Essay Type Research Articles

Use of Objective Tests in Examining Law Courses at Daystar University

The use of multiple-choice questions (MCQs) in law schools has not gained widespread acceptance, unlike in medical schools where they enjoy global usage. Law Schools traditionally use essay-type/problem-solving questions to assess students. The efficacy of this form of assessment is increasingly being attacked due to increasing numbers of students and advancements in technology that enable students to generate answers. Bloom’s Taxonomy provides for a hierarchy of learning processes, which include ‘remember’, ‘understand’, ‘apply’, ‘analysis’, ‘evaluate’, and ‘create’. Studies on whether MCQs can test higher-order learning processes required in law courses have been inconclusive. We did a retrospective study to investigate whether MCQs are an efficient and effective way of assessing law courses. Underlying this study was the desire to find an alternative mode of assessment to overcome the threats facing the essay type. Results from selected law courses were analyzed in which students’ performance on MCQ tests, oral tests, and final examinations were compared. MCQs were analyzed on a two-dimensional Bloom’s table to establish the extent to which they tested higher-order learning processes. We compared the results of scores on the MCQs with those of oral tests and final essay-type examinations using correlational analysis and one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA). This was for the courses Constitutional Law (n = 22, MCQs = 75), Intellectual Property Rights (n = 113, MCQs = 100), Broadcast & TV Law (n = 11, MCQs = 76), Administrative Law (n = 65, MCQs = 91), and Cyberspace Law (n = 28, MCQs = 101). In general, students performed best on the MCQ test compared to orals and final exams. A two-tailed correlation analysis comparing all five courses showed a strong correlation between MCQs and Orals (r = 0.699, p = 0.189) and a weak correlation between MCQ test and final exam (r = 0.196, p = 0.752). Sixty-eight percent of 75 MCQs in Constitutional Law tested higher-order processes. The mean scores for MCQ (+ = 39.45 + 4.83), orals (+ = 7.64+18.72), and final exam (+ 28.5 + 8.88) showed a best performance for MCGs. ANOVA comparing test scores for MCQs, Orals and Final examination showed a very significant difference (F (2, 63, 0.05) = 38.11, p < 0.0001). Fifty-four out of 100 MCQs for intellectual property Law tested higher-order learning processes. The mean scores for MCQ (+ = 39.78 + 5.22), orals (+ = 18.88+14.66), and final exam (+ 29.0442 + 7.71) showed a best performance for MCQs. ANOVA results were highly significant (F (2,342,0.05) = 125.565, p < 0.0001). In Broadcast & TV Law, 44.7% of 76 MCQs tested higher-order learning processes. The mean scores for MCQ (+ = 43.27+6.89), orals (+ = 31.09+12.53), and final exam (+ 32.09 + 6.69) were different. ANOVA results were very significant (F (2,30,0.05) = 6.057, p < 0.01). There were 91 MCQs in Administrative Law of which 74% tested higher-order processes. The mean scores for the three tests were MCQ (+ = 33.05 + 4.76), orals (+ = 22.89 + 16.08), and final exam (+ 32.58 + 5.58). ANOVA results were very significant with F (2,191,0.05) = 20.388, p < 0.0001. Cyberspace Law had 101 MCQs of which 38.6% tested higher-order learning processes. The mean scores for MCQ (+ = 43.50 + 4.51), orals (+ = 36.43 + 2.27), and final exam (+ 35.04 + 7.71) were different. ANOVA results were very significant (F (2,81,0.05) = 20.375, p < 0.0001). We concluded that MCQs are efficacious and efficient in testing higher-order learning processes. MCQs can be used to assess learning of law courses. We recommend that law schools should embrace MCQs for assessing law courses.

A Contrastive Study of Theme Types in Academic IELTS Essays Written by English-Majored Students and IELTS Candidates

The present study was conducted to investigate theme types in academic IELTS essays written by successful test-takers and English-majored students at Quang Nam university, applying Halliday (2014)’s functional model of Theme-Rheme in English, and then making a comparison between two different levels of performance: one with 7-7.5 band scores and the other written by English-majored students to identify similarities and differences between two essay groups. In this study, the data were 60 IELTS essays collected from two domains: 30 IELTS essays written by English majored students at Quang Nam university, and 30 sample essays scored from 7.0 to 7.5. The findings of this study are expected to enable IELTS test-takers in general and English-majored students at Quang Nam university in particular to take into account the prominent theme types of academic IELTS sample essays in order to make good use of thematic strategies to produce an effective and coherent piece of writing.

Kemampuan Peserta Didik dalam Menulis Karangan Narasi Kelas IV Sekolah Dasar

This research aims to determine students' abilities in writing narrative essays in class IV elementary school. This research uses a suggestive narrative essay type. In this research, researchers used a qualitative approach. The subjects to support this research were one class IV student in one of the elementary schools. The instrument the researchers used was the instrument for students' ability to write narrative essays. Apart from that, the data analysis technique used is descriptive data analysis technique, which describes a condition as it is. Based on the results of the analysis of the ability of fourth grade elementary school students in writing narrative essays, it can be concluded that there are three of the five aspects that are considered inappropriate.

Investigating the Grammatical and Lexical Coherence in Essay Writing by Iraqi EFL College Students

As the system of Arabic language is totally different from English, writing in English is considered a problematic issue for the Arab students including the Iraqi students as well. However, this problem can extend to university levels. Writing essays include not only writing correct sentences, but entail coherence in writing related to lexis, grammar and joining ideas in a coherent way. So, this article investigates the use of the grammar and lexical coherence in writing essays by Iraqi students at university level. This study is a primary data analysis of the responses obtained by two questionnaires set for the students and teachers. The study involves fifty students selected randomly from the third grade of Department of English at the College of Arts of University of Thi-Qar in Iraq. The students' answers and writing in essays are analyzed thoroughly to give the main findings. The analysis of the other questionnaire given to twenty teachers of the Departments of English of University of Thi-Qar comes in accordance with the results of the first questionnaire which set for the students and confirms the findings of the paper. The study reveals that Iraqi students have a good theoretical knowledge about types of essays and essay writings as well as conjunctions and coherence devices, yet they are weak in applying these devices in writing.

Syntactic complexity in second language (L2) writing: Comparing students’ narrative and argumentative essays

This study investigated the distinctive structural characteristics between narrative and argumentative texts and examined the relationships among syntactic measures within each genre. Conducted with 161 Chinese college freshmen, the study employed 14 syntactic complexity measures to analyze 322 essays comprising both narrative and argumentative types. The research questions focused on identifying syntactic measures that differentiate between the two genres and the correlational strength among these measures. Results indicated nuanced differences in syntactic complexity, with argumentative essays demonstrating slightly higher complexity in most measures, particularly in the length of production unit, amount of coordination, and degree of phrasal sophistication. Notably, no significant differences were found in overall sentence complexity or measures of subordination. These findings suggested that these aspects do not distinguish between genres for these second language (L2) writers. Correlations within syntactic measures were also analyzed and revealed strong relationships between certain measures within the same category for both essay types. However, there were some distinct patterns of correlation between the two genres. Implications for L2 writing assessment and future studies were discussed.

A learning analytics view of students’ use of self-regulation strategies for essay writing

Essay writing is a fundamental part of higher education. Students’ use of self-regulatory skills, such as time management and planning and writing strategies, while writing essays predicts better writing quality. Current characterisations of the relationship between self-regulation and essay writing are limited by the difficulty of assessing self-regulation in real-life essay writing contexts. This paper reports on a novel approach to examine students’ use of self-regulation strategies in a real-life setting, using learning analytics. Four case studies are presented to illustrate similarities and differences in students’ use of time management, planning and writing strategies. Participants managed their time in very different ways to complete the assignment. They were active over a different number of days, engaged in sessions of different durations, and at different times of the day. The participants used a variety of approaches to their writing: one participant started early and allowed editing time, another typed gradually over a number of days, and two participants waited until the due date to complete the essay, with varying amounts of editing. Findings from this research contribute to a novel detailed empirical evidence of different essay preparation behaviour in real-life settings. After further studies with a variety of essay types and student samples, there may be significant value in using the approached outlined in this paper as the basis of tools they provide students with advice and support in their essay preparation.

Unpacking the Roles of Reading-to-Write and Writing-Only Approaches: A Comparative Case Study of Thai Undergraduate Students

This comparative case study explores the roles of reading-to-write and writing-only approaches on students’ L2 writing skills. Six third-year English major students from a Thai university, with diverse proficiency levels, participated in the study. Data from students’ writing samples, semi-structured interviews, and observations were analyzed through quantitative and qualitative methods. The two approaches contributed differently to enhancing students’ English writing skills. The writing-only approach significantly improved grammatical accuracy, while the reading-to-write approach fostered the use of more complex grammar structures, particularly in argumentative writing. In terms of coherence and cohesion, both approaches proved equally productive. Language proficiency, learning styles, task demands, essay types, topic familiarity, and time limitations also impacted the utilization of each approach. These insights suggest a blended approach to teaching writing at the university level, integrating both reading and writing elements. However, the findings also underscore the importance of explicit instruction in grammar and reading to support students in developing robust writing skills.

Examining Brain Based Learning Models Assisted Open-Ended Approach To Mathematics Understanding Concept

The implementation of this research is due to indications of learning problems related to students' difficulties in understanding mathematics in division material in third grade elementary school which results in students being weak in understanding mathematical concepts. This needs to be improved through the implementation of a brain-based learning model with an open-ended approach so that it affects students' understanding of mathematical concepts. Quasi-experiment with pretest posttest control group design was used as the basis for this research method. The study population consisted of 96 grade 3 students from 5 schools in cluster 5, Klaten. Simple randomization was used as a sampling technique with a sample of 48 students. The research instrument used was a test of 10 questions with essay type. Based on the results of the hypothesis test obtained at 0.018, the brain-based learning model assisted by an open-ended approach has an effect on students' understanding of mathematical concepts with an average increase of 34.96 seen from the pretest and posttest. This research contributes to influencing students' mathematical concept understanding ability in a more positive direction through collaboration between the brain-based learning model with an open-ended approach.

Assessment by modified essay type questions and multiple-choice questions in medical undergraduate students: Which are better in addressing higher cognitive skills?

Assessment by modified essay type questions and multiple-choice questions in medical undergraduate students: Which are better in addressing higher cognitive skills?

Virtual Writing Tutor (VWT) on Students’ Writing Skill Improvement at Writing Class

The study aimed to investigate Virtual Writing Tutor (VWT) on students’ writing skill at writing class. The study involved 30 participants taking writing subject at English and Literature Department, Language and Art Faculty, Universitas Negeri Medan. The qualitative method was conducted in this study. An observation sheet, questionnaire, and interview guidance were the instruments of study. The findings of the study showed that 100% of students are interested in using the media in practicing their writing skills. However, 45% of students stated that the choice of essay types was limited. Furthermore, 15% of students stated that there are features that cannot be accessed for free because they must have a premium (paid) account. Thus, , it is still necessary to be highlighted that using VWT is not the only way to get better at writing. It ought to be utilized in conjunction with classroom instruction and lecturer directions.

Machine Learning Models: A Study of English Essay Text Content Feature Extraction and Automatic Scoring

Accurate automatic scoring of English essay is beneficial for both teachers and students in English teaching. This paper briefly introduced an XGBoost-based automated scoring algorithm for English essay. To improve the accuracy of the algorithm, a long short-term memory (LSTM) semantic model was introduced to extract semantic scoring features from essays. Finally, the improved XGBoost algorithm was compared with the traditional XGBoost and LSTM algorithms in a simulation experiment using five types of essay prompts. The results indicate that the improved XGBoost algorithm has the best performance for automatic scoring of English essay and also requires the shortest scoring time.

Pelatihan Penulisan Esai Opini dan Mentoring Studi Lanjut bagi Pendidik Perempuan Indonesia

This Community Service aims to help enhance the writing skills of female educators and help them prepare the documents needed for further studies. For this reason, female educators such as lecturers and teachers from various regions in Indonesia were invited to attend virtual tutoring through the Zoom platform. This training and mentoring activities were carried out in several meetings and delivered by several resource persons regarding the techniques of writing opinion essays and supporting documents such as study objective and personal statement, needed to continue studies, especially at foreign universities. Nevertheless, despite having received a positive response from the participants, this training was still limited only to the introduction of opinion essays and structure in essay writing and only concerned with writing study objective and personal statement. Therefore, the recommendation for the following programs is providing training that discusses other types of essays on the IELTS test and other skills needed to improve the English competence of Indonesian female educators. In addition, other writing workshops for female educators are also necessary for postgraduate studies in the future.
 
 Keywords: Postgraduate Studies Mentoring, Female Educators, Opinion Essay Writing

CRITICAL THINKING AND BIOLOGICAL LITERACY: RELATIONSHIP WITH CONCEPTUAL UNDERSTANDING OF PLANT TISSUE

Biology learning currently requires students to have critical thinking ability and biological literacy so that they can improve conceptual understanding. The purpose of this study was to analyze the correlation between critical thinking ability and biological literacy in conceptual understanding of plant tissue. This research method is quantitative descriptive research using a correlational study. The research sample used 92 students from SMA Negeri 37 Jakarta. critical thinking ability instrument uses essay type test with 24 questions, biological literacy uses multiple choice type test with 10 questions and concept mastery is a multiple-choice type test with 30 questions. In variable showed that the fifth indicator was the lowest in critical thinking, biological literacy was the lowest in the nominal dimension, and mastery of concepts corresponded to the difficulty of the cognitive level of the questions. The results of hypothesis testing show that there is a positive and linear correlation between critical thinking ability and biological literacy with conceptual understanding of plant tissue. Multiple linear regression model Multiple linear regression model Ŷ = 13.077 + 0.399X1 + 0.413X2. Critical thinking ability and biological literacy contribute 33.5% to conceptual understanding. Critical thinking skills and biological literacy have a positive relationship but with different strengths and levels of contribution to the mastery of plant tissue concepts.

Поэтика прозы Вячеслава Иванова конца XIX-начала XX в.: художественная философия и открытие эстезиса

This paper is the study of the early philosophical prose of the Russian symbolism theorist Vyacheslav Ivanov during the period of the 1880-s–1900-s. This issue has been understudied and requires approach based on interdisciplinary methods. The materials from the writer's archive and publications reflecting the development of his prose, characterized by a synthesis of philosophical, religious and artistic principles characteristic of the poetics of Russian symbolism, are analyzed. The materials analyzed include early prosaic sketches of Ivanov, fragments of his so-called Intellectual Diary, religious, philosophical, literary and critical essays, articles and other works. Emphasis is placed on the principles of forming a metaphysical discourse, as well as the genre dynamics of Ivanov’s early prose, which can be characterized by essay type of writing and the increasing importance of the philosophical parts. These works are compared to his prose of the early 1900-s published in the “Vesy” journal. It is concluded that Ivanov’s prosaic manner is characterized by the poetic and cultural discourse and his thesaurus is based on the metaphysical language of images. The important components of this discourse include principles of ancient aesthetics of thought and the revitalization of text via various metaphors. A vital role is played by esthesis as one of the methods of philosophical perception and aesthetic reflection of the sensual world. The texts of the Old and New Testaments and the Christian tradition prove to have an essential impact. The influence of works by Aristotle, Plato, B. Pascal, J. W. Goethe, V. Solovyov, F. Nietzsche on the development of metaphysical language of Ivanov’s prose is noted. The conclusion is made that the author’s early prose is the result of attaining an individual style, reflecting the phenomenology of the symbolist consciousness.

PENGARUH MODEL PEMBELAJARAN DISCOVERY LEARNING TERHADAP KEMAMPUAN METAKOGNITIF SISWA PADA MATERI DUNIA TUMBUHAN KELAS X SMA

This study aims to determine whether Discovery Learning can influence students’ metacognitive abilities. This research was conducted at SMA Negeri 1 Bilah Hilir. Nonequivalent Control Group Design. Samples were taken using random sampling technique. The sample for this research was class X MIA. The research instrument is in the from of multiple choice questions with 5 questions consisting of metacognitive knowledge components and 3 essay type questions consisting of metacognitive regulations. The results of hypothesis testing using the t-test show that the value of tcount 11.44 > ttable 2.03693, so Ho is accepted. So it can be concluded that the Discovery Learning learning model has a significant effect on students’ metacognitive abilities on the concept of the plant world.

Assessment Rubric Design for Students’ English Problem-Solution Short Essay Writing

Abstract. This paper is aimed at describing the parts (paragraphing and contents) of problem-solution short essay necessary for the assessment and analyzing the approach used in designing the rubric. The data are taken from the sample of problem-solution short essay which belongs to the argumentative writing. The data were collected by using the documentation method and was analyzed qualitatively. The results show that there are two main parts in the analytical assessment rubric for the problem and solution short essay namely contents and grammar with the percentage values 60% and 40% respectively. The assessments of contents cover the suitable Title of the essay, Paragraphing, and Task response. Each of them has scoring scales. Meanwhile, grammar assessments that contains omission, addition, selection, ordering, plus the use of capital/small letters are measured by counting the numbers of errors. In order to get the total score of the essay, the excel sheets with certain formula are made. The top-down approach is appropriate in designing the analytical rubric for this type of short essay. It comprises of four steps, they are 1) choosing a framework for the intended assessment, 2) determining the criteria of the assessment, 3) adapting an existing rubric and designing the rubric for the specific learning purposes, and 4) use the rubric. The last step requires further observation and evaluation to test the effectiveness of the rubric that has been designed.Keywords: Assessment Rubric, Writing, Problem-Solution, Short Essay, Parts of Essay

Analyzing Students' Skills in Writing Narrative Texts at SDN Cemorokondang 4 Malang

This study aims to determine the ability to write narrative essays of fifth grade elementary school students. In this study, there are 2 types of narrative essays, namely expository narrative essays and suggestive narrative essays. In this study used a descriptive research method, a qualitative approach. The subjects in this study were 20 students of class V at SDN Cemorokandang 4, Malang City. The instrument used is the instrument for students' ability to write narrative essays. The data analysis technique used is the Milles and Huberman model, which consists of data reduction, data presentation, and verification/conclusion. Based on the results of an analysis of the ability to write narrative essays for fifth grade students at Cemorokandang 4 Elementary School, Malang City, the assessment guidelines for writing narrative essays consist of 6 aspects, namely plot, characters, setting, content, style (choice and vocabulary structure), and spelling and punctuation. The results category for writing expository narrative essays showed 15 students had good criteria, 4 students had enough criteria, and 1 student lacked criteria. The category of students' suggestive narrative writing results showed 2 students with very good criteria, 9 students for good criteria, 3 students for sufficient criteria, and 6 students for poor criteria.

Training on Making HOTS Questions with WQC Application

Abstract. The use of question instruments as an evaluation tool in junior and senior high schools in the Merauke district is still based on paper and pencil using multiple choice and essay types. It is not the expected output in 21st-century learning. Seeing these conditions, the service team conducted a training program for making HOTS-based question instruments with the WQC application to help improve teachers’ abilities in compiling HOTS-based questions. The training participants were 30 teachers and carried out offline in two sessions. The first session of the meeting provided material regarding procedures for compiling good-quality questions and HOTS. In the second meeting, the speaker gave a tutorial on using the WQC to collect computerized evaluation questions. The training results show 1) the teacher could compose HOTS-based questions using the WQC application and 2) the teacher was enthusiastic about participating. It can be seen from the percentage of teacher responses calculated by the Likert scale. The results obtained were 87.78% for the first session presenters, while for the second session presenters, it was 86.15%, and for the use of the WQC application, it was 84.40%.

Solvitur ambulando: The Peripatetic Essay from Leslie Stephen to Virginia Woolf

This paper aims to bring to light some continuities between periodical essays written by Victorian critic Leslie Stephen (1832-1904) and Modernist writer Virginia Woolf (1882-1941), by focusing on a specific type of essay—“the peripatetic essay”—, which uses walking as a structuring device (Forsdick 48) and which both father and daughter quite frequently deployed. Although they were published some fifty years apart, “London Walks” (1880), and “Street Haunting” (1927) testify to their authors’ common interest in the material culture of their times and their rootedness in the English empirical tradition, a tradition epitomized by Stephen’s motto as the leader of the Sunday Tramps: “solvitur ambulando,” “solved by walking” or “solved by practical experience,” which connects empirical proof with perambulation (Maitland 366). The peripatetic essay, because it relies on the “alternation between thought and perception,” “self-consciousness and consciousness of a world beyond the self,” “physical and mental experience” (Gilbert in Forsdick 47-8), allows both writers to firmly root their reflection in bodily sensation. Comparison with Stephen’s essays reveals the magnitude of Woolf’s re-appropriation and revision of the genre: while Stephen’s persona, “a professed misoscopist” or hater of sights (224), refuses to be absorbed or alienated by visual perceptions, using them merely as a “promoter of thought” (234), Woolf’s persona gives precedence to sensation over the intellect, turning into “a central oyster of perceptiveness,” “an enormous eye” (481), as well as an army of conflicting selves, who dissolve the frontiers of personality.

Scoring of Essays in L1 in the Secondary School-Leaving Exam

The article is a comparative analysis of nine different types of essays as a part of the secondary school-leaving exam in L1 on a literary topic from the point of view of their scoring systems. In terms of scoring, two different types of essays have been found. On the one hand, there are essays that give a higher percentage of points in the category of language that is understood as the correct use of grammar, punctuation, etc. On the other hand, there are essays that give a lower percentage of points for the category of language that is understood differently, namely as efficient communication, and give a higher percentage of points for the categories pertaining to content – literary knowledge, argumentation, etc. The Slovenian essay is categorised as the first type; possible changes are proposed for it to be based on the characteristics of the second type of essay. In other words, the use of a descriptive-criteria scoring system is proposed, with a stronger emphasis on literary knowledge, argumentation and personal response.