Journal of Learning for Development - JL4D
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Online Learning as an Alternative Learning Modality in Ecuador’s Education Institutions Amidst Crises and Outbreaks: A SWOT Analysis
No full textThe primary objective of this paper is to analyse the weaknesses, threats, strengths, and opportunities (SWOT matrix analysis) of online teaching and learning in educational institutions (primary, secondary, and higher education) in Ecuador during the COVID-19 pandemic. A qualitative study of the descriptive documentary type was conducted, where the information obtained from virtual education in times of crisis and outbreaks was collected and analysed. It was found that educational centers at different levels of schooling still continued to use traditional teaching methods and processes subject to old procedures as a basis for their incursion into virtuality, although other establishments began to handle combined modalities such as blended and hybrid online (e-learning) modes of learning. In conclusion, the deadly coronavirus disease (SARS-COV-2) abruptly halted much human activity worldwide. This forced hesitant educational systems that still used traditional face-to-face teaching methods in classrooms to move and change to online learning in many regions, regardless of the socioeconomic level and demographics of the students. Aside from determining how to deal with the problems and challenges of virtual education during epidemics and natural disasters, it is clear that the number of technology-driven educational start-ups has increased significantly
Resilience, Adaptability, and Sustainability of Higher Education: A systematic Mapping Study on the Impact of the Coronavirus (Covid-19) Pandemic and the Transition to the New Normal
No full textThe coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has been a global crisis, affecting many areas of society, including higher education, which has not been immune to its effects. This study, therefore, examines COVID-19 from the perspective of higher education, applying data mining and analytics approaches, i.e., t-SNE analysis, text-mining, and social network analysis, to identify research themes and patterns. The results obtained show that studies have not been restricted to addressing only the impact of COVID-19 on learners and educational institutions in terms of pedagogical issues. The study identified three broad themes from the body of research on this subject: (1) educational crisis and higher education in the new normal: resilience, adaptability, and sustainability, (2) psychological pressures, social uncertainty, and mental well-being of learners, and (3) the rise of online distance education and blended-hybrid modes. The study concludes that the survival of higher education depends on the resilience, adaptability, and sustainability skills of higher education institutions
Rethinking the Relationship between the Growth of the Secondary Education System and Employment: Evidence from Turkey
No full textThe contribution of the secondary education system to employment is among the priority areas of educational policy since it has employment-related aims for students who do not/cannot continue on to higher education. In Turkey, the secondary education system has increasingly grown with students and schools included in the system. Consequently, secondary school graduates have increasingly demanded access to employment opportunities. Therefore, this paper investigates the relations between the growth based on the number of students and schools in the secondary education system and the employment of secondary school graduates in Turkey. Long- and short-run relationships between the growth in the secondary education system and employed secondary school graduates were investigated by employing Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) Bounds Testing approach. Although analysis pointed out a cointegration between the growth in the secondary education and employment, long-run coefficients of variables were found to be insignificant
Using Wikis as a Teaching Tool for Novice Teachers – Pedagogical Implications
No full textThe present study reports on research conducted on novice teachers’ use of wikis with their high school students. These teachers had been previously exposed to wikis as a collaborative learning tool during their teaching preparation programme. The aim was to explore whether their experience with wiki usage helped them in their teaching. Participants included fifteen novice teachers in their first year of teaching foreign languages in Albania, who held their teaching partly online during the school year 2020-2021, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Data collected through in-depth interviews include their own reflections. These reflections indicate that the use of a wiki at the university level helped them feel at ease in using wikis in their online teaching. The study proved the use of wikis to be a feasible means of online collaboration, which facilitated constructing new knowledge for their students. As a result, wikis provide a collaborative medium of technology integration into their teaching
Innovative Open Schooling in Secondary Education in Mozambique: Technological Conditions for Students to Attend Distance Learning
No full textThis article describes part of the results, taken from ongoing initial research, on the potential of new media in distance education. The article explores the technological conditions that students involved in Open and Innovative Schooling (OIS) experience, focusing on the fifteen schools in Mozambique. Participants were selected by intentional sampling and a mixed method research approach was then followed. The results revealed that, in general, minimum technological conditions were created at schools for the distance learning process, despite some asymmetries between schools and students. These findings are useful for documenting and sharing the real condition under which OIS operates in the Mozambican context. Furthermore, it is key to influencing educational policies in order to include training in digital literacy, as well as strategies for technology distribution for students from the mentioned schools. These are also crucial for an in-depth reflection on the aspects to be improved for a better implementation of OIS.
Tracer study of 2017-2019 NAMCOL TVET graduates : Tracer study of 2017-2019 NAMCOL TVET graduates
No full textThis article focuses on the outcome of a tracer study of former NAMCOL TVET trainees who completed their training in 2017, 2018 and 2019 in the following trades: Automotive Mechanics, Welding & Metal Fabrication, Office Administration and Plumbing & Pipe-Fitting in terms of their employment profile, opinions on the quality and effect of training they received in light of their employment experiences. The study revealed that former trainees were well equipped with relevant knowledge and skills needed by the job market. However, the majority were unemployed, and among the employed, others were employed outside their specialisation. Furthermore, the study revealed some challenges that former trainees encountered while studying with NAMCOL, among others, inadequate equipment, lack of job attachment opportunities, financial constraints, and the delay of equipment and material supply. The study further made recommendations that could improve TVET quality and delivery at NAMCOL. 
Relationships Between Cognitive Styles and Indigenous Students’ Mathematics Academic Outcomes
No full textThis article explores the link between cognitive styles and Indigenous students’ mathematics academic outcomes. There were three different groups of Indigenous West Papuan students participating in this study: 9 junior high school students, 12 senior high school students, and 46 university students. Data were collected from the results of the group embedded figure test and the previous semester's scores and analysed using a quantitative approach. In contrast to previous studies, the results indicated no significant correlation between cognitive styles and mathematics academic outcomes for junior and senior high school students. However, the different cognitive styles showed a significant contribution for university students. As Indigenous students pursue a higher level of education, their cognitive styles would influence their mathematics academic outcomes
A Systematic Study of the Literature on Career Guidance Expert Systems for Students: Implications for ODL
No full textThe continual evolution of employment opportunities in the present industrial era has raised the need for career-long expert advice. Similar to other fields, thankfully technology has come to our rescue in the area of career guidance also. This paper presents a systematic review of Expert Systems (ES) developed for career guidance, course selection and evaluation of students in the past ten years. The popular research databases Google Scholar and Science Direct were used for obtaining the relevant research papers through broad keywords. The keywords were refined to identify the articles related to rule-based, case-based and fuzzy logic-based ES used for career guidance. A total of twenty-five peer-reviewed relevant articles with full-text available online was selected for the final study. In order to avoid duplicity, technical reports and unreferenced literature were excluded. The review identifies the relatively high weight given by the researchers to rule-based systems owing to their simplicity and broad applicability. However, the relative merits and demerits of rule-based, case-based and fuzzy logic-based ES are highly dependent on the field of application. Nevertheless, ES find wide applications in the area of career guidance and have the potential to enhance the career guidance accessibility of the most remote students
COVID-19 Pandemic: Development of Digital Technologies that Provide Connection, Collaboration and Lifelong Learning
No full textThe topicality of the problem under research is due to the changes in educational systems (from elementary to higher) in Ukraine and throughout the world caused by COVID-19. The authors believe digital technologies that allow keeping in contact under COVID-19 while studying or working should be examined. The article determines which groups of the population use these technologies and the consequences it has. The article aims to reveal the essence of initiatives of international organizations on the educational institutions in the world and Ukraine during the COVID-19 period. The aim also involves highlighting and analyzing the quality of education and ensuring continuous updating of its content based on the latest technological advances, including innovative methods in the educational process during COVID-19. A main set of methods was as follows: 1) analysis, synthesis, comparison, generalization to study scientific literature, legislative and regulatory documents; 2) historical and pedagogical analysis to determine the features of the open education development. The questionnaire was adapted to ensure the statistical accuracy and relevance of the data obtained from Google Forms, a web service with limited access to the electronic questionnaire (only by link). The data obtained show the following: the regional affiliation and profiles of educational institutions; the experience of the teaching staff in using distance learning technologies in the education process; assessment of the prospects for distance learning implementation in the Ukrainian educational system; readiness to master distance learning technologies. The empirical data obtained were analyzed and organized by the electronic survey with Google Forms web service with limited access to the form. The significance of the article is to provide a holistic view of online teaching and learning activities under lockdown to eliminate academic disorders and ensure the resumption of educational activities and discourses as a normal process
Impact of COVID-19-Related Distress on Anxiety and Depression of College Students
No full textThe current study explores the impact of COVID-19 related distress factors on the mental well-being of college students. For the purpose of the study, mental well-being is measured through the depression symptoms and general anxiety levels of the students. The study used judgemental sampling to identify the respondents of the study. The final sample consisted of 147 respondents and the data was analysed on SPSS. The results suggested that while COVID-19 distress factors were not significant in predicting the level of depression symptoms experienced by the students, the general anxiety levels were significantly impacted by the distress factors. The findings are particularly useful for the teachers and institutions working to connect and teach through online platforms