Public Universities In Thailand Research Articles

The Production of Instructional Videos for Teaching Kammalor Drawing for Thai University Students Majoring in Arts Education

The purposes of this study were to develop instructional videos for Lai Kammalor Drawing, to assess their effectiveness, and to compare students’ ability before and after learning through instructional videos for Lai Kammalor Drawing. The participants in this study were undergraduate students who were majoring in Arts Education from a public university in Thailand. The study’s purposefully selected sample was divided into two groups: 1) the sample group, which consisted of 43 students, and 2) the treatment group, which consisted of 20 students. The descriptive statistics (mean and standard deviation) as well as the t-test for dependent samples were used in this study. Three major results arose as a result of the research. To begin, the evaluation of the instructional video creation for Lai Kammalor Drawing yielded findings that were much higher than the usual average of 3.50 (mean=4.76, SD=0.34). Furthermore, the content and design were at excellent levels. Second, the instructional videos for Lai Kammalor Drawing were 80.67/83.88 percent efficient, above the necessary set of 80/80 percent. Finally, the posttest score was significantly greater than the pretest scoreat the.05 level.

Tobacco use and associated factors among university students in Thailand

ABSTRACT Background Tobacco smoking remains a major public health concern as it is a leading cause of serious illness and premature deaths worldwide. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of smoking among university students in Thailand and identify associated factors. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted in five public universities in Thailand. The inclusion criteria were current enrollment in the university and age ≥18 years. A self-administered questionnaire was used to collect information about sociodemographic characteristics, smoking status, and knowledge and attitudes toward smoking. Multiple logistic regression was used to determine factors associated with smoking. Results Of a total of 1,299 students included, 28.2% were smokers, 76.5% in males and 23.5% in females. Being male, aged between 21 and 22 years, enrolled in a non-science major, living off campus, having a family member or friend who smoked, having a favorable attitude toward smoking, and having a moderate attitude toward smoking were significantly associated with being a smoker. However, knowledge about smoking was not a significant influencing factor. Conclusions A high prevalence of smoking among university students was reported in our study. Our findings should be taken into consideration when developing programs to prevent smoking among this young social group.

The Development of an Academic Collocation List for Undergraduate Mechanical Engineering Students

Acquiring collocations is widely considered to be essential in language learning. The question arises, however, as to what collocations merit students’ and teachers’ attention in ESP classes at a tertiary level. Thus, this corpus-based study aims to systematically develop an academic collocation list for undergraduate mechanical engineering students who learn English as a foreign language. To identify such a collocation list, the current study relied on a corpus-based approach and an expert-judged approach. The Sample Corpus of Mechanical Engineering containing 2.1 million words was compiled from required and supplementary textbook chapters, reading texts and research articles as specified in the course syllabi for the undergraduate program in Mechanical Engineering at a public university in Thailand. The development of the list involved five stages: 1) compilation of materials 2) creating a specialized corpus 3) extracting high-frequency node words and identifying lexical collocations 4) expert judgement; and 5) ordering the entries. These steps are in line with those proposed by Ackermann and Chen (2013) with some modifications. It is expected that this corpus-informed collocation list consisting of 282 entries will be highly useful for students majoring in Mechanical Engineering as well as ESP teachers and material developers. The complete list of collocations is provided in the appendix.

Use of Core Modal Verbs in Academic Writing of Thai EFL Students

Modal verbs, as one of modality devices, play an important role in academic writing and argument. To gain insights into the use of modal verbs in academic writing of Thai EFL students, the in-depth analysis of 15 discussion essays written by the third-year English majors at one public university in Thailand was carried out. It focused specifically on the nine core modal verbs (can, could, may, might, will, would, shall, should and must) and examined their frequencies and semantic functions. The data analysis employed Sketch Engine, a corpus concordance, and drew on categories of semantic functions. The analysis revealed that can, will, may and should were the top four frequently favored items, respectively while must, could, would and might were found to be exceptionally underused. As for semantic functions, the most dominant meaning was “possibility” expressed by can. The results indicate that Thai students’ academic writing skills need to be significantly improved, particularly their ability to use modal verbs strategically in their essays. The curriculum design for academic writing needs to emphasize both syntactic structure and semantic functions of modal verbs and encompass activities urging students to practice using these modals systematically and purposefully.

‘Uhh I’m not trying to be racist or anything’: exploring an indexical field of Thai English

ABSTRACT This article explores the notions of indexical order and indexical field of Thai English based on 30 interviews conducted with students at a public university in Thailand. The analysis of these interviews examine an indexical field of Thai English where in many cases students perceive Thai English to be spoken by certain types of people, including: tour guides, restaurant workers, street vendors and the prime minister. This indexical field emerged even though many respondents had features of Thai English in their idiolect. The findings shed light on how we classify global varieties of English as the present study illustrates how the features of Thai English are not uniform, nor is the community of speakers who make up this variety. It is argued that a variety of English may be enregistered despite lacking a status of variety directly attributable to a community of speakers.

STUDYING CONDITIONS AND PROBLEMS FOR DEVELOPING MATHEMATICS LEARNING MODEL OF UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS IN THAILAND

This research intends to study the conditions and problems of learning management in Mathematics for undergraduate students. The research problem is that students have low achievement and ability problem-solving in mathematics. The research method used is development through conducting preliminary studies and quantitative survey research, producing initial designs of integrative learning models. The results of this research were used to develop the mathematics learning model. The research was conducted over one year considering two groups. The first sample was collected from the group with 376 students studying mathematics in the academic year 2020. The second sample was collected from the group with 116 professors of public universities in Thailand. Questionnaires were used as a tool of the research. The data analysis was divided into two stages. The first stage was to analyze supporting factors with factor analysis. The second stage was to design the learning management of students and professors with regression analysis. The results have shown that the opinions of students and professors on conditions and problems of learning management can be summarized as follows: (1) The students’ arguments for corrections in the aspects were group learning and teamwork, steps of solving problems, a learning model that is real situations, and the problem-based learning, respectively. (2) The professors’ opinions for corrections in the aspects were student interaction, academic achievement, problem-based learning, and learning management model that is current situations, respectively. (3)The supporting factors for developing the learning management model that professors and students were consistent in solving problems. It was found that there were three main factors as follows; group learning, problem-based learning, and active learning. The learning management model should be developed by integrating group learning, problem-based learning, and mathematical problem-solving to enhance problem-solving and mathematics learning achievement.

An Analysis of Grammatical Errors Made by Thai EFL University Students in an EAP writing Class: Issues and Recommendations

Grammatical errors are major concerns for many teachers and students. The first step in tackling these errors is to investigate what kinds of grammatical errors students make and how frequently they occur so that remedies can be sought. This study thus set out to analyze the essays written by Thai EFL students. The data used for analysis were 58 essays (24,445 words) produced by 29 second-year students enrolled in an EAP writing class at a public university in Thailand. Through the analysis, 1,199 errors were found. The errors were classified into ten types, and errors on nouns, articles, verbs, word classes, and prepositions were the most frequently found errors, constituting 84.07% of all the errors identified. This study also further divided the ten types of errors into 49 subtypes. This thorough and in-depth error classification revealed that wrong use of singular and plural nouns, omission of the article ‘the’, and subject-verb disagreements were the most prevalent grammatical errors committed by the Thai EFL students in this study. Alarmingly, the results showed that Thai EFL students still struggle with grammatical accuracy when they write. Although these grammatical errors may not completely obscure the meanings of students’ writing, the worrying point is their presence or prevalence can significantly undermine its quality and prevent it from reaching publishable quality. To address this issue, more attempts need to be made on the part of Thai EFL teachers. Therefore, this paper also provides recommendations for how to assist students in fixing thesecommonly made grammatical errors.

Impacts of Positioning, Power, and Resistance on EFL Learners’ Identity Construction through Classroom Interaction: A Perspective from Critical Classroom Discourse Analysis

In this study, we explored how positioning, power, and resistance might have possible impacts on learners’ identity construction. We conducted this study in a 6-month language and culture program from August 2018 to January 2019 involving one teacher and 24 English major undergraduate students at a public university in Thailand. Using Kumaravadivelu’s (1999) Critical Classroom Discourse Analysis (CCDA) as an analytical framework and Braun and Clarke's (2006) thematic analysis approach to analysing data , we found three themes that illustrate how participants demonstrated positioning, power, and resistance: (a) learners’ choice of code as passive resistance, (b) circulating power in interaction and struggles of power, and (c) multiple positioning in classroom interactions. The findings suggest classroom context serves as a learning space to shape the contours of learners’ identity positioning and dynamics of power negotiation. This study contributes to the growing research on language learners’ identity in classroom interactions from a CCDA perspective. It suggests that EFL teaching should incorporate learner identity as an explicit goal that serves as an interpretive frame for learners’ on-going academic growth as English users within and beyond classroom contexts.

Gamification as a Tool for Enhancing Student Understanding in Business Processes: an Experimental Research

The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of gamification on the improvement of students’ knowledge in business processes. Special consideration is given to the modulation effect of task complexity on knowledge in business processes. A total of 96 undergraduate students majoring in management information systems at a large public university in Thailand participated in the experiment. This research is based on one-short design to gather the data. The data were analyzed by using a paired-samples t-test and multiple regression. The results of this study are that students’ perceptions of enjoyment in learning, reality of business processes in daily life, engagement in learning, and knowledge in business processes from gamification are higher at posttest stage than pretest stage. In addition, students’ perception of engagement in learning is positively correlated with perceived knowledge in business processes. Furthermore, students’ perceived knowledge in business processes is slightly negatively affected by the modulation effect of perceived task complexity on perceived engagement in learning. However, the perceived enjoyment in learning, reality of business processes in daily life, and the modulation effect of task complexity do not affect perceived knowledge in business processes. This study will help teachers and companies, often facing challenges in business process training, by showing them how to design and use gamification.

ICCP: An instructional model for academic English skills development of educational researchers

In the context of this current study, the majority of novice and domestically trained researchers from various fields of education in a large public university in Thailand have been increasingly under performative pressure to publish in English journals despite a lack of systematic training to meet the rigorous demands of the high impact journals in the field. Informed by research in English for Academic Purposes (EAP) and English for Research Publication Purposes (ERPP), an ICCP instructional model for an EAP parallel course design was proposed based on the needs analysis in the first phase of the study. The developed ICCP instructional model consists of the rationale, purpose, instructional process, and recommendations for other institutional policies to enhance both the research and academic English skills for educational researchers. The model was first evaluated by five experts in the field of curriculum and instruction, research, and English teaching methodology. After the model revisions, another 10 experts rated the model at 4.88 out of 5, indicating that the model is most appropriate for EAP learners.

Exploring university perceptions of IS implementation and attributes of success: a case study of public universities in Thailand

ABSTRACT This study aims to gain a better understanding of public university implementation of organizational information systems (IS). Mixed methods research was used, including initial exploration, telephone interviews, and a self-administered mail survey. The data were gathered from university personnel at 40 public universities in Thailand, and the research focused on the university student-registration systems (S-R). The study results highlight the different perceptions between two response groups: administrators and system users. The results show different perceptions of IS implementation and attributes that define IS implementation success. The results also serve as important suggestions that need to be recognized by administrators and practitioners for effectively planning the implementation of organizational IS in public universities.

Can Large Educational Institutes Become Free from Grid Systems? Determination of Hybrid Renewable Energy Systems in Thailand

In some countries, renewable energy resources have become one of the mainstreams of energy savings and sustainable development. Thailand is one of the major countries to use renewable energy generation facilities in public buildings. In particular, public educational institutes consume large amounts of electricity from the grid. To reduce the electricity dependency on the national grid connection and greenhouse gas emissions, this paper introduces potential optimized solutions of renewable energy generation systems for a public university in Thailand, Chiang Mai University. Based on the simulation results from HOMER software, the potential configuration organized by PV panels, batteries and converters is proposed. The suggested configuration achieves 100% of the renewable fraction with $0.728 of the cost of energy for per electricity. Moreover, the greenhouse gas emissions are significantly reduced. Both the implications and limitations are presented based on simulation results.

The Effects of Social Intelligence on Workplace Spirituality

The purpose of this study was to explore the effects of social intelligence on workplace spirituality. Data were collected from 71 graduate students in MBA program at a selected public university in Thailand through the Tromso Social Intelligence Scale (TSIS) and the Workplace Spirituality Scale. Multiple regressions analysis was computed to examine the impacts of three social intelligence’s components on each dimension of workplace spirituality. Results indicated no statistically significant influence of social intelligence on conditions for community. On the other hand, findings revealed statistically significant effects of social skills (s = .666, p = .001) and social awareness (s = .277, p = .002) on meaning of work. Also, results found that social information process (s = .314, p = .012) and social skills (s = .254, p = .040) had a positive significant influence on inner life. Findings of this present study were new knowledge, which create a body of knowledge in this area

Measuring Emotional Intelligence of International Students: A Comparison on Gender Differences and Nationality

This study aimed at assessing emotional intelligence among international students at a selected public university in Thailand and compare mean differences between genders and groups of nationality. A total of twenty-two students agreed to participate in this study by completing a survey questionnaire through an online platform. Results demonstrated no significant difference between males and females in emotional intelligence and each dimension. To compare emotional intelligence among different groups of nationality, the Kruskal-Wallis test indicated a statistically significant difference in self-awareness between the different nationalities, χ2 (2) = 7.691, p = .021. Mann Whitney U test was computed to determine the difference between each pair of nationality group. Findings indicated that self-awareness in group of Bhutanese students was statistically significantly higher than group of Thai students (U = 4.00, p = .024). Moreover, self-awareness in Chinese group was statistically significantly higher than the group of Thai students (U = .000, p = .018).

Assessing ESL Learners’ Online Learning Self-Efficacy in Thailand: Are They Ready?

Aim/Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine whether ESL students in Thailand felt comfortable and confident using online course management tools as indicated by the levels of their online learning self-efficacy. Background: While online learning has become commonplace in most US based universities, some international educational institutions are just now dealing with the enormous task of introducing online learning to their academic communities and working with both faculty and students for successful implementations. In Thailand, there is a national initiative to harness the power of online learning together with other technological innovations to facilitate an increase in learning outcomes and provide additional access to education for students within public educational institutions. Methodology: Online learning self-efficacy data was collected from 856 newly admitted English as a second language (ESL) students at a large public university in Thailand. Participants were provided an email link to an online survey either via a direct email solicitation or a web link posted by their course instructors. The survey consisted of 8 demographic items and 29 self-efficacy items on a 4-point Likert-type scale. Contribution: This paper adds to the body of research on self-efficacy in online learning context by examining the levels of online learning self-efficacy of ESL students in Thailand, where online learning is still not as prevalent as in the United States and many other regions. Findings: Significant correlations were found between online learning self-efficacy levels and demographic characteristics including self-report computer skills, comfort level using the internet, self-reported English proficiency scores, and prior online learning experience. ESL learners participating in this study were found to have high levels of online learning self-efficacy, which indicated a readiness for engagement in online learning courses. Recommendations for Practitioners: As indicated by the results of the study, ESL students who were better at using computers and more comfortable surfing the internet were found to be more confident that they would do well in online learning environments. Therefore, it is recommended that sufficient training should be provided to support this transition by helping students, especially those with lower computer skills and comfort levels using the internet, get started and supporting them along the way. Also, at the very first stage of transitioning into online learning, the institution may first start with partially online courses into which a mixture of both online and face-to-face elements is incorporated. This will allow students to gradually adjust themselves into the new instructional delivery system and technologies that come with it. Once students are well-adjusted and familiar with the new learning environment, and assessment of the effectiveness of the partial integration has been conducted, the institution can consider offering courses that are entirely online. Recommendation for Researchers: Faculty and institution readiness for the adoption of online learning should also be taken into consideration in future work. To address the identified limitations, we recommend that inclusion of participants from across content domain would provide a more representative and generalizable result. Impact on Society: Incorporation of online learning as a standard instructional strategy will improve access to the educational system within Thailand. Assessing student readiness for this non-traditional way of learning may facilitate institutions’ ability to better plan how to effectively incorporate online learning into its curricula. Future Research: This student focused study was a follow-up to a faculty focused study attempting to indicate the level of readiness for this institution to broadly adopt online learning. Future research could be conducted at the organization/institution perspective using appropriate frameworks to address the last element of readiness for online learning adoption that considers the three facets of student, faculty, and institution. After the completion of this phase of affective/attitudinal research and the implementation of online learning within this institution, we recommend moving on to the measure effectiveness of the new instructional methodology.

The Energy Related Water Footprint Accounting of A Public Organization: The Case of A Public University in Thailand

Energy is the one of the most important driven forces of the organization activities. The energy consumption in the organization depends on two modes of utilization, fuel used for transportation and electricity generation. Since there is a significant relation between energy and environment, the impact of the energy production on the environment is the crucial agenda the organization should be accounted for. The greenhouse gas is not only the main concern regarding the energy production but also the water consumption because the fuel or electricity production require a large amount of water. This has the direct impact on the water security so people in the organization should have the responsibility for the water usage contributed to the energy production. As a result, the ecological indication, water footprint, was utilized to quantify the amount of water used for the production of fuel and electricity used in the organization. The analysis was conducted between January to April 2018 which is the second semester of the 2017 academic year. The amount of fuel and electricity used in this period was collected and the water footprint was calculated. The results show that the gasoline use has contributed to the highest amount of water consumption.

Impact of Anxiety in Reading Aloud Activities in the classroom: a case study with university Thai students of Spanish A1 level

The goal of this research work is to assess the influence of anxiety in the development of reading skills, in class, in a group of twenty-one Thai students of Spanish (Elementary Level) from a public university in Thailand. Through participative observation, semi-structured interviews, and the Foreign Language Reading Anxiety Scale (FLRAS) we analyze Thai students´ low interest for reading aloud in class. The data analysis and an in-depth literature review allowed us to conclude that, their low interest to read aloud in class is directly related to sociocultural factors associated to Thai context. This implies the need to introduce in class reading activities that reduce anxiety levels.

EFL University Teacherss Professional Development in the Thai Context

This study aims to explore the perceptions of 30 English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teachers serving in public universities in Thailand regarding needs, challenges and quality of teacher career development in their universities. A questionnaire and an interview are employed to gather data. According to the teacher development programs offered, all universities served by the participants provide prospects for teachers to have further in-service education. In relation to professional development, nearly all participants point out a strong need for obtaining a higher degree as career advancement in their field and interestingly as a tool for salary increment. Teacher collaboration and student learning also emerge as possible factors motivating teachers to strive for self-improvement. Although undertaking research is referred to as an important and for some a required element for English teaching jobs, time-consuming nature and a sophisticated process discourage its instigation. Regarding views about quality of university teacher development, most report being satisfied with the overall universities’ emphasis on improving English teaching and learning by accentuating teachers as a key. However, teachers’ lacking motivation to progress professionally due to excessive teaching workload and internal politics embedded in some universities can be reasons preventing teachers from securing educational growth. Implications from the study shed light on the significance to support the quality of university teachers through furnishing sufficient opportunities of professional development and what Thai EFL university teachers aspire to accomplish most to develop themselves efficiently.

The Effects of Learning and Communication Strategies Instruction on Economics Undergraduates’ Oral Communication Ability in Thailand

This study investigates the effects of learning and communication strategies (LACS) instruction on economics students’ oral communication ability in Thailand and explores their perceptions toward the instruction. The study involved 23 third-year economics undergraduates at a public university in Thailand who were explicitly taught 13 learning and communication strategies in class. The impacts of the LACS instruction on oral communication ability were assessed by the participants’ pre- and post- oral presentation tests, and the perceptions of the participants as well as their strategy use were obtained from students’ reflective journals (SRJ), semi-structured focus group interviews, and the teacher’s observation notes. The findings reveal that all students’ oral presentation test scores significantly improved and confirm that teaching a combination of different LACS could enhance oral communication ability. The qualitative results indicate that all 23 students had positive perceptions of the strategies instruction. Furthermore, it is revealed that strong students used a combination of all three types (cognitive, metacognitive, and affective) of learning strategies (LS) and a communication strategy (CS) of self-repair, while moderate and weak students employed a combination of two types (cognitive and affective) of LS and self-repair. Nonetheless, this study would argue that strong, moderate, and weak students did apply metacognitive strategies, as evidenced by their reflections on their strategy use in the journals and the self-assessment form, but some students were not aware of it. Consequently, future studies should emphasize raising students’ awareness of their metacognitive strategy use.

The Effects of Learning and Communication Strategies Instruction on Economics Undergraduates’ Oral Communication Ability in Thailand

This study investigates the effects of learning and communication strategies (LACS) instruction on economics students’ oral communication ability in Thailand and explores their perceptions toward the instruction. The study involved 23 third-year economics undergraduates at a public university in Thailand who were explicitly taught 13 learning and communication strategies in class. The impacts of the LACS instruction on oral communication ability were assessed by the participants’ pre- and post- oral presentation tests, and the perceptions of the participants as well as their strategy use were obtained from students’ reflective journals (SRJ), semi-structured focus group interviews, and the teacher’s observation notes. The findings reveal that all students’ oral presentation test scores significantly improved and confirm that teaching a combination of different LACS could enhance oral communication ability. The qualitative results indicate that all 23 students had positive perceptions of the strategies instruction. Furthermore, it is revealed that strong students used a combination of all three types (cognitive, metacognitive, and affective) of learning strategies (LS) and a communication strategy (CS) of self-repair, while moderate and weak students employed a combination of two types (cognitive and affective) of LS and self-repair. Nonetheless, this study would argue that strong, moderate, and weak students did apply metacognitive strategies, as evidenced by their reflections on their strategy use in the journals and the self-assessment form, but some students were not aware of it. Consequently, future studies should emphasize raising students’ awareness of their metacognitive strategy use.