Formal Learning Contexts Research Articles

The effectiveness of refutation text in confronting scientific misconceptions: A meta-analysis

Misinformation around scientific issues is rampant on social media platforms, raising concerns among educators and science communicators. A variety of approaches have been explored to confront this growing threat to science literacy. For example, refutations have been used both proactively as warning labels and in attempts to inoculate against misconceptions, and retroactively to debunk misconceptions and rebut science denialism. Refutations have been used by policy makers and scientists when communicating with the general public, yet little is known about their effectiveness or consequences. Given the interest in refutational approaches, we conducted a comprehensive, pre-registered meta-analysis comparing the effect of refutation texts to non-refutation texts on individuals’ misconceptions about scientific information. We selected 71 articles (53 published and 18 unpublished) that described 76 studies, 111 samples, and 294 effect sizes. We also examined 26 moderators. Overall, our findings show a consistent and statistically significant advantage of refutation texts over non-refutation texts in controlled experiments confronting scientific misconceptions. We also found that moderators neither enhanced nor diminished the impact of the refutation texts. We discuss the implications of using refutations in formal and informal science learning contexts and in science communications from three theoretical perspectives.

Accessibility, Usability, and Universal Design for Learning: Discussion of Three Key LX/UX Elements for Inclusive Learning Design

In this paper, we aim to provide readers with three critical concepts that can maximize inclusivity of learner experience (LX) and user experience (UX) design: accessibility, usability, and universal design for learning (UDL). Although recent K-12 and postsecondary education have experienced rapid change in its student population with the growing awareness of the equal opportunities for all, general design methods of addressing such diversity across formal and informal learning contexts are still prone to retrofitted changes to predefined instructions in favor of standardization. This is due in part to the limited interpretation of accessibility as the concept for the medical model of disabilities where learners with disabilities are not regarded as users or consumers, but as clients or patients. Moreover, LX and UX have been widely designed with the usability of dominant group in mind while trading off exclusion of those who cannot fit themselves into it. However, accessibility and usability are not mutually exclusive; rather, a truly inclusive learning design (i.e. UDL) comes from the interplay between them. Through the paper, we provide definition and description of each concept and provide practical examples of how UDL principles can be applied to inclusive learning design.

Exploring One Colombian Adolescent’s Diverse Literacies in his Rural Community

A deficit view of rural language learners’ out-of-school literacy practices has permeated formal educational and language policy globally. Intergovernmental organizations like the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, for instance, have often portrayed rural learners in Global South countries as having literacy deficits if their language skills are not in alignment with the practices valued in school contexts. These deficit representations are often instrumentalized as a tactic to oppress and exclude rural students’ literacies and language traditions from educational policy and curricula. Throughout this article, the authors – both language educators researching young people’s diverse literacy practices – aim to address and combat such problematic omissions. Following a sociocultural, multiliteracies framework, we analyzed two semi-structured interviews and accompanying artifacts to feature the literacies that a 14-year-old rural Colombian youth engages with daily. Results illuminate the myriad language practices honed outside of formal learning contexts, including family-based literacies, oral and embodied forms of communication, analyzing and composing with multimodal texts, and developing critical skills with digital texts to question national power relations and forge activist identities. The authors discussed the benefits of an expanded view of literacy – particularly for educators – in hopes of contributing to equity-based research advocating the recognition and inclusion of rural students’ vernacular literacies across formal learning spaces.

ELEMENTS WITHOUT PRIOR INSTRUCTION (EWPI), A NEW CATEGORY FOR ANALYSING SECOND LANGUAGE ACQUISITION: A PANORAMIC REVIEW OF ERROR ANALYSIS

This article presents a panoramic review of Error Analysis and Interlanguage studies, with the aim of reflecting on the need to include a new taxonomic category in said research. If formal second language teaching is an important factor in learning, there is no doubt that research on students' interlanguage should reflect this importance. This can be formulated through an operational category in formal learning contexts that allows the student's data to be classified, depending on whether the element of analysis has been previously instructed or not. This category gives great importance to the entire production and opens new paths in the dialogue with the influence of non-formal learning and with the positive impact of related languages, regardless of whether it is the mother tongue. It also highlights the importance of observing, quantifying and describing linguistic phenomena that are not necessarily produced in large absolute numbers, but that might still be relevant to explain the evolution of second language acquisition.

Creating Spaces of Engagement: Exploring High School Youth’s Voices in Reshaping the Social Justice Curriculum

The current structure of formal education makes it difficult for teachers and students to hold meaningful conversations to support high-school youth’s meaning-making of critical social-justice issues. This paper presents data on three high-school youth’s knowledge and experiences with social justice issues during the pandemic. Specifically, the paper aims to explore how youth construct knowledge and counter dominant discourses through utilizing informal learning spaces, such as social media platforms, peer and family conversations, as well as personal encounters. In addition, and more importantly, an exploration of how formal education can incorporate social-justice issues into the curriculum is considered. The analysis of these high school youth’s interview conversations presents their diverging needs to learn about social-justice topics in both formal and informal learning contexts. The data also illustrates the power of their voices in a way that could inform future curriculum development. Discussions and implications highlight the possibility of creating such ethical spaces in formal education to engage in social-justice topics.

Health Literacy, Migration Traumas, Narrative Medicine and the Language Desk. New practices in translingualism and educational processes

Health literacy (HL) is a complex field encompassing a range of public health education and communication activities that are crucial for interacting with the health care system. In a sustainable world, future healthcare must be accessible to all, and we must ensure that people from migrant backgrounds have got the resources to manage their health. Inequalities in immigrants’ health profiles, a sign of ineffective integration policies, could be mitigated by improving HL levels. The aim of the study was to investigate the space given to HL within formal immigrant learning contexts; the study featured a questionnaire that was intended as a probe into some specific needs and discomforts connected with the condition of translingualism and with the related trauma, which may have a negative impact on language learning. Such interweaving offers a different perspective that generates new teaching practices and the creation of a Language Desk that through language, health literacy and narrative medicine promotes equitable, safe and sustainable learning contexts that enhance the experience of translingualism in all its forms.

THE ROLE OF DRAMATIC PADAGOGY IN DEVELOPING TRANSVERSAL COMPETENCE ON STUDENTS

The old didactic theatre must be replaced by, let us say, pedagogical.” (Augusto Boal). Lifelong learning education can be ensured also with the dramatic pedagogy learning curricula due to the specific of student’s competences that can be improved and valued in formal and nonformal learning on promoting skills, attitudes a key-competences, social and positive values. The key-competences frame has a transversality characteristic but the most important is to identify the life key-competences you need to ensure, along with the selected methods used to achieve them. In this study we propose dramatic pedagogy methods to develop the acquisition of knowledges and skills of students and also to highlight their benefits thru drama teaching. The impact dramatization curricula in formal learning context encourages all students to participate to activities using their creativity or to express their personalities in solving problems, to express their imagination and most off all to be authentic. All teachers can use on their learning context planning such as dramatization, as a significant element of their teaching according with the used drama methods. Dramatization as an art form involves cohesion and mutual cooperation between students and teachers. It encourages students to think positively about themselves, to learn and believe in their own growing abilities. Dramatization as an educational method, through integrated approaches of learning contributes permanently to adapt and to design curriculum for students need of learning and to increases the perspective of expansion knowledges outside the curriculum, to free movement and to research on the worldwide science.

The effect of settings, educational level and tools on computer‐assisted pronunciation training: A meta‐analysis

AbstractBackground studyComputer‐assisted pronunciation training (CAPT) has emerged as an important resource for second language (L2) pronunciation learning. CAPT offers diverse opportunities for learners to master L2 pronunciation with the help of authentic learning activities in multiple contexts.ObjectivesThis study presents a comprehensive overview to examine the overall effect of using a computer in learning pronunciation in multiple settings and diverse educational levels with the assistance of different tools.MethodsThe meta‐analysis consisted of 31 primary studies that reported results obtained from experimental vs. control group designs. These studies reported 42 effect sizes in the results.ResultsThe findings of the meta‐analysis indicated that using CAPT in learning pronunciation had an overall medium effect size. Similarly, the results showed that using CAPT inside the classrooms had a large effect size. The results also showed that CAPT had a large effect size when used in schools and other formal learning contexts, such as language institutes. CAPT had a medium effect when it was used in universities. The results also showed that using videos for learning pronunciation had a large effect size while other tools had a medium effect size.ConclusionsThe study findings contribute to understanding the overall effect of CAPT and offer implications for educators and practitioners involved in designing effective instructional strategies for enhancing L2 pronunciation skills.

Role of the School Library in Supporting the Teaching and Learning Process and Student Literacy at SDN Sawojajar 1

Background: A school library is a library established by each school where the library has an important role in the student teaching and learning process.
 Purpose: This research aims to determine what efforts the Library at SDN Sawojajar 1 made to support the teaching and learning process and student literacy.
 Design and methods: This research uses a descriptive qualitative approach. The data collection techniques used were observation, interviews, and documentation.
 Results: The results of the research show that the efforts made by the SDN Sawojajar 1 Library, which plays a role in supporting the teaching and learning process and literacy, are by providing various kinds of collections, implementing the Steel Corner program, implementing the literacy movement (GLS) program, and making library visits mandatory. The policy of providing a collection of textbooks, applicable books, and references helps meet students' needs in understanding the school curriculum. It stimulates interest in reading outside the context of formal learning. The Reading Corner Program provides opportunities for students to read books according to their interests. In contrast, the Literacy Movement (GLS) provides a holistic approach by integrating audio-visual media to improve student literacy. With the various efforts made by the library, it is hoped that it can become a dynamic and effective learning center in supporting the teaching and learning process and increasing student literacy at SDN Sawojajar 1.

The moderating effect of multilingualism on the relationship between EFL learners’ grit, enjoyment, and literacy achievement

Aims and Objectives/Purpose/Research Questions: The study investigated the relationship between the L2 grit, domain-general grit, foreign language enjoyment (FLE), multilingualism, and self-reported literacy achievement of students learning English as a foreign language (EFL) in public upper-secondary schools in Norway. Specifically, the study sought to identify predictors of students’ EFL reading and writing achievement and examine the moderating effect of multilingualism on the relationship between L2 grit, FLE, and such achievement. Design/Methodology/Approach: A quantitative research design was employed, and data were collected through an online questionnaire. Convenience sampling was used to recruit 181 upper-secondary school students learning EFL in southeastern Norway (one participant’s responses were discarded because they were incomplete). Data and Analysis: Paired and independent sample t-tests and moderated multiple regression were used to analyse the collected data. Findings/Conclusions: The study found that the perseverance component of L2 grit and daily language use (one of two aspects of multilingualism used in the study) positively predicted both reading and writing achievement (the consistency of interest component of L2 grit only positively predicted writing achievement). In addition, daily language use was found to negatively moderate the relationship between the perseverance component of L2 grit and reading and writing achievement, with the moderating effect dissipating as additional languages were used daily. Originality: The study is among the first to explore the interplay between grit and multilingualism in the Nordic region and examine the relationship between multilingualism, grit, FLE, and achievement globally. Significance/Implications: The study’s findings underscore the need for researchers to develop and use more comprehensive multidimensional measures of multilingualism when investigating its effects on language learning in formal contexts, design scales for grit that target specific language skills, and broaden grit-related research to cover the learning of multiple language and non-language subjects concurrently.

Internet usage and learning opportunities: A case study with secondary school students in La Araucanía, Chile

This study seeks to contribute to the understanding of learning shaped by the Internet, considering the affordances for secondary students. A case study was conducted with eight 15- and 16-year-old students from the Region of Araucanía, south of Chile, using a digital log and individual semi-structured interviews, before and during the pandemic. Through a thematic analysis of students’ narratives, it was found that in formal learning contexts, students utilized the Internet to complete homework assignments and projects, understand academic content through multimedia resources, and communicate synchronously and asynchronously with peers and teachers, overcoming challenges in Internet access, particularly in rural areas. In informal learning contexts, students acquired new content and developed skills aligned with personal interests, benefiting those from low socio-economic backgrounds or rural settings. While these affordances existed before the pandemic, they became more evident and frequent during it, showcasing opportunities to leverage the Internet for learning and teaching. Future research should also explore how teachers are adapting their pedagogical approaches in response to the integration of the Internet into students’ learning environments.

Productive Word Knowledge Development and Its Relation to Informal Contact with English through Various Leisure Activities

Much of the previous research that has provided evidence for the relationship between engagement in out-of-class activities and vocabulary outcomes has focused on receptive word gains. However, little research has attempted to explore this relationship with productive word knowledge. Additionally, the contribution of various gaming genres to the relationship is particularly underexplored. The present mixed-method study fills these lacunas by employing a productive vocabulary levels test, a questionnaire, and semi-structured interviews to explore the relationship between 35 different leisure activities that English as a foreign language (EFL) learners engage in outside the classroom and their productive vocabulary growth. The study’s findings revealed that although learners frequently engaged in different activities, they spent most of their free time gaming, which contributed the most to productive word knowledge learning. Regression analysis showed that two gaming genres, massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPGs) and first-person shooters, significantly predicted productive knowledge of words. Qualitative analysis demonstrated that, in general, the participants had a positive perception of informal engagement with English activities outside formal learning contexts.

Profil Pelajar Pancasila dari Perspektif Persatuan Guru Nahdlatul Ulama (Pergunu) Kabupaten Kediri

This research aims to elucidate a comprehensive overview of Pancasila students as a strategic step in shaping the national character, particularly within the context of the Nahdlatul Ulama Teachers Union (Pergunu) in Kediri Regency. The employed method in this study is the literature review method, involving a series of activities related to the collection, reading, recording, and processing of data from various literary sources. Findings from this research highlight that the profile of Pancasila students plays a significant role in supporting national educational goals and advancing character strengthening programs. This profile encompasses essential characteristics and competencies for Indonesian students, both in the formal learning context and in interactions with society. Through the application of six dimensions of the Pancasila student profile—faith and piety to God Almighty, global diversity, self-reliance, mutual cooperation, critical thinking, and creativity—it is anticipated that the Indonesian society can become individuals who are intelligent, character-driven, and capable of facing 21st-century challenges. This is also expected to consistently instill Pancasila values, in accordance with our national philosophy, ultimately realizing a prosperous and dignified life for the nation as mandated by the 1945 Constitution. The development strategy of the Pancasila student profile is implemented through integration into formal education activities, such as intracurricular, extracurricular, and cocurricular activities, organized in the form of Pancasila student profile strengthening projects. Through the implementation of this policy, it is hoped to cultivate excellent character in the Indonesian student generation, enabling them to compete globally.

Community Engaged Research as Relationship Building

This study examines the cultural and linguistic funds of knowledge (Moll, Amanti, Neff, & González, 1992; Moll, 2019) of multilingual families shared by parent authors in bilingual children’s books integrated into culturally responsive pedagogy (Ladson-Billings, 1995, 2014) shared in formal and informal learning contexts -- including elementary schools, public libraries and parks, teacher education university courses, and digital platforms. This study practices community-engaged research in which the experiences and perspectives of participants and researchers shaped how data was collected, understood, and shared with others (Bay & Swacha, 2020). Parent authors were invited to partner in generating, reflecting on, and sharing stories as educational community experiences, and as part of a study focused on fostering appreciation, understanding, and preservation of cultural and linguistic heritages as a significant aim in in our multicultural, multilingual world. As part of this, the study supports teachers, schools, and community stakeholders in including diverse languaging features (García, 2009) in curricula and instruction. Community engaged research highlights the complexities of the human experience and results in a valuable outcome beyond quantifiable data: community relationships. This collaborative inquiry into the development and sharing of multilingual parent books revealed relationship building as an artistic, authentic, and humanizing practice of bridge-building.

Continuous learning at work: the power of gamification

PurposeThis literature review explores the potential of gamification in workplace learning beyond formal training. The study also highlights research gaps and opportunities for scholars to develop new theories and methodologies to enhance the understanding and application of gamification in workplace learning. It provides guidance for managers to use gamification to enhance learning and engagement. Ultimately, this review presents gamification as a promising field of study to increase individual and organizational performance.Design/methodology/approachLiterature review of 6625 papers in the timeframe 1990–2020, with an update to include papers published in 2023.FindingsThis article examines the impact of gamification beyond formal learning and its potential to enhance employee productivity and well-being in the workplace. While there has been extensive research on gamification in formal learning contexts, little is known about its impact on informal learning. The study argues that the context of gamification is crucial to extending its effects and discusses the role, antecedents and consequences of game design elements in the workplace. The article also explores how the learning context relates to employee learning during work. Further research is necessary to investigate the impact of individual characteristics on work experience and performance.Research limitations/implicationsIntended contribution of the present study is the development of a theoretical framework exploring the benefits of gamification in a work context.Practical implicationsFor practicing managers, this paper shows how to use gamification to increase workplace learning and employee engagement, not just in the context of formal learning—as some companies already do today—but also systematically, in the context of informal learning.Originality/valueThis study explores the impact of gamification on informal workplace learning and emphasizes the significance of the context of gamification in extending its effects to improve individual and organizational performance.

Literacies in everyday life: Tattoo information needs

This paper identifies the information needs of individuals in the process of tattoo acquisition and discusses those needs in relation to information literacy skills that support tattoo information experience. Findings of 21 interviews with participants in Aotearoa New Zealand show that for a successful tattoo information experience, people need to engage with information to find a tattoo image, select and communicate their needs and negotiate with artists, mitigate health and safety risks, understand tattoo-related rights and appropriateness, capture and share their experience, and present their identity in social settings. Seven categories of information needs emerged supported by accompanying literacies under the overarching category of Information Needs (Information Literacy): Health Information Needs (Health Literacy), Visual Information Needs (Visual Literacy), Legal Information Needs (Legal Literacy), Cultural Information Needs (Cultural Literacy), Societal Information Needs (Societal Literacy), Digital and Media Information Needs (Digital and Media Literacy). Although just briefly mentioned by our participants, there was an indication of Financial Information Needs (Financial Literacy). Information literacy in the workplace and formal learning contexts has been well-researched. Still, there is an opportunity to focus more on literacies in everyday life, and tattoos present such an opportunity with significant contribution to individuals, tattoo artists and communities.

Individual interest, self‐regulation, and self‐directed language learning with technology beyond the classroom

AbstractIndividual interest and self‐regulation are two pillars of self‐directed learning. Despite empirical evidence on the interaction between the two with respect to academic achievement, few studies have explored how individual interest and self‐regulation might interact and relate to self‐directed informal learning. This study surveyed 322 university students on self‐regulation and two interest constructs (interest in learning English and interest in pursuing personal interest in English), and tested how these factors related to their engagement in self‐directed use of technology for English learning beyond the classroom. Structural equation modelling analysis revealed that despite both being significant determinants, interest factors, and self‐regulation were associated differently with various types of self‐directed technological activities (instruction‐, information‐, entertainment‐ and socialization‐oriented activities). Self‐regulation was predictive of instruction‐, information‐ and socialization‐oriented activities, which have high cognitive load and require effort management for second‐language learners. Interest in English learning was consistently a significant predictor of all four types of technological activities. Interest in pursuing personal interest in English played a significant role in information‐ and entertainment‐oriented technological activities. The findings recommend greater attention to individual interest when promoting self‐directed informal learning. The findings further suggest adopting a differentiated approach to bolstering self‐directed learning for different purposes. Practitioner notesWhat is already known about this topic Self‐regulation is important to self‐directed learning. Subject‐matter interest and self‐regulation interplay to influence academic performance in formal learning contexts. What this paper adds Interest and self‐regulation interplayed to shape self‐direction in informal learning contexts. Self‐regulation was predictive of instruction‐, information‐ and socialization‐oriented activities. Interest factors added additional explanation power on self‐directed technological activities. Both subject‐matter interest and the integration of personal interest with subject learning were significant determinants. The integration of personal interest with subject learning mediated the influence of subject‐matter interest. Implications for practice and/or policy Educational interventions need to work simultaneously on both interest and self‐regulation to bolster self‐directed learning. Educators need to address different factors when boosting different types of technological activities. A relative stance needs to be taken since self‐regulation might play a less significant role in less taxing technological activities. It is important to deliberately integrate students' personal interests into English learning and help students perceive and act on the integration.

Perceptions of Employability of Undergraduate Business Program Graduates: A Qualitative Analysis

Background: Students' perspective on graduate employability is an essential aspect to consider as they are the primary stakeholders of higher education institutions. Therefore, exploring graduates' perspectives on their employability and considering their opinions when designing policies and programs to improve graduate employability is crucial. However, little attention has been paid to graduates' perspectives on their employability. Objectives: This paper explored graduates' perceptions of employability, the labour market, and their views on academic credentials and employability skills in obtaining and retaining employment. The paper also examined the role of business schools in enhancing employability and how universities have prepared graduates to enter the labour market in the context of the human capital approach. Methods: The study adopted a qualitative approach using semi-structured interviews with a small sample of 38 undergraduate students from two different business programs who graduated from the constituent college of Pokhara university in 2019 and 2021 using purposive sampling. The interviews were designed to elicit in-depth responses from the participants and to allow them to share their experiences and insights. The study used the thematic analysis approach to analyze the data, which involved identifying patterns and themes within the data. The transcripts of the interviews were carefully reviewed and analyzed, and themes were generated based on the recurring patterns and ideas expressed by the participants. Results: The thematic analysis demonstrated that graduates understood employability as becoming employable with the potential of employability skills. Graduates viewed possessing academic credentials as one of the key benefits ofbecoming employable in the competitive and congested graduate labour market. The study further illustrated that employers expect both discipline-specific knowledge and soft skills from graduates. The data on the role of business schools in enhancing employability suggested that although many graduates felt that business schools could provide theoretical knowledge, the schools need to pay more attention to practical-based knowledge, especially soft skills. Conclusion: The study findings have provided insights into how recent graduates comprehend employability, view the current labour market and position their academic credentials in employability. The analysis has further demonstrated that students increasingly view their employability as the relative positional competition for labour market resources, which appears to have a bearing on how they perceive the role of credentials in their employability. The findings have further shown that employers expect both sides of graduate potential: strong academic credentials and employability skills. Therefore, graduates increasingly see the need to develop broader employability, which incorporates building strong academic credentials and employability skills and competencies outside the formal learning context. The study findings have implications for business schools, policymakers and researchers within the broader discourse of the knowledge-driven economy.

Self-directed language learning with Duolingo in an out-of-class context

The research study explored online language learners’ self-directed language learning (SDLL) experiences, benefits, motivations, and challenges when employing educational tools like Duolingo in an out of classroom context. To gain insights into SDLL, in-depth and semi-structured interviews with 10 Duolingo users were conducted. Study results indicated that learners manage various human and material learning resources in complementary ways to accomplish their language learning goals. Importantly, Duolingo learners self-monitor their learning process through feelings of knowing, content evaluation, and judgments of the adequacy of information and resources available. In addition, the study found that Duolingo learners highly rely on the features of learning technology to track, monitor, and reinforce their learning. Additionally, learners in this study were mostly driven by intrinsic needs and interests, such as culture, travel, and brain training, rather than obtaining certificates, scores, or grades. While most existing studies on self-directed language learning (SDLL) with technology have been conducted in a formal learning context, the results of this study provide some insights into SDLL independent of formal school contexts.

Attitudes towards digital game-based language learning among Japanese university students

The notion that digital games can be effectively employed as tools for learning and teaching has steadily been gaining traction among educational theorists and researchers, with numerous empirical studies pointing to the potential benefits of games for skill and knowledge development. However, a solid understanding of learners’ attitudes and concerns regarding this relatively novel pedagogical approach is also necessary for effective implementation in formal learning contexts. It cannot be taken for granted that today’s learners will accept game-based approaches simply because these learners tend to be more accustomed to advanced technologies than those of previous generations. The aim of this mixed-methods empirical study is thus to help elucidate learner beliefs and attitudes regarding digital game-based language learning with survey data collected from 112 undergraduate student participants at a large public university in Japan. The findings reveal that learners generally held positive attitudes towards DGBLL before taking part in any intervention and, after playing a cooperative digital game over six weekly sessions, reported stronger positive attitudes towards this pedagogical approach. In contrast to the results of earlier studies, gender was not found to be a statistically significant predictor of attitude towards DGBLL in this sample. However, two other demographic factors, namely information technology literacy and digital gaming experience, correlated positively with several measures of attitude. The learners considered enjoyment to be the most important advantage of using digital games for language learning. However, many also expressed doubts regarding the effectiveness of game-based language education.