Implications For Education Research Articles

The relationship between beliefs and practice in language teaching education

According to Woods (2003), understanding the relationship between beliefs and actions is crucial for research on beliefs about language learning and teaching and for understanding teachers’ practices. The studies on this topic usually investigate what teachers say abouttheir believe regarding specific aspects of language teaching and learning and what they actually do in practice. These studies reveal that on the one hand, beliefs influence practice and these, in turn, influence beliefs. On the other hand, the results usually show either divergence or convergence between beliefs and practice. However, this relationship is not so straightforward, as many researchers have already pointed out (Barcelos 2006, Breen et al. 2001, Richardson 1996, Woods 1996). According to Richardson (1996), we need to understand the complexities of the teaching contexts and of teachers’ beliefs within their contexts. In view of that, in this article, I reflect on the relationship between beliefs and practice in general and highlight the complexity of this relationship by pointing out some factors that influence this relationship, such as contextual factors, methodology employed, among others. I conclude with implications for language teacher education and for research on the relationship between beliefs and practices. /Keywords: beliefs, language learning, language teacher education

The Role of Education in Economic Development: A Comparative Study of Nigeria and Kenya.

Education is a transforming factor in economic growth because it gives people the information and skills that spur innovation, productivity, and general social advancement. Two of the biggest economies in Africa, Nigeria and Kenya, have made considerable changes to their educational institutions to promote economic expansion. But even with these reforms, obstacles including poor infrastructure, restricted access, and insufficient government money still stand in the way of development. This study examines how education affects economic growth in Kenya and Nigeria, paying particular attention to how the distinct political, cultural, and historical backgrounds of each nation affect educational achievements. This study highlights opportunities for improvement while identifying important educational policies and initiatives that have successfully supported economic growth through a comparative analysis. It considers the larger implications of education as an instrument for national transformation, drawing on theological viewpoints, and makes the case that real growth must be in line with moral and ethical principles. In the end, the research suggests a more integrated strategy, stressing that education may act as a catalyst for long-term, sustainable economic growth when it is in line with spiritual principles.

Profiles, tissue and microbial integrity of cadavers used in medical faculties in South-western Uganda: implication in anatomical education.

Cadaveric dissection has remained an integral part of anatomical education globally; hence, the profiles of cadavers, their gross tissue and microbial integrity has great implication in anatomical education. This study determined the profiles, gross tissue and microbial integrity of cadavers used in South-western Uganda (SWU) medical schools. A cross-sectional study was carried out for three months in anatomy and microbiology laboratories of SWU medical teaching institutions. Ethical approval was obtained, cadavers were proportionately selected and examined grossly, and surface swabs taken for microbial analysis. Data collected was entered into Microsoft Excel, cleaned, and exported to Stata version 17 for analysis. Majority of cadavers were male (68%), adult (96%), blacks (100%), unknown cause of death (96%), obtained as unclaimed bodies (100%) and with no cadaver record tag (96%). Nearly a half (48%) cadavers had disrupted dentition, 68% had poor muscle integrity and 80% with abnormal fat. About 27% cadavers had poor surface microbial integrity among which 62.5% had a mixture of both bacteria and fungi, 25.0% had only fungi while 12.5% had only bacteria. A high number of cadavers had micro-organisms on their surfaces with majority having a mixture of bacteria and fungi. Majority of cadavers had poor gross tissue integrity. Better cadaver preservation methods should be adopted. To advocate for the establishment of cadaver donation policy and programs through which good quality cadavers can be obtained.

Knowledge on fire: the impact of conflict and violence on education in Afghanistan

ABSTRACT This article examines the impact of armed conflict on the education system in Afghanistan between 2001–2021. Using critical ethnography as its main research approach, the article draws on the perceptions and experiences of varying educational stakeholders (n = 103) to identify different forms of setbacks, which the wider educational community endured at the intersection of international intervention and an armed conflict. The article builds critical insights into the dynamic and simultaneous processes of interactions and relationships between armed conflict and education and the mechanisms that facilitated their sustenance, and its implications for education. The article illustrates how the education system in Afghanistan was implicated by persistent violence under the disguise of recovery interventions and implicated educational stakeholders’ agency that is crucial for enabling educational transformations amid violence and fragility.

Navigating the holistic conceptualizations of mental health issue in social work: a cross-cultural study of practitioner perspectives

ABSTRACT Holistic approaches, such as the Biopsychosocial model, have become mainstream frameworks for organizing mental health services in recent decades. However, little research has explored how frontline social workers embrace and synthesize the different dimensions within this holistic approach. This paper uses semi-structured interviews to investigate diverse conceptualizations of mental health issues among frontline social workers. Fourteen social workers from Hong Kong and twelve from Sydney were interviewed. Three prevalent positions were identified: prioritizing chemical imbalance, questioning the concept of illness, and refusing a fixed understanding of mental health issues. The analysis also reveals how these understandings influence frontline social work practice, uncovers broader socio-cultural influences through s cross-cultural lens, and highlights implications for social work education for navigating the inclusivity of holistic approaches.

ICT in biology education: teachers’ readiness and implementation challenges in the context of Bangladesh

Information and Communication Technology (ICT) is commonly employed in biology classes to facilitate students' comprehensive comprehension of biological processes and enable them to see living phenomena. The purpose of the study was to explore the use of ICT in enhancing the teaching and learning process of biology in the secondary schools of Bangladesh. In our study, sequential explanatory mixed method design has been followed. Data was collected from purposively selected ten secondary schools of Dhaka city. The study reveals that teachers have a positive attitude towards incorporating ICT in biology lessons and possess operational understanding of data processing tools and online browsing. Nevertheless, it also emphasizes the fact that teachers are devoid of personal computers in their houses and have restricted availability to school computers. Furthermore, the existing curriculum and teachers' guides lack adequate instructions for integrating ICT into biology lectures. The study also suggests that the process of developing ICT-based curriculum is complicated, which deters teachers from incorporating ICT into their classes. Furthermore, there is a limited availability of educational materials related to ICT in the Bangla language. This study recommends continuous in-servicing training on ICT to teachers, interest free loan to teachers for purchasing laptops, developing interactive biology educational ICT contents in Bangla and include specific instructions in the curriculum and teachers’ guide on how to use ICT in biology classes. These findings have important implications for policy makers, educators, and researchers who are dedicated to expanding the use of ICT in education.

Exploring English self-concept and investment of successful EFL learners from a Chinese secondary school

Academic self-concept, a central psychological construct that powerfully explains learners’ varied motivations and learning behaviors, needs to be further explored to deepen our understanding of language learner psychology. Drawing on self-reported learning histories, this study investigates the English self-concept of successful English as a foreign language (EFL) learners and their mediated learning behaviors from the theoretical lens of personal investment theory (Maehr & Braskamp, 1986). Data were collected from 12 students at a key secondary school in Shanghai using retrospective narratives and semi-structured interviews. The analysis revealed three categories of cognitive and affective characteristics in the learners’ English self-concept and the corresponding investment features with subtle differences identified. Participants espoused average to high competency beliefs and moderate to strong positive affect toward English learning, nurtured by positive self-beliefs such as interest and self-efficacy formed through early English learning experience. Their sustainable, targeted, and resilient investment in English learning was also underpinned by the perception of mastery and performance goals appropriately afforded by teachers, parents, peers, or the school. Practical implications for parents and educators are discussed in terms of what they can do to help learners build positive self-perceptions as EFL learners.

Automated feedback on fluency and complexity measures for L2 academic paragraphs: Student perspectives and impacts on human-rater scores

While complexity, accuracy, and fluency (CAF) measures are known to correlate with L2 writers’ scores, less is known about the effectiveness of providing automated feedback based on these measures for improving writing performance. Furthermore, it remains unclear if improvements in specific CAF measures correspond to improvements in human-rater scores. Finally, the trade-off hypothesis predicts that all three components of CAF cannot be improved at once, so providing multiple CAF measures to students at the same time might cause cognitive overload and overwhelm students, reducing their ability to uptake the feedback. To examine these issues, a simple paragraph feedback tool was developed to provide input on number of words, vocabulary variety, supporting detail markers, and sentence length. The tool was implemented repeatedly in L2 academic paragraph writing lessons with 124 students. Improvement was assessed through complexity, accuracy, and fluency (CAF) measures and human-rater scores, while also gathering student opinions. Results showed significant improvements in number of words, sentence length, and supporting detail marker usage from pre- to post-treatment with improvements in number of words and vocabulary variety found to be the strongest predictors of improvements in human-rater scores. Students reported finding vocabulary variety feedback most helpful, while supporting detail marker feedback was perceived as most confusing. Notably, students reported very low cognitive load overall. This article also discusses pedagogical implications of these findings for L2 writing instruction and automated feedback implementation.

Exploring the potential of AI for pragmatics instruction

Large language models (LLM) (e.g., ChatGPT) have garnered massive attention due to their potential to serve as interactive partners for a wide range of teaching and learning activities. In instructed second language acquisition, one potential use of LLMs is for pragmatics instruction. The current study sought to assess ChatGPT’s suitability for this task by analyzing its output in response to 144 DCTs (discourse completion tasks), which test a language learner’s ability to create apologies, requests, and refusals over differential levels of social and power distance, and degrees of imposition. Quantitatively, ChatGPT produced significantly shorter apologies than the other two speech acts (p < .001, R2 = .49), utilizing fewer pragmatic strategies (p < .001, R2 = .38). Closer social distance and greater imposition also resulted in longer responses, with higher imposition also eliciting ChatGPT to use more pragmatic strategies. Qualitatively, human raters scored ChatGPT’s apologies significantly lower in terms of their appropriateness, politeness, and language use, despite there being no statistical differences in ratings for requests and refusals. The main pedagogical implications are that, while ChatGPT offers an attractive option for students looking for more language exposure and interaction outside of the classroom, some degree of skepticism is still required due to its quantitative and qualitative inconsistencies.

An Insight into developmental changes in reasoning skills among Indian Preschoolers: A cross-sectional study using a story-based approach

Background: Considering the importance of exploring the development of reasoning skills during preschool period and the suitability of using a culturally linguistically relevant story-based approach for the same, the present research intended to profile the reasoning skills in typically developing Indian preschool children between 36 and 72 months using a story-based approach. The specific objectives were to develop explanation, prediction, and inference based reasoning tasks around a story and assess the reasoning skills in typically developing Indian preschool children using the same. Method: Reasoning tasks across explanation, prediction, and inference domains were developed based on a story and evaluated for its psychometric properties. The developed tasks were then administered to 63 typically developing Indian preschool children attending English medium schools in Mangalore. The preschoolers were equally divided into three age groups, and the responses obtained across the age groups were analyzed quantitatively and qualitatively. Results: The developed tasks were confirmed to have good psychometric properties like content validity and reliability. The age comparisons of reasoning abilities using one-way ANOVA suggested an increase in reasoning abilities with age during the preschool period. The qualitative analysis further suggested that with increasing age, the nature of reasoning changed from content-based reasoning to reasoning based on prior knowledge which was integrated with the story content. Conclusion: The study describes reasoning skill development using a story-based task in Indian preschoolers. The study findings further provide clinical and educational implications to assess and foster reasoning abilities among preschoolers.

The use of Languages in DRC: Family, Educational and Cultural Implications

The use of Languages in DRC: Family, Educational and Cultural Implications

Improving students' openness to artificial intelligence through risk awareness and digital literacy: Evidence form a developing country

The integration of technology, particularly artificial intelligence (AI) in learning process has the potential to enhance learning efficiency by offering diverse perspectives and quick information access. However, this reliance on AI can lead to overdependence, thereby diminishing the overall learning experience. This study aims to explore student acceptance and risk factors for learning using AI through the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM). This cross-sectional study surveyed 218 accounting students using a structured questionnaire. The internal consistency of latent constructs was verified through Cronbach's alpha, followed by exploratory factor analysis to ensure the unidimensionality of these constructs. The theoretical framework was tested using Partial Least Squares - Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM). The result suggests that students with higher self-confidence demonstrate greater enthusiasm for learning AI, while digital literacy significantly influences the perceived ease of use. While accessibility is not prioritized, functionality and information accuracy are deemed more critical. The research model posits that perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, self-efficacy, digital literacy, and perceived risk impact student acceptance of AI. Perceived usefulness and self-efficacy positively influence student acceptance, while perceived risk has a negative impact. Furthermore, it emphasizes the importance of increasing basic technological literacy among students in online learning environments. Despite these insights, the study is limited by its focus on accounting students, and future research should consider a broader demographic. This study contributes to the existing literature by highlighting the role of digital literacy and self-efficacy in AI adoption, offering valuable implications for educators and AI service providers.

Exploring learners’ attitudes towards meme consumption and their implications for classroom use

ABSTRACT This study tries to ascertain the attitudes of tertiary learners’ internet meme consumption and its potential for pedagogical implications. Internet memes, as multifaceted cultural artefacts, have become pervasive in contemporary digital communication, influencing societal discourse and online interactions. Despite their prevalence, research on learners’ everyday experiences and attitudes towards memes in educational settings is a rarity. This research therefore aims to examine the affective and cognitive attitudes of undergraduate students towards internet meme culture. Utilising a cross-sectional survey design, data was collected from 119 second-year undergraduate students at St. Joseph's College (Autonomous), Tiruchirappalli, India. The questionnaire focused on measuring both affective and cognitive appeal towards meme consumption. The analysis revealed that memes as an educational tool have a positive impact on the affective and cognitive domains in a classroom setting.

Exploring crystallized and fluid intelligence in down syndrome using graph theory

This cross-sectional study examined the cognitive performance of crystallized intelligence (Gc) and fluid intelligence (Gf) in 340 individuals, comparing adults (aged 22-45) to adolescents (aged 16-21) in two groups of etiologies. Down syndrome (DS) and non-specific intellectual disability (NSID). The aim was to estimate whether their cognitive performance reflected accelerated, stable, or continuous trajectories. Participants were assessed using the Vocabulary, Similarities, Block Design, and Raven Matrix tests. ANOVA analysis indicated that adults exhibited higher scores than adolescents on three of the crystallized and fluid intelligence tests, with similar trends observed in the Raven Matrix test, thus supporting the Compensation Age Theory. Participants with NSID exhibited higher scores in Vocabulary than participants with DS. Participants with DS exhibited higher scores in Block Design and Raven than participants with NSID. There was no difference between the groups in Similarities, suggesting that the verbal ability of individuals with DS is not so impaired relative to participants with NSID. Graph analysis demonstrated divergent Gc-Gf networks between the two groups of etiologies. The DS etiology revealed more coherent connections between crystallized and fluid intelligence, especially in adulthood, compared to the diffuse and absent connections seen in adults with NSID. Thus, the relative strength in Similarities and the more coherent Gc-Gf interconnections in the DS etiology suggested a more coherent and not-so-impaired profile in a clear diagnostic etiology such as DS, especially in adulthood, compared to unclear genetic etiologies such as NSID. The findings hold educational implications for adults with ID with and without Down syndrome at least until their 40’s as a time for growth and development, perhaps serving as a protective factor against possible cognitive decline in the future.

The interdisciplinary field of Sleep Medicine-time for dentists to sink their teeth into it!

Sleep Medicine has evolved into a highly multidisciplinary field over the last few decades, involving respiratory physicians, neurologists, cardiologists, ENT surgeons, psychiatrists and psychologists to name a few. It is within this highly multidisciplinary context that we have seen an increasing role for dentists in the recognition, diagnosis and management of select sleep disturbances and disorders. Over the last couple of decades, this growing role for dentists has seen the informal emergence of a new interdisciplinary field of Dental Sleep Medicine-a field that bridges medicine and dentistry as it pertains to the diagnosis and management of sleep disorders. This article describes this new field in terms of its history, the evolving scope of practice for dentists, the implications for education and training, and the importance of multidisciplinary care that optimises outcomes for patients.

Teachers handling multiple subject areas: Difficulties and adaptive attributes in the delivery of instructions

The adoption of K–12 program wanted to produce better proficient pupils with the skills needed for both job and lifetime study. Though the Department of Education (DepEd) emphasized the need for many teachers, issues like the number of students enrolled in the program and the subjects that require specialized instruction tend to increase. Instructors end up teaching subjects other than their area of expertise, which is a problem that schools all around the country are still facing today. This qualitative-phenomenology study carried out a small-scale interview that investigated the challenges faced by teachers who had to teach multiple subject areas. Teachers (n=8) were purposively sampled according to their subject areas. Thematic analysis indicated that teachers were troubled of teaching multiple subject areas because of the preparation process they need to consider, the difference in teaching materials and even their teaching methods matter. Some noted that the process was not effective because the subject mastery was insufficient. These have major implications in education in the Philippines especially it was a common practice to give teaching loads to teachers having competence beyond their area of expertise. This highlighted the need to reevaluate teaching assignments and strategies for professional development to ensure that educators have the necessary competence to effectively teach in different subject areas.

Exploring EFL learners’ need satisfaction, need frustration, and their motivational change in a blended English learning environment

AbstractDespite increasing scholarly attention on L2 motivational changes, little is known about learners’ L2 motivational changes in a blended English learning environment and their relationship with need satisfaction and need frustration. Drawing on self‐determination theory, this study investigated how a blended English learning environment satisfied and frustrated 15 EFL (English as a Foreign Language) learners’ basic needs and the relationship between basic needs and motivational changes. Data were collected via questionnaire responses, semi‐structured interviews, and learning records. Thematic analysis revealed that learners exhibited five profiles of motivational changes, with “remaining autonomously motivated” and “changing from controlled to autonomous motivation” as two major types. In addition, the learners’ need satisfaction and need frustration exerted both independent and joint impacts on motivational changes. The joint effect exhibited variation between learners depending on need categories and need strength. Theoretically, the study extends self‐determination theory by adding the need for novelty to the original tripartite taxonomy of basic needs. In addition, the study provides empirical evidence for the debate on the independent and interaction effects regarding the roles of need satisfaction and need frustration. Pedagogical implications are proposed regarding the design of blended English courses.

The Impacts of Computer-Assisted Translation Tools on Learning Autonomy of Students in English Translation Courses

Computer-assisted translation (CAT) tools have played an important role in professional translation work. Nevertheless, integrating CAT tools in translation training effectively has remained a conundrum in educational institutions. This research investigates the impact of CAT tools on the learning autonomy of English-majored students in translation courses. Several CAT tools were employed in the training process of 64 students majoring in English translation for 10 weeks. The Learner Autonomy Perception Questionnaire was used to collect quantitative data for pre-test and post-test. Qualitative data was also collected from 15 individual interviews. Findings reveal that the integration of CAT tools has positive impacts on components of learner autonomy, including belief about teachers’ role, metacognitive knowledge, metacognitive skills, and freedom, but it has no significant influence on motivation. Furthermore, although CAT tools facilitate opportunities to foster self-confidence, independence of learning and critical thinking skills, they may cause an over-reliance on technology and a lack of creativity and sense of ownership. Accordingly, several teaching implications are drawn in this study.

Diversifying the teaching workforce: challenges and opportunities in initial teacher education (ITE)

ABSTRACT Globalisation and migration have led to increasingly diverse classrooms. Yet teachers from ethnic minority backgrounds continue to be disproportionally under-represented in the teaching workforce. While education policies often focus on addressing student differences and diversity, the attention is rarely extended to diversifying the traditionally homogenous teaching workforce. The result is the widening diversity gap between teachers and the students they teach. This has implications for social justice, equity and inclusive education. While the benefits of a diverse teaching workforce are widely recognised, efforts to increase teachers from ethnic minority backgrounds yielded limited results. This paper discusses the challenges that support the attraction and retention of teacher candidates in initial teacher education and their transition into teaching and recommends strategies addressing structural, institutional, and environmental factors that deter them from the teaching profession.

The Career Development and Social Determinants Framework: An Integrative Approach

This conceptual article introduces an innovative career development framework that integrates a focus on the social determinants of health within career development and postsecondary readiness counseling. This article provides an overview of career development and postsecondary readiness in schools, reviews the existing literature base on social determinants of health and school counseling, introduces the Career Development and Social Determinants Framework (CDSD-F), and lists implications for school counselors and counselor educators.