Technology adoption in Malaysian schools: An analysis of national ICT in education policy initiatives

Educational change, particularly change involving the adoption of educational innovations, is a complex process. In Malaysia, the significant role of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in promoting digital education is reflected in the national ICT in education policy. Nevertheless, studies in the Malaysian educational context have shown that the policy implementation resulted in varying degrees of success. Through a discourse analysis approach, this paper aims to examine the evaluation studies on large scale initiatives introduced to digitize the Malaysian education system, from the Smart Schools programme to the incorporation of the Frog Virtual Learning Environment in classroom. The rationale behind these top-down initiatives and how they affected the stakeholders at the micro level, namely, teachers and students, are reviewed and analysed. The analysis informs our understanding of the factors that contribute to the successful and unsuccessful implementation of these initiatives and guide the planning of future policies.Educational change, particularly change involving the adoption of educational innovations, is a complex process. In Malaysia, the significant role of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in promoting digital education is reflected in the national ICT in education policy. Nevertheless, studies in the Malaysian educational context have shown that the policy implementation resulted in varying degrees of success. Through a discourse analysis approach, this paper aims to examine the evaluation studies on large scale initiatives introduced to digitize the Malaysian education system, from the Smart Schools programme to the incorporation of the Frog Virtual Learning Environment in classroom. The rationale behind these top-down initiatives and how they affected the stakeholders at the micro level, namely, teachers and students, are reviewed and analysed. The analysis informs our understanding of the factors that contribute to the successful and unsuccessful implementation of these initiatives and guide the planning of future policies

PROSESI PANGGIH PADA UPACARA PERKAWINAN ADAT JAWA TENGAH DALAM TINJAUAN SEMIOTIK TADEUSZ KOWZAN

Tujuan yang dicapai dalam penelitian ini adalah mendeskripsikan tata cara dan makna Prosesi Panggih pada Upacara Perkawinan Adat Jawa Tengah. Digunakan kajian semiotik teater berdasarkan perspektif Tadeusz Kowzan untuk mengetahui tata cara dan makna Prosesi Panggih pada Upacara Perkawinan Adat Jawa Tengah. Berdasarkan penelitian, dapat dikemukakan beberapa hal, yaitu upacara perkawinan adat Jawa Tengah terdiri atas 3 jenis, yaitu 1) Prosesi Panggih, 2) Prosesi Krobongan, dan 3) Upacara Sabda. Prosesi Panggih terdiri atas 3 tahapan, yaitu 1) balangan gantal (berbalangan sirih), 2) mrepeg ponang antigan (memecah telur), dan 3) wijikan (membasuh kaki laki-laki). Balangan gantal diartikan sebagai lambang bahwa dalam mengarungi bahtera rumah tangga penuh dengan suka-duka harus dirasakan bersama. Selanjutnya, mrepeg ponang antigan mengandung makna harapan bahwa pengantin berdua harus sudah siap untuk berfikir mandiri (pecah nalar atau pecah pikir). Sementara itu, wijikan yang berisikan bunga pancawarna dan air yang diambil dari kali tempur mengandung makna bahwa kesucian jiwa pengantin berdua.Kata kunci: makna semiotis Prosesi Panggih, semiotika teater Kowza

Analisis Eksternal dan Internal dalam Menentukan Non Performing Financing Bank Umum Syariah di Indonesia

This study aims to examine and analyze the Non Performing Financing of Sharia Banks in Indonesia. Thisresearch is important to do because of bad credit has a very high fluctuation. As for some of the factorsanalyzed in the influence of Non Performing Financing is: Gross Domestic Product, Inflation, Exchange Rates,policy type of financing Islamic banks as well as the allocation ratio murabaha receivables rather than theallocation of profit loss sharing financing (RF).The population in this study were all Islamic Banks in Indonesia.The sampling technique used was purposive sampling, which is a sampling method based on multiple criteria,namely: a). Islamic Banks which publish quarterly financial statements during the period 2005-2011. b). IslamicCommercial Bank which has a complete data based on the variables studied. Data analysis methods used in thisstudy is an analysis of Multiple Linear Regression. These results indicated that the growth of real GDP and theexchange rate of rupiah against the dollar had a positive impact on the Non-Performing Financing but notsignificant; inflation has a negative impact to Non Performing Financing and significant; profit and loss sharingratio of return on total return of financing (RR ) has a negative effect on the Non-Performing Financing, but notsignificant. Murabaha financing allocation ratio to the allocation of profit loss sharing financing and asignificant negative effect on Non Performing Financing

THE INSPIRATION OF CORPORATE INTERNET REPORTING: THE PERSPECTIVE OF MALAYSIAN CORPORATIONS

Corporate Internet Reporting (CIR) is the communication process between corporations and stakeholders via the Internet medium.  The use of CIR by corporations is considered as a precondition for success, as it offers the facility to provide stakeholders with information to make well-informed and timely investment decisions.  This study examines the reasons that motivate Malaysian listed corporations to practice CIR.  The study was conducted on 310 publicly listed Malaysian corporations across eleven various economic sectors.  In gathering the data, a questionnaire survey was distributed to the preparers of CIR who are represented by the chief financial officers, accountants, finance managers or investor relations managers of the companies.  The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and the independent sample t-test.  The results revealed that corporations’ acceptance of CIR as a norm in today’s business world was the most important reason to inspire companies to practice CIR.  In addition, the timeliness, high quality, downloadable and processable format of information presented, the aspiration of companies to be in line with technological developments, increased demand for CIR by stakeholders and the ability of CIR to reach a broader range of stakeholders in disseminating corporate information were other important reasons that inspired Malaysian corporations to practice CIR.  On the other hand, the study found competitive pressure and directors’ desire as trivial reasons in inspiring companies to practice CIR. Finally, the study contributes to the knowledge pertaining to CIR in Malaysia and might be useful as a reference for other developing countries in clarifying the nature of financial reporting problems. Keywords:  Corporate Internet Reporting, inspiration, Malaysian corporations

THE INSPIRATION OF CORPORATE INTERNET REPORTING: THE PERSPECTIVE OF MALAYSIAN CORPORATIONS

Corporate Internet Reporting (CIR) is the communication process between corporations and stakeholders via the Internet medium.  The use of CIR by corporations is considered as a precondition for success, as it offers the facility to provide stakeholders with information to make well-informed and timely investment decisions.  This study examines the reasons that motivate Malaysian listed corporations to practice CIR.  The study was conducted on 310 publicly listed Malaysian corporations across eleven various economic sectors.  In gathering the data, a questionnaire survey was distributed to the preparers of CIR who are represented by the chief financial officers, accountants, finance managers or investor relations managers of the companies.  The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and the independent sample t-test.  The results revealed that corporations’ acceptance of CIR as a norm in today’s business world was the most important reason to inspire companies to practice CIR.  In addition, the timeliness, high quality, downloadable and processable format of information presented, the aspiration of companies to be in line with technological developments, increased demand for CIR by stakeholders and the ability of CIR to reach a broader range of stakeholders in disseminating corporate information were other important reasons that inspired Malaysian corporations to practice CIR.  On the other hand, the study found competitive pressure and directors’ desire as trivial reasons in inspiring companies to practice CIR. Finally, the study contributes to the knowledge pertaining to CIR in Malaysia and might be useful as a reference for other developing countries in clarifying the nature of financial reporting problems. Keywords:  Corporate Internet Reporting, inspiration, Malaysian corporations

Efektivitas penggunaan Permainan Bola Bertanya untuk Meningkatkan kemampuan Menulis dalam Pembelajaran Bahasa Arab Siswi di Madrasah Tsanawiyah Diniyah Puteri Pekanbaru.

ABSTRAK Siti Zaidah Rukmana Hsb, (2021) : Efektivitas penggunaan Permainan Bola Bertanya untuk Meningkatkan kemampuan Menulis dalam Pembelajaran Bahasa Arab Siswi di Madrasah Tsanawiyah Diniyah Puteri Pekanbaru. Penelitian ini adalah penelitian eksperimen yang bertujuan untuk mengetahui Efektivitas penggunaan permainan bola bertanya untuk meningkatkan kemampuan menulis dalam pembelajaran bahasa Arab siswi di Madrasah Tsanawiyah Diniyah Puteri Pekanbaru. Rumusan permasalahan dalam penelitian ini adalah “Apakah penggunaan permainan bola bertanya efektif untuk meningkatkan kemampuan menulis siswi di Madrasah Tsanawiyah Diniyah Puteri Pekanbaru?”. Penelitian ini dimulai dari merancang langkah pembelajaran, pelaksanaan, observasi, kemudian test. Populasi penelitian adalah siswi Madrasah Tsanawiyah Diniyah Putri Pekanbaru tahun ajaran 2020/2021, dengan sampel siswi kelas I A dan I B Madrasah Tsanawiyah Diniyah Puteri Pekanbaru. Subjek penelitian adalah siswi dan guru Bahasa Arab Madrasah Tsanawiyah Diniyah Puteri Pekanbaru. Instrument yang digunakan untuk mengumpulkan data dalam penelitian ini terdiri dari observasi dan test. Dari analisis data yang diperoleh, dapat disimpulkan bahwa Efektifitas Penggunaan Permainan Bola Bertanya efektif untuk meningkatkan kemampuan menulis dalam Pembelajaran Bahasa Arab siswi di Madrasah Tsanawiyah Diniyah Puteri Pekanbaru. Karena nilai To = 9.19 lebih besar dari Tt pada taraf signifikansi 1% = 2.72 dan taraf signifikansi 5% = 2.02. ini berarti bahwa Ho ditolak dan Ha diterima. Dengan kata lain Efektifitas penggunaan permainan bola bertanya efektif untuk meningkatkan kemampuan menulis dalam pembelajaran Bahasa Arab Siswi di Madrasah Tsanawiyah Diniyah Puteri Pekanbaru. Kata Kunci : Efektivitas, Permainan Bola Bertanya, Kemampuan Menuli

Factors influencing the choice of private medical centre among Malaysians

With better education, knowledge and income, people today are able to choose the medical services that will satisfy them the most. The purpose of this study is to examine the factors influencing consumers in choosing a Private Medical Centre. In this study, five factors were used and these included waiting time, environment, reputation of consultant, facilities and cost. These factors had been used to see whether they influenced the choice for private medical centre among Malaysians. Data were collected through a questionnaire survey that involved customers of private medical centre in Serdang, Kajang, and Puchong. Convenience sampling technique was used to distribute 155 questionnaires. The results showed that there was a significant relationship between environment, facilities, and cost, with the choice of Private Medical Centre among Malaysians. Based on the results, it is suggested that the management of Private Medical Centre should focus on providing the best services to their customers to ensure they get the greatest satisfaction

Recasts, prompts and noticing: A comparative study

Noticing has been regarded as an important theoretical construct in the mechanism of how corrective feedback (CF) facilitates second language acquisition. However, to date, only a paucity of CF research has examined noticing triggered by different types of CF (i.e., recasts vs. prompts). The study is intended to fill in the gap by examining the relationships between type of CF and level of noticing. To that end, 105 Malaysian ESL learners were asked to perform four communicative tasks during which recasts and prompts were provided contingent upon the encounter of past tense errors.  To assess noticing, the study has employed a triangulated method using multiple elicitation procedures including diary writing, stimulated recall, and exit questionnaire. The results of the study revealed that both recasts and prompts were able to induce noticing the corrective intent, noticing the target of CF or form, noticing the gap, and noticing the rule. However, contrary to what was expected, recasts were able to promote higher levels of noticing across all noticing categories. Moreover, the greatest difference between recasts and prompts was found in noticing the gap. The study suggests that CF that provides exemplars of the target linguistic feature may promote higher levels of noticing the gap which may, in turn, increase the effectiveness of CF in L2 acquisition.

Cross-Cultural Adaptation of Darmasiswa International Students in Central Java Indonesia

The research probed the cross-cultural adaptation of international students who participated in the Darmasiswa program in Indonesia. They have various cultural backgrounds; they lived in Java and interacted with Javanese cultures. The Darmasiswa students’ varied experiences brought particular attention to their competence to adapt to a host country. This study aims to discover how Darmasiswa students overcome the assimilation process, embrace the psychological elements of intercultural communication, and how they handle the adaptation process. It also seeks to discover the efforts to make this program successful and recognise how the participants deal with the challenges of adapting to the local culture. This study used a descriptive qualitative method and employed an in-depth interview to approach the research participants. The participants came from Myanmar, Japan, Singapore, India, Hungaria, Timor Leste, and Thailand. They joined the Darmasiswa program in 2019 to study and learn bahasa Indonesia, the arts, and the cultures. They studied at four universities in Semarang for one year in Central Java Province, Indonesia. Findings showed that the Darmasiswa students’ adaptation and interaction processes were varied. The culture shock experienced by the students were influenced by their family value from their home countries. Internal and external factors played an essential role in influencing the success of the Darmasiswa students’ adaptation. The factors include; communication system, symbolic interaction, social life, personal mindset, the host society's motivation, and the Darmasiswa students’ involvement with the host country’s cultural activities. Those factors affected the students' adaptation levels and learning achievement in the program

Corporate internet reporting within Malaysian economic sectors

Corporate Internet Reporting (CIR) is the communication process between corporation and stakeholders via the Internet medium. The Malaysian economy in 2015 was ranked 14th in the world and 5th in countries with a population exceeding 20 million, is one of the most competitive countries in the world. The use of CIR by Malaysian corporations in diverse economic sectors is considered as a precondition for success. This study looks into the elements of CIR practice by 310 publicly listed Malaysian corporations across various economic sectors. In addition, the influence drivers for CIR practiced by the corporations has also been examined. In measuring the level of CIR in use, this study has developed a CIR index with 41 attributes. Data was gathered for a period of three months and analysed using descriptive statistics and multiple regression method. The results revealed that the level of CIR practiced by Malaysian corporations varies across economic sectors, with certain sectors dominating the level of practice in specific CIR categories. Size, profitability and economic sector are significant in determining the CIR practice of corporations. Finally, the study contributes to the knowledge pertaining to CIR in Malaysia as it examines the actual level of CIR practiced by corporations in various economic sectors