Malaysian Higher Education Research Articles

Design of an Innovative Assessment Instrument Integrating Service-Learning Malaysia University for Society Approach for Engineers in Society Course during Covid19 Pandemic

Service-Learning Malaysia-University for Society (SULAM) has served as a learning experience in Malaysia for the past few years, merging theories and practices to expose students to real-world community problems. SULAM was developed as a cutting-edge teaching and learning technique in Malaysia's higher education institutions (HEIs). Alternative assessment is one of the instruments for evaluating students' work in a real-world environment. It can also help students develop their higher-order thinking skills (HOTs), particularly at engineering HEIs. However, there is a dearth of research on SULAM in engineering programmes, particularly in terms of the assessment instruments utilised in achieving the essential skill sets for societal well-being. This study improves on the ordinary way of assessment by creating a unique alternative assessment instrument for the Engineers in Society (EIS) course integrated with SULAM (EIS-SULAM) to analyse the expected outcomes and evaluate its success. The EIS-SULAM course and its curricula were assessed in this study through document analysis and the creation of an assessment instrument by subject matter experts. The assessment instrument was used by 415 respondents utilising a purposive sampling of civil engineering students taking the EIS-SULAM course during the February–July 2020 semester (starting of Covid19 Pandemic) to determine its usefulness in measuring students' skill sets. The students submitted 90 projects using the Google Classroom platform and were assessed by three (3) lecturers using a syndicated marking method to assure fairness and uniformity in the report's marking. The results show that the student's grades are distributed normally, with around 20% of the 415 students receiving A+, A, and A- grades, 70% receiving B+, B, and B- grades, and 10% receiving C+ and C grades. Overall, all students met the 50% cut-off mark for the EIS-SULAM course, which satisfies the EAC Standard 2020 criterion. It is envisaged that the findings of this study will be used to improve engineering assessment instruments to increase societal well-being.

Framework for Dispute Resolution in Malaysian Higher Education: A CrossJurisdictional Analysis

Effective Complaint handling is fundamental to the growth of businesses and other institutions including the higher education institutions (HEIs). Education although argued to be mainly public good, higher education students are perceived as customers in a private enterprise and sometimes mixed goods. This perception reinforces the need to focus on the satisfaction of students on the quality of services they receive in Higher Education Institutions (HEIs). An effective complaint handling mechanism is therefore a means to ensure student complaints do not aggravate to conflicts. This aspect has not been adequately addressed in literatures; the laws of Higher Education Institutions in Malaysia have no clear provisions for complaint handling. Doctrinal method and qualitative techniques are employed in this work by online search of existing legislation in Malaysia, United States, United Kingdom, and other countries. Also, utilizing library materials, and internet sources like google scholar, Hein Online and, Jstor and Ebscohost (IIUM Discovery online) to discover literatures on this subject. This method reveals the global best practices in higher education complaint handling. The United Kingdom, United States and Australia are the models examined because these are foremost countries where University Ombudsmen offices were established and the complaint handling system in universities have developed overtime. Independence, accessibility, transparency, hierarchy of complaints (internal and external independent Ombudsmen) are some of the unique qualities in the complaint handling system in the countries especially in the United Kingdom. This paper therefore proposes a similar framework for Malaysia’s HEIs.All papers must include an Abstract. The Abstract and Keywords text should be 11 point Calibri, full justified and contained within one paragraph. Begin the Abstract with the word ABSTRACT. Do not Indent. Do not cite references in the abstract. The abstract should beapproximately 150 words. Avoid using abbreviations in the abstract.

The Ideology Towards English as a Medium of Instruction (EMI) Adoption in Higher Education in Malaysia: A Case Study

The Ideology Towards English as a Medium of Instruction (EMI) Adoption in Higher Education in Malaysia: A Case Study

Time-based changes in authorship trend in research-intensive universities in Malaysia

ABSTRACT Considering the fact that publications serve as an important criterion to evaluate the scientific accomplishments of an individual within respective fields in academia, there has been an increasing trend to publish scientific articles whereby multiple authors are defined as primary, co-, or corresponding authors according to the roles performed. This article analyzes the authorship pattern in 4,561 papers (including 60 single-authored papers) from 1990 till 2020 of 94 academics who hold a position as professors and are affiliated with the Faculty of Medicine at three different research universities in Malaysia. Only 708 papers (15.5% of 4,561 papers) were authored by less than three authors. In 3,080 papers (67.5% of 4,561 papers), those academics appeared as coauthors. Using different years as cutoff periods, it was observed that the appearance as coauthor in the papers had steeply risen around the years: 2006, 2007, 2008 and onwards. The increased number of authors in the multi-author papers and the appearance of the selected academics as coauthors reflect the extent of boosting of collaborative research in that period which corresponds to the adoption of the “publish or perish policy” by the Ministry of Higher Education in Malaysia.

The Fourth Industrial Revolution and Its Impact on Malaysian Higher Education

The Fourth Industrial Revolution and Its Impact on Malaysian Higher Education

Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) Influence on Individual Income Tax Revenue? Evident Using Secondary Data from Individual Income Tax Collection in Malaysia

This paper aims to examine the impact of Higher Education Institutions on individual income tax revenue compliance in Malaysia. To expect, higher educators have greater income tax compliance and in turn to increase individual income tax revenue. A quantitative approach utilizing secondary data obtained from Inland Revenue Board of Malaysia (IRBM) and Malaysian Ministry of Higher Education (MOHE), from year 2002 to 2017. EViews software was utilized to answer the objectives. Results discovered that student’s enrolment are significantly led to income tax revenue, at significant of 5%. However, both student’s intake and student’s graduate were shown negative impact on income tax revenue. Therefore, MOHE is encouraged to increase student enrolments, while improving the quality of higher education in Malaysia. In fact, graduates will become more knowledgeable and in turn to commit themselves in individual income tax revenue compliance behavior. Theoretical and managerial implications and limitation of the study are outlined.

International Chinese Postgraduate Students’ Adaptation Strategies for Oral English Communication Practices in Malaysian Higher Education Institutions

Since establishing the Silk Road initiatives, increasing numbers of Chinese students are going to Malaysia to pursue their postgraduate degrees. As the largest group of international students, numerous research studies have reported that Chinese international postgraduate students face language obstacles in English language communication during their overseas studies in English-medium instruction (EMI) campuses. This qualitative case study supplies in-depth insight into different adaptation strategies utilized by international Chinese postgraduate students to overcome challenges faced in academic communication practices. Qualitative data were collected from three sessions of semistructured in-depth interviews. Informants were six international Chinese mainland postgraduate students (i.e., three masters’ students, three Ph.D. students) from diverse disciplines. The interviews allowed the participants to share their own experiences of utilizing effective adaptation strategies to overcome challenges faced in academic English communication practices in their studies. Their adaptation strategies include enhancing their oral English language communication competence and academic achievement. Thus, this study contributes by providing suggestions to Malaysian higher education institutions seeking measures to improve international service quality.

Cyber Security Risk Management Frameworks Implementation in Malaysian Higher Education Institutions

Cyber Security Risk Management Frameworks Implementation in Malaysian Higher Education Institutions

Harmonizing Hospitality Industry and Higher Education: Can Community College Compensate the Void?

ABSTRACT Mixed opinions on the need for higher education in hospitality studies remain thus far. Yet, a bridging notion that can potentially fill the gap has not been extensively explored. Therefore, this qualitative study attempts to present community college as the transitional element that could bridge the hospitality industry and higher education in Malaysia. Semi-structured interviews were conducted to seek views from academics, program administrators and industry professionals on the Malaysian community college’s capacity in delivering hospitality graduates that fulfill the hospitality industry requirement. CIPP evaluation model was used to guide the study. The findings provide ample evidence that the community college has immense potential in bridging the hospitality industry and higher education although certain improvements are still necessary. Thus, this study also suggests a few recommendations that the community college can consider for the program future directions.

The Design and Implementation of Web-Based Multimedia Learning Content Management System for Arabic Vocabulary Pronunciation

Arabic vocabulary is one of the important knowledge areas in learning Arabic language. In fact, that in the current world, almost 80% of Muslim are non-native speaker of Arabic language. Some people found that Arabic vocabulary is difficult and confusing to learn and subsequently failed to master the knowledge. Besides, most of the higher education in Malaysia has been introduce Arabic subject in their curriculum or plan of study. On the other hand, learners faced difficulties in learning Arabic vocabulary, especially the pronunciation due to limited hours of learning in the class and less attractive of teaching materials. The purpose of this study is to design and develop a web-based multimedia learning content management system (LCMS) to enhance the learning of Arabic vocabulary pronunciation. The proposed system was developed using Articulate Storyline for implementing interactive learning which all multimedia elements can be blended in the system. The development process follows the System Development Life Cycle (SDLC) as a methodology. Then, the proposed system is evaluated using expert reviews by distributing questionnaires among five expert users, and User Acceptance Test (UAT) contributed thirty respondents to determine the effectiveness of the system. The result from the Expert Review shows that the proposed system is suitable to use but still needs some improvements. While the result from the UAT indicates that the proposed system has a positive impact and to be well accepted by the majority of the users. Therefore, the most significant potential is the ability of the proposed system to help, assist, enhance and enrich the experience of learning Arabic vocabulary pronunciation more effective and efficient.

Perceived Traits for Future Women Academic Leaders in Malaysian Higher Education Institutions

Perceived Traits for Future Women Academic Leaders in Malaysian Higher Education Institutions

LINGUISTIC STRATEGIES AND POWER IN THE NARRATIVES OF WOMEN LEADERS IN A MALAYSIAN HIGHER LEARNING INSTITUTION

An important challenge for Malaysia today is to retain and attract more skilled and qualified women in the leadership positions. Because women account for more than half of Malaysia's population, gender diversity and inclusion strategies are required to help the country achieve high-developed status. The objective of this study is to investigate how women leaders in a Malaysian higher learning institution use language to exercise ‘power over’ their team members. Specifically, it explores the linguistic strategies used by women leaders in Malaysian higher education through their narratives. Using a qualitative research approach, the discursive features employed by these women are examined. The data were gathered through semi-structured interviews in which women leaders presented their conversation with their colleagues in face-to-face interactions, email exchanges or WhatsApp messages. The gathered data were transcribed and analysed through content analysis in light of Fairclough’s (2009) theory of power to provide insight into how and why these women leaders enact ‘power over’ through language use. The findings of this research revealed that women leaders use different linguistic strategies in a direct or mitigated way for several reasons such as to show personal power, hierarchy, strictness with deadlines, enactment of leadership, and to assert authority which would enact ‘power over’ to their colleagues in order to achieve their agenda. Further, there is a tendency for women leaders in higher learning institution to frequently use I-statement as a strategy to enact ‘power over’ colleagues.

Risk management practice, alliance management capability, and enterprise resilience: Findings from Indonesian state-owned enterprises

In the era of high uncertainties, all businesses, including state-owned enterprises, are trying to be resilient, be able to absorb the negative impacts caused by the changes, adjust, rebound, and then thrive and success after the disruptions. This study aims to examine to what extent risk management and alliance management capabilities promote enterprise resilience among Indonesian state-owned enterprises using dynamic capability theory. Analysis was done using SPSS and Structural Equation Model – Partially Least Squares on 322 valid questionnaires that were received via an online survey from the boards of directors and senior management of state-owned enterprises and their subsidiaries. The study discovered that alliance management capabilities have a significant positive effect on enterprise resilience and risk management practice. Furthermore, the findings show that risk management contributes significantly to the formation of enterprise resilience and act as a mediator between alliance management capabilities and enterprise resilience. Thus, enterprise resilience can be developed by having the ability to form and manage alliances effectively and efficiently, as well as practicing risk management, which allows a firm to anticipate and plan mitigation actions in the face of an uncertain and disruptive situation. Acknowledgment We acknowledge the Ministry of Higher Education Malaysia for HICoE Research Funding, Accounting Research Institute (ARI), Universiti Teknologi MARA, Malaysia, Universitas Indonesia, Indonesia, for all support and resources.

Factors predicting participation in higher education in Malaysia

Factors predicting participation in higher education in Malaysia

What Does It Take to Adopt Big Data Management Approach at Malaysian Higher Education Institutions?

Big data management (BDM) is one emerging approach in creating new values out of existing digital data in this era of Industrial Revolution 4.0. Many business firms, typically in banking and marketing sectors, have initiated their moves towards embedding big-data driven approach into their strategic planning, business direction and hence, implementing it actively in their daily operations.

EXPLORING THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN MOBILE ADDICTION, INTERPERSONAL RELATIONSHIP AND ACADEMIC BEHAVIOR AMONG YOUNG ADULTS IN TERTIARY INSTITUTIONS

Purpose – Smartphones have become part and parcel of life in the 21st century. However, limited studies have examined the impact of mobile addiction and interpersonal relationship on academic behaviour among adolescents in higher education. Hence, this study was conducted to explore the relationship between these three variables in the Malaysian higher education context. Methodology – A descriptive correlational research design was employed to collect and analyse the data from a total of 150 young adults who responded to an online Google form distributed through a WhatsApp link. The items in the questionnaire were adapted from various doctorate studies. The data were analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics such as mean and standard deviation, correlation and multiple regression. Findings – The study found that adolescents in Higher Education in Malaysia have a moderate level of mobile addiction. The results also established that the three variables, namely mobile addiction, interpersonal relationship, and academic behaviour, were interrelated. The findings suggest that relationship status, interpersonal relationship and gender contributed to the variance in the academic behaviour of adolescents in higher education, with relationship status being the most significant. The study also found that smartphones do not affect the academic behaviour of adolescents. Significance – The findings provide valuable information to help facilitate the monitoring of mobile usage behaviour of adolescents in higher education.

Understanding the role of social media in informal learning by researchers in Malaysian higher education

Understanding the role of social media in informal learning by researchers in Malaysian higher education

Understanding the Role of Social Media in Informal Learning by Researchers in Malaysian Higher Education

Understanding the Role of Social Media in Informal Learning by Researchers in Malaysian Higher Education

Determinants of Satisfaction and Deep Structure Usage of Post-acceptance Learning Management Systems by Malaysian Higher Education Lecturers

This study investigates factors influencing satisfaction and deep structure usage of Learning Management Systems (LMS) using a revised expectation-confirmation model of information system continuance. It addresses the gaps in the existing literature that primarily focused on behavioral intention in the acceptance stage instead of deep structure usage in the post-acceptance stage. Deep structure usage refers to using LMS features to support an underlying teaching task. The study population consists of 54 lecturers in Malaysian private universities in the post-acceptance stage of LMS implementation. Data was gathered using a web-based survey questionnaire. Various variables were analyzed through statistical correlation and regression using a statistical package for social science software. This study concludes that confirmation of expectation and perceived usefulness positively impacted satisfaction; confirmation of expectation was the strongest predictor of satisfaction. Additionally, the combined effects of satisfaction, confirmation of expectation, and perceived usefulness positively correlated with deep structure usage of LMS. This study investigates whether lecturers would use the system to its full capacity if they found the LMS features useful to a specific teaching task and if the system provides satisfaction and fulfills the lecturers’ expectations. Future research recommends extending the model to investigate determinants of satisfaction and confirmation of expectations of specific LMS features in terms of technical, design, capability, and experiential aspects. This extension would enable a more detailed understanding of aspects that determine satisfaction and confirmation of expectation, directly influencing deep structure usage.

The roles of technology in enhancing service excellence in Malaysian higher education industry

The roles of technology in enhancing service excellence in Malaysian higher education industry