student's online participation and exam results of 88 students. The contents of the online forum were also analyzed using a 34-item instrument derived from the Community of Inquiry model

E-MATHEMATICS: PRE-INSTRUCTIONAL AND SUPPLEMENT INSTRUCTION AND THEIR IMPACT OF STUDENT'S ONLINE PARTICIPATION AND FINAL EXAM SCORE

Open University Malaysia (OUM), Malaysia's first open and distance learning with over 70.000 students, offers more than 51 programs to-date. More than 90% of its students are working adults who are unable to leave their jobs or families behind to pursue their dream of getting a degree. The blended learning approach adopted by OUM provides the flexibility for working adult's to obtain the required paper qualification and to upgrade their knowledge. One of the important elements of blended learning is the use of online discussion forum where learning takes place beyond classroom. Mathematics, a traditionally difficult course, forms part of the prerequisite for students to obtain a business degree at OUM. The adult learners at OUM generally have left school for at least five years and most of them have low grades in Mathematics at O' Level. Thus it is a big challenge for these adult learners to undertake a Mathematics course via online with minimum Face-to-Face contact with their tutors. This paper focuses on the implementation of pro-instruction workshop and supplemental instruction to find its impact on student's online participation and exam results of 88 students. The contents of the online forum were also analyzed using a 34-item instrument derived from the Community of Inquiry model. Results obtained showed that there was a strong correlation between workshop participation and final exam score. Independent samples t-test conducted showed that there was a significant difference between the mean score of online discussion ratio and final examination between participants attached to a tutor conducting the workshop and extended coaching compared to participants attached to another tutor using the normal teaching guide. The means COI score obtained for mathematics between the two tutors indicated that there is a difference in the teaching and cognitive presence but almost similar in the social presence

Effects of hospital facilities on patient outcomes after cancer surgery: an international, prospective, observational study

© 2022 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an Open Access article under the CC BY 4.0 licenseBackground: Early death after cancer surgery is higher in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs) compared with in high-income countries, yet the impact of facility characteristics on early postoperative outcomes is unknown. The aim of this study was to examine the association between hospital infrastructure, resource availability, and processes on early outcomes after cancer surgery worldwide. Methods: A multimethods analysis was performed as part of the GlobalSurg 3 study—a multicentre, international, prospective cohort study of patients who had surgery for breast, colorectal, or gastric cancer. The primary outcomes were 30-day mortality and 30-day major complication rates. Potentially beneficial hospital facilities were identified by variable selection to select those associated with 30-day mortality. Adjusted outcomes were determined using generalised estimating equations to account for patient characteristics and country-income group, with population stratification by hospital. Findings: Between April 1, 2018, and April 23, 2019, facility-level data were collected for 9685 patients across 238 hospitals in 66 countries (91 hospitals in 20 high-income countries; 57 hospitals in 19 upper-middle-income countries; and 90 hospitals in 27 low-income to lower-middle-income countries). The availability of five hospital facilities was inversely associated with mortality: ultrasound, CT scanner, critical care unit, opioid analgesia, and oncologist. After adjustment for case-mix and country income group, hospitals with three or fewer of these facilities (62 hospitals, 1294 patients) had higher mortality compared with those with four or five (adjusted odds ratio [OR] 3·85 [95% CI 2·58–5·75]; p<0·0001), with excess mortality predominantly explained by a limited capacity to rescue following the development of major complications (63·0% vs 82·7%; OR 0·35 [0·23–0·53]; p<0·0001). Across LMICs, improvements in hospital facilities would prevent one to three deaths for every 100 patients undergoing surgery for cancer. Interpretation: Hospitals with higher levels of infrastructure and resources have better outcomes after cancer surgery, independent of country income. Without urgent strengthening of hospital infrastructure and resources, the reductions in cancer-associated mortality associated with improved access will not be realised. Funding: National Institute for Health and Care Research

Global variation in postoperative mortality and complications after cancer surgery: a multicentre, prospective cohort study in 82 countries

© 2021 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an Open Access article under the CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 licenseBackground: 80% of individuals with cancer will require a surgical procedure, yet little comparative data exist on early outcomes in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs). We compared postoperative outcomes in breast, colorectal, and gastric cancer surgery in hospitals worldwide, focusing on the effect of disease stage and complications on postoperative mortality. Methods: This was a multicentre, international prospective cohort study of consecutive adult patients undergoing surgery for primary breast, colorectal, or gastric cancer requiring a skin incision done under general or neuraxial anaesthesia. The primary outcome was death or major complication within 30 days of surgery. Multilevel logistic regression determined relationships within three-level nested models of patients within hospitals and countries. Hospital-level infrastructure effects were explored with three-way mediation analyses. This study was registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT03471494. Findings: Between April 1, 2018, and Jan 31, 2019, we enrolled 15 958 patients from 428 hospitals in 82 countries (high income 9106 patients, 31 countries; upper-middle income 2721 patients, 23 countries; or lower-middle income 4131 patients, 28 countries). Patients in LMICs presented with more advanced disease compared with patients in high-income countries. 30-day mortality was higher for gastric cancer in low-income or lower-middle-income countries (adjusted odds ratio 3·72, 95% CI 1·70–8·16) and for colorectal cancer in low-income or lower-middle-income countries (4·59, 2·39–8·80) and upper-middle-income countries (2·06, 1·11–3·83). No difference in 30-day mortality was seen in breast cancer. The proportion of patients who died after a major complication was greatest in low-income or lower-middle-income countries (6·15, 3·26–11·59) and upper-middle-income countries (3·89, 2·08–7·29). Postoperative death after complications was partly explained by patient factors (60%) and partly by hospital or country (40%). The absence of consistently available postoperative care facilities was associated with seven to 10 more deaths per 100 major complications in LMICs. Cancer stage alone explained little of the early variation in mortality or postoperative complications. Interpretation: Higher levels of mortality after cancer surgery in LMICs was not fully explained by later presentation of disease. The capacity to rescue patients from surgical complications is a tangible opportunity for meaningful intervention. Early death after cancer surgery might be reduced by policies focusing on strengthening perioperative care systems to detect and intervene in common complications. Funding: National Institute for Health Research Global Health Research Unit