How Canadian and Chinese High School Students Access and Use ICT: An Exploratory Study

This paper reports the findings of an exploratory study that examined two secondary schools: one from a big city in eastern China and the other from a middle-sized city in eastern Canada. Data were collected using a paper-based survey questionnaire that included multiplechoice, open-ended, and scaled questions. Responses indicate that ownership and access to ICT devices were quite similar between Canadian and Chinese participants, but the learning and use of ICT between the two groups of participants differed due to various reasons. Results seemed the Chinese participants relied more on classroom learning, and teachers of the Chinese participants did not integrate much use of ICT outside of the classroom. The findings of this paper support the literature about ICT integrated teaching that indicates the need for Chinese educators to make more efforts in making full use of available ICT for teaching and learning purposes when ICT access becomes a less critical issue

A Study of the First Year International Students at a Canadian University: Challenges and Experiences with Social Integration

An increasing number of international students come to Canada for their higher education. As a unique group on Canadian campuses, international students deserve our attention so that we can understand their special needs. Using Tinto’s retention model as a theoretical framework, this study investigates the experiences of the first year international students at a Canadian university. It pays special attention to the challenges these students face in the process of their social integration into the new learning and living environment. Data were collected through surveys and focus groups. Data analysis reveals a comprehensive picture of international students’ socialization patterns and challenges. Since student retention has been a central concern for many universities, the findings of this study are informative for higher education institutions to optimize their services to meet international students’ preferences and needs

Understanding Chinese International Students at a Canadian University: Perspectives, Expectations, and Experiences

The objective of this study was to understand perspectives, expectations, and experiences of Chinese international students studying in the graduate and undergraduate programs at a Canadian university, paying special attention to the challenges these students faced in the process of acculturation. Multiple data gathering techniques were used for the quantitative and qualitative data, including a survey questionnaire, individual interviews and focus group discussions. Findings related to the participants’ adjustment to the new environment include English language proficiency, previous education background, communication with other students, and understanding of the local culture. The study found that participants experienced various challenges in their new learning and living environment and some recommendations are offered for improvements. L’objectif principal de cette étude est de comprendre les perspectives, les attentes et les différentes expériences des étudiants internationaux chinois de deuxième et de troisième cycles dans des programmes canadiens. L’article décrit également avec beaucoup de détail les défis que ces étudiants doivent relever lors du processus d’acculturation. Plusieurs techniques de collection de données quantitatives et qualitatives ont été appliquées dont un questionnaire, des interviews individuels et des discussions en groupe. Les résultats en rapport avec l’adaptation des participants au nouvel environnement incluent la compétence langagière en anglais, la formation antérieure et la compréhension de la culture locale. L’étude exposera plusieurs défis auxquels ont dû faire face les participants pour pouvoir s’adapter aux nouveaux environnements et quelques recommandations seront offertes pour faciliter ce processus

A Review of What Instructional Designers Do: Questions Answered and Questions Not Asked

The purpose of this literature review was to determine what evidence there is that instructional designers apply ID Models, as well as to establish what other activities and processes they might use in their professional activities. Only ten articles were located that directly pertained to this topic: seven reporting on empirical research and three case descriptions recounting development experiences. All ten papers pertained to process-based ID models. Results showed that, while instructional designers apparently do make use of process-based ID models, they do not spend the majority of their time working with them nor do they follow them in a rigid fashion. They also engage in a wide variety of other tasks that are not reflected in ID models

Student Achievement in Online Distance Education Compared to Face-to-Face Education

A meta-analysis was conducted to synthesize existing research published between 1995 and 2004 comparing student achievement in online distance education (ODE) and face-to-face education (F2FE) at the post-secondary level. The purpose of this study was to investigate how the development of technology contributed to student achievement in ODE within the last ten years. The result of comparing overall weighted mean effect size of student achievement showed no significant difference between the two settings (d =.023, k = 20, N = 1617, p = 0.640). However, the student achievement comparison revealed an interesting result when the primary studies were categorized by whether the experimental study conducted a pre-test or not. In the pre-tested group of studies, student achievement in ODE was significantly higher than F2FE (d = 0.211, k = 9, N = 631, p < 0.05) even though there was no difference for prior knowledge between ODE and F2FE (d = 0.0813, k=9, N=631, p>0.05). On the other hand, student achievement from the no pre-test group of studies resulted in no significant difference between the two settings (d =-0.106, k = 11, N = 986, p> 0.05). Discussion and suggestion for further studies are provided focusing on methodological weakness of primary studies and differences of teaching and learning in ODE and F2FE

Chinese Immigrant Parents’ Communication with School Teachers

Parent-teacher communication has great influence on children’s school performance. Using Walker et al.’s model of parent involvement as a theoretical framework, this study investigated Chinese immigrant parents’ communication experience with teachers and the psychological factors that influenced such communication. The study collected data through survey and revealed that Chinese immigrant parents recognized their responsibility to maintain regular communication with school teachers and believed that such communication could bring beneficial outcomes to their children’s education. The study found that Chinese immigrant parents had more frequent communication with teachers than those recorded in previous literatures. Among the five psychological factors, communication self-efficacy seems to have the strongest relation with parents’ communication behaviors

Plagiarism Issue for International Students: What Can Information Literacy Do?

While digital technologies provide increasing opportunities to enhance teaching, learning and research, academic institutions have to make more efforts to deal with issues such as plagiarism, especially among international students, because of their “cultural, educational, and linguistic hurdles” (Amsberry, 2009, p. 32) that keep them from a proper understanding of the academic integrity and plagiarism guidelines. Many universities take a legal approach to addressing plagiarism, which is one aspect, but a “holistic” approach can help implement “sustainable reform in university plagiarism management” (Sutherland-Smith, 2010, p. 13). One important purpose of information literacy education is to help students understand what plagiarism is, and how to avoid it. Relevant literature has documented various solutions, including collaborative work between instructors and librarians, workshops organized by libraries, a required topic in research methods course, etc. Online tutorials is frequently mentioned as a useful tool because students who engage in online plagiarism tutorials are “better able to recognise cases of plagiarism” (Risquez, O’Dwyer & Ludwith, 2011, p. 760). Jackson (2005) suggests that international students would benefit from online tutorials and web pages specifically designed for them (p. 206). However, as “those who may have the greatest need for such tutorials may be reluctant to participate” (Risquez et al., 2011, p. 760), it may be more beneficial to integrate anti-plagiarism instruction into the information literacy curriculum (Lampert, 2004). Based on an extensive review of relevant literature and the author’s experience, this presentation tends to discuss information literacy, plagiarism, and international students

Peer learning for university students’ learning enrichment: Perspectives of undergraduate students

Peer learning, which is supported by learning theories such as Behaviourism, Cognitivism, Social Constructivism, and Connectivism, is increasingly gaining the attention of researchers and practitioners with an emphasis on student-centered learning in educational settings. A review of relevant literature indicates that higher education institutions employ a variety of peer learning programs that potentially benefit both those who receive help and also those who provide help among peers. This study was designed to find out what peer learning programs are available at the University of Windsor, Canada, where the authors teach; how they are operated; and how undergraduate students from different academic programs at this university perceive such programs. Based on the findings, recommendations are made for faculty members as well as student service units to implement various types of peer learning so as to provide students with the best possible learning experience