research in social sciences and technology editorial welcome to the research in social sciences and technology. the second issue is the final issue of our first year. ressat is delighted to share three studies about civic and social studies education in this issue. the study entitled “a multiple regression of civic education scores” by bittman and russell provides a clear picture of whether classroom pedagogies, demographics, and home environments influence american students’ civic knowledge on the national assessment of educational progress. the authors employed the 2010 national assessment of educational progress (naep) 12th grade civics assessment. the results of the study revealed that civics scale scores for 12th graders in 2010 were influenced by demographics, classroom instructional strategies, and home environment. in the study “early american political scientists: traditionalist paradigm and citizenship education”, ahmad provided a history of american political science as an academic discipline. this study explores the historical context of the first phase of american political science: traditionalism. in this study, ahmad discussed the enduring legacy of traditionalism, its inadequacies, and its implications for american democracy and civic life. tarman and mauch examined historical documents about the development of the social studies laboratory in their study entitled “a historical approach to social studies laboratory method”. the researchers examined certain periodicals published in the us such as education, the historical outlook and the history teacher’s magazine along with the non-experimental historical research methodology. the results of the study asserted that social studies laboratories are meaningless unless accompanied by a commitment to move toward student-centered activities and learning. editorial research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), i-ii ii i would like to thank all authors and reviewers for their contribution to ressat. i hope you will both enjoy and be challenged by the articles in the second issue of ressat. please join us to contribute to the development of ressat in the future. bülent tarman, ph.d editor in chief research in social sciences and technology (ressat) e-issn: 2468-6891 editorial: learning transformation through innovation and sustainability in educational practices in the academic world “real learning” in any form is an active interaction of human mind with past experience, and that relates to man, machine, materials and ideas. therefore any teaching and learning process should be aimed at providing ample scope for the learners mind to interact and acquire fruitful experience. only through this active interaction, the learners and educators can reconstruct his/her experience in light of new experience leading to “real learning”. this enables to enhance the competency, tenacity and inquisitiveness among the scholars. a dedicated and focused approach towards different teaching and learning experience of educators from different parts of the world, especially from the middle east has been widely discussed in this special issue of general education conference. the 2nd general education conference organized by abu dhabi university on learning transformation, was a platform to ponder upon the ways of institutionalizing innovation and sustainability in educational practices. the participation of researcher and presenters from different parts of the world helped the participants to have a view and learn from the best practices used elsewhere and cope with the challenges of frequently changing demographics, advancement in technology, and economic challenges that have a direct impact on our practices of teaching and learning. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) is an international, peer-reviewed, openaccess journal. this journal is published twice a year (may & november) as online versions. the current ‘special issue’ of the journal consists of nine articles. the articles have been selected after following the double blind peer review process. the feedback and comments received from the experts helped the authors to refine and enhance the quality of papers. the present edition include papers from the field of teaching & learning, educational leadership & management, and digitalization of learning etc. the editorial appreciates the efforts taken by the subject experts to research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), i-ii evaluate the papers and offer constructive suggestions. we are extremely delighted to present the current issue and are confident that it will add value to the reader’s knowledge and help them acquire new thought process in the field of education and learning. we would like to thank everyone and express our special appreciation to the people who contributed to make this issue ready for you. we especially would like to thank all authors and reviewers for their contribution to ressat. we hope you will both enjoy and be challenged by the articles in this issue. we also look forward to seeing your contribution to the development of ressat in the future. guest editor, ressat editor-in-chief, ressat asst. prof. dr. smitha dev assoc. prof. dr. bulent tarman abu dhabi university research in social sciences and technology editorial: the future of social sciences bulent tarman1 we have been facing with several challenges in all over the world. global and local economies are facing threats as well as the increasing numbers of migrants that have not been seen for several decades (tarman & gurel, 2017; tarman, 2008;2010a; 2010b). resources are becoming scarcer and more expensive as we consume more. technology and especially the internet and social networking are changing the way we work, interact and communicate (geoghegan-quinn, 2012; yigit & tarman, 2013;tarman & acun, 2010). “social sciences began to take shape in the 19th century, but came into their own at the beginning of the 20th century, when a number of well-established disciplines, including economics, sociology, political science, history and anthropology really made their mark. geography and psychology could be added to that list. however, only sociology, political science and economics have succeeded in consolidating their position in the social sciences mainstream. the others were virtually all marginalized. moreover, powerful institutional barriers now separate the various disciplines.” (aubert, 1999). or as schrage (2015) argue that the future of social science is with private companies: maybe he is right with his claim that “tomorrow’s most important discoveries into why people do what they do will most likely come from business innovation than university research. the best and most rigorous social science experiments will be done for profit.” as toffler who has also been described as the "world's most famous futurologist" (1980) pointed 27 years ago the transitions we faced moving from the first wave 1 assoc. prof., editor-in-chief, research in social sciences and technology tarman research in social sciences and technology, 2(2), i-vi ii (agricultural age) to the second wave (industrial age) and last as we move into the third wave (information age). this is the post-industrial society. he says that most countries have been trying to transitioning from a second wave society into a third wave society since the 1950s when he wrote his book in 1980. his predictions regarding technology and communications, we can see have been fulfilled all around us. but it is time to ask what would be the fourth wave? what would it be called? “artificial intelligence age” or “space age” or what? whatever it would be called the question must be where social sciences will stand in this wave and what kind of role social scientist will carry and how much today’s social scientists are aware of this fact? the question of “why is the study of social sciences so critical to our future?” has been asked number of times in the past! to speak of the future of the social sciences is not an easy task especially nowadays where the dynamics of the world has been dramatically changing which brings lots of crisis with pain at every level from local to global. the name of this change has been called as the “new order of the world” as some of the players lose their power and importance while new players comes in to show themselves and claim that they are also important and cannot be ignored! but no body exactly knows which direction the world will evolve as abbott indicates that “we live today in a puzzling world, where what used to be domestic issues have become international ones while conversely what used to be international issues have become domestic ones, as in the internal differences produced by massive immigration. that dual reversal does present obvious and important empirical issues.” i think just this part of the explanation is enough by itself to show why the study of social sciences so critical and important to our future because it is the field of social sciences to discuss under the scientific knowledge and provide a projection to understand the social, cultural, economic and political events for the humanity. of course, the social sciences are tarman research in social sciences and technology, 2(2), i-vi iii supposed to play an important part in addressing all of the societal challenges as they have been historically playing this role. this is such a comprehensive field that social scientists as educators, historians, sociologist, psychologist, economists or any other discipline of the social sciences are responsible to analyze the happenings to improve the society and humanity for the future. the social sciences are essential because they help us understand ourselves and why we do what we do. as yunus emre2 pointed several centuries ago: knowledge (wisdom) should mean a full grasp of knowledge: knowledge (wisdom) means to know yourself, heart and soul. if you have failed to understand yourself, then all of your reading has missed its call 3 . therefore, one of the most important purpose of creating this platform to give chances to social scientists and researchers to share their findings of research with others to show what they do and why they do. keeping this vital role of social sciences in mind, research in social sciences and technology (ressat) has been trying its best to create such a platform for the social scientists or scholars who think critically to contribute for the improvement of social sciences since its first issue. it is my pleasure to share with you this new issue (2/2) of ressat. i hope you will revel in reading and learning about the latest studies. in this issue, you will meet three new research studies and a book review. the studies that we think will contribute to the social sciences literature are as follow: the first research is carried by james e. schul as titled “clinical entrepreneurship: a student teacher assigning desktop documentary making” the author of this study examined a student teacher’s assignment of a historical documentary project in the eighth grade u.s. history class. results of this qualitative research reveal that this student teacher proposed the 2 yunus emre, (born c. 1238, turkey—died c. 1320, turkey), poet and mystic who exercised a powerful influence on turkish literature. https://www.britannica.com/biography/yunus-emre 3 reference: halman, talat sait. 1993. yunus emre: selected poems translated by talat sait halman. ankara: ministry of culture https://www.britannica.com/biography/yunus-emre tarman research in social sciences and technology, 2(2), i-vi iv documentary project to the cooperating teacher, who supported the student teacher as she integrated it. second research is conducted by the researchers from university of central florida. “advance placement and the achievement gap in the 21st century: a multiple linear regression of marginalized populations in ap enrollment” is done by bittman, davies, russell and goussakova. this study focused on the analysis of the college board’s advanced placement (ap) enrollment of marginalized populations’ (i.e., african american, hispanic, and poor students) limited access and the schools’ efforts to bridge the gaps. results show that the focus on ap enrollment rates for minority students has led to increased rates of minorities successfully completing advanced coursework, but there is still a need for similar focus on high poverty schools. the third study placed in this issue examines the mcluhan's words, how facebook is considered a "message" as well as a "cool" or "hot" medium with the title of “mcluhanian perspective of facebook” by aldardasawi. the author attempts to address the reasons why people are very attached to such a virtual social life. a book review is placed as the last work in this issue. emin kilinc reviewed the following book for us: wilkins, a. (2016). modernising school governance: corporate planning and expert handling in state education. new york, ny: routledge. 172 pp., isbn9781138787476. this book is a part of routledge research in education policy and politics series which aims to enhance readers understanding of key challenges and facilitate on-going academic debate within the influential and growing field of education policy and politics by routledge. i would like to thank everyone and express my special appreciation to the people who contributed to make this issue ready for you. i especially would like to thank all authors and tarman research in social sciences and technology, 2(2), i-vi v reviewers for their contribution to ressat. i hope you will both enjoy and be challenged by the articles in this issue. i also look forward to seeing your contribution to the development of ressat in the future. sincerely, bulent tarman, (ph.d) editor-in-chief, ressat tarman research in social sciences and technology, 2(2), i-vi vi references abbott, a. (2015). “the future of the social sciences.” 37th marc bloch lecture. école des hautes études en sciences sociales. paris, june 18. retrieved nov. 13, 2017 (http://home.uchicago.edu/aabbott/papers/marc%20bloch%20lectu re%20pre%20trans.pdf). aubert, jean-eric (1999). into the future with social sciences, oecd observer, no: 217/218, summer 1999. retrieved on 10.11.2017 from http://oecdobserver.org/news/archivestory.php/aid/58/into_the_future_with_social_sciences.h tml geoghegan-quinn, m. (2012). the future of social sciences and humanities in horizon 2020, british academy review, no. 19 (january 2012). retrieved on 11.11.2017 from https://www.britac.ac.uk/sites/default/files/bar19-07-geogheganquinn.pdf halman, t. s. (1993). yunus emre: selected poems translated by talat sait halman. ankara: ministry of culture. schrage, m. (2015). why the future of social science is with private companies, harvard business review. retrieved on 11.14.2017 from https://hbr.org/2015/09/why-the-future-ofsocial-science-is-with-private-companies toffler, a. (1980). the third wave, bantam books, usa. tarman, b (2008) the european union and the modernization of the turkish education system, cambria press. new york, usa. tarman, b. (2010a). socio-cultural transformation: western-oriented modernization of turkey, vdm publishing house. (isbn: 978-3-639-19096-0) tarman, b. (2010b). global perspectives and challenges on teacher education in turkey, international journal of arts & sciences (ijas), 3(17): 78-96, united states. tarman, b. & acun, i. (2010). social studies education and a new social studies movement, journal of social studies education research. (1),1. 1-16. tarman, b. (2016). innovation and education, research in social sciences and technology, 1 (1), 77-97. tarman, b. & gürel, d. (2017). awareness of social studies teacher candidates on refugees in turkey, journal of social studies research, doi: 10.1016/j.jssr.2016.11.001 yigit, m.f & tarman, b. (2013). the impact of social media on globalization, democratization citizenship, journal of social science education, 12(1), 75-80. http://home.uchicago.edu/aabbott/papers/marc%20bloch%20lecture%20pre%20trans.pdf http://home.uchicago.edu/aabbott/papers/marc%20bloch%20lecture%20pre%20trans.pdf http://oecdobserver.org/news/archivestory.php/aid/58/into_the_future_with_social_sciences.html http://oecdobserver.org/news/archivestory.php/aid/58/into_the_future_with_social_sciences.html https://www.britac.ac.uk/sites/default/files/bar19-07-geogheganquinn.pdf https://hbr.org/2015/09/why-the-future-of-social-science-is-with-private-companies https://hbr.org/2015/09/why-the-future-of-social-science-is-with-private-companies research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 brigas & figueiredo. “the hour of the code”: computational thinking workshop in a primary school in guarda, portugal. 129 “the hour of the code”: computational thinking workshop in a primary school in guarda, portugal carlos jorge brigas* polytechnic institute of guarda josé alberto quitério figueiredo polytechnic institute of guarda *corresponding author: brigas@ipg.pt received: 08.08.2019 revision: 06.09.2019 accepted: 23.09.2019 how to cite this paper: brigas, c. j., & figueiredo, j. a. q. (2019). “the hour of the code”: computational thinking workshop in a primary school in guarda, portugal. research in social sciences and technology, 4(2),129-136. abstract in recent years, there has been an increased effort to introduce coding and computational thinking in early childhood education. in accordance with the international trend, programming has become an increasingly growing focus in european education. the idea of introducing computer programming in the classroom dates back to the late 1960s. the introduction of programming language provides an opportunity to engage in logical and abstract thinking, problem solving, and the creative design process. one of the best-known initiatives is the hour of code. this initiative is being implemented in 180 countries and more than 700 million students have participated. the hour of code started as a one-hour introduction to computer science, designed to demystify “code,” to show that anybody can learn the basics, and to broaden participation in the field of computer science. this article describes a workshop held under the “the hour of the code” initiative and implemented in the primary schools of guarda, portugal. the activity took place at the school and lasted two hours. students from the first to the fourth grade participated, with ages ranging from 6-11 years. the teachers of the activity were university professors of computer engineering and students of computer engineering. keywords: coding and computational thinking, ict in education, elementary education introduction in recent years, there has been an increased effort to introduce coding and computational thinking in early childhood education. in accordance with the international trend, programming has become an increasingly growing focus in european education. the idea of introducing computer programming in the classroom dates back to the late 1960s. the introduction of programming language provides an opportunity to engage in logical and abstract thinking, problem solving, and the creative design process. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 brigas & figueiredo. “the hour of the code”: computational thinking workshop in a primary school in guarda, portugal. 130 seymour papert (2000) identified the potentialities of introducing children to programming languages as an incubator of powerful ideas, that is, as a tool to engage children in new ways of thinking and “thinking about thinking” (papert, 2005). programming language allows and creates an opportunity to develop into logical and abstract thinking, problem solving, and the creative design process. according to papert (1980), the potentialities of programming languages become evident through the observation of children's participation in computational thinking projects. in the 1960s, the mit team with which papert was working developed the idea of introducing computer programming into the classroom. papert developed the first programming language designed for children, logo. some projects have since been promoted in the united states. for example, the computer science for all initiative was launched to bring programming into every educational level (smith, 2016). in europe, some countries integrate coding in the curriculum at the national, regional, or local level, including austria, bulgaria, the czech republic, denmark, estonia, france, hungary, ireland, israel, lithuania, malta, spain, poland, portugal, slovakia, and the uk (balanskat & engelhardt, 2014; bocconi et al., 2016; livingstone, 2012). one of the best-known initiatives is the hour of code. this initiative is being implemented in 180 countries and more than 700 million students have participated. the hour of code started as a one-hour introduction to computer science, designed to demystify “code,” to show that anybody can learn the basics, and to broaden participation in the field of computer science. computational thinking in elementary school in recent years, there has been a growing effort to introduce coding and computational thinking in elementary school. the term computational thinking, which is now widely known, was first used in 1980 by papert. various definitions and critiques of the concept “have been criticized for inaccuracies, ambiguous definitions and visions of computational thinking, and arrogance, as well as bold and unfounded claims about the universal benefit of computational thinking” (tedre & denning, 2016, p. 120). for wolfram (2016), computational thinking “is about formulating things clearly enough and, in a sufficiently systematic way, it is possible to tell a computer how to do them.” for us, computational thinking is an essential competence in child development and has the particularity of being transversal in all disciplines. in the learning environment, it can be implemented by combining problem solving, understanding problems, or creating new solutions. these innovative learning environments can use computers to formulate solutions, and these environments are rich for enhancing the expressive creativity and evaluative power of students’ ideas. collaboration around a computer makes learning meaningful and supportive. in this sense, computational thinking is both delightful and effective for students. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 brigas & figueiredo. “the hour of the code”: computational thinking workshop in a primary school in guarda, portugal. 131 why should we use computational thinking in elementary school? some researchers (e.g., waite, 2018) argue that computational thinking requires dealing with levels of abstraction that are not compatible with the cognitive development of primary age children. but we accept that it is possible to introduce computational thinking in elementary school. some research presents pragmatic reasons for beginning computational thinking at this teaching level: 1. cross-curricular approaches: computational thinking allows the creation of transversal activities to different teaching areas. 2. promote gender equality: several researches point out that promoting computational thinking in learning environments in primary school is a very effective way to increase gender equality (graham & latulipe, 2003; lapan et al., 2000; turner et al., 2008). 3. motivation, confidence, pleasure: students design and participate in activities that involve computational thinking and, if implemented using technology such as pc, tablet, and smartphones, there is a clear satisfaction in learning itself, providing the pleasure of “enthusiasm” through innovative environments, which allows free choices and effective outcomes. as millwood (2008) points out, “such enthusiasm is usually fostered through play, where children are significantly responsible for choices and outcomes even when founded on imagination and fantasy.” 4. collaboration: computational thinking projects can be designed as teamwork, which enables children to acquire the ability to consult, work, and learn from others. it also has the ability to rely on play and, in particular, the delight of “coexistence” (millwood, 2008). 5. creativity: computational thinking activities enable children to participate in rich environments and can use arts, sciences, and technology to solve problems or create new solutions. how to teach computational thinking in early childhood learning to code involves children in new ways of thinking that some researchers have called computational thinking (barr & stephenson, 2011; international society for technological education and the computer science teachers association, 2011; lee et al., 2011; tarman & baytak, 2012; valiandes & tarman, 2011; wing, 2006). it allows children to develop and acquire analytical mental tools that are inherent in the field of computer science, including recursive thinking, the application of abstraction to discover a complex task, and the use of heuristic reasoning to find a solution. these mental tools are universally applicable (wing, 2011). you do not need to be in computer science courses to gain this knowledge, but in an integrated manner with other curricular subjects in school and from an early age; instead of teaching children about specific programming languages and hardware, which often complicates and research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 brigas & figueiredo. “the hour of the code”: computational thinking workshop in a primary school in guarda, portugal. 132 alienates children, teachers and schools should prepare children to think with creativity, complexity, and logic. computational thinking is understood as a combination of four skill categories:  pattern recognition: pattern recognition is the process of identifying, defining, extending, and creating patterns. pattern recognition requires the classification of data. for example, a preschooler learns pattern recognition when she sorts blocks according to attributes like shape or color.  creating and using algorithms: an algorithm is a set of steps to solve a problem. programming a computer and solving an algebraic proof involves creating and using algorithms. one can solve tasks that involve creating and using algorithms in the form of step-by-step instructions.  decomposition: decomposition is an analytical process that involves breaking something down into smaller parts; normally, this kind of activity involves dividing a large thing into smaller things. in mathematics, it is very easy to create this kind of activity.  understanding abstractions: we understand abstraction as something that exists only as an idea. understanding abstractions requires the ability to make generalizations and use other problem-solving thought processes to imagine something we cannot see or touch. computational thinking workshop in a primary school in guarda the activity took place at the students' school and the duration of two hours. participants in the activity were students ages 6-11 in the first to fourth years of the first cycle of primary education. the teachers of the activity were college professors of computer engineering and students of computer engineering. instead of teaching children about a specific programming language, which is often too complicated for children, we define in this workshop activities where children must solve problems by creating and using algorithms. in the following algorithm, children must define a set of step-by-step instructions that solve a problem. in this case, the children play a robot role (figure 1). research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 brigas & figueiredo. “the hour of the code”: computational thinking workshop in a primary school in guarda, portugal. 133 figure 1. robot workshop. after a short explanation, the children needed no help exploring and creating algorithms to solve problems. students had the possibility to customize the robot with different appearances and sounds according to their likes (figure 2). research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 brigas & figueiredo. “the hour of the code”: computational thinking workshop in a primary school in guarda, portugal. 134 figure 2. robot face. these activities were popular, and all of the children wanted to assume the role of robot. all the children helped each other, showed collaborative behavior, created several solutions to the same problem, and always tried to overcome previous mistakes; it was also evident that it created some competitiveness between them. during the exploration of the model, a large number of children changed their minds and modified the algorithm for better resolution. conclusions the major goal of these workshops was to evaluate the difficulties and potentialities of using computational thinking in elementary schools. the methodology used allowed us to observe the exploration and authoring of activities performed by children in a “natural” environment, the classroom. working with the whole class allowed for observing diverse ways to explore the tools, too. the use of computational thinking in education facilitates the development of several important capacities (understanding, reasoning, decision-making, etc.) that we observed. using simulkids, children could make predictions and explain events which otherwise would not be possible with the same ease. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 brigas & figueiredo. “the hour of the code”: computational thinking workshop in a primary school in guarda, portugal. 135 references balanskat, a., & engelhardt, k. (2014). computing our future: computer programming and coding priorities, school curricula, and initiatives across europe. european schoolnet. http://www.eun.org/c/document_library/get_file?uuid=521cb928-6ec4-4a86-b5229d8fd5cf60ce&groupid=43887 barr, d., harrison, j., & conery, l. (2011). computational thinking: a digital age skill for everyone. learning & leading with technology, 38(6), 20-23. barr, v., & stephenson, c. (2011) bringing computational thinking to k-12: what is involved and what is the role of the computer science education community? acm inroads, 2(1), 48-54. doi: 10.1145/1929887.1929905 bocconi, s., chioccariello, a., & earp, j. (2018). the nordic approach to introducing computational thinking and programming in compulsory education. report prepared for the nordic@bett2018 steering group. available at https://doi.org/10.17471/54007 (accessed 28 march, 2018.) graham, s., & latulipe, c. (2003). cs girls rock: sparking interest in computer science and debunking the stereotypes. acm sigcse bulletin, 322-326. international society for technology in education and the computer science teachers association. (2011). operational definition of computational thinking for k-12 thinking. international society for technology in education (iste) and the computer science teachers association (csta). lapan, r. t., et al. (2000). seventh graders’ vocational interest and efficacy expectation patterns. journal of career development, 26(3), 215-229. lee, i., martin, f., denner, j., coulter, b., allan, w., erickson, j., et al. (2011). computational thinking for youth in practice. acm inroads, 2(1), 32-37. livingstone, s. (2012). critical reflections on the benefits of ict in education. oxford review of education, 38(1), 9-24. millwood, r. (2008, 15 may). “an analysis of delight.” available at http://blog.richardmillwood.net/2008/05/15/an-analysis-of-delight/ papert, s. (1980). mindstorms: children, computers, and powerful ideas. basic books, inc. papert, s. (2000). what’s the big idea? toward a pedagogy of idea power. ibm systems research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 brigas & figueiredo. “the hour of the code”: computational thinking workshop in a primary school in guarda, portugal. 136 journal, 39(3.4), 720-729. papert, s. (2005). you can’t think about thinking without thinking about thinking about something. contemporary issues in technology and teacher education, 5(3/4), 366367. tarman, b. & baytak, a. (2012). “children’s online language learning: a constructionist perspective”, energy education science and technology part b: social and educational studies, 4(2) 875-882 tedre, m., & denning, p. j. (2016). the long quest for computational thinking. in proceedings of the 16th koli calling international conference on computing education research (pp. 120-129). new york, ny: acm. doi: 10.1145/2999541.2999542 turner, s., et al. (2008). gender differences in holland vocational personality types: implications for school counselors. professional school counseling, 11(5), 317-326. valiandes, s. & tarman, b. (2011). differentiated teaching and constructive learning approach by the implementation of ict in mixed ability classrooms, ahi evran university journal of education faculty, (kefad)12 (1), 169-184. wing, j. m. (2006). computational thinking. communications of the acm, 49(3), 33-35. wing, j. m. (2011). research notebook: computational thinking-what and why? the link magazine, spring. pittsburgh, pa: carnegie mellon university. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 tureniyazova, a.i., using graphical organizers in the teaching process of ict 31 using graphical organizers in the teaching process of ict asiya ibragimovna tureniyazova* ph.d, nukus branch of tashkent university of information technologies email: asiya.tureniyazova@gmail.com *corresponding author: asiya.tureniyazova@gmail.com received :16.07.2019 revision requested: : 06.09.2019 accepted : ------- :18.09.2019 how to cite this paper: tureniyazova, a. i. (2019). using graphical organizers in the teaching process of ict. research in social sciences and technology, 4(2) 31-40 abstract to date, hundreds of advanced teaching methods, such as game methods, have been developed, and these problem-based learning methods are widely used in education. most of these technologies are based on the principles of student-centered and participatory learning. these interactive methods allow the learner to master the necessary professional knowledge, skills, and competencies under the managerial guidance of a teacher. on the other hand, students should be familiar with how to work with information using modern means of obtaining information to collect, analyze, and apply facts to solve problems. this implies an important task facing educational institutions: the integration of information technology in the educational process. in this article, the author shares her experience of using graphic organizers and it for effectivity of the teaching process due to visibility, high involvement of students, and their active learning and creativity. the graphic organizers as supportive tools for teaching and learning and their use and types are described. examples of graphic organizers for teaching/learning it and information security, designed using it, are given. keywords: ict, learning, teaching, graphic organizer/s (go/s), mindmap introduction international studies have identified a teacher’s professional identity as one of the most important factors to achieving educational improvement (garcía-martínez & tadeu, 2018). according to this, we seek to improve the education of professional teachers, who have solid knowledge and should be able to apply this knowledge in solving various problems of everyday life, using different approaches related to tasks of modern education with their students. students' motivation, interests, and involvement in learning activities have a large role in ensuring the successful implementation of this task by teachers. an experienced teacher should skillfully use effective methods and means to successfully achieve the planned learning outcomes. these methods are well known, but not every teacher, unfortunately, uses them mailto:asiya.tureniyazova@gmail.com mailto:asiya.tureniyazova@gmail.com research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 tureniyazova, a.i., using graphical organizers in the teaching process of ict 32 correctly or for their intended purpose. very often the choice of methods and means of learning is random, not justified in accordance with the objectives of the lesson; their use is formal and therefore unsuccessful. at the same time, the competent use of methods with a clearly defined role in the general concept of the lesson makes the lesson a fascinating event of involvement and teachers co-working with students, giving to both sides a high degree of satisfaction with the progress achieved (etherington, 2019). importance of integration of it into the educational process times are changing, and a student is “no longer the same introverted child that studied in the workbench of fifteen or twenty years ago;” indeed, we live in a time of “smartphones, tablets, and a wide range of portable technologies at our disposal” (tadeu & brigas, 2018, p. 103), so education, and more specifically the learning and teaching process, should address the necessary means to handle the evolution of ict. computerization of education is designed to improve the quality of education through a fuller use of available information, increase the effectiveness of the educational process based on its individualization and intensification, develop effective methods and technologies for developing education, and integrate various types of activities (educational, research, methodological, scientific, organizational) in the framework of a single methodology based on information technology, preparing graduates for life in the conditions of information society, increasing their professional competence and competitiveness (tureniyazova, 2013). ict has the potential to bring real-life issues into classrooms in a way that was not possible before in a traditional classroom setting. the flexible nature of ict and the internet especially provide pupils (and others) with the opportunities for research, interaction, cooperation, and collaboration (baytak, et al. ,2011; cole, 2000). computer technology is a powerful way to increase the effectiveness of the educational process because the computerization of the learning process makes it possible to work individually with each student according to tasks specially developed for them. this imposes additional tasks on the teacher to improve the educational methods used, to develop new forms and methods of organizing the educational process, providing optimal conditions for selfdevelopment and self-education of pupils and students. in this article, it is our intention to show how such participatory means of teaching and learning as graphic organizers, designed by using ict, could be a very useful tool for motivation, involvement, individualization, visualization, creativity, and effectivity of teaching. graphic organizers as tools for visual thinking and organizing information to raise a generation that is able to think critically, make decisions quickly, and find a way out in critical life situations, it is important to equip students with learning methods and tools for research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 tureniyazova, a.i., using graphical organizers in the teaching process of ict 33 independent, active learning rather than giving them ready material for memorization (tureniyazova, 2018). this pedagogical task requires the effective learning technologies which bring up in the learner the ability to analyze the received (from teacher, from textbook, from internet) educational information, to extract from the total amount of information the necessary, reliable piece, to teach how to use the information found for solving specific problems. according to allan paivio’s theory of dual coding, humans process information in both visual and verbal forms. when we are learning new words or concepts, it is helpful to try to form mental images for those ideas to reinforce their meanings (paivio, 1986). visual thinking is a learning style in which the learner better understands and retains information when ideas, words, and concepts are associated with images. research tells us that the majority of students in a regular classroom need to see information in order to learn it. a graphic organizer is a visual display that demonstrates relationships between facts, concepts, or ideas (inspiration, webgraphy). graphic organizers are communication tools that show the organization or structure of concepts as well as relationships between concepts. they help:  to extract the important, essential information and give an overview of a large subject;  to show the structure of concepts, their hierarchy;  to compare and show relationships and contrasts between concepts;  to sort and range, to show cause and effect, etc. graphic organizers facilitate the assimilation of textual information by its visual presentation. they allow you to penetrate deep into the essence of the concepts, analyze and see the internal relationships, and show the logical sequence of processes, as well as build an algorithm for solving the problem. with their help, one can develop a creative imagination, build various associations, and generate original ideas. one can display a large amount of information in a concise, visual form on one page, making it easier to remember. there are many types of graphical organizers, of which some are good for ranging and sequencing, some make comparison easy, and some are better to use for showing cause and effect. an example of a graphic organizer is a cluster explaining a graphic organizer's concept, as below: http://www.instructionaldesign.org/theories/dual-coding.html research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 tureniyazova, a.i., using graphical organizers in the teaching process of ict 34 figure 1. cluster, “graphic organizers.” many educational institutions worldwide have incorporated the use of clickers and other student response systems such as ipods, laptops, tablets, and smartphones inside classrooms, to make sure they are not left behind as the net generation (oblinger & oblinger, 2005; tarman, 2009, 2010). we can use students’ interest in computers and different types of portable devices (tablets, smartphones, etc.) to make learning “boring” material more fascinating and exciting through the absorbing activity of drawing graphic organizers and searching information for making gos more contentful and unique. gos can be drawn in a very simple graphic editor, microsoft paint. teachers and students can also use ready shapes of the smart art tool of ms word for presenting different structures and relations, or seesaw, power point, or google slides (tureniyazova, 2018). figure 2. smart art tools of ms word for drawing graphic organizers. • • • • • • •• •• text1 text2 text3 text1 text2 text3 text5text4 research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 tureniyazova, a.i., using graphical organizers in the teaching process of ict 35 a mind map is a mainly hierarchical diagram used to organize information, ideas, and understanding of a topic. it is a type of diagram that can aid visual thinking, learning, planning, and creativity (mindmapping, webgraphy), a diagram for representing tasks, words, concepts, or items linked to and arranged around a central concept or subject. it uses a non-linear graphical layout that allows the user to build an intuitive framework around a central concept. a mind map can turn long lists of monotonous information into a colorful, memorable, and highly organized diagram that works with the brain's natural way of doing things. mind maps help us remember information, as they hold it in a format that the mind finds easy to recall and quick to review. the use of graphic organizers showed their high efficiency in my experience in teaching disciplines of a specialty for first-year students of the bachelor's degree in “methods of teaching informatics” at the nukus state pedagogical institute. students are very willing to accept the offer to design graphic organizers using computer devices. they are especially encouraged by the possibility of using smartphones, the use of which is not allowed on the campus of the institute, and internet access. in the actualizing phase with the help of organizers such as kwhl, cluster, how?, etc., the basic knowledge of students on the topic is discovered. then they are shared in lecture texts via shareit, and they could also find materials on the internet to fill out the proposed gos. the role of the teacher is only to facilitate the process, and the students, each individually, bring their work “to perfection.” everyone tries to make their "drawing" bright, original, meaningful. nobody is cheating, no copying! students are very creative in using multi-colored forms, lines, making combinations of different gos, inventing new ones. for example, at the end of december, a student rotated a go fish skeleton, making it a christmas tree, and decorated it with different toys with texts on the topic. work on the initiated gos is to be completed at home, and sometimes it is continued in the next classes on the basis of additional material on the topic. finished work is accepted as one completed task for independent work. examples of using it and graphic organizers in teaching and learning it in this section, we would like to show how graphic organizers could be drawn using a computer, and how learning ict concepts such as a scheme for comparing computer viruses and biological viruses could easily be drawn in ms word. the importance of visualizing concepts is showed by the following examples and structures that state directly the connections and interconnections between the several elements in the study. by doing this, students learn the links and networks of the process in a much easier way. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 tureniyazova, a.i., using graphical organizers in the teaching process of ict 36 figure 3. graphic organizer t-scheme for comparing computer viruses and biological viruses. using a cluster go in the process of teaching the subject of information security could be done by drawing shapes in ms word, as in the following example: figure 4. graphic organizer cluster for “information security” concept. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 tureniyazova, a.i., using graphical organizers in the teaching process of ict 37 figure 5. graphic organizer venn diagram for identifying similarities and contrasts between computer viruses and biological viruses. figure 6. graphic organizer “why?” for analyzing why the computer doesn’t work correctly. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 tureniyazova, a.i., using graphical organizers in the teaching process of ict 38 figure 7. “threats to information” brain droplets. figure 8. web design presented in mind mapping technique (tureniyazova, 2018). a timeline of important events with comments and images on dates, the visual construction of the causal relationships of events and processes, deep insight into the essence of objects by drawing their internal structure and composition, a comparative diagram of two or more similar phenomena, and many other graphical organizers, creative and meaningful, facilitate the individual perception and understanding of the concepts being studied (tureniyazova, 2013). the examples presented here assume a natural position inside of the modern classroom; they can be used due to their easy understandability and the simplicity of connections because they allow students to create powerful mental connections using the knowledge that they possess already and the new data that they are collecting. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 tureniyazova, a.i., using graphical organizers in the teaching process of ict 39 the entrepreneurial spirit needs to be addressed inside the classroom; students and teachers need to adapt to new realities. across the world, we found several examples of the need to develop new and different attitudes facing the learning and teaching process: for instance, in the entrepreneurship 2020 action plan from the european commission, it is stated that the world needs more entrepreneurs, and for that, ict tools could help to bring the necessary and effective change. conclusion to meet the requirements of a quickly changing world and labor market, our graduates must have strong knowledge, skills, and competencies, be able to think critically, be flexible, and be able to analyze the situation and make decisions. to train such personnel, effective educational technologies are needed. learning and teaching processes should develop entrepreneurial capabilities like creativity and auto/self-confidence (paiva & tadeu, 2017), because attitudes of entrepreneurship education help students to be more innovative in their lives. it has been proven that the use of information technologies improves the quality of training, but experience shows that, used with other techniques, they give an even greater effect. presenting information in both text and graphic formats is one of the most basic ways to make a lesson accessible to more students. visibility is one of the main didactic principles for increasing learning efficiency. the use of ict makes it possible to provide this visibility, and good examples of the use of ict in education and self-education are computer-generated organizers. graphic organizers could be a very effective tool of teaching and learning for students of different ages and abilities. they can be used by teachers for presenting new material, for reviewing and testing the students’ knowledge, and for homework or independent study. in the graphic organizers drawn on the computer, one can make changes in the course of mental activity without fear of “spoiling the picture” like in the case of drawing on paper, and that makes students feel free, confident, active, and creative in learning. to conclude, the use of graphic organizers and ict in combination allow for making the learning process easy, interesting, and understandable for students, and that is why it is effective. references baytak, a., tarman, b., & ayas, c. (2011). experiencing technology integration in education: children's perceptions. international electronic journal of elementary education, 3(2), 139-151. cole, r. (ed.). (2000). issues in web-based pedagogy. london: greenwood press. etherington, m. (2019). the challenge with educational transformation. journal of culture and values in education, 2(1), 96-112. retrieved from http://cultureandvalues.org/index.php/jcv/article/view/33 http://cultureandvalues.org/index.php/jcv/article/view/33 research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 tureniyazova, a.i., using graphical organizers in the teaching process of ict 40 garcía-martínez, i., & tadeu, p. (2018). the influence of pedagogical leadership on the construction of professional identity. systematic review, journal of social studies education research (jsser), doi: 10.17499/jsser.90982 oblinger, d., & oblinger, j. (2005). is it age or it: first steps toward understanding the net generation. educating the net generation, 2(1-2), 20. retrieved february 28, 2018, from https://digitalcommons.brockport.edu/bookshelf/272 paiva, t., & tadeu, p. (2017). new approach to entrepreneurship education in primary schools: the bgentl. turkish online journal of educational technology (tojet), http://hdl.handle.net/10314/3911 paivio, a. (1986). mental representations: a dual coding approach. oxford, england: oxford university press. tadeu, p., & brigas, c. (2018). using online programs to centre students in the twenty-first century. in c. fitzgerald, s. laurian-fitzgerald, & c. popa (eds.), handbook of research on student-centered strategies in online adult learning environments (pp. 102-119). hershey, pa: igi global. doi:10.4018/978-1-5225-5085-3.ch005 tarman, b. (2009). the digital divide in education. eric (ed508213) tarman, b. (2010). global perspectives and challenges on teacher education in turkey. international journal of arts & sciences (ijas), 3(17), 78-96. tureniyazova, a. (2013). возможности использования информационных технологий в образовании. муғаллим ҳәм үзликсиз билимлендириў. scientific-methodical journal, 2013, №4. tureniyazova, a. (2013). informatikaning asosiy tushunchalarini o’rgatishda grafikli organayzerlardan foydalanish. physics, mathematics and informatics, scientificmethodical journal, №6. тashkent. tureniyazova, a. (2018). informatikani oqitiwdin formalari, metodlari ham qurallari. t.: “fan va texnologiyalar.” webgraphy (retrieved 03/04/2019) http://www.inspiration.com/visual-learning/graphic-organizers http://www.mind-mapping.org/mindmapping-and-you/knol-on-mind-mapping.html http://www.mindmapping.com/mind-map.php http://ec.europa.eu/growth/smes/promoting-entrepreneurship/action-plan/ https://digitalcommons.brockport.edu/bookshelf/272 http://hdl.handle.net/10314/3911 http://www.inspiration.com/visual-learning/graphic-organizers http://www.mind-mapping.org/mindmapping-and-you/knol-on-mind-mapping.html http://www.mindmapping.com/mind-map.php http://ec.europa.eu/growth/smes/promoting-entrepreneurship/action-plan/ research in social sciences and technology a historical approach to social studies laboratory method1 james mauch cedar crest college wil@weatherhillfarm.com bülent tarman btarman@gmail.com abstract in the early years of social studies education, great attention was given to “social studies laboratories” and a teaching and learning pedagogy called “the laboratory method”. this study examines historical documents about the development of the social studies laboratory. the researchers examined certain periodicals published in the us such as education, the historical outlook and the history teacher’s magazine along with the non-experimental historical research methodology. in an age of inquiry-based projects and “hands-on” approaches to the learning of social studies, a brief historical overview of the foundations of such approaches in the social studies seems appropriate from us perspective. parallels are drawn by using comparative approach, and suggestions made, for a twenty-first century approach to a social studies laboratory and a laboratory method of teaching the many disciplines that define the social studies. the findings of this study indicate that despite the social studies classroom, method and laboratory may have changed a great deal over the past century, the goals of the social studies teacher have not changed. the social studies teacher still works to keep his or her students actively engaged in learning, still works to help them learn new concepts and skills, and still works to help each and every student succeed. above all, the social studies teacher still looks for strategies and tools to help students prepare for life outside of the classroom. in conclusion, a valuable lesson is to be learned from the early development of the social studies laboratory: the room, the technology and the innovative ideas are meaningless unless accompanied by a commitment to move toward student-centered activities and learning, a twenty-first century version of the “laboratory method”. it is when technological access becomes inexorably entwined with teaching strategies that empower students to use, develop and critique the technology that substantive learning takes place in the social studies classroom. keywords: social studies education, laboratory method, inquiry method, united states introduction during the first quarter of the twentieth century, a small cadre of united states (us) social studies educators began calling for what they envisioned as a “social studies laboratory”, 1 earlier version of this study was presented at ii. international congress of educational research, antalya 29april-2may 2010 tarman & mauch research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 55-66 56 a phrase that came to encompass both an idea for a separate room devoted to the exploration of social studies concepts and a methodology for teaching. for the time, both ideas were revolutionary. the “pure sciences” had only recently adopted laboratories in some american schools – rooms where “hands on” experimentation and problem solving would take place. perhaps more revolutionary than the conceptualization of a laboratory for the social studies was the notion that a significant change in teaching strategies would need to accompany the physical changes envisioned to create the social studies laboratory. teachers were no longer to assume the role of a presenter of information; now they would need to become an informed guide for their students. the idea for a social studies laboratory and what subsequently became known as the “laboratory method in social studies” can be traced directly to professor mary sheldon barnes. as early as 1896, professor barnes described the duality of the social studies laboratory and the “laboratory method”: and as science has pushed her way out of the narrow textbook and the common schoolroom, with its dogmatic teacher, into the world of phenomena, and into special laboratories fitted with work-tables, collections, and apparatus…so history is destined to push its way out of the same narrow textbook and common schoolroom, with its dogmatic teacher into the world of human nature, and into special seminaries, fitted with maps, pictures, and books, with a work-table for every student, this whole provided over by a specialist who can guide the student to his sources, and show him how to interpret them truly and critically (p. 4445). the first social studies laboratory in an american school is attributed to the pratt institute of new york city (monroe, 1907; baldwin, 1929). created and developed by one of professor barnes’ former students, the pratt institute’s social studies laboratory aroused both educational and public interest when it was first described. tarman & mauch research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 55-66 57 the concept and design of the early social studies laboratory were formed through various articles that appeared in education, the historical outlook and the history teacher’s magazine between 1902-1916, articles that largely expanded barnes’ description of more than a decade before. the descriptions of what a social studies laboratory should include were remarkably similar throughout the articles – chairs and tables for students instead of fixed desks, political and geographic maps and globes, bookcases, dictionaries, atlases and newspapers (roberts, 1902; morehouse, 1916). in his doctoral dissertation for columbia university’s teachers college, j.w. baldwin (1929) suggested that in addition to the numerous articles written during this period concerning how to outfit a social studies laboratory, a seminal moment in the development of such laboratories occurred during the 1909 annual meeting of the american historical association in new york city. two professors exhibited a collection of the latest laboratory-teaching aides from around the united states and europe. the exhibition caused a sensation of sorts among professors, teachers and school administrators who had already read of such laboratory equipment for the social studies in the leading educational journals of the day, yet now had the opportunity to handle the latest maps, globes, photographs, books and lantern slides. perhaps more significant than what was brought to the exhibition was who brought it professors henry johnson and james shotwell of columbia’s teachers college. the fact that professor henry johnson of columbia’s teacher college was substantially involved in the promotion of a social studies laboratory is testament to the interest surrounding social studies laboratories. johnson had already earned himself a well-deserved reputation for being a “frontier thinker” in the social studies. johnson’s interest in the social studies laboratory did not wane after the 1909 american historical association meeting. indeed, johnson and shotwell led the discussions regarding social studies laboratories during the middle states tarman & mauch research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 55-66 58 association’s meeting in march of 1910 and both the north central association’s meeting and the new england association’s meeting in april of the same year (baldwin, 1929). in addition to furthering the discussion in professional conferences and meetings, johnson and shotwell’s exhibition fueled a multitude of articles throughout the 1920s and 1930s, but these articles differed from previous ones on the subject of the social studies laboratory in two distinct ways. to be sure, the authors continued to advocate for the creation of a social studies laboratory, and their descriptions of the basic equipment necessary for such laboratories included many of the same items mentioned in articles dating from the turn of the century. understandably, some authors (wilgus, 1921; dawson, 1924; kidder, 1925; kutak, 1925-6; and baldwin, 1929) were beginning to advocate equipping social studies laboratories with more technologically advanced equipment such as motion picture projectors and screens, films, projection lanterns and multigraph (a precursor to the mimeograph) machines. the second way in which these articles differed from previous literature on the subject of the social studies laboratory was in their focus on how one would need to teach in the laboratory setting using a specialized method of instruction. this new form of instruction, dubbed the social studies laboratory method, included a substantial amount of what educators today refer to as “student-centered” learning. the laboratory method was so revolutionary because students of the social studies were no longer to be passive learners sitting in fixed rows of desks, preparing for exams and recitations. the social studies teacher was no longer to be a purveyor of information, but rather a knowledgeable guide, coach and referee. a.c. wilgus (1921) described the laboratory method as follows: since this is the laboratory method of teaching and studying history, most of the work is done by the pupils under the constant guidance of the teacher. it is a method whereby the pupils write history and thus study it instead of going to class and reciting after supposedly studying it… the teacher should be the pupil’s constant advisor and guide (p. 24). tarman & mauch research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 55-66 59 under the laboratory method, social studies students were free to move about large tables, counters and workspaces. students conducted their own research on a given topic using the dictionaries, maps, charts, atlases, encyclopedias, magazines, newspapers and journals that were the staples of the social studies laboratory. in the process, students utilized the equipment and technology within the laboratory to create books, bias-relief maps, scale models, charts, graphs, posters, and other visual displays to illustrate their understanding of subject (morehouse, 1916). as the early roots of the progressive era began to form, both the social studies laboratory and the laboratory method experienced subtle changes. some educators of the late 1920s began to conceptualize the social studies laboratory in a different way (hill, 1925). the social studies laboratory began to emerge as a “minimal benchmark” in the progressive school. the new social studies laboratory would encompass laboratory work by students in the community of the school, not just in the laboratory room itself. many educators of the era took this concept one step further, insisting that teachers and students visualize the social studies laboratory as existing beyond the four walls of the classroom. these changes to the laboratory were brought about through changes in the laboratory method, chief among them the idea that students of the social studies should work on real problems facing their school and their community. teachers who employed the laboratory method of instruction were beginning to de-emphasize the compilation of timelines and completed historical outlines in favor of a problem-based study and instruction. popularized by textbook authors like harold rugg, using community problems as a catalyst for research, discussion, and action on the part of social studies students seemed to be the perfect way to revitalize the laboratory method. tarman & mauch research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 55-66 60 if the spark of interest that surrounded the adoption of the social studies laboratory and laboratory method was fanned into flame by the progressive era, it was the gathering storm of world war ii that put the fire out. as america entered world war ii, the emphasis in social studies curriculum shifted to issues more readily recognized as teaching students about “democracy” and “citizenship”. in addition, some administrators began to question how much “real learning” was taking place in the laboratories, given the fact they were much more expensive to equip than a traditional social studies classroom. teachers were also slow to adopt the social studies method. it was time and energy consuming, and many cast a suspicious eye towards reforms that, at least in appearance, suggested that the traditional amount of subject material would not be covered and a substantial amount of “teacher control” over curriculum, learning, testing and discipline would be surrendered to the students. a social studies laboratory for the twenty-first century it is our hope that a renewed emphasis and interest may revive the social studies laboratory and laboratory method. the two core components of the laboratory method, studentcentered learning and social problem solving, are strategies that have not “gone out of fashion” since they were conceived more than a century ago. indeed, practitioners of the social studies are still arguing for the implementation and development of such ideas throughout american schools. the concept of a separate laboratory for the social studies is as intriguing in the twentyfirst century as it was in the twentieth century. more than a century ago, the development of the laboratory was fueled by a combination of pedagogical and technological advancements: tables and chairs in place of fixed desks, supplies to create, build, and help explain numerous concepts related to the social studies, and a belief that students should assume a preponderance of the responsibility for learning. rapid technological advancements, accompanied by equally tarman & mauch research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 55-66 61 rapid declines in costs, are reasons to re-consider the development of a social studies laboratory for the twenty-first century (tarman, 2011). the nature of technological advancement in the twenty-first century is, in itself, evidence in support of social studies laboratories. becoming facile in the use of computers, peripheral equipment, and the internet as a research tool are skills necessary to compete in the national and international marketplace of twenty-first century. important social studies concepts, lessons, skills and ideas can be taught and learned while students become facile in the educationally appropriate use of technology (tarman & acun, 2010). in this way, the nature of the social studies laboratory and the social studies laboratory method become entwined in a significant and meaningful manner that extends far beyond providing students with a new way to present evidence of their learning. one area of great promise involves using technology to explore primary sources of information. primary sources of information in a social studies classroom can eliminate the traditional “filters” of textbook authors, editors and publishers. textbooks introduce bias (“history is written by the victors”), rarely present opposing viewpoints of historical events or people, and seldom raise moral or ethical questions regarding historical events. many educators who employ primary sources of information within their classrooms cite research findings that show students who are exposed to these primary sources are more actively engaged as learners and more fully develop their critical thinking, reasoning and problem solving skills. the argument is that the nature of primary sources themselves can help students “eclipse” the act of simply “absorbing” the material and lead students to analyze and evaluate such sources, recognizing both bias and the potential significance of the information in the process. kathleen craver (1999) argues that it is precisely these skills that students will need to acquire and fully develop if they are to compete in the global arena of the twenty-first century. tarman & mauch research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 55-66 62 in decades past, the availability of primary sources for teachers was limited in comparison to what is available to the social studies teacher today. the technological revolution has made it possible for teachers and their students to search through millions of primary source materials. in addition, technology makes these sources readily available, often through “printer friendly” formats that can be easily printed and shared with students. of more promise is the notion that students can search and analyze primary sources of information that are meaningful to them and of use in their studies, rather than passively accepting what a teacher or textbook says is important. an added benefit is that students who search for and evaluate primary sources of information would become more facile in using the internet as a research tool. technology (via the computer and internet) can expose students to more than just the printed word. internet sources can also provide digital images of artifacts, paintings, dwellings, sounds and places, often in stunning clarity. many museums, both across the united states and the world, provide digital images of much of their collection. some museums even make available artifacts that are not on display to the general public due to space limitations of the facility. in exploring these sites, students are often provided with a digital image (sometimes multiple images of the same artifact from a variety of perspectives) along with written documentation and even sound or video clips to add explanation and meaning to the image. students and their teachers can take virtual tours of historic sites or structures, often being able to listen to diary excerpts or travelogues as they “walk” through rooms of historic structures. many historic sites, museums, national monuments and art galleries have created multi-media “tours” available on cd-roms for students and teachers to peruse. these same technologies can help teachers who want their students to develop a global perspective. students can access cd-roms and the internet to view collections, documents, art, architecture and literature from almost any global culture. often, there exist multiple opportunities for students to interact with local experts, teachers and museum curators regarding tarman & mauch research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 55-66 63 the cultural significance of anything a student discovers on the internet. in addition, “listservs” and cultural “chat rooms” can provide students with many opportunities to digitally converse with people from around the world. all of these technological resources available to social studies teachers and students provide ample support for the social studies laboratory. such a laboratory can provide students and teachers with the physical space to house the infrastructure necessary to support technology in a way that can both protect equipment and ensure the optimal placement of computers, printers, smartboards, scanners, videocassette recorders and televisions. the social studies laboratory supports student research, small group instruction, cooperative learning, and student presentations that would utilize a variety of multimedia tools. conclusion though the social studies classroom, method and laboratory may have changed a great deal over the past century, the goals of the social studies teacher have not changed. the social studies teacher still works to keep his or her students actively engaged in learning, still works to help them learn new concepts and skills, and still works to help each and every student succeed. above all, the social studies teacher still looks for strategies and tools to help students prepare for life outside of the classroom. access to technological hardware and software combined with the need to develop our students to be critical consumers of information and to become facile in the use of technology have important implications for developing social studies laboratories for the twenty-first century. many arguments similar to those of over a century past can still be voiced, such as the need for a separate (or better yet, adjoining) room that would both be wired for and house the technological tools of our time. innovative teachers of the social studies are still advocating forms of the laboratory method – inquiry learning, constructivist approaches, cooperative learning, “hands on” active learning, and other student-centered approaches. much like their tarman & mauch research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 55-66 64 twentieth century counterparts, today’s social studies teachers support the adoption of technological innovations and tools to enhance student engagement, thinking and learning. unfortunately, one fact of life in american public education that has remained unchanged since the appearance of the first social studies laboratory is that many school districts across the nation are woefully under-funded. technological hardware and software are expensive, and some school buildings have yet to be wired to support the technological infrastructure necessary to equip a school with the type of social studies laboratory about which we have written. additionally, there are substantial costs associated with meaningful teacher training programs that will help teachers develop the skills necessary to operate, maintain and utilize the capabilities of a given technology. and what of state and national standards? classroom teachers have complained that the pressure to “teach to the standards” so that students succeed on high-stakes tests curtails their ability to teach some important skills and concepts (ayas, 2009). what promise does technology hold for alleviating this pressure? technology is a precise tool, but what it is used for and how well it is used is dependent upon the person who uses it. it may be no better or worse at helping students succeed on standardized tests than more traditional instructional tools. school districts and classroom teachers should not adopt technological hardware and software based solely on their desire to address the standards in social studies or any other discipline. if understood and developed properly, the social studies laboratory of the twenty-first century will not be a seldom-used educational gimmick full of “bells and whistles” of dubious educational value. to fund technology for the sake of appearing to be on the cutting edge of education is a waste of time and money and both commodities are too valuable in today’s schools. a valuable lesson is to be learned from the early development of the social studies laboratory: the room, the technology and the innovative ideas are meaningless unless accompanied by a commitment to move toward student-centered activities and learning, a tarman & mauch research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 55-66 65 twenty-first century version of the “laboratory method”. it is when technological access becomes inexorably entwined with teaching strategies that empower students to use, develop and critique the technology that substantive learning takes place in the social studies classroom. references ayas, c. (2009). the impact of the ohio graduation test on geography instruction as perceived by the secondary social studies teachers in central ohio. unpublished dissertation, ohio state university, columbus. baldwin, j.w. (1929). the social studies laboratory: a study of the equipment and teaching aides for the social studies. unpublished doctoral dissertation, teachers college, columbia university. barnes, m.s. (1896). studies in historical method. boston: dc heath. dawson, e. (1924). the social studies laboratory. the historical outlook xv (6), 25-29. hill, h.c. (1925). laboratory work in civics. the historical outlook xvi (3), 80-83. kidder, l. (1925). a social studies laboratory. university high school journal, 1 (3), 194-207. kutak, r. (1925-6). the ideal social studies classroom. junior high school social studies committee of the department of superintendence fourth yearbook, 354-356. monroe, w.s. (1907). the history of the pestalozzian movement in the united states. syracuse, ny: bardeen. morehouse, f. (1916). forms of the history recitation. the history teacher’s magazine, vii (10), 332-337. roberts, f.h. (1902). laboratory method in civil government. education xxii, 477-479. tarman, b. & acun, i. (2010). social studies education and a new social studies movement, journal of social studies education research, (1), 1. 1-16. tarman & mauch research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 55-66 66 tarman, b. (2011). sosyal bilgiler öğretiminde yeni yaklaşımlar ii,(new approaches in social studies education ii) sosyal bilgiler eğitiminde sosyal bilgiler laboratuarlarının yeri ve önemi,(importance of social studies labs in social studies education) edt.: r. turan, a.m. sünbül & h. akdağ, ankara: pegema yayıncılık. wilgus, a.c. (1921). the laboratory method in the studying and teaching of history. the historical outlook, xii (1), 23-27. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) e-issn: 2468-6891 122 evaluation on the effectiveness and usability of the developed collaborative interaction management system salvacion mata-domingo1 abstract a collaborative interaction management system (cims) is a system that potentially provide some assistance to the teachers in managing the student’s collaborative interaction in forum discussions. the projected main function of the cims is to provide tools that automatically gauge the quality of interaction as reflected in student’s individual contributions so as to make it easier for the instructor to make judgments on the effectiveness of the collaborative process. this study aims to assess how effective and usable is the developed cims based on the evaluation of faculty and students. the descriptive research design is utilized in this study. the five-point likert scale is used and the gathered data are statistically interpreted through the utilization of a weighted mean. the sample population of this study is the one hundred twenty participants coming from the different universities in the area where the survey was conducted. the researcher adopted a survey instrument made by some software specialists. the bases of the instrument are some of the characteristics listed on the software quality model of iso 9126. these are the functionality, usability and the reliability. each of these software characteristics is described by some indicators to obtain the responses of the participants. the overall evaluation of the participants displayed the weighted mean of 4.0, thus it can be concluded that the functionality, usability and reliability of the software is very good. key words: effectiveness, usability, software quality, collaborative interaction management system introduction in the traditional lecture-based method of teaching and direct instruction, learning is primarily perceived as involving the simple transfer of fixed knowledge from the teacher to the students. in this paradigm, the teacher's main responsibility is to cover as much course material and deliver knowledge to their students. in such a setup, the minds of students are viewed as empty vessels in which knowledge can easily be poured into; as such, learning is simplistically presumed to have occurred when students have individually integrated and organized the knowledge they received 1 lecturer gulf college, mabela, muscat, sultanate of oman, salvacion.sally@gulfcollege.edu.om mailto:salvacion.sally@gulfcollege.edu.om mata-domingo in their heads. while such methodology and perspective has been tried-and-tested, it nevertheless has numerous disadvantages. over the years, perspectives on learning have evolved considerably. educators nowadays, have increasingly realized the inadequacy of the lecture-based approach and have started to view learning as a process that is based more on student’s personal experience. in this new paradigm, learning is defined as being context-sensitive and focused more on selfdiscovery and exploration. knowledge therefore is viewed as being created within a group process where interaction between individuals and the sharing of experiences in learning activities are the primary motivators. the teacher’s responsibility in this scenario is shifted towards getting students to interact with each other in a productive and supportive manner. learning environments that emphasize the social nature of learning are considered as valuable tools in this new paradigm (baytak, tarman & ayas, 2011; tarman & baytak, 2011; tarman, 2012). tools like forum discussion that pays particular attention to promoting and encouraging communicative cooperation and collaboration is a good example of this kind of environment. in fact, in the e-learning panacea, both in the academe and the industry, discussion forums are gaining tremendous popularity as a mechanism for increasing learner interaction. the utilization of discussion forum in academic setting is often problematic. the main reason is the enormous amount of time and effort that it imposes to implementing teacher-mediators in monitoring and guiding student interaction. another factor is the high level of difficulty faced by the implementing teachers in evaluating the contributions of students in such online interactions. in the field of e-learning, similar problems are being addressed through the development of specialized environments such as the learning management system (lms) and content management system (cms). after thorough study the researcher was able designed a framework that was used to develop a management system that potentially provide the teachers some assistance in managing student’s collaborative interaction in forum discussions. this is the system that is referred to as a collaborative interaction management system (cims). the task of the researcher does not end after the development of cims. there is a need to evaluate the effectiveness and usability of the developed cims; thus, this study was conducted. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 122-133 objectives and rationale of the study there are huge number of researches that explore about some areas of information and communication technology; however, it is believed that there are limited studies that explained its effectiveness and usefulness which would guide the developers on how to enhance their newly created system. the developed cims could reduce the time and tasks of the teachers when making decisions on the assessment’s performance of every student. through the results of this study the teachers would be equipped with more knowledge and they will be able to extend more support to the students in managing their collaborative interactions. moreover, it would also address the end users’ perspective (teachers and students) as regards to the issues of measurement on the quality characteristics of the developed software. in addition, the outcomes of this research would serve as a tool, to be utilized by the end users namely teachers and students as well as designers of instructional technology, which could expedite progressions in their communication and instructions activities. review of related literature nowadays, in the area of education technology is widely used. this includes the use of powerpoint presentation, study reading materials, online books, and the like. technology has become very important for any business whether it is a small medium enterprises or huge corporations. the meetings with employees around the world are now scheduled with the use of the internet. technology changes most of people’s lives (tarman, 2009; yucel et.al, 2010). the connection between families even in the different parts of the world are maintain through the use of cellphones and electronic mail. in other words, technology is used in various activities and in the different areas; thus, it is expected that improvements will continue over time and it will aid in making the works of average people a lot easier (“what role does technology”, 2017). yet, in the paper of bocar and biong ( 2015 ) they recommended that students must be more careful in the utilization of on information and communication technology either it be within or outside the school so that mata-domingo the time and money could be spent wisely so that it will bear good results and goals for success will be achieved. iso 9126 is an international standard for the evaluation of software. the iso 9126 or other quality model transports clearness on the meaning of purpose and operating capability; however, the requirements, compliance and operating environment of software continuously changing; thus, the search to find valuable characteristics that facilitate measurement and control of the software production process continue (mccall, 1977). the important purpose of a product or service connotes functionality. the more functions the products or services have the more complicated it becomes. in the case of software there is specified list of functions. usability refers to the easiness of use for a given function. it may also refer to the ability to learn on how to use a system. it is considered as a major sub-characteristic of usability. specifically, reliability is define as the capability of the system to uphold the provision of its service under defined conditions for definite periods of time. it is a software characteristic which include fault tolerance. this means that the system has the ability to recover and continue its functioning after it experienced failure (mccall, 1977). according to the study of bala and chana (2012) “fault tolerance is a major concern to guarantee availability and reliability of critical services as well as application execution”. it was explained in their study that the impact of failure can be minimized through pre-emptive measures. technical people must forecast failures and take proper actions before failures actually happen. this is the meaning of fault tolerance techniques. the researchers above mentioned proposed cloud virtualized system architecture. in the proposed system autonomic fault tolerance was implemented and it was found out that the proposed system can deal with various software faults for server applications in a cloud virtualized environment. according to britain and liber, (2003) since early 1980’s the academe have used email to communicate and the influence of technology continues as the growth and explosion of internet came very popular that leads academician to undertake in making their lecture notes and other supplemental reading materials on the web for the students to look through. it is common nowadays to some universities to have web-interfaces. some institutions used conferencing software to create online group discussions. these are the innovations brought about by the modern technology. it is not surprising when it researchers would be able to develop software to further research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 122-133 make the technology more useful in the educational setting. the developed software could be used as a teaching and learning tools. there are numbers of software quality characteristics; however, chua and dyson (2004) explained that the three software quality characteristics amongst others namely: functionality, reliability and usability are assessable, thus, this encourage the researcher to evaluate the effectiveness and usability of the developed cims. an instrument with specific indicators designed from the quality characteristics of the iso 9126 software quality model by experts (davis, 1989; tullis and stetson, 2004) was adopted to assess the developed cims. the problem the implementation of the developed cims was not assumed as perfect; thus, assessment needs to be done. this study specifically focus on what is the level of the effectiveness and usability of the developed cims based on the evaluation of the (a) teachers, and (b) students? scope and limitations of the study this study focuses on the evaluation of the software’s quality that is assessed by the information technology (it) teachers and students from various universities in metro manila using evaluation criteria provided in the iso 9126 software quality assessment tool. the general objective of this study is to determine the observation of the user-participants on the developed cims. method this section discussed the process on how this study was conducted. the descriptive research design is utilized in this study. the projected main function of the cims is to provide tools that automatically gauge the quality of interaction as reflected in student’s individual contributions, thus, it makes it easier for the instructor to make judgments on the effectiveness of the collaborative process. in order to fully investigate the cims as a system, which is appropriate for use by faculty and students in the subject area, the characteristics of the cims have to be evaluated. the quality characteristics items mentioned in iso 9126 software quality model was the bases of the adopted evaluation instrument on the effectiveness and usability of the developed cims. these are the mata-domingo functionality, usability and reliability. each of these software characteristics is described by some indicators, from the work of davis, (1989); tullis and stetson, (2006) to obtain the responses of the participants. the sample population is randomly chosen which composed with the thirty teachers and thirty students from the selected universities in the national capital region area. one hundred twenty are the total number of participants of this study. statistical tools the five-point likert scale was used and the gathered data are statistically interpreted through the utilisation of the weighted mean. for purposes of interpretation, analysis, and discussion the researcher constructed the scale of measurement as follows: numeric value hypothetical mean range qualitative description verbal interpretation 1 1.00 1.80 poor means that the functionality/ usability/ reliability is not at all effective / usable 2 1.81 – 2.60 fair means that the functionality/ usability/ reliability is slightly effective / usable 3 2.61 – 3.40 good means that the functionality/ usability/ reliability is effective / usable at majority of the time 4 3.41 – 4.20 very good means that the functionality/ usability/ reliability is effective / usable at most of the time 5 4.215.00 excellent means that the functionality/ usability/ reliability is always effective / usable data gathering procedure prior to the administration of the instrument the researcher ask permission from the heads of office of the four universities. for confidentiality and ethical reasons they are named as, a university, b university, c university and d university. after the approval of the request the questionnaire was distributed to the participants. the answered questionnaires were collected and the gathered data are tallied, interpreted, and analised. results and discussion research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 122-133 the table below reflects the results of the study. the participants exposed the level of the effectiveness and usability of the developed system. functionality based on the gathered data the participants revealed the functionality of the developed cims. it can be observed in the results as manifested by the participants that out of the six (6) description or indicators to measure the functionality of the developed cims four (4) of them were rated very good. nevertheless, the two (2) of them were rated excellent. the results show that to some extent the functionality of the developed cims is effective at most of the time. moreover, its usefulness would improve job performance and enhance effectiveness always. table 1 effectiveness and usability of the developed cims legend: hypothetical mean range qualitative description verbal interpretation functionality item average (µ) qualitative description 1. using the system in my job would enable me to accomplish tasks more quickly 4.20 very good 2. using the system would improve my job performance 3. 90 excellent 3. using the system in my job would increase my productivity 4.60 very good 4. using the system would enhance my effectiveness on the job 4.51 excellent 5. using the system would make it easier to do my job 4.41 very good 6. i would find the system useful in my job 3.50 very good factor average 4.19 very good usability 1. i think that i would like to use this system frequently 4.56 excellent 2. i found the system unnecessarily complex 3.72 very good 3. i thought the system was easy to use 4.21 excellent 4. i think that i would need the support of a technical person to be able to use this system 3.42 very good 5. i found the system very cumbersome to use 3.85 very good 6. i felt very confident using the system 4.62 excellent factor average 4.06 very good reliability 1. overall, i am satisfied with the ease of completing the tasks in this scenario 4.13 very good 2. there are not enough errors preventive messages in the system 2.70 good 3. with the amount of time it took to complete the tasks in this scenario 4.37 excellent 4. overall, i am satisfied with the support information (online-line help, messages, documentation) when completing the tasks 3.78 very good factor average 3.75 very good overall average 4.00 very good mata-domingo 1.00 1.80 poor means that the functionality/ usability/ reliability is not at all effective / usable 1.81 – 2.60 fair means that the functionality/ usability/ reliability is slightly effective / usable 2.61 – 3.40 good means that the functionality/ usability/ reliability is effective / usable at majority of the time 3.41 – 4.20 very good means that the functionality/ usability/ reliability is effective / usable at most of the time 4.21 5.00 excellent means that the functionality/ usability/ reliability is always effective / usable usability moreover, with respect to the usability of the developed cims, the table above showed split results. as evaluated by the participants, they rated excellent on the three of the six (6) descriptions or indicators. they revealed that they would like to use this system frequently since it was easy to use, and they felt very confident using the system always. however, in the other three (3) descriptions or indicators the participants rated the effectiveness and usability of the developed cims at most of the time. this signifies that the developed cims is effective and usable but nonetheless the assistance of the technical person is necessary at some extent as it shows the lowest item average (µ=3.42) among other descriptions in this characteristic. this situation is reasonable since every individual has his or her own expertise. as per the definition of american heritage dictionary of the english language (2016) a technical person in the scientific field means “one who is having or demonstrating special skill or practical knowledge relating to information technology”. in the present study some of the participants are students which is it presumed that their skills and practical knowledge are yet inadequate. reliability in addition, with regard to the probability that the developed system does not experience many failures in the given time interval the participants demonstrated that they are satisfied on the effectiveness and usability of the developed cims as shown in the results on the table above. however, the participants established that errors preventive messages must be increased in the system to decrease the failures on the part of the users. the overall results displayed the rating of very good which means that the effectiveness and usability of the cims is at most of the time. the results of this present study strengthen the words of bala and chana (2012) when they stated in their study that to minimize failure, forecast on the future failures needs to be done and take the appropriate actions before failures actually happen. this signifies the application of fault tolerance techniques. table 2. summary of the participants evaluation on the effectiveness and usability of the developed cims legend: software characteristics factor average (µ) qualitative description research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 122-133 hypothetical mean range qualitative description verbal interpretation 1.00 1.80 poor means that the functionality/ usability/ reliability is not at all effective / usable 1.81 – 2.60 fair means that the functionality/ usability/ reliability is slightly effective / usable 2.61 – 3.40 good means that the functionality/ usability/ reliability is effective / usable at majority of the time 3.41 – 4.20 very good means that the functionality/ usability/ reliability is effective / usable at most of the time 4.21 5.00 excellent means that the functionality/ usability/ reliability is always effective / usable in total, the table 2 above encapsulated the participants’ evaluation on the developed cims. it is awe-inspiring that after rigorous effort of the researcher the users of the developed cims are pleased and rated the effectiveness and usability of the system at very good level even though there are areas that needs more valuable improvements. the rating that the participants established implies that they found the developed cims effective and/or usable at most of the time. findings after the thought-provoking interpretation and analysis of the gathered data the researcher found that: (1) the effectiveness of the functionality characteristic of the developed cims is at most of the time; (2) there is a split result as to the usability characteristic of the developed cims; however, fifty percent of the indicators or descriptions are rated at excellent level; (3) participants demonstrated that they are satisfied on the effectiveness and usability of the developed cims as regards to its reliability though the system needs more additional preventive messages to reduce the failures of the users; (4) the overall results showed that the developed cims is effective and usable at most of the time. discussion, conclusion and implications based on the results, analyses and findings of this study it can be concluded that though the functionality, usability and reliability of the developed cims was evaluated by the participantusers at very good level which implies that at most of the time it is effective and usable. the evaluation is a good motivation to address the area which shows a little weaker point. these weak 1. functionality: the ability to do something well or achieved a desired result from the forum. 4.19 very good 2. usability: measured in terms of the increase in productivity using the new system. 4.06 very good 3. reliability: it refers to the probability that the system under consideration does not experience many failures in the given time interval. 3.75 very good overall average 4.00 very good mata-domingo points need further study and enhancement in order to make it more effective and usable. specifically, to wit: in the usability characteristic of the developed cims the description which says that, the participants need the support of a technical person to be able to use this system must be given greater consideration since this signifies that though they rated the overall usability at very good level they still found some difficulty to some extent. moreover, it can be noted that the reliability characteristic gathered the lowest factor average among the other two characteristics. thus, more improvements or enhancement in this area must be done. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 122-133 references american 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(2006). a comparison of questionnaires for assessing website usability. retrieved september 2015 from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/ 228609327_a_comparison_of_questionnaires_for_assessing_website_usability valenti, s., cucchiarelli, a. & panti, m. (2002). computer based assessment systems evaluation via the iso9126 quality model. journal of information technology education, 1(3), 157175. what role does technology play in our lives? (2017). iac publishing, retrieved july 2017. llc. from https://www.reference.com/world-view/role-technology-play-livesa6e4ca6f4c2593 ca?qo=contentsimilarquestions# yucel, c., acun, i., tarman, b., & mete, t. (2010). a model to explore turkish teachers' ict integration stages. turkish online journal of educational technology, 9(4), 1-9. https://www.reference.com/world-view/role-technology-play-livesa6e4ca6f4c2593%20ca?qo=contentsimilarquestions https://www.reference.com/world-view/role-technology-play-livesa6e4ca6f4c2593%20ca?qo=contentsimilarquestions research in social sciences and technology (ressat) e-issn: 2468-6891 79 the influence of managerial skill and creativity on decision making in public junior high schools of tangerang city and regency syafa’at ariful huda 1 abstract the objective of this research is to study the effect of managerial skill and creativity on principals’s decision making in public junior high school of tangerang city and regency. this research used survey method. the samples of this research were 60 persons selected randomly. technique of data collection tools is using instrument in the questionnaire. the data were analyzed by using descriptive statistics and path analysis in inferential statistics. the result of the research concluced that: managerial skill and creativity had direct effect on principal decision making of public junior high school. therefore to improve principal decision making, managerial skill and creativity should be improved. key words: decision making, managerial ability and creativity. introduction the establishment and implementation of law no. 22 of 1999 on local government, law no. 25 of 2000 on financial balance between central government and local government, and government regulation no. 25 of 2000 on government authority and province as autonomous region have given some authorities in education which used to be managed by the central government. local regions receive full authority to develop all fields, including education. to improve overall human resources, improve quality of education, distribute opportunity to get education, and improve relevance of education, as well as cooperation in providing education, policies and programs from elementary education to higher education are required. improvement of quality of education is a policy to reach the purpose of national education in a planned, regulated, focused, and continuous way. there have been many efforts, including: refining curriculum, improving quality of principal, and providing adequate and qualified education 1 lecturer, stkip kusumanegara, indonesia, syafaathuda@yahoo.com mailto:syafaathuda@yahoo.com research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (2), 79-92 80 facilities consistent with development needs. some of the education facilities are books, props and education media which have been distributed to schools. the creative process of principal in leading a school is an essential factor to create managerial skill. good managerial skill requires creativity in managing subordinates (csikszentmihaly, 1996). creative process binds all components into one integral part. the bond which is created due to principal’s creativity in leading will encourage cooperation and develop visionary attitude to influence decision making (james, et. al., 2012). in 2012, a principal of a public junior high school of tangerang regency unilaterally performed mutation of teachers without any clear reason, so the schools teachers reported the principal to the mayor of tangerang. similar thing happened with a principal of a public junior school of tangerang city, who dismissed 7 teachers because “civil servant teachers aren’t required”. according to the circular letter (se) of minister of for public servants (menpan), honorary teacher in public schools shouldn’t be dismissed. principals across tangerang city also released a unilateral policy for the students’ parents. poor decision making of junior high school principals of tangerang regency and city is apparent in: 1. inconsistency between activity plans and programs, 2. decision making unsupported by school programs, and 3. decisions not reflecting the aspiration of other members of the schools. the incidences above were due to the principles having limited managerial skill in terms of creativity, unfamiliarity between superiors and subordinates, and other factors systematically affecting the development of junior high schools. in practice, schools should be guaranteed, meaning decisions are made by using managerial skill, knowledge, creativity, time, and energy of the principals, to the schools are able to achieve their goals and targets which in turn enable them to survive and even grow quantitatively and qualitatively. in other words, good decision making process of principal will be able to drive school to achieve, maintain and develop positive and productive attitudes and behaviors for the school. if teachers and other staff are dissatisfied with principal’s decision, it will negatively impact macro and micro policies. based on the introduction above, this paper will study the influence of managerial skill and creativity on decision making of principals in tangerang regency and city. huda decision making decision making in rational model, manager makes decision objectively and with all necessary information. after selecting solution, it’s followed by implementation, the evaluation of the effectiveness of the solution (kreitner & kinicki, 2008). decision making is a dynamic process (luthans 2011). such dynamic process has behavior and strategic implication in organizations. most recent empirical research indicates the decision process which includes strategic decision-making generates good decisions in the organization. however there are still many problems, for instance managers who make wrong decisions. back to the dominant role played by information technology in effective decision-making practice and analysis, the study relevance and the application of organizational behavior is called decision making behavior. “decision making is part science and part art” (kreitner & kinicki, 2008). decision making is important for managers or education administrators because decision making process plays an important role in organizational motivation, leadership, communication, coordination, and transformation. the decision taken by the administrator affects educational customers, especially learners. therefore, each educational administrator must master fast, accurate, effective and efficient decision making skills. as a part of the management function, in taking or making a decision, a manager is often required to choose one decision from a variety of alternatives. in reality, the types of decisions taken or made by managers or leaders in the organization will give impact on the development of the organization. several factors, such as the external environment, past experience, the level of knowledge of managers or leaders, and the relationship between people (members) in the organization affects the decision making made by a manager or leader. this is supported by “decision making is almost universally defined as choosing between alternatives” (luthans, 2011). it’s related with traditional management role that when manager plans, manages, and control, they make decision. an individual with good decision making skill will try to work as best as possible to make organization runs smoothly. someone with good decision making sill in organization will identify with their organization and be fully engaged and loyal, as well as having positive affection for the organization. the dynamic process has implication on behaviors and strategies in organization. the latest empirical studies indicate that decision making process which includes making strategic choice research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (2), 79-92 82 produces good decision in organization (robbins & coulter, 2012). decision making is a process of identifying and selecting solution to achieve desired or expected end result (kreitner, 2010). the quality of decision made by manager is the benchmark of their effectiveness. sometimes, one or two good or bad decisions strongly affect the success of one’s career or organization’s success. decision making is essentially selecting from several alternatives. decision is a choice made from existing alternatives (dessier, 2004). from the explanations above, it’s concluded that decision making is an action performed by someone to select the best solution from a number of the best alternative solutions from a number of available alternative solutions to solve a problem in an organization. managerial skill many tasks performed in a team are achieved by being interdependent and involving the managerial skills of the principal. therefore managerial skill plays an important role in determining the benefit of the loss of process (tarman & dev, 2018; tarman, 2017). ability can be viewed from how decisions makers are able to perform different but related activities. in other words, ability is relatively stable or continuous in certain tasks (colquitt et. al., 2011). ability is categorized into cognitive, emotional, and physical abilities. these abilities should be possessed by managers. cognitive ability is an ability which refers to the discovery and application of knowledge to solve problem. therefore, principals’ managerial skill is important in decision making process. in cognitive ability, there are three types of abilities, but the one suitable in the managerial process is quantitative ability. quantitative skills refer to mathematical abilities where reasoning problems can be conducted by mathematical logic approach, both in simple and complex manner. it means that quantitative capabilities can be implemented for the process of selecting and applying alternatives in order to solve problems (luthans, 2011). “skill is the specific capacity to physically manipulate objects”. making new products takes skill. technical skills: knowledge of methods, processes, procedures and techniques for doing specific activities of the organizational unit of the manager. technical skills also include factual knowledge on the organization (rules, structures, management systems, employee characteristics), and knowledge on the organization’s products and services (technical specifications, strengths and limitations). this type of knowledge is obtained by a combination of formal education, training, and work experience (kreitner & kinicki, 2008). huda interpersonal relationship skills: it is also called "social intelligence", including knowledge on human behavior and group processes, the skill to understand feeling, attitude, and motivation of others; and the ability to communicate clearly and persuasively. a manager who understands others and is very attractive, tactical, and diplomatic will have more cooperative relationships than those with no feeling and are offensive. conceptual skill: it is skill which covers general analytical abilities, logical thinking, eloquence in conceptualization, and conceptualization of complex and ambiguous relationship, creativity in idea creation, problem solving, and ability to analyze events and perceive trends, anticipate change, and recognize opportunities and potential problems (inductive and deductive thinking). a leader is needed to organize and manage the course of an organization. in the carrying out functions, organization leaders need skills, and skills that support for success in doing their duties to achieve organizational goals established. an organization success or failure is largely determined by its leadership. a leader must have the ability in organizing his/her organization. ability is a characteristic brought since birth or learned, and it allows a person to complete the work assigned to him/her. the principal of the secondary school as a source must have managerial capability the ability of principal of high school to implement his or her work activities with involvement of teachers, staff, students and the surrounding community with the special skills and proficiency, doing efforts to make use of those interrelated activities in order to achieve educational goals. the activities include: a) planning; planning is basically the process of determining the activities to do in the future. this activity aims to set various resources to achieve results as expected. it means that in the planning process, there are efforts to use human resources, natural resources, and other resources to achieve goals (robbins & coulter, 2012). the principal of secondary school as the leader of an educational institution, in achieving the educational objectives, requires planning by setting goals, actions and decisions based on method, plan or logic, rather than on feeling for the goal of making the education system more effective and efficient while producing quality graduates (output). b) organizing is a process of employing two or more people to work together in a structured way in order to achieve specific goals or multiple goals. in other words, organizing is the process of research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (2), 79-92 84 managing and allocating work, authority and resources among members of the organization, thus they can achieve organizational goals. the principal of secondary school as a leader and manager must have the ability and skill in organizing all potentials owned by organizations and should be able to change the organization he/she leads into an effective working group to achieve the goals set (tarman, 2016; 2012). c) leadership involves directing, influencing and motivating employees to perform duties. the most important in leadership is the manager’s relationship with everyone working with she/ he to perform the task well and achievement of the goals or objectives set (schermerhon, 2010). the principal of secondary school must have a responsible characteristic, always appear as a person respected, trusted, exemplified, and obeyed therefore the principal as a leader really take function as a source of inspiration teacher, staff and student. d) “controlling it is a process to ensure that the real activity is in conformity with the planned activity. managers must rest assure on the actions taken by members of the organization really move the organization toward the goals formulated (robbins & coulter, 2012). successful managers certainly have the same abilities, because each capability matches the fields, or the ability is more useful for the appropriate types of work. nonetheless, the more important is to determine what successful/ effective leaders/ managers do. in relation to the principle of management in the implementation of managerial duties, fred luthans as an educator and corporate executive identifies five basic types of skills each manager must have: “a. cultural flexibility, b. communication skills, c. hrd skills, d. creativity, e. self-management of learning.” leaders in domestic organizations, similar skills are arguably constructive criticism, given the gradually increasing contrast. communication, human resources, creative problem solving, personal science development are important to leaders not just managing, but also recognizing and observing the value of differences in their organizations. thus, the target set by the organization will be easy to achieve. based on the concept descriptions above, managerial skill is cognitive knowledge to know, understand and apply knowledge in solving problems including planning, organizing, leadership, and control. huda creativity creative thinking ability determines one’s flexibility and imagination in terms of problem and making effective decision (anita woolfolk, 2009). creative thinking does what is known to be what may happen (fred luthans, 2011). creativity requires observation, experience, knowledge, and indefinite ability in which each person needs to organize common elements into new patterns. creativity is a process of using intelligence, imagination, and skill in developing new product, object, process, or thought (kinicki & kreitner, 2008). they also explain that the definition highlights three types of intelligence; a creative person can create something new (creation), connect or synthesize something (synthesis), or improve or change something (modification). if someone can create something new, synthesize something, or modify something, they are creative. creative will rise to surface if there is interaction between individuals and their environment. it means that changes in the individual and the environment can either support or hamper creative efforts. creativity is a supreme expression owned by humans for the problem-solving process, which involves original ideas and is obtained from generation to generation in an integrated manner derived by genes in humans (feist & gregory, 2009). match with it, “creativity is a process by which an individual, group, or team produces novel and useful idea to solve a problem or capture an opportunity” (ivancevich et. al., 2008). essentially, creativity is an intelligence or ability possessed by every person which grows naturally if continuously trained and is unlimited. it can also be defined as a process of individual, group, or team in producing new and useful idea to solve problem or take opportunity. a process is called the creative process, it is divided into two parts, finding and proving. discovery involves the use of imagination, game of ideas, and exploration. based on the conceptual description above, creativity is an individual’s or a group’s implementation of mental ability and curiosity to find something new (thought, idea, and product). method research design research design indicated that: there is a direct effect of managerial ability to principals’s decision making, there is a direct effect of creativity to principals’s decision making and there is a direct effect of managerial ability to creativity. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (2), 79-92 86 the relationship among research variables can be described in the constellation of the problem below. figure 1: research design population and sample/ study group/participants the study population was 71 principals of public junior high schools. the sample of respondent based on random sampling with slovin formula amounted to 60 principals of public junior high schools in tangerang city and regency. data collection tools the data collection in this research is done through distributing questionnaires designed in the form of likert scale. on this scale the proposed statements are supplemented with five alternatives answers and their weightings for each alternative. for the likert scale, the details are: (1) always scored 5, (2) often scored 4, (3) sometimes scored 3, (4) rarely scored 2, (5) never scored 1. data collection the unit of analysis in this study was the principals of public junior high schools in tangerang city and regency. data analysis the data were analyzed by using descriptive statistics and path analysis in inferential statistics huda findings table 1. summary statistic description test result no. variation decision making creativity managerial skill 1. mean 102.45 105.08 19.28 2. standard error 0.98 1.60 0.50 3. median 103.50 103.19 19.82 4. mode 104.50 98.35 20.15 5. standard deviation 7.60 12.40 3.91 6. sample variance 57.7093 153.7726 15.2574 7. range 34 48 18 8. minimum 83 87 7 9. maximum 117 135 25 10. sum 6147 6305 1157 11. count 60 60 60 table 2. est. with liliefors test (lo) variation n lcount ltable conclusion α = 5% α = 1% decision making – managerial skill 60 0.092 0.114 0.131 normal decision making creativity 60 0.088 0.114 0.131 normal creativity – managerial skill 60 0.110 0.114 0.131 normal table 3. summary of regression linierity test result variable n regression linearity conclusion fcount ftable 0,05 fcount ftable 0,01 decision making on 60 8.61 ** 4.01 0.86 ns 2,52 very significant/linier research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (2), 79-92 88 managerial skill decision making on creativity 60 13.51** 4.01 0.51 ns 2.44 very significant/linier creativity on managerial skill 60 4.91 * 4.01 1.90 ns 2.52 very significant/linier remark: * significant at p α = 0.05), **significant at α = 0.01 the result of structure model path analysis can be described in figure 2 as follows: figure 2: result path coefficient discussion, conclusion and implications hypothesis 1 (the effect of managerial skill on decision making) path coefficients directly influence managerial skill on decision making (p31) = 0.258. positive path coefficient describes the influence of which is directly proportional, so that perceived managerial skill will increase decision making. the ttest values obtained at 2.16 while the value of t-table with df = 58 is 2.00. the value is t count > t-table, so that the hypothesis is accepted. it means that there is a direct effect of managerial skill on decision making. it was in line with colquitt’s integrative model which demonstrates that decision making is influenced by managerial skill. the research result supported the statement of “cognitive ability refers to capabilities related to the acquisition and application of knowledge in problem solving. cognitive ability are very relevant in the jobs most of you will be involved with that is, work involving the use of information to make decisions and solve problems” (colquitt et. al., 2011). managerial sill had positive effect on decision making, so managerial skill which is a part of managerial process had important huda relation with decision making. therefore, the principals could optimize and improve their managerial skill to improve decision making at school. hypothesis 2 (the effect of creativity on decision making) path coefficients directly influence creativity on decision making (p32) = 0.363. positive path coefficient describes the influence of which is directly proportional, so that perceived creativity will increase decision making. the ttest values obtained at 3.04 while the value of t-table with df = 58 is 2.00. the value is t count > t-table, so that the hypothesis is accepted. it means that there is a direct effect of creativity on decision making. this was in line with colquitt’s integrative model which demonstrates that decision making is influenced by creativity. similarly, (fred luthans, 2011) in organizational behavior, human behavior at work states that “creative thinking skills determine how flexibly and imaginatively people can deal with problems and make effective decisions”. creativity for a lot of people means that they see work as very important and their life goal. they tend to love work. worker who has high creativity usually also has effective decisions for organization and organizational purpose. therefore, principals should improve their creativity to improve decision making at schools. hypothesis 3 (the effect of managerial skill on creativity) path coefficients directly influence managerial skill on creativity (p21) = 0.279. positive path coefficient describes the influence of which is directly proportional, so that perceived managerial skill will increase creativity. the ttest values obtained at 2.34 while the value of t-table with df = 58 is 2.00. the value is t count > t-table, so that the hypothesis is accepted. it means that there is a direct effect of managerial skill on creativity. colquitt’s integrative model which demonstrates that managerial skill is influenced by creativity. according to dess and joseph as quoted by (fred luthans, 2011) in organizational behavior, “one analysis argues that five key leadership roles can help shape managerial successes (and failures) in the near future. the include: (1) a strategic vision to motivate and inspire, (2) empowering employees, (3) accumulating and sharing internal knowledge, (4) gathering and integrating external information, and (5) challenging the status quo and enabling creativity”. managerial skill drives someone to significantly improve creativity. similarly, to improve managerial skill in organization, creativity should be optimized. conclusion based on the result, it’s concluded that: (1) managerial skill had positive and significant influence on decision making level. based on this finding, it’s concluded that the hypothesis that managerial research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (2), 79-92 90 skill had direct influence on decision making was accepted. (2) creativity had positive and significant influence on decision making level. based on this finding, it’s concluded that the hypothesis that the hypothesis that creativity had direct influence on decision making was accepted. (3) managerial skill had positive and significant influence on creativity level. based on this finding, it’s concluded that the hypothesis that managerial skill had direct influence on creativity was accepted. huda references anon, (2002). teacher in tangerang city. retrieved april 10, 2013, from http://www.republika.co.id. anon, (2011). retrieved november 16, 2013, from http://www.aroundbanten.com/2011/09/14/principal-school-in-city-tangerang. anon, (2006). decision staff of the regional councils. retrieved april 11, 2013, from http://www.creationvoice-online.com/news.html?id=151361. colquitt, l., & wesson. (2011). organization behavior, improving performance and commitment in the workkplace.. new york: mcgraw-hill irwin. csikszentmihaly, m. (1996). creativity, flows and the psychology of discovery and invention. new york: harper collins publisher. dessier, g. (2004). management principles and practices for tomorrow’s leader. new jersey, pearson education. feist, j. & gregory j. f. (2009). theories of personality. new york: mcgraw-hill. luthans, f. (2011). organizational behavior. new york: mcgraw-hill. gibson, l. james et al, (2012). organizations behavior, structure, processes . new york: mcgraw-hill. ivancevich, m. j., konopaske, r., & matteson, (2008). organizational behavior and management. boston: mcgraw-hill. kreitner, r. & kinicki, a. (2008). organization behavior key concepts, skill & best practice. new york : mcgraw-hill. kreitner, r. (2010). organizational behavior. newyork, mc.graw-hill. robbins p. s. & coulter, m. (2012). management. pearson education limited. schemerhorn, r. j. (2010). intoduction to management. asia: sons (asia) pte ltd. tarman, b., & dev, s. (2018). editorial: learning transformation through innovation and sustainability in educational practices. research in social sciences and technology, 3(1), i-ii. retrieved from http://ressat.org/index.php/ressat/article/view/363 tarman, b. (2017). editorial: the future of social sciences. research in social sciences and technology, 2(2). retrieved http://ressat.org/index.php/ressat/article/view/329 http://www.republika.co.id/ http://www.aroundbanten.com/2011/09/14/principal-school-in-city-tangerang http://www.creationvoice-online.com/news.html?id=151361 http://ressat.org/index.php/ressat/article/view/363 research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (2), 79-92 92 tarman, b. (2016). innovation and education. research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 77-97. tarman, b. (2012). effective leadership in culturally diverse schools. energy education science and technology part b: social and educational studies, 4(2), 1103-1114. woolfolk, a. (2009). educational psychology. boston: pearson education. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) e-issn: 2468-6891 teachers’ perceptions on using smartphones in teaching english as a foreign language context ali alzubi 1 abstract this study explored the perceptions of english as a foreign language (efl) teachers at a foundation year in a university in saudi arabia. forty-one (27 males and 14 females) teachers completed a survey using google forms. the results indicated that the majority of teachers (83%) supported the integration of smartphones in efl context, in which 71% believed that smartphones would enhance students’ efl learning. 72% reported that they used smartphones for university-related work: sending and receiving emails, accessing the internet, and using educational applications were the most reported beneficial features whereas scanning/creating qr codes, using calculator, playing games, and playing a podcast were the least reported.79 % believed that smartphones would have instructional benefits for learners such as access to technology, motivation, creativity, english language learning opportunities, and variation in instruction, whereas 58 % did not notice any barriers in the use of smartphones in efl context. that smartphones might distract students’ attention was the only reported barrier. recommendations and implications for further research and applications were suggested. key words: english as a foreign language, foundation year, perceptions, saudi arabia, smartphones introduction mobile phones’ capabilities are being improved in education day by day. regardless of place and time, their features and applications have made them useful to improve the process of learning. research on the use of mobile phones for learning purposes revealed a gradually increasing use among learners (johnson & radhakrishnan, 2017; ng, hassan, nor, & malek, 2017). in order for this technology to succeed in education, it needs to be investigated in the light of the three main pillars of education: students, teachers, and curricula. this study examines the teachers’ perceptions about integration and use of smartphones in perceiving english as a foreign language. 1 dr. alzubi, najran university, aliyarmouk2004@gmail.com mailto:aliyarmouk2004@gmail.com research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 92-104 previous research revealed that teachers are still not in favour of or reluctant to adopt this technology in the classroom because of little adequate training of using mobile phones (ozdamli & uzunboylu, 2015), knowledge (şad & goktas, 2014), beliefs about negative consequences (kafyulilo, 2014), and fears of inappropriate use (kafyulilo, 2014; thomas, o’bannon, & britt, 2014). the number of users of smartphones and internet is increasing very fast and students use them for study purposes both in and outside the classroom in saudi arabia. (al-fahad, 2009; alsaid, 2015; hazaea & alzubi, 2016). however, there is still ambiguity about how teachers perceive these tools in the classroom because there was not enough research done on teachers’ perceptions towards using this technology in language learning. therefore, it is very important to understand the teachers’ perceptions on using smartphones in efl classroom before integrating any new learning methods or tools in order to have an inclusive picture about efl teachers’ perceptions on using smartphones in connection with support, features, benefits, and barriers among preuniversity students in a different cultural context (e.g. saudi arabia). review of literature smartphone integration in efl context the plenty of features that smartphones have in the absence of time and place restrictions have made them unavoidable and undeniable in education. according to kukulska-hulme (2016), the importance of mobile technology is perceived to have three features: constant and immediate help, inclusive education (help learners overcome any barriers that hinder their potential), and various uses of technology without any prior request. these kinds of help can be offered in formal settings in educational institutions such as university, school, college, and kindergartens and in informal learning settings such as home, entertainment, or at work (jaldemark, 2018). looking like glasses that make seeing better, lyddon (2016, p. 304) argues that the importance of smartphones resides in assisting learners to ‘observe and recall things better, fill gaps in our knowledge, and enhance our ability to communicate.’ with smartphones can deliver learning potentials where efl learners can learn in authentic situations, and self-regulation modes (persson & nouri, 2018). in learning through mobiles, learners can claim power over their learning where they can interact with people, collaborate for feedback, and monitor and evaluate their learning on their own shall improve social interaction, autonomy, and motivation and have less time in formal learning settings (azar & nasiri, 2014; kim & kwon, 2012). alzubi 94 previous research revealed that mobile phones have the ability to help provide collaboration (joseph & uther, 2009), to reduce anxiety (rahimi&yadollahi, 2011), to access and engage with learning materials (pegrum, 2014), to enhance communication (lyddon, 2016), to provide didactic conversation (miglani &awadhiya (2017), to give input or feedback (zulkafly, shariman, & zainuddin, 2011), and to take charge of their learning (alzubi, kaur, & hazaea, 2019; hoffmann, 2017; rubin, 2018). benefits of using smartphones in education the promising features and potentials of smartphone in learning require that teachers accept and appreciate these technological tools and use them to vary their teaching methods. teachers’ perceptions on mobile phones’ integration in teaching and learning has been reviewed. in malaysia, zulkafly et al. (2011) claimed that teachers are not conservative mobile phones adaptation in learning and are very keen to employ new methods in teaching. the teachers reported that mobile phones could be used to take attendance, to write and send announcements, and to set schedules. in turkey, ozdamli and uzunboylu (2015) concluded that teachers were in favour of using mobile phones in learning, but had insufficient level of training adequacy in mobile learning. oz (2015), another turkish scholar, revealed that teachers had high levels of perceptions towards the use of mobile phones in language learning and these perceptions were affected by gender and gpa. in india, o'bannon, waters, lubke, cady, and rearden (2017) reported that most teachers who participated in the study supported the use of mobile phones in the classroom. the teachers used mobile phones for a number of tasks that included e-mail, text messages, internet, reading texts, videos, calendar, and clock/alarm/timer features. in five commonwealth countries, miglan and awadyhiya (2017) revealed that teachers in open and distance learning modes expressed their positive perceptions towards mobile learning as they believed in mobile phones’ potentials in enhancing the learners’ engagement. in new zealand, aldrich (2017) found out that teachers perceived mobile phones as powerful educational tools and worthy of implementation to access knowledge and enhance learning in the classroom. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 92-104 barriers of using smartphones in education teachers do not always favour the use of mobile phones in learning. in america, for example, thomas et al. (2014) revealed that teachers were not in favour of allowing students to use mobile phones in the classroom due to a number of issues relating to cheating, accessing to inappropriate content, cyberbullying, and disruption. perhaps, the little support of teachers to students to use mobile phones in the classroom and for school related work can be justified by the fear and little trust in students as they might not be mature enough to control and use mobile phones for learning purposes in addition to the barriers above. serin (2012) found out that turkish teachers had inaccurate information about mobile integration in learning and believed that mobile learning would decrease effective communication environment in the classroom. şad and goktaş (2014) found out that preservice teachers mostly had little positive perceptions about the potentials of mobile phones as learning tools. in tanzania, it was found out that although mobile phones were mostly used in schools and colleges and their use in teaching and learning was the lowest due to teachers’ little knowledge about employing these tools for learning purposes, also due to their beliefs on the negative consequences that may result from using mobile phones. furthermore, teachers reported that flirting, little attention, immoral acts (e.g., watching pornographic videos) (kafyulilo, 2014) can stand as barriers of mobile phone integration in learning. in the light of review of literature, this study examined the teachers’ perceptions towards using smartphones in efl context in a different cultural context, i.e., saudi arabia, and for the reason that very little research was conducted about the topic. this study hopes to verify the previous findings and provide suggestions and recommendations for further applications about the use of the most spread technological tools (smartphones) for learning purposes. thus, this study examines the following research question in order to present a complete picture about the teachers’ perceptions on using smartphones in different cultural contexts: how do teachers’ perceive the use of smartphones among pre-university students in efl context in saudi arabia? method population and sample of the study the study targeted all efl teachers (56) at a foundation year programme in a university in the southern region of saudi arabia. thirty-seven male and fourteen female teachers in level one and two comprised the sample of the study. foundation year is a programme of two semesters with the alzubi 96 main aim of preparing high school students for the university specialised study. four skills are taught by the foundation year programme: english skills, computer skills, math skills, and communication skills. the following table (table 1) shows the participants’ particulars involved in the study: table 1 qualities of participants category details field of study english language teaching, applied linguistics, linguistics, translation. english language foreign, second or first language arabic language foreign or first language age 20-65 gender both (male & female) nationality multinational (saudi arabia, jordan, india, pakistan, sudan, yamen, egypt, britain) data collection in this quantitative research, the data were collected through a survey about the teachers’ perceptions towards using smartphones in efl context. survey an adapted survey of forty-six items by thomas et al. (2014) was administered through google forms to collect data to provide answers for the research questions. the survey consisted of demographic information (6 items) (gender, age, teaching experience, teaching level, courses, smartphone expertise), teachers’ support for the use of smartphones in efl context (2 items), beneficial smartphone features (18 items), instructional benefits to using smartphones in efl context (11 items), and instructional barriers to using smartphones in efl context (9 items). data analysis the data were analysed through features by google forms in form of percentages and finding means and standard deviation by excel programming. validity of the survey was evaluated by four experts in the field of computer/mobile-assisted language learning. suggestions and comments related the clarity of some items were considered. then, the survey was piloted, and the cronbach research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 92-104 alpha value was .78. it is noted that due to the imbalance in the number of male and female participants of the study, the differences based on gender were not analysed. findings how do teachers’ perceive the use of smartphones among pre-university students in efl context in saudi arabia? demography table 2 depicts the demographic data of the teachers who agreed to participate in the study. it is shown that teachers who completed and submitted the survey were 41 (73 %) out of 56 participants: 27 (66 %) male, 14 (34%) female teachers. participants’ ages range from 20-30 (4 participants: 8.9 %), 31-40 (17 participants: 41.5 %), 41-50 (15 participants: 36.5 %), and 51above (5 participants: 12.2%). the teaching experience years had the following percentages: 1-5 (11 participants: 26.8 %); 6-10 (10 participants: 24.4 %); 11-15 (6 participants: 14.6%); 16-20 (5 participants: 12.2 %); and 21-above (9 participants: 21.9 %). as for the teaching level, the participants expressed that 60 % (25) teach both levels (one and two), 31.7 % (13) teach only level one, and 7.3 % (3) teach only level two. in addition, reading skills are taught by 17 participants (41.5 %), writing skills by 13 participants (31.7 %), listening and speaking skills by 19 participants (46.3), and grammar by 15 participants (36.4%). with regard to level two, technical writing is taught by 19 participants (46.3%) and general english by 17 participants (41.5%). finally, data analysis of smartphone expertise showed that 32 participants (78 %) of the teachers have a very good expertise with the use of smartphones (m=3.92, sd= 0.909). table 2 demography n. item category frequency percentage standard deviation gender male 27 66% female 14 34% age 20-30 4 8.9% 31-40 17 41.5% 41-50 15 36.5% 51-above 5 12.2% alzubi 98 teaching experience 1-5 11 26.8% 6-10 10 24.4% 11-15 6 14.6% 16-20 5 12.2% 21-above 9 21.9% teaching level level one 13 31.7% level two 3 7.3% both levels 25 60% courses reading skills 17 41.5% writing skills 13 31.7% listening & speaking skills 19 46.3% technical writing 19 46.3% general english 17 41.5% 1 how do you rate your expertise with smartphones? 3.92 0.909 teachers’ support for the use of smartphones in efl context as per the table below (table 3), the figures depict that 34 (83%) of the participants support the use of smartphones in efl context (m=3.96, sd=0.802) and 29 (71%) think that smartphones support students’ efl learning (m=3.85, sd=0.802). table 3 teachers’ support for the use of smartphones in efl context n. item means standard deviation 2 i support the use of smartphones in efl context. 3.96 0.802 3 i think that smartphones support students' efl learning. 3.85 0.917 use of smartphone features table 4 shows that 72 % of the participants reported that smartphones are of very good benefit in efl context (m=3.60, sd=0.700). sending and receiving emails (m=4, sd=0.802), accessing the internet, and (m= 4.14, sd=0.582) and using educational apps (m=4.07, sd=0.655) were the most reported beneficial features. the least reported benefit of smartphone features were scanning/creating qr codes (m=3.59, sd=0.700), using calculator (m=3.62, sd=0.757), playing games (m=3.65, sd=1.106), and playing a podcast (m=3.63, sd=0.798). research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 92-104 table 4 teachers’ use of smartphone features for university related work n. item means standard deviation 4 sending and receiving text messages through smartphones are useful in efl context. 3.96 0.793 5 sending and receiving emails through smartphones are useful in efl context. 3 0.802 6 sending and receiving tweets through smartphones are useful in efl context. 3.74 0.883 7 accessing the internet through smartphones is useful in efl context. 4.14 0.582 8 taking photos through smartphone is useful in efl context. 3.70 0.854 9 posting pictures online through smartphones is useful in efl context. 3.70 0.857 10 recording audio/video through smartphones is useful in efl context. 3.92 0.740 11 watching videos through smartphones is useful in efl context. 3.96 0.833 12 playing music through smartphones is useful in efl context. 3.74 1.038 13 playing a podcast through smartphones is useful in efl context. 3.62 0.798 14 playing games through smartphones is useful in efl context. 3.66 1.106 15 using clock/alarm/timer in smartphones is useful in efl context. 3.74 0.962 16 using calendar in smartphones is useful in efl context. 3.74 0.784 17 using calculator in smartphones is useful in efl context. 3.63 0.757 18 social networking through smartphones is useful in efl context. 3.88 0.659 19 downloading apps on smartphones is useful in efl context. 3.88 0.793 20 using educational apps through smartphones is useful in efl context. 4.07 0.655 21 scanning/creating qr codes through smartphones is useful in efl context. 3.59 0.700 total 3.81 0.165 instructional benefits to using smartphones in efl context table 5 displays teachers’ perceptions on the instructional benefits in the use of smartphones in efl context. 79 % of the participants agreed that smartphones have instructional benefits in efl context (m=3.94, sd=0.140). they strongly agreed that smartphones increase access to technology (m=4.03, sd=0.538), increase students’ motivation (m=4, sd= 0.762), facilitate students' creativity (m=4.03, sd= 0.705), provide english language learning opportunities regardless of place and time (m=4.18, sd=0.682), and provide opportunities for variation in instruction (m=4, sd=0.604) in efl context. that smartphones increase digital fluency was reported the least instructional benefit towards using smartphones in efl context (m=3.70, sd=0.781). alzubi 100 table 5 instructional benefits to using smartphones in efl context n. item means standard deviation 22 smartphones increase access to technology in efl context. 4.03 0.538 23 smartphones increase students' engagement in efl context. 3.77 0.789 24 smartphones increase student's motivation in efl context. 4 0.762 25 smartphones facilitate students' creativity in efl context. 4.03 0.705 26 smartphones increase students' productivity in efl context. 3.77 0.797 27 smartphones decrease digital divide for students with no computer at home. 3.96 0.643 28 smartphones increase students' collaboration in efl context. 3.92 0.576 29 smartphones increase students' communication in efl context. 3.89 0.758 30 smartphones increase digital fluency. 3.70 0.781 31 smartphones provide english language learning opportunities regardless of place and time. 4.18 0.682 32 smartphones provide opportunities for variation in instruction. 4 0.604 total 3.94 0.140 instructional barriers to using smartphones in efl context as shown in the following table (table 6), 59 % of the participants did not perceive any barriers in the use of smartphones in efl context (m=2.89, sd=1.011). one of the barriers is that 39% agreed that smartphones may distract students’ attention (m=3.33, sd=1.106). however, 53.7% were not of the opinion that smartphones are a waste of time (m=2.48, sd= 1.003), and 41% did not consider smartphones as a barrier in cheating (m=2.81, sd=0.813), 46.3% in accessing learning apps (m=2.85, sd=0.803), 36.6 % in disrupting learning (m=2.74, sd=0.975). table 6 instructional barriers to using smartphones in efl context n. item means standard deviation 33 smartphones are a barrier to students' efl learning in accessing to apps. 2.85 0.803 34 smartphones are a barrier to students' efl learning in cheating. 2.81 0.803 35 smartphones are a barrier to students' efl learning in cyber bullying. 3 0.715 36 smartphones have a negative impact on students' writing. 3 0.997 37 smartphones are a barrier to students' efl learning in harassment. 2.88 0.643 38 smartphones distract students' attention. 3.33 1.106 research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 92-104 39 smartphones are a barrier to students' efl learning in accessing inappropriate content on the internet. 2.96 1.048 40 smartphones disrupt students' efl learning. 2.74 0.975 41 smartphones are a waste of time. 2.48 1.003 total 2.89 1.011 discussion it has been found that teachers’ perceptions towards the use of smartphones in efl context are positive. this tendency is based on their use of smartphones for university related work, the promising features of smartphones, the absence of time and place, and the belief in their capability in enhancing students’ english language learning. to put in a nutshell, the most of efl teachers who participated in the study supported the integration of smartphones in efl context because they believe that smartphones would enhance students’ efl learning. despite the little number of teachers in o'bannon et al.’s (2017) study, the majority of the teachers supported the use of mobile phones in the classroom owing to the fact that smartphones would support students’ learning. unlike thomas et al. (2014), 39 % of the teachers had seen a supportive role in using mobile phones in the classroom. it was also found that the majority of the teachers use smartphone features in efl context. sending and receiving emails, accessing the internet, and using educational apps were the most reported beneficial features. the least reported smartphone features were scanning/creating qr codes, using calculator, playing games, and playing a podcast. like thomas et al. (2014), 60 % of the teachers reported that they used mobiles for schoolwork. except for accessing the internet, thomas et al. (2014) and o'bannon et al. (2017) reported that calendar, clock alarm/timer as the most used whereas sending and receiving emails, scanning/creating qr codes and playing a podcast were the least. the various findings can be justified by the new rapid advancements in revolution of smartphones which have made all applications available on smartphones regardless of time and place. in addition, the participants reported that smartphones increase access to technology and students’ motivation, facilitate students’ creativity, provide english language learning opportunities regardless of place and time, and provide opportunities for variation in instruction in efl context. alzubi 102 this finding goes in line with o'bannon et al. (2017) except for the statement that smartphones increase digital fluency which was reported the least in this study. furthermore, the teachers expressed their concern about the use of smartphones in efl context with regard to distracting students’ attention. this finding does not correspond with o'bannon et al. (2017) who reported that teachers view accessing to inappropriate content on the internet as the primary barrier. thomas et al. (2014) reported the teachers’ concerns on the learners’ use of mobiles to cheat, access inappropriate content, cyberbully, and create classroom disruptions, and a lack of student access and on students’ writing. the integration of smartphones in learning is on the increase and their practicality is being improved day by day. this may justify the variance in some findings. conclusion smartphones are being proved day by day as valuable learning tools amid the absence of time and place restrictions. this study aimed to identify the teachers’ perceptions towards using smartphones in efl teaching and learning context at the university level in saudi arabia. the findings indicated that teachers have positive perceptions about smartphone integration in efl context due to the useful features such as sending and receiving emails, accessing the internet, and using educational apps; and instructional benefits for students that include access to technology, motivation, creativity, and opportunities for variation in instruction. as for barriers in using smartphones in the classroom, teachers were only worried that smartphones would distract students’ attention. due to the imbalance in the numbers of male and female teachers, no comparisons were made based on gender differences. these findings imply a call for stakeholders to support the integration of these tools in the triangular processes of teaching and learning methods, curricula, and students. they are also invited to furnish the floor for experimental studies that investigate the applicability of various smartphone features in efl context. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 92-104 references aldrich, s. t. 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(2017). mobile learning: readiness and perceptions of teachers of open universities of commonwealth asia. journal of learning for development, 4(1), 5871. ng, s. f., hassan, n. s. i. c., nor, n. h. m., &malek, n. a. a. (2017). the relationship between smartphone use and academic performance: a case of students in a malaysian tertiary institution. malaysian online journal of educational technology, 5(4), 58-70. o'bannon, b. w., s. waters, j. lubke, j. cady & k. rearden (2017). teachers and students poised to use mobile phones in the classroom. computers in the schools, 34, 3, 125-141, doi: 10.1080/07380569.2017.1347454 alzubi 104 oz, h. (2015). an investigation of preservice english teachers' perceptions of mobile assisted language learning. english language teaching, 8(2), 22-34. ozdamli, f., &uzunboylu, h. (2015). m‐learning adequacy and perceptions of students and teachers in secondary schools. british journal of educational technology, 46(1), 159-172. pegrum, m. (2014). mobile learning: languages, literacies and cultures. basingstoke, uk: palgrave macmillan. persson, v., & nouri, j. (2018). a systematic review of second language learning with mobile technologies. international journal of emerging technologies in learning (ijet), 13(02), 188-210. rahimi, m., &yadollahi, s. (2011). success in learning english as a foreign language as a predictor of computer anxiety. procedia computer science, 3, 175-182. rubin, d. (2018). adapting teaching strategies to arab student needs in an efl classroom. journal of ethnic and cultural studies, 5(1), 16-26. şad, s. n., &göktaş, ö. (2014). preservice teachers' perceptions about using mobile phones and laptops in education as mobile learning tools. british journal of educational technology, 45(4), 606-618. serin, o. 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(2011). educators’ perceptions towards mobile learning. paper presented at the artificial intelligence workshop, kuala lumpur, malaysia. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 caceres-reche, hinojo-lucena, navas-parejo, and romero-rodriguez. the phenomenon of cyberbullying in the children and adolescents population: a scientometric analysis 115 the phenomenon of cyberbullying in the children and adolescents population: a scientometric analysis maría-pilar cáceres-reche university of granada francisco-javier hinojo-lucena university of granada magdalena ramos navas-parejo university of granada josé-maría romero-rodríguez* university of granada *corresponding author: romejo@ugr.es received : 03.07.2019 accepted : 08.09.2019 how to cite this paper: caceres-reche, m. p., hinojo-lucena, f. j., navas-parejo, m.r., & romero-rodrigues, j. m. (2019). the phenomenon of cyberbullying in the children and adolescents population: a scientometric analysis. research in social sciences and technology, 4(2), 115128. abstract cyberbullying has become a global problem; cases of violence increase and the rate of suicide by victims has skyrocketed. the purpose of this work was to analyze the scientific production published on cyberbullying in children and adolescents from its beginning until 2018. to this end, a scientific analysis was carried out in the scopus database, determining diachronic productivity, journals, countries, and institutions with the greatest interest in the subject and articles with greater scientific impact due to the number of citations. in addition, a network map was established to highlight keywords related to cyberbullying in both populations. among the results, it is worth noting the increase in publications in 2018 and the configuration of certain journals, institutions, countries, and authors as references in the subject. finally, potential explanations for the findings of the study and suggestions for future research are discussed. keywords: cyberbullying, children, adolescents, bibliometrics, scientific production introduction although aggression between equals is a fact that has historically existed in society, today, with the development of the internet and information and communication technologies (icts), this type of behavior has intensified. the internet has increased aggressive behaviors at earlier ages due to the easy access children have to mobile devices and the lack of control to open a profile research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 caceres-reche, hinojo-lucena, navas-parejo, and romero-rodriguez. the phenomenon of cyberbullying in the children and adolescents population: a scientometric analysis 116 on social networks (hennig, cuesta, fernández, & dorival, 2019). networks have allowed bullying to extend from the school context to other personal and social environments through cyberbullying (waasdorp & bradshaw, 2015). therefore, cyberbullying is defined as bullying and harassment between equals through icts (cuesta, muñoz, & izquierdo, 2018). some studies directly relate that most aggressors are men and the majority of victims are women (moreno-ruiz, martínez-ferrer, & garcía-bacete, 2019). others studies state that overweight or obesity is also a condition for being a victim of cyberbullying (garcía-hermoso, oriol-granado, correa-bautista, & ramírez-vález, 2019). however, the aggressor-victim profile is sometimes diffuse, as the electronic platform allows us to easily reverse these roles and meet victims who become aggressors (aboujaoude, savage, starcevic, & salame, 2015). among the main consequences of being a victim of cyberbullying is the presence of low selfesteem, feelings of loneliness, suicidal thoughts (kopecký & szotkowski, 2017), and anxiety (ruíz-martín, bono-cabré, & magallón-neri, 2019). at the same time, victimization is associated with serious psychosocial, affective, and academic problems (tokunaga, 2010). in the spanish context, the average age of the aggressor is usually similar to that of the victim, 13.8 years old (ballesteros, 2017), a period of transition from childhood to adolescence. added to this is that the star gift in the first communion of children is a smartphone, being an aggravating factor in these cases, since the computer and mobile phone are the channels through which such actions are perpetrated. in this scenario, the abuse of the mobile device and the time invested in the network begin to be linked to the problematic use of the internet. habitual and uncontrolled web surfing increases the chances of being a victim of cyberbullying (smith et al., 2008; tabuenca, sánchezpeña, & cuetos-revuelta, 2019). in this respect, parental controls are fundamental to avoid this type of risk situation (chester, magnusson, klemera, spencer, & brooks, 2019; katz, lemish, cohen, & arden, 2019). at the same time, teacher training is also key to mitigating this type of aggressive online behavior (wachs, bilz, niproschke, & schubarth, 2019). it is the responsibility of the family and the school to put the focus of attention on the children in their charge. information and training are absolutely necessary for families and teachers to be trained in the prevention and intervention of online aggressions. sometimes the lack of information leads to the belief that cyberbullying is an isolated behavior, but it is usually linked to other risky behaviors such as cybergrooming (adults deceiving minors), sexting (sending images with sexual content) (arias, buendía, & fernández, 2018), or cybergossip (lópez-pradas, romera, casas, & ortega-ruiz, 2017). thus, the repercussion on the minor is so great that it can generate psychological disorders and, in the worst case, death. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 caceres-reche, hinojo-lucena, navas-parejo, and romero-rodriguez. the phenomenon of cyberbullying in the children and adolescents population: a scientometric analysis 117 additionally, cases of cyberbullying are increasing in geographically disparate territories such as the united states (baiden, graaf, zaami, acolatse, & adeku, 2019), the united kingdom (przybylski, 2019), spain (menesini et al., 2019), china (chu, fan, lian, & zhou, 2019), and turkey (horzum, ayas, randler, & düşünceli, 2019). the aim of this study was to analyze the production of scientific articles regarding cyberbullying in children and adolescents. research questions given the seriousness of this issue for the emotional well-being of children and adolescents and the increase in recent years in cases of bullying connected to ict, it is very appropriate to analyze the scientific production that exists indexed in the database scopus, one of the most prestigious databases, based on the following research questions: rq1 how many studies were published over the year? rq2 which journals, countries, and institutions concentrate the greatest scientific production on cyberbullying in scopus database? rq3 what are the topics of the articles with the greatest impact on cyberbullying in children and adolescents? rq4 what are the main terms related to cyberbullying in children and adolescents? methods in this scientometric study, a methodology of bibliometric analysis was used (ardunuy, 2012; hinojo, aznar, cáceres, & romero, 2019). likewise, the following search equations were established: cyberbullying and children; cyberbullying and adolescent. these two equations were entered into the search engine of the scopus database in order to analyze the state of the matter in these two different populations involved in cyberbullying. sample the unit of analysis was determined on the basis of the application of a number of inclusion and exclusion criteria. the inclusion criteria were: (1) scientific articles published in journals and peer-reviewed; (2) year of publication from origin until 2018; (3) appearance of descriptors in title, abstract, or keywords; (4) published in english. on the other hand, the exclusion criteria were related to: (1) documents not subject to review by experts; (2) articles published in 2019, as it was not a completed year; (3) descriptors not included in the title, abstract, or keywords; (4) the language of publication is not english. after the application of the criteria, the sample consisted of a total of 1,097 documents: cyberbullying and children (n = 417) and cyberbullying and adolescent (n = 680). research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 caceres-reche, hinojo-lucena, navas-parejo, and romero-rodriguez. the phenomenon of cyberbullying in the children and adolescents population: a scientometric analysis 118 the search was carried out on all existing documents in the scopus database, using both equations and following the sole criterion of restricting the search until 2018. data analysis the data were analyzed from microsoft excel and vosviewer programs. results the diachronic productivity of cyberbullying publications in the child and adolescent population shows that most documents are concentrated from 2014 onwards (figure 1). at the same time, 2018 is the year with the most production. based on price's law, literature would be in a phase of exponential growth, begun in 2014 in both populations (price, 1986). it is therefore a subject in full expansion. figure 1: diachronic output on cyberbullying in children and adolescents these results answer the first research question about the amount of scientific production that exists in the scopus database on cyberbullying in children and adolescents over the years. in relation to journals on this topic, a cluster of journals specializes in the subject of cyberbullying. in both populations, there are seven journals in the top 10 with the highest production, especially cyberpsychology behavior and social networking and computers in human behavior (table 1). research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 caceres-reche, hinojo-lucena, navas-parejo, and romero-rodriguez. the phenomenon of cyberbullying in the children and adolescents population: a scientometric analysis 119 table 1. journals with highest scientific production journal children adolescent cyberpsychology behavior and social networking computers in human behavior computers in human behavior cyberpsychology behavior and social networking journal of adolescent health international journal of environmental research and public health journal of adolescence journal of adolescent health international journal of environmental research and public health aggressive behavior psicothema journal of adolescence journal of interpersonal violence journal of adolescent health journal of youth and adolescence psicothema aggressive behavior children and youth services review bmc public health frontiers in psychology among the 10 countries with the greatest number of documents in the child and adolescent population, the united states produced the most (28.05% children; 30.44% adolescents), followed by the united kingdom in the child population (12.70%) and spain in adolescence (14.70%). the rest of the countries collect an amount of documents lower than 10% (table 2). table 2. countries with highest scientific production country children adolescent n % n % united states 117 28.05 207 30.44 united kingdom 53 12.70 49 7.20 spain 49 11.75 100 14.70 canada 34 8.15 40 5.88 australia 24 5.75 33 4.85 germany 24 5.75 36 5.29 czech republic 18 4.31 24 3.52 israel 16 3.83 18 2.64 belgium 15 3.59 38 5.58 italy 15 3.59 33 4.85 turkey 10 2.39 23 3.38 as for the institutions with the highest production (table 3), the first three in both populations are: universiteit antwerpen in the netherlands, masaryk university in the czech republic, and research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 caceres-reche, hinojo-lucena, navas-parejo, and romero-rodriguez. the phenomenon of cyberbullying in the children and adolescents population: a scientometric analysis 120 the university of cordoba in spain. these institutions collect a larger amount of documents than the rest, situating themselves as specialists in the subject matter. table 3. organizations with highest scientific production organization children adolescent n % n % universiteit antwerpen 14 3.35 35 5.14 masaryk university 13 3.11 23 3.38 university of cordoba 12 2.87 23 3.38 mcgill university 11 2.63 9 1.32 university of castilla-la mancha 10 2.39 7 1.02 university of toronto 10 2.39 7 1.02 nanyang technological university 8 1.91 7 1.02 università degli studi di firenze 8 1.91 16 2.35 göteborgs universitet 7 1.67 6 0.88 open university of israel 7 1.67 8 1.17 university of seville 7 1.67 17 2.5 universiteit gent 4 0.95 15 2.20 university of valencia 6 1.43 13 1.91 pennsylvania state university 4 0.95 11 1.61 university of deusto 2 0.47 11 1.61 university of wisconsin-eau claire 5 1.19 10 1.47 tables 1, 2, and 3 provide answers to the second research question, which reflects the increased production of cyberbullying documents across journals, countries, and institutions. the articles with the greatest impact are collected due to the high number of citations (table 4). it was taken as a criterion that they had more than 500 citations. based on this, five articles are collected that refer to cyberbullying in both the child and adolescent population. the first of them, with a total of 1,158 citations, is titled "cyberbullying: its nature and impact in secondary school pupils" (smith et al., 2008). secondly, "cyberbullying: another main type of bullying?" (slonje & smith, 2008) contains a total of 654 citations. next is "electronic bullying among middle school students" (kowalski & limber, 2007) with 639 citations, "bullying, cyberbullying, and suicide" (hinduja & patchin, 2010) with 610 citations, and "extending the school grounds? bullying experiences in cyberspace" (juvonen & gross, 2008) with 577 citations. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 caceres-reche, hinojo-lucena, navas-parejo, and romero-rodriguez. the phenomenon of cyberbullying in the children and adolescents population: a scientometric analysis 121 table 4. most cited references to cyberbullying in children and adolescents authors year title journal citations smith et al. 2008 cyberbullying: its nature and impact in secondary school pupils journal of child psychology and psychiatry 1158 slonje, r., smith, p. k. 2008 cyberbullying: another main type of bullying? scandinavian journal of psychology 654 kowalski, r. m., limber, s. p. 2007 electronic bullying among middle school students journal of adolescent health 639 hinduja, s., patchin, j. w. 2010 bullying, cyberbullying, and suicide archives of suicide research 610 juvonen, j., gross, e. f. 2008 extending the school grounds? bullying experiences in cyberspace journal of school health 577 table 4 shows the most frequently cited articles on the issue being addressed in this bibliometric analysis. the topics are mainly related to school, and even suicide appears also linked to cyberbullying, thus answering the third research question posed. network maps between keywords reflect the relationships generated with other topics directly linked to cyberbullying. the size of the words indicates their frequency of appearance and a greater amount of connections with other descriptors. in this regard, cyberbullying in children is linked to different clusters of descriptors exemplified with different colors. among the most prominent terms are "mental health," "social networks," "depression," "loneliness," "sexting," "cybergrooming," "suicide," and "self-esteem" (figure 2). all of them are largely linked to the consequences and impacts of cyberbullying on victims. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 caceres-reche, hinojo-lucena, navas-parejo, and romero-rodriguez. the phenomenon of cyberbullying in the children and adolescents population: a scientometric analysis 122 figure 2: network map between the keywords of articles published on cyberbullying in children as age progresses, cyberbullying is linked to a higher number of terms and clusters that enhance greater complexity in the subject matter (figure 3). although some of the factors associated with cyberbullying are still repeated in children, the relationship with other concepts such as "relational aggression," "suicidal ideation," "substance use," "internet addiction," "bullying," and "facebook" emerges. with the analysis of these network maps (figure 2 and 3), one sees the terms related to cyberbullying in children and adolescents, answering the fourth research question. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 caceres-reche, hinojo-lucena, navas-parejo, and romero-rodriguez. the phenomenon of cyberbullying in the children and adolescents population: a scientometric analysis 123 figure 3: network map between the keywords of articles published on cyberbullying in adolescents discussion the data obtained from the bibliometric analysis show the interest in the subject at a global level. interest has increased since 2014, coinciding with the increase in cases of cyberbullying per year (ballesteros, 2017). in this respect, the literature is in a stage of exponential growth (price, 1986), where a solid body of knowledge about cyberbullying has begun to be generated in both populations. in turn, there is a specialization of scientific journals with a psychological character, such as cyberpsychology behavior and social networking, computers in human behavior, psicothema, and frontiers in psychology, as well as those that specialize in children and adolescents: children and youth services review, journal of adolescent health, and journal of adolescence. this denotes that cyberbullying is being approached from a psychological perspective, with special emphasis on the consequences it has on victims. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 caceres-reche, hinojo-lucena, navas-parejo, and romero-rodriguez. the phenomenon of cyberbullying in the children and adolescents population: a scientometric analysis 124 the united states is the country with the highest production, reflecting a great interest in the subject and associating itself with the large number of cases it presents (baiden et al., 2019). the united kingdom and spain have also opted for research into cyberbullying and have a large number of documents, while cases are increasing in these two countries (menesini et al., 2019; przybylski, 2019). in short, the analysis of territories denotes the great diversity of countries around the globe that collect cases of cyberbullying. in this challenge, different institutions from different countries have begun to consolidate as references, highlighting the universiteit antwerpen in the netherlands, masaryk university in the czech republic, and the university of cordoba in spain. in the top 10 of each area of population (children and adolescents), there are five spanish institutions, as spain is the country with the highest number of institutions dealing with cyberbullying. the topics of the most-cited articles are the impact on students and the relationship with suicide. the psychological character of the journals influences the casuistry of reflecting the harm it causes in the victims, so it is not surprising that it addresses the consequences it presents in the person. this is verified in network maps, where the terms "mental health," "depression," "loneliness," "self-esteem," "suicide," and "suicidal ideation" are related to cyberbullying (kopecký & szotkowski, 2017; ruíz-martín, bono-cabré, & magallón-neri, 2019; tokunaga, 2010). for its part, the association of cyberbullying with other risky behaviors such as sexting and cybergrooming is remarked upon (arias, buendía, & fernández, 2018), as are abusive use of the internet, "internet addiction" (smith et al., 2008; tabuenca, sánchez-peña, & cuetosrevuelta, 2019), and the use of social networks such as facebook and its influence in cyberbullying cases (hennig et al., 2019). a limitation of the study is the search engine of the scopus database. the search is limited to a review of titles, abstracts, or keywords presented by the descriptors used (cyberbullying and children; cyberbullying and adolescent). therefore, any article that does not present any of these descriptors is excluded from the final results. this may cause some documents to be overlooked. however, the number of articles that can be analyzed by bibliometrics provides valuable data that represent a real vision of the current state of the subject matter. finally, future lines of research should be highlighted: (i) to extend the range of the population to an adult population in order to verify the interest of the topic beyond the child and adolescent population; (ii) to focus attention on the concrete consequences on the health of the victims; (iii) to establish from the review of the literature the possible predictors of cyberbullying; (iv) to analyze through empirical evidence the profile of the aggressor. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 caceres-reche, hinojo-lucena, navas-parejo, and romero-rodriguez. the phenomenon of cyberbullying in the children and adolescents population: a scientometric analysis 125 conclusions the present study gathers a series of implications and findings of interest in the subject of cyberbullying in the child and adolescent population. it has also addressed the objective of analyzing the scientific production on cyberbullying in children and adolescents. these implications and findings relate to the research questions posed: (rq1) the state of scientific production is in full expansion and each year increases considerably, relating to the increase in cases per year; (rq2) certain journals, countries, and institutions have been established as references in the subject, beginning to consolidate a body of scientific knowledge on cyberbullying; (rq3) the articles with the greatest impact on cyberbullying focus attention on the consequences for victims; (rq4) the related terms include the association of different factors that affect human health (depression, loneliness, self-esteem, and suicidal ideation) and risk behaviors associated with cyberbullying such as sexting or cybergrooming. the scientific production on this subject has increased in parallel with the cases of cyberbullying, and therefore the concern with preventing them, in recent years. the increase has occurred in both populations, especially in the case of adolescents, which is the critical age according to the study by ballesteros (2017). cyberbullying is a recent problem linked to a society characterized by the use of icts. it is necessary to find an effective solution to prevent this type of bullying. in this sense, research on the subject plays a fundamental role, and for this reason numerous specialized journals with great impact and countries and institutions of recognized prestige are already working on it. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 caceres-reche, hinojo-lucena, navas-parejo, and romero-rodriguez. the phenomenon of cyberbullying in the children and adolescents population: a scientometric analysis 126 references aboujaoude, e., savage, m. w., starcevic, v., & salame, w. o. 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(2019). bullying intervention in schools: a multilevel analysis of teachers’ success in handling bullying from the students’ perspective. journal of early adolescence, 39(5), 642-668. https://doi.org/10.1177/0272431618780423 research in social sciences and technology a multiple regression of civic education scores bonnie l. bittman university of central florida bonnie.bittman@ucf.edu william b. russell iii university of central florida russell@ucf.edu abstract social studies teachers instruct their students through a variety of instructional pedagogies. social science education researchers have called for k-12 teachers to transition away from a traditional lecture format and move towards a format that encourages critical thinking. classroom debates of controversial issues are a common method by which teachers engage students in higher-order thinking. this research study utilizes the 2010 national assessment of educational progress (naep) 12th grade civics assessment (n = 9,800) to identify instructional techniques that improve student’s score. utilizing the naep data explorer online statistical analysis tool, a linear regression was conducted examining the effects of race, socio-economic status, instructional pedagogies, and access to newspapers and computers on student performance. results show that discussing current events, at any frequency, increases student performance. students who participated in classroom debates once or twice a month or less also improved. african-american and hispanic students scored lower, as did students who qualified for free and reduced lunches. this study suggests that the inclusion of current events should be encouraged civics classes. keywords: civics education, social studies education, national assessment of educational progress introduction when the national assessment of educational progress (naep) released its nation’s report card for civics in 2011, it became apparent u.s. students made few gains when answering questions of america’s constitutional democracy (national center for educational statistics, 2011). the average score in 2010 was statistically significantly lower for 12th grade students than in 2006, with students in 2006 scoring on average 151 and in 2010 at 148 cite (national center for educational statistics, 2011). on the 2010 nation’s report card on civics education, only 67% of twelfth-graders reported studying the u.s. constitution, students of color made no gains, and female students scored significantly lower than male students as bittman & russell iii research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 1-16 2 compared with 2006. thus, it appears high school graduates in the u.s. lack basic knowledge of civic life, politics, and government institutions. civic knowledge is necessary to support democratic values, to continue the core values of the american democracy (galston, 2004). in the early 1970’s, about 50% of 18-29 year olds in the united states voted in presidential elections, while less than one fifth voted in the 2002 general election (galston, 2004). political knowledge “has frequently been considered one of the most important qualifications for self-governance” (niemi & junn, 1998, p. 1). in fact, delli carpini and keeter (1996) found that u.s. citizens with the most political knowledge voted 90% of the time, while those with the least amount of knowledge voted 20% of the time. knowledge of the political system allows individuals to understand their place, as an individual and as a part of a group, and effect change within said system. therefore, the current lack of participation by young people in the u.s. is reflective of the current political focus towards older u.s. citizens (galston, 2004). purpose research shows that a young adults’ civic education effects future political behavior, and the gap between white and minority young adults goes beyond academics and is reflected in the political environment (neundorf, niemi, & smets, 2016). the purpose of this quantitative research study was to determine if classroom pedagogies, demographics, and home environments influence american students’ civic knowledge on the national assessment of educational progress. higher civic scale scores were expected of white students not considered poor who discussed current events, participated in debates, and had newspapers and computers at home. h1: civics scale scores on the national assessment of educational progress can be predicted from demographics, classroom pedagogy, and home environment bittman & russell iii research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 1-16 3 literature review political scientists have bemoaned the lack of youth participation in voting for decades (putnam, 1995; dalton, 2013). the decline in youth voting rates has been blamed on the advent of television, increases in inequalities, or a lack of interest in politics by young people (putnam, 1995, 2000; skocpol & fiorina, 1999; mondak, 1995). putnam (1995) argues that u.s. citizens are turning away from social groups as a result of television taking up more and more time within their typical day. this decline is occurring in a world where technology has the opportunity to bring people together online into new virtual interactions (kittilson & dalton, 2011; dostie-goulet, 2009). with today’s youth growing up in a new digital age, new ways of developing political efficacy could be driving young u.s. citizens into new forms of political participation (johnson & kaye, 2003; wellman, et al., 2001). young adults with higher self-efficacy are more willing to participate in politically driven activities and vote, leading to a positive effect on voter turnout (condon & holleque, 2013). civics education improves students understanding of the political processes and their participation in democratic activities; however, the continuing existence of the achievement gap has troubling implications for the democratic process and representation for racial and socioeconomic minorities (u.s. department of education, 2012). students’ motivation and opportunities to gain political knowledge is dependent on the social and ideological nature of education (ichilov, 2008). schools act as agents of political socialization, shaping student’s knowledge of politics and helping to establish ideals. however, within schools, discourse concerning politics and controversial issues is avoided for fear of offending classmates, the teacher, or other stakeholders (washington & humphries, 2011). in 1994, the national council for the social studies (ncss) changed the definition of social studies education to “the integrated study of the social sciences and humanities to promote civic competence” (ncss, 1992). the renewed focus on civics education is a vital bittman & russell iii research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 1-16 4 component to democracy as a result of the changing global environments (waters & russell, 2011). worldwide, the rise in technology and access to the internet has made it easier for social studies teachers to prepare students for the challenges associated with globalization in the 21st century (merryfield, 2011). unfortunately, on average, black and hispanic students scored lower on the 1999 iea (international association for the evaluation of educational achievement) civic education study than white students, but when the quality of schools is controlled, latino students score comparably with white students (wilkenfeld & tourneypurta, 2012; humphries, muller, & schiller, 2013; wicks, et al., 2014). civics education should be grounded not just in content and standards, but also in discourse and inclusion in the classroom to ensure minorities are represented within the democratic system (santora, 2011). in order to be competitive within the global marketplace, students need to be prepared to confront controversial issues and analyze different points of view, as required by participatory democracies (ehman, 1969). as an agent of socialization, teachers need to be aware of the influence classrooms have on developing political attitudes. political socialization, defined by jones (1971) as the process that both fosters the acceptance of traditional political norms and values and encourages the development of skills and abilities that enable one to adapt to a rapidly changing society, occurs through agents, including but not limited to parents, religious beliefs, socioeconomic level, and educational systems (neimi & sobieszek, 1977). as students’ progress through their education, secondary classrooms become more significant as agents of political socialization when compared to the socialization process in elementary education. several pedagogical techniques are effective in transmitting differences in political attitudes to learners (ehman, 1980; kahne, crow, & lee, 2013; campbell, 2008). kahne, et al., (2013) found that “open and informed discussion of societal issues” encourages students to become more aware of the larger political arena, particularly elections and current issues (p. 435). poorly managed discussions, however, bittman & russell iii research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 1-16 5 can discourage students from participation and learning, particularly if the student perceives the teacher’s political attitude as different from their own (kelly-woessner & woessner, 2008; martins & gainous, 2013). the inclusion of current events into the classroom environment can be difficult for teachers who often fear backlash from parents, administrators, and students when discussing controversial issues with their students (washington & humphries, 2011). including current events into the classroom occurs more often when teachers have a higher awareness of the news (passe, 1988). in a study examining 8th graders in europe, knowles and mccafferty-wright (2015) found that an open classroom climate increased civic knowledge, civic self-efficacy and political efficacy. their multilevel regression and path analysis study indicated a direct relationship between social movement citizenship scores and an open classroom climate. the literature shows creating an environment where students feel comfortable discussing controversial issues and current events improves students’ civic knowledge. although teachers can improve civic knowledge through an open classroom environment, racial and socioeconomic minority students continue to score lower on standardized tests (u.s. department of education, 2012). the 2010 national assessment for educational progress found that black (m = 127), american indian/alaska native (m = 134) and hispanic (m = 137) u.s. 10th graders continue to score lower than their white (m = 156), asian/pacific islander (m = 153) counterparts concerning civic knowledge (national center for education statistics, 2011). examining european civic knowledge, the iea civic education study (2000) found both gender (β = -.09) and home literacy resources (β = .13) explained some variance in civic knowledge scores. the inclusion of both race and socioeconomic status in this study has been justified through previous research. voter participation is low and has been for decades. the national council for the social studies has shifted focus towards citizenship education in an attempt to increase the number of bittman & russell iii research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 1-16 6 young americans who vote in state and national elections. the role teachers play in democratic education can influence political efficacy and increase awareness of political topics. however, students who are a racial minority or from a low socioeconomic status fall behind their peers on national and international civic exams. this study will examine the effects of teacher instructional strategies on civic knowledge, controlling for race/ethnicity and socioeconomic status. data and methodology this analysis employed the 2010 national assessment of educational progress (naep) 12th grade civics assessment. the naep civics test was administered to a nationally represented sample of 12th grade students in the united states. the public schools and subsequent student participants were selected randomly, and the full sample includes 9,800 (rounded to the nearest 10) students (national center for education statistics, 2011). the dependent variable was the student’s civics scale score, measured on a scale from 0-300 (national center for education statistics, 2011). the naep civics assessment measures civic knowledge in five areas; (1) what are civic life, politics, and government? (2) what are the foundations of the american political system? (3) how does the government established by the constitution embody the purposes, values, and principles of american democracy?, (4) what is the relationship of the united states to other nations and world affairs?, and (5) what are the roles of citizens in american democracy?. the naep civics assessment included 153 questions that were divided into eight sections containing a mixture of multiple choice and short answer questions. each student responded to questions in two 25-minute sections, but were not tested on every section. the independent variables that were included measured race, poverty, classroom pedagogy, and home environment. race was a school-reported variable, categorized as white, black, hispanic, asian/pacific islander, american indian/alaska native, or two or more races. bittman & russell iii research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 1-16 7 poverty was measured through the national school lunch program (nslp) and school reported. students were considered eligible for nslp if the family income was below 130% of the poverty level. current events and debate/panel discussions were also student-reported, and students were asked on a 5-point scale “how often do you do each of the following when you study social studies or civics or government in school (never, a few times a year, once or twice a month, once or twice a week, almost every day). while the naep includes a number of instructional methods students report on, this study focused on the inclusion of current events and debate discussions in the classroom. home regulatory environment questions, like the classroom instruction questions, were also student-reported. students were asked “is there a computer at home that you use?” with yes or no responses, and “does your family get a newspaper at least four times a week?” with yes, no, and i don’t know responses. the restricted nature of the data, considering the sensitive data collected of minors, required the researchers to utilize statistical software provided by the national center for education statistics. a multiple linear regression was deemed appropriate considering the dependent variable was interval data and all assumptions were met. furthermore, the use of a regression model allowed the researcher to identify the effect of independent variables on the dependent variable. in other words, the inclusion of characteristics such as race, poverty, instructional strategies, and home environment were included to examine how much variance in student civics scores could be explained. the null hypothesis is that civics scale scores cannot be predicted from demographics, classroom pedagogy, or home environments, tested at p = 0.05. normality was not able to be tested and was assumed through random sampling. results the purpose of this research study was to understand the effect of instructional methods on student’s civic knowledge, controlling for race and socioeconomic status. civics scale scores for 12th graders in 2010 were influenced by demographics, classroom instructional strategies, bittman & russell iii research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 1-16 8 and home environment (f18 = 53.816, p < 0.05). about 21% of the variance in civic scale scores were accounted for by the model (r2 = 0.214), a low percentage. independent variables descriptive statistics are reported in table 1. most students, over 62%, report discussing current events a minimum of once a week or more. student participation in debates, however, is much lower, with 44% of students reporting debate in the classroom once/twice a month in class or less. 54% of students do not have newspaper in the home, and 94% report they have a computer. table 1 independent variables descriptive statistics variables (12th grade) percentage sd race/ethnicity black 14.01 34.71 hispanic 16.49 37.11 asian/pacific islander 6.07 23.88 american indian/alaska native 1.18 10.83 two or more races 0.83 9.09 discuss current events a few times a year 10.32 30.42 once or twice a month 19.41 39.55 once or twice a week 32.07 46.67 almost every day 30.44 46.01 take part in debate or panel discussions a few times a year 21.56 41.12 once or twice a month 23.03 42.10 once or twice a week 16.21 36.85 almost every day 7.89 29.96 computer at home no 6.00 23.76 newspaper in home no 54.30 49.81 i don’t know 8.18 27.40 national school lunch program eligibility not eligible 66.11 47.33 information not available 0.59 7.67 demographic characteristics both black and hispanic students scored lower on the civics test than white or asian students, even controlling for poverty. looking at nslp eligibility, students who are not eligible for free or reduced lunches score higher on the civics test. these results are reflective of the achievement gap common in the american educational system. students without bittman & russell iii research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 1-16 9 computers in the home, although a very small proportion of students, scored lower at a statistically significant level. furthermore, the inclusion of poverty in the model indicates students who do not qualify for the national school lunch program score significantly higher than students who do quality. instructional strategies instructional techniques did impact students’ scores. a closer examination of current events illustrated that talking about current events at any time in class lead to a significant positive relationship on the assessment. students who experienced debates or panel discussions in class a few times a year or once or twice a month had significant gains on the naep, but not when they were held once or twice a week or every day. concerning debates or discussion in class, this model suggested that more is not necessarily better. home environment home environment does effect students’ scores on the civics assessment. if students do not have a computer at home, they score lower on the civics test. considering the amount of research conducted regarding newspapers in the home and the resulting decline in civic awareness, the results within table 2 challenged prevailing assumptions. students who do not know if they have newspapers in the home were the only statistically significant relationship, accounting for only 8% of the total responses. there is no significant difference between students whose home received newspapers and those whose home do not. this challenges the prevailing theory that the decline in newspapers caused the decrease in political knowledge in young people. bittman & russell iii research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 1-16 10 table 2 summary of linear regression analyses predicting civic scale scores β se race/ethnicity black -0.192* 0.016 hispanic -0.104* 0.017 asian/pacific islander 0.010 0.017 american indian/alaska native -0.036 0.038 two or more races 0.008 0.012 discuss current events a few times a year 0.036* 0.017 once or twice a month 0.153* 0.012 once or twice a week 0.262* 0.023 almost every day 0.282* 0.022 take part in debate or panel discussions a few times a year 0.066* 0.014 once or twice a month 0.039* 0.014 once or twice a week 0.019 0.012 almost every day 0.012 0.011 computer at home no -0.112* 0.015 newspaper in home no 0.009 0.009 i don’t know -0.083* 0.011 national school lunch program eligibility not eligible 0.199* 0.013 information not available 0.021* 0.012 note: cell entries are standardized regression coefficients; standard errors are given in parentheses. *p < 0.05 discussion the results of this study offer some interesting conclusions. first, the achievement gap between minority students and white students continues to persist, even controlling for extreme poverty. a lack of background knowledge, cultural causes, persistent socio-economic inequalities have all been blamed for the discrepancy, but the causes are beyond the scope of this paper. furthermore, students in extreme poverty also score significantly lower than other races on the naep assessment, and the resulting gap must be addressed by educators, policymakers, and other stakeholders to ensure that poor students develop the skills required to participate in the democratic process. that participation could lead to policy changes necessary bittman & russell iii research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 1-16 11 to fully close the economic, political, and social differences so engrained in the american society. second, the results of this study suggest that discussion in class in the form of debates or panel discussion, is not a true panacea. the results from a multiple regression of civic scale scores from the national assessment of educational progress (naep) found that discussion or debate in the classroom does not increase civic scores significantly. rather, regular discussion of current events significantly improves students’ civic scale scores. research regarding the discussion of controversial issues in social science is mostly qualitative in nature, calling for teachers to create classroom environments reflective of the democratic process (hess, 2004; hess & mcavoy, 2015; parker, 2003). nevertheless, increasing the frequency that teachers discuss current events does equate increases in civic knowledge. as a citizen and educator, it is necessary to champion instructional strategies that promote civic knowledge in younger generation. this conclusion is limited however, measuring two different types of discussion could confound the results. further research on the subjects discussed in class needs to be conducted to identify the specific impact of discussion within the classroom. third, the decreasing prominence of newspapers in u.s. citizens’ lives has no significant effect on civic knowledge. although a majority of students’ report that they do not get the newspaper delivered most of the week, there is no difference in civics scores between those that do and those that do not. the mythical stature of newspapers in u.s. citizens’ lives is declining, and these results suggest that it will have little to no effect on the political knowledge of future generation. limitations there were limitations with this study. foremost is the inability of the researchers to analyze the data beyond the tool provided by naep. multicollinearity was not able to be tested, and considering the similarities between debate/panel discussions and discussions concerning bittman & russell iii research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 1-16 12 current events, may influence the results. furthermore, the data concerning instructional methods was self-reported by the student and may not accurately represent classroom pedagogy. further quantitative research is necessary to understand the impact debates and current event discussion have on student achievement. conclusion in this study, the achievement gap between races and socio-economic levels is persistent within the u.s. educational system. discussing current events has a positive effect on u.s. student’s knowledge that continues to increase as the frequency escalates, but holding debates and panel discussion only improves student scores so much. having a computer in the house increases students’ scores, but the results could be a reflection of poverty. lastly, having a newspaper in the house four times or more a week does not increase students’ political knowledge. within social science education research, quantitative studies are not as common as qualitative. this study provides another perspective of u.s. student civics knowledge, and offers one instructional method that could increase student achievement. if america’s democracy is to regain its vigor, socioeconomic and racial disparities could be addressed through a careful analysis and application of instructional techniques. to improve the current political climate in the u.s. and begin addressing some of the pressing political problems, educators must focus on improving poor and minority student’s knowledge so that the marginalized can speak for themselves. bittman & russell iii research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 1-16 13 references campbell, d. e. 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(2012). a cross-context analysis of civic engagement linking cived and u.s. census data. journal of social science education, 11(1), 6480. http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ed528611.pdf research in social sciences and technology (ressat) e-issn: 2468-6891 major factors affecting the academic achievements of indian students residing in india (kerala) and uae. smitha dev1 abstract this paper is designed to explore the various factors affecting the academic achievements of high school students. the study was conducted on 210 high school students from abu dhabi and thiruvananthapuram. procrastination behavior inventory, an index of stress tolerance, and study habits scale were used to understand the various factors interfering their academic achievement. the data was analyzed using the statistical techniques such as product-moment coefficient of correlation-pearson's r, and factor analysis. these results provide an insight into the numerous factors effecting students in their learning process and it is a fact that students need to get adequate support and motivation from teachers and parents to keep up their focus on the educational goal. key words: academic achievement, stress, procrastination, study habits introduction in earlier days’ intelligence was considered as one of the major factor for students’ academic achievements, however recent researches have emphasized the importance of many other major factors which contributes to high academic performances. environmental factors such as family and classroom interaction plays a major role, along with personal factors like interest, intelligence, anxiety, aptitude, and study habits. another place of influence are the social factors, which includes socio economic status and cultural influence. and finally, psychological factors like selfmotivation and emotional stability are the key components which can influence students learning. many studies have been conducted in this area by leading researchers, and according to tarman (2010; 2016; 2017) the causes of low academic performance are low motivation, poor study habits and lack of parental involvement in their children’s education. academic achievements of student’s manifest through their study habits. developing a good study habit and learning to tolerate stress is very important for a students’ academic and career success. according to shama 1 dr. smitha dev, asst. professor of psychology, abu dhabi university, smitha.dev@adu.ac.ae dev (2005, p.67) ‘’academic performance is a necessary evil because, one kind of ability is rewarded economically and socially more than the other. ’through this research, the investigators tried to explore three important factors that could influence students’ performance, and they are procrastination behavior, stress tolerance and organized study habits. procrastination is a behavior which can be found in most of the people to a certain extent. procrastinators have a tendency to delay tasks, and can affect their academic performance. it was noted that 95% of college students engage in procrastination (ferrari (2001)). there are evidence that procrastination results in detrimental academic performance including poor grades and school drop outs (balkis & duru, 2009). similar to procrastination, many scientists have studied about the effect of stress on academic achievement, and its effect on human being have also been reported differently. according to westman and eden, 2007; keeley et al., 2008, stress and academic performance have a curvilinear relationship. however, many studies are contradicting these findings and have reported that optimum level of stress can enhance learner’s ability to perform. most of the researches agree that study habits are important to improve students’ performance. study habits are the organized practices which students needs to ritually follow to improve their learning. the purpose of this study is to investigate whether procrastination behavior, stress tolerance and study habits have any major role in students’ academic achievements. it should be noted that many researches have been conducted in this area, especially with college students and most of the studies have taken place in the west. therefore, the investigators felt that a research of this kind should help to improve the awareness among educationalist and parents, to understand and uphold the importance of creating a supportive and positive environment to develop the stress tolerance level of students and also cultivate a structured study habit among students. this research is focused on a specific demographic population and therefore the study was conducted on indian students studying in uae and in india. in addition, this is also a cross cultural study of students studying in uae & india, and to perceive more about student’s adeptness between both the cultures. studies of this kind is very essential to upgrade the ongoing changing educational stature. literature review the researchers tried to highlight the empirical background of the study and to summarize and evaluate the research findings relevant to the topic under investigation. an investigation done by chandra (2010) highlighted that adolescent period frequently causes raise of stress among research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3), 16-31 18 teenagers which make them difficult to deal with increasing burdens and demands in later life. stopplern (2010) also supported the fact that excessive stress has a harmful impact on both mental and physical health in later life. approaching to academic stress smith (2007) tried to explore the predictors of academic related stress experienced by students. the study also examined the coping strategies used by students. the finding of the study revealed that anxiety, parental and others support, problem focused coping ability are significantly important predictors of the academic stress experienced by students. attri and neelam (2013) in their study observed a significant difference in the academic anxiety and academic achievement of male and female secondary school students. it was also observed that girls were found to be more academically anxious and had better academic achievement than boys. as discussed earlier procrastination is a way to avoid or escape from undesirable tasks. ferrari (2001) found that almost 20% of adult’s experience chronic procrastination, whereas academic procrastination among undergraduate students are between 70-95%. a study from solomon and murakami (1986) found that procrastinators attribute passing exams to external factors more than the other students. finally, howell et al (2011) observed a significant negative correlation between procrastination and academic control of students. whereas a large number of studies had contradictory findings that procrastination is positively related to poor academic performance (balkis & duru, 2009; beck, koons, & milgrim, 2000; beswick, rothblum, & mann, 1988; cetin, 2009; fritzsche, young & hickson, 2003; klassen, krawchuk, & rajani, 2008; ozer, demir & ferrari, 2009; wesley, 1994). all the above studies focused on the main effect of stress and procrastination on academic achievement. to summarize, many studies revealed that stress and procrastination is widely experienced problematic behavior among students and it had a negative impact on their academic performance (kilinc, tarman & aydin, 2018; kilinc, 2014;2015; tarman & dev, 2018; yigit & tarman, 2016). through this study we tried to explore the relation of three other major factors which contributes towards academic success. from the above literature it was also understood that further investigation was very essential in this area, and the following hypothesis were formulated to find the relationship between all the three variables: h1. there is a significant positive correlation among the factors such as procrastination behavior, stress tolerance and study habits of students in india. h2. there is a significant positive correlation among the factors such as procrastination behavior, stress tolerance and study habits of students in uae. dev h3. procrastination behavior, stress tolerance and study habits are the major factors affecting students’ academic achievement in both india and uae. method sample the researcher employed stratified sampling method to collect data. the data were collected from higher secondary schools of india and from higher secondary schools of abu dhabi, uae. the participants of the study were male and female students from class x and class xii. table 1 categories of male and female students in abu dhabi and india on the basis of the class in which they are studying class total (male & femaletvm) total (male & female-auh) x 109 120 xii 101 90 total 210 210 table 2 students in uae and india on the basis of their academic achievement achievement level n total students in kerala high achievers average achievers low achievers 62 80 68 120 students in uae high achievers average achievers low achievers 65 92 53 materials all tools used in this study were adapted from another study ‘procrastination behavior, stress tolerance, and study habits: a cross-culture analysis’ conducted by the same author. the following tools were adapted for the present investigation. 1. procrastination behavior inventory pbi covers five aspects of student’s procrastination behavior, including examination, assignments, sports, games, extracurricular activities and time management. inventory has both positive and research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3), 16-31 20 negative items, reversed scoring was used for negative items. split-half reliability method was used to estimate the reliability of the test. the test was split into two equal halves on the basis of odd items and even items (odd-even reliability method). a correlation coefficient between the 2 halves was found using pearson product-moment formula. thus the half test reliability coefficient of 0.7 was estimated. the reliability of the whole test was found out using spearman brown formula. thus reliability coefficient of 0.82 was obtained. this index of reliability shows that the test is highly reliable. this value of reliability is significant of 0.01 level. the validity of the test was estimated with the help of empirical or criterion related validity. it was found out by correlating the present scale with “stress tolerance inventory” of (balagangadharan, 1998), as reported in the manual (sananda raj & reshmy, 1999). both the tests were administered to a sample of 40 subjects and the correlation coefficient was estimated as 0.72. this index of validity shows that the test is an adequately valid, the value of validity coefficient being significant at 0.01 level. 2. an index of stress tolerance (student version) the stress tolerance index was developed by the author, the test consists of 20 items, which was highly relent to measure students stress tolerance level. it consists of equal positive and negative items. split-half reliability method was used to estimate the reliability of the test. the test was split into two equal halves on the basis of odd items and even items (odd-even reliability method). a correlation coefficient between the 2 halves was found using pearson product-moment formula. thus the half test reliability coefficient of 0.7 was estimated. the reliability of the whole test was found out using spearman brown formula. thus reliability coefficient of 0.82 was obtained. this index of reliability shows that the test is highly reliable. this value of reliability is significant of 0.01 level. the validity of the test was estimated with the help of empirical or criterion related validity. it was found out by correlating the present scale with “stress tolerance inventory” of (balagangadharan, 1998), as reported in the manual (sananda raj & reshmy, 1999). both the tests were administered to a sample of 40 subjects and the correlation coefficient was estimated as 0.72. this index of validity shows that the test is an adequately valid, the value of validity coefficient being significant at 0.01 level. 3. study habits scale (revised) dev study habits scale consists of 20 descriptive items which was highly relevant to measure students study habits. the scores for the separate items were then summed to obtain the study habits scale score of the individual. the maximum obtainable score was 100 and minimum was 20. the test-retest reliability of the scale is reported to be +0.92, on a sample of 75 students, with a time interval of one month. the odd even reliability was found to be +0.95 after correlation for alternation, calculation on a scale of 60 students. validity of the scale had been established by correlating the scores of the scale with the scales of attitude towards academic work and achievement motivation and the validity coefficient were found to be +0.84 and +0.79 respectively. this indicates that the scale is reliably and valid in measuring the study habits of students. personal data schedule the variables such as class studying, sex, place of study, and percentage of marks obtained in the previous examination (to measure academic achievement) was obtained by using a personal data schedule, which was relevant to obtain some important variables. to calculate academic achievement, the sample were categorized into high, average and low achievers. for this purpose, the mean (m) and standard deviation (sd) of the scores on achievement were calculated. those who obtained at or above mean plus half sd (m+1/2 sd) were designated as high achievers, those at or below (m-1/2 sd) were designed as low achievers, and those who obtained achievement scores between (m-1/2 sd) and (m+ ½ sd) were designed as average achievers. results and discussion table 3: correlation matrix of the four variables in indian culture s.no variable 1 2 3 4 1 procrastination behavior ( ) -0.422 -0.571 -0.238 2 stress tolerance ( ) +0.420 +0.060 3 study habits ( ) +0.284 4 academic achievement ( ) there existed marked or substantial negative correlation among the variables, procrastination behavior with stress tolerance, study habits and academic achievement of students in india. there existed marked or substantial positive correlation between stress tolerance and study habits for students of india. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3), 16-31 22 the correlation between stress tolerance and academic achievement of students in india was found to be not significant statistically. i. the factor structure for the india sample: the correlation matrix presented in the table 2; was subjected to the factor analysis. factor analysis resulted in showing there exist only one factor as significant while rotating this factor. the same result has been obtained, as there is no meaning in rotating if there is only one factor extracted by factor analysis. the factor structure obtained for the four variables for the india sample is given in table 3. table 4 factor structure of variables for the india sample s. no variable factor loading degree of presence of the variable in the factor 1 procrastination behavior -0.826 * 2 stress tolerance +0.687 considerable presence 3 study habits +0.838 very high presence 4 academic achievement +0.449 variable present, but low note: * -ve loading indicates absence of the variable in the factor. the diagrammatic representation of the factor is given as figure 1. 0.9 study habits 0.8 0.7 stress tolerance 0.6 0.5 academic achievement 0.4 0.3 0.2 0.1 0 -0.1 -0.2 -0.3 -0.4 -0.5 -0.6 dev -0.7 -0.8 procrastination behavior -0.9 figure 1: factors identified for kerala students: studiousness figure 1. diagrammatic representation of the factor for kerala students the factor for indian sample had identified as studiousness, means the students are very serious, responsible and hard working with their studies, since the factor had very high positive loading in study habits, and considerable positive loading in stress tolerance. also, the variable academic achievement is present in this factor; whereas the variable procrastination behavior is absent in it, as indicated by the negative loading. it may be noted that 'studiousness' is indicated by earnest interest and concern for study. but the low factor loading on academic achievement indicates that factor is loaded by this variable only to a mediocre level. studious students usually have very good study habits. a student who has acquired good study habits might have developed a behavior pattern, which enables him or her to sit down and begin working on his or her assignments with maximum concentration. habits permits him or her to attend to routine pattern conducted with settling down to work without having to give them much wastage of time and energy. higher level of stress tolerance is another characteristics of studiousness. too much of workload at school, tuition classes, over expectation of parents, and teachers, tensions related to examinations to be attended, fear of not able to reach to the expectation of parents and teacher, fear of failure, fear of success etc. keep a student in stressful situation. overcoming such stressors, with minimum anxiety can always help the students show overall academic performance. academic achievement is the knowledge attained or skills developed in the school subjects, and is usually determined through test scores or through marks assigned by teacher or both. the performance in a test or examination makes a student attain a categorization as a high academic achiever, an average academic achiever, or a low academic achiever. procrastination behavior of a student is a negative aspect of behavior. it is the act of putting off doing something until a future date, postponing or delaying needlessly. academic procrastination is one of the aspects of procrastination behavior. it leads to piling of books on desks, postponing school works, putting of studies etc. a procrastinator always ends up in problem with teachers. such students tend to leave their work incomplete. the students of kerala, in general, seem to be research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3), 16-31 24 very studious, having good study habits, higher level of stress tolerance, and lower procrastination behavior. table 5 correlation matrix of the four variables in uae culture s. no variable 1 2 3 4 1 procrastination behavior ( ) -0.386 -0.632 -0.308 2 stress tolerance ( ) +0.385 +0.248 3 study habits ( ) +0.506 4 academic achievement ( ) there existed low negative correlation among the variables, procrastination behavior with stress tolerance, academic achievement, and study habits (marked or substantial negative correlation), of students in uae. there existed low positive correlation between stress tolerance with study habits and academic achievement of students in uae. ii. the factor structure for the uae sample: the correlation matrix presented in table 2 was subjected to factor analysis. factor analysis resulted in showing that there exist only one factor as statistically significant. while rotating this factor, the same result has been obtained, as there is no meaning in rotating if there is only one factor extracted by factor analysis. the factor structure obtained for the four variables for the uae sample is given in table 4. table 6 factor structure of variables for the uae sample s.no variable factor loading degree of presence of the variable in the factor 1 procrastination behavior -0.799 * 2 stress tolerance +0.643 considerable presence 3 study habits +0.869 very high presence 4 academic achievement +0.672 considerable presence note: * -ve loading indicates absence of the variable in the factor. dev the diagrammatic representation of the factor is given as figure 2. 0.9 study habits 0.8 0.7 academic achievement 0.6 0.5 stress tolerance 0.4 0.3 0.2 0.1 0 -0.1 -0.2 -0.3 -0.4 -0.5 -0.6 -0.7 procrastination behavior -0.8 -0.9 figure 2: factors identified for uae students: diligence figure 2. diagrammatic representation of the factor for uae students. the factor for uae sample has been identified as diligence, means the students have a constant and earnest effort to accomplish their goals, since the factor had very high positive loading in study habits, considerable positive loading in academic achievement, and stress tolerance, and very high negative loading in procrastination behavior. the factor indicates or is characterized by study earnest, energetic application and painstaking effort on the part of the students. the positive loadings on the variables noted above shows that the students in uae have very good study habits, high stress tolerance, and are capable research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3), 16-31 26 of achieving high in academic subjects. at the same time, it in noteworthy to highlight the fact that factor is free from procrastination behavior to a high degree. study habits are regularity regarding academic work, which characterizes most of the high achievers, though it cannot be regarded as the general feature. in preparing for the examinations, greater reliance is placed on text books and self-prepared notes. cramming, expect for a few key phrases, is not recommended and the subjects seem to depend more on their own powers of expression, organization, and presentation. stress tolerance is the ability of a person to withstand or tolerate stressful situations. every student has to face lot many academic stress and institutional stress. getting good marks in examination, completing day-to-day activities of the school, studying daily the study materials, and the like are some pressures a student has to face. over expectation of the parents, and too much of demands from the teachers as well as institutional heads also put students under pressure. these factors, when overwhelmingly high can create tension and anxiety leading to stress. the ability to overcome such stressors makes the student more tolerant. academic achievement or good performance academically is the key to categorization of a student as a good achiever. good academic performance is always possible with good study procedures. it can be called the progress that a learner makes in learning. procrastination behavior means, postponing or putting off doing something until a future date, it also implies a failure to initiate or complete a task. students who procrastinate leave their work incomplete, the failure to complete their work in the right time, creates chances of getting into trouble with teacher. all these can cause stress. a student who doesn't procrastinate can be said to achieve maximum academically. the factor 'diligence' thus characterizes excellence. dev iii. comparison of the factor structure of kerala and uae students: for the interpretation and comparison of the factor structures of kerala and uae students, it has been recalled that the factor for kerala students has been identified as studiousness, and the factor for uae students has been identified as diligence. ‘studiousness’ is indicated by earnest interest and concern with study, though with the moderate academic achievement level; whereas, ‘diligence’ is indicated by studyearnestness, energetic application, and painstaking effort on the part of the students. the factor studiousness had very high positive loading in study habits, considerable positive loading in stress tolerance, and low positive loading in academic achievement, whereas very high negative loading in procrastination behavior. at the same time, the factor diligence had very high positive loading in study habits, and considerable positive loadings in stress tolerance and academic achievement, whereas, as in the case of studiousness, the factor diligence also had very high negative loading in procrastination behavior. the main difference between the two factors is thus on the degree of loading of the variable academic achievement on the respective factors. in this context, the fact that diligent students must show very high-level academic achievement, when compared to studious students, cannot be discarded. apart from this, the two factors have many similarities, as mentioned above. in short, in terms of similarities, both factors imply good study habits, high level of stress tolerance, and the absence of procrastination behavior. the summary and conclusions of the above analysis and discussion are presented in the next chapter. conclusion the study investigated how procrastination behavior, stress tolerance and study habits impact the ‘academic achievements of students studying in uae and their counterparts in india. the significant contribution of this study is that, this is the first cross cultural study in this region, and will help the parent population in uae to understand students’ tolerance level since they are living in a very protective environment, with limited exposure compared to their counterpart who live and study in india. the findings indicate that, there research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3), 16-31 28 existed marked or substantial negative correlation from the variable of procrastination behavior with stress tolerance, study habits, and academic achievement among students studying in india. as seen in the previous studies, this study supports the findings that, when procrastination increases, the stress tolerance level decreases and thereby lowers their academic achievement due to poor study habits. the results also observed that, there existed marked or substantial positive correlation between stress tolerance and study habits of student studying in india, and this indicates that when the stress tolerance increase, their study habits also improve. the correlation between stress tolerance and academic achievement for students studying in india, was found to be not significant statistically. surprisingly the stress level of students studying in india was found to be not affecting their academic achievement, and this indicates that stress has no significant role in their studies. the same results were observed with students studying in uae and it was found that by procrastinating, their study habits, academic achievements and stress tolerance level declined. among uae students, the study observed a low positive correlation from the variables such as stress tolerance, study habits and academic achievements. this indicates that the stress tolerance level among students in uae had a positive impact on their academic achievement. the current study also observed a substantial positive correlation between academic achievement and study habits. the factor structure for the students in india, using the factor loading of variables procrastination behavior, stress tolerance, study habits, and academic achievement was identified as ‘studiousness’, while the factor structure for the uae. students using the factor loading of variables procrastination behavior, stress tolerance, study habits, and academic achievement was identified as ‘diligence’. it can be concluded that the students studying in india were more ‘studious’ while students from uae were more ‘diligence’. this study will be useful for school counsellors, educators and psychologists to understand and help students to resolve their academic issues, and this study will also help parents and teachers to realize the importance of support required, to reduce academic procrastination and stress to develop the academic efficiency of students. also this study emphasis the importance of conducting quarterly based special counselling sessions in schools to enhance student’s ability to tolerate stress, reduce academic procrastination and develop good study habits. dev references attri, a.k., & neelam. 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(2016). how do different ethnicities approach to the education system and differences in turkey? italian sociological review, 6(3), 339-353. 10.13136/isr.v6i3.119 research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 garcía-martínez et al. promoting professional development for teachers through a scale of competence assessment. 147 promoting professional development for teachers through a scale of competence assessment inmaculada garcía-martínez * university of granada miguel pérez-ferra university of jaén josé luis ubago jiménez university of granada rocío quijano-lópez university of jaén *corresponding author: igmartinez@ugr.es received: 04.07.2019 revision: 06.08.2019 accepted: 12.09.2019 how to cite this paper: garcía-martínez, i., pérez-ferra, m., jiménez, j. l. u., & quijano-lópez, r. (2019). promoting professional development for teachers through a scale of competence assessment. research in social sciences and technology, 4(2),147-162. abstract competencies are a key factor in the professional development of teachers. additionally, information and communication technologies (icts) in education are becoming increasingly important due to their potential in the field of education. the combination of both makes it easier to perform a comprehensive assessment of the level of competences of students in the teacher degree. the design of tasks and activities in order to promote their assessment enable classroom intervention. indeed, this paper presents how icts have been used in university teaching. in order to respond to the evolution of training needs, we present a valid and reliable evaluation tool for professional competencies and learning results for prospective teachers (pre-school and primary education). we applied for students from the teacher degree in their practicum period. indeed, different learning and assessment tasks have been designed, some related to “correct” or “incorrect” teaching practices. this implies that the students have not only to do their tasks but to identify and to differentiate what is correct in their professional development. finally, the instrument enables the assessment of the level of professional competencies acquired by prospective teachers during their training period. keywords: teacher training, professional competencies, online assessment program, preservice teacher education, teacher degree research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 garcía-martínez et al. promoting professional development for teachers through a scale of competence assessment. 148 introduction higher education is undergoing a pedagogical renewal (fullan & langworthy, 2014) that has transformed the teaching and learning processes, incorporating information and communication technologies (icts) in order to fit the demands placed on society (escudero, martínez-domínguez, & nieto, 2018). in this regard, the formative programs of teaching degrees have undergone great modifications (pérez-ferra & quijano-lópez, 2018), including a set of competencies (quijano-lópez, pérezferra, garcía-martínez, & ocaña-moral, 2016) that teachers must acquire in order to ensure high-quality teaching resulting in effective student learning processes (louis, 2007). this transformation is not only reflected in the use of new teaching methods and skills but is also evident in the type of assessment carried out (de marco et al., 2015). there is a growing trend in the use of icts as a way of measuring teachers' professional competencies during their training period (cano-garcía, 2015). this is exemplified by the studies regarding the design of an instrument to measure the teaching performance by students in the education degree. more specifically on the use of ict, the research developed by prendes, castañeda, and gutiérrez (2010) analyzes the competencies required for future teachers to integrate ict in the classroom, using an adaptation of the questionnaire by cabero and llorente (2006). other studies such as that by etxabe-urbieta, aranguren-garayalde, and losada-iglesias (2011) have opted for the rubrics to evaluate the teaching and learning process of future teachers. likewise, icts have provided new learning environments in which instructional processes can be developed, oriented towards collaboration and sharing (rincón-gallardo & fullan, 2016). as a result, barriers of space and time are broken down and teachers' opportunities to learn professionally both from their own practices and from their colleagues are increased. if the intention is to create competent teachers, it is essential to look for ways in which they can professionalize their figure (garcía-martínez & martín-romera, 2019). in this regard, the evaluation of professional teaching skills, either in virtual environments or through the use of technological platforms and resources, is a priority (ruiz-morales, garcía-garcía, biencintolópez, & carpintero, 2017). different studies have analyzed the benefits of virtual learning environments and technology for teachers and students (magen-nagar & shonfeld, 2018; tarman & yuksel, 2014). in this regard, marín-díaz and cabero (2019) consider that the exponential growth of virtual training environments has influenced teachers' ways of interacting (lim & newby, 2019). in fact, one observes an emerging research trend that points to personal learning environments and the use of technological tools and platforms such as moodle (brahimi & sarirete, 2015; tarman & research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 garcía-martínez et al. promoting professional development for teachers through a scale of competence assessment. 149 baytak, 2012) as the path to achieving an education for the knowledge society (mcnaughton et al., 2018; şahin & uluyol, 2016). however, to ensure that teachers and students are prepared to face the challenges that web 2.0 and even web 3.0 offer, it is necessary that they have proficiency in technological skills (el mhouti et al., 2017). this research justifies the importance of future teachers acquiring the professional skills required for their future professional development while highlighting the usefulness of an effective assessment system to judge them. following this approach, a competence assessment scale designed and validated within an innovation project is presented. method the present paper is inscribed within an interpretative paradigm (habermas, 1982). in particular, an exploratory and interpretative study is undertaken (hernández-sampieri, fernández-collado, & baptista, 2014), using the case study as a strategy. likewise, quantitative and qualitative methods are applied to respond to the proposed objectives (tójar, 2006). research objectives a) know the level of knowledge in professional competencies that pre-service teachers acquire in their teacher training period. b) analyze the impact of ict on teacher professional development during their training period. c) design an online evaluation program for assessing professional competencies in a teacher by creating an innovative resource that allows evaluation of online training. participants the study was carried out with 407 students from the third and fourth year of the primary education degree and pre-school education degree at the university of jaén. the ages of the participants ranged from 21-29 years old. procedure in this paper, we identified two clearly delimited phases. in the first, an instrument was created to evaluate four basic workable competences: organize and promote learning situations, team work, use of new technologies, and organizing self-continuous training. to guarantee its validity and reliability, 15 primary and pre-school teachers were involved, along with extensive experience in schools and a strong training in competencies. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 garcía-martínez et al. promoting professional development for teachers through a scale of competence assessment. 150 after the design of the instrument, there was a program design phase for the evaluation of teachers' professional competencies, which was applied on a pilot level. more than just the conceptual aspect, the tasks proposed for assessing teachers' professional competencies were based on managing and applying what had been learned. likewise, these tasks focus on identifying desirable teaching practices in their professional development. results for the assessment of each competence, we designed a specific activity in which students were asked to put into practice the knowledge acquired. the research is contextualized in a course of nature sciences in the degrees of primary education and pre-school education. the results are presented according to the objectives of the research. first of all, it exposes the level of knowledge of several professional competences acquired in this period from an online scale of evaluation of competences designed for this study. finally, the technological competence is examined, analyzing the impact of icts on teacher professional development during their training period. thus, in order to verify the level of training in the teacher's professional competence “organize and promote situations,” an activity was designed where students had to work with concrete content during each educational stage where they will work as teachers. in particular, the contents were the growth and development of plants and, moreover, orientation through cardinal knowledge. in the first case, growth and development of plants, students must demonstrate their scientific knowledge through observation, experimentation, obtaining results, studying those results, and expressing conclusions. this activity was evaluated through a report detailing the whole process followed to carry out the proposed activity, through a blog. thus, it not only acquired the contents of the activity itself but also showed knowledge about both digital competence and scientific competence. in the report, the assessment was made of the content knowledge, as well as its didactic transfer, identifying the curricular elements to be used, designed, and proposed for future teaching students. with respect to the results obtained, it was found that students had difficulties organizing the contents according to the scientific method. specifically, most of the difficulties found were in the phase of studying these results and expressing conclusions. in this regard, it could be stated that the future teachers were capable of observing, experimenting, and obtaining results following the imposed guidelines but were unable to structure knowledge, synthesize it, and carry out higher-order functions; in short, they produced a report in which they demonstrated whether they were capable of linking facts with inferences regarding other authors and with other data. for the competence “teamwork,” an activity of good teaching practices was proposed in which they were asked to design a didactic unit in small groups. we opted for the grouping of small research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 garcía-martínez et al. promoting professional development for teachers through a scale of competence assessment. 151 cooperative groups to work on interpersonal and social skills, empathy, dialogue, and consensus in order to reach a common objective. in this case, the content selected was the human body and its reproduction, suitable content in both educational stages. the assessment of this competence found a positive willingness by most students to work in teams. above all, there was a clear trend to work in groups rather than individually. however, 30% of the students disagreed on the final work presented, which indicates difficulties in the processes of negotiation, dialogue, and consensus. due to the fact that the aim was to evaluate the students' capacity to apply knowledge, the activity of the competence “use new technologies” was formulated in a negative sense. thus, a teaching-related malpractice about the use of the digital whiteboard was used as a model for the activity. as part of the activity, students were asked to carry out in situ an analysis of the use of the digital whiteboard in schools during the pre-school and primary education stages. simultaneously, they were also asked to carry out an analysis of the technological materials produced by the publishers so that they could reflect on their suitability in the curriculum as well as the use that teachers make of them in the classroom. the results obtained for this competence were ambiguous. there was a strong coincidence when it was stated that there was widespread improper use of the digital whiteboard, given that it did not “take advantage” of the real possibilities it offered such as wikis, webquest, and moocs, among others. in the case of the analysis of the technological materials designed by the editorial companies, approximately half of the future teachers (47.65%) considered that they were adequate and conformed to the guidelines of the curriculum, while the rest thought otherwise. there was unanimity in declaring the scarce use that teachers made of these resources, the textbook being the material of preference for the majority of primary and pre-school teachers. observing the trends on the effective use of ict in the classroom, in order to analyze the competence “organize one's own continuous training,” students were asked to create a personalized learning environment (ple), coinciding with studies such as şahin & uluyol (2016) in the turkish context. among the guidelines for doing so, they were asked to perform the following tasks: create a twitter account and follow interesting people. share ideas and findings on twitter. subscribe via rss to blogs or other information sources (scientific journals). start writing ideas and projects on a blog in wordpress, blogger, or posterous. tag and share favorites on del.icio.us or diigo. participate in some interesting social networks: reducan, elgg, ning, grou.ps. add lifestreaming and share it. subscribe to other interesting people on facebook. given the familiarity that future teachers have with technology, most showed a high level of knowledge in this competence, although they acknowledged having had difficulties in research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 garcía-martínez et al. promoting professional development for teachers through a scale of competence assessment. 152 expressing their own ideas, an aspect related to the competence “organize and promote situations.” table 1 presents the relationship of each competence observed, with the tasks to be carried out to evaluate the level of achievement of these tasks. table 1. list of competences to be analyzed by tasks. competence task organize and promote situations an activity must be carried out correctly. the development and growth of a plant is proposed. making a compass. teamwork organize an activity in group with all its phases: schedule, tasks distribution, process assessment. design of a didactic unit about human reproduction. use of new technologies there is a bad practice about the digital whiteboard and they must analyze and correct it. analysis of the use of digital whiteboards in schools in pre-school and primary education. analysis of cds attached to educational materials. organize one's own continuous training organize their own online training. organize a ple. discussion the development of professional teaching competencies is a key aspect of school improvement. this study addresses this by identifying four basic competencies for any teacher. studies such as the one carried out by gallego-quicenos et al. (2017) have analyzed the perceptions of teachers in science education and their transfer to teaching, finding that students usually do not have a positive perception of science due to the approach adopted to teach it. in their study, they highlight the need for more creative experiences involving the social component, which would increase student motivation. this social nature of knowledge and the capacity to learn and work with others is one of the conditions enclosed in the competence of “teamwork.” according to the results obtained, the participants of the study have a favorable attitude toward working with others, although they have difficulties when it comes to initiating negotiation and consensus processes (forte & flores, 2013). in this regard, research such as that developed by benoliel and schechter (2018) or that of duffy and gallagher (2017) bet on the establishment of enabling conditions for collaboration as a way to combat professional isolation of teachers and get a group of teachers to work cooperatively. often, these processes are initiated when there is a collective concern, as in the first case. other times it happens when the need arises to work together to achieve a desirable goal for all (radiæ-šestiæ, radovanoviæ, milanoviæ-dobrota, slavkovic, & langoviæmiliæviæ, 2013). research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 garcía-martínez et al. promoting professional development for teachers through a scale of competence assessment. 153 furthermore, ict provides multiple opportunities and challenges for teachers. not only is it necessary for them to show competence in the use of ict tools, but they are also required to make didactic use of them. there has been a large amount of international investigation on this subject, highlighting the insufficient pedagogical training that future teachers often have to face these challenges (jiang, tang, peng, & liu, 2018; khan, 2017). as for the capacity of future teachers to “organize their own continuous training,” studies such as that of tour (2016) have focused on the capacity of teachers to establish networks and initiate self-starting professional learning processes, highlighting the positive impact of technologies. in this area, ongoing training through virtual learning environments is positioned as a powerful way to professionalize teachers and develop effective teaching practices (mcnaughton et al., 2018). conclusions this study presents the findings from research carried out at the university of jaén with students from the primary education teacher degree and the pre-school education teacher degree. the first research objective was that of understanding the level of knowledge in professional competencies that pre-service teachers acquire in their teacher training period. to this end, the aim was to analyze four important basic skills that teachers must possess for their subsequent professional development: “organize and promote situations,” “teamwork,” “use new technologies,” and “organize their own continuous training.” in the analysis, with regard to the competence “organize and promote situations,” it was found that students show difficulties when developing didactic transposition, abstracting what is relevant and expressing conclusions on specific contents. in the “teamwork” competence, their high willingness to work in a team stands out at the same time that they show an insufficient ability to achieve consensus, an aspect that they must continue to improve in their subsequent professional practice. regarding the third competence, “using new technologies,” students show knowledge in the use of new technologies, although they have insufficient knowledge to use them for pedagogical purposes, coinciding with numerous researches in the field. despite this knowledge of how to use technologies, it has been detected that a very high percentage do not use specific software. for example, they do not know how to use all the potential of word, such as change of format, inclusion of pagination, table format, inclusion and creation of images, etc. with regard to the competence “organize your own continuous training,” it has been shown that future teachers are inclined to use ict in their training but have difficulties in carrying out tasks in which they have to express their own ideas and make value judgements. the second research objective was to analyze the impact of ict on teacher professional development during their training period. students are familiar with the use of icts, as they have been trained in the technological era; however, they do not show enough pedagogical research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 garcía-martínez et al. promoting professional development for teachers through a scale of competence assessment. 154 knowledge about the use of icts to integrate them into the design of teaching and learning processes. in this respect, there is a demand for specific programs on ict literacy to reduce this situation. this is probably because they have learned to think about an activity and apply it but have not thought about how to evaluate it in terms of competence assessment or meaningful learning. this is a deficiency to be taken into account. finally, we present an example of a scale of evaluation of professional teaching competences, validated by 15 practicing teachers, responding to the third objective of this work, designing an online evaluation program for assessing professional competencies in a teacher, by creating an innovative resource that allows evaluation of online training (see appendix). research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 garcía-martínez et al. promoting professional development for teachers through a scale of competence assessment. 155 references benoliel, p., & schechter, c. 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(2017). teachers’ self-initiated professional learning through personal learning networks. technology, pedagogy and education, 26(2), 179-192. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 garcía-martínez et al. promoting professional development for teachers through a scale of competence assessment. 158 appendix: scale of competence assessment student details a degree b course c subject d age e gender previous studies city father's age mother's age father's academic degree elementary studies: secondary school/bachelor: professional training: module: degree: phd: mother's academic degree elementary studies: secondary school/bachelor: professional training: module: degree: phd: father's job mother's job research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 garcía-martínez et al. promoting professional development for teachers through a scale of competence assessment. 159 instructions to fill out the questionnaire: 1. read carefully, one by one, each question. 2. when you have read it, answer by marking with a cross (x), according to the following scale: 1: strongly disagree 2: disagree 3: agree 4: strongly agree ns/nc: unknown/ no answer item 1 2 3 4 ns/nc a) organize and promote situations a.1. knowing the theoretical contents is necessary to face the explanation in their teaching work. a.2. teachers must have developed knowledge about the different methodological issues that may be developed in their profession. a.3. it is important to be able to use social and communicative skills required for the development of the teacher's professional activities. a.4. the teacher has to be constantly innovative in his or her classes. a.5. one must avoid daily routines. a.6. teachers have to analyze if they awaken curiosity, motivation, and if they are able to make their teaching interesting. a.7. he has to know how to teach discipline. a.8. adapting to learning situations proposed by the student is key. a.9. teachers must know different types of resources to use inside and outside the classroom. a.10. entrepreneurship and initiative of students and colleagues is important. a.11. the ability to orient students towards learning must be developed. a.12. teachers must know how to link theoretical content to the students' reality (they must know how to find usefulness). b) teamwork teacher must: research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 garcía-martínez et al. promoting professional development for teachers through a scale of competence assessment. 160 b.1. appreciate the work and role of the team leader. b.2. understand that teamwork depends on assuming responsibilities. b.3. understand that collaborative work results from the fact that an educational stage or cycle works properly. b.4. participate in the implementation of projects in the school to keep the school running properly. b.5. understand that flexible opinions in collaborative work is necessary for the group's improvement. b.6. understand that management functions in a school are important and necessary. b.7. that the teacher's reflection on his or her teaching task is enhanced if it is carried out in a group and there is communication between groups of teachers. b.8. communicate their achievements and problems to their peers. b.9. promote and value the organized teamwork of their students. c) use of new technologies c.1. teachers must be able to use digital resources to help students learn their use and function. c.2. knowing digital resource management as well as time management in computer classrooms is fundamental in the teacher’s practice. c.3. teachers need to know didactic resources in digital support. c.4. the use of new technologies as an informative, formative, and methodological resource is key. c.5. to be able to identify the essential from the accessory when teachers analyze digital information is essential. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 garcía-martínez et al. promoting professional development for teachers through a scale of competence assessment. 161 c.6. it is very important to know how to use a text-processing system. c.7. it is essential to know how to use worksheets. c.8. c.9. teachers need to know how to work with learning platforms in their profession. c.10. a good teacher has to have e-mail. c.11. teachers must use their own web environment (know how to create and update it). d) organize one's own continuous training d.1. when a teacher obtains his or her university degree, he or she has acquired knowledge enough to practice teaching. d.2. self-study learning is key to the teacher's professional improvement. d.3. training courses are fundamental to the teacher's professional development. d.4. there is no need for continuous training courses for teachers. d.5. school materials provided in schools are sufficient to ensure renewal and updating of teaching. d.6. teachers are trained as professionals only over time. d.7. teachers must be concerned about the quality they offer to their students through updating and continuous training. d.8. a good teacher is one who is motivated by updating and continuing education over time. d.9. in order to know how to manage the student's learning, the teacher has to know how to organize his own training and his ongoing learning. d.10. ongoing reading encourages professional development as a teacher. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 garcía-martínez et al. promoting professional development for teachers through a scale of competence assessment. 162 d.11. participation in school projects enables teachers to be permanently and constantly updated. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 zarabanda, d.e.b. ict and its purpose in the pedagogical practice 83 ict and its purpose in the pedagogical practice diego enrique báez zarabanda* university of granada dbaez3@unab.edu.co *corresponding author: dbaez3@unab.edu.co received : 04.07.2019 revision requested: 09.08.2019 accepted : 25.09.2019 how to cite this paper: zarabanda, d. e. b. (2019). ict and its purpose in the pedagogical practice. research in social sciences and technology, 4(2), 83-95. abstract information and communications technology (ict) is currently inserted in the daily activities of a human being and has become a necessary resource, vital for their development up to the point of not conceiving activities without using these. in this sense, the education field is not the exception and has been partially including ict as support for the teaching practice; however, there is an increasing demand from the students to implement more resources and activities supported by these technologies. a significant distance exists (the known digital divide) between the possibilities offered by different web applications that can support the pedagogical practices and the actual reality of the teaching practice, where the students realize the flaws and the necessity of strengthening the technology skills of the teachers to efficiently develop and orientate such use. in this regard, it is necessary to critically reflect on the possibilities that are offered by different web applications and their impact, their purpose in the pedagogical practice in a way that can serve as a pretext to motivate the teachers in their use and application in the development of their classes, achieving real formative processes. by doing this, students can be offered real, significant learning experiences from the technological, social, and pedagogical view, consolidating in a first instance the abilities of the teachers in the ict area, as well as the comprehensive learning of their students, being updated on the advances that ict offers globally, and implementing these permanently in their job as teachers, thus innovating their classes and motivating students towards learning and toward consolidating the use of ict in the different disciplines, with the human and social component that must characterize us, accomplishing from this standpoint and reflection a pedagogical practice of quality. keywords: ict, pedagogical practice, digital competences, teacher, educational institution. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 zarabanda, d.e.b. ict and its purpose in the pedagogical practice 84 introduction considering the different pedagogical, psychological, religious, and political stances from which a class can be boarded, different strategies and efforts have been proposed for the duty of the teacher throughout history, which are considered to be the focus of the functioning of educational institutions and pedagogy (understanding pedagogy as the development of the education process, that is to say the class itself). these strategies have looked for alternatives to generate through education better human beings, a better society; however, from other scenarios and perspectives, on the contrary, school has been held responsible for the flaws and deterioration of society. in this regard, tenti (1994) states that “the educational system, despite its unfulfilled promises, constitutes an institutional network that contributed significantly to the social democratization process” and, in the order mentioned above, gives relevance to the role of educational institutions in the society. in fact, it is clear that school has a transcendental function in individuals’ development and their environment, and that around school is where future professionals are guided with the necessary abilities to address the challenges of the current society. among these great challenges, the intersection between ict and its use in the permanent qualification of pedagogy is found. however, although most educational institutions (in all levels) work toward “comprehensive education for its students,” many of these focus their models, strategies, activities, and resources in subjects that are disciplinary only. in many of the courses and class subjects that identify the educational institution, ict has a secondary role and is even invisible in the practice of pedagogy. as torío (2004) affirms, “we live in a period in which traditional institutions are not able to transmit values and behavior patterns with decisive solvency” (p. 39). each semester or annually, educational institutions graduate high school students or undergraduate students with disciplinary abilities in the different areas of education, ruled by national and international standardized tests (pisa, talis, pirls, timss), which position the educational institutions giving these the label of “quality entities” and placing them in the different rankings. this classification conditions the educational institutions toward generating strategies and giving resources to the disciplinary within their classrooms or academic spaces, considering the areas where these international tests evaluate them. in that sense, ict and the role it must execute in pedagogy are not being used at its full potential, on one hand because the national and international tests do not evaluate rigorously the technological abilities of the students, and on the other hand because, based on years of teaching experience in the private and public sector, as well as in diverse researches, there are flaws in the technological abilities of the teachers from different areas when implementing ict in pedagogy or even in the educational policies established by the institution, by secretaries or by the ministry of education. these competences, which teachers must possess for the most effective and efficient incorporation of ict in their pedagogical practice, according to cabero (2014), are: research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 zarabanda, d.e.b. ict and its purpose in the pedagogical practice 85 cognitive (knowledge of their discipline), technique (ict domain), pedagogical applications (knowledge of the possibilities they offer as educational tools), methodological (application of appropriate procedures), positive and critical attitude towards them, facilitator of the teachinglearning process, of the ability for their students to incorporate them into their learning, of the ability to adequately choose technological resources, of being permanently trained and trained in their use, ability to work cooperatively in networks, and of being a constant evaluator. (p. 114) also, some of the technological inclusion policies in the educational institutions are exclusively focused on “supplying schools with technological resources that are centralized in computer rooms with internet access” (moreira, 2011, p. 51), originating on the one hand a latent reality where technological resources for classes exist but are used almost exclusively by teachers from the computing areas, and on the other hand, the lack of technological abilities of the teachers or, in some cases, the resistance to using the many existing applications to make pedagogy dynamic, create a situation that goes against the possibilities of ict in the consolidation of significant learning experiences where both the student and the teacher can constitute and strengthen conceptual and procedural use frameworks, the manipulation and use of web resources (online and offline) offered independently from the area of education. considering this, cassany (2006) refers to the need of incorporating ict into the educational environment, stating that: the kids from today will be adults in 2020. what use is learning to write only in pencil and paper? the kid is sitting in class on tuesday morning, writing with pencil…, what motivation does the kid have to write like this? what is the kid feeling? what do the kids think, if at home they have broadband (wi-fi), if when they lift their head up they see through the window an employee of the company, sitting in front of an amazing flat screen, with spell check, style corrector, and an assisted translation program? for the kids of today, the adults of tomorrow, reading and writing should already be using websites, elaborating hypertexts, composing emails, conversing or chatting through spell check and translating programs, besides taking notes with paper and pencil and reading books with hard covers. (p. 183) therefore, in most educational institutions, students are still being isolated from ict and its possibilities. also, in the development of pedagogical practices, the educational institutions have the identity and application of the four pillars of education (delors, 1996), but in the real execution of academic activities, the institutions give more priority and resources to knowing rather than doing, considering the areas covered by national and international standardized tests. however, in none of these measures of “comprehensive education” and/or “educational quality” is it possible to evaluate what kind of human beings they are educating, what their ethics will be as professionals and in their personal lives in diverse situations in the future, making decisions research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 zarabanda, d.e.b. ict and its purpose in the pedagogical practice 86 that could undoubtedly affect (positively or negatively) their environment, more than the abilities and disciplinary competences learned within the educational institution. similarly, mckinsey (2007) showed that educational investment vs. results on standardized tests is not a sin qua non condition. for example, “singapore, one of the countries with best performance in the world, spends less on primary education than 27 out of the 30 countries of the ocde” (p. 6). an aspect this demonstrates is not investment necessarily but the way pedagogical practices are performed to achieve disciplinary competences. using inger enkvist’s words, “what the pisa tests evaluates do not reveal if there is a good environment in the classrooms, good principles are taught or if humanities are well taught.” therefore, high results on standardized tests are not precisely a guarantee for the institution, and even less to society, that the objective of “comprehensive learning” is being accomplished; also, it cannot guarantee the minimization or elimination of the current index of corruption, violence, or any other social indicators that show the defects of the education system. ict in education historically, in many law postulates and models it is established that education must supply the current needs of society and construct citizens to face the challenges of the future. this is even more important in a time of globalization and immersion in the knowledge society, the ict, and when many human activities have been automatized. new generations must get the necessary competences to perform in this new context. regarding this, as stated by bernete (2012), “for young people, using internet or sms is something as natural as for their parents is watching tv of for their grandparents is listening to the radio. we know that each generation and social group ‘naturalizes’ the technologies that are available and tries to benefit from it” (p. 98). in this sense, technological inclusion must be “naturally” introduced in the pedagogical practices, the teacher being the leader in the areas of planning, organizing, and developing, as in the abilities of managing different web tools and their application in academic process and even social processes based on the institutional and area goals, in their interests and needs of the context. nevertheless, the incorporation of ict in the educational area has been given “unequally and in occasions with restrictive and limited means despite the existing consensus about their value as tools of great help in the development of the learning process” (gonzález, 2007, p. 221), leading to many of the pedagogical practices mentioned previously, which must be a task for all educational professionals who dedicate to this labor, to give relevance to the importance of ict in education (yucel et al., 2010). in fact, ict has been incorporated almost completely in the daily activities of the human being, including an important place in leisure and free time. the everyday nature of the students goes by in social media, chats, internet searches, online games, everything within one click; kids and research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 zarabanda, d.e.b. ict and its purpose in the pedagogical practice 87 teenagers today are “digital natives,” but “icts are still absent in most classrooms or academic spaces, and when they are not, a great part of the teacher practices are still reluctant to their usage” (moreira, 2011, p. 51). this is why it is necessary that teachers as mediators of the learning process recognize this reality and its implication in the way of being, learning, and interacting of this new generation, to link said dynamics in the pedagogical practice and exploit its potential. in relation to these new learning dynamics and the everyday nature of our current students, according to moreira, machado, and santos (2015): for this generation of millennials, the use of technology, internet, phones and videogames constitutes an undeniable referent for their daily life; without technology millennials are isolated from their social group and also without the possibility of developing activities such as leisure or interpersonal communication. in that sense, those kids disconnected from the internet are excluded from a social interaction circle that makes part of the everyday life of a whole generation. (p. 13) not using ict in educative processes, and even preventing students from using pedagogical practices, would be ignoring this reality; teachers must use this knowledge to potentialize and focus those technological abilities towards the cognition development and strengthening in the different disciplines, giving students benefits since they use these tools in the social arena, games, and in their free time. despite their immersion in the digital world, students are not experts or wholly responsible (due to their age and chronological maturity) in the use and manipulation of the information found on the internet; on the contrary, they have limitations to identify and critically manage the information found, as affirmed by cassany (2006): “on the internet you can find everything that humans are able to produce, no censorship, no limits, no frontiers… on the internet the garbage and the mud are mixed with the pearls and jewels” (p. 220). it is necessary to build in students the ability to filter information and evaluate it, discriminating the scientific from the speculative, the trustworthy websites from those without academic foundations, and educate them with disciplinary and technological judgement to know how to navigate through abundant information, since “the difficulty resides in how to select, interpret and evaluate the information that surrounds us” (gonzalez, 2007, p. 221). ict and pedagogical practice based on the aforementioned approaches, the path which pedagogical practices in educational institutions should walk glimpses how icts are exploited by the education community and achieve the formative function in the disciplinary and social areas, since “alphabetization in the digital culture must be understood and something more complex that the mere learning of using social software tools or tools from web 2.0” (moreira, machado, & santos, 2015, p. 30), research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 zarabanda, d.e.b. ict and its purpose in the pedagogical practice 88 placing the teacher at the center of this alphabetization process, responsible for the adequate use of the outnumbered tools currently offered by different platforms and web applications, and as stated by moreira, not only using the applications in class, for in this respect the millennial student possesses an advantage over the teacher; the teacher must print the pedagogic manuals of these, with objectives clearly planned, established in order to use ict to its full potential (tarman, baytak, & duman, 2015). in other words, as stated by perez gomez (2013), “equity in access and training for critical knowledge are the two faces of alphabetization in the use of digital technologies. therefore, different authors pose the need for education to radically rethink their objectives and formative competences to be an educated, critical and democratic civilian in the new illustration that the digital culture represents.” due to this, educational institutions are called upon for real changes in their processes, and in the transformation of their teachers, to redesign pedagogical practices based on the current needs: the incorporation of ict in education, since it is the reality, interest, and necessity of the students. however, using web applications or technological tools cannot be reduced to digitalizing activities and traditional proposals, papering over traditional teaching methods with new technologies; although ict is a facilitating, motivating tool that also supports the development of pedagogical practices more appropriately, its success is determined by the pedagogical use given by the teacher. in terms of cuban (2006) cited by moreira (2011), “technology is not the motor of innovations, but the didactic methodologies for the use of these” (p. 60). in relation to the pedagogical use of ict, it is useful to cite sabada and bringue (2010), who identify the main characteristics of kids and teenagers in relation to the use of ict, and that it is necessary that teachers refer to ict both in the planning as well as in the development of their classes, to adjust, make flexible, and lead their pedagogical practice to a good use. according to sabada and bringue (2010), the characteristics of millennials in relation to the use of ict are: • equipped: they have access to an ample range of technological devices. in this aspect, the teacher must manipulate a wide range of devices to provide students with the specific discipline of study. • multitask: they perform various tasks simultaneously, even using the availability of various screens; for example, watching tv while navigating the internet or making a phone call. regarding this characteristic, there is an important challenge for the teacher and the digital immigrant; multitasking is not easy if it is not permanently practiced with the use of devices and applications to strengthen this ability. • mobilized: by age 12, kids already have phones available. here is where the gap between teachers and students widens, and while for students it is easier to recognize and use new tools or applications, for the teacher this can become a complex task. therefore, the challenge and compromise for teachers is to be permanently updated in the use of devices and their applications. • interactive: they prefer the interactivity offered by the internet rather than tv. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 zarabanda, d.e.b. ict and its purpose in the pedagogical practice 89 although it is true that tv can support practical pedagogy, it is possible that through the use of other devices or applications, the demand from the student for interactivity can be supplied. • emancipated: in the home context, they use their own screens, which allows them to be more independent in relation to the use of technology and the consumption of information. this subject can be complex, considering many realities around the social and economic circumstances of our students and the educational institutions. many students and their families have devices at home, but it is possible that these have to be shared, or the internet connection is not of good quality. this reality is not exogenous to the ordinariness and dynamic of the institutions and with which the teacher must interact daily to offer their students a significant and quality pedagogical practice. • autonomy: between 10-18 years old, more than half are alone when watching tv, playing videogames, or navigating the internet. this last characteristic points to an important challenge and compromise from the teacher and the educational institution regarding digital and social responsibility that must be developed and strengthened continuously in the students in order for them to be conscious about their actions and how these can affect themselves and others. in relation to digital responsibility, due to the immersion of ict in daily life, a relevant aspect emerges when it comes to educating students: the security in digital competences “to encourage participation and empowerment of the society of the 21st century. promoting them, implies the critical, creative and secure use of the ict, either with work, school or activities of daily life purposes” (castillejos, torres, & lagunes, 2016). castillejos, torres, and lagunes (2016) specifically affirm that: the security subject is not only centered in protecting the user and its devices, but also boards the relative to the protection of the natural environment. it gives awareness about the acquisition of devices, the use of energy, recycling and disposal of devices, as well as the appropriateness of digital tools to promote care for the environment and the use of green technologies. in that sense, the national institute of educative technologies and professors education (intef, 2014) considers the level of security a series of competences that the teacher must know and apply in a way that can educate students about their importance. such competences are: table 1. security, digital competence area. competence description device protection protect the devices and understand the risks and threats of the web; know protection and security measures. protection of personal data understand the usual terms of use of the programs and digital services; actively protect personal data; respect the privacy of others; protect yourself from threats, frauds and harassment. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 zarabanda, d.e.b. ict and its purpose in the pedagogical practice 90 health protection avoid health risks relating to use of technologies regarding threats of physical integrity and psychological well-being. environment protection considering the impact of ict in the environment. source: intef 2014. based on this description, the teacher must teach these competences in the subject of digital security for the benefit of students and the education community. intef (2017) defines the digital competence as “the creative, critical and secure use of the technologies of information and communication to achieve the objectives related to work, employability, learning, free time, inclusion and participation in society” (p. 12). intef presents in its document “common framework of digital competence of teachers– september 2017” the areas of competence in which the teacher must be skilled with technologies and show these skills in their pedagogical practice. this way, ict can be used to its full potential through the leadership of the teacher in different scenarios and situations that can arise in the development of an academic exercise. these areas of competence are: figure 1. common framework of digital competence of teachers (cdc). source: adapted from areas of the common framework of digital competence of teachers–intef (2017) referring to this classification, the five areas contemplate a specific number of competences each, adding 21 that are also subdivided in six levels of competence differentiated by intef (2017, p. 3) as the following: the common framework of digital competence of teachers establishes three dimensions in each of the competences of the five areas that compose it. the first dimension is basic and research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 zarabanda, d.e.b. ict and its purpose in the pedagogical practice 91 includes levels a1 and a2. the second dimension is intermediate and includes levels b1 and b2. lastly, the third dimension is advanced and includes level c1 and c2. this structure is designed to identify the level of digital competence of teachers, establishing a progressive level of development and autonomy from level a1 to the highest level, c2. based on this, teachers can demonstrate their current level of digital competence, making relevant the insertion of ict in their pedagogical practice and the optimal pedagogical and didactic use of these tools. therefore, we must permanently reflect in our duty as teachers, training frequently about new applications and possibilities that surge for the qualification of our labor in the disciplinary area as well as in the social arena. it is the teachers’ moral and professional responsibility for ict to not be underused and be able to offer the students everyday what báez (2019) has denominated “significant learning experiences (sle),” which are comprised of the following aspects:  generate spaces for students to acquire their knowledge in knowing, knowing how, and social and civil competences; through activities of practical character that give place to cooperative work, solidarity, in the staging of values and principles, constructing from these at the same time the necessary knowledge to confront problems that emerge from the epistemological rigor that the level of study requires.  for it to be significant, it must consider the disciplinary and social need in the personal environment of the student and the community. similarly, the manifested interests by students in the development of classes must be shown in planning and teacher activities, in a way that they can feel an active part of the education process.  learning, a product of the first two, since these develop in scenarios where the students “do what they want” and see a relationship, the pertinence of it with real life outside school or university, will allow in a more effective manner to achieve noteworthy learning for their professional exercise or their performance as citizens and as part of a family of a community in the two postulated and argued areas: disciplinary and axiological. (p. 35) this means that the teacher must be updated on the technological aspects, web applications, and having high digital abilities, because “even regular users of new technologies ignore the didactic potential and the possible ways of including these in the curriculums of obligatory learning” (gutierrez, palacios, & torrego, 2010), but also in the emotional, axiological, and ethic aspects, in their behavior and the synergy they reach with their students, the resilience of the teacher, giving real meaning to life from the disciplinary and behavioral learnings achieved in its students and future citizens of the world with the support of ict. “digital technologies are not only an instrument or machines that we have added to our daily lives, but these have controverted in the necessary and indispensable prosthesis to coexist and connect with others, research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 zarabanda, d.e.b. ict and its purpose in the pedagogical practice 92 to work, to shop, to do management processes, to have fun…, or for any other social action of the 21st century” (moreira, machado, & santos, 2015). the teacher must assume the role, considering this new reality, this new “prosthesis” the students have inside and outside the classroom, to continuously improve pedagogical practices and strengthen the four pillars of knowing, doing, being, and coexisting (delors, 1996) through the mediation and support of ict. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 zarabanda, d.e.b. ict and its purpose in the pedagogical practice 93 references báez, d. 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(2010). a model to explore turkish teachers' ict integration stages. turkish online journal of educational technology, 9(4), 1-9. https://bit.ly/2mge1ya research in social sciences and technology mcluhanian perspective of facebook 1aldardasawi areen f. abstract as we live in the epoch of popular culture, it is very important to understand it and study its dimensions as well as their influences upon society. technology is a very salient manifestation of popular culture that has brought substantial changes to the world. thus, we have to be aware of the effects and the potential effects that technology may have upon us. one type of technology is facebook which is the most popular social network website in terms of the number of members and visitors. as a virtual society, facebook is growing more and more popular day by day. in this article, facebook, as a technological medium, is going to be measured and explained according to marshall mcluhan's perspective of media and technology. therefore, we will try to explain, in mcluhan's words, how facebook is considered a "message" as well as a "cool" or "hot" medium. in addition, there will be an attempt to discerning the reasons why people are very attached to such a virtual social life. keywords: social media, mcluhan, facebook, hot and cold introduction: facebook is a popular culture product in order to say that a certain phenomenon is a product of popular culture, it has to have some characteristics. according to (storey, 1994), in order to define popular culture, first, we can simply say that it is well liked by people (storey, 1994; tarman, 2009; 2010). so, as facebook is the most liked and visited social media website, it is considered a popular culture. facebook is the world's largest in terms of the number of users also having more than one million small or medium-sized businesses on which large companies spend more than hundred million dollars advertising on facebook per year (sareah, 2015). this indicates how rapidly facebook had gained approval among people (kılınç et al., 2016). a second criterion areendardasawi@yahoo.com -sakarya university1 aldardasawi research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),59-75 by which john storey regards a popular culture is that it is the leftover after high culture characteristics are determined (hossain & aydin, 2011; storey, 1994; yigit & tarman, 2013; 2016). high culture is characterized as complicated and difficult, therefore, facebook, like all popular technological products, is characterized by easiness and simplicity. on the contrary of high culture, popular culture is mass-produced commercial culture as well as for mass consumption and from the people for the people (aydin, 2012; 2013; storey, 1994; tarman, 2016) which obviously makes facebook a huge wealthy company. plus, it is socially approved by the masses because it represents them as they are members of it. it is designed to meet their needs that were structurally born by the emergence of popular culture. plus, it reshaped people according to its standards. in 1967, the canadian public intellectual marshall mcluhan has introduced the world with a masterpiece of thought about media and the world of technology. interestingly, his theory eventuated to be applicable to technology till the present time. mcluhan's perspective of media and technology was that of a philosophical one. considering media as extensions of our lives or bodies and classifying the types of media and technology using the dichotomy of 'hot' and 'cool' was just a brilliant way to describe the relationship between the masses and technology. moreover, he redefined the "message" of the media by considering it as the changes that a certain technology has on people's lives (valiandes & tarman, 2011; tarman & baytak, 2011). in this article, facebook as an extension to our social life, as a message and as "cool" medium will be discussed. most importantly, mcluhan's hypothesis of how our tools, such as facebook, can shape us. mcluhan was an obscure canadian academic until the mid-60s, when his best-selling book, understanding media, turned him into a pop-culture phenomenon. his playfully radical ideas perfectly reflected the spirit of the times, when the air was filled with revolutionary rhetoric and pot smoke. aldardasawi research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),59-75 mcluhan's central thesis, encapsulated in the famous phrase "the medium is the message", was that the technologies through which we take in information the media, broadly defined become "extensions" of our bodies, exerting a profound influence over us. when an important new medium arrives, it can reshape who we are as individuals and as a society. the electric media of television and computers, argued mcluhan, would liberate us from our dependence on the printed word. print was what he called a "hot" medium, one that absorbed all of our attention and left little room for participation. the medium it had supplanted, the spoken word, was by contrast a "cool" medium that left plenty of space for participation. reading, to put it simply, is a lonely pursuit, while speech is a social one. so when we became readers, rather than listeners, we sacrificed our shared, tribal consciousness and became locked into private consciousness. electric media, being cool technologies that promote interaction, would bring back our lost tribal consciousness, mcluhan believed. but our tribes would no longer be small, isolated groups. because the new media spanned the planet, we would become members of a "global village ." when the communal 1960s collapsed into the self-indulgent 1970s, mcluhan fell out of favor. today mcluhan's work seems current again. kevin kelly, one of wired's original editors, suggests that what mcluhan "was really talking about was the internet two decades before it appear." ii. facebook: the extension of social life the extension of something is the stretching that makes it bigger or longer. similarly, media are the extension of our bodies and minds. they widen the abilities of our bodies and minds so that life becomes easier and faster. according to (mcluhan, 1964), machines as aldardasawi research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),59-75 objects were forming extensions to our bodies; like cars as extensions to feet, clothes to skin, weapons and industrial machines to hands and so on. however, in the technological era, these technologies are extensions of our nervous systems because they are intangible and usually function through our minds and feelings, in mcluhan's words, "the technological simulation of consciousness" (mcluhan, 1964). the influences of media on the human nervous system have started ever since the emergence of technology. taking mcluhan's light bulb for an example, the light bulb is a medium that extended the daylight so that humans can work and function ordinarily in the dark (mcluhan, 1964). similarly, facebook is an extension to social life in general (kılınç & dere, 2013). for example, when writing a status in the 'what's on your mind?' blank, we are evacuating what is in our minds concerning some situation. therefore, by frequently updating a status that has to do with feelings, thoughts or anything alike, we are composing an extension of the daily diaries in which we write what we lived, thought or felt. our social life is not as physical and real as it was. it became a virtual one where we gather online and still can share our news, feelings or activities at the spot. paying someone a visit is no longer going to their house most often, but visiting their profile on facebook is enough to know their news like marriage, engagement getting a job and so on. a text message on facebook is an extension of the chit-chat we used to have while coming across someone while going somewhere or even the extension of the visit itself. adding an acquaintance as a friend on facebook is the extension of the action of getting to know someone closely. acquaintances become closer in distance than in real life. on facebook, we exchange 'likes' and 'comments' which imply closer distance since we act like we just met the day before, while we never did. we act as if we continue a conversation we were having. aldardasawi research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),59-75 moreover, facebook is an extension of our memories because it saves a lot of photos and other memories. moreover, it reminds us of some old posts as a memory to share. this memory may work as a reminder for our old young self where we were different in thought or shape. with that memory, we generate feelings and thoughts that we had at the time we shared. facebook is using emotional words which are important to make people have closer social bonds. groups on facebook, for example, are the extension of a social clubs concerning certain topics. a group about health contains many suggestions, conversations and discussions about healthy lifestyles, diets or exercise. social life became easier and faster and not limited with time or space because it is lived within smart phones any time anywhere. eventually, facebook contains all these possibilities of social relations; h.e. wittkower says in his facebook and philosophy the following: facebook appeared to some writers as angel, and some as demon; to some as an emerging global village, and to others as isolation in disguise; to some as an opportunity for maintaining relationships, and to others as broadcast narcissism. the point from sartre tells us why there’s so much disagreement about what facebook means: there’s so much disagreement, not because there are so many ways to think about facebook, but because there are so many different facebooks. (wittkower, 2010) so, this is to say that these different facebooks are just resembling and representing social life in form and content. again as wittkower implied, "facebook is a kind of mirror of our social existence, and we do not always enjoy all aspects of the communities that we find ourselves to be part of." iii. facebook is the message "the medium is the message" is one of mcluhan's best known aphorisms that distinguished him as a media philosopher (wittkower, 2010). mcluhan redefined 'message' when he related it to media. the message of media is not only its content but the package of changes that occurred on life because of using such media "the "message" of any medium or aldardasawi research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),59-75 technology is the change of scale or pace or pattern that it introduces into human affairs" (mcluhan, 1964). mcluhan argues that there is something called "media mates". in other words, one media contains one or more other media (mcluhan, 1964). for example, the telegraph is a medium that contains print which is another medium; the print, in turn, contains another medium which is speech, an absolute media. likewise, facebook contains countless media inside of it, like photographs, videos, words, articles and so forth. so, the contained media "posts, pictures, videos, etc." are the message of the containing one "facebook". however, according to mcluhan, this message is the reason to change how people understand or relate to the world because it is irrelevant to the medium. well, the structure in which people exist while on facebook is social but it still differs from the real social life. it added some bizarre characteristics to social life that cannot be performed in real life as mcluhan puts it "the machine altered our relations to one another and to ourselves". for example, people we interact well with on facebook may mean no one to us for real. we me even pass by each other without saying hello. we may know lots of things about people we know well on facebook, but when we have a conversation for real, it may not go further than 'hello, how are you' conversation. the message of facebook is wide and various to the extent that it "changes the form of human relations and activities" and in mcluhan's words, "we shape our tools and therefore our tools shape us" (mcluhan, 1964). facebook shaped our social life accordingly in a way that imparts different characteristics to our social bonds. iv. facebook: hot or cold? another concept of mcluhan's theory of media is the dichotomy of 'hot' and 'cool' used in describing media according to its relationship with the senses of humans. we can say that a certain medium is hot if it engages one sense like sight or hearing such as in reading individually or listening to a song using the ear pieces respectively. because this sense is aldardasawi research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),59-75 functioning with complete concentration and there is not distraction that necessitates using any other senses which he describes as "high-definition" media; "hot media do not leave so much to be filled in or completed by the audience. hot media are, therefore, low in participation, and cool media are high in participation or completion by the audience" (mcluhan, 1949). on the contrary, a cool medium is the one which requires filling in the blanks; it does not give full information so it engages more than one sense in order to have a full perceiving of the received message through media. therefore, and in my opinion, facebook can never be a hot media for it contains many various contents and media mates which prevent from perceiving information in highdefinition quality. individuality is no longer a preference because in the social structure of facebook, people like to share their most trivial moments. there is an obsession of showing the people what we think, listen to, read and do. facebook is even getting cooler and cooler by time. whenever it is developed with new features, it makes the chance of individuality less. although sharing is optional, and choosing between privacy and publicity totally belongs to the user, but facebook as a tool has shaped us the way it functions. rare people they are who are not very active on facebook. facebook is very cold because it is converged, involves high participation, and lacks privacy in spite of the privacy settings. v. the masses chose cool media when investigating the reasons behind this salient turnout for facebook and other social media, it is revealed that it is mainly connected with psychological and social reasons. as mentioned earlier, our tools shape us, which means that it is hard not to cope with the new social trend that is adopted by most people in the social sphere. so, not being a member on facebook incurs a kind of loss in the social capital. so, it is better not to go against the grain in social issues in order to catch up with everything said or heard. furthermore, facebook is not only a social media website; it performs the role of a persona of some type. it helps in aldardasawi research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),59-75 boosting the ego of its members as they share in public and get fans out of it. logging in and told "good afternoon" by facebook sometimes is just a step that aims at the users psyche to imply a feeling of care and attention. as a site, it offers a good service for its members and they like it. even the elderly needed to cope with this rise of technology and new social life. my grandmother has grabbed herself a smart phone along with accounts on many social media websites after she realized that were are sitting in one room but everyone is busy with their smart phones. she is active on facebook, she uses emojis professionally and comments harshly on what she does not like. in this course, it is worth mentioning mcluhan's tetrads of media effects which he developed in his posthumously published laws of media (1988) which consist of the four concepts; enhances, retrieves, obsolesces and reserves into. he argues that these tetrads are considered as "a means of focusing awareness on hidden or unobserved qualities in our culture and technology" (mcluhan, 1988). so, the effects of any media can be viewed in the abovementioned four ways. to understand these effects using the concepts we have to put them in questions which we ask ourselves. these questions go as follows (mcluhan, 1988): what does it enhance? what does it make obsolete? what does it retrieve that had been obsolesced earlier? what does it flip into when pushed to extremes? well applying these questions on facebook will make its effects clearer as we elaborate the answers. i) what does facebook enhance? facebook is a technology that is versatile; meaning that it consists of many other media features which make of it a photo album, memo, diary, entertainment, newspaper, aldardasawi research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),59-75 social club, phone booth, post office, and more. with these continuously developed features, facebook brought substantial changes in human behaviors. facebook posts became one way of showing people's personality and psychology by developing the feature of "feelings" next to the "what's on your mind?", therefore, expressing ourselves has become amplified to the audience we have along with the feeling next to it to avoid ambiguity in expressing. thus, facebook intensifies the social relations online by making people getting to know more about each other through monitoring each others' profile pages. people are closer to each other than before. plus, this "facebook memories" feature reinforces feelings like appreciation of some experience, going back in time and realize how different one was thinking, nostalgia and so on. furthermore, facebook makes reaching people we once met and thought we will never meet again easier, like primary school teachers and friends, and faraway relatives. moreover, social status can be shown through check ins and photographs. ii) what does facebook make obsolete? we cannot really say that facebook has made things obsolete, but it only made them less popular like congrats phone calls, real birthday wishes, tv, emails between friends, and more. advertisements, for example, are taking a better course on facebook than their traditional way because they take the consumer with mere a click to the shop where they can buy instantly. privacy is also less popular because people tend to share aspects from their private lives that the audience is not very interested in like flirting with their soulmates, spending the honeymoon somewhere, travelling to some distance, receiving some gift or surprise, private moments with their children, making a cake and etc. privacy does not seem like something preferred anymore by the masses. formality and good manners are also reduced in preference. one may have many people in their contact list including teachers, professors, old people and others but they act the same in public (facebook's public). another privacy killer is live maps; they pro vide aldardasawi research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),59-75 users of the ability of going live to the whole world in any time they prefer; for example, why would anyone care about watching someone who just took a shower and tries to get ready for school or whatever? the thing is, on facebook, every potential act is optional but unconsciously obligatory because facebook has already shaped the masses. iii) what does facebook retrieved that has been obsolesced earlier? facebook has contributed in making the world not only a village but a neighborhood where everyone is present at any occasion or event that happened. a discussion about some particular topic in a certain place allows people around the whole world to participate in the very topic with its details, pros and cons and so on. for example, family members who used to live together, have memories together and who naturally have parted by time can have a conversation or reminiscence at the spot as if they are sitting in one room. moreover, the option of translation under every status is making communication even easier. facebook makes people more aware of the world around them, therefore, uniting people to stand for each other and call for universal calls; supporting women, refugees, famine-sufferers and others. iv) what does facebook flip into when pushed to extremes? every invention of technology has advantages as well as disadvantages. when pushed to extremes, there definitely are disadvantages shown. facebook is good in terms of reinforcing the social bonds and share news and feedbacks about various issues in the world. nevertheless, when it is pushed to extremes it may turn into an obsession of monitoring people and control using their information which may cause serious privacy problems. for example, interestingly, when trying to post a picture on facebook with many people, facebook suggests tagging these people by selecting their faces and writing their names down by itself. well this is not a good omen. it also causes aggravating some social problems like aldardasawi research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),59-75 narcissism and self-centeredness. some members are never done with taking photos of themselves which annoys their followers. moreover, the act of "like" is becoming more traditionalized because people feel obliged to like some other peoples' stuff for reasons other than their fondness of the shared stuff. let us put it this way, by liking someone's picture it implies paying their ego some attention and unconsciously asking for it in return for their own ego. finally, the masses are out of control in terms of announcing their life events on facebook as if they hold a huge loudspeaker in public method an online survey was distributed through facebook via a web-based platform, targeting ages 18 and above. participants of this age range were chosen because the researcher was interested in exploring the potentia l effects that technology may have upon us. through the use of technology and how the independent variables of age, gender, how one perceives the effect of technology upon us in facebook it is the most popular social network website in terms of the number of members and visitors. there were 296 participants were from jordan with a 92% response rate. this sample was heavily caucasian and well educated. the survey consisted primarily of closed-ended quantitative questions. of the 296 participants, 81 identified as male, 209 identified as female, 1 identified as “other,” and 5 declined to answer the question. during analysis, the researcher decided to eliminate the responses from the participant who identified with the “other” category to restrict the research analysis to two sexes as opposed to three when exploring gender. participants were asked to respond to 28 multiple-choice questions by selecting a single answer they felt best reflected their opinion and 1 open-ended question where they aldardasawi research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),59-75 could describe their opinion in their own words with regard to how they view the effects that technology (mcluhanian perspective of facebook). significance was set at p ≥ .05. however, there were many instances when there were levels of p = .06 or .07 levels of significance, which this researcher considered as borderline significance in these findings and therefore reportable. conclusion marshall mcluhan (1911-1980) was engaged in questioning and investigating the effects of print, electronic technology and various forms of ‘new media’ as they influence our lives. together at the university of toronto with eric havelock, northrop frye, edmund carpenter, walter j. ong and briefly with harold innis, from the early 1950’s to late 1970s, mcluhan and their ‘toronto communication school’ delivered profound, if not always mainstream or quickly comprehendible insights into the history of language and speech (e.g. orality vs. literacy) and their impact on science, technology and culture. mcluhan believed that the essential message of humanmade media is found when we realize that media are ‘outterings’ or ‘utterings’ (cf. ‘extensions’) of ourselves, and that by learning about them we thus also learn about ourselves. this description may raise initial concerns from some readers. for example, should such topics as media and communications even count as ‘scientific’ (usually ‘natural science’ is the common meaning in anglo-saxon discourse) let alone suggest the possibility that they constitute the topical basis for a ‘new science,’ as indicated in laws of media’s subtitle? could an english professor ever possibly hope to solve long-standing theoretical and applied puzzles in or about science and human nature, through cross-disciplinary applications of literary theory to culture? to answer these concerns is yet another test for the mcluhan method, and may ultimately help to measure marshall mcluhan’s legacy in the increasingly aldardasawi research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),59-75 wired ‘global village’ and explain his lasting success and influence as a so-called sage and visionary of the electronic-information age. in mcluhan’s messages, the term ‘media’ is used quite broadly to include technologies, artefacts and even words and scientific theories of human discovery or invention. these may all be analyzed in his unique tetrad-form of four effects articulated in laws of media. we found that everything man[kind] makes and does, every procedure, every style, every artefact, every poem, song, painting, gimmick, gadget, theory, technology – every product of human effort – manifested the same four dimensions.” (mcluhan & mcluhan, 1988). mcluhan prescribed his so-called four effects (laws of media) as a complementary method to aristotle’s well-known four causes: material, efficient, formal, and final. the four effects, which i will briefly elaborate on below, were named as follows: retrieval, reversal, obsolescence and amplification or enhancement. these four effects are meant to apply simultaneously, and not linearly or sequentially, mirroring the method of aristotle’s four causes. if applied properly and inventively, their perceptual impact on the reader will be one of aural/visual, discontinuous, resonant interplay, as they reveal already present or future features of media, culture and technology. the combination of the four causes and the four effects is the most comprehensive and capable framework that has been developed so far whereby to evaluate the impacts and implications of new technologies. (sheridan 1990( in the book laws of media, marshall mcluhan’s earlier work unites in a general anthropic method that brings all language, aural and visual culture, technology and theoretical relativising to bear in an inspiring mix of catholic genius and mystical allure. the medium is the message and the method is what matters in laws of media. aldardasawi research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),59-75 the four effects allow for a reflexive investigative approach to whatever artefact o r theory the participant (reader/listener/observer) chooses to apply them, in other words, an epistemology that is both personal and at the same time inevitably social. the tetrad model and its implications for science, philosophy and life therefore are meant to shock us (sensibly) and to open new doors to further discovery, following the historic lead of g. vico’s science nuova and f. bacon’s novum organum. combined with mcluhan’s mosaic approach, the four effects in tetrad-form suggest a new way, a ‘new science’ to consider media, culture, technology and science. the potential perceptual reach of this simultaneous method of effects alone may open up fresh communicative connections, which arouse reasons for excitement and exploration in new scientific and humanitarian areas. results hot media are those that contain relatively complete sensory data. with hot media the viewer has less need to become involved by filling in missing data. mcluhan refers to hot media as low in participation. any hot medium allows for less participation than cool one, as a lecture makes for less participation than an interactive seminar, and a book for less than dialogue. cool media requires the individual to participate perceptually by filling in the missing data. this participatio n creates healthy involvement. he refers to the completeness (hot) or incompleteness (cool) of the stimulus. mcluhan thinks that if we cross mediums we cause a social problem. we have a cool society and that the introduction of television (hot) has caused great problems. the internet doesn't really fit into mcluhan's "hot" and "cool" dichotomy. it encourages participation but it also sucks up our attention and dominates our senses. when we gaze into a computer screen, we tune out everything else. the temperature of media was not mcluhan's aldardasawi research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),59-75 only subject, nor even his most interesting one. although he was often presented as a glorifier of technological progress, he painted a subtle, sometimes disturbing picture of the future. in applying mcluhan’s tetrad of media effects to the use of facebook, we see that facebook is merely an extension of established communication technologies—it has not obsolesced any of these technologies; and it has not completely recovered a tribal sense of community or democracy. facebook, then, is simply another system for delivering information to one’s peers. the media are more interactive, they also more potent tools for manipulation and control. they not only transmit information to us but gather information about us. aldardasawi research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),59-75 references aydin, h., (2012). multicultural education curriculum development in turkey. mediterranean journal of social sciences, 3(3), 277-286. aydin, h. 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(2010). facebook and philosophy. illinois: carus. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) e-issn: 2468-6891 1 the impact of pedagogical leadership on pedagogical coordination in secondary schools inmaculada garcía-martínez1 & pedro tadeu2 abstract educational leadership has an international recognition as a factor for school improvement (oecd, 2009, 2014). the international investigations guarantee this. within the multiplicity of investigative lines that concern this factor, there is one that alludes to its impact on school improvement, especially in contexts of the social inequality. within the pedagogical leadership, it has been evidenced that the shared modalities of leadership that invite other members of the educational organization to be involved in a common project, are associated with a greater commitment for the improvement and inclusion of all the students. at the same time, other factors come into play, such as the professional identity of both management and staff (garcíamartínez & tadeu, 2018), professional capital (hargreaves and fullan, 2014) or the inclusive practices outlined in this type of context. this intervention oscillates around these issues, offering a vision about studies carried out in the international sphere that associate, on one hand, the impact of leadership on the educational organization and on the other, positive effects in challenging contexts. finally, the results obtained from a questionnaire designed specifically for this research will be presented, in which secondary school teachers were asked to respond to questions related to the collaboration in the center, if they received support from the management team to improve their practices, if they perceived themselves as school leaders or teachers. among the results found, it is observed that there is a positive trend towards the construction of a common educational project in secondary schools by the management team. likewise, there is a positive predisposition on the part of the teaching staff to be more involved in the initiatives of the educational center and towards collaboration and coordination with other colleagues. key words: pedagogical leadership; teacher leadership; pedagogical coordination; teacher collaboration; secondary education introduction secondary education is one of the most complex levels of the educational system due to the inherited school cultures (bolívar, 2012). the fact that the teachers who teach at this educational level become specialists increase their tendency to the isolation. for this reason, it is necessary to reconvert the educational system from within, in which those collaborative conditions are favored 1 ph.d. prof., university of granada, igmartinez@ugr.es 2 ph.d. prof., udi – polytechnic of guarda, ptadeu@ipg.pt research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3), 1-15 that facilitate communication and the exchange of practices within the educational organizations (albashiry, voogt & pieters, 2016). for this, in recent decades, is betting on the establishment of pedagogical leadership in schools as a way to improve them from within. the distribution of leadership from the direction implies a greater involvement of the teaching staff to work towards common goals, related to the improvement of the teaching and learning processes of the students (shaked & schechter, 2017). in fact, recent research points to distributed and shared leadership (harris, 2014) as to the ideal modalities to optimize the professional capacity of teachers (hargreaves & fullan, 2014). likewise, it has been verified how distributed leadership is a catalyst to improve teacher involvement and develop a collaborative culture in secondary school (klar, 2012). numerous international investigations have inquired about the positive effects of distributed leadership modalities on school improvement capacity, the professionalism of the teaching staff (garcía-martínez & tadeu, 2018; wieczorek, 2017), the climate and school coexistence (piyaman, hallinger & viseshsiri, 2017), and, of course, on the processes of teaching and learning of students (day, gu, & sammons, 2016; sheppard & dibbon, 2011). most of them coincide in pointing out the hierarchical organizational structures that characterize secondary education as the main impediment to carry out the school reforms, both internally and externally. around these questions, a line of research called "learning communities" was developed (stoll et al, 2006), which subsequently and, under the influence of "organizations that learn" movements (krichesky & murillo, 2011), it turned to what is now known as "professional learning communities" (leclerc, moreau & lépine, 2009; stevenson, hedberg, o'sullivan & howe, 2016). however, all the processes that move these currents are not applicable to the complex spanish case, especially at the secondary education level (garcía-martínez, higuerasrodríguez & martínez-valdivia, 2018). for this reason, it is necessary to resort to other approaches more related to the reality and complexity that await the rigid structures of secondary education, initiating small actions within the organization that seek to strengthen the pedagogical coordination and, therefore, the processes of school teaching and learning (piyaman, hallinger & viseshsiri, 2017; seashore-louis, leithwood, wahlstrom & anderson, 2010). currently, there is an emerging line of the research that advocates the intermediate leadership as a means to alleviate the organizational rigidity (hauge, norenes & vedøy, 2014; hulpia, devos, rosseel & vlerick, 2012; kilinc, 2017; liljenberg, 2015; poultney, 2012; tarman, 2012). garcía-martínez & tadeu normalmente, el director invierte la mayor parte de su tiempo en realizar tareas administrativas y burocráticas, que dejan poco tiempo a responsabilizarse de las cuestiones eminetemente pedagógicas. in these cases, if the direction empower other figures, getting them to lead the pedagogical processes, a double benefit will be obtained. on the one hand, the fact that management empowers others is an act of trust that makes staff feel important and motivated to assume pedagogical responsibilities. on the other hand, organizational decentralization entails greater participation, shared decision-making, the strengthening of trust in the educational center and fluid and effective relationships among all educational agents. these factors represent an important advance in the initiation of internal change processes necessary for any school to achieve school improvement (garcía-martínez, higueras-rodríguez & martínez-valdivia, 2018). in an investigation carried out by shaked & schechter (2017), it was found that the systemic thinking of intermediate leaders are characterized by four characteristics: “(1) seeing wholes; (2) using a multidimensional view; (3) influencing indirectly; and (4) assessing significance” (p. 699). in this sense, a large research corpus points to the department heads and the heads of studies as to the potential leaders in schools, due to their intermediate position in the organization (de angelis, 2013; leithwood, 2016). likewise, the establishment of a pedagogical leadership in the center, with a distributed cut, causes the role of the management to undergo profound modifications, changing from a mere manager of the organization to a dynamizer of internal change processes (hanuscin, chen, rebello, shina, & muslu, 2014), whose main mission is to offer the necessary coverage and support so that other members assume the leadership and ensure the continuity of such processes (paranosic & riveros, 2017). in this sense, it seems plausible to gather the perception of the teaching staff about the internal functioning of the organization and to verify if, indeed, the director as formal leader of the secondary school, empowers other members of the organization, giving rise to the conditions of collaboration and of shared decisions within the research (rigby, 2015). the research in this work addresses all these issues, highlighting the perception of teachers about the internal functioning of secondary schools. specifically, they were asked about their opinion about the role of the director as responsible for the collaborative conditions, the tendency to extend or not the center's decision-making to all the staff. in turn, they were also asked about their involvement in the center and their willingness to collaborate with their peers, as well as if there was a tendency for collaboration in the institute. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3), 1-15 method the design carried out for this research has sought to present an overview of the impact of pedagogical leadership on pedagogical coordination in secondary schools. for this, the focus was on the existence or not of a culture of collaboration in this kind of schools, facilitated by the management, according to the perspective of the teaching staff. in this sense, the research problem is formulated around the following questions: is there a pedagogical leadership in secondary schools? does management dilute the leadership throughout the organization, giving way to conditions of collaboration in the centers? does leadership influence pedagogical coordination? to answer these questions, a non-experimental descriptive and cross-sectional design has been followed on a final sample of 300 secondary teachers from eastern andalusia. for access to the sample, secondary schools located in the provinces of jaén, granada and almeria were contacted through the institutional email, requesting the voluntary collaboration of the teaching staff. therefore, it can be said that the sampling procedure followed corresponds to a non-probabilistic sampling, for convenience, because despite extending the participation to the whole sample adhered to the pre-defined criteria (secondary school teachers working in public institutes), the accepting sample could not be controlled. the collection of information was carried out through a likert-type scale, with four response options, one corresponding to 'totally disagree' and four to 'total agreement', aimed at secondary school teachers. in addition, the questionnaire was adapted in an online version, using the google form tool, to guarantee the anonymity of the respondents. specifically, the designed instrument had 30 items, in which teachers were asked questions related to the dynamics of the center, the tendency to isolation or teacher collaboration, the role of the director as a catalyst for good practices and support for staff. for the calculation of the internal consistency, cronbach's alpha was made, whose score was 0.946. the statistical treatment and analysis of the data obtained was carried out through the statistical program spss® 24.0. findings the following table (table 1) presents the characterization of the items: 3, 6, 7, 10, 11, 13 and 14. the absolute and relative frequencies of the responses obtained were used, as well as the calculation of the mean, standard deviation and median for each element. garcía-martínez & tadeu regarding the item (q3) it is observed that the majority, 60% (180), of the professors affirmed that the director stimulates the collective work a lot. based on the average value (3.25) and the median (3.00), we can affirm that the collaborative work is duly stimulated by the director. regarding the item (q6), it can be seen that the highest response rate is "a lot", which means that 55.3% of the teachers surveyed consider that the management makes it possible to take participatory decisions in the center. in turn, one aspect to highlight is that none of the respondents is against such a statement. in addition, the average of the answers in this question amounts to 3.36, being the median 4. these results reveal that the management takes into account the contributions of the teachers and there has been some consensus reached when making decisions in the center. the item (q7) "you assume responsibilities and take initiatives to improve the quality of teachinglearning processes", on the contrary, you get the lowest scores, with an average of 2.51 and a median of 2. however, a considerably moderate percentage (33.3%) of the teaching staff affirms that if they assume responsibilities to improve teaching and learning processes. in the item (q10), most of the answers (77.3%) are in a lot, which confirms that there is a consolidated culture of collaboration in the educational centers of the participants in this research. proof of this is its high average, 3.77, as well as its median 4, with the item being the best valued. high scores also received the item (q11), concentrating in "a lot" to 52.3% of the answers, followed by "enough", with 36.3%. the average of this item is 3.40 and the median is 4. on the contrary, the item (q13) "you consider that you receive support from the management team to improve their practices", receives scores moderately lower than most, with an average of 2.62. regarding the response trend, there is a great variability in the responses (1,131), distributing the teachers' opinions almost equally in the four response options. finally, most of the answers to the item (q14) adhere to the "much" option, which means that 71% of teachers assume and recognize their identity as a leader. table 1: absolute and relative frequencies, mean, standard deviation and median per item item not at all little bit quite a lot average (standard deviation) median n(%) n(%) n(%) n(%) q3 2 (0.7%) 20 (6.7%)180 (60.0%) 98 (32.7%) 3.25 (0.600) 3.00 q6 0 (0.0%) 59 (19.7%) 75 (25.0%) 166 (55.3%) 3.36 (0.790) 4.00 research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3), 1-15 q7 94 (31.3%) 60 (20.0%) 46 (15.3%) 100 (33.3%) 2.51 (1.244) 2.00 q10 0 (0.0%) 0 (0.0%) 68 (22.7%) 232 (77.3%) 3.77 (0.490) 4.00 q11 4 (1.3%) 30 (10.0%) 109 (36.3%) 157 (52.3%) 3.40 (0.722) 4.00 q13 70 (23.3%) 59 (19.7%) 85 (28.3%) 86 (28.7%) 2.62 (1.131) 3.00 q14 38 (12.7%) 4 (1.3%) 45 (15.0%) 213 (71.0%) 3.44 (1.018) 4.00 since the variables under study are of the ordinal type, we used the spearman correlation coefficient. analysis of the following table shows that q3 shows a statistically significant correlation with q6, q7, q11 and q13 and positive. with the exception of the correlation with q13 that is considered moderate, the remaining ones present low intensity. this means that there is a relationship between the director's willingness to establish a collaborative environment in the secondary school and the support that the headmaster provides to the teachers to improve their practices. likewise, a relationship is observed, albeit weak, between the actions of the management to create a collaborative environment in the educational organization and the distribution of responsibilities and joint decision-making in the secondary school. the "relatively low" score given to the issue that concerns the involvement of the teachers in this decision-making, can reduce, in some way, the direct relationship with the collaborative work of all the staff to achieve a common project. indeed, it is observed that q6 is also positively correlated and statistically significant and of low intensity with q7 (0.350) and q13 (0.436). that is, it is observed that there is a relationship between the degree of participation promoted by the management and the degree of involvement of the teaching staff. however, the weakness of this relationship may be due to the lack of involvement of the teaching staff when it comes to taking the responsibility for the improvement of the teaching and learning processes. in turn, one aspect to highlight is the relationship between the degree of participation promoted by management, that is, the empowerment and support that management offers teachers to improve their educational practices. visualizing the scores obtained in both items shows how the teachers perceive that the management has conditions of collaboration in the secondary school, although it does not finish giving them the tools they need to be able to assume them. also, it exist a correlation positive and moderately intense (0.601) between the items q6 and q11, that is between the shared decision making promoted by the management and the collaborative garcía-martínez & tadeu work of all the staff around a common project. so the greater the degree of participation in the center's decision-making, the higher the collaboration indexes to work together towards a common goal. however, the correlation with q10 is weak (-0.266) and in the opposite direction, that is, if we check the increase of frequency in q10, the decrease in q6 is expected. these results are certainly incongruent, since they affirm that the more the management favors the consensus in the center's decision-making, the less is the consolidation of a culture of collaboration in it. as for q7, it can be observed that it presents positive and statistically significant correlations with q11, q13 and q14. the coefficients observed with q11 (0.540) and q13 (0.631) show moderate intensity, which implies that the degree of the involvement of the teachers to assume responsibilities and propose change initiatives is related to the degree of collaboration prevailing in the center to work together to achieve the educational goals and the support that management gives them to implement this improvement. however, respect the correlation between q7 and q14 the intensity is weak (0.299), so, there is no intense relationship between the involvement of teachers in the improvement processes and their perception of the school leader. on the other hand, it is observed that q10 presents a significant correlation in the opposite direction and of low intensity with q11 (-0.165), that is, between the existence of a culture of collaboration in the center and the tendency to work together to achieve common goals. statistically significant correlations of q11 with q13 (0.458) and q14 (0.302) were positive and of low intensity. therefore, weak correlations are observed between the collaborative work of the staff to achieve common objectives, the support facilitated by management and the perception that the teachers have about leadership. similar is the case of the correlation between q13 and q14 (0.434), that is, the support of the headmaster to the teachers and the development of the teacher leadership identity. table 2: spearman correlation q3 q6 q7 q10 q11 q13 q14 q3 1 0.464** 0.481** 0.051 0.473** 0.553** 0.069 q6 1 0.350** -0.266** 0.601** 0.436** 0.050 q7 1 -0.066 0.540** 0.631** 0.299** research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3), 1-15 q10 1 -0.165** 0.061 -0.008 q11 1 0.458** 0.302** q13 1 0.434** q14 1 *-significative at 5%; **-significative at 1%. discussion in this research, a relationship was determined between the headmaster's willingness to establish a collaborative environment in the secondary school and his capacity to offer support to the teaching staff to improve their practices. in this line, authors such as leithwood (2016), harris (2014) or krichesky & murillo (2011), agree that the establishment of a culture of collaboration in the educational organization facilitates teachers to develop their professional capacity (hargreaves & fullan, 2014), improving their teaching practices. at the same time, they point out the decisive role that management plays in the establishment of collaborative conditions in the center (javadi, bush & ng, 2017; mifsud, 2017; wang, 2016). in addition, there is a relationship, albeit weak, between the actions of the management to create an environment of collaboration in the educational organization and the distribution of responsibilities and joint decision-making in the center. these results coincide with other studies that have pointed to "empowering" as a means of school improvement (garcía-martínez, higueras-rodríguez & martínez-valdivia, 2018; harris, 2014). according to some authors, the direction as the formal leader of the center must empower teachers to assume pedagogical responsibilities, which motivate them to work towards a common project. in turn, this empowerment would mobilize ways of collaboration and communication in the center, having to work together, with a view to a common goal. however, as has been reported in this paper, the "relatively low" score received by the issue that concerns the involvement of teachers in this decision-making, can reduce the ability of the staff to collaborate to work towards achievement of that common project (geda, 2015). in contrast with our results, li, hallinger, kennedy & walker (2016) argue that "among the array of school capacity factors, school environment featuring trust, communication and collaboration have been conceptualized as conditions that mediate the influence of leadership on the professional progress of teachers" (p. 3). in our research we can see the existence of a weak relationship between the degree of participation promoted by the management and the degree of involvement of the teaching staff. the weakness garcía-martínez & tadeu of this relationship may be due to the lack of involvement of the teaching staff when it comes to taking responsibility for the improvement of the teaching and learning processes. at the same time, an aspect to be highlighted is the relationship between the degree of participation promoted by management, that is, the empowerment and support that management offers teachers to improve their educational practices (stevenson, hedberg, o'sullivan & howe, 2016; wingrave & mcmahon, 2016). visualizing the scores obtained in both items shows how the teaching staff perceives that the management has some conditions of collaboration in the secondary school. although he does not finish giving him the tools he needs to be able to assume them. in other words, management presents a good disposition to offer optimal conditions that give way to internal changes. consistent with the point made by day, gu, & sammons (2016), who stress the need for management to assume a transformative role that impacts the individual and collective practices of teachers to produce such improvements. in addition, a positive and intense correlation was found between the shared decision making promoted by the management and the collaborative work of all the staff around a common project. so the greater the degree of participation in the center's decision-making, the higher the collaboration indexes will be to work together toward a common goal. this relationship has already been observed by authors such as bandur (2012), who says that “how devolution of power and authority to school level are credited with creating partnerships in participatory school decision making such as setting a school mission, shared vision, annual programs (...) school buildings, school-based curriculum, and even students’ discipline policies” (p. 869). this author continues to point out that “devolving power and authority to school level is seen to have created several changes in schools, including in-school culture changes, and increased participation of school communities. these factors have led to the improvements identified in teaching-learning environments and student achievements” (p. 869). the indirect relationship glimpsed between the establishment of a participatory culture in the center and the achievement of a culture of collaboration is contrary to that found in other similar studies. while in this case, there has been some incongruity in obtaining that the more the management favours consensus in the center's decision-making, the less is the consolidation of a culture of collaboration in it. studies such as the one carried out by harris (2014), point out the opposite effect, stating that when management opens decision-making throughout the organization research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3), 1-15 and empowers staff, internal links are strengthened that give way to a collaborative environment, mutual trust and respect. in addition, there is some agreement with other similar investigations (marco-bujosa & jurist levi, 2016; sharma, rifkin, tzioumis, hill, johnson, varsausky et al, 2017) in the establishment of a moderately correlated intense between the degree of involvement of teachers to assume responsibilities and propose initiatives for change and the trend towards collaborative work to achieve educational goals and the support and support offered by management to initiate those improvement processes. contrary to what was found by other investigations, in the present study (bolívar, 2012; oecd, 2009), paradoxically, it has been found that there is an indirect relationship between the prevalence of a collaborative culture in the center and the degree of involvement to join forces and work together around a common project. to reduce the lack of involvement of teachers, low & lotter (2016) designed a model to achieve professional teacher development. according to these authors, the training in the distributed leadership modalities has a remarkable impact on the professional capacity of teachers, in the sense that these experiences allow teachers to "see their instructional expertise and content knowledge improve through collaborative interactions. high-quality professional development should not stop with improved teacher practice, but should strive to produce teacher leaders that share this growth with others as part of a systematic implementation of best practices "(p. 344). finally, our study established a slightly moderate relationship between the support and support provided by the management to the teachers and the development of a leader identity in the teaching staff. find that coincide with other studies that affirm that the dynamics that prevail in the organization, as well as the hallmarks of the center, result in the identity of the teaching staff as professionals (garza, drysdale, gurr, jacobson & merchant, 2014; rigby, larbi-cherif, rosenquist, sharpe, cobb & smith, 2017). conclusions among the results found, it is observed that there is a positive trend towards the construction of a common educational project in secondary schools by the management team. in addition, it has been noted that the headmaster as the formal leader of the secondary school has fully assumed its new role as a catalyst for change processes, instead of a manager. this is shown by the teachers' perceptions when they have been asked if there is a culture of collaboration in the center promoted garcía-martínez & tadeu by the management. also their response to whether the management promotes shared decisionmaking in secondary schools. although the work of management is acknowledged to create suitable working conditions to initiate internal processes of change, teachers do not finish assuming all the responsibilities that are expected of them in practice. however, there is a positive predisposition on the part of the teaching staff to be more involved in the initiatives of the educational organizations and towards collaboration and coordination with other colleagues, which supposes the beginning of processes of internal change that result in an improvement of the organization as a whole. in future research, a contrast will be made between the teachers' perception of these issues and the perception of both the management and other intermediate leaders, in order to observe whether there is convergence in the opinions. equally, it would be interesting to use qualitative techniques that allow a more detailed analysis of the inherent reasons for these results, offering a mixed design. references albashiry, n., voogt, j. & pieters, j. 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(2016). professionalisation through academicisation: valuing and developing the industry in scotland early years. professional development in education, 42(5), 710-731. doi: 10.1080 / 19415257.2015.1082075 research in social sciences and technology innovation and education bülent tarman gazi university, turkey btarman@gmail.com abstract we are living in a world that is changing rapidly and becoming more globalized. especially the changes in the areas of science, technology and economy are becoming effective in the areas like education and health that are closely related to human life. we are experiencing a quick process named ’globalization’ that changes economic, social and political structures of the world and that no one can predict the outcome. these changes create new opportunities while opening new challenging areas. in order for countries to compete with each other, they need to be creative in all areas and they also need to be reformist to cope with domestic, national and global problems. in this study, the innovations in the area of education throughout the world will be examined and the place of turkey compared to other countries in educational innovations will be analyzed. also the concept of ‘charter schools’ as acceleration in educational innovation in the united state of america, who is the leader in terms of innovation in the world, will be analyzed. this study will also analyze the charter schools in the usa and discuss whether the concept can be implemented in turkey and bring dynamism to education or increase the quality of education. while looking for the answers of these questions, the researcher conducted a literature review and also used the data he gathered while staying in the usa for nine years for pursuing his ma and phd degrees. keywords: education, innovation, usa, charter school, turkey. introduction development of technology in today’s information society has become one of the most important factors for economic development and competitiveness. development of science and technology in a country can be achieved by the science and technology policies directed by state-government. on the other hand, having real science and technology policies depend on basing those policies on a more concrete system (saatçioğlu, 2005). the importance of science and technology policies given by countries will also shape the administration of the science and technology systems of those nations. science and technology administration system covers effective institutions and mechanisms that help developing national policies and implementing them. these systems are named as national innovation systems in today’s world (dpt, 2000; 2006). tarman research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 77-97 78 the united states of america (usa) is leader not only in science, economy and politics, but also in the area of innovation. asking the question ‘what makes usa so different and leader in the world?’ will help us to understand the reasons why it is so and also give us ideas about creating effective social, political, economy and education policies for the developing countries, like turkey. the most important reason that innovation in the usa is so powerful is that innovation is supported both materially and spiritually (euractiv, 2010). “while having a creative mind is noticed, the organizations within the system encourage creativity” (euractiv, 2010). also another aspect that exists in the usa but not in other countries is a developed and rich internal market. the world's largest and most competitive economy in the usa holds a dynamic internal market that request innovations. education system in the usa also supports successful students by providing scholarships and scientifically rich environments (euractiv, 2010). in this regard, patent rights and their usage come first among the issues that the usa give weight to. they are very important for the usa based companies especially for r&d. it companies in the usa invest in r&d at the level of 8 to 10 percent of their income. the usa came first in the area of investment in r&d in 2008 by investing 365 billion dollars and china followed it by an investment of 217 billion dollars. these numbers indicates that countries like eu members and other developing countries must seriously address r&d and innovation as important issues if they want to be involved in global race. it might be the reason that european commission declared 2009 as the year of innovation and creativity”. the aim was to promote creative and innovative approached in different sectors and help eu to go forward in the globalized world strongly. it can be understood that by declaring the year of creativity and innovation, european commission is aware of the importance of creativity and innovation on personal, social and tarman research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 77-97 79 economic developments. thus the main topics occurred in 2010 are as follow: pre-school, the promotion of artistic and other creative fields during primary and secondary education; forefronting cultural diversity as the source for creativity and innovation; supporting mathematics, science and technology education for the development of creative minds; supporting innovation as a path to sustainable development; performing regional and local development strategies based on creativity and innovation; promoting innovation in the private and public services (euractiv, 2010). eu and innovation 2008 european innovation scoreboard (eis) reveals that throughout eu-27, the increase of the innovation performance during the last five years has been 2,3%. the main engines of this development are human resources sector with an increase of 4% and finance and support sector with an increase of 7.1%. according to the eis data, the areas where the eu is strong are; education for youth, public r&d expenditures, it expenditures, knowledge-intensive services, and importation of advanced technology products. the areas where the eu is weak are innovative collaboration among smes and lifelong education. in line with these indications, sweden, finland, germany, denmark and the united kingdom are considered as the “leaders of innovation”. the innovation performance of these countries is above the average of eu. among these countries the country that innovation performance is the fastest performing is germany. denmark is the slowest country in the field of innovation. austria, ireland, luxembourg, belgium, france and the netherlands are described as the “innovation followers”. the innovation performance of these countries is lower than the innovation leaders’ but higher than the average of the eu. the fastest developing country in terms of innovation performance in this group is ireland and second is austria. tarman research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 77-97 80 cyprus, estonia, slovenia, czech republic, spain, portugal, greece and italy are described as “moderate innovators”. the innovation performance of these countries is lower than the eu average. cyprus is the country that is fastest developing in terms of innovation performance. portugal follows cyprus. there is no development with the performance of spain and italy. malta, hungary, slovakia, poland, lithuania, latvia and bulgaria are categorized as countries ’innovation followers’ that have performance lower than the eu average. among these countries, bulgaria and romania are the countries that show the fastest development in terms of innovation performance. 2008 european innovation scoreboard shows that the eu is behind the usa and japan in terms of innovation especially in four areas. these are international trademarks; governmental-public sectors connections, number of researchers and the expenditures of market on r&d. on the other hand, 2008 global innovation scoreboard reveals that the eu with its 27 members is performing better that developing economies like china, india and brazil in terms of innovation performance. turkey, innovation and education turkey is placed towards the end of the list on the area of innovation compared to the eu countries. in “ the global competitiveness report 2013-2014”, turkey is in the 44th line among 148 countries. table 1 the global competitiveness (gci) 2013-2014 list of some countries according to the global competitiveness (gci) 2013-2014 gci 2013-2014 gci 2012-2013 countries rank value rank value switzerland 1 5,67 1 5,72 singapore 2 5,61 2 5,67 finland 3 5,54 3 5,55 germany 4 5,51 6 5,48 tarman research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 77-97 81 usa 5 5,48 7 5,47 sweden 6 5,48 4 5,53 hong kong 7 5,47 9 5,41 netherlands 8 5,42 5 5,5 japon 9 5,4 10 5,4 england 10 5,37 8 5,45 qatar 13 5,24 11 5,38 avusturalia 16 5,15 20 5,12 soudi arabia 20 5,1 18 5,19 france 23 5,05 21 5,11 south korea 25 5,01 19 5,12 china 29 4,84 29 4,83 chile 34 4,61 33 4,65 spain 35 4,57 36 4,6 turkey 44 4,45 43 4,45 italy 49 4,41 42 4,46 portugal 51 4,4 49 4,4 south africa 53 4,37 52 4,37 mexico 55 4,34 53 4,36 brazil 56 4,33 48 4,4 bulgaria 57 4,31 62 4,27 india 60 4,28 59 4,32 rusia 64 4,25 67 4,2 iran 82 4,07 66 4,22 greece 91 3,93 96 3,86 algerian 100 3,79 110 3,72 according to the european innovation scoreboard--(eis) “turkey is among the countries like malta, hungary, slovakia, poland, lithuania, latvia and bulgaria that have lower performance compared to the eu average. however, development is taking place in recent years. compared to the average performance of the country, the areas that innovation is most powerful are finance and support services.” (euractiv, 2010). however we cannot claim it in the education sector. “the weakest areas are human resources and innovation investments of companies. the performance of turkey in especially human resource area is close to zero level. as a result of the increase in personal credits (18%), r&d expenditures of the market (17.5%), technology expenditures (19.8%) and importation of knowledgetarman research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 77-97 82 intensive services (31%), the leader areas of the innovation performance have been finance, support services and company investments.”(euractiv, 2010). table 2 global competitiveness index (gci) global competitiveness index (gci) rank value (20132014) (20122013) (20132014) 20122013) gci 44 43 4,5 4,5 basic requirements (36,0%) 56 57 4,8 4,8 organizational structure 56 64 4,1 4 infrastructure 49 51 4,5 4,4 macroeconomic stability 76 55 4,6 4,9 health and basic education 59 63 5,9 5,8 productivity raisers (50,0%) 45 42 4,4 4,4 higher education and in service training 65 74 4,3 4,9 product market efficiency 43 38 4,5 5,8 labour market efficiency 130 124 3,7 4,4 financial market development 51 44 4,4 4,1 technological infrastructure 58 53 4,1 4,6 market size 16 15 5,3 3,8 innovation and variety factors (14,0%) 47 50 3,9 4,5 development level of business world 43 47 4,4 4,3 innovation 50 55 3,5 3,3 as seen in the table that contains the components to calculate the global competitiveness index; the most important improvements compared to the previous year have been in the areas of institutional structuring, healthcare and basic education, innovation, higher education and in-service training. (demir, 2013). it is seen that the innovation capacity, which is composed of the quality of scientific research institutions, r & d expenditures of corporate sectors, university-industry collaboration in r & d, the public's purchasing policy for advanced technologies, the presence of scientists and engineers, patents and intellectual tarman research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 77-97 83 property rights protection, has increased five steps and taken the 50th place in the 2012-2013 report compared to the previous year. (ulengin, ekici, & tamer, 2014). in the global innovation index published by insead, cornell university and wipo, turkey is in the 68th country among 142 countries with a score of 36,03. swetzerland comes first in this index with a score of 66,59 (ulengin, ekici, & tamer, 2014). in the meantime the r&d investments of turkey is equivalent to only 0.6 percent of gdp. 65% of r&d spending comes from the government and 35% comes from the private sector. table 3 r&d performance of countries r&d spendings (gerd, million $) r & d expenditures to gdp ratio (%) r & d expenditure per person ($) germany 93,1 2,88 1138 usa 415,2 2,77 1331 china 178,2 1,84 155 japan 141 3,39 1146 s. korea 53,2 4,03 1203 turkey 11,1 0,92 166 (source: oecd science, technology and industry scoreboard 2013) the gross domestic r&d expenditures of turkey increased 17,1% in 2012 compared to the previous year and was calculated as 6581 million dollar (13 062 millions tl). the share of r&d expenditures in gdp was 0,86% in 2011 and 0,92% in 2012. looking at the table below, one can see that turkey is behind other countries especially in the areas of “quality of scientific research organizations, r&d expenditures of companies and university-industry collaboration in r & d”. tarman research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 77-97 84 table 4 competitiveness ranking index of countries germany usa china japan s.korea turkey competitiveness ranking (148 countries) 4 5 29 9 25 44 innovation capacity 3 5 30 6 22 45 quality of scientific research organizations 6 5 41 9 24 63 r&d expenditures of companies 4 5 22 2 20 68 university-industry collaboration in r&d 9 3 33 17 26 52 public procurement of advanced technology 17 15 13 37 31 23 scientists and presence of engineers 17 6 44 4 33 53 useful models, patents 6 12 36 4 9 41 (source: world economic forum | the global competitiveness report 2013–2014) turkey was in 70th place among 148 countries in the access to research and education services index in 2013-2014 periods. this index is one of those few indexes that show turkey as performing low since 2006. in 2006 turkey was in 44th place with a score of 4.23. in 2013, the country had the same score but placed 70th. in this index, turkey has a score of 4,19 that is above the world average. the score of switzerland that is placed first in this index is 6,47. protection of intellectual property is indicator that is directly related to the level of development. countries that are among the best performing ones in this are all the ones that have high level of national income per capita. (ulengin, ekici, & tamer, 2014). table5 last 8th annual development of turkey 20132014 20122013 20102011 20092010 20082009 20072008 20062007 score 4,23 4,04 4,24 3,88 3,88 4,34 4,23 rank 70 77 58 75 68 43 44 table 6 8th annual growth 2013-2014 period and the top ten countries tarman research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 77-97 85 2013-2014 2012-2013 2010-2011 2009-2010 2008-2009 2007-2008 2006-2007 score rank score rank score rank score rank score rank score rank score rank switzerland 5,47 1 6,43 1 6,44 1 5,3 1 5,02 2 5,99 1 5,92 5 germany 5,1 2 6,09 4 5,98 2 6,03 2 5,81 5 5,98 3 6,07 3 netherlands 5,09 3 6,13 2 6 4 5,97 4 5,83 3 5,81 7 5,7 8 austria 5,09 4 6,09 3 5,96 6 5,55 12 5,23 16 5,32 15 5,32 14 belgium 5,94 5 5,9 5 5,81 9 5,63 10 5,61 11 5,73 8 5,63 11 finland 5,87 6 5,67 8 5,64 7 5,94 5 5,82 4 5,71 9 5,82 6 hong kong 5,75 7 5,53 10 5,27 15 5,05 20 4,88 25 5,08 19 4,93 21 sweden 5,69 8 5,77 7 5,97 3 5,84 7 5,73 7 5,89 4 5,59 13 usa 5,67 9 5,6 9 5,63 10 5,98 3 5,12 1 5,99 2 6,14 1 porto rio 5,61 10 5,51 11 5,35 18 4,95 23 4,68 31 4,72 30 the eu was planning to be the world’s most competitive market in 2010 within the framework of lisbon strategy by leaving behind the world leader, which was the usa. the essential element of economic growth in this strategy was innovation. however the year 2010 has passed and it is understood that the lisbon strategy is not realistic due to the unexpected results. likewise the declaration of the year 2009 as the year of creativity and innovation does not sound realistic since it is not known whether it is only symbolic or will create tangible and concrete consequences. therefore a new strategy document and development plan was prepared and called as the europe 2020 strategy. this is a strategy document that tells what europe plans to do from 2010 to 2020 and aims at being the guide of the continent for the next 10 years. in this strategy document, five main measurable objectives are determined for the europe in 2020 and 7 main initiatives are mentioned to accomplish these goals. “innovation union” is one of those 7 main initiatives (innovation union, 2013). thus, it is targeted to increase the share of r&d expenditures, specifically the r&d investments of private sector, in gross national product to 3% by improving conditions for investment and developing a new indicator for measuring the innovation (t.c. sanayi ve ticaret bakanlığı ab koordinasyon genel müdürlüğü, 2011). an innovation model in american education system: charter schools tarman research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 77-97 86 charter means "transferred" or "transferred rights". the terms ‘charter schools’ means education and training activities financially supported entirely by the state and transferred to another organization or institution for a certain time period. charter schools have a history of 20 years. the first time that charter schools gained an official status was in 1991 with the charter school act that was adopted by the state of minnesota. the state of california followed this in 1992 by adopting its own state law. today there are more than 40 states in the usa that adopted charter schools laws and also there are more than five thousands charter schools. its’ ratio to the total public schools is %5.1. (national alliance for public charter schools, 2012) these schools are like the private schools established in turkey. although the operation of those schools is different in each state, all of them are covered by the state budget. the students do not pay any tuition fee to those schools. people who want to open a school shall prepare a detailed proposal. this proposal is accepted as the constitution of the school. in the proposal, how the school will operate, curriculum and discipline practices are mentioned besides what it will offer different than the other schools, that is innovation. the people who prepare that proposal should introduce a different system or feature other than the local public should offer. in other words, the charter school should be an alternative to the existing schools. otherwise, justification for the existence of these schools will disappear. the prepared proposals are submitted to various authorities of the state. sometimes this authority is the ministry of national education, sometimes a school district or authorized universities in the state. the process of preparing proposal is difficult and time-consuming. to give an example from my personal experiences, it corresponds to about a two-year preparatory process with a team of twenty members. the team that prepared the proposal included specialists from different areas including science, social science and foreign languages. at the end of an intensive two-year preparation, there were two folders consisting tarman research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 77-97 87 an application file of more than one thousand pages that contained all information for a school to be opened. after submitting this proposal to the authorized institution, a team of 25 people specialized in different areas investigated it and prepared a detailed report. after submitting this report to the relevant authorities, they conducted a meeting called “public hearing” before giving their decision so that the applicants could inform the public about their project and answer their questions. in this meeting, the decision can be given or another date for public hearing can be decided if needed but it is understood that the process is very strict and detailed. these meetings are done open to the public since all these initiatives are done by the “tax money” coming from the local people and by doing that people find the chance to check whether their money is spent by the authorities according to their needs. therefore, while people who support the applicants may be present in those meetings, people who do not support and want to block the proposal may also present their ideas. upon the acceptance of the proposal, the state education ministry pays a certain amount of money that may change from state to state to the applicants as a ‘start up’ for the costs during the opening process. this amount may change from 100.000 usd to 400.000 usd. however, sometimes it may take time to receive this money so the applicants should be ready for the first spending. after getting the permission to open the school, the founding members first establish school board of trustees. in some states the school board of trustees should be established before opening the school. the board of trustees assigns a manager and then starts the process to open the school. the first step is to rent the building. state ministry controls the building to find out whether it is convenient for education and then upon the positive report, the school can be opened. the principal recruits the teachers after the approval of the board of trustees based on the criteria defined by the state ministry. the teachers are recruited for one year. tarman research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 77-97 88 there is no entrance exam for those students who live in the school zone and it is open to all. if the number of students applied to the school is higher than the quotas of the entire school, the students are accepted by drawing of lottery. the state ministry pays tuition fee to the school for each student between 5.500 usd and 18.000 usd according to the state laws and regions. this amount might be paid monthly, bi-monthly or quarterly. the schools can use this money for the salaries of the teachers, rent of the building, social and sports activities of the students, electricity, water and gas bills and equipment materials. some states provide the textbooks of students and in some states the schools buy the textbooks from the money they receive from the state. also based on the economic conditions of the students, the state contributes to the lunch of students. the schools are audited strictly in two different areas. one of these is economically and the other is quality of education. within the economic control, the state controls the school regarding how the money for opening the school and tuition fees is spent. in case of detection of improper use of money, various penalties may be applicable including the closure of school. evaluating the success of the students in national and statewide exams controls the quality of education. within the framework of “no child left behind” act, the school will be closed if the school fails for three consecutive years. charter schools were established in the usa in 1993 as the alternatives of the public schools. the interruption of education by the teachers who were members of teacher unions was one of the reasons of the establishment of those schools. the general success level in these schools is higher compared to the public schools in their regions. this success comes without further burden on the state budget. in the meantime, the public schools are trying to increase their quality by looking at those schools. the key point behind the success is the ability to bring an alternative way to solve the problems that current system cannot do. thus even the schools hours and course hours can change in the proposed charter. the staff also tarman research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 77-97 89 can work more than the ones in public schools. this is determined in the contract between the school and the teachers. the number of students entering to charter schools varies but usually it is between 5% 10%. charter schools use the state money in their expenditures and are regarded as nonprofit organizations so that are exempt from tax. a very convenient infrastructure has been created in the usa with the charter schools to develop alternative educational models. it is the result of these alternative educational models that in each region new schools are opened based on the local students’ profiles and needs so that programs different than the public schools can be offered. solution focused and innovative glance at turkish educational system problems it is not the aim of this study to list or examine the problems of turkish educational system. there are numerous institutional reports and academic papers written on this areas (akyüz, 2012; berberoğlu & kalender, 2005; di̇e, 2004; 2005; dpt, 2000; 2006; erg, 2007; 2008; 2009; 2010; 2011; gur & celik 2009; eu comission, 2007; 2009; 2010; 2011; 2012; 2013; gedikoğlu, 2005; küçükcan, & gür, 2009; tarman, 2008; 2010; 2011; tarman & acun 2010). for this reason, instead of examining the existing problems, a new concept that is ‘charter schools’ is added to the literature in order to develop a solution-oriented approach. charter school concept that is solution-oriented and innovational might be considered as a solution to the problems of the turkish education system. with the starting of 2012-13 academic year, ministry of national education (mone) made a radical innovation by switching to 4+4+4 system. as a result of this radical innovation that did not have any groundwork, a situation that was never heard before in the history of meb occurred and more than 500.000 students were not placed in a high schools (soner, 2013). authorities are trying to overcome these problems but whether fort his current problem tarman research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 77-97 90 or other problems that are waiting for a solution for so many years, the concept of charter schools should be brought to our country and implemented according to the dynamics and realities of the country. on the condition that they do not conflict with the standards and goals of the national education, the charter schools that develop their own curriculum and implement their own educational methods will result in new innovative approaches and let students to receive education based on their needs because the reason that those schools exist is to provide a better education with a reduced operating cost. these schools, which are open to all students without discrimination of any kind, have to have effective programs to attract parents and students. otherwise the administration of the school will not be able to run the school economically. this way it will be mandatory to provide better service in order to operate. the concept of ‘charter schools’ should be examined in depth in order to find solution to many of our educational problems. it is because it might solve problems with its’ innovative feature but also might create more important problems if not planned carefully. therefore the weaknesses of charter schools should also be laid down. criticism of charter school system people usually criticize charter schools since they are regarded as additional cost to the budget. a charter school that is approved by the authorities is a school funded by the state with the funding coming from the tax money. spending those tax money for the charter schools that appeal to a small group of society compared to the public schools is the point that is criticized by people. another criticism towards charter schools is that the founders might have secret agendas. this ‘secret agenda’ brings a more serious fear that the schools might be established tarman research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 77-97 91 for different reasons other than the reasons suggested during the process of establishment. to give an example, people might fear that those schools will grow a new generation that is not supported by the current system. another criticism is towards the selection of administrative and academic staff by the school administration that makes people anxious about the competence of individuals. many other criticisms can be added to the ones above. however, due to the scope of our study, the most prominent of these critics are highlighted here. conclusion it can be said that both developed and developing countries are trying to reinforce their education system both nationally and internationally. in developed countries, this search for reinforcement is a dynamic structure that looks for the best, while in developing countries the search is for understanding and transferring the systems in countries that are in better positions. this situation might be supported and or may appear as a compelling reason by internal and external factors. eventually the basic goal is to make the system better. in our country, the need for restructuring to strengthen the capacity meb is accepted by many institutions. there are various think tanks (seta, erg, etc.) that prepare reports to help official executives of meb to assist policymaking by addressing our education system from different perspectives. also, the existing in-house trained personnel or trained external specialists help meb to conduct research and analyze the results in order to determine new policies. on the basis of both international and national assessments, the problems of quality in education are addressed but there is not any clear solution for those problems. charter school concept that we tried to discuss in this study is s an approach to increase the quality in education. the strengths and weaknesses of this approach that we tried to explain in this study tarman research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 77-97 92 will increase the quality of education by bringing a competitive environment and leading to a continuous search for a better system. it will also bring the idea of ‘accountability and standardization in education’ that is an important criteria for the quality of education. a research conducted in the usa in 1983 (a nation at risk) found that in terms of student success, the usa that was one of the super powers of the world was in a critical level compared to the other countries. this situation made the politicians think about reconstructing educational system and resulted in an educational reform. this educational reform then turned into an act called ‘no child left behind act’ by taking the shape of standards-based accountability in 2000s. in fact, this reform aims at upbringing of each student for each class in accordance with the minimum standards and then as a result, increasing the quality of education by helding the schools accountable. accordingly, even though each school, town or state is free to practice different curricula, they need to reconfigure their curricula since nclb brings a kind of standardization. for our country, a new system where standards for each student are determined and then evaluation of whether the students reach those standards is necessary instead of defining the curricula in a centralized system. this system will not only provide autonomy to teachers in determining curriculum on the basis of standards, but also force the teachers to become more professionals. by this way, it will be easier to track what students are learning. in order for this to be real, both teachers and administrators need to get trained with short, medium and long-term plans. in fact, to have autonomy on the basis of curriculum is possible with the “charter school” approach we tried to examine above. the points that should be taken care of are to take measures against the weaknesses of the approach. thus it will be possible to prevent moving away from increasing the quality of education. there are numerous studies conducted on decentralized or centralized education systems. there are studies that are especially about highly decentralized and highly tarman research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 77-97 93 centralized education systems. to give an example, france is a "highly centralized" country. on the other hand, the usa and canada are "highly decentralized". when one looks at the timms scores of these countries, he/she can see that the success level of these two systems is very different. france is the strictest country in this subject and all the decentralization efforts have backfired. on the other hand, there are discussions in the usa regarding to have a more centralized system. looking at the timms scores, the united kingdom is far beyond both the usa and france but the education system is neither "highly centralized" nor "highly decentralized". they have a more balanced system. in other words, the control is neither in the hands of local governments nor central government. the united kingdom might be considered as an example for turkey since existing ideological approaches will open the way for those ideologies to dominate in certain areas and the ideology of education will be different in all regions. charter school concept exists in the united kingdom and is implemented effectively. there is not any system that is perfect all the times. it is for this reason that social, economic and cultural needs create the necessity for reconstructing and empowering the existing systems. the positive results and developments depend on to what extend this reconstructing process was effective. to do it effectively, there should be historical consciousness and a continuous search for the best practices, analysis and applications. a trust environment is a necessity to do this. to do this, as i have mentioned in my previous studies, there should be social ‘mindset change’. based on this understanding and without ignoring our cultural and historical accumulations, charter school concept should be used after comprehensively examined. this implementation should start with a pilot project and should be used throughout the country on after determining the deficiencies and addressing them. references akyüz, y. 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(2013). the global competitiveness report 2013-2014. retrieved from (http://www3.weforum.org/docs/wef_globalcompetitivenessreport_2013-14.pdf) (accessed on 27.05.2016) http://www.ab.gov.tr/files/sbypb/yayinlar/avrupa2020_yenilikcilikbirligi.pdf http://www3.weforum.org/docs/wef_globalcompetitivenessreport_2013-14.pdf research in social sciences and technology (ressat) e-issn: 2468-6891 105 critiquing a qualitative study using tracy’s big-tent criteria saud albusaidi1 abstract this paper presents a critique of an article that explores the internationalisation of the curriculum. first, to facilitate critical reflection, the main western paradigms of positivism, interpretivism, critical theory and postmodernism are described and the differences between them emphasised. the article focused on in this paper can be situated largely within an interpretivist paradigm. big-tent markers, which are employed to evaluate qualitative research, are then critically implemented to highlight the strengths and weaknesses of this article and offer relevant suggestions regarding ways in which it can be improved. key words: international students, internationalisation, internationalisation of the curriculum, paradigm, interpretivism, big-tent markers. introduction and rationale lecturing in a private college in oman has provided me with numerous opportunities to interact with international students from various backgrounds. the presence of non-omani students alongside omani students, together with the internationalisation of the curriculum (ioc), has been of increased academic interest to me. within the scope of this paper, it is important to clarify the distinction between ioc and iohe (internationalisation of higher education). ioc refers to “the incorporation of an international and intercultural dimension into the curriculum as well as the teaching and learning arrangements and support services of a program of study” (leask, 2009, p. 209). this indicates that both a formal and informal curriculum, including optional services, are internationalised in line with global dimensions to fulfil students’ needs. conversely, iohe in oman is “a way of producing graduates capable of explaining their country to the wider world” (trahar, 2011, p. 5) and is similar to the system applied in japan (trahar et al., 2015). 1 mr. saud albusaidi, university of bristol, s_s_8mile@hotmail.com research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 105-122 several researchers have investigated themes relating to internationalisation in oman (e.g. al abduwani, 2017; al’abri, 2016a; 2016b; brandenburg, 2013). sawir’s article, however, provides a holistic view of how teachers and domestic students perceive internationalisation and explores the contributions international students make in australia. ioc is a major area of interest within higher education and sawir’s article has motivated me to explore whether similar observations can be made in oman. indeed, my selection of this article was driven by my pedagogical questioning of ioc in oman and the research i am conducting for my thesis. in practical terms, this paper will also help me to acquire fundamental skills and knowledge needed to understand, dissect, and critique any future research papers. first, i present a summary of sawir’s research article, along with its aims, methodology, and the main findings. the paradigmatic perspective from which sawir conducted her research will then be classified and justified. tracy’s (2010) criteria for evaluating qualitative research will then be utilised to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of her study. this will be followed by an overall evaluation of issues pertinent to conducting research in social sciences, along with suggestions on how sawir’s study could be improved. finally, i will explain how the stated aims of this paper have been achieved. summary of sawir’s article in her research, sawir investigates whether and how international students have simplified ioc in australia. a more thorough examination of internationalisation is an ongoing requirement in higher education (leask, 2015; green & whitsed, 2015) and also in relation to oman (e.g., al abduwani, 2017; al’abri, 2016a; 2016b). sawir (2013) argues that the presence of international students and their facilitation in learning and teaching has not been extensively investigated in australia. her article therefore aims to fill this gap in the research literature. to conduct her study, she recruited potential participants by sending an email to four academic faculties. in response, 80 academic staff members agreed to participate and signed a consent form prior to taking part in a semi-structured interview. once the interviews were conducted, a thematic approach was utilised to analyse the data. the main findings were then presented and discussed. sawir’s study highlights the following issues: albusaidi 1. international students are tied to their own diverse cultures. 2. academic staff were inspired in their pedagogical preparation for an internationalised classroom. 3. staff appreciated and acknowledged the value of such classrooms. 4. australian students were unaware of how internationalisation impacted the cultural environment. 5. given the lack of interest among australian students, the cultural resources that international students bring were not fully exploited. review of theories and classifying the article the different paradigms of ‘western’ social science research can be classified as positivism, interpretivism, critical theory, and post-modernism (e.g. see bassey, 1996; crotty, 1998; usher, 1996). these paradigms “systematically” guide the researcher in addressing and exploring an issue (usher, 1996, p. 10) and distinguish research from everyday questioning and problem-solving. each paradigm is underpinned by epistemological and ontological assumptions, with the latter addressing “what is reality” (usher, 1996, p. 11) and the former addressing the nature of knowledge (usher, 1996; morrison, 2012). positivists base their knowledge on the assumption that research should be objective, unbiased, value-free, and involve the implementation of quantitative methods (morrison, 2012; usher, 1996). for positivists, there is one single reality that exists, “waiting to be discovered” (feilzer, 2010, p. 6). usher, however, claims that “human actions are interpretable… hence any knowledge of them is indeterminate” (1996, p. 20). acknowledging that positivism and post-positivism paradigms are both employed in research, usher suggests that a positivist epistemology in social sciences research is inappropriate because values can affect findings and “we cannot be positive about our claims of knowledge when studying the behavior and actions of humans” (creswell, 2014, p. 7). by contrast, interpretivists “insert themselves into the continual process of meaning construction in order to understand it” (scott & morrison, 2006, p. 130). values and knowledge are thus research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 105-122 intrinsically connected in that understanding and exploring a phenomenon relies heavily on the interpretations made by the researcher. thus, “interpretations of [the collected] data involve subjective individual constructions” (scotland, 2012, p. 12). interpretivists therefore subjectively ‘construct’ knowledge and ‘make meaning’ from data obtained through observation, field notes, interviews, and storytelling. reality, for interpretivists, can be understood in different ways by different researchers; hence, they accept the existence of multiple realities (morrison, 2012). unlike positivists, the context within which meanings are constructed and embedded, for them, is vitally important when interpreting data and findings. critical theory, however, has challenged the epistemology of both positivism and interpretivism. according to the marxist tradition, critical theory challenges the established traditions of society and opposes the stance taken by both positivists and interpretivists. the position critical theorists adopt is that each context provides its own unique perspective. usher explores the suggestion that critical theory constitutes an “ideology critique” (1996, p. 23). critical theory primarily aims to engender social change based on consensus and robust arguments: thus, for such theorists, reality is not permanent and enduring but crystallised through dialogic, dialectic, and transformative methodologies (guba & lincoln, 1994). post-modernism, by contrast, “questions… the foundations of knowledge and understanding” (usher, 1996, p. 25). within this framework there is no certainty in truth and therefore social science is full of ambiguity. the binary subjective-objective framework is disrupted by postmodernism, which contends that deeper scrutiny is needed to challenge and question preeminent knowledge (kelly, 1995; usher, 1996). according to this argument, reliable and rational science is disclaimed knowledge. overall, however, researchers do not always specify which paradigm they are working within (guba & lincoln, 1994). ostensibly, sawir’s article could be situated within the interpretivism paradigm based on its methodology, epistemology, and ontology. the methodology, according to creswell (2003), represents the research paradigm. although guba and lincoln (1994) suggest qualitative and quantitative research methods can be implemented within any paradigm, interpretivists mainly construct their knowledge through the use of qualitative research methods, such as the interviews employed in sawir’s article. these were therefore not interpreted quantitatively and numerically; albusaidi instead, the findings were based on an interpretation and understanding of the data by sawir (creswell, 2014). this is confirmed by thanh and thanh (2015, p. 24) who suggest that “researchers who are using an interpretivist paradigm and qualitative methods often seek experiences, understandings, and perceptions of individuals for their data to uncover reality rather than rely on numbers of statistics”. sawir interviewed academic staff “to discuss their perspectives” and “comment on the academic and social issues experienced by international students” (2013, p. 364). creswell (2003, p. 9) argues that interpretivists “generate or inductively develop a theory or pattern of meanings”. this was evident in the way sawir examined the experiences of academic staff and interpreted them qualitatively. her aim was not to invoke social change, which is a feature of the critical theory paradigm (usher, 1996; creswell, 2014), but to ‘understand’ and ‘explore’ features of the data. hence, the epistemological assumptions of sawir as an interpretivist underpin her research aims. creswell (2003), furthermore, highlights the way researchers within the interpretivism paradigm construct their science based on the experiences and perceptions of participants. creswell’s claim can be linked to sawir’s epistemology, which is evidently interpretivist, in that her aim is to ‘understand’ and ‘explore’ staff experiences in relation to ioc. furthermore, she inserted herself into the research (scott & morrison, 2006) by personally asking staff about the experiences of international students. importantly, her previous knowledge did not influence the findings as the participants’ own words provided a route to their reality. this shows that sawir accepts the existence of multiple realities. scotland (2012) claims that the ontological assumption of the interpretivist is embedded within the topic that the researcher is exploring. this can be seen in sawir’s mission to understand the contribution international students make to ioc. her ontology is relativist as her exploration leads to different answers and experiences and is thus different “… from positivists who often accept only one correct answer” (thanh & thanh, 2015, p. 25). thus, a concrete reality does not exist; instead, there is a socially constructed reality based upon the experiences of staff. discussion and critiquing the selected article for a novice researcher, critiquing a published research article is an intricate and challenging task. moreover, selecting the appropriate criteria introduces yet more complications. although the bigresearch in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 105-122 tent criteria by tracy (2010) are holistic in nature, i believe they can be implemented to evaluate the quality of all theoretical research and/or a combination of criteria can be created that encourages “imagination, growth, and improvisation” (tracy, 2010, p. 837). indeed, the field of qualitative research includes an ongoing dialogue on values and the quality of research, a clear contrast with the consistent aims of quantitative research. consequently, tracy and hinrichs (2017, p. 1) believe it is essential to develop the big-tent model because “there is…great value and need for more standardized criteria”. as i am new to the process of critiquing, my position is that the big-tent model provides a proper framework within which to evaluate sawir’s article. this framework compromises eight criteria: worthy topic, rich rigour, sincerity, credibility, resonance, significant contribution, ethics, and meaningful coherence (tracy & hinrichs, 2017; tracy, 2010), all of which are addressed in this paper. worthy topic tracy (2010) believes a worthy topic is one that is relevant, timely, significant, and interesting. over the past 25 years, research papers on internationalisation have increased because of globalisation (rezaei et al., 2018), “the economic benefits” (sawir, 2013, p. 359; trahar, 2007) that accrue, and the number of students travelling to other countries for study and employment (elliot et al., 2015). this has also been witnessed within higher education institutions (heis) in oman, which compete to provide an education that equips learners to work in a global environment. in regard to heis, australia (sawir, 2013) and the uk (trahar, 2007) set different fee structures for international students: conversely, in oman, local and international students pay the same fees. however, the process of ioc has accelerated in australia and the uk because of the growing number of international students joining heis. both countries argue that these fees ensure the provision of an adequate and internationalised curriculum. sawir is not alone in arguing that “many international students led institutions to redesign their curricula” in australia (2013, p. 361). haigh (2002), leask (2005; 2015), and schuerholz-lehr (2007) detail how australian and international hei graduates are being prepared for global positions through iohe and ioc. thus, an exploration of ioc is relevant both to sawir’s concerns and the wider international context. from a narrower perspective, the annual report issued by central queensland university (cqu), the institution where sawir works, states that “international, intercultural and indigenous albusaidi perspectives will be evidenced in our academic offering” (2012, p. 12). similarly, the report emphasises the importance of “international prestige ratings” to cqu, which praises research in this area (2012, p. 12). sawir’s findings therefore provide significant insights that will be of value to cqu decision-makers and practitioners. the cqu report shows that in 2010 there were 8,054 international students. this was followed by a sharp decrease in 2012 to 5,779 students. this underlines the timeliness of sawir’s research as it directly relates the experiences of staff in australia to those of cqu staff. for the same reason, sawir’s topic has educational authenticity as it raises awareness among both cqu staff and decision-makers (guba & lincoln, 1989, 2005). acknowledging that several factors have led to the decrease in international students, sawir admits: …too much focus on research on international students has created a gap in the literature of the internationalisation of higher education. to have comprehensive understanding of processes of internationalisation, more research needs to be conducted, and particularly with domestic students as participants. (2013, p. 374) this suggests that interviewing international students will provide more insight into this topic. this is a clear strength of sawir’s article as she had admitted there is a gap in her research and has highlighted this as an area for future research. finally, although the topic of ioc may seem ‘obvious’ to some researchers, i believe it is personally of great value in the context of oman and, moreover, has remained relevant beyond 2013. rich rigour rich rigour refers to the depth the researcher goes into when discussing the methodology and findings of the topic they are investigating (tracy & hinrichs, 2017). although the discussion of the methodology in sawir’s article covers most of the main concepts, it would have been strengthened further if she had justified the choices made. for instance, one anonymous university was chosen with only prosaic justifications provided for doing so. sawir (2013, p. 363) based this choice on the fact that it was “the second oldest university in australia” and its position as “a research-intensive university”. however, no clear reasons were provided as to whether and how sawir was related to that university. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 105-122 tracy (2010, p. 841) argues that “demonstrations of rigor include the number and length of interviews, the appropriateness and breadth of the interview sample”. sawir, however, only states that semi-structured interviews were implemented. i believe that explaining her reasons for choosing semi-structured interviews over structured or unstructured interviews would have strengthened her methodology. qualitative or open-ended questionnaires could, arguably, be a viable alternative method of data collection (page et al., 2014; schuh et al., 2009). it is therefore not clear why sawir chose interviews over questionnaires. moreover, in addition to interviews, she could have used open-ended questionnaires to enrich her findings. this would have been useful as some participants may require time to think about their answers, which is more feasible with questionnaires than it is with interviews. furthermore, their use would also have enabled sawir to triangulate her findings, a point that will be returned to later. nevertheless, due to staff interest, the interviews took approximately 30-60 minutes which would indicate the collection of sufficient data. although she recorded the interviews, the use of appropriate procedures and practices (tracy, 2010; tracy & hinrichs, 2017), such as an acknowledgment of the gap between recording and transcribing, the length of time taken for transcription, example interview questions and transcripts, and a sample consent form were not explained or provided. the only practice mentioned by sawir was “reading the text [transcribed interviews] several times” to identify the main themes (2013, p. 364). in terms of sampling, four out of the ten faculties were selected purposefully, yet the reasons for choosing these venues were not given. moreover, there were 7,000 staff working at that university, yet only 80 participated in the study. this in itself is less of an issue as qualitative researchers generally tend to work with small samples because they aim for deep and rich data. however, sawir did not state how long she engaged with the staff in order to build trust, which may affect the credibility of her research. nevertheless, the thematic approach she used to analyse the data was effectively implemented. overall, however, explaining ‘how’ the approach works does not justify ‘why’ it was used. i chose sawir’s article to broaden my understanding of the ioc situation in australia; yet, surprisingly, sawir explicitly states that “[o]ther findings from the larger study such as the views of academic staff towards the presence of international students, … are written and published separately” (2013, p. 364). as a researcher, this surprised me because a reader will pay to review albusaidi this version of the article, but many of the results are presented in other versions. this is despite the fact that she does acknowledge that this research is part of a larger study. nevertheless, the results and discussion sections are profound in terms of both analysis and evaluation. this includes a full consideration of the features of a thematic approach, such as finding and categorising similar and different patterns (braun & clarke, 2006), all of which are deployed and explained by sawir. tracy argues that “rigorous analysis is marked by transparency” (2010, p. 841). however, one could ask whether the data are “coded in an epistemological vacuum” (braun & clarke, 2006, p. 84). such a query implies that the data may sometimes be purposely selected to present only the positive aspects of a topic. braun and clarke (2006, p. 84) term this “theoretical thematic analysis” whereby data selection is influenced by the researcher’s own values and beliefs, reducing the quality of the discussion. in her research, sawir explicitly shows how the presence of international students was perceived negatively by domestic students, which presents a challenge for academic staff who must strive to encourage the latter to appreciate the life experiences of the former. for example, she notes that “it was a challenge for them [staff] to get domestic students to appreciate and exploit these cultural resources [the life experiences international students bring with them]” (2013, p. 367). thus, in this case, transparency in the selection of the data is evident. sincerity a sincere researcher would be self-reflexive and transparent (tracy & hinrichs, 2017). it could be argued that sawir has not entirely fulfilled this goal. for example, in the methodology section, she fails to state any aims or limitations beyond choosing a qualitative approach or the use of semistructured interviews. when clarifying the choice of university, she mentions she works for another university. however, she does not state whether this was for “a prolonged period” (creswell & miller, 2000, p. 127). this casts doubt over her engagement within the context of the university. self-reflexivity requires honesty regarding the foibles of the selected methodology and its impact on the research. critically, this was not clear in sawir’s article. moreover, tracy and hinrichs argue that “awareness of and authenticity about one’s own identity and role within the research context is a central component of a researcher’s sincerity” (2017, p. 5). however, sawir only describes ‘how’ she contacted the staff; her role within this process and research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 105-122 her values and experience were not clearly explained. an interpretivist researcher jointly constructs the meaning of the research with the participants (creswell, 2003). although sawir conducted the interviews, the extent to which she was critically engaged with the context and the participants was not made clear. she simply presents themes and supports them with direct quotes from the interviewees. one could therefore question how sawir validated the stories, experiences, and situations related to her by staff. she did not reflect upon these situations and thus address the essentially subjective nature of qualitative research. a transparent researcher would also describe how the study was funded, the challenges it presented, and the “twists and turns” (tracy & hinrichs, 2017, p. 5) of the research. these remain unstated in sawir’s article. overall, the inclusion of such information could have justified the methodological practices she implemented. this is crucial as it helps avoid any misunderstanding and removes all doubts about the authenticity of the findings. credibility researchers ‘show’ rather than ‘tell’ readers how detailed their description is (tracy, 2010). for instance, sawir demonstrates the richness of her data by supporting each theme with ideas, indepth descriptions, and selected quotes from the participants. in so doing, she improves the credibility of the research. however, sawir’s voice was less clear when contextualising her research in the literature review as she mentions numerous noteworthy studies yet does not question the methodology or context of those studies. for example, a claim such as “international students in tertiary institutions have lowered academic standards” (sawir, 2013, p. 360) arguably requires deeper scrutiny, yet sawir fails to mention the context surrounding the studies making such claims or the data collection instruments they employ. taking the findings of other studies for granted rather than questioning them is a weakness of her article. in terms of triangulation, sawir only employed interviews. she did not state why she did so as the use of more than one method is believed to increase the credibility and trustworthiness of research (flick, 2006; patton, 2002). one might claim that, because sawir is an interpretivist, using different methods will yield different realities, none of which are necessarily “true”. however, sawir did not state which paradigm she is working within and why she only used interviews, which means her methodology can be questioned. one point mentioned previously relating to the interviews albusaidi concerns the extent to which sawir engaged with the participants. tracy argues that “[m]ultivocality can also be achieved through intense collaboration with participants” (2010, p. 844). it is therefore possible to argue that the study would have been better suited for cqu as sawir would have been more familiar with the context and had a better understanding of the participants. although being both a researcher and a staff member would have presented a challenge, participants may have felt safer revealing their experiences, thus yielding richer and more authentic data. resonance sawir’s study is qualitative and therefore her aim was not to generalise the findings. it could, however, provide significant insights that could be useful in other contexts. from the perspective of an international student, and as a teacher of international students, i believe several findings are particularly noteworthy. for example, sawir found that the “presence [of international students] has led them [the teachers] to think about their teaching methods” (2013, p. 365). international students come from different backgrounds and have experienced a diverse range of teaching and learning experiences. they will therefore expect to be taught in a similar or perhaps more effective way. having experienced a similar situation when i moved from being an international student in the uk to teaching international students at a college in oman, this compelled me to think critically about the teaching methods used in my classroom. prior knowledge and expectations are not only built on the methods of teaching but also on how an international student is viewed by their domestic counterparts. this is because the lecturer plays a vital role in enabling students to understand and learn from each other. for instance, sawir states: interviewees asserted that those domestic students who interacted more with the international students probably gained a much better (or more interesting) learning experience. developing relationships with domestic students, however, is more complicated and difficult, resulting in divisions between international and domestic students. (2013, p. 368) sawir here touches on important and profound issues, such as how teachers and local students in oman should interact and learn from international students. her findings therefore increased my desire to investigate the omani context, providing further resonance to her work. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 105-122 significant contribution sawir’s study has still made significant contributions to my work as a novice researcher. her research has provided a deeper understanding of the contribution international students can make. for example, her research addresses the fact that “there is little research examining the extent to which the presence of international students on campus contributes to internationalisation of australian education and training” (2013, p. 363). this confirms tracy’s claim that qualitative research “provides new conceptual understandings” (2010, p. 846). thus, sawir’s study profoundly explains ioc in an australian university and provides the basis for further research, not just in australia, but globally. as mentioned previously, her findings have increased my desire to examine ioc in oman. overall, her study can be assessed as both theoretically and heuristically significant (see tracy, 2010). tracy also argues that “[a] research project that yields unsurprising theoretical findings may nonetheless provide a significant contribution by introducing and explicating a new methodological approach” (2010, p. 846). this may justify sawir’s use of a qualitative approach. in the literature review, she extensively highlighted previous studies in relation to ioc and how international students are perceived and the contribute they make. beyond her stated aims, her objective was to investigate the topic from within a qualitative paradigm. this may represent the methodological contribution of her research in a local context, which consequently could contribute to other qualitative studies conducted globally (e.g. see leask, 2013; leask & bridge, 2013; trahar et al., 2015; trahar, 2014). ethics sawir has followed ethical practices to at least some degree. she ensured that the name of the university and participants’ names and ages remained anonymous, emphasising “[t]o preserve confidentiality interviewees, if quoted, were referred to by a code placed in brackets” (2013, p. 364). issues such as voluntary participation, arranging convenient interviews, and signing the consent form were all addressed. however, tracy contends that “we constantly reflect on our methods and the data worth exposing” (2010, p. 847), and sawir does not explain how she provided a safe environment within which the interviewees could freely express their ideas (creswell & miller, 2000). moreover, she does not state how the recordings and transcribed interviews were albusaidi saved, and there was no evidence of member-checking, all of which seem to suggest a lack of transparency in regard to ethical research practices. meaningful coherence a meaningful and coherent study connects its methodology to its paradigm and aims (tracy, 2010). sawir’s interpretivist position thus provides a clear link between employing a qualitative approach and qualitative data collection. she achieves this by inserting herself into the research in order to elicit and understand participants’ views and construct meaning from the data using their voices, all of which are commensurate with the goals of her study. although the research questions are not explicitly stated, the gap the research aimed to fill is clearly addressed, and the findings have largely achieved this. thus, the methods used to collect and analyse data were appropriately implemented. furthermore, the section ‘a way forward’ considers several implications that provide an insight into the concerns and issues surrounding ioc. this is one of the strengths of her research as she situates her study within a wider context. in her conclusion, she states how the aims were achieved. her study could have been made more coherent by elaborating and reflecting upon the methodology and justifying the particular methods employed. this would help the reader to understand and interpret the methodological rationale for the study, thereby averting any misinterpretations. overall evaluation the weaknesses and strengths of sawir’s study constitute a basis upon which her study can be improved. some researchers suggest that acting on the findings and implications of qualitative research is not a secure undertaking as it is built on a subjective foundation. unlike quantitative research, the findings are not generalisable. nevertheless, tracy emphasises that “[a] parsimonious framework for qualitative quality can help us communicate value for our work to a variety of audiences” (2010, p. 838). this has empowered me to add a novel flavour to my journey as a novice interested in qualitative research. it has also guided me in critiquing sawir’s article and encouraged me not to take any research for granted. for instance, sawir could have stated her research questions more clearly as she leaves the reader confused about certain aspects of her study. a clearly stated research paradigm could also have rendered both the methodological aspects (i.e. the approach, the method, the strategy) and the findings more coherent and explicit. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 105-122 additionally, the results and discussion sections could have been combined and sawir’s voice heard more loudly throughout the study. although the discussion is rich, issues such as member checking, triangulation, peer reviewing, and external audits (tracy, 2010; creswell & miller, 2000) are not addressed in sawir’s article. specifically, “who is not talking and what is not said” (tracy, 2010, p. 843) are not clear in her literature review, results, and discussion sections. an improvement in these areas will render her research more credible and trustworthy. conclusion in conclusion, this paper has made me think deeply about writing my own thesis. i feel that using tracy’s model will provide me with an effective way to critique research papers in the future. each criterion addresses how research weaknesses can be a turning point on which to produce a better study in the future. admittedly, i am only at the beginning of the journey of evaluating published articles. however, reading about research paradigms has deepened my understanding of the decisions that need to be taken regarding which theoretical framework to adopt. moreover, it reminds me that, whilst retaining an open mind, everything in my life, including my studies, should be rationalised to make my world more productive. it is also important to emphasise that, regardless of the limitations of sawir’s study, her research adds to my understanding of ioc and the contribution international students make. her findings have further increased my desire to investigate ioc in oman. although my critique is not exhaustive, it has been invaluable in deepening my understanding of the research process at an early stage of my career. acknowledgment i would like to express my sincere gratitude to professor sheila trahar for her feedback, support and guidance while writing this article. also, i would like to thank other friends and colleagues who provided me with their insightful comments. albusaidi references al abduwani, t. 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(2007). teaching and learning: the international higher education landscape. some theories and. working practices. escalate. retrieved march 23, 2019, from http://escalate.ac.uk/downloads/3559.pdf. https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/79e6/888e672cf2acf8afe2ec21fd42a29b2cbd90.pdf http://escalate.ac.uk/downloads/3559.pdf. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 105-122 trahar, s. (2011). developing cultural capability in international education: a narrative inquiry. abingdon: routledge. trahar, s. (2014). this is malaysia. you have to follow the custom here. narratives of the student and academic experience in international higher education in malaysia. journal of education for teaching. retrieved march 23, 2019, from http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/02607476.2014.903023 trahar, s., green, w. j., de wit, h., & whitsed, c. 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(2020). scaffolding problem solving in teaching and learning the dpace model a design thinking approach. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 93 scaffolding problem solving in teaching and learning the dpace model a design thinking approach malliga k. govindasamy* international languages campus, kuala lumpur, institute of teacher education ngu moi kwe international languages campus, kuala lumpur, institute of teacher education *corresponding author: mallikagovin@ipgm.edu.my received : 2019-11-21 rev. req : 2019-12-10 accepted : 2020-01-03 doi: 10.46303/ressat.05.02.6 govindasamy, m. k., & kwe, n. m. (2020). scaffolding problem solving in teaching and learning the dpace model a design thinking approach. research in social sciences and technology, 5(2), 93-112. doi.org/10.46303/ressat.05.02.6 abstract problem solving is a basic skill needed to function effectively in the working environment. teachers are no exception to this professional demand. it is of utmost importance for teacher education programs to prepare pre-service teachers with this fundamental competency. the dpace model is a preliminary effort by two teacher educators to enhance the problem-solving skills among pre-service teachers. the model was developed using the design thinking approach with reference to vygotsky’s constructivism and grounded by questions as scaffolds to facilitate internalization of knowledge that teachers need to assist them in addressing and expanding their problem-solving boundaries. the main structure of the model consists of five domains developed with reference to computational thinking concepts. each domain consists of open-ended questions formulated according to bloom’s ordering of cognitive skills, taking pre-service teachers progressively toward better understanding of the problem and creating an efficient solution. this model was applied among 62 pre-service teachers enrolled in the tslb3152 course at the teacher education institute international languages campus, kuala lumpur, malaysia. in total, 86.67% of the respondents reported that the dpace model helped them in their problem-solving task and almost 78% of them scored an a grade in their coursework tasks facilitated using the dpace model. efforts are needed to further refine the questions and field test the model in other courses or situations with the hope that this ongoing teacher education effort will create a paradigm shift in the quest toward mastery of 21st century skills among pre-service teachers. keywords: dpace model, problem-solving skills, scaffolding, computational thinking, teaching and learning research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 govindasamy, m. k., & kwe, n. m. (2020). scaffolding problem solving in teaching and learning the dpace model a design thinking approach. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 94 introduction problem solving is defined as the mental process of working through the details of a problem to reach a justifiable solution. in academia, it is considered as a cognitive process that directs the learners to use and combine various cognitive functions in an effort to solve a novel problem. it includes representing, planning, executing, and self-regulating the problem task (mayer & wittrock, 2006, as cited in haataja et al., 2019). dick, carey, and carey (2014) asserted that problem solving is the highest order of cognition that facilitates innovative knowledge practices. problem solving is not a skill or knowledge merely limited to academics but relates strongly to the challenges of the workplace, where it is needed to support the delivery of solutions. the knowledge-based global economy demands acute critical thinking to solve real-world problems. specific to the needs of the workplace, the malaysian educational blueprint (ministry of education, 2013) has emphasized initiatives to develop and enhance the key competencies that enable students to master problem solving. however, the general perception of employers with regard to problem solving indicates that malaysian graduates generally lack these life skills and are not able to think critically and creatively in new situations (ministry of education, 2015). the teaching profession in malaysia is no exception to the above dilemma. the inability to interrogate instructional problems is one of the many challenges teachers face in their professional practices. it is very important for teachers to facilitate students’ learning in an efficient manner, and this requires teachers to critically reflect on their practices. most teachers lack critical and creative thinking despite the many initiatives by the ministry of education to foster these skills through professional development programs. since 1994, the teacher education division, through the adoption of the “boston model” or the infusion model, incorporated higher-order thinking in the teacher education programs (nagappan, 2001). the pre-service teachers were also exposed to other models, including the cort thinking tools, yet findings indicate that the teachers still lack the ability to apply accurately higher-order thinking in their actual professional practices (kuldas, hashim, & ismail, 2015, as cited in dewitt, alias, & siraj, 2016). nagappan (2001) and suhaili (2014) concluded that in order to have a better understanding of critical thinking and problem-solving strategies, teachers, both novice and experienced, need to be trained in instructional strategies. while some teachers, through their many years of experience, may have acquired the ability to independently solve instructional problems effectively, others might need assistance to improve their competency in solving problems. problem statement the course digital innovation in teaching and learning (tslb3152) is a two-credit course offered in the graduate teacher education program. the course learning outcome is to enable pre-service teachers to creatively and innovatively solve instructional problems using digital tools and applications. the course aspires to develop pre-service teachers’ problem-solving skills and empower them to become better problem solvers in their profession. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 govindasamy, m. k., & kwe, n. m. (2020). scaffolding problem solving in teaching and learning the dpace model a design thinking approach. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 95 the main coursework task requires pre-service teachers to innovatively solve one teaching and learning problem they encountered in the teaching of their option subject during their practicum sessions in schools. the tslb3152 course is delivered over a period of one semester after the pre-service teachers have undergone practical teaching in the earlier semester. prior to the integration of the proposed problem-solving strategy, the pre-service teachers did not have a structured approach in addressing the identified instructional problems. the usual problem-solving approach employed in the course involves encouraging them to brainstorm in groups to identify possible new and better strategies to solve the said problem. this was consistent with asimow’s (2015) recordings on the common problem-solving approach in which individuals identify the problem, consider options for solutions, sieve through the possibilities and pick one, try it out, and find out if it worked. for the most part, the prediction strategy of “what would happen if …” is used before defining the end goal for each stage of problem solving. this analytical and deductive thinking process is done to help them select the best solution to the problem before embarking on developing the product as a solution. the course proforma recommended some generally established problem-solving models; however, these models did not fit the specific requirements of the coursework task. during the observation of the practicum session, it was discovered that the pre-service teachers failed to demonstrate a sound knowledge of problem solving in their teaching practices. the reflective writing records showed that their focus was more on addressing nonteaching-related problems that occur in the class and that they were unable to think creatively about ways to solve the actual teachingand learning-related problems. the final assessment of the coursework outcome (solution products) showed that a major percentage of their work was at the augmentation and modification level (figure 1). the solutions created were found to be mainly direct substitutes with a functional improvement for existing teaching and learning objects. a digitized version of the regular learning objects in use, such as e-story, animated posters, e-worksheets, and interactive powerpoint slides with enhanced features such as games and online assessment tools, were produced as the ultimate solution. figure 1: samr model (puentedura, 2014) research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 govindasamy, m. k., & kwe, n. m. (2020). scaffolding problem solving in teaching and learning the dpace model a design thinking approach. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 96 generally, the assessment of performance in the tslb3152 course showed the pre-service teachers’ inability to address the “real” problem effectively. most of the solutions created had gaps and lacked generalizability. findings from a likert scale survey that solicited the preservice teachers’ perceived competence levels in solving instruction-related problems indicated inadequate knowledge and skills in addressing problems and generating a justifiable solution. in sum, the pre-service teachers need guidance to frame their thoughts and cognitions in identifying problems and analyzing situations and challenges so that they are able to generate justifiable solutions to the teaching and learning content-related problems. purpose of the study this study intends to validate the effectiveness of the dpace model in facilitating the preservice teachers in planning and executing a solution for the identified instructional problem. the objective of the study is twofold: i) to design and develop a structured problem-solving model using questions as a scaffold, and ii) to validate the effectiveness of the model in facilitating pre-service teachers’ problem solving ability. the study probes into three main aspects, namely: 1. identify the dimensions for the proposed problem-solving model; 2. build a series of open-ended questions that form the scaffold within the dimensions of the proposed model; 3. validate the effectiveness of the designed model in facilitating problem solving among pre-service teachers. literature review a learner’s developmental level consists of (i) the actual developmental level, at which the learner possesses the ability to independently perform a task, and (ii) the potential developmental level, where the learner accomplishes a task through guidance and assistance from a more competent adult or capable peer (vygotsky, 1978). vygotsky believed that appropriate supportive instructional activities for a task, when provided to a learner at the potential developmental level (zone of proximal development or zpd), will “boost” the ability to accomplish the task. one of the ways to lead the learner through the zpd is through scaffolding. instructional scaffolding is a systematic process through which a more knowledgeable person adds supports for students in order to move them progressively toward stronger understanding and ultimately greater independence in learning. wood, bruner, and ross (1976), as cited in mcleod (2019), highlighted that in scaffolding, the more competent person must control the elements of the task that are initially beyond the learner’s capability, permitting the novice to concentrate upon and complete only those elements that are within his or her range of competence. in other words, introducing individual tasks within the dimension of the learner’s competence can serve as scaffolds that eventually help learners research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 govindasamy, m. k., & kwe, n. m. (2020). scaffolding problem solving in teaching and learning the dpace model a design thinking approach. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 97 complete the whole learning task. such a scaffolding strategy will be beneficial for the novice or inexperienced teacher, providing them with the necessary support and guidance at the initial stage so that they will be able to organize their thoughts, develop specific knowledge or skills that bridge their zpd, and eventually facilitates problem solving. consistently, literature documented the use of scaffolding to help improve pre-service teachers’ specific reflective thinking and writing (lai & calandra, 2010, and mair, 2012, as cited in ching, yang, baek, & baldwin, 2016). the intent of scaffolding is to guide the building of knowledge from the ground up (concrete to abstract) in order to bridge foundational knowledge to higher-level thinking and application. these cognitive skills, as described by bloom (1956) and updated by anderson et al. (2001), reflect the need to structure learning activities to develop students’ higher-order potentials (as cited in fisher & frey, 2010). structuring the task as a means of scaffolding students’ understanding was also put forth by applebee and langer (1983), who viewed a structured environment as a strategy to sequence the thoughts of the students when approaching a task. a clearly structured approach, according to surgenor (2010), enables students to prioritize information and identify links and connections between concepts and ideas and from one level to another. surgenor (2010) further emphasized the need to systematically and logically sequence the information aided with the explicit sign-posting of key issues to increase comprehension and enable students to separate the “wood from the trees.” this phrase suggests that well-structured details of scaffolding allow students to address the minor details of the task and not just view it in entirety. a number of tools (visuals and verbals) have been identified by scholars and researchers as aiding formal scaffolding. these include concept maps, word webs, graphic organizers, explanations, examples, hints, prompts, question cards, and question stems (alibali, 2006). alibali (2006) further posits that as the complexity of the content increases, a variety of scaffolds are required to accommodate the different levels of complexity to help students master the content. in such situations, teachers can opt for a combination of visual scaffolds with modeling of a skill or adapting a material/activity (copple & bredekamp, 2009; larkin, 2002), bringing students’ attention to the task and jointly solving the problem or providing continuous motivation (ragoff, 1990, as cited in rodgers, 2004). among all these, questioning received accolades as the most integral component of instructional scaffolding. vygotsky (1978) posited questions as providing unique access to the learners’ zpd, directing teachers toward specific interventions in the scaffolding metaphor. echoing this, larkin (2002) prompted for questioning techniques to bridge the gap between what a learner knows and what the learner needs to know. the significance of questioning as a high-level cognitive strategy is discussed explicitly by scholars and is well documented in the literature. posing questions pertinent to a specific scope of knowledge works as a thinking stimulant and facilitates the learning process. davoudi and sadhegi (2015) highlighted the indispensable role of questioning in facilitating critical thinking and metacognitive skills. guided questioning as a form of scaffold has been recorded as enabling students to elicit critical thinking (coffey, 2014) and improving the depth of written research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 govindasamy, m. k., & kwe, n. m. (2020). scaffolding problem solving in teaching and learning the dpace model a design thinking approach. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 98 reflection (moussa-inaty, 2015). dahl and eriksen (2015) recommended open-ended questions as a means to create an environment of inquiry that allows students to produce higher levels of reflection. according to sheninger (2018), placing accurate and properly phrased questions within a mental process’s developmental structure can assist internalization, independence, and generalization of knowledge to other contexts. guiding students to move from the acquisition of knowledge to the application of knowledge and then to creation of knowledge is indeed a challenge; however, structuring the thinking process with well-designed questions can help to address this elusiveness. deed (2009), as cited in davoudi and sadhegi (2015), asserts that structured questions can be viewed as a pedagogical tool for students to represent, organize, communicate, and conceptualize abstract ideas committed to their learning. in other words, rightly pitched questions at each cognitive level raise the thinking challenge. applebee and langer (1983) proposed that questions be structured around a model or framework that naturally sequences thoughts so as to extend and elaborate the knowledge the learner already possesses. this strategy will pave the way for development of new knowledge that will eventually bring the learner to function autonomously in that task and generalize the new learned knowledge to similar circumstances. revell and wainwright (2009) opined that a structured approach designed along a framework or a model helps students visualize the “big picture” of the task to be accomplished while progressively attending to minor details. the design thinking approach (structuring of the thinking) as proposed in this study references the concepts of computational thinking. computational thinking (ct) is broadly defined as a set of cognitive skills that draws upon certain logically ordered steps and dispositions placed within a problem-solving structure (wing, 2006). the concepts of ct guide students to systematically organize their thought processes involved in problem solving so that the solutions are generalizable to the real world. ct is essential to the development of computer applications, but it can also be used to support problem solving across all disciplines. research methodology the study adapted the design science research methodology (dsrm) by peffers, tuunanen, rothenberger, and chatterjee (2007). design science, as conceptualized by simon (1996), supports a pragmatic research paradigm that calls for the creation of innovative artifacts to solve real-world problems. thus, the dsrm was employed to guide the building blocks of this model, providing research directions and addressing the research objectives. within this design, a combination of qualitative and quantitative methods via exploratory approach was applied to progress the study from the broader perspective to the required details. the details of the current study according to the various stages as recommended by the dsrm is shown in figure 2. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 govindasamy, m. k., & kwe, n. m. (2020). scaffolding problem solving in teaching and learning the dpace model a design thinking approach. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 99 figure 2: dsrm-based research phases and research activities (adapted from peffers, tuunanen, rothenberger, & chatterjee, 2007) the development of the model and the open-ended questions were grounded by critical analysis of relevant literature. the reliability and validity of the scaffold questions were established through advice and recommendations from experts in the field of assessment and evaluation. the validation of the designed problem-solving model was carried out using the cross-sectional (cs) approach. cs has been proven to be an effective method for providing a snapshot of the behaviors, attitudes, and perspectives of participants in a study (gay, mills, & airasian, 2009). a likert-style questionnaire was used to solicit the pre-service teachers’ perceptions of the usefulness of the model in facilitating the problem solving task. the questionnaire also carried open-ended questions to elicit the pre-service teachers’ feedback on the usability of the model. in total, 62 pre-service teachers from one cohort enrolled in the tesl degree program at the teacher education institute international languages campus in kuala lumpur, malaysia, participated in this study. the developed model was employed in the teaching of the tslb3152 course. this course is offered in the sixth semester of the four-year degree program. development of the dpace model the zone of proximal development (zpd), as posited by vygotsky’s constructivist theory (1976) and bruner’s scaffolding theory (wood, bruner, & ross, 1976), formed the ground for the model. the proposed model consists of two main components: i) progressive dimensions for problem solving, and ii) scaffolds. the dimensions were derived from the concepts of computational thinking and structured with relevance to the taxonomy of cognitive domains research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 govindasamy, m. k., & kwe, n. m. (2020). scaffolding problem solving in teaching and learning the dpace model a design thinking approach. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 100 (bloom, 1956). numerous studies on problem-solving strategies have documented computational thinking as one effective approach to solve problems across various disciplines. the proposed model extends the ct problem-solving processes by adding relevant dimensions that relate to the ordering of cognitive processes. figure 3 describes the building of the proposed model. figure 3: the dimensions of the dpace model with relevance to the ct concepts the structure of the problem-solving model is comprised of five domains related to the design thinking process, namely: i) define, ii) probe, iii) abstract, iv) create, and v) evaluate. each aspect of the domain was clearly defined using concepts adapted from the stages of thinking as postulated in ct. each dimension is further reinforced with sign-postings that facilitate preservice teachers to comprehend their cognitive behaviors at each progressive level. figure 4 shows the dimensions with the sign-posting phrases and statements. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 govindasamy, m. k., & kwe, n. m. (2020). scaffolding problem solving in teaching and learning the dpace model a design thinking approach. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 101 figure 4: dimensions of the model with sign-posting the scaffolds consist of open-ended questions. according to zwiers and crawford (2011), open-ended questions elicit deeper thinking and offer the opportunity to produce original ideas. the open-ended questions were formulated based on the progressive levels according to bloom’s ordering of cognitive skills. the questions were verified for content validity and reliability. the internal consistency reliability of the question statements was estimated through a triangulation process among experts in the field of pedagogy and evaluation and assessment. this was done in order to establish the consistency of responses in terms of addressing the intended cognitive activities at each level of the continuum. figure 5 shows the model’s five domains mapped with scaffold questions that match the cognitive levels. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 govindasamy, m. k., & kwe, n. m. (2020). scaffolding problem solving in teaching and learning the dpace model a design thinking approach. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 102 figure 5: the dpace model’s five domains and the mapped scaffold questions implementation of the dpace model the dpace model was developed to enable pre-service teachers to effectively solve content teachingand learning-related problems using questions as a scaffold. prior to the actual field test, the selected sample of students was provided with a simulation using the model. misinterpretations were clarified so that the students clearly understood the actual use of the model. following this, the field test was carried out among the 62 pre-service teachers. these teachers used the model to create a digital solution to the problem identified during their practicum session. the teachers’ perceptions of the usefulness of the model was solicited using an online survey questionnaire (see appendix 1) generated using google form. data collection and analyses the dpace model was able to lead the pre-service teachers progressively through their zpd toward better understanding of teaching and learning problems and incrementally improve their problem-solving skills. the assessment of their coursework task revealed that a good percentage of the products developed showed significant task redesign and can be categorized as transformative: modification and redefinition level as shown in the samr model (figure 1). about 78% of this batch of pre-service teachers received an a grade in their coursework task (figure 6). research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 govindasamy, m. k., & kwe, n. m. (2020). scaffolding problem solving in teaching and learning the dpace model a design thinking approach. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 103 figure 6: student performance after intervention the perceived benefit of the model by the pre-service teachers was solicited through a 15-item likert scale questionnaire disseminated via google form at the end of the course. the analysis (see appendix 2) revealed that on average, 86.67% out of the 58 respondents reported that the dpace model helped them in their problem-solving task. among the benefits stated, the highest percentage (94.74%) agreed with the statement of “the questions helped me to organize my problem solving process systematically,” with a mean score of 4.29 out of 5 with a standard deviation (sd) of 0.65. next highest (92.11%) agreement among them was for the statement of “i’m able to create a solution to the problem,” followed by “the questions helped me to decompose the problems better” (89.47% with a mean score of 4.24 and 0.7 sd). the lowest percentage of 73.68% agreement, with a mean score of 3.95 with a 0.77 sd, which can still be considered a high score, was for “i’m clear with the end goal of each domain.” the pre-service teachers were asked to provide suggestions/comments regarding the design thinking approach and the scaffolding questions. comments provided by these teachers also support the findings stated above. some of the comments are as follows: ● it’s a thorough process of thinking, which made us aware of minor details in our problem. (r5) ● the structured approach with the 5 procedural steps helps to know the root problem in order to find the solution for it. (r9) ● the scaffolding question helped me to clearly identify problems and solve it. (r21) ● the questions are very helpful to prompt thinking of a deeper cause of the problem. (r29) ● it is a systematic way to guide our thinking as innovators. (r32) visual representations of data help organize and summarize research data. these representations can enhance the clarity and support for research findings (dickinson, 2010). to provide insight related to the trends that emerge from the qualitative data retrieved from the survey, a word cloud was generated using a google add-on application, awesome table. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 govindasamy, m. k., & kwe, n. m. (2020). scaffolding problem solving in teaching and learning the dpace model a design thinking approach. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 104 the product (figure 7) demonstrates a fast and visually rich way to enable the researchers to have some basic understanding of the data at hand. figure 7: patterns or trends that emerged from the pre-service teachers’ comments/ suggestions regarding the dpace model and the scaffolding questions the bolder, larger words (“questions,” “problems,” and “helps”) represent the overall preliminary perception of the pre-service teachers regarding the problem-solving model. however, while the word cloud provides an alternative for the researchers to explore and communicate the findings, it does not tell the whole story, as the size of the words reflect frequency, not importance or the exact context. conclusions and recommendations this exploratory study has provided an insight into the importance and need to scaffold problem solving. the pre-service teachers need a support structure that provides them with opportunities to use their problem-solving processes in meaningful learning contexts. by means of define, probe, abstract, create, and evaluate questions being systematically offered in the scaffolding plan, a cognitive structuring of the solution process and hence an improvement of students’ problem-solving competency were intended. as hao yang (2017) posits, follow-up and challenging questions are beneficial to develop students’ thinking ability. the strategic instrument, scaffolding questions as used in this model, is a scaffold designed specifically for problem-solving tasks in the teaching and learning contexts, to identify teaching and learning problems, and designing as well as creating innovative digital solutions. this study has shown significant results indicating the effectiveness of questioning as a scaffolding tool for problem solving, and it replicates the results of previous studies (delmarcelle, 2017; mccarthy et al., 2016; zheng & cao, 2017). hence, the findings of this study may provide an important contribution to the literature on questioning techniques to be used in teacher education programs as well as provisions for professional development programs for in-service research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 govindasamy, m. k., & kwe, n. m. (2020). scaffolding problem solving in teaching and learning the dpace model a design thinking approach. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 105 teachers. the findings may serve as a framework to support all levels of questioning categories in bloom’s taxonomy (bloom, 1956). the dpace model is a powerful approach to thinking and problem solving, as the concepts are grounded in sound pedagogical theories. the structured and systematic approach will benefit not only the pre-service teachers and lecturers involved in the tslb3152 course but also subjects, situations, or industries where the need to provide solutions to specific problems arises. in other words, the dpace model is replicable. however, as the findings are limited to the context of this study, efforts are needed to further refine and simplify the scaffold questions. in addition, prior to generalization of the findings, the dpace model needs to be field-tested in other courses in ongoing teacher education efforts to ensure a paradigm shift in pre-service teachers’ thinking toward achieving 21st century skills. this shift is essential and significant in order to produce the skilled problem solvers that the world demands today. success of the dpace model this dpace model won a silver medal at the international summit of innovation and design exposition 2019 (inside 2019) organized by the university of malaya, malaysia, held april 2930, 2019. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 govindasamy, m. k., & kwe, n. m. 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(2020). scaffolding problem solving in teaching and learning the dpace model a design thinking approach. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 107 dick, w., carey, l., & carey j. (2014). systematic design of instruction (8th ed.). amazon.com: kindle store. fisher & frey. (2010). guided instruction. scaffolds for learning: the key to guided instruction. retrieved from http://www.ascd.org/ gay, l. r., mills, g. e., & airasian, p. w. (2009). educational research: competencies for analysis and applications (9th edition). upper saddle river, nj: prentice hall. hao yang. (2017). a research on the effective questioning strategies in class. science journal of education, 5(4), 158-163. retrieved from http://www.science publishinggroup.com/journal/paperinfo?journalid=197&doi=10.11648/j.sjedu.201705 04.16 haataja, e., moreno-esteva, e. g., salonen, v., laine, a., toivanen, m., & hannula, m. s. 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(2011). academic conversations: classroom talk that fosters critical thinking and content understandings. portland, me: stenhouse publishers. http://www.hippasus.com/rrpweblog/archives/2014/12/11/samrandtpck_handsonapproachclassroompractice.pdf http://www.hippasus.com/rrpweblog/archives/2014/12/11/samrandtpck_handsonapproachclassroompractice.pdf http://esheninger.blogspot.com/2018/02/scaffolding-questions-to-develop-deeper.html http://esheninger.blogspot.com/2018/02/scaffolding-questions-to-develop-deeper.html http://ir.unimas.my/id/eprint/6789 about:blank https://www.asee.org/public/conferences/56/papers/13970/download research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 govindasamy, m. k., & kwe, n. m. (2020). scaffolding problem solving in teaching and learning the dpace model a design thinking approach. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 109 appendix 1 research in social sciences and technology volume 1 issue 1, 2018 govindasamy, m. k., & kwe, n. m. (2020). scaffolding problem solving in teaching and learning the dpace model a design thinking approach. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 110 appendix 2 likert scale questionnaire on the impact of the dpace model on problem solving no questions strongly agree & agree not sure strongly disagree & disagree mean standard deviation (sd) 1 the 5 domains in the ct helped me to understand the hierarchical processes of problem solving. 94.74 (36) 5.26 (2) 0 4.18 0.51 2 i’m clear with the end goal of each domain. 73.68 (28) 23.68 (9) 2.63 (1) 3.95 0.77 3 the questions in each domain are clear and comprehensible. 84.21 (32) 10.53 (4) 5.26 (2) 3.97 0.72 4 the questions enabled me to understand what is to be done at each domain. 84.21 (32) 10.53 (4) 5.26 (2) 4.00 0.84 5 the questions helped me to decompose the problems better. 89.47 (34) 7.89 (3) 2.63 (1) 4.24 0.71 6 the questions helped me to probe the cause of the problem. 86.84 (33) 10.53 (4) 2.63 (1) 4.13 0.7 7 the questions helped me to explore symptoms and remedies for the problem. 86.84 (33) 10.53 (4) 2.63 (1) 4.16 0.72 8 the questions helped me to organize my problem solving process systematically. 94.74 (36) 2.63 (1) 2.63 (1) 4.29 0.65 9 i’m able to create a solution to the problem. 92.11 (35) 5.26 (2) 2.63 (1) 4.26 0.69 10 the scaffolding provided through the questions helped me to create a practical solution to the teaching and learning problem. 81.58 (31) 13.16 (5) 5.26 (2) 4.16 0.82 research in social sciences and technology volume 1 issue 1, 2018 govindasamy, m. k., & kwe, n. m. (2020). scaffolding problem solving in teaching and learning the dpace model a design thinking approach. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 111 no questions strongly agree & agree not sure strongly disagree & disagree mean standard deviation (sd) 11 the scaffolding provided through the questions helped me to create a justifiable solution to the teaching and learning problem. 86.84 (33) 7.89 (3) 5.26 (2) 4.21 0.7 12 the scaffolding helped me to develop my problem-solving skills. 84.21 (32) 10.53 (4) 5.26 (2) 4.08 0.78 13 the guidance provided through the scaffolding helped me to become better problem solver. 78.95 (30) 13.16 (5) 7.89 (3) 4.03 0.88 14 with scaffolding, i’m able to make rational and intelligent decisions regarding teaching and learning problems. 92.11 (35) 5.26 (2) 2.63 (1) 4.18 0.65 15 i believe i can solve teaching and learning related problems better now. 89.47 (34) 10.53 (4) 0.00 4.18 0.61 average 86.67 9.82 3.51 4.14 0.72 research in social sciences and technology (ressat) e-issn: 2468-6891 students’ impressions on the effectiveness of online discussion forums beena vijayavalsalan1 abstract learning processes have gained significant importance because of diverse sources in digital era. the main objective of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of online discussion forums among the students of abu dhabi university, uae. the study has recruited 105 students, who were given questionnaires to pinpoint the aspects and features approved by them. the questionnaire consists of factors regarding the significance of online discussion forum and regular participation. the obtained data was analysed through descriptive statistics. the hypothesis of study has been tested using chi-square test. the results have shown strong association between positive learning experience and frequency of student participation in discussion forums. however, no statistical significance (p-value=0.306) has been observed among online forums and age of the participants for developing critical thinking skills. moreover, a significant difference has been identified in students’ participation on the effectiveness of online discussion (pvalue=0.000). thus, it is concluded that online discussion forums serve as an efficient and effective tool for interaction among the participants. the discussion forums play an effective role in developing and acquiring employability skills among students. moreover, active and frequent participation of students in online discussion forums enable them to enhance their learning experience. keywords: interaction, learning, online discussion forums, participation, positive learning experience introduction learning process through a variety of sources has gained significance with prominence in digital modalities. one such source is the online learning process that is known to be delivered through a range of mediums including virtual learning courses, educational websites, digital library, and books, etc. all these mediums provide accessibility to learning materials, as well as help in improving the process of teaching and learning (hershkovitz & nachmias, 2009; waters & russel, 2016). the explosive development, rapid growth, and improvement of communication technology coupled with the advent of the internet have vastly leveraged the significant and accelerated growth of educational opportunities, particularly for students worldwide. introduction of technology and internet has provided new methods for teaching and learning. many institutions 1 senior instructor of english, abu dhabi university, beena.v@adu.ac.ae mailto:beena.v@adu.ac.ae vijayavalsalan of higher learning have adopted the e-learning techniques for their operations today (su et al., 2005; moore & marra, 2005; farmer, 2004; sharples, 2000). advances in technological approaches and computer skills among students have rapidly enhanced the asynchronous online discussion forums (shana, 2009). online discussion forums provide an open opportunity to the students for active participation in online learning. moreover, it also enhances the participation of students, who may feel inhibited, when required to engage in discussions in a traditional classroom setting. according to kanuka (2005), critical thinking of students can be improvised through online discussion forums. the claim has been supported by perkins & murphy (2006), who developed a model for measuring engagement in critical thinking on online discussion forums. the unprecedented growth of online learning has triggered widespread scholarly interest in different matters. these matters are not only restricted to online teaching and learning but also involve the scope of courses and programs that are available in different institutions. the fundamental goal of the approach has been recognized to remove the barriers of time and place to promote students’ self-directed learning. it can also enable the academic staff benefit by moving from a teacher centred approach to a learner centred one. as such, understanding the determinants of effective learning in online discussions is deemed critical during the learning process. the nature of this emerging landscape of personalized learning in higher education is gaining more popularity in the educational sectors with time. studies have indicated that online discussion forums are beneficial to the learning experience in numerous disciplines (son, 2006; little, titarenko & bergelson, 2005; jin 2005). scope of the study the current study focuses on how learners, particularly at the abu dhabi university, perceive these discussion forums and to what extent they have really benefited, whether perceived or real, from these institutionalized forums? this study aims to explore how teaching has adapted to the modern styles and enhanced the teaching learning process. it has been presumed that online discussions can be an effective way to strengthen student learning outside the class if only students agree to engage honestly in these discussions. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 86-108 88 hypothesis of study in order to evaluate the study objectives, four hypotheses have been formed for the investigation: ho: there is no significant relationship among age of the respondents and online forums developing critical thinking skills among students. h1: there is a significant relationship among age of the respondents and online forums developing critical thinking skills among students. ho: there is no significant difference between gender of the respondents and encouragement to share information. h2: there is a significant difference between gender of the respondents and encouragement to share information. h○: there is no significant difference between the frequency of participation and positive learning experience. h3: there is a significant difference between the frequency of participation and positive learning experience. h○: there is no significant difference between online discussion forums helping to share ideas and knowledge between participants and increasing students’ participation in teaching and learning as compared to the face-to-face instructional settings. h4: there is a significant difference between online discussion forums helping to share ideas and knowledge between participants and increasing students’ participation in teaching and learning as compared to the face-to-face instructional settings. on the basis of the aforementioned hypotheses, the primary emphasis of this study is to examine whether the educational experience of students through discussion forums have been enhanced in reality or not. moreover, the study also aims at determining the students’ perceived opportunity to interact, view knowledge, and information from multiple perspectives, and reflect upon this information. in order to address the rationale of the study efficiently, the literature vijayavalsalan which is concerned with emerging role of the instructors and the elements of best practices in discussion forum use have been taken into consideration. research questions 1. is there any significant relationship between age of the students and online forums that develop critical thinking skills among them? 2. is there any significant difference between gender and encouragement among students to share information with peers? 3. is there any difference between the frequency of participation and positive learning experience among the students? 4. is there any difference between online discussion forums that help in sharing knowledge and face to face instructional setting in teaching practice? conceptual framework discussion, in the process of learning, is considered as one of the most critical dimensions. moreover, kolb (1984) proposed that the enhancement of learning experience seems to occur through regular participation in discussions. whether these discussions take place in a traditional classroom or through online teaching using electronic means, their importance is integral to both the achievement and satisfaction of learners (zhang & fulford, 1994; fulford & zhang, 1993). a study by kadagidze et al., (2014) have indicated the role of instructor, which should be undertaken for developing an environment of the forum. moreover, the role of instructor may depend on what the instructor tries to achieve. the role of the instructor is important in several methods of online education (ma et al., 2015). simply forming a discussion forum, providing the technology, and a question or topic of discussion is not enough to ensure the success of the discussion model (guldberg & pilkington, 2007; ma et al., 2015). some factors within such structures appear to go beyond the control of the instructors; it may include the personalities of learners enrolled in the discussion forum and their preferences for interaction among the group (guldberg & pilkington, 2006). online discussion forums represent one of the most popular repositories of user-generated information on the internet (distante et al., 2014). online learning is generally considered as one of the models of blended learning. it has been realized to be an increasingly common aspect of research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 86-108 90 online learning, which has gained significance in the contemporary approach, directed towards the use of discussion forums (vlachopoulos & cowan, 2010). the technique of online learning has been identified as the most common contemporary approach used by the students because online learning has become one of the most popular increasing trends among educational uses of technology (means et al., 2013; tarman & baytak, 2012; tarman, baytak, & duman, 2015). with respect to online learning, it has been stated that “the online environment is not the ideal setting for all types of learning. classrooms are not perfect either...” (alvarez, 2005). e-learning is not a ‘one size fits all’ magical solution that can resolve any educational problem as it may also present disadvantages to this type of learning. consequently, there is no way to guarantee that 100% of e-learning content will reach 100% of the intended audience. different learning styles have been promoted among students, which is a current challenge in e-learning environment for academics (clark & mayer, 2016). the conventional techniques may not be appropriate in the classrooms in the modern era, where the e-learning is playing a vital part for delivering better education. in order to understand the requirements of the students, diversity in the virtual class is needed to be comprehended (islam et al., 2015). the idea delivers an urgent need to clearly understand what the right circumstances are and how e-learning can help to produce the best results. for the purpose of resolving the differences, two inquiries must be considered: first approach associated with the managerial role, which has been referred by coppola et al. (2002). it inquires what the instructor needs to do in order to stimulate a good discussion. the second approach inquires that once the discussion is underway, how much should the instructor intervene? moreover, it has been identified that successful questions or discussion topics mainly relate to the learning objectives that provide clarity as per the due dates, expectations, and grading. the manner can transform the learning objectives into learning outcomes (guldberg & pilkington, 2007; majeski & stover, 2007). furthermore, fung (2004) investigated the manners of discussion and proposed this idea. it has been observed that when discussion questions or topics are specified and relate to the concept or idea presenting the course content, discussions provide more success despite the variances and complexity of interaction between the learners. the presence of an instructor is more important as compared to the perceived presence of peers and students’ satisfaction (swan & shih, 2005)). however, an instructor, who may contribute significantly to a discussion, tends to decrease the length of discussions, as well as vijayavalsalan their frequency. on the contrary, it has not been observed to decrease the quality of discussions necessarily. thus, it has been observed that an instructor can decrease learner-learner interaction as learners rely on the instructor to answer questions and a mediate the debates (guldberg & pilkington 2007; paloff & pratt 2001). the instructor may intervene but only in order to keep the discussion on track or take on a cheerleading role to motivate the discussion (dysthe, 2002; paloff & pratt, 1999). role of a cheerleader or motivator is critical in such system. it is the learner-learner interaction that truly engages with ideas and relates back to the statements of kolb (1984) that ‘discussion is a critical component of the learning process, not waiting for the answers to fall from heaven’s academic prophet.’ preferably, it has been stated that an instructor should spend his/her time for the preparation of materials and to carefully think about the discussion questions and topics that may efficiently associate with the learning objectives. clearly, there is significant value in the use of online discussion forums. nevertheless, collaboration and constructivist approaches for teaching do not develop with the availability of technology only (garrison, 2007). although, online discussion forums have been widely used for about a decade, there is still room for applying effective strategies and tactics for the use. it is important how the discussion forums are organized in the development procedure. it has been observed that it is important for the students to find information about what they are searching for and they must be aware of what they search and seek (mokoena et al., 2013). methodology as per the nature of the study, the quantitative approach has been utilised to evaluate the students’ impressions on the effectiveness of online discussion forums among the students of abu dhabi university, uae. the significance and requirement of online discussion forums have been effectively evaluated by analysing the perceptions of the students of the university quantitatively. research design as the study primarily focuses on identifying the perception of students towards learning through online discussion forums, quantitative research design has-been opted for the investigation. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 86-108 92 data collection a structured questionnaire has been designed for data collection to pinpoint the aspects and features that are approved by students. the questionnaire comprised of the factors regarding the significance of online discussion forum and regular participation. the questionnaire was based on a 5-point likert scale from 1 to 5 rating strongly agree to strongly disagree. sampling procedure the random sampling approach has been employed to recruit participants in the study. the study was only based on abu dhabi university, so the students of all educational levels were recruited in the study. a total of 150 questionnaires were distributed among different departments of the abu dhabi university, from which 105 were received with completely filled data. sample size a total of 105 students have been considered as the sample of study, who actively participated in online discussion forums. the respondents have been selected through random sampling approach such that each member had an equal chance of being chosen. data analysis data has been analysed through descriptive statistics that was to identify age, gender, and frequency of participation of study respondents. the reliability and validity of the data have also been analysed through cronbach’s alpha. the value of cronbach’s alpha was greater than 0.70, so it has been concluded that the collected data was reliable and valid. chi-square test was also applied to test the hypotheses of the study. if the value of chi-square appears below the level of significance (p<0.05), the null hypothesis should be rejected and an alternative is accepted. reliability test after data collection, reliability was tested by computing the value of cronbach’s alpha. from the table of reliability statistics, it has been observed that the value of cronbach’s alpha is vijayavalsalan 0.811, i.e. greater than 0.70. therefore, it has been said that collected data is reliable and valid enough to produce good outcomes. table 1 represents the test for reliability statistics. table 1 reliability analysis case processing summary n % cases valid 6 100.0 excluded (a) 0 .0 total 6 100.0 reliability statistics cronbach’s alpha .811 ethical consideration an informed consent form was distributed among the participants to ensure the confidentiality of the data collected. the consent declared that the data collected will be kept confidential. findings this study has been carried out in order to examine the perception of students towards online discussion forums, as well as to evaluate whether their performance can be enhanced through these forums. in order to evaluate the age and gender of study participants, descriptive statistics has been applied. age groups have been categorized into three groups: 14-17 years, 18-24 years, and 25-34 years. from the outcomes of table 2 and figure 1, it has been assessed that majority of the participants belong to the age group of 18 to 24 years (91.4%). on the other hand, 7 respondents belonged to an age group of 25 to 34 years; whereas, just 2 participants belonged to the age group of 14 to 17 years. table 2 descriptive statistics for age groups age groups frequency percent valid percent cumulative percent valid 14 17 years 2 1.9 1.9 1.9 research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 86-108 94 18 24 years 96 91.4 91.4 93.3 25 34 years 7 6.7 6.7 100.0 total 105 100.0 100.0 figure 1: age distribution of study participants descriptive statistics for gender has been evaluated and presented in table 3. the outcomes showed that majority of the participants were the female while, only 34 respondents were male students. table 3 descriptive statistics for gender gender frequency percent valid percent cumulative percent valid female 71 67.6 67.6 67.6 male 34 32.4 32.4 100.0 total 105 100.0 100.0 considering the online discussion forums, descriptive statistics have been applied to examine the percentage of students, who actively participate in these discussion forums. it has been analysed through outcomes that approximately 82% of the students participate in online discussion forums; whereas, the remaining 18% did not actively participants in these discussions. the results for participation can be observed from table 4 and figure 2. table 4 vijayavalsalan descriptive statistics for participation in online discussion forums participation frequency percent valid percent cumulative percent valid yes 86 81.9 81.9 81.9 no 19 18.1 18.1 100.0 total 105 100.0 100.0 figure 2: participation in online discussion forums with respect to the usage of online discussion forums, frequency distribution has been applied to generate the outcomes. table 5 demonstrates that majority of the students have been using these discussion forums on a weekly basis; whereas, 40 participants reported that they have been using these forums occasionally. on the other hand, it has also been identified that just 7 participants used online forums on a daily basis. furthermore, it has been observed that 10 participants have never used online discussion forums for study purpose. table 5 frequency of the usage of online discussion forums frequency frequency percent valid percent cumulative percent valid daily 7 6.7 6.7 6.7 weekly 48 45.7 45.7 52.4 occasionally 40 38.1 38.1 90.5 never 10 9.5 9.5 100.0 total 105 100.0 100.0 research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 86-108 96 figure 3: frequency distribution for the use of online discussion forums when the respondents were inquired about their regular participation in online discussion forums, it has been observed that almost 66.7% students participate in discussion forums on a regular basis (figure 3). on the contrary, 33.3% of the participants reported that they are not regular users of online discussion forums. the statistics for regular participation of students can be observed in table 6 and figure 4. table 6 frequency for regular participation in online discussion forums regular participation frequency percent valid percent cumulative percent valid yes 70 66.7 66.7 66.7 no 35 33.3 33.3 100.0 total 105 100.0 100.0 vijayavalsalan figure 4: regular participation in online discussion forums for the improvement of gpa, chi-square test among online discussion forums and the age of respondents rendered significant contribution to the study. results of pearson chi-square demonstrated a significant value of 0.306 that presented no statistical significance among online forums and age of the participants to provide an opportunity for developing critical thinking skills. hence, an alternative hypothesis has been rejected and the null hypothesis was accepted. table 7 reveals the outcomes obtained through chi-square test. table 7 relationship between online discussion forums and age of study participants age * contribution cross tabulation count contribution total strongly agree agree neutral disagree age 14 17 years 0 1 1 0 2 18 24 years 5 32 37 22 96 25 34 years 0 0 6 1 7 total 5 33 44 23 105 chi-square tests value df asymp. sig. (2-sided) pearson chi-square 7.164a 6 .306 likelihood ratio 9.473 6 .149 linear-by-linear association 1.433 1 .231 n of valid cases 105 a. 9 cells (75.0%) have expected count less than 5. the minimum expected count is .10. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 86-108 98 for the second hypothesis, chi-square showed a greater p-value of 0.281 that demonstrated no significant difference between encouragement to share information and gender of the respondents. therefore, the null hypothesis has been accepted and an alternative was rejected. the results of chi-square distribution can be observed in table 8. table 8 relationship between gender of participants and encouragement to share information gender * valuable cross tabulation count valuable total mostly true sometimes rarely not true gender female 11 45 13 2 71 male 9 15 8 2 34 total 20 60 21 4 105 chi-square tests value df asymp. sig. (2-sided) pearson chi-square 3.828a 3 .281 likelihood ratio 3.777 3 .287 linear-by-linear association .001 1 .981 n of valid cases 105 a. 2 cells (25.0%) have expected count less than 5. the minimum expected count is 1.30. when the association among frequency of students’ participation in online discussion forums and their positive learning experience has been examined, the outcomes reflected that there is a significant difference between the two. table 9 displays a p-value of 0.000, which is less than the level of significance (0.05). hence, it has been concluded that null hypothesis is rejected and an alternative was accepted. table 9 relationship between frequency of participation and positive learning experience frequency * contribution cross tabulation count contribution total strongly agree agree neutral disagree frequency daily 3 4 0 0 7 weekly 0 17 27 4 48 vijayavalsalan occasionally 2 9 15 14 40 never 0 3 2 5 10 total 5 33 44 23 105 chi-square tests value df asymp. sig. (2-sided) pearson chi-square 45.762a 9 .000 likelihood ratio 39.179 9 .000 linear-by-linear association 15.059 1 .000 n of valid cases 105 a. 10 cells (62.5%) have expected count less than 5. the minimum expected count is .33. last hypothesis has been examined through outcomes that presented the value of chi-square as 0.147 i.e. greater than the level of significance. therefore, it has been concluded that there is no significant difference between online discussion forums that may help to share ideas and knowledge between participants and increases the participation of students in teaching and learning as compared to the face-to-face learning environment. hence, the study rejected the alternative hypothesis and accepted the null hypothesis. the results for this hypothesis are displayed in table 10. table 10 relationship between online discussion forums to share knowledge between participants and increase their participation as compared to the face-to-face instructional settings. share knowledge * students participation cross tabulation count students participation total yes no share knowledge yes 68 30 98 no 3 4 7 total 71 34 105 value df asymp. sig. (2sided) pearson chi-square 2.100a 1 .147 continuity correction 1.063 1 .302 likelihood ratio 1.949 1 .163 fisher’s exact test linear-by-linear association 2.080 1 .149 n of valid cases 105 research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 86-108 100 discussion from the outcomes, it has been examined that majority of the respondents actively participate in online discussion forums on a regular basis, which enables them to enhance their learning. it has been evidenced through past studies that discussion forums enable the students to actively participate during a class session, particularly the students, who typically do not participate (asterhan & eisenmann, 2011; ng, cheung & hew, 2010). moreover, it has also been evaluated that discussion forums have a potential to enhance participation of students (salter and conneely, 2015). constructive criticism extensively enhances the performance of students. the utilization of quality feedback is helpful to develop a constructive learning approach for enhancing the learning and teaching in higher education (du toit, 2012). teachers must ensure that students undergo critical evaluation and are directed on how to improve in areas, where they are falling short (reece & walker, 2016). teachers must display subtle attitude as strictness can have a negative impact on the interest of students towards the subject. this can be best done by acknowledging the efforts of students, whilst instructing them about other alternatives on how they can improve their work. free discussions and feedbacks resulted with the development of pleasant relationship among the students and teachers (ribas & perine, 2016). a study by tiernan (2014) indicated that participation in discussion and debate among students and student engagement with lectures can effectively improve their learning and experience of university. as the study presented that online discussion forum has significance among the students of aby dhabi university, so the lecturers must be confident to provide students with directions for online discussions. this online forum must be simple, to the point, and does not cause any confusion among the students (rose & smith, 2007). a lecturer must have the necessary foresight and opt for methods that may help students in learning without getting them off the track. any glitches must be resolved immediately as the goal is to have a dynamic discussion around a topic in a timely manner. in order to actively participate in online discussion forums, students are required to be highly motivated. this can be done by tracing out what topics are confusing for the students and providing them with examples to think about. the teacher must create an environment where all opinions are welcomed, so that students feel free to express their opinions and gain a rich and varied experience. moreover, it is not enough to inform students that they will be graded on their participation in the discussions; they may also vijayavalsalan be aware on the procedure of grading. there should be specific guidelines and rubrics that explain the assessment techniques and grading mechanism (rose & smith, 2007). teachers must be clear in their instructions to ensure that students accomplish the goals of learning. students must not feel confused about what is expected of them during the online activities. explicit guidelines are required to ensure clarity and develop a purpose for the students. this declaration may consist of directions regarding how often students should post comments in the discussion forum site and how many they ought to post, what the pattern of their contribution should be, how the students should approach the subject, and what is expected of them (roper, 2007). it is important to ensure maximum participation on the online discussion forums; for example, the forums can be organized effectively with each topic given its own thread. this kind of supportive environment not only motivates students to go to the thread easily but may also help them to locate what they require. social presence is vital to ensure that discussions are fun and informative. students must feel connected through online forums that can be achieved through proper monitoring to ensure that discussions follow the right etiquette and avoid from deviation. social presence is the extent to which students and teachers project themselves through online forums as real people (garrison, 2007). social interactions enhance learning community and underpin the development of a community of practice (irwin & berge, 2006). the development of social presence can be enhanced through tactics, which mainly comprise of using online introductions (pelz, 2004) and the provision of social spaces (heckman & annabi, 2006). the tone of discussions and students’ belief that the forums provide a safe environment is also critical (anderson, 2004). the instructor can effectively provide the platform to use online discussion forums and can also moderate discussions and deal appropriately with unacceptable behaviour (mcguire, 2017). types of questions that are posted on online forums may not always receive responses from students. in order to encourage students to voluntarily engage in the activities, discussions must be intriguing and diverse. students must be challenged by the discussions, thereby elevating the feeling of satisfaction when they arrive at results and theories for proposed questions. professors must try to make the discussions and questions as innovative as possible thus, making the discussion interesting and enabling students to think out of the box. neal & akin (2007) proposed several questions that included inquires for more evidence, questions that ask for research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 86-108 102 clarification, open questions, linking or extension questions, hypothetical questions, cause-andeffect questions, and summary and synthesis questions. outcomes of the present study also reflected that there has been no significant difference among the encouragement to share information and gender of the study participants. furthermore, the relationship among frequency of participation of the respondents and positive learning experience has also been evaluated. it has been determined through results that there is a statistically significant difference between these two. the outcomes are observed to be consistent with those of song & mcnary (2011), who demonstrated that online discussion forums resulted in the efficient and positive learning experience for students. this is due to the active participation, interaction, and engagement of students in online discussion forums. considering the effectiveness of online discussion forums in sharing of the knowledge and ideas, it has been evaluated that there is no significant difference among sharing of the ideas between participants and enhancement of the participation in teaching and learning than what has been obtained from face-to-face interactions. discussion, conclusion and implications online forums are generally known as message or discussion boards, which enables the participants to interact with each other more efficiently. in order to bring significant improvement in learning skills, online discussion forums play a substantial role as an effective mechanism for the students. there are many advantages associated with the approach of online learning. students are observed to be in favour of a self-regulated aspect of asynchronous discussions, in contrast to face-to-face interactions with peers and teachers. the purpose of online discussion forums is to promote the interaction among peers and encourage the students to be less dependent on the instructors. on the other hand, the discussion forums have also been observed to play an effective role in developing and acquiring employability skills among students. it can be concluded through results that frequent participation of students in online discussion forums is beneficial, as it enables them to enhance their positive learning experience. therefore, the abu dhabi university must promote the online discussion forums to enhance the communication and interaction level of the students. vijayavalsalan limitations and future recommendations the present study was based on only a single educational institute of abu dhabi university in uae and recruited the students, who are enrolled in this university. it has been recommended that future studies should employ quantitative data from a larger sample size of the participants and recruit more universities together. it would enable this research to progress beyond being a relatively modest repetition of previous research. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 86-108 104 references alvarez, s. 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(1994). are interaction time and psychological interactivity the same thing in the distance learning television classroom?. educational technology, 34(6), 58-64. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ej488250 research in social sciences and technology (ressat) e-issn: 2468-6891 16 effectiveness of coaching by school improvement partners through good relationship and professionalism skills practiced zalina mohd tahir1 & nabihah mohd salleh2 abstract school administrators consisting of principals and headmasters (pgb) play a significant role in leading the school to achieve excellence. to ensure that excellence is achieved within the timeframe stipulated, the pgb received guidance from fellow coaches known as school improvement partners (sip). the coaching process requires mutual understanding between the two parties so that it can work smoothly and effectively (narimawati, 2007) without any conflict of ideologies. this study is to identify the effectiveness of the coaching of sip through the good relations and professional skills practiced during the ongoing coaching. a total of 212 pgb as respondents and data were analyzed using spss version 23 for the descriptive analysis, while amos version 22 is used for advanced statistics structural equation modeling. the study found that the goodness of fit model by sip coaching is good with reading of chi-square/df=2.203, cfi= .969, p=0.00 and rmsea=.076. good relationship with professional coaching sessions have contributed a total of 71% (r2=.71) to the effectiveness of the coaching as well as it helps to increase the pgb confidence in the development of schools. this finding confirms that coaching by sip directly acts as a catalyst for the success of the school and to complete the needs of mission and vision of the ministry of education, malaysia. key words: administration, management, coaching, performance, quality. introduction the success of an empire is very dependent on the ability of leaders to think critically, analytically and thoroughly. to achieve the status of a developed nation, the effectiveness of thought in designing strategies and implementing an agenda of action is particularly important in the education system. malaysia as a nation that is moving towards a developed status is concerned with educational attainment among people. one factor that helps to achieve excellence is when a person reaches the level of confidence, excitement and satisfaction in the 1 ph.d., – department of education, federal territory of kuala lumpur, malaysia ministry of education, malaysia school improvement partner, zalina.mtahir@yahoo.com 2department of education, federal territory of kuala lumpur, malaysia ministry of education, malaysia, nabihahppgc@gmail.com mailto:zalina.mtahir@yahoo.com mailto:nabihahppgc@gmail.com tahir & salleh work. many studies have been conducted regarding the level of job satisfaction which is linked to the success of an organization. among them are the working environment and style of administration (karim, 2008) or the management of the education system (huda et. al., 2004). education is one area that cannot be set aside because it contributes to the development of the country. the malaysian education system should be designed strategically to produce the best for all parties (zainudin, 2010). good planning should be realized by the head or administrators in an organization. at school level, the principal or headmaster plays a key role in leading the organization. next, the responsibilities go to the second layer of the administration and so on to other educators to mold students to achieve the desired results. in administrating an organization especially schools, administrators faced various problems including the satisfaction and comfort of working with others. if they are not comfortable in any case, they are likely to lead to failure in fulfilling their responsibilities (zalina, 1997). certainly this brings negative impact to the organization. thus, each educator is responsible for their respective roles in order to realize excellence. statement of problem the transition of change in education in the delivery of knowledge using the 20th century approach to teaching of the 21st century seems to be taking quite a long time in malaysia. in reality, the change in the approach of delivery of knowledge is very significant in developed countries such as finland and other european countries. hence, there should be a move so as education in malaysia today are at par with the developed countries. the malaysian government through the ministry of education (moe) is aware of this situation and would continue to look for solutions that are more meaningful and efficient. hence, the malaysia education blueprint (2013-2025) (meb) was launched to address the current and future needs of the citizens as a whole. moe have always emphasized on the development of academic achievement and character building of students in schools. through the meb, new posts have been created, namely a group of experts who are specially prepared to guide teachers in developing school. these research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3(1), 16-35 experts consist of two groups known as school improvement partners (sip) and school improvement specialist coaches (sisc). sip plays a different role which encompass a coach, mentor and counselor to the administrator of the school, while the sisc is to act as an expert adviser to subject teachers. both groups have a role as partners to upgrade the school in moving towards achieving excellence. administrator has very critical role to play in managing a school. principals and headmasters (pgb) are responsible in helping to shape the quality of teachers (azlin mansor, 2006; tarman, 2012; yigit, & tarman, 2016) and the outcome of students. to enable them to perform effectively, pgb should be responsible for the rise and fall of their administration. according to mayer (1992), commitment of the administrator refers to the attitude shown in the organizations such as schools. thus, the relationship between the pgb with sip should always be maintained in order to avoid further negative prejudice and to create a sense of belonging in creating effective guidance. comfort and satisfaction is usually achieved when administrators and sip can share the problems and potential solutions and take a view without prejudice of their respective capabilities. objective of the study i. measuring the level of relationship of principal/headmaster (coachee) with school improvement partners (sip) through coaching sessions. ii. measuring the level of professionalism skills in the performance of sip in coaching the principal/headmaster (coachee) . iii. measuring the effectiveness of the coaching of sip towards the principal/ headmaster (coachee) in respective school. research method design review the study conducted is based on quantitative, descriptive and correlation. this method emphasizes the specific objectives for translating research questions in addition to help researchers collect and analyze data (chua, 2006: 2009; fraenkel, 2007). this method also tahir & salleh aims to get the facts by using the objective measurement and statistical analysis of numerical data to explain actual situations (yin, 2003). thus, the researchers developed a questionnaire consisting of two parts. part a consists of 10 items related to the information and personal details of respondents, while part b covers three (3) constructs namely; i) 8 items related to the relationship between sip with pgb; ii) 11 items related to the field of professionalism skills of sip; and iii) 12 items related to the effectiveness of the coaching of sip towards pgb. the questionnaire is based on the interval level with likert scale (1-10) to enable the respondent to make a more accurate assessment (likert, 1932). according to zainudin (2012), with more choices, higher degrees of the scale, there will be better validity of the answers. the scale is from "1" as "strongly disagree" to "10" as "strongly agree". each of the 31 items of the three constructs showed the total value of reliability (cronbach's alpha) 0.958 (pilot test) and 0.961 (actual study), thus explaining the strength of the items in each construct. according to hair et. al., (2006) the reliability of the minimum acceptable is 0.60. table 1.1 shows the value of each construct was studied. therefore, this study takes the same value as the reliability level of the index and found that questionnaire is considered higher which between 0.958 and 0.961. table 1.1: value of reliability and number of items in every construct construct number of items cronbach alpha (pilot test) cronbach alpha (actual study) relationship of sip with pgb 8 items 0.948 0.956 professionalism skills of sip 11 items 0.953 0.950 effectiveness of coaching 12 items 0.973 0.979 total 31 items 0.958 0.961 method of analysis demographic analysis is carried out through statistical analysis for social science (spss) (pallant, j., 2010) version 23. measurement of the degree of relationship, professionalism skills and effectiveness of the guidance towards pgb involve statistical analysis with advanced amos 22 which were divided into three stages. the first stage is an exploratory analysis of data known as exploratory factor analysis (efa) (hair et. al., 2010: zainudin, 2012) or there research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3(1), 16-35 are researchers who use principle component analysis (pca) (hair, et. al., 2006). this analysis is designed to evaluate the psychometric characteristics of the instrument which is based on the construction of variables. this technique is also used to get a new validity and reliability of each sample. the second stage is known as confirmatory factorial analysis (cfa), which aims to see the correlation between the variables used. in addition, the analysis of these factors will also determine the appropriateness and validity of items to measure variables and to test the structure of covariance in each variable. finally, at times this analysis will result in a reduction of data produced and the data is more significant (hair, et. al., 2010). in the third stage, the analysis of structural equation modeling (sem), which aims to test the construct of the measurement model achieve its suitability index (fitness indexes). all three stages of the analysis will help researchers to evaluate the psychometric characteristics of the instrument which is based on the construction of independent variables, namely through the construct of the relationship between sip with pgb, and constructs related to the field of sip’s professionalism while the dependent variable involves constructs of the effectiveness of coaching. all scales used will be confirmed before proceeding with the next analysis. population sample survey the respondents consisted of principals and headmasters serving in schools in the federal territory of kuala lumpur between the years 2016-2017. mohd majid konting (1998), states that the sampling technique is one of the research strategy where information obtained can be used as the real representative of the population. this study selected a simple random sampling because this method can prevent the occurrence of bias data collection. (shaver and norton, 1980). a total of 230 headmasters and principals have agreed to answer the questionnaire in this study. however, only 212 (92.1%) questionnaires were completed by respondents and used as sampling. the study went through a normal process of data collection. initially, a pilot test was conducted on a total of 58 principals/headmasters selected to respond to the questionnaire. the goal is to tahir & salleh identify the level of their understanding of the questions posed. a pilot test was conducted to school heads in two zones namely bangsar and pudu. after a week, the questionnaires were collected and re-refining process was made to the questions which are less clearly defined. after carrying out the re-refining of questions and discussions among researchers (sips), the researchers have gone to schools to get approval of pgb to be respondents. after approval was obtained, the questionnaires were then distributed to the respondents concerned. at this point of time, they were also given a week to understand and answer the questionnaires. other sip colleagues also helped in the effort to distribute and collect questionnaires completed by respondents. data analysis the data were analyzed in two ways: i) descriptive analysis that involves frequencies and percentages for explaining; a) demographic profile of respondents; and b) data regarding the level of academic qualifications and experience of pgb; and ii) analysis of the efa, cfa and sem to identify the correlation between the variables and the effectiveness of the coaching. descriptive a) the demographic profile of the respondents indicated a total of 98 pgb (46.2%) were males and 114 pgb (53.8%) were females. of these, fraction in terms of race, 185 pgb (87.3%) are malays, 19 pgb (9.0%) are chinese and 8 pgb (3.8%) indians. in general, most of the respondents (pgb) are over the age of 41 years, a total of 206 respondents, a high percentage of 97.2%. this proves that the positions of pgb indeed have been held by those who have served long and have extensive experience in the education system. it was found that only four (1.9%) respondents of pgb are between the ages of 31-35 years, while two others (0.9%) aged between 36-40 years. of the 212 respondents, 201(94.8%) of them are married while only 11 (5.2%) are single. table 1.2 presents a summary of respondents' demographic data. b) change in the education era and the importance of seeking knowledge can be seen when a total of 104 (49.1%) respondents have a bachelor degree, while as many as 48 respondents (22.6%) had masters. a total of 17 (8.0%) pgbs have qualification at diploma level and 43 research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3(1), 16-35 of respondents (20.3%) are ‘sijil tinggi pelajaran malaysia’ (stpm) and ‘sijil pelajaran malaysia’ (spm) holders. total respondents holding professional qualifications showed that 46 (21.7%) have a first degree in education. only 8 (3.8%) of them have a master's degree in education, while 54 respondents (25.5%) have a diploma in education and the remaining 104 (49.1%) have only a teaching certificate. table 1.2: summary of respondents demographic data demografic respondent frequency percentage gender male female 98 114 46.2 53.8 total 212 100.0 race malay chinese indian others 185 19 08 00 87.3 9.00 3.80 0.00 total 212 100.0 age 31-35 years 04 1.90 36-40 years 02 0.90 41 and above 206 97.2 total 212 100.0 marital status single married 11 201 5.20 94.8 total 212 100.0 a total of 191 respondents (90.6%) are educators who have been teachers for 16 to more than 21 years, while 20 respondents (9.4%) have experienced as educators between 6-15 years. however, experience as the head of school administrators are found to be almost a balanced distribution. respondents who have experienced administering more than 10 years were 65 (30.7%), while 86 respondents (40.6%) have experienced being administrators between 6-10 years. a total of 61 respondents (28.8%) experienced administering other schools less than five years. considering the size of the federal territory of kuala lumpur is not too large if compared to other states in this country, the ability to move from home to school is less than 25 kilometers one way. one-way distance from home to school for 41 respondents (19.3%) were between 1-5 kilometers, while 52 of the respondents (24.5%) live between 6-10 kilometers from the school. however, it was found 119 respondents (56.1%) live more than 10 kilometers away from the school. although the distance is not an issue to senior administrators, other issues tahir & salleh such as traffic congestion in the city has resulted in longer time to get to school. table 1.3 presents a summary of the qualifications and experience of respondents in administering their schools. table 1.3: summary of the qualifications and experience of respondents respondent frequency percentage academic qualifications (general) spm/stpm diploma bachelor master 43 17 104 48 20.3 8.0 49.1 22.6 total 212 100.0 professional qualifications teaching certificate diploma in education bachelor in education masters in education 104 54 46 08 49.1 25.5 21.7 3.8 total 212 100.0 experience as teacher 6-10 years 11-15 years 11 09 5.2 4.2 16-20 years 01 0.5 21 years and above 191 90.1 total 212 100.0 experience as administrator 15 years 6-10 years 11 years and above 61 86 65 28.8 40.6 30.7 total 212 100.0 distance to school 1-5 km 6-10 km more than 10 km 41 52 119 19.3 24.5 56.1 total 212 100.0 analysis of efa and cfa a) exploratory factor analysis (efa) based on the sample size (n=212) the cronbach alpha values for the three constructs reached between 0.950 to 0.979 (table 1.1). however, when statistical exploratory factor analysis (efa) is used, the results obtained changed because this analysis produces strength for each construct and its position in these constructs. this analysis was also conducted to minimize data through the cleaning process of the collected data. the main thing to remember is that every item in the construct has a high loading factor value, while with lower value the item will be dropped. the loading factor value of 0.5 or more is considered significant while research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3(1), 16-35 values above 0.70 is considered as very appropriate and has a clear structure (hair, et. al., 2006). therefore, any item that has a loading factor value of less than 0.50, the item was dropped from the instrument to produce good data. based on monte carlo simulation study (rubinstein, r. y. and kroese, d.p., 2007) it was suggested that the appropriate analysis is to maintain the construct that has four or more items in it and each item has a loading value exceeding the reading of .40. however, the researchers took a position by using items that meet the characteristics suggested by hair et. al. (2010) and zainudin (2012), namely: • the loading of each item must exceed 0.50. • each dimension or construct will be maintained if they have more than three items with high loading factor value. • the bartlett's test is significant at .01 (p <.001) • the kaiser-meyer-olkin (kmo) must exceed .60 • significant must be p = 0.000 • communality exceeds .60 analysis part b involves three constructs of the relationship between the pgb (coachee) with sip (coach), professionalism skills and effectiveness of the coaching that includes 31 items. these constructs are as follow: i) construct of pgb in relationship with sip one of the key assumptions evaluated in the analysis of the efa is to test between correlations (multicollinearity) of items. there are 8 items tested in the construct of relationship with sip. bartlett's test statistically showed the item is significant to the value of χ2 (28) = 2158.467 and p=.000. value of kaiser-meyer-olkin (kmo) generated is more than .600 (.918), while the value of measure of sampling adequacy (msa) on each item is more than .60. the next step is to assess the reading of communality that should exceed .60. during a test carried out on rotated component matrix, the complexity factor is applicable to an item (l8). tahir & salleh this situation led researchers to drop the item from the constructs even when the value of kmo is higher. the same process of efa is carried out once again and have produced results with kmo = .914 bartlett's test showed statistically the item is significant with the value of χ2 (21) = 2086.211 and p=.000. thus, only seven (7) items are taken for analysis at the next stage. based on table 1.4 shows the efa analysis of the construct 'pgb relationship with sip'. this construct produces only one implied dimension based on eigenvalues data greater than 1.0. this finding also demonstrates the said dimension is able to justify more than 84.30% of seven (7) items contained in the overall construct. table 1.4: eigenvalues and the percentage of variance for the construct of pgb relationship with sip initial eigenvalues component total % of variance cumulative % 1 5.902 84.307 84.307 total variance explained: 84.307% ii) construct of professionalism skills of sip there are 11 items in the construct of ‘professionalism skills of sip'. bartlett's test statistically showed that the item is significant to the value of χ2 (55) = 2767.867 and p=.000. the value of kaiser-meyer-olkin (kmo) produced is more than .600 (.893), while the value of measure of sampling adequacy (msa) of each item is also exceeding .60. when the value of bartlett's and kmo meet the test conditions, then the next step is to assess the reading of communality that should exceed .60. during the test on rotated component matrix was carried out, no complexity factor occurs and no item is dropped. thus, all 11 items are accepted to be analyzed at the next level. table 1.5 shows the analysis of the efa for 'professionalism skills of sip' construct. this construct also produces only one implied dimension based on eigenvalues data greater than 1.0. this finding also demonstrates the said dimension is able to justify more than 79.65% of seven (7) items contained in the overall construct. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3(1), 16-35 table 1.5: eigenvalues and the percentage of variance for professionalism skills construct initial eigenvalues component total % of variance cumulative % 1 8.762 79.655 79.655 total variance explained: 79.655% iii) effectiveness coaching construct there are 12 items in the construct of ‘effectiveness of coaching’. bartlett's test statistically showed that the item is significant to the value of χ2 (66) = 4565.235 and p=.000. value kaisermeyer-olkin (kmo) generated is more than .600 (.829). the measure of sampling adequacy (msa) on each item is more than .60. communality values also exceeded the reading of .60. during the test runs on rotated component matrix, no complexity factor occurred and this indicates that all items received one construct. thus, the researchers maintain all these items. the same efa process is carried out once again and has produced similar results. so the researchers maintain 12 items to be analysed at the next level. table 1.6 shows the analysis of the efa to construct 'effectiveness of coaching'. this construct also produces only one implied dimension by eigenvalues greater than 1.0. this finding also explains that they are able to explain 81.42% of seven (12) items contained in the overall construct. table 1.6: eigenvalues and the percentage of variance for effectiveness of coaching initial eigenvalues component total % of variance cumulative % 1 9.77 81.425 81.425 total variance explained: 81.425% in conclusion, although the kmo value obtained is above .60 and the msa of each item is greater than .60, the possibility of items dropped still can be occurred. this is because the rotated component matrix test will determine the items in one or multi-dimensional. these findings will lead to the decrease in the number of items despite the higher value of the msa. this means that each variable can be estimated exactly and meet the criteria suggested at the tahir & salleh same time. finally, after going through the process of efa, the total number of items in part b was reduced to 30 items (table 1.7). table 1.7: reliability value and number of items in every construct construct no. of item cronbach alpha pgb relationship with sip 7 items 0.966 sip professionalism skills 11 items 0.947 effectiveness of coaching 12 items 0.978 total 30 items 0.963 b) confirmatory factor analysis (cfa) with the measurement model having found the relationship among the three constructs are strong with high cronbach alpha value, the cfa is then used to test the appropriateness and validity of the measurement model proposed. cfa is used to validate the constructs that have gone through the process of efa. the validity is measured to determine the item is actually representing a specific construct. item confirmation can be made by using a diagnostic model that involves a few key points to be tested (hair, et. al. 2006). next, the cfa is also used to explore the item if there is a significant modification that needs to be made before the overall construct is combined into a structural model (hair, et. al., 2006). table 1.8 shows the diagnostic model in the cfa analysis process suggested by some researchers and suitable as a reference. table 1.8: diagnostic model in cfa process diagnostic model requirement reference modification index >4 >10 hair, et. al., 2006 fassinger, 1987 standardised residual <2.5 –no problem >4.0 –possible problem hair, et.al., 2006 squared multiple correlations or reliability >0.3 hair, et.al., 2006 standardised coefficients <1.0 min & mentzer, 2004 in all three constructs (pgb relationship with sip, professionalism skills and effectiveness of coaching) used in this study resulted in a one implied dimension, the cfa is used to make the confirmation. the construct validity was measured to determine the extent to which the items produced truly represent the resulting construct. cfa analysis was conducted using amos research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3(1), 16-35 software version 22. each model constructed is considered fit when the index reading reached the proposed stage (hair, et. al., 2006), namely: i) the value of chisq/df between 2 and 5 is considered good and acceptable fit for the model and the data used. ii) comparative fit index (cfi), which exceeds the threshold value of 0.90 indicating a good fit and appropriate, and; iii) root mean square error of approximation (rmsea) of less than 0.08 indicates an estimated error that is reasonable and acceptable. browne and cudeck (1993) suggested a reading of between 0.08 to 0.1 is also considered reasonable and acceptable. since all these constructs are one dimension, then the construct is in the form of first order and the method of combining all of the constructs can be made. this combination method is highly recommended method of measuring the measurement model using the cfa simultaneously (zainudin, 2012). a total of 30 items of three variable constructs have reached a cronbach alpha above 0.90 with the correlation among the constructs of less than 0.85. figure 1.1 shows the analysis of standardized hypothesized measurement model that combines all of the constructs. tahir & salleh figure 1.1: hypothesized measurement model model of this construct is tested and the results showed the value of chisquare/df= 8.88, cfi=.715, p=.000 and rmsea= .193. all the fitness indexes in these constructs did not meet the proposed criteria, although the loading factor exceeds .50, squared multiple correlation (smc) exceeded .3 (hair et. al., 2006). thus the model needs to be revised and combined with free parameter estimate carried out to obtain better covariance reading. items with less than .50 loading factor will be dropped and only the best fitness indexes will be retained and used for the next process. figure 1.2 shows the revised measurement model after the 15 items from all three constructs are dropped. items dropped are 3 items from the ‘relationship’ constructs (l1, l2, l7), 5 items from the ‘professionalism skills’ constructs (p2, p3, p4, p7 and p10) and 7 items from the ‘effectiveness of coaching’ constructs (m1, m2, m3, m4, m5, m6 and m8). research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3(1), 16-35 figure 1.2: revised measurement model after the test is carried out repeatedly by dropping an item at a time, eventually the values of the fitness indexes fit the value of chi-square / df = 2.203, cfi = .969, p=000 and rmsea= .076. the results of these tests show that each item in each construct tested has its own strength. no items are redundant that require a combination of the free parameter estimate except for m12 and m11 which are combined. after a combination of these two items is made, the value that results from the test statistically showed that the standardized regression weight is significant and fulfills the rules of thumb (hair, et. al., 2006) as the validity of all constructs showed a correlation value less than 0.85. this relationship can be seen when the correlation between the constructs of 'effectiveness and relationship' is r=.84, while the correlation between the constructs 'professionalism and effectiveness' is r=.69 and the correlation between the constructs 'relationship and professionalism' is r=.76. table 1.9 shows the standard error (se), the critical ratio (cr) and p-value. all items of each construct tested are considered good by fulfilling the proposed rules of thumb. tahir & salleh table 1.9: value of regression weights for each item in construct regression weights: (group number 1 default model) estimate s.e. c.r. p l6 <--relationship 1.085 .030 36.532 *** l5 <--relationship 1.000 l4 <--relationship .996 .030 33.762 *** l3 <--relationship 1.023 .052 19.601 *** m11 <--effectiveness 1.117 .040 27.609 *** m10 <--effectiveness .760 .062 12.275 *** m9 <--effectiveness 1.073 .045 23.663 *** m7 <--effectiveness 1.001 .041 24.343 *** p9 <--profesionalism 1.063 .090 11.840 *** p8 <--profesionalism .957 .093 10.297 *** p6 <--profesionalism .774 .078 9.909 *** p5 <--profesionalism .663 .084 7.897 *** m12 <--effectiveness 1.000 p1 <--profesionalism 1.050 .084 12.568 *** p11 <--profesionalism 1.000 findings structural equation modeling (sem) in answering the research objectives, the structural model tests involving the analysis of the independent variables (exogenous) with the dependent variable (endogenous) are carried out. figure 1.3 structural models are built to test the relationship between the independent variables to the dependent variables. there are two exogenous constructs, construct of 'relationship' which has four items (l3, l4, l5 and l6) and the construct of 'professionalism skills' which has six response items (p1, p5, p6, p8, p9 and p11). next endogenous construct consists of one construct 'effectiveness' which has five items (m7, m9, m10, m11 and m12). based on standardized regression weights which measure beta estimate and the standard deviation, it is found that 'relationship' construct will affect the 'effectiveness of coaching' with reading of β=0.73, while the construct 'professionalism skills' will affect the 'effectiveness of coaching' with reading of β=0.14. a very good correlation is shown among research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3(1), 16-35 the constructs because there is no similarity (mirror) in understanding. construct 'relationship and professionalism' has a value of r = .76 which less than .85. figure1.3: structural model of sips’ effectiveness of coaching referring to the squared multiple correlations (smc) for the construct of 'effectiveness of coaching' is r2 = 0.71, which means that the construct of 'relationship' and construct of ‘professionalism skills' contribute 71% to the effectiveness of sip coaching to pgb in schools. smc value for each item was among the lowest of r2=0.31 (p5) to the highest value of r2 = 0.94 (l6). all of the smc show the contribution of each item is between 31.0% to 94.0%, and this shows the contribution and strengths of those items in the respective constructs. similarly the correlation between the constructs of all independent variables have a relationship and lower than the value of 0.85 which r=.76. tahir & salleh overall the suitability index values obtained in this structural model is good and achieve the desired level with reading of chi-square/df = 2.203, cfi=0.969, p= 0.000 and rmsea=0.076. all items in the independent variables have played a role in the relationship (causal relationship) contributing their individual strength to the dependent variable. based on the analysis of the findings, it can be concluded that the effectiveness of the coaching of sip towards pgb is due to the good rapport and professional skills during the coaching sessions. these findings have also fulfilled the research objectives. conclusion and implication the results of this study showed that although most administrators are among those aged over 40 years (97.2%) and 40.6% of them had held this position between 6-10 years the cooperation and guidance of outsiders expertise is still needed. the study confirmed that the overall good relationship skills and professionalism skills of sip has contributed to the effectiveness of the coaching so as to increase confidence in the administration of the pgb. the findings also illustrate that the pgb and sip should continue to work together to strengthen the management and administration of the school in order to achieve the objectives and goals set. the chance of pgb getting guidance from coaches should be seen as a catalyst to force a shift towards excellence. thus, the top management through the district transformation program (dtp) as the district education office (ppd) and the state education department (jpn) should understand and support the need for this coaching. this is because the sip has actually acted as a coach, mentor and counselor which will be continued until the school achieved excellence within the timeframe stipulated. it is proposed that a study on the ability of sip and pgb to transform education in schools be carried out in the future. it is intended that the school leadership capabilities be enhanced continuously which in line with the government’s vision through the malaysia education blueprint (meb (pppm), 2013-2025). research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3(1), 16-35 references azlin norhaini mansor. 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(2012). structural equation modeling using amos graphic. shah alam: universiti teknologi mara publication centre (uitm press). zalina mohd tahir (1997). occupational stress among teachers at secondary school in malaysia. master thesis, university of aberdeen, united kingdom. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 montenegro rueda & fernández cerero. main barriers to ict teacher training and disability 96 main barriers to ict teacher training and disability marta montenegro rueda * university of seville josé fernández cerero university of seville *corresponding author: mmontenegro1@us.es received : 03.07.2019 revision requested: 09.08.2019 accepted : 12.09.2019 how to cite this paper: montenegro rueda, m., & fernández cerero, j. (2019). main barriers to ict teacher training and disability. research in social sciences and technology, 4 (2), 96-114. abstract from the earliest ages, the commitment to an inclusive education needs the impulse of an educational system that opens its schools to all students. this reality would not be possible today without taking into account the educational support provided by information and communication technologies (ict) to the inclusive process, since they constitute the scaffolding that will allow participation and the realization of tasks adjusted to the possibilities and interests of the people. in the process of integration of ict in the classroom, teachers are a key element since, as has been shown in numerous studies, one of the critical factors for the success of educational systems is the existence of trained, motivated teachers. the purpose is to know the main barriers or obstacles for the development of teacher training plans in ict for people with disabilities, as well as the priority aspects for training. in the empirical part of the study, 241 interviews with professionals from the spanish educational sector (members of management teams, ict coordinators, directors and technological advisors of teacher training centers) were analyzed. among the conclusions, we can highlight that the main barriers that hinder the implementation of ict training activities and disability in most of the autonomous communities are determined in the first place by economic factors, lack of time, and teachers’ attitude. the conclusions of the study make it necessary to adopt important measures in the initial training of teachers in order to be trained in the incorporation and appropriate use of ict in teaching people with different types of disabilities, especially taking into account that the reality that we face every time has more innovative and enriching technological tools that offer us a wide range of applications and adequate tools for this purpose. keywords: information and communication technologies, disability, teacher training, inclusion. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 montenegro rueda & fernández cerero. main barriers to ict teacher training and disability 97 introduction this article is part of a larger research project entitled “diagnosis and teacher training for the incorporation of ict in students with functional diversity,” funded within the framework of the state development plan of scientific and technical research of excellence 2013-2016 (difoticyd edu2016 75232-p). at present, despite the evidence of the existence of progress in political and normative matters that has allowed to dignify people with disabilities, in the plane of action, the processes of exclusion and inclusion are still visible, showing the difficulties and problems that are still present in the concrete process of full participation. from the earliest ages, the commitment to an inclusive education needs the impulse of an educational system that opens its schools to all students and ensures to each of them a teaching capable of addressing existing differences. this reality would not be possible today without taking into account the educational support provided by information and communication technologies (ict) to the inclusive process, since they constitute the scaffolding that will allow participation and the realization of tasks adjusted to the possibilities and interests of the people. it is in this process of integration of ict in the classroom where the teacher is configured as the key element. as has been shown in numerous studies, one of the critical factors of the success of education systems is the existence of trained teachers, motivated and involved (mourshed, chijioke, & barber, 2010). in this line, the mckinsey report, based on the comparison of the 10 best education systems in the world (finland, south korea, japan, or canada), highlights that the educational level of a country depends on training, motivation, and lifelong learning of their teachers. training that passes inexorably for its ability to use ict, acquiring the knowledge and skills necessary to use them as a resource to bring the teaching-learning processes to all students, including those with special educational needs. for this reason, the different educational administrations have become the acquisition of competences by teachers in ict. these training policies have been translated into training plans that have been aimed at two aspects (condie & munro, 2007): the first is the initial teacher training, which is usually included in the curriculum a mandatory component in relation to ict, and the second aspect is that which is aimed at the professional development of the teaching staff, offered as continuous training by the different educational administrations. so, by way of example, in the andalusian context, the ministry of education of the junta de andalucía has proposed the “plan de éxito educativo 2016-2020” where a continuous commitment is made by information and communication technologies (ict) and learning and knowledge technologies (tac), through the use of ict and tacs within the framework of the digital strategy plan in education in andalusia. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 montenegro rueda & fernández cerero. main barriers to ict teacher training and disability 98 the work we present focuses on the field of continuing education of teachers, and its purpose is to know the main barriers or obstacles for the development of teacher training plans in ict for people with disabilities, as well as the priority aspects for training. we believe that this study is important for several reasons. first of all, despite the fact that the line of research on ict teacher education has been developing for more than two decades, there are still very few studies on training in ict especially for people with disabilities. we think that an inclusive school should try to eliminate or minimize the barriers that limit the correct learning of its students, with special attention to the most vulnerable. a second reason is due to social aspects, where the processes of discrimination and social exclusion in the population with disabilities are of special concern in families, educational centers, town halls, and other institutions with an impact on citizen education. lastly, it is important to pay attention to the factors of efficiency and effectiveness of pedagogical practices with ict, since they increase communication and enhance the abilities of people with disabilities, favoring the reduction of their limitations. in short, this work is interesting, in addition, because it allows the analysis not only of the training of teachers in ict in primary education, but it is also able to find evidence to argue the existence of factors favoring learning with ict, which enhance the development of good educational practices. research questions based on this context, we have considered the following research questions: what are the main barriers or obstacles for the development of ict teacher training plans for people with disabilities? what aspects are considered priorities in the training of primary education teachers in relation to ict and disability? background the path for the integration of ict in education has not been easy, and its maximum potential has not been reached, in the same way that pedagogical thinking has not progressed in parallel with technological advances, since these in the field of inclusive education in developed countries is very slow. one of the most noteworthy conclusions of recent studies in our context is that, despite the increase in the availability of technological resources in schools, the pedagogical practice of teachers in the classroom does not necessarily imply a substantive modification of the traditional teaching model (area, 2008; area, cepeda, gonzález, & sanabria, 2010). it is for this reason that there is the need for teachers to acquire skills and abilities related to the use of ict, among other reasons, due to the lack of training, a variable that continues to be one of the factors that limit the use of ict in the inclusive classroom. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 montenegro rueda & fernández cerero. main barriers to ict teacher training and disability 99 the use of technology in education plays a particularly important role in allowing the development of the flexible curriculum and helping students with disabilities to participate as equals in the learning experience, helping to prepare them for lifelong learning, fun, and learning outside of school (panzavolta & lotti, 2012). in the international arena, there are numerous publications and research that show the importance of the integration of technology to improve student learning. now, if we place ourselves in the field of disability, we can see that there are few studies that place special emphasis on the potential of ict in students with functional diversity due to disability (alper & goggin, 2017; istenic & bagon, 2014; khetarpal, 2014; ramos & andrade, 2016; shih et al., 2011; turner-cmuchal & aitken, 2016; wallace & georgina, 2014). although ict can be an effective instrument to improve the education of all students, it is necessary that it entails a transformation of teaching activities, because the students' learning is related to the quality of the practices in which they participate in the classroom (coll, mauri, & onrubia, 2008). of all the factors that can affect this transformation, there is one that exerts a great influence: the degree of technological training of teachers. in this sense, and internationally, we can also highlight the scarcity of those studies aimed at teacher training to successfully teach ict, in the framework of disability (altinay & altinay, 2015; liu, 2011; vladimirovna & sergeevna, 2015; yusof et al., 2014). in all of them, the lack of teacher training in this area is evident. authors such as scolartic (2015) go even further and highlight the importance of the pedagogical component over the technological, which leads us to infer that there is a direct and negative relationship in the performance of the teacher, since at higher levels of complexity, there is less evidence of competency. in the spanish context, the volume of production of works related to the problem of ict training of teachers and the skills they need to use it is abundant, as has been shown in recent years (fernández batanero & bermejo, 2012; ortiz, almazán, peñaherrera, & cachón, 2014; rangel & peñalosa, 2013; rosario & vázquez, 2012; terigi, 2013). the studies carried out in order to know the digital competence of teachers to facilitate the integration of ict in the classroom suggest that although teachers have a certain mastery of technical aspects, they do not use technology for teaching practice since this requires skills or higher level capabilities (prendes & gutiérrez, 2013), conclusions coinciding with those of scolartic (2015). so, if we talk about the ict competences necessary to use them with people with functional diversity due to disability, we can check the low volume of existing jobs, and they also highlight the lack of training and knowledge that teachers have regarding the different types of technologies that can be used with these people, the possibilities they offer, and the functions for which they can be used (baytak et al., 2011; molina, pérez, & antiñolo, 2012; roig, ferrández, rodríguez-cano, & crespo, 2012; tello & cascales, 2015; toledo & llorente cejudo, 2016). research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 montenegro rueda & fernández cerero. main barriers to ict teacher training and disability 100 this lack of ict training is one of the main obstacles or barriers that the teacher finds when dealing with students with disabilities in the classroom. among the barriers or obstacles that teachers find for their training, we find lack of training and financial support, as stated by silva and austillo (2012). likewise, the study also includes the lack of recognition and incentive to teachers. another barrier to highlight is the lack of time, which hinders the planning of educational work (barrantes, casas, & luengo, 2011). on the other hand, ramírez, cañedo, and clemente (2011) show that the attitude of teachers towards ict also constitutes a barrier to teacher training. aspects that have a negative impact on the teaching-learning processes with ict make it impossible to make information more accessible and enhance people's abilities, in the case of students with disabilities, helping their difficulties to be alleviated and, in some cases, their limitations reduced to a minimum (homero, tejedor, & calvo, 2017). for cullen and alber-morgan (2015), the daily use of different technologies by disabled students has positive effects on their learning, making them independent. therefore, when technology is properly integrated in the classroom, students, with the disability they have, will have multiple means to train and achieve an adequate academic education. that is why teachers not only have to have theoretical knowledge of the subjects taught but also of the adapted resources that exist and are necessary to teach the disabled student. there is no doubt that the benefits of ict to students with disabilities are many and very diverse. in particular, they can facilitate access to all types of information in an easier and more comfortable way; favor the autonomy of students, being able to adapt to the needs and demands of each student in a personalized way; favor the synchronous and asynchronous communication of these students with the rest of classmates and the teaching staff; help to adapt the environment; improve cognitive development thanks to the activities that can be done; save time for acquiring skills and abilities; favor the diagnosis of the student; support a multisensory communication and training model; encourage individualized training, as students can move at their own pace, which is extremely important for these subjects; favor the development of the autonomy and independence of the people; avoid marginalization and the digital divide, which introduces being devoid of using the tools of development of the knowledge society; facilitate the socio-labor insertion of the student with specific difficulties; provide moments of leisure; save time for acquiring skills and abilities; allow the exercises that the students must carry out to be executed and repeated with minimum efforts so that the students acquire the competences, attitudes, and capacities; encourage the approach of these people to the scientific and cultural world; and be excellent simulators (toledo, 2013). research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 montenegro rueda & fernández cerero. main barriers to ict teacher training and disability 101 method the purpose of the study was to learn about the main barriers encountered by primary school directors and advisors in the spanish state for the development of ict training plans for people with disabilities, as well as aspects that are considered a priority in such training. research design the research design is situated from a descriptive ethnographic research perspective, from which the data collection and analysis approach has been defined from qualitative techniques. the technique used to collect the information was the semi-structured interview prepared ad hoc. instruments for the validation of the interviews, it was decided to apply the expert judgment technique, this being done through a document attached to the interview, with a series of open questions that were delivered to eight specialists in the area from different spanish universities. in the validation of the interview protocol, the delphi method was used because it is based on the recognition of the superiority of group judgment over the individual trial (linstone & turoff, 1975). the categories of interviews have revolved around: sociodemographic aspects (type of center, community / autonomous city, province, position held, sex and seniority in office); concept of functional diversity; disability concept; ict benefits for people with disabilities; teacher awareness and preparation; development of training experiences; promotion of training; barriers to the development of training plans; and priority in training. for content analysis, the following phases have been followed: preanalysis, categorical system formation, coding and analysis and interpretation, using a computer tool that facilitates the qualitative data analysis, nvivo 11. finally, it is worth mentioning that the elaboration of the categories and the decision to take the answers of the interviewees as correct or incorrect have been subject to concordance and reliability criteria. that is to say, the analysis carried out, both for the process of construction of the system of categories (agreement between coders), and for the moment in which the coders have made use of this system of categories (reliability), has resulted in a coefficient excellent kappas above 0.75 (fleiss, 1981). the categorical system used for the analysis of the interviews, in the two aspects shown in this article, has been as follows (table 1): research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 montenegro rueda & fernández cerero. main barriers to ict teacher training and disability 102 table 1. categorical system categories and definition subcategories examples barriers to the development of training plans: obstacle that prevents or hinders the carrying out of training activities. teacher’s attitude “the barriers have to do, fundamentally, of a personal nature. of those teachers who are not involved or who are not supporters (entre.069).” quality of training “the training of professionals within the official training networks is deficient in that it is scarce and far from the school reality (entre.211).” geographical distance “perhaps one of the problems is that we are far from the training centers (entre.113).” economics “the economic, the institutional support, the one that truly is a bet by the new technologies so that the teaching staff has some good materials (entre.066).” teacher’s age “there is a lot of demand, but little supply of this type of resources. teachers who want to train do so through private courses (entre.139).” scarce training offering “the barrier itself is that there is not a very large student body or simply that the disabilities can be very different, so of course giving a course focused on a disability includes very few students (entre.022).” lack of time “the main barrier is that teachers every time we have more work and all the training we have to do in our free time, so sometimes there are many areas or facets in which we have to train ... which is complicated (entre.052).” priority in training: teacher preference in training (multiple choice response). a) know specific technological materials. b) know different software. c) know how to apply didactic strategies and curricular adaptations. d) locate websites with educational resources. e) get adapt a computer equipment. f) know institutions related to the accessibility of websites. (same as subcategories) sample in this research, 241 professionals from the education sector participated. for the selection of the sample, a probabilistic sampling was chosen, since the objective of the study is to estimate what is true for a population from a group of participants. specifically, it has been done by groups in which natural group units have been identified, in our case, autonomous communities / cities and types of centers. once the grouping has been made, the subjects have been selected at random, in such a way that all of them have had the same probability of being chosen (principle of equiprobability) (mcmillan & schumacher, 2005, p. 135-140). research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 montenegro rueda & fernández cerero. main barriers to ict teacher training and disability 103 therefore, the object of the study has been educational centers of public, private and concerted ownership, as well as teacher training centers (cep hereafter), located in 19 communities and autonomous cities of spain. table 2. distribution communities / autonomous cities and type of center. cep public private concerted total andalusia 3 7 3 3 16 aragon 3 6 2 2 13 asturias 2 7 2 2 13 cantabria 2 6 2 3 13 castilla la mancha 2 6 6 0 14 castilla y león 2 7 3 3 15 catalonia 3 7 4 3 17 ceuta 0 2 3 0 5 extremadura 3 6 2 2 13 galicia 2 6 2 3 13 balearic island 2 6 2 2 12 canary island 2 7 1 2 12 la rioja 1 6 5 0 12 madrid 3 6 3 3 15 melilla 1 3 1 1 6 murcia 1 6 2 2 11 navarra 2 7 3 1 13 basque country 2 7 3 2 14 valencia 2 7 2 3 14 total 38 115 51 37 241 the distribution of the interviews carried out was as follows: 174 members of the management team, 29 ict coordinators, 23 directors of teacher training centers (cep), and 15 technology advisers of teacher training centers (cep). all the interviews have been done personally. of the total sample, 53.11% corresponds to directors of educational centers or training centers (n = 128), 25.31% refers to heads of studies (n = 61), and 21.58 % to ict coordinators of educational centers or consultants of training centers (n = 52); 43.9% of the interviewees are men and 56% are women. http://www.juntadeandalucia.es/educacion/portalseneca/web/cep/ceps http://www.educaragon.org/arboles/arbol.asp?sepruta=&guiaeducativa=42&strseccion=a1a31&titpadre=formaci%f3n+permanente+del+profesorado&arrpadres=&arrides=&arridesvin=&lngarbol=1506&lngarbolvinculado http://historico.educastur.es/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=5417&itemid=124 http://www.cepdecantabria.es/ http://www.educa.jccm.es/profesorado/es/crfp http://csfp.centros.educa.jcyl.es/sitio/ http://www.mecd.gob.es/educacion-mecd/ba/ceuta-melilla/ceuta/atencion-ciudadano.html https://formacion.educarex.es/red-de-formacion.html http://www.edu.xunta.gal/portal/node/3095 http://www.larioja.org/educacion/es/normativa-educativa/habitual-informacion/normativa-profesorado http://gestiondgmejora.educa.madrid.org/ http://www.mecd.gob.es/educacion-mecd/ba/ceuta-melilla/melilla/ http://www.murciaeduca.es/cprregiondemurcia/sitio/ https://www.educacion.navarra.es/web/dpto/formacion-del-profesorado http://www.berritzeguneak.net/berritzeguneak.php?id=es http://mestreacasa.gva.es/web/cefirealacant/xarxa research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 montenegro rueda & fernández cerero. main barriers to ict teacher training and disability 104 results based on the empirical basis of the opinions of the informants, the following results have been obtained. barriers to the development of training plans once verified that the centers ensure that the training is offered and promoted through courses, working groups, projects, meetings and/or seminars (79.69%), but that there are not really enough training experiences (66.8%), it is necessary to know what are the barriers or impediments that hinder the development of these training activities. figure 1. main obstacles to carry out training activities. figure 1 shows in percentages the main barriers that, according to the interviewees, hinder the realization of training activities. the barriers that have a higher percentage of appearance are: the one related to "economic" factors (32.14%). in this case, highlights such as: “the first barrier i think is the economic one. if you do not have devices, or mobiles, or computers to do tasks, you can hardly use them in the classroom. moreover, some teachers use personal devices in the classroom (entre.122).” “well, the main barrier is the material resources we have, the budgets. every year the center demands training courses, among them on functional diversity through this training plan and we find ourselves with the difficulty that the budgets do not arrive through the cep and others. (entre.227).” the one referred to "lack of time" (26.37%). the interviewees stated that: research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 montenegro rueda & fernández cerero. main barriers to ict teacher training and disability 105 “barriers is the availability of teachers or time, which does not always have time. many times the teachers if they want, but do not have the time, that is, there are no times in the centers for this training, we do not have a timetable, especially in primary schools (entre.013).” “the main barrier is the lack of time not only to carry out the training, but to prepare the sessions in which we can incorporate the acquired knowledge (entre.154).” the one referring to "teacher’s attitude" (18.96%). in this sense, the interviewees hold demonstrations in relation to an advanced age for training and little awareness of the importance of such learning: “discouragement by some of the teachers because they are older, they see that their retirement is near and all this seems very complicated (entre.037).” “the main barrier is teacher awareness. teachers are often aware of the problem they have, but at the same time they are selfish when it comes to demanding training actions (entre.225).” it is also interesting to note that the emergence of barriers related to factors such as "economic" and "lack of time" is shared by many autonomous communities/cities with the exception of galicia and the balearic islands, which consider that the main obstacle is "teacher’s attitude," and la rioja that highlights as a barrier the "scarce training offering," that is, justify that the problem is that there is a limit of places in the courses offered. “many times it is the limitation in places. the city takes a course with 20 or 30 seats for all teachers, and many times, many people stay out. that is the only barrier you can find, the limitation of places because we as a concerted center treat us differently than those of the public (entre.042).” figure 2. obstacles by communities. finally, according to table 3, we can see that ceips are the ones that claim to find a higher percentage of barriers to carry out training activities. the data could justify the results obtained research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 montenegro rueda & fernández cerero. main barriers to ict teacher training and disability 106 in the categories related to teacher training. it turns out that the ceips are the ones that offer the most, but the ones that experience less training. this fact is striking and the explanation would be given by the high number of barriers or obstacles that are found to carry them out. these barriers are also present in the rest of the centers; therefore, it is necessary to propose a training activity that adapts to the teaching staff and does not take into account factors such as those dealt with in this category that hinder their development. table 3. barriers by institutions. public concerted private cep teacher’s attitude 46.38% 14.49% 15.94% 23.19% quality of training 58.33% 16.67% 16.67% 8.33% geographical distance 64.71% 5.88% 29.41% 0% economics 42.86% 15.97% 17.65% 23.53% teacher's age 60% 0% 40% 0% scarce training offerings 43.33% 26.67% 20% 10% scarce of students with disabilities 44.44% 16.67% 16.67% 22.22% lack of time 55.67% 24.75% 14.43% 5.15% priority in training in the next category, several statements are presented that deal with aspects that should include training activities aimed at primary school teachers. participants have had the opportunity to choose the three statements they consider to be a priority in teacher training. among the most relevant results, the interviewees consider that training activities facilitate the task of applying curricular strategies and didactic adaptations supported by ict (86.72%), which favor being able to know specific technological materials for students with disabilities (61. 83%), to locate websites with educational resources for people with disabilities (41.91%), as well as to adapt a computer equipment to the educational needs of any person with a disability (41.91%). it is also considered appropriate to emphasize that the statement "know institutions related to the accessibility of websites" is the one with the lowest percentage of choice (18.67%). the result obtained is striking because accessibility was the subcategory that reached a high frequency of appearance in the category related to the "benefits provided by information and communication technologies (ict) to people with disabilities." research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 montenegro rueda & fernández cerero. main barriers to ict teacher training and disability 107 figure 3. aspects that training activities should contemplate. likewise, the choice of those elements that should be included in teacher training varies according to autonomous communities or cities. the statement "know how to apply teaching strategies and curricular adaptations" has once again been shared by many autonomous communities/cities with the exception of asturias, la rioja and murcia, which attribute greater importance to the knowledge of specific technological materials, and ceuta and melilla, where they consider necessary that teacher training includes knowledge of different specific software to be used with students with functional diversity. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 montenegro rueda & fernández cerero. main barriers to ict teacher training and disability 108 figure 4. training activities by communities. finally, we would like to add that depending on the type of center, the results do not allow us to establish relevant differences, since the percentage of choice of the statements has remained fairly similar in each of these. despite this, the result shows the need for a training activity that includes all the elements (materials, software, application of strategies and adaptations, websites, adaptation of computer equipment, and accessible institutions). research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 montenegro rueda & fernández cerero. main barriers to ict teacher training and disability 109 figure 5. priority in training according to the institution. conclusions rq1: what are the main barriers or obstacles for the development of ict teacher training plans for people with disabilities? the main barriers that hinder the implementation of ict training activities and disability in most of the autonomous communities are determined in the first place by intrinsic factors such as: economic, time, and teacher attitude. these aspects coincide with previous studies, although those do not deal specifically with students with disabilities (barrantes, casas, & luengo, 2011; ramírez, cañedo, & clemente, 2011; silva & austillo, 2012). it is noteworthy that the educational centers for early childhood and primary education (ceip) are the ones that offer the most, but at the same time they are the ones that experience less training. the cause of this is determined by factors such as the previous ones. in public centers, the main barriers that arise are determined by "geographical distance," followed by "quality in training" and “lack of time” to complete it. on the contrary, the research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 montenegro rueda & fernández cerero. main barriers to ict teacher training and disability 110 concerted centers consider the “scarce training offer” as the main barrier, followed by “lack of time.” the privately owned centers consider the “economic” as the main factor. our study shows that the lack of training and confidence of teachers in icts is decisive for their commitment to them. this lack is directly related to the quality and quantity of the teacher training programs. in this sense, the autonomous community of la rioja offers the lowest training offer in the country. rq2: what aspects are considered priorities in the training of primary education teachers in relation to ict and disability? regarding the priority in the training, it is considered necessary that the training activities facilitate the task of applying curricular strategies and didactic adaptations supported by ict, favor the knowledge of specific technological materials for students with disabilities, and facilitate the localization of websites with educational resources for people with disabilities. in short, it highlights the need for a training activity that includes all the elements (materials, software, application of strategies and adaptations, websites, adaptation of computer equipment, and accessible institutions). implications it is necessary to adopt important measures in the initial training of teachers in order to be trained in the incorporation and appropriate use of ict in the teaching of people with different types of disabilities, especially considering that the reality that we have every time has more innovative and enriching technological tools that offer a wide range of applications and suitable tools for this purpose. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 montenegro rueda & fernández cerero. main barriers to ict teacher training and disability 111 references alper, m., & goggin, g. 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(2014). teachers’ perception of mobile edutainment for special needs learners: the malaysian case. international journal of inclusive education, 18(2), 234-256. http://www.scolartic.com/ research in social sciences and technology (ressat) e-issn: 2468-6891 1 doctoral candidate, warner school of education, university of rochester, usa, azizah.alogali@gmail.com world englishes: changing the paradigm of linguistic diversity in global academia azizah alogali1 abstract this paper discusses the ways that the publications of multilingual and non-native speakers of english are treated in academic publications. using the world english theory as a framework, it attempts to enumerate which overt and hidden advantages native speakers may have over non-native speakers in academic writing communities, and how these can be deconstructed. it also explores possible solutions to this problem, both to improve non-native students’ written scholarly work and to restructure global perceptions and biases towards different regional varieties of english. the paper focuses on certain gatekeeping behaviors performed by institutions of knowledge production, and on how the world english theory can be applied to help improve parity in international academia. keywords: linguistic rights, world english theory, discrimination, international publication, multilingualism, language varieties introduction: an age of pluralism although international communication and trade has been occurring for centuries, in recent decades, the pace of globalization has accelerated to an unprecedented velocity. the use of english as a vehicle for the agents of globalization has increased hand in hand with electronic communication, the expansion of global businesses, and international scholarly publication. however, the ways in which english is used from region to region vary greatly, so much so that the language itself has evolved into something fundamentally different in many different contexts. even when market pressure is not such a driving pressure, such as in literary and artistic production and personal expression, english continues to enjoy popularity among speakers for whom it is not a first language (varughese, 2012). furthermore, the distinguishing linguistic features of both english varieties and other languages have ceased to honor geographic boundaries (dor, 2004). mailto:azizah.alogali@gmail.com alogali 55 as a “hyper collective good”, according to dor (2004), languages like english provide an increased benefit to society with an increased population of speakers (p. 112). yet the benefits described by dor (2004) are disproportionately enjoyed by a global minority of so-called “native speakers”. non-native and multilingual speakers, most noticeably international scholars, remain disadvantaged in many ways when attempting to engage in englishdominated academic discourses (curry & lillis, 2004). the bias against non-native speakers extends to other areas of life as well, limiting employment opportunities, social mobility, and even self-esteem, though manifestations of this vary widely in different contexts (papen, 2005). in an effort to address the inequalities created by the global spread of english, as well as its possible advantages, many theories under the umbrella of “world englishes” have emerged as part of the international discourse on language. though these theories are as diverse as the contexts they endeavor to describe, they share a common set of philosophical and humanitarian characteristics. as rajagopalan states, “world english belongs to everybody who speaks it, but is nobody’s mother tongue” (p. 185). this paper will attempt to provide an overview of the past and current trends in the developing world englishes discourse, with an aim to advocate for equal access to discursive power and honoring of the contributions of multilingual scholars. the rise of english and linguistic hegemony before we explore the tenets and applications of world englishes theory, it is important to examine the historical factors and processes that have contributed to the rise to power and continued dominance of english as a language of business and education. the dominance of english has been facilitated by the forces of globalization: increased communication and mobility of people and ideas, international trade, and cultural diffusion. but as macewan (2001) argues, globalization does not always bring about positive change. old-fashioned forms of globalization research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 54-73 during the age of exploration included slavery, genocide, and the systematic eradication of indigenous cultures and languages: macewan (2001) urges us to examine if modern forms of globalization are truly morally superior to their historical predecessors (p. 1). following in the footsteps of european colonization, the hegemony of english takes advantage of many of the same power mechanics as those used by former colonial powers. saxena and omoniyi (2010) describe three chief elements which have contributed to the rise of english’s linguistic hegemony: leadership without force, leadership through legitimation, and leadership through consensual rule (p. 513). english is often imported and used in international contexts because of its convenience, and nowadays does not often need to be forced on those who use it. the legitimation of english has perhaps the most direct ties with the age of colonization, especially through the legacy of colonial schools and their tacit communication that english was the language of the powerful and morally superior (papen, 2005). further, as the predominance of english is increasingly met with acceptance and taken for granted by international populations, the world increasingly gives its unspoken consent to the rule of the english language. as papen (2005) states, literacy education depends on “what forms of knowledge have authority”. it is clear that the english language is widely regarded as an authority on matters of business and academics, even in places where it has never been a native or colonial language. the conventions of english: setting the tone for the wider world even when english is not employed as the language of instruction or business, the conventions and underlying cultural beliefs of the english tradition still exert a powerful influence on modern communications. dor (2004) describes in detail how the tools of mass communication — computer keyboards and the formatting and limitations of modern web pages and applications — are shaped and regulated by the limitations of the english language, even when they are used alogali 57 by foreign-language users. in a similar fashion, purveyors of academic conventions such as the american psychological association, exert control over the work of multilingual scholars any time they wish to publish in english. one of the great linchpins of positivist approaches to science and research is the “assumption that values in narrating science are universal” (duszak, 2006, p. 38). yet what is presented by powerful institutions of academia as universal truth is merely the local knowledge of the european, judeo-christian root community from which the english-language academic tradition is descended (canagarajah, 2002). this over-valuing of western academic values, such as effacing and minimizing the author’s presence, creates an imbalanced dynamic where the contributions of scholars from other language traditions are misunderstood and often dismissed because they do not follow the rules set by the english tradition (bhatt, 2008). even in multilingual spaces, such as the world of online communication, expression in other languages is still hindered by the looming influence of english. what results is a kind of “imposed multilingualism” as described by dor (2004), where speakers keep their languages, but the languages cease to be “theirs” due to regulation and standardization created to further economic goals (p. 116). there are several major entities who contribute regularly to the perpetuation of the rhetorical and conceptual dominance of the english language. western academia plays an important role in engaging in gatekeeping activities that limit and diminish the contributions of multilingual scholars (canagarajah, 2002). as described by curry & lillis (2004), scholars in nonenglish-dominant countries are under increasing pressure to publish in english and reap the rewards given to english-language articles and research. however, the increased competition for limited english-language journals, the confusing and foreign expectations for formatting and style, and the widespread prejudice against esl writing in english-language journals make attaining the research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 54-73 rewards of writing in english extremely difficult (curry & lillis, 2004). this results in a skewed representation in international journals, in which a “good piece of work will not be rejected because of the english but one which is on the borderline… may be at a disadvantage” (pérez-llandata, plo, & ferguson, 2011). in this way, the process of publishing and disseminating knowledge through respected channels has become a “mechanism by which the intellectual hegemony of the west is maintained on a global scale” (canagarajah, 2002, p. 254). mass media, corporate entities, and even governments also contribute to maintaining the perceived superiority of english conventions and linguistic traditions. though the number of foreign-language media outlets is increasing, and the ability to translate articles and web material is becoming increasingly widespread, these globalizing processes frequently serve to further the interests of the powerful english-speaking minority. as canagarajah explains, “the local finds representation only according to the purposes and forms permitted by the powerful” (p. 247). it is not only academic journals that are guilty of perpetuating this inequality: as bhatt (2008) describes, newspapers and media “simultaneously reproduce and transform discourse” as well (p. 181). academic blogs, news websites, and even the documentation and coverage surrounding academic conferences all tend to follow the english-dominated pattern. attempts have been made by governments in different countries both to preserve and eradicate english, but few have succeeded (rajagopalan, 2010). by far the most fruitful examples of bringing english to foreign markets have been commercially motivated, usually in the form of advertising which blends english with indigenous tongues in order to sell a product (dor, 2004). while these capitalist and post-colonial explanations have held sway for a long time, a transformational new theory known as world englishes theory has begun to change the face of global communications discourse. alogali 59 world englishes theory: basic principles and paradigms goals and objectives of world englishes theories world englishes theory refers to an umbrella of different approaches and frameworks united by a set of common goals and principles. but what are these goals, exactly? world englishes theory often focuses on turning traditional understandings of linguistic power and privilege upsidedown, and empowering those who are usually at the bottom of linguistic hierarchies (saxena & omoniyi, 2010). examples of disempowered groups that might be well served by a world englishes perspective include esol learners, students from multicultural backgrounds, multilingual scholars, and any user of language whose experiences and contexts do not match those that are given privilege in modern society (weber, 2014). while world englishes offers a revolutionary way of thinking about language and power, scholars in the world englishes field do not necessarily call for political action to fight existing structures of privilege and oppression. rather, world englishes is often treated as a way to build “linguistic peace” by increasing crosscultural collaboration and understanding (hoffman & siebers, 2009, p. 409). the goals of world englishes theory are as simple to articulate as they are complex to bring to reality. curry & lillis (2004) posit that world englishes aims to “expand the definition of an esol learner”, and by including more language users in this family hopes to foster a more just treatment of their contributions and needs (p. 664). curry & lillis also advocate for a more assetbased (rather than deficit-based) perspective on language use, in order to honor the “cultural capital” of users of world englishes (p. 674). another important goal of world englishes theory pertains to the spread of the forces of globalization, explained by rajagopalan (2010) as sometimes being merely “old capitalism in a new bottle” (p. 177). rajagopalan (2010) believes that world englishes’ role is to foster the growth of healthy aspects of globalization (international education, research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 54-73 collaboration, and multicultural society) while thwarting the factors which “masquerade” as globalization to further the ends of the privileged (p. 178). ultimately, world englishes scholars agree that their combined endeavor is to create a more just and positively pluralistic community of language users, where privilege is minimized and notions of “correctness” are discarded in favor of usefulness and mutual intelligibility (bhatt, 2001). as bhatt (2001) eloquently put it, “world englishes, in its most ambitious interpretation, attempts to decolonize and democratize applied linguistics” (p. 544). paradigm shift: from formalism to functionalism in order to attain bhatt’s (2001) goal of decolonization and democratization, it is deemed necessary by world englishes scholars that a major shift in our perceptions of language use and regulation take place. historically, pronunciation, spelling, and grammar of english have been regulated by a combined effort of academic institutions, government bodies, and the self-policing of groups of language users (rajagopalan, 2010). however, as globalization spreads and multilingual, multicultural language users begin to outnumber the monolingual and monocultural, this regulation has become fraught with conflict. one example of this is illustrated in milroy’s (2001) description of the decline of the standard of british english’s “received pronunciation” into obsolescence in recent years (p. 1). milroy (2001) claims that it is no longer relevant if “correct” pronunciation is used in british english, because so many other forms of pronunciation have passed into wider acceptance that the “correctness” is no longer a requirement for understanding (p. 4). the prestige associated with “received pronunciation” illustrates exactly the type of linguistic formalism that has prevailed over institutions of language regulation until recently. weber (2014) criticizes this formalist approach, tearing apart the argument that grammar is hard alogali 61 wired to human beings and that languages must follow a set pattern of structural rules. as bhatt (2001) argues, the frameworks used to study, interpret, and evaluate language have until recently been constructed and employed by scholars with a monolingual and monocultural bias. bhatt (2001) draws attention to five different “sacred cows”, or misinformed ideas that must be sacrificed to fully embrace the philosophy of world englishes. one of these “sacred cows” pertains to imposing the grammar of one language variety, namely the privileged one, upon other varieties of the same language (bhatt, 2001). this creates the false idea that there are absolute rules about which are the “wrong” and “right” ways to communicate. there has been considerable debate among scholars as to whether this way of analyzing language is relevant or useful — proponents of world englishes argue that grammar and syntax cannot be treated as independent of the situations in which they are applied (saxena & omoniyi, 2010). the functionalist approach which enjoys the most popularity among world englishes scholars argues that when it comes to language, meaning is fully context-dependent and that linguistic categories and structures are malleable and emergent (saxena & omoniyi, 2010). fuctionalism focuses on “the text rather than the sentence” and treats language not as a pure ideal, but as a tool for accomplishing a variety of tasks (saxena & omoniyi, 2010, p. 9). as illustrated by weber (2014), functionalism illuminates many of the dynamics that have sparked an interest in the world englishes paradigm, specifically its equalizing and democratizing influences. there are several main branches of world englishes theory that, while not wholly distinct from one another, each fulfill different conceptual objectives. major branches of world englishes theory the emerging landscape of world englishes theory has as many contributors as there are varieties of english fighting for respect and legitimacy. one of the more prominent branches of world englishes theory comes from wolf and polzenhagen (2009), who champion a framework research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 54-73 for linguistic analysis known as cognitive linguistics. like the other functionalists, wolf and polzenhagen (2009) urge for a move away from linguistic formalism and grammar-centered study. they argue that the most important elements of language exist within the mind of both speaker and listener, and pertain to the ways in which thinking affects their communication (saxena & omoniyi, 2010). wolf and polzenhagen (2009) used a number of culturally-dependent topics, such as ghosts, ancestors, and family relationships, to stimulate discussion from speakers of different varieties of english that illustrated differences in cognition and ways of thinking. cognitive linguistics is primarily concerned with thought and perception, a complement to the next major branch of world englishes theory, which is known as usage-based functionalism. usage-based functionalism is the preferred theory of world englishes scholars, and most of the other theories that abound are outgrowths of this basic paradigm. the theory was popularized by bybee (2006), who describes the development of a person’s dialectical and lexical formation as a series of “language events” (p. 711). bybee (2006) goes on to insist that usage not grammar or “correctness” is what makes a word or a phrase meaningful. for the usage-based functionalists, understanding and intelligibility are the markers of acceptable language use. saxena & omoniyi (2010) compare this phenomenon to the ways in which children construct their own grammar based on their exposure to different languages. just like these children, speakers of multiple languages or language varieties always experience some overlap between the linguistic spheres in which they live and work (saxena & omoniyi, 2010). language has many different purposes, be they instrumental (for school), regulative (for administration/legal uses), interpersonal, or imaginative (literary/artistic), and each creates different contexts in which language is applied (bhatt, 2001). alogali 63 the usage of english as a language of business, instruction, or literary expression has been shaped by historical forces of exploration, colonization, and now, globalization. one scholar who has attempted to make sense of the spread of english over time is kachru (1985), whose framework of circles of english influence is heavily cited by other world englishes scholars. kachru’s framework describes three circles, an inner circle, which includes countries where english is considered a native language, an outer circle of countries where english has been institutionalized, and an expanding circle of countries where english is primarily treated as a foreign language (bhatt, 2001). kachru’s (1985) framework, while it may be a helpful starting point for those new to the world englishes field, is grossly outdated and no longer an accurate reflection of english usage around the world (if it ever was). wolf and polzenhagen (2009) criticize kachru’s oversimplification of a world that is incredibly diverse and complex, arguing that the distinction between circles is “fuzzy” and “always in motion” (p. 2). while there is some disagreement about the validity of kachru’s (1985) framework, one thing that all world englishes scholars seem to agree on is the importance of a multicultural theoretical perspective. according to bhatt (2001), multiculturalism is especially important in subverting unhealthy linguistic power dynamics because varieties of english are treated with equal respect under the we paradigm (p. 528). each variety of english is thought to possess its own “cultural capital”, a term coined by curry & lillis (2004), which makes it valuable and unique in its own right regardless of dissimilarities with privileged varieties of english (p. 674). as rajagopalan (2010) explains, any language transplanted into a new place will slowly take root in a new environment and develop its own “endonormative standards” (p. 175). world englishes seeks to do away with the notion that these new standards are inferior to the old ones. bhatt (2001) speaks for all world englishes scholars when he puts forth a call to accept, even embrace, multiple research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 54-73 norms for language acquisition and use. as rajagopalan (2010) explains quite eloquently, world englishes theory is “multicultural in its very essence, not devoid of culture” (p. 186). when putting these theories into practice and applying them to real-life situations, there are a number of interesting paradigm shifts that have begun to take place in spaces where the many varieties of english are used and measured against each other. as rajagopalan (2010) states, english “has long ceased to be the monopoly of [its] original ‘native speakers” (p. 185). one of the conceptual revolutions that has been fostered by proponents of world englishes theory is an idea that has shocked many academics in privileged positions: the “apotheosis”, or natural death, of the concept of the native speaker (rajagopalan, 2010, p. 187). practices of gatekeeping and discrimination in academic publishing although the ideal of polyphonic, multilingual expression is an appealing one, actually participating in this transformative means of communicating often fails to bear fruit for scholars. curry & lillis (2004) point out that scholars feel frustrated by the obligatory nature of learning and using english even in non-english-dominant countries. this is especially frustrating when their attempts to write in english are treated with derision and disrespect. canagarajah (2002) describes the irony of the situation: “though there is a major interest in local knowledge in diverse academic circles in the west, publishing practices present a major barrier to its representation” (p. 254). it turns out that most publishers would rather print the descriptions of international research from third-party “native speakers” than to look to the original producers of this knowledge, however willing they may be to share their expertise. in this way, canagarajah (2002) states, “academic publishing is a gatekeeping activity that legitimizes what passes for established knowledge” (p. 254). this is a toxic dynamic that stifles creativity and excludes meaningful voices from important academic discourses. alogali 65 the practices of academic publishers reflect their tacit participation in this unfair system, despite empty pr-motivated assurances that they want to cultivate a more multicultural world. duszak (2006) describes how publishing houses in her nation “privilege educational materials and comprehensive overviews… dictionaries, [textbooks], topical readers and, notably… translations of foreign, mainly english academic books” (p. 41). the demand for having all printed materials in english does not pay respect to the relevance or quality of content of the most sought-after materials. canagarajah (2002) describes how the barriers to publication can be both nondiscursive, involving infrastructure, personal prejudice, lack of access to resources or networking, and discursive, such as alien formatting concepts, guidelines, and field-specific, english-only jargon. academic papers written by multilingual scholars are often overlooked for “lack of readability and poor command of english”, according to perez-llantada, plo and ferguson (2011, p. 25). this is not to say that no work from multilingual scholars ever passes the test and is published: merely that the stakes are much higher and more difficult to clear for non-native speakers. perez-llantada, plo and ferguson (2011) elaborate: “surely a good piece of work will not be rejected because of the english, but one which is on the borderline… may be at a disadvantage” (p. 23). all of this evidence points to an abuse of power and authority on the part of publishing institutions, which must be rectified to better reflect the pluralistic world in which scholars now work. papen (2005) argues that researchers and those dispensing publication privileges or other forms of soft power must take into account the historical and sociological background that underlies any esl writer’s identity and fluency. it is the responsibility of those who are doing the gatekeeping to open those gates and allow for a more varied stream of content to become available. curry & lillis (2004) urge such institutions to engage in a dialogue about “global knowledge production” and broaden their publication horizons (p. 684). all of this can contribute to achieving this goal, as articulated research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 54-73 by gee (2006): more humane notions of literacy/mastery for speakers of english, and less harmful, discriminatory gatekeeping. embracing the contributions of multilingual scholars: recommendations there are many distinct and measurable benefits to opening the gates of academic publishing to the increasing polyphony of multilingual scholars. canagarajah (2002) draws a fitting comparison between the push to integrate english-language and other-language academia and recent fusions between western and ayurvedic or chinese traditional medicine. although historically a great deal of misinformation and undue prejudice has surrounded types of medicine that were divergent from the western tradition, recently many attempts have been made by prestigious medical institutions to embrace proven practices and treatments from these other sources (canagarajah, 2002). in the same fashion, traditionally prestigious and powerful institutions of academia can tap into a wealth of resources by opening their doors to multilingual scholars. uzuner (2008) describes multilingual writers and researchers as “a main pillar of global scholarship”, capable of significantly enriching the academic traditions to which they contribute (p. 251). uzuner (2008) further elaborates how multilingual scholars enrich the knowledge base of academic communities by “exploring previously unexplored areas of research” and by “exposing and making accessible untapped resources” (p. 251). in a similar vein, uzuner (2008) explains how esl scholars make their work more accessible to other-language readership by relying on multimedia and graphs, tables, and images in the non-dialogic parts of their papers, resulting in improved comprehension and utility. widening the scope of articles that are accepted and read is a powerful force for promoting more efficient and collaborative international resource. as chew (2010) “is it better to belong to one nation among competing nations or to a united world?” (p. 58). chew (2010) hopes that reducing discrimination will lead to a state of “unity amidst diversity” alogali 67 where multiple norms and standards cooperate and coexist to serve the greater academic good (p. 49). if publishing institutions fail to embrace this enormous resource, uzuner (2008) fears that it will “impoverish knowledge production” around the world (p. 251). concluding thoughts: english as a catalyst for peace world englishes theory lays bare the realities of being a multilingual scholar, from its unique advantages to the intersections of history, politics, and privilege that make it so often a hurdle to be overcome. the underlying systems of capitalism, imperialism/colonialism, and the institutions which confer and preserve privileged hierarchies, however, could be unraveled by putting this theory into practice. however, just as the world english family of theories is diverse and regionally specific, responses to these oppressive systems and methods for overcoming their dominance vary based on the location and situation of the agents of change. much of the applicability of world englishes theory to improving the experiences of multilingual scholars is dependent on their geographic location, the academic tradition and culture from which they originate, infrastructure or logistical obstacles, and social mores or customs that relate to scholarship and language. canagarajah (2002) reminds us that the concept of positionality and the politics of location, ideas borrowed from feminist theory, can apply to language use and culture as well. each scholar’s unique linguistic, cultural, and material circumstances influence their ability to be heard and received differently by their academic peers, for good or for ill. for example, a scholar from a culture where freedom of information is restricted or censored may need to apply world englishes theory to legitimize what limited body of literature is available to him, and to encourage the relaxation of censorship and data restrictions to include foreign writings and scholarship. in a different situation, a scholar whose own country’s facilities for research proceed significantly differently than those of leading nations in the field may need to use world englishes research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 54-73 theory to explain the nuanced differences in approaches and explain how their variety makes them special and unique rather than redundant. finally, a scholar from a colonized area may need to tackle the lingering legacy of colonialism head-on in his writing using the principles of world englishes theory, rather than allowing it to remain an unspoken source of power and privilege. in this way, world englishes theory can become an agent of liberation and a way to push the boundaries of a location’s academic culture for the benefit of those within and outside of the area. world englishes theory is at heart a politicized theory which tears privilege from the hands of the few and wishes to spread it equally among all seekers of knowledge. because of this, it can be instrumental in promoting the ideals of freedom of information, equality among human beings, and non-violent intellectual resolutions to conflict. in the current era of increased political polarization, advanced and catastrophic weaponry, and widespread xenophobia, world englishes theory may serve as a beacon of optimism and mutual understanding for those who wish to resist the divisive forces of violence and xenophobia. hoffman and siebers (2009) offer an interesting and encouraging viewpoint on the plight of multilingual scholars, using concepts from the budding field of “peace linguistics”. as hoffman and siebers (2009) explain, it is important to define the rights of speakers referred to as “linguistic rights”, and to educate people on how to use language to come closer together rather than to set boundaries among each other (p. 408). hoffman and siebers’ agenda aligns with dor’s (2004) proclamation that speakers have a right to resist global pressures and use, maintain, and develop their local languages as well as their varieties of english. openly acknowledging the ways in which academic hierarchies and traditions of privilege affect our current academic institutions is an important way of recognizing that the linguistic rights of multilingual scholars are being violated, and allows us to work together to find ways to honor those rights. as hoffman & siebers (2009) suggest, embracing the world englishes framework and alogali 69 respecting multiple varieties of english is actually an important step in building linguistic peace, which can lead to other types of peace as well (p. 409). for example, acknowledging the nationhood or solidarity of a linguistic group which has been oppressed can provide relief for marginalized groups and allow them to express their identity in a non-violent, constructive way. providing official recognition for language varieties in government documents, schools, signs, and packaging offers increased visibility for members of marginalized groups and allows them to feel included and represented in their nation’s business. this provides a non-violent alternative to the suppression of or discrimination against members of said group, without compromising the nation’s integrity. it also allows members of the marginalized group to be recognized for their scholarly contributions in their own tongue, and to be eligible for academic awards and professional opportunities that might otherwise have gone to members of the dominant majority. in terms of promoting peace and collaboration rather than violence and division, world englishes offers a gateway from the academic to the political. hoffman & siebers (2009) argue that english has a unique position to be employed in the pursuit of peace. since it is such a globallyused tool, rather than being put to use to divide people and degrade certain groups, through the world englishes model it can serve as an example of cooperation and mutual acceptance for policymakers in government, in economic institutions, and in religious organizations. for example, acknowledging the flawed and bloody history of english as a language of colonization frees us to continue to use it consciously for reasons of efficiency, while also allowing it to mutate and morph to suit the needs of its modern-day users who are no longer (or never were) colonizers. using this mutable standard of english, rather than enforcing regional varieties from privileged areas, helps to neutralize its undertones of colonization and discrimination and render it a tool accessible to all. this practice can be employed anywhere that language varieties come into contact, from research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 54-73 diplomatic engagements to business contracts to academic or social media platforms. advances in translation technology will only improve the utility and feasibility of these applications as it becomes faster and easier to digitally alter text and audio to cater to different populations. ultimately, world englishes theory has the potential to transform our understanding and concepts of language and power if it is put properly into practice, for the empowerment of millions and the enrichment of global knowledge and scholarship. as chew (2010) states most elegantly, “a language must be at the service of the people who use it” (p. 67). let us cease the discrimination and gatekeeping and, through world englishes make english work for everyone who uses it. alogali 71 references bhatt, r. 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(2009). world englishes: a cognitive sociolinguistic approach. berlin: mouton de gruyter. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) e-issn: 2468-6891 42 measuring puerto ricans’ knowledge of the national, subnational and latin american flags carlos a. morales-ramirez1 abstract this study tests puerto ricans’ knowledge about the national and municipal flag, since it is known that teaching with flags is part of the social studies standards of the island. two questionnaires were provided to 50 participants to test their knowledge of the national, municipal and latin american flags. for the national and municipal flags, the participants were asked to provide the symbolism. a total of 96% drew the national flag correctly, although no one identified all the symbolisms correctly. only 2% of the participants identified all latin american flags correctly. a chi-square test was performed to test if flag knowledge and level of education were independent variables. the test value was 0.30 which is greater than the p > 0.10; therefore, the null hypothesis was accepted: ho = the level of schooling of the participants and their knowledge of the puerto rican flag are independent. key words: puerto rico, vexillology, municipal flags, flag knowledge, latin american flags, education introduction although the origin of flags dates to ancient times (cordero alvarado, 2014), vexillology – the study of flags (smith, 1975; montaner frutos, 2013) – was initially ‘coined’ as a discipline in the 1960s by dr. whitney smith (orenski, 2003). flags are an object of communication, expressing political ideologies, history and cultural aspirations (erbez rodriguez and balbuena castellano, 2008; minahan 2010; kizilçaoğlu, 2014). such communication represents the value of a nation, reflecting its change and transformation through time (endrst, 1992), honouring the symbolism of national identification (znamierowski, 2010; morales-ramirez, 2015). a nation’s symbol(s) carries strong feelings that summarize its essence (eriksen and jenkins, 2007; kilinc, tarman & aydın, 2018; kilinc, 2015; kilinc & dere, 2013; znamierowski, 2010; purcell, 2012). it is important to recognize that such symbols are not exclusive to the independent states of the 1 ph.d. candidate, national university of singapore, department of geography, cmoralesramirez@u.nus.edu morales-ramirez world (minahan, 2010). territories and other dependencies also incorporate their own ‘local’ symbols into many of their flag designs (whyte, 2007; minahan, 2010). scientific studies in vexillology are still very scarce (orenski, 2003; morales-ramirez, 2015). as the discipline endeavours to find its voice in the scientific world, there are a few vexillologists doing research and not just cataloguing flags (eriksen and jenkins, 2007; moralesramirez, 2015). for a vexillologist, it is critical to conduct analytical studies of flags which is needed as part of the scientific nature of the discipline (orenski, 2003; gregoric, 2010; purcell, 2012). some researchers have mentioned vexillonomy as the analytical usage of flags as part of the ‘responsibilities’ of studying flags (castany-prado, 2006). in 2003, orenski suggested the scientific research in vexillology to have: (1) data collection, (2) pattern recognition, (3) hypotheses and theories, and (4) predicting testable observations. this study incorporates these techniques to measure puerto ricans’ knowledge about their national and municipal (sub-national) flags. this is the first time a research like this is conducted in puerto rico. the main objective is to continue expanding scientific research within vexillology, while understanding the locals’ knowledge of flags. flag knowledge is important because it is part of education standards in the island. students are expected to be familiarized with such patriotic symbols from early age and throughout several academic grades (department of education of puerto rico, 2014). flags are also important because they are linked to national values, ideologies, and core values in general (becker et al., 2017). such importance has yet to be explored in puerto rico and it also shows the importance of vexillology as an eclectic emerging field within the social sciences. puerto rico is an island in the caribbean; a previous spanish colony that is now a territory of the united states (u.s.) (rodríguez ramos, 2010; scarano, 2011; ramos hernández, 2013). it wasn’t until 1952 that the island’s current flag was used as its main national symbol (ayala and bernabe, 2009; gómez biamón, 2012; jones, 2014). it is well known that the puerto rican flag was modelled after the cuban flag (cólon peña, 2000; gómez biamón, 2012), although both flags were inspired by the flag of the u.s. (minahan, 2010). the puerto rican flag was designed in 1895 and the cuban flag in 1849 (colón peña, 2000; bordeleau, 2014; méndez-méndez and fernandez, 2015). in 1892 a group of rebels seeking independence for puerto rico designed the current flag of the island during the anti-spain revolt (rivera arbolay, 2001; méndez-méndez and fernandez, 2015; denis, 2016). the flag is made up of a blue triangle at the hoist that represents the government’s republican powers (rivera arbolay, 2001; scarano, 2011; bordeleau, 2014). the research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3),42-67 red stripes symbolize bloodshed, the white stripes stand for liberty and human rights, and the star represents the commonwealth of puerto rico (scarano, 2011; bordeleau, 2014). overall, the puerto rican flag shows the brotherhood in the revolutionary fights in cuba and the island (scarano, 2011). figure 1. flag of puerto rico (image obtained with permission from fotw – flags of the world website: http://www.crwflags.com/fotw/flags/) in the island, the flag is taught all throughout primary and secondary school (department of education of puerto rico, 2014). the national flag is taught in kindergarten – age 5 – and by second grade (primary school) – age 7 – students are expected to know the patriotic symbols of their municipality and the island (indec, 2003; department of education of puerto rico, 2014). students learn about the national and local symbols such as the flag, anthem and shield (albert robatto, 2001; ramírez, 2002; ortiz garcía, 2006). all the 78 municipios (municipalities) of the island have a flag and a shield (toro sugrañez, 1995; rivera arbolay, 2001). by fifth grade –age 10 – students are learning about patriotic symbols of the countries in american continents and in sixth grade – age 11 – these are expanded to the entire world (department of education of puerto rico, 2014). although flags are incorporated in the school standards, knowledge about the flags is not expected to derive from this. in puerto rico, both the public and private sectors of education have struggled with their academic test results after an international student evaluation (lópez alicia, 2016). results from the academic achievement tests administered in the island have shown low percentage scores (vázquez, 2014; fortuño, 2016). the department of education has taken measures to improve such scores and are testing a new test with new parameters (quiles, 2015; figueroa cancel, 2016). social studies are not a subject incorporated in these tests (figueroa morales-ramirez cancel, 2016; fortuño, 2016; lópez alicea, 2016); therefore, no scores or percentages of academic achievement in this subject are available. it is difficult to attest if social studies standards are being met, due to the omission of the subject in these tests. therefore, this study hopes to shed light on the achievement of the cultural standard present in the social studies standards throughout most academic grades, as explained above. currently there is no data on how successful the concept of patriotic symbols is in the island or if the success is due to the individuals’ prior exposure to them in school (grades k-12), which presents an opportunity to conduct research on topics such as flag knowledge. method research design surveys in vexillology are common (kaye, 2001a, 2001b; 2005; guenter, 2015), with recent flag surveys by prof. scot m. guenter and amy langston presented at the north american vexillological association’s annual meetings, nava 49 in 2015 and nava 50 in 2016 respectively. taking from this initiative this research aimed to measure puerto ricans’ knowledge of the national, subnational, and latin american flags using questionnaires. population and sample the target sample size for this study was expected to be relative to the current research in the field (lenth, 2001), with a sample between 100-500 participants over the age of 18 years old (kaye, 2001a, 2001b, 2005; guenter, 2015). the initial sampling method used was a cluster sampling to select participants for a small-scale study in the municipality of san sebastián. for the final output, only 50 individuals showed up and completed the questionnaires, which did not allow for such sampling method to be carried out. sample size is critical in reporting proper results and may provide inadequate information if the amount is not sufficient (de martini, 2008; luh et al., 2008; ryan, 2013); therefore, for the scope of this study, a statistical analysis was done with this sample to understand the significance of the results (ryan, 2013). data collection tools a questionnaire was designed to test puerto ricans’ knowledge about the national flag and the flag of their municipality. the first part of the questionnaire had six questions asking the participants if they knew the flag of puerto rico and their hometown/municipality. participants had to draw the flags with all appropriate parts and provide the symbolism. the questionnaire was provided randomly to adults over the age of 18 years old. participants were not required to answer any/all research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3),42-67 questions and could leave the questionnaire at any time. after the first questionnaire was completed, a second one was created to test puerto ricans’ knowledge of latin american flags. upon reviewing the literature, and knowing that these flags are taught throughout primary and secondary school, this questionnaire was created to understand puerto ricans’ knowledge of flags of other countries they are exposed to in school. it was created to measure this knowledge and expand upon depending on the results. since puerto rico is a territory of the u.s., the u.s. flag was included in this second questionnaire. only ten flags, and not all of them, were given in this questionnaire to ensure all participants completed it: mexico, cuba, dominican republic, jamaica, haiti, brazil, panama, argentina, chile, and the u.s. these flags, except the u.s., were selected randomly from the group of countries that comprise latin america (jamaica was included because of its proximity to the island). the flag of the u.s. was included since puerto rico is a territory of the country and the flag is displayed next to the puerto rican one everywhere. in this part, participants were not asked specific information about the flags. a sample of 50 individuals were given the two questionnaires. data collection two questionnaires were provided to all participants. they were asked to complete all questions and were informed they could stop at any time. there was no time limit. all questionnaires were collected and each question was documented and analyzed. data analysis a chi-square test was conducted to analyse the dependency/independency of the flag knowledge and schooling. this test is commonly used in social science research (franke et al., 2012) and examines independency between two variables (agresti and kateri, 2011; franke et al., 2012; mchugh, 2013). it is a non-parametric test that measures nominal or categorical data (franke et al., 2012; mchugh, 2013) to test two hypotheses: null hypothesis ho (variables are independent) and alternate hypothesis ha (variables are not independent) (lemeshko, 2015). the null hypothesis of this study is that level of schooling and knowledge about the flag are independent variables, while the alternate hypothesis states they are not independent. findings morales-ramirez a total of 50 participants completed both questionnaires. all participants were puerto ricans and questionnaires were completed in the island. of these participants, 68% were females and 32% were males. gender was not used as part of the final analysis of the results. participants’ ages ranged from 18 years old to 72. six age groups were created: 18-24 years; 25-34 years; 3544 years; 45-54 years; 55-64 years; and over 65 years. most of the participants were in the age group of 18-24 years old, with 32% of the entire group. the age group with the least participants was over 65 years with 2%. the remaining age groups had the following percentages of the participants: 25-34 years (12%); 35-44 years (30%); 45-54 years (18%); and 55-64 years (6%). five categories were created for the level of education of the participants: (1) elementary school (10%); (2) junior high school (8%); (3) high school (20%); (4) didn’t attend or finish school (2%); and (5) university degree [any level currently in progress or completed] (60%). the initial intent of this questionnaire was to only survey participants in the municipality of san sebastián. due to the variety of people that either reside outside of their hometown or commute to other municipalities for work or school, ten municipalities are represented in the results. most of the participants, 66%, are from san sebastián. other municipalities represented were: camuy (14%), arecibo (6%), and aguada, aguadilla, aguas buenas, caguas, dorado, lares, and quebradillas, all with 2% of the participants each. all participants had to answer the same questions about the national flag. however, they were asked to answer the municipal flag question using their hometown/municipality of residency. the first question asked participants if they knew the flag of puerto rico. only 2% did not answer the question and 2% answered that they did not know the flag. the rest of the participants knew the flag (96%). after this, they had to draw the flag to confirm their answer. of the total, 98% drew a flag – not necessarily a complete one. all participants that drew a flag had to correctly draw all parts of it (figure 2). only 4 %, of the 98% that drew a flag, did not draw the flag with all correct parts. the majority of the 98% that drew a flag did draw all parts correctly (72%), the rest either drew two (2%), five (4%) or six (18%) parts of the flag. these incomplete answers had the star and the triangle. the parts that were incorrect or incomplete were the five stripes. it is not clear if participants forgot to mention all five stripes or if they did not know the exact numbers. if they did not draw all five stripes but mentioned that the flag had that number of stripes this was considered a correct/complete answer. an incomplete answer was when less than five stripes were drawn and/or mentioned. they were also asked to name the colours of each part. most participants research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3),42-67 named a colour (84%). however, not everyone named them correctly. since there are seven parts to the puerto rican flags, participants were asked to name all colours for all the parts. like the number of parts being mentioned, it is not clear if participants forgot to mention the colours for every part or did not know them, since the results varied: not answering (16%), naming two correctly (4%). figure 2. parts of the flag of puerto rico and colours. the circles with the numbers represent the parts participants had to draw correctly. the colours of each part are listed. the number of parts and the number of colours participants had to identify correctly is seven the final part of the section on the puerto rican flag was to write the symbolism of each part of the flag. although many participants knew the flag and drew most of it accurately, only 28% said they knew the symbolism, with the remaining 72% answering they did not. it was expected for participants to name five symbolisms of the flag: (1) the meaning of the triangle, (2) the red stripes or the colour red, (3) the white stripes or the colour white, (4) the star, and (5) the meaning behind the similarity to the cuban flag. no one identified all the symbolisms of the parts of the flags: no answer or incorrect answer (76%), three correct symbolisms (2%), two (6%), and one correct symbolism (16%). answers about the symbolism varied. some participants alluded to the current political parties for the meaning of the colours, since two of them use a colour of the flag: red (popular democratic party) and blue (progress new party). the star was the part of the flag that most answered correctly (80%), followed by the colour red (15%) and the symbolism of morales-ramirez the triangle (5%). there were two participants that answered ‘no’ to this question about the symbolism and provided an answer. the answers provided were incorrect or incomplete. the last question of this part of the questionnaire, knowing the symbolism of the national flag, was used to determine the significance of the results based on the education level of the participants. a chi-square test was performed with the appropriate results. the observed values (actual count) (table 1) were entered and the expected values were calculated as follows: e = m𝑟 𝑥 m𝑐 n e = expected value; mr = total amount for that row; mc = total amount for that column; and n = total sample size. table 1 knowledge of the puerto rican flag by level of schooling. the observed values (actual counts) are listed first and in parenthesis is the expected calculated value is listed. level of schooling correct knowledge about the symbolism incorrect knowledge about the symbolism or no answer provided total elementary school 2 (1.4) 3 (3.6) 5 junior high school 0 (1.12) 4 (2.88) 4 high school 2 (2.8) 8 (7.2) 10 university degree (completed or in progress) 9 (8.4) 21 (21.6) 30 no schooling 1 (0.28) 0 (0.72) 1 total 14 36 n = 50 the next step was to obtain the cells chi-square value (χ2) in order to get the degree of freedom to determine the significance of the results. for this, the observed values were subtracted from the expected values. the result was squared before dividing it from the expected value: χ2 = (𝑂 − 𝐸)² 𝐸 this means that the first cell was calculated as follows: (2-1.14)2/1.14 = 0.26 (table 2). all the cell values were added to get the cell value for the table, in this case this value is 4.87. next, the table’s degree of freedom (df) was calculated to get the level of significance for the statistical analysis. the equation below was used to get the df. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3),42-67 ([number of rows] – 1) x ([number of columns] – 1) the equation was as follows: ([4] – 3) x ([7] – 1) = 18. the final step was to get the results from the chi-square statistical test. the test results determine if the hypothesized results are verified. it takes the distribution of chi-square value (χ2) with the calculated degree of freedom. the chisquare test value was 0.30. based on this number, our significance level in this analysis is p > 0.10. since the results are greater than this value, the null hypothesis is accepted: ho = the level of schooling of the participants and their knowledge of the puerto rican flag are independent. table 2 expected values and chi-square values in parenthesis. level of schooling correct knowledge about the symbolism incorrect knowledge about the symbolism or no answer provided total elementary school 1.4 (0.26) 3.6 (0.1) 5 junior high school 1.12 (1.12) 2.88 (0.44) 4 high school 2.8 (0.23) 7.2 (0.09) 10 university degree (completed or in progress) 8.4 (0.04) 21.6 (0.02) 30 no schooling 0.28 (1.85) 0.72 (0.72) 1 total 14 36 n = 50 the next three questions related to the participant’s hometown/municipality. the same questions were asked for the flag of their respective hometown/municipality. similar to the first question about the puerto rican flag, participants were asked if they knew the flag of their hometown. the majority answered ‘yes’, 56%, with 28% answering they did not know it and the remaining 16% did not answer the question. only 52% of the participants drew a flag –not necessarily one with all correct parts. the remaining percentage, 48%, accounts for participants that did not draw a flag. due to the variability of municipalities represented in this study, the different flags had different number of parts, ranging from two parts (lares: the cross and the star) to eight (aguada: the star, the three diagonal bands, the cross, the name, the blue triangle, and the dove) (figure 3) (toro sugrañes, 1995). for flags like aguadilla, arecibo and caguas, the participants were not required to draw the shield in detail. they were only asked to indicate where morales-ramirez the shield is located in the flag. this was explained prior to the questionnaire to ensure no answers were provided on flags that incorporate external sources in their design. other symbols like the dove in the flag of aguada, the taíno sun in the flag of camuy and the fleur-de-lys in the flag of dorado were not expected to be drawn in detail. participants were informed to draw a shape and mention was it represented if they were not sure how to draw it. figure 3. flags from the municipalities listed by the participants as their hometown. the number of parts participants had to draw correctly for each of these municipalities are as follows: aguada (eight parts), aguadilla (three parts), aguas buenas (four parts), arecibo (three parts), camuy (three parts), caguas (seven parts), dorado (six parts), lares (two parts), and quebradillas (four parts). (images obtained with permission from fotw – flags of the world website: http://www.crwflags.com/fotw/flags/) only 32% of the participants drew all the parts of their hometown’s flag correctly, with 81% of these being from the municipality of san sebastián. the flag of this municipality has three parts in its design (figure 4) and each part has its own symbolism: red for the bloodshed during puerto rico’s first cry for independence during the lares revolutionary movement, the white band stands for the culebrinas river, and the green is for the mountains surrounding it (toro sugrañes, 1995). when asked if they knew the meaning of each part of the flag, 56% of the participants of research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3),42-67 all municipalities said they did not. the remaining percentage, 44%, were from incorrect answers or for those who did not answer because they did not know the flag. of the 33 individuals from san sebastián, 39% answered all symbolisms of the flag correctly, 36% did not answer and the remaining did not answer correctly. participants were able to identify the meaning of the colour red. since the municipality is surrounded by two main rivers – culebrinas and guajataca – some participants confused the river the wavy band alludes to. the symbolism of the colour green proves to be the more challenging out of three, with participants not mentioning it in their answer. figure 4. flag of san sebastián. (image obtained with permission from fotw – flags of the world website: http://www.crwflags.com/fotw/flags/) for the second questionnaire, participants were asked to name the country of each of the ten flags provided. there was a total of eight flags from latin american countries, jamaica and the flag of the u.s. flags were chosen based on the proximity of the countries to puerto rico (e.g. cuba, haiti, dominican republic and jamaica) and popularity of the country (e.g. argentina and brazil are well known in sport events). all the 50 participants completed this part of the questionnaire. of the total, only 2% identified all flags correctly – one individual. most participants were able to identify five flags correctly (20%). there rest of the results are as follows: one (6%), two (8%), three (14%), four (8%), five (20%), six (6%), seven (14%), eight (16%), nine (6%), and ten (2%) flags. all participants identified the flag of the u.s. correctly and only 4% were able to identify haiti’s flag correctly. morales-ramirez figure 5. flags of latin american chosen for this study. (images obtained with permission from fotw – flags of the world website: http://www.crwflags.com/fotw/flags/). discussion, conclusion and implications most of the participants were able to identify and correctly draw the puerto rican flag. it is not clear why or how they were able to do so, as the questionnaire did not further explore this. it is known that puerto ricans have a strong sense of pride for their island (barreto, 2002; duany, 2003; lópez-baralt, 2010). they are also very nationalistic when it comes to cultural identities (flores, 1993; barreto, 2002; font-guzmán 2013, 2015). due to its political status of ‘unincorporated state’, puerto rico participates in sports events like the olympics and beauty pageants that allow for the flag to be flown and exposed (duany, 2003). the flag can also be seen outside of the island, especially in neighbourhoods in the u.s. with a large puerto rican population (aparicio, 2016). in a neighbourhood in chicago, illinois (humboldt park) there are two metallic puerto rican flags with a length of 18 meters (agencia efe, 2015). in these neighbourhoods in research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3),42-67 the u.s., the flag is easy to see, especially during the many puerto rican day parades (aparicio, 2016; power, 2016). puerto ricans emigrate from the island to the conterminous u.s. to display their pride and cultural identify, expressing it with flags – the bigger the better (aparicio, 2016; power, 2016). this allows for more exposure to the island’s patriotic symbols and may explain the results of the first question of this questionnaire. as with many national flags, the puerto rican flag is flown in governmental offices throughout the island alongside the flag of the u.s. therefore, the flag of the u.s. is also commonly seen in the island (lexjuris puerto rico, n.d.). both flags must be flown together, and not complying may result in penalties (lexjuris puerto rico, n.d.; agencia efe, 2013; primera hora, 2013). in schools, the flag of the u.s. and other patriotic symbols are part of the social science curriculum (department of education of puerto rico, 2014). the exposure to the patriotic symbols of the u.s. can also explain why all participants were able to identify the flag in the second part of the questionnaire. the chi-square results showed that the significance of knowledge of the puerto rican flag and level of education are two independent variables. therefore, knowledge of these two flags may come from other forms of exposure to it. it is not known how successful the social studies standards in the island are, therefore, research in this area is needed to further understand if there is a correlation. also, exposure to the puerto rican flag comes from many sources that include and are not limited to: music, movies, art, merchandise, among others. a larger sample size will be needed to get a better understanding of these results. like the other response, a clear reason about the results of the municipal flag is not known. as with the flag of puerto rico and the u.s., each of the 78 municipalities in the island has a flag with its own displaying laws (lexjuris puerto rico, n.d.). under law #70 of march 20th, 2006, it is mandated that each of the municipalities should use their flag and fly it outside of their town hall; it is up to the municipality’s mayor to provide regulations of its usage (lexjuris puerto rico, n.d.). the flags are seen in every municipality, in more than one location. information about their symbolism can be found in each municipality’s website (e.g. http://aquiestapuertorico.com/ssdelpepino/) and even in informative materials (e.g. http://www.munss.org/downloads/informacion%20de%20san%20sebastian.pdf). although there is no literature to support the exposure puerto ricans have to their municipal flags, one is guaranteed to see them flying in places at the municipality, other than governmental offices and buildings, and in textbooks (see toro sugrañes, 1993 and rivera arbolay, 2001). this can morales-ramirez explain individuals’ knowledge about the flag, or at least the reason they were able to draw the flag but not know or remember its symbolism. for the remaining latin american flags there was no clear pattern or trend of knowledge identified. for example, certain participants did not identify jamaica correctly, while others had no problems with it. the only trend observed was the lack of correct answers (or an answer) with the flag of haiti. as mentioned in the results, only 4% (two individuals) identified the flag correctly. the rest of the participants did not even attempt to name it. haiti, along with the dominican republic form the island of the hispaniola, which is west of puerto rico. it is part of the social science curriculum in puerto rico to teach flags such as the haitian one (department of education of puerto rico, 2014). however, it is not known how well these are taught, how often, or if educators even incorporate all the flags of the countries in the american continents. the history of the country is part of the curriculum, since events such as the haitian revolution are important in history and in the region (moya pons, 2012; dubois, 2013). such event does not show or incorporate the flag of haiti, since at that time it was fighting for independence from france (moya pons, 2012; dubois, 2013); therefore, if knowledge of this flag is attributed to puerto ricans’ exposure to it, then this may explain the lack of knowledge. haiti is not a high-profile country in the media. when the country does appear in the media, it is usually done in a negative way (potter, 2009). in major sporting events, such as the olympics, which is where flags are displayed, and this is major event that many people pay attention to, haiti does not have a large team or has won many medals (the new yorker, 2016). this study tested puerto ricans’ knowledge about the national and appropriate municipal flags. the results show that most of the participants know the national flag, although the reason or background knowledge for this was not tested. it is hypothesized, that such knowledge of the national flag comes from pride and overexposure to it, as the flag is observed and used outside of the island. no one identified all symbolisms of the national flag correctly. if exposure to the flag is a reason for participants to know it, then this may explain why the symbolism is not known. flying or displaying the flag everywhere (including abroad) will not help with knowing the symbolism unless it is learned. the symbolism of flags is not often simple, and the puerto rican flag is a great example of that. also, with subnational flags symbolism is rarely found easily, which requires studying it or doing some research to find it. participants came from different municipalities of the island; therefore, the second part of the first questionnaire showed varied research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3),42-67 results. most participants were from the municipality of san sebastián. these individuals represented many participants that knew the municipal flag and the symbolism. although at the national level the results varied throughout all participants. like the hypothesis about the knowledge of the puerto rican flag, it is thought that such knowledge about the municipal flags comes from the exposure residents have to it. san sebastián is a municipality with ample documents about their patriotic symbols and the flag is observed often in the area. when asked to identify flags of latin america and the flag of the u.s., the results of the questionnaire did not show any significant trend. all participants identified the flag of the u.s. correctly, probably because the flag has to be flown next to the puerto rican everywhere in the island. only 2% identified all ten flags provided correctly, including haiti’s flag. this was the only flag the participants did not identify or even attempted to guess. this may be due to the lack of exposure the country gets in the media and major events worldwide. to address some of these concerns and/or knowledge gaps, this study can be conducted with more individuals and extended directly to schools. if educators are following the standards created by the department of education of puerto rico, students currently learning about such symbolisms should have better scores than most of the individuals that participated in this study. although it was not the aim of this study, another possibility can be to expand the current questionnaire and ask questions about the background knowledge that allowed the participants to identify and describe a flag. since education and knowledge do not show a significance of dependency, it is expected that participants provide other sources of knowledge (although the sample size is not enough to provide a definite conclusion). this can be due to the sample size of the study or because of the lack of knowledge about the success of social studies standards. although standards include flag knowledge in the social studies curriculum, it is not known if these are incorporated and how well these are taught. overall, this study provides an outline to continue doing research studies in vexillology, specifically in puerto rico. it contributes to the ongoing growth of the discipline as a science and shows that scientific research can be conducted in the field in order to depart from just cataloguing flags. morales-ramirez references agencia efe. 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(2007). on cartographic vexillology, cartographica 42(3):251-262. znamierowski, a. (2010). the world encyclopedia of flags. anness publishing: london. morales-ramirez appendix appendix a. questionnaire about national and subnational flag knowledge título: símbolos patrios de puerto rico: las banderas age: __________ gender: masculine ________ femenine _________ municipio donde reside: _________________________________ level of school completed: escuela elemental escuela intermedia escuela superior universidad no fue a la escuela 1. ¿conoces la bandera de puerto rico? (si la conoces pasa a la pregunta #2. si no la conoces pasa a la pregunta #4.) a. sí ___________ b. no ___________ 2. dibuja y menciona los colores de cada parte de la bandera. 3. detalladamente, explica el simbolismo de cada parte de la bandera. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3),42-67 4. ¿conoces la bandera de tu municipio? (si la conoces pasa a la pregunta #5.) a. sí ___________ b. no ___________ 5. dibuja y menciona los colores de cada parte de la bandera. 6. detalladamente, explica el simbolismo de cada parte de la bandera. morales-ramirez appendix b. questionnaire about latin american flags. título: símbolos patrios de puerto rico: las banderas edad: __________ género: masculino ________ femenino _________ municipio donde reside: _________________________________ nivel de educación completado: escuela elemental escuela intermedia escuela superior universidad no fue a la escuela parte ii 1. identifica el país al que pertenecen las siguientes banderas: a. __________________________________ b. ______________________________ c. _____________________________ research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3),42-67 d. ____________________________ e. _____________________________ f. _____________________________ g. _________________________________ morales-ramirez h. ________________________________ i. _______________________________ j. ____________________________ research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 watson, e. (2020). #education: the potential impact of social media and hashtag ideology on the classroom research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 40 #education: the potential impact of social media and hashtag ideology on the classroom ellen watson* university of alberta *corresponding author: ellen.watson@ualberta.ca received : 2019-06-10 rev. req. : 2020-04-13 accepted : 2018-04-25 doi: 10.46303/ressat.05.02.3 how to cite this paper: watson, e. (2020). #education: the potential impact of social media and hashtag ideology on the classroom. research in social sciences and technology, 5(2), 40-56. doi.org/10.46303/ressat.05.02.3 abstract common on social media platforms, the hashtag (#) organizes users’ ideas, emotions, and comments. originally used to create a searchable platform, the hashtag and its ideology present interesting considerations for changes to education. as students using social media today most certainly use hashtags to converse, hashtag-informed teaching could connect education to students’ worlds instead of forcing students to fit into the pre-defined world of education. prevalent in post-secondary education, k-12 educators have recently begun to integrate social media tools into their classrooms, but what are the pedagogical implications of the ideologies of these tools? in response, this study asked the following question: “how can the hashtag inform the k-12 classroom?” using a systematic literature review and thematic analysis, this study analyzed eight articles that discussed the use of hashtags with k-12 students. findings indicated four themes that could inform the alignment of k-12 classrooms with hashtag ideology: encouraging voice and user-generated content, the potential of selforganization, network hetero/homogeneity, and connecting to space without a common physical space. suggestions are provided as to how classrooms (and education) may consider restructuring to better reflect hashtag ideology, meeting students in their social media-driven world. keywords: hashtag, social media, educational change introduction social media technologies such as twitter have become an integral part of society. launched in 2006, twitter connects users with short, 140-character messages (recently increased to 280character messages) called tweets (reed, 2013). using these short messages and running feeds, twitter connects users across the globe. there are 328 million monthly users with over 500 million tweets sent per day. above that number, twitter’s website highlights that over 3,600 employees from around the world are using twitter in a business aspect. it has also been found that approximately 50 percent of students aged 13-17 use twitter (science daily, 2017). clearly, social media has infiltrated our society and is making its mark on our culture. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 watson, e. (2020). #education: the potential impact of social media and hashtag ideology on the classroom research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 41 social media makes connecting with others easier than ever; many platforms, including twitter, allow users to facilitate and organize information using hashtags, encouraging users to combine and develop knowledge as a group while connecting with others. unfortunately, education has neglected to see beyond the mere communicative process of twitter, ignoring the principles and possible impacts that twitter’s structures of communication might have on curricula. analyzing and recognizing the ideologies and social structures informing the everyday world of our students, such as those connected to social media, could provide direction for us to create a structure of schooling that better serves the students of today’s world. twitter’s organization and messaging structures have revolutionized world communication and thinking; specifically, the hashtag has been positioned as a point of association, organization, unification, and polarization. youth use hashtags every day on social media platforms as a way to connect. yet, schooling remains unchanged, ignoring those principles brought to culture by the hashtag. by ignoring the pedagogical implications of social media, “education [risks becoming] unworldly and the world [risks becoming] non-educational," (illich, 1972, p. 24). students need a relatable world, but, more importantly, they need an education they can relate to the world. teaching through social media ideologies, such as those associated with the hashtag, could bring this revolution to the k-12 classroom; this article aims to show how classrooms might change to incorporate the ideologies informing a hashtag to better meet their clientele today. social media use in education educational research has extensively studied the use of hashtags with both teachers and postsecondary students. the majority of research investigating the use of social media (including the use of hashtags) has been conducted in higher education (kimmons et al., 2018; tang & hew, 2017). recently, there has also been a surge of studies investigating k-12 teachers’ use of social media (and hashtags) for professional development (e.g., coleman et al., 2018; duffy et al., 2018; meredith, 2018; rosell-aguilar, 2018; willet, 2019). in these studies, it has been claimed that the use of hashtags facilitates the communication of content and provides the ability to connect with and to others and information. however, high school is a very different context than post-secondary education or the professional development of adult learners. few studies in peer-reviewed literature focus on social media (e.g., twitter) as it can be connected to k-12 classrooms. studies have shown the benefits of connecting social media use to k-12 curricula (kilinc et al., 2012) and the increase in teacher-student communication offered by social media (vasquez cano, 2012). twitter, specifically, has been shown to improve students’ engagement with a subject (loomis, 2018). studies have also shown that using social media in younger classrooms can be problematic as students need time to learn how to appropriately use the platform, particularly if they have never participated in social media (gunuc et al., 2013). largely, as with studies in post-secondary and professional development research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 watson, e. (2020). #education: the potential impact of social media and hashtag ideology on the classroom research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 42 contexts, research in k-12 has focused on analyzing how social media has been used and the benefits of its use to teaching and learning. the use of social media (such as twitter, where the hashtag originated) has been shown to be beneficial in k-12 contexts, but the implications of the ideologies behind this modality have been largely ignored by researchers. in response to this gap in the literature, this study endeavored to view connections between the hashtag and education from a different lens: how the ideology and use of the hashtag on social media might inform classroom structure in k-12 schools. by analyzing those studies that have investigated hashtag use, this research was able to extend beyond analyzing the use of the hashtag in schools and theorize about how we might apply the principles of hashtagged communication to classroom structure and organization. what is a hashtag? while hashtags today appear on many social media spaces such as twitter, facebook, and instagram, it was on twitter on august 23, 2007, that users began attaching metadata (a.k.a. hashtags) to tweets (bates, 2013). attaching the “#” symbol in front of a word (or non-spaced phrase) creates a hashtag; for example, #groundhogday is read “hashtag groundhog day”. originally used to mark topics and searchable keywords (lu, 2014), the # (or hash) symbol today often indicates emotion, sarcasm, connection to an event or place, and more. by attaching a hashtag, a user gives an idea a boundary and a focus (jeffares, 2014) while also informing other users about what they are discussing. on top of this, those following hashtagged conversations are able to choose with what information they want to interact by selecting those hashtags they are curious about and want to learn from (bates, 2013). the hashtag is ubiquitous across all social media platforms; knowing how to “think in hashtags” (as put by gleason, 2018) is a skill learned beyond a specific social media platform. this is a very different way of conversing than that occurring in k-12 classrooms today. participants in classroom conversations are students, generally similar in their geographical location and age. while these students can choose with whom they want to be friends, they cannot choose with whom they are classmates. the teacher, curriculum, and textbook often dictate what is learned; the student does not choose the information with which they want to interact. even with the introduction of inquiry activities and student choice, classrooms still have a particular learning goal in mind. hashtagged conversations have no specific goal to achieve. students use hashtags in their daily life, yet k-12 classrooms operate differently than social media spaces. thus, this article sought to answer this question: “how might a k-12 classroom look if informed by ideals implied by hashtags?” methods design systematic review procedures were used to search, select, and extract data from studies and articles that met eligibility criteria for this study. an approach that uses secondary-level analysis research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 watson, e. (2020). #education: the potential impact of social media and hashtag ideology on the classroom research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 43 to review existing research in light of a new question (newman & gough, 2019), the advantage of a systematic review is that it clearly defines the protocols and search methods used to identify studies relevant to the research question being posed. using these identified studies, findings can be synthesized to produce results that answer a question for which research is not readily available. systematic reviews require a rigorous, methodical, and transparent approach to their search of the literature. following a systematic review process (as described by newman & gough, 2019) requires the researcher to (1) pose a question, (2) identify assumptions, (3) develop search procedures and criteria, (4) search and select studies meeting criteria, (5) code studies, and (6) synthesize results. to meet steps (1) and (2) in newman and gough’s process, this study sought to answer the question, “how might a k-12 classroom look if informed by ideals implied by hashtags?” by extending findings from those studies already published that explored the use of hashtags in k-12 education. recognizing a subjectivist epistemology and relativistic ontology, the findings from this research are interpreted from the perspective of the researcher. it should also be noted that these findings represent interpretations from studies that have been published in peer-reviewed work since there may be research beyond articles in peer-reviewed journals that could have supported or refuted these findings; however, to create a manageable search, and as these studies have been shown to meet the quality standard of the academy, this study was limited to peer-reviewed work. search procedures, criteria, and study selection five electronic databases were used to identify eligible articles: education research complete (ebscohost), eric, proquest, psychinfo, and sage journals online (education database only). a keyword search within each electronic database was conducted with the word “hashtag” to be found in the title or abstract of a paper (as this eliminated studies discussing hashtags in passing and not as a focus of their article). the keyword “education” was added to the search terms as a second term when the database did not allow researchers to limit results to education-specific journals. hand searching of reference lists of articles identified during the search process occurred after exhausting all five databases. titles and abstracts of articles found through the search procedures were screened for relevance. if the article appeared to fit the eligibility requirements, or if it appeared to have the potential to fit these requirements, the full-text document was obtained and screened to determine inclusion. decisions for selection were based on the following eligibility criteria: peer-reviewed, empirical study, conducted with primary or secondary students, and providing results on hashtag use or theorizing on the influence of hashtag use. studies were not restricted to any timeframe, but no studies were found using the search parameters before 2010. only english language articles were considered. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 watson, e. (2020). #education: the potential impact of social media and hashtag ideology on the classroom research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 44 data analysis procedures studies that met inclusion criteria were read and themes speaking to the question, “how might a k-12 classroom look if informed by ideals implied by hashtags?” noted. using a thematic analysis approach per braun and clarke (2006), those studies identified as meeting the selection criteria were analyzed by (1) familiarizing oneself with the data (i.e., thoroughly reading identified articles), (2) generating initial codes, (3) searching for themes, (4) reviewing themes and coding, (5) defining and naming the themes, and (6) describing the theme for reporting. as each identified article was read thoroughly, initial codes were generated; these included: confirmation bias, diverse connections, constructing and contributing to knowledge, online space navigation and search terms, learning hashtags, online presence, location, sharing information without conversing, and user-generated content. codes were analyzed and collapsed into four overarching themes that spoke to hashtag ideals in the classroom: giving voice to students, self-organization and emerging knowledge, homophily and heterogeneity, and space beyond place. using these four themes, the researcher re-read each identified article to assess connections of existing codes to each theme. finally, themes were defined using the coded findings and a description of each theme written. findings and discussion titles and abstracts of 200 citations retrieved from electronic searches of databases were reviewed. of those, the full texts of 15 articles were retrieved and screened for inclusion as they potentially met the criteria for this study. eight of these articles met the eligibility criteria. common reasons for article rejection included: not education-focused (n=60), post-secondary populations (n=40), teacher or administrator development focus (n=26), and metric prediction or measurement (n=17). other reasons for article rejection included: not written in english, methodology focused, and public movement analysis. arguably, this is a small sample for literature analysis on this topic, yet this also highlights the need to analyze the implications of the hashtag in secondary education. overview of article findings of those articles that conducted formal studies (n=6), four reported secondary student participants, with one (gleason, 2018) starting the research with secondary students and completing the study with these students in college. all of these articles included student voice within their findings. the representation of these voices included students describing their interaction with hashtags (e.g., gleason 2016, 2018; jimenez, 2016) and a representation of tweets from students (e.g., gleason, 2016, 2018; journell et al., 2013, 2014). there were no articles using primary school-aged participants, likely due to twitter requiring users to be age 13 or older. some articles presented a strong focus on hashtags and their educational implications (e.g., gleason, 2013, 2016, 2018; journell et al., 2013) while others discussed hashtags among other research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 watson, e. (2020). #education: the potential impact of social media and hashtag ideology on the classroom research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 45 results and topics in their article (e.g., krutka, 2013; taylor & weigel, 2016). those articles focused on hashtag use generally portrayed deeper exploration of hashtags and their impact on learning. as shown in table 1, four major themes were identified across the eight included articles. each x represents a theme’s presence within each article. these themes reflected results describing the influence of hashtags on learning. the four identified themes were: (1) giving voice to students, (2) self-organization and emerging knowledge, (3) network homophily and heterogeneity, and (4) connecting to a space beyond place. each of these areas are described in the next section. theme descriptions giving voice to students. one theme common to all studies and articles included in this review was that of giving voice. several studies (i.e., gleason, 2013, 2016; jimenez, 2016; journell et al., 2013) discussed the prevalence of user-generated content within hashtagged discussions. as students contributed to hashtagged conversations, they took part in discussions they may not have encountered within the classroom. there was a significant amount of user-generated content within hashtagged conversations (gleason, 2013), and this is one form of giving voice. hashtagged conversations provided voices that were additional, and sometimes alternative, to those available in traditional media (gleason, 2013). this meant that students who might otherwise be excluded from discussions on world issues could contribute their voices and actively participate in these conversations (gleason, 2013, 2018; journell et al., 2013). students noted that they were able to gather information that differed from what they read in books or viewed in controlled media; information came from users experiencing issues that resonated with them, sparking students to contribute their voices to the conversation (gleason, 2018; jimenez, 2016). in these hashtagged forums, everyone was able to contribute their voice and had a chance to be heard (journell et al., 2014). young people could become part of the story being told through hashtagged information (gleason, 2016). table 1. articles mapped to represented themes reviewed article giving voice selforganization & emerging knowledge homophily & heterogeneity space beyond place #occupy wall street: exploring informal learning about a social movement on twitter (gleason, 2013) x x x new literacies practices of teenage twitter users (gleason, 2016) x x x research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 watson, e. (2020). #education: the potential impact of social media and hashtag ideology on the classroom research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 46 thinking in hashtags: exploring teenagers’ new literacies practice on twitter (gleason, 2018) x x x democratic twittering: using social media in the social studies (krutka, 2013) x x #sayhernameloudly: how black girls are leading #blacklivesmatter (jimenez, 2016) x x x tweeting in the classroom (journell, ayers, & beeson, 2014) x x x joining the conversation: twitter as a tool for student political engagement (journell, ayers, & beeson, 2013) x x x using twitter for student learning & connecting with scientists (taylor & weigel, 2016) x x articles presented arguments for students to share their voices, but a few articles also presented the issue of voicing without listening. when following a hashtag, one can choose with what information one will engage (gleason, 2013) or whether one engages at all. for example, in the study by journell et al. (2013), students participated in hashtagged discussions but rarely responded directly to classmates’ contributions. there was plenty of talking, but there was little indication of listening. in another example, gleason (2018) described one student using twitter as a forum to tweet about her experiences as a form of journaling. this student did not intend to have a conversation with others; rather, she wanted to share the information with the world and had no intention of discussing these tweets further. hashtagged discussions were designed to be read but not necessarily designed to foster responses (journell et al., 2016). hence, in some studies, students were talking “at each other” rather than “with each other” (journell et al., 2014, p. 66). hashtags gave students a voice, yet it may not be the case that this always produced productive discussion. self-organization and emerging knowledge. hashtags were used to guide meaning-making (gleason, 2016, 2018). that is, hashtags were often attached to statements to indicate identity, humor, and connect relevant information. this allowed participation in a collective experience while contributing to the knowledge and culture connected to the hashtag. for example, the hashtag “#studentproblems” allows users to share their problems as students (often in an amusing way). with this hashtag, students are able to connect and organize knowledge by contributing and informing themselves of what others have contributed. the tweet “i never realized how much i needed coffee until i wrote finals #studentproblems” voices a student’s distaste for finals while also commiserating with others involved in the community. this publicly research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 watson, e. (2020). #education: the potential impact of social media and hashtag ideology on the classroom research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 47 voices that this student believes coffee is an important key to finals success, which may prompt another user to seek caffeinated assistance in the future. moreover, the phrase #studentproblems connects “students” over problems that are common to their peer group, creating a community defined by the hashtag. by contributing to hashtags, students informally construct knowledge with like-minded users (gleason, 2013). along with constructing knowledge, evidence also indicated that students organized and cultivated their learning with hashtags. through hashtags, students connected with others interested in similar knowledge and actively cultivated their knowledge on a topic (jimenez, 2016). as they connected with others, students learned to navigate hashtagged spaces, including where to go and how to behave (gleason, 2013). gleason (2018) called this hashtag practice “orientating” and described how some students learned to navigate these spaces through mimicking others’ use of twitter. users in these studies were able to organize learning spaces for (and help orientate) others wanting to connect with certain information using hashtags. hashtags alerted readers to new or relevant information (gleason, 2016), which allowed students in studies such as jimenez (2016) and journell et al. (2013, 2014) to learn to navigate informal learning spaces. for example, in jimenez (2016), students explained that they were able to learn about a topic by following hashtags similar to those to which they were introduced (e.g., #blacklivesmatter). in doing this, these students organized their knowledge and found spaces to which they wanted to contribute, such as #ifidieinpolicecustody. hashtags provide an effective way of organizing the informal learning space offered by social media. network homogeneity and heterogeneity. in discussing organization, articles also raised ideas regarding the homogeneity and heterogeneity of networks and information. studies noted that hashtags could present a variety of opinions and sources with which to explore and learn about a topic (gleason, 2013; journell et al., 2013, 2014). this aspect of hashtagged conversations deviates from the traditional school model; unlike the homogeneous networks formed in schools by peer pressure, a hashtagged discussion could expose students to diverse opinions and a variety of beliefs (journell et al., 2014). by accessing hashtagged conversations, students connected with individuals from a variety of political and social orientations (journell et al., 2013). however, disinterest may prevent students from accessing a variety of topics (gleason, 2013, 2016). put simply, we click on what we find interesting. in gleason’s (2016) study, students used hashtags to identify with groups around a shared interest. this self-directed interest, combined with personalized search results driven by online data mining, “may result, paradoxically, in information-sharing practices [in hashtagged spaces] that are less diverse than desired” (gleason, 2013, p. 968). studies indicated that access to diverse views was a benefit to using hashtagged spaces, presumably formed due to the high volume of user-generated content, but these discussions may not encourage accessing this diversity as students can choose with which information to interact. connecting to a space beyond place. finally, articles highlighted the ability of hashtagged conversations to connect users. this connection is unique because these conversations can “eliminate geographical barriers and connect students to people with whom they would not research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 watson, e. (2020). #education: the potential impact of social media and hashtag ideology on the classroom research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 48 normally interact” (journell et al., 2013, p. 477). activities such as “live-tweeting” an event, where a user or group of users describe an event at the moment it is occurring through a coconstructed story, brought together users who were both involved in the event and participating remotely (gleason, 2018). using live-tweeting, gleason's student participants mobilized information across a large physical distance using connections. again, this speaks to the potential of a diverse, heterogeneous network that is external to physical connection; connections beyond their immediate proximity allowed students to share their messages much further than they would be able to without social media (gleason, 2018; jimenez, 2016). this space gives participants of hashtagged conversations a place to “put it out there,” a place to share their voices, stories, and lives with people without the limits of physical location (jimenez, 2016). this space became more than proximity; it opened the realm of connection to a worldwide forum of other users interested in the same hashtagged space. hashtagged conversations altered the need for geographical connection, providing a new temporality within which students interacted. studies and articles focusing on student and classroom interactions with twitter noted that students could discuss issues in real-time instead of being limited to allotted class time (journell et al., 2013, 2014; krutka, 2013; taylor & weigel, 2016). contributors to hashtagged conversations connected to a worldwide audience where information is shared instantaneously. this connection to a unique temporal and digital space provided a different style of conversation and may permit different types of connection. what can the hashtag teach education? the hashtag offers social media users a way to connect and organize online. hashtagged conversations endorse user-generated content among traditional media, connecting meaning to users’ dialogue and users to meaning. how can these ideals apply to classrooms beyond the use of social media? in this discussion, review findings are used to theorize about how hashtag ideology may influence the k-12 classroom. talking with and talking at. in a traditional classroom, the instructor often talks “at” students, yet teachers are encouraged to talk “with” students. aligning ourselves to what reed (2013) calls web 2.0 culture, where information shifts from domain-controlled to user-controlled information, could bring this change to the classroom. to achieve this, an instructor may use a decentralized approach, as described by newell (2008), where the teacher is no longer the single connection point for all students but one connection point in a net of connections. students are no longer the recipients of information but active constructors within the educational network of this classroom. perhaps it is time for education to initiate movement from a centralized, traditional structure to one reflecting web 2.0 values. if user-generated content is to become the educational norm, as hashtag ideology suggests, the traditional roles of teacher and student need to be addressed. the user-generated content of hashtagged conversations replaces the need for traditional, often monistic, media-led discussions (jimenez, 2016); educators might consider shifting their research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 watson, e. (2020). #education: the potential impact of social media and hashtag ideology on the classroom research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 49 classrooms from centrally controlled, traditional content to student-generated content. according to the articles reviewed in this study, students are often excluded from discussions, but they desire to contribute. it may be time to re-think who decides what knowledge is important. hashtag ideology suggests that students should contribute to curricular decisions; however, this is certainly not the norm in our current educational system where curricular decisions are made for students. one argument against student-generated content is that government bodies hold content authority—we have a curriculum document to teach! teachers are asked to make learning student-centered while teaching externally defined curricula. defining content and skills can impede student-driven learning (cumberbatch & trujillo-pagan, 2016). we may run the risk of disengaging students from education by formally structuring what they can (and should) learn (miles & mangold, 2012; reed, 2013). hence, if we are to embrace the ideals of user-generated content and decentralized instruction, it may be time to rethink our educational structure and who should make decisions on what is taught. there is also a danger in decentralizing the classroom: talking without listening. hashtagged conversations do indeed encourage voice, but they do not always encourage conversation (gleason, 2013; journell et al., 2013, 2014). in the classroom, this could manifest as students shouting random thoughts without connection to other students’ contributions—in other words, a classroom discussion gone terribly wrong. as educators, we encourage students to listen and thoughtfully respond, but this can be neglected in hashtagged conversations. as students live in a hashtagged world, teachers need to make the effort to teach students how to talk with each other, not at each other. while encouraging student voice and user-generated content, education should also ensure that students are able to converse instead of simply talk. by applying hashtag ideology, educators may move closer to student-centered teaching, inspiring students to converse instead of always reporting to a central node, the teacher. the decentralized classroom encourages user-generated content and offers alternative learning avenues to a monistic curriculum. finally, it is important that students learn to listen, a skill not required by hashtagged conversations; teachers need to not only provide space to talk with others but also encourage (and teach) thoughtful responses. education should prepare students to be active participants in their world. perhaps hashtag ideals can provide the voice students need to actively contribute to education systems. constructivist classrooms and self-organization. commenting on sources from both media and users, participants in a hashtagged conversation contribute to and co-construct knowledge. this resonates with constructivist classrooms, where learners are actively involved in both meaning-making and knowledge construction. in the constructivist classroom, knowledge emerges as our students participate in the world (osberg & biesta, 2008). social constructivism, where meaning is constructed within a social group, is particularly integral to hashtag ideology. if we are to teach our students in line with web 2.0 ideals, constructivism should take a more central seat in the educational conversation. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 watson, e. (2020). #education: the potential impact of social media and hashtag ideology on the classroom research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 50 in the constructivist classroom, students connect, organize, and produce knowledge, just as is done in hashtagged conversations. hashtagged spaces encourage users to think not only about what information they are interacting with, but also how this information is organized within the hashtagged space (bates, 2013). as mentioned by gleason (2013, 2018), jimenez (2016), and journell et al. (2013, 2014), students learn through hashtag use to navigate informal learning spaces. one aim of constructivist teaching is to have students learn to effectively learn (matthews, 1994); hashtag ideology would agree, implicating that it is more important that students are taught to navigate learning than to focus on learning information. again, this incites consideration of pre-determined course curricula and what should be taught. empowering students to make decisions about how they learn allows students to decide how they connect to the learning, how they connect ideals, with whom they want to learn, and to control their learning (hall, 2009). this encourages autonomous learning, urging students toward becoming what illich (1977) called self-aware actors who ask questions of what and how they are learning. “we are constantly being taught, constantly learn, and constantly unlearn” (sandlin, 2010, p. 1), so why limit ourselves to focusing on what information to learn? if we are constantly learning, the classroom should focus on teaching skills needed to learn instead of impressing subject content on learners. constructivism, as informed by selforganization and learning to navigate spaces, may provide learners with these metacognitive skills. our curricula have specific concepts, written from specific perspectives, to be learned; this does not leave much room for constructivism. if curricular documents are indicators of content to be covered in a course, this is arguably a significant issue. however, if curriculum documents were written to provide teachers with the freedom to explore topics instead of aiming for students to learn a pre-destined set of information, this problem may cease. as an example of how this may be attempted, consider the science curricula in saskatchewan, canada. in these documents, teachers are given broad outcomes that students are supposed to learn; for example, in the physics 30 document, students are to learn to “analyze the effects of forces on objects undergoing uniform motion, uniformly accelerated motion and circular motion” (government of saskatchewan, 2017, p. 30). this statement provides significant room for teachers to explore this concept. however, acceptable conceptions are not only driven by the curriculum but also by discipline-specific understandings (kuhn, 1996). for example, experts in physics will likely explain the effects of forces on objects in these three frames of motion in a consistent format since these are accepted understandings in physics. hence, even though the curriculum document is open to constructive approaches, the teacher is still limited by understandings accepted in a discipline. on top of these limitations, many school systems across the globe require students to write standardized exams at the end of certain courses, further limiting the teacher to what content has to be learned. requiring specific knowledge to be taught, along with standardization of tests and classroom practice, makes it difficult to constructively teach. hashtagged spaces teach students how to learn, not what to learn; perhaps classrooms need to reorient to meet those ideals of the spaces with which students interact. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 watson, e. (2020). #education: the potential impact of social media and hashtag ideology on the classroom research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 51 the dangers of homogeneity. reviewed articles discussed the availability of a diverse, heterogeneous network in hashtagged spaces, but there is also potential for homogeneous spaces to reify existing opinions and ideas. gleason (2013) highlights that self-interest may direct a lot of what is learned since participants in these spaces select from what sources they want to learn. it may be that participants of a hashtagged conversation are looking for what they want to hear (bates, 2013), to interact with those of the same opinion. as an example of the dangers of these homogeneous networks, supovitz et al. (2017) explain social media’s impact on teacher network formation. teachers used to discuss teaching with others in their school, district, or division; these opinions would likely vary and may have encouraged the debate of ideas. however, with social media, teachers can seek out networks of common ideals and values; they do not have to be challenged. if our students were to learn in the same way, their understandings might never be challenged. students may not learn to think beyond their own perceptions. this is a worrisome thought, to say the least. the classroom ought to teach students to explore diverse opinions, seek challenges, and challenge ideas. while the hashtag can promote homogeneous networks, it also provides a diverse community from which to access information (coleman et al., 2018; dagdilelis, 2018; freishtat, 2010). just as the classroom needs to provide students with the skills to learn, it must also engage students with information that challenges their beliefs, as it is in encountering belief disagreement that humans are offered the opportunity to reflect on what they know and learn from this (christensen, 2019). with the rise of “fake news” and user-generated content, knowledge is becoming increasingly unfiltered (supovitz et al., 2017). education has a responsibility to teach students to navigate knowledge while also making appropriate judgements on information and its sources. education should not provide “correct” answers that students blindly accept; education should challenge students’ conceptions of what they already believe, forcing students to rethink what they think they know. it is not enough to know an answer, one must also know why that is an acceptable answer. following hashtag ideology, teachers could encourage their students to find information and people that challenge their beliefs and ask them to reflect on their reactions to these encounters, a feat that may not be possible inside a traditional classroom. teaching students to seek out a variety of sources when gaining knowledge may provide a better understanding of how to learn in this web 2.0 world. learning beyond the classroom. social media connects users across the world, building unique, virtual communities. a communal spirit develops through social media, fostering communities from diverse and separate individuals based on common interests (coleman et al., 2018; freishtat, 2010; tully & ekdale, 2014). hashtags allow users to effectively find others interested in learning about and discussing common issues of curiosity, as shown by those articles reviewed. despite ranging in geographical distance, these communities remove the requirement of a common place to discuss ideas. perhaps education should reconsider whether a common location is required for learning. much like online classrooms, the classroom of today could reach well beyond the walls we envision in schools. in a traditional school setting, students interact with knowledge at a certain research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 watson, e. (2020). #education: the potential impact of social media and hashtag ideology on the classroom research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 52 time on certain days. should students decide to interact with this knowledge outside of class and have a question, they must wait until the next meeting time to bring it up. with hashtagged conversations, learning can occur in real-time instead of being limited to designated class time. perhaps the classroom should no longer be set in a certain timeframe but be allowed to permeate throughout the day. logistically, this may seem ill-conceived since a teacher cannot possibly be expected to work all hours of the day, but hashtag-informed education is not a centralized learning experience. through a decentralized experience, hashtag learners can (and should) interact with knowledge, with those not in their classroom, with peers, and with their teacher in real-time. the hashtag-informed teacher is no longer the container of content but a conduit facilitating learning, able to follow the conversation and contribute but not control the content. students in a hashtag-informed classroom are not limited to a specific place and time of learning but are able to learn in real-time from a worldwide community. our students constantly learn beyond the classroom; through social media and hashtagged conversations, our students contribute to a global pool of constantly shifting and emerging knowledge. hashtagged conversations offer another view of education and encourage students to develop knowledge without the formal classroom. maybe we should question the necessity of the common classroom for learning. conclusion through a systematic review of articles discussing hashtags and hashtag use in k-12 settings, four major ideals to apply to the classroom were identified. first, the hashtag-informed classroom gives students voice and promotes user-generated content, unlike the typical, centrally dictated classrooms. this theme, along with the second theme of self-organization and emergent knowledge, beckon reconsideration of our current educational system and the use of common curriculum documents. curriculum, the teacher, and the discipline dictate what should be learned in our current system, yet hashtag use elevates the decentralized nature of informal learning. this emphasizes a crevasse separating our students’ world and the world of education. hashtag ideology suggests that students be allowed to generate and contribute to the information to be learned, but also to organize themselves, learn to select what to investigate, and justify their learning decisions. just as users become “orientated” (gleason, 2018) and learn how to use the hashtag, learning in this classroom shifts focus from the content to be acquired to learning how to learn. hashtag ideology would suggest that the classroom be re-envisioned. traditional classes meet during allotted times and in a specific place (whether that space is online or in-person). this limits knowledge creation to those in a similar geographical area (or online room) and specific time. however, with hashtags, students are able to investigate various topics at their own leisure. when they have a question, they pose it to a community and (hopefully) receive a response in real-time from any number of people including experts, peers, teachers, and others. these hashtag-informed principles along with student voice, user-generated content, selforganization, and learning to learn would suggest that it is time we reconsider classroom and research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 watson, e. (2020). #education: the potential impact of social media and hashtag ideology on the classroom research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 53 education structure. hashtagged ideology suggests ways that education systems might make formal learning fit into an informal space. it is time for education to start relating to how students are already learning: with web 2.0 principles and hashtags. references bates, m. (2013). of hashtags and descriptors (english). online searcher, 37(3), 80. braun, v., & clarke, v. (2006). using thematic analysis in psychology. qualitative research in psychology, 3, 77–101. christensen, d. (2019). epistemology of disagreement: the good news. in j. fantl, m. mcgrath, & e. sosa (eds.), contemporary epistemology: an anthology (pp. 231–248). john wiley & sons, inc. coleman, j. m., rice, m., l., & wright, v., h. 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(2019). revisiting how and why educators use twitter: tweet types and purposes in #edchat. journal of research on technology in education, 51(3), 273–289. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) e-issn: 2468-6891 ehealth systems —user experiences from healthcare workers synnøve thomassen andersen1 abstract this article focuses on practices, perspectives and values by healthcare workers, by analyzing how they experience the use of ehealth systems. the empirical data is from a qualitative case study, is derived from a number of eight participating health clinics use of ehealth systems, by healthcare workers. the analysis shows that by adopting a simple, small-scale and user-oriented approach, and by focusing on the needs and circumstances of users instead of advanced technology, it was possible to reveal domestication of ehealth systems. while these findings cannot be generalized, they provide insight into and shed light on trends concerning the negotiations of healthcare workers with ehealth technology. themes related to the experience of user interfaces in ehealth systems have generally not been explored in detail. this research thus contributes new insight to the field. this study is significant for more knowledge related to healthcare and use of technology. the promotion of research in this area will provide use and development of ehealth systems that will benefit healthcare workers and patients. key words: ehealth system, domestication, technology, work practices, user interface introduction the implementation of information and communications technology (ict) in the healthcare sector, also known as ehealth, has been claimed as having the potential for drastic improvements in efficiency, quality and safety (silverstone et.al.,1992; oh et. al., 2005). to handle the healthcare services in the future is a huge challenge, and technology in healthcare has therefor become a prominent area of focus. many countries focusing of implementing ict in the healthcare sector (aanestad & olaussen, 2010). there is a need for more research in healthcare services to meet the different needs for the future. most healthcare workers have direct contact with people, but in the future they have to use technology more often, and technicians and engineers need to develop solutions according to the needs of healthcare workers. 1 phd, the arctic university of norway, alta, norway, synnove.thomassen.andersen@uit.no mailto:synnove.thomassen.andersen@uit.no research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 51-72 52 this article highlights the use of electronic health systems (ehealth) by healthcare workers, using such systems in their daily work. ehealth has considerable potential for improving communication, not simply between the various level of service providers, but also with patients and other users (andersen, 2013). use of various technologies is an integrated part of the everyday work for healthcare workers, who must have the digital competence required to actively benefit from ict in their work and implement it in quality improvement activities (venkatesh, 2006). reforms and strategies emphasize the use of ict as critical, but there are few, if any, standards highlighting the competence required, and for whom. the same also applies to how healthcare workers in all areas of the sector will acquire the competence required to use ict tools (andersen & riise, 2012). whenever new situations arise, people will always try to find a new resource they can apply and adapt, for use in their everyday lives. this phenomenon is called technological domestication (silverstone et.al.,1992; sørensen, 2002; sørensen, 2006). the technology is integrated into the user’s everyday practices, and the user and the user’s environment adapt to the technology (sørensen, 2002; sørensen, 2006; venkatesh, 2006). challenges related to the experience of information from different ehealth systems are also related to the level of quality assurance in the system in question. more research is needed into the specific practices and experiences of users; how are the ehealth systems used, and how do they affect healthcare workers? i believe this article will contribute to highlight challenges healthcare workers face on a daily basis. is the user interface, aligned with actual use? by focusing on practices, perspectives and values, i want to answer the following question: what is the healthcare workers experiences in use of ehealth systems? this article contributes to a stronger focus on and more research into how healthcare workers actually experience the use of various ehealth systems. clarification of terms ehealth information systems should, among other things, encompass both legal and professional principles. they must be good enough, and not be detrimental to the patient’s health as a result of patient data being collected and combined electronically. an information system (or is) is a system for the collection, storage, processing, transfer and presentation of information (oh et al.,2005). in principle, an is can be completely manual, but the term is often reserved for systems based on information and communications technology (ict). the term information systems is also used about the field studying the development and use of such systems. the user interface of a http://no.wikipedia.org/wiki/informasjon http://no.wikipedia.org/wiki/informasjons-_og_kommunikasjonsteknologi http://no.wikipedia.org/wiki/systemutvikling thomassen andersen computer system makes it possible for a user to communicate with a device (oh et al., 2005). for computers, user interfaces can be further divided into graphical and textual user interfaces. user interfaces enable intuitive human-computer interaction, in that users easily understand how to proceed to get the result they want from the user interface. icons, windows and buttons are used to communicate. this encompasses both what we see on the screen and what happens when we click a key or check a box. most operating systems work this way. in windows, which is the most commonly used operating system in the health sector, applications rely on graphical user interfaces to communicate. bevan’s international standards for human-computer interaction (hci) and usability covers use of the system, user interface and interaction, among other things (bevan, 2011). maguire (2001) claims that by developing a user-friendly system, organizations may benefit in many different ways: increased productivity and efficiency, reduced likelihood of documentation errors, reduced costs related to training and user support, and last, but not least, a higher degree of user acceptance. domestication the theory of technological domestication has evolved over several decades. in the early 90s, silverstone et al. (1992), described domestication as a multi-stage process from acquiring the technology to “taming” it, whereupon it acquires a symbolic value for the user. according to silverstone et al., the domestication of technology can be observed through four stages.  appropriation refers to the point at which the technology is acquired, either by a person or a household.  objectification refers to the values and applications attributed to the technology in everyday life.  incorporation refers to the process of establishing a pattern of use, and how this develops.  conversion refers to the stage where the technology has been fully incorporated into the home and gained a symbolic value for the user this approach focuses on the processes leading up to the domestication of a technology. according to research (venkatesh, 2006), domestication requires adaptation, not only to society, but to the individual household as well. children and adolescents who have grown up with a technology are technologically competent, and use the technology in the most advanced ways http://no.wikipedia.org/wiki/grafisk_brukergrensesnitt http://no.wikipedia.org/wiki/kommandolinje research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 51-72 54 (ibid). sørensen (2002; 2006) introduced a new perspective on the theory; the technology develops from being impersonal and alien to becoming entrenched—a part of the individual’s social and symbolic practice. technologies that have completed this process will be fully incorporated into the user’s everyday life as a domesticated technology. on this basis, sørensen (2002; 2006) developed a new model, the so-called trondheim model, which, instead of stages, focused on three different dimensions of the domestication of a technology: the practical, the symbolic and the cognitive.  the practical dimension encompasses the practical use of the technology, including routines and habits related to it. this may also include the establishment of agencies, institutions and companies to aid in the perpetuation or development of use concerning a specific technology.  the symbolic dimension refers to the purpose attributed to the technology, and the philosophy behind this purpose. technology may also create meaning, in that it can serve as a means by which to establish identity and self-concept.  the cognitive dimension is related to the learning process, or the competence required to use the technology. the cognitive dimension also includes developments in the practical and symbolic dimensions, and therefore does not stand alone. by focusing on dimensions rather than stages, it highlights the notion that order is not relevant (sørensen, 2006). this model therefore detached the domestication process from a linear timeline, while retaining the original focus on acquisition, practical use and symbolic value. in addition, the model introduced a learning aspect—the cognitive dimension—that had previously not been made subject to analysis. method this study follows the interpretative and qualitative tradition in social sciences and technology research (myers, 1997; myers and avison, 2002; walsham, 1993). an interpretive study seeks to acquire an understanding of the context and how the process influences and is influenced by the context (walsham, 1993). this interpretive research is descriptive rather than attempting to identify causal explanations for the phenomenon. a qualitative research method addresses the understanding and interpretation of data, which are primarily not in the form of thomassen andersen numbers, and is a well suited method when one wants to examine and describe experiences and knowledge of individuals through methods such as interviews, observations and document analysis (myers, 2008). i have adopted a case study approach, through analysis and reflection to display the dialog with the practicing and self-reflection related to the challenges, dilemmas and opportunities as a researcher i have met. the research approach enabled me to describe and understand personal meaning, social phenomena and the experiences from people through data collecting methods such as interviews and observations in its natural environments (thagaard, 2009). the research questions provided the direction for the research method and strategy as the research study addresses the approach related to healthcare workers experiences in use of ehealth systems. the context of this study is the use of ehealth systems in 8 different clinics in the health care sector. the strategic selection of informants includes a total of 25 men and women between the ages of 20 and 69. when the study began, individuals within health clinics were asked to participate by giving interviews related to my research. in total, 25 interviews with 25 informants were conducted (see table1). the informants were health care workers within different clinics, in hierarchical positions (from operational, administrative or strategic levels), and situated in different geographical locations. before the interviews started, informants were informed that they at any time could withdraw from the interview without having to give any reasons for it. i recruited random informants of healthcare workers by asking them to participate in the study. even so, i kept an objective distance from the healthcare workers included in the study by only engaging with them during the actual interview. table 1 informants, ages, sex, position informants women men no. 20 5 age 20–29 1 30–39 7 1 40–49 9 1 50-69 3 3 field physician, physician, research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 51-72 56 nurse, community worker, unit director, comptroller, specialist nurse, nurse consultant, dental clinic director this study has made use of interviews, observations and literature reviews. the interviews were structured by an interview guide, which directed the conversation. digressions varied from user to user. the individual interviews focused on opinions, perceptions and experiences. it was also possible to interpret the responses, how the responses were given, and the body language of the informants. i have also sought to reveal both complexity and diversity in responses given during the interviews. the aim of using observation techniques was to gain knowledge and obtain data on the interaction between the healthcare workers and different ehealth systems. this was done by observing the different informants in situations like using ehealth systems and telephone. by observing the informants as active participants, i wanted to explore the tension for the healthcare workers active use of technology and the different ehealth systems. most informant are between the ages of 40 and 49, however, age was not a factor in the selection of informants; i chose individuals who are active users of the ehealth systems. empirical data cover gender, age, age range, and user experiences from ehealth systems. i choose to interview the informants from their various educational and competence backgrounds. the informants work in various units within the healthcare sector. several also have work experience across units. some informants work in administrative positions, whereas others are directly involved in patient care. all informants have experience with the systems from clinical work, and we must emphasize that several of the systems are used by all informants, but with varying levels of functionality, access and areas of interest. as part of the study, large numbers of documents from reports, strategic documents and manuals have also been reviewed and analyze (see table 2). table 2 activities related to the collection of data, as well as the total number of informants. women men total interview 20 5 25 thomassen andersen literature review ehealth strategic documents reports, >50 memos other documents ehealth systems electronic patient record: use of the ehealth systems has been studied in the appropriate context: how healthcare workers use ehealth systems and their work practices for finding, saving, deleting and documenting information. the informants have listed using the following ehealth systems in their daily work:  dips: distributed information and patient data system in hospitals.  docmap: system for procedure and non-conformity management.  amis, emergency medical information system: booking emergency transport.  nissy, national information system for patient travel: booking patient transport.  partus: used by midwives to report on birth process.  clockwork: used to order consumables for the units.  profil: electronic patient record. none of the systems “communicate”, and each requires system-specific training. dips is the only system tailored for clinical hospital operations. docmap, for example, is also used in shipping and the petroleum/offshore and logistics industry. the system has not been designed specifically for the health sector and its users. the informants use several different ehealth systems to ensure that their jobs are carried out and properly documented. user interface experiences all informants received training in profil before the system was implemented. this training was given in the form of classroom instruction. some informants later expressed that what they really needed, was to sit at a computer, training with the help of colleagues who are familiar with the system, as the use of profil requires coming to grips with a lot of new terminology, new buttons and a new approach to developing a care plan. none informants had any issues with the colors or fonts. several informants reported problems with system lag, e.g. in moving from one report to research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 51-72 58 the next, shortcut buttons suddenly disappearing, problems remembering how to get these shortcuts back, and last, but not least, users find profil opaque and hard to navigate. one informant (55 years old, unit director with hr, documentation and professional responsibilities) stated: “i think the system has a poor user interface. one of the key criteria for a successful professional discourse is a shared understanding, and this is hard to achieve when many of our employees don’t see the value of technology as part of the service. they find it difficult. i have previously used dips in connection with my work, and i found this to be much more user-friendly and intuitive, even for those who are not so tech savvy. personally, i find that the organization of information in the various ehealth systems is good, but we should have had a single access portal that does not discriminate between users.” the informants who work as assistant nurses explained that they usually only read/write reports, but that they contribute in the development of care plans. nurses report having a hard time remembering all their tasks: even simple iplos registration requires them to enter information in a number of places in profil. these informants also report that the form section of profil is “confusing”, as it is difficult to find the right form. none informants had used the help function; they preferred asking colleagues. the informants also had perception of information in the ehealth systems. one informant (55 years old, administrative employee with financial responsibility, super-user on the systems used at the clinic) reported that: “the clinic has systems used for patient care, and systems used for daily operations. for patient care they use dips, which is a patient record. everything related to treatment and care is registered here. when the patient comes in, we write an admissions memo. we also write examination plans, record the patient’s health history, write treatment plans and individual plans, nursing reports, a continuous patient file and a discharge summary when the patient is discharged. we also enter diagnoses and procedure codes. when we take blood samples, we record this in dips. it’s also possible to write prescriptions, sick leaves, medication certificates and various nav and norwegian health economics administration (helfo) forms.” another informant (39 years old, working in the emergency room, using the ehealth systems winmed/infodoc) reports that: thomassen andersen “we document everything said over the phone, or in person, and if the patient is seen by a doctor, it automatically sends a discharge summary to his or her primary care physician.” the employees also make use of helfo’s website to determine who their patients’ primary care physician is, as not all patients know this. this information is necessary in order to send the discharge summary to the right person. analysis qualitative methods helped me gain an understanding of how ehealth systems are used, with the help of domestication as a theoretical approach. according to thagaard (2009), qualitative methods must have a certain degree of flexibility, which a semi-structured approach offers. the questions were designed to invite informants to reflect on the themes addressed in the questions and provide comprehensive answers (2009, p. 91). in order to achieve this, i considered which circumstances would establish a safe and relaxed atmosphere between me as a researcher and the informant, a factor walsham also emphasized (walsham, 1995a, 2002, 2006). it was important for me to be self-critical and aware of my own norms and attitudes. such a reflective posture is essential in order to provide the empirical data with an analytical interpretation. thagaard (2009) points out that it is essential that you are able to see the importance of your own role in the interaction with users/informants, empirical data and theoretical perspective. reflexivity starts with me as a researcher’s own understanding, based on previous personal and professional experiences. in addition, expectations about how things are, what is to be explored, and the motivation and qualification to explore the field. in addition, perspectives and the theoretical basis in relation to the researcher’s education and interests are required (malterud, 2001, p.484). according to walsham (1993, p.14) “case studies provides the main vehicle for research in the interpretive tradition”. the survey was based on the informants’ feedback on their work practices and use. all of the interviews are transcribe2, and the informants were anonymize. their responses gave me insight into how they used the ehealth systems, and the manner in which they chose to use them. the informants had a much higher level of reflection and were far more critical of the ehealth system than expected. in qualitative interviews, it is important to protect the integrity of the individuals interviewed, both during the interview itself and afterwards, when the results are 2 the text has been translated from norwegian into english by one of the authors. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 51-72 60 presented and interpreted. in an interpretive perspective, i has been involved in both the collection and the interpretation of the data, and these activities have consequently been subject to me as a researcher’s subjective assessment. walsham (2006), therefore pointed out that one must be aware of the risk of becoming blind and biased, less critical of special events, in that much is taken for granted when the researcher becomes “socialized to the views of the people in the field and thus loses the benefit of a fresh outlook on the situation” (p.322). researchers must maintain an open dialogue concerning their research. according to myers (2008), qualitative research methods are designed to help researchers understand people and the social and cultural context within which they live. walsham (2002), emphasizes how important it is for interpretive researchers to have insight into his/her own role in the complex process that emerges between people. as for the user interfaces of the various ehealth systems, employees point out that a computer application called “phone support for emergency healthcare workers”, employees can get advice related to the symptoms of those who call in, what advice to give, who needs to be seen by a doctor, who needs an ambulance, and how urgent something is. in general, informants report finding the ehealth system more time-consuming than the old system of keeping patient records on paper. even something as simple as changing the phone number of a resident’s next of kin can be challenging in profil; the informants say they don’t know how to do this. profil links to pps (practical procedures in nursing) and to the norwegian catalogue of medicine (felleskatalogen), which the informants found useful. pps is perceived as user-friendly, transparent and always up to date. whenever an area is not covered by pps, the nursing home has its own procedures. the informants reports knowing where the procedures are, but they do not read them. informants who are nurses report that they rarely use the electronic messaging functionality to contact physicians; they prefer calling to get the correct dosage of marevan, giving messages, etc. they have a direct line to the clinic that lets them “cut in line”, and the informants report they find this approach more cost-effective than filling in the form of the electronic messaging service and waiting for a reply. also, the replies go to the unit supervisor, who forwards them to the relevant nurse. home care nurses use the system more regularly, but primarily for prescription renewals. all informants wanted a way to communicate electronically with the local hospital to eliminate the problem of having loose paperwork everywhere. in addition, this paperwork is often thomassen andersen sent through inconvenient channels, often by fax. papers from the hospital are not scanned into the patient file at the nursing home, which is another drawback. one of the informants pointed out that age and computer skills are key factors in the use of ehealth systems. the majority of the informants reported that they have observed how those most confident in the use of ict are often “appointed” to handle ict-related tasks. most younger people are comfortable working with computer tools, but computer skills vary considerably among the older employees. the analysis shows that a higher number of male informants would have been beneficial, as it could have shown whether there are any gender differences in how users perceive the ehealth systems they use in their everyday work. my interpretative approach has a practice-oriented approach which include both epistemological (i.e., related to the nature of knowledge) and ontological (i.e. related to the nature of being and reality) implications (gherardi, 2006). during my research, i have studied how processes and practices related to healthcare workers use of ehelath systems, but also how they experience this practical use, which calls for an exploratory and interpretative approach. documentation of health data is mandatory, and registration is primarily digital. electronic records are hailed as being efficient time-savers, increasing the quality of services. the theory of domestication, based on the practical, symbolic and cognitive dimensions of the trondheim model (sørensen, 2006), has been used as a tool to analyze the informants’ use of ehealth systems across the health sector. generally, the informants reported that they usually were able to find the information they needed in the various ehealth systems, but that the process was a struggle due to the complicated nature of many systems. a good user interface for an electronic patient file system will be dependent on who will be using the system, and the situations in which the system will be used. there are many different views of what a good user interface is like, and these views develop over time (nielsen, 1995; maguire, 2001; bevan, 2011). consequently, there is no point in making detailed demands for user interfaces in this type of standard. individual suppliers are free to design the user interface of the systems they provide, and it is up to the individual organization to consider which supplier has the best user interface for their needs. this type of standard therefore only specifies a few major requirements deemed relevant for all types of user interface. one should note, however, that while this basic standard does not include specific user interface requirements, such requirements may be specified in various content standards. this survey focuses on the research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 51-72 62 situation in the healthcare sector. the use of technology and various ehealth systems is part of the work practices of all informants. this analysis shows that the negotiations users have with technology on their own, both at work and at home, is designed in different ways. silverstone et.al., (1992), pointed out that whenever new situations arise, people will always try to find a new resource they can apply and adapt for use in their everyday lives. he called this technological domestication. when this is jobrelated, it may be related to a lack of standardization or a basic structure, and that too much has been left up to the developers and the individual units (e.g. nursing home, home care nurses, etc.), allowing them to design the features that work best for them. in a home setting, technology is used as a naturally integrated part of the user’s everyday life, and the user and the user’s environment adapt to the technology (sørensen et al., 2002; sørensen, 2006). findings the findings are in detail described in the analysis, however, i will present the ares of questions schematically in table 3. the area of question and answer made in the interview are presented as a schematic overview of the results of the informants. the interviews in the survey included several questions. the questions in the table are presented as + which means: positive, opportunities, or as – which means: challenging, obstacle. the table also shows the number of women and men who have answered and the result of the area of question. table 3 area of questions for the informants area of questions* women + men + competence/no competence in use of ict and ehealth systems 15 5 2 3 clearly/not clearly defined goals for the job 17 3 4 1 easy/not easy to find relevant procedure for the job 9 11 2 3 access/no access to ejournal 19 1 5 access/no access to electronic messages, other information 14 6 4 1 user-friendly/ not user-friendly user-interface 12 8 4 1 critical/ not-critical to ehealth system 13 7 4 1 new/not new work practices in use of ehealth systems 17 3 3 2 new/not new learning processes in use of ehealth systems 18 2 5 thomassen andersen super-users/lack of super users in use of ehealth systems 16 4 4 1 training/lack of training in use of ehealth systems 12 8 4 1 need of more/not more training in use of ehealth systems 17 3 5 use of different ehealth systems to document your job 17 3 4 1 easy/not easy to use form in ehealth systems 8 12 2 3 challenges using ehealth systems, your own experiences * answer are defined in column + (satisfied) or – (not satisfied) application of the three dimensions of domestication theory made it possible to categorize the findings, even during the analysis, it was able to gain an understanding of the types of responses that were relevant and which could be eliminated (table 4). discussion, conclusion and implications the research question: what is the healthcare workers experiences in use of ehealth systems? the findings show that application of the three dimensions of domestication theory made it possible to categorize the findings (see table 4) in three dimensions; the practical, the symbolic and the cognitive dimension. table 4 categorizing of the findings. dimension the practical dimension the symbolic dimension the cognitive dimension knowledge in use of ict in ehealth systems was based on the individual informant’s role, skills and authority. the healthcare workers had clearly defined goals for their work. users assessed the information and ehealth systems on their own. hard to find a procedure that works for the circumstances. ehealth systems created new practices, new learning processes within ict. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 51-72 64 the practical dimension through the lens of domestication, i identified several domestication strategies. for example, while the practical use of the ehealth systems by healthcare workers may be identical, there were many different approaches to the symbolic negotiations with the technological solutions. according to sørensen (2006), this type of situation elicits different strategies for domestication of the technology. some informants used the ehealth systems to achieve specific goals, such as documenting, finding and/or saving data. all of the informants reported that they sometimes did not know exactly where to log data in the running report, and they also found it difficult to read reports, due to the incoherent structure of documenting things in different places. access administration, i.e. giving an employee access to profil, requires many, many “keystrokes” before access is granted. for example, the same information has to be entered twice, in different modules, which makes the system difficult to use, and a lot of time is wasted. many of these problems could have been saved by simplifying the process. sørensen (2006), points out that the introduction of new technology is meaningless until it is “put to work and given meaning” (p. 23). other informants used ehealth systems because they wanted to learn more about different diseases and how different types of medication could contribute to improved health. some informants used the ehealth systems to maintain their own level of proficiency in the use of various ehealth systems. according to andersen & riise (2012), the use of ict is emphasized throughout national reforms and strategies, with no clear guidelines as to which kinds of competence are required, and for whom. the overall impression was that knowledge of the use of technology and various ehealth systems was based on the individual informant’s role, skills and authority. something that became clear over the course of this study into the work practices of healthcare workers, was the level of individuality enabled by the technology. the healthcare workers had clearly defined goals for their work. they carried out their work on their own, they used the ehealth systems on their own, and they assessed the information on their own. none of the healthcare workers made use of the ehealth systems a joint task for colleagues to work on together. it became clear that several different decision support systems were in use within a single clinic, and these systems were crucial for both quality and operations. according to langøen (2003), decision support systems are systems providing information, knowledge or recommendations to healthcare workers in a format tailored to the decision-making situation. decision support systems are intended to fill the role of expert helping the inexperienced, but most decision support systems “are most useful for thomassen andersen healthcare workers who have enough experience to recognize when the advice provided by the application is relevant, and when it is not (langøen, 2003). the symbolic dimension while the practical use of the ehealth systems is relatively similar from one informant to the next, the meaning behind this use may differ considerably. by emphasizing the symbolic dimension, we can identify the meanings and purposes informants attribute to their use of the ehealth systems, as well as the values these represent. both dips/partus and docmap are supposed to aid in ensuring the quality of the treatment patients receive by registrations in the electronic patient file and updated procedures. however, all informants report that the search process is difficult and yields poor results, and that the help provided by the “help functionality” of the systems in question yields poor results. all of the ehealth systems specified above require dedicated user access in the form of username and password. in practice, this constitutes a major problem, in that the systems you use least often are the ones where you are most likely to forget your log-in information and password. this is a recipe for user frustration. applications for user decision support are too “advanced” and time-consuming to learn and navigate. langøen (2003), points out that this is not caused by a lack of information, but rather by “information overflow”. if a computer system can assist the healthcare worker in retrieving the information needed in the moment when it is needed, we have a decision support system. the fact that the various systems don’t “communicate” and that some are not up to date, poses a challenge for system users. in order to create and maintain a good system for the individual unit, one or several individuals with sufficient resources and knowledge of the system, so-called superusers, are required. docmap is particularly vulnerable, as unit operation takes priority over time with superusers. the informants report that they try to reduce their use of docmap due to the difficult searching functionality. it requires good search terms, log-ins, document cataloguing, etc. without log-in credentials, users risk getting a high number of results, and some of them will be irrelevant to the search term. if the unit where the employee works does not have a dedicated procedure, the same applies (both with and without log-in credentials). users have a hard time finding a procedure that works, as well as determining which procedure is the right one for their circumstances. in addition, it is a drawback that it is not possible to link a procedure from docmap to the patient’s treatment plan in dips, for example for the purpose of documenting and describing the procedure to be used in the patient’s research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 51-72 66 treatment. according to andersen (2013), ehealth systems hold considerable potential for improving communication, not simply between the different levels of service providers, but also with patients and other users. some systems are compatible with dips, but these have not been implemented. this also applies to practical procedures in nursing (pps). every procedure specifies one or more areas of application, which means that if a procedure is not applicable for the unit where you work, it should/must not be used, as it is not approved for use in that particular unit. for example, docmap does not require technical nursing procedures to be evidence-based, and despite the availability of a template and a “required” format, we see that this is not consistently applied. it is also important to point out that for the most experienced nurses, the decision-making process is different from that of more inexperienced nurses. while the practical use of the ehealth systems is relatively similar from one informant to the next, the meaning behind this use may differ considerably. in other words, domestication of ehealth systems created new practices, which, in turn, created different symbolic values and new learning processes within technology and communication. this is in line with previous research (sørensen, 2002; sørensen, 2006), which points out that the technology is integrated into the user’s everyday life, and the user and the user’s environment adapt in response to the technology. the cognitive dimension domestication theory can contribute to an understanding of how and why ehealth systems are used, including the user’s experience. among other things, one would be able to determine which practices, values and perceptions are at the heart of the domestication of ehealth systems. according to sørensen (2002), a domestication perspective will be focused on why. the municipal health services act requires each municipality to plan, organize and facilitate for healthcare workers to be able to uphold their record-keeping obligations and duty to perform their jobs safely. furthermore, municipalities are obligated to provide necessary training in all electronic systems implemented (aune, 2007). the goal of several electronic patient file systems is to boost efficiency and improve the quality of patient care. however, most evaluations into electronic patient file system implementations show that the expectation of hospital administrations rarely correspond to actual results. the informants had differing perceptions of the systems described. dips is perceived as a good and intuitive system, but there is potential for improvement in the technical solution. for example, informants request more information boxes. dips is also used thomassen andersen differently from unit to unit. some units use the treatment plan, whereas others do not use this functionality at all or only to a limited degree. with training and a greater understanding of the shared benefits to using the treatment plan, the system could potentially be used by more users, which would also improve the quality of nursing documentation. one informant reported that the user interface of dips was too advanced and complicated. as a result, the system was rarely used; it took too long to find the information users wanted (the help button), and users didn’t use it (nielsen, 1995). to gain a better understanding of the ehealth systems, i looked into whether any existing practical domestication strategies, could be identified in the work practices of healthcare workers. through the interviews, i gained an understanding of why the informants acted the way they did. also i gained insight into their work practices, which could explain some of the choices they made. this stage yielded the highest number of digressions, in that the informants usually started reflecting on their own use and what this entailed. commonalities in the interviews include informants reporting varying and inadequate training in the use of the systems specified. several informants wondered whether the system could reduce documentation quality, resulting in a poorer outcome for the patient. also, could poor training of healthcare workers potentially reduce digital communication between professional groups? the survey showed that there are considerable organizational and didactic challenges associated with the practical implementation of the ehealth system dips. it seems to have been implemented without any follow-up. ordinary healthcare workers who are also users, experience that they are often asked to train others. the survey showed that there are key areas of competence or knowledge users either have to have or must acquire in order to achieve optimum use of the system. one of the informants believed use of the ehealth system could result in additional work. according to langøen (2003), this can sometimes be resolved by the healthcare workers dedicating themselves to ensure that they get sufficient training in the ehealth system to ensure that all use is optimized and rational. sørensen (2002), emphasizes that domestication of technology leads to new practices, perceptions and cognitive skills and new learning processes within technology and communication among users. generally, the informants reported that they usually were able to find the information they needed in the various ehealth systems, but that the process was a struggle due to the complicated research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 51-72 68 nature of many systems. a good user interface for an electronic patient file system will be dependent on who will be using the system, and the situations in which the system will be used. there are many different views of what a good user interface is like, and these views develop over time. consequently, there is no point in making detailed demands for user interfaces in this type of standard. individual suppliers are free to design the user interface of the systems they provide, and it is up to the individual organization to consider which supplier has the best user interface for their needs. this type of standard therefore only specifies a few major requirements deemed relevant for all types of user interface. one should note, however, that while this basic standard does not include specific user interface requirements, such requirements may be specified in various content standards. this survey focuses on the situation in the healthcare sector. the use of technology and various ehealth systems is part of the work practices of all informants. the lack of communication between ehealth systems shows that the standardization process has failed, and the different systems do not communicate. norway excels at implementing and developing information technology. those who are young today will be even more focused on using this technology than the adult generation (official norwegian report 2011:7). health service operators have to stay on top of new developments to satisfy the demands of these future users. the share of seniors in the population is increasing, but we see that it can be challenging to meet the needs of senior users in these ehealth systems. older users are not necessarily proficient users of technology, and they sometimes struggle to perform various tasks, such as making a doctor’s reservation online. in applying the theory of domestication, the aim was to examine why the informants use the ehealth system. the empirical data showed that various domestication strategies were applied, for example, while the practical use of the ehealth systems by health care workers may be identical, there may be many different symbolic reasons for their use. this situation leads to different ways of domesticating technology. some healthcare workers used the ehealth systems to achieve specific goals as part of their work. other informants used ehealth systems because they wanted to learn more about different diseases and how different types of medication could contribute to improved health. others still used the ehealth systems to maintain their own level of proficiency in the use of technology in connection with various ehealth systems. informants mention training as a weakness in all ehealth systems. i find that proficient users require systematic training, preferably as early as possible in the initial period of employment. i thomassen andersen also find that repetition is always necessary to maintain knowledge, especially if there are systems one uses less frequently. technological domestication focuses on the interaction between humans and technology, where technology is “tamed” and implemented in the user’s practical and sensemaking everyday life (sørensen, 2002). generally, findings from the interviews on the view of healthcare workers of their use of ehealth systems shows little variation. informants report that they are satisfied with the appearance of the ehealth systems, but that they would like the different ehealth system to communicate with each other. aanestad and olaussen (2010) argue that this is typical, yet new projects attempting get the different health service providers and ehealth systems to communicate are developed all the time. this situation is challenging for all informants in their everyday work, in that they have to find secure alternatives to share patient information among themselves and between the different health service operators. conclusion this survey has revealed the roles ehealth systems play in the work practices of healthcare workers, how the technology is used, and why. this research thus contributes new insight to the field. this study shows that training plans, additional technical solutions and a simplified user interface could result in more widespread and proper use of the ehealth systems. technology use in the form of ehealth systems in the healthcare sector makes it possible to allocate more human resources where they are most needed. domesticated technology that has been attributed with meaning beyond the technical can be perceived as a fully integral part of everyday life. healthcare workers have always recorded health-related information and part of their work practices with pen and paper, such as reports, discharge summaries, logs, etc. ehealth systems offer a way to do this by technological means, even at an individual level. the challenge lies in the experience of control provided by information alone, in that information should also be assessed subjectively. in addition, we cannot necessarily control who else has access to the information we register in the ehealth systems. the question is whether it is able to generate a higher quality in patient care and improved communication between professions. this study shows that the more flexible the ehealth system, the easier it is for healthcare workers to use the technology to meet their needs. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 51-72 70 implications while these findings cannot be generalized, they provide insight into and shed light on trends concerning the negotiations of healthcare workers with ehealth technology. themes related to the experience of user interfaces in ehealth systems have generally not been explored in great detail. the disadvantages using descriptive research is that this study may not be ‘repeatable’ due to their observational nature. thomassen andersen references aanestad, m. & olaussen, i (red.) 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(2006). doing interpretive research. european journal of information systems 15(3), 320-330. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 sturm, e. & quaynor, l. a window, mirror, and wall: how educators use twitter for professional learning 22 a window, mirror, and wall: how educators use twitter for professional learning elizabeth sturm* lewis university laura quaynor johns hopkins university *corresponding author: sturmel@lewisu.edu received : 2019-09-19 accepted : 2019-11-24 how to cite this paper: sturm, e. & quaynor, l. a. (2020) window, mirror, and wall: how educators use twitter for professional learning. research in social sciences and technology, 5(1), 22-44. abstract teachers and other professionals increasingly utilize twitter as a medium for professional expression and professional learning. these types of twitter exchanges often take place in formal chats which are moderated by professional organizations or other knowledge brokers in the field. as moderated public online forums become more common, educators may wish to understand the benefits and limitations of this type of professional learning. this paper reports on a study of educators’ discourse in two hosted twitter chats focused on global education and analyzes the ways in which these types of chats align with research on high-quality professional learning. results indicate that twitter chats provide multiple components of high-quality professional learning, namely a focus on content, collaboration, and teacher agency; to a lesser extent, they may provide peer coaching and allow for conversations across a sustained duration. however, other components of meaningful professional learning are not possible in this context, as it is not job-embedded and does not provide active learning or supported opportunities to practice. keywords: professional learning, social media, twitter, educational technology, global education author note portions of this scholarship were supported by a faculty scholar award from lewis university. the manuscript has not been published and is not under consideration for publication elsewhere. copyright will be given to ressat should it be published in ressat. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 sturm, e. & quaynor, l. a window, mirror, and wall: how educators use twitter for professional learning 23 introduction teacher professional learning that is relevant, collaborative, and involves active teacher participation has been linked to both educator persistence and student learning, two valuable goals in education (darling-hammond, hyler, & gardner, 2017). with the advent of professional online social networking, platforms such as twitter offer possibilities for professional learning on topics selected by teachers themselves, in a community of committed educators from various locations. however, twitter can also serve as an echo chamber for ideas and might limit professional growth due to a loss of available time for job-embedded professional development. in this paper, we use a content analysis of educator twitter chats to evaluate the possibilities and barriers of twitter as an avenue for teacher professional learning. below, we discuss research on professional learning and its importance in educator retention and student learning, as well as controversies in this field. we then consider how twitter and other online learning communities can facilitate teacher professional learning. in the subsequent sections, we describe our rationale for focusing on two different twitter chats centering on global learning, our content analysis of these chats, and the ways that educator participation in these twitter chats relates to teacher professional learning. teacher professional learning professional learning for teachers has historically been a main lever to focus on and improve the quality of educational systems (guskey, 2002). when grounded in communities of practice (lave & wenger, 1991), teacher professional learning develops teacher practice in meaningful and sustainable ways. indeed, studies of professional models have shown increases in student achievement indicating that teacher engagement in quality professional learning can result in a year of additional reading growth and improved science learning among their students as compared to a control group (greenleaf et al., 2011). although a substantial amount of resources are invested each year by educational institutions, returns from professional learning in the form of student outcomes are varied and minimal (tntp, 2015). research indicates that the most effective professional learning processes involve a focus on content, active learning and collaboration, teacher coaching and feedback, coherence, and sustained duration (darlinghammond et al., 2017; desimone, 2009). below, we discuss each of these components in detail. content and pedagogical knowledge in professional learning across syntheses of research on effective professional learning, researchers have come to some agreement that meaningful professional learning focuses on both content that teachers will teach to students and pedagogy directly related to teaching this content (darling-hammond et al., 2017; desimone & garet, 2015; swan dagen & bean, 2014). as an example of these types of programs and results, johnson and fargo (2014) studied a professional learning experience for 21 teachers across two elementary schools focused on both science and linguistically relevant pedagogy, and showed its impact on hispanic student performance on science research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 sturm, e. & quaynor, l. a window, mirror, and wall: how educators use twitter for professional learning 24 assessments, as students of participating teachers showed higher growth in science knowledge over time as compared to students of non-participating teachers. the efficacy of this program was determined to be in part due to its inclusion of science content, conversational spanish, and strategies for using culturally relevant pedagogy in science. the type of content included in professional learning should involve ways of understanding and teaching content known to increase student learning (garet et al., 2016) and include an explicit link to classroom lessons, involving not only what to teach but also how to teach it (desimone & garet, 2015). overall, changing teacher procedural classroom behavior is easier than improving content knowledge or inquiry-oriented instruction techniques (desimone & garet, 2015). supporting growth in both content knowledge and pedagogy requires engagement in a community of practice. the types of activities that result from this engagement are detailed in the following section. active learning and collaboration aligning with adult learning and social learning theories (rohlwing & spelman, 2014), effective pl for teachers involves active learning and collaboration with peers. active learning activities might include seeing modeled practices that teachers can analyze, try out, and reflect on (darling-hammond et al., 2017). this reflection-on-action can then turn an informational experience, in which participants gain new knowledge and skills, into a transformational experience, in which teachers change their points of view or habits of mind (mezirow, 2000). one main driver for the importance of active learning is understanding the mechanism of change in teacher knowledge, skills, beliefs, and actions. research on this change process indicates that changes in teacher practices lead to changes in student outcomes (such as learning, participation, or motivation), and this then leads to a change in teacher beliefs about effective practices (clarke & hollingsworth, 2002; guskey, 2002). teacher commitment to a new idea develops after implementation takes place in part because most teachers derive their sense of professional success from student growth (guskey, 2002). once teachers agree that a practice does in fact lead to increased student growth, they incorporate it more regularly and shift their beliefs about the efficacy of the new or modified practice. the connections between knowledge, skills, beliefs, and actions are multidirectional and self-reinforcing (clarke & hollingsworth, 2002). active learning in an environment of professional collaboration is a key aspect of professional learning. in fact, teachers who work in isolation rarely change their practice (swan dagen & bean, 2014). harré (1983) applied the vygotskian principles of social learning to the intersection between individual and social learning, and public and private displays of learning. this process involves a cycle of individual publication (communication) of information, the conventionalization of this information in public space, the appropriation of information by other individuals, and personal reflection and possible transformation prior to the next cycle of publication. this collaboration interacts with active learning as teachers work together as active learners. such a connection between active learning and collaboration should take place in a research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 sturm, e. & quaynor, l. a window, mirror, and wall: how educators use twitter for professional learning 25 context where teachers have some agency in their own learning. raphael, vasquez, fortune, gavelek, and au (2014) note that the success of professional learning will depend on the “buyin, ownership, and agency of the participating teachers” (p. 157). this agency and buy-in are also related to peer coaching and feedback. teacher coaching and feedback to support the content-based, active, and collaborative learning found in successful pl, peer coaching and feedback are critical features of professional learning systems. the incorporation of teacher leaders in coaching further supports a sense of teacher agency. in a study of professional development within high-performing educational systems, jensen, sonnemann, roberts-hull, and hunter (2016) note the key role of teacher leaders in these systems. for example, in shanghai, teachers will not be promoted unless they can demonstrate that they are collaborative, and mentors will not be promoted unless the teachers they mentor improve (jensen et al., 2016). this type of coaching and mentoring increasingly has involved video technology (desimone & garet, 2015). one successful professional model leading to substantial improvements in student reading abilities included the work of literacy coaches, who worked intensively with peers to improve the ways teachers scaffolded student discussion of texts (bryk, gomez, grunow, & lemahieu, 2015). this type of peer coaching involves both a dialogical approach to professional learning as well as a recognition of the importance of a teacher’s role and a sense of teacher agency. in addition, such peer coaching required action over a sustained period of time, the peer leadership of the literacy coaches, and the support of school and system-based leadership. sustained duration and leadership current research indicates that time and leadership complement the above factors in allowing for effective professional learning. professional learning that is able to lead to systemic change or a change in the outcomes of a system must be both systematic and sustained over time (raphael et al., 2014). some reports suggest that, in fact, a duration of three to five years is appropriate for systemic effort that results in increased student learning (swan dagen & bean, 2014); others indicate that increases in student learning can be seen through 10 days spread over the course of one year (greenleaf et al., 2011). in both scenarios, significant time must be allocated not only to learning but also to practicing and evaluating a job-embedded skill. overall, current trends suggest that educational leaders are moving away from professional learning focused on short workshops and into longer-term initiatives (desimone & garet, 2015). leaders, both at the school and district level, can be key gatekeepers to effective professional learning (swan dagen & bean, 2014). focusing on a particular initiative over a number of years on a systemwide scale requires leaders to balance multiple needs and choose not to undertake other competing initiatives (jensen et al., 2016). leaders can also choose to include professional learning, or not, in a teacher’s evaluation, and foster an environment in which teachers have time in their weekly teaching schedule to try and reflect on new skills (jensen et al., 2016). research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 sturm, e. & quaynor, l. a window, mirror, and wall: how educators use twitter for professional learning 26 teacher professional learning on twitter the need for alternate models of professional learning traditional, formal models of professional learning face constraints of space and time (lawless & pellegrino, 2007; smith, wilson, & corbett, 2009) and the lack of continuing support for participants (alberth, mursalim, siam, suardika, & ino, 2018). models of professional learning that bring all teachers in a system together for days at the beginning or end of the school year often are “inadequate, fragmented and superficial” (thacker, 2015, p. 38) and do not meet the individual needs of the participants (ball & cohen, 1999; borko, 2004; wei et al., 2009) or are often something “done to teachers” (carpenter & morrison, 2018, p. 25) rather than a participatory and collaborative form of learning. educators hampered by the costs of professional learning due to a lack of investment by their educational institutions may look to social media as an affordable way of accessing professional learning (o’keeffe, 2018). this may be heightened in discipline areas that are not considered to be high stakes, such as social studies. in a study of high school social studies teachers, thatcher (2015) found that the limited funds available for social studies professional learning and a primary focus on literacy and mathematics in professional development creates an environment in which social studies teachers need to find alternative models for creating communities to improve their practice. twitter as a platform for professional learning as an alternate professional model, many educators have turned to social media platforms such as twitter as a free, informal, communal space for professional learning in which participants can create personalized networks (carpenter & krutka, 2014; gao, luo, & zang, 2012; krutka & carpenter, 2016; o’keeffe, 2018). social media platforms also break down spatial boundaries through real-time availability across geographical lines and time zones, provided that educators have digital connections (adjapong, emdin, & levy, 2018). although many educators use twitter as a platform for professional learning, their social presence varies, much like in a traditional professional learning model in which some participants may engage in reciprocal sharing and others may prefer to listen without engaging in the dialogue. in examining thousands of educators’ tweets, researchers found that the majority of visible interaction on twitter was through retweets and likes, with only a small percentage of original content (greenhalgh & koehler, 2017). o’keeffe (2018) found that higher education staff who participated in twitter had a variety of social presences, ranging from a small number with a high usage of interactive posting to those who used it as a one-directional resource without creating any form of social identity for themselves. one method of professional learning on twitter is the use of twitter chats, planned virtual dialogues that are organized around topics and include the use of hashtags as their method of organization. according to adjapong et al. (2018), twitter chats can be identified as virtual research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 sturm, e. & quaynor, l. a window, mirror, and wall: how educators use twitter for professional learning 27 professional learning networks (vpln). within these chats, participants share and gain knowledge and tools to further their own professional learning (krutka, carpenter, & trust, 2017). venable and milligan (2012) argue that the real-time engagement that is a hallmark of these types of scheduled twitter chats may lead to transformational discussions. although it is not possible to identify how many individuals use these chats without engaging visibly in the social sphere, several studies have attempted to capture the value of twitter chats as a sphere for professional learning amongst participants interacting visibly through retweets, responding to questions, responding to other participants, and liking tweets. researchers have also examined how different educational groups use twitter chats as a method of professional learning. recently, multiple studies have focused on preservice educators’ participation in twitter chats as a beneficial form of professional learning (carpenter & morrison, 2018; delello & consalvo, 2019; krutka, 2014; mullins & hicks, 2019; riech, levinson, & johnston, 2011). adjapong et al. (2018) found that educational participants who took part in a #hiphoped twitter chat found a sense of belonging within the chat community and reported that the professional learning they engaged in as part of these chats had an impact on their instructional practice; additionally, a majority of participants self-reported that #hiphoped chat participation “impacted their practice by specifically encouraging them to be more engaging educators, possibly by gaining tools that supported the teaching to the specific needs of their students” (p. 34). this aligns with the findings by researchers in the social studies education community. krutka & carpenter (2016) surveyed 303 “self-identified social studies educators” (p. 44) to examine how and why these educators use twitter. seventy-four percent of those respondents listed using twitter chats for professional learning and a high percentage reported sharing and collecting resources along with using twitter as a tool for collaboration with other professionals. like in the #hiphoped study, the majority of krutka and carpenter’s (2016) respondents also noted that participation in twitter chats impacted their teaching through challenging their thinking and exposure to new ideas and materials. theoretical framework we used a sociocultural learning framework to understand the ways in which teachers engaged in twitter chats. as discussed in raphael et al. (2014), sociocultural approaches to professional development hold that learning proceeds from social interactions and is then individually transformative when an individual uses this idea in their private sphere. this cycle of public and private learning, based on harré’s (1983) description of the vygotskian space, proceeds through four phases: publication or open discussion of information, conventionalization or making an idea normal in the public sphere, appropriation or using that idea in one’s private sphere, and transformation of an individual’s understanding. grounding this study in a sociocultural learning framework necessitated a focus on dialogue and social interaction. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 sturm, e. & quaynor, l. a window, mirror, and wall: how educators use twitter for professional learning 28 research question and methodology given the proliferation of teachers’ use of twitter as a space for teacher-led, optional professional learning, in this paper we investigate the engagement of teachers participating in twitter chats focused on global education. we particularly wished to understand the format of professional learning to complement previous analyses focused on the content of these chats (quaynor & sturm, 2019). the research question pursued in this study is: what types of exchanges do teachers have with each other in a hosted twitter chat? methodology as an examination of online exchanges among teachers, we engaged in qualitative content analysis (schreier, 2012) complemented with code frequency analysis (krippendorf, 2013) to understand the ways in which teacher twitter chats served as a form of professional learning. we focused on two twitter chats with the theme of global education conducted in february, 2016. the first, #sschat, is a weekly chat affiliated with the national council for social studies (ncss). the second, #globaledchat, is a weekly chat hosted by the center for global education at asia society. after downloading .pdf versions of the selected twitter chats conducted by the hosting organizations, we uploaded these documents to the dedoose (2018) platform for coding. consistent with the process of qualitative content analysis (schreier, 2012), we initially individually created descriptive codes for each tweet based on reading the first 20 percent of the twitter chat transcript. these descriptive codes sought to describe the types of exchanges teachers had with each other, aligning to the research question. in research meetings, we discussed the reliability, validity, exhaustiveness, saturation, and mutual exclusiveness of the codes (schreier, 2012). we then compared coding lists to identify similar codes, created one shared coding list, and coded 10 percent of the transcript jointly, ensuring over 80 percent agreement on codes and discussing any differences. following this collaborative process, we collapsed codes into categories with parent and child codes, and completed coding of the transcripts. to move from codes to themes, we examined the prevalence of parent codes in each twitter chat, shared the findings, and created descriptive themes based on the relationship between parent codes. appendix a shares the relationship between child codes, parent codes, and themes. findings the main ways in which teachers engaged in twitter chats included: (1) forming community, (2) networking, (3) sharing resources, (4) dialogue, and (5) structured learning. in table 1, we have shared the prevalence of these parent codes across each twitter chat. the most common form of engagement was forming community, at 30% of chat engagement, followed by dialogue (24%) and structured learning (23%). less common were sharing resources (17%), often in response to a specific query by the host, and promoting one’s own personal, professional, or organizational work (6%). research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 sturm, e. & quaynor, l. a window, mirror, and wall: how educators use twitter for professional learning 29 table 1 parent codes across twitter chats chat parent code dialogue forming community networking sharing resources structured learning #sschat global perspectives in social studies 252 245 47 139 161 #globaled chat local global connections 97 199 43 116 186 totals 349 (23.5%) 444 (30%) 90 (6%) 255 (17%) 347 (23%) below, we describe the relationships among these activities in the chat, which we have narrated into three themes. in these hosted twitter chats, the host leads participants to create community, and teachers connect as people and professionals. both prompted and unprompted, teachers share resources and dialogue about these resources. participant dialogue as professionals and learners involves networking and sharing resources they have used or developed. theme 1: the host leads participants to create community in both chats, the host’s first question involved introductions. participants largely provided professional introductions (e.g., i teach social studies in 8th grade), but some engaged in personal, “fun” introductions. figure 1. screenshot from a #globaledchat session in the above example, the moderator asked participants to introduce themselves and mention their favorite beverage in honor of national drink wine day. this participant shared his professional affiliation, personal information about parenting, and also humor about “not” drinking his favorite beer. in their subsequent questions, engagement, affirmation, and agreement with others were common. during the #sschat, the participants showed affirmation and agreement in multiple ways, such as the following example of a participant directly stating her agreement with another participant. although we did not include the number of likes of each tweet in this research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 sturm, e. & quaynor, l. a window, mirror, and wall: how educators use twitter for professional learning 30 research, one can see that the answer to the first question received six likes along with one direct agreement response. figure 2. screenshot from a #sschat session humor and sharing emotion were also part of this process, with some participants sharing emotion through words such as “happy” and the use of exclamation points, as shown in the tweet below. this participant also showed emotion by comparing the events of the month to a holiday. figure 3. screenshot from a #sschat session finally, participants shared experiences and perceived challenges, such as the challenge of teaching students who have had few experiences traveling beyond their community borders. the @ sign is used to respond to participants who share a common challenge, and the responses reflect a shared experience. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 sturm, e. & quaynor, l. a window, mirror, and wall: how educators use twitter for professional learning 31 figure 4. screenshot from a #globaledchat session theme 2: prompted and unprompted, teachers share resources and dialogue about these resources in both the #sschat and the #globaled chat, hosts asked questions that required participants to share resources such as lesson plans or pedagogy ideas. appendix b contains the questions asked during both chats used in this study; four questions in each chat ask participants to share resources. the #sschat question prompts specifically ask participants to share teaching methods (q4), curriculum (q5), classroom successes (q6), and trusted resources (q7), which is similar to resources (q3), strategies (q5), interdisciplinary project examples (q6), and ideas for student action (q7) asked for in the #globaledchat. the resources shared in the participants responses ranged from links to movies and websites, to tested classroom ideas such as curriculum and informal pedagogy strategies. participants also shared resources unprompted by the host. for example, when asked how they think about global education, a participant shared a philosophical resource for the promises and dangers of thinking globally if it reinscribes colonialist/white supremacist power dynamics. teachers then responded to the sharing of resources with affirmation, encouragement, and occasional questions or critiques. below, we provide an example of an extended informal exchange about using street views on google maps for teaching about international locations. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 sturm, e. & quaynor, l. a window, mirror, and wall: how educators use twitter for professional learning 32 figure 5. screenshot from a #sschat session research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 sturm, e. & quaynor, l. a window, mirror, and wall: how educators use twitter for professional learning 33 theme 3: participant dialogue involves networking although less prevalent than other types of engagement, networking was a consistent activity in both of these chats. as organizations have twitter accounts for marketing and public relations, individuals from these organizations promoted their own initiatives as part of their engagement in the twitter chat. in the #globaled chat, the asia society (whose member hosted the chat) as well as the global exploration for educators organization (geeo), the longview foundation, the global oneness foundation, global stem classroom, and irex international all participated as organizations and often tweeted answers or resources related to their organizational brand. in this example, we see the global oneness project replying to another participant with a link to materials created by their organization. figure 6. screenshot from a #globaledchat session as noted within the individual themes, participants’ engagement via sharing resources, providing encouragement or affirmation, networking, engaging in structured learning, and informal dialogue are related and mutually reinforcing activities in a learning community. in figure 7, we provide an initial concept map demonstrating the relationship among these activities as engaged in by participants during the chats. this pathway of engagement held for both the #globaledchat and the #sschat. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 sturm, e. & quaynor, l. a window, mirror, and wall: how educators use twitter for professional learning 34 figure 7. concept map of parent codes discussion as discussed above, educator engagement in online professional learning communities hosted on twitter involved multiple avenues for personal and professional connection. in this section, we discuss how this type of engagement maps onto key components of high-quality professional learning: a focus on content, active learning and collaboration, teacher coaching, feedback, and sustained duration (darling-hammond et al., 2017). by drawing together educators interested in social studies learning, activity within the chats connected to scholarship on situated learning, teacher agency, and marginalized voices. these connections are detailed below. situated learning in reporting on meaningful professional learning that translates into changes in practice, raphael et al. (2014) note that learning should be situated within teachers’ professional contexts. in the collective space of a twitter chat, teachers are able to share and gain what guskey and yoon (2009) call “just-in-time” information that they can integrate into pedagogy. as pointed out in adjapong et al. (2018), the twitter chat serves as a third space (babha, 1994) in which practitioners can dialogue with each other and organizations that serve as knowledge brokers in their fields (cooper & shewchuk, 2015) regarding problems of practice. although limited, this type of engagement begins to fulfill the need for teacher active learning and collaboration (darling-hammond et al., 2017) in professional learning. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 sturm, e. & quaynor, l. a window, mirror, and wall: how educators use twitter for professional learning 35 in the hosted twitter chats studied, students were found to be present in practitioner stories and suggestions; this only partially meets margolis, durban, and doring’s (2017) proposal that high quality professional learning requires the presence (either metaphorical or physical) of students. as participants are not engaged in real-time collaboration, the chats do not allow for experiencing a new idea in practice and evaluating if it makes a difference in student outcomes, which is a key component of professional learning (guskey, 2002). teacher agency professional organizations focused on professional learning consider teacher agency to be a key ingredient for teacher professional learning (calvert, 2016). participating in a twitter chat is an example of independent engagement in professional topics, and a way in which teachers demonstrate their agency as developing professionals. these chats are self-selected by teachers and are an insertion of their voices as experts on their own practice in a public forum. this is often displayed in their introductions, such as through participants identifying the courses taught in the area of social studies, or international teaching expertise. development as professionals is also shown in the ending tweets, which often stated a variation of being able to take a piece of learning from the chat into their classroom. one participant in the #sschat ended the session with this tweet: “i won't be as chipper at 4:30am, but i'll have new ideas to plan out and that's always a great time #sschat -until next time!” in the #globaledchat, one participant signed off with: “wow! thanks for the fabulous ideas! my head is swimming with info!” the majority of the chat questions for both chats focused on participants sharing their expertise with each other. vella (2002) suggests that adult learning needs to be relevant, meaningful, and embedded, with the learners acting as subjects and making their own decisions rather than behaving as objects having decisions made for them. generalized chat questions, while focused on a broad theme, provide space for “participation of the learners in naming what is to be learned” (vella, 2002, p. 4). the facilitator releases multiple questions at regular intervals during the hour and participants select what, to whom, and when to share information, affirm others’ responses, or ask additional questions. being in a dialogic space where participants have the ability to be both learners and experts increases teacher agency and active learning (vella, 2002). through sharing expertise and providing both feedback and some questions or critique of each other, teachers provide and receive coaching, which has been found to be an effective element of professional learning (darling-hammond et al., 2017). unfortunately, the nature of the fastpaced chats, with seven or eight questions posed within a 60-minute chat, does not appear to provide a forum in which coaching could be sustained. while analyzing both chats using archived material and revisiting several of the tweets that showed responses from other participants, there was no evidence that the conversation threads extended past the duration of the initial chat. analysis of extended connections or coaching, as well as how teachers research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 sturm, e. & quaynor, l. a window, mirror, and wall: how educators use twitter for professional learning 36 incorporated discussed ideas into their own practices, is a possible avenue for further research in this area. a space for marginalized voices? as noted by adjapong et al. (2018) in their study of #hiphoped chats, some participants in hosted twitter chats note that the online community allows for collaboration, innovation, and enjoyment of public space by members working in the social justice sphere. in the wake of testing regimes focused on reading, writing, and mathematics, teachers report limited amounts of curricular time in school focused on social studies topics (fitchett, heafner, & vanfossen, 2014; gilles, wang, smith, & johnson, 2013; kalaidis, 2013; national center for educational statistics, 2011-2012). within social studies, the field of global education or a focus on global issues is sometimes under critique from nationalist groups or cautious administrators. as an example of these critiques, one participant in the #globaled chat shared that their school board had cancelled a planned course on world religions at the high school level. in the chats studied, participants were able to come together with a group of self-identified global educators to discuss not whether global education was a good idea, but how to put global education into practice. being a global educator may not be oppositional to all school settings, but because of the limitations on teaching from a global perspective in some school settings, teacher participation in these types of twitter chats connects to previous research, in which tweets and twitter chats can be examples of babha’s (1994) third space where individuals can create oppositional, multifaceted identities (adjapong et al., 2018; mcarthur & white, 2016; yadlin-segal, 2017). the ability to share resources and promote one’s own or one’s recommended work, as well as the utilization of a twitter handle and connection to other twitter users, all serve to promote and define a teacher’s professional identity in the digital age. within the chats, global aspects of power and equity were not a central topic of discussion. however, in each discussion, participants brought up the legacies of imperialism or colonialism and considered ways to teach about these legacies and power imbalances. in a community of practice with other global educators, participants also discussed challenges to teaching with a global lens and reflected on limitations to their own practices. conclusion as demonstrated above, teacher exchanges within hosted twitter chats focused on global education exhibit multiple characteristics of high-quality professional learning. these include a focus on content, active learning and collaboration, and teacher agency. however, the format of the twitter chat does not allow for other aspects of professional learning, including a clear feedback cycle, sustained duration, the creation of a community of practice at a school, and a hands-on approach (darling-hammond et al., 2017). research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 sturm, e. & quaynor, l. a window, mirror, and wall: how educators use twitter for professional learning 37 digital exchanges and digital dialogue are becoming more prevalent in teachers’ informal professional learning (lantz-andersson, lundin, & selwyn, 2018) and promote participants’ sense of belonging within communities of educators with similar interests (adjapong et al., 2018; krutka & carpenter, 2016). the positive response received by participants through likes, comments, and retweets reflects a sense of affirmation, showing the participants reflections of themselves as members in the desired community. the comments and emotions about new resources become windows into different classroom experiences and practices, broadening the educators’ knowledge base and providing validation. while multiple studies have focused on participants’ sense of belonging and the exchange of resources within the timed twitter chats, there is room for additional research on the feedback cycle and on how the initial excitement and engagement with new resources translates into actual transformative classroom practices. research that follows teachers into their classrooms after a chat to examine if transformation occurs would be of benefit to the educational community. it is still unclear if professional learning through twitter chats increases curricular mirrors and windows (style, 1996), or if the absence of sustained duration and deeper feedback cycles could serve as walls, where professional learning is left in the twitter archive when the chat ends. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 sturm, e. & quaynor, l. a window, mirror, and wall: how educators use twitter for professional learning 38 appendix a child codes, parent codes, and themes themes parent code child codes theme 1: the host leads participants to create community. parent codes: fc, n, sl theme 2: prompted and unprompted, teachers share resources and dialogue about these resources. parent codes: sl, sr, d theme 3: participant dialogue involves networking. parent codes: d, n, sr forming community (fc) ● affirmation ● agreement with other twitter user ● emotion ● greeting ● how to engage ● humor ● me too ● parents don't ● personal information ● photo greeting ● professional information ● student limitations ● thank you networking (n) ● announcing connection ● announcing participation ● promoting/sharing own professional work ● sharing group event sharing resources (sr) ● sharing pedagogy suggestion ● sharing resource theoretical ● sharing resource global content information and tech ● sharing teaching challenges ● what we did dialogue (d) ● @ sign ● adding information to other user's response ● answering participant question ● asking participant for example ● disagreeing with other twitter user? ● i will try that! ● question to other participants structured learning (sl) ● answering host content question (about global ed.) ● question content ● question from moderator research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 sturm, e. & quaynor, l. a window, mirror, and wall: how educators use twitter for professional learning 39 appendix b twitter chat questions global perspectives in social studies sschat 1/2/16 hosted by @caranowou welcome to #sschat! introduce yourself, where you're from & something "global" about yourself. q1: what does teaching global perspectives in social studies mean to you? #sschat q2: what are obstacles to teaching with global perspectives? how can you overcome these obstacles? #sschat q3: what are key issues/dimensions of a global perspective that students should learn? #sschat q4: what are methods to teach global perspectives to students who haven't been exposed to much diversity? #sschat q5: what curriculum best lends itself to teaching from a global perspective? why? #sschat q6: share success stories of teaching from global perspective? what is an instance that didn’t go so well? #sschat q7: share some of your “go to” resources for teaching a global perspective? #sschat making global/local connections for students global ed chat 2/18/16 hosted by @singmaster welcome to #globaledchat! please introduce yourself and, in honor of national drink wine day, tell us your favorite beverage. q1: what are some issues that are relevant to both your local community as well as to the global community? #globaledchat q2: what are some challenges for students in making connections between local and global issues? #globaledchat q3: what are some current resources that can help teachers connect local issues to global issues? #globaledchat q4: how can travel help bring to life local and global connections? q5: what are some strategies teachers can use to integrate their travel experiences into student learning? #globaledchat q6: do you have examples of interdisciplinary projects that make local/global connections? #globaledchat q7: how can students take action on global issues in their local communities? #globaledchat q8: how does incorporating authentic issues, audiences, and actions enhance student learning? #globaledchat https://twitter.com/#!/search?q=%23globaledchat https://twitter.com/search?q=%23globaledchat https://twitter.com/search?q=%23globaledchat https://twitter.com/search?q=%23globaledchat https://twitter.com/search?q=%23globaledchat https://twitter.com/search?q=%23globaledchat https://twitter.com/search?q=%23globaledchat https://twitter.com/search?q=%23globaledchat https://twitter.com/search?q=%23globaledchat https://twitter.com/search?q=%23globaledchat https://twitter.com/search?q=%23globaledchat https://twitter.com/search?q=%23globaledchat https://twitter.com/search?q=%23globaledchat https://twitter.com/search?q=%23globaledchat research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 sturm, e. & quaynor, l. a window, mirror, and wall: how educators use twitter for professional learning 40 references adjapong, e. s., emdin, c., & levy, i. 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(2017). constructing national identity online: the case study of #iranjeans on twitter. international journal of communication, 11, 24. https://tntp.org/assets/documents/tntp-mirage_2015.pdf https://tntp.org/assets/documents/tntp-mirage_2015.pdf http://www.onlinecollege.org/%20wp-content/uploads/2012/03/onlinecollege.org-twitterchat.pdf http://www.onlinecollege.org/%20wp-content/uploads/2012/03/onlinecollege.org-twitterchat.pdf research in social sciences and technology (ressat) e-issn: 2468-6891 93 from rebellion to riots: student violence inside the egyptian universities after june 30, 2013 nasser tolba1 abstract this article aims to explore the phenomenon of violence at egyptian universities after the downfall of the muslim brotherhood regime on june 30, 2013. it is a critical analysis to identify the underlying causes and factors leading to this excessive violence and its impact on egyptian universities. the article drew on qualitative methods by interviewing 16 muslim brotherhood students from four public universities. the results indicate that frustration, injustice, the collapse of democracy, and interference of the security in universities played an initial role in the students’ violent behaviors. the forms of violence varied from clashes, throwing stones, and destroying university facilities and infrastructure. the effects of violence on the university were large such as, canceling study several times, eliminating student political and cultural activities, infrastructure losses, and many arrests, injuries, and victims between students and staff. keywords: the events of the 30 june 2013, violence, egypt revolution, student protests, student activism. introduction and background during the time of submitting my application to the doctoral program in education at fayoum university, most egyptian universities witnessed an extensive range of protests and student strikes. these strikes began after the downfall of the muslim brotherhood regime and lasted an entire year. the new regime excluded the brotherhood from power and arrested their leaders. these political events motivated the organization of the muslim brotherhood students in egyptian universities to mobilize huge demonstrations which differ according to the membership of the organization in each university. the regime attempted to restrain the student demonstrations by force, and the result was a mass disorder. for example, clashes between students and the police, burning university facilities and preventing study for long periods occurred. this violence became a widespread phenomenon at public and private universities and has recently drawn the attention of all social strata on the background of these bloody events (hassinen, 2013; pratt, 2014). this study, therefore, tries to answer two main questions: what are the main reasons for, and forms of, student violence at the egyptian universities? and what has been the impact of these events on universities in egypt? 1 doctoral student at the institut für bildung und kultur (institute of education and culture) fredrich schiller university of jena – germany. nasser.tolba@uni-jena.de assistant lecturer – faculty of education – fayoum university– egypt research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3(2), 93-114 although the literature articulates the phenomenon of political engagement and student activism in university life (greenbreg, 2014; golkar, 2015; levin & cureton, 1998; mashyekhi, 2001; simmons & lilly, 2010), few systematic attempts have been made to examine student political violence at universities especially after revolutions and societal transformations in the third world countries. sociologists and political scientists refer that political violence is a prominent form of violence, which is related to political issues (zimmermann, 2011). it can be defined as “all collective attacks within a political community against the political regime, its actors including competing political groups as well as incumbents or its policies “(gurr, 2016, p 34). it is not only a behavior against the state but also, the state can apply violence aginst civilians and opposition groups. the political aim is the motivating key factors in the political violence cycle. therefore, “political violence depends basically on the use of physical power to cause affliction for a political adversary” (della porta, 1995, p. 2). many studies pointed out that the suppression of liberties, social justice issues, and the violent repression were the main reasons for the previous waves of political violence at universities in latin america, africa, and asia (altbach, 1999; fokwang, 2009; he, 2014; roberts, 2015; samaranayake, 2015; yigit &tarman, 2013; 2016). in africa, most university students were involved in violent actions as a result of the political issues, policies of discrimination, intrauniversity conflicts and tensions, poor university facilities, and declining standard of living for a large sector of the population (konings, 2002; nyamnjoh & jua, 2002). the majority of african universities were controlled by oppressive regimes which practiced structured violence over the opposition groups. the most remarkable example was the apartheid system in south africa (harris, 2010). cultism is also considered as a major reason for violence. many political regimes raise cultism to distract students from the fundamental issues of freedom and democracy that they are constantly demanding. rotimi (2005) has reported many violent events between student groups, especially muslim and christians in nigerian universities. numerous murders have been committed against rival cult members. he traced this to the long period of military rule and the culture of institutionalized violence. this also has been agreed by fomunyam (2017) who attributed violence at african universities to the "an inherited ideological trait" and indicated that the process would continue in the future unless careful actions and policies are taken to ensure transformation and decolonization in those countries. tolba the authoritarian university administrations have served as a basic tool for political violence. it is reported that students demanded the improvement of the educational services at universities and increasing the space of democracy and freedom, but administrations ignored these requests and asked the police to put an end to the student protests (amutabi, 2002). at the university of yaounde in nigeria, the strikes turned to violence because the university authorities refused to be involved in a dialogue with students. the students were also divided into two groups; the "autochthonous" group supporting the regime and the "parliament" representing the radical opposition. as such violent events were frequently occurred between students and security forces as well as between the two groups of students. many students were jailed, and others were fired from university (konings, 2002). poor societal, political, and economic conditions could lead to political violence at the university. farson (1973) reported the protests of the lebanese students, who demanded political and civil rights for students, job opportunities after graduation, and modernization of the agriculture and industrial sectors. security forces confronted the student demonstrations, and violent events ensued. many students were injured, and hundreds were arrested. political ideologies may also lead to violence among students. twallba (2013) identified the reasons for students’ violence at al-yarmouk university in jordan. he stated that the violent events related to competition in the student union elections, weakness of procedures, and laws to prevent violence, and pride of belonging to tribes were the main causes for the students’ clashes. although scholars have studied violence at universities from different perspectives and in other nations, there is to date no specific study exploring the political violence inside universities in post-revolution. in egypt, most studies confirmed a strong relationship between student violence and many political and economic issues such as; the lack of political work and participation inside university, the problem of unemployment, limited participation in university decision making, and an absence of channels for expressing opinions (al-gendy, 1989; al-qaṣāṣ, 2005; farag, 1993). in conclusion, political violence inside universities is related to several causes varied from political to economic, societal, and academic factors. although the current study corroborates the results of the previous literature, it represents a new theoretical framework for the student violence in post-revolution. political violence, state, and student movement in egypt it is clear from the history of the student movement in egyptian universities that it was working towards freedom, democracy and anti-authoritarian regimes (abdalla, 2008). soon after the research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3(2), 93-114 establishment of the first egyptian university (cairo university), the main concern of the students was fighting the british colonization of egypt. at this time, the student movement was an essential part of the national movement in egypt (al-rafʿay, 1988). battle of march 9th a confrontation between students and political authority took place on march 9, 1932, following the dismissal decision of taha hussein from the university by ismʿil ṣidqiy government (reid, 1990, p.120). the students responded by staging demonstrations and strikes in defense of university independence. ismʿil ṣidqiy resorted to the security solution to finish the demonstrations, and the security forces stormed the campus of cairo university. the university rector ahmad lutfi al-sayed resigned as an objection to that decision (al-gimʿay, 1982). after this demonstration, the government has been changed, and taha hussien and ahmad lutfi al-sayed were returned to work again in the university. these situations give clear evidence for the power of the students’ movement at the egyptian university. incident of kūbry ʿabbas1 in 1946 the students mobilized huge demonstrations against the repeal of the 1923 constitution (reid, 1990). the british security police opened fire the students on kūbry ʿabbas; two students died, and a dozen was injured. the demonstrations ended with significant benefits, rework the 1923 constitution and moved the british security forces camp from ismʿiliyah square (tahrir now) to outside cairo (hassan, 2010, pp.20-21). demonstrations of 1968 a large number of the students’ protests against the ruling authority have increased, especially after the defeat of june 1967(ramaḍan, 1998). the students cooperated with other social groups and workers’ unions for demanding true judicial decisions of the leaders who caused the defeat. the authority confronted the protests, and the security forces arrested thousands of students and sent them to jail. finally, this public discontent forced nasser to declare that a necessary change has to happen (ʿabdellah, 2008). bread riots in the era of sadat, especially in 1972, the egyptian universities witnessed massive demonstrations against the situation of no war no peace with israel after the sadat’s speech. 1the researcher used ala-lc romanization symbols to write arabic words to latin script via transliteration. tolba the students sat-in the celebrating great hall of cairo university and demanded liberation for the national lands (sinai) from occupation. the security forces entered the university campus and arrested the students (ʿafify, 2014). after the 1973 war, the students' movement refused the state’s public policy and the subordination to the political system of the united states of america (shehata, 2008). in 1977, huge demonstrations exploded in what is known as "bread riots" as a result of the disapproval of sādāt's policies, rising prices, and declaration of the camp david treaty (erlich, 2005). as usual, the security forces arrested thousands of university students from all political groups at the university (rūshdy, 1994). mubarak and students, the great depression mubarak followed the way of sadat in creating restrictions and obstacles in front of the student movement. these procedures led to the growth of religious groups within the egyptian universities which threaten the democratic practices. the students mobilized numerous demonstrations and protests for supporting the palestinian people against israel’s aggression (al-dessūkay, 1998). the security forces worked to prevent the protests, and this led to a clash between security and students, especially in cairo university, ʿain shams university, and alazhar university. many students were injured, others were arrested, and others were still excluded from university. in january 1991, the students protested against the gulf war, demanding an end to the conflict. the regime prevented these demonstrations by force. there were many injuries between students and security. another bloody confrontation between students and security force has happened inside ʿain shams university. the reason for the clashes was students’ union elections. the security used a group of thugs disguised as students to undermine the election. the authority wanted to control the students’ union by appointing loyalist students (hagāzy, 2009). it is noted that the student movement was one unit through the beginning of the egyptian university in 1908. the students participated in social issues with a national identity and without any religious or political affiliations. these characteristics give the student movement its power to make a change in the political sphere. the students were one part and interested in the same cases and problems with other social and political groups in the society. additionally, the student movement maintained its peaceful way and expressed the community’s sufferings and demands. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3(2), 93-114 at the current time, there is no general case for all the student groups at egyptian universities. there is an enormous political polarization and division inside universities. on the one hand, the muslim brotherhood students support muhammad morsi and reject the new regime and his leader al-sisi. on the other hand, many students support the new regime and reject the muslim brotherhood policies. also, there is a group of independent students who do not have any political belonging to any political parties. therefore, the demonstrations and riots which took place at egyptian universities for nearly a year 2013/2014, is related to just one students’ group. it does not express the whole of the student movement at egyptian universities. theoretical framework there are many theories endeavored to interpret violence. some of these theories attributed violence to the biological aspects while other theories attribute it to the psychological disorders and consider violence as a causal reaction towards certain situations and other theories stated that violence is not an innate or an instinctive behavior but a learned behavior (brehm & kassin, 1990). the current study attributes violence to the state of disappointment and frustration among students at egyptian universities (frustration-aggression theory of john s. dollard and neal e. miller). the 25 january revolution 2011 has accompanied with high expectations and hopes for political development in egypt. therefore, hopes and aspirations of the students have increased to make a real change in the egyptian society through achieving social justice, freedom of expressing and democratic practices. however, the political events that followed the coup and the destroying of democracy led students to feel frustration and alienation. the repressive practices of the security force against the student demonstrations pushed them to react violently. the exclusion of the muslim brotherhood from the political arena represents damage to the concept of the democracy and justice. the overthrow of the legitimate president, abolishing the parliament elections and committed bloody events in rabʿah and al-nahdah by security forces increased the student's anger and led to a case of disappointment and depression. as a result of privation of legitimate channels for the freedom of expressing opinions, a large section resorted to using the violence against the security forces and the authority of the university which does not protect the freedom of the students at the university. method and procedures research design tolba this article relies on a qualitative method through interviewing students. the qualitative design is appropriate to the current study because it uses a naturalistic approach to understand the phenomenon of political violence at egyptian universities in post-revolution. moreover, it gives an opportunity to the oppressed groups, which the political authority prevents them from expressing their voices, to deliver their ideas and perspectives. population and sample the study was conducted in four purposively selected universities (fayoum university, alazhar university, helwan university, and cairo university) located in the middle and northern egypt, between september 2013 and june 2014. the study sample was chosen from the muslim brotherhood students who participated in or witnessed demonstrations. the focus of this study was on the muslim brotherhood students because they were the only student group which confronted the regime at that time as deduced from the characteristics of students who has been arrested, injured or fired from universities for related reasons. the sample consisted of 16 students from the four universities. the students were varied from different faculties such as faculty of education, faculty of commerce, faculty of arabic language, faculty of arts, faculty of islamic studies, faculty of political science, and faculty of engineering. additionally, the sample included male and female students. data collection tools the study implemented an open interview to collect data from the sample (biber & leavy, 2006; croswell, 2007; flick, 2007). the interviews were conducted face-to-face and on-site in 2013-2014. the interviews lasted between thirty to forty minutes. the participants agreed to record their speeches. most of interviews have been recorded via recorder. the interviews took the shape of ordinary speech. data analysis the process of analyzing data passed through several stages. first, the recorded data were transcribed to written form through a texts editor program (word processing). then the researcher read the entire data to understand it and to make sense of the general ideas. afterward, the author started asking questions on these data for better understanding. further reading of data was made (line-by-line) with writing notes and reflections about the data. after reading the interviews, open codes were given to the data. the open coding produced various codes and ideas which were considered the base for further analyses. the researcher also attempted to provide primary explanations for the data at this stage. a further reading was research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3(2), 93-114 conducted for rising comments and questions such as what are the main ideas that related to the student violence? are these ideas are connected together? afterward, the researcher categorized themes, linked and organized them by the relationship in a process called axial coding. this process provided coding families that became the major findings of the study through clear themes (biber & livy, 2006; flick, 2007; fetterman, 2010). categories started to emerge, and the relationship between related categories was examined. finally, categories were ordered, processed, organized, dismantled and shown the channels of construction and deconstruction of the social phenomenon through the selective coding process (breuer, 2009; strauss& corbin, 1998). the causes and forms of the political violence were easily detected. to ensure trustworthiness of the study results, a discussion of data findings was conducted with the students to confirm content validity. also, feedback on the manuscript was received from many researchers and experts in fayoum university in egypt and jena university in germany (golafshani, 2003; fettermann, 2010). findings analysis of data showed three major themes of political violence at egyptian universities: the causes of political violence, the forms of political violence, and the repercussion of political violence on universities. first: the causes of political violence the brotherhood students attributed all violent events to the political issues and the legitimacy of the current regime. according to the data, these reasons were divided into three main subreasons: (a) the crisis of legitimacy of the current regime, (b) the massacre of rabʿah and alnahdah, and (c) the restrictions of liberties and political work at universities. the crisis of legitimacy for the current regime according to the study, the legitimacy of the regime is represented in the results of the elections box. the regime is legitimate as long as it was chosen by the majority of the egyptian people in democratic elections. therefore, the muslim brotherhood and pro-muslim brotherhood considered what has occurred on 30 june 2013 as a coup against the legitimate president. the brotherhood students have a solid conviction that muhammad morsi must complete his presidential period and afterward presidential elections can be organized according to the rules of democracy. for that reason, the students mobilized huge demonstrations and strike to express their rejections for the toppling of president morsi from the rule. a student at al-azhar tolba university stated his opinion about the aim of the students’ upheaval. "demonstrations at first were organized for political issues, especially the overthrow of the elected president." the issue of legitimacy has always been the focus of students’ attention. it was mentioned in the students’ chants and slogans. for example, they shouted " ʿ awdh al-shar'iah" which means the return of the political legitimacy. another profound example is "morsi r'isy" and this means morsi is my president. the researcher saw those slogans in most of the universities’ buildings, especially at fayoum and cairo university. it seems that the students want to share their ideas and views about the legitimacy with other students. this also may indicate the absence of basic freedom, freedom of expression, and freedom of assembly. when the researcher asked the brotherhood students about the current regime, the responses reveal the degree of refusal to the new regime. they considered him illegitimate and that it should be removed from power. a female student at fayoum university stated: we do not recognize this regime or its government, laws or anything related to him. we aim to restore our rights. we are in a country where our rights were stolen. this president is not legitimate. people do not have their rights. we are confronting that regime until its downfall. how can i find a job after graduation if this regime did not leave? how can everyone take his rights like before? the ruling of generals means bad economy, bad tourism, etc … the massacre of rabʿah and al-nahdah through the responses of the study sample, the events of rabʿah and al-nahdah were the fundamental reasons for the student protests. they believe that the current regime committed arbitrary and unlawful killings against the unarmed protesters in rabʿah and al-nahdah. regardless of the reasons for the sit-in protest or the massacre, the brotherhood students were outraged because many students died. they demanded expeditious trials for the murderers. a female student at fayoum university said: demonstrations have many aims. the first aim is blood. we started the demonstrations here after rab’ah massacre. many students were martyrs. they were killed in rab’ah and al-nahdah. the students consider rab’ah and al-nahdah as a symbol of the regime’s repression. they took the shape four fingers of the hand as a symbol for recalling the memory of the massacre of rab’ah. the students also wanted to take revenge from the security forces because they research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3(2), 93-114 murdered their colleagues. this was obvious in their speech "the first aim is blood". in their demonstrations, the students screamed: "we want to take our colleagues’ rights or die like them". they said those phrases with a loud voice full of anger and umbrage. this is a remarkable indicator of the status of shock as a result of these events. restrictions on liberties and political work in the university most of the students realized that the regime has controlled the university and imposed laws for preventing any political activity inside it. they also believed that their demonstrations are the only effective tool to press on the regime to finish the coup. moreover, they were also aware that the demonstrations had become a source of worry for the current regime. a student at alazhar university mentioned: the protests and riots have been exercised systematically at al-azhar university. the police practiced all kinds of violence and gross violations against the faculty members and us as well. these accidents have led to inflame the situation between the angry students and the security forces. in counter of the student demonstrations, the security forces intensively intervened universities, arrested the students, and threw tear gas and smoke bombs on the protesters. these brutal actions motivated the students to confront this coarseness of the security forces. a student at helwan university said: "the crisis began when the security forces arrested large numbers of the brotherhood students. that is because students demanded to release their arrested colleagues". at fayoum university, the researcher has witnessed the harsh intervention of the security forces in the student demonstrations. the police used excessive force to keep the students inside the university. a brotherhood student leader at fayoum university said: one of the students told us that the armored vehicles began to move in the direction of the university. therefore, we wanted to get back quickly to the university to protect the female students. male students can escape, but female students cannot. the law of demonstrations has also played an effective role in increasing disorder at universities. under this law, thousands of young people have been jailed on charges of the violation of the law. the students of fayoum university were worried about the intent of the regime to give a chance for mobilizing protests. a student at fayoum university stated: of course, the regime is trying to suppress the freedom of expressing opinions, which was existed after the 25th january revolution 2011 by this law. to tolba mobilize a demonstration, how can i get permission from one of the regime’s institutions which the demonstration will be against him? absolutely, i will organize a demonstration without any permission. the law, especially in the fifth act stated that the political rallies are banned in houses of worship. furthermore, the tenth act gives the right for the ministry of interior to approve, ban or change the track of the demonstrations if there is a threat to the society (organizing demonstrations act, 2013). thus, this law is discordant with the egyptian constitution. the new political regime attempted to prevent students from their basic rights in expressing opinions. for these reasons, the students refused the law and a student at cairo university mentioned that: the regime has declared that it is okay to arrange and make demonstrations. when people begin their demonstration, the regime sends its forces to shoot them. at the same time, the ministry of interior can permit you to make a demonstration in far place such as a desert. therefore, it is not logic. judicial regulation is another oppression tool which has been legislated for the disordered situation at egyptian universities. it emerged on the political level for the first time in 2013. it allowed the civil security at the university to inspect and arrest students (al-sony, 2013). the implementation of judicial regulation turned the campuses into a big prison in which the students could not practice their social or political activities. actually, the decision for judicial regulation was entirely hasty. this is simply because the students were demanding more freedom, but the regime wanted to confine this freedom. therefore, the number of protests has increased. second: forms of political violence at the egyptian universities in consonance with the study results, the forms of political violence have varied between protests in front of the deans and the chancellor’s office, the clash with the security, throwing stones and molotov cocktails, and destroying university's facilities. protests in front of the deans and the chancellor’s office since the beginning of the 25thjanuary revolution 2011, student activism has increased to restore their rights such as freedom, fair elections, and improving university facilities. conversely, the situation after 30 june 2013 was different due to the increasing number of research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3(2), 93-114 protests for one student group (the muslim brotherhood). these protests became a main feature of daily life in the egyptian universities. students began to press on the university administration to achieve our demands. we arrange this by preparing slogans and chants in the center of the campus. if nobody (administration) comes negotiate about the demands, we go to the administration building and make a strike or sit in the front of the dean’s office. this achieves good results (a student at fayoum university). the declared aim for these protests is to release the arrested students from prisons. the hidden objective of demonstrations was to reinstate president morsi to the rule. according to the students’ perspective, this is difficult because most of the university administrations support the current regime. moreover, they do not have the intent to protect students or listen to their grievances. on the one hand, the regime through the university administration endeavored to block the public sphere at universities for the muslim brotherhood students. on the other hand, the regime tried to reward other groups which are supporting the regime through financial aids and open public sphere for them. due to the current political situation in egypt, the regime realizes that the protesters are following a particular political group (muslim brotherhood) and he will not respond to their demands. if other groups which are supporting the regime, it is possible to achieve their demands (a student at helwan university). the clash with the security the student protests increased to a degree in which the security forces stormed the university to disperse the demonstrations and clashes occurred. this is because the security acts violently against students. therefore, the students tried to step out into the surrounding streets to gather the public support and legitimacy for their demonstrations. the security forces followed the student demonstrations and prevented them by force. the security threw tear gas, rubber bullets, and hit the students with batons. the students' backlash against the security forces actions was constantly violent. there is a physical law states that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. if i was suddenly attacked, i could not be silent. i will react to what i have in my hand (a student at fayoum university). tolba it is sorrow when the students participate in a demonstration, and the security forces shot them with tear gas and rubber bullets. there are many videos prove that if you want it, i can bring it to you (a student at cairo university). this atmosphere of aggression and violent actions of security pushed students to respond to violence. the students at fayoum university punished the civil security. ten of the private security at the faculty of arts and the faculty of education were injured and their chief had fatal injuries to his liver, kidneys, and neck. the students aimed to take the revenge for their colleagues because the civil security arrested the students and handed them over to the police. the students believe that there is collusion between the private security and the security forces as they have the same mission. a female student at fayoum university clarified: the civil security in the university informed the police about our colleagues. the security arrested them later. this is a strong reason for that. we do not begin violence. the power/resistance relationship between the security forces and the students has turned the university campuses into a war zone. in one hand, the regime wanted to grip on universities, impose stability, and show the power of the state. on the other hand, the brotherhood students sought to use their organization to press on the regime, achieve their demands, and show the weakness of the regime through protests and confrontations. throwing stones and molotov cocktails as a result of the security intervention and the excessive use of force in dealing with the student demonstrations, the students threw stones and molotov cocktails on the security outside the university. according to the brotherhood students throwing stones is considered a small tool for self-defense. security forces have thrown tear gas, smoke bombs, and rubber bullets and this affected our breath. students threw stones and fireworks, and this does not affect them. it is just self-defense (a student at al-azhar university). the state of frustration among students let them to burning the security’s cars. at al-azhar university, the students burned the cart of the security forces located outside the university to press on them to leave the university campus. in fact, the students’ reaction to the police was logical because the security forces started violence against students at the beginning. the security forces stormed the students’ dormitories before dawn to arrest students. a student died research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3(2), 93-114 during this violent intrusion. these arbitrary and unlawful killings irritated students and pushed them to behave violently. destroying and burning university facilities according to the students’ responses, they turned to destroy university facilities in a later stage of their protest. many accidents were reported at al-azhar, fayoum, and cairo university. the students burned the building of the faculty of commerce at al-azhar university. moreover, they destroyed the president’s office of al-azhar, ain shams, and al-zagazig university. at fayoum university, the author witnessed two rooms completely burned after the students’ attacks on the civic security. moreover, the students destroyed the gates of fayoum university and al-azhar university when the private security tried to prevent them from marching outside the university. also, they damaged the surveillance cameras in many university campuses, especially in cairo and fayoum university. third: repercussion of the political violence in the egyptian universities according to the study’s results, the events of the political violence significantly impacted egyptian universities. for instance, most students’ cultural, scientific, sport, and social activities were canceled. furthermore, the study was delayed for long periods which impacted the educational process at universities in terms adequate time to complete curricula. for example, the study was postponed twenty days at the beginning of the academic year 2013/2014 and for an extra month in the second semester. as well as, influencing running lectures because the students, during the demonstrations, were using microphones and reciting some phrases in raucous voices which disturb professors while teaching classes. additionally, the brotherhood students encouraged the new students for not attending lectures or scientific lessons in laboratories. these violent events also influenced the relationship between students, professors, and administrations of universities. this is because students blocked the office of the chancellor at al-azhar university and the dean of the faculty of engineering at cairo university. they also injured the dean of the faculty of pharmacy at cairo university. furthermore, a massive rift in the student movement in most egyptian universities occurred. there has been considerable disagreement between student groups reached to violent actions. many clashes between the brotherhood students and the students who support the new regime policies happened. for example, approximately, 143 students were injured in the clashes at mansoura university (al-deeb & al-sayed, 2013). further, dozens of the students died during their confrontation at the faculty of engineering in cairo university and the faculty of tolba medicine at al-azhar university. also, hundreds of students were jailed. therefore, many experts in higher education institutions in egypt suggested the abolition of the university dormitories. they claimed that these dormitories sheltered many students who have a tendency for violence. they were also demanding for returning the police to the universities again for maintaining constancy, facilities, and protecting them from deliberately sabotages by the students. discussion, implications and limitations many factors contribute to the violence at universities such as political polarization, policies of discrimination, bad economic situation, cultism, and inter-university conflict (farsoun, 1973; harris, 2010; nyamnjoh & jua, 2002; rotimi, 2005). however, this study displays unique reasons for violence among university students in post-revolution in egypt. the findings indicate that the regime’s legitimacy, the restrictions of liberties, and the events of rab’ah and al-nahdah constitute the primary source of political violence at egyptian universities. a possible explanation for this might be that the state of alienation which prevails among students as a result of various forms of persecution expressing itself in the form of explosions, vast and sudden protest movements which confront the authorities inside universities. it also prompts students to adopt all opposition’s ideas which reject the regime, and it motivates them to respond rapidly to any external political influences. thus, the students have fallen as a prey to the political contradictions in the egyptian society. as a result of the absence of channels of expressing opinions, large sections of students resort to using violence against the police and the university administration which is not in support for the student rights. it is notable that loss of hope for democratic change represents additional reasons for these accidents. the geographical location of the universities played an effective role in the density of political violence inside egyptian universities (robertson, 2013; wallace, & weiss, 2015; zhao, 1998). the universities which are situated in a rural region, such as fayoum university and helwan university, witnessed bloody events because of the increasing numbers of religious groups and the increasing percentage of unemployment and illiteracy between the surrounding communities. unlike, cairo university situated in the urban area of giza which has massive student protests but less violent and bloody events. although male students were more involved in political activities and had an intensive tendency to react violently, the female students have a supportive role in leading demonstrations against the security forces especially after many male student leaders were arrested. this is a development in the concept of political participation for the female students. the brotherhood uses the female students to mobilize research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3(2), 93-114 demonstrations which will have a greater impact on the masses of students. and the security forces will not deal violently with them. if the female students were shot, this would increase the public discontent for the regime inside and outside the university. another interesting finding is the forms of multilateral political violence at egyptian universities. they are varied between protests in front of the deans’ offices, clashes with security, and destroying university’s facilities. this result may be explained by the fact that the lack of awareness and professionalism of the security forces and the regime’s insistence on the security solution has aggravated the problem. furthermore, the idea of resistance is a central notion in the brotherhood's ideology and their understanding of islam. therefore, it increased the violence between the students and the security forces. the pattern of governance at egyptian universities which is characterized by a dictatorship is considered a fundamental factor for violence (konings, 2002). it is following the political will of the authority and antagonizes any movement which has a tendency for democracy inside the university. therefore, there is no real political space inside egyptian universities to contain the students’ demands for democracy and freedom. the university administrations do not have any vision to respond the students’ demands. frustration, despair, injustice, and alienation have increased among students. this has led to the tendency to violence and to the rejection of any source of authority in the society. this finding is compatible with a study conducted by aumutabi (2002). implications for student affairs professionals the findings of the current study have many implications for student affairs. first, student affairs circles at egyptian universities must promote a dialogue between student factions and create a more inclusive and equitable campus environment. it should also construct centers for social justice on campus and enhance cross-campus collaboration (broido & reason, 2005). second, student affairs professionals ought to provide meaningful discussions with students about what it means being an active and engaged member of a society in post-revolution. the role of a student affairs adviser is to create calm in the midst of the storm and provide an opportunity to assist students to develop their voice and their role in leadership. this will be achieved through regular political awareness workshops (bickford & reynolds, 2002). third, the practitioners can include alumni over the student lifecycle to provide rich and positive experiences to students. they can be represented as supervisors or as external participators. this will provide guidance towards the essence of student life and activities. fourth, the university policies and procedures should be regularly reviewed to explore how they contribute to the upgrowth of student activism and violence. lastly, student affairs circles can provide a tolba booklet for student code of conduct for demonstrations and political work. this will contribute to a secure campus environment for both students and faculty staff. limitations this study has many limitations which should be mentioned. although the qualitative method was suitable for the current study, the small number of participants from only four universities in egypt is considered as a disadvantage. however, the problem of generalizing results still exists and should be careful about that, the results of this study may provide a theoretical framework to explore political violence in universities in post-revolution. although my attempts to be objective while dealing with the phenomenon of political violence inside the egyptian universities, the process of analyzing and presenting data might be influenced by my academic background as a doctoral student with a liberal standpoint which considers the student protests as a human right. this liberal view could, in sometimes, supports the students in a counter of the oppression of the regime. many difficulties were encountered while conducting this study. for instance, significant barriers pertaining to violence included restrictions by the security forces and exposure to smoke and tear gas. also, the camera damaged while trying to take pictures during demonstrations. these circumstances may have influenced the students' responses and blocked some controversial issues. despite, the accuracy of conducting interviews in this study, some participant refused to be interviewed. therefore, the study may lose some important data. acknowledgments i would like to express my appreciation to my supervisor, professor dr. michael winkler; my academic and professional developments are products of his unreserved guidance. also, i want to thank dr. yousef mahmoud and dr. sanaa hashem for their support. the author acknowledge the egyptian ministry of higher education (cultural affairs and missions sector) for the financial support during this work. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3(2), 93-114 references ʿabdellah, a. 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(2011). political violence, crises and revaluation. theories and research. 2nd edition, new york, usa: rutledge. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) e-issn: 2468-6891 40 palestinian teachers’ views on the factors that limit students’ creativity and some possible strategies to overcome them ahmed raba’1 & hussam herzallah2 abstract this study seeks to investigate the degree of enhancing creative thinking skills in the english for palestine and math curricula from the teachers of english and math perspectives. to accomplish this aim, the researchers used a 20-item questionnaire and a 5-question interview. findings of the research showed that the degree of using creative thinking in schools and curricula is low and inadequate. in the light of these findings, the researchers recommended divergent methods of teaching, adequate training for teachers and students on different techniques and the inclusion of activities in the curricula to improve students’ creative thinking. key words: creative thinking skills, english and math curricula. introduction it worth raising a crucial issue which is knowledgeable thinkers are more likely to achieve success, solve problems and make correct decisions for life than ordinary people. the ability to think clearly and rationally is essential whatever human beings choose to do, so thinking clearly and systematically is of great importance in every field of life especially in education field. teaching thinking skills is basic due to the flux of knowledge available in all fields. thinking skills provide the necessary tools to address this flood of renewable knowledge that has been witnessed in our modern world. via developing this skill, learners can differentiate themselves from others. they help learners to promote imagination and concentration. they also give them the potentials to view the world differently. (jarwan, 2007: p.60). as indicated by (larsen, 2002: p.55), the new challenge for the development of educational and pedagogical curricula is that it needs to provide programs on teaching thinking process to all; therefore, educators in recent years strive to create strategies to develop thinking for all individuals to solve unexpected problems. that is schools and curricula must provide students with proper tools and proper 1 associate professor-an-najah national universityfaculty of education and teacher trainingahmedm@najah.edu 2 associate professoral-quds open university-tulkarm branchhhirzalla@qou.edu raba’ and herzallah thinking skills that they can use to deal with multiple and diverse situations that they may encounter in school and in life as well. friesen and jardine (2010), freire (1970), cotton, (1991). the urgent need for high thinking skill is a must for all in the current digital era with web 2.0 and other forms of technology having become an inseparable part of schools, learning styles are changing rapidly, forcing learners to carry a transformational change in their pockets in the form of powerful multimedia handheld devices (chen, 2010). these digital technologies have changed the traditional pedagogical paradigm, by enabling educators to reach their students directly and to revolutionize their learning experiences, which poses a lot of challenges in the way of thinking both critically and creatively (yücel, et al, 2010; tarman, baytak, & duman, 2015). therefore, it is time to reflect on whether our pedagogical approaches are congruent with the learning styles of this generation. learners will not be working on routine information seeking and problem solving, but will forge new and dynamic relationships, and tackle novel challenges with sophisticated technology (mcwilliams, 2008). the challenge for educators is thus to move beyond the convergent thinking tasks of multiple-choice and recall assignments that are dominating educational practices (tarman & chigisheva, 2017; tarman, 2017). based on these important grounds, the researchers conducted this study which showed the importance of creative thinking in teaching via determining the obstacles that limit the extent to which creative thinking is practiced and the elements that lack creativity in our schools’ curricula. pragmatically, it aims to give recommendations to deal with these obstacles. the number of studies concerned with creativity in the palestinian schools is not adequate. since we have a low level of creativity in our schools, studies like this should minimize the gaps that prevent the creative thinking elements in curricula unfortunately, palestinian schools do not enhance creative thinking at a satisfactory level. the current curriculum and teaching strategies are reluctant to give up rote memorization and spoon feeding. curricula do not include creative materials and questions. moreover, schools do not give teachers autonomy on deciding what to teach in their classes. they are obliged to follow their school’s system, the predetermined textbooks and lesson plans. there is no place for creative activities that allow students to deal with new situations in effective ways. teachercentered education in our schools limit the extent of students’ creativity. teachers supply students with the possible questions to be asked in the exams, and they leave no room for students’ creativity in research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3(2), 40-57 answering them and dealing with new authentic situations. students are like robots, expected to give predetermined answers to certain questions. this restricted systematic educational process suppresses creativity, imagination and innovation. instead of supporting students’ abilities to merely memorize paragraphs, rules and techniques, teaching policies that allow multiple answers, analysis and representations of the materials must be developed. (hamdona, 2007jarwan, 2007, ayat 2012, hammad, 2014 and romahi and issa 2010) research problem the researchers have noticed that students do not seem to have characteristics of creative thinking when dealing with subjects such as english and math. they do not have the ability to think out of the box. this may be due to the fact that the palestinian educational system limits the extent of using creative thinking because the curricula used in the palestinian schools depend heavily on rote memorization and predetermined syllabi. dajani and mclaughlin (2009) ayat (2012) and raba’2014 and romahi and issa (2010). moreover, schools and teachers neglect important creative activities. this research aims to illuminate the aspects that restrict creativity in the teaching process and seeks to have solutions. literature review a lot of research was carried out to provide feedback to textbooks designers and educationists because of the importance of thinking skills as an integral part in the teaching and learning process. for the sake of clarity and systematicity, the researchers divided this section into three subsections where they showed definition of creative thinking, research findings about creative thinking in general, creative thinking in palestinian curricula and schools, and creative thinking in math and english lessons and finally, the researcher end this section with the research questions research. definition and research findings about creative thinking in general: creative thinking was defined as the skill to come up with "original, inventive and novel ideas" (cropley, 1992, p. 6). his definition about creativity revolves around authenticity and innovation. not much different from cropley, sternberg (1999) referred to creative thinking as the ability to manage situations and solve problems in various ways, to formulate new solutions without neglecting the original appropriate ones. according to these definitions creativity would help overcome the dominant way of teaching seeking to develop one answer and one way of thinking from students. these definitions encourage the multiplicity of opinions and solutions. to sum up, “critical thinking is self-guided, self-disciplined thinking which attempts to reason at the highest level of quality in a fair-minded way. people who think critically consistently attempt to live rationally, reasonably, empathically. they are keenly aware of the inherently flawed nature of human thinking when left unchecked.” (elder, 2007:3) when dealing with creativity, there is a tendency to separate and differentiate creativity as a product and process (lubart,1990). with reference to creativity as product, magno (2009) states raba’ and herzallah that “creativity is a product of an executed imagination” (p. 10). a creative product is judged by its genuineness and benefit (barron, 1955; mackinnon, 1962). a creative product is considered as a surprising and unexpected result. csikszentmihalyi (1996) argues that a creative product is the result of analyzing information with regard to the social and cultural surroundings. discarding the social and cultural facts does not yield applicable and reasonable solutions. creative thinking requires imagination and thinking out of the box in different ways, but that doesn’t mean being illogical. in regard to the creativity process, torrance and myers (1970) illustrate that the creative learning process is being able to identify problems, weaknesses, gaps in knowledge, absence of elements, inconsistencies, and then gathering available information; identifying deficiencies, searching for solutions, testing and retesting these solutions until reaching the perfect ones; and in the end, reaching the results. likewise, taylor (1974) described the creative process as the elaboration of creative actions that will eventually lead to the production of creativity. wallas (1926) defined four steps of the creative process: preparation, incubation, illumination, and verification, which led to the development of creative problem solving model. this model dealt with teaching individuals to find and determine the problem, then gathering the necessary information and developing creative ideas about the possible solutions (meadow & parnes, 1959; meadow, parnes, & reese, 1959). rauth, köppen, & meinel, (2010) and carroll, goldman, britos and koh (2010) showed that the type of content along with the type of pedagogy contribute to different levels of creativity creative knowledge and creative skills. as suggested by fink, 2007, as cited in hardiman, 2010, activities associated with creative thinking produce differentiated patterns of activity across multiple regions of the brain the co-activation and communication among brain regions that are not ordinarily strongly connected during noncreative activities (heilman et al, 2003, as cited in hardiman, 2010) can now be stimulated by immersing learners in processes which encourage them to demonstrate divergent thinking through allowing them for multiple representations of the material freeing them from being constrained to memorize books and to adhere to teachers’ instructions. in his book, gebhard (2006) offers some methods to improve efl teachers’ skills to enhance students’ creativity. he focused on teaching english in a communicative way. his method depends on teaching students to comprehend spoken english and to conduct open dialogues among students. additionally, he emphasizes that these activities must not be separated from the cultural context and must be integrated with the cultural elements to enhance creative thinking, an argument also supported by raba (2014). copeland (2005) illustrates that students are surrounded by certain type of exams and expected to give predetermined answers, and suggests socratic circles as a technique to guarantee that discussions are managed by students. moreover, open dialogues circles strategy develops students’ thinking skills to become more effective individuals. students will respect differences among them and work harmoniously. another aspect of fostering creativity involves bringing playing activities into the classroom. many researchers have argued in favor of play strategies as a tool for enhancing creativity. craft (2003) asserts that “play is necessary to creativity, not all play is creative” (p. 150). as a result, teachers should clearly set the purpose of play techniques and their effect in promoting research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3(2), 40-57 creativity. the aim of such activities is to empower students’ imagination and to have novel perspectives. the ability to analyze a given issue from multiple perspectives and reconstruct the available knowledge is fundamental for those creative thinkers to accomplish their objectives (mumford, 1984). besides, torrance (1972) illustrated that creativity growth includes both cognitive and affective characteristics. if affect is merged with imagination, creativity will increase: “the ability to think imaginatively in a free-association style and to be open to thinking about affect-laden material being related processes” (suler, 1980, p.770). what kills creativity according to hennessey and amabile (1987) is using restricted situation choices. when students abide to the choices offered by the teacher to deal with situations they encounter, no space for creative thinking is allowed. in addition, much surveillance over students’ work would make them hesitate to try new ideas. also, focusing students’ attention on expected evaluation or expected reward would minimize their motivation. if students focus on the idea that they are learning to perform an exam, this would strip the joy out of the learning process and replace it with anticipation and fear. all of the previously mentioned practices would paralyze students’ imagination and their motives to try and experiment with new things. creative thinking in palestinian curricula and schools, and creative thinking in math and english lessons. romahi and issa (2010) emphasized how the atmosphere hindered appropriate teaching and wishful learning. they added that since the establishment of the palestinian ministry of education, it was tasked with the enormous duty of setting up an educational system from ‘scratch’. reform followed specifically in 2008 with the development of the educational strategic plan aimed at reforming shortfalls in the education system. the current system however, still struggles to bring about educational reform in a climate of instability, and unexpected change which would be a strong obstacle in all subjects to hinder creative thinking in a good way. hamdona (2007) found that the lowest score is critical thinking life skills domain which got 10.54% out of the total average of the five domains. items such as "identifying relevant information, organizing thoughts to reflecting logical thinking and thinking of different ways to answer a question" have great interest in training learners how to think. however, the textbook exercises neglect or ignore items such as "applying of technology, confident in reaching a reasonable conclusion and finding answers to challenging questions" additionally, the next low scores were fore decision-making / problem solving life skills domain that got 13.2%, consequently, the research could focus on the connection between textbooks and life skills in order to build up good citizens who benefit their countries. the inclusion of critical thinking and leadership life skills are new dimensions and trends. hamouda (2009) recommended the inclusion of texts and stories that emphasize mental educational values; he added that the books activities should incorporate students’ thinking, insight and wit, verification and preservation of time. here, the researcher showed how important is the work of the textbook designer in the inclusion of very suitable texts in english and other subjects. raba’ and herzallah abu shams (2003) showed that an-najah english majors and instructors need more training in using cognitive, memory and compensation strategies by embedding them into regular classroom activities. the researcher here emphasized the importance of both pedagogy content in improving high thinking skills, that is, not only the rich content is vital in teaching thinking, but also effective teachers are basic in this context abu ashiba (2010) recommended to make balance in distributing the values in the content of the textbook including all types of cognitive skills such as creative thinking skills and critical thinking skills. therefore, the researcher also recommended holding workshops in order to discuss all types of activities that enhance the balance of all the values included in the textbook of english for the twelfth grade. abu tailakh (2015) recommended modifying the reading activities by providing them with enrichment material that included creative thinking skills, decision –making activities and problem-solving exercises. english language supervisors and principals are also recommended to hold more workshops to train english language teachers on how to enhance the creative thinking skills in the pupils' mentalities. naser, nafi’ and arman (2016) showed that the degree of faculty’s use and stimulation of critical thinking skills in the english department were medium, and that there were no statistically significant differences in the degree of the faculty’s use and stimulation of critical thinking due to gender and performance, and the presence of significant differences was due to level and in favor of third year english majors. the results of the students’ interview also showed that there were skills that teachers used largely as the skill of interpretation and analysis, and that there were skills which were fairly used such as the skill of inference, and the assessment skill was low. according to shehadeh and dwaik (2013) teaching english in palestine is influenced by many factors (e.g. large number of students in each class, the limited class period time, the few number of classes each week, etc.) which limit the extent of creativity and teachers’ ability to deal with students individually. also, the lack of technological resources to be used in classes and depending too much on textbooks restricts the number of activities used creatively to teach the language communicatively.. when students do not get enough attention due to their large number in each class it leaves them no opportunity to practice the language or communicate in it (dajani & mclauplin, 2009). the teacher-centered approach in the process of teaching remains the only possible approach where they depend on textbooks as the only tool of teaching and in the absence of a challengeable atmosphere, students do the exercises in a dull and routine way without any effort for creativity as summarized by fennel (2007) english classes are designed only to suit the standardized tests. in the area of creative thinking in math in the palestinian context, studies are few and not adequate; some studies were done in the area. for example, zamel, (2011) and attakaineh research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3(2), 40-57 (2011) concluded that what hinders creative thinking skills in math classroom practices include crowded classes, teachers’ concern of finishing textbook, lack of time to apply collaborative activities that promote creative thinking among students. they recommended reducing the number of classes in addition to holding more and more training workshops for teachers of math on helping students have more practice in using creative and thinking in a seminar held in the educational qattan centre for educational research and development, addressing a group of secondary school students’ views on the most important educational problems faced by secondary stage, students put a blame on their teachers and management for not respecting them as adults. students mentioned that teachers do not understand their personal and educational needs including appropriate thinking skills, decision thinking skills and problem solving skills, particularly in these difficult circumstances that encounter the educational sector. (wahba, 2001:37) khalid a (2014) concluded that the higher thinking skills in math are included moderately, and the study recommended the need to take advantage of higher thinking skills list specified in the current study, as well as reviewing the adequacy of the examples and exercises included in the books of mathematics for the basic stage for each skill. palestinian students participated in the timss 2003 and 2007 assessments in math and science. in both years, students were assessed in grade 8. palestine’s purpose in participating in the study was to obtain achievement indicators that could be used for comparison within the international context. although results were not high compared with the results of other countries, the ministry of education and higher education viewed timss as a "diagnostic tool" for educational reforms, development of new curriculum, teachers training and introduction of some form of certification or licensing of teachers. in an attempt to minimize the problems in the area of teaching english and math, the present study sought to answer these questions: 1) to what extent do schools english and math curricula enhance creative thinking in learning? 2) are there significant differences at (p=0, 05) in the degree of teachers’ opinion about the extent of schools enhancing creativity with reference to specialization, gender, qualification and years of experience? methodology before starting with methodology, it is worth mentioning some background knowledge about the palestinian context. in terms of history, formal education in palestine has been controlled and administered by foreign rule. let’s start from the 1917 during british rule, education was expanded to supply a growing need for civil servants for the british empire (barakat, 2007; brown, 2003a). as a result, education came to be associated with the power structures and the ruling elite. in 1948 palestinian education continued to deteriorate with the creation of the state of israel and the ethnic cleansing of the majority of the indigenous population. palestinian refugees in un-administered camps were subject to the educational policies and curricula of the host countries (hanafi, hilal & takkenberg, 2014). in the west bank and gaza strip, jordan and egypt respectively applied their national curricula. accordingly, formal education received by palestinians was not concerned with preserving palestinian historic-cultural distinctiveness or raba’ and herzallah advancing political and social aspirations (brown, 2003a). during the israeli occupation of the west bank and gaza in 1967, military authorities targeted the education system (abo hommos, 2013; asaad, 2000). things became worse during the intifada civil protest movement starting in 1987, when israeli military forces closed down schools and universities for periods of up to two years. the adverse impact on palestinian education was enormous. education under palestinian self-rule the 1993 oslo peace accords the first-ever palestinian ministry of education (moe) was established in 1994 with the remit to prepare an aspirant palestinian citizenry for institution building, state formation and the global information economy. this entailed rebuilding an outdated educational system with severe shortages of qualified teachers and school buildings, and an outdated foreign curriculum. suffering and oppression continued resulted in the failure of the curricula and teaching pedagogies in to enhance critical thinking and the capacity to apply logic amongst the students from variable age categories. based on this continual bleeding of the palestinian education, the researcher tried find a way that might help to reform the educational system. the forthcoming paragraphs deal with population and sample, instrumentation, credibility and reliability, procedures and statistical processes. the study population consisted of all english language teachers and math teachers in nablus government city schools.(120 male and female teachers of english and math : 70 male and female teachers of english and 50 male and female math teachers according to the directorate of education statistics. the sample of the study which was simple and random, consisted of (14) male and female teachers (8) teachers of english and (6) teachers of math which represented 11.6% of the whole population). all the names of the 120 teachers were written on completely duplicated scraps of paper, folded and mixed well and then the 14 male and female teachers were randomly chosen; this type of choice is simple; so the sample was simple and random. table 1 shows the result of the distribution of the sample according to the study independent variables table 1. the distribution of the sample by independent variable percentage frequency level variable 57.2 8 english language specialization 42.8 6 math 35.7 5 male gender 64.3 9 female 57.1 8 b.a qualification 42.9 6 m.a 71.4 10 less than 5 years years of experience 28.6 4 from 5-10 years 01101 14 total instrumentation research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3(2), 40-57 the researchers used two tools: an interview in addition to a 20-item questionnaire for collecting data necessary for the purpose of the study. the tools were developed by the researchers after surveying previous relevant studies in the same area. credibility and reliability: the study tools were given to experts in the field of the study area. they deleted three items and so the total items of the questionnaire become 20; they also modified some items until the study instruments reached final forms. to determine the reliability of three sub-questionnaires, chronapach alpha formula was used. it was (0.38), this value is suitable for conducting such a study. to analyze the data necessary for the study variables the researchers used the statistical package for social science (spss) version 20. they also used frequencies, means, standard deviations and percentages. additionally, they used chronapach alpha formula, ttest for two independent samples, and one way anova test. results of the study table 2 shows the results obtained for the first question “what is the degree of teachers’ agreement on the extent that schools enhance creative thinking skill in efl and math classes? “ table 2. means, standard deviations, percentages and estimation level n o . n o . in th e q u e st io n e r it e m m e a n st a n d a rd d e v ia ti o n s p e rc e n ta g e e st im a ti o n l e v e l 1 . 1 school encourages everything new in the teachinglearning process 3.07 0.73 61.4 moderate 2 . 10 class management develops creative thinking among students 3.07 0.47 61.4 moderate 3 . 6 creativity practices in schools are encouraged 3.07 0.73 61.0 moderate 4 . 9 school library is rich in books that enhance creative thinking 3.02 0.91 60.4 moderate 5 . 5 content limits teaching; still methodology is up to the teacher 3.01 0.66 60.2 moderate 6 . 7 school has clear strategy about creative teaching 3.00 0.80 60.0 moderate 7 . 2 school supports students' activities 3.00 0.75 60.0 moderate 8 . 8 teachers are free to teach creative ideas 2.35 1.21 47.0 very low raba’ and herzallah table (1) shows that the total degree of teachers’ agreement on the extent that schools enhance creative thinking skill in english and math classes was 52.4% which can be considered low. the highest percentage (61.4%) was found for each of the following items: “school encourages everything new in the teaching-learning process”, and “class management develops creative thinking among students,” and “there is some concern about creativity and innovation in schools ". on the other hand, the lowest percentage was found for the item “school gives creative homework activities" with41.4%) table 3. means, standard deviations, percentages and estimation level table (2) shows that the total degree of teachers’ agreement on the extent that schools enhance creative thinking skill in efl and math classes according to efl teachers' perspectives for the second domain (curricula) was (62.2%) which suggests a moderate level of agreement. the highest percentage was identified for the items “curricula objectives have creative outputs” which received 67.4%, but it is still a moderate level. on the other hand, the lowest percentage was found for the item “curricula concentrate on creative questions,” which received 60.0%, and this means that the textbooks lack effective questions that really enhance learners’ thinking skills. results of the second study question “are there statistical significant differences (α =0.05) about efl teachers’ opinions about the extent that schools enhance creative thinking skill in efl and 9 . 4 school gives teachers autonomy in their own classrooms 2.35 1.08 0174 very low 1 0 3 school gives creative homework 2.07 1.07 7007 very low total degree of the first domain (school) 2.71 0.42 4.07 low n o . n o . in th e q u e st io n n a ir e it e m m e a n st a n d a rd d e v ia ti o n s p e rc e n ta g e e st im a ti o n l e v e l 11 11 objectives have creative outputs 3.37 0.82 67.4 moderate 12 12 content is in line with creative thinking skills 3.22 0.67 64.4 moderate 13 14 curricula challenge the students' abilities 3.20 0.80 64.06 moderate 14 20 curricula encourage intelligence 3.18 0.82 63.6 moderate 15 15 contents is rich in high knowledge skills 3.14 1.00 62.8 moderate 16 13 contents meets the students' real life situations 3.14 0.84 62.8 moderate 17 16 content is more theoretical than practical ones 3.10 1.00 62.0 moderate 18 18 curricula motivate students to think rather than to memorize 3.07 1.34 61.4 moderate 19 17 curricula make the learning student centered 3.00 1.15 60.0 moderate 20 19 curricula concentrate on creative questions 3.00 0.85 60.0 moderate total degree of the second domain (curricula) 3.11 0.55 62.2 moderate research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3(2), 40-57 math classes attributed to the variable of specialization, gender, qualification and years of experience? to answer this question, ttest for independent samples and one way anova tests were used; tables (3,4, 5and 6) show the results. table 4. independent sample t test results of efl teachers' opinions by specialization total degree specialization n mean s. d t sig.* english language 8 3.12 0.28 0.275 0.210 math 6 3.20 0.31 *. the mean difference is significant at the 0.05 level. table 5. independent sample t test results of efl teachers' opinions by gender total degree gender n mean s. d t sig.* male 5 3.07 0.31 -1.780 0.100 female 9 3.25 0.41 *. the mean difference is significant at the 0.05 level. table 6. independent two sample t test results of efl teachers' opinions by qualification total degree qualification n mean s. d t sig.* b.a 8 3.04 0.47 0.297 0.772 m.a 6 3.17 0.36 *. the mean difference is significant at the 0.05 level. table 7. independent sample t test results of efl teachers' opinions by experience total degree experience n mean s. d t sig.* 1-5 10 3.11 0.43 1.423 0.180 6-10 4 3.17 0.24 *. the mean difference is significant at the 0.05 level. the above tables show that there are no statistically significant differences (α =0.05)among the teachers about the extent that schools enhance creative thinking skill in english and math classes by the independent variables of specialization, gender, qualification and experience. results of the second study tool (interview) five teachers (3 english, 2 math) were randomly chosen and interviewed about the extent of schools english and math curriculum enhancing of creative thinking skills in efl and math classes; they agreed that schools do not encourage everything creative and new in the teaching and learning process. they also agreed strongly that the curricula lack strategies for developing creative thinking among the students. these results are in line with those of the questionnaire regarding the role of school in enhancing creative thinking among students. the same result was raba’ and herzallah found about the curricular objectives in the field of creative thinking. moreover, supporting the questionnaire results, the interviewees were negative about the appropriateness of the curricula to the students' creativity needs. they agreed that curricula do not meet the needs of their students in the teaching–learning process. additionally, they agreed that the role play technique could be used in classroom to enhance students’ imagination and self-esteem. in addition, some of them suggested forming student discussion groups and debates to make students participate more keenly and in a more engaged fashion. they reinforced their responses by mentioning that training sessions could be conducted for the same subject for both teachers and students to ensure success. discussion according to the teachers, schools do not encourage everything new, and class size and management restrict creative thinking. students are not given the chance to think out of the box in different ways. this can be attributed to the administrative regulations requiring teachers to cover the course material. they do not have enough time to apply strategies such as role-play, problem solving, and brain storming that enhance students’ thinking skills. teachers are in a real race to finish the heavy and usually overloaded content. we think that both the english and math curricula lack activities that really challenge students’ high thinking skills. so, as a solution for this, supplementary materials derived from real life situations can be included in classroom teaching, and the homework items can be carefully selected to complete the missing link of the curricula to the life outside the school. in the curriculum, students should develop capability in critical and creative thinking, and so they should learn to generate and evaluate knowledge, clarify concepts and ideas, seek possibilities, consider alternatives and solve problems. critical and creative thinking should be integral to activities that require students to think broadly and deeply using skills, behaviors and dispositions such as reason, logic, resourcefulness, imagination and innovation in all learning areas at school and in their lives beyond school. (raba’ and dweikat, 2017). special attention should be directed to the selected content of the subject which plays a key role to attract students’ attention, and encourage them to think more creatively. the teachers' responses show no statistically significant differences in their opinions regarding the extent that schools enhance creative thinking skill in efl classes based on the variables of specialization, gender, qualification and years of experience. these results can be attributed to the lack of new methods of teaching, particularly in the field of teaching and learning languages. in addition, the progressive development of knowledge about thinking and the practice of using thinking strategies can increase students’ motivation for, and management of, their own learning. they become more confident and autonomous problem-solvers and thinkers. further studies about using modern or innovative methods of teaching might reveal the importance of such new approaches. as the educational palestinian context is so much different from almost all the educational contexts all over the world due to the different sequential foreign occupations starting from the othmani rule until the israeli occupation that is over a century and a half, all the national attempts are inadequate to recover the bleeding wound. struggle to free the curriculum and make it pure national without the effect of the israeli continual domination continues hoping that effort and time to be directed for education and producing good generation capable to research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3(2), 40-57 compete with other nations in the world. this is in accordance with countries hanafi, hilal & takkenberg, 2014). recommendations many researchers have attempted to find out methods to enhance creativity in teaching. for instance, myers and torrance (1961) found that rewarding creative thinking in children, which brings marvelous results in creative thinking and information processing enhancement. hennessey and amabile (1987) offer some tips to enhance creative attitudes in the classroom: (1) students are most creative when they enjoy what they are doing, (2) avoid using tangible rewards; (3) don’t construct competitive tasks; (4) encourage children to keep track of their own work; (5) encourage children to develop their self-esteem and to concentrate on their strengths; (6) let students feel the value of creativity. based on the study results, the following are recommended for practice: 1. new teaching trends that foster creativity should be included in the curricula including dialogue, reflection, collaboration and action; these serve to enhance individual and collective agency, and communal ties in preparation for strategic collective action. . 2. extensive lessons with new teaching methods should be designed in a way to increase students motivation and participation in the classroom. 3. teachers should be trained well in order to master the new developments in teaching to foster creativity. 4. imaginative activities and creative assignments (eg. role play) which suit students' levels and needs should be particularly emphasized in the teaching process. raba’ and herzallah references abu ashiba, s (2010). an analysis of the incorporated values in english for palestine 12 the islamic university of gaza. unpublished thesis. abo hommos, n. 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(2017). editorial for special issue: transformation of educational policy, theory and practice in post-soviet social studies education. journal of social studies education research, 8 (2), i-iv. retrieved from http://dergipark.gov.tr/jsser/issue/32450/360860 tarman, b., baytak, a., & duman, h. (2015). teachers' views on an ict reform in education for social justice. eurasia journal of mathematics, science and technology education, 11(4), 865-874. 10.12973/eurasia.2015.1445a taylor, i. a. (1974). developing creativity in gifted young adults. education, 94, 266-268. torrance, e. p. (1972). predictive validity of the torrance tests of creative thinking. the journal of creative behavior, 6, 236-262. torrance, e. p., & myers, r. e. (1970). creative learning and teaching. new york, ny: dodd, mead & company. -244. wallas, g. (1926). the art of thought. new york: harcourt brace jovanovich. whaba, n. (2001). "views of the students in (s) secondary school" educational sights, p, 37-39. yücel, c., acun, i., tarman, b., & mete, t. (2010). a model to explore turkish teachers' ict integration stages. turkish online journal of educational technology, 9(4), 1-9. zamel, m. (2011). the obstacles facing the palestinian teacher in developing creative thinking skills inside the classroom in u.n.r.w.a schools. the journal of educational & psychological sciences (jeps) university of bahrain http://dergipark.gov.tr/jsser/issue/32450/360860 research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3(2), 40-57 appendix questionnaire dear teacher: the questionnaire was designed to investigate the "to what extent do schools enhance creative thinking skill in efl and math classes according to teachers' perspectives” please, read all the questions carefully and then tick the correct option which you consider. your answer will confidential and will only be used for research purposes thank you for your cooperation. researchers: …………………. . section (1): personal information 1) gender: male female 2) qualification: b.a m.a 3) experience: 1-5 6-10 more section (2): read the following statements carefully and check under the column that best represent your level of agreement with each statement a: school n o . it e m s tr o n g ly a g re e a g re e u n d e c id e d d is a g re e s tr o n g ly d is a g re e 1. school encourages everything new in the teaching learning process. 2. school policy makes scientific competitions between students 3. school gives enough time for students' activities 4. school gives teachers autonomy in their own classrooms 5. content limits teaching; still methodology is up to a teacher to decide 6. creativity and innovation in schools are concerned 7. school has clear strategy about creative teaching 8. teachers are free to apply the creative ideas. 9. school library has books and references which enrich creative thinking among students. raba’ and herzallah 10. class management develops creative thinking among students. b: curricula n o . it e m s tr o n g ly a g re e a g re e u n d e c id e d d is a g re e s tr o n g ly d is a g re e 11. curricula objectives have creative outputs. 12. curricula contents are in line with creative thinking skills. 13. curricula contents meet the students' real life situations. 14. curricula are rich in creative activities which challenge the students' abilities. 15. curricula contents are in high knowledge skills. 16. curricula are in theoretical sides rather than practical ones. 17. curricula make the learning – teaching process studentcentered. 18. curricula motivate students to think rather than to memorize. 19. curricula concentrate on creative questions. 20. curricula encourage students to develop their intelligence. research in social sciences and technology review of modernising school governance: corporate planning and expert handling in state education reviewed by emin kilinc1 wilkins, a. (2016). modernising school governance: corporate planning and expert handling in state education. new york, ny: routledge. 172 pp., isbn -9781138787476. modernising school governance: corporate planning and expert handling in state education is a part of routledge research in education polic y and politics series which aims to enhance readers understanding of key challenges and facilitate ongoing academic debate within the influential and growing field of education policy and politics by routledge. andrew wilkings, the author, is a senior lecturer in education studies at the university of east london. modernising school governance is a product of a threeyear project conducted between 2012 – 2015 and supported by the economic and social research council (esrc) in england. modernising school governance aimed to investigate the impact of the latest reforms on the role of school governors in the english state education system. the authors aimed to examine how the role of school governors changed by considering the market-based reforms from the 1980 ’s with a particular emphasis on accountability, freedom and responsibilities, verification, and the needs of modernized market. modernising school governance provided detailed information about how the creation of greater school autonomy diminished local government support and effects of centralized accountability on school governors’ daily practices. this book also investigated both 1 asst. prof.,turkey; eminphd@yahoo.com mailto:eminphd@yahoo.com kilinc research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),76-80 77 government and non-government demands on training, professional development, skills audit, performance evaluation, rituals of verification, evidentiary decisionmaking and consensus-driven language. according to the author, school governors stand at the intersection of state and ma rket prerogatives. thus, school governors have been encourage to meet the challenges of new modernized market and education system, which entails acquiring new skills and knowledge as well as the ability to use new technologies. modernising school governance also highlighted how school governors become captured in governmental fields of power. in order to examine school governors’ role in the shed light on recent reforms, the author adopted elements of foucauldian theory and governmentality approach. by us ing these approaches wilkins described the dividing practices through which governors are classified as ‘good’ or ‘poor’, ‘strong’ or ‘weak’, ‘amateur’ or ‘professional’. in the book’s introduction, wilkins briefly explained the change of state education with a particular emphasis on school governance. wilkins described school governors as ‘a band of volunteers who are expected to provide appropriate challenge and support to senior school leaders on issues relating to the financial and educational performance of the school’. this definition ties school governors to community, local and national government, and modernized market. wilkins briefly maintained the latest educational reform that diminished local government involvement in the governing of school and the impact of business on school governance. according to the author, school governors never stray too far from the demands of state and market. in chapter 1, wilkins provided an overview of historical development of school governance and the role of governors in the english state education system. wilkins criticizes and problematizes the meaning of school governance and its relation with power. wilkins started this chapter by explaining what he means by a genealogy of school governance. he stated that ‘there are no universal categories, transcendental continuities and immovable truths determining what school governance is or ought to be.’ (p. 11). wilkins also mentioned in this chapter that school governance should not be understood as tautological terms as the gradual, unending movement towards a universal model. the author argued that school governance has strong bound with politics and markets. wilkins also criticized women, older people and ethnic groups’ under kilinc research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),76-80 78 representation in the body of school governance. at the end of the c hapter 1, wilkins provided his own definition of school governance. in chapter 2, wilkins provided a discussion about de mocracy in the school governance and skill-based model of school governance. wilkins explained the changing role of school governors. because school governance cannot be separated from politic, cultural and economic realities, wilkins analyzed different go vernments policies related to school governance and provided a detailed analysis of various phases and forms of school governance under the different governmental regimes. he explained how central governments extend the responsibilities of school governors and empowered them from the role of managers, trustees, and/or stewards to articles of government. wilkins started c hapter 3 with the discussion of modalities of neoliberalism. he asserted that there are promiscuous array of definition and theoretical framework about neoliberalism. this ambiguity causes significant critics which pointed to muddiness of neoliberalism and its abstract multifaced imprecision. after this brief discussion, wilkins provided four approaches to read neo-liberalism and explain its relationship with the government and public education. in this chapter wilkins also explained how neoliberalism, as a conceptual strategy, formed the conduct of governors. chapter 4 is the first empirical chapter of the book. in this chapter, wilkins investigated the changed role of governors by providing several opinions from the participants of his research. wilkins tried to investigate daily practices of school governors and the effects of public, market, and government expectations on school governors. wilkins used foucault’s insight of governmentality, which can be described as ‘active government characterized by permanent vigilance, activity, and intervention, to make sense of school governors as objects over the state as a market-maker. wilkins explained the characteristics of an ideal school governor by the perspective of the central government. he stated that ‘ideal school governors are people who view problems as challenges and opportunities, people who actively work on themselves through training and upskilling, people who adopt a positive attitude to change and risk taking, and people who relate to themselves and others as a business’ (p. 73). according to wilkins, it is also expected from the school governors to engage with a battery of bureaucratic and administrative activities. through the reforms, the central government increase school kilinc research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),76-80 79 autonomy and schools found themselves outside of the control of local government. however, it means that sc hools have to meet new criteria and performative demands decided by the central government. thus, the central government established office for standards in education, c hildren’s services and skills (o fsted) to assess, sort, and rank schools. in this chapter wilkins discussed the evaluation of o fsted on how well school governors hold senior school leaders to account for the financial and educational performance of the school. wilkins also investigated the effects of this evaluation operated by o fsted on the daily practices of school governors by providing some governors’ opinions. in the previous chapters, wilkins explained the process of diminishing local governments power on school governance and producing greater school autonomy through several reforms related to education. as a result of these reforms, school governors gained autonomy, extensive responsibility and they no longer monitored by local authorities. however, they have been monitored by new legal and professional authorizes from the central government. thus, these gained autonomy, responsibility, and new metric-style monitoring required new type of school governance, which wilkins proposed modernized school governance. in c hapter 5, wilkins explained what modernized school governance is. wilkins postulated that modernized school governance is not a radical break from the old one, but it is ‘specifically engineered to support the new legal and financial responsibilities of school autonomy, the requirements of site based management and the adoption of new public management (npm) techniques’ (p.97). wilkins explained in this chapter that the changing role of school governors from hiringfiring of teaching staff, liaising with contractors and suppliers, and implementing the curriculum to supplant the formal authority of local government as the primary overseers, supervisors and superintendents of schools. wilkins also mentioned the democratic and technical role function of school governance. wilkins focused on the widespread citizen involvement on school govenance. at the end of the chapter wilkins emphasized the importance of expertise and skills, which are necessities of autonomy. in the final chapter, wilkins provided detailed information of the dispersion of power to the governing bodies. wilkins stated the development of academy trust and explained three types of cluster arrangements model: multi-academy trust, collaborative kilinc research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),76-80 80 trust, and umbrella trust. according to wilkins, the reforms caused an unexpected result, shift from state monopoly to private oligopoly. thus, wilkins criticized the growth of oligopoly and equated academy chains to a form of de-democratization. wilkins also focused on the complex nature of accountability under the current structure. in short, modernising school governance is a readable and stimulating book that documenting the impact of recent educational reform on the role of school governors in english states educational system. in the light of current politic and market realities, wilkins showed that the world of school governance is not just complying requirements or generating incomes but it is beyond all of these. i believe that this book is a valuable resource for anyone who wants to understand the world of school governors and relationship between education, politics, and markets. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) e-issn: 2468-6891 14 diagnosing the barriers for integrating educational technology in physics courses in lebanese secondary schools fouad m. yehya1, dr. aziz m. barbar2 & dr. suzanne abou –rjeili3 abstract this paper investigates the barriers affecting the success implementation of ict in the lebanese secondary physics classes. it is realistic based study adopted the descriptive quantitative method to collect data by attitude test survey from 94 lebanese secondary schools from different lebanese districts. the results indicated that the ict implementation in physics courses was not attained. physics teachers must improve their ict skills. moreover, the low technology periods per week and revealing curriculum content, inflexibility of the curriculum to ict implementation, insufficient existence of computer labs, lack financial support, insufficient training, inadequate technical support, unavailability of internet connectivity and the crowded class rooms were main barriers that prevent the implementation of ict. key words: educational technology, physics courses, ict implementation, educational technology barriers, lebanese secondary physics teachers. introduction “technology literacy is increasingly becoming mandated in k-12 curriculum which puts more stress on curriculum administrators to integrate technology into lesson plan requirements” (accuosti,2014). nowadays, ict educational technology has become an influential value in drawing the future of learning (baytak, tarman & ayas, 2011; salas-pilco & law, 2018; shan-fu, 2013; tarman, 2017; tarman & dev, 2018; tarman & chigisheva, 2017; yücel et al. 2010) and has become an important part in lebanese society. it is the lens through which we experience much of our world and the need in every classroom. per the report of the international conference on ict and post (unseco,2015), education technology constitutes a transformative tool that facilitates future lifelong learning by allowing people to learn anytime, anywhere, anyway and with any content they may need. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3(2), 14-39 recent research designed and administered by hanover research on behalf of mcgrawhill education (2016) with the goal of assessing college students’ digital study habits and experiences (sample of 3311) revealed that (81%) of students agree that educational technology is beneficial (corrado,2016). educational technology helps learners across variety of activities, including doing homework, preparing for exams, doing research and improving grades. physics, as an essential subject in secondary curricula, also benefited from the ict revolution. several studies argue that ict implementation in physics offers many means of improving teaching and learning in the class room. ict educational technologies have the potential to support physics education across the curriculum, motivate learners, provide visual education to concertize abstract notions, support for effective communication between learners, and develop critical thinking skills and other competencies needed to work in an ict-rich environment (salas-pilco, & law, 2018; siddiqa siddiqa, schererb, & tondeu, 2016; hursen & asiksoy, 2015; sharma, 2015; kamei, 2015; shan-fu, 2013; aina, 2013). thus, the limitations of ict technology tools in physics courses can limited physics teaching and learning (makki, o'neal, cotten, & rikard ; 2018) and the impact of ict can’t be investigated in the absence of investigating the main barriers that prohibit its use from the teachers’ perspective (mndzebele, 2013; hassler et al., 2016). consequently, identifying the possible barriers to the integrating of educational technology in physics classroom would be an important step in assisting educators to overcome these barriers and improving the future and the quality of physics teaching and learning with technology. educational technology barriers, in the paper at hand, refer to the factors that frustrate teachers who are teaching physics courses from using ict and retarded its implementation in their secondary classes unless overcoming blockades. many researchers examined specified barriers that prevent ict implementation in their countries. according to al mulhim (2014), the barriers that prevent teachers from frequently and appropriately using ict for their teaching in saudi arabia are: a) lack of access to technology, b) lack of effective training, and c) lack of time and same barriers in sudan secondary schools (elemam, 2016). according to doumi and alshanak (2008) and to al-haresh, mfleh, & al-dahon (2010) the main obstacles in carrying educational technology on physics in jordan secondary schools are the lack of computer labs for science classes, not having enough computers for all students, lack of technician and the internet yehya et al. services. according to laaria (2013) and to kipsoi, changach, & sang (2012) the key barriers that prevent teachers from using ict effectively in kenya are lack of periods for ict training, poor models of practice, and poor schools’ administration. osta (2005) related ict using barriers in the developing countries to policy making and national planning that didn’t create a clear time plan with clear outcomes. these countries limit their efforts and missions in creating computer curricula, teaching computer sciences and computer skills, and supply schools with computers and equipment. these efforts are not accompanied with the infrastructure and concrete time plan to prepare teachers to integrate these computers in teaching and learning. the existing literature has reported different categories of barriers that obstruct teachers from implementing ict in education. becta (2004) grouped barriers whether they are related to individual (teacherlevel) such as time, lack of confidence, and resistance to change or to institutions (school-level) such as lack of effective training in solving technical problems, and lack of access to resources. similarly, ether (1999) and chen, tan & lim (2012) classified barriers that teachers face in using icts into two main categories: 1) extrinsic barriers and 2) intrinsic barriers. extrinsic barriers are school level barriers related to organization and institutional context. they result from insufficient and/or inappropriate configuration of ict infrastructures, insufficiency of funding, the high cost of hardware and software, lack of effective teachers’ training and technical support, lack of access to resources, lack of internet connectivity and lack of time. correspondingly, gomes (2005) and pandolfini (2016) concluded that lack of training in digital literacy, lack of pedagogic and didactic training in how to use educational technology in class room and in specific areas in science are main ict implementation barriers. while intrinsic barriers are related to teachers’ personal experiences and awareness, teachers’ beliefs and attitudes towards technology, teachers’ lack of confidence in using technology, teachers’ lack of knowledge and skills in using technology practices, and their resistance to change towards ict. accuosti (2014) classifies four factors affecting ict implementation and leading to the absence in its systematic use: 1the visions of ict role either as marginal activities for teaching where computers are used from time to time to motivate, train students, or fill time or as a magic solution for learning difficulties; 2teachers as an element of facilitation based on their impact on how technology is implemented, their attitude and resourcefulness; 3social environments research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3(2), 14-39 that can either enable or restrict the implementation based on students behaviour, social and historical circumstances of the environment, the cooperation for the sociocultural, the background and scientific longevity and durability of the education community and economic influences that are related to costs, available funds, technical support , the availability and the access (prasad, lalitha, & srikar, 2015) ; 4teachers’ requirements and their personal developments. evidently, ict implementation barriers at all the levels (teacher, school, and ministry of education level), either classified in different categories or discussed separately are imbedded and interfered together. each barrier to ict use could impact several other barriers (jones, 2004) and cannot be neglected for better education. thus, identifying these barriers encourages the desired improvement in the future of educational technology in the national educational plans for various subjects, and may lead to overcome them in the investor sectors and governments improvement policies. aim of the study: since 2000, the lebanese ministry of education and higher education (mehe) has been taking the decision of the implementation of ict in education and equipping schools with computers. in 2003, the lebanese government, through the united nations development programs (undp), and the office of the minister of state for administrative reform (omsar) completed the development of the “national e-strategy” to move lebanon towards knowledge ebased society. also, the world bank provided lebanese public schools with 5000 computers in 2003, and with 2500 personal computers in 2005 to computer labs in different public schools (burns, 2011). after 2006, several us-based companies (microsoft, occidental petroleum, intel, and cisco) launched several initiatives that initiate different technology-related projects in several lebanese schools. however, it was not until july 2013 that the ministry of education and higher education (mehe) started to organize workshops and conferences aimed to adopt an appropriate ict framework to access teachers’ ict knowledge, skills and readiness, and to move a step forward on the way of ict implementation in the lebanese schools (center for educational research and development [cerd], personal communication, 2017). it can be clearly seen that ict educational technology in lebanon is not implemented in education since all the potentials has focused on hardware, software and did not address teachers’ training and yehya et al. curriculum development. this was also mentioned by alameh (2013) “it is not clear if this initiative will include training teachers on integrating technology in their classrooms”. the delay in the educational technology progress at the lebanese official level does not mean that there are no initiatives at teachers’ level or schools’ level to implement educational technology in their subjects and classes. there may be more technology-based initiatives in lebanon than those found in official documents and reports (alameh, 2013). these initiatives face many barriers where very few research studies have been identified these barriers (mo’dad, 2012) for that, this study came to highlight some barriers that prevent the implementation of educational technology particularly in physics courses as a part of education status in lebanon in general. although there are reasonable research studies on the barriers that challenge teachers in using icts from a general perspective over the world, there are few studies that identify the barriers which exist in the integration of ict in education in lebanon and in physics lebanese classes from lebanese physics teachers’ perspectives. in response to this lack, the study aimed to: 1identify the current barriers of implementation of ict in lebanese secondary physics classes that may be common to all the educational fields. 2recognize lebanese secondary physics teachers’ perspective for the success of ict implementation in physics courses 3provide proposals and recommendations that may enhance effective technology integration in lebanese secondary schools. thus, to fill the knowledge gap about the barriers of educational technology implementation in physics courses in lebanese schools and help policymakers and schools’ administrators to achieve their goals for better ict visions the following questions are addressed: 1what is the level of the ict educational technology implementation by lebanese secondary physics teachers in their courses? 2what are the barriers tackled by physics secondary teachers for the implementation of educational technology in lebanese secondary physics courses? 3what are secondary physics teachers’ suggestions for more effective educational technology implementation? research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3(2), 14-39 method research design the study adopted the quantitative descriptive method as an appropriate research method to answer the study questions and examine the indicated barriers for appropriate implementation of ict. in this study, structured survey, with different types of questions such as closed ended and open ended, has been prepared and used as research instrument to obtain data relevant to the study’s objectives and research questions. the survey was reviewed and modified many times by other researchers and pretested among a small subset of target respondents to check if it serves to collect appropriate comparable data and to determine its feasibility and usefulness as a research instrument. the measure of central tendency (mean m), and the measure of dispersion (standard deviation sd) of the descriptive statistics were used to interpret data to generate descriptive information and to lead to important recommendations. population and sample/ study group/participants the population that was considered in this endeavor was all the english lebanese secondary schools that form a population of 443 schools (126 public and 317 private) and their physics teachers who teach the scientific sections without gender discrimination. it must be mentioned that the chosen secondary schools for the sampling process are the english section schools because the difference between the languages in determining the ict barriers, if there is any difference, is beyond the aim of this investigation. moreover, the concentration on physics teachers for scientific sections is to ensure enough number of periods per week since scientific sections have dedicated more hours per week and that may encourage teachers’ initiatives, if any exist, and give better opportunities to use educational technology in physics classes. in the context of this study, the sample is formed of 141 physics teachers of 94 secondary schools (51 private schools and 43 official schools), designated by random sampling process from the population of the lebanese secondary schools that teach physics in english in the academic year 2016/2017 using a table of random numbers. although some teachers in the chosen sample are common instructors in more than one secondary school, they submitted different surveys expressing the ict status of each school separately. the level of precision in the existing representative sample for the considered population, using the sample size calculator, indicated that the sample size reflects the target population at yehya et al. 95% confidence level and 9% confidence interval. moreover, this sample can be considered as a representative sample since the 94 chosen schools represented 22% of the lebanese secondary schools that instruct physics in english from different socioeconomic backgrounds and geographical locations without any gender discrimination. data collection tools a survey developed by the researcher based on the review of literature for previous researches dealt with the barriers of ict implementation in education in different countries. it was used to realize the barriers that prevent the appropriate implementation of educational technology in lebanese physics classes and investigate the changes needed within schools and education policy makers to better adoption of learning technologies. the survey besides its first section about teachers’ demographic variables gender, age, teaching experience, level of qualification, and type of training contained sections dealt with ict availability and administrative support. the survey also contained a section pivoted around the school vision for ict use and the barriers that faces physics teachers in the use of educational technology in their learning/ teaching process. the validity of the survey sections and statements were checked and reviewed by ph.d. educators and physics instructors and modifications were done based on their instructions and feedback. also, draft copies from this survey were tested with different teachers to check their clearness and their comments were taken into consideration. moreover, the reliability of the questions that deal with the ict barriers was measured by cronbach's alpha. the measure of the internal consistency between survey’s questions is 0.686. data collection the survey was distributed after the approval of the ministry of education and higher education (mehe) at the beginning of the academic year 2016-2017. data analysis data was managed using statistical package for social sciences (spss v19). the descriptive statistics was used in summing the data including percentage, frequency, mean and standard deviations. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3(2), 14-39 findings the following section revealed separately the results in the context on the three questions of this endeavor to come up finally with a discussion that diagnosed the barriers in ict implementation in lebanese secondary physics classes. 1the results of the first questions: physics lebanese secondary teachers n= 141 responded to the level of the ict technology implementation question “what is the level of the ict educational technology implementation by lebanese secondary physics teachers?” in the different sections of the used survey. the survey was designed to collect evidences about the level of the ict implementation by using: (1) yes/ no question about the existence of ict vision in their institutions; (2) description of ict technology resources that are abundant in their schools and that are important in the process of integration of technology in physics education; (3) set of 8 statements about how often the use of different ict tools by physics teachers for teaching in class with a likert scale format consisting of 5 points: 1= never, 2= few times/year, 3= at least once per month, 4 = at least once a week, 5 = daily. the collected results shed light on many factors that reflect the level of ict implementation in lebanese physics classes and can affect this implementation. these interacting factors were described in the three following levels: 1schools’ vision and the administrations’ role, 2 availability of ict resources and 3the physics teachers’ utilization for educational technology tools. schools’ vision and the administrations’ role: the results related to the lebanese secondary schools’ vision and the role of the schools’ administrations in ict implementation are displayed in table 1: table 1 ict lebanese secondary schools' vision and coordinators’ supportiveness statements percentages yes no no answer is ict vision integrated in the whole school plan 43.28% 55.32% 1.41% is the coordinator or the head of the department in your organisation supportive for using technology in teaching, learning and assessment? 71.6% 28.4% 0 % yehya et al. unfortunately, schools seem to be not motivated in implementing ict. the collected data shown in figure 1 revealed that 55.32% (19.15% private and 36.17% official) of physics teachers claimed in the (yes/ no) question that there is no ict vision in their schools. it seems that many of these schools in both sectors (private and official) do not feel the need of ict educational technology, or they do not understand what changes are needed. they are tied to traditional teaching and learning tools, satisfied with their tried and tested ways in providing knowledge. thus, the level of awareness among schools’ administrations of the local ict was found to be quite low and there is a little opportunity to adapt to technologies. on the positive side, 72% of physics teachers in the sample showed that principals, head of physics departments or/ and the physics coordinators encourage and support technology implementation in their physics courses for teaching, learning and assessment. this result, from one side, revealed the coordinators’ and teachers’ ict awareness for the need of ict in learning and reflect teachers’ initiatives for ict implementations. however, this positive encouragement and supportiveness for ict implementation in physics classes seem insufficient in the absence of real proactive actions in providing ict tools. ict encouragement and supportiveness need at least the availability of ict appropriate resources (makki et al., 2018). availability of ict resources lebanese secondary physics teachers indicated the presence of ict tools in their schools from a list of tools listed in the survey. moreover, they could indicate the existence of other tools figure 1: ict vision in lebanese secondary schools research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3(2), 14-39 if any were found and not listed in the survey. the percentage of the availability of the ict educational technology resources are represented in the graph of figure 2. figure 2: percentage of available and non-available resources in the lebanese secondary schools 23,4 11,3 9,2 20,6 43,3 32,6 25,5 7,8 2,1 5,7 39,7 11,3 45,4 14,9 76,6 88,7 90,8 79,4 56,7 67,4 74,5 92,2 97,9 94,3 60,3 88,7 54,6 85,1 0 50 100 150 etextbooks e-assessment tools google apps for education internet access from: classroom internet access from: computer lab internet access from: teachers’ room internet access from: physics laboratory free subscription to online resources for students drill and practice soft ware tutorial software simulations (virtual lab) software reference software (encyclopaedia) interactive whiteboards handheld smart devises (tablet) ict resources non available percentage % available percentage % doğrusal (available percentage %) yehya et al. the graph showed that internet access was found to be most widely used in computer laboratories (43.3% available) but not in the physics class rooms (20.6% available). this reflected a permeation of computers occurred in specialist rooms (computer labs) where no free subscription to online resources for students in physics classrooms (7.8% only available). simulations were the next most widely used in lebanese secondary physics classes (39.7% available). in general, most of ict educational technology tools are not available in lebanese schools and are rarely used for teaching in class as google apps for education (9.2% available), e-assessment tools (11.3% available), reference software (11.3 % available). drill and practice software and tutorial software were generally uncommon in lebanese secondary physics classes (2.1% available). thus, the lebanese secondary schools did not provide physics teachers with educational technology resources and didn’t give them enough time to manage and familiarise with ict. this again, clearly confirms that administrations’ ict supportiveness is only theoretical and away from real actions in the classrooms. physics teachers’ utilization for educational technology tools. “technology is just a tool. in terms of getting the kids working together and motivating them, the teacher is most important.” bill gates the existence of the educational resources in schools and physics classrooms is without any doubt important but what is more important is how and how frequency of implementation in the learning process. on the level of utilizing ict technology tools, the results about how often the use of different ict tools by physics teachers for teaching in class with a likert scale format consisting of 5 points: 1= never, 2= few times/year, 3= at least once per month, 4 = at least once a week, 5 = daily were presented in table 2 table 2 level of ict usage by lebanese physics teachers educational technology tools percentage % m sd daily at least once a week at least once a month a few times per year never internet access 16.3 24.8 14.2 18.4 26.2 2.87 1.460 research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3(2), 14-39 on the up side 41.1% of lebanese physics teachers, who teach the scientific sections, indicated that they use internet daily and or at least once a week and 25.5% stated that they use simulation daily or at least once per week. however, the other use of ict tools is at low percentage. also, the results indicated that 63.4% of the total number of physics teachers never use ict tools in their learning process and 11.78% rarely use ict (few times per year) that reflects a miserable implementation status. moreover, the mean for the most used technology resource is (m= 2.87, sd =1.86) for internet access and (m= 2.56, sd= 1.20) for computer software and m< 2.5 for all the others technology resources. moreover, the total average of the mean of the use of ict tools in physics courses was (m= 1.79) with a standard deviation sd = 1.01 which is very low. thus, this low mean in the use of educational technology resources can be an evidence that lebanese secondary physics’ teachers don’t appreciate the role of appropriate ict tools in motivating students and making lessons more interesting in spite their positive awareness towards ict. this situation delays ict implementation and make teachers resist its use (makki et al., 2018 ; khan, hossain, hasan, & clement, 2012), firmly grounded to their traditional teaching ways, and lose opportunities to adapt to technologies. to conclude without any doubt, per the vision status of lebanese schools to the use of ict, the shortage of ict tools and resources, in addition to the low mean in the level of the ict usage (m=1.79) that the level of ict educational technology implementation by lebanese secondary physics teachers in physics courses was very low. free subscription to online resources for students 4.3 4.3 7.1 7.8 76.6 1.52 1.080 drill and practice software 2.1 3.5 5.7 2.1 86.5 1.33 0.898 tutorial software 0 6.4 10.6 2.8 80.1 1.43 0.920 simulations (virtual lab) 2.8 22.7 29.8 17.7 26.2 1.36 0.847 reference software 0.7 4.3 7.1 6.4 81.6 2.56 1.203 e-assessment tools 1.4 7.1 8.5 14.9 68.1 1.59 1.008 hand holdup smart devises(tablet) 2.8 5 11.3 16.3 64.5 1.65 1.049 interactive whiteboards 5 6.4 9.2 19.1 60.3 1.77 1.163 etextbooks 9.2 14.9 8.5 11.3 56 2.1 1.441 google apps for education 2.8 5.7 7.1 12.8 71.6 1.55 1.038 total 4.30 9.55 10.82 11.78 63.4 1.793 1.017 yehya et al. 2the results of the second question: the second question “what are the barriers tackled by physics secondary teachers for the implementation of educational technology in lebanese secondary physics courses?” allowed physics teachers to reveal the obstacles that they have faced in their attempts to implement ict and to construct on the results of the first question. physics teachers n= 141 replied on the survey’s section that deals with ict barrier. the survey was formed of 9 statements about the barriers of ict implementation in their physics courses with a likert scale format consisting of 4 points distributed as following: (5= strongly agree; 4= agree; 2= disagree; 1= strongly disagree). there is no choice (3= neither agree or disagree) to produce a forced choice measure and collect actionable data where no uncaring option was available. unanswered statements are indicated with 3 and considered as neither agree or disagree. the mean “m” and the standard deviation “sd” for each barrier were calculated and accordingly the results were arranged in descending order as presented in table3. the analyses of the results were based on the following criteria: 1-the obstacle of mean less than 2.5 (m<2.5) is considered as a weak barrier 2the obstacle of mean 2.5 < m< 3.5 is considered as medium barrier 3the obstacle of mean less than 3.5 <m< 4 is considered as big barrier 4the obstacle of mean greater than 4 (m>4) is considered as a very big barrier research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3(2), 14-39 table 3 the mean and the standard deviation for the obstacles in decreasing order statements n mean sd 6the number of physics periods is not enough for using technology and revealing all the curriculum content 141 4.29 .990 5-the lack of technicians for computer labs 141 3.78 1.166 7there is no internet services in physics classes 141 3.78 1.243 3-the number of computers is not sufficient for students 141 3.63 1.174 1-computer labs are unavailable for physics subject 141 3.53 1.257 4-physics classes are too crowded 141 3.53 1.290 9physics official curriculum is not appropriate for technology resources use 141 3.50 1.313 2-computer lab is away from the physics classroom 141 3.43 1.289 8the download and use of the computer physics programs are difficult. 141 2.82 1.280 the results for the obstacles in ict implementation in the lebanese secondary physics classes revealed that there are no weak barriers per the study mentioned scale. the raised barrier “6the number of physics periods is not enough for using technology and revealing all the curriculum content” of mean m= 4.29 can be considered as a very big barrier for ict integration in physics courses. also, the following raised barriers: “5-the lack of technicians for computer labs; 7 there is no internet services in physics classes; 3-the number of computers is not sufficient for students; 1-computer labs are unavailable for physics subject; 4-physics classes are too crowded; and 9physics official curriculum is not appropriate for technology resources use” of mean ranged between 3.5 and 4 (3.5 <m< 4) can be considered as big barriers for ict integration in physics courses. furthermore, the two barriers raised in the table “2-computer lab location is not conveniently located near the physics classroom” and “8-the download and use of the computer physics programs are difficult” of mean 2.5 < m< 3.5 are considered as medium barriers. yehya et al. moreover, “difficulty to download and use of the computer physics programs” even it is not of high mean m=2.88 compared to the other barriers’ mean, but it is an indicator to the teacher-level barriers reflecting lack of teachers’ ict skills; lack of teachers’ confidence; lack of pedagogical training; lack of follow-up and lack of differentiated training. in addition to that, it reflects the need for the lebanese secondary physics teacher for professional development. 3the results of the third question: the third question in this endeavor, “what are secondary physics teachers’ suggestions for more effective educational technology implementation?”, is a complementary question to the second question. this question aimed to let teachers based on their experiences in ict implementation to highlight more barriers, if any and not mentioned in the survey, since any submitted suggestion is an image of a barrier that may delay the establishment of ict in their classes. most responses proposed many suggestions directed towards those who are responsible for the integration of technology in physics education and can be generalized for the whole educational process in other subjects. they can be summarized by the following:  provide schools with computers for physics classes.  increase the finance support for schools especially for public schools to invest in technology.  increase the number of physics teaching periods per week.  train teachers to use ict in their classes effectively.  modify the lebanese physics curriculum to give teachers a clear sense of what to teach and foster teachers on-the job training.  enrich the physics lebanese curriculum with software simulations and provide it freely for all learners.  train students to use educational technology starting from their elementary level. thus, the revealed suggestions yield and confirm that the barriers are pivoted around schools’ resources and teachers’ skills and support the results of the previous questions. also, these suggestions insured that schools’ visions and their slow attempts to ict research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3(2), 14-39 implementation are real barriers at this level. in summary, the revealed suggestions were aligned with the results of the previous questions in this study and support them. discussion, conclusion and implications ict is not only the future of our learners’ education, it is the present investment. the study highlighted, based on the literature review and physics teachers’ perspective, many indicators and factors that diagnosis the ict status in lebanese secondary school and hinder the successful implementation of ict for physics learning and for whole curricula in general. effective implementation of ict largely depends on the school administration’s vision and the teachers’ effort to insert ict (khanet al.,2012; mndzebele, 2013; hassler et al., 2016). lebanese secondary schools’ visions did not reduce the pressures by offering training, financial assistance for teachers, timetabling time for any ict implementation to comfortably progress towards technology rich environment. also, they did not prepare the needed infrastructure and provide teachers with enough ict resources. per makki (2018), ghavifekr, kunjappan, ramasamy & anthony (2016), accuosti (2014 ) and ampirica’s (2006) limited resources within the schools can seriously delay and limit the teachers’ initiatives to implement ict in classes. a strategic vision is required to implement ict; teachers need to be provided with suitable facilities, software and training to be able to implement them in technology learning -teaching process (tiwari & singh, 2018; salehi & salehi ,2012). consequently, the study proved that efficient ict implementation in physics courses at the lebanese secondary schools was not attained and was weak in the absence of clear ict vision in schools, real support and the limitation of ict appropriate tools. this aligned with what mentioned in the lebanese literature about the fuzzy status of ict in lebanese school (alameh, 2013; mo’dad, 2012). physics teachers indicated many related barriers that interact to hinder ict effective implementation. most of show up ict barriers in this endeavor are aligned with the barriers revealed in the literature review concerning this topic. loaded curriculum and the lack of time appeared as very high extrinsic barriers that negatively impact the integration of technology in physics education. this is aligned with what was mentioned by bingimlas (2009) and chen et al. (2012) and argued that enough time in using yehya et al. technology can be effective to improve ict usage (accuosti, 2014; goktas, yildirim, & yildirim. 2009). also, the lack of ict support, lack of access and appropriate resources, are mentioned as an effective barrier that cannot be ignored for better ict implementation in the lebanese physics secondary courses. ict support helps teachers to use ict in teaching without losing time through fixing software and hardware problems. the absence of technical support and maintenance is a major impediment to the development of ict in schools. without the good technical support in the classroom and the whole school resources, teachers cannot be expected to overcome the barriers preventing them from using ict (bingimlas, 2009; salehi and salehi; 2012). in the same context, ampirica (2006), khan et al. (2012), prasad et al. (2015) and ghavifekr (2016) found that lack of access, lack of computers and software are the large barriers to ict implementation. moreover, the limitation on access to hardware and software resources influences teachers’ motivation to use ict in the classroom. in addition to that, availability of computer outside physics classrooms is mentioned as an effective barrier in ict implantation in the lebanese physics secondary courses. the existence of computers in the class is motivational to ict integration (dotong, de castro, dolot, & prenda,, 2016). the existence of lab computers defines computers as non-integrated devises in learning and make teachers suffer from lab reservations and tabulated the movements of students between class and computer labs. accuosti (2014) claims that “computer’s physical presence changes the atmosphere and structure in the class due to its very nature”. thus, computers in educational setting should be part of student environment that promotes academic achievement, interaction and the positive attitude in the class. besides this, the raised barrier concerning the physics curriculum and its unsuitability for ict implementation is important to be highlighted. inflexibility of the curriculum to adapt and adopt new technologies are main barriers at the resources level (goktas et al., 2009; rabah, 2015; dotong et al., 2016) and this was confirmed by physic teachers’ suggestion, since ict cannot be a simple added value to the traditional curriculum without renew the curricula and make it flexible to contain the educational technology (accuosti, 2014; stoilescu, 2014). furthermore, the lack of physics teachers’ skills in dealing with computer software is also a hinder for ict implementation (tiwari & singh, 2018). the insufficient teachers’ training sessions to progress in the technology rich context are serious barriers in teachers’ skills and attitude level (mathevula, 2014; hassler et al., 2016). teachers who are motivated and research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3(2), 14-39 commitment to ict will evidently integrate ict more easily within the learning teaching process. this was insured by teachers’ suggestions and reflected their need for professional development. training is a key factor for successful integration of computers into classroom teaching (gomes, 2005; goktas et al., 2009; khan et al., 2012). consequently, ict related training programs develop teachers’ competences in computer use, influencing teachers’ attitudes towards computers and assisting teachers to reorganize the task of technology and how new technology programs are significant in student learning (goktas et al. 2009, buabengandoh,2012; prasad et al., 2015). in summary, the barriers that resist ict implementation in the lebanese physics classes are: lack of the number of physics periods per week for using technology and revealing all the curriculum content; the insufficient existence of computer labs for the subject and their positions away from physics class room; the lack of resources to access and unavailability of internet connectivity in physics class room; inadequate technical support; inflexibility of the curriculum to ict implementation; insufficient training for physics teacher physics teacher; in addition to the lack of financial support and the large number of students in the class room. these barriers are met with the findings of the previous literature review that shed light on same situations (gomes, 2005; bingimlas,2009; buabeng-andoh ,2012; tiwari & singh,2018) and approved that efficient ict implementation in physics courses at the lebanese secondary schools was not attained. recommendations: based on the results of the study, the following recommendations can be formulated for better integration of technology in lebanese secondary schools for physics education and whole teachinglearning process for different subjects in general at different levels: 1at the ministry of education’s and education policymakers’ level: the ministry of education and the education policymakers should be aware of the positive impact of ict implementation in developing teaching and learning in general and physics courses in particular. they should increase the finance support for schools especially for public schools to invest in educational technology, technical support and maintenance to ensure the continued operation and development of ict systems. also, education policymakers should yehya et al. develop ict resources in schools and apply efforts to promote awareness within available software to facilitate teaching and learning. moreover, they should stress on teachers’ training programs to implement technology in the learning process as main priority. added to this, physics curriculum developers should avoid digitizing for old curricula that lead to both time and finance loss. instead of that, they should renew the physics official curricula and make it flexible to contain the educational technology in order for teachers and students to become partners in the learning process and this can be applied in all curricula subjects. 2at schools’ level: schools should integrate ict vision in their plans and develop their technology resources. cooperation among administrators, principals and teachers should be encouraged to reduce ict barriers among schools. school principals and administrators should provide all teaching and learning spaces with ict facilities and computers in general and particularly in physics classrooms. ict tools should not be narrowed to specialized rooms like our present and students should be provided with sufficient number of computers and internet services in classes and an access to ict facilities outside lesson times. moreover, they should avoid crowded classes in general and particularly physics classes that keep the teachers of physics subject feel irresponsible to ict integration and only concern about the content. furthermore, school principals and administrators should reduce the pressure of curriculum and the number of teaching periods to encourage instructors to invest the allotted time in the development of ict skills. also, they should develop strategies for evaluating the impact of ict at different levels in the school thus icts’ users can be confident in assessing its impact on teaching/ learning process. 3at physics teachers’ level, and all teachers in general: teachers should plan for the integration of ict in all aspects of their teaching, as appropriate. they should exploit the benefits to be gained from ict in their lesson planning and preparation and the potential of ict in developing students’ skills including research and investigation skills, writing, communication and presentation skills, teamwork and collaborative skills, and the higher-order skills of problem-solving, analysis, and evaluation. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3(2), 14-39 furthermore, teachers should provide students with an appropriate and equitable level of experience of ict at all class levels and explore the appropriate use of resources and applications in facilitate learning. 4at community level: community should be aware of the importance of ict in their development and cooperate with schools in their regions and support the ict implementations and raise funds to reach this aim. also, software designers, educators and instructors in their community should work together to develop appropriate forms of software that are able to support different skills and ways of learning and teaching to use in subject teaching. limitation of the study: the research data collection process was very exhausting and challenging. a delay in answering back the survey questions and sometimes the ignoring for the survey at all were main constraints of this endeavor. this act, despite it was limited, wasted effort and time and reflected the lack of some teachers’ awareness and appreciation to the importance of research in education. tables and figures table 4 ict lebanese secondary schools' vision and coordinators’ supportiveness statements percentages yes no no answer is ict vision integrated in the whole school plan 43.28% 55.32% 1.41% is the coordinator or the head of the department in your organisation supportive for using technology in teaching, learning and assessment? 71.6% 28.4% 0 % yehya et al. table 5 level of ict usage by lebanese physics teachers educational technology tools percentage % m sd daily at least once a week at least once a month a few times per year never internet access 16.3 24.8 14.2 18.4 26.2 2.87 1.460 free subscription to online resources for students 4.3 4.3 7.1 7.8 76.6 1.52 1.080 drill and practice software 2.1 3.5 5.7 2.1 86.5 1.33 0.898 tutorial software 0 6.4 10.6 2.8 80.1 1.43 0.920 simulations (virtual lab) 2.8 22.7 29.8 17.7 26.2 1.36 0.847 reference software 0.7 4.3 7.1 6.4 81.6 2.56 1.203 e-assessment tools 1.4 7.1 8.5 14.9 68.1 1.59 1.008 hand holdup smart devises(tablet) 2.8 5 11.3 16.3 64.5 1.65 1.049 interactive whiteboards 5 6.4 9.2 19.1 60.3 1.77 1.163 etextbooks 9.2 14.9 8.5 11.3 56 2.1 1.441 google apps for education 2.8 5.7 7.1 12.8 71.6 1.55 1.038 total 4.30 9.55 10.82 11.78 63.4 1.793 1.017 research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3(2), 14-39 figure 3: ict vision in lebanese secondary schools table 6 the mean and the standard deviation for the obstacles in decreasing order statements n mean sd 6the number of physics periods is not enough for using technology and revealing all the curriculum content 141 4.29 .990 5-the lack of technicians for computer labs 141 3.78 1.166 7there is no internet services in physics classes 141 3.78 1.243 3-the number of computers is not sufficient for students 141 3.63 1.174 1-computer labs are unavailable for physics subject 141 3.53 1.257 4-physics classes are too crowded 141 3.53 1.290 9physics official curriculum is not appropriate for technology resources use 141 3.50 1.313 2-computer lab is away from the physics classroom 141 3.43 1.289 8the download and use of the computer physics programs are difficult. 141 2.82 1.280 yehya et al. figure 4: percentage of available and non-available resources in the lebanese secondary schools 23,4 11,3 9,2 20,6 43,3 32,6 25,5 7,8 2,1 5,7 39,7 11,3 45,4 14,9 76,6 88,7 90,8 79,4 56,7 67,4 74,5 92,2 97,9 94,3 60,3 88,7 54,6 85,1 0 50 100 150 etextbooks e-assessment tools google apps for education internet access from: classroom internet access from: computer lab internet access from: teachers’ room internet access from: physics laboratory free subscription to online resources for students drill and practice soft ware tutorial software simulations (virtual lab) software reference software (encyclopaedia) interactive whiteboards handheld smart devises (tablet) ict resources non available percentage % available percentage % doğrusal (available percentage %) research in social sciences and 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(2010). a model to explore turkish teachers' ict integration stages. turkish online journal of educational technology, 9(4), 1-9. http://ressat.org/index.php/ressat/article/view/363 http://dergipark.gov.tr/jsser/issue/32450/360860 research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 loh, r. c., & ang, s. a. (2020). unravelling cooperative learning in higher education: a review of research. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 22 unravelling cooperative learning in higher education: a review of research raymond chee-yen loh * school of business and law, tmc academy, singapore chin-siang ang school of psychology, tmc academy, singapore *corresponding author: austin.ang@tmc.edu.sg received : 2019-06-06 rev. req : 2019-09-12 accepted : 2019-11-01 doi: 10.46303/ressat.05.02.2 loh, r.c.y., & ang, c. s. (2020). unravelling cooperative learning in higher education: a review of research. research in social sciences and technology, 5(2), 22-39. doi.org/10.46303/ressat.05.02.2 abstract teaching and learning have evolved over the years. while the use of lecture is still the dominant mode of teaching in educational institutions, there has been consensus that students need to be active in learning, for which traditional styles of teaching may not be well suited. this calls for an alternative instructional mode: cooperative learning to promote active learning among students. in higher education, interest in cooperative learning has gained momentum since the early 1980s, and this kind of teaching and learning can be conducted in many ways. the purpose of this study is to provide an overview of existing evidence pertinent to cooperative learning. in this review, cooperative learning is defined and elements inherent in this pedagogy are discussed. theoretical perspectives relating to cooperative learning are also outlined. the outcomes pertaining to cooperative learning are then presented, followed by the influence of context on cooperative learning. this review is organized and structured as such to serve as a basis of reference for further research in the field. keywords: cooperative learning, higher education, learning, teaching introduction teaching and learning have evolved over the years. while the use of lecture is still the dominant mode of teaching in educational institutions (felder & brent, 2005), there has been consensus that students need to be active in learning, for which traditional styles of teaching may not be well suited (biggs & tang, 2011; ramsden, 2003). this calls for an alternative instructional mode: cooperative learning (cl) to promote active learning among students. why is cl of such interest? in this globally and digitally interconnected world, there is a growing need to equip students with 21st century competencies such as critical thinking, interpersonal communication, collaborative skills, and global awareness in order to develop the next research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 loh, r. c., & ang, s. a. (2020). unravelling cooperative learning in higher education: a review of research. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 23 generation of innovators and creative thinkers (johnson, johnson, roseth, & shin, 2014). to develop those skills, educational institutions would need to consider using innovative teaching methods to ignite passion for learning and provide students with the opportunity for active learning (oecd, 2005; saavedra & opfer, 2017). previous studies have suggested that cl is one of the key teaching and learning strategies to meet the said purpose (felder & brent, 2007; loh & teoh, 2017; shimazoe & aldrich, 2010). although cl is especially valued in current teaching pedagogy and contemporary scholarship, far less has been written to provide a literature overview of cl in higher education. essentially, there is a need to draw together what research has been done on cl in higher education to provide a historical overview of this particular field of research. hence, the purpose of this article is to review prior research addressing the following questions: (1) what is cl and its importance? (2) how does cl evolve in higher education? (3) what contextual factors support or constrain the implementation of cl? the review begins with a discussion of the definition of cl as well as its theoretical underpinnings and associated elements. the paper then provides different drivers and motivations for adopting a cl approach. additionally, this paper will review empirical research on cl in higher education and identify contextual factors strengthening or constraining cl. the review concludes with a discussion of the methodological issues in investigating cl from previous research. definition, theoretical underpinnings, elements underlying cl definition although cooperative learning is sometimes used interchangeably with collaborative learning (millis & cottell, 1998; patesan, balagiu, & zechia, 2016; márque et al., 2018), the terms mean different things. collaborative learning is completely self-forming in purpose and structure, where students take full responsibility for their learning (barkley, cross, & major, 2005). in simple terms, students have a greater sense of autonomy and teachers give only minimal instruction. cl, on the other hand, is a more defined, structured form of learning in which the teacher needs to be a “task-setter” by carefully creating a highly structured and well-organized learning environment that requires the active participation of each student. the teacher’s fundamental task is to set goals, plan and structure the tasks, and assign students into group roles to work together toward a common end (johnson & johnson, 2009; slavin, 2012). when groups work on tasks, the teacher should act as a coach or facilitator, moving from group to group to monitor the learning process. the teacher also needs to provide students with ongoing feedback and assessment of group progress. overall, cl differs from collaborative learning in that teachers still assist the students in active learning instead of being completely “hands-off” in their classrooms. theoretical underpinnings since the initial advocacy of social constructivism by vygotsky in 1978, cl has been a topic much discussed by educational psychologists and practitioners. vygotsky (1978) believed that research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 loh, r. c., & ang, s. a. (2020). unravelling cooperative learning in higher education: a review of research. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 24 social interaction with others plays a huge role in the acquisition of knowledge and information that individuals would not be able to achieve independently. knowledge acquisition is allegedly used to construct socially through cooperative efforts to learn, understand, and engage in the process of problem solving. furthermore, the zone of proximal development (zpd), as highlighted in the theory, facilities one to understand how scaffolding support will enable learners move from an actual development level to a potential level of development (taber, 2011). with adequate guidance or support from a knowledgeable adult or in cooperation with more capable peers, it is expected that learners will achieve higher potentials (jacobs, mccafferty, & iddings, 2006). more recent works on cl make clear that interdependence must be present in order for cl to take place. in his social interdependence theory (sit), johnson (2003) defined cl as an approach of construction of skills and knowledge through the interactions among learners. he suggested that positive interdependence results in “promotive interaction” between learners, where they can encourage and facilitate each other to attain shared goals. slavin (2012) also expounded the idea that learners help each other learn. to facilitate positive interdependence, teachers need to structure goals and interactive tasks so that students work together to achieve desired goals. students are assigned rotating roles including leader, recorder, checker, and time-keeper. while there are more benefits related to positive interdependence, it requires cooperation and contribution from every member of a group; otherwise, it could lead to negative interdependence, in which students discourage and obstruct one another to achieve a shared goal (johnson & johnson, 2009). elements underlying cl students are not born to cooperate; instead, they need to learn the skills of cooperating. for cl to take place, the teacher must establish the will and the skill of working cooperatively among students. according to johnson, johnson, and holubec (2013), five elements are essential to implement genuine cl: positive interdependence, face-to-face interaction, interpersonal and small group skills, individual and group accountability, and group processing. positive interdependence refers to students needing each other to complete shared tasks (johnson et al., 2013). this can be accomplished when students realize that one’s performance is mutually caused by oneself and one’s team members, as well as that all gain from each other’s efforts (herrmann, 2014). this results in “promotive interaction” among students in small groups to facilitate and encourage each other to reap gains. to help students contribute their share in group goals, a task needs to be structured so that students are aware that all group members share a common fate. second, cl should always be held in person. at its most basic level, face-to-face interaction is the best tool for knowledge sharing, as it affords opportunities for students to interact, establish personal communication, and observe other team members' expressions when they explain, elaborate, clarify misconceptions, or discuss perspectives (ifeoma, ngozi, & nkem, 2015). students in a group also act in trusting and trustworthy ways such as sharing resources, providing constructive feedback, challenging reasoning, encouraging one another, and participating in joint-celebration success (felder & research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 loh, r. c., & ang, s. a. (2020). unravelling cooperative learning in higher education: a review of research. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 25 brent, 2007). in the process of such engagement, new ideas and knowledge are formed and information is reorganized and reconstructed, which enables learners to develop better cognitive abilities (gillies, 2016). besides this, face-to-face interactions can reduce unnecessary miscommunications that result from not being able to see body language and nonverbal cues. third, cl requires students to work in a group, where interpersonal and small-group skills are absolutely important to facilitate social interaction among one another. in classrooms where cl is used, teachers must teach students interpersonal skills such as communication, leadership, trust, decision making, and conflict resolution (johnson et al., 2013). this is because students in the group are exposed to other group members’ divergent views that may differ from their own. by having good socialization skills, it is easier for them to build trust and relationship bonding. fourth, individual and group accountability means that every member in a group is responsible for their contributions in group tasks (johnson et al., 2013). there is no doubt that each student needs to do his or her part so that the group is accountable for meeting its goals. while group goals are necessary to motivate learners to assist one another by providing them with a stake in one another’s success, it is important that individual contribution must be assessed. lastly, group processing requires group members to periodically reflect on their actions, obtain feedback from group members to facilitate improvements in team members’ participation, sharpen social skills, and practice cooperative skills (ifeoma et al., 2015). group processing provides time for group reflection of progress to ensure that if there are areas that do not work, they can be rectified promptly so that the group morale will not affect the functioning of the group. benefits of cl much has already been learned from research about the benefits of cl. in this study, the benefits of cl will be categorized and summarized into three aspects: academic, affective, and social competence. the academic benefits involve knowledge acquisitions and growth in intellectual and academic skills. in essence, cl moves students from a passive to a more active role in the learning process. numerous studies have shown that active learning is more effective than passive learning to encourage deep comprehension of the materials (biggs, 1999; cavanagh, 2011; gokhale, 1995; shimazoe & aldrich, 2010; wyk, 2012). millis & cottell (1998) also highlighted that cl is an approach to instruction in which students have greater use of higher-level thinking skills. this improves student attitudes toward learning and, in turn, increases retention of their subject area knowledge (johnson et al., 2014; porter, 2006; shimazoe & aldrich, 2010; thanh, gillies, & renshaw, 2008; webb, 2009). it also appears that cl allows students to analyze problems via multiple perspectives, and this helps them to think in more complex ways. for students who are too shy to ask teachers questions, cl provides them a platform to seek clarification from their peers. some studies found that students learn better through peer explanation, as they can translate teachers’ language into peer conversation (johnson, johnson, & stanne, 2000). during the sharing process, more competent students improve their thought articulation by making connections and synthesizing information from various sources. all these can promote their understanding through active reasoning and explanation (johnson et al., 2014). this helps to expand their existing zpd to the research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 loh, r. c., & ang, s. a. (2020). unravelling cooperative learning in higher education: a review of research. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 26 higher potential level. furthermore, as students mutually share their ideas, opinions, and viewpoints to each other, it pushes students to think critically in an academic context (gillies, 2003; slavin, 2012) and in turn, widen their perspectives (barkley et al., 2005; cavanagh, 2011; colak, 2015; shimazoe & aldrich, 2010). not surprisingly, there was a strong positive connection in the literature between cl and academic performance (colak, 2015; du, 2015; porter, 2006; slavin, 2014). in addition to academic benefits, the affective benefits include the emotional aspects of learning, such as appreciation, enthusiasm, motivation, and values, in which one becomes more involved, committed, and self-reliant in one’s own learning (du, 2016). when students work cooperatively in classroom activities, it helps to create a pleasant social ambience. as students interact with one another, the affinity and support they receive from peers facilitate students to feel like they are part of the group. this leads them to be committed not only to their own learning goals but to group goals as well (carcolini, 2017; gillies, 2003; gokhale, 1995; james, 2018; seng, 2014). in the long run, students are more likely to feel empowerment and higher self-efficacy, self-esteem, and satisfaction (barkley et al., 2005; cavanagh, 2011; porter, 2006; slavin, 2014). cl also helps to enrich autonomous learning experiences, which provides greater choice and flexibility in learning (johnson et al., 2013, 2014; millis & cottell, 1998; seng, 2014). for most students, autonomous learning can be a driving force to help them persevere in the face of challenges. further studies have documented that students are highly motivated and will naturally enjoy learning more if they can learn autonomously (thanh, gillies, & renshaw, 2008). as time goes by, they prefer to learn new things and find motivation to keep learning (du, 2016; johnson et al., 2014). this may explain why students find that their personal ego-strength, self-confidence, and autonomy levels are all enhanced after they have been involved in cl. the social competence benefits include the ability to get along with others in acceptable and appropriate ways. while learning is a complex individual process, it is also a social one (felder & brent, 2007). cl enables students to interact with others in a variety of ways. to complete a group task, students need to constructively navigate group interaction in order to respect each other as separate and unique individuals. these social interactions require strong interpersonal social skills and cooperative skills (cavanagh, 2011; johnson & johnson, 2009; shimazoe & aldrich, 2010; thanh, gillies, & renshaw, 2008). with these skills, students can positively depend on each other in a team to solve problems collectively. cl could also provide the context for students to use social language, read social cues, and exchange ideas. moreover, cl provides learners with the increased ability to view things from another’s perspective (gokhale, 1995; lim, 2004; yager, 2000). in the process of working with other members in a group, students are able to picture what others are feeling and thinking and appreciate others’ views. from there, they can learn a set of interpersonal negotiation strategies for use with peers in order to resolve disagreements in constructive ways. as a result, empirical studies reported that cl is critical for students to develop social skills and competence (cavanagh, 2011; johnson & johnson, 2009, 2014; seng, 2014; slavin, 2014). eventually, students who feel good about themselves and their social skills are more likely to build a wide variety of mutually beneficial relationships. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 loh, r. c., & ang, s. a. (2020). unravelling cooperative learning in higher education: a review of research. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 27 cl in higher education in a higher education context, cl was examined across countries. although there have been numerous studies demonstrating that cl is an effective learning strategy, most of the studies were conducted in western countries, particularly the united states, europe, and australia (cavanagh, 2011; herrmann, 2014; roseth, johnson, & johnson, 2008). attracted by the claimed positive outcomes from western studies, cl was soon adopted in other parts of the world, including asia (e.g., vietnam, malaysia, singapore, and china), the middle east, and africa. tadesse and gillies (2015) examined ethiopian university students’ and teachers’ satisfaction and opinions regarding cl; neo (2005) incorporated cl in a multimedia project to determine its impact on student learning in malaysia; loh and teo (2017) investigated the effectiveness of cl to engage singaporean students; singh (2013) and malatji (2016) investigated cl benefits to students’ cognitive abilities in south africa; tombak and altun (2016) examined turkish university students’ motivation toward cl; and thanh et al. (2008) and tran (2014) explored teachers’ and students’ perception of the use of cl in universities in vietnam. these studies provide concrete evidence that cl is being used in higher education in other parts of the world in addition to western countries. with more universities and colleges incorporating cl, johnson and johnson (2014) argued that higher education should challenge students not only in mastery of knowledge content but encourage students to analyze, accept multiple opinions shared by fellow students, and cooperate in diverse groups. this is especially important when cl implemented in higher education shows promising outcomes (cavanagh, 2011; colak, 2015; hammond, bithell, jones, & bidgood, 2010; herrmann, 2014; ho, watkins, & kelly, 2001; kelly & fetherston, 2008; malatji, 2016; tadesse & gillies, 2015; thanh, gillies, & renshaw, 2008; tran, 2014). researchers have suggested that students are more mature and possess higher cognitive thinking skills; however, entrenched learning styles pose barriers for some students to respond well to cl. perhaps there are a variety of reasons for the less promising outcomes, including teachers and students not receiving proper training in cl, varying understanding and conception of cl, barriers imposed by institutions, and even cultural differences that make teaching and learning distinct. contextual factors strengthening or constraining cl in higher education based on prior studies, our paper attempts to identify five main factors that strengthen or constrain the implementation of cl in the university context: the teachers, the students, group formation, university environment and disciplines, and cultures. the teachers research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 loh, r. c., & ang, s. a. (2020). unravelling cooperative learning in higher education: a review of research. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 28 in the context of cl, the role of the teacher remains that of a helper, facilitator, mentor, and a guide, whereas the student’s role remains central in the whole process as active participant in the learning and constructing of knowledge (baloche & brody, 2017). the power shift from teacher to students could be a problem when students do not know how to take charge of their learning. therefore, teachers play a key role in establishing cl experiences in classrooms. however, not all teachers are familiar with cl since didactic (teacher-focused) teaching has been the dominant teaching strategy in higher education for centuries. some teachers may struggle to relinquish control in classes, especially when it comes to the delegation of authority to students (kember, 2003). this explains why gillies (2016), thanh et al. (2008), and tadesse & gillies (2015) argued that “letting go” of power represents a key barrier to implementing cl. teachers’ roles include designing tasks for students in groups and structuring groups and tasks so that students understand how and what to do. moreover, teachers who facilitate student learning in cl require certain coaching skills such as encouraging students to work in small groups and assume accountability in learning, and providing constructive feedback (felder & brent, 2007; jacob et al., 2006). johnson et al. (2013) suggested that teachers in cl should provide facilitation, behavioral modelling, and guidance. it is important for teachers to provide learners with clear directions and guidelines in order to help them in the journey of learning. they should delegate the responsibility and the role for a group so that students in groups have the chance to equally contribute to achieving mutual goals as well as constructing their own knowledge. while students are working on a task, teachers should observe and monitor their progress to evaluate their learning pace. in addition, teachers should ensure that active learning takes place by allowing closer interactions and bonding among students (shimazoe & aldrich, 2010). helping students to interact and work together not only enables students to learn from each other but also to nurture a sense of holding task responsibility. with encouragement and mentoring received from teachers, it creates enjoyment in their learning, and they better achieve desired objectives of learning (gillies, 2003; jacobs et al., 2006; johnson et al., 2014). however, teachers need to adapt their approach to manage diverse classroom contexts and acknowledge cultural and institutional barriers. professional development (pd) is proposed to provide teachers with content knowledge, practical skills, and self-confidence before they adopt cl (chalmers & gariner, 2015; coffey & gibbs, 2002; de vries, van de grift, & jansen, 2014; garet et al., 2001). pd is the processes and activities designed to improve teachers’ knowledge, instructional approaches, and goal setting for student learning outcomes. in addition, pd also seeks to provide practical and situational wisdom to equip teachers with the necessary competency and professional capacity to deal with uncertainty since teaching and learning take place within certain contexts (garet et al., 2001). apart from considering pd as a narrow perspective to improve professionalism and expertise in teachers, it can be taken on a wider dimension that includes student development, curriculum design, or cooperation with peers that could result in transformation of educational practice that best reflects the needs of students. in order for pd to have effective outcomes in changing teachers’ practice, opfer and pedder (2011) suggested that three conditions need to meet. first, pd should be introduced in a research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 loh, r. c., & ang, s. a. (2020). unravelling cooperative learning in higher education: a review of research. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 29 setting with which teachers are familiar. when other teachers in the same work setting also receive pd and put new knowledge into practice, they will have a greater connectedness in terms of pooling their collective wisdom, sharing their experience, and psychological support (garet et al., 2001; jacobs et al., 2006). by doing so, it is much easier for teachers to seek input and improvements from their existing network systems in schools (gillies & boyle, 2010). furthermore, collaboration with fellow teachers can change pedagogic perceptions and lead to improvement in teaching methods and improved relationships (shagrir, 2017). pd can take place either in formal or informal learning contexts. in a formal learning context, activities are consciously undertaken by teachers with the intention to learn. teachers may discuss learning goals or evaluate their own teaching practice with a peer. in the process, teachers might learn unconsciously; for example, they might unconsciously develop beliefs about collaboration with other teachers. on the other hand, for informal learning, both conscious and unconscious levels may occur. teachers, for example, might consciously experiment with new instructional formats to change their teaching practice while unconsciously developing, through a combination of unpleasant experiences, an aversion to certain methods of instruction. second, pd should run progressively by focusing on a limited number of goals at a time. some teachers might feel overwhelmed if they are exposed to too many goals in a short period of time. since teaching is a complex activity, ramsden (2003) suggested that it be a developmental process where one progresses from less to more sophisticated ideas. teachers’ experiential learning, knowledge, and practice all need time to develop. the idea is further supported by chong and kong (2012), arguing that training needs to be sustained in order for change to be entrenched. it will also help to avoid diverting their focus and lowering their commitment levels (postholm, 2012). hence, pd needs to go beyond supporting teachers at the initial stage of cl and be extended for a longer period. third, educational institutions and school administrators must support teachers in pd by allowing them to have time to meet to share and reduce structural obstacles that may impede the change processes (yost, 2006). as teachers put their knowledge into practice, they may encounter difficulty with unpredictable outcomes (benegas, 2019; clarke & collins, 2007). continuous support is necessary to help teachers navigate the challenges. in addition, it facilitates teachers to internalize their knowledge into practice by having considerable time to digest what they learn, think about how it might be relevant to their teaching, and make sense of dilemmas and challenges through a process of critical appraisal. postholm (2012) posited that critical appraisal is an important process for teachers’ learning and development of good teaching practice. opportunities can be created by schools where teachers can engage in active reflection on their teaching, either through joint work with fellow teachers or working with instructional experts to support adoption of new instructional practices. the students the effectiveness of cl may be affected by student factors, with researchers suggesting several aspects. for instance, prosser and trigwell (2014) suggested that students who adopt surface learning might not find cl beneficial, as they do not actively contribute to the group learning. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 loh, r. c., & ang, s. a. (2020). unravelling cooperative learning in higher education: a review of research. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 30 according to colak (2015), only the deep learning approach results in effective learning where students are aware of their learning experience. likewise, biggs, kember, and leung (2001) argued that students’ previous experience and prior knowledge, motivation to learn, selfconfidence, learning styles, and personalities were associated with students’ acceptance of cl. these could suggest that although teachers might use cl, if students do not participate with much enthusiasm, cl will not implement well. kember and kwan (2000) also emphasized the role of learner-learner interaction. to achieve better outcomes, learners need to engage in group or cooperative learning (e.g., sharing of materials, studying together). if they choose to remain passive in their learning, the quality of cl is deemed to be ineffective. tadesse and gillies (2015) further elucidated that cl takes more time compared to traditional learning methods because students need time to be familiar with cl and more time to execute. students need time to develop, absorb, discuss, and practice new knowledge. cl activities require student initiative, so it is not surprising that cl occurs only occasionally; therefore, the benefits of cl are not maximized if students are not intrinsically motivated in cl. group formation group formation can be a formidable task for teachers who implement cl in the classroom. it requires time, planning, and effort to create effective groups. there is much debate about whether homogenous or heterogeneous groupings help students learn or put them at a disadvantage. most researchers agreed that heterogeneous grouping better supports the implementation of cl (felder & brent, 2007; johnson et al., 2000; slavin, 2014). of these studies, students in cl groups need to be varied (heterogeneous) with different races, abilities, interests, etc. in agreement, lou, abrami, and d’apollonia (2001) suggested that heterogeneous groups have the greatest potential for success in cl, allowing more capable peer interactions and peer tutoring; they further reported that in diverse groups, low-ability students tend to benefit most. the diverse group of students allows students to actively interact with diverse individuals while at the same time learning each other’s differences. jacobs et al. (2006) argued that both higherand lower-ability students tend to gain from cl, as high-ability students feel a sense of care for others and build autonomy while low-ability students can learn from students who understand the concepts. however, barkley et al. (2005) disagreed with the idea and argued that high-ability students may begin to feel some resentment toward being in the heterogeneous group and low-ability students may shy away from participating with the group. barkley et al. (2005) suggested that the efficient way is to allow students to form their own groups. this may lead students to form working groups with those who share similar backgrounds and interests. arguments for friendship groups include: a) students feel uncomfortable working with those they have not worked with before, and (b) it takes time to know each other or ascertain group members’ abilities, unlike in friendship groups where students readily get to know each other’s strengths and weaknesses (nguyen, 2008). in hofstede and hofstede’s (2005) study, affective factors exceed cognitive factors, and group harmony is a decisive factor of a successful group among asian students. this implies that the established bonding between members in a group is much more important for asian students research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 loh, r. c., & ang, s. a. (2020). unravelling cooperative learning in higher education: a review of research. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 31 to learn. gillies (2016), however, warned that one of the shortcomings of a friendship group is that some students may feel left out or even be discriminated against. moreover, friendship groups may be detrimental in terms of identifying and pinpointing errors in order to maintain group harmony (gillies & boyle, 2010). although one of the characteristics of collectivist societies is the desire to cooperate and work in groups, not all students subscribe to this behavior. the desire to stay ahead of competition limits team work. the above discussions highlight the complexity of student group formation. university environment and disciplines the surrounding environment, the way that teachers manage their classrooms, and school disciplines are commonly considered central aspects in students’ learning experiences. johnson et al. (2000) concluded that whether a method is teacher-centered (transmission) or student-centered (conceptual change) depends on the type of subject. they suggested that in “hard” discipline subjects such as chemistry, medicine, and engineering, teacher-centered methods are widely used, and the student-centered approach is used for “soft” or humanities subjects such as history and social sciences. it has long been assumed that cl would be more suitable for humanities subjects and not suitable for “hard” subjects, which are seen as more academically rigorous. additionally, class size and level influence teaching approaches adopted by teachers. as class size and level increases, teachers tend to use a teacher-focused approach (singer, 1996). implementing cl with a bigger class size is not impossible, but it requires more effort since teachers need to ensure that students’ behaviors are better managed. therefore, baloche and brody (2017), buchs et al. (2017), and thanh et al. (2008) highlighted the importance of receiving institutional support to adopt cl in higher education. one of the common obstacles teachers face during cl is a tight timeline to complete broad curriculum coverage in a semester term, as cl takes time for implementation. consequently, some teachers may either not adopt or casually adopt cl in the classroom. this may lead some students to feel dissatisfied with cl, with the perception that cl is a waste of time (gillies & boyle, 2010). relatedly, it may affect teachers’ confidence in using cl, and they may resort to familiar instructional strategies such as traditional lectures. culture culture refers to “patterns of thoughts … systems of knowledge that inform us how we should interact and communicate with others as well as interpret other’s behaviour” (bulut, 2009, p. 112). hofstede and hofstede (2005) advocated that learning, teaching, and culture are strongly interrelated. ignoring or devaluing cultural aspects will result in partial understanding or misunderstanding of how students learn and cooperate in cl. cultural differences affect students’ cooperation, learning (economides, 2008), perceptions, interpretations of the learning environment (nguyen, 2008), participation, motivation (lim, 2004) and learning behavior (valiente, 2008; wong, 2004). while johnson et al. (2000) reported that cultural diversity offers positive learning outcomes such as better interaction skills, sensitivity and research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 loh, r. c., & ang, s. a. (2020). unravelling cooperative learning in higher education: a review of research. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 32 respect toward other cultures, some have argued that stereotypes, prejudices, and hostility may occur in cl groups due to misunderstanding and conflicts arising among students from different cultures (economides, 2008; lafer & tarman, 2019; johnson & hinton, 2019). one of the potential reasons is that language barriers may hinder “promotive interaction” in a working group, leading to unnecessary communication conflicts. thanh et al. (2008) highlighted that asian students tend to pay special attention to personal relationships as a crucial factor in determining group success. in addition, tan (2017) argued that asians’ perceptions and responses to critical thinking differ from those in the west, as asians view critical thinking as collegial, communal, emphatic, and interpersonal instead. loh and teo (2017), on the other hand, advocated that asian learners are open to active and innovative learning approaches. wong (2004) suggested that confucian heritage is an integrated part of chinese culture that influences teaching and learning. bray, adamson, and mason (2014) claimed that in confucian heritage cultures, there is a high regard for education where teachers usually rank highest in the social hierarchy and students tend to show more respect to them. biggs and watkins (1996) added that in chinese culture, teachers are well respected for their wisdom, and the wisdom of teachers is not to be questioned. additionally, teachers retain much class control with students asking fewer questions to maintain harmony in class, and they speak only when asked to do so since doing so disrupt lessons. to some extent, asking questions is also considered to be a challenge to the authority of teachers, which may explain why some students display a passive attitude in class when they are not encouraged to speak out. hence, asian students may prefer a teacher-centered approach, expecting their teachers to be well prepared masters of knowledge delivering content in a coherent, systematic, and structural manner. conclusion this review defines the meaning of cl and discusses theories relating to cl. studies included in our review show that cl is an effective teaching and learning approach in higher education. findings appear to be consistent with the notion that cl helps to enhance academic, affective, and social development of students. we identified some factors that strengthen or constrain the implementation of cl in higher education. students, staff readiness, and group formation are considered as strengthening factors, whereas institutional factors are considered as constraining factors. the role of culture is considered as either strengthening or constraining, depending on how cl is valued in a particular cultural context. in terms of limitations, our choice to restrict our research to articles written in english might have led to an overrepresentation of studies from english-speaking countries, which may have influenced our summary. this study might provide some insight for future research to consider different contextual factors in determining the success of cl. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 loh, r. c., & ang, s. a. 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(2006). reflection and self-efficacy: enhancing the retention of qualified teachers from a teacher education perspective. teacher education quarterly, 33(4), 59-76. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) e-issn: 2468-6891 i editorial: 2019 (4) 1 dear colleagues, readers and contributors of ressat! we are excited to be with you through the may 2019 issue (4/1) of research in social sciences and technology (ressat). we would like to extend our appreciations to all who contributes by submitting or reviewing manuscripts or have been readers of ressat. in our first issue of the fourth year, you will find six articles. the first article written by fouad m. yehya, aziz m. barbar & suzanne abourjeili entitled as “learning with simulations: influence of a computer simulation with hands-on activities on students’ learning of the physics capacitors’ concepts.” in their research, the authors examine to investigate whether the use of computer simulations combined with hands-on activities are more effective than simulation alone to students´ learning of physics concepts. the result of this research reveals that simulation usage with hands-on activities by physics teachers may promote leaners conceptual understanding of some capacitors’ concepts than the use of simulation alone. deanna jacobsen koepke, david a. thomas, & alexis manning are the authors of the second article entitled as “fatal encounters: a content analysis of newspaper depictions of the deaths of unarmed people of color at the hands of law enforcement or security personnel.” this is a very interesting study focusing on analyzing the way newspaper articles report on the deaths of unarmed people of color at the hands of law enforcement and security personnel between 1999 and 2017 to determine if local and national print media frame these stories using similar terminology and concepts. with the title of “ehealth systems' user experiences from healthcare workers” in the third article, synnove thomassen andersen seek to investigate the practices, perspectives and values by healthcare workers, by analyzing how they experience the use of ehealth systems. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), i-ii fenty kusumastuti in the fourth article entitled as “polysemy in and of the science fiction film arrival (2016)”. this research was aimed at describing the interrelation between the polysemy in the film and the polysemy of the film. the analysis of the data reveals that examining the phenomena of cognitive linguistic meanings from the 30 micro-unit polysemy to the rhetorical criticism of the polysemous text opens up multiple interpretive possibilities that may go unnoticed. in his article with the title of “teachers’ perceptions on using smartphones in english as a foreign language context” ali abbas alzubi explores the perceptions of english as a foreign language (efl) teachers at a foundation year in a university in saudi arabia. in the last article of this issue with the title of “critiquing a qualitative study using tracy’s big-tent criteria” saud albusaidi critiques of an article that explores the internationalization of the curriculum. i would like to thank everyone and express my special appreciation to the people who contributed to make this issue ready for you. i especially would like to thank all authors and reviewers for their contribution to ressat. i hope you will both enjoy and be challenged by the articles in this issue of ressat. i also look forward to seeing your contribution to the development of ressat in the future. looking forward to being with you in next issue... bulent tarman, ph.d editor-in-chief, research in social sciences and technology (ressat) www.ressat.org http://www.ressat.org/ research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 monkevičienė, o., vildžiūnienė, j., & valinčienė, g. (2020). the impact of teacher-initiated activities on identifying and verbalizing ways of metacognitive monitoring and control in six-year-old children. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 72 the impact of teacher-initiated activities on identifying and verbalizing ways of metacognitive monitoring and control in six-year-old children ona monkevičienė* vytautas magnus university jelena vildžiūnienė vytautas magnus university galina valinčienė vytautas magnus university *corresponding author: ona.monkeviciene@vdu.lt received : 2019-08-20 rev. req : 2019-10-06 accepted : 2019-11-30 doi: 10.46303/ressat.05.02.5 monkevičienė, o., vildžiūnienė, j., & valinčienė, g. (2020). the impact of teacher-initiated activities on identifying and verbalizing ways of metacognitive monitoring and control in six-year-old children. research in social sciences and technology, 5(2), 72-92. doi.org/10.46303/ressat.05.02.5 abstract the qualitative research presented in this article attempts to show the impact of teacherinitiated activities on six-year-old children’s metacognitive monitoring and control abilities. the metacognitive model is discussed, research findings that substantiate the development of separate components of metacognitive regulation are analyzed, and the educational ways that promote metacognitive development in children are systematized. the outcomes of the research show that teacher-initiated activities stimulate and encourage children to find and apply more diverse ways of metacognitive monitoring and control. after teacher-initiated activities, the target group children demonstrated, identified, and verbalized the following ways of acting and learning that had not been noticed in their self-initiated activities in the area of metacognitive monitoring, namely, thinking while doing, modelling, acting by scheme/without a scheme, and activity by self-created strategies. in the area of metacognitive control, the children showed the ability to challenge themselves to do better than before, think and do as a continuous, unbroken control and implementation process, and control performance consistency. keywords: preschool education, metacognition, monitoring, control. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 monkevičienė, o., vildžiūnienė, j., & valinčienė, g. (2020). the impact of teacher-initiated activities on identifying and verbalizing ways of metacognitive monitoring and control in six-year-old children. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 73 introduction metacognition and metacognitive regulation among preschoolers are nowadays the main focus of researchers and practicians. research shows that the development of children’s metacognitive regulating ways in the preschool years forms the background for learning to learn. marulis, palincsar, berhenke, and whitebread (2016) revealed that the components of metacognitive knowledge are very close to the skills needed for learning at school. therefore, among children whose metacognitive knowledge is more comprehensive and who are able to apply their metacognitive skills in learning activities from three to five years of age, cognitive and metacognitive development is anticipated to be more advanced and their academic achievements higher. it has been established that metacognition stimulates self-regulated learning (robson, 2010, 2016) and influences the child’s choice of strategies for individual learning (chatzipanteli, grammatikopoulos, & gregoriadis, 2014). metacognition has a certain effect on the quality of critical thinking (magno, 2010) and on the relationship with better and more effective problem-solving skills (lee, teo, & bergin, 2009). metacognition is defined as children’s “thinking about their own thinking” and metacognitive regulation as the ability to evaluate one’s cognitive activities and act accordingly to achieve certain aims while doing a specific task or solving a problem (vasile, 2010). bernard, proust, and clément (2015) name two approaches to the metacognitive regulation of children. the first view claims that children’s metacognitive regulation is possible only when they have a very clear understanding of the processes of their knowledge (perception, memory, reasoning, etc.)—that is when they develop concept-based metacognitive capacities. the other view is based on research showing that children have experience-based metacognitive knowledge (for example, they know what was harder or easier to do). according to the first view, metacognitive regulation is possible at around six years of age, whereas the second view claims that some forms of metacognitive regulation emerge much earlier. a great deal of research has helped to reveal the development of the components of metacognitive regulation in children (brinck & liljenfors, 2013; brown, 1978; lee et al., 2009; whitebread, bingham, grau, pino pasternak, & sangster, 2007). the metacognitive regulation in fourto six-year-olds encompasses processes of planning, monitoring, control, and evaluation. according to whitebread et al. (2009), robson (2010, 2016), rowe (2018), and others, any behavior or verbalization related to foreseeing a task and the choice of procedures for its implementation is considered planning. monitoring refers to any behavior or verbalization related to a constant evaluation of the way a task is performed, observing one’s own cognitive processes, ways of acting, and emerging problems. control is any behavior or verbalization related to the change in the ways of acting with respect to monitoring results. evaluation is any behavior or verbalization related to the performance of a task and assessment of the quality of its performance. the analysis of the research shows that children’s metacognition and metacognitive regulation have been investigated more in modelled experimental situations than in self-initiated research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 monkevičienė, o., vildžiūnienė, j., & valinčienė, g. (2020). the impact of teacher-initiated activities on identifying and verbalizing ways of metacognitive monitoring and control in six-year-old children. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 74 activities or everyday activities initiated by teachers (bernard et al., 2015; robson, 2010). the researchers have identified a variety of ways to stimulate the development of metacognitive regulation (hyerle, 2014; perry, thauberger, & hutchinson, 2010; roebers, 2017). however, stimulating the development of children’s metacognitive regulation still remains a great challenge for teachers. moreover, one of robson’s (2016) studies aimed at identifying the activity (a child’s activity with an adult or with other children in the absence of an adult) more beneficial to the development of metacognitive skills yielded some unexpected results: a child engaging in activity without an adult’s presence is much more useful for developing metacognitive regulation. such results contradict the findings of other researchers. therefore, it served as a precondition to the current research aiming to identify whether teacher-initiated activities assist children in applying more diverse metacognitive monitoring and control processes compared to self-initiated activities. research questions this study raises the following questions: which metacognitive monitoring ways applied in both teacher-initiated and selfinitiated activities are identified and verbalized by six-year-olds? which metacognitive control ways applied in both teacher-initiated and self-initiated activities are identified and verbalized by six-year-olds? when do children identify and verbalize a wider qualitative variety of the applied ways of metacognitive monitoring and control—in teacherinitiated or self-initiated activities? literature review the components of metacognition metacognition is defined as a person’s awareness of their own cognition and learning (metacognitive knowledge), and the use of that knowledge in regulating one’s cognitive processes such as planning, monitoring, and control while learning, performing tasks, or solving problems (metacognitive regulation) (brown, 1987; flavell, 1979; marulis, 2014; marulis et al., 2016; schneider, 2008). flavell (1979) designed a model of cognitive monitoring that included metacognitive knowledge about one’s own thinking and thinking of others, goal/task strategies, metacognitive experiences, cognitive and emotional thinking experiences (experiences related to thinking), cognitive goals/tasks, and cognitive strategies that help to reach cognitive goals. brown (1987) extended the model by separating and distinguishing metacognitive knowledge from metacognitive regulation. many researchers divide metacognitive knowledge into declarative knowledge, which is knowing about oneself and others as learners, knowing about one’s own and others’ cognition processes and learning; procedural knowledge, which is knowing about a goal/task, cognitive strategies, and how to employ them to achieve the goal/task; and conditional knowledge, which is knowing why, when, and how to use the strategies and how certain factors impact cognition (lee et al., 2009; vasile, 2010). the researchers claim that metacognitive knowledge is important for metacognitive regulation (bernard et al., 2015; lee et al., 2009). according to lee et al. (2009), metacognitive regulation research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 monkevičienė, o., vildžiūnienė, j., & valinčienė, g. (2020). the impact of teacher-initiated activities on identifying and verbalizing ways of metacognitive monitoring and control in six-year-old children. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 75 includes planning, monitoring, and evaluation, whereas, in the opinion of whitebread et al. (2009) and robson (2010), it includes planning, monitoring, control, and evaluation. robson (2010), on the basis of the research into the connection among cognitive, social, and emotional aspects, also emphasizes emotional and motivational regulation, ways that are used to control emotional and motivational states while doing the task at hand. according to brinck and liljenfors (2013), metacognition needs to be related not only with the use of languages, symbols, and logical reasoning, but also with perceptual associations, emotions, motivation, and attention (especially while evaluating metacognitive expressions in children at a very early age). figure 1. the components of metacognition (according to flavell, 1979; brown, 1987; lee et al., 2009; bryce & whitebread, 2012; marulis, 2014; robson, 2016). brinck and liljenfors (2013) make theoretical assumptions that the most important metacognitive regulation processes are monitoring and control. therefore, these two specific metacognitive components have been chosen to expand on the research. metacognition in early childhood the research in metacognitive knowledge and metacognitive regulation in children shows that these two components are formed not sequentially but simultaneously, integrally. it has been proved by research that children who have not even reached one year of age already begin to develop a “theory of mind,” since they begin to understand such mental phenomena as their own wishes and intentions (wellman & liu, 2004). lyons and ghetti (2011) claim that twoto two-and-a-half-year-olds have certain initial metacognitive forms since they are able to evaluate what they know and what they do not know (metacognitive monitoring) and so they start using specific words in describing their states of mind, such as “to know,” “to think,” “i know,” “i do not know.” the research by deloache, sugarman, and brown (1985) shows that 18-month-old children spontaneously use the strategies for correcting mistakes. thus, they research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 monkevičienė, o., vildžiūnienė, j., & valinčienė, g. (2020). the impact of teacher-initiated activities on identifying and verbalizing ways of metacognitive monitoring and control in six-year-old children. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 76 already have the initial forms of cognitive regulation, even though at this stage of their development the “theory of mind” is just forming. brinck and liljenfors (2013) theorize that the initial stage of metacognitive regulation is even earlier, at two to four months. children at this age start participating in mutual monitoring and control interactions with an adult. such monitoring and control involves implicit and perceptual metacognitive skills. this completely denies the attitude that metacognition is impossible in preverbal infants and the viewpoint that metacognitive regulation is possible only when children clearly understand their cognitive processes. bartsch and estes (1996) substantiated the idea that threeto four-year-olds first learn to distinguish between cognitive and non-cognitive states, wishes, expectation, etc., and that knowledge forms the basis of metacognitive knowledge. threeto five-year-olds gain a clearer understanding of their own and other people’s minds and thinking. at this age, metacognitive knowledge in children consists of knowing about thinking and cognition, knowing about a task and strategies. fiveto seven-year-olds are already “experts” in the field of metacognitive knowledge (lyons & ghetti, 2011). how children demonstrate their knowledge has been established (marulis et al., 2016; robson, 2016; whitebread et al., 2009). less research has been done on the metacognitive regulation of children (on planning, monitoring, control, and evaluation). however, the research conducted so far shows that such skills are formed at quite an early age. it has been proved that two-year-olds monitor their own knowledge states (brinck & liljenfors, 2013). metacognitive monitoring strategies in children up to four years of age have not been differentiated (feurer, sassu, cimeli, & roebers, 2015). schraw and moshman (1995) claim that four-year-olds are able to apply several strategies of learning regulation. the research results of blöte, resing, mazer, and van noort (1999) show that the behavior of four-year-olds is strategical and that children at this age are able to develop and apply problem-solving strategies and transfer them to the new tasks. on the other hand, it has been proved that children demonstrate well-developed metacognitive monitoring skills earlier than the control skills for the respective qualities. according to destan, hembacher, ghetti, and roebers (2014), although little children (up to five years of age) possess monitoring skills, they lack the skills to exploit information gained while monitoring to control their behavior. for example, five-year-olds distinguish very well between hard and easy tasks (which shows their monitoring skills) but do not allocate more time to the harder task (that is, making use of the knowledge), while sixto seven-year-olds give more time to the harder tasks after evaluating their complexity. solution control is characteristic of children as young as five years of age. children of this age group easily collected and placed in a “treasure box” the pictures they memorized well and threw away into a “garbage box” the pictures they did not memorize well. thus, children demonstrated the ability to evaluate their decisions (destan et al., 2014). the research of other authors supports the theory that fiveto seven-year-olds (bryce & whitebread, 2012) and in some cases even fourto five-year-olds (robson, 2010, 2016) are already able to apply both monitoring and research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 monkevičienė, o., vildžiūnienė, j., & valinčienė, g. (2020). the impact of teacher-initiated activities on identifying and verbalizing ways of metacognitive monitoring and control in six-year-old children. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 77 control. at this age, these skills develop, qualitatively and quantitatively, rapidly. six-year-olds successfully reflect on their own cognition (schraw & moshman, 1995). the analysis of other research shows that children of the chosen target group (six-year-olds) already possess metacognitive and monitoring skills. this finding provides reasonable assumptions by which to identify the impact of the teacher-initiated activity on the ways by which sixto seven-year-olds identify and verbalize metacognitive monitoring and control strategies. educational ways applied to develop children’s metacognition researchers in education seek to systematize and substantiate ways that help the development of metacognitive knowledge and metacognitive regulation among children. these ways are classified into several groups, namely, developing metacognitive knowledge; directly modelling metacognitive regulation processes; creating challenging situations that naturally stimulate children’s metacognitive reasoning and actions; creating an environment for joint child-play, communication, and learning; and joint participation of children and adults in learning activities. the ways that develop children’s metacognitive knowledge include a teacher talking to children clearly and in words that the children can understand about learning, thinking, and using the opportunity to reflect on one’s own thinking (threeto seven-year-olds), and giving the children feedback. this helps the children to better perceive themselves as learners and to better understand their own knowledge and thinking (chatzipanteli et al., 2014; pramling, 1988). the ways that directly model metacognitive regulation processes include the modelling of metacognitive skills (planning, monitoring, control, evaluation) through children’s activities, encouraging children to use strategies such as imagination, focusing of attention and evaluation (chatzipanteli et al., 2014); the use of thinking tools such as thinking maps; selfevaluation using visual criteria (hyerle, 2014); exploration-based learning (white & frederiksen, 1998). this helps children to learn and apply the ways of metacognitive regulation in practice. challenging situations are created and metacognition is developed when children get involved in complex open-ended activities (robson, 2010), when they are challenged to do what they have never done before, when there is a complex yet interesting and meaningful task that opens an opportunity to achieve several different goals and to act in different ways and in different directions—for example, to explore, create, evaluate, and re-create the lifecycle of a butterfly (perry, thauberger, & hutchinson, 2010; roebers, 2017). according to the researchers, such tasks encourage children to choose solutions, think about themselves as learners, and think about the task itself and the strategies for its completion. the tasks also encourage the children to raise questions and predict outcomes. children in such situations face difficulties, identify mistakes, choose among different ways of operation, and adapt them to a given situation (roebers, 2017). research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 monkevičienė, o., vildžiūnienė, j., & valinčienė, g. (2020). the impact of teacher-initiated activities on identifying and verbalizing ways of metacognitive monitoring and control in six-year-old children. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 78 creating an environment for joint child-play, communication, and learning. chatzipanteli et al. (2014) emphasize the importance of joint play and group activities for children to encourage them to think aloud because it provides an opportunity for self-regulative talk and to start reflective dialogues and learn from each other. joint learning by children and adults happens when a teacher raises and addresses metacognitive, reflective questions for children to answer along with the teacher by applying specific ways of thinking together (chatzipanteli et al., 2014). marulis et al. (2016) noticed great progress in the field of metacognitive knowledge in fourto five-year-olds when children worked with teachers who created a process and favorable conditions to develop metacognitive knowledge that reflected on the children’s educational activities and on the learning of the children. methods this study aimed to discover the ways in which metacognitive monitoring and control were identified and verbalized by six-year-olds in self-initiated and teacher-initiated activities, and the impact teacher-initiated activities had on the identification and verbalization of the applied ways. the analysis of identification and verbalization of the metacognitive monitoring ways applied by the children encompassed the monitoring of self-cognition processes, monitoring of functioning and learning methods, and identification of failures, causes, and signs of problems. the analysis of identification and verbalization of the metacognitive control ways applied by the children involved conducting the control process itself, changing their own actions with respect to monitoring results as well as striving for a better outcome. the aspects of the analysis were determined considering the theoretical and empirical insights of lee et al. (2009), whitebread et al. (2009), robson (2010, 2016), marulis (2014), and rowe (2018). conclusions concerning the impact of teacher-initiated activities on children’s identification and verbalization of metacognitive monitoring and control ways could be drawn due to the comparison of self-initiated and teacher-initiated activities, i.e., when children identify a wider qualitative variety of the applied ways of metacognitive monitoring and control. research design a qualitative research strategy based on constructivist theory was applied in the study (berg & lune, 2012; mayring, 2014). such research enables disclosing unique experiences of participants and describing the surveyed phenomena and processes employing qualitative categories with reference to them. the object of the current research—identification and verbalization of metacognitive monitoring and control ways applied by children—is a phenomenon whose disclosure and description can be based on the unique subjective experiences of the children. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 monkevičienė, o., vildžiūnienė, j., & valinčienė, g. (2020). the impact of teacher-initiated activities on identifying and verbalizing ways of metacognitive monitoring and control in six-year-old children. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 79 with reference to destan et al. (2014), the process of metacognitive monitoring is usually assessed by asking the target group of individuals to explain or otherwise reveal their cognitive states before, during, and after the completion of a task. the process of metacognitive control is assessed by analyzing how the target group of individuals changes or adapts their behavior as they monitor the outcomes and seek to improve the results of their activities. according to lee et al. (2009), researchers observe and record the language that children use—i.e., their reasoning about themselves as learners, about learning while doing the task at hand, and about their achievements. researchers record verbal comments and/or use conversations, interviews, and questionnaires. following the above-mentioned methodological insights, the participants of the study were asked to perform a practical activity during which the application of metacognitive monitoring and control ways was inevitable. then the researcher watched videos together with the participants, discussing the ways applied and raising reflective questions. therefore, video material and records of reflective talks with children were used for data accumulation. the qualitative content analysis technique, widely used by researchers for studying various texts, was employed for data analysis (berg & lune, 2012; mayring, 2014). the explorative design was also applied (mayring, 2014; saldana, 2016), in cases where categories were developed inductively from the text, as the surveyed phenomenon had not been substantially revealed and investigated. in the research, a phase as a category was distinguished when analyzing texts of the reflective talks with children with reference to their content and meanings, a phrase that characterized children’s identified or verbalized ways of metacognitive monitoring or control. texts of children’s speeches were interpreted with reference to video material as a context enabling better understanding of the content and meaning of their ideas. sampling purposive sampling was applied in the study. the sample included sixto seven-year-olds attending preschool in the city (14 children) and rural areas (14 children). the choice of children’s groups was random. the same 28 children participated in all four stages of the study. research procedure the study is performed in four stages with every child individually. first stage. the researchers encouraged each child to draw or construct whatever the child wished, letting the child choose the idea and the means. the whole activity—the child’s involvement, verbal comments, re-doings, completion of the work, etc.—was video-recorded by the researcher. during the research, although the children were encouraged to think aloud, there were no “think-alouds” because the children were so absorbed in their activities that they did not comment on the what, how, and why of whatever they were doing. baker and cerro (2000, p. 104) mention similar limitations: “think-aloud procedures may disrupt the research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 monkevičienė, o., vildžiūnienė, j., & valinčienė, g. (2020). the impact of teacher-initiated activities on identifying and verbalizing ways of metacognitive monitoring and control in six-year-old children. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 80 processing of the task.” that is why, based on robson’s (2010) research methodology, it was decided to include the second stage: a reflective talk with the child while watching the footage. second stage. each child was shown the footage and asked some reflective questions: “what did you want to draw/construct?”, “what did you want to learn?”, “how did you decide what to draw/construct?”, “how did you make a specific decision to draw/construct this particular thing?”, “did you think ahead of how to draw/construct it?”, “what did you manage/fail to draw/construct the way you wanted?”, “how exactly did you draw/construct it?”, “what did you change or re-make?”, “which idea was the best one?”, “why?”, “what did you learn while drawing/constructing or having drawn/constructed it?” the footage was shown to the children because they could hardly remember the process of their work without it. with the footage, the children were able to better remember and verbalize the ways of metacognitive monitoring and control they had applied. third stage. each child was encouraged to draw or construct something suggested by their teacher. the child was provided a common idea for a drawing or craft, new ways or techniques of activity, and unexpected materials never used before. the teacher only initiated the child’s activity but was not leading or managing the child in any way. every child’s activity was videorecorded with great emphasis on the signs of metacognitive regulation (as in stage 1). before the third stage, it had been presumed that an interesting and unexpected task being a challenge to a child would stimulate the appearance of metacognitive regulation. such a presumption was based on the research of perry et al. (2010), who claimed that tasks should be related to a child’s opportunities to think metacognitively and behave strategically. fourth stage. the child was shown the footage and asked the same reflective questions as in the second stage. findings metacognitive monitoring the metacognitive monitoring processes applied in both teacher-initiated and self-initiated activities were analyzed. the children’s behavior and responses reveal that they perform the monitoring of their cognition processes, actions, failures, problem signs, and reasons. the monitoring of one’s cognition processes the content analysis of the research revealed that during both the self-initiated and the teacher-initiated drawing and construction activities, the children identified and verbalized several aspects of the process of monitoring their cognitive processes. they demonstrated their empirical understanding of visual perception as a cognitive process. a boy constructed a watch according to his idea. before choosing the color of the watchcase, he would take a part and put it on a yellow belt and would visually decide if they would fit together. the researcher research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 monkevičienė, o., vildžiūnienė, j., & valinčienė, g. (2020). the impact of teacher-initiated activities on identifying and verbalizing ways of metacognitive monitoring and control in six-year-old children. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 81 asked, “how did you decide that you needed to construct the watch this way?” the boy answered: “my brother once had one like that. i have seen it” (b:10, 6.8). the boy understood that one learns about things by looking at them. the children demonstrated their understanding of the thinking process and used the appropriate concepts. the researcher asked, “how did you decide what to do?” the boy answered, “i was thinking in my mind. the brain helps me” (b:10, 6.8). the boy understood that his mind is his thoughts and related thinking to the activities of the brain. he realized that thinking helps to create ideas for activities. the children noticed the connection between their thinking processes and the things they thought of and later implemented: “i came up with an idea of what to draw because i was thinking to draw the ocean. i managed to draw a bird, a sea-gull, and a dolphin” (g:4, 6.10). the child understood that one can implement the ideas that come to one’s mind and saw the connection between the internal processes and actions in a real-life environment. the children noticed the connection between the focus of attention and the quality of the implemented goal: “i need to focus when i draw… that means i need to do it beautifully” (g:2, 6.8). the girl realized that the focus of attention increases the quality of her activity. in the teacher-initiated activities, the children identified and verbalized several new aspects of monitoring of cognitive processes. they noticed and verbalized their knowledge and the (in)congruity of their actions to their knowledge. children were introduced to a new activity: stamping paints on a wet sheet of paper with little paper stamps made by them. a girl who stamped a butterfly later reflected, “i should not have messed with the water [should not have made the paper sheet wet]. now everything looks kind of fluffy [commenting on how the paint spread in the water]. i knew that butterflies are fluffy on their neck only, not elsewhere” (g:18, 6.10). the children demonstrated an empirical understanding of tactile perception as a cognitive process. a girl was asked to construct a horse that she had never constructed before. her horse bent over. the girl said, “when children run, they make wind. that is how the horse bent over” (g:25, 6.11). the child commented on a phenomenon that can be felt by touching. the children also demonstrated an empirical understanding of their aesthetical perception and creative work. a boy was asked to try a new technique: to blow paint through a straw. the researcher asked, “what did you want to create?” the boy: “the sea. i wanted to make some art. you know… when you make something beautiful” (b:17, 6.8). the data show that teacher-initiated activities helped the children to monitor not only their thinking, visual perception and focus of attention but also their own knowledge and actions according to their knowledge, tactile and aesthetic perception, and the creative process. monitoring one’s ways of acting and learning after self-initiated activities, the children were able to identify and verbalize two ways of acting. they identified the way of acting with materials. the researcher asked, “how did you draw?” the boy answered, “i drew with a thick and thin [fiber-pen end]. it was most convenient to color using the thick end” (b:1, 6.2). they identified a way of learning by trial and error. the researcher asked, “how did you do it?” the boy answered, “i realized how to pick colors in a research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 monkevičienė, o., vildžiūnienė, j., & valinčienė, g. (2020). the impact of teacher-initiated activities on identifying and verbalizing ways of metacognitive monitoring and control in six-year-old children. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 82 more beautiful way. i realized that after building it for the third or fourth time” (b:12, 6.11). these are just the most elementary ways of learning by doing. after the teacher-initiated activities, the children identified and verbalized six new ways of acting and learning. they identified a way of thinking while doing. the teacher suggested to a girl that she draw an object using the grattage technique. the researcher asked, “how did you decide what you wanted to draw?” the girl answered, “i had no idea. but i realized that while drawing…” (g:21, 6.11). this particular case demonstrates that the girl monitors her inner process of thinking. the children identified a way of acting: modelling. a girl was suggested by the teacher to paint on paper with starch paste. when asked, the girl answered, “i wanted to paint some birds on that jelly. my teacher showed me… i saw outside” (g:16, 6.9). the girl realized that she was using the experience that she had gained in different ways. the children identified a way of learning: learning from an example, from another child. regarding using the grattage technique, a girl said: “i looked at what you were doing and did it myself” (g:21, 6.11); regarding constructing an object from lines of different colors, another girl said, “i saw how rytis did it” (g:24, 6.10). the first girl realized she had been learning from her teacher; the second girl realized she had learned from her classmate. the children identified a way of acting: copying. the children were encouraged to construct something they had never seen before with the constructor: “i had to copy the second wing so both could be identical” (g:28, 6.11). the child found an appropriate solution to make two identical objects. the children independently identified a way of acting, did not need instruction (scheme): “i can’t really construct with this piece of paper. it was easier for me to build without paper” (g:28, 6.11). the comment shows that the girl not only identifies a way of acting with/without a scheme but also her ability to act in one way or the other. the children identified their activity strategies: to count, to measure, to compare. the suggestion to construct a horse that a girl had never constructed before was followed by her comment: “i was comparing the legs accordingly to the size. i counted the parts for the legs” (g:25, 6.11). there were many more reflections by the children, showing that children successfully apply all their acquired preschool skills as their own operational strategies and, importantly, identify them as their successful actions. the data show that the teacher-initiated activities that seem like a challenge to children encourage and stimulate them to more actively monitor the ways of acting as well as the ways to identify and verbalize. during self-initiated activities, the children tend to use the usual ways of acting, in which their monitoring is not so obvious. identification of failure and problem indications after self-initiated activities, the children were able to identify and verbalize a lot of signs of failures and problems. the children noticed and verbalized incongruity with the idea and goal: “i wanted to make a robot with arms and a sword. arms are not double. the sword is not double. he cannot hold the sword” (b:13, 6.11). the children noticed and verbalized their mistakes by comparing the result with their imagining: “i made a mistake in the sky… i did not manage to paint clouds. they are kind of looking up” (g:4, 6.10). this shows that during research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 monkevičienė, o., vildžiūnienė, j., & valinčienė, g. (2020). the impact of teacher-initiated activities on identifying and verbalizing ways of metacognitive monitoring and control in six-year-old children. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 83 monitoring, children compared the end result with what they had imagined. the children identified their success/failure according to their own schemes of drawing: “i managed! i have drawn it in kindergarten the same as it was at home” (g:5, 6.9). in this particular case, success/failure is identified by the degree of compliance of the action with own acting schemes. the children identified their success/failure according to the demands made by adults—the whole sheet of paper had to be filled: “i did everything well. i saw that my whole picture was filled” (b:1, 6.2). this shows that children decide about their success/failure by observing if their activity matches some external requirements. the children verbalized the inappropriate (in their opinion) characteristic features of their work—the size, forms, spaces, sustainability: “i could not draw a tail for this cat that’s long enough at the first attempt” (g:6, 6.6); “because it was round, not square” (b:10, 6.8); “the earth is not good enough because it is falling apart” (g:8, 6.9). this proves that children base their decisions about successes and failures on the knowledge that they already have about the pictured objects. the children verbalized the aesthetic features of their works: “one wave did not seem nice” (g:7, 6.9). this observation indicates that children decide on their successes and failures according to an intuitive experience of beauty. after the teacher-initiated activities, the children were able to identify two new signs of success/failure monitoring. the children verbalized the inaccuracies in joining different parts. a girl accepted the challenge proposed by her teacher to construct some object decorated with an ornament. she attempted to make a box with ornaments. she had to work very carefully and accurately. “i did not really fix the ends. because it is difficult to make them firm. because there are lots of small holes” (g:23, 6.11). the children noticed and verbalized new materials as a challenge. a girl attempted to make a flower from kinetic sand. “i did not manage to make its stem. it fell apart. i did not know how to make it from this kind of sand. you can build from it only the kind of fluffy buildings that soon fall apart” (g:19, 6.6). the activity initiated by the teacher encouraged children to pay more attention to details and the fact that some unknown material qualities can determine the success or failure of the work. the data show that six-year-olds have the well-developed ability to monitor their success and failure signs in self-initiated activities. the teacher-initiated activities encourage and stimulate them to give more attention to new materials and signs of new ways of acting relevant to the monitoring of success/failure. identifying reasons for failures or problems a reflective talk with children shows that the monitoring of the reasons for a failure or a problem is much more complex for six-year-olds than the monitoring of the indications of a problem or a failure. after independent, self-initiated activities, children identified and verbalized only several reasons for their failures or problems. they identified and verbalized the lack of experience and personal skills: “i was not able to put all the toys in the shop. the shop i’ve drawn is too small” (g:2, 6.8). the girl understood that she had arranged the objects in her drawing inappropriately. the children also identified and verbalized the result of the research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 monkevičienė, o., vildžiūnienė, j., & valinčienė, g. (2020). the impact of teacher-initiated activities on identifying and verbalizing ways of metacognitive monitoring and control in six-year-old children. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 84 previous activity as a hindrance to achieving further purposes: “i was not able to draw a market [it did not fit in the sheet]. the drawing was fully filled already” (b:1, 6.2). the child understands that his idea to draw a market came later after he had already drawn some cars, a house, and a road. all those things hindered him in accommodating the market in the picture. the children identified and verbalized the reasons for a problem such as lack of means/materials or their inapplicability to reach the goal: “the trees are not as i expected because there is no brown color” (b:3, 6.6). the lack of means/materials or their inappropriateness/inapplicability was quite easy to detect as a reason for a problem. the children were able to identify and verbalize more reasons for their failures and problems in the teacher-initiated activities. they identified and verbalized their inability to accurately foresee the result. suggested by the teacher, a girl painted on a green sheet of paper covered in starch paste. “i painted the hair yellow… but you can’t see my yellow on this green. so, i repainted it in black” (g:16, 6.9). the girl understood that her unusual activity with the materials she had never used before was the reason for not foreseeing a failure. the children identified and verbalized the reason for their failures—the unexplored characteristics of a new material: “i wanted to form some little balls and a dot but i could not make it because it [kinetic sand] was too fluffy” (g:19, 6.6). the child tried to work with kinetic sand as if it was ordinary sand. her failure intensified her metacognitive reasoning to identify the characteristics of kinetic sand as a possible reason for the failure. the children also noticed and verbalized the uncontrollable characteristic features of the usual materials as a possible reason for their failures. a boy was painting with watercolors. “i could not really make the other bird, a lark. the water has all blurred up” (b:15, 6.6). the child understands that you are meant to paint with watercolors, but you also need to have good skills to achieve a complex goal. the comments of the children show that the monitoring of the reasons for possible failures or problems is a very complex process for six-year-olds. in self-initiated activities, the children were able to identify and verbalize only the lack of their own skills and the lack of appropriate/applicable materials as the reasons for their failures. the teacher-initiated activities encouraged and stimulated the children’s metacognitive reasoning to view their unusual way of acting and unusual materials as additional factors that could affect the results and the quality of their work. metacognitive control the metacognitive control processes applied in both teacher-initiated and self-initiated activities were analyzed. the children’s behavior and speech disclose how they carry out the control of their activity and how they change ways of acting with respect to monitoring results. identification and verbalization of the control process after self-initiated activities, the children identified and verbalized quite a number of control performance processes. they identified and verbalized the control of their activities focusing research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 monkevičienė, o., vildžiūnienė, j., & valinčienė, g. (2020). the impact of teacher-initiated activities on identifying and verbalizing ways of metacognitive monitoring and control in six-year-old children. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 85 on the goal. the researcher asked, “what did you want to draw?” the girl replied, “an ocean. i had to distinguish which animal to put into water and which to put in the sky. i had to try really hard…” (g:4, 6.10); “i’ve drawn it the way i thought” (g:5, 6.9). the children commented on their purposeful efforts to act according to the goal they imagined. they mentioned their efforts, performance strategies, and their ideas. the children identified and verbalized acting according to their plan: “first i chose my colors and later i constructed” (g:8, 6.9). this shows that children already have some strategies in mind and are using them. they understand what strategies they use. yet most often, children controlled their activities to attain the results of their desired quality for their work to look nice or not to fall apart, not to tear, not be able to bend or stand, or not fall, retain its given form, etc.: “i had to make this bird standing so i drew some toes on its feet” (g:11, 6.10); “that square had to be with little angles to not to fall apart” (b:14, 6.10). the children had a clear vision of the result and the quality of that result. they controlled their acting in order to reach that result of the desired quality. in the teacher-initiated activities, the children were able to identify and verbalize some new ways for their activity control. they verbalized their passion to meet the challenge to make things better than before: “i wanted this drawing to be better than the previous one. i had to learn” (g:18, 6.10). while trying stamping with paper stamps, the girl was controlling the quality of the process of her work, orientating it toward better results. the children commented on their thinking and doing as one integral and unbroken control process. “it’s good to put some paint. to make the sea, too. i was thinking of where to put the paint and how to make it” (b:17, 6.8). the boy understood how he had controlled his performance—by thinking and doing. the children commented on the consistency of control of the action: “i did it the way you showed me. to draw with a candle, to strongly rub it in and then to draw with a crayon, paint with some paint and draw with a stick [grattage]” (g:21, 6.11). the girl controlled her action according to the consistent step-by-step instruction given by her teacher. the children commented on ways of control that helped them to work accurately: “i counted what i had [what was needed] in order to collect the green ones” (g:24, 6.10). the girl constructed a scarf by laying the lines of different colors and counting how many blocks she needed for that. the children’s comments show that during self-initiated activities, they take control of their activity to orientate it to work according to a specific plan and achieve the expected criteria of quality while attaining their goal. the teacher-initiated activity helped them see more ways of controlling activities, achieving better results, controlling thinking and acting as a continuous process, and controlling consistency and accuracy of activities. performance change with respect to monitoring results and achieving a better result after self-initiated activities, the children identified and verbalized the ways in which they changed their activity. the children commented that after noticing the problem, they changed the way they acted: “as i opened the door, the land [the floor of the house] fell in. then i took it all apart and rebuilt the floor on a table” (g:8, 6.8). the girl at first constructed the floor of her house by joining the floor to the walls. later, she first made the floor on the table and only research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 monkevičienė, o., vildžiūnienė, j., & valinčienė, g. (2020). the impact of teacher-initiated activities on identifying and verbalizing ways of metacognitive monitoring and control in six-year-old children. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 86 then started joining the walls to the floor. the children commented that, having noticed a problem, they already imagined a change and re-did the work according to their imagining: “because in my imagination i saw something like this. there were too many light-colored blue clouds, so i painted one with dark blue” (g:6, 6.6). the girl responded to the monitored results by using her imagination to find a solution. having detected a problem and sought a specific result, the children commented on experimenting as a possible way: “i took off the legs at its head and fixed behind its [a hen’s] tail. i had to construct it this way because the hen wanted to stand up straight. i needed to fix the legs behind its wings” (g:11, 6.10). having detected a problem (that the hen was falling down, not able to stand straight), the girl experimented until she found how to balance the hen; only then did she fix the legs firmly. the children commented on the re-building (re-painting, re-doing) of their work: “the stick of the broom for my snowman was too short [thin], so later i made it bigger [thicker]” (b:5, 6.9). in this case, the child did not change the way of performance but only re-made the thing that failed. the children commented on constantly improving their skills: “i’ve managed to draw a rosebush and a kitten because i train a lot in drawing” (m:6, 6.6). in the teacher-initiated activities, the children verbalized two previously unmentioned ways of considering the results of monitoring. they commented that, having noticed a problem, they looked at the book: “it is difficult to draw a peewit. it has a sort of tuft on its head. i looked at the book” (b:15, 6.6). the children understood that the information that is found in books can help to solve problems. they also commented on choosing the right means/materials: “i blew the paint with this straw. it is longer, so much better because i can reach far with it” (b:17, 6.8). the outcomes of the research show that, for both types of tasks—self-initiated and teacherinitiated—six-year-olds adapt their actions to suit the situation, changing the ways of acting if needed, by using their imagination, experimenting, seeking information in books, or by remaking, correcting, changing the materials, etc. results and discussion the research has revealed that six-year-olds have some well-developed self-knowledge and performance monitoring skills. they not only demonstrate such skills in the self-initiated activities but are also able to identify and verbalize them. six-year-olds successfully monitor the processes of their cognition (understanding, thinking, memory, attention), identify their own successes and failures, and detect the signs of a problem. however, they are less successful at identifying the reasons for their failures and problems. during self-initiated activities, they reason less metacognitively about the ways they perform and learn. six-yearolds are able to use the information gained during the monitoring of the self-initiated activities to control their actions and behavior. children exercise behavior control as they orientate toward a goal, seek to perform according to a plan, and meet certain quality criteria. children adapt their performance to a specific situation by changing the ways of acting—using their imagination, experimenting, re-making, and correcting. children are able to identify, verbalize, and apply metacognitive control ways. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 monkevičienė, o., vildžiūnienė, j., & valinčienė, g. (2020). the impact of teacher-initiated activities on identifying and verbalizing ways of metacognitive monitoring and control in six-year-old children. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 87 the current research has expanded the indicators of children’s metacognitive monitoring and control formulated by whitebread et al. (2007, 2009). with reference to the research of the above-mentioned authors, threeto five-year-olds observe and verbalize their thinking and memory processes in their activity. the current study reveals that six-year-olds already carry out the monitoring of focusing their attention, visual and tactile perception, and even the monitoring of aesthetic perception. six-year-olds can understand and verbalize the relationship between their cognitive processes and ideas of self-initiated activities, as well as the achievement of aims, between one’s own knowing and acting with respect to knowing or not. such aspects were not explored in the studies of whitebread et al. (2007, 2009). whitebread et al. (2007, 2009) and robson (2016) indicate that children select acting strategies, apply and change them, and notice mistakes and problems and eliminate them; however, particular strategies and problems identified by children have not been substantially described and systematized. rowe (2018) also addresses the problem of such research limitations in his phd thesis. the current study has an opportunity to analyze the situation from the perspective of six-year-olds, i.e., what acting strategies they select, what monitoring and control ways they apply, and what features and reasons they envisage for failures and problems, as well to systematize the findings. according to deston et al. (2014), children show good metacognitive monitoring skills before they learn good metacognitive control skills, which are quite weak up to five years of age. the current research has shown that six-year-olds (as observed in the target group) have good metacognitive monitoring and good metacognitive control skills. the study aims to answer the following question: do teacher-initiated activities stimulate sixyear-olds to apply a wider variety of ways of metacognitive monitoring, metacognitive control, and metacognitive reasoning related to those activities? in this regard, previous studies provide ambiguous conclusions. whitebread et al. (2009) revealed that the participation of an adult assists children in demonstrating better metacognitive regulation abilities. the scholars conclude that adults foster frequent reflections of children that, in turn, contribute to the development of metacognitive regulation abilities. robson (2016) revealed different results: fourto five-year-olds showed better self-regulation and metacognition when adults were absent, especially in areas of aim setting, progress monitoring, and conflict resolution. in the researcher’s opinion, when an adult is present, children tend to delegate responsibility to the adult, hoping the adult will help them achieve their goals. the metacognitive aspect promoted by the presence of adults is procedural knowledge. the current research has shown that the teacher has a stimulating effect on the development of metacognition. judging from the results of the research, a teacher-initiated activity had significant impact on the children’s ways of monitoring self-performance and learning. the children demonstrated, identified, and verbalized the following ways of monitoring: thinking research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 monkevičienė, o., vildžiūnienė, j., & valinčienė, g. (2020). the impact of teacher-initiated activities on identifying and verbalizing ways of metacognitive monitoring and control in six-year-old children. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 88 while doing, modelling, learning from an example or another child, acting by a scheme/without a scheme, performance strategies based on the acquired pre-academic skills. in the area of metacognitive control, after a teacher-initiated activity, the children demonstrated, identified, and verbalized the following ways of performance control: rising to a challenge, seeking better results, seeking to do better than previously, seeing thinking and doing as one continuous control and implementation process, and the control of performance consistency. in the current research, unlike in the research conducted by robson (2016), the teacher only initiated activities as a challenge but did not give any guidance, direct explanations, or help. every child was encouraged to deal with the given challenge themselves. that may be the reason for the different outcomes from this study. an interesting finding is that six-yearolds understand thinking and doing as a continuous, unbroken process of control and implementation. researchers of the metacognitive regulation processes in children constantly explore the most efficient ways to enable children to disclose their metacognition. in the current research, such skills were demonstrated by the participants only after their activities had been recorded and the footage had been analyzed with them after the performance of the tasks and they were asked questions that induced reflection. the footage helped them to remember what they had experienced and how they had been thinking and acting. without the footage, they would not have been able to recreate their performance process and subject it to metacognitive reasoning. destan et al. (2014) consider that fiveto seven-year-olds are hindered by memory limitations. according to robson (2016), fewer cases of metacognitive regulation demonstration are recorded during a natural observation process in children, as children better demonstrate their metacognitive abilities not while playing or engaged in other activities but after the activity is carried out, when employing a reflective dialogue. therefore, two causes limiting children’s metacognitive expression are identified: (1) children focus their attention on a single aspect of an activity, either carrying out the task itself or commenting on the activity; (2) a child’s brain is not developed enough to allocate attention; due to memory limitations, children are unable to recall and comment on the whole process of carrying out an assignment without video material. conclusion and implications teacher-initiated activities foster six-year-olds to apply, identify, and verbalize more ways of metacognitive monitoring and control of different quality than self-initiated children’s activities. the impact is particularly explicit in the monitoring of one’s acts and self-regulated learning, understanding self-control processes, and identifying reasons for problems and failures. teacher-initiated activities are successful if modelled as challenges to children rather than as activities to be performed per clear instructions. in self-initiated activities, children are more likely to implement partially tested ideas. they employ a usual way of acting; therefore, their monitoring is not particularly obvious. both self-initiated and teacher-initiated children’s activities are favorable for identifying signs of problems and failures in children and changing research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 monkevičienė, o., vildžiūnienė, j., & valinčienė, g. (2020). the impact of teacher-initiated activities on identifying and verbalizing ways of metacognitive monitoring and control in six-year-old children. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 89 the way they act with respect to monitoring results. such metacognitive regulation experiences are gained through learning, experimenting, making mistakes, acting practically, and creating or recreating. the children who participated in the study acted individually. such performance could have influenced the application, identification, and verbalization of metacognitive monitoring and control processes. rowe (2018) highlights that reflective dialogues among children playing together promote the development of metacognitive monitoring and control. future research may focus on the impact of teacher-initiated activities on the metacognitive regulation of collaborating groups of children. references baker, l., & cerro, l. c. 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(2008). the development of metacognitive knowledge in children and adolescents: major trends and implications for education. mind, brain, and education, 2(3), 114–121. doi: 10.1111/j.1751-228x.2008.00041.x schraw, g., & moshman, d. (1995). metacognitive theories. educational psychology review, 7(4), 351–371. doi: 10.1007/bf02212307 vasile, c. (2010). developmental metacognition: aspects in young children. petroleum-gas university of ploiesti bulletin, educational sciences series, 62(2), 20–125. wellman, h. m., & liu, d. (2004). scaling of theory-of-mind tasks. child development, 75(2), 523–541. white, b. y., & frederiksen, j. r. (1998). inquiry, modeling, and metacognition: making science accessible to all students. cognition and instruction, 16(1), 3–118. doi: 10.1207/s1532690xci1601_2 whitebread, d., bingham, s., grau, v., pasternak, d. p., & sangster c. (2007). the development of metacognition and self-regulated learning in young children: the role of collaborative and peer-assisted learning. journal of cognitive education and psychology, 6(3), 433–55. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 monkevičienė, o., vildžiūnienė, j., & valinčienė, g. (2020). the impact of teacher-initiated activities on identifying and verbalizing ways of metacognitive monitoring and control in six-year-old children. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 92 whitebread, d., coltman, p., pasternak, d. p., sangster, c., grau, v., bingham, s., almeqdad, q., & demetriou, d. (2009). the development of two observational tools for assessing metacognition and self-regulated learning in young children. metacognition and learning, 4, 63–85. doi: 10.1007/s11409-008-9033-1 https://doi.org/10.1007/s11409-008-9033-1 research in social sciences and technology (ressat) e-issn: 2468-6891 i editorial: 2018 (3) 2 dear ressat readers and contributors, we are excited to be with you through the may 2018 issue (3/2) of research in social sciences and technology (ressat). we would like to extend our appreciations to all who contributes by submitting or reviewing manuscripts or have been readers of ressat. in our second issue of the third year, you will find the articles on various topics of social sciences specifically focusing on education. the first article written by martin kustati &hidayat al-azmi as titled “pre-service teachers’ attitude on elt research”. this paper reports on a research determining the attitudes of pre-service efl teachers’ attitude to research in english language teaching (elt) in indonesia. the findings of this research revealed that the pedagogical implications of the study for the pre-service teachers include the need to be aware of the significant relationship between attitude and background in research practice and they should be trained formally on conducting and writing elt research. fouad yehya yehya, aziz barbar, dr., suzanne abou rjeily are the authors of the second article entitled as “diagnosing the barriers for integrating educational technology in physics courses in lebanese secondary schools”. this paper investigates the barriers affecting the success implementation of ict in the lebanese secondary physics classes. the results indicated that the ict implementation in physics courses was not attained. physics teachers must improve their ict skills. furthermore, the low technology periods per week and revealing curriculum content, inflexibility of the curriculum to ict implementation, insufficient existence of computer labs, lack financial support, insufficient training, inadequate technical support, unavailability of internet connectivity and the crowded class rooms were main barriers that prevent the implementation of ict. with the title of “palestinian teachers’ views on the factors that limit students’ creativity and some possible strategies to overcome them” in the third article, ahmed awad raba' & hussam tawfeeq harzallah seek to investigate the degree of enhancing creative research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (2), i-iii thinking skills in the english for palestine and math curricula from the teachers of english and math perspectives. the researchers recommended divergent methods of teaching, adequate training for teachers and students on different techniques and the inclusion of activities in the curricula to improve students’ creative thinking. ronald maraden silalahi & untung yuwono in the fourth article entitled as “the sustainability of pancasila in indonesian education system”. this research was aimed at reconstructing pancasila ideology and discussing the steps to revitalize pancasila in indonesian education system. in his article with the title of “from rebellion to riots: student violence inside the egyptian universities after june 30, 2013” nasser tolba explores the phenomenon of political violence at egyptian universities after the downfall of the muslim brotherhood regime on june 30, 2013. as it is indicated by the author, it is a critical analysis to identify the underlying causes and factors leading to this excessive violence and its impact on the egyptian universities. i would like to thank everyone and express my special appreciation to the people who contributed to make this issue ready for you. i especially would like to thank all authors and reviewers for their contribution to ressat. i hope you will both enjoy and be challenged by the articles in this issue of ressat. i also look forward to seeing your contribution to the development of ressat in the future. looking forward to being with you in june 2018 issue... sincerely, bulent tarman, (ph.d) editor-in-chief, ressat www.ressat.org http://www.ressat.org/ i research in social sciences and technology editorial dear colleagues and readers, it is my pleasure to share with you the may 2017 issue (2/1) of research in social sciences and technology (ressat). i strongly believe once again that you will have a chance to meet with invaluable studies in this issue. i hope you will enjoy reading and learning about the latest studies from different parts of the world. in this issue, you will meet three new distinguished studies. the studies that we think will contribute to the social sciences literature are as follow: the first one is that studied by mehmet f. yigit as titled “value priorities of public and private university students”. the author of this study examined whether there is a statistically significant difference between value priorities of public and private university students in turkey and whether their values differ. the results showed that private university students show greater tendency towards universalism, power, tradition, conformity, and hedonism compared to the public university students. second, you will meet a study researched by malia hoffmann entitled “an exploratory study: mobile device use for academics” this study focused on how undergraduate students and higher education instructors at two universities used mobile devices in and outside of the class for academic purposes. hoffman found that students use their devices in class to read, reference, or search materials while faculty using their devices as presentation devices most often. editorial research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 1-ii ii last, a comparative research is conducted by evrim erbilgin entitled “a comparison of the mathematical processes embedded in the content standards of turkey and singapore”. this study compares turkey’s and singapore’s mathematics content standards in terms of the highligthed mathematical processes and finds that the two countries reflected mathematical processes differently in their content standards. i would like to thank everyone and express my special appreciation to the people who contributed to make this issue ready for you. i especially would like to thank all authors and reviewers for their contribution to ressat. i hope you will both enjoy and be challenged by the articles in this issue of ressat. i also look forward to seeing your contribution to the development of ressat in the future. sincerely, bulent tarman, (ph.d) editor-in-chief, ressat www.ressat.org http://www.ressat.org/ research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 brigas, c.j., modeling and simulation in educational context teaching and learning sciences 1 modeling and simulation in an educational context: teaching and learning sciences carlos jorge brigas * ph.d professor, polytechnic institute of guarda, ci&dei centre for studies in education and innovation email: brigas@ipg.pt *corresponding author: brigas@ipg.pt received : 08.08.2019 accepted : 09.21.2019 how to cite this paper: brigas, c.j. (2019). modeling and simulation in an educational context: teaching and learning sciences. research in social sciences and technology, 4(2),1-12. abstract in science education, there is a need to evaluate the behavior of dynamic systems. representing and explaining processes through educational models or simulations enables students to perform activities where it is easier to understand these processes and discover the essential properties of a system. performing modeling or simulation activities that promote interpretation and understanding of systems are learning activities in which students have the ability to create and test their own perceptions of a given phenomenon. although such activities enhance the development of skills such as reflection, decision making, creativity and generalization, the use of these activities in educational contexts is very sporadic. the difficulties teachers experience in using this type of activity relate to the types of models that are usually used to represent a system, the specificities needed to represent them, the degree of complexity of modeling and simulation tools to do so, and the lack of preparedness to implement practical research activities. in this research, we present the modeling for kids methodology to support the development of georeferenced multisensory modeling and simulation activities for the first cycle of basic education. this methodology lists a set of norms that aim to advise the teacher and the student in the accomplishment of these activities. the methodology identifies the strategies, contexts of use, and curriculum areas where these activities can be inserted. it also identifies the processes of analysis and representation of dynamic systems. due to the importance and advantages of georeferenced multisensory information in learning, the methodology also prescribes that teachers and students use this type of information in modeling and simulation activities. keywords: science education, modeling and simulation, elementary education introduction in science education, there is a need to evaluate the behavior of dynamic systems. the analysis of these systems by elementary school students is usually a complex process that requires a great cognitive effort. the traditional teaching of science impels children to memorize processes, not privileging the understanding of which entities, processes, and relationships are research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 brigas, c.j., modeling and simulation in educational context teaching and learning sciences 2 present in a system. its purpose is for the teacher to pass on to the student's mind his or her knowledge of the scientific content and for the student to consolidate it through memorization processes. the current and more traditional model is based on the following premises: what can be taught can be provided to the student in the form of information; information can be verified by the student through observation, which will be applied in answering questions and solving exercises. in contrast, the use of models and simulations in an educational context can provide alternative collaborative and interactive environments that foster personal discovery and help students to act and think, assuming the role of researcher, allowing them to build their own knowledge. representing and explaining processes through educational models or simulations enables students to perform activities where it is easier to understand these processes and discover the essential properties of a system. performing modeling or simulation activities that promote interpretation and understanding of systems are learning activities in which students have the ability to create and test their own perceptions of a given phenomenon. although such activities enhance the development of skills such as reflection, decision making, creativity and generalization, the use of these activities in educational contexts is very sporadic. the difficulties teachers experience in using this type of activity relate to the types of models that are usually used to represent a system, the specificities needed to represent them, the degree of complexity of modeling and simulation tools, and the lack of preparedness to implement practical research activities. why use modeling and simulation in an educational context? the traditional teaching model of science impels children to memorize processes, not privileging the understanding of which entities, processes, and relationships are present in a system. its purpose is for the teacher to pass on to the student's mind his or her knowledge of the scientific content and for the student to consolidate it through memorization processes. the current and traditional model is based on the following premises: what can be taught can be provided to the student in the form of information; information can be verified by the student through observation, which will be applied in answering questions and solving exercises (cosgrove & osborne, 1991). papert (1993) states that the best research and experimentation activities are those in which children are involved in their development and that result in meaningful things for them and all those who share the same interests. osborne (1991) states that children act as scientists, are curious about the world around them, and constantly question themselves about the functioning of systems and objects. they elaborate explanations based on everyday experiences in order to build a vision of the world in which they live. in making their own explanations, children reuse their knowledge to construct new concepts about a particular system. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 brigas, c.j., modeling and simulation in educational context teaching and learning sciences 3 the acquisition of skills that promote the understanding and interpretation of complex systems has progressively assumed an important role in education (jacobson & wilensky, 2006). several researchers claim that the best learning activities are those in which students, in addition to interacting with their own material, have the ability to create and invent systems where these materials are reused (papert, 1980; resnick, 2002). driver (1985) states that activities should be valued where students have the opportunity to present their ideas, in groups or individually. students should also be encouraged to share their conceptions of the world around them and be exposed to unexpected, “counterintuitive” situations, as they are compelled to generate new explanations. the construction of several explanations about the same phenomenon will allow students to confront different explanations, in order to give consistency to the elaborate thought and to understand that it is possible to have several explanations for a given phenomenon or dynamic system. the explanations developed by the students to understand a particular phenomenon are limited to this phenomenon. but their reuse, when exposed to other situations, will allow children to increase or develop their knowledge (repenning, ioannidou, & ambach, 1998). the diversity of the content taught in the classroom motivates teachers to implement modeling and simulation activities in educational environments more frequently (lunce, 2006). in these activities, programs are used to represent systems, usually through a mathematical description. schwarz et al. (2007) indicate that modeling or simulation tools allow students to graphically represent a phenomenon, entities, and relationships for the purpose of analyzing, predicting behavior, and understanding (cherry, ioannidou, rader, brand, & repenning, 1999). the use of these tools has been steadily increasing due to the need on the part of teachers and content writers to produce interactive content that enables them to create more enriching, motivating, and meaningful environments for students (hung & chen, 2002). their use will also allow the introduction of research methods, which is crucial for students to develop the critical thinking and skills needed to understand the dynamic systems and processes that surround them. modeling and simulation in an educational context humans have had, since ancient times, models to understand or represent systems or phenomena, and several authors claim that models are a technique that can be used to study the behavior of phenomena and dynamic systems (banks & carson, 1984; bennet 1995; cherry, ioannidou, rader, brand, & repenning, 1999; law & kelton, 1991; watson & blackstone, 1989). the representation of a small part of a real complex system through a model can be aimed at understanding and discussing the complex phenomena that are part of the system (kuipers, 1994). in an educational context, its use may aim to motivate the student to test hypotheses about reality, to represent systems through schemas, or to develop mental models, among others (duffy & cunningham, 1996; repenning, ioannidou, & ambach, 1998; winn & synder, 1996). in this context, a modeling activity is based on the use of a model that represents a phenomenon or system more simply and where certain aspects have been suppressed in order research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 brigas, c.j., modeling and simulation in educational context teaching and learning sciences 4 to make it easier to understand (cherry, ioannidou, rader, brand, & repenning, 1999; lunce, 2006; kuipers, 1986). the same system can be represented by several models that represent it in part or in full. in any case, the level of detail and fidelity with which a model represents the real system are important factors, even if the model does not represent all elements of the system (alessi & trollip, 2001). several authors indicate that in implementing these activities, teachers may use two distinct methodologies or modes: the exploratory mode and the expressive mode (gomes, ferracioli, & marques, 2008; marcelino, 1998). in exploratory mode, students manipulate the parameters of a model and cannot modify its structure. templates are generally provided by the teacher (bliss & ogborn, 1989; bliss et al., 1992). in expressive mode, students have to identify which model can represent the phenomenon and build it, which can then be expressed using a modeling tool. a modeling tool is specially designed and built to facilitate the construction and calculation, or simulation, of models. as marcelino (1998) indicates, the use of each of these methodologies is related to the type of application that the teacher and students are using. in the case of a modeling tool, students can build or execute a model, which allows the teacher to use the two methodologies described above. another way to use models in education, albeit indirectly, is through simulation programs. evagorou et al. (2009) state that, through simulation, students can verify the dynamic behavior of systems or phenomena present in most systems studied by children, whether energy transfer between systems, heat transfer, phases of the moon, or plant growth. in a simulation activity, students run the program that allows them to identify the meaning and influence of variables in the system, unaware of the underlying model structure. in simulation programs, students can only explore a model that was previously implemented when building the program. marcelino (1998) identified yet another way of using modeling tools and simulation programs in an educational context, which he designated as a demonstrative mode. in this case, the teacher uses the tool or program to demonstrate a phenomenon or system. the teacher's choice of the methodology to be used depends on the objectives to be achieved, the students' prior knowledge, the time available for the activity, and the degree to which the teacher wants the students to analyze the phenomenon or system. there are several types of simulation models that can be used in educational contexts. they can be grouped in quantitative models and qualitative models. quantitative models are composed of entities represented by numerical values, and the relationships between entities are described through mathematical relations. they provide their authors or users with numerical data that reflects their evolution and behavior (fritzson, 2004). another type of model we can use is qualitative. in this case, the entities that make up the model are represented by a finite set of qualitative states (fritzson, 2004). research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 brigas, c.j., modeling and simulation in educational context teaching and learning sciences 5 qualitative modeling allows the representation of complex and dynamic systems with only the essential characteristics of their structure and behavior (neumann & bredeweg, 2004) and about which there is little information. thus, it is possible to represent a system where, although not having all the data necessary for a quantitative representation, this representation has the ability to reproduce the essential characteristics of the system in question, neglecting a large amount of information that is not relevant to its execution (neumann & bredeweg, 2004). in these models, the state of variables is commonly identified through a finite and ordered set of qualitative values such as small, medium, and large. regarding simulation programs, lunce (2006) identifies four different ways to classify them: physical, iterative, situational, and procedural simulations.  physical simulations represent a certain phenomenon and allow students to manipulate some of the variables represented in the simulation. in this type of simulation, the system is already represented and the student has only the possibility to change the variables and verify the impact of these changes on the system behavior.  in iterative simulations, students have the possibility to test and represent hypotheses and verify the results and thus learn about the phenomenon represented.  situational simulations allow students to deal with different environments or situations in order to play a certain role and thus acquire knowledge about the system represented.  procedural simulations allow, for example, to learn how to operate equipment. advantages of using modeling and simulation activities in educational contexts according to leite (2001), we can classify modeling and simulation activities as practical activities. their implementation allows teachers to create interactive environments where students can design, create, and test alternative ideas and models that represent a system they observe (papert, 1980; resnick, 2002). the execution of the models allows students to compare the results with their previous perceptions. resnick (2002) classifies this action as cyclical and iterative, where new ideas generate new creations and new creations generate new ideas. performing modeling and simulation activities in educational contexts can bring a diverse set of advantages. for parush et al. (2002), they are an efficient and effective tool for teaching and learning complex and dynamic systems. several authors report that these activities enable more dynamic, interactive, and motivating learning that can enhance the development of skills such as reflection, decision making, creativity, and generalization (hansmann, scholz, francke, & weymann, 2005; mills , 2004; ramasundaram, grunwald, mangeot, comerford, & bliss, 2004; schwarz, meyer, & sharma, 2007; tarman & tarman, 2011). they also enable learning by discovery (passmore & stewart, 2002; schwarz & white, 2005). alessi and trollip (2001) state that these activities have additional advantages compared to other methodologies because they enable students to take an active role in their realization and, in the opinion of the students themselves, are more interesting, motivating, and research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 brigas, c.j., modeling and simulation in educational context teaching and learning sciences 6 meaningful. they facilitate the understanding of systems because they focus the student's attention on the aspects considered by the teacher as essential, preventing the student from being distracted by analysis of other elements or entities (alessi & trollip, 2001). we can also affirm that the use of models and/or simulations, if designed well, can facilitate learning where the student is stimulated to develop a scientific attitude, because they allow for creating research environments “of real or experimental situations. in this case, students are usually called to ‘invest’ in determined roles, observing the variables at play and taking responsibility for the development of a given process” (brito, duarte, torres, bahia, figueiredo, & alves, 2002, p. 18). other studies indicate that the realization of these activities shows that students get better results, that there is a better transfer of acquired knowledge to real-world situations (leemkuil, de jong, de hoog, & christoph, 2003), which allows the analysis and the representation of phenomena that could be expensive to represent or impossible to visualize in reality (alessi & trollip, 2001). wilson et al. (1996) also point out that they allow for changing the time scale by compressing it or selecting a part of the time in which a phenomenon occurs. thomas and milligan (2004) point out that they enable students to create stimulating and rich learning environments by providing access to certain concepts that might otherwise be dangerous and impractical. they also allow for the customization of the pace of learning and repeating experiences as needed (kang, 1995). despite the potential that exists in introducing these activities in an educational context, teachers and students find it difficult to perform modeling and simulation activities. proof of this is the small number of projects or initiatives that use modeling and simulation as an educational tool. these difficulties of use are due to, among other reasons: • the specificities of educational modeling and/or simulation authoring tools, which oblige their users, teachers, and students to have time to adapt to their interface and to have higher-level scientific and technological knowledge than may be the case. • the forms of model representation are usually based on quantitative modeling, which compromises their use at educational levels where the fundamental thing is not to know the system in detail but only to have part of it or to have an idea of its functioning. • the absence of methodologies that help the teacher implement modeling and simulation activities. methodology to support the development of modeling and simulation activities when implementing modeling or simulation activities in educational contexts, there are key issues to consider when planning the development of such activities. defining the context of use, the strategies to be used, the forms of analysis, and representation of the systems is crucial for such an activity to be fruitful. the presented methodology aims to provide a set of specifications to support the use and development of modeling and simulation authoring tools for basic education. the methodology research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 brigas, c.j., modeling and simulation in educational context teaching and learning sciences 7 will define the objectives that can be achieved with the accomplishment of this type of activity, the contexts and strategies of use, the curricular areas where they can be implemented, the methods of analysis, and representation of dynamic systems, among others. the methodology aims to provide teachers with a set of norms that allow them to engage, motivate, and assist students in carrying out research activities that model or simulate common phenomena, issues that concern them, and experiences lived in field work. the modeling for kids (m4k) methodology is intended to assist teachers and students in the development of modeling and simulation activities for primary school. the methodology has: • a set of standards that will assist the teacher in planning and implementing such activities. • a process for the analysis and representation of dynamic systems, based on qualitative modeling and causal reasoning, which will allow students and teachers at this level to build their own models. • a set of specifications for the development of modeling and simulation authoring tools for this level of education. the planning and implementation phase is intended to provide teachers with an indication of the purpose of modeling and simulation activities, the curriculum areas and the contexts in which these activities can be used, and their use strategies. in this phase, the role of the teacher is also described, an activity planning model is presented, and the phases of support for its implementation are identified. the realization of modeling and simulation activities involves analysis, in the case of both, and may involve the representation of dynamic systems, in the case of the former. the difficulty inherent in identifying all the elements and relationships present in a system and all state combinations can restrict the use of these activities in the first cycle of basic education. hence the need, in our opinion, for a methodology that can assist in these processes. the m4k systems analysis and representation phase provides teachers and students with methodologies that facilitate the analysis and representation of dynamic systems. this phase also has a set of standards that: • define the types of models that can be used in modeling and simulation activities. • describe the process of analysis and model representation. • identify the stages of development of a modeling activity. a modeling and simulation authoring tool should share the characteristics that papert (resnick, et al., 2010) has identified in the programming languages developed for this age level: low floor, high ceiling, and wide halls. papert says that child-oriented applications should be easyto-use, accessible applications, so that their users can enjoy these applications without taking too much time to understand: low floor. however, they should enable more experienced users to perform activities according to their level of knowledge: high ceiling. the success of these types of applications also depends on their curriculum coverage, i.e., they should, as far as possible, cover a wide range of curricular areas: wide halls. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 brigas, c.j., modeling and simulation in educational context teaching and learning sciences 8 conclusion in everyday life, children naturally act as scientists, are curious, and seek explanations for the phenomena surrounding them. conducting practical research activities in basic education allows students to be involved in carrying out these activities and in achieving results that have meaning for them. in this work, we aimed to demonstrate the importance of practical research activities and the use of simulation and modeling in the construction of knowledge. we highlighted the relevance that the use of simulation and modeling can have in the development of students' critical thinking. ict enables teachers to create more motivating, enriching educational environments and access to content and activities that would otherwise be difficult or impossible to do. the combination of ict with modeling and simulation enables the creation of integrated educational environments that are highly accessible and facilitate the development of learning environments that can foster action and reflection. performing modeling and simulation activities in educational environments is an effective tool for learning complex and dynamic systems, as it allows for more active, motivating learning at the pace of each student, in which he or she is induced to develop important skills such as understanding, reflection, intuition, and generalization. we analyzed different ways of using modeling and simulation in education and the advantages of this use in the educational process. we refer to the various types of models we can find, which we have classified as quantitative models and qualitative models, and how the use of qualitative models can enable more students and teachers to design and perform modeling and simulation activities across educational levels, with special emphasis on basic education. qualitative modeling allows teachers and students who do not have the mathematical knowledge or information needed to represent quantitative models a way to model phenomena that they observe in the real world, about which they only have the fundamental characteristics. the lack of a methodology that facilitated and normalized the integration of modeling and simulation activities in basic education led this research team to identify a set of procedures that are of relevant importance in carrying out these activities. the modeling for kids methodology has a set of standards that help the teacher and the student to perform modeling and simulation activities. m4k intends, through the presented norms, to provide a methodology that values the conceptions that students have and that they build when they analyze a certain system, providing procedures that promote an attitude of active and scientific analysis. the methodology presents schemes of representation of dynamic systems through qualitative modeling and defines the roles of teachers and students and the steps to follow in carrying out these activities. m4k also describes the specifications that modeling and simulation authoring tools should have in order to enable these students to perform modeling and simulation activities with them. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 brigas, c.j., modeling and simulation in educational context teaching and learning sciences 9 references alessi, s. m., & trollip, s. 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(1996). cognitive perspectives in psychology. in d. jonassen (ed.), handbook of research on educational communications and technology. new york: simon & schuster. research in social sciences and technology a prediction for teacher commitment: effects of managerial style, burnout and demographics 1 gökhan demi̇rhan uşak university cemil yücel osmangazi university cemilyucel@gmail.com abstract the purpose of this study is to determine the effects of managerial style, teacher burnout and demographics on teacher commitment. in accordance with this aim, a quantitative casual research design was implemented. data of the research were gathered from 280 primary school teacher, by a questionnaire including managerial style, teacher burnout, teacher commitment and teacher demographics forms. for each research questions, hierarchical linear regression analysis was carried out. according to the findings, task oriented behaviors of principal, emotional exhaustion level of the teacher, self-inadequacy feelings of teacher, marital status and work time spending at the same school predicts teacher commitment significantly. on the other hand, human orientation, isolation level from work environment, physical burnout level, vocational burnout level, gender, professional experience, educational level and working status variables does not predicts teacher commitment. keywords: teacher commitment, teacher burnout, managerial style, teacher demographics. introduction effectiveness is the most common and fundamental area of interest for educational systems worldwide. miller (1981) highlights that leadership behaviors and staff morale is geared to effectiveness of school. after nearly 30 years, pisa 2009 report entitled “what makes a school successful” includes a chapter named learning environment, emphasizing importance of leadership, school climate and emotional picture of staff on school effectiveness (oecd, 2010, 87-101). in the meantime, educational administration researchers’ intensely interested in interaction between leader attitudes and emotional characteristics of staff. these studies cumulatively gathered descriptive, relational, experimental and casual findings about this interaction. surely, interaction between managerial attitudes and staff characteristics will be in focus for long years, because student 1 the data used in this study was taken from the master thesis of the author, titled “the relationship between managerial styles of educational administrators and burnout and commitment levels of teachers” demirhan & yücel research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 24-43 25 characteristics, expectations from education, manager profiles, teacher adequacies, working conditions, social structure and anything in the world is changing and this change is everlasting. this study is focused on interaction between teacher commitment and managerial style of the principal, organizational burnout level of teacher and some demographics. managerial style ohio state university leadership studies offered two dimensioned managerial style: initiating structure and consideration after 1945. closely, university of michigan studies determined these two dimensions of leadership: production centered and employee centered (warrick, 1981). in the years followed, theories like blake and mouton’s managerial grid theory (1964), reddin’s 3d leadership model (1970), hersey and blanchard’s situational leadership model (1988) used this two-dimensioned behavioral framework. in this study these dimensions like task orientation and human orientation was used. task orientation includes principal’s behaviors and attitudes on organizational aims, defining individual and group roles to guarantee absolute production/service process, success and outcome in concordance with instructions and guidelines. nonetheless, human orientation of principal is based on democratic, supportive, emphasizing on subordinate needs and motivation, delegated power/authority and establishing an amicable work atmosphere (bass, 1985; fiedler, 1967; northouse, 2004; stodgill, 1974). burnout freudenberger (1974) defines burnout as unsuccessfulness, attrition and dissipation. another definition describes burnout as occupational stress in human service professionals, which results from the demanding and emotionally charged relationships between caregivers and recipients (maslach & jackson (1984).with another approach, cherniss (1980) maintains that burnout is a result of unsuccessful attempts to deal with stress emanated from job and social life. maslach and jackson argued organizational burnout via three dimension; demirhan & yücel research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 24-43 26 emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and lack of personal accomplishment. in this study teacher burnout has five-dimensioned structure, including emotional exhaustion, inadequacy feelings, isolation in work place, physical burnout and loosing enthusiasm for profession. commitment modway, steers and porter (1979) states that the organizational commitment denotes cohesion and identification level to an organization of an individual. meyer and allen (1991) define organizational commitment via three dimensions; affective, continuance and normative commitment. affective commitment means emotional attachment and satisfaction of members to/from the organization in general. normative commitment represents individual’s feelings of beholden. continuance commitment is member’s desires to being a part of organization. allen and meyer (1990) maintains that all these three sub factors of commitment can be characterized via member’s wish of staying in organization and summaries these three factors as; affectively committed members, says that he/she wants to stay in organization, normatively committed member thinks that staying in organization is a moral necessity and continuance commitment gives impression such as ‘being a part of this organization is good for me’ to the members. at this study, affective and normative commitment items of survey were conjoined on factor analysis and this dimension of commitment named as normative commitment. purpose and research questions the purpose of this research is to define the effects of managerial style, teacher burnout and demographics on teacher commitment. in conformity to the purpose, these questions would be pertinent; a. what are the prediction levels of managerial style of the principal, teacher burnout and demographics on teachers’ general commitment level? b. what are the prediction levels of managerial style of the principal, teacher burnout and demographics on teachers’ normative commitment level?; c. what are the prediction levels of demirhan & yücel research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 24-43 27 managerial style of the principal, teacher burnout and demographics on teachers’ continuance commitment level? method design this study has a casual research model. casual research design is generally used when the researcher thinks that there is a causal connection between the variables (ellett & ericson, 1983). hypothesis of this research is structured on the idea of underlying cause – effect relation between teacher commitment and managerial style of the principal, teacher burnout and some demographics such as gender, marital status, professional experience, work time spent at the same school, educational level and working status. sample the sample of this study is 280 primary school teachers selected randomly from 1001 teacher working at uşak (western anatolia) city center in 2009-2010 academic years, via stratified sampling method. confidence internal ratio of the sample is 4.97% for 95% confidence level for this population. 53.9 % of the sample is male (n: 151) and 46.1% is female (n: 129). instruments measuring managerial style in the literature review, there are a lot of scales and measures for assessment of managerial style. surely best known is leadership behavior description questionnaire. lbdq and alike’ s mostly depends on ohio state and michigan universities’ leadership studies (1945), which focused on two dimensions of administrative activities: consideration and initiating structure (newstrom & davis, 1993, 228). almost five decades, researchers used two main tendencies: job or task orientation and human or relation orientation in leadership style measurement studies. in this study, two-dimensioned survey was used demirhan & yücel research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 24-43 28 including 42 items about daily managerial activities of a principal. survey is based on a likert-type scale between 1-9 points about attitudes of principals for each item on two dimensions; task and human orientation. cronbach’s alpha internal consistency coefficients is (.97) for task orientation dimension and (.98) for human orientation. measuring burnout for assessment of teacher burnout, 32 items were used in this survey. survey was developed by özdemir (2008) and yücel for a master thesis on teacher burnout. according to özdemir, the survey has 5 dimensioned factor structures and cronbach’s alpha internal consistency coefficient was calculated (.94). for this study after removing 5 items according to the reliability analysis, due to the item-total correlation coefficient problems, the current survey declined to 27 items. according to factor analysis (principal component analysis, varimax rotation with kaiser normalization) results, the 27 items were categorized into 5 dimensions. reliability and structure validity statistics of burnout survey is given at table 1. table1 reliability and validity statistics of teacher burnout survey dimensions numb er of items α % variance explained initial eigenvalues emotional burnout 8 .88 15,350 9,793 feeling inadequate 5 .85 13,203 2,590 isolation 5 .85 12,662 1,715 physical burnout 5 .85 12,471 1,393 vocational burnout 4 .72 8,350 1,260 total 27 .93 62,036 (kmo-msa; .910, barlett’s ts χ 2 : 3918,121, df: 351, p:,000) measuring commitment demirhan & yücel research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 24-43 29 for assessment of teacher commitment, 12 items were used in this survey. survey was developed by yıldırım (2009) and his advisor yücel for a master thesis about teacher burnout. according to yıldırım, the survey has 3 dimensioned factor structures and cronbach’s alpha internal consistency coefficient was calculated (.93). as a result of factor analysis carried out through this study, 12 items includes two dimensions named normative commitment and continuance commitment. reliability and structure validity statistics of teacher commitment survey is given at table 2. table2 reliability and validity statistics of teacher commitment survey dimensions number of items α % variance explained initial eigenvalues normative commitment 8 .93 41,183 6,931 continuance commitment 4 .79 25,392 1,058 total 12 .93 66,574 (kmo-msa; .934, barlett’s ts χ 2 : 2308,764, df: 66, p:,000) demographics through this research a form was given to teachers including gender, marital status, professional experience, working time during the school, educational level and working status variables in addition to other instruments. gender and marital status variables were coded as nominal variables. professional experience, working time during school, educational level and working status variables were coded as scale type variables. detailed information is given at the findings section to guarantee intelligibility of analysis carried out. data analysis in this quantitative casual research model study, hierarchical linear regression analysis (hierarchical regression model: hrm) was carried out for data analysis on each research questions. in addition, pearson correlation analysis is used for checking multicollinearity demirhan & yücel research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 24-43 30 problems on sub factors of the variables entered to the regression model. correlations between sub factors should be under .70 to avoid multicolinearity (nunnaly, 1978). according to the findings of correlation analysis, none of the correlation coefficients between sub factors of the burnout scale is over .70. however, the correlation between task orientation and human orientation sub factors of managerial style scale is over .70 in this study. it is to be thought of bureaucratic and highly regulative structure of the educational management system of turkey causes misperception about dualist structure (task and human) of the principals’ managerial preferences. correlation matrix and descriptive statistics are given below (table 3). table 3 correlation martix and descriptive statistics of variables used in hierarchical regression model ̅ sd. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 general commitment level 3,14 1,424 normative commitment level 3,36 1,546 continuance commitment level 2,72 1,460 1. emotional burnout level 1,93 0,726 1 2. level of feeling inadequate 1,72 0,743 ,613 ** 1 3. isolation 1,67 0,686 ,472 ** ,511 ** 1 4. physical burnout level 2,45 0,749 ,605 ** ,376 ** ,298 ** 1 5. vocational burnout level 1,85 0,841 ,498 ** ,496 ** ,429 ** ,305 ** 1 6. task orientation 6,74 1,665 -,180 ** -,196 ** -,230 ** -,119 * -,212 ** 1 7. human orientation 6,77 1,666 -,136 * -,173 ** -,209 ** -,089 -,213 ** ,831 ** 1 **. p<. 01, *. p< .05, n:280 in the regression model, three blocks were used. variables of the first block are task orientation and human orientation levels of the school administrators’. in the second block, five sub factors of teacher burnout scale; emotional burnout levels, levels of feeling inadequate, isolation levels from work environment, physical burnout levels and vocational burnout levels of teachers’ variables were used. third block includes demographic variables about teachers such as gender, marital status, professional experience, working time during the school, educational level and working status. variables in first and demirhan & yücel research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 24-43 31 second blocks are coded as scale type variables. possible scores of the task and human orientation scale can be in the 1-9 range, burnout scale can be in 1-5 range and commitment scale can be in 1-7 range. professional experience and working time variables were coded as free of range scale type through year. findings prediction on general commitment levels of teachers table4 hierarchical regression model for general commitment levels of teachers. r r 2 adjusted r 2 std. error of the estimate change statistics r 2 change f change df1 df2 sig. f change (p) ,313 a ,098 ,092 1,35835 ,098 15,064 2 277 ,000 ,402 b ,162 ,140 1,32143 ,064 4,139 5 272 ,001 ,477 c ,228 ,190 1,28273 ,066 3,776 6 266 ,001 a. predictors: (constant) task orientation, human orientation b. predictors: (constant) task orientation, human orientation, emotional burnout, feeling inadequate, isolation, physical burnout, vocational burnout c. predictors: (constant) task orientation, human orientation, emotional burnout, feeling inadequate, isolation, physical burnout, vocational burnout, gender, marital status, professional experience, work time spent at the same school, educational level, working status according to the findings from hrm (table 4), managerial style of the principal, teacher burnout and demographics explains 22.8% of variance on general teacher commitment. variables in the first block, task orientation and human orientation explains 9,8% of the total variance (r: .313, r2: .098, p: .000). when the second block added on, including emotional burnout level, level of feeling inadequate, isolation level from work environment, physical burnout level and vocational burnout level of the teachers, the model explains 16,2% of the variance on total and the level of prediction change is statistically significant (r: .402, r2: .162, p: .001). the effect of the second block on explained variance demirhan & yücel research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 24-43 32 is 6.4 %. at the last model, the single effect of variables in the third block, gender, marital status, professional experience, working time, educational level, working status, is 6.6 % on prediction of teacher commitment level and this effect changes explained variance significantly (r: .477, r2: .228, p: .001). table 5 coefficients * model unstandardized coefficients standardized coefficients t p correlations b std. error β part partial 1 (constant) 1,295 ,354 3,654 ,000 task orientation ,214 ,087 ,250 2,457 ,015 ,146 ,140 human orientation ,062 ,087 ,073 ,716 ,475 ,043 ,041 2 (constant) 1,608 ,513 3,135 ,002 task orientation ,205 ,086 ,239 2,395 ,017 ,144 ,133 human orientation ,081 ,085 ,095 ,951 ,342 ,058 ,053 emotional burnout level -,448 ,169 -,228 -2,652 ,008 -,159 -,147 level of feeling inadequate ,554 ,148 ,285 3,745 ,000 ,221 ,208 isolation level from work environment -,010 ,141 -,005 -,072 ,943 -,004 -,004 physical burnout level -,162 ,133 -,085 -1,221 ,223 -,074 -,068 vocational burnout level -,030 ,116 -,018 -,260 ,795 -,016 -,014 3 (constant) 2,352 ,856 2,749 ,006 task orientation ,230 ,084 ,269 2,750 ,006 ,166 ,148 human orientation ,089 ,083 ,104 1,078 ,282 ,066 ,058 emotional burnout level -,536 ,167 -,273 -3,209 ,001 -,193 -,173 level of feeling inadequate ,539 ,145 ,277 3,723 ,000 ,223 ,201 isolation level from work environment ,004 ,137 ,002 ,032 ,974 ,002 ,002 physical burnout level -,002 ,138 -,001 -,016 ,987 -,001 -,001 vocational burnout level -,037 ,113 -,021 -,325 ,746 -,020 -,018 gender -,192 ,166 -,067 -1,160 ,247 -,071 -,063 marital status -,750 ,294 -,148 -2,556 ,011 -,155 -,138 professional experience -,003 ,015 -,017 -,203 ,840 -,012 -,011 work time spent at the same school ,055 ,023 ,170 2,385 ,018 ,145 ,129 educational level -,122 ,117 -,067 -1,043 ,298 -,064 -,056 working status ,076 ,167 ,026 ,456 ,649 ,028 ,025 demirhan & yücel research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 24-43 33 table 5 coefficients * model unstandardized coefficients standardized coefficients t p correlations b std. error β part partial 1 (constant) 1,295 ,354 3,654 ,000 task orientation ,214 ,087 ,250 2,457 ,015 ,146 ,140 human orientation ,062 ,087 ,073 ,716 ,475 ,043 ,041 2 (constant) 1,608 ,513 3,135 ,002 task orientation ,205 ,086 ,239 2,395 ,017 ,144 ,133 human orientation ,081 ,085 ,095 ,951 ,342 ,058 ,053 emotional burnout level -,448 ,169 -,228 -2,652 ,008 -,159 -,147 level of feeling inadequate ,554 ,148 ,285 3,745 ,000 ,221 ,208 isolation level from work environment -,010 ,141 -,005 -,072 ,943 -,004 -,004 physical burnout level -,162 ,133 -,085 -1,221 ,223 -,074 -,068 vocational burnout level -,030 ,116 -,018 -,260 ,795 -,016 -,014 3 (constant) 2,352 ,856 2,749 ,006 task orientation ,230 ,084 ,269 2,750 ,006 ,166 ,148 human orientation ,089 ,083 ,104 1,078 ,282 ,066 ,058 emotional burnout level -,536 ,167 -,273 -3,209 ,001 -,193 -,173 level of feeling inadequate ,539 ,145 ,277 3,723 ,000 ,223 ,201 isolation level from work environment ,004 ,137 ,002 ,032 ,974 ,002 ,002 physical burnout level -,002 ,138 -,001 -,016 ,987 -,001 -,001 vocational burnout level -,037 ,113 -,021 -,325 ,746 -,020 -,018 gender -,192 ,166 -,067 -1,160 ,247 -,071 -,063 marital status -,750 ,294 -,148 -2,556 ,011 -,155 -,138 professional experience -,003 ,015 -,017 -,203 ,840 -,012 -,011 work time spent at the same school ,055 ,023 ,170 2,385 ,018 ,145 ,129 educational level -,122 ,117 -,067 -1,043 ,298 -,064 -,056 working status ,076 ,167 ,026 ,456 ,649 ,028 ,025 *. dependent variable: general commitment levels of teachers. when we analyzed findings in terms of all independent sub factors (table 5); task orientation levels of principals (b: .230, p: .006) from first block, emotional burnout levels (b: -,536, p: .001) and self-inadequate feelings levels (b: ,539, p: .000) of the teachers from demirhan & yücel research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 24-43 34 second block, marital status (b: -,750, p: .011) and working time (b: ,055, p: .018) effects teacher commitment significantly. task orientation levels of principals, self-inadequate feelings levels of teachers, working time variables have positive effects on teacher commitment. nonetheless, emotional burnout levels of teachers and marital status (coded as 1: married, 2: single) variables have negative effects on teacher commitment. prediction on normative commitment levels of teachers table 6 hierarchical regression model for normative commitment levels of teachers. mode l r r 2 adjusted r 2 std. error of the estimate change statistics r 2 change f change df 1 df2 sig. f change (p) 1 ,348 a ,12 1 ,115 1,45537 ,121 19,052 2 277 ,000 2 ,429 b ,18 4 ,163 1,41524 ,063 4,186 5 272 ,001 3 ,486 c ,23 6 ,198 1,38480 ,052 3,015 6 266 ,007 a. predictors: (constant) task orientation, human orientation b. predictors: (constant) task orientation, human orientation, emotional burnout, feeling inadequate, isolation, physical burnout, vocational burnout c. predictors: (constant) task orientation, human orientation, emotional burnout, feeling inadequate, isolation, physical burnout, vocational burnout, gender, marital status, professional experience, work time spent at the same school, educational level, working status as seen on table 6, managerial style of the principal, teacher burnout and demographics explains 23.6% of variance on normative commitment levels of teachers. variables in the first block, task orientation and human orientation explains 12.1% of the total variance (r: .348, r2: .121, p: .000). when the second block added on, including emotional burnout level, level of feeling inadequate, isolation level from work environment, physical burnout level, vocational burnout level of the teachers, the model explains 18.4% of the variance on total and the level of prediction change is statistically significant (r: .429, r2: .184, p: .001). the effect of the second block on explained variance is 6.3%. at the last model demirhan & yücel research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 24-43 35 the single effect of variables in the third block, gender, marital status, professional experience, work time spent at the same school, educational level, working status, is 5.2% on prediction of normative commitment level and this effect changes explained variance significantly (r: .486, r2: .236, p: .007). table7 coefficients * model unstandardized coefficients standardized coefficients t p correlation s b std. error β part partia l 1 (constant) 1,110 ,380 2,924 ,004 task orientation ,236 ,093 ,254 2,530 ,012 ,150 ,143 human orientation ,099 ,093 ,107 1,060 ,290 ,064 ,060 2 (constant) 1,451 ,549 2,641 ,009 task orientation ,228 ,092 ,246 2,492 ,013 ,149 ,137 human orientation ,116 ,091 ,125 1,274 ,204 ,077 ,070 emotional burnout level -,444 ,181 -,209 2,456 ,015 ,147 -,135 level of feeling inadequate ,608 ,158 ,288 3,838 ,000 ,227 ,210 isolation level from work environment ,000 ,151 ,000 -,003 ,998 ,000 ,000 physical burnout level -,187 ,142 -,090 1,311 ,191 ,079 -,072 vocational burnout level -,075 ,124 -,041 -,607 ,544 ,037 -,033 3 (constant) 2,222 ,924 2,406 ,017 task orientation ,246 ,090 ,265 2,725 ,007 ,165 ,146 human orientation ,127 ,090 ,137 1,419 ,157 ,087 ,076 emotional burnout level -,512 ,180 -,241 2,843 ,005 ,172 -,152 level of feeling inadequate ,599 ,156 ,284 3,834 ,000 ,229 ,206 isolation level from work environment ,006 ,148 ,003 ,039 ,969 ,002 ,002 physical burnout level -,042 ,149 -,020 -,282 ,778 ,017 -,015 vocational burnout level -,074 ,122 -,040 -,611 ,542 ,037 -,033 gender -,134 ,179 -,043 -,747 ,456 ,046 -,040 marital status -,743 ,317 -,135 2,346 ,020 ,142 -,126 professional experience -,004 ,016 -,022 -,268 ,789 ,016 -,014 demirhan & yücel research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 24-43 36 work time spent at the same school ,049 ,025 ,141 1,992 ,047 ,121 ,107 educational level -,168 ,126 -,086 1,332 ,184 ,081 -,071 working status ,194 ,180 ,061 1,078 ,282 ,066 ,058 *. dependent variable: normative commitment levels of teachers. task orientation levels of principals (b: ,246, p: .007) from first block, emotional burnout levels (b: -,512, p: .005) and self-inadequate feelings levels (b: ,599, p: .000) of the teachers from second block, marital status (b: -,743, p: .020) and working time (b: ,049, p: .047) effects normative commitment significantly (table 7). task orientation levels of principals, self-inadequate feelings levels of teachers, work time spent at the same school variables effects normative commitment positively. emotional burnout levels of teachers and marital status variables have negative effects on normative commitment. prediction on continuance commitment levels of teachers table8 hierarchical regression model for continuance commitment levels of teachers. model r r 2 adjusted r 2 std. error of the estimate change statistics r 2 change f change df1 df2 sig. f change (p) 1 ,186 a ,034 ,028 1,44251 ,034 4,946 2 277 ,008 2 ,283 b ,080 ,057 1,42078 ,046 2,708 5 272 ,021 3 ,401 c ,161 ,120 1,37230 ,081 4,259 6 266 ,000 a. predictors: (constant) task orientation, human orientation b. predictors: (constant) task orientation, human orientation, emotional burnout, feeling inadequate, isolation, physical burnout, vocational burnout c. predictors: (constant) task orientation, human orientation, emotional burnout, feeling inadequate, isolation, physical burnout, vocational burnout, gender, marital status, professional experience, work time spent at the same school, educational level, working status according to the findings (table 8), managerial style of the principal, teacher burnout and demographics explains 16.1% of variance on continuance commitment. variables in the first block, task orientation and human orientation explain 3.4% of the total variance (r: demirhan & yücel research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 24-43 37 .186, r2: .034, p: .008). when the second block added on, including emotional burnout level, level of feeling inadequate, isolation level from work environment, physical burnout level, vocational burnout level of the teachers, the model explains 8% of the variance on total and the level of prediction change is statistically significant (r: .283, r2: .080, p: .021). the effect of the second block on explained variance is 4.6%. at the last model the single effect of variables in the third block, gender, marital status, professional experience, working time, educational level, working status, is 8.1% on prediction of continuance commitment levels of teachers and this effect changes explained variance significantly (r: .401, r2: .161, p: .000). table 9 coefficients * model unstandardized coefficients standardized coefficients t p correlations b std. error β part partia l 1 (constant) 1,652 ,376 4,390 ,000 task orientation ,170 ,093 ,193 1,833 ,068 ,109 ,108 human orientation -,008 ,093 -,009 -,085 ,932 -,005 -,005 2 (constant) 1,935 ,551 3,508 ,001 task orientation ,157 ,092 ,179 1,712 ,088 ,103 ,100 human orientation ,013 ,092 ,015 ,141 ,888 ,009 ,008 emotional burnout level -,450 ,182 -,224 2,478 ,014 -,149 -,144 level of feeling inadequate ,445 ,159 ,223 2,795 ,006 ,167 ,163 isolation level from work environment -,033 ,152 -,016 -,219 ,827 -,013 -,013 physical burnout level -,116 ,143 -,059 -,811 ,418 -,049 -,047 vocational burnout level ,053 ,124 ,030 ,429 ,669 ,026 ,025 3 (constant) 2,616 ,915 2,858 ,005 task orientation ,196 ,090 ,223 2,192 ,029 ,133 ,123 human orientation ,017 ,089 ,019 ,186 ,853 ,011 ,010 emotional burnout level -,576 ,179 -,286 3,228 ,001 -,194 -,181 level of feeling inadequate ,420 ,155 ,210 2,710 ,007 ,164 ,152 isolation level from work environment -,004 ,147 -,002 -,028 ,977 -,002 -,002 physical burnout level ,076 ,148 ,038 ,514 ,608 ,031 ,029 vocational burnout level ,034 ,121 ,019 ,283 ,778 ,017 ,016 demirhan & yücel research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 24-43 38 gender -,329 ,177 -,112 1,857 ,064 -,113 -,104 marital status -,727 ,314 -,139 2,316 ,021 -,141 -,130 professional experience -,002 ,016 -,009 -,102 ,918 -,006 -,006 work time spent at the same school ,065 ,024 ,198 2,664 ,008 ,161 ,150 educational level -,036 ,125 -,020 -,292 ,770 -,018 -,016 working status -,123 ,178 -,041 -,691 ,490 -,042 -,039 *. dependent variable: normative commitment levels of teachers. task orientation levels of principals (b:,196, p: .029) from first block, emotional burnout levels (b: -,576, p: .001) and self-inadequate feelings levels (b: ,420, p: .007) of the teachers from second block, marital status (b: -,727, p: .021) and work time spent at the same school (b: ,065, p: .008) effects continuance commitment significantly (table 9). task orientation levels of principals, self-inadequate feelings levels of teachers, working time variables effects normative commitment positively. emotional burnout levels of teachers and marital status variables have negative effects on continuance commitment. demirhan & yücel research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 24-43 39 discussions according to the findings, task orientation level of the principals, affects teacher commitment positively. task orientation highlights protecting and sustaining rules and regulations about organizational structure (blake & mouton, 1964). besides, task orientation is known as initiating structure at the studies of bass (1985), stodgill (1974), fiedler (1967) includes exact role definitions of superiors and subordinates. it is thought that clear role definitions, detailed guidelines and constancy on organizational aims protects teachers from organizational confusion and gives sense of confidence. similarly, former researches state that, the degree of emphasis on rules, regulations and role definitions is an important predictor of employee commitment (davenport, 2010; dale & fox, 2008; zeffane, 1994). this prediction spans on normative and continuance commitment levels too. the negative effect of emotional burnout levels of teachers on general, normative and continuance commitment means that, emotionally exhausted teachers loses harmony with the organizational aims, incompatibility of values appears and teachers are losing desire to staying in organization. the research of jung & kim (2012) supports the results for this evidence. according to jung & kim, higher level of emotional exhaustion causes decreasing of commitment levels of subordinates. findings denotes that; self-inadequate feelings of teachers, predicts teacher general commitment level and sub factors. although it sounds like a paradox that positive effect of self-inadequate feelings on teacher commitment can be thought as simple habituation to the work place and colleagues. furthermore, if we think this case in sync with the other finding about positive effect of working time, collaborating for long times will create a family atmosphere and self-inadequate feelings might be lightened in this reliance ambiance and this relaxation may boost employee commitment. in addition, self-inadequate feelings may be creating fear of unemployment on teachers and this fear would be advancing effect on demirhan & yücel research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 24-43 40 normative accordance and continuance commitment. there is a need of further research to support this thought. significant prediction capacity of marital status of teachers and working time variables on general, normative and especially on continuance commitment, shows that teachers in a routine of living at the same place and area for a long period accepting institutional goals and values, need stability and do not want to ruin their long period plans and they feel more flexible to be in harmony with institution and they intend to provide work continuity. besides, being married is a factor increasing the coherence to institution and decreasing the attraction of professional mobility. at the former researches, working time was used as an independent variable in a regression-based study and in a meta-analytic study (borman& dowling, 2008; dee, henkin& singleton, 2006). but according to the findings of these studies, working time is not a significant predictor of teacher commitment. according to kurşunoğlu, bakay&tanrıöğen (2010), working time during the school, and marital status effect teacher commitment. findings of kurşunoğlu, bakay and tanrıöğen’s study shows that married primary school teachers commitment levels are significantly higher than single teachers and working time increases teachers general, normative and continuance commitment levels. conclusion consequently, teachers have low-moderate burnout and commitment levels. perceived task orientation level of the principal, emotional exhaustion level of the teacher, selfinadequate feelings of teacher, marital status and working time predicts teacher commitment statistically significant. we can also say at general and normative commitment, perceived task orientation level of the principal is the most effective predictor. but for continuance commitment, demographics like marital status and working time during the school are the demirhan & yücel research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 24-43 41 most effective variables. even though there is no significant difference between perceived task orientation and human orientation levels of the principals, human orientation does not have a marked prediction role on teacher commitment. references allen, n. j., & meyer, j. p. 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(1994). patterns of organizational commitment and perceived management style: a comparison of public and private-sector employees. human relations, 47(8), 9771010. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 diaz-aznar, trujillo-torres, garcia, & jimenez. sociodemographic factors influencing smartphone addiction in university students. 137 sociodemographic factors influencing smartphone addiction in university students inmaculada aznar-díaz * university of granada juan-manuel trujillo-torres university of granada santiago alonso-garcía university of granada carmen rodríguez-jiménez university of granada *corresponding author: iaznar@ugr.es received : 03.07.2019 accepted : 08.09.2019 how to cite this paper: diaz-aznar, i., trujillo-torres, j. m., garcia, s. a., & jimenez, c. r. (2019). sociodemographic factors influencing smartphone addiction in university students. research in social sciences and technology, 4(2), 137-146. abstract the development of mobile devices has affected the way of life of university students, affecting their daily habits and sometimes their health. specifically, in recent years a series of illnesses have developed as a result of the constant use of smartphones by the university population, which has come to be catalogued as an at-risk population. the aim of this work was to analyze the sociodemographic factors that influence the smartphone addiction of university students. for the measurement of the levels of addiction, the standardized instrument smartphone addiction scale was used in a sample of 385 students from the university of granada, spain. a multiple linear regression model was used as a statistical test, highlighting that the factor influencing smartphone addiction is the time of use. finally, the study includes a series of implications derived from the results obtained, with the aim of establishing preventive measures to help to mitigate smartphone addiction. keywords: mobile devices, smartphone addiction, internet addiction, higher education introduction initially, the democratization of information and communication technologies (ict) enabled their use at the social level (tarman et. al, 2015; 2019). today, business competitiveness in technology has made the prices of mobile devices affordable for the general public, boosting consumption and increasing the number of hours dedicated to these devices. among them, the smartphone has reached great popularity due to its characteristics and reduced dimensions. mailto:iaznar@ugr.es research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 diaz-aznar, trujillo-torres, garcia, & jimenez. sociodemographic factors influencing smartphone addiction in university students. 138 in spain, consumption has reached such an extreme that, of populations that spend the most time on smartphones, spain is fifth in the world (rodríguez, 2017). this abusive use is mostly by teenagers (ruiz-palmero, sánchez-rodríguez, & trujillo-torres, 2016) and young adults, who belong to the generation that has grown up with technology and is more prone to a certain addiction to the smartphone (wang, sigerson, & cheng, 2019). this type of addiction has been closely linked to internet addiction (jeong, suh, & gweon, 2019), forming part of the behavioral addictions. one of its variants is nomophobia, which is characterized by a state of anxiety caused by the impossibility of having access to a smartphone (anshari, alas, & sulaiman, 2019). for its part, addiction to the smartphone has been increased by the growth and development of social networks and the need for the user to be connected as long as possible to them (cha & seo, 2018; noë, turner, linden, allen, winkens, & whitaker, 2019). at the same time, the development of videogames through mobile applications (apps) has led to a greater dedication to smartphones and, therefore, a greater predisposition to addiction (gaspar & cuesta, 2015). this problem associated with the abuse of the internet entails other risky behavior on the internet, such as being an aggressor or victim of cyberbullying (qudah, salamah, attallah, hashem, alfnan, aljomaa, & ateik, 2019). thus, excessive use of mobile devices accentuates the possibilities of exercising or receiving aggressions online. in addition, the largest population at risk of smartphone addiction are university students (polo, mendo, león, & castaño, 2017). therefore, a priori, it is a well-educated population that is studying at a higher level and may develop negative consequences such as depression and anxiety (boumosleh & jaalouk, 2017; kim, park, kim, pan, lee, & mcintyre, 2019), worsening physical health (kumcagiz, 2019), and low academic performance (alzubi, 2019; chang, chiu, chen, chiang, miao, chuang, & liu, 2019). in spite of these consequences for the user, the educational field is beginning to introduce the mobile device to improve the teaching-learning process in the classroom. this methodology is called mobile learning (hinojo, aznar, & romero, 2018). in this line, it is essential that teachers implement measures for education in the good use of the smartphone and the application of good teaching practices (aznar, cáceres, & romero, 2018) in order to reduce malpractice with the mobile device. some previous studies that focus attention on smartphone addiction on the part of university students pick up positive aspects that can predict this type of behavior. thus, self-control is a key piece in reducing smartphone addiction (heo & lee, 2018). age influences when presenting a predisposition to smartphone addiction in university students (gligor & mozos, 2019). time of use is directly related to smartphone addiction (rozgonjuk, elhai, täht, vassil, levine, & research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 diaz-aznar, trujillo-torres, garcia, & jimenez. sociodemographic factors influencing smartphone addiction in university students. 139 asmundson, 2019). the individual differences of university students explain the excessive use of technology (elhai, rozgonjuk, yildirim, alghraibeh, & alafnan, 2019). a high degree of awareness is linked to a low addiction to smartphones in university students (lian, 2018). on the other hand, other studies warn that smartphone addiction correlates positively with anxiety (konan, durmus, türkoglu, & bakir, 2018). depression, anxiety, and smartphone addiction in college students showed a significant positive correlation (kim & kwon, 2019), and high smartphone use and low social support is positively and significantly related to smartphone addiction (herrero, urueña, torres, & hidalgo, 2019; kuss, harkin, kanjo, & billieux, 2019). based on these considerations, the objectives of the study were to evaluate the degree of smartphone addiction of university students in the primary education degree at the university of granada and to determine the sociodemographic factors that influence smartphone addiction. there were also established as research questions: rq1: what is the degree of addiction to the smartphone (understood as the abusive use of the internet that interferes with daily life) of future teachers? rq2: are there differences between gender (male or female), age, educational level (level attained in the educational system), employment status, and time spent on smartphone addiction? rq3: does gender, age, educational level, employment status, and time spent influence smartphone addiction? method participants the sample under study was extracted from a population of students of the faculty of education sciences at the university of granada. an online survey based on a standardized questionnaire was applied to different grade levels in primary education. the selection of the sample was made on the basis of stratified random sampling, taking into consideration that the sample size reached a significant sample size at 95% confidence with a margin of error of 5% (n = 385). the characteristics of the participants are shown in table 1. the sample consisted of a total of 147 men and 238 women ages 18-55 (m = 23.98; sd = 5.40). research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 diaz-aznar, trujillo-torres, garcia, & jimenez. sociodemographic factors influencing smartphone addiction in university students. 140 table 1. socio-demographic data n m(sd) or % gender male 147 38.2 female 238 61.8 age 385 23.98(5.40) 18-21 123 31.9 22-25 134 34.8 26-29 85 22.1 30 or more 43 11.2 studies a-levels 358 93 high-level vocational training 27 7 employment situation active 199 51.7 inactive 186 48.3 usage time (hours) less than 1 118 30.6 between 1-2 146 37.8 between 2-3 68 17.7 more than 3 53 13.9 measures smartphone addiction scale (sas-sv) addiction to the smartphone was evaluated with the sas application in its short version. this scale measures smartphone addiction through 10 items. the response mode is based on a likert scale of four levels ranging from 1 (strongly disagree) to 4 (strongly agree). the scores obtained in each item are added up, being able to reach from a minimum of 10 points to a maximum of 40; the scores close to 40 indicate a greater degree of addiction to the smartphone. this scale has good psychometric properties and internal consistency (kwon, kim, cho, & yang, 2013). reliability in this study was great (cronbach's a = 0.82). data analysis the data were analyzed using different statistical tests with the help of the ibm spss version 24 quantitative analysis software. from this, the statistical-descriptive (rq1 and rq2) values were calculated and the significance of the independent variables in smartphone addiction was verified from the establishment of a multiple linear regression model (rq3). research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 diaz-aznar, trujillo-torres, garcia, & jimenez. sociodemographic factors influencing smartphone addiction in university students. 141 results the descriptive statistical values, which answer rq1 and rq2, include scores that fall within the range of smartphone addiction in age (18-21, 22-25, and 30 years or older), educational level (superior grade), employment situation (inactive), and time of use (between 2-3 and more than 3 hours). at the same time, statistically significant differences are established between different groups (table 2). specifically, these are the age groups 18-21 and 26-29 years (p = 0.003), 22-25 and 26-29 years (p = 0.007), 26-29 and 30 years or more (p = 0.032); employment status (p = 0.011); and between all times of use. table 2. descriptive statistics and test t independent variable m sd t df p gender male 19.88 5.70 -0.072 383 0.943 female 19.92 5.61 age 18-21 20.56 5.86 18-21/22-25 0.521 255 0.603 18-21/26-29 3.091 206 0.003 18-21/30 or more 0.112 164 0.911 22-25 20.19 5.43 22-25/26-29 2.702 217 0.007 22-25/30 or more -0.250 175 0.803 26-29 18.22 4.97 -2.165 126 0.032 30 or more 20.44 6.35 studies a-levels 19.89 5.66 -0.162 383 0.871 high-level vocational training 20.07 5.35 employment situation active 19.20 5.76 -2.566 383 0.011 inactive 20.66 5.41 usage time less than 1 17.58 4.66 less than 1/between 1-2 -2.949 262 0.003 less than 1/ between 2-3 -5.285 184 0.000 less than 1/ more than 3 -8.008 169 0.000 between 1-2 19.36 5.04 between 1-2/between 2-3 -2.950 212 0.004 between 1-2/ more than 3 -5.882 197 0.000 between 2-3 21.62 5.59 -2.603 119 0.010 more than 3 24.40 6.10 the multiple linear regression model, which answers rq3, has a good fit and is significant (fstatistic = 15.341; p = 0.000) (table 3). it is established that the only significant variable in smartphone addiction is time of use (p = 0.000). the remaining variables are not significant to explain the addiction. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 diaz-aznar, trujillo-torres, garcia, & jimenez. sociodemographic factors influencing smartphone addiction in university students. 142 table 3. multiple linear regression analysis independent variable b se t p β r2 smartphone addiction gender -.0184 0.569 -0.324 0.746 -0.016 0.16 age 0.523 0.328 1.597 0.111 0.092 studies -0.436 0.528 -0.825 0.410 -0.039 employment situation 0.996 0.610 1.633 0.103 0.088 usage time 2.321 0.281 8.263 0.000 0.415*** note: ∗p < 0.05; ∗∗p < 0.01; ∗∗∗p < 0.001. discussion and conclusions the data obtained confirm that university students are a population at risk for technological addiction (polo et al., 2017). it is detected that there is a greater addiction in young adults and in adults aged 30 years or more, with statistically significant differences between age groups. however, the 26-29 age group is not addictive. on the other hand, there are significant differences in the work situation; the fact of being inactive is an incentive for smartphone addiction. having more free time intervenes in the use of that time to devote it to the mobile device. differences between independent variables also indicate that the sociodemographic factors of university students may explain smartphone addiction (elhai et al., 2019). on the other hand, longer usage time indicates a greater addiction to the smartphone, with significant differences being found between all estimated usage bands. this is confirmed in the multiple linear regression analysis where the time invested is the only variable that influences significantly. thus, time of use is significantly related to smartphone addiction (rozgonjuk et al., 2019). consequently, those university students with higher smartphone use are more likely to develop pathologies such as depression or anxiety (boumosleh & jaalouk, 2017; konan et al., 2018; kim & kwon, 2019; kim et al., 2019) and poor academic performance (chang et al., 2019). for its part, age did not significantly influence smartphone addiction, despite what was found in other studies (gligor & mozos, 2019). in short, smartphone addiction is an endemic disease of 21st century society. establishing measures for its prevention and treatment is a challenge for public administrations, especially in the field of education. this work has responded to the objectives of assessing the degree of smartphone addiction of university students in the degree in primary education at the university of granada and determines the sociodemographic factors that influence addiction to the smartphone. at the same time, the research questions collected the findings of the study: (rq1) the degree of addiction of future teachers is medium-high, as established by polo, mendo, león, and castaño (2017). (rq2) there are significant differences between age groups, work situations, and time invested (gligor & mozos, 2019). adults aged 26-29 are less likely to engage in these addictive behaviors. conversely, the two extremes 18-21 and 30 or older reflect higher levels of smartphone addiction. the work situation is also an incentive. gender and research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 diaz-aznar, trujillo-torres, garcia, & jimenez. sociodemographic factors influencing smartphone addiction in university students. 143 educational attainment are not determining factors. (rq3) time of use significantly influences smartphone addiction, so the more time spent on the mobile device, the higher the score (rozgonjuk et al., 2019) on the sas measurement scale. finally, among the limitations of the study is the establishment of the sample. when set with random criteria, they are representative of the population. however, it is a population limited only to future primary education teachers of a specific university. in future studies, it would be of interest to extend the sample to more degrees. another limitation relates to independent variables, which were limited to a few sociodemographic factors. it is recommended that in future work, the factors that can influence smartphone addiction be expanded. finally, determining usage time as a predictor of smartphone addiction helps prevent this type of behavior. based on this, education in the proper use of technology and the reduction of mobile device consumption should be fundamental pillars in the technological education that university students receive, being a key piece to avoid the negative consequences arising from abuse of the smartphone. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 diaz-aznar, trujillo-torres, garcia, & jimenez. sociodemographic factors influencing smartphone addiction in university students. 144 references alzubi, a. 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(2019). digital nativity and information technology addiction: age cohort versus individual difference approaches. computers in human behavior, 90, 1-9. doi:10.1016/j.chb.2018.08.031 https://www.citejournal.org/proofing/barriers-to-the-effective-use-of-technology-integration-in-social-studies-education/ https://www.citejournal.org/proofing/barriers-to-the-effective-use-of-technology-integration-in-social-studies-education/ research in social sciences and technology (ressat) e-issn: 2468-6891 the sustainability of pancasila in indonesian education system: a critical discourse analysis of legal texts on education ronald silalahi1 & untung yuwono2 abstract pancasila as the ideological foundation of indonesia is inseparable from education. in the implementation level, education is directed to build the values of pancasila through learning programs. however, indonesian education is still at an alarming condition, because the competencies of the graduates are not equivalent to the graduates from the other countries. this phenomenon underlies the formation of 2013 curricula that emphasizes on the development of pancasila values as the core competencies. this research was aimed at analyzing text in order to reconstruct pancasila ideology and discussing the steps to revitalize pancasila in indonesian education system. critical discourse analysis was conducted in three stages, namely text description (linguistic analysis), discursive practice, and socio-cultural practice of legal texts on education. the texts analyzed are texts that are the juridical foundation of 2013 curriculum. the results obtained in linguistic analysis are elaborated with the results of interviews with teachers and education practitioners to give an overview of indonesian education, the application of the 2013 curriculum as well as the steps that can be taken to revitalize pancasila in indonesian education system. the analysis revealed that the revitalization in indonesian education system is absolutely needed, because the values of pancasila as one of the core competencies that must be owned by the students have not been fundamentally and appropriately implemented in education and learning process. key words: indonesia, revitalization, ideological foundation, education system, juridical introduction the slogan saya indonesia, saya pancasila ‘i am indonesia, i am pancasila’ in mass media is an accurate portrayal of indonesian citizens’ love of pancasila as their national ideology (tunjung, 2017; kuwado, 2017; rimadi, 2017). this slogan is the answer to the anxiety of indonesian people over the issues of intolerance that are increasingly strengthening in every level of indonesian society. through the momentum of pancasila day, president joko widodo (the seventh president 1 dr, universitas bunda mulia, bomberrose@gmail.com 2 dr, universitas indonesia, untungy@gmail.com mailto:bomberrose@gmail.com mailto:untungy@gmail.com silalahi & yuwono of indonesia) invites the whole society of indonesia (as a diverse nation but still one) to return to pancasila and its old javanese phrase bhineka tunggal ika 'unity in diversity'. pancasila is indonesian national ideology. the term ‘ideology’ can be defined as the fundamental values and beliefs of groups and their members. similarly, wodak and meyer (2008) define this term as a collection of beliefs and values in societies which are the basis for the members to behave and act within social institution. pancasila is regarded as national ideology because the values of pancasila are the foundations and directions for indonesian citizen towards the vision and mission of the nation. strategically, pancasila can be seen from two perspectives. pancasila on one hand represents the wealth of indonesia as a country that has various ethnicities, languages and identities but unites within the framework of persatuan indonesia ‘indonesian unity’ (the third values of pancasila). on the other hand, this diversity can also be a latent issue that can endanger the unity and integrity of indonesia. these values of pancasila are implemented in various fields and served as the foundation for making various policies. the building of pancasila as indonesian national ideology of indonesia cannot be separated from the role of education. since the era of indonesian independence in 1945, education in indonesia is always directed to build indonesian society based on pancasila and the constitution of 1945 (government of republic of indonesia, 2003). indonesian students are taught about the history of nation's struggle to achieve independence, how to fill independence through community development, tolerance, and love of indonesian through several civic education subjects, such as pendidikan moral pancasila ‘pancasila moral education’, pendidikan sosial perjuangan bangsa ‘social education of nation struggle’, and kewarganegaraan ‘citizenship’ (santoso et al., 2013). leek (2016) states that civic education is directed to build learners’ knowledge on issues related to citizenship and government participation as well as to build learners' understanding of national ideology. education in indonesia aims at building the potential of students to become human beings who have skills, faith, and noble characters, as stated in the act of national education system research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (2), 58-78 60 education means conscious and well-planned effort in creating a learning environment and learning process so that learners will be able to develop their full potential for acquiring spiritual and religious strengths, develop self-control, personality, intelligence, morals and noble character and skills that one needs for him/herself, for the community, for the nation, and for the state. (government of republic of indonesia, 2003) the objectives above visibly show that education is directed to develop not only the academic competencies of the students, but also their non-academic competencies, such as character and nationalism. the act of national education system clearly shows that indonesian education was oriented towards the system of neoliberalism (silalahi et al., 2016). from the perspective of implementation, education is directed at the fulfillment of particular competencies through competency-based curriculum (silalahi et al., 2016). these competencies are built to provide graduates with several competencies to fulfill the demand of market, industries, and stakeholders (dusi, 2012). in the end, neoliberalism of education can undermine the ideology of pancasila that is oriented towards the development nationalism. education should not only focus on the fulfillment of industry demands but also on building learners’ character and spirit of nationalism. therefore, the government of indonesia should be able to accommodate these two goals through an education system which is in line with the values of pancasila and oriented toward the development of learners' quality and competence. the purpose of this study was to analyze indonesian ideological foundation of education portrayed in the 2013 curricula and their juridical foundation. the analysis is conducted by relying on fairclough (2003) three dimensional model consisting text analysis, discourse practice, and sociocultural practice. in addition, the analysis is also conducted in social and cultural context to find solutions to indonesian educational problems and discuss the steps to revitalize pancasila in indonesian education system. silalahi & yuwono pancasila as indonesian ideological foundation the word pancasila was morphologically formed from two sanskrit words, namely pañca meaning five and śīla meaning base. this term has been known since the age of majapahit (an ancient kingdom in the fourteenth century) in the book kertagama and sutasoma written by empu prapanca and empu tantular (asmawati & hasanah, 2016). pancasila as the foundation of indonesia was firstly proposed by soekarno, the first president of indonesia. president soekarno (1945) divided pancasila into five values, namely the value of nationalism, humanity, consensus, social welfare, and god’s supremacy. these five values were developed into five principles. the following are the principles and their implanted values translated and published by gumilar (2016). table 1 pancasila: the five guiding principles of indonesia no principle implanted values 1 ketuhanan yang maha esa ‘belief in the one and only god’ belief in god’s supremacy 2 kemanusiaan yang adil dan beradab ‘just and civilized humanity’ justice and humanity 3 persatuan indonesia ‘the unity of indonesia’ nationalism and tolerance 4 kerakyatan yang dipimpin oleh hikmat kebijaksanaan dalam permusyawaratan perwakilan ‘democracy guided by the inner wisdom in the unanimity arising out deliberations amongst representatives’ democracy (by relying on mutual agreement) 5 keadilan sosial bagi seluruh rakyat indonesia ‘social justice for all the people of indonesia’ social justice and equality critical discourse analysis in legal texts this research is directed to analyze language used in legal text by using cda in order to portray the ideology of pancasila. cda is an interdisciplinary approach in the study of discourse to analyze language and text as the representation of social phenomena (wodak & meyer, 2014). language is a tool used to represent social phenomena. therefore language analysis cannot be separated entirely from cda. gyuró (2015) states that linguistic analysis in cda is aimed to know the relation of power through lexical and grammatical elements. this is based on the belief that language is the part of ideological practices that shape the identity of society. this study applies research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (2), 58-78 62 cda approach because it focuses on linguistic analysis of legal texts (which is the primary data of the study). furthermore, the analysis is focused on discourse practice analysis (production, distribution, and consumption of the text) as well as socio-cultural practice one of the dimensions of cda that has always been associated with cda is public policy analysis or also known as discursive legitimation. discursive legitimation is one of the most important issues that are often discussed in political and social studies (haunss & schneider, 2013; vaara, & tienari 2008). the established policies have had a great impact on the community so that their formations take into account various aspects (van dijk, 2006)). researches on discursive legitimation were more directed to the analysis of language and power behind the formation of texts. in contrast to the previous studies, this paper gave emphasis not only on the language and power but also on the sociocultural contexts to contribute to the development of appropriate public policies. fairclough (1989: 2003) states that cda must be conducted by relying on three dimensional analyses (text description, discourse interpretation, and sociocultural explanation). text description: analysis of language text text descriptions are aimed to illustrate the ideologies that are cognitively constructed through text (fairclough, 1989: 2003), (wodak, & meyer, 2014). by using systemic functional linguistics (sfl), ideology communicated through the text is analyzed by focusing on the morphological (word) and syntax (phrase, clause, and sentence) aspects (aidinlou et al., 2014). the repetition of words and lexical choices in a text indicates ideologies that the sender is trying to persuade. in the context of discursive legitimation, policymakers emphasize the ideology conveyed by repeating words that are semantically related. in the sentence construction, the classification of verbs represents powers relation (hampl, 2017). by using the term transitivity, halliday (2014) represents language into processes, participants, and circumstances. the positions and types of word in the sentence show senders’ perspectives toward particular ideas. for example, the word pancasila as the subject of the sentence put different emphasis with the same word as the object. pancasila as the subject has the role as the silalahi & yuwono perpetrator of action performed by the verbs, while the word pancasila appeared as an object emphasizes the purpose of actions performed. discourse practice (interpretation) discourse interpretation (or discourse practice) put more emphasis on the context of communication (fairclough, 1989: 2003). contextual understanding provides an overview about why the communication process occurs. for example is the ideology of pancasila portrayed through indonesian national constitution reflects the communication process between the house of representatives and educational institutions. as the legislative body that forms the law, the house of representatives persuades educational institutions to follow the constitution that has been made and agreed. in this case, power plays a role in social institutions. sociocultural practice (explanation) sociocultural explanation provides an overview about social and cultural context affecting communication (fairclough, 1989: 2003). social conditions, historical events, and political issues offer explanations about the background of ideologies. in this paper, social explanation aims to explain the social and cultural phenomena influencing the building of pancasila ideology. öztürk (2015) state that social and economic aspects have a very close influence on education. the established educational policies represent the social and economic conditions occurring at a time. in fact, education is regarded as one way to solve social and economic problems that occur in the community (tarman &acun, 2010; tarman & dev, 2018). therefore, to be able to understand the education policy required a deep understanding of social and cultural aspects (tarman, 2016; 2017). method research design this is a descriptive qualitative research by using critical discourse analysis approach. analysis is done on legal texts on education (as primary data). findings in text analysis are elaborated with the conversations held with teachers and education practitioners (as secondary data). the research was aimed to analyze indonesian ideological foundation of education portrayed in the 2013 curricula and their juridical foundation. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (2), 58-78 64 data collection the following are the texts of the juridical foundations of curricula 2003 1. act of the republic of indonesia no 20 of 2003 on national education system (government of republic of indonesia, 2003), 2. government regulation no 19 of 2005 on national education standards (government of republic of indonesia, 2005), 3. government regulation no 32 of 2013 on changes in national education standards (government of republic of indonesia, 2013), 4. regulation of the minister of education and culture of the republic of indonesia no 54 of 2013 on graduate competency standards (minister of education and culture, 2013c), 5. regulation of the minister of education and culture of the republic of indonesia no 64 of 2013 on content standards (minister of education and culture, 2013a), 6. regulation of the minister of education and culture of the republic of indonesia no 65 of 2013 on process standards (minister of education and culture, 2013b), 7. regulation of the minister of education and culture of the republic of indonesia no 66 of 2013 on assessment standards (minister of education and culture, 2013d), 8. regulation of the minister of education and culture of the republic of indonesia no 67 of 2013 on basic framework for primary competencies (minister of education and culture, 2013e), 9. regulation of the minister of education and culture of the republic of indonesia no 68 of 2013 on basic framework for elementary competencies (minister of education and culture, 2013f), 10. regulation of the minister of education and culture of the republic of indonesia no 69 of 2013 on basic framework for high school competencies (minister of education and culture, 2013g), 11. regulation of the minister of education and culture of the republic of indonesia no 70 of 2013 on basic framework for vocational competencies (minister of education and culture, 2013h), 12. regulation of the minister of education and culture of the republic of indonesia no 71 of 2013 on eligible text books (minister of education and culture, 2013i), silalahi & yuwono analysis is done on the entire text of law above. it only focuses on the linguistic constituents, such as words, phrases, clauses, and sentences that semantically reflect the five pancasila values (belief in god’s supremacy, justice and humanity, nationalism and tolerance, democracy, and social justice and equality). these values are clearly reflected from the words found in the text. for example, the value of 'belief in god's supremacy' which is reflected in the word 'god', 'almighty god', and so on. data analysis the research was conducted by following fairclough (1989 & 2003) three dimensional models, including the analysis of text description (or language text), discourse interpretation, and sociocultural explanation. to help the process of analysis, antconc3 software was used to detect the word usage and syntactic construction in the text analyzed. focus group discussion (fgd) was conducted with 30 respondents consisting of teachers and educational practitioners from educational institutions and the ministry of education and culture to discuss a. the application of 2013 curriculum, b. 2013 curriculum weaknesses and strengths, and c. the efforts to revitalize pancasila as the foundation of indonesian education system. the reason of using teachers and educational practitioners in this research because the success in the education system is related to the understanding and participation of teachers (öztürk, 2015). therefore, an in-depth analysis of the teacher's view of the educational system is essentially needed. findings text description: linguistic analysis of 2013 curricula morphologically, the word pancasila was appeared several times in 2013 curricula and their juridical texts. in 2013 curricula, the study of pancasila is one of the compulsory subjects. understanding the values of pancasila is the core competencies that the students must possess. therefore, the ministry of education and culture and culture integrates the values of pancasila on a number of subjects. for example in buddhist education, the students are taught about the 3 anconc is a software used to concordance text (anthony, 2018) research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (2), 58-78 66 values of pancasila that are reflected in buddhist teachings and philosophies. this is also marked by the emergence of the frase pancasila budhist ‘buddhist pancasila’ as one of the competencies in the subject of buddhist education. antconc software showed that there are two things that get emphasis in 2013 curricula and their juridical texts judging from the level of word appearances, namely competence and pancasila. the word competence appeared in several syntactic constructions (phrase) such as a. kompetensi lulusan ‘graduate competencies’, b. sertifikat kompetensi ‘competency certificates’, c. standar kompetensi ‘competency standards’, d. kompetensi dasar ‘basic competencies’, e. kualifikasi kompetensi ‘competence qualifications’, f. kompetensi minimum ‘minimum competencies’, and others. meanwhile, the word pancasila appeared in the several syntactic constructions (phrase), such as a. pendidikan pancasila ‘pancasila education’, b. nilai pancasila ‘pancasila values’, c. latihan pancasila ‘pancasila practice’, d. moral pancasila ‘pancasila moral’, e. simbol pancasila ‘pancasila symbols’, f. perwujudan pancasila ‘the embodiment of pancasila’, and others. aidinlou et al (2014) states that the repetition of words shows the ideology that is persuaded through text. therefore, it is certain that the 2013 curriculum emphasizes educational ideology that focuses on the development of competencies and values of pancasila. the words pancasila appeared as the modifier of the word pendidikan ‘education’. the role of pancasila as a modifier emphasizes that pancasila is the underlying value in indonesian education. this is in line with the definition of education according to the act of the republic of indonesia no 20 of 2003 on national education system silalahi & yuwono national education is an education based on pancasila and the 1945 constitution of the republic of indonesia which is rooted in the values of religion, national culture of indonesia and responsive to the demands of times. (minister of education and culture, 2013d) the phrase ‘based on pancasila’ above indicates that pancasila is the foundation for indonesian education. therefore, the implementation of education must be in line with the values and principles of pancasila. the values of pancasila are integrated in the core and basic competencies of 2103 curricula. the table below is the summary of core and the basic competencies of 2013 curricula (minister of education and culture, 2013). table 2 core and basic competencies of 2013 curricula no core competencies basic competencies 1. 1 2. appreciating and practicing the teachings of religion. understanding the values of religious life appreciating the content and meaning of 1945 constitution of republic of indonesia 3. 2 4. maintaining and practicing honest, disciplined, responsible, caring, cooperative, tolerant, peaceful, responsive and proactive behaviors. demonstrating the problem solving attitudes for various issues. appreciating the values of pancasila in the society and nation. implementing the values in 1945 constitution of republic of indonesia appreciating the values in 1945 constitution of republic of indonesia in the various aspects such as ideological, political, economic, social, cultural, defense and security, and law. adopting tolerance between religions adopting the values of tolerance and harmony in diversity. adopting the values of democracy by prioritizing the principles of consensus in everyday life. 5. 3 6. understanding, applying, and analyzing the factual, conceptual, procedural, and intellectual knowledge analyzing the cases of human rights violations. protecting and promoting the values of humanism in accordance with pancasila. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (2), 58-78 68 no core competencies basic competencies based on science, technology, art, culture, and humanity understanding the philosophy in the 1945 constitution of the republic of indonesia 7. 4 8. processing, creating, and serving the real world and abstract domains in order to develop what they have learnt in school independently, effectively and creatively by using methods in accordance with the scientific principles presenting cases of human rights violations which are essentially contrary to the values of pancasila. the core and basic competencies in 2013 curriculum are aimed at building the values of pancasila through education oriented towards appreciating, practicing, maintaining, understanding, applying, analyzing, processing, creating, and serving (minister of education and culture, 2013). the ninth orientations can be semantically simplified into understanding (reflected in the word understanding), appreciating (reflected in appreciation), applying (as reflected in the word practicing and applying), analyzing (as reflected by word analyzing) and practicing (as reflected from the word practicing, processing, creating, and serving). this classification is based on the semantic similarity of words. these education orientations are directed to meet (implement) the five basic principles of pancasila. here are the five principles of pancasila and the competencies built in accordance with table 2 above. table 3 the values of pancasila and their competencies no values of pancasila orientation competencies 1. 1 belief in the one and only god appreciating and applying appreciating and practicing religious teaching (core and basic competencies 1 in table 2) 2 just and civilized humanity understanding, applying, and analyzing understanding, applying, and analyzing the values of humanism and nationalism (core and basic competencies 3 in table 2) 3 the unity of indonesia appreciating and practicing appreciating and practicing caring, cooperative, tolerant, and peaceful behaviors. (basic and core competencies 2 in table 2) silalahi & yuwono no values of pancasila orientation competencies 4 democracy guided by the inner wisdom in the unanimity arising out deliberations amongst representatives appreciating and practicing appreciating and practicing the principles of democracy (basic competencies 2 in table 2) 5 social justice for all the people of indonesia understanding, applying, and analyzing understanding, applying, and analyzing human right violations and social injustice (basic competencies 3 and 4 in table 2) the analysis above showed that indonesian education ideology is aimed to fulfill of the competencies which are further integrated into several subjects. this is done through learning methods oriented toward understanding, appreciating, applying, analyzing, and practicing. discourse interpretation: 2013 curricula as the forms of communication discourse interpretation provides an overview of ideology in the context of communication. text description showed that the formation and implementation of the 2013 curricula is based on the ideology of pancasila. from the context of communication (production and consumption), 2013 curricula and their juridical text can be viewed as a form of communication involving government, indonesian society, and educational institutions. 2013 curricula can be seen as form of communication involving the ministry of education and culture as the sender and educational institutions as the receivers of communication. the contextual analysis showed that the ministry of education through 2013 curricula provides a set of rules and goals that must be done by educational institutions. in line with the exposure in the text description, the rules and goals include the implementation of pancasila value and the improvement of learners' competencies. meanwhile, juridical texts bind the recipient to implement things in accordance with the provisions given. thoroughly, the juridical text is communicated by the government represented by a number of parties (such as house of representative, president of indonesia, the ministry of education and culture) to the subordinate institution. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (2), 58-78 70 table 4 juridical foundation from the context of communication no juridical texts sender (representatives) receiver 1. 1 act of the republic of indonesia no 20 of 2003 on national education system house of representative and the president of indonesia the minister of education and culture, education institution, indonesian citizen 2. 2 government regulation no 19 of 2005 on national education standards the president of indonesia the minister of education and culture, education institution, indonesian citizen 3. 3 government regulation no 32 of 2013 on changes in national education standards the president of indonesia the minister of education and culture, education institution, indonesian citizen 4. 4 regulation of the minister of education and culture of the republic of indonesia no 54 of 2013 on graduate competency standards the ministry of education and culture education institution 5. 5 regulation of the minister of education and culture of the republic of indonesia no 64 of 2013 on content standards the ministry of education and culture education institution 6. 6 regulation of the minister of education and culture of the republic of indonesia no 65 of 2013 on process standards the ministry of education and culture education institution 7. 7 regulation of the minister of education and culture of the republic of indonesia no 66 of 2013 on assessment standards the ministry of education and culture education institution 8. 8 regulation of the minister of education and culture of the republic of indonesia no 67 of 2013 on basic framework for primary competencies the ministry of education and culture education institution 9. 9 regulation of the minister of education and culture of the republic of indonesia no 68 of 2013 on basic framework for elementary competencies the ministry of education and culture education institution 10. 10 regulation of the minister of education and culture of the republic of indonesia no 69 of 2013 on basic framework for high school competencies the ministry of education and culture education institution 11. 11 regulation of the minister of education and culture of the republic of indonesia no 70 the ministry of education and culture education institution silalahi & yuwono no juridical texts sender (representatives) receiver of 2013 on basic framework for vocational competencies 12. 12 regulation of the minister of education and culture of the republic of indonesia no 71 of 2013 on eligible text books the ministry of education and culture education institution table 4 reveals that pancasila as the foundation of indonesian education system is communicated with the aim to be accepted and implemented by the subordinate educational institutions. regulations of the minister of education and culture (number 54, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68, 69, 70, and 71 of 2013) provide an overview about the basic framework of competencies at each level of education and the competency standards for students and educational institutions. the analysis shows that each level of education has different competency targets. sociocultural explanation: the background of 2013 curricula the deputy minister of education and culture in indonesia, stated that the formation of 2013 curriculum is motivated by the issues of globalization, economics, and advances in information technology at global scale (minister of education and culture, 2013e). on the global scale, indonesian education is categorized as one of the worst in the world because it is considered not to have high competitiveness. referring to political and economic risk consultant (perc) 2003, indonesian education system is considered as one of the worst in asia and among other developing countries (minister of education and culture, 2013f). graduate’s competencies in indonesia do not reach the standards of competence at global level. therefore, competence standardization is needed to improve student competitiveness in global scale. teachers’ and educational practitioners’ perception toward 2013 curricula focus group discussion with teachers and education practitioners showed that competence on the one hand builds an active, efficient, and creative classroom atmosphere. however, on the other hand, the regulation seems instantly made because there are still many teachers who are not ready to implement these curricula. preparation of teaching, assessment systems, and teaching methods based on the students’ achievement of certain competencies are a number of obstacles that hinder the implementation of 2013 curriculum. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (2), 58-78 72 in addition, many indonesian teachers are still adopting conventional learning methods, especially in learning strategies and assessments. in addition, the established policies are not evenly disseminated to all teachers. basically, indonesian government conducted a socialization of 2013 curriculum but only a few of the teachers invited to the event. indonesia's vast territory and limited facilities and infrastructure become one of the reasons that resulted in the dissemination process cannot be done evenly throughout the territory of indonesia. competency-based assessment is conducted in all areas, such as attitudes, skill, and knowledge. however, most teachers focus more on competencies related to academic skills and less emphasis on the other skills. pancasila which is integrated in core competence cannot be assessed with appropriate parameters. so in the end, teachers emphasize on the understanding and knowledge of pancasila and less on students' ability to appreciate, apply, and practice the values of pancasila. the lecturers argue that pancasila cannot be fully integrated in all lessons. for example, mathematics and physics lessons that focus on understanding and implementing algorithms cannot be used as a medium for developing tolerance and religious values as embodied in pancasila the practice and appreciation of pancasila cannot be measured by using certain competence standards. referring to the exposure above, pancasila’s sustainability in indonesian national education should be supported by a direct and applicable education system that also considers the aspects of understanding and application. the education system should consider its implementation in the level of teaching and the ability of educational institutions to implement educational designs. therefore, the formation of education system should involve government, educational institutions, education practitioners and the community. educational practitioners suggested that the 2013 curriculum needs to be studied more deeply. indonesia is not ready to fundamentally change its education system. facility, infrastructure and teaching competencies need to be improved and before making any significant changes in the education system. moreover, teachers need to be involved in the curriculum development process that is appropriate and in accordance with the competencies of teachers. as a conclusion, educational institutions in indonesia do not have readiness to apply the 2013 curriculum. silalahi & yuwono discussion, conclusion and implications this research was conducted by using cda approach with legal text on education as the primary data. analysis is done on linguistic elements such as words, phrases, and sentences. further, analysis is focused on discourse practices (production, distribution, and consumption of the text), as well as sociocultural practices. the ideology of pancasila is applied in the education system in indonesia. therefore, the goal of national education should be oriented towards the development of pancasila ideology. however, indonesian education is in an alarming condition marked by the poor indonesian graduates’ competence standards even when compared to other countries in asia. the deterioration of indonesian education in terms of graduate competence has become the foundation for the formation of the 2013 curriculum that is oriented towards the achievement of certain competencies. linguistic analysis of texts (legal texts) showed that indonesian education is aimed to fulfill the competencies and pancasila itself is one of the competencies that students must possess. the values of pancasila in 2013 curriculum are further integrated into several subjects through learning methods that are oriented toward understanding, appreciating, applying, analyzing, and practicing. discourse interpretations revealed that the 2013 curriculum and its juridical foundation (legal texts) is a form of communication between the government and the subordinate institutions. this communication process binds educational institutions to accept and implement the values of pancasila in each level of education. sociocultural explanations showed that the formation of the 2013 curricula is the reaction to indonesia's poor educational conditions. indonesian education is also considered unable to meet the competency standards at the global level. fgds with teachers and education practitioners show that the 2013 curriculum has not been able to implement the values of pancasila through the subjects. in addition, indonesian teachers are considered not to have sufficient capability in the application of pancasila. the integration of pancasila in the 2013 curriculum was actually weakening the values of pancasila itself. the government should consider the implementation of 2013 curriculum and the impacts that can be generated through the alteration of the education system significantly. in research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (2), 58-78 74 addition, the formation of education policy should involve the government, educational institutions and practitioners as well as teachers to bridge all parties involved in education. acknowledgement the paper is fully authorized by the directorate of research and community service, directorate general of research and development reinforcement ministry of research, technology and higher education of the republic of indonesia and the part of a doctoral dissertation research grant. silalahi & yuwono references aidinlou, n., dehgan, h., & khorsand, m. 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(2014). critical discourse analysis: history, agenda, theory, and methodology. methods of critical discourse analysis, 1–33. https://doi.org/10.1016/s03767361(09)70018-4 http://ressat.org/index.php/ressat/article/view/363 research in social sciences and technology (ressat) e-issn: 2468-6891 extent of students’ practices as digital citizens in the 21st century salvacion mata-domingo1 & nenita guerrero2 abstract this study aims to determine the level or extent of practices on the norms or behaviours of the participants with regard to the use of technology. it is technically termed as digital citizenship. a researcher-made survey questionnaire patterned from an online article with slight modification is the main tool used in this study. the research setting of this study is in one of the colleges in the sultanate of oman. the participants are two hundred randomly selected students who are officially enrolled in levels 5 and 6 in the academic year 2016-2017. the result of the study dwelled on the three main indicators namely: respect yourself and/or respect others; educate yourself and/or connect with others; and protect yourself and/or protect others. the findings revealed that gender and educational level impacts the level or extent of norms that are applied in terms of technology use. it was manifested by the participants that self-education and connection with others is practiced by them at an extent higher than their selfrespect and respect to others. furthermore, it can be concluded that males are more sensible than females when it comes to self-education and/or connection with others as applied in the use of technology. according to what was shown by most of the participants, protecting oneself or protecting others is generally at a lesser extent of practice by them. some of the male and female participants are less conscious on what is meant by digital health and wellness keywords: practices, respect, educate and protect yourself, digital citizenship introduction nowadays, the issue about digital citizenship is captivating the interest of researchers, technology leaders, teachers, parents and students. it is undeniable that around the globe, numerous societies still lack awareness about the significance of digital citizenship. many times people are subjected to the misuse and abuse of technology (leek, 2016; yigit & tarman, 2013; 2016). the issue on digital citizenship does not focus only on how it is to be used but also includes the norms or behaviors that are appropriate in using the technology. the way users act online could be a challenge, test, trial or a lesson to others. users must know how to act using a technology since what is done today could be imitated by the new 1 lecturer faculty of computing sciences, salvacion.sally@gulfcollege.edu.om 2 faculty majan college (university college),nenita.guerrero@majancollege.edu.om mata-domingo & guerrero generation. ribble (2014) to continue, according to ribble (2014) digital citizenship is a concept which helps the users to apprehend what they should know in order to use the technology in a correct, proper and suitable manner. he added that, “digital citizenship is more than just a teaching tool. it is the norms of appropriate, responsible technology use”. there are different researches conducted in relation to information and communication technology (ict) but only few studies showed about how a digital citizen would conduct himself in the society. thus, this research was conducted to determine the extent of participants’ norms as to the use of technology. literature review digital age is here. it moves the people very quickly. since technology changes the way people learn and the manner teachers do their teaching activities, every individual has to take care of his own responsibility for understanding the changes. according to orth and chen (2013), digital citizenship education becomes effective only if it is focused on being a good citizen and exercising good judgment so that students would use the digital technology in a responsible and respectful manner. the study conducted by jones and mitchell (2016) revealed that there is a collective interest in improving digital citizenship by educating the younger generations. thus, teachers must be updated since there are always new literacies or knowledge that overtake the traditional literacies (larson, miller, & ribble, 2009). jones and mitchell (2016) suggested to improve education by narrowing its focus on (1) respectful behavior online and (2) online civic engagement. the researchers bocar and biong (2015) mentioned that “the internet, social network sites like skype, facebook, youtube, and mobile phones are examples of information and communication technologies that bring convenience and expediency to people’s activities today. some of the jobs of the scientists can be done even if they are just sitting in front of their computers with internet connections. furthermore, they said that “… technologies are useful; however, careful management and utilization of these devices should be well taken so that other activities … will not be much affected”. to understand better, the researchers outlined simple explanation about the different indicators which are utilized in this study. the highlight of the enlightenments are expressed in bold letters. they are arranged according to how they appear in the researcher made survey research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 134-148 136 questionnaire. ribble and bailey (2005) words implies that the learners must be taught on how to learn anything, anywhere and anytime. this can be done by allowing everyone to partake in a digital society. this represents digital access. in the use of technology the users must remember that what they do in public affects the others. the avoidance of doing an act which causes disturbance or disruption to others like turning the personal electronic equipment to silent mode or putting off either in the classroom or outside are signs that a person is observing proper manners. teachers must instruct their students that by so doing is an act of politeness and the exercise of proper manners termed as etiquette. it must be noted that the students we have today are the adults in the future. they would follow what they have observed from the adults today. to continue, the affirmative side of technology integration can be highlighted by the teachers without over-emphasizing rules and regulations regarding the application of the norms as digital citizens. the students must be taught on what is proper and dishonorable behavior in the use of technology. in this situation a law is underscored. digital commerce can be viewed as transactions which involved the buying and selling of goods and services online. parents, teachers, and school leaders has the duty to teach the students that they must buy goods online in a legitimate manner and they must be informed also what the consequences are if they are not making judicious decisions of their acts which involve online transactions. the students must be equipped with the knowledge highlighting on privacy, identity theft, and credit card protection. in the present days the fastest way of communication is through the use of technology. most of the people and companies convey basic information through electronic communication; however, face to face communication is much more efficient and effective when the circumstances involves sensitive, personal, or negative information. in the area of education, it is more appreciated when the information will arrive when needed. this practice needs diligent searching and processing skills such as information literacy and technology skills. in short, learners must not be left behind. they should be aware that, in this time, the learning of anything with the help of technology can be done anytime, and at anywhere. concerted effort to learn what is right or wrong is necessary to ascertain and understand the correct and proper use of technology and teachers must be prepared to provide some information on time to the students. this is one of the ways that literacy in the use of technology can be helped by the educators. digital citizenship encompasses educating a new kind or group of people with a high degree of information mata-domingo & guerrero literacy skills so that they will be able to impart their knowledge appropriately to the users of technology. digital responsibility deals with the descent and moral use of technology. students should be informed that to steal other people’s work or cause damage to other people’s identity or property is not within the bounce of digital citizenship. unethical acts like “creating web sites that are demeaning or defaming to others, hacking into another person’s computer information, downloading music illegally, plagiarizing, or creating and distributing worms, viruses, or trojan horses” represents malicious and unethical behavior. thus, they should be avoided. in engaging some works which involve the use of technology students must be warned that there are inherent dangers in it. it is everyone’s responsibility to take care his or her health and wellness. the eyes are the part of the body which are most involved when it comes to digital work and thus, eye safety must be guarded. this is what is meant by digital safety. as members of the digital world, one needs to be careful and must be skilled in digital security measures. one must know how to protect his or her electronic work. for example through creating a back-up data, or using passwords even though it is not a one hundred percent secured since there are some other people who can hack other’s work. the digital security must be exercised by the person himself. it cannot be trusted to anybody else. conceptual framework this study focuses on the norms of the participants that are appropriate while using the technology. the practices or the norms applied by the users is termed as digital citizenship. the schematic diagram below shows the flow of the study. the main indicators and subindicators therein are patterned from the online article of mike ribble (2014). they are the significant components that lead the successful gathering of data. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 134-148 138 figure 1. schematic diagram on the flow of the study the problem this study was conducted to determine the norms or behavior which are appropriately practiced by the participants with regard to technology use. specifically, the researchers desired to answer the following: (1) what is the extent of students’ digital practices in one of the colleges in muscat? (2) as manifested by the participants, which participants’ profile  gender  educational level o 5 o 6 educate yourself and / or connect with others 1. digital commerce 2. digital communication 3. digital literacy protect yourself and/ or protect others 1. digital rights & responsibilities 2. digital health & wellness 3. digital security respect yourself and /or respect to others 1. digital access 2. digital etiquette 3. digital law digital citizenship mata-domingo & guerrero among the sub-indicators of the three main indicators that the extent of students’ digital practices contrasted most based on their: (a) gender, and (b) educational level (5 and 6)? (3) which among the three main indicators namely: respect yourself and/or respect others; educate yourself and/or connect with others; protect yourself and/or protect others, is practiced by the participants at very great extent? significance of the study this study is conducted to find the answer of the problems listed herein. furthermore, the researchers intended to contribute some information to the existing literature regarding the issues on digital citizenship through the results of this research. the researchers enthusiastically hope that the output of this study would help other researchers who are conducting relevant studies similar to this present work. scope and limitation there are numerous issues faced by users of modern technology at present; however, the researchers opted to do this investigative work which concentrated only in one of the private colleges in the sultanate of oman to make it certain that it can be done within the allotted time. the participants are selected from those who are willing to participate and officially enrolled during the academic year 2016-2017. method the descriptive survey method was utilized in this study. the researchers made a questionnaire patterned from the online article of mike ribble (2014) titled “nine elements digital citizenship” with slight modification. in this article it discussed about the nine themes as regards to the norms that a certain digital citizen must practice. each theme has a corresponding description and from there on, the researchers extracted the ideas and constructed the different indicators in order to arrive at the intended result of this survey. this researcher-made survey questionnaire was the main tool for gathering the data. moreover, ribble (2014) grouped the different behavior of the users of technology into three and these are respect yourself or respect others; educate yourself or connect with others, research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 134-148 140 and protect yourself or protect others. under these three groups are the nine themes of digital citizenship which composed of the following in its digital manner: ( 1) access, ( 2) etiquette, (3 ) law, (4 ) commerce, (5 ) communication, ( 6) literacy, (7) rights & responsibilities, ( 8) health & wellness, (9 ) security (self-protection). based on the earlier mentioned nine themes, the researchers constructed nine indicators, respectively, as follows: (1) my goal as a digital citizen is to provide and expand access of technology to those who lacks the opportunity. (2) i act according to rules and policy and conduct myself based on the appropriate electronic standards in the society. (3)to abide the laws is my manifestation of ethics of technology within a society. (4) in buying some goods electronically i study carefully whether the company or business i am dealing with is legal. (5) when i communicate with other people electronically i know what appropriate decisions i should make before the exchange of information. (6) i learn that technology and its usage cover anything, anytime and anywhere. (7) i help others to define how the technology is to be used in an appropriate manner since it is one of my digital rights and responsibilities. (8) i know about the inherent dangers of technology and thus it keeps myself digitally well and healthy. (9) i installed virus protection, backups for my data, and surge control in my equipment. furthermore, for purposes of interpretation on the gathered data the weighted mean is used. consequently, to enable appropriate discussion the researchers prepared their scale of measurement as shown below: numeric value hypothetical mean range qualitative description verbal interpretation 1 1.00 1.75 less extent means the respondents practice it occasionally 2 1.76 – 2.50 less great extent means the respondents practice it majority of the time 3 2.51 – 3.25 great extent means the respondents practice it most of the time mata-domingo & guerrero 4 3.26 – 4.00 very great extent means the respondents practice it at all times in addition, the research instrument used was administered in one of the colleges in the sultanate of oman. the research participants are the randomly selected officially enrolled students in level 5 and 6 in the academic year 2016-2017. to ascertain the sample of the population the researchers gathered the data from the 200 selected students which composed of the equal number of male and female. thus, the 100 male students are coming level 5 and 6 and the same number female students are coming the same educational level. prior to the administration of the survey questionnaire the researchers ask permission from the department head that they will be allowed to gather data from the students. after the approval data were collected, tallied, interpreted and analyzed. results and discussion the succeeding tables below highlight the outcome of the study. the participants revealed the extent of the norms or behavior that they practice while using the technology. the discussion is based on the different main indicators with its corresponding sub-indicators. the first main indicator as identified by ribble (2014) is respect yourself and / or respect to others. as mentioned in the earlier part of this paper it has three sub-indicators and these three indicators are streamlined through few description, to wit: digital access means full electronic participation in society; digital etiquette signifies electronic standards of conduct or procedure; digital law indicates electronic responsibility for actions and deeds. these three description are further simplified by the researchers which are displayed in the methodology section. it can be observed in table 1 below as shown in the factor average that all participants manifested their digital citizenship at great extent to the main indicator called respect yourself and / or respect to others. generally, this signifies that at most of the time they value selfworthiness and likewise to other person. according to ribble (2014) digital access means full electronic participation in the society. in the result of this study, it is noticed that there is a variation on the extent of the digital access extended by the participants to people who lacks the opportunity. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 134-148 142 table 1 extent of participants’ digital citizenship as regards to respect yourself indicator main indicators with its sub-indicators level 5 level 6 male female male female respect yourself and /or respect to others item average ( µ ) qd item average ( µ ) qd item average ( µ ) qd item average ( µ ) qd 1. digital access 2.48 lge 1.74 le 2.64 ge 1.90 lge 2. digital etiquette 3.12 ge 3.02 ge 3.08 ge 2.98 ge 3. digital law 2.74 ge 3.00 ge 2.94 ge 3.08 ge factor average 2.78 ge 2.59 ge 2.89 ge 2.65 ge the digital access or full electronic participation in the society as manifested by the male participants in level 5 show at less great extent which means that the level of their practice is at majority of the time, while the male participants in level 6 show at great extent or most of the time. this signifies that though they are of the same gender they do not display the same degree of extending digital access to the people. moreover, the participants from level 5 presents less interest in extending digital access to the people in the society as compared with level 6. on the other hand, as revealed by the female participants in level 5 their electronic participation in the society is at less extent, while the female participants in level 6 demonstrate the extent of their participation at less great extent. at this instance the female establish similar outcome with the male participants. the females show that though they have the same gender they do not have same degree of extending digital access. in addition, the extension of digital access to the people in the society by the females in level 5 is done occasionally, while the female participants in level 6 is at majority of the time. this indicates that the females in level 5 shows much lesser concern in extending digital access to the people in the society as compared with level 6. legend: hypothetical mean range qualitative description(qd) verbal interpretation 1.00 1.75 less extent le means that participants practice it occasionally 1.76 2.50 less great extent lge means that participants practice it majority of the time 2.51 3.25 great extent ge means that participants practice it most of the time 3.26 4.00 very great extent vge means that participants practice it at all times mata-domingo & guerrero the table 2 below reveals the result of the extent of participants’ digital citizenship as regards to the indicator labelled as educate yourself and / or connect with others. similar to the first main indicator mentioned in table 1 it has three sub-indicators as displayed in table 2. these three sub-indicators has corresponding simple explanation from the author of the online article where the instrument used in this study is patterned. table 2 extent of participants’ digital citizenship as regards to educate yourself indicator main indicators with each sub-indicators item average level 5 level 6 male female male female educate yourself and / or connect with others item avera ge ( µ ) qd item average ( µ ) qd item average ( µ ) qd item average ( µ ) qd 1. digital commerce 3.44 vge 2.96 ge 3.44 vge 2.74 ge 2. digital communication 3.28 vge 3.48 vge 3.42 vge 3.34 vge 3. digital literacy 3.06 ge 2.90 ge 3.30 vge 2.94 ge factor average 3.26 vge 3.11 ge 3.39 vge 3.01 ge ribble (2014) said “digital commerce implies electronic buying and selling of goods; digital communication means electronic exchange of information and digital literacy refers to process of teaching and learning about technology and the use of technology”. these three subindicators are given life by the researchers as it is discussed in the methodology part of this study. after the collection of the responses it was found that the male participants in level 5 and 6 educate themselves as digital citizens at very great extent as reflected in the factor average in table 2. this signifies that in using the technology they educate themselves at all times. on the other hand, the female participants (levels 5 and 6) manifested that in using the technology they educate themselves at great extent. this means that their application of the norms as digital legend: hypothetical mean range qualitative description verbal interpretation 1.00 1.75 less extent le means that participants practice it occasionally 1.76 2.50 less great extent lge means that participants practice it majority of the time 2.51 3.25 great extent ge means that participants practice it most of the time 3.26 4.00 very great extent vge means that participants practice it at all times research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 134-148 144 citizen is done most of the time. the results reveals that the males are more conscious when it comes to self-education and/or connect with others as applied in use of technology. moreover, the variation is demonstrated in sub-indicator called digital literacy. in this part, male in the level 5 expresses their digital citizenship at great extent or most of the time while the males in level 6 demonstrate at very great extent or at all times. this means that the former group of participants practice their digital citizenship at lesser extent as regards to digital literacy as compared to the latter. the table 3 below discussed the results as demonstrated by participants. correspondingly, the discussion focuses on the third main indicator of this study which is the protect yourself and / or protect others. this main indicator has three sub-indicators which are also given simple meaning by ribble (2014). table 3 extent of participants’ digital citizenship as regards to protect yourself indicator main indicators with each sub-indicators item average level 5 level 6 male female male female protect yourself and/ or protect others item averag e ( µ ) qd item average ( µ ) qd item average ( µ ) qd item average ( µ ) qd 1. digital rights & responsibilities 2.44 lge 1.70 le 2.18 lge 1.70 le 2. digital health & wellness 2.26 lge 1.74 le 2.92 ge 1.88 lge 3. digital security 2.42 lge 2.04 lge 2.78 ge 2.66 ge factor average 2.37 lge 1.83 lge 2.73 ge 2.08 lge according to ribble (2014) “ digital rights & responsibilities denotes to those freedoms extended to everyone in a digital world; digital health & wellness indicates physical and psychological well-being in a digital technology world; and digital security (self-protection) stands for electronic precautions to guarantee safety”. in order to make legend: hypothetical mean range qualitative description (qd) verbal interpretation 1.00 1.75 less extent le means that participants practice it occasionally 1.76 2.50 less great extent lge means that participants practice it majority of the time 2.51 3.25 great extent ge means that participants practice it most of the time 3.26 4.00 very great extent vge means that participants practice it at all times mata-domingo & guerrero it more understandable the researchers interpreted them and constructed the implication of the subindicators as mentioned in the methodology section. in the table 3 above, it is clear in the factor average that most of the participants namely: males in level 5, females in level 5 and 6 signify that they practice their digital citizenship at less great extent. this means that the extent of their norms in the use of technology is at majority of the time. nevertheless, the males in level 6 show that they apply their digital citizenship at great extent. this means that at most of the time they observe appropriate norms in the use of technology. in this third main indicator (protect yourself and / or protect others) it is noticed that the manifestation of the participants in the two of the three sub-indicators which are digital health & wellness, and digital security greatly differ among the two different genders. however, they vary most in digital health and wellness indicator. the degree of their digital citizenship as to digital health and wellness indicator which is expound as knowledge about the inherent dangers of technology differs a lot between gender and among educational level. the males in level 5 show that their digital citizenship in it is practiced at less great extent or at majority of the time while the males in level 6 said that they practice it at great extent or most of the time. this means that the males in level 5 are less conscious on their health as compared to males in level 6. on the other hand the females in level 5 said that their digital citizenship practice as to digital health & wellness is at less extent or occasionally while the females in level 6 held it at less great extent or majority of the time. this clearly shows that females in level 5 are less mindful as to their health & wellness while using the technology as compared with their counterpart. being healthy is one of the important parts in the life of every person. the reason to be healthy is clearly showed by the responses of the participants. in its over-all point, regardless of gender and educational level the mentioned sub-indicator is carefully practiced by the participants at different extent. the table 4 below displays the result with respect to the determination on which one of the three main indicators is practiced by the participants of level 5 and 6 at very great extent. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 134-148 146 table 4 summary on which main indicator is practiced at very great extent main indicator male female level 5 level 6 level 5 level 6 factor average ( µ ) qd factor average ( µ ) qd factor average ( µ ) qd factor average ( µ ) qd 1. respect yourself and/or respect others 2.78 ge 2.89 ge 2.59 ge 2.65 ge 2. educate yourself and/or connect with others 3.26 vge 3.39 vge 3.11 ge 3.01 ge 3. protect yourself and/or protect others 2.37 lge 2.73 ge 1.83 lge 2.08 lg e based on the result on table 4, it can be observed that the no.2 main indicator (educate yourself and / or connect with others) is practiced at very great extent. this means that the male participants applied this norms at all times although the factor average displayed under level 5 (µ = 3.26) signifies a difference with level 6 (µ = 3.39). moreover, both of them are within the same mean range. on the other hand, as regards to the responses of the female participants, none among the three main indicators showed being practiced by the participants at very great extent. nevertheless, it disclosed that the no. 1 and no.2 main indicators are practiced by the females in level 5 and level 6 at great extent. furthermore, it can be determined that they are in the same range; however, as we examine it closely it is the no. 2 main indicator (educate yourself and / or connect with others) got the highest factor average as expressed by level 5(µ =3.11) and level 6 (µ =3.01) female participants. this signifies that both groups of participants are practicing this norm as digital citizen at most of the time. findings after the careful analysis of the gathered data the researchers drawn the following findings with regard to the three main indicators. legend: hypothetical mean range qualitative description (qd) verbal interpretation 1.00 1.75 less extent le means that participants practice it occasionally 1.76 2.50 less great extent lge means that participants practice it majority of the time 2.51 3.25 great extent ge means that participants practice it most of the time 3.26 4.00 very great extent vge means that participants practice it at all times mata-domingo & guerrero in the main indicator no. 1 that is respect yourself and / or respect to others it was found that the male and female participants at levels 5 ad 6 manifested that their digital citizenship in the above mention indicator is at great extent. the participants’ digital citizenship varied most with respect to the sub-indicator called digital access or full electronic participation in the society (see table 1). with respect to the main indicator no 2 that is educate yourself and / or connect with others, the male participants ( level 5 and 6 ) manifested that their digital citizenship in this indicator is at very great extent. the female participants (levels 5 and 6) manifested that their digital citizenship is at great extent. the participants’ digital citizenship varied most in subindicator called digital literacy (see table 2). in the main indicator no 3 that is protect yourself and / or protect others the males in level 5 and females in levels 5 and 6 signify that their digital citizenship in this indicator is at less great extent. the males in level 6 show that their digital citizenship in this indicator is at great extent. the participants’ digital citizenship varied most in sub-indicator called digital health and wellness (see table 3). discussion, conclusion and implications in the present time technology plays an important role in the life of the individuals in the globe. however, it is essential that people must know the appropriate manner of using the technology to avoid harmful effects to oneself and not to put other people in danger. this study revealed that different genders and at different educational levels have diverse extent or level of applied norms in the use of technology. it is believed that a person who has knowledge in everything that he would do is important. as manifested by the participants it was found out that self-education and connection with others is practiced by them at an extent higher than their self respect and respect to others. furthermore, it can be concluded from the findings that the male is more sensible than women when it comes to self-education and/or connect with others as applied in use of technology. in addition, according to what was shown by most of the participants, protecting oneself or protecting others is generally at a lesser extent of practice by them. some of the males and females participants are less conscious on what is meant by digital health and wellness. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 134-148 148 references bocar, a. and biong, c. 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(2016). how do different ethnicities approach to the education system and differences in turkey? italian sociological review, 6(3), 339-353. 10.13136/isr.v6i3.119 http://digitalcitizenship.net/uploads/technologyturningpointsteachertalk.pdf http://digitalcitizenship.net/publications.html research in social sciences and technology (ressat) e-issn: 2468-6891 unlocking the power of inquiry: a case study on elementary science professional development program ramla poonawala1 abstract elementary teachers often struggle with how to design and implement inquiry instruction with their students. this study examines the awareness of inquiry-based teaching amongst elementary science teachers through a workshop intervention, conducted in a private school in karachi, pakistan. the case study design deployed, highlighted the learning experiences of 24 participants that took part in the professional development workshop. a qualitative survey was carried before the intervention followed by focus group discussion and participant observations after the intervention. the findings of this study were that before the science training the participants were superficially aware of the fundamentals of inquirybased methods and techniques and knew its importance. however, in-depth process knowledge and skills/strategies required for an effective inquiry was an identifiable shortcoming. because of the workshop, the participants demonstrated an improved understanding of what entails an inquiry process and features of scientific inquiry. this research should inspire and inform professional developers about gap in inquirybased science teachings. furthermore, the study aims to motivate private schools in pakistan to invest in inquiry-based science teaching as a tangible long-term benefit which can translate into better teaching practitioner. key words: inquiry based teaching, scientific inquiry, elementary science introduction pakistan education statistics 2015‐16 shows that 48 % of teachers are employed in private sector education. private schools have catered to the gap left by the public school (warsi, 2005) but getting supply of adequately trained teachers is still a challenge. due to rapid growth in the number of private schools in pakistan, it is easy to get teaching job without any formal teacher training and/or education. pakistan education for all 2015 national review report states that very few teachers employed have a teaching degree from a university. 1 ms elm, and science coordinator in private school, ramla.hozi@gmail.com mailto:ramla.hozi@gmail.com poonawala the role of the teacher is to develop conceptual understanding in an effective manner. the lack of professional development and lack of pedagogical knowledge inhibits teacher to elicit student’s conceptual knowledge before or after the lesson. in a research conducted by plourde (2002) it was noted that less than one third of the teachers in elementary school felt that they were qualified to teach science. major reason for this was perhaps many elementary teachers were not taught by their teachers the investigative methodology and as such the cycle persists (nabors, 1999). it’s a cycle that continues to perpetuate itself as the teachers emulate the teachers that they have had when they were in school. the teachers in pakistan are used to teacher centric methodology which is a one-sided imparting of scientific knowledge. this means that the knowledge of students is text book based and in fact they do not learn but memorize concepts to get through standardized tests and core concepts remains naïve in their minds (christie & afzaal, 2005; halai, 2008; tarman & kuran, 2015; yigit & tarman, 2016). because of the acuteness of the problems discussed above, inquiry-based teaching methods have been recommended by professionals (nrc, 2000; anderson, 2002; khan, 2012; erbilgin, 2017) to help teachers to improve their learning in science education as well as to widen their interest in science and develop their personal scientific literacy. for an effective delivery of inquiry-based lesson a science teacher require experience related to inquiry (akhter, 2013). however, no research has been carried by private sector education either at regional and national level that objectively measure conception of inquiry-based practices of in-service teachers in science classroom. this research outlines a case study of an elite private school in karachi, pakistan that engages elementary science teachers to experience inquiry-based science education through series of professional development workshops. the salient research questions of the study are addressed below 1. what do teachers know about inquiry-based teaching and learning in science before the professional development workshop? 2. how does teacher’s awareness of inquiry-based science concepts improve after the professional development intervention? research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 74-85 76 method research design based on interpretivist philosophy a case study methodology was used to investigate the research question. the target audience (respondents) of the study were twenty-four elementary science teachers from grade 1 to 5 of an elite private school. the school is of socio-economic class (sec) a+, educated parents and the school is consciously working on professional development of all teachers. the school follows british curriculum (o-levels). there has been a lot of emphasis on in-house training and development of teachers in workshops on subjects of math and english but there have been no such workshops on science. intervention plan the science training workshop plan was adopted from online curriculum for professional developer developed by institute of inquiry 2(ifi funded by national science foundation). the primary goal of the training and development workshop was to plant a seed in the minds of the teachers so that they can reflect on their current practices and provide strategies to learn science by inquiry based activities. the workshop aimed to bring about small but reflective change in teacher’s belief pattern by providing them with the teaching best practices of inquiry based teaching techniques. the overview of the workshop is mentioned in table 1. table 1: overview of workshop intervention plans table-1 overview of workshop intervention plans session 1: introduction to inquiry facilitator introduces the aims and objectives of the science professional development workshop. after the brief introduction about the workshop. the researcher conducted survey to elicit in-service teacher’s prior knowledge and belief about inquiry based pedagogy from all the teachers attending the workshop session 2 : comparing approaches this part of the workshop required a lot of planning. three different workstations of hands on lessons were set up structured, guided and open inquiry. teachers carried out simple investigation in groups. after carrying out the investigation they were asked to consider how and why each approach may be effectively used in the classroom. discuss the limitations of each approach. session 3: science process skills activities and plan adapted from the professional development curriculum from the institute of inquiry. 2 https://www.exploratorium.edu/education/ifi/workshops/fundamentals poonawala there are two parts to this workshop. 1. in part one teacher worked in pairs, rotating through five very short hands-on tasks that required the use of different science process skills. 2. after providing the opportunities to experience the process skills the facilitator formally introduces different process skills required for inquiry and discussed the importance of skills at different developmental levels session 4: scientific method teachers underwent two complete guided investigations. scientific method was formally introduced. they designed their investigation, collected data, organized and interpreted data using graphs and tables and draw conclusion based on evidence. session 5& 6: subtle shift this workshop was designed in three parts: part 1 teachers were provided with three different activities of the same topic. teachers analysed each activity critically among groups to identify the skill based learning through each activity. in addition to this they compared all three activities and identified and analysed the level of learner control given by the teacher. part 2 to further solidify and practice shifting of traditional lessons to inquiry based lesson plan. participants worked in groups to bring subtle shifts in their lessons. part 3 teachers read excerpts of case studies related to effective inquiry based practices. after reading teachers reflected in groups and identified features of inquiry learning. population and sample/ study group/participants purposive sampling technique was deployed while selecting the teachers. it was done on purpose based on grade level and number of subjects they taught. sample included only those teachers who taught multiple subjects along with science subject. the teaching experience ranged 0 15 years and demonstrated diverse levels of competence and knowledge base in science. data collection tools data was collected at different times during the span of the study and as such this ensured that progression of the concepts learned were explored and documented accordingly. initial conception and understanding of inquiry-based science teaching was collected using preworkshop survey forms having both open and close ended questions. keeping in view the research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 74-85 78 qualitative nature of the research questions data was collected at different stages of the workshop intervention through participant observation and focus group discussions. data collection the data collection of participant observations was done through pre-designed observation check list along with journal entry of field notes. all the focus group discussions were recorded on audio tape and the contents were transcribed and analyzed. data analysis pre intervention survey data showed that most of the participants demonstrated positive perceptions about benefits of inquiry based teaching. almost all respondents connected inquiry based teaching to generation of curiosity among learners. they knew that inquiry based teaching “engages students to become inquisitive about learning”. they believed that this approach provides “students with a platform to question, explore and investigate the world around them. when students inquire they learn the reasons, facts and logic behind a certain matter.” inquiry through engagement in science questions is as per the nses which states that such activity refers to the variety of activities involving students and teachers through which they develop the knowledge and understanding of scientific concepts (nrc, 2000). teachers believed that “inquiry leads to better understanding as this mode of teaching generates enthusiasm/motivation amongst students”. “when students relate subject learning to their prior knowledge they will eventually take more from the subject matter”. data shows that although teachers have positive beliefs about inquiry based teaching but they do not have detailed understanding of different levels of inquiry and essential features of classroom inquiry. post intervention the findings of focus group discussions and field notes after the session are summarized under following themes: poonawala different approaches towards inquiry after the intervention participant teachers shared their understanding through focus group discussion about features of three different approaches towards inquiry. there conception on different approaches towards inquiry are compiled in table-2. table 2: comparison of different investigations structured guided open-ended  teacher has full control over the problem or questions being addressed and outcome of the problem  teacher has control over the procedure, materials to use advantage:  easier to manage  controlled environment  clear instructions  known outcome  suitable when time and material limitations.  better for early age groups  safe and risk free for teachers disadvantage:  limited skill-based learning.  low level thinking i.e. completely teacher controlled.  not much room for exploration  minimal discussion  limited freedom of thought  teacher has control over the questions being addressed.  both teacher and learner have shared control over procedure of the investigation. advantage:  opportunity to think critically and out of box  promotes competition and collaborative work  encourages discussion and engagement  allowing students to apply concepts.  room for mistakes and trial and error (for student and teacher) disadvantage:  less curiosity as questions proposed by teacher and not child  overwhelming for students with little or no background knowledge  requires higher degree of teacher involvement (scaffolding).  learner has full control on all aspects of the approach.  learner poses the question, designs and plans the investigation and uncovers the outcome. advantage:  highest level of thought involved  skill based active engagement  improves questioning skills  exposure to various ideas (exploration skills) and variety of tools  ownership of work in students.  creates opportunity to pose questions, inquire, reflect, infer and conclude  this stays as a long-term learning and impacts the student.  problem solving skills disadvantage:  overwhelming  chaotic resulting in classroom issues  safety issues for students  less directions less focus  time consuming and stressful  unpredictable outcome scientific method and fair testing the participants said that guided inquiry facilitated their understanding of scientific method, science process skills and fair testing. they identified the importance of control variable while carrying out the fair test. “to make data valid i ensured that the mass and size of the marble remain the same.” “i realized that there are so many environmental factors that may affect my readings.” research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 74-85 80 “for e.g. while rolling a marble on different surfaces the direction of wind changed the direction of the marble causing the distance covered by the marble to change.” they also experienced that designing an experiment took the most amount of time and energy. “it took me a while to design a method by which i can ensure the same force must act on the marble. i discovered after trial and error that if i place a marble on a slope instead of flat surface will cause the marble to roll.” “our group had to beat our brains how to prevent the marble from rolling too far and measure the distance. every time we roll the marble moved off the track. i covered the plank with different medium and rolled the marble on it but then i saw another group rolling the marble from an incline first and then testing rolling it on different materials.” process skills almost all participant realized that their science process skills required for carrying a fair investigation were inadequate. they realized that investigation requires multiple science process skills. different science process skills includes hypothesizing, predicting, designing an experiment to test the hypothesis, controlling and identifying variables, measuring, data gathering and analysis and communicating conclusion based on evidence. the abundant research material clearly points out that teachers must understand and develop the scientific thinking process to instil the same in students. challenges participants stated that fear of chaos and time restriction made them more comfortable in structured lab activities. data from field notes reported participant’s level of confidence in generating evidence based conclusion to be very low. they experienced most amount of confusion and chaos during designing and data collection phase. research based practices. participants reported that analyses of the classroom vignettes from research literature provided deep insights on different strategies about how professionals around the world have incorporated poonawala inquiry in their classrooms. this was a good exposure to the teachers on importance of research literature and how it can benefit them in their professional growth and development. subtle shifts in inquiry participant teacher’s also discussed about the need of bringing subtle inquiry based shifts in their lessons. subtle shift explained by rankin (2013) are strategic changes in pedagogy or gradual changes to the existing activities/lesson plan to give students more responsibility to use process skills. they reported to have difficulty in giving adequate amount of control to the learner in classroom. the major challenge confronted by them while planning for inquiry lessons was the maintenance of balance between content and process and creating a harmony of the two to the benefit of student growth and development. findings participants after the intervention reported that researching on inquiry based methods increase their awareness on how to design activities that not only engages them to understand the content but also develop skills required for inquiry. they realized the need to plan investigations, use appropriate tools and techniques to gather data, formulate explanations from appropriate evidence, evaluate their explanations in light of alternatives, and then communicate and justify their proposed explanations (national research council, 2000). in doing so, students not only learn content but also develop understanding of how scientists study the natural world and learn the skills needed for inquiry. after the intervention teachers realized the complexity and difficulty in making small shift in the old lesson plans. table-2 summarizes few ways by which they can rearrange lesson to bring inquiry based subtle shifts in their lesson. discussion, conclusion and implications the major outcome of this intervention was progress in participant’s understanding of the concept of inquiry-based science teaching. workshop intervention and exposure to research-based materials created general awareness about different approaches towards inquiry and features of inquirybased science lessons. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 74-85 82 at the start of this study the participants had superficial knowledge and understanding and as a direct consequence of this workshop they deepened their knowledge base and started the process of appreciating the various aspects of inquiry. the workshop provided opportunity to participants to apply their learning and reflect on their practices. it provided direction for teachers as to what kind of experiences and skills are required for effective delivery of inquiry lessons and how to communicate them effectively. nevertheless, this one intervention was merely a stepping stone in the journey of understanding and application of inquiry-based teaching in science teaching as this kind of instruction demands a significant shift from ingrained traditional teaching methodologies this requires sophisticated pedagogical content knowledge and process skills that are not gained overnight or studied by learning books. it is the process of learning, implementation, customization, feedback, reflection and practice on a day-to-day basis that will improve the learning outcomes in the long run. table 3directions to enhance inquiry based teaching by participants recommendations inquiry is demanding on the teachers and students who need to be better equipped and planned. teachers need to create systems for organization and management of materials and guide students through the process. table 3directions to enhance inquiry based teaching by participants rearranging the order of activities  adding open ended reflective questions  analyzing relevance of activity with big idea.  giving attention to discourse and productive talk  inclusion of science process skills  inclusion of formative assessments  anticipation of students’ responses  more engaging activities  construction of knowledge based on prior experiences  emphasis to skill based learning poonawala as inquiry-based teaching is a paradigm shift where school administrator are the key facilitators in providing teachers with an enabling environment to foster this change. this implies providing them with a variety of support from opportunities to learn, material and tools including and not limited to equipment (science learning centers, lab facilities etc.) and flexibility in designing of curricula. additionally, moral support and encouragement to move away from old school learning methodologies are necessary. this research can be extended over a larger period and a larger sample size to further consolidate findings for any public policy or reform base for teaching. also, a detailed study can be conducted to explore how teachers prepare and execute their inquiry based lesson plans and find a correlation between inquiries in science and conceptual understanding of content or acquisition of scientific skills. limitations since the study is based on a four-month period the same stretched over a period of a year or two may result in more concrete findings and researcher would better assess the gap between preaching and practice. as such, the subtle changes need a larger duration research to monitor the impact over time. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 74-85 84 references akhter, n. (2013). an investigation of pakistani university teacher-educators’ and studentteachers’ perceptions of the role and importance of inquiry-based pedagogy in their professional learning experiences in initial teacher education (doctoral dissertation, university of glasgow). anderson, r.d., 2002. reforming science teaching: what research says about inquiry? journal of science teacher education, 13(1), 1-12. andrabi, t., das, j., & khwaja, a. (2002). the rise of private schooling in pakistan: catering to the urban elite or educating the rural poor? world bank washington dc and harvard university cambridge ma. banchi, h., & bell, r. (2008). the many levels of inquiry. science and children, 46(2), 26-29. christie, t., & afzaal, m. (2005, september). rote memorization as a sufficient explanation of secondary school examination achievement in pakistan: an empirical investigation of a widespread assumption. in international conference on assessment and the future schooling and learning. international association for educational assessment, abuja, australia. crawford, b. a. (2000). embracing the essence of inquiry: new roles for science teachers. journal of research in science teaching, 37(9), 916-937. education for all 2015 national review report: pakistan. http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0022/002297/229718e.pdf erbilgin, e. (2017). a comparison of the mathematical processes embedded in the content standards of turkey and singapore. research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 53-74. halai, n. (2010). teaching teachers of science. journal of educational research, 13(1), 171-179. mohammed, r. f. and jones, b. h. (2008). the fault is in ourselves: looking at ’failures in implementation’. compare, 38(1), 39-51. nabors, martha l., (1999). "principals" for hands-on science. education, 119, 744-746. instructional psychology, 29, 245-253. new york, ny. national research council. (2000). inquiry and the national science education standards: a guide for teaching and learning. national academies press. pakistan education statistics 2015-16, national education management information system academy of educational planning and management ministry of federal education and pr http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0022/002297/229718e.pdf poonawala ofessional training government of pakistan http://library.aepam.edu.pk/books/pakistan% 20education%20statistics%202015-16.pdf plourde, l. a. (2002). the influence of student teaching on preservice elementary teacher’s science self-efficacy and outcome expectancy beliefs. journal of instructional psychology, 29(4), 245. rankin, l. (2011). pathways to inquiry. science and children, 48(6), 8-9. saeed, m., & mahmood, k. (2002). assessing competency of pakistani primary school teachers in mathematics, science and pedagogy. international journal of educational management, 16(4), 190-195. tarman, b., & kuran, b. (2015). examination of the cognitive level of questions in social studies textbooks and the views of teachers based on bloom taxonomy. kuram ve uygulamada egitim bilimleri, 15(1), 213-222. 10.12738/estp.2015.1.2625 warsi, j. (2004). conditions under which english is taught in pakistan: an applied linguistic perspective. sarid journal, 1(1), 1-9. yigit, m. f., & tarman, b. (2016). how do different ethnicities approach to the education system and differences in turkey? italian sociological review, 6(3), 339-353. 10.13136/isr.v6i3.119 http://library.aepam.edu.pk/books/pakistan%20education%20statistics%202015-16.pdf http://library.aepam.edu.pk/books/pakistan%20education%20statistics%202015-16.pdf i research in social sciences and technology (ressat) volume 4 issue 2, 2019 tadeu, p. j. a, batanero, j. m. f., & tarman, b. (2019). editorial: ict in a global world. editorial 2019: (4)2, special theme issue ict in a global world guest editors pedro josé arrifano tadeu (instituto politécnico da guarda polytechnic of guarda, ptadeu@ipg.pt portugal) josé maria fernandez batanero (university of seville, batanero@us.es spain) bulent tarman (editor-in-chief, ressat, btarman@ressat.org turkey) the impact of everything on society, in general, is increasingly visible, and we find ourselves in a permanent state of transformation and improvement due to the dizzying proliferation of technologies. information and communication technology (ict) drives the modern world in education, sports, engineering, management, health, tourism, economics, and communication. all have connections, either because ict is used as a tool or because ict is the way to solve problems. starting from these ideas, we decided to create a special edition of ressat, collecting a wide range of articles and different perspectives regarding the use of ict around the world. different areas of knowledge are using and interacting with these new resources, creating a new space for access and production of learning, contributing at the same time to the elimination of barriers so that all people might approach technology in a global world. presented in this edition are 13 articles that discuss the point of view of the use of ict in some areas, explaining how our society is so attached to this digital revolution. it is our intention to contribute to the analysis and discussion of empirical research and theoretical aspects linked to the development of technologies in formal and informal learning processes showing significant approaches in a global world. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) is an international, peer-reviewed, open-access journal. this journal is published twice a year (may and november) in online versions. this special issue of the journal consists of a set of articles connected to the use of ict tools, particularly in the field of education. the articles were selected after following the double-blind peer-review process, combining feedback and comments received from experts that helped the authors to refine and enhance the quality of their papers. mailto:ptadeu@ipg.pt mailto:batanero@us.es mailto:btarman@ressat.org we are honored to present the special issue and we would like to thank the authors and reviewers for their contribution to ressat. we hope you will enjoy and be challenged by the articles in this issue, and we look forward to seeing your contribution to the development of ressat in the future. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 riberio, m. c. analog and digital games as a pedagogical tool in the teacher training context. 163 analog and digital games as a pedagogical tool in the teacher training context maria do céu ribeiro * insituto politécnico de bragança *corresponding author: ceu@ipb.pt received : 04.07.2019 revision requested: 06.09.2019 accepted : 28.09.2019 how to cite this paper: riberio, m. c. (2019). analog and digital games as a pedagogical tool in the teacher training context. research in social sciences and technology, 4(2),163-173. abstract this article focuses on analog and digital game play and the challenges it poses to future teachers in an educational context. for that, a review of the literature on the subject was made, addressing the theories of piaget and vygotsky. we refer to the game as a pedagogical resource, its relation to the teaching-learning process, and its role in stimulating the multiple intelligences referenced by the psychologist howard gardner. structurally framed by this theoretical framework, we developed this study in an integrated internship context in a classroom of the first cycle of basic education, with 20 children ages 9 and 10. in order to carry out this research, we developed teaching-learning experiences that allowed us to answer the following question: how do the different game supports (analog/digital) motivate children to the teaching-learning process? in order to answer this question, we have outlined the following objectives: i) to understand if the type of support in which children play influences learning; ii) develop activities in contexts, using games (analog and digital); (iii) understand, to what extent, playing games encourages the development of multiple skills. the study is part of a descriptive, interpretive, and reflexive process, framed in a qualitative approach. for data collection, we used participant observation, observation log grids, field notes, photographic records, and interviews with the children. after analyzing the data, these tend to reveal, among other aspects, a remarkable improvement in motivation of children, perceiving that the game is an excellent teaching/learning strategy that allows the development of social and communication skills of children, predisposing the child for learning. as far as the type of game support is concerned, we found that although digital is more appealing to children born in the digital age, we verified that both the game in analog and digital support, when properly integrated into the educational action, are also promoters of meaningful and lasting learning. keywords: initial teacher training; game; analog game; digital game; teaching of the 1st cycle of basic education. mailto:ceu@ipb.pt research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 riberio, m. c. analog and digital games as a pedagogical tool in the teacher training context. 164 introduction in this article, we intend to deepen the knowledge about analog and digital games as a pedagogical resource, its relation with the teaching-learning process, and also to understand how the type of support affects the motivation of children. through play activities, the child develops psychologically, culturally, socially, mentally, and physically; that is, play provides an integral development of the human being. given the importance of play activities for child development, how do the different game supports (analog/digital) motivate children through the learning process? in order to answer this question, we have outlined the following objectives: i) to understand if the type of support in which children play influences learning; ii) develop activities in contexts, using games (analog and digital); (iii) understand, to what extent, playing games encourages the development of multiple skills. in the course of this research, we find that, increasingly, children need diversified teaching methods that stimulate their taste in learning, keep them interested and enthusiastic, and make their learning more meaningful. increasingly, we hear of the game as a powerful educational resource that, when used consistently, becomes a pleasant and successful promoter of the teaching-learning process of children, since according to serrão (2009), “the game can constitute a resource to promote the articulation of content in the pedagogical practice of [teachers], in different strategies, in the development of children's learning” (p. 1). according to sousa and baptista (2014), the research on the practices presented here focuses on “understanding problems, analyzing behaviors, attitudes or values” (p. 56). in this article, we present a brief theoretical framework through which we seek to base this research, the methodology that underlies the study, the discussion of results, final considerations, and bibliographical references. theoretical framework the game in piaget's theory throughout his work, piaget (1990) has always given great importance to play in children's development. pessanha (2003) mentions that piaget “presented a theory related to the child's cognitive development. he considered that children go through different stages of development and that, in play activity, the type of behavior is linked to the corresponding development phase” (p. 33). for piaget (1990), the development of intelligence in children is strongly linked to play activities, relating each type of game to a particular stage of the child´s development. this author classifies games as related to the three stages of development: sensorimotor stage (0 to 2 years), preoperative stage (from 2 to 7 years), and concrete operations stage (from 7 to 11 years). research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 riberio, m. c. analog and digital games as a pedagogical tool in the teacher training context. 165 in the initial form of the game, the child becomes aware of new abilities; in each acquired learning, the child returns to use these games that end up forming new schemes of action or conduct. the purpose of these games is the repetition of movements and gestures just for the pleasure that the child has in doing them. in exercise games, there are no symbols or rules. then the child moves on to symbolic games, in which he still finds the same pleasure as previous games, but he begins to use symbols (tarman & tarman, 2011). there is, therefore, the presence of the make-believe where the child uses other objects to symbolize that he is eating, sleeping, or doing any other activity. this behavior represents some situation that the child experienced, allowing the assimilation of the outside world with the child's self (baytak et al, 2011; valiandes & tarman, 2011). symbolic games evolve to age 7. in the first years of this phase (from two to four years), the child uses his own body to represent what he wants; for example, imitating animals, in the case of the dog, the child kneels and imitates the sound of the dog. however, when approaching the stage of concrete operations, around the age of 7, intuitive thinking begins to emerge and games begin to have a closer representation of reality. here the child seeks pleasure through the obtained results and the fulfillment of rules, whereas in symbolic play, pleasure is in the process. this is the phase of the rules game. in conclusion, for piaget (1990), playing is crucial in the child's life, constituting a condition for the social, moral, intellectual, and cognitive development of the child. the game in vygotsky's theory like piaget, vygotsky considers game/ludic as a fundamental factor in the development of children, establishing a relationship between this and learning. for this psychologist, it is only around age 3 that the game arises in the activities of children, since until that age the child still cannot understand symbols to represent the real through the imaginary. in this way, vygotsky (2008) believes that it is in the imaginary world of the child that the game ascends, where the child is an active being that builds and creates through social interactions. according to the psychologist, the child's game presents three main characteristics: imagination, imitation, and rules. when playing, the child imitates everything he sees and experiences in daily life, using his imagination. thus, “the imaginary action created by the game favors the development of abstract thinking and the maturation of social rules” (baranita, 2012, p. 41). vygotsky's most well-known theory concept is the zone of proximal development (zpd), which “defines those functions that have not yet matured but are in the process of maturation, research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 riberio, m. c. analog and digital games as a pedagogical tool in the teacher training context. 166 functions that will mature but are presently embryonic” (john-steiner, souberman, cole, & scribner, 2007, p. 97). it is essential that the child has opportunities to play, know, experience, feel, discover, explore, create, and interact in order to develop skills. vygotsky's theory emphasizes the teacher's responsibility for the development of the child. it is fundamental that in their pedagogical practices, teachers use games and ludic activities with the purpose of providing children with excellent experiences so that they can be developed and learn with greater ease. for vygotsky, when the teacher proposes game situations in the classroom, he offers moments of affection between the child and learning, making learning more meaningful and enjoyable. the game as a pedagogical resource the role of game in the development and education of children in playing is, as pessanha (2003) states, “one of the most common forms of behavior during childhood and highly attractive and intriguing for researchers interested in human development, education, health and social intervention” (p. 5). nowadays, children have access to diverse means of communication so that the way the contents are approached in school becomes a little discouraging. the oral presentation of ideas is the technique most used by teachers, allowing them to promote information in a more synthetic and orderly way. this method, “the expository method also makes content management much more objective and linear. saves time. it makes the alibi rarer from lack of time to fulfill programs. managing the programs in this way is easy to accelerate in the teaching when it is necessary” (ribeiro, 2012, p. 72). however, we know that children of all ages have a taste for play. the period of childhood is deeply related to play and games. thus, the game can be transformed into an educational support and as a way of motivating children to learn. the game, as a learning tool, is a resource with enormous interest for teachers, since its importance is directly linked to the development of the human being in a social, creative, affective, historical, and cultural perspective. according to couto (2018), “the use of the game as a teaching and learning strategy helps to build a more motivating learning environment” (p. 17). we can point out that the game is a development opportunity. thus, when playing, the child experiences, invents, discovers, learns, and confers skills. therefore, we corroborate teixeira and apresentação's (2014) opinion that “the use of the game as pedagogical material aims to create a relaxed environment that enables meaningful learning through observation, creativity, logical thinking, problem situation, articulation with different knowledge and interrelation with classmates” (p. 305). however, it is important to note that not all games are included in the pedagogical material category; the element that separates an educational game from a more playful one is that games or pedagogical toys are developed with the explicit intention of provoking meaningful learning, research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 riberio, m. c. analog and digital games as a pedagogical tool in the teacher training context. 167 construction of new knowledge, and awakening the development of an operative skill (antunes, 2011, p. 38). thus is the role of the teacher in the selection of the games highlighted. digital games in the teaching-learning process the game plays a huge role in all children´s lives. therefore, in today's intimately technological world, the way of interacting with games is changing. with the technological expansion and the great ease in acquiring computer products, children have contact with other activities of this nature such as computer games or digital games. in this sense, silva, marques, mata, and rosa (2016) state that “technologies have a strong attraction to children and play an important role in their daily life, it is important that they be supported early on to make a critical reading of this influence, to understand their potentialities and risks and to know how to defend themselves against them” (p. 93). digital games, in an educational context, can become a powerful learning tool as the child is encouraged to participate, improving performance and stimulating the generation of individual, collective, and social experiences. according to amante (2011), the computer stimulates an active learning, controlled by the student, in which we point out the role of the teacher, as mediating agent, in order to guide the game to the learning to be stipulated in its planning. the game’s role in the stimulation of multiple intelligences after integrating a research team dedicated to studying human potential, psychologist howard gardner created the theory of multiple intelligences. this theory holds that the human being has eight intelligences located in different parts of the brain, which can be stimulated in different ways. they are (i) linguistic intelligence, referring to an individual's ability to express himself either through oral language or gestures, as a way of analyzing and interpreting ideas and information, and producing works involving oral and written language. according to antunes (2011), in order to develop this competence, the teacher can propose games that allow the child's vocabulary to expand, games that develop fundamental language skills such as analyzing, comparing, synthesizing, describing, and criticizing grammar and games for verbal memory; (ii) logical-mathematical intelligence, referring to conclusions based on the reason that games must "fix the symbolic conceptualization of numerical and geometric relations ... to awaken the operative and meaningful awareness of numbering systems" (antunes, 2011, p. 71). thus, memory games, bingos, board games, and imitation games are some examples of play activities that develop logical-mathematical intelligence; (iii) spatial intelligence, which is linked to visual and spatial perception, to the interpretation and creation of visual images and to the pictorial imagination, making possible a better understanding of graphic information such as maps. games aimed at stimulation of this nature should work on the notions of location and direction, spatial-temporal orientation, and creativity, such as drawing and painting research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 riberio, m. c. analog and digital games as a pedagogical tool in the teacher training context. 168 activities, construction games, and blind goat, among others; (iv) musical intelligence, which involves understanding and expression through music, the ability to compose and reproduce musical patterns. ludic activities play a very important role in the development of this competence, since a lot of the games are accompanied by rhythms, sounds, and music. thus, providing games in which the child can hear different sounds and playing musical instruments are some playful activities that favor the development of this competence; (v) body-kinesthetic intelligence translates into the ability to control body movements, balance, coordination, and express oneself using the body; (vi) interpersonal intelligence refers to an individual's ability to relate to others, and in order to develop this competence, it is necessary to have human contact, teamwork, and communication; (vii) intrapersonal intelligence is linked to each person's ability to recognize their unconscious habits, modify their attitudes, and control addictions and emotions. it is important that in these situations, the teacher praises and values the performance and not only the victories; (viii) naturalistic intelligence, which, according to lima and lima (2003), involves the observation and understanding of the environment and natural elements such as fauna and flora. as a way of developing this ability, the teacher can carry out activities/games involving the imitation of animal sounds, dramatization of facts related to nature (pollution, animals facing extinction, etc.), and games with names of animals and plants, among others. although this intelligence did not appear in his early works, gardner decided to include it later. with this research, gardner's main goal was to show the plurality of the human intellect and how these competencies can be developed. methods the research described has analogical and digital games as a pedagogical tool in the context of teacher training. it focuses on children's learning and was developed from a qualitative perspective (bogdan & biklen, 2013). considering the context of carrying out this exploratory study, the supervised teaching practice, this focused on a question that, limiting this research, made it feasible in time conditions in which it was performed. the question is: how do different game supports (analog/digital) motivate the children to the teaching-learning process? in order to answer this question, we outlined the following objectives: i) to understand if the type of support in which children play influences their motivation; ii) develop activities in contexts, using the game (analog and digital); (iii) understand, to what extent, playing games encourages the development of multiple skills. the technique of data collection that we used most frequently during this investigation was participant observation, since the researcher “integrates the means to investigate, thus being able to have access to the perspectives of the people with whom they interact, while living the same problems and the same situations as them” (sousa & baptista, 2014, p. 88). field notes, to which we also refer, are characterized as instruments of data collection providing a more detailed description of events, people, objects, and activities. these are, therefore, a kind of written account of all that the investigator observes at a given moment. bogdan and research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 riberio, m. c. analog and digital games as a pedagogical tool in the teacher training context. 169 biklen (2013) consider that “the field notes are fundamental for participant observation” (p. 150). as a complement, we used the semi-structured interview, which is based on a script called “with a set of topics to be addressed in the interview” (sousa & baptista, 2014, p. 80). the interview carried out with children of the first cycle of basic education came up with the objective of knowing the children's perceptions about the theme under study. to this end, we consider it was pertinent to interview the children about their playing habits, both in school and at their homes, and to know their opinions about the games they have explored along our way through their classroom. from the analysis of these data emerged conclusions, presented in the discussion of the results. results and discussion according to the objectives indicated for this study, these would allow us to guide the answer to the main question; the use of this resource undoubtedly motivated the children, having demonstrated in class several competences. with regard to the research presented here, through which we wanted to know how the different game supports (analog/digital) motivate children in the teaching-learning process, we begin by saying that we believe we have succeeded in obtaining a response to it. during our practice, it was possible to observe the great enthusiasm of the children in the accomplishment of the tasks. when we used the game as a resource, we found enthusiastic involvement and sharing of know-how. with this research, we realize that the game (regardless of the support) is a great ally in the construction of learning. with regard to the objectives outlined in the question, we consider that we have also managed to achieve them. concerning the first objective, to see if the type of support in which children play influences their motivation, we concluded that the children were more enthusiastic when they discovered that they were going to play on the computer; however, by our observations, we conclude that, regarding the efficacy of the game in educational terms, both analog and digital support, when strategically and methodologically put into practice, are promoters of meaningful and lasting learning. of course, the computer becomes a much more attractive object, as today's children are “born” with the technologies that are very present in their lives. the second objective, to develop activities in the contexts using the game (analog and digital), was also achieved and is visible in the different registers that we carried out during our practices. in respect to the third objective, to understand the extent to which playing games favors the development of multiple skills, we can say that through play, children develop affective bonds with each other, helping to build more socializing learning in addition to the great motivation, strengthening their sense of inter-help, consolidating certain values that help them to live with research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 riberio, m. c. analog and digital games as a pedagogical tool in the teacher training context. 170 others democratically. therefore, the game allows children to put aside individualism, helping them to their future in society. to conclude, we present the data that emerged from the content analysis, which focused on knowing some children's habits regarding the games they usually play at school and at home. they say they prefer to play checkers, puzzles, and who is who? there are also answers that refer to memory games, dominoes, chess, and games related to fights. these facts are evidenced in the following: “the game checkers is what i like the most” (c1); “(...) checkers and who is who?” (c4); “it's a game about the contents of the classes, which has problems. it's mathematics and study of the environment and then we have to say the answer” (c16). through the analysis of the registration units, we can also verify that in all of the games available in the school´s library, children usually explore games that challenge reasoning, such as chess, checkers, and puzzles, among others. however, it appears to be children who resort to games that explore the content addressed in educational practices. when questioned about whether the games in the library would be sufficient, 13 of the 17 children said yes, but the remaining four children mentioned their desire to have more variety of games through which to learn some content: “yes [there should be more]. those with questions of study of the environment, mathematics, portuguese, english. so instead of studying in books, we would play games.” therefore, for us to get an idea of the contact with games in their homes, we asked: “do you have a computer at home? if so, what do you usually do?” as far as the first question is concerned, only one child responded negatively, with the remainder having computers available in their homes. regarding the second question, 13 children reported using the computer to view videos and play games; we can confirm this statement from the excerpts. one child said he used the computer to play games and also to search for tests and information about some school contents: “i also played some games and looked for some tests on the matter.” then, in order to know their opinion, we asked them about the classes in which we used games to explore/review some of the content taught. in this way, 12 children reported that these classes were more stimulating, since their approach was not like normal, in which the contents are explored in a transmissive way, becoming a bit monotonous. it is possible to verify this last statement through the excerpt: “when you played games, we learned while we were playing” (c1); “they were cool, because we had fun and at the same time learned things” (c2). also, in response to the previous question, a child considered the classes in which we used the game as: “it is a good way to entertain children, different than always talking about the same subject” (c8). through the reports presented, it is noticeable that the games developed during our practice in this context were a remarkable strategy because they not only provided moments of pleasure for the children but also contributed to the development of their learning. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 riberio, m. c. analog and digital games as a pedagogical tool in the teacher training context. 171 finally, as a way of trying to know if game support (analog/digital) had any influence on the involvement of children, we asked them about their preference in the type of support and the reason. six of the 17 children interviewed prefer board games, since: “we are the ones who move the pieces and the dice. and also, because we interact with colleagues more than in the computer” (c1). four children reported having a preference for games in a digital format: “we learn things better and we do not need to throw the dice, just click” (c5). the remaining seven children considered both supports as facilitators in the teaching-learning process: “they are both good, i do not have one preferred because i think we learn both” (c10). by the answers to the questions, it is possible to observe the perceptions of the children on the use of the game as an educational resource. for them, the pleasure of the game coupled with the possibility of learning becomes a factor of great motivation. conclusion one of the purposes of this investigation was to demonstrate that the game appears in a child's life as a source of extremely pleasurable knowledge. thus, the game, with its playful and educational function, provides entertainment and socialization among children and between children and adults. it is in the activities developed by teachers that children begin the discovery of the world, preparing for their roles in society. the game, when applied well, can be much more than a recreational instrument. more than that, the role of games in education is of enormous relevance since through playing/ludic, the child acquires skills and, at the same time, develops in a social, cognitive, affective, and motor way. in this way, using games in a school context can promote a fascinating and enjoyable environment while promoting the learning and development of children. during our observation/cooperation period in the first cycle of basic education class, due not only to the organization of the space and to the fact that it was a level of education promoting formal learning, it was a little more difficult to develop activities using the game as a strategy of teaching-learning. in relation to the involvement of children in a situation of play, we found that there was a great curiosity and attention on the part of these; however, it is important to point out that although the game stimulates and motivates the children in their learning process, forced use without pedagogical intention can cause disinterest for the same, but educational games are intended to socialize and educate. during this investigation, we could verify that, from game to game, there was evolution of each child in the various domains of development and learning, which leads us to conclude that the game has a significant role in the education of children, both in the playful field and in the pedagogical aspect. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 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(2011). differentiated teaching and constructive learning approach by the implementation of ict in mixed ability classrooms, ahi evran university journal of education faculty, (kefad)12 (1), 169-184. vygotsky, l. s. (2008). pensamento e linguagem. lisboa: relógio d’água. research in social sciences and technology virtually ready? pre-service teachers’ perceptions of a virtual internship experience stewart waters university of tennessee, usa kswaters@utk.edu william b. russell iii university of central florida russell@ucf.edu abstract the purpose of this phenomenological study was to understand the experiences of six secondary pre-service teachers that completed a semester long internship with a supervising mentor at a virtual school in the southeastern united states. the secondary pre-service teachers in this study voluntarily chose a placement in the virtual school over a traditional classroom placement for completion of their initial licensure field experience. this study sought to examine why secondary pre-service teachers chose a virtual internship and what their experiences were like as online instructors. a total of six participants completed a sixtyminute semi-structured interview at the completion of the semester long virtual school internship. results of the study indicated that secondary pre-service teachers’ primary motivation for entering a virtual internship experience was “convenience.” additionally, participants felt prepared for future employment in virtual schools, but had some reservations about their prospects in a traditional classroom setting. keywords: virtual schools, qualitative, pre-service teachers, teacher education, technology. introduction online learning is one of the most debated and controversial topics at all levels of education in today’s society. from graduate programs at universities to elementary schools, the presence of online instruction has continued to grow over the last decade both in the united states and abroad. in fact, as of 2011, online courses represented 31.3% of total enrollments for colleges and universities in the u.s.; while every state in the u.s. also offered some type of online learning option to k-12 students (allen & seaman, 2011; watson et al. 2011). for teacher educators, this growth simply cannot be ignored and a more direct effort needs to be made in order to ensure that future teachers are being prepared to reach students in both traditional and online settings. unfortunately, “very few teacher education programs in the united states offer a curriculum for online teaching, leaving districts, states, and virtual schools to train online teachers” (dawley, rice, & hinks, 2010, p. 11). the lack of attention mailto:kswaters@utk.edu waters & russell iii research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 1-23 2 paid to online teaching in teacher education programs could be attributed to a myriad of factors, including issues of equity, accessibility, and lack of familiarity or comfort with technology by teacher educators. however, regardless of how teacher educators feel about online instruction, the fact is that public schools are increasingly turning to this platform as a way to improve learning experiences for students. researchers in the u.s. and abroad continue to express the need for additional training of teachers in the realm of online instruction. yet, despite the increasing presence of online instruction in public schools and universities, less than 2% of teacher education programs in the u.s. offer some type of field experience for pre-service teachers in k-12 online programs (kennedy & archambault, 2012). the shortage of learning opportunities in the realm of online instruction in many teacher education programs continues to be extremely problematic, considering how many k-12 public schools now look to include this form of instruction in the curriculum. for this reason, the researchers in this study sought to examine how secondary pre-service teachers at a large research university experienced a virtual internship as part of their initial licensure program. this study shares the experiences of six secondary pre-service teachers located at a large research university located in the southeastern united states. the purpose of this phenomenological study is to better understand the internship experience at a k-12 virtual school, with the goal of adding to the literature on improving teacher education programs for the unique task of online teaching. the researchers in this study hoped to gain valuable insights from secondary pre-service teachers regarding why they chose to participate in a virtual internship, as well as how they experienced this unique training program. to begin answering this initial line of inquiry, the researchers were guided by the following two research questions: waters & russell iii research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 1-23 3 (1) why do secondary pre-service teachers choose to participate in a virtual internship experience over a traditional internship experience at a brick and mortar school? (2) how do secondary pre-service teachers experience a practicum placement at a virtual school? review of literature according to the u.s. department of education (2002), virtual education, distance education, and e-schools refer to “instruction in a learning environment where teacher and student are separated by time, space, or both, and the teacher provides course content through course management applications, multimedia resources, the internet, videoconferencing, etc. students receive the content and communicate with the teacher via the same technologies” (united states department of education, 2002, p. 11). this broad definition of virtual education is provided to highlight the plethora of ways through which contemporary students are experiencing “classroom” instruction. while some people may regard online classes as primarily a post-secondary phenomenon, readers may be surprised to know that online and blended learning courses are actually increasingly present throughout k-12 schools. in fact, according to picciano and seaman (2009), more than 1,030,000 students in elementary school, middle school, and high school are attending virtual schools across the united states. as more students and schools turn to online learning, it becomes exceedingly important for teacher educators, administers and education stakeholders to consider how teachers are being prepared to effectively deliver instruction in the virtual environment. dessoff (2009) stated, “the growing use of online teaching in the nation’s public schools has placed a related burden on district administrators to ensure that they use high quality and highly qualified instructors” (p. 23). while most states require teachers to have current state licenses or certifications, few provide guidance or regulations for training, certification, or professional development associated with virtual schools. therefore, researchers need to examine what makes an waters & russell iii research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 1-23 4 effective online instructor and find ways to improve the quality and value of virtual classrooms. hemschik (2009) conducted a case study exploring how k-8 online educators adapted to working in virtual school settings. the study revealed eight themes: (1) pedagogical beliefs, (2) educator practice, (3) curriculum, (4) employee-based research strategies, (5) development of the learning community, (6) human systems, (7) technology systems, and (8) organizational systems. hemschik found that the “development of appropriate skills in online communication, online reading, computerbased note taking, and organization will unquestionably help students and teachers become more successful as they both may be limited in their experiences with online learning” (p. 49). hemschik’s study highlights the importance of training teachers to be successful in addressing the unique challenges associated with online and blended learning classrooms. while this training can be accomplished in many ways, it is logical to start this training in the early stages of pre-service teachers and continuing into the all-important internship experience. research over the years has shown that the internship experience is one of the most meaningful and impactful events in preparing a pre-service student teacher for the realities of the classroom (davis & roblyer, 2005). until recently, this internship experience consisted of pre-service teachers working in a traditional “brick and mortar” classroom with supervising teachers. however, as technology advances continue to change the face of education in the 21st century, pre-service teachers are now experiencing the opportunity to conduct their internships online at virtual schools. this unique learning environment requires a new set of skills for teachers to be considered “highly qualified.” the no child left behind act defines a highly qualified teacher as one who is fully certified, has a bachelor’s degree, and demonstrates competence in subject knowledge and teaching in core subjects (united states department of education, 2002). while this makes the teacher qualified, according to nclb waters & russell iii research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 1-23 5 legislation, it may not encompass the additional skills needed to be a successful online educator in the high school classroom. teacher preparation programs are particularly crucial in preparing “highly qualified” teachers and often re-shape or re-design programs to meet the changing needs of public schools. dessoff (2009) conducted a study interviewing school administrators about online education and found a strong consensus that extended training and skills are required to be an effective online instructor. additionally, the administrators in this study identified strong written and oral skills, ability to motivate, and comfort-utilizing technology as key traits needed by teachers to be successful in the online classroom environment (dessoff, 2009). to better understand the experiences of a virtual internship, the researchers in this study interviewed six secondary pre-service teachers that chose to participate in a virtual internship placement over a traditional internship. all participants were recruited via email and interview requests were made following the completion of their internship experience in an attempt to minimize the potential conflicts associated with possibly critiquing a program while still being enrolled in it. additional methods for the study are described in the following section. methods this phenomenological study focused on the experiences of six secondary pre-service teachers in an attempt to understand the essence of their virtual internship experience. according to merriam (1998), “these essences are the core meanings mutually understood through a phenomenon commonly experienced. the experience of different people is bracketed, analyzed, and compared to identify the essence of the phenomenon” (merriam, 1998, p. 15). phenomenology was chosen as a theoretical framework because it allows the participants the opportunity to describe their lived experiences in a narrative context based on their realities and feelings within the experience. thus, phenomenology suited this study well waters & russell iii research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 1-23 6 because it focuses on acquiring an understanding of a phenomenon based exclusively on the participant’s experiences and how the participants made meaning from these experiences. participants for this study were selected using criterion sampling (patton, 2002), with each participant choosing to forego a semester long traditional internship placement in a brick and mortar classroom setting for the semester long virtual internship. the virtual internship experience was created as a partnership between the university and the participating virtual school. each student participating in the virtual internship was partnered with a mentor teacher that worked for the virtual school for a minimum of three years. administrators from the virtual school selected teachers that they considered to be “high quality” to serve as mentors to the university students. additionally, each student participating in the virtual internship was assigned a university supervisor to monitor their progress and make sure they were completing their responsibilities up to the standards expected of the profession. the virtual internship experience lasted a total of one semester, beginning in january and ending in june, with each participant working in partnership with his or her mentors to gradually assume the instructional responsibilities of the online course. as the curriculum and assessments were already designed at the virtual school, the participating interns were not required or expect to plan in any of these instructional areas. rather, the majority of their responsibilities focused on maintaining communication (telephone calls, emails, online chats, etc.) with all students to monitor their individual progress and assist them as needed. each class at the virtual school contained roughly 25-35 students. all participating interns in this study worked closely with their mentors to develop strategies and procedures for helping each individual student complete the virtual course. after self-enrolling in the virtual internship, the students were recruited for participation in this research study. the researchers conducted 60-minute semi-structured interviews with each of the participants. open-ended questions were utilized to allow waters & russell iii research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 1-23 7 participants to provide a rich description of their experience during the virtual internship and better understand the essence of the phenomenon. interviews were also used as a method to collect data because they allow researchers insight into participants “interpretations, perceptions, and meanings and understandings, as the primary data sources” (mason, 2002, p. 56). in the end, all six of the students opting to complete the virtual internship experience agreed to be interviewed for this study at the end of their program. participants in this study were asked to self-identify and provide demographic information. there were four males and two females, with one female identifying as hispanic and one male identifying as asian. all other participants’ self-identified as caucasian. this study took place in a large research-intensive university located in the southeastern united states. additionally, the state where this university was located also has a large statewide virtual school, which partnered with the teacher preparation program to make this internship experience possible. participants in this study completed all of the same coursework and licensure requirements as other students in the secondary teacher education program. the interviews took place at the university where the participants attended school in the month following the participants’ completion of the internship experience. each interview was audio-recorded, transcribed, bracketed, analyzed, and compared to identify underlying themes in the essence of the virtual internship experience. themes were then shared with each participant to ensure that the researchers accurately captured the voice and lived experiences of the participants. all names throughout the study are pseudonyms utilized to protect the anonymity of the participants. findings the purpose of this qualitative study was to examine why secondary pre-service teachers engaged in a virtual internship over a traditional internship and how they experienced this unique phenomenon. findings revealed two shared horizons for the first research question waters & russell iii research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 1-23 8 regarding why participants choose to enroll in a virtual internship and two shared horizons for the second research question looking into how participants experienced a practicum placement at a virtual school. these shared horizons make up the essence of the virtual internship experience for participants in this study and findings are discussed in the following section based on the shared horizons for each research question. research question 1: why do secondary pre-service teachers choose to participate in a virtual internship experience over a traditional internship experience at a brick and mortar school? the initial research question posed in this study was designed to try and understand the rationale and reasoning of each participant about why they chose to enroll in a virtual internship experience. the participants had a variety of reasons and they all spent a good deal of time reflecting and discussing this question during the interview process. after transcribing and coding all of the interview data, the researchers identified two shared horizons, (1) convenience, (2) new experiences. each of these shared horizons will be discussed separately in the sections that follow. convenience one of the first themes to emerge from the data regarding why participants chose to enroll in a virtual internship was the idea of “convenience.” each participant discussed varies aspects of their lives and how busy their schedules are due to work, family obligations, and a variety of other responsibilities. it appears that the participants in this study were under the impression that the virtual internship might offer them more flexibility in their schedule or free time to accomplish other things. as one respondent commented: honestly, i originally was drawn to the virtual internship because i work a lot and i thought the flexibility of the schedule might make it, like, easier for me to work during the waters & russell iii research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 1-23 9 school year. my parents don’t really help me with bills or anything so i kind of have to think about how i’ll be able to complete the program and still pay my rent. (interview with taylor) while financial considerations are nothing new for pre-service teachers (or college students in general), taylor’s comment brings forward some interesting considerations for teacher educators and the institutions preparing them to enter the classroom. how can teacher education programs expect to attract the “best and brightest” students into the field with a program structure that not only offers little to no financial support, but actually makes it exceedingly difficult for students to provide for themselves during the process? the full time internship structure, while undoubtedly beneficial in teacher development, may encourage pre-service teachers to take out student loans for needed funding, which in turn increases the financial burden placed on students once they enter the teaching field and could lead to the high attrition rate among teachers within the first five years of their careers. another consideration along the lines of “convenience” came in relation to family responsibilities. often times, pre-service teachers have families of their own, so dedicating several months to an unpaid internship experience can be quite a burden, and even deterrent, for people wishing to become teachers. this was a sentiment shared in one of the interviews with marcie when she stated: well, i have two young kids, so i entered the teacher education program worried about the internship semester and how i would deal with being away from them. then when we were presented with the virtual internship option, i just thought it might be a lot easier for me and my family if i wasn’t tied to a school building monday-friday from 8-4 or whatever. (interview with marcie) while pre-service teachers come into teacher education programs with a variety of family, financial, and other considerations, it remains nevertheless important for teacher education programs to consciously acknowledge these challenges and put support systems in waters & russell iii research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 1-23 10 place that can help each student be successful. additionally, larger teacher education programs, such as the one involved in this study, often partner with many local school districts in order to find placements for all of their interns. large distances can separate school districts, which places additional transportation burdens on students, especially those lacking reliable transportation. this scenario can be quite common among college students and further highlights the convenience of a virtual internship, as stated in one of the interviews by van: i think the first reason i was drawn to the virtual internship experience is because i don’t have a car, so obviously transportation is a big issue for me. i guess i could take public transportation, but not really knowing what school we would be placed at (in the traditional internship) sort of freaked me out a little bit. (interview with van) convenience, while sometimes carrying a negative connotation among researchers, can be a highly motivating factor. during the interview process, the participants did not highlight the convenience factor as a way to “get out of extra work,” nor did we get the impression that the participants were lazy in any way. on the contrary, the participants were all hard working individuals that saw the convenience of the virtual internship as a pragmatic opportunity to realize their goals of becoming a teacher within the complex reality of their daily lives. the virtual internship, or some type of blended learning experience, could prove to be an enticing alternative for students with financial struggles, families, and/or jobs, wishing to enter into the field of education. new experiences another highly motivating factor shared by the participants in this study for selecting the virtual internship was the opportunity to have a new experience. as the program in this study was one of the first and only teacher education programs in the u.s. to offer a completely online internship that lead to initial teacher certification, many participants in this waters & russell iii research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 1-23 11 study saw the virtual internship as a new and exciting opportunity that would allow them to be on the forefront of technology and education. as zach indicated: for me, one of the really cool things about this program (the virtual internship) is that it is so new and kind of cutting edge. i have always liked technology and i was excited about the idea of being one of the first students in the country to participate in a virtual internship. (interview with zach) furthermore, participants in this study went on to highlight how the virtual internship differed from a traditional classroom internship, and many saw this as a positive deviation. the participants discussed some of the well-documented difficulties of teaching in contemporary classrooms, such as the influence of high stakes testing, teacher evaluation models, violence in the schools, etc. although virtual schools certainly deal with similar issues, the participants seemed more open to overcoming these obstacles because of the unique experience a virtual internship might offer. these sentiments were highlighted in an interview with fallon when she stated: let’s see. well, i guess i first started thinking about doing the internship at the virtual school after talking to a friend of mine that was in the middle of their internship experience at a local high school. she was kind of going on and on about all the issues with students not paying attention in class, parents freaking out about their kids grades and college, and all of the other stuff that goes along with teaching. it all sounded a little depressing to be honest and after hearing about the virtual internship opportunity, there just seemed to be so much excitement and optimism about the program and how it could be the future of education. i guess i kind of felt rejuvenated about having an experience that not many teachers have had and maybe that will give me a leg up in a highly competitive job market. (interview with fallon) waters & russell iii research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 1-23 12 the theme of new experiences was further reinforced by participants that had family or friends actively involved in the field of education. several participants chose to focus on the “uniqueness” of the virtual internship as a motivating factor for choosing it over the traditional classroom placement. these feelings were often solidified by friends or family members that were educators, encouraging the participants to take advantage of the virtual internship as a way to learn more about the expanding sector of online education courses. as one participant responded: my mom has been a middle school teacher for almost 30 years or so, so i have been around the “insiders” (air quotes in interview) of education for a while. i remember a lot of dinner conversations centered around what happened in my mom’s class at school that day, sometimes it was good stuff, sometimes it was not so good stuff. naturally, when the option for this program (virtual internship) became available to me, i discussed it with my mom. she really encouraged me to enroll in the program and talked about the growing importance of online classes. she talked about how her kids actually had to complete a course online (state required) and told me i should get some experience in this growing field of education. so i suppose i enrolled to get a new experience. thanks mom! (interview with alex). overall, participants in this study appeared to choose the virtual internship experience because of convenience and the new experience it offered. several factors highlighted in the aforementioned sections offer valuable insights into the appeal of virtual internships, and how this experience might evolve the field of teacher preparation. as online education becomes more prevalent in the years ahead, and perhaps virtual internship opportunities expand, it will be interesting to see if the “uniqueness” of this form of training persists and continues to be a pulling factor. research question 2: how do secondary pre-service teachers experience a practicum placement at a virtual school? waters & russell iii research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 1-23 13 this section will highlight findings from the second research question regarding how secondary pre-service teachers experience a practicum placement at a virtual school. the majority of the interview questions focused on various aspects and components of the virtual internship experience so that the researchers might better understand the dynamics of this learning opportunity. several open-ended questions were asked to elicit responses and many questions were probed throughout the interview to gain deeper insight and understanding into the phenomenon. after transcribing and coding all of the interview data, the researchers identified two shared horizons that made up the essence of the virtual school practicum experience, (1) importance of communication and (2) time management. each of these shared horizons will be discussed separately in the sections that follow. importance of communication communication is a key component of being an effective classroom teacher. communication was a trait highlighted consistently by participants involved in the virtual internship experience, but in a variety of different ways. participants discussed the importance of and struggles with the different platforms utilized to communicate effectively in virtual schools with students, parents, administrators, mentors, and university supervisors. while good communication skills are certainly a staple of good teachers, whether in a traditional or virtual classroom, it may be even more important to focus on the diversity of these skills with virtual classroom teachers. participants in this study often discussed the difficulties of developing rapport with their students in online courses. as one participant discussed: getting to know all of my students at the beginning of the semester was really interesting. just like a traditional classroom, they were all so different and needed different things from me as their teacher. some kids wanted to talk a lot, and others hated it. i remember one student in particular that would write these really thoughtful and detailed responses via email or discussion boards, but when i called him he was so quiet and shy. waters & russell iii research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 1-23 14 when i asked if everything was okay, he said, “i just hate talking on the phone.” after that, i kind of started re-evaluating the needs of the students and considering my role as a facilitator of their learning. just like any good teacher, i had to find the best ways to reach them and how to make them comfortable so they would feel open enough to talk with me about class assignments and all that stuff. (interview with zach). getting to know the students was just the beginning of the communication process for participants in this study. additional communication issues arose throughout the virtual internship process surrounding student feedback and the most efficient and effective ways to provide feedback to each individual student. as teachers in virtual schools are required to maintain and document consistent communication with each student enrolled in their courses (sometimes 40 plus students), it became increasingly important for the participants in the study to really develop good oral and written communication skills and deliver feedback in a timely fashion. the complexity of the communication spectrum was highlight by taylor, who stated: providing feedback to students in an online class is pretty difficult and really time consuming. sometimes, feedback is given via email, sometimes over the phone or video conferencing. hell, sometimes it is even via text messages. all of these different methods of communication have advantages and disadvantages, but i guess one of my biggest takeaways from the program is how important it is to be actively in communication with your students. the kids mostly seemed like they wanted to feel a connection to a “real” teacher. it was really challenging for me to balance my work and personal life with all of the constant communication needs of my students. it was not at all what i was expecting going into this experience, but i think i will be a better teacher and communicator because of my time in the virtual internship. (interview with taylor) waters & russell iii research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 1-23 15 as taylor indicated in the previous quote, communication can be a substantial obstacle on the path to becoming an effective teacher in online courses. in addition to the importance of communication with students, the participants in this study also referenced the importance of good communication between virtual school mentors and university supervisors. as these are the people most directly involved in the participant’s successful completion of the virtual internship, it stands to reason a good level of communication is needed to help pre-service teachers feel supported. good communication between mentors and pre-service teachers has proven to be a contributing factor to the successful completion of an internship experience (compton & davis, 2010; duncan & barnett, 2009). one participant spoke specifically about an example of miscommunication and how it leads to feelings of anxiety. so my first week or so in the internship, i was talking with my mentor on the phone about the course curriculum, assessments, and all sorts of technical things. i noticed after a while she started to sound, like, frustrated maybe. it was like she expected me to know some of this stuff and i felt like maybe she didn’t really want to work with me. i talked to my university supervisor about it, and he recommended that i talk with my mentor teacher directly about my concerns, which i did. it turns out, my mentor was just having a bad day and had some personal issues she was dealing with, so it wasn’t really me at all. after going through all that, i realized how important good communication is, especially when talking over the phone, because people can’t necessarily see you to know your mood and all that. (interview with marcie) time management the internship experience, both traditional and virtual, can be extremely difficult and time consuming for pre-service teachers (ballantyne & hansford, 1995; kennedy & archambault, 2012). students involved in a practicum experience have teaching waters & russell iii research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 1-23 16 responsibilities, university responsibilities, coursework, life, etc. considering all the factors involved, it is no wonder why time management was a shared horizon for participants in this study. the virtual internship required a great deal of organization and sometimes-tedious attention to details. as mentioned in the previous section, participants in this study had to keep detailed communication logs documenting when and how they communicated with every student enrolled in the course. the communication logs were discussed by all of the participants in the study, and not necessarily in favorable terms. clearly, there was a struggle to complete the communication log tasks along with all of the various other responsibilities associated with teaching in a virtual school. to that end, the importance of good time management was continually a part of the discussion revolving around the development of good teaching in an online classroom environment. one participant highlighted these frustrations with the following comment: just like any new training experience i guess, it took me a few weeks to really figure out all of the different aspects of this job (teaching at a virtual school). i mean, there are just so many little things that you have to keep up with all the time, like communication logs (documenting when/how contact is made with each student in the course) which was such a pain in the ass to me. i get why it is necessary because you have to actually show that you are helping every student, but it just took so much time. (interview with van) additionally, some participants noted their misperception of the work schedule associated with the virtual internship. participants mentioned how they entered the virtual internship thinking that they may have more flexibility and “free time” during the weekdays, but found that desire unfulfilled throughout the process. i think one of the most challenging things for me during the internship process was time management. i thought there would be more flexibility in my schedule throughout the semester, but boy was i wrong. students enrolled in online courses work at all different paces waters & russell iii research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 1-23 17 and times throughout the course, so i was basically on call from 7:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. every night. but after a couple of weeks, i found myself kind of obsessively checking my email, phone, everything to see what was going on with my students and address their questions. it was exhausting and a lot more work than i thought it would be at the beginning of the year. (interview with alex) undoubtedly, school and university mentors need to play an active role in helping preservice teachers develop good time management skills. as the virtual school environment is quite unique and offers a wide range of time constraints, the cooperating teacher will need to help the pre-service teachers develop appropriate strategies to manage their responsibilities in ways that effectively maximize their time. since teaching in a fully online classroom will be a completely new experience for pre-service teachers, mentors should likely focus on time management and structure in the early stages of the internship. i worked with my mentor a lot to try and set up a schedule for myself during the week. she (the mentor) put a lot of emphasis on this in the early stages of the internship because she always would be talking about how important structure and time management is for online teachers. we worked together really well and she helped me figure out the best ways to organize my time so i could be a good teacher, but not kill myself in the process. (interview with fallon) limitations of study as this was a phenomenological qualitative research study, it would be irresponsible not to highlight limitations of the study. in qualitative research, the researcher often acts as the mechanism for data collection, analysis, and interpretation of the data (hatch, 2002; glesne, 2011). being intricately involved with all steps of the data throughout the study could cause issues of validity, as the researchers develop the role of participator (fraenkel & wallen, 2009). however, the researchers in this study had no vested interest in the success or failure waters & russell iii research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 1-23 18 of the virtual internship program at the university, nor did we have any prior relationship with the participants in the study. the researchers interest in this study stems from our experiences taking online classes as graduate students, and our subsequent roles as teacher educators looking to improve our own respective programs. we attempted to minimize our basis in the data analysis process by sharing our interpretations with the interview participants to make sure we adequately and accurately captured the essence of their experience in the virtual school practicum. additionally, the findings from this study cannot be exaggerated or generalized to any other virtual internship programs. each setting and program will likely have unique features in place that make the virtual internship slightly different, which could alter the findings if the study was conducted at another location with new participants. this study was also conducted at a large research-intensive university in the southeastern region of the united states, meaning the essence of the phenomenon could be different if the study were replicated at a different city, state, or country. finally, this study was limited by the fact that we only conducted one interview with each of the participants. we could have developed additional rapport with the participants by conducting multiple interviews in an effort to learn even more details about the virtual internship experience. it would be interesting in the future to conduct interviews at the beginning and end of the virtual internship experience and see if there are any changes in the participants feelings. it also would be interesting to conduct a longitudinal study that followed pre-service teachers into their careers and have them reflect back on the virtual internship experience. conclusions the findings in this study have implications for educators and teacher preparation programs. firstly, participants in this study had favorable experiences with the virtual internship and each of them saw value in this new experience. while it may not be possible waters & russell iii research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 1-23 19 for all teacher preparation programs to partner with virtual schools to create a similar internship experience, virtual internships should at least become a part of the conversation regarding the future of teacher education. as online courses continue to proliferate in both public schools and universities, more consideration should be given to the preparation of quality teachers in this environment. online learning continues to be a global phenomenon in a variety of fields, but especially in education. schools all across the u.s. consistently rely on online course to supplement or enrich their curriculum, empowering students to stretch their learning beyond the four walls of traditional classrooms. yet, despite this growing popularity and importance, teacher preparation programs consistently disregard training in the realm of online instruction. in fact, the international association for k12 online learning reported: a national survey of teacher education programs conducted in 2012 found that a paltry 1.3% of them were preparing their teachers for next generation learning models. that survey and subsequent studies have identified the need for a dramatic shift in the skills and methods for education preparation toward next generation learning models, which require many of the same skills as traditional education, yet a more comprehensive set of skills to navigate a diverse range of learning environments—including blended, online, competency-based models emerging in anytime, everywhere traditional classrooms and schools (inacol, 2013, p. 4). often times, education is a field that remains reactive instead of proactive. technological advances have changed the way that society operates, yet, somewhat strangely, most teacher preparation programs continue to exist in the same fashion that they did 30 years ago. this study highlights the value of a virtual internship experience as at least a component of teacher preparation programs. just like teacher education programs highlight differences in working in rural, suburban, and urban settings, so too should the online setting be included in waters & russell iii research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 1-23 20 this dialogue. without including specific training in virtual schools, teacher education programs are limiting pre-service teachers job prospects and placing the burden of preparing high quality virtual school teachers on local school districts or state level virtual schools. as the enrollments of k-12 virtual schools continues to increase throughout the u.s., teacher education programs can no longer passively sit to the side and hope that online learning is a passing trend. virtual schools are here to stay, so the time is now for teacher education programs to begin actively considering ways to prepare future teachers for high quality instruction in online classrooms. references allen, e., & seaman, j. (2011). going the distance: online education in the united states. babson survey research group and quahog research group. ballantyne, r., & hansford, b. (1995). mentoring beginning teachers: a qualitative analysis of process and outcomes. educational review, 47(3), 297-308. bogdan, r., & biklen, s. (1998). qualitative research in education. an introduction to theory and methods. (3 rd edition). needham heights, ma: allyn & bacon. compton, l., & davis, n. (2010). the impact of and key elements for a successful virtual early field experience: lessons learned from a case study. contemporary issues in technology and teacher education, 10(3), 309-337. creswell, j. (2007). five qualitative approaches to inquiry. qualitative inquiry and research design (2 nd edition). thousand oaks, ca us: sage publications. creswell, j., & clark, v. (2007). designing and conducting mixed methods research. thousand oaks, ca us: sage publications, inc. davis, n. e., & roblyer, m. d. (2005). preparing teachers for the “schools that technology built”: evaluation of a program to train teachers for virtual schooling. journal of research on technology in education, 37(4), 399-409. waters & russell iii research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 1-23 21 dawley, l., rice, k., & hinks, g. (2010). going virtual 2010! the status of professional development and unique needs of k-12 online teachers. retrieved from http://edtech.boisestate.edu/goingvirtual/goingvirtual3.pdf desoff, a. (2009). the rise of the virtual teacher. district administration, 45(2), 23-26. duncan, h. e., & barnett, j. (2009). learning to teach online: what works for pre-service teachers. journal of educational computing research, 40(3), 357-376. fraenkel, j. r., & wallen, n. e. (2009). how to design and evaluate research in education. (7 th edition). new york, ny: mcgraw-hill. glesne, c. (2011). becoming qualitative researchers: an introduction. fourth edition. boston, ma: pearson education. hatch, j. a. (2002). doing qualitative research in education settings. albany, ny: state university of new york press. hanson, w., creswell, j., clark, v., petska, k., & creswell, j. (2005). mixed methods research designs in counseling psychology. journal of counseling psychology, 52(2), 224-235. hemschik, t. (2009). course designs, instructional strategies, and support systems in k-8 online education: a case study. dissertation retrieved from google scholar. international association for k-12 online learning (inacol). (2013). partnering for success: a 21st century model for teacher preparation. retrieved from www.inacol.org mason, j. (2002). qualitative researching (2nd ed.). london: sage publications. merriam, s.b. (1998). qualitative research and case study applications in education. san francisco, ca: jossey-bass publishers. patton, m. (2002). qualitative research and evaluation methods (3rd edition). thousand oaks, ca: sage. waters & russell iii research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 1-23 22 picciano, a. & seaman, j. (2009). k-12 online learning: a 2008 follow-up of the survey of u.s. school district administrators. sloan consortium. waters & russell iii research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 1-23 23 appendix a virtual internship study interview protocol 1. tell me a little bit about your educational background and why you want to become a teacher? 2. as a pre-service teacher, how important do you think the internship experience is for your development as a future teacher? why/explain? 3. what made you decide or influenced you to complete your internship at a virtual school? 4. thinking about your virtual internship, what would you say are some of the strengths of this experience? o what are some of the weaknesses of this experience? 5. how do you think this virtual internship compares to a traditional classroom (face-to-face) internship in terms of preparing you to become a future teacher? o do you feel you are missing out on anything by doing your internship virtually? o do you feel more prepared for certain aspects of teaching that are more commonly found in virtual classrooms (use of technology, written communication) because of your virtual experience? o do you feel less prepared for certain aspects of teaching that are not commonly experienced in the same way for online classes (classroom management, student engagement, etc..) as they are for traditional face-to-face classes? 6. as an educator, what do you think are some of the strengths and weaknesses of online learning? o as a teacher, how do you take advantage of these strengths and improve the weaknesses to maximize student learning? 7. how was the feedback from your virtual internship experience from your supervising teacher and supervising faculty member? do you think evaluation of your performance was fair? discuss and explain. 8. do you feel that a virtual internship is something that should be mandatory component for all students in a teacher preparation program? why or why not? 9. what recommendations would you make to teacher educators to improve the overall quality of virtual internships? would you recommend this experience to other students? 10. is there any other information or comments regarding your experiences with a virtual internship or this interview that you think would be useful for me to know? 1 research in social sciences and technology value priorities of public and private university students mehmet fatih yigit, ph.d fatihyigit6@gmail.com abstract the aim of the study is to find out whether there is a statistically significant difference between value priorities of public and private university students in turkey and whether their values differ. this is a quantitative study using anova for the analysis of the data. the results suggest that private university students show greater tendency towards universalism, power, tradition, conformity, and hedonism compared to the public university students, while the public university students showed greater sensitivity to benevolence compared to the private university students. the test results also showed that the education level of mothers do not have a significant effect on value priorities of both public and private university students, while father’s education has significant effect on the perception of power. keywords: value perceptions, turkish universities, higher education, traditional culture, private universities introduction values are defined as being the social representations of basic motivational goals that play important roles in guiding people and their lives (rokeach 1973; rohan 2000). the meaning of values and beliefs in a person’s life is so important that they demonstrate attractive actions and as a result motivate and direct behavior of that person (feather 1995; mauch and tarman, 2016). research on the role of values on one’s life has shown that the values a person holds predict his level of social contact with other people who are not the member of their communities (sagiv and schwartz 1995). there are studies conducted on specific values, such as religious values, cultural values and social values and their relationship with the experiences of university students (yeh, mailto:fatihyigit6@gmail.com yigit research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 1-17 2 carter and pieterse 2004; mccollum 2005; yigit, 2016; yigit and tarman, 2016). these studies tell us that the value students bring with them to university have significant effects on their behaviors. values have been considered crucial in defining personal and social organizations (durkheim 1985). schwartz (1999) defines values as conceptions that direct individual persons or organizational leaders to evaluate other people. the way that people show their value priorities might change from society to society. in individualistic countries, the values related to selfdirection and security might be represented more deeply, as in the united states, compared to the collectivist countries where values related to tradition and universalism are attached more importance, as in turkey (tarman, 2012; 2016; yigit and tarman, 2013). schwartz (1992) have identified ten types of core values that are usually recognized in all around the world. they are 1) universalism, 2) self-direction, 3) power, 4) tradition, 5) security, 6) stimulation, 7) conformity, 8) achievement, 9) benevolence and 10) hedonism. there are many aspects to measure each value. however, some aspects are considered twice that measure different values. the aspects for the value self-direction include creativity, freedom, choosing own goals, independent and being curious. the value stimulation is measured by taking a varied life, daring and an exciting life aspects into account. hedonism is measured by the aspects pleasure, enjoying life and self-indulgent while the aspects for achievement are ambitious, successful, capable, influential, intelligent, self-respect, and social recognition. for the value type power, the aspects are authority, wealth, social power, preserving my public image, and social recognition. security includes social order, family security, national security, clean, reciprocation of favors, healthy and moderate sense of belonging. conformity includes the aspects obedient, self-discipline, politeness, honoring parents and elders, loyal and responsible. the aspects under the tradition value are yigit research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 1-17 3 respect for tradition, humble, devout, accepting my portion in life, moderate and spiritual life. benevolence includes helpful, honest, forgiving, responsible, loyal, true friendship, mature love, sense of belonging, meaning in life and a spiritual life. the aspects under last value type universalism are broadminded, social justice, equality, world at peace, world of beauty, unity with nature, wisdom, protecting the environment, inner harmony and a spiritual life (table 1). table 1: single values representing motivational types of values and their definitions power social status and prestige, control or dominance over people and resources. social power, authority, wealth, preserving my public image, social recognition. achievement personal success through demonstrating competence according to social standards. successful, capable, ambitious, influential, intelligent, selfrespect. hedonism pleasure and sensuous gratification for oneself. pleasure, enjoying life. stimulation excitement, novelty, and challenge in life. daring, a varied life, an exciting life. self-direction independent thought and action-choosing, creating, exploring. creativity, freedom, independent, curious, choosing own goals, self-respect. universalism understanding, appreciation, tolerance and protection for the welfare of all people and for nature. broadminded, wisdom, social justice, equality, a world at peace, a world of beauty, unity with nature, protecting the environment. benevolence preservation and enhancement of the welfare of people with whom one is in frequent personal contact. helpful, honest, forgiving, loyal, responsible, true friendship, mature love. tradition respect, commitment and acceptance of the customs and ideas that traditional culture or religion provide the self. humble, accepting my portion in life, devout, respect for tradition, moderate. conformity restraint of actions, inclinations, and impulses likely to upset or harm others and violate social expectations or norms. politeness, obedient, selfdiscipline, honoring parents and elders security safety, harmony and stability of society, of relationships, and of self. family security, national security, social order, clean, reciprocation of favors, sense of belonging, healthy. resource: (schwartz 1996) yigit research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 1-17 4 there are numerous studies conducted in the areas of cultural and individual values. among the research conducted in this area, turkey is considered as a collectivist country with a score of 37 out of 100 in the dimension of individualism. in this sense, turkey is described as a country where people belong to in-groups, like families or organizations and look after each other for the sake of loyalty (hofstede 2012). there are some research conducted in turkey in the areas of value priorities of families, teachers and students (kılınç and others, 2016; tahiroglu and aktepe 2014; tarman and acun, 2010), value perceptions of a specific public university students (zavalsiz 2014) and value tendencies of elementary school students (yigittir and ocal 2010). however, there are limited studies conducted in the area of value priorities of public and private university students taking their parents’ educational and economic status into account. in this sense, this study will have grounded an important role in determining the differences, if there is any, among the perceptions of university students in terms of the values they prioritize. the purpose of this study is to look at the value priority differences of public and private university students in turkey. the research aims at finding whether public and private university students’ values differ by taking their parents’ education and economic levels into consideration. the researchers try to answer the following questions: 1. is there a statistically significant difference between public and private university students’ value priorities? 2. is there a statistically significant difference among university students’ value priorities based on their parents’ education and economic level? yigit research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 1-17 5 method this is a quantitative study conducting a comparative analysis between private and public university students’ value priorities. the causal comparative design is adopted for this study. the aim of the causal comparative design is to learn the effect of the independent variable on the dependent variable. the reason behind choosing this research design method is that the independent variable cannot be manipulated by the researcher. the independent variable in this study were economic status and school types. the economic status of the students was measured by asking a question about their parents’ current economic position to be classified as high, middle and low and the school type was already marked by the researcher on the survey since he knew they type of the school beforehand. father’s and mother’s education level were asked separately on the top of the survey form to be classified as primary school, secondary school, high school and university level. the dependent variables were all the motivational types of values subject to this study, which are; universalism, power, tradition, conformity, hedonism, self-direction, security, stimulation, achievement and benevolence. data collection the researcher works in a private university located in istanbul, turkey. finding all sources of information in all private and public universities in turkey was a challenge for the researcher. the researcher would be most successful in accessing pertinent participants at the universities in istanbul. the data from both private and public universities subject to this research comes from those universities that the researcher accessed in istanbul. after getting permission from the administration, the researcher visited classrooms randomly during the lectures and asked the instructor for permission to conduct the survey with the students between october-december 2014. after getting the permission from the lecturer, the students were asked to participate in the study yigit research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 1-17 6 if they wanted to do so. the ones who accepted to participate in the study were given the survey questions to answer. each questionnaire took between 5-7 minutes to complete. the total sample of 341 respondents were delivered the schwartz value survey (1992) adapted into turkish language by kusdil and kagitcibasi (2000) and collected by the researchers. the reliability coefficients for the adapted survey ranges from .51 to .77. in terms of each value type, the reliability coefficient for universalism is .77, for benevolence is .76, for hedonism is .54, for power is .75, for achievement is .66, for stimulation is .70, for self-direction is .69, for tradition is .63, for conformity is .51 and for security is .59 (kusdil and kagitcibasi 2000). participants the data for this study were collected from a population of students of a public and a private university in istanbul, turkey. in terms of student success, students of both universities are considered successful by taking the ranking of both universities into account. in our sample, the females are over-represented compared to the males. participants were 242 females and 99 males aged 17 to 38 (male: m = 20, sd= 2; female: m= 19, sd= 2). the average age of the participants was 19.13 years (sd= 1.680). the reason of this over-representation is observed to be the education departments since females constitute about 66 percent of the population in faculties of education (osym 2013). this might be considered as one of the limitations of the study and further studies might be conducted taking this limitation into account. the samples from private and public universities are almost equally divided. the 49.3 percent of the samples come from the private university whereas 50.7 percent comes from the public university. although the sample size cannot be considered as representative for public and private universities in turkey, it can be regarded as a heterogeneous sample since the backgrounds of the yigit research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 1-17 7 students participated in this study represent a substantial variation of turkish students’ cultural and economic backgrounds. data analysis the collected data were analyzed using spss 20 statistical analysis software. the data were first analyzed to find out whether the distribution was normally distributed. the test results showed that the data are normally distributed with a skewness of -0.296 (se= 0.134) and kurtosis of -0.439 (se= 0.267). the level of significance adapted as the reliability level was 0.05. after the normality test, one-way variance of analysis for random samplings (one-way anova) was adopted in order to analyze the data. results a one-way between subjects anova was conducted to compare the differences in private and public university students’ value priorities (table 2). there was a significant effect of the school type on the motivational type of value universalism that included single values broadminded, wisdom, social justice, equality, a world at peace, a world of beauty, unity with nature, and protecting the environment at the p<.05 level [f (1, 329) = 8.750, p = 0.003]. among the motivational types of values analyzed was also self-direction that included single values creativity, freedom, independent, curious, choosing own goals, and self-respect. the test result showed that there was not a significant effect of the school type on this value at the p<.05 level [f (1, 329) = 2.535, p = 0.112]. power was the third motivational type of value that included the single values social power, authority, wealth, preserving my public image, and social recognition. the anova test showed that school type had a significant effect on power at the p<.05 level [f (1, 329) = 7.316, p = 0.007]. the test results also showed that type of school had a yigit research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 1-17 8 significant effect on tradition that included the single values humble, accepting my portion in life, devout, respect for tradition and moderate at the p<.05 level [f (1, 329) = 10.658, p = 0.001]. the test results did not show a significant effect of school type on the motivational type of value security at the p<.05 level [f (1, 329) =.697, p = 0.404] that included the single values; family security, national security, social order, clean, reciprocation of favors, sense of belonging, and healthy. the test result also showed that they type of school did not have a significant effect on the motivational type of value stimulation at the p<.05 level [f (1, 329) = 0.077, p = 0.782]. the single values representing stimulation were daring, a varied life, and an exciting life. another motivational type of value was conformity that included the single value items politeness, obedient, self-discipline, honoring parents and elders. the test result showed a significant effect of school type on this value at the p<.05 level [f (1, 329) = 13.987, p = 0.000]. for the motivational type of value achievement that included the single value items successful, capable, ambitious, influential, intelligent, and self-respect, the test result did not show a significant effect of school type at the p<.05 level [f (1, 329) = 0.506, p = 0.477]. the test results for the last two motivational type of values, benevolence [f (1, 329) = 85.667, p = 0.000] and hedonism [f (1, 329) = 4.255, p = 0.040] showed a significant effect of school type on the perceptions of those values at the p<.05 level. the single value items under benevolence were helpful, honest, forgiving, loyal, responsible, true friendship, and mature love. on the other hand, the single values under hedonism were pleasure, and enjoying life. yigit research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 1-17 9 table 2: one-way analysis of variance of value priorities by school type source ss df ms f p universalism between groups 126.615 1 126.615 8.750 .003 within groups 4760.992 329 14.471 total 4887.607 330 selfdirection between groups 86.242 1 86.242 2.535 .112 within groups 11194.145 329 34.025 total 11280.387 330 power between groups 91.267 1 91.267 7.316 .007 within groups 4104.141 329 12.475 total 4195.408 330 tradition between groups 148.491 1 148.491 10.658 .001 within groups 4583.860 329 13.933 total 4732.350 330 security between groups 5.165 1 5.165 .697 .404 within groups 2437.252 329 7.408 total 2442.417 330 stimulation between groups .422 1 .422 .077 .782 within groups 1809.143 329 5.499 total 1809.565 330 conformity between groups 149.342 1 149.342 13.987 .000 within groups 3512.761 329 10.677 total 3662.103 330 achievement between groups 3.769 1 3.769 .506 .477 within groups 2449.899 329 7.447 total 2453.668 330 benevolence between groups 1609.458 1 1609.458 85.667 .000 within groups 6181.056 329 18.787 total 7790.514 330 hedonism between groups 29.029 1 29.029 4.255 .040 within groups 2244.409 329 6.822 total 2273.438 330 yigit research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 1-17 10 the researcher looked at the whether there was a statistically significant difference among university students’ value priorities based on their parents’ economic level (table 3). the test results did not show a statistically significant difference at the p<.05 level for the motivational types of values universalism [f (2, 328) = 1.284, p = 0.278], self-direction [f (2, 238) = 2.340, p = 0.098], power [f (2, 328) = 0.111, p = 0.895], tradition [f (2, 328) = 0.865, p = 0.422], security [f (2, 328) = 0.014, p = 0.986], stimulation [f (2, 328) = 0.938, p = 0.393], achievement [f (2, 328) = 0.310, p = 0.733], and benevolence [f (2, 328) = 0.508, p = 0.602]. on the other hand, the test results showed a significance effect of parents’ economic level on the perceptions of hedonism [f (2, 328) = 5.032, p = 0.007], and conformity [f (2, 328) = 3.187, p = 0.043]. because we have found a statistically significant result in this example, the researcher needed to compute the tukey post hoc test compare each of our conditions to every other condition. post hoc comparisons using the tukey hsd test for conformity indicated that the mean score for the high income (m = 38.78, sd =2.846) condition was significantly different than the low income (m = 36.06, sd = 4.494) condition. post hoc comparisons using the tukey hsd test for hedonism indicated that the mean score for medium income (m = 17.04, sd = 2.627) condition was significantly different than the high income (m = 18.52, sd = 2.254) condition. the researcher also looked at to find out whether the education level of mother has an effect on the value priorities of the university students. the test results showed that mother education did not have a statistically significant effect at the p<.05 level on universalism [f (3, 325) = 0.872, p = 0.456], self-direction [f (3, 325) = 0.569, p = 0.636], power [f (3, 325) = 2.342, p = 0.073], tradition [f (3, 325) = 0.454, p = 0.715], security [f (3, 325) = 1.395, p = 0.244], stimulation [f (3, 325) = 0.422, p = 0.737], conformity [f (3, 325) = 0.882, p = 0.451], achievement [f (3, 325) = 0.896, p = 0.444], benevolence [f (3, 325) = 1.606, p = 0.188] and hedonism [f (3, 325) = 0.761, p = 0.517]. yigit research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 1-17 11 table 3: one-way analysis of variance of value priorities by parents’ economic level source ss df ms f p universalism between groups 37.968 2 18.984 1.284 .278 within groups 4849.639 328 14.785 total 4887.607 330 selfdirection between groups 158.666 2 79.333 2.340 .098 within groups 11121.720 328 33.908 total 11280.387 330 power between groups 2.850 2 1.425 .111 .895 within groups 4192.558 328 12.782 total 4195.408 330 tradition between groups 24.831 2 12.415 .865 .422 within groups 4707.520 328 14.352 total 4732.350 330 security between groups .205 2 .103 .014 .986 within groups 2442.212 328 7.446 total 2442.417 330 stimulation between groups 10.290 2 5.145 .938 .393 within groups 1799.275 328 5.486 total 1809.565 330 conformity between groups 69.817 2 34.909 3.187 .043 within groups 3592.285 328 10.952 total 3662.103 330 achievement between groups 4.636 2 2.318 .310 .733 within groups 2449.032 328 7.467 total 2453.668 330 benevolence between groups 24.053 2 12.027 .508 .602 within groups 7766.460 328 23.678 total 7790.514 330 hedonism between groups 67.676 2 33.838 5.032 .007 within groups 2205.762 328 6.725 total 2273.438 330 yigit research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 1-17 12 on the other hand, the test results showed a statistically significant effect of father’s education level on power at the p<.05 level [f (3, 326) = 4.426, p = 0.017] whereas did not have a statistically significant effect on universalism [f (3, 326) = 0.511, p = 0.675], self-direction [f (3, 326) = 2.386, p = 0.069], tradition [f (3, 326) = 1.091, p = 0.353], security [f (3, 326) = 2.462, p = 0.063], stimulation [f (3, 326) = 0.877, p = 0.453], conformity [f (3, 326) = 1.075, p = 0.360], achievement [f (3, 326) = 0.674, p = 0.569], benevolence [f (3, 326) = 1.635, p = 0.181] and hedonism [f (3, 326) = 0.459, p = 0.711]. post hoc comparisons using the tukey hsd test for power indicated that the mean score for secondary school level (m = 43.44, sd = 3.985) condition was significantly different than university level (m = 42.39, sd = 3.510) condition. discussion and conclusion the first research question was to find out whether there is a statistically significant difference between public and private university students’ value priorities. the results suggest that while there are statistically significant differences for most of the motivational types of values, there are also some values that did not show a significant difference. the students of the private university showed greater sensitivity to the motivational type of values universalism, power, tradition, conformity, and hedonism compared to the public university students. on the other hand, the public university students showed greater sensitivity only to the motivational type of value benevolence compared to the private university students. a recent study claims that students with the value of universalism may be experiencing a sense of isolation from the bigger society (karabati and cemalcilar 2010). the result of our study do not examine whether public and private university students experience a sense of isolation due to their value priorities. this might be a good research area for future studies. yigit research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 1-17 13 an earlier study conducted in turkey showed that adults attributed more importance to benevolence compared to university students (aygun and imamoglu 2002). in this regard, the priority towards this type of motivational value shows similarity between public university students and adults in turkey. for the values self-direction, security, stimulation, and achievement, the results did not show a significant effect of school type on their priorities both for public and private university students. since turkey is regarded as a collectivist country (hofstede 2001), it is normal that students of both public and private universities do not show difference in terms of priority of self-direction. this is because in such societies, members usually prefer being the part of a system and directed by it instead of acting autonomously. our second research question was to find out the difference among university students’ value priorities based on their parents’ education and economic level. the results indicate that as the parents’ economic level increase, the students’ priority for the motivational type of value conformity and hedonism also increase. on the other hand, the test results suggest that there is no relationship between parents’ economic level and the priority of universalism, self-direction, power, tradition, security, stimulation, achievement and benevolence. the results also indicate that mother’s education level do not have an effect on the priority of the motivational types of values of the university students while the education level of father’s have only significant effect on power. in other words, as the education level of father’s decreases, the university students’ priority towards social power, authority, wealth, preserving public image, and social recognition decrease. the image of private university students in turkey is that they tend to be more sensitive to economic and cultural freedom compared to the public university students. they are known to be the members of wealthy families who have different value priorities compared to families of public university students. in terms of thinking globally, they are considered to be more open to the yigit research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 1-17 14 universalism and different cultures around the world. also, private university students in turkey are usually regarded as the members of the society who do not follow the traditional and cultural doctrines of the classis turkish families. the results of this study confirm that private university students are more inclined towards universalism compared to the public university students. however, contrary to the general belief in turkish society, private university students participated in this study are not far away from their own cultural and traditional values. compared to the public university students, private university students showed greater sensitivity to traditional values. on the other hand, the result that public university students showed greater sensitivity only for the motivational value type benevolence shows that the general image of private university students in turkey will change soon since they are more sensitive to cultural and traditional values while also adopting universal ones. the result of this study could be different if conducted one or two decades ago. the economic situation of families in turkey was not as good as it is nowadays in general. the number of private universities was very few and their annual costs was very high that only certain families could send their children to those institutions. the social and economic disparities between the families who sent their children to private universities and public universities were so visible in turkey that it was not difficult to distinguish between them. however, recent reforms in turkey helped lower and middle class families to come up with those high-class families in almost all areas, including education. the number of private universities increased drastically since 2005 and a competition started among those institutions. as a result, families who hold traditional and cultural values of the society started to send their children to those institutions. thus, we can consider the results of this study as the consequence of those developments in turkish society. yigit research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 1-17 15 due to time and economic reasons, this study was conducted in only one metropolitan area in turkey with the participation of two universities. this might be considered the main limitation of the current study. a more comprehensive research that will include different cities and universities in turkey would give us more well-rounded results. hence, a similar study with the participation of diverse universities in turkey can be considered by researchers. references aygun, z.k., and e.o. imamoglu. 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(2014). universite ogrencilerinin deger algisi: karabuk universitesi ornegi (value perceptions of university students: the case of karabuk university). turkish studies international periodical for the languages, literature and history of turkish or turkic 9(2): 1739-1762. 18 research in social sciences and technology an exploratory study: mobile device use for academics malia hoffmann, ed.d california state university, fullerton malia.csuf@gmail.com abstract this exploratory study surveyed how undergraduate students and higher education instructors at two small faith-based universities in southern california used mobile devices in and outside of the class for academic purposes. the researcher cross-referenced the results from the two groups to make correlations. the results of this study showed that nearly all instructor participants had multiple devices and almost half of the student participants had two or more devices as well. those devices are being used in and outside of formal class for academics in very basic and emerging way that are just touching the surface of their capabilities. this study found that students use their devices in class to read, reference, or search materials. faculty reported using their devices as presentation devices most often. key words: mobile devices, tpack, formal learning, informal learning introduction the popular apple computer company has changed the educational landscape with the reinvention of traditional music players and basic cellphones, as well as the creation of advanced mobile devices, including the ipod touch, iphone, and ipad. apple has inspired other companies like google and microsoft to reinvent cellphones, transform them into smartphones, and also create tablets. these devices, though used by individuals of all ages, have become quite popular on college campuses. according to the pew organization (rainie & smith, 2013), 56% of all american adults own a smartphone. eighty percent of those adults who own smartphones are between the ages 18 to 29 years old. the undergraduate population that participated in this current study was within that age range. in addition to smartphones, e-readers and tablet mailto:malia.csuf@gmail.com hoffmann research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 18-52 19 computers have also become commonplace for americans ages 16 and older, with 24% owning those devices. undergraduate students appear to use their devices for more than just talking, texting, and social networking; these devices have also become tools for academic learning. capitalizing on students’ use of mobile devices could help lead educators to include these devices in their courses more deliberately. according to the pew institute (rainie & smith, 2013), 34% of all cellphone internet users used their phones, rather than a desktop or laptop computer, as a primary tool to access the internet. with these statistics in mind, it was apparent at the time of this study that there was much to be learned about the ways in which undergraduate students were using these devices for academic purposes. by uncovering the way students use academic mobile device, educators can begin to merge technological, pedagogical, and content knowledge (tpack) practices into their pedagogical approaches (koehler & mishra, 2008). tpack guided the theoretical framework for this study. tpack builds on and expands shulman’s (1986) pck (pedagogical and content knowledge) framework for teaching by adding the important technological piece that is so evident in today’s learning environment. tpack suggests best teaching practices to provide a blend of technological, pedagogical, and content knowledge into all courses. by providing an equal blend of each of the tpack components, educators can establish rich learning environments for their students to keep them engaged while utilizing specific technologies and pedagogies that relate to their content areas. very few research studies have been done regarding the use of mobile devices in the higher educational environment. additionally, none of those existing studies connected mobile learning to the tpack framework. therefore, the purpose of this exploratory study was to hoffmann research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 18-52 20 determine the mobile learning of undergraduate students and instructors and correlate the two groups’ data. the correlated data gathered on both groups was connected with the tpack framework to suggest pedagogical strategies for instructors to provide a richer learning environment that meets the needs and demands of today’s mobile learners. research questions the following research questions were explored: 1. in what ways, if any, do undergraduate students use mobile devices in class for academic purposes? 2. in what ways, if any, do undergraduate students use mobile devices outside of class for academic purposes? 3. in what ways, if any, do higher education instructors use mobile devices for academic purposes in class? 4. in what ways, if any, do higher education instructors use mobile devices outside of class for academic purposes? literature review this study explored the ways in which college students and faculty used mobile devices: portable web-enabled devices for learning. the role of technology has changed the way people communicate with each other, which has also led to changes in support of students’ learning. pedagogical efforts and instructional theories were also considered when proposing mobile technologies for learning. tpack connects technologies with specific pedagogical strategies (koehler & mishra, 2008). many qualitative and quantitative studies have been done on how young adults use technologies regularly. however, there is still much to be learned about how hoffmann research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 18-52 21 young adults use these technologies for academic purposes. current non-academic uses and other mobile device studies, as well as tpack studies, are discussed subsequently. a meta-analysis of trends from mobile learning studies found that the key factors to define mobile devices were mobility and the ability to engage in educational activities without being tied to a location. users are able to access wireless technology to access data, communicate, and mediate other educational activities (wu, jim wu, chen, kao, lin, & huang, 2012). however, many users were not using the devices to their fullest potential. being device centric, focusing on the device rather than the pedagogy in the devices’ use, has hindered the ability to completely conceptualize the educational capabilities of those powerful mobile devices. additionally, in a study conducted by kilinc, kilinc, kaya, baser, turkuresin, & kesten, (2016) providing training for educators in areas of technology reduced anxiety and increased their beliefs and attitudes towards technology integration. contrary to being device centric, using tpack does not focus on the device; rather, it focuses on the full integration of technology into required content areas with appropriate pedagogies (wu et al., 2012). pedagogical content knowledge shulman (1986) observed the focus of education on teachers’ content knowledge in terms of teacher certification. up until around 1986, teachers were to prove their knowledge of subject matters through tests, while never really needing to prove they understood pedagogical strategies to use with that content knowledge. he emphasized that both pedagogy and content knowledge needed to have shared importance when educating students. too much focus on one or the other disrupted the necessary balance for students to learn accurately and effectively. if there was too much emphasis on the content knowledge but the teacher did not know how to convey those hoffmann research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 18-52 22 facts, the student would not learn. if the teacher was good at explaining content to students, varying their teaching techniques, but the content knowledge was wrong, then it still did not matter because the knowledge being taught was useless. teachers needed to learn not just pedagogy itself, but also different pedagogical strategies in regard to different subject matter. teaching should not be a one size fits all model. for example, science may require more hands on experiences like dissection, language arts requires peer-to-peer writers’ workshops, and social studies may require utilization of primary source materials to enrich the learning environment. shulman described this content-pedagogy connection as pedagogical content knowledge (pck), and it has changed the nature of teacher education in 1986 from that point forward. development of technological pedagogical and content knowledge (tpack) tpack became relevant as a technology integration expert in higher education while considering how undergraduate professors can begin to integrate mobile devices into their formal instruction. koehler and mishra (2008) built upon and extended shulman’s (1986) theory of pck to include technology integration. k-12 teachers have been pressured for about the past 2 decades, 1990-2014, to integrate technology. higher education teachers have more recently begun to feel the pressure of technology integration; however, both groups of teachers have seen very few models that address how to accomplish this. further more, as a country who is renowned for its technology and innovation; we still have a long way to go (tarman, 2016). tpack emphasizes teachers’ knowledge because teachers are the biggest influences in the classrooms. in respect to the curriculum and standards, teachers have historically decided what would be taught and how it would be taught on a daily basis. focusing on teachers’ knowledge was the key place to start when looking at transforming classrooms. as new technology tools hit hoffmann research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 18-52 23 the stage like the ipads in 2010, some researchers posed questions regarding whether certain pieces of technology made a difference in the classroom, for instance, do ipads influence learning? when realistically, the question that should be asked is, how do teachers use ipads to influence learning? or, what subject matter instruction is enhanced by the use of ipads? the technologies used are irrelevant if the teacher is not equipped to use those technologies properly. using the tpack framework allows educators to look at equal distribution of focus on each of the core aspects of tpack: technological, pedagogical, and content knowledge. teachers most commonly have used and are using combinations of knowledge and any of the three core components of tpack. each component is equally important and equal distribution each of the components creates the best learning environment (koehler & mishra 2008). figure 1 taken from koehler and mishra (2008) demonstrates the combination of components of the tpack framework. figure 1. tpack. reprinted from handbook of technological pedagogical content knowledge (tpack) for educators, p. 12, by m. j. koehler & p. mishra, 2008. new york, ny: routledge/taylor & francis group for the american association of colleges for teacher education. copyright 2008 by the authors. reprinted with permission. hoffmann research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 18-52 24 any combination of the three tpack components with knowledge and the core components can exist. content knowledge is the knowledge of the subject matter that is to be taught. historically, higher education has been full of subject matter experts or individuals who are accomplished in their fields, hold much experience, and may even be well published. these individuals are known as content knowledge experts. being a content knowledge expert is an important aspect of teaching because misrepresentation of content knowledge could impact students greatly (mishra & koehler, 2006). students have looked to their professors as the subject matter experts, and for the most part have accepted information given by teachers without question. if the content was misrepresented, it created holes in the students’ foundational knowledge, impacting how they used that knowledge, creating the need for clarification of that knowledge down the road and further supporting the importance of content knowledge. pedagogical knowledge is the educators’ knowledge regarding how to teach, including educational objectives, students’ evaluation, and learning processes (mishra & koehler, 2006). educators typically learn pedagogy through their teaching experiences and in their pre-service teaching programs. knowing how to create lesson plans, vary instruction, and manage a classroom effectively demonstrate pedagogical expertise. professors in teacher education programs are usually former teachers who have gained teaching or pedagogical expertise through teacher training and experiences. they then share this expertise with pre-service teachers (their students) to prepare those future teachers to prepare lessons, teach, and assess students appropriately. solid pedagogy refers to how students viewed what were good teachers. this pedagogy can be demonstrated through differentiation of instruction and a strong sense of hoffmann research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 18-52 25 care for the students’ education and well-being. being an expert in pedagogy is what separates knowledgeable people from knowledgeable educators (mishra & koehler, 2006). not only is it important to have a strong foundation in the content knowledge, but sound educators must also be experts in content pedagogy as well. combining content knowledge and pedagogical knowledge creates a better learning experience for students. educators who could do this effectively are able to choose appropriate teaching techniques and arrange the content so it can be best understood (mishra & koehler, 2006). often, educators who understand and apply content pedagogical knowledge receive positive student evaluations. students feel that the instructors are able to meet their diverse learning needs and create positive educational environments for them while further increasing their content knowledge. for instance, when teaching mathematics, a teacher might pose meaningful questions related to what the students know. a teacher who is sound in his/her content knowledge and pedagogical knowledge will be able to find errors in students work and suggest corrections. the instructor will not only know math concepts, but also be able to adapt the instruction to meet the students’ needs (mishra & koehler, 2006). technological knowledge is the knowledge someone has regarding technology tools, whether analog (books and/or whiteboards) or digital (internet, tablet applications, and/or web 2.0 tools; mishra & koehler, 2006). technological knowledge is always changing since technologies are always changing. with that in mind, it is difficult to define technological knowledge due to its state of flux. becoming computer literate is a skill that an educator holds with the ability to stay flexible and apply knowledge across platforms or tools, making an educator knowledgeable in technology (koehler & mishra, 2008). educators who have hoffmann research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 18-52 26 technological knowledge are able to troubleshoot technology on their own or with little to no direction or support. individuals with sound technology knowledge do not require a lot of direction and they also have a large repertoire of tools to use. however, possessing technological knowledge alone does not make an effective educator (mishra & koehler, 2006). teachers are blending technological knowledge and content knowledge when they find or create connections between content areas and technologies. an expert teacher in this regard would be able to find tools that connect to the core subject areas, for instance using geometer’s sketchpad for teaching mathematics. technological and content knowledge teachers are able to replace tasks that were done without technology and provide technologies to achieve those same learning objectives (mishra & koehler, 2006). for example, rather than have a teacher provide a lecture on newton’s laws of physics, he/she might provide interactive games or use web 2.0 tools to teach the same content. technology teachers are usually strong in technological and pedagogical knowledge and are able to choose the right technologies for the learning objectives at hand. such an educator understands and demonstrates different teaching strategies and varies the uses of technologies. an expert in this area is able to find a variety of tools for a variety of instructional uses (mishra & koehler, 2006). he/she is able to adapt to and stay up to date on the latest trends in technology, educational and otherwise. rather than take an analog task and rework it with technology, this type of teacher will use technology as a tool to make that learning project better. for example, studying newton’s laws of physics again, an instructor could have students digitally record gravity at work by dropping two different weighted items at once, and have the students slow the recording down to re-watch to see if the heavier object drops first or hoffmann research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 18-52 27 at the same time. the key to technological and pedagogical knowledge is the diversity in tools and strategies that the teacher implements. the technology is the tool, not the purpose (mishra & koehler, 2006). finally, technological pedagogical and content knowledge is the ideal blend of all four components. it requires a full understanding of each area and how to use and apply each of the core components. tpack applies a variety of technologies that represent concepts and facilitate pedagogical techniques to differentiate teaching (mishra & koehler, 2006). an educator who incorporates tpack effectively is able to build on students’ prior knowledge by including appropriate technologies and best pedagogical practices. the incorporation of all three components, technological pedagogical and content knowledge, blends technology seamlessly into the classroom. tpack applies to the technology teachers and their courses as well as the subject matter instructors. the teacher does not use technology for its own sake, but rather has an educational purpose, and is able to find several different applications of those tools. an effective tpack integrating educator is able to model this framework in instruction daily and provide an integrated teaching approach to meet the diverse needs of all learners (mishra & koehler, 2006). timeliness of this study today, higher education is under the microscope and being investigated more closely to reform the educational stage and make changes. the working world demands that today’s students create and research, not just consume information. the higher education academy (hea) challenges universities to work harder to make connections between teaching and researching (kukulska-hulme, 2012). with the rise in popularity of moocs, questions have hoffmann research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 18-52 28 been raised about the need for or purpose of funding a traditional 4-year education. mobile devices have been evolving quickly; however, the instructional strategies in higher education have not been evolving as fast (cruz-flores & lopez-morteo, 2010). many k-12 institutions are working diligently to create technology rich learning environments for their students, not to mention the large amount of money that schools are investing in technological devices and educational materials (kilinc et al., 2016). however, as mentioned previously, once students graduate and go to college, they go back in time with regard to technology integration. traditional higher education institutions are falling behind with regard to progressive education, and now they must be forced to make changes or they will lose students to more innovative forms of education like moocs. mobile device integration is one progressive change that higher education institutions must begin to recognize that students are demanding. although students use their devices on their own, they could benefit more if their instructors would find deliberate uses for these powerful technologies. ally (2004, 2009) found that students used their mobile devices for both simulation and explorative information retrieval. however, students required some assistance from instructors to guide them away from misconceptions while searching the web for answers during information retrieval using devices. additionally, when students were given devices rather than using their own technology, students experienced more difficultly because they were using unfamiliar technologies and instructional time was lost (chang, chatterjea, goh, theng, lim, sun, & nguyen, 2012). if students have devices, they know how to use them; teachers merely need to ask them to do a task and the students will know what tool to use to accomplish it. educators do not need to be experts in devices; however, getting involved in the learning process with those tools will create better hoffmann research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 18-52 29 learning environment where both student and teacher will benefit. with mobile device implementation educators will not feel as though they are fighting the potential distraction of mobile devices and students will feel empowered and guided to use these powerful devices. traxler (2010) discussed the attitudes of today’s undergraduate students, noting that mobile devices: affect people’s sense of time, space, place and locations their affiliations and loyalties to groups and communities, the ways in which they relate to other individuals and to groups, their sense of their identity, and their ethics, that is their sense of what is right, what is wrong, what is approved of and what is inappropriate. they bring these attitudes into the universities. (p. 2) how students connect and learn with others has changed dramatically. what students know and how they know it is no longer something that is only obtained from sitting in a classroom or reading out of a textbook. the gathering of information has become more attainable and immediate. rather than going to class or to the library, students can get answers within seconds on their own devices. mobile devices afford learners the portable ease to learn on the go, while providing motivation for both teaching and learning (korkmaz & yurtseven, 2016). students no longer require the assistance of a professor or personally known expert in order to ask questions or make connections. rather, students can now send a tweet into the twitterverse and receive answers within minutes. these answers can be validated by the masses since they are posted publicly. students can utilize a variety of other resources within communities or other like-minded learners (kukulska-hulme, 2010). learning is now experienced and supported in digitally mediated environments (bell, 2011). this immediacy and ease of access to information hoffmann research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 18-52 30 is changing the landscape of higher education. learning no longer needs to be confined to four walls and a professor; rather it is social, interactive, 24/7, and immediate. learning is more than just processing content; social learning theory emphasizes the importance of the context in which information is received (bandura, 1971). students need to learn through observations, direct instruction, and social experiences. a variety of experiences to reinforce the content are needed for students to conditionalize that information. mobile devices afford students opportunities to engage in the content socially as often as needed. mobile devices provide more mobility to learning, providing students with necessary social learning experiences. this study is timely due to the high pressure on higher education intuitions to offer something relevant to today’s mobile learners. with the rise in moocs that provide opportunities for free education to the masses, higher education institutions must work hard to provide a unique and personalized learning experience. k-12 schools are setting the standards for rich technology environments, yet when students arrive on college campuses their use of technologies diminishes drastically. using tpack will provide a sound framework to take the focus off of the particular devices and focus on an equal blend of all the important components of learning to meet the digital demands of today’s students. methods the researcher chose two similar research sites to triangulate the data. students and faculty were recruited from two small religiously affiliated liberal arts universities in southern california. both locations had undergraduate and graduate programs. for this study, the researcher only investigated traditional undergraduate students and instructors who taught at least one class a semester. a convenience sample was taken from the two universities due to the hoffmann research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 18-52 31 researcher’s accessibility and ties to those university sites. according to university a statistics gathered in the fall of 2014, university a had 1,592 traditional undergraduate students, 373 of whom were new freshman (first-time first-year degree seeking students). of those 373 freshmen, 40 were part-time. males made up 40.7% of the population and females made up 59.3%. demographically, the traditional undergraduate population included 54 (3.39%) non-resident aliens, 307 (19.28%) hispanics/latinos, 3 (0.19%) american indians/alaska natives, 85 (5.34%) asians, 49 (3.08%) blacks/african americans 6 (0.38%) native hawaiians/other pacific islanders, and 807 (50.69%) white. the population included 71 (4.46%) students identifying with two or more ethnicities, and 210 (13.19%) students of unknown ethnicity. seventy-one percent of undergraduate students required financial aid assistance. university b had 3,474 traditional undergraduate students. males made up 42.8% of the population and the females made up 57.2%. demographically, the traditional undergraduate population included: 16.5% hispanics/latinos, 0.6% american indians/alaska natives, 13.5% asians, 7.4% blacks/african americans, 0.5% native hawaiians/other pacific islanders, and 49.2%) white students. the population included 5.3% students identifying with two or more ethnicities, and 6.9% students of unknown ethnicity. eighty-one percent of students utilized financial aid. many of the same questions that were asked of the students were used for the faculty survey. the instructors were asked about reasons for not including mobile devices; that question was based on research done by terras and ramsay’s (2012), which found that many faculty members abstain from mobile device usage due to potential student distractions. ifenthaler and schweinbenz’s (2013) work informed this survey’s option of too many obstacles to overcome to hoffmann research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 18-52 32 integrate tablets. koehler and mishra’s (2008) research informed the survey’s option of too much time spent needing to learn the technological knowledge. this survey used current research on educators’ reluctance to integrate technology to inform its available options. data analysis methods multiple-choice data were analyzed with descriptive statistics; answers to open-ended items and comment boxes were coded using rubrics that went through several iterations. rubric creation for open-ended items. eight of the 12 questions had open-ended comment sections. rubrics were used to make sense of those. the following sections list the questions asked of the participants followed by the rubrics to code those responses. students’ questions and answers are listed first followed by the questions asked of the instructors and their answers. findings part 1: descriptive analysis results this first section of the findings section will review descriptive analysis results from the most relevant survey questions. the second section of the chapter will use those analyses to answer the research study questions. students: what are some reasons you are using mobile devices? (check as many as apply). the student participants were asked to check all that apply for the reasons they were using mobile devices. table 1 reflects those responses in order from most common the least common reasons for using mobile devices. thirty-seven participants responded to this question. four student participants checked other and wrote answers such as check the time, gps, to communicate when i’m away on debate or internship trips, and for distraction in class! hoffmann research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 18-52 33 table 1 students: what are some reasons you are using mobile devices? (check as many as apply) reason n make it easier to access my work 31 (84%) increase my communication with other students 29 (78%) increase my communication with my instructor 23 (62%) increase my efficiency with tasks 20 (54%) collaborate with others 20 (54%) increase my knowledge in my field of study 17 (46%) make it easier to complete my course work 16 (43%) turn in assignments 11 (30%) improve my quality of work 10 (27%) quiz or poll 9 (24%) increase my motivation toward completing my coursework 8 (22%) other 4 (11%) note. n = 37. instructors: what are some reasons, if any, you are using mobile devices? (check as many as apply). table 2 reflects responses to this question in order from most common to least common reasons for using mobile devices. seventeen participants responded to this question. one participant checked other and wrote, still learning! table 2 instructors: what are some reasons you are using mobile devices? (check as many as apply) reason n increase my communication with students 12 (71%) make it easier to access my instructional materials 11 (65%) increase my efficiency with tasks 10 (59%) increase my motivation in students 9 (53%) increase my communication with colleagues 9 (53%) improve my quality of instruction 6 (35%) increase my knowledge in my field of expertise 5 (29%) increase collaboration for my students 4 (24%) quiz or poll 4 (24%) podcasts/vidcasts 3 (18%) give assignments 3 (18%) other 1 (6%) hoffmann research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 18-52 34 note. n = 17. the most common responses between students and instructors for using mobile devices were to increase communication, easier access to school materials or information, and efficiency with tasks. this finding indicates that both students and instructors have the same goals for using mobile devices and these could be shared with other students and instructors. student and instructor uses in class. this section presents the questions asked of students and instructors regarding the way in which the participants used mobile devices in class. instructors: do you ever ask your students to use mobile apps to complete assignments? yes: tell me about a time when you did. fourteen of the 19 respondents said no and six of the 19 responded with yes. collaboration, special purpose applications, campus app/lms, flipping, and consumption/reference/search were the codes used to group the responses, which are listed from most commonly used to least commonly used in table 3. table 3 instructor: do you ever ask your students to use mobile apps to complete assignments? response n collaboration 2 (33%) special purpose application 2 (33%) campus app/lms 2 (33%) flipping 1 (17%) consumption/reference/search 1 (17%) note. n = 6. it is interesting that there was a disparity between the student and the instructor responses. the common themes between the two groups are collaboration, special purpose apps, and campus applications/lms. the other responses that students gave were more student-centered, like taking notes, which fit into productivity and reading. however, students hoffmann research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 18-52 35 reported taking quizzes on their devices, yet no instructors reported asking students to take quizzes online. perhaps instructors see those quizzes as part of the lms and not an outside application. students: name a few mobile apps that you use inside of class. thirty-six students responded to this question; of those 36, three said none. one student specifically said, i almost never use my phone in class (too distracting), if i do i use safari or adobe to pull up an article during class discussion or google (for definitions or thesaurus). the responses fit into nine different categories—consumption, campus/lms, productivity, cloud storage, special purpose apps, social media, communication, entertainment, and games. table 4 reflects the number of student participants who reported using the corresponding category of mobile app in class. table 4 students: name a few mobile apps that you use inside of class app n consumption 16 (44%) campus/lms 10 (28%) productivity 9 (25%) social media 6 (17%) communication 6 (17%) cloud storage 5 (14%) special purpose apps 5 (14%) entertainment 2 (5%) games 2 (6%) note. n = 36. instructors: name a few mobile apps, if any, that you ask your students to use in your classes. seventeen instructors responded to this question; of those 17, five said none (or they do not ask students to use mobile apps). the responses fit into eight different categories: consumption/searching, educational streams/entertainment, social media/video hoffmann research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 18-52 36 conferencing/communicating, campus/lms, special purpose applications, collaboration, cloud, and quizzing/polling. table 5 lists the responses in order of most commonly requested applications to least commonly requested applications. table 5 instructors: name a few mobile apps, if any, that you ask your students to use in your classes app n consumption/searching 6 (35%) educational streams/entertainment 5 (11%) social media/video conferencing/communicating 3 (18%) campus/lms 3 (18%) special purpose applications 3 (18%) collaboration 3 (18%) cloud 1 (6%) quiz/poll 1 (6%) note. n = 17. common uses between students and instructors were consumption/searching, social media, and campus/lms uses, which indicates and supports the earlier claims that instructors ask students to use mobile devices to look up information or check for references. social media may be used as a means to connect with other students or experts in the field. finally, many students and instructors are utilizing their schools’ lmss. some students are aware of cloud storage applications, yet instructors are not asking their students to utilize them for easier access to course materials. additionally, instructors reported asking students to use applications for collaboration, but students are not reporting using those. collaboration applications such as google drive, which could double as cloud storage, could help students communicate with each other, aid productivity, and well as increase engagement, addressing the concern of the student hoffmann research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 18-52 37 who mentioned the potential distraction of using mobile devices for learning. if these uses are encouraged and directed by instructors, students may have less chances to be distracted. students: tell me about a time when an instructor has explicitly asked you to use a mobile device. thirty-one responded to this question; four of those 31 said none, which means that instructors have not asked the students to use a mobile device. the coded responses fit into the following categories: reference/search, quiz/poll, campus/lms, communication, productivity, photography, calculate, and educational streams. the responses are listed in table 6 in the coded categories from most commonly asked to use to least commonly asked to use. table 6 students: tell me about a time when an instructor has explicitly asked you to use a mobile device purpose n reference/search 14 (45%) quiz/poll 7 (23%) campus/lms 3 (10%) communication 3 (10%) productivity 2 (6%) photography 2 (6%) calculate 1 (3%) educational streams 1 (3%) note. n = 31. instructors: tell me about a time when, if at all, you used asked your students to use a mobile device in your class. sixteen instructors responded to this question; of those 14, two said none or have not (asked students to use a mobile device in class). the responses fit into five different categories: research, collaboration/communication, polling, special purpose applications, and campus/lms. the number of instructors who responded within those coded responses are reflected in table 7, from most commonly asked to least commonly asked. hoffmann research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 18-52 38 referencing was rated the highest among both groups, which indicates a very basic use of a mobile device as a reference tool, no different than asking students to look in their book for an answer. campus/lms uses and communication were also rated highly. table 7 instructors: tell me about a time when, if at all, you used asked your students to use a mobile device in your class purpose n research 7 (44%) collaboration/communication 5 (31%) polling 3 (19%) special purpose applications 3 (19%) campus/lms 1 (6%) note. n = 16. part 2: research questions answered this section of the chapter will use the aforementioned analyses to answer the research questions. research question 1: in what ways, if any, do undergraduate students use mobile devices in class for academic purposes? this study showed that students and instructors are at very basic use of mobile devices. those mobile technology uses do not utilize technology specific uses. the mobile device uses that students reported could just as easily be done with analog tools such as books or papers, students reported using their devices in class for finding information, reading, consumption, reference, search, and distraction. before the digital age students would have referenced encyclopedias. nowadays, they reference wikipedia. they could have referenced their textbooks; today they may have that textbook digitally. the benefit of the mobile device for these basic uses is the speed with which the information can be obtained. hoffmann research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 18-52 39 using the search feature within an ebook application like ibooks or kindle, students can quickly pull up the desired information, whereas before, students would have had to rely on their memory of where the information was, bookmarks, or notes. mobile devices allow users to more quickly and efficiently gather the information that in the past would have taken more time. students noted distractions as well. they stated that they were not bored, but got distracted while looking up content. other students in the study specifically stated that they were aware of the potential for distraction and chose not to use their devices for that reason. communication, collaboration, social media, and cloud storage can be accomplished in a unique with mobile devices. the first smartphones’ main purpose was to communicate via text, call, or email. today, smartphones have the power and the enhanced ability to communicate beyond those basic uses and open doors to collaboration, cloud storage, and social media, which can add tremendously to the learning experience. students can edit a document or project simultaneously using google drive. they can share it with each other via the same means or store and share files to be accessed easily at any time through cloud storage tools like dropbox or evernote. social media allows students to crowd source information, connect with experts, and obtain data, facts, or resources within seconds. the power of information through social media in real time is unique through the easy access of mobile devices. finally, tools like campus apps/lmss, special purpose apps, photography, entertainment, games, calculating, and educational streams put mobile device usage a cut above laptop or analog tools. application developers specifically design apps for users to create, collaborate, share, and explore. when students or educators use these advanced features or applications of mobile devices it reflects a deeper knowledge of the tpack framework. students can take hoffmann research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 18-52 40 photos of notes on a whiteboard to reference later quickly and easily. they no longer have to diligently copy everything down and worry that they got it right; they have the exact image to reference. calculating apps can perform the most advanced calculations without needing a specific type of graphing calculator; students can buy a graphic calculator app for much less than what they would spend on such a device. campus applications or lmss allow students to access necessary and pertinent course content at anytime, anywhere. that content is personalized to their course needs. educational streams and entertainment apps allow students to access lectures, podcasts, vidcasts, and related multimedia content without ever having to leave their seats. finally, games, although initially thought of as a distraction by many, have academic qualities if connected correctly to the content. for example, angry birds can be connected to physics and clash of the clans can be used to develop problem solving and team building strategies. all of these applications can be done best with mobile devices, due to their ease of portability and specific application features, taking learning to the next level. research question 2: in what ways, if any, do undergraduate students use mobile devices out of class for academic purposes? similar to the ways students used devices in class, consumption, reference, search, and productivity were used outside of class for academic purposes. reading was not listed as an activity done outside of class on mobile devices. this is interesting because it could mean that students also buy the physical books but do not carry them to class, hence referencing their mobile devices in class. productivity was a surprising finding here because many students stated that it was easier to produce work on a computer rather than a mobile device. hoffmann research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 18-52 41 music, entertainment, social media, communication (email, text messaging, and/or chats), shopping, cloud computing and/or cloud, and storage were some of the uses students noted outside of class. music and entertainment was also reported; students reported listening to or watching music/ entertainment while doing schoolwork. social media and communication were reported as means to connect with classmates regarding what assignment due dates or to collaborate on assignments including cloud storage and computing applications. students indicated that they shop on sites like amazon to purchase textbooks or other school resources. games, special purpose apps, navigation, and campus app/lmss, again are unique to mobile devices. some of these uses, like games, were noted as a means to regroup between homework sessions. special purpose apps, like epocrates, allow medical students to make informed medical decisions by referencing studies or experts in the field. campus app/lmss are used both in and outside of formal class for different purposes. students simply reference those apps in class, whereas outside of class students use them to hand in assignments and participate in discussion forums. research question 3: in what ways, if any, do instructors use mobile devices in class for academic purposes? many instructors reported using mobile devices for presentation, consumption, reference, search, educational streams, and entertainment. again, these are very basic uses of the devices that can be accomplished on a computer or even through the use of a tv, dvd player, etc. these methods do not encourage tpack usage; rather, they are just another way of doing what they have already been doing. the ease of access can be argued here for searching and referencing as well as timely access to educational streams if a situation arises, but generally, these uses are not mobile device specific. hoffmann research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 18-52 42 some faculty noted using mobile devices in class for collaboration, cloud access, conferencing/communicating, and quizzing/polling. these uses are taking mobile learning to the next level. instructors are not necessarily utilizing the mobile devices to their fullest potential, yet they are well on their way to doing so. some of these functions can be performed on laptop devices; however, with their increased ease of access, mobile devices make these uses timely. collaboration through tools such as google drive or prezi allows creation of dynamic content in seconds while including all students. cloud access allows instructors to provide all students access to electronic documents without ever having to make a photocopy or leave the room. conferencing and communicating could that were once done solely via telephone can now be done with smartphones, skype, facetime, or google hangout. viewers can not only hear but also see the other person in real time. this affordance opens many doors to connect with experts in the field across great distances without ever leaving the campus. finally, quizzing or polling allows teachers to get obtain time formative assessment data from every student to ensure everyone is learning. since every student in this study had access to a smartphone, mobile devices have the potential to allow instructors to require every student to participate in the means they see appropriate. special purpose apps, campus app/lms, flipping the classroom, social media/videos utilize the unique features of mobile devices. professors are able to find content specific applications like the twen application, which allows law students to access archives and law specific information; an activity that would have had to be done in a library only years ago. flipping the classroom can be done easily through the use of the video camera on a mobile device so that class time can be used in more collaborative and interactive ways. social media hoffmann research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 18-52 43 and videos allow instructors to access current content within seconds and connect it with what is being taught or discussed. it allows instructors to personalize each class, rather than teach from a script. finally, campus apps or lmss allow instructors to personalize learning for their students, make changes as necessary, and meet the diverse needs of each student through posting a variety of content. research question 4: in what ways, if any, do undergraduate instructors use mobile devices out of class for academic purposes? it is evident that faculty do more research with their mobile devices outside of class than in class, whereas students used their devices in class for researching more often than outside of class. faculty reported using mobile devices to access books, educational streams, news, and to communicate, produce documents etc., and reference. mobile devices make it easier to accomplish these tasks; however, mobile devices are not essential to the accomplishment of these tasks. social networking, music, and cloud based apps are beginning to use the full capabilities of mobile devices. faculty can use social networks to connect with their students outside of class to answer questions or provide resources. mobile devices allow this to happen outside of the office or home. cloud based apps allow documents to be shared easily and accessed from any device, providing the most up to date information. music was noted as more of a form of entertainment while working on academic content. campus app/lms, photography, games, navigation are uses that take advantage of the advanced features of mobile devices. the campus apps/lmss allow for rich content to be shared and personalized for students to access at any time. photography allows faculty to capture specific examples of course connected content. games can be created to make learning more hoffmann research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 18-52 44 dynamic and potentially connecting and capturing the interest of their students. navigation can be used to connect a setting to the context of course materials. these advances mobile devices uses seem to be more for instructors’ personalized learning rather than for their students; however, these uses can be developed and encouraged use in class with their students as well. summary of findings the study revealed that students use their mobile devices for a wide variety of tasks. many of those uses were in fact academic in class; however, a few non-academic themes did emerge. two students outright reported using their devices to distract themselves. they stated: used my smartphone to remove some boredom during lectures, and used it to text or look at instagram, not necessarily because class was boring, just couldn’t resist. other write-in answers of ways they used their devices in class included entertainment, social media, games, and communication. however, social media, games, and communication uses can also be academically related. specific non-academic examples included family guy, snapchat, and texts. this distraction potential was a major concern for instructors and contributed to their apprehension about integrating mobile devices into their course. however, out of 38 students who responded, only two explicitly admitted to using it as a distraction, whereas seven other students acknowledged the potential distraction and noted the following reasons for not wanting to use a mobile device in class: (a) it’s easy to get distracted, so many apps, (b) it gets distracting, (c) i get distracted easily, (d) mobile devices 100% distract me from school work, (e) will use them for other purposes and distracts other students who handwrite notes, (f) laptop is not as distracting a phone, and (g) gets easily distracted with other things on the laptop or tablet. hoffmann research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 18-52 45 however, if instructors are guiding and deliberately integrating devices into their courses, students will be less likely to get distracted. it is important to acknowledge that distractions do not come from the devices; rather, distractions are a problem with the pedagogy. whether a student has a device or not, if he/she is not engaged he/she will find a distraction. students used to pass notes or talk to their neighbors; now mobile devices offer a different medium for distraction. it is not the device that is inherently distracting. focusing on engaging pedagogical strategies while including mobile devices may begin to utilize the tpack framework while dispelling the notion that devices are to blame. both students and instructors shared a few advanced or unique mobile device uses: collaboration, quizzing/polling, and special purpose apps. however, these uses were reported as being teacher directed, or as formal learning. these uses do not reflect the tpack framework because the pedagogical strategy is recalling information, nor is the technological application unique to the pedagogical approach. recalling information can be done just as easily through analog tools as it is through this technological application. the key with tpack is to not simply substitute analog for digital; rather, it is to provide a rich technological application that supports the pedagogical strategy. collaboration uses reported by both students and instructors were at an emerging level passed simply consuming and/or referencing. dropbox, prezi, google drive, and virtual notebook were some examples of collaborative uses. dropbox was noted as a place to share files. sharing files can also be accomplished through google drive or evernote as well. it is not just the sharing of files that is important, but also the ability to collaborate in real time on those files. the power of google drive allows collaboration to occur simultaneously with changes in real hoffmann research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 18-52 46 time. additionally, each member of the group can have access to the documents. pedagogically, instructors can have group members keep organic chemistry notes together without anyone needing to make a copy or physically get together. tpack strategies are being utilized through encouraging students to do active learning while using technology and collaboration. some of the pedagogical strategies that faculty members mentioned included appropriate teaching methods regarding the pck model. for instance, many students reported that faculty ask them to use their devices to look something up or reference material. teachers are asking students to learn through inquiry, discovery, or active learning. however, just because they use a mobile device instead of a book does not make this task tpcak. in the sciences a professor may ask student to search for the symptoms of a specific disease; doing so while utilizing a mobile device’s unique features would align this task with the tpack framework. an educator could still implement the active learning model by using mobile device communication features to connect with experts, arrange interviews, harness the power of live social media to obtain public opinion on a topic, or use instagram to search hashtags of images. changing this way of thinking for instructors needs to happen in order to move toward true tpack integration. the biggest potential is for tpack integration with mobile devices is the integration of special purpose applications such as voicethread, which allows easy collaboration while taking advantage of the presence of mobile devices. by using voicethread in history courses, instructors can model tpack teaching strategies. voicethread connects with the new york public library, allowing students to locate primary source materials. students may also comment on their classmates’ work via voice, type, or video. this application utilizes a variety of technological knowledge teaching strategies. additionally, applications such as nearpod (allows hoffmann research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 18-52 47 students to follow the instructor, collaborate, work at their own pace, etc.), notability (robust note taking through images, audio, and text as well as collaboration capabilities), or geometer’s sketchpad (geometric drawings with hands on capabilities to measure segments, angles, etc.) are all good examples of uses toward using the tpack framework effectively. these are just a few more advanced mobile device applications instructors could use that participants failed to mention in the study. the aforementioned applications encourage tpack integration into the college classroom. with instructor directed use of these tools, students may begin to use them on their own outside of class to accomplish informal learning. with teacher directed uses of mobile applications, students will be less likely to be off task or distracted as well. limitations the results of this study are best applied to other universities with similar demographics and populations. information about participants was obtained through self-report measures; therefore, the results may reflect personal uses that are not demonstrative of the entire university populations’ usage. the researcher pulled a random sample from each research site to provide a representative population sample. the sample of research subjects was limited to those who consented to participate in the study and were students who attended two small christian liberal arts universities in southern california. the intent of surveying a random sample was to obtain a cross section of the population to provide the most accurate view of the universities’ student populations. the researcher adapted the student survey instrument that was used by researchers from ucf (chen & denoyelles, 2013) to incorporate the most up to date research data. the student and faculty surveys were piloted before the start of the data collection. two experts in the educational technology field validated those pilot study survey results. data collection was hoffmann research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 18-52 48 limited to the time allowed by the institutional review board (irb). the researcher gathered data over the course of 6 weeks during in-session semesters to best capture the participants’ uses of mobile devices for academic purposes. hoffmann research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 18-52 49 references ally, m. 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(2012). review of trends from mobile learning studies: a meta-analysis. computers & education, 59(2), 817-827. doi:10.1016/j.compedu.2012.03.016 research in social sciences and technology (ressat) e-issn: 2468-6891 32 elementary school teachers’ mathematical connections in solving trigonometry problem sitti fithriani saleh1, purwanto2, sudirman3, erry hidayanto4, & susiswo5 abstract this study aims to reveal mathematical connections of elementary school teachers in solving trigonometric problem. the subjects of this study were 22 elementary school teachers as the prospective participants of professional teacher education and training (ptet). they came from several districts of south sulawesi province. the teachers were given trigonometry problem. trigonometry problems could encourage teachers to connect geometrical and algebraic concept, graphical representation and algebraic representation, as well as daily life context. the result shows that most of the subject teachers of this study solved the problem according to procedures they know without considering everyday life context. on the other hand, there were some subjects who connected problem with everyday life context using graphical, verbal, or numerical representation. thus, subjects who were able to connect problem information with appropriate concepts and procedures are categorized as substantive connections. while the subjects who were able to connect problem information with mathematical concepts but less precise in using the procedure are categorized as classification connections. key words: mathematical connection, trigonometry problem, elementary school teachers introduction mathematics is a network of interconnected ideas, not a collection of separate nodes, although it is often taught separately (businskas, 2008; nctm, 2000). mathematical connections are one of the five process standards recommended by nctm (2000) in addition to problem solving, reasoning and verification, communication, and representation. mathematics is a collection of interconnected mathematical ideas that mutually build or support each other (erbilgin, 2017). a person who is able to connect mathematical ideas, facts, procedures, and relationships indicates that the person has deep mathematical understanding and that his/her knowledge is long-lasting 1 s.pd., m.pd., universitas muhammadiyah makassar, st.fithriani.1603119@students.um.ac.id 2 prof., ph.d., universitas negeri malang, purwanto.fmipa@um.ac.id 3 dr., m.si., universitas negeri malang, sudirman.fmipa@um.ac.id 4 dr., m.si., universitas negeri malang, erry.hidayanto.fmipa@um.ac.id 5 dr., m.si., universitas negeri malang, susiswo.fmipa@um.ac.id mailto:st.fithriani.1603119@students.um.ac.id saleh et al. (eli et. al., 2011; mhlolo et. al., 2012; nctm, 2000; saminanto & kartono, 2015). in addition thereto, a learning that involves connections will not only make learners understand mathematics deeper but also make use of mathematics in everyday life (nctm, 2000; saminanto & kartono, 2015). when someone learns something, the person is also in the process of connecting the new information with his prior knowledges (businskas, 2008; eli et. al., 2011; nctm, 2000; saminanto & kartono, 2015). however, when the teachers help their students to make connections, they have helped their students to learn on how to think mathematically (nctm, 2000). as a matter of fact, teachers have an important role to create a learning experience that allows students to recognize and interpret mathematical connections (mhlolo et. al., 2012). moreover, teachers who do not understand connections between important functional concepts in mathematics will be unable to engage students effectively to make connections, reasoning, and solve problem (eli et. al., 2011; saminanto & kartono, 2015). connecting two or more mathematical ideas is a cognitive process involving the activity of creating or recognizing the interrelationships between the ideas. mathematical connections can manifest the interrelationships between concepts in a single topic of mathematics, interrelationships between topics in mathematics, mathematical interrelation with other disciplines or daily life (businskas, 2008; kilinc, 2015; mhlolo et. al., 2012; nctm, 2000; saminanto & kartono, 2015; tarman, 2010; 2017; tarman & chigisheva, 2017). mousley (2004) categorizes mathematical connections into three, i.e., the connections that students construct between new information and their existing knowledge, the relationship between different mathematical ideas and representations, and the connections made between mathematics learned in schools and the mathematical aspects found in everyday life context. the topic of trigonometry in mathematics blends the visual and symbolic aspects of geometry and algebra (chin, 2013). solving trigonometric problems requires the mastery of certain concepts of geometry and algebra, as well as the ability to connect them. in trigonometry, the use of graphical representations and algebraic representations are mutually supportive. therefore, elementary school teachers need to have the ability to solve trigonometric problems, even though trigonometry is not taught in elementary school. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3), 32-41 based on the reason mentioned above, this study is aimed to reveal the mathematical connections of elementary school teachers in solving trigonometric problems. theoretical framework there have been some studies conducted previously which results in categorization of connections based on certain aspects. mousley (2004) categorizes mathematical connections based on their scope, the connection between new information and prior knowledge, the connection between different mathematical ideas and representations, and the connection of mathematical ideas in everyday life context. eli et. al. (2011) examined on the prospective teachers' views of the interrelationships between mathematical ideas, i.e. categorical, characteristic, curricular, procedural, and derivational. arjudin et. al. (2014) highlighted problem-solving process, i.e., classification connections, substantive connections, and expansive connections. according to arjudin (2017), classification connection arises when a person is able to connect the problem information with mathematical concepts but does not connect with procedures related to mathematical concepts and the problem solving. the person knows the mathematical concepts needed to solve the problem, but is unable to connect between concepts or does not master the procedure to solve the problem. on the other hand, substantive connection occurs when a person is able to connect the problem information with mathematical concepts and connect the mathematical concepts with the procedures he/she mastered. the last, expansive connection occurs when a person is able to connect problem information with mathematical concepts and procedures and can build new procedures that are connected with problem solving. expansive connection is done when someone solves a completely new problem for him/her. the person will connect the problem information to be solved with information from previously solved problems. from that connection will then form a new procedure to solve the problem. method participants the study involved 22 elementary school teachers from several districts in south sulawesi province. the teachers are prospective participants of professional teacher education and saleh et al. training (ptet), which is a government program to improve the quality of teachers so that they deserve a certificate of educators. prior to the training, the teachers were asked to study independently of the modules available online. this module contained mathematics topics and exercises specially designed to refresh the teacher's knowledge. teachers could consult online with instructors who had been determined. they were required to submit a report in the form of a summary of material that had been learned and answered the instructor's questions. the instructor would then assess and determine the teacher's skills that need to be improved. data collection the teachers were given the opportunity to study modules independently and work on practice questions from various mathematical topics. the study focused on the connections that teachers made in solving the following trigonometric problem: “an elementary student will determine the height of the flagpole without measuring directly. he stood at 12 m from the flagpole. using a clinometer, it is known that the elevation angle between the student's eyes and the point of the flag pole is 60°. determine the height of the flagpole! calculate the distance of the eye to the ground! problem solving made by teacher become data in this research. data analysis the teachers' answers were distinguished by the appearance of connections in everyday life context. there were two kinds of answers, namely the answer that calculated the distance of the observer's eye to the ground (p) and the answer that did not calculate the distance (q). furthermore, the answers of group p were classified into categories of classification connection and substantive connection. the proposed problem does not allow any introduction of new procedures, so that expansive connection cannot be detected. thus, expansive connection was not used in this study. findings in the trigonometry problem proposed, the teachers were asked to determine the height of the flagpole by utilizing the comparison of trigonometry. teachers who are able to make connections research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3), 32-41 between problems with the context in everyday life would certainly calculate the distance of the eye of the observer to the ground. although there is no information related to the distance in the question, teachers may use variables, verbal sentences, or make assumptions. based on the results of the answer analysis of 22 teachers, only 9 people calculated the distance of observer's eyes to the ground (group p). the other 13 teachers did not calculate the observer's eyes distance to the ground (group q). group q solved problems according to the procedures they know, regardless of everyday life context. they did not realize that the answers they provide had not shown the actual flagpole. there was still a part of the flagpole neglected, which is the distance of the observer's eye to the ground. group p there were 9 teachers who calculated the distance of observer's eye to the ground (group p). four teachers described sketches with observer distance to the ground, two teachers drew sketches but incomplete, and three teachers did not draw sketches. the teacher used verbal sentences, variables, or assumptions to show the observer's eye distance to the ground. p04 used the y symbol on the sketch and description to show the observer's eye distance to the ground. the final answer of p04 is "thus, the entire height of the flagpole is the observer’s height + ab = y + 12 √3". figure 1 shows the sketch made by p04. figure 1. p04’s sketch p11 and p21 used the p symbol on the sketch and made assumptions. p11 and p21 each estimated the observer's eye distance to ground 1.52 meters and 1.5 meters. no further explanation had been made on the basis of these estimations, whether they connected it with the ideal height of high a 12√3 b 12 m c y tanah 600 saleh et al. school students or not. p21 performed a calculation error in 12√3 + 1,5 = 13,5√3. this results in p21's incorrect answer. figure 2 shows the sketch made by p21. figure 2. p21’s sketch meanwhile, p22 did not use symbols either in sketches or descriptions of answers to indicate the distance of the observer's eye to the ground. p22 used verbal sentences. here is an excerpt of the final answer of p22. thus, the height of the flagpole from the eye distance is 12√3. if calculated from the ground, then the height is 12√3 plus the height of the student (up to the eye). on the other hand, p09 and p15 made sketches but incomplete. they did not depict the line to show the observer's distance from the ground. nevertheless they still calculated the distance. figure 3 shows the sketch made by p15. figure 3. p15’s sketch p15 used verbal sentence in the answer, just like p22. p09 had a problem on the calculation, so the final answer is incorrect. figure 4 shows the error p09 in performing the calculation. b = 12 m 𝛼 =60o 𝑎 𝑝 research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3), 32-41 figure 4. p09’s calculation error p05 did not make sketch, yet was able to rewrite the information in the problem and used variables. p05 made assumptions of the observer’s height by connecting to knowledge or everyday experience. in the process of calculation, p05 mistakenly implemented the cosine concept so that the final answer is incorrect. besides, p02 and p16 did not sketch the problem, but directly used the trigonometric ratio to determine the height of the flagpole. they did not give explanation of the variables used. thus, in order to obtain information on how they did it correctly, an interview is needed. p02, p04, p11, p16, and p22 were able to connect information on problems with appropriate concepts and used appropriate procedures. problem solving of the five subjects is categorized as substantive connection. problem solving of the subjects p05, p09, p15, and p21 are categorized as classification connections. the four subjects were using incorrect procedures and which resulting on incorrect answers. p04, p11, p15, and p22 were able to sketch based on information in the problem. it means they could connect verbal representations with graphical representations. p05, p11, and p21 used numerical representation that is 1.5 as "observer's eye distance to the ground". this representation is connected to the most students’ height they know. p02, p04, p09, p15, p16, and p22 did not specify the distance of the observer's eye to the ground. p04 used the y variable to represent the distance, while the other subject used verbal representation. group q there were 13 teachers who did not calculate the distance of the observer’s eye to the ground (group q) in solving the trigonometric problem. q08 made a complete sketch, but did not calculate the distance of the observer’s eye to the ground in the answer. q08 could well represent verbal saleh et al. problems into image form, but failed to connect the image with the final answer. more interviews were needed to find out if q08 was able to relate problems with daily life experiences. if q08 only calculated the x value in the image as the flagpole height, then the flagpole is in a floating position. figure 5 shows the sketch made by q08. figure 5. q08’s sketch q01, q07, q10, q12, q17, and q18 made a sketch, but the sketch did not depict the observer's eye distance to the ground. the final answer obtained also did not involve that distance. q03, q06, q13, q14, q19 and q20 did not sketch the problem. they directly deciphered the answers involving the comparison of trigonometry and did not calculate the distance of the observer's eye to the ground. q19 paraphrased information about the distance of the observer’s eye to the ground by writing as follows. “the height of the flagpole by calculating the distance of the observer’s eye to the ground = ... m” this paraphrase shows q19 understood the problem, although at the end of the answer the information is not used. conclusion the trigonometric problems proposed in this study provide opportunity for teachers to make assumptions based on their experience, particularly in connection to "observer's eye distance to ground". group p calculated the distance, while group q did not calculate the distance. there is research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3), 32-41 still a need for in-depth interviews with subjects in group q to obtain information why they did not calculate the distance. group p was able to connect information in the problem to their prior knowledge by using various representations, and was able to connect to everyday life context. in the p group, it is detected that there are the category of classification connection and substantive connection. references arjudin, sutawidjaja, a., irawan, e. b., & sa’dijah, c. (2014). tingkatan koneksi matematis siswa mts pada pemecahan masalah terapan sistem persamaan linear. proceedings of seminar nasional pendidikan matematika universitas ahmad dahlan yogyakarta (pp. 807-819). yogyakarta, indonesia: universitas ahmad dahlan. arjudin. (2017). karakteristik koneksi matematis pada pemecahan masalah aljabar. unpublished doctorate dissertation, universitas negeri malang, indonesia. businskas, a. (2008). conversations about connections: how secondary mathematics teachers conceptualise and contend with mathematical connections. unpublished doctorate dissertation, simon fraser university, burnaby, canada. chin, k. e. (2013). making sense of mathematics: supportive and problematic conceptions with special reference to trigonometry. unpublished doctorate dissertation, the university of warwick, coventry, uk. eli, j. a., mohr-schroeder, m. j., & lee, c. w. (2011). exploring mathematical connection of prospective middle-grades teachers through card-sorting tasks, math ed res j, 23, 297-319. erbilgin, e. (2017). a comparison of the mathematical processes embedded in the content standards of turkey and singapore, research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 53-74. kılınç, e. (2015). elementary school and social studies teachers’ opinions about the concept of good citizenship. route educational and social science journal, 2(3), 194-206. mhlolo, m. k., venkat, h., & schafer, m. (2012). the nature and quality of the mathematical connections teachers make, original research, http://www.pythagoras.org.za. doi: 10.4102/pythagoras.v33i1.22. mousley, j. (2004). an aspect of mathematical understanding: the notion of “connected knowing”. proceedings of the 28th conference of international group for the psychology of mathematics education, vol. 3: 377-384. http://www.pythagoras.org.za/ saleh et al. national council of teachers of mathematics. (2000). principles and standards for school mathematics. reston, va: national council of teachers of mathematics. saminanto & kartono. (2015). analysis of mathematical connection ability in linear equation with one variable based on connectivity theory, international journal of education and research, 3(4), 259-270. tarman, b. (2017). editorial: the future of social sciences. research in social sciences and technology, 2(2). retrieved from http://ressat.org/index.php/ressat/article/view/329 tarman, b. & chigisheva, o . (2017). editorial for special issue: transformation of educational policy, theory and practice in post-soviet social studies education. journal of social studies education research, 8 (2), i-iv. retrieved from http://dergipark.gov.tr/jsser/issue/32450/360860 tarman, b. (2010) global perspectives and challenges on teacher education in turkey, international journal of arts & sciences (ijas), 3(17): 78-96, united states. http://ressat.org/index.php/ressat/article/view/329 http://dergipark.gov.tr/jsser/issue/32450/360860 research in social sciences and technology (ressat) e-issn: 2468-6891 116 building english vocabulary schema retention using review value calculation for esl students burhan mustafa tanis1, cihangir arslan2 abstract vocabularies, the core of any language, are probably the most challenging and time-consuming part of learning a foreign language in a diverse and disperse community of learners. this study proposes an approach that can help a learner build up his/her english vocabulary volume by intensive article reading, inclusion of google cloud natural language api, glosbe dictionary api and the use of a computing technology, the review value calculation. the review value calculation was able to determine the number of days the new words should be reviewed so as to become part of long-term memory. this paper shows that students were able to increase their vocabulary acquisition skills by applying technology and computing to their study routines. students were able to retain words fast and understand their usage better, by employing an interactive monitoring process. if the system is used properly and implemented carefully, it will hypothetically produce a faster technique for acquiring new vocabularies for foreign students. keywords: vocabulary schema, review value calculation, short-term memory, long-term memory, assessment interval 1 doctor in information technology (dit), ama university, burhanmt@outlook.com 2 doctor in education, jose rizal university,cihangirarslan1@gmail.com mailto:burhanmt@outlook.com research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3), 116-134 introduction the unimaginably vast growth of information, communication technologies and the increase of students’ knowledge of computer learning have paved the way for new educational forms, known as e-learning (georgiev et al., 2004). commonly known as computer-based training, then termed internet and learning management systems, e-learning has become the latest term used to address the search for new and more effective educational methods. e-learning has been used to help students learn the english language in their own convenient time and place (kritikou, 2013). learners do not regard e-learning as a replacement for traditional instructor-led training but as an accompaniment to it, leading to a blended-learning strategy (ruiz et al., 2006). university language learners studying english as additional subject, not a major one, still have problems in acquiring vocabulary. the assumption is that this might be due to the strategies used in teaching vocabulary. thus, language teachers and researchers started considering technology as an option to teach this more effectively. (levine, ferenz & reves, 2000; horst, cobb & nicolae , 2005; tozcu & coady. 2004; taylor 2009). it seems that learners show very little effort in dealing with their problems with newly learned words when technology is involved. during the lesson, teachers often assume that students will deal with this problem of vocabulary-building outside the class on their own. however, learners do not have enough knowledge about vocabulary learning techniques, and they have difficulty in dealing with this problem themselves (monica, 2014). offering online lessons to students with the use of video-conference systems has become a large industry. the rapid growth of this demand led the way to industries offering online lessons to students by means of video-conference systems. video-conferencing fosters communication and collaboration (johnson et al., 2006), and traineeteachers can jointly dissect the newly acquired knowledge (hu & wong, 2006). some researchers conclude that video-conferencing is a “powerful tool” to give students confidence in innovative teaching practices. kent and simpson (2010) stated that students have viewed video-conferencing mostly as an alternative way for learning english outside the classroom. in fact, and not just for english language learning according to georgiev et al., (2004), no matter how huge the advantage of direct learning is, once the student has no ability to be part of the that particular lesson in that particular time, s/he will miss the training material. moreover, kent and simpson (2010), see it as a new system that can bring knowledge in an updated form. in this system, the teacher will teach the learner new vocabulary words that are within the lesson for the day. usually, there is no tanis & arslan systematic way of doing this; it would just be based on the teacher’s prerogative. vocabulary is one of the critical skills of the english language. allwright, in his paper, “language learning through communication practice” stated that communication is essentially the result of language teaching; nevertheless, its importance as a component of the language teaching process has been neglected. he further suggested that recalibrating language teaching towards a major focus on communicative skills encompasses three fundamental elements, namely: samples of the target language, guidance concerning the nature of the target language and management or directed learning activities. clearly it all leads down to focus on enhancing learning through its roots. since educators, lecturers, teachers and even the learners themselves place priority on grammar and reading skills, the core of learning the language – vocabulary – is overlooked. they immediately forget the words after the teacher has given them the meaning or even after looking in the dictionary. a number of studies have investigated how students can improve their vocabulary, with reading being one of the most common ways to do so. a long-term habit of extensively reading articles that are appropriate for a learner’s english ability can greatly improve the vocabulary and command of a learner of english (song, 2000). however, this strategy may be difficult to implement for a learner with no extensive vocabulary, because the learner may have problems either in choosing appropriate levels of articles in accordance with her/his needs and interests or in figuring out the meaning of unknown words using the semantics of familiar words in an article that is obtained. dictionaries are always helpful; however, the need to continually look up unknown words, which once learned may be forgotten in a few days as per learning curve theory, might also easily discourage a learner. according to atkinson (2009), several researchers have also developed language tutoring systems in order to assist learners in learning language and proposed different personalization strategies for personalized e-learning systems. with regard to an e-learning system, it is also hard to select appropriate articles for such learners if precise profiles of learners are never established. this study proposes an approach that can help a learner build up his/her english vocabulary volume by intensive article reading, during which meanings of unknown words are understood in the context of articles, followed with a handful of checkpoints to assess the learner and with the use of review value calculation to determine vocabulary memory retention. the intention is to obtain the vocabulary from articles more effectively, so learners will not easily forget the words. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3), 116-134 vocabulary learning is an area in which learners use learning strategies most frequently (klapper, 2008). kilickaya and krajka (2010); a number of strategies are required to empower the process of vocabulary teaching and learning with the aid of technology. when second-language learners use particular approaches for acquisition of new words in the second language, these are defined as vocabulary learning strategies (gu, 1994). oxford (1990) defines vocabulary learning strategies as “operations employed by the learner to aid the acquisition, storage, retrieval and use of information”. vocabulary learning has been classified into two forms: the traditional vocabulary and technology-savvy vocabulary learning (schmitt & schmitt, 1995). in traditional vocabulary learning, vocabulary lists that enhance students’ memories and understanding of the words are used. however, it is impossible to compile a vocabulary list that is appropriate for all the students in a class with different english levels (graham, harris & loynachan, 1993). some researchers used a keyword method as the best memory technique for learning concrete words, but not abstract words (stroller and grabe, 1993). others suggest that the use of a vocabulary notebook and/or index cards can be an effective shortcut to achieve this (schmitt & schmitt, 1995). ideally, the words recorded in the notebook and or index cards are chosen according to the needs of individual learners, thus learner autonomy is raised. with the increase in learner independence, its effectiveness has been widely recognized. sahin (2009) and some other researchers (kilinc et.al, 2018; ritter et. al, 2011; tarman,; 2017; 2016; tarman, baytak, & duman, 2015; tarman & baytak, 2012; valiandes & tarman, 2011) reiterated that the use of technology in pedagogy has proven its valuable contribution. another known vocabulary learning strategy is semantic mapping; this is a popular strategy used in classrooms. learners are encouraged to use concepts and relationships to create a semantic map in which keywords are highlighted. linkage is formed between the previously learnt information and the new word so as to reinforce and retain the memory of the new word. according to nation (1990), researchers have made both positive and negative comments regarding this method, and semantic mapping’s ability to meet the learners’ vocabulary needs is still questionable (nation, 1990). the role of vocabulary acquisition in learning has been recognized by researchers in the field (schmitt 1997, neilsen 2003, dornyei & skehan, 2003 and craven 2013). it is also interesting to note that both traditional and technology-savvy techniques are worthy of mention. however, there is still a need to address and develop new innovative ways to improve learning in vocabulary tanis & arslan acquisition using a deterministic peer review calculation that deals with word retention and acquisition. vocabulary architecture figure 1 shows the english vocabulary schema-building processes, which are composed of four phases: assessment phase, practicing phase, vocabulary acquisition phase, and the actual acquisition phase. during the assessment phase, the level and interest of the learner will be initially assessed to create the learner’s vocabulary schema, profiles and a personalized learning process. after the establishment of the interests and level of the student (based on standards created by the common european framework of reference for languages), the system is capable of rendering 25 – 40 articles, depending on the information taken during the initial assessment. as the learning process progresses, short quizzes will be given based on the learner’s vocabulary schema to determine the learner’s comprehension. on the other hand, the practicing phase is capable of helping learners through speaking with human native english speakers, subject to the availability of online instructor(s). usually, learners will request an online instructor for actual mentoring and tutoring. results will then be recorded for profiling the learner’s vocabulary schema. when the user requests to speak to a native speaker, the system will find a teacher that is available at that time in the system. the native speaker will then be given enough time to review the student’s level and vocabulary schema before speaking to the student. meanwhile, the vocabulary acquisition phase is a stage where an article will be presented based on the learner’s level, interest and profiles. the article is directly linked to the google cloud natural language application programming interface (api) to determine parts of speech and grammar rules, lemmatization and stemming, while the instructor defines vocabularies that need to be learned by the learners. the actual acquisition stage defines the meaning of the vocabulary words, employing glosbe dictionary api to define the vocabulary according to the localized definition of words and language conversion from one language to another, e. g. english to spanish, and to other recognized languages. in the learning process and the acquisition of new words, the review value calculation will dynamically be computed to determine reinforcement (reading related articles) and adjustment (quizzes) to make sure that new word items will be learned. the higher the value of the review value calculation, the higher the memory retention. there are four essential tables that will keep track of the progress and assessment of the learner: research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3), 116-134 the learner’s portfolio table, learner’s vocabulary schema table, general vocabulary table and article table. these tables will contain all of the learner’s information such as interest, level and articles, which will be saved automatically. this is where the review value calculation module will obtain all the information before giving the user the appropriate articles to read, vocabulary to use in the articles, and quizzes to give. review value calculation to determine the acquisition of new vocabulary, short-term and long–term items should be determined using the concept of review value calculation or rvc. short-term items refer to any newly obtained vocabulary in the system. when a user obtains a new vocabulary item, it will be marked as short-term by default. each newly obtained vocabulary item is ranked as 1 in the user’s vocabulary schema, and as it continues appearing in the quizzes, its rank increases. regarding the short-term memory on the learner’s vocabulary schema, the system will compute the assessment interval or ai as shown in the equation below. the lower the rank of the word, the more it will appear in assessment, so the learner can master that particular word. however, if the learner has reached rank 4 on that particular vocabulary item which would mean that it is now a long-term item it will be counted as short-term and will be tested along the process. tanis & arslan figure 1: the vocabulary learning processes of the system ai = (round(0.5 ∗ rc) + (2 ∗ sp) + (2 ∗ riec)) ∗ rg where: ai=assessment interval rc = review_counter sp = speaking_practice riec = review_in_exam_counter research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3), 116-134 rg = ranking given a real-time example, assume all the variables are given a default value of 1 except ranking (rg), which is 4, then ai is: . = (round (0.50 * 1) + (2 * 1) + (2 * 3)) * 4 = (1 + (2 + 6) * 4 = 9 * 4 = 36 the assessment interval ai is computed in terms of days. the next assessment for that particular vocabulary item is in 36 days. a quiz containing that word would then appear and if the learner gets it correct, a new assessment interval would then be computed, and it could appear, depending on the system’s calculation, in a month, a year or so. nevertheless, after a 36-day interval and assessment takes place, if the user gets the word wrong, it would be degraded again into a shortterm item. method this chapter presents the research design, respondents, sampling technique, data gathering instrument, preparation of the instrument, validation of the instrument, method used in the developing system, data gathering procedure, retrieval of the instrument and statistical too. this method designed to gather information about the condition of the existing study. the proponent used one of the types of descriptive research; the descriptive comparative study which is suited for the proposed study. this is comparative survey where the proponent considered at least two entities and established criteria to determine which between existing and proposed system are better. research design
 this study used developmental research and descriptive research methods to understand how to be proposed system was analyzed. natural work environments are the ideal place for development research. given the ambiance of research, it makes way for a greater reliability of any particular research thus creating tanis & arslan methodological predicaments for the proponent. however, the research is considered best if it is done in an actual place than of simulated or idealized projects only. for instance, klein and richey (2005) involved tests on two real-time projects pertaining to design and development of a company. these tests include stand-up training whereas the other had computer-based training. giving the idea of “real life” concept of development-based research renders the results longer than expected comparing from the other kind of research. frequent changes in one’s research timeline and processes leading to unexpected events which is quite normal in other kind of research. eventually, it is safer to say that fully-detailed research procedures and time frame are two important things to take into account. the software model that advocate utilized is the agile development model; infer a precise, methodology to the product advancement that starts at the framework stage and phases. figure 2: agile methodology in software developmental application, a particular method is used in creative process that expects the usage for flexibility and carrying out a level of pragmatism to the finished product, agile software development (asd). it focuses on making the code simple, running a test often, and once ready it delivers functional bits of the application. the main aim of asd is to provide and build progress within small client-approved parts, for it is usually the preferred norm than delivering the whole large application by the end of the project. moreover, agile, fosters the platform of evaluating the heading of the task at hand throughout the advancement lifecycle. the usage of sprints or emphases which is also known as customary research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3), 116-134 rhythms of work are applied at the end of advancement lifecycle process wherein introduction of possibly shippable item is enhanced. “iterative” and “incremental” are the dexterous portrayed procedure this is yield when the process is concentrated on the redundancy of curtailed work cycles. improvement sets have only one chance of opportunity to measure every part rightfully. taking about the lithe standard, each and every part of improvements such as online, prerequisites and the others are simultaneously returned to the advancement lifecycle. at any instance a group stops and a reassessment happens, it could render a guide to an alternate bearing. the outcomes of this “inspect-and-adapt” methodology to advancement extraordinarily decrease both improvement expenses and time to market. since groups can create programming in the meantime they’re assembling necessities, the marvel known as “investigation loss of motion” is less inclined to block a group from making advancement. furthermore, on the grounds that a collaboration cycle is restricted to two weeks, it gives stakeholders repeating chances to align discharges for achievement in this present reality. nimble improvement system helps organizations construct the right item. population and study participants this is a case study for united towers ispeakbetter company. this study will be integrated in our existing system. the respondents of this study will come from our existing data from our website’s (ispeakbetter.com) database who are willing to participate. these respondents will be in different levels when it comes to their english proficiency. some have already tried learning english using a web-based program and some would be their first time. in addition to that, the respondents will come from different countries such as azerbaijan, germany, indonesia, mongolia and turkey thus their exposure to english would also differ. data collection the researcher will get its necessary data from the system’s database – contains the users’ feedback and gathered information. the respondents will be given enough time to go through the whole process. the process itself will not be time constrained since students will be in a different level in their english skills. tanis & arslan as soon as the respondents complete the whole process of trying the system online, the researcher will gather all the results and will be tallied and tabulated. these data will become the basis of the analysis and interpretation. it will take 6 months to gather the data from system’s database. data collection tools throughout the process of doing a comprehensive study until the moment of writing this paper, the researcher found out that this study has not been done before in any field of learning english as a second language (esl). there are existing platforms and sites which are thoroughly discussed in the review of related literature section, yet, none of these works mentioned, are emphasizing enough in developing one’s speaking and reading skills by improving his vocabulary schema through an interactive elearning communication with review value calculation. the searcher has designed the system for experimental use, thus prototype of this system has been produced. the engagement and the feedback taken from the learner throughout the process will be the main source in considering this a success. at the end of the day, there will always be room for improvements. data analysis part of carrying out good research is rendering intended results. these results can be gained through an authentic and comprehensive research testing. this study believes that engaging the respondents more productively is possible when the following framework of testing are taken into account. functionality reliability accessibility efficiency in terms of creating vocabulary schema, tracking the user’s status and progress the monitoring of the individual progress of the user in terms of his/her vocabulary schema is taken into account. it includes the number of gained short-term and long-term vocabulary words. for instance, out of 67 newly acquired vocabulary words, 10 were already known to be long-term research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3), 116-134 while the rest will still be in the short-term category, thus will be seen in upcoming articles more frequently. the vocabulary item, figure of speech and its translation are all shown to serve just like a dictionary, and contain all its vocabulary schema. learners can easily track their own progress with a click at their convenience. findings and discussion for brevity, figures and tables have been restructured; only 20 out of 50 learners have been used for discussion. a total of 50 students were extracted from 1000 possible learners served by the company. the participants’ english levels are almost the same, considering their age and nationalities. this may be attributed to less exposure to the english language in these countries. the development process of vocabulary schema was divided into three parts, namely: will-be-obtained, newly obtained and obtained vocabulary words. as much as the front-end of the system, design, is taken into account, review value calculation algorithm implementation is another major component in providing the learners’ vocabulary schema. this is done by considering the back-end formula used in finding the assessment of the interval. the assessment interval defines the schedule as to when that particular vocabulary item should appear in a quiz. in order to compute the assessment interval, the components include the performance during exams, the number of times the items appeared and whether the learner conducted a speaking practice with the lecturer online. for the discussion, student number 2 was taken as an example. applying the formula discussed in the previous section, table 3 derived the attributes of vocabulary id 62, and the assessment interval of the vocabulary item will be assessed after four days. looking at the created entry, this shows when the vocabulary item was first seen, and if it appears in other articles it will be updated. however, based on the assessment interval, if the particular word was created last 2017-11-29, a quiz will be given to the learner four days later (2017-12-03) regarding the vocabulary item. this approach was actually seen in the general english proficiency test, gept, in taiwan as early as 2000. the same vocabulary and articles are used in different levels of the gept for different levels of english ability. in addition to adjusting the memory cycles of vocabulary (wang, 2012), it also determined the relationships between words in an article and intelligently adjusted the memory cycles of those words that do not appear in the after-reading quizzes but are known to tanis & arslan a learner. this approach not only enhances the learner’s vocabulary schema but also checks the learnt word from time-to-time with the assessment interval. table 1 users’ profile and initial assessment result table 1 shows the initial level of learners from different countries doing online courses of english communication, mostly from turkey, russia, the eu and central asia. the age average is 24.5 with standard deviation of 1.25. the area of interest that the prototype software offers is adventure with the participants’ english level ranging from a1 to b1. table 2 learners’ profile on target vocabulary and number of articles table 2 shows the status of the 20 learners with the corresponding records of those who were given adventure level articles. the third column corresponds to the target vocabulary or will-be-obtained vocabularies. for student number 1, for example, the requirement was to have 110 to-be-obtained research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3), 116-134 vocabulary words, but only 78 were obtained, with 10 articles rendered out of 15, etc. all these are part of showing the students’ progress throughout their journey in enhancing their vocabulary schema and learning english. table 3: the assessment interval of a particular student figure 3. long-term vs. short-term vocabulary figure 2 shows the monitoring of individual progress of the user in terms of his/her vocabulary schema. it includes the number of gained short-term and long-term vocabulary words. this graphic illustration is presented for visual clarity. out of 67 newly acquired vocabulary words, 10 were already known to be long-term while the rest will still be in the short-term category, thus will be seen in upcoming articles more frequently. clicking the show button in figure 2 will show all the new vocabulary words learnt by the learner. the vocabulary item, figure of speech and its tanis & arslan translation are all shown to serve just like a dictionary, and contain all its vocabulary schema. learners can easily track their own progress with a click at their convenience. the use of review value calculation provides an essential factor to support improving the learner’s vocabulary schema through the promotion of the learner from one level to another. for instance, the system can show and monitor students who make progress by increasing its level. to give an example, student 2 was able to obtain 100 new vocabulary words, and after taking a handful of quizzes, he would be promoted to a2. this takes time and flows like a continuous process, once one has mastered the fundamentals of a language (pronunciation, orthography and basic grammar). throughout this process, learners become familiar with the words they come across. it is the frequency of usage and the number of encounters in different forms and contexts that determine the acquisition of new vocabulary. teaching vocabulary should not mainly focus or consist of providing new specific words to the learners, but should involve and arm them with the necessary techniques and strategies to enhance vocabulary knowledge (craven 2013). furthermore, based on the study of kilickaya & krajka (2010), language instructors are largely unaware of the vast opportunities technology provides. the probable reason for this is the lack of training in the usage of technology in language classrooms. conclusion and implications learning new vocabulary is one of the most challenging and time-consuming processes for foreign learners. several researches studies have navigated this area of tutoring and successfully implemented it in different manners. the study focused on enhancing the vocabulary schema of the learner by providing reading articles based on the learner’s interest and english level. to make sure that the acquisition of vocabulary will take place, a computing mechanism has been incorporated into the system using review value calculation. through the use of the said mechanism, learners were able to monitor their progress while the system dynamically determined when a vocabulary word should be transferred into long-term memory from short-term memory. based on the results, many foreign students were able to demonstrate faster comprehension and understanding. almost all of the students showed an increase in their english level according to european english level framework. although the study has successfully implemented computing mechanisms in word acquisition, there is a need to have an intelligent system to aid the learners to research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3), 116-134 advance in the learning process: for example, the presence of an artificial intelligence (ai) module to teach the students and encourage them to continue is needed for faster word acquisition. another possible proposal is to transform the learning process into a game-based tutoring system. references atkinson j. 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(1995). e. mail for english teaching. alexandra, va: tesol publications. the role of using facebook in improving english, tojsat: the online journal of science and technology, july 2013, 3 (1). yiouli kritikou (2013). cognitive web-based vocabulary learning system: the results of a pilot test of learning greek as a second or foreign language. procedia social and behavioral sciences, 141 (2014 ) 1339 – 1345. doi: 10.1016/j.sbspro.2014.05.231. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2014.05.231 research in social sciences and technology (ressat) e-issn: 2468-6891 preparing teachers for the use of digital technologies in their teaching practice vasileios dagdilelis1 abstract . greece these last 15 years has developed and implemented a large-scale system for the integration of digital technologies in education and more specifically in the teaching practice. "large-scale" means that the whole program concerns all greek education system. a very important part of this nationwide project is the training of teachers program that involves practically all greek teachers so far more than 120,000 teachers have been involved and soon they will be involved all of them (approximately 150.000). in this paper we present a summary of this plan. the monitoring of this project at national level, almost from its very beginning, gave to us the opportunity of collecting a large volume of raw information and data of both quantitative and qualitative nature key words: ict and education, teacher's training, digital literacy. introduction what greece is trying to do? greece these last 20 years has developed and implemented a program for the integration of digital technologies in education and more specifically in the teaching practice. the training of teachers is an important part of this program. this training is relatively long (more than 80 hours of instruction over a period of three months for teachers and 380 hours for their trainers) and versatile, as it includes lectures, homework, evaluation activities, school practice, use of web 2.0 platforms and a variety of other activities. the training of trainers is an important part of the whole project as well. this training has a very practical dimension: teachers must of course have special skills in handling software and more generally contemporary digital environments. they also should have theoretical knowledge about topics such as pedagogy, didactics, learning theories and teaching 1 professor, at the university of macedonia, thessaloniki, greece, dagdil@uom.edu.gr mailto:dagdil@uom.edu.gr research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 109-121 110 methodologies. however, the most important part of their training is, in a way, “non-visible”, or more precisely, it is perhaps very difficult to be described analytically. this part corresponds to a very specific kind of digital literacy. teachers should be aware of the most common practices used in modern digital social networks, but not of course only as mere experienced users, but as critical 'readers' of those practices as well. even more, this critical view of the practices should lead them to a creative use of social media. moreover, their trainers have an even more complex goal, namely to show to other teachers the specific features of this new digital ecology and to devise new ways of teaching the creative and innovative use of these features. the educational use of digital social networks, of web 2.0 and more generally of digital environments, should be oriented towards the consideration of digital environments and more generally of digital resources, as a kind of wealth, or as a kind of tool (in the broadest sense of the word) that can enrich the learning experiences of students. common practices, however, often identify the teaching and learning experience with digitization: for example, educational authorities seem to consider the digitalized books in the form of xxx.pdf file, as a major opportunity to access to information and creating new knowledge (e.g. new information). so they try to digitalize all books used in primary and secondary education because they consider that this an enormous progress (which is true to some extend) but in a way "they stop there". unfortunately, teachers often adopt similar points of view. in this case, the use of digital technologies or digital resources, in most cases is more a ritual that teachers have to respect, than a true challenge to reorganize their teaching (jung, 2005). in this framework we try to identify all these elements that support the real, profound process of the transformation of a teacher to a critical user of digital technologies. in this paper we present a summary of a specific part of this plan, namely the section related to teacher’s training. the monitoring of this project at national level, almost from its very beginning, gave us the opportunity of collecting a large volume of raw information and data of both quantitative and qualitative nature. in the next section we present the general conditions for the integration of ict in education, a general description of the whole training project and then the questions of our research. next dagdilelis follows a description of the empirical part of our research: the data gathered, their analysis and the findings. the paper ends with our conclusions. conditions for the integration of ict in education successful integration of ict in education does not depend solely on the digitization of available resources (books etc.), nor on the existence of a physical and technological infrastructure (such as computer laboratories, networks, etc.), not even the combination of them. this is a finding that has often been ascertained (for example: soloway, 1995; oppenheimer, 2004; cuban, 2003). if we consider that an exploitation of ict in education must be considered successful when it somehow improves the expected results of the learning process, then it is obvious that the infrastructure and the digitization of resources are not sufficient. the teacher is absent from this tableau, but the teacher is an essential factor for a successful integration of ict in education (yucel et. al, 2010; tarman, baytak & duman, 2015). in fact, there are other factors that we are discussing below. there are many ways of implementation and many "levels" of what we call, in a general way, the pedagogical and didactic utilization of ict in education. in some countries, the integration of ict into teaching takes place in a decentralized way and each region decides autonomously how to organize this integration. in greece, it was decided to apply a single, central model for the whole country. this does not mean that actions are not allowed and implemented in place to integrate digital technologies into education: all greek teachers can use digital technologies in their lessons. however, here we are referring to a nationwide program implemented by the ministry of education across the country for all schools. the scale of implementation, i.e. the size of the project, is very large, at least for greece of 11,000,000 inhabitants. this large scale imposes a very long, careful and constantly updated study, a detailed plan for this objective. so, all known factors that play an important role for the success of this project must be taken into account. below is a list these factors to be taken into account in order for a program for the integration of icts. education is effective. for each factor, the relevant actions and actions of greece are also research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 109-121 112 mentioned. it should be stressed that all planed actions and activities did not follow a completely linear course, nor a time sequence, as the list that follows seems to imply. it is just here that factors and actions are presented in a systematic way. factor 1: the agencies and institutions responsible for designing, implementing the project and managing it in general have to be clearly determinate. in greece, the leader was the ministry of education (http://www.minedu.gov.gr), through the institute of educational policy (an institute of the ministry) and the computer technology institute diophantus (http://www.cti.gr), two institutions of the public sector dealing with education and technology. it is obvious that thousands of people from different disciplines, such as specialized scientists, technicians, teachers and trainers, administrators and others, have participated in this multiannual program, through the key institutions we have mentioned, as well as many local ones. factor 2: an important element associated with logistics has to do with the cost of hardware, but also with its maintenance, infrastructure support and updating. also important are forecasts of developments (technological, economic, social practices) to come. for example, the work of introducing ict in education began at the time of "web 1.0", before the open source movement and open software development, before smartphones, tablets and the beginning of interactive boards, before facebook and twitter. technological developments, to the extent that they are incorporated into social practices and the culture of everyday life, raise questions about the technology that education must adopt and have been a major problem in the development of this program for greece. technical infrastructure to be installed in schools is a crucial factor though not enough, as we have already mentioned. factor 3: organization and preparation of teacher education. it is obviously necessary to describe with some degree of accuracy the learning outcome of this training in the broadest way in order to determine the desired profile of teachers and trainers who will attend the relevant program, the characteristics they need to have for handling ict in classroom but also out of it. from the description of the profile and the desired learning outcomes, the teacher training need to be gradually organized we refer about this in detail in the following sections. as in the case of infrastructure, it is virtually impossible to predict the future. in the example of greece, many dagdilelis actions were designed before the introduction of the so-called web 2.0, before social media, youtube, etc. – as we explained. moreover, elements in education that are now considered important, such as the use of robotics or the emphasis on stem, did not have the same "value" they have today. teacher education and training must therefore be based on more general principles. it is also important, in the same context, to train the staff (pedagogical, teaching and administrative) who should support the whole effort when the program starts to apply. factor 4: creating appropriate teaching and support material. it is generally accepted that the integration of ict in teaching practice creates new conditions in the classroom. the very organization of the course is different from the one in a typical teacher-centered lesson. it is therefore necessary to create educational material and generally supporting material for the classroom. thus, for example, school books and curricula should be adapted to the new type of lesson. at the same time, additional material, in conventional or digital form, must be prepared: text files, software files, images, videos, links, worksheets, etc. it is necessary to set up and operate parallel structures such as repositories, school networks and support for platforms for the creation of communities (students and teachers), to support distance learning courses (modern or asynchronous), etc. greece, for this purpose, has set up and maintains the pan-hellenic school network (http://sch.gr, which supports approximately 1,300.00 students, 160,000 educators and educational staff and about 16,500 school units). at the same time, a number of repositories, content and service portals and national accumulators such as the digital school (http://dschool.edu.gr/), photodendro (http://photodentro.edu.gr/aggregator/) and aesop (http://aesop.iep.edu.gr/) or e-me (http://4all.e-me.edu.gr) include several tens of thousands of supporting material files: audio files, photographic and cinematic material, specific software, video tutorials, teaching scenarios, etc. in addition, hundreds of sites and portals, initiatives by the teachers themselves, offer plenty of digital or digitized material for instructional purposes. an enormous network of linked digital files has been created. in this context, it is of course necessary to create, collect, adapt and use appropriate educational software or software that can be used for educational purposes. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 109-121 114 factor 5: integration of ict in education, brings dramatic changes to the structure of the lesson. one issue is whether these changes are consistent with the current institutional framework, the laws and the legal framework on education. in greece, the adaptation of this framework was necessary and is still being implemented, as the previous legal framework could not have foreseen these changes. in a way it may be necessary for the legal framework to anticipate and regulate actions that did not exist before the digital age, such as the school's website, the school's digital newspaper, etc. factor 6: creating and installing related administrative structures as well as an electronic system for managing the various actions of the school, as well as training actions. more generally, a somehow a digital ecosystem should be promoted, in which pedagogic and didactic use of digital technologies will be realized. in the same context, a plan should be planned and implemented gradually, for the transition period between the start and the (relative) “finishing” of the process of incorporating digital technologies in education. training teachers: history and importance the project of systematically train teachers in ict has a rather long history in greece. actually began more than 20 years ago, with a series of pilot projects and the organization of the greek educational software production (production of software from scratch). during the early years (years 1998-2004) numerous educational programs were created from scratch or adapted (more than 150). software that could not be built in greece, because its creation was expensive, has been bought and translated into greek language. moreover this software was not only translated into greek language, but adapted to the greek educational system. at the same period and within this framework, several parallel actions and projects were organized, such as a pilot program for the creation of standardized computer laboratories into the public schools and a pilot training program for teachers. in 2005 began the lessons of the program known as the "first level training" (flt). teachers of all disciplines attended classes for 48 hours of digital "alphabetization". at the end of the courses dagdilelis there was a certification exam. until today, more than 100.000 teachers of primary or secondary education are certified by the system, which is a huge number for greek standards. in 2007 the very first of university training centers (utc) were created, which had as a goal to train trainers for the program known as second level training (slt). in other words, utc are schools of trainers for teachers. the training program for trainers has a long duration: it includes about 380 hours of lessons, during 6-10 months or so. these courses, taking place mostly in computer laboratories, include theoretical courses, laboratory exercises, practice on the field, participation in discussion lists or digital fora environments and use of web 2.0 platforms. also, the trainees have a good training in the use of modern digital systems and environments, such as interactive whiteboards or environments for distance learning. in short, the trainers follow a relatively complete and extensive training program. these trainers then, in their turn, train teachers in various subjects. the training seminars last around 100-140 hours in total and intended solely for the various disciplines: teachers of mathematics, physics, etc., follow more than 80 hours of theoretical courses and workshops, and many hours of practice on the field, with a content that is specific to their specialty. so far there are about 600 trained trainers (graduates of utc) and about 20.000-25.000 trained teachers certified teachers of slt, while the final expected number estimated to be closer to 60.000. this year however, another model of training is applied, namely a model of smaller, but combined seminars, with the same total training scheme. these new seminars are called b1 and b2 respectively. this model is more flexible than the previous one. these numbers are very important for greek education, because the target of the project is a very high percentage of greek teachers from all levels of education. this training is therefore crucial for the greek educational system, since it involves directly or indirectly all the teachers in public education and essentially determines largely the success or failure of implementation of ict in greek education. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 109-121 116 blended and face to face teaching for these courses, mentioned above, a blended teaching / learning system has also been implemented recently. it is well known that distance education and training presents some disadvantages, but also many advantages over typical face-to-face teaching. besides the usual social and economic reasons, greece's reasons for adopting distance learning are also related to its geography. more specifically, greece is a country with a very special morphology. its continental section in many places is inaccessible or at least with a difficult access. in addition, greece has about 2,500 islands, with a lace coastline, having a total length of 15,000 kilometers (continental africa’s coastline is about 17,000 kilometers long). these islands include dozens of small or larger islands inhabited. so, a significant part of the greek citizen cannot have direct access to educational or training services. thus, the use of distance learning methods was necessary. distance education adopts a blended teaching model. in the relevant lessons, a model is used, according to which the lessons are implemented by 20% with the face-to-face classical method and by 80% from a distance. in distance learning, about half of the courses take place on a collaborative learning platform and the other half with asynchronous training, primarily with the help of the well-known platform moodle. the careful design of the blended lessons and the constant effort to improve them has resulted in an not-so-expected result: blended lessons seem to have as well, if not better, learning outcomes from face-to-face lessons. some questions about organizing training as mentioned above, the training of teachers in greece to the educational uses of ict, is organized the last 20 years in a nationwide scale. through a system containing different levels of training with different objects and varied courses, many thousands of teachers of various specialties, have been trained in the uses of digital technologies in education. these specialties include teachers of primary education, and secondary education as well, teachers of language, mathematics and science. dagdilelis in our work, we summarize briefly a framework and an analysis of these data through a specific angle, or more precisely by setting a specific question: to what extent the "scientific" knowledge actually "spreads" to trainees? in short, to what extent teachers learn / acquire applied knowledge during trainings? we emphasize the fact that we do not refer to a specific scientific area (from those mentioned above), but we refer to phenomena that appear independently of any particular scientific area (drent & meelisen, 2008; khe & brush, 2007). it is obvious that the application of that knowledge acquired by teachers presupposes the conquest of advanced skills in using ict. teachers need to acquire skills that are directly related to the modern uses of ict, for example, participation in social networks and more generally the web 2.0 tools and environments. they must also have knowledge of a specific vocabulary, have theoretical and practical knowledge related to safe navigation on the internet, know how specific software functions etc. we could assume that such knowledge constitute an "alphabetization" (introductory and often contextualized knowledge), while for the deeper, framed knowledge of uses of ict we use the internationally known term of (digital) "literacy". our analysis shows that in a general way, teachers responded satisfactorily to the level of alphabetization. we attempt to investigate also the extent to which teachers conquered the digital literacy necessary for the use of ict in education. in this case, we are trying to see if teachers take into account the new digital "ecosystem", i.e. web 2.0, social networking and their very important role for the young pupils and students. it is a fact that, in general, most studies show that teachers have a positive attitude towards the use of ict in education and especially in teaching. but what is less certain is the following: the acceptance of ict is accompanied by a similar change in attitude towards ict, particularly in terms of new social practices? teachers believe that ict can be used as tools for a complete reorganization of their courses? too often teachers follow traditional teaching strategies. teachers believe that ict and generally throughout the digital technology as a mere tool in the classroom. the form of this point of view can be varied: teachers can simply uses electronic slides (power point or something equivalent), may suggest problems written with a word processor instead of handwriting, can post results on the internet instead of hang them on the walls. all this is a typical use of ict in teaching. but it is research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 109-121 118 a very inefficient use: in these cases listed above, it is hard to believe that students will improve their learning through the use of ict. in short, teachers can simply consider ict as useful tools rather than as tools that can disrupt the very structure of their courses, in a more productive way. from a different point of view, there are software that can completely overturn the (mentally and theoretically) tools available to students and the teacher and thus completely change the structure of the lesson. a typical example of this kind is the so-called dynamic geometry environments such as geogebra, which allows the construction and management of geometric shapes with the sole criterion of the principles of euclidean geometry. in addition, the interactive physics environment performs experiments and simulations in a controlled digital environment, where the laws of newtonian physics apply. yet the use of web 2.0 tools can change, can alter the structure of a typical teacher-centered lesson. a trivial example could be history: instead of describing the characteristics of a personality, for example alexander the great, students can search for resources and information on the internet and combine this information with the help of the teacher. instead of being informed about the occupations of the mycenaean or minoan people, they can visually visit the relevant archaeological sites, examine the findings and try to draw conclusions always with the support of the teacher. it is obvious and many related researches confirm, that the use of environments of this kind create multiple transformations in the usual teaching scheme: the didactic contract itself changes radically and the didactic transposition (the way scientific knowledge is adapted to the needs of the education and more specifically, the needs teaching) changes as well. the roles and objectives of the teacher change radically and a training for teaching and pedagogical uses of ict is not only necessary, but absolutely necessary, if we do not want the use of ict to degenerate into trivial applications, without learning value. to summarize all this, training teachers in modern applications of ict in teaching and learning, means more than just skills in using educational software and management of educational platforms; rather it means that trainers should be able to reshape their course and to critically take into account modern advances in digital technologies and their impact on students. trainers also must be able to "transfer" these skills and attitudes to teachers that will educate. so, our question could be summarized as follows: does this happen? dagdilelis data and analysis the material we have for analysis and study is massive, covering a long period of time and has a varied form. first questionnaires were given to and answered by trainees by the end of each course. also, we have data from interviews with teachers and from direct observations of several courses. along with this material, we had access to the material trainers display themselves at various sites with open access for all. this material either falls within the framework of their training or not for instance, can be personal blogs. in this section we refer briefly to some of our findings that emerged from the qualitative analysis of the data. the data analysis has not yet completed, but the first important results are already emerging. first, the time range, the volume (quantity) and the diversity of the data even if they do not guarantee the reliability of our results, certainly are an important factor of this reliability. our most important and significant finding is that teachers (trainers and trainees) have a generally positive attitude towards ict integration in teaching. this positive attitude is very strong among teachers: it seems to be constant in time as teachers respond firmly, when and if they are asked, that they consider ict relevant to for teaching and learning. also seem willing to use ict in all phases of instruction. however, despite their positive attitude, rather few seem to have integrated into their teaching practices what we called "modern advances in digital technologies and their impact on students." specifically, while teachers can easily integrate educational tools (such as educational software) to teaching and "transmit" this expertise to other teachers if needed (for example in training or inservice training), on the other hand modern applications like web 2.0 and social networking, seems not to have so much impact in their teaching practice. teachers can integrate ict into their teaching: that is certain. it is not certain however that they are convinced of the role of social networks and web 2.0 in education at least as far as convinced of the other aspects of ict. it is true however that recently the training program that we describe here was substantially upgraded in that direction was enriched to a very significant issues about web 2.0 and social networking. the results of this enrichment are not yet visible. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 109-121 120 this reluctance of the adoption of a modern digital applications and environments, this "distance" between a social practice that is widespread in greece as elsewhere and particularly among students on the one hand and a "wait to see" from teachers position on the other hand, could be considered as a kind of "paradox." but probably this reflects a general characteristic of the greek education system (demetriadis, 2003; legontis & dagdilelis, 2013; dagdilelis, 2016). the greek education system, completely centralized, leaves sometimes little room for initiatives: all relative material and framework (books, programs, didactic material,...) emanate from central institutions, practically the ministry of education, and are implemented and used in the same way in all schools. within this context, generally, teachers are obliged to follow stereotypic teaching models. the use of tools such as web 2.0, and various forms of social networking, however, has a particular dynamic, which is not compatible with the course, as is usually organized. thus, the greek teachers of all levels, are very familiar with so-called "frontal" teaching in teacher-centered models. they are very unfamiliar, if at all, to "open" methods of teaching that would give students the opportunity for initiatives and this is a problem that obviously requires a long and multifaceted intervention. conclusion the initial data analysis seems to indicate that the use of ict in teaching has been generally accepted by the teachers. however, some of the modern aspects of this use, namely web 2.0 and social networking, do not have the same degree of acceptance among teachers. although their significance is not disputed, it is clear however that teachers do not seem willing to incorporate these elements into their teaching. we hypothesized that a possible explanation of this phenomenon is linked to the centralized nature of the greek educational system, but of course this is a hypothesis that needs further investigation. if this hypothesis is confirmed, then a long term effort for a new orientation of greek education is necessary. in any case, further analysis of the already available data, along with what we actually collect, will give us at least we hope a clearer picture of the matter. dagdilelis references cuban. l. (2003) oversold and underused. harvard university press. dagdilelis, v. (2016) une étude de la formation des enseignants grecs au numérique : problèmes d’organisation et du contenu, didapro-didastic, didactique de l’informatique et des stic, 2527 janv. 2016 namur (belgique). demetriadis et al (2003)., cultures in negotiation: teachers’ acceptance/resistance attitudes considering the infusion of technology into schools, computers & education, 41(3), 19-37. drent, m., & meelisen, m. (2008). which factors obstruct or stimulate teacher educators to use ict innovatively? computers & education, 51, 187-199. jung, i. (2005). ict-pedagogy integration in teacher training: application cases worldwide. educational technology & society, 8 (2), 94-101. khe foon hew, & brush t. (2007) integrating technology into k-12 teaching and learning: current knowledge gaps and recommendations for future research, educational technology research and development, volume 55, number 3, 223-252. legontis a. & dagdilelis v. (2013) interactive whiteboards in greek schools: simply whiteboards or a valuable tool? international journal of technologies in learning, volume 19, issue 3, pp.133-149 oppenheimer, t. (2004) the flickering mind. random house. soloway, e. (1995). beware, techies bearing gifts. communications of the acm, 38(1), 17-24 tarman, b. (2016). innovation and education. research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 77-97 tarman, b., baytak, a., & duman, h. (2015). teachers' views on an ict reform in education for social justice. eurasia journal of mathematics, science and technology education, 11(4), 865-874. 10.12973/eurasia.2015.1445a yucel, c., acun, i., tarman, b., & mete, t. (2010). a model to explore turkish teachers' ict integration stages. turkish online journal of educational technology, 9(4), 1-9. http://www.springerlink.com/content/1042-1629/ http://www.springerlink.com/content/1042-1629/ http://ijltl.cgpublisher.com/product/pub.262/prod.2 http://ijltl.cgpublisher.com/product/pub.262/prod.18 research in social sciences and technology a comparison of the mathematical processes embedded in the content standards of turkey and singapore evrim erbilgin, ph.d evrimerbilgin@gmail.com abstract this study compares turkey’s and singapore’s mathematics content standards in terms of the highligthed mathematical processes. a mathematical processes framework was employed to analyze the content standards drawing on the standards for mathematical practice defined by the common core state standards for mathematics. the standards for mathematical practice include make sense of problems and persevere in solving them, reason abstractly and quantitatively, construct viable arguments and critique the reasoning of others, model with mathematics, use appropriate tools strategically, attend to precision, look for and make use of structure, look for and express regularity in repeated reasoning. the data sources are 2013 mathematics curriculum standards of turkey and 2013 mathematics syllabus of singapore for grades 7 and 8. data analysis revealed that the two countries reflected mathematical processes differently in their content standards. some mathematical processes are not identified in turkey’s content standards while all mathematical processes are observed in singapore’s content standards. the distribution of the observed mathematical processes are also different in the two countries. suggestions for future content standards revisions are shared in the paper. introduction curriculum standards are one of the factors that affect student learning and achievement through influencing what and how topics are to be taught in classrooms (goertz, 2010; pang, 2009). in the domain of mathematics, some curriculum standards are categorized into content standards and process standards (national council of teachers of mathematics [nctm], 2000). content standards define what mathematical topics students are expected to learn, whereas process standards guide how students acquire mathematical knowledge. process standards define what counts as a mathematical activity. for instance, according to nctm mailto:evrimerbilgin@gmail.com erbilgin research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 53-74 54 (2000), doing mathematics means formulating and solving complex problems, developing and testing mathematical conjectures, sharing and discussing mathematical ideas, recognizing and making connections among mathematical topics, and creating and using multiple representations. this type of mathematical practice is essential for developing students’ conceptual understanding of mathematics (hiebert, 2003), therefore, process standards might contribute to increased student learning in schools. despite the importance of process standards in promoting student performance, they are often ignored in research studies that focus on analyzing or comparing curriculum standards (tran, reys, teuscher, dingman, & kasmer, 2016). there have been many research studies that compared curriculum standards of different countries (porter, mcmaken, hwang, & yang, 2011; schmidt, wang, & mcknight, 2005). particular attention has been given to higher achieving countries whose students outperformed their peers in other countries in international studies such as trends in international mathematics and science study [timss] and the program for international student assessment [pisa]. many of the research studies on mathematics curriculum comparison focused on analyzing and comparing what mathematics is included and in which sequence the topics are ordered within the content standards (tran et al., 2016). lacking are studies that investigate how mathematics topics are introduced in content standards. the current study aims to compare content standards of turkey and singapore in terms of process standards by examining how students are expected to learn mathematical topics as expressed in the content standards. the reason for choosing turkey is the author’s interest; she is from turkey and aims to contribute to curriculum studies in her country. the reason for the choice of singapore is that singapore is among the top performing countries both in the most recent timss (provasnik, malley, stephens, landeros, perkins, & tang, 2016) and pisa (the organisation for economic co-operation and development, 2016), and its curriculum documents are available online in erbilgin research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 53-74 55 english. comparing the two countries’ curricula with a focus on mathematical processes will contribute to research efforts in the area of curriculum by providing a framework for analysis. there are frameworks for analyzing or comparing content standards based on their cognitive complexity (e.g., depth of knowledge, webb (2007)) or content coverage (e.g., general topic trace mapping (schmidt et al., 2005), however, there is a need to develop a framework to analyze content standards with a focus on mathematical processes (tran et al., 2016). the current study will also provide data to curriculum developers in turkey, singapore, and other countries as they consider integrating process standards into the content standards. theoretical framework in mathematics education literature, how students learn mathematical topics have been viewed as important as what mathematics they learn (australian association of mathematics teachers [aamt], 2006; kilpatrick, swafford, & findell, 2001; nctm, 2000, 2014). therefore many curriculum documents include mathematical processes as a guideline to implement content standards in classrooms. in this section, first i will review prominent mathematical processes from the related literature and then present the framework used in this study. according to nctm (2000), mathematical process standards include problem solving, reasoning and proof, connections, communication, and representations. the problem solving standard recommends that students construct new mathematical knowledge through solving challenging questions whose solution methods are not known in advance. students should be encouraged to reflect on their problem solving processes and to develop a habit of mind that is characterized by curiosity and inquiry. the reasoning and proof standard suggests that students look for, develop, and test mathematical conjectures. they should also be able to defend and evaluate mathematical arguments, and justify mathematical results. this standard is about seeing mathematics as a discipline that is meaningful and logical. the connections standard erbilgin research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 53-74 56 advocates that mathematics is a collection of interconnected topics and mathematical concepts build on one another. additionally, mathematics is related to other disciplines such as science and art. such view of mathematics helps students understand mathematics conceptually and have a robust learning. the communication standard is about providing students with opportunities to share their mathematical thinking and reasoning with other students orally or in writing. quality listening is also part of this standard. mathematical communication promotes sharing of multiple perspectives and therefore is essential for rich learning. the representations standard involves expressing mathematical ideas in variety forms including words, graphs, tables, and equations. students should be given opportunities to use multiple representations and translate one representation into another. kilpatrick et al. (2001) defined mathematical proficiency that is necessary for students to learn mathematics successfully. mathematical proficiency has five interwoven and interdependent components: conceptual understanding, procedural fluency, strategic competence, adaptive reasoning, and productive disposition. conceptual understanding refers to knowing the reasons behind mathematical principles or formulas. a learner with conceptual understanding has a connected knowledge network. procedural fluency means performing mathematical procedures accurately and effectively. strategic competence is related to problem solving standard of nctm (2000). it means being able to formulate and solve mathematical problems strategically. adaptive reasoning indicates logical thinking about mathematical concepts. similar to the reasoning and proof standard (nctm, 2000), it provides students with capacity to analyze a mathematical situation critically, to reason both inductively and deductively, to reflect on their mathematical activity, and to justify mathematical arguments. productive disposition toward mathematics is about valuing mathematics and seeing it useful in our lives. erbilgin research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 53-74 57 more recently, the common core state standards for mathematics [ccssm] ((national governors association center for best practices, council of chief state school officers, 2010) defined 8 standards for mathematical practice drawing on earlier work of nctm (2000) and kilpatrick et al. (2001). make sense of problems and persevere in solving them refers to analyzing a problem situation carefully, develop and use a variety of solution strategies, and reflect on the problem solving progress. reason abstractly and quantitatively is about contextualizing mathematical expressions and decontextualizing a given situation. construct viable arguments and critique the reasoning of others indicates constructing and defending mathematical arguments and communicating them to others. model with mathematics means mathematizing real world situations by creating a mathematical model and revising the model if necessary. use appropriate tools strategically refers to selecting and using appropriate materials for solving a mathematics problem or investigating a mathematical idea and being aware of the limitations of available tools. attend to precision is related to being clear and explicit about the definitions, symbols, graphs, and other forms of representations that are used. it is also related to computing fluently. look for and make use of structure indicates finding patterns and using known structures to view a new situation with a different perspective. look for and express regularity in repeated reasoning means concluding generalizations through analyzing individual cases and calculations. the current study develops a mathematical processes framework to analyze content standards drawing on the standards for mathematical practice defined by ccssm. the reason for choosing the mathematical processes defined by ccssm is that it is comprehensive, based on previous frameworks, and detailed. i took each process standard defined by ccssm and elaborated it such that it could be used to examine content standards. table 1 contains the mathematical processes coding framework developed and used in this study. for each mathematical process, an example from each country’s standards (when exists) is provided. erbilgin research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 53-74 58 table 1 mathematical processes coding framework 1. make sense of problems and persevere in solving them (ps) problem solving (ps) example: the content standard expects students to analyze the problem situation and plan a solution method. solve problems in any strand of mathematics. interpret the solution and compare different solution methods. reflect on the problem solving progress. 7.3.2.5. solves problems related to area. (turkey) n2.c. …use algebra to solve problems,... (singapore) 2. reason abstractly and quantitatively (raq) reason abstractly (ra) example: the content standard expects students to represent a given situation symbolically. make sense of formulas. n7.c. formulate inequalities from real-world contexts. (singapore) reason quantitatively (rq) example: the content standard expects students to make sense of quantities in real world contexts. estimate quantities (numbers, measurements). compare quantities using units. examine relationships between quantities. make inferences from data. 8.1.3.3. determine between which two whole numbers the value of a square root of a number that is not a perfect square lies. (estimation activities to determine the closest whole number is suggested.) (turkey) 3. construct viable arguments and critique the reasoning of others (cacro) construct arguments (ca) example: critique the reasoning of others (cro) example: the content standard expects students to explain why a mathematical statement is true or false. elaborate the difference or similarity between mathematical concepts. explain why a mathematical procedure works. s1.b. predict, observe and explain how the different measures of central tendency are affected by extreme data values (or outliers). (singapore) the content standard expects students to judge whether other’s mathematical arguments are valid or not. discuss whether a mathematical argument is valid or not. share and compare problem solution strategies. discuss misconceptions. work in groups to explore mathematical concepts. discuss applications of mathematical topics in real life. n3.d. discuss misconception, e.g. “if a is 5% more than b, then b is 5% less than a.” (singapore) erbilgin research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 53-74 59 4. model with mathematics (m) modeling (m) example: the content standard expects students to construct a mathematical model to solve real life problems. g8.a. work on tasks that incorporate some or all elements of the mathematical modelling process (solving problems in realworld contexts using geometry). (singapore) 5. use appropriate tools strategically (ut) use single tool (ust) example: use multiple tools (umt) example: the content standard expects students to use a representation (tables, graphs, visual drawings, and symbols) to express mathematical ideas. use concrete materials to make observations. use technology to make mathematical investigations. 7.1.2.1. identifies rational numbers and represents them on number line. (turkey) the content standard expects students to use multiple tools to investigate a mathematical concept (tools should be different structurally, for example, if a concrete material and its digital form is included in a standard, it is not coded under this category). make connections among multiple representations (only translating one representation into another is not coded here. connection between representations should be emphasized). n6.d. use a spreadsheet of graphing software to study how the graph of y=ax+b changes when either a or b varies. (singapore) 6. attend to precision (ap) attend to accuracy (aa) example: attend to fluency (af) example: the content standard expects students to use accurate labels, terminology, and notations. describe situations with appropriate mathematical language. attend to precision in measures and specify units. 8.2.2.1. …identifies dependent and independent variables and examines how they change with respect to each other. (turkey) the content standard expects students to perform procedures fluently. calculate efficiently and correctly. n1.d. …develop proficiency in the 4 operations of integers. (singapore) 7. look for and make use of structure (mus) make use of structure to analyze (musa) the content standard expects students to analyze the structure of mathematical objects (e.g. even and odd numbers). express a number, quantity, or mathematical expression in a different form (e.g. use properties of operations to rewrite algebraic expression). classify mathematical objects based on their form. erbilgin research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 53-74 60 example: make use of structure to make connections (musc) example: compare different forms of expressions including misconceptions. analyze the properties of geometric shapes and solids. 8.2.1.4. factorize algebraic expressions. (turkey) the content standard expects students to make connections among mathematical topics. use real life examples to examine structure of mathematical objects. n3.c. make connections between percentages and fractions/decimals, e.g. … (singapore) 8. look for and express regularity in repeated reasoning (er) express regularity (er) example: the content standard expects students to analyze and express patterns. write patterns with symbols. make generalizations. discover rules and formulas. 8.3.4.3. construct the surface area formula for right cylinders;… (turkey) n5.f. explore number patterns and write algebraic expressions to represent the patterns. (singapore) by using the framework presented in table 1, the current study sought to answer the following research question:  to what extent do opportunities to engage in mathematical processes in middle grades content standards of turkey and singapore vary? methodology the set of curriculum standards is one of the main data sources in educational studies (bogdan & biklen, 1992). the middle school mathematics curriculum standards of turkey and singapore are the data sources of this study (ministry of national education [mone], 2013; curriculum planning and development division, 2012). before explaining the data analysis process, some background information about each set of standards will be provided. in turkey, middle schools cover grades 5 through 8 and there is centralized curriculum governed by mone. the latest curriculum revision took place in 2013. the 2013 curriculum was examined in this study. in turkey’s mathematics curriculum standards, there are 5 content strands: numbers and operations, algebra, geometry and measurement, data analysis, and erbilgin research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 53-74 61 probability. for each grade level, the content standards are organized according to these strands. some content standards include remarks and examples. singapore has 6 years of primary school education and 4-5 years of secondary education. secondary school students enroll in express, normal (academic), or normal (technical) courses of study with the following percentages of student enrollment: 60%, 25%, and 15% respectively (mullis, martin, goh, & cotter, 2016). the mathematics content standards of normal (academic) route are subset of the content standards of the express route. since more students enroll in express course and most of its content standards are common with that of normal (academic) course, the mathematics content standards of the express course are examined in the current study. singapore’s mathematics curriculum standards are organized around 3 content strands: number and algebra, geometry and measurement, and statistics and probability. at each grade level, content standards are presented in a table with two columns. one column shows content list, occasionally including remarks and examples. the other column shows corresponding learning experiences considered as content standards in the current study. the first two years of secondary school (secondary one and secondary two) of singapore correspond to the last two years of middle school (grades 7 and 8) of turkey and these two grade levels have been the subject of this study. to avoid confusion, grade 7 and grade 8 will be used to indicate the grade levels for both countries. hence, the data sources of this study include 2013 mathematics content standards of turkey and singapore for grades 7 and 8. i conducted a content analysis of both set of standards using the mathematical processes coding framework presented in table 1. content analysis allows making sense of data through systematic coding and comparison (bogdan & biklen, 1992). to conduct a content analysis from a deductive approach, first, a draft coding framework was developed based on the standards for mathematical practice defined by ccssm. content standards in one strand of erbilgin research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 53-74 62 each country’s standards were coded using the draft framework, through this process the framework was revised and finalized. then, the author, who is experienced in content standards analysis (erbilgin, 2014), coded the 7th and 8th grades content standards based on the framework presented in table 1. each content standard was reviewed to assess if it includes one or more of the mathematical processes as defined in the framework. some content standards did not include any mathematical processes. for example, the content standard “7.1.2.2. convert rational numbers to decimals. (turkey)” was not assigned any code. some content standards involved more than 1 mathematical process. for instance, the content standard “n2.c. discuss examples of direct and inverse proportion and explain the concepts using tables, equations and graphs. (singapore)” involved 2 processes. it is assigned the code cro since the standard expects students to discuss and explain mathematical concepts and the standard is also assigned the code umt since students are expected to use multiple representations to investigate mathematical concepts. when coding a content standard, the remarks and examples are also considered for clarification. when a judgment could not be made for a standard, another mathematics educator knowledgeable about the framework and the content standards was consulted and an agreement was reached. patton (2002) suggests that using rigorous data collection and analysis methods increase validity of data. by using a framework based on the related literature, the study aimed to increase the validity of the study. to establish reliability, intra-rater reliability statistics was calculated. one month after completing the coding of each set of curriculum standards, the 7th and 8th grade content standards of singapore were coded again. the intra-rater reliability score was calculated by dividing the number of same codes by the total number of codes. for instance, for the 7th grade, the initial coding assigned 83 codes to the standards. the re-coding assigned 82 codes to the same standards with 79 of them same as the initial codes. the intra-rater reliability score was calculated to be 95% (79/83). similarly, the percentage of the same codes erbilgin research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 53-74 63 between the two separate coding processes was calculated to be 93% for the 8th grade, indicating high reliability (miles & huberman, 1994). findings mathematical processes in turkey’s content standards before presenting the findings about content standards, i will briefly present what mathematical processes are emphasized in the introduction part of turkey’ curriculum standards document since it is the basic document outlining the general goals of mathematics education. the document lists problem solving, communication, reasoning, and connections as mathematical processes (mone, 2013). these processes are part of the process standards defined by nctm (2000) and share some common perspectives with make sense of problems and persevere in solving them, construct viable arguments and critique the reasoning of others, use appropriate tools strategically, reason abstractly and quantitatively, look for and make use of structure, and look for and express regularity in repeated reasoning mathematical practices defined by ccssm. the document also includes a section on using information and communication technologies in teaching mathematics effectively. the document advocates a mathematics teaching approach where students are actively engaged in the sense making process, value learning mathematics, and use technology and other representations appropriately (mone, 2013). table 2 shows the mathematical processes found turkey’s content standards at the 7th and 8th grades. there are 53 content standards at the 7th grade and 48 of them had mathematical processes based on the framework used in this study. there are 54 content standards at the 8th grade and 43 of them had mathematical processes. table 2 mathematical processes in the content standards of turkey mathematical processes 7th grade 8th grade frequency percent* frequency percent erbilgin research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 53-74 64 ps 8 14% 4 6% raq ra 2 3% 2 3% rq 4 7% 2 3% cacro ca 1 2% 3 5% cro 0 0% 0 0% m 0 0% 0 0% ut ust 22 38% 20 32% umt 2 3% 4 6% ap aa 1 2% 4 6% af 0 0% 0 0% mus musa 11 19% 15 24% musc 4 7% 5 8% er 3 5% 4 6% total 58 100% 63 100% *percent values are rounded to the nearest whole number. table 2 shows that the most frequent mathematical process integrated into turkey’s 7th and 8th grade content standards is use appropriate tools strategically (ut) with majority of them falling into the using single tool category (87%). since the introduction part of turkey’s mathematics curriculum standards included a section using using technology, i determined the content standards suggesting the use of technology. out of the 24 ut codes at the 7th grade, 8 of them included using technology for learning mathematics. this number increases to 13 at the 8th grade. one observation about the ut codes was that the content standards typically suggested using technology as a possibility while the other tools are mentioned to be used more strongly. for instance, the remarks for the content standard 7.3.5.2 note using concrete materials as “constructions made up with congruent cubes and common geometric solids are used.” regarding the use of technology, the same remark notes “interactional activities with appropriate information and communication technologies might be included.” another erbilgin research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 53-74 65 observation about the ut codes is that 4 content standards do not specify which tool to use, they rather state using appropriate tools in teaching the related content in a general sense. according to table 2, look for and make use of structure (mus) is the second most frequent mathematical process contained in the content standards. analyzing the structure of shapes, numbers, and expressions, representing them in a different form, and classifying them are involved in about 1/4th of the content standards. make sense of problems and persevere in solving them (ps) was observed in the content standards with 14% at the 7th grade and 6% at the 8th grade. the standards involving ps are all in the form of solving problems related to a mathematical concept such as “7.1.4.7. solves problems related to direct and inverse proportion.” ignoring the other processes involved in problem solving and listed in the framework. the standards assigned the reason abstractly (ra) code expected students to construct algebraic representations of real life situations and the standards with reason quantitatively (rq) code expected students to estimate quantities and make sense of quantities in real world contexts. all the content standards that were assigned the look for and express regularity in repeated reasoning (er) code were in the geometry domain and expected students to discover rules or formulas. table 2 shows that model with mathematics (m) did not appear in the content standards. similarly, there is not any content standard coded under the critique the reasoning of others (cro) category. the percentages for the construct viable arguments (ca) code is also low, indicating that the communication processes are not reflected in the content standards. attend to fluency (af) is another code that was not observed in turkey’s standards. a related code, attend to accuracy (aa) was observed in standards expecting students to use accurate labels, terminology, and notations. mathematical processes in singapore’s content standards erbilgin research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 53-74 66 singapore’s curriculum standards document report that it advocates 3 mathematical processes: reasoning, communication, and connections; applications and modelling; thinking skilss and heuristics (curriculum planning and development division, 2012). reasoning, communication, and connections are common processes with the process standards of nctm (2000) and shares some aspects of construct viable arguments and critique the reasoning of others, and reason abstractly and quantitatively process standards of ccssm. application and modelling is about using the modelling process to solve problems within or outside (real-world contexts) mathematics, and it is closely related to the model with mathematics standards of ccssm. it also mentions about using appropriate tools strategically. thinking skills and heuristics highlight mathematical actions such as classifying, comparing, deducting, analyzing, synthesizing, and using a variety of problem solving strategies. the last process involves common perspectives for doing mathematics with the make sense of problems and persevere in solving them, look for and make use of structure, and look for and express regularity in repeated reasoning standards of ccssm. table 3 shows the mathematical processes found in singapore’s content standards at the 7th and 8th grades. there are 49 content standards (learning experiences) at the 7th grade and all of them had mathematical processes based on the framework used in this study. there are 25 content standards at the 8th grade and all of them had mathematical processes. table 3 mathematical processes in the content standards of singapore mathematical processes 7th grade 8th grade frequency percent* frequency percent ps 6 7 % 0 0% raq ra 7 8% 1 3% rq 10 12% 2 5% cacro ca 5 6% 5 13% cro 10 12% 7 18% m 2 2% 2 5% erbilgin research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 53-74 67 ut ust 14 17% 9 23% umt 9 11% 5 13% ap aa 2 2% 1 3% af 1 1% 0 0% mus musa 8 10% 3 8% musc 5 6% 3 8% er 4 5% 1 3% total 83 100% 39 100% *percent values are rounded to the nearest whole number. table 3 shows that the most frequent mathematical process integrated into singapore’s 7th and 8th grade content standards is use appropriate tools strategically (ut) with majority of them falling into the using single tool category (62%). out of the 23 ut codes at the 7th grade, 14 of them included using technology for learning mathematics. this number decreases to 13 at the 8th grade. regarding the ut category another observation is that singapore’s standards makes specific suggestions for which tools could be used in teaching a concept. for instance, using a clinometer for learning about trigonometric ratios, algebra discs for manipulating algebraic expressions, and specific software names for drawing graphs are suggested in the standards. table 3 shows that the second most frequently observed mathematical process is reason abstractly and quantitatively (raq) at the 7th grade and construct viable arguments and critique the reasoning of others (cacro) at the 8th grade. students are expected to discuss and explain mathematical arguments and contexualize and decontextualize situations when learning mathematics. at the 7th grade, model with mathematics (m) and attend to precision (ap) have lower percentage values and at the 8th grade, make sense of problems and persevere in solving them (ps), attend to precision (ap) and look for and express regularity in repeated reasoning (er) had lower percentage values. the standards involving ps are in the form of solving problems related to a mathematical concept, ignoring the other problem solving processes. however, the erbilgin research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 53-74 68 standards that were assigned the model with mathematics (m) code incorporate other problem solving processes such as understanding the problem context, interpreting a solution in the problem context, and identifying the limitations of the solution. comparison of mathematical processes for turkey and singapore figure 1 represents the mathematical processes observed in the content standards of turkey and singapore. for both countries, mathematical processes identified in the 7th and 8th grade content standards are combined to make the comparison easier. tables 2 and 3 show that there are no big differences across the grade levels in terms of use of mathematical processes. turkey has 107 content standards in total at the 7th and 8th grades and 91 of these standards contained mathematical processes according to the framework used in this study. these 91 standards included 121 processes. thus, the number of processes are 113% of the content standards (121÷107). for the same grade levels, singapore has 74 content standards and all of these standards contained mathematical processes. the total number of mathematical processes identified in singapore’s standards is 122. the number of mathematical processes are 165% of the content standards (122÷74). these ratios indicate that singapore’s content standards include more mathematical processes on average than turkey’s standards do. figure 1. mathematical processes identified in content standards of turkey and singapore 10 8 3 0 40 4 29 65 16 22 3 30 3 16 4 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 ps raq cacro m ut ap mus er turkey singapore mathematical processes in content standards of turkey and singapore p e rc e n t o f p ro ce ss e s erbilgin research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 53-74 69 figure 1 indicates that there are similarities and differences between turkey’s and singapore’s content standards in terms of the highlighted mathematical processes. in both set of standards, use appropriate tools strategically (ut) has the highest percentage with 40% for turkey and 30% for singapore. also, in both set of standards, attend to precision (ap) and look for and express regularity in repeated reasoning (er) have low percentage values with turkey’s standards having slightly higher values. turkey’s standards do not include any learning expectation that fall into the model with mathematics (m) category. mathematical modelling is closely related to problem solving since it involves solving real-world problems. when model with mathematics (m) and make sense of problems and persevere in solving them (ps) are combined, both set of standards seem to emphasize problem solving similarly. nevertheless, singapore’s standards clearly differentiates between problem solving and mathematical modelling as applications and modelling is one of its 3 mathematical processes. additionally, singapore’s standards involve various problem solving processes (e.g., understanding the problem, interpreting the solution) whereas only solving problems is included in turkey’s standards as a problem solving process. in addition to the diffrence in their approach to modelling, the two set of standards also differ in the construct viable arguments and critique the reasoning of others (cacro) category. cacro is the second most frequent process in singapore’s standards with 22%. on the other hand, its frequency in turkey’ standards has a value of 3%. additionally, critique the reasoning of others (cro) component of cacro was not identified in turkey’s standards. another difference between the two set of standards is that singapor’s set of standards has a higher percentage of reason abstractly and quantitatively (raq) caltegory than that of turkey’s. turkey’s set of standards has a higher percentage of look for and make use of structure (mus) than that of singapore’s. overall, turkey’s content standards focus on ut and mus with 69% for both categories and put some emphasis on ps and raq with 18% in total. erbilgin research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 53-74 70 the focus of singapore’s content standards, on the other hand, is more distributed over four processes: ut, cacro, raq, and mus. discussion this study compared turkey’s and singapore’s mathematics content standards in terms of the highligthed mathematical processes. in the introduction section of their curriculum standards, both countries’ documents elaborate some mathematical processes that share common perspectives with the standards for mathematical practice of ccssm such as make sense of problems and persevere in solving them, construct viable arguments and critique the reasoning of others, and reason abstractly and quantitatively. the current study found that the two countries reflected these processes differently in their content standards. one of the findings is that some of turkey’s content standards did not involve any mathematical process whereas all of singapore’s standards contained at least one process. another related finding is that model with mathematics (m), critique the reasoning of others (cro), and attend to fluency (af) are not identified in turkey’s content standards while all mathematical processes are observed in singapore’s content standards. it is important to note that m, cro, and af are mentioned about in the introduction section of turkey’s standards. these two findings indicate that singapore’s standards reflect more variety of mathematical processes with a higher proportion compared to turkey’s standards. content standards not only determine what topics to be taught in mathematics lessons, but they also guide the development of instructional materials, instructional practices, and assessment (confrey, 2007; goertz, 2010; pang, 2009). particularly for countries such as turkey who are struggling to transform to student-centered teaching practices (güneş & baki, 2011), more guidence for teachers might be needed. the curriculum standards of turkey value a student-centered teaching approach as its introduction section implies (mone, 2013), but this approach is not widely articulated in the content standards. future curriculum revisions might consider how to integrate mathematical processes into the erbilgin research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 53-74 71 content standards to better guide the teachers, textbook writers, teacher educators, and others interested in mathematics education. the current study provides valuable information about the distribution of the mathematical processes for turkey and singapore. the findings revealed that turkey’s standards mainly focus on use appropriate tools strategically (ut) and look for and make use of structure (mus). in comparison, the focus of singapore’s content standards is distributed over four processes: use appropriate tools strategically (ut), construct viable arguments and critique the reasoning of others (cacro), reason abstractly and quantitatively (raq), and look for and make use of structure (mus). this finding indicates that both turkey’s and singapore’s content standards promote using representations and tools when learning mathematics and emphasize analyzing the structure of mathematical objects, but compared to singapore, turkey’s content standards lack a focus on students’ reasoning and explaining mathematical arguments. students’ engagement in meaningful mathematical dialogue enhances their own mathematical thinking and also contributes to the common knowledge building process in the classroom (brendefur & frykholm, 2000). to promote students’ mathematical reasoning and explaining, both cacro and raq could be more explicitly included in the content standards. use appropriate tools strategically (ut) has the highest percentage for both turkey and singapore. for turkey 13% of these standards and for singapore 38% of them fall into the using multiple representations category. using multiple representations for teaching a mathematical topic and making connections among them enriches students’ understanding of mathematical concepts, strengthens the learning process by providing mutual sources of information, and helps to address different types of learners (brenner, mayer, moseley, brar, durán, reed, & webb, 1997; porzio, 1999). regarding the use of tools in turkey’s standards, another observation is that the use of technology in teaching mathematics is presented as an erbilgin research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 53-74 72 option rather than a strong suggestion like other tools suggested for use. the reason for this choice might be the lack of technological tools in schools. for instance some middle schools do not have a computer lab in turkey. with the developments in technological tools, technology might be used to increase students’ motivation, support conceptual understanding of mathematics, and provide opportunities to do mathematical investigations that cannot be done with paper and pencil (raines & clark, 2011; souter, 2001). besides, teachers in turkey possess positive attitudes toward using technology (cüre & özdener, 2008; kılınç, kılınç, kaya, başer, türküresin, & kesten, 2016). students in turkey should be given more opportunities to use technology to learn mathematics and the content standards might be a starting point for this support. turkey’s standards include make sense of problems and persevere in solving them (ps) and look for and express regularity in repeated reasoning (er) slightly more than that of singapore’s. both of these processes require higher order thinking skills (webb, 2007) and it is valuable to highlight them in the content standards. regarding ps, both countries’ content standards contain only “solving problems” aspect of the problem solving process. singapore, however, integrated various problem solving processes into the content standards that are assigned the model with mathematics (m) code. considering the role of standards in guiding the teachers’ practices, including all problem solving processes in content standards might facilitate their practice in classrooms. conclusions one strategy to reform school education have been developing or revising curriculum standards. curriculum analysis should not be limited to content analysis only, mathematical processes should be also examined. the framework used in this study might be used to study to what extent the processes are integrated into the content standards. such an analysis will help to allign the mathematical processes advocated by the curriculum developers and the content erbilgin research in social sciences and technology, 2(1), 53-74 73 standards, and assess whether they are indeed reflected in the content standards or not. if the curriculum developers want to convey a coherent message to teachers in the whole curriculum document, then such an analysis is imperative. references australian association of mathematics teachers. 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(2007). issues related to judging the alignment of curriculum standards and assessments. applied measurement in education, 20(1), 7-25. http://timssandpirls.bc.edu/timss2015/encyclopedia/ http://teach.valdosta.edu/are/artmanscrpt/vol1no1/souter_am.pdf research in social sciences and technology (ressat) e-issn: 2468-6891 1 incorporating digital technology in the general education classroom eddia solas1 & frances sutton2 abstract a group of activities, using digital technology which supports learning and facilitates student academic success, were compiled in a 28-item challenge for beginning general education students, as a part of a life and study skills course. each challenge invited students to access some aspect of digital technology which had the potential to increase their academic competence. a convenience sample of 29 male students, from three different classes, was used for the intervention. students were all taught by the same instructor, in the same semester. the main objective of the study was to increase students’ digital academic literacy, exposing them to applications and ict skills which would increase their efficiency, self-efficacy and accuracy in executing academic tasks. the efficacy of the intervention was assessed by comparing students’ work to others who did not take part in the study. the technology tools used were aimed at accomplishing tasks such as group formation and communication, note-taking, information capture, summarization, synchronous and asynchronous collaboration on tasks, referencing, formatting, grammar check, plagiarism and assessment. students were challenged to complete particular tasks using specific applications. students were given 28 days to complete the tasks, after which they were required to do two quizzes, using kahoot!, as a group and nearpod, individually. a screenshot of each completed activity was submitted as evidence of task completion. a questionnaire was used to garner student perspective on the intervention. throughout the semester academic output were analyzed to see if students continued to use the technology introduced. the results of the study showed that students were appreciative of the technology introduced and had no problems learning how to use the different applications. faculty observed that student output improved over previous semesters, where the intervention was not carried out. some students nearing the end of their academic careers expressed regret at not being introduced to the technology earlier. the study illuminated the inhomogeneity inside classrooms with regards to academic digital technology. it also showed the benefit of introducing the technology during the general education program, at the beginning of students’ academic careers, and how this knowledge contributes to development of 21st century skills and workplace readiness of students. plans are underway to introduce the technology to all students taking the life and study skills course. key words: digital technology, intervention, kahoot, academic output, education program, inhomogeneity. 1 asst. prof. – gs, general studies system wide, esolas@hct.ac.ae 2 grad. student, ohio state university, sutton.373@osu.edu mailto:esolas@hct.ac.ae mailto:sutton.373@osu.edu research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 1-15 introduction prensky coined the terms digital natives and digital immigrants, to distinguish between those who grew up using mobile devices such as computers, smart phones and tablets, video games and the internet, digital natives, and those who acquired knowledge of these tools later in life, digital immigrants (kennedy, judd, churchward, gray, & krause, 2008; stoerger, 2009). since then, there has been much debate on whether digital natives possess the technological savvy he suggests. though it has been established that the current generation are prolific users of technology, especially in their personal lives (oblinger & oblinger, 2005; stoerger, 2009), this does not represent the total picture of this generation. while there are those who have bought into prensky’s views on the higher performance of these students, and the need to adapt education to their particular learning needs (oblinger & oblinger, 2005; prensky, 2005), there are still those who believe there is too much inhomogeneity inside classrooms to adopt a one-size-fits all pedagogy towards technology-driven pedagogic practices (baytak, tarman,& ayas, 2011; bennett, maton, & kervin, 2008; yucel et al, 2010). nevertheless, there has been a flurry of activity surrounding the integration of technology for pedagogic purposes in higher education, in order to facilitate the learning needs of tech smart students (kitchner, 2012; patel, chapman, luo, woodruff, & arora, 2012) . many educational institutions worldwide have incorporated the use of clickers and other student response systems, ipods, laptops, tablets and smart phones inside classrooms, to make sure they are not left behind as the net generation (oblinger & oblinger, 2005, tarman, 2009; 2010) takes control of their own learning (al-wasy & mahdi, 2016; banister, 2010; barak, lipson, & lerman, 2006; liu, navarrete, maradiegue, & wivagg, 2014). yet despite the “awe” with which so-called digital immigrants view the technological capabilities of digital natives and the viewpoint that all digital pedagogy is high tech, many students view technology as merely tools which increase efficiency, enhance output quality, and reduce time on task (oblinger & oblinger, 2005; stoerger, 2009). according to kennedy et. al. (2008), high technology use by students does not even translate to increased preferences for technology-driven pedagogic instruction. notwithstanding the use of technology for gaming and social media, it has been noted that the classroom is far from homogenous regarding the knowledge of technology by students. from observation, students are solas & sutton not proficient with specialized technologies geared towards increasing and enhancing academic achievement and output. we have observed that though our students intuitively use technology, they have not all been exposed to the wide range of tools at their disposal to enhance the quality of their academic output. this study forms a preliminary investigation of the impacts of introducing digital academic tools to students. it is hoped that such an introduction will ensure academic success and improve the quality of student work produced. in the project we examine the benefits of introducing academic technology to students early in their academic careers, when it can be of optimal use. the tools were introduced at the beginning of a life and study skills course for students in the first semester. a major aim of the life and study skills course is to equip students entering the bachelor’s degree program with the skills necessary for a successful academic career. the course seeks to develop, in students, study and communication skills for critical thinking, problem solving, and creativity. these skills are not just focused on the transition into college life and the support of academic achievement, these tools lay the foundation for lifelong learning, personal success and recognize the implications for enhancing professional practice. . method background the 28-day tech challenge is a four-week intensive course in essential technology and concepts, aimed at enhancing the digital academic literacy of students. emphasis is placed on the four cs of 21st century learning – communication, collaboration, critical thinking and creativity (association, 2012). the challenge is strategically issued during the first month of the semester to equip students with the tools necessary for successful completion of the course, as they implement the technology during formative and summative assessment tasks. the tech challenge is a part of a life and study skills course, taught by the general education department. the 28-day tech challenge fulfills the requirements of two of the six course learning objectives namely:  recognize the importance of time management, team work and effective study skills including basic research literacy and critical thinking research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 1-15  develop an understanding of the use of digital and information literacy skills for success at college and beyond applications and sites introduced to students were chosen based on their usefulness in the following areas:  hosting of students support information learning platforms  collaboration – synchronous and asynchronous  cloud computing  summarization and main idea selection tools  presentation efficiency  accuracy in academic report writing  note-taking and list making  research tools the participants the study used a convenience sample of n=29 male students in three different classes assigned to the same instructor, during the same semester. the course was taught in english and all students were arabic english language learners (aells). the majority of the students were in the first semester (n=13) and the final semester (n=9). the course is designed for first semester students, however students may take it later if they had previously failed it, or failed to do it before, for whatever reason. study design and data collection an action research model was applied for the study, as the aim was to improve current practice by generating knowledge to empower both learners and instructors (bradbury-huang, 2010). the research sought to answer the following questions: 1. do students value and appreciate being introduced to academic technology? 2. what are the impacts of the 28-day tech challenge on students’ time management, team work and study skills? solas & sutton 3. does increasing the digital academic literacy of students improve the quality of student work? the 28-day tech challenge intervention was applied starting the first day of the first week of the semester. students were given a 28-item checklist to work with for the 28 days of the challenge. in the first class the objectives and outline of the intervention were explained to students. students were provided with a list of 8 apps to download on their smart device (table 1). a basic subscription to these apps were free of cost, however one application, grammarly, was paid for by the college. students who registered late for the course, or did not attend some classes were not given extra time to complete the challenge and were required to catch up on their own or with the aid of colleagues. all information related to applications and websites were stored on the edmodo site and was accessible to all students. students were required to upload a grid with screenshots of completed exercises as evidence of task completion. a comprehensive set of power point slides incorporating all required information was supplied to students as extra reading. at the end of the 28 days all students were assessed formatively as a group using a kahoot! quiz. students were later tested individually using nearpod. both kahoot! and nearpod are student response systems used for student assessment. in order to gain learner feedback on the activity students were asked to complete a 14-item questionnaire, aimed at collecting student perception of the challenge. kwiksurveys was the survey tool used to garner student feedback. table 1. list of applications students downloaded on the first day of class application use edmodo course delivery platform box cloud computing mindmup creating mind maps for organization, main idea selection and summarization grammarly grammar, style and plagiarism checker research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 1-15 citethisforme instant referencing powerpoint presentation evernote clipper clips articles and images and annotates them evernote notebook, notes and research clippings genius scanner uploads handwritten notes wunderlist organizes your “to do” list table 2. 28-item checklist name ………………….. id ……………………… 1 what are the 4 cs of “21st century” skills? solas & sutton 2 are you a trouble-shooter? 3 why do teachers and successful students love cloud computing? 4 what is the main difference between box.com and bblearn? 5 have you joined your class and team whatsapp groups? do you always check what you have to do if you have missed a class? 6 have you downloaded wunderlist, edmodo, evernote, box, and genius scanner onto your phone and laptop? show me. 7 have all your members of your small edmodo study group uploaded a recent photograph 8 have you reviewed this slide show to make sure that your team avoids making bad presentations? how many bullet points should there be on each slide? 9 do you know the eight items of information that you need on your first powerpoint slide or report? 10 how many different types of shared docs does google have? do you know how to make a shared doc for your group? 11 have you checked that each member in your team can edit your documents synchronously – can you all work on it at the same time even if you are in bani yas or dubai? research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 1-15 12 have you created a notebook in evernote named “my research” and saved at least three articles in it? 13 have you used evernote web-clipper to take screenshots and used the web-clipper icons to highlight and annotate your research notes? 14 have you downloaded the premium version of grammarly using your hct email? hct pays for it! what does grammarly do? 15 is your grammarly plagiarism checker turned on? what does ”unoriginal text: 308 words” mean? 16 have you familiarized yourself with https://www.citethisforme.com for instant referencing? what referencing style must you use? 17 have you reviewed this video to make sure that you completely understand paraphrasing? what is an inline citation? 18 can you create a shared professional looking mind-map? what can you attach to it? 19 do you completely understand the “formatting guide”? what font must you use? 20 do you really understand the plagiarism declaration? why might your teacher make you write another essay in front of her? 21 if your grammarly plagiarism report says “100% unoriginal text” and you submit it, expect….. https://www.citethisforme.com/ solas & sutton 22 how many extensions do you have on your tool bar? what essential one is not in this image? g……………… 23 are you sure that you know how to submit assignments on bblearn and edmodo? how much do you lose if you miss the deadline? 24 have you downloaded genius scanner onto your phone for uploading handwritten notes and scans? to where can you send them? 25 have you downloaded the latest version of the lock down browser? why do you need it? 26 is your college email working? what must you put in the subject box when you write to your teacher? 27 do you know where to find your degree audit? who is your advisor? 28 “eat that frog!” what does it mean? score how many items did you know on day 1? …..…/28 how many items did you know on day 28? ……./28 how many items have you learnt? ……….. table 3. results of questionnaire garnering student feedback question selected response n % (n) which semester are you in? sem 1 sem 2 sem 3 sem 4 29 45 (13) 14 (4) 10 (3) 31 (9) week 1 week 2 week 3 week 4 29 research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 1-15 when did you start the life and study skills course? 45 (13) 38 (11) 14 (4) 3 (1) on the first day of the course how many items on the tech checklist did you know? 0-5 6-10 11-15 16-20 >20 28 36 (10) 32 (9) 11 (3) 21 (6) 0 (0) when did you complete and upload your 16-screenshot grid as evidence of your app use? week 1 week 2 week 3 week 4 26 0 (0) 4 (1) 23 (6) 73 (19) after doing the 28-day challenge, how many items do you now know? 0-5 6-10 11-15 16-20 >20 28 0 (0) 7 (2) 18 (5) 14 (4) 61 (17) how many new items did you learn? 0-5 6-10 11-15 16-20 >20 28 11 (3) 14 (4) 14 (4) 18 (5) 43 (12) on day 1, on a scale of 1-10, how would you rate yourself? 1-2 3-4 5-6 7-8 9-10 27 18 (5) 30 (8) 22 (6) 26 (7) 4 (1) on completing the 28-day tech challenge, on a scale of 1-10 how would you rate yourself? 1-2 3-4 5-6 7-8 9-10 28 0 (0) 4 (1) 11 (3) 43 (12) 43 (12) how was the 28-day tech challenge for you? easy so, so difficult very difficult i don’t know 29 28 (8) 59 (17) 14 (4) 0 (0) 0 (0) which way did you learn the most? listening to the teacher studying the power points alone discovering and using the apps together with my team 29 48 (14) 7 (2) 45 (13) if a student starts the course late, do you think it is possible for him to catch up if he studies the slides for 6 hrs? yes no 28 79 (22) 21 (6) do you think the slides are easy to understand even if a student has a low level of english? yes no 29 79 (23) 21 (6) are apps useful for student? not useful useful very useful essential if you are going to be a successful 21st century student 29 0 (0) 38 (11) 28 (8) 34 (10) findings the study, though preliminary, endeavored to find the answers to the following questions: 1. do students value and appreciate being introduced to academic technology? 2. what are the impacts of the 28-day tech challenge on students’ time management, team work and study skills? 3. does increasing the digital academic literacy of students improve the quality of student work? solas & sutton the answers to these questions were explored through student and faculty feedback from questionnaires, nearpod, black board learn (bblearn), kahoot!, observations and feedback from faculty teaching the same students subsequent to the life and study skills module. bblearn was used to capture whether students had completed the assignments of the challenge. a screenshot of evidence of use of each application or technology tool was required from each student to show he was exposed to the technology. this evidence was reviewed by the class teacher. students then completed a kahoot quiz together and provided written feedback using nearpod. though students were not required to complete a formal assessment on the technology, throughout the semester the class instructor encouraged the use of and looked for evidence of students applying their new found knowledge. feedback from questionnaire to gather student perspective table 2 illustrates the results of the questionnaire aimed at gathering the students’ perspective of the exercise. at the start of the semester 68% of the students were familiar with 10 or less items on the 28-item checklist. none of the students were familiar with more than 20. these results provide evidence of the observed inhomogeneity and technological diversity of the class, regarding use of digital technology useful in academia, and challenge assumptions that students come to the classroom with uniform digital competencies, because they belong to the group of millennials. after the 28-item challenge was completed 61% of students reported a knowledge of more than 20 items on the checklist, 75% learned more than 10 items previously unknown to them. when asked how challenging they perceived the exercise, 87% described the challenge as easy or so-so, which indicates that students are comfortable using technology, possessing core basic skills, but need to be introduced to specialized technologies such as those relevant to academia. 45% of students discovered the new technology through interactions with peers and 48% from listening to the instructor. this illustrated the ease with which students gained skills in the technology introduced. considering the ease with which students view the use of technology, their knowledge of basic skills and their view that it is convenient and timesaving, it was unsurprising that 100% of students thought the digital technology introduced to them were useful for their academic careers. some students went further to give unsolicited comments on how useful they found the exercise and research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 1-15 some expressed regret on not being introduced to some of the technology on first entrance to the institution. select students’ comments on the 28-day challenge – using nearpod the challenge that will help you during your career life. it’s not a temp. challenge the challenge taught me a lot of apps and websites that helped in my studies and time management it’s never late to start this challenge. we all started from zero and ended up as heroes i think that the 28 days challenge helped me learn using many apps that at first i thought were too much and so complicated i’m using the challenge tips in my daily routine because the challenge helped me a lot. i don’t prefer to use apps when studying but the 28 days challenge made me realize that some apps could be very useful when studying manage your time and don't leave everything to tomorrow. at first i felt very bad, but now i think very useful quality of student output – teacher observation the aims of the study were to determine whether introducing students to academic digital technology would increase the output quality of students and impact their time management, team work and study skills. compared to untreated classes, students’ exposed to the technology gave more organized and better formatted work. the teacher (frances) reported on the improved quality of work, compared to untreated classes. there were relatively few errors, if any, in the apa format of references and students submitted their assignments readily without prompting, which seemed to be a direct result of the assistance of the relevant technology. throughout the course of the module, it was observed that students utilized the applications introduced in their presentations, written work and as organization and time management tools. students took pleasure in their increased efficiency and frequently commented on it. their team work was evident based on much fewer complaints about not being able to work with or get in touch with other group members. students were also observed using tools such as the google suite to work in groups. solas & sutton faculty comments on teaching students in modules subsequent to the challenge students who have been exposed to the 28-day challenge show greater self-efficacy in subsequent modules. report from faculty, who taught some of the same students in subsequent modules, indicated these students were better at citing references, main idea selection and organization using mind maps and other applications, and were more ready to take on tasks that required using the help of technology. they were also better at research because they had greater self-efficacy towards tasks. students seem more empowered and were better at self-regulation than other students. discussion, conclusion and implications the results from our preliminary study confirm that there are different levels of exposure to digital academic tools shown by students. the study revealed that learning new technology is intuitive for students and unnecessary for teachers to teach their use, once the students have been exposed to the technology. there is a definite need for students to be introduced to digital tools that can assist their academic output and help them to work more efficiently. even tools which are familiar in their personal lives can be adopted for academic use, though sometimes this needs to be pointed out to students. the quality of students’ output, time management, and teamwork and study skills showed marked improvement, throughout the semester and in subsequent modules, for students who had been exposed to academic digital technology. although not corroborated by quantitative data, a positive improvement was noticed within the department when treated students were compared with untreated students. the results are that academic digital technology is now being introduced formally to the curriculum of the module and will be implemented system wide across all colleges. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 1-15 references al-wasy, b. q., & mahdi, h. s. (2016). the effect of mobile phone applications on improving efl learners' self-editing. journal of education and human development, 5(3), 149-157. https://dx.doi.org/10.15640/jehd.v5n3a16 http://jehdnet.com/journals/jehd/vol_5_no_3_september_2016/16.pdf association, n. e. (2012). preparing 21st century students for a global society: an educator’s guide to the “four cs”. alexandria, va: national education association. retrieved march 1, 2018 from http://www.nea.org/tools/52217.htm banister, s. (2010). integrating the ipod touch in k–12 education: visions and vices. computers in the schools, 27(2), 121-131. https://dx.doi.org/10.1080/07380561003801590. barak, m., lipson, a., & lerman, s. (2006). wireless laptops as means for promoting active learning in large lecture halls. journal of research on technology in education, 38(3), 245-263. retrieved march 4, 2018 from https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ej728904.pdf baytak, a., tarman, b., & ayas, c. 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(2012). integrating ipads into the four-year-old kindergarten classroom. university of wisconsin--stout. retrieved february 28, 2018 from http://www2.uwstout.edu/content/lib/thesis/2012/2012kitchnera.pdf liu, m., navarrete, c., maradiegue, e., & wivagg, j. (2014). mobile learning and english language learners: a case study of using ipod touch as a teaching and learning tool. journal of interactive learning research, 25(3), 373-403. retrieved february 28, 2018 from https://www.learntechlib.org/p/41972/ https://dx.doi.org/10.1080/07380561003801590 https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ej728904.pdf https://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8535.2007.00793.x https://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8535.2007.00793.x https://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1476750310362435 https://doi.org/10.14742/ajet.1233 http://www2.uwstout.edu/content/lib/thesis/2012/2012kitchnera.pdf https://www.learntechlib.org/p/41972/ solas & sutton oblinger, d., & oblinger, j. (2005). is it age or it: first steps toward understanding the net generation. educating the net generation, 2(1-2), 20. retrieved february 28, 2018 from https://digitalcommons.brockport.edu/bookshelf/272 patel, b. k., chapman, c. g., luo, n., woodruff, j. n., & arora, v. m. (2012). impact of mobile tablet computers on internal medicine resident efficiency. archives of internal medicine, 172(5), 436-438. http://dx.doi.org/10.1001/archinternmed.2012.45 prensky, m. (2005). listen to the natives. educational leadership, 63(4). retrieved february 28, 2018 from http://cesa7ita2009.pbworks.com/f/listen+to+the+natives.pdf stoerger, s. (2009). the digital melting pot: bridging the digital native-immigrant divide. first monday, 14(7). http://dx.doi.org/10.5210/fm.v14i7.2474 tarman, b. (2010) global perspectives and challenges on teacher education in turkey, international journal of arts & sciences (ijas), 3(17): 78-96, united states. tarman, b. (2009). the digital divide in education, eric (ed508213). yucel, c., acun, i., tarman, b., & mete, t. (2010). a model to explore turkish teachers' ict integration stages. turkish online journal of educational technology, 9(4), 1-9. https://digitalcommons.brockport.edu/bookshelf/272 http://dx.doi.org/10.1001/archinternmed.2012.45 http://cesa7ita2009.pbworks.com/f/listen+to+the+natives.pdf http://dx.doi.org/10.5210/fm.v14i7.2474 research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 ohlin, c. information and communication technology in a global world: teachers’ perceptions of continuing professional development 41 information and communication technology in a global world: teachers’ perceptions of continuing professional development christer ohlin * kristianstad university christer.ohlin@telia.com *corresponding author: christer.ohlin@telia.com received : 04.07.2019 accepted : 08.09.2019 how to cite this paper: ohlin, c. (2019). information and communication technology in a global world: teachers’ perceptions of continuing professional development. research in social sciences and technology, 4(2),41-57. abstract this study takes its departure from ongoing debate about teachers’ (collective) “continuing professional development” (cpd). the overall aim is to highlight active teachers’ perceptions on developing a self-understanding of their complex role in daily practice by using digital tools. the following research questions guided the study: how can teachers make schools more relevant and engaging? how can students’ achievement increase? in what way can teachers provide high-quality education for all students? three perspectives will be guiding the study: information and communication technology (ict), learning, and special education. the participants in the study are 21 staff members in preschool, primary school, and a recreation center with whom we conducted structured individual interviews and focus group discussions. field notes were also taken during the interview and discussion sessions. the findings reveal the importance of the teachers’ deeper understanding of students’ creativity, critical thinking, communication, and collaboration. furthermore, the most powerful thing teachers can do is to design engaging, meaningful, and authentic work and technology-enhanced learning experiences. in order to improve learning in a digital world, the teachers must be engaged and supported by professional learning opportunities to continually improve and strengthen their digital competencies and teaching practices. the theoretical standpoint is the norm model as an analytical tool to understand the teachers’ perceptions. the concept of “norm” is a collective term for the factors and structures that are regarded as a normal balance between the aspects of value/will, system conditions/possibilities, and cognition/knowledge. keywords: continuing professional development (cpd), digital tools, information and communication technology (ict), the norm model research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 ohlin, c. information and communication technology in a global world: teachers’ perceptions of continuing professional development 42 introduction information and communication technology (ict) is one of the potential and powerful tools for extending educational opportunities; hence, teaching and learning processes in different forms and levels of education will be enhanced (unesco, 2003). however, successful integration of ict in the teaching-learning process is dependent on the preparation of teachers and teachers' continuing professional development (cpd). this study takes its departure from ongoing debate about teachers’ (collective) “continuing professional development,” and is defined as natural learning experiences and those conscious and planned activities which are intended to be of direct or indirect benefit to the individual, group or school, which enhance the quality of education in the classroom (day, 1999). there has been a considerable emphasis placed on cpd for teachers and trainers to support them in using technology (heinrich, 2012; henderson & yeow, 2012). the project “information and communication technology (ict) in a global world” highlights teachers’ perceptions of using digital tools to learn, create, and solve problems in their daily practices. education is a fundamental element of change, and teachers play a crucial role in implementing the necessary knowledge and values into the learners, making them participants in the development process. cpd is widely acknowledged to be of great importance in the life of schools, contributing to professional and personal development for staff and to improvement in teaching and learning. international studies (european commission, 2008; eurydice, 2009; oecd, 2005) on teachers and their continuing professional development show that the form, content, and context conditions of cpd is focusing on fostering educational performance and effectiveness but are relatively loosely linked with school practices in the area of instruction, evaluation and feedback, and school leadership. according to desimone (2009), professional development involves activities such as regular in-service training, workshops, local and national conferences, and college courses. what is important for today’s policymakers, principals, and educators is to realize the transformation of schools with regards to using digital tools and the role of technology in making schools more effective and engaging. digital tools will serve as a means, not as an end. significance of the study conducting a study of this nature is very important, and the findings may contribute knowledge regarding the continuing professional development (cpd) needs of teachers in moving toward new roles and tasks associated with digital tools in schools. furthermore, the study will illuminate the nature of the obstacles and possibilities for teachers' cpd. finally, this study contributes toward the understanding of support in educational change. aim research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 ohlin, c. information and communication technology in a global world: teachers’ perceptions of continuing professional development 43 the overall aim is to highlight the active teachers’ perceptions on developing selfunderstanding of the complex role in daily practice by using digital tools. three perspectives guide the study: information and communication technology (ict), learning, and special education. research questions how can teachers make schools more relevant and engaging? how can students’ achievement increase? in what way can teachers provide high-quality education for all students? related theories ict is an important area within the school and is connected to the mission of teaching: to train/educate for a future society. all involved in creating good learning environments for all students are responsible for attaining the mission. with digitalization and ict, a greater desire, motivation, and willingness to learn can be created (alberta, 2011), and this will contribute to the students' overall development. according to livingstone (2012), technologies have transformed society from top to bottom, particularly in terms of education and what the public expects education systems to deliver. technology has made it possible to view the world through a digital lens, and teachers can access this knowledge at will via interactive smartboards (touch boards) or students' laptops and touchpads/ipads. the research on ipad use and adoption overwhelmingly reports that tablet devices like these have a positive impact on students' engagement with learning. in a study by karsenti and fievez (2013), they highlight the benefits of using ipads: information access, portability, creativity, higher student motivation, and possibility to work in one’s own space. furthermore, the results from the study also show that the collaboration both among students and with the teacher increased, and the improvement of the quality of the presentations are remarkable. heinrich (2012) and henderson and yeow (2012) identify the importance of teacher training as a necessary support for effective integration of digital tools in classrooms, and different aspects are discussed such as technical, pedagogic, social, and economic. furthermore, in getting teachers started using digital tools, some form of initial familiarization with the tools is essential (heinrich, 2012) and can be described in different phases: a) initial familiarization with the tablet device (ipad) or smartboard; b) identifying, installing, and using appropriate and relevant applications that support teaching and learning; c) identifying applications that support personalized and/or collaborative learning, including those that can cater to learners with additional needs; and d) creating, uploading, and sharing teaching resources (for students and colleagues). research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 ohlin, c. information and communication technology in a global world: teachers’ perceptions of continuing professional development 44 an increasing number of research studies indicates that teachers have not integrated ict in the curriculum in a way that leads to significant changes in classroom practice (baytak, tarman, & ayas, 2011; burden, hopkins, male, martin, & trala, 2012; kilinc et al., 2018; valiendes & tarman, 2011) despite increased access and improved technical artifacts. an overarching aspect for not implementing ict is related to the teachers' personal attitudes toward ict. teachers who regard ict as a learning tool have confidence in the technology, trust students to be capable of working independently, and have more inclination to use laptops. tallvid (2015) discusses teachers' reluctance to the pedagogical use of ict in the classroom, and the main findings from this study are the teachers' lack of technical competence both concerning how to handle different types of digital teaching material and the lack of competence if technical problems should occur, insufficient teaching material, and insufficient time for planning. a successful school improvement with focus on ict requires ongoing technical training and discussions about pedagogical issues and content (tallvid, 2015) in order to integrate ict in teachers' daily practices. furthermore, in promoting improvement in schools, the following strategies have been found to be effective (hopkins, ainscow, & west, 1994): * concrete, teacher-specific and extended training * classroom assistance from local staff * teacher observation of similar projects in other classrooms, schools, and districts * regular project meetings focusing on practical issues * teacher participation in project decisions * local development of project materials * principals' participation in training this highlights the key role of the relationship between policy implementation and school improvement programs in determining teacher quality and student achievement. according to stringfield, winfield, millsap, puma, gamse, and randall (1994), there are different conditions that underpin the work of successful schools, such as many staff development opportunities for teachers to learn together, good leadership, the coordination of activities in order to keep people involved, etc. communication within the school is an important aspect of coordination, together with the informal interactions between teachers, and finally the recognition of inquiry and reflection as important for school improvement. teachers' continuous professional development the conceptualization of teacher learning and development is discussed by shulman and shulman (2004) and includes the key element of vision, motivation, understanding, practice, reflection, and community, where teacher learning/development is seen as a process of active individual construction. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 ohlin, c. information and communication technology in a global world: teachers’ perceptions of continuing professional development 45 cpd is dynamic, ongoing, continuous, and set in teachers' daily lives, embedded in the classroom context, directly related to the work of teaching, can take form of co-teaching, reflecting on actual lessons or group discussions, and constructed through experience and practice (webster-wright, 2009). another kind of professional development is involvement in a development or improvement process (guskey, 2000). researchers (birman, desimone, porter, & garet, 2000; boyle, lamprianou, & boyle, 2005; desimone, 2009) emphasize the importance of the collective participation of teachers, as participation from the same department, grade, or subject is more likely to be coherent with their experiences and affording opportunities for active learning and contributing to a shared professional culture. hence, the development of a common understanding of instructional goals, methods, problems, and solutions are key factors that seem to inspire teachers to improve their classroom practices. according to cohen and hill (2000), cpd should therefore be collaborative and over time, include time for practice, coaching, and follow-up, be grounded in students' curriculum, and be job-embedded and connected to several elements of instruction. desimone (2009, p. 185) has developed a model for studying the effects of professional development on teachers and students. in figure 1 below, the model is illustrated. figure 1. the effects of professional development the model represents interactive relationships between the critical features of professional development, teacher knowledge and beliefs, classroom practice, and student outcomes. the contextual aspects are also important in describing the effects of cpd. ict and special education icts offer a great potential to support lifelong learning for all groups of students, including students in need of special support (unesco, 2006). however, the educational needs of people with disabilities are vastly diverse. on one hand, they must, as their peers, get knowledge and skills required in the society in which they live; on the other hand, they have (by definition) core features of professional development: * content focus *active learning * coherence * duration * collective participation increased teacher knowledge and skills: change in attitudes and beliefs change in instruction improved student learning context such as teacher and student characteristics, curriculum, school leadership, policy environment research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 ohlin, c. information and communication technology in a global world: teachers’ perceptions of continuing professional development 46 additional demands (often referred to as special educational needs) caused by functional limitations which affect learners' ability to access standard educational methods of instruction and, therefore, prevent educational progress (unesco, 2006). in this context, ict application is very important as it plays an essential role in providing quality education for students with disabilities. icts are extremely diverse and varied and may be grouped in the following categories, illustrated in figure 2 below: figure 2. the process of icts in special education icts allow students in need of special support to take active part in the process of interaction and communication and will become a valuable resource for inclusion (unesco, 2006). it is important to realize that icts alone cannot solve all problems. the teachers need to develop innovative teaching methods or change and adapt the existing approaches to accommodate new concepts of special education and modern technology. icts will thus contribute in creating good learning environments for all. theoretical standpoint the norm model the norm model may be used as an analytical tool to understand a particular taken action. the concept of “norm” is a collective term for the factors and structures that are normalizing and are therefore regarded as normal. the norm model (hydén & wickenberg, 2008) studies actions in order to find norms and what controls people's actions. norm theory is based on systems theory, where the parts of a system are related to each other and influence each other while all the parts depend on the whole. a norm comprises factors and structures that jointly shape the patterns of behavior and thought; structures are normalized and consequently are seen as normal. a norm analysis examines the values, knowledge systems, and conditions that compensation technology can compensate or substitute for lack of natural function didactic information technology are suitable tools for implementing inclusive education communication technology as a resource that eases and makes communication possible alternative and augmentative communication research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 ohlin, c. information and communication technology in a global world: teachers’ perceptions of continuing professional development 47 form patterns and work together as integrated action instructions. hydén and wickenberg (2008) assume that people's norms have three conditions that cannot exist without each other. the norm model is illustrated and the three conditions are described in figure 3. figure 3. the norm model methods action research this study is inspired by the concept of action research, a process in which teachers examine their own educational practices systematically and carefully using the techniques of research (denscombe, 2010). furthermore, action research allows teachers to try out different ways of doing things in their classrooms and to find something that works for themselves and their students. three main perspectives have guided the data collection: information and communication technology (ict), learning, and special education. population research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 ohlin, c. information and communication technology in a global world: teachers’ perceptions of continuing professional development 48 the participants are 21 staff members in a preschool, primary school, and recreation center in the southern part of sweden. the school was selected because of the professional competence, awareness, and willingness among the staff to create good learning environments for all. furthermore, the motivation among the staff members to use assistive teaching tools as a complement to the ordinary teaching and learning strategies was one important aspect in the selection of participants. research methods interviews data was collected through a semi-structured group interview process, audio-recorded and moderated by two researchers. the interview questions were open-ended and covered the following areas: implementation and general experiences, classroom situation (teachers' role, student learning), lesson planning/design, perception of knowledge, and opinions concerning the in-service training. in the analysis of interview data, a pattern coding process was used (bryman, 2012; kvale & brinkman, 2009). the recordings were transcribed and analyzed. the transcripts were studied in detail to identify joint patterns, and key words and sentences were marked and put together into categories. three research questions were raised and the analysis was based on these research questions, and the data presentation is organized according to the specific questions. the example comments indicate teachers’ reflections on their own professional development, the role of digital tools, and the impact on their teaching. research question one: how can teachers make schools more relevant and engaging? research question two: how can students' achievement increase? research question three: in what ways can teachers provide high-quality education for all students? the study context the school is a primary school in a village in the southern part of sweden. there are 150 students ages 6-12 years, divided into 7 classes. each class has a classroom teacher, and in addition there is one special education teacher and a few subject teachers—21 staff members in all. the final conference/workshop of the three-year project was held in 2015 and all the results connected to the project were analyzed and documented in 2016 and 2017. the project was funded by grants from a non-governmental foundation, and this made it possible for the research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 ohlin, c. information and communication technology in a global world: teachers’ perceptions of continuing professional development 49 principal to come up with a clear vision of the teachers’ continuing professional development (cpd), which included activities such as:  lectures on how to create good learning environments, special education, ict  specific courses in how to use the new tools  follow-up meetings for reflections  study circles on how to use the tools  workshops with experts in digital tools  field visits to relevant schools/institutions using digital tools  team development  individual classroom work, interaction between students and teachers furthermore, the following assistive teaching tools were purchased:  an individual ipad for each staff member  ipads for the students (working in pairs)  interactive boards in each classroom the above activities were carried out in cooperation with staff from two universities and different agencies in ict. all activities were discussed and resolved by a steering committee under the leadership of the principal. ethics throughout the study, the research ethical rules (swedish research council, 2002) were considered: information: the participants were informed about the aim of the research, the role they would play in the project, and the conditions for their participation, which was voluntary and could be discontinued at any time. consent: participants in the study had the right to decide whether or not to take part. confidentiality: details about everyone taking part in the study were treated with the greatest confidentiality possible; personal data was stored safely. using the data: information gathered about individuals was used only for research purposes. findings teachers’ perceptions on developing a self-understanding of their complex role in daily practice by using digital tools. all the teachers expressed satisfaction in discovering their professional development since the project started. however, the participants had different views of what kind of knowledge their participation in project would lead to. some stated that they saw the project as a possibility for deepening their knowledge in a subject area, regarded as a means for further professional research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 ohlin, c. information and communication technology in a global world: teachers’ perceptions of continuing professional development 50 training, while others stressed the positive influence of the project in general and specifically on the possibilities of reflection together with colleagues, which was enhanced by appropriate use of interactive technologies. the teachers agreed that motivation increased and they felt greater confidence in working collectively with digital tools, acquiring pedagogical tools, and producing their own knowledge and learning in an everyday context. research question one: how can teachers make schools more relevant and engaging? all teachers had experience of working with digital tools and gave many examples of how they can be used in order to make schools more engaging. with the tools available, the possibilities to develop the skills are striking. the possibility for the teachers to participate in the project meant a lot for their professional development, and their attitudes toward the meaning of good teaching have changed. all the teachers are aware of the importance of designing engaging, meaningful, and authentic work and technology-enhanced learning experiences. thanks to improved learning in the digital world, the teachers demonstrate a deeper understanding of the importance of being able to create sustainable teaching practices. furthermore, the teachers are aware of the many benefits, for both students and teachers, of learning in relevant and engaging contexts and using technology in appropriate and innovative ways. according to the teachers, the benefits of using ipads include enhanced learning, collaboration, visualization, motivation, and communication. in summary, the teachers felt very positively about the value of the digital tools and articulated many of the benefits, not only for learning but for themselves: it has made me think differently about how i deliver my lessons. the children are more focused. i think it excites them more so they are more engaged. students engage in the material more and can work independently more effectively. all the teachers highlighted the role of the principal and the administrative support: good leadership is a necessary condition for creating schools more relevant and engaging. research question two: how can students' achievement increase? the teachers were aware that more time is needed in order to be able to confirm that quality has improved due to the digital tools, and this is because of insufficient assessment data available. however, the majority of the teachers believed that technology has a role to play in education insofar as it can make a meaningful contribution to provide instruction, socialize, and research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 ohlin, c. information and communication technology in a global world: teachers’ perceptions of continuing professional development 51 provide qualification, and thus the teachers firmly stressed that ipads have enormous educational potential. there was a clear consensus among the teachers that collaborative learning entails more than just working next to each other or even helping one other. the digital tools have created many possibilities in truly collaborative work, which enhances student learning by modeling authentic work and increasing students’ achievement. the teachers appeared to recognize the value of different apps in their teaching, and due to the fact that the device is always available, it becomes present and can be used at will. nevertheless, the teachers expressed a need for ongoing professional development and sharing of best practices. the ipad has impacted the way the teachers now teach in order to increase students' achievement, and some of them consider more student-centered approaches, more group work activities, and more student activities. another possible way of increased achievement is expressed in this way: the instant access to new information means that students can gain information from a variety of resources, not just a textbook or worksheet. i just use another tool. my teaching approach has not changed but clearly using the ipads is new. research question three: in what ways can teachers provide high-quality education for all students? the teachers were aware of the complexity of providing high-quality education for all students, and many basic components were mentioned: learners, environments, content, processes, and outcomes. one appropriate way to meet a variety of individual learners’ needs can be via ipad and smartboard. this will lead to the possibilities of enhancing the need for more relevant education for all. according to the teachers, digital tools can contribute to improving learning environments: usability, accessibility, and flexibility. however, integration of the aforementioned tools must be carefully elaborated: content, methods of content delivery and methods for teaching and learning, and methods for students’ progress assessment. furthermore, the teachers stressed the importance of considering what the application of digital tools requires, and mentioned continual upgrading of their own competence as well as the possibility of access to more expert knowledge, guidance, and professional advice to provide individual education. in order to be able to include all students in an active part in the learning process, most of the teachers agreed about the compensatory role of digital tools, which allow for compensation of mental, sensory, and physical activity limitations. the tools will help students to overcome the barriers to learning and thus help students to develop effective learning strategies. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 ohlin, c. information and communication technology in a global world: teachers’ perceptions of continuing professional development 52 the teachers were aware of the conditions of quality education and discussed different processes of economic, scientific, technological, and cultural development where digital tools play only a partial role: electronic textbooks can be tailored to the individual student so that ipads open the doors to an individualized curriculum. ipads allow more independent learning from students. enabling students to immediately see the results of learning. a quotation from one of the teachers summarized the overall consideration of providing highquality education for all by using digital tools: the ideas are there, and while some of us are still at the stage of doing traditional things more easily, many of us are potentially agents of change. the main complaints about using digital tools are related to occasional poor network connectivity and to blocking of internet sites. this is an obstacle to creating good learning environments for all students. discussion the overall aim of the study was to highlight the active teachers' perceptions on developing a self-understanding of their complex role in daily practice by using digital tools. the project made it possible for the teachers’ continuing professional development (cpd), and the conditions for improving their classroom practices were offered, such as in-service training, time for meetings and coaching and follow up, and collective participation of teachers. this is emphasized by birman et al. (2000) and boyle et al. (2005), who highlight the importance of the development of a common understanding of instructional goals, methods, problems, and solutions. the results from this study show that investment in quality professional learning opportunities to support teachers in designing meaningful, highly engaging learning experiences for students pays off. when analyzing the results using the norm model (hydén & wickenberg, 2008), it became obvious that the teachers are motivated and have gained new knowledge using interactive tools. furthermore, they are aware of the new possibilities in improving their teaching. the contextual conditions are also essential in studying the effects of professional development (desimone, 2009), and according to the teachers, strong leadership is one of the most important factors in successfully continuing professional development. together with the staff members, the principal at the school developed a clear vision for ict and cpd focused on pedagogy and teacher development. it is the principal's role to create a culture of norms that research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 ohlin, c. information and communication technology in a global world: teachers’ perceptions of continuing professional development 53 stimulates and inspires teachers to a higher level of engagement and willingness to develop their skills and their profession. the overall objectives and a coherent strategy were thus in place. this is essential in order to be able to avoid operational problems of time and funding. therefore, leadership, like clear goals and objectives, is crucial to the success or failure of cpd. the impact of cpd programs ought to be evaluated within the conceptual framework, opportunity to learn features, etc., in accordance with the presented research (desimone, 2009). another important factor in the success of the project was the teachers’ ongoing training development, and this is something that tallvid (2015) emphasized in his study. research question one was formulated to find out how the teachers, with the new knowledge, could make the school more relevant and engaging. all the teachers expressed an awareness of the importance of designing engaging, meaningful, and authentic work and technologyenhanced learning experiences. the teachers also realized the benefits of using ipads and the way they contribute to enhancing learning, collaboration, visualization, motivation, and communication. this is in accordance with results reported in different research projects (alberta, 2012; karsenti & fievez, 2013) where benefits such as information access, creativity, higher student motivation, and collaboration are highlighted. collaboration is promoted by digital tools since they stimulate face-to-face social interaction between children; in the project, the students often worked in groups of two, and this was a contributing factor in creating collaboration. however, the ipads were either used individually or in groups depending on what was being taught and the expected learning outcomes. use of ipads often resulted in students spending more time and effort on their work, which will contribute to a higher level of engagement. the outcomes of research question two, how can students' achievement increase?, revealed that even if it is too early to say whether ipads are a contributing factor in enhanced student achievement, the teachers expressed that technology has a role to play in education insofar as it can make a meaningful contribution to better results in general. with the teachers’ increased knowledge and skills and their changing attitudes and beliefs, this changed their instructions, which has led to improved learning. this is what desimone (2009) discusses as the effects of professional development. obviously, digital tools alone cannot contribute to the students’ achievement of the goals; the teachers must develop innovative teaching methods and accommodate modern technology. the third research question dealt with ways in which teachers can provide quality education for all. this study has shown that digital tools have the potential to motivate both students and teachers and are beneficial to both learning and teaching. however, the tools have to be carefully elaborated: content, methods of content delivery and methods for teaching and learning, and methods for students’ progress assessment. furthermore, the teachers agreed to the fact that digital tools have a compensatory role, which will help students to overcome research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 ohlin, c. information and communication technology in a global world: teachers’ perceptions of continuing professional development 54 the barriers to learning, and thus help students to develop effective learning strategies. these aspects are also highlighted by unesco (2006), where the process of icts in special education are discussed including compensation, didactic, and communication. icts allow students in need of special support to take active part in the interaction and communication and will become a valuable resource for inclusion (unesco, 2006). conclusion the project proved to be extremely successful. while technology was an integral part of the success, a key factor was the principal's capability to create a culture of norms that stimulates a higher level of engagement and willingness to develop their skills and their profession. the quality of the ongoing management is striking, and the principles of sound management of school improvement and development have been applied. the teachers interviewed found that digital tools have features and a design to make them useful for education. the size and portability of the ipad allow it to be easily moved around the classroom. the tools can be used to support engagement and collaboration. there has been a significant and very positive impact on learning and teaching, and information communication technology (ict) has proven to be influential in everyday activities which, in time, should be reflected in achievement, thanks to both pedagogical changes and new ways of learning due to access to information and learning tools. the adoption of using ict tools in education enhances teaching and learning processes in different forms and levels of education. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 ohlin, c. information and communication technology in a global world: teachers’ perceptions of continuing professional development 55 references alberta. (2011). ipads–what are we learning? retrieved from http://education.alberta.ca/admin/technology/research.aspx baytak, a., tarman, b., & ayas, c. (2011). experiencing technology integration in education: children's perceptions. international electronic journal of elementary education, 3(2), 139-151. birman, b. f., desimone, l., porter, a. c., & garet, m. s. (2000). designing professional development that works. educational leadership, may 2000 (association for supervision and curriculum development). boyle, b., lamprianou, i., & boyle, t. (2005). a longitudinal study of teachers’ change: what makes professional development effective? report of the second year of the study. school effectiveness and school improvements, 16, 1-27. bryman, a. (2012). social research methods. oxford: oup. burden, k., hopkins, p., male, t., martin, s., & trala, c. (2012). ipad scotland evaluation. faculty of education, university of hull. cohen, d. k., & hill, h. c. 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(2008). contributions in sociology of law: remarks from a swedish horizon. lund: media-tryck sociologen. karsenti, t., & fievez, a. (2013). the ipad in education: uses, benefits, and challenges – a survey of 6,057 students and 302 teachers in quebec, canada. montreal, qc: cripe. kilinc, e., tarman, b., & aydin, h. (2018). examining turkish social studies teachers’ beliefs about barriers to technology integration. techtrends, 62, 221. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11528-018-0280-y kvale, s., & brinkman, s. (2009). den kvalitativa forskningsintervjun. lund: student literature. livingstone, s. (2012). critical reflections on the benefits of ict in education. oxford review of education, 38(1), 9-24. oecd. (2005). teachers matter: attracting, developing and retaining effective teachers. paris: oecd publications. retrieved from http://www.oecd.org/edu/teacherpolicy shulman, l. s., & shulman, j. h. (2004). how and what teachers learn: shifting perspective. journal of curriculum studies, 36(2), 256-271. stringfield, s., winfield, l., millsap, m., puma, m., gamse, b. & randall, b. (1994). special strategies for educating disadvantaged children: first year report. washington dc: us department of education. swedish research council. (2002). ethical principles in research in arts and social sciences. stockholm: erlanders gotab. tallvid, m. (2015). 1:1 i klassrummetanalyser av pedagogisk praktik i förändring. doktorsavhandling, göteborgs universitet. göteborg: chalmers repro. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11528-018-0280-y research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 ohlin, c. information and communication technology in a global world: teachers’ perceptions of continuing professional development 57 unesco. (2003). developing and using indicators of ict use in education. bangkok: unesco asia and pacific regional bureau for education. unesco. (2006). icts in education for people with special needs. institute for information technologies in education. valiandes, s., & tarman, b. (2011). differentiated teaching and constructive learning approach by the implementation of ict in mixed ability classrooms. ahi evran university journal of education faculty, (kefad), 12(1), 169-184. webster-wright, a. (2009). reframing professional development through understanding authentic professional learning. review of educational research, 79(2), 702-739. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 fernandez, camargo, & nascimento. technologies and environmental education: a beneficial relationship. 13 technologies and environmental education: a beneficial relationship antonio hernández fernández * antonio.hernandez@ujaen.es claudia de barros camargo claudiabarros@correo.ugr.es maria selma lima do nascimento msl00027@red.ujaen.es *corresponding author: antonio.hernandez@ujaen.es received : 08.08.2019 accepted : 09.21.2019 how to cite this paper: fernandez, a. h., camargo, c. b., & nascimento, m. s. l. (2019). technologies and environmental education: a beneficial relationship. research in social sciences and technology, 4(2), 13-30. abstract educational technologies have an important role in education today. they represent a relevant resource in the process between theorizing and educational practices, and they are essential in the awareness process for sustainability. thus, technological education appears as a facilitator in this process, especially with students, parents, and everyone around us, as being supported by tech resources to produce an efficient effect. this study was performed at escola municipal de ensino fundamental in alagoinha-paraíba, brazil, between january and february, 2019; the research question is: are teachers using and recognizing technology as a partner in the environmental awareness process? the main objective is to analyze the usage of tech in the process for environmental awareness by teachers. the specific objectives are: to check the usage of technological education in the environmental awareness process, to comprehend the challenges faced by the teachers in the process of technological usage on the scope of environmental education, to identify the activities developed by the teachers involving tech and environmental education, and to perceive the educational practices. a total of 22 teachers responded to the questions. data collection was made on a likert scale using the qualitative method and descriptive research. the likert scale was validated on its construction with analysis factor. therefore, it was found that the teachers use the tech resources in their classes, through the environmental awareness, besides defending the educational projects and realizing interdisciplinary works about environmental education for environmental conservation. keywords: environmental education, educational technologies, environmental awareness introduction environmental education arose from the eminent need for environmental preservation, and, given this concern to be careful and zealous for nature and everything that belongs to it, research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 fernandez, camargo, & nascimento. technologies and environmental education: a beneficial relationship. 14 humans as integral parts of nature also began to organize some strategies for society to learn how to value the importance of this theme. according to maciel et al. (2019), contact with nature is very important for individuals because they learn a lot about existing values in society, always focusing on conservation and sustainability care. the present study has the general objective of analyzing the use of technologies in the process of environmental awareness by the teachers of the municipal school of primary education in alagoinha, paraíba, brazil, with these specific objectives: to verify the usage of educational technologies in the process of environmental awareness, to understand the challenges faced by teachers in the process of using technology in environmental education, and to identify the activities developed by teachers involving technology and environmental education (boutelier, 2019). according to the united nations educational, scientific and cultural organization (unesco, 2005), environmental education has great relevance in the process of environmental awareness, and a school is an ideal place for this achievement in defense of nature. technological education appears as a facilitator in this process, especially with students, parents, and everyone around us, as being supported by the tech resources to produce an efficient effect. review of literature environmental education the protection of nature is the responsibility of all, since it is a collective good, as long as people feel concerned for preservation. in brazil, conservation is a right and a duty of all citizens. thus, according to the federal constitution of brazil (1988), in accordance with article 225, everyone has the right to a balanced environment, common to all people, and the public and the community are responsible for its care and defense now and for future generations. it is the duty of education, through public policies, to provide students of all ages with the knowledge and understanding of natural phenomena. that is, this action allows an intellectual construction of environmental protection, where the population maintains the construction of sustainability. in 1987, unesco presented a document attributing a link between underdeveloped or developing countries and the degradation of nature, because it is also related to the need for survival. in this regard, several subsequent problems arise, such as soil degradation, land becoming barren, deforestation, and reduction of agricultural production; it is important to start early the process of awareness in every part of society. the concept of environmental education understanding the concept of environmental education is important because it is not easy to define it, for it is a multidisciplinary issue and depends on diverse contexts existing in society, history, economics, law, geography, and tourism, important details fundamental to this process. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 fernandez, camargo, & nascimento. technologies and environmental education: a beneficial relationship. 15 therefore, we find it expressed in the law that establishes the national environmental education policy, as evident in article 1 of law no. 9.795 / 99 (brasil, 1999): environmental education is understood as the processes through which the individual and the community construct social values, knowledge, skills, attitudes, and competences aimed at the conservation of the environment, as well as the common use of the people, essential to the healthy quality of life and its sustainability (brasil, 1999). the principles of education are also present in article 1 of law no. 9.795 / 99 (brasil, 1999), especially when there is mention of the citizenship principle, the student's development in maintaining a good quality of life and propagating good attitudes to enforce quality environmental education. another concept of environmental education can be found in the dictionary of meanings (2019), as it is very significant to understand that environmental education is a teaching area aimed at raising individuals’ awareness of environmental problems and how to help combat them by conserving natural reserves and not polluting the environment. environmental education aims at preserving the precious resource that is nature and everything that surrounds it. it aims to seek the various solutions from the point of view of social, ethical, economic, ecological, and environmental aspects. this is a task that awakens in society the concern about what causes damage to nature: deforestation, soil degradation, air and water pollution, and garbage. today, these concerns occur in several nations around the world, for it is a collective problem. environmental education and technology education society is dependent upon technology. the speed at which information reaches its destination is impressive, and in record time it transcends information and changes in all sectors of the current society, above all reflecting on the health, education, politics, and practices of everyone involved in this reality. there is no doubt that technology brings many transformations to education, and with this there is great possibility for the student and teacher to expand their knowledge, helping in classroom discussions and encouraging interest. for cabero and cejudo (2006), of the great revolutions in human communication, undoubtedly technology is the most current in our time. defining technology goes beyond a simple concept; indeed, it is saying something very innovative, current, and necessary in contemporary society. hernández fernández and de barros (2016) suggest that icts can help in various aspects of society: improving learning, innovating practices, and changing organizations. icts are dynamic, and currently we find three forms of application: ict (information and communication technology), tac (technology for learning and knowledge), and tep (technology for empowerment and participation). the use of technologies can favor a quality education when associated with inclusive education, for it is able to eliminate barriers, and for some it is the only access to the educational and cultural world (hernández fernández & de barros, 2016; lafer & tarman, 2019; valiandes & tarman, 2011). according to these authors, the policies of incorporation of the technologies in the schools favor learning; however, it is also necessary to reflect about results and whether the research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 fernandez, camargo, & nascimento. technologies and environmental education: a beneficial relationship. 16 teachers have competence for its usage. the availability of technology should be a reason for inclusion, although on some occasions there is what is known as “digital exclusion.” thus, at the same time, we cannot fail to emphasize the importance of technologies in schools, to be used in an educational and methodological way (hernández fernández & de barros, 2016, p. 238). in an inclusive school, digital inclusion must be present, understood as the attempt to balance the different digital gaps that appear in the social field, not only those related to the diverse socioeconomic and cultural conditions of students, but also those related to students who have developed different strategies in their approach to technologies (hernández fernández & de barros, 2016, p. 238). the school must maintain the character of inclusion, adjust to the limitations of the students, and use material and human resources to pursue this goal. therefore, teacher training is essential in the process of building information and communication technologies (icts) in inclusive education. today, teacher training is a primordial process that does not end in training courses but must always be focused on social practice, as reflected by pimenta (1995). in this environment, teachers must acquire knowledge and transform it into great educational practices, always reflecting and doing new actions. for passarelli (1993), there are three main theories that govern the use of computers in basic education: system theory, behavioral theory, and cognitive theory. the instrumental form of the computer is based on behavioral theory, system theory makes relation with all structure and organization, and the cognitive approach has relation with the information where the human intelligence is actuated of diverse forms to codify, store, and compare information. in everything expressed previously, there are several reasons for the use of technology in education, because when used in a cognitive approach, it allows the student to encode, acquire knowledge, express opinions, and transform reality. the use of technology reinforces a paradigm that allows an interaction between the information and the opinion of the acquired knowledge. according to belloni (2001), this is the reality of interaction between technology and education. education is always a communication process, and technology gives the student a new worldview; the school is a perfect space to accumulate new knowledge and change reality, so “tech” is very conducive to education. the school has a great challenge to work with such important themes, so it is good to know how teachers experience this theme at school. historical assumption and environmental awareness a document that indicates all the above discussion about environmental education, the “belgrade charter,” organized at the belgrade conference, is a great historical reference for the principles that guide and regulate the environment and school subjects. in the 21st century, due to problems of environmental contamination and urban population growth, studies and concern for nature have begun to be of considerable magnitude. the european naturalists were the first investigators of this phenomenon. according to dias (2001), british researcher patrick geddes aroused interest in this subject. he was known as the father of environmental education for his reflection on the post-industrial revolution process, where impacts on nature and the threat to the quality of life for all became urgent. dias (2004) further states that in research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 fernandez, camargo, & nascimento. technologies and environmental education: a beneficial relationship. 17 1952, after numerous deaths in london as a result of air pollution, there was a collective mobilization in defense of the environment and a dignified quality of life for the people of the planet. the effects of this event alerted other countries, with the emergence of “environmentalism” in the united states in 1960. after this, international concern began on this subject from the international union for the conservation of nature (iucn), which occurred in 1971, and the concept of environmental education was limited to environmental preservation related to animal life (dias, 2004). according to sato (2004), it was in 1972, through an international conference, that significant advances were made when the united nations (un) integrated humans as that primordial being in the process of raising awareness about the importance of nature for life. in 1992, the united nations conference on environment and development (unced), also known as rio-92, was held in rio de janeiro, brazil, with the goal of promoting discussions on environmental issues. scientists debated the social dimension of the environmental problem. humans were previously considered the most important being of this awareness, but now the vision of this conception is broader and goes back to humans as “environmental partners” in society; all changes have the objective of solving or mitigating the problem (mendonça, 2002). much change was added, all approved by a large majority of speakers, including ngos, civil society, researchers, and influential people in the media and in society, and all defended the principles of respect and care for the environment. furthermore, the value of education in the process of awareness, the responsibility of society, social and economic justice, respect, ecological aspects, and quality of life for everyone on the planet were discussed. with this, they made a document called “agenda 21,” dealing with the primordial agreement between nature and society (mendonça, 2002). parallel to rio-92 was the global forum-92 and a document named “earth charter,” in which environmental education is defined as a dynamic process of conscious, individual, and especially social transformation maintaining great emphasis on sustainability. according to mendonça (2002), after these events, environmental education became part of the school context, through the perspective of globalization of education and the relevance as a guiding role for a sustainability awareness. therefore, the un decreed a decade of education for sustainability, 2005-2014. dias (2004) states that on april 27, 1999, environmental education became a law, part of the national policy for environmental education (act 9795/99), recommending in article 2 that: “environmental education is an essential and permanent component of national education, and must be present, in an articulated way, at all levels and modalities of the educational process, both formal and non-formal.” practices in environmental education the environmental proposal in basic education rescues some paradigms, values, and new pedagogical practices that will transform conscious subjects and citizens with an important role of changing a reality. according to the environmental education law no. 9795 of 1999, environmental education must develop in the primary, secondary, and higher teaching-learning processes within the curriculum, involving all segments through education, from basic education to higher and vocational education. the law ensures that it must intervene in research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 fernandez, camargo, & nascimento. technologies and environmental education: a beneficial relationship. 18 education through activities, in schools, through awareness and changes to an ecologically transformative thinking. it is not necessarily a subject, but it easily facilitates the interaction of the curriculum in schools adapting to all areas of knowledge. according to alkimin et al. (2019), in order to realize a work of environmental awareness in the school space, it is pertinent to go through teacher education, be it initial or continued, as these spaces are rich in the art of researching, investigating, and using creativity in the teaching process. according to leff (2002), the knowledge acquired by environmental education is very broad and involves several areas of knowledge based on values and attitudes linked to sustainability for a current and conscious education; it can be worked in the school in an interdisciplinary way, helping much in the process of valorizing the environment. for this, brazil (2012) argues that dcnea collaborates through science and technology to raise awareness about sustainability. for this, historical, socio-environmental, political, and economic knowledge in defense of this process are pertinent. one of the goals of ea in the dcnea article 13, subsection vi, ensures that science and technology as a support to strengthen themes in all sectors of the educational curriculum. in title iii, referring to curricular organization, in article 17, item i, letter a, it suggests the integration of several sectors of society, together with political, geographic, environmental, psychological, and relations between science, culture, and technology. technology is a splendid resource today for the process of knowledge and change of thought in relation to nature, as well as communication through technological resources in learning. methods development this research is quantitative, because according to hernández fernández and de barros (2018), an investigation has as its primary objective to study the properties and quantitative phenomena and also the relationships that provide the review of existing theories. the instrument used for data collection was a likert scale, which consists of a series of items that explore the research object. for each item, we have a scale of 1 to 5, from much in disagreement to very much in agreement. the likert scale was constructed with an operation table using the specific objectives of the research. the application of the likert scale had as a general objective to analyze the use of the technologies in the process of environmental awareness by the teachers of the municipal school, and the following specific objectives: to verify the use of educational technologies in the process of educative awareness, to understand the challenges faced by teachers in the process of using technology in environmental education, to identify the activities developed by teachers involving technology and environmental education, and to realize the educational practices of teachers. the type of search is within the descriptive scope level. according to gil (2008, p. 28), the descriptive research seeks to describe characteristics of a given population, research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 fernandez, camargo, & nascimento. technologies and environmental education: a beneficial relationship. 19 phenomenon, or the establishment of relations between variables. the population studied comprises all the teachers of the municipal school studied, totaling 22 teachers who participated in the research of their own free will, signing a free and informed consent form according to resolution 196/96 of the ministry of health on research involving human beings, comprising the teachers who teach the children to the 5th year, besides those who work in the rooms of specialized educational assistance (aee) of the referred school. research design, in the words of pérez ferra (2009), the method is the procedure to reach the objectives and the methodology constitutes the study of the method. for him, one takes as reference the classification provided by bisquerra (1989), which focuses on how the research methods can be oriented, either to obtain basic knowledge or to obtain knowledge applied to decision making and the actions for the exchange of knowledge. this research is exploratory and descriptive in nature and will adopt a quantitative methodology. for the accomplishment of the research, we used a likert scale as the instrument of data collection. population and sample the population to be investigated is formed by teachers of the municipal school in focus, totaling 22. thus, the sample coincides with the population. instrument for the construction of the instrument, an operational matrix was used, observing the objectives, variables, dimensions, indicators, items, and units of measurement (mejía, 2005). we drew a likert scale, composed of 25 items, grouped into four dimensions (extracted from the specific objectives): a (environmental education), b (technologies), c (educational process), d (awareness), and e (practices). validity of content to validate content on the scale, we relied on “expert judgment” and a “pilot test.” in the judgment of experts, the corresponding validation questionnaires were carried out; reviewing the observations, we made some simple changes in the formulation of the items, which did not affect the content of the items. finally, in the pilot test, when passing the scale obtained good results in understanding and coherence of items, so it was in the content validity scale. construction validity (factorial analysis) the construction validity is referred to in the degree to which an instrument reflects the average construction, being elaborated operationally when the user wishes to make inferences about conduct or attributes that can group below the label of a particular constructor. it refers to whom so successfully an instrument represents and measures a theoretical concept (bostwick & kyte, 2005). the factorial analysis is a statistical model that represents the relations between a set of variables, fernando and anguiano carrasco (2010) with great success present that these relations can be explained from a series of unobservable (latent) variables research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 fernandez, camargo, & nascimento. technologies and environmental education: a beneficial relationship. 20 denominated factors, the number of factors being substantially lower than the variables. that is to say, the factorial analysis has as objectives the description of the relations of a series of variables, thanks to the formation of a smaller number of other common variables the first, mathematically defined (factors). the technique of factor analysis that we have applied in our research follows the following steps: 1. study of the correlation matrix it is necessary to study the correlation matrix to verify if our data are adequate to perform a factor analysis. this matrix must have a certain structure. to prove this, if kaiser-meyer-olkin was used for the sample adequacy (kmo coefficient), in our case the value is 0.704; following kaiser (1974), the value is acceptable, so we continue with the analysis. 2. extraction of factors once it has been decided that the factorial analysis can give good results, the factors are extracted. for it, the statistical package for the social sciences (spss) provides different methods that differ in the interactive algorithm that the extractions use. spss brings by default the principal components method that starts with the totality of the commonality (whose value is one) in the common factors and, therefore, the final value of the commonality at the end of the interactive process is an indicator of the quality of the extraction in the sense that the variables with low values of final communality are poorly explained by the model. in good extraction, these values should be high in all variables. the resulting commonality table shows us only that there is an item with value .473, and the rest has a value greater than .500; we say nonetheless that this does not delete this item. table 1. communality of variables. communalities initial extraction a1.environmental education is important in the current context. 1.000 .886 a2.knowledge about environmental problems is relevant in the teaching-learning process. 1.000 .889 a3.environmental education triggers environmental preservation. 1.000 .915 a4.it is important to be up-to-date about the current environmental problems. 1.000 .762 a5.environmental education helps on the environmental problems solution. 1.000 .856 b6.the usage of technology favors the awareness of environmental problems. 1.000 .809 b7.the usage of technology triggers the teaching-learning process. 1.000 .844 b8.it is important to use technology in the learning-teaching context. 1.000 .808 b9.-the usage of technological resources instigates awareness of the environmental problems. 1.000 .753 b10.the school favors the usage of technological resources in the process knowing the environmental problems. 1.000 .861 c11.there is a relation between technology and environmental education. 1.000 .718 c12.the development of the ambiental educational project favors the process of environmental awareness. 1.000 .789 c13.the usage of the internet develops the knowing process related to environmental education. 1.000 .923 c14.blogs and the educational platform are technological resources used in the process of environmental awareness. 1.000 .746 research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 fernandez, camargo, & nascimento. technologies and environmental education: a beneficial relationship. 21 c15.it is important to discuss environmental education at school. 1.000 .900 d16.the search made by the students enriches the range of knowledge about the environmental reality. 1.000 .743 d17.the usage of technological resources from the school favors on the dynamics of environmental awareness. 1.000 .811 d18.group environmental discussion is an important resource within the process of teacher planning. 1.000 .760 d19.environmental education should be addressed only in science classes. 1.000 .796 d20.the teacher is prepared to address the theme of environmental education. 1.000 .866 e21.it is important that the teacher performs competence on the practices of educational process, about activities of environmental awareness. 1.000 .784 e22.it is important to discuss the theme of environmental education in the classrooms. 1.000 .916 e23.projects involving the theme of environmental education should be developed in all schools. 1.000 .678 e24.in the school context, work on the theme of environmental education in an interdisciplinary way helps in the process of environmental awareness. 1.000 .876 e25.the process of environmental awareness is related to quality of life. 1.000 .698 extraction method: principal component analysis. source: own elaboration. the best represented items are: a3 (.915), c13 (.923), and c15 (.900): a3. environmental education triggers the preservation of the environment. c13.-the usage of the internet develops the knowledge process related to environmental education. c15.it is important to discuss environmental education at school. the worst represented item is: e23 (.678): e23.projects involving the theme of environmental education should be developed in all schools. 3. factor rotation the solution obtained in the processes of factor extraction is not the only one and, in addition, the structure of the problem does not change if we subject these factors to orthogonal rotations (rotations of the axes in which the angle is conserved). therefore, the solution obtained may not be optimal. to perform rotations, there are several methods that follow the optimality criterion. one of them is the varimax rotation that optimizes the factorial loads in order to obtain the most extreme loads possible in the factors (high and low). there are rules for knowing the most appropriate number of factors to keep, for example, what is known as the kaiser criterion (1958), which indicates that the main components whose own values are greater than unity must be conserved, although the most used is to observe the percentage of total variation explained by each component factor, and when it reaches a percentage accumulated considered high, in our case the first 7 factors, which explain 81.539% of the accumulated variation. table 2. initial eigenvalues. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 fernandez, camargo, & nascimento. technologies and environmental education: a beneficial relationship. 22 component autovalues initials total % of variation % accumulated total % accumulated 1 6.662 26.649 26.649 6.662 26.649 2 4.037 16.147 42.796 4.037 42.796 3 2.766 11.064 53.860 2.766 53.860 4 2.535 10.139 63.999 2.535 63.999 5 1.834 7.336 71.335 1.834 71.335 6 1.419 5.674 77.009 1.419 77.009 7 1.133 4.531 81.539 1.133 81.539 8 .987 3.946 85.486 9 .827 3.307 88.793 10 .623 2.493 91.286 11 .596 2.382 93.668 source: own elaboration. 4. studies of factorial scores the factorial scores, that is, the value obtained by each individual of the sample in each factor, are estimated by different methods since it is not possible to obtain them exactly. by calculating the component matrix, we finally get 12 factors. table 3. component matrix. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 a1.environmental education is important in the current context. .274 .347 -.025 .629 -.286 -.037 .459 a2.the knowledge about environmental problems is relevant in the teaching-learning process. .685 -.129 -.071 -.319 -.428 -.069 .328 a3.environmental education triggers environmental preservation. .424 .247 -.040 .758 .045 .298 -.088 a4.it is important to be up-todate about the current environmental problems. .610 .483 -.209 -.058 .043 .065 -.322 a5.environmental education helps on the environmental problems solution. .604 .541 -.314 .110 .044 .287 .053 b6.the usage of technology favors the awareness of environmental problems. .570 -.593 .301 -.102 .132 -.057 .104 b7.the usage of technology triggers the teaching-learning process. .457 .323 -.479 -.403 .197 -.017 .316 b8.it is important to use technology in the learningteaching context. .519 .258 -.068 -.314 .384 .312 .352 b9.the usage of technological resources instigate the awareness of environmental problems. .776 -.162 .117 .238 .031 .223 .061 research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 fernandez, camargo, & nascimento. technologies and environmental education: a beneficial relationship. 23 b10.the school favors the usage of technological resources in the process of knowing the environmental problems. .688 -.522 .033 -.243 .054 .131 -.186 c11.there is a relation between technology and environmental education. .519 -.577 -.109 .110 .266 .145 .001 c12.the development of the ambiental educational project favors the process of environmental awareness. .487 .528 -.226 -.010 .242 -.334 -.227 c13.the usage of the internet develops the knowing process related to environmental education. .272 -.535 .059 .269 .300 -.521 .354 c14.blogs and the educational platform are technological resources used in the process of environmental awareness. .682 -.496 -.002 -.008 .009 -.071 -.173 c15.it is important to discuss environmental education at school. .389 .469 .512 -.256 -.257 -.251 -.269 d16.the search made by the students enriches the range of knowledge about the environmental reality. .341 .720 .089 -.049 .309 .038 .013 d17.the usage of technological resources from the school favors the dynamics of environmental awareness. .674 -.220 -.405 .021 -.080 -.363 -.076 d18.group environmental discussion is an important resource within the process of teacher planning. .423 -.035 .712 -.208 -.101 -.087 .109 d19.environmental education should be addressed only in science classes. -.262 .114 .783 .083 .092 .221 .191 d20.the teacher is prepared to address the theme of environmental education. .240 -.143 -.090 -.527 -.527 .467 .084 e21.it is important that the teacher performs competence on the practices of educational process about activities of environmental awareness. .408 .220 -.099 .526 -.479 -.216 .076 e22.it is important to discuss the theme of environmental education in the classrooms. .478 .432 .663 .014 -.227 -.090 -.033 e23.projects involving the theme of environmental education should be developed in all schools. .482 .343 .228 -.353 .299 -.246 .035 e24.in the school context, work on the theme of environmental education in an interdisciplinary way helps in the process of environmental awareness. .733 -.375 -.025 .192 -.279 .144 -.251 research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 fernandez, camargo, & nascimento. technologies and environmental education: a beneficial relationship. 24 e25.the process of environmental awareness is related to quality of life. .292 -.181 .382 .376 .472 .231 -.125 extraction method: main component analyses; 7 components extracted. source: own elaboration. table 4. analysis of explained and accumulated variation, as well as determination of factors and distribution of items taking into account the higher level of saturation by factors. factor denomination items integrated in each factor of the questionnaire. i a. environmental education b. technology c. educational process d. awareness e. practices a2.knowledge about environmental problems is relevant in the teachinglearning process. a4.it is important to be up-to-date about the current environmental problems. a5.environmental education helps on the environmental problems solution. b6.the usage of technology favors the awareness of environmental problems. b7.the usage of technology triggers the teaching-learning process. b8.it is important to use technology in the learning-teaching context. b9.the usage of technological recourses instigates the awareness of the environmental problems. b10.the school favors the usage of technological resources in the process of knowing the environmental problems. c11.there is a relation between technology and environmental education. c14.blogs and the educational platform are technological resources used in the process of environmental awareness. d17.the usage of technological resources from the school favors on the dynamics of environmental awareness. e23.projects involving the theme of environmental education should be developed in all schools. e24.in the school context, work on the theme of environmental education in a interdisciplinary way helps in the process of environmental awareness. ii c.educational process d.awareness c12 d16 iii c.educational process d.awareness e.practices c15 d18, d19 e22 iv a.-environmental education e.practices a1, a3 e21 v e.practices e35 vi d.awareness d20 vii c.educational process c13 source: own elaboration. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 fernandez, camargo, & nascimento. technologies and environmental education: a beneficial relationship. 25 reliability as a general criterion, george and mallery (2006) suggest the following recommendations to evaluate cronbach's alpha coefficients: alpha coefficient> .9 is excellent alpha coefficient> .8 is good alpha coefficient> .7 is acceptable alpha coefficient > .6 is questionable coefficient alpha> .5 is poor. the cronbach alpha coefficient of the likert scale shows a high internal consistency of the set of these 25 variables and presents a value of α = .864, which is a good value. according to the exploratory factorial analysis, it was decided to calculate in the first of the factors resulting to the alpha coefficient, to know the degree of internal consistency that presents, we removed the rest of the factor when having less than four items. the first factor consists of 13 relative variables, the remainder of which is .980, which is excellent. the original school of 25 items gave us an alpha of .864, so we achieved a reduction of 12 items, with greater reliability, so we can conclude that our scale is validated in its construction. descriptive analysis we will carry out the analysis of the most significant data offered by the likert scale according to the dimensions of research. a. environmental education the descriptive analysis of this dimension gives us some information to highlight. in this way, the teachers interviewed think that environmental education is important in the current context, which stimulates the preservation of the environment, think that it is important to keep informed about current environmental problems and, for the most part, think that environmental education helps in solving environmental problems. b. technology the teachers interviewed strongly agree that the use of technology favors knowledge about environmental problems, the use of technological resources stimulates awareness of environmental problems, that there is a relationship between technology and environmental education, as well as that the internet or technologies develop knowledge about environmental education. c. educational process in the descriptive analysis of these dimensions, we are told that teachers agree that the use of technological resources favors the dynamics of environmental awareness, as well as that it is important to discuss environmental education in the school. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 fernandez, camargo, & nascimento. technologies and environmental education: a beneficial relationship. 26 d. awareness the teachers agree that the teacher is prepared to work on the theme of environmental education, and they do not agree that environmental education should be addressed only in science classes. e. practices finally, in this dimension, teachers are very much in agreement that it is important to discuss the theme of environmental education in the classroom, as well as to develop projects on the subject and carry out an interdisciplinary work on environmental education. results and discussions the results show that in table 1, in the face of the environmental education dimension, the teachers mostly agree that environmental education stimulates the preservation of the environment, since it points out a totality of results 1.000 and extraction of .915. these data point to a good performance related to the choice of teachers, emphasizing a3.environmental education stimulates the preservation of the environment. referring to the technology dimension in table 1, most teachers agree that internet usage develops the knowledge process related to environmental education demonstrated in the result of commonality of 1.000 and extraction of .923, these results emphasize c13.internet use develops the knowledge process related to environmental education. it is noteworthy that in the educational process dimension in table 1, teachers mostly agree that it is important to discuss environmental education in school, being represented by the result of commonality of data in 1.000 and extraction of .900, emphasizing the response of c15.it is important to discuss environmental education at school. regarding the awareness process in table 1, the teachers chose to highlight the use of the technological resource in the awareness process, resulting in a community of 1.000 and an extraction of .811, proving the answer of the d17. the use of technological resources of the school favors the dynamics of environmental awareness. it is observed that referring to the practical dimension in table 1, the teachers recognize that it is important to discuss the theme of environmental education in the classroom, resulting in commonality of 1.000 and extraction .916 in response to e22.it is important to discuss environmental education in the classroom. in addition to agreeing in its majority that in the context, working on the theme of environmental education in an interdisciplinary way helps in the process of environmental awareness, the result is exposed by the commonality of 1.000 and extraction .876, proving e24. in the school context, working on the theme of environmental education in an interdisciplinary way helps in the process of environmental awareness. in this way, the factorial analysis was done to validate the scale, because we not only wanted to do the scale to investigate, but to make a scale validated in its construction in a scientific way, so that it is a validated instrument for the scientific community. the original research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 fernandez, camargo, & nascimento. technologies and environmental education: a beneficial relationship. 27 scale has 25 items, and we were able to validate it with the factorial analysis and reduce it to 13 items with the highest reliability. final considerations we aimed in this article to address the question: do teachers use and recognize technology as a partner in the process of environmental awareness? we sought to analyze the usage of technologies in the process of environmental awareness by the teachers of a municipal school of elementary education of alagoinha-paraíba, as well as verifying the use of educational technologies in the process of environmental awareness. we wanted to understand the challenges faced by teachers in the process of using technology in environmental education, identify the activities developed by teachers involving technology and environmental education, in addition to perceiving the educational practices of teachers. the factorial analysis was developed for a greater reliability and forming a scientific character in the investigation. the data show that, unilaterally, teachers are attentive to issues related to the environment and the use of technology in this favor in the awareness process. thus, when verifying the use of educational technologies in the process of environmental awareness, the great majority of participants agree that the use of the internet develops the knowledge process related to environmental education, being representative in the best items represented in the research, table 1 c13, .923. consequently, in order to understand the challenges faced by teachers in the process of using technology in the field of environmental education, it was clear that item e23.projects involving environmental education should be developed in all schools, presents a challenge that starts from the lack of structure of some schools to develop this ability, to perceive the schools located in the rural area of the municipality. by identifying the activities developed by teachers involving technology and environmental education, one can notice the predominance of the use of the blog, platform, and internet as technological resources within the process of environmental awareness. teachers believe that there is a representative relationship between technology and environmental education. hence, when perceiving the educational practices of teachers within the scope proposed by the research, one can notice that the use of projects and the accomplishment of interdisciplinary work on environmental education are important resources used in this dynamic of the classroom. therefore, in response to the research problem: do teachers use and recognize technology as a partner in the process of environmental awareness? it is noticed that teachers in their totality appreciate this theme, believing that technology and environmental education are in fact partners in the process of awareness, and that the school in question is inserted in this context to use the technology for this purpose. finally, we noticed the teachers’ concern about a topic of extreme relevance, environmental education and technology in the process of environmental awareness, in addition to the educational and methodological practices of the classroom, the teachers demonstrated a new look at the challenges, but also the strength in building care with the environment, which will bring an improved quality of life for all. facing this challenge, teacher and student are the main agents. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 fernandez, camargo, & nascimento. 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(2011). differentiated teaching and constructive learning approach by the implementation of ict in mixed ability classrooms, ahi evran university journal of education faculty, (kefad) 12(1), 169-184. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) e-issn: 2468-6891 major features, benefits, and prerequisites for intelligent enterprise managing system alexander olefirenko1, alexey galuschenko2 abstract the modern conditions of high-tech and highly competitive markets require the evolution of the enterprise automation systems. such new, the post-erp systems should meet the conditions for the provision of customer self-service and other counterparts, the dramatic decrease of the manual labour through automation, robotic application, integration with other systems and external contracting systems, multichannel marketing and distribution, reduction of supply chains and other current trends. these systems should be built on the new iem automation paradigm (intelligent enterprise managing) and therefore belong to the iem system class. as stated in the iem paradigm article, a modern approach to solving the task of automation is based on the application of "best" solutions for each separate entity or business unit. in practice, however, this approach has resulted in a series of significant problems. the scale of the problems is increasing with the growth in transactional load, competitive pressures on the market, requirements for accelerate optimization, and business processes changes. key words: management system, structure, solutions, automation paradigm, scale, intelligent system, neuroinformatics. introduction research in the area of "intelligent systems" has received state support (order no. 701 of the ussr civil code on public education from 30/08/1989). a research program "intelligent systems", has been approved, according to which scientists of research and development establishments and universities of the country have been tasked to design intelligent system (prototype), based on achievements in the area of systems theory, neurophysiology, computer technology and computer science (the ussr state committee on public education, 1991). the contribution to the establishment of the «intelligent systems" scientific area was made in due course way back by pavlov (1949), russian physiologist, researcher of the higher nervous activity 1 chief technical officer, ultimate humanless enterprises, olefirenko.a@ultimabusinessware.com 2 lead researcher, iem institute, alex.galush@gmail.com olefirenko and galuschenko 69 mechanisms. pavlov (1949) concluded that the highest nervous activity is the ability of the body to adapt to the environmental conditions. in the "lectures on the work of the cerebral hemispheres" pavlov (1949) suggested that, in the near future, mathematics would cover many areas of expertise by converting natural sciences data into language of mathematics. intelligent systems of the beginning of the 21st century are designed and built on digital technologies with digital coding using the characters "0" and "1". neuroinformatics, based on the neural networks theory, is studying ways to describe the cerebration by mathematical tools, and to develop such mathematical models that are appropriate to human nature. the study under the government program "intelligent systems" (1989-1991) clarified the concept of the intelligent system. the intelligent system was defined as a range of means (programs, hardware and software) together with a man included into an information process which are able to conduct the synthesis of a goal, act, find more effective ways to achieve the goal (pupkov & konkov, 2001; tarman, 2010; 2016;2017; tarman, baytak & duman, 2015; tarman & baytak, 2011). the concept of intelligent system has many definitions, and it is multidimensional. an intelligent system is an information technology system that has the required knowledge data base, an operating procedures, intelligent assistance, and thus it solves tasks without the help of an operator (the operator is the expert outlining the way of proceeding and responsible for decision-making). intellectual support is understood by us as a multipronged support, including software and tools, algorithmic and mathematical support, which can help solve various complexity problems. it should be noted that the intelligent system is designed that it can:  solve various complexity problems no worse than a human being, and just as he does;  learn; systematize, compare, explain, analyze, generalize, and gain the experience of solutions and actions. an information technology system with the required knowledge data base, operating procedures, intelligent assistance, but not capable of solving tasks without the help of the operator, the person responsible for decision-making is defined as the intellectualized system. thus, the difference between the intellectual system and the intellectualized one is determined by the fact of presence of the person, the professional operator in the decision making process. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3),68-91 the intellectualized system, as a system, is capable to work in conditions of self-management, indeterminacy, dynamism, scarcity and immensity of information, with different objects, different objects life cycles. intelligence, intellectuality, intellectual are the words which are attributed to the qualities, characteristics of man, capture a person's ability to think, make decisions that are based not only on knowledge and experience, but on a variety of factors (intuition, imagination, etc.), and intelligent systems implement this through the system interface with the user in a programming language that is close to the natural language. in a scientific literature in a narrower sense, an intelligent system is understood as a program system developed on the basis of the technology that defines the database, its structure, how to obtain and process information, and how to take decisions. an intelligent system is also understood as a computer system capable of dealing with tasks that only the man could solve. materials and methods ostroukh (2015) relegates the intelligent system to an automated system category with a knowledge component. an intelligent system is understood as a set of tools (logical, mathematical, linguistic, software, interactive) designed to work with information and to assist a person in different types of activity (anokhin, 1935; 1978; 1998; kilinc, tarman & aydin, 2018; ritter et.al, 2011; tarman & chigisheva, 2017). researches by anokhin (1935), neurophysiologist of the life forms, adaptive reactions and adaptive abilities, mechanisms for achieving goals, functional system theory, form the basis for the concept of the intelligent system. anokhin (1935) in the work of "the problems of the centre and the periphery in the physiology of neural activity" develops and defines the concept of a functional system. a functional system with feedback and an exchange of information about the results of action mechanisms is an enclosed physiological formation. the functional system provides an adaptive effect with multiple paths, channels of information moving from the periphery to the centre (see fig. 1). adaptation of the organism in accordance with the anokhin (1935; 1955; 1978; 1998) functional system theory is achieved through mechanisms:  afferentation synthesis of data entering to living organisms; olefirenko and galuschenko 71  the living organism decision-making;  building an afferent model of the expected result;  results action acceptor as a model for the result prevision; reafference model in the form of a ring-net of interacting neurons covered by a ring interaction (anokhin, 1955).  action to implement the decision (anokhin, 1935). figure 1. block scheme of the functional system (pupkov & konkov, 2001). anokhin (1998) introduced the neurophysiology principle of action acceptor, which is that the nervous system continually (in every action) builds a model of expected, presumed reafference (passing of the nervous agitation from the periphery to the brain) from the result of the action. reafference, feedback, makes it possible to compare the expected result, the prediction, and the results of the action that are received. the operation of comparing the parameters of the action acceptor and the result obtained has an emotional component in the sense of satisfaction/dissatisfaction. anokhin (1998) found, that the defining characteristic of any result that works towards the goal is that achieving the result of any level and complexity is possible on the basis of the principle of self-regulation. the mechanisms for achieving results are certain: afferentation synthesis; decision making; efferent program and action acceptor, reafference, recognizing similarity between the result and the prognosis. in a situation when the actions reach the expected result, the research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3),68-91 act of adaptation ends. when the model and the real reafference are mismatched (passing of the nervous agitation from the periphery to the brain), the living organism reacts differently, he acts in an indicative and exploratory manner. in a situation where actions do not achieve the expected result, the afferent synthesis and the action program are changed, and this occurs until the result has been matched with the action acceptor parameters. after the achievement of the result, the living organism feels satisfied. anokhin (1935; 1955; 1978; 1998) research results of the functional system has been put into practice only when information and computer technologies have been actively developed. the creation of fast-acting, technology-based microprocessors with a large amount of memory, which provide the high productivity, the development of networking technologies, the need to obtain and process vast amounts of information, and the handling of information and databases to develop effective solutions, such as management, has been an objective reason for designing, constructing of intelligent systems. the current level of research in the area of intelligent systems involves the design of systems that are based on knowledge, actions, algorithms, up-to-date information about their state and the state of the environment, and can meet the challenges of different complexity. any system as a whole is a complex of interconnected, interacting elements, parts with uniquely defined features and functions, which provides the implementation of the system functions. by looking at the structure of the system, you have to assume that the structure is a steady set of unchanged, persisting for some time (for example, in the observation time interval) relationship. by describing the structure of the intelligent system, it is necessary to rely on the structure definition above. based on this, the structure of the intelligent system consists of elements such as the purpose of knowledge, dynamic expert systems and acceptor, actions, subject to management, and feedback mechanism (see figure 2). the invariant nature of the goal should be noted because, with regard to the intelligent system, it can only be a synthesis of the goal based on available memory, motivation, information on own and the environment state. the objective, as a component of the system, is linked to a dynamic expert system, the function of which is in the expert assessment, being the basis of the decision on the necessary action to be taken and the prognosis of the intended result (see figure 2). the solution is accepted, and then the object control algorithm is developed. olefirenko and galuschenko 73 figure 2. the structure of the intelligent system (pupkov & konkov, 2001). in the "intelligent systems" research area, the problem is the classification of intelligent systems, the choice of grounds for classification, and the identification of the common and special. the common, in our view, for all intelligent systems are:  the adaptability (in the conditions of objective changes, the system's ability to develop and software configuration);  communicative maturity (grasp of ways of user conversational interaction with the system);  the ability to solve difficult formalized tasks (tasks with dynamic, undefined data, original algorithm);  self-learning (ability to build knowledge of acting experience). if the characteristics data are taken as a basis for intelligent systems classifying, we can form out:  adaptive intelligent systems;  intelligent systems with intelligent interface;  intelligent systems to solve difficult formalized tasks, or expert systems;  self-learning intelligent systems. for the "methods" criterion, the classification of intelligent systems (is) would be as follows: self-organizing is, communication is, is developed using heuristic programming technologies. there are intelligent systems of common (solve tasks by algorithm, generate new procedures to solve new tasks), and special (solution of defined while designing tasks) purpose another basis for classifying of intelligent systems can be the solvable problem, then the intelligent system (is) can be formed out: game is, administration is, is with informative task research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3),68-91 type, computer linguistics is, is with identification tasks, is on solving tasks of intelligent information system creation. if you take the "used methods" criterion for the classification base, you identify types of intelligent systems, such as hybrid, soft, and rigid. let's take a look at some of the designing and engineering approaches of the intelligent systems, shown in the work of chinakal (2008). the logical approach comes from the aristotle logic and the boolean algebra, it is based on the human ability to think logically. the development of science has enabled the introduction of subject symbols, the designing of the basic data representation system, creation of knowledge and data bases. the structural approach involves modelling of the human brain with its inherent structural componentsneurons, neural networks. the evolutionary approach is characterized by the development of not only the basic model of the intelligent system, but also the rules, following them the system can evolve. the simulation approach is linked to the objects like "black box" (everything is unknown, high uncertainty), "gray box" (something is known or there are hypothetical assumptions), and the "white box" (minimum level of uncertainty). as you can see, named objects differ in the level of data uncertainty about their characteristics. the model of such objects is designed to take into account the specific behavior in the system of the "impactresponse" and the relationship between response and external influences. on the basis of the above, a number of conclusions can be drawn on the relevance and focus of research in the area of intelligent systems. among the problems that are currently being faced and addressed in the "intelligent systems" research area, which are of a theoretical and innovative nature, are:  the problem of synthesizing the purpose, the mechanism of target components interaction, because the target is a system forming factor;  the problem of identifying (capturing) the critical potential of such a set of components of a goal when the purpose is synthesized;  development of intellectual management theory, theoretic apprehension of objectorientated systems;  finding and designing mathematical models that are adequate for wildlife based on information process theories and management; olefirenko and galuschenko 75  model constructing: the action program model, the action acceptor model, and its practical implementation into intelligent systems. findings the main research areas of in the area of intelligent systems that are currently being developed should also be outlined. by defining the research object as a basis for the line of research, priority may be given to: a study of the human brain, its structure and operating mechanisms, intelligence models; intelligent systems research and computer-based modelling; develop intelligent systems with dialogs in the "man-machine" system, interactive characteristics. so here are the main issues: 1. heterogeneity. developers of systems that implement one or another functionality unit to make their products more attractive have to adapt it to different landscapes. as a rule, this means that the product must run on different operating systems, use a large set of database management systems and other technologies to store data (including support for various application integration mechanisms, including aging or outdated ones) that allow the product to be used in a specific environment at the enterprise. developers face a combinatorial explosion of possible configurations, which entails both a significant increase in development costs and a reduction in the reliability of the product itself. 2. disruption of a single information field. using some of separate applications (such as crm, erp, hrm, wms as a "standard" set for a modern enterprise) breaks the enterprise's single information field. even if there are integration mechanisms between applications, each application uses its own dedicated database. as a result of unavoidable synchronization errors, the data accumulates discrepancies that distort the real picture of the enterprise. in view of the constant data gap, it is extremely difficult to reconcile, and in practice it is not done, and errors are suppressed by the periodic introduction of amendments to the data based on subjective representations of the employees and/or auditors of the enterprise. however, the data remain inconsistent and unreliable. with the growth in data volumes, the technical possibilities for their real reconciliation are only reducing. during the final (and foreseeable time), the error is not suppressed, and the enterprise is losing the picture of reality. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3),68-91 3. flexibility and full-functionality any two enterprises cannot operate on identical algorithms, they are located in different geographical locations, they work with different people, and so on and so forth. in reality, each enterprise is unique and can implement process even with the small difference, but with it. many of these enterprises are "best" in their field, and the implementing software product is forced to co-opt a big set of different settings, rules, and exceptions. such way leads only to one result that is the radical complication of the product until it would not be possible to modify it further. as a result, with an increasing number of implementations, companies are asked to adjust to a specific solution, and in future companies face the impossibility of changing the product at the time set by the external environment. these issues have a cumulative effect of reducing the performance of your application. and as a result, the implementation of multi-way marketing (especially on the internet), user self-service implementation, integration with a variety of sensors (rfid, pressure transmitter, gps, etc.), automatic settlement mechanisms through blockchain or smart contract implementations are extremely difficult or impossible to implement. as can be seen, many of the decisions that were "good" for the technology of 80-90 years could withstand the practice tests in current circumstances. to solve these challenges, it is necessary to move to modern automation systems based on the iem paradigm (see the evolution of enterprise automation systems from erp to the new management and automation paradigm -intelligent enterprise managing). thus, the obvious requirements for iem systems are as follows: 1. common information space 2. real-time transactions 3. reliability and consistency of data at any point in time 4. high customization level 5. uncompromising performance, ability to withstand high transactional load to meet the requirements, the iem systems should be built on the following principles:  centralized data storage (as a private case of the iem paradigm requirement of a system unicity). in this case, it is intended any version of the database management system that will ensure data consistency and the transactional atomicity. olefirenko and galuschenko 77  a closed multifunctional platform, invariant for all enterprises. this platform provides only technical tasks for the entire system operating and does not have any business information.  the open business logic space. the platform must provide the mechanisms to implement an arbitrary configuration of the business logic space without any necessity to make any changes to the platform itself.  close integration with featured data management system to achieve maximum performance and data consistency.  a rich data model. the enterprise is described by high-level abstractions (more high-level than the "records" currently in use).  modern, industrial, high-standard language. the lack of integration with a wide range of dbms dramatically reduces the cost of developing and testing of the functionality and the functionality itself is tightly divided into the platform and business logic space. integration with favorite dbms allows you to move a large part of the data processing closer to the data itself, dramatically speeding up the transactions. the transporting balance of processing mechanisms, however, is limited by the high-level development language use requirements. in this way, all dbms capabilities are used to fetch, aggregate, and filter data, but direct processing is done by the defined algorithms of the business logic space. in turn, the business logic space implements only that functionality which is needed at the particular enterprise and nothing more. this allows you to reduce multiply the code base and simplify the application support. agile development techniques using continuous integration provided by the platform and performed business logic space over it. iem system is as a process changes driver in the enterprise. strict regulation of processes in the system and a requirement for symmetry (see the iem paradigm) allow you to directly manage processes through the automation system. one-time data entry and data reuse as a natural consequence of centralized data storage and the general monolithic system endurance to unskilled intervention. a closed platform, according to the principle of integrity, controls itself and provides mechanisms for implementing independent verification of the validity and consistency of data in the business logic space. this reduces the risk of changes to the software code that can cause data degradation. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3),68-91 reducing of owning cost the use of the common development languages (not obsolete/proprietary) provides access to a broad marketplace of developers, development tools. in turn, platform tools, together with the requirement of a rich data model, significantly (up to 10 times) speed up the development and implementation of new enterprise functionality. the period of implementation of the system is reduced to months with unacceptable conditions in the current year. independence from software manufacturer. due to the full openness of the business logic space for modification, an enterprise can completely abandon its interaction with the manufacturer and maintain a completely closed development. any production can be introduced as a sequence of operations which, apart from production, also includes organizational processes, planning processes, raw material and financial support process, etc. as part of this concept, standard resource planning and distribution tools and multi-faceted production and corporations management tools have been developed today and brought about in the form of powerful tools, like ics (integral control system). with their help it is possible to automate planning, tracking, control and analysis of company business processes. in the previous chapter we saw that ics includes subsystems of information support for production, supply, distribution, storage, technical, material, financial support, etc. having such information allows for setting tasks to optimize material and financial flows of the company, optimize business process themselves and their structure, and lessen the expenses. certainly, the usage of mrp / erp systems itself allows for securing more efficient production management due to: – regulation of resources, elimination of deficiency and finding no sale, sunk financial resources and storage expenses, – authenticity of order executability assessment based on production assets available, – reduction of expenses and time by means of optimizing business processes, – reduction of production cycle duration and flexible reaction to demand, – monitoring actually produced products, their comparison with target tasks and, as a result, correcting production plans, etc. new possibilities of an extended ics application appeared with more active usage of the internet when managing production processes, including when managing deliveries and sales. more complete and efficient information influences the efficiency and timeliness of making management olefirenko and galuschenko 79 decisions. the role of efficient usage of databases, dbms system tools, their logical structure and interconnections becomes more important. a prominent spot of the agenda of today is given to the tasks of optimal organization of information flows in the management system, creating and positioning responsibility centers, need for technical problem solution. this also includes the tasks of singling out standard objects, information processing tools with the consideration of occurring events and changing situations, software standardization. that said, tracking and control remain principal management functions of ics modules. certainly, at the stage of ics creation and implementation, completely new problems requiring their own solution arise. these are, primarily, determining the composition of business processes, their analysis and optimization, management of information flows. problems of management both in a separate responsibility center and in a responsibility center as a whole become independent problems. however, further quality leap in development of mrp / erp systems lies on the path of their intellectual possibilities development. that is why iics (intellectual integrated control system) mmc sets the task to extend intellectual possibilities of ics by means of integrating databases, mechanisms of logical entry, information rollup, etc. into their composition, i.e. its task of improving the existent icss by means of “intellectual add-on”. great significance is given to the problem that there was an attempt to solve when creating iics mmc by the need of efficient management of big arrays of information typical of large industry. total number of indexes characterizing material and financial flows is at least several thousands of units which must be taken into account when looking for and making management decision. that is why, when creating iics mmc, great significance is given to analysis of the informational structure of a company management system, and such tasks solved with the help of specially created databases as diagnostics of management object status, identification of discrepancy reasons, formation of management decisions are determined. functioning of databases as subsystems of the highest hierarchical level in the information structure of the company management system is based on: research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3),68-91 – informational arrays formed by means of automatic registration with the help of automate workstations module stubs intended for manual entry of the final data about business processes, – databases in which data used in the process of developing and making management decisions is archived and updated, and data coming from direct information sources is combined, – elementary images (functions) with the help of which queries are formed, data is transformed and analyzed, recording documents on separate business processes and company as a while are formed. at the same time, already at the level of elementary images (functions), usage of integral assessment and logic conclusions is expected. at this point using standard software tools provided by system and other shells is virtually impossible. therefore, there is a need for special methods and technologies that have original applied scientific nature. this is primarily caused by the necessity to provide real support for the process of developing and making management decisions at the company. there emerges a need for expert evaluation usage, adequate description of situations where a management decision is to be made, and tracking of multi-criteria nature of ratings used in decision making. management process becomes especially complicated when decision making is needed in time crisis or close-to-crisis situations. this means that the need to use situational analysis tool in the process of company management becomes current. the toolkit applied in the development of methodical system support is extending. it includes both elements and technologies of expert analysis, and results of collective decision making theory, and “fuzzy” logic, and results of game theory and prediction theory. but for us, from the point of view of analysis of management technologies used when creating iics mmc, application of different forms of expert assessment technologies. starting from formation of databases and logic entry mechanisms in a certain subject area and finishing with multi-aspect assessment of complex management situations, determining principal tendency of their development and preparation of recommendations and alternative options for management decisions. constructing a database structure must primarily take into account “horizontal” automation principle, i.e. based on consequent interconnection of business processes. olefirenko and galuschenko 81 at the same time, to provide support for management system at all hierarchical levels actually existing in a modern company it is also necessary to use “vertical” automation principle allowing taking into account management communications actually working in the company. using “vertical” approach implies increasing depth and numeric composition of business processes in order to improve company management efficiency. when implementing iics mmc, the administrative functional company management pyramid is used (fig. 3). figure 3. administrative functional company management pyramid. at the base of the pyramid we have information support organization by types of production, data control based on the status of separate branches, data formation based on resource base. at the second level of the pyramid there is release and shipment control by types and quality control by types of assessment of current efficiency by types. i.e. it is not only original data summary but also research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3),68-91 information about product quality and management efficiency at the level of workshops. at the third level we have general control and coordination of product release by types, as well as general quality control implemented when managing workshop activity. at the fourth, highest level there is industrial complex management; production, commercial and financial activity management of the company as a whole. management at this level of managerial hierarchy is executed by company top managers. when organizing the company management system, the composition of the principle administrative functional pyramid can also include other management pyramids of a lower hierarchical level correspondent to separate responsibility centers. particularly, these can be a subsystem of main power engineer’s service control or financial economic service control, etc. composition, specifics, nature of information in such pyramids is defined by both general information requirements effective at the company and requirements of certain activity of a responsibility center. such structure of information flows organization at the company among which expert information plays an important role benefits to the improvement of manageability of its activity. it also allows for defining logical interconnection, necessary analysis and information processing, as well as priorities in the process of its usage when preparing and making management decisions. the mentioned information flows serve as starting point information for the work of intellectual subsystems iics, as well as for creating entry rules, mathematic models, expert procedures used in intellectual subsystems of iics. certainly, the sphere of application for intellectual subsystems is primarily the forth and third levels of administrative functional company management pyramid. at the same time it is often easier to work out, test and adapt them at the third level of management, since the activity at this level of management is less complicated, and the volume of information undergoing analysis is less. at the same time the nature of decisions made is essentially kept. since the main task of any management system is making efficient management decisions based on the upcoming information about activity of the company and its subdivision, it becomes an important task to create and implement into usage intellectual subsystems iics providing adequate analysis of management situations. based on this analysis, preparation of alternative options of management decisions with assessment of expected efficiency of their implementation is performed. olefirenko and galuschenko 83 at this stage of management process, usage of expert information in interaction with the feedback mechanism functioning when making management decisions is expected. at the same time, management decisions made might also concern reorganization of the existent management system at the company. with the usage of intellectual subsystems iics, tactical and strategic goals of the company might be modified if external or internal situation demands it. one of the features of iics mmc is the possibility to work with large volumes of information and integrated account of multiple factors, indexes, criteria, complex classification and diagnostics tasks, necessity to develop decisions in complex management situations. this makes it worthwhile to use technologies of situational analysis to provide efficient work of company management system. because of diversity and multi-faceted indexes, factors, criteria based on which management decisions are prepared and made, the role of expert assessment, group decision preparation and making technologies, multi-criteria choice increases. this brings special significance to the necessity track composition, interconnection and combination of different indexes and factors, their correspondence to the goals set and the tasks planned. the foreground is given to the so-called problem of observability of indexes used in the management process. it can be direct, indirect, or expert depending on its nature and application in the process of decision preparation and making. as we know, it is only possible to manage what is measurable. in our case one of the main company management tasks is to determine the composition of indexes to be measured, to determine or assess their current values, to provide their planned values. for every responsibility center, its own composition of indexes values of are to be controlled in the management process is determined. the task of determining the composition of indexes to be controlled in the management process is one of the primary tasks of management system formation. next task of no less importance is the task of measuring their values for appropriate decision preparation and making. in the management process, it is not sufficient to determine the value of issue of a certain type of product in the current moment of time. it is necessary to be able to assess how much the current index value corresponds to the management goals, and if the correction of planned tasks or taking other measures are necessary in case of discrepancies in the planned and research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3),68-91 actual values. no to mention the fact that not all characteristics to be managed in the course of complex production activity can be directly measured. besides, when assessing product quality or solving marketing problems, numeric data is not always enough. if, say, maximum speed of the vehicle is 130 km/hr, is it good or bad? if it is a car, it is clearly not enough today to be able to meet sales market competition. but if it is a truck with great weight-bearing capacity, it might absolutely satisfy the buyer. when managing complex diverse company activity, we must also be able to assess management quality which sometimes could be a rather difficult task. this is necessary in order to introduce timely corrections into the management system which, according to recommendations of leading specialists in the quality sphere, must be implemented at least once a year. for example, it might be worthwhile to single out new responsibility centers or correct an existing system of such centers. when changing goals, it might be even the composition of the measured indexes that could be subject to revision, not to mention weight coefficients characterizing their comparable importance in achieving goals. a considerable amount of indexes taken into account in the management process makes the assessment of the current status and the expected result of alternative option implementation more complicated. form the point of view of efficient functioning of the management system, it might be more worthwhile to choose a relatively small amount of key indexes and monitor their values in the course of achieving of the set goals. but the choice of the index system and determination of current status assessment mechanism, as well as the overall facility work results assessment mechanism, and even assessing their values can be performed only with the help of certain methods of expert assessment. development of correct integral assessment indexes is also only possible using modern methods of expert assessment. one more type of problems which must be solved when managing a company are problems of optimal resource distribution, especially in case of deficit types of resources. if we take into account that the resources in the management process today are thought to include virtually all of them, necessary or beneficial for achievement of the set goals, it becomes clear how complicated this managerial task is, especially when managing a large-scale company. because today, it is even information that is included in main management resources. this problem can also be solved to a considerable extent only using expert management technologies, i.e. intellectual systems. they are especially important in case of high sensitivity of the situation towards the management decision olefirenko and galuschenko 85 made when even minor changes in the chosen resources can cause considerable changes in the result, including quality characteristics of the output product. in order to prepare information about management situations introduced by a set of correspondent indexes, as part of situational analysis, we can break down statuses into normal, standard and abnormal with different degrees of deviation from the expected or the planned status. in standard situations, results of the management decisions made are predictable. abnormal situations, as well as situations with a high degree of uncertainty require a bigger volume of analytical work and imply using expert assessment methods to a greater extent. in this case, the significance of quality preparation of alternative options of management solutions rises. as part of the situational approach, expert systems to use when managing facilities of different purpose are developed (30 ip). the type of management decisions requiring a higher quality level from the company management system also include situations where a transition from one management situation to another is provided for, since the degree of uncertainty is higher in them than in a usual standard situation. it is worthwhile here to use intellectual subsystems especially designed when managing a company (42 ip). figure 4. ea as a management system object. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3),68-91 in iics mmc the management system feedback loop includes subsystem of status diagnostics of economic activity (ea) of the management object (fig. 4), its production, commercial and financial component. subsystem contains a database in which, apart from other data, the information about decision maker’s goals and their corrections, and the information about their priorities when making management decisions is entered. the information about priority goals can be entered in an interactive mode. when using situational analysis technologies in iics mmc in the process of company management, the assessment of management situations with the help integral ratings introduced by integral indexes (chapter 2.6). this also implies active usage of expert assessment methods, i.e. intellectual subsystems of types aeas (automated expert assessment system) or dss (decision support system). particularly, the possibility of analysis of nature of changes in separate indexes, their influence on the course of decisions made earlier gains special significance. the analysis results are used in preparation of recommendations on achieving the index values that meet the set goals. iics mmc implies managing three types of resources: universal, unique and non-renewable, as well as mutually substitutable with the possibility of their recount with the help of specially entered non-dimensional scales taking into account their maximum consumption and minimum acceptable value. the author introduces an interesting term of production potential characterized by the smallest value of the most deficit resource. the group of management rules determined when developing the system is intended for preparation of management decisions when distributing resources of different types. essentially, the problem of optimal resource distribution is viewed in the system as the main company management problem which is solved based on application of intellectual subsystems being a part of iics mmc. playing a definitive role when managing modern company, responsibility centers in which, based on using intellectual subsystems iics mmc, major management decisions are made, also use expert information to a considerable extent. it is on the basis of expert information, being an integral part of informational flows, that decisions are made by manager of different hierarchical levels of company management. databases determined based on expert information allow performing diagnostics of ea status of both company as a whole and its responsibility centers. on their basis recommendation on olefirenko and galuschenko 87 preparation of management decisions are formed necessary for prevention of emerging deviations in reaching index values characterizing ea and correspondent to the goals of company activity. they use coefficients of confidence identifying the degree of influence of emerging deviations of the results of ea calculating the accuracy of emerging deviations and assessing changes in ea status. it is important for successful functioning of iics mmc to organize the process of information processing and rollup for assessment of company ea as a whole or a separate responsibility center. main components of this process are introduced on fig. 5. figure 5. structure of intellectual system of management accounting of company economic activity. particularly, it implies functioning of management decision formulation database updating which must be performed constantly when new information comes. management influences are formed research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3),68-91 in the occurrence of deviations in the results of production, commercial and financial activities, of unstable or transitional ea status, as well as standard ea status. thus, iics mmc created by y.v. ipatov includes intellectual subsystems of is types we have looked at earlier, and, above all, expert systems (es) and decision support systems (dss). we believe that the area of intellectual integrated control systems (iics) creation and development is a valid way to improve efficiency of the ics generation used today when managing the largest companies and organizations. when preparing and making management decisions having, to a considerable extent, multi-criteria and collective nature, the possibilities of automated expert assessment systems (aeas) must be applied to a bigger extent. this is determined by the fact that aeas are intended for improvement of efficiency in the usage of experience and knowledge of professionals of high qualification in the management process. the future of the next generation of integrated control systems belongs to efficient combination of the possibilities of expert management technologies with the possibilities of modern informational systems and computer technologies. conclusion and implications it can be seen that almost all giants, working in highly competitive markets such as amazon, ebey, walmart and similar, work on their own development systems, which are very similar to iem systems except for some details. successful solutions to the classical scheme in modern markets, the author is not known. correspondingly, it will not be a significant deviation from the truth to say that the iem systems are implementing all the benefits of self-development systems, sparing operators from the risks of developing such a system ab initio. you can even estimate the risks of such a project (developing your own automation system) by estimating the number of success stories in several dozen companies and the number of forgottens on this path, which are many hundred thousand. just statistical probability of success is the share of the percentage. on the other hand, following the classical approach will statistically result in a 100% probability defeat. to sum up, it can be seen that the use of the iem approach makes it possible to make significant progress in the development of enterprise automation systems. in the marketplace, are not only the olefirenko and galuschenko 89 transitional-level systems from erp to iem (not meeting the 1-2 requirements), and fully compliant with all requirements. in the next 10-20 years, the market for iem systems will rapidly develop along with large-scale migration to the iem system, the transition to automated and robotic production, the shortest and most integrated supply chains from the producer to the final consumer. iem systems allow you to step directly to an autonomous (unmanned, humanless enterprise) enterprises and, in turn, they are as a link to the new technological revolution. you can guess how the "internet of enterprises (ioe)" has been created. each of the companies under iem systems associated with other transaction chains can make excessive more than 90% of the global economy inventory together with their infrastructure processing and shifting. the ioe nodes, unlike the modern internet, interact solely with structured information nullifying the mistakes and the probability of the attack, including virus one. so the internet of enterprises is an integral meta-iem: – self-organizing and self-balancing economic environment of planetary scale, the global homeostatic self-regulation mechanisms of which are extremely resistant to the imbalance of interference of any nature. – completely unmanned processes of wealth creation, operated by the world-wide network of iem systems, in the next few years will realize the centenary dream of mankind: getting rid of the routine work. a similar approach has been shown with a "value network" concept developed by a number of authors from the middle of 90th. according to value network ideology iem enterprise is the analogy of internal value network while internet of enterprises is the analog of external value network. again, iem system is the intelligent infrastructure basis of value networking. despite of mathematical derivation of iem paradigm, value network is based on practical business analysis and currently more like a set of empirical techniques and approaches than a science theory with a elaborated mathematical basis. whoever it is important to mention the equality of the results of two fundamentally different approaches: a fabulous evidence of high reliability and practical effect of conclusions. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3),68-91 references anokhin, p.k. (1935). the problems of the centre and the periphery in the physiology of neural activity. nizhny novgorod: nizhny novgorod state medical academy. anokhin, p.k. (1955). features of the afferent apparatus of the conditioned reflex and their importance for psychology, psychology issues, 6, 16-38. anokhin, p.k. (1978). philosophical aspects of functional system theory: selected works. moscow: science. anokhin, p.k. (1998). selected works. cybernetics of functional systems. moscow: medicine. chinakal, v.o. (2008). intelligent systems and technologies. moscow: the peoples' friendship university of russia. kılınç, e., tarman, b., & aydın, h. (2018). examining turkish social studies teachers’ beliefs about barriers for technology integration.techtrends, 62(3), 221-223. ostroukh, a.v. (2015). intelligent systems. krasnoyarsk: science and innovation facility. pavlov, i.p. (1949). lectures on the work of the cerebral hemispheres. selected works. moscow: the ussr academy of sciences publishing house. pupkov, k.a. & konkov, v.g. (2001). intelligent systems (research and creation). moscow: bauman moscow state technical university. ritter, n., kılınç, e., navruz, b., &bae, y. (2011). test review: test of nonverbal intelligence-4 (toni-4). journal of psychoeducational assessment, 29(5), 484-488. tarman, b. (2017). editorial: the future of social sciences. research in social sciences and technology, 2(2), 1-6. retrieved from http://ressat.org/index.php/ressat/article/view/329 tarman, b. (2016). innovation and education. research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 77-97. retrieved from http://ressat.org/index.php/ressat/article/view/3 tarman, b., baytak, a. & duman, h. (2015). teachers’ views on an ict reform in education for social justice. eurasia journal of mathematics science and technology education, 11(4), 487-496. tarman, b., baytak, a. (2011). the new role of technology in education: social studies teacher candidates’ perceptions, gaziantep university journal of social sciences, 10(2),891-908. tarman, b. & chigisheva, o . (2017). editorial for special issue: transformation of educational policy, theory and practice in post-soviet social studies education. journal of social http://ressat.org/index.php/ressat/article/view/329 http://ressat.org/index.php/ressat/article/view/3 olefirenko and galuschenko 91 studies education research, 8 (2), i-iv. retrieved from http://dergipark.gov.tr/jsser/issue/32450/360860 tarman, b. (2010) global perspectives and challenges on teacher education in turkey, international journal of arts & sciences (ijas), 3(17): 78-96, united states. the ussr state committee on public education "comprehensive scientific, research-andtechnology and educational programs and projects of the public education of the ussr 1989-1994 years". (1991). moscow: public education of the ussr. http://dergipark.gov.tr/jsser/issue/32450/360860 research in social sciences and technology (ressat) volume 5 issue 1, 2020 rapoport a. editorial: technologization of global citizenship education as response to challenges of globalization: 2020 (5)1, i-vii editorial 2020: (5)1, special issue technologization of global citizenship education as response to challenges of globalization guest editor anatoli rapoport (purdue university) cultural, linguistic, and economic exchanges between communities, including nations, are as old as civilization itself, but only recently did such exchanges receive an appropriate and universally recognized name: globalization. naming the process caused a significant shift in how globalization came to be perceived, and it has become an important issue in political agendas, economic policies, and cultural aspirations. in other words, globalization helped shape and refine debates about global interconnections and interdependence, universality of human rights, and the importance of economic and social justice. education, too, has been on the receiving end of globalization, but due to its traditionalistic nature, its response has been slower and more muted than that of economy, culture, or ideology. along with the developments in international and global education, the emergence of global citizenship education (gce) is one such response. the irony is that citizenship education developed historically as a means to raise and educate the young with the specific values and norms of the region or nation; in other words, to create national citizens loyal to the existing polity. this semantic twist is probably one of a number of reasons why many educators are still skeptical about gce, which is a relatively new area of education. the traditional prevalence of the idea that citizenship only refers to national citizenship, confusion between citizenship as a legal concept and citizenship as belonging and membership (which is the subject of citizenship education), lack of a clear definition of global citizenship on the one hand and an array of characteristics that scholars usually attribute to it on the other, and erroneously understood patriotism are among the obstacles to a wider use of gce frameworks in schools. despite a growing number of empirical studies (davies, harber, & yamashita, 2005; merryfield, 2008; rapoport, 2013, 2015; sant, davies, pashby, & schultz, 2018), educators and research in social sciences and technology (ressat) volume 5 issue 1, 2020 rapoport a. editorial: technologization of global citizenship education as response to challenges of globalization: 2020 (5)1, i-vii education theorists are still at the initial stage of developing a methodological basis for teaching global citizenship. despite ongoing debates and skepticism regarding global citizenship (koyama, 2015; standish, 2012; wood, 2008), global citizenship education has gained significant momentum in the last decade (harshman, 2015; maguth & hilburn, 2015). the increase in the use of global citizenship frameworks in the classroom resulted in the steady growth of empirical analytical studies directed at codifying specific methodologies and teaching devices to improve global citizenship education. research on a methodological approach in various areas of education, including gce, demonstrated the importance of technology along with mediation and teacher agency. advances in technology, particularly information and communication technology, and burgeoning online communication have been both reasons and results of globalization. the emergence of digital citizenship was another response to globalization. according to mossberger, tolbert, and mcneal (2008), digital citizens are those who use technology on a daily basis, use technology for political information to fulfill their civic duty, and use technology at work for economic gain. during the end of the last century and the first decade of the present one, scholars, politicians, and journalists foresaw tremendous opportunities for new technologies in the development of civic society and citizenship. they believed that new, easily obtained information available to everyone would help citizens become more knowledgeable about politics and more willing to participate in political processes; communication technologies would provide platforms for open discussion of social, political, or ideological problems; and citizens would have direct access to authorities, which could make the democratic process more open and governments more accountable. in the same vein, technologies expanded the horizons for the development of citizens’ participation, even though full participation has been severely stifled by the lack of educational and technological competences or access to communication technology due to poverty or restrictive policies. a positive impact of new communication technologies on the development of global citizenship has been one of the daring promises of the new millennium. the burgeoning use of technology has led to a plethora of research on how technology influences youth engagement, research in social sciences and technology (ressat) volume 5 issue 1, 2020 rapoport a. editorial: technologization of global citizenship education as response to challenges of globalization: 2020 (5)1, i-vii civic knowledge, and skills, presenting evidence of the benefits, obstacles, and potential detriments of the use of technology in citizenship education. the last decade, however— specifically after 2016—witnessed a more cautious approach to the use of technology in the social sphere, particularly as a medium of communication, including global communication. private, corporate, and government users realized that, as charles white, one of the authors in this issue, put it: “technology is a tool, and its effects on global citizenship education depend on who uses the technology, how it is employed, and for what purpose.” there is little doubt that radical changes in the last several decades have been stimulated by unprecedented progress in technology and globalization. education, including citizenship education, has fully experienced the impact of both the former and the latter. global citizenship education, however, remains an area that is still on the edge of academic interest among scholars and practitioners who study the interaction between education and technology. gce, which is itself an unsettled and disputed part of citizenship curricula, nevertheless provides many opportunities to document and analyze the role and place of technology and social networks in growing youth social and civic activism caused by globalization this special issue of ressat, the impact of technology on global citizenship education, brings together scholars whose research addresses the challenges in citizenship education, global education, and educational and information technologies. the volume starts with the article wielding social media in the cyber-arena: globalism, nationalism, and civic education by charles s. white, the executive director of the social science education consortium in rockland, massachusetts. drawing from current research and news reporting on methods and effects of online manipulation and propaganda, the author argues that in our globalizing world, technology can be used as a tool for good and a tool for harm. globalization has produced significant benefits to the world community, both economic and social, but they have come at a cost. among the losers are those economically displaced persons whose manufacturing jobs moved elsewhere; they are resentful of foreigners and fearful of an uncertain future. for them, global citizenship is anathema, and they are susceptible to manipulation by malign forces eager to exploit any perceived rifts in the post-war world order. global processes require active and research in social sciences and technology (ressat) volume 5 issue 1, 2020 rapoport a. editorial: technologization of global citizenship education as response to challenges of globalization: 2020 (5)1, i-vii productive engagement of the young within the emerging global community. technology could play a positive role in effective global citizenship education. identifying how technology can be employed positively in gce is important, but not enough. the article concludes by describing international efforts to defend against social media assaults on democracy and by identifying the new knowledge and skills citizens must acquire for positive civic engagement in the global cyber-arena. digital exchanges and digital dialogue are becoming more prevalent in teachers’ informal professional learning and promote participants’ sense of belonging. twitter has been used as an important medium for professional expression and professional learning. in a window, mirror, and wall: how educators use twitter for professional learning, elizabeth sturm (lewis university) and laura quaynor (johns hopkins university) report on a study of educators’ discourse in two hosted twitter chats focused on global education and analyze the ways in which these types of chats align with research on high-quality professional learning. teacher exchanges focused on global education exhibited multiple characteristics of high-quality professional learning that included a focus on content, active learning and collaboration, and teacher agency; to a lesser extent, they provided peer coaching and allowed for sustained conversations. the study demonstrates that there is room for additional research on the feedback cycle and on how engagement with new resources translates into actual transformative classroom practices. michael kopish (ohio state university) and welisson marques (instituto federal do triângulo mineiro, uberaba, brazil) present an exploratory case study of a transnational, collaborative curricular project for pre-service teachers in the united states and brazil. their article leveraging technology to promote global citizenship in teacher education in the united states and brazil describes a partnership to promote collaborative activities in curriculum and instruction, scholarship and research, and for student and faculty exchanges guided by critical pedagogy and social justice approaches to global citizenship education. the authors demonstrate the extent to which the collaborative online international learning (coil) approach facilitated pre-service teachers’ development of global competencies and ability to employ emerging technologies for learning. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) volume 5 issue 1, 2020 rapoport a. editorial: technologization of global citizenship education as response to challenges of globalization: 2020 (5)1, i-vii the idea that technology is disrupting traditional norms and practices has long been prevalent in many spheres of human activity, including education. the article re/coding global citizenship: how information and communication technologies have altered humanity and created new questions for global citizenship education by gabriel swarts (st. bonaventure university) addresses three key challenges that gce teachers and scholars face in the attempt to “re/code” the field in the information age: a) how humans engage with global issues and concerns, b) the role of governments and citizenship status in a “disrupted” age, and c) the role of technology corporations in the delivery and control of globalized media. to answer these questions, the author invites readers to discuss how information and communication technologies are changing the landscape, and how global citizenship education must open new spaces for conversations and the future of the field. in 2017, the international bureau of education (ibe) put forth a set of capacity-building competences reflecting the means to prepare students for the shifting needs of industry while developing skills needed for interacting in a globalized context. a group of researchers from pepperdine university (danielle p. espino, seung b. lee, lauren van tress, toby t. baker, and eric r. hamilton) examined the reflection of these competences in a project that addressed unesco sustainable development goals (sdg) targets 4.4 and 4.7 to build on both relevant skillsets and global citizenship in a learning context. the project involved collaborative stemfocused media making by adolescent participants from various countries in an informal, global makerspace environment. in analysis of u.s., kenyan, and finnish discourse patterns in a crosscultural digital makerspace learning community through the ibe-unesco global competences framework, the authors explore the interactive role of media making, cross-cultural engagement, and collaborative learning in the development of global competences in students who worked together both asynchronously, using email or slack, and synchronously through video conference calls known as online global meet-ups. the study concludes that across the meet-up, participants helped each other develop key competences that support the importance of considering this media making, boundary-crossing, collaborative environment in learning and building global competences. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) volume 5 issue 1, 2020 rapoport a. editorial: technologization of global citizenship education as response to challenges of globalization: 2020 (5)1, i-vii we hope this volume will draw the attention of theorists and practitioners who are interested in citizenship education, social studies education, global and international education, comparative education, and the role and place of technology in education and civic life. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) volume 5 issue 1, 2020 rapoport a. editorial: technologization of global citizenship education as response to challenges of globalization: 2020 (5)1, i-vii references davies, l., harber, c., & yamashita, h. (2005). global citizenship education: the needs of teachers and learners. birmingham, uk: center for international education and research (cier), university of birmingham. harshman, j. (2015). introduction to research in global citizenship education. in j. harshman, t. augustine, & m. merryfield (eds.), research in global citizenship education (pp. 1-8). charlotte, nc: information age publishing. koyama, j. (2015). the elusive and exclusive global citizen. new delhi, india: mahatma gandhi institute of education for peace and sustainable development/unesco. maguth, b., & hilburn, j. (2015). introduction: the state of global education: learning with the world and its people. in b. maguth & j. hilburn (eds.), the state of global education: learning with the world and its people (pp. 1-10). new york, ny: routledge. merryfield, m. m. (2008). scaffolding social studies for global awareness. social education, 72(7), 363-366. myers, j. (2006). rethinking the social studies curriculum in the context of globalization: education for global citizenship in the u.s. theory and research in social education, 34(3), 370-394. mossberger, k., tolbert, c. j., & mcneal, r. s. (2008). digital citizenship: the internet, society, and participation. cambridge, ma: mit press. rapoport, a. (2013). global citizenship themes in the social studies classroom: teaching devices and teachers’ attitudes. the educational forum, 77(4), 407-420. rapoport, a. (2015). global citizenship education: classroom teachers’ perspectives and approaches. in m. merryfield, t. augustine, & j. harshman (eds.), research in global citizenship education (pp. 119-136). charlotte, nc: information age publishing. sant, e., davies, i., pashby, k., & schultz, l. (2018). global citizenship education: a critical introduction to key concepts and debates. london: bloomsbury. standish, a. (2012). the false promise of global learning: why education needs boundaries. new york, ny: continuum. wood, p. (2008). the impossibility of global citizenship. brock education, 17, 22-37. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) e-issn: 2468-6891 impact of mentoring on at-risk youth shazia mirza1 abstract this research is a qualitative case study which highlights the important role of an educational leader using mentoring and socio emotional techniques to save her student from extremist activities in the name of religion. educational leaders should be committed not only toward their students’ academic enrichment but also focus on developing their student’s socio emotional wellbeing and build in them the confidence when they need it the most. whenever at-risk youth is mentioned, it is assumed that they hide destructive layers under their body and mind. they need someone who knows how to read these signs and the educational leader should play a key role in this regard. this study will help educational leaders and managers to understand the aspects, importance and applicability of social emotional learning (cognitive affective) on students’ behavior. furthermore the study will also show how using some techniques of care, the teacher not only saves her students’ life but also the lives’ of many other students. this research accentuates the importance of creating a strong bonding with students. for curriculum developers, it is of key importance to inculcate religious content that emphasizes more on aspects related to care through animal rights in islam and humanity on whole. furthermore this research provides imperative guidelines to inculcate social emotional learning in ‘islamiat’ curriculum and shares the result on student’s behavior towards people generally. finally, it emphasizes the leaders’ role of managing students on the basis of socio emotional learning. key words: leader, mentoring, at-risk youth, socio emotional learning, care curriculum, extremism introduction while on their way home people would cross the tracks and get trapped between sudden movements of the cargo train. six residents died and lost their limbs. my maid’s son was the seventh and last victim of this tragedy. i visited my maid’s home for condolence where i was warmly welcomed by other women of the community. i was urged to start a non-formal school or 1 ceo,manzil educational organization, ceomanzil@gmail.com mailto:%20ceomanzil@gmail.com mirza a play group in that area. initially a bit reluctant, i did start a non-formal one roomed 2community based school (cbo) in a marginalized area of karachi in the year 2002. in a few years the non-formal school became a formal one. my students who entered at pre-primary level reached secondary section and i witnessed a great shift in their behaviors and attitudes. i had seen them grow in front of my eyes. some of them became reserved and some would stay out late with friends. what i especially noticed was that neighborhood mothers were not aware what their sons were doing. when mothers were called to caution them to keep an eye on what their sons were doing, they would explain that since they are boys they couldn’t control them. this type of attitude encouraged boys to act carelessly because they knew no one was supervising them. as far as the role of teachers is concerned, they focused more on the cognitive side and ignored the pupils’ socio-emotional needs. i noticed that the curriculum incorporated nothing that made them caring human beings who make positive contributions to the world. this research is about one student who was negatively influenced by an irrational character whom he idolized. when the student reached grade viii, i experienced a great shift in his behavior as he started avoiding my classes. he started raising questions and doubting the importance of worldly teachings and began influencing other pupils in classroom as well. he became very aggressive both inside and outside of class. teachers in the school could not identify the reason behind this shift in his behavior. some suggested very strongly that i expel him out of school in order to protect other students from his negative influence. for me, as a ceo, it was difficult to rusticate a student who had spent eight years with me but i couldn’t ignore this issue any more. we started reflecting on possible reasons and factors behind his behavior. things started getting worse when he openly declared his association with a terrorist organization supporting their views openly. statement of problem it is very important for a child to get caring and nurturing environment in school where students look upon their teachers for guidance. reality is different from what should happen in a learning institution because usually, there’s no one to guide them. teachers are like machines who come 2 pseudonym for the case study research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 36-53 38 and go and show least concern for what is happening in their student’s life nor do they ponder why the student is completely ignoring their socio-emotional needs. this research will fill the gap and guide teachers how to handle at-risk youth. research questions  can a students get inspired by extreme thoughts?  can mentoring help at-risk students change their negative perspective to positive?  does a family play a positive role in mentoring at-risk children? research objectives  to find out how students get inspired by extreme thoughts  to gauge how mentoring changes students perspective positively  to determine the role of families who lack close bonding with at-risk children literature review mentoring extensive research has been conducted regarding mentoring the youth and considerably for those that are at-risk. slack, et al. (2013) mentions that students who are unsuccessful in their academic endeavors are at a substantial risk of dropping from school or require a mentor. hoover (2005) states that a mentor is a person that encourages and cares for a student and is actively involved in the educational undertakings of the pupil. rhodes (as cited in dubois et al. 2011) states that mentoring has three categories including: cognitive, identity and social-emotional. social emotional aspect can be inculcated when the mentor models caring behavior and provides support to the mentee. this is especially helpful when the youth experience non satisfactory relationship with people around them especially parents. mentoring also facilitates the cognitive ability in students. when a student is involved in a mentoring program that is consistent, long-term and following a proper framework, there are tangible results that can be drawn from it (tierney & grossman, 2000). hence mentoring can be a tool that can be used by a teacher to deal with at-risk students. mirza cognitive affective curriculum cognitive/affective curriculum helps prepare student body to face challenges of the world, and it also inculcates critical thinking habits among youth. the collaborative for social and emotional learning (casel) has identified five major interrelated sets that include behavioral, affective and cognitive competencies. the five sets are “self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills and responsible decision making (casel)”. cognitive and affective curriculum is the process through which students are able to apply knowledge, attitudes and skills to achieve positive results and make informed decisions. effective sel programming needs a curriculum based approach that is properly structured and can be applied consistently over the years (as cited in kress et al., 2004). ragozzino et al., (2003) explains their experience of promoting and integrating sel in school students and also preparing the teachers and staff to develop these skills. brandt (2003) states that learning is not solely cognitive because when it is inculcated in classes, sel answers challenging issues of emotions and cognition that are intertwined together (as cited in kress et al., 2004). care curriculum according to noddings (1995), care theory emphasizes more on expressing empathy. socio cultural preparation, which is supported by the mechanism of lave and vygotsky advocates that learning is inevitably social in nature and therefore schools do well to recognize such a certainty (as cited in heid, 2008). as suggested by noddings (1995), learning happens greatest within an atmosphere of care, enabling students to learn to care forms close social relationships to be shaped. she further elaborates that care then develops the substance that chains socio-cultural relationships, that nurtures aesthetic skills (as cited in heid, 2008). noddings (1995) emphasizes the importance of adding religious knowledge in the curriculum. she emphasizes that students should devoted their lives to religion and they should also master elementary vocabulary about a belief in god. extremism fierce extremism and radicalization rank at the top among challenges of our times. youth are vulnerable to the messages of terrorist organizations and violent extremists. they require research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 36-53 40 specific learning opportunities while they face challenges to develop attitudes and skills that may help them gain strength. with the help of confident, respected and well prepared teachers these competencies can be developed. there are three main factors that lead to violent extremism amongst youth, socioeconomic, psychological and institutional (unesco 2016). davies (2008) explores how education can counter different forms of extremism which present societies globally. young people become vulnerable to being attracted by extremist narratives. what provides a breeding ground for violent extremism is when economic opportunity fails and youth doesn’t get any mentoring or guidance from their families and surroundings. extremist beliefs are also reliant on the cultural perspective, norms and values that are intricately bound up in the definition of ‘extremism.’ pakistan faces utmost challenge from domestic and internal security issues that emerge in the name of religious extremism. unfortunately these overwhelming threats always affect pakistani youth. in the name of religion what these so called leaders do is pitch in their identity, and say you will be important, you will know important people, especially the promise of belonging to a momentous group. they make them significant. second, grievance against society especially those who experience negative emotions are usually young people from marginalized areas who feel that they have nothing to lose (unesco, 2016). method research design the current study is a case study that discusses the role of mentoring in the life of an atrisk youth. it shows how the teacher first observed his behavior and salvaged him from the clutches of idolizing humans and cruelty to animals, to a complete turn of character where now he nurtures plants and cares for domestic animals at his school. this journey is well captured using qualitative research and single case study method to accomplish the methodology and objectives of the study underpinned by the literature review. mirza qualitative research method qualitative research is useful for obtaining insights into lives of individuals, groups in their natural settings (oxford.., 2016). it deals with the explanations of societal norms and aims to help us in recognizing the social world around us that we inhabit (hancock, 1998). single case study case study research allows understanding of difficult issues but is done through past reports. it requires in-depth and holistic inquiry into cases. a researcher of case study understands the behavioral condition through the perspectives of the actor and does not include qualitative and statistical results. the case study method involves an analysis and reconstruction of the case at hand to be under investigation (tellis, 1997). figure 1: the process situational analysis situational analysis was conducted through observations that indicated change in behavior. academic results began to decline, authoritative directions were not obeyed, and confusion reflected on the student’s face. discussion session was conducted between teachers, classmates and the head teacher. situational analysis planned intervention analysis research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 36-53 42 planned intervention teachers, classmates and junior students were asked to observe and report to the head teacher. vigilant monitoring was enforced. data was collected and the islamiat teacher was removed. bonding was created with the student and the relationship was made more casual than formal. informed decisions were made, head teacher demonstrated emotional intelligence applicability, care curriculum/ sel. analysis interventions were evaluated; that indicated that they were a success. respondents of study the student was of grade viii and he influenced his classmates’ views drastically with strong reasoning using religion. the total sample size includes 3shahbaz and his four classmates. sources of data for the purpose of this study, three teachers, four students and the family of shahbaz were interviewed. a focus group was conducted of teachers and students that were involved. open ended questions were asked. location of the study this case study was conducted at a community based school situated in a post area of karachi. four marginalized areas are adjacent to it. data analysis introduction to the issue when a teacher has spent years of her life shaping her students, it brings great astonishment to her when she sees the same student changing in front of their eyes. when a radical shift takes place, it is very difficult to deconstruct the behavior and challenge ideas once set. 3 pseudonym for the case study mirza shahbaz joined the cbo when he was 5 years old. he was a bright and obedient student who regularly participated in all school and community service programs. he was quite friendly in class and preferred spending time with his friends. he was good in studies as well as extracurricular activities. he was an obedient student who had good administration skills since childhood and was always ready to take leadership roles. when shahbaz was in grade 9, his academic results started declining. teachers noticed this change especially during class when he would suddenly lose focus. his classmates shared that he was neither talking much nor spending time with them in the evenings. he had a very depressing demeanor. with time he started sharing his thoughts with his close friends regarding reality of life. he would often say, “we are here in this world for some time and there is nothing much to do as we will all die”. his friends shared shahbaz’s statements with their class teacher who in turn reported it to the school head teacher. shahbaz’s behavior shahbaz’s behavior changed and he began negating the orders of his teacher. when he was cautioned even over trivial matters, he would become defensive. he would state that whatever the teachers were teaching was completely forbidden in religion and that female teachers were not supposed to teach male students. he also started convincing students to be part of his cause and began pressurizing them to listen to his ideology even when they were not inclined to do so. he became abrupt and aggressive especially toward junior students and animals if things did not go according to his way. he used to throw stones at crows. one day he gave a spicy samosa to a lamb. when the animal was agonizing in pain it pleased him. when one student mentioned that being cruel to animals was not right, he retorted that it would make him strong from inside i.e. to see animals in pain would make his heart strong. he further explained to his friend that those creatures were made for us, to serve us therefore we can do anything with them. family meeting his parents were called to school and told more about his recent activities and also to inform them about his plans. during the meeting, his parents were asked to keep a vigilant eye on him and not to allow him to roam around the neighborhood aimlessly. his mother said as he was a grown up, they couldn’t stop him from the activities he was involved in. the father on the other hand suggested that he should be punished and he would not mind if teachers punished him too. his family did not play any significant role in his correction; in fact his mother encouraged him to research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 36-53 44 leave school and serve his religion because she was annoyed with teachers whom she thought were working against her son’s religious beliefs by stopping him. observation by teachers and classmates the ceo of cbo called a meeting between his classmates and subject teachers. the community is highly connected and since teachers are from the community, they take ownership of school and its students. they took his problem as theirs and avidly participated solving it. teachers decided to talk to him and try their best to connect with him. they would call and ask him to share his problems with them but he always opted to remain silent. after several failed attempts shahbaz told them that he was uninterested in studying and wanted to serve his energies in the path of religion. one of shahbaz’s classmates shared an incident where he saw him writing on a wall with spray paint publicizing a certain organization. this revelation alarmed all his teachers and they started keeping a vigilant eye on him. two of his classmates were asked to keep an eye on him after school hours. another follow-up meeting was conducted the next day and one classmate revealed that he had seen shahbaz carrying a book that contained some pictures pasted. his class teacher checked his bag the next day and noticed that a book in his bag indeed contained the pictures of his hero who was the head of this organization. some teachers and the board of cbo suggested immediate expulsion of shahbaz from school but the ceo instead asked for some time to handle the situation. another meeting was called between the ceo and the teachers where it was decided that the strategy would be changed. he would not be pushed harder or else he would become rebellious. intervention phase the school head teacher vigilantly began to research on education and its status in islam. authentic hadith were collected that covered the sayings and events specific to education. a lot a data was gathered that in fact negated shahbaz’s claim of education being forbidden in islam. on the contrary, it was evident that islam highly supported education and during gazwa-e badr, prisoners (non-muslims) were asked to teach 10 children how to read and write. this was their ransom after which they would be freed. specific presentations were developed by the ceo covering animal rights in islam, sports and environment. human rights were also covered to inform the students of the values placed by islam on all these aspects of life. mirza bonding student teacher relationship have long lasting and positive implications. it is important for students to develop academically and socially. a teacher is the spiritual mother of a student and her teachings remain with him/her like a shadow. either you follow the shadow when there is darkness or the shadow follows you when there is sunlight. her teachings are in the soul of his/her students. the ceo emphasized and directed the teachers to strengthen a strong emotional bonding. this was important and was made possible because of the unique model of the school being a cbo. the teachers applied the instructions by giving shahbaz more importance in his class. small and simple presents were awarded to him. as shahbaz was working in the administration department after school hours, teachers would make him his favorite meal for lunch and would ask him to pick it from their residence. all the teachers demonstrated a very empathetic behavior toward him especially during school hours. his grade ix science teacher developed a special bond with him through food i.e. by cooking and eating together with him. the teacher would also give him a sympathetic ear when he would talk about his academic problems and began giving him individual free extra classes. these classes helped her develop a one to one relationship with him. cbo is different and is comparatively more successful as compared to ngos because communities perceive ngos as aliens. as cbos are run by communities themselves, the management and students share happiness and sorrows together. teachers develop natural bonding with the students. picnics the importance of going for trips means more than just going out for fun. students experience new environment which gives them a chance to build closer relationship with their teachers and classmates. the bond between shahbaz, teachers, classmates and the ceo greatly strengthened when picnics were arranged between the senior sections. the purpose was to take him to a new environment, enjoy time with classmates, play and have food together. such arrangements reduce social awkwardness. the power lies with the teacher, she can make the most of the situation by building connections and strengthening the bond as a result. shahbaz was made the group leader and given the research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 36-53 46 responsibility to arrange for transportation and food. they ordered their favorite food and shared it with each other. these strategies inculcated team spirit and leadership qualities and also taught them to be cooperative and caring toward each other. special lunch program working collectively as team for a specific task makes everyone more responsible and accepting of the outcomes and fosters teamwork. the lunch strategy was quite successful so a special lunch program was organized in school called the soup kitchen. when teachers eat lunch with students it frames them in a different light embedding the teacher in a different territory that speeds up the process of building effective rapport. it also enables a smooth interaction and students are drawn into their realm of influence. it’s an effortless way to build rapport. meals foster feelings of belonging and warmth and also improve social skills. lunch created strong bonding between students and teachers of cbo. shahbaz contributed by helping to set it up and in this sense eating together created good social gathering and good environment. employment shahbaz’s father is a stone mason and his mother is a housewife. they have a family of six children to support. keeping this in mind, shahbaz was given an administration job from 7:30am to 5:30pm. he had to stay back in school to fulfill his duties thus not being left with much extra time. teachers also gave him important duties to conduct in school to work as teacher assistant. he was assigned the duty of opening the school gate early in the morning and monitor students while they enter school. by giving him a job to fulfill his financial duties, the school tried to make him economically strong so that he doesn’t get attracted towards joining the terrorist organization for money or financial satisfaction. islamiat curriculum students that established a strong bond with their teachers perform better. the islamiat teacher was replaced as her teaching style only catered to the lower order thinking skills thus working on rote learning instead of character building. the new teacher tried to infuse higher order thinking skills among students by bringing a social side into the islamiat curriculum. human rights, animal rights, sports, environment and other fun aspects were incorporated in the curriculum as practiced by our prophet peace be upon him. ayats and hadith were narrated in class with their references to establish their authenticity. more pets were brought in school to teach mirza teacher a •higher order thinking skills •empathetic •teaching love •humanitarianism •positive influence teacher b •lower order thinking skills •no empathy •teaching hate •sectarianism •negative influence them with example. these were deliberately done to inculcate the importance of animal rights and care in islam. when a religion has rights for animals how can it justify killing human beings in the name of religion. such interventions stimulated their thinking to higher order thinking skills. comparison of the two teachers this is the venn diagram that elaborate a comparative analysis of the two teachers. the common aspect between the two is the student and the religion. teacher a is the head teacher of the school who rescued the student through interventions whereas teacher b is the person having negative influence who tried to take the student away. figure 2: comparison of the two teachers findings care and bonding makes deep connections with students. after developing a strong bond and trusting her instinct, the teacher told shahbaz that she didn’t want him to keep his association with the other organization. he was kept busy during school days from morning till evening but he had time at night and over the weekends. finally, the ceo decided to ask shahbaz to make one choice between the two organizations. he was pressed so that he can focus on giving his exams. he stood up and left the class because he decided to pick the other organization. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 36-53 48 the teacher of cbo was confident that shahbaz would come back on basis of her strong bonding through care which was provided to him. she made sure that his friends did not abandon him while he was in deciding mode. he used to ask his classmates if any of them missed him or asked about him. his classmates would say that everyone was very busy indicating that no one misses him. in reality he was missing the extra care and importance which he was getting in school, within a week he shared with his friend that he wanted to go back to school and apologize. outcome once a connection is developed with the student, nothing can break the bond as students find direction through the light the teacher shows her students. when shahbaz was given a choice because he could not swim in two boats, he decided to go for the other organization. to everyone’s surprise, he stood up and left the room. his class teacher asked the ceo to stop him else he would throw himself completely in the hands of the organization that pollutes young minds to conduct actions that are not supported by religion. the ceo was sure and confident due to her connection with him that he will return back to the cbo. she also allowed his friends to continue their friendship with him so that they can keep a watchful eye on him. his best friend 4hunain played a significant role in this whole scenario. he didn’t say anything to shahbaz about cbo. after two days shahbaz’s curiosity knew no bounds. he wanted to know if teachers and other students missed him. hunain replied in the negative and said everyone was busy in their own endeavors. as shahbaz was quite used to attention, he felt strange that no one missed him. hunain, on the other hand, narrated the whole scenario back in school the next day which assured the teachers that he was missing school. now hunain was especially directed to share the fun news of school with shahbaz, which he did amicably well. shahbaz told hunain that his party member wanted to talk about shahbaz to the ceo. upon hearing this, the ceo stated that if the party leader came, he would be shown the door indicating that there was no influence that the party leader have have on the ceo. teachers also sent a message to shahbaz saying that he should be ashamed of himself by sending party heads to threaten the ceo of cbo. 4 pseudonym for the case study mirza hunain communicated the message along with the threat and consequences. shahbaz absorbed all this and didn’t reply. he started inquiring about the after lunch activities in cbo. on the 6th day, he told hunain that he wanted to return to the school but he was very embarrassed to show up. shahbaz also asked for different ideas to ask for forgiveness. hunain advised him to go and convey salaam (peace salutations for greeting people). the next day, which was a saturday, hunain informed the ceo that shahbaz would come back. he sat in her car to surprise her. when the teacher entered her car, he said salaam and the teacher didn’t say anything else i.e. she didn’t condemn him about abandoning school etc. because she was confident in her bonding with shahbaz and realized that he had made the final choice of returning back to his school, the cbo. summary of findings it is very important that there should be a specific program designed in school which confirms positive results (powell, 1997). cbo didn't possess any such program but they rescued the student from the evil political/religious clutches through their natural instincts and care for the student. cbo included care policy in their educational model as socio emotional learning is integral especially for students representing the marginalized areas of the city. powell (1997) states that a student at high risk can be positively influenced with effective mentoring and this impact is also lifelong. cbo in this regard has played a very important role in tackling students’ behavioral issues using effective mentoring strategies. it is important to create bonding with the students and then the student will start listening to the teacher. then the cycle of mentoring starts. activities that build bonding include lunch, arranging picnics, giving a listening ear, highly motivating the student so that they are able to achieve their best. social side of islam is usually ignored, the curriculum sways heavily toward rituals. the personality of an islamiat teacher is key. it is important that the teacher sets good examples that are also realistic. islamiat teacher at cbo had behavioral issues i.e. she was very rude and often criticized students. she had zero bonding and would scare students about hell and punishment of allah, this caused the students to become fearful of religion hence the care part of islam was neglected. the care policy applied to counter the effect of the above mentioned issues resulted in rescuing the student from the evil clutches of terrorist organization. one life saved from such an ordeal means saving many more unimaginable lives that could have been destroyed due to terrorism. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 36-53 50 those parents who do not develop strong bonding with their students become easy prey to terrorist organizations. noddings (1995) says that when we provide our students an atmosphere of care their learning skills increases drastically. cbo is trying very hard in this regard to provide its students atmosphere of care in classroom and develop their learning skills through it. it is important that curriculum for care should be developed where both teacher as mentors and children explore and practice morality (kazemek, 1989). cbo is developing a curriculum based on care which will develop students who are caring. school leadership does not play important role in developing strong bonding with parents, teachers and students. when the student reaches teenage, class teacher can play a major role, finding out or developing a strong bonding, with his/her student. schools play a very important role in helping students understand the negative effects of drug use, bullying and violence. this can only happen when schools focus on developing social emotional skills in their students. cbo in this regard helped its students by giving them guidance and support that has continued till today and no other case has been witnessed again. discussion, conclusion and implications conclusion teachers play a very important role in building students’ lives. in cbo the role of teacher is defined differently. it’s not merely taking care of students’ academic side but also their socio emotional skills. usually teachers feel that their role as caring teacher is when they focus more on developing their academic side but students on the other hand have different concept of care. they feel cared when they help them to face their personal life’s challenges and guide them as mentors. we as teachers should know that students don’t just come alone they also bring with them their personal problems, behaviors, their family issues, frustrations and depression. recommendations  it is very important for principals and school leaders to develop cognitive affective curriculum.  in order to help at-risk students, it is very important to develop long-term mentoring programs which should not be less than one year. mirza  in order to help students who have extreme behavior issues or views in the name of religion, it is very important for islamiat teacher to include care related syllabus in its curriculum. topics like care, peace and love of animals and their rights in islam, environment, and humanity as a whole.  teacher can play a very important role in life of at-risk students by developing a strong bonding through care.  teachers in school should act as mentors rather than inviting mentors from outside who are not aware of the school environment and student’s background or nature for a long time.  extremism in the name of religion can only be curbed through religion. content should be according to the context.  it is very important for these students to read the life history of their prophet mohammed (peace be upon him).  beside studies, schools should focus on extracurricular activities that includes fun trips.  schools should have proper vocational training classes for students according to their interests. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (1), 36-53 52 references dubois, d. l., portillo, n., rhodes, j.e., silverthorn, n., and jeffrey c. valentine, j. c., (2011). how effective are mentoring programs for youth? a systematic assessment of the evidence. psychological science in the public interest. 12(2) 57–91. accessed from: doi: 10.1177/1529100611414806 falkenberg, t., (2009). starting with the end in mind: ethics-of-care-based teacher education. counterpoints, vol. 334, engaging in conversation about ideas in teacher education, pp. 50-59. accessed from: http://www.jstor.org/stable/42980273 grassel, e. and schirmer, b., (2006). the use of volunteers to support family careers of dementia patients: results of a prospective longitudinal study 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(2005). an unlikely relationship. chronicle of higher education, 51(38), academic search premier database. accessed from: http://chronicle.com/article/anunlikely-relationship/12584/ kazemek, f. e., (1989). feminine voice and power in moral education. morals and values, educational horizons, 67(3), pp. 76-81. accessed from: http://www.jstor.org/stable/42924775 kress, j. s., norris, j. a., schoenholz, d. a., elias, m. j., and seigle, p., (2004). bringing together educational standards and social and emotional learning: making the case for educators. american journal of education, 11(1), pp. 68-89. accessed from: http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.1086/424720 noddings, n., (1995). teaching themes of care. the phi delta kappan, 76(9), pp. 675-679. accessed from: http://www.jstor.org/stable/20405432 noddings, n., (1998). teachers and subject matter knowledge. teacher education quarterly, 25(4), twenty-fifth anniversary issue, pp. 86-89. accessed from: http://www.jstor.org/stable/23478164 oxford university press. 2016. qualitative field research. mother and child health: research methods. pp. 196-211. accessed from: http://www.oxfordjournals.org/our_journals/tropej/online/ce_ch14.pdf perry, c. m., and quaglia, r. j., (1997).perceptions of teacher caring: questions and implications for teacher education. looking at preservice and new teachers, teacher education quarterly, 24(2), pp. 75-82. accessed from: http://www.jstor.org/stable/23478135 mirza slack, r. s., johnson, c. a., dodor, b., & woods, b. (2013). mentoring “at risk” middle school students: strategies for effective practice. north carolina middle school association journal, 27(1). accessed from: www.ncmle.org/journal/pdf/feb13/final_slack_johnson_et%20al.pdf the hamilton fish institute on school and community violence & the national mentoring center at northwest regional educational laboratory. (2007). effective strategies for providing quality youth mentoring in schools and communities: the abcs of school-based mentoring. accessed from: educationnorthwest.org/sites/default/files/abcs.pdf wang, c., and ku, h., (2010). a case study of an affective education course in taiwan. educational technology research and development, 58(5), pp. 613-628. accessed from: http://www.jstor.org/stable/40929422 weissberg, r. p., and cascarino, j., (2013). academic learning + social-emotional learning= national priority. the phi delta kappan, 95(2), pp. 8-13. accessed from: http://www.jstor.org/stable/23617133 white, b., (2003). caring and the teaching of english. research in the teaching of english, 37(3), pp. 295-328. accessed from: http://www.jstor.org/stable/40171629 research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 galkiene, a., & puskoriene, g. (2020). development of adaptation tools for pupils on the autism spectrum in microsystems. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 1 development of adaptation tools for pupils on the autism spectrum in microsystems alvyra galkiene * vytautas magnus university giedre puskoriene vytautas magnus university *corresponding author: alvyra.galkiene@vdu.lt received : 2019-08-16 rev. req : 2019-10-06 accepted : 2019-11-20 doi: 10.46303/ressat.05.02.1 galkiene, a., & puskoriene, g. (2020). development of adaptation tools for pupils on the autism spectrum in microsystems. research in social sciences and technology, 5(2), 1-21. doi.org/10.46303/ressat.05.02.1 abstract this research investigates the possibilities for the development of adaptation tools for pupils on the autism spectrum (as), studying in the first and second forms, within their microsystems. five mothers and five teachers of children on the as participated in the research, and their insights help reveal the process of moving from one microsystem to another for a child on the as. children studying in the first and second forms were chosen because children experience a particularly significant social turning-point during this period. the following question is raised: how do synergy-driven processes taking place in the microsystems of pupils on the as contribute to the development of the adaptation processes in these children? the research data was collected via semi-structured interviews and underwent qualitative content analysis. the research results reveal that the development of adaptation tools in children on the as is determined by a mesosystem that covers various combinations of microsystems, and the synergy between the factors of the microsystems creates conditions for a child’s gradual transfer from one microsystem to another, perceiving the mechanisms of its functioning, and adapting within them. a mesosystem, which evolves on the school campus, within a family, and with specialists, not only encourages the development of adaptation tools in a child on the as but also helps mothers to restore their inner harmony and actively engage in their children’s education process. in the microsystem of their peers, children on the as acquire fundamental instruments for participation in community activities. keywords: autism spectrum, adaptation tools, microsystem, mesosystem research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 galkiene, a., & puskoriene, g. (2020). development of adaptation tools for pupils on the autism spectrum in microsystems. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 2 introduction adaptation is the process of adjustment of interlinked human functioning systems (biological, psychological, and social) through changes in cognitive structures and behavioral expression, with the aim of restoring balance with an environment that has new requirements by mutually interacting with it and causing mutual impact. the manifestations of a child’s adaptation are considered adjustment to changing social conditions (rotheram-fuller, kasari, chamberlain, & locke, 2010). biological factors that are important for the success of adaptation include the child’s development level at the moment of the social turning-point (vygotsky, 1991), the quality of biologically determined social functions in the brain (cozolino, 2014; richardson, 2019) such as neuroplasticity, which is the ability of the human brain to change and regenerate even after organ damage, and the ability to adjust to changing situations and states of being as the person consistently and continually learns new skills or repeats existing skills (doidge, 2007). psychological processes that contribute to successful adaptation are linked to selfregulatory functions, the essence of which is the ability to adapt positive and negative emotions caused by a certain experience and to respond in a socially acceptable manner to daily life requirements by employing emotions ranging from happiness to sadness, from nervousness to tranquility, and from anger to joy (hamlin, 2016). the social dimension in the process of adaptation includes the personal ability to independently function in society using daily life skills (hill, gray, kamps, & varela, 2015), particularly the ability to initiate, maintain, and build friendly relationships with one’s peers. these abilities facilitate the process of fulfilling school requirements and adjusting to them (gresham, van, & cook, 2006). the success or failure of adapting oneself in a social environment also depends on the package of adaptation tools that the child has at their disposal. autism spectrum disorder is a developmental disorder with clear neurological symptoms (stampoltzis, defingou, antonopoulou, kouvava, & polychronopoulou, 2014) that continue throughout the entire lifespan (hamlin, 2016). the inability of pupils on the as to adequately and flexibly interact with the environment reflects the lack or inadequacy of tools vital for adaptation (preis, 2007). when examining this issue, focus is placed on the level of mental development (mouga, almeida, café, duque, & oliveira, 2015), the person’s age, the extent of as symptoms (hill et al., 2015; kenworthy, case, harms, martin, & wallace, 2010), abstract reasoning skills and flexibility of thoughts (williams, mazefsky, walker, minshew, & goldstein, 2014), perception of facial expressions (wallace, case, harms, silvers, kenworthy, & martin, 2011), executive function (mclean, harrison, zimak, & morrow, 2014; pugliese, anthony, strang, dudley, wallace, & kenworthy, 2015; pugliese, anthony, strang, dudley, wallace, naiman, & kenworthy, 2016), specificities of sensory processing (lane, young, baker, & angley, 2010), and having attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ashwood, tye, azadi, cartwright, asherson, & bolton, 2015). research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 galkiene, a., & puskoriene, g. (2020). development of adaptation tools for pupils on the autism spectrum in microsystems. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 3 researchers have established that the state of chronic stress is characteristic of children on the as (hamlin, 2016; kushki, drumm, mobarak, tanel, dupuis, chau, & anagnostou, 2013). response to stress differs in children with and without as. in stressful situations, children on the as experience stronger reactions to stress. an important circumstance has been established, namely, that children on the as with higher iq values experience prolonged stress, and the stress levels of seemingly calm children never reach zero (kushki et al., 2013). according to attwood (2006), the high intelligence of a person on the as still does not guarantee efficient application of stress management strategies. therefore, if the means of reducing stress are not applied, the stress significantly reduces the adaptation abilities of children on the as despite their intelligence levels (hamlin, 2016). it is considered that people on the as have a damaged mirror neuron system, which causes obstacles in learning through observation and disturbs verbal and non-verbal communication, emotional stability, and empathy. it has been established that the brains of persons on the as function more actively when observing and analyzing objects yet show little or no activity in face recognition. when asked to recognize emotions on a face, they analyze separate features but not the whole. these brain activity characteristics might result in anxiety and misunderstandings during interactions (cozolino, 2014). nevertheless, resources facilitating adaptation have an important role in the adaptation process. in most cases, these resources include the children’s excellent visual and spatial memory, inclination towards adhering to structure, and special fields of interest (tender, 2009). importantly, persons on the as might be characterized by different levels of autistic symptoms, various cognitive abilities, and behavioral adaptivity (iovannone, dunlap, huber, & kincaid, 2003; kanne, gerber, quirmbach, sparrow, cicchetti, & saulnier, 2011). brain neuroplasticity is considered an important adaptation resource for children on the as. the brain is capable of changing its structure and function according to reasoning and activity. the formation of synapses is the grounds for any type of learning. these synapses are preserved according to the principle of “use it or lose it.” continuous work and repetition that helps form new connections between neurons also helps instill obtained skills. it is not only the effect of the action but also the imagination that might affect the brain (doidge, 2007). there is no coincidence in the fact that along with the growing volumes of research in neurology and neuropsychology and their publications came an increasing popularity of education programs focusing on the development of social skills and competences in children on the as, both through specialists’ individual work with the child on the as and by involving peers in the process (reichow & volkmar, 2010). these researchers established correlations between certain brain functions and social communication issues. regardless of how biologically determined the reasons for as are, brain neuroplasticity theory confirms the universal potential in the brain to change and adapt by learning various new or lost skills (doidge, 2007). the adaptation of children on the as occurs in close interaction with the surrounding environment. the social environment affects the child’s cognitive and emotional spheres and their behavior, while at the same time the system is influenced by the child’s behavior. therefore, the quality of adaptation depends not only on the person’s efforts and characteristic research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 galkiene, a., & puskoriene, g. (2020). development of adaptation tools for pupils on the autism spectrum in microsystems. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 4 traits but also on the effect caused by their surrounding environment (steinbrenner & watson, 2015). the child’s education environment includes the interacting participants in the educational situation who form specific systems. microsystems are the closest ones to the child. here, the child participates via direct interaction. the child’s fundamental surrounding microsystems include their family, school, and peers. education in individual environments differs due to the varying grades in which they exert influence; however, as both microsystems co-operate, the relationships between them result in a mesosystem that follows similar principles (sheridan & mccurdy, 2005). relationships between parents and teachers and between parents and the child’s friends are of particular importance to the children. firm and positive connections within microsystems create a favorable context for children’s development (buzaitytė-kašalynienė, 2015; kato, 2018; liu, 2019). the participation of a person with insufficient adaptation tools in these systems is limited and continuously causes feelings of insecurity. a solution is the elimination of social barriers from the environment and the development of the person’s system of adaptation tools. in summary, it can be claimed that science provides substantiation for the effect of the biological, psychological, and social systems of human functioning on the adaptation of children on the as. however, in order to facilitate the process, it is important to understand the mechanisms of interaction, which impact the development of adaptation tools. the aim of the research is to examine the factors of the microsystems the child participates in and analyze the significance of the interaction between the systems for the development of adaptation tools in these children. this research is based on vygotsky’s cultural-historical theory, in which he explains the diversity among children and substantiates disability-caused situations of “social dislocation” (rieber & carton, 1993). according to the theory, the adaptation of a person with a disability in society is more successful when social interaction favorable to the person is created and the environment is adjusted accordingly, rather than when attempting to overcome the biological basis of the disability. research question how do synergy-driven processes taking place in the microsystems of pupils on the as contribute to the development of the adaptation processes in these children? methods research design in order to answer the research question, a qualitative research approach (harding, 2018) was chosen. qualitative content analysis, a version of deductive category development (mayring, 2014), was applied for data analysis. the conceptual framework of the research organization is provided in figure 1. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 galkiene, a., & puskoriene, g. (2020). development of adaptation tools for pupils on the autism spectrum in microsystems. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 5 figure 1. conceptual framework for the research when analyzing the discourse of parents and teachers of children on the as on their personal experience, units of meaning are identified which illustrate the children’s adaptation process. the units of meaning are attributed to one of the microsystems. the microsystems that are significant in the adaptation process were identified based on the results of scientific research analysis. while analyzing the microsystem factors that affect adaptation, we looked for features that indicate links with other microsystems, which build the mesosystem around the child. the expression of factors encouraging adaptation was investigated in terms of the course of the child’s adaptation and the development of their adaptation tools as well as the experience of other participants of the mesosystem. research participants the research participants were five mothers raising children on the as and five teachers that educate these children (table 1). research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 galkiene, a., & puskoriene, g. (2020). development of adaptation tools for pupils on the autism spectrum in microsystems. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 6 table 1. the characteristics of research participants participants age of participants work experience of the teachers the class in which the child learns the school the child attends mother 37 first mainstream classroom in a mainstream school mother 38 second mother 42 second mother 40 first specialized classroom in a mainstream school mother 46 first special school teacher 49 27 first mainstream classroom in a mainstream school teacher 58 30 second teacher 29 2 second teacher 61 39 first specialized classroom in a mainstream school teacher 23 2 first special school note: all the teachers had fewer than two years of experience working with children on the as. all the mothers who participated in the research had degrees in higher education. the average age of the mothers was 40.6 years (from 37 to 46 years of age). the children of three mothers attended mainstream schools. one of these children attended the first form, and the othe r two were in the second form. the child of the fourth mother learned in a specialized classroom (designed exclusively for children on the as) at a mainstream school; he was in the first form. the child of the fifth mother attended the first form at a special school. the children’s age varied from 7 to 8 years. the average age of the teachers was 43.9 years, ranging from 23 to 58 years of age. the average work experience of the teachers was 19.8 years (ranging between 1 to 39 years). sampling the purposive sampling method was used when designing the research. families that belong to a parent support group on the facebook social network were invited to participate in the research. invitations to participate were extended to parents of children on the as learning in the first or second grades because at this stage, the children go through a particularly significant social turning-point. mothers of five children expressed willingness to participate in the research, but not a single father responded to the call. through cooperation with the children’s mothers, the children’s teachers (five) were also invited. data collection and data analysis technique qualitative research was carried out. an in-depth interview method was applied for data collection. once the fundamental question was posed to the interviewee, the conversation was further developed in a way to create conditions for her to reveal her personal experience. the duration of interviews with each interviewee was 1.5 2 hours. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 galkiene, a., & puskoriene, g. (2020). development of adaptation tools for pupils on the autism spectrum in microsystems. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 7 data analysis was carried out with the help of latent content analysis (mayring, 2014) and involved four phases following the data coding agenda (see table 2). the first preparatory phase covered transcribing the interview material, preparing a selective protocol, identifying and defining units of meaning, and illustrating the process of adaptation. in the second phase, categories were developed in a deductive way. in the third phase, the units of meaning were selected and attributed to categories according to set characteristics. finally, in the fourth phase, links were identified between factors from different microsystems. the links within the microsystem as well as their impact on each child’s adaptation were analyzed. table 2. data coding agenda categories features of units of meaning features of cross-section analysis family microsystem prevalence of factors related to family members or family environment prevalence of links between the factors of family microsystem with factors of other microsystems school microsystem prevalence of factors related to school actors or environment prevalence of links between the factors of school microsystem and those of other microsystems peer microsystem prevalence of factors reflecting the child’s or their peers’ activity prevalence of the factors of peer microsystem, interrelated or linked to factors of other microsystems research ethics research participants were invited to voluntarily participate in the research and were ensured complete anonymity. the aim of the research and its implementation were clarified to all participants. the teachers’ participation in the research was arranged with school leaders. with prior agreement, the interviews were recorded on a voice recorder to be transcribed later. the names of the research participants were encoded in the following manner: mothers: m1-m5; teachers: pm, gm, sk, and sm. the names of children mentioned in the article were changed. findings the data was analyzed in accordance with the main research question, “how do synergy-driven processes taking place in the microsystems of pupils on the autism spectrum contribute to the development of adaptation processes in these children?” the units of meaning in the discourse of the interviewees are grouped into categories and analyzed in terms of their impact on the adaptation of the child on the as. family microsystem in the adaptation process of a child on the as, the factors within the family microsystem constitute a fundamental condition ensuring the child’s safety and creating conditions for his or her launch into other microsystems. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 galkiene, a., & puskoriene, g. (2020). development of adaptation tools for pupils on the autism spectrum in microsystems. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 8 the social turning-point that the families were preparing for and that took intensive effort encompassed the child’s joining activities in the school microsystem. research results revealed school selection criteria used by families with children on the as. evidently, the families did not follow their right to educate their children at a school close to home but attempted to find a school that would constitute the most favorable environment that would best meet their needs. the search criteria differed. ... i saw the good-natured attitude of the principle and thought the teachers should share the same. in addition, i said: “see, they’re waiting for us here. do you understand? we are welcome here. we will come here on the 1st of september.” (m3) the attitude and approach i felt from the school administrator sold me. i will be heard here. (m5) ... we decided we should try and send him to a mainstream school. if it doesn’t work, then we will go to specialized classrooms. because currently, integration into mainstream classes in higher school years is not fully ensured. …the child will not have special conditions all his life. otherwise, he will be with disabilities all his life then. (m1) we chose the place with more assistance from a speech therapist available. (m4) the results of the research show that when making decisions at the sensitive moment of choosing a school, families assign great emphasis to potential psychological and educational environments that might help their children adapt in the new microsystem. interestingly, in many cases, the determining factor in the families’ decisions was the attitudes of school leaders, which allowed prediction of interpersonal relationships within communities. the families of m3 and m5 chose different types of education institutions after conversations with their leaders. the family of m3 decided to attend a mainstream school, as they believed in the school community’s openness to pupils with special needs, while m5 chose a specialized education institution expecting understanding and support. when considering the criteria for adapting in society, the families laid out a path to adult life. the family of m1, predicting significantly more challenges for their child to adapt in a mainstream school, nevertheless choose the latter as they believe the ultimate goal of adaptation is involvement in life in open society. in the family of m4, the possibility of assistance in the present moment was the criterion for their choice. their goal was to solve the problem of limited communication as a fundamental tool for adapting in society. school microsystem research results show that families assign particular importance to the relationship with the people closest to their children, namely, their teachers, as the main actors in the child’s adaptation process. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 galkiene, a., & puskoriene, g. (2020). development of adaptation tools for pupils on the autism spectrum in microsystems. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 9 ... we have been very lucky with the teacher. … she accepted our child not as a problem but as a challenge for herself as a teacher, to see that she can work with such a child. i would go as far as to say this is the absolute secret of success. (m1) the teacher is very empathetic, and has right insights. i don’t even know how to thank that person. it is a gift… (m5) the parents did not consider the teacher’s experience working with such children important. the main criterion is the attitude of accepting the child and building a favorable relationship with him or her. in cases when the teacher succeeded in creating a trust-based relationship with the family, the family might be expected to try to pass their child’s successful experience and thus facilitate the child’s adaptation in the school, while at the same time helping the teacher experience professional success in educating a child on the as. ... i began my story not talking about his difficulties but about his strong sides: that he himself learned to read, he first learned the letters and then to talk and that he has a fantastic memory and is great in logical matters. (m1) on the first days, i wrote down everything that works for him and that he likes and gave it to them. (m5) fully aware of their children’s difficulties, the mothers (m1 and m5) tried to equip the teachers with tools that would allow creating situations that produce success for their children at school. first, they provided the characteristics of their children, including their strengths and preferences, since these features would naturally unfold only once the child was settled in the school and when favorable circumstances were present. on the other hand, in the first stage of interaction, the teacher’s pre-formed attitude determined the search for the pre-formed image and postponed the first spontaneous impression. interaction of family and school microsystems research results show that the methods of developing adaptation tools in children on the as for teachers included bringing school and family activities together. the transposition of activities or elements of interaction common in the family microsystem to the school helped avoid the child’s destructive behavior in changing social circumstances. ... the girl carried that apple around all day. it made her feel much calmer. later, we discovered that at home she also likes to keep some fruit or vegetable in her hand. on some days, she kept carrying the fruit or vegetable around. this is the link to the fact that home is safe. “i will make this classroom similar to my home and i will feel safe.” (sk) research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 galkiene, a., & puskoriene, g. (2020). development of adaptation tools for pupils on the autism spectrum in microsystems. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 10 when under stress, he said: “to mum, to dad.” then, i said: “ok, let’s call your dad.” when he calmed down, i repeated it several times. with hope and surprise, he turned to me: “to call?” when he heard his dad’s voice, the child’s eyes changed. a new space opened up. not that of anger about what had happened but that of a chat with dad. (sm) the teachers’ remarks demonstrated that it is not only the imitation of the home situation in the school environment but also the development of social and psychological skills that are significant for the development of adaptation tools. when working towards adaptive behavior for children on the as, teachers develop skills that, under usual conditions, are formed in the family. ... now, i teach the child to cover his mouth when sneezing. he does not want to. then, i show it with an imitative gesture: “achoo.” then, he repeats it. if he repeats it, you are happy. through social acts, the child himself focuses on my actions and speech. in addition, tries to do it. (sm1) he takes a card himself and goes there. he has to have his diaper changed. however, he already goes to the toilet with no aggression. he attaches the card and changes his diaper himself. (sm2) he used to put things into his mouth. he used to chew shoes. therefore, we had an idea that he should chew chewing-gum. and, it worked. he no longer chews his shoe. (gm) the child’s acceptable behavior is a highly important instrument for adaptation in social environments, and without mastering it, any positive interaction with peers or other social groups is not possible. teachers develop such behavior through imitation (sm1), alternative communication (sm2), and providing an acceptable model for the child’s behavior (gm). in a well-functioning mesosystem of school and family, the microsystems are mutually supportive. not only does the teacher teach the child skills to be trained in the family, but the family adopts the functions of the school. sometimes it happens that the biggest learning happens at home. he likes it. (m3) ... when we study the lithuanian language, his focus weakens; then i say to him: “what’s 18+24?” he immediately wakes up. and calculates it. then, i ask him something else. he comes alive immediately when i ask him to calculate something. (m3) in some cases, individualizing a learning activity and carrying it out in the most familiar environment and with the people whom the child trusts the most reduces stress factors that impede the development of adaptation tools in a new environment. in other cases, the family encourages the child to discover opportunities important to him in the school microsystem. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 galkiene, a., & puskoriene, g. (2020). development of adaptation tools for pupils on the autism spectrum in microsystems. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 11 “do so that i have no english lessons.” i then started motivating him saying that all computer terms are english. he wants to be a computer specialist. i told him he would need it. and now, he’s in seventh heaven, learning english. (m3) i tell him: “i will give you two euros every day, and you can buy what you want for lunch.” he says: “to me, and i can buy whatever i want? they will not give me food?” i tell him: “they will not give you food. you have to go and order yourself.” thus, he first started to enjoy school because he could choose the food. since it is very important for him to eat. (m3) aware of their child’s expectations, the family helps him find meaning in various activities in the new microsystem and relates them to the realization of his expectations. thus, the understanding of meaning acquires the shape of an adaptation tool. activities at school are not limited to learning. it is a complex system based on socio-psychological links. the needs of the child as a fully-fledged participant in that environment are not limited merely to active synergy between the teachers and the parents. therefore, the microsystems of peers and specialists are brought into the mesosystem of the school and family, expanding it and adopting an important role in it. peer microsystem although autism implies an inclination to solitude in children with the syndrome, relationships with peers nevertheless constitute an important adaptation element. a child on the as has encounters with their peers that begin immediately upon joining school activities. however, for the interaction between children to emerge, a lengthy and complex adaptation period is needed. research results show that introducing the child to their classmates and explaining his or her needs does not suffice. interpersonal relationships are formed gradually, in various situations, and with various participants involved. research shows that the teachers’ attempts to encourage interaction between pupils externally has little effect. we suggest that other children should invite him to play together. he does not come. and so, they walk away, they do not invite him again. (m2) however, lukas refused to work in teams and worked on his own. (m3) mothers shared their children’s unsuccessful experiences when effort was made to involve their children in other children’s ongoing activities through external acts but without providing adaptation tools. the attempts failed. however, when providing targeted training to the child on the as to communicate, a different result might be expected. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 galkiene, a., & puskoriene, g. (2020). development of adaptation tools for pupils on the autism spectrum in microsystems. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 12 in aba sessions, the therapist would invite our neighbors’ children and play games outside together with them. he would teach my child to join in to common play together with other children. (m2) ... she (the aba therapist) says: “look them in the eye. and ask: please let me take some.” she teaches ways to talk to children, and what not to do. (pm) when adjusting to the child’s situation and participating together with him or her, adaptation tools gradually emerge. teaching occurs in different microsystems, including the school and the neighborhood. research shows that children on the as are not indifferent towards relationships with other children. “i do not want to go to school. because i have no friends there.” (m2) however, the acquisition of tools for adaptation in a community is gradual. the material in the interviews with teachers and mothers reveals the taxonomy of the process of adaptation amongst one’s peers (see table 3). table 3. taxonomy of adaptation processes of children on the as amongst peers stages substantiating evidence 1) observation that child takes pencils and colors that detail. and so, he does the same. he copies. … he sees what other children do. (pm) 2) interest ... for a long time, he did not truly need any interaction with children. and now, i think he would already like to make friends, and he has two imaginary friends. i think this is a step towards finding friends at school. (m1) 3) communication ... they started playing hide-and-seek with his sister. they agree between themselves that they’re going to play. this is a very special activity of theirs. if one of them proposes it, they both agree. this is their first game together as such. (m1) in the second form, he found some girl as his friend who talks to him a little. now, he feels a little better. sometimes i find him talking to some child. the assistant sees me and says: “you know, some child came and said: ‘let’s go play.’ and they left.” this is magical news for me in the middle of the second form. (m2) 4) friendship ... he already has friends. he lists all the children, tells me who is ill, and who wanted what. he tells me. (m4) 5) empathy “i wish to invite them to the cinema.” all of them... “ok,” i say, “let’s try.” everyone was happy about it and we went to the cinema... together with the whole class. all the children said “thank you” to him. therefore, he was very satisfied. (m3) the results of the research allow identifying the taxonomy of the adaptation of children on the as in their peer microsystem. the taxonomy includes five stages: 1) observation, 2) interest, 3) communication, 4) friendship, and 5) empathy. the taxonomy corresponds to the sequence of the regular development of interpersonal relationships within a community. however, the interesting fact is that in this process, the initiative to communicate comes from the child on the as. this initiative naturally evolves from the child’s needs and cannot be imposed from the outside. in the education process, it is important to encourage this initiative, to “awaken” it, research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 galkiene, a., & puskoriene, g. (2020). development of adaptation tools for pupils on the autism spectrum in microsystems. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 13 but as long as it is absent, a fully-fledged adaptation and interaction in the community is impossible. this result of the research unveils the particular importance of the peer microsystem for the adaptation of a child on the as. it is in that microsystem that the main tools for independent participation in a community are acquired. specialist microsystem although the factors related to specialist activities were not separated into an individual microsystem when designing the research, in the research itself they are nevertheless described as factors of a separate microsystem that interact with factors of other microsystems. to achieve full adaptation, the child on the as is brought into the microsystem of specialists as well. thank you to our aba therapist… she turned letters and numbers into one of his interests. for instance, he says: “no, i don’t want to do homework.” and once we finish it, he takes his little book where he also has to write letters. in addition, during the break, he writes letters for his own pleasure. his greatest tragedy is if we forget to take his exercise booklet. because he then cannot write letters. (m1) the specialists work directly with the child, solving their specific problems and forming skills that facilitate the process of adaptation. in other cases, they collaborate with the teachers, thus indirectly helping to build an educational environment favorable to the child’s adaptation. ... the teacher collaborated strongly with the aba therapist. because the aba therapist comes to the school after the lessons are over. (m1) in the specialist microsystem, specific education models based on scientific research and successful practice prevail, which are applied to the education of an individual child. the research participants revealed that in the education of their children, applied behavior analysis is often applied, otherwise referred to as aba. this analysis is based on the analysis of functional links between a specific behavior and its consequences. according to the research participants, to develop adaptation tools in children on the as, the specialists apply art therapy, theatre therapy, and hippotherapy programs. results and discussion the results of this research show that the development of adaptation tools in children on th e as is not limited merely to activities in the school or family microsystems. the connection of these two microsystems results in a mesosystem where fundamental mechanisms of adaptation processes are active. the efficiency of a child’s education in a mesosystem of the school and family was proven in research results from iovannone et al. (2003), charman et al. (2011), and lilley (2019). however, satisfying the need to develop adaptation tools in children on the as calls for interaction with other mesosystems as well. the results of this research research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 galkiene, a., & puskoriene, g. (2020). development of adaptation tools for pupils on the autism spectrum in microsystems. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 14 reveal that determining the mesosystem in the development of adaptation tools encompasses the interaction of four microsystem factors (see figure 2). figure 2. mesosystem determining the development of adaptation tools in children on the as in this mesosystem, the interaction between the microsystems is very flexible, with two or more microsystems forming internal mesosystems according to the problems at hand. the results of the research show that as families with a child on the as adapt to a new family situation in a period of crisis, the interaction between factors of the microsystems of the family and school and specialists are of particular importance. this interaction helps family members restore their inner harmony and discover the best methods for their child’s education. the fact that specialist assistance in the earliest period of crises is crucial to increase the family’s ability to take care of the child with a disability was also proven by the results of research from kapp and brown (2011) and krakovich, mcgrew, yu, and ruble (2016). hence, the development of school microsystem pupils teachers assistants school leaders specialist microsystem: aba and other program professionals special needs teachers speech therapists arts therapists peer microsystem school friends neighbourhood friends other friends family microsystem mother father brothers sisters grandparents research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 galkiene, a., & puskoriene, g. (2020). development of adaptation tools for pupils on the autism spectrum in microsystems. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 15 adaptation tools in a child on the as begins with the tools necessary for the adaptation of the family: accepting the situation and empowering oneself to act for the sake of the child. at the same time, a mesosystem determining the development of the child’s adaptation tools begins to emerge. the research results demonstrate that in the child’s adaptation process, the synergy of factors of family and school microsystems is the most desirable. according to conn (2014), goodall (2015), and other authors, children on the as are characterized by the need to act in a clear and predictable environment. our research results show that as the microsystems of the family and school interact in a mesosystem, elements from one microsystem are transferred to the other, thus creating an environment that contains fewer irritants and is more familiar to the child. the actors in the mesosystem have been determined to be able to exchange the goals of their roles to adapt to the child’s needs. the teacher contributes to developing daily life skills, while the mother adds to teaching academic subjects. this interaction creates an expanded education environment and helps spot the most favorable moments for the formation of specific abilities under the circumstances of a natural social interaction. thus, the child’s adaptation mechanisms are naturally activated. the mesosystem functioning on the grounds of family and school microsystems is expanded by means of the internalized specialist microsystem. when acting together, the actors of individual microsystems exchange information, make joint decisions, and create a unified adaptation tool system for a child. charman et al. (2011) and lindsay, proulx, thomson, and scott (2013) believe that when making efficient decisions in the context of the child’s education, information exchange between the family and the specialists plays a particularly important role, since perceiving the child’s needs and abilities becomes crucial in the process of adaptation and involvement in community activities. it is particularly important to understand the functions of the child’s specific behavior and eliminate obstacles for his or her adaptive behavior. most teachers acknowledge that they find it difficult to understand and control the behaviors of children on the as (lindsay et al., 2013). research results demonstrate that in the mesosystem determining the development of adaptation tools, specialists convey elements of programs aimed at the education of children on the as to their teachers and parents, thus broadening the portfolio of education methods the teachers and parents use and help build an adaptable education environment. the research results show environmental adaptivity to be a highly important condition in the process of the family’s planning of their child’s education and deciding on its goals. the parents who put more emphasis on the education goals relevant to the present moment choose mesosystems where the factors of the specialist microsystem prevail, and they expect specific adaptation tools to be developed. the parents who more greatly underscore the perspective of their child’s adaptation in open society choose the mesosystems that include adaptive education system factors encouraging the use of adaptation tools in changing social conditions. goodall (2015) and hamlin (2016) believe that in all cases, the center of the planning of the educational environment is a friendly physical and social environment that reduces the child’s stress and suggests possibilities for facilitating adaptation. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 galkiene, a., & puskoriene, g. (2020). development of adaptation tools for pupils on the autism spectrum in microsystems. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 16 our research results show that in the mesosystem determining the development of adaptation tools for children on the as, important significance falls on the interaction with the peer microsystem. kasari, rotheram-fuller, locke, and gulsrud (2012), locke et al. (2015), reichow and volkmar (2010), and huber and carter (2019) confirmed that regularly developing peers become social behavior models for those on the as, which are more efficient than pedagogical means directly applied by the adults. the research results reveal that the involvement of a child on the as in his or her peer mesosystem encourages his or her initiative in building interpersonal relationships. the process develops gradually, moving from stage to stage. in the first stage, the child, by participating in the peer microsystem, passively observes the activity of other children and attempts to copy or imitate this behavior without establishing interpersonal relationships. in the second stage, observation and attempts to align one’s own activities to those of other peers determines interest in interpersonal relationships, which may be expressed in the aspiration to have a friend. when moving on to the third adaptation stage, the participation of other children is important. this participation encourages the child on the as to begin to communicate and play together. these relationships gradually grow into the fourth stage, namely, friendship and curiosity in the peers’ interests and expectations. as the relationships evolve successfully, the shift to the fifth stage takes place. empathy emerges, with its first manifestations evident in willingness to bring joy and pleasure to others. in this process, assistance and support on behalf of the adults is crucial. however, the most important condition for adaptation tools is to develop a safe peer microsystem in which the child on the as can act. ensuring a safe environment among peers is the fundamental task for pedagogues and specialists, as the results of many studies show that lack of social skills and strategies for coping with stress in these children might become grounds for bullying. children on the as become victims of bullying several times more often than other pupils (conn, 2014; goodall, 2015). one of the signs of successful adaptation to acquiring social skills is joint games of children on the as and their peers (wolfberg, dewitt, young, & nguyen, 2015). conclusion and implications summarizing the results of the research, it can be maintained that the mesosystem determining the development of adaptation tools of child on the as encompasses various combinations of microsystems, the synergy of the factors of which creates conditions for the child’s gradual move from one microsystem to another, understanding its functioning mechanisms and adapting within it. it has been established that at a social break-through point, as the child adapts to the school, the closest interaction takes place between the microsystems of family and school. this interaction builds a favorable environment for the child’s adaptation, and the development of their adaptation tools takes place. the specialist microsystem affects mainly the child’s development of adaptation tools and creates flexible links with the family and school microsystems. the peer microsystem has indirect interaction with the family and school microsystems. in the process of the child’s acquisition of adaptation tools important for independent functioning in society, the peer microsystem takes particular significance. within it, the child’s independent initiative slowly unfolds, as well as the ability to create and maintain research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 galkiene, a., & puskoriene, g. (2020). development of adaptation tools for pupils on the autism spectrum in microsystems. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 17 interpersonal relationships. the child becomes involved in that microsystem through the use of a set of adaptation instruments acquired in the mesosystem of family and school: daily life skills, emotion control skills, and perception of meaning and possibilities. the factors that make part of the specialist microsystem are aimed at the process of overcoming autism-driven obstacles. a successful mesosystem determining the development of adaptation tools, creating safe conditions for gradual development of adaptation tools, might be an important precondition for the successful functioning of a person with asd in society at the stage of adult life. the limitations of this research lie in the fact that the participant group includes only mothers and teachers. to achieve more in-depth insights on the issue of the adaptation of persons on the as, it might be worthwhile to examine the impact of the synergies between the family of the child on the as and his or her class as a mesosystem (sheridan & mccurdy, 2005) and the child on the as and his or her friends (conn, 2014) in the process of adaptation. the second shortcoming is the fact that mothers are the sole representatives of the families. the involvement of fathers and siblings in research on this topic would reveal deeper adaptation processes. implications the results require deeper scientific research into the didactic issues of adaptation tools that will facilitate the processes of adaptation in society for children on the as. the issue of adaptation of these children in an inclusive education system is of particular relevance. a deeper understanding of the educational specificities of these children is an important precondition for their welfare. references ashwood, k. l., tye, c., azadi, b., cartwright, s., asherson, p., & bolton, p. 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(2005). ecological variables in school-based assessment and intervention planning. assessment for intervention: a problem solving approach, 43– 65. https://www.psychopen.eu/fileadmin/user_upload/books/mayring/ssoar-2014-mayring-qualitative_content_analysis_theoretical_foundation.pdf https://www.psychopen.eu/fileadmin/user_upload/books/mayring/ssoar-2014-mayring-qualitative_content_analysis_theoretical_foundation.pdf research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 galkiene, a., & puskoriene, g. (2020). development of adaptation tools for pupils on the autism spectrum in microsystems. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 21 stampoltzis, a., defingou, g., antonopoulou, k., kouvava, s., & polychronopoulou, s. (2014). psycho-social characteristics of children and adolescents with siblings on the autistic spectrum. european journal of special needs education, 29(4), 474–490. steinbrenner, j. r., & watson, l. r. (2015). student engagement in the classroom: the impact of classroom, teacher, and student factors. journal of autism and developmental disorders, 45(8), 2392–2410. tender, j. (2009). jūsų vaikui diagnozuotas autizmas – ką daryti toliau? [your child has autism – what’s next: a book to help parent make decisions]. klaipėda: kitoks vaikas. vygotsky, l. s. (1991). воображение и творчество в детском возрасте [imagination and creativity in childhood]. moscow: просвещение. wallace, g. l., case, l. k., harms, m. b., silvers, j. a., kenworthy, l., & martin, a. (2011). diminished sensitivity to sad facial expressions in high functioning autism spectrum disorders is associated with symptomatology and adaptive functioning. journal of autism and developmental disorders, 41(11), 1475–1486. williams, d. l., mazefsky, c. a., walker, j. d., minshew, n. j., & goldstein, g. (2014). associations between conceptual reasoning, problem solving, and adaptive ability in high-functioning autism. journal of autism and developmental disorders, 44(11), 2908– 2920. wolfberg, p., dewitt, m., young, g. s., & nguyen, t. (2015). integrated play groups: promoting symbolic play and social engagement with typical peers in children with asd across settings. journal of autism and developmental disorders, 45(3), 830–845. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) e-issn: 2468-6891 73 polysemy in and of the science fiction film arrival (2016) fenty kusumastuti1 abstract polysemy has always become a significant issue in interdisciplinary studies, mainly because particular words or phrases tend to have multiple meanings and the way to decide on the intended meanings involves cultural understanding that may be problematic for different groups of people. this paper divides the main research questions into two inquiries: (1) what is the meaning of the micro-unit polysemy in the science fiction film arrival (2016)? and (2) what is the interpretation of the macro-level of polysemy in the film? the purpose of this research is to describe the interrelation between the polysemy in the film and the polysemy of the film. it is assumed that revealing the phenomena of polysemy found in the film helps to construct a better comprehension of the objective of the polysemy of the film. this has been done by implementing two stages of procedures in this research: (1) identifying the translation of the most significant polysemous words, phrases, clauses, and sentences found in the film by using meaning patterns and contextual patterns (schmidt, 2008) and (2) discovering the three potential themes of polysemy of the film that include resistive reading, strategic ambiguity, and hermeneutic depth (ceccarelli, 1998). the analysis shows that examining the phenomena of cognitive linguistic meanings from the 30 micro-unit polysemy to the rhetorical criticism of the polysemous text opens up multiple interpretive possibilities that may go unnoticed. key words: polysemy; translation; science fiction film; cognitive linguistic meanings; rhetorical criticism introduction polysemy occurs in most parts of our everyday lives without our awareness because we tend to use the same expressions in order to communicate our different intended meanings. fauconnier and turner particularly mention that the human’s conceptual system is much higher than our linguistic system, accordingly, no matter what language we are speaking, the vocabularies and grammatical concepts are not enough to support our abundant yet complicated ways of thinking 1 fenty kusumastuti, fu jen catholic university, fentykusumastuti@staff.uns.ac.id mailto:fentykusumastuti@staff.uns.ac.id research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 73-91 (fauconnier & turner, 2003). therefore, it is never easy to reveal the meanings of specific texts from one culture and to determine the equivalence to another culture (lafer & tarman, 2019; tarman & kilinc, 2018) because “a word acquires meaning through its context and can produce varying responses according to culture” (nida, 1964). any translation activities need various considerations such as recognizing the context of situations or the cultural aspects of both the source language (sl) and target language (tl) text, and it is included but not limited to the translation of polysemy. therefore, some concerns must be made, and these possibilities that may occur in the translator’s mind are seen through the phenomena of polysemy as shown in the science-fiction film arrival (2016); while polysemy of the film reveals how arrival as a text may have multiple interpretations, depending on who initiates it. this paper argues that polysemy as seen from different points of view –in and of– a text, in this case a film, shouldn’t be used as if it had a single universal meaning nor a tool for liberation, but more of a way to create a flow pattern that gives power to the text from the inside to outside. the film narrates the appearance of aliens in 12 different countries in the world. one of the locations visited was montana, united states. in this setting, a linguist and a translator, dr. louise banks along with a physicist, ian donnelly are hired by colonel weber, from the u.s. army intelligence, to question the aliens’ intention of coming to earth. during the mission, louise, ian, the u.s. army intelligence, and other experts from different nations must work together by studying the heptapods’ language and teaching them ‘human’ language in order to achieve effective communication. however, many difficulties occur during the operation because they are coming from different academic disciplines and political regimes, which means having different points of view and do not speak the same ‘language’ to each other. moreover, the minimal time and high pressure from the public media, society, and their commanders develop the tension throughout the film, and because other nations start to see these aliens as a threat, they must race against time to avoid a global war that might explode any time. arrival’s characteristics of extraordinary science-fiction film with its “estrangement and cognition” attracts attention to challenge it with the “empirical environment” of the present-day society (freedman, 2000; suvin, 1979). the coming of the aliens in the middle of the neighborhood was an example when the estrangement occurred in the film. as in most sci-fi films that aliens usually represent the otherness of our real world, the aliens in arrival may also bring different interpretations to the audience about their sociocultural phenomena. not only showing empathy to kusumastuti the alienation, but this film also makes us understand the situation and try to figure out the way to solve the problem as soon as we know how to communicate effectively with them. moreover, the sociocultural environment of the film production is associated with the specific communicative function, which in this point of view is as seen from the perspective of polysemy, and somehow the multi-meanings are reflected through the rhetorical criticism of the film. in short, the sci-fi film arrival is about a linguist who is assigned to translate the language of the aliens, and therefore by using this film, the study of polysemy and translation will profoundly be fully presented. a theme of a film is generally built from a set of the audience’s understanding that may involve the audiovisual stimulation, characterizations, plot, and the linguistic choices of the scenarios. several micro linguistic units conveyed from a film must contain essential messages that initiate a thorough examination of translation analysis. the translation analysis that involves the elaboration of the thematic functions of each linguistic unit shapes the substantial theme of polysemy of the film. this research proposes that both phenomena of polysemy found as the minor linguistic element in the film and as the major theme of the film shows a mutual correspondence from either way. first, having the idea of the role of polysemy in the film may bring consideration in translating the polysemous words, phrases, and sentences; and second, analyzing the multimeanings helps the understanding of an entire purpose of polysemy issue as the central theme of the film. the main research questions of this paper are divided into two inquiries: (1) what is the meaning of the micro-unit polysemy in the science fiction film arrival (2016)? also, (2) what is the interpretation of the macro-level of polysemy in the film? the purpose of this research is to describe the interrelation between the polysemy in the film and the polysemy of the film. polysemy in translation polysemy is believed to be a significant issue in translation, in principle, because the linguistic expression does not only represent meanings but more prompts for meanings (fauconnier & turner, 2003). polysemy as the most unrecognizable phenomenon occurs in every aspect of human life helps to create a whole perception in life because the understanding polysemy is considered as an activity of constructing the conceptual integration networks. moreover, “the study of polysemy can help translator, by giving them certain guidelines, as to how to think about words, and how to make use of the context to resolve the ambiguity of polysemous words” (schmidt, 2008). thus, not only in the domain of translation studies, polysemy happens to be a research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 73-91 part of our linguistic system that is hiding behind our ignorance of the conceptual system. in order to examine polysemy from the cognitive linguistics perspective, schmidt introduced two significant ways of meaning patterns and contextual patterns as a result of combining taylor’s cognitive models of polysemy and fauconnier and turner’s conceptual blending (fauconnier & turner, taylor). before understanding the context of a word, we first have to establish the readings of the word, employing the meaning patterns as the network of senses that are represented by dictionary entries. after the meaning patterns, the second important factor is the contextual patterns in which the word is embedded, for example, by examining the context of discourse. selecting the right sense of meanings must recognize and adjust specific correlations between both patterns respectfully. the phrase “offer weapon” is one example of polysemy found in the film. it occurs in the climax of the film because it answers the most critical question regarding the purpose of the aliens coming to earth. the misinterpretation of this polysemy may lead to a global war between the aliens who landed the 12 different places on earth and the human beings led by general shang. the interpreter of these two different cultures, dr. louise banks, analyzes the possible meanings of the phrase. she is aware that even though the aliens have learned the human language, they are still not sure if the aliens genuinely understand the difference between a weapon and a tool. human language is as messy as their culture, one word may express more than one idea, which sometimes is not parallel to the meaning but contrasted to the original meaning. from her explanation, it is inferred that she is referring to polysemy because seeking the meanings through the context is essential and that when translating polysemy, the translator must focus on the meaning patterns of the language and the cultural issue of its surroundings. thus, it corresponds directly to schmidt’s theory in selecting the right sense of polysemy in translation: meaning patterns and contextual patterns. nevertheless, this paper would also analyze the interrelation of the translation of polysemy to polysemy as the main focus of the film. some studies on polysemy in films have been conducted in many years by different scholars. one of the most noteworthy researches is the investigation of polysemy in a science fiction text conducted by delany in 1979 quoted by rieder in 2010. in his writing, delany pointed to a polysemous sentence “he turned on his left side” that has two interpretations: (1) of whether the man changed his position to the left side of his body, or (2) if the man actually is an ai that activated the left body by turning on a switch. according to delany, kusumastuti “it depends upon the reader’s familiarity with the use of science fiction conventions, both meanings use different senses that actively shape their understanding of the world depicted in the text concerning the empirical environment and the generally constructed world” (delany, 1979; rieder, 2010). the result of his study concludes that the different versions of understanding a single polysemous sentence may appear due to the different backgrounds of knowledge and different sociocultural environment that shape the audience. thus, any new meanings closest to the science fiction text values are worth considering. polysemy of a text not only examining the polysemy in translation that is investigated from a cognitive linguistics perspective, but this paper would also analyze a text that is essential to study polysemy as a unity. the film may open up possibilities for multiple interpretations, and the potential assumptions that lead to different categories depend on the purpose of representing the polysemy of a film (ceccarelli, 1998). the first category is a “resistive reading” that focuses the multiple meanings from the dominant control of the author as an addition to the power of the audience. the second type is the “strategic ambiguity” that is likely to be planned by the author to show two different interpretations from two conflicting groups of audience or readers. finally, the third one is the “hermeneutic depth” that freely offers a new expanded way to the audience to accept the multiplicity of meanings to fully appreciate the text’s more profound significance (ceccarelli, 1998). investigating which type of polysemy is in the sci-fi film arrival (2016) may need an indepth analysis on how the thematic functions of translating several key elements may influence the message that is carried out in the film. in other words, the polysemy of a film may be reflected by how it is treated and manifested in the film. many articles discuss the film from different perspectives. most of the articles agree that the science-fiction film arrival (2016) mainly focuses on language and communication. derry suggests that language and communication used in the film show the colonialism among human communities, while carruthers talks about human reproduction ethics and quality of life through the narrative of the chronological time (carruthers, 2017; derry, 2016). nevertheless, none of them discusses the relationship between language, communication, and translation in particular. lucking states about how the language perceives time, that context comprehends meaning, and research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 73-91 also brings about the communication issues, but does not interrelate these three terms (lucking, 2017). similarly, narrating the plot is parallel with reviewing the message of the film, and as for both derry and lucking, the film’s theme is mostly related to communication issues.the various interpretations over the sci-fi film arrival (2016) indicate that polysemy becomes part of this film. therefore, there must be an interrelation between the languages used in the film, represented by the polysemy, and the translation strategies, of the polysemy, done by the main character of the film. polysemy occurs in most science fiction films with its alienation because the films want to challenge the audience’ multiple perspectives over the film. not only is polysemy on the language used, many science fiction films present non-human creatures such as aliens, zombies, artificial intelligence or robots in their stories in order to get the audience’ attention to reflect their present society with the fictional narratives in the film. the aliens, robots or ai, and zombies “are a basic presence integral to the process of examining humanity” (sardar & cubitt, 2002). in other words, aliens in this sci-fi film are used to represent differences and otherness in order to examine humanity: of what it is to be human. ted chiang, the author of story of your life, the story of where the film is adapted from also supports the statement by saying that “science fiction is very well suited to asking philosophical questions: questions about the nature of reality, what it means to be human, how do we know the things that we think we know” (chiang, 1998). it shows that this science-fiction film arrival (2016) could be the best film to ask questions about the nature of language in social contexts. for this reason, this paper adequately describes the interrelation between the translation of polysemy in the science-fiction film arrival (2016) to reveal the cultural and ideological environment of the film. accurately, this paper answers the research questions of (1) what is the meaning of the micro-unit polysemy in the science fiction film arrival (2016)? moreover, (2) what is the interpretation of the macro-level of polysemy in the film? by countering the two research questions, this paper may provide a complete overview of how polysemy in the film contributes to the vital theme of the film and how the message of the film influences the different meanings of polysemy as illustrated in the film. kusumastuti method research design the research is using a qualitative method because this paper aims for a complete, detailed description of observation, including the explanation on the context of events and how to connect them with the data collected to answer the research questions (miles & huberman, 1994). not only the dialogues in the film, but also the cinematic output, including the sound effects, background music, motion pictures, camera angles, and other filmic details belong to the primary research data. meanwhile, the most significant component of data is the polysemous words, phrases, clauses, and sentences that are selected from the spoken dialogues, monologues, and narrations during the film. the selection process was made based on the urgency of the appearance of the polysemy: whether they are explicitly explained in the film; implied during the film; or left unexplained in the film. data collection tools in this study, the researcher is the data gathering instrument because the subject of the analysis is a film. the primary source of the research data is the science fiction film arrival (2016) and supported by the intertextual texts surround the film, such as the materials supplied by the directors, producers, or reporters and film reviewers as supplementary resources or promotion media in newspapers or articles discussing their interpretation about the film. data collection the researcher applied specific procedures in examining the polysemy found in the film. the most necessary procedure is to identify the polysemous words and phrases by using schmidt’s cognitive-linguistic (schmidt, 2008). it involves the dictionary used as a means to recognize the meaning patterns. it is crucial to validate whether the words and phrases are polysemy because if the meanings found in the dictionary are not related to each other, the next procedure must be applied to make sure the relevance of the other new meanings to the context of the situation. in order to grasp the contextual patterns, understanding the film is considered to be the best way to objectively interpret the cultural setting because particular words or phrases might be used as the means to different intended meanings. besides, it also depends on the context of the situation, research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 73-91 wherein the film, there are many ways to interpret it, such as the setting, the camera angles, the lighting, or the background. data analysis after analyzing the polysemy from a linguistic perspective, they are investigated through the three categories of rhetorical criticism to select the possible meanings for the film’s polysemy. studying the possibilities of “resistive reading” was carried out by investigating dvd bonuses, film commentaries, or reviews to explore whether the audience has different interpretations than the producers or directors over the film. meanwhile, the “strategic ambiguity” was inspected by studying the film explanations, film critics and articles written in mass media to see any different groups of readers converging in assessing the film as intended by the filmmakers. the “hermeneutic depth," on the other hand, was also investigated through film critics and audience reception, but must be proven that there are no forced interpretations from neither points of view and “accept the multiplicity of meanings to fully appreciate the film’s deeper significance” (ceccarelli, 1998). findings what is the meaning of the micro-unit polysemy in the science fiction film arrival (2016)? in order to answer the first research question on the interpretation of meanings, the microunit of polysemy must be determined and examined thoroughly. these are the findings and the analysis of the research that is divided into different parts, signified by the 30 findings of polysemy in the film as seen from table 1 below. table 1 polysemy in the science fiction film “arrival” (2016) explicitly explained implied unexplained 12 vessels channel alpha arrival foundation of civilization translation crackdown aliens kusumastuti non-linear war parrot human kangaroo approach the big domino offer weapon handshake to gain ground math problems everybody dies booster risk kick strong cocktail copy steer clear over vitals made a quick work of those insurgents these 30 examples of polysemy belong to different categories based on the appearance in the film. five polysemy are explicitly explained throughout the film, and most of the polysemy is implied, 22 of them, and the rests, only 3 remained unexplained but played a significant role in determining the meaning of polysemy in film. however, from all the 30 polysemy, five critical examples of war; kangaroo; make a quick work of the insurgents; offer weapon; and arrival was chosen randomly to explain the phenomena of polysemy, both from the micro unit and the macro unit as the theme of the film. these key examples indicate the phenomena of polysemy in the sci-fi film as it is discussed or intentionally exposed by the author of the film in order to mirror the alienation. thus, through the evaluation of the polysemy and the strategies of translating the polysemy, this analysis leads to the revealing interrelation between the polysemy in and of the film. war: an argument or a desire for more cows? the first finding is the word "war". it is mentioned by louise when she talked to colonel weber in their first meeting. colonel weber showed her a recorder device of the aliens’ voice to ask about the script translation, and louise wanted to interact with the aliens herself because it is impossible to translate from an audio file, but colonel weber did not trust her. next, he was going to ask professor danvers in berkeley for a second opinion. that was when louise asked colonel weber to demand the sanskrit word and the translation for the word war to professor danvers as it is seen in figure 1. this telling question becomes a test for professor danvers because his answer will research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 73-91 influence colonel weber’s decision. in the very early morning, colonel weber came back to louise with professor danvers’ answers. he said that the sanskrit word for war is "gavisti," and he says it means “an argument” (figure 2). colonel weber asked louise back, “what do you say it means?” louise answered, “a desire for more cows” (figure 3). the film does not precisely explain the reason why colonel weber considers louise’s translation to be much better than professor danvers nor how louise’s considerations in putting the different meanings of the word "war". she only gives a sign that she knows how professor danvers will answer the question and that her approach is close to colonel weber’s need. figure 1. sanskrit word for “war” figure 2. “gavisti." figure 3. “a desire for more cows." the scene above tells us the meanings elaborated from two different points of view: on the one hand, it may refer to an argument as stated by professor danvers, and this is the literal meaning of the word "war." on the other hand, louise approaches the translation by using the context of the word origin, and it shows her deep linguistics proficiency and her openness for the learning process to restore communication issues among humans and aliens. the context of the situation in the film is described as chaotic and can be at any second move to war. as a us army leader, kusumastuti colonel weber has the concern to keep the situation in hand and to avoid as many confrontations as possible, thus having other ideas besides argument. her interpretation may not be too direct nor too literal because of the aliens’ estranged atmosphere that may influence the way she approaches the translation, yet it shows that she will try to interact with them in order to understand their culture and their way of thinking, and the most important thing is to keep the world in peace. kangaroo: a hop around animal with a pouch or i don’t understand? the next polysemy is "kangaroo". the scene took place in the middle of their mission when colonel weber doubted louise’s approach to the heptapods’ language. she is teaching them how to speak and read in the english language, which, according to colonel weber, will take a longer time. louise then told him the kangaroo story about captain james cook when he set to australia in 1770 and met the aboriginal people. he asked about the animals hopping around with pouches and asked the aborigines “what are they?” and they replied “kangaroo” and so we call these animals kangaroos to this day (figure 4). recently, when we finally fully understand their language, we find out that kangaroo means “i don’t understand” (figure 5). from this story, we realize that louise does not want to take irresponsible acts by misinterpreting the heptapods’ language, and this approach is the best and fastest way to reach the message of translation. the polysemy kangaroo refers to two different references: the animal as the concrete object and “i don’t’ understand” as the non-existence general reference. the reference of the extended meaning can be elaborated from the context shared of the original setting, in this case, is the year 1770 aboriginal people in australia. figure 4. kangaroo figure 5. kangaroo means i don’t understand research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 73-91 to make a quick work of the insurgents: translation or massacring? the next phrase is to make a quick work of the insurgents. the act is on the first meeting between louise and colonel weber when he came to ask her translating the heptapods’ language from a voice recorder. he said that louise is on top of everyone’s list when it comes to translation and that she still has the top-secret clearance from her previous work translating farsi language for the u.s. army. he was trying to praise louise by saying, “you made quick work of those insurgent videos” as seen in figure 6. however, louise replied by saying “you made quick work of those insurgents” (figure 7), which lead to different reference: the first quick work refers to the quick translation work of the video done by louise, while the other quick work done by colonel weber must deal with the execution sentence of the u.s. army toward the farsi or persian people. this time, the polysemy involves the verb phrase where the meanings are extended from the original meaning but with different references. figure 6. …those insurgent videos figure 7. …those insurgents offer weapon: use guns or give knowledge? the next phrase of polysemy is "offer weapon". the phrase is the most important message from the film because it happens during the climax, the answer from the heptapods when louise was asking the question “what is your purpose of coming to earth?” (figure 8). kusumastuti figure 8. what is your purpose? figure 9. confuse figure 10. offer weapon the phrase offer weapon is discussed further in the film, and this is when louise revealed language as a cultural issue. she says, “we don't know if they understand the difference between a weapon and a tool. our language, like our culture, is messy, and sometimes, one can be both. and it is quite possible that they are asking us to offer them something, not the other way around.” from her explanation, we get the sense that as a translator, louise is trying to apply the translation strategy when she is dealing with the polysemous phrase of “offer weapon”. she cannot ignore the possibility of any cultural issues that may influence the meaning of the language. the word weapon may refer to a tool or harmless instrument that might be needed by the heptapods. meanwhile, the word "offer" may refer to the opposite of it, meaning they are asking us to offer them something rather than they indeed present us something. however, a series of louise’s approaches to the translation is done by entering the shell once again to the confirmation and giving empathy to abbot. they finally get the idea that the heptapods are trying to tell them that they need to assemble with the other 11 sites in order to comprehend their knowledge. approaching louise’s strategies in translating this polysemy suggests that a translator must be research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 73-91 open-minded to any possibilities that may influence the interpretation because it cannot be seen only from one but of many perspectives. arrival: coming or born? the crucial last example is the title, arrival. it is already stated at the beginning of the paper that the title attracts the attention the most due to its ambiguity and it is so called polysemy because it is assumed to have more than one meaning with an extended relationship among the notions. as a title, the polysemy must carry the essential elements that cover the whole message of the film and how the translation strategies illustrated in the film lead the audience to perceive the theme. the first assumption refers to the most obvious one: the aliens’ or the heptapods’ coming to earth. the proofs can be from louise and colonel weber when they say "they arrive”. louise mentions it in the very beginning of the film right after the scenes of her glimpses of the future, where many mass media reports on the aliens. she says "i believe in beginnings and endings. there are days that define your story beyond your life. like the day they arrived.” reading the script without watching the film may give a different interpretation, but when we observe the film, we understand the word "they" in the clause "the day they arrived" is closely related to the heptapods. figures 11 and 12 tell us that many people are interested in the coming of the heptapods but louise. the scenes show that it may not be the arrival of the aliens that become the center of the attention in the film. figure 11. like the day they arrived figure 12. indifferent kusumastuti figure 13. where is everyone? figure 14. the news in class moreover, the utterance “they arrive” is said by colonel weber on the first day louise and ian come to the shell to interact with the heptapods for the first time. when they all are ready inside the shell, and nothing happens for a while, louise asks colonel weber “what happens now?” and he replies "they arrive” and that is just before the aliens show up on the barrier. thus, we believe that the polysemy “they arrive” as spoken by louise and colonel weber in these two different contexts refers to the arrival of the aliens. figure 15. alpha’s now in the nave. figure 16. they arrive. on the other hand, the title arrival does not technically appear in the first part before the film is about to start nor at the beginning of the film but only at the end of the film. the film ends with louise and ian dancing in the house, and ian is asking her "do you want to make a baby?” this question ends the film, and the title is the first and last time ever appeared on the screen. thus we may also infer that the title arrival refers to the arrival of the daughter, hannah, or their new family, together with ian and the upcoming daughter, hannah. the polysemy of the verb arrival has two different references because it appears in different contexts: at the beginning of the film to indicate the arrival of the aliens and at the end of the film conclude the resolution of the film that leads to a happy ending or a new hope. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 73-91 figure 17. you wanna make a baby? figure 18. arrival, the title why is polysemy treated and manifested in arrival? after analyzing all 30 polysemy with five key examples and identifying the thematic functions described and shown in the film, the different categories of polysemy in the sci-fi film are tested by three considerations suggested by ceccarelli (1998). they include the “resistive reading” or dominance of the author; the “strategic ambiguity” that imparting the opposed interpretations; and the “hermeneutic depth” or the audience’s freedom to accept the multi interpretations. finally, a complete representation of polysemy in the sci-fi film may be accomplished. the first category that is related to the “resistive reading” shows whether or not the author has a hidden agenda with the film production. in order to investigate this, the sociocultural environment of the film must be revealed. denis villeneuve produces the movie itself and released in the cinema in 2016, a few days after the us election. however, this is an adaptation film taken from a novella story of your life by ted chiang in 1998. thus, the idea must have already been there long before the political moment. however, a few articles discussed the themes of the film from different areas, and one major theme that is explained in most of the research is the communication issues represented by the aliens, the characters, the nations, and the conflicts between them (collocations cross-linguistically : corpora,dictionaries and language teaching, 2016; lucking, 2017). it indicates that there is a possibility of having the contextual factors that shape the film adaptation. the producer must have seen significant ideas that appeared in 1998 so that he decided to modify the short story relevant to a 2016 film. however, “resistive reading” does not occur in this film. kusumastuti the other category of polysemy in the film is “strategic ambiguity” that divides the audience into two opposite sides: the pros and cons. by analyzing the five critical examples of polysemy, it is seen that the meanings or senses of polysemy may refer to almost any referents. however, the two different appreciations do not indicate any conflicts for the audience who interpret the film. nevertheless, the set of polysemy that includes war, kangaroo, make a quick work of the insurgents, offer weapon, and arrival mainly, are not intentionally being used to cause any divergence audience. in the case of war and kangaroo, for example, louise explicitly explained the multi interpretations of the word from different perspectives. the different interpretations open the audience’s mind that people having different opinions is acceptable and that we have to respect their arguments because this numerous diversity that complete us into one. this opinion supports the idea of revealing offer weapon that may not be accomplished without gathering all the information from 12 vessels. the last category of polysemy in the film is “hermeneutic depth”. it happens when the film does not force the only interpretation to the audience but lets the audience decide and embrace the different empathetic by themselves. the context of a war that is initiated at the beginning of the film does not explain to us the reason why colonel weber chose louise instead of professor danvers, but we can infer it from her intelligence and open-minded attitude to different points of view. in the case of "make a quick work of the insurgents" for instance, it is more sort of new information for us rather than to make us choose between the others. it is because the reason why colonel weber conducted the massacre was based on louise’ prompt action on the farsi translation, thus it is not entirely colonel weber’s responsibility but because it is more like a duty that must be executed quickly. the most intriguing phrase is offered weapon because it becomes the climax of the conflict, but the audience is led to take sides on louise’s interpretation than that of the contrary because general shang may bring the nation into a world war, something preventable in the name of humanity. moreover, louise’s actions in demonstrating the evidence seem to be more reasonable that it could save people’s lives than destroying human nature, which is more of a contrast to the audience’s expectation. however, the heroic actions of louise when she interpreted offer weapon do not merely make the audience agree with her choice all the time because one of "arrival"s meanings is related to her daughter’s birth and the aliens’ arrival. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 73-91 discussion, conclusion and implications to answer the first research question about the phenomena of the polysemy found the film, the elaboration of the multiple possible meanings could be found by interpreting the narrative of the film as seen through the dialogues, the gestures, and the scenes. the findings show that there are 30 polysemy found in the film with five critical examples of war, kangaroo, to make a quick work of the insurgents, offer weapon, and arrival presented in the analysis. the least number of meanings are two for each datum, while the most number of possible meanings can reach up to more than five different interpretations. from all the 30 polysemy, five polysemy are explicitly explained throughout the film, including kangaroo and offer weapon, while the most numbers of 22 polysemy are implied in the film, such as war and to make quick work of the insurgents, and the rest, 3 of them, is never mentioned in the film, such as the title arrival. meanwhile, to answer the second research question related to the reasons for manifesting polysemy in the film depends on the emergence of the polysemy. this paper has shown that the different senses or meanings in polysemy influence the translator’s decision in translating the polysemy. however, there are significant ways of making the inferences of the set of the presented polysemy developed in the film’s message. from the three types that this sci-fi film may be categorized, the hermeneutic depth is the most general nature for this polysemy. similar to its category of film, science fiction presenting alien as the main forces, arrival (2016) is trying to open any interpretation for the audience to consider the alienation’s references. however, by recognizing the phenomena of polysemy in a particular film, the confusion of misreading or misunderstanding the polysemic text or film might be reduced. it is also realized that polysemy is not always related to power relations from the author to the audience, or specific political discourse. in this case, polysemy in the science fiction film arrival (2016) has its way to reach the audience, which is by recognizing the multiple possibilities that at the end the audience can finally truly appreciate the message of the film. references carruthers, a. (2017). temporality, reproduction and the’not-yet' in arrival (villeneuve, 2016). paper presented at the film-philosophy conference 2017. ceccarelli, l. (1998). polysemy: multiple meanings in rhetorical criticism. quarterly journal of speech, vol. 84(4), 395-415. kusumastuti chiang, t. (1998). story of your life. stories of your life and others, 117-178. collocations cross-linguistically: corpora, dictionaries and language teaching. (2016). helsinki: societe neophilologique. delany, s. r. (1979). science fiction and ‘literature’—or, the conscience of the king. starboard wine: more notes on the language of science fiction, 81-100. derry, k. (2016). arrival. journal of religion & film, vol. 20(3), 15. fauconnier, g., & turner, m. (2003). polysemy and conceptual blending. trends in linguistics studies and monographs, 142, 79-94. freedman, c. (2000). critical theory and science fiction: wesleyan university press. haiman, j., & song, j. j. (2010). the oxford handbook of linguistic typology. lafer, s., & tarman, b. (2019). editorial 2019: (2)1, special issue. journal of culture and values in education, 2(1), i-v. retrieved from http://cultureandvalues.org/index.php/jcv/article/view/34 lucking, d. i. c. (2017). enacting chronology. language and time in chiang’s “story of your life” and villeneuve’s “arrival”. lingue e linguaggi, vol. 21, 129-143. miles, m. b., huberman, a. m., huberman, m. a., & huberman, m. (1994). qualitative data analysis: an expanded sourcebook. sage. nida, e. a. (1964). toward a science of translating: with special reference to principles and procedures involved in bible translating: brill archive. rieder, j. (2010). on defining sf, or not: genre theory, sf, and history. science fiction studies, 191-209. sardar, z., & cubitt, s. (2002). aliens r us: the other in science fiction cinema. pluto press. schmidt, g. (2008). polysemy in translation-selecting the right sense istraživanja, izazovi i promjene u teoriji i praksi prevođenja. explorations, challenges and changes in translation theory and practice. theorie und praxis des übersetzens: alte fragen und neue antworten: sveučilište josipa jurja strossmayera u osijeku, filozofski fakultet. suvin, d. (1979). metamorphoses of science fiction: on the poetics and history of a literary genre. yale university press. tarman, b., & kılınç, e. (2018). poetry in the social studies textbooks in turkey. journal of culture and values in education, 1(1), 50-62. retrieved from http://cultureandvalues.org/index.php/jcv/article/view/4 http://cultureandvalues.org/index.php/jcv/article/view/34 http://cultureandvalues.org/index.php/jcv/article/view/4 research in social sciences and technology (ressat) e-issn: 2468-6891 30 fatal encounters: a content analysis of newspaper depictions of the deaths of unarmed people of color at the hands of law enforcement or security personnel deanna jacobsen koepke 1, david a. thomas2, & alexis manning3 abstract research has been conducted for several decades on the framing of stories in the media. this study furthers that field by analyzing the way newspaper articles report on the deaths of unarmed people of color at the hands of law enforcement and security personnel between 1999 and 2017 to determine if local and national print media frame these stories using similar terminology and concepts. tabular and graphical analysis from the leximancer program, as well as statistical analysis (chi-square, p 0.0001), all demonstrate that local and national newspapers do not use similar terminology and concepts when presenting these stories. therefore, the null hypothesis is rejected. key words: print media, framing, law enforcement, deaths, leximancer introduction trayvon martin, philando castile, alton sterling, and freddie gray were all unarmed people of color who lost their lives after an interaction with law enforcement or security personnel. they are also names most of the public learned due to the extensive media coverage their situations received. one might consider these occurrences to be the kind of thing about which only a local audience would care. however, as vakili (2016) writes, national media cover local events when they believe it is either interesting or important to a national audience. because many people in the us have formed opinions on these and similar cases based in part on the way that the media have portrayed them, the authors of this study wanted to know what that media coverage looked like. they also wondered if there were differences in the ways these stories were presented to the public based on the proximity of the newspaper to the story. the authors agree with vakili (2016) when he says that while newspapers are no longer the primary vehicle for news delivery that they 1 assistant professor of sociology, university of providence, deanna.koepke@uprovidence.edu 2 professor of mathematics, university of providence, dave.thomas@uprovidence.edu 3undergraduate student, university of providence, alexis.retterath@uprovidence.edu research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 30-50 once were, they continue to play an important role in the distribution of information. not only do they distribute this information, but they also put a frame around it, potentially influencing audience reaction. formally our research question is, “do local and national newspaper articles frame reports of deaths of unarmed people of color at the hands of law enforcement or security personnel using similar terminology and concepts?” literature review framing is commonly understood as the ways that material can be presented to suggest how the audience should understand it (jacobsen koepke, 2009). entman (2005) tells us that some aspects of a story are highlighted while others are downplayed to drive a certain interpretation of the story. meyers (2004) reminds us that facts do not have inherent meaning. meaning is acquired as the facts are organized into stories. this organization can be done via the media, and it shapes society and how those within the society understand events (lee & solomon, 1990). further, framing has been demonstrated to influence public opinion (iyengar & simon, 1993). many people in the u.s. have traditionally trusted and believed that which is reported in newspapers (gitlin, 2003). even though one regularly hears the accusation of “fake news”, this is usually directed at social media and online sources. for example, in hunt’s (2016) article, she addresses many aspects of “fake news”, all of which are attributed to reddit, 4chan, twitter, online message boards, facebook and “the social web”. in fact, she clearly contrasts these outlets with such traditional newspapers as the new york times and the washington post. thus, the trust that many in the us have for mass media allows us to continue to believe they are socially responsible and report the facts objectively (ehrlich, 2005). we regularly assume they have more insight into the matters being reported than our experiences give us (lee & solomon, 1990), and this leaves us open to the interpretations of those who write and present the stories. most people have an inherent understanding that not all the news can be reported. thus, they further trust that the topics presented by the media are appropriately important and the facts were chosen with care. newspapers have been known to criticize various sides of issues to maintain the impression that the reporting is fair and objective (jacobsen koepke, 2009). yet the very telling of a story by a person means this is not possible (vakili, 2016). humans bring bias with koepke, thomas, & manning them, and this bias can be seen in the decisions made about which details will be included in a story and which will be excluded in an effort to keep the audience interested, suggesting how the information should be interpreted (jacobsen koepke, 2009). stories are hung on a “peg” (gitlin, 2003), or placed in a context that readers will understand. thus, very complex information may be simplified (gitlin, 2003), leading to additional shaping of opinions due to a lack of exposure to the full depth and breadth of an event. pipkins (2017) reports that the media guide many audience members in their understanding of social problems by the very way that they define the problems themselves. as these messages are reinforced over time, the public begins to consider their view to be “common sense” (gitlin, 1979). what is a concern to the present study is the “common sense” view applied to interpretations of the deaths of people of color at the hands of law enforcement and security personnel. van gorp (2007) tells us that frames limit the potential explanations an audience will use to evaluate an event. thus, it is important to understand what frames have been used to understand race and law enforcement to date. mills (2017) reported that as far back as 1962, malcolm x suggested that the media was used by the police to depict black people as criminals. we also tend to see law enforcement and security personnel as warriors or “…soldiers engaged in battle with the criminal element” (sinyangwe, 2015, p. 7). the media has generally been believed to reflect the values of white upper-class society (alexander j. c., 2003). it makes sense that they have long supported the “law and order” narrative in which law enforcement and security personnel are held in high regard as protectors and those who keep their communities safe from crime. news reports that reinforce this “party line” are highly likely to persuade a large portion of their audience (iyengar & simon, 1993). these two “common sense” views intersect in cases when the officers report believing that a person was armed when that was not true, which happens more often when the person was black. cowart, saunders and blackstone (2016) performed a content analysis of the twitter feeds of nine major media outlets for a month following the shooting of michael brown, hypothesizing that more images would fall under the “law and order” classification than any of the other categories they had identified (violence, civil liberties, talking heads, or grieving/coming together). they were unable to support that hypothesis, finding that the “violence” category accounted for more of research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 30-50 the images while “law and order” was a close second in the ranking. interestingly, they also found that most images separated police and protesters rather than depicting them both in the same image, suggesting a narrative of opposing forces and reinforcing our earlier discussion of the depiction of law enforcement personnel ready for conflict, as soldiers or warriors in battle. several researchers have investigated differences in national media coverage and local media coverage of events that can be said to have a racial component. dill and wu (2009) examined front-page newspaper content for the two weeks following hurricane katrina searching for the assignment of blame for suffering and damage. the local papers printed more content about death and injury, with rescue/relief/evacuation matters coming in second. national newspapers primarily printed content dealing with the distress suffered by the displaced residents, crime in the city, and the failure of the government. klahm, papp and rubino (2016) conducted research similar to the present study, performing a content analysis of newspaper articles covering police shootings between january 2014 and april 2015. rather than explicit references to race, they found that the stories were more likely to mention officer misconduct, less likely to mention criminal history, and less likely to mention the possession of a weapon when the suspect was black than when the suspect was white. holody, park and zhang (2013) conducted a study of the framing of race in coverage of the virginia tech shootings. they found that the national newspapers included in the study were more likely than the local newspapers to mention the shooter’s race and to do so in a more prominent way. similarly, vakili (2016) performed a content analysis of the new york times (national) and the baltimore sun (local) and found that although both national and local coverage of the freddie gray situation framed race through negative stereotypes, national articles were more likely to use race as a frame than local articles were. the national articles suggested that his race was the reason for his death while local articles attributed his death to his injuries and, on occasion, his own behavior. to date, research has looked either at a shortened time frame or individual events to compare media coverage of these cases. this study expands both the time frame and number of cases to koepke, thomas, & manning present a more comprehensive picture of this field. additionally, this study analyzes the data and reports on the findings using multiple methods to add robustness to the results. method research design the storehouse of human knowledge and experience is vast, complex, messy, and growing exponentially. to cope with the information explosion, scholars in many knowledge domains rely on sophisticated information technologies to search for and retrieve records and publications pertinent to their research interests. but what is a scholar to do when a search identifies hundreds of documents, any of which might be vital or irrelevant to his/her work? more and more, scholars are turning to automated textual (i.e., content) analysis technologies to achieve what they do not have time to do themselves (thomas, 2014). this study used leximancer, an automated textual analysis technology, to identify and characterize relationships between concepts (e.g., police, shooting, gun) in hundreds of u.s. newspaper articles, a body of work large and complex enough to challenge the most systematic, reliable, and unbiased reader. there are several reasons why a scholar would want an automated system for content analysis of documents (smith & humphreys, 2006). researchers are subject to influences that they are unable to report which may lead to subjectivity in data analysis and the interpretation of findings (nisbett & wilson, 1977). limiting researcher subjectivity often involves extensive investments of time and money to address interrater reliability and other sources of bias. one goal of automated content analysis is to reduce this cost and to allow more rapid and frequent analysis and reanalysis of text. a related goal is to facilitate the analysis of massive document sets and to do so unfettered by a priori assumptions or theoretical frameworks used by the researcher, consciously or unconsciously, as a scaffold for the identification of concepts and themes in the data (zimitat, 2006). since textual analysis technologies operate directly on words (as well as other symbols), a rationale for inducing relationships between words is needed. beeferman, berger, & lafferty (1997) observed that words tend to correlate with other words over a certain range within the text stream. indeed, a word may be defined by its context in usage (leydesdorff & hellsten, 2006). for instance, few north americans would have trouble completing the sentence, “a breakfast food of lightly fried batter disks served with butter and syrup is called a … (pancake).” research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 30-50 this study asked the research question, “do local and national newspaper articles frame reports of deaths of unarmed people of color at the hands of law enforcement or security personnel using similar terminology and concepts?” in addressing this question, a research design was developed that went beyond counting concept occurrences as isolated events to characterizing the strength of co-occurrence relationships between concepts and their respective media sources. data analysis was conducted using three approaches (tabular, graphical, and statistical), each of which provides a different perspective of the relationships between the discovered concepts in the local and national print media. in tabular format, co-occurring concepts are presented as word lists in table columns (see table 1). each column lists the most frequently occurring concepts appearing in articles from the indicated sources. in an informal manner, the lists may be compared and concepts common to both media sources marked. the scope of this analysis is limited to an intuitive awareness of the extent to which the lists resemble one another. table 1 concepts associated with different sources source 1 source 2 concept1 concept21 concept2 concept22 concept3 concept3 concept4 concept23 concept5 concept24 concept6 … concept1 … in graphical format, co-occurring concepts are represented in network spanning trees, or concept maps (see figure 1). in these maps, concepts, individual files, and file folders appear as circular nodes. concepts positioned closely to one another co-occur frequently. concepts more widely separated co-occur less frequently. segments joining nodes identify the most likely co-occurrences associated with those concepts. the same principles apply to the positioning of the file source folders, foldr1_localword and folder1_natlword. the scope of this analysis, while still intuitive in interpretation, employs both bayesian and machine-learning algorithms to depict associations between concepts and sources. in this study, graphical representations like figure 1 koepke, thomas, & manning were used to identify concepts close to the source folders and, therefore, characteristic of the articles in those sources and those which were “in the middle” and, therefore, less indicative or diagnostic, so to speak. figure 1 network spanning tree / concept map the chi-square test of association compared the relative frequencies of occurrence of several concept clusters. according to lowry (2018), …when observed items are sorted according to two or more separate dimensions of classification concurrently, they are said to be cross-categorized. the most efficient way to represent cross-categorized frequency data is with what is known as a contingency table. when chi-square procedures are applied to a contingency table of this sort, it is typically with the aim of determining whether the two categorical variables are associated; hence the name of this version, the chi-square test of association. in this study, the chi-square test of association was used to determine the probability that both the local and national data were drawn from the same population of articles. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 30-50 sample the authors compiled a list of people of color who lost their lives during the period 1999–2017 following interactions with law enforcement or security personnel. this was a difficult task because there is no comprehensive list of such victims in the us. the authors relied on information found in a variety of sources. these included the online databases fatal encounters and operation ghetto storm, the hip hop and politics website, the root website, victims listed by mccarthy (2015a) and alexander (2016), and personal knowledge gained through traditional media reports and social media discussions. lists of the victims, local and national newspapers, and articles referenced in this study may be found at https://mathedcom.wordpress.com/shootings/ in the appendices. appendix a identifies the victims. given the list of victims, the authors selected newspapers recognized as local media. selected national newspapers were each associated with major metropolitan areas. to achieve a national sample, the authors partitioned the us into eight distinct geographic areas and selected the most recognizable newspapers from each. consequently, the northwestern and southwestern coastal us, the northeastern and southeastern coastal us, two north-central us regions, and two southcentral us regions are represented. the list of newspapers accessed may be found in appendix b on the website referenced above. articles were then selected for analysis. while we are aware of the function of repetition in the success of making meaning and shaping opinions, we believe that the initial presentation of a story sets the stage for how it will be interpreted. thus, we chose to focus solely on the first reporting of each case in each newspaper. each victim’s name was entered into the search engine of the website for each of the eight national newspapers and the local newspaper associated with the case. the article with the earliest date of publication was chosen for inclusion in this study. a coding system was developed to identify the victim and the newspaper, and each article was saved as an adobe portable document format (.pdf) file using the appropriate code. with a list of 97 victims, we felt that selecting a smaller sample would not necessarily provide representative results and decided to include all the pertinent cases for analysis. thus, there was a potential population size of 834 articles. however, not all newspapers reported on all cases as listed. therefore, the number koepke, thomas, & manning of articles reviewed was 350, with 85 local articles and 265 national articles. the list of articles included in the data analysis can be found in appendix c on the website referenced previously. to compare the content of national articles with local articles, each corresponding file was saved to a comprehensive group folder. in other words, all 85 individual local files were saved to a single “local” folder and all 265 individual national files were saved to a single “national” folder, as the researchers saw no need to identify individual articles for this project. these folders were then uploaded to leximancer for analysis. to further strengthen the qualitative content analysis, the quantitative chi-square test of association was also performed on the data. data analysis using bayesian statistical methods, leximancer automatically extracts a dictionary of terms from source documents, discovers concepts, and constructs a thesaurus of terms associated with each concept using boolean algorithms. concepts identified in this manner are unbiased, robust statistical artifacts and are depicted graphically in leximancer as concept spanning trees. in these trees, concepts appear as circular nodes, frequent co-occurrences appear as segments, and concept nodes positioned near to one another co-occur more frequently than more widely separated concepts. document files and/or folders are positioned in the trees using similar principles to facilitate identification and interpretation of relationships between concepts and documents. leximancer treats words as collections of symbols and analyzes the occurrence and co-occurrence of words across the entire set of documents submitted for analysis. as a metaphor of this process, imagine leximancer concatenating a set of documents and treating their content as a single string, while maintaining the original structure of each document in case it is needed for further analysis. leximancer begins by eliminating parts of speech (e.g., a, an, it, the, those, is, was, were, etc.) that, while necessary for sentence structure and meaning, are unrelated to the co-occurrence of other words. it counts the number of occurrences of each word and builds a thesaurus from the “concept seeds”, or the words that occur most often. it then looks for words that co-occur, either in the same sentence or adjacent sentences. when a threshold of frequency is found, the program creates a concept. metaphorically, concepts in leximancer are collections of words that generally travel together throughout the text. presented with a list of discovered concepts, the researcher may add research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 30-50 (e.g., acronyms), delete (e.g., figure, table, pp., etc.), or merge concepts (e.g., teacher/teachers, instructor/instructors), thereby introducing a certain level of informed bias. thomas (2014) cites several studies in which leximancer provided the analysis of textual data. these studies looked at the progress of design science research in academic conference proceedings papers, the evolution of international business paper content and the current state of research on data quality. thomas has conducted his own research using leximancer. in one study, he analyzed papers from the annual meetings of the society for information technology in education to determine the emergence of themes and concepts (thomas, 2014). in another, he analyzed journal articles and proceedings papers on the use of technology in math and science distance learning courses to determine if those fields are using the same language, so to speak (thomas, 2018). thomas, handy and stols (2017) also used leximancer to analyze scholarly articles, reports, and publications dealing with mathematics education in south africa to determine the various voices and communities of thought discussing it. it is this type of work that provides a methodological foundation for the present study. findings tabular findings leximancer reports identify discovered concepts using both tabular and graphical representations. table 2 presents a complete list of the 63 discovered word-like (as opposed to name-like) concepts in an ordered (by count) list. in this table,  concepts are collections of words that travel together in the text;  count denotes the total number of content blocks containing the given concept; and  relevance denotes the percentage frequency of text segments which are coded with that concept, relative to the frequency of the most frequent concept in the list. the relatively frequent use of the concepts police, officers, shooting, shot, and man suggests that newspaper reports emphasize actors and actions more than complex concepts like community and justice. koepke, thomas, & manning table 2 ranked concepts: all newspapers word-like count relevance word-like count relevance police 3028 33% officers 2850 31% shooting 1453 16% shot 1174 13% man 860 09% fired 698 08% charges 667 07% investigation 665 07% killed 662 07% gun 659 07% death 658 07% black 653 07% family 581 06% video 573 06% time 474 05% report 472 05% case 467 05% car 447 05% people 419 05% fatal 367 04% told 364 04% released 357 04% force 355 04% called 348 04% unarmed 342 04% city 338 04% died 298 03% involved 273 03% tried 273 03% white 272 03% jury 270 03% day 268 03% attorney 268 03% community 262 03% department 257 03% law 255 03% down 238 03% incident 236 03% officials 231 03% news 231 03% men 224 02% murder 219 02% statement 215 02% outside 212 02% happened 212 02% scene 211 02% civil 206 02% night 193 02% including 186 02% home 186 02% members 184 02% woman 174 02% son 174 02% several 171 02% public 164 02% heard 158 02% decision 149 02% mother 148 02% justice 142 02% head 140 02% saying 136 02% life 134 01% body 133 01% tables 3 and 4 offer insights into the differential uses of concepts in local and national reports. in table 3, the 20 most likely concepts to occur in national and local text blocks are presented. note that only 8 (noted in red) of the 20 concepts appear in both media formats. table 3 twenty concepts likely to occur in national and local reports: 8 duplicates (red) national local black fatal justice scene video involved white unarmed civil investigation unarmed murder jury video research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 30-50 city black life day decision white community outside department man law charges including released gun death force night told police men city day officials death community table 4 lists the 20 concepts most likely to co-occur with the concept police. note that there are no duplicates between media formats. this strongly suggests that reports framed by national and local print media employ different concepts to describe the deaths of unarmed people of color by police. table 4 twenty concepts most likely to co-occur with the concept police national local black scene justice woman video murder white night civil home unarmed several jury heard city incident life head decision officials community members department investigation law involved including called gun time force mother told tried men car day died death shooting graphical findings the concept map seen in figure 2 collapses the 350 files used in the study into national and local file folders to avoid burying the 63 discovered concepts in a presentation of the article titles. each folder icon represents the aggregated content of its sample documents. the most striking feature koepke, thomas, & manning of figure 2 is the diametrical positioning of the national and local file folders. in this representation, the proximity of a given concept (e.g., scene) relative to a given folder (e.g., local) indicates frequent occurrence of the concept in the documents of the local folder. conversely, the separation of a given concept (e.g., scene) and a given folder (e.g., national) indicates infrequent occurrence of the concept scene in the documents of the national folder. an inescapable impression is that local and national reports differ systematically with respect to the concepts they use to frame their stories. figure 2. concept map in figure 3, the concept map is spanned by a set of colored circles denoting sets of co-occurring concepts called themes. each theme is named according to its most prominent concept: police, report, family, case, son. unlike concepts, which are robust statistical artifacts, themes are convenient organizational representations generated by leximancer with some input from the researcher. like “a view from 10,000 feet”, themes provide a setting for intuitive generalization. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 30-50 figure 3. concept map with themes statistical findings to achieve a higher-level perspective, frequency data related to the occurrence of the concepts police, black, white, shooting, shot, fired, gun, death, killed, fatal, murder, justice, officials, jury, and attorney were aggregated into five clusters as seen in table 5: police, race, shooting, death, and justice. koepke, thomas, & manning table 5 frequencies of occurrence of key concept clusters police race shooting death justice police black shooting death justice white shot killed officials fired fatal jury gun murder attorney national 3768 827 3007 1427 720 local 1019 233 355 527 147 the null and alternative hypotheses used in the chi-square test of association were  h0: local and national print media employ similar terminology and concepts to describe and characterize incidents involving the deaths of unarmed people of color and subsequent legal proceedings; and  ha: local and national print media employ different terminology and concepts to describe and characterize incidents involving the deaths of unarmed people of color and subsequent legal proceedings. the data presented in table 5 was entered into the online interface of vassarstats (lowry, 2018) and the analysis reported as seen in table 6. table 6 vassarstats chi-square test of association 1 police race shooting death justice totals national 3768 827 3007 1427 720 9749 local 1019 233 355 527 147 2281 totals 4787 1060 3362 1954 867 12030 specifying α = 0.01, df = 4, and x2critical = 13.28, a test statistic of x 2 obtained = 261.44 was returned using the vassarstats online statistical analysis suite (http://vassarstats.net/newcs.html). an associated p-value  0.0001 was obtained. accordingly, the null hypothesis was rejected in favor of the alternative hypothesis: local and national print media employ different terminology and research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 30-50 concepts to describe and characterize incidents involving the deaths of unarmed people of color and subsequent legal proceedings. table 7 vassarstats chi-square test of association 2 police race shooting death justice national -2.9% -3.7% +10.4% -9.9% +2.5% local +12.3% +15.9% -44.3% +42.2% -10.6% table 7 identifies the degree to which observed cell frequencies differ from the values needed to support the null hypothesis. for instance, the observed frequency of concepts in the local print media shooting cluster is 44.3% too small relative to the national print media shooting cluster under the null hypothesis. further examination suggests that the local newspapers say less about the shooting itself and more about the death of the victim than the national newspapers. limitations there are several limitations that potentially impact the findings of this study. first, the lack of reliable data regarding the number of people in the united states who are shot by law enforcement personnel each year is notable (sinyangwe, 2015; mccarthy, 2015a; mccarthy, 2015b; barry & jones, 2014; lowery, 2014). this not only applies to victims who were unarmed, but also to all people who were victims of these shootings. although attempts have been made to collect data on “arrest-related deaths” (mccarthy, 2015b, p. 2), they have not been successful to date. the average person in the united states is more likely to learn about these events from either the traditional media or social media than he or she is to hear it from law enforcement (mccarthy, 2015a). while such reporting may be done, there are a variety of city, county, and/or state requirements that do not lead to a comprehensive national picture of this issue. without a reliable count of officer-involved shootings, it is difficult to compile a list of the deaths involving unarmed victims and, further, the racial identity of those victims. this also leaves out the deaths of people who were not shot by law enforcement personnel but nevertheless died while in their care. further, it does not address deaths attributed to security personnel who are not koepke, thomas, & manning technically members of the law enforcement community. for purposes of this study, the authors attempted to create a list of victims that was as accurate as possible. in addition to the steps outlined in the discussion of methodology, the authors reached out to the national association for the advancement of colored people (naacp), the black lives matter movement, the marshall project, and the southern poverty law center as potential sources for a reliable list of victims. none of those organizations was able to assist with such a list. without the certainty of a complete accounting of victims, it is possible that some newspaper coverage that could have altered the outcome of the data analysis was missed. however, the potential for missing data should not deter scholars from a study of this type that can provide a description of what can be seen in the known data. a second limitation is the number of victims who did not receive coverage in either a local or a national newspaper. eight of the ninety-seven victims received no coverage at all in the newspapers chosen for the study. the other stories did not necessarily receive equal coverage in all the newspapers under review, either in quantity or quality. both of these could have led to biased outcomes in the data analysis. while the lack of coverage of some of these cases could potentially open a dialog on the lack of concern for the death of an unarmed person of color, the authors do not feel that such a gap in information negates the descriptive findings of this study. finally, a number of the newspaper stories were attributed to the associated press or other wire services rather than original works written by staff reporters. while this has the possibility to skew the results, it should also be noted that the choice of which, if any, articles to include regarding each victim is made by the individual newspapers. thus, the choice of how to present the information to the audience remains a local one. conclusions as the reader can see from both the graphical and statistical analysis of this data, the authors have demonstrated that there is a marked difference between local coverage of these deaths and national coverage of the same stories. this further suggests that there may be a difference in audience understanding of these events due, at least in part, to the difference in coverage. if one agrees that research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 30-50 public opinion has an effect on the actions of others, such as law enforcement and security personnel, then one must understand how those opinions are formed. there is much to be learned about race relations in the united states, as well as public sentiment regarding law enforcement and security personnel, by analyzing newspaper articles. the authors are planning additional research on newspaper coverage of the deaths of unarmed people of color that will address the sex of the victim, the coverage that exists before and after an incident happens locally, a comparison of local coverage when the law enforcement member responsible is indicted versus not indicted, and a comparison of coverage by geographical region in the us. the authors would like to invite others to join them on this journey. unfortunately, it appears that there is no end in sight to the names of victims to be included in future research. at least eight unarmed people of color have been killed by law enforcement personnel in the first six months of 2018. the names danny ray thomas, decynthia clements, stephon clark, saheed vassell, diante yarber, claudia gomez gonzalez, antwon rose, jr., and anthony marcel green have already been added to the list from which these researchers work. references alexander, b. 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(2006). a lexical analysis of 1995, 2000 and 2005 ascilite conference papers. proceedings of the 23rd annual ascilite conference, pp. 947-951. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 regaña, c.b. , piñero-virué, r. p. & reyes-rebollo, m.m. how multimedia support collaborative research: best practices 58 how multimedia support collaborative research: best practices cristóbal ballesteros regaña * universidad de sevilla cballesteros@us.es rocío p. piñero-virué university of seville miguel mª reyes-rebollo university of seville *corresponding author: cballesteros@us.es received : 02.07.2019 revision requested: 06.09.2019 accepted : 09.20.2019 how to cite this paper: regaña, c.b. , piñero-virué, r. p. & reyes-rebollo, m.m. (2019). how multimedia support collaborative research: best practices. research in social sciences and technology, 4(2), 58-72. abstract the purpose of this article is to evaluate the potential for online multimedia materials as alternative learning tools for the collaborative training of teachers in the design of researchbased teaching. a case study using a team of three trainee teachers was used to develop a process of initial training in the design of a constructivist and research-based teaching unit supported by online multimedia material. the results obtained from the research allowed some principles to be identified and basic recommendations and alternative lines of action to be given for designing online multimedia materials. online multimedia materials can be alternative teaching tools that contribute, with other materials, to the development of constructivist, collaborative, and research-based strategies which help provide the necessary support for improving the initial and ongoing training of new teachers in the design of teaching from a research perspective. keywords: multimedia design, design of teaching, collaborative teacher training, teaching by research introduction new information and communications technologies are the cornerstones that make online multimedia systems one of the most complete and capable educational tools for training teams of teachers. within this framework, and equipped with a set of requirements which we aimed to define and test, we embarked on a research project to gain a better understanding of the potential for online multimedia material in initial training for teachers and in their subsequent professional development. it originated in the difficulties teaching teams face in addressing the design of constructivist and research-based teaching units in line with current trends in the spanish curricular model (ballesteros & román, 2016; cabero & ballesteros, 2004). research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 regaña, c.b. , piñero-virué, r. p. & reyes-rebollo, m.m. how multimedia support collaborative research: best practices 59 for this reason, based on issues related to the design and development of the curriculum, we set out to explore the extent to which online multimedia material, aimed specifically at training teaching staff in the design of units for teaching the sciences and environmental studies, could stimulate and facilitate the tasks involved in planning constructivist, research-based teaching units on specific issues pupils may encounter in their contact with the medium (ballesteros & román, 2016). our study revolved around three fundamental questions. the first was how to make sure that teachers interested in constructivist and research-based learning could adequately address the task of designing teaching units of this nature (austin, 2009). a particular problem we encountered here was how to determine the basic requirements for ensuring that teams of teachers could become involved in a collaborative way in designing their own teaching units (kwan, fox, chan, & tsang, 2008). however, given the difficulty of a large proportion of teachers’ experience in undertaking these design tasks, we considered as a second fundamental question the problem of clarifying the barriers and difficulties they often face. we also looked at the issue of defining the characteristics of a strategy for collaborative professional development supported by online multimedia materials, and its potential for use in training (cañal, ballesteros, & merino, 2004). the third research problem we addressed was connected to the previous one and focused very specifically on investigating the potential for online multimedia material in training teachers in processes for planning constructivist and research-based teaching units (evans & gibbons, 2007). there is a clear gap and inadequacy of method regarding teaching design in a good proportion of initial and ongoing training courses for teachers, and there is also very little dedicated educational material to encourage training in this area or to facilitate design tasks (cheng, safont, basu, & goebel, 2010). for this reason, we were interested in exploring the characteristics, potential, and limitations of a number of new materials for curricular development, which would not be limited to supplying information or resources for teaching traditional school topics. instead, they would provide everything teaching teams needed to embark, with necessary support, on processes for reflective practice and planning, with defined study goals of interest to pupils. the materials would also allow them to make their own decisions about what to teach and how to teach it in an independent and informed way. in this sense, we believed that online multimedia applications, along with a variety of other resources, could play a significant part in independent learning for teaching staff. we were equally aware, however, of the danger of overstating and generalizing the potential of these resources, bearing in mind the enormous diversity of contextual and motivational factors, as well as levels of professional development, etc., which could affect how each team of teachers might use them and how it might affect their usefulness in each case (ballesteros, 2006; lafer & tarman, 2019; tarman, 2016). research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 regaña, c.b. , piñero-virué, r. p. & reyes-rebollo, m.m. how multimedia support collaborative research: best practices 60 our first goal, then, was to define the real difficulties facing teams of teachers who try to develop the design of their own teaching units in an attempt to go beyond blindly accepting and applying the concepts given in the textbooks. we were particularly interested in defining the difficulties implicit in these planning tasks without losing sight of the problems inherent in the real professional context in which these tasks are undertaken. once we had taken this initial step, we moved on to determining what kind of support online multimedia material could offer in addressing these difficulties and in facilitating the planning process, as well as contributing to the professional development of teachers in the use of this medium. this line of thought helped us to create a training strategy and determine its content using the online multimedia material we had produced (cabero & ballesteros, 2004). the next step in this process involved creating the multimedia material. as soon as it was ready, we put it into operation by arranging for a group of teachers in their initial stages of training to use it as an aid to planning a teaching unit on a specific study topic. this experimental process gave us the data we required for a preliminary assessment of the validity of our training strategy, the structure and content of the material, and the resources used in it. for this reason, the study was undertaken in four main phases: 1. development of a theoretical/scientific framework for the research, and production of online multimedia support material for designing constructivist and research-based teaching units. 2. setting the baseline data; determining the existing levels of professional development of the teachers taking part in the experiment. 3. experiments using the online multimedia material. 4. analysis of methods; conclusions. our ultimate aim was to support the initiatives of teaching staff interested in research-based learning in schools, experimentation with the curriculum, and the resulting improvement in school-based learning. with this in mind, we attempted to assess the extent to which the experimental online multimedia material could provide a prototype for enhancing and improving experience through an open process of experimentation in which teachers themselves were involved in pinpointing inadequacies and formulating proposals for change and improvement. in terms of the above issues, we set the following research objectives: 1. to design and test a constructivist, research-based, and collaborative strategy for training teaching staff. 2. to design, produce, and test a set of online multimedia support materials for the design of research-based learning [m.a.d.e.i.]. 3. to document the development of professional knowledge in a team of trainee teachers during the process of designing a constructivist teaching unit based on a strategy of learning through research. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 regaña, c.b. , piñero-virué, r. p. & reyes-rebollo, m.m. how multimedia support collaborative research: best practices 61 4. to identify the main learning opportunities and barriers encountered by teachers involved in designing this type of learning. 5. to give pointers, alternatives, and guidelines to help teachers interested in this form of learning to design and produce research-based teaching units. 6. to assess the usefulness and potential of online multimedia technology in general, and the m.a.d.e.i. material in particular, as a learning resource for training teaching staff in the design of research-based teaching units. 7. to discuss the implications of our study for the initial and ongoing training of teaching teams, and the development of new ways of experimenting with the curriculum. characteristics of online multimedia material: organizational and functional structure in describing the characteristics of the m.a.d.e.i. material (ballesteros, 2008, 2016), we shall first give details of the structure for developing its content and layout, followed by details of the training strategy resulting from its organizational structure, which will inform its successful implementation. organization to help design a constructivist and research-based teaching unit so that the actual educational resources were also in keeping with this focus, the m.a.d.e.i. material was organized around team-based study, reflection, and discussion on a set of specific questions to be addressed during a three-phase process: 1. exploring and enhancing your professional knowledge: a) what do we know and what do we need to know about constructivist and research-based teaching and units? b) what do we know about plant nutrition? 2. exploring pupils’ ideas about plant nutrition: c) how do primary pupils in general tend to conceptualize plant nutrition? d) how do our pupils conceptualize plant nutrition? e) what problems and obstacles are encountered in teaching plant nutrition in schools? 3. planning a teaching unit: f) what should the unit teach? g) how should the teaching be organized? the following structure was used to organize all this information within its own framework: a) the interface was designed to ensure that the teaching team had access to all parts of the multimedia through the various levels of structuring and navigation. b) the online multimedia used a navigation tree system, but within each module, teachers could move freely around the various sections and parts of the network. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 regaña, c.b. , piñero-virué, r. p. & reyes-rebollo, m.m. how multimedia support collaborative research: best practices 62 c) although the modules were arranged in a constructivist and research-based teaching sequence, it was also possible, at the same time, for teachers to define their own way of using it according to their interests and their level of professional development. d) review tags in the upper left-hand corner of each screen pointed to the sections the teachers would be amending. e) all screens were identified by their corresponding titles. f) intuitive icons played an important part in the design of the different elements of the interface and helped the user to navigate the multimedia. g) to help motivate the user, the cursor changed form (an index finger on a hand pointed to active links, and a closed hand indicated the appearance of text with complementary information). short help messages also came up on the symbols to explain their function. h) the texts contained words or areas with two types of hyperlink: explanatory links to more information on content, and associative links that cross-referenced the different modules, sections, and parts of the online multimedia material in a meaningful way. training strategy the functional structure for implementing the m.a.d.e.i. material emerged as a constructivist and research-based strategy for training teaching staff, with two main aspects: a) it encouraged analysis, discussion, and progressive reformulation of professional knowledge as part of a research-based process led by the team of teachers involved in the design activities and who were supported and guided by it. in this way, the opening screen of each module of the multimedia contained sections called “exploring our first ideas” and “what have we learned?” the first allowed them to make a preliminary analysis of their thoughts on the material that would be developed in each module. the second helped them to compare these initial ideas with the new knowledge they acquired at the end of the different training modules. b) it provided the necessary support for designing a teaching unit in keeping with a constructivist and research-based teaching strategy and, in terms of our particular study, it would contribute to the development of a specific study objective (“how do plants feed?”) within primary education (6-12 years). in this way, the m.a.d.e.i. material addressed the team of teachers on the one hand, and posed questions for them to study, reflect on, discuss, and make decisions about. on the other hand, it gave them direct access to information on these issues in a way that the teaching team considered most relevant and appropriate to its aims. in short, our aim was to ensure that the online multimedia material offered the most appropriate type of support so that the unit produced by the teachers was genuinely innovative and could be put into practice by each member of the team. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 regaña, c.b. , piñero-virué, r. p. & reyes-rebollo, m.m. how multimedia support collaborative research: best practices 63 investigation methodology to overcome the problems and fulfill the objectives mentioned above, this research project used an initial training process for teaching staff which had been developed on the basis of online multimedia materials and specially designed for the purpose. to this end, a case study was proposed involving three students from the faculty of educational sciences at the university of seville (spain), in which they had to use the online multimedia material (m.a.d.e.i.) to design a constructivist teaching unit based on a research-based teaching strategy. the m.a.d.e.i. material was envisaged as support/guidance that would not only facilitate the design of teaching units on a specific theme (in our case, “plant nutrition”) but would also contribute to the professional development of teachers interested in research-based teaching strategies. in terms of these factors, our proposed research had a twofold objective: a) to understand how the professional knowledge of a team of trainee teachers developed while they were designing a constructivist teaching unit based on a research-based teaching strategy. b) to assess the potential for using multimedia technology as an educational resource in developing processes for training school staff to design units using this type of teaching. the participants given that the central objective of our research was to assess the potential of multimedia technology in general, and the m.a.d.e.i. material in particular, as an educational resource for the initial and ongoing training of teams of teachers in the design of research-based teaching units, the factors which influenced the sample used in the study were clearly influenced by this aim from the beginning. for this reason, the teachers involved in the experimental team were chosen on the basis of a set of conditions which we considered desirable, and the criteria for selection were based on those suggested by goetz and lecompte (1988). they were as follows: a) willingness and personal availability to take part in the research project. the first condition was to choose trainee teachers who demonstrated genuine interest and who were available to take part in the different phases of the research. from the start, it was important that no teacher should be forced to take part in the study. on the contrary, after they had volunteered, they themselves would be the ones to decide their level of participation in the preliminary meetings, the general way in which they would be involved, and their commitment to decisions made at the meetings—in other words, everything to do with their availability in terms of the time and commitment expected of them during the research. b) enrollment in one of the specialization courses for the educational science qualification. in order to develop an effective preliminary training process with the m.a.d.e.i. material, we research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 regaña, c.b. , piñero-virué, r. p. & reyes-rebollo, m.m. how multimedia support collaborative research: best practices 64 considered it important to opt for a condition which would cover all teachers in the experimental team; in our particular case, this was that they should still be studying to become future teaching professionals. from here, we would hone it down to students enrolled in one of the qualifications offered by the faculty of educational sciences at the university of seville (spain). for this reason, the final team of teachers was composed of three students from the faculty of educational sciences, two of whom were in their third year of studying primary education (6-12 years) and a third in the second year of studying nursery education (0-6 years). c) to have had different experiences of teaching methodologies over the course of their academic studies. the third criteria for selection for the sample group involved a preference that the teachers chosen for the case study should have had different experiences of teaching strategies throughout their education. at the end of this process, we were able to form a final team of three trainee teachers with different backgrounds and formative experiences who also had little experience in taking part in training and research activities or projects, or in any type of course, seminar, conference, or activity of this nature. instruments used a combination of four types of instruments were used: diaries (throughout the period where the research-based teaching unit was being designed) and group interviews with the team of participating teachers (at three key points in the experiment: at the beginning, halfway through, and at the end). data was also collected from an analysis of the video recordings and from the documents and material produced using the online multimedia resources (notebook and teaching unit) in each of the joint design sessions and collaborative work developed over the course of the research. in this sense, and following schön (2008), the diaries became one of our main monitoring tools in considering a research model based on a continuous process of reflection and decisionmaking involving the teachers. the use of the diaries helped us to describe, analyze, and evaluate the sessions and the arguments that supported the dynamic of collaborative working developed during the second and third phases of the experiment. it brought us closer to the intended design strategy and gave us an idea of the thoughts and reflections emerging from the teaching team during the implementation of the various sessions. for each collaborative work session, the team of teachers kept a semi-structured diary with notes on two fundamental issues: a) a description of the design strategy to show the steps followed by the teaching team in designing the teaching unit. b) reflections, analysis, and evaluation to show the various arguments that supported the design of the strategy. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 regaña, c.b. , piñero-virué, r. p. & reyes-rebollo, m.m. how multimedia support collaborative research: best practices 65 in considering the proposed research question and objectives, we decided to use a semistructured group interview framework with questions which were basically descriptive and structured. this allowed us to explore and detail both the professional knowledge the team of teachers was acquiring and the potential for using multimedia technology in training teaching teams to design research-based teaching units. the interviews were conducted at three key points in the research: before, during, and at the end of the process of designing a teaching unit with the m.a.d.e.i. material. the semi-structural framework of the interviews allowed us to adapt and rework the questions we used, and also to incorporate new questions that arose in the course of the interviews. the video recordings allowed us to record, observe, and analyze chronologically both the succession of events which were helping to form the design strategy and the reflective dynamic between the teachers while they were creating the teaching unit with the m.a.d.e.i. materials. the recordings were made throughout the development of the third phase of the research, and the camera remained fixed in a pan shot to capture the monitor screen and the sounds of the conversations and dialogues taking place at all times. this methodological procedure gave us a first-hand view of how they were using the online multimedia material, and gave us contextual information about the sequence and agenda followed by the teachers as they were designing the different curricular elements of the teaching unit. finally, the documents were reviewed in order to analyze the different items produced by the teaching team in each collaborative design and work session using the m.a.d.e.i. materials. in the course of the review, which took place during the development of the third and fourth research phases, we examined the following documents: a) the notebooks the teachers were keeping to record their initial understanding, their conceptual constructs and re-evaluation of their ideas during the two m.a.d.e.i. sessions (exploring our first ideas and what have we learned?) to give us an in-depth analysis of the different modules, as well as the participants’ reflections, decision-making, questions, and issues. this document in particular was reviewed in both the third and fourth phases. b) the teaching unit, which was constructivist and based on a strategy of teaching by research. it was created by the teaching team with the help of the m.a.d.e.i. material: how do plants feed? the unit was analyzed in the fourth and final phases. data analysis taking as our reference the theoretical framework of the study as well as the issues and objectives involved in the research, we defined a system for categorizing data with six dimensions, as follows: research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 regaña, c.b. , piñero-virué, r. p. & reyes-rebollo, m.m. how multimedia support collaborative research: best practices 66 a) teaching received throughout their education. through this, we intended to detail the role played by the different elements of the curriculum in the teaching and learning processes the teachers had undergone from primary level (6-12 years) through secondary (12-16 years) and sixth form (16-18 years) to university level. b) current model for designing teaching units. we wanted to understand the team’s initial ideas about their teaching model and teaching unit design. c) professional knowledge, which categorized the teachers’ ideas on designing constructivist, research-based teaching units. d) the potential for using the m.a.d.e.i. material in teaching. this assessed the possibilities for the use of online multimedia material in the actual development of a process for training teachers to design research-based teaching units. e) general evaluation of the research, which included the team’s own general assessments of the training process that was developed and the results obtained. f) suggestions, changes, and proposals for improvements to the research. as soon as the system of data categorization had been set up, the first step involved using the various instruments to transform the set of information into data which could be more easily interpreted. in this way, and especially in the case of the interviews and video recordings, the information was transferred directly from its original medium onto computer, as the information from the remaining instruments had been collected digitally over the course of the research, through the diaries and documents in the notebook. to analyze all the data obtained from the research, a content analysis technique was used involving a procedure in three main stages (bardin, 2002): 1. identification of units of information: coding. this first stage involved devising a general coding system for the data by identifying units of information, or “segments of content,” as base units which would allow us to give an accurate account of the main characteristics of the content. in the specific context of our study, each unit of recorded data corresponded to an opinion, thought, commentary, question, issue or decision, i.e., any concrete evidence of the teachers’ professional knowledge on any of the questions or issues they encountered during the research. 2. categorization: once the analytical units had been specified, they were classified and organized using the system of categorization designed for the research, so that all the information on each of the dimensions and categories in the system was arranged in a structured and systematic way. as a general principle, we tried to ensure that during the categorization process each unit of information corresponded exclusively to one dimension and category only, as “mutual exclusion” was the best way to ensure the effectiveness of the proposed system of categorization. 3. interpretation or inference: finally, the process of analyzing the data was completed in a third stage where we proceeded to interpret the different units of categorized information. in this research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 regaña, c.b. , piñero-virué, r. p. & reyes-rebollo, m.m. how multimedia support collaborative research: best practices 67 way, taking as a reference the different dimensions and categories we had created in our system of categorization, we were able to integrate the various pieces of evidence from the teaching team in a meaningful way. this included their opinions, reflective thoughts, comments, queries, questions, and decision-making. in short, we were able to understand and analyze the development of the process they followed and the overall results obtained from the research as a whole. furthermore, during the final stage, the teaching team itself had a central role to play in the experience, specifically during the final interview, where they helped triangulate the data which had been collected, and the results of the four experimental phases, with the views of the teachers involved. this provided a safeguard against any bias in interpretation. results it became increasingly clear that the teaching teams generally lacked training in organizing teaching processes. by way of offering an alternative to this situation, our research proposed to design and test a constructivist, research-based, and collaborative strategy for training that could inform the development of future processes of initial and ongoing training for teaching staff, and which would focus on teaching design through research. in this sense, the results obtained from the study provide evidence of the educational options on offer to support teachers through the whole process involved in designing and producing constructivist, research-based teaching units: 1. it contributes to the analysis and gradual reformulation of their professional knowledge in terms of the main learning elements on which the planning and design process is based. a) exploration and improvement of their professional knowledge in terms of the theme to be studied in the unit. b) exploration of the way primary pupils in general conceptualize the study theme and, in particular, the way pupils in their own classroom see it. c) planning the unit: what should the unit teach and how should the teaching be organized? 2. it creates a research process in which the teachers themselves are the main actors, taking part in the design tasks in an independent and collaborative way. 3. it adjusts to suit their design and learning abilities both as individuals and within the group. 4. it gives the learning support and guidance required to design this type of teaching unit, by: a) taking account of constructivist approaches in order to exert a real influence on the curriculum in centers of learning; b) balancing the commitments of teachers and pupils in the process of teaching and learning; c) requiring teachers to be capable of guiding, adapting, and improving initial teaching proposals in the course of their development in order to adapt them to the ideas, experiences, and interests of the pupils themselves, and the obstacles they face; d) enabling the development of real and meaningful learning based on the most immediate conceptual reality; e) encouraging the involvement of pupils in developing all their learning activities; research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 regaña, c.b. , piñero-virué, r. p. & reyes-rebollo, m.m. how multimedia support collaborative research: best practices 68 f) consolidating the role of pupils as active participants in building their own knowledge; g) combining teaching and evaluation strategies into a single process to ensure continuous monitoring and adjustment throughout the whole training process. this will give it optimum coherence and consistency. in terms of the potential for using multimedia technology in collaborative training of teaching staff in the design of teaching through research, as we have shown in the first part of this work, many of the problems currently observed in classrooms originated on the whole in the inadequacy of initial and ongoing training for teachers in designing teaching processes (evans & gibbons, 2007; tarman, 2012). this has been exacerbated by a lack of dedicated educational material which would provide the necessary support in overcoming these inadequacies (cheng, safont, basu, & goebel, 2010). in this sense, the results of our research point to the following possible advantages of using multimedia technology: 1. it allows the design of flexible training environments that can adapt to different starting points and levels of professional development in teams of teachers interested in designing this type of teaching. 2. it takes into account their needs, initiatives, and professional concerns when they have to make decisions about which planning strategy to follow. 3. it gives the necessary support and guidance to reinforce their understanding of the main educational dimensions of the training process being developed. 4. it poses questions for them to study, reflect on, discuss and/or make decisions on, and at the same time provides access to information about these issues. 5. it opens up the possibilities for accessing and consulting any of its modules, sections, or parts. 6. it combines appearance and manageability in both the information and the various organizational resources it makes available (diaries, notebooks, design files, and individual products) so that a number of tasks can be developed at the same time on the same screen. 7. it combines the most useful aspects of conventional word processors for editing and manipulating written documents. 8. it adds key words and/or conceptual support diagrams to its various texts in order to give more information on meanings and basic relationships. 9. it saves space and teaching time. 10. it has excellent capacity for storing and organizing information in a number of forms, by combining it in a virtual space and making available the main sources of information which may be required to support the collaborative design of any research-based teaching unit. 11. it considerably reduces the time and effort required in design tasks for this type of teaching, bringing them in line with teachers’ other professional work. discussion and conclusions the characteristics of online multimedia educational material should be determined by the main organizational and functional factors which have emerged from the data we have presented: research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 regaña, c.b. , piñero-virué, r. p. & reyes-rebollo, m.m. how multimedia support collaborative research: best practices 69 1. about the first fundamental question: 1.1. respect and maintain the scientific quality and upgrading of the content that is developed. 1.2. create open workspaces that allow the teachers to reflect and consult at all times, from their initial ideas to making decisions and/or the progress in the various collaborative work sessions. 1.3. always take personal aspects of the teaching team into consideration so that they can move around independently to explore and consult the various sections and modules. 1.4. facilitate procedures for obtaining feedback on the contents of the material and any information produced during design sessions. 2. about the second fundamental question: 2.1. encourage professional motivation in the teaching teams in designing and determining the different curricular elements of the unit. 2.2. make use of strategies to help the teachers exchange ideas and compare their initial concepts with their newly acquired learning. this will reinforce an active role for the teachers in building their new professional knowledge. 2.3. allow each individual and the group as a whole to work at their own pace in learning and design so that the work is organized according to the group’s own professional needs, knowledge, and concerns. 2.4. facilitate collaborative and independent decision-making that provides the appropriate support and guidance required. 2.5. make it possible to add new and complementary material that the teams decide to incorporate. 3. about the third fundamental question: 3.1. adapt the language levels used in editing the contents to the background and needs of the teachers. 3.2. throughout the design process, structure and organize the modules and sections so that the required information can be accessed easily. 3.3. support navigation with pop-up conceptual diagrams that can provide an overview and show the main concepts and relationships for each issue on the same screen. 3.4. the graphics designed for the material (buttons, text, diagrams, and illustrations) need to contribute to the presentation and development of the contents so that they can be understood intuitively and aid navigation around the information. they also need to make it possible for the teachers to use a number of screens at the same time and therefore work on several tasks simultaneously. 3.5. set up the collaborative work strategy so that all screens show the navigation paths and steps followed each time a user consults the material. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 regaña, c.b. , piñero-virué, r. p. & reyes-rebollo, m.m. how multimedia support collaborative research: best practices 70 in summary, we believe our study can make contributions in two main areas. on the one hand, it can help define a constructivist, research-based, and collaborative strategy for training teaching staff and help us overcome the main inadequacies in the initial and ongoing training of teachers with regard to the design of research-based teaching. on the other hand, the study can contribute to the design of new, specific, online multimedia teaching materials which will provide the necessary support in overcoming these deficiencies. research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 regaña, c.b. , piñero-virué, r. p. & reyes-rebollo, m.m. how multimedia support collaborative research: best practices 71 references austin, k. a. 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(2002). el análisis de contenido. madrid, españa: akal. cabero, j., & ballesteros, c. (2004). posibilidades de los multimedia para la formación colaborativa del profesorado. algunos principios y orientaciones didácticas para su diseño. agenda académica, 11(1 y 2), 31-40. cañal, p., ballesteros, c., & merino, j. (2004). dificultades de los equipos de profesores en el diseño de unidades didácticas. un material de apoyo multimedia. investigación en la escuela, 52, 57-67. cheng, i., safont, l. v., basu, a., & goebel, r. (2010). multimedia in education: adaptive learning and testing. new jersey, usa: world scientific publishing. evans, c., & gibbons, n. j. (2007). the interactivity effect in multimedia learning. computers & education, 49(4), 1147-1160. goetz, j. p., & lecompte, m. d. (1988). etnografía y diseño cualitativo en investigación educativa. madrid, españa: morata. kwan, r., fox, r., chan, f. t., & tsang, p. (2008). enhancing learning through technology. new jersey, usa: world scientific publishing. lafer, s., & tarman, b. (2019). editorial 2019: (2)1, special issue. journal of culture and values in education, 2(1), i-v. retrieved from http://cultureandvalues.org/index.php/jcv/article/view/34 http://cultureandvalues.org/index.php/jcv/article/view/34 research in social sciences and technology volume 4 issue 2, 2019 regaña, c.b. , piñero-virué, r. p. & reyes-rebollo, m.m. how multimedia support collaborative research: best practices 72 ley 14/1970, de 4 de agosto, general de educación (l.g.e.). ley orgánica 8/1985, de 3 de julio, reguladora del derecho a la educación (l.o.d.e.). ley orgánica 1/1990, de 3 de octubre de 1990, de ordenación general del sistema educativo (l.o.g.s.e.). ley orgánica 10/2002, de 23 de diciembre, de calidad de la educación (l.o.c.e.). ley orgánica 2/2006, de 3 de mayo, de educación (l.o.e.). schön, d. a. (2008). the formation of reflexive professionals: towards a new design of the education and the learning in the professions. barcelona, españa: paidós. tarman, b. (2012). prospective teachers’ beliefs and perceptions about teaching as a profession. educational sciences: theory & practice, 12(3), 1-24. tarman, b. (2016). innovation and education. research in social sciences and technology, 1(1). retrieved from http://ressat.org/index.php/ressat/article/view/3 http://ressat.org/index.php/ressat/article/view/3 research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 espino, d.p., et al. analysis of u.s., kenyan, and finnish discourse patterns in a cross-cultural digital makerspace learning community through the ibe-unesco global competences framework 86 analysis of u.s., kenyan, and finnish discourse patterns in a cross-cultural digital makerspace learning community through the ibe-unesco global competences framework danielle p. espino seung b. lee lauren van tress toby t. baker eric r. hamilton pepperdine university *corresponding author: danielle.espino@pepperdine.edu received : 2019-09-01 accepted : 2019-11-18 how to cite this paper: espino, d. p., lee, s. b., van tress, l., baker, t., & hamilton, e. (2020). analysis of u.s., kenyan, and finnish discourse patterns in a cross-cultural digital makerspace learning community through the ibe-unesco global competences framework. research in social sciences and technology, 5(1),86-100. abstract in 2017, the international bureau of education (ibe) at the united nations educational, scientific and cultural organization (unesco) put forth seven global competences to address accelerating technological progress and increasing levels of complexity and uncertainty affecting many facets of society (marope, 2017). these competences were used in examining participant discourse in a global, collaborative digital makerspace environment, where students ages 12 to 17 from six countries develop and share stem-focused media artifacts. the participants communicate synchronously through video conference calls, referred to as online global meet-ups. the meet-ups allow students to present media artifacts they have created, share ideas, exchange information, and provide feedback. in this analysis, epistemic network analysis (ena), a technique in quantitative ethnography, is used to examine the connections made among the ibe-unesco global competences in a meet-up involving participants from finland, kenya, and the u.s. ena network models were created initially for the three sites, then further disaggregated by time segment to analyze how participant discourse patterns may have evolved in each context. through this approach, the paper explores more broadly the interactive role of media making, cross-cultural engagement, and collaborative learning in the development of global competences in students. keywords: collaborative learning, epistemic network analysis, global competences, sustainable development goals, transactive discourse research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 espino, d.p., et al. analysis of u.s., kenyan, and finnish discourse patterns in a cross-cultural digital makerspace learning community through the ibe-unesco global competences framework 87 introduction the workforce continues to adapt to the changing needs of technology advances. with revolutionary systems such as complex internet sensors and integrated systems contributing to the rise of industry 4.0, these developments affect the future of the workforce as well as the learners and education to support it (marope, 2017). these changes challenge current education systems to thoughtfully examine how to best prepare learners for the unknown future, career readiness, and future curricula in this new landscape (marope, 2017). in 2015, the united nations adopted 17 sustainable development goals (sdgs) to address social and economic issues facing global society. sdg#4 addresses quality education, to provide inclusive and equitable educational opportunities for all. this was further addressed by the educational 2030 incheon declaration and framework for action adopted by the united nations educational, scientific and cultural organization (unesco) in 2016, which expanded on sdg#4 to provide a new vision for education in 2030. this included target 4.4, which seeks to “substantially increase the number of youth and adults who have relevant skills, including technical and vocational skills, for employment, decent jobs and entrepreneurship” (unesco, p. 20), and target 4.7, which aims for learners to “acquire knowledge and skills needed to promote sustainable development, including... education for human rights, gender equality, promotion of a culture of peace and non-violence, global citizenship and appreciation of cultural diversity and of culture’s contribution to sustainable development” (unesco, p. 21). in 2017, the international bureau of education (ibe), a program supporting unesco, put forth a set of capacity-building competences for education systems that inherently address these targets in their curriculum. these competences, seen in table 1, reflect the means to equip students to adapt to the shifting needs of industry 4.0 while developing skill sets in interacting in a globalized context. this paper examines the reflection of these competences in a current project that addresses both sdg target 4.4 and 4.7, to build on both relevant skillsets and global citizenship in a learning context. this project involves collaborative stem (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) focused media making by adolescent participants from various countries in an informal, global makerspace environment. participants collaborate both asynchronously, using communication tools such as email or slack (a cloud-based team messaging application), and synchronously through video conference calls known as online global meet-ups. these meetups consist of participants from at least two different project sites who share projects for feedback or discuss projects they are working on together. in these meet-ups, participants frequently discuss stem-related content and the process of media making as they mutually build on each other’s existing knowledge. transactive discourse (transactivity, looks at the extent to which participants build on the reasoning of others. the presence of transactivity is also examined in this paper as a means to describe the building of observed global competences during the course of the meet-up. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 espino, d.p., et al. analysis of u.s., kenyan, and finnish discourse patterns in a cross-cultural digital makerspace learning community through the ibe-unesco global competences framework 88 transactive discourse transactivity is defined as the extent to which learners operate on the reasoning of their peers. the transactive discourse framework is explained as the interaction and reasoning that operates on the reasoning of another (berkowitz & gibbs, 1983). this type of discourse model is crucial in understanding the development of individual reasoning skills through dynamic discussions. berkowitz (1980) explains that there are two types of transacts: representational, statements of others without acting on them, and operational, statements that act on another’s reasoning. this study utilizes both representational and operational reasoning. within an experimental learning setting, the transactive discourse framework can be applied in order to analyze and understand the educational dialogue among students. in their study, joshi and rosé (2007) describe transactive discourse in an educational collaborative setting as when students “elaborate, build upon, or argue against the ideas presented” by fellow students, “working towards a common understanding of the task and reaching a shared solution” (p. 53). within this framework, the participants in this study had the opportunity to interact, engage, contribute, and learn from each other in online meet-ups. students increased their interpersonal skills while aiming to seek a common solution. in the same study, joshi and rosé (2007) examined the relationship between effective learning in collaborative groups, the process by which all learners work on the learning task together. students’ learning and growth is measured based on how collaborative groups construct arguments and display argumentation. the transactivity of learners’ discourse is positively related to individual knowledge acquisition (teasley, 1997). as these participants effectively build on the contributions of their learning partners, they improve upon their capacity for learning (joshi & rosé, 2007). according to teasley (1997), the link between transactive reasoning and cognitive change reflects piaget’s notion that when children operate on each other’s reasoning, they become aware of contradictions between their reasoning and that of their partner. this cognitive conflict leads to a higher level of understanding that signifies authentic cognitive growth integrating the conflicting viewpoints (teasley, 1997). to increase student learning, it is beneficial to enlist a skilled facilitator during computersupported collaborative learning (cscl). in a study by berkowitz (1980), students who engaged in formal transactive communication increased the amount of transacts, but only the representational type; therefore, to increase the transactive communication, new strategies were employed. consequently, one successful strategy of facilitators was the “plus one” manipulation, or exposure to the reasoning that is one stage higher than one’s current stage (berkowitz & gibbs, 1983). based on the transactive discourse framework of berkowitz and gibbs (1983), facilitated discussions between students of various cultures can be analyzed for development and research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 espino, d.p., et al. analysis of u.s., kenyan, and finnish discourse patterns in a cross-cultural digital makerspace learning community through the ibe-unesco global competences framework 89 improvement. moreover, as students of different cultures engage in partnership, they are encouraged to exchange thoughts, bestow knowledge, and challenge ideas. essentially, the interaction between each participant strengthens the level of engagement and connection that they form together. as the operational transaction alone was significantly related to stage change and the representational transaction was not, both together were more strongly related to change than either alone (berkowitz & gibbs, 1983). the functionality of the transactivity framework depends on the interactive behaviors of the individuals within this setting, and the evidence of how each of them conducts, performs, and ultimately evolves as a result of this setting (berkowitz & gibbs, 1983). the transactivity framework focuses specifically on the relationship between competing positions of different speakers (joshi & rosé, 2007). cscl suggests that communication exists with each other via text-based, asynchronous discussion boards, as utilized in this study through the mediums slack or school-assigned email (weinberger & fischer, 2006). the goal of cscl is to motivate learning partners to collaborate via the discussion boards, where they have composed a unique written problem in the text that should be analyzed, argued, and refined jointly as a team (chi, 1997). weinberger and fischer (2006) determined that when learners are actively attempting to solve a problem, they are engaging in on-task discourse, demonstrating accurate knowledge of the material related to the task. further, different strategies may be used to solve the task, thereby increasing efficiency as a result of the individual acquisition of knowledge (weinberger & fischer, 2006). this current study examines a boundary-crossing perspective of transactive discourse among participants in various countries. additionally, it offers a new interpretation of the interactions between participants, utilizing online learning communities as a medium for transitivity in learning. methodology data for this analysis consisted of discourse data collected during an online global meet-up involving a total of seven students from finland (1), kenya (4), and the united states (2). the data was transcribed, resulting in 171 utterances. each utterance was then coded by two raters for the presence of unesco’s seven global competences: lifelong learning, self-agency, interactively using diverse tools and resources, interacting with others, interacting in and with the world, trans-disciplinarity, and multi-literateness. the two raters came to an agreement on the coding through a process of social moderation (frederiksen et al., 1998; herrenkohl & cornelius, 2013). table 1 contains the micro-competences as well as sample utterances from the data corresponding to each macro competence. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 espino, d.p., et al. analysis of u.s., kenyan, and finnish discourse patterns in a cross-cultural digital makerspace learning community through the ibe-unesco global competences framework 90 table 1. macroand micro-competencies with corresponding sample utterances from the meet-up data macro-competence micro-competences sample utterance from transcript data lifelong learning curiosity, creativity, critical thinking i like how you used voice over; i don’t know how to do that but i would like to incorporate it, so maybe one day you could show me how to do that. (u.s. participant) self-agency initiative/drive/motivation, endurance/grit/resilience, responsibility the reason i’m proud of that video in particular is it was like the first script i wrote that we actually got it all done together and it actually made it to youtube, so that was a very proud moment when i saw it was up on the site and it was being shared and liked. (u.s. participant) interactively using diverse tools and resources impactful use of resources, efficient use of resources, responsible consumption my video is about an eggshell and how we should make use of it because it is useful. it is used to cure many diseases such as gastric health… it helps the bone marrow produce healthier blood cells and also it contains calcium that helps lower high blood pressure. (kenyan participant) interacting with others teamwork, collaboration, negotiation about my group video kind of project… so how can i talk with other people in there because i have written something in there but is there some kind of chat box or something where i can talk to other people in my team? (finnish participant) interacting in and with the world being local and global, balancing rights with privileges, balancing freedoms with respect it was really great meeting you all and i think this is a really good opportunity for kids like us to connect with other people who share the same interests as us around the world, and um yeah, i’m looking forward to seeing all the videos you make. (u.s. participant) trans-disciplinarity stem, humanities, social sciences i know for stem, at least when it comes to math, a lot of people tend to be afraid of math or not want to deal with math because they find it difficult or like boring, but this video showed an application in a way that makes you want to watch. like, i could see myself finding that video and like sitting and watching and thinking aw, that’s really cool. (u.s. participant) multi-literateness reading & writing, numeracy, digital there’s a software, a mathematics software that’s called geogebra and i used it… [for] making a bicycle using mathematics, uh the mathematics concept, so i used the lines, tangents, circles, and so on to make a bicycle. (kenyan participant) research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 espino, d.p., et al. analysis of u.s., kenyan, and finnish discourse patterns in a cross-cultural digital makerspace learning community through the ibe-unesco global competences framework 91 epistemic network analysis (ena) was used to examine the connections made between the competences. a technique in quantitative ethnography, ena uses visualization and statistical techniques to identify meaningful patterns in discourse by analyzing the co-occurrences of constructs (shaffer, 2017). ena is grounded in epistemic network theory, which posits that “learning can be characterized by the structure of connections that students make among elements of authentic practice” (shaffer & ruis, 2017, p. 182). ena utilizes a moving stanza window to identify linkages between constructs within the recent temporal context. for this analysis, a moving stanza window of five lines was used. furthermore, the data was segmented into six time periods, corresponding to variations in the meet-up’s discourse. an overview of each segment is provided in table 2. table 2. overview of the meet-up data segmentation. segment type description no. of lines 1 introduction participants introduce one another. 18 2 presentation & feedback u.s. participant shares a project about a science street fair. 35 3 presentation & feedback kenyan participant shares a project about using geogebra. 19 4 presentation & feedback kenyan participant shares a project about the alternative uses of eggshells. 25 5 general discussion all participants reflect on their learning from the presentations. 44 6 closing closing comments and two participants coordinate a future project. 30 results figure 1 presents the projected points of each utterance on the two-dimensional ena space, which accounts for 41.3% of the variance in the data. the blue dots represent the projected points for the utterances spoken by student participants from the u.s., while the purple and green dots are those of students from kenya and finland, respectively. the mean location of each group is indicated by the square of the same color, with the surrounding box signifying the corresponding 95% confidence intervals. figure 1. projected points, mean location, and 95% confidence intervals for the utterances of u.s. (blue), kenyan (purple), and finnish (green) participants. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 espino, d.p., et al. analysis of u.s., kenyan, and finnish discourse patterns in a cross-cultural digital makerspace learning community through the ibe-unesco global competences framework 92 figure 2 presents the cumulative mean epistemic network models of the meet-up discourse disaggregated by time segments and the countries of the participants. in the network models, the nodes of the network represent constructs (codes) and the thickness of the edges indicate the relative frequency of co-occurrence—or connection—between them. thicker edges indicate stronger connections between constructs. each successive model in the figure represents an aggregation of the connections made in the discourse up to that segment. the final network models are reflective of the average discourse patterns displayed by each group during the entire meet-up. in segment 1, no significant connections were visible between the seven competencies for all participant groups. segment 2 included a presentation about a science street fair by a participant from the u.s. the u.s. participants showed a strong connection between multiliterateness and interacting in and with the world. these two competences were also moderately linked to self-agency. meanwhile, the finnish participant showed thick connections between lifelong learning, self-agency and multi-literateness. the kenyan student participants demonstrated connections between multi-literateness and self-agency. the third time segment comprises a presentation by a kenyan student on using geogebra in a math video, as well as a follow-up discussion. here, a connection between multi-literateness and trans-disciplinary developed for the kenyan participants. for the u.s. participants, a new connection was seen emerging between trans-disciplinarity and lifelong learning. the network for the finnish participant remained the same. in segment 4, a video presentation on the alternative uses for eggshells was delivered by a kenyan participant and followed by feedback from other students. for the kenyan participants, a more complex ena model emerged, with relatively strong connections made between interactively using diverse tools and resources and three constructs: trans-disciplinarity, selfagency, and interacting with others. linkages between interacting with others and multiliterateness, as well as self-agency and trans-disciplinarity, were also seen. the discourse pattern of the u.s. participants also added a strong connection between interacting with others and lifelong learning. for the finnish participant, a new connection was seen between interactively using diverse tools and resources and self-agency. during the general discussion in segment 5, it can be seen that the u.s. and finnish students were able to expand upon their existing epistemic networks, similar to that of the kenyan participants in segment 4. for students in the u.s., strong connections emerged between interacting with others and both interactively using diverse tools and resources and selfagency, as well as self-agency and trans-disciplinarity. for the finnish participant, a prominent new connection was seen between interacting with others and interacting in and with the world, as well as between interactively using diverse tools and resources and multiliterateness. for the kenyan students, the network model remained relatively consistent from the previous segment. in the final segment, while some connections became thicker (such as research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 espino, d.p., et al. analysis of u.s., kenyan, and finnish discourse patterns in a cross-cultural digital makerspace learning community through the ibe-unesco global competences framework 93 interacting with others and self-agency for the finnish participant), there were no significant changes to be seen in the networks of the three groups. u.s. participants kenyan participants finnish participant 1 2 3 4 5 6 figure 2. cumulative mean epistemic network models by time segment and country research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 espino, d.p., et al. analysis of u.s., kenyan, and finnish discourse patterns in a cross-cultural digital makerspace learning community through the ibe-unesco global competences framework 94 discussion across the online meet-up between the u.s., kenyan, and finnish participants, the ena models show how the presenter topics and competences are subsequently built on and reflected by competences demonstrated by the other two sites. after presenting in segments 3 and 4, the kenyan students helped u.s. students build trans-disciplinarity and the finnish student build competency around diverse tools and resources. instead of solely examining the dialogue for evidence of transactive discourse, there is a transactive pattern observed in the ena models for each site as the time segment progresses. most of the key activity occurred between segments 2-5, reviewed below. segment 2 the second segment began with a participant from the u.s. sharing a video about a science street fair. following a question from the facilitator on whether the participant was involved in the editing of the video, a discussion ensued around the topic of media production and the use of video editing software. this topic closely related to digital literacy and was therefore representative of the competence multi-literateness. in response to the question, the american participant acknowledged a lower level of proficiency in video editing when compared to other roles in filmmaking; however, they expressed interest and efforts in enhancing their skills. u.s. participant 1: was i involved in the editing process? no, not really. my strengths are filming or doing audio or writing or being a talent. editing is kind of one of my weaker spots so i’m not really involved in editing, but i have been practicing so i can improve. participants from kenya and finland built on this statement around media making, especially by highlighting their own experiences. the kenyan participant mentioned their knowledge of a specific video editing software, while the finnish participant shared both the enjoyable and difficult elements of video production. kenyan participant 1: actually, i’ve been making videos. i started making videos in the beginning of the year and i’ve been using camtasia to edit. finnish participant: … i really like to make scripts and talk to people in videos, and i also like to edit. but in the editing process, it’s long and hard so i get frustrated. i want the video to be good so it takes time, and sometimes it’s very boring, but i really like it, though… i like to come up with different ideas and i also like to plan things, like how do i edit this and how do i explain it and stuff like that, so it’s fun, yeah. segment 3 the conversation in the third segment focused on the competence of trans-disciplinarity, as connections were demonstrated by the u.s. and kenyan participants, prompted by a video research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 espino, d.p., et al. analysis of u.s., kenyan, and finnish discourse patterns in a cross-cultural digital makerspace learning community through the ibe-unesco global competences framework 95 about an online app that combines algebraic equations with geometric shapes. using the program, a kenyan student created a drawing of a bicycle by graphing lines, circles, and other shapes on a cartesian coordinate system. a student from the u.s. found it interesting that the project was able to link mathematical concepts to everyday objects. kenyan participant 2: … i thought of an application of mathematics, and looking at a bicycle i saw the segments, which are probably mathematics concepts—the tires are the circles and so on, so i decided to try a bicycle and it worked. u.s. participant 1: … for stem, at least when it comes to math, a lot of people tend to be afraid of math or not want to deal with math because they find it difficult or like boring. but this video showed an application in a way that makes you want to watch, like, i could see myself finding that video and like sitting and watching and thinking, aw that’s really cool, i’d like to learn how to do that. there was limited participation by the finnish participant, and therefore no change was visible in connections between competences. segment 4 in the fourth segment of this meet-up, a kenyan participant gave a video presentation on alternative uses for eggshells. the other participants in the meet-up then gave responses and feedback to the presenter. a u.s. participant was impressed by the kenyan participant’s technological skills in making the presentation, noting that they “liked how [they] did voiceover,” which was a skill they hadn’t yet learned. thus, the u.s. participant was able to identify a skill that they had not yet learned but wanted to (lifelong learning) and provided positive feedback to the kenyan participant’s application of said skill (interacting with others). the finnish participant then reflected on the specific content of the eggshell presentation and was amazed by novel uses of eggshells, saying that the presentation was a “video about a thing which [i] thought was a piece of garbage but it wasn’t.” compared to the earlier segments of this meet-up, the participants formed stronger connections between competences as they watched each other’s presentations and ideas. one u.s. participant’s response to the eggshell video gave rise to a developing connection between lifelong learning and interacting with others. the finnish participant’s response connected self-agency with interactively using diverse tools and resources as they acknowledged the usefulness of the presentation video, the novelty of its concepts, and the technology used to create the video. finnish participant: ... i thought the video was amazing. there were good graphics, good text, everything was perfect and i really liked the voiceover as well. there were a lot of beauty tips, which were awesome. i have to try them myself... it’s very fun to see that you can make a video about the thing you are throwing… away all the time but you don’t think of it as a useful research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 espino, d.p., et al. analysis of u.s., kenyan, and finnish discourse patterns in a cross-cultural digital makerspace learning community through the ibe-unesco global competences framework 96 item or anything like that, so it’s very fun to see you make a video about a thing which you thought was piece of garbage but it wasn’t. it was very awesome to see that. thank you for sharing that video, it was awesome. since a kenyan participant was presenting in this time segment, they discussed the video project that they created and received responses by the u.s. and finnish participants. thus, the kenyan participants demonstrated several new strong connections, including interactively using diverse tools and resources with self-agency, trans-disciplinarity, and interacting with others. segment 5 in this segment, all participants shared closing thoughts on the overall meet-up and ideas of video making around stem subject matters. the u.s. and finnish participants demonstrated very similar ena models, which were more developed as a result of segment 4. in these models, the u.s. participants developed a richer link between self-agency and both trans-disciplinarity and interacting with others, as well as between interactively using diverse tools and resources and interacting with others. the finnish participant demonstrated strong connections between interacting with others and interacting with the world, as well as between interactively using diverse tools and resources and multi-literateness. an example of this took place when the finnish participant complimented the eggshell presentation in segment 4: finnish participant: well, i actually really love to see other people around the world because i’m very tired of finnish people… so it’s very nice to meet you all and i would really like to make a video of me trying those eggshell things, so is it okay, [kenyan participant 2], if i’m doing that kind of video, i can share it in the next meeting or something like that... can i do it? another example of the strong connections between interacting with others and self-agency took place later when the u.s. participant described their encouragement to make math videos because of the presentation in segment 3: u.s. participant 1: it was nice meeting you all and seeing your videos and hearing your kind of thoughts and comments; now i’m more encouraged i think to make like the math video. i really like that one so now i’m not gonna like shy away from touching on math topics because i’m afraid people won’t like them, because i can see now there’s a way to make it interesting and so that people would want to watch it. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 espino, d.p., et al. analysis of u.s., kenyan, and finnish discourse patterns in a cross-cultural digital makerspace learning community through the ibe-unesco global competences framework 97 table 3. cumulative summary of strongest connections between competences exhibited in the epistemic network models by time segment and country segment u.s. participants kenyan participants finnish participant 2  multi-literateness – interacting with the world  multi-literateness – self-agency  multi-literateness – lifelong learning  self-agency – multiliterateness  self-agency – lifelong learning 3  multi-literateness – interacting with the world  lifelong learning – transdisciplinarity  multi-literateness – self-agency  multi-literateness – transdisciplinarity  multi-literateness – lifelong learning  self-agency – multiliterateness  self-agency – lifelong learning 4  multi-literateness – interacting with the world  lifelong learning – transdisciplinarity  lifelong learning – interacting with others  multi-literateness – self-agency  multi-literateness – transdisciplinarity  interactively using diverse tools and resources – interacting with others  interactively using diverse tools and resources – transdisciplinarity  interactively using diverse tools and resources – self-agency  self-agency – trans-disciplinarity  multi-literateness – interacting with others  multi-literateness – lifelong learning  self-agency – multiliterateness  self-agency – lifelong learning  interactively using diverse tools and resources – selfagency 5  multi-literateness – interacting with the world  lifelong learning – transdisciplinarity  lifelong learning – interacting with others  self-agency – transdisciplinarity  self-agency – interacting with others  interactively using diverse tools and resources – interacting with others  multi-literateness – self-agency  multi-literateness – transdisciplinarity  interactively using diverse tools and resources – interacting with others  interactively using diverse tools and resources – transdisciplinarity  interactively using diverse tools and resources – self-agency  self-agency – trans-disciplinarity  multi-literateness – interacting with others  multi-literateness – lifelong learning  self-agency – multiliterateness  self-agency – lifelong learning  interactively using diverse tools and resources – selfagency  interacting with others – interacting with the world  interactively using diverse tools and resources – multiliterateness note: new connections introduced in the time segment are in italics. conclusion when looking at dialogue alone, the building of logic and knowledge from participants may not be immediately evident. utilizing ena models allows for a visual representation of the competences developed over time in the meet-up, through aggregated models that build with each successive time segment. as the time segments progressed, the ena models became more complex, demonstrating more connections between competences. a text version of the research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 espino, d.p., et al. analysis of u.s., kenyan, and finnish discourse patterns in a cross-cultural digital makerspace learning community through the ibe-unesco global competences framework 98 progression of these connections seen in ena is summarized in table 3. in time segments 2 and 3, the ena models across the different participants remained visually similar. however, a key turning point was in segment 4, where a kenyan student's presentation reflected more connections between competencies and a more complex ena model. in the remaining time segments, the finnish and u.s. participants showed similarly complex ena models, which demonstrated that they built on and adopted similar knowledge and competences to their kenyan counterparts. in addition, the connections made between constructs such as interacting with others, interacting with the world, and interactively using diverse tools and resources address and develop global citizenship among participants. across the meet-up, participants helped each other develop key competences, as reflected by the ena models across time segments 2-6. ena models helped examine the overarching trend of transactivity that took place as participants exhibited global competences built on by preceding presentations shared during the meet-up. this progressive change in behavior with respect to global competencies supports the importance of considering this media making, boundary-crossing, collaborative environment in learning and building global competences. the project provides insight on how utilizing technology can support global competency development and, in turn, global citizenship. acknowledgements the authors gratefully acknowledge funding support from the u.s. national science foundation (award #1612824) for the work this paper reports. views appearing in this paper do not reflect those of the funding agency. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 espino, d.p., et al. analysis of u.s., kenyan, and finnish discourse patterns in a cross-cultural digital makerspace learning community through the ibe-unesco global competences framework 99 references berkowitz, m. w. (1980). the role of transactive discussion in moral development: the history of a six-year program of research, part i [and] part ii. v5 n2 sum 1980, 5(3), n3. berkowitz, m. w., & gibbs, j. c. (1983). measuring the developmental features of moral discussion. merrill-palmer quarterly, 24(4), 399-410. chi, m. t. (1997). quantifying qualitative analyses of verbal data: a practical guide. the journal of the learning sciences, 6(3), 271-315. joshi, m., & rosé, c. (2007). using transactivity in conversation for summarization of educational dialogue. retrieved from: https://www.isca-speech.org/ archive/slate_2007/papers/sle7_053.pdf marope, m. (2017). future competences for future generations. international bureau of education: in focus, 2. retrieved from: http://ibe-infocus.org/wpcontent/uploads/2018/03/in-focus-2017.pdf shaffer, d. w. (2017). quantitative ethnography. madison, wi: cathcart press. shaffer, d. w., & ruis, a. r. (2017). epistemic network analysis: a worked example of theory-based learning analytics. handbook of learning analytics, 175-187. teasley, s. d. (1997) talking about reasoning: how important is the peer in peer collaboration? in l. b. resnick, r. säljö, c. pontecorvo, & b. burge (eds.), discourse, tools and reasoning. nato asi series (series f: computer and systems sciences), vol 160. berlin: springer. united nations educational, scientific and cultural organization (unesco). (2016). educational 2030 incheon declaration and framework for action. retrieved from https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000245656 weinberger, a., & fischer, f. (2006). a framework to analyze argumentative knowledge construction in computer-supported collaborative learning. computers & education, 46(1), 71-95. https://www.isca-speech.org/%20archive/slate_2007/papers/sle7_053.pdf https://www.isca-speech.org/%20archive/slate_2007/papers/sle7_053.pdf https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000245656 research in social sciences and technology (ressat) e-issn: 2468-6891 1 learning with simulations: influence of a computer simulation with hands-on activities on students’ learning of the physics capacitors’ concepts fouad m. yehya1, aziz m. barbar2 & suzanne abourjeili3 abstract physics is a tough and challenging topic. facilitating the learning of physics requires an innovative and constructivist view of teaching that promotes an active learning environment and an effective implementation of educational technology. the purpose of the study is to investigate whether the use of computer simulations combined with hands-on activities are more effective than simulation alone to students´ learning of physics concepts. interactive computer simulation (crocodile simulation) was used to spread over the aim of this study. eighty-seven grade 11 learners from the scientific sections and two physics teachers from two different schools participated in the quantitative experimental study. this attempt assesses via posttest the progress in understanding the concepts charging/ discharging of capacitors after four periods of 200 minutes in two different scenarios: 1using only a computer simulation; 2 using computer simulation with hands-on activities. the results of both descriptive and inferential statistics show that the learners’ understanding of capacitors’ concepts were highly achieved when learners used the computer simulation combined with hands-on activities. the use of hands-on activities was identified as the major cause of this differentiation. keywords: computer simulation, hands-on activities, learning physics, charging/ discharging capacitors. introduction learning physics concepts are perceived as one of the toughest missions in the secondary schools (colletti, 2010). the difficulty in learning many of physics concepts is attributed to their abstract nature, complexity and its microscopic features that lead to various misconceptions (chen et al., 2013). research results show that learners’ misconceptions are comforting, persisting and highly resistant to change through traditional interventions. learners do not enter the classroom as blank states, but with inconsistent views with the scientific concepts that lead them not to understand situations and laboratory demonstrations in their courses. 1 dr. fouad yehya*, saint josef university, beirut, 17-5208 lebanon, fouad.yehya@net.usj.edu.lb 2 dr. aziz m. barbar, american university of science and technology, beirut, 16-6452 lebanon, abarbar@aust.edu,lb 3 dr. suzanne abou-rjeili, lebanese university, beirut, 17-5208 lebanon, suzanne.abourjeily@usj.edu.lb mailto:fouad.yehya@net.usj.edu.lb mailto:abarbar@aust.edu,lb mailto:suzanne.abourjeily@usj.edu.lb research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 1-29 although the capacitors concepts are important in physics learning, there is a lack of the studies that focus on the effects of teaching strategies on learners' understanding of these concepts. bilal and erol (2009) in an experimental study over 177 undergraduate students by means of an electricity concept test (ect) aimed to determine university learners’ conceptions about some electricity concepts showed that half of the learners have clear difficulties of understanding capacitor effects and capacitance. the study showed that the main conceptual students’ confusion is about inserting an insulator between two conductor parallel plates. many of learners believe that inserting an insulator between two conducting parallel plates prevents any current going through the circuit or from one plate to another. moreover, the results of ect revealed the evidence that the most common learners’ confusion that was determined about a basic rc circuit was the importance of the order of the elements in the circuit: the capacitor filled with charge flowing through one part of the circuit only. most of the studies have been described, with the aim of highlighting learners’ misconceptions. it is difficult to avoid misconceptions through general instruction (chen et al., 2013) and learning activities that have to be designed for conceptual change is a point that should be taken into consideration. in front of these difficulties related to the nature of concepts and the used learning strategies, there is no doubt that the following questions are very important to be raised by physics teachers and educators for improving science teaching and learning: can the use of different learning approaches and ict tools in education be a significant advantage to enhance learning for capacitors’ concepts? how can technological tools and hands-on materials be effectively used? the literature that is relevant to facilitate physics learning revealed the effectiveness of many learning design approaches and strategies for effective meaningful learning and improving learners’ understanding of physics concepts (carmichael et al., 2010; ma & nickerson, 2006; liu, 2006). many studies investigate the effectiveness of technology-use, hands-on approach, and combination of both on learners’ learning of science concepts (ekmekci & gulacar, 2015). both computer-based and hands-on activities can improve students’ understanding of science concepts (sarabando et al., 2016). thus, from one side, hands-on activities can play an effective role in learning physics concepts (zhang, 2018; zacharia et al., 2008). according to bulunuz (2012) hands-on approach can provide authentic learning experiences for learners. however, the effectiveness of handson approach should not be taken for granted (klahr et al., 2007). it should be a form of active learning in which learners think and discuss the concepts related to capacitor circuits and actively perform activities and away from the cookbook type of activities performed in yehya et al. traditional science classrooms. hands-on experience in which learners are just expected to follow the steps provided by a lab instructor or a textbook neglect important science teaching and learning principles (ekmekci & gulacar, 2015). from the second side, the evidence based on several experimental studies suggests that learning can be improved by integrating new technologies of information and communication (ict) (tarman & dev, 2018; salas-pilco & law, 2018), particularly computer simulations as a possible contribution on topics that learners find conceptually difficult in exploring them in more depth and interactive ways (sarabando et al., 2016). computer simulations as educational technology tools have become increasingly powerful and available to teachers in the past three decades (yehya et al., 2018; taher & khan, 2015; trundle & bell, 2010) and presently physics teachers can select from a wide range of computer simulations available through the internet. they are open learning environment and effective engaging tool that may support traditional instruction and teachers’ understanding to how student think about and learn the physics material and identify what students ask and response due to the communication with their peers (wieman et al., 2008). they offer an educational environment that aims to enhance teachers’ instructional potentialities and facilitate students’ active engagement (taher & khan, 2014; karamustafaoğlu, 2012). preceding studies have shown the plentiful benefits of computer simulations in facilitating teaching and learning and increasing learners’ capacities (sharma, 2015). many of these studies focused on the role of computer simulation on acquiring knowledge of the specific content and developing skills of questioning and reasoning (chang et al., 2008). according to rutten, joolingen & veen (2012) after a review for 17 studies categorized under the title “enhancement of traditional instruction using computer simulations” reported that traditional instruction and learners’ cognitive focus can be improved by using computer simulations. computer simulations improve motivation and creativity and create a challenging learning environment enhances teachers’ instructions and facilitate learners’ engagement (gill et al., 2014; karamustafaoğlu, 2012; gulbahar and guven, 2008; hockiko, 2009). additionally, computer simulations can replace the dangerous, delicate, expensive apparatus or materials that are impossible to be in physics classrooms (gill et al., 2014) such as processes inside nuclear reactors and mass spectrometers. they show what cannot ordinarily be visible (happened quickly, too slowly, not readily observed as the flow of electrons through circuit and the connection between the rate of this flow and the current). moreover, they are flexible to take lab anywhere and at any time and decrease lab spaces, time, requirement for research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 1-29 teacher assistant, need for equipment. (ratompomalala & bruillard, 2011; wieman et al., 2008; condie & munro, 2007; cox et al., 2003). moreover, computer simulations, in comparison with textbooks and lectures, offer a great variety of opportunities for teaching models and processes involving physics concepts (heard & aravind, 2010; mckagan et al., 2009; stern et al., 2008; wieman et al., 2008). they could be used complementary or alternative to other instructional tools in order to facilitate student understanding of physics concepts and improve their achievement as well as their attitudes towards these subjects (calik, 2013; karamustafaoğlu, 2012). they enable learners to experiment new and more constrictive pedagogies (taher & khan, 2014) and provide them with an exploratory learning environment where students will be able to generate hypotheses, design experiments, predict outcome, interpret data and reconsider hypotheses (hursen & asiksoy, 2015). furthermore, ekmekci & gulacar (2015) show that a combination of simulation and hands-on approaches is effective in learning. liu (2006), for example, studied the effects of a combination of hands-on and computer modeling activities, in chemistry, on student understanding of gas laws. the study showed that computer-based activities and hands-on activities were more effective when used in combination rather than separately in terms of understanding gas laws. the combination of these activities enhanced students’ understanding of the particulate and macroscopic representations of gases by giving them the opportunity to study gases not only at the macroscopic level, but also in the virtual space of the simulation where they are able to see beyond the physical world, invisible to naked eyes, and work directly at the atomic scale in an abstract model of the system. also zacharia, et al. (2008) indicated that experimenting with the combination of physical manipulations and virtual manipulations enhanced students' conceptual understanding of heat and temperature more than experimenting with physical manipulation alone. thus the combination between simulation and hands-on activities is more effective in learning than the use of simulation or hands-on approaches alone. to sum up, the literature supports the effectiveness of both simulation and combination of simulation and hands-on approaches in learning process. though, what is the extent of the relative effectiveness of the combination of simulation and hands-on activities versus computer simulation? in other words, is one approach more effective than the other in terms of learners’ learning for capacitors’ concepts outcomes and overcoming their difficulties and misconceptions? thus, this paper investigates if there is a difference between the effectiveness of the combination of simulation and hands-on activities and the use of simulation alone in terms of yehya et al. improving learners’ understanding of capacitors’ concepts and what affordances each approach might provide. aim of the study: the current paper aimed to compare the improvement in learners’ understanding for some capacitors’ concepts between experimental groups and control groups. the study compared twodifferent actions situated within a constructivist learning environment: learners of experimental groups learn by using the combinations of computer simulation and hands-on activities (cs+ha) and learners of control groups learn by using computer simulation (cs). the main research question was: are computer simulations combined with handson activities more effective than simulations alone in improving learners’ learning about the notions of capacitors? thus, based on the research question, the research’s dimensions will involve the integration of computer simulation with or without hands-on activities as independent variables while learning capacitors’ concepts as the dependent variables. to investigate the best implementation of the computer simulation in physics instructional setting in the context of the research question. it is hypothesized that: h1: learners, who apply simulations with hands-on activities, show significantly higher conceptual knowledge achievement in capacitors’ concepts than peers who only use simulations. method research design this study used a quantitative experimental approach to examine the difference between the use of simulation with hands-on activities and the use of simulation alone on learning the concepts of capacitors’ charging and discharging. the design of the study was shown in the table 1. table 1. study design lesson about charging and discharging of academic year participating teacher learners 2016/ 2017 teacher a section a (21learners) (e 1) research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 1-29 table 1 shows the participating for two teachers denoted by a and b and four groups from two secondary schools. the study was done in academic years 2016/2017, during the study of the chapter “capacitors” in grade 11 scientific section in lebanese secondary schools for four periods (200 minutes). during the lesson explanation, learners in each secondary school in both groups (control “c” and experimental “e”) were subjected to the same content and experimental activities and taught by the same teacher. the only difference between the participated groups is the way of conducting the activities. the control groups performed activities only manipulating with laboratory equipment where the experimental groups performed the same activities using laboratory equipment and the phet computer simulation. at the end of lesson, students were subjected to the same posttest to access their learning. the study did not give any consideration for pre-test to characterize learners’ pre-knowledge about capacitors’ concepts since these concepts are not discussed before in previous classes according to the lebanese curriculum. population and sampling the population that was considered in this study was the 11th grade learners in the scientific section of the lebanese secondary schools without gender discrimination. this experimental research involved the participation of two grade 11 secondary physics teachers, who teach two different 11th grade sections in their schools to remove the probability of different results between the experimental and the control groups due to the difference in teachers’ expertise and their style and to ascertain that the difference between the groups is due to the used treatments. in this context, purposive sampling process was used. several teachers were invited, from secondary schools that have two 11th grade sections in the geographical area where the researchers were based after they were informed about the study aims, and all aspects that should be taken into consideration during the learning process with students in the classroom and the laboratory. five teachers, from five secondary schools, accepted the invitation to participate in this research. two schools out of them were chosen by random sampling to form a sample of 87 learners, grouped in four groups taught by two physics teachers. so, each teacher capacitors (200 minutes) school 1 section b (22 learners) (c 1) teacher b school2 section a (23learners) (e 2) section b (21 learners) (c 2) posttest (30 minutes) yehya et al. taught two 11th grade classes denoted by (experimental e1 (21 learners) and control c1 (22 learners) and experimental e2 (23 learners) and control c2 (21 learners). learners in the participated groups were not selected by random sampling since they are already grouped into sections and it was not possible to redistribute them randomly for the different treatments. data collection tools 1. hands-on activities the employment of hands-on activities involved the use of many instruments as oscilloscope, capacitor box, switches, source of dc voltage, resistors and rheostat in the aim to find out the relationship between the physical quantities that affect the functioning of the capacitors in direct current (dc) electric circuits. 2. computer simulation a powerful feature for the computer simulation is its multiple representations that allow users to create, visualize, and interact with analytical and graphical representations of the studied phenomena. the computer crocodile interactive simulation was used to build the circuits needed. the computer simulation used in this study addresses the flexibility in circuit construction and measurements which is hard to be done practically with the experimental teaching of the concepts of charging and discharging which would involve practice with an oscilloscope. 3. interview data about how the lesson is conducted and how the activities were applied in the context of constructivism learning theory during the learning process was discussed with the participating teachers two weeks before instruction. the interview lasted an average duration of 60 minutes with each teacher. 4. posttest to assess students’ learning of the concepts of charging and discharging, the conceptual posttest test was directed. the exercises of the posttest were adopted from the research done by bilal & erol (2009) “investigating students’ conceptions of some electricity concepts” aimed determine university students’ conceptions about some electricity concepts and developed and refined by the researchers. the posttest used the items that were related to capacitors concepts, and the only modification done on these items was the replacement of the word “key” by “switch” to be aligned with the lebanese curriculum. the posttest questions research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 1-29 were formed of 2 sets (table 2). each set has one stem related to three exercises dealt with the capacitors’ concepts and integrated into the lebanese curriculum for the 11th grade. moreover, the posttest was examined by 30 11th grade learners who had not participated the study. the attained reliability using cronbach's alpha coefficient was 0.773 confirming that the used posttest was appropriate to measure precisely and consistently what it measures. table 2 posttest exercises set 1 use this stem to solve exercises: 1-1, 1-2 and 1-3. a parallel plate capacitor is formed by using the identical metallic plates a and b. the distance between the plates is d and the space between the plates is empty. the capacitor is connected to a battery by means of a key. 1-1 which one is correct relating to the amount of charge on the plates when the switch is closed? a) plate a has a positive charge and plate b has the same amount of negative charge. b) plate a has a negative charge and plate b has the same amount of positive charge. c) only plate b is charged negatively. d) none of the plates is charged. justify your answer: 1-2 what happens if the free space between the plates a and b is filled with a conducting matter when the key is closed? a) plate a has a positive charge and plate b has the same amount of negative charge. b) plate a has a negative charge and plate b has the same amount of positive charge. c) only plate b is charged negatively. d) none of the plates is charged. justify your answer: 1-3 the switch is closed a long time to fully charge the plates, then the switch is opened and a dielectric block is replaced between the plates. which one is correct relating to the capacitance? a) capacitance decreases to a certain level. b) capacitance increases. c) capacitance does not change d) capacitance decreases to zero. justify your answer: set 2: use the following stem to solve exercises 2-1, 2-2 and 2-3. yehya et al. the circuit shown is formed by using two identical lambs, l1 and l2, a capacitor, a switch and a battery of that internal resistance is negligible. 2-1 which lambs shine at the moment that the switch is closed? a) only lamb l1. b) only lamb l2. c) lamb l1 and l2. d) none. justify your answer: 2-2 after the key is closed and the capacitor is fully charged which lambs shine? a) only lamb l1. b) only lamb l2. c) lamb l1 and l2. d) none. justify your answer: 2-3 after the capacitor is fully charged, the battery is moved from the circuit and the circuit is reconnected with a wire. when switch is closed, which lambs(s) shine? a) only lamb l1. b) only lamb l2. c) l1 and l2. d) none. justify your answer: note 1. adopted from ‘’investigation students’ conceptions of some electricity concepts” by bilal & erol (2009) learners’ posttest answers were analyzed according to the criteria found in table 3. these criteria were applied to the justification that the learners provided in their answers. these answers were analyzed independently by the researcher and the two participated teachers obtaining in all cases a degree of agreement exceeding 95.0%. in situations where there was disagreement with the classification of the responses, the discrepancy was classified in the second level. table 3. criteria used to describe the conceptual understandings level criteria 3 answer that includes all the components of the validated answer 2 answer that shows some understanding of the concepts 1 answer incorrect or irrelevant, illogical, or an answer that is not clear, or blank answer research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 1-29 data collection the posttest was used as a regular formal graded test for learners by both teachers to consider it seriously. it was done the next week after the completion of the lesson for 30 min duration. the two participated groups in each school did the posttest at the same time. data analysis data was managed using statistical package for social sciences (spss v19). the descriptive statistics was used in summing the data including percentages, frequency, mean and standard deviation. moreover, the inferential statistical theory was used to ascertain the significant difference between the participated groups and make appropriate inferences concerning the utility of computer simulation in the 11th grade capacitor courses at lebanese secondary schools. findings the research main question was “are computer simulations combined with hands-on activities more effective, than simulations alone, in approving students’ learning about capacitors’ concepts? the following section revealed separately the results of the posttest exercises in the context of the research main question to come up finally with a discussion that examine the influence of a computer simulation with hands-on activities verses the only use of computer simulation on students’ learning of the physics concepts of charging and discharging of capacitors. the posttest, as mentioned before, is formed of two sets of exercises. set 1, examine learners’ understanding of charging two metallic plates. learners were asked to relate the amount of charges on the plates of the capacitor to the existence of metallic and dielectric materials between the plates. validated answers should include knowledge that the amount of positive charges equal to the amount of negative charges and the existence of dielectric material between the plates increases the capacitance of the capacitors. the exercises of set 2 were designed to investigate students’ understanding on current during the charging and discharging of the capacitor. students were asked what happens to the brightness of the lamps in different situations and if the order of the elements in the rc mattered. validated answers should include knowledge that the order of the elements are not mattered with the current in the circuit. yehya et al. scores of the used posttest of the experimental group were compared to the scores of the control group in each of the two schools, and statistical results were revealed in the coming sections for the two participated schools. all the results were revealed and discussed separately in the coming section. 1. comparing the learners’ answering level between the experimental and control groups in each school learners’ level of answering in each school by teachers a and b for each exercise in set 1 (exercises1-1, 1-2 and 1-3) and set 2 (exercises 2-1, 2-2 and 2-3) were revealed by the bar charts of figure 1, where the cross tabulation for the level of answering in each school were shown in appendix a. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 1-29 yehya et al. figure 1: compare learners' answering between participated groups bar charts reveal that in all the exercises of the posttest, and in both participated schools, the incorrect answers of the learners of the experimental groups are less than the incorrect answers of the learners of the control group. also, the completely validated correct answers submitted by the learners of the experimental group are much more than the validated correct answers submitted by the learners of the control group. thus, the overall posttest’s findings indicate that ensuing to learners’ participating in respective treatments by same teacher, the majority of learners in experimental group in both participated schools showed scientifically better understanding for the concepts of the distribution of charges in the plates of the capacitors, the effect of introducing different kinds of materials between the plates on the amount of charges and the concept of charging and discharging than learners of control group. furthermore, table 4 provides a summary of the frequencies in percentage for the three levels of understanding of all the exercises in the posttest for all the learners of teachers a and b. table 4. frequency in percentage for the three levels of understanding the charging and discharging capacitors concepts exercises level teacher a (school 1) teacher b (school 2) experimental 1 control 1 experimental 2 control 2 1-1 3 57.1 31.8 56.5 28.5 2 28.5 31.8 30.4 33.3 1 14.2 36.3 13 38 1-2 3 52.3 27.2 52.1 23.8 2 38 40.9 39.1 38 1 9.5 31.8 8.6 38 research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 1-29 1-3 3 52.3 27.2 52.1 23.8 2 42.8 50 43.4 47.6 1 4.7 22.7 4.5 28.5 2-1 3 38 22.7 34.7 28.5 2 57.1 45.4 60.8 42.8 1 4.7 31.8 4.3 28.5 2-2 3 23.8 18.1 30.4 14.2 2 66.6 45.4 60.8 42.8 1 9.5 36.3 8.6 42.8 2-3 3 66.6 31.8 60.8 33.3 2 19 27.2 26 28.5 1 14.2 40.9 13.6 38 all the results highlighted that the learners of the experimental groups in both schools showed more correct answers that includes all the components of the validated answer than the learners of the control group (level 3 answers, see table 4). more than 52% of the learners of the experimental verses 25% of the learners of the control group answered the questions of set 1 (1-1, 1-2 and 1-3) correctly with full explanation. also, 36% of the learners of the experimental group verses 25% of the learners of the control group provide a full explanation for exercise 2-1, 27% of the learners of the experimental group verses 16.2% of the learners of the control group provide a full explanation for exercise 2-2 and 63% of the learners of the experimental group verses 32% of the learners of the control group provide a full explanation for exercise 2-3. furthermore, learners of both groups showed approximately the same percentages in showing some understanding of the concepts (level 2 answers, see table 4). thus, results reveal that learners of the experimental groups who integrate simulation with hands-on activities have better conceptual understanding of capacitors’ concepts than the learners of the control groups who use simulation alone. 2. comparing the learners’ mean score between the participated groups comparing the mean score and the standard deviation for the posttest for both groups can be a lens that can magnify learners’ recognizing for the tested concepts. accordingly, the mean can highlight the difference in learners’ abilities to retain knowledge in the posttest exercise between the two participated groups. the mean of scores m and the standard deviation sd for the whole posttest for both experimental and control groups were calculated and showed in the table below (table 5). yehya et al. table 5. compare the means between the participating groups in the posttest report final grade group type mean std. deviation n experimental 13.82 3.021 44 control 9.43 4.043 42 total 11.67 4.168 86 the analyses of the results were based on the following criteria: the score of mean m greater than 12 (m> 12) was considered as a good score the score of mean m between 9 and 12 (9 < m < 12) was considered as an acceptable score the score of mean m between 6 than 9 (6 < m < 9) was considered as a low score the score of mean m less than 6 (m< 6) was considered as very low score. results revealed clearly that the mean of the scores of the experimental group in the whole posttest was m= 13.8 with a standard deviation sd = 3 that were considered as good score. whereas the mean of the scores of the control group was m= 9.4 with sd = 4 that were considered as an acceptable score. the result indicated that the mean difference between the mean of the experimental group from the mean of the control group is 4.4. additionally, the independent samples t-test (table 6) was conducted to examine if the difference in the mean of the scores was significant in validating the stated hypotheses between the control and experimental groups after the treatment. it provided that the p-value of levene's test for homogeneity of variances was f (1,84) = 6.5, p = 0.012. thus, ttest assuming nonequal variances was calculated. results of “ttest for equal variance not assumed” showed that there is a significant difference at the 5% level in students’ grades means of the experimental group compared the that in the control group, t (75.8) =5.6, p= 0.001 (p < 0.05) in the participated schools on a 95% confidence interval. thus, there is a significant impact of the combination of computer simulation and hands-on activity on conceptual knowledge achievement in capacitors of the experimental group compared to that of control group in the participated schools. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 1-29 table 6: independent t test to examine the mean difference between the participated groups for the participating schools independent samples test levene's test for equality of variances t-test for equality of means f sig. t df sig. (2tailed) mean difference std. error difference 95% confidence interval of the difference lower upper final grade equal variances assumed 6.576 .012 5.721 84 .000 4.390 .767 2.864 5.916 equal variances not assumed 5.682 75.817 .000 4.390 .772 2.851 5.928 thus, these results exposed that learners of the experimental group attained better retention and recognition than that of the control group. these results suggest that when learners used simulation with hands-on activities, they have better recognition for the charging and discharging capacitors concepts than who used simulation only. discussions, conclusion and implications the main concern of this study is to compare between the effectiveness of the use of computer simulation with hands-on activities and the use of computer simulation alone on learning some capacitors’ concepts. because the result is dynamic to be applied in the context of the widespread of computer simulation in academic area, this study was commenced. in the context of the research question, the study focused on comparing learners’ achievement in different ways of simulation usage to verify the research hypothesis. the research hypothesized that learners who apply simulations with hands-on activities show significantly higher conceptual knowledge achievement in capacitors’ concepts than peers who only use simulations. learners’ different achievement for some concepts of capacitors for the two treatment groups (control group using simulation alone and experimental group using simulation with yehya et al. hands-on activities) was examined using posttest adopted from a conceptual test named “electricity concepts test (ect)”. the findings of this study indicate, in general, that computer simulations are effective learning tools. the use of the computer simulation helps learners to learn the physics concepts of capacitors, either used alone or combined with hands-on activities. these findings are consistent with the previous research of rutten et al. (2012), smetana & bell (2012), trundle & bell (2010), sahin (2006) and many others. moreover, the posttest results demonstrated that learners who use simulation combined with hands-on activities of the experimental group had better conceptual understanding and mastery to provide answers that include all the validation components of capacitors’ concepts than the learners of the control group. the analysis of the results revealed that the mean score of the learners who use simulation alone of the experimental group in the posttest is much better than that of the learners of the control group. additionally, the independent t test also indicated that there was a significance difference between the experimental group and the control group in the both participated schools. accordingly, the posttest results of this study confirm that the efficacy of computer simulations depends on its combinations with the hands-on activities. the combination of simulation with hands-on activities enables learners to experiment with new and more constrictive pedagogies and provide them with an exploratory learning environment where they will be able to learn different physics concepts (hursen & asiksoy, 2015) and overcome scientifically incorrect conceptions about the capacitors’ concepts. thus, simulations become more effective when its use was integrated with hands-on activities. this result contradicts the results of sarabando et al. (2016) who proved that the use of only computer simulation was more effective than the computer simulation used together with hands-on activities. however, this result aligns with the finding by taher and khan (2014) who revealed that simulation by itself is not very effective in promoting student learning; it becomes effective when it is followed by hands –on activities. thus, it was found that simulation usage with hands-on activities by physics teachers may promote leaners conceptual understanding of some capacitors’ concepts than the use of simulation alone. consequently, improving learners’ physics learning highly recommends that the use of computer simulation alone can be replaced by combinational computer simulation and hands–on activities instructional strategy. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 1-29 limitation of the study: in any case, we should note that the achievement obtained by learners in this study may be considered quite reasonable taking in consideration the documented difficulties in learning the capacitors’ concepts as mentioned in the introduction. the implication of this research for educators and educational researchers is that the combinational computer simulation and hands-on activities as instructional strategy can improve students’ understanding about the capacitors’ concepts. despite this high expectation for combinational computer simulation and hands–on activities as instructional strategy, it should be noted that we cannot guarantee an overall conclusion about its effectiveness. the results from this experimental research are limited because they are based on just one topic (capacitors) and the usage of one interactive computer simulation and this limits the research results. hence, it is recommended that future studies should be conducted to validate the findings of the current study by incorporating a larger sample size, longer implementation period and other physics topics. references bilal, e., & erol, m. 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(2018). editorial: learning transformation through innovation and sustainability in educational practices. research in social sciences and technology, 3(1), i-ii. retrieved from http://ressat.org/index.php/ressat/article/view/363 trundle, k. c., & bell, r. l. (2010). the use of a computer simulation to promote conceptual change: a quasi-experimental study. computers & education, 54(4), 1078-1088. wieman, c. e., perkins, k. k., & adams, w. k. (2008). oersted medal lecture 2007: interactive simulations for teaching physics: what works, what doesn’t, and why. zacharia, z. c., olympiou, g., & papaevripidou, m. (2008). effects of experimenting with physical and virtual manipulatives on students' conceptual understanding in heat and temperature. journal of research in science teaching: the official journal of the national association for research in science teaching, 45(9), 1021-1035. yehya, f., barbar, a., & rjeily, s. a. (2018). diagnosing the barriers for integrating educational technology in physics courses in lebanese secondary schools. research in social sciences and technology, 3(2), 14-39. zhang, l. (2018). withholding answers during hands-on scientific investigations? comparing effects on developing students’ scientific knowledge, reasoning, and application. international journal of science education, 40(4), 459-469. http://ressat.org/index.php/ressat/article/view/363 yehya et al. appendices appendix a the cross tabulation for the level of answering in each school by spss: group type * set 1, e1-1 * teacher crosstabulation count teacher set 1, e1-1 total incorrect some understanding of the concept all the components of validated answer teacher a group type experimental 3 6 12 21 control 8 7 7 22 total 11 13 19 43 teacher b group type experimental 3 7 13 23 control 8 7 6 21 total 11 14 19 44 total group type experimental 6 13 25 44 control 16 14 13 43 total 22 27 38 87 group type * set 1, e1-2 * teacher crosstabulation count teacher set 1, e1-2 total incorrect some understanding of the concept all the components of validated answer teacher a group type experimental 2 8 11 21 control 7 9 6 22 total 9 17 17 43 teacher b group type experimental 2 9 12 23 control 8 8 5 21 total 10 17 17 44 total group type experimental 4 17 23 44 control 15 17 11 43 total 19 34 34 87 group type * set 1, e1-3 * teacher crosstabulation count teacher set 1, e1-3 total research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 1-29 incorrect some understandin g of the concept all the components of validated answer teacher a group type experimenta l 1 9 11 21 control 5 11 6 22 total 6 20 17 43 teacher b group type experimenta l 1 10 12 23 control 6 10 5 21 total 7 20 17 44 total group type experimenta l 2 19 23 44 control 11 21 11 43 total 13 40 34 87 group type * set 2, e2-1 * teacher crosstabulation count teacher set 2, e2-1 total incorrect some understandin g of the concept all the components of validated answer teacher a group type experimenta l 1 12 8 21 control 7 10 5 22 total 8 22 13 43 teacher b group type experimenta l 1 14 8 23 control 6 9 6 21 total 7 23 14 44 total group type experimenta l 2 26 16 44 control 13 19 11 43 total 15 45 27 87 group type * set 2, e2-2 * teacher crosstabulation yehya et al. count teacher set 2, e2-2 total incorrect some understandin g of the concept all the components of validated answer teacher a group type experimenta l 2 14 5 21 control 8 10 4 22 total 10 24 9 43 teacher b group type experimenta l 2 14 7 23 control 9 9 3 21 total 11 23 10 44 total group type experimenta l 4 28 12 44 control 17 19 7 43 total 21 47 19 87 group type * set 2, e2-3 * teacher crosstabulation count teacher set 2, e2-3 total incorrect some understandin g of the concept all the components of validated answer teacher a group type experimenta l 3 4 14 21 control 9 6 7 22 total 12 10 21 43 teacher b group type experimenta l 3 6 14 23 control 8 6 7 21 total 11 12 21 44 total group type experimenta l 6 10 28 44 control 17 12 14 43 total 23 22 42 87 research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 1-29 tables and figures tables table 1: study design table 2: posttest exercises adopted from ‘’investigation students’ conceptions of some electricity concepts” by bilal & erol (2009) set 1 use this stem to solve exercises: 1-1, 1-2 and 1-3. a parallel plate capacitor is formed by using the identical metallic plates a and b. the distance between the plates is d and the space between the plates is empty. the capacitor is connected to a battery by means of a key. 1-4 which one is correct relating to the amount of charge on the plates when the switch is closed? a) plate a has a positive charge and plate b has the same amount of negative charge. b) plate a has a negative charge and plate b has the same amount of positive charge. c) only plate b is charged negatively. d) none of the plates is charged. justify your answer: 1-5 what happens if the free space between the plates a and b is filled with a conducting matter when the key is closed? a) plate a has a positive charge and plate b has the same amount of negative charge. b) plate a has a negative charge and plate b has the same amount of positive charge. lesson about charging and discharging of capacitors (200 minutes) academic year participating teacher learners 2016/ 2017 teacher a school 1 section a (21learners) (e 1) section b (22 learners) (c 1) teacher b school2 section a (23learners) (e 2) section b (21 learners) (c 2) posttest (30 minutes) yehya et al. c) only plate b is charged negatively. d) none of the plates is charged. justify your answer: 1-6 the switch is closed a long time to fully charge the plates then the switch is opened and a dielectric block is replaced between the plates. which one is correct relating to the capacitance? a) capacitance decreases to a certain level. b) capacitance increases. c) capacitance does not change d) capacitance decreases to zero. justify your answer: set 2: use the following stem to solve exercises 2-1, 2-2 and 2-3. the circuit shown is formed by using two identical lambs, l1 and l2, a capacitor, a switch and a battery of that internal resistance is negligible. 2-1 which lambs shine at the moment that the switch is closed? a) only lamb l1. b) only lamb l2. c) lamb l1 and l2. d) none. justify your answer: 2-2 after the key is closed and the capacitor is fully charged which lambs shine? a) only lamb l1. b) only lamb l2. c) lamb l1 and l2. d) none. justify your answer: 2-3 after the capacitor is fully charged, the battery is moved from the circuit and the circuit is reconnected with a wire. when switch is closed, which lambs(s) shine? a) only lamb l1. b) only lamb l2. c) l1 and l2. d) none. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 1-29 justify your answer: table 3: criteria used to describe the conceptual understandings level criteria 3 answer that includes all the components of the validated answer 2 answer that shows some understanding of the concepts 1 answer incorrect or irrelevant, illogical, or a answer that is not clear, or blank answer table 7: frequency in percentage for the three levels of understanding the charging and discharging capacitors concepts exercises level teacher a (school 1) teacher b (school 2) experimental 1 control 1 experimental 2 control 2 1-1 3 57.1 31.8 56.5 28.5 2 28.5 31.8 30.4 33.3 1 14.2 36.3 13 38 1-2 3 52.3 27.2 52.1 23.8 2 38 40.9 39.1 38 1 9.5 31.8 8.6 38 1-3 3 52.3 27.2 52.1 23.8 2 42.8 50 43.4 47.6 1 4.7 22.7 4.5 28.5 2-1 3 38 22.7 34.7 28.5 2 57.1 45.4 60.8 42.8 1 4.7 31.8 4.3 28.5 2-2 3 23.8 18.1 30.4 14.2 2 66.6 45.4 60.8 42.8 1 9.5 36.3 8.6 42.8 2-3 3 66.6 31.8 60.8 33.3 2 19 27.2 26 28.5 1 14.2 40.9 13.6 38 table 5: compare the means between the participating groups in the posttest report final grade group type mean std. deviation n experimental 13.82 3.021 44 control 9.43 4.043 42 total 11.67 4.168 86 yehya et al. table 6: independent t test to examine the mean difference between the participated groups for the participating schools independent samples test levene's test for equality of variances t-test for equality of means f sig. t df sig. (2tailed) mean difference std. error difference 95% confidence interval of the difference lower upper final grade equal variances assumed 6.576 .012 5.721 84 .000 4.390 .767 2.864 5.916 equal variances not assumed 5.682 75.817 .000 4.390 .772 2.851 5.928 figures: research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2019: 4 (1), 1-29 yehya et al. figure 1: compare learners' answering between participated groups research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 patimo, d.m. & lucero, m.b.a., predictors of success in advance higher education: a case in northwest samar state university, philippines research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 40 predictors of success in advance higher education: a case in northwest samar state university, philippines donald m. patimo* northwest samar state university, calbayog, philippines ma. bernadette a. lucero northwest samar state university, calbayog, philippines *corresponding author: donald.patimo@nwssu.edu.ph received : 2020-11-08 revised : 2021-03-12 accepted : 2021-04-29 how to cite this paper: patimo, d.m. & lucero, m. b. a. (2021). predictors of success in advance higher education: a case in northwest samar state university, philippines. research in social sciences and technology, 6 (1), 40-52. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.3 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). abstract teachers play a significant role in the preparation of our youth as they make important decisions about education, work, and life. existing studies on the correlations between teaching proficiency and academic performance of the students are primarily limited to elementary, secondary, and tertiary levels. considering the big difference between advance higher education and other educational levels, there is a need to explore the relationship of the teaching proficiency to the academic performance of the students in advance higher education. this study made use of the descriptive-correlation research design. survey questionnaires were distributed to all advance higher education faculty members and students from school years 2015 to 2017 at northwest samar state university. statistical tools like frequency and percentage distribution, means, standard deviations, and regression analysis were used for the analysis of the data. results showed that most of the advance higher education faculty members are male, married, doctorate holders, professionals, researchoriented, very satisfactory performers, and possess good financial status. the best predictor of the academic performance of the advance higher education students is the work experience of the faculty members. keywords: teaching proficiency, academic performance, graduate education 10.46303/ressat.2021.3 mailto:donald.patimo@nwssu.edu.ph https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.3 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 patimo, d.m. & lucero, m.b.a., predictors of success in advance higher education: a case in northwest samar state university, philippines research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 41 introduction teachers play a significant role in the preparation of our youth as they make important decisions about education, work, and life. clarke et al (2010) observed that the teachers’ appreciation of the subject matter involved can directly influence the learning opportunities of the students. denessen et al (2015) added that female teachers showed less positive attitudes towards teaching than male teachers which contributes to the less positive attitude of their students. hamilton et al (2015) postulated that a teacher has more influence compare to any other school factors, including leadership, services, and facilities. their research also suggested that the individual and family characteristics may have great impact on student achievement when compared with teachers. another interesting finding on their study was the best way to assess teacher’s effectiveness by looking at their work performance. in another study, the teacher’s conferences and workshops attended, qualification, and published papers are not related to teaching performance (hashmi et al, 2011). on the other hand, bulut and yilmaz (2014) found a meaningful correlation between math teachers’ democratic conduct in the students’ learning process and success in mathematics. in addition, morteza and khademi (2015) suggested that teachers’ sources of pedagogical beliefs and teaching experiences were predictors of the learners’ outcomes. existing studies such as mentioned above on the correlations between teaching proficiency and academic performance of the students are primarily limited to elementary, secondary, and tertiary levels. considering the big difference between advance higher education and other educational levels, there is a need to explore the relationship of the teaching proficiency to the academic performance of the students in advance higher education. furthermore, graduate work has varied activities from theories to the conduct of researches and as such gwen (2011) enumerated points of difference between graduate education and other levels of education. according to him, graduate programs are advanced and highly specialized than the other levels of education in the country. elementary, secondary, and tertiary classes are usually larger and less individualized compared to the individual students or small groups work closely supervised with professors in graduate studies. graduate programs are much more research-oriented while undergraduate programs are focused on instructions (dinh, 2019; lee & lee, 2020;). noteworthy is to explore the current trends that are far more advanced with practical applications that the content of such knowledge imparted may improve the craft and skills of the advance higher education students. likewise, this study may imbibe in determining the weaknesses of the students on the lack of the needed knowledge shall be capitalized as the starting point for this undertaking. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 patimo, d.m. & lucero, m.b.a., predictors of success in advance higher education: a case in northwest samar state university, philippines research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 42 in northwest samar state university (nwssu), many advance higher education students failed in their comprehensive examination. for the last five semesters and summers, the failure rate of the advance higher education students ranges from 18 to 59 percent. hence, this study was conducted. specifically, this study sought answers to the following research questions. first, the study aimed to identify the profile of the advance higher education faculty members in terms of age, civil status, sex, highest educational attainment, work experience, relevant training/seminars attended, net take home pay, number of researches conducted, and performance rating of the advance higher education faculty members. also, the study tried to identify the academic performance of the advance higher education students in terms of their basic, major, and elective subjects. finally, the study shall determine the profile variable of the advance higher education faculty members that best predict the academic performance of their students. data and method a lot of people have looked up at teachers with a beaming awe, a high regard, strongly believing in them, where they placed their confidence in them for they were assumed that they will find ways and means to reach out to students amidst difficulties and go through the rigors to effectively reach out to students. waychunas (2020) mentioned of exploring schools that were “beating the odds” to identify odd practices. this notion of giving out the best to be effective encompasses the proper mind set, the preparation of oneself, and a noble heart for the best of the students (wenner & campbell, 2017). and in this light, the aim to harness on skill and be one with technology has geared toward the notion of education 4.0, a lifelong affair with industry (pangandaman, ali, lambayong, & ergas, 2019). the graduate school as being composed mainly of students coming from different organizations and institutions of varied interest may be effective in relating theories to practice. thus, wren and wren (2009) give emphasis on the useful experience of the students in the graduate level of education. furthermore, the training and practice would seem to be favorable hands-on learnings of the students. the predictors of success rather have its measuring factors such as to look into the students’ academic success in higher education the student demographics, like gender, the socio economic factors as adhered by alyahyan and dustegor (2020) were of paramount importance. in the same manner, we may look into the trends of education that the needed skill be imbibed as part of what teachers may adapt the technology. another issue is the present conditions of the covid-19 pandemic where we encountered a lot of problems in the delivery of the instructions to the students. the research of pokhrel and chhetri (2021) accordingly highlights certain dearth such as weakness of online teaching infrastructure and the limited exposure of teacher to online teaching. mccorkle (2020) mentioned that schooling has changed for most people and that it is a big challenge in the academe as to how to show leadership in the middle of these circumstances. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 patimo, d.m. & lucero, m.b.a., predictors of success in advance higher education: a case in northwest samar state university, philippines research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 43 this study was primarily based on the idea that teachers matter most to the students’ academic performance (hamilton et al, 2015). torabi and zahiri (2012) found out that characters such as ethics and humility of teachers have the most influence according to the students’ views. the effects of professional, scientific, and physical environment factors were assessed as ineffective in student-teacher relationship. another study found that other teacher characteristics coupled with classroom practices are comparable in size to those of student background (wenglinsky, 2001). bhatti and qazi (2011) found out that the students’ scores on their grade point averages (gpas) have better academic competence. teachers are considered moulders of the minds, they as well influence the students in more ways and instill memories of seen good and great examples of what their teachers have shown in their real lives. bilbao et al (2012) further emphasized that teachers are considered as professionals with competent skills observes high standards of the job, and abides by the code of ethics. teachers demonstrate leadership who made great influence not only for their students but also extends beyond their own classrooms to others within their own school and the whole community (danielson, 2006). the conceptual framework of the study is shown in the figure below. the inputs of this study involve the profile of the advance higher education faculty members and students. these inputs were collected and processed with the academic performance of the advance higher education students through the descriptive-correlation method of research with the use of questionnaires and interview guides. the result of the assessment determined the predictors of success in advance higher education. figure 1. conceptual framework of the study advance higher education faculty members and students academic performance of advance higher education students predictors of success in advance higher education research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 patimo, d.m. & lucero, m.b.a., predictors of success in advance higher education: a case in northwest samar state university, philippines research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 44 data and method design descriptive-correlation research design was used in this study. the study aimed to identify the profile of the advance higher education faculty members and the academic performance of their students in basic, major, and elective subjects. among the profile variables of the advance higher education faculty members, the study shall determine the best predictor of academic performance of their students. sample a total enumeration of advance higher education faculty members and students from school years 2015 to 2017 were considered in the study. the study was conducted at the main campus of the northwest samar state university in calbayog city. with this, all advanced higher education faculty members in total of 19 and all advance higher education students in total of 197 were considered in the study. instruments the survey questionnaire utilized in this research study was constructed by the researchers to elicit the needed data for the personal profile of the advanced higher education faculty members. the questionnaire specifically asked for the age, civil status, sex, highest educational attainment, work experience, relevant training/seminars attended, net take home pay, number of researches conducted, and performance rating of the advance higher education faculty members. for the grades of the basic, major, and elective subjects of the advance higher education students, the researchers asked for this data with the university registrar. data collection data collection for this study started with a letter of request addressed to the university president of the state university seeking permission to conduct the study. upon approval, the researchers personally distributed the questionnaires to the respondents of the study. full explanation of the purpose and importance of the study and how the instrument should be accomplished were explained to the respondents in order to solicit their cooperation. data from the accomplished questionnaires were analyzed, presented, and summarized. the same permission from the university president was presented to the university registrar in order to get the actual grades of the advance higher education students on basic, major, and elective subjects. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 patimo, d.m. & lucero, m.b.a., predictors of success in advance higher education: a case in northwest samar state university, philippines research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 45 data analysis data analysis for this study began with a data cleaning process where non-response and erroneous data were removed from the data set to improve accuracy of the overall analysis. the researchers then employed descriptive statistical analyses using statistical software to summarize the data collected in this study. statistical tools like frequency and percentage distribution, means, standard deviations, and regression analysis were used for the analysis of the data. results and discussions this section presents, analyzes, and interprets the data to answer the problems raised in this study. the discussion includes the profile of the advance higher education faculty members and students, academic performance of the advance higher education students, relationship between the profile of the respondents and the academic performance, and the profile factors that can best determine the students’ academic performance. the first research question of this study was to identify the profile of the advance higher education faculty members in terms of age, civil status, sex, highest educational attainment, work experience, relevant training/seminars attended, net take home pay, number of researches conducted, and performance rating of the advance higher education faculty members. table 1 presents the frequency and percentage distribution on the profile of the advance higher education faculty members. in terms of age, analysis of the data on the mean and standard deviation revealed that the majority of the advance higher education faculty members are mature adults who reached the apex of their teaching career. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 patimo, d.m. & lucero, m.b.a., predictors of success in advance higher education: a case in northwest samar state university, philippines research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 46 the majority of the advance higher education faculty members were male, married, and doctorate holders. the mean work experience and standard deviation showed that most of the advance higher education faculty members practiced already their profession in a long period and may acquire valuable exposure in the field of teaching with professional students. the same profile variables on age, sex, educational background and years of teaching were considered in the study of monga and ye (2020) on teachers’ perceptions towards interpersonal relationship and working environment at roong aroon school, one of the graduate schools in thailand. table 2 presents the frequency and percentage distribution on the profile of advance higher education faculty members concerning the number of relevant trainings/seminars research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 patimo, d.m. & lucero, m.b.a., predictors of success in advance higher education: a case in northwest samar state university, philippines research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 47 attended, net take-home pay, number of researches conducted, and performance rating. the mean number of relevant trainings/seminars attended by the advance higher education faculty members of the university displayed the support of the administration concerning their education and other teaching competencies. in terms of net take-home pay, the analysis of the computed mean and standard deviation can show the good financial status of the advance higher education faculty members of the university. also, the mean and standard deviation with regards to the number of researches conducted by the advance higher education faculty members are good evidence of limited research productivity of the university. this evidently showed the country’s problems in terms of maintaining the balance between the mandates of instructions and research in the advance higher education (david et al, 2020). in terms of performance rating, the majority of the advance higher education faculty members are ‘very satisfactory’ that can further display their degree of teaching proficiency. the next research question of the study was to identify the academic performance of the advance higher education students in terms of their basic, major, and elective subjects. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 patimo, d.m. & lucero, m.b.a., predictors of success in advance higher education: a case in northwest samar state university, philippines research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 48 table 3 displays the academic performance of the advance higher education students in terms of basic, major, and elective subject areas. as observed, passing grades were obtained by the advance higher education students on basic, major, and elective subject areas. this is also true in the study of mendoza (2020) with the academic performance graduate students in a state college in northern leyte, philippines. these data further show the good scholastic performance of the advance higher education students that prove their motivation to learn important knowledge, skills, and attitude in their field of specializations. the last research question addressed in this study was to determine the profile variable of the advance higher education faculty members that best predict the academic performance of their students. table 4 displays the stepwise multiple regression analysis of the profile of the advance higher education faculty members concerning the scholastic performance of their students. the result revealed the predictor for the scholastic performance of the advance higher education is the work experience of advance higher education faculty members. these findings were supported in the study of hamilton et al (2015). their study postulated that teachers matter most to the student's academic performance. when it comes to student performance, the teacher factor is estimated to have twice or thrice the impact compared to any other school factors. another study found that the teachers can contribute as much as the students’ capacities and abilities to student learning (gairola, 2019; morteza & khademi, 2015). also, wenglingsky (2001) suggested that teachers’ sources of pedagogical beliefs and teachers’ teaching experiences are the main predictors of learners’ outcomes. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 patimo, d.m. & lucero, m.b.a., predictors of success in advance higher education: a case in northwest samar state university, philippines research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 49 in relation to this, demirham and yucel (2016) concluded in their study that the teacher commitment can be predicted by their marital status and working time. this is also supported with a linear regression study of bittman and russell (2016) when they found out that the instructional pedagogies of experienced teachers increase student performance. conclusion the success in advance higher education can be primarily predicted with the work experience of the faculty members. good or bad academic performance of the advance higher education students primarily dependent to the work experience of their faculty members. faculty members with high work experience usually denote good academic performance of their students. on the other hand, low work experience among faculty members denotes low academic performance of their students. more experienced faculty members in the university have more relevant trainings or seminars attended, more researches conducted, good performance rating, and higher net take home pay. with this, their students are more motivated to learn and to equip with the necessary knowledge and skills to be successful in their advance higher education studies. work experience of the advance higher education faculty members may be considered as important criteria for the recruitment and selection of faculty members in masteral and doctorate programs of the university. results of this study are primarily limited in the case of the northwest samar state university that offers graduate programs in the philippine settings. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 patimo, d.m. & lucero, m.b.a., predictors of success 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(2009). enhancing learning by integrating theory and practice. international journal of teaching and learning in higher education, 21(21), 258-265. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 white, c.s., wielding social media in the cyber-arena: globalism, nationalism, and civic education 1 wielding social media in the cyber-arena: globalism, nationalism, and civic education charles s. white, phd.* executive director, social science education consortium *corresponding author: execdirector@ssec-inc.org received : 2019-09-03 accepted : 2019-10-04 how to cite this paper: white, c.s. (2020). wielding social media in the cyber-arena: globalism, nationalism, and civic education? research in social sciences and technology, 5(1), 1-21. abstract information technology is a tool, and its effects on global citizenship education (gced) depend on who uses the technology, how it is employed, and for what purpose. in theory, technology use could provide significant benefits toward achievement of gced goals. globalization has demanded an educational response — to prepare the young for productive engagement with the emerging global community. technology could play a positive role in effective gced. but globalization has come at a cost; it has produced winners and losers. among the losers are those economically displaced as manufacturing jobs move elsewhere; they are resentful of foreigner and fearful of an uncertain future. for them, global citizenship is anathema. they are susceptible to manipulation by malign forces eager to exploit any perceived rifts in the postwar world order. for them, technology is a weapon, as easily aimed at the aspirations of gced as another apparent enemy. identifying how technology can be employed positively in gced is important, but not enough. young people must also understand the conflict between globalization and alt-right nationalist populism, much of it carried out in the cyber-arena of the internet and social media. new technologies have armed adversaries with tools to manipulate opinion and foment disorder, undermining global citizenship education and western democracies in general. young people should be able to recognize the gladiatorial combat between globalization and nationalist populism —between democracy and authoritarianism — in the cyber-arena. this article explores how technology is a double-edged sword – a tool for good and a tool for mischief. it draws from current research and news reporting on methods and effects of online manipulation. the article concludes by describing international efforts to defend against social media assaults on democracy and by identifying the new knowledge and skills citizens must acquire for positive civic engagement in the global cyber-arena. keywords: civic knowledge and skills, democracy, global citizenship, information technology, social media, democracy. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 white, c.s., wielding social media in the cyber-arena: globalism, nationalism, and civic education 2 introduction the primary aim of global citizenship education (gced) is nurturing respect for all, building a sense of belonging to a common humanity and helping learners become responsible and active global citizens. gced aims to empower learners to assume active roles to face and resolve global challenges and to become proactive contributors to a more peaceful, tolerant, inclusive and secure world. education for global citizenship helps young people develop the core competencies which allow them to actively engage with the world and help to make it a more just and sustainable place. it is a form of civic learning that involves students' active participation in projects that address global issues of a social, political, economic, or environmental nature. (unai, n.d., par. 1) this is how the united nations describes the scope of its global citizenship education initiative. successful programs in gced will foster, among other things, “understanding of multiple levels of identity, and the potential for a ‘collective identity’ which transcends individual cultural, religious, ethnic or other differences” and “capacities to act collaboratively and responsibly to find global solutions for global challenges, and to strive for the collective good” (unesco, 2014, p. 17). those who toil in the gced vineyard aspire to goals articulated decades ago in the aftermath of world war ii. in founding the united nations in 1945, the allied victors recognized that nations could not rely on isolationism as a guarantor of peace and security, and that virulent nationalism inevitably leads to war. only an interdependent community of nations, with populations capable of global perspectives, and the spread of democratic governance would serve as a solid foundation for a peaceful and prosperous world order. programs in global studies and global education proliferated from the early 1950s forward (zong, wilson, & quashiga, 2008). for a half-century after the end of world war ii, free trade accelerated economic globalization in the last half century, and new democracies sprouted — especially as the soviet union disintegrated in the early 1990s. in recent decades, despite what appears to be a success story, globalization and democratization now contend with the gale winds of an anti-globalism backlash and authoritarian retrenchment, including efforts to exploit the resulting turmoil to undermine the democratic west. any discussion of intentional or unintentional inputs into gced, especially technology, would be incomplete without understanding and responding to this movement. globalization and the populist response at a grand scale, globalization has produced significant benefits to the world community. but globalization has also come at a cost. table 1 summarizes what analysts have identified as the positive and negative effects of globalization. usually presented exclusively in economic terms, globalization’s cultural and social effects may play an even greater role in the anti-globalist populist movement. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 white, c.s., wielding social media in the cyber-arena: globalism, nationalism, and civic education 3 table 1: globalization's pros and cons (collins, 2015) globalization’s pros and cons pros cons economic  lowers prices for consumers in the developed nations  promotes global economic growth  creates jobs  companies become more competitive  creates a world-wide market for companies and consumers who have access to products of different countries, including in the developing world  shifts the globe from compartmentalized power sectors to a world-level power capable of addressing global problems and offering global benefits  creates speedy travel, mass communication, quick dissemination of information through the internet  promotes freer movement of labor  promotes the sharing of technology, which accelerates development  transnational companies invest in plants in other countries, raising employment, alleviating poverty cultural/social  encourages expansion of constitutional democracy  promotes influx of information between countries that otherwise had no common ties  promotes cultural intermingling and understanding  fosters more openness and tolerance among people in other parts of the world, not viewing others as aliens economic  loss of jobs transferred from developed economies to lower cost countries  increased trade deficits among developed nations  unequal distribution of generated wealth  still many trade barriers in the form of value added taxes (vat)  workers in developed countries face pay cuts to avoid jobs leaving the country  multinationals accused of exploiting workers and weak environmental laws outside of the developed nations  multinational corporations influence national/ international political decisions  theft of technology when production goes overseas  has failed to address global inequality  global spread of communicable diseases  social welfare “safety nets” under pressure in developed countries due to deficits and job losses  de-industrializing of developed nations  lower prices have not offset the decline in wages cultural/social  exposes traditional culture to ideas and values considered undesirable  promotes cultural and social change that threatens the status quo and creates uncertainty for the future  wage stagnation produces fear of falling behind others who benefit more from globalizations research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 white, c.s., wielding social media in the cyber-arena: globalism, nationalism, and civic education 4 the major stresses of globalization have fallen into two categories: the significant disruption in industrialization and employment patterns, and challenges to the social and cultural status quo and those effects on self-image and rising uncertainty. global economic disruption in the united states, globalization has encouraged a shift from a predominantly manufacturing economy to a service economy. the decline in the coal and steel industries has hit america’s heartland hard. over time, companies have moved operations overseas to take advantage of lower labor costs. the us benefits from that in terms of lower prices when good are imported, but this has been offset by the loss of jobs and poor wage growth. other changes to the labor market have unsettled significant portions of the u.s. population. the demand for workers with manufacturing skill and experience has declined, while the demand for knowledge-based workers has increased significantly. the despair of displaced workers has led many to resent immigration, seeing them as competitors for the increasingly scarce jobs. ironically, the declining number of working-age americans will require greater immigration to maintain national economic productivity over time. but that is a longer view — longer than the next payment deadline for a struggling family. those most hurt by globalization in the us come to believe that the country is becoming too dependent on outsiders. for them, the web of international trade agreements has compromised our national sovereignty and allowed america to be mistreated by other nations (mason & solis, 2017). larry diamond (2018) concluded that “a growing proportion of voters feel threatened by changes they feel unable to control—increasing immigration and cultural pluralism, deepening income inequality and insecurity, de-industrialization, and other challenges to national sovereignty posed by globalization” (par. 11). cultural disruptions and animosities immigration and migration have produced both economic and cultural disruption world-wide. the increased flow of employment across borders increased to an overwhelming deluge as a result of civil wars and other humanitarian disasters. europe has been especially affected by the influx of refugees. the strain of accommodating their needs is exacerbated by fears of terrorist groups exploiting the situation for their own ends. immigration is perceived by some as a threat to the traditional ethnic dominance within affected nations. in the us, this explains the animosity of some toward inflows of hispanic immigrants from latin america; in europe, it is the influx of arabs and muslims that gives rise to rumblings of discontent within sectors of the “dominant” culture. the particular source of disruption can vary from nation to nation. sometimes, as above, the blame is assigned to immigration. for others, multiculturalism is the culprit of disorder. for still others, disorder arises from a growing aspiration of a nation’s citizens for a more genuine democracy. in all cases, however, the rise of disorder gives strong rulers an excuse to drive a research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 white, c.s., wielding social media in the cyber-arena: globalism, nationalism, and civic education 5 nation toward greater autocracy. it also tempts our adversaries to exploit disorder and destabilize their foes. impatience with government response among those adversely affected by globalization there is a strong belief that constitutional democracies and their institutions have not acted quickly enough to solve the problems created by globalization. moreover, the traditionally dominant race, ethnic group, or class blames constitutional democracy for providing benefits and rights to “others” who haven’t earned them. they see themselves as victims, then, at the mercy of elites and the maze of legal and political institutions that seem always in conflict — polarized, partisan, and in gridlock (levine, 2018). populists would wish to sweep away all these institutions and legal constraints so that “bold action” can be taken. according to william galston (2017), “the revolt against [liberal democracy] . . . rests on these three complaints: liberal institutions undermine effective governance, while liberal principles weaken national sovereignty and force citizens to give equal status to people who are unlike them” (p. 31). consequently, some believe that liberal democracy is suffering a crisis in confidence (wike & fetterolf, 2018) from these grievances, a populist worldview emerges, as summarized in table 2. for an indepth description and analysis of contemporary populism, see (mudde & kaltwasser, 2017). table 2: populist beliefs populists are opposed to: populists are: free trade suspicious of foreigners flexible labor markets hyper-patriotic diversity and immigration nationalistic institutions international agreements elites expertise populists backlash in politics the political successes of the contemporary populist movement extend globally, particularly in europe (hadiz & chryssogelos, 2017; moffitt, 2018). the vote of the uk to leave the european union (brexit) was emblematic of the populist’s strong defense of national sovereignty and its fears of the increasing burdens of immigration. controversy concerning the manner of the uk’s exit deepened under british prime minister boris johnson (grant, 2019). across europe, new or formally obscure populist parties sprouted up – podemos in spain, syriza in greece, ukip in the united kingdom, and afd in germany. the traditional parties were too bureaucratic, too formal, research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 white, c.s., wielding social media in the cyber-arena: globalism, nationalism, and civic education 6 and too slow to react to accelerating change. the new parties seem to be reacting more quickly and more energetically to conflicts in the society, and they provide a megaphone for popular frustrations and anger. they identify with their followers and claim to be the only political movements that truly represent an allegedly homogenous majority (duerr, 2018). embracing the same nationalist, xenophobic, and anti-institutional values, populists in the us have not formed their own political party; third parties have never competed very successfully in america’s two-party system. however, like the earlier extremely conservative tea party movement nearly ten years ago, american populists have found an uneasy home in the far right-wing of the republican party. i say uneasy because the current populist movement’s extreme ideology has had the effect of creating rifts in the republican party. after the highly contentious 2016 presidential campaign, marked by a sophisticated disinformation effort by the russian government (carter, 2018), donald trump won the electoral college vote thanks to a mere 77,000 votes across three states. why is the populist movement a danger to democracy? among the targets of the modern populist movements, liberalism looms largest. populists argue that liberalism and all its institutions and elites do not hear or represent the true voice of the people. their leader, donald trump, claims to be one of them and he alone can best act in their best interests. consider the implications of this mindset for the preservation of liberal democracy. a threat to limited government what is the essence of liberal democracy? according to galston (2017), “the phrase ‘liberal democracy’ combines two distinct ideas. [‘democracy’] stands for a structure of governance in which decisions are made, directly or indirectly, by the people, as well as a conception of politics in which all legitimate power flows from the people. [‘liberal’], by contrast, denotes a particular understanding of politics in which the domain of legitimate public power—even when this power expresses the will of democratic majorities—is inherently limited” p. 11). that is to say, there are some uses of public power that are illegitimate, even in the face of a democratic majority. for populists, these limits on government power to control speech and expression and association and others – reflected in the various institutions, procedures, and laws relevant to those limits – are impediments that slow or even prevent the dramatic and urgent actions populists believe are essential to redress “the people’s” complaints and implement their will. electoral autocracy (illiberal democracy) regardless of the specific concerns, populist parties and leaders have advocated an abandonment of liberalism, to be replaced by what some refer to as “illiberal democracy” (zakaria, 1997). such cases occur when, by popular vote, citizens install a government that suppresses citizens’ rights, those elections often marked by massive manipulation. müller (2018) describes the relationship between liberalism and democracy and how they apply to the research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 white, c.s., wielding social media in the cyber-arena: globalism, nationalism, and civic education 7 growth of illiberal democracies. citing zakaria, he uses the nation of hungary, led by autocrat victor orbán, as his example: fareed zakaria, the influential foreign affairs commentator, was among the first to draw a fundamental distinction between liberalism and democracy: the former referred to the rule of law, the latter to the rule of the majority. leaders with majority backing were creating “illiberal democracies,” in which neither political losers nor unpopular minorities could feel safe. this picture is misleading when applied to today’s populists like mr. orbán. in hungary, it is not just the rule of law that has been under threat. rights essential for democracy itself — especially rights to free speech, free assembly and free association — have been systematically attacked. as media pluralism disappears, citizens cannot get critical information to make up their minds about their government’s record. (para. 3) globalization, nationalist populism, and destabilization in the cyber-arena the nature of technology’s effects on global citizenship education depends largely on how its power is employed. while one can devise ways to harness technology in support of gced goals, one cannot ignore active efforts to undermine global citizenship and liberal democracy using technology. in the cyber-arena, the ability to identify and defend against malevolent and manipulative cyber assaults is indispensable for robust global citizenship. technology as a tool for positive global citizenship engagement social media has qualities that can empower global citizenship education, and these we should support and expand. for many, the digital revolution represented the realization of a longdesired democratization of knowledge, defined as “the acquisition and spread of knowledge amongst the common people, not just privileged elites such as clergy and academics” (wikipedia, n.d.). the people are no longer dependent on and limited to the main news outlets. the decision of what is relevant and important can now reside with the citizens themselves. the same tools that have provided new spaces for information retrieval, creation, and dissemination have also made possible online discussion – locally, nationally, and globally. unesco cites an example of this in unesco’s global citizenship education report: the young masters programme on sustainable development (ymp) has also established a webbased education and learning platform that uses a crowd-learning approach to collect and promote local examples, challenges and success stories. free of charge for schools, teachers and students, it has been used by participants from 120 countries and around 30,000 students. (2014, p. 29) in the era of social media, an expanding portion of the public can weigh in on issues that concern them. anyone with access to social media can express their opinion, comment on the opinion of others, and share their views. moreover, groups small and large can collaborate on research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 white, c.s., wielding social media in the cyber-arena: globalism, nationalism, and civic education 8 civic projects. even deliberation, under the right circumstances, can be supported by social media, according to esau, friess, and eilders (2017). social media has been used to advocate for certain policies or to seek expanded access to the conditions necessary for democratic citizenship in places where these opportunities are not yet available. the global significance of these developments for revitalizing mature democracies and nurturing the emergence of new democracies should not be underestimated (shirky, 2011; ufuophy-biri & ojoboh, 2017). tucker, theocharis, and barbará argue that social media have the potential to aid democratic movements by spreading information, reinvigorating participation, and facilitating collective action. in a nutshell, social media can democratize access to information and communication tools. groups that would ordinarily be censored or silenced can reach a mass public and find it easier to hold powerful elites accountable” (2017, p. 50). technology used to undermine truth, reason, and confidence while benefiting from the positive qualities of social media, citizens and governments around the world are also confronting new challenges. first, the ability to filter the information one receives through social media has contributed to greater polarization within societies. people tend to shut out ideas they disagree with and select only those sites that reinforce their beliefs (mitchell, gottfried, kiley, & matsa, 2014). self-contained echo chambers are a result of the information channels so fine-tuned and immersive that one never needs to leave their selfreinforcing bubbles (pariser, 2012). moreover, each of these bubbles has become increasingly polarized, thanks in part to “the greater ease with which extreme voices can make themselves heard in the age of social media” (mounck & eiermann, 2017, para. 15). second, as methods of manipulating images, video, and voice grow in sophistication, discriminating between the authentic and the deceptive has become even more burdensome. a case in point is deep fake, or “deepfake,” coined in 2017 and described as way to produce very realistic but fake video using a database of readily available photos and an artificial intelligence app that teaches the computer how to superimpose one person’s image onto another’s. an example that has made the rounds on the internet is a deepfake of former president obama. the original fakeapp software was developed as a lark and distributed for free. not long after it made its way to reddit and used for a host of inappropriate purposes (roose, 2018). the relevance to gced is the potential of the technology, whose quality will make it nearly undetectable over time, to used as a weapon against political leaders running for election and activists advocating for a cause (sasse, 2018). deepfakes will take disinformation campaigns, from whatever source, to an entirely different level (rini, 2019). the potential effects of this technology on politics and citizenship have not gone unnoticed (boylan, 2018). third, internal and external cyber-attacks intent on disrupting and interfering with successful democracies, or frustrating efforts to establish democracy, are a world-wide plague — and are https://www.nbcnews.com/video/fake-obama-warning-about-deep-fakes-goes-viral-1214598723984 research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 white, c.s., wielding social media in the cyber-arena: globalism, nationalism, and civic education 9 likely to continue (taylor, 2019). in indonesia, for example, fake news postings on facebook have enflamed religious, ethnic, and political tensions (gabriel, 2017). fake news can have deadly consequences, where rumors of plots can generate retaliatory violence based on entirely false information. according to one analyst in sri lanka, time and again, communal hatreds overrun the newsfeed — the primary portal for news and information for many users — unchecked as local media are displaced by facebook and governments find themselves with little leverage over the company. some users, energized by hate speech and misinformation, plot real-world attacks. (taub & fisher, 2018). russian trolling during the 2016 us election demonstrate america’s susceptibility to fake news and hoaxes. according to a timberg and dwoskin report in the washington post (2018), russian trolls announced 129 phony events during the 2016 campaign, reaching 340,000 users. about 62,500 indicated that they planned to attend. that same report cited the announcement of two competing events scheduled on the same day and time in houston, texas, in hopes of fomenting a confrontation. one purportedly came from “heart of texas,” and the other, from “united muslims of america,” both of which were fictitious creations of russian. a similar rally in august of 2016 targeted anti-immigrant sentiment in twin falls, idaho – part of a larger and traumatic story for this small town (dickerson, 2016). increased polarization and partisanship. self-contained echo chambers are a result of the atomization of information and the ability to filter out information that fails to confirm one's existing biases (pariser, 2012). in the safety of our bubbles, we can enjoy the mutual reinforcement of like-minded people inhabitants (brady, wills, jost, tucker, & van bavel, 2017). this phenomenon is certainly happening in the us and across the globe. the following summary of a study of indonesian social media by lim (2017) can be applied as much to the nations of europe and north america as it does to indonesia: there is no doubt that . . . social media . . . contributed to the increasing polarization among indonesians. . .. while encouraging freedom of expression, social media also emboldens freedom to hate, where individuals exercise their right to voice their opinions while actively silencing others. unraveling the complexity of the relationship between social media and electoral politics, i suggest that the mutual shaping between users and algorithms results in the formation of “algorithmic enclaves” that, in turn, produce multiple forms of tribal nationalism. within these multiple online enclaves, social media users claim and legitimize their own versions of nationalism by excluding equality and justice for others. (p. 411) electoral cyber-manipulation. social media has also become a force in electoral politics. in indonesia, for example, where the bulk of social media users reside in urban areas, presidential candidates capitalized on social media, especially facebook, to promote their candidacies (nance, 2016; white, 2018). facebook is particularly influential among 18-24-year-olds, who constitute the largest group of users (abdillah, 2014). similar demographics can be found almost universally. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 white, c.s., wielding social media in the cyber-arena: globalism, nationalism, and civic education 10 in the united states, the mueller report (mueller, 2019) provided substantial evidence of russia’s interference in the 2016 election. the current consensus is cyber-attacks will continue and be more aggressive in advance of the 2020 election, involving not only russia but also china and other bad actors. unfortunately, voting systems in the us are woefully outdated and susceptible to manipulation (sanger, epstein, & wines, 2019). cyber-troops. the computational propaganda project (cpp) at oxford university has conducted research on the impact of computer technology on the manipulation of public opinion around the world. in july of 2017, cpp issued a report titled, “troops, trolls and troublemakers: a global inventory of organized social media manipulation.” the study concluded that social media “is the primary medium over which young people around the world develop their political identities and consume news. however, social media platforms like facebook and twitter have also become tools for social control” (bradshaw & howard, 2017). the report focused narrowly on the global rise of “cyber troops,” teams established by governments, the military, or political parties to manipulate public opinion.1 first recognized in 2010, details of cyber troop activity were available from twenty-eight countries as of 2017, from both authoritarian and democratic regimes. the former focus almost exclusively on domestic public opinion, with an aim to disrupt the political opposition or to use “astroturfing” methods to create artificial support for government policies or against the opposition by flooding the cyber-arena with often bot-driven laudatory posts. nearly all the democratic regimes deploy cyber troops to influence foreign publics; domestic social media manipulation efforts are concentrated in political parties, especially in relation to elections (bradshaw & howard, 2017, p. 3). taken to the extremes, cyber troops target individuals for harassment. sometimes this includes posting photos of dissidents or opposition leaders online and encouraging abuse. in russia, for example, leaders of the kremlin-backed nashi youth movement circulated a list of human rights activists, declaring them “the most vile of enemies” (elder, 2012). censoring or blocking access. terminating or restricting access to the internet and wireless service is one approach used to starve citizens of relevant news and information needed to participate in civic life (committee to protect journalists, 2019; editorial board, 2019). in autocratic regimes, citizen participation beyond obedience is not prized. for example, russia is taking measures to limit its citizens’ access to the web (doffman, 2019). in china, the so-called “great firewall of china” is an effort of the government to block citizens within the country from accessing internet sites beyond china’s borders (bloomberg quicktake, 2017). 2 meanwhile, the regime uses social media astroturfing to create the appearance of popular support for the government and to harass opposition groups and individuals. 1 the computational propaganda project has also produced a series of reports that provide a broader look at social media use in russia, poland, brazil, canada, germany, ukraine, and taiwan. see woolley and howard (2017). 2 this bloomberg quiktake (2017) reference also contains a graph depicting the comparative internet openness for countries worldwide. as of 2016, china was the most restrictive. the united states was ranked fourth in internet openness. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 white, c.s., wielding social media in the cyber-arena: globalism, nationalism, and civic education 11 fomenting social and political disorder. perhaps of greatest danger to liberal democracy from misuse of social media comes from efforts to generate social and political disorder. some of these efforts come from opposing forces within a nation; some come from foreign actors who welcome the chance to destabilize democracies. social media also can take relatively minor incidences of disorder and magnifying them through false and incendiary language to appear to generate the appearance of great danger, exploiting fear and uncertainty. regimes that lean toward autocracy use this phenomenon to crack down on a free press and free expression by the people. locked in an imposed information desert, democratic citizenship worthy of the name withers. fighting back according to sir tim berners-lee, inventor of the world wide web, “[t]hrough the use of data science and armies of bots, those with bad intentions can game the system to spread misinformation for financial or political gain” (berners-lee, 2017, para. 4). we have ample evidence that this has been happening, certainly from 2012 and likely earlier. one response has been to goad the major social media platforms to remove the most egregious bad actors. social media platforms weed out the worst actors investigation of social media misuse in the us during the 2016 election found that the private information of at least 87 million americas were scrapped from their facebook profiles. the information was linked to voter information to design a highly targeted disinformation effort (confessore, 2018). under considerable public pressure, facebook founder mark zuckerberg announced that 270 facebook pages and accounts run by the russian “troll farm” involved in disrupting the 2016 election are being removed (castillo, 2018). facebook also added content reviewers to identify accounts engaged in deliberate disruption; as of february 2018, there were 7,500 (madrigal, 2018). in cases where users have persisted creating chaos through fake news, facebook and twitter have taken action. in the case of twitter, hundreds of fake accounts used to generate and forward automated bots have been deleted (twitter publicpolicy, 2018). twitter has improved the system’s ability identify malicious automation. google has updated its “search quality evaluator guidelines” to do a better job identifying inaccurate information and altering its algorithms to allow more accurate and reliable information to appear higher in its search results (southern, 2017). these have been positive steps, but new revelations of social media misuse are a news staple. the government is applying additional pressure on social media companies to do more (scola, 2019). controlling content through government action numerous nations are developing policies to combat fake news — some more draconian than others. at the end of february 2018, for example, the malaysian government sought legislation that would outlaw “fake news” (reuters staff, 2018). the law would punish offenders with a 6year prison term. king of malaysia reportedly pointed to the effects of social media in “forming the values and culture of a society,” a sentiment that is hard to dispute. the malaysian law research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 white, c.s., wielding social media in the cyber-arena: globalism, nationalism, and civic education 12 defines fake news as “any news, information, data and reports which are wholly or partly false, whether in the form of features, visuals or audio recordings or in any other form capable of suggesting words or ideas” (beech, 2018, para. 11). this would seem to include cases where the originator did not know the information was false, or whether the person had the intent to disrupt or mislead. opponents of the new law worry that the government will become the sole judge of what is true and acceptable. the philippines and singapore are also considering new legislation of concern to media rights advocates. in the case of singapore, which already maintains close oversight over the nation’s media, a parliamentary committee is studying ways to extend the law beyond existing laws that already address defamation, hate speech, and fake news. representatives from facebook, google, and twitter have offered their opinions to a committee considering new laws, mostly suggesting that existing laws should be sufficient (agence-france presse, 2018). fostering a well-educated citizenry in its written statement to the singapore parliamentary committee, the representative from google argued that “an effective way of combating misinformation is through educating citizens on how to distinguish reliable from unreliable information. . .. [and by] promoting quality journalism to ensure that there is a robust network of fact-checking organisations providing reliable information and debunking falsehoods” (agence-france presse, 2018, para. 4). the journalistic response to misinformation and disinformation fall beyond the scope of this article, but that author’s former point on educated citizens is spot on. at the ramparts: a technology-savvy global citizenship education the deluge of deliberately false social media posts, combined with the growth in false information coming from political leaders, seem to represent the dawn of a “post-truth” era. the oxford english dictionary chose “post-truth” as its 2016 word of the year. they define post-truth as “relating to circumstances in which objective facts are less influential in shaping public opinion than emotional appeals” and personal belief (post-truth declared word of the year by oxford dictionaries, 2016). the rand corporation in santa monica, california, conducted an in-depth study of this post-truth phenomenon and issued a report titled truth decay (kavanagh & rich, 2018). the crisis of truth extends beyond malicious bots and cyberattacks. it extends to explicit efforts at all levels to obscure truth, and more – to make truth obsolete. dishonesty lies at the heart of corruption; few conditions are as destructive to democracy as government and corporate corruption. among the virtues on which democracy depends is honesty – in relationships among citizens and in government’s relationship to the people. civic education alone will not reverse this trend and reestablish a commitment to truth. all sectors of society must work together to respect the truth, reject dishonesty, and root out corruption. schools can insist that civics students and teachers take the time to skillfully assess the veracity of sources and analyze research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 white, c.s., wielding social media in the cyber-arena: globalism, nationalism, and civic education 13 and debate public issues based on evidence, reason, and civil discourse — even as they acknowledge that some matters generate emotional responses. digital civic/media literacy teachers and researchers in the us have begun to recognize that social media has altered the manner and form by which students seek and acquire information (brainpop educators, 2019; journell, 2019; white, 2018). the potential for misinformation and manipulation in the cyberarena mandates that we increase our efforts to prepare skilled online critical thinkers (wardle & derakhshan, 2017). critical thinking must extend beyond print, television, and official pronouncements to include multimedia settings (greenfield, 2009; kahne & bowyer, 2017; kahne, hodgin, & eidman-aadahl, 2016; mihailidis & thevenin, 2013; stoddard, 2014). fortunately we can draw from the research and practice in digital and media literacy to improve our efforts (aspen institute communications and society program, 2010). from the field of media literacy, we can draw core questions and concepts (table 3) to include in the civics curriculum. table 3 media literacy questions and concepts (center for media literacy, 2005) focusing directly on digital media, the stanford history education group at stanford university developed a battery of assessment tasks (wineburg, mcgrew, breakstone, & ortego, 2016; mcgrew, breakstone, ortega, smith, & wineburg, 2018) to gauge student competence in analyzing social media communication (see table 4). they continue to expand the scope of their research and development that serve as a guide to teaching the skills necessary to separate the wheat from the chaff within the cyber-arena. in the deepfake domain, though, even experts are finding it increasingly difficult to identify ai-produced fake videos. artificial intelligence researchers note that the improving technology tools to create deepfakes is racing ahead faster than fake detection methods (harwell, 2019). fortunately, this variety of disinformation and manipulation has not be widely applied in the political realm to date. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 white, c.s., wielding social media in the cyber-arena: globalism, nationalism, and civic education 14 table 4 civic online reasoning assessment tasks, by grade level (wineburg et al., p. 6) improve the quality of discussion and deliberation the nature of communication on social media underscores a more general deficit in youth and adult skills involved in discussion and deliberation. on the social media side, researchers investigating the conditions necessary to support high-quality online deliberation have correctly observed that the design of the online space matters. they are working on social media design standards to achieve that goal as i said earlier, it is difficult to separate emotion and reason when addressing deeply felt public issues. whether online or person-to-person, there are techniques that we can apply in the classroom and among the public generally to allow facts and reason to prevail (hodgin & kahne, 2018) and to maintain civility as we do so. a leading researcher in deliberative civic education, diana hess, has observed that students are simply not getting enough instruction and practice in disciplined discussion and deliberation (2009). conclusion this cautionary picture sketch of the global cyber-arena is intended not to dissuade young people from their engagement as global citizens, but to buttress it. from the commentary above, i conclude with several recommendations for young people to consider as they carry out their civic work online.  reject the claim that is no such thing as reliable information. this cedes the argument to those who would have us believe that truth resides not in reason and evidence but in the mind of a demagogue.  rigorously verify information, employ reason based on evidence, suspend judgment in the absence of a convincing argument. expect others to do the same. these skills are in short supply in the cyber-arena, and it is easy to be lost in the maelstrom of irrationality and message-swapping masquerading as discussion.  break out of your cyber-bubble and seek out sources of reasoned opposition to your views and beliefs. hone your skills in critiquing your own positions as you critique others. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 white, c.s., wielding social media in the cyber-arena: globalism, nationalism, and civic education 15  expecting productive deliberation to occur in 140or 280-character tweets is asking too much of that platform. paraphrasing the old saying “use the right technology tool for the right citizenship job.”  be vigilant in monitoring government efforts to manage the flow of information to the public, whether through limits on social media platforms, concealment of government information the public has a right to know or directing special benefits to news outlets supportive of the current regime.  turn some of your global citizenship commitment to supporting good journalism and debunking faux journalism in the us and around the world. fact-check mongolia (tardáguila & flamini, 2019) is one of many examples of determined journalists fighting for democracy. speak out against efforts to stifle a free press, to demonize and discredit good journalists, and even to imprison journalists.  feel free to add to this list. a robust program in global civic education will include the content, skills, experiences, and principles needed to carry out these tasks and many more. practice them until they become matters of habit. they will serve as reliable guides for truth seeking and durable shields for combat in the cyber-arena. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 white, c.s., wielding social media in the cyber-arena: globalism, nationalism, and civic education 16 references abdillah, l. a. 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(2008). global education. in l. s. levstik, & c. a. tyson (eds.), handbook of research in social studies education (pp. 197-216). new york, ny, usa: routledge. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%20democratization_of_knowledge https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%20democratization_of_knowledge http://purl.stanford.edu/fv751yt5934 https://tinyurl.com/y7lrbb9p http://www.jstor.org/stable/20048274 1 research in social sciences and technology (ressat) e-issn: 2468-6891 pre-service teachers’ attitude on elt research: an effort to boost research performance martin kustati1 & hidayat al-azmi2 abstract this paper reports on a research determining the attitudes of pre-service efl teachers to research in english language teaching (elt) in indonesia. a mixed method was used in this study. a survey questionnaire was completed by 217 (f= 187, m=30) participants who enrolled in the fourth year of undergraduate teacher education. then, interview was used to identify their problems in conducting the research. the participants acknowledged that they had positive attitudes towards research in elt. meanwhile, they had negative views about english department involvement in their research. while there were no significant sex differences in the attitudes to elt research. the interview findings revealed that there were some factors that made them get difficulties in doing their research. the pedagogical implications of the study for the pre-service teachers include the need to be aware of the significant relationship between attitude and background in research practice and they should be trained formally on conducting and writing elt research. key words: attitude; pre-service teachers; elt reseach; research performance; efl teaching introduction the term attitude is defined by two major of views, mentalist and behaviorist. mentalist, argue that attitude is an internal condition that can be activated by stimuli and terminate the next response (de los angeles clemente, 2001a). meanwhile, behaviorism says that it is such the kind of one’s response toward social situation (hymes, 2005). the distinction among these views deals with the components. according to coronel-molina (2009) mentalist argues that attitude can be divided into: cognitive (knowledge), affective (felling), conative (action) while behaviorist regarded attitude as a single entity. arbuthnott (2009); bamberg (2003); holmes (2007); silverman & subramaniam (2000)stated that attitude has a great influence on education. this opinion is also supported by benson (2007); burns (2003); de los angeles clemente (2001b); jenkins (2006); mcdonough & mcdonough (2014) which states that the concept of attitude as one of the critical elements that must be considered in the scheme of teacher education in the field of english language teaching. a positive attitude towards education, especially those related to research in the field of english language teaching will enable pre-service undergraduate teachers to complete the final project earlier. conversely, a negative attitude toward research will hinder pre-serve teacher in completing the final project. this fact will certainly have implications for the delay in the completion of study in english language courses. 1 dr. universitas islam negeri imam bonjol padang, sumatera barat, indonesia. martinkustati@yahoo.com 2 dr.universitas islam negeri imam bonjol padang, sumatera barat, indonesia. marvelouse_80@yahoo.co.id mailto:martinkustati@yahoo.com mailto:marvelouse_80@yahoo.co.id research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (2), 1-13 studies on attitude to english language teaching (elt) research have taken mammoth advances over the past few decades, which have had its significant implications for the elt itself. several studies have examined pre-service teachers’ attitudes on elt research (borg, 2010, 2013; gitlin, barlow burbank, kauchak, & stevens, 1999; hathaway, nagda, & gregerman, 2002; newell & cunliffe, 2003a; tercanlioglu, 2005). then, the literature on elt research suggests that the concept of attitude is regarded as one of the most essential elements within a language teacher education scheme (de los angeles clemente, 2001a). positive attitude on research enables them to transfer the theories, idea into a form of research (tarman, 2017; tarman & baytak, 2012). meanwhile, if they have negative attitude on research, they will find difficulties in doing a research. crookes & chandler (2001); hathaway et al. (2002); newell & cunliffe (2003a) state that the undergraduate pre-service teachers have negative attitudes on research because they are not well-trained to read research journal, do not have sufficient knowledge about types of research design and topic relate to their field. meanwhile, the other study focused on the attitudes towards research in the field of english language teaching, not about the general attitude. previously, some limited studies on attitudes has been done towards language attitudes (dörnyei & csizér, 2002), speakers of a language (hickey, 2001; montrul & ionin, 2012), the teacher's own teaching techniques (savignon & wang, 2003). however, there are also quite many studies that broaden the definition to include attitude towards research in the field of language teaching (borg, 2010, 2013; dörnyei, 2003; holmes, 2000). a study by torcanlioglu (2011) showed that majority of respondents have a positive attitude towards research in the field of language teaching. the study also found that respondents had a negative attitude towards the involvement of the faculty. the conclusion of the study is interesting, but there is a need to conduct a similar research in other countries. then, a set of questionnaire is only used to answer research question, thus, it is still essential to study deeply by using mixed method (questionnaire and interview). the number of respondents in the study is relatively small, only 173 people. respondents of the current study in the english study program involve 217 comprising 187 women and 30 male. based on preliminary study that the researchers carried out in english department of state institute for islamic studies imam bonjol padang, indonesia, majority of pre-service teachers face some problems in doing their research. 90% of pre-service teachers chose experimental research. it must be contradicted with the expectation that they are recommended to use various types of research design in case of responding the problem or the phenomenon in the field. undergraduate pre-service teacher also cannot write an ideal introduction of a research. as a matter of a fact they put too much theory and less problem or phenomenon to be researched. thirdly, it was also identified that they fail in formulating the research problem. finally, they still have low motivation to find the reading resources such as journals, articles or even books. research on attitudes towards research in the field of english language teaching is focused on pre-service undergraduate teacher attitude toward the research and how the subject is taught. barlow et al (1999) found that what has been missing from the literature is about how someone views the research. the findings of previous studies conducted by borg (2015); gitlin et al. (1999); holmes & meyerhoff (2003) recommend that it is important to provide knowledge for the pre-service undergraduate teachers about the research definition, design, and procedures, and contributions to the field of education and teaching english. newell & cunliffe (2003) state that the undergraduate pre-service teachers have different attitude about the nature and significance of the research for them, especially as the final project for the completion their study (creswell, 2014; gay, mills, & airasian, 2006; gregerman, lerner, von hippel, jonides, & nagda, 1998; hathaway et al., 2002). kustati & al-azmi 3 research will be a very important activity if undergraduate pre-service teachers have positive attitudes towards the importance of the study and performed the appropriate steps and provide a significant contribution to the field of research (tarman, 2012). the evaluation on undergraduate degree revealed that there are several benefits of research for the undergraduate pre-service teachers other than those disclosed in the previous paragraph. another benefit for them to do research is a requirement to pursue graduate study (hathaway et al., 2002). others have focused on developing specific skills (kardash, 2000; lopatto, 2006; seymour, hunter, laursen, & deantoni, 2004), 2006; seymour et al, 2004) or the maturation of a way of thinking (isaacs, 2008; steinberg, 2007), concentrated in both career goals and skills development and a measure of personal growth (lopatto, 2006). as defined by creswell (2014) & gay et al. (2006), the nature of the research is a process step that is used to collect and analyze information to improve our understanding of the topic or issue. in this study, we focus on the attitudes towards research in the field of language teaching that will be judged based on seven indicators of attitude proposed by (bolton, 1999). since a limited number of studies have investigated undergraduate pre-service teachers’ attitude on elt research, the research questions of the present study are: 1. what are undergraduate pre-service teachers’ attitudes on elt research? 2. is there any significant difference between males’ and females’ attitudes on elt research? 3. why do undergraduate pre-service teachers have difference attitudes on elt research?. research methodology this study uses mixed method, combining quantitative and qualitative. this method is a type of research that combines between qualitative and quantitative methods in a single study (johnson & onwuegbuzie, 2004). participants the population of this study was the undergraduate pre-service teacher faculty of tarbiyah iain imam bonjol padang. they are all pre-service undergraduate teachers who are still active. cluster random sampling was used in this study where the sample can be divided vertically into five groups based on years of college, namely: (1) the first and second semester of pre-service undergraduate teachers, (2) the third and fourth semester pre-service undergraduate teachers, (3) the fifth and sixth semester pre-service undergraduate teachers, (4 ) seventh and eighth semester pre-service undergraduate teachers, (5) pre-service undergraduate teachers over eight semesters (being the final task completion). thus, the sample was those who are active in english undergraduate pre-service teacher department in the academic year 2016/2017 the were 217 respondents consisting of 187 females’ pre-service undergraduate teachers and 30 males. then, sampling techniques were also used to get the interview data (used purposive random technique). there were 15 pre-service undergraduate teachers which consist of 10 females and 5 males involved in interview session. instruments the present study employed two instruments: questionnaire and interview. the questionnaire designed by (bolton, 1999), was modified to investigate the undergraduate preservice teachers’ attitude on elt research and to identify whether there was a significant research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (2), 1-13 difference between males’ and females’ attitudes on elt research. the second instrument, semistructured interview, was used to investigate the participants’ reasons to have difference attitude on elt research. the validity of the instrument shows how far the instrument can measure what is to be measured, while the reliability of the instrument shows the consistency and accuracy of the measurement results. adaptive testing instrument was used to further purify the questionnaire items although this questionnaire has been used by bolton (1999) and tercanlioglu (2011). the number of participants who involved in the try out is as many as 30 pre-service undergraduate teachers. they were at the half 8 and doing the process of writing a proposal (pre-service undergraduate teachers who are beyond the study). the data was processed by using a computer program "statistical package for the social sciences" (spss 12.0 for windows pcs) through the analysis of item correlations and cronbach alpha reliability. through the analysis of the correlation between the items for each construct, and the correlation between each item with the total score for these constructs, we customize or remove ubiquitous items that do not show a significant correlation and correlation values (r) of less than 0.30 and the alpha cronbach should be more than 0.60. the following table showed that the cronbach alpha were above 0.80. in other words, the reliability of questionnaire is in good level. table 1. reliability of the questionnaire no indicator cronbach alpha 1. attitude on elt research in general. 0.900 2. attitude on the inclusion of research in undergraduate courses 0.893 3. attitude on the research content of the work place, particularly in relation to elt practice 0.876 4. attitude on engaging research activities 0.878 5. attitude on their confidence to do elt research 0.893 6. attitude on the role of research in elt profession 0.874 7. attitude on the involvement of the english department on their research activities 0.879 then, researchers were assisted by the coordinators of the batch in distributing the questionnaire. all batch coordinators involved in the study were briefed about the research objectives and procedures. tabel 2. seven indicators of bolton (1999) no indicator total of items 1. attitude on elt research in general. 3 2. attitude on the inclusion of research in undergraduate courses 3 3. attitude on the research content of the work place, particularly in relation to elt practice 3 4. attitude on engaging research activities 4 5. attitude on their confidence to do elt research 3 6. attitude on the role of research in elt profession 3 7. attitude on the involvement of the english department on their research activities 3 22 item the above table shows the seven indicators which proposed by bolton (1999). the first indicator refers to study the undergraduate pre-service teachers’ attitudes on english language teaching research in general. this section has 3 items and the questions are intended to measure if they saw research as something that (1) easy or hard (2) important or not important (3) interesting or boring. the second indicator aims to look at teachers’ attitudes on the inclusion of kustati & al-azmi 5 research in undergraduate courses. the third indicator aims to look at teachers’ attitudes on the research content of the work place, particularly in relation to elt practice. this section aims to expose the pre-service undergraduate teachers to the issue or view research topics in the field of language teaching. the fourth indicator is the attitude on engaging research activities. the fifth indicator aims to identify teachers’ attitudes on their confidence to do elt research, the sixth indicator is teachers’ attitudes on the role of research in elt profession. the last indicator is teachers’ attitudes on the involvement of the english department on their research activities. for interview protocol, there were 12 questions that asked to the interviewees about the reasons for undergraduate pre-service teachers to have difference attitudes on elt research. the data of interview, then, was analyzed. by having interviews, it allowed the researchers to assess the participants’ unobservable (such as feelings) and observable behavior. the interview would reveal the reasons to have difference attitude on elt research in such a way. results and discussion there are three main research questions that are described below: research question 1: what are undergraduate pre-service teachers’ attitudes on elt research? the research finding on research question one is described based on seven indicators that proposed by bolton (1999). it could be seen from table 3 below: table 3. undergraduate pre-service teacher attitude on elt research no items es ip it u d ui b percentage (%) 1. my perception on elt research 0.9 44.3 46.6 1.8 5.5 0.9 2. my perception on elt research subject at english department 66.8 14.7 1.4 15.3 1.8 3. my perception on elt research as the final requirement to finish the study at english department 49.3 13.8 1.4 28.6 6.9 note: es : easy d : difficult ip : important ui : unimportant it : interesting b : bored u : undecided no items sd d u a sa percentage (%) 4. elt research is a part of important subject at english department 5.1 5.5 57.6 31.8 5. field research is a part of task on elt research subject at english department 9.2 4.2 81.1 5.5 6. providing training of elt research is not important 34.6 50.2 3.7 11.5 7. elt research is not important task for students’ future careers 22.6 49.3 0.9 25.8 1.4 8. i like lecturer’s tasks that ask me to conduct the elements of elt research 1.4 18 24.9 54.3 1.4 9. i like to conduct on elt research 1.4 9.7 2.8 84.3 1.8 10. i like discussing issues on elt research with elt research lecturer 3.7 81.6 14.7 11. i like reading research article in the journals 1.4 12 6 80.6 12. i met with several researchers who were doing the research 2.8 22.6 20.7 53.9 research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (2), 1-13 13. i do not like the tasks of elt research which were given by lecturer 6 63.2 20.7 10.1 14. i understand the terms which are used in elt research subject 2.8 11.1 33.5 51.2 1.4 15. i am confident to design elt research 1.4 6.9 41.9 48.4 1.4 16. i am confident to evaluate the results of elt research 2.8 5.5 47.9 42.4 1.4 17. elt research is important to identify and evaluate the problems on english language teaching 2.3 4.1 64.1 29.5 18. elt research is very important for me to increase my knowledge to teach students 11.1 1.4 40.1 47.4 19. elt research is very important to develop my teaching profession 2.3 6.0 3.2 44.7 43.8 20. elt research lecturers play important rule in english department 2.8 2.3 7.4 35 52.5 21. elt research lecturers supervise the students on current issues on the research 1.4 2.3 21.2 49.8 25.3 22. lecturers at english department use the finding of the research as a source of teaching material 32.3 46.1 9.2 12 0.5 note: sd : strongly disagree d : disagree u : undecided a : agree sa : strongly agree what emerged most significantly from this research project was that concerning how undergraduate pre-service teachers felt about elt research in general, 89 % thought that it was difficult even though 73.3 % thought research to be interesting. however, 83 % considered elt research necessary. the respondents appeared to be positive towards the overall concept of research in elt. participants’ attitudes to the research and its role in their undergraduate course and future profession were positive, and they were confident about their ability to understand research and research terminology related to english teacher education. however, they had negative views about english department, especially their lecturers’ involvement in research. only, 73 % agreed that their lecturers place great emphasis on research. 15 % stated that they discuss their own research interests in class. finally, it is only 12 % of the respondents said lecturer use research findings as part of their teaching material. research question 2: is there any significant difference between males’ and females’ attitudes on elt research? the issue of gender and its relation to human internal psychology become a trend topic in the past decades. the following described the females’ and males’ attitudes on elt research: table 4. the differences of males’ and females’ attitudes items gender m sd se f p. 1. my perception on elt research f 2.71 0.87 0.64 2.41 0.12 m 2.53 1.50 0.93 2. my perception on elt research subject at english department f 2.69 1.21 0.08 0.08 0.77 m 2,.3 1.33 1.33 3. my perception on elt research as the final requirement to finish the study at english department f 3.30 1.57 0.10 0.84 0.77 m 3.30 1.46 0.28 kustati & al-azmi 7 4. elt research is a part of important subject at english department f 4.17 0.74 0.54 0.23 0.88 m 4.13 0.77 0.14 5. field research is a part of task on elt research subject at english department f 3.87 0.62 0.04 1.65 0.10 m 3.60 0.85 0.15 6. providing training of elt research is not important f 1.92 0.93 0.69 0.15 0.21 m 1.93 0.78 0.14 7. elt research is not important task for students’ future careers f 2.29 1.12 0.18 1.65 0.19 m 2.67 1.15 0.21 8. i like lecturer’s tasks that ask me to conduct the elements of elt research f 3.42 0.82 0.61 2.19 0.14 m 3.00 0.83 0.15 9. i like to conduct on elt research f 3.81 0.65 0.48 1.60 0.10 m 3.43 0.93 0.17 10. i like discussing issues on elt research with elt research lecturer f 4.47 0.48 0.35 0.84 0.40 m 4.47 0.82 0.15 11. i like reading research article in the journals f 3.70 0.70 0.51 0.90 0.30 m 4.47 0.82 0.15 12. i met with several researchers who were doing the research f 3.33 0.87 0.64 0.07 0.79 m 2.83 0.95 0.17 items gender m sd se f p. 13. i do not like the tasks of elt research which were given by lecturer f 2.34 0.75 0,05 0.12 0.72 m 2.43 0.67 0.12 14. i understand the terms which are used in elt research subject f 3.42 0.80 0.59 0.47 0.30 m 3.07 0.78 0.14 15. i am confident to design elt research f 3.46 0.70 0.05 0.87 0.30 m 3.13 0.62 0.11 16. i am confident to evaluate the results of elt research f 3.40 0.71 0.05 0.83 0.10 m 3.00 0.69 0.02 17. elt research is important to identify and evaluate the problems on english language teaching f 4.24 0.62 0.04 3.97 0.04 m 4.03 0.61 0.11 18. elt research is very important for me to increase my knowledge to teach students f 4.28 0.89 0.66 0.17 0.18 m 3.94 1.12 0.20 19. elt research is very important to develop my teaching profession f 4.23 0.93 0.68 0.20 0.65 m 4.13 0.93 0.17 20. elt research lecturers play important rule in english department f 4.39 0.88 0.06 0.50 0.47 m 3.93 1.04 0.09 21. elt research lecturers supervise the students on current issues on the research f 4.00 0.81 0.05 015 0.21 m 3.67 0.88 0.16 22. lecturers at english department use the finding of the research as a source of teaching material f 2.06 1.01 1.07 4.19 0.42 m 1.8 1.61 0.11 the table above shows that there is no significance difference among both variable males’ and females’ attitudes on elt research. it means that the males’ and females’ attitudes on elt research are quite similar. research question 3: why do undergraduate pre-service teachers have difference attitudes on elt research? the majority of undergraduate pre-service teacher acknowledged that elt research is difficult for several reasons. the first factor is the lack of knowledge on elt research methodology. the second factor is lack of training on how to write a good proposal and research report. the third factor is the lack of lecturers’ involvement in their research activities. the fourth factor is the difficulty in having administrative service from the faculty. the fifth factor is the lack of reading sources in the library. the sixth factor is the difficulties in getting internet access in the campus. the last factor is the academic supervisors who are not from english department. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (2), 1-13 the results of pre-service undergraduate teachers of english attitudes towards research in the field of english language teaching would be elaborated by the research questions, the answer began with a discussion on pre-service undergraduate teacher attitudes toward research in the field of english language teaching. the descriptions of pre-service undergraduate teacher attitudes toward research were related with the perceptions on research in the field of english language teaching in general, the role of research in the courses offered, pre-service undergraduate teacher attitudes toward research, pre-service undergraduate teacher confidence in doing research, the role of research in the teaching profession, and english department involvement study. a surprising finding on pre-service undergraduate teacher attitudes toward research shows that they had positive perceptions of the research in which they acknowledge that most research in the field of english language teaching is easy, important and interesting but some other preservice undergraduate teachers claimed that it as a hesitant task, difficult , and boring to do. the result also shows that in an educational context, understanding differences and ideology of the academic activities in the form of research activity is a commonplace. this fact is also supported by some of the foremost experts in language teaching that discuss the attitudes towards the field of english. for example, newell & cunliffe (2003c) who states that the pre-service undergraduate teachers have a different attitude about the nature and significance of the research for them, especially as the final project for the completion of the program is a relatively common (seymour et al., 2004). in line with the expert opinion, tercanlioglu (2011) found that almost all respondents had a positive attitude towards research in the field of language teaching. the study also found that respondents had a negative attitude towards the involvement of the faculty. however, the research should be going into an activity that is very important if the preservice undergraduate teacher of the department of methodologies & educational practices in the teaching english as a foreign language have positive attitudes toward the importance of the study and performed the appropriate steps and make a significant contribution to the field of scientific research. from various surveys that have been conducted in many countries, there are some benefits that can be derived for the pre-service undergraduate teachers if they can do the research properly and in accordance with procedures. in addition, the benefits of research to the pre-service undergraduate teachers are as the final project, and as a condition to pursue graduate study (hathaway et al., 2002; lopatto, 2006; seymour et al., 2004). research is also useful for the development of certain skills (kardash, 2000; lopatto, 2006; seymour et al, 2004) or the maturation of a way of thinking (isaacs, 2008; steinberg, 2007), concentrated in both career goals and skills development and a measure of personal growth (lopatto, 2006), and has been described in the literature. there was no significant difference between the attitude of male and female pre-service undergraduate teachers. that is, both male and female pre-service undergraduate teachers likely have the same attitude. it implies that there is no gender bias in the department of methodologies & educational practices in the teaching english as a foreign language. there are several factors that cause the differences in pre-service undergraduate teachers’ attitudes based on the results of interviews, mainly due to the positive and negative factors in the process of thesis writing of the pre-service undergraduate teachers. positive factor is that most of the pre-service undergraduate teachers already understand the importance of research so they strive diligently to learn the procedures for conducting the research. in contrast, negative factors can hinder pre-service undergraduate teachers to do research. as recognized by the majority of kustati & al-azmi 9 survey respondents, namely, first, most of the existing english language lecturer at the faculty, department, or program of study do not use these findings to better maximize service guidance, periodic discussions about the concept of the study, offer the practical fieldwork more rather than theory and use of research findings as part of the pre-service undergraduate teacher teaching materials. second, the faculty does not provide excellent service completely, especially in the administrative process, tutoring besides completing other facilities. third, the pre-service undergraduate teacher is dependent upon the lecturers in the faculty, department, or program of study to provide knowledge and guidance on the concept of research in the field of english language teaching. pre-service undergraduate teachers have not trained themselves to selflearning by finding reading materials in the library or on the internet, meet and discuss with the lecturer or discussing interesting research in the field of language teaching. fourth, academic lecturers are mostly from non-english language. in fact, the pre-service undergraduate teacher must first consult about the proposal they would be taken to proposal seminar before the board of examination. conclusions since this research has only been conducted in the context of islamic collage, there must be a requirement to expand the research in the broader scales such as in the non-islamic universities. the attitude of the efl pre-service teachers shows a few differences. there were 74% of pre-service undergraduate teachers considered research in english is difficult, although 61% of pre-service undergraduate teachers admitted that research in this exciting field. however, 83% of them basically stated that research is very important for them to do a final project for research experience and it make makes them gain significant experience in career when they became a teacher later. the pre-service undergraduate teachers for overall had a positive attitude towards the whole concept of other research in the field of english language teaching in the field. the attitude of pre-service undergraduate teachers towards research, the role of research subjects and research functions for teacher professional development in the future. some pre-service undergraduate teachers also have self-confidence about their ability to do research in the field of english language teaching and research to understand the terms. pre-service undergraduate teachers have positive attitude about the involvement of the course lecturers to research they are doing. 93% of them agreed that faculty courses emphasize the importance of research. 58% of pre-service undergraduate teachers said that the lecturer in the study program provides guidance about their interest in the topic of research in the field of english language teaching. however, only 12% of pre-service undergraduate teachers stated that the lecturer use their research findings as part of teaching materials. recommendations the current study showed that majority of pre-service teachers have a positive attitude towards research on elt, english lecturer in the faculty, department, or program of study may consider to use these findings to maximize their service guidance, periodic discussions about the concept of the study, provide field research portion of practice more than theory and use the research findings as part of the pre-service undergraduate lecturer teaching materials. these findings can also be used by the faculty and departments to provide excellent service, especially in the administrative process, to increase books, journals, magazines, newspapers, and research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (2), 1-13 newsletters in the library, fix wifi facility in the college so that pre-service undergraduate teachers can easily access the internet, providing research training to pre-service undergraduate teachers on a periodic basis. maximum involvement of the various parties will make the preservice undergraduate teacher easier and motivated to do research. however, the pre-service undergraduate teachers are also expected to not only depend on the lecturers in the faculty, department, or program of study to 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(2011). pre-service efl attitudes towards research. retrieved from www.readingmatrix.com/conference. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) e-issn: 2468-6891 92 the inter and intra discipline linkage between economics, business administration and social sciences noureddine benlagha1 & wael hemrit2 abstract this study aims at investigating the extent to which six disciplines (economic, business administration, finance and investment, accounting, banking and insurance and risk management) reach out to spaces shared with other disciplines at the college of economic and administrative sciences in the university of al-imam mohammad ibn saud islamic university. first, we look at the descriptive statistics to know the attendance of each course in various specialties. second, we employ two ratios to measure the penetration extent of each economic branch in different social sciences branches and vice versa. in the intraspecific linkage measurement, our results indicate that these disciplines are far from having a dependence with history, politics, ethics and sociology sciences. moreover, we find that studies of the sharia are flourishing and the economic and business administration courses in the field are being defended. in the field study of interspecific linkage, our results indicate a deficiency of the linkage between the related disciplines in different manners. economic and business administration disciplines have, especially, the lowest degree of openness, compared to the rest of disciplines. key words: openness level, higher education, economics and business administration, sharia, saudi arabia. introduction teaching social sciences and especially economics to students on business programs in faculties or specialized colleges can be relatively challenging. in part, teaching economics suggests a series of parables that make many simplifying hypotheses and focuses on theoretical backgrounds. other disciplines, at all levels, such as business administration, finance, banking, insurance and accounting are considered as practical modules related to functions that businesses actually employed. generally, teaching these disciplines take place in more specialized business colleges as higher institute of management, institute of high business studies, institute of accounting and 1 assoc. prof., department of finance and economics, college of business and economics, qatar university, nbenlagha@qu.edu.sa. 2 assist. prof., department of insurance and risk management, college of economics and administrative sciences, al-imam mohammed ibn saud islamic university (imsiu), saudi arabia. wahemrit@imamu.edu.sa. benlagha & hemrit 93 institute of insurance or actuary. these faculties and colleges usually operate by branches or department such as economics, business administration, accounting, finance and investment, banking, insurance and risk management and others. the number of branches reflects the ambition of educational institutions to improve the quality of outputs which focuses on certain competency standards required in the labor market. graduate programs of different academic departments are usually designed and planned by a committee of professors with help of specialists in the branch. the major component of the program is intuitively composed of modules directly related to the branch, and the second part consists of a series of modules dealing indirectly with the main branch. the purpose of adding these modules is related to different parameters such as institution policy, government policies or opening to institution's environment. principal and auxiliary modules will directly affect student achievement and other outcomes. first, the content of university program could affect failure rates in the considered branch. second, economic branch is also considered as investment in the human capital of students (becker, 1964). consequently, the academic programs affect human capital and the ability to be integrated in a developed labor market. for these reasons, the choice of modules in one branch seems to be a significant task. moreover, the program in one field can also contain several modules related to other branches each one focusing in different objects of specialty, such as history, political sciences, sociology, ethics or sharia sciences. as the growth of islamic economics activities in international business relations, nowadays many institutions in the world including gcc and especially in the saudi arabia follow the trend of using islamic system which is called as “sharia based principles”. however, the human resources who can support the system are not available enough due to the lack of education, especially in business school. business universities core curriculum in state and private universities in saudi arabia does not have emphases on islamic principles in business practices. in addition, the need to appreciate the guiding principles and framework of islamic philosophy is necessary to maintain the growth of the economic and business activities. despite the few desirable features discussed above, some undergraduate curriculum suffers from many of serious weaknesses, one of which is specific subject oriented and does not adequately gear itself to other fields and topics. the importance given to main subject is considerably higher research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3), 92-115 than that given to other subjects in comparisons to well recognized business school in the world. another major shortcoming in the current programs and degrees is the restrictions and inflexibility of the curriculum content. university education in any disciplinary area should cater to needs of students, which depend, to a large extent, on the career opportunities of students and needs of employers. in our study, we focus on the degree of openness of one branch to others, on the one hand, and to other social sciences on the other hand, for the case of the college of economics and administrative sciences of al-imam muhammad ibn saud islamic university. to this aim, we will proceed by a characterization of inter and intra descriptive statics approach. we also develop a first ratio measuring the degree of openness of each division to others. another ratio is also proposed to measure the global degree of openness for each section. we exploit data related to programs of college departments. in the inter analysis, we mainly investigate the linkage between economics and business disciplines and five types of social sciences (history, political sciences, sociology, ethics and sharia). our study is quite different from the existing literature since our intra analysis is used to investigate the linkage between different departments in economic and business administration faculties and colleges is not covered in the literature. to the best of our knowledge, no previous works have addressed the linkage between economics and business administration with the sharia science. the study has important implications for decision makers in the studied university, other universities and ministry of education since it provides useful information about the opening up fields of economic and business disciplines to other disciplines and the new ways of understanding and thinking. this paper encompasses many academic disciplines of the economic, social, and sharia sciences and promotes a new debate related to the opening on the improvement of human capital effects and the ability of students to be integrated in a developed labor market. our findings should lead to the conclusion that islamic principles must be included in business school curriculum as a solution to bridge the gap between theory and practice in business sectors. the rest of the paper is organized as follows. section 2 reviews the literature on the linkage between economics and other social sciences. section 3 describes the data. section 4 presents and benlagha & hemrit 95 discusses the empirical findings. finally, section 5 concludes and presents policy recommendations. literature review there is a wide variation in economics emphasis in the business courses of different institutions. for the majority, economics requirements are limited to the principles course alone, whereas others require various degrees of more advanced economics training as part of the courses for the business curriculum. neither the american assembly of collegiate schools of business (aacsb) nor the association of collegiate of business schools programs (acbsp) offer any specific recommendations regarding the extent to which program reduces the independence between disciplines and appropriate mix of economics and business courses. some earlier studies, however, proposed that economics students should be subjected to more economics courses beyond the principles that most schools require. specifically, the american economic association study (1950) recommended making economics as much as 20 percent of the business curriculum. the person report (1959) and the gordon-howell report (1959) recommended three and two additional courses, respectively, beyond the two principles courses. the task of the linkage between economics and other related disciplines in earlier study carried out by philbrook (1957) arguing that one possible reason of the failure in teaching of economics in faculties was the ambiguity in the minds of faculty members about the nature and role of economic disciplines. this ambiguity is directly inherent to the logical linkage between the two disciplines. santos (2017) stipulates that the business administration as a social fact needs to free itself from some ties of the modern epistemological profile of modern social sciences to consolidate itself as a scientific field. moreover, hudson (2017) said that economics overall, fits best with philosophy, but the linkage is weak. when we divided economics into papers published in theory, econometrics and the remaining journals, the economics branch turned out to be directly connected to mathematics and computer science, particularly econometrics, and thence the sciences. the rest of economics then links with business administration and thence the social sciences. biehl, kim and wade (2006) use a multi-method citation analysis to investigate the linkage among the academic business disciplines. in the literature, the interaction between economics and the other social sciences is mainly discussed by category of related discipline. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3), 92-115 shiozawa (1999) compared the philosophical backgrounds of the economic and accounting disciplines in view of complexity theory. the most important result from this study is that accounting can be considered as good and supportive partner of economics. especially, accounting can assist the recently born economics of complexity in its efforts to explain behaviors of the enterprise as an economic agent. rumelt, schendel and teece (1991) examine the linkage between strategic management and economics and they argue that the key contribution from economics has been primarily from the industrial organization literature, with promises of important gains to be made from the ‘new’ economics as it breaks away from the neoclassical theory of the firm. moreover, yang (2007) investigates the development trends and the linkage between economics and management research. he mainly found that countries that give interest to economics research also attach the same importance to management research. finance, banking and insurance are also three intimately related subjects in business disciplines. yet, the linkage between these subjects and economics is not quite discussed in the literature. expressly, when talking about the linkage between economics and finance as two different disciplines, we found very limited resources of research which are conducted. however, we found few studies debating the linkage between finance and economics as sectors of activities, for instance one can see, levine (1997), beck, demigruc-kunt and levine (2000), ang (2010) or more recently khan and siraj (2012). moreover, the linkage between economics, insurance and banking disciplines could be considered as a key gap in the existing research literature debating the different academic disciplines. in the new institutional economics, the society principles are greatly influenced by economic factors, and the society environment mainly determines economic practices. rizza (2006) suggests that this consistency is vital for the social order. he finds a strong uniformity structured by the cognitive dimension of embeddedness3 that limits the economic reasoning concerning the role of collectively shared illustrations in progress on all aspects of social and economic development. for this reason, without social conditions, the study of economics is quite impossible. then, all social difficulties are directly linked to the economic conditions of the people. after an investigation of new behavioral economic found in the human decision, drakopoulos and 3embeddedness refers to the degree to which economic activity is constrained by non-economic institutions (granovetter, 1985). benlagha & hemrit 97 katselidis (2017) explain the advices supporting the case for the linkage between economic and psychology fields. they find there were no methodological objections against using economic concepts, findings and ideas from psychology field. economic aspects play a vigorous role in each phase of our social life. thus, the area of cooperation between sociology and economics fields is widening and the progress of individual depends very much on economic factors. moreover, a considerable number of studies discussed this issue; rosdahl (2003), fligstein and dauter (2007), kanbur and spence (2010), kus (2010), fligstein and dioun (2015) and mitra and ulubasoglu, (2015). we find that the economic ground has been considered as a division of ethics and there is no isolating streak between economics and practical ethics, but the economic thought is minor, unjust and immoral. therefore, economic and ethical thoughts are directed by own ideologies and subsequently often conflict. consequently, some believe that the economy is an independent science which has nothing to do with the morality of people (amoral) and some of them believe that the economy may often conflict with mortality (immoral). in this perspective, wight (2003) belies economists' own instinctive knowledge, and demonstrates the role of morals and virtue in the scholarly endeavors. king (2013) suggests that economics students must know the weakness of the economic aspects, for example, income distribution, property rights, taxation, minimum wages, global poverty and so forth above all take place because of an economic-ethical difficulty. recently, there is even new conception going on named “the revival of economics as a moral science” (peil and van staveren, 2009) proposed that both deontological and teleological evaluations take place in the areas of behavioral economics and judgment. the economics student must understand the creativity extent and moral principles that do not conflict with societal values and how they can use personal moral compass to assist organizations with key business goals (lewis, 2002; hausman and mcpherson, 2006; held, 2006; kinsella and kinsella, 2009). economics and history disciplines have been a prosperous subject of scholarly study during recent decades. gayer (2002) states that only 13 of the top 62 graduate economics disciplines reported offering any course of the history on the economic discipline thought in the previous five years. among the top 20 departments, only four reported having offered such a course. nunn (2009) examined the importance of the long-term effects that historic events can have on economic http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/s1059056015001707 research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3), 92-115 development. he confirms that the overall importance of historic events and many specific historic channels continue to affect economic development today. in a new and interesting analytical history of economic thought, sandmo (2011) proposes a learning about the history thought that should be part of a liberal teaching. the liberal education should include a basic understanding of statistics. he suggests that the study of the history thought shows that economic analysis is not a static field but, as he puts it, an evolving one. einchengreen, park and shin. (2011) state that for economics students, the danger with historical analogy is that policy makers will use it imprudently. in other words, regulatory bodies of higher education will fail to capture the minute differences in response to challenges faced by economy, weigh their correspondence with the current situation, and emphasize not just similarities but also differences. theoretical background the conceptual foundation of the inter and intra-specific linkage between university courses are not fully developed as yet. therefore, the research in this field must attach greater importance to the theoretical grounding base. drawing on arguments based on complexity, embeddedness and human capital theories, we attempt to apprehend the diverse perspectives for understanding the growing of defined task. complexity theory: the path of complexity is the social organization which is a set of interacting or interdependent elements; it therefore constitutes them as the units of the manifold, and as forming multiplicity (zimmerman et al. 2001). moreover, the system is both more and less than what might be called the sum of its parts. one aspect of social organization is to be found in economic activity that enables the full development of human being’s inherent potentialities, including social, legal, political, historical knowledge and the mediating variables of organizational identity and social movements (schneider and somers, 2006). these qualities are "emerging" and are empirically observable without being logically deductible; these emerging qualities feedback on the parts and can stimulate them to express their ideas and opinions. in complexity theory, an economics student should detect and respond to its environment, thus changing its environment, which changes the student perception of economic and management sense again, so that the university reacts to, and in that way – proactively – provide an understanding of the interdependence between courses in the various specialization areas; the slight change in perception of most important course content characteristic produces dynamic and benlagha & hemrit 99 continuous change recursively. thus, there is a dynamic linkage between the student adaptation to new academic environments and the educational related aspects that they form perceptions about. further, one cannot consider the economics student without considering the spectrum of specialties; the emphasis is on collective, relational behaviour and holism rather than on isolationism, individualism and solipsism (morrison, 2006). embeddedness theory: one of the most exciting developments in the economic sociology concerns the extent to which economic action is embedded in structure of social relations (granovetter, 1985). it is enough to note that the distinctive approach proposed by beckert (2007) highlights the social embeddedness of economies. social relations must be structured to allow the economic system to be adapted to the specific laws of society, based on specific processes and conferring a special status. so that the well-functioning economic system can be met only by market society. the economics students should know about the college of economics and administrative sciences and start from how the economy acquires unity and stability, i.e., how the interdependence and reappearance of its fragments come to be tenable. they should focus on the basic structural principles that could provide such unity and stability rather than on possible strategic or discursive sources of development. the whole of social, political, history, and intellectual life then appears as 'superstructure'. given the interest in both embedded and disembedded economies, students must engage in such higher order thinking tasks as analysis, synthesis and evaluation of the determinants of the instituted process that results from the economic value. the “legitimate training” should be defined on the basic purposes of coherence between the tradition of formal economy and the expressive behaviour that involves more than the limited conception of economic activity in relation to the scope of politics, history, ethics, sociology, etc. human capital theory: each student has its own capital, which comes from his personal gifts, innate, and training. its stock of intangible capital can build up or wear more rapidly. it grows cumulatively over a long period by increasing the investment in knowledge, which explains the differences in productivity, and income. like any form of investment, the human capital can be calculated by the marginal rate of return associated with an expense or an extra year of study or broad knowledge than specialties (becker, 1964). it is in this sense that becker (1964) advanced the theory of human capital that is accumulated knowledge and investments in health and time like any other. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3), 92-115 the cross-training effort of the economics students contributes to specific knowledge which was one-sided and therefore dogmatic, rigid, and fanatical. in the inventory of existing and available knowledge, the student acquires a specific talent and cannot be content merely with views and concepts of the specialty course that depends of the chosen domain. this sense of the whole will enhance the students' personal involvement in the learning process that follows. the student gets a portfolio of skills and experiences that differentiate it from the locked students and thus increase its own value in the labor market. presence of sharia in university courses there is no doubt that islamic sharia should strive to achieve justice for all people and to build the basic of communication between human beings under a reservation of rights and the organization of economic life. in addition, to directing the human to get the satisfaction of almighty allah, the economists must be integrated into the new economic development related to sharia compliant transactions. the most important step in the planning process is to be clear on the aim of the purposes of the sharia study which is transformed from the theoretical to the practical side, in order to give a kind of opportunity studies fact, to serve the entire economy (jobst, 2006). in the aftermath of the financial complexity and development, there is a growing necessity among scholars of economics and those working in the sharia field to identify and understand what islamic economics is and how it can contribute to the western system of finance and multiculturalism. perhaps the reason is that the jurist (also known as alem) was economist and that ever policymaker, academic and practitioner on the economic ground have enough of fiqh and economic knowledge. kayed and hassan, (2011) attribute cause of financial crisis to a laxity of lending standards often adopted by conventional financial institutions. in other words, the crisis has shown us that the economy, if it is detached from sharia rulings, will wander in the darkness and lead to many disasters. at the same time, islamic institutions are viewed as challenges and opportunities by many islamic and non-islamic countries, many of whom have sought to get involved in this growing industry, (bley and kuehn, 2004). benlagha & hemrit 101 moreover, many of our economic problems such as unemployment and inflation can be treated following sharia principles (zakat and principle of preventing dealing benefit). the economics student will be able to differentiate between halal and haram and there is no need to distinguish between permissible and impermissible given that the basic principle of transactions is the permissibility (sherif, 2015; jriden, 2013). many authors disagree with the propositions that economics requirements be uniform for all business majors and argue that curriculum needs may be better served by varying the economics emphasis across the various business concentrations. thus, a marketing student may be required to take an extra in course intermediate microeconomics, whereas this requirement may not apply. the significance of economic education in fostering success in a business area likely would vary by institution. this makes a strong case for making curriculum design dynamic. to our knowledge, such study does not exist, and this paper partially fills a gap in knowledge and is thus a contribution to the literature. method to investigate the inter and intra-discipline linkage between economics, business administration and other social science fields, we use the database related to the educational program of the college of economics and administrative sciences in al-imam muhammad ibn saud islamic university. first, we take a look at this university class organogram. second, we briefly describe the various specialties in the college of economic and administrative sciences. research design to examine the different associations between six divisions of the studied college, we employ a descriptive analysis approach and then, we propose a ratio of openness to compare between the strength of the linkage among different departments. thus, we develop two ratios to evaluate the degree of openness between departments. the first is used to measure the degree of openness between two different sections. the second, is a global ratio employed to estimate the openness degree of one section relatively to the other sections. let, ji x , : the number of credit hours or units allocated to a section j in the section i . i x : the total number of credit hours or units in the section i . research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3), 92-115 then, the openness ratio for the department i to the department j is defined by: i ji ji x x o ,   and the global openness ratio of one section to the rest of another department is defined by: i n j ji g x x o i    1 , population and sample/ study group/participants teaching the basic islamic knowledge triumphed most faculties and institutes in al-imam university under the blessing of sheikh mohammed ibrahim al-sheikh – may allah show mercy to him and his brothers. it contains eleven undergraduate colleges plus the sharia institute. figure 1the concept map of al-imam muhammad ibn saud islamic university. at present the university hosts over 35,000 students in the regular, summer, evening, and distance education programs both at undergraduate and postgraduate level. for nearly thirty years, the university of al-imam muhammad bin saud islamic revolutionary step was the establishment of a specialized section of the islamic economic studies. turning to the department of economics and business administration. in, 31/10/2006 the economic section was transformed to an independent college under the name of the college of economics and administrative sciences. it becomes a distinctive position in the areas of training and research in response to the needs and developments in the financial and business sector, especially in the benlagha & hemrit 103 field of economics and islamic finance, which began to take shape in the contemporary world4. the figure 2 illustrates the academic departments in the college. figure 2the divisions of college of economics and administrative sciences. the college of economic and administrative sciences contains six departments. the first batch management students were beginning in the first semester of the academic year (1999-2000), and the first batch of the students graduated in the second semester of the academic year (2002-2003). then, the section of accounting department grew up in the college of economics and administrative sciences on 24/05/2006 to participate in the pilot project presented by the university. after one year, the finance and investment department announced the first batch of accepted students in the scholarship program. in the same stage, the banking department began his academic role. in a final step, it was approved the establishment of insurance and risk management department in 2012. the department started the second semester in the beginning of the academic year 2012-2013. the undergraduate program in each of six departments is divided into eight semesters covering the section, the college, and obviously, the university requirements. there are common first four semesters for all students entering without deficiencies or advanced credits. in the fifth semester, 4 the description of the college of economics and administrative sciences is translated from the website of the college: http://units.imamu.edu.sa/colleges/economics/profile/pages/default.aspx research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3), 92-115 students who opt for specialisation are allotted their choice based on merit and marks scored by them in the previous semesters. data collection the objectives and structure of programs are also summarized such as; the four years’ programs are tailored made to serve the needs of the bright students who are looking for a career education in entrepreneurship, management profession or towards higher education in business schools. all programs require successful completion of a minimum of 42 courses (3 or 2 cr. hr. each) picked from different streams including economics, finance, business administration, banking, accounting, and insurance. it specifies the minimum and maximum range in each category. the course titles are suggestive and not mandatory. tables 1 and 2 below illustrate the number of courses offered to various levels. table 1. number of courses that are taught across all discipline areas. courses numbers history politics ethics sociology quraan fukh and sunna shariaa languages others levels 1-4 0 0 1 0 4 4 8 2 1 economy 1 0 0 1 4 2 6 0 0 business administration 0 0 0 0 4 1 5 0 0 accounting 0 0 0 0 4 0 4 0 0 finance and inv 0 0 0 0 4 2 6 0 0 banking 0 0 0 0 4 2 6 0 0 ins. risk mgt 0 0 0 0 4 2 6 0 0 note.1. number of courses that are approved in different levels of economic and business administration disciplines (common core (1-4 levels), economy, business administration, accounting, finance and investment, banking and insurance and risk management) at the college of economics and administrative sciences in al-imam muhammad ibn saud islamic university. table 2. number of guided learning hours of courses across all discipline areas. number of credit hours history politics ethics sociology quraan fukh and sunna shariaa languages others levels 1-4 0 0 2 0 4 12 16 8 2 economy 3 0 0 3 4 6 10 0 0 business administration 0 0 0 0 4 2 6 0 0 accounting 0 0 0 0 4 0 4 0 0 finance and inv 0 0 0 0 4 5 9 0 0 banking 0 0 0 0 4 7 11 0 0 ins. risk mgt 0 0 0 0 4 6 10 0 0 note.2. number of hours spent teaching students in the economic and business administration disciplines (common core (1-4 levels), economy, business administration, accounting, finance and investment, banking and insurance and risk management) at the college of economics and administrative sciences in al-imam muhammad ibn saud islamic university. benlagha & hemrit 105 one notable strength of the current curriculum is that it includes a considerable number of inter disciplinary subjects. this is compatible with the suggestions of several writers that business degree programs should also include subjects that help students in gaining an understanding of the political, cultural and socio-economic environment of the country concerned. in this respect, we analyze each department program to investigate the linkage between them and the affiliation with other social sciences. to fulfill this challenge, we will apply descriptive and graphical methodology. findings intra-linkage of economics and business administration disciplines with other social sciences in what follows, we will present the tables that were designed to show data for the number of the various disciplines’ areas (history, politics, ethics, sociology, sharia, languages and others) that are taught across all specialties of economic and business administration, including the number of credit hours for each course data. as can be seen from tables 1 and 2, there was also an almost whole lack of social and human sciences through the non-representation of sociology, politics, ethics and history courses. this result is reached given the impression that the lesson planning for the economy and management sciences assumes that all jurisdictions have no links with pedagogical vision dictates. while the findings are certainly enlightening, we go deeper into this analysis and many remarks will be included in the province of our study. the education plan omits everything relating to the teaching of political sciences and legislation that reflect a deficiency of factual description relating to functioning of economic institutions and of the setting in which they evolve and the rules of law on which they work. this result was confirmed by chapsal, (1952) over a long period in the french case. economic and business administration courses, without which any teaching on political relations would remain empty and unrealistic; political economy and legislative policy are probably the most urgent problems of our age. a certain amount of political knowledge transfers the student from the theoretical world to a better gratitude of the composite structures of modern society and economic cornerstone. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3), 92-115 another important result of our analysis is the absence of ethics and sociology courses in the economics disciplines. the weak association may affect firstly, the extent of compliance to the public undertakings as well as on financial transparency within certain undertakings, secondly the effectiveness of economic transactions under the regulatory requirements and market needs and finally, the proposed monitoring protocol among different economic agents. this result contradicts the various suggestions of (wight, 2003; hausman and mcpherson, 2006). we find that student ideas suffer from a lack of congruence between economic theory and the needs of the community, making a vacuum and fragility in communication between producers and consumers, managers and investors, citizens and the state. the gap between the economic theories and sociology and ethics practices requires looking beyond the aggregate pattern across economic agents. the lack of historical literacy in the past issue of the existence of an economics discipline is a fatal consequence. a typical course is taught two hours every week to economics students, but it is certainly not enough to discover and enunciate the rules and the economic principles, which underlie human activities in pursuit of living. according to that reasoning, the presence of the theory of consciousness based only on the long-term effects is implemented through the discursive access to the major historical events and transformations. this confirmed the idea of nunn (2009) who stipulates that the lack of theorizing about content in history directly negates everything that resulted from legal and living conditions and economic measures development. another dimension through which the economic discipline can represents the strength and direction of an exceptional field at a point using "quraan" and "fukh and sunna" field is the sharia. therefore, the economic and administrative science marks its huge and preponderating importance more strongly than even its presence. this is similar to representing magnetic fields around magnets. according to fawwaz, alawneh and shawaqfeh (2015), as the theoretical feature of the islamic economic system is still in the early stages, there are continuous efforts to develop islamic tools compliant with the economic studies and decision-making processes in administrative reforms. given the presence of many courses (such as: quraan, fukh and sunna), the credit hours a student spends per week in class that is related to sharia course reflect approximately the current trends in teaching and learning practices. thus, many features of the teaching system reinforce this trend in benlagha & hemrit 107 the college. however, the sharia is confined to keeping the quraan and the path oriented toward the sunna and the prophetic model, because along with the quraan, the sunna makes up the second sources of islamic theology and law. in other words, the term “sharia” as currently used in several issues in relation to economic disciplines, academic studies, and financial or non-financial institutions strategies encompasses a vast field of research, all of which has “islam” as its common bond. references to sharia, whether in the sense of a culture, civilization, or religious tradition, have become ever more frequent with the appearance of a plethora of economics and administrative science literature (“fundamentalist”) islam, or “islamism.” these results confirm the concept and the experimental basis for developing the academic studies provided by (bley and kuehn, 2004; jriden, 2013; martin et al, 2016). for this reason, there is an urgent need for the integration of sharia in the others economics courses and topics of finance, business, banking, insurance backgrounds that should be required to be taken by all economics students. accordingly, the concepts of shariah jurisprudence becomes important, since it develops operational guideline in the financial institutions. however, the human resource which can support the system is not available enough due to the lack of education, especially in legal base on islamic principles. therefore, the curriculum on business school both in the state and private universities must concentrate or have specific course on islamic principles in business to bridge the gap. during last decade, the business school’s curriculum in al-imam mohammed ibn saud islamic university becomes part of a global system of business school educations. the curriculum response to globalization is the introduction of specialized courses such as jurisprudence transactions, financing contracts, and cooperative insurance. globalization calls for the need to prepare the economics students for complex transactions for raising capital, locally and internationally, regulating the flow of capital and securing investors’ guarantees. courses like mergers and acquisitions (m&a), project finance, credit transactions or corporate rehabilitation have also been introduced. these courses have been designed based on “sharia principle” or using islamic contract law system. another desirable feature of the current curriculum is the inclusion of ideological and religionoriented subjects such as islamic morals, islamic ethics and islamic texts. these subjects aim at shaping the students' world views as well as philosophical and ideological foundations. in this research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3), 92-115 way, as suggested by fitzgerald and baird (2011), the students must be evaluated not on their professional learning and normative views, but on the basis of whether the comprehensive and practical knowledge on sharia compliance is logically connected to the business principles that they have chosen. consequently, we find that also successfully forward in an important part of the approved plan of study at the college in teaching a large proportion of the economic features and investment decisions on the terms of reference for each sharia principle. the inclusion of several economics-based subjects is also vital for all economics students. through these subjects, the students can learn the basic economic concepts and the economy operating in the context of those concepts. an adequate understanding of the economic behavior and development strategies is important for economics students. in addition, it was universally believed that a good knowledge of quantitative techniques is necessary for all students to be able to discover the research process data and analyze a wide variety of managerial problems and remedial measures. given the importance of each attribute of various mathematics and statistics subjects that were very different, the students are expected to gain this knowledge. moreover, one of the primary functions of business graduate is to provide financial and managerial information to managers in their organization. therefore, it is important for them to have at least a basic knowledge of business administration, so that their supportive management platform can deliver more effective self-management. benlagha & hemrit 109 figure-3. the linkage between divisions of the college of economics and administrative sciences the figure 3 shows that, in the first four semesters, courses taught in the economics division are with respect to courses taught in other departments without forgetting the presence of three specialized courses of other disciplines. we also notice that the least represented departments in the first four semesters are banking and insurance and risk management. this figure allows us to better understand the linkage between departments for the higher levels. it shows two significant raptures in the distribution of the number of hours allocated to each discipline taught in college; especially for the first division "business administration" and second division "economics". these breaks indicate that the deficiency is triggered in the association with other related disciplines. to be more precise, for the economic division, the economics courses listing is not broad enough to offer students a technical job skills and knowledge areas resulted from the business administration, banking, and insurance and risk management courses. as, a result, the economic reasoning behind financial market, micro institutional perspective, sectorial and spatial integration needs is deceptively simple. we can say that economics graduates may have a narrow range of knowledge about the determinants of peripheral economy. likewise, for the business administration, there does not exist any course related to other sections of the college except four hours related to accounting department. the lack of technical skills for the economics students is very difficult to develop the talents required to become effective global managers. in other words, these areas of weakness are very striking revelation regarding the absence of finance, insurance and banking, risk management and economics area, where the current management program listing does not have the versatility and flexibility, or the perspective to deal with the issues. the above figure reflects some similarities in the distribution of disciplines related to finance and investment, banking and insurance and risk management disciplines. these three last divisions are significantly more open to other departments. the literature perceived the presence of strong unidirectional linkage between the finance and investment division and the economic one. moreover, the second strong unidirectional linkage is between insurance and risk management and finance and investment. another association running from insurance and risk management to business administration was found. measure of the degree of openness research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3), 92-115 table 3 provides results of the calculated openness ratio allowing to examine the strength of the linkage between two different sections. table 3. partial openness ratio section economy business administration accounting finance and inv banking ins. risk mgt economy 0.947 0.000 0.000 0.053 0.000 0.000 business administration 0.045 0.909 0.045 0.000 0.000 0.000 accounting 0.053 0.105 0.789 0.053 0.000 0.000 finance and inv 0.278 0.111 0.167 0.389 0.000 0.056 banking 0.048 0.095 0.048 0.190 0.619 0.000 ins. risk mgt 0.053 0.158 0.053 0.158 0.105 0.474 this table allows for a better visualization and apprehension of the opening degree of a department to another and thus, it helps to measure the linkage intensity among different departments. we note that the degree of openness is significant for the finance and investment department to the economic section with a value of 0.278. the degree of openness is also significant for the banking department to the finance and investment department. figure-4 provides an orderly representation based on the degree of openness of various departments. figure 4. global openness ratio for various divisions benlagha & hemrit 111 this figure indicates that the finance and investment department has the higher global ratio followed by the insurance and risk management division. however, the lowest ratio is detected for the economy and business administration divisions with values lower than 0.1. discussion, conclusion and implications our results suggest that there is a significant separation of disciplines related to economics and business administration with other disciplines areas, except those related to sharia science. consequently, the students lack background knowledge necessary to understand the key history, politics, ethics and sociology references. the economic and business background and the specialized disciplines in the college have not the capacity to motivate and guide research questions at both the micro and macro levels of economic problems and globalization analysis. these results have many undesirable implications on the outputs of the college. although the economics and business administration disciplines are the most represented in the four first semester, the two considered sections have the lowest degree of openness compared to the rest of departments. the inflexible nature of the current curriculum is disadvantageous to the academic community as well. since academics are expected to follow a single curriculum, which has been imposed on them, they do not get the opportunity to gain the experience of curriculum design and course planning on the one hand. on the other hand, they are not motivated to look for new developments in a subject area, because introducing new techniques, concepts or topics other than those listed under each of the subjects in the undergraduate subject handbook is considered illegal under the existing system. even though, it is possible to submit a written request or proposal to the curriculum sub-committee asking for permission to add a new topic or make an amendment to an existing topic or subject, it is not practically possible to get the official approval. as a matter of fact, students are also aware of this situation and some students who like to pass an examination with the minimum amount of studies may even complain to the authorities, if a lecturer attempts to introduce a new topic or concept in addition to those given in the undergraduate subject handbook. a more serious problem emanating from the above situation is that some of the concepts, techniques or topics used by lecturers in the teaching of subjects in the curriculum naturally become outdated and obsolete. this is inevitable because lecturers are not expected to replace any research in social sciences and technology (ressat) 2018: 3 (3), 92-115 outdated parts of the subject matter specified in handbook with newer and more refined concepts, techniques or topics. consequently, this situation has a serious and adverse effect on the quality of business graduates and the morale of academics in saudi arabia. our results can be used to adopt an appropriate strategy to the specific realities and challenges of university in relation to the labor market in the country that applies islamic sharia. we can say that it is obviously true, then, that comprehensive ideals emerged at a time when islamic universities started firstly, to build around the interests and abilities of students on social harmony and secondly to open the way to a new linkage between the economy and other fields. each of these fields should has implications for scholarship on 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(2001). a complexity science primer. in edgeware: insights from complexity science for health care leaders (pp.3–20). irving, tex.: vha inc. research in social sciences and technology early american political scientists: traditionalist paradigm and citizenship education iftikhar ahmad long island university iftikhar.ahmad@liu.edu abstract in the first decade of the twentieth century the discipline of political science was in its nascent stage. political science professors of that period focused their research primarily on the study of the state or the nation-state. they espoused a worldview that may be called traditionalism. traditionalist paradigm was informed by hegelian philosophy of the primacy of the state. their academic research and professional mission paid little attention to social issues of the period such as racial segregation, income inequality, women’s right to vote, and poverty. traditionalist political scientists promoted teaching about the structure and function of government on college campuses and in public schools packaging it as citizenship education. however, political scientists of the mid-1920s and early 1930s found traditionalism to be an inadequate methodology for explaining the complex political problems of a rapidly changing society. keywords: political science, state, traditionalism, government, academic discipline, citizenship education introduction the history of american political science may be divided into three broad phases: traditionalism, behavioralism, and post-behavioralism (somit and tanenhaus 1967; gunnell 1990; easton 1991). each phase is characterized by political scientists’ assumptions about the social and political order in america. this paper explores the historical context of the first phase of american political science. in doing so, it discusses the enduring legacy of traditionalism, its inadequacies, and its implications for american democracy and civic life. the traditionalist phase was introduced in the late nineteenth century by the founding fathers of the discipline with the establishment of political science programs in colleges and universities (haddow 1939; crick 1959; waldo 1975; gunnell 1990, 1991). the most instrumental founders were those who studied in prussia and were influenced by hegelian conservatism. upon their return to the united states, the prussian-trained american political ahmad research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 17-54 18 scientists placed the nation-state “at the top as the consummation and culmination, and also the basis of all other institutions” (dewey 1982, p. 194). state-centricism became so pervasive in american political science discourse that john dewey, a renowned philosopher of education, called it an “industry” of which hegel was “a striking example” (dewey 1982, p. 194). nonetheless, for dewey, such deep commitment to the state-centric approach was dogmatic on the part of its adherents because they made the state to be “a supreme end in itself” (p. 196). commenting on the hegelian influence on american political scientists, dewey posits: naturally, inevitably, the students of political science have been preoccupied with this great historic phenomenon, and their intellectual activities have been directed to its systematic formulation. because the contemporary progressive movement was to establish the unified state against the inertia of minor social units and against the ambitions of rivals for power, political theory developed the dogma of the sovereignty of the national state, internally and externally. (p. 195) hence, some of the traditionalists’ primary missions were the study of the state, the preparation of administrators for government, and the creation of a passive citizenry (leonard 1999, 750). because of their innate interest in the state, political scientists considered the teaching of government in both colleges and school their central obligation. moreover, traditionalists founded the apsa in 1903, which for several decades made systematic efforts to foster the teaching of government-related courses in public schools. describing the academic background of the apsa founders, peter manicas (1987) suggests that “almost half those holding positions in the american political science association had been german-trained” (p. 219). the mission of the german-trained traditionalist scholars was the “americanization of political science” (manicas 1987, 219). it is particularly notable that the traditionalist perspective in the apsa considered the teaching of government as political science education. indeed, it was this legacy, which continued for decades in the high school social studies curricula of most states. some critics identified the legacy as “conservative cultural continuity” (haas 1979, 151). ahmad research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 17-54 19 recognizing traditionalism as the core value of political science, social science historian dorothy ross (1991) argues that “the discipline of [political science] entered the 1920s with its conservative traditionalism still visible” (p. 448). ross’s study suggests that in comparison with other social sciences, political science was relatively slower in recognizing and embracing social and scientific change. the discipline of psychology, for example, was well ahead of political science in incorporating scientific methods in its research. it was therefore psychology that charles e. merriam of the university of chicago emulated, and he urged his fellow political scientists to follow its methods. merriam took over the presidency of the apsa in 1925. merriam sought to steer the political science discipline away from traditionalism and towards social science. because most apsa members were trained in traditionalism, merriam’s ascendancy to power did not shake the old school entirely. inspired by advances made in the sister social sciences, especially psychology and sociology, merriam sought to introduce the social science research methods into political science. psychology was merriam’s “chief interest and his scientific trojan horse” (ross 1991, 452). merriam’s insistence on the use of the social science research methods was a repudiation of the comparative-historical method heretofore used by traditionalists. in the mid-1920s, merriam inaugurated the behavioralist phase in political science. however, the behavioralist movement gained popularity only after the second world war. behavioralist political scientists parted ways with traditionalism by curtailing their professional commitment to the study of the state and the fostering of the teaching of government in schools. unlike traditionalists, who emphasized the teaching of government, behavioralists undertook the task of making political science a genuine science by emulating the methods of the natural sciences. in their pursuit of achieving scientific rigor through empirical testing, ahmad research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 17-54 20 behavioralists took scant interest in normative activities, such as the education of democratic citizens. as a research paradigm, behavioralism later gained a small amount of respect among the high school social studies textbook writers. several textbooks for senior grades, including american political behavior by howard d. mehlinger and john j. patrick (1971), incorporated the behavioralist conception. by the late 1960s, the behavioralist perspective was less appealing to certain dissident groups within the apsa. leftists, feminists and members of the racial minority groups in the apsa challenged the positivist mission of the behavioralist paradigm. this internal revolt in the apsa ushered political science into an amorphous third phase, post-behavioralism, which continued into the late twentieth century. traditionalism of the founding fathers of political science traditionalism, a conservative theoretical framework, is primarily concerned with the study of the state. traditionalism is also known by other expressions, including realism, conservatism, and state-centeredness. in the late nineteenth century, four individuals with traditionalist orientations set the stage for institutionalizing political science as an academic discipline: francis lieber, woodrow wilson, john w. burgess, and frank j. goodnow. each one of these luminaries contributed in a major way to the development of political science. lieber was the first scholar who assumed a faculty position as a professional political scientist at columbia college. wilson was the first elected vice president of the apsa in 1904; he declined the position, but served the organization as its fourth president several years later. burgess was a political scientist who founded the school of political science at columbia college in 1880. goodnow, a professor of administrative law at columbia university, was elected as the first president of the apsa in 1903 and was a close associate of burgess at columbia college. ahmad research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 17-54 21 a common passion of the four scholars was their commitment to the study of the state. political science to them was staatswissenschaft, or the science of the state, an idea introduced into american political science by german-born scholar francis lieber and also later discovered by american students in the late nineteenth century when they studied at prussian universities (haddow 1939; brown 1950; crick 1959; somit and tanenhaus 1967; ross 1991). this idea reified the state into an entity that was higher in status than civil society and citizens. in the state-centric conceptual scheme, citizens paid their allegiance to the state and in return derived from it their rights and privileges. moreover, all founding fathers of political science were academicians fascinated by the concept of the state. they all considered the state a historical reality warranting a careful and systematic study. they perceived their work to be more than an exercise in speculative philosophy—for them the study of the state was a scientific enterprise. moreover, for them the subject matter and method of political science differentiated it from history and other social sciences: they considered political science a distinct field of study. because they viewed human affairs from the prism of the state, their approach to social, political, and economic problems may be termed as state-centric. from their perspective, the state was an extraordinary and most vital institution. the historical and essential function of this institution was to provide protection for citizens against external aggression. they considered the state to be a ubiquitous and omnipresent creature worthy of adulation. since, in their view, the state was a timeless entity, its significance transcended other transient human organizations or parochial interests. the government formed the nucleus of the state. they considered learning about the machinery of government essential for citizenship and citizenship education. it is evident from their ideas and activities that their intellectual ahmad research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 17-54 22 energies were invested mainly in achieving one specific goal: the strengthening of the institution of the state. indeed, theirs was a conservative enterprise. at least two of these individuals, lieber and burgess, belonged to that class of american scholars who had studied political science in germany (merriam 1925). this is not to suggest, however, that before the arrival of the german-trained american scholars the state had never been theorized about in a systematic fashion in the united states. james madison’s “federalist no.10,” which proposed the theory of interest groups, may be designated as the seminal empirical approach to the study of the state in america. madison’s analysis of politics was empirical in that he stressed “the evidence of known facts” and jettisoned speculation by “theoretic politicians” (madison [1787] 1961). what was remarkable about the german-trained american political scientists, however, was their commitment to establish separate academic programs for the systematic study of the state. initially, the goals of the programs included the preparation of bureaucrats for the government (leonard 1995, 77). programs in political science at johns hopkins and columbia universities were two such examples. in the late nineteenth century, the term political science was not very popular in the united states or elsewhere in the western world (crick 1959). perhaps one or two colleges may have offered political science as a course. separate textbooks on political science were rarely published. in 1877, theodore dwight woolsey, a disciple of lieber and president of yale university, authored a textbook, political science: or, the state theoretically and practically considered. it is probable that woolsey’s book may have been the first systematic study of the state by an academician that was used as a textbook. in encyclopedia americana, james garner noted that woolsey’s textbook was a “systematic presentation of the principles of political science which has appeared from the pen of an american” (cited in haddow 1939, 241). this ahmad research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 17-54 23 suggests that in the late nineteenth century, political science was a newly introduced academic discipline for the study of the state, having its own peculiar language, theories, principles, and methods that were different from fields like economics, history, or law (somit and tanenhaus 1967; waldo 1975). leonard d. white (1993) maintains that “in 1900 there were in the united states not more than 100 men and women who would recognize themselves professionally as political scientists” (p. 223). white also suggests that “the hand of german scholarship was still heavy upon our ‘infant industry’” (p. 224). indeed, this was not the case with other social sciences, such as sociology and economics. francis lieber of the four founding fathers, lieber, a prussian émigré, was the first scholar to introduce political science into the united states. lieber arrived in the united states in 1827 and developed friendships with the whig elites of boston. in the early 1830s, when a young french aristocrat, alexis de tocqueville, visited the united states, lieber was one of the scholars with whom he exchanged ideas about american democracy. the two held conflicting views about the american social order (ross 1991, 41). whereas lieber’s worldview was state-centric, tocqueville was impressed with a robust civil society in america. examining lieber’s scholarly influence on academia, ross (1991) argues that “exploiting the resonances between german understanding of the state and american whig culture, francis lieber forged a lasting link between the two in american political science” (p. 38). hence, the construction of a seminal state-centric theoretical framework of american political science can be attributed to francis lieber. lieber’s state-centricism fostered a counter-majoritarian vision of citizenship in the political science discipline. the focal point of lieber’s vision of citizenship was “the whig tradition of limited democracy” (ross 1991, 258). ross illustrates the prevalence of lieber’s counter-majoritarian conservative approach in political science by citing j. franklin jameson, a student at johns ahmad research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 17-54 24 hopkins university. jameson wrote in his diary that, “every political meeting i have attended has had the same effect, to shatter my rising respect for the people, in their political capacity, and make me despise them” (p. 259). jameson’s academic training in lieberian political science shows the discipline’s orientation toward limited public participation in the political process. lieber’s civil liberty and self government (1853) earned him the chair of history and political science at columbia college in 1858. in his inaugural address, lieber (1858) not only explained the purpose of political science in american society but also articulated his conception of citizenship, citizenship education, and social order from his state-centric traditionalist worldview. lieber stressed three points. first, he argued that self-government for citizens was derived exclusively from the state. second, public schools should teach the young about liberty, justice, and political truth. and finally, lieber declared communism and extreme individualism utopian because they ignored the realities of the role of the state in the lives of citizens. according to lieber, “man cannot divest himself of the state” (lieber 1880, in farr and seidelman 1993, 22). the state was a reality—citizens owed their liberty and rights to the state. rights and obligations did not exist outside the state. it was thus incumbent upon citizens to respect the supreme status and authority of the state. citizens would do so by being patriotic. according to lieber, patriotism was a positive virtue entailing the love of one’s country but not the hatred of others. patriotism also required the fostering of individual liberty, justice, and truth in politics. lieber asserted that it was thus necessary for public schools to teach children about the values of liberty, justice, and truth. in other words, the essential components of lieber’s conception of citizenship and citizenship education were the values of liberty, justice, and truth. the notions of individual liberty and justice were, of course, not new concepts and had been part of the western philosophical discourse for centuries. ahmad research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 17-54 25 the idea of truth in politics was certainly a new addition to the discourse. lieber defined “truth in politics” as statistical facts about political life; that is to say, citizens needed to be knowledgeable on political issues. for lieber, the scientific analysis of politics demanded facts. science was thus considered a tool for discovering truth about public life and hence for strengthening good citizenship. in order to preserve liberty and justice, citizens needed to know the truth. lieber characterized political science as “the very science for nascent citizens of a republic” (lieber 1881, 1: 343). according to lieber, the teaching and learning of good citizenship values in schools were made possible by the use of the scientific approach to political life. by this, he meant that unless citizens were familiar with the statistical facts, they could not make intelligent political decisions. in other words, to achieve true individual liberty and justice, citizens needed to learn the principles of political science. hence, for lieber, the public school was the most important place for the teaching of political science. john w. burgess john william burgess founded the school of political science at columbia college in 1880. the year 1880 symbolizes the formal birth of political science (waldo 1975). burgess had studied law at the university of berlin and was influenced by hegel’s conservative philosophy. under burgess’s leadership, the school of political science attracted well-known scholars. historian james harvey robinson and political scientists william a. dunning and herbert osgood were some of burgess’s colleagues at columbia. by 1900, columbia offered one of the most rigorous programs in political science in the united states, sowing the seeds of the traditionalist paradigm. ross (1991) suggests that, “the atmosphere was especially conservative at columbia, under john w. burgess” (p. 259). burgess was a strong proponent of conservatism, nationalism, and supremacy of the white race. writing in hegelian tradition, burgess sought to apply the german concepts of the ahmad research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 17-54 26 state, sovereignty, and citizenship to american conditions. according to burgess, the state was a western concept. it was the “product of the progressive revelation of the human reason through history” (burgess 1890, 50). this suggests that history had rendered the prior forms of human organization obsolete. the state was an expression of human rationality and it was here to stay. in his philosophy of right, hegel had defined the state as a “divine will as a present spirit” (hegel 1949, 240-1). hegel’s definition suggests that the state’s will precedes the will of the people. the state was sovereign and had an absolute power that could not be challenged. concurring with hegel, burgess posited that “we must hold to the principle that the state can do no wrong” (burgess 1890, 50). burgess’s ideas favoring the hegemony of the state were certainly unrestrained. his vision of the state bordered on tyranny. one may argue that burgess was an apologist for an unrestrained leviathan. as an ultra-nationalist, burgess advocated the superiority of the teutonic race. to burgess, the people of the teutonic race were superior to those of the slavonic and roman races because they were “particularly endowed with the capacity for establishing nation states, and are especially called to work, and therefore, they are entrusted, in the general economy of history, with the mission of conducting the political civilization of the modern world” (burgess 1909, 22). burgess was a self-proclaimed racist and imperialist who argued that the state had the right to protect its distinctiveness by selecting its immigrants on the basis of their racial identity. he recommended that all immigration of czechs, hungarians, and italians be cut off because they were inclined to anarchy and crime. in his view, the immigrants from southeastern europe were socialists and atheists and not suitable for the american society (burgess 1895). he suggested that america perfect its ahmad research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 17-54 27 political civilization with a teutonic population, and not “pollute” itself with non-teutonic people. for burgess, because the teutonic race had the best mental attitude for democratic systems of government, it should colonize the rest of the world so that barbarians may be taught rights and duties (burgess 1896). later in his reminiscences of an american scholar, burgess (1934) admired lieber’s political science and comparative law by noting: i would say that the book represents the teutonic nations—the english, french, lombards, scandinavians, germans and north americans—as the great modern nation builders, that it represents the national state, that is, the self-conscious democracy, as the ultima thule of political history; that it justifies the temporary imposition of teutonic order on unorganized, disorganized, or savage people for the sake of their own civilization and their incorporation in the world society; that it therefore justifies the colonial system of the british empire especially; that it favors federal government, and finally, that it extols above everything the system of individual immunity against governmental power formulated in the constitution of the united states and upheld and protected by the independent judiciary. (p. 254-5) from the above statement, it appears that burgess admired lieber as a fellow imperialist. in burgess’s view, imperialism was not only desirable—it was historically inevitable and morally defensible. indeed, according to burgess, imperialism was the only panacea for saving the non-white populations of the world from self-destruction. burgess’s statement implies that since the non-white peoples of the world were barbaric, imperialism would bring about social change by introducing law and order through the administrative machinery of the nation-state. burgess’s imperialist worldview about traditional societies contains erroneous assumptions, however. both lieber and burgess formed their opinions about the non-european societies because of their eurocentric perspective, rather than verifiable data. moreover, one may raise the question: is it the administrative structure of a state system alone that makes people civilized? in their reductionist framework, it seems that for lieber and burgess, the state ahmad research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 17-54 28 was the sole civilizing agent and that, without invoking the state and its attendant machinery, societies suffered from anarchy and chaos. they suggested that it was due to the absence of the state system that non-european societies were disorganized. in his statement, burgess extols organized governments in european societies. he also prescribes the same for the non-european societies. nonetheless, as charles tilly (1975) has argued, the creation of the nation-state system in europe was a process of social transformation involving massive depredation, violence, and bloodshed. that is to say, the creation of the nation-state in europe was hardly a picnic. burgess failed to realize that, as a european construct, the notion of the nation-state system might not be universally applicable. indeed, what appealed to burgess in the idea of the nation-state was its organizational aspect, i.e. its core values of order and stability. nonetheless, it was on the basis of race that burgess supported the idea of imperialism. in his view, american imperialism was justified because the higher civilization of the united states must be shared with the backward peoples. in short, burgess americanized rudyard kipling’s theory of the white man’s burden, urging the european race to colonize non-european people and their lands. in his scheme, the nation-state was simply an efficient mechanism that facilitated the white man’s paternalistic domination over indigenous populations of non-european societies. woodrow wilson wilson held a prominent place in the political science community. he was elected as fourth president of the apsa. his works on leadership and the science of administration were seminal contributions to research on the study of the state (wilson 1885, 1887, 1889). by the late nineteenth century, wilson’s congressional government: a study of american politics (1885) was one of the most popular works in political science. it was reprinted eighteen times. wilson’s thesis was that government by congress was a menace and therefore the president ahmad research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 17-54 29 should be more powerful than a bunch of bickering politicians in the house and senate (wilson 1885). in wilson’s view, the public was unruly and incapable of governing themselves and, hence, their participation in the decision making process had to be restricted. wilson’s conception of restricted democracy and citizenship was thus at odds with the majoritarian nature of jeffersonian democracy. for wilson, the most important purpose of political science was the strengthening of the state. hence, he stressed the importance of the study of “administration” in political science (wilson 1887). through the discipline of political science wilson sought to create a class of professional civil servants who would conduct the affairs of the state in a businesslike manner and who were not easily swayed by their transitory passions. it appears that for wilson, the american government was inherently a modern entity that was qualitatively different from other forms of governments, like monarchies. his argument was that the modern age was defined by specialization. the state, being a modern organization, needed a specialized and rational class of individuals for whom the state’s interest preceded other subjective interests. conceptually, wilson’s perspective on the needs of a modern state was close to hegel’s ideas about the creation of a disinterested universal class. the members of the disinterested universal class are professional bureaucrats who dedicate their lives to the service of the state. indeed, like other political scientists of his generation, wilson’s ideas were also shaped by the german idealist social philosophy whose teleological goal was “to provide a bulwark for the maintenance of the political status quo against the tide of radical ideas coming from revolutionary france. although hegel asserted in explicit form that the end of states and institutions is to further the realization of the freedom of all, his effect was to consecrate the prussian [s]tate and to enshrine bureaucratic absolutism” (dewey 1982, ahmad research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 17-54 30 188). thus, wilson justified a pivotal role for a strong bureaucracy that was committed to the strengthening of the state. indeed, the overarching theme in wilson’s writings is the primacy of the state. this is not to suggest that all of wilson’s writings were about this theme. nonetheless, as a political scientist, as well as a contributor to the popular press, his undivided attention seems to be focused on questions related to the state and the concomitant issues of government and administration. it appears that by paying a disproportionate amount of attention to the interests of the state, wilson inevitably—and perhaps deliberately—relegated a secondary status to fundamental values, such as freedom, democracy, justice, and equality, in his political writings. as a politician and a world statesman, wilson had unquestionably championed the liberal causes of democracy and self-determination for millions of people. however, his inordinate level of celebration of the state and an unwavering faith in it as a panacea for human progress certainly eclipsed his commitments to liberal causes. for wilson, the state was represented by government, and the essential characteristic of government was “force” (wilson, the state, 29, [cited in padover]). in wilson’s view, “government, in its last analysis, is organized force.” the state was thus conceived in a masculine, dominant, autonomous, and intrusive form that was different from a civil society that was conceived as having feminine characteristics. in contrast with the state, the civil society in this conception was understood to hold a subordinate position and to need protection by the state. frank j. goodnow as the first elected apsa president, goodnow’s ideas represented the official mission of professional political scientists. in his inaugural address to apsa members in 1904, ahmad research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 17-54 31 goodnow articulated the organization’s aims and agenda. he declared that political science dealt with a subject that other “american scientific associations” had ignored. that subject was the “state.” according to goodnow, “political science is that science which treats of organization known as the state. it is at the same time, so to speak, a science of statics and a science of dynamics. it has to do with the state at rest and with the state in action” (goodnow 1904, 37). goodnow argued, “the american historical association had treated the state incidentally” (1904, 36). moreover, in goodnow’s view, the members of the american historical association who studied the state at all had focused only on the states of the past and not the states of the contemporary era. hence, the study of the state and its functions was the responsibility of the apsa members. similarly, goodnow argued that the members of the american economic association dealt with the state, but only when it concerned the administration of the tax collection system. professional economists were interested in the study of production and distribution of goods. they hardly studied the organization of government, the policy making process, and the distribution of power in various branches of government. goodnow pointed out that, like the american historical association and the american economics association, other professional associations also did not study the structure and function of the state. goodnow thus drew a line of demarcation between political science and history and economics, its two most formidable competitors in the academic marketplace. an adherent of pragmatism, goodnow was less interested in abstract theories than in their practical applications. he had carved himself a separate niche in the discipline of political science known as public administration, earning the title of the founding father of the subfield of public administration in political science. ahmad research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 17-54 32 for goodnow, the goal of political science was the study of the state in three aspects: (1) the expression of the will of the state, (2) the content of the will of the state, and (3) the execution of the will of the state. the first referred to political action by parties, the second to the legal system, and the third to the enforcement of law (goodnow 1900). it appears that goodnow had emphasized the primacy of the will of the state. however, little is mentioned in his framework about the citizens’ will. perhaps he may have identified the citizens’ will with the will of the state. on the other hand, perhaps, he did not see a conflict between the two. burgess and goodnow: two orientations in early political science john william burgess and frank johnson goodnow, the two major founding fathers of american political science, represented divergent orientations in the discipline. dorothy ross (1991) classifies the two orientations as “hegelianism” and “realist historicism” respectively (p. 71, 274-5). hegelians were those who believed that the state was the product of the progressive revelation of human reason through history and that liberty could be attained only through the institutions of the state (ross 1991, 71). from his hegelian perspective, burgess had declared that the modern nation-state was the creation of teutonic political genius and that social change could not affect this fundamental principle (p. 72). for burgess, the american political system was simply a historical continuation of the legacy of the teutonic races. goodnow refuted burgess’s thesis of teutonic nations’ contributions and instead focused his attention on the study of the technical realities of municipal government. goodnow was a historical realist in that he studied the role of political parties, administration, and city government issues that older political scientists considered less ahmad research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 17-54 33 significant for study (ross 1991, 274). like other historical realists, goodnow was interested in the realistic analysis of public institutions, and not in idealistic speculation. goodnow was burgess’s student at amherst college and columbia university, but developed major ideological disagreements with his teacher on fundamental theoretical questions. the two also worked as colleagues on the political science faculty at columbia university. john d. millett (1955) posits that burgess and goodnow were giants of american scholarship in the early development of graduate study in the field of government; they gave columbia its distinctive reputation (p. 259). although the two scholars were traditionalists in that they studied the state, goodnow’s worldview was also influenced by the progressive movement of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. unlike burgess, who stressed the continuation of the anglo-saxon heritage in political and social values, the future-oriented goodnow, sought to bring about reforms in municipal and national governments. whereas burgess’s hegelian approach to political science stressed historical analysis, goodnow sought to draw political scientists’ attention to the need for municipal reforms. moreover, while burgess’s theoretical perspective emanated from his historicist thesis about the reconstruction of the past, goodnow moved beyond the “gentry conception of fixed american principle,” and argued his case for making political science relevant to the political realities of the time (ross 1991, 283). on the question of women’s education in universities, little is known about goodnow’s views, but burgess was quite vocal on the subject: he vehemently opposed women’s enrollment in the department of political science at columbia. in his view, women caused distraction for men and therefore did not belong in the political science classrooms. because burgess disliked coeducation, on one occasion, he also clashed with seth low, the president of columbia university (hoxie 1955, 64). when president low allowed women ahmad research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 17-54 34 to audit courses, burgess wrote a letter to low noting that “the admission of ladies would be a disturbing element” (hoxie 1955, 65). he did not, however, oppose the establishment of a separate college for women. unlike burgess, who repudiated social change, goodnow’s ideas and work may be characterized as progressive in orientation. goodnow was also an activist reformer who worked closely with revisionist historian charles a. beard. in 1903, when goodnow launched the american political science association, burgess ignored goodnow’s efforts and the activities of the new organization. traditionalist vision and citizenship education it is evident from the writings of the four founding fathers of political science that they espoused a state-centric traditionalist political philosophy. indeed, in the context of liberal democracy, such conception had implications for citizenship and citizenship education. that is to say, the traditionalists’ ideological influence over the apsa’s activities in the pre-collegiate setting manifested itself in the form of curricular recommendations for the government course. in addition, because their traditionalism echoed the past state-centric conservative voices of machiavelli, thomas hobbes, and hegel, they considered the state to be the highest form of human organization. this meant that they emphasized the bellicose dimension of human nature. in other words, traditionalists celebrated the state because it ensured social order, a value that seemed to outweigh other values. because for an extended period the apsa continued the state-centric legacy, it promoted a paternalist conception of citizenship and citizenship education. such a conception portrayed stereotypical gender images, including the masculine “toughness, courage, power, independence” of the state (tickner 1992, 6). feminist political scientist j. ann tickner (1992) suggests that these virtues essentially valorize “hegemonic masculinity” and hardly convey the women’s experiences (p. 58). feminist scholar susan moller okin (1998) posits that political scientists’ traditional theories ahmad research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 17-54 35 about citizenship stressed the public virtues of citizens and ignored the domestic virtues of civic life (p. 117). that is why traditionalist political science not only ignored women’s roles in the political community, but also excluded them from the academic profession (ross 1991, 102). indeed, such a conception of women found a green pasture in public schools in the form of the apsa’s support for a course on government. it would be safe to assume that when education philosopher nel noddings (1991) characterizes traditional citizenship education curriculum as the “warrior model,” she refers to the ideological framework of social studies that includes the state-centric high school course on government (p. 69). furthermore, the political scientists’ overemphasis on the state and state organization, the government, bureaucracy, and administration, presented a prescription that was antithetical to the american values of equality, cultural diversity, and a traditional commitment to civil society. in the traditionalist conception of citizenship and citizenship education, respect for the state and its organs loomed large. in their conception, the interests of the state overshadowed the interests of individuals, families, and communities. like machiavelli and hobbes, the founding fathers of political science conceived man as quarrelsome, untrustworthy, greedy, and incapable of living in cooperation with others. their antidote to this problem was that man must be managed, controlled, and made beholden to an entity that was sovereign, efficient, and secular. this entity would use force to purge dissent and ensure social order. in essence, then, this entity was to be no other than the hobbesian leviathan, or what richard f. bensel (1990) has called the yankee leviathan. thomas hobbes, the first english political philosopher of the seventeenth century, had argued that in the state of nature, life was nasty, brutal, and short. dissatisfied with the state of nature, men surrendered part of their liberty to a sovereign in exchange for peace and order. hobbes called this sovereign the leviathan. this is not to imply that the founding fathers of political science espoused ahmad research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 17-54 36 totalitarianism or authoritarianism. they had simply operationalized their state-centric framework within liberal democracy. however, their ideas can be located on the conservative side of the ideological continuum because they favored a thin or restricted model of democracy in which citizens would enjoy limited access to decision making and decision makers. in their framework, citizenship is inconceivable without the state. that is to say, citizens must accept the authority of the state as an overarching power and an inescapable reality. indeed, in their juridical interpretation of citizenship, there probably would be no place for what john dewey called “a mode of associated living, a conjoint communicated experience” (dewey 1916, 87). john dewey and political scientists: competing approaches to citizenship john dewey was critical of the traditionalist conception of citizenship and citizenship education. dewey’s humanistic conception of citizenship transcended the territorial boundaries of the state. although dewey did not entirely reject the significance of the political dimension of citizens’ lives, he found the state-centric approach to citizenship education less effective. dewey refuted “the idea of the subordination of the individual to the institution” of the state (p. 99). in this context, dewey (1983) argued, “we think of the citizen in a political capacity, and sometimes we restrict the idea of being a good citizen to the political relations, duties and responsibilities of the person, his relations to the government of the country as a whole and to his local government. i think that is only a part of good citizenship” (p. 158-9). surely, learning about the “simple paper knowledge of the government” is “a just a paper preparation” for citizenship (p. 160-1). for dewey, the idealization of political institutions diverts students’ attention from understanding the forces that operate behind the functioning of the government. in other words, it is erroneous to assume that instruction about the “machinery” of government produces good ahmad research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 17-54 37 and intelligent citizens. dewey was highly critical of limiting citizenship education to instruction in the american constitution and the machinery of government. dewey (1983) noted, “so we think when we have given information to the students about the structure and workings of the government, we have somehow done our part as educators in preparing them to be good citizens when they enter into public life; to become actual citizens when they go out from the school in the future” (p. 160). for dewey, democracy, or citizens’ “associated living” is a countervailing force against the coercive qualities of the state. in an educational context, dewey’s “associated living” is a concept that rejects paternalism and cultural hegemony of one ethnic group or gender over the others; it respects social heterogeneity and pluralism (p. 87, 94). indeed, the founding fathers of political science held a thin or restricted view of democracy. their view of democracy put less emphasis on “associated living,” “conjoint communicated experience” and the “breaking down of those barriers of class, race, and national territory” (dewey, 1983, p. 87). they considered such ideas and activities perilous for the american republic. whereas the deweyean idea of “associated living” stresses civic participation and community life as the rosetta stone of democracy, the restricted or thin view of democracy limits peoples’ true participation in civic life. wilson had suggested in 1887 that political thinkers had spent 2,000 years addressing the problem of who should make basic decisions for society. in wilson’s view, such decision makers were not the citizens but the administrative class of the state. according to wilson (1887), “administration is the most obvious part of government; it is government in action; it is the executive, the operative, the most visible side of government, and is of course as old as government itself” (p. 198). referring to this framework, dewey (1983) argued that we “leave the students with a feeling that they really did ahmad research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 17-54 38 not have to solve problems; that the problems were solved by the officers of our government and the makers of our constitution; so that all they have to do is to vote for a good man and attend, perhaps, caucuses” (p. 160). hence, in wilson’s state-centric conception of democracy, citizens seem to play a minimalist role in political decision-making. the writings of traditionalist political scientists hardly offer any prescription pertaining to the benefits of citizens’ active participation in civil society or how citizens could realize the good life in a participatory democracy. more importantly, it is the traditionalist conception of the founding fathers of political science that provided the epistemological foundation to the apsa, which guided its campaign for canonizing the teaching of government in the high school social studies curriculum. political science in colleges most historians agree that political science was first formally introduced in academia in 1880 by john burgess (merriam 1925; haddow 1939; somit and tanenhaus 1967; waldo 1975). in addition to burgess’s school of political science at columbia college, johns hopkins university and the university of michigan soon began offering advanced level courses in political science. the columbia and johns hopkins programs became precursors in political science instruction in the united states, however. the two programs emulated the german university model by stressing independent research and discouraging philosophical speculation. moreover, for research, both schools had borrowed the historical-comparative method from german universities. although this method was not empirical, it was still considered scientific. the historical-comparative method was used in the study of foreign governments, especially european governments. the period between 1880 and 1920 was a formative phase for political science in that its identity as a discipline was shaped. during this period, the american political science ahmad research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 17-54 39 association was organized as a professional body and major research publications including the apsa’s proceedings and the american political science review were launched, in which scholars in political science published their research (anderson 1939). by the turn of the century, the number of colleges and universities offering political science and the number of students enrolled in such courses were unknown. however, since the discipline itself was new, it may be assumed that few colleges offered political science as a course. in 1900, the number of “individuals recognizing themselves as professional political scientists hardly exceeded one hundred” (white 1993, 13). in 1903, all those who parted ways with the american historical association and formed the american political science association as a separate entity were not necessarily professional political scientists. fifty years later, there were 4,000 political scientists teaching in colleges and working in other fields and most of them were apsa members. in the 1950s, about ten regional political science associations had been founded. from 1902 to 1910, six leading american graduate schools conferred fifty-four degrees. between 1911 and 1920, thirteen graduate schools granted approximately 125 ph.d. degrees in political science. in the 1920s, 296 ph.d. degrees were granted. most of those who earned ph.d. degrees sought positions as instructors in colleges. the rapid progress in graduate studies in political science suggests a growing demand for courses in political science. three factors point to the growth in college enrollment and demand for political science faculty: (1) the influence of progressivism, (2) the role of government in public life, and (3) faith in science. economics and sociology in colleges: a comparison with political science a brief comparative historical analysis of the developments in the social sciences suggests that by the late nineteenth century, when industrialization and modernization were making inroads into american society, liberal and secular ideas were also taking hold. it was ahmad research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 17-54 40 during this period that the social sciences, mainly political science, sociology, and economics, also flourished in academia. robert bellah, et al. (1985) argue that developments in the social science disciplines were triggered by the new model of higher education that grew “contemporaneously with the rise of the business corporation” (p. 299). because the social science disciplines focused on the study of issues related to government, the economic system, and society--they were not immune from the major social questions of the time. hence, the ideological polarization in society also found a fertile ground in academia. ross (1991) characterizes this development as “the threat of socialism” (p. 98). of the three disciplines, economics--formerly known as political economy--was already an established academic discipline in american colleges (tryon 1935; ross 1991). for many decades, political economy was mostly taught as moral philosophy. however, as the demands of the industrial-corporate society were increasing, traditional curricula in colleges were no longer considered adequate. bellah, et al. (1985) suggest that the “educational institutions were transformed in ways comparable to the transformation of other institutions” (p. 298). in other words, developments in industrial organizations corresponded with developments in the social sciences in academia. hence, the task before the social sciences was to provide a “useful knowledge about an increasingly complex society” (bellah, et al. 1985, 299). the advancement in industry created a need for verifiable data and information that the social sciences could produce in research universities. this socioeconomic reality sowed the seeds of specialization and professionalism in social sciences. in view of the social, political, and economic transformations that necessitated the creation of the modern social sciences, it was inevitable that the social science specialists and professionals held certain conceptions of american democracy and citizenship. ahmad research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 17-54 41 whether they were economists, sociologists, or political scientists, social scientists raised normative questions and applied research methodologies for addressing them. because the social sciences were essentially about the study of people and their behavior, one could argue that their assumptions and findings had serious implications for democracy. although as scientific academic disciplines, political science, economics, and sociology emerged during the progressive era, economics had the longest presence in american colleges. manicas (1987) points out that the first chair in political economy was established at king’s college, now columbia university, around 1786. the early growth of american sociology took place at the university of chicago in 1890s, when it created a new chair and appointed albion woodbury small. three years later, small founded the american journal of sociology. small also authored the first textbook of sociology (manicas 1987, 224). between the first and second world wars, the reform-minded chicago school of sociologists focused its research on the study of communities. in 1905, about fifty professional sociologists from twenty-one educational institutions met at johns hopkins university and founded the american sociological society. in 1959, the american sociological society was given a new name: the american sociological association (hereinafter referred to as asa). the asa’s mission was the scientific study of society. over the course of the asa’s history, it has fostered the teaching of sociology in elementary and secondary schools. in the 1980s, the asa developed a teaching services program focusing on curriculum and classroom instruction. in one important respect, sociology was much more progressive in its orientation than economics and political science: “sociologists also recruited significantly more women” (ross 1991, 391). according to ross, in the progressive era, more women majored in sociology courses than they did in political science and economics (p. 158). ahmad research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 17-54 42 women who studied sociology were interested in “charitable and reform activities” (ross 1991, 102). moreover, because university programs in political science and economics were usually of conservative orientations, they were not hospitable places for women. ross maintains that the late nineteenth and early twentieth century social scientists projected a “masculine image” because they were seeking to “achieve realism, science, and professional standing” (p. 102). some studies show that women made a higher degree of scholarly contribution in sociology than they did in political science and economics. for example, shulamit reinharz (1993) of brandeis university identifies about two dozen women sociologists who, between 1800 and 1945, made scholarly contributions to the field of sociology. reinharz’s list of women sociologists includes frances wright, jane addams, and margaret mead. indeed, both traditionalist political science and positivist economics were much behind sociology in opening their doors to women. the apsa and teaching of political science in colleges the formation of the apsa in 1903 signified that political scientists were surely determined to secure a separate status for political science courses in colleges. indeed, by introducing political science as an autonomous discipline, they were determined to legitimize traditionalism as a systematic approach to the study of the state. in its first official meeting in 1904, one of the apsa’s founders and first treasurer, w. w. willoughby (1904), announced that the formation of the apsa was “undoubtedly the most important event which has occurred in the history of the scientific study of matters political in this country” (p. 109). for willoughby, the formation of the apsa was a turning point for political science in that the new learned society would promote the professional interests of its members. willoughby and his associates understood the pulse of the time, were inspired by the ahmad research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 17-54 43 advances science had made in other walks of life, and were willing to emulate methods from the natural sciences for the study of the state. at this point, it seems that political scientists had prepared to dissociate themselves from the moral sciences and moral philosophies of the late nineteenth century. subsequently, their new sources of inspiration and insight included the modern theories of evolution via darwin and herbert spencer, as well as developments in psychology via sigmund freud and william james. all this seemed rational on their part because new discoveries in science commanded respect and, therefore, by practicing science, political scientists sought respectability for their trade. of course, in 1904, what willoughby meant by “the scientific study of matters political” by no means carried an identical meaning two or three decades later. for example, in the late 1920s and 1930s, when the chicago school emerged as a formidable intellectual force in political science, it simply parted ways with the work of apsa’s founders. whereas the apsa founders’ focus was the systematic study of the state and its organs, in the behavioralist approach of the chicago school, the state was nowhere to be seen in their equations. political scientists’ time-honored enthusiasm for and commitment to the study of the state had simply vanished. describing this change in focus in 1939, political scientist william anderson, then a professor at the university of minnesota, wrote, “american political science stands today reoriented somewhat away from the contemplation of the state and its sovereignty, and toward the actual political processes and the political behavior and motivation of man” (anderson 1939, 265). as a subject of study, the state was losing its allure for political scientists. the apsa and its member body made the demand that political science be made a separate department in colleges and universities. by 1914, after one decade of the apsa’s ahmad research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 17-54 44 existence and struggle for a separate identity in academia, the number of separate departments of political science in 300 institutions had gone up to thirty-eight (anderson 1939). in eighty-nine institutions, political science was combined with history and economics. in forty-five institutions, political science and sociology were combined. in twenty-one institutions, political science was combined with history, economics, and sociology. nonetheless, the process of separation between political science and other disciplines continued in later years. by the time of the first world war, political science was widely taught in colleges and universities (waldo 1975). traditionalism, the apsa, and pre-collegiate instruction in government in 1903, due to “diverging interests, compounded by rising professionalism,” traditionalist political scientists departed from the womb of the american historical association (aha), and founded the apsa as an independent learned society (ross 1991, 283). traditionalist political scientists followed the footsteps of their mother organization. with their strong state-centric orientations, they set out to do for the teaching of political science what historians had been doing for instruction in history: they sought to popularize instruction in government in schools. this is not to suggest that the apsa introduced the government-related courses in schools. indeed, as rolla m. tryon (1935) suggests, by 1900-01, about 20 percent of all students in both public and private high schools in the united states were enrolled in government-related courses (p. 284). government-related courses and textbooks that carried a variety of labels, including civics, community civics, and government, were in use. nonetheless, most of these textbooks contained materials from political science. some of the apsa’s prominent officials, such as w. w. willoughby, had also authored textbooks on civics and government. tryon mentions twenty high school textbooks containing ahmad research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 17-54 45 political science material, which were in use at the time of the birth of the apsa. nonetheless, as the apsa appeared on the horizon, like the aha, it also wanted clients in the pre-collegiate environment to promote its traditionalist conception of citizenship and citizenship education. as an independent learned society, the apsa wanted to secure its monopoly over the construction of knowledge beyond college campuses by firmly defining the parameters of curriculum and instruction in government in schools. the apsa’s conception of citizenship and citizenship education was in conflict with the historians’ conception in that political scientists “were centrally concerned with contemporary politics, [and] most historians, whether descended from the belles-lettristic tradition or simply engrossed in the demands of the rankean reconstruction of the past, were not” (ross 1991, 283). neither of the two presented an activist and participatory conception of citizenship, however. the apsa considered the schools as places where a diluted version of political science could be taught to students so that upon arrival to colleges as freshmen, they would face little difficulty in understanding the advanced disciplinary concepts. that was one reason, as tryon (1935) argues, the apsa paid “considerable attention to political science in schools below the college” (p. 39). starting in 1903, under goodnow’s presidency, the apsa appointed a committee of instruction in political science. professor william a. schaper of university of minnesota was appointed as the section chair. the section administered a test in various colleges to find what students knew about their government (apsa 1906, 207-28). in 1905, schaper presented his report “what do students know about government before taking college courses in political science?” at the apsa annual meeting. indeed, this was political scientists’ first organized foray into the business of citizenship education in schools. schaper’s report was seminal in the apsa’s decision to take an active part in fostering the teaching of government in schools. as the apsa reports indicate, in different decades of ahmad research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 17-54 46 the twentieth century, the apsa made several more attempts to influence school curricula with respect to the teaching of government. however, gradually, the apsa’s enthusiasm in this matter was watered down. by the end of the second world war, as traditionalism was in retreat in the apsa, so was the apsa’s organizational interest in instruction in government in schools. after the second world war, the apsa continued its residual school-related activities by setting up committees, subcommittees, and task forces; and holding conferences for the purpose of examining school curricula, creating instructional materials, training teachers, and making recommendations for improving instruction in government. several philanthropic agencies, such as the rockefeller foundation and the carnegie corporation, funded the apsa activities, which included collaboration with the national council for the social studies to produce guides for social studies teachers. as traditionalism slowly faded away as a dominant paradigm, the apsa’s verve for the teaching of government in schools also ended. anti-traditionalists in the apsa in the early days of the apsa, some voices in the association dissented from traditionalism. one such voice was that of political scientist henry jones ford. only two years after the apsa was formed, ford frowned on traditionalism as a self-serving and misguided ideology. in “the scope of political science,” ford challenged traditionalists’ core assumptions about the significance of the state for citizenship and their claims of a scientific study of the state (apsa 1905, 198-206). ford argued that traditionalists restricted the scope of political science either by giving a technical meaning to the term “political” or to the term “the state” (ford 1905, 198). he criticized the work of the founding fathers of political science for being culture-specific in their definitions of “political” and “the state.” he asserted that since the ahmad research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 17-54 47 epistemology of political science was the product of european experiences, it could not have a universal validity. in ford’s view, the state was conceived and created under special european historical developments and represented only a particular phase in european history. hence, the state could not be a concept that had an all-encompassing temporal and spatial application. ford’s critique of john burgess was that burgess held the state to be the permanent and universal condition of human nature, but that he restricted the definition of the state to a selected area of the world—i.e. europe and north america—and excluded non-european states. according to ford, such conceptualization meant that the scope of political science could not extend to all times and places. hence, political science was not a science. moreover, ford rejected political scientists’ claim that their field represented objective laws. ford raised the pertinent question that, according to history, because “every succeeding form of political structure has seemed final to the people who lived under it, how can we be sure that the form which political science now takes as its objective reality is an exception to the rule? may it not be transitory like the rest?” (p. 201). ford concluded that the most salient fact of modern history was the instability of political systems. he argued that in europe, since 1814, every state had changed either in its political or social organization. thus, ford noted, “upon my broad survey of events the national, popular state itself is found to be in a condition of metamorphosis” (1905, 201). in other words, ford challenged the traditionalists’ use of the state as a unit of analysis in their methods of investigation. he argued that political science was race-specific and not a universal science by arguing that “we have come to realize that when we speak of the principles of political science, what we really mean is general observations based upon the race-experience of a group of peoples whose culture rests upon the greco-roman foundations” (ford 1905, 203). ahmad research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 17-54 48 moreover, he suggested that political scientists gathered their concepts from the “mental deposits of our own race experience” (ford 1905, 201). by this, ford meant that, since the historical political development in europe was unique, the experiences of its people were also different from the experiences of peoples living outside europe. ford’s scathing critique came at the time when traditionalists had just founded the apsa and were thinking about launching a movement for the advancement of their state-centric perspective by promoting instruction in government in schools. ford’s dissentious criticism of the epistemology of political science was insightful: he questioned the core assumptions of the discipline. it appears that his critical article in proceedings, the first official journal of the apsa, drew little interest from traditionalists. nonetheless, about six decades later, a similar but more effective revolt in the apsa, the caucus for new political science, echoed ford’s prescient voice that undermined the supremacy of traditionalism. conclusion as an academic discipline american political science has a checkered history. in the nineteenth century and early twentieth century, the prussian-educated political scientists, including francis lieber, introduced a state-centric paradigm in the discipline of political science that may be called traditionalism. the prussian-educated scholars’ worldviews were shaped by european political and historical experiences. in 1903, when political scientists dissociated themselves from american historical association (aha), they founded american political science association (apsa), a learned society that promoted traditionalism. scholars who espoused traditionalism studied the state and promoted the ideology of the primacy of the state; their research agenda hardly included issues such as gender equity, racial equality, social justice, and other significant social issues of the time. traditionalists promoted their sui generis worldview on college campuses as well as in public schools in the form of teaching about the ahmad research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 17-54 49 structure and functions of government labeling it as citizenship education. in other words, good citizens should be knowledgeable about the political system under which they lived. however, with the advancement of knowledge in social sciences during the 1920s and early 1930s, traditionalist paradigm lost its respectability among the new generation of political scientists. professor charles e. merriam, a prominent professor at university of chicago, found traditionalist paradigm to be an inadequate methodology for explaining complex political problems of a modern industrial democracy. although traditionalism faced opposition from some members of the american political science association, academicians who were not political scientists, such as john dewey, also attacked traditionalists for supporting the status quo and for being detached from the social and political realities. hence traditionalist paradigm lost its intellectual relevance in academia and was replaced by a new paradigm known as behavioralism. what were the implications of traditionalism for citizenship education in schools and colleges in general and for strengthening democracy in particular are some of the questions that warrant further rsearch. needless to say, traditionalist paradigm was informed by hegelian philosophy that postulated the primacy of the state at the expense of civil society. the state was presented as a masculine institution that protected its citizens and therefore must be revered by all citizens. the state provided a security umbrella under which citizens flourished. also, traditionalism posited that the state was a by-product of history and had a moral foundation for its existence, and also that without the state an individual’s true existence is incomplete. indeed, such philosophical thinking in germany and elsewhere on the european continent was ubiquitous but had little resemblance with the american political experience. one could argue that traditionalists succeeded in americanizing the hegelian dogma on college campuses and in the public school curriculum. however, such worldview promoted a jaundiced conception of democracy and citizenship education—a conception that may be ahmad research in social sciences and technology, 1(2), 17-54 50 called a warrior model or a cardboard model of citizenship. in such a conception, the state is viewed as a father figure and citizens are viewed as passive children with few participation skills. it is therefore not surprising that several decades of research data consistently show apathy among american youth toward active participation in the civic life. references apsa section on instruction in political science (apsa). 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(1877). political science: or, the state theoretically and practically considered. new york: scribner, armstrong. research in social sciences and technology 36 advance placement and the achievement gap in the 21st century: a multiple linear regression of marginalized populations in ap enrollment bonnie bittman1, alex p. davies2, william b. russell iii3, ekaterina goussakova4 abs tract the analysis of the college board’s advanced placement (ap) enrollment focused on marginalized populations’ (i.e., african american, hispanic, and poor students) limited access and the schools’ efforts to bridge the gaps. little research has been done on marginalized populations’ ap passage rates. the researchers of this correlational study investigated ap enrollment and passage rates in public and charter high schools in florida (n = 355) by comparing the enrollment and passage proportions amongst caucasian, african american, and hispanic students as well as the proportions of students who received free or reduced lunch. the results showed a weak, positive relationship between proportions of hispanic, african american, and caucasian students passing ap exams and the proportion of ap students enrolled. there was a strong, positive relationship amongst the proportions of african-american, hispanic, and caucasian students who passed the exam. however, a weak, negative relationship was found between the proportions of students who were enrolled in ap classes and those who received free or reduced lunch. there was also a negative relationship between hispanic, african american, and caucasian students passing the ap exam and the percentage of the school’s population enrolled in free or reduced lunch. the findings suggest that schools with high poverty rates have a low enrollment rate of students in ap courses. the focus on ap enrollment rates for minority students has led to increased rates of minorities successfully completing advanced coursework, but there is still a need for similar focus on high poverty schools. keywords: advanced placement, marginalized populations, ap passage rates, poverty introduction the advanced placement (ap) program offered by the college board has been in existence since the 1950s. by completing a subject specific exam at the end of the school year with a passing score of 3 or above on a 5-point scale high school students can receive college credit from an admitting university. the number of exams offered by the college board has 1 ph.d candidate, university of central florida, bonnie.bittman@ucf.edu 2 ph.d candidate, university of central florida, alex.davies@ucf.edu 3 prof. dr. university of central florida, russell@ucf.edu 4 ph.d candidate, university of central florida, ekaterina.goussakova@ucf.edu mailto:bonnie.bittman@ucf.edu mailto:alex.davies@ucf.edu https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/h/10quxuhla91wf/?&cs=wh&v=b&to=russell@ucf.edu mailto:ekaterina.goussakova@ucf.edu bittmann et al. research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),36-58 increased from 10 in 1960 to 34 presently (ackerman, kanfer, & calderwood, 2013). the college board has increased its offerings to include the hard sciences (e.g., physics, biology, chemistry), foreign languages (e.g., english, german, japanese), and the social sciences (e.g., european history, psychology, economics). thus, the number of exams taken by students has increased from 10,000 in 1960 to 3.93 million in 2013 (college board, 2013). a vast body of research exists on the historically limited access to ap programs for marginalized populations, including african american and hispanic students as well as students from low socio-economic backgrounds (conger, long, iatarola, 2009; corra, carter, & carter, 2011; davis, davis, & mobley, 2013; estacion et al., 2011; hale, 2007; kerr, 2014; ohrt, lambie, & ieva, 2009; ndura, robinson, & ochs, 2003; solorzano & ornelas, 2004). beginning in 2009, access and completion rates of accelerated programs, including dual enrollment, have been calculated into each of florida’s high school’s grade (florida legislature, 2008). additionally, there has been a steady diversification amongst the students enrolled into ap enrollment. purpose statement previous research on ap enrollments and passage rates in florida was done using 20022003 school year data (conger et al., 2009). in fact, much of the recent studies regarding ap enrollment in florida has referred to ap enrollment data prior to the 2008 senate bill 1908. the most recent data were reported by estacion et al. (2011) for the 2006-2007 school year. the current study set out to investigate high school students’ ap enrollment and passage rates by analyzing the 2011-2012 ap enrollment and passage rates of students from marginalized populations in florida. more specifically, the current study sought to determine whether a relationship existed amongst students who successfully passed the ap exams (i.e., a score of 3 or bittmann et al. research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),36-58 higher on a 5-point scale), the students who received free or reduced lunch, and the total percentages of caucasian, hispanic, and african american students who took the ap exams in florida during the 2011-2012 school year. as such, the guiding research question for the current study was as follows: was there a relationship amongst students who a) successfully passed the ap exams (i.e., scoring a 3 or higher on a 5-point scale), b) the percentage of students who had received free or reduced lunch, and c) the total percentages of caucasian, hispanic, and african american students who took the ap exams in florida during the 2011-2012 school year? review of the literature the benefits and drawbacks of the ap programs have been investigated for decades. early on, the differences in race, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status (ses) were not considered. in a comparative study on ap enrollment versus non-ap, college courses (n = 108 matched pairs), bergeson (1967) did not find any statistically significant differences between the students who skipped preliminary courses in college (i.e., accelerants) and equallygifted students who followed the regular process of enrollment. the findings indicated that the students’ grades were comparable, allowing bergeson to advocate for ap enrollment. rice (1967) expressed a strong opposition to the exemptions in english composition. “language proficiency is far too elusive a term to be meaningful when applied to individuals […] i have yet to encounter a freshman, however gifted, who could not benefit immeasurably from the experience of writing” (rice, 1967, p. 184). over the decades, there has been a steady growth in the number of students taking ap classes. having successfully taken at least one ap course has considerable bearing on college admission in favor of the student who took it (ndura et al., 2003; solorzano & ornelas, 2004). accepted at over 90% of colleges and universities in the united states (college board, 2013), bittmann et al. research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),36-58 ap exams have become one of the most significant tools for students in the college application process. sadler et al. (2014) highlighted the fact that admission to the ivy league schools is influenced not only by the number of ap courses taken, but also by the fact that students who pass those courses “receive ‘bonus points’ when their high school rank-in-class is calculated” (p. 1). therefore, students who are not enrolled into ap courses may be at a significant disadvantage with regards to college admission (solorzano & ornelas, 2004). ackerman, kanfer, and calderwood (2013) found that in college, “students with greater numbers of ap-based course credits tended to complete fewer, lower level courses and a greater number of higher level courses” (p. 2). students’ average ap scores strongly correlated with their first year’s grade point average (gpa) in college. student achievement in ap classes was found to be the single best predictor of success in college, after the students’ high school gpa (dougherty, mellor, & jian, 2006). davis, davis, and mobley (2013) reported that high school students who have successfully passed their ap exams consistently showed higher gpas while in college and were more likely to graduate. advanced placement enrollment gaps research has shown that students who have successfully completed ap courses have a head-start on their college education compared to the students who have not successfully completed an ap course. despite the increasing number of students enrolling into ap courses, racial minority students are underrepresented and disproportionately enrolled as compared to their caucasian peers nationwide (davis et al., 2013; kerr, 2014; ndura et al., 2003; ohrt et al., 2009). referencing college board’s 2012 statistics on national ap enrollment, davis et al. (2013) reported that caucasians made up more than half of the students who were enrolled in ap courses, nationally, at 57.1%, hispanics made up 17%, and asians and pacific islanders made up bittmann et al. research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),36-58 10.3%. african americans made up 14.7% of the national student population; however, they only made up 9% of all students enrolled in ap courses in 2012. a study by the u.s. department of education demonstrated that racially diverse students were three times more likely to earn a bachelor’s degree just by attempting an ap course (as cited in davis et al., 2013). drawing upon students’ 2002-2003 sat scores from the north carolina department of public instruction archive, cora, carter, and carter (2011) compared the expected and the actual ap enrollment levels in 47 courses of students consisting of both african americans (n = 1499, male = 1199 or 21.92%, female = 1300 or 23.77%) and caucasians (n = 2680, male = 1359 or 24.84%, female = 1321 or 24.14%). cora et al. (2011) found that caucasian students were enrolled into more ap courses across the board than their african american peers. additionally, the researchers found that the students’ race was a stronger predictor than their gender regarding ap enrollment. gendered differences were observed within each racial category with more female than male enrollments. furthermore, kerr (2014) concluded that the majority of factors leading to the lack of ap enrollment among racial minority students include “poverty issues, peer relationships/pressure, and absence of parental support” (p. 481). additionally, based on a survey taken by racial minority students from her own school, kerr (2014) reported the most common response showed that “non-white students believe the overly white complexion of advanced classes indicates that [ap courses] are geared toward white students only” (p. 481). although the reasons for not enrolling into ap courses were not discussed, kerr (2014) referenced college board’s 2012 statistics indicating that 300,000 racial minority high school students did not enroll into a single ap course despite having been identified as possessing appropriate ap skills and potential. marginalized population and advance d placement passage rates bittmann et al. research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),36-58 with respect to the various racial groups of students, hispanic and african american students’ ap course enrollment and passage rates are the most concerning. davis et al. (2013) referenced college board’s recognition of african americans as being the most underrepresented student group regarding ap enrollment, at both national and state levels, and also scoring significantly lower on the exams than all other racial groups. solorzano and ornelas (2004) stated that in reviewing “the educational pipelineirrespective of how educational outcomes are measured, latina/o and african american students do not perform as well as [caucasian students]” (p. 15). only 4.1% of all african american students who took an ap exam in 2011 passed, and nearly 50% of these students scored the lowest possible score on the exam as compared to their caucasian peers of whom less than 16% scored the lowest possible score (as cited in davis et al., 2013). for hispanic and african american students, parents and/or caregivers (e.g. grandparents, older siblings, babysitters) can be the students’ greatest support or impediment to pursuing higher education. not having role models to discuss higher education may be a detriment to the students’ overall educational development (as cited in ohrt et al., 2009). institutional efforts to address advanced placement issues to help address the discrepancy in the academic achievement gap for all racial minority students, with attention to hispanic and african american students, various schools have taken a collaborative approach among faculty, administration, counselors, and parents to increase the number of racial minority students enrolled in ap courses (davis et al., 2013; kerr, 2014; ohrt et al., 2009). ohrt, lambie, and ieva (2009) described a school-wide model that was done, as a non-study, to identify hispanic and african american students who demonstrated potential for successful completion of an ap course. this particular school had an enrollment of 2,692 bittmann et al. research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),36-58 students (caucasian = 41%, hispanic = 40%, african american = 9%), and the remaining percentage included students from asian, native american, and multiracial backgrounds. approximately 11% of the hispanic students and 8% of the african american students were already enrolled in ap courses. the school counselor met with the school’s faculty, administrators, parents and/or guardians, and students to create and implement a program that would identify those who showed ap potential based on their sat and/or national merit scholarship qualifying test scores. identified students and their families would attend information sessions on the realities and benefits of enrolling into ap courses as well as college admission processes. students received support services and mentoring from the school’s counselors along with administration and faculty who were, themselves, either hispanic or african american. additionally, current ap-enrolled, hispanic and african american students mentored the newly identified ap students. ohrt et al. (2009) reported that for the following school year, hispanic and african american student ap enrollment increased by 37%. nineteen students were identified, and 16 completed a total of 25 ap courses. only 12.5% enrolled in the ap program passed the exam with a score of 3 or higher. in addition, davis et al. (2013) found that the african american students who received support services scored higher than the african american students who chose not to receive the support services; however, it was not significant at an alpha of .05. the african american students receiving the services scored significantly better than the national norms for african americans who also took the same ap psychology exam. ironically, there was no significant difference in scores between the african american students receiving the support and the caucasian students at the school who took the exam, but there was significance between the african american students who did not receive the support services and the caucasians. bittmann et al. research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),36-58 following a similar research design and methodology of ohrt et al. (2009) and davis et al.’s (2013) studies, kerr (2014) and her team of faculty, counselors, and administrators identified racial minority students with ap potential for social studies and met with them and their parents to discuss the courses and program. the results showed the overall enrollment into ap history courses among the racial minority students had increased from 23% to 34%. additionally, the 9t h grade saw an increase from 16% to 26%. although an increased enrollment occurred at 1% for the african american students and 1.5% for the hispanic students, kerr pointed out that the number of african american and hispanic students combined who enrolled into the ap courses was not as large as the increase in enrollment for the caucasian students. marginalized students and advanced placement in florida conger, long, and iatarola (2009) used data from the florida department of education’s education data warehouse, sampling the students from grades 9-12 (n = 118,050) during the 2002-2003 school year. conger et al. (2009) found that “hispanic and black students’ coursetaking rates are higher than those of white students when we condition on these pre–high school characteristics. poverty gaps are also reduced by 68 to 77 percent with these controls.” (p. 573). furthermore, due to the increased enrollments of african american and hispanic students in magnet schools, minority students had similar scores to caucasian students’ when access to the ap courses was equal. in addition, conger et al. (2009) noted that the increased access of marginalized populations to ap courses may be attributed to the shift in state policies. in particular, the florida legislature passed bill 1908 in 2008 addressing the issues of access and success of marginalized students to ap courses. according to estacion et al. (2011), only 7.3% of florida students in grades 11-12 were enrolled in college credit equivalent courses during the 2006-2007 school year with dismal bittmann et al. research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),36-58 enrollments for hispanic students. only 9% of hispanic students were enrolled compared to the 23% of caucasian students. hispanic students who received free or reduced lunch were at 31%, and caucasians were at16% as compared to 31%). furthermore, caucasians were the highest racial category enrolled into ap courses, and they outperformed all other races in the courses in florida. the enrollment data continued to indicate limited access to ap courses for african american and hispanic students as well as students from low socioeconomic backgrounds, thus leaving these students at a disadvantage regarding their pursuit for higher education. teachers and administrators have already begun to address the ap issues regarding marginalized student populations in florida (davis et al., 2013; kerr, 2014; ohrt et al., 2009). hale (2007) shared his experience of teaching ap english to the african american student population that was considered to be at the high school’s lowest quartile, academically, during the 2004-2005 school year. despite the resistance from other faculty, hale succeeded in empowering the students through african american literature and capitalizing on their sociocultural and oral literary traditions. students thrived on the complex mature topics that hale presented, brought their incredulous friends to the doors of the class as proof that they were taking ap english, and lent school readings to their parents. “teachers gave these students the most boring materials […] their minds were awesome, but their speaking and written skills had gone to the wayside […] it was their raw african american poverty that allowed them to see easily into many of the passages and essays” (hale, 2007, p. 124). the students were encouraged to visit mr. hale’s college english class. even though none of the students scored a 3 or higher on the ap english exam at the end of the course, ultimately, most chose to go to college upon their high school graduation. as it has been shown, even though considerable research regarding enrollment gaps and ap issues exists, florida could benefit from additional studies on the ap bittmann et al. research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),36-58 enrollment and passage rates among its african american and hispanic students and its students who receive free or reduced lunch. methodology the researchers employed quantitative statistics and ran a statistical analysis to answer the following question: was there a relationship amongst students who a) successfully passed the ap exams (i.e., scoring a 3 or higher on a 5-point scale), b) the percentage of students who had received free or reduced lunch, and c) the total percentages of caucasian, hispanic, and african american students who took the ap exams in florida during the 2011-2012 school year? the researchers’ null hypothesis included the following: there was no statistically significant relationship among students who successfully passed the ap exams, the percentage of students who received free or reduced lunch, and the total percentages of caucasian, hispanic, and african american students who took ap exams in florida during the 2011-2012 academic year. this research is necessary to examine marginalized populations’ access to ap courses and passage rates in high schools within florida, and advanced analysis investigating patterns of enrollment and success rates florida had not been conducted at the time of the study. this analysis can illuminate issues to access and success for students and can assist stakeholders in increasing opportunities for all high school students in florida. sampling procedure the sample size of this study included 355 public and charter high schools from the state of florida. select schools were excluded from the study for two reasons. first, to ensure each school had enough teacher allocations to offer both standard and ap level classes, any school with a population of less than 1,000 students in grades 9-12 was eliminated. next, schools that did not offer any ap classes were also eliminated because they conflicted with the research bittmann et al. research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),36-58 question examining ap enrollment and passage rates. the public and charter high schools (n = 355) ranged in population from 1,009 to 4,245 (m = 1,921, sd = 572.2) as shown in table 1. table 1 descriptive statistics for student population in 2011 -2012 school year n range minimum maximum mean std. deviation total student population 2011-2012 355 3236.0 1009.0 4245.0 1921.000 572.2208 valid n (listwise) 355 measurement this quantitative analysis employed pearson’s product moment correlation was conducted because the research question looked for the relationship between two interval data variables at a time and is useful in this study as a descriptive statistic (lomax & hahs-vaughn, 2012). the alpha level was set at .05. the statistic is reliable because the correlation is using population level data, with little room for interpretation. concerning validity, the lack of categories offered by the florida department of education’s division of accountability, research, and measurement (arm) limits the number of relationships that can be examined to find a causal relationship, but the categories provided are central to the research question. procedure the procedure for this study began by developing a focus on ap enrollment within florida and an examination of the data available on the florida department of education arm’s website. all data were accessed through the florida department of education’s division of accountability research & measurement (arm) website (http://www.fldoe.org/aboutus/division-of-accountability-research-me.stml). additional research requests were made to the department, if needed. by focusing on access and passage rates of marginalized population to ap bittmann et al. research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),36-58 classes, the researchers examined statewide data for ap enrollment rates, ap passage rates, school population levels, socioeconomics levels, and race. the data that was used for this study was available to the public at no cost. the data were combined into a single data set by hand using microsoft’s excel workbook and exported to ibm’s spss where all analyses were conducted. the quality of the study was assured through data checks performed routinely by all researchers. the following data were collected: the schools’ names and their corresponding school districts as well as the schools’ 2011-2012 total student population, the percentage of ap students in grades 10-12, the percentage of students who received free or reduced lunch, the total percentages of caucasian, hispanic, and african american students scoring 3-5 on ap tests during the 2011-2012 school year. all data were merged into a single data set, and any missing values were excluded from the analysis. a pearson’s product moment correlation was conducted for all 355 cases comparing individual variables to the 2011-2012 school year passing rate. a pearson’s product moment correlation was chosen as a statistical procedure for this study because the hypothesis is testing for relationships with data that are interval/ratio in scale , set at an alpha of .05. the assumption of independence was met via populatio n data. the assumption of linearity was reasonable given a review of scatterplots of the variables shown in figure 1 below. bittmann et al. research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),36-58 figure 1. scatterplots of the variables results in analyzing the correlation set, all 10 of the 10 correlation coefficients were statistically significant (p < .001) as shown in table 2 (see appendix). there was a positive relationship between the following pairs: the total percentage of hispanic students scoring a 3-5 on the ap exams and the percentage of ap enrolled students in grades 10-12 (r = .221, n = 314, p < .001), the total percentage of african american students scoring a 3-5 on the ap exams and the percentage of ap enrolled students in grades 10-12 (r = .277, n = 248, p < .001), and the total percentage of caucasian students scoring a 3-5 on the ap exams and the percentage of ap enrolled students in grades 10-12 (r = .239, n = 334, p < .001). these three positive relationships indicated that when the total percentages of hispanic, african american, and caucasian students scoring a 3-5 on the ap exams increased, the percentage of ap enrolled students in grades 10-12 increased as well. three more positive relationships were found. the first positive relationship was in the total percentage of african american students scoring a 3-5 on the ap exams and the total percentage of hispanic students scoring a 3-5 (r = .816, n = 239, p < .001) indicating that as the bittmann et al. research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),36-58 total percentage of african american students scoring a 3-5 on the ap exams increased, the total percentage of hispanics scoring a 3-5 did as well. the next positive relationship was between the total percentage of caucasian students scoring a 3-5 on the ap exams and the total percentage of hispanic students scoring a 3-5 (r = .862, n = 296, p < .001) indicating that as the total percentage of caucasian students scoring a 3-5 on the ap exams increased, the total percentage of hispanics scoring a 3-5 did as well. the final positive relationship was between the total percentage of caucasian students scoring a 3-5 on the ap exams and the total percentage of african american students scoring a 3-5 (r = .825, n = 231, p < .001) suggesting that as the total percentage of caucasian students scoring a 3-5 on the ap exams increased, the total percentage of african american students scoring a 3-5 increased as well. although significance was found, four relationships were negative as shown in table 2 (see appendix). the four negative relationships are as follows: the percentage of ap enrolled students in grades 10-12 and the percentage of students who received free or reduced lunch (r = .254, n = 355, p < .001), the total percentage of hispanics scoring a 3-5 on the ap exams and the percent of students who received free or reduced lunch (r = -.286, n = 314, p < .001), african american scoring a 3-5 on the ap exams and the percentage of students who received free or reduced lunch (r = -.279, n = 248, p < .001), and caucasian students scoring a 3-5 on the ap exams and the percentage of students who received free or reduced lunch (r = -.289, n = 334, p < .001). these negative relationships suggest that as the percentage of ap enrolled students and the total percentages of hispanic, african-american, and caucasian students scoring a 3-5 on the ap exams increased, the percentage of students who received free or reduced lunch decreased. within the positive relationships, the relationships that were correlated with the percentage of ap enrolled students in grades 10-12 had a mildly-medium effect based on bittmann et al. research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),36-58 cohen’s (1988) correlational effect size. the relationships between the total percentages of african american and hispanic students scoring a 3-5 (r2 = .67), the total percentages of caucasian and hispanic students scoring a 3-5 (r2 = .74), and the total percentages of caucasian and african american students scoring a 3-5 (r2 = .69), all had rather large effect sizes according to cohen (1988). within the negative relationships, the total percentages of hispanic, african american, and caucasian students scoring a 3-5 had the same, medium effect size of .08 based on cohen (1988). the relationship between the percentage of ap enrolled students in grades 1012 and the percentage of students who received free or reduced lunch had an effect size of .06 suggesting a mildlymedium effect size based on cohen. using g*power (faul et al., 2007), from the lowest to the greatest correlation coefficient (r = .221-.862), post hoc power ranged from relatively high power, at .98, to a perfect power of 1. discussion this study examined high school students’ ap enrollment and passage rates using the 2011-2012 ap enrollment and passage rates of students from marginalized populations in florida. previous research regarding ap enrollment and passage rates for the state of florida was completed with data from the 2002-2003 school. this study analyzed the relationship amongst students who passed the ap exams, students receiving free or reduced lunch, and the total percentages of caucasian, hispanic, and african american students who participated in ap exams during the 2011-2012 school year in florida. pearson product correlations were examined between students who a) successfully passed the ap exams (i.e., scoring a 3 or higher on a 5point scale), b) the percentage of students who had received free or reduced lunch, and c) the total percentages of caucasian, hispanic, and african american students who took the ap exams in florida during the 2011-2012 school year. bittmann et al. research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),36-58 the scope of the study was narrow, focused on a single state in the united states, serving to update previous research that was conducted in 2002-2003 regarding marginalized population enrollment in ap courses in florida. despite the narrow focus, this research study updated the literature focused on racial minority students and ap enrollment rates. in doing so, this research study illuminates the need for stakeholders to continue to encourage minority enrollment in ap coursework and to emphasize to those students that passing the ap exam is possible. additionally, the inclusion of students who qualify for free and reduced lunch as a variable indicates a particular marginalized, student population that should be examined in future research regarding ap coursework. this research study found both positive and negative correlations in regards to the variables investigated. advanced placement enrollment rates of caucasian, hispanic, and african american students were positively and strongly correlated with the passing scores of caucasian, hispanic, and african american students on ap exams. this indicates that hispanic and african american students who are enrolled in ap classes were successful in passing the ap exam. the historic disenfranchisement of hispanic and african american students can be ameliorated slightly through the continued enrollment of hispanic and african american into ap coursework. despite the positive correlation between the different races and passage rates, a negative association was found between the percentage of caucasian, hispanic, and african american students and students from low socio-economic backgrounds. with a negative, weak correlation, these results suggest that schools with higher proportions of low-ses students do not encourage enrollment in ap coursework as emphatically as schools with a lower proportion. this troubling trend has the potential to significantly hamper students from low socioeconomic backgrounds bittmann et al. research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),36-58 from future success in their post-secondary schooling as well as continuing the marginalization of individuals from low socioeconomic backgrounds. efforts have been made to bridge the achievement gap, as it relates to ap, across various racial groups, particularly among african american, hispanic, and caucasian student populations. following similar methods of davis et al. (2013), kerr (2014), and ohrt et al. (2009), parental involvement is a crucial component for students’ academic success (kilinc et al, 2016; mauch & tarman, 2016; tarman, 2016; tarman & acun, 2010). depending on the resources available, schools can hold after and/or before school tutoring sessions in which ap teachers will be available to tutor ap-enrolled students on their coursework (hoffmann, 2017). inviting parents, regardless of racial or socioeconomic backgrounds, to these sessions will help keep them updated on their children’s progress as well as informed of the materia l that is being taught. as a result, this may place parents in a better position to assist their children with their ap coursework and assignments. as previous researchers suggested (davis et al., 2013; kerr, 2014; ohrt et al., 2009) when schools recognize students who have ap potential, particularly from african american and hispanic backgrounds, they may conference or hold informational meetings that detail the ap program and its courses for the parents, particularly for the parents who may not understand what ap is nor realize the positive effects that such a program may have on their children’s academic career. counselors can work with the student’s teachers to develop a plan of action that is specific to each student and his or her ap course that outlin es the steps that will be taken to ensure academic success in the course. the current study highlights the continuing issue regarding ap enrollment and passage rates among student populations that are considered to be marginalized by mainstream education, particularly african american and hispanic student populations and students from low bittmann et al. research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),36-58 socioeconomic backgrounds. the results from this study show that students from racially diverse backgrounds who enroll into ap programs are successful in passing the exams. however, schools do not particularly acknowledge the academic potential that students from low socioeconomic backgrounds, as indicated by their free and reduced lunch status, may have if enrolled into an ap course. thus, this finding highlights the need for the academic counseling and informational meetings with parents, along with the tutoring sessions with the parental involvement, regarding ap programs for these students as well. considering the nature of correlational designs, cause and effect relationships cannot be established without an experimental component (gall, gall, & borg, 2007; waters & russell, 2016). the current study did not include such a component as it pulled data from a pre-existing database. furthermore, the limiting number of variables examined did not provide concrete evidence of a causal relationship between the ses level and race with success on ap exams. the current study included data from florida schools which may not be representative of national trends. however, the researchers of the current study sought to investigate the ap enrollment and passage rates from within the state of florida only. future research includes analyzing this data at a national level rather than just limiting it to an individual state. research regarding students from low socioeconomic backgrounds enrolled into ap courses is also an area that is often overlooked. another marginalized student population that could be considered includes english language learners. additionally, researchers continuing this work may consider analyzing the data to see how students’ gender affects their enrollment and passage rates of ap courses. bittmann et al. research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),36-58 appendix table 2 pearson correlations coefficient results percentage of ap students (10-12th grades) 20112012 percent free and reduced lunch 2011-2012 total percentage of hispanic students scoring 3-5 2011-2012 total percentage of black students scoring 3-5 2011-2012 total percentage of white students 3-5 2011-2012 percentage of ap students (10-12th grades) 20112012 pearson correlation 1 -.254** .221** .277** .239** sig. (2tailed) .000 .000 .000 .000 sum of squares and cross products 92654.144 -643751.275 18546.236 18699.368 22452.352 covariance 261.735 -1818.506 59.253 75.706 67.424 n 355 355 314 248 334 percent free and reduced lunch 20112012 pearson correlation -.254** 1 -.286** -.279** -.289** sig. (2tailed) .000 .000 .000 .000 sum of squares and cross products -643751.275 69245016.197 -676982.822 -492030.474 -720398.556 covariance -1818.506 195607.390 -2162.884 -1992.026 -2163.359 n 355 355 314 248 334 total percentage of hispanic students scoring 3-5 2011-2012 pearson correlation .221** -.286** 1 .816** .862** sig. (2tailed) .000 .000 .000 .000 sum of squares and cross products 18546.236 -676982.822 88551.310 55419.363 72662.228 covariance 59.253 -2162.884 282.912 232.854 246.313 n 314 314 314 239 296 total percentage of black students scoring 3-5 2011-2012 pearson correlation .277** -.279** .816** 1 .825** sig. (2tailed) .000 .000 .000 .000 sum of squares and cross products 18699.368 -492030.474 55419.363 71770.114 55489.786 covariance 75.706 -1992.026 232.854 290.567 241.260 n 248 248 239 248 231 bittmann et al. research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),36-58 total percentage of white students 3-5 2011-2012 pearson correlation .239** -.289** .862** .825** 1 sig. (2tailed) .000 .000 .000 .000 sum of squares and cross products 22452.352 -720398.556 72662.228 55489.786 100945.206 covariance 67.424 -2163.359 246.313 241.260 303.139 n 334 334 296 231 334 **. correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed). bittmann et al. research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),36-58 references ackerman, p. l., kanfer, r., & calderwood, c. (2013). high school advanced placement and student performance in college: stem majors, non-stem majors, and gender differences. teachers college record, 115(10), 1-42. bergeson, j. b. 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(2021). investigating the effects of e-learning as a method of curriculum dissemination for rural tvet college students. research in social sciences and technology, 6(3), 82-92. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.27 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). abstract the study investigates the effects of e-learning as an alternative form of curriculum dissemination for rural technical and vocational education and training (tvet) college students. this study adopted connectivism theory, which enabled lecturers to reflect and adapt to how learning has changed and the accompanying implications of designing the spaces and structures to the current mode of learning. the researcher made use of two research methods to gather data; phone interviews and questionnaires. the data was analyzed using thematic analysis and the statistical package for social sciences (spss) version 20.0, office word format. the results indicated that the unavailability of technological resources, lack of financial support from single parents’ side due to socio-economic factors, and child-headed families hinder the correct implementation of e-learning and make it difficult to reach its objectives. keywords: e-learning; curriculum dissemination; tvet college; covid-19; rural students introduction learning is continuous, never-ending and goes far beyond the realm of formal education in school, college or university (shrivastava, 2018). lecturing as a teaching method or style is still widely used from the primary, secondary and tertiary levels of education, of which vocational colleges are no different. hence, according to mcgrath (2012), there is a need to look into this issue to possibly change the education landscape in order to accommodate new teaching and learning methodologies. people of different socio-economic status (poor, black, employed, unemployed) use technology in different ways for various reasons and as a result, researchers see that internet web services like google, google scholar, facebook, whatsapp, telegram and others play important roles not just in connecting people through communication but also as sources of information education. in this instance, we concur with shrivastava (2018), who said 10.46303/ressat.2021.27 mailto:khosimadix@gmail.com https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.27 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 madimabe, m. p. & omodan, b. i. investigating the effects of e-learning as a method of curriculum dissemination for rural tvet college students research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 83 that in the 21st century, things like social media contain the facets of the internet in that they connect people (communication) and are favorites among school youth in terms of how they connect and share information in every corner of the world. although this teaching and learning platform is a challenge in developing countries, mässing (2017) argues that it is an alternative educational solution to unforeseen challenges such as community unrest, lockdown and natural disasters, as seen in the covid-19 pandemic. the observed vulnerability may be connected to limited educational resources in institutes as the major challenges of rural institutions in south africa (omodan et al., 2019). andersson (2008) further adds that these susceptibility factors are persistent over time due to inadequate access to connectivity. considering zawacki-richter and qayyum (2019) assertions, many countries, especially those in the sub-saharan, continue to struggle with making the complete transitioned by providing teaching and learning through educational technologies. one of the overarching challenges leading to this fact is poor government support, provision and maintenance of infrastructure, especially reliable power supply and costs, all of which derail efforts for transition to e-learning (in both urban and rural areas) and gives the researcher more clarity on the gap that is accompanied by this method of teaching and learning. the covid-19 pandemic has affected educational systems worldwide, leading to a near-total closure of schools, universities and tvet colleges (okoye et al., 2021). it has led to the utilization of e-learning as an alternative route of teaching and learning as this route reflected the characteristics of no contact, which projected the safest attempt to reduce the spread of covid-19. the researcher shares similar views with omodan (2020), who believes that higher education institutions located in the rural areas of the free state province, maluti -a-phofung municipality in south africa seem to be vulnerable in the event of covid-19 lockdown and community shutdown unrests in response to this alternative teaching and learning methodology. it is important to consider that students were locked down in their rural homes assumed to be in remote areas with little or no access to the internet, which came as a result of chronic unemployment, inequality, and poverty which are dominant in the rural communities of south africa; conditions such as scarcity of educational resources should be acknowledged as an outcome. adding to the list of obstacles, okoye et al (2021) stated that the main challenge for lecturers is to equip students with processes or criteria’s of how students can retain the learned content; how students can independently self-teach themselves continually and know methods that incorporate coping mechanisms and acceleration of education in general. one tend to concur with kitizo (2016) when further outlining that, at times, the focus is on the usage of technology rather than on quality teaching and learning that this technology is disseminating, taking into consideration that only few higher education practitioners can use technology of this transformative era. according to zare et al. (2016), higher education institutions should be accountable to the public and should be responsive to the needs of their respective local communities. this entails equipping their primary stakeholders (students) with 21st-century knowledge and skills that will assist them to become responsible members of their communities and the country. however, this does not suggest that traditional teaching approaches such as lecturing have no space today; instead, things like e-learning can help close gaps that traditional teaching methods failed to address. being in contrast with omodan (2020), who holds that students are assumed research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 madimabe, m. p. & omodan, b. i. investigating the effects of e-learning as a method of curriculum dissemination for rural tvet college students research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 84 to lack access to the internet and other devices that can enable them to cope with alternative teaching and learning, which could be complete online teaching and learning; indeed, students lack such. e-learning is defined as using electronic technologies to access educational curriculum (salamat et al., 2018). in this paper, the researcher denotes e-learning as a process of acquiring and distributing knowledge widely across the world, enabling people around the world to access information. this study draws on kamsin’s (2005) belief that one of the greatest assets to online learning is its ability to allow students to control their learning process by offering students a direct, action-oriented, practical learning experience. salamat et al. (2018) further added by stating that, this mode of learning makes education flexible for students because there are no boundaries of time and building. letseka et al. (2018) stated that e-learning can be differentiated pedagogically; it can accommodate different learning styles, allowing students to work at their own pace and facilitate learning through a variety of activities. self-regulated learning involves students’ ability to engage proactively and work independently in an atmosphere that is self-motivating and encourages behavioral processes that increase goal attainment (shrivastava, 2018). theoretical framework this study is guided by the connectivism theory, making reference to flexibility of allowing learning to occur at any given time and space, depending on the recipient. not only that, but its ability to influence shifts in education regarding the way knowledge and information flow, expand, and the changes brought by the increasing need for educational technologies in the realm of higher education (picciano, 2017). the basic principles of this theory are that students need to understand and be provided with experiences in navigating and recognizing the perspective of the constantly shifting and evolving information. connectivism theory is credited for its holistic principles that deliver a learning theory that properly fits within the digital age characterized by the diverse contexts identified in the introduction (shrivastava, 2018). proponents of connectivism say that the theory is beneficial because it allows for actionable knowledge whereby learners can exploit the weak ties among the nodes and adopt a pattern of learning. they can also formulate meaning as individuals, thus expanding their personal network (herlo, 2019). as a theory, connectivism calls for the creation and the formulation of knowledge instead of its dissemination inside and between learners. thus, siemens (2005) proposes the following eight connectivist principles illustrated in table 1. the connectivist approach is convenient as it allows students to employ the free internet web resources present for access by every person (bates, 2015). the unique role of the theory in this study is its ability to enable lecturers to reflect on how learning has changed and the accompanying implications to how they should design the spaces and structures of learning today (siemens, 2006). from our perspective as researchers, we draw on siemens (2005), who asserts that lecturers should be encouraged to be aware of their role to formulate, organize and perform, assess and adjust learning in its entirety not just for present generations but also for future ones either or without connectivism learning theory. we hold that lecturers or institutions of higher learning must play their part in expanding the knowledge base of teaching and learning, taking into account the potential benefits that e-learning may offer. therefore, research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 madimabe, m. p. & omodan, b. i. investigating the effects of e-learning as a method of curriculum dissemination for rural tvet college students research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 85 this study aims to investigate the effects of e-learning on curriculum dissemination for tvet college students located in the rural areas of south africa. table 1. siemens’ eight principles of connectivism 1. learning and knowledge rest in diversity of opinions. 2. learning is a process of connecting specialized nodes or information sources. 3. learning may reside in non-human appliances. 4. capacity to know more is more critical than what is currently known. 5. nurturing and maintaining connections is needed to facilitate continual learning. 6. ability to see connections between fields, ideas, and concepts is a core skill. 7. currency (accurate, up-to-date knowledge) is the intent of all connectivist learning activities. 8. decision-making is itself a learning process. choosing what to learn and the meaning of incoming information is seen through the lens of a shifting reality. while there is a right answer now, it may be wrong tomorrow due to alterations in the information climate affecting the decision. research question in order to response to the above problem, the following research question and objectives were raised to guide the study:  how can rural tvet colleges optimize e-learning as a form of curriculum dissemination to students? research objectives thus, based on the main research question, following objectives guided the study. that is, the study explores;  possible conditions necessary for e-learning to be utilized as an alternative form of curriculum dissemination for rural tvet college students  possible threats that could hinder a successful implementation of e-learning as a platform for curriculum dissemination. research methodology in order to gain insight into the effects of e-learning on students’ learning and teachings at tvet college level, cell-phone interviews and online questionnaires were conducted with 50 student registered in the tvet college. this method of collecting data was chosen as it best suited the rules and regulations of the covid-19 pandemic. volunteer sampling technique was used to gather data from the respondent, the driving force being the conditions of the 2020 national lockdown and the frustrations that students were enduring in the teaching and learning process. 50 student participant who were willing and available forwarded their cell phone research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 madimabe, m. p. & omodan, b. i. investigating the effects of e-learning as a method of curriculum dissemination for rural tvet college students research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 86 numbers from various programs whatsapp groups utilized at the college for the scheduling of the interviews, whilst they completed the online questionnaire which consisted of a 5-likert scale from strongly agree to strongly disagree and it comprised five items. this was done as a consequence of having posted all the aspects of the study in the college program whatsapp groups for the purpose of recruitment, because these students were directly affected by this abrupt technological shift and needed to air their various experiences. the first data collection method was the one-on-one phone interviews and the second was that of a questionnaire with a set of carefully designed questions was used as another research tool for data collection. the qualitative data was analyzed using thematic analysis and quantitative data using the statistical package for social sciences (spss) version 20.0, office word format, and central tendency measures, which are the statistical techniques of frequency and percentage score. the aforesaid research methodologies were deemed suitable in achieving the objective of the study by the researchers. data presentation and analysis the data presented responds to the objectives of the study, and this was done under the following sub-themes: availability of technological resources to encourage e-learning in the rural areas, involvement of parents in the teaching and learning of tvet college students and students inconsistently focusing on the set objectives. this was represented in terms of literature review, direct quotation and graphical presentations. findings and discussions conditions necessary for the implementation of e-learning effective teaching approaches encourage students to recognize connections between different ways of curriculum dissemination for rural college students (jones, 2002). lecturers should design classrooms and activities that assist students to construct knowledge internally rather than imposing knowledge on students (mulaudzi, 2016). to this extent, mulaudzi (2016) also proposes that students should access to interact with lecturers and classmates continuously in the classroom and at home to construct knowledge that makes sense to them, and this will be a positive feature of a democratic approach through which environmental education will emerge as students will become enthusiastic about learning. the success and implementation of e-learning depend on several factors, such as the availability of technological resources and parental involvement in their children’s learning. availability of technological resources to encourage e-learning in rural areas emphasizing this position, chahine (2013) states that curriculum dissemination should be done in various innovative ways. gordon and browne (2014) support the above view by stating that e-learning is concept orientated; as such, it can enhance students’ interest in learning while at home. the researchers also declared this in the quantitative statement below: s2: “the availability of technological resources on the students’ side could enhance the teaching and learning process in the rural communities.” s1: “the use of technology in the teaching and learning process will encourage students to learn more.” research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 madimabe, m. p. & omodan, b. i. investigating the effects of e-learning as a method of curriculum dissemination for rural tvet college students research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 87 s2 and s1 statements clarify that lecturers should try different strategies to have new generations gather technological confidence in their learning process. this study also agrees that meeting this condition becomes necessary for successfully implementing e-learning in the rural tvet colleges. in support of this is the qualitative data in fig. 1 below, which indicates that only 14% of the college students have access to either computers or smartphones while 53% of the students have no access to computers or smartphone while learning through e-learning. figure 1. students’ access to technological resources figure 2. students’ accessibility to data the figure above presents statistics that almost half of the students and more do not have access to computers or smartphones with connectivity when at home, which ultimately hinders the teaching and learning process. the figure denotes that no student at the college has research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 madimabe, m. p. & omodan, b. i. investigating the effects of e-learning as a method of curriculum dissemination for rural tvet college students research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 88 unlimited access to the internet. only 26% of the students have access to persona wireless fidelity (wi-fi), 48% of the students use smartphones to access data, while 28% on the student mass have no access to the internet. the study found that the resources that should enable lecturers to plan their lessons, such as teaching aids and tangible resources that will assist lecturers in teaching authentic lessons, are regarded as a conducive condition. this will enable students to relate what is taught in the classroom to their everyday lives and that the assessments used when assessing their understanding of the questions must be similar to those examples done in class. in agreement with the findings, moloi (2014) posits that a collective voice in the community can proffer a sustainable solution to the problems revealed; this voice can be in terms of the parents meeting the college halfway by procuring data, technological gadgets for students and creating a suitable environment for students to study at home. involvement of parents in the teaching and learning of tvet college students research has shown that most of the students’ best performers at learning institutions are backed by their parent’s participation and a high level of effort in their children’s learning process. parental involvement has many benefits because it enhances learners’ motivation, interest and academic performance (kwatubana & makhalemele, 2015). with parental involvement, learners become more social, are happier and active in their learning. these learners are less likely to be absent in school and tend to arrive on time, submit most of the homework and school projects, and their parents assist them in terms of confronting every hurdle in their school life (kwatubana & makhalemele, 2015). this view is also supported by the participant below: s3: “as part of the planning process, lecturers and parents need to work together in preparing students and determining how they wish to engage as peers.” according to s3’s utterances, parents can assist their students and the college in various ways, such as waking the students up to be at college in time, tracking their daily awareness of what they are taught daily and help push students to do homework. the above assertions agree with sapungan and sapungan (2014), who state that when a school has a strong relationship with their children’s parents, it improves performance for both the children and their learners physically and academically. parental involvement, therefore, is vitally important, school administrators (school management team smt, school governing body sgbs and other stakeholders) are encouraged to emphasize the important role played by parental involvement and must make the college achieve its mission objectives. it becomes evident when viewing the qualitative data in the figure below that parental involvement plays a crucial point in supporting their student academically. fig. 3 signifies that 89% of the students at the tvet college are still dependent on their parents’ guidance and financial support, whereas only 11% of the students are from child-headed families. as part of the planning process, the study found that lecturers and parents need to prepare students and determine how they wish to engage as peers. this is considered a conducive condition to the smooth implementation of e-learning in support of the stakeholders’ findings in ensuring that students acquire knowledge meaningful to their lives which takes priority. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 madimabe, m. p. & omodan, b. i. investigating the effects of e-learning as a method of curriculum dissemination for rural tvet college students research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 89 llamas and tuazon (2016) agree with the above by stating that parents become pleased when involved in the school’s activities and their children’s journey while at school, college or university. findings from the study further indicate the vital importance of the relationship between parents and college administrators, which ntekane (2018) says can result in the higher academic achievement of the school in all aspects (teaching and learning, management and administration). park and holloway (2013) further indicate that parents’ involvement in their wards’ schooling has long been believed to promote a range of positive outcomes, including academic achievement, engagement in schoolwork, and lower dropout rates. figure 3. home financial status a major threat that could evade the successful implementation of e-learning given the condition necessary for the successful utilization of e-learning on curriculum dissemination in the colleges, the researchers’ concerns were discussed and it was discovered that students inconsistently focus on the set objectives. the discussions were as follows: students inconsistently focusing on the set objectives students being in dire need of a consistent classroom environment. in order to achieve this goal, the learners and their teachers must work together in achieving the common collective goals of the institution. the students must collaborate with one another to make sure each module objectives are achieved. the students must be encouraged to embrace the challenges they come across in their learning and see them as a learning process rather than a stumbling block, as shown below: ft: “lack of participation may limit class interaction and also cause students to miss out on the benefits of student-centered undertakings, which include being exposed to multiple ways of analyzing, interpreting and solving problems.” research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 madimabe, m. p. & omodan, b. i. investigating the effects of e-learning as a method of curriculum dissemination for rural tvet college students research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 90 from the above, it can be deduced that being in the classroom without sufficient knowledge to drive learning equates to taking a family vacation trip but with little knowledge of the destination route. thus, the importance of lesson objectives can never be over emphasized because they ensure that the students’ learning and the process are worthwhile and beneficial. when the lecturers lay out the lesson objectives from the start, they clearly indicate to their students what to expect and the direction of the subject or module. communicating the lesson module also sends a clear message about the focus of learning activities, especially on their students’ attention since it is needed based on the ft assertions. the empirical data of this study found that students’ inconsistent focus on the learning objectives is a threat; that is, students do not participate in the teaching and learning process. ultimately, this limited class interaction also causes students to miss out on the benefits of student-centered undertakings, including being, and this automatically threatens the successful implementation of the strategy. lecturers can overcome this threat by preparing and planning lessons to arouse students’ curiosity and prompt students’ interaction. operative lecturers must be domain experts who understand how to flexibly use the availability of different technological pedagogues when disseminating content (mahlomaholo & francis, 2011; mahlomaholo, 2010). this paper agrees that clear learning objectives reassure students of the need to focus and provides lecturers with a focal point for planning instructions. in other words, feedback can assist in solidifying students’ understanding of the content at hand and known specific lesson objectives will improve their performance in this way. the key for lecturers is to draw up clear learning objectives criteria to become aware of when they have achieved these learning objectives (hattie & timperley, 2007). equally, the lecturer must give feedback on each task, and the feedback must be in line with the learning objectives. the benefit of such feedback is that it will foster the students to be consistent in their learning, which aligns with the predetermined objectives. conclusion and recommendations according to the findings, there are few possibilities that e-learning can move swiftly in the colleges located in the rural areas of the free state due to the following factors such insufficient learning gadgets and connectivity access. secondly, in the environment where students are situated, load shedding occurs frequently due to the socio-economic development of the communities in which the college is located. based on the findings, it has been observed that connectivity access is very limited to a certain percentage of students, resulting in students not getting all the shared information relevant for assessments and content coverage in time, which ultimately affects students’ learning processes. on the other hand, it was also discovered that parents are not involved in their children’s learning process. discussions revealed that very limited support was observed as empirical data reflected that students do not have their privacy to a comfortable space at home; also, unemployment of either one or both parents hinders the financial aspect from the parents’ side, which affects the students learning process. all in all, the study proposes that the colleges should work closely with the national student financial aid scheme (nsfas) to ensure that students get the necessary support regarding the resources that will support e-learning, such as laptops, data connectivity and availability of wifi on campus premises. the department of higher education and training (dhet) should ensure research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 madimabe, m. p. & omodan, b. i. investigating the effects of e-learning as a method of curriculum dissemination for rural tvet college students research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 91 that all colleges provide sufficient internet access for students to be able to connect to wi-fi on site. references andersson, a. 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(2019). open and distance education in asia, africa and the middle east: national perspectives in a digital age. springer briefs in education. http://www.springer.com/series/15238 zare, m., sarikhani, r., salari, m., & mansouri, v. (2016). the impact of e-learning on university students’ academic achievement and creativity. journal of technical education and training, 8(1), 25-33. http://doi.org/10.17583/rise.2020.5495.x https://doi.org/10.1007/s10639-021-10527-x http://doi.org/10.24059/olj.v21i3.1225.x research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 akarsu, m. z., alteration of consumption habits in turkey over time research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 122 alteration of consumption habits in turkey over time mahmut zeki akarsu ph.d. candidate, warsaw university, warsaw, poland. email: m.akarsu@uw.edu.pl received : 2021-05-20 revised : 2021-07-08 accepted : 2021-08-22 how to cite this paper: akarsu, m. z. (2021). alteration of consumption habits in turkey over time. research in social sciences and technology, 6(3), 122-134. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.33 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). abstract simon kuznets and john maynard keynes did research on the subject of propensity to consume. kuznets asserted that people do not alter their consumption/saving ratio and spend more when they have more disposable income. keynes alleged that when disposable income increases, the rate of saving also increases over time because people tend to keep their consumption habits steady. namely, the consumption/saving ratio of households or individuals tends to decrease as disposable income goes up. and in this study, the keynesian consumption function is investigated in the turkish economy. the result of this research might give insight into the future of the consumption/saving ratio in turkey. in the study, the ardl econometric model is operated with data from the turkish statistical institute. the result of the study is that people change their consumption habits with the increase of disposable income. as a result, the consumption level has been slowing down, and the propensity to consume diminishes. that proves that the keynesian consumption function holds in turkey. keywords: keynesian consumption function, economic growth, average propensity to consume, ardl. jel classification: e12, e21, f40. introduction the consumption-saving ratio is an essential indicator in the economic assessment that prefigures economic growth. countries need savings to be able to invest in the future in order to improve the economy. savings stimulates investment and economic growth. besides, consumption, as well, is significant for economic growth. keynes states that consumption spurs economic growth and prevents economic stagnation (alper, 2018). consumption is a crucial economic factor of gdp. the total consumption is calculated as the sum of household consumption and public expenditure, which is of paramount importance in 10.46303/ressat.2021.33 mailto:m.akarsu@uw.edu.pl https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.33 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 akarsu, m. z., alteration of consumption habits in turkey over time research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 123 terms of its contribution to economic growth. however, savings are also essential for economic growth. increased savings promotes the gdp in developed and developing economies (misztal, 2011). hence, the consumption–saving ratio is a significant indicator of economic growth. simon kuznets stated that the consumption-income ratio (c = by1) would not change over time, even if people get a rise in their salary. kuznets basically implied that people tend to save a similar percentage of their incomes (egilmez, 2009). however, keynes was against that theory. keynes upheld that the average propensity to consume decreases over time when people earn more income (arioglu & tuan, 2011). the propensity to consume level is such a significant indicator to predict the future consumption–saving ratio. if people, when they have more income, tend to save more, then we can assume that economic growth will slow down, and as a consequence, policymakers should make provision for stagnation. economic revival is dominantly lead by consumption expenditures in turkey (sudi & ucak, 2007). in turkey, for instance, the average propensity to consume is approximately 75%. it means that turkish consumers spend 75% of their income (y) and saves 25% of their income (ministry of development of the republic of turkey, 2018, p. 8). however, saving rates do not increase as much as they should have been because debts rather than cash mostly keep nourishing the consumption expenditures. as shown in figure 1, in 1998, consumption and gdp were close to each other. over time, as turkey developed more, the gap between consumption and gdp got larger. however, in turkey, the saving rate has been diminishing, even though the gdp growth is much greater than the consumption growth (ministry of development, 2018). this points out borrowing for growth. namely, turkish economic growth is not sustainable and maintainable. figure 1. the graph of gdp and consumption (in the usd) in turkey between 1998 and 2019 (turkish statistical institute, household consumption, 2020) 1 c denotes the aggregate consumption, b is the marginal propensity to consume, y is the income (alimi, 2013). 200 000 000 400 000 000 600 000 000 800 000 000 1 000 000 000 1 200 000 000 gdp final consumption research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 akarsu, m. z., alteration of consumption habits in turkey over time research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 124 this study aims to investigate the keynesian consumption function in turkey. the average propensity to consume, economic growth, consumer price index, and unemployment data are collected, which are measured in quarters between the years 1998 and 2019. moreover, variance decomposition and the ardl model are used to check whether keynesian consumption theory is valid in turkey. if the keynesian average propensity to consume theory holds in turkey, it might be assumed that turkish economic growth will slow down, and households, which could be more flawed than now, might struggle with paying off debts unless turkey changes its economic growth structure. therefore, the result of this study will be of paramount importance in order to understand where the turkish economy heads to. keynesian consumption function keynes explained in his book “general theory of employment, interest, and money.” that there is a law (he) called “psychological law of consumption.” the law clarified that people increase their consumption when income increases. however, income earners do not increase their consumption level as much as the increasement level in income (keynes, 1936, p. 95). he also remarked that consumption also decreases when the disposable income decreases, but not so fast (keynes, 1936, p. 102). c = f(ch, cg ) (1) c denotes consumption, which includes dept. ch is household consumption; cg is government expenditure. government expenditure and household consumption are the functions of consumption. c= ch year(quarter) + cg year(quarter) (2) (2) demonstrates that to obtain the consumption, ch in x year and z quarter is summed with cg in x year and z quarter. for instance, in the 1st quarter of 1998, household consumption was about 9 billion turkish liras, and government expenditure was roughly 1.4 billion turkish liras. the total consumption (c) was approximately 10.4 billion turkish liras in the 1st quarter of 1998. c= α + фy, α>0, 0<ф<1 (3) α and ф denote autonomous consumption and marginal propensity to consume, respectively. autonomous consumption means that even if people do not have any income, they have to spend some amount of money to survive. apc = c/y = (α/y) + ф (4) average propensity to consume (apc) is calculated by consumption over income. it provides information explaining that what percentage of disposable income individuals (the whole population) tend to spend and save in a country. if the average propensity to consume decreases when there is an increment in income, then: ∆ of aps = ∆(s/y) > ∆(c/y)= ∆ of apc (5) ∆ denotes increment. the increment of the average propensity to save ∆(s/y) is greater than the increment of the average propensity to consume ∆(c/y). in other words, keynes asserted that when people get a rise in income, saving increases. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 akarsu, m. z., alteration of consumption habits in turkey over time research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 125 literature of propensity to consume jin (1995) searched on consumption and disposable income between oecd countries and found that consumption and disposable income are cointegrated. sand (2002) worked on the propensity to consume norwegian household farms. he stated that propensity to consume and propensity to save is of paramount importance since farmers, business people, and policymakers need to measure the impact on the future production level and consumption possibilities to maneuver in the coming years. sand found out that the marginal propensity to consume is low among norwegian farm households. saglam2 (2006) studied the keynesian absolute income hypothesis with turkish income data between the years 1982 and 2003. saglam used the least square method and attained that the keynesian theory is valid in turkey. slacalek (2009) analyzed the oecd countries regarding income, consumption, and wealth using the cointegration approach. the result was that there is a long-term relationship between income, consumption, and wealth. alimi (2013) investigated how consumption is influenced by income. alim used ordinary least squares to search the validity of the keynesian absolute income hypothesis. alimi found that the average propensity to consume decreases in nigeria as income increases. ianole & druıcă (2015) reached a result in the keynesian consumption hypothesis that in europe between the years of 2000 and 2013 and asserted that the absolute income hypothesis was valid. bilgili and baglitas (2016) presented the permanent income and random walk hypotheses. they deduced that the absolute income held with the marginal propensity to consume (0.7 – 0.8). kim (2017) searched about the effect of consumption on economic growth in asia, in which he obtained a result that consumption is a driving force of economic growth among asian countries more than it is in the rest of the world. rafiy et al. (2018) analyzed the impact of consumer spending and investment on indonesia’s economic growth using the ardl test. they deducted that consumption fosters economic growth significantly, but investment does not. fisher et al. (2019) used the psid (panel study of income dynamics) dataset collected on american families. their research, where converted measures to constant 2013 the american dollars, investigated the average propensity to consume and the marginal propensity to consume using income distributions, consumption, and wealth. they got a result that the average propensity to consume falls over time. they also found from empirical research that the bottom 10 percent has 0.8 of average propensity to consume, whilst the top 10 percent has 0.6. that means that relatively poor people save less than wealthy people since their disposable income allows them to essentials. yigit (2020) analyzed the data to find the validity of the average propensity to consume in turkey by using many different types of unit root tests. his result suggested that the average propensity to consume is in use. abeysinghe and choy (2004) wrote an article called the aggregate consumption puzzle in singapore and concluded that there is no cointegration relationship between income and consumption. okcu (2008) investigated the nexus between income and consumption using the 2 saglam (2006) used the least square econometric model and covered the year between 1982 and 2003 when turkey faced high inflation, and purchasing power sank dramatically. in this study, i covered the years between 1998 and 2019, when the turkish economy boosted and the inflation rate went down. therefore, the data, which covers steady inflation time, could provide more reliable results on this topic. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 akarsu, m. z., alteration of consumption habits in turkey over time research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 126 cointegration analysis in turkey and found no relationship between consumption function and income function. most of the researches certify that the keynesian consumption function is valid in many different countries. as seen above, scholars use many different methodological approaches in order to sift through the hypothesis. discussion in this research, the validity of the keynesian theory of the average propensity to consume will be checked using the ardl econometrics model in turkey between the years 1998 and 2019. the variables, which are the average propensity to consume, gross domestic product (gdp)3 by expenditure in constant price (2015=100) data, unemployment data (person) 4 , and consumer price index (%) data, are collected to conduct the empirical research from turkish statistical institution. all of the data is quarterly and variance decomposition, var bound test, and error correction form are used in the empirical research part. consumption includes household consumption and government expenditure (2). c/y denotes consumption divided by gross domestic product (y). the consumer price index is inf; the gross domestic product is gdp; unemployment is unemp. c/y had a strong seasonality due to the quarterly data. to avoid the seasonality problem, c/y is seasonally adjusted, using “seasonal and trend decomposition using loess” (stl), before starting the econometric analysis. figure 2 illustrates the graph of c/y (seasonally adjusted), gdp, inf, and unemp. as can be seen, the gross domestic product has increased sharply since 1998, while the consumer price index remains around 3% (quarterly). in turkey, roughly 4 million people were unemployed in 2019, which is the highest unemployment in history (turkish statistical institute, turkish statistical institute unemployment, 2020). augmented dickey-fuller unit root test is performed for all variables. all of the variables were nonstationary in level and became stationary in 1st difference (appendix table 1a). it means all of the variables are dynamic. after the unit root test, the johansen cointegration test (intercept (no trend) in ce and test var) is applied to examine if the variables are cointegrated. test results revealed a cointegration among variables, and variables have long-run relationships (appendix table 2a). before the subsequent econometric analysis, we take the logarithm of gross domestic product and unemployment since they are collected to interpret data efficiently. lngdp denotes the 3 in this research, gross domestic product (gdp) data is used instead of the gdp per capita data because gdp per capita is related to economic growth as well as population growth. in consumption function theory, we do not consider population growth. therefore, using gdp per capita could slightly change the result. so, i did not use gdp per capita. 4 in this research, unemployment data is collected in person instead of in the rate because turkey has a chronic unemployment issue, which is around 10%. the unemployment rate does not frankly explain how big unemployment is in turkey, and when the unemployment rate is implemented, the result becomes very unreliable due to the using unemployment rate instead of unemployment in the number of people. with unemployment in the number of people, we can see the changes of unemployment over time, and it helps us understand the whose saving increase, which influences the theory. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 akarsu, m. z., alteration of consumption habits in turkey over time research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 127 logarithm of the gross domestic product; lnunemp denotes the logarithm of unemployment. besides, we also take the first difference of all of the variables since they are nonstationary. figure 2. the graph of consumption/gdp, gdp, consumer price index, and unemployment figure 3. inverse root of ar characteristic polynomial, between -1 and +1. inverse root of ar characteristic polynomial roots is used to check whether the model is stationary and invertible (brooks, 2019). as seen in figure 3, roots lie inside the unit circle, which means that our var model is steady, and any shock will die out in the long run. this test is vital to prove that our model is valid and that the result is acceptable. stacked graphs of variance decomposition demonstrate in figure 4 that c/y has mainly explained itself, yet in the long run (88.81%), it is influenced by the consumer price index (5.26%), and gross domestic product (3.39%), and unemployment (2.53%) in 10 periods of time. the gross domestic product also mostly explained itself in the long run, but from the second .68 .70 .72 .74 .76 .78 .80 98 00 02 04 06 08 10 12 14 16 18 c/y 40 60 80 100 120 98 00 02 04 06 08 10 12 14 16 18 gdp -5 0 5 10 15 20 25 98 00 02 04 06 08 10 12 14 16 18 inf 0 1,000,000 2,000,000 3,000,000 4,000,000 5,000,000 98 00 02 04 06 08 10 12 14 16 18 unemp -1.5 -1.0 -0.5 0.0 0.5 1.0 1.5 -1 0 1 inverse roots of ar characteristic polynomial research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 akarsu, m. z., alteration of consumption habits in turkey over time research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 128 period to the tenth period, c/y affected the gdp by about 8.90%, which means consumption has an impact on gdp, and unemployment, otherwise, has a weak impact on gdp, which is 3.92% in the tenth period. inflation is almost no impact on gdp (0.26%). figure 4. result of variance decomposition. inflation is explained by itself and the other three variables. in the tenth period, inflation accounted for itself by 88.12%, while c/y, gdp, and unemployment accounted for inflation by 4.35%, 5.03%, 2.26%, respectively. namely, inflation is influenced by those three variables, even though they are not a substantial impact on inflation. unemployment is mostly accounted for itself by 94% in the first period and 90% points in the tenth period. however, gross domestic product explains unemployment at 4.90% in the first period and 8.01% in the tenth period. in short, variance decomposition illustrates that consumption is a crucial economic factor for gdp growth. inflation influences consumption negatively due to the fact that in an inflationary economic condition, people lose purchasing power. in this case, even if inflation does not influence gdp directly, inflation has an impact on gdp through consumption. moreover, to decrease unemployment, turkey should increase economic growth as a consequence of variance decomposition. variance decomposition demonstrates that c/y and gdp have an quite strong nexus. 0 20 40 60 80 100 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 d(c/y) d(lngdp) d(inf) d(lnunemp) variance decomposition of d(c/y) 0 20 40 60 80 100 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 d(c/y) d(lngdp) d(inf) d(lnunemp) variance decomposition of d(lngdp) 0 20 40 60 80 100 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 d(c/y) d(lngdp) d(inf) d(lnunemp) variance decomposition of d(inf) 0 20 40 60 80 100 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 d(c/y) d(lngdp) d(inf) d(lnunemp) variance decomposition of d(lnunemp) variance decomposition using cholesky (d.f. adjusted) factors research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 akarsu, m. z., alteration of consumption habits in turkey over time research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 129 table 1. ardl long run form and bounds. ardl long run form and bounds variable coefficient std. error t-statistic prob. lngdp -0.090101 0.022714 -3.966738 0.0002* lnunemp 0.016491 0.010208 1.615541 0.1102 inf -0.000400 0.000674 -0.592883 0.5550 c 0.906036 0.067580 13.40687 0.0000* f-bounds test test statistic value signif. i(0) i(1) f-statistic 5.329440 10% 2.37 3.2 k 3 5% 2.79 3.67 2.5% 3.15 4.08 1% 3.65 4.66 note: dependent variable: d(c/y), selected model: ardl (3, 0, 0,0), * is p<0,01. in the model, we did not encounter any heteroskedasticity, autocorrelation, normality problems (appendix table 3a, table 4a, figure 1a). lastly, the cusum test and cusum of squares test are between lines of 5% significance, which means that the model does not have any issue (appendix figure 2a and 3a). ardl long-run form and bounds test helps find the long-run relationship between variables. c/y is the dependent variable in our model, and the logarithm of gross domestic product, the logarithm of unemployment, and the consumer price index are independent variables. the fbound test confirms that between variables, there is a long-run relationship. subsequently, as seen in the selected model ardl (3,0,0,0), unemployment and consumer price index are statistically non-significant, yet the gross domestic product is statistically significant, and when gdp is on the increase by 1%, c/y slightly drops. concluding remark gdp, consumer price index (inflation), and unemployment impact the average propensity to consume (c/y). inflation is the most significant influencer of c/y. after inflation, gdp is the second most significant influencer of c/y. on the other hand, c/y has a substantial impression on gdp, which means that consumption is a driving force for economic growth. ardl long-run form and bound test illustrate that when gdp increases, the average propensity to consume falls in the long run. it means that the keynesian consumption function holds in turkey. namely, during the turkish economic growth, people spend less than the increase in income and save more. as known, unemployment in turkey has increased dramatically, and approximately 4.5 million people are out of work. but meanwhile, disposable income increased, and people raised their savings. that means that the high-income group is the capital power holder earning more and more in time and saves more and more. namely, the keynesian consumption function does not research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 akarsu, m. z., alteration of consumption habits in turkey over time research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 130 clarify the behavior of the whole society. instead, it explains the behavior of the big capital holders. if there had been the income group consumption rate dataset, the result would have been more reliable and accurate about which income group saves and spends mainly. moreover, the consumption/gdp ratio is slowly dropping, but the saving rate is not increasing. because turkish people consume goods and services with disposable income and loans, that means loans enhance people’s disposable income. it is also visible in the household debt. household debt has risen significantly over time in turkey (oecd, 2021, p. 34). namely, consumption and economic growth are dominantly driven by loans, which means the economic growth and consumption take place with the massive debt cycle in turkey. another finding during the research is that the keynesian consumption function does not take income distribution or poverty into account. that is the biggest obstacle in this theory since we do not know what part of society influences consumption primarily. furthermore, the gini coefficient is relatively high in turkey (41.9, source: fred, 2019), and millions of people are out of work as the saving rate is increasing. that means that in turkey, consumption and saving are driven by wealthy people. in the future, research, which is similar to fisher et al. (2019), might be conducted to analyze the different income groups in order to observe which income groups drive consumption. to sum up, as long as the economic growth of turkey keeps growing in the same way, the driving force of consumption on economic growth will decrease. the diminishing average propensity to consume causes economic growth to slow down. as a consequence of reducing consumption, the dept cycle could be broken, and people and institutions could not pay off debt. therefore, turkey should get to switch its economic growth structure from consumptionbased economic growth to aggressive export-based. turkish domestic market is not a genuine driving force for economic growth. turkey should improve the exportable goods market and concentrate on research and development (r&d). references abeysinghe, t., & choy, k. m. 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(1995). cointegration of consumption and disposable income: evidence from twelve oecd countries. southern economic association, 62, 77-88. retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/pdfplus/1061377.pdf keynes, j. m. (1936). the general theory of employment, interest, and money. cambridge: palgrave macmillan. kim, h. (2017). the effect of consumption on economic growth in asia. journal of global economics, 5(3), 1-8. ministry of development. (2018). 11th development plan (2019 2023). ankara: ministry of development. retrieved from https://www.sbb.gov.tr/wpcontent/uploads/2020/04/tuketim_ve_tasarrufegilimleriozelihtisaskomisyonuraporu .pdf ministry of development of the republic of turkey. (2018). 11th development plan. ankara: ministry of development. misztal, p. (2011). the relationship between savings and economic growth in countries with different level of economic development. financial internet quaterly, 14(3), 17-29. oecd. (2021). oecd economic surveys: turkey. oecd. retrieved from https://www.oecd.org/economy/turkey-economic-snapshot/ okcu, a. b. (2008). examining of income-consumption’s relationship with cointegration analyses for turkey. unpublished master thesis. adana: cukurova university. retrieved from http://libratez.cu.edu.tr/tezler/7109.pdf rafiy, m., adam, p., bachmid, g., & saenong, z. (2018). an analysis of the effect of consumption spending and investment on indonesia’s economic growth. iranian economic review, 22(3), 753 766. saglam, y. (2014). keynesian consumption function: case of turkey. journal of institute of social science of mustafa kemal university, 3(6). sand, r. (2002). the propensity to consume income from different sources and implications for saving: an application to norwegian farm households. workshop on the farm household-firm unit: its importance in agriculture and implications for statistics, https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/6407984.pdf. slacalek, j. (2004). international evidence on cointegration between consumption, income, and wealth. unpublished manuscript, 1 25. retrieved from http://www.slacalek.com/research/sla04cointcay/sla04cointcay.pdf sudi, a., & ucak, a. (2007). meaningfulness of economic growth and development: a study on turkish economy. the journal of accounting and finance, 34, 57-65. retrieved from https://dergipark.org.tr/tr/pub/mufad/issue/35603/395513 turkish statistical institute. (2020). household consumption. retrieved from https://data.tuik.gov.tr/bulten/index?p=hanehalki-tuketim-harcamasi-2019-33593 research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 akarsu, m. z., alteration of consumption habits in turkey over time research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 132 turkish statistical institute. (2020). turkish statistical institute unemployment. retrieved 12 19, 2020, from https://data.tuik.gov.tr/kategori/getkategori?p=istihdam-issizlik-veucret-108&dil=1 yigit, m. (2020). testing the validity of absolute income hypothesis through average propensity to consume for turkish economy. in s. a. hatirli, o. demirel, & s. a. koc, theoretical and applied studies on turkish economy vol. i (pp. 105-120). london: ijopec publication limited. appendix table 1a. augmented dickey-fuller unit root test variables test i(0) prob. i(1) prob. c/y adf 0.1736 0.0001 gdp adf 0.9993 0.0000 inf adf 0.1352 0.0000 unemp adf 0.8833 0.0000 table 2a. johansen cointegration test unrestricted cointegration rank test (trace) hypothesize d no. of ce(s) eigenvalue trace statistic 0.05 critical value prob.** none * 0.285764 54.58934 47.85613 0.0102 at most 1 0.169892 25.98332 29.79707 0.1292 at most 2 0.097308 10.15637 15.49471 0.2689 at most 3 0.016967 1.454597 3.841465 0.2278 trace test indicates 1 cointegrating eqn(s) at the 0.05 level * denotes rejection of the hypothesis at the 0.05 level **mackinnon-haug-michelis (1999) p-values unrestricted cointegration rank test (maximum eigenvalue) hypothesize d no. of ce(s) eigenvalue trace statistic 0.05 critical value prob.** none * 0.285764 28.60603 27.58434 0.0369 at most 1 0.169892 15.82695 21.13162 0.2351 at most 2 0.097308 8.701773 14.26460 0.3118 at most 3 0.016967 1.454597 3.841465 0.2278 max-eigenvalue test indicates 1 cointegrating eqn(s) at the 0.05 level * denotes rejection of the hypothesis at the 0.05 level **mackinnon-haug-michelis (1999) p-values research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 akarsu, m. z., alteration of consumption habits in turkey over time research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 133 table 3a. result of heteroskedasticity. heteroskedasticity test: breusch-pagan-godfrey null hypothesis: homoskedasticity f-statistic 1.451438 prob. f(10,73) 0.1756 obs*r-squared 13.93151 prob. chi-square(10) 0.1761 scaled explained ss 9.052231 prob. chi-square(10) 0.5272 table 4a. result of autocorrelation test. figure 1a. result of normality test. 0 2 4 6 8 10 12 -0.02 -0.01 0.00 0.01 0.02 series: residuals sample 1999q1 2019q4 observations 84 mean 8.26e-20 median -0.000685 maximum 0.026936 minimum -0.025941 std. dev. 0.011367 skewness 0.212348 kurtosis 2.720680 jarque-bera 0.904353 probability 0.636242 breusch-godfrey serial correlation lm test: null hypothesis: no serial correlation at up to 2 lags f-statistic 1.288301 prob. f(2,71) 0.2821 obs*r-squared 2.941622 prob. chi-square(2) 0.2297 research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 akarsu, m. z., alteration of consumption habits in turkey over time research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 134 figure 2a. result of cusum test. figure 3a. result of cusum of squares test. -30 -20 -10 0 10 20 30 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018 cusum 5% significance -0.2 0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 1.2 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018 cusum of squares 5% significance research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 kopish, m. & marques, w. leveraging technology to promote global citizenship in teacher education in the united states and brazil 45 leveraging technology to promote global citizenship in teacher education in the united states and brazil michael kopish, phd.* ohio state university welisson marques, phd instituto federal do triângulo mineiro in uberaba *corresponding author: kopish@ohio.edu received : 2019-09-01 accepted : 2019-10-21 how to cite this paper: kopish, m. & marques, w. (2020) leveraging technology to promote global citizenship in teacher education in the united states and brazil. research in social sciences and technology, 5(1), 45-69. abstract with globalization and the increase of technology, collaborative work between institutions from different countries is a reality. beginning in 2018, two teacher education programs, one in the united states and one in brazil, developed a partnership to promote collaborative activities in curriculum and instruction, scholarship and research, and for student and faculty exchange. critical pedagogy and social justice approaches to global citizenship education in teacher preparation guided the partnership’s collaborative activities toward the development of pre-service teachers’ global competencies and ability to integrate technologies as users and educators. this empirical research article presents an exploratory case study of a transnational, collaborative curricular project that leveraged technology in courses for pre-service teachers in the united states (n=12) and brazil (n=10). the study explores the extent to which course content and activities facilitated pre-service teachers’ development of global competencies and ability to employ emerging technologies for learning and offers implications for practice. keywords: collaborative online learning, competences, globalization, pre-service teachers introduction to address the demands of globalization, educational institutions are called upon to prepare students to face the challenges and opportunities of a global workforce. researchers and stakeholders alike argue that at all levels of education, the future success of young people and graduates depends on: 1) being technologically competent in order to use a variety of technological tools (hamel, 2007; iste 2017; moore & simon, 2015; partnership for 21st century skills, 2011; stearns, 2009; west, 2010), and 2) being globally competent in order to work with diverse and geographically dispersed people and act on globally significant issues (asia society, 2011; boix-mansilla & jackson, 2011; longview foundation, 2008; oecd, 2018; research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 kopish, m. & marques, w. leveraging technology to promote global citizenship in teacher education in the united states and brazil 46 osler & vincent, 2002; standish, 2012, 2014; unesco, 2015; u.s. department of education, 2017; world savvy, 2018). in a world that is increasingly interconnected, developing technological and global competencies with students at all levels is imperative for our global future. broadly, competencies in education are defined as a student’s ability to transfer learning in and/or across content areas, often through an organizational framework that articulates learning outcomes in domains such as knowledge, skills, and dispositions or attitudes. for example, frameworks that outline technological competencies emphasize the capacity for innovation, leadership, multidisciplinary collaboration, collective problem identification, and resolution in dynamic digital environments (hamel, 2007; iste 2017; partnership for 21st century skills, 2008). frameworks for global competencies (asia society, 2011; boix-mansilla & jackson, 2011; oecd, 2018; unesco, 2015; world savvy, 2018) organize around cognitive (i.e., knowledge of global issues, trends, and globalization processes using analytical and critical thinking), socio-emotional (i.e., dispositions of empathy, valuing multiple perspectives, appreciation for diversity, and a sense of responsibility toward a common humanity), and behavioral domains (i.e., skills related to effective intercultural communication and collaboration, including speaking more than one language and acting on issues of global significance (tichnor-wagner et al., 2019, pp. 4-5). at the forefront in the design and enactment of curricula to develop technological and global competencies, teachers and teacher educators are essential. with globalization and the increased use of technology, collaborative work between institutions from different countries is a reality (lindsay & redmond, 2017). beginning in 2018, two teacher education programs, one in the united states and one in brazil, developed a partnership to promote collaborative activities in curriculum and instruction, scholarship and research, and for student and faculty exchange. during the spring/fall semester of 2019, the two authors employed a collaborative online international learning (coil) approach with teacher education courses at their respective institutions. together, the authors co-designed a series of collaborative activities, seeking to develop teacher education students’ global competencies (boix-mansilla & chua, 2016) and technological competencies (uerz, volman, & kral, 2018). this manuscript presents a reflective inquiry that explores the extent to which course content and activities facilitated pre-service teachers’ development of global and technological competencies, and offers implications for practice. literature review teachers’ technological competencies current and future teachers alike are expected to keep up with the requirements and demands of technology in education. teachers are expected to develop innovative ways to employ technologies as tools to enhance teaching and learning environments with students (drent & meelissen, 2008; iste, 2008; unesco, 2011). in addition, technology is viewed as a goal of research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 kopish, m. & marques, w. leveraging technology to promote global citizenship in teacher education in the united states and brazil 47 learning; thus, teachers are encouraged to develop students’ technological literacy and prepare them for working and learning in the 21st century with skills like cooperation, communication, problem solving, and lifelong learning (iste, 2008; unesco, 2011; voogt & pareja roblin, 2010). however, the knowledge of how to use technology tools to support learning and develop technological literacy remains underdeveloped for many in-service and pre-service teachers (agyei & voogt, 2011; crook, 2012; drent & meelissen, 2008; houston & pierson, 2008; lei, 2009; ottenbreit-leftwich, glazewski, newby, & ertmer, 2010; sang et al., 2010; tondeur et al., 2012) and for many teacher educators as well (gronseth et al., 2010; tondeur et al., 2012). given these limitations, researchers have identified four domains of teacher educators’ technological competence that are needed to foster student teachers’ ability to teach and learn with technology: 1) technology competencies—the ability to use technology in general (not specific to teaching and learning); 2) competencies for pedagogical and educational use of technology—teacher educators’ competencies in using technology for teaching and learning; 3) beliefs about teaching and learning—teacher educators’ beliefs about education; and 4) competencies for innovation and professional learning—competencies related to changing pedagogical practices and to professional development (uerz, volman, & kral, 2018, p. 17). teachers’ global competencies global competence is defined as “the capacity and disposition to understand and act on issues of global significance” (boix-mansilla & chua, 2016, p. 3). through educational opportunities and experiences, globally competent students should be able to: 1) investigate the world beyond their immediate environment; 2) recognize perspectives of others and their own; 3) communicate ideas effectively with diverse audiences; and 4) take action to improve conditions (boix-mansilla & jackson, 2011, p. 11). student development of global competencies, however, requires educational experiences facilitated by globally competent teachers. globally competent teachers possess “a body of knowledge about world regions, cultures, and global issues, and the skills and dispositions to engage responsibly and effectively in a global environment” (longview foundation, 2008, p. 7). in practice, globally competent teachers are able to employ a range of pedagogies that guide students through international and crosscultural experiences; engage them in diverse content, multiple perspectives and critical inquiry; and facilitate authentic opportunities for students to take action (kopish, 2017). the role of teacher educators in the preparation of future globally competent teachers is crucial (reynolds, ferguson-patrick, & mccormack, 2013; williams, 2014; zong et al., 2008). however, in a crowded curriculum driven by standards and accreditation, teacher education programs are oriented in local rather than global contexts (zhao, 2010). teacher education programs in the u.s. are among the least internationalized (knight et al., 2015; longview foundation, 2008), and teacher candidates have limited exposure to global content, courses, and experiences during teacher preparation (kirkwood-tucker, 2009; rapoport, 2009, 2010; steinemann et al., 2001; zong, 2009). despite recent efforts to incorporate global competencies in professional standards for teachers (aydarova & marquardt, 2016; kirby & crawford, 2012), the training and research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 kopish, m. & marques, w. leveraging technology to promote global citizenship in teacher education in the united states and brazil 48 preparation of teachers has not kept up with the demands or needs of a global society (apple, 2001; o’connor & zeichner, 2011; osler & vincent, 2002). the preparation of future teachers is a challenging enterprise. teacher educators must select among competing priorities to meet all the demands of the profession and develop technological and global competencies. however, the development of teachers who are technologically and globally competent can be viewed as complementary if structured correctly; opportunities for curricular innovation exist. researchers in teacher education, for example, have used technology to engage teacher candidates in intercultural dialogue with people from around the world (gaudelli, 2006), virtual intercultural exchanges (hossain & aydin, 2011; journell & dressman, 2011; malone & wilder, 2008), wiki collaborations (ertmer et al., 2011), and weblogs (steven and brown, 2011), as well as asynchronous discussion threads (brantmeier, aragon, & folkestad, 2011; wade et al., 2008) and synchronous discussion threads followed by face-to-face communication (hoter, shonfield, & ganayi, 2009). virtual technologies and intercultural exchange in education in a globalizing world, intercultural interactions and exchanges have become an important educational goal for institutions of higher education. social networks, mobile devices, and video conferences are among several computer-mediated tools that “constitute a new way of understanding social participation and collaboration” (guerin, cigognini, & pettenati, 2010, p. 199). today’s students are able to explore the world virtually through innovative curricular models and online environments that offer resources and tools and link students in different parts of the world to promote collaboration (belz & kinginger, 2002; o’dowd, 2014; thorne, 2010). these online environments, or virtual spaces, increase opportunities for students to learn from interaction with people of different cultural backgrounds (raffaghelli & richieri, 2012). the rise of virtual spaces offers new pedagogical and curricular opportunities for educators as well. with origins dating back to the 1990s, virtual spaces that promote international collaboration have been identified by different iterations and incarnations (cf., o’dowd, 2018) such as virtual exchange (helm, 2015), telecollaboration (guth, helm, & o’dowd, 2012; o’dowd & ware, 2009) and collaborative online international learning (coil) (rubin & guth , 2015). virtual exchange is the broad term to describe methods of engaging students in online collaborative projects with international partner classes under the guidance of teachers or trained facilitators (o’dowd & lewis, 2016); these exchanges have been implemented in foreign language education, business studies, and initial teacher education (cummins & sayers, 1995; helm, 2018; o’dowd, 2018; warschauer, 1996; whyte & gijsen, 2016). it is important to note, however, that “the idea of introducing telecollaboration as a tool in subject areas outside of foreign language education appears to be quite new” (o’dowd, 2016, p. 288). virtual exchange is based on student-centered, international, and collaborative approaches to learning, which facilitate knowledge construction through interaction and negotiation with research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 kopish, m. & marques, w. leveraging technology to promote global citizenship in teacher education in the united states and brazil 49 students from other cultures. it is an educational approach that involves a commitment to experiential learning, collaborative critical inquiry, and cross-curricular learning (cummins & sayers, 1995). educational goals of virtual exchange include the development of transversal skills, digital literacies, intercultural awareness, and the ability to collaborate effectively with people of different cultural backgrounds (guth & helm, 2010). in teacher education, using technology to create digital spaces for collaborative learning enhances the professional knowledge base for teaching and facilitates pre-service teachers’ development of technological competence and engagement with cross-cultural, international peer reflection and dialogic learning (dooly, 2017; guichon, 2009; hubbard & levy, 2006; mcneil, 2013; menter, hulme, elliot, & lewin, 2010). among the different types of virtual exchanges, one promising practice is collaborative online international learning (coil). collaborative online international learning (coil) collaborative online international learning (coil) is a type of virtual exchange that promotes cross-cultural development among professors and students without learners and instructors leaving campus ((mckinnon, smith, & thomson, 2015). as an instructional method, coil virtually links two (or more) institutions together to examine different cultures and national experiences and may also involve interpretations of subject content. in the coil model, students are enrolled in separate courses at their home institutions and receive grades from their respective professors. the courses may be within the same discipline or different disciplines and collaborative in that faculty have constructed an online module within each course with shared learning objectives, learning tasks, and a culminating project. the collaborative components of coil courses can vary by durations of time (i.e., four weeks, entire semester), format (i.e., face-to-face, blended or online courses), meeting (i.e., asynchronous, synchronous) depending on academic calendars of the institutions, time differences between countries, and learning objectives of the modules (rubin & guth, 2015). according to o’dowd (2018), there are many different approaches to designing and enacting virtual exchange in higher education, such as subject-specific (i.e., foreign language learning and business studies initiatives), a service provider approach (i.e., facilitated through service providers), and a shared syllabus approach (i.e., coil). the shared syllabus approach to coil, employed exclusively in this study, includes the addition of international perspectives to course syllabi and structures shared course assignments or tasks to promote the development of digital competence and intercultural competence (o’dowd, 2018). the sequence of tasks is based on the progressive exchange model (o’dowd & ware, 2009) covering three phases of information exchange, comparing and analyzing cultural practices, and working on a collaborative project. the first type of task, information exchange, involves partners introducing themselves by providing information about biographies, interests, and cultures. the second type of task asks students to make critical comparisons and analyses of cultural products from both cultures (e.g., newspapers, magazines, books, etc.). finally, the third type of task is collaborative, which requires students to work together to produce a joint product or conclusion together. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 kopish, m. & marques, w. leveraging technology to promote global citizenship in teacher education in the united states and brazil 50 conceptual framework it is important to acknowledge the pedagogical perspectives that guide the authors’ thinking about teacher education in general and in the design of coil activities specifically. the course activities and experiences were developed from a sociocultural perspective that learning is a socially mediated process (lave & wenger, 1991; vygotsky, 1978). the online collaborative activities required students to communicate across a variety of modes including text, speech, and multimedia formats, reflecting vygotsky’s (1978) theory of the importance of language in learning. moreover, students were engaged in situated activities that occurred within social practice contexts (lave & wenger, 1991). specifically, students engaged in real-world contexts where the nature of the interactions among learners, the tools used within the interactions, the activity itself, and the social context in which the activity takes place shaped learning. in order for social interactions to lead to development, the interactions were situated in activities that had clear goals and purposes. guided by the global competence (boix-mansilla & jackson, 2011) and technological competence frameworks (uerz, volman, & kral, 2011), all required tasks were hands-on, interactive, and experiential in nature. experiential learning suggests that students comprehend information when actively participating in experiences related to the concepts they are learning (scales, roehlkepartain, neal, kielsmeier, & benson, 2006) and promotes changes in mental associations and behaviors due to specific experiences (ormod, 1990). the coil experiences provided future teachers with rich environments of social interaction (lave & wenger, 1991; vygotsky, 1986) that promoted technological, cross-cultural, and dialogic learning in an iterative, reflective cycle. methods research design for this research, the authors conducted a reflective inquiry (adler, 1993; tabachnick & zeichner, 1991) to address the following research questions: to what extent did pre-service teachers’ participation in coil activities help to develop global competencies? to what extent did pre-service teachers’ participation in coil activities help to develop preservice teachers’ ability to employ emerging technologies for learning? because the coil approach was offered for the first time, the authors demonstrated inquiry as stance (cochran-smith & lytle, 1999, 2009), which “positions practitioners’ knowledge, practitioners and their interactions with students and other stakeholders at the center of educational transformation” (2009, p. 123)—in this case, the enactment of coil activities for the development of pre-service teachers’ global competencies and ability to employ technologies for learning. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 kopish, m. & marques, w. leveraging technology to promote global citizenship in teacher education in the united states and brazil 51 participants study participants included a total of 22 university students enrolled in teacher education programs in the united states (n=12) and brazil (n=10). students from the united states were enrolled in a required undergraduate pre-service teaching methods course, while students in brazil were enrolled in a required graduate course focused on work, education, and professional identity. the course in the united states was offered for three hours on thursdays from january to may, 2019, and the brazilian course met for five hours on fridays from march to june, 2019. confidentiality irb approval for this study was obtained for the 12 teacher candidates in the united states. to avoid coercion, written consent was collected from participants on the final day of the methods course by a colleague and not shared with the author until after final grades were due. to preserve anonymity and confidentiality, participant names are not included in this study. procedures the design and enactment of virtual exchange in this study involved a shared syllabus approach to coil, which included the addition of international perspectives to both course syllabi and shared course assignments or tasks that promoted the development of digital competence and intercultural competence (o’dowd, 2018). the curricular project involved four opportunities for pre-service teachers to learn with and from each other, employing different technologies based on the progressive exchange model phases of information exchange, comparing and analyzing cultural practices, and working on a collaborative project (o’dowd & ware, 2009). first, in the information exchange phase, pre-service teachers participated in digital storytelling (di blas & paolini, 2013), which involved creating videos with mobile devices and video editing software on topics of teacher education, professional identity, and cultural comparisons. second, during the comparing and analyzing cultural practices phase, pre-service teachers uploaded videos to a private youtube channel, translated and closed captioned in portuguese or english, and viewed videos of a partner from the respective institution. third, as partners viewed videos, they prepared questions for an intercultural interview and cross-cultural dialogue using whatsapp (a social media and messaging platform) and google translate. finally, for the working on a collaborative project phase, all pre-service teachers participated in a synchronous skype videoconference facilitated by the two authors on topics of educational reform and teacher identity in the respective countries. data data were collected in different forms to enhance the credibility of findings. during each phase of the project, pre-service teachers completed course assignments, wrote reflective journals of their experiences, and participated in whole-group reflective debriefing discussions and research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 kopish, m. & marques, w. leveraging technology to promote global citizenship in teacher education in the united states and brazil 52 informal conversations. concurrently, the authors kept observational and reflective notes during each phase, met on a weekly basis via skype to discuss curricular choices of instructors and experiences of students, and reviewed recordings of videoconferences and debriefing discussions. analysis data were analyzed using procedures for thematic analysis (braun & clarke, 2006). the first step involved data immersion and thorough readings and viewings to create lists of initial ideas about the data. second, a semantic approach (patton, 1990) was employed to generate an initial coding scheme related to previous research and conceptual frameworks for global competencies (boix-mansilla & jackson, 2011) and technological competence for teacher educators (uerz, volman, & kral, 2018). third, codes were sorted into possible themes, compared and adjusted based on relevant data, and thematic relationships were considered. fourth, themes and examples were reviewed within codes and across the entire data set. fifth, themes and definitions were created using clear descriptive language and illustrative excerpts and organized as findings in this manuscript. findings developing global competencies research question one sought to explore the development of global competencies as a consequence of participation in coil activities. the following three themes were present in the data: 1) a new and affirming cultural experience; 2) broadening understanding through perspective taking; and 3) strategic thinking to express ideas and sustain communication. a new and affirming cultural experience during a debriefing session, the pre-service teachers enrolled in the course expressed surprise that the course activities deviated from prior assumptions and previous experiences in teacher education methods courses. for all pre-service teachers, participating in a virtual exchange using a coil approach offered students a variety of new experiences. for example, one preservice teacher explained, “i have never been in a situation where the language barrier was the main issue preventing communication.” other teacher candidates offered thoughtful and critical reflections about their limited experiences with people from different cultures and acknowledged, “i have never been outside my own cultural area.” it was clear that the coil approach helped to facilitate pre-service teachers through a new and affirming cultural experience. as one pre-service teacher cogently shared, the class activities “shrank the world for me. we have the ability to interact with so many people across the world and learn new ideas and grow with other cultures through technology, and this program helped me learn how to use these tools to do just that.” research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 kopish, m. & marques, w. leveraging technology to promote global citizenship in teacher education in the united states and brazil 53 what helped pre-service teachers navigate cultural and linguistic differences was their desire and ability to identify similarities with their brazilian partners, which helped to form positive connections and associations across differences. for example, during a debriefing session, three pre-service teachers offered a similar sentiment: “that it can be helpful and impactful to meet others who are different from you in order to learn more about a new culture and gain new views on certain subjects or topics.” it was clear from the discussions and affirmative body language of other participants that digital storytelling, as an entry activity to coil, helped to form powerful human connections across geographic distance and set a positive foundation for future activities. broadening understanding through perspective taking pre-service teachers broadened their understanding through perspective taking. this theme, represented in the data, aligned with a core attribute of the global competency recognize perspectives: that students “recognize and express their own perspective and identify influences on that perspective” (boix-mansilla & jackson, 2011, pg. 12). to illustrate, students shared the discussions with brazilian partners, reflecting multiple perspectives, which allowed them to “see different ideas from new perspectives other than my own or even my family’s.” digital storytelling, intercultural interviews, and synchronous videoconferences all focused on topics of teacher education, professional identity, and cultural comparisons. these repeated topics, represented in multiple modes, challenged pre-service teachers’ assumptions and knowledge. pre-service teachers repeatedly acknowledged their limited knowledge of history, culture, and issues in brazil and other countries. however, the structure of the coil activities enabled pre-service teachers to “build relationships” with partners and discuss “more than typical ‘get to know you’ questions,” for more substantive topics such as “issues regarding our cultures/politics/education, and how we view the world around us.” for other pre-service teachers, the coil activities provided key opportunities for critical reflection. as one student shared, “i developed better awareness of my positionality in comparison to brazil and was able to critically think about how my situations differ from that country.” this level of reflection was experienced by many of the pre-service teachers as they considered their own paths to post-secondary education along with their partners. importantly, students mentioned the benefits of cross-cultural experiences as critical context for learning about cultures from new perspectives. in a journal reflection, an aspiring foreign language preservice teacher admitted that they “still had a lot to learn” about culture, but through communication and interactions, they learned that although “different cultural aspects and characteristics of countries can vary greatly from place to place, learning about… subtle differences is when you can really begin to understand a place.” being able to talk about culture and issues related to culture, politics, and education in meaningful ways helped to reshape how pre-service teachers viewed the world. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 kopish, m. & marques, w. leveraging technology to promote global citizenship in teacher education in the united states and brazil 54 strategic thinking to express ideas and sustain communication the coil activities required students from brazil and the u.s. to differentiate listening and speaking communication practices, both verbal and nonverbal, and bridge the barrier of not having a shared common language. moreover, the students had to select and use technology and media to communicate with partners. taken together, the students engaged in strategic thinking to express ideas and sustain communication. this theme aligns with a second global competency, communicate ideas, and was mentioned by pre-service teachers as they learned to communicate their ideas effectively with diverse audiences. some key attributes of communicate ideas include: listen to and communicate effectively with diverse people; select and use appropriate technology and media to communicate with diverse audiences; reflect on how effective communication affects understanding and collaboration in an interdependent world (boix-mansilla & jackson, 2011). all pre-service teachers were challenged by the disorienting dilemma (meizrow, 1978, 1990) of communicating across a language barrier, for none spoke portuguese, nor did their partners speak english. the students, however, were quick to share strategies and tools they employed to ensure the ideas expressed in the activities were communicated clearly with their partners. some pre-service teachers shared strategies that involved focusing on positive interactions to “build trust” and “seek to find common interests.” others spoke of the importance of augmenting communication with visuals. as one shared during a debriefing after producing digital storytelling videos, “i was deliberate in my choices to include pictures for explanations of things that i knew would probably not translate in the same way. this ensured my partner was still making a connection without needing a direct written translation.” in the third set of coil activities, students viewed videos, prepared questions, and engaged in a synchronous intercultural interview using whatsapp and google translate. reflective journals and class debriefing sessions revealed that pre-service teachers leveraged technology and non-technology options to communicate across language barriers. most pre-service teachers expressed a similar sentiment, as represented by this quote: “google translate was helpful. even though our pronunciation of the words was not always perfect, they still got the general idea of what we were trying to say.” with a sense of accomplishment, a few pre-service teachers indicated that google translate helped them learn some words in portuguese. when reliance on google translate waned, pre-service teachers employed a strategy of modifying their speech. for example, when students realized their speech was too fast or words were too complex or idiomatic, they repeated and rephrased more clearly, concisely, and slowly. as one pre-service teacher shared, “i found that i normally had to simplify my speech and be mindful in the order of the words i say so that it was more understandable or easier to translate.” regardless of mode—producing or viewing digital storytelling videos, intercultural interviews, or participation in a videoconference—pre-service teachers were required to simultaneously manage visual, auditory, and textual material as well as pay close attention to communicative choices, which enabled them to participate in conversations to learn with and from others. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 kopish, m. & marques, w. leveraging technology to promote global citizenship in teacher education in the united states and brazil 55 developing technological competencies research question two sought to explore the development of technological competencies as a consequence of participation in coil activities. the following three themes were present in the data: 1) cautious confidence and limited connections; 2) recognizing benefits and utility: changing beliefs using technology; and 3) expanding possibilities for teaching and learning with technology. cautious confidence and limited connections with backpacks, often hurried and disheveled, pre-service teachers entered the methods course on thursday nights. all students possessed technological devices in one or more forms (i.e., phones, computers, and/or tablets) and successfully demonstrated the ability to employ technologies for tasks such as email, social media, word processing, searches, and in the development of presentations. the course activities and assignments required students to use technologies that were unfamiliar to most. for example, weekly assignments required students to use the google suite of products (i.e., drive, docs, slides) and various apps. coil activities required pre-service teachers to use google translate to bridge language barriers and facilitate communication in multiple modes. in other cases, students were familiar with tools on their devices and how to use them for social purposes but not for educational purposes. to illustrate, the sentiment of one pre-service teacher was shared by many: “i have recorded a video on my phone, but never edited or created captions; i use facetime to video chat, but never whatsapp or skype as part of a class.” scaffolding the use of technology through novel tasks, workshops, and assignments was critical, allowing pre-service teachers to become familiar with new technologies. repeated practice using different technologies helped to build confidence in utilizing technologies in unique ways. prior to the workshops, students were unfamiliar with resources like google translate and whatsapp. students learned “how useful these apps are when it comes to communicating with others who do not speak the same language” and expressed confidence in “showing someone else how to use these resources so they can effectively communicate with me.” this sentiment, however, also demonstrates a limitation expressed by many. on the one hand, feeling confident in showing someone else how to use a technology is important. the limitation, on the other hand, is that pre-service teachers were unable to meaningfully connect the use of technology with pedagogy or content. recognizing benefits and utility: changing beliefs using technology pre-service teachers recognized the benefits of using technology for teaching and learning and expressed an interest in using it in future classrooms. as one student shared, “these were all valuable experiences that allowed me to deepen my knowledge of different tools that i will be able to and probably will use in the future in my classroom.” among the students who recognized the benefits and utility of using technology, they expressed appreciation and value research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 kopish, m. & marques, w. leveraging technology to promote global citizenship in teacher education in the united states and brazil 56 in learning examples of how to use technology for cross-cultural activities. other pre-service teachers found utility in different technologies for promoting an inclusive classroom. for example, pre-service teachers made direct connections between technologies that help bridge communication barriers, such as using google translate with students or families that speak different home languages. as one student shared, “even with its faults, as it isn’t perfect in translation, it encourages discussion between people of different cultures and languages, and i would want that in my future classroom.” collectively, students identified practical technology uses that could be replicated and applied in future educational contexts. expanding possibilities for teaching and learning with technology “got me thinking” was the clause used with the greatest frequency by pre-service teachers in written reflections and discussions. to illustrate, a student might begin with an opening sentence such as, “my experience with students in brazil got me thinking about all the ways that i will have to make the most effective use of the technologies we learned.” what followed “got me thinking” were often rich examples of pre-service teachers’ reflections on the use of technology and how empowered they felt to expand possibilities for teaching and learning with technology. for some pre-service teachers, it was the ways in which they used different technology tools and mediums to create new projects. the digital storytelling projects were mentioned as the most enjoyable activity because the design and production phases of the project required focus and unleashed pride and creativity. as one pre-service teacher offered, “i worked hard to become acquainted with [various technologies] in order to make a visually appealing and clear video for my partner to understand. these projects pushed me to expand my horizons on using different forms of media to create informative and fun projects.” it was clear that students understood the importance of effective communication across language barriers and sought to create quality videos for their brazilian partners. engaging in the coil activities and in-class workshops exposed pre-service teachers to new apps and technology tools. as familiarity with and confidence in using different technologies increased, students also shared that when they encountered problems, new solutions were found. in other words, repeated exposure and practice helped to expand a repertoire of tools to complete the different tasks. when students struggled with one tool, they described instances of “finding another way to use technology.” rather than shutting down, the students shared examples of how they persisted by switching between tools and products; for example: whatsapp to skype, google translate to itranslate or translation in skype, imovie to hitfilm, and device recording to screencastify. developing competencies across multiple platforms, devices, and tools encouraged pre-service teachers to consider ways to improve the coil activities for the class and in future ways to promote student learning. for example, with great excitement, one student shared, “i thought of so many things that we could do to learn more about the brazilians, communicate about teaching, even collaborate on creating lesson plans. these experiences enhanced my creativity and thinking about how i am going to use limited research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 kopish, m. & marques, w. leveraging technology to promote global citizenship in teacher education in the united states and brazil 57 resources in order to maximize student learning to the fullest potential.” all pre-service teachers believed their abilities and skills using and selecting technology improved throughout the semester. importantly, the pre-service teachers also expressed that they could still use more work and practice with technology in order to be effective practitioners in future classrooms. the coil experiences sparked an interest in looking for professional learning and professional development opportunities to improve their ability to use technologies as users and educators. discussion toward the goal of developing global competencies among pre-service teachers through coil activities, the findings reported in this study are promising. the results, however, are limited to the experiences of teacher candidates (n=12) at one university in the united states; those enrolled in the course represent a small sample. while the small sample size was comparable to other qualitative studies (harshman, 2016b; maguth, 2014; parkhouse, tichnor-wagner, cain, & glazier, 2016), a larger sample of pre-service teachers would likely reveal critical differences in perspectives in the development of global and technological competencies. moreover, the inclusion of data from international partners would be a welcome addition to this study and will require the authors to mitigate differences in institutional irb procedures for international research. global competencies despite these limitations, the quality and structure of the coil activities contributed to the development of global competencies with pre-service teachers at a state university in the midwestern united states. specifically, the findings indicate that pre-service teachers considered the coil activities a new and affirming cultural experience that helped to broaden their understanding through perspective taking and encouraging strategic thinking to express ideas and sustain communication across linguistic barriers. these findings align with two domains of global competence outlined by boix-mansilla and jackson (2011): recognize perspectives and communicate ideas. the development of intercultural and communicative global competencies is largely due to the emphasis of the coil tasks, which involved information exchange through digital storytelling, making comparisons and analyses of cultural products through the review of digital storytelling videos and intercultural interviews, and a collaborative videoconference to explore issues of teacher identity and education policy. in the shared syllabus coil approach, assignments and tasks are designed to develop intercultural competence (o’dowd, 2018). notably absent in these data was evidence related to the global competence of investigating the world and taking action (boix-mansilla & jackson, 2011), which exposed a limitation in the design of the coil tasks and offers guidance for future collaborative coil activities. in the progressive exchange model offered by o’dowd and ware (2009), working on a joint project is a third type of task in the coil approach. there are endless possibilities for engaging students research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 kopish, m. & marques, w. leveraging technology to promote global citizenship in teacher education in the united states and brazil 58 in collaborative tasks to produce a joint product. for example, future activities could involve a collaborative inquiry project to explore an educational policy issue from multiple perspectives. a coil activity could involve students evaluating evidence, developing arguments and defensible conclusions, and designing opportunities to take action personally or collaboratively. or, perhaps students could participate in a coil activity that involved a cycle of co-designing a lesson plan, teaching the lesson plan, engaging in critical reflection, and re-designing the lesson plan. each of these examples encourages students to engage in practices and tasks that could be viewed as a more integrative approach to developing global competencies across four domains: investigate the world beyond their immediate environment; recognize perspectives; communicate ideas; take action (boix-mansilla & jackson, 2011). future projects should also be designed to create unique experiences for students to engage in critical pedagogy and attend to issues of power and privilege that reproduce inequality (friere, 1970). this would help move the coil tasks in this study beyond reflective and comparative activities related to identity and issues in education to activities that engage students in praxis as critical educators and citizens. technological competencies in the shared syllabus coil approach, assignments and tasks are also designed to develop digital competence (o’dowd, 2018). the second research question in this study focused on the extent to which coil activities helped develop technological competencies or the ability to employ emerging technologies for learning. while there are main iterations of technological competencies (hamel, 2007; iste 2017; moore & simon, 2015; partnership for 21st century skills, 2011; stearns, 2009; west, 2010), the domains of competence that informed this study include: general abilities, pedagogical and educational use, beliefs about teaching and learning, and innovation and professional learning (uerz, volman, & kral, 2018). the findings reported in this study indicate that pre-service teachers have cautious confidence and limited connections with technologies. participating in coil activities, however, expanded pre-service teachers’ repertoire of experiences using different technologies, which helped them recognize the benefits and utility and ultimately changed their beliefs about using technology. by the end of the course, pre-service teachers moved from using technology to complete assignments to considering new possibilities for teaching and learning with technology. research in teacher education demonstrates that technology is a powerful tool for engaging pre-service teachers globally in intercultural interactions and exchange (brantmeier, aragon, & folkestad, 2011; ertmer et al., 2011; gaudelli, 2006; hossain & aydin, 2011; hoter, shonfield, & ganayi, 2009; journell & dressman, 2011; malone & wilder, 2008; wade et al., 2008). adding to this body of research, findings from this study indicates coil as a type of virtual exchange and offers great potential for teacher educators to develop global and technological competencies. as pre-service teachers entered the course and started coil activities, many possessed general technological competencies, which enabled the instructor to showcase new technologies and build upon existing skills. a community of practice emerged for pre-service research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 kopish, m. & marques, w. leveraging technology to promote global citizenship in teacher education in the united states and brazil 59 teachers through the structure of the coil activities, the scaffolding of new technologies, and ongoing support from classmates and the instructor. the findings in this study offer reasons to be encouraged, but with some caveats. pre-service teachers engaged with technologies, both familiar and new, in order to complete graded assignments for the course; they leveraged technology for design and communication. while some clearly saw the value of technology for teaching about culture and communicating across language barriers, it remains to be seen whether the pre-service teachers will transfer learning to new contexts and meaningfully connect the use of technology with pedagogy and content (koehler, mishra, & cain, 2013). based on some of the student reflections about future plans to use technology in the classroom, pre-service teachers seem most comfortable replicating practices learned or limiting the use of technologies for communicative purposes. it may be of benefit for the authors to consider additional ways to evaluate pre-service teachers’ development of technological competencies, perhaps with tasks to design curriculum with technology for the classroom. as this project expands to involve students in collaborative tasks that produce a joint product, the instructors and their students will benefit from interor multidisciplinary collaborations outside teacher education to share, discuss, and reflect on lessons with colleagues and technology experts. collaboration with colleagues and technology experts is a form of professional development that would help expand the instructors’ repertoires of practice using technology and help expand opportunities for future coil activities. engaging students in the collaborations would be an excellent way to model professional development and further develop skills like cooperation, communication, problem solving, and lifelong learning (iste, 2008; unesco, 2011; voogt & pareja roblin, 2010). closing the world is changing rapidly and its people are increasingly interconnected. a teacher education that includes the development of global and technological competencies is an imperative for the 21st century. contexts and access to resources and opportunities differ among institutions of higher education and teacher education programs. while there is no prescriptive path, transforming teacher education using a coil approach is a rewarding endeavor for instructors and has the potential to be a transformative experience for the preservice teachers. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 kopish, m. & marques, w. leveraging technology to promote global citizenship in teacher education in the united states and brazil 60 references adler, s. a. 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(2008). global education. in l. s. levstik & c. a. tyson (eds.), handbook of research in social studies education (pp. 197-216). new york: routledge. research in social sciences and technology clinical entrepreneurship: a student teacher assigning desktop documentary making james e. schul1 abstract this qualitative research study examines a student teacher’s assignment of a historical documentary project in her eighth grade u.s. history class. data for the study consisted of classroom observations, document retrieval, and interviews with both the student teacher and her cooperating teacher. using a triad of frameworks (ambitious teaching, student teaching experimentation, and cultural historical activity theory), this study sought to understand what led the student teacher to employ documentary making and how she employed it into her classroom. results reveal that this student teacher proposed the documentary project to the cooperating teacher, who supported the student teacher as she integrated it. additionally, the two teachers employed documentary making as a means to foster a personal connection with students as well as a personal encounter with the past. finally, the student teacher was proactive in light of experiencing adversity with assigning the documentary project. implications of these findings are discussed. keywords: student teaching; teacher education; desktop documentary making; history education introduction the clinical experience of student teaching is a pivotal period for most teachers. teacher candidates, during this time, experiment with employing methods and strategies that were first introduced to them in their preparatory coursework or that their cooperating teacher offers them. it is also a time where the teacher candidate learns the rigors of the job such as lesson preparation and classroom management. student teachers who seek to enliven their classroom instruction are more willing than their peer teacher candidates or experienced teachers to enlist new or 1 assoc. prof., education studies department, winona state university, usa, jschul@winona.edu mailto:jschul@winona.edu schul research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),1-35 2 unconventional strategies during student teaching, especially those strategies that involve the use of emergent digital technologies (kılınç et al, 2016). desktop documentary making (ddm) is one tool based in new digital technologies that teachers may use to position history students to construct their own knowledge. research on student’s use of ddm (e.g., schul, 2012a) indeed demonstrated that students are actively problem solving if their teachers position them to construct historical narratives on their own. however, history teachers selectively appropriate (fehn & schul, 2014; rozenweig, 2011; yilmaz & kirtel, 2015) digital technologies to suit their own pedagogical purposes and their use of ddm is no exception. in one study (schul, 2010a), for instance, a history teacher was investigated who integrated ddm for the purpose of engaging students in problem solving and historical inquiry whereas another study (schul, 2012b) examined a teacher who used ddm to teach research skills. yet, why and how is ddm employed by student teachers during what is likely their most pivotal clinical experience? no research currently exists on a student teachers’ experiences with integrating ddm into their classroom. this particular study focused on a singular beginning teacher’s student experience as she sought to integrate ddm into her classroom. this study was guided by the following two questions: 1. what led the student teacher to employ desktop documentary making into her classroom? 2. how did the student teacher employ desktop documentary making into her classroom? several theoretical frameworks contributed to the investigation of these questions. the following section sheds light on these frameworks and how they related to this study. schul research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),1-35 3 theoretical frameworks since this study sought to understand the factors contributing to a student teaching employing ddm in her clinical experience, the notion of ambitious teaching was invaluable with understanding this particular case. ambitious teaching s.g. grant (2003, 2005) developed the construct of ambitious teaching to describe teachers who dare to take risks and who are willing to innovate. according to grant and gladwell (2010), ambitious teachers “deeply understand their subject matter and actively seek ways to connect their subject matter with the lived experiences of their students” (p. 2). ambitious history teachers create and assign activities in their classroom that align well with constructivism in that they engage students to construct their own histories. these risk-taking teachers usually have a strong constructivist bent (i.e., they seek to position students to construct knowledge rather than rely on direct instruction) in their instructional approach (marlowe & page, 2005; mishra, 2014). such teachers are usually willing to experiment with new digital technologies as a means to enhance the teaching and learning experience in their classroom because these technologies promise to engage students in their own learning through fresh and relevant means (molebash, 2004; wenglinsky, 2005; swan, hofer, & swan, 2011). student teachers whose characteristics are akin to ambitious teaching are likely to experiment as they plan and teach lessons during their clinical experience. student teaching experimentation cooperating teachers (those who closely mentor teachers during their student teaching experience) play a central role in the development of a teacher’s preparation (fairbanks, freedman, kahn, 2000; waters & russell, 2016). whether a teacher becomes an ambitious schul research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),1-35 4 teacher or not may hinge upon the nature of the student teaching experience that the cooperating teacher fosters (demirhan & yücel, 2016; clark, 2015). cooperating teachers perceive three types of student teaching experiences from the lens of their cooperating teachers: mimic, experimentation, and benign neglect (valencia, martin, place & grossman, 2009). while both the first and third types infer that the cooperating teacher puts little effort forth to intentionally nurture and develop the student teacher as a professional, this second type of student teaching, experimentation, involves scaffolding on the part of the cooperating teacher. cooperating teachers of these experimentation student teachers “provide supportive and respectful contexts in which student teachers can experiment and take risks and they attempt to go beyond technical supervision to engage student teachers in authentic dialogue” (mcnay & graham, 2007). in sum, successful cooperating teachers help to develop their student teachers’ sense of efficacy through verbal persuasion and vicarious experience (knoblaugh & hoy, 2008). cultural historical activity theory cultural historical activity theory (chat) was employed in this study to help investigate the second research question that focused on how the student teacher integrated ddm. chat enabled the analysis of the actions between the student teacher and her cooperating teacher as they integrated ddm into their respective classroom. cultural historical activity theory (chat), a model based upon vygotsky’s theory of mediated action conceived by theorists (e.g., engeström, 1987, 1999; leont’ev, 1974, 1978) and used by researchers (e.g., kaptelinin & nardi, 2006; roth, 2004; roth & lee, 2007; schul, 2010b, 2012a, 2014; yamagata-lynch, 2007) describes the complicated processes individuals engage in as they seek to create “objects’ or, as in the case with the teacher in this study, a documentary making class project. a central premise behind chat is that activity (i.e., a student teacher and a cooperating schul research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),1-35 5 teacher assigning together a ddm project) is ever-changing and is affected with the infusion of several various types of mediators. mediated action suggests that the relationship between human action and the environment from which it took place is innately bound together (wertsch, 1998). vygotsky (1978) offered the basic premise for mediated action by claiming that development occurs first between people and then within the individual, therefore a mediating effect exists where a person internalizes what was once exclusively external to her or him. this mediation in an individual’s thought process can only be discovered in unison with the social and cultural environment from which it emerged (wertsch & tulviste, 1992). one important aspect of analyzing an activity system through a chat lens is how individuals within it handle “tensions” that naturally emerge. how these individuals handle these “tensions” is central to understanding their philosophy and training as related to producing a particular outcome. in this study, as you will see, the tension highlighted is the teachers’ handling of technological difficulties that posed problems during the integration of her ddm project assignment. figure 1 depicts the chat heuristic created by engestrӧm (1987) used for this study as the student teacher integrated ddm into their classroom. the socio-cultural nature of chat contends that mediating agents (i.e., psychological tools, human tools, and material tools) affect human behavior within the activity system (kozulin, 1998). these mediating agents such as rules, community, division of labor, and tools, are employed throughout activity where an object (in this study’s case, a ddm project the teacher assigned) may be created. there are three primary classifications of tools: material, cultural, and human (kozulin & presseisen, 1995). schul research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),1-35 6 figure 1. activity system of the student teacher assigning a ddm project a teacher’s integration of ddm includes a wide array of these mediators (schul, 2010b). a classroom, for instance, includes a plethora of material mediators from textbooks, computer software/hardware, and the physical space of the room itself. cultural mediators, also known as psychological tools, can be contrasted with material tools because “unlike material tools, which serve as conductors of human activity aimed at external objects, psychological tools are internally oriented, transforming the inner, natural psychological processes into higher mental functions” (kozulin 1998, pp. 13-14). cultural tools that a teacher may use when integrating ddm may include their instructions, but also their personal conceptual dispositions as well as concepts such as historical empathy. according to barton and levstik (2004), historical empathy may include perspective recognition as well as care and commitment. human tools that a student teacher may employ with ddm involve any person who was directly or indirectly involved in her integration of the project. due to the nature of this study, the primary human schul research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),1-35 7 tools analyzed will be the student teacher and her cooperating teacher. regarding the other mediating agents as they pertain to this study, the documentary project itself may serve as an initial object, with rules perhaps representing the class schedule as well as the explicit and implicit objectives, goals, or parameters where teachers and students teach and learn within the course curriculum, community may represent the students and teacher within the history class, and division of labor may represent any resources (material or human) that the student teacher uses to complete their documentary. the outcome at the particular moment of activity depicted in figure 1 is the student-produced documentary. it must be noted that activity is fluid, with one action dependent upon another. this holds true with a teacher assigning a project like ddm as these mediating agents may shift throughout the process with the realization that many outcomes may be achieved in the process of completing the ultimate outcome of a completed documentary. research setting and participants this study took place in a middle level, eighth grade, american history course in the spring of 2013 during a three-week long project where the students were assigned to compose a desktop documentary focused upon the american government’s forced removal of american indians from the east of the mississippi river to the oklahoma territory in the late 1830s. the two participants in this study were miley james, an undergraduate middle level education major in the midst of her capstone student teaching experience, and mrs. fisher, a fifteen year middle school teacher and miley’s cooperating teacher during the student teaching experience (all names are pseudonyms to project anonymity). the school where the teachers worked, belleview (a pseudonym), was situated in a predominately middle class small town in the american midwest. there were twenty-three eighth grade students total in the classroom under study, 9 females and 14 males, with 22 being white-caucasian and 1 african-american. schul research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),1-35 8 at the time of this study, miley james was twenty-one years of age. miley, like mrs. fisher, was a white-caucasian female who was raised in a predominantly middle class neighborhood. miley’s student teaching experience was the final capstone project of her undergraduate teacher education program at a private university in a town nearby the belleview school district where she majored in middle childhood education with specialty in language arts and social studies education. this researcher served as her middle level social studies methods instructor in the fall of 2011 and served as her student teaching supervisor at the time of this study. miley was first introduced to ddm during her methods course and was required to compose one of her own and reflect on how she might use it in her own classroom. she first came to know mrs. fisher during this methods course since they were placed together during a field experience connected with the course. mrs. fisher first became aware of ddm through miley and they decided to integrate ddm during this field experience. the relationship built between miley and mrs. fischer led to a mutual agreement between belleview and the university that mrs. fisher would be a suitable cooperating teacher for miley’s student teaching experience, the culminating curricular experience for teacher candidates’ professional preparation. this study was prompted by miley sharing, with this researcher, that she would like to integrate ddm during her student teaching experience. since this researcher also served as miley’s student teaching supervisor, i told her that i would like to study this phenomenon and she gladly obliged. mrs. fisher’s course load consisted of both seventh and eighth grade social studies courses and miley’s placement consisted of a responsibility to work with both grade levels. mrs. fisher’s classroom, the bounded setting (stake, 1995) for this study, had student desks arranged linearly, facing the front of the classroom. a video projector hung from the ceiling and was connected to the smartboard® that hung adjacent to a whiteboard. a few, but schul research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),1-35 9 not many, posters hung in the room that focused on various documents and principles embedded in united states political history such as the declaration of independence. mrs. fisher’s course curriculum mirrored belleview’s state social studies standards and the class featured in this study was entitled “u.s. studies from 1492 to 1877: exploration through reconstruction.” at the time of this study, the course curriculum focused upon the westward expansion of the united states in the nineteenth century, particularly the displacement of american indians. data collection and methods the data sources for this qualitative case study consisted of classroom observations, document retrieval, and interviews. multiple data sources infused depth to the study as it allowed this researcher to check my conception of the reality of the phenomenon from one data source to another (creswell, 2007; stake, 1995). upon receiving institutional review board (irb) approval in the spring of 2013, data collection commenced soon afterward with classroom observations. these observations, five in all, occurred in late march and early april, 2013, and centered on belleview’s eighth grade social studies class scheduled from 1:33 until 2:18 p.m. (see table 1). the timing of the study revolved around when miley chose to integrate ddm since this researcher was primarily interested in the teachers’ phenomenon with integrating ddm together during this clinical experience. table 1. classroom observations date 3-26-13 3-27-13 3-28-13 4-2-13 4-4-13 during these observations, i sought to be an inconspicuous observer. while the teachers and students proceeded with their routine, i took notes on a laptop computer of what i saw and schul research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),1-35 10 heard during these observations with the intent of examining the whole phenomenon involved in the integration, with an emphasis on the teacher’s perspective, their relationship with one another, as well as the students’ response to the teachers (lofland & lofland, 1995). occasionally, one of the teachers voluntarily approached me and shared commentary with me, these conversations were recorded and included in the data analysis. documents relevant to the study’s research questions were collected. these documents consisted of any handouts that the teachers distributed to their students. i spontaneously collected these documents as the participants used them throughout this study. each teacher was interviewed after the conclusion of the ddm project, miley was interviewed on april 16, 2013 while mrs. fisher was interviewed on the following day, april 17, 2013. the interviews were semi-structured (see appendix a for teacher interview questions) and audio-recorded by this researcher and later transcribed. analysis of data commenced simultaneously with data collection, with coding categories developing throughout the investigation (erickson, 1986). all codes were developed under the auspices of the study’s theoretical framework that enabled patterns to be revealed within the case (bogdan & biklen, 2003; lincoln & guba, 1985; shank, 2002) resulting in a convergence of evidence from these multiple data sources (yin, 2013). for instance, whenever the two teachers mentioned the purpose of the ddm project to the class, or informally to an individual student, i immediately coded that vignette under the category of “purpose.” i also sought to compare and contrast the words and practices between the two teachers to reveal any congruity, or lack thereof, that they may possess in their thoughts and actions. to do this, i coded some vignettes or observations as belonging to mrs. fisher or miley. data were analyzed to shed light on the research questions. schul research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),1-35 11 the analytical procedures of this study consisted of analysis, synthesis, and illumination (shank, 2002). thematic analysis is based on finding emergent patterns and trends that cut across data (bogdan & biklen, 1982; lincoln & guba, 1985). analysis required the dissection of data into manageable forms for the sake of interpretation and understanding (lecompte & schensul, 1999). i used the theoretical framework to pinpoint, for instance, the effect the cooperating teacher had on the student teacher. synthesis required a reassembly of the data so that it “takes on a more anecdotal, more personalized, more interpretive character” (shank, 2002, p. 138). illumination consists of finding emergent patterns and trends that cut across data (bogdan & biklen, 1982; lincoln & guba, 1985). these patterns and trends became the findings reported in this paper. for instance, a persistent trend in the data set was the parallelism between the teaching philosophies of the two participants in this study as well as the cooperating teacher’s continual support of the student teacher. since this trend was observed throughout the study, it became a finding for this study. inter-rater reliability of the coding process with an undergraduate education major who was disassociated from this study as well as member checking with the teacher was used as means to ensure validity of the study’s results (lincoln & guba, 1985; stake, 1995). inter-rater reliability involved the researcher initially coding the data, then following up with the undergraduate student coding the same data on their own. for instance, one code included the teachers’ philosophy. anytime the teachers shared their philosophy, whether it be through an interview or through classroom observation, the code was highlighted and separated from the data set. this researcher then compared the data sets from this code to see whether the teachers’ philosophy was observed similarly. member checking simply consisted of the researcher sharing with the teachers an initial draft of a manuscript of this study as a means to ensure that the schul research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),1-35 12 phenomenon was observed accurately. the feedback provided by the study’s participants was minimal and consisted mostly of affirmation to the researcher that the phenomena in this study was observed accurately. a limitation to this study is that this researcher was also the student teacher’s methods professor prior to her student teaching experience that this study investigates and also served as her university supervisor during this time. it became a priority for me to be as objective and inconspicuous as possible, while fully aware of the possibility that this case study may not be completely authentic due to my presence in the bounded setting. what follows is a report of the results that emerged from this study that reveal the teachers’ rationale for integrating ddm into her instruction and the knowledge, skills, and practices it took for this tandem to integrate ddm into miley’s student teaching experience. findings this study yielded three key findings in answering the research questions. these findings indicate: (a) the student teacher proposed to employ ddm and the cooperating teacher offered support and encouragement; (b) the teachers saw ddm as a means to foster a personal connection with students as well as a personal encounter with the past; (c) preparation and proactivity enabled the student teacher to persevere in light of difficulties with integrating ddm. the student teacher proposed to employ ddm and the cooperating teacher offered support and encouragement. during miley’s junior year field experience in mrs. fisher’s classroom, mrs. fisher approached miley “to do some sort of project rather than give a typical test.” miley shared with mrs. fisher that she had just learned about documentary making in her social studies methods course and thought it might be an appropriate fit. mrs. fisher thought that miley’s idea of a documentary project was “perfect for our trail of tears project.” mrs. fisher shared with miley schul research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),1-35 13 her goal for an upcoming unit on the american indian experience in early nineteenth century american history. this goal centered upon mrs. fisher’s interest in positioning the students, as miley put it, “to understand what the american indians went through.” this development of empathy (perspective recognition) toward the american indians during the trail of tears was a secondary purpose of this ddm project. miley proceeded to share with mrs. fisher about how ddm might fit well to accomplish this goal: i had just done a documentary project for my social studies methods course and i did mine on the vietnam war but it still involved emotion and turmoil and what not – so i said that it involves moving making software – and so i brought in the documentary to let her see it. mrs. fisher saw miley’s documentary production and agreed that it had the potential to fulfill this educational purpose. “i believe it is an excellent format for students to think about and convey the emotional impact of historical events,” mrs. fisher asserted, “i thought a documentary project was perfect for our trail of tears project, because i wanted students to make real connections to the people affected and evaluate the impact it had on their lives." the teachers proceeded to plan out together how they might fit the ddm project in the upcoming unit and collaborated together in how they would integrate it in their classroom. the two teachers tried out something unconventional, for both they and their students, when they embarked on assigning the ddm project. rather than assume students were capable of composing a documentary on their own, the two teachers decided to assign the project incrementally to ensure student understanding. in fact, this initial step of assigning the project was where mrs. fisher worked the closest with miley, often being with her in the classroom assisting students who may need extra assistance, or enriching the directions that miley gave to the students. this approach to mentoring a student teacher is prototypical of the experimentation type of student teaching experience where the cooperating teacher provided support as they schul research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),1-35 14 moved from technical supervision to authentic dialogue with their students (mcnay & graham, 2007). during the first day of the ddm project, miley directed her students to report to the computer lab down the hallway from mrs. fisher’s classroom. when miley assigned ddm on this first day, she distributed a handout to the class (see appendix b) and briefly read it to the class. she proceeded to show the class a sample documentary that she found on the topic. “as you can see, this is basically a movie,” miley announced to the class, “i’m going to show you how to use the software that is called photostory. it is on all of your computers in the lab. i’ll show you how to use it” (classroom observations, march 26, 2013). miley proceeded to show the class how to use the photostory 3® software, clicked on the “new project” button on the software and followed that by opening a blank microsoft word® document. she proceeded with the assignment of the project in these four incremental steps protracted throughout the duration of the allotment class time for the project: collecting images; narrative development; software integration and music; assessment and closure. the teachers were present with the students during this entire process as each student progressed at various levels during each stage. stage one: collecting images as she first assigned the ddm project, miley wrote the following on the white board at the front of the computer lab: “photostory 3 -find images -copy website onto word document” (classroom observation, march 26, 2013). the students were free at this time to work on their individual projects as both teachers walked around the room helping any students in need. “now remember, you’re looking for your images,” mrs. fisher reminded the class as she perused around the room and noticed students off the given task, “your goal today is to get a whole folder full of photos, nothing else” (classroom observation, march 26, 2013). this provided schul research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),1-35 15 instructional support for the students but also public affirmation and support for miley’s initial step in assigning this unconventional project. miley’s confidence, as a result, visibly grew. later on, miley reminded the entire class: “remember, you want to get a variety of pictures” (classroom observation, march 26, 2013). miley also reminded the students, as they collected images, to copy the website’s uniform resource locator (url) where they found the images and paste them onto a word document. stage two: narrative development on the second day of the project, miley distributed a slide sheet to the class (see appendix c) that required the students to write down the text that they wanted to go along with each image. miley assigned the ddm project with an intent to have each student write an explicit message on each image. the directions on this slide sheet state: “in your own words, write out the text that will accompany each of your photos and then order them on the sheet” (classroom observation, march 27, 2013). students were busily at work on this second day of the project collecting their images and then writing down text on their slide sheet. the two teachers patrolled the class during this second step – offering little whole-class instruction but instead connecting with students on a one-on-one basis, answering any questions the students may have had or clearing up any problems they might have been encountering. the two teachers were connecting with the students on a more personal level, which was also one way the teachers were meeting their primary objective for the project. this second step also further revealed that mrs. fisher’s relationship with miley was one of authentic dialogue rather than technical supervision (mcnay & graham, 2007) as she treated miley as an equal in power and authority by providing academic freedom to assist students in her own personal way. stage three: software integration and music addition schul research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),1-35 16 on the third day of the project, the teachers direct the students that they will be working closely with the photostory 3® software. mrs. fisher gave the following announcement to the class to guide the students to this objective for the third day as well as what they should expect when working within the computer software: ok, remember when we saw the sample a few other days? well, you might have noticed that the text was a little hard to see – and that was because of the color used for the text. please remember that – the color will look different on your software than it does when it plays. (classroom observation, march 26, 2013). mrs. fisher proceeded to have a lower profile during this project after making this announcement. miley was completely in charge of the project and was completely empowered to take the project lead as it was nearing conclusion. figure 2 shows how mrs. fisher (cooperating teacher) served as a human tool for miley (student teacher) as a means to develop an outcome of experimentation during this student teaching experience, which became a rule that led miley to create and sustain the ddm project. figure 2. the cooperating teacher is a human tool who supported the teacher to experiment with her pedagogy, which became a rule the student teacher following during the ddm project. schul research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),1-35 17 while miley was left on her own during this third step, it was also a step where the students were required to employ other features of the digital technology beyond mere image collection and storyboarding. while the students navigated their way through the photostory 3® software, they also were at the stage where they had to add music to their documentary. this additional component of this particular stage was to come after belleview’s brief spring break. on the day immediately following the spring break, miley advised the students the following about their music options: ok, you’re going to eventually need to put music on your story. the software program has some music of its own – it could be classical music or something like that. however, on tuesday you’ll need to bring a song on a flash drive if you want to bring one of your own. (classroom observation, april 2, 2013) the class had to wait to integrate music because it required belleview’s technology coordinator to work “on something with the computers to make sure that this can be done” (miley, classroom observation, april 2, 2013). as miley worked with some computers with students, she discovered that the technology coordinator had already altered the computers so that the music could be added. “ok, please give me your attention,” miley announced to the entire class that they can now add music: “so, if you’re ready – you can feel free to download music today. but if not, you can wait until tomorrow” (miley, classroom observation, april 2, 2013). stage four: assessment and closure on the final day of the project, april 4, 2013, the students watched one another’s documentaries as they were projected on the smartboard® in front of the class. miley was in a rush to complete this final stage of the documentary because of the time-consuming technological problems that occurred at the onset of the project. “this project took longer than i schul research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),1-35 18 thought and i need to get started on the next unit,” miley explained to me as i walked in the room at the start of the class period (classroom observation, april 4, 2013). as a result, students merely watched the documentaries during this stage without a discussion prompt. the teachers saw ddm as a means to foster a personal connection with students as well as a personal encounter with the past. a crucial component of this collaboration between mrs. fisher and miley was their shared commitment to provide an opportunity for students to employ creativity. mrs. fisher believed that “when students are given the chance to be creative, they flourish.” miley echoed mrs. fisher’s conviction to consider student interests when designing instruction: “i believe that each student is unique and educators need to take that into consideration before instruction. i think it is important to allow students’ individ uality to show.” miley shared in her interview that students found ddm attractive as opposed to other technology-based tools: “i don’t like that we’re in this rut of doing powerpoints i think that students find documentary making so much fun.” since ddm enables students to create something that interests them, namely movies, the teachers are more likely to garner a more meaningful and personalized response from the students as they created their documentaries. while both teachers saw the potential of ddm as a means to enliven their classroom instruction, they saw it as an important tool that would enable students to have fun, be creative, and connect with one another in a more meaningful way than if they engaged in a more traditional teaching and learning tool. the ability to understand and share the feelings of others, permeated as a purpose throughout the two teachers’ classroom. put simply, the classroom was a caring environment. “i want students to know i care about them and want them to succeed in school in life,” mrs. fisher shared in an interview. “not only should educators look at the way schul research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),1-35 19 students learn, but also at the students as people. many students have very different personal lives, which affect their education,” miley maintained in her interview. this concern for students was not hollow talk that poured from the teachers’ mouths, classroom observations supported that the teachers really did care for their students. both teachers greeted students with a smile, were patient with students whose attitude and behavior may have otherwise been burdensome to a less caring leader, and their instruction allowed space for students to ask questions with the teachers gladly clarifying any confusion students may have encountered. the teachers saw the ddm project itself featuring a means for the teachers to better care for their students. "it is very important to me to get to know my students, so i can best reach them,” miley emphasized in her interview, “this activity is one that allows me to get to know more about my students from this project." miley went on to provide a specific example of how she saw ddm privileging some students’ talents or interests that she may not have known about through other instructional tools and methods: there were some students who had not been as verbal in the past – they were fine students – but quiet – but some of those students created the best projects. this was a reminder that this activity is one that allows me to get to know more about my students from this project. like one student wants to play the flute – and i never would have known this about her if it weren’t for this project because they shared that with me as they sought to find music for their documentary. miley viewed the ddm project to be successful chiefly because the activity was personal for her students and, as a result, she got to know more about them. while the teacher viewed ddm as a means to garner a personal connection between them and their students, ddm actually served a dual purpose for these teachers. the teachers, as we saw in the first finding, also employed ddm as a means for the students to better know the schul research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),1-35 20 people from the past, in this particular case the american indians forced to travel on the trail of tears. figure 3. teachers assign the ddm project with the purpose that the images they use and the narrative they compose leads to empathy for the victims of the trail of tears, which will be a cultural tool that leads to students’ historical understanding of the event. figure 3 shows how the teachers sought to have students construct a story using images and narrative during their ddm project. this particular action led to an outcome of empathy amongst the community of students who used this empathy toward victims of the trail of tears as a means to garner historical understanding of the particular event. while first assigning the project to the class, miley stated: “with this, i want you to experience what the native americans went through” (classroom observation, march 26, 2013). mrs. fisher liked the possibilities of empathetic development that existed with ddm and was a significant reason why both teachers decided to try out ddm: "i thought a documentary project was perfect for our trail of tears project”, mrs. fisher shared in her interview, “because i wanted students to make real connections to the people affected and evaluate the impact it had on their lives.” according to miley, mrs. fisher shared with her, as the two considered lesson development that led to the initial ddm project in their field experience prior to student teaching, that she desired “the students to understand what the american indians went through.” schul research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),1-35 21 as shown in the first finding, miley shared with mrs. fisher her own experiences with ddm in her social studies methods course, which at that time was concurrent with the field experience. this initial experience with ddm for miley involved “emotion and turmoil” as she composed a documentary project on the vietnam war, and she speculated that ddm was appropriate for a student of the trail of tears because it too involved “emotion and turmoil.” mrs. fisher agreed with miley at the onset of the ddm project as well as with its aftermath in the student teaching experience: "i believe it is an excellent format for students to think about and convey the emotional impact of historical events." preparation and proactivity enabled the student teacher to persevere in light of difficulties with integrating ddm. miley’s integration of the ddm project did not proceed without obstacles throughout the project’s various stages. in fact, by the fourth day of the project, miley became peppered with so many challenges that a casual observer might understand it if she discontinued the project altogether. first, numerous emergent scheduling challenges threatened the curricular space that miley needed for the ddm project to succeed. an upcoming staff development day signaled that belleview would be on a two-hour delay schedule, thus limiting class time on the project before its completion. school was cancelled just before the project began because of a snow storm that hit the belleview community, which resulted in a need for miley to change her lesson plans around to ensure that the project began on time. one class day in the midst of the ddm project was designated by the school as an “incentive day” where students throughout the belleview middle school were rewarded for positive behavior. a field trip for students enrolled in band was scheduled on yet another day, which meant those students would be absent at the project’s closure. second, mrs. fisher’s mother became severely ill during this project. mrs. schul research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),1-35 22 fisher was her mother’s caretaker and her attendance would be sporadic throughout the duration of the project. miley, in essence, was forced to lead the project on her own since the substitute teachers were unable to assist with the project due to their unfamiliarity with it and their short stay as the supervisor of the class. finally, on the third day of the project, a computer virus infected one of belleview’s computer labs leading to the incapacitation of the project’s central tools. however, mrs. fisher mentored miley in such a way to assure that she was supported and had the confidence to navigate through these challenges. the primary assurance that mrs. fisher provided was the authentic dialogue that each had over principles of constructivist teaching. both teachers were committed to ensuring that students were positioned to problem solve and develop knowledge on their own through the ddm project. mrs. fisher also closely supported miley during the initial steps of the ddm project and eventually, by the project’s third day, let miley free to take the entire class lead. mrs. fisher’s confidence in miley and her willingness to put her in the complete lead of the project was put to the test near the very end of the project as she encountered what some teachers might ascertain to be a technological nightmare for them: a complete breakdown of the school’s computer infrastructure. “there was a computer virus that hit the school,” miley warned me as i entered the classroom, “and we’re trying to work through this” (classroom observation, march 28, 2013). miley was on her own on this day, with only a substitute teacher in place of mrs. fisher who had to miss school to take care of her mother. belleview school district, like many public schools in the rural midwest, house their computer technology in computer labs. there were two computer labs available to the teachers during this project. at belleview, these computer labs represent the exclusive locations in the school building where students have access to computers. mrs. schul research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),1-35 23 fisher’s class had only one computer, intended solely for teacher use. in sum, this virus in the computer lab was a significant threat to the success of the project. miley proactively handled the technological adversity by reserving the extra computer lab in advance. mrs. fisher, who returned on the day following the computer virus attack, praised miley’s composure and foresight during this trial: “she had done a wonderful job with this, she reserved both computer labs just in case this problem arose again” (classroom observation, march 28, 2013). the chat diagram displayed in figure 4 depict miley’s activity at the particular moment of adversity. figure 4. student teacher’s use of proactivity as a rule leads the student teacher to handle the tension from a computer virus to find a new computer lab that ensures the continuation of the documentary project. the left triangle in figure 4 depicts the student teacher, miley, employing a rule of proactivity when the computer virus became a tension during the latter stage of the ddm project. this resulted in an outcome of a new computer, which she used as a material tool (see right triangle of figure 4) for the remainder of the project. miley could have done numerous other schul research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),1-35 24 things with this tension such as halting the project until the virus was addressed by belleview’s technology coordinator, thus losing precious class time (this might have worked if she transitioned to another lesson and then segued back to the ddm project), or even cancel the ddm project altogether because of this problem that arose within it. of course, miley did not cancel the project. instead she reserved another computer lab so the students could use computers unaffected by the virus. miley remained committed to her ddm project: “i’m a big fan of this idea,” miley said about ddm at the conclusion of the project, “i think that students find documentary making so much fun.” miley’s enthusiasm was supported by mrs. fisher: "i will definitely continue to use documentary making in my 8t h grade u.s. history class,” mrs. fisher proclaimed in an interview, “and will consider including a documentary project in my 7t h grade world history class as well.” the teachers’ positive attitude with ddm despite the adversity associated with this particular project stemmed from many areas. first, the teachers experienced some success with their initial project the previous year. “we did it last year with great success and the students really liked it,” miley shared in an interview. the teachers also saw ddm as being compatible with their personal teaching philosophy that students should be provided freedom by their teacher where they can explore the subject matter and construct their own knowledge and understanding of it. “i want to help them [students] make their own discoveries and connections that make their learning meaningful,” mrs. fisher explained in her interview. miley concurred with her cooperative teacher: “i think it is important to allow students’ individuality to show. students deserve some choices in learning because no two students learn exactly the same way.” the teachers possessed a similar pedagogical orientation in that they foresaw the potential ddm had with positioning the students to problem solve and create on their own. "i enjoyed seeing schul research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),1-35 25 students organize their ideas and present them in a creative way,” mrs. fisher revealed in her interview, “they took ownership of and pride in their work." “i’m a big fan of this idea,” miley shared when discussing ddm in her interview, “i don’t like that we’re in this rut of doing powerpoints i think that students find documentary making so much fun.” the teachers also similarly envisioned ddm as a means for students to emotionally connect with the subject matter under study. “i believe it is an excellent format for students to think about and convey the emotional impact of historical events,” said mrs. fisher. miley concurred with her cooperating teacher: "i think it would be a great way to show the emotion of a particular topic – or for students to share a story.” the teachers’ satisfaction with their ddm project drew from their respective pedagogical philosophies which enabled them to persevere through adversity rather than perceive the adversity as an obstacle that would deter them from integrating ddm in the future. "it [ddm] reinforced my belief that when students are given the chance to be creative, they flourish,” mrs. fisher affirmed, “i liked the fact that this project gave students the opportunity to summarize, evaluate, draw conclusions, design and create.” “i was really pleased – especially with the students who struggle on tests – did very well on this project,” miley concluded, “the students were very proud of their projects and shared them with one another.” discussion miley james was an ambitious teacher (grant & gradwell, 2010) who yearned to engage her students in the development of their own knowledge. this bent toward constructivism made miley more willing and committed to experiment with digital technologies such as ddm (molebash, 2004; wenglinsky, 2005; swan, hofer, and swan, 2011) than a novice teacher who may not have been as oriented toward constructivism. miley was clearly involved in a student schul research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),1-35 26 teaching experience that fostered her desire to experiment with teaching strategies, such as ddm, that had the potential to elicit a constructivist classroom. miley thought that ddm, in particular, had the potential for students to construct their own historical understanding. miley’s student teaching placement with mrs. fisher proved to complement miley’s desire for ambitious teaching. mrs. fisher, herself an ambitious teacher with constructivist tendencies, fostered an experimentation clinical experience (valencia, martin, place, & grossman, 2009) where miley could take risks and be engaged in authentic pedagogical dialogue with her cooperating teacher (mcnay & graham, 2007) this helped to instill a sense of entrepreneurship in how miley designed lessons as well as following through with completing them. miley’s student teaching experience may have gone very differently if she was placed with a cooperating teaching unwilling to allow for risk-taking and who did not seek to engage students in historical inquiry because of an overarching concern with covering content and controlling the class (barton & levstik, 2003). for one, she might not have even integrated ddm for fear that it might break students away from traditional history teaching and learning that involved rote memorization and the learning of isolated names, places, and dates. second, miley’s encounter with technological adversity might have led her to restrict the project assignment or discouraged her from assigning ddm in the future. instead, miley persevered with the ddm project and was optimistic with using it in the future to engage her students in a student-centered approach to learn history. in sum, perseverance and proactivity are necessary traits for teachers to have if they seek to be ambitious. in this study’s particular case, mrs. fisher’s encouragement and support of miley’s risk taking with ddm was undoubtedly helpful for miley as she navigated through difficulty. schul research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),1-35 27 it cannot be said for certain that miley behavior as an ambitious teacher, equipped with a tool of entrepreneurship, within her professional parameters, was exclusively dependent upon her mentorship with mrs. fisher. miley’s commitment and perseverance with the ddm project likely came from three forces: miley’s own resolve; mrs. fisher’s encouragement and support; and, finally, being educated in a teacher preparation program that encouraged such risk taking toward constructivism. however, this study focused solely upon miley’s relationship with her cooperating teacher. the combination of these three forces yield teacher candidates who are well on their way to being ambitious teachers during their career. the level of significance that mrs. fisher’s support played as it related to miley’s willingness to take risks can only be subjected to speculation. however, mrs. fisher was both morally and physically supportive of miley’s risk-taking as a teacher. so, this study did reveal that whatever commitment to ambitious teaching had prior to her student teaching was, in fact, reinforced through her relationship with mrs. fisher. future research, therefore, should build on this particular study by examining multiple student teachers who integrate ddm, or other unconventional teaching tools and strategies, to cross examine the relationship each of the student teachers have with their cooperating teacher. it would also be important to examine the role that a student teacher’s own personal resolve, as well as the role of the teacher preparatory program, plays in their disposition with assigning and carrying out projects. such investigations would enable a cross-case analysis that may yield interesting results. little is currently known about the influence that a cooperating teacher may have with student teachers’ integration of ddm. for instance, more ethnographic investigation of the relationship between a student teacher and their cooperating teachers may unearth findings that help teacher educators and teacher preparatory programs to be more intentional with student teachers’ placement in clinical experiences. this research will schul research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),1-35 28 help to clarify exactly how important it was for teachers like miley to have a cooperating teacher, similar to mrs. fisher, who yearns to foster clinical entrepreneurship amongst the upcoming generation of teachers. schul research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),1-35 29 references barton, k. c., & levstik, l. s. 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(1992). l.s. vygotsky and contemporary developmental psychology. developmental psychology, 28(4), pp. 1-10. doi:10.1037//00121649.28.4.548 yamagata-lynch, l.c. (2007). confronting analytical dilemmas for understanding complex human interactions in design-based research from a cultural historical activity theory (chat) framework. the journal of the learning sciences, 16(4), 451-484. yilmaz, a., & kirtel, a. (2015). determination of the methods used by prospective teachers in the field of social studies while teaching historical topics. journal of social studies education research, 6(2), 112-153. yin, r. k. (2013). case study research: design and methods. sage publications. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037%2f%2f0012-1649.28.4.548 http://dx.doi.org/10.1037%2f%2f0012-1649.28.4.548 schul research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),1-35 33 appendix a interview questions questions #1-4 only apply to mrs. fisher: 1) what has this experience of integrating documentary making been like for you? (mrs. fisher only) 2) what was your initial response to miley’s idea of a documentary project? 3) what are the lessons, both things you like and things you didn’t like, that you learned from teaching this project? 4) what future plans do you have regarding including documentary making into your class? questions #5-8 apply to both mrs. fisher and miley. 5) what is your philosophy of teaching? 6) what/who have been primary influences upon you as an educator? 7) what goals do you have in mind for your career? 8) anything else? schul research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),1-35 34 appendix b trail of tears desktop documentary project create a desktop documentary about the u.s. policy toward native americans in the 1830s. your documentary will use images, text, and music to present the following information:  describe the indian removal act  describe the cherokee response to the indian removal act and the supreme court decision  describe the trail of tears  describe the seminole resistance and its results  describe the impact of all of the above on native americans and the united states your documentary must have the following components:  title slide with creative title, your name, class period and date  a minimum of ten slides presenting the above information with images and text (5 topics – 2 slides per topic)  all descriptions must be in your own words  a credit slide at the end of your presentation listing all sources used  appropriate music the project is worth 100 points and will be graded on the following criteria:  title slide – 10 points  content slides using images and text – 50 points  sources slide – 10 points  spelling and grammar – 10 points  creative presentation of information, using own words – 10 points  appropriate music – 10 points schul research in social sciences and technology, 2(2),1-35 35 appendix c slide sheet in your own words, write out the text that will accompany each of your photos and then order them on the sheet _________________________________ _______________________________ _________________________________ _______________________________ _________________________________ _______________________________ _________________________________ ________________________________ _________________________________ ________________________________ _________________________________ ________________________________ _________________________________ _______________________________ _________________________________ _______________________________ _________________________________ _______________________________ research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 mbhiza, h. w. shifting paradigms: rethinking education during and post-covid-19 pandemic research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 279 shifting paradigms: rethinking education during and post-covid-19 pandemic hlamulo wiseman mbhiza university of limpopo, faculty of education, south africa email: wmbhiza@gmail.com received : 2021-06-14 revised : 2021-07-21 accepted : 2021-08-22 how to cite this paper: mbhiza, h. w. (2021). shifting paradigms: rethinking education during and post-covid-19 pandemic, research in social sciences and technology, 6(2), 279-289. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.31 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). abstract it is uncontested that education systems globally are under constant pressure to respond to the changing needs of societies. the outbreak of covid-19 has reminded us that the complexity of education needs responsive practices to facilitate effective teaching and learning across all levels of schooling globally. all over the world, the normative ways of teaching and learning evolved drastically in the first quarter of the 2020 academic year when teachers and students found online offerings to be the dominant option available as a consequence of the pandemic conditions. in south africa specifically, students and teachers were thrust into virtual teaching and learning situations with the majority of them having no preparation for this shift. this conceptual paper considers education in the current and post-covid-19 era as the greatest paradigm shift in the history of education. i examine measures taken by higher education institutions to support the provision of education to ensure learning continuation. in this paper, i provide some suggestions for carrying out educational activities during the continuing covid19 situation. educational leaders need to rethink content creation and content sharing and establish working communities to meet the demands of the new paradigm in education. keywords: covid-19; education; paradigm shift; south africa; access introduction the covid-19 pandemic has turned the world upside down and is a huge challenge to the education systems globally. the consequence of the pandemic in different countries includes the widespread closure of educational institutions, national borders as well as business entities, to name just a few, in attempts to decrease the number of rising infections (maringe, 2020). in south africa, as the country went into what is known as a ‘total lockdown’, so too did all the private and public colleges and universities across the country. in this paper, i critically reflect on the measures taken by the south african higher education department and institutions to ensure learning continuation through alternative pedagogies. i also critically examine the 10.46303/ressat.2021.31 mailto:wmbhiza@gmail.com https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.31 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 mbhiza, h. w. shifting paradigms: rethinking education during and post-covid-19 pandemic research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 280 consequences of shifting to virtual teaching and learning situations. in this paper, i consider education during covid-19 and the ‘uncertain post-covid-19 era’ as the greatest paradigm shift in the history of education. according to martin and furiv (2020), albeit the anticipated possible short-term duration of the novel coronavirus pandemic, its impact on the nature of higher education is likely to be enduring and quite significant. accordingly, the shift to online learning and teaching may be construed as a paradigm shift, as new ways of thinking, knowing and teaching have evolved from the traditional teaching approaches into online curriculum delivery. subject to the success of online curriculum delivery across different institutions in the country, there are opportunities for all higher education institutions to continue access in the online medium (eickelmann & gerick, 2020; huber & helm, 2020). to ensure effective teaching and learning in the context of online curriculum delivery, traditional universities and colleges may need to retrain their lecturers and equally consider new requirements for staffing to maximize the success of online teaching and learning (maringe, 2020). as students learn from home in the new education paradigm, a need to rethink our pedagogies and values of lifelong learning become significant to ensure quality of learning and equitable provision of educational knowledge to students from different social and economic backgrounds. in view of the notion of paradigm shift that is central in this paper, the changes in the education systems across the world will represent a key turning point in delivering education within higher education institutions in the post-covid-19 era. review of related literature higher education and covid-19 the covid-19 pandemic is causing major disruptions to the higher education sector, resulting in a revolution in the global landscape of higher education due to the rampant spread of the virus. as mentioned above, the pandemic has forced global higher education institutions to experiment with remote online teaching and learning. that is, because of the institutions’ inability to continue delivering educational knowledge through on-campus learning, they have scrambled to provide the curricular contents through emergency online teaching. within the south african context, universities are doing a lot of ‘digital growing up’ in action, especially considering that the majority of the institutions offered their various programs through oncampus teaching before covid-19, without developed infrastructure to meet the demands of online teaching (maringe, 2020). with the exception of the university of south africa and some private higher education institutions which offered distance teaching and learning before the pandemic, it is highly unlikely that most of the south african universities will have enough experience to adapt and deal with distance learning effectively. online curriculum delivery in these times of the covid-19 pandemic has since become a choice in teaching approaches across different universities, both private and public in south africa and has become a key condition to ensure the continuation of learning and teaching. until march 2020, the traditional teaching situation at the majority of south african public universities was pigeonholed by students who gathered in physical lecture halls and lecturers who presented their subjects’ standard curriculum through lecturing approaches (lipowsky & rzejak, 2015). the continuing changes in the national lockdown alert levels and consequently the shutting research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 mbhiza, h. w. shifting paradigms: rethinking education during and post-covid-19 pandemic research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 281 down of universities for physical attendance of lectures confronted both lecturers and students with an entirely new situation, which to many traditional universities was an unfamiliar way of content delivery, as mentioned earlier (eickelmann & gerick, 2020; huber & helm, 2020; tarman, 2020). while the transition to online curriculum delivery through the use of various digital tools such as blackboard, microsoft teams, zoom, google meet, and youtube made learning and teaching continuation possible, we should be cognizant of the extent to which these platforms effect the quality of teaching, students’ learning and understanding as well as development and attainment of skills essential to specific professions. of importance to note is that before march 2020, neither students nor lecturers from traditional universities really knew how to navigate through the distance mode of learning and teaching. maringe (2020) argues that, “mere posting of teaching and learning materials on platforms such as sakai without the underpinning pedagogies is likely to negatively affect both quality and effectiveness of students’ learning”. this necessitates that universities should train both their staff and students on the use of various platforms to ensure effective teaching, learning and assessments through online tools. the impact of technology on students and lecturers the era when lecturers relied on printed materials for their teaching has shifted to a technological era where lectures are integrated with various virtual platforms (mahaye, 2020). this represents a paradigm shift in higher education from traditional face-to-face lectures to technology-based curriculum delivery. while this is the case, sintema (2020) has argued that fewer developing countries are prepared to implement online education due to lack of experience and training, which is further exacerbated by inadequate resources to enable online curriculum delivery. notwithstanding this reality, the advent of online education during covid19 has created opportunities for both lecturers and students to access from online various learning materials despite the distance created by the pandemic (hodges et al., 2020; molise & dube, 2020). of importance to note is that the pandemic has decentered lecturers by shifting more responsibilities for learning to the students. this resonates with mahlaba’s (2020) assertion that “we should not keep our students permanently dependent on us (as teachers) for their learning, because we will not always be there to provide learning” (p. 123). covid-19 has proven that, as teachers, we will not always be readily available to be the source of information for our students, hence we should allow students to take charge of their own learning. this is not to say that lecturers should not play an active role in teaching the students, but rather to ensure that students share power in constructing educational knowledge and selfdirecting their learning (kopish & marques, 2020). various authors have argued that selfdirected learning is one of the best predictors of academic success (khiat, 2017; mahlaba, 2020; tekkol & demirel 2018). hedding et al. (2020, p. 1) argue that shifting to online technologybased teaching and learning “encourages a move away from 'rote learning' to focus more on problem solving, critical thinking and applied understanding by using a holistic and integrated approach, because traditional assessment techniques are no longer viable”. in relation to the above, bester and brand (2013) have reported that students have the ability to reconnoiter new ideas, construct knowledge and connect new information to real-life situations, which can enable effective learning if the learning environment is technology rich. similarly, mahaye (2020, p. 13) posits that “a major impact of technology is that it can be used research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 mbhiza, h. w. shifting paradigms: rethinking education during and post-covid-19 pandemic research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 282 to enhance access to information and improve learning standard”. this demonstrates that technology not only provides avenues for continuous curriculum delivery in institutions of higher learning, but also creates opportunities for effective teaching and learning. to maximize effective teaching and learning during the covid-19 pandemic, morgan (2020) provides a useful reflective summary of the international society for technology in education’s guidelines on how to use online distance teaching and learning to benefit students during the covid-19 pandemic. the key takeaway from these guidelines are to ensure the provision of effective online education access and equity, use free high-quality resources, respond to the emotional pressures, and provide student-facing teaching and learning. the pandemic represents a unique teaching and learning opportunity for both lecturers and students to critically reflect on the future of education. according to the world economic forum (2020), many students and educators have realized that it is possible to teach and learn differently, which provides the potential for a paradigm shift in education. for example, the large-scale rollout of online learning as an alternative form of curriculum delivery has created new forms of innovative teaching and learning, which could have been considered unfeasible prior to the covid-19 pandemic. the way we understood teaching and learning at universities is changing, and the change can be unequivocally permanent. understanding the paradigm shift the prognostication for a paradigm shift in education post covid-19 is vested in the observation that higher education institutions are confronted with the task of employing alternative ways of teaching, learning and research, which are compounded by the uncertainty of what will happen in the future. as institutions across the country continue with the project of salvaging academic years in the midst of the virus, the ceremonial norms and traditions cannot continue as normal, especially considering the incommensurability of online and on campus learning and teaching approaches. both staff and students in traditional universities will need to become knowledgeable about complex and dynamic scholarship of distance teaching and learning in order to be effective in teaching and learning within the new paradigm (mavundla & mgutshini, 2021). similarly, mhlanga and moloi (2020, p. 8) postulate that, “we see this change as the beginning of the process that will move education to 4ir where learning will be mostly digital, with a few occasions of face-to-face engagements”. this highlights that the covid-19 pandemic has transformed what we had come to know as the normal mode of teaching and learning in the education sector. institutions of higher learning within the south african context are now intensifying their efforts towards offering online curriculum delivery using various learning platforms, with limited conversations about education post the pandemic. it could be argued that the forced shift to online teaching and learning has had a great influence on the higher education sector’s adoption of various fourth industrial revolution tools. with above discussion in mind, the question of social justice, equity and access within the south african context cannot be overlooked whenever educational processes and provision are discussed (mhlanga & moloi, 2020), especially for students located in remote rural communities and other previously disadvantaged communities. this resonates with maringe’s (2020, p. 1) argument that, “issues of exacerbating inequalities for the already disadvantaged students have to be interrogated and mitigated lest the gains already achieved may be wiped out in an instant”. according to dube (2020, p. 1), “rural learners face unprecedented research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 mbhiza, h. w. shifting paradigms: rethinking education during and post-covid-19 pandemic research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 283 challenges in adjusting to a new mode of life and learning”. while this refers to primary school and secondary school learners, the same can be said about university students from deprived geographic locations, especially first year students who have limited experience and training in using technological tools for learning. to exemplify this, the distinctive rise of online learning meant that students needed to secure study materials such as laptops to ensure learning continuation and completion of online assessment, which is a challenge for rural constituencies because of the high levels of poverty (mukuna & aloka, 2020). this did not only create inequities in formal and epistemological access for rural students, but caused an emotional toll too, because they were reminded by the pandemic that access is for the select few. in addition to the above discussion, most of the students in public universities in south africa rely solely on various bursaries offered by the government to pay for tuition, accommodation, food as well as an allowance because they come from poor backgrounds and their parents are unable to afford the university fees (masutha, 2020; beaunoyer et al., 2020). thus, the indefinite closure of universities means the great loss of a fundamental safety net, including nutrition, learning resources and emotional support (odeku, 2021; masutha & naidoo, 2021). i argue that the covid-19 pandemic exacerbates social exclusion through education and the accompanying continuing inequalities brought about by the apartheid education system. for example, across the different traditional universities in south africa, the lack of adequate access for the student in the transition to online learning has intensified exclusion and constrained effective learning. this is true, especially considering the fact that the suddenness to transit to online learning left little time for institutions to lay the groundwork for lecturers to teach online and for students to adapt to learning remotely. thus, the normative ways universities delivered curriculum content before covid-19 will certainly be incompatible with the anticipated postcovid-19 era. the new paradigm requires the use of vast modern-day e-learning tools and devices, as opposed to the face-to-face physical attendance of classes (jimola & ofodu, 2021). another aspect that is observably a driver for a paradigm shift in education is that the pandemic is also forcing institutions to rethink and restructure assessment methods as well as how to conduct work-integrated learning and other practical work in an online mode. according to almonacid-fierro et al. (2021), “the covid-19 pandemic has generated a profound change in education systems during 2020, impacting the teacher training processes in tertiary education” (p. 72). such ostensibly insurmountable matters discussed herein are undeniably key drivers of a paradigm shift to our ways of knowing, ways of thinking as well as ways of being within the landscape of higher education. the change of assessment systems in universities to a new shape is one of the characteristics of the new educational paradigm, especially when the prevailing discourse of artificial intelligence (ai) or the fourth industrial revolution (4ir) in education is seriously taken into consideration. it can be said that lecturers may resort to ai to deal with evaluation, assessment and monitoring of students’ performance. accordingly, the forced and hurried changes brought by the pandemic within south african universities serve as revolutionary in the education system. platforms used to ensure that learning progresses the continuing fluctuation of the covid-19 positive cases and the alteration of the alert levels for lockdown in south africa constantly forces universities and other institutions of higher learning to continue using online remote learning. in this regard, unesco has recommended research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 mbhiza, h. w. shifting paradigms: rethinking education during and post-covid-19 pandemic research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 284 various resources, platforms and educational applications, depicted in table 1, with the aim of facilitating learning continuation as well as to provide social interactions and care during closure of the institutions (mhlanga & moloi, 2020). in most traditional universities in south africa, the use of the different virtual platforms has meant learning in action, as these platforms had never formed part of their pedagogical approaches or curriculum delivery under normal circumstances. due to space limitations in this paper, i will not unpack the use of each platform in detail, but offer insights into what the shift to using them represents within the higher education sector. table 1. online learning platforms platform platform descriptions microsoft teams  used by lecturers and students to hold online discussions  chat, audio calls, video calls and collaboration features google meet  used by lecturers and students to hold online discussions  video meeting recordings and screen sharing online (websites)  learners learn independently at home blackboard (collaborate)  used by lecturers and students to hold online discussions  live interaction, teach with screen sharing or using a whiteboard, having breakout rooms zoom  used by lecturers and students to hold online discussions  video and audio conferencing, collaboration, chat, webinars, breakout rooms skype  used by lecturers and students to hold online discussions  video and audio calls with talk, chat and collaboration features whatsapp  used by lecturers and students to hold online discussions and used by learners to engage in collaborative learning  video and audio calls with talk, chat and collaboration features the platforms depicted in table 1 represent some of the steps taken by the south african higher education institutions to ensure learning continuity, give students support during covid-19 and in turn strengthen online learning (see dipa, 2020). of importance to note is that most of the platforms in table 1 offer multiple functionalities as described, and the majority of both students and lecturers are confronted with the task of learning how to use the platforms to interact during teaching and learning processes. the platforms represent change in what we had come to know and think about teaching and learning at traditional higher education research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 mbhiza, h. w. shifting paradigms: rethinking education during and post-covid-19 pandemic research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 285 institutions in south africa, and marks the beginning of a paradigm shift to 4ir, whereby teaching and learning will be predominately digital, with limited occasions of physical interactions. thus, it could be said that covid-19 did not only have a major influence on the higher education sector’s use of several 4ir tools, but forced a paradigm shift in the sector’s normative ways of doing things. what stands out from the prominent platforms is that the institutions have established discussion platforms to enable students and lecturers to discuss the topics in similar ways they used to in the traditional lecture environment. this demonstrates that south african higher education institutions are making strides to promote students’ interactions through discussion boards featured in most of the platforms in table 1. while this is the case, it should be noted that the nature of interactions in online platforms versus the traditional face-to-face lectures represents two different communicative approaches. generally, pulling the platforms in table 1 together reveals that during covid-19 the universities are trying to configure strategies to restructure teaching and learning processes and ensure that teaching and learning continues. the recent surges of the covid-19 virus in south africa and the second year of using 4ir tools to deliver curriculum content to students across different institutions symbolizes what is often referred to as ‘the new normal’. such normalcy in this paper is viewed as a paradigm shift as the behavior of the pandemic illustrates the high possibilities that the higher education system will never revert back to what it was before march 2020. in this vein, the world health organization (who) has pointed out that the novel coronavirus may never be exterminated; as such we will have to live with it. who emergencies expert mike ryan on 13 may 2020 stated that: it is important to put this on the table: this virus may become just another endemic virus in our communities, and this virus may never go away. hiv has not gone away, but we have come to terms with the virus. i think there are no promises in this and there are no dates. this disease may settle into a long problem. this statement captures the essence of a paradigm shift in different spheres of our lives, including the educational system globally. things will never be how they were before the pandemic; as such we need to configure effective ways to provide educational knowledge to the students. cheating practices literature on online curriculum delivery has advocated the need to build collaborative online learning communities whereby students are continuously and actively engaged (espasa & meneses, 2010; kuo et al., 2014). according to cross (1998), learning communities entail “groups of people engaged in intellectual interaction for the purpose of learning” (p. 4). while i consider that students’ interactions in an online learning environment play a major role in their learning and academic achievements, there has been a notable outcry about students’ collaboration to cheat. when the transition to online teaching and learning was made in different institutions due to covid-19 conditions, students started using social instant messaging applications such as whatsapp and telegram, often removed from the direct supervision and involvement of lecturers, to exchange answers to assessment questions. this addresses the drawback of online learning and assessment to be the intensifying cheating research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 mbhiza, h. w. shifting paradigms: rethinking education during and post-covid-19 pandemic research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 286 practices (mavundla & mgutshini, 2021; rahim, 2020). accordingly, as much as the shift to online teaching and learning through the utilization of 4ir tools provides learning opportunities for students in these unprecedented times, equally the shift creates challenges, which institutions need to address if the use of online teaching and learning is to be effective (lowenthal & snelson, 2017). according to church and de oliveira (2013), whatsapp is prominent because of the communication advantages it presents, including the ability to send instant messages to an individual and/or groups simultaneously, the privacy it offers, as well as being low cost. the reality is that students use these benefits to cheat in real-time during assessments since lecturers cannot supervise them as they write away from campuses. this resonates with previous studies that argue that the contemporary generation of students hold a fluid viewpoint of what unethical behavior is, compared to students in the past (gulli et al., 2007; troop, 2007). while it could be argued that the use of online platforms such as whatsapp help learning communities collaborate and share information, the institutions claim that the cheating mechanisms students use not only hinder the trustworthiness of online assessments, but the quality of students’ learning. in relation to this, adedoyin and soykan (2020, p. 5) state that “in online learning, assessments are often carried online whereby instructors are limited to proxy supervision of learners, making it impossible to regulate and control cheating”. thus, i argue that the paradigm shift creates an epistemological muddle in which students fail to observe the traditional conceptualization of academic treachery as they cheat in assessments. conclusion the transition to online curriculum delivery in higher education has changed how students and lecturers relate to educational knowledge. in the context of covid-19, the relentless usage of 4ir technology for teaching and learning means that the traditional pedagogies are being disrupted, and all educational stakeholders need to adapt to the new ways of teaching and learning. what once required a visit to a library before covid-19 is now no further away than on digital gadgets such as cell phones and laptops. while teaching and learning processes in traditional education institutions once required that students and lecturers convene in physical lecture halls, the relentless rise in covid-19 infections in the country has forced us into the ‘4ir age’, where students can interact with their instructors and with each other virtually. in this paper, i demonstrated that the forced transition to online learning is driving what we might refer to as a paradigm shift in education. this means that the education system before the covid-19 pandemic, the one that served for centuries, may no longer be compatible in this changing environment, thereby signifying an educational system revolution. accordingly, covid-19 has forced the education sector to be responsive to the apparent signs of the new paradigm, and we need to use the ongoing experiences of online teaching and learning to shape our expectations of what is to take hold within the education sector post the covid-19 pandemic. educational leaders need to rethink content creation and content sharing, and establish working communities to meet the demands of the new paradigm in education. we can develop a hypothesis using our current experiences of online curriculum delivery, a model of online education that captures the new ways of knowing and new ways of thinking about educational processes. such a model would be used as a tool for understanding the conditions of teaching research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 mbhiza, h. w. shifting paradigms: rethinking education during and post-covid-19 pandemic research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 287 and learning in the new paradigm, as well as the enablers and constraints for effective teaching and learning. this paper has demonstrated that covid-19 has posed challenges in the education sector in south african higher education institutions, resulting in the emergence of a new paradigm through the adoption of various steps to facilitate learning in the higher education sector. with the unavoidable revolution in the education system, the south african government and higher education institutions should strengthen their resources to run online educational activities indefinitely. as demonstrated by mike ryan’s statement earlier, should covid-19 become another endemic virus within our communities, the education sector should be prepared to continue working in online spaces; online learning may never go away. references adedoyin, o. b., & soykan, e. 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(2020). lernen mit digitalen medien. zielsetzungen in zeiten von corona und unter besonderer berücksichtigung von sozialen ungleichheiten. in d. fickermann & b. edelstein (hrsg.), “langsam vermisse ich die schule ...”. schule während und nach der corona-pandemie (pp.153–162). waxmann. doi:10.31244/9783830992318.09 espasa, a., & meneses, j. (2010). analysing feedback processes in an online teaching and learning environment: an exploratory study. higher education, 59(3), 277-292. gulli, c., kohler, n., & patriquin, m. 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(2020). covid-19 and schooling: evaluation, assessment and accountability in times of crises—reacting quickly to explore key issues for policy, practice and research with the school barometer. educational assessment, evaluation and accountability, 32(2), 237-270. jimola, f. e., & ofodu, g. o. (2021). sustaining learning during covid-19 seismic shift: the need to develop flexible pedagogy. interdisciplinary journal of education research, 3(1), 14-26. khiat, h. (2017). academic performance and the practice of self-directed learning: the adult student perspective. journal of further and higher education, 41(1), 44-59. kopish, m., & marques, w. (2020). leveraging technology to promote global citizenship in teacher education in the united states and brazil. research in social sciences and technology, 5(1), 45-69. kuo, y. c., walker, a. e., schroder, k. e., & belland, b. r. (2014). interaction, internet selfefficacy, and self-regulated learning as predictors of student satisfaction in online education courses. the internet and higher education, 20, 35-50. lipowsky, f., & rzejak, d. (2015). key features of effective professional development programmes for teachers. ricercazione, 7(2), 27-51. lowenthal, p. r., & snelson, c. (2017). in search of a better understanding of social presence: an investigation into how researchers define social presence. distance education, 38(2), 141-159. mahaye, n. e. (2020). the impact of covid-19 pandemic on education: navigating forward the pedagogy of blended learning. available at https://www.academia.edu/42842598/the_impact_of_covid_19_pandemic_on_educ ation_navigating_forward_the_pedagogy_of_blended_learning mahlaba, s. c. (2020). reasons why self-directed learning is important in south africa during the covid-19 pandemic. south african journal of higher education, 34(6), 120-136. maringe, f. (2020). the quarantined academy: emerging opportunities and risks. heltasa. http://heltasa.org.za/the-quarantined-academy-emergingopportunities-and-risks/ martin, m., & furiv, u. (2020). covid-19 shows the need to make learning more flexible. university world news. the global window on higher education. https://www.universityworldnews.com/post.php?story=20200324115802272 masutha, m. (2020). redressing or reproducing inequalities? narrative accounts of workingclass students' experiences of completion and non-completion in south african higher education. unpublished doctoral dissertation, university of bath. masutha, m., & naidoo, r. (2021). stories from the margins. in m. k. ralarala, s. l. hassan, & r. naidoo (eds.), knowledge beyond colour lines: towards repurposing knowledge generation in south african higher education, (pp. 59-77). uwc press. mavundla, a. o., & mgutshini, t. (2021). contexts during the covid-19 pandemic in south africa. covid-19. in t. mgutshini, k. oparinde, & v. govender (eds.). covid-19: https://www.academia.edu/42842598/the_impact_of_covid_19_pandemic_on_education_navigating_forward_the_pedagogy_of_blended_learning https://www.academia.edu/42842598/the_impact_of_covid_19_pandemic_on_education_navigating_forward_the_pedagogy_of_blended_learning http://heltasa.org.za/the-quarantined-academy-emergingopportunities-and-risks/ https://www.universityworldnews.com/post.php?story=20200324115802272 research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 mbhiza, h. w. shifting paradigms: rethinking education during and post-covid-19 pandemic research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 289 interdisciplinary explorations of impacts on higher education (pp. 97 – 111). african sun media. mhlanga, d., & moloi, t. (2020). covid-19 and the digital transformation of education: what are we learning on 4ir in south africa? education sciences, 10(7), 180. molise, h., & dube, b. (2020). emergency online teaching in economic and management sciences necessitated by the covid-19 pandemic: the need for healthy relations in a rural schooling context. international journal of learning, teaching and educational research, 19(6), 387-400. morgan, h. (2020). best practices for implementing remote learning during a pandemic. the clearing house: a journal of educational strategies, issues and ideas, 93(3), 135-141. mukuna, k. r., & aloka, p. j. (2020). exploring educators’ challenges of online learning in covid-19 at a rural school, south africa. international journal of learning, teaching and educational research, 19(10), 134-149. odeku, k. o. (2021). using blackboard collaborate for law pedagogy amid a spiraling covid19 pandemic in a historically disadvantaged black south african university. journal of educational and social research, 11(3), 241-241. rahim, a. f. a. (2020). guidelines for online assessment in emergency remote teaching during the covid-19 pandemic. education in medicine journal, 12(2), 59-68. sintema, e. j. (2020). e-learning and smart revision portal for zambian primary and secondary school learners: a digitalized virtual classroom in the covid-19 era and beyond. aquademia, 4(2), ep20017. https://doi.org/10.29333/aquademia/8253 tarman, b. (2020). reflecting in the shade of pandemic. research in social sciences and technology, 5(2), i-iv. tekkol, i̇. a., & demirel, m. (2018). an investigation of self-directed learning skills of undergraduate students. frontiers in psychology, 9, 2324. troop, d. (2007). you're never gonna believe this one. chronicle of higher education, 53, 4. http://www.chronicle.com/article/youre-never-gonna-believe/16333 world economic forum. (2020). the future of jobs report 2020. https://www.voced.edu.au/content/ngv:88417 https://doi.org/10.29333/aquademia/8253 http://www.chronicle.com/article/youre-never-gonna-believe/16333 https://www.voced.edu.au/content/ngv:88417 research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 williams, t.k., mcintosh, r.w., & russell, w.b. equity in distance education during covid-19 research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 1 equity in distance education during covid-19 tamika k. williams, robert w. mcintosh & william b. russell iii* university of central florida *corresponding author: russell@ucf.edu received : 2021-01-26 revised : 2021-04-02 accepted : 2021-04-29 how to cite this paper: williams, t.k., mcintosh, r.w., & russell, w.b. (2021). equity in distance education during covid-19. research in social sciences and technology, 6(1), 1-24. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.1 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). abstract this study uses the phenomenological approach to qualitative research to explore the covid19 distance learning experiences of educators who served students with varying digital access and efficacy. the researchers analyzed survey data collected from 13 educators that was used to guide a focus group discussion with 11 educators. the participants reported that although their students experienced inequities in both digital access and digital efficacy, there was a greater issue with access to technology. the study also found that educators dealt with digital inequities by putting in extra work and shifting their mindsets. educators also reported a desire to maintain the reforms that helped their students. keywords: covid-19, digital divide, educational technology, distance education, educational inequity introduction the covid-19 pandemic forced school districts, schools, and teachers to mobilize in order to deal with the digital inequities that have existed for decades. at the beginning stages of technological advances in education, the so-called digital divide related more to access to technology and equipment. there was unequal access to technology that gave some students advantages over others. however, current data suggests that the divide has shifted (hall et al., 2020; kaden, 2020; lynch, 2020; reinhart et al., 2011; sandvik, 2020; tang & bao, 2020). even when access to technology is equal, inequities persist because some students and teachers do 10.46303/ressat.2021.1 mailto:russell@ucf.edu https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.1 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 williams, t.k., mcintosh, r.w., & russell, w.b. equity in distance education during covid-19 research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 2 not have the necessary training and skills to take advantage of technological resources. due to the evolving nature of the pandemic, data on this phenomenon is limited, and interpretations are fluid. however, there are patterns in the available data in regard to the impact of technology and training challenges on educational equity. reports show that educators took actions to close the digital divide during the pandemic that included providing resources and training (kaden, 2020; kalimullina et al., 2021; lynch, 2020; rhim & han, 2020; swarts, 2020; tadeu et al., 2019; whittle et al., 2020). they also implemented new teaching methods designed to preserve the sense of community during distance learning. purpose covid-19 and the educational response to it affected all students and teachers. thus, it is important to consider whether and how digital inequities are affecting students and teachers. the purpose of this research is to add to our understanding of these effects through the collection and interpretation of self-reported teacher views. the following questions guided the study: 1. how have teachers, schools, and districts responded to the closing of schools as a result of the covid-19 pandemic? 2. did they consider the digital divide in their responses to mitigate the instructional consequences of the pandemic? 3. have teachers seen evidence of a digital divide when online learning was implemented? 4. do teachers feel that their technology preparation (or lack) influenced the quality of their and their students’ experience? 5. will any changes or improvements be continued after covid? literature review reckoning and awareness the covid-19 pandemic forced teachers and educational leaders to reckon with existing digital inequities that some were not even aware existed. because distance learning was the main and sometimes only learning platform at the beginning of the covid lockdown, research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 williams, t.k., mcintosh, r.w., & russell, w.b. equity in distance education during covid-19 research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 3 it highlighted digital divide issues, but lessons learned should be carried over to benefit students and achieve educational equity (hall et al., 2020). kaden (2020) found that the forced response to the pandemic revealed what was missing when “going digital” and what support and resources were necessary to make sure schools could still be effective and run efficiently. the teacher in kaden’s case study became aware of the challenges his most vulnerable students had to deal with, challenges that were only exacerbated by the pandemic. he had homeless and transient students that he lost contact with and special needs students that he could not properly support. the pandemic also revealed the skills this teacher was missing, some skills he did not know he even needed. hall et al. (2020) found that the pre-service teachers in their study who analyzed digital access data became aware of the unequal access to technology and technology training and the systemic racial inequities that contributed to the digital divide. however, these future teachers recognized the potential for technology to truly improve opportunities if inequities are considered and addressed. this growing awareness led to improvements in practice and procedures, even if temporarily. rhim and han (2020) say the sudden and involuntary move to online learning pressed teachers to adopt new teaching methods and to learn new technology. not only did teachers have to acquire technical skills, but they also had to learn new methods for delivering lessons. teachers could not just take their face-to-face lessons and post them on their district’s digital platform (godsey, 2020; han, 2020, kaden, 2020; & rhim). whittle et al. (2020) say the experience of covid-19 revealed the need for an educational framework to guide and support remote instruction that is necessitated by crisis situations. these researchers proposed their emergency remote teaching environments (erte) framework, anticipating future emergency situations. even though covid-19 was a temporary crisis situation, educators and educational researchers found the need to retain the lessons gleaned from the experience. the pre-service teachers in hall et al.’s study expressed the need to recognize privilege and use that recognition to help marginalized students (2020). the researchers in the study urged teacher educators to continue exposing future teachers to inequities after emergency distance learning ends because the inequities will still be there. school districts had to create new educational models research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 williams, t.k., mcintosh, r.w., & russell, w.b. equity in distance education during covid-19 research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 4 that were flexible and accessible in order to facilitate continued learning in the midst of a global crisis. parents, students, and the world economy depended on it (kaden, 2020). some new models may be more effective than the pre-covid one and should not be abandoned once the crisis ends (kaden, 2020; sandvik, 2020). for example, a distance learning model can allow for more flexibility, cost-effectiveness, and independence. kaden (2020) argues that distance learning should not be designed to replace or mimic traditional in-person learning but should add to the body of pedagogical knowledge. access and efficacy researchers describe the digital divide as having at least two components, with the first focused on access to technology and the internet and the second focused on the efficacy of its use (hargittai, 2001; reinhart et al., 2011; tang & bao 2020). traditionally, the first level digital divide focuses on those who have access and those who don’t, sometimes called the “haves” and the “have nots.” the pew research center (2020) reported that in the united states, the “have nots” are on the decline as of february 2019, with 90% of u.s. adults using the internet and 71% with high-speed broadband internet access at home. that does not mean that we should dismiss the first level of the digital divide because it remains a reality, particularly for rural and lower socioeconomic status (ses) americans (anderson & kumar, 2020; perrin, 2020). additionally, the pew research center study focused on adults and did not communicate the full story when considering school-age children. to overcome the first level digital divide during the emergency remote teaching setting created by covid-19, schools and school districts have distributed technology for students that did not have access at home and often needed to provide or support internet access at home as well. unfortunately, schools in low ses areas also tend to have reduced technology infrastructure to support the needs of their students and community during times of crisis and school closures (sayer & braun, 2020). the second level of the digital divide transitions from access to technology and the internet to the efficacy of its use. another way to consider this level of the digital divide is to consider the difference between those who consume information from the internet and those who produce it (hargittai & walejko, 2008; tang & bao 2020). the difference between these two groups focuses heavily on information and communication technologies (ict) skills and research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 williams, t.k., mcintosh, r.w., & russell, w.b. equity in distance education during covid-19 research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 5 education, and like technology access, this divide tends to be bound with ses (tang & bao, 2020). another factor of the second-level digital divide comes in the form of technology used, with an increasing number of americans relying on smartphones to access and interact with the internet (anderson, 2020). smartphones do not prevent users from overcoming the second level of the digital divide, but they do reduce their access to programs and applications that are often used to generate and create content online. it is critical to understand that both students and teachers find themselves being influenced by the digital divide. inequities in teachers’ understanding and use of icts must be considered when measuring the impact of school closures and emergency remote teaching (godsey, 2020). trust and whalen (2020) found that teachers were often relying on informal networks or self-directed learning in order to overcome the difficulties transitioning from the traditional school-based modality to the emergency remote teaching setting required during covid-19. ongoing training and professional development for teachers in icts and distance education are needed in order for teachers to effectively transition instruction during crises (hall et al., 2020; lynch 2020; peterson et al., 2020; tang & bao, 2020; trust & whalen, 2020). school-based embedded technology facilitators are one way to provide informal and ongoing training that teachers need as technology changes and demand shifts based on current circumstances (reinhart et al., 2011). connection and community building because of the isolation and separation of distance learning, much of the most effective transformations of methods and strategies during the pandemic related to communication and community building (bertacco, 2020; godsey, 2020; kaden, 2020; lynch, 2020; rhim & han, 2020; sayer & braun, 2020; whittle et al., 2020). this is especially the case for students with the greatest need, such as those students who have disabilities, are living in poverty, or are from marginalized groups (bertacco, 2020; godsey, 2020; kaden, 2020; lynch, 2020). teachers cannot just take their classroom and lessons and move them online without accommodating for the loss of face-to-face connection (bertacco, 2020; godsey, 2020; rhim & han, 2020). lynch (2020) found from her survey of best practices around the world that it is important to research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 williams, t.k., mcintosh, r.w., & russell, w.b. equity in distance education during covid-19 research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 6 create shared spaces for students that their emotional needs can be met along with their educational needs. it is important for the teacher to maintain a personal connection to students and parents, which can be more challenging but is even more essential with the most vulnerable students and families (godsey, 2020; kaden, 2020). godsey (2020) points out that not all students have the advantage of an educated parent at home, access to resources, stable internet, or even a safe space to study. whittle et al.’s (2020) erte framework highlights the social role of the teacher to support not only the students but their parents, who must now take on the role of teaching assistant. teachers should be in regular communication with parents and students. this role is closely related to erte’s feedback dimension, as teachers need to provide quick assessment feedback. teachers in sandvik’s (2020) survey reported that they learned the importance of providing feedback to students in various ways. zoom and other online meeting platforms have become teachers’ and students’ best friend and worst enemy. teachers report that there can be too much screen time and information overload (lynch, 2020; sandvik, 2020). however, bertacco (2020) found that teachers should use the time on screen to engage with students. godsey (2020) says some synchronous meeting time is necessary to build a connection. while maintaining the necessary contact with families is necessary, it can add to teachers’ workload (kaden, 2020; sandvik, 2020). students need to be social and craved a connection with peers during the pandemic (kaden, 2020; rhim & han, 2020; whittle et al., 2020). whittle et al. (2020) highlight the critical social component of learning; students who are limited to online learning have a better experience when they have opportunities to interact with other students. incorporating tools such as message boards, breakout rooms, games can allow for interaction, collaboration, and community building (bertacco, 2020; godsey, 2020; lynch, 2020). bertacco (2020) warns that the learning context is what is most affected during the covid-imposed remote learning and must be addressed to make sure educators reach all students. it is also important and beneficial for teachers to remember their needs during emergency remote learning (godsey, 2020). teachers also experienced covid-19 differently due to inequities (kaden, 2020; reinhart et al., 2011; sandvik, 2020; tang & bao, 2020). research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 williams, t.k., mcintosh, r.w., & russell, w.b. equity in distance education during covid-19 research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 7 collaboration among teachers and the sharing of knowledge and resources is vitally important (godsey, 2020). the global pandemic that entered the united states in the spring of 2020 forced educators to do what educators have been talking about doing for decades: to revolutionize schools to meet the needs of a diverse population of students. the experience of forced distance learning highlighted the technological divides among students and forced school systems to close those divides by providing access and addressing technological efficacy issues. the work to close the digital gap revealed deeper sociological issues (kaden, 2020; sayer & braun; 2020; tang & bao, 2020). a byproduct of attending to the technological gap was bringing attention to student needs that went beyond providing laptops and internet access. the pandemic connected the home and school environment in ways that educators found challenging but informative and transformational. teachers, school leaders, and educational researchers concluded that the lessons learned need to be retained and that the reforms need to be permanent (hall et al., 2020; lynch, 2020; whittle et al., 2020). it is important to study and reflect on this pandemic through the eyes of the educators on the front lines of what might be an educational revolution. this study examines the experiences and reflections of current educators who serve in different capacities in a school district in the southeastern united states. data and method we used the phenomenological approach to qualitative research for this study to describe the experiences of educators who served students with differing experiences and needs during the covid-19 pandemic. after the institutional review board approved the study, we began recruiting participants to take an anonymous survey about their experiences and perceptions. potential participants were advised of their rights to participate and/or decline participation in the anonymous survey and/or a focus group discussion conducted through the zoom virtual meeting platform. those participants who gave consent were sent an anonymous link to the survey that consisted of both likert-type questions and open-response questions. those participants who indicated their willingness to also participate in the focus group discussion were sent invitations to a follow-up zoom meeting. they were given the option to research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 williams, t.k., mcintosh, r.w., & russell, w.b. equity in distance education during covid-19 research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 8 change their display names and turn off their videos to maintain anonymity. we also use pseudonyms in our report to protect the identities of our participants. participants seven teachers, two counselors, and four administrators took the survey (n=13). three administrators, two counselors, and six teachers participated in the focus group discussion (n=11) (see table 1). elementary, middle, and high school levels were represented in both the survey and focus group data. table 1 focus group participants pseudonym gender ethnicity role joy female black administrator angie female white teacher reggie male black teacher frank male white administrator harmony female black administrator kendra female black teacher chris male white teacher josh male white teacher sylvia female hispanic teacher shonda female black counselor denise female black counselor data sources the survey instrument consisted of 10 background questions, 20 likert-type questions, and four open-response questions (appendix a). there were four categories of questions for the survey related to the teacher and district response to the pandemic, consideration of the research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 williams, t.k., mcintosh, r.w., & russell, w.b. equity in distance education during covid-19 research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 9 digital divide in that response, evidence of a digital divide, and educators’ technological training. the questions were designed based on evidence from existing research. we used the survey responses to get a general understanding of the experiences and perceptions of educators in relation to educational equity during the pandemic. we used data from the educator survey to inform and guide our two-hour focus group discussion (silverman, 2017). we triangulated the data by interviewing multiple participants who serve in varying capacities and using multiple data collection methods, including the survey and focus group discussion (kozleski, 2017). the focus group discussion provided for participant verification and feedback to support trustworthiness (kozleski, 2017). data analysis for this report centers on the focus group discussion. data analysis we used the phenomenological approach to analysis the data (creswell & poth, 2018). the overall data analysis process is summarized in figure 1. first, we reviewed the participants’ background information to get an overall idea of the varying roles, characteristics, and contexts of the participants. we did not intend to perform any quantitative interpretive analysis of the data. next, we studied the responses to the likert-style questions to explore educators’ impressions and experiences of education during the pandemic. to do this, we formed topic categories, synthesized categories into themes, and compared themes to themes in the existing literature. we used our analysis of the educators’ expressions in the survey to determine what was significant about their experience and what should be discussed further. from this interpretation, we formed the basis of our focus group discussion, which was guided by twelve discussion questions (appendix b). we began analysis of the focus group discussion with memoing, which involved getting a general overview of the discussion, and taking notes. next, we created a table to form categories. for the category formation process, we reviewed the transcripts and segmented it according to question. we made notes as topics came up in the discussion (see figure 2). we used the topics as column headings in the table. for each question, we wrote details under the heading about what was said about the topic and by whom. we then compared notes and reviewed the categories for patterns. we research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 williams, t.k., mcintosh, r.w., & russell, w.b. equity in distance education during covid-19 research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 10 synthesized the categories into themes. finally, we went back to the transcripts to verify themes by using a color-coded highlighting process. figure 1 summary of data analysis process figure 2 focus group discussion topic categories training uncompensated work student support family support communication benefits research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 williams, t.k., mcintosh, r.w., & russell, w.b. equity in distance education during covid-19 research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 11 results responses from the 20-question likert survey mostly supported what has been found by other researchers on the topic. students and families from high needs populations such as those who spoke english as a second language, those with varying exceptionalities, those from minority groups, and those who qualify for free or reduced lunch struggled due to technology, economic, and communications issues. teachers and staff were overwhelmed but worked hard to overcome the issues their students faced. one major conflict with the existing research is that teachers reported access to technology as more of a problem than its efficacy. even though the district provided laptops for students who qualified for free or reduced lunch, those students were often disrupted by connection issues such as poor wifi signals or problems with the video conference application. the educators’ responses also did not emphasize the use of collaboration as much as the existing literature would suggest. based on the survey responses, we created the twelve discussion questions to discover how the educators’ experience might be applied to improve educational practice in a similar crisis and in general. we wanted to find out more about what the educators were doing to mitigate the challenges they and their students faced and to support their most vulnerable students. what emerged from the focus group discussion were three themes: (a) when educators put in extra work, students benefited, (b) the pandemic forced a shift in mindset that inspired new behaviors and resulted in positively surprising outcomes, and (c) teachers want the lessons learned from the experience to lead to lasting change. extra work paid off the discussion showed that although educators were overwhelmed and exhausted with the amount of uncompensated time and energy they had to put in during the pandemic, the investment of extra time and energy resulted in positive outcomes for them and their students. many teachers, counselors, and administrators took the initiative to attend summer workshops and to complete self-taught training sessions. during the interview angie explained, “over the summer, i did like, 55 different workshops and all the workshops were online geared.” in angie’s school district, the summer trainings offered through the district were often taught by district-based employees, such as other teachers. chris was one of the teachers that led research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 williams, t.k., mcintosh, r.w., & russell, w.b. equity in distance education during covid-19 research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 12 professional development over the summer. he designed a training that focused on the use of digital discussion boards to make discussions engaging for students. for the teachers, the summer workshops better equipped them to support their students. teachers spent hours outside of work hours troubleshooting technical issues, counseling stressed students and parents, answering emails, and creating engaging and innovative lessons. harmony, an administrator, found that she and her staff basically needed to train the parents on how to work with the online tools including the gradebook and the virtual learning environment. this was often done in case-by-case situations with administrators throughout the district, instead of through a dedicated program or workshop. chris also described spending hours on the phone with parents, “walking them through the gradebook because they never had to check the grade books themselves before.” in comparison, angie found that often the parents, grandparents, or guardians would give the teachers a cell phone number to contact students directly. this way the teachers could, “just talk to them ourselves and say, ‘hey, what are you doing? how can i help you?’” (angie). josh and other teachers in his team decided that they needed to be the tech support for their students and parents. they even created videos to quickly share some of the more common how-to situations. this was in addition to their actual instructional roles. educators discovered that practicing digital tools and allowing students and parents to use digital tools lessened stress. they discovered that incorporating community building in lesson plans worked for students who were isolated and lost in distance learning. they found out that breakout rooms created safe spaces for some students, “because sometimes they don’t feel comfortable sharing in whole group” (harmony). this district used split classrooms where some students watched the teacher online while other students were physically in the room with the teacher. reggie would pair students up, online with in-person. he rationalized his effort, “it’s kind of like forcing conversation because if it doesn’t happen the online kids will turn the screen off and not participate at all.” educators found ways to make this a better experience for their students. mindset shift research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 williams, t.k., mcintosh, r.w., & russell, w.b. equity in distance education during covid-19 research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 13 the pandemic forced educators to rethink, reprioritize, and reevaluate their habits and behaviors. they did things they had never done because they had to. for example, reggie and his peers synchronized their lesson plans. josh’s school required teachers to standardize their virtual classroom homepages to improve ease of use for the students and parents. these changes created benefits for teachers and students. from the focus group we learned that, when used properly, the online tools helped to remove the divide between home and school. the pandemic pushed parents to engage with learning platforms that have been in use for years. in chris’s school district they introduced the learning management system, canvas, county-wide five years ago, “i spent several hours on the phone with parents who needed help understanding the technology like the learning management system” (chris). these applications have features designed to give parents a window into the classroom, but many never knew their purpose or how to use them. kendra described how it was possible to address issues quickly, “if something wasn’t going well by the end of the day, i can quickly say, ‘hey, can you get your mom or can you get your grandma.’ you know, so issues were fixed instantly.” the administrators in the focus group recounted how the pandemic encouraged the teachers to challenge themselves in new ways. frank described how the teachers who invested the effort to design lesson plans that use the digital tools in an engaging way are finding greater success in this environment. he said, “those are the classrooms that we noticed have higher engagement, higher grades, and less disparity.” harmony explained how a different set of teachers are becoming leaders on campus. these teachers often include the younger and newer teachers, “i’ve seen where new teachers because they’re young and they’re used to this platform anyway, where they become tutors to veteran teachers” (harmony). the pandemic is forcing the school system to embrace technology and to become more flexible to meet the needs of the students. educators described how they paid attention to their students in a different way since the beginning of the covid-19 pandemic. reggie’s big take-away was realizing the complexity of his students and that he wanted to get to know each of his students individually. he also realized just how much the day-to-day realities of his students affected their learning, positively research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 williams, t.k., mcintosh, r.w., & russell, w.b. equity in distance education during covid-19 research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 14 for students of privilege and less so for students whose lives are more challenging. chris realized that he needed to reassess the role of distance education and the opportunity that it presents. “i was actually really surprised to see some of my students who are troubled the most in the classroom, start thriving in the online environment” (chris). the virtual school model may benefit more students than were previously utilizing it. for administrator joy, covid made her realize the critical role of human connection. she had to set her own tasks and concerns aside and provide more support to her teachers, students, and community. “i took on the task of calling some of our parents, you know, just checking on the students to find out why were they not logging in and some of the parents just wanted someone to just listen to them and listen to their frustration” (joy). after covid-19 the educators in our focus group repeatedly stated that they do not want all the work they did to be in vain. first, if another lockdown were to occur, the teachers and administrators say there should be a plan. the covid-19 experience should have taught lessons that should not have to be repeated. second, students benefited from many of the changes the pandemic forced educators to make. though many of the adjustments were intended to support high needs students, they provide for a better education for all students and should therefore continue post-covid. the participants stressed that one of the lessons they learned is that planning needs to deliberately and thoughtfully take into account the needs of the most vulnerable students. chris strongly believes that we should do more for students with the highest needs, “the priority has to really be focused on the highest needs students, instead of providing families and students choice for the sake of choice.” while he is worried that additional measures such as summer school and saturday school may be perceived as a punishment by many, he emphasized that steps need to be taken to ensure those that the school district finds a way to provide support for students with the greatest need. in order to make distance education sustainable now and after covid, two things need to be addressed. the first is ongoing and explicit professional development for teachers. educators often had to get the training they needed on their own time. though it benefited research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 williams, t.k., mcintosh, r.w., & russell, w.b. equity in distance education during covid-19 research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 15 them and their students, they were not compensated. to ensure that this necessary training can be applied across the board, educators, like harmony, call for more funding: “we need more money in the budget so that we can provide…effective trainings.” the second measure that needs to be addressed is straightforward and transparent communications from decisionmakers. according to frank, this communication also needs to address the expectations about student performance and teacher performance. how are students, teachers, administrators, and schools going to be evaluated and held accountable? end-of-course and state testing can’t keep getting pushed off or ignored; “we need to know where the kids are in their learning” (chris). these concerns weigh on the participants. educators had to try new things in the covid environment and discovered strategies that could support all students in any environment. josh, for example, established an online school gaming club. the students come together online through minecraft and he has found that it provides his online students to socialize. he doesn’t want to see this end when covid is over, “i hope those kinds of things aren’t suddenly removed and say, okay, covid is over, we’re going to go ahead and stop all of those things that we put in place just in the meantime, as well” (josh). they do not want to stop just because the crisis ends. chris acknowledged that for many this is their first experience with distance learning and with experience the teachers and the students are getting better at it. frank pointed out that the status quo from before covid-19 wasn’t working for all students, “we can’t go back to normal, ever again because normal isn’t going to be good enough” (frank). while many students may still learn best in the traditional classroom environment, the participants don’t want to see the options provided by distance education to simply go away. discussion our research focused on a series of questions regarding the impact of covid-19 on education, including (a) how have teachers, schools, and districts responded? (b) did they consider the digital divide in their responses? (c) have teachers seen evidence of a digital divide? (d) do teachers feel that their technology preparation (or lack) impacted their and their students’ experience? (e) will any changes or improvements be continued after covid? our results closely aligned with the themes that we have been able to identify in the review of the literature. the educators in our study also expressed their experiences dealing with the same research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 williams, t.k., mcintosh, r.w., & russell, w.b. equity in distance education during covid-19 research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 16 issues reflected in the literature such as increased awareness of and urgency for addressing digital inequities (reckoning and awareness), the teachers, counselors, and administrators also highlighted the necessity for building community as was similarly found in existing literature (connection and community building). although they discussed both levels of the digital divide (access and efficacy), the educators in our study seemed to experience greater challenges with access due to technology failures and student connectivity problems. the themes that emerged from our focus group conversation demonstrated the educators’ responses to and experiences with the digital divide. first, when educators put in extra work, students benefited. second, the pandemic forced a shift in mindset that inspired new behaviors and resulted in positively surprising outcomes. third, teachers want the lessons learned from the experience to lead to lasting change. these themes appear to focus on what the literature referred to as the digital divide’s first level access to technology. we had expected to find that students and teachers were struggling to overcome the second level of the digital divide, the efficacy of technology use. we were surprised to find that the first level of the digital divide was far more common a complaint. though the school district distributed laptops to help overcome the limitation of access, many families were restricted to only one device, even if those families had multiple students. worse than limited access, many families were completely unreachable, with students unable to attend school because of closures and the schools having no reliable way to communicate with students and families. these students simply did not receive services or any instruction during closures and potentially beyond. while our research doesn’t differ greatly from the existing body of literature, it does add support to the current research of the impacts of covid-19 on education. it shows that the available findings are not limited geographically to a single area or to a specific set of schools or districts. there are compelling arguments for further research into the impacts of covid-19 on education, including but not limited to 1) identifying how much “slide” has occurred in student learning, 2) how many students have been lost from the system due to limited access and unreliable communication within the communities, 3) how are teacher research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 williams, t.k., mcintosh, r.w., & russell, w.b. equity in distance education during covid-19 research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 17 education programs addressing digital education and preparing future teachers to cope with emergency remote learning. our research was conducted in good faith, but it relies on self-reported data in both the survey and focus group. the number of participants in the survey and the focus-group suggests a near-identical group of respondents though we cannot be sure because the survey was anonymous and there was a greater number of educators who agreed to participate than those who actually did participate in the study. another limitation is the relatively brief interactions between research and participant. the research relies on a single survey and a single focus group. in future studies, it may be possible to broaden the survey participant base and to increase the number of focus groups or the number of times that the focus group interacts with the researchers. conclusion and implications though we have certainly not exhausted the understanding of the impact of covid-19 on educators or education based on the findings in one focus group discussion, the input of these educators is a necessary addition to the body of knowledge on this topic and the implications in this study are significant and should be considered for future research and practice. first, we learned that the digital divide is still a problem. we also learned that educators persevered and worked long hours beyond their contracts to overcome the challenges. it is important for educational researchers and leaders to explore funding sources to compensate educators fairly should the need arise again in the future. we also learned that educators are more than willing to get the necessary training to successfully implement new technologies to benefit their students. in fact, they want it. this training will require monetary support. second, we learned new strategies for ensuring equitable educational outcomes and positive experiences in the classroom that should be applied beyond crisis situations. teachers in this study witnessed the advantages of utilizing explicit instruction to support their students in person and at home. this was especially needed for students who were using the district online learning platform. those students needed clarity, consistency, modeling, and support. the teachers, counselors, and administrators in the study learned the importance of community building. effective community-building actions included those that connected the research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 williams, t.k., mcintosh, r.w., & russell, w.b. equity in distance education during covid-19 research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 18 school and home environment, provided encouragement and support for students and parents, and allowed for flexibility. creating community by collaboration and mutual support among teachers also benefited students. decision-makers should pay attention to those lessons and include educators who served on the frontlines in any planning to inform educational policy decisions. references anderson, m. 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(2020). lessons from locked-down learning. agora, 55(2), 12. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 williams, t.k., mcintosh, r.w., & russell, w.b. equity in distance education during covid-19 research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 20 sayer, p., & braun, d. (2020). the disparate impact of covid – 19 remote learning on english learners in the united states. tesol journal, 11(3), e00546. https://doi.org/10.1002/tesj.546 silverman, d. (2017). how was it for you? the interview society and the irresistible rise of the (poorly analyzed) interview. qualitative research, 17(2), 144-158. https://doi.org/10.1177/1468794116668231 swarts, g. (2020). re/coding global citizenship: how information and communication technologies have altered humanity… and created new questions for global citizenship education. research in social sciences and technology, 5(1), 70-85. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.05.01.4 tadeu, p., fernandez batanero, j., & tarman, b. (2019). ict in a global world. research in social sciences and technology, 4(2), i-ii. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.04.02.ed tang, h., & bao, y. (2020). social justice and k-12 teachers’ effective use of oer: a crosscultural comparison by nations. journal of interactive media in education, 2020(1). trust, t., & whalen, j. (2020). should teachers be trained in emergency remote teaching? lessons learned from the covid-19 pandemic. journal of technology & teacher education, 28(2), 189–199. whittle, c., tiwari, s., yan, s., & williams, j. (2020). emergency remote teaching environment: a conceptual framework for responsive online teaching in crises. information and learning sciences, 121(5), 311-319. https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/ils-04-2020-0099/full/html research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 williams, t.k., mcintosh, r.w., & russell, w.b. equity in distance education during covid-19 research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 21 appendix a distance learning equity survey demographic information (participants selected from a drop-down menu.) gender age race/ ethnicity district title i status racial make-up of students socioeconomic status of students position grade level taught subject taught perception questions (for likert-type scale, participants rated their levels of agreement with the provided statements.) section 1: how have teachers, schools and districts responded?  my district/school did everything possible to make sure that all students had access to learning devices and software to succeed.  my district/school did everything possible to make sure that all students had the technology training to succeed.  my district/school did everything possible to make sure that teachers and staff had the training necessary to effectively facilitate learning.  i was supported by my district/school.  i did all i could to support all my students?  i did all i could to support my coworkers? open-ended: describe your experience during the initial covid lockdown. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 williams, t.k., mcintosh, r.w., & russell, w.b. equity in distance education during covid-19 research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 22 section 2: did they consider the digital divide in their response?  there was a special distribution of resources to support high needs populations (students with disabilities, students living in poverty, students from marginalized communities, students from minoritized communities).  there was training for students from high need populations.  there was training for parents of students from high needs populations.  if there was training for high needs populations, my district/school made sure that the students and families were well aware of opportunities for training.  i did everything possible to communicate with my students and families from high needs populations. open-ended: how did you and/or your district/school address the disparate impact of covid-19 on students from high needs populations? section 3: have teachers seen evidence of a digital divide?  my students from high needs populations suffered a greater impact on their learning than other students.  it was more difficult for me to maintain communication with my students from high needs populations.  my students from high needs populations were more likely to lack technological resources needed to continue learning.  my students from high needs populations were more likely to lack the technological skills necessary to continue learning. open-ended: what differences did you notice between your students from high needs populations and other students? section 4: do teachers feel that their technology preparation (or lack) impacted their and their students’ experience?  i already had the necessary technological preparation to facilitate learning for my students when distance learning started.  additional training was provided for me during initial distance learning. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 williams, t.k., mcintosh, r.w., & russell, w.b. equity in distance education during covid-19 research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 23  i had to find my own training in order to ensure continuity of learning for my students.  my students suffered due to my lack of technological skills.  my students benefited from my technological skills. open-ended: how did your technological preparation (or lack thereof) impact your experience and/or your students’ experience? research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 williams, t.k., mcintosh, r.w., & russell, w.b. equity in distance education during covid-19 research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 24 appendix b focus group discussion questions 1. what kinds of training has been most helpful for you? 2. how are you overcoming technical issues students have such as no connection, webex issues, etc.? 3. what is working as far as communication with families? 4. how are you overcoming the issues involving parent/grandparent extra support needs? 5. what is working to help online students stay on track and engaged? 6. what kinds of activities work best for online students? 7. what did you learn from the covid experience that you could apply to benefit students going forward post-covid? 8. have you seen any benefits or improvements due to covid-19? 9. what changes need to be made for this to be sustainable (next semester and beyond)? 10. what has helped you most to be successful in doing your job? 11. if there were to be another lockdown, what is the most important thing you would you want educational decision-makers to provide for you or the students? 12. what are you doing to strike a work/life balance? how are you attending to your mental health? research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 dhlamini, j. p. & molaodi, v. t. cross-fertilization in teaching and learning between institutions after covid-19 shutdown: a collaborative effort research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 135 cross-fertilization in teaching and learning between institutions after covid-19 shutdown: a collaborative effort joyce phikisile dhlamini1 & vivian thuso molaodi*1 *corresponding author: 1. north-west university, south africa received : 2021-06-18 revised : 2021-08-20 accepted : 2021-09-15 how to cite this paper: dhlamini, j. p. & molaodi, v. t. (2021). cross-fertilization in teaching and learning between institutions after covid19 shutdown: a collaborative effort. research in social sciences and technology, 6(3), 135-145. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.34 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). abstract research reported in this article investigated the effectiveness of collaborative effort between schools to bridge the existing gaps that erupted during the outbreak of covid-19. there are gaps in teaching and learning within the previously privileged institutions and the marginalised institutions in south africa. such gaps might have a negative impact on how teaching and learning are conducted. the purpose of this article was to investigate the creative and constructive ways of managing the anxiety related to socio-economic impacts in schools, amongst which were the introduction of online teaching and learning technologies, new methodologies and contents. this article is underpinned by the concepts of the establishment of advantageous strategies for collaboration, knowledge sharing and knowledge transfer. qualitative document analysis has been adopted as a methodology to collect information for this study. the outbreak of covid-19 has evoked inequalities amongst the communities. however, the re-opening of schools exacerbated multiple challenges. while teaching and learning is the centre of the education project in south africa, which the country has to adapt to, most institutions were faced with a number of challenges. this study’s major finding revealed that collaboration is synergistic and can bring out the best contribution that might currently perceive partnership within the school system. this article recommends ways of bridging the gap between schools through developing partnerships between institutions through cross-fertilisation. keywords: bridging gaps, collaboration, knowledge transfer, knowledge sharing, inequalities. 10.46303/ressat.2021.34 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.34 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 dhlamini, j. p. & molaodi, v. t. cross-fertilization in teaching and learning between institutions after covid-19 shutdown: a collaborative effort research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 136 introduction collaboration is not a simple and easy practice for people to engage in. it requires joint effort and envisions the world as interdependent and allows for participation in society in a cooperative fashion. collaboration among various educational agencies has been a key concept promoted in educational reform movements (kezar & lester, 2009). educational institutions could envisage a cohesive collaboration that would enable partnership between the schools for a common goal. the hope is that collaboration will be synergistic and bring out the best results within the participants. schools that do not have enough resources to cope with the demands of e-learning and those who may currently have resources might perceive resources as a sharing contradiction instead of collaboration. this collaboration involves developing partnership and long-term coherence relationships between schools to tap on the strength of each entity. it also involves a refined plan of delivery, effective development process, efficient communication, accountability and evaluation of teaching-learning programs. there has been significant evidence that when the department of education, school districts, schools in under-privileged communities pool their ideas, energies, and resources into a collaborative effort, the processes generated are not only richer in content but sounder in design (heath & johnson-taylor, 2006). a closer relationship between secondary schools is precisely important. such collaboration should feature involvement and agreement among all education personnel who are prepared to focus on projects that engage an active collaboration between schools (bernshausen & mcmahan, 2011). although collaboration may seem complicated, kezar and lester (2009) argue that collaboration is the most natural and the easiest practice for people to engage in and envisions the world as interdependent and allows for participation in society in a cooperative fashion. therefore, collaboration among various educational agencies has been a key concept promoted in educational reform movements. the hope is that collaboration will be synergistic and bring out the best in participating contributors, that is, the schools that currently perceive contradiction instead of collaboration (bernshausen & mcmahan, 2011). problem statement research conducted by the university of wits has proven that their first-year students struggle to cope with university education and curriculum (habib, 2016). the research further discovered that even those students who obtained distinctions in their matric results are not coping in institutions of higher learning (ihl). some students are getting an average of only 50 per cent in their university modules. this proves that there is a lack of quality education in teaching and learning in some secondary schools, hence a need for collaboration as cited. (habib, 2016). some schools are situated in rural areas and in some townships that hardly have electricity in the area. such schools do not even have the necessary teaching and learning support materials (tlsm) such as laboratories, libraries, computer centres, internet, to name a few. on the other hand, some schools have the equipment and resources that can assist learners to be introduced to the modern information and communication technology (ict) they need for their research work in their school subjects. apparently, such dispensations provide unequal access to research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 dhlamini, j. p. & molaodi, v. t. cross-fertilization in teaching and learning between institutions after covid-19 shutdown: a collaborative effort research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 137 technology, giving some students advantages over others (williams et al., 2021). thus, ict in schools encourage teachers and learners to join online platforms that allow for connectivity and engagement among users (waters & hensley, 2020). the majority of learners who “pass” matric are not admitted into the university due to the admission requirements of institutions of higher learning. universities have specific expectations of what students will learn through each teaching programme offered by that university. it is not surprising that these expectations are not fully met due to a lack of collaboration between the school sites to assist each other (heath, 2005; heath & johnson-taylor, 2006). such collaboration between school advance communication and prepares learners to cope with university work when they embark on further studies. equipping learners would answer the outcry as it was stated that “first-year university students are not coping with their studies” when they embark for tertiary institutions (habib, 2014). it is thus imperative for schools to work together collaboratively in order to share resources. aim of the research the major aim of this research project was to establish effective collaboration and partnership conversations between secondary schools. the focus was on advantageous strategies of collaboration, knowledge-transfer and knowledge sharing among secondary schools as an effective tool for working together. when learners pass their final grade at high school, they aim to further their studies through the institutions of higher learning. therefore, the effective collaboration within secondary schools would benefit learners from sharing knowledge and resources and be exposed to the expectations of the institutions of higher learning, including the universities and the further education and training colleges (fet), when learners progress after matric. however, collaboration aims at not benefiting the learners only but teachers and the entire school population (heath & johnson-taylor, 2006). methodology the research method employed in this research to collect information was qualitative document analysis. in the document analysis, the authors analysed documents of the department of education, academic research reports, strategic plans and reports such as the needu (2012) report, the constitution of the republic of south africa (rsa, 1996), (doe, 2010) and south african legislation. policies constitute the guidelines and draft policies —academic literature such as scholarly articles on collaboration. the national strategic plans and progress reports written by state departments were also analysed. conceptual framework conceptual framework used in this research includes the concepts of strategies for the collaboration known as advantageous strategies for collaboration (asc) concept of knowledge sharing (ks) and the concept of knowledge transfer (kt). wu et al. (2004), daniel et al. (2002) and dyer and powell (2001) were engaged in this article. wu et al. (2004) asc outline that in order to achieve successful collaboration, effective strategies are important. in this study, these strategies consisted of the infrastructure in the school. they further elucidate that collaborative advantage is the ability to form effective and rewarding partnerships with other institutions for mutual benefit that involves collaboration and creating new value together rather than being research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 dhlamini, j. p. & molaodi, v. t. cross-fertilization in teaching and learning between institutions after covid-19 shutdown: a collaborative effort research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 138 a simple exchange or transaction. infrastructure in the school refers to the availability of teaching and learning resources. is there any access to ict that the school is providing to the learners? does the school have computers and other teaching and learning resources? is there any collaboration with the other schools in the neighbourhood for assistance? the relationships that the school forms with other schools are imperative. such relationships became vital as departments of education implemented new teaching methods designed to preserve the sense of community during distance learning (william et al., 2021). asc strategy is important because the institutions involved in this collaboration share the available resources. it is evident that most township schools do not have enough (tlsm) to enable learners to learn successfully. however, through collaboration, the institutions could share the resources to the advantage of the learners. this collaboration includes the functioning of the school. the process of collaboration includes curriculum management to delivery and learner engagement which is the main focus of successful teaching and learning. the importance of asc is to create learning activities that are important and necessary for learning (wu et al., 2004). it also prepares learners to be part of a team and work collaboratively with other learners. the second concept is knowledge sharing (ks) by dyer and powell (2001), which focuses on sharing the resources available. the schools should participate in sharing the knowledge that they have with the schools that need assistance. it is important to develop partnerships with other institutions in order to share resources, thus sharing the knowledge. this is a process where knowledge is shared as an activity through which knowledge is exchanged among learners and educators in schools. by knowledge sharing, schools can exchange skills and expertise among each other. schools must be assisted in sharing their resources with other schools, and they should also develop a system of networking with other tertiary institutions as well. this is a crucial strategy as it involves the use of information and communications technology (ict). in the third concept, which is knowledge transfer (kt), daniel et al. (2002) intimate that any organisation that can enhance their research capacity would increase knowledge and bring development to schools. this project assisted the university to enhance its research capacity thus sharing and advancing the performance of the three secondary schools in heidelberg. the advancement of these secondary schools was brought about through by the effective strategies of collaboration between these institutions and the sharing of knowledge. the project monitored collaboration within the institutions and the staff (hutchings & michailova 2003; law & ngai, 2008). literature review working relationships between institutions the establishment of a working relationship between schools was a major goal of this study. effective collaboration between secondary schools has been a challenging effort. such collaborations have become particularly essential presently due to various changes in the school curriculum by the department of basic education (doe). the doe established the national curriculum statement (ncs), which lowered the pass requirement for exiting grade research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 dhlamini, j. p. & molaodi, v. t. cross-fertilization in teaching and learning between institutions after covid-19 shutdown: a collaborative effort research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 139 12 learners to tertiary education. when such learners receive their results at the end of their year of study, indicating that they have passed, the ihl does not admit them due to the low points that they have earned for their secondary school subjects (pinnock & hodgkin, 2010). according to the national education evaluation & development unit (needu) report, there has been an agreement between the minister of basic education and the president of south africa to improve the matric pass rate in the country (needu, 2012). however, reports show that results are not meeting the targets agreed upon (doe, 2012). as a result, more school leavers find themselves excluded from further studies in tertiary institutions. collaboration enables both schools to handle different issues related to student objectives and future careers. heath (2005) asserts that a superficial collaborative plan is likely to face a cultural clash and would have little chance to succeed. on the other hand, a well-planned activity, designed jointly by members of both institutions that consider the academic parameters of each institution has much a higher chance of succeeding. that collaboration helps participants to reflect on values, develop a shared vision and a sense of purpose around why collaboration is a good idea (kezar & lester, 2009). for instance, rismark and solvberg (2011) argue that knowledge sharing as a key to professional learning should be organisationally supported. in addition, akinyemi et al. (2019) report that teachers should collaborate and mutually engage in learning activities in communities of practice in high schools to enhance their professional development. the research reported in this article investigated the effectiveness of collaborative effort between schools and recommended how to engage in this collaboration. in addition, it investigated the ways of bridging the gap between schools with sufficient resources and those who lack resources, with the aim of achieving internalisation and globalisation through developing partnerships between institutions through cross-fertilisation. literature has shown that there is a disparity in the way schools are funded (department of basic education, 2016; du plessis, 2020). one of the objectives is to arrive at recommendations that could be implemented by both quintiles 1 and 5 schools to prepare learners collaboratively for further education and training. most schools categorised under quintile 1 are those schools in the rural areas, villages and townships. parents in such school are mostly unemployed and hit by poverty. on the other hand, quintile 5 schools are mostly found in urban areas where parents are working and can afford to support the needs of the school. why collaboration between schools? this is a significant effort to develop collaboration between schools through a project based on participation. the collaboration could be initiated to facilitate a project that sought to promote integration between secondary schools. close collaboration between schools is an important piece towards the continuous improvement of learner performance and introduction of learners towards the programme, which might be useful at the universities (walkington & seguin 2020). when educators from various schools and school principals are actively involved in determining the curriculum needs and improving on what is taught in the classroom including, lesson preparation, content knowledge, and instructional skills, teaching and learning will improve in schools. heath (2005), heath and johnson-taylor (2006) and dyer and powell (2001) research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 dhlamini, j. p. & molaodi, v. t. cross-fertilization in teaching and learning between institutions after covid-19 shutdown: a collaborative effort research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 140 suggest the most helpful aspects of school-to-school collaboration as that of sharing resources, including:  sharing expertise  conducting action research  service on school and university program improvement committees  making joint presentations at conferences. since 2005, the outcomes-based education (obe) approach to the curriculum was introduced in south africa. that brought about uncertainties among the teachers. in 2005, the national curriculum statement (ncs) was introduced and in 2008, the revised national curriculum statement (rncs) replaced its antecedent. since 2010, a new curriculum known as curriculum assessment policy statement (caps) was introduced (doe, 2010; pinnock, 2011). all these changes in the curriculum leave the teachers and the learners in confusion as they attempt to adjust to all these changes, which eventually become challenges. the pass requirements of learners have been lowered to 30 per cent. when learners receive their results at the end of their matric year that they have passed, they ironically do not get admitted at the university. the major problem is the low standard and the parlous quality of learning that learners receive at the secondary school level (doe, 1997; doe, 2004; doe, 2010). collaborations have become particularly essential recently due to the significant change in the demographics of post-secondary students. the outbreak of covd-19 has brought many challenges in the education system. such challenges are escalating due to societal differences, in addition to poverty. presently, there has been a change in students’ nature and career objectives, which have led to a high number of non-traditional students. however, the use of technology in ihl leaves out some students from underprivileged communities. hence a stronger partnership and closer relationship between secondary schools are critical to the success and possible cross-fertilisation of institutions (nage-sibande & van vollenhoven, 2012). in taking on new ideas for collaboration between two different institutions, several factors need to be taken into account. one of the major factors is that ihl and secondary schools have different missions, and they deal with very different issues related to student objectives, educational goals. in addition, some schools are faced with budget issues (kezar & lester, 2009). involvement of the school management teams it is essential for a school management team (smt) to change their attitude towards effective school management as they are expected to perform most of the managerial roles in the school and in support of any project which might bring change in improving the results of the school. they could even further request more information on programmes that would enhance their roles as managers in the school, by engaging themselves in the management of projects to bridge existing the gaps of “school community” in relation to the other “school community” so that schools can work collaboratively. they could also develop confidence in performing their duties and, most importantly, nurtured a positive attitude. the harmony prevails in the schools by implementing the advantageous strategies for collaboration, knowledge sharing, and knowledge transfer (wu et al., 2004). schools benefit from collaboration and continuously get involved in projects that are helpful to them as they could learn from sharing with other schools. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 dhlamini, j. p. & molaodi, v. t. cross-fertilization in teaching and learning between institutions after covid-19 shutdown: a collaborative effort research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 141 there should be cohesion in the form of collaboration between the secondary schools to improve the performance of learners. the advantage of this collaboration is the implementation of the curriculum which is prescribed to all schools operating under the department of education in south africa and ensuring that lesson plans used in schools are in accordance with the curriculum assessment policy statement (caps) according to each subject (doe, 1997; doe, 2004 & doe, 2010). according to (pinnock & hodgkin, 2020), caps is not a new curriculum but an amendment of the national curriculum statement (ncs). therefore, caps still follows the same process and procedure as the ncs grades r-12 (pinnock & hodgkin, 2020). cross-fertilisation is necessary since educators get involved in working with other educators from other schools while equipping their skills of deriving learner activities from the syllabus. collaboration boost educator morale. they get involved in knowledge sharing with other schools hence engaging their learners in searching for information relevant to their studies. however, educators use lessons’ themes as allocated in the curriculum working in collaboration with other schools. smt as subject specialists, work collaboratively with the subject educators. cross-fertilisation is important to achieve the following:  the concept of resource sharing is learnt through the collaboration of secondary schools and the use of the concepts of advantageous strategies for collaboration (wu et al., 2004)  the smts play both managerial and educator roles in preparing and organising ltsm and the resources needed by educators and learners.  some of the schools engaged in this collaboration are underprivileged with insufficient resources and some have the required resources. smt and educators learn that collaboration with other schools is necessary to benefit all through the concept of knowledge sharing (dyer & powell, 2001). findings and discussion the preparedness of the learners to be engaged in collaborative learning with other schools play a pivotal role. the understanding of the educators on how to involve learners in collaborative learning is also essential. educators are engaged in different teaching programmes that can be viewed as glasses stacked on the tiers according to their degrees of importance of the structure of teaching and dialogue between the learner and the educator, and to collaborate with other schools (moore, 1973). however, the abilities and competencies of educators play a major role in these new ways of controlling teaching and learning. icts in secondary schools is growing in popularity in south africa, and it could be useful where a lack of resources poses a significant challenge in secondary schools. some schools have such electronic devices, whereas, on the contrary, there are those schools without electronic resources. their collaboration with other secondary schools could afford the learners with the opportunity to use the ict equipment from other schools. such collaboration involves developing partnership and long-term relationships between schools to tap on the strength of each entity (kezar & lester, 2009). it also involved a refined plan of delivery, effective research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 dhlamini, j. p. & molaodi, v. t. cross-fertilization in teaching and learning between institutions after covid-19 shutdown: a collaborative effort research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 142 development process, efficient communication, accountability and evaluation of the teaching and learning programme. the researchers discovered that secondary schools that lack technological resources for teaching and learning find it difficult to perform academically. such schools need to share knowledge with other schools. however, the lack of resources makes it difficult for them to access information. findings from this study show that knowledge transfer is important in order to improve educational practices (huberman, 1983; love, 1985). it has been discovered that it will assist the schools to share the information with other schools, especially those who lack teaching and learning resources. such mishaps occur in schools that are categorised in quintiles i and 2 most frequently. the knowledge transfer process in education assists in increasing the use of research results by potential users to improve learning and teaching and curriculum delivery in schools. another finding was that the objectives of implementing the present school curriculum which is curriculum assessment policy statement (caps), will be better achieved through collaboration to support teachers and learners and foster a great sense of self-worth and professionalism in the schools. collaboration also enables teachers to develop confidence in themselves and be more effective in their obligation if educators are engaged in different teaching programmes where they recognised the structure of teaching and dialogue between them as educators and learners, as advocated by moore (1973). researchers have realised that through the use of icts, schools could learn from the collaboration with other schools, which will help them prepare the learners to cope with the demands of tertiary institutions as this would even bring improvement to the matric result of the learners. such projects are likely to motivate educators to specialise in different fields which are related to school subjects. the use of ict by the educators and the learners with the teams’ assistance formulated among schools could bring success. each participant would realise the important role he/she could play helping others who do not have access to computers and other ict material during their optional time and on the other hand, the concept of knowledge sharing, knowledge transfer, and resource sharing (daniel, et al. 2002; wu et al. 2004; dyer & powell, 2001). recommendations the researchers recommend that creating cross-fertilization between secondary schools through advantageous strategies for collaboration, knowledge sharing and knowledge transfer between schools is vital to improving teaching and learning (dyer & powell, 2001). when drawing on the concept of asc, wu et al.’s (2004) show that the availability of teaching and learning resources is one of the effective strategies that can be achieved through collaboration. although debates about implementing the best strategies to bridge the existing gaps in teaching and learning within the privileged and marginalised institutions in south africa have been ongoing even before the outbreak of covid-19, it is thus recommended that infusing working together among schools can help the situation which the existing differences in secondary schools has exacerbated. in addition, there was an increasing concern that the reopening of schools after lockdown would also exacerbate the situation by evoking inequalities research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 dhlamini, j. p. & molaodi, v. t. cross-fertilization in teaching and learning between institutions after covid-19 shutdown: a collaborative effort research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 143 amongst the schools. hence when secondary schools work together, it will help the disadvantaged to benefit from those schools that are better resourced. the differences in funding of schools need to be in accordance with the needs of the individual school. it is recommended that schools should be equally funded or schools, especially schools in quintiles 1 and 2. if the funds that the doe provides are insufficient, officials should consider collaboration of such schools as the best option. where there are schools situated in rural areas and some townships with limited resources that limit online or blended learning, in order to bridge the gap between schools with sufficient resources and schools that lack resources, collaboration between secondary schools, partnerships between institutions through crossfertilisation is recommended. school leaders, as key players of institutions, should work towards building rapport so that some school members will not feel marginalised and not get involved. since collaboration requires the participation of all stakeholders, school principals need appropriate professional development to assist in facilitating collaboration between schools. conclusion collaboration could bridge the gaps between secondary schools since teachers would no longer be working in isolation but collaborating on teaching. this collaboration provides teachers with the opportunity to discuss strategies on learning styles, teaching and assessment. through collaboration, there could be a development of knowledge sharing and partnerships between secondary schools. it could be concluded that knowledge sharing and knowledge transfer means the process of transforming and sharing information and skills which could be achieved through creating time, developing a sharing culture, and creating mutual relationships between schools. the meaning of knowledge transfer in this research was suggested as the best strategy for the process of transmitting information, skills and experiences in the best practices amongst secondary schools. this process of collaboration between the secondary schools could yield transformative results. it also could benefit the learners in the schools on their learning process and integrated the information, and the knowledge gained. references akinyemi, a. f., rembe, s., shumba, j., & adewumi, t. m. 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(2011). knowledge sharing in schools: a key to developing professional learning communities. world journal of education, 1(2), 150-160. walkington, nj. & seguin, b. 2020. multi-component multiphase porous flow. archive for rational mechanics and analysis, 235(3) 2171-2196. waters, s., & hensley, m. (2020). measuring rural p-12 teachers’ attitudes, perceptions, and utilizations of social media. research in social sciences and technology, 5(3), 25-54. williams, t. k., mcintosh, r. w., & russell, w. b. (2021). equity in distance education during covid-19. research in social sciences and technology, 6(1), 1-24. wu, t. wu, r.t.y. lin, c. & tseng, h. (2004). a study of the advantageous strategy construction for collaboration between small and medium enterprises and higher technological and vocational institutions by porter’s diamond theory. republic of china. december 2004. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 idowu, s. a., ifedayo, t. e., & idowu, e. o. (2020). assessing the career conflict options of senior secondary school students of ado-odo ota local government, ogun state, nigeria. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 55 assessing the career conflict options of senior secondary school students of ado-odo ota local government, ogun state, nigeria samuel adebayo idowu* department of human resource management, faculty of humanities, social and management sciences, elizade university, ilara-mokin, ondo state, nigeria tolu elizabeth ifedayo department of history and international relations, faculty of humanities, social and management sciences, elizade university, ilara-mokin, ondo state, nigeria elizabeth oluwatoyin idowu postgraduate student, department of counselling psychology and educational foundation, tai solarin university of education, ijagun, ogun state, nigeria *corresponding author: idowusamueladebayo@gmail.com received : 2020-06-02 rev. req. : 2020-07-04 accepted : 2020-07-17 doi: 10.46303/ressat.05.03.3 idowu, s. a., ifedayo, t. e., & idowu, e. o. (2020). assessing the career conflict options of senior secondary school students of ado-odo ota local government, ogun state, nigeria. research in social sciences and technology, 5 (3), 55-77.. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.05.03.3 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) abstract career choice is one of the most important decisions that students make, and this decision will affect them throughout their lives. this study adopts a descriptive research survey method for assessing career conflict options of senior secondary school students in ado-odo ota local government, ogun state, nigeria. the data contains questionnaires administered to 373 male and female secondary school students from three private schools and three public schools in the ado-odo ota local government. the data obtained from the questionnaires were categorized into a demographic data inventory, career choice scale, and support, interference, and lack of engagement scale. demographic information was analyzed using descriptive statistics, and simple linear regression analysis was used to test the three hypotheses generated for the study at 0.05 alpha levels of significance. the findings suggest that parental formal education has a significant effect on the choice of careers of students, and that the profession of parents has a minor influence on the choice of careers of students. the results also indicate that the socio-economic status of parents does not affect the career choice of secondary school students. based on the findings, this study recommends that parents be trained in career counseling to help parents direct their children in their career choices. counseling units in the ministry of education should also coordinate orientation activities and provide information on the broad variety of career opportunities open to students. finally, mailto:idowusamueladebayo@gmail.com https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.05.03.3 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 idowu, s. a., ifedayo, t. e., & idowu, e. o. (2020). assessing the career conflict options of senior secondary school students of ado-odo ota local government, ogun state, nigeria. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 56 future research should be carried out on the contradictory effect of teachers and school counselors on the career choices of secondary school students. keywords: career choice conflict, parents’ education, parents’ occupation, secondary school students introduction there is nothing as important for students as choosing a career. at times, the option of an individual's career determines the ultimate success of an individual in all life endeavors. career choice affects every aspect of a student's life; a successful career choice could determine one's potential success in the same way that a bad career choice could inhibit one's chance of success. choosing a career is a vital decision that everyone has to make at some stage in their lives. career choice is a decision that not only informs a student of a variety of subjects in secondary school but can also impact their course of study in higher learning institutions. as a result, most secondary school students (especially those in senior classes) understand the value of obtaining appropriate career and educational information from parents, teachers, and relatives (camarero-figuerola, dueñas, & renta-davids, 2020). the decision to make a better career choice has always led to contradictory thoughts in the minds of students, leading to intra-personal conflict. intra-personal conflict is the kind of conflict that occurs within an individual based on ideas, beliefs, decisions, and choices. this type of disagreement in career choices can either contribute to or hinder a student's career prospects. a range of factors, including parents, family, career interests, education policy, student academic success and employment opportunities, affect the options of career choices made by students. choosing a career is often seen as a major turning point in the life of secondary school students (borchert, 2002; hall & quinn, 2014; napompech, 2011) because the conflicting decision itself has the power to open the door to success or close the door to opportunity. students are aware of career opportunities and choices as soon as they are introduced to the occupation, ambitions, education, and role of their parents in society (chen, 2018; patton & mcmahon, 2014). parents have often seen themselves as having a major impact on their child's career choices. this is due to the fact that parents see themselves as family leaders who guide, prescribe, and determine the behavior and actions of their children in order for the children to achieve the goals and objectives set (idowu, 2019). adelusi (2003) argues that parents may be a motivating or inhibiting force in their children's career choices, particularly when it is clear that the home is the first social group in which the child comes into contact with parents who are the most powerful determinants of their children's career plans, ambitions, and career expectations. according to alutu (2001), career choices should begin as early as the nursery school years at all levels of primary, secondary, and tertiary education. the career-choice cycle of young people can be likened to the polisher crystals: all kinds of people grind at them, but the parents are the biggest rocks in the tumbler (otto, 2000). research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 idowu, s. a., ifedayo, t. e., & idowu, e. o. (2020). assessing the career conflict options of senior secondary school students of ado-odo ota local government, ogun state, nigeria. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 57 according to carlos (2009), knowing the factors that contribute to choosing a career is crucial because that decision sets goals for one's future and can influence one's satisfaction with one's career. parents are the most important people their children turn to, especially as counselors and role models (kracke, hany, driesel-lange, & schindler, 2013). watson, quatman, and edler (2002), polenova, vedral, brisson, and zinn (2018), and sylaj and sylaj (2020) argue that career preferences are partly determined by factors such as parents' level of education, socioeconomic status, parental occupation, and parental expectations. vellymalay (2012) says that the child's ability to excel in school depends on how well the child is handled by the parents. thus, this study is significant because parents do not understand the major impact their educational background, occupation, socio-economic status, and beliefs have on the career choices of their children. it is on this basis that the purpose of this study is to explore the degree to which parental factors predict the career choices of senior secondary school students in the ado-odo ota local government area of ogun state, nigeria. objectives of the study the aim of this study is the assessment of career conflict options of senior secondary school students of ado-odo ota local government, ogun state, nigeria. other objectives that were critically studied are: 1. to examine the impact of parents’ level of formal education on the career choices of senior secondary school students. 2. to assess the extent to which parents’ occupation affects the career choices of senior secondary school students. 3. to determine the relationship between parents’ socio-economic status and the career choices of senior secondary school students. 4. to outline recommendations and develop suggestions for future research to parents and other stakeholders when making career choices for senior secondary school students. research hypotheses ho1: parents’ level of formal education has significant impact on the career choices of senior secondary school students. ho2: parents’ occupation has no significant impact on the career choices of senior secondary school students. ho3: parents’ socio-economic status has no relationship with the career choices of senior secondary school students. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 idowu, s. a., ifedayo, t. e., & idowu, e. o. (2020). assessing the career conflict options of senior secondary school students of ado-odo ota local government, ogun state, nigeria. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 58 review of relevant literature career choice career is the entirety of the work that one does in his or her lifetime. according to granger, dick, jacobson, and van-slyke (2007), a career describes the totality of one's activity over a lifetime. alika and egbochuku (2009) define a career as a sequence of occupations, jobs, and positions occupied in a person's working life; this can be applied to pre-vocational and postvocational roles as well. brown (2002) describes the process of choosing a career as one of estimating one's abilities and values, of estimating the skills and abilities needed for success in a given occupation, and of estimating the job values that will be met by the various occupational alternatives accessible. career is a series of jobs that a person has in a specific field of work, usually requiring more responsibilities as time passes (okonkwo, 2011). okobiah and okorodudu (2004) refer to career as a range of work and non-work circumstances that typically cover an individual's entire life. career choice is a process involving a comparison of available career opportunities, a narrowing of choices, and a determination of what is best suited to a person at that time (capuzzi & stauffer, 2012). career choice is the outcome of a series of decisions, transactions, and changes over a period of years and in the context of many influencing factors (leung, 2008). career choice is a decision that most human beings make at some point in their lives; it is a decision that should be carefully considered as it can affect the rest of a person's life (eyo, 2011). according to salami (2006), many young people in nigeria make a wrong career choice because of ignorance, inexperience, advice from parents and teachers, or because of the stigma attached to those jobs without sufficient technical guidance and career advice. career decisionmaking provides a mechanism that enables creativity and efficient and sustainable approaches to the problem of youth career development (savickas, 2012). muraguri (2011) argues that the individual's choice of career is likely to be affected by several factors including personal and cultural values, family background, career expectations, and career guidance. some often make career decisions by choosing the path of least resistance: for example, pursuing a career path favored by their parents or following in the footsteps of elder siblings. finally, career choices are not made in isolation. secondary school students are exposed to the systemic influence of their parents and the social and cultural classes to which they belong. countless variables affect the phases that students go through when selecting a career. once students are in secondary school, they have the overwhelming job of selecting their future careers. career choice is one of the most daunting tasks for some secondary school students, as it determines what they would do in the future. it is therefore very important for each person to choose an appropriate career (ncda, 2003) as this helps to decide their future. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 idowu, s. a., ifedayo, t. e., & idowu, e. o. (2020). assessing the career conflict options of senior secondary school students of ado-odo ota local government, ogun state, nigeria. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 59 parents’ educational background the educational background of parents may affect the choice of a student's career, as certain students may determine whether or not to choose the career of their parents. udoh and sanni (2012) examined the impact of parental background variables on the career choices of secondary school students in nigeria's uyo local government area. the findings indicate that the level of formal education of parents has a major impact on the career aspirations of secondary school students. aswani (2012) argues that parental education has a major effect on pupils' educational and vocational aspirations. in the same way, adya and kaiser (2005) see the importance of parental education as important motivators for their children. for example, montgomery (1992) points out that female students with talent in mathematics regarded their career choices as reflecting interests resulting from the influence and educational history of their parents. onyejiaku (1980) asserts that well-educated parents are better able to provide the requisite assistance to their children in career choice and planning. denga (1990) found that children may be disinterested in some careers because of the educational inadequacy of parents and thus may not be educated. whiston and keller’s (2004) study in latin america on the impact of the family found that parental education had an impact on what the child learned about work and work experience. several researchers also reported the strong impact of parents’ education on career choices (esters & bowen, 2005; fisher & griggs, 1995). in a study conducted by nwoke (2011) on the impact of parents’ educational background on vocational choice among nigerian adolescents from eight secondary schools in abuja municipal, it was observed that parents’ educational background appears to influence and stimulate the type of courses that children study in tertiary institutions and their subsequent career choices. deridder (1990) points out that a lower level of parent education can delay the career development of adolescents. being born to parents with poor education reduces the likelihood of achieving a career goal and ultimately determines the child's likely career path. parents’ occupation parents have a great deal of importance in their children's career choices, which is why career discussions between parents and children play a key role in children's career choices. muyoi (2009) believes that parents have an effect on children's career decisions, both deliberately and unintentionally; as children pass through puberty, they begin to seriously consider their future, often looking to their parents as role models or career guides. lee (1984) argues that the occupational orientation of parents familiarizes children with their roles in the workplace. hairston (2000) states that the career ambitions of the parent encourage children to select their career goals, which often affect their knowledge of careers and familiarize them with research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 idowu, s. a., ifedayo, t. e., & idowu, e. o. (2020). assessing the career conflict options of senior secondary school students of ado-odo ota local government, ogun state, nigeria. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 60 occupational requirements. parents provide adequate encouragement for career choices that appear to be appropriate to their own (small & mcclean, 2002). otto (2000) estimates that 93 percent of high school juniors in his sample reported having similar occupational values to their parents. if the experience is good, then the child wants to associate with the occupation, but if it is negative, the child refuses the occupation. jungen (2008) states that children begin to associate with the profession of their parents as soon as they are able to pronounce their work title. caplow (1994) found that career decisions are explicitly and specifically inherited from parents. krippner (1963) analyzed the occupational preferences of students and their parents’ occupational level using roe's (1956) occupational scale and discovered that the occupations that students wanted to join are related to that of their parents’ occupations. roe (1956) perceives some positive relationship between children’s early childhood experiences and their occupational choice, as they spend most of their years at home and generally find the family as their reference community and parents to be significant figures. according to onyejiaku (1987), children born in a home dominated by a certain profession are likely to be influenced by that profession. many families are known to have held some occupations for many generations. a boy whose father and grandparents, uncles, and brothers are doctors or lawyers would inevitably have a different professional interest from a boy born in a family established over the years as farmers, teachers, or accountants. udoh and sanni (2012) discovered that the occupations of parents have a major effect on the career choices of secondary school students in uyo lga. paul (1962) argues that some parents have a participatory attitude to their children's career choices. parents with this kind of attitude are keen on their jobs and speak openly and with obvious enthusiasm to their children, thus exposing their children to these occupations (paul, 1962). parents socio-economic status a variety of family-related factors, such as the socio-economic status of parents, impact the child (bollu-steve & sanni, 2013). from a research study on family impacts on career development, lankard (1995) describes the socio-economic status of parents as having an impact on career choices among young people. alika and egbochuku (2009) reported that parental influence has a major impact on the educational attainment of adolescents, especially on the socio-economic status of parents. shahidul, karim, and mustari (2015) found that students’ career ambitions are significantly affected by the socio-economic background of their families. obiyo and eze (2015) point out that, in general, social status is passed down through generations and typically affects individual career choices. it is similar to cosidine and zappala (2002), who found that the socio-economic status of parents substantially influences the educational history of underprivileged students. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 idowu, s. a., ifedayo, t. e., & idowu, e. o. (2020). assessing the career conflict options of senior secondary school students of ado-odo ota local government, ogun state, nigeria. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 61 at one point, according to bolles (2011), you inherit some financial and other resources from your parents that affect your career choices to some degree. the financial status of the family influences factors such as one's attending school and one's career choice. in turn, this can have an impact on one's own values and career aspirations. gabriel, muli, muasya, maonga, and makhungilhu (2016) also find that the socio-economic background of the student’s family has a major impact on their career ambitions. students from high-level socio-economic households tend to join skilled work while those from low-income households are content with clerical work. however, obiyo and eze (2015) argued that the socio-economic status of parents is not a good predictor of the career ambitions of secondary school students. according to taylor, harris, and taylor (2004), the socio-economic status of parents is insignificant in shaping their career aspirations. theoretical framework adopted for this study this study is guided by the parental attachment theory proposed by bowlby (1980). the theory explains that a child develops a deep emotional relationship with another adult (caregiver) over a lifetime. parental attachment, according to navin (2009), has been shown to be positively correlated with student career exploration. navin (2009) considers that parental attachment is defined as the degree to which one feels emotionally attached and supported by one's parents, which is positively linked to career exploration. bowlby (1980) suggests that sensitive and emotionally open parenting helps the child develop a healthy relationship style that promotes the child's socio-emotional development and well-being. less supportive and emotionally open parenting or neglect of the child's needs result in unhealthy types of attachment style, which is a risk factor for many mental health problems. lee and hughey (2001) found that parental attachment is positively related to career maturity, which is characterized as how a teenager is prepared to make career choices. although career maturity may not be related to career exploration, career exploration is a required step in the process of achieving career maturity. the theory is relevant to this study, given that bowlby (1980) provides guidance on children's emotional development. bowlby (1980) has also made fair suggestions to parents and guardians. parents and guardians can now see the need to build a safe bond of attachment to their children. such bonds will enable children to end up with a secure attachment and a secure state of mind later in life. parents should learn to consider the biological and psychological needs of children and to reduce the unreasonably high standards of behavior of children. in this way, parents may seek to avoid the frustration that comes with expecting events beyond the child's ability. some studies have suggested that the explanation for the correlation between parental connection and various aspects of career growth is that a secure relationship with one's parents provides a safe place for one to seek emotional support (navin, 2009). data and method research design research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 idowu, s. a., ifedayo, t. e., & idowu, e. o. (2020). assessing the career conflict options of senior secondary school students of ado-odo ota local government, ogun state, nigeria. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 62 this study adopts a quantitative research design to assess career conflict options of senior secondary school students. according to christensen, johnson, and turner (2019), the quantitative research design is the strategy for gathering information from the study participants in a numerical format. the type of quantitative research design adopted for this study is the descriptive survey design that helps the researchers to gather data from a crosssection of the target population about an existing phenomenon (leedy & ormrod, 2001). this design is used because no attempt is made to manipulate any of the variables in this research; they are represented as they exist among the participants in this study. this research is a survey-based quantitative case study associated with a deductive approach. a deductive approach occurs when the conclusion is logically derived from a set of premises, the conclusion being true when all premises are true (ketokivi & mantere, 2010). firstly, it is a case study concentrating on three private and three public secondary schools in nigeria. secondly, the study collected primary data by means of a survey approach by developing a questionnaire. finally, this research examined parents' education, occupation, and socioeconomic status (independent variables) as having an effect on the career choices of secondary school students (dependent variable). population and sample the population of this study consists of 12,200 sss1, sss 2, and sss 3 students from 77 public and private secondary schools in the ado-odo ota local government area of the state of ogun, nigeria (ogun state government official website, 2020) during the 2019/2020 academic session. a sample of 373 participants were drawn from the population using a multi-stage random sampling technique. the sample size was calculated by applying the formula of yamane (1973) with 95% confidence level, which is given below: n n = 1 + n(e)2 where n is the sample size, n is the population size, and e is the error margin (alpha value). 1 n = 1 + 12,200 (0.05)2 = 373 http://ogunstate.gov.ng/ research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 idowu, s. a., ifedayo, t. e., & idowu, e. o. (2020). assessing the career conflict options of senior secondary school students of ado-odo ota local government, ogun state, nigeria. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 63 table 1. distribution of the selected sample (2019/2020 academic session). source: researcher’s field work, february 2020. research instrument the study makes use of closed-ended questionnaires consisting of two sections as a primary data collection instrument. the questionnaires adopted are the demographic data inventory (ddi), the career choice scale (ccs) and the support, interference, and lack of engagement scale (sil). the 10-item ddi is designed by the researchers and has been used to gather data on some of the demographic characteristics of respondents such as school name, school type, gender, age, class, area of specialization, parents' educational qualifications, parents' occupational categories, and parents' socio-economic status. the ccs was adapted by the researchers from the cds (meyer & winer, 1993), a 4-point likert-type instrument with 15 items, to measure the choice of career among adolescent students. the sil scale was developed by boerchi and tagliabue (2018) to measure students’ perceptions of their parents’ career-related behaviors and their influence on the students’ behaviors. the sil scale consists of nine items in a 4-point likert-type format with responses ranging from 1 = strongly disagree, 2 = disagree, 3= agree, to 4 = strongly agree. school type s/n selected schools total # of students sampling fraction sample size public schools 1. 2. 3. community high school, igbara, sango ota african church community secondary school, ewupe, ota ado-odo senior high school, alapoti road, ado-odo, ota 195 147 140 0.55667 0.55667 0.55667 104 80 78 private schools 4. 5. 6. glorious scholars academy, ewupe, sango ota dynamic brave schools, singer, sango ota divine graceland academy, ado-odo, ota 68 60 72 0.55667 0.55667 0.55667 38 33 40 total 697 373 research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 idowu, s. a., ifedayo, t. e., & idowu, e. o. (2020). assessing the career conflict options of senior secondary school students of ado-odo ota local government, ogun state, nigeria. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 64 in the pilot analysis of these questionnaires, reliability tests were carried out to determine the internal consistency of each measure. cronbach alpha coefficients have been identified as follows: 0.87 for ccs, and 0.81 for sil. data collection and analysis procedures for each of the secondary schools chosen for this study, researchers obtained primary data by seeking permission from the principals and school management prior to administering hard copies of the questionnaires with the aid of two research assistants. after receiving the consent of the administrators, the researchers called the students in their classrooms and made contact with them. the students were given the duration of three days to complete and return the questionnaires to the two research assistants, who sent them to the researchers for analysis. data obtained from field surveys using the ddi, ccs, and sil questionnaires were sorted, compiled, and analyzed using various statistical tests using the ibm spss quantitative analysis software version 23. the statistical methods used are a descriptive statistical technique and an inferential statistical technique. the demographic data of the respondents based on their school type, gender, age, class, area of specialization, fathers’ and mothers’ educational qualification, fathers’ and mothers’ occupational category, and parents’ socio-economic status were analyzed using the descriptive statistical technique by using tables for simple frequency distribution and percentages. the inferential statistical technique that was used to analyze hypotheses 1, 2, and 3 is simple linear regression analysis, which was used to test the relationship between parents’ level of formal education, parents’ occupation, and parents’ socio-economic status (independent variables) and career choices of senior secondary school students (dependent variable). all tests were carried out at 0.05 level of significance. results this section presents the analysis and interpretation of data collected from the respondents through the questionnaires. it presents the demographic analysis of the respondents using descriptive statistics and the hypothesis testing using inferential statistics. demographic analysis table 2. demographic characteristics of respondents (n= 373) s/n variables categories frequency percentage (%) 1. school type public 262 70.2 private 111 29.8 2. gender male 166 44.5 female 207 55.5 3. age below 15 92 24.7 15-18 244 65.4 research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 idowu, s. a., ifedayo, t. e., & idowu, e. o. (2020). assessing the career conflict options of senior secondary school students of ado-odo ota local government, ogun state, nigeria. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 65 over 18 37 9.9 4. class sss 1 127 34.0 sss 2 141 37.8 sss 3 105 28.2 5. area of specialization art 55 14.7 commercial 171 45.8 science 147 39.4 6. father’s educational qualification no education 19 5.1 primary education 38 10.2 secondary education 54 14.5 ond/nce 93 24.9 hnd/b.sc 93 24.9 master’s & above 76 20.4 7. mother’s educational qualification no education 37 9.9 primary education 37 9.9 secondary education 76 20.4 ond/nce 55 14.7 hnd/b.sc 94 25.2 master’s & above 74 19.8 8. father’s occupational category senior officer 226 60.6 middle-level officer 128 34.3 junior officer 19 5.1 9. mother’s occupational category senior officer 73 19.6 middle-level officer 189 50.7 junior officer 111 29.7 10. parents’ socioeconomic status high 129 34.6 middle 207 55.5 low 37 9.9 source: field survey, february 2020. table 2 shows that the majority of participants (70.2%) are from public secondary schools, while 29.8% are from private secondary schools. the majority of participants (55.5%) are females, while 44.5% are males. the majority of participants (65.4%) were between 15 and 18 years of age. this is followed by those who are under 15 years of age (24.7%) and over 18 years of age (9.9%). the majority of participants (37.8%) are in sss 2, 34.0% are in sss 1, and 28.2% are in sss 3. the largest proportion of participants (45.8%) are in the commercial class. this is followed by those in the science class (39.4%) and the art class (14.7%), respectively. the largest proportion of participants (24.9%) indicate that their fathers have a hnd/b.sc. degree. the same proportion of participants (24.9%) note that their fathers have an ond/nce qualification. it is followed successively by those who state that their fathers have master's research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 idowu, s. a., ifedayo, t. e., & idowu, e. o. (2020). assessing the career conflict options of senior secondary school students of ado-odo ota local government, ogun state, nigeria. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 66 degrees and above with 20.4%, secondary education (14.5%), primary education (10.2%), and no formal education (5.1%). the largest proportion of participants (25.2%) indicate that their mothers have a hnd/b.sc. degree. it is followed sequentially by those who maintain that their mothers have secondary education (20.4%), master's degree and above (19.8%), ond/nce (14.7%), primary education (9.9%), and no formal education (9.9%). most of the participants (60.6%) deem their fathers to be senior officers based on the occupation category. this is followed by those who submit that their fathers are middle-level officers (34.3%) and junior officers (5.1%). the majority of participants (50.7%) consider their mothers to be middle-level officers with respect to occupation, accompanied successively by those who indicate that their mothers are junior officers (29.7%) and senior officers (19.6%). finally, table 2 shows that most of the participants (55.5%) maintain that their parents have a middle socio-economic status, followed by those who claim that their parents have a high socio-economic status (34.6%) and a low socio-economic status (9.9%). hypothesis testing hypothesis 1 parents’ level of formal education has significant impact on the career choices of senior secondary school students. table 3. coefficients of simple linear regression analysis for the impact of parents’ education on career choice model unstandardized coefficients standardized coefficients t sig. b std. error beta 1 (constant) 47.367 1.436 32.977 .000 parents’ educational qualification -1.105 .316 -.179 -3.499 .001 a. dependent variable: career choice source: field survey, february 2020. table 3 reveals significant results (β = -.179, t = 3.499, p < .05). consequently, the null hypothesis, which stated that parents’ level of formal education has no significant impact on the career choices of senior secondary school students, is therefore rejected in favor of the alternative hypothesis. subsequently, it is concluded that the degree of formal education of parents has a significant impact on the career choice of senior secondary school students in the study area. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 idowu, s. a., ifedayo, t. e., & idowu, e. o. (2020). assessing the career conflict options of senior secondary school students of ado-odo ota local government, ogun state, nigeria. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 67 hypothesis 2 parents’ occupation has no significant impact on the career choices of senior secondary school students. table 4. coefficients of simple linear regression analysis for the impact of parents’ occupation on career choice model unstandardized coefficients standardized coefficients t sig. b std. error beta 1 (constant) 40.211 1.343 29.947 .000 parents’ occupation 1.695 .860 .102 1.970 .050 a. dependent variable: career choice source: field survey, february 2020. table 4 shows non-significant results (β = -.102, t = 1.970, p = .05). the null hypothesis, which states that parents’ occupation does not have a significant impact on the career choices of senior secondary school students, is therefore upheld. table 4 further reveals that career choice could be predicted from parents’ occupation by means of the regression equation: career choice = 1.695 x parents’ occupation + 40.211. this means that the occupation of parents may or may not determine the career choices of senior secondary school students in the area of study. hypothesis 3 parents’ socio-economic status has no significant impact on the career choices of senior secondary school students. table 5. coefficients of simple linear regression analysis for the impact of parents’ socio-economic status on career choice model unstandardized coefficients standardized coefficients t sig. b std. error beta 1 (constant) 45.233 1.526 29.650 .000 parents' socio-economic status -1.468 .820 -.092 -1.789 .074 a. dependent variable: career choice source: field survey, february 2020. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 idowu, s. a., ifedayo, t. e., & idowu, e. o. (2020). assessing the career conflict options of senior secondary school students of ado-odo ota local government, ogun state, nigeria. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 68 table 5 reveals non-significant findings (β = -.092, t = 1.789, p > .05). the null hypothesis, which states that parents’ socio-economic status has no significant impact on the career choices of senior secondary school students, is therefore accepted. table 5 further shows that career choice could be predicted slightly from parents’ socio-economic status by means of the regression equation: career choice = 45.233 – 1.468 x parents’ socio-economic status. discussion the findings on the demographic profile of respondents in table 2 show that the majority of respondents 70.2% are from public secondary schools. the majority of respondents (65.4%) are between 15 and 18 years of age. the findings also indicate that most of the respondents with 37.8% are in sss 2. also, the largest proportion of the respondents (45.8%) are in the commercial class. the highest proportion of the respondents (24.9%) indicate that their fathers have a hnd/b.sc. degree. the highest proportion of respondents (25.2%) indicate that their mothers have a hnd/b.sc. degree. most of the respondents (60.6%) submit that their fathers are senior officers based on the occupation category. the majority of respondents (50.7%) maintain that their mothers are middle-level officers with respect to occupation. the study also reveals that most of the respondents (55.5%) maintain that their parents are of middle socioeconomic status. the findings in research hypothesis 1 conclude that parents’ level of formal education has a significant impact on the career choices of senior secondary school students in the study area. this coincides with the findings of ogbiji (2019), who discovered that the children of parents with higher education are more likely to seek higher educational ambitions than those whose parents do not have higher educational qualifications. this finding is similar to the findings of shahidul, karim, and mustari (2015), which reveal that the parental level of formal education had a positive impact on the career choice of secondary school students. also, hahs-vaugh (2004) posits that parental education appears to have an impact on the academic and career development of students. on the contrary, roach (2010) concludes that the highest level of parental education does not have an impact on the career selection of college students. the finding in research hypothesis 2 reveals that career choice could be predicted from parents’ occupation. this is in agreement with williams (2016), who concluded that if the work of parents gives their children a great deal of happiness or offers a comfortable lifestyle, children would see the benefits early and can prefer their parents’ careers over others. on the other hand, if parents complain about their work or struggle to support the family on the income that their work offers, children are more likely to pursue more satisfying or higher-paid careers. this finding is close to that of aswani (2012), who found that the occupation of the parents— particularly the mother—had a substantial positive effect on the educational and career ambitions of the standard eight pupils in kenya. this study also coincides with the study of saleem, hanan, saleem, rao, and shad (2015), which reveals that the occupations of parents play important roles in the selection of careers for their children. in his research on the relationship between parental occupations and the occupational preference of their children, research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 idowu, s. a., ifedayo, t. e., & idowu, e. o. (2020). assessing the career conflict options of senior secondary school students of ado-odo ota local government, ogun state, nigeria. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 69 okeke (2003) discloses that the career paths of parents affects the career choices of their children. mwaa (2016) also submits that parental occupation is one of the factors that influence students’ career choices. the finding in research hypothesis 3 states that the socio-economic status of parents does not have a significant impact on the career choices of secondary school students. the results show that the socio-economic status of the family does not significantly influence the student's career choice. related to this study is the study of obiyo and eze (2015), which reveals that the socio-economic status of parents is not a strong predictor of the career aspirations of secondary school students. according to taylor, harris, and taylor (2004), the socio-economic status of parents is insignificant in shaping students’ career aspirations. salawu and bagudo (2000) have the same opinion that there is no significant relationship between the socioeconomic status of parents and the career aspirations of students. however, the results of this study are not consistent with the findings of salgotra and roma (2018) that the socio-economic status of parents has a significant effect on students’ career aspirations. conclusion this study concluded with four findings on demographic data, hypothesis 1, hypothesis 2, and hypothesis 3. the demographic findings in table 2 show the response of the respondents on their demographic characteristics and that of their parents. hypothesis 1 concludes that the magnitude of parents' formal education has a substantial effect on the career choice of secondary school students. this suggests that the level of formal education of parents can affect the career choices of senior secondary school students, which means that the higher the standard of parents' education, the more knowledgeable the students will be when making career choices. hypothesis 2 reveals that parents’ occupation has slight significant impact on career choices of senior secondary school students. this implies that the occupation of parents has little influence in determining how senior secondary school students make decisions on their career choices. finally, this study concluded in hypothesis 3 that the socio-economic status of parents is not important to the career choices of senior secondary school students. this means that the socio-economic status (income) of the parent does not affect the career choices of secondary school students in the study area. recommendations 1. since parental participation in student career choices is unavoidable, the current study recommends that parents be trained in career counseling. schools should set up special community programs to help parents direct their children. 2. counseling units in the ministry of education should coordinate orientation activities and provide information on the broad variety of career opportunities open to students. this will broaden the view of students as well as reveal the negative impact of family members on career choices. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 idowu, s. a., ifedayo, t. e., & idowu, e. o. (2020). assessing the career conflict options of senior secondary school students of ado-odo ota local government, ogun state, nigeria. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 70 3. parents should not push students against their will to pursue careers similar to their own. this is because the average number of students indicated that they would not choose a career similar to that of their parents. 4. a good parent-child relationship is important in shaping students ' career choices. in this regard, it is recommended that parents take time to discuss different career choices with their children and respect their decisions. suggestions for future research this research only looked at the effect of parental factors on the career choice of senior secondary school students in the ado-odo ota local government area of ogun state, nigeria. further studies should be carried out in the following areas: 1. research should be carried out on the effect of teachers and school counsellors on career choices of senior secondary school students in ado-odo ota local government area of ogun state, nigeria. 2. future research should focus on the impact of parental and peer group factors on career choices of senior secondary school students using a wider sample size because this study only made use of 373 participants in the ado-odo ota local government area of ogun state, nigeria. 3. further studies should consider differences in parental factors that may influence the career choice of senior secondary school students. variables such as parental educational background, parents' socio-economic status, parental expectations and values, and parents' occupation should be considered. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 idowu, s. a., ifedayo, t. e., & idowu, e. o. 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(3rd ed.). new york: harper and row. https://work.chron.com/effect-parents-adolescents-choice-career-18063.html research in social sciences and technology *corresponding author turkish pre-service teachers’ experiences with contemporary technology games and perceptions about teaching with instructional games ümmügülsüm korkmaz* osmangazi university, turkey ugkorkmaz@gmail.com zeynep yurtseven avci osmangazi university, turkey zyurtse@gmail.com abstract the present study investigates pre-service teachers’ experience about playing technology games and their opinions about using contemporary technology to play games as an instructional tool. the participants are 272 pre-service teachers from a university in middle anatolia. the present study used mixed methods. the data was collected through an online survey that was created by the authors. the survey contains demographic questions about the participants` gender, major, whether they play technology games or not, and questions about which technology games they play, their opinions about using technology (iwbs and tablets) to play games for instruction, and for which instructional purposes they plan using technology to play games. following research questions were investigated for the current study: 1. whether pre-service teachers play technology games or not? if yes, which technology games they play? 2. whether pre-service teachers plan to use interactive white boards and tablets that were distributed by the government under fatih project to play technology games for educational purposes? 3. whether pre-teachers’ opinions about using the iwbs and tablets to play instructional games associated with their gender and playing technology games? 4. for which instructional purposes pre-service teachers plan to use iwbs and tablets to play instructional games? for the second and third questions descriptive statistics and crosstabs were conducted. for the first and fourth questions content analysis was applied. fifty-four percent (n=148) of the pre-service teachers agreed to use the iwbs and tablets to play technology games for educational purposes while 46% (n=124) did not. there is no statistically significant association between gender and plans using the iwbs and tablets to play instructional games. there was a statistically significant association between who playing technology games and plans using iwbs and tablets to play instructional games. pre-service teachers who play technology games reported higher scores than the ones who do not play technology games. the participants suggested that using iwbs and tablets to play games would make learning fun and easy. the study has implications for teacher education and k-12 education policy. the present study also adds to the knowledge of whether the ygeneration pre-service teachers find the recent technology games useful for education or not. keywords: instructional games, tablet computer, interactive white boards, pre-service teachers, y-generation. korkmaz & yurtseven avcı research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 44-58 45 introduction computer games are a fundamental part of new generation`s lives who grow up surrounded by various technologies (bourgonjon, valcke, soetaert, & schellens, 2010; papastergiou, 2009). games are reported having the potential to be an efficient teaching tool by several studies in different fields from history to computer science (basawapatna, koh, & repenning, 2010; kebritchi, hirumi, & bai, 2010; panagiotakopoulos, 2011; sung & hwang, 2013; tuzun, yılmaz-soylu, karakus, inal, & kızılkaya, 2008; watson, mong, & harris, 2011). as the researchers and teachers seek for better and more efficient ways of teaching, using games in the classroom might be one of the ways to improve teaching. using the contemporary technology games especially in today’s world, might be helpful to teaching to the z-generation children, who were born in 1995 or after (mccrindle & wolfinger, 2010). the z-generation was born compatible to the current technology. they play with tablets, computers, smart phones and such other contemporary technology devices readily. schrader, zheng, and young (2006) claim that even if there is a body of literature on negative consequences of video games, there are potential possibilities of using video games as an instructional tool. interactive white boards (iwbs) and tablet computers are given among the recent technologies in schools by current studies (beauchamp & kennewell, 2013; bey, 2012; desantis, 2012). an iwb is a tool that allows using videos, pictures, and several other forms of media on through one device with a big screen. teachers might design instruction using those various types of media for their students and iwb also allow users to interact with each other (desantis, 2012). similarly, tablets have similar functions in a mobile form, which makes them more portable. beauchamp, burden, and abbinett (2015) report tablets are easy to use and learn. besides, tablets can be used as a motivational teaching and learning tool for korkmaz & yurtseven avcı research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 44-58 46 teachers and students (beauchamp, burden, & abbinett, 2015). playing games using those technologies would create a unique teaching and learning environment in classrooms. recently, a nationwide project called fatih (movement of enhancing opportunities and improving technology) is initiated by turkish ministry of national education to integrate touch screen smart tools into the classroom settings. ministry of national education reports that schools and classes will be equipped with the latest information technologies including iwbs and tablets with this project (fatih projesi, 2016). in this study, we investigate pre-service teachers` opinions and plans about using those technologies for the purpose of playing instructional games, which is reported as an effective learning tool in several studies (e.g., sung & hwang, 2013). we examine their opinions in relation with their gender, playing experience in general, and we also examine which instructional purposes they plan to use game playing in their future teaching with iwbs and tablets. games, technology games in particular, are acknowledged as an integral part of the changing structure of 21st century classroom (bourgonjon, valcke, soetaert, & schellens, 2010). furióa, gonzález-gancedoa, juana, seguíb, and rando (2013) identify gaming as a useful instructional tool including both traditional games and technology games. studies report gaming approach support comprehension, attitude, and achievement of students (kebritchi, hirumi, & bai, 2010; miller & robertson, 2010; papastergiou, 2009; sung & hwang, 2013). according to tuzun et al. (2008), with game-based learning, students become independent learners instead of focusing on getting high grades. educators use or promote to use games for various rationales. panagiotakopoulos (2011) argues that while students immersed in instructional tasks more, they were also observed to be more motivated when they learn with educational games. watson, mong, and harris (2011) add that when students learned educational concepts with games, the learning environment becomes more studentcentered and students to be more engaged. korkmaz & yurtseven avcı research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 44-58 47 according to becker (2007), observing the positive outcomes of digital games as an educational tool relies on abilities of new teachers. they should not be expected to adopt games as instructional tools, if they are not confident about using those games in educational settings and not knowledgeable about the potential of using them. watson, yang, and ruggiero (2010) investigated barriers to game-based learning based on teachers` perceptions. the authors concluded that four main factors were hindering teachers` use of games for instructional purposes: “challenges of implementing games effectively, challenges with using technology, current educational system, and challenges with obtaining games”. on the other hand, bourgonjon, valcke, soetaert, and schellens (2010) examine student acceptance of video games in an empirical study with secondary school students. they claim that several factors affect student preferences for using video games in instruction. perceived usefulness and ease of game, learning opportunities offered by the game, and personal experience with video games in general are given as the most influential factors for student acceptance of video games in education. in this regard, we see similarities for teachers and students to accept games as instructional tools such as perceived potential usefulness of game. additionally, if the technology is easy to use, it is more likely to be acceptable by teachers and students. some of the earlier studies argue that gender is an effective factor for playing games while some of the studies suggest that gender is less effective among other descriptive variables (e.g., laplante, nelson, labrie, & shaffer, 2006; papastergiou, 2009). bourgonjon et al. (2010), for example, report gender effects on student acceptance of video games; however, they report that it is mediated by student experience with video games in general and ease of use. in this study, we aim to examine pre-service teachers` experiences with contemporary technology games, which type of games they play, their plans for using current technology that would be available in their future classrooms -iwbs and tabletsfor instructional korkmaz & yurtseven avcı research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 44-58 48 purposes, which potentials they foresee by using games for instruction. we also investigate if their perceptions are related to their gender and game-playing experience. the present study aims to answer the following four questions: 1. do pre-service teachers play technology games? if yes, which technology games they play? 2. do pre-service teachers plan to use interactive white boards and tablets that were distributed by government under fatih project to play technology games for education purposes? 3. are pre-service teachers’ opinions about using the smart boards and tablets to play instructional games associated with pre-service teachers’ gender and playing with contemporary technology? 4. do pre-service teachers plan to use iwbs and tablets to play instructional games for which instructional purposes in the future? method the present study used a mixed method research design by using both qualitative and quantitative data. because of the notion of the questions, mixed method is found to be the best way to provide deeper information. research questions require both qualitative and quantitative methods to be answered. descriptive statistics, cross tabulation, and content analysis were used. descriptive statistics and cross tabulation were conducted using ibm spss 21. the content analysis was done using ms word. participants two hundred and seventy two pre-service teachers from the education faculty of eskişehir osmangazi university in middle anatolia participated in this study. two hundreds and seven (76%) of the participants were female and 65 (24%) of the participants were male. the participants` majors are english language education (n=55, 20.2%), primary school education (n=49, 18%), special education (n=38, 14%), early childhood education (n=32, korkmaz & yurtseven avcı research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 44-58 49 11.8%), computer & instructional technology education (n=32, 11.8%), elementary mathematics education (n=32, 11.8%), elementary science education (n=26, 9.6%), and theology education (n=8, 2.9%). instrumentation the instrument of this study was developed by the authors. this is an online survey that has six questions. two of the questions are open-ended. the survey asks about the participants’ gender, major, whether they play technology games, which technology games they play, whether the pre-service teachers think that they will use the smart boards and tablets that was distributed by government under fatih project to play technology games for education purposes, and why they will use iwbs and tablets to play instructional games. the online survey clearly states that the definition of technology games as follows: ‘contemporary technology games such as need for speed, farm ville, or any other games that are played with computers, tablets, or smart phones’. data collection this study is a part of a larger research that was established in 2015. data was collected from 272 pre-service teachers for 2 weeks by using an online survey. overall procedure took 15 to 40 minutes for each participant. the survey that was used for this study took an average of 5 minutes for each participant. results findings for research question 1 table 1 presents the frequencies and percentages of participants who said they play technology games and who said they do not. table 1 whether pre-service teachers play technology games do you play games using contemporary technology? frequency percentage no 80 29.4 yes 192 70.6 korkmaz & yurtseven avcı research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 44-58 50 total 272 100.0 if the participants reported that they play games, they were asked which technology games they play. responses were categorized under eleven themes. the themes along with number of participants who mentioned that they play/used to play that type of games are given in table 2 below. table 2 type of technology games that participants play themes examples frequency strategy candy crush (20), aa (23), mario (31), angry birds (6), chess (3) 93 action & adventure gta (grand theft auto) (16), subway (14), farm heroes saga (1), 101 (5) 36 fight counter-strike (12), league of legends (8), dota (defense of the ancients (3) 23 speed car racing games (13), need for speed (7), blur 21 crossword & mind games crossword (4), word games (6), mind games (7), king (3) 20 simulation the sims (12), euro truck, air control 14 soccer fifa (8), pes (pro evolution soccer) (5) 13 gambling & memory games rummikub (9), backgammon (2), poker game (2), 13 farming hay day (3), farm ville (10) 13 role playing knight online, silk road, the elder scroll, dragon age, popmundo 5 other dress up games (7), matching (2), architectural games (2), skill games (2), puzzles (1) 14 total of 192 participants reported which games they play using today’s technology. a hundred and thirty-nine (72%) of them were female, 54 of them were male (28%). participants of the present study mostly play strategy games (f=93). ninety (65%) of the 139 korkmaz & yurtseven avcı research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 44-58 51 female participants reported that they play strategy games while 3 (6%) of the 54 male participants play strategy games. action & adventure games are the second mostly preferred games (f=36). twenty five (18%) of the 139 female participants reported that they play action & adventure games while 11 (20%) of the 54 male participants play action & adventure games. fight games are third mostly preferred games (f=23). three (2%) of the 139 female participants reported that they play fight games while 20 (37%) of the 54 male participants play fight games. in summary, 192 participants reported that they play technology games while 80 of the participants reported that they do not play technology games. a total of 265 strategy, action & adventure, fight, speed, crossword & mind, simulation, soccer, gambling & memory, farming, role playing games, and other games have been played by the 192 pre-service teachers who participated in the present study. findings for research question 2 the second question of the present study is that whether pre-service teachers plan to use iwbs and tablets that were distributed by government under fatih project to play contemporary technology games for education purposes. table 3 presents the responses of the participants. table 3 participants’ plans for using iwbs and tablets to play games do you plan to use interactive white boards and tablets that were distributed by government under fatih project to play contemporary technology games for education purposes? frequency percentage yes, i do 124 45.6 no, i do not 148 54.4 total 272 100.0 as seen in table 3, almost half of the participants plan to use iwbs and tablets to play instructional games while almost half of the participants do not. korkmaz & yurtseven avcı research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 44-58 52 findings for research question 3 a cross tabulation was performed to breakdown gender and the pre-service teachers’ plan to play technology games for education purposes in their future classrooms. the result is presented in table 4. the pearson chi-square revealed that the relation between gender and plans for using iwbs and tablets to play games was not statistically significant, x 2 (1, n=272) =.565, p>.05. table 4 cross tabulation: plans for iwbs and tablets and gender what is your gender? do you plan to use interactive white boards and tablets that were distributed by government under fatih project to play technology games for education purposes? male female total yes, i do 38 110 148 25.7% 74.3% 100.0% no, i don`t 27 97 124 21.8% 77.2% 100.0% total 65 207 272 23.9% 76.1% 100.0% a cross tabulation was performed to breakdown the pre-service teachers’ plans for using iwb and tablet to play games and if the pre-service teachers played technology games. the result is presented in table 5. table 5 cross tabulation: plans for iwbs and tablets and playing technology games do you plan to use interactive white boards and tablets that were distributed by government under fatih project to play technology games for education purposes? do you play contemporary technology games? yes no total yes, i do 114 34 148 77.0% 23.0% 100.0% no, i don`t 78 46 124 korkmaz & yurtseven avcı research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 44-58 53 62.9% 37.1% 100.0% total 192 80 272 70.6% 29.4% 100.0% the relation between teachers’ plans for using iwbs and tablets to play games and playing technology games was statistically significant x 2 (1, n=272) =6.483, p<.05. findings for research question 4 one of the survey questions was about for which instructional purposes pre-service teachers plan to use iwbs and tablets to play instructional games. according to the content analysis results, participants` responses were organized under ten different categories: making learning more fun (11 students); efficient/easier/long lasting learning (8); providing engagement and motivation (6); using up-to-date methodology (5); appealing to multiple senses/visualization (4); using as a supportive tool to regular instruction (4); reaching information faster or faster instruction (3); rewarding (2); active learning (1); and using for assessment and feedback (1). some of the exemplar student comments are provided below: children learn better with games. today`s students are surrounded by technology and love technology, we can turn this into an opportunity. classroom instruction would be more colorful, engaging; it would be equipped with audiovisuals; and using technology might make teaching and learning easier. i think using technology is an up-to-date approach; it is also practical and would be time efficient. i can prepare tests with the elektroy software for formative assessment and i can get instant feedback with the socrative program. a couple of participants mentioned that some particular instructional tasks could be easier through playing technology games such as word memorization especially for foreign korkmaz & yurtseven avcı research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 44-58 54 language teaching; some mathematical tasks, like calculation games; and using videos and animations. some pre-service teachers had some concerns about using technology games as well. for example, one of the participants mentioned that if games are used too much, it may cause distraction and another pre-service teacher reported she would think about using technology games based on the number of student in her class implying it would be hard with too many students. discussion and conclusion as being a member of y-generation, those born in 1980-1994 (mccrindle & wolfinger, 2010), the participants of the present study documented that 71% (n=192) of them play with contemporary technology games such as some strategy games or speed games. most of the participants play strategy games. this result is consistent with the earlier study by hsu and chiou (2011). the authors of this earlier study reported that most of their participants, who are pre-service teachers, were playing digital games. on the other hand, turkish government plans to distribute tablets to students and teachers and equip classrooms with iwbs; so the authors of the present study asked the participants whether they plan to use those devices to play instructional games. almost half of the participants plan to use those devices to play instructional games while almost half of the participants do not. this result leads more investigation, since hsu and chiou (2011) reported that most of the pre-service teachers who participated in their study believe the potential of digital games to improve student learning. it could be further investigated, why about half of the pre-service teachers do not plan to use games in their future classrooms. results show that the relation between gender and plans for using iwbs and tablets to play games was not statistically significant. both males and females equally prefer to use iwbs and tablets to play instructional games in their future classrooms. this is an expected korkmaz & yurtseven avcı research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 44-58 55 result because the recent studies argue that gender is a less effective factor than the other demographics (i.e., papastergiou, 2009). results of the present study additionally revealed that the relation between teachers’ plans for using those devices to play instructional games in their future classrooms and playing technology games themselves was statistically significant. as expected, if pre-service teachers experience playing contemporary technology games, they are more likely to plan to use instructional technology games in their classrooms using tablets or iwbs. lastly, the participants of the present study were asked to answer, if they would, why they would prefer to use those games in their classrooms. the participants reported that they prefer to use those devices to play games in the classroom because they think that the contemporary technology games are fun and they would make learning fun. the pre-service teachers also think that games would support teaching process, ease teaching, attract and motivate students, might be used as reward, and appeal to multiple senses. these results are also parallel with the current literature such as panagiotakopoulos (2011) and watson, mong, and harris (2011). rice (2012) reports one of the reasons hampering classroom use of games is limited teacher knowledge about complex role-playing, graphically dense, and cognitively viable modern games. in this study, we asked pre-service teachers which types of games they played, but we did not investigate if the game types have any association with their plans for using games in their classroom. future research might search for the answers of the following questions: why do pre-service teachers prefer to play certain games? does the type of game they play have an effect on pre-service teachers` perceptions about using technology games in education? another further research also could be conducted on: do their major have an effect on pre-service teachers` perceptions about using technology games in education? the korkmaz & yurtseven avcı research in social sciences and technology, 1(1), 44-58 56 present study also did not investigate why the pre-service teachers would not prefer to play technology games in their 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(2013). games in schools: teachers’ perceptions of barriers to game-based learning. in aect's annual convention proceedings (pp. 229238). retrieved from http://www.aect.org/pdf/proceedings13/2013/13_32.pdf research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 marais, e. a journey through digital storytelling during covid-19: students’ preparedness to use technology for learning in the language classroom research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 169 a journey through digital storytelling during covid-19: students’ preparedness to use technology for learning in the language classroom elma marais north-west university, potchefstroom, south africa email: elma.marais@nwu.ac.za received : 2021-06-11 revised : 2021-07-21 accepted : 2021-08-30 how to cite this paper: marais, e. (2021) a journey through digital storytelling during covid-19: students’ preparedness to use technology for learning in the language classroom. research in social sciences and technology, 6(2), 169-182. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.17 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). abstract the covid-19 pandemic has forced lecturers at south african universities to reconceptualise their teaching and learning activities. universities had to embark on remote teaching to salvage the 2020 academic year. this created the opportunity to draw on students’ creative and digital skills to promote digital storytelling as a way of enhancing their learning experience. this article describes the journey of a teacher educator and a group of students registered for a language didactics module in an initial teacher education programme. film study was traditionally presented through lively conversations in a contact session where students could exchange their perceptions and opinions regarding various aspects of film. because of the covid-19 lockdown this approach had to be reviewed. the lecturer in question employed digital learning competencies to transform learning through the innovative use of digital tools and resources to rethink student engagement with film. students were invited to create digital stories. the outcome of the process not only improved their understanding of teaching film but also promoted their digital competencies and empowered them to create resources they could use in their careers. keywords: digital storytelling; film study; digital competencies; covid-19 introduction sam walton, the founder of walmart, (walton, 1992) once said: “many of our best opportunities were created out of necessity”, a notion entirely consonant with the possibilities inherent in the educational situation that covid-19 has forced upon our children and university students. educators and students alike are finding themselves in unfamiliar territory. although distance learning has been a part of our institutions for some time, we are all scrambling to find 10.46303/ressat.2021.17 mailto:elma.marais@nwu.ac.za https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.17 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 marais, e. a journey through digital storytelling during covid-19: students’ preparedness to use technology for learning in the language classroom research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 170 the best way to facilitate online teaching for students who previously attended face-to-face contact sessions on campus. the question of teaching is one side of the coin, the other being the development of students’ digital competencies, especially those of future teachers and in the context of covid-19 (jackman et al., 2021; könig et al., 2020; intrenational labour organization & bank, 2021; perifanou, 2021). within teacher training language courses, literary study has always been a cornerstone, with film study becoming more and more important in recent years. literature and film studies are traditionally associated with lively discussion within a classroom, where students could give their opinions on what the literary or filmic work aims to say and how such a text could be used in teaching at school (ahn, 2020; stephens et al., 2012). this is not possible within the context of covid-19, especially in an unequal society like south africa’s where not all students have access to devices and stable internet all the time. in a classroom setting a lecturer could show students a full-length film and the camera angles, lighting and much more could be discussed. as students had no access to campus, not only could the film not be shown or given to students because of copyright laws, most students were unable to hire afrikaans films or download them on streaming services. this led to a rethinking of the module, and of how students might differently engage with the content knowledge of drama and film while imagining how filmic concepts and conventions might be introduced in the intermediate phase language classroom. the aim of the article is to report on the changes implemented and on students’ perceptions of these changes. the focus is on a task where students had to create their own animated voiceover films, written drama, and report on how they would use these in the classroom. the students also comment on how they engaged with the technology used to create the film and why they chose the film that they did (see research question under the methodology). review of literature film as part of teacher training courses at the university in question, there is a module that focusses on the integration of drama and film in the intermediate phase (marais, 2020). this module combines content knowledge of drama and film with pedagogical knowledge to prepare intermediate phase students to use drama and film to facilitate language learning. the aim is to equip future teachers not only with the capacity to use drama and film texts to facilitate language learning, but also with the ability to engage with a new generation of children who are more familiar with visual technology in a variety of forms. within the south african curriculum, film study is not an outcome in the intermediate phase (sa, 2011), and therefore can be used with much more freedom within the language classroom in that phase. according to robin (2016), digital storytelling can be a powerful educational tool for students of all ages. moreover, if students are given the opportunity to share their work with their peers, they gain valuable experience in critiquing not only their own work but those of other students. film making encourages students’ creativity and gives them control over what they deem appropriate and what they want to use it for (robin, 2016). research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 marais, e. a journey through digital storytelling during covid-19: students’ preparedness to use technology for learning in the language classroom research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 171 digital competencies of pre-service teachers it is becoming increasingly important that in their pre-service years, student teachers start to explore the use of new technology in their teaching, especially in the context of covid-19. within the current curriculum, they might encounter technology as part of assignments, microlessons, or compulsory teaching practice at schools. the integration of technology into teacher training has become essential, especially in the light of the digital framework presented by the south african government in 2019 (sa, 2019). pre-service teachers must be prepared for presenting content knowledge through the use of technology and made to understand that the use of technology is strictly functional, a way of facilitating learning. it is widely acknowledged that future teachers and in-service teachers should have adequate if not comprehensive knowledge regarding the integration of technology in the classroom (martines et al., 2019; robinson & aronica, 2015; tamika et al., 2021; tondeur, 2018; tondeur et al., 2019). this is also a growing field within the south african context. in his state of the nation address on 7 february 2019, the president of south africa stated that the government would like a tablet in every child’s hand to aid their learning by 2025 (de villiers, 2019). this is not a new notion in south africa, since a white paper on e-education in 2004 asserted that south africa needed to transform learning and teaching through the development and integration of information and communication technologies (ict)(sa, 2004). the department of basic education has set out the digital learning competencies and digital literacy skills that teachers need for teaching in the digital age (sa, 2019). south africa has struggled in this regard because of budget constraints, gaps in teachers’ technical knowledge, and even crime in instances when schools have been broken into and equipment stolen. aside from these problems, there is still a drive to develop our teachers’ and pre-service teachers’ digital competencies. the digital framework identifies thirteen competencies that are required of teachers, ranging from the competencies of beginner teachers to highly developed literacy, numeracy and information technology (it) skills (sa, 2019). in this project, the focus was on the transformation of learning through the innovative use of digital tools and resources (sa, 2019). the digital learning competency 8 – transforming learning through the innovative use of digital tools and resources – is achieved if teachers (or, in the case of this project, students) are able to do the following:  explore new uses for established digital tools and resources;  explore opportunities offered by new digital tools and resources;  facilitate learning that was not possible before the introduction of digital tools and resources;  understand the impact of digital tools and resources on the nature of learning. the department of basic education (sa, 2019) goes on to say that the knowledge, skills and attitudes that a teacher or student could acquire could include a spirit of being innovative, exploring the potential value of new digital tools for learning, and implementing new approaches to learning. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 marais, e. a journey through digital storytelling during covid-19: students’ preparedness to use technology for learning in the language classroom research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 172 tondeur et al. (2019) claim that it is becoming more and more important for teacher educators to prepare prospective teachers for the presentation of material through the use of various technologies. teacher educators need to bridge the gaps that prospective teachers might have with regard to their technology, pedagogy and content knowledge (tpack) (koehler et al., 2013). tondeur et al. (2016) and tondeur (2018) concede that trying to prepare pre-service teachers for the effective integration of technology, so that technology adds to the learning experience and is not used simply for its own sake, is a complex process (aslan & chang, 2016). according to tondeur et al. (2016), pre-service teachers do not use technology during their preservice work-integrated learning as they do not have the skills nor the knowledge (besides the use of powerpoint) about how effectively to integrate technology. aslan and chang (2016) claim that new teachers should have the knowledge and skills to plan and prepare content using aspects of technology that facilitate learning. they also need the motivation to do so (tondeur et al., 2016). hammond et al. (2009) cite several reasons why students might not embrace the use of technology. these include teachers’ pedagogical beliefs, innovativeness, workload, the school’s access to ict infrastructure and the school’s culture. he asserts that there is a need for in-service teachers to be assisted with access to and the use of technology (hammond et al., 2009; ohlin, 2019). the same can be said about pre-service teachers. according to aslan and chang (2016), although pre-service teachers do use technology more than in-service teachers, their skills tend to be limited to technologies they are familiar with: using search engines to look for information and employing a data-projector to project powerpoint presentations. this situation makes it clear that we need to expose pre-service students to new technologies, technologies that they can use to present content in ways that enhance learning. especially in the context of the ongoing pandemic, it is important to help students imagine how they might engage technology to create their own resources for classroom use, rather than just exploiting technology to repeat content to learners. as stated above, the module that is the focus of this study aimed at developing and facilitating students’ digital competencies to enable them to create their own resources for use in the classroom, and in doing so develop their knowledge, skills and attitudes toward new approaches and resources for the language classroom. creating their own resources if there is one thing in education that the exigencies of covid-19 have taught us, it is the need for teachers to be able to create their own resources and make use of technology. although numbers of learners do not have access to devices like ipads or the internet and thus could not avail themselves of resources while the schools were closed, now that they are back at school teachers need to think critically and creatively about how to help them to catch up. teachers therefore need the digital competencies to make smart decisions. a critical problem in language education and film in south africa is gaining access to resources in the language that is being taught, especially the african languages and to some extent afrikaans. most films are only available in english, so teachers will just use the english film or no film at all. giving students guidance on how they might use technology to create films in their language of choice is a way to decolonise the curriculum while imparting vital skills. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 marais, e. a journey through digital storytelling during covid-19: students’ preparedness to use technology for learning in the language classroom research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 173 the challenges posed by the pandemic gave the author the opportunity to combine the development of digital competencies and home language resources as an activity for her preservice student teachers. methodology the research methodology sets out the procedures that was followed by the researcher answers the research question and is defined as the methods, facts and epistemological approach used (creswell & cresswell, 2017). in this section the task that was assigned to the students will also be discussed. the task assigned to students the assessment that the students had to complete was as follows: use an animation film like tom and jerry or any other animated film that you see as appropriate to teach afrikaans. as part of the assignment, you have to do the following: 1. choose a short animated film, such as tom and jerry, that you deem appropriate for a particular grade. 2. write an appropriate text (in the drama format) for the short animated film. look at study unit 1 for the characteristics of a drama. 3. recreate the film by recording your drama as a voice-over with the animated film. 4. use this newly created film to prepare a listening and speaking lesson to be used in a school classroom. remember to integrate language components into your lesson. what you have to submit: 1. your drama text. 2. your reworked film. 3. 300 to 500 words on how you would use this film to teach a lesson. 4. 300 to 500 words on why you have chosen this specific film for the intermediate phase. the lecturer supported the students by helping them through technical difficulties they might encounter while recording their videos. instructions were included on how to record their videos by using either their phones or screen recorders, and how to re-size them. in this assignment, students had to demonstrate the characteristics of a drama by writing their own drama (thereby enabling assessment of their knowledge about drama) (lower level of bloom’s taxonomy). they then had to create a short film, as well as analyse and evaluate it (top levels of bloom’s taxonomy). for the final part of the assignment, the students had to submit not only a rationale for choosing the film and but also an explanation for why the film was appropriate for that particular grade, and how it could be used in the classroom. this displayed their ability to understand the context of their learners and apply the knowledge they had gained during the course to make decisions on how to use drama and film in the classroom. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 marais, e. a journey through digital storytelling during covid-19: students’ preparedness to use technology for learning in the language classroom research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 174 this assignment was not only aligned constructively with the outcomes of the module but also modelled to students that they could create their own resources and think critically about them. in the end, the activity addressed five fundamental elements, as illustrated below in figure 1: using the content the students had to learn from the curriculum to create their own resources for the classroom, and in doing so develop their digital competencies. having the opportunity to share their films further developed their engagement not only with the content of the module but how resources could be created, as students could see how others did it and could learn from each other in a community of practice. figure 1: development of the activity (produces by the author) while the lecturer had a clear concept and goal in mind for the task, it is important to evaluate what students learned and got out of the experience. to evaluate the students’ perceptions of the task and the digital competencies learned, a questionnaire was distributed to them. students. the following section will discuss the methodology and the results of the questionnaire. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 marais, e. a journey through digital storytelling during covid-19: students’ preparedness to use technology for learning in the language classroom research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 175 research question in this study the following research question was explored:  how can digital storytelling be used to develop students’ digital competencies and own resources while assessing their content knowledge regarding drama in film in language teaching? research design in order to answer this question, a qualitative research approach within the interpretive paradigm was adopted. qualitative research is conducted to understand people’s experiences and provides an opportunity to understand what is important for people(creswell & cresswell, 2017; silverman, 2020) or in the case of this study students experience of the task that was assigned to them to develop resources and their digital skills in this particular course . the interpretativist paradigm is used as it as it gives the researcher the freedom to explore the meaning that an individual or an community may extrapolate from an experience (creswell & cresswell, 2017; rehman & alharthi, 2016). according to rehman and alharthi (2016) “researchers are inextricably part of the social reality of being researched, i.e. they are not ‘detached’ from the subject they are studying” (p.83) as the lecturer (researcher) was in the case of this study. participants the research was treated as a case study through the purposive sampling of students completing the course detailed below. a case study is an research approach that is used to gather in-depth, multi-faceted understanding of participants’ experience of a particular phenomenon or situation (creswell & cresswell, 2017). purposive sampling is widely used in such qualitative research (palinkas et al., 2015)to unpack and explore information-rich cases that relates to the phenomenon that is being studied. the population for this study included a cohort of student teachers completing a degree in education focused on the intermediate phase of the south african school curriculum. all students in this population was registered for afri 311, (afrikaans home language, afrikaans film and drama), a compulsory module in this programme. 84 students from a class of 116 participated in this study after being invited to complete a questionnaire about their experiences of completing the assessment task for this module. research instrument and data collection the cirrus testing platform was used to conduct an open-ended questionnaire. cirrus is a cloudbased, e-assessment tool hosted by amazon web services that is incorporated within this institution’s learning management system (cirrus, 2021). using cirrus provided a platform that participants were already familiar with and therefore did not add to their coursework or workload. the cirrus testing platform was adapted to only use open-ended questions that would not be marked but where students could give their honest opinions. data analysis the responses to the open-ended questions were downloaded in excel format and coded using atlas.ti. atlas.ti is an computer program used to arrange and manage qualitative material in research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 marais, e. a journey through digital storytelling during covid-19: students’ preparedness to use technology for learning in the language classroom research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 176 creative and systematic ways in for data analysis purposes (atlas.ti, 2021). the qualitative data that was gathered from the questionnaire was subsequently evaluated and interpreted to answer the research question set out above. three following themes were identified from the data:  pre-service teachers’ preparedness to utilise technology to create a film as a digital resource;  pre-service teachers’ perceptions of the ease of use of new technology as a vehicle to present content;  pre-service teachers’ perceptions of creating their own resources; and  students learning from each other. ethical clearance was obtained from the north-west ethical committee within the faculty of education within the wilworks project. in another effort towards ethical behaviour, participants were offered the opportunity to answer the open-ended questions in their home language, afrikaans, in order to create a safe space to express their views. this also contributed to validity and reliability of the data. as responses to the questionnaire was in afrikaans, the direct quotations were translated to english for the purpose of this article. member checking and triangulation were performed as the translations were sent to the students for their approval of the content and understanding. findings and discussion pre-service teachers’ preparedness to utilize technology to create a film as a digital resource initially, students were negative about the use of new technology as most of the students, 73 of the 84 who responded, indicated that they had never done anything like this before. only 9 students indicated that they did not learn any new digital skills. the majority of students therefore had no pre-existing knowledge about using a film that was already created and reworking it into something new. one student commented that he/she did not understand the need for resources in the home language, as an english film would do just as well. s41:1: i would not create such a film again, i do not see the need to create films in afrikaans for students, they can watch the english as it was created in english. i would just rather use it as is. most students’ knowledge about technology was limited to word processing and watching videos, not creating their own. some students indicated that while they created tiktok videos, this was something totally different, as tiktok videos are much shorter and do not fall into the criteria as set out in the assignment. their initially negative attitudes spilled over into an unwillingness to learn new technology. they did not want to try something new, and several students asked if they could present their content on powerpoint. it was evident from the students’ growing preparedness to try the new technology that they were moving through the stages of concern identified by george et al. (2006). this process was described by george et al. (2006), to explain how likely a person might be to adapt to new technology based on their concerns regarding that technology. according research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 marais, e. a journey through digital storytelling during covid-19: students’ preparedness to use technology for learning in the language classroom research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 177 to george et al. (2006), the stages of concern that might influence the adoption of new technologies can be set out as follows: figure 2: stages of concern regarding the adoption of new technology (george et al., 2006) according to george et al. (2006), concerns about adopting new technology will vary according to the user’s knowledge and experience of that particular technology, and these concerns will influence the intensity of their adoption of the new technology. when the assignment was first presented to the students, they were ‘unconcerned’ about the new technology and did not want to use it. numbers of students indicated that their first response to the assignment was one of panic as they felt that they did not have the digital skills to complete it, and would have preferred the familiarity of a medium like powerpoint. as time elapsed and students realised that they would have to complete the assignment, their concerns about the new technology moved to a personal concern regarding ‘what do i need to do?’ (george et al., 2006). in this stage of concern, the students were uncertain about the demands of the new technology and their ability to meet these demands. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 marais, e. a journey through digital storytelling during covid-19: students’ preparedness to use technology for learning in the language classroom research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 178 creating a space of support was crucial in this regard, a space where not only support videos were supplied but where questions were answered immediately. students felt comfortable enough to try new things with new technology. thereafter they learned by doing. pre-service teachers’ perceptions of the ease of use of new technology as a vehicle to present content ample support was given to students to make sure that they did not struggle with the creation and uploading of a video. the lecturer explained everything via short instructional videos that were sent to students on the learning management system and via a whatsapp group. the students could ask questions on the whatsapp group and support could be given to them as they needed it. it was important to ensure that students’ struggles with technology did not influence them negatively. if students struggled with recording, presenting and reworking their video, the supplemental instruction leader1 was there to supported them. it was also important to make sure that students knew exactly what they would be assessed on. the assessment focused on content knowledge, as this was the main focus for the incorporation of film with a written assignment, and not necessarily how it looked. secondly, students were assessed on the presentation of their film in relation to the school grade for which they had created it. after students had overcome their initial ‘fear’ of the new application, they were asked in the survey what they thought of various aspects of it. as many as 79 of them indicated that they would be using the tools to which they had been introduced again to create their own resources for their classrooms. forty-eight of the participants indicated that although it was difficult at the beginning, with support they were able to learn new digital skills that they could transfer to other fields within their careers. the 5 students who indicated that they would not be making or using such films in their classrooms gave very different answers for this. one student commented that she would much rather use the english version of the film, even in an afrikaans home language class (see quote s41:1). this is quite unfortunate as we have a big problem in south africa with access to resources in afrikaans and the other nine official languages. it seems that we have not made it sufficiently clear to our students that when you give a learner resources in the language that you are teaching they will learn the language better. it was therefore important to have a follow-up session with the class to reiterate why resources in the home language being taught are extremely important. another comment that spoke to why students would not use film again in this way had to do with their interface with the new technology. the student commented that it takes too long and it is not as perfect as hollywood animation would be. s56:5: i struggled to create a perfect hollywood film and it took really long, i don’t think that i will do it again although i think children will enjoy it. 1 an supplemental instruction leader is an senior student that support students within a subject if and when they struggle. they do not lecture, but support students in question that they have and as a group the students solve the problems and learn from each other. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 marais, e. a journey through digital storytelling during covid-19: students’ preparedness to use technology for learning in the language classroom research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 179 this is unfortunate. as teachers, they will not have the financial capacity to create hollywood films, and if this is their outlook they will never give their students access to films in a language other than english. pre-service teachers’ perceptions of creating their own resources the students were asked if they would create such films again and use the films that they had created in their classrooms. to this question the answer was an overwhelming ‘yes’, with the exception of two students. the students who responded that they would use these resources in their classroom commented that the films helped them to explore the availability of films in the home language in question, and now saw the need for them. they furthermore commented that having the creative space to write the story and then create the film had them thinking more deeply about what is appropriate for the intermediate phase and how they would use this kind of material in their classroom. one student commented that she wanted to teach a lesson about intensive form. using an already created film would not necessarily use intensive form that the teacher could use as part of their lesson, but seeing that she had created the dialogue she had the freedom to make sure that intensive form phrases were included. s12:3: i struggled but enjoyed creating the dialogue that could support my lesson. i wanted to do a lesson on intensive form, but no film includes this, especially in afrikaans. writing the dialogue, i could include it to correlate with my lesson. the two students who commented that they would not use or create such films again had two different arguments regarding the matter. one student indicated that it takes too much time to create your own resources, while the other commented that s/he does not see the need to give learners the resources in the language that s/he is teaching. she stated that they can watch the english film and just answer questions in the language being taught. s76:3: i would not create my own film, you would save time to just use resources that the school have, or the department gives you, even if they are not available in afrikaans. it takes too much time to write the words and create the film. both of these are problematic responses, as the one indicates a fundamental problem – that some students and teachers only want to use the resources they have, no matter the circumstances – and the other suggests that the student does not understand the fundamental principles of language instruction, i.e., giving students a chance to experience the language. students learning from each other although this was not originally planned, the films and drama texts that the students created were shared among them after they had submitted their work. most students indicated that it broadened their understanding and that they learned from each other. the students had a resource bank they could use for teaching practice and when they taught in the future. putting together this resource bank pooled resources not only for the students but also for the larger community if the students were to give their consent. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 marais, e. a journey through digital storytelling during covid-19: students’ preparedness to use technology for learning in the language classroom research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 180 the fact that students were able to watch other students’ films allowed them not only to see different and creative ways that other students presented their drama and used afrikaans home language in animated films, but also engendered an awareness of variance in afrikaans, as coming from different contexts in the diverse society of south africa, the students speak different variants of the language. students further indicated that the assignment held their attention and incorporated creativity: it motivated them to think differently about language teaching and the resources they could use and even create. this was evident when students had to create content and resources later on in the course, when several students made use of film instead of traditional assignment types. some students attempted even more unusual and original exercises. when i asked these students why they tried the format that they did, they indicated that the creativity encouraged in the course spurred them to think outside of the box and take things a step further. this is evident from some of these quotes: s8:5: it was nice for me to be a bit creative i enjoyed the opportunity to be creative and to create my own resources it was a positive experience that aided me to think outside of the box and prompted me to think about ways to create resources to support my learners. s26:3: it was really creative and different. this challenged me to think differently not only about teaching language, but about resources. students indicated that the ‘different’ approach that was used within this module led them to examine language education and look differently at the teaching of the various language components. they said that their experience in school and hitherto during the teaching practice opportunities had induced them to see language teaching as boring and textbook bound. they have felt that children did not enjoy it and that they had not known how to make it interesting for them. when asked whether this new approach had changed their views on language teaching, the students indicated that it had indeed made language teaching more interesting [s6:2: “it was really interesting way to present a lesson in the language classroom”]. they claimed that they had been allowed more creativity, and that this had changed their own approach to language teaching. they indicated that they would like to make language teaching more creative and engaging for learners, by using modern teaching approaches and technology. conclusion finding a way to critically engage students during covid-19 pandemic with film and how they would use it within an intermediate classroom created a challenge for me as a lecturer. i was always very reliant on the lively discussions that showing films to students engendered, especially their ideas about one would use a particular film in the classroom and the value of doing so. the advent of the pandemic required me to think differently and go beyond the creation of a zoom classroom where some students could end up not attending or muting their microphones or even doing something else while the discussion proceeded. challenging the students to create their own films developed their digital learning competency by transforming learning through the innovative use of digital tools and resources. this in turn research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 marais, e. a journey through digital storytelling during covid-19: students’ preparedness to use technology for learning in the language classroom research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 181 challenged and developed the students’ spirit of innovation, their exploration of the value of technology and their thinking about new ways of learning and teaching. the activity described in this article challenged the students to engage with the content and to understand it thoroughly: not only by creating a drama but by thinking critically about why, how and what the true value is of what can be created in the language classroom. each student had to engage on his or her own but with the opportunity to ask questions and learn. from the students’ feedback, it is clear that the assignment did push them out of their comfort zone, but they rose to the challenge and in the end acquired not only content and pedagogical knowledge but also digital competencies, rendering them more prepared for the changing world in which they would be teaching. references ahn, c. 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(1992). sam walton: made in america. bantam books. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ej1125504.pdf https://doi.org/10.1080/1475939x.2016.1193556 https://doi.org/10.1111/bjet.12748 microsoft word 4.ofori-kusi&tachie.56-68 research in social sciences and technology https://ressat.org e-issn: 2468-6891 volume: 7 issue: 1 2022 pp. 56-68 learning mathematics through whatsapp groups in university preparatory program during the covid-19 pandemic daniel ofori-kusia & simon adjei tachie*b * corresponding author email: simon.tachie@gmail.com a. department of natural science, university of the free state, south africa b. school of mathematics, science and technology education, north-west university, potchefstroom, south africa article info received: september 12, 2021 revised: october 27, 2021 accepted: november 19, 2021 how to cite ofori-kusi, d., & tachie, s. a. (2022). learning mathematics through whatsapp groups in university preparatory program during the covid19 pandemic. research in social sciences and technology, 7(1), 56-68 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2022.1 copyright license this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 abstract this study investigates the effects of whatsapp social media learning group in the teaching and learning of mathematics with first year underprepared university students. the study was undertaken using a quantitative research method. it employed a randomised post-test-only with a non-equivalent groups design to investigate if there is a statistically significant difference between university students who studied through the traditional face-to-face lecturing approach and students who utilised a blended approach to learning mathematics. the study population comprised first-year university students enrolled for the university extended programme offered by all universities in south africa. the sample consisted of 192 experimental groups and 341 control group students conveniently sampled from a university in south africa. the main instruments used in this study were two standardised semester exams. these tests were checked and moderated by senior mathematics lecturers to ensure they conformed with the module content and satisfied all assessment policies of the university. the cronbach alpha coefficient was used to measure the consistencies in these twosemester exams. the study's main finding showed no statistically significant difference in results between students who studied mathematics through a face-to-face lecturing approach and students who studied mathematics through a blended learning approach. the study concludes that the latter performed slightly better than students in the former, confirming that a whatsapp learning group can be a viable alternative to the teaching and learning at the university when face-to-face learning is not possible, as for an example in the covid-19 era. the study recommends that more profound research be conducted to identify and analyse positive indicators when learning is done through social media interaction. keywords learning mathematics; social media; whatsapp learning group; mathematics achievement. 10.46303/ressat.2022.1 57 ressat 2022, 7(1): 56-68 introduction and background the transition from the primary education system to the higher education system has never been smooth for under-prepared students, with unconvincing results emanating from the primary school system. our experience with these types of students as researchers indicates a considerable mathematics knowledge gap between their high school mathematics and first-year university mathematics, making the university preparatory program a critical lifeline for students' success in the university system. wolmarans et al. (2010) define the mathematical knowledge gap as the difference between the knowledge possessed by school leavers and the knowledge required for first-year entry into mathematics courses. most first-year university students even find it difficult to cope with mathematics bridging courses. some have to repeat the procedure for a few years before they are considered competent for the program. the department of higher education estimated the annual drop-out rate in south african universities in 2012 to be 35% (dhet, 2013). the council for higher education in 2013 went further to explain that only 25% of students in residential universities graduated within the minimum turnaround time required, and only 35% of the total number of students enrolling in any given year obtain their degrees within five years (che, 2013). a report by dhet (2013) cites, among the various reasons, insufficient support for hugely underprepared first-year university students who experienced poor standards of teaching and learning at the primary school level. help is needed to avert the high student failure rate in the higher education sector. for this reason, these students are typically placed in university preparatory programs that involve mathematics pre-requisites to strengthen their understanding of the basic mathematical concepts and integrate basic high school mathematics concepts with introductory university mathematics concepts. universities in south africa attempt to address the poor quality of teaching and learning among students of previously disadvantaged backgrounds only after students have entered higher education (lombard, 2020). this preparatory mathematics course is designed to run for 6 hours a week in a face-to-face lecture mode. it is a smooth transition medium to gradually introduce fresh first-year mathematics students (with average mathematics results from the primary school system) to university mathematics. problem statement this study investigated whether or not learning mathematics through whatsapp learning groups impacted the mathematics performance of first-year university students engaged in a university's extended program. the emergence of covid-19 necessitated the reduction of contact, face-to-face sessions to limit the impact of infection. this gave rise to institutions and lecturers, particularly exploring other teaching and learning methods and involving the online learning space where social media could become a valuable resource in the learning process. this study, therefore, investigated the impact on students' mathematics achievements when 58 ofori-kusi, d., & tachie, s. a. ressat 2022, 7(1): 56-68 social media was explored as a supportive learning tool compared to students who studied the module merely through face-to-face interaction in the lecture venues. research question what impact does social media (whatsapp), as a learning platform, have on first-year university students' preparatory mathematics performance? aim of the study the study aimed to determine whether or not there was a statistically significant difference in first-year mathematics results for first-year university preparatory students who learnt through a traditional face-to-face approach and students who learnt through a blended process of faceto-face and social media learning platforms. a null and alternative hypothesis was formulated as follows:  h0: there is no statistically significant difference in the average score of two-semester exams between the control and experimental groups.  h1: there is a statistically significant difference in the average score of two-semester exams between the control and experimental groups. theoretical literature framework the theoretical framework that informed the current study was social constructivism. gergen (1973 cited in passer & smith, 2008) explains that in social constructivism, individuals learn from a group and, in doing so, can gel with the learning style of the group whiles maintaining their way of learning (gergen, 1973 as cited in passer & smith, 2008). it also reveals and explains how knowledge transfer can take place through lecturer-student interaction and student-student interaction. the idea of social constructivism was coined to enable literature to understand the mental processes that are involved in allowing the students to conceive ideas on how to deal with complex problems and how students can develop unique strategies to deal with complex problems and in the process forming unique problem-solving strategies, this according to passer and smith (2008) is produced from a shared way of thinking within social settings. vygotsky (1978) further explains that cognitive development in students stems from social interaction from guided learning within the zone of proximal development as students and their peers' coconstruct knowledge in a social setting. social constructivism in the current study guides how students can acquire and share mathematical knowledge while learning mathematics through using a social setting on a whatsapp platform group. the theory will also help the researcher understand the reasoning of students' use of social media (whatsapp) for effective teaching and learning of mathematics in their program through student-student interaction or student-lecturer interaction. amry (2014), after comparing students who learnt mathematics through whatsapp group chats where mathematical knowledge was constructed through social constructivism compared to students who learnt mathematics through traditional face to face approach, concluded that the former performed better than the latter. then there was a real difference in 59 ressat 2022, 7(1): 56-68 the mathematics scores between the two groups. gasaymeh (2017) also reported that students have a positive feeling towards integrating whatsapp into their formal learning. learning is a process of thinking whereby the mind can conceive of myths that discourage or encourage students to use a particular concept or concept for solving problems effectively through social media. in problem-solving situations, under certain mathematical constructs called schemas, the mind reasons how to execute an action through commitment in practice. schemas are mechanisms in human memory which allow for the encoding, synthesis, generalisation and retrieval of experience similarities (marshall, 1995) to execute familiar different cases or problems action. learning mathematics is purely a constructive process because it is cumulative, and mathematical concepts are interrelated (ncube, 2013). learning that focuses on practical activities and students-frequent use of social media can pave the way for sharing ideas through social interaction. piaget (1968) contends that learning takes place in three phases: (1) assimilation, putting new data into schemas; (2) accommodation, converting existing schemas into new knowledge and (3) equilibration: finding a balance between oneself and the world through sharing of ideas using any effective medium (such as social media). the higher education curriculum is currently structured to include the subject content and the didactics aspects in the same module. therefore, teaching and learning must be done so that students enjoy the lecture and contribute through their participation. a significant set of ideas of constructivism is that knowledge comes from the foundation of experience through social interaction; hence, students' use of social media such as whatsapp will help them understand mathematical concepts taught by their lecturers in a program. the understanding of the world is impacted mainly by social experiences, and individuals have specific knowledge that emanates from unique backgrounds. nonetheless, the bulk of knowledge is socially shared from socially shared experiences. therefore, all knowledge is social knowledge (morgan, 2014). according to goldkuhl (2012), constructivism ideology helps manage people's existence and operations in the world hence the use of constructivist theory in this study. social media and its impact as a teaching and learning tool. social media network has become very popular among the youth, especially university students (stephens, 2011; stollak et al., 2011; waters & hensley, 2020). according to stollak et al. (2011), social media is becoming the primary means of communication among university students. they estimate that at least 85 per cent of students enrolled in the university use social media as a means of communication. stephens (2011) also explains that students in this current generation heavily rely on social media to communicate with one another. with this situation in mind, many instructors have now started using social media networks to communicate and deliver learning materials to their students (watson, 2020; 60 ofori-kusi, d., & tachie, s. a. ressat 2022, 7(1): 56-68 white, 2020). albalaw (2017) reports that technology developed from the internet has become widely used as a medium for teaching and learning. but some researchers have reported conflicting reports on the impact of social media in the teaching and learning process (hoffman, 2009; hsueh, 2011). hoffman (2009) explains that using technology developed from the internet has the potential to improve student engagement, 'motivation, personal interaction, and affective aspects in the lecture room, but explains that this can only be achieved if there is careful planning with regards to its affordability and usefulness to the teaching and learning process. hoffman further explains that the social media technology in the classroom can be a failure if its integration into the teaching and learning process is not well planned and executed. hsueh (2011) shares similar sentiments with nuraini et al. (2020) and reports that even though the use of social media can provide a rich teaching-learning experience to students, the viability of using it as a teaching and learning tool is still very limited in most universities and its introduction can automatically leave some students out of the teaching and learning process. the current study explores the impact of social media on first-year students' mathematics performance with the extended university program. whatsapp social media was adopted for this study as it is widely used and can be used specifically on mobile devices to which most students have access. university students' use of mobile phones has increased over the years (benjamin, 2011; porter et al., 2015). mobile phones as a teaching tool can be beneficial for both lecturers and students. it has 'modern' and automated techniques for achieving teaching and learning goals (boyle, 2013), and mobile phones are much cheaper to invest in than larger devices (albalaw, 2017). whatsapp messaging social media can be downloaded, installed, and used on android, ios, and kios devices, all available on mobile devices. it can also be used on both desktops and laptops by pairing your mobile device with the desktop or laptop by scanning the qr-code, making a mobile phone a pre-requisite for using whatsapp technologies (colom, 2021). echeverría et al. (2011) explain that mobile media messaging technologies like whatsapp has the potential to offer multiple teaching and learning options at the university and basic school level but remains an untapped potential at that level which, according to rambe and ng’ambi (2012), is due to a limited academic understanding and conceptualisation of how this technology can be integrated into mainstream classroom practice and uncertainties on educational outcomes if these technological advancements are introduced. in their work, naidoo and kopung (2016) tried to find out how whatsapp instant messaging influences mathematics learning and what its use entails. naidoo and kopung (2016), whatsapp instant messaging offered students the opportunity to learn from anywhere and became a resource for students to clear out any misconceptions they may have about a particular mathematics concept. they also discovered whatsapp instant messaging had limited the number of characters and symbols that students can use to express themselves mathematically. nuiraini et al. (2020) confirm the findings of naidoo and kopung (2016) 61 ressat 2022, 7(1): 56-68 revealed that in as much as whatsapp instant messaging can help students to gain and learn new mathematics knowledge as it aids interaction with their peers, it has got some disadvantages when introduced into the learning process such as does not have a feature where students can type mathematics symbols and hence hindering students’ participation in the teaching and learning process on the whatsapp platform. the current study hopes to add further information to the literature on how whatsapp instant messaging can improve the teaching and learning of mathematics for underprepared students at the university level. research methodology and design this study followed a quantitative research design which employed a post-test only with non– equivalent groups to test whether there were any statistically significant results in the post-tests mathematics scores for first-year university preparatory students who studied the extended introductory mathematics module through a face-to-face approach (control group) compared with first-year university initial students who studied the same module through a combined blended approach (face-to-face, online, whatsapp, social media interaction), this being the experimental group. quantitative research design uses numeric values to determine whether the null hypothesis should be accepted or rejected (ary et al., 2010). with this design, the study used an independent t-test and descriptive statistics of both the control and experimental groups to measure students' mathematics performance when whatsapp chat groups are used as a teaching and learning aid and blended with the traditional methods faced face teaching approach. descriptive statistics were used to understand whether online whatsapp group chat can be an alternative teaching method when face to face instruction is not feasible. the independent t-test was used to determine whether there were any statistically significant results between the control and experimental groups. with this research design, the control group received different treatment from the experimental group but with both groups writing a similar post-test after the therapy (creswell, 2003). description of pre-covid 19 face to the face learning approach all lessons in this form of lecturer-student interaction took place in a traditional, face-to-face lecture room, where the lecturer passively delivered content to the students. a sit-down, the face-to-face test was conducted after every mathematical concept had been completed. there were also two face-to-face, sit-down semester exams that were performed. the first face-toface semester exam was conducted halfway through the course. the second face-to-face semester exam was conducted when the content in the module was completed, with the focus being on the other half of the module content. the first-semester exam covered the first half of the module content, while the second-semester exam covered the second half. an average of the two tests was used to investigate the problem. 62 ofori-kusi, d., & tachie, s. a. ressat 2022, 7(1): 56-68 description of a post-covid 19 blended learning approach entailed a hybrid of face-to-face and a social media network learning approach. the blended approach was designed to reduce face-to-face contact sessions at the time of the emergence of covid-19, which could spread in crowded places where each person was close to others. out of 6 hours in a week, only two hours were for a face-to-face contact session, and the rest of the 4 hours were spread through the week as a whatsapp discussion which was held asynchronously, where the key concepts discussed on the face-to-face session was merely reinforced through social interaction on whatsapp group chats. all concepts discussed and explained on the platforms were explained briefly during the face-to-face interaction to solidify students' deep conceptual understanding. online tests replaced the sit-down, face-to-face test after completing each mathematical concept, and the two sit-down examinations were maintained as in the face-to-face learning approach. population and sampling the study population was all first-year university students in south africa enrolled for an extended mathematics preparatory program. a convenient sampling technique was used to sample 533 first-year students from one university, of which 192 students formed the experimental group and 341 students formed the control group. this sample used the convenient sampling technique as the data were readily accessible. suitable sampling procedures use available cases for a study (ary et al., 2010). data collection and procedures the control group only had face-to-face sessions, and their data were collected in 2019. the face-to-face sessions were held between march 2019 and june 2019. the first-semester exam was written in april 2019, and the second-semester exam was reported in may 2019. all lectures were purely face-to-face, with the lecturer passively delivering the lecture material. the experimental group had their classes partly face-to-face and partly using whatsapp learning group interaction asynchronously delivered. the blended approach happened between march 2021 and may 2021, with first and second semester exams administered in april 2021 and june 2021, respectively. each mathematical concept in the module began with face-to-face interaction that was passively delivered by the lecturer and continued thorough asynchronous whatsapp group discussions where peer teaching, with the guidance of the lecturer, formed the basis of the teaching and learning. the average of the two-semester exams was calculated for both the control and experimental group and compared to check whether there were any statistically significant results in the two average scores. validity and reliability of research instruments two standardised exams used to examine students in the module were randomly chosen as the instruments for this study. the marks for the two examinations were converted to 100 per cent. the first standardised exams followed questions from the first half of the module, and the 63 ressat 2022, 7(1): 56-68 second standardised exam catered for the second half of the module. both of the two standardised tests had been thoroughly checked and moderated by senior mathematics lecturers from the universities to ensure they covered the contents in the module and conformed to all universities' assessment policies. previous results obtained in these two-semester examinations were used to check for consistency in the test. the cronbach alpha coefficient was used to measure the consistency in the test that stood at 0.62 and 0.67 for the standardised exam one and standardised exam two, respectively. data analysis at 0.05 significance level, an independent 𝑡-test was employed to determine whether or not there were statistically significant differences between the first-year university students who studied first-year preparatory mathematics through a purely face-to-face approach compared to first-year university students who studied first-year preparatory mathematics through a blended approach of face-to-face interaction and online social media interaction. the mean, median, mode and standard deviation of the experimental and control groups were also calculated. spss statistical software was used to calculate both the descriptive and the inferential statistics. the descriptive statistics compared the mean and standard deviation to ascertain which of the two groups performed better in the average of the two-semester exams conducted between the two groups (experimental and control) to determine which group performed better, and the inferential statistics were used to check whether the null hypothesis should be accepted or rejected. results and discussion table 1 shows the mean score for the control group was 48,84 and the average score for the experimental group was 49,57 showing the difference in scores between the control scores and the experimental group is minimal. there was not much difference in the performance of the average scores of the two-semester test between the two groups. this was also confirmed by the other central tendencies of the median and the mode. the median and method for the control group were 49.50 and 48,50 respectively, the median and mode were 50,49 and 65,59. the t-test analysis of the score between the control group and the experimental group indicated that at 0.05 significance level and at 531 degrees of freedom, the t-statistic value (𝑡( . , )=0.6193) was less than the 𝑡critical value (1.9644); the p-value (0.5360) was greater than 0.05 (𝑝 > 0.05). this meant the null hypothesis could not be rejected; hence there was not a statistically significant result in the average of two-semester examinations between first-year university students who enrolled in a university preparatory mathematics program and studied through a purely face-to-face approach compared to students who studied the same program through a blended approach of face to face and online social media interaction. 64 ofori-kusi, d., & tachie, s. a. ressat 2022, 7(1): 56-68 table 1. summary of the descriptive and inferential statistics control group(average score of twosemester exams) experimental group(average scores of twosemester exams) mean 48,84 49,57 median 49,50 50,49 mode 48,50 65,69 std dev 11,42 15,65 observation 341 192 degrees of freedom 531 t statistic 0.6193 t – critical two-tail 1.9644 p-value 0.5360 this result suggests that even though there were no statistically significant results between the control group and the experimental group, online whatsapp chat teaching groups can be a viable teaching medium and can be an alternative when face-to-face teaching instruction is not possible. the findings were consistent with the work of barhoumi (2015), so (2016), nirgude and naik (2017), kushwaha and jhawar (2018), and jere et al. (2019). to mention only a few. barhoumi (2015) confirmed the impact of whatsapp group-learning groups when blended with a face-to-face approach. according to barhoumi (2015), whatsapp chat groups can be used as a supporting tool during class discussions which form part of the teaching and learning process. so (2016) also used the whatsapp group as an intervention to the teaching and learning process and concluded that the whatsapp group as a learning tool could make students achieve more academically. nirgude and naik (2017) found that whatsapp group chat activity can be very effective for after class activity such as 'sharing information, assessment, discussions, feedback, and flipped classroom concept’. the work of kushwaha and jhawar (2018) also supports the findings of this study in the sense that, according to them, if whatsapp instant messaging is appropriately repurposed among university students, it can enhance their learning capabilities. they further explained that whatsapp instant messaging, as a tool, can foster social constructivism by offering learners the platform to construct mathematical knowledge in a social environment. jere et al. (2019) also concluded that whatsapp as a learning tool has the potential to make students active 65 ressat 2022, 7(1): 56-68 participants in the learning process and, in the process, improve their performance in the subject. concluding remarks even though there was no statistically significant difference between a strictly face-to-face learning approach and a hybrid of face-to-face and online approaches, the results show that the latter is just as effective as the former, with the learners in the latter performing slightly better compared with learners in the former. the results obtained from the quantitative analyses show that under-prepared, first-year university students can construct, acquire and transfer knowledge among themselves in a social context on an online whatsapp group platform. this infers that whatsapp, which is popular among underprepared first-year students, we can be categorised as the z generation (students born after 1996), has the potential to become a viable alternative to teaching and learning when there is a situation that does not make it conducive to implementing the face-to-face, traditional teaching approach. policymakers for higher education may have to look at formalising whatsapp as an additional support mechanism to supplement traditional, face-to-face instruction; it may go a long way in supporting underprepared university students to gradually become successful in the university setting. this study recommends that more profound research be conducted to develop social media interaction as a supplementary and alternative learning approach when a face-to-face approach is not viable. the findings of this study go a long way to show that social media, which is popular among students of this generation, can become a viable alternative to teaching and learning when a face-to-face learning approach cannot be implemented. recommendation this study recommends further more profound research to be conducted on how social media can be used as an alternative teaching platform during devastating times like the covid-19 era. qualitative analyses should now be considered to identify and analyse indicators that contribute positively to learning through social media learning groups. references albalaw, a. s. 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(2010). addressing concerns with the nsc: an analysis of first year student performance in mathematics and physics. paper presented at the 18th conference of the south africa association for research in mathematics, science and technology, kwazulu-natal. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 skhephe, m. & matashu, m., the use of technology in accounting classrooms during covid-19: what do accounting teachers in the eastern cape, south africa, have to say? research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 267 the use of technology in accounting classrooms during covid-19: what do accounting teachers in the eastern cape, south africa, have to say? melikhaya skhephe*1 & martha matashu2 *corresponding author: sikepemk@gmail.com 1. north west university, south africa 2. north west university, south africa received : 2021-05-25 revised : 2021-08-04 accepted : 2021-08-26 how to cite this paper: skhephe, m. & matashu, m. (2021). the use of technology in accounting classrooms during covid-19: what do accounting teachers in the eastern cape, south africa, have to say? research in social sciences and technology, 6(2), 267-278. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.30 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). abstract it was mentioned that accounting classrooms must keep pace with rapidly changing technology, which is influencing all aspects of our daily lives. this study examined accounting teachers’ views on the use of technology in their classrooms during covid-19. to this end, the researchers employed a qualitative approach and a case study. data were obtained from accounting teachers through interviews, with the sample of ten participants having been purposively selected. the results indicated that allowing learners to bring their own personal technological devices to the classroom represented a contravention of the school’s constitution. another result was that when technology is optimally used in the classroom, it makes available different forms of assistance which change the way learners learn. researchers conclude that use of technology in accounting implemented compulsory if teachers want to keep up with changes accounting profession. furthermore, schools’ constitutions need to be amended to promote the use of available technologies in the classroom, albeit in a highly structured, managed, and efficient way. researchers recommend that learners be allowed to use their own personal devices in the classroom, to enhance learning. school principal be encouraged to develop school plans outlining how s/he would support use of technology in school. keywords: accounting classrooms, teachers’ views, educational technologies, ict in education, covid-19, south africa 10.46303/ressat.2021.30 mailto:sikepemk@gmail.com https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.30 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 skhephe, m. & matashu, m., the use of technology in accounting classrooms during covid-19: what do accounting teachers in the eastern cape, south africa, have to say? research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 268 introduction oliveira (2015) opines that, for accounting classrooms to remain relevant, continuous changes and improvements are necessary in the subject area. what this means, is that teaching and learning processes must keep up with the technological innovations which professional accountants are adopting. babalola and tiamiyu (2014) concur that for accountancy learners to acquire the weights and potentials connected with heightened worldwide competition, a variety of basic skills is needed – amongst others, diagnostic and problematic-solving skills; personal and interactive skills; management-related, negotiation and organizational skills; together with the capacity to apply these competencies in an array of single situations, often with the aid of technology. obeng (2014) asserts that technology use in accounting classrooms is now deemed to be as crucial a usefulness as water and electricity in communities, and later has also come to play a major role in education. importantly, technology permits continuous testing to determine whether learners have mastered the contents of the materials presented to them (hammond, 2013). beetham and sharpe (2013) asserts, great majority of schools in the united kingdom are virtual learning environments (vles), thanks to the use of web 2.0 or ‘soft software’, sakai and drupaled, moodle, blackboard, turnitin and many more. furthermore, these platforms grant teachers the opportunity to search topics on the internet, track their learners’ activities display syllabus information. however, in the eastern cape of south africa, daily dispatch (2020) reveals that a contract worth hundreds of millions of rand, to lease 55 000 tablet devices, was signed to provide a technology use in classrooms. thus far, 44 000 tablets have been delivered to learners, in an attempt to promote online, distance learning and laptops distributed to teachers. despite these impressive statistics, a study conducted by skhephe, caga et al. (2020) reveal that there is no evidence that the recipients were prepared, in any way, before being allocated these devices. therefore, it is against this background that the authors wanted to investigate, about the use of technology in accounting classrooms during covid-19. research questions the study was guided by the following research questions  why accounting teachers, must embrace technology use during and after the covid-19?  how does technology use assist in the teaching of accounting during covid-19? review of literature literature review is a critical, analytical account of the existing research on a part (maree, 2015). the digital revolution has changed the way accounting teachers are expected to deliver their lessons in their respective classrooms (skhephe, mantlana et al., 2020; tadeu et al., 2019). furthermore, in the 21 century a lot of information is now available via technology than any one person could ever hope to acquire. in this study literature on the use of technological skills in accounting classroom has been reviewed under the separate sub-headings. technology in the accounting classroom accounting classroom has changed to fulfil business necessities, better prepare learners for the labor marketplace and to allow them to thrive in a changing environment (yap et al., research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 skhephe, m. & matashu, m., the use of technology in accounting classrooms during covid-19: what do accounting teachers in the eastern cape, south africa, have to say? research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 269 2014). the most recent cohorts of accounting learners are more familiar with diverse technologies – after all, they learnt to deal with mobile phones, tablets, and individual technology from an initial stage. accounting teachers must take benefit of these valency to instrument incremental variations aimed at developing certain strengths which are inherent in learners, such as teamwork skills and enthusiasm, as these competencies will enable them to make a difference in their organizations one day, to communicate efficiently with supervisors and to be at ease with technology (mastrolia & willits, 2013). the current organizational atmosphere entails professionals to progress innovative skills which, if schools have the foresight, they will already have trained their learners to master. as mastrolia and willits (2013) observe, related skills must comprise the capability to search a widespread variation of bases (e.g., the world wide web) and to effort with an extensive variety of data services (albrecht & sack, 2016). worryingly, yu et al. (2013) note that accounting learners are not adequately prepared to use databases or technology domains, nor do they become proficient at problem solving. yu et al. (2013) emphasizes that, as the world prepares to meet the demands of 4ir, it will become very problematic to teach accountancy exclusive of the usage of detailed software. reimbursements of consuming technology in the accounting classroom babalola and tiamiyu (2014) opine that the appropriate use of technology in accounting classrooms can catalyze a model modification in terms of both content and pedagogy, which will, in turn, usher in reforms. babalola and tiamiyu (2014) further argue that, if considered and applied appropriately, technology-reinforced teaching can foster the gaining of appropriate knowledge and skills to form a basis from which to empower accounting learners for lifelong learning. babalola and tiamiyu further observe that, there are several benefits that can be derived from the use of technology in accounting classrooms, as discussed below. evaluative learning: technology permits pupils to (actively) reconnoiter and determine, rather than merely (passively) attend and recall. technology-improved knowledge is learner-focused and investigative, unlike static, textor print-based educational aids. it recognizes that there are many diverse knowledge pathways and diverse arrays of articulations of knowledge. dynamic learning: technology-improved knowledge mobilizes tools through which to examine, calculate and analyze material, thus affording a platform for learner inquiry and analysis, and facilitating the construction of new information. pupils consequently acquire while doing, and, where suitable, effort on real-life difficulties in complexity, assembly learning less intellectual and more applicable to their lifetime condition. co-operative learning: where technology supports learning, it inspires collaboration and teamwork among pupils, educators, and specialists, notwithstanding of where in the world they are. away from each other from modelling actual-world connections, technologyreinforced education offers pupils and chance to work with individuals from various nations, in that way helping to develop their team up and forthcoming skills, as well as their worldwide responsiveness. it models education done through the learners’ generation, by enlarging the learning space to incorporate not only their peers, but also mentors and specialists from diverse disciplines. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 skhephe, m. & matashu, m., the use of technology in accounting classrooms during covid-19: what do accounting teachers in the eastern cape, south africa, have to say? research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 270 creative learning: learning which is maintained by technology endorses the guidance of present data and the formation of real-world products, rather than the regurgitation of established data. integrative learning: here, the goal is to promote a thematic, consolidative method to education and knowledge. such a method removes the artificial divide amongst diverse disciplines, and amongst theory and practice that characterizes the old-style classroom approach. employing accounting software in the teaching and learning of accounting wan et al. (2016) explain that, in using relevant computer software and technology in accounting classrooms a new type of learning environment is created, which offers an alternative platform for teaching and learning. as wan et al. (2016) point out, traditional approaches are usually blamed for producing accounting learners who have good technical abilities but lack the relevant skills and expertise. the demands of the ever-evolving business environment made certain changes imperative – changes in the way in which accounting knowledge and skills are taught to, and developed in, learners. accounting teachers may be described as agents of knowledge transfer and skills providers, and they should thus exploit the potentials of any devices, platforms or aids which can benefit their classroom practice and help their learners. as wan et al. (2016) add, due to their flexibility and embedded special features, the delivery methods available in computer-assisted technology make learning more attractive and effective. however, teachers of accounting should not solely depend on impressive software to deliver subject-related knowledge to their learners. as connell (2011) argue, an over-reliance on software might enhance learners’ enjoyment of the subject and improve their marks, but it may also prevent them from attaining those learning outcomes which require an understanding basic accounting procedures and concepts. in the view of connell et al., (2011), accounting software should be treated like a “transparent box”, requiring users to first understand the contents of the knowledge they must learn, before they use the system. e-readiness accounting classroom e-readiness classroom is one which is designed especially for the delivery and support of electronic learning systems (elss) (lloyd, byrne, and mccoy 2012). lloyd et al. (2012) asserts that, where such classrooms exist, the teacher’s job is to instruct learners to work on their own, while his/her role is to guide the learners throughout-this is where teaching is supported by technology, often in the form of a connection to the internet. for keramati et al. (2011), the e-readiness of an accounting classroom is determined on three levels: technical readiness, lifestyle readiness and pedagogical readiness. technical readiness is where the focus is on the readiness of technology hardware, software, and a connection to the internet, as all these aspects support e-learning. in lifestyle readiness, the focus is on the facilitator and related challenges which may affect his/her satisfaction with an e-learning community, for instance his/her in/ability to adapt to change (panda & mishra, 2013). pedagogical readiness places the emphasis on the facilitator’s understanding of technology, and his/her experience, confidence, and attitude (dursun et al., 2011). sammak et al. (2010) asserts that pedagogical readiness pertains to perceptions regarding the electronic learning systems and evaluates research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 skhephe, m. & matashu, m., the use of technology in accounting classrooms during covid-19: what do accounting teachers in the eastern cape, south africa, have to say? research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 271 whether facilitators have a predisposition to embrace new technology to accomplish different related tasks. holsapple and lee-post (2010) believe that, in terms of pedagogical readiness, it is crucial to assess whether a facilitator prefers a chalk-and-talk approach to the optimal use of technology. theoretical framework based on global expectations, and changing realities related to the way in which technology influences teaching in the era of 4ir, davis et al. (1989) developed the technology acceptance theory (tat). having considered the stated research questions, the researchers who authored this study deemed tat ideal for underpinning their investigation, which is reported on here. tat is used to predict or determine why someone might use technology, while another individual may decline to do so (davis et al. 1989). this theory further states that, for technology to be accepted, user’s necessity to advance innovative skills and knowledge of present technologies, by continuously improving their capacities and upgrading their skills (davis et al. 1989). implementing the necessary changes is, however, quite a challenge. many factors, including the high cost of technology adoption and skills-related differences in the users of those technologies, may represent barrier to uptake which need to be overcome and turned into opportunities (davis et al. 1989). furthermore, to keep abreast, decision makers also need to capitalize on the opportunity to make technology dispersal and placement as achievement. straub et al. (2015) observe that a potential user’s educational upbringing, views and individual biases are all influences that disturb the receiving (or rejection!) of newly presented and/or moved technologies. the amount of information circulating today, across millions of information structures, is so massive that it is impossible to operate data without the aid of various technologies. however, an information system which delivers high technical performance will be useless if the user, for whatever reason, does not adopt and/or accept the available technology. as per tat, we necessity to comprehend the details because users outright admit or initially discard certain structures, and then, in the case of the latter, grudgingly adapt systems to suit their needs and those of their learners. venkatesh et al. (2015) opine that technological innovations need to be not merely accepted, but actually used. this theory is applicable in the present study, since the mode of delivery of information in the classroom is continuously shifting, the legitimacy and correctness of content might modification over time, dependent on the finding of new facts and/or breakthroughs being made in a subject. tat is very relevant to this study, since it is a material classifications theory that examines how users originate to receive and use technology. furthermore, the actual system envisages an endpoint, in other words what every user should be able to do with technology. this theory further proposes that when operators are offered with an innovative technology, several issues impact their choice about how and when to use it, while the capability to know is taken to be more serious than what is really acknowledged (davis et al. 1989). research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 skhephe, m. & matashu, m., the use of technology in accounting classrooms during covid-19: what do accounting teachers in the eastern cape, south africa, have to say? research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 272 methodology research design the study uses of the qualitative approach. the goal of this method is to uncover actual inner meanings and new ideas (leavy, 2017). in order to investigate the use of technology in accounting courses during covid-19, this study employs a qualitative approach to acquire highquality data and interesting insights using semi-structured interviews. the outline, plan, or method that will be employed to get an answer to the research questions is defined by johnson and christensen (2008). a case study is used in this study. a case study is a research project that details and analyses one or more cases (denscombe, 2010). the case study is on the 5 secondary school in the eastern cape of south africa. as the authors mentioned that they have analyze the data using constant comparative method, we have adapted the expert the we have mentioned in the data analysis. sample the sample consisted of 10 accounting teachers. participants were purposive selected based on being accounting teachers who are expected to make use of technology. all of the participants were between 5 to 15 years of teaching experiences. five of the teachers were women and five were men. data collection interviews were employed to gather data for this study. bogdan and biklen (2007) defines interviews as a conversation between two or more people that is moderated by one person with the goal of obtaining information from the other people. they were semi-structured interviews. however, it is important to mention that since the study was conducted during the covid-19 pandemic, interviews were conducted online in order to comply with covid-19 protocols. each interviewer was give 10 minutes to respond to all the questions. a tape recorder was used to record the responses of the interviewer and after all the interviewers were interviewed, the authors transcribed interviewer’s response and verbatim accounts were used. data trustworthiness according to creswell (2014) it about qualitative information that is unchanging, foreseeable, reliable, dependable, and unfailing in the future, generating the similar findings or outcomes as before. the study followed creswell's four qualitative research characteristics of dependability, confirmability, and repeatability. data analysis, interpretation and reporting this study used a constant comparison technique to data analysis, which is consistent with qualitative research (gray, 2018). in this approach, data was reviewed and reread as it was collected, and the authors identified emergent patterns through a process of inductive reasoning. then, as new data was gathered, social phenomena were categorized and their attributes noted, and instances were compared. this form of analysis will fit to answer the research questions since each interpretation and finding is compared with existing findings as research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 skhephe, m. & matashu, m., the use of technology in accounting classrooms during covid-19: what do accounting teachers in the eastern cape, south africa, have to say? research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 273 it emerges from the data analysis. another import element of this approach is that the research begins with raw data; through constant comparisons a substantive theory will emerge. ethical procedures de vos et al. 2011) believes that researchers need to be aware of what is considered as proper and improper in scientific research. the investigators detected entirely proper measures before and during the study. right permission was established from the researcher’s organization. the investigators were allowed by the eastern cape education district to evaluate schools and interview contributors. the doorkeepers were employed to gain access to the investigative sites and the participants. the selected members were guaranteed that the data was only for study tenacities. the matters of informed agreement and privacy were obeyed as well. results embracing the use of technology in the accounting classroom during and after the covid-19 the findings show that teachers are trying hard to embrace use technology in their classrooms. however, technology adoption and use are facing multiple challenges and is proceeding at a snail’s pace. the following were the responses from the participants. teacher 2 confirmed: in the 21st century there is no way that i cannot embrace the use of technology in my classroom. since there is no functioning computer laboratory at my school to utilize for searching and googling with my accounting learners, other than the laptops [which] were given to all teachers [which i use] as personal technology), i am allowing accounting learners to bring their own personal technology devices to the classroom, in order to allow searching/googling of accounting information. i [monitor] their progress, but we are struggling with internet since these learners are mostly using their own data to search, and they complain that data is expensive. teacher 3 stated: i am making use of my own laptop and the data projector i bought by myself whenever, i am in my classroom. jah it is assisting in the classroom, but i can see my head of department and the principal are not supporting me. you cannot believe that whatever, i need technology device i need i use my own money to buy it. teacher 7 confirmed this: looking into the changes that are happening in [the] accounting curriculum and looking into the type of learners we teach; technology use within the classroom is un-avoid[able]. in my classroom, just [by] mentioning the [word] use of technology [all] my learners become excited, and it improves their participation in the classroom. however, since there are no computer technologies for learners in the form of computer laborator[ies] in the school, i [have] allow[ed] the accounting learners to carry their device[s] and use them in the classroom. [it] is prohibit [ed by] the constitution of the school, [but] only allowed in [the] accounting classroom, not in other subjects. teacher 10 added: research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 skhephe, m. & matashu, m., the use of technology in accounting classrooms during covid-19: what do accounting teachers in the eastern cape, south africa, have to say? research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 274 in my school, i putt a pressure to the school managers to fix all the computers that were supplied by the department of basic education in 2010 and i am conducting my accounting classes there. assistance provided by technology use in accounting classroom during covid-19. the findings indicated that, when technology is in use in the accounting classroom, teaching becomes easy since all the parties work towards one goal of achieving results. teacher 1 confirmed: when technology is in [the] accounting classroom, it provides different opportunities to make learning more fun and enjoyable, in terms of teaching [the] same things in new ways. apart from that, we need to acknowledge that no one learns in the same way, because of different learning styles and different abilities. so, through technology use within the classroom, those things are catered [for]. teacher 4 reveal: lastly, technology can encourage collaboration with learners in the same classroom, [the] same school and even with other classrooms around the world. teacher 5 added: it makes my learners to learn independent and it increases completion since it proves my learners with more information in addressing or answering one question. teacher 8 concurs: due to [my] love of both accounting and technology, i am trying my best in my classroom to make use of technology, but it [would] be better if education district officials [did] follow-up [visits] to each school, [to see] how teachers make use of these laptops. that [would have] served to pressurize teachers to make use of [the] technologies allocated to them, and in that way, benefits associated [with] the use of technology were going to be achieved. teacher 9 stated: using any form of technology in the classroom changes the way learners learn and also how teachers teach, learners are not being forced to learn. discussion in this study, the findings arrived at after data interpretation and analysis were examined in the light of the identified themes and categories. embracing the use of technology in the classroom the findings revealed that accounting teachers are extremely willing to embrace and support the use of technology in their classrooms, as is evident from the fact that they allow their learners to bring their own personal devices to use as learning aids. as the participants admitted, however, they are confronted by challenges such as the high cost of data and a school constitution which prohibits the possession and use of cell phones on the school research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 skhephe, m. & matashu, m., the use of technology in accounting classrooms during covid-19: what do accounting teachers in the eastern cape, south africa, have to say? research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 275 premises. this finding confirms mastrolia and willits’ (2013) argument that the youth are extremely familiar with the latest gadgets and technologies – many masters the use of mobile phones, tablets and personal computers as infants or toddlers. accounting teachers must capitalize on those skills, to introduce incremental changes in the classroom. rather than focusing on individual strengths, the emphasis should shift to teamwork and to early adopters motivating their peers who might not be as comfortable with such devices yet. rather than being a nice-to-have, technology should serve to strengthen learners’ problem-solving skills (yu et al. 2013). as davis et al. (1989) propose, all learners must be encouraged to develop new skills and knowledge of current technology, and continuously upskill themselves and broaden their repertoire of abilities. oliveira (2015) believes allowing learners to make use of their own personal devices in the classroom can save schools the costs of buying hardware and software, given their already constrained budgets. oliveira further argue that not allowing such devices on the premises risk learners being left behind and will mean they cannot keep up with platforms which have been made available to assist them in their learning. these findings concur with skhephe, mantlana et al. (2020) that learners are already au fait with most devices, and these technological tools offer teachers a wonderful opportunity to enhance their teaching, while allowing learners to access a variety of platforms to enrich their learning. assistance provided by technology use in accounting classroom from the interviews it became clear that accounting teachers understand that when technology is optimally used in class, it provides different forms of assistance: it not only changes the way in which learners learn, but also the way in which the teacher delivers his/her lesson. this finding corroborates the view of babalola and tiamiyu (2014) that the appropriate use of technology in the accounting classroom can bring about a paradigm shift in both the content and pedagogy which the teacher uses, and that is the essence of true classroom reform. as wan et al. (2016) note, it is crucial to use relevant computer software and technology, to create a learning environment that fosters teaching and learning to the extent that other subjects may be inspired to try to do the same – that will boost learners’ proficiency across all disciplines. indeed, as connell et al. (2014) argue, teachers should be careful not to rely so much on software that the most basic learning outcomes and foundational concepts are ignored. as davis et al. (1989) warn, technology implementation is a costly undertaking, and teachers should be aware that not all learners can afford the same software or have the same level of competence to start with. this finding corroborate with davis et al finding that teachers need to understand the reasons why users outright accept or initially reject certain systems, and then, in the case of the latter, grudgingly adapt systems to suit their needs and those of their learners. implications for policy and practice this study showed that use of technology in accounting classrooms plays a pivotal role in equipping learners with the modern skills needed in accounting profession. however, proper implementation of technology use confronted with many challenges. therefore, teachers and education managers should develop their own operational plans, guidelines, indicators and strategies for proper implementation of technology use in accounting classrooms. in addition, curriculum managers should work with relevant stakeholders to refine and implement draft research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 skhephe, m. & matashu, m., the use of technology in accounting classrooms during covid-19: what do accounting teachers in the eastern cape, south africa, have to say? research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 276 policies that are available in the eastern cape province to ensure the enough discussion forums for teachers and principals are open to voice their views around use of technology across all subject in schools. conclusion this research investigated the use of technology in accounting classrooms during covid-19. to this end, the researchers focused on high schools in the eastern cape province of south africa. they concluded, after a critical review of the findings, that there is an urgent need to ensure that use of technology in accounting implemented compulsory if teachers want to keep up with changes accounting profession. furthermore, schools’ constitutions need to be amended to promote the use of available technologies in the classroom, albeit in a highly structured, managed and efficient way. although it is not easy to adapt to change, if teachers realize the benefits of using technology, they will concede that most learners are glued to their technologies, rather than textbooks. limitations of the study this study has some limitations that were considered when interpreting its findings. firstly, this study is limited to high school accounting teachers in the eastern cape province, south africa. secondly, this study adopted a qualitative approach that included accounting teachers with interviews to establish a baseline of teachers use of technology use in the classroom. however, the research could have more validity if this study adopted mixed methods of quantitative approach to reveal technology implementation in high schools by teachers in the eastern cape, south africa. recommendations researchers recommend that learners should be allowed to make use of their own personal devices in the classroom, with strict provisos, where schools are unable to provide such technologies to their learners – in that way, no child will be left behind. school principal be encouraged to develop school plans outlining how s/he would support the structured, meaningful use of technology in their school. ict officials from all education district offices conduct workshops with teachers who have been allocated laptops or tablets, so that they may learn how to use those technologies as a tool to supplement their teaching. references albrecht, w., & sack, r. (2016). accounting education: charting the course through a perilous future. sarasota: american accounting association. babalola, y. a., & tiamiyu, r. (2014). the use of ict in teaching and learning of accounting education in nigeria. 33rd annual convention and international conference of nigeria association for educational medial and technology (naemt) at emmanuel alayande college of education, oyo state, nigeria, october 8-12, 2012, available at: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2181366 beetham, h. & sharpe, r. (2013). rethinking pedagogy for a digital age: designing for 21st century learning (2nd ed.). new york: routledge. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 skhephe, m. & matashu, m., the use of technology in accounting classrooms during covid-19: what do accounting teachers in the eastern cape, south africa, have to say? research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 277 bogdan, r. c., & biklen, s.k. (2015). qualitative research of education: an introduction to theories and methods. boston: allyn & bacon. connell, a, m. (2011). the potential of ict based education in developing countries. new york: education development centre. davis, f. d., bagozzi, r. p., & warshaw, p. r. (1989). perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use and user acceptance of information technology. mis quarterly, 13 (10), 318–333. de vos, a., strydom h., fouché., c. & delport, c. s. l. (2011). research at grassroots. pretoria: van schaik. department of education (doe). (2010). revised national curriculum statement, grades r–9 (schools): teacher’s guide for the development of learning programmes. pretoria: government printer. denscombe, m. (2010). the good research guide for small scale research projects. buckingham: open university press dursun, a., effie, l. & law, c. (2011). measuring student e-learning readiness: a case about the subject of electricity in higher education institutions in turkey. conference: advances in web-based learning-icwl 2011-10th international conference, hong kong, china, december 8-10, 2011. proceedings. gray, a. (2018). effective differentiation: a training guide to empower teachers and enable learners with send and specific learning difficulties. texas: routledge. hammond, m. (2015). introducing information communications technology in schools in england: rationale and consequences. british journal of educational technology, 45 (6), 50-62. holsapple, c. w., & lee-post, a. (2006). defining, assessing, and promoting e-learning success: an information system perspective. sciences journal of innovative education, 4(1), 67–85. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-4609.2006.00102.x johnson, r. b., & christensen, l. b. (2013). educational research: quantitative, qualitative, and mixed approaches. lose angeles: sage publications. keramati, a., afshari-mofrad, m., & kamrari, a. (2011). the role of readiness factors in elearning outcomes: an empirical study. computers and education. 1 (9), 20-35 leavy, p. (2017). research design. quantitative, qualitative, mixed methods, arts based and community based participatory research approaches. new york: gilford press. lloyd, s a., byrne, m. m., & mccoy, t.s. (2012). faculty-perceived barriers of online education. journal of online learning and teaching, 8 (1), 1-12. magwa, s. & magwa, w. (2015). a guide to conducting educational research: a student handbook. singapore: strategic book publishing and rights co. llc maree, k. (2015). first steps in educational research. pretoria: van schaik. mastrolia, s. a., & willits, s.d. (2014). millennials: what do we really know about them? journal of advances in accounting education, 14 (9), 45–60. obeng, t. k. (2014). practical application of ict t enhance university education in ghana, http://www.modernghana.com/ghana/tome/news.achive/features.asp [accessed 10 february 2021]. oliveira, h. c. (2015). technology in accounting education: a business simulation case study. porto: iscap polytechnic institute. https://www.researchgate.net/scientific-contributions/effie-l-c-law-2196288010?_sg%5b0%5d=do7f1-tevqvwlsnybfoaohcrgl-ycacuwxb8xu-soqp2yr_0gy96lhiyc7tqnwqei_chxhy.flk4l5t8n040qxuzajbnm6bnd73o-es-dyvvfdtvjogrlwbz67nhm4gdiqn0xwemmtgorgy6pv3lnihhwaizlq&_sg%5b1%5d=ssjjjnh1iddinwr3x8yqz1rzyitssdywfdsa01mz4dakgyjukwggffkzb3nq3cciekamwre.7936u0rmmykli5j8wa-yo81goix_phoxpzgv5ghhvazacskr812e4nwxz5keqbjsbnjzuswzaqohspjjjumovq https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-4609.2006.00102.x http://www.modernghana.com/ghana/tome/news.achive/features.asp research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 skhephe, m. & matashu, m., the use of technology in accounting classrooms during covid-19: what do accounting teachers in the eastern cape, south africa, have to say? research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 278 panda, s. & mishra, s. (2013). e-learning in a mega open university: faculty attitude, barriers and motivators. educational media international, 44(4): 323–338. https://doi.org/10.1080/09523980701680854 sammak, m. s., baghbel, m. & samancioglu, m. (2010). technology readiness of primary teachers: a case study in turkey. procedia social and behavioral sciences, 2(10): 2671– 2675. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2010.03.393. skhephe, m., caga, n. p. & boadzo, r. m. k. (2020). accounting teachers’ readiness for elearning in the fourth industrial revolution: a case of selected high schools in the eastern cape, south africa. perspectives in education. 38(1), 43-57 http://dx.doi.org/10.18820/2519593x/pie.v36i2 skhephe, m., mantlana, c. d., & gobingca, b. z. (2020). accounting learner readiness for virtual classrooms in the eastern cape, south africa: lessons learnt from the literature. proceedings of the 2nd world conference on the future of education (brussels, belgium), p. 1–12. straub, d., lock, k., & hill, c. (2015). transfer of information technology to developing countries: a test of cultural influence modeling in the arab world. journal of global information management, 9 (5), 6–20. tadeu, p., fernandez batanero, j., & tarman, b. (2019). ict in a global world. research in social sciences and technology, 4(2), i-ii. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.04.02.ed venkatesh, v., morris, m. g., davis, g. b., & davis, f. d. (2015). user acceptance of information technology: toward a unified view. mis quarterly, 27 (7), 15-30. wan, w. m. n., kassim, c. k. h. c. k., mohd nasir, n. e. & suraya, a. (2016). the use of accounting software for effective teaching and learning of introductory accounting: a pedagogical discussion. journal of social science, 11 (3), 100–115. yap, c., ryan, s., & yong, j. (2014). challenges facing professional accounting education in a commercialized education sector. journal of accounting education, 6 (2), 50-65. yu, s., churyk, n. t., & chang, a. (2013). are students ready for their future accounting careers? insights from observed perception gaps among employers, interns and alumni. global perspectives on accounting education, 10 (7), 1–15. https://doi.org/10.1080/09523980701680854 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2010.03.393 http://dx.doi.org/10.18820/2519593x/pie.v36i2 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.04.02.ed i research in social sciences and technology (ressat) volume 5 issue 2, 2020 tarman, b. (2020). editorial: reflecting in the shade of pandemic. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org editorial: reflecting in the shade of pandemic bulent tarman editor-in-chief, ressat btarman@ressat.org doi: 10.46303/ressat.05.02.ed tarman, b. (2020). editorial: reflecting in the shade of pandemic. research in social sciences and technology, 5(2), i-iv. doi.org/10.46303/ressat.05.02.ed i hope this editorial note finds you well and healthy, especially amid the uncertainty due to covid-19. we are concerned about our children, families, neighbors, colleagues, and ourselves. we are contending with daily reports of death presented as the centerpiece headline news while we are dealing with grief and uncertainty. the impact of this current pandemic on society, in general, is increasingly visible, and we find ourselves in a permanent state of transformation due to the dizzying proliferation of technologies. this pandemic expedites the vital role of information and communication technology (ict) that drives the modern world in education as well as in all other areas. on the other hand, as schools and higher education institutions rapidly move their learning, teaching, and assessment online in response to the worldwide pandemic, academics feel improvised, inefficiently supported, and deeply fearful (watermeyer et al., 2020).1 i hope all of you are doing your best at adapting and finding the way of your teaching styles and courses, grace, and humanity that still exist despite the difficulties we face during this pandemic. i feel the joy of being home with my family and having more hours to contemplate the existing issues humanity faces and how it will end up and what changes it will bring to our social, cultural, and professional lives. we do not know what new panic tomorrow will bring; however, it seems doubtless that “this pandemic will teach people many lessons” 1 this is based on the findings of a recent study: “in total, an excess of 1400 responses were generated from academics working in higher education institutions across 40 country contexts. these are voices of experience representing all the major disciplinary areas and career stages from which transpire the enormous challenges that this pandemic presents to academic lives and careers… the physical closure of university campuses by the covid19 pandemic has almost overnight changed ‘how we do what we do’ as academics, and the nature of our daily routines” (watermeyer et al., 2020). research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org (rapoport, 2020). some people have already started criticizing (including self-critics) the existing systems in almost all areas, asking whether this happens because of the injustice and unfairness occurring everywhere at every level (individual, local, national, and global) since the majority stay silent and do not show any reaction to these injustices. no matter what/who the cause of this pandemic is and how it ends, we all understand the fact that we were not aware enough until we lost our blessings. i hope that we as people remember the lessons we are learning now about responsibility, citizenship, and what really matters in life. keeping our scholarly activities in mind, “there is nothing like a crisis to make you realize what is important and this could not be truer than in the world of scholarly communication” (gadd, 2020). the real purpose of scholarly communication is not to allocate credit for career advancement but to communicate with each other, to share insights for the benefit of humanity. presented in this edition are eight articles that discuss the points of view of various areas of education from several different parts of the world. it is our intention to contribute to the analysis and discussion of empirical research and theoretical aspects linked to the development of technologies in formal and informal learning processes showing significant approaches in a global world. the first article, written by alvyra galkiene and giedre puskoriene, is development of adaptation tools for pupils on the autism spectrum in microsystems. in their research, the authors investigate the possibilities for the development of adaptation tools for pupils on the autism spectrum (as) studying in the first and second forms within their microsystems. the result of this research reveals that the development of adaptation tools in children on the as is determined by a mesosystem that covers various combinations of microsystems, and the synergy between the factors of the microsystems creates conditions for a child’s gradual transfer from one microsystem to another, perceiving the mechanisms of its functioning and adapting within them. raymond chee-yen loh and chin-siang ang are the authors of unravelling cooperative learning in higher education: a review of research. the authors start by defining cooperative learning, discuss the elements inherent in this pedagogy, and outline the theoretical perspectives relating to cooperative learning (cl). this review study concludes that cl is an research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org effective teaching and learning approach in higher education. findings appear to be consistent with the notion that cl helps to enhance academic, affective, and social development of students. the authors also emphasize the role of culture on determining how cl is valued in a particular cultural context. in #education: the potential impact of social media and hashtag ideology on the classroom, ellen watson analyzes scholarly works discussing the use of hashtags with k-12 students to answer this question: how can the hashtag inform the k-12 classroom? findings of the study indicate four themes that could inform the alignment of k-12 classrooms with hashtag ideology: encouraging voice and user-generated content, the potential of self-organization, network hetero/homogeneity, and connecting to space without a common physical space. marta camarero-figuerola, jorge-manuel dueñas, and ana-inés renta-davids are the authors of the relationship between family involvement and academic variables: a systematic review. this research reveals that family participation is a variable that protects against academic failure and that this relationship is stronger in vulnerable populations and ethnic minorities. in the impact of teacher-initiated activities on identifying and verbalizing ways of metacognitive monitoring and control in six-year-old children, ona monkevičienė, jelena vildžiūnienė, and galina valinčienė explore the impact of teacher-initiated activities on six-yearold children’s metacognitive monitoring and control abilities. the results of the research show that teacher-initiated activities stimulate and encourage children to find and apply more diverse ways of metacognitive monitoring and control. malliga k. govindasamy and ngu moi kwe are the authors of scaffolding problem solving in teaching and learning the dpace model a design thinking approach. this research intends to validate the effectiveness of the dpace model in facilitating pre-service teachers in planning and executing a solution for an identified instructional problem. the result of this research validates that the dpace model is a powerful approach to thinking and problem solving, as the concepts are grounded in sound pedagogical theories. in comparing pre-service civic education teachers’ tpack confidence across course modes: insights for future teacher education programs, imam fitri rahmadi, eti hayati, and research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org aulia nursyifa compare pre-service civic education teachers’ tpack confidence across three course modes of a pre-service teacher education program in indonesia. in the last article of this issue, multidimensional analysis of the teaching process of the critical thinking skills, seyat polat evaluates critical thinking skills in a multidimensional way by focusing on the level of teachers’ critical thinking skills. the author analyzes how teachers conceptualize critical thinking, their practices of critical thinking in the classroom, and if the critical thinking is referred enough in the curriculum by using a mixed-method research design. we are honored to present this issue, and we thank the authors and reviewers for their contribution to ressat. we hope you will enjoy and be challenged by the articles in this issue, and we look forward to seeing your contribution to the development of ressat in the future. references gadd, e. (2020, april 20). the purpose of publications in a pandemic and beyond. wonkhe. retrieved from https://wonkhe.com/blogs/the-purpose-of-publications-in-a-pandemic-and-beyond/ rapoport, a. (2020). from the editor: global pandemic: a painful lesson for social studies educators. journal of international social studies, 10(1), 1-2. watermeyer, r., crick, t., knight, c., & goodall, j. (2020, april 9). forced shift to online teaching in coronavirus pandemic unleashes educators’ deepest job fears. nature index. retrieved from https://www.natureindex.com/news-blog/forced-shift-to-online-teaching-incoronavirus-pandemic-unleashes-educators-deepest-job-fears https://wonkhe.com/blogs/the-purpose-of-publications-in-a-pandemic-and-beyond/ https://www.natureindex.com/news-blog/forced-shift-to-online-teaching-in-coronavirus-pandemic-unleashes-educators-deepest-job-fearshttps://www.natureindex.com/news-blog/forced-shift-to-online-teaching-in-coronavirus-pandemic-unleashes-educators-deepest-job-fears research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 olawale, b.e. et al. covid-19 induced psychosocial challenges in south african higher education: experiences of staff and students at two rural universities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 179 covid-19 induced psychosocial challenges in south african higher education: experiences of staff and students at two rural universities babawande emmanuel olawale1, bonginkosi hardy mutongoza1, emmanuel olusola adu1 & bunmi isaiah omodan2 *corresponding author: bolawale@ufh.ac.za 1. faculty of education, university of fort hare, south africa 2. faculty of education, walter sisulu university, south africa received : 2021-06-15 revised : 2021-08-11 accepted : 2021-09-28 how to cite this paper: olawale, b.e., mutongoza, b.h., adu, e. o. & omodan, b.i. (2021). covid-19 induced psychosocial challenges in south african higher education: experiences of staff and students at two rural universities. research in social sciences and technology, 6(3), 179193. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.37 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). abstract although the global impact of the covid-19 pandemic on the education and mental health of the university environment is relatively unknown, it is expected to be very significant considering the high incidence of emotional reactions amongst university students and staff. while fears around covid-19 exposure, anxieties, and the challenges of support normalize stress, anxiety, and depression as emotional reactions in the face of the pandemic, this psychosocial impact has negative consequences for the university community. thus, in order to salvage the higher education institutions from the debilitating effects of the pandemic, there is a clear need to safeguard the welfare of students and staff. hence, it becomes vital to examine the experience of members of the university community during the covid-19 crisis in order to develop measures and implement interventions that will assist in navigating psychosocial challenges. underpinned by hettler’s model of holistic wellness which was developed to promote wellness in the university community settings, the study employed a mixed-method research approach in which data was collected using web-based survey and online interviews. concurrent triangulation sampling technique was employed to select a sample of fifteen students, five university managers, and five lecturers – making twenty-five respondents at each of the two universities, thus making a cumulative total of fifty at two rural universities in the eastern cape province, south africa. thus, quantitative and qualitative data collected were analysed concurrently by first reporting the quantitative findings and then comparing them with qualitative findings. findings revealed that although the university environment traditionally provided opportunities for strengthening social ties which satisfy the universal need to belong to a community, the covid-19 pandemic has altered rural university life, thus, significantly impacting on psychosocial wellbeing. the study recommends that rural institutions must facilitate psychosocial wellness programming with the assistance of wider stakeholders such as the government and the private sector who can assist in financing this initiative. 10.46303/ressat.2021.37 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.37 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 olawale, b.e. et al. covid-19 induced psychosocial challenges in south african higher education: experiences of staff and students at two rural universities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 180 keywords: covid-19; challenges; emotional reaction; impact; pandemic; psychosocial introduction the covid-19 pandemic has disrupted all aspects of society in ways that nobody could have imagined. as a measure to curtail the spread of the highly infectious virus, countries set in place various strategies to limit the movement of people (and the resultant transmission of the virus). such strategies include the enactment of lockdowns, the banning of public gatherings, wearing of masks, sanitizing of hands, etc. (mccorkle, 2020; sahu, 2020). these measures meant that education institutions (schools, colleges, universities, etc.) were closed and alternative methods of instruction had to be formulated (adeyon & soykan, 2020; ebrahim et al., 2020). this gave rise to the establishment of online learning in order to rescue education, albeit with very minimal preparedness especially in rural settings where the infrastructure to enable online learning was barely existent (dube, 2020; mncube al., 2021). remote learning however presents various challenges for students and staff at higher education institutions – for example the lack of access, training and unavailability of online resources (dhawan, 2020; kalimullina et al., 2021; muhuro & kang'ethe, 2021), complications of assessment and evaluation (ntshwarang et al., 2021; unesco, 2020). the covid-19 pandemic has also had a profound effect on mental health, owing to the strains and pressures created by the abrupt change in the way of life (liu et al., 2020). the pandemic has created an unparalleled amount of stress on university communities because of the anxiety, uncertainty of the future, pressures associated with learning from home, challenges associated with time management, etc. (budiharso & tarman, 2020; cao et al., 2020; hasan & bao, 2020; tang et al., 2020). in fact, the incidence of stress, anxiety, and depression seem to be increasing in most organisations, despite intensified scientific attention to this phenomenon from various disciplines. this is exacerbated with the complexities which the pandemic has brought to the fore, wherein academics who initially were involved in offering moral support to students’ needs, incessantly grapple with tasks other than their core teaching functions in order to maintain the functionality of institutions (mncube et al., 2021; williams et al., 2021). in south african universities, psychosocial wellness has recently become embedded in the pressing public health issues owing to unprecedented incidents of attempted suicide and suicide occurrence in the country (makhubela, 2021; van zyl et al., 2017). these concerns are more pronounced in rural universities which in most instances have very limited resources for students and staff to cope amid the academic pressures extant in universities (pillay et al., 2020; rousseau et al., 2021). psychosocial challenges significantly impede social adjustment to university and academic attainment and is linked to increased suicidality (laher et al., 2021). it is contended that university communities are shown to be at a higher risk particularly around times of transition, and psychosocial wellness is shown to decrease significantly around times of major transitions at universities (cvetkovski et al. 2019; poalses & bezuidenhout, 2018). the abrupt transition into online learning in order to cope with the pandemic resulted in a loss of the social aspects of university life and this resulted in common anxieties and fears which significantly affect the psychosocial wellness of students and staff (laher et al., 2021). protocols instituted to curb the spread of the pandemic have also been large ones that dissuade social cohesion, thus while students and staff in developed contexts may have access to technologies research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 olawale, b.e. et al. covid-19 induced psychosocial challenges in south african higher education: experiences of staff and students at two rural universities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 181 which can bridge the social vacuum, their rural counterparts are usually priced out of such technologies and alternative strategies of doing community (hasan & bao, 2020; rajkumar, 2020). as such, this study sought to examine the psychosocial challenges experienced by students and staff at two rural universities amid the covid-19 pandemic. literature review: impacts of covid-19 and the risk factors of its psychological impacts for the general public, while some were overconcerned about the lockdown-related scarcity of emergency and essential services, the unrealistic panic led to false feelings created a detrimental impact on the community that genuinely requires these essentials and promote unconcealed black market which led to social injustice and activity disruptions (mahase, 2020). as evident in the previous contagious disease outbreaks such as the 2003 severe acute respiratory syndrome (sars), it is not uncommon for patients, perceived patients, and/or health workers, to suffer stigmatization (siu, 2008; verma et al., 2004). in the same vein, the outbreak of the covid-19 pandemic has given rise to stigmatization factors such as fear of isolation, discrimination, racism and marginalization with all its economic and social implications (dubey et al., 2020). according to dubey, et al. (2020), a stigmatized set of people or society may find it difficult to seek medical attention, as well as hide medical history, specifically of travel. this attitude in turn is capable of increasing community transmission risks. as such, the world health organisation issued a detailed psychosocial consideration for lessening the growing stigma of the covid-19 pandemic (world health organization, 2020). while the psychological impact of covid-19 amongst children, old age, domestic caregivers, as well as the general public is being overlooked (dubey et al., 2020), developmental psychologist largely found that learned experiences through environmental factors among children during early childhood provide a solid background for lifetime behaviour and success given that it is a fundamental phase for emotional, cognitive, as well as the psychosocial skill development (dubey et al., 2020; ghosh et al., 2020; wang et al., 2020). thus, community-based mitigation programmes such as closing of schools, playgrounds, as well as amusement parks, disrupt children’s normal lifestyle which can potentially cause distress and confusion (dubey et al., 2020). similarly, documented psychological impact of the covid-19 on higher education students revealed that most students feel increased stress level, anxiety, and depression as a result of changed delivery and uncertainty of university education, social isolation, decrease family income as well as the fear of future employment (aristovnik et al., 2020). thus, while previous studies have discussed an intense and wide spectrum of psychosocial ramification that the covid-19 pandemic can inflict on the general public, the fear of “coronaphobia” (asmundson & taylor, 2020) is caused as a result of uncertain characters and unpredictable course of the disease, perceived risk of acquiring the infection, as well as the intolerance of uncertainty among many others (dubey et al., 2020). these can therefore generate negative psychological responses which include maladaptive behaviour, avoidance reaction among common people and emotional distress (taha et al., 2014). similarly, while people bereaved from the death of colleagues, dear friends, as well as their beloved ones due to covid-19 pandemic, their inability to gain closure, bury and/or cremate their loved ones can as well result in frustrations, resentment, anger, psychological trauma and long-term psychiatric sequelae (dubey et al., 2020; ho et al., 2020). research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 olawale, b.e. et al. covid-19 induced psychosocial challenges in south african higher education: experiences of staff and students at two rural universities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 182 in coping with the challenges caused by covid-19 pandemic, university members may exhibit several unpleasant behaviours such as impatience, annoyance and hostility. such behaviours may in turn cause them to suffer from physical and mental violence caused by overly pressurized parents, disappointment, lack of face-to-face contact with classmates, friends and educators, lack of enough personal space at home, among many others which can potentially trigger troublesome and even prolonged adverse mental consequences (wang et al., 2020). thus, while remote classes, online assignments as well as assessment have been the most effective way of salvaging the education sector, various researchers have warned against the stress it brings (dubey et al., 2020). thus, shimazu et al. (2020) highlighted a few immediate strategies that could assist in protecting mental health from psychosocial (such as sleep and healthy nutrition); psychological (such as coping and relaxation); behavioural (physical activities); and social (e.g. communication) aspects. in addition, holmes et al. (2020) argue for a longer-term strategy that could be considered in promoting psychosocial wellbeing which include the positive mechanistic-based component such as problem-focused approach which helps maintain control over situations and the creation of positive events in daily life that provide momentary respite from chronic stress (shimazu et al., 2020). theoretical framework the current study is underpinned by hettler’s (1984) model of holistic wellness which was developed to promote wellness in the university community settings. figure 1. hettler’s (1984) model of holistic wellness according to hettler (1984), holistic wellness is made up of six broad dimensions of healthrelated behaviours namely: physical wellness, emotional wellness, spiritual wellness, social wellness, occupational wellness, and intellectual wellness. for hettler (1984), a person who strives for holistic wellness is aware of all aspects of wellness and consciously works to incorporate these elements into one’s daily life. in other words, the pursuit of wellness is a lifelong endeavour, and educational facilities are ideal settings for wellness promotion (harrington, 2016; miller et al., 2008). as such, this model is useful for this study because it emphasises that people who are aware of the interconnectedness of each of the dimensions of the holistic wellness model will contribute to a healthy university community. this is because research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 olawale, b.e. et al. covid-19 induced psychosocial challenges in south african higher education: experiences of staff and students at two rural universities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 183 the model explains the different aspects of psychosocial wellness – arguing how such wellness can contribute to the development of better living spaces and social networks. problem statement while the impact of the covid-19 pandemic is felt across all populations, most especially communities that are socially disadvantaged, as well as individual who are employed as social workers, research shows that students and staff in the higher institute of learning are amongst the most who are strongly affected by the pandemic (aristovnik et al., 2020; dubey et al., 2020). this is because of uncertainty regarding academic success, social life, as well as future careers (aristovnik et al., 2020; lima et al., 2020; rajkumar, 2020). thus, given that prior to the pandemic outbreak, university communities across the globe continue to experience an increased level of depression, lack of self-esteem, anxiety, violence, abuse of substances, as well as suicidality (holm-hadulla & koutsoukou-argyraki, 2015; rajkumar, 2020), the fears around covid-19 exposure and many challenges faced by university students contributed to pre-existing stressors which thus have a negative consequence for the university community. therefore, to salvage the higher education institutions (heis) from the debilitating effects of the pandemic, there is a clear need to safeguard the welfare of students and staffs by investigating covid-19-induced psychosocial challenges in order to establish relevant approaches to deal with the physical and mental health repercussion of the pandemic. research questions in order to elicit the experiences of students and staff with regards to covid-19-induced psychosocial challenges in south african higher education, this study sought to answer the following questions: • how has the covid-19 pandemic affected workloads and productivity in universities? • how has the covid-19 pandemic affected interpersonal relationships in universities? methodology research paradigm this study was underpinned by the post-positivism paradigm because it enables the researchers to get a broad insight and an in-depth picture on the experiences of students and staffs with regards to covid-19-indcued psychosocial challenges in south african higher education. research approach to get a better knowledge of the phenomena under investigation, a mixed method approach was used. a mixed methods approach is one that combines quantitative and qualitative research methodologies (creswell & creswell, 2018). this approach allowed the researchers to accumulate in-depth information on the experiences of students and staffs with regards to covid-19 induced psychosocial challenges in south african higher education. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 olawale, b.e. et al. covid-19 induced psychosocial challenges in south african higher education: experiences of staff and students at two rural universities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 184 research design based on the use of mixed method research approach, the study was informed by a concurrent triangulation design whereby the researchers used quantitative and qualitative methods simultaneously to best understand the phenomenon under investigation (leavy, 2017). population, sample and sampling techniques the population of the study was composed of staff and students at two rural universities in south africa from which participants for the study were selected. in collecting data, we employed a concurrent triangulation sampling technique to select participants for this study. a sample of fifteen (15) students, five (5) university managers, and five (5) lecturers – making twenty-five (25) respondents at each of the two universities, thus making a cumulative total of fifty (50) respondents who participated in both phases of the study. data collection instruments because mixed methods data collecting entails employing different tactics, techniques, and ways of requesting information from respondents, both quantitative and qualitative data gathering methods were employed (creswell & creswell, 2018). in the qualitative phase, data were collected using semi-structured online interviews with the students and staff, while quantitative data were collected using a web-based survey which was distributed to students and staff who had participated in the qualitative phase. as such, the researchers only used data from participants who participated in both phases of the study. data analysis the quantitative data were analysed descriptively – we provided simple summaries about the sample and findings, while the qualitative data were analysed thematically – we summarised and organised the data based on emerging themes from interviews. thus, quantitative findings were presented first and then compared to the qualitative findings. results and discussion the study sought to investigate the experiences of staff and students at two rural universities with regards to covid-19-induced psychosocial challenges in south african higher education. as such, research findings were presented and discussed under the following sub-headings: • workload management and productivity-related challenges • interpersonal relationships-related challenges workload management and productivity research findings from the quantitative phase of the study in figure 2 below shows the covid19-related psychosocial challenges faced by the university community with regards to workload management and productivity. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 olawale, b.e. et al. covid-19 induced psychosocial challenges in south african higher education: experiences of staff and students at two rural universities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 185 figure 2. workload management and productivity data revealed that 56% of the participants in both universities indicated that one of the major challenges that affected their psychosocial wellness in the domain of workload management and productivity was an undefined work schedule, while 32% of the participants disagreed and 12% remained neutral. this implies that since the abrupt transition to online learning caused by the covid-19 pandemic, institutions are struggling to define work schedules that boost productivity. research findings also revealed that 74% of the participants lamented about the unbearable workload which they have to deal with, while 18% of the participants seemed not to have a problem with the workload, and 8% remained neutral. as such, it is evident from the participants’ response that the unbearable workload led to an increased work-related stress as 82% of the participants noted an increase in such stresses, while 6% disagreed and 12% remained neutral. the data also revealed that students and staff are struggling to grapple with increased academic pressure owing to the initial covid-19-induced temporary closure of higher education institutions. to this end, 78% of the participants noted that academic pressure was a significant challenge impacting their psychosocial wellness, while 10% of the students remained neutral, and a meagre 12% disagreed. in the qualitative phase, in order to elicit the covid-19-related psychosocial challenges faced by the members of the university community, participants were asked “how has the covid-19 pandemic affected workloads and productivity?” research findings revealed that as institutions are rebuilding education practices which have been affected by the covid-19 pandemic students and staff had challenges with regards to time management, work-overloads, undefined work schedules, as well as poor workload planning which directly impacted on work productivity. a case in point can be seen in the response of a lecturer at university b who bemoaned: the pandemic has heavily affected me at several levels, for example, i do not have enough time for my academic work ever since the beginning of the pandemic, […] we unexpectedly shifted to online teaching and learning with very little training and 56 74 82 78 12 8 12 10 32 18 6 12 undefined work schedule unbearable workload increased work-related stress academic pressure workload managament and productivity agree neutral disagree research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 olawale, b.e. et al. covid-19 induced psychosocial challenges in south african higher education: experiences of staff and students at two rural universities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 186 resources. as such, having a clearly defined work schedule has become a huge problem. (lecturer 4, university b) a student at university a corroborated these sentiments arguing: since the reopening of our university, we are always trying to catch-up on schedules […] it always seems like we are behind in terms of the academic programme. sometimes i feel like lecturers are overloading us and not taking our situations into consideration, […] it appears as though they only think that we are taking one module, […] it is just overwhelming and depressing for students. (student 13, university a) in the same vein, a student also reiterated the challenges related to workloads and productivity by noting: […] i have been able to learn new things, for example the use of ict in learning, it however appears as though the lecturers in my faculty do not put students into consideration in terms of workload planning because they are simply interested in the dishing out and submission of tasks for assessment. this comes as added pressure to the already challenging adoption of online learning which we did not know. (student 7, university b) a manager also added: you see, workloads are difficult to manage in the face of the pandemic. both staffs and students are complaining about having too much work, but what can we do? the university has expectations, […] students must be taught, and lecturers must teach and assess. it is a stressful time for both students and lecturers, […] this has to be done using technologies which we all are still trying to learn because we never really did these online things before the pandemic. (manager 3, university a) the challenges related to workloads were also pronounced by a student: i have failed to submit a couple of assignments because of the unbearable workloads. i come from rural areas where sometimes i struggled with connectivity and i would get some of the assignments late. now in order to stay afloat, i have resorted to copying. if i don’t copy, i fail, and if i fail, my funding will be withdrawn you see? some of us do not have the luxury to fail, we simply cannot. they say desperate times need desperate measures. (student 14, university a) research findings revealed that workload management in higher education institutions is affected by unclearly defined work schedules, unbearable workloads, increased work-related stress, academic pressure from taking and preparation for online assessments, as well as the pressure to acquire large amounts of knowledge in very limited timespans. the findings also revealed that students are confronted by performance-related challenges with regards to maintaining bursaries and funding for their studies. this was identified as adding significant stresses on the pursuit of studies, thus some students resorted to academic dishonesty in order to safeguard their bursaries and funding in the wake of the uncertainties induced by the pandemic. these findings corroborate that of patterson et al. (2020) who argue that the covid19 crisis possess a significant amount of workload increase to students and lecturers as they research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 olawale, b.e. et al. covid-19 induced psychosocial challenges in south african higher education: experiences of staff and students at two rural universities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 187 strive to move towards the online teaching and learning model. this transition to an online pedagogy gave rise to increased workload burdens for the university community in their quest to ensure the continuity of academic activities. staffs and students are therefore confronted by exhaustion, fatigue and financial constraints (laher et al.,2021; patterson et al., 2020). similarly, cao et al. (2020) add that the covid-19 pandemic has created an unparalleled amount of stress on university communities because of the anxiety, uncertainty of the future, pressures associated with learning from home, challenges associated with time management, etc. thus, findings from both quantitative and qualitative study revealed that covid-19-induced psychosocial challenges may have a considerable impact on productivity in higher education institutions. such challenges include, undefined work schedule, unbearable workload, increased work-related stress, as well as academic pressure. these findings corroborate that of aristovnik et al. (2020) who posit that the consequences of such challenges often result in increased stress level, anxiety, and depression as a result of changed delivery and uncertainty of university education, and social isolation. this is because according to the holistic model of wellness, wellness is made up of six inter-related dimensions which equally affect the psychosocial wellbeing of an individual in the university setting (hettler, 1984). as such, research demonstrates that psychosocial challenges often result in increased absenteeism, lower job engagement and reduced performance from both students and staff (international labour organization, 2020). interpersonal relationship findings from the quantitative phase of the study in figure 3 below shows the covid-19-related psychosocial challenges faced by the university community with regards to interpersonal relationships. figure 3. interpersonal relationships data revealed that challenges that affected participants’ psychosocial wellbeing with respect to interpersonal relationships were the lack of adequate support, as 68% of the participants indicated that there is lack of emotional and psychosocial support, while 14% remained neutral, 18 76 56 1214 14 26 0 68 10 18 88 emotional & psychosoc support isolation from colleagues etc disruption of collaborative work balancing academic career with private life interpersonal relationship agree neutral disagree research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 olawale, b.e. et al. covid-19 induced psychosocial challenges in south african higher education: experiences of staff and students at two rural universities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 188 only 18% agreed that the institution provides such support. this implies that rural institutions do not have adequate psychosocial support for their students and staff. as such, these university community members are often left to fend for their own wellness. research findings further revealed that while 10% of the participants disagreed that they felt lonely during selfisolation, and 14% remained neutral, the larger percent of the population (76%) agreed that isolation or working from a separate space possess a lot of challenges which had a negative impact on their wellbeing. this becomes more acute when one considers the foregoing finding that most students and staff are without adequate support to cope with the stresses that come with the covid-19 pandemic. members of the university community are thus left without sufficient social capital to cope in the wake of covid-19 stringencies. as a result, this led to work interruption as 56% of the participants indicated that disruption of collaborative work amongst peers are resultant of self-isolation, 26% remained neutral, and 18% disagreed. however, while a minority of 12% of participants indicated that they were able to balance their academic careers with their private life, results indicated that 88% of the participant continue to find it very difficult to maintain this balance. to gather qualitative information from participants on the psychosocial challenges faced by the members of the university community, participants were asked “how has the covid-19 pandemic affected your interpersonal relationships?” research findings revealed that the lack of emotional and psychosocial support, isolation, disruption of collaborative work, balancing academic career with work commitment are some of the major challenges affecting the university community’s wellness in the wake of covid-19 pandemic. for instance, a student at university b lamented: i left the university when the first lockdown happened, and i was far away from my colleagues. we never really got an opportunity to bond as classmates since we were forced to close just as our semester was starting. now we have returned to campus, but we cannot really interact freely with each other. you see, after a busy week of assignments and tests, we used to go out and refresh with my friends, but now we just cannot. even in my romantic relationship, i am always on the edge, worrying and stressing about the possibility of getting the virus from my partner or giving it to him. the social distancing has separated us […] we are lonely and isolated. university is where we must build lifelong friendships that we carry into adulthood, but this is difficult because those who live close to the university can go home regularly while some of us are left isolated in our rooms doing online learning. (student 1, university b) similar sentiments were also revealed by lecturers who revealed how the pandemic has significantly changed their relationships around the university. a lecturer admitted: sometimes just being in the same vicinity with colleagues helps you to refresh. it gives you a sense that we are moving at a similar pace and in the same direction. this has changed because we are largely working apart […] i am often haunted by the feeling that i am behind my colleagues in terms of coverage of course content. we seem to continually not have time for the small chit chats which we used to have before the pandemic. everyone is always busy trying to catch-up. i do not feel like we are a team, we are just a collective of individuals. (lecturer 2, university a) research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 olawale, b.e. et al. covid-19 induced psychosocial challenges in south african higher education: experiences of staff and students at two rural universities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 189 the findings revealed that even managers from the university agreed that the covid-19 pandemic has significantly caused psychosocial rifts, especially with regards to interpersonal relationships which are oftentimes used to cope with challenges. these sentiments are effectively captured in the views of a manager who posited: we have had to relearn how to do life as members of the university community. instead of merely sending out tasks and expecting reports from those you are delegating duties to, it is important to get a sense of the person behind the job being done. sadly, we have not been able to work like we used to. sometimes, i have to step in and work to do my part in keeping the institution going – even on weekends where my family expects me to spend time with them. it is literally everyone who is struggling. i think many families might come out of this pandemic broken because many people are failing to find the balance between earning a living and being involved in their families. (manager 5, university b) a student also added views on how the psychosocial challenges of covid-19 are heavily interwoven into other aspects of student life. the student voiced: this covid thing is really difficult for relationships. it is emotionally and psychologically draining to live life while being in constant fear that i may get it. the need to stay safe then drives you away from your peers and friends because they tell us that we must stay apart to save lives […] but these very people you are supposed to stay apart from are the very network that helps you to cope when you get stressed by academic work or anxious. i personally have suffered many mental breakdowns but there are very little support structures offered by the institution. you have to deal with all these things while battling to pass your modules […] if you do not, then you lose funding. that is also an additional stress, my grandmother back home cannot finance my studies. how can a normal human being deal with all these things? (student 12, university a) research findings revealed that interpersonal relationships in higher education institutions are affected by the covid-19 pandemic owing to issues like limited psychosocial support, isolation, the disruption of collaborative work, etc. it is therefore not uncommon for students and staff to bemoan the psychosocial stresses as witnessed in references to being emotionally drained, lonely, and without adequate support services in the wake of the covid-19 stringencies. the added pressure associated with transitioning into a relatively new form of learning (which had its own complications) which came against the backdrop of striving to maintain good grades and completion of course content, is also evidently increasing the likelihood of psychosocial pressures on the university community. these findings corroborate laher et al. (2021) who note that psychosocial challenges significantly restrict social adjustment in higher education institutions, hinder academic attainment, and can be linked to increases in suicides when people fail to cope with such pressures. the unique setting of rural institutions puts such institutions at more significant risk because they usually do not have sufficient resources to help students cope (pillay et al., 2020; rousseau et al., 2021). findings from both quantitative and qualitative study revealed that covid-19-induced psychosocial challenges have significant impact on interpersonal relationships. these challenges include isolation from peers, colleagues, as well as the university community, lack research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 olawale, b.e. et al. covid-19 induced psychosocial challenges in south african higher education: experiences of staff and students at two rural universities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 190 of emotional and psychosocial support, and the inability to balance work in the academic domain with private life. this has significant implications for psychosocial wellness as presented in hettler’s (1984) wellness model which postulates that individuals within the university community must actively seek balance in the pursuit to enhance personal relationships and friendships. this pursuit, of relationships and balance has significantly been altered in the face of the pandemic as highlighted in the findings. this can be corroborated by laher et al. (2020) who note how covid-19 has had an extended impact on the loss of social aspects of university life. while the developed world has access to technologies which may help to bridge the social vacuum, poorer countries and institutions are usually priced out of these technologies, and their students and staff are left without no recourse (hasan & bao, 2020; rajkumar, 2020). conclusion and recommendation the degree to which an individual can balance life challenges successfully is a direct reflection of their level of psychosocial wellness. our research findings highlight covid-19-induced psychosocial challenges in south african higher education as well as aspects of wellness which are a source of concern for rural academic institutions. although the university environment traditionally provided opportunities for strengthening social ties which satisfies the universal need to belong to a community, it is not surprising that covid-19 pandemic altered rural university life, thus, significantly impacting on psychosocial wellbeing as isolation, lack of support, workload, etc. in the absences of resources, has produced feelings of stress and burnout. as such, the study recommend that rural institutions must facilitate psychosocial wellness programming with the assistance of wider stakeholders such as government and the private sector who can assist in financing this initiative. we also recommend that institutions must review their academic programmes and rid them of unnecessary stresses for students and staff based on their institution-specific settings. this would go a long way in ensuring the survival of rural institutions and their communities in the wake of both the current pandemic, and possible future disruptions which may occur to the learning project. references adeyon, o. b., & soykan, e. 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(2020). covid-19 and mental health: a review of the existing literature. asian journal of psychiatry, 52, 102066. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ajp.2020.102066 rousseau, k.-l., thompson, s., pileggi, l.-a., henry, m., & thomas, k. g. (2021). trends in the prevelance and severity of depressive symptoms among undergraduate students at a south african university, 2016-2019. south african journal of psychology, 51(1), 67-80 https://doi.org/10.1177/0081246320977759 sahu, p. (2020). closure of universities due to coronavirus disease 2019(covid-19): impact on education and mental health of students and academic staff. cureus, 12(4), e7541. https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.7541 shimazu, a., nakata, a., nagata, t., arakawa, y., kuroda, s., inamizu, n., & yamamoto, i. (2020). psychosocial impact of covid‐19 for general workers. journal of occupational health, 1-2. https://doi.org/10.1002/1348-9585.12132 siu, j. y. (2008). the sars-associated stigma of sars victims in the post-sars era of hong kong. qualitative health research, 729-738. https://doi.org/10.1177/1049732308318372 taha, s., matheson, k., cronin, t., & anisman, h. (2014). intolerance of uncertainty, appraisals, coping, and anxiety: the case of the 2009 h1n1 pandemic. british journal of health psychology, 19(3), 592-605. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjhp.12058 tang, w., hu, t., hu, b., jin, c., wang, g., xie, c., . . . xu, j. (2020). prevalence and correlates of ptsd and depressive symptoms one month after the outbreak of the covid-19 epidemic in a sample of home-quarantined chinese university students. journal of affective disorders, 27(4), 1-7. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2020.05.009 unesco (2020). covid-19 and higher education: today and tomorrow. madrid: unesco. van zyl, p., joubert, g., bowen, e., du plooy, f., francis, c., jadhunandan, s., . . . metz, l. (2017). depression, anxiety, stress and substance abuse in medical students in a 5year curriculum. african journal of health professions education, 9(2), 67-72. verma, s., mythily, s., chan, y., deslypere, j., teo, e., & chong, s. (2004). post-sars psychological morbidity and stigma among general practitioners and traditional chinese medicine practitioners in singapore. annals of academy of medicine singapore, 33(6), 743-748. wang, g., zhang, y., zhao, j., zhang, j., & jiang, f. (2020). mitigate the effects of home confinement on children during the covid-19 outbreak. lancet, 395(10228), 945-947. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0140-6736(20)30547-x williams, t.k., mcintosh, r.w., & russell, w.b. (2021). equity in distance education during covid-19. research in social sciences and technology, 6(1), 1-24. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.1 world health organization (2020). mental health and psychosocial considerations during the covid-19 outbreak. retrieved from https://www.who.int/docs/defaultsource/coronaviruse/mental-health-considerations https://doi.org/10.19173/irrodl.v19i2.3391 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ajp.2020.102066 https://doi.org/10.1177/0081246320977759 https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.7541 https://doi.org/10.1002/1348-9585.12132 https://doi.org/10.1177/1049732308318372 https://doi.org/10.1111/bjhp.12058 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2020.05.009 https://doi.org/10.1016/s0140-6736(20)30547-x https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.1 https://www.who.int/docs/default-source/coronaviruse/mental-health-considerations https://www.who.int/docs/default-source/coronaviruse/mental-health-considerations research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 mccorkle, w., problematizing immigration restrictions research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 1 problematizing immigration restrictions during covid-19 in the social studies classroom william mccorkle college of charleston *corresponding author: mccorklewd@cofc.edu received : 2020-07-29 rev. req. : 2020-08-25 accepted : 2020-09-27 doi: 10.46303/ressat.05.03.1 how to cite this paper: mccorkle, w. (2020). problematizing immigration restrictions during covid-19 in the social studies classroom, research in social sciences and technology, 5 (3), 1-24. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.05.03.1 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) abstract in the midst of the covid-19 pandemic, which affected almost every corner of the globe, nations largely closed their borders and restricted or completely halted immigration. this stance, while understandable, raises questions about how ideas of inclusivity and immigrant rights can be maintained in the midst of chaos and insecurity. this article based in the framework of critical border and migration studies provides an overview of the evolution of immigration policies during the crisis and examines how social studies teachers can problematize assumptions of restrictive immigration policies during times of uncertainty and connect the current situation with past times of crisis. though this is relevant to teachers from all countries, there is a particular focus on the united states context. central to the argument is that the ideals of a more open and inclusive immigration system must be maintained even during times of fear and panic. this work builds upon pedagogical scholarship on immigration in the social studies classroom while applying these ideas to the problematic and unique circumstances of immigration during a pandemic. keywords: immigrant rights; critical migration; social studies pedagogy; covid-19 introduction it would be an understatement to say that life has changed for everyone during the covid-19 (coronavirus) pandemic in 2020. basic aspects of life such as employment, schooling, and even family gatherings have changed for most people. in this chaotic time when fear is abounding, it is natural for people to focus on the dramatic changes in the daily lives of their families. in the midst of these changes, areas such as immigrant rights have garnered less coverage, and in the process, have suffered serious setbacks. many educational scholars and activists are arguing for a deeper exploration of immigration in the classroom and educational research particularly in the rise of more xenophobic https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.05.03.1 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 mccorkle, w., problematizing immigration restrictions research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 2 movements, particularly in the united states with the election of donald trump (dabach et al., 2018; poteat et al., 2019; mccorkle, 2018b). though structural injustices in the immigration system existed far before trump, the more blatant forms of prejudice have been revealed more clearly in this administration, whether it was the child separation policy (holpuch, 2020), the “remain in mexico” policy (hurley, 2020), or the muslim travel ban (lind, 2018). while opposition to these policies had been somewhat vocal (kocher, 2018; lind, 2018), those voices have become less strident in a time of pandemic and chaos like covid-19. during the covid-19 pandemic, the restrictions on immigration have reached levels that few could have not imagined before. many nations completely closed their borders to nonresidents (asquith, 2020), which affected both broader travel and immigration. the united states went beyond merely stopping non-essential travel and also prevented the entrance of new asylum seekers and refugees (alvarez, 2020a, human rights watch, 2020) with little protest. they even started deporting unaccompanied minors (montoya-galvez, 2020), a policy that even the trump administration was hesitant to implement previous to the pandemic. while traditionally many on the political right would applaud these measures, there seemed to be little resistance from the left. the attitude among some almost seemed to be that in the midst of the perceived inaction of president trump, at least he was being strict or “responsible” in regard to this area of covid-19 preparedness. how do educators respond in such a time as this? how do they ensure that these types of pandemic related immigration restrictions are only temporary and do not become endemic? this paper considers how educators, particularly social studies teacher educators, can intentionally stress the values of a more open and inclusive immigration system in the midst of chaos, fear, and pandemics using the framework of critical border and migration studies and through an understanding of the broader literature on teaching about immigration within the classroom. as tarman (2020) highlights, this pandemic has caused individuals to call into question some of the current social structures and inequities. the contention of this article is that the current restrictive immigration system, exacerbated by the current crisis, must be included in that broader critique. both this critique and ideas for integrating these ideas that problematize the restrictions within the classroom are central in this article. theoretical framework this paper is centered on the ideas of critical border and migration theories (juss, 2004; parker & vaughan-williams, 2009; schulze-wessel, 2016) particularly as it relates to the social studies (mccorkle, 2020). though these theories can be defined in different ways and have distinctive terms, the core idea revolves around “the work that borders do as foundations linked to violence, force, and the deployment of a logic of exceptionalism” (parker & vaughn-williams, 2009, p.585) and whether “nation-states have the right to restrict migration, outside of general, reasonable security measures” (mccorkle, 2020, p. 63). parmar (2020) contends that borders should be reimagined as reflections of the societies that produce them as this “may inspire society to hold a mirror to itself and reveal its insecurities and obscurities toward those deemed to be ‘strangers” (p. 14). research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 mccorkle, w., problematizing immigration restrictions research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 3 authors such as carens (1987) have compared restrictive migration to the feudal system where individuals are born on a plot of land and then forced to remain there throughout their lives. he asks if we see feudalism as so unjust, why do we not see restrictive migration in the same way? these theories also relate to more open border theorists like bregman (2016) who argue that more open borders would not only be the best solution to poverty in developing countries but would also confront what he sees as the greatest form of discrimination, an individual’s place of birth. carens (1987) contends that though open immigration may not be able to be implemented immediately, it should be a goal developed nations work towards as it is the only morally justifiable response. bregman (2016) and storesletten (2000) argue that more open immigration system would not only benefit those coming from the developing world but could also be beneficial to industrialized nations. schulze-wessel (2015) examines the economic disparities in regard to immigration as the borders are more open to those who are affluent but are often closed to those who are impoverished. in a similar vein, fortier (2006) explores how migration for poor communities who are most restricted is also a necessity for them rather than a sign of “hyper-mobility” that often defines migration for wealthier individuals (p. 318). for many this mobility is seen as a right, but it is applied unevenly based largely on wealth. basik (2012) also describes the injustice of limiting migration as poor immigrants who need to leave their countries are often the victims of international economic policies that put them at a disadvantage. there is something uniquely unjust about allowing capital to easily pass through borders while not allowing the same for labor. he further argues that most of the research in immigration has focused on immigration from a national economic perspective rather than from the individual, human rights perspective. it could also be argued that a more open immigration system can help improve globalization (pyun & lee, 2009) and ideas of global citizenship (banks, 2003), which can have a strong influence on peace and understanding between those of difference cultures and nationalities. mezzadra (2020) and mccorkle (2019) also call for a new vision of borders and migration through the lens of freedom. as mezzadra states, “a politics of freedom of movement must take seriously the proliferation of borders beyond territorial demarcations” (p. 14). these theories are particularly marginalized and forgotten during a pandemic, but times of chaos are when these critical theories are particularly important because the already restrictive immigrant system becomes even more inaccessible. literature review there is significant academic literature on teaching about immigration within the classroom, particularly in the social studies classroom. authors such as dabach, merchant, and fones (2018) argue that in the classroom immigration should be taught less as controversy and more as something that is quite natural throughout history. when framing immigration in terms of controversy, we automatically undermine it as an issue of basic human rights, which should be at the center of the discussion. tarman and gürel (2017) explore turkish social studies candidates’ awareness and attitudes towards refuges in their country. they argue that there is a lack of focus on refugee issues in the social studies, and though there were inclusive attitudes among the pre-service candidates overall, there tended to be more exclusive attitudes toward research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 mccorkle, w., problematizing immigration restrictions research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 4 having refugees settle in their own area. aydin et al. (2017) argue that teachers should receive greater training to ensure that they are creating a welcoming environment for immigrant and refugee students in their class and eliminating some of the biases they may have towards these students. nast (2012) outlines lesson plans that can be taught about issues regarding refugees. some examples include focusing on the story of a young iraqi refugee and having students explore article 13 of the universal declaration of human rights and how it applies to palestinians in particular. from a slightly different perspective, white (2004) describes how educators can use content analysis to have students analyze u.k. newspapers clippings from the 20th century in relation to asylum and immigration policy. monreal and mccorkle (2020) analyzed the state social studies standards and three middle school social studies textbooks in a u.s. southern state and conclude that while historical immigration is seen as natural, more modern immigration is often portrayed as something that is controversial. additionally, textbooks tended to link undocumented immigration with criminal activity. overall, there was a lack of actual coverage about modern immigration. mccorkle (2018a) also argues that it is vitally important that teachers are the ones seeking to undermine xenophobic ideas and narratives that will not likely be significantly challenged outside of this academic setting. this is particularly relevant to three of the most common narratives – that undocumented immigrants place a burden on the economy, that immigrants have higher crime rates, and that immigrants are over-running our border like never before (mccorkle, spearman, & cole, 2018). journell and castro (2011) examine how immigration was used as a “catalyst” for discussing civics education during the 2008 election. among other themes, the teacher in the study had students consider how policies like deportation seemed to be in contradiction to ideas like natural rights (p.13). likewise, dabach, fones, merchant, and adekile (2018) discuss how social studies teachers are able to bring in the idea of civic participation for undocumented students while remaining unabashed in their support for the students. this article builds on this research but also takes a unique perspective as it seeks to understand how immigration should be discussed in unprecedented times, when migration and human movement in general is seen as hazardous. restrictive immigration in times of crisis in times of crisis, nations tend to be more insular and to marginalize foreigners, whether those actions will lead to greater security or not. in certain instances, these types of actions are counterproductive to the host country. a relevant though indirect analogy was when the united states sought to impose high tariffs at the start of the great depression and caused greater economic disaster (crucini & kahn, 2003). the red scares of the 1920s and 1950s, particularly related to the fear of foreign subversives, caused the united states to abandon many of its core constitutional values related to freedom of press, assembly, and speech. in a similar way, the earlier alien and sedition act in 1798 raised concerns that too much power was being put in the hands of the executive branch and taking away from the broader rights of migrants (bradburn, 2008). there is also the example of 9/11 where more stringent immigration restrictions were implemented under the rationale of stopping another terrorist attack. it is difficult to say whether these greater restrictions were a reason that there were no large-scale research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 mccorkle, w., problematizing immigration restrictions research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 5 terrorist attacks by foreign nationals or whether they were irrelevant in that matter. what is clear is that the restrictions affected many people who posed no threat, justified greater immigration restrictions, and in many ways created the immigration restriction apparatus in the united states (garreton, ryan, & carmel, 2020). in fact, many could argue that the xenophobic sentiment under people like trump has at least part of its roots in the fear of a foreign threat from 9/11 (rhodes, 2020) even if none of the individuals that committed the acts had crossed illegally into the country. this is related to the larger anti-globalist and nationalist populist movements that have risen in many countries throughout the globe over the last decade whether that is in brazil, hungary, great britain, or italy. as white (2020) highlights, much of the populist reaction is in response to globalism, particularly the negative economic ramifications that affect segments of the society. galston (2017) discusses how the great recession and the growth of technologies have played a role in this new populist movement, particularly in the united states. immigration restrictions and covid-19 the current situation with the covid-19 pandemic is on a scale that we have not faced in any of our lifetimes. outbreaks like the avian flu were not treated in the same way and did not lead to dramatic immigration restrictions. likewise, the hong kong flu in 1968 did not lead to the same level of social distancing or restrictions on borders. even in the spanish flu of 1918, there was not the same level of global border restrictions. there can be a couple of factors involved with this difference from 1918: first, due to the differences in transportation and technology, there was not the same ease of travel between borders like today. also, there was less of a system in place to limit immigration. for example, in the united states, even during this period of world war i, the border was much more open than it is today (ngai, 2014). it was much harder to make a decree and shut down the borders to the outside world. with that stated, there was discrimination against certain immigrants, particularly the chinese who were accused of spreading the spanish flu (kraut, 2010). the question of whether these stringent immigration policies both in the united states and globally have been effective will be up for broad debate and will be largely speculative in nature. on one hand, it appears rational that halting travel from china or italy at the beginning of the crisis or stopping travel from the united states later in the crisis may have stopped the spread of the virus. this is a problematic reality from a more critical border perspective particularly with the need to reframe immigration as an issue of freedom (mezzadra, 2020). it does problematize this critical perspective and seems to bolster the idea of more restrictive borders. however, there are also aspects where the closing of the borders needs to be critiqued. for example, later evidence showed that covid-19 was in places like france (tidman, 2020) and california (chiu & armas, 2020) months before the extent of the spread was realized and the borders were closed. at this point, did the closing of the borders actually solve many of the issues? did the possible mitigation from restrictions on the few people that were going to still be traveling justify the restrictions in travel? furthermore, there were many instances where the restrictions on the borders did little to stop the spread, such as the united states placing further restrictions on those from central american and mexico where the rates from covid research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 mccorkle, w., problematizing immigration restrictions research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 6 19 were much smaller. even in the summer of 2020 when the united states leads the world in covid-19 cases and deaths, there are still broad restrictions on individuals from countries that have a fraction of the number of cases. for example, as of august 2020, the united states had 10 times the number of official covid cases as mexico even though the population is only about three times as large (statista, 2020). the larger question is when will these restrictions be lifted. this article is being written in the summer of 2020, so at this time this question is still unknown. for example, even at a time when and if a vaccine is found, will immigration restrictions still be in place because those from developing nations may have less access to the vaccine? at what level of spread will it be considered safe to admit people from a foreign country? what would happen in places like the united states or europe where some people may doubt the numbers coming from more authoritarian countries such as china, russia, or iran? this pandemic is occurring during a time where simultaneously there has been more travel for those in the wealthier classes but also greatest restrictions for many immigrants, particularly for those that do not come from wealth (fortier, 2006; mccorkle, 2020). will the effects of this virus exacerbate this trend? threats to globalism though globalism has been used at times by those in power to oppress marginalized groups in both the developed and developing world, it could also be argued that the internationalism and interchange of the world has meant a more peaceful world (girdap, 2020; kilinc et al., 2018; pyun & lee, 2009). the more open borders of the e.u. have been a sign of the positive change from conflict that not only defined europe during world war i and world war ii, but also throughout much of its history. the pictures of the borders being resurrected in europe in many ways symbolize a mitigation of the dream that was birthed out of the formation of the european union at the end of world war ii and the more open borders that the schengen agreement created (pallini, 2020). even as those restrictions are once again lifted, what it has shown is that the freedom and unity of the borderless europe may have always been an illusion. the borders can be raised again whenever it is seen as necessary. it is also important to consider how the business relationships and personal interchange between nations may help lead to greater international cooperation. though covid-19 may not shut down the economic activity between powerful nations, global cooperation goes beyond the exchange of products. it means americans living and traveling in china, foreign exchange students coming to the united states and canada, and the yearlong foreign work experiences that change worldviews forever. though most of these experiences are the privileges of those living in the developed world or among the wealthy in the developing world, we should not underestimate the power they have for greater cooperation and peace. countries with not only economic ties but social and cultural ties are more likely to find productive ways to interact (woods, 1987). research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 mccorkle, w., problematizing immigration restrictions research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 7 the u.s. pandemic travel policies the u.s. policy changes towards immigration during the covid-19 epidemic is a good case study to examine. the first real restrictions came when president trump called for a travel ban from china when the epidemic first began. this ban was announced on february 2, 2020, and applied to non-citizens flying directly from china to the united states; though there were loopholes to true containment as u.s. citizens and residents returning from china were still allowed to re-enter (yen, 2020). many people including jennifer nuzzo, a professor of health security at john hopkins and ron klain, the former ebola ‘czar’ for the obama administration questioned the wisdom or effectiveness of the measure (kessler, 2020). both top democratic presidential candidates, joe biden and bernie sanders, seemed to be critical of trump’s move to shut down travel from china (re, 2020). the initial move to restrict immigration was met with resistance; however, as the toll of the virus became greater much of that resistance decreased. on march 12th president trump announced the next step of restrictions targeting foreign nationals coming from the schengen zone of europe. as saeed (2020) highlights at least part of the reason for this move may have been to refocus the controversy on the actions of other foreign nations for not taking the needed precautions to stop the spread of the virus. this came at a time when there was growing anger and frustration at the president for not doing more to stop the virus. the european travel ban could have been a way to both show action while at the same time putting the blame more on a foreign entity. curiously, ireland and the united kingdom were originally spared from the ban but then were added to the ban two days later (snyder, 2020). this relates to the broader idea of the threats primarily residing outside our border (or those foreigners coming in) when in reality the threat was already inside. this is a populist trope employed in both in modern and historical narratives (mccorkle, spearman, & cole, 2018). though overall in the american society the idea of shutting down borders may have been more embraced, as the fear from covid-19 had become central in the american consciousness, there was strong critique from some in europe. amaro (2020) highlights some of the critiques of this policy from those in europe including those who considered that it was more political than strategic and according to a leader at one brussel’s based think tank it was an “effort by trump to try to convince the american people he has a plan.” the presidents of the european council and european commission were direct in their condemnation of the situation was handled. as they stated, the coronavirus is a global crisis, not limited to any continent and it requires cooperation rather than unilateral action. the european union disapproves of the fact that the united states decision to impose a travel ban was taken unilaterally and without consultation. the european union is taking strong action to limit the spread of the virus (von der leyen & michel, 2020). refugees were also a target of the restrictions. the initial refugee ban from the united states was only supposed to last for about two weeks from march 19th through april 6th (alvarez, 2020a). however, like many of the policies, the restrictions for refugees continued to be research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 mccorkle, w., problematizing immigration restrictions research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 8 expanded and was not lifted until the end of july 2020. these restrictions were implemented in a refugee program that was already accepting record low numbers (alvarez, 2020b). later, on march 21st, trump further shut down the mexican american border, blocking any non-essential travel; this initial shutdown was expanded an additional month in april. a similar move was made with the shutting down of the canadian border (romo, 2020). shutting down the u.s.-mexico border had a dramatic impact on asylum seekers. though many adults and families were blocked from asylum due to the united states migration protection protocol (remain in mexico policy), the latest policies under covid-19 have meant that even unaccompanied minors are being denied a chance for asylum (greene, 2020). as greene highlights, though the u.s. and mexican governments deny direct coordination in stifling the movement of asylum seekers, they are both working together to ensure that it is more difficult to pursue asylum. in one story she recounts how three minors were grabbed by mexican officials as they were seeking to cross into the country. in july of 2020, it was also reported that the trump administration was working with several hotel chains to temporarily house unaccompanied minors before they were deported (merchant, 2020). the trump administration’s stance towards asylum seekers did face some greater pushback. as the un refugee agency stated, “we understand that in the current global covid-19 public health emergency all governments have an obligation to enact measures to protect the health of their populations. while this may warrant extraordinary measures at borders, expulsion of asylum seekers resulting in refoulement1 should not be among them (lakhani, 2020). lucas guttentag (2020) argues how this initial order came from the centers for disease control and is an abuse of the power and unlawful under current immigration statues and international law. as he states, “the covid border ban attempts to erect a shadow immigration system devoid of constitutional protections that erases fundamental statutory safeguards implementing refugee protection obligations.” in this way the ban went far beyond a temporary necessity during a pandemic and help to further strengthen the more heavy-handed antiimmigrant policies of the executive branch, particularly under the trump administration. president trump took the restrictions even further in april 2020 when in a late night tweet, he stated that he was going to ban immigration into the united states, with no distinction due to the rates of covid-19 in the foreign countries, to deal with the spread of the disease and the economic turmoil that it was creating. he later backtracked the dramatic comment and stated that it would only apply to new green card holders for 60 days with a possible extension in the restriction if necessary (shear, kanno-youngs, & dickerson, 2020). 1 refoulement refers to return refugees or asylum seekers to nations where they may face persecution, torture, or other human rights violations. it is considered illegal under international policy (un human rights office of the high commissioner, n.d.). research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 mccorkle, w., problematizing immigration restrictions research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 9 something that needs consideration is that throughout all these restrictions, the name donald trump has been used over and over again. though the constitution does not give the president the ultimate authority over immigration policy this has become largely the case, not only in the times of pandemic, but also more broadly (anderson, 2020). this includes polices that were more inclusive of immigrant rights such as daca and dapa under president obama, but also a host of restrictive policies from the trump administration before the pandemic. it has almost been taken for granted that the executive branch has this power when that is far from settled from a legal perspective (wilson, 2019). international immigration restrictions the pandemic has also marginalized immigrant communities globally accused of being the cause of covid-19 spread in some nations. this was particularly the case in singapore where approximately 85% of the cases of covid-19 in the nation came from the cramped dorms of low waged migrants. in these dorms 10-20 individuals can stay in one room, which is an obviously unsanitary situation with the spread of the virus (leung, 2020). a similar situation occurred in saudi arabia where around 75% of the country’s covid-19 cases came from the migrant populations. as the international labor organization notes, many migrants may refuse to take part in the free testing from the nation out of a fear that they could be deported if their residency had previously expired (sherlock, 2020). one of the worst examples of the treatment of migrants during this time was in the country of malaysia where hundreds of undocumented migrants were rounded up and placed in detention out of the fear that they would spread the virus. the united nations warned malaysia to not put these individuals in detention as it could increase the risk of the virus spreading. people also fear that these policies will cause migrant communities to go into hiding and likewise cause greater issues with the virus. the majority of the migrants targeted are from the persecuted rohingya group. the asian chapter of the human rights watch has argued that “this is perhaps the most mindless and inane thing ‘they’ could have done.” however, the government is “committed to promoting a policy of fear and xenophobia that transfers the anger of the malaysian public on to foreigners who cannot defend themselves.” (ahmed et al., 2020). examples of more inclusive policy there have been some examples of nations and states that have acted more inclusively towards migrants during this crisis. the country of portugal has ensured that undocumented immigrants receive the same rights as permanent residents such as access to public health care and welfare benefits for at least the initial months of the crisis (schmitt & massimino, 2020). this stands in contrast to the united states, which did not initially allow undocumented immigrants or even those with temporary protected status or deferred action for childhood arrivals (daca) status to receive federally funded free covid-19 testing (schmitt & massimino, 2020). however, research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 mccorkle, w., problematizing immigration restrictions research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 10 bucking the national policy, the state of california has also offered $75 million in covid testing for undocumented immigrants in the state (jordan, 2020). excessive restrictions though most individuals would agree that some of level of travel restrictions may have been necessary particularly in the beginning of the crisis when containment of the virus was the primary goal, the broad and unbending immigration restrictions that have continued far surpass reasonable regulations and are being used to cover more anti-immigrant policies that politicians would like to enact. in the case of the united states, the obvious opportunism on covid-19 is quite blatant. the same administration that is calling for schools to be opened across the nation and even threatening federal funds if this does not occur (guadiano et al., 2020) is simultaneously enacting policies that imply children crossing the border for asylum are a public health concern. likewise, little distinction is being made between those who are merely traveling for pleasure versus those such as asylum seekers and refugees whose lives and safety lie in the balance. finally, the prolonged closure of borders reveals how the free movement of people is not seen with the same level of importance as other areas such as opening back businesses and schools or allowing social events to resume. this underlies the disregard of the importance of the rights of migration. classroom strategies in the coming years, whether classes are conducted in person or online, many issues regarding covid-19 will surely be central in the discussion in the social studies classroom. issues such as the economy, public health, and civil liberties will certainly be core topics, but it is also important in this context for teachers to center the issue of immigration. for social studies teachers in particular, the focus on overly restrictive immigration and the use of crises to promote xenophobic narratives and policies is particularly related to history and contemporary political issues. in particular, this theme relates to the national council for the social studies (2010) curriculum standard #3 on people, places, and environments, which includes the study of “the causes, patterns and effects of human settlement and migration.” this area would primarily apply to the secondary classroom. however, there could also be application at the middle grades and elementary level if the relevant adaptions were implemented. for many students, immigration might not have been a topic that they have even considered in the context of covid-19. part of this exploration could just be having students examine articles and primary sources related to this topic both in the united states and around the world. some examples include coverage from the u.s.-mexico border with the fear of covid-19 (peña, 2020) or stories of refugees being delayed because of the new policies. this article is based more in a critical approach, aligned with teaching methods explicitly working for social reconstruction such as represented by educational philosophers like counts (1932/1978) and freire (1970/1986). however, the ideas raised in this article could also be applicable for teachers who would take an approach more akin to john dewey (1897) who was more reticent in seeking to persuade students towards a certain position. in this case, the research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 mccorkle, w., problematizing immigration restrictions research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 11 arguments and questions raised in this piece would be relevant in having the students begin to grapple with this issue. it is important for teachers who are discussing these issues, both during the pandemic and in future reflective retrospectives, to consider the ways that immigrants were treated during covid-19 and how we can ensure the creation of more inclusive policies during future pandemics or other crises. four possible strategies include questioning or problematizing the immigration policies during covid-19 (especially the ones that may have been excessive or unnecessary), introducing ideas on rights of migration both within and outside national boundaries, linking the current immigration restrictions to the reactions of the u.s. government to past crises, and exploring the link between immigration restrictions and excessive executive power. questioning the policies one strategy that educators could implement is having students truly consider some of the wisdom of the immigration restrictions during the pandemic. if educators accept the simplistic stance that all border closings are justified in the name of stopping the virus, it could set up a damaging precedent during a precarious worldwide event or unrest. for example, it might have made perfect sense for the united states to put greater restrictions or even outright bans on individuals from some nations in europe, particularly italy, in the early days of the violence. however, was a complete e.u. ban justified, especially as the rates in the united states were also high when this ban was issued? it made even less sense in may 2020 when there was still a ban of individuals from european countries when the united states led the world in covid19 cases but was still refusing entrance of individuals from europe. were the further restrictions of the southern border, when mexico and central america had far fewer cases than the united states, just a convenient method for the country to implement more xenophobic policies? as educators look back on this crisis after the initial panic has subsided, these are the issues that should be considered. many citizens who lean left politically, who may have traditionally advocated for more open border but supported these decisions either explicitly or implicitly as a way to mitigate the spread of the virus, may have done so without realizing the precedent that it is setting for every future world crisis. students could engage in a type of counterfactual history (bunzi, 2004; roberts, 2011) and speculate what the similarities and differences would have been if borders and migration were allowed to remain relatively the same. though students may come to different conclusions, this approach of deconstructivity at the minimum could problematize the normalization of some of these extraordinarily stringent policies, which were almost universally embraced. this area could also be enhanced with having students consider some broader questions including, 1. what should be the duties of nations towards asylum seekers and refugees? what are the actual written international and national polices? 2. what level of travel restrictions are reasonable and justified during a global pandemic? should there be exceptions to these restrictions? 3. what is the proper balance between a nation’s public health in a pandemic and the rights of refugees and asylum seekers? research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 mccorkle, w., problematizing immigration restrictions research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 12 4. what would be the effect of maintaining the current restrictive immigration policies after the pandemic has passed? rights of migration teachers also can help students analyze how this crisis relates to the rights of migration in general. this has come into clearer focus as now countries have even restricted travel from the united states, most notably the eu (chappell, 2020). this is largely something that those from the united states have never experienced. a u.s. passport normally grants almost open access, at least for tourist travel, to most nations in the world. however, the united states (and other developed nation) largely exclude those from poorer countries (schulze-wessel, 2016). this comes into even greater focus after there was some discussion in late march by the trump administration to even block travelers from leaving infected states like new york (alper, 2020). though this action did not occur, there were other states that put restrictions on individuals from areas like new york and new jersey. south carolina banned residents from the new york tri-state area from reserving hotel rooms in the state (kelleher, 2020). other states like rhode island went a step further and actually had officials pull over cars and have police and national guard knock on doors for individuals coming from new york to make sure they were in quarantine (nieto del rio & ellis, 2020). in the summer of 2020, the roles were reversed as new york, new jersey, and connecticut put quarantine restrictions on individuals from many southern and western states (coleman, 2020). these are types of restrictions on intra-national movement that have not really been seen in the history of the country, even during the 1918 pandemic. perhaps these novel developments can be a good point of classroom focus in helping students reimagine the rights of migration in general. should educators perhaps discuss if these restrictive actions, which are seen as draconian in times of crisis, should be removed as the norm for people from poor countries in general? there is something that seems instinctually wrong with a family not being able to leave their state and go to another. why then do we allow such restrictions to take place between countries when the stakes are often much higher (mccorkle, 2019)? students could examine some of the issues that could result if districts, states, or provinces within a country began to implement restrictions on internal migration more fully. in china, rural residents were barred from obtaining particular government benefits and even certain jobs if they relocated to urban areas (scheineson & zissis, 2009). though these restrictions are becoming more liberalized, there remnants still exist (candelaria, daly, & hale, 2013). a similar system existed in the soviet union where a permit (propiska) was necessary for travel between regions and was used to slow the movement of individuals from rural areas to the cities (human rights watch, 1998). some questions that students could consider for this section include, 1. is the right to travel or migrate a human right? 2. is it ever justified for state or federal government to restrict travel within a state or nation? 3. is it justified for state or federal government to restrict travel outside or re-enter the country? research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 mccorkle, w., problematizing immigration restrictions research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 13 4. should nation states have the right to restrict travel in the absence of health and security concerns? historical examples of policies during chaotic times teachers can also focus on how these types of temporary policies of a nation could become an excuse for authoritarian immigration policies in the future. this is especially true if something like covid-19 becomes endemic as the who says is possible (howard & rahim, 2020). what happens if a reliable vaccine is not found? even if the greatest danger has passed, will the issue of pandemics and viruses be used as an excuse to block more asylum-seekers and refugees in the future? as mentioned earlier in the paper, there are many examples of problematic responses to crises in u.s. history. perhaps the closest historical precedent to compare to the current situation is 9/11, when the patriot act was immediately passed after the attacks and was used for years into the future for issues that did not even pertain to terrorism (bell, 2011). teachers could examine the rhetoric surrounding the patriot act following september 11th, the anti-terrorist rationale behind it, and the almost unanimous, immediate support for it. they could then examine in what ways it was used for its original purpose of stopping terrorism and conversely how it led to other purposes such as the nsa spying on all american citizens, which whistleblowers like edward snowden later exposed (scheuerman, 2014). another historical example that teachers could have students examine is the limitations on the first amendment in the midst of world war i in the united states where speaking out against the war was met with resistance (gutfeld, 1968) or similarly the mccarthyism of the 1950s where free political thought was also under attack (gibson, 1988) in the name of security. in regard to immigration specifically, there could be an examination of how the fear and economic turmoil of the great depression contributed to the deportations of scores of individuals of latin american descent, including u.s. citizens (wagner, 2017). this restrictive immigration environment also caused the united states to turn away jewish refugees fleeing the nazi threat in europe (blakemore, 2019). there could be an analysis of how the events of 9/11 allowed for more restrictions on immigrant communities that extended far beyond the initial moves to secure the country including the establishment of ice (immigration and customs enforcement). it also created an environment where local and state officials became more involved with immigration enforcement (mittelstadt, speaker, meissner, d., & chishti, 2011). this issue could be combined into the broader conversation of the effects of 9/11 both in the united states and around the world. ettinger (2016) outlines methods for teaching students about the wars of 9/11 (iraq and afghanistan) who may have been too young to remember the events of 9/11. he believes this pedagogical reflection is of special importance for educators who may take aspects of this knowledge for granted since they lived through it. table 1 u.s. responses to crises crisis intention secondary results resistance to world war i unity to win war limits on free speech, free press, and free assembly research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 mccorkle, w., problematizing immigration restrictions research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 14 red scare/mccarthyism stop communism/revolution scapegoating of immigrants, uncritical accusations, limits on political thought great depression/high unemployment help american workers loss of rights for mexicanmigrants (including some mexican americans) and rejection of asylum seekers including jews fleeing nazi europe. september 11th stop terrorism/ensure security scapegoating of muslim americans, infringements of civil liberties, government surveillance, creation of stronger immigration enforcement some questions students could consider include, 1. why do times of chaos and panic often lead to actions that are in opposition to the values of a nation? is this inevitable or can it be avoided? 2. what are the similarities and differences between the current pandemic and the environment after september 11th? 3. how do you think the current response to covid-19, particularly related to immigration, will be viewed in history? 4. what role is historical empathy in measuring the historical reactions to times of chaos? expanding executive power finally, this crisis gives a space to focus on the role of the executive in regard to immigration policy. the u.s. constitution and many state governments were rightfully leery of the power of the executive. however, in many areas such as national security and immigration, the power of the executive has continued to grow over time (wilson, 2019). students could examine what the long-term effects of this are on the ideas of representative democracy. this could be integrated within the larger focus on the rise of more authoritarian governments around the world and the possible power they have consolidated during this time. davis (2019) highlights the need for social studies teachers to integrate the dangers of authoritarianism within the social studies classroom and focus on the need for civic engagement to counteract this trend. some larger questions students could consider include, 1. how has executive power expanded in the united states since the end of world war ii? 2. how much executive authority is given constitutionally to the president and how have presidents abused executive authority? 3. what legislative and judicial authorities has executive authority undermined or weakened? 4. where does the authority to make immigration policy lie? research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 mccorkle, w., problematizing immigration restrictions research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 15 5. in terms of executive authority, what have been the greatest differences between the trump, obama, and bush administrations? conclusion this paper was finished in the summer of 2020 in the midst of the covid-19 pandemic. it is certain that some of the realities will shift dramatically over the near future. unfortunately, one thing will almost certainly continue – this crisis will be used for xenophobic purposes that will extend far beyond this immediate crisis. it will also be true that some of the pro-immigrant movement against draconian policies will be further muted both because this crisis will demand more attention and because there may be less public will to actually move in a more inclusive direction. during these times, social studies educators need to combat xenophobic rhetoric and continue to push for more inclusive immigration policies through both their classes and their broader activism. it would be shameful if one of the legacies of this pandemic is more permanently closed borders and greater disregard for asylum seekers and refugees. that is why it is a vital necessity that educators begin exploring these issues now when they might be the most uncomfortable yet urgent, lest they be forgotten. references ahmed, k. 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(2020, march 26). ap news check: trump’s inaccurate boasts on china travel ban. associated press. https://apnews.com/0dc271ad7f7917374a5a0cfb49273783 https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2017/03/americas-brutal-forgotten-history-of-illegal-deportations/517971/ https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2017/03/americas-brutal-forgotten-history-of-illegal-deportations/517971/ http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/0309826042000242512 https://ressat.org/index.php/ressat/article/view/438 https://scholarship.law.uc.edu/ihrlr/vol1/iss2/4 https://apnews.com/0dc271ad7f7917374a5a0cfb49273783 research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 moloi, t.j. & adegoriolu, e.t. the transformative methodology: expository study of teaching english as the second language acquisition research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 219 the transformative methodology: expository study of teaching english as the second language acquisition tshepang jacob moloi *1 & emmanuel tobi adegoriolu1 *corresponding author: moloijac@yahoo.com 1. north-west university, faculty of education, south africa. received : 2021-06-17 revised : 2021-08-21 accepted : 2021-09-15 how to cite this paper: moloi, t.j. & adegoriolu, e.t. (2021). the transformative methodology: expository study of teaching english as the second language acquisition. research in social sciences and technology, 6(2), 219-232. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.20 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). abstract the significance of language as a science in the educational sector has continued to play a critical role in terms of teaching and learning. however, due to inequalities exposed severely by the covid-19 pandemic, the teaching of english as the second language acquisition to foreign speakers; is adversely affected. therefore, the use of transformative methodology as the teaching strategy is explored to determine the most suitable methodology of teaching during the covid-19 pandemic. the study utilizes participatory action research as the approach to explore the efficacy of transformative methodology; this approach is embedded in the paradigmatic principles of constructivism as the lens of qualitative methodology. besides, the data is analysed using critical discourse analysis post the generation of it using observations and semi-structured interviews (free attitudinal interviews). the paper demonstrates the prospects of using transformative methodology as the appropriate use of pedagogical strategy for english as the second language acquisition, it also suggests efficient but costly measures required to be implemented by the universities for the use of the transformative methodology. keywords: second language acquisition; covid-19; transformative methodology; teaching strategy and inequalities. introduction the dynamics of the globe unconventionally evolved because of the coronavirus (covid-19) pandemic. its emergency is quite distinctive from other pandemics or phenomena since the globe, by and large; was neither prepared nor anticipated that the equitable use of limited resources to be effective given its magnitude to combat and manage its effects. notwithstanding this pandemic, south africa, similarly to other countries, was not spared from the adverse impact of it. on the 11th march 2020, world health organisation (who) declared covid-19 as a pandemic and since then, the status quo in our societies and the world in general; deteriorated and the perpetual distribution of uneven resources abated. as a result, countries 10.46303/ressat.2021.20 mailto:moloijac@yahoo.com https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.20 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 moloi, t.j. & adegoriolu, e.t. the transformative methodology: expository study of teaching english as the second language acquisition research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 220 across the world had to contingently develop coping mechanisms and hence various measures of lockdown were implemented in an attempt to curb the spread of the covid-19. amid these challenges presented forth the pandemic, like other dimensions such as political, economic and labour; the educational sector was not immune from the voracious effects of the pandemic. this implied that our limited resources suffered profound pressure and this perpetuated the high levels of inequalities among our students, instructors and high institutions of learning, as conceded by aristovnik et al. (2020) that among other relative stakeholders within the education system, students are the main victims to be adversely affected by the pandemic. factually, the pandemic shall remain with the globe for quite some time, hence the paper aims to expose the efficacies of using transformative method in the context of teaching english as the second language under covid-19. the fundamental basis to expose efficacies of using transformative method is mainly to view the challenges of transformative method and its impact on teaching english as the second language. research question how effective is the use of transformative methodology to teach english as the second language at the university? research objectives the aim of the paper is to expose the efficacies of using transformative methodology to teach english as the second language at the university. while the objectives of it is to:  determine the challenges of using transformative methodology as the teaching strategy.  discover the efficacies of using transformative methodology as the teaching strategy for esl at the university. literature review the emergency of covid-19 seems to have an adverse impact on all universities although such an impact is not measurably drastic to other universities (omodan, 2020). this means that students who emerged from impoverished backgrounds will feel the brunt of this pandemic, although students’ determination for tertiary education is espoused by their personal goals and ambitions to better their diverse backgrounds. the fact that students emerged from diverse backgrounds consisting of abject poverty, inequality, crime and other social ills with the purpose of transforming their lives to eradicate the widening gap of inequality, cannot be delayed by this pandemic. certainly, students’ experiences as a result of covid-19 have raised alarm concerning their potential to succeed in accomplishing their educational goals (aristovnik et al., 2020; tarman, 2020), and universities and colleges’ state of finances have exponentially deteriorated and resulted in financial distress. this notion is purported by abdullah and haider (2020) when opined that enormous financial inadequacies have adversely impacted the institutional directions in terms of leadership and management. this indicates that pertinent expertise, skills relevant to the pandemic are required to mitigate the prevalent effects of the covid-19 and to manage, efficiently; the use of the limited resources. similarly, high institutions of learning are subjected to financial distress (habibi et al., 2020) and this distress caused the instant shut down of some of the universities. the classical example is that of alliave university research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 moloi, t.j. & adegoriolu, e.t. the transformative methodology: expository study of teaching english as the second language acquisition research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 221 college in medical sciences which closed shop as the results of the operational requirements (husin et al., 2018). furthermore, these challenges exposed even the hidden elements of inequalities and resources and grant no further opportunities to salvage the remnants of the resources. this denotes that covid-19 has no mercy when coming to the struggle of economic emancipation given the definition of it by velavan and meyer (2020) that covid-19 is “positive-single stranded large rna viruses which infect humans, but also different animals.” apart from animals, human beings are the core mechanisms in any dimension; hence human capital plays a pivotal role in economic activities. kanu (2020) surmised the catastrophic effects of covid-19 in threefold on economic activity, i.e. financial corporate, human mortality and job losses. this submission indicates that the significance of human capital surpasses; although not negating the significance of the other two dimensions, in essence, the value of the economy itself. it is because human capital in a narrow sense, inject not only expertise, skills and knowledge but contribute immensely towards police formation that enables the conducive environment for economic and political climates, which create profound opportunities for growth. therefore, it is prudent to infer that covid-19 has widened the gaps of inequality and poverty because zucman (2019) rebutted that covid-19 has widened the gaps of inequalities since the distribution of wealth has subverted. this implies that wealth is not only limited to monetary value but includes, inter-alia; services, goods and resources. these services, good and resources serve as the bulk of capacity for effective functioning of high institutions of learning but because of the adverse impact of covid-19, these institutions are compromised and obligated to adapt their traditional approaches of imparting skills and knowledge into the relevant and recent methods, thereof; transformative method (tm hereinafter) has been regarded as one of the best methods for teaching during this pandemic era (beka & beka, 2017). as a result of this adaption, the tm can be used to teach english as the second language (esl). it is because the state of readiness of the globe is subjected to rigour test to withstand the challenges of the pandemic (beka, 2014). this implies that societies ought to evolve since we have digitalization and the 4th industrial revolution (oecd, 2019), hence the subsequence use of the tm for teaching and learning esl shall mitigate the compromise of the perks of the quality of teaching and learning. apart from the limitations of tm; it seems to be an alternative method for teaching and learning esl as beka and gllareva (2016) endorsed that tm’s outcomes are evident towards the contribution to a high quality of teaching and learning and this serves as the opportune lacunae for using tm for teaching and learning esl. however, this high quality of outcomes alluded by beka and glarella (2016) is substantially controversially because quality, reliability, validity and standard can be compromised when assessment is administered remotely without effective monitoring (gardner, 2012). however, the suspense of this controversy; to demystify the use of tm to teach esl, need to be applied, thus certainly; language constitute an integral part of our lives and necessitates that the teaching of esl, as the world progress and evolve; be altered and adapted to suit the current era. based on this assertion; the second language’s (sl) definition is distinctive from that of the language as the former is defined as the intense, involved and systemic study of research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 moloi, t.j. & adegoriolu, e.t. the transformative methodology: expository study of teaching english as the second language acquisition research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 222 people learning a new language apart of their mother tongue (hogue, 2017) while the latter is the expression of ideas, opinions, facts and emotions utilizing the systemic method involved in a language, such as signs and symbols (hogue. 2017). above all, the functions of language among others are to communicate and interact and the emerging contexts for these functions are critically important as the social function from an academic function. argumentatively, individuals interact using their mother tongues in a social context and this interaction is premised on the concept coined by cummins (1981, 1991) called basic interpersonal communication skill (bics). in contrast, cummins further coined the concept called cognitive academic language proficiency (calp) for academic purposes (cummings, 1981, 1991). therefore, depending on the context prevailing; these concepts are intertwined for effective communication, writing and reading using esl and enable the potency of second language acquisition using these concepts interchangeably (lehman welch, 2020). as a result, the pertinent question arises of how esl can be acquired amid the prevalence of covid-19? rhetorically, tm; which is the method embedded into the context of social change that inspires and influence people’s experiences can significantly enhance the teaching and learning of esl. these experiences are conflated with the meanings of life and the exposition of using tm to teach esl is relevant and constitutes the genesis of this paper. in concise, the paper exposes the use of tm under the complex situation of the covid-19 pandemic for teaching esl at the university. theoretical framework the paper aims to expose the efficacies of using tm to teach english as the second language. however, this aim cannot be attained without expanding; in essence; the significant pertinent question of what constitutes, by definition and usage; transformative method. therefore, in narrow sense transformative method means the action that is involved on teaching process by way of substance and validation (farren, 2019). in a broader sense, transformative method entails the activity of validating, reasoning, inquiring and reflecting on our perspectives during the cause of teaching (craton & taylor, 2012). based on these two definitions; the paper adopts the subsequent one since it exposes the efficacies of tm on teaching esl and appreciates the fact that when the necessicity arises to embrace change, such should be done without hesitation. it is because tm is enshrined on the elements of values and morality where social interaction endorses the use of language (farren, 2016; shatunova et al., 2021). as a result, this infers that students interact in a social context primarily to transform their values and morality to appropriate them for teaching and learning. learning language is not predicable and conventional as the process tend to be complex and not linear (menezes, 2013; adams, 2020). so language is scientific in nature and requires set of techniques and approaches employed to bridge the gaps of second language acquisition. therefore, the second language acquisition (sla) is the theoretical genesis to expose the efficacies of using tm to teach it. insofar as tm concerned, there is dialectical relationship between tm and sla in the sense that tm does not only produce competent and skilled speakers but also extend their potency to contribute on the social cause of solving social phenomena and problems. similarly, sla is research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 moloi, t.j. & adegoriolu, e.t. the transformative methodology: expository study of teaching english as the second language acquisition research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 223 defined as the technique for communication purpose and interaction within the context of education, corporate or organisation among non-english speakers (aljumah, 2020). conversely, sla has the potency to affect our behaviour towards language acquisition hence its development from behaviourist point of view, descend into the perspective that learning any second language is induced by the stimulus and responses (parker, 2019; skinner, 1957) and these stimulus and responses augur well with the action of teaching which is espoused by tm. in brief, there is an action involved that need to be taken by both instructors and students and based on this requirement, sla pose a challenge to english none speakers as english is dominantly used as the medium of instruction for various reasons, among other including but not limited to: economic, educational, business, political, technological and social reasons. critical to emphasis that sla’s theories for language learning deem not adequately sufficient to hypothesis how sla is learnt (aljumah, 2020; vu, 2019), thereof; exposing the use of tm as the theory for teaching sla will add to the already existing other theories such as universal grammar (chomsky, 1957) for expanding the options of instructors to utilize theories for teaching second language. methodology the paper aims to expose the efficacies of using tm in the context of teaching esl under covid19. therefore, it utilizes the constructivist paradigm as the lens to zoom into the qualitative data. the choice of this paradigm is premised on the rationale that people, as socialite and inquisitive by nature; utilize their experiences, skills and knowledge to learn, reflect and decipher from them (dickson et al., 2016). it is because experiences and knowledge constitute the crux of the learning, hence constructivist believe that students should engage into an exercise of problem solving by the process to unlearn the existing information relearn the new way in a form of reorganisation of data cognitively (yadav, 2021). this infers that such a process of unlearning and relearning unfolds, students’ critical and independent thinking is enhanced and widen hence we regard experiences and knowledge of students profound for distilling the efficacies of using tm to teach esl. when students constructively engage on their existing knowledge and experiences to acquire the new information, they seek to appreciate the recognition of these tenets by embracing change from the traditional way of teaching into the modern one (ajdini, 2021). therefore, the appreciation of this recognition affords rather creates the new path for acquisition of knowledge, skills and experiences for students and thus, connect these tenets with quality of data. as a result, the paper exposes the efficacies of using tm to teach esl at the university using participatory action research (par) as the research design. whitman et al. (2010), contend that par is the collective, tuition, action and participation utilized to collect data that can be functional to the quest of social transformation, therefore, one of the reasons to combine both the par and constructivism is that both serve the interests, values and insights of the people who are affected by the same problem (molise, 2021). these techniques are also entrenched on the principles of liberty, emancipation and freedom for participants to partake on social research to socially demystify the social phenomena and constructs which affect them on daily basis (adebola et al,. 2020). thus creating the equal opportunity for both participants and principal researcher to enjoy the rights, responsibilities and duties to solve social research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 moloi, t.j. & adegoriolu, e.t. the transformative methodology: expository study of teaching english as the second language acquisition research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 224 phenomena and constructs (dube & hlalele, 2018). similarly, this assertion is endorsed by jack and krahlc (2006) when they accede that par distinguishes itself from other methods as it expounds on the significance of involvement, engagement and mutual understanding. this exploration necessitates the attrition that students ought to be initiators and active agents of their learning. now, to expose the efficacies of tm for teaching esl; par demonstrates the similar features of tm in the sense that in the latter, the individuals’ experiences are meaningful and taken into cognisant and in the former individuals are engaged and involved with mutual understanding (macdonald, 2014). equally so, the notion that human beings are the core components of teaching and learning and the primary goal is to preserve their lives and prevent any harmful effect on them, serves as the substantive basis for equal involvement and participation. since the objective is to determine the efficacies of using tm to teach esl under covid-19, the introduction of tm in our educational sector is crucial and has brought significant improvements (tallvid, 2016). this introduction of tm is in the form of ict (information and communications technology); and it mitigates the contagion effects of infection among students and lecturers (petterson, 2018). this infers that online learning serves as the source of interaction and negate physical interaction. on these bases, the study utilized the qualitative method because it is the method that developed and employed under social context and human sciences (creswel, 2014) and actually entrenches the notion that social context precisely establishes the nature and type of data to be studied, evaluated, analysed and synthesized. hence, poggenpoel and myburg (2005) explicitly asserted that the concept ‘data’ is fundamentally dominant in this method merely because the aim is to solicit comprehension instead of hypothesis. in contrast, the data used from the employing of tm conjures the salient comprehension to alleviate the challenges of teaching esl under covid-19. this demonstrates the crucial aspects of bringing on board people’s experiences and meanings by way of engagement and involvement, hence tm afford the students such expanded opportunities to engage and involve their lecturers. the study analyses data using critical discourse analysis (cda) which is the technique utilized to analyse the logical relationship between semiotics and other dimensions of social practices (faircough, 2001). this technique analyses the texts and interactions that occurred in the past and present, hence its relevance is embedded in the rationale that it allows people to exercise their freedom, independence and courtesy. it is further stated by van dijk (1998) that cda analyses the written and spoken texts to precisely depict the discursive sources of dominance, exploitation, biasness and power. as a result, this technique is logically relevant to demonstrate that tm is of value and its efficacies can enhance the acquisition of esl and data is transcribed verbatim in order to develop and interpret themes. in brief, the method and technique utilized do qualify the substantive aim of exposing the efficacies of tm because of their similar features characterized by a sense of independence, involvement, engagement and emancipation. the social practices and structures which compel the prevalence of political, social and historical oppression appearing in our traditional classrooms, can be dissected, evaluated and substituted by the use of tm (bukhari & xiaoyang, 2013). the paper adopted purposive sampling, whereby the participants were sampled from the population of fifteen (15) second research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 moloi, t.j. & adegoriolu, e.t. the transformative methodology: expository study of teaching english as the second language acquisition research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 225 language experts out of which eight (8) were purposively sampled and consists of five (5) female experts and three (3) male experts. the experts are the cohort of 28-57 year of ages who were interviewed using semi-structured interview conducted virtually in order to comply with the preventative measures of covid-19. the role of the principal researchers is to facilitate this processes to ascertain that participants are fairly, transparently and unbiased interviewed as well as dispatching written interview questions for those who were not able to attend the virtual interview. this virtual interview lasted not more than 30 minutes per participant, this was in the interests of time constraints these experts were working under. the purposive sampling was chosen because it affords both the principal researcher and participants the equal opportunity to share their expertise and insights about this method; hence, the principles of engagement, involvement and active participation were accomplished. suffice to mention that the participants were academic experts in teaching esl and were asked and/or given the total form of fifteen (15) questions which ranged from open-ended questions to close-ended questions. to surmise, the collection of data transpired under the auspices of fairness, transparency, respect, intellectual emancipation, freedom and liberty and subsequently the accomplishments of the principles of the method and technique involved in this study in the quest to exposing the efficacies of tm for teaching esl under the covid-19 pandemic. results the fact that the paper aims to expose the efficacies of using tm for teaching esl; the results were quite interesting in the sense that participants were able to share insights and nuances which were not initially envisioned. amid the first objective of the paper to determine the challenges which hinder the effectiveness of tm for teaching esl, on average; participants indicated that tm poses number of challenges which ranged from the skills and expertise of utilizing the online management learning systems to the degree of inaccessibility by students to this online learning system. these challenges are transcribed verbatim in the following excerpt between the principal researcher and the participant, mr. mbewu as pseudonym. interviewer: having more than ten (10) years of experience in higher education, have you ever thought that the sector will experience such an enormous transition from faceface to online learning? mr. mbewu: not in single moment of my thoughts did i think that we will have this online platform learning system, considering the fact that some of us are aging. this means that technological literacy is no more relevant. interviewer: how are you copying since the advent of this online system? mr. mbewu: it is quite a struggle; my brother, we are learning along the implementation process as we have no choice but duty bound to teach even though we don’t know how to teach online. from the above excerpt, one denotes the sense of frustration from these experts as they are confronted with the conundrum of teaching under the difficult times of covid-19 and the research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 moloi, t.j. & adegoriolu, e.t. the transformative methodology: expository study of teaching english as the second language acquisition research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 226 insufficient prerequisite technological skills for online teaching and learning. in contrast, the young participants seem to be enthused into this online learning system as they indicated, in the following except; that online learning is costly but convenient, frank to use and expedient. interviewer: what are the challenges you have encountered using tm as the teaching strategy for esl? ms. lekae: for me it the water under the bridge, because since from high school to university; i experienced teaching and learning through online systems and so i found it vibrant and captivating for me to use it. interviewer: is it because you have sufficient skills to use this system that makes it easy for you? ms. lekae: most definitely; having acquired technological skill from young age served as an advantage for me as i adapted quickly into the learning system. although it is costly to implement it since you have to buy data or university make provision of this data to both students and lecturers. evidently, there are huge disparities in terms of the technological expertise and the age of personnel involved. these disparities infer the requirements of incessant training and development programmes for lecturers in order to remain relevant and abreast with the use of technology. however, the sense of ineptitude does not negate the factor of financial implications and lucidly demonstrated from the excerpt that, although young academics fare much better in terms of the use of technology compared to their counterparts; training and development programmes add the burden of costs incurred by universities in terms of skill empowerment. in addition to the challenges of using tm as the strategy to teach esl, it has been established that students tend to similarly experience attention deficit when they are in physical sittings. the following except indicate evidentially how this attention deficit hinder the efficacies of tm: interviewer: do you find tm as more effective to use than face-to-face contact? ms. ana: not so much because one cannot detect the concentration and attention of students as some of them are might not be physically before their devices but just listening while doing something else. and this shows that they are clearly not paying full attention. interviewer: so how will you curb such deficiency to aid effective teaching and learning? ms. ana: it is difficult but you will now and then pose pertinent questions to retain their attention, but it is not sufficient as some of the students will just respond on the chat box without articulating their responses. this excerpt saliently indicates the challenges that couple the use of tm which can deter potential users of it. the most dominating issue here is the attention deficit although it is inevitable even from the physical contact, it seems to be difficult to control during the online learning. however, these challenges do not outweigh the effectiveness of tm for teaching esl as it is demonstrated in the following excerpt: research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 moloi, t.j. & adegoriolu, e.t. the transformative methodology: expository study of teaching english as the second language acquisition research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 227 interviewer: how will you describe the teaching and learning process on the use of tm? ms. annette: i find it interesting in the sense that students are self-driven and have the sense of ownership for their learning. they now and then enquire as to when shall we have synchronous online teaching and learning which depicts their self-directed learning. interviewer: is it fair to infer that tm has changed the landscape and trajectory of teaching and learning? ms. annette: i want to believe that because now students have the zeal and inclination to login and learn unlike waking up early in the morning to prepare for an eight on the clock class. so in their comfort of their homes or residences, they just login and continue with learning. the efficacies of using tm are explicitly demonstrated in these excepts as the students have developed the sense of ownership and being active agents of their learning. primarily because students have ceased to commute from their residential areas to university campus in the quest of attending the morning and day classes. however, the limitations or challenges of tm are characterised by attention deficit, sufficient and affordable technological training programmes for lecturers, and the level of anxieties and frustrations presented forth by the use of technology for ole age lecturers. albeit these challenges, there is a need for transition from traditional methods of teaching to the modern one, i.e. using tm to demonstrate the significance of it as the effective teaching strategy for esl. these excepts formulate the classical example that educational sector is gradually transforming to remain afloat to be relevant and innovative. discussion this paper aims to expose the efficacies of using tm to tech esl under covid-19 and in this section challenges and efficacies of using tm are elucidated on the basis of results in order to achieve the research question and objectives. challenges of tm firstly, it was established that the use of tm presented various challenges which hinder the effectiveness of teaching and learning, especially from the lecturers’ point of view because the lecturers; who in this regard are considered as experts of teaching esl, conceded that the online teaching presented the reasonable apprehension as some of them are not competently skilled to teach online using the gadgets or laptops. this finding is congruent with the insight hinted by beka (2021) that online teaching brought the levels of anxieties and stress as 54,6% of teachers felt stress before the online lesson began. similarly, the finding of this aspect concurs with this view of beka (2021) that majority of participants indicated that they felt inadequately prepared and not ready to venture into online teaching. in addition, to exacerbate the matter; the participants stated that they felt that this online teaching subject them to tedious and rigour surveillance as whatever that they may disseminate, students will instantly verify the facts of it by using google. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 moloi, t.j. & adegoriolu, e.t. the transformative methodology: expository study of teaching english as the second language acquisition research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 228 secondly, the study discovered that the respondents had reservations about attention deficit since the strategies and tactics of classroom management in the online sittings are obscure and difficult to implement. this implies that the retention of students’ attention, on the online sitting of teaching and learning; is not effective since the diagnostic task of gauging their existing knowledge cannot be explicitly detected as some students can conceal their visibility online. squarely, this response is endorsed by barrot (2015) when stated that the baseline assessment to gauge the existing rather previous knowledge of students can be difficult to administer because its reliability and validity is not guaranteed. however, these challenges do not negate that tm does not provide alternative means of learning since students find it convenient as they do not have to wake up early in the mornings in preparations for the class efficacies of using tm to teach esl at the university previously, reservations in terms of challenges are discussed on the basis of data generated. however, these reservations do not supersede the efficacies of using tm as the participants indicated that the perks of using online teaching as the tm, has afforded them additional opportunities for their students to experience teaching and learning in an individualized manner. this individualized manner is cited as the means of acquiring additional information from other sources apart from that imparted to them by lecturers. furthermore, participants indicated that students are the active agents of their learning because invariably they hint at the schedule of the online class in order to address the misunderstanding encountered during their learning remotely. concerning being active agents, the students felt to experience collaborative learning much better than when they are in the physical setting. it is because a handful of students are timid to express themselves before their fellow peers and lecturers, however; they felt at ease expressing themselves online because they can conceal or hide their faces. consequently, responses further indicate that although students’ might have attention deficit, they have the zeal to learn, hence, after the online teaching; they would go back to the lesson for reflection purposes and this process is evident by the lecturers’ being inundated with emails of follow-up questions to demonstrate self-directed learning. therefore, if students can reflect on the lessons; this implies that they can internalize their learning which subsequently cement the process of acquisition of knowledge. it is because the more they get exposed to the content and/or subject matter, the more they become learned. this assertion is expounded by berner, lobo and silva (2013) that when students conduct the reflection on the lesson, they merely implement the acquired skills and knowledge into the contexts of their real-life situations. on top of this, when the implementation of skills into a real-life situation is conducted, internal learning occurs and as such, long-lasting and decisive decisions are established as the results of this process. in brief, this is the salient demonstration that tm for teaching esl under covid-19 would further entrench the exercise of reflection. furthermore, the participants extrapolated that tm creates an expanded opportunity for students to own their learning. once students have ownership for teaching and learning, they understand their role and ultimately manage to accomplish their educational goals. patently, lecturers’ roles are mainly that of facilitating the process of teaching and learning and such, the students’ ownership is depicted by the degree of responsibilities that come with their learning. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 moloi, t.j. & adegoriolu, e.t. the transformative methodology: expository study of teaching english as the second language acquisition research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 229 students have to ascertain that they have sufficient data before online learning can commence, moreover, students have to make sure that learning materials are procured timely and time is adequately managed in terms of executing assessments and meeting all the deadlines for submissions. all these factors encompass the trait of responsible students who understand the purpose of teaching and learning by not lightly taking these online classes for granted. comparatively, a traditional method of teaching whereby attention is accentuated to compulsory; was never considered to be a matter of success and failure, but since the tm has been implemented in the context of teaching and learning, students have begun to reconcile and critically understood the significance of attending these online classes. finally, the study established that through tm; students were able to query their perspective, views, and conceptualizations by constructing new phenomena, paradigms and facts in a manner that diffused their preconceived ideas and existing knowledge. this infers that additional learning opportunities to scaffold students were less employed by lecturers as now students were able to critically synthesize and evaluate what they learned. therefore, the sustained challenges are discovered and addressed by students as it is succinctly indicated by berner et al. (2013) that the prevalence and emergency of challenges make the tm work effectively, as a result; tm can withstand diverse challenges because it has the potency to impact positively the process of teaching and learning. in concise, the general findings between the challenges and effects tm demonstrated that if tm is properly utilized, it can yield vibrant and tangible results as it encourages individual or self-directed, ownership and collaborative learning, reflection and paradigm shifts of students. equally, the findings further propel the notion that sustainable challenges which are of a relevant feature of skills and knowledge required can inspire and learn as students can critically evaluate, synthesize and deduce meaning which, the latter is of the most imperative tenet of intellectual emancipation. conclusion the paper establishes and exposes the challenges and efficacies of using tm to teach esl under the covid-19 pandemic by generally indicating how important to have interactive teaching and learning process, and its aim is achieved using the principles of par and constructivism which emphasis collaboration in research and learning using our own experiences. in contrast, the paper pinned down the perpetual revelation of inequalities since the challenges of procuring data, laptops or gadgets constitutes the financial aspect which can be a dire challenge to the majority of students. hence, further studies are required to focus on how the provisions of these resources can be made exponentially and readily available to enable the use of tm under the conditions of the covid-19 pandemic. furthermore, the study established that the tm can be used one of the teaching strategy to tech any second language for non-speakers. the results demonstrated that using tm as the online source of teaching, aid the students to acquire ownership or self-directed learning in a sense of initiating their learning, being active agents of their learning and achieving collaborative learning. it is therefore, our view that tm qualifies as one of the learning theories of sla despite the challenges presented by it which necessitate the emergency of further studies to search the mitigating measures of these challenges. amid these challenges, the study research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 moloi, t.j. & adegoriolu, e.t. the transformative methodology: expository study of teaching english as the second language acquisition research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 230 did not evaluate by and large; how the challenges can be mitigated or averted. therefore, further studies are required to focus on the mitigations of challenges of using tm to teach esl under covid-19. conversely, the paper exposed the efficacies of using tm as the strategy to teach esl at the university. these efficacies include the action of students taking responsibility for their learning as they develop self-directed learning, tend to have ownership and collaborate for learning, it further indicated that the use of their existing knowledge or experiences trigger interest and curiosity; which in turn affirm the premise of constructivism that people use their existing knowledge and experience to interpret and improve on the new one. this is the prerequisite for second language acquisition as conceptual development is embedded on the interest to learn using, firstly; the mother-tongue before transition to second language (chomsy, 1957). therefore, the effectiveness of using tm as the teaching strategy to teach esl at the university, are evidently characterised by the use of this recognisable teaching strategy to develop academic language proficiency and social communication skill. references abdullah, m & haider, a. 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(2020). international student migration and polymedia: the use of communication media by bangladeshi students in germany. research in social sciences and technology, 5 (3), 95-110. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.05.03.5 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) abstract tertiary-level students from bangladesh usually migrate to germany for the purpose of higher studies. these international student migrants use communication media to maintain connections with family members and friends in bangladesh and social networks with friends, classmates, and bangladeshi community members in germany. drawing on the experiences of bangladeshi student migrants in germany and using polymedia theory, this paper investigates how the migrant students use the polymedia environment to maintain the transnational social networks and connections. this paper is based on qualitative data derived from 18 in-depth interviews with bangladeshi migrant students in germany. findings suggest that using the polymedia environment, bachelor migrant students receive emotional support from their family members back home, while masters and phd students are responsible for providing emotional and practical support to their left-behind families, relatives, and friends. migrant students’ media usage with families and friends living in bangladesh is influenced by their marital status and gender as well as their familial and social structure in bangladesh. their use of communication media with the members of the bangladeshi community and foreign classmates living in germany is comparatively less frequent and more educationoriented. key words: international student migration, polymedia, bangladesh, germany introduction international student migrants are those who leave their country of origin and move to another country for the purpose of study (unesco, 2015). international student migration has become a significant global phenomenon in the last few decades. over the last 20 years, https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.05.03.5 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 masud, m. m. h. (2020). international student migration and polymedia: the use of communication media by bangladeshi students in germany research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 96 the number of international students has grown significantly. the number of international students rose from 2 million to 5.3 million between 1998 and 2017, with an average annual growth rate of six percent (oecd, 2019). tertiary-level or post-secondary students from the global south (e.g., china and india) usually migrate to the countries of the global north (e.g., the u.k., the u.s., and canada) in order to access better education and research facilities. international student migration has received immense attention from migration and higher education researchers in recent times (findlay, 2010; king & raghuram, 2013). previous studies have predominantly focused on how migration theories have analyzed student mobility (king & raghuram, 2013; raghuram, 2013), post-graduation decision-making among international students (geddie, 2013; james, 2018; mosneaga & winther, 2013), comparative understanding of student visa policy (grimm, 2019), the position of international students in the skilled migration program of australia (hawthorne, 2010; robertson, 2011), intra-eu mobility of students (baláž et al., 2017; carlson, 2013; van mol, 2013, 2014; wilken & dahlberg, 2017), and inter-asian educational mobility (yang, 2018). however, there has been relatively little research on how international student migrants use diverse forms of communication media to maintain social and emotional connections with their home countries as well as in the destination country. the globalization of communication media, on the one hand, and the transnational turn of migration studies, on the other hand, have intensified the research on the multidimensional usages and effects of different media by people on the move (alencar et al., 2019; holley et al., 2013; mcauliffe et al., 2017; schaub, 2012; vancea & olivera, 2013; zijlstra & liempt, 2017). intensive studies have been conducted on the use of smartphones and social media by regular migrants, irregular migrants, and refugees. many studies have reported how the border guards in various receiving and transit countries scrutinize the communication tools of migrants as part of the securitization strategy to control irregular migration (alencar et al., 2019; gillespie et al., 2006). there is also growing research on how migrants use different types of media and technologies for maintaining social relationships with families and friends back home; for instance, peng (2016) and collins (2009) study the communication media use of chinese migrant students in hong kong and south korean international students in new zealand, respectively. yet, the question of how international student migrants from the global south living in the global north use different communication media to maintain social relations with home and build connections abroad has remained under-researched. while living in different global northern countries, student migrants from global southern countries extensively use different communication media to keep pace with the modern education system and maintain social relationships with families and friends who have been left behind. to fill this research gap, this study investigates the use of communication media by international students from bangladesh in germany. the paper addresses the following questions: how do international student migrants use communication media with families, friends, and relatives at home? how do they use communication media to maintain relationships with foreign classmates as well as with members of the home-country community abroad? research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 masud, m. m. h. (2020). international student migration and polymedia: the use of communication media by bangladeshi students in germany research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 97 the article is divided into four sections: the next section presents the theoretical issues related to media and international student migration, followed by a brief discussion on the migration of bangladeshi students to germany. after that, the method of this research is elaborated. then, the findings and discussions are presented. the article ends with a concluding remark. theoretical issues the use of media communication has become an integral part in the process of migration. migrants move from their place of origin and try to maintain relations with left-behind families and friends. moreover, migrants must build and uphold social networks in their host society. the availability of telecommunication media and technologies is an advantage that enables them to maintain transnational relationships. in the past, migrants used to communicate via only a few media. at present, migrants can afford different media for the purpose of communication. in different places and with different people, they use different modes of media. they can choose a certain type of media on the basis of the content of the message. they also may prefer one type of media over another depending on the subject, object, and context of the communication. media are now more user-oriented and users can select which media they prefer in a particular context (madianou & miller, 2012). in order to understand the social implications of migrants’ use of digital media in the context of transnational communication, madianou and miller (2012) propose the theory of polymedia. polymedia emphasizes “the social, emotional and moral consequences of choosing between those different media” (p. 169). drawing on experiences of filipino and caribbean transnational families, madianou and miller (2012) demonstrate that “polymedia is an emerging environment of communicative opportunities that functions as an ‘integrated structure’ within which each individual medium is defined in relational terms in the context of all other media” (p. 170). therefore, “polymedia is not simply the environment; it is how users exploit these affordances in order to manage their emotions and their relationships” (p. 172). madianou and miller (2012) report many cases and implications of the migrants’ use of polymedia, which can be further explored. different theoretical approaches have emerged from the study of international student migration. there are demand-side theories that explain international student migration to western universities as a strategy used by middle-class families in the global south to boost their social and cultural capital (findlay, 2010; findlay et al., 2012; riaño et al., 2018). supplyside theories, on the other hand, argue that powerful states of the global north are the key players of global student flows, and international student migration happens because of their interest in controlling the global market through supplying highly educated people (findlay, 2010; white, 2010). the global knowledge theory suggests that international students are economic agents, sources of income for the tertiary education sector, and instruments of building soft power (budiharso & tarman, 2020; king & raghuram, 2013; madge et al., 2014; raghuram, 2013). therefore, as global knowledge migrants, international students from the southern part of the world use updated information technologies to keep pace with the research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 masud, m. m. h. (2020). international student migration and polymedia: the use of communication media by bangladeshi students in germany research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 98 modern education system to make them efficient, create and expand social networks in the host country, and maintain social relations with their families back home to avoid homesickness. there is growing research on the interplay between international student migration and media; this study contributes to the development of the literature in this field. drawing on the experiences of bangladeshi student migrants in germany, this paper investigates how bangladeshi students in germany use the polymedia environment to maintain social relationships with their families and friends whom they have left and with classmates and co-migrants in the host country. migration of students from bangladesh to germany since the second half of the 1970s, bangladeshi tertiary-level students have migrated abroad in search of a quality education and a better future (ullah & huque, 2019). the u.s., australia, the u.k., and canada have remained the most attractive study destinations for bangladeshi students. in the last two decades, malaysia has overtaken other countries and become the most desired destination for bangladeshi students. also, a significant increase in the number of bangladeshi students abroad has been noticed. between 2013 and 2017, the number of bangladeshi outbound tertiary-level students increased from 37,235 in 2013 to 57,675 in 2017 (unesco, 2020). out of 57,675 bangladeshi students abroad, 2,311 were in germany. the number of bangladeshi students in german universities increased by 34 percent between 2017 and 2018 (tithila & joarder, 2019). as the recent unesco (2020) data shows, germany has become the fifth-largest host country of bangladeshi students worldwide after malaysia, the u.s., australia, and the u.k. german universities, partly due to their tuition-free policy, have gained popularity among bangladeshi students. germany has become a key player in international education in recent years. according to unesco (2020) data, germany has become the fourth-largest host country of international students worldwide, preceded by the united states, the united kingdom, and australia. the number of international students in germany increased from 282,201 in 2013 to 374,583 in 2018 (rao et al., 2020). between 2007 and 2019, the number of english-taught masters programs jumped from less than 100 to 1,268 (trines, 2019). despite being a non-englishspeaking nation, 13 percent of all students in germany are international students, while the rate is only 5.5 percent for all u.s. students (trines, 2019). germany’s neighboring countries (e.g., austria, france, and italy) are the major student-sending countries, as are china, india, russia, iran, turkey, and syria. like many other international student-receiving countries, germany permits international graduates to stay 18 months to look for work. however, due to linguistic and cultural differences between germany and bangladesh, bangladeshi students face many complexities when they migrate to germany for higher education purposes. in this context, it is significant to investigate how bangladeshi students use communication media and maintain transnational relations. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 masud, m. m. h. (2020). international student migration and polymedia: the use of communication media by bangladeshi students in germany research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 99 methods in 2019, 18 bangladeshi students from a university in germany were selected for in-depth qualitative interviews. an in-depth interview is interactive and flexible in nature, which “permits the researcher to explore fully all the factors that underpin participants’ answers: reasons, feelings, opinions and beliefs” (legard et al., 2003, p. 141). in-depth interviews were used to examine the media usage experiences from “the real experts” (bilsborrow et al., 1984; king et al., 1998, p. 159). a semi-structured interview guide was used for data collection. the guide includes questions about the migration experiences, use of different media, and communication with family and friends at home and abroad. as a bangladeshi student migrant in germany, the researcher found it easy to make initial contact with a small group of bangladeshi students, and through them he was able to “establish contacts with others” (bryman, 2012, p. 716). during the interviews, some of the respondents eagerly shared their facebook and instagram profiles, messages, and video communication via messenger, whatsapp, and imo with the researcher. by conducting interviews in the university cafe and student dormitories, the researcher observed the use of communication media by the participants (mchugh, 2000). all in-depth interviews were conducted in bangla. the interviews were tape-recorded with the consent of the interviewees. the interviews were transcribed. according to the patterns and trends observed, the thematic qualitative analysis was carried out. the information from the interviews was checked and cross-checked with observations to reach data triangulation. data and information from various sources enabled the researcher to carry out “constant comparative analysis” (cho & lee, 2014, p. 4). the real names of the respondents were replaced with pseudonyms. findings and discussion marital status, duration of stay in germany, sources of funding for education and living, internet costs, and gender of the respondents were considered influential factors of communication media usage. therefore, questions about these aspects were included in the semi-structured questionnaire. among the 18 respondents, 6 were studying bachelors, 8 masters, and 4 phd when interviewed. their age range was from 20 to 35. four of the respondents were female. fifteen of the interviewees had been in germany for 2-5 years, while 3 of them had been for less than 2 years. all of them studied in tuition-free programs. six of the masters and phd students were awarded different forms of monthly stipends. with the exception of one student, all of the masters and phd students studied their programs in the english language. both german and english were the mediums of instruction for four bachelor students; the rest studied only in english. five of the respondents were married. nearly all of them worked part-time to meet their living costs. all of the participants had family in bangladesh, except for one who lived with her husband in germany, and had left behind in-laws and families. most of them were from middleand upper-middle-class family backgrounds. almost all of the respondents lived in student dormitories and private houses where affordable internet fees were included in the house rent. in addition, the university research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 masud, m. m. h. (2020). international student migration and polymedia: the use of communication media by bangladeshi students in germany research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 100 provided free wi-fi and internet services. some of them bought an internet package for 10 to 20 euros per month. all of them owned a personal laptop and a modern mobile phone on which they used facebook, messenger, imo, whatsapp, instagram, twitter, and skype. therefore, the three preconditions for the emergence of polymedia were met: respondents had access to communication media; they were media literate; and media was available and affordable to them (madianou & miller, 2012, p. 171). media use with people in bangladesh cycle of reciprocal care and responsibility in family family is the most important unit of caring and sharing in bangladeshi culture. parents usually take care and contribute to their children’s welfare and development throughout their life, particularly when their children are young. as soon as young children become mature and income-earners, they start caring for their parents in exchange, mostly when their parents get older. this is a long-cherished cycle of reciprocal care and responsibility embedded in bangladeshi familial tradition. sending and supporting young children abroad for higher education is the family strategy to make them capable so that they can have enough monetary and psychological resources to take care of their parents in exchange. as soon as the migrant children become graduates, mature, and enter into jobs abroad, their parents expect emotional and material support from them. this study found that bachelor migrant students received support from their left-behind family members, while masters and phd level students were responsible for providing support to their families. bachelor migrant students reported that their parents provided emotional support via telecommunication. they admitted that their parents were very careful with them and communicated with them often: i completed the higher secondary in bangladesh. then i migrated to germany to study the bachelor program. … i have never lived alone out of my family before coming here. this is why my parents are worried and phone me every time. every day they ask similar types of questions: what i cook, what i eat, how is my sleep, is there any problem, etc. … i can see their faces via video call whenever i want, so i do not feel homesick. i can share my feelings with them from time to time. …here the education system and lifestyle are different. they encourage and support me so that i can adjust to the changes. (ahmad, male, 22, bachelor) as most bachelor migrant students had few experiences of living outside the family and grew up with family in urban areas in bangladesh, parents encouraged and supported them in regular audio and video calls via messenger and imo. this electronic communication helped them adjust to the new environment. in contrast, masters and phd students were responsible for providing emotional support to their family members using modern information technologies. masters and phd students research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 masud, m. m. h. (2020). international student migration and polymedia: the use of communication media by bangladeshi students in germany research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 101 were older, more independent, mature, and experienced. most of them received their undergraduate and graduate degrees from bangladeshi public and private universities, were employed 1-3 years in different organizations, and lived apart from their family in bangladesh for extended periods of time. most of them knew how to cook, how to take care of themselves, and how to adjust to a new place. instead of receiving care and emotional support from their families, they had to provide such support to their elderly and younger members of their families in bangladesh. for example, mohammad, who was married and had a left-behind family, reported: when my daughters cry i need to make video calls and console them. they are my fans. sometimes my wife gets fed up with my daughters and i console her. … i lost my father, and my mother is old. i need to take care of her as far as i can over the phone. i tell her to take medicine regularly. i suggest that she walks and does exercise for a few minutes. (mohammad, male, 33, phd) masters and phd students not only provided emotional support and care but also practical assistance to their families. mohammad continued: i teach my daughters over the phone, you know, english and bangla alphabets and numbers. i send links of educational videos to my wife so that she can show my daughters. …a few days ago, my wife was facing problems with replacing the battery of her laptop, then i made a video call and showed her how to do it. (mohammad, male, 33, phd) in his study, peng (2016) reported a mutual form of support and sharing between parents and migrant students. in contrast, this study shows that bachelor students receive support from parents back home, while masters and phd level students are responsible to provide support to their parents. transnational communication via modern media enables migrant students and their family members to continue the cycle of reciprocal care and responsibility. gender and marital status were found to be very important factors for maintaining communication with family via media. compared to male students, female students received more care from their parents because they were concerned about the safety and adjustment in the new place. while single women respondents received support from their family, married women respondents had to maintain communication with both natal home and inlaws’ house. married women students received emotional support from their natal homes, but they were responsible for maintaining relations with in-laws. as described earlier, compared to single males, married male students were expected to keep connections via telecommunication with their families, particularly with children and elderly members. maintaining relations beyond family respondents considered their cousins, uncles, and aunts from both maternal and paternal sides close relatives and maintained telecommunication with them. some of the migrant research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 masud, m. m. h. (2020). international student migration and polymedia: the use of communication media by bangladeshi students in germany research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 102 students admitted that their relatives financed their migration costs. students had to maintain communications with all members of bari. in bangladesh, bari is a collection of families that live together in different houses in the same place for generations. members of these families might have blood relations. as syed (male, 25, masters) shared, “after migrating to germany, i created a messenger group and added all my cousins, nephews, nieces, husbands, and wives of my cousins in the group. we chat with one another there.” students had high school, college, and university-wise facebook and messenger groups. they had daily chats with their friends and relatives in these groups and shared pictures, videos, and text messages. during leisure time, migrant students made group calls via messenger and started electronic adda. according to deb and biswas (1996), “adda is a peculiar bengali institution: agendaless discussions which are not idle gossip, not debate, not crib sessions, but all these and more.” in addition to the day-to-day communication, relatives and friends of the respondents contacted the migrant students for suggestions about visa processing, university selection, program selection, and blocked bank accounts. mossammat (female, 24, masters) stated, “i receive lots of text and voice messages, emails, and phone calls when someone who is known to me is applying for higher education in germany. they contact me for processing visas, opening bank accounts, and booking flights.” student migrants were involved in research and higher study in germany-related facebook groups. they shared information and links in these groups. moreover, modern telecommunication tools were also used for maintaining prem, a term referring to pre-marital love relations between boys and girls. two male students admitted that they contacted their premika (female lover) over the phone more than once per day. they sent virtual flowers, kisses, and hugs along with the text and voice messages throughout the day. while previous research on international migrant students’ media communication (peng, 2016) has mainly focused on media usage with their families, this research explores how migrant students use communication media beyond their familial relations. most of the respondents reported that they maintained communication with people outside their families. media selection in the polymedia environment, the selection of media among the available alternatives depends on the social relationships between the sender/caller and receiver/callee and the context of the communication (madianou & miller, 2012). for example, chowdhury explained how he selected media among different alternatives when he communicated with his family back home: i usually make audio calls via imo or messenger for a long talk with my wife because if i make video calls, my children will see me and want to talk with me. if they start talking, my wife and i cannot continue talking anymore. this is why i make audio calls. …in the evening, i make video calls to see and talk with my children. my children are research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 masud, m. m. h. (2020). international student migration and polymedia: the use of communication media by bangladeshi students in germany research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 103 pithapithy (about the same age), they quarrel to take control over the mobile phone, this is why i make video calls on the laptop so that both of them can see me at the same time. …also, i prefer a laptop because it is healthier, compared to a mobile for children. (chowdhury, male, 32, phd, married) huque stated how media usage varied based on the relations between caller and receiver: every weekend i talk with my mother, younger brother and his family. i make a long video call using imo or messenger. i see my mother, brother, and nephews. …it seems to me that my younger brother’s wife feels shy when she talks with me over video calls because we have never talked like this so closely before. i am her vasur (husband’s elder brother) and she feels lojja (shy) to talk with me over video calls. this is why i switch to audio calls when i talk with her. (huque, male, 33, phd, married) students reported that they talked over video calls for the first few minutes, and then switched to audio calls so that they could do other work simultaneously: for the first few minutes, i make video calls. then i switch to audio calls and connect my headphones and start cooking and talking together. i need to study and cook for myself. also, i work part-time. i do not have enough time. … i do not have access to the internet all day. for this reason, i record my speeches and send those via messenger whenever i have access to wi-fi. … i prefer imo when i need to call for a long time. it works better even if my family has a poor internet connection. (ullah, male, 27, masters) migrant students considered several other aspects when they chose media. for example, they reported that without buying an internet package, one person living in bangladesh could send text messages via messenger, which was not possible via any other media. as a consequence, they preferred using messenger for communication. moreover, syeda explained how video calls were considered more valuable than audio calls in typical bangladeshi culture: if i have the capability to make video calls but i am making audio calls, then my family members/relatives/friends will not take it positively. if i make audio calls to one and then video calls to another at the same time, they will think i am giving more value to the latter. (syeda, female, 21, bachelor) syeda described how being a woman also influenced her decision of choosing media for communication: i think facebook and messenger are secure enough to protect my data. as a bangladeshi woman, i need to think about it. … i do not like imo because it sends lots of unnecessary messages every day. … i like whatsapp. i think it is more secure. i suggest my brother downloads this app. (syeda, female, 21, bachelor) research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 masud, m. m. h. (2020). international student migration and polymedia: the use of communication media by bangladeshi students in germany research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 104 moreover, media selection depends on the popularity of the media in a particular region. for example, facebook, messenger, and imo are the most popular communication media in bangladesh. therefore, these were mainly used by migrant students and their parents, friends, and relatives. in contrast, peng (2016) found that mainland chinese students studying in hong kong used qq and wechat because of their popularity in mainland china. filtering information respondents reported that they did not communicate all messages, news, and information. like peng’s (2016, p. 11) respondents, the interviewees of this study adopted the strategy of concealing bad news and spreading good news: when i cook something and it looks good then i send some pictures of the dish so that my parents think i am fine here. when something bad happens, i do not share it with my family. one day i cut my finger when i was cutting vegetables, another day i fell with my bicycle and i hurt myself. i did not share these stories. i share only good things. … sometimes i need to do odd jobs, which i do not share. (uddin, male, 20, bachelor) male respondents reported that if they were in any pictures or videos with foreign female friends or classmates wearing short clothes, they refrained from sharing these pictures or videos with their families, friends, and relatives living in bangladesh: i neither share this type of picture on facebook nor send it to any of my family members, friends, and relatives. i would rather post it either on twitter or instagram. these two social networking sites are not widely used by bangladeshis. so, no one will see. (syed, male, 25, masters) in bangladesh, women normally wear sari (a long piece of cloth wrapped around their waist, with one end draped over head or shoulder) or shalwar kameez (a three-part dress consisting of long loose trousers, a long tunic top, and a scarf) that covers the whole body (hussein, 2018). migrant students thought that most of their relatives would not perceive this type of picture in a positive manner. female students also explained that they did not share any pictures in which a western boy is seated beside her drinking beer or whisky. they argued that their families did not take these pictures positively. thus, students’ opinions showed that they not only concealed study-related problems but also cultural affairs (peng, 2016). media use with people in germany communication with bangladeshi community it is widely agreed that the possibility of face-to-face contact reduces peoples’ intention to use media for communication (madianou & miller, 2012). however, the migrant students research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 masud, m. m. h. (2020). international student migration and polymedia: the use of communication media by bangladeshi students in germany research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 105 used facebook, messenger, and whatsapp for communication with their country people living in germany. according to most of them, media use with bangladeshis was purposeful. mia explained how he used communication media with bangladeshi friends: i send text messages via messenger before going to the indian/south asian/asian shops. we exchange voice and text messages to know what to buy from superstores, and how to cook. (mia, male, 26, masters) migrant students reported that there was a facebook group for bangladesh’s current, former, and prospective students. this group had about 95,000 members. when they needed any information, they posted there, and within one or two minutes they received proper suggestions from the group. many of them admitted that they posted part-time jobs, visa processing, blocked accounts, university programs, home visits, and flight-related messages in the group. in exchange, they shared information and links related to scholarships, visas, higher education, and living in germany. most of the students reported that their communication with the bangladeshi community in germany was occasional. they created many messenger groups to organize different national and international days, for example, international mother language day, independence day, victory day, eid-ul-fitr (a muslim festival of breaking the fast), eid-ul-adha (a muslim festival of sacrifice), and pohela boishakh (first day of bangla new year). we exchange greetings over phone calls or messages on our special days because there are no holidays for our national and religious festivals in germany. what we usually do is organize parties later based on the situation of the community. we arrange surveys or polls on facebook to take everyone’s opinion in selecting a venue, date, and time. … during the observance, we generally gossip face-to-face. but, those who organize these occasions, they need to contact one another via messenger or whatsapp. after the program, we exchange our photos and videos. we upload those on facebook and youtube. (begum, female, 23, masters) migrant students admitted that they had different facebook pages depending on the city (bangladeshi community in hamburg) and occupation (bangladeshi architecture and civil engineering students in germany). students also reported that they maintained educational institutions and home district-wise messenger groups. the two main bangladeshi political parties, awami league and bangladesh nationalist party, had wings in germany and maintained facebook pages: bangladesh awami league germany and bangladesh nationalist party germany. most of the students were not interested in these pages. classmates respondents reported that they used a common whatsapp group for study and social occasion-related messages with classmates. topics of daily messages included deadlines for assignments, class schedules, assignment titles, references, etc. sub-groups in whatsapp research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 masud, m. m. h. (2020). international student migration and polymedia: the use of communication media by bangladeshi students in germany research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 106 were created on the basis of study groups, courses, and trips. begum (female, 23, masters) stated, “when we go on an excursion in different places, we create different groups on whatsapp.” they reported that their foreign classmates used whatsapp often (hoffmann, 2017). begum continued, “sometimes i see 200 unread messages. every time ‘ting ting,’ someone is writing something.” students claimed that they used whatsapp for daily communication purposes and presented well-thought arguments on facebook. they explained that they could read posts and comments on facebook seriously, but on whatsapp, everything went very rapidly because of the high number of messages. students reported that their study-oriented group meetings were not discussed in-depth in whatsapp groups; rather, they organized face-to-face in the university library and cafe. moreover, migrant students wrote about their national days and cultural occasions in the whatsapp group. some of them had bitter experiences of sharing national histories in the group. khan (male, 29, phd) shared, “i wrote about the international mother language day and the independence war of bangladesh in our whatsapp group. i have some classmates from the neighboring countries of bangladesh. they did not take it positively.” students claimed that communication media use with foreign classmates depended on international relations. they also reported that the language of communication on whatsapp and facebook depended on the language of instruction of the semester or program they were studying. conclusion this paper has examined how international student migrants use different types of communication media to maintain emotional and social relationships with their family members, relatives, neighbors, and friends back home. also, it has investigated how they maintain social relations with migrants from their origin country, and how they create and continue academic communication with classmates in the destination country. through exploring the media usage experiences of bangladeshi students in germany, the paper has analyzed the relations between media and migrants. this study found that student migrants used different forms of media depending both on the relations with the receivers and on the social contexts (madianou & miller, 2012). while the senior student migrants were found giving emotional and material support to their parents, relatives, neighbors, and friends, junior students were found receiving emotional support from their parents in bangladesh. by filtering information and selecting media, these student migrants also managed their relationships with family members living in the home country (peng, 2016). communication media usage helped them to maintain intimate relations with people beyond their families. their experiences also showed that they were successful in actively managing the polymedia environment to keep occasional connections with the bangladeshi community in germany. additionally, their stories demonstrated how they used media to maintain functional and educational relations with their classmates and foreign friends. to conclude, this study expands the literature on polymedia and migration as it encompasses the discussion on how media can be used to connect peoples beyond families. this study research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 masud, m. m. h. 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(2022). interdisciplinarity in data analysis through the primary school textbooks in greece and singapore. research in social sciences and technology, 7(1), 90-99. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2022.6 copyright license this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 abstract data analysis is one of the most popular fields of mathematics and includes statistics and probability. these two mathematical domains are some of the most well-known, influencing everyday life and the various sciences. their teaching lays the foundation for primary education and culminates in secondary education. probability and statistics are necessary for today and the future of several professions. this research attempts to highlight the multidisciplinary character of these two disciplines through the textbooks of primary education in greece and singapore. it aims to highlight the dependence of mathematics teaching on interdisciplinarity through textbooks. the textbook analysis was chosen because books offer varied learning opportunities. the researchers selected the books, partaking in the comparative analysis. after defining the basic principles dividing lines for the differentiation of the exercises, the analysis was conducted. it included two stages. in the first stage, the activities of the books were examined in their framework application. then, their interdisciplinary character was accentuated in the scientific field. the results reveal a substantial dependence of data analysis on interdisciplinarity. more interesting is that the distribution of interdisciplinary exercises is prevalent in the scientific milieus. keywords probabilities; statistics; multidisciplinary; textbooks; greece; singapore. 10.46303/ressat.2022.6 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2022.6 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ 91 ressat 2022, 7(1): 90-99 introduction probability is a relatively new domain of mathematics and impacts everyday life. in fact, thanks to its broad range of applications, the distinguished mathematician-astronomer marquis de laplace suggested that its theory had the specifications to be the most important field of human knowledge (ross, 2010). moreover, statistics is a mathematical domain, beneficial for every science due to its use in research and data analysis. it is now reflected in every educational system, as their teaching encompasses all education levels (gao, 2014). a direct correlation between these two mathematical domains exists; the introduction of their theory in primary education is done altogether through the data analysis. the present study has attempted to compare and present the multidisciplinary data analysis through the textbooks of greece and singapore. singapore's choice stands out as a model because students from there have high mean scores in international research programs such as pisa and timss (mullis et al., 2015). more specifically, in the last pisa program in 2018, where both countries participated, singapore was the second in mathematics out of 78 countries, while greece was forty-fourth. in fact, when grouping the countries based on their cognitive levels, singapore was among the four countries with a mathematical knowledge level of 4, while greece was at level 2 (schleicher, 2019). therefore, this study aims to improve the teaching of data analysis, through the differences between the development of the frameworks of each activity in the two countries’ textbooks and the variety of their interdisciplinary characteristics. data analysis, probabilities, statistics, and interdisciplinarity the prominence of teaching data analysis, probability theory and statistics, is evident through the daily events, specifically the daily stochastic processes. the impact of theories on a broad range of applications, and their utility in various sciences, could gain the interest of the global research and educational community in mathematics teaching. in fact, the national council of teachers of mathematics in america, known as nctm (ferrini-mundy, 2000; nctm, 2014), endorses the vitality of introducing probability, and therefore statistics, into mathematics curricula is of utmost relevance. this fact is confirmed today by their crucial role at every education level (langrall, 2018). many educators consider probability and statistics the leading disciplines of mathematics as they have direct application in everyday life and other sciences (konold, 2002). the connection of their theory with the uncertainty, the decision making, and the modeling of stochastic processes reinforces their involvement in other sciences (borovcnik & kapadia, 2010; reia et al., 2019). for example, one can find many examples of probability and statistics applications in various sciences. they find applications in investment decisions, medical decisions for administering medicines, court decisions judging the guilt of the accused based on the existing data, planetary motion predictions, athletes’ performance predictions, weather 92 ressat 2022, 7(1): 90-99 forecasts, applications of quantum physics, and many more (rubel et al., 2016; ross, 2010; upshur, 2013). primary mathematics textbooks and interdisciplinarity many researchers have investigated mathematics and its teaching of mathematics as they hold status in everyday life and the other sciences. therefore, the teaching principles of mathematics are constantly studied and revised (yang et al., 2010). textbooks, as proven, provide enormous learning opportunities for students (sievert et al., 2019). hence, one's mathematical knowledge may directly depend on the textbook. accordingly, a constant endeavor to improve math textbooks is present. textbooks have specific relevance for primary school. many countries update them occasionally to incorporate novel teaching practices and connect their activities to daily situations (yang et al., 2010). usually, a new mathematical concept’s introduction is done through other sciences, where children can understand its practicality (english, 2009). it makes interdisciplinarity exceedingly critical for the textbooks and generates the need to adjust the curriculum in primary school (english, 2009). however, it is worth mentioning that the benefits of interdisciplinarity for students pose a challenge for teachers, as they require knowledge beyond mathematics (nguyen & krause, 2020). singapore and greece singapore has a population of 5,703,600 inhabitants ("singapore population – worldometer," 2021). not being a populous country is an advantage for developing a flexible yet strong curriculum (ginsburg, & leinwand 2005; ministry of education [moe], 2012). the country’s educational system is renewed and reinforced at regular intervals, adapting to the requirements of an increasingly globalized society (wang & lu, 2018). a child in singapore must attend six years of primary education and four or five years of secondary education, depending on the high school type each student attends (ministry of education [moe], 2013). many researchers worldwide believe that the education system following specific characteristics, can be characterized as a prodigious model (ginsburg & leinwand, 2005). indeed, a crucial role in the success of its educational system for a country relies on the belief of individual citizens that education is critical for the survival of them and their country (kaur & har, 2009). the usual prevailing trend is knowledge and skills acquisition, directly impacting everyday life (erbilgin, 2017; kaur & har, 2009). thus, it boils down to a strictly structured and spiral curriculum in mathematics (mullis et al., 2015). that is why singapore has become known to the global educational community. also, the performance of the country's students in the international pisa and timss programs depicts it as a role model for other countries (gurría, 2018; mullis et al., 2015; timss, 2015; wang & lu, 2018; schleicher, 2019). the direct result is the singaporean education system and the textbooks used in the country, a yardstick for comparison for many researchers worldwide. 93 ressat 2022, 7(1): 90-99 greece’s population is almost twice singapore’s, and thanks to her past, it possesses an unmatched history in education. today, its educational system experiences frequent changes to adapt to the new data and be a modern european educational system conforming to world standards. the system’s principal objective is to have a critical thinking citizen with a broad range of knowledge (gouvias, 2012). also, in greece, a student must complete six years of primary education and additional six years of secondary; before attending the university (eurydice, 2022). method for the comparison of school textbooks interdisciplinarity is one of the primary factors highlighting the enormous number of mathematics applications in various sciences or everyday situations. it directly affects concentrated students' interests (kloosterman & stage, 1992; tachie & kariyana, 2022). therefore, the purpose of this paper is not merely to highlight the prominence of interdisciplinarity in mathematics. it also aims to demonstrate the dependence of teaching a specific mathematical concept on interdisciplinarity through the activities of the textbooks. besides, this research plans to compare the differences in the multidisciplinary presentation in the exercises in the school textbooks of the two countries and examine the main disciplines involved in interdisciplinary activities. the primary supervisory tool in greek and singapore schools is the school textbook (kaur, 2010). thus, in the present study, the essential sources used were the standard curricula of each country and the textbooks used in primary school. in the greek educational system, until today, students are provided with a specific school textbook by the state. yet, in singapore, it is not the standard practice, various approved ones are available so that teachers can choose the book meeting their needs and instruct students to buy it (ministry of education [moe], 2012). the researchers in this study have selected the version used in most comparative studies worldwide of those books series. this version has been available in english and other languages used in various countries. indeed, of the books selected from each country, the analysis included only the chapters dealing with common concepts related to statistics, probability, or data analysis. thus, from the textbooks of greece, the analysis included only those of the primary school’s last two grades, while singapore contained all from all six grades. 94 ressat 2022, 7(1): 90-99 table 1. school textbooks of the study greece singapore cassioti, o., kliapis, p. & oikonomou, th. (2013). mathematics in elementary school. itye diofantos (in greek). marshall cavendish education. (2021). primary mathematics 1β, 2b, 3b, 4a, 5b, 6b u.s. edition. singapore. vryonis, k., doukakis, s., karakosta, v., baralis, g., & stavrou, i. (2018). primary school mathematics. itye diofantos (in greek). teaching experts in mathematics have debated data analysis and probability and statistics in primary and secondary education in recent years (batanero et al., 2016). greece follows a different logic from singapore in distributing mathematics curricula in primary and secondary education. it is because the greek education system, at its core, aims at learning the concept (cassioti et al., 2013; vryonis et al., 2016), while the corresponding singaporean system focuses on the learning the process (marshall cavendish education, 2021; ministry of education [moe], 2015). of course, the variety of topics and the multidisciplinary approach used by the textbooks of the two countries when teaching the chapters of data analysis in the primary school depict meaningful differences. for the analysis conducted in the present work, the researchers set some principles regarding the categorization of the activities. more specifically, they analyzed them one by one and collected the results in a sorting table before the final tables were generated. αn activity was considered interdisciplinary if the topic were a trigger for discussion in another scientific field. the emphasis was that the separation of the activities concerning the framework structure depended on whether the activities included a daily context for the student (daily life or game, these are daily context activities). it might also involve a context, providing scientific information not directly of interest to the specific age group of students (scientific context), or activity not fitting into a specified context. those not included in the above contexts are called activities of another context. no special coding was necessary for the needs of the present study. however, to ensure its reliability and validity, the researchers analyzed the activities twice with an interval of three months. the two analyses’ results were exactly the same as the development frameworks of the activities were clear. 95 ressat 2022, 7(1): 90-99 results the following tables depict the results. the first table shows the analysis of the activities regarding the framework of the exercises and multidisciplinary ones. then, a table on the multidisciplinary exercises, comprising the two manuals and the respective scientific fields, pursues. every table includes the set of all primary textbooks of each country related to data analysis, probability, and statistics. the total number of the exercises portrayed in every table is from the whole set of the books selected. table 2. activity analysis between the selected books and chapters exercises framework analysis greece singapore f f% f f% frameless activities 6 35.2% 0 0% daily context 7 41.2% 43 100% scientific context 4 23.5% 0 0% activities of another context 0 0% 0 0% total 17 100% 43 100% the table above demonstrates the results of the analysis of all activities from the textbooks of the two countries. it included the implementation of the activities. as depicted in the table, in greece, the activities were distributed in different contexts scientifically and daily besides without a framework. however, in singapore, where the number of activities was much higher, they were characterized as only in children’s daily context. table 3. multidisciplinary exercises and interdisciplinary branches between the selected books and chapters multidisciplinary sector greece singapore f f% f f% environmental studies 3 17.6% 1 2.3% economy 0 0% 10 23.3% language-literature 1 5.9% 4 9.3% physics 1 5.9% 7 16.3% sociology 3 17.6% 3 6.9% biology 0 0% 1 2.3% sport 2 11.7% 1 2.3% total of interdisciplinary exercises 10 58.8% 19 62.7% 96 ressat 2022, 7(1): 90-99 table 2 shows that both countries critically promote interdisciplinarity through their textbooks. more specifically, in greece, the exercises are part of a multidisciplinary framework by 58.8% and in singapore by 62.7%. the activities considered interdisciplinary and classified according to the field belonging to the table below, matched a single interdisciplinary field, no activities were present in more than one field. one could also see that singapore textbooks had a broader range of multidisciplinary content than the corresponding greek ones. also, in singapore, the primary percentage of exercises was combined with economic issues. in contrast, in greece, most activities corresponded to more social issues and environmental studies. discussion mathematics is a science directly linked to other positive sciences besides the humanities and social sciences (ross, 2010). of course, students have difficulties learning mathematics and often wish to avoid this learning process (kloosterman & stage, 1992). much research has addressed this issue. the nctm supports the perception that the way students learn is as critical as what they do (nctm, 2014). in fact, a general view supported by many researchers holds that the textbook is the primary factor in offering learning opportunities to students. thus, it can impact the students’ knowledge levels by presenting activities and topics (sievert et al., 2019). it can also increase the interest in textbook comparison studies. the interdisciplinary factor in the teaching of mathematics appears particularly beneficial in primary school (english, 2009). at that young age, students find it easier to understand a new mathematical concept by using it in various situations than by understanding it through a theoretical mathematical framework (nguyen & krause, 2020). it has led to interdependence in the teaching of mathematics and interdisciplinarity. as the results revealed, both countries had a critical level of the multidisciplinary approach to their activities in the data analysis chapters. more specifically, they seemed to exceed the percentage of 50% for the multidisciplinary activities, with a slight difference between them. but the interdisciplinary impact of singapore's activities covered more fields. in fact, there was also a critical difference in the scientific domain bringing together the most interdisciplinary activities for each country. in singapore, this domain was economics, in greece, the social and environmental sciences. yet, greece had an increased number of frameworks for its exercises, while singapore generated its activities only in a daily context. a meaningful difference that emerged and was not part of the primary objectives of the research was the difference between the number of exercises in the textbooks of greece and singapore from the chapters analyzed. the assessments above can partially justify the difference in the two countries’ positions in the last competition of the pisa. thus, the outcomes from this research can help explain the difference in the student’s levels both in mathematics and sciences. however, a need for increasing the number of exercises in greek textbooks and the variety of frameworks in singapore books is evident. comparative textbook research worldwide, parallel with the integration of technology in the education system, will be a critical 97 ressat 2022, 7(1): 90-99 issue for the future (espino et al., 2020). research like this study may suggest possible improvements or shortages for textbooks in different countries. conclusion the present work has attempted to highlight mathematics through the interdisciplinarity shown by the activities of textbooks. for the research, greece’s and singapore’s primary schools, were selected. singapore is a country whose mathematics curriculum is superior and leads students to achieve high places in the international competitions pisa and timss. in fact, after a thorough study, this country’s textbooks, were often used in comparative textbook studies worldwide. the two countries were substantially different concerning the mathematics curriculum and the knowledge required in each grade. the substantial difference in the two countries’ performance in the last pisa competition was a decisive factor in their selection. subsequently, a series of textbooks, were selected from each country for the data analysis. data analysis is a common beneficial mathematics domain requiring no special needs of knowledge or skills. interdisciplinarity is a factor used in the teaching of mathematics to prove to students the utility of the concept taught. in the present study, a crucial dependence of mathematical activities on interdisciplinarity existed. the two countries, although showing several differences in the activities they develop, ended up having a very slight difference in the percentage of interdisciplinary exercises they used in their chapters. also, differences seemed to exist in the number and choices of the areas, where the multidisciplinary exercises were extended. the outcomes of this research can highlight the utility of interdisciplinarity in textbooks and can be used as guides in upgrading mathematics teaching or the mathematics 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(2010). comparing the development of fractions in the fifthand sixth-graders' textbooks of singapore, taiwan, and the usa. school science and mathematics, 110(3), 118–127. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1949-8594.2010.00015.x file:///c:/users/oztur/downloads/pisa https://www.worldometers.info/world-population/singapore-population/ https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2022.2 http://timssandpirls.bc.edu/timss2015/international-results/timss-2015/mathematics/student-achievement/ http://timssandpirls.bc.edu/timss2015/international-results/timss-2015/mathematics/student-achievement/ https://doi.org/10.1111/jep.12040 microsoft word 1.de-klerk-et-al.1-21 research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 de klerk, e.d., palmer, j.m., & alexander, g. covid-19 and technology: higher education’s responses to inclusive practices for pre-service teachers with disabilities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 1 covid-19 and technology: higher education’s responses to inclusive practices for pre-service teachers with disabilities edwin darrell de klerk*1, june monica palmer2 and greg alexander2 *corresponding author: edwin.deklerk@spu.ac.za 1. sol plaatje university, department education studies, south africa 2. central university of technology, department postgraduate studies, free state, south africa received : 2021-05-28 revised : 2021-07-25 accepted : 2021-08-04 how to cite this paper: de klerk, e.d., palmer, j.m., & alexander, g. (2021). covid-19 and technology: higher education’s responses to inclusive practices for pre-service teachers with disabilities, 6(2), 1-21. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.7 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). abstract transforming the learning experiences of pre-service teachers with disabilities from stigma and social exclusion to experiencing a sense of belonging, is a desirable imperative for learning mediators in the south african higher education (sahe) context. this paper presents a relational content analysis of the concepts, theories and policies, related to effecting transformation in the meaning schemes of pre-service teachers with disabilities and to provide heis with inclusive responses to addressing their learning support needs. the theory of perspective transformation, which highlights the process of effecting change in a frame of reference, is applied. the theory expands on three dimensions, including psychological (changes in understanding of the self), convictional (revision of belief systems) and behavioural (changes in lifestyle) with a sound foundation of inclusion aimed at drawing on practices for the prevention of exclusion of the pre-service teacher with disabilities in sahe spaces. the paper further analyses discourses extracted from section 47 of the salamanca statement, (1994) that build on inclusion artefacts in addressing perspective transformation. the findings in terms of belonging show that affirmations of the discourses, related to an interpersonal connection with others, have the scope to affect pre-service teachers with disabilities’ need for a positive regard as a prerequisite to foster the inclusion of individuals within any given relationship. this paper recommends that sahe institutions embrace an ethos of inclusivity to achieve transformative equity for pre-service teachers with disabilities and offers an inclusive response framework to ensure that they are able to participate, learn and be welcomed as appreciated associates of heis. keywords: covid-19; perspective transformation theory; pre-service teachers with disabilities; sense of belonging; transformative learning. 10.46303/ressat.2021.7 research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 de klerk, e.d., palmer, j.m., & alexander, g. covid-19 and technology: higher education’s responses to inclusive practices for pre-service teachers with disabilities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 2 introduction as the covid-19 pandemic remains to spread internationally, millions of students in heis are still affected by sudden shifts away from classroom practices to more innovative and inclusive online teaching and learning strategies in many parts of the world (el said, 2021). ongoing education, remote and online learning have become a remedy for this unparalleled worldwide epidemic, notwithstanding the encounters posed to both lecturers and students in heis. significantly, changing from customary direct learning to online learning is an entirely new experience for both lecturers and students, to which they had to adjust to speedily (kalimullina et al., 2021; pokhrel & chhetri, 2021). nevertheless, the present landscape of inclusive education in south africa deserves an in-depth monitoring of implementation initiatives. initiatives are necessary to facilitate change, given the pre-1994 historical, explicitly discriminating infrastructure, and ensuing inequalities regarding access to resources (alexander & mhlongo, 2021). sutton (2021) mentions that, generally, students with disabilities in heis are less likely to believe that they experience a sense of belonging, and that they are deemed equally important, in relation to other students. it seems that students with disabilities often experience the home environment as too distractive, mostly become depressive, due to isolation and a feeling of loneliness, whilst some experience high levels of anxiety, because of uncertainties regarding their future (sutton, 2021). in a south african study, kamga (2020) provides an analysis of challenges experienced to apply inclusive education, exploring universal instructions for the future, whilst considering covid-19 as an opportunity to reconsider how educational preparation for the future can be comprehensive for students with disabilities. in relation to this aspect, it therefore becomes crucial for pre-service teachers with disabilities, aiming to be discernibly effective in an inclusive education atmosphere. additionally, teachers in post-school settings should familiarize and enlighten themselves with both the direct (school-based) and broader (community) social interfaces, issues and challenges they experience, due to a particular disability (alexander & mhlongo, 2021). it is significant to note that students with disabilities should be reasonably accommodated within the general education system by having their individual needs recognised and any form of exclusion rejected (united nations [un], 2007 as cited in kamga, 2020). bearing the significance of inclusion in mind, it is imperative to contemplate that there is a need to ensure that, without imposing undue burden, equality is promoted by provisioning appropriate modifications to the delivery of education for persons with disabilities (un, 2006, article 2 as cited in kamga, 2020). considering the afore-mentioned stipulations, heis, therefore, have to research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 de klerk, e.d., palmer, j.m., & alexander, g. covid-19 and technology: higher education’s responses to inclusive practices for pre-service teachers with disabilities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 3 adopt reasonable accommodation measures in terms of technology, which would entail embracing practical modification methods to ensure the inclusion of students with disabilities. research question to promote inclusive practices for pre-service teachers with disabilities, this paper addresses the research question: how can a proposed inclusive response framework for higher education institutions, through an analysis of salamanca statements, provide inclusive practices for preservice teachers with disabilities amid the covid-19 pandemic? literature review learning experiences of pre-services teachers with disabilities it is not easy to find an exact description for disability, which precisely and convincingly includes the lived experience of individuals with disabilities. it should be considered that the meaning of disability comes a long way, representative of power undercurrents, preconception and social marginalization of individuals that seem not to belong (soudien & baxen, 2006). according to the centers for disease control and prevention in the united states of america, a disability may include several categories, such as social relationships, vision, thinking, movement, learning and remembering (centers for disease control and prevention, 2020). as such, a disability may be described as a situation of the body or mind (impairment) that limits individuals with the condition (disability) to engage in particular activities and to accordingly, interact constructively with their immediate environment (alexander & mhlongo, 2021). therefore, the way in which people with disabilities (pre-service teachers) participate in several human activities (moving around, learning, interacting or communicating) is reliant on various conditions and aspects conditions, which unavoidably affect their autonomous lifestyles, particular flexibility, learning, and their future occupation prospects as fully competent teachers (alexander & mhlongo, 2021). disability may be regarded as impairments and environmental and attitudinal barriers that hinder the effective participation of someone in a society on an equal basis (department of social development [dsd], 2016). persons with disabilities (also pre-service teachers) experience three foremost categories of interconnected barriers (dsd, 2016). firstly, social barriers comprise extraordinary costs, absence of disability consciousness, and communication complications; as well as emotional-like anxiety regarding individual well-being. secondly, psychological barriers include individuals’ fear for safety. thirdly, structural barriers include infrastructure, operations and information. these barriers become a challenge, especially when individuals with disabilities are denied access to full participation in all aspects of life. also, the barriers (dsd, 2016) can be associated with long-term challenges experienced by pre-service teachers with disabilities (hereafter, ptwd) in heis. some challenges that reverberate with this research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 de klerk, e.d., palmer, j.m., & alexander, g. covid-19 and technology: higher education’s responses to inclusive practices for pre-service teachers with disabilities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 4 research are the heritage of the south african history that still influences the operations in higher education; the role of institutional diversity; the flexibility of learning, teaching methodologies and issues pertaining to mainstreaming provision (howell, 2005, as cited in lyner-cleophas, 2016). howell (2015) states that, although disability is part of the current transformation efforts in heis to address social inequalities, a lack of sufficient policy implementation prolongs the existence of barriers to learning and development for ptwd. a study conducted in western canada (sokal et al., 2017) reveals that labels of numerous disability sets are applied to assess whether or not ptwd can act as teachers. the latter view (sokal et al., 2017) embodies a socially constructed interpretation of disability as insufficiency and is an indication of practices and opinions that prolong ableists’ worldviews, while guaranteeing sustained opportunities to dominant groups those pre-service teachers without disabilities. ptwd occasionally display a particular conduct when they engage in teaching practice sessions, raising questions of whether their disability is irreconcilable with meeting the ethics for teachers’ skilled practices, even when practices are put into place, which may enhance their learning experiences (sokal et al., 2017). the findings of a study conducted with 4th year ptwd, ranked their learning experiences in education study courses relatively low (ezer et al., 2010, as cited in forkosh-baruch & lipka, 2016). significantly, the indicated pre-service teachers experienced learning disabilities and gave adapted courses for learning a high ranking, because such courses had a significant impact on their teacher-training. the study proposed that ptwd’ learning experiences should include education courses that would impact selfefficacy, whilst adaptive courses are significant for facilitating inclusion principles. even if disability was assumed inversely, measured differently or provided for applying diverse techniques, it is obvious that its developing nature emulates the environment within which ptwd experience learning in heis. in this regard, the dsd (2016) recommends that there should be, “a mainstreaming of disability to ensure full inclusion of persons with disabilities as equals. the model further encourages that persons with disabilities must actively participate in transformation processes that impact on their lives” (p. 21). furthermore, those in-service teachers (with and without disabilities) should provide the impetus for redirecting thinking on how all citizens should promote the social values of a democratic and transformed south africa this probably via the recognition and acceptance of diversity, more specific to disability issues (alexander & mhlongo, 2021). we argue that the dsd’s (2016) view applies to heis responses to inclusive practices for ptwd. inclusive technologies to achieve transformative equity inclusion presupposes the creation of a sense of belonging, tolerance, value and respect for others, while ensuring equal access to learning opportunities and limiting discrimination (dsd, research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 de klerk, e.d., palmer, j.m., & alexander, g. covid-19 and technology: higher education’s responses to inclusive practices for pre-service teachers with disabilities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 5 2016). drawing on nussbaum (2006), the afore-mentioned view implies that heis should implement special arrangements to ensure that ptwd lead a dignified life, taking into consideration both individual impairment and educational arrangements. acknowledging the disabilities of pre-service teachers, heis should be cognizant about the availability of infrastructure, instruction, need-based approaches and resources for instructional provision, appraisal, and the considerable obvious matter of accommodation and recognition at all levels (ahmad, 2015b). in this manner it circumvents classifying ptwd, based on their impairment only, therefore heis should ensure the implementation of inclusive technologies that will build the capacity of both lecturers and pre-service teachers in line with a university’s transformation agenda (mutanga, 2017). inclusive learning technologies can be defined as those skills, whether hardware or software, that assist students to learn approaches to avoid, work around or recompense for their difficulties (ahmad, 2015a). consequently, an effective integration of inclusive technologies may afford ptwd with an ability to access a broad-spectrum education syllabus and offering them numerous means to complete their work with more comfort and freedom (perelmutter et al., 2017, kabel et al., 2021). to meet the needs of ptwd, assistive technology (inclusive of equipment, devices, instruments and software) may enhance the learning experiences of ptwd to prevent exclusion from actively participating in their learning and knowledge production, while improving their self-image and sense of belonging (international organization for standardization, 2011, as cited in svensson, 2021, 196; haßler, et al., 2016). significantly, technology is viewed as a goal of learning, aiming at developing students’ technological literacy and preparing them for working and learning in the 21st century (unesco, 2011, as cited in kopish & marques, 2019). furthermore, the future workplace accommodation (school buildings, infrastructure and facilities) for ptwd should be geared towards making the required resources adjustments: a reasonable and affordable infrastructural, technological and ideological engagement, which embrace diversity where students with disabilities should feel that they are genuinely accommodated within the democratic learning spaces of south africa (mhlongo & alexander, 2021). notably, a view by rapoport (2020) may be deemed applicable here in that he asserts that technology influences engagement, knowledge and skills, whilst the latter may contribute to transformative classroom practices. when transformation and equity are mentioned in tandem, this paper proposes that the notion of transformative equity may be regarded applicable in its attempt to provide heis with inclusive responses to addressing the learning support needs of ptwd. drawing on shields and hesbol (2020), we argue that transformative equity requires change knowledge frameworks (perspectives) to ensure equity, in that individuals should become disability responsive. our view suggests that heis should evaluate unjust practices and offer the potential, not only for research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 de klerk, e.d., palmer, j.m., & alexander, g. covid-19 and technology: higher education’s responses to inclusive practices for pre-service teachers with disabilities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 6 better personal attainment, but for a better life lived in community with others (shields, 2016). in this instance, transformative equity is geared towards how heis should become aware of their understanding of the plight of a diverse nation and to permit a non-discriminating and inclusive practice by acting upon these understandings (mezirow, 1990, 14). significantly, heis should allow ptwd to make meaning of their existing experiences, so that innovative experiences are embraced and changed. in this way, transformative equity may create possibilities for individuals to start thinking and acting differently (hoggan et al., 2017). disability equity in higher education during covid-19 disability may be conceived of as a valuable source of the universal lived experience (anderson, 2006). in this study, issues pertaining to students with disabilities are relevant to all disadvantaged or marginalised groups, as they are considered as part of the worlds’ largest multicultural minority. the united nations convention on the rights of persons with disabilities (un, 2006), adopted and signed by south africa in 2007, contains 50 articles and recognizes, “…the inherent dignity and worth and the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family as the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world…” (un, 2006, p. 1). although this view of the un (2006) is significant, the covid-19 pandemic has unearthed and accentuated the plight of students with disabilities. a south african study, investigating lecturers’ perceptions on disability inclusion at two universities, revealed that obstructions to inclusion stem from lecturers’ dearth of accountability, skills and knowledge in making adaptations to their lectures for disabled students, thereby not addressing their needs and risking their retention (mutanga & walker 2017). additionally, accessible and flexible online learning may not be available to students with disabilities, although heis in the main, ostensibly provide such. mcclain-nhlapo (2020) asserts that issues pertaining to disability equity may be associated with an absence of accessibility, which may result in students with disabilities being excluded from emergency courses offered by heis during the covid-19 pandemic. thus, although education technologies exist, online equipment frequently lack the rudimentary and essential availability structures to make them practical for students with disabilities. moreover, even when apparatuses are made with the availability structures, it necessitates skills that may not be freely accessible to several students with disabilities in lowand lower-middle-income nations (mcclain-nhlapo, 2020). to achieve disability equity, heis ought to start with collaboration in an attempt to understand why it is imperative to build capacity. capacity building should be regarded as a way to change mindsets, foster peaceful co-existence, whilst implanting inclusive practices to counterbalance research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 de klerk, e.d., palmer, j.m., & alexander, g. covid-19 and technology: higher education’s responses to inclusive practices for pre-service teachers with disabilities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 7 student isolation (ayehsabu, 2020; snounu, 2019). a broad stakeholder consultative forum (centers/units for disability access & support for students; student representative council; south african council for educators; teacher unions; teaching & learning coordinators; center for diversity; institutional renewal & transformation, etc.), to monitor the implementation of ongoing engagements, are cardinal in promoting diversity and disability equity in heis’ (alexander & mhlongo, 2021). theoretical framework in an attempt to provide heis with tools as to how to respond to inclusive practices for ptwd, this paper employs the theory of perspective transformation, which considers people as actors in the world and how learning changes their thought patterns and world view (rahman & hoque, 2017). when ptwd enter higher education institutions (heis), they instantly become aware of particular information that surrounds them, while testing new assumptions and expectations, constantly assimilating and analysing the acquired information to be able to adapt (mezirow, 2001). the imperative for heis is to create inclusive practices where ptwd are guided in terms of engaging in transformative and adaptive learning toward more inclusive, open, and reflective practices (mezirow, 2003). a transformative approach to newly gained perspectives provides opportunities for challenging expectations, interrogating ways of knowing, and analytically appraising different viewpoints, in order to bring about wider, more comprehensive perspectives (herbers & nelson, 2009). the theory expands on three dimensions, including psychological (changes in understanding of the self), convictional (revision of belief systems) and behavioural (changes in lifestyle), with a sound foundation of inclusion aimed at drawing on practices for the prevention of exclusion of the pre-service teacher with disabilities in sahe spaces. perspective transformation is useful in this paper, in that it may guide heis on how to employ open dialogue in which all participants are afforded opportunities to express their concerns and perspectives (gould, 2002). significantly, in such dialogues, heis should focus on pre-service teachers’ abilities to transform their understanding of the self, review their own belief structures and bring about changes in their lives (mezirow, 2003). method qualitative content analysis, “is systematic and analytic but less rigid than quantitative content analysis, and the researcher constantly revises the themes or categories by moving back and forth between conceptualization, data collection, analysis, and interpretation” (bell et al., 2019, 511). two categories of content analysis exist, including relational analysis and conceptual analysis. (wilson, 2011). conceptual analysis is fundamentally applied when content is coded for particular words, ideas, or themes, and the researcher would make extrapolations founded research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 de klerk, e.d., palmer, j.m., & alexander, g. covid-19 and technology: higher education’s responses to inclusive practices for pre-service teachers with disabilities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 8 on the patterns that transpire. relational analysis is complementary to conceptual analysis in that it delves into the interactions between concepts that become apparent from the examined texts. this paper employs a relational content analysis to analyse discourses in the salamanca statement (unesco, 1994). it implies that relational analysis tolerates more elucidation than conceptual analysis, because it goes beyond the regularity of specific ideas and allows for interpretations to be made about inclusive significance. when researchers apply relational analysis to education policy content, they (researchers) are positioned central to the process of meaning making of texts (bell et al., 2019). to conduct a relation analysis of statements, we took the following steps. firstly, a sample of statements from the salamanca statement (unesco, 1994) were selected – the selection was based on statements that strongly speak to inclusive practices for pre-service teachers with disabilities. secondly, the statements (unesco, 1994) were aligned with the dimensions of perspective transformation as described in the theoretical framework. thirdly, three inclusive responses for heis have been identified which were analysed in relation to the statements (unesco, 1994) and dimensions of perspective transformation. with reference to relational analysis, the identified responses are relevant to the analysis of texts in the salamanca statement (unesco, 1994). these inclusive responses are: transformative inclusivity for preservice teachers with disabilities; positive regard for pre-service teachers with disabilities and assisting pre-service teachers with disabilities to enact a sense of belonging. in an attempt to show understanding, the researchers (henceforth referred to as chris, amanda and alan) added anecdotes, which entail brief explanations about their own experiences with inclusive practices at heis, in terms of pre-service teachers with disabilities. significantly, the salamanca statement (unesco, 1994), was developed from the collective dream of 94 nations that supported schooling as a right of all children, with the conviction that schools have the mandate to accommodate diverse learners, irrespective of their intellectual, physical, emotional, linguistic and social afflictions (unesco, 1994). the salamanca statement is clear that a transformation in perspectives is necessitated to ensure that people with disabilities are provided appropriate opportunities to participate in educational programmes, outlining the advisory role that universities should assume in actively involving people with disabilities in research and training roles, while considering their perspectives respectfully and without reservation (unesco, 1994). arguably, when heis consider perspectives in the salamanca statement (unesco, 1994), ptwd will be afforded opportunities to design their personal lifestyles and ambitions with dignity. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 de klerk, e.d., palmer, j.m., & alexander, g. covid-19 and technology: higher education’s responses to inclusive practices for pre-service teachers with disabilities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 9 results and discussion the discussion correlates with the research question: how can a proposed inclusive response framework for higher education institutions, through an analysis of salamanca statements, provide inclusive practices for pre-service teachers with disabilities amid the covid-19 pandemic? an inclusive response may be viewed as an act to ensure that all students are able to participate, learn and are welcomed as appreciated associates of heis (morgado et al., 2016). notably, an inclusive response transpires when circumstances are created to encourage inclusive practices to meet the needs of all students (fernández, 2014, as cited in colón et al., 2018). this paper proposes the following: “inclusive response framework” (figure 1). to extrapolate the relational aspect of concepts contained in section 47 of the salamanca statement (unesco, 1994), concepts including “involve people”, “to ensure” and “taken fully into account”, were explored. we aligned the constructed meanings with additional stipulations in the salamanca statement to show its relation to aspects of perspective transformation, in order to propose inclusive responses for heis to address ptwds learning support needs. the following inclusive responses will consequently be discussed: transformative inclusivity for pre-service teachers with disabilities; positive regard for preservice teachers with disabilities and assisting pre-service teachers with disabilities to enact a sense of belonging. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 de klerk, e.d., palmer, j.m., & alexander, g. covid-19 and technology: higher education’s responses to inclusive practices for pre-service teachers with disabilities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 10 figure 1: inclusive response framework section 47 (salamanca statement, unesco, 1994) “it is also important to actively involve people with disabilities in research and training roles in order to ensure that their perspectives are taken fully into account” (unesco, 1994, 29). “special attention is required in ensuring equality of access and opportunity” (unesco, 1994, 18). “inclusion is essential to human dignity and to the enjoyment and exercise of human rights” (unesco, 1994,7). “reaffirmation of a commitment to inclusion to promote positive attitudes” (unesco, 1994, 40) psychological perspective behavioural perspective convictional perspective heis inclusive response establishing transformative inclusivity (reducing educational inequalities) fostering positive regard (accepting and supporting persons with disabilities nurturing a sense of belonging (regenerating confidence) research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 de klerk, e.d., palmer, j.m., & alexander, g. covid-19 and technology: higher education’s responses to inclusive practices for pre-service teachers with disabilities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 11 transformative inclusivity for pre-service teachers with disabilities the use of “involve people” (unesco, 1994), signifies a transformative inclusivity tool, aligned with the notion of human rights and an autonomous way of considering morals and developing opinions, which celebrate human diversity (maguvhe, 2015). for heis to “involve people”, a welcoming learning environment should be created through inclusive participation, to enable ptwd to optimise genuine opportunities for self-representation skills, among others. observing the basic rights of ptwd, while preserving their human dignity, is a cornerstone of any inclusive practice and a necessary imperative for heis. additionally, heis’ response to ptwd should be geared towards fostering individuals’ sense of confidence and dignity, as well as catering to their emotional and physical vulnerabilities. providing equitable teaching and learning experiences, while confidently changing and enhancing their self-esteem is key. in this regard, chris told the following story: i believe that it is imperative to have faith in my students. in showing that i have faith in them, they realise that i see them as autonomous individuals, deserving of respect. i concede that the value i have for them, paved the way for a deeper trust, which i find is so vital in any given relationship where deep learning is an objective. by trusting them fully, and believing in their abilities, i realised that they exude a profound sense of self-worth and confidence. this simple act helped them to value themselves, to think differently about who they are and to be aware and use opportunities that are afforded to them. considering chris’ story from a psychological perspective and drawing on mezirow (1991), heis should assist students to grow in awareness and stature, while being cognisant of their experiences and reflections (how they are thinking, feeling, judging and acting). for this purpose, heis may be positioned to assist ptwd to restructure their frames of reference, which determine how they make meaning of their current experiences. it is, therefore, necessary that a transformative inclusive climate, with flexible and relevant educational programming, be created. transformative inclusivity would require that heis foster inclusive, multidimensional learning, which would include actions to create equitable opportunities for ptwd. a democratic approach in responding to critical human rights issues by relevant stakeholders within the south african heis’ landscapes and those pre-service teachers receiving tertiary training, should be construed as a collaborative effort in empowering ptwd through the creation of a dialogical atmosphere of equality. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 de klerk, e.d., palmer, j.m., & alexander, g. covid-19 and technology: higher education’s responses to inclusive practices for pre-service teachers with disabilities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 12 positive regard for pre-service teachers with disabilities the use of “to ensure” (unesco, 1994), is not only about adjusting to accommodate diversity, but to create equal access to teaching and learning opportunities. this implies that heis should deliberately implement actions that safeguard inclusivity and use difference as a stimulus for fostering learning, participation, and achievement. this kind of inclusion aligns with a stipulation in the salamanca statement, which highlights that, “special attention is required in ensuring equality of access and opportunity” (unesco, 1994, 18). the significance of an inclusive response, encapsulating equality of access and opportunity, suggests equal access to resources, mining the talents, intelligences, and abilities of individuals with disabilities. consequently, heis should ensure that access and opportunities are emphasised through training stakeholders around disability awareness, recognising that diversity brings richness, new ideas, growth, and dynamism (fredette et al., 2015). in her reflection, amanda had the following to say: i am of opinion that a combination of high expectations and effective instruction indicate a proven way to express hope to students. by instilling hope, i realised that i was able to strengthen ptwd to believe in their own capacities, by adapting my teaching pedagogies so that every student would feel included. i frequently assessed my own pedagogies by requesting ptwd to demonstrate what they have learned and assisted them where necessary. in so doing, i constantly explored their practices to better articulate, understand and further identify and improve upon their educational needs. this allowed them to contribute towards change in their own behaviour, as well as in their perspective about their university. interpreting amanda’s story from a behavioural perspective, heis may use mindfulness as a supplementary knowledge practice to assist ptwd to develop insights into their customary modes of thinking, which then allows them to alter negative patterns of thinking and subsequently responding differently in these situations. importantly, mindfulness teaching may help ptwd to “step-out” of disapproving behaviour patterns, paying specific consideration to their existing experience, so that they (ptwd) unconditionally feel good about themselves. this implies that heis should assist ptwd to reach their highest potential, also known as selfactualisation. we contend that developing self-actualization can help ptwd to unravel difficulties innovatively, embrace transformation, and promote profound and significant relationships. thus, by supporting ptwd, a person-centered approach is proposed, one of understanding acceptance and change so that they experience feelings of belonging. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 de klerk, e.d., palmer, j.m., & alexander, g. covid-19 and technology: higher education’s responses to inclusive practices for pre-service teachers with disabilities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 13 assisting pre-service teachers with disabilities to enact a sense of belonging the use of “taken fully into account” (unesco, 1994), has reference to gaining acceptance, attention, and support from others. evidently, heis’ response should be to model different social relations and possibilities, while recognising that students with disabilities are valued and that their achievements are celebrated. in terms of inclusion, recognising the abilities of ptwd can be associated with the salamanca statement, because it may refer to a, “reaffirmation of a commitment to inclusion to promote positive attitudes” (unesco, 1994, 40). heis should deliberately facilitate actions aimed at modifying fundamental feelings and beliefs, as well as the co-existence of encouraging and undesirable characters. considering the afore-mentioned, alan mentioned: i always encourage my ptwd to invite me into their spaces, their social digital worlds, sharing on a professional level. in so doing, i try to bridge the gap between ptwd and other students. i realised that regular communication was the key in reimaging my classes. i afford my students the space to share their emotions and connect with each other. in this way, i assist them to create communities of practice and to establish solid academic relationships – all recipes for helping them to experience a sense of belonging. we found in alan’s story, from a relational perspective, that lecturers at some heis already assist ptwd to revise their belief systems, so that they actively transform the ways in which they (ptwd) would make decisions. in this regard, we propose that heis should establish emotional and social learning in classroom situations, while enabling social spaces for all students to work together and support initiatives that would nurture an exchange of ideas. in so doing, heis would be in a position to strengthen ptwd’ sense of belonging. a sense of belonging can assist in improving students’ academic achievement, because it is a human need and a fundamental motive, sufficient to drive human behaviour. heis should, therefore, take ownership of ptwd’ development so that they may be positioned to reinventing themselves to belong. in so doing, ptwd may become transformative agents who strive to be successful within an academic space where heis provide inclusive, equitable and socially responsible practices. the analysis of section 47 of the salamanca statement (unesco, 1994), provides useful heis’ responses to inclusive practices for ptwd. arguably, if heis would acknowledge the significance of responding appropriately to the needs of ptwd, they (heis) may play a crucial role in enhancing transformative inclusivity, a positive regard and a sense of belonging where disability research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 de klerk, e.d., palmer, j.m., & alexander, g. covid-19 and technology: higher education’s responses to inclusive practices for pre-service teachers with disabilities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 14 inclusion would form a significant part of a re-imagined society. this would then align with the notion that, in order to create a caring and inclusive society where all assume equal responsibility to build it, the potential and rights of all its citizens will be protected. an implementation of the proposed heis’ responses may thus contribute to nation building where multiplicity, socio-economic wellness and citizenship could be promoted. concluding reflections this theoretical paper attempted to answer the question: how can a proposed inclusive response framework for higher education institutions, through an analysis of salamanca statements, provide inclusive practices for pre-service teachers with disabilities amid the covid19 pandemic? the analysis of the salamanca statement (unesco, 1994) and the proposed inclusive response framework, revealed three responses which, when implemented, may assist heis to foster a more conducive education environment for ptwd. firstly, when heis would implement transformative inclusivity, it may assist ptwd to appreciate a multidimensional learning environment where equal opportunities are afforded to all students and it would include actions to create equitable opportunities for all. secondly, heis should foster a positive regard to enable ptwd to experience a stronger sense of self-worth, thus helping them to become more confident and motivated. thirdly, when ptwd are assisted to enact a stronger sense of belonging, they (ptwd) may regard themselves as equally important, in relation to other students. this paper supports other findings in the academic literature on the role of heis to respond to inclusive practices for ptwd. heis should create conducive environments for diverse students to thrive through exhibiting consideration, kindness and exercising an obligation to inclusivity. the findings further reflect that heis should employ person-centred approaches in assisting ptwd in acquiring appropriate levels of self-actualisation, which might be realised through the promotion of the supportive acknowledgement and discussion, pertaining to disability. gaining insight into the issue of self-disclosure involves explaining sensitive information so that fellow students without disabilities and lecturing staff, value notions around transparency, equity, respect, and acceptance of diversity – these values should be espoused during class engagements and social interactions. furthermore, promoting effective classroom communities where all ptwds may fulfil their optimal potential, becomes all-important. inclusive teaching and learning activities could possibly be structured to empower a sense of belonging, care, trust, and constructive conversations about disability, while ensuring the research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 de klerk, e.d., palmer, j.m., & alexander, g. covid-19 and technology: higher education’s responses to inclusive practices for pre-service teachers with disabilities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 15 availability of accommodations and or modifications, infrastructure, facilities and learning support materials. this paper suggests that an empirical study be conducted, which would include the voices of ptwd regarding their experiences of inclusivity in heis. understanding what challenges ptwd may experience regarding inclusivity, may assist heis in planning for future accessibility needs during times of extreme stress and beyond. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 de klerk, e.d., palmer, j.m., & alexander, g. covid-19 and technology: higher education’s responses to inclusive practices for pre-service teachers with disabilities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 16 references ahmad, f.k. 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(2011). research methods: content analysis. evidence based library and information practice, 6(4), 177–179. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 grobler, a. plans and interventions of south african grade 1 educators during the 2020 lockdown period research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 163 plans and interventions of south african grade 1 educators during the 2020 lockdown period annemie grobler email: grobleram@ufs.ac.za university of the free state, bloemfontein, south africa received : 2021-09-14 revised : 2021-10-26 accepted : 2021-11-03 how to cite this paper: grobler, a. (2021). plans and interventions of south african grade 1 educators during the 2020 lockdown period. research in social sciences and technology, 6(3), 163-178. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.36 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). abstract the extended lockdown in 2020 found south african educators employing innovative strategies to teach and assess foundation phase learners. educators had to make do with reduced hours in the classroom and experienced new challenges in delivering curriculum content to learners that had barely grown accustomed to the formal classroom setup. empirical research attempted to identify the plans and approaches used by grade 1 educators. the findings may indicate best practices as experienced in this time and help to inform the approach taken during future repetitions of extraordinary circumstances. a theoretical and conceptual framework based on the current constructivist approach adopted by the curriculum assessment and policy statement (caps) guided the empirical research and informed the construction of the questionnaire. the key findings were themed into strategies for presenting teaching and learning, communication, and the impact on schooling. findings were compared to the premises of the theoretical framework and conclusions drawn. it was noted that educators were hesitant to move their schooling entirely to the virtual learning platform and eager to return to the school environment. various obstacles posed by the digital divide were flagged as threats to future situations and the involvement of parents was emphasized. the resilience of educators to continue to ply their trade, and their belief in the indomitable spirit of children, may offer conducive circumstances for future innovations in education. keywords: teaching; constructivism; pandemic; lockdown; strategies; interventions; covid-19. introduction at midnight on 26 march 2021 in south africa, a hard lockdown on level 5 due to the coronavirus pandemic came into force until 16 april 2021. after this date it was extended for another 14 days (sabc news online, 2020). the amended school calendar of the department of basic education (dbe) allowed teaching and learning in an online or virtual environment from 10.46303/ressat.2021.36 mailto:grobleram@ufs.ac.za https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.36 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 grobler, a. plans and interventions of south african grade 1 educators during the 2020 lockdown period research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 164 8 june 2020. a gradual and phased approach was taken to reopen schools on site. grade 1 learners were only permitted to return to the physical school environment on 24 august 2020 (dbe, 2020a). during the months of the extended lockdown in 2020, south african foundation phase educators felt compelled to resort to creative, alternative ways to teach and assess foundation phase learners. especially grade 1 learners suffered from the severe measures taken to counter the spread of the virus. deviating from the planned calendar comprising of 203 school days as published on 11 january 2018, the dbe published an amended calendar of 158 school days under the disaster management act as published on 11 august 2020 (dbe, 2020b). the united nations educational, scientific and cultural organization (unesco) admitted that covid-19 posed not only a catastrophe for healthcare but also a global crisis in terms of education (unesco, 2020). this article reflects on the outcomes of empirical research conducted to probe the plans and approaches used by foundation phase educators. it firstly expounds on the theoretical and conceptual framework on which the empirical research was based and defines the approach in the construction of the questionnaire. secondly, it describes the process of the empirical investigation and then presents the findings. a discussion of the findings is presented in the third place, drawing conclusions on key aspects in the problem statement and reflecting on them in terms of the theoretical framework underlying the investigation. in conclusion, a way forward is proposed for future management of similar or resultant situations of flux and change. problem statement during the covid-19 pandemic, educators all over the world had to draw on their ingenuity to demonstrate their professional competence instead of relying on established practice. this unprecedented situation caused uncertainty and even despair at their own worth (kirby, 2021). mccallum (2021) highlights the strain that these uncertainties posed to educators. specifically, the challenge posed to educators of learners in their first year of formal schooling, that is grade 1, triggered this research. the response to the catastrophe sparked by the discovery of the virus named sars-cov-2 by the international committee on taxonomy for viruses of the world health organization (who) on 11 february 2020 (who, 2020) is an ongoing process, with the direction being plotted en route to the future. the national curriculum statement (ncs) grades r-12 is the policy document that informs the theoretical approach of the south african schooling system. the curriculum assessment policy statement (caps) provides guidelines according to phase and subject. the comprehensive ncs offers guidance on teaching and learning in different phases according to learner development, the foundation phase, inclusive of grade r up to grade 3; the intermediate (grades 4-6) and senior phase (grades 7-9), and the further education and training phase (grades 10-12). the caps document for the foundation phase lists a culture of “active and critical learning” (dbe, 2012, p.4) as one of the principles of the curriculum. the caps furthermore aims to produce learners who are able to critically and actively engage in the teaching and learning environment and communicate effectively in individual and group activities (dbe, 2012). research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 grobler, a. plans and interventions of south african grade 1 educators during the 2020 lockdown period research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 165 the situation that was created by the national response levels based on the disaster management act in 2020 was in direct contravention of the principles of collaborative learning as laid out by the ncs. grade 1 learners had only been in the formal schooling system for almost one quarter, with the end of quarter holidays being expedited by a week due to the pandemic. when the date came for the schools to reopen after the planned two-week holiday, the country was still in lockdown level 5 which prohibited all movement except for essential services. schools therefore remained closed, and only on 8 june 2020 did tuition resume – and furthermore, exclusively in an online or remote setting. wolhuter and jacobs (2021) point to the global employment of emergency remote teaching (ert) or emergency remote learning (erl) in order to continue with the school year. this was an inaugural step for education, one that was not universally embraced (taylor, 2020; jones, 2020). some schools were not in a position to move their teaching to an online platform at all. many educators protested against the practice, calling on the tenets of collaborative teaching and learning and arguing that learners would suffer from the absence of peers in the learning environment (timmons et al. 2021; kirby, 2021; taylor, 2020). because it is accepted that desperate times call for desperate measures, it is possible that innovative solutions may be devised during periods of adaption and flux. now, more than ever, it is appropriate to consider the lessons to be learnt from the recent past to strengthen educators’ approach to crisis management in the likelihood of future instances of global disasters such as the covid-19 pandemic. globally, the crisis that was sparked by the pandemic has produced, and continues to produce, concerted efforts to research the impact of the pandemic. the quest for information on the virus and its effects is evident in the newsworthiness of the covid-19 keyword. as the pandemic disrupted normal life on various levels of society, its impetus is being felt in fields as diverse as health, the economy and education. at present the provision of research results on covid-19 and its impact on the world is prolific: an information search on the google search engine with keywords “lockdown, covid-19, education, grade 1 plans” provided no fewer than 7 650 000 hits (13 september 2021). it is accepted that the impact of the extreme measures taken to combat the pandemic should rightfully be documented if any lessons are to be learnt from this experience. in order to specify the results to a manageable number and to ascertain whether any local south african research has been done, extensive literature searches on 7 databases was conducted on the ebscohost platform and on sabinet on 13 september 2021 using the keywords “grade 1, covid-19, education”. the result was little, if any, research localized to south africa to track and evaluate the plans that foundation phase educators devised to manage the ensuing situation on schooling. this investigation was done to provide further insight into the lived experience of educators specifically in south africa, particularly in the mangaung metropolitan municipality as representative of the average south african school affected during this time. given the basic premise of a collaborative teaching approach, the question that initiated this investigation was: what were the outcomes of plans and interventions actioned by grade 1 educators in the initial period of the hard lockdown and ensuing months in 2020? research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 grobler, a. plans and interventions of south african grade 1 educators during the 2020 lockdown period research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 166 conceptual and theoretical framework as mentioned above, collaborative learning occurs in a setting where the educator encourages active participation by the learners (litshani, 2017). all learners are involved in meaning-making and are actively involved in the construction of knowledge. this process occurs typically in a learner-centred classroom, where the educator adapts the learning content and the approach to best suit the needs of the classroom in question. the variables may refer to social, economic, geographical or cognitive aspects, and the educator attempts to offer inclusive learning that is sensible to the diversity posed by the specific group (fellowes & oakley, 2010; tlale, 2017; wessels, 2014). this study was directed by an interpretivist approach for the purpose of paving the way for conducting an empirical investigation on the lived experiences of foundation phase educators during the greatest part of 2020. it was also underpinned by vygotsky’s social constructivism theory (1978). according to this theory, “individuals must actively build knowledge and skills” (wessels 2014, p.1). building on the premises of the earlier theories of dewey and piaget, constructivists regard learning as ideally instituted in a collaborative fashion, with a learnercentred classroom at the heart of the approach (landsberg et al., 2012). peer learning is often employed as a teaching and learning strategy, as individual learners and the classroom community alike are co-responsible for constructing knowledge (wessels, 2014). the educator thus becomes a facilitator in a process of collaborative learning that requires the active engagement of learners (litshani, 2017). while this approach has already gained widespread popularity and is regarded as “the basis of south african school curriculum since 1997” (jacobs et al., 2012, p.41), in the recent past, fru and seotsanyana (2017) indicated the necessity of further research on the effect of socio-cultural specifics on learners’ learning practices. the restraints on the learning process presented by the covid-19 pandemic pose a serious challenge to the concept of collaborative learning when learners were not able to participate in a class setting. this contextualization motivated the use of this theoretical framework in the current investigation. research conducted in japan by mochida et al. (2021) described the factors that modified learners’ stress during the pandemic. they concluded that learners experienced heightened stress, although positive behavioural traits were also established during this trying time. a report by nelson and sharp (2020) indicated that the severely reduced school hours leave foundation phase learners with inadequate exposure to the principle of sticking with a task. the propriety of teaching values was confirmed by konstantinou’s (2021) research on the development of perseverance through an intervention for teenagers. speaking specifically about adolescents, konstantinou (2021) reiterated the importance of character-building courses, especially in the new post-lockdown context. to build the moral courage that youngsters will need to negotiate daily life in the “new normal” of the post-pandemic world, it seems advisable to encourage positive values. the basis should already be laid at foundation phase level if these values are to be sustained and integrated in later years. atiles et al. (2021) noted that the lack of preparation for online or virtual learning is a mistake that the world cannot afford to repeat. equitable access to digital resources, such as free data and appropriate technology, is indicated by kirby (2021) as essential to support learning in research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 grobler, a. plans and interventions of south african grade 1 educators during the 2020 lockdown period research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 167 future. irrespective of future pandemics, unrestricted and fair access to digital technology will craft the educational landscape globally (timmons et al., 2020; williams et al., 2021; wolhuter & jacobs, 2021). the influence of parental involvement during this time, when many parents were to a great extent prohibited from extending appropriate support to their children in the lockdown learning environment is also currently receiving scrutiny (taylor, 2020; formosinho, 2021). the above framework provided the theoretical context to undertake an empirical inquiry on the plans devised and interventions made by foundation phase educators within the social context of the covid-19 pandemic. aim of the investigation this article reports on an interpretivist investigation into the approaches adopted in different schools in the mangaung municipal area in the free state, south africa, during the months of the hard lockdown and immediately thereafter in 2020. apart from portraying the lived realities of the educators who formed part of the sample, the investigation aimed to identify commonality or best practice and subsequently to suggest strategies for future management of extended periods of disrupted schooling. the effect of reduced rapport with the school educator, and viable ways to mitigate these circumstances, were also explored. method research design a simultaneous, mixed method research design was motivated by the requirement for minimal non-essential exposure to public structures by the pandemic. the design was found appropriate for including both qualitative and quantitative items in the questionnaire (cohen et al. 2018; denzin & lincoln, 2018). sampling from an approximate number of 114 primary schools (schools4sa [online], 2021) serving a population of 775 184 residents, 29.3% of which are under the age of 15 (municipalities.co.za [online], 2021), ten schools (ranging from former model c types, quintile 1-3 schools, single gender and co-education schools) were selected within the mangaung municipality, a municipality located in the free state province of south africa. the schools covered a geographical range of 30 km, from the affluent northern suburbs to the densely populated urban core, to the blue-collar worker area in the south and the agricultural smallholdings to the east of the city. one of the selected schools declined to participate and therefore a school of similar socioeconomic profile was invited. at another school, both the educators who had been responsible for grade 1 teaching in 2020 had left the system (one had retired and the other had emigrated) and likewise, this school was replaced by another with a similar profile. another school was able to furnish only one completed questionnaire. these situational specifics yielded a sample of 23 questionnaires from 10 schools. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 grobler, a. plans and interventions of south african grade 1 educators during the 2020 lockdown period research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 168 data collection instrument a self-constructed questionnaire was used for data collection. it comprised of three sections, presenting 32 items that included binary, likert-type and open-ended questions. section a collected data regarding the experiential profile of the educator and the type of school. the overall number of years’ experience and the number of years’ experience teaching grade 1 were indicated. respondents were requested to indicate the number of learners in their respective classrooms; the number of grade 1 learners in the school, and comment on the availability of a teaching assistant in the classroom. section b probed the approach to the pandemic by the school immediately after the lockdown. items attempted to ascertain whether learners were permitted to come to school every day, on alternate days, every other week, for a fortnight at a time, or not at all. in the event that learners did not return to school physically, a question was asked to ascertain whether tuition was offered online or not at all. finally, the question was asked whether any learners had declined to return to school once the school opened its doors again. section c constituted the bulk of the questionnaire and centered on the approach to teaching and learning in the classroom. here respondents were requested to provide further detail regarding the strategies applied by the school regarding to the new situation; the mode of lesson delivery; and the nature of teaching and learning material. the type of teaching platform was also probed. participants were also requested to share their experience of frustrations, insights and reflections on future improvements. the final part of the questionnaire investigated the impact of the lockdown on learner knowledge in different foundation phase learning areas. respondents were requested to indicate the area most and least affected during the lockdown and the consequence of the lockdown on areas of soft skills (for example as taught in life skills). finally, an open-ended response was solicited on the future of the current school system in south africa. pilot study after obtaining permission from the free state department of education (fsdoe), an electronic survey via surveymonkey (surveymonkey.com) was conducted at one of the identified schools as a pilot. the results of the electronic survey were not included in the results, as the items in the questionnaire were thereafter developed further, and the questionnaire eventually presented as a paper-based inquiry. qualitative data capturing and generation the principal of each of the selected schools was invited to offer their school’s participation through requesting two of the educators who had been responsible for grade 1 teaching during 2020 to complete the questionnaire. the hard-copy questionnaires with an information letter were distributed by hand and collected on a mutually agreed date. although the completion was anonymous, the researcher allocated a numerical code to the questionnaires to distinguish different copies. the questionnaires were collected by the researcher from the schools. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 grobler, a. plans and interventions of south african grade 1 educators during the 2020 lockdown period research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 169 data analysis following the above exposition, all the raw data were captured manually by the researcher and sorted by question into categories. graphs were compiled from the numerical data items and qualitative responses were grouped into emerging themes. ethical considerations permission to conduct the research was obtained from the fsdoe and approval granted by the general humanities research ethics committee (hsrec) of the university of the free state (ufs). questionnaires were submitted anonymously: participants were not requested to provide biographical details, other than stating their years of teaching experience. neither were the schools’ names divulged; the only possible identifiers were the categories of schools. a numerical code was allocated to each questionnaire to ensure anonymity and confidentiality whilst allowing the researcher a way of validating the individual copies. possible limitations the study was limited to the immediate area accessible to the researcher in the interest of generating data without the temporal and financial encumbrances associated with a large-scale investigation. in addition, it was assumed that the microcosmos of the central area in the free state would possibly be representative of the middle-section urban society in south africa. the selection of schools did not conclusively guarantee universal access to technologically driven approaches to teaching. more extensive investigations that probe the applicability of the findings to the greater area of south africa, or beyond, may shed further light on the situation. findings this section presents the findings of the questionnaire data without discussion of the results, which will follow hereafter. section a of the questionnaire attempted to profile the schools that made up the random sample. the numbers are presented below to profile the composition of the sample and not to correlate any of the resultant findings. whilst the sample consisted of 10 randomly chosen schools, there were 23 educators who filled in the questionnaires. this led to the following results: 1 educator represented a private school, 2 educators reported their workplace to be a no-fee school, 15 educators were from ex-model c schools, and 5 from schools in the quintile 1-3 range. the number of years’ experience teaching grade 1 ranged from a maximum of 36 to a minimum of 1 year, with the average years of experience as an aggregate between respondents at 10.5 years. 11 educators had between 1 and 9 years of experience, 10 had between 10 and 19 years, one had between 1 and 29 years of experience and 1 had 30 or more years of experience in teaching grade 1. similarly, the number of years’ experience teaching any grade ranged from a maximum of 36 to the lowest count of two years’ experience. 4 educators had more than 30 years of experience, teaching any grade, 1 had between 20 and 29 years, while 12 educators had between 10 and 19 years of experience teaching any grade, and 6 educators had between 1 and 9 years of experience. the class size ranged from 38 for the largest class to 2 in the smallest class. an overwhelming majority (21 out of 23) of respondents indicated that they did not have the assistance of a teaching assistant in the classroom. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 grobler, a. plans and interventions of south african grade 1 educators during the 2020 lockdown period research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 170 section b attempted to explore the approach of the school to the pandemic immediately after the period of the total lockdown. questions 7-13 probed into the frequency at which learners attended school and the changed response of learners to physical school attendance when learners were again allowed on the school premises. most educators (17 of 23) confirmed that the school encouraged the daily attendance of learners, while six educators reported that this was not possible. of the latter, one school solved the problem of creating more space for learners by shuffling the initial two groups into three classes. the option to allow learners to attend on alternating days was met with equal interest and disinterest: 12 educators reported that this was not done at their school, while 11 of the 23 reported that this approach was carried forward at their school. interestingly, only 8 of 23 educators reported that their school touted attendance every alternate week, in contrast to 15 out of 23 educators who reported that this was not the case. notwithstanding the above trend, educators were unanimous in reporting that their schools did not favour attendance by one group on a fortnightly rotational basis. it was noted that none of the sampled schools failed to re-open. all 23 educators attested that their schools re-opened physically after the initial lockdown period, with no reliance on a purely online process of teaching and learning. however, the reluctance of certain learners to return to the classroom is evident, with 14 of the 23 educators noting that at least one of their charges did not return to the physical classroom. one educator explained that two learners who did not return suffered from comorbidities and were kept at home, returning to the classroom after hours to complete the assessments required. 9 of the 23 educators did not observe fewer learners returning to the physical classroom. section c investigated the approach in the classroom. the use of specific strategies, teaching and learning material, online or printed support material, and the impact on learner participation in various spheres were investigated. open-ended questions provided an opportunity for educators to reflect on the situation and the impact of their practices in managing the post-traumatic conditions with a view to adapting to the much-cited ‘new normal’ that is still under construction. respondents were overwhelmingly aware that the new situation required them to adopt strategies tailored towards crisis management. only two respondents denied that their schools implemented any special measures to address the pandemic. the most obvious strategy, adopted by 20 of the 23 educators, was to use video clips to convey learning content to their learners. 19 respondents also mentioned that they made use of printed material, while 9 respondents sent soft copies to parents that they could print themselves. other strategies included the use of whatsapp group messages (8 educators). individual educators also attested to means such as youtube videos, practical exercises to execute at home; using electronic classroom platforms such as zoom or google classroom. one school was fortunate enough to have their own broadcasting channel for electronic teaching. some of the physical interventions that the new situation required were the prohibition of sharing any resources whatsoever and removing the second learner at desks traditionally occupied by two learners. some schools inserted dividers between desks; others replaced their research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 grobler, a. plans and interventions of south african grade 1 educators during the 2020 lockdown period research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 171 twin desks with single learner desks, and one school split the initial two groups of learners into three to have them all in attendance every day. printed learning material was provided by all 23 educators. six reported that this was provided once per month; seven reported that it was provided weekly, and 10 reported that printed material was issued daily. a cohort of 17 educators provided the parents with links or emails to print material at home: the majority of 11 educators used this approach once per week, 4 indicated that it was done every day or at parent’s request, and 2 educators did this once a month. educators were not in agreement on the usefulness of the teaching and learning support offered by the dbe. while 11 of 23 educators reported that they depended heavily on the material provided by the dbe, an almost equal number of 12 out of 23 were dismissive of the material provided by the dbe. a practice that was enthusiastically embraced was the filming of video clips, with 19 of 23 educators participating in this innovative approach. in the current report, the two educators who indicated that they did not make use of this technique conceded that during the initial hard lockdown when schools were physically closed, they did in fact turn to this solution in order to retain contact with their learners. the frequency at which video clips was distributed was cited by 17 educators at once per week, while 4 educators recorded and sent out video clips daily. one of the major setbacks of this was the unreliable and fluid database consisting of parents’ cellphone numbers. one participant complained that there was no way to check if learners had received the benefit of these interventions, as parents possessed multiple cell phone numbers. in cases of joint or shared custody, learners rotated between divorced parents and it was impossible to track which parent had the responsibility to supervise the learner’s homework at any given time. the length of video clips ranged from 1-4 minutes as the most popular length (16 educators), with 3 educators listing their video clips at the 5-10 minutes range and 2 educators reporting their video clips at 11-30 minutes. echoing the sentiments of nelson and sharp (2020), the biggest frustration in this regard consisted of the hurdles experienced with parents not having sufficient data or connectivity to download or watch longer video clips. notwithstanding the challenges, overall satisfaction in the current study with this approach was reported as the second most efficient communication channel, only surpassed by whatsapp group messages as a more effective method. most educators were hesitant to use the electronic classroom opportunities available currently. uptake of electronic teaching platforms was reluctant, with 2 educators utilizing zoom, 2 using class dojo, 1 using google classroom, 8 using whatsapp group messages, and 8 indicating nonspecified platforms. while 6 of 23 educators viewed electronic classroom opportunities as the preferred route during this time, 17 of 23 were dissatisfied with the restraints laid upon the system during this time and pleaded for the re-opening of schools. overall experience by educators of the efficiency of the electronic platforms to reach their learners ranged from satisfactory to perplexing. the highest satisfaction score was attained by whatsapp group messages, followed closely by video clips. engagements on the zoom/ e research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 grobler, a. plans and interventions of south african grade 1 educators during the 2020 lockdown period research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 172 teaching platform was least successful in the teaching and learning of foundation phase learners. however, the range of dissatisfaction regarding the effectiveness of reaching learners by furnishing parents with a written index of work to be covered was also quite broad, ranging from “very good” to “poor”. educators were prompted to share any insights worth noting as an open-ended item. from the responses, several themes emerged, with parent participation flagged as the most pressing issue. reflection by the educators on their own practices suggested an awareness that they had willingly gone the extra mile. some educators mentioned that they had bought data for parents from their own pockets, couriered or handdelivered printed material to learners, and incurred further expense on their side by using more data than before in order to communicate via whatsapp group messages with the parents – which was generally construed as a highly effective solution to keep in touch. asked to express their frustrations as an open-ended item, educators were very much in sync with one another. communication as the first broad theme was flagged by all educators and could be further categorized into the difficulty of communicating with learners, due to data or technological issues, the language barrier which caused problems communicating via the parents who were responsible for relaying the learning tasks to their children, and the lack of assurance that the learners had understood correctly. one of the participants explained: “it was challenging at times in the sense that i had to compile lessons for the parents (who mostly have little knowledge in the area of education instruction) and had to then rely on them to disseminate the knowledge/ strategies etc. to their children”. the diminished contact time was listed as the second broad theme of concern, as educators were unsure whether their teaching had hit the target. during the pandemic, the aspect of mastery through time on task during physical school attendance was neglected. as one educator explained: “at school learners repeat work, at home they just do it to get it done.” regarding the learning areas most impacted by the circumstances caused by the pandemic, educators were unanimous in reporting the resilience of learners in life skills. 15 of 23 educators indicated this subject as experiencing the least impact, and no-one believed the subjects of literacy and numeracy did not suffer at the hands of the pandemic. only 5 of 23 educators indicated that life skills was adversely impacted by the pandemic. the last scale question required educators to scale the impact of the pandemic on learners’ general development and skills in the categories of dealing with stressful situations, their levels of assertiveness, their social confidence, the impact on introverted and extroverted personalities, and their eagerness to learn and explore. the aggregate results indicated that the highest impact was experienced in the area of stress tolerance with assertiveness affected second most, followed by eagerness to learn in the third place and ease of social interaction affected almost as much. to conclude the questionnaire, educators were invited to offer their thoughts on the future of the schooling system as we know it. the overwhelming desire that surfaced here was for foundation phase learners to be able to return to school physically for maximum contact time; if not daily, then on the basis of alternating weeks. the one-day-on /one-day-off approach proved too disruptive to establish the much-needed stability and routine for these learners. the second pertinent thought was the plea to go back to basics and research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 grobler, a. plans and interventions of south african grade 1 educators during the 2020 lockdown period research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 173 to relieve the burden posed by the caps document in the foundation phase. extracurricular activities should be allowed only a small portion of time and effort. in academics, the focus should be quality rather than quantity. discussion the findings from the data harvested through the questionnaire may be applicable for planning interventions for scenarios of future disruptions to the traditional school calendar and may assist foundation phase educators to plan according to best practice. with most educators in the 10-19 years’ experience group, and the average number of years’ experience calculated at 15 years, it seems that the sample represents a fairly mature cohort of educators. the average ratio of educator to learners, construed as 1:27, constitutes a reasonably manageable classroom size. with the largest classroom size at 38 learners, none of the classrooms may be regarded as overcrowded as is often part of the educational landscape in south africa. it is therefore acceded that exacerbated conditions may exist in rural schools or areas outside of the geographic sample. strategies for presenting teaching and learning most schools attempted to establish a regular routine of school attendance by keeping learners in a pattern of frequent attendance, rather than chunking the attendance into larger periods alternated by equal periods of non-attendance. this common practice is expressed by one of the participants: “learners need to attend school on a regular basis”. the sampled educators agreed that physical attendance on a regular and frequent basis is in the best interest of the learners. in the words of one of the participant educators: “i don’t think online classes are effective for 6-year olds, as it takes physical presence to engage with them and help them maintain focus and actively learn.” the ambivalence portrayed towards the teaching and learning material provided by the dbe in whatever format (paper-based or radio broadcasts) may be indicative of the perceived standard of the dbe material. while those who were able to generate their own material, chose to do so, those who were dependent on the dbe material had to make do. it appears logical to infer that if the perception regarding the material provided by the dbe was one of higher esteem, the uptake of this offer would also have been higher. it is therefore imperative that material developed by the dbe should adhere to accepted norms and standards. it is therefore suggested that consultation and stakeholder engagement be strengthened by the dbe in providing supporting material that is deemed as applicable and useful by all foundation phase educators of schools across the spectrum. the innovative approach of filming video clips offered an interesting perspective on the engagement of south african foundation phase educators. while the active engagement in the sample population was very good, a survey conducted in england indicated that local educators preferred to utilize pre-recorded video clips downloaded from the internet as opposed to original content filmed by each individual educator (nelson & sharp, 2020). it appears that local educators overlooked the possibility of drawing on existing offers available on the internet; alternatively, it may be argued that schools intended to build up their own repository of video lessons that may in future be repeated. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 grobler, a. plans and interventions of south african grade 1 educators during the 2020 lockdown period research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 174 communication the challenge presented to learners to receive their schooling via mediation by their parents proved substantial. it appears that parental involvement in most cases featured as a deterrent to effective learning. educators were dismayed at the lack of responsibility assumed by parents. parents ostensibly proved ineffective both as medium of relaying the instructions and in offering guidance to the learners. while the educator participants were sympathetic to the increased workload of essential workers who could not harness the strength to keep up with their children’s schedules, it was also remarked that some parents were perceived to be uncommitted to their duties as parents (taylor, 2020; jones, 2020). as mentioned before, formosinho (2021) observed that elsewhere in the world, learners’ schooling progress was often at the mercy of their parents who might not have sufficient data, or could not find the time or will to download or convey content for their children. in addition, one of the participants in the current inquiry commented on the challenge of parents who were unable to communicate in the language of learning and teaching of the school. these findings concurred with a project in england that reported on parents’ inability to provide their children with the technological support to engage meaningfully in online schooling (nelson & sharp, 2020). atiles et al. (2021) reported on parents in the usa and latin america alike who were unable to support their children’s learning due to the unavailability of technological resources. timmons et al. (2020) described the panic of canadian parents in finding themselves responsible for providing technological support for their children’s tuition. even though the actual teaching would be provided by the educator, it could not reasonably be expected of foundation phase learners to navigate the technology independently to access the learning. in this regard, formosinho (2021) suggested that parents should be better trained to assume responsibility for their children’s learning. further scrutiny of the questionnaire data in this section indicated that the reasons suggested by educators for the inadequate level of engagement by parents could be grouped into i) technological and socioeconomic issues such as outdated or inadequate devices and lack of data; ii) communication challenges; including a lack of understanding of the assignment or due to the language barrier, and iii) parents’ own work load that prevented them from spending more time on their children’s learning. regardless of the factors that may influence the fragility of communication between the school and the parent, it is essential to establish reliable and immediate communication between these parties. this finding confirms kirby’s research (2021) as discussed above on the importance of communicating effectively with parents during such a time. in the current investigation, respondents were fairly satisfied with the results obtained by using whatsapp group messages to convey information to parents. the impact on schooling the south african educational landscape is distinct from the british scene, where approximately 52 % of schools engaged their learners on a virtual learning environment (vle), according to a report by nelson and sharp (2021) as mentioned above. the remainder resorted to “labourintensive” measures such as posting learning material on whatsapp or school websites (nelson & sharp, 2020, p.9) and was akin to the measures taken by educators in the current enquiry. these included making photocopies for parents, holding “drive-through” collection events, and research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 grobler, a. plans and interventions of south african grade 1 educators during the 2020 lockdown period research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 175 couriering material to learners in distant settings. against this backdrop, respondents were noticeably hesitant to place their trust in the virtual learning environment. the dissatisfaction experienced by educators regarding the impact of the decreased contact time with their learners is evident: 21 of 23 reported a very clear deficit in learner knowledge and development when they returned to the physical classroom. one educator said, “the deficit will never be erased”. a further frustration of the decreased teaching time was the feeling of wading through quicksand: while the contact time had dramatically decreased, the pace was further stalled by the necessity to repeat learning content due to different groups attending school on different days. educators indicated that the learning area of literacy was the hardest hit by the repercussions of the lockdown, with 18 of 23 educators listing this as an area of damage, and 13 of 23 noting the impact on numeracy as concerning. however, the educators were unanimous in finding that “nothing will be the same again”. in this regard, several educators pleaded for authorities to lighten the heavy load of a brimful curriculum and return to basics. this wish was expressed as follows: “the curriculum should be adapted so that the idea of catching up and being behind can be erased from educators’ and learners’ perspective and attitude towards everyday life.” this remark is indicative of the forward focus of educators in preparing learners for a meaningful school career. jones (2020) cautioned that parents should resist the desire to recreate the traditional school setup at home and rather allow children greater freedom in dealing with curriculum content. the findings reiterated the basic tenets of a constructivist approach in that educators were unanimous in recommending a return to the collaborative environment of the physical classroom. in turn, the constraints imposed by the removal of learners from the physical classroom as experienced by educators prove the validity of the constructivist approach with its emphasis on active participation. learners had to overcome the lack of peer participation as they were literally left to their own devices in construing knowledge. the findings also confirmed the importance of the physical environment on learning; this is conversely affirmative of the guidelines set out by piaget and later theorists (landsberg et al., 2012). if the national curriculum statement (2012) wishes to maintain its viewpoint that supports active and collaborative learning, it seems essential that the physical classroom should be retained post-pandemic. conclusion the general feeling of frustration or dissatisfaction with presenting their teaching in an adaptive or blended manner indicates that foundation phase educators are hardly eager to retreat to the virtual world. in addition, as also mentioned by taylor (2020), the engagement of parents in assuming responsibility for the education of their children needs to be reconfirmed. if parents are not able to support their children in the online environment, the likelihood of successful e-learning seems meagre. as mentioned by atiles et al. (2021), the varying degrees of preparedness for the fourth industrial revolution will in future extend the digital divide between citizens who are empowered and the disadvantaged. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 grobler, a. plans and interventions of south african grade 1 educators during the 2020 lockdown period research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 176 equitable access to digital resources, such as free data, was strongly suggested as a basic requirement to support all learners in similar future scenarios (kirby, 2021). going forward, equitable access to learning will be of paramount importance all over the world (timmons et al., 2020). an educator who is cognizant of collaborative learning design will be in a position to structure their teaching in a learner-centered manner to the benefit of their learners, even in predominantly virtual learning platforms. it is evident that educators would rather return to the trenches than stay in their ivory towers; this authenticates their dedication to the teaching profession. more than ever, learners must be empowered to grasp the ‘tools of the mind’ (vygotsky, 1978; fru & seotsanyana, 2017). the viva vox is indeed asserted to be essential in the foundation phase. as one educator explained, “it takes physical presence to teach a grade 1 learner”. educators agreed that the pandemic had devastating effects on the schooling of our grade 1 learners. whilst the impetus of the blow that had been dealt will only manifest fully in years to come, the resilience of educators seems indomitable: “nothing will ever be the same again. we can use the strategies to improve and build on what we have. we will be fine.” references atiles, j. t., amodóvar, m., chavarría vargas, a., dias, m. j. a. and zúñiga león, i. m. (2021). international responses to covid-19: challenges faced by early childhood professionals. european early childhood education research journal, 29(1), 66-78. cohen, l., manion, l. and morrison, k. (2018). research methods in education (8th edition). routledge. denzin, n.k. and lincoln, y.s. (2018). the sage handbook of qualitative research. sage. department of basic education (dbe). (2020a). amended school calendar 2020. retrieved from https://www.gov.za/sites/default/files/gcis_document/202008/43609gen432.pdf department of basic education (dbe). (2020b). national state of disaster. re-opening of schools 2020. retrieved from www.gov.za/about-sa/school-calendar#2020 department of basic education (dbe). (2012). curriculum assessment and policy framework. retrieved from https://www.education.gov.za/curriculum/curriculumassessmentpolicystatements(c aps)/capsfoundation.aspx fellowes, j. and oakley, g. (2010). language, literacy and early childhood education. oxford. formosinho, j. (2021). from schoolification of children to schoolification of parents? – educational policies in covid times. european early childhood education research journal, 29(1), 141-152. fru, r. and seotsanyana, m. (2017). curriculum change in the 21st century: rethinking solutions for improved learner performance. in magano, d., mohapi, s.j. & robinson, d. (eds.). realigning teaching training in the 21st century (pp. 1-12). cengage. jacobs, m., vakalisa, n.c.g. and gawe, n. (2012). teaching-learning dynamics. pearson. jones, d. (2021). the impact of covid-19 on young families, children, and teachers. a defending the early years report. retrieved from https://dey.org/wphttps://www.gov.za/sites/default/files/gcis_document/202008/43609gen432.pdf http://www.gov.za/about-sa/school-calendar#2020 https://dey.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/the-impact-of-covid-19-on-young-children-families-and-teachers-a-dey-report-9-8-20-final.pdf research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 grobler, a. plans and interventions of south african grade 1 educators during the 2020 lockdown period research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 177 content/uploads/2020/09/the-impact-of-covid-19-on-young-children-families-andteachers-a-dey-report-9-8-20-final.pdf kirby, k. (2021). teaching through a pandemic. in thornburg, a. w., ceglie r. j. and abernathy, d. f. (eds.). handbook of research on lessons learned from transitioning to virtual classrooms during a pandemic (pp.46-91). igi global. konstantinou, i. (2021). why embedding character teaching in schools matter. in white, m. a. and mccallum, f. (eds.). wellbeing and resilience education: covid-19 and its impact on education (pp.96-110). routledge. landsberg, e., kruger, d. and swart, e. (eds.) 2012. addressing barriers to learning. van schaik. litshani, n.f. (2017). positioning and realigning the role of the teacher for classroom practice. in magano, d., mohapi, s.j. and robinson, d. (eds.). realigning teaching training in the 21st century (pp.13-29). cengage. magano, d., mohapi, s.j. and robinson, d. (eds.) (2017). realigning teaching training in the 21st century. cengage. municipalities of sa [online]. (2021). demographic information: mangaung metropolitan municipality. https://municipalities.co.za/demographic/8/mangaung-metropolitanmunicipality mccallum, f. (2021). educators’ wellbeing during times of change and disruption. in white, m. a. and mccallum, f. (eds.). wellbeing and resilience education: covid-19 and its impact on education (pp.183-208). routledge. mochida, s., sanado, m., shao, q., lee, j., takasha, j., ando, s. and sakahika, y. (2021). factors modifying children’s stress during the covid-19 pandemic in japan. european early childhood education research journal, 29(1), 51-65. nelson, j. and sharp, c. (2020). schools’ responses to covid-19: key findings from the wave 1 survey. slough: national foundation for education research (nfer). schools4sa. (2021). how many primary schools in bloemfontein? retrieved from https://www.schools4sa.co.za/phase/primary-school/freestate/bloemfontein/ sabc news online. (1 may 2020). south africa’s lockdown level 5,4,3,2 and 1. retrieved from https://www.sabcnews.com/sabcnews/infographic-south-africas-lockdown-level5432-and-1/ taylor, n. (2020). school lessons from the covid-19 lockdown. southern african review of education, 26(1), 148-166. retrieved from https://hdl.handle.net/10520/ejc-sare-v26n1-a10 timmons, k., cooper, a., bozek, e. and braund, h. (2021). the impacts of covid-19 on early childhood education: capturing the unique challenges associated with remote teaching and learning in k-2. early childhood education journal, 49, 887-901. https://doi.org.10.1007/s10643-021-01207-z thornburg, a.w., ceglie, r.j. and abernathy, d.f. (eds.) (2021). handbook of research on lessons learned from transitioning to virtual classrooms during a pandemic. igi global. tlale, l.d. (2017). whole school improvement through inclusion. in magano, d., mohapi, s.j. and robinson, d. (eds.). realigning teaching training in the 21st century (pp.186-203). cengage. https://dey.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/the-impact-of-covid-19-on-young-children-families-and-teachers-a-dey-report-9-8-20-final.pdf https://dey.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/the-impact-of-covid-19-on-young-children-families-and-teachers-a-dey-report-9-8-20-final.pdf https://municipalities.co.za/demographic/8/mangaung-metropolitan-municipality https://municipalities.co.za/demographic/8/mangaung-metropolitan-municipality https://www.schools4sa.co.za/phase/primary-school/freestate/bloemfontein/ https://www.sabcnews.com/sabcnews/infographic-south-africas-lockdown-level-5432-and-1/ https://www.sabcnews.com/sabcnews/infographic-south-africas-lockdown-level-5432-and-1/ https://hdl.handle.net/10520/ejc-sare-v26-n1-a10 https://hdl.handle.net/10520/ejc-sare-v26-n1-a10 https://doi.org.10.1007/s10643-021-01207-z research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 grobler, a. plans and interventions of south african grade 1 educators during the 2020 lockdown period research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 178 united nations educational, scientific and cultural organization (unesco). (2020). covid-19 a global crisis for teaching and learning. unesco. vygotsky, l.s. (1978). mind in society. harvard university press. wessels, m. (2014). practical guide to facilitating language learning. oxford. williams, t.k., macintosh, r.w. & russell, r.w. (2021). equity in distance education during covid-19. research in social sciences and technology, 6(1), 1-24. http://dx.doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.1 wolhuter, c. and jacobs, l. (2021). covid-19, the global education project and technology: disrupting priorities towards rethinking education. research in social sciences and technology, 6(2), 96-109. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.13 world health organization (who). (2020). naming the coronavirus disease (covid-19) and the virus that causes it. retrieved from https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019/technicalguidance/naming-the-coronavirus-disease-(covid-2019)-and-the-virus-that-causes-it http://dx.doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.1 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.13 https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019/technical-guidance/naming-the-coronavirus-disease-(covid-2019)-and-the-virus-that-causes-it https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019/technical-guidance/naming-the-coronavirus-disease-(covid-2019)-and-the-virus-that-causes-it research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 nur’aini, s. university students’ learning disruption and affordance in a contested learning environment research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 25 university students’ learning disruption and affordance in a contested learning environment siti nur’aini universitas pgri semarang, indonesia email: sitinuraini@upgris.ac.id received : 2021-06-10 revised : 2021-07-19 accepted : 2021-08-30 how to cite this paper: nur’aini, s. (2021). university students’ learning disruption and affordance in a contested learning environment. research in social sciences and technology, 6(3), 25-44. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.23 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). abstract this study investigates how university students engage with their learning affordances in a contested environment due to the coronavirus pandemic. this qualitative research employed a case study approach involving 136 participants. data analysis was conducted using qualitative analysis as a circular process to describe, classify, and perceive the phenomenon and how the learning, affordances, and society were interconnected. the main framework of the research was the theory of affordance and how it was available for university students in their learning environment that changed due to the covid-19 pandemic. data were collected in the first semester of 2020 through an online survey on google form. the findings indicate the importance of the social environment to provide affordance for the students to adjust with them. four kinds of affordances emerged from the study; internet affordance, assignment affordance, domestic affordance, and distance learning affordance. the role of the social environment is definitive in changing how students manage their affordances. keywords: learning affordance; case study; contested environment; coronavirus pandemic; circular process. introduction one of the key aspects of education is the society where education takes place. however, society can become a source of challenges in many aspects of life due to changes in the environment caused by natural disasters, political unrest, war, or a plague (atmojo & nugroho, 2020; palvia et al., 2018; stone, 2019). when this happens, social and environmental issues become a source of controversy. last year, the world was hit with a plague that disrupted education practice all over the globe. with the announcement from the who that covid-19 was a global pandemic (sohrabi et al., 2020), the government of many countries released laws to close the factories, malls, government offices, schools, and universities to prevent people 10.46303/ressat.2021.23 mailto:sitinuraini@upgris.ac.id https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.23 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 nur’aini, s. university students’ learning disruption and affordance in a contested learning environment research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 26 from gathering in large groups. the environment where schools used to be conducted was no longer safe, and it became contested due to the plague (liu et al., 2020; saltiel, 2017; vladoiu & constantinescu, 2020). in many campuses across the globe, like in hong kong (wong & moorhouse, 2020), indonesia (wajdi et al., 2020), india (li & lalani, 2020), students and teachers were not permitted to have a direct interaction in the classroom as it could increase the risk of spreading the disease; thus, learning had to be conducted by distance or online (pete, 2020; purcell & hetrick, 2020). in the history of education, face to face meeting with the teachers has been thought of as the critical factor in the success of education as it offered numerous social contexts where both students and teachers could interact without barriers (daumiller et al., 2020; li & lalani, 2020; rapanta et al., 2020). the paramount of offline education was the direct contact between teachers and students, which inherently become absent as learning moved to an online platform. the migration from offline to online learning came with challenges for students and teachers worldwide because they had to study from home (wilder-smith & freedman, 2020). this research paper aimed to respond to two research questions: what types of learning affordances were available within the contested environment because of covid-19 and how they adapt to the changes in their society and learning contexts to overcome their learning challenges. this study considered the past and present situation of distance learning and how the environment changed the way learning was conducted and why it matters to understand what affordance is available to the learners in the disrupted and contested learning environment. literature review distance and online learning in developing countries the concepts of a face-to-face meeting in a classroom (mueller, 2018) and distance learning (he et al., 2014) are familiar in the manner of teaching. face-to-face meeting in a classroom has been going for as long as human existence and their need for education (tao et al., 2016); however, recent years have witnessed the growing academic interest in implementing distance learning. in recent years, a worldwide recognition of distance learning has been acknowledged (kalimullina et al. 2021); for example, white (2003, 2014) and nyoni (2014) described that open university uk is among the world’s biggest distance learning providers whose operation dates back to 1969. for their courses, course books, video and audio documentaries, audio activity cassettes, and transcripts of video and audiocassettes were available to the learners. these learning tools are similar to what is used in china and indonesia open university, where learners read the hard copied materials sent by post, recorded lectures, and hard copy notes. learners also used government-operated radio stations and tv programs to get materials (nyoni, 2014; stone, 2019). other countries, such as botswana and tanzania (perraton, 1985, p. 31), implemented distance learning to train their teachers. in a more sophisticated country like the us, distance learning was conducted with satellite and broadcasting technology (nyoni, 2014). research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 nur’aini, s. university students’ learning disruption and affordance in a contested learning environment research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 27 there have been changes in how learning media in distance learning was delivered with the emergence of the internet. what used to be delivered in papers, notes, radio, or tv (kidd, 2010; sancristobal et al., 2012) has now transformed into an online platform where learners could download the materials, obtain the pdf documents, read them on-screen, or watch the tutorial online (stone, 2019). some course providers use the learning management system (lms) to facilitate the learners to access theoretical content, join in a forum, and collect assignments (sancristobal et al., 2012). although the delivery method changed, one thing that stays within the online learning context is the learners’ choices on responding to their environment. most learners are aware of why they chose online learning, although they could choose the offline one as most providers that offer online courses also provide the offline one. in online learning, they voluntarily enrolled in the course and picked when and how they wanted to learn, and decide what kind of support was available. they employ and utilize affordance in their learning because of their readiness to conduct online learning (arthur-nyarko et al., 2020). they know the implications (nyoni, 2014) and benefit of online learning, such as there is no need for them to travel and leave the comfort of their home (weidlich & bastiaens, 2019), they have plentiful online resources where they could do research and the freedom to manage their time (zhu & bingham, 2010) and to gain the equal opportunities of online learning (williams et al., 2021). the current online learning situation for university students is different from the circumstance described above. within the contested environment due to covid-19, the preparedness and readiness of students are not known. online learning was forced upon them because of the virus and government policy; thus, not everyone is prepared for it. therefore, how students cope with the sudden change and how they conduct their learning is unknown. the way university students overcome the challenges and use affordances in their environment will become the focus and purpose of this study. affordances the theory of affordance provides valuable insight into how human beings live in an environment that can support their physical and mental livelihood and wellbeing. the environment provides the good and the bad things that human beings need for their growth, and the things it provides are called affordances. a researcher in the field of affordances, gibson (2015, p. 119), elaborates that “the affordances of the environment are what it offers the animal, what it provides or furnishes, either for good or for ill,” which can be interpreted as the food, water, predator or prey to keep the ecosystem balanced. norman (2002) emphasizes the importance of affordance on how an actor relies on their environment to carry out their intentions, plans, values, beliefs, and experiences. however, another researcher laurillard (2002) demonstrated that affordances in the context of technologies have limitation and constraints which enable individuals to pause and analyze to understand their environment to meet their needs. in his analysis, van lier (2004) proposes a context-specific definition of affordances as the roots of the relationship between the person and the physical, social, and symbolic world, and he also defines the four levels of affordances as shown in table 1. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 nur’aini, s. university students’ learning disruption and affordance in a contested learning environment research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 28 table 1. levels of affordance (van lier, 2004) level affordances 1 unmediated attachment between the organism and the environment 2 organism realizes the presence of affordance and engages it 3 participative control to the realization of affordance 4 a critical point of view towards the affordance itself table 1 describes affordance levels from the simplest to the most complex relationship between affordances and the environment. the first level is described as an ‘unmediated’ attachment between the organism and the environment, which means that the environment has the possible affordances that the organism might or might not need. meanwhile, a secondlevel affordance involves the organism who realizes the presence of affordances and engages it. a third level affordance, van lier (2004) adds the participative control to the realization of affordance, and level four affordance provides the critical point of view towards the affordance itself. the relationship between affordance in a context and how individuals/organisms understand it is shown in figure 1 below: figure 1. the emergence of affordance (van lier, 2004, p. 92) figure 1 presents the emergence of affordance from individuals’ interaction and how they perceive and interpret the environment and take action to meet their needs. those elements are interconnected and contribute to how each element is functioning. while kress (2003) identifies that affordance has the potential and limitations of a particular model or medium in research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 nur’aini, s. university students’ learning disruption and affordance in a contested learning environment research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 29 meaning representation and communication, individuals shall be aware of what they can or cannot use to meet their needs and why affordance is essential for their survival. together, these concepts of affordance offer ideas that it takes both the environment and individuals to navigate how they want to meet their needs for survival in many aspects of life, such as professional or educational needs. the descriptions above enforce the notion that individuals cannot be separated from society and the affordance it provides. they go hand-in-hand that the connection between what individuals need and their role in the environment shape the society itself, such as the family, class system, and the economy. within the educational context, society plays a critical role in shaping how individuals perceive their environment and what it offers and how individuals' action and choices can bring about changes in their education and the outcomes (swift, 1969). under the context of a contested environment due to covid-19, learners were forced to change the way they practice their learning because their society only offered so much within the limited circumstances. together with the affordances that the society and environment offered, the learners were demanded to be flexible and adept at adjusting their ways of learning and communicating with others to fulfil their learning needs. there is a growing body of literature that recognizes the importance of affordance. wilkesmann and lauer (2020) point out that affordances are the features of an artefact that defines how and if a specific learning behavior can be acted upon in defined settings. the thing that is available and how individuals use that affordance is connected to “the relationships between the properties of an educational intervention and the characteristics of the learner that enable particular kinds of learning by him/her (kirschner, 2002, p. 19). this is consistent with van lier’s (2004) depiction and categorization of affordance, which will be used as a reference point in this study. the educational context is suitable for this paper’s central issue as the situation and context contribute to how affordance relates to the participants’ learning experiences. therefore, from the many definitions of affordance, it can be concluded that affordance is an independent element in a human’s life. it is not affected by the environment or changes, as affordance is the environment itself. individuals need to adjust their actions, perception, and interpretation of their circumstances if they want to manage or survive the environmental changes. existing research recognizes the critical role of affordances in academic contexts. arenas (2015) conducted a study on a higher education context where affordance in learning technology is prominent in students’ learning experiences. it elaborates how the teachers’ perception should be addressed less than that of the students to explore the benefit of the student-centric perspective. the work of arenas (2015) considers that affordances in student-centric approaches offer agency in students in determining the pace of their study. this agency is critical as it explores their thoughts and ideas of what and how students use affordances in their environment. another study of affordance focused on mobile devices and their relation to learning affordances, as reported by cochrane and bateman (2010), where they investigated tertiary students’ various course contexts as the means of pedagogical integration. in this study, cochrane and bateman (2010) pointed out that affordances help students build and develop their skills in combining the tools to advance their study. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 nur’aini, s. university students’ learning disruption and affordance in a contested learning environment research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 30 furthermore, wijekumar et al. (2006) explained the influence of affordance on k-12 and undergraduate learners’ learning outcomes and how they move around their learning challenges. it emphasizes how learners use the learning tools, in this case, a computer, to improve their skills in interactive learning and sharpen their problem-solving tasks. the participants’ independence and willingness in the work of wijekumar et al. (2006) were the keys to showing how affordance played a significant role in their learning. together, these studies discussed affordance where the use of technology for learning was voluntary, and all means were prepared. they were supported by their environments, such as steady internet connection and learner’s willingness to do online learning (weidlich & bastiaens, 2019) and their strong motivation (setiyadi & sukirlan, 2016; tarhan & balban, 2014). although they have issues with their tools and multimedia contents (sancristobal et al., 2012), they were not unmotivated because those situations provide affordance that learners can utilize to meet their learning needs. learners were vigilant to pursue their learning because it was easier for them to manage their lives to adjust with their activities, other learning availability, and availability of teachers (stone, 2019). taken together, these studies on online learning affordance, the relative importance of learning facilities, learner’s agency, and a country’s infrastructure have been the supporting factors for successful online learning. however, the situation of online learning in a developing country is different. existing studies discuss common challenges such as infrastructure, learning facilities, and teachers’ competence (crews & parker, 2017; elwood & maclean, 2009; ismail & jarrah, 2019; weston, 2020; wuttke & seifri, 2017). in terms of infrastructure, the online platform becomes a nuisance when implemented in developing countries, as elaborated in the work of heeks (2002). some studies explore how online learning is conducted on different platforms that do not require face-to-face meetings between learners and teachers (lindgren & mcdaniel, 2012; owen et al., 2020; persada et al., 2020; queiros & de villiers, 2016). there are influential elements that getting connected becomes a challenge when the hindrances are environmentally unavoidable, as elwood and maclean (2009) explained, strengthening the point that a contested environment could exist for a length of time. depending on how the society that lives within the environment, the learning activities will move around what is available for the learners, such as the shortages of skillful teachers and lack of training centers for teachers, such as in countries like cambodia who did not have enough teachers who were good with computer and information technology (crews & parker, 2017). heeks (2002) reports on various issues in countries like south africa, thailand, and remote areas in china. those existing accounts discuss facilities and teachers’ competence, environmental challenges. however, a few have discussed the ways students cope with and navigate around the changes of social and environmental elements of their studies that have significant effects on their learning. in the pages that follow, this paper aims to assess what types of learning affordances were available within the contested environment because of covid-19 and how they adapt to the changes in their society and environment to overcome their learning challenges. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 nur’aini, s. university students’ learning disruption and affordance in a contested learning environment research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 31 methods design: a case study a qualitative research approach (dörnyei, 2007; lichtman, 2013) in which this study was framed was employed to explore the participants’ points of view. case studies have been long established to present a detailed analysis of data (creswell, 2013). as yin (1994) explains, case study research provides a space for in-depth accounts about a case occurring in a real-life situation. this article adopted the design to provide deep understanding of the participants’ narratives. participants the participants for this cohort were 136 indonesian university students in the first, second, and third-year during the first semester of 2020, majoring in english education and literature. the sample was representative in terms of gender and the level of their semesters. the author’s choice to use an online platform restricted participants’ range only to those who had access to the internet. participants’ demographics are elaborated on in table 2. table 2. participants demographics based on gender and campus locations sex city names total semarang yogyakarta solo male 38 16 12 66 female 31 15 24 70 to ensure human ethics regulation was implemented in this study, information sheets and consent forms were shared to get the written agreement that their participation was informed and voluntary. the participants were invited to read the information and purposes on the first page of the online survey. if they did not agree to participate, they could opt out and exit the page. if they consented, they were directed to the pages to answer the survey’s main questions. all names included in the narratives were pseudonyms. instruments in this present case study, data were collected using a web-based survey and language processing to dig deeper into the participants’ realm to understand their experience. using a google form survey, the participants were asked to respond to 15 open and closed questions. the close-ended question design of the survey was based on the need to find out the participants’ gender, age range, location, and in what semester they were. meanwhile, the open-ended questions provided a space for the participants to elaborate on their ideas, opinions, and feelings based on the survey questions, thus enabling the author to analyze the survey’s narrative aspects. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 nur’aini, s. university students’ learning disruption and affordance in a contested learning environment research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 32 data collection data collection was conducted during the first semester of 2020. the survey was shared through various social media platforms such as whatsapp, facebook messenger, line, and emails. data analysis technique data analysis was conducted based on the conceptual framework proposed by dey (1993) by using the process to describe and classify the phenomenon and perceive how the events and circumstances were interconnected. one of the initial ways to have an understanding of something is through a description. thick description represents a comprehensive elaboration of an event or a phenomenon. it is more than just stating a fact, but a more detailed presentation of the research contexts. denzin (2017) adds another thing to help with qualitative analysis: the situation where the research is taking place, or contexts. it covers more than just the location or situation, but sometimes, it presents the historical or social settings. context provides an understanding of why an action is done under certain circumstances. dey (1993) underlines the importance of context because it holds meaning, and meaning can be understood when the relevant context is elaborated. the analysis process follows the depiction in dey’s (1993) design that displays the connection between the three elements of a circular process in qualitative analysis. figure 2. qualitative analysis as a circular process (dey, 1993, p. 32) from the questionnaire results, the author read the questionnaire responses from the participants, then group them based on these categories: internet affordance, assignment affordance, and domestic affordance. these three themes were the most commonly found in the participants’ narratives. the author then connected the theme to the level of affordance, as indicated in table 1 above. these steps ensured robust and rich descriptions about how and what affordances were available to the students and how they navigate their learning to deal with the pandemic. the last step of the analysis was connecting the dots of description and classification. it was then followed by seeking the relationship between the research research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 nur’aini, s. university students’ learning disruption and affordance in a contested learning environment research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 33 components, such as the location of participants’ residences and their situation at home, or the challenges related to their learning. findings this present study answered two research questions: 1) the types of affordances available within the contested environment because of the covid-19 pandemic and 2) how the participants adapt to the changes in the society and learning contexts to overcome the learning challenges. this findings section focuses on answering the research questions written in two parts. the first part was the affordances available to the participants during the covid-19 pandemic, followed by the actions, choices made, and strategies that the participants did to adapt to the changes in society and their learning contexts. gibson (2015) stated earlier in this article that environment and context became the essential factors of affordance perceived from the participants’ narratives. as stated in the introduction, students were sent home for their safety. initially, they were happy because this meant they could ‘enjoy’ time with their families. however, the feeling changed when their university leaders informed that the time they had to spend at home was prolonged indefinitely, and learning was moved to online platforms. the earlier parts of this article mentioned that the transformation from offline to online learning caused turmoil and confusion because everything was uncertain (garcia-morales, 2021). they had to follow the teachers who conducted the classes through video conferences, whatsapp group chat, lms, and other platforms in their learning process. the lecturers sent the learning materials, assignments, or quizzes through online platforms to allow students to learn independently and asynchronously. most lecturers chose this method over conducting the class synchronously because of the challenges with the network issues, which was a common experience in developing countries like indonesia, as explained by heeks (2002). the part below elaborates the affordances available in the environment and how the participants responded to the changes. there are four major themes of affordances emerging from the participants’ responses to the survey. internet affordances many participants expressed their concern due to the change of learning style, which had caused them to experience distress. the majority of the participants agreed that internet connection was the biggest challenge, as expressed by one of the participants who lived near blora regency, one area closest to semarang in central java. this region consisted of hilly areas with numerous small forests, which caused it to have an unstable internet connection. hardi (pseudonym) shared his challenging experience to access the internet: i often have a problem getting the internet signal and finding a place to access the class because my parents’ house is far from the city. i have to spend a lot of money to buy data. (hardi, male, 20 y/o – blora, semarang area). these situations and contexts were labelled as internet affordances related to internet signal or the lack thereof. as defined in van lier’s work (2004) that the disconnected or unmediated research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 nur’aini, s. university students’ learning disruption and affordance in a contested learning environment research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 34 attachment between the participants and the environment occurred in the evidence. they did not know yet how to overcome the issue because they did not have the experience. the sentiment was shared by 54,7% of the participants as shown in figure 3. figure 3. challenges of online learning as responded by participants unclear instructions from the lecturers (48.9%) too many assignments (82.5%) tight deadlines (72.3%) busy with other activities (20.4%) bad signal at home (54.7%) expensive to buy data, more expenses (70.9%) lazy, lack of motivation (13.9%) lecturers who do not understand technology (17.5%) not used to learning independently (35.8%) not getting pocket money from parents (45.3%) in the places where they lived, internet access could be scarce due to distribution disparity. although internet providers were competing to provide internet to the people, urban areas likely had a better signal, contrary to remote areas. the participants overcome the issue of internet scarcity in several ways. one of the surprising things from the students was how swift they adapted to the changes and adjusted their actions to the situation. to accommodate their needs of the internet to complete the assignment from their lecturers, the participants narrated their actions below: what kind of learning strategies you did to complete the assignments from the lecturers? share here. i go to places with internet access, although it is far from home, and stay in that place until the lectures are completed. (danang, male 21 y/o, solo area). in a similar vein, another participant expressed: it is not easy to get an internet signal at home because my village is in a remote area, in a mountainous region. if i wanted to get a better signal, i have to go to the city, and it took me around 15 minutes of the trip. (anggun, female 19 y/o, semarang area) research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 nur’aini, s. university students’ learning disruption and affordance in a contested learning environment research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 35 both accounts indicated that the participants chose to go to places where the internet signal was available because it was not available at home. another action the participants did to access the internet was by providing it for themselves. this statement was similar to chogyel et al. (2021), who focused on the challenges of online learning for middle school learners. a participant under the pseudonym putri (female, 20 y/o) stated that: when i have quota (of internet data) i must save it and prioritize to use it to access important things (assignments). (putri, female 20 y/o, semarang area). putri only used her data for important things such as her assignments over other things. both accounts indicated their understanding of level 2 of van lier’s affordance, where they recognized the challenges and engaged with them to figure out how to overcome the issues. the challenges that the participants encountered related to providing the internet for their learning is also found in jaradat and ajlouni (2021), who worked on the perspective of undergraduate students on online learning. assignment affordances concerns regarding assignments from the lecturers were the second most expressed by the participants. the added workload to work independently added to the internet network problems above. one of the participants wrote her concern related to the changes in assignment workload: we get so many assignments with tight deadlines that make me feel so stressed and want to give up working on the assignments, and i am not used to studying alone at home because i usually discuss the lessons with my friends and lecturers. (nilan, female, 21 y/o– solo area). this account indicated the first level of affordance in van lier’s work as it expressed the stress and desperation in dealing with assignments. the overwhelming feelings of loneliness because nilan was not used to studying by herself. besides the loneliness, other issues emerging from the participants’ narratives were about the number of assignments they had to complete: for example, one assignment was completed, and there are 2345678 more assignments even though i just finished one assignment, there are more to come] (priyo, male, 19 y/o, semarang area). in dealing with the number of assignments in a day, the participants sorted their priorities of the assignments by the closest deadlines was the emerging theme coming from the participants. they began to understand level 2 of affordance by engaging it to meet their needs. the narratives below are the examples of how they manage their academic activities: i will do my best to complete the assignments, and when the lecturers did not give the materials thoroughly, i usually used google to search for more materials or study independently from the books. if i still get difficulties understanding it, i will ask my friends, and we study together. (susianti, female, 20 y/o solo area). the challenges were not only the internet connection, but also on the incomplete learning materials they got from their lecturers. participants were conditioned to be independent in finding more explanations. it was difficult because they did not have the channel to express research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 nur’aini, s. university students’ learning disruption and affordance in a contested learning environment research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 36 their curiosity. therefore, they sought cooperation with their classmates to discuss the materials together. in a similar vein, the narrative from yanto strengthened the point of the necessity of working with classmates. when a lecturer gave an assignment, if i understood it, i would do it immediately. however, if i had problems with the materials and assignment, i will ask my friends. if we both didn’t understand it we discussed it by inviting other friends to form a whatsapp group for each subject and inviting the lecturer to discuss the materials together. (yanto, male, 19 y/o, yogyakarta area). the responses to the assignment affordance that initially put them in an overwhelming state because they did not know yet how to organize their time and set their priority. as time went by, they became more adept at adjusting to the environment. they showed their understanding of level 2 of affordance where they responded to the environment to benefit themselves. setting up priorities, making a list, making a schedule, and communicating with their friends through an online messaging platform such as whatsapp. since the online learning made it hard for them to engage with their friends in real-time, they showed an understanding of the third level of affordances in van lier (2004) as they began to take actions to overcome the stress by sharing the burden with their friends to make sure that their lecturers’ demands were met. several participants expressed that they acquired new skills in using the internet concerning their assignments such as choosing the right keywords and mining information from websites to add the reference of their works. domestic affordances several participants were particularly critical about their domestic situation. their narratives indicated that the prolonged time of learning at home had become a seed for challenges and misunderstanding among family members. below is the excerpt of the concerns: my parents are not happy that i spent much time on my phone or laptop. they thought i was playing games and did not want to help around the house while doing the online classes. (damian, male 19 y/o yogyakarta area). the online classes required students to spend most of their time on their devices to access the learning materials. the number of classes they had to participate in determined how long they needed to be on their devices. this choice of actions resulted in a lack of contribution to do the house chores and spend with their family members. furthermore, some parents did not comprehend online learning, which led them to think that their children were spending time outdoor for fun or playing with their phones and caused them to become cross with their children. their understanding of level 3 of van lier’s affordance, where they engaged with the domestic concerns and adjusted their activities to avoid confrontation with their parents. usually, i finished my house chores in the morning so that i could focus on completing my campus assignment. however, it is not always like that because during the lecture, or when i am doing the assignment, my parents or family members ordered me to do something. (sabrina, female, 21 y/o, semarang area). research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 nur’aini, s. university students’ learning disruption and affordance in a contested learning environment research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 37 doing house chores was inevitable for some participants because it was considered an obligation to help their parents. they needed to navigate between doing the online class and meeting their domestic obligation to their families. another participant expressed how misunderstanding with his parents often occurred because of the online classes. hilman explained how he overcame the challenges in the narrative below: when we are at home, house chores are inevitable. it feels awkward because i had to choose the online class while at the same time, my parents asked me to help them. it often became a cause of arguments because of misunderstanding. usually, i helped them first, then joined the class. (hilman, male, 20 y/o, yogyakarta area). hilman’s action indicated his understanding of the affordance where his parents did not understand how the online course was conducted. hilman chose to do the house chores before he participated in the online class. the strategy he did to overcome the issue was supported by a statement from another participant who opted to move all his gadgets in the living room so that everyone in the family could see what he did. when i do the assignment or join online class, i don’t do it in my bedroom and stay away from the bed because potentially i will be lying down and be lazy. i do my assignment and classes on my desk in the living room so that the people at home can see that i am joining a class and not playing games. (wawan, 19 y/o, semarang area). the temptation of being lazy when working in the bedroom was a challenge that wawan tried to avoid. he showed his understanding of level 2 of affordance where they realized the presence of affordance and engaged with it. by sitting in the living room where everyone could see their activities, wawan completed the two challenges of doing his online classes and keeping his family informed about his activities. they were aware of the issues and recognize that their parents were not on the same page of understanding how online learning was conducted, and they helped their parents understand their challenges. distance learning affordances amidst the frustration that came with the transition to online learning, many participants highlight the positive and beneficial things about distance learning. they shared the sentiment about transportation changes as quoted below: besides the unpleasant things, i feel some positive things, such as saving my fuel money because the trip from my house to campus is quite far, and it saves my energy, and this online class is indeed more flexible. (debbie, female, 21 y/o semarang area) out of all the aspects of studying online, debbie took the positive aspect of it. debbie’s narrative is consistent with the findings in the work of weidlich and bastiaens (2019), particularly in the part where she did not have to move places to study. the situation meant that they did not have to worry about getting caught in the rain and traffic or coming late to class. furthermore, by having the classes at home, they did not have to spend their money to buy food because the parents provided the meals. another thing that was advantageous to the participants was that research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 nur’aini, s. university students’ learning disruption and affordance in a contested learning environment research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 38 distance learning allowed them to be more productive because they did not spend time traveling. the positive aspect of online learning was not limited to the lack of necessity to travel and other things such as increased independence among the participants. my biggest motivation is to become independent without the explanation from the lectures, i must be independent to find information when the lecturers only gave me the assignments without any explanation beforehand. i did various things to complete an assignment. (hermina, female, 21 y/0, solo area). online learning brought positive changes in the participants. their independence became the most significant change in the way they conducted learning. before the pandemic hit, they depended on the lecturers to provide the learning materials and information in the classroom. however, as they were faced with an urgent situation, they changed their learning behavior. the participants utilized their resources such as laptops and internet access to search for additional information about their learning subjects. they became more independent and selfreliant to accommodate their learning needs. this article has responded to two research questions and the affordances came down into four categories as elaborated above. in each category, the participants’ ways to adapt to the changes have been provided and explained. discussion the findings support the premise that affordance is influenced by the environment where the participants live. the quick changes in the environment and people’s behavior allow the participants to choose when the needs arise. they overcome issues from internet problems to negotiating activities with their parents and gaining independence in their learning. it shows how participants controlled their actions even when the circumstances did not provide support for them. their creativity and perseverance would not have shown up most interestingly if the situation had not been demanding like that. for example, the internet in indonesia could be traced back to the early ’90s, but online learning was never a main option until the pandemic strikes. this essential change in behavior suggests that when the environment forces the people living in it to change, they do it for the sake of survival, education, and other urgent needs (chiu et al., 2021). the key strength of this present study was the actions and strategies of the participants in responding to the affordance that their environment offered. some of the issues emerging from the findings relate specifically to the participants’ independence. in the usual context precovid, most indonesian students were used to the instructions from their lecturers given in the classroom. unfortunately, the instruction was not always available, either because the lecturers did not share it or the students were troubled by their internet connection. however, the participants found a way to manage this challenge by searching for more information online for the topics that were not elaborated in detail. this finding has a similar vein with the work of colombari et al. (2021) who wrote about self-determined learning to emphasize on the participants’ independence. they learned more through their independent study and discussion with their peers through online chats or emails. they became a better learner even research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 nur’aini, s. university students’ learning disruption and affordance in a contested learning environment research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 39 when their environment limited their access to face-to-face meetings with their lecturers. they managed their priorities, took regular breaks, cut the hours spent on social media, and allocated their data mainly for their learning needs. the impact of online learning was directly affecting their english learning that required practice and spoken communication. the participants who lived in a society with poor internet connections were challenged by the delivery of learning materials from the lecturers. it frequently occurred that during the lesson, the lecturer’s voices were interrupted, unclear, or disconnected entirely, making learning impossible. this phenomenon of internet connection problems is also found in the studies by atmojo and nugroho (2020); ilmi zajuli et al. (2020); pajarianto et al. (2020). the participants, family members, lecturers, and everyone else involved in online learning indicated how they struggled to cope with the challenges in learning, providing for the family, and staying healthy and safe for everyone affected by the covid-19. this situation is relevant to the challenges of online learning described in the work of heeks (2002). as for the challenges with their english practices, they formed group chats to practice with their friends online. however, this method of practice was found as impractical, exhausting, and time-consuming, while it yielded very little success to improve their skills in speaking or listening, which is also found in the work of subekti (2021). in spite of its limitation, this study adds some insight to the independence of indonesian university students which was often overlooked by the lecturers and by the students themselves. they were not aware that they could achieve that level of independence in managing their time, learning activities, and research skills. however, the findings have shown that they were capable of being independent when they need to be, and it was a refreshing knowledge to learn. conclusion and implications there are four kinds of affordance emerging from this study: internet affordance, assignment affordance, domestic affordance and distance learning affordance. the first thing the participants did to adjust to the changes is by changing their online behavior and actions to fulfill their learning needs. they worked with their friends and set priorities to ensure that they completed the assignments. the findings indicate that affordances are flexible and difficult situations can trigger creative thinking and actions. affordance is independent regardless of the circumstance, while the participants are dependent on the circumstance. its independence does not change because a person does not like the circumstance that triggers the emergence of affordance. the way individuals respond to affordance will determine how they carry out their actions because how the participants react, think, and behave is influenced by their environment. hardship in life always comes in many forms; however, adapting and using the circumstance to benefit the individuals depend on familiarity, experience, and adeptness in dealing with the challenges. they could use it to benefit from the circumstances or succumb and give up on the situation. this study proves that students are resilient and creative. with the help from the people around them, such as family members, lecturers, and peers, they could tackle online learning challenges that they have not done before. they managed to face, deal with, and control the affordance available to them in the middle of their learning challenges. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 nur’aini, s. university students’ learning disruption and affordance in a contested learning environment research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 40 the implications of this study can be applied in how other studies focus on how lecturers deal with online teaching. a few of the participants indicated that some senior teachers have difficulties migrating from offline to online teaching. the lecturers’ challenges in using technology, gadgets, and internet platforms had caused a disturbance in the learning process because the lecturers could not provide materials on the online platform. other aspects of the study that can be investigated within this covid-19 context are teachers and students' motivation, agency, and emotion. the present study was subject to several potential methodological weaknesses. data was collected through anonymous online survey, which did not allow clarification from the participants. it resulted in the limited information asked and responded to by the participants. although the study has successfully demonstrated how participants employed affordances, the perspective of how data was view could limit the elaboration of analysis. lastly, the generalizability of the results might not be repeated elsewhere because of the specific nature of the participants who experienced the changes of learning platform at the beginning of the pandemic. references arenas, e. 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(2010). learning to perceive the affordance for long-distance throwing: smart mechanism or function learning? journal of experimental psychology: human perception and performance, 36(4), 862-875. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0018738 https://doi.org/10.46303/jcve.2020.8 https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8535.2005.00528.x https://doi.org/10.1093/jtm/taaa020 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.1 https://doi.org/10.1080/03075079.2018.1539960 https://doi.org/10.1080/15325024.2020.1776523 https://doi.org/10.1037/a0018738 research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 mavhandu-mudzusi, a.h. et al. transgender student experiences of online education during covid-19 pandemic era in rural eastern cape area of south africa: a descriptive phenomenological study research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 110 transgender student experiences of online education during covid-19 pandemic era in rural eastern cape area of south africa: a descriptive phenomenological study azwihangwisi helen mavhandu-mudzusi1*, tshimangadzo selina mudau2, thulile shandu1 & nthomeni dorah ndou3 *corresponding author: mmudza@unisa.ac.za 1. university of south africa, south africa 2. sefako makgatho health sciences university, south africa 3. university of venda, south africa received : 2021-06-14 revised : 2021-07-20 accepted : 2021-08-04 how to cite this paper: mavhandu-mudzusi, a.h., mudau, t.s., shandu, t. & ndou, n.d. (2021). transgender student experiences of online education during covid-19 pandemic era in rural eastern cape area of south africa: a descriptive phenomenological study. research in social sciences and technology, 6(2), 110-128. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.14 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). abstract covid-19 affected education in many ways. as a response, various strategies were introduced to ensure students’ access to education, including online education. for most of the students, fulltime online education brought diverse challenges. this descriptive phenomenological study explored the experiences of transgender students regarding online education during the covid-19 pandemic in buffalo city metro municipality, south africa. data were collected by means of individual telephonic interviews with eight purposively selected transgender students using the snowballing technique. data were thematically analysed using the interpretative phenomenological analysis framework for data analysis. the findings indicate that transgender students faced barriers in accessing online education, including (i) limited interaction, (ii) unconducive home environment because of stigmatisation, abuse and disruptions, and (iii) lack of access to the internet owing to the centralisation of internet access points, the unaffordability of data, unstable internet connections and an intermittent electricity supply. the findings further highlighted that transgender students face stigmatisation and abuse which hinder their learning. the situation is exacerbated by a lack of sources of income for transgender students, especially those who must make means for money to buy educational resources such as data for internet connection needed for online classes. based on the findings, the researchers recommend continuous support for transgender students to ensure their continued engagement in online education, amidst the challenges they face. to this end, educational institutions should ensure that students have alternative means of accessing education so that those from diverse populations, settings and socioeconomic statuses are reached. keywords: covid-19; descriptive phenomenology; online education; transgender students; rural eastern cape 10.46303/ressat.2021.14 mailto:mmudza@unisa.ac.za https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.14 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 mavhandu-mudzusi, a.h. et al. transgender student experiences of online education during covid-19 pandemic era in rural eastern cape area of south africa: a descriptive phenomenological study research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 111 introduction this paper reports on transgender students’ experiences of online education during covid-19 era in rural areas of the eastern cape. when coronavirus disease of 2019 (covid-19) hit global communities in 2020, the world was thrust into turmoil and had to deal with various types of change. chief of these were the restrictions that had to be imposed as countries went into lockdown. south africa was not immune to these changes. on 23 march 2020, the president of south africa, cyril ramaphosa, announced that the country’s lockdown would begin on 26 march 2020 (sanews, 2020). the lockdown protocols detailed various measures to curb the spread of the virus, including the restrictions imposed on the movement of and contact between individuals. the pandemic and its concomitant restrictions, therefore, meant that various sectors of society had to find different ways of carrying on with their lives. educational institutions, then, as one of the main areas where gatherings are mandated, frequent and prolonged, were generally affected. they consequently had to find innovative ways to ensure that students, of various kinds and from various backgrounds, continued to have access to education (daniel, 2020; dube, 2020). one such was online education implemented by most of the institutions of higher education in south africa, regardless of students’ socioeconomic environment. therefore, it was important for the researchers to explore the experiences of transgender students in the rural area of eastern cape towards online education, especially because of the community’s attitudes associated with this population. literature review covid-19 affected education globally (mailizar, almanthari, maulina & bruce, 2020). the result of the various restrictions meant that students and teachers could not have face-to-face contact in class owing to restrictions on gatherings. as a response, educational institutions have been seeking innovative alternatives to ameliorate the effects of the disruptions. to this end, a quick google scholar search of recent literature indicates how “throughout the covid-19 pandemic, there has been a growing reliance on the use of technology to learn, live, and stay connected” (goldschmidt, 2020). what comes out prominently, though, is how technology is touted as an enabler for access to education during lockdown restrictions. technology can widen access, increase flexibility and reduce the need for on-site teaching accommodation (kumar, saxena & baber, 2021; dube, 2020; subedi & subedi, 2020). it stands to reason, then, that technology platforms have been the platforms of choice for education under constraints. in other words, technology has provided access to education for students who would otherwise have had to miss out. “in education, the term access typically refers to the ways in which educational institutions and policies ensure – or at least strive to ensure – that students have equal and equitable opportunities to take full advantage of their education” (edglossary, 2014). at the core of access, then, is the issue of student support, in that institutions should strive to ensure learning opportunities for students. student support, in this regard, refers to institutional (administrative and policy), cognitive (quality content and efficient pedagogy) and affective (coping strategies, mental wellness and conducive learning environments) strategies (williams, mcintosh & russell, 2021; mailizar et al., 2020). student support, therefore, is the foundation and defining character of access, as aptly argued by williams et al., (2021) and waters and hensley (2020) who stated that access to learning is anchored on student technological support and use of various opportunities available and preferred by students. the research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 mavhandu-mudzusi, a.h. et al. transgender student experiences of online education during covid-19 pandemic era in rural eastern cape area of south africa: a descriptive phenomenological study research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 112 versatility of technology, then, provides the access and support so that students can have opportunities for successful learning. what is key, though, is that such opportunities should be equitable and equal (edglossary, 2014). while the benefits of technology cannot be disputed, it remains to be seen if technology in education is “an infallible means to develop profound knowledge and wide range of language skills” (ahmad, 2016: 118), particularly in relation to students who might be regarded as those on the periphery. there remains a dearth of research on, for example, the role of technology in relation to providing access to education for transgender students, particularly in the time of covid-19. even outside the pandemic era, transgender students have often been left out of discussions and decisions regarding access to education, even though they face various adversities and impediments to accessing education (omercajic & wayne, 2020). scholars argue that issues of access to education for transgender students are issues of equity and social justice (omercajic & wayne, 2020). according to parents and friends of lesbians and gays (pflag, 2004), transgender people are “those whose gender identity or gender expression differs from conventional expectations for their physical sex”. they face a myriad of challenges because they are different and their behaviour and expression of self, differs from what society expects or associates with that gender (enke, 2016). according to goldberg (2018), “many transgender students experience discrimination and harassment at college, which may have implications for their academic success and retention”. in fact, the negative experiences of transgender students are sometimes described as hostile (omercajic & wayne, 2020; wayne, kassen & omercajic, 2020; daniels et al., 2019). in addition to societal attitudes, transgender populations face adverse conditions such as poverty (kia, robinson, mackay & ross, 2020; suissa & sullivan, 2021). in view of this literature review, considering the experiences of transgender students of transphobic discrimination, bullying, poverty, transgender students still have to access online education like all other students during covid-19 lockdown, this paper asks the following question: what might be the transgender students’ experiences of online education during covid-19 era in rural areas of the eastern cape? thus, this study explores transgender students’ experiences of online education during covid-19 era in rural areas of the eastern cape. theoretical framework. perhaps the most relevant theoretical framework for exploring access is one that describes what the access to education entails – interaction. according to moore (1989), a successful teaching and learning environment involves bi-directional interaction of various kinds. in view of the remote learning that has been associated with the pandemic restrictions, interaction theory, as encapsulated in the theory of transactional distance, is a worthwhile lens because it refers to “the universe of teacher-learner relationships that exist when students and instructors are separated by space and/or by time" (moore, 1993). in this case, when one considers technology as a solution to transgender students’ access to education, one must consider moore’s (1989) argument for student–student, student–teacher and student–content interaction. it should be noted that human–human interaction is not merely for the purposes of socialising, or an affective outlet, but is meant for cognitive activities such as discussions, explanations, cognitive exchanges, argumentation and the negotiation of meaning (kumar et al., 2021; saxena, baber & kumar, 2020). in addition to human–human interaction, one needs research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 mavhandu-mudzusi, a.h. et al. transgender student experiences of online education during covid-19 pandemic era in rural eastern cape area of south africa: a descriptive phenomenological study research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 113 to consider the fact that students interact with course content and assessment through technology (aguilera-hermida, 2020). this means that access to education must also explore transgender students’ educational experiences in relation to these types of interaction. such access should also be considered based on the availability of technological resources for successful education (williams et al., 2021). there is thus room to explore whether technology provides an enabling or disabling environment for the transgender students’ access to education. method design this study employed descriptive phenomenology to describe experiences of transgender students regarding online education during the covid-19 lockdown. according to moser and korstjens (2018), phenomenological research is concerned with the essence of the participants’ meaning through its iterative nature. the researchers used descriptive phenomenology because it was deemed a suitable design to gain an understanding of the lived experiences of transgender students by digging deeper into their real-life world (sloan & bowe, 2014) when accessing online education during the covid-19 pandemic in south africa. this is because, according to husserl, reality cannot be studied separately from the consciousness of those experiencing it (morrow, rodriguez & king, 2015). setting, population and sample the study was conducted at the buffalo city metro municipality of the eastern cape province, south africa. the municipality had experienced high rates of covid-19 infections and death rates during the second wave of the covid-19 resurgence in south africa. participants were recruited using snowballing technique. to ensure homogeneity of the sample, the study inclusion criteria were participants who were 18 years and older; resided in the buffalo city metro municipality for at least two years; who identified themselves as a transgender woman, or have been assigned male sex at birth and currently living as a woman, and have registered as a student before 2020, and still registered for current academic year (being at the higher education for at least two years). the recruitment process was initiated through the link of one transgender woman who met the inclusion criteria. the women provided the fourth author who was responsible for recruiting the participants and collecting data the cellphone numbers of other potential participants. the total sample size was eight transgender women. the number was determined by data saturation. as kincheloe (2005) asserted, quality findings in qualitative research are not determined by number of participants but depth and prolonged engagement with the researched. table 1 presents the participants’ biographical data. the names used for the participants are pseudonyms which were given in order to protect their identity. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 mavhandu-mudzusi, a.h. et al. transgender student experiences of online education during covid-19 pandemic era in rural eastern cape area of south africa: a descriptive phenomenological study research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 114 table 1. biographical data of participants name age degree level of study gender identity disclosure at home rudo 25 psychology 3rd not disclosed thoby 23 education 4th not disclosed bessy 23 education 3rd disclosed nana 25 social work 3rd disclosed belinda 22 information technology 4th disclosed fanisa 23 social work 3rd disclosed oniah 24 psychology 3rd disclosed metsi 25 microbiology 3rd disclosed, ethical considerations to conduct this study, an ethical clearance was obtained from the university of south africa’s (unisa) department of health studies research ethics committee. each participant informed about all the ethical related issues were provided to enable them to make verbal consent as the study was conducted at the height of global covid-19 pandemic where south africa was not spared. furthermore, the study aims, objectives, and the process of data collection to the participants were explained to participants. ethical principles such as the right to privacy and confidentiality, right to withdraw anytime during the study were explained to the participants (flick, 2018). to minimise harm, which for this study was mostly the spread or contracting covid-19 for both the researched and the researcher, the researcher ensured that special precautionary measures were followed by conducting telephonic interviews than physical meetings (flick, 2018; gray, grove, & sutherland, 2017; south african government 2020). data collection instrument these interviews were guided by an interview guide drafted by the researchers. before actual data collection, the interview guide was tested through interviewing two transgender women who are not part of the sample. this was done to ensure that the questions are clear and that the language used is not discriminative, judgmental or sensitive as the transgender women are among the vulnerable population. after first pilot interview, the audio recording was listened to by all authors, and discussed the process, cautioning against using leading and closed ended questions which can affect the reflective and descriptive nature of the study. after the comments, second test interview was conducted, and discussion made. all the researchers were satisfied with the process followed during second interview and the probes used. the interview guide was then finalised. data collection the researcher conducted individual in-depth telephonic interviews from volunteering transgender students guided by the final interview guide. all interviews were digitally audio recorded. the following free attitude open-ended question was posed to each participant to initiate the discussion. “kindly share with me your experiences of online education during covid-19 pandemic.” the initial question was then followed by further probes to explore further the single response given by the participants. this was to allow the researcher to research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 mavhandu-mudzusi, a.h. et al. transgender student experiences of online education during covid-19 pandemic era in rural eastern cape area of south africa: a descriptive phenomenological study research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 115 exhaust all possible areas in the description of the participants’ experiences. the following were some of the probes used: what is your view about technology teaching? what did you like most about that? the researcher asked further probing questions such as: how did it affect you as an individual? what could be the best solution? probing was to ensure that the hidden experiences are carefully mined out from participants as the experiential experts of the experiences and the essence of meaning of their experiences is unearthed (flick, 2018; morrow et al., 2015). probing was blended with continuous reflections between the researchers and the researched to explore contextual meaning of the item picked for reflection. through the reflections, the researcher ensured rich engagement to dig deeper the meaning-making of the participants’ experiences (moser & korstjens, 2018). though the researcher could not observe the non-verbal cues such as body language, the researcher made field notes recording aspects such as tone of voice and silence during the interviews (preethi, 2019). interviews lasted from 45 minutes to an hour. at the end of every interview, the researcher marked all the different recordings with a participant number. interviews were conducted until data saturation was reached (gray et al., 2017). data analysis data were transcribed verbatim by first author to promote the voice of the participants (castillo, 2018; peat, rodriguez & smith, 2019). two of the researchers individually analyzed the data guided by the steps of interpretative phenomenological analysis framework for data analysis as follows: the step-by-step approach involved reading and rereading followed by noting of common themes through circling to ensure emersion with data. thereafter, the researcher matched emergent themes with field notes per individual case. a connection between emergent themes was sought. the researcher ensured a continuous reflective process before moving to the next step while seeking for similar patterns across all cases. the last step involved peer critiquing by other researchers together with consulting available literature to compare findings with participants’ verbatim quotes for a coherent analytical account of the whole process. finally, a table was created to summarise superordinate themes, sub-themes, and themes of the findings as indicated below in table 2: results based on the analysis of the participants’ description of their experiences, two superordinate themes, composed of several themes and subthemes, namely, psychosocial environment and limited interaction, emerged from the data analysis, as shown in table 2. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 mavhandu-mudzusi, a.h. et al. transgender student experiences of online education during covid-19 pandemic era in rural eastern cape area of south africa: a descriptive phenomenological study research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 116 table 2: experiences of transgender students regarding online teaching and learning during the covid-19 lockdown superordinate themes themes sub-themes unconducive psychosocial environment stigmatisation stigmatisation by parents name-calling by extended family members exposure to abuse sexual abuse by stepparents abuse by partner disruptions noise involvement in household chores internet-related challenges centralised internet unaffordability of data intermittent electricity supply limited interaction lack of opportunity to interact with classmates classmates leaving the virtual space immediate disconnection to save data no time to interact with lecturers pre-recorded issue sparing the data for the next lesson unconducive psychosocial environment this superordinate theme highlights the psychosocial environment in which transgender students found themselves during the covid-19 lockdown. it is composed of three themes: stigmatisation, exposure to abuse and disruptions. stigmatisation this theme relates to the stigmatisation faced by transgender women while they were at home under lockdown: at home, my parents used to know me as a straight boy. but, since i left home to go to the university, i have realised that i am a transwoman and have to live as such. however, at home, the moment they saw me putting on my makeup, my father mentioned that, he has only one wife and a son, not a girl and request me to urgently wipe off the nonsense from my face. this make me so uncomfortable and disturbed my concentration during online lessons (rudo). besides stigmatisation by parents, transgender women are also stigmatised by other extended family members: because i was on campus, i have bought a new wardrobe to dress comfortably. now i no longer have any male clothes. as i have not disclosed my gender identity, every time research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 mavhandu-mudzusi, a.h. et al. transgender student experiences of online education during covid-19 pandemic era in rural eastern cape area of south africa: a descriptive phenomenological study research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 117 my cousins see me dressing up, they call me names like, sister, queen and mammy. i cannot even dress up without being laughed at but this traumatised me making me to be unable to concentrate with my school work, unlike when i am on campus where i dress freely without being stigmatised. in fact, on campus they are used to me. it is not even an issue of how i dress because we are so many (thoby). apart from the stigmatisation experienced in the home environment, which affect transgender students’ concentration, participants also reported the issue of abuse. exposure to abuse this theme focuses on the abuse experienced by transgender women because of being at home and being expected to attend online classes. the transgender students complained of different forms of abuse. one of the participants mentioned the abuse she experienced from a stepparent: since i passed grade 12, and joined the university, at least i was away from my stepfather. even during holidays, i did not go home but remain in the hostel, or visit a friend. but now, with covid-19 and online education, i was forced to come back home. my stepfather continues to molest me. the problem is that i do not want to make a scene, because my mother loves him, and she is at least happy for the first time in her life, after she was physically abused by my biological father because of my gender identity. but i know that, as soon as my mother leaves home, he will sexually abuse me. i cannot concentrate when i study as i know that, anytime he can come and drag me to his room and force himself on me (belinda). the abuse experienced comes not only from parents but also from sexual partners, as highlighted in the following excerpt: when i left secondary school, i started to live openly as a transwoman. my parents became aware when my sister show them my picture and they said that i should not come home, as they have given birth to a “boy”, so they do not want to see me anyhow. i therefore had to move in with my boyfriend, who is a gay. he is very abusive. he expected me to do what he wants in his own time although i had to join the online class. i have missed several virtual classes. i do not think that i will pass (nana). besides the abuse, there are disruptions in the home environment which hinder transgender women from fully participating in online education. disruptions this theme highlights the disruptions experienced by transgender women when trying to engage in online education at home. the disruptions include noise in the environment and expectations to carry out household chores. one of the participants highlighted the inability to concentrate on online classes due to noise, as indicated in the following quotation: my uncle likes very loud music. i cannot even tell him to reduce the volume as it is his home. i therefore try to study but cannot concentrate. i cannot join the classes due to loud noise (bessy). research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 mavhandu-mudzusi, a.h. et al. transgender student experiences of online education during covid-19 pandemic era in rural eastern cape area of south africa: a descriptive phenomenological study research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 118 the noise emanates not only from the home but also from the neighbourhood: as most of the people are at home, my neighbours play loud music from morning up to sunset. this is so disturbing. i wish we could be allowed to go back to the university. we shall do the lockdown in the hostel, because online classes at home are not even feasible. unfortunate i cannot even tell anyone to keep quite as a transgender person, we are voiceless in rural community. any irritation to the community may be calling death to myself (belinda). in addition to the noise that hinders transgender women, some of the participants were expected to help out with the household chores: nobody understand that i am at school. they expect me to do the house chores daily. i must cook, clean the house and do laundry. if there is shortage of something, they will send me to town to buy. when they need electricity, they send me. when i tell them that i am supposed to be in class they do not understand. they assume that i just want to be playing with my laptop. i end up cooking while my laptop is on (fanisa). besides disruptions at home caused by noise or involvement in household chores, participants raised the issue of internet access as a particular hindrance to online education by transgender women. internet-related challenges this superordinate theme focuses on the issues related to internet which influence the accessibility of transgender women access to online education. results indicate that transgender women face diverse challenges related to internet access. the challenges range from the internet only being accessible in a centralised place, the unaffordability of data and unstable internet connections. centralised internet access to the network is a problem for some of the transgender students. this is due to a lack of network access in certain areas, as shown by the following statement: when i at home, because it is in rural village, i cannot access internet. for me to get the internet access, i am expected to go to the shopping mall. but this is impossible due to lockdown. and even when i am at the shopping mall, i can only download tutorials and save. i cannot join the classes due to noise. i cannot even write examination at the mall (rudo). besides the issues relating to localisation of internet in certain areas, some participants cannot even afford to buy data for accessing the internet. unaffordability of wi-fi data being at home is an issue for some of the participants as they do not have money to buy data. this is compounded by the problem of a lack of money-making opportunities due to the covid19 lockdown: when i am at school i do not have a problem of accessing data. the university give us a bit of data, which cannot even last for a week. this means that i should go and buy data. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 mavhandu-mudzusi, a.h. et al. transgender student experiences of online education during covid-19 pandemic era in rural eastern cape area of south africa: a descriptive phenomenological study research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 119 but i do not have money. because of lockdown and fear of covid-19 infection, i cannot even hassle. before covid-19 pandemic, i could do the household chores for other people and get paid. sometimes i would exchange sex for money and can buy data and whatever i need. but now i am stuck. i do not have any plan. i am missing a lot at school (belinda). besides the unaffordability of data, there is the challenge of the instability of the internet connection. unstable internet fortunately, i have wi-fi network, but the quality is not good. most of the time it is difficult to hear what the lecturer is saying. sometimes i get disconnected in the middle of session (oniah). unstable internet is also related to an intermittent electricity supply. intermittent electricity supply participants mentioned that they sometimes fail to access the internet due to a lack of continuity in the electricity supply which is mostly in the form of intermittent load shedding: the online test and examination are challenging. we need to adjust. with the network, we get frustrated because of load shedding. if i fail to finish due to network, i must write another test, which becomes very unfair (fanisa). load shedding not only affects internet access, but some student cannot even start their computers due to lack of power: there is load shedding most of the time. when there is load shedding, the network also disappears. i end up failing to connect. so, i usually miss lessons. sometimes we spend more than 24 hours without internet and even electricity. this means that you cannot even study. load shedding is rare while we are on campus because there is even backup of electricity in the form of generators (metsi). besides the internet-related challenges, participants also raised the issues of limited interaction. limited interaction this superordinate theme focuses on the limited interaction inherent to online education. participants raised concerns that online education limits their interaction. the interaction highlighted refers to interaction with fellow students and with the lecturers. inability to interact with fellow students participants mentioned that online education hinders them from interacting with fellow students. one the reasons for not interacting with other students is that after formal lectures, their classmates leave the virtual space. we fail to discuss the content because there is no proper interaction with colleagues. immediately after the online session, everybody leave the online platform. unlike with the face-to-face lecture where when the educator leaves the class, we remain discussing until our next class start. we can even go to the student centres, or our research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 mavhandu-mudzusi, a.h. et al. transgender student experiences of online education during covid-19 pandemic era in rural eastern cape area of south africa: a descriptive phenomenological study research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 120 residential areas and continue with the discussions. but now, such an opportunity is not there (rudo). participants further mentioned that interaction online is also determined by data affordability as shown by the following statement: sometimes people might have an opportunity of joining the discussion groups organised by one of the student in class. but because we want to spare data as much as possible, we do not join such discussions so that we can be able to attend the formal classes. with this online system, you find that data can be exhausted quickly (belinda). besides trying to spare data, some participants feel uncomfortable about initiating online communication with students they do not know: the problem for online thing is that you cannot ask anyone as you do not know the people. it is better to be taught physically in class. online learning without knowing people is difficult as we do not even know their attitudes towards us transgender people. (musi) apart from the failure to discuss with the fellow classmates, participants could not interact freely with the lecturer for clarification. limited time to interact with the lecturer this theme focuses on the participants’ inability to interact with the lecturer. failure to interact was due to pre-recorded presentations and data-related issues. the participants mentioned that most of the lessons are pre-recorded: the lessons are pre-recorded making it difficult to ask the question or interrupt the lecturer during the lesson. this is a problem because, sometimes the whole lesson ends without me understanding anything. it is very difficult to ask the questions directly just using chat (rudo). in other instances, the student failed to interact because of the types of platform used: most of the time during online lessons, it is only the facilitator’s platform which is active, we cannot interrupt if there is something you do not understand. for you to be given chance, is at the end of the lesson where the facilitators link controller can unmute your mike, but the time is limited, because some platforms just close when the scheduled lesson time is over (thoby). in addition to the way in which lessons are provided, participants also referred to data as a challenge to continue interacting with the lecturer when the formal lesson is over. we would like to interact and ask more questions to the facilitators after the formal lesson. but when one think of the data, we just disconnect. otherwise data will get depleted before the next lesson (metsi). discussion the advent of covid-19 seems to have intensified the psychosocial challenges that transgender students had been going through prior to the pandemic. these challenges related mainly to research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 mavhandu-mudzusi, a.h. et al. transgender student experiences of online education during covid-19 pandemic era in rural eastern cape area of south africa: a descriptive phenomenological study research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 121 unconducive home environments where stigmatisation, abuse and disruptions were experienced. the findings have indicated that the psychosocial environment where the transgender women find themselves in, especially during lockdown, is not conducive for them to attend online education. the environment includes their homes. participants mention that, when they are on campus, it was easier for them to live freely and openly as transgender. but because of lockdown, participants live under pressure because their parents forced them to act as a “straight individual”. this situation affects the transgender women psychologically, as they are traumatized, making them to fail to concentrate during online education. the study findings indicate that, though online education is one of the innovative ways to ensure that students continue to have access to education as stated by daniel (2020) and dube (2020), the situation was different for transgender students in the rural areas of the eastern cape, south africa during codid-19 lockdown. furthermore, for transgender women, going back to their home environment exposes them to sexual abuse, which they have previously averted by being on campus. but currently, being back at home makes them to be abused by people such as their step fathers. having to suffer such sexual abuse, it affected their concentration during the online education. the challenge is wanting to put other’s happiness first, as person like belinda chose to suffer in silence in order to protect her mother’s relationship. the situation prohibits her from concentrating to the studies. these findings attest to enke (2016), omercajic and wayne (2020), wayne et al. (2020), mentioning that transgender students experience diverse challenges including discrimination, harassment and other hostile treatments. furthermore, such decision to stay in the abusive relations aligns with findings by hentschel, heilman and peus (2019) that transgender women are less assertive than male counterparts. as some transgender women were living openly on campus, but “pretending to be cisgender men” at home, going back home makes them to be “outed” by some of their relatives who have seen them such as siblings. the situation caused people like nana to be disowned by the parents because of gender identity. that compelled her to move out and go and stay with the sexual partner. unfortunately, the sexual partner was also abusive, not allowing her to join online classes. that made her to miss several online classes. apart from direct emotional and sexual abuse experienced by some of the transgender women which negatively affected their engagement to online education, findings indicate that there was noise in the environment. the noise was either from loud volume of music from home which they have no control of or from neighbours. people like bessy and belinda failed to concentrate during the online classes because of loud music played at home and also by neighbours. due to voicelessness of transgender women because of fear of stigma and discrimination based on how the gender nonconforming individuals are viewed in the community, transgender women could not request relatives or neighbours to lower their volume. while these challenges are also generally experienced by employees working from home (palumbo, 2020) and other students (adnan & anwar, 2020; dube, 2020, daniels et al., 2019), the transgender students’ plight was particularly hard because of the existing tensions related to the stigma of their sexuality. for example, when the transgender students were disturbed by noise in their homes, they had few places to escape to since most faced hostility research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 mavhandu-mudzusi, a.h. et al. transgender student experiences of online education during covid-19 pandemic era in rural eastern cape area of south africa: a descriptive phenomenological study research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 122 from their neighbours and communities. this meant that no matter how much their concentration levels were disturbed, lockdown meant that they were locked down to their homes without the many alternatives they would have had outside the pandemic. the reluctance of transgender students to confront relatives and neighbours due to fear of stigma and discrimination attest to findings by enke, (2016) mentioning that transgender individuals face a lot of challenges based on how they behave or express themselves which is contrary to what society expects from a specific gender. besides being disturbed by noise, people at home expected transgender women to be involved also on the house chores such as cooking, cleaning the house and also running all the family errands like shopping. people at home did not understand that students can attend school at home. they consider non-involvement to home chores while a person has not gone to class as laziness. this situation prohibited transgender women from being engaged fully to online education. in addition, the fact that the participants were required to stop participating in online classes so that they could attend to household chores meant added stress. this was mainly due to the mostly african perspective where certain household chores are gendered. because transgender students are different and express themselves differently from the expectations of society in relation to specific genders (enke, 2016), they had to deal with the double challenge of missing classes and conforming to expectations that did not speak to what they wanted to do. such behavior of conforming to societal expectations concurs with findings by hentschel, et al., (2019) that transgender women are less assertive and have poor leadership skills. the situation of forcing all the students to go home during covid-19 lockdown, and initiating online education without considering the environmental factors of students such as transgender and other marginalized students showed limitation on the part of universities to provide adequate support to students as according to williams et al., (2021) and mailizar et al., (2020), student support also include ensuring conducive learning environments for the students. another major environmental factor which affected transgender women from benefiting from online education, is the challenges related to technical issues. the technical challenges in this study relate to the affordability and availability of the internet as well as the intermittent availability of electricity due to load shedding (a system by the south african power utility where electricity is cut at intermittent intervals to lessen the load or demand for the dwindling power supply). participants raised the issue of being unable to access internet, as the area where they stay, there is no internet. internet access is only found in the centralised place such as shopping complex. this means that, for transgender women to be able to access online education, they have to go to the nearby malls. however, because of lockdown regulations, they cannot go to the mall to access class or even to download educational materials. that situation also makes students such as rudo, who stays in the internet-less area to even fail to write the examination as it was supposed to be conducted online. failure to stay connected to internet defeats the requirement of online education which requires students to stay connected in order to learn as indicated by goldschmidt (2020). in some instances, the challenge was not the unavailability of internet, but the price of data which students could not afford due to lack of money. the lack of money became the issue for transgender women like belinda, whose source of income was piece job where she would go research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 mavhandu-mudzusi, a.h. et al. transgender student experiences of online education during covid-19 pandemic era in rural eastern cape area of south africa: a descriptive phenomenological study research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 123 to people’s houses to assist them with laundry and other household chores so that she can get paid. the other source of her income was transactional sex, where she would provide sexual services to clients in order to get money. because of covid-19 lockdown restrictions, she could not go to places like brothels, restaurants, shebeens or any places where she can find the clients. the situation hinders her from accessing the online education as she cannot afford to buy data. the lack of financial resources by transgender students attest to the finding by kia et al., (2020) and suissa and sullivan, (2021) indicating that transgender populations face adverse conditions such as poverty. for other transgender women, the challenge was not affordability of data, but the issue was that the internet connectivity was unstable, thus, hindering them from joining the online classes. even when sometimes they manage to connect, poor quality of network prohibits them from hearing what is said in the class, or continually disconnected. this situation makes them not to benefit from online education. the situation of not having data to access education indicates that the institutions of higher education, though they initiated online education, did not provide the necessary tools for marginalised and economically disadvantaged students to access education. not providing data is in contrast with the recommendation by williams et al., (2021) and waters and hensley (2020) who stated that access to learning is anchored on student technological support and use of various opportunities available and preferred by students. the unstable internet was exacerbated by intermittent supply of electricity. transgender women mention that they failed to join online classes due to electricity load shedding. this is the situation where the electricity will be switched off for at least two hours or even up to 24 hours in some areas as the country’s means of rationing electricity supply. during load shedding, the internet is also affected, which blocks the students from joining online classes. this is the situation which, when students are on campus, they rarely experience. this situation means that they fail to connect to internet. they could also not read the downloaded materials as for most of the laptops used by students, the batteries can last only for four hours if not connected to the electricity source. while lack of data and poor internet connectivity are challenges which ultimately cause uncertainty for virtual learning for many students in south africa (dube, 2020), the transgender students in this study were particularly affected because they face adverse conditions and poverty (kia et al., 2020; daniels et al; 2019), which affected their ability to afford data to enable them to participate in online activities such as completing assessment tasks. to this end, the participants noted that if they had been on campus, their studies would not have been affected by data and electricity limitations. this does not negate the literature which exposes the discrimination and harassment that these students face on campuses (goldberg, 2018), but it seems campuses offer more learning opportunities without the restrictions of technology. while the unconducive psychosocial environment and technical challenges were expressed emphatically in this study, it became clear that at the core of the struggles with online learning for transgender students was a crucial gap in interaction in its various facets. the lockdown regulations prohibited the students from interacting in person for discussions with lecturers and other students, towards understanding the content. participants raised the challenge inherent to how online education is structured such as limited interaction with fellow students. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 mavhandu-mudzusi, a.h. et al. transgender student experiences of online education during covid-19 pandemic era in rural eastern cape area of south africa: a descriptive phenomenological study research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 124 this is because of immediate disconnecting from virtual space as soon as the lecturer finished the presentation. this is different from what they used to do following face to face learning, where after formal lesson, students will remain interacting with each other, and even take discussions further in the student learning centres. the follow-up discussion made the participants to seek clarification and also more information regarding the lessons. but now, as all students want to conserve data for future lessons, there is no time to remain online and form discussion groups. lack of the interaction with educators and fellow-students denies the students from benefiting from the human–human interaction, which according to the theoretical framework used in this study, is important not only for socialising and affective outlet, but also meant for cognitive activities such as discussions, explanations, cognitive exchanges, argumentation and the negotiation of meaning (kumar et al., 2021; saxena, baber & kumar, 2020). the other challenge is that participants do not have time to know each other, making it difficult to identify the person they can contact for further discussions. they cannot just blindly contact any person based on attendance list as they are not sure of the person’s attitudes towards transgender due to fear of being victimised or exposed to violence. the situation of transgender students’ reluctance to engage in group discussion is not unique to the covid era, but concurs with omercajic and wayne (2020) documenting that transgender students are usually excluded from discussions and decisions regarding access to education. some of the lessons are pre-recorded, making it difficult for the students to interject during the lesson to ask questions. this means that, if the learner fails to understand specific aspects in the beginning of the lecture, it can affect the understanding of the entire lesson. which is not there while students are in physical class as they can raise their hands and ask for clarification immediately. this is in contrast with moore (1989), mentioning that successful teaching and learning environment involves bi-directional interaction of various kinds. it also contravenes interaction theory, as encapsulated in the theory of transactional distance (moore, 1993). the other hinderance to interaction during online education is the type of platforms utilised where only the lecturer’s platform is active during online teaching while all the attendees are muted. this disables participants from interacting with the facilitators. the only time the link controller unmutes the participants is towards the end of the lesson, when there is limited time to interact because those platforms automatically close when the scheduled lesson time is over. therefore, these findings where students fail to fully access education based on the platforms used and saving data are in contrast with the assertion by kumar, saxena, and baber (2021) and dube (2020) that the use of online education increases flexibility and access to education. in this study, transgender women prefer onsite physical teaching unlike what is recommended by kumar et al. (2021) and dube (2020) mentioning that the use of technology can reduce the need for onsite teaching. it stands to reason, then, that technology platforms have been the platforms of choice for education under constraints. however, the issue of trying to save data also affects the continuous interaction during online teaching as students disconnect as soon as the formal presentation is over, so that they can still have data for the next session. all the above situations make transgender women to continually experience challenges in accessing education. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 mavhandu-mudzusi, a.h. et al. transgender student experiences of online education during covid-19 pandemic era in rural eastern cape area of south africa: a descriptive phenomenological study research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 125 in other words, lockdown restrictions affected student–student, student–lecturer and student– content interaction (moore, 1989; 1993). instead of in-person discussions with lecturers and group discussions with peers, students had to rely on virtual meetings that were limited by time, technology, data and electricity. the transgender students, thus, preferred to attend physical classes, rather than virtual learning. this calls into question, then, the growing “reliance on technology” (goldschmidt, 2020: 88), assertions of technology as widening access to education (kumar et al., 2021; dube, 2020) and the view of technology as “an infallible means to develop profound knowledge and wide range of language skills” (ahmad, 2016: 91). while these technology affordances are true, it seems there is a need for conscious adjustments that will increase opportunities for bi-directional interaction. this requires creativity on the part of the teachers, institutional support and, probably, government support. what is clear is that technology should be used so that students can have equal and equitable opportunities to education (edglossary, 2014). the negative experiences of students regarding online education continuously violate transgender students’ access to education, even when scholars such as omercajic and wayne (2020) regard accessing education for transgender an issue of equity and social justice. limitations because of the covid-19 lockdown regulations, in-depth interviews were conducted telephonically. this hindered the researchers from observing some of the non-verbal cues which may have assisted in describing and understanding the data. the data collection was also affected by the wi-fi network, as sometimes during the interviews the participants were disconnected or became inaudible. then, when attempting to resume the interview, some participants were no longer available. owing to telephonic interviews and limited internet access, participants were given information-related research and other ethical aspects verbally to obtain informed consent. regardless of these limitations, the researchers did everything they could to ensure trustworthiness and adhere to all ethical principles. as this study followed descriptive phenomenology, the researchers suggest a future quantitative study, comparing the transgender students’ view of online education between rural and urban areas to check if online education is not worsening the gap between the urban and rural transgender students. conclusion the issue of online education seems to be a challenge for all the students, especialy some of the transgender students during covid-19 lockdown. apart from the psychosocial environment where transgender students face stigma and discrimination, some of the challenges faced by these students are not limited to them alone, but appear to apply to other students in similar settings, in particular the issue related to internet access and limited interaction. however, if the situation is not addressed with the main focus on marginalised groups such as transgender students, the access to education for this population could be continuously compromised. this may further lead to the worsening of marginalisation and perpetuating inequality, poverty and further exploitation among transgender individuals and scourge of gender based violence. to avert the above situation, the researchers therefore recommend the following: relentlessly fighting for the betterment of the education and lives of transgender through increased awareness of the community in relation to transgender individuals to increase the understanding of transgender issues. this might increase the research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 mavhandu-mudzusi, a.h. et al. transgender student experiences of online education during covid-19 pandemic era in rural eastern cape area of south africa: a descriptive phenomenological study research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 126 acceptance of the transgender individual by the family and community members. regarding internet access, institutions offering online education should ensure that students are provided with adequate data. when there is lockdown, the students could be given the choice to remain on campus if their home environment is not conducive to learning, with measures in place to comply with health requirements. references adnan, m., & anwar, k. 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(2021). equity in distance education during covid-19. research in social sciences and technology, 6(1), 1-24. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.1. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-9752.12549 https://www.doi.org/10.46303/ressat.05.03.2 https://www.doi.org/10.1080/00131911.2020.1829559 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.1 research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 matarirano, o. et al. students’ responses to multi-modal emergency remote learning during covid-19 in a south african higher institution research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 199 students’ responses to multi-modal emergency remote learning during covid-19 in a south african higher institution obert matarirano*1, onke gqokonqana1 & abor yeboah1 *corresponding author: omatarirano@wsu.ac.za 1. walter sisulu university, department of accounting and finance, south africa received : 2021-06-13 revised : 2021-07-19 accepted : 2021-08-30 how to cite this paper: matarirano, o., gqokonqana, o. & yeboah, a. (2021). students’ responses to multi-modal emergency remote learning during covid-19 in a south african higher institution. research in social sciences and technology, 6(2), 199-218. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.19 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). abstract covid-19 pandemic forced several higher education institutions (hei) to operate remotely. emergency remote teaching, using synchronous and asynchronous instruction, was adopted by several heis. the experiences of students with remote teaching and learning in certain situations are not fully understood, thus need to be explored. this study explored the experiences of students with the emergency remote teaching and learning practices adopted at a selected hei in south africa. a cross-sectional and self-administered survey was used to gather data from 243 conveniently sampled returning students within the department of accounting and finance. descriptive statistics were used to make sense of the collected data. the study found that students preferred a face-to-face approach to learning to remote learning. the respondents underscored insufficient data, unstable network connection, unconducive home environments and loneliness as deterrents to effective remote learning. despite these negative experiences, students appreciated the flexibility and convenience of recorded video lectures and acknowledged the compassion and support of lecturers during remote learning. an understanding of the experiences of students during remote learning provides a basis for future teaching plans, which would improve students' learning experiences. in its current format and students living in their home environments, remote learning greatly diminishes the chances of success for most students. lecturers need to be compassionate and considerate of student’s struggles in their plans for remote teaching and learning as well as online learning. keywords: emergency remote teaching and learning; interaction; remote learning; online learning; synchronous instruction; asynchronous instruction. 10.46303/ressat.2021.19 mailto:omatarirano@wsu.ac.za https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.19 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 matarirano, o. et al. students’ responses to multi-modal emergency remote learning during covid-19 in a south african higher institution research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 200 introduction covid-19 pandemic has caused several governments to take drastic measures to curb its effects. one such measure was restricting movements by imposing lockdowns where educational institutions, among others, were forced to close. south african government announced a national lockdown on the 23rd of march 2020, which was to take effect on the 27th of march 2021 (south african government news agency, 2020). with universities closed, the only way of saving the academic year was through the adoption of emergency remote teaching and learning [ertl] (czerniewicz et al., 2020; jena, 2020) that was facilitated by advancements in technology (ewing & cooper, 2021). ertl is a temporary move from face-to-face and blended teaching to a remote approach as a response to a crisis (hodges, moore, lockee, trust & bond, 2020). primarily, it is facilitated by technology in higher education (he) as several studies have showcased (ferri et al., 2020; mohmmed et al., 2020). commonly used ict platforms for ertl include learning management systems (lms), online video communication and social media platforms (jena, 2020; rahiem, 2020). it is on these platforms that participants engage synchronously or asynchronously via lectures, discussions and assessments (rahiem, 2020) in learning. this study identified and described the undergraduate students’ encounters during ertl, perceptions and preferences for ertl, in a selected hei. whilst several authors such as naidoo (2020), sokhulu (2020), obuaku-igwe (2020) and songca et al. (2021) carried similar studies in south africa, a common characteristic of their studies is that they focused on experiences on limited aspects of ertl. naidoo and sokhulu’s studies focused on experiences of digital platforms; obuaku-igwe considered social isolation experiences whilst songca et al, considered access to study materials and participation efficacy. this study considers experiences from the whole remote learning process except for assessments, which most lecturers have not started administering by the time of collecting data for the study. it looked at the experiences from interactions with lecturers and learning content on platforms used and the interactions with learning content in their home environments. background to the selected higher education institution like many other heis in south africa, the selected institution shifted from its blended but primarily face-to-face teaching and learning mode to ertl. blackboard, customised as wiseup for the selected hei, was the official learning management system (lms) adopted. because most students did not have the required ict tools and data for connection and some lecturers needed some training to enable ertl, the institution did not move to ertl immediately after the lockdown. the institution addressed some of these challenges by training its staff members and providing ict tools and data for both lecturers and students who were in need. training of staff members, especially lecturers, was necessary as it has a direct impact on teaching methods which in turn, impact on student learning (idika, 2020). the delay in moving to remote learning meant that the academic calendar had to be adjusted several times, a common feature for other heis (czerniewicz et al., 2020). this meant that lecturers and students had to complete syllabi in a condensed calendar, which could have been a source of stressful experiences. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 matarirano, o. et al. students’ responses to multi-modal emergency remote learning during covid-19 in a south african higher institution research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 201 the hei moved to ertl after the provision of the enablers but yet encountered a challenge with its lms that could not cope with increased traffic flow. this led to lecturers being limited to few functions of the lms, further affecting the academic plans. because of the temporary malfunctioning of the lms, the institution’s management informed lecturers to use various approaches and platforms for teaching. whilst the decision enabled learning to continue, it exposed students to multiple approaches and platforms, which could have been frustrating for students as claimed by pincock (2020). transitioning to technology during remote learning could overwhelm the students at home, learning how to use the new tools correctly and adapting to a new learning setting (kalimullina et al., 2021; o’scanaill, 2020). research questions it is against this backdrop that the study explored the experiences of students to ertl by answering the following questions:  what were the students’ encounters with ertl at the selected hei during the selected period?  what were the perceptions of the selected hei’s students to ertl during the selected period?  what is the preferred learning approach of the students from the selected hei? literature review since covid-19 induced lockdowns, which led to the closure of heis and the adoption of ertl, many studies have been carried out to explore the experiences of students around the world (amin & sundari, 2020; benito et al., 2021; ewing & cooper, 2021; ghazi-saidi et al., 2020). ertl is considered to be a double-edged sword in that it enabled learning to take place during the covid-19 pandemic but also constrained effective learning (ewing & cooper, 2021). it is considered to be flexible and convenient (serhan, 2020) and some authors claim that it caused feelings of disengagement, demotivation and isolation among students (parker et al., 2021). although ertl enabled learning to take place, it exposed and exacerbated the digital divide between students (krönke, 2020; shin & hickey, 2020; williams et al., 2021). whilst on campuses, students had access to ict equipment, stable internet connection and did not require data for internet connection as wi-fi was provided by hei. these enablers are unavailable at most students’ home environments, widening the digital gap between students from poor families and rich families. theoretical perspective: sociocultural theory vygotsky's sociocultural theory of learning and development (1978) was used to understand the experiences of students during remote learning and the related effects on learning. vygotsky (1978) argued that learning happens in social contexts and underscored the importance of interactions and culture. he argued that learning was a product of sociocultural interactions of individuals and their participation in knowledge practices of a community and supported by others in the community who are more knowledgeable than them. students learn in social contexts through interactions with their peers, teachers and other experts. learning takes place when students interact and collaborate with more knowledgeable others, which could be teachers and or peers (vygotsky, 1978). teachers facilitate learning by creating a research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 matarirano, o. et al. students’ responses to multi-modal emergency remote learning during covid-19 in a south african higher institution research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 202 learning environment that maximises the student’s ability to interact with other students through discussions, collaborations and feedback (neff, 2021). the interactions among students, lecturers and the contextual features of classrooms through activities, impact the motivation of students, which influences their learning. activities in classrooms refer to what lecturers and students, and students and students say to and do with one another (perry et al., 2006). the use of remote learning meant that some student interactions in the selected heis, which were primarily face-to-face, were disrupted. whilst it was still possible to continue with interactions using online platforms, factors such as lack of compatible devices, inconsistent supply of electricity, unstable internet network, high cost of data and unconducive home environments negatively impact the quality and extent of interactions. the established experiences are discussed considering the online student interactions, which are considered by vygotsky to be critical for effective learning. factors that influence interactions in remote learning ict-related factors and electricity to effectively engage in erl, students require the basics of e-learning that include electricity, digital devices, internet connection and data (czerniewicz et al., 2020), which are unavailable to some students (mohmmed et al. 2020; ferri et al., 2020). online interactions are possible with digital devices such as smartphones, tablets/ipad and computers. in their exploration of students’ readiness for digital learning, arthur-nyarko at al. (2020) claim that access to digital technologies creates the foundation for implementing technology-enabled learning. the devices, which are mostly battery-powered, need electricity for recharging. a stable internet connection is another requirement for online interactions. access to electricity and stable internet have a greater impact on students who reside in remote rural areas where there is no or erratic supply of electricity and limited or no ict infrastructure (ferri et al., 2020; shim & lee, 2020). most students from the selected hei live in rural areas and their interactions during erl are curtailed by lack of electricity and unstable internet connections. even with the aforementioned requirements, online interactions are impossible without data that enables internet connection. many students confessed that remote learning required a lot of data, which does not come cheaply (shim & lee, 2020). the cost of data in south africa is very high (naidoo, 2020; rossouw, 2018), thus inhibiting the poor students’ access to learning and reducing their chances of success. technology use proficiency whilst having digital devices, electricity, stable network and data improved the chances of interactions, the actual interactions depend on the ability of students to use the technology for learning. although most students are digital natives (prensky, 2001) and are experienced users of technology (basol et al., 2018), their proficiency is primarily in social media, which may not assist much in understanding technology for learning (nami & vaezi, 2018). the proficiency is even worse for students from poor economic backgrounds who are not exposed to the digital platforms for learning until they join universities (czerniewicz et al., 2020). exposure to technology improves students’ e-learning self-efficacy (khalifeh et al., 2020) and technology research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 matarirano, o. et al. students’ responses to multi-modal emergency remote learning during covid-19 in a south african higher institution research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 203 proficiency (mccoy, 2010), which are relevant to meaningful students’ engagements with learning. home environments the study environment is another factor that affected erl. during the national lockdowns, most students had to go back to their homes. whilst the home environments provided a comfortable learning environment for some students (parker et al., 2021), they impeded many with financially-poor backgrounds and family responsibilities (mohmmed et al., 2020; obuakuigwe, 2020; shin & hickey, 2020). many studies considered home environments unconducive for learning (jisc, 2021; kaisara & bwalya, 2020) as several students did not have a dedicated space to work, undisturbed (wilcox & vignal, 2020) which negatively affects student learning. student experiences of remote learning positive experiences experiences of students during erl have been mixed, with reports of improved learning and some negative experiences (ewing & cooper, 2021; wise & bergner, 2020). remote learning promoted the anytime anywhere learning (mazana, 2018) and reached people who would have been inaccessible (yuhasriati et al., 2020). students enjoyed the comfortable home environments, efficient time utilisation, smooth interaction (benito et al., 2021; shim & lee, 2020), flexibility, convenience (wise & bergner, 2020) and the freedom to structure their learning (jena, 2020; parker et al., 2021). they had no obligation to attend lectures in cramped lecture venues and could learn in more relaxed environments (parker et al., 2021), improving their concentration levels (pincock, 2020). remote learning was also desirable to students who commute to and from university campuses, as it saved them time (yuan, 2021) and money (krige, 2020). besides its flexibility and convenience, erl granted students more opportunities for interaction with their lecturers and peers (huang et al., 2020). live streaming established a sense of community (yuan, 2021) and promoted interaction by providing a less intimidating learning environment (pincock, 2020), and encouraging introverts to participate (ghazi-saidi et al., 2020) without being concerned about the attention of peers and lecturers (serhan, 2020). the ability of students to ask questions in remote learning contributed to their positive experiences (parker et al., 2021). students who preferred remote learning commented on the easiness of communicating with lecturers and peers and less distraction from friends and classmates (sokhulu, 2020; vale et al., 2020). the use of videos and recordings was highly appreciated by students (naidoo, 2020) who were keen to utilise recordings for learning (yuan, 2021) and as a result, reported enhanced learning experiences (benito et al., 2021; vale et al., 2020). recordings have been reported to improve students’ interaction with the course content as they paid more attention to synchronous engagements instead of focusing on note-taking (nkomo & daniel, 2021). lecture recordings are a critical resource for review to students who got lost in a class (czerniewicz et al., 2020) or did not understand a concept because of its complexity or difficulties in understanding the lecturer (nkomo & daniel, 2021). yuan (2021) argues that recorded videos assist students to research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 matarirano, o. et al. students’ responses to multi-modal emergency remote learning during covid-19 in a south african higher institution research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 204 connect and understand concepts better, which they can achieve by replaying the video whenever they desire. negative experiences although students had positive experiences with remote learning, they also had unpleasant ones. for some students, words such as anxious, frustrated, distressed and overwhelmed were used to describe their experiences (almoayad et al., 2020; subedi & subedi, 2020; wise & bergner, 2020). contrary to the claim by ghazi-saidi et al., (2020) and yuan (2021) that engagements improved with erl, many studies revealed a reduction in engagement levels (jisc, 2021; parker et al., 2021; shin & hickey, 2020; wise & bergner, 2020). turn-taking in synchronous classes inhibited effective interactions as more than a single person could talk discouraging others from participating (wise & bergner, 2020). there is a general distraction associated with online learning, which negatively affected student learning experiences (vale et al., 2020). students could easily be distracted by other activities such as web browsing (mohmmed et al., 2020) and chatting on social media platforms (parker et al., 2021) during synchronous sessions and home experiences where most students did not have private study spaces (parker et al., 2021; serhan, 2020). these distractions led to many students losing motivation to learn (ghazi-saidi et al., 2020; shin & hickey, 2020). social isolation was also a major issue and most students felt isolated from their peers and lecturers (benito et al., 2021; kaisara & bwalya, 2020; shim & lee, 2020). students decried the lack of interpersonal experiences and connections with other students (wise & bergner, 2020). erl was considered to be less personalised (ewing & cooper, 2021) and students did not feel a sense of community (shin & hickey, 2020). yet, the findings of varying and contrasting experiences are expected as students do not have homogeneous learning patterns (arora et al., 2011) and previous experiences (ghazi-saidi et al., 2020), thus their experiences with erl would be different. in addition, the students were exposed to different structures and cultural environments that influenced their experiences. methods design a cross-sectional descriptive study was carried out to describe the experiences of students with remote learning from the time when face-to-face interactions were replaced by remote teaching until the end of august of 2020. the experiences included students’ encounters, perceptions and preferences. the study followed a survey research design, utilising an online questionnaire with closed-ended questions. surveys are considered most appropriate for measuring unobservable data such as factual information, preferences, attitudes, beliefs and behaviours (nayak & singh, 2015). sampling procedures a non-probability convenience sampling was used to identify respondents. the survey instrument was administered to returning students enrolled in the department of accounting and finance (doaf) in one campus of the selected institution. the study targeted returning students because they were more familiar with the institution’s structures and cultures and research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 matarirano, o. et al. students’ responses to multi-modal emergency remote learning during covid-19 in a south african higher institution research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 205 experienced face-to-face learning before covid-19-induced lockdowns. as a result, they were able to provide meaningful assessments on the shift to ert. the doaf had 649 registered returning students in the first semester of the 2020 academic year. after a week of sharing the questionnaire, 243 students responded. the general characteristics of the respondents are summarised in table 1. table 1. general characteristics of respondents age female male total study level frequency below 20 years 8 2 10 second 93 20 25 years 106 48 154 third 115 25 30 years 37 18 55 fourth 35 30 35 years 14 6 20 over 35 years 3 1 4 grand total 168 75 243 243 as portrayed in table 1, the total number of students who responded to the questionnaire was 243 of which 69% were females whilst 31% were males. the level of study which had the highest representation was the third year, which made 47% of the respondents. the age class of 20 – 25 years had the most respondents comprising 63% of the sample. research instrument a self-administered questionnaire developed by the researchers based on the research questions of the study was used to gather data. the questionnaire had five sections. the first section solicited socio-demographic information such as gender, age and level of study. the second section identified the ict tools, platforms and approaches used during erl. section three had nine items that were used to establish the encounters of respondents during the period under study. the fourth section had seventeen items that required respondents to indicate their feelings about erl on a likert scale. nine of the 17 items solicit feelings about the learning platforms and approaches used as well as the interactions with lecturers. the remaining items related to preferences and reasons behind the identified preferences. the last section required respondents to indicate their preferred learning platforms but the findings are not reported in this paper. reliability and validity the internal consistency of the 17 items that were used to explore the perceptions of students was established by calculating cronbach’s alpha whilst validity was established by extracting factor loadings from the principal component analysis. cronbach’s alpha and factor loadings were calculated using spss. a cronbach’s alpha value of 0.827 was obtained, which showed high internal consistency reliability. as a rule of thumb, values above 0.6 for cronbach’s alpha indicate a reliable research instrument (sarosa, 2019). for a research instrument to be reliable, the rotated factor loadings of any item should not be less than 0.4 (rahn, 2021). all items had factor loadings above 0.4. the reliability and validity scores obtained show the adequacy of the research instrument in measuring the perceptions of students during the selected period of erl. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 matarirano, o. et al. students’ responses to multi-modal emergency remote learning during covid-19 in a south african higher institution research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 206 data collection procedures the study implored responses from literate participants, thus making a self-administered questionnaire an appropriate measurement tool. data were collected from the 30th august 2020 to the 4th of september 2020, which was towards the end of the covid-19 adjusted first semester. the end of the semester was selected because it allowed students enough time to experience erl. a hyperlink to the questionnaire was shared via class whatsapp groups. key ethical issues were addressed throughout the research, especially during the data gathering and analysis stages. all respondents were informed about the purpose of the study and how the information generated was to be used. confidentiality was guaranteed and highlighted in the introduction of the google form used for data collection. respondents were informed of their right to privacy and refusal to participate at any point in the survey. data analysis the data analysis process began by downloading responses from google forms to ms excel and then cleaning it for missing responses. the data presented only one missing response on the ict devices used by respondents, which was not reported in this paper. data from ms excel was exported to spss for reliability and validity testing. in attempting to understand the meaning of the data relating to student encounters during the study period, bar charts in ms excel, were used to present the frequencies of each pre-identified encounter. the visualisation of the results made the interpretation and understanding of the data easier. the perfections and preferences of students were analysed using item statistics of the likert scale generated from the descriptive statistics of spss. the five-point likert scale was reduced to three points including strongly agree and agree; neutral; disagree and strongly disagree. the item statistics included percentages of options selected for each item and the means for each item. the percentages of the options for each item represent the position of respondents regarding that item; the higher percentages represent the majority position of respondents. the mean represents the average response to each item and ranges between 1 and 5 with 2.5 as the middle point. a mean above 2.5 implies responses skewed towards agreeing with a statement whilst below 2.5 shows disagreeing with a statement. findings the purpose of this study was to identify and describe the encounters of students and their perceptions and preferences about remote learning. to have a better understanding of the experiences of respondents, it is necessary to present the general teaching approaches used by lecturers in their engagements with students. these approaches are summarised in figure 1. the results of the students’ encounters, perceptions about remote learning and preferences in remote learning are presented thereafter. approaches used for ert respondents were requested to select the approaches used by lecturers in ert. their responses are summarised in figure 1. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 matarirano, o. et al. students’ responses to multi-modal emergency remote learning during covid-19 in a south african higher institution research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 207 figure 1. approaches used for ert the approaches used for ert, as presented in figure 1, included asynchronous pre-recorded class videos and class recordings, whatsapp voice notes and voiceover powerpoint whilst virtual classes were used for synchronous engagements. pre-recorded videos and virtual classes, which were also recorded, were the commonly used approaches for ert. the primary reasons for having pre-recorded videos or recording classes were to enable access to students who would have missed classes due to various reasons such as unstable network, insufficient data for connectivity and family responsibilities among others. students’ encounters during erl from a list of encounters, respondents were asked to select encounters during remote learning. their responses are summarised in figure 2. figure 2. student encounters during erl as figure 2 portrays, the major encounters students had with erl included struggles to log in to learning platforms, inability to download learning content, inaudible synchronous lectures and insufficient data. the most frequently selected encounter was running out of data for engagement with learning. students were provided with data that was expected to last them for a month but this was not enough for the learning required. students were expected to pre-recorded videosonline virtual classes whatsapp voicenotes voiceover powerpoint 10 47 136 74 102 35 161 35 14 0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160 180 lost phone phone freezing log in to the used platform inability to download content inaudible lectures lost saved content inadequate data too many platforms used network challenges research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 matarirano, o. et al. students’ responses to multi-modal emergency remote learning during covid-19 in a south african higher institution research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 208 attend synchronous virtual classes, download course content, search information for assignments and engage in peer discussions amongst other activities. it is also possible that students used the provided data for socialisation, which may be necessary for learning motivation. the other encounters selected included trouble in logging into learning platforms, difficulties in downloading content and inaudible lectures that reflected unstable networks. perceptions about erl the perceptions of students about the learning platforms used, teaching approaches as well as their engagements with lecturers are summarised in table 2. table 2. perceptions about erl item strongly disagree/disagree neutral agree/strongly agree mean i enjoy the flexibility of learning using online platforms 59 % 22 % 19 % 2.3580 i like recorded classes/videos because i can watch them anytime 14 % 20 % 66 % 3.7037 i like recorded classes/videos because i can watch them at any place 16 % 22 % 62 % 3.6502 i like recorded classes/videos because i can pause and or rewind 11 % 19 % 70 % 3.7654 lecturers take long to respond to queries raised on platforms 62 % 27 % 11 % 2.2469 lecturers do not respond to queries raised on an online platform 80 % 15 % 5 % 1.9753 lecturers do not constantly visit the learning platforms used 76 % 15 % 9 % 2.0864 lecturers do not actively engage me on the platforms used 61 % 26 % 13 % 2.3786 i get frustrated by the use of different platforms by lecturers 26 % 22 % 52 % 3.2634 in attempting to understand the perceptions of students in interacting with learning content, synchronously and asynchronously, they were asked to indicate their feelings about the learning platforms used, the lecture and class recordings as well as their interactions with lecturers. table 2 presents the responses to the statements provided. most respondents did not enjoy the flexibility of online platforms, contrary to what is claimed in literature. the mean responses to the statement on whether they enjoyed the flexibility of online platforms were below the mid-point of 2.5, implying negative perceptions towards used platforms. the responses to this item could have been influenced by the challenges respondents encountered during remote learning. as portrayed in figure 2, respondents had insufficient data as well as having difficulties in logging into learning platforms, downloading learning content and hearing lecturers during synchronous interactions. regardless, the respondents appreciated the flexibility of pre-recorded lectures and recorded classes, which were considered being convenient. as shown in table 2, students appreciated recorded content as they could access it at any time, any place and could pause, rewind and fast forward, allowing them to study at their own pace. class recordings and videos provided research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 matarirano, o. et al. students’ responses to multi-modal emergency remote learning during covid-19 in a south african higher institution research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 209 another opportunity for students who would have missed the synchronous classes because of a myriad of reasons. the presence of the lecturer on the learning platforms is critical if students are to have meaningful engagements with learning content. engagements between students and lecturers are through learning platforms, emails and social media networks. respondents were requested to indicate their feelings about how the lecturers engaged with them to better understand the learning content. most respondents were content with the efforts and support of the lecturers as shown in table 2. responses showed that lecturers showed compassion and were supportive of students. they claimed that lecturers responded to their queries on time, were visible on the learning platforms and actively engaged them on the platforms. the only source of frustration from interaction with lecturers was the use of different platforms for different subjects. this could be because students were serviced by other departments for specialised courses such as commercial law and statistics that are housed in other departments separate from doaf. preferences of learning approach table 3 presents the responses to statements about respondents’ preference between faceto-face classes and online learning as well as reasons provided for those who preferred learning face-to-face on campus. table 3. preferences for learning approach item strongly disagree/disagree neutral agree/strongly agree mean i prefer learning online to a classroom 77 % 13 % 10 % 1.9095 i prefer attending classes on campus because: i do not have adequate study space 20 % 19 % 61 % 3.3580 i do not have enough study time 20 % 22 % 58 % 3.4074 i have a poor network connection 21 % 22 % 57 % 3.3086 i do not have adequate data for connection 20 % 23 % 57 % 3.3045 i do not have proper ict equipment 34 % 24 % 42 % 3.0082 it is difficult to concentrate when studying from home 25 % 12 % 63 % 3.6255 remote learning lowers personal relationships 32 % 27 % 41 % 3.1481 as table 3 shows, most respondents preferred face-to-face, on-campus learning compared to online learning. a paltry 10% preferred online learning compared to 77% that were against it. a mean score of less than 2.5 shows that online learning was unpopular with the respondents. the respondents were requested to select reasons for preferring face-to-face interactions. the reasons selected for the preference of face-to-face learning approach ranged from unconducive home environments, ict-related, to social relations factors. most respondents indicated not having enough time and space to study and difficulty in concentrating at home environments. in addition, their preference for face-to-face interactions was partly informed by the lack of personal relationships in remote learning. thus, they could not learn from each other through collaborations and discussions. students get motivation by engaging with their peers and a lack of interaction may demotivate them to engage with content, chiefly, if the research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 matarirano, o. et al. students’ responses to multi-modal emergency remote learning during covid-19 in a south african higher institution research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 210 content is challenging. with all reasons provided, the means, as shown in table 3, were above 2.5 proving their preference for face-to-face interactions on campus. of all reasons, the lack of digital devices had the least effect on their perceptions. still, it was expected that students would not consider a lack of digital devices as an inhibitor to remote learning as most students received laptops. discussion the study intended to identify the encounters of students during remote learning, their perceptions of remote learning and their preferred approaches to learning. the results show that the students who participated in the survey had insufficient data for learning, had unstable network connections which resulted in struggling to log in to learning platforms, downloading learning content and hearing lectures in synchronous classes. in terms of perceptions, most respondents did not enjoy the flexibility of online learning platforms. however, they appreciated the benefits associated with recorded learning content and classes. the respondents also considered their interactions with lecturers to have been fruitful and they perceived lecturers to be compassionate and affective in the interactions. most respondents preferred to go back to face-to-face classes on campus to learning online. these findings are the subject of the following discussion. the findings provide evidence that the level and quality of interactions between students and lecturers and students and students, which are critical to learning, as argued by vygotsky (1978), were greatly affected. besides student-lecturer and student-student interactions, the studentcontent (moore, 1989) interaction was also affected. moore (1989), in his discussion on students’ interactions in distance learning, argued that students need to interact with content, lecturers and other students for effective learning to take place. any factors that do not promote these interactions would negatively affect student learning and reduce their chances of success. encounters of students during erl the major encounter of respondents during remote learning was insufficient data for engagements with learning. this finding was expected as most respondents are from disadvantaged families, do not have internet access at home and cannot afford to buy data, which is considered to be expensive in south africa (naidoo, 2020; rossouw, 2018). inadequacy of data makes engagement with learning content, lecturers and peers a challenging exercise. however, this encounter is not isolated to the respondents in this study as other studies around the world found insufficient data to be an issue for meaningful remote learning (kaisara & bwalya, 2020). the struggles of respondents to log in to learning platforms, inability to download learning content and inaudible lectures during synchronous classes highlight the unstable network that most students encountered. an unstable network connection has been cited in several studies as one of the major obstacles to remote learning in both the developing (kaisara & bwalya, 2020; songca et al., 2021) and developed world (wilcox & vignal, 2020; williams et al., 2021). students with poor internet connections cannot fully engage with content, interact with peers and lecturers online, which makes erl a struggle for them (shin & hickey, 2020; vale et al., 2020). inability to engage with content, especially in synchronous interactions, negatively research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 matarirano, o. et al. students’ responses to multi-modal emergency remote learning during covid-19 in a south african higher institution research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 211 affects students’ chances of success (benito et al., 2021) as attendance affects performance (vale et al., 2020). similar to insufficient data, an unstable internet connection reduces the levels of interactions between students and learning content, their lecturers and peers, thus reducing their chances of success. learning is considered a social and cognitive engagement (shin & hickey, 2020), so a lack of social interaction impedes effective learning (almoayad et al., 2020). students’ perceptions about erl despite the negative experiences of remote learning, many respondents appreciated the use of lectures and class recordings. use of recordings put students at ease as they could access the learning content they could have missed and gave them another opportunity to interact with learning content. in addition, recordings also provided flexibility and convenience for learning. with recordings, students could get clarification on concepts missed out in classes, access the content when they had time and ‘quietness’. they could download content when they had data and a stable network and could study offline. this was very important as the data package students received, as a result of the negotiation between the selected institution and network providers, had more night proportion data than daytime. having recordings available anytime meant that students could utilise this data by downloading the videos at night. students could also rewind, pause and fast-forward recordings to improve their understanding. this finding is echoed in many prior studies that claim recordings to be useful to students (benito et al., 2021; naidoo, 2020; vale et al., 2020; yuan, 2021) and are preferred to synchronous instruction (songca et al., 2021). these studies argue that recordings benefit students by enhancing engagement, supplementing classes (nkomo & daniel, 2021), providing an alternative to missed classes (mohmmed et al., 2020) and allowing students to review unclear concepts (czerniewicz et al., 2020; yuan, 2021). the respondents also acknowledged the efforts of lecturers in making their experiences in remote learning bearable. they claimed that lecturers actively interacted with them on various platforms, provided timely responses to queries/consultations and were flexible, which improved their engagements with learning content. such presence could have improved the learning of students as lecturers’ active involvement is critical to providing support and encouragement (aristovnik et al., 2020). many studies carried out to assess the experiences of students during remote learning also found lecturers to be compassionate and made themselves available for interactions with students (songca et al., 2021; yuan, 2021). the only concern with respondents regarding their interactions with lecturers was the use of multiple platforms for engagements. this concern was likely to result from no specific guidance being provided for student instruction and lecturers were likely to use methods they were comfortable with. in addition, students were, in some subjects, instructed by lecturers from departments other than the doaf. whilst it could be easier for lecturers from the same department to agree on using similar platforms, the same could not be said about different departments which adopted and recommended different platforms. students’ learning preferences asked if they would prefer learning online or face-to-face on campus, it is unsurprising that most respondents preferred being on campus compared to learning online. face-to-face research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 matarirano, o. et al. students’ responses to multi-modal emergency remote learning during covid-19 in a south african higher institution research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 212 interactions gave them meaningful interactions and increased their chances of success. the benefits of remote learning such as flexibility and convenience (benito et al., 2021; serhan, 2020) were overshadowed by the negative experiences associated with remote learning. this finding is shared by benito et al., (2021) who found face-to-face classes to be more effective to learning than remote learning. university campus environments provide resources and study spaces that are missing in most home environments. at home, most students, who share spaces with their families, have many family responsibilities and home chores, which limit the time they have for interacting with learning content. this challenge is worse for students who are parents or females as they have to take care of their families, in addition to studying full time (czerniewicz et al., 2020; shin & hickey, 2020). the home environments have several disturbances that make concentration almost impossible as most respondents in the study alluded. this argument is supported by vale et al., (2020) who found that it is easier for students to concentrate in face-to-face classes than in online environments. adding to study spaces and study time, students from most rural areas do not have electricity, which further limits the extent of all relevant interactions. most of the identified challenges resonate with the challenges faced by students in remote learning, which include lack of quiet study spaces, no access to campus resources, additional familial responsibilities and unreliable internet connection (wilcox & vignal, 2020). the campus environments neutralise the negative experiences associated with home environments by providing study spaces, ict-related resources as well as places for social interaction. according to unesco (2020), university campuses are hubs of social activity and human interaction, which are essential to learning and development. remote learning denied students an opportunity for physical and social engagements with peers, negatively affecting their social life. rodriguez-segura et al., (2020) argue that the social life of students plays a huge role in their learning, which is in line with the sociocultural learning theory which argues that learning occurs in social contexts through interactions (vygotsky, 1978). according to hurst et al., (2013), social interaction improves student learning by enhancing their critical thinking and problem-solving skills. okita (2012) claims that interacting with other people assists students in organising their thoughts, reflecting on their understanding and finding gaps in their reasoning. in african societies that practice a culture of ‘ubuntu’, where there is a dependency on each other, isolation may cause a sense of being lost, which may lead to a loss of desire and motivation to learn. online social interactions are hindered by insufficient data and unstable network connections. the findings of this study point to the mixed feelings students experience during remote learning. this is because, as much as remote learning brought inequalities between students to the fore, it also provided several opportunities that were not fully explored pre-covid-19. as ewing and cooper (2021) claimed, remote learning evoked both positive and negative experiences from students as it aided and inhibited student interactions with learning content, lecturers and peers. insufficient data, unstable networks, unconducive home environments and use of multiple platforms reduced the level of interactions whilst the use of recorded materials and availability of lecturers to students when there was a need, improved the interactions. this study adds to the body of knowledge for online learning and how decisions for online should have a student’s voice if they are to be effective. in making decisions about online research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 matarirano, o. et al. students’ responses to multi-modal emergency remote learning during covid-19 in a south african higher institution research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 213 learning, the findings of the study show that the primary focus must be on student learning and not necessarily how versatile lecturers may be when using online platforms. the choice of learning approaches and platforms should not be left to the lecturers but involve students. such decisions would lead to students focusing on learning rather than other issues such as learning platforms, which disrupt them learning. limitations and areas for further research although the findings of this study conform to findings from other similar studies, the study was exclusive, making the findings ungeneralisable. first, the sample was from one department, which is not representative of all students of the selected hei. the short time provided to respond (one week) may have excluded students who did not have data, network or ict tools at the time data was collected. a longer data collection period might have improved the number of responses and be more inclusive. the study excluded students who had no whatsapp at the time of administering the survey instrument. interactions with assessments were excluded from the study, which could have broadened the insights into the remote learning experiences. in addition, the study did not get qualitative explanations for the experiences and perceptions during ertl. future studies need to consider qualitative explanations of the experiences and also consider the effects of different societal structures such as gender on student experiences in remote learning. conclusion the study findings showed that students encountered a number of challenges, key among them being insufficient data, and unstable network connection. they also decried unconducive home environments which made them prefer being on campus. their preference for face-to-face oncampus learning may therefore, not be a sign of dislike for online learning but a reflection of the challenges they encountered during remote learning. most of the challenges experienced are not new to most students but they were exposed by ertl. the university campuses concealed these deep social inequalities that exist within south african societies. regardless of these negative experiences, they appreciated the use of recorded material and the compassion of lecturers. although the findings of the study cannot be generalised, they provide a resource for proper planning of teaching and learning, not only during pandemics but also for the future of elearning. the findings show that online learning will not be feasible with all the challenges students encountered when learning from home. effective engagements, which are inhibited by the circumstances of home environments, are only possible with students being on campus. the findings also point to the need for lecturers to consider the challenges students encounter in their plans for teaching and learning. the lessons learnt from studies such as this help in planning for the future of teaching and learning. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 matarirano, o. et al. students’ responses to multi-modal emergency remote learning during covid-19 in a south african higher institution research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 214 references almoayad, f., 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(2022). do personality traits matter in preferences of translation strategies? research in social sciences and technology, 7(1), 42-55. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2022.4 copyright license this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 abstract translation is closely related to languages, linguistics, pragmatics, sociolinguistics, culture etc. and because of these relations, there are also a lot of theories which give importance either to source language or target language. linguistic and other features of the source and target texts have been examined for years. but translator is an important element with an important role in translation process as well, and the influence of translators’ personality traits on their translation has been emphasized. therefore, the aim of the current study is to investigate whether there are relations between translators’ personality characters and their translation strategy preferences. the bfi test (big fivefactor inventory) is administered to 28 english translation and interpreting students at cappadocia university to determine the personality traits of the participants. then they are asked to choose one of the suggested translations in accordance with the translation model. the data are analyzed through spss (v. 22). the findings indicate that there are significant relationships between personality traits of participants and their use of translation strategies. according to results, agreeableness personality trait has a significant relationship with borrowing strategy, openness and neuroticism have significant relationships with modulation strategy, and conscientiousness has a significant relationship with adaptation strategy. only extraversion does not correlate significantly with any of the strategies. keywords personality traits; translation studies; translation strategies 10.46303/ressat.2022.4 43 ressat 2022, 7(1): 42-55 introduction translation studies have kept features of source and target languages, linguistics, pragmatics, sociolinguistics, culture etc. in the center. there have been many translation theories; some of them regard source texts as starting point and some give importance to target texts, that's to say to texts produced in the target language by the translators. translation process also includes translators who produce the target texts. translators may apply many methods to translate different texts. this means that translators approach a text with appropriate methods and have the best translation at the end. the skills, knowledge and experience of the translator have important roles in the end product. however, it may be important to take the role and personality traits of translators. it can be suggested that the investigations on relationships between the personality traits of translators and their individual preferences in translation have been very recent. according to reiss (2000), a translator’s personality type may affect her/his translation performance. for this reason, these subjective differences in personality traits result in various tl texts of the same sl texts. and again, according to wuilmart (2007), besides their approaches and methods in translation, translators’ preferences are affected by their personality traits as well. hubscher-davidson (2007) investigates the relationships between their performance and translators’ personality traits and the results show that the personality traits of translators affect their behavior and as a result of this, their translations are also influenced by their personalities. in accordance with these developments, it may be important to investigate the relationships between personality traits of translators and their translation strategy preferences, because it seems obvious that personality traits are important in translation and translators’ decision in their approaches to sl texts therefore, this study investigates the relationships between translators’ personality traits and their strategy-use preferences. review of literature according to costa et al. (1995) personality characterizes the thinking, acting, and feeling of an individual in an enduring style. in old times personalities were classified according to the humours but later this evolved into adjectives which described personality traits of the people. the 1960s witnessed the emergence of five dimensions of personality which was called the big five. end of 1980s and 1990s witnessed the intense research on the big five which has been accepted and used as an important personality trait model to distinguish the dimensions of human personality; these are neuroticism, agreeableness, extraversion, openness, and conscientiousness (john et al., 1991). it has been proved that professional performances of people are influenced by their personalities (avunduk, 2021; barrick, 2005; barrick & mount, 1991; barrick et al., 2001; lounsbury et al., 2004; ones et al., 2007; rothstein & goffin, 2006;). personality traits are also important in education, in learning a foreign language, and they are important for various language skills (başok & sayer, 2020; dewaele & furnham, 1999; gazioğlu & güner, 2021; guerra et al. 2020; patimo & lucero, 2021; vural, 2017). for example, the study 44 ressat 2022, 7(1): 42-55 done by vural (2019; 2020) indicates a significant relationship between personality traits and learners’ foreign language speaking anxiety and self-efficacy. knowledge development may depend on personal varieties as well. personality traits can be accepted as noncognitive individual differences, and in accordance with these big five personality traits are related to academic success (o’connor & paunonen, 2007). besides, neuroticism and extroversion are strongly related to affect (eysenck & eysenck, 1985; costa & mccrae, 1992) and openness, agreeableness and conscientiousness are related to confidence and self-esteem (watson & clark, 1992). investigations on relationships between the personality traits and translators’ performance have been new in the field. according to reiss (2014), personality traits of translators are important during translation training, and each translator has different and personal ways and styles of translating. according to wuilmart (2007), together with the elements which affect translator's decisions and preferences in his approach to the source language and source text and figuring out his methods of translation and the final text in target language, translator’s personality traits can be among the other factors that influence translator's preferences. translator’s feelings and mood are directly related to his performance and the quality of the translated text. a similar investigation was performed by hubscher-davidson (2007) about the performance and translator's personality. in this study she investigates the personality traits of the translators and how these traits may affect translators’ decision-making process. according to the results, there are significant relations between translators’ personality traits and their behaviors and decision making in translation. translators have different personality traits, and these traits may affect their decisions and behaviors in translating. therefore, these individual differences may affect the translation process and their final products in target language are different from each other (coba, 2007). for that reason, it may be suggested that the work of a translator is up to his personality traits and attitudes, and these personality traits may play a salient role in preferences, behaviors and success or failure of the translator in translation process. translation procedures of vinay and darbelnet two french scholars, jean paul vinay and john darbelnet investigated the relations between linguistics and translation in 1950s. however, their studies were accepted as comparative literature because translation studies were not considered as a field of science in those years. actually, they tried to find the differences between languages to understand both languages better through translation, and for that reason the contrastive linguistics term can be applied to their work as well. in their book ‘comparative stylistics of french and english: a methodology for translation’ vinay and darbelnet (1995) mention about seven direct or oblique translation procedures or processes. direct ones are literal translation, borrowing and calque and these can 45 ressat 2022, 7(1): 42-55 be called as source-oriented procedures. and the oblique ones are transposition, modulation, equivalence, and adaptation. these seven procedures or as the following:  borrowing: this is maintaining a word in source language (sl) in the target language (tl). this may happen when there is no existing term in the target language to fill a metalinguistic gap in it.  calque: sometimes some expressions in source language are translated literally into target language. this is called calque.  literal translation: this is translating word for word from source language to target language with proper grammatical and idiomatic equivalence.  transposition: in transposition, word type in source language is changed into another word type in target language, such as changing nouns into verbs without any semantic change.  modulation: according to vinay and darbelnet this procedure can be used when the translations from other procedures sound awkward. modulation may help translator to keep the meaning and accuracy of the source language and to be natural.  equivalence or idiomatic translation: here the equivalence means cultural equivalence. a situation is expressed by two different texts from two different languages.  adaptation: sometimes a translation may sound strange and unfamiliar in target language. it is similar to equivalence, but the translation must be relevant and meaningful to the originals. methodology model of the study since this study needs comparative and correlational analysis, quantitative research design features have been applied. empirical statements and methods are used in data collection in quantitative research (cohen et al., 2013), and numerical data and their generalization to clusters of people for a particular circumstance are important (babbie, 2015). besides, the obtained data are analyzed in a correlational way; that is the correlation between translations strategies and participants personality traits. therefore, relationships between more than two variables are investigated and according to the results, predictions are made to understand those relationships (johnson & christensen, 2004). the sample a sample can be accepted as a small unit of a population to illustrate the general situation of the participants. the participants of the current study were chosen according to their availability, accessibility, and proximity during the application of questionnaire; for that reason, the current sampling can be called as convenience sampling (gay et al., 2011). the participants are 28 translation-interpreting department sophomore and junior students. 22 of them are females and 6 are males from cappadocia university in turkey. they have already been acquainted with models and theories of translation during their studies. there was no 46 ressat 2022, 7(1): 42-55 intervention during the current research and the participants were assessed during fall 2021 semester. since all the questions in the questionnaire are answered fully and acceptably, the final n-size is 28. research instruments instrument to collect data on personality the data are generated from the big five inventory; extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, neuroticism and openness construct the big five personality traits. the participants answer the bfi questionnaire first. this big five inventory has 44 short-phrase items to assess the personality traits of individuals (john et al., 1991; john & srivastava, 1999; benetmartínez & john, 1998; john et al., 2008). it has a five-step scale from 1 ‘disagree strongly’ to 5 ‘agree strongly’. it has an average above .83 reliability ranging from .79 to .88. the validity correlations are .88 for extraversion; .81 for openness; .84 for neuroticism; .79 for agreeableness and .47 for conscientiousness, and it has totally an average of .82 (rammstedt & john, 2005; 2007). for the current study the internal reliability of bfi is determined separately, and cronbach’s alpha coefficient is calculated for each personality trait with the results of .62 for agreeableness, .68 for openness, .63 for extraversion, .67 for conscientiousness, and .62 for neuroticism; and the average is .65. these results are enough for the current study to have a good internal consistency. instrument to collect data on translation seven strategies introduced by vinay and darblenet (1995) are taken into consideration to design to translate the source text sentences in the study. for the model of vinay and darblenet 7 sentences in turkish (1 sentence for each of the translation strategies) and their english translations are prepared. here 2 translated texts are assigned for every sentence, and totally there are 14 translated texts. each strategy of vinay and darblenet’s model is applied to only one translation, and the other is translated without any strategy. in other words, for each sentence two translations are given, one according to the related strategy and the other without any strategy. later they are asked to choose one of the two translations to determine their translation strategies preferences. cronbach’s alpha coefficient is calculated for vinay and darblenet’s model in this study is 0.61. the participants are expected to have answered the questions accurately. data collection the current study is quantitative study, and the data are collected through structured questionnaires. the questionnaires of current study contain dependent-independent variables such as personality traits and translation strategies. at the beginning of every questionnaire the aim and the content are explained for the participants. the survey is conducted by the researcher of the current study himself. data are collected from sophomore and junior students attending translation-interpreting department at cappadocia university in turkey. the current study does not require any data manipulations or experiment, and therefore, just two different 47 ressat 2022, 7(1): 42-55 questionnaires are applied. there was no intervention during the current research and the participants were assessed during fall 2021 semester. since all the questions in the questionnaire are answered fully and acceptably, the final n-size is 28. data analysis data are collected through two inventories in two stages. first the participants give their responses to the big five inventory in order to determine their personality traits. then at the second stage, they are asked to choose one of the two english translations of a turkish sentence; here, one out of the two translations is in accordance with a strategy of translation. in the current study, participants are asked to indicate their agreement levels by the help of some statements, and this is called as interval scale (pfeiffer et al., 2011). interval scale is based on one questionnaire with 5 categories of likert scale ranging from 1 (strong disagreement) to 5 (strong agreement) and 2, 3 and 4 indicating intermediate judgments. accordingly, there is no right or wrong answer, and participants choose the number reflecting their thoughts best at one point of time; from this point of view, the current study can be accepted as a cross-sectional study as well. then, the data are analyzed using the statistic package for social sciences (spss) version 22. the significant correlations or differences among variables are investigated through inferential statistics (correlation). and descriptive (means and standard deviations) statistics is applied to determine the personality traits of the participants. first, the data quality and their accordance with the objectives are ensured through checking the questionnaires for any wrong sequences and any missing pages. then, to increase the precision and accuracy and avoid illegible, insufficient, and uncertain responses from the questionnaires, data editing is applied (naresh, 2019). it is seen that all questionnaires are completed properly and there is no incomplete information and parts in them, and therefore, all papers of 28 participants are included in the analysis. after this, data coding is performed, and then, coded data are transferred to the computer before the data analysis. after calculating the mean scores, the internal consistencies of the questionnaires are examined through calculation of cronbach’s alpha coefficients. kolmogorov-smirnov (ks) test is not applied to examine the normality because the sample number is below 100. instead, the values of skewness and kurtosis are calculated since the sample number is below 50. according to the results, the z value is between -1.96 and +1.96; therefore, it is accepted that the data are distributed normally (field, 2018). then, to find out any relationships between personality traits and translation strategies, pearson product-moment correlation coefficient is computed because it is a tool to investigate the degree of associations between variables (naresh, 2019). 48 ressat 2022, 7(1): 42-55 results descriptive results descriptive statistics is applied to the bfi so that the personality traits of the participants are determined. in the following table the minimums, maximums, means and standard deviations of personality traits of the participants can be found: table 1. descriptive statistics of personality traits of the participants n minimum maximum mean std. deviation agreeableness 28 1.56 5.00 3.67 .56 openness 28 1.90 5.00 3.65 .55 conscientiousness 28 1.67 5.00 3.58 .59 extraversion 28 1.10 5.00 3.49 .64 neuroticism 28 1.00 4.88 2.48 .62 total 28 in the table above the mean scores of the bfi of participants can be seen. according to the analysis of their answers the bfi shows that the mean scores are agreeableness (m = 3.67), openness (m = 3.65), conscientiousness (m = 3.58), extraversion (m = 3.49) and neuroticism (m = 2.48). this table indicates that all participants have all the five personality traits. most of them are agreeable and the least are neurotics. hypothesis testing results then, the pearson product-moment correlation coefficient between the personality traits of the participants and their vinay and darblenet’s model translation strategy preferences is calculated. table 2 consists of these results below: table 2. correlations between the personality traits and translation strategy preferences _____________________________________________________________________________ variables m sd 1-b 2-c 3-l 4t 5m 6-e 7-a _____________________________________________________________________________ agreeableness a 3.67 .56 **0.02 0.57 0.68 0.62 0.30 0.84 0.35 openness a 3.65 .55 0.93 0.31 0.43 0.58 ** 0.03 0.97 0.77 conscientiousness a 3.58 .59 0.42 0.56 0.17 0.43 0.19 0.27 **0.01 extraversion a 3.49 .64 0.61 0.24 0.61 0.91 0.38 0.26 0.43 neuroticism a 2.48 .62 0.11 0.83 0.74 0.59 **0.04 0.43 0.69 49 ressat 2022, 7(1): 42-55 note: a = 5-point likert scale ** p < .05 this table shows the preferences of the participants according to vinay and darblenet’s translation strategies. the participants should choose one translation of the two they are offered. their answers and personality traits, i.e. the two variables, are correlated and computed. according to the results, most of the variables are over .05, and this means that there is no significant correlation between these variables, and it is not possible to make any prediction about most variables. however, a few significant relations exist between the variables; the most significant predictors of preference strategies for the participants are agreeableness (beta = .02, p < .05) for borrowing strategy, openness (beta = .04, p < .05) for modulation strategy, conscientiousness (beta = .01, p < .05) for adaptation strategy and neuroticism (beta = .04, p < .05) for modulation strategy. these four personality traits correlate with three strategies significantly and predict them, but extraversion does not correlate significantly with any of the strategies. besides, interestingly openness and neuroticism correlate and predict the same modulation strategy according to the results. discussion there have been some studies about the relationships between translators’ personality traits and translation performances (hubscher-davidson, 2009; rammstedt et al., 2016). however, the aim of the current study is to find out the relationships between translators’ personality traits of the participants and their strategy use preferences. these strategies are taken from vinay and darblenet’s model. the results show that some of the personality traits, agreeableness, openness, conscientiousness, and neuroticism have significant relations with some of the participants’ strategy preferences, borrowing, modulation, adaptation, and modulation respectively. however, most personality traits do not predict the preference strategies. these significant relationships indicate that more agreeableness, openness, conscientiousness, and neuroticism may mean more preferences of borrowing, modulation, adaptation strategies. in other words, all statistically significant correlational coefficients of the independent variables, i.e. personality traits, are positive and they are positively correlated with the dependent variables i.e. strategy preferences. this means that if there is a positive change in the independent variable, the dependent variable will change positively as well. according to the current study, when agreeableness, openness, conscientiousness, and neuroticism increase, the translators are more inclined to use borrowing, modulation, adaptation strategies in their translating processes. conscientiousness personality trait is closely associated with discipline, moral values and ethical principles, and conscientious people can cope with problems easily, fulfill their duties and think a lot carrying out (neuman & wright, 1999). in the current study, conscientiousness is positively correlated with adaptation strategy. sometimes one phenomenon in source 50 ressat 2022, 7(1): 42-55 language (sl) cannot be found in target language (tl) because of the cultural differences between two societies. in such cases adaptation can be applied to cultural changes because the adaptation is target oriented strategy. this positive relation between the conscientiousness and adaptation can be explained by the fact that conscientious people are eager to ponder a lot before translating, and faithful to ethical values. therefore, when they feel that they cannot render the meaning in sl properly to tl, that there can be ambiguity in translation, they can apply adaptation strategy to carry the message in sl to tl in a familiar cultural context. vulnerability, self-consciousness, depression, impulsiveness, angry hostility, and anxiety are typical features of neuroticism (barrick & mount, 1991). according to bruck and allen (2003) being angry, tense, full of anxiety, depression, and worry, suffering from stress and negative emotions are among the behavior pathologies of neurotic individuals (bruck and allen, 2003). since the neuroticism causes unfavorable feelings under negative and tense conditions, the performances of sign language interpreters are affected negatively during their interpretation processes by neuroticism (bontempo et al.,2014). in the current study, neuroticism trait is positively correlated with modulation strategy. this means higher neuroticism predicts more modulation strategy in translation process. the meaning and accuracy of the source language can be saved and so, the translator can be more natural in modulation. vinay and darblenet (1995) suggest that modulation is “a touchstone of a good translator” (p. 246) where the viewpoint, perspective, and category of thought can diversify. modulation is another target-oriented strategy of vinay and darblenet and it requires a translation to be coherent and accepted in target language and its culture. translators with high neuroticism may feel anxiety about not to be able to produce an acceptable and common translation in tl, and this reason may cause their applying the modulation strategy in translation process. besides, nervousness and emotional consistency are common characteristics of neuroticism (eysenck & eysenck, 1975). while translating something, high neuroticism can trigger the emotions of the translator, and can urge her/him to be more fluent and natural in her/his translation in order to be read easily and naturally by the target language readers. this can be another reason for a translator to apply modulation strategy as well. the personality trait openness is closely related with open-mindedness, curiosity for knowledge, values, aesthetics, fantasy, and learning new things (barrick and mount, 1991). individuals with high level of openness have big originality, humor, and imagination (friedman & schustack, 1999). in the current study, openness trait is positively correlated with modulation strategy together with neuroticism. this significant correlation between the openness and the translation strategy of modulation also means higher openness predicts higher modulation strategy in translation process. since modulation is another target-oriented strategy, and in modulation it is important for a translation to be coherent and accepted in target language and its culture, and translators with this personality trait are open to new experiences, they often do not prefer the primary version of a translation and look for alternative translation versions. in other words, it can be suggested that translators with higher openness diversify viewpoint, 51 ressat 2022, 7(1): 42-55 perspective, and cognitive category of the source language while translating into target language. as mentioned above other features of this personality trait are open-mindedness, curiosity for knowledge and values. therefore, translators with high openness may tend to find out new target equivalents from different viewpoint, perspectives, and cognitive categories. besides, people with openness trait are tolerant, initiative, independent and biased to diversity to monotype (mccrae & costa, 1997). therefore, it can also be suggested that translators with higher openness may tend to find more unfamiliar equivalents of the expressions in sl in order to achieve variety and different perspectives for target readers. and also, in previous investigations the personality trait openness has a positive relationship with interpretation competence (bontempo et al., 2014; rammstedt et al., 2016). however, according to the results, no significant relationship between extraversion and translation strategies of vinay and darblenet is determined. generally, extraversion is associated with being energetic and productive in activities of foreign language learning (ehrman, 2008). however, this factor cannot be applied to translation strategy preferences, and most probably, there are other factors than personality traits for them to affect their strategies in translation. conclusion outcomes such as job performance, and academic success are closely related to personality traits and some of these outcomes can be predicted by personality traits (john & srivastava, 1999). according to the findings of the current study, there are significant relationships between agreeableness and participants’ borrowing strategy preferences, openness for participants’ modulation strategy preferences, conscientiousness for participants’ adaptation strategy preferences, and neuroticism for participants’ modulation strategy preferences. however, there is no significant relationship between extraversion and any of the translation strategies of vinay and darblenet. in other words, extraversion does not predict any translation strategies. the thinking, acting, and feeling of an individual in an enduring style are characterized as personality; the results of the current study may prove this, because different individuals with different personality traits prefer different translation strategies. this study is in accordance with the previous studies where professional performances of people are influenced by their personalities. the results of the current study also indicate that each translator has different and personal ways and styles of translating. these results are also aligned with the results of reiss (2000) who indicates that personality traits of translators are important during translation training. the current study also shows that translator’s feelings and mood are directly related to his performance and the quality of the translated text, and this is in accordance with wuilmart’s (2007) findings that translator’s personality traits can be among the other factors that influence translator's preferences in target language. 52 ressat 2022, 7(1): 42-55 the findings of the current study agree with hubscher-davidson’ (2007) finding that there are significant relations between translators’ personality traits and their behaviors and decision making in translation process. and according to the results of the current study it can be suggested that preferences, behaviors and success or failure of the translator in translation process are closely related with their personality traits. this finding is also in accordance with the coba’s (2007) finding that the translation process and the final products in target language may be affected by individual differences of the translators. as for pedagogical implications the results show that there are strong personality elements affecting 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(2007). le péché de «nivellement» dans la traduction littéraire. meta: journal des traducteurs/meta: translators' journal, 52(3), 391-400. https://doi.org/10.7202/016726ar research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 badaru, k. a. & adu, e. o., the political awareness and participation of university students in post-apartheid south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 1 the political awareness and participation of university students in post-apartheid south africa kazeem ajasa badaru*1 and emmanuel olusola adu1 1. university of fort hare, south africa *corresponding author: kbadaru@ufh.ac.za received : 2021-04-05 revised : 2021-05-24 accepted : 2021-07-11 how to cite this paper: badaru, k. a. & adu, e. o. (2021). the political awareness and participation of university students in post-apartheid south africa. research in social sciences and technology, 6(3), 1-24. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.22 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). abstract being politically aware and participating in politics are essential determinants of a society’s democratic survival. one source of concerns for researchers of political behavior regarding post-apartheid south africa is the low rates of youth’s political participation. there is however a dearth of empirical studies in the extant literature on the university students’ political awareness and their political participation in post-apartheid south africa. this mixed-methods research was conducted to fill in this obvious gap. a study sample of 372 undergraduate students selected from one rural university in the eastern cape through the stratified random sampling techniques yielded the quantitative data, and the qualitative data were obtained from five (5) executive members of the student representative council (src) who were purposively selected for semi-structured interviews. both quantitative and qualitative data analyses were performed by employing simple descriptive and pearson correlation statistics as well as a thematic content analytical approach. results showed that nearly all the respondents demonstrated a high level of political awareness in terms of rights to vote and be voted for (99.4%), the importance of parliament, and the national constitution (99.1%) while the respondents’ levels of political participation appeared to be below average as only (49.2%) voted during the 2017 src election, whereas (30.4%) of them voted in the 2014 national elections. students’ political awareness was found to be significantly correlated with their participation in political activities on-campus (r = 0.130) and off-campus (r = 0.185). in conclusion, the bivariate analysis indicated that there was a positive correlation between students’ political awareness and their participation in politics (p<0.001). keywords: university students, political awareness, student representative council, political participation; post-apartheid south africa. 10.46303/ressat.2021.22 mailto:kbadaru@ufh.ac.za https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.22 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 badaru, k. a. & adu, e. o., the political awareness and participation of university students in post-apartheid south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 2 introduction researches have shown that political awareness is associated with citizens’ participation in political activities (kuotsu, 2016; sarwar et al., 2021; kholisoh et al., 2019). this study, conducted between 2017 and 2018, is another empirical contribution to the debates and efforts at mitigating the paucity of political participation of youth globally and specifically in the post-apartheid south african context. previously, badaru and adu (2020) have established the connection between university students’ use of media [for raising political awareness] and political participation in south africa. it is of interest to extend further the discourses on university student political participation by investigating how their levels of political awareness could hitherto or otherwise propel their participation in political activities. nonetheless, the expression of concerns and apprehensions arising from the low participation of south african youth in political activities (badaru & adu, 2020) was the impetus and rationale for this particular study. political awareness is significantly imperative for a democratic society to be built on accountability, transparency, and good governance. every democracy, therefore, needs citizens’ participation to ensure its further development and survival. politically aware citizens help in sustaining democracy by being critical of the government’s actions, inactions, programs, and policies. ahmed et al. (2015) argued that politically aware citizens should be able to hold their government and other public servants accountable for manners in which the country’s affairs are being managed. political awareness has been considered as a function of three constituents namely; the level of exposure to political information, the intellectual capability to retain and organize political information, and the desire to acquire and understand the political news. in other words, political awareness implies having access to political information, political participation, media primarily in terms of political contents that stimulate interest in politics and public affairs (kuotsu, 2016). the word awareness is originally latin, which means to know things on an ongoing basis. francis bacon first used the word in the year 1600. it was also used in john locke’s philosophical disputes. the term awareness has been interpreted to imply those ideas that pass in the human mind, and the early 19th century, and psychology, it has emerged into existence, which was identified as the science of consciousness. therefore, this term was used to mean all the sensations and mental images, thoughts, desires, and emotions. political awareness results from the social development engendered by the human need to prepare the tools for interaction with nature in such a way that man was able to distinguish between what is essential and non-essential and demonstrate causes of the phenomena, being aware of the relationship with the environment (althubetat & jarrar, 2013). political awareness is helpful to an individual in analyzing political reality away from emotional perceptions. citizens who are politically aware will see issues differently and perhaps in the national interest devoid of sentiments in whatever forms. the notion of political participation consists of numerous types of political engagements such as voting in an election, involvement in activities of the political parties, other voluntary organizations, conversations concerning politics, and protests against constituted authorities. the debates on the notion of political participation in the literature indicate that it is practically research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 badaru, k. a. & adu, e. o., the political awareness and participation of university students in post-apartheid south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 3 impossible to divorce democracy from political participation (van deth, 2001). the latter is very germane to the good continuation and survival of the former (gutmann, 1987, as cited in badaru & adu, 2020). according to miller (1992), democracy aims at aggregating the preferences, desires, and needs of the individual citizens into a collective whole. seyla benhabib (as cited in frateschi, 2016) describes democracy as the model for organizing public interest and exercise of power in the democratic institutions informed by principles guiding the process of decision-making arising from a democratic deliberation among citizens considered to be politically equal. for democracy to thrive, citizens have to participate in the political system which to a large extent can be influenced by their level of political awareness. according to verba and nie (1972), this is important because democracy is only little in a state where a few individuals are involved in the decision-making; while there is more democracy in a country where more people participate in the decision-making processes. political participation involves all the activities that the citizens engage in to influence the decisions and policies made by the government and its officials. it is a democratic engagement through which the citizens have the benefits of communicating their dissatisfactions, demands, and preferences to their elected representatives and other government officials and may continue to mount pressure on them until they respond positively to their yearnings (teorell, 2006). it is concerned with the citizens’ activities aimed at influencing government’s decisions and policies through voting in an election, meeting and consulting with party leaders and government officials and elected representatives, and declaring protests, strikes, and demonstrations against the erring leaders (resnick & thurlow, 2015). in an attempt to theorize the concept of political participation, various scholars have considered its meaning from the normative perspectives in terms of three distinctive but intertwined models. the responsive model theorists have argued that political participation is a form of democratic action intended to influence the decisions of those who have a say in government. the proponents of the participatory model insist that political participation is an attempt made by private citizens to have a say in the decisions and policies of the government. the deliberative model theorists believe that political participation is one way by which the citizens find out what to say about the government’s actions and inactions as well as other political issues that may directly or indirectly affect their well-being (teorell, 2006). the contribution of political awareness towards active participation in political processes cannot be downplayed. citizens’ understanding of politics and other politically related issues is shaped and developed by their exposure to political information especially through the media. the level of political participation of individuals is dependent on their level of political awareness. kuotsu (2016) posits that individual citizens must have some level of awareness not only about democratic processes and institutions of governance but also about certain political issues both at the national and international levels. we are of the view that individuals, whose level of political awareness is low, may be uninterested in participating in all forms of political activities. pericles argues that a citizen should not feel unconcerned about the political affairs of his state just because he is capable of taking care of his family; such an individual who chooses not to participate in public affairs should not be regarded as a harmless but a useless citizen (van deth, 2001, p.3). by implication, every responsible citizen must have some understanding of politics and also participate in the political activities of his country. as research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 badaru, k. a. & adu, e. o., the political awareness and participation of university students in post-apartheid south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 4 minogue put it, “the thing called ‘apathy’ is democracy’s version of original sin” (as cited in van deth, 2001, p.3). for anyone to be politically aware, he can never be guilty of a common crime otherwise known as apathy. this underscores the signification of political awareness for effective participation in a democracy. for the purpose of this study, political participation of university students implies participating in political activities that occur on-campus as well as off-campus. in south africa, university students are enjoined to join any student political and social organizations existing on campus and also as registered students automatically become members of the student representative council (src) whose operational structure and constitution are modelled after the parliamentary-presidential system of democracy at the national and provincial levels. another interestingness about student political organisations in south africa’s higher institutions is that some of them are the youth-wings of constitutionally recognized national political parties. for instance, we have the democratic alliance student organization (daso) and the african national congress youth league (ancyl) as the institutional campus branches of the national parties; the democratic alliance (da) and african national congress (anc) respectively. these institutional campus branches receive supports in terms of funding and donations usually during the src electioneering campaigns to ensure victory for their candidates. political participation is an important democratic exercise that makes it possible for citizens’ voices to be heard in the corridors of power. it is regarded as ‘one of the cornerstones of any democratic society’ (castillo et al. 2015, p.16). the involvement of citizens in the democratic governance of their country would make the political leaders have a sense of responsibility and also become accountable. political participation enables the government to understand its citizens’ needs and aspirations while the active involvement of citizens in partisan politics compels the government to fulfil its constitutional role. why should university students then participate in political activities? it is one of the surest methods for students to become involved in the making of positive changes and contributions in their particular community and the society as a whole. students’ engagement with political activities would give them an understanding of how a government works and what role it has to play in solving the socioeconomic and political problems confronting their country. students’ participation in politics, therefore, would help in bringing the government’s attention to addressing fundamental problems that need to be solved in such a way that the impact of governance becomes positive and visible. political awareness is, therefore, very crucial for students to become interested in political processes both on campus and at the national levels. it would be helpful for them also to become well informed about politics, and to be able to make informed decisions when it comes to elections and selection of candidates, and joining of political parties. the media and more importantly the digital technologies have become very instrumental in raising students’ awareness about political affairs and increasing their participation in political activities (anwar & jan, 2010). social media, for instance, have made students susceptible to political awareness and online participation in politics practically made possible by the internet and access to mobile phone technologies. such that, those students who were previously uninterested in politics now have to join in debates and conversations with friends, families, and their teachers across space and time on politically related issues. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 badaru, k. a. & adu, e. o., the political awareness and participation of university students in post-apartheid south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 5 gutmann’s advocacy is instructive when he argues that students should be given opportunities to take part in the formulation of policies and decisions that would impact their affairs to build in their self-efficacy and encourage them to participate in their country’s political activities actively (as cited in badaru & adu, 2020). the university students, being among the youth, have more access to government information through various media platforms. expectedly, they are supposed to engage in political discussion and other politically-related activities both within and outside the university campus. in south africa, university students have been known for their participation in campus politics on the platforms of the various political organizations affiliated with the national political parties. amoateng’s study (2015), conducted at the university of johannesburg, affirmed that students demonstrated a high level of political awareness which positively influenced their participation in the political processes. in other words, there is an indication suggesting that levels of political awareness have a positive relationship with the levels of participation in political activities. the motivation for conducting this particular study was borne out of the dearth of empirical studies in the extant literature on the university students’ political awareness and their participation in politics, specifically in the eastern cape province, south africa. this study, therefore, investigated the university students’ political awareness and political participation in post-apartheid south africa to fill in the gap in the body of literature. the researchers selected one university in the eastern cape as the study location. the choice of this university was informed by the fact that it was one of the historically black universities where political struggles, protests, and unrelenting movements were launched against the former apartheid regime before the eventual enthronement of the democratic government in 1994 in south africa. the paper’s focus includes the theoretical framework, literature review, objectives of the study, research methods and procedures, results analysis, discussion of findings, and the study’s implications. statement of the problem the underlying essence of democracy is citizen participation and south africa being one cannot be an exception. there has to be a decline in political participation when political awareness is poor among the citizenry. it is assumed that the political apathy among students, or youth in general, today might be as a result of their little or poor levels of political awareness. such a political trend as observed among post-apartheid south african youth is dangerous for the country’s nascent democracy. plato’s thought on one of the outcomes of political apathy is very instructive here as he remarked, thus: “the price of apathy towards public affairs is to be ruled by evil men” (as cited in sasikala & francisca 2017, p.78). our observations about university students in south africa show that they are vibrant and articulate in terms of staging demonstrations and strikes against administrative decisions of their universities as well as government decisions that are perceived to be unjust and unfavorable to their plights and academic needs on campus. more importantly, many of them are registered members of one student political organization or the other; thereby participate in various forms of politicking at the level of the campus. there is nonetheless a need to investigate the students’ level of political awareness, their participation in politics and to determine whether or not there is a correlation between their political awareness and participation. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 badaru, k. a. & adu, e. o., the political awareness and participation of university students in post-apartheid south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 6 research questions the following research questions were answered in this study:  to what extent are university students politically aware in post-apartheid south africa?  in what ways have students participated in politics on and off-campus?  to what extent is students’ political awareness associated with their participation in politics? theoretical framework and literature review this study has been grounded in the cognitive mobilization theory of civic literacy and participation as espoused by dalton (amechi, innocent, and ikechukwu, 2018). the argument is suitable for this study because it provides some theoretical explanation for political awareness and participation in politics. besides, this theory is relatively known in the literature in terms of its use to advance arguments for political awareness and involvement in politics. the cognitive mobilization theory of civic literacy and participation argues that civic literacy determines an individual’s levels of political knowledge and political participation. it is believed that individuals become empowered by political education through what they learn about political issues. they, therefore, mobilize their cognitive knowledge of politics to participate in various political activities. conversely, individuals without sufficient civic education tend to exhibit political awareness that is poor or low, about the political processes, whereas those having sufficient political knowledge of political objects (democracy, party system, candidates, institutions of the state etc.) have better inclinations to engage actively and participate in all forms of political activities (amechi et al., 2018). students’ political awareness students, like other citizens, need to understand the political systems of their country and the world around them. this is important for them to be able to make informed decisions when the need arises to elect their leaders and political representatives. kuotsu (2016) avers that political awareness plays a critical role in providing explanations for the variation in political participation. he submits further that a higher level of political awareness would certainly lead to a greater increase in participation. it is therefore important for university students to have an awareness of democratic institutions, their rights, and their duties as responsible citizens. in another study conducted by althubetat and jarrar (2013), it was found that students of the university of petra who offered any political science course as an elective exhibited a high degree of political awareness. this is a clear indication that exposure to knowledge of politics can greatly increase the students’ political awareness. furthermore, in a study conducted by sharma and choudhary (2014), results showed that there was no significant difference in political awareness among male and female secondary school students. from another perspective, institutions of learning have been regarded as an important role player in raising political awareness of persons through various pedagogical approaches, social and academic programs integrated as part of curricula, lectures, conferences, and training towards the preparation of individuals to take up responsibilities for public affairs and fulfillment of civic duties (alsati and al-ghanem, 2017). research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 badaru, k. a. & adu, e. o., the political awareness and participation of university students in post-apartheid south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 7 students’ political participation much concern has been raised in the literature about the low rates of youth participation in formal and informal political activities such as voting during elections and involvement in party politics (robertson, 2009). blais and rubenson (2013, as cited in castillo et al. 2015) have argued that the lower rates of young people’s political participation these days have become sources of worry and appeared as a worldwide phenomenon. in eastern europe, research suggests that young people are least likely to participate in voting exercises and activities of the political parties (fieldhouse et al., 2007). in south africa, reports indicate that university students have participated in voting and other electoral activities during the national election elections in 2005 and 2014 respectively (luescher-mamashela, luescher, and kiiru 2011; mhlomi and osunkunle 2017). a vast majority of students (76%) who participated in mhlomi and osunkunle’s study (2017) confirmed that they participated and voted in south africa’s 2014 national election. according to luescher-mamashela et al. (2011), surveyed students from african universities (south africa [62%], tanzania [62%], and kenya [79%]) confirmed their participation in national elections of their respective countries between 2005 and 2007. we have observed also that not all university students are keenly interested in participating in political activities whether on-campus or off-campus. some of them are only interested in the souvenirs such as the t-shirts, face caps, and other materials provided to them by the various political organizations operating on campus while others are more interested in the real politicking that such political organizations provide as an opportunity to test their political skills. a democratic body through which students in universities and other higher education institutions get represented in the scheme of governance on campus is known as the student union or student representative council (src). adelabu and akinsolu (2009) and rou et al. (2017) agree that the src provides the platform as the first political organization where students of higher institutions practice political functions and actively participate in political activities. south africa makes a provision for the inclusion of the srcs in its higher education policy to promote cooperative governance philosophy among stakeholders in the nation’s postapartheid higher education and training (klemenčič et al., 2016). the srcs in the 1980s were considered as subalternate to the student political organizations that operated in south africa’s public institutions of higher learning (moreku, 2014). however, this status of subordination has changed these days as srcs are now actively involved in the protection of rights and welfare interests of the student organizations. according to the higher education act 101 (1997), srcs are to statutorily participate as critical stakeholders representing the student bodies in the affairs of public higher education institutions existing in south africa. by and large, the srcs serve as the students’ mouthpiece as they are playing an active role in the university’s decision-making meetings at the faculty, senate, and council levels. they are also responsible for procuring resources, organizing social and academic activities, and distributing released funds from the university management to all registered societies, clubs, and organizations to which students belong on campuses (cele & koen, as cited in moreku, 2014). the srcs in post-apartheid south africa are creations of the law operating a constitutional structure for student representation. they run and conduct elections based on democratic principles and their elected representatives in the executive and parliamentary positions hold offices for a one-year tenure subject to renewal provided representatives are research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 badaru, k. a. & adu, e. o., the political awareness and participation of university students in post-apartheid south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 8 not due for graduation from the universities in the next academic year. student participation in src activities is enshrined in its constitution structured in tune with the dictates and electoral regulations of south africa’s constitution which provides for political participation of political parties and candidates or political gladiators (klemenčič et al., 2016). from another perspective, nyundu et al. (2015) and lake (2010) investigated factors that propelled and inhibited the interests and participation of students in the src politics at the campus level. one factor, according to these scholars, is the success stories of key political figures around them and beyond. so, they feel encouraged to follow in the footsteps of successful and prominent politicians. students who have ambitions and persuasions to align with the social and political programs for them to have a sense of belonging is another factor propelling their interests in politics at the campus level. on the contrary, there are other students who choose to be politically apathetic because their perception is poor about student leaders. they are also afraid of losing their studentship, scholarship or funding opportunities, employment offers, and anti-democratic dispositions of university authorities that stifle freedom of expression and political participation (nyundu et al., 2015; lake 2010). in a report published by dibetle (2007, 14 june), the political apathy of students at the university of pretoria (up), south africa was revealed. this report indicated that the up’s src election witnessed a low turnout. out of 22,000 eligible voters, only 2500 (11.4%) of them turned up to vote. this is the extent of concerns that forms the justification for this present study. relationship between political awareness and participation in politics: empirical studies a very recent descriptive study investigated al-ain university students’ level of political awareness and the university’s role in raising students’ political awareness (al-khaza’leh & lahiani, 2021). this study was a mixed-research design involving 980 students. its findings showed that the university students demonstrated a high level of political awareness. interestingly, it found also that students from the faculty of humanities were better politically aware than their peers from other faculties. male students were said to be more politically aware than their female counterparts and the university was found to be critical in the development of students’ level of political awareness. in another more recent study, sarwar, ramazan and shafiq (2021) explored how political talk shows on television impacted students’ political awareness and political participation in pakistan. it was a cross-sectional study of 400 students selected through the multistage sampling technique from twelve universities. the study’s findings affirmed that political awareness was associated with political participation. kholisoh et al. (2019) were interested in determining the new media influence on the millennial generation’s political awareness as well as their participation in political activities in the special capital province of jakarta. they utilized the quantitative method to sample 400 young people aged between 17 and 37 years. their findings affirmed that new media’s political information had both direct and indirect influences on the young people’s political awareness as well as their participation in various political activities. kuotsu’s study (2016) on political awareness and its impact on political participation was carried out to find whether or not their level of political awareness influenced the respondents' (aged 18 years and above) political participation. this study was a mixed design with a sample size of 402 participants selected from the rural and urban districts of nagaland in india. the author research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 badaru, k. a. & adu, e. o., the political awareness and participation of university students in post-apartheid south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 9 found that there was a relationship between political awareness and participation in electoral activities among the respondents. it was also found that mass media exposure was a determinant factor influencing citizens’ political interest and participation in all forms of political activities. in another study conducted by ahmed et al. (2015) the authors set out to determine the level of political awareness among students in a public university of pakistan. it was a survey design consisting of a sample of 200 students drawn from selected departments in the social sciences and the natural sciences. this study found that students generally exhibited a reduced level of political awareness. it also found that the social sciences’ students demonstrated a better level of political awareness than their counterparts in the natural sciences. amoateng’s study (2015) was a qualitative design and interviews were conducted with 1,214 undergraduates of the university of johannesburg in south africa. the study found that parents’ political socialization and participation are important determinants of the students’ political participation. it was also found that the students exhibited a high level of political awareness which was positively correlated with their participation in political activities. in nairobi, ndiritu’s study (2007) investigated the critical role of television debate programs in the creation of political awareness among the young kenyans. the author asserted that the youth’s political participation had become a source of concern to leaders of thought and political stakeholders in the country. using the purposive and snowballing methods of data collection the author found that political television programs had an enormous impact on the political awareness of the youth. the study affirmed that the youth had benefited immensely from the television political discussions increasing their understanding of the political processes. it was concluded that the television political discussions positively contributed to fostering and raising the youth’s political awareness; activating their interest in politics, and motivating them to participate in the political processes. similarly, one study conducted at the university of karachi, pakistan by yaseen et al. (2018) examined the essential role of political talk programs through television and radio in fostering political awareness among university students. the study was a quantitative design, and 196 participants were randomly drawn from two different faculties namely the faculty of the social science and humanities as well as the faculty of sciences. the study found that political talk shows were significantly correlated with the participant's level of political awareness. the study further showed that political awareness was capable of encouraging political knowledge and discussion of political issues which hitherto would lead to increased political participation among the university students. a case study of students at the university of gujrat, pakistan contributed to research on the mass media influence and political awareness concerning the participation of youth in politics (ali et al., 2013). this study found that the print and electronic media through their viewership and readership exerted influence on the youngsters’ political awareness, how they judge political issues, their interest, and participation in politics. it further confirmed other studies that television was most influential in the dissemination of political information and the creation of political awareness among university students. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 badaru, k. a. & adu, e. o., the political awareness and participation of university students in post-apartheid south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 10 method this study was a mixed-methods design (concurrent triangulation) conducted at one selected university in the province of the eastern cape, south africa between 2017 and 2018. the university was chosen because it was one of the historically black universities that led the struggle against the apartheid regime and for the enthronement of democracy in south africa. by a mixed-methods design, we collected and analyzed both quantitative (survey) and qualitative (semi-structured interview) data concurrently but separately to see where there was any similarity or difference in the results. participants the participants for this study were selected by using probability random and purposive sampling techniques which were referred to as the judgement sampling by etikan, musa and alkassim (2016). for the quantitative strand of the study, a sample of 375 undergraduates were randomly selected while another sample of 5 members of the src executive were purposively interviewed for the qualitative strand. the belief was that src members were actively involved in both on-campus and off-campus politics. table 1 below has details of the qualitative study’s participants. the sample size of 375 was determined at the confidence level of 95% from the population of 14,408 students via the online creative research survey software. for the quantitative strand as shown in table 1, 60.5% of the participants were male, and the remaining 39.5% were female. the participants' ages were between 16 and 31 years. a majority of them (41.0%) fell within the age bracket (21-25) years. most of the participants (36.3%) were from the departments in the faculty of sciences; 21.5% of them were from the department of political science, and public administration; 8.3% of them were from law faculty, and surprisingly 12.1% of the participants were from the social sciences faculty and also the remaining 12.1% of them belonged to the management and commerce faculty. 40.3% of the participants were in the third year of their study, 31.7% and 28.0% of them were in the second and first years respectively. as for the qualitative strand of the research, the youngest among the members of the src was 24 years old while the oldest was 33 years old. the departments of the five of them cut across faculties of law, management, humanities, and social sciences, see table 2. in south africa, undergraduate degree programs take a minimum of 3 years and 5 years maximum. for instance, undergraduate degrees in commerce, communication, public administration, and human movement science are studied for 3 years while others such as nursing, law, agricultural extension programs take a minimum of 4 or 5 years depending on the requirements for admission. it is also imperative to reiterate that all participants in this study are undergraduate students at one of the historically black universities in the eastern cape province, south africa. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 badaru, k. a. & adu, e. o., the political awareness and participation of university students in post-apartheid south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 11 table 1. students’ socio-demographic characteristics variables frequency percentage (%) sex male 225 60.5 female 147 39.5 age 16-20years 78 21.0 21-25years 152 41.0 26-30years 127 34.2 31 and above 14 3.8 faculty/department education 36 9.7 political science/ public administration 89 21.5 sciences 135 36.3 social sciences and humanities 45 12.1 management and commerce 45 12.1 law 31 8.3 year of study year one 104 28.0 year two 118 31.7 year three 150 40.3 table 2. interview participants’ profiles participants department sex age number of terms in office interviewee 1 applied communication management male 31 2 interviewee 2 law male 24 2 interviewee 3 public administration male 26 2 interviewee 4 economics male 27 1 interviewee 5 accounting female 33 1 as for the qualitative strand of the research, the youngest among the members of the src was 24 years old while the oldest was 33 years old. four of them were males while one was a female. the departments of the five of them cut across management, humanities, and social sciences, see table 2. instruments for data collection questionnaire: the principal instrument used for data collection in this study was a questionnaire which was complemented by a semi-structured interview and other relevant official documents such as the constitutions of student political organizations and the srcs. the research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 badaru, k. a. & adu, e. o., the political awareness and participation of university students in post-apartheid south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 12 political awareness of respondents was measured with 11 items and the cronbach alpha coefficient yielded a value of 0.89 while their levels of political participation were determined by using 8 items for on-campus political activities (coefficient value 0.78) and 6 other items for off-campus (coefficient value 0.66). all of these coefficient values suggested that the instrument had a high level of reliability or internal consistency. a total of 450 copies of the research questionnaire were distributed but only 372 copies (82.7%) were retrieved from the respondents for the final analysis. the participants cut across six faculties in the university. the questionnaires were distributed to the students personally by the principal researcher while he also conducted the interviews with the src members on a one-on-one staggered basis for a period of three months. interviews: interviews were conducted with a validated guide by other researchers. we secured the consent of the participants for their views to be recorded using gargets such as the taperecorder and android phone’s video camera. verbatim transcriptions of both video and audio recordings were meticulously done and returned in form of texts to the participants to read and confirm that textual data were in tandem with their expressed opinions and narrations as collected during the fieldwork. after confirmation of the transcribed data, we coded and recoded the texts into different themes and sub-themes that were in tandem with the research questions. lastly, an audit trail was carried out to ensure that results confirmed dependability. validity and reliability of the data the researchers had to seek the opinions of experts to ensure the validity of the data collection instrument. it was further subjected to pilot testing by administering it to other participants, twenty in number, who did not eventually take part in the original study. the cronbach alpha was employed to determine the coefficient value (0.89) from the reliability test to which the instrument had been subjected. data trustworthiness data trustworthiness is concerned with the need for the research findings to be considered worthy of being given attention (graff, 2014). as provided by lincoln and guba (as cited in loh, 2013), the criteria for establishing and ensuring the trustworthiness of data are credibility (internal validity), transferability (external validity), dependability (reliability), and conformability (objectivity). all of these criteria were meticulously considered while collecting the qualitative data for this study. data analysis the quantitative data were analyzed using simple descriptive and pearson correlation statistics while the qualitative data were analyzed with the aid of the thematic content analysis. we utilized the ibm spss statistical package version 20 and the atlas 6.2 software application for quantitative and qualitative analyses respectively. ethical considerations this study got approval from the researchers’ institution of affiliation. besides, we had to secure permission from the relevant authorities of the university where the study was conducted in the eastern cape province of south africa. participants were also made to complete and sign research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 badaru, k. a. & adu, e. o., the political awareness and participation of university students in post-apartheid south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 13 the informed consent forms in compliance with all ethical issues such as voluntary participation and confidentiality. results in this study, the researchers investigated the participants’ level of political awareness, various ways of their political engagements on and off the campus, and the extent to which their political awareness level is associated with their participation in politics. to what extent are university students politically aware in south africa? table 3. level of students’ political awareness items extremely aware moderatel y aware somewhat aware not at all aware are you aware of your rights to vote and be voted for? 245(65.9) 102 (27.4) 18 (4.8) 7(1.9) are you aware of your freedom expression? 249(66.9) 100 (26.9) 21 (5.6) 2(0.5) are you aware of the ideologies of south africa’s political parties? 65 (17.5) 192 (51.6) 103 (27.7) 12(3.2) are you aware of development of political issues like the state capture? 117(31.5) 140 (37.6) 96 (25.8) 19(5.1) are you aware of the role of government in a democracy? 186(50.0) 137 (36.8) 46 (12.4) 3 (0.8) are you aware of your obligations as a citizen? 157(42.2) 151 (40.6) 42 (11.3) 22(5.9) are you aware of your rights to fair hearing? 139(37.4) 159 (42.7) 55 (14.8) 19(5.1) are you aware of the role of the police in a democracy? 134(36.0) 158 (42.5) 74 (19.9) 6 (1.6) are you aware of the importance of the parliament in a democracy? 177(47.6) 132 (35.5) 59 (15.9) 4 (1.1) are you aware of the functions of your municipality or local government council? 117(31.5) 168 (45.2) 70 (18.8) 17(4.6) are you aware of the importance of the constitution in a democracy? 186(50.0) 130 (34.9) 53 (14.2) 3 (0.8) table 3 above presents the students’ level of political awareness. the students were asked questions relating to south african politics in terms of democracy, democratic institutions, and issues of citizenship rights, obligations, and duties as well as the importance of the constitution in the republic of south africa. almost all participants (98.1%) were aware of their rights to vote. similarly, almost all the participants (99.4%) were aware of their right to freedom of expression. in the same vein, almost all the students (96.8%) were aware of the ideologies of south africa’s political parties. interestingly, an overwhelming proportion of the participants research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 badaru, k. a. & adu, e. o., the political awareness and participation of university students in post-apartheid south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 14 (94.9%) were aware of political development such as state capture. it is equally amazing to find that virtually all the respondents (99.2%) disclosed that they were aware of the role of government in a democracy. moreover, a vast proportion of the students (94.1%) were aware of their obligations as citizens. finally, almost all the participants (99.1%) were aware of the importance of parliament and the constitution in a democracy. the general narratives of the src members indicated that they had some level of political awareness. one of them remarked as follows: i believe that the level of my political awareness has encouraged me to become a part of the src leadership on campus. i have always loved to read and discuss politics with friends, family, and lecturers. as a south african, i have an idea of what my rights are which include voting during elections. being politically aware is one thing, and another thing is to have the courage and strong will to join politics whether the university administration will be friendly with your decisions or demands…rights of the students must be respected. our welfare should be important to any serious university manager or vice-chancellor, but eh… [sic] you need a lot of courage to confront an undemocratic administration. so, if you don’t have the courage, you will withdraw from participating because you don’t want to be a scapegoat (a public administration male student, 26 years old). in what ways have students participated in politics on and off campus? table 4. students’ participation in the 2017 src elections yes no did you vote in the 2017 src election? 183 (49.2) 189 (50.8) were you actively involved in the 2017 src election campaigns? 38 (10.2) 334 (89.8) did you vote in the 2014 national election? 113 (30.4) 259 (69.6) were you actively involved in the provincial and national election campaign activities? 48 (12.9) 324 (87.1) results in table 4 show that less than half (49.2%) of the participants did vote during the 2017 src election. a majority (89.8%) of them had never been involved in the src election campaigns. similarly, most of them (69.6%) did not vote during the 2014 national (general) elections while a significant proportion (87.1%) did not have any involvement in the provincial and national campaign activities. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 badaru, k. a. & adu, e. o., the political awareness and participation of university students in post-apartheid south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 15 table 5. students’ activities in the university have you taken part in any of these activities in the university? yes no attended a political meeting of students (e.g. the mass meeting) 144 (39.6) 220 (60.4) contacted a senior official of the university like the vc to discuss issues or make formal complaints about certain issues affecting students’ affairs. 50 (13.4) 322 (86.6) wrote a letter to student leaders or made a leaflet to protest against issues. 46 (12.4) 326 (87.6) joined other students to stage a protest march on campus. 79 (21.2) 293 (78.8) table 5 shows the various activities which students had engaged in on the university campus. a majority of the participants never took part in the list of the political or politically-related activities as shown in the table 5 above. a majority of the participants (60.4%) did not attend students’ mass meetings. similarly, the majority of the participants (86.6%) did not contact any senior university official to discuss issues or make a formal complaint about issues affecting students’ affairs. similarly, only a small proportion (12.4%) of the students wrote a letter to student leaders or made a leaflet to protest against specific issues of concern. lastly, only 21.2% of the participants had ever joined other students for a protest march on campus. from the src member’s perspective, a narrative was noted as follows: as a passionate citizen, i had the intention of serving in leadership positions once an opportunity presented itself. on securing admission to the university, i joined a political organization (pasma), and i campaigned vigorously for our candidates in the src elections for that year 2016. i have always represented the organization on student affairs in meetings with the university officers and other party leaders at the provincial and national levels (an economics male student, 27 years old). fig. 1. distribution of participants into active and inactive members of the src are you an active member of the src or student parliament?; yes; 9,4; 9% are you an active member of the src or student parliament?; no; 90,6; 91% research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 badaru, k. a. & adu, e. o., the political awareness and participation of university students in post-apartheid south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 16 figure 1 indicates that less than 10% of the participants were active members of the student representative council (src) on campus while the rest of them (91%) were not active members of the src. table 6. students’ participation in national political activities did you take part in any of these activities in the past? yes no attended a political party’s gathering or meeting. 144 (39.6) 220 (60.4) contacted a government official to discuss or complain about issues. 50 (13.4) 322 (86.6) wrote a letter to a local/national newspaper about national issues. 46 (12.4) 326 (87.6) joined a national protest or demonstration against government. 79 (21.2) 293 (78.8) took part in the campaigns or rallies in support of a political party. 113 (30.4) 259 (69.6) joined in a debate on national issues at a political forum. 53 (14.2) 319 (85.8) table 6 presents the responses of the participants to a question which sought to find whether or not the participants did take part in certain activities outside the campus politics. a majority of the participants claimed not to have taken part in any of these activities. for instance, only 39.6% of the students affirmatively confirmed that they had attended a political party’s gathering or meeting; 13.4% of the participants did contact a government official to discuss or complain about issues of national or local concern in south africa. another 12.4% of the students did write a regional/national newspaper about matters of national interests. in terms of participation in national protest or demonstration, only 21.2% did join in protesting against the government, while 30.4% of the students claimed to have taken part in the political parties’ rallies or campaigns. from the qualitative point of view, the src president of the university under investigation had this to say: i am a member of sasco, anc youth league, young communist league of south africa. i was secretary of young communist league of south africa. i set meetings with all political organizations. i was privileged to have meetings and speak with faculty management members, vc at the political level. i emerged as src president because i was first an activist becoming politician. in national politics, i started voting since 2004, voted in 2009 and 2014. i am currently a member of the anc. i’m interested in becoming a politician at the provincial level in the position of the member of parliament (mp) in the future (an applied communication management male student, 31 years old). research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 badaru, k. a. & adu, e. o., the political awareness and participation of university students in post-apartheid south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 17 to what extent is students’ political awareness associated with their participation in politics? table 7. pearson correlation statistics showing relationship between political awareness and on-campus political participation variable pearson coefficient p-value political awareness 0.130 0.012 sex -0.076 0.146 age -0.048 0.360 faculty of study 0.037 0.476 the relationship between political awareness and on-campus political participation was examined using pearson correlation statistics (table 7). the result shows that political awareness was significantly correlated with political on-campus participation (r=0.130) as indicated in table 7. table 8. ordinary least square regression showing relationship between political awareness and on-campus political participation variable unstandardized coefficient (b) standard error standardized coefficient (b) p value constant 2.14 0.54 0.001 political awareness 0.23 0.15 0.08 0.124 the coefficient indicates that there is a weak positive association between political awareness and on-campus political participation. in the ordinary least squares’ regression analysis, the relationship between political awareness and political on-campus involvement was not statistically significant (as shown in table 8). table 9. pearson correlation statistics showing relationship between political awareness and off-campus political participation variable pearson coefficient p-value political awareness 0.185 <0.001 sex -0.077 0.144 age 0.093 0.076 faculty of study 0.021 0.685 year of study 0.195 <0.001 the association between political awareness and off-campus political participation was examined with pearson correlation statistics, and the result shows that there was a significant research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 badaru, k. a. & adu, e. o., the political awareness and participation of university students in post-apartheid south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 18 positive relationship between political awareness and off-campus political participation (r = 0.185), see table 9. table 10. ordinary least square regression showing relationship between political awareness and off-campus political participation variable unstandardized coefficient (b) standard error standardized coefficient (b) p-value constant 0.074 0.789 political awareness 0.076 0.022 0.178 0.001 in the ordinary least squares’ regression analysis, the relationship between political awareness and off-campus political participation was statistically significant (table 10). discussion to what extent are university students politically aware in post-apartheid south africa? the first question guiding our discussion of findings in this study was to ascertain the extent of the university students ‘political awareness. this study has revealed that the level of political awareness of the participants was high. they demonstrated an understanding of the political system, political developments, and politically related issues in south africa. alsati and alghanem (2017) have argued that institutions of learning play a critical role in raising political awareness of persons through various pedagogical approaches, social and academic programs integrated as part of curricula, lectures, conferences, and training towards the preparation of individuals to take up responsibilities for public affairs and fulfillment of civic duties. unarguably, this finding was not surprising at all as the students had unhindered access to all sorts of digital media for political information. on their campus, there is the provision of the internet and other digital technologies. this has given them opportunities to interact with online news media through which political information is related to them on a 24-hour basis. this is consistent with the findings of the studies conducted by ahmed et al. (2015) and ali et al. (2013). their conclusions have corroborated this study’s finding that students who are exposed to the use of media and forms of political education would exhibit some increased level of political awareness. from our observation, students sometimes go on youtube channels to watch much of the news; talk shows on political issues, and exclusive live coverage of political events through the internet access made available to them on campus and through their mobile telephone technologies. the study conducted by yaseen, mamdani, and siddiqui (2018) found that political talk shows through television and radio did help in increasing the political awareness levels among the university students. we, therefore, wanted to believe that the students’ access to all forms of political education on their campus must have contributed to their high levels of political awareness as found out in this study. contrary to the belief that a high level of political awareness will engender an increase in political participation (kuotsu 2016), we found that the students’ political participation was relatively low in this study. however, this is in tandem with robertson’s argument that concerns have been raised in the literature about the low rates of young people’s participation in political research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 badaru, k. a. & adu, e. o., the political awareness and participation of university students in post-apartheid south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 19 activities (robertson 2009). the rates of participation of university students in conventional politics such as voting and party membership are low across the globe. fieldhouse et al. have argued that young people are least likely to participate in voting and activities of the political parties (fieldhouse et al., 2007). the principal researcher in this study observed that students show more interest to participate in unconventional political activities such as protests than they participate in conventional politics. for example, the period of this study’s fieldwork coincided with the period of the student representative council (src) election of the university under investigation, and he was surprised to see student leaders knocking on the doors of students at the odd time about 21h00 persuading those who had not voted to go out and do so. this was an election that ought to have ended at 15h00 but had to be extended till late in the night to accommodate more students to cast their votes after persuasions from the various leaders of the participating student organizations in the election. this action of the student leaders could be likened to forcing an unwilling horse down to the riverside to drink water. in what ways have students participated in politics on and off-campus? this second question was raised in an attempt to articulate the discourses interweaving around various ways of students’ participation in politics within and outside their campus. regarding the campus politics, this study has found that almost half of the sampled university students actively participated and did vote in the src election that took place on campus in 2017 while a very small percentage of the participants were actively involved in the src electioneering campaigns of the same year. another important finding was that a vast majority of the participants did not vote during the 2014 national election. most of them also were not actively involved in the electioneering campaign activities both at the provincial and national levels. within the university campus, a larger percentage of the students were not active members of either the src or student parliamentary body as represented in figure 1. this accounts for reasons why most of them declared that they never attended mass meetings (student political meetings), felt unconcerned about taking up issues of student welfare or complaints about issues affecting their welfare on campus with the university authorities, had no regard for staging protests along with their elected student leaders on issues affecting their wellbeing on the campus. in the same vein, this study has specifically confirmed the general concerns (see castillo et al., 2015; fieldhouse et al., 2007) of low political participation of youth in conventional politics as most of the participants stated that they had never attended political meetings or gatherings, nor contacted any government officials to discuss issues of concerns that require political moves, and never joined in debating issues of national concerns at any political forum or campaign rallies. in contrast to the above, the src president that was one of the interview participants appeared to be more politically aware and was actively participating in politics at the campus level as well as at the provincial and national levels. just as adelabu and akinsolu (2009) and rou et al. (2017) have agreed that the src provides the platform as the first political organization where students of higher institutions practice political functions and actively participate in political activities. he claimed to an active member of the south african students congress (sasco), ancyl, young communist league of south africa. more interestingly, he explicitly revealed that he had been privileged to have meetings with the faculty management members, and the vice-chancellor even before he emerged as the src president. this is in research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 badaru, k. a. & adu, e. o., the political awareness and participation of university students in post-apartheid south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 20 tandem with south africa’s provision for the inclusion of the srcs in its higher education policy to promote cooperative governance philosophy among stakeholders in the nation’s postapartheid higher education and training (klemenčič et al., 2016). he was an activist. he stated further that he had been voting in the national and provincial elections since 2004. but, i probed further to know why he was so keenly interested in politics despite being a student of communication management. he responded that he wished to become a politician in the future and a member of parliament at the provincial or national level. while he was still an undergraduate student, he claimed to be a registered member of the ruling anc. both nyundu et al. (2015) and lake (2010) have identified success stories of prominent politicians and the need to have a sense of political belonging as factors propelling students’ interests and participation in politics. in contrast, students’ political apathy could be a result of their poor perception of political leaders, having fears not to lose their studentship, and other academic benefits from the university authorities. to what extent is students’ political awareness associated with their participation in politics? although students’ level of political participation was generally assessed to be far below the average in this study, it was interestingly found that there was a significantly positive relationship between students’ political awareness and their participation in both on-campus and off-campus politics. in confirmation of this finding, previous studies conducted by alkhaza’leh and lahiani (2021), sarwar et al. (2021), and kholisoh et al. (2019) have also found that there is a connection between political awareness and political participation. this was further corroborated by the finding in one kenyan study conducted by ndiritu stating that an increased level of political awareness among the youth had led to more participation in the political processes (ndiritu 2007). similarly, amoateng (2015) found that students in a study exhibited a high level of political awareness and had a positive correlation with their participation in partisan activities. in this study, 49% of the participants had participated in voting in the year 2017 src election while 30% voted during the 2014 national election. we may have to assume that the non-voting students had other reasons (not to be considered in this study) for not participating in political activities both at the campus and national levels. however, this study has so far established that political awareness is a desideratum for increasing, and to a large extent has a correlation with, levels of participation in political activities off and on-campus. implications of the findings the findings of this study have practical implications for the university administrators, government, and educators. the university administrators have to devise the means of redirecting the energies and political enthusiasm of their students towards conventional democratic practices as against their usual acts of rioting and demonstrations when they feel aggrieved. this implies that reasonable demands from students on any critical issues should be looked into without violating their democratic rights. the government needs to expand the political education curriculum for university students to adequately address and emphasize the importance of participation in the democratic processes. by so doing, the universities would become alive to their responsibilities of building in their students the political consciousness for their involvement in the country’s democracy. finally, the implication for the educators is research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 badaru, k. a. & adu, e. o., the political awareness and participation of university students in post-apartheid south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 21 the need for them to conduct more specific studies on the students’ political awareness and participation across other provinces in south africa. they also have the responsibility of consciously encouraging their students to become much more interested in political activities in higher education institutions and at the national level, to say the least. conclusion this paper was an attempt to make intellectual and scholarly inputs into the body of literature on the role of political awareness towards participation in partisan activities. we have highlighted the various arguments of scholars on the significance of political awareness to raise the level of participation of the citizens in a democracy. besides, we have made arguments to support the fact that university students are the future leaders for the continuation of the nation’s democratic politics. south africa, therefore, cannot afford to lose a significant proportion of its population (the youth) to political apathy and disenchantment with participation. hence, it became critical to conduct this research to be able to ascertain the level of university students’ political awareness and participation in politics. be that as it may, three key findings have emerged from this study. firstly, the university students were found to have a high level of political awareness. this is good for the democratic development of the country because only the citizens who are politically aware would be interested in demanding accountability and good governance from their elected officials. they are also capable of contributing to the democratic processes through voting and regular engagements with the government or its representatives. secondly, we found that participation of the students in conventional politics such as voting was relatively low compared with their high levels of political awareness. this kind of situation has to be given attention by the government, civil society groups, and other stakeholders in the project of building democracy in post-apartheid south africa. thirdly, we have also established that political awareness levels are positively associated with levels of political participation. it is, therefore, imperative for the citizens’ levels of political awareness to be channeled towards improving the rates of their participation in the political processes to advance further growth in the country’s democratic practices. acknowledgement we are appreciative of the financial support received from our institution’s govan mbeki research and development centre (gmrdc) in south africa that helped us in the course of carrying out this study. we also acknowledge the contributions of participants, colleagues (most especially, anthony ajayi), and the anonymous reviewers in shaping and reshaping the final draft of this article. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 badaru, k. a. & adu, e. o., the political awareness and participation of university students in post-apartheid south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 22 references adelabu, m. a., & akinsolu, a. o. 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(2015). african youth and persistence of marginalisation: employment, politics, and prospects for change. new york: routledge. http://dx.doi.org/10.5380/dp.v13i2.43124 http://www.nova.edu/ssss/qr/qr18/loh65.pdf research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 badaru, k. a. & adu, e. o., the political awareness and participation of university students in post-apartheid south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 24 republic of south africa. (1997). the higher education act. act 101 of 1997. robertson, f. m. (2009). a study of youth political participation in poland and romania. phd diss., ucl (university college london). https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/18725/1/18725.pdf rou, c. j., musa, d., & kamis, n. c. (2017). students’ awareness towards the student representative council: a survey conducted at northern region polytechnics of malaysia. advanced journal of technical and vocational education, 1(2): 14-22. sarwar, m. s., ramazan, t., & shafiq, j. (2021). television and political awareness: measuring the impact of political talk shows on political participation of students of lahore. journal of media studies, 36(1), 217-233. http://journals.pu.edu.pk/journals/index.php/jms/index sasikala, v., & francisca, s. (2017). does location difference determines political awareness? international journal of advance research, ideas and innovations in technology, 3(2), 78-81. sharma, b. m., & choudhary, m. (2014). a study of political awareness among senior secondary school students. eduved international journal of interdisciplinary research. retrieved www. eduved. org/oct2014/editedj0244. pdf on february, 11, 2019. teorell, j. (2006). political participation and three theories of democracy: a research inventory and agenda. european journal of political research, 45(5), 787-810. van deth, j. w. (2001). studying political participation: towards a theory of everything. in joint sessions of workshops of the european consortium for political research, grenoble, pp.1-19. retrieved 18/03/2019 from https://ecpr.eu/filestore/paperproposal/c8b57aab-51d9-4aca-b65d-4510ccfc19a3.pdf verba, s., & nie, n.h. (1972). participation in america: political democracy and social equality. new york: harper and row. yaseen, m., mamdani, k. f., & siddiqui, m. (2018). the role of political talk shows in raising political awareness among youth: a case study of university of karachi. international journal of humanities and cultural studies (ijhcs), 5(3), 90-108. https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/18725/1/18725.pdf http://journals.pu.edu.pk/journals/index.php/jms/index research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 makwembere, s. disability sensitivity and sensibility: a nondisabled lecturer perspective on inclusive lecturing opportunities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 52 disability sensitivity and sensibility: a nondisabled lecturer perspective on inclusive lecturing opportunities sandra makwembere walter sisulu university, department of people development and technology, south africa e-mail: smakwembere@wsu.ac.za received : 2021-06-16 revised : 2021-07-27 accepted : 2021-08-18 how to cite this paper: makwembere, s. (2021) disability sensitivity and sensibility: a nondisabled lecturer perspective on inclusive lecturing opportunities. research in social sciences and technology, 6(2), 52-75. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.11 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). abstract disability is a social force that arguably creates more education problems for students with disabilities than their impairments. understanding it as a form of social oppression can lead to less exclusionary teaching and learning attitudes, beliefs, expectations and practices. numerous studies have looked at the experiences of staff and students with disabilities as well as the experiences of teaching students with disabilities. however, more studies are needed to better understand and address disability in higher education. nondisabled perspectives have a role to play in opposing disabling educational practices and cultures to make higher education more inclusive. many opportunities especially exist for nondisabled lecturers to contribute to addressing the higher education barriers and discrimination which often affect students with disabilities. the purpose of this study was to use a disability perspective to present my lecturing practices during the move to emergency remote teaching and learning in response to covid19 while working at an hdi. an autoethnographic method was used. content analysis of my accounts exposed the exclusionary nature of my practices in terms of how they facilitated ableism and suppressed disability discourse. recommendations are made, in light of the results, on ways to not only make higher education spaces more accommodating but counter a wider societal culture that oppresses and even seeks to eradicate the value of those who live with impairments. keywords: ableism; disability; education access; higher education; inclusive higher education 10.46303/ressat.2021.11 mailto:smakwembere@wsu.ac.za https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.11 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 makwembere, s. disability sensitivity and sensibility: a nondisabled lecturer perspective on inclusive lecturing opportunities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 53 introduction social, physical, institutional and attitudinal environments appear to still be failing to meet the needs of people with disabilities and, in higher education institutions (heis), more needs to be done to understand why this is the case (broido, 2020; howell, 2018; mutanga, 2017; snounu, 2019; zongozzi et al., 2019;). heis continue to suffer from practices which marginalise and exclude students with disabilities (dolmage, 2017; timberlake, 2020). according to the united nations convention on the rights of persons with disabilities (uncrpd), disability results “from the interaction between persons with impairments and attitudinal and environmental barriers that hinder their full and effective participation in society on an equal basis with others” (uncrpd, 2006). different models can be used to explain disability and the social and human rights models are adopted here. according to the social model of disability (smd), disability can be understood as i) a social construct not a consequence of impairment, ii) a consequence of complex interrelationships between impairment, individual responses to impairment and the social environment and iii) the cause of social disadvantage experienced by people with disabilities (hosking, 2008). the main proposition by social model theorists is that “it is the social and political aspects of disability, not the bodily aspects, which afford the profound levels of disadvantage under which disabled people struggle” (swartz & watermeyer, 2006, p. 2). in essence, disability is a “form of social oppression” (thomas, 1999). from this perspective, lecturing practices that exclude students with disabilities would be oppressive. the human rights model of disability takes disability as a human rights issue. disability is understood as part of human diversity and not a basis to deny or limit any person’s rights (degener, 2014). the position largely stems from the rights of people with disabilities contained in the uncrpd. from this viewpoint, exclusionary lecturing practices would be a human rights issue because of the associated denial or limitation of the rights of students with disabilities. disability is an issue of power (rocco, 2005). disablist environments make people with disabilities invisible or discounted (rocco, 2005; hirschmann, 2014). in public domains, people with disabilities are misrepresented or unrepresented at all (swartz et al., 2018). this “exclusion from the social and representational order is a forceful form of symbolic violence” (swartz et al., 2018, p. 21). this negative social value can become internalised and constitute a form of symbolic violence experienced by people with disabilities (swartz et al., 2018). furthermore, “when exclusion is the norm, it is bound to produce ideological justifications for the systemic problems produced by it” (d’souza, 2020, p. 1177). in south africa, despite the introduction of a higher education disability policy in 2018 and other legislative and policy provisions for disability equity, disability is an issue not well addressed in many universities. for historically disadvantaged institutions (hdis) which already suffer many challenges, such as a lack of infrastructure as well as human and financial resources, prioritising ways to tackle disabling environments can facilitate inclusivity. hdis refer to a category of universities that catered for black people under apartheid and are presently classified as such to redress historic inequalities (africa & mutizwa-mangiza, 2018). seven universities are presently classified as hdis: the university of fort hare, the university of limpopo, the university of venda, walter sisulu university, the university of the western cape, the university of zululand and mangosuthu university of technology. the sefako makgatho health science university, a former campus of the university of limpopo, is also classified as an hdi. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 makwembere, s. disability sensitivity and sensibility: a nondisabled lecturer perspective on inclusive lecturing opportunities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 54 these institutions have a history of being marginalised and have many students from disadvantaged backgrounds (africa & mutizwa-mangiza, 2018). relating to disability, not enough attention has been paid to lecturing experiences during the covid-19 pandemic at these institutions. literature is replete with experiences of students with impairments being disabled by their university environments (moswela & mukhopadhyay, 2018; ngubane-mokiwa & zongozzi, 2021; zongozzi, 2020) as well as lecturer experiences of teaching students with varying impairments (mutanga & walker, 2017; svendby, 2020). however, there is limited literature on the reflections of the lecturers who might be creating disabling situations and their perspectives on how they facilitate disabling experiences. in a study on the forms of support offered to students with disabilities by the disability unit at the university of venda, an hdi, mbuvha (2019) found that students did not get sufficient additional support from lecturers such as tutorials, curriculum differentiation and extra learning materials adapted for their needs. the study highlighted lecturer behaviours that hinder inclusivity. however, the lecturers’ views on those students’ experiences were excluded. lecturers are important role players in creating more or less inclusive environments; thus, some attention should be paid to how they do this. concerning nondisabled lecturers in particular, investigations that include their individual reflections can help to identify the “deeply conditioned” (watermeyer, 2006, p. 35) assumptions ‘within’ that lead to teaching and learning practices that are consciously, unconsciously or dysconsciously exclusionary. the purpose of the study was to use a disability perspective to present my lecturing practices during the move to emergency remote teaching and learning (ertl) in response to covid-19 while working at an hdi. research question the research question was: in what ways did i lecture, from a disability perspective, in terms of what i perceived and assumed was expected of me and my delivery of course materials, during the move to ertl in response to covid-19? what follows is a review of literature on disability in higher education and inclusive lecturing. then, the social and human rights models of disability are presented. the methodology is outlined, followed by a presentation of the results according to the themes of ableist conditioned barrier building and reinforcing disability silences. the results are discussed and finally, the conclusion and recommendations are presented. literature review disability in south african higher education article 24 of the uncrpd (2006) states that, persons with disabilities should be assured of the right to inclusive education at all levels. south africa, as a signatory of the uncrpd, has to demonstrate its commitment to address disability. croft (2010) observed that people with disabilities are excluded from educational opportunities and face difficulties in progressing to tertiary levels. moreover, education models still battle to accommodate the broad needs of research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 makwembere, s. disability sensitivity and sensibility: a nondisabled lecturer perspective on inclusive lecturing opportunities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 55 people with disabilities and political dialogue on the disability in higher education is yet to reach prolific levels. a core problem has been the “invisibility” of people with disabilities in systems of freedom (quinn & degener, 2002). what seems to be apparent is that people with disabilities are excluded from political influence and are perceived to be too few to deserve resource investment, hence, significant higher education policy and research ‘silences’ on disability are witnessed (morley, 2011; verstraete, 2017). despite seemingly progressive policy, for example, the national education policy act 27 of 1996, the draft policy for the provision of quality education and support for children with severe to profound intellectual disabilities (2016) and the strategic policy framework on disability for the post-school education and training system (2018), much still needs to be done to implement and sustain initiatives that support and include students with disabilities. it is well recognised that many universities are not fully equipped to cater for disabilities (morley & croft, 2011; pudaruth, gunputh & singh, 2017; southern africa federation of the disabled, 2018). as morley and croft (2011, p. 393) noted, “while awareness about exclusion and equalities is developing, disability is a structure of inequality that has received little policy or research attention in higher education in low-income countries”. studies on disability in south african universities have raised several issues. in a mixed method study on staff and students with disabilities’ experiences of disability support, inclusion and exclusion at stellenbosch university, lyner-cleophas (2016) found that there were inclusive and exclusive practices at that university. the policy was inclusive, however, practices such as inconsistent lecturer support, inadequate training to deal with disability and less attention to less visible disabilities, resulted in exclusions. mutanga’s (2018) qualitative study on the academic and life experiences of students with disabilities at two hdis (the university of fort hare and university of venda) revealed that their policies needed to be more inclusive. mutanga (2018) found that students with disabilities struggled to access teaching and learning because of issues such as little effort made by lecturers to offer alternative consultation times, an inability to access study materials in friendly formats, a shortage of resources such as braille books as well as inaccessible teaching and learning methods used by lecturers. in a qualitative study of e-learning needs of students with disabilities at a south african university, jaarsveldt and ndeya-ndereya (2015) found that lecturers distanced themselves from giving support to students with disabilities. this was attributed to their lack of knowledge and skills relating to disability, their lack of anticipation of disability needs as well as psychological factors such as discomfort and uncertainty. they argued that lecturers should accept responsibility for understanding accessibility issues and establish inclusive learning environments (jaarsveldt & ndeya-ndereya, 2015). additionally, that “through raising the confidence levels of lecturers and encouraging them to engage in a continuous process of self-reflective practice – there will be steady progress towards inclusive education” (jaarsveldt & ndeya-ndereya, 2015, p. 210). in a study on lecturer perspectives on the academic lives of students with disabilities, mutanga and walker (2017) uncovered that lecturers blamed students with disabilities or the institution for their challenges, lacked an understanding of diversity and treated students with disabilities as a homogenous category. furthermore, the lecturers acknowledged “their lack of awareness on how to react and act when confronted by students with disabilities or disability issues in research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 makwembere, s. disability sensitivity and sensibility: a nondisabled lecturer perspective on inclusive lecturing opportunities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 56 practice” (mutanga & walker, 2017, p. 5). similar to jaarsveldt and ndeya-ndereya (2015), mutanga and walker (2017, p. 7) made pertinent observations that: lecturers need to be aware and be reflective of their perspectives and behaviour. selfreflection, which involves deep inward looking into every action is critical for lecturers to become more aware and active in meeting the needs of all students. this is only possible if lecturers are willing to self-examine their own conceptions. this article is a response to mutanga and walker’s (2017) call. inclusive lecturing inclusive lecturing “is about responding to the spectrum of different needs that any crowd of human beings will present to [lecturers]. some of these are visible...others are not. some of the needs are well known to their owners, others are not” (brown & race, 2003, p. 164). it caters for the needs of students with various impairments (amka, 2017). determining how to enhance access to higher education as well as the best ways to include underrepresented groups, in particular people with disabilities, is a challenging task for many lecturers (ukpabio, 2019; chiwandire, 2019; nurjannah, rahajeng & arawindha, 2021). using inclusive lecturing strategies can address accessibility challenges. when lecturing is not inclusive, it reinforces barriers to education experienced by students with disabilities (osborne, 2019; munemo & bekele, 2020; hsu et al., 2020) and ableism (dolmage, 2017; d’souza, 2020). ableism is a predominately “unconscious acceptance of able-bodied privilege and sense of normal that does not need to be defined; normal is recognisable and “we know it when we see it” (timberlake, 2020, p. 85). it can also be dysconsicious (broderick & lalvani, 2017), meaning it is “a flawed awarenessa way of thinking about disability that upholds and is upheld by, mainstream ideology around normality” (timberlake, 2020, p. 91). it renders disability as “abject, invisible, disposable, less than human” (dolmage, 2017, p. 7). the exclusion of people with disabilities is an inherent feature of ableism. the risk of taking such exclusion for granted is that “students with disabilities...will be seen as inevitable victims of an immutable part of social life and consequently treated as preordained failures” (d’souza, 2020, p. 1181) and be marginalised. concerted efforts are necessary to “eliminate or minimise the barriers that limit the correct learning of...students” (rueda & cerero, 2019, p. 98) created by ableism. universal design for learning (udl) is an educational approach to teaching, learning and assessment that can be applied to respond effectively to student differences (wilson, 2017). it is a framework that can reduce barriers of accessing course activities and content when it is applied (mcgeehan, 2020). it gives guidance on how to provide multiple means of engagement, representation and means of action (chiwandire, 2019). for example, the use of pause procedure, where short breaks are taken to review notes or discuss topics covered, can improve the accuracy of notes as well sustain student attention. this is valuable for students with learning disabilities (pedroza, 2019). udl encourages the use of different teaching approaches and forms of assessment to reduce giving privilege to one type of student. when it comes to the use of multiple methods, it emphasises the range of formats used per method in addition to the number of methods. when it is applied well, udl can lead to learning environments that are more inclusive of all students, not simply for students with disabilities (chiwandire, 2019; mcgeehan, 2020). research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 makwembere, s. disability sensitivity and sensibility: a nondisabled lecturer perspective on inclusive lecturing opportunities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 57 despite institutional goals that might be set to advance inclusive lecturing and incorporate udl principles in teaching and learning, many educational practices still largely benefit students without disabilities and this seems to even be perceived as ‘normal’ (kilinc, 2021). further research into lecturing experiences is needed to provide insights into how they demonstrate exclusionary educational practices and how these can be shaped to be more inclusive of the needs of students with various impairments (amka, 2017). social and human rights models of disability the social model of disability (smd) and human rights model of disability (hrmd) are two complementary models of disability (lawson & beckett, 2020) which are useful for positioning one’s understanding of disability and subsequently, how one might facilitate it. smd focuses on the barriers (attitudinal, physical, political and so on) that exist separately from an individual’s impairment. the main premise is that society disables individuals and groups by catering for the needs of people who do not have impairments. the model emerged in the united kingdom in the 1960s and the use of the actual term ‘social model of disability’ is traced to the 1980s. oliver (1983) coined the phrase and is credited as a pioneer of the model. oliver (1996) stated that: it is society which disables physically impaired people. disability is something imposed on top of our impairments by the way we are unnecessarily isolated and excluded from full participation in society. disabled people are therefore an oppressed group in society...it is necessary to grasp the distinction between the physical impairment and the social situation called ‘disability’ of people with such impairment...impairment [is] lacking all or part of a limb or having a defective limb, organism or mechanism of the body and disability [is] the disadvantage or restriction of activity caused by a contemporary social organisation which takes little or no account of people who have physical impairments and thus excludes them from participation in the mainstream of social activities. (oliver, 1996, p. 22) the model rests on these arguments. impairment is distinguished from disability where impairment pertains to a condition of the mind or body and disability results from the way society responds to that impairment (degener, 2014). oliver (2004, p. 30) argued that the model is “a practical tool, not a theory, an idea or a concept”. disabling situations are partially created by people’s choices (samaha, 2007). in a university context, for example, a lecturer’s choice of slides purely for personal aesthetic pleasure could be exclusionary and disabling. working based on preferences overlooks the universal appropriateness of materials to accommodate students with various visual needs including students with visual impairments. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 makwembere, s. disability sensitivity and sensibility: a nondisabled lecturer perspective on inclusive lecturing opportunities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 58 figure 1. social model of disability (adapted from samaha, 2007) concerning remedies to disability, the model places the responsibility on society, not the person with an impairment, to remove the disabling barriers. the exclusions and oppression of people with impairments are to be resisted in all social arrangements of society. the human rights model of disability (hrmd) concentrates on the inherent dignity of human beings and afterwards, but only if necessary, on a person’s medical characteristics. it places the individual at the centre of all decisions affecting him/her and, most importantly, situates the main ‘problem’ outside the person and in society (degener, 2014; quinn & degener, 2002). similar to the smd, societal factors account for disability. every person, by virtue of being human, is a human rights subject and the human rights they are entitled to do not need the absence of impairment. the human rights encompass civil and political as well as economic, social and cultural rights. these two sets of rights are indivisible and interdependent (degener, 2014). furthermore, the hrmd strives for social justice by offering a “roadmap for change” (degener, 2014, p. 26). the uncrpd human rights treaty has especially shaped policy responses to disability by providing a rights framework within which policy can be developed. consequently, disability is being mainstreamed into policy areas where it was previously not considered thereby enhancing social justice. concerning university contexts, this model positions these spaces as places where the rights of students with disabilities must be realised. therefore, lecturers have a duty to ensure the rights of students with disabilities are respected. while some view the hrmd as a departure from the social model; others view it as an expansion and improvement of the smd. lawson and beckett (2020, p. 350) argue that “the relationship between the two models is one in which neither can be viewed as an improvement on the other because each has distinctive roles to play”. the two theories can be applied in a complementary way to understand disability in higher education contexts. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 makwembere, s. disability sensitivity and sensibility: a nondisabled lecturer perspective on inclusive lecturing opportunities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 59 methodology design a qualitative design was chosen. specifically, retrospective autoethnography was used. it enabled an identification and questioning of the junctions between ‘self and society’, ‘the particular and the general’, ‘the personal and the political’, demonstrating myself “in the process of figuring out what to do, how to live and the meaning of [my] struggles” (adams et al., 2015, p. 1-2). it is valuable for educational research (starr, 2010) and was chosen because it “can produce personally, professionally and socially useful understandings of teaching and researching in higher education” (pillay, naicker & pithouse-morgan, 2016, p. 14). data and sources of data the primary data were my lecture slides, my lecture recordings, whatsapp messages and typed up and handwritten notes (self-data), of what could be recalled of main events and steps taken. the focus was on three courses that i lectured under ertl while working for a south african hdi in 2020. the courses were business management, labour law and research methodology. the business management course had 130 students, the labour law course had 91 students and research methodology course had 53 students. the main data collection process of collating materials took place over a week (5-11 april 2021). for the first part of the week, i looked over course lectures slides, listened to lecture videos while taking notes of my perceptions and assumptions. the written record allowed me to capture personal matters (fiske, 1990). the process was hampered by a failure to recall precise events (wamsted, 2012) and disruptions to the times dedicated to recalling events but the recollections intended to focus on “lifting out and sharing meaning from (marginalised) experiences” (schmid, 2019, p. 273). data analysis written, typed up data, were manually analysed through qualitative content analysis. the unit of analysis was my lecturing material. the analysis of texts involved coding texts then extracting themes (mayring, 2000). a process of coding led to an identification of themes which do not “generate concepts and theory, but instead...describe the meanings and actions of [myself] and texts” (drisko & maschi, 2016, p. 105). a selection of audio and video data was used to augment text data. the videos were not transcribed, instead reflections on what was watched or listened to formed part of analysis. results two main themes emerged from categorising my lecturing experiences and reflections. these are presented next. ableist conditioned barrier building ableism was revealed in the perceptions and assumptions of what was expected of me, in the delivery of course materials. although no student in any of the courses disclosed that they had a disability, not catering for students with disabilities was presented as a conditioned rather than planned behaviour and created barriers to potential learning from a disability perspective. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 makwembere, s. disability sensitivity and sensibility: a nondisabled lecturer perspective on inclusive lecturing opportunities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 60 perceptions and assumptions about what was expected when the first lockdown was announced on the 23rd of march 2020, i was unsure about what to expect. i wondered how i would work under the circumstances. the notion of social distancing was new and i wondered how it was meant to be managed. from april 2020, i attended several meetings at departmental, faculty and institutional levels where the responses to covid-19 were discussed and resolutions were made. at all the meetings i attended, disability was incomprehensively discussed. by june 2020, i began some interactions with students via whatsapp. below is a personal narrative i wrote which summarises what i did: after the beginning of national lockdown was announced on 23 march 2020, for the first time, i could not physically go to work freely for reasons unrelated to institutionally based disruptions. initially, i thought the situation would not be for long, so was not very concerned. at the time, i did not realise the implications of lockdown nor did i anticipate how quickly the institution would decide in response to the situation. several new policies were introduced to support ertl. i had to decide how i was going to manage teaching and learning activities under the circumstances. between april and may 2020, i participated in different pieces of training such as how to use the university learning management system and microsoft teams...i also did my research on other online platforms such as google and zoom and on how to instruct and assess online. despite the time invested, still, i did not feel i was fully knowledgeable and equipped to enter ertl. i knew that there was no option but was not confident that the preparatory process i had gone through was enough. i placed the course materials (slides and course outlines) on the university learning management system...when june 2020 arrived, i began some contact with students via whatsapp groups. whatsapp became the main medium of communicating with students. i did not receive as many messages as i had feared when i created the groups. from july 2020, i had more interactions with students on whatsapp as well as the university learning management system. i sent prerecorded lecture videos on the whatsapp groups as well as posted these on the learning management system. i had a few live online classes on blackboard and ms teams where i displayed slides and at times showed videos from youtube. of the courses i lectured, the main challenges students faced was network connectivity and data access problems. i accommodated these challenges by having shorter live classes, sending prerecorded videos instead of having live classes and changing assessment dates (s. makwembere, personal communication, april 5, 2021). the decisions about how i was going to manage teaching and learning activities were based on my perception that all the students i needed to cater for had the same learning needs. i prepared myself to along these lines. i researched on how to use different platforms, instruct and assess online assuming that i would cater for uniform student needs. i placed materials on the learning management system in single formats (microsoft document, powerpoint or portable document format). these were formats that i was familiar with and felt comfortable to use. i believed that the formats were sufficient. when i contacted students on whatsapp, i assumed that they had no challenges in receiving my messages other than network connectivity research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 makwembere, s. disability sensitivity and sensibility: a nondisabled lecturer perspective on inclusive lecturing opportunities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 61 or data access. i believed that once i sent a message, it was received as it was sent. when it came to the prerecorded videos, i spoke as i went through slides believing that what i said would be heard and the images i presented would be seen. during live online classes on blackboard or microsoft teams, which tended to be one hour to one and a half hours long, i was the main person who spoke. i held my lectures without video and believed that this method was sufficient as i assumed that all the students who attended only needed to hear me. i usually gave students an opportunity to ask questions after i was done but rarely received any questions. i thought that this meant that the students had no requests or that if they had any needs, that they would find a way to have these resolved by themselves. the accommodations i made to my lecturing were mainly to accommodate student network connectivity or data issues. in my view, these were the main needs students had expressed thus most accommodations were in response to this. course material delivery lecture slides and lecture videos were placed on the online learning management system blackboard and were sometimes distributed via whatsapp. i prepared lecture slides for classes using microsoft office and pre-recorded videos using screencast-o-matic. materials were viewable on blackboard as illustrated in figures 2 and 3. lecture slides were uploaded in microsoft powerpoint format and lecture videos were in mp4 file format. figure 2. lecture slides posted on blackboard figure 3. videos posted on blackboard research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 makwembere, s. disability sensitivity and sensibility: a nondisabled lecturer perspective on inclusive lecturing opportunities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 62 the slides and videos were uploaded during the year and left on the platform for students to access. i recounted the following in my notes concerning my use of blackboard: i put everything on blackboard. no one told me about any particular features that i could use for students with disabilities. i don’t think i would necessarily have needed to use them but it would have been nice to know i had the options. i’m disappointed that i didn’t ask...it’s rather late now, it’s done...i think it might’ve been a lot of effort...the way i prepared was as i had done previously, there didn’t seem to be a need to do anything differently (s. makwembere, personal communication, april 5, 2021) the lecture slides typically included english written text and different images or figures. figures 4 to 7 illustrate my typical presentation of slides. at times, the slides had links to youtube videos as shown in figures 4 and 5. during classes, the youtube videos would be shown to students. if a pre-recorded lecture was prepared, the youtube video would be shown as part of the recording too. figure 4. business management lecture slides with links to youtube videos research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 makwembere, s. disability sensitivity and sensibility: a nondisabled lecturer perspective on inclusive lecturing opportunities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 63 figure 5. research methodology lecture slides with links to youtube videos i recalled my incorporation of videos as follows: i liked the option to show videos. i didn’t get to do that last year. i never showed any videos in classes, it was just impossible...it seemed too much effort to rearrange class schedules and go through the venue booking system...i was now able to get around this. i feel proud that i tried this out. i’m not sure if these were the best possible videoes but they were nice in my view...i heard about captions and alternative text earliler this year on twitter. i never thought to use these options at all. if there was any person in class that needed them, they must’ve been so annoyed...felt cheated. (s. makwembere, personal communication, april 5, 2021) at times, images were included in the lecture slides such as in figures 6 and 7. sometimes animations were also used with the images to emphasise certain points as illustrated in figure 6. figure 6. business management lecture slides with images research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 makwembere, s. disability sensitivity and sensibility: a nondisabled lecturer perspective on inclusive lecturing opportunities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 64 concerning the additional features i included on slides, my thoughts were as follows: i like animations. i don’t use them much but here (slide 13 and 14) i liked the bit of drama. if i had a blind student, i wonder how i would handle this. at the time, i really was more focused on getting the animations to appear correctly. i assumed that everyone was going to see them and like them. i wasn’t aware of any reason not to include animations. do i stop using animations on slides because one student in my class is blind? (s. makwembere, personal communication, april 5, 2021) figure 7. labour law lecture slides with images the images selected to be part of the lecture slides as well as the youtube videos were my choice. during the lecture presentations, i would direct students’ attention to particular points on slides and aspects of images or figures. i would use phrases such as ‘as you can see here...’ and ‘what is clear here is...’ when referring to certain content. i also used prerecorded video content prepared using screencast-o-matic, a video recording and editing software which i purchased at the price of usd$19.80 for the year. when images were part of the lecture slides, i used the in-built pointer to refer to different parts of the images as illustrated in figure 8. figure 8. pointer use in labour law prerecorded lecture video research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 makwembere, s. disability sensitivity and sensibility: a nondisabled lecturer perspective on inclusive lecturing opportunities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 65 occasionally, youtube videos would be part of pre-recorded content. the selection of these tended to be based on what i viewed as a video that gave useful information. such videos included people presenting information such as in figure 9 or only voice overs with images as illustrated in figure 10. figure 9. research methodology prerecorded lecture video with youtube video figure 10. business management pre-recorded lecture video with youtube video after rewatching the video in figure 10, my reaction was as follows: “i can’t believe there is so little text. i liked how the video simplified the techniques but wow, this was for a hearing and seeing audience. i prepared this for someone like me” (s. makwembere, personal communication, april 8, 2021) also, i used pre-recorded videos to demonstrate various things such as how to create charts as shown in figure 11. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 makwembere, s. disability sensitivity and sensibility: a nondisabled lecturer perspective on inclusive lecturing opportunities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 66 figure 11. research methodology video to demonstrate how to create charts pre-recorded videos were sometimes used to provide feedback on assessments (figure 12). figure 12. prerecorded video providing feedback on a business management assessment as with lecture presentations, in the pre-recorded videos, i would direct students' attention to certain points on slides and aspects of images or figures. reinforcing disability silences concerning references to disability, disability was referred to in a written form during three instances, two during the research methodology lectures and one during a labour law lecture. there were no extended discussions of disability in the classes associated with the slides. in the first instance, during a research methodology lecture, disability was referred to as part of examples of publication titles (figure 13). the title was ‘career advancement challenges facing people with disabilities’. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 makwembere, s. disability sensitivity and sensibility: a nondisabled lecturer perspective on inclusive lecturing opportunities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 67 figure 13. research methodology lecture slides on the second occasion, during another research methodology lecture on research ethics, the willowbrook study ‘on children diagnosed with mental retardation’ was cited (figure 14). figure 14. research methodology lecture slides in the final instance, disability was referred to during a labour law lecture on the employment equity act. people with disabilities were identified as belonging to the definition of designation groups. figure 15. labour law lecture slides research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 makwembere, s. disability sensitivity and sensibility: a nondisabled lecturer perspective on inclusive lecturing opportunities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 68 no discussions on disability took place beyond these references made during these lectures. for the willowbrook study in figure14, i did not consider whether the slides reinforced any negative attitudes or beliefs about disability. my thoughts at the time were that the slide created a basis for discussion on unethical research. my views on the way i handled the lecture with the willowbrook study were that: i saw mental retardation being referred to in different descriptions about the study and thought this was correct. this means the situation was not just my problem. the problem was that i just gave information without casting a critical eye over it. but, i didn’t even know how to engage critically from a disability perspective...if it was not for these reflections, i was probably going to carry on referring to the term mental retardation...i needed help to know how to handle disability discussions in class. (s. makwembere, personal communication, april 8, 2021) i felt ill prepared to handle discussions relating to disability in class. discussion ableism characterised the patterns of perceptions of and assumptions about what was expected and the course material delivery. the form and formats of materials developed were taken to be “normal” and the delivery of information was perceived as “normal” albeit the “abnormal” circumstances of covid-19. accessibility for students with disabilities was not prioritised at the time. mbuvha’s (2019) study pointed to this lack of support from lecturers as well. youtube videos and prerecorded videos had no additional features such as captions, subtitles or video transcripts. no steps were taken to check and make use of the blackboard or screencast-o-matic accessibility features. the choices were based on what was perceived as a ‘normal’ audience with similar learning needs in my academic reality. i met a “standard of normal” (dolmage, 2017). this ‘normal’ category is socially invented and part of an “ableist ‘reality’ that...has been created, and is maintained, through higher education” (dolmage, 2017, p. 6). my lecturing was ableist, for “able-bodiedness...represented as at once ideal, normal, and the mean or default” (dolmage, 2017, p. 7). there was no sensitivity to the fact that the preparation and presentation of materials as well as the assumptions made valued ablebodiedness and inadvertently justified barriers of inequality for students with disabilities (dolmage, 2017). the absence of lecturing practices which took students with disabilities into account were similar to what students shared as their experiences in mbuvha’s (2019) study. lecture planning and delivery processes under the ertl circumstances took place without interrogating whether they were disability inclusive. this exemplified a lack of lecturer preparedness and ignorance concerning disability, also found amongst lecturers by mutanga and walker (2017). students in mbuvha’s (2019) study expressed inaccessibility of learning due to a lack of such accommodations by lecturers. the failure to apply udl principles meant that barriers to potential learning were present. these ableist practices of not applying udl principles seemed to be dysconscious (broderick & lalvani, 2017). irrespective of no known students with disabilities, they created barriers, the kind of “barriers that have kept people with disabilities out of social institutions like universities” (dolmage, 2017, p. 59). the justifications for producing the materials the way they were produced at the time were exclusionary and the research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 makwembere, s. disability sensitivity and sensibility: a nondisabled lecturer perspective on inclusive lecturing opportunities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 69 assumptions about the audience were exclusionary. the evidence points to little recognition or critical questioning of how lecturing accommodated diverse needs. this might not have been intentional. it highlights that indeed disability is a powerful invisible social force, which can lead to a conditioning, which finds the exclusion of students with disabilities as acceptable. from a human rights perspective, such lecturing practices do not create situations to facilitate selfdetermination, that is, they do not recognise the right of students with disabilities to take and develop responsibility for their learning decisions and situations (donnelly, 2011). the lecturing practices silenced disability experiences as they overlooked disability. this discounting of people with disabilities was also found by gabel and miskovic (2014), rocco (2005) and hirschmann (2014). yoshida and shanouda (2015) found, that experiences of people with disabilities are often silenced. lectures neither included examples of disabilityrelated issues or images of people with disabilities nor facilitated a meaningful discussion on disability. the slide on the willowbrook study exemplified how violently society has treated people with disabilities and the lecturing non-response exemplified how normalised this seemed to be. society is accustomed to overlooking people with disabilities and their experiences (rocco, 2005; hirschmann, 2014). the use of the term mentally retarded is rejected. referring to someone as mentally retarded is disrespectful and offensive (granello, 2019; garcia, granello & boehm, 2020). intellectual disability is the term considered more appropriate as it speaks to how society limits the individual as opposed to attributing fault to the individual (cluley, 2018; vandetta-smitherman, 2018). where disability related references are used in lectures without interrogation, as the evidence revealed, disability discourse is silenced (gabel & miskovic, 2014). the importance of disability experiences, for example, through incorporating critical disability literature in curricula, is important. conclusion there is no standardised disability support in south african higher education, therefore, many lecturers in hdis can find themselves without guided support to address disability in their classrooms whether or not they have students with disabilities. given this reality, lecturers still have their own agency and ability to self-correct. inclusive higher education needs reflexivity that results in behavioural changes, which promotes truly inclusive teaching and learning practices. this article revealed some exclusionary lecturing practices adopted under ertl during 2020. neither lecturers nor their heis are immune to society’s dominant ableist discourse. while it is ideal for institutional support to be provided to lecturers to better handle disability, lecturers do not have to wait for their institutions to provide them with guidance on how to better support students with disabilities. progressively inclusive changes can be made independent of institutional direction based on the rights accorded to people with disabilities. lecturers do not have to wait to encounter students with disabilities. through engaging in reflexive processes, an individual’s agency can be activated to counter the marginalisation of students with disabilities and other forms of exclusionary higher education practices. recommendations studies on disability in higher education should be “about challenge, debate, uncertainty and new forms of academic production” (swartz & watermeyer, 2006, p. 6). heis (both public and private) should look to engage in disability research to enhance understanding and shift research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 makwembere, s. disability sensitivity and sensibility: a nondisabled lecturer perspective on inclusive lecturing opportunities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 70 practices both internally and in the higher education sector, through provoking critical thinking on disability because access to higher education is a social and human rights issue. indicators of access to higher education should use holistic approaches. enrolment into universities of students with disabilities should be deemphasised as a primary marker of access as this does not fully respond to the physical, social and legal barriers which impact the lived experiences of people with disabilities (shakespeare, 2011). disability assessments can rather focus on ways to broadly interrogate inclusivity. for example, instead of only establishing whether lecture theatres have ramps, measures can be introduced to evaluate the preparedness of lecturers to handle the delivery of courses to students with diverse learning needs in those lecture theatres or on online platforms. lecturers should intentionally and proactively devise and use tools to create the best learning environment for students (appert et al., 2018; kachani, ross & irvin, 2020). these need not be completely new. inclusive teaching principles can be followed such as establishing and supporting class settings that foster belonging to all students, establish clear student expectations, choose course content that appreciates diversity and recognises barriers to inclusion, design every course element for accessibility and reflect on teaching beliefs to increase self-awareness and one’s commitment to inclusion (appert et al., 2018; kachani et al., 2020). when preparing lecture content in a variety of forms (for example, powerpoint presentations and videos), use different ways of representing and supporting materials (for example, illustrations, summaries, captions and alternative text for images), choose course content by authors of diverse backgrounds and that reflects systematically underrepresented or missing perspectives and plan for the use multiple methods to convey information and adjustable formats (appert et al., 2018; gillian‐daniel et al., 2020). in the classroom, establish guidelines to promote inclusive learning in the classroom with students, build rapport with students through, for example, learning their names, having online chats and sharing about your interests, diversify class activities to offer a variety of ways for students to participate in class, use examples that reflect diversity and intersectionality, extend ways of encouraging class engagement, for example, designing activities or assignments with students, build awareness of student behaviours in the classroom and devise ways to deal with challenging behaviours such as microaggression and address, not ignore, difficult classroom behaviours such as offensive comments, by extending opportunities to probe the behaviours without attributing motive as well as applying existing policies and procedures and direct students to where they can get additional support (appert et al., 2018; schuelka et al., 2019; kabel et al, 2021; kachani et al., 2021). concerning teaching beliefs, avoid making assumptions about students’ abilities, treat every student as an individual, consider individual positionality and interrogate the ways perceptions of the self and others have been shaped, probe conscious and unconscious biases (appert et al., 2018; schuelka et al., 2019; gillian‐daniel et al., 2020; kachani et al., 2021; naraian, 2021). it will not be possible for hdis to achieve all that would be necessary to ensure lecturers, as key role players of inclusive higher education, immediately have the resources and knowledge they need to address disability issues. therefore, strategies to progressively build capacities should be developed with staff and students with disabilities and as far as possible, include other key role players in the disability community to ensure that needs are appropriately met. these research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 makwembere, s. disability sensitivity and sensibility: a nondisabled lecturer perspective on inclusive lecturing opportunities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 71 strategies can include identifying and establishing relationships with key stakeholders who can meaningfully participate in the dialogue on inclusive reform, providing diversity and inclusion workshops and reviewing policies for inclusivity and making changes where there are weaknesses (appert et al., 2018; kachani et al., 2020). as the strategies are implemented, lecturers should be encouraged to reflect on the ways they are implementing these and share them. the presence of a safe environment will be vital for this, therefore, careful consideration should be given to how the revelations will be handled if they are used for performance management. references adams, t. e., jones, s. h., & ellis, c. 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(2021). mentor-mentee experiences amidst covid-19: a teaching practice case study, research in social sciences and technology. 6(2), 76-95. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.12 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). abstract preparing student teachers for the world of work is seen globally as a challenge. this research aims to explore mentors and mentees experiences in teaching practice during the covid-19 period. in order to explore the challenge in this study, the following research question guided the paper: what are the teaching practice experiences of mentors and mentees at a school during covid-19? the research question is a result of limited research done on the experiences of two groups during covid-19. informed by the realist social theory, we generated data via telephonic interviews with mentors and mentees in one school. the data was generated through semi-structured interviews and thematic analysis was a method employed in the analysis of the data. the results present challenges experienced by mentees which, amongst others, include a feeling of inadequacy or a lack of confidence in their abilities to bring about order to the classroom and a feeling of being excluded in meetings and extra-curricular activities. on the other hand, mentors receive mentees without any prior warning or without arrangements made to accommodate them and the absence of the university officials except for assessment. based on the results, a collaborative approach should be employed to deal with some of the challenges experienced by mentors and mentees. keywords: teaching practice; mentees; mentors; covid-19. 10.46303/ressat.2021.12 mailto:tsotetsict@ufs.ac.za https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.12 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 tsotetsi, c.t. & mile, s.a. mentor-mentee experiences amidst covid-19: a teaching practice case study research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 77 introduction pre-service teaching plays an integral part in teacher training as it provides student teachers with the opportunity to attain real-life work experience (kiggundu, 2007). while it is the responsibility of institutions of higher learning to provide educational theories and instil them in pre-service teachers, a more significant responsibility lies with practising teachers to provide on-the-job mentorship that will equip necessary skills for pre-service teachers to excel within the teaching profession. ryan (2016) outlines that pre-service teaching is a time for reflection regarding the student-teacher’s field readiness while similarly exploring and negotiating mechanisms to prevail over challenges and encounters that may surface within their teaching occupation. simply put, pre-service education means teachers’ education before they enter into service. it is also concerned with the significance of learning the methodology of the fundamental qualities to the realisation of becoming a good teacher (educational systems blog, 2013). it has been determined that pre-service teachers divulge concerns in applying learned theories into their actual teaching (beeth & adadan, 2006; tarman, 2012). harding and hbaci (2015) believe that the transition from being full-time students who are supported by university personnel and supervisor teachers to independent teachers (although scaffolded) who are entirely responsible for pedagogical processes and classroom management puts a strain on pre-service teachers. professional teacher induction programmes provide a wide array of subjects and jargon such as curricula, management, and fairness (ryan et al., 2017). several studies have been piloted to scrutinise pre-service teachers’ strengths and barriers in pedagogical processes. the glitches are directly associated with their limited experience within the profession, including behavioural management, time management, lack of ability to work with learners with different needs, and the lack of communication skills. the prevailing covid-19 pandemic conditions further escalated these challenges, forcing schools to revise learner attendance models. limbers (2020) study outlines how multiple states provided the guidelines for the return of school in the 2021 academic year, which gives school districts directives for their reopening. in south africa, the ministry of education provided regulations on learners’ attendance, timetable models, social distancing measures, to name a few. the challenge faced by pre-service teachers in this period is that they are not equipped with a methodology to navigate the classroom in dealing with the psyche, anxiety, technological and social aspects of learners concerned with a health crisis as covid-19. lepp et al. (2021) asserts that covid-19 propelled reorganised learning settings within the education domain and that the stakeholders in school were forced into a new circumstance. as such, pre-service teachers were not exempted from these changes, although the same model of teaching practice was still adopted with no adjustment to suit the covid 19 prescriptions and regulations. pre-service teachers’ strengths include a tendency to inquire, pay attention, build rapport with children, and increase their social awareness (harding & hbaci, 2015). according to the revised policy on minimum requirements for the teaching qualification south african (rsa [republic of south africa], 2015), an activity where student teachers are placed in schools in order to gain teaching experience is referred to as teaching practice. a qualification therein attests that an organised and logical programme of learning was followed and completed through formal or informal learning provided by institutions of higher learning such research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 tsotetsi, c.t. & mile, s.a. mentor-mentee experiences amidst covid-19: a teaching practice case study research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 78 as universities, universities of technology and teacher colleges that are recognised. clarke, triggs and nielsen (2014) further stress that a pre-service teacher mentorship programme which takes the form of teaching practice in the south african context and its supplementary practical can be regarded as an induction course that provides support to ascertain that preservice teachers are drawing out to the maximum from the available learning opportunities. mokoena (2017) deduces that teaching practice is a period where student teachers observe teachers who are already practising in the field in order to learn about teaching skills and classroom management techniques. it is important to note that a student may not be graduated if they do not undergo teaching practice experience in south africa. this implied that education students across south african institutions still had to go for their teaching practice during covid-19. kiggundu and nayimuli (2009) suggest that teaching practice can be the make or break phase for pre-service teachers, maintaining that pre-service teachers can either have a positive or a negative experience during the teaching practice tenure. this period can be challenging and yet an important part of teacher training, drawing into the south african context as a developing country where the belief that the effectiveness of the teaching practice can be diminished or eroded by an array of trials, such as geographical distance, poor and uneven levels of teacher expertise, extensive lack of resources as well as a lack of discipline among a wide cross-section of learners and educators. moreover, should such challenges not be addressed, they may potentially affect the pre-service teacher’s performance during this induction period and, in the long run, alter their perception of the teaching profession in its entirety. ryan (2016) therefore, concludes that a teaching practice programme displays an interdependent relationship between primary stakeholders, which are the mentors and mentees. in that regard, he asserts that adequate and effective communication between the stakeholders mentioned above can influence the turnout of the induction programme. communication can thus enhance the practical experience for a pre-service teacher, and lack of thereof can similarly propel a deterioration in performance and in the long run, develop an overall dislike for the profession. finally, the educational system blog (2013) emphasises that pre-service teaching programmes are mainly aimed at providing support to enhance teacher learning and to instil in pre-serving teachers a greater degree of self-confidence. these teachers extract a great deal of knowledge from their practice and the school culture settings where they have been placed. moreover, studies have revealed that a mentor or a supervisor significantly influences the student teacher’s performance during teaching practice (kiggundu, 2007). one can then conclude that pre-service teacher training can be enhanced by a wellplanned mentorship programme that is aimed at providing support and equipping pre-service teachers with expertise to excel in the teaching profession. mckingley (2017) describes mentor teachers as professional teachers who are veteran teachers, equally experienced and knowledgeable in their learning area of expertise and also in the school setting contexts. mentors are responsible for scaffolding pre-service teachers through methodology and professional proficiency (heeralal & bayaga, 2011). therefore, one can conclude that mentorship stakes a significant role in shaping the value orientations of preservice teachers as they internalise professional expertise, including learner discipline and pedagogical methodologies. in this accord, the quality of teaching practice reflects individual research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 tsotetsi, c.t. & mile, s.a. mentor-mentee experiences amidst covid-19: a teaching practice case study research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 79 values, perceptions, and experiences (sternberg, 2008; grewal et al., 2019). as such, teacher mentorship must not be limited to academic obligation and must extend beyond the teaching and learning dimension. induction and mentorship programmes positively impact. little and nelson (1990) are of the view that mentorship is beneficial to both parties involved— mentors and mentees in a sense that mentorship programmes are essential in asserting inexperienced teachers with a strong induction and start into the teaching career. equally, veteran teachers get a chance to self-develop and learn in the process. koki (1997) shared these sentiments and emphasised that supporting student teachers at the onset is important in preserving new teachers in the education system. formalising the mentor role for experienced teachers also builds another niche in the career ladder for teachers and contributes to educational professionalism (moody, 2020). the us department of education (2015) denotes the importance of mentoring in preparing pre-service teachers for the demands of a highly enhanced profession mentor teachers are tasked with training beginning teachers in various aspects of teaching, including instruction and professional etiquette. they provide induction in the implementation of evidence-based instruction and lesson planning and nurture them in that regard. teaming up student teachers with skilled expert teachers who can mentor them allows them to extend their understanding of teaching theories and approaches and methodologies, classroom management, and prescribed educational system policies through discussions and reflection with their mentor. this teaching practice experience and student learning through a developmental and formative relationship support new teachers in the field (us department of education, 2015). an ultimate aspect that affects the mentor-mentee relationship is the uniqueness of the mentor teacher. there are striking differences in how mentor teachers apprehend and carry out their work with student teachers (feiman-nemser & parker, l993). haddad and oplatka (2009) maintain that the differences in mentors’ perceptions and practices are linked to variances in role expectations, working conditions, programme orientations, and mentor’s eagerness to fully partake in the teaching practice experience, support the pre-service teacher and know how well prepared they are for the programme. in the south african context, du plessis (2013) notes that the biggest challenge facing the teacher training programmes is poor school management, lack of timetables and teacher position gaps, which means that some student teachers will go to a school and assume the role of teachers as replacements to vacant positions, thus depriving such students an opportunity to learn from someone who is an expert in the field. du plessis (2013) also notes that some schools are willing to accommodate students; however, some mentor teachers are not entirely committed to the programme, which results in a zero mentorship impact. in light of the discussion above, it is important to highlight that both mentor teachers and preservice teachers encounter many curricular and extra-curricular challenges during the teaching practice experience. therefore, this paper aims to explore the challenges undergone by both parties during the induction of pre-services teachers during the covid-19 period. unfortunately, there is a dearth of literature with a focus on mentor-mentee experiences amidst covid-19. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 tsotetsi, c.t. & mile, s.a. mentor-mentee experiences amidst covid-19: a teaching practice case study research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 80 research questions we structured questions as follows: the main research question: what are the experiences of mentor and pre-service teachers during the covid-19 pandemic? the two sub-questions below assisted in responding to the main question. what are the challenges faced by both the mentors and mentees during this period? what are the possible solutions to the challenges denoted herewith? theorising through realist social theory this paper adopted the realist social theory as a lens through which it was conducted. this theory was conceptualised by margaret s. archer (1995) and is central to the human constitution, although not limited to that. therefore, it is important to highlight that this theoretical framework is multi-dimensional and engages an array of theories that can be dissected as separate entities denoted as morphogenetics in this context (archer, 1995). archer (2002) supports this notion by alluding to the realist social theory as a theoretical framework that employs the morphogenetic approach theories that speak to the stratified nature of social reality, giving the researcher a multifaceted opportunity to come about with theories that will instigate change. furthermore, social interactions can be multidisciplinary; therefore, this framework can cut across various social disciplines. carter and sealey (2002) assert how they view sociolinguistics as an epitome of human behaviour prescribed by their social actions as in archer’s (1995) ideology, wherein she outlines that society’s existence relies on our activities. she also highlights that society is transformable and has no preferred state and we as humans are also immutable as our actions are informed by the society in which we exist. essentially, realism in this regard is upheld as asserting the nature of things, that is to say, ‘the way things are’. lawson (1996) equally outlines that social theory is overtly steadfast in explaining the nature of social beings and how we access society, particularly referring to the economics discipline. the social dimension in this regard speaks to the structuration of entities (human constitution as mentioned) and their ability to practise agency (archer, 2002). this, maintains archer’s theory that people are often ‘structured’ and this autonomy can favour one structure over the other. carter and sealey (2002), whose paper is linguistic inclined, adopt this theoretical framework as a relevant lens to linguistic proficiency. they impute that certain social actions are contextual conditions owed to the structuration of certain entities. moreover, they argue that structuration is subliminal in approach, and its aftermath is social relations dictated by it, and in turn, social reality turns out to be beyond the awareness and control of the individual. therefore, it is of utmost significance to outline that humans, in essence, are the only social actors, who in realism, are subject to structured social relations. in that regard, they can practice agency against systematic structures such as religion, politics to name a few (carter & sealey, 2002). the social actors’ ability to employ autonomy in their actions is thus not determined by themselves but influenced by other factors. this is further endorsed by carter and new (2004), who believe that individuals as ‘agents and actors’ are influenced, though not determined, by their structural situations. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 tsotetsi, c.t. & mile, s.a. mentor-mentee experiences amidst covid-19: a teaching practice case study research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 81 the preceding argument of structuration and agency paves the way for archer’s (1995) theory of dualism between two entities. in this theory, she argues that two aspects naturally co-exist in social contexts through social interactions and are interdependent; however, she contends that since they directly influence each other and how the other turns out, one can essentially be existent without the other. two objects or aspects are said to be related if neither is constituted by the relationship in which each stands to the other. bread and butter, coffee and milk, a barking dog and a postman, provide examples. in contrast, two objects are said to be internally related if they are what they are and do what they do by virtue of the relationship in which they stand to one other. landlord and tenant, employer and employee, teacher and student are examples that spring easily to mind. in each case, it is impossible to have the one without the other; each, in part, is what it is and does what it does by virtue of the relation in which it stands to the other (lawson, 1996). our paper employed this theory as it deals with social interactions between human constitutions as prescribed by archer (1995). moreover, it focused on two separate entities that can exist independently and in dualism— the mentor and pre-service teacher, as lawson (1996) exemplified. although, carter and sealey (2002) allude to the subliminal nature of structuration, this is actually true for the two entities which underlie our paper. pre-service teachers and practising experienced teachers were two primary social actors for this paper but have a wide stratification of social actors who are influential in how they conduct the teaching practice. from big authoritative social players such as politicians and curriculum developers to the learners whose behaviour and sociological and psychological factors determine the efficacy of teaching practice, induction process of pre-service teachers and mentorship. carter and new (2004) maintain that two entities can have an agency that is influenced by structural situations. fundamentally, mentor teachers can have autonomy or agency in their organisation and principles through which they wish to instil in their students (pre-service teachers); however, its existence is determined and dependent on the need for student teachers. student teachers who are equally products of institutions of higher learning, governed by both government and institutional policies and coming with their own theoretical ideologies as provided within their pedagogical discourses. this is to say that structuration, agency and dualism are not linear and plainly black and white but do have areas shaded in grey and are influenced by multilayers of structures. likewise, pre-service teachers can emanate independently with their ideologies and organisation but can actually transform on the influence of the other structures, that is, mentoring. this speaks hereof to lawson’s (1996) theory of dualism that entities can stand separately but are somewhat intertwined in non-linear but rather stratified systems. therefore, this paper resonates entirely with this theory as it aims at determining two structures firstly as separate entities and their ability to employ agency and then scrutinise them in dualism, as to which one influences or impacts in one way or the other as alluded in archer’s (1995) theory. methods design qualitative research donates to the indulgence of the human condition in multifaceted settings and an observed situation (bengtsson, 2016). this essentially feeds off from the intepretvist research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 tsotetsi, c.t. & mile, s.a. mentor-mentee experiences amidst covid-19: a teaching practice case study research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 82 paradigm wherein it can be denoted as implying that qualitative research is concerned with unearthing the humanistic circumstance through the perspective of the human in question. our paper thereof seeks to understand the perspectives of two parties involved in the mentoring process of pre-service teachers. therefore it relates to qualitative research which is not interested in the figures but the understanding of the realities experienced by the aforesaid groups which can be expressed in words as highlighted by bengtsson (2016). the case study research design was suitable in this respect, related by harrison et al. (2017) as dating as far back as recorded history can prove which sociologists and anthropologists used to investigate people’s lives and experiences and their understanding of the social and cultural contexts within their world in order to understand the different individual perspectives and ascribed meaning to their world. such is still the case in current contexts. a case study research can equally unfold through interviews or in researchers observing a certain social group to understand their world. this form of inquiry is entirely relevant to this paper as it aims to understand individuals pre-service and mentor teachers within the spaces they exist. sampling this paper was couched by purposeful sampling; which refers to individuals who possess the ability to respond to a question within a specific field of specialisation (koerber & mcmichael, 2008). our paper’s focus is on the two groups of participants. the participants were chosen based on their field experience, especially in the case of mentor teachers, while pre-service teachers were chosen according to their year of study (preferable final year students) who have been exposed to teaching practice previously. the limitation, however, to this sampling method is that in current contexts, the world is hit by a pandemic (covid-19) which prohibits face-toface contact between individuals or, in cases where they can be in contact, maintain a 1.5 metres social distance. rationally, research cannot be conducted in such unfavourable circumstances mainly because the respondents’ anonymity must be upheld in all regards. therefore, contact samplings were done through social media platforms like whatsapp, through recorded audio notes transcribed and in other instances, phone call conversations. table 1. demographics of the participants. participants age gender year of study/ work wxperience method of selecting participants pre-service teacher 1 20-25 male 4th year purposeful participant selection pre-service teacher 2 20-25 female 4th year purposeful participant selection mentor teacher 1 25-30 female 3 years purposeful participant selection mentor teacher 2 25-35 male 7 years purposeful participant selection data collection and instrumentation according to bar-ilan (2001), data collection is the most significant aspect of each study, alluding to how great care should be taken into cognizance when it is carried out given that it carries the entirety of the study. bar-ilan further (2001) interjects that the internet changes research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 tsotetsi, c.t. & mile, s.a. mentor-mentee experiences amidst covid-19: a teaching practice case study research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 83 continually; therefore, any paper’s discoveries are valid and relevant in the time frame in which the study was conducted. the findings thereof depend a great deal on selecting the data collection tool the author opts for, which the researcher has no control over. it is fundamental to note that selecting a data collection tool is significant in guiding the paper to attaining maximum results which address the research question central to the paper. participants for this research were selected at random senior and fet phase schools around the maluti a phofung rural in the eastern free state, south africa. in addition, two mentors and two pre-service teachers were selected from a school based on experience in mentor teachers, and current undertaking in a pre-service teacher who is on practicals or who has previously been exposed to teaching practice (particularly because of the covid-19 pandemic which changed the implementation of the continuation of teaching practice). the participants were interviewed telephonically, upon which their responses were tape-recorded and transcribed for analysis. the data for this paper was collected using semi-structured interviews. petrescu, lazar, cioban and doroftei (2017) explain semi-structured interviews as a process of eliciting information by the researcher from the participant by asking questions in a verbal interchange. we used semistructured interviews through social media platforms. furthermore, the advantage of this type of interchange allows for interviews to provide broad and open responses to questions instead of yes and no replies. therefore, the most vital point in this accord is for the researcher to choose a participant who is relevant to their area of study in order to elicit as much meaningful information as possible. smyth (2019) refers to semi-structured interviews as interview questions that are more open-ended in their approach. data analysis our data were analysed through thematic analysis, which refers to a method of analysing qualitative data that can come in the form of interview transcripts. in this method, the recurrent and synonymous themes were examined to identify their commonalities (caulfield, 2020). thematic analysis is an excellent approach to research where one is trying to find out something about people’s views, opinions, knowledge, experiences or values from a set of qualitative data (caulfield, 2020). in this method of data analysis, the researcher is concerned with the close examination of the data collected in order to arrange themes or in accordance to their commonalities in order to conclude. caufield (2020) notes the various approaches to conducting thematic analysis, which can be arranged in a six-step process; familiarisation denotes getting familiar with the data and knowing what is entailed in the data holistically, which can take form in the transcription of the audio data collected. the second step will be coding which denotes highlighting sections of our text, usually phrases or sentences and coming up with shorthand labels to describe their content. the third is the generating of themes which denotes looking at the labels created, then identifying similarities amongst them then begin thematising them to broader, specific concepts. reviewing themes denotes making sure that the themes created are useful and correlate with the data collected; the themes must be accurate representations of the data when comparing themes to it. next, the themes have to be defined and named. defining research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 tsotetsi, c.t. & mile, s.a. mentor-mentee experiences amidst covid-19: a teaching practice case study research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 84 themes involves formulating exactly what we mean by each theme, figuring out how it helps us understand the data, and finally writing up these themes. trustworthiness and crystallization of data the data validation and reliability were assessed through member checking, wherein transcribed results were returned to participants to ensure accuracy and whether the information resonates with their responses (birt et al., 2016). on the other hand, in order to reach data crystallization, we got data by reviewing the literature as well as interviewing mentor teachers and mentees. tracy (2010) urges researchers to use multiple methods of data generation to reach crystallization in qualitative research approaches. ethical considerations the participants were allowed to withdraw from the study should they feel uncomfortable, and their identities were withheld and upheld with the utmost confidentiality. furthermore, participants were given an informed consent form to sign so as to give assurance that their participation is voluntary. throughout the interviews, we maintained professional standards for managing and conducting research and equally obtained voluntary informed re-consent for any additional data collection at a later stage. we also obtained approval from the faculty of education at the university of the free state and adhered to their ethical standards and procedures for data collection results and discussion in this section, the results are presented according to the two sub-questions below, -what are the challenges faced by both the mentors and mentees during this period? -what are the possible solutions to the challenges denoted herewith? pre-service teachers noted as (p-st1 and p-st2) and mentor teachers noted as (mt1 and mt2). challenges encountered by mentor teachers and pre-service teachers during teaching practice amidst covid-19 adaptation to school culture/environment adaptation to the school setting can refer to the ability of the student teacher to adapt fully into the school environment, be at par with the organisational culture and have the ability to be socially at ease in the workspace. deed et al. (2019) opined that teachers must have the ability to adapt to changing settings within the school scope, especially because it is a contemporarily flexible space. hellsten et al. (2009) premise that the inability of the preservice teachers to adapt to the school setting can ultimately bring about feelings of inadequacy and isolation within the new space. they are often overloaded and overwhelmed by the demands of the profession and, in turn, become frustrated. pst1: sometimes, i was unable to manage my time very well. i was going to the class having prepared for a one-hour lesson. when i get there, the content gets prolonged; some students don’t understand because they missed most of the content last year due to covid-19. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 tsotetsi, c.t. & mile, s.a. mentor-mentee experiences amidst covid-19: a teaching practice case study research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 85 p-st2: no, we were not involved in staff meetings, even extra-curricular activities. it was just chess, which the learners asked me to assist them. i was not given that task officially. the concerns expressed by both participants are evidence that pre-service teachers struggled with the adaptation to the school environment due to the conditions enforced by covid-19, especially on issues that relate to classroom discourses. many people have looked up at teachers with beaming awe and high regards, strongly believing in them, and placed their confidence in them, assuming that they would find the ways and means to reach out to students amidst difficulties and go through the rigours to reach out to students effectively (patimo & lucero, 2021). the current methods used in the training of pre-service teachers thus fail to cater to the need for pre-service social inclusivity, especially as schools are flexible environments dictated by the circumstances of the period. in the first case, time management struggle reveals the need for the mentor teacher to provide guidance, particularly because of the transition from institutions of higher learning to schools in covid-19 conditions, the participant is overwhelmed. in the second statement, the student expresses feelings of inadequacy, at which learners do not recognise him as a ‘real’ teacher. härkönen (2013) (as cited in samuseviča, 2013) denotes that pre-service teachers’ professional development and adaptation are highly governed by numerous partial and impartial factors that affect their work. support from role players the role players who are involved in the induction process of pre-service teachers are firstly the institution of educator training, the department of basic education (hereafter doe), the principal and the smt, the mentor teacher and the pre-service teacher. all the parties mentioned above have a role to undertake during the induction process and should extend a hand of support to pre-service teachers in order to ensure that their confidence does not deplete. lattore-cosculluela et al.(2021) assert that creativity and collaboration are competencies that aid in the learning in non-conventional classroom environments and can prove effective in developing skills in students. the support from all the parties involved can translate to mutual learning and knowledge transfer. mutual learning therein means that all role players are engaged in constant interactions through dialogue and develop an understanding which affects a workable atmosphere where reflection, feedback and interpersonal ties are upheld (salinitri, 2005). p-st1: there’s no support. there’s no support because if you find that your mentor is a new teacher, both of you will just be going around with no guidance, getting to know the content, the implementation and teaching strategies. p-st2: i only saw the smt on the first day; i saw the principal two days before i started. on the day i arrived, i met the principal, he handed me over to the hod (head of department), and the hod gave me a teacher– a mentor teacher, and that was it. mt1: so far, i haven’t experienced any involvement of body beyond the school environment, either the university where the student comes from or the department. mt2: the involvement only comes in during the evaluation part. that’s where the institution gets involved, but beyond that, i haven’t experienced any extended involvement. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 tsotetsi, c.t. & mile, s.a. mentor-mentee experiences amidst covid-19: a teaching practice case study research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 86 the repetition of the lack of support from the role players simply denotes the severity of the feeling of the solitude felt by the pre-service teacher. it is evident that pre-service teachers do not receive scaffolding of any sort from the aforementioned role players. needless to say, this leaves the pre-service teachers with feelings of neglect and takes away from the intended purpose of teaching practice which leaves the pre-service teacher with misconceptions of what teaching practice is about. equally important, the mentor teacher also expresses the limited involvement from both the department of education and the teacher training institutions. the department of education can assign teaching practice practitioners to ensure that schools are not maltreating training teachers. moreover, one can conclude that both the smt and the principal can employ a more hands-on role than overseers by ensuring that the trainee student is well accommodated, not just by the mentor but by the whole staff members. laker et al. (2008) hold the view that pre-service teachers predominantly esteemed direct professional support and guidance not only from their mentor teachers, they also valued the communal support of their pre‐service and teacher colleagues. the institution of educator training must equally show extensive support to the student teachers as they have expressed feelings of neglect, upon which an appointee from the institution will only come upon observations. the delegates from institutions must do regular check-ups on students. mentor teacher awareness in this paper, this concept speaks to the knowledge of the mentor teachers about the duties that are expected of them during the induction process. mentor teacher’s insufficient comprehension of promoting pre-service teacher reflection and the pre-service teachers’ independence results in less mentorship effect, if not none at all. jones (2009) alludes that performing the part of a role model and having the authority to be critical and act as a ‘friend’ at most is challenging, and thus, there should be a critical examining of issues in relation to the control of power which comes with the position of being a mentor. teachers should be oriented to move away from the shared understanding of what mentorship is about, which is regarded as traditional where there is a linear routine. p-st2: on the first day, i found that my mentor teacher was going to a first period. so when i was handed over to him, it was already his first period, which means that i just went with him and observed without him explaining anything to me. and for the next few days, i would just tag along to observe what he does. mt1: no, there was no formal notice, i only learnt about the arrival at school that morning and the principal told me that we have a visitor and she’s coming here to do practicals with no formal warning. this conversation shows that the mentor teachers lack the knowledge orientations that are supposed to be passed on to the trainee pre-service teachers. from the above conversation, it appears the covid-19 pandemic resulted in some mentor teachers not being prepared to accommodate students especially alluding to the fact that the second pre-service teacher went to class with his mentor who had not sat down with him prior about anything, the concepts that were to be discussed on the day, among others. mentor teacher 1’s response is an indication that schools do not formally sit and plan in anticipation of pre-service teachers. planning about aspects such as the number of student teachers, the teachers that will research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 tsotetsi, c.t. & mile, s.a. mentor-mentee experiences amidst covid-19: a teaching practice case study research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 87 undertake mentoring duties and how they will be accommodated are not discussed. childre and van rie (2015) assert how hybrid mentor teacher training is optimal in endorsing mentor teacher awareness as mentor teachers face the challenge of not knowing what to do during the training programme. it is evident that schools do not treat teaching practice with the level of seriousness it deserves. this therein indicates that mentor teachers are rather the link that has been neglected within the whole process, having not been oriented on how to accommodate trainees within their scope of work and the likes. mentor teachers must undergo training on how to provide essential guidance. lack of motivation this aspect is the lack of motivation on the parts of both mentor and student teachers alike. the confidence in pre-service teachers to recognise themselves as belonging to the space and having a meaningful contribution in the teaching and learning discourses is somewhat limited. more than that, some mentor teachers are disengaged and are not willing to take up the part of mentoring the pre-service teachers. pst2: it was classroom management… you will find students walking out of the classroom because you are a student teacher. uh they don’t care, they don’t ask, they just walk out. they walk out in twos, in pairs to the toilet and the period after break. mt1: yes, it’s a very big challenge, but because we came from that very same environment where we had to go to schools without warning schools, we have to give room to those student teachers. mt2: i think it would be a good strategy to encourage mentor teachers. it’s a lot of work; it needs a little bit of incentive just to motivate you… the statement from p-st2 is evidence that the student teacher also has feelings of inadequacy. allowing students to walk out without stopping them shows that the pre-service teacher also lacks confidence in his abilities to bring about order to the classroom by putting an end to learner indiscipline. therefore, this reduces the student teacher’s motivation to perform certain tasks and fulfil the demands of the induction process. mt1 speaks of how challenging it is to have the task of scaffolding a pre-service teacher; however, there is little enthusiasm to address these challenges, meaning the motivation to create environments suitable for them to carry their work effectively is depleted; hence they conform and succumb to the tradition of the system. it is important for mentor programme overseers in schools such as principals and smt’s to provide approaches to reinforce pre‐service teachers’ and mentor teachers’ principles and maintain their motivation (he, 2009). for mentor teachers, motivation can be enhanced through offering incentives upon taking up the mentorship role. for pre-service teachers, motivation can be elevated by allowing them to engage in every space within the school curricular and including them in important school functionalities. programme on the induction of pre-service teachers pre-service teachers felt that there was no formal programme guiding them at school. mentors guided pre-service teachers as they deemed fit. this is confirmed by the two pre-service teaches utterances below: research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 tsotetsi, c.t. & mile, s.a. mentor-mentee experiences amidst covid-19: a teaching practice case study research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 88 p-st2: the trails are a logbook where you sign; those are for the institution and the file, which is a report back. but if you were to go back to the school, you won’t find any document that would indicate my presence in the school for teaching practice on a specific date. p-st1: there were no programmes that indicate how teaching practice should unfold. i think the only document that can essentially trace me to the school would be the covid19 screening tool, which i had to fill every morning after my temperature was taken this conversation reveals no formalised or standardised programme that outlines each role player’s expectations within the duration of teaching practice. this, therefore, implies that all the parties involved perform the induction processes differently. the lack of a universal teaching practice programme eliminates the standardisation pertaining to which aspects of both pedagogical discourses and the overall school culture should be heightened. as such, each individual teacher transfers whatever knowledge they deem important to the student, but not the knowledge that can ascertain good, quality teachers. in turn, pre-service teachers end up internalising and copying the modus operandi of the mentor teacher in different situations, not what is outlined in the policies. in some instances, some pre-service teachers end up exiting the teaching practice period without having learnt anything valuable due to the fact that teachers operate differently, and while one teacher might approach teaching practice with enthusiasm, another one might not. therefore, it is logical to assume that a programme will assist in ensuring that pre-service teachers deduce as much as possible from the programme as they will be inquiry filled if they have a guiding tool of which features they ought to enquire. according to ingersoll (2012), teacher training programmes are a vital tool in the induction of pre-service teachers as they serve as a guideline on what the process should entail. on the other hand, tsotetsi et al. (2020) believe that the quality of induction of pre-service teachers can affect the quality of teaching and learning offered in schools. solutions to the challenges faced by pre-service teachers and mentor teachers multiplicity in mentorship mentorship multiplicity in this regard refers to pre-service teachers receiving mentorship not only from a single mentor teacher but from multiple teachers in the school who are in the capacity to provide such. collaborative teaching must be encouraged in order to ensure that that pre-service teachers get the best out of the mentorship programme. mt2: i believe it is our responsibility as teachers in the school to teach student teachers about the profession, especially as we come from the same system, by showing them how things are done, supervising them, assessing them, engaging them also in collaboration teaching. mt1: of course, i’m the mentor teacher, but sometimes, it becomes a little too much. i think some help from the smt would do. my colleagues are quite helpful. for example, on the days i’m absent, i’m not feeling well, or i’m not able to make it to work, i’d have my colleagues taking over in mentoring my students and guiding them in my absence. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 tsotetsi, c.t. & mile, s.a. mentor-mentee experiences amidst covid-19: a teaching practice case study research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 89 the conversation revealed that multiple mentorships could assist not only the student teacher to draw the maximum out of the teaching practice experience, but it can be beneficial to the mentor teacher in cases where they have other obligations that may cause them to be absent from work. mt2 speaks of collaborative teaching, which is essential in imparting multiple teacher orientations to a student. this implies that if the pre-service teacher is not only restricted to one mentor, they internalise as much work and professional etiquette from all the teachers who act in their mentor capacity. this also reveals that in the absence of the mentor teacher, the inductee teacher is not obliged to act in the teacher capacity to close the teacher’s position gap, as they can be redirected to another availably assigned mentor teacher. dlamini (2017) divulges the importance of collaborations in preparing pre-service teachers for the world of work, which can eliminate misconceptions regarding the occupation and affect their efficacy. mentor teacher workshops mentor teacher workshops in this regard refer to the training of mentor teachers before they accommodate pre-service teachers in their practice. mainly because teachers receive no formal help from designated authorities or mentors receive no formal guidance from their district departments, and when they are tasked to perform such a duty, they struggle. mt1: i think the heads of departments in higher education institutions like the ufs, the people who are handling this programme of student teachers, are supposed to have workshops, some kind of workshops with the schools around. they are supposed to have that workshop where they emphasise the points that the mentor teachers must prioritise when these student teachers arrive in the school, the time frames … including conduct, the conduct of the student teacher at the school, how are they supposed to be conducted and how these mentor teachers are supposed to report to the institution, report on the behaviour and level of preparedness of the pre-service teacher. the conversation reveals the importance of workshops and mentor teacher training. from mt1’s response, we can deduce that mentor teachers are stranded when given the mammoth task of inducting pre-service teachers. what is strikingly important is that the participant highlights that teacher training institutions should collaborate to draw up a guiding tool, be it a policy or any form of document that will serve as a guideline on how to conduct the induction. what is essential here is to note that teachers need preparation programmes to show that they can mentor the inductees. online pre-service teacher diaries as suggested by participants, these online diaries refer to web platforms that allow pre-service teachers an opportunity to record their assessments and their experiences online as they transpire. this is important as it will ensure that it keeps a record of what pre-service teachers encounter during their induction, especially in such a critical time as covid-19, where the entire school system is forced to move from traditional teaching methods to integrating technology. pokhrel and chhetri (2021) denote a lack of online educational infrastructure. however, this is not the case for institutions of higher learning as they are well equipped and have been using online learning for some time. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 tsotetsi, c.t. & mile, s.a. mentor-mentee experiences amidst covid-19: a teaching practice case study research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 90 the covid-19 pandemic forced teachers and educational leaders to reckon with existing digital inequities that some were not even aware existed because distance learning was the main and sometimes only learning platform at the beginning of the covid-19 lockdown (williams, mcintosh & russell, 2021; subedi & subedi, 2020). p-st2: i think the institution should be there holistically, not just come once to assess you. i think if i go back to the solution that i provided, the online part, that is the daily assessment on my part whereby when you come out of the class, you sign in and then send your experience of the classroom for that day so that you send ideas as they come or those experiences as they come. so it will be sort of a diary, an online diary so that you can be assisted immediately. and then the assessment should be done there, and the lecture should be involved in those discussions. the conversation above reveals the importance of integrating technology into the teaching practice programme. online diaries can prove helpful by ensuring that teachers’ day-to-day encounters are recorded online and are responded to with utmost urgency. what is important is that these online programmes will ensure that there’s communication flow between the major stakeholders of the induction programme, being the institution of higher learning and the pre-service teacher. madlela (2015) outlines how incorporating ict into teaching practice has altered the domain and brought about positives which allow for the smooth sailing of the programme and eliminate backlogs. inevitably so, these teacher diaries may have challenges as there are glitches with the use of technology; therefore, the online diaries can prove helpful in ensuring that induction programmes are a success. role players’ involvement this aspect looks at the role each role player employs in the induction process. literature reveals that principals, teacher training institutions, and the department of education are rather invincible in the induction process. as such, mentor teachers find themselves having to carry the whole responsibility of ensuring that pre-service teachers are well trained across the school settings. mt2: school management teams can try to be more involved so that pre-service teachers don’t feel overwhelmed by the work, especially in the middle of such a pandemic where sometimes i also do not know how to go about my work, how do i then provide guidance? i think from all the circulars i have seen from the department, during this time, none has referenced how pre-service teachers should be accommodated in schools. this aspect speaks to the notion that all the role players involved in the induction process must be held accountable. essentially they should be the primary the department of education as the primary stakeholder should be in position to direct the whole programme to ensure that pre-service teachers and mentor teachers alike are not overwhelmed. as mentioned in the conversation above, the other role players, including the principal, should champion the interests of pre-service teachers through extensive involvement during the induction process as the product of the whole programme ploughs back to the department of education. ntsoane’s (2017) paper revealed that smt members in schools do certainly initiate their preservice teachers. however, their duties and exertions are adversely affected by the lack of an research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 tsotetsi, c.t. & mile, s.a. mentor-mentee experiences amidst covid-19: a teaching practice case study research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 91 apparent and comprehensible induction policy, further enhanced by the lack of involvement from the education department workforce and a lack of training. conclusion this paper, titled: mentor-mentee experiences amidst covid-19, was concerned with the challenges experienced by both mentors and mentees. the challenges that faced both mentor and mentee teachers were dissected to provide practical solutions that aided in solving the problem of poor mentorship programmes, which essentially resulted in zero mentorship impacts. zero mentorship impacts imply that pre-service teachers draw the least from a programme that was conceptualised to provide an on-the-job learning experience. this, therefore, pushes prompts a dislike for the profession and will eventually result in lesser human capital. based on the results, a collaborative approach should be employed to deal with some of the challenges experienced by mentors and mentees. recommendations the department of basic education must be wholly involved in the induction of trainee teachers by employing personnel that will be responsible for doing check-ups on pre-service teachers. the department must also introduce workshops to train veteran teachers on how to conduct inductions and what aspects they must prioritise during training. they must also hold the responsibility of establishing programmes in collaboration with teacher training institutions that will serve as guidelines on what mentor teachers should do. institutions of higher learning must also play a proactive role and not only surface towards the end of the programme when pre-service teachers must be evaluated. institutions must also introduce the use of technology within the programme to answer students at their earliest convenience. finally, pre-service teachers themselves must take the initiative in their learning experience. references archer, r. 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(2021). equity in distance education during covid-19. research in social sciences and technology, 6(1), 1-24. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.1 https://doi.org/10.29086/2519-5476/2020/v27n2a8 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.1 research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 rahmadi, i. f., hayati, e., & nursyifa, a. (2020). comparing pre-service civic education teachers’ tpack confidence across course modes: insights for future teacher education programs. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 113 comparing pre-service civic education teachers’ tpack confidence across course modes: insights for future teacher education programs imam fitri rahmadi* universitas pamulang, indonesia eti hayati universitas pamulang, indonesia aulia nursyifa universitas pamulang, indonesia *corresponding author: imamrahmadi@unpam.ac.id received : 2019-12-22 revision req : 2020-01-10 accepted : 2020-02-26 doi: 10.46303/ressat.05.02.7 rahmadi, i. f., hayati, e., & nursyifa, a. (2020). comparing pre-service civic education teachers’ tpack confidence across course modes: insights for future teacher education programs. research in social sciences and technology, 5(2), 113-133. doi.org/10.46303/ressat.05.02.7 abstract integrating technology into learning and instruction processes is inevitable in this modern world, so it is of pivotal importance that all teachers should master tpack confidently. unfortunately, the approaches toward teacher education programs in many countries, specifically in indonesia, do not yet integrate tpack in the curriculum. this study aimed at comparing pre-service civic education teachers’ tpack confidence across three course modes—regular a, b, and c—of a pre-service teacher education program in indonesia. involving 90 pre-service civic education teachers, a self-report measure survey is used as the research method. the result revealed that regular a and c pre-service civic education teachers report an almost equal level of tpack confidence while the regular b pre-service civic education teachers report a lower level of tpack confidence. academic and practical implications of these findings are discussed, and insights for future teacher education programs are provided. keywords: tpack, pre-service civic education teachers, teacher education program introduction teaching is a complex activity requiring various knowledge, specific skills, and attitudes. teaching activities involve aspects of personal quality and professional competency (guzman & nussbaum, 2009; haider & jalal, 2018; meijer, korthagen, & vasalos, 2009; srinivasan et al., 2011; walsh et al., 2018), which will become a passion (celik, 2017) as well as a profession (sakuma, 2018) should it be conducted continuously and repeatedly. a classic theory stated research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 rahmadi, i. f., hayati, e., & nursyifa, a. (2020). comparing pre-service civic education teachers’ tpack confidence across course modes: insights for future teacher education programs. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 114 that to be able to teach appropriately, teachers should have knowledge of content, pedagogy, and the intersection between the two: pedagogical content knowledge or pck (shulman, 1986). nonetheless, since avant-garde science, technology, and arts developed in the 21st century, a new theory on teaching emerged. the theory is that today’s teachers must have knowledge of technology and its intersections between content and pedagogical knowledge: technological content knowledge (tck), technological pedagogical knowledge (tpk), and technological pedagogical content knowledge (tpack) (mishra & koehler, 2006). integrating technology into learning and instruction processes is inevitable in this modern world. learning in the 21st century actively uses technological instruments as tools, processes, and resources (framework for 21st century learning). the learning process and environment should open an equal access to qualified tools, technologies, and learning resources. finally, the learning outcome is directed to create students as good citizens in the digital era. thus, in the context of 21st-century learning, it is of pivotal importance that all teachers should confidently master tpack (kereluik et al., 2013). the approaches toward teacher education programs in many countries, and specifically in indonesia, do not yet integrate tpack in the curriculum. since the 1970s, the approach toward teacher education in indonesia has only emphasized knowledge of content and pedagogy as two different kinds of independent knowledge. by early 2010, inspired by the pck framework (shulman, 1986), it was understood that the approach should emphasize knowledge of content and pedagogy as well as their intersection (alptki, 2016). however, applying the pck framework is not relevant today, and approaching tpack as a framework for teachers’ knowledge looks more appropriate for future teacher education programs. the tpack framework the tpack framework was introduced by matthew j. koehler and punya mishra in 2005 (koehler & mishra, 2005). it is not only a new kind of knowledge for teaching but also a framework for teachers’ knowledge (mishra & koehler, 2008). the tpack framework introduces relation and complexity to the basic knowledge of teaching: content, pedagogy, and technological knowledge. the framework could be used for analyzing and understanding teachers’ knowledge levels in terms of integrating technology into learning and instruction processes (cox & graham, 2009; koehler & mishra, 2009; koehler, mishra, & cain, 2013; tadeu et al., 2019). below is the figure of the tpack framework. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 rahmadi, i. f., hayati, e., & nursyifa, a. (2020). comparing pre-service civic education teachers’ tpack confidence across course modes: insights for future teacher education programs. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 115 figure 1: technological pedagogical content knowledge (tpack) framework (koehler & mishra, 2009) as described in figure 1, there are seven knowledge domains of the tpack framework, including technological knowledge (tk), pedagogical knowledge (pk), content knowledge (ck), pedagogical content knowledge (pck), technological content knowledge (tck), technological pedagogical knowledge (tpk), and technological pedagogical content knowledge (tpack). that knowledge is elaborated by mishra and koehler (2008) as follows: 1. tk is knowledge about standard technologies such as books, chalk, and blackboard, as well as more advanced technologies such as the internet and digital video. this would involve the skills required to operate particular technologies. in the case of digital technologies, this would include knowledge of operating systems and computer hardware, as well as the ability to use standard software tools including web-browsers, email programs, and word-processors. it includes basic knowledge about installing and upgrading hardware and software, maintaining data archives, and staying up to date about ever-changing technologies. 2. pk is deep knowledge about the processes and practices or methods of learning and instruction and how it encompasses (among other things) overall educational purposes, values, and aims. this is a generic form of knowledge that is involved in all issues of student learning, classroom management, lesson plan development and implementation, and student evaluation. it includes knowledge about techniques or methods to be used in the classroom, the nature of the target audience, and strategies for evaluating student understanding. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 rahmadi, i. f., hayati, e., & nursyifa, a. (2020). comparing pre-service civic education teachers’ tpack confidence across course modes: insights for future teacher education programs. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 116 3. ck is knowledge about the actual subject matter that is to be learned or taught. the content to be covered varies greatly by age level and subject matter. clearly, teachers must know and understand the subjects they teach, including knowledge of central facts, concepts, theories, and procedures within a given field; knowledge of explanatory frameworks that organize and connect ideas; and knowledge of the rules of evidence and proof (shulman, 1986). teachers must also understand the nature of knowledge and inquiry in different fields. 4. pck is the first intersection in the framework between pedagogy and content knowledge (shulman, 1986). in considering the relationship between content and pedagogy, the key question is how disciplines differ from each other and whether disciplines can or should be taught through the same instructional strategies. if disciplines are the same, then mathematics can be taught using the same instructional strategies that we use to teach architecture or music. on the other hand, differences between the disciplines would argue for a need to teach them differently. 5. tck is an understanding of the manner in which technology and content influence and constrain one another. teachers need to master more than the subject matter they teach; they must also have a deep understanding of the manner in which the subject matter (or the kinds of representations that can be constructed) can be changed by the application of technology. teachers need to understand which specific technologies are best suited for addressing subject-matter learning in their domains and how the content dictates or perhaps even changes the technology, or vice versa. 6. tpk is an understanding of how learning and instruction changes when particular technologies are used. this includes knowing the pedagogical affordances and constraints of a range of technological tools as they relate to disciplinarily and developmentally appropriate pedagogical designs and strategies. this requires getting a deeper understanding of the constraints and affordances of technologies and the disciplinary contexts within which they function. 7. tpack is the intersection of all three bodies of knowledge. understanding of this knowledge is above and beyond understanding technology, content, or pedagogy in isolation, but rather as an emergent form that understands how these forms of knowledge interact with each other. these include an understanding of how to represent concepts with technologies, pedagogical techniques that use technologies in constructive ways to teach content; knowledge of what makes concepts difficult or easy to learn and how technology can help students learn; knowledge of students’ prior knowledge and theories of epistemology; and knowledge of how technologies can be used to build on existing knowledge and to develop new epistemologies or strengthen old ones. the study context as shown in the tpack framework, there is a context circle surrounding the main circle of the tpack knowledge domains, meaning that considering context on the tpack measurement is research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 rahmadi, i. f., hayati, e., & nursyifa, a. (2020). comparing pre-service civic education teachers’ tpack confidence across course modes: insights for future teacher education programs. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 117 important because different contexts lead to different results. correspondingly, this study is conducted in the context of different course modes in the pre-service civic education teacher education program, faculty of teacher training and education, universitas pamulang. comparing pre-service civic education teachers’ tpack confidence across the course modes is the main purpose of the study. table 1: course modes and pre-service teachers’ characteristics course modes days times hours characteristic regular a (ra) monday friday morning 07:1008:50 08:5010:30 10:3012:10 mostly fresh graduates who do not work regular b (rb) monday friday night 18:2020:00 20:0021.40 mostly fresh graduates who work during the day regular c (rc) only saturday morningafternoon 07:4011:00 11:4015:00 15:0018:20 fresh graduates and adults who work on weekdays table 1 describes course modes and pre-service teachers’ characteristics in the pre-service teacher education program. there are three course modes: regular a (ra), regular b (rb), and regular c (rc). the course for both ra and rb is conducted on weekdays while rc is conducted only on saturday. each course has three different times scheduled for attending the class. ra pre-service teachers are mostly high school graduates who do not work, rb pre-service teachers are mostly high school graduates who work during the day, and rc pre-service teachers are a combination of fresh graduates and adults who work on weekdays. pre-service teachers’ tpack measurements have been conducted by researchers in a variety of fields including english (baser, kopcha, & ozden, 2016; kwangsawad, 2016; öz, 2015), economics (raman, 2014), sciences (canbazoglu bilici, guzey, & yamak, 2016; jang & tsai, 2012; karta & afacan, 2017; maeng, mulvey, smetana, & bell, 2013), mathematics (cuhadar, 2018; jang & tsai, 2012; xiang & ning, 2014), and social sciences (akman & guven, 2015; brigas, 2019). likewise, there are some studies measuring pre-service teachers in general, neither focusing on specific subjects nor fields (gairola, 2019; greval et al., 2019; jamieson-proctor, research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 rahmadi, i. f., hayati, e., & nursyifa, a. (2020). comparing pre-service civic education teachers’ tpack confidence across course modes: insights for future teacher education programs. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 118 finger, & albion, 2010; koh, chai, & tsai, 2010; mouza & karchmer-klein, 2013; tondeur et al., 2017). the majority of studies measuring pre-service teachers’ tpack confidence were conducted in the field of sciences and mathematics, but there are few studies in the social sciences. this measurement of pre-service teachers’ tpack confidence in civic education can fill a research gap of tpack measurement in social sciences and provide a report of pre-service teachers’ tpack confidence in indonesia. furthermore, it may be beneficial to evaluate the teacher education program. method there are at least five methods to measure participants’ tpack, including self-report measure, open-ended questionnaire, performance assessment, interview, and observation (abbit, 2011; koehler, shin, & mishra, 2012, p. 21). this study is conducted by using a self-report measure survey involving 90 pre-service civic education teachers in a pre-service civic education teacher education program, faculty of teacher training and education, universitas pamulang, indonesia, in april, 2019. the self-report measure is one of the most frequently used methods to measure participants’ tpack (mouza, 2016, p. 173; tsai, koh, & chai, 2016, p. 88). on the other hand, this is the most practical way to measure tpack confidence with a large number of participants. an online questionnaire in google form was developed for measuring pre-service civic education teachers' tpack confidence, adapted from schmidt et al. (2009), sahin (2001), and mahdum (2015). the google form link was shared to a whatsapp group in order to be filled by the pre-service teachers. the questionnaire is a five-level likert scale: 1) 1 = strongly disagree; 2) 2 = disagree; 3) 3 = neither agree nor disagree; 4) 4 = agree; and 5) 5 = strongly agree. the questionnaire contains 57 items of the seven tpack knowledge domains consisting of 16 tk items, 8 pk items, 7 ck items, 7 pck items, 7 tck items, 7 tpk items, and 5 tpack items. using the pearson product moment correlation, all items have been validated with a valid result. meanwhile, the reliability tested by cronbach’s alpha test obtaining results of 0.884 (tk), 0.770 (pk), 0.703 (ck), 0.827 (pck), 0.858 (tck), 0.802 (tpk), and 0.804 (tpack). regarding the study participants, they are pre-service civic education teachers in different course modes: regular a (ra), regular b (rb), and regular c (rc). furthermore, they are the final-year pre-service civic education teachers who participated in the three-month teaching internship program in secondary schools from january to march, 2019. the pre-service teachers voluntarily engaged in this study. researchers declared in advance that their engagement in this study would not affect their internship grade. all collected data is used only for research purposes. the sample of this study was taken by the disproportionate stratified sampling method. a descriptive statistic was employed to analyze the collected data. for analyzing as well as research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 rahmadi, i. f., hayati, e., & nursyifa, a. (2020). comparing pre-service civic education teachers’ tpack confidence across course modes: insights for future teacher education programs. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 119 describing data, rating scales and remarks are determined as follows; 1) 1.00 – 1.50 (very poor); 2) 1.51 – 2.50 (poor); 3) 2.51 – 3.50 (fair); 4) 3.51 – 4.50 (good); 5) 4.51 – 5.00 (very good). findings after the google form link was shared to the whatsapp group, 119 pre-service civic education teachers completely filled in the form. of the 119 teachers, there were 38 ra pre-service teachers, 30 rb pre-service teachers, and 47 rb pre-service teachers. applying the disproportionate stratified sampling method, 30 completed forms for each course mode were taken as data for further analysis. the general data of respondents is described below. table 2: profile of respondents gender: male female ra: 9 (30.00%) 21 (70.00%) rb: 11 (36.67%) 19 (63.33%) rc: 13 (43.33%) 17 (56.67%) age range: <22 yrs 22-24 yrs 25-27 yrs 28-30 yrs >30 yrs ra: 16 (53.33%) 13 (43.33%) 0 (0.00%) 0 (0.00%) 1 (3.33%) rb: 4 (13.33%) 20 (66.67%) 2 (6.67%) 2 (6.67%) 2 (6.67%) rc: 7 (23.33%) 11 (36.67%) 4 (13.33%) 3 (10.00%) 5 (16.67%) marital status: single married ra: 28 (93.33%) 2 (6.67%) rb: 24 (80.00%) 6 (20.00%) rc: 20 (66.67%) 10 (33.33%) it course: never ever ra: 24 (80.00%) 6 (20.00%) rb: 22 (73.33%) 8 (26.67%) rc: 20 (66.67%) 10 (33.33%) teaching experience: haven’t have: < 1 yr 1-2 yrs 3-4 yrs 5-6 yrs > 6 yrs ra: 26 (86.67%) 2 (6.67%) 2 (6.67%) 0 (0.00%) 0 (0.00%) 0 (0.00%) rb: 17 (56.67%) 4 (13.33%) 4 (13.33%) 2 (6.67%) 1 (3.33%) 2 (6.67%) rc: 18 (60.00%) 4 (13.33%) 1 (3.33%) 4 (13.33%) 3 (10.00%) 0 (0.00%) table 2 describes the profile of pre-service civic education teachers involved in this study. the number of female pre-service teachers is higher in all course modes. the vast majority of ra pre-service teachers were younger than 22, and the majority of rb and rc pre-service teachers were ages 22-24. interestingly, almost 40% of rc pre-service teachers were older than 24. the majority of ra and rb pre-service teachers are single, and one-third of rc pre-service teachers are married. most pre-service teachers in all course modes have never taken an it course. the majority of ra pre-service teachers have no teaching experience, while over 40% of rb preservice teachers and 40% of rc pre-service teachers had experience in teaching practices. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 rahmadi, i. f., hayati, e., & nursyifa, a. (2020). comparing pre-service civic education teachers’ tpack confidence across course modes: insights for future teacher education programs. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 120 technological knowledge (tk) tk is knowledge about technologies both in traditional and modern forms, requiring practical skills and knowledge to operate them in a variety of contexts. in this study, there are 16 statements in the issues of smart technology’s practical usage ranging from computers to digital cameras. moreover, it includes issues about understanding and keeping up with new technologies. table 3: tk scores of pre-service civic education teachers no. statements ra remark rb remark rc remark 1 i know how to solve my own computer technical problems. 3.77 good 3.57 good 3.70 good 2 i can learn technology easily. 3.77 good 3.57 good 3.90 good 3 i keep up with important new technologies. 4.07 good 3.80 good 4.07 good 4 i frequently play around with the technology. 3.87 good 3.37 fair 3.87 good 5 i know about a lot of different computer technologies. 3.57 good 3.17 fair 3.57 good 6 i know about basic computer hardware (ex. motherboard, ram) and their functions. 3.63 good 3.13 fair 3.60 good 7 i know about basic computer software (ex. windows, media player) and their functions. 3.87 good 3.43 fair 3.90 good 8 i know how to use a word processing program (ex. microsoft word). 4.27 good 3.97 good 4.23 good 9 i know how to use a spreadsheet program (ex. microsoft excel). 4.03 good 3.67 good 3.93 good 10 i know how to use a presentation program (ex. microsoft powerpoint). 4.27 good 4.07 good 4.23 good 11 i know how to use a picture-editing program (ex. adobe photoshop). 3.53 good 3.27 fair 3.40 fair 12 i know how to use an internet communication tool (ex. email). 4.37 good 4.17 good 4.37 good 13 i know how to use an internet social media application (ex. facebook, instagram). 4.57 very good 4.23 good 4.50 good 14 i can save data in a digital medium (ex. cd, dvd, flash disk). 4.30 good 4.07 good 4.47 good 15 i can save and change data into file formats (ex. changing ms word file to pdf format). 4.27 good 3.77 good 4.20 good 16 i can use a printer, scanner, projector, and digital camera. 4.13 good 3.83 good 4.33 good total 4.02 good 3.69 good 4.02 good grand total 3.91 = good table 3 reveals pre-service civic education teachers’ tk scores. the mean tk scores of preservice civic education teachers in all course modes are in the “good” category. ra pre-service teachers report that they are very good at using internet social media applications. in addition, while ra pre-service teachers are good at using a picture-editing program, rb and rc pre research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 rahmadi, i. f., hayati, e., & nursyifa, a. (2020). comparing pre-service civic education teachers’ tpack confidence across course modes: insights for future teacher education programs. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 121 service teachers only have sufficient knowledge in the same issue. moreover, rb pre-service teachers report having only sufficient knowledge of different computer technologies as well as knowledge about basic computer hardware and software while ra and rc pre-service teachers have better understanding. pedagogical knowledge (pk) pk is profound theoretical and practical knowledge regarding learning and instructional processes in the classroom specifically related to planning, processing, and evaluating learning and instruction. in this study, there are eight statements about issues of pedagogical theories and practices ranging from classroom lesson planning to student learning assessment. further, it includes an issue about understanding common student misconceptions. table 4: pk scores of pre-service civic education teachers no. statements ra remark rb remark rc remark 1 i know how to create a classroom lesson plan. 4.13 good 4.07 good 4.30 good 2 i know about teaching general procedures in the classroom. 4.17 good 3.80 good 4.30 good 3 i know how to organize and maintain classroom management. 4.17 good 3.90 good 4.27 good 4 i can adapt my teaching style to different learners. 4.03 good 3.87 good 4.13 good 5 i can adapt my teaching based upon what students currently understand or do not understand. 4.10 good 3.87 good 4.07 good 6 i can use a wide range of teaching strategies in the classroom setting. 4.00 good 3.83 good 4.00 good 7 i am familiar with common student understandings and misconceptions. 4.00 good 3.83 good 4.03 good 8 i can assess student learning in multiple ways. 4.00 good 3.83 good 4.07 good total 4.08 good 3.88 good 4.15 good grand total 4.03 = good table 4 reveals pre-service civic education teachers’ pk scores. the mean pk scores of preservice civic education teachers in all course modes are in the “good” category. rc pre-service teachers are relatively better at composing a lesson plan, general procedures of teaching, and organizing and maintaining classrooms, obtaining a score over 4.25. interestingly, only in the knowledge of making a classroom lesson plan did rb pre-service teachers score over 4.00. both ra and rc pre-service teachers, in contrast, scored over 4.00 in all issues. content knowledge (ck) ck is knowledge about the content that teachers teach, including knowledge of key concepts, explanatory frameworks, and rules in a particular field. in this study, there are seven research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 rahmadi, i. f., hayati, e., & nursyifa, a. (2020). comparing pre-service civic education teachers’ tpack confidence across course modes: insights for future teacher education programs. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 122 statements about issues of civic education content. this includes understanding civic education subjects, following recent issues, keeping up with resources, and using social ways of thinking. table 5: ck scores of pre-service civic education teachers no. statements ra remark rb remark rc remark 1 i have sufficient knowledge about civic education. 3.97 good 3.73 good 4.13 good 2 i have various ways and strategies for developing my understanding of civic education. 3.97 good 3.87 good 4.10 good 3 i can use a social way of thinking. 4.13 good 3.93 good 4.23 good 4 i follow recent developments and issues in civic education. 3.90 good 3.80 good 4.07 good 5 i recognize leaders in civic education. 3.57 good 3.47 fair 3.57 good 6 i keep up-to-date with resources (ex. books, journals) in civic education. 3.87 good 3.50 fair 3.87 good 7 i join conferences and activities in civic education. 4.07 good 3.87 good 4.10 good total 3.92 good 3.74 good 4.01 good grand total 3.89 = good table 5 reveals pre-service civic education teachers’ ck scores. the mean ck scores of preservice civic education teachers in all course modes are in the “good” category. however, rb pre-service teachers report having only sufficient knowledge in the issues of recognizing civic education leaders and staying current with the latest civic education resources. in the same issues, both ra and rc pre-service teachers have a relatively lower score, under 3.90, compared to the other issues. the rc pre-service teachers, surprisingly, have a better knowledge of using a social way of thinking than ra or rb pre-service teachers. pedagogical content knowledge (pck) pck, as the first intersection in the framework, is knowledge of pedagogy for specific content, subjects, or fields. this matters because different content requires different instructional strategies. in this study, there are seven statements in the issues of subject-related pedagogic knowledge in civic education ranging from classroom lesson planning to student learning assessments. in addition, it includes issues on the capability of drawing connections among related subjects and other related courses. table 6: pck scores of pre-service civic education teachers no. statements ra remark rb remark rc remark 1 i can create my own lesson plan in civic education subjects. 4.27 good 3.90 good 4.23 good 2 i can select appropriate and effective teaching strategies for civic education subjects. 4.13 good 4.00 good 4.23 good 3 i can make difficult civic education lessons easier for students to understand. 3.97 good 3.73 good 3.93 good research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 rahmadi, i. f., hayati, e., & nursyifa, a. (2020). comparing pre-service civic education teachers’ tpack confidence across course modes: insights for future teacher education programs. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 123 4 i can draw connections among related subjects in civic education. 3.93 good 3.67 good 4.03 good 5 i can draw connections between civic education and other related courses. 3.93 good 3.63 good 4.00 good 6 i can use a variety of learning resources for teaching civic education subjects. 4.17 good 4.00 good 4.20 good 7 i can develop evaluation tests on my own in civic education subjects. 4.20 good 3.73 good 4.03 good total 4.09 good 3.81 good 4.10 good grand total 4.00 = good table 6 reveals pre-service civic education teachers’ pck scores. the mean pck scores of preservice civic education teachers in all course modes are in the “good” category. compared to other issues, the pre-service teachers have a lower score on the issue of simplifying difficult civic education lessons and drawing connections between related subjects in civic education and other related courses. it is also noticeable that rb pre-service teachers have a lower score on the issue of creating a lesson plan and developing an evaluation test in civic education, scoring under 4.00. both ra and rc pre-service teachers obtained a higher score of over 4.20 on the issue of composing civic education lesson plans. technological content knowledge (tck) tck is knowledge about the manner in which technology and content influence and constrain one another in the learning and instructional context. in this study, there are seven statements about issues of using technology for creating civic education content. these include using computer technologies and the internet to gain a better understanding of civic education subjects, as well as using communication technologies and social media to connect with peers and civic education leaders in indonesia. table 7: tck scores of pre-service civic education teachers no. statements ra remark rb remark rc remark 1 i know about technologies that i can use for understanding civic education subjects. 3.93 good 3.87 good 4.13 good 2 i can use specific computer applications for understanding civic education subjects easily. 4.23 good 4.10 good 4.30 good 3 i can use computer technologies to develop civic education subjects (ex. writing papers and making presentation slides). 4.30 good 4.17 good 4.27 good 4 i use the internet as a learning resource for searching civic education materials. 4.37 good 4.27 good 4.37 good 5 i use communication technologies (ex. whatsapp, bbm, line) for discussing civic education content with peers. 4.30 good 4.23 good 4.37 good research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 rahmadi, i. f., hayati, e., & nursyifa, a. (2020). comparing pre-service civic education teachers’ tpack confidence across course modes: insights for future teacher education programs. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 124 6 i use social media (ex. facebook, instagram, twitter, blog) for posting and expressing my understanding of civic education content. 3.90 good 3.60 good 3.70 good 7 i use social media (ex. facebook, twitter, linked-in) to connect with civic education leaders in indonesia. 3.63 good 3.20 fair 3.43 fair total 4.10 good 3.92 good 4.08 good grand total 4.03 = good table 7 reveals pre-service civic education teachers’ tck scores. the mean tck scores of preservice civic education teachers in all course modes are in the “good” category. nevertheless, it is uncommon for pre-service teachers to use social media for getting in touch with civic education leaders in indonesia; this issue received the lowest score in all course modes with a “fair” remark from rb and rc pre-service teachers. in contrast, they were by far more familiar with using the internet to look for civic education materials, which scored almost 4.40 for ra and rc pre-service teachers and 4.30 for rb pre-service teachers. it can be seen that they are also familiar with specific computer applications to easily understand civic education subjects, computer technologies to develop civic education subjects, and communication technologies to discuss civic education content with their friends. technological pedagogical knowledge (tpk) tpk is knowledge about the manner in which technology and pedagogy influence and constrain one another in the learning and instruction context. in this study, there are seven statements about using technology for learning and instruction in civic education. this includes issues of using technologies that could influence teaching strategies and enhance students’ performance in the classroom. table 8: tpk scores of pre-service civic education teachers no. statements ra remark rb remark rc remark 1 i can choose technologies that enhance the teaching strategies for a lesson. 4.03 good 3.97 good 4.03 good 2 i am thinking more deeply about how technology could influence the teaching strategies i use in my classroom. 4.07 good 3.83 good 4.10 good 3 i can choose technologies that enhance students’ engagement for a lesson. 4.07 good 3.97 good 4.00 good 4 i am thinking critically about how to use technology in my classroom. 3.90 good 3.83 good 3.93 good 5 i can adapt the use of the technologies to different teaching activities. 4.07 good 3.90 good 4.00 good 6 i can choose technologies that enhance students’ performance in the classroom. 4.03 good 3.90 good 4.03 good 7 i can help other teachers to use technologies for a lesson in the classroom. 3.97 good 3.77 good 3.87 good total 4.02 good 3.88 good 4.00 good grand total 3.97 = good research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 rahmadi, i. f., hayati, e., & nursyifa, a. (2020). comparing pre-service civic education teachers’ tpack confidence across course modes: insights for future teacher education programs. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 125 table 8 reveals pre-service civic education teachers’ tpk scores. the mean tpk scores of preservice civic education teachers in all course modes are in the “good” category. for none of the issues did rb pre-service teachers obtain a 4.00 score. similarly, ra and rc pre-service teachers also received a score under 4.00 on the issues of thinking critically about integrating technology in the classroom and helping other teachers to use technology for an instructional process in the classroom. on other issues, both ra and rc pre-service teachers have a higher score, particularly on the issues of thinking deeper about the possibility of technology influencing teaching strategies in the classroom, of 4.07 and 4.10, respectively. technological pedagogical content knowledge (tpack) tpack is the intersection of all three bodies of knowledge. this is knowledge about the manner in which technology, pedagogy, and content influence and constrain one another in the learning and instruction context. in this study, there are five statements on the issues of using appropriate technologies in suitable teaching strategies for delivering civic education content effectively in the classroom. it also includes issues of helping other teachers to use appropriate technologies for other content-related teaching strategies. table 9: tpack scores of pre-service civic education teachers no. statements ra remark rb remark rc remark 1 i can use appropriate technologies on suitable teaching strategies for delivering civic education content effectively in the classroom. 4.00 good 3.83 good 4.07 good 2 i can choose appropriate technologies to develop students’ understanding of civic education content that i teach by using a specific teaching approach in the classroom. 4.07 good 3.80 good 4.10 good 3 i can choose appropriate technologies for assessing students’ performance on civic education subjects that i teach by using a specific teaching approach in the classroom. 3.90 good 3.90 good 3.80 good 4 i can conduct good teaching with combining the use of appropriate technologies and a suitable teaching approach on civic education subjects in the classroom. 3.93 good 3.83 good 3.97 good 5 i can help other teachers to use appropriate technologies in other suitable content-related teaching strategies for a lesson in the classroom. 3.87 good 3.70 good 3.83 good total 3.95 good 3.81 good 3.95 good grand total 3.91 = good table 9 reveals pre-service civic education teachers’ tpack scores. the mean tpack scores of pre-service civic education teachers in all course modes are in the “good” category. nonetheless, the majority of the issues obtained relatively low scores under 4.00. on top of that, the rb pre-service teachers scored below 4.00 on all of the issues. the issues that have research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 rahmadi, i. f., hayati, e., & nursyifa, a. (2020). comparing pre-service civic education teachers’ tpack confidence across course modes: insights for future teacher education programs. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 126 scores 4.00 and over are for ra and rc pre-service teachers regarding the ability to use appropriate technologies on suitable teaching strategies for delivering civic education content effectively in the classroom and choose appropriate technologies to develop students’ understanding of civic education content taught by using a specific teaching approach. composing the study findings in a simple message, this is a bar chart summarizing all mean scores of the seven tpack knowledge domains from all course modes. the graph simplifies the findings for better understanding of the comparison of pre-service civic education teachers’ tpack confidence across the three course modes. figure 2: pre-service civic education teachers mean scores of tpack subdomains figure 2 shows tpack subdomain mean scores of the pre-service civic education teachers. it is clear that the rb pre-service teachers’ knowledge scores are lower than the knowledge scores of ra and rc pre-service teachers in all tpack subdomains. in addition, the highest score is the pk of rc pre-service teachers reaching a score over 4.10, and the lowest one is the tk of rb pre-service teachers with a score under 3.70. the pk and ck scores of rc pre-service teachers are higher than those of ra pre-service teachers. on the other hand, there is no significant difference in the scores of ra and rc pre-service teachers at the mean scores of tk, pck, tck, tpk, and tpack. discussion all in all, the pre-service civic education teachers’ confidence over the seven tpack knowledge domains in all course modes is in the “good” category. it implies that the teachers have mastered tpack confidently. however, among the course modes, the rb pre-service teachers showed lower confidence in mastering the seven tpack knowledge domains. further, there is almost an equal level of tpack confidence for ra and rc pre-service teachers. this reveals that the pre-service civic education teacher education program conducted in ra and rc course modes is more powerful for developing the pre-service teachers’ tpack confidence. 3,40 3,50 3,60 3,70 3,80 3,90 4,00 4,10 4,20 ra rb rc ra rb rc ra rb rc ra rb rc ra rb rc ra rb rc ra rb rc tk pk ck pck tck tpk tpack research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 rahmadi, i. f., hayati, e., & nursyifa, a. (2020). comparing pre-service civic education teachers’ tpack confidence across course modes: insights for future teacher education programs. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 127 characteristics of course modes and pre-service teachers influence the tpack confidence level. the lower tpack confidence of rb pre-service teachers could be caused by the course being joined by mostly fresh graduates aged 20-24 who work during the day and study at night. the ra course mode looks more ideal than the two other modes because it is conducted in the morning and the participants do not work. even though the rc pre-service teachers join the course on saturdays, they are fresh graduates and adults aged 25 and over who work on weekdays while focusing their study on saturday from morning to afternoon. teaching experience seems to have no significant effect on tpack confidence. over 80% of ra and 60% of rc pre-service teachers had not been engaged in teaching practices, but they reported mastering tpack confidently. in contrast, over 40% of rb pre-service teachers have teaching experience, but the level of their tpack confidence is lower. it supports the evidence that the rb course mode is unideal for the teacher education program. the pre-service teacher education program requires a well-developed system starting from recruitment to the continuous professional development process (darling-hammond, 2017) and standardized curriculum connecting theories and practices (flores, 2016), so the implementation of the rb course mode should be reconsidered. this study also discusses each issue in the seven tpack knowledge domains. even though their tpack confidence is in the “good” category, there are some issues that obtained a relatively lower score and should be better developed in the teacher education program. toward tk, pre-service teacher education programs should develop the teachers' competencies in using a picture-editing program, using different computer technologies, and understanding about basic computer hardware and software. there is no special concern on pk issues, but particularly in the rb course mode, pre-service teacher education programs should develop the teachers' competencies on all issues except making a classroom lesson plan. regarding ck, pre-service teacher education programs should develop pre-service teachers' understanding of civic education leaders and develop their ability to stay current with the latest civic education resources. regarding pck, pre-service teacher education programs should develop pre-service teachers’ competencies in simplifying difficult civic education lessons as well as drawing connections among related subjects in civic education and other related courses. also, particularly for rb pre-service teachers, their competencies should be developed on the issue of creating a lesson plan and developing an evaluation test in civic education. regarding tck, pre-service teacher education programs should develop pre-service teachers' competencies in using social media for getting in touch with civic education leaders. the ability to think critically about integrating technology and helping other teachers use technology in the classroom should be developed for the tpk. finally, regarding tpack, pre-service teacher education programs should develop pre-service teachers' competencies in helping other teachers use appropriate technologies for other suitable content-related teaching strategies in the classroom. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 rahmadi, i. f., hayati, e., & nursyifa, a. (2020). comparing pre-service civic education teachers’ tpack confidence across course modes: insights for future teacher education programs. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 128 this study provides a figure of pre-service teachers’ tpack confidence in indonesia. it could be compared to pre-service teachers’ tpack confidence investigated in australia and israel (redmond & peled, 2015), turkey (kabakci, yurdakul, & coklar, 2014), new zealand (nordin, davis, & ariffin, 2013), and the u.s. (schmidt et al., 2009). below is the global figure of the tpack confidence. table 10: the global figure of pre-service teachers’ tpack confidence tpack domains mean australia (n=85) israel (n=99) turkey (n=3105) new zealand (n=107) u.s. (n=87) indonesia (n=90) tk 3.80 3.55 * 3.61 3.82 3.91 pk 3.99 4.06 * 4.11 4.05 4.03 ck 4.34 4.00 * 4.31 4.05 3.89 pck 4.16 4.11 * 4.02 3.91 4.00 tck 3.96 4.02 * 3.97 4.06 4.03 tpk 3.94 3.85 * 3.92 4.30 3.97 tpack 4.02 4.00 3.84 4.00 4.13 3.91 table 10 compares pre-service teachers’ tpack confidence on a global scale. overall, the u.s. and australia have higher scores than the other countries. the highest scores on tck, tpk, and tpack were recorded in the u.s. and the highest scores on ck and pck belong to australia. surprisingly, new zealand has the highest score on pk and indonesia has the highest score on tk. there is no figure for tk, pk, ck, pck, tck, and tpk in turkey, and the tpack score of turkey counted as the lowest among the other countries. conclusion in short, the ra and rc pre-service civic education teachers report almost equal levels of tpack confidence while the rb pre-service civic education teachers report lower levels of tpack confidence. further, the rb course mode looks inappropriate for developing pre-service teachers’ tpack. a pre-service teacher education program needs an ideal course time as well as good input so that future excellent teachers can be well prepared. forthcoming pre-service teacher education programs should concern tpack development, particularly on each issue of the knowledge domains that require further development, as discussed above. the present study has limitations on the number of participants and the context of study. the study samples 90 pre-service teachers involved in a teacher education program conducted in a private higher education institution. further research on the pre-service teachers’ tpack confidence measurement should explore another context with a larger sample. measuring preservice teachers’ tpack confidence in the pre-service teacher education program conducted in a public higher education institution is one example. it is also suggested that further research on tpack measurement use the latest model and questionnaire, such as tpack-21 (valtonen et al., 2017), e-tpck (angeli & christodoulou, 2019), and tpack-samr (tunjera & chigona, 2020) models. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 rahmadi, i. f., hayati, e., & nursyifa, a. 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(2014). evaluating chinese pre-service mathematics teachers’ knowledge of integrating technology in teaching. journal of mathematics education, 7(1), 48-58. https://doi.org/10.1080/0142159x.2017.1394998 research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 lau, s. h. et al. effectiveness of online training for rural entrepreneurs during a global pandemic research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 194 effectiveness of online training for rural entrepreneurs during a global pandemic lau sie hoe1, mohd ariff zabidi manja2, vloreen nity mathew3, adeline engkamat1, zalina ibrahim3 & ahmad lutfi anis*4 *corresponding author: lutfianis@uitm.edu.my 1. faculty of computer and mathematical sciences, universiti teknologi mara cawangan sarawak, kota samarahan, malaysia 2. faculty of plantation and agrotechnology, universiti teknologi mara cawangan sarawak, kota samarahan, malaysia 3. faculty of business and management, universiti teknologi mara cawangan sarawak, kota samarahan, malaysia 4. faculty of applied sciences, universiti teknologi mara cawangan sarawak, kota samarahan, malaysia received : 2021-09-08 revised : 2021-10-09 accepted : 2021-11-20 how to cite this paper: lau, s. h., manja, m. a. z., mathew, v. n., engkamat, a., ibrahim, z., & anis, a. l. (2021). effectiveness of online training for rural entrepreneurs during a global pandemic. research in social sciences and technology, 6(3), 194-212. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.38 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). abstract the ability of rural entrepreneurs to cope with the covid-19 pandemic greatly depends on their knowledge of information and communication technology (ict) to support online business. in this study, online surveys were conducted to assess the readiness and acceptance of rural entrepreneurs in adopting to the pandemic using the available technologies. data collected were analyzed by descriptive and inferential statistics using anova. online training modules were designed based on their specific needs. although participants indicated that their frequency and skills of using the electronic devices or applications had generally increased or improved after the training, the increment was not statistically significant (α=0.05). this indicated that while the participants, to some extent, benefited from the online training provided, there has not been a significant impact on them. keywords: entrepreneurs, online training, pandemic, covid-19, skills introduction with the advancement of digital technology and its recognized importance in a developing economy, malaysian entrepreneurs have been encouraged to embrace the digital economy. one of the steps taken is to equip entrepreneurs, particularly those in rural areas, with information and communication technology (ict) knowledge and skills to pursue bigger opportunities in online business. entrepreneurs' ability to capitalize on the digital economy, particularly rural entrepreneurs, greatly depends on their ability to acquire sufficient ict knowledge to support online business. communities in rural areas in the state of sarawak, 10.46303/ressat.2021.38 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.38 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 lau, s. h. et al. effectiveness of online training for rural entrepreneurs during a global pandemic research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 195 malaysia, face a bigger challenge compared to the urban populations as there are limited mechanisms to ensure that remote rural populations will be able to receive the same benefits due to the limited infrastructure and amenities available (gnaniah et al., 2004; horn & rennie, 2018). while the development of digital infrastructure is aggressively planned and implemented as part of the sarawak digital economy strategy, awareness, knowledge, and skills to support its usage may still be lacking among the rural entrepreneurs. one of many projects proposed in 2019 to complement the sarawak government's efforts was to identify the problems and obstacles faced by rural entrepreneurs in the samarahan division of sarawak; devise and provide ict training module relevant to the needs of the entrepreneurs. the project's main activities were to engage with rural entrepreneurs through training programs organized at the universiti teknologi mara (uitm) campus. after establishing a baseline study that involved focus group discussions, in-depth interviews and collection of qualitative data using the purposive sampling method, training courses were to be designed based on the findings. ict and entrepreneurial courses were planned to be conducted over a 6-month duration. levels of knowledge and usage of ict among the sample communities were to be evaluated and analyzed via descriptive and influential statistics in the subsequent stage of the project. however, the unforeseen covid-19 pandemic across the world in early 2020 resulted in the implementation of lockdowns and months of movement control order (mco) by the malaysian government in its effort to curb the spread of the coronavirus. the mco measures include restrictions on movement, assembly and international travel and the closure or limited operations of businesses, industries, government offices, and educational institutions. the situation has disrupted our pursuant of face-to-face training programs as earlier planned. as such, the training modules were redesigned to cater for online learning. online learning has emerged as a preferred environment for teaching and learning in entrepreneurship training (aldahdouh, 2019; altowairiki, 2021; batmang et al., 2021; demosthenous, panaoura, & eteokleous, 2020; hu & huang, 2022; kilincer, 2021; korkmaz & toraman, 2020; paudyal & rana, 2021; k. selvarajah & hussin, 2017; thompson & mcdowell, 2019; xhelili et al., 2021). apart from substantial cost reduction and the ability to reach learners anywhere and anytime, online learning plays a crucial role in reaching entrepreneurs throughout urban, suburban and rural malaysia. as a result of the covid-19 social distancing efforts, there has been a large-scale transition to online learning (atilgan, & tukel, 2021; elsaheli-elhage, 2021; govindarajan & srivastava, 2020; kara, 2021; kibici, 2021; restuati et al., 2021). the components of such a carefully designed online experience include learning methodologies, contexts, tools and simulators and support systems for digital learning (sousa et al., 2019). on the other hand, online learning may pose a challenge to entrepreneurs, particularly rural entrepreneurs, due to various reasons. limited it infrastructure, lack of technical skills, fear of technology, negative attitudes towards technology usage, and lack of technical support, including internet coverage and accessibility, challenge the implementation of online learning (ali & magalhaes, 2008; kalimullina et al., 2021; maphalala et al., 2021; matarirano et al., 2021; welsh et al., 2003; williams et al., 2021). adopting and implementing advanced technologies by businesses has many advantages, namely, the value-added creativity (hitt & brynjolfsson, 1996; smith & correa 2005), digitization of operations (caldeira et al., 2012; mukhopadhyay et al., 1995), and the creation research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 lau, s. h. et al. effectiveness of online training for rural entrepreneurs during a global pandemic research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 196 of social businesses, which can be significant for small and medium scale business entrepreneurs (turkina, 2018). however, small businesses are normally restricted by a lack of time, information and knowledge, and budget, which hinder the adoption of the latest technologies and limits their ability to withstand market competition (laudon & laudon, 2019). abdul rashid (2016) reported on the analysis of the capability of ict among rural women entrepreneurs in malaysia. while the rural communities are aware of the benefits and importance of technology for their businesses, most do not fully apply internet technology in their lives. they prefer simple and easy technologies compared to advanced technologies that are perceived as difficult but could be beneficial. although prior studies indicated that small businesses adopt or are willing to utilize advanced technologies at a slow pace under normal circumstances, it can suddenly become imminent when faced with unusual situations such as during the covid-19 pandemic (akpan et al., 2020). with the implementation of online training, under unusual circumstances such as a global pandemic, there is a change in the initial perspective of the study and poised to answer different critical questions. the scope of the survey becomes more inclined towards questions relating to the sustainability of rural entrepreneurs during the tough pandemic. it is not just about the effect of the mco on businesses in terms of income but also the mode of business and readiness of the rural entrepreneurs to adopt to the pandemic situation using technologies available to them. this information is important in designing the training modules required including the suitable training platforms that can enable the rural entrepreneurs to cope with online learning. therefore, the study intends to answer the following research questions: • what are the challenges faced by rural entrepreneurs during the pandemic and how they tried to overcome these challenges? • what are the perceptions and readiness of rural entrepreneurs towards engaging in online businesses? • is there any significant difference in the frequencies and skills in using ict tools among the entrepreneurs after attending online training? this paper reports the relevant findings pertaining to those questions and discusses factors that determine the online training modules' effectiveness. research methodology this section presents the design, sampling, instruments, data collection and the data analyses employed to answer the three research questions. research design descriptive research design in the form of survey was employed in the study. population and sampling the division of samarahan was chosen due to its proximity to the local higher institutions of learning, such as uitm, universiti malaysia sarawak (unimas) and teachers training colleges, where it is considered that the location may facilitate knowledge transfers to the communities to upgrade further their standard of living via e-commerce or digitalized economy from agrobased industries. the main economic activity in samarahan is agriculture. hence, the target research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 lau, s. h. et al. effectiveness of online training for rural entrepreneurs during a global pandemic research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 197 population consisted of rural agro-based entrepreneurs registered with a local government agency, samarahan division agriculture office. the population consisted of 78 rural agro-based entrepreneurs registered with the agency. they included agro-based entrepreneurs from subdivisions of kota samarahan, simunjan, and asajaya. random sampling method was used to select 31 rural agro-based entrepreneurs as sample for the study. instruments two sets of instruments were used in the study. the first set of instruments was a survey questionnaire adopted from technology acceptance model (tam) instrument from davis (1989) and adams et al. (1992). the questionnaire consisted of three sections. the first sections covered the demographic characteristics of the participants. the second section contained items related to challenges faced by the rural entrepreneurs and how they tried to overcome these challenges. it was aimed to collect data for the first research question. the third section aimed to collect data to answer the second research question, consisted of items related to their perception and readiness towards engaging in online businesses. in addition, participants were asked to suggest the type of training they need most. based on the training need analyses in the first survey, online training modules were designed and developed. the second set of questionnaire was the entrance/exit survey form to assess their frequency and skills in using nine (9) electronic devices or applications before and after attending the training. there is a total of 18 statements; 9 statements on the frequency of using the electronic devices or applications and another 9 statements on the skills of using them. participants were required to indicate their degree of agreement using a 5-likert scale (1strongly disagree, 2-disagree, 3-unsure, 4-agree, 5-strongly agree) on the 18 statements. data collection method the first set of questionnaire was administered after three months of the implementation of the first movement control order (mco) in april 2020. it was conducted via google form. online training modules were designed for a month-long training programme. the modules consisted of four components based on the preceding needs-analysis findings: word processing, poster promotion, basic excel business template, and digital marketing. the selected rural entrepreneurs were part of a specific facebook group for the sole purpose of training. at the same time, a whatsapp group was also formed to communicate with the participants actively. facebook and whatsapp were the main platforms as they are user friendly and most used by the participants. training videos uploaded onto these platforms provide flexibility for participants to follow the lessons even outside their working or business hours. discussions were held weekly via google meet. the entrance survey was conducted before the start of the first module, and the exit survey was conducted one week after the end of the training programme. the analysis from the entrance-exit surveys was used to quantitatively measure the participants' level of understanding regarding the lessons provided. data analyses data collected were analyzed using spss. the study employed both descriptive and inferential statistics. descriptive statistics, including mean, median and mode, standard deviation and measure of skewness, were used to answer the first and second research questions. for the research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 lau, s. h. et al. effectiveness of online training for rural entrepreneurs during a global pandemic research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 198 third research question, inferential statistics, analysis of variance (anova) was used to determine whether there is a significant difference in the mean item scores before and after training. anova tests were conducted at a 5% significance level (α = 0.05). results and discussion survey on business during the mco the surveys that followed were aimed to assess the readiness and acceptance of the entrepreneurs towards online businesses and identify their specific needs in coping with the pandemic. the businesses were substantially affected by the pandemic, as depicted by the survey results in table 1, whereby 96.2% of respondents stated that their business activities were affected by the government's imposition of the movement control order (mco). 24 out of 26 respondents (92.3%) said they face difficulties getting raw materials during the mco period. however, only 42.3% of the respondents applied for financial assistance during the period. table 1. effect of movement control order (mco) on business activities statement yes no total count percent (%) count percent (%) count percent (%) is your business affected by the mco? 25 96.2 1 3.8 26 100.0 can your business operate normally during the mco? 4 15.4 22 84.6 26 100.0 does the mco affect the supply of raw materials for your business? 24 92.3 2 7.7 26 100.0 did you apply for any financial aid during the mco? 11 42.3 15 57.7 26 100.0 as the implementation of mco has disrupted normal business activities, respondents were asked about their alternative source of income. the results in table 2 showed that 26.9% of the respondents did not have any alternative source of income during that period. 15.4% of the respondents engaged in cash on delivery (cod) and another 15.4% engaged in online sales. others alternative incomes include selling other products (11.5%), gardening (11.5%), selling products from home (7.7%), in villages (3.8%), consignment to local shops (3.8%) and involved in the food business (3.8%). respondents were asked how they conducted their business during mco, and the results are listed in table 3. of the total, 69.2% of the respondents conducted their businesses using online platforms such as whatsapp, instagram, facebook, grab, and food panda. only 23.1% could still conduct their businesses face-to-face, while the remaining 7.7% conducted their sales through middlemen. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 lau, s. h. et al. effectiveness of online training for rural entrepreneurs during a global pandemic research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 199 table 2. the alternative source of income during the mco period if you cannot operate your normal business, give your alternative source of income. count percent (%) none 7 26.9 cash-on-delivery (cod) 4 15.4 online selling 4 15.4 selling other products 3 11.5 farming 3 11.5 sales from home 2 7.7 sales in village 1 3.8 food business 1 3.8 consignment to local shops 1 3.8 total 26 100.0 table 3. mode of business during mco state how you conduct business during the mco. count percent (%) online platforms (whatsapp, instagram, facebook, grab, food panda, etc.) 18 69.2 direct sales/face-to face 6 23.1 sales through middlemen 2 7.7 total 26 100.0 table 4 shows the comparison of monthly revenue of respondents before and during mco. the monthly revenue before mco ranges from rm100 to rm20,000. however, during the mco, the range drops to only from rm30 to rm1,000. there is also a drastic drop (72.6%) in the mean monthly revenue from rm5,059.62 to rm1,387.69. in conclusion, mco had significantly affected their revenues. table 4. comparison of monthly revenue before and during mco monthly revenue (rm) percentage (%) before mco during mco minimum 100 30 -70.0% maximum 20000 10000 -50.0% mean 5059.62 1387.69 -72.6% std. deviation 5197.85 1981.32 respondents were also asked about the challenges faced during mco, and the survey results are as shown in table 5. from the survey, the greatest challenge was finding clients for their products, which 96.2% of respondents indicated. other challenges in descending order are; covering operation cost (92.3%), obtaining business model (88.5%), getting supplies of raw research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 lau, s. h. et al. effectiveness of online training for rural entrepreneurs during a global pandemic research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 200 materials (80.8%), communication with clients (69.2%), hiring workers (50.0%) and paying business premise rental (38.5%). table 5. challenges during mco since the mco, i have faced difficulty in yes no total count percent (%) count percent (%) count percent (%) sourcing of raw materials 21 80.8 5 19.2 26 100.0 getting customers 25 96.2 1 3.8 26 100.0 communicate with customers 18 69.2 8 30.8 26 100.0 getting workers 13 50.0 13 50.0 26 100.0 delivering goods to customers 21 80.8 5 19.2 26 100.0 getting capital for business 23 88.5 3 11.5 26 100.0 sustaining business operation cost 24 92.3 2 7.7 26 100.0 paying business rental 10 38.5 16 61.5 26 100.0 almost all respondents stated that their business activities were affected by the government's imposition of mcos since april 2020. due to the difficulties faced during the mco periods that have led to a substantial decrease in their income, some had applied for financial assistance. the disruption of normal business activities had forced a majority of the entrepreneurs to find alternative sources of income. at the same time more than half of the entrepreneurs had turned to online platforms in conducting their businesses. as mentioned by maphalala et al. (2021), the pandemic situation has helped accelerated self-learning through the usage of online media. in order to answer the second research question it is necessary to evaluate their usage of ict tools during the pandemic, as it is related to their readiness for online business. table 6 shows the survey on usage of ict tools since mco. generally, respondents agreed that their frequency of usage of ict tools except old handphones had increased since mco as the total percentages of agreement (strongly agree and agree) are higher than the total percentages of disagreement (strongly disagree and disagree). the most notable increase in the frequency of usage is the usage of smartphones with 53.8% of the respondents strongly agreed, and another 42.3% agreed. only one respondent, or 3.8% disagreed. two other notable increases are the subscription of mobile data packages and social media usage, with 42.3% of the respondents strongly agree, and another 34.6% agree. there was also an increase in digital camera usage where 15.4% of the respondents strongly agreed, and another 42.3% agreed. these are consistent with the increase in the frequency of use of smartphones. other ict tools in decreasing order of usage are laptops and scanners, with 15.4% of the respondents strongly agree and another 26.9% agree, printers (11.5% strongly agree, 26.9% agree) and desktop computers (3.8% strongly agree, 26.9% agree). for the usage of old handphones, 15.4% of the respondents strongly disagree, and another 34.6% disagree the usage had increased since mco. only 15.4% of the respondents strongly agree, and another 15.4% agree the use of old handphones has increased since mco. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 lau, s. h. et al. effectiveness of online training for rural entrepreneurs during a global pandemic research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 201 table 6. usage of ict tools since mco since the mco, i have frequently been using count percent (%) s tr o n g ly d is a g re e d is a g re e u n su re a g re e s tr o n g ly a g re e t o ta l old handphone count 4 9 5 4 4 26 percent (%) 15.4 34.6 19.2 15.4 15.4 100 smartphone count 1 0 0 11 14 26 percent (%) 3.8 0.0 0.0 42.3 53.8 100 desktop computer count 4 2 12 7 1 26 percent (%) 15.4 7.7 46.2 26.9 3.8 100 laptop count 4 1 10 7 4 26 percent (%) 15.4 3.8 38.5 26.9 15.4 100 internet data package count 0 1 5 9 11 26 percent (%) 0.0 3.8 19.2 34.6 42.3 100 digital camera count 3 1 7 11 4 26 percent (%) 11.5 3.8 26.9 42.3 15.4 100 digital scanner count 3 2 10 7 4 26 percent (%) 11.5 7.7 38.5 26.9 15.4 100 printer count 4 1 11 7 3 26 percent (%) 15.4 3.8 42.3 26.9 11.5 100 social media count 0 1 5 9 11 26 percent (%) 0.0 3.8 19.2 34.6 42.3 100 respondents, in general, agreed that their skills in handling ict tools had improved since the mco as the total percentages of agreement (strongly agree and agree) are higher than or equal to the total percentages of disagreement (strongly disagree and disagree), as presented in table 7. there is a close association between the survey results on skills in handling ict tools and the survey results on the frequency of usage of ict tools. skills in handling ict tools increase with the frequency of their usage. a total of 34.6% of the respondents strongly agree, and another 46.2% agree their skills in handling smartphones improved since the mco. there are also notable improvements in skills in managing social media (34.6% strongly agree, 46.2% agree) and mobile data plan subscriptions (26.9% strongly agree, 50.0% agree). the percentage of respondents who agree their handing skills had improved for other ict tools in descending order are; printers (11.5% strongly agree, 34.6% agree), digital cameras (7.7% strongly agree, 34.6% agree), laptops (11.5% strongly agree, 30.8% agree), desktop computers (38.5% agree), old handphones (15.4% strongly agree, 15.4% agree) and digital scanners (11.5% strongly agree, 19.2% agree). research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 lau, s. h. et al. effectiveness of online training for rural entrepreneurs during a global pandemic research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 202 table 7. skills in handling ict tools since mco since the mco, i have improved my skills in handling frequency percent (%) s tr o n g ly d is a g re e d is a g re e u n su re a g re e s tr o n g ly a g re e t o ta l old handphone count 3 5 10 4 4 26 percent (%) 11.5 19.2 38.5 15.4 15.4 100 smartphone count 2 0 3 12 9 26 percent (%) 7.7 0.0 11.5 46.2 34.6 100 desktop computers count 1 4 11 10 0 26 percent (%) 3.8 15.4 42.3 38.5 0.0 100 laptop count 2 2 11 8 3 26 percent (%) 7.7 7.7 42.3 30.8 11.5 100 internet data package count 1 1 4 13 7 26 percent (%) 3.8 3.8 15,4 50.0 26.9 100 digital camera count 2 2 11 9 2 26 percent (%) 7.7 7.7 42.3 34.6 7.7 100 digital scanner count 3 2 13 5 3 26 percent (%) 11.5 7.7 50.0 19.2 11.5 100 printer count 2 2 10 9 3 26 percent (%) 7.7 7.7 38.5 34.6 11.5 100 social media count 1 1 3 12 9 26 percent (%) 3.8 3.8 11.5 46.2 34.6 100 all respondents expressed their interest in engaging in online businesses and perceived online business as important (table 8). a total of 96.2% of the respondents view online businesses as able to increase their revenue besides conventional business. 80.8% of the respondents expressed their readiness to engage in online business on a part-time basis. only 61.5% express their readiness to engage in online business on a full-time basis. however, only 38.5% of the respondents have adequate ict facilities to engage in online business. towards the end of the survey, respondents were asked about the suggested training programmes they wish to participate in. the results in table 9 shows that 38.5% of the respondents stated training programmes related to video promotion. 26.9% of the respondents chose training on how to effectively use social media, while another 23.1% wished to attend training on dropships. the remaining 11.5% preferred to join training on digital marketing. all respondents expressed their interest in engaging online businesses, and a large majority of them viewed online business as important means of increasing their revenue besides conventional business. in general, the respondents agreed that their usage and skills in handling ict tools have increased since the mco. consequently, a high percentage of the respondents stated that they are ready to engage in online business either part-time or full-time. the findings agree with previous studies that reported entrepreneurs' necessary and significant transition to research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 lau, s. h. et al. effectiveness of online training for rural entrepreneurs during a global pandemic research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 203 online learning and online business due to the covid-19 pandemic restrictions (akpan et al., 2020; govindarajan & srivastava, 2020). table 8. perception and readiness towards engaging in online businesses after the mco, will you yes no total count percent (%) count percent (%) count percent (%) be more interested in online business? 26 100 0 0.0 26 100.0 feel online business is important? 26 100 0 0.0 26 100.0 be ready to engage in online business part-time? 21 80.8 5 19.2 26 100.0 be ready to engage in online business full time? 16 61.5 10 38.5 26 100.0 have adequate ict facilities to do online business? 10 38.5 16 61.5 26 100.0 feel that online business will increase your revenue beside conventional business? 25 96.2 1 3.8 26 100.0 table 9. suggested training programmes type of training frequency percentage video promotion 10 38.5 dropships 6 23.1 effective usage of social media 7 26.9 digital marketing (example in shopee/lazada) 3 11.5 total 26 100.0 online training this section reports the survey results on the frequency and skills in using selected electronic devices or applications before and after one month of online training. the data is aimed to find out the significant difference in the frequencies and skills in using ict tools among the entrepreneurs after online training. a total of 31 entrepreneurs had participated. at the beginning of the training, participants were required to fill an online entrance survey form to assess their frequency and skills in using 9 electronic devices or applications, namely old handphone, smartphone, desktop computer, laptop, data package subscription, digital camera, scanner, printer and social media. towards the end of the training, participants were asked to fill similar sets of online exit survey. each participant was assessed twice using the same instrument resulting in pairs of observations. to gauge the effectiveness of the online training, the results of the entrance and exit surveys were compared. paired sample t-test was conducted to determine whether there is any research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 lau, s. h. et al. effectiveness of online training for rural entrepreneurs during a global pandemic research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 204 significant difference between the means of the entrance and exit survey. the tests were conducted by using a 5% level of significance ( . table 10 and table 11 show the paired samples statistics and paired samples test for frequency of using old handphone, smartphone and desktop computer. based on table 10, the mean on the frequency of usage in the exit survey was higher than in the entrance survey for all the three electronic devices (old handphone, smartphone and desktop computer). this indicated that their frequency of using these three devices had generally increased after attending online training. although there is an increase in the frequency of usage, further paired samples t-test in table 11 shows that the increase was not statistically significant. the p-values for frequency of usage for old handphone , smartphone and computer were all greater than . table 10. paired samples statistics for frequency of using old handphone, smartphone and desktop computer frequency of using mean n std. deviation std. error mean old handphone exit 2.7097 31 1.27000 0.22810 entrance 2.5484 31 1.02758 0.18456 smartphone exit 4.3871 31 0.91933 0.16512 entrance 4.0968 31 1.22079 0.21926 desktop computer exit 2.9032 31 1.01176 0.18172 entrance 2.7742 31 1.08657 0.19515 table 11. paired samples test for frequency of using old handphone, smartphone and computer frequency of using paired differences t df sig. (2tailed) mean std. deviation std. error mean 95% confidence interval of the difference lower upper old hand phone exitentrance 0.16129 0.93441 0.16782 0.18145 0.50403 0.961 30 0.344 smart phone exitentrance 0.29032 1.03902 0.18661 0.09079 0.67144 1.556 30 0.130 desktop computer exitentrance 0.12903 0.76341 0.13711 0.15099 0.40905 0.941 30 0.354 tables 12 and 13 show the paired samples statistics and paired sample test for frequency of using laptops, data package subscription, and digital camera. table 12 showed the mean values for the exit survey were higher than the mean values for the entrance survey for laptop, data research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 lau, s. h. et al. effectiveness of online training for rural entrepreneurs during a global pandemic research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 205 package subscription and digital camera. this indicated that the frequency of using these three devices had generally increased after attending online training. however, the paired samples ttest in table 13 shows that the increase was not statistically significant. the p-values for frequency of usage for laptop , data package subscription and digital camera were all greater than . table 12. paired samples statistics for frequency of using laptop, data package subscription and digital camera frequency of using mean n std. deviation std. error mean laptop exit 3.1613 31 1.18594 0.21300 entrance 3.1290 31 1.25809 0.22596 data package subscription exit 4.0000 31 1.00000 0.17961 entrance 3.8387 31 1.15749 0.20789 digital camera exit 3.3871 31 1.17409 0.21087 entrance 3.1290 31 1.20394 0.21623 table 13. paired samples test for frequency of using laptop, data package subscription and digital camera frequency of using paired differences t df sig. (2-tailed) mean std. deviation std. error mean 95% confidence interval of the difference lower upper laptop exitentrance 0.03226 0.94812 0.17029 0.31551 0.38003 0.189 30 0.851 data package subscription exitentrance 0.16129 0.82044 0.14735 0.13965 0.46223 1.095 30 0.282 digital camera exitentrance 0.25806 1.09446 0.19657 0.14339 0.65952 1.313 30 0.199 table 14 and table 15 show the paired samples statistics and paired sample test for frequency of using the scanner, printer and social media. a similar trend was observed where the mean values for the exit survey were higher than the mean values for the entrance survey, as shown in table 14. however, the paired samples t-test in table 15 shows that the increase in the frequency of usage of the three devices or applications was not statistically significant. the pvalues for frequency of usage for scanner, printer, and social media were , and respectively. these p-values were all greater than . although participants reported an increase in the frequency of using all the 9 research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 lau, s. h. et al. effectiveness of online training for rural entrepreneurs during a global pandemic research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 206 electronic devices or applications at the end of the online training session, the increases in the reported frequencies were not statistically significant at a 5% level of significance. table 14. paired samples statistics for frequency of using the scanner, printer and social media frequency of using mean n std. deviation std. error mean scanner exit 3.1935 31 1.13782 0.20436 entrance 2.9355 31 1.23654 0.22209 printer exit 3.0645 31 1.12355 0.20180 entrance 3.0323 31 1.22431 0.21989 social media exit 4.0645 31 0.92864 0.16679 entrance 3.7742 31 1.23044 0.22099 table 15. paired samples test for frequency of using the scanner, printer and social media paired samples test frequency of using paired differences t df sig. (2tailed) mean std. deviation std. error mean 95% confidence interval of the difference lower upper scanner exitentrance 0.25806 1.03175 0.18531 0.12039 0.63651 1.393 30 0.174 printer exitentrance 0.03226 0.65746 0.11808 0.20890 0.27342 0.273 30 0.787 social media exitentrance 0.29032 1.10132 0.19780 0.11364 0.69429 1.468 30 0.153 a similar paired samples t-test was conducted on the responses to 9 remaining statements on the improvement in the 'participants' skills in using the 9 electronic devices or applications. the results are shown in table 16 and table 17. the results were similar and consistent with the findings on responses to the 9 previous statements. all means for the exit survey were higher or similar than the corresponding means for the entrance survey. this indicated that generally, participants perceived their skills in using the electronic devices or applications improved at the end of the online training session. however, paired samples t-test showed that the perceived improvement in skills was not statistically significant at a 5% level of significance. table 16 shows the paired sample statistics on skills in using old handphone, smartphone and desktop computer. the mean values for the exit survey were higher than the mean values for the entrance survey. however, the paired samples t-test show that improvement in skills was not statistically significant at (table 17). the p-values were all greater than . research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 lau, s. h. et al. effectiveness of online training for rural entrepreneurs during a global pandemic research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 207 table 16. paired samples statistics on the skill in using old handphone, smartphone and computer skills in using mean n std. deviation std. error mean old handphone exit 3.1613 31 1.06761 0.19175 entrance 3.0000 31 1.15470 0.20739 smart phone exit 4.0000 31 1.09545 0.19675 entrance 3.9355 31 1.12355 0.20180 desktop computer exit 3.2903 31 0.90161 0.16193 entrance 3.0968 31 0.83086 0.14923 table 17. paired samples test on the skill in using old handphone, smartphone and computer skills in using paired differences t df sig. (2tailed) mean std. deviation std. error mean 95% confidence interval of the difference lower upper old hand phone exitentrance 0.16129 1.12833 0.20265 0.25258 0.57516 0.796 30 0.432 smart phone exitentrance 0.06452 1.26321 0.22688 0.39883 0.52787 0.284 30 0.778 desktop computer exitentrance 0.19355 0.90992 0.16343 0.14021 0.52731 1.184 30 0.246 table 18 shows the paired samples statistics on skills in using laptop, data package subscription and digital camera. the mean values for the exit survey were either higher than or similar to the mean values for the entrance survey. results for paired samples t-test in table 19 show that skills improvement was not statistically significant at . all the p-values were greater than . table 18. paired samples statistics on skill in using laptop, data package subscription and digital camera skills in using mean n std. deviation std. error mean laptop exit 3.4516 31 .96051 0.17251 entrance 3.2258 31 1.02338 0.18380 data package subscription exit 3.7742 31 1.11683 0.20059 entrance 3.7742 31 1.02338 0.18380 digital camera exit 3.3871 31 0.80322 0.14426 entrance 3.2903 31 1.00643 0.18076 research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 lau, s. h. et al. effectiveness of online training for rural entrepreneurs during a global pandemic research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 208 table 19. paired samples test on skill in using laptop, data package subscription and digital camera skills in using paired differences t df sig. (2-tailed) mean std. deviation std. error mean 95% confidence interval of the difference lower upper laptop exitentrance 0.22581 1.05545 0.18956 -0.16134 0.61295 1.191 30 0.243 data package subscription exitentrance 0.00000 0.96609 0.17352 -0.35437 0.35437 0.000 30 1.000 digital camera exitentrance 0.09677 1.27423 0.22886 -0.37062 0.56416 0.423 30 0.675 table 20 shows the paired samples statistics on skills in using the scanner, printer and social media. the mean values for the exit survey were also higher than the mean values for the entrance survey. even so, the results for paired samples t-test in table 21 show improvement in skills were not statistically significant at . all the p-values were greater than . table 20. paired samples statistics on skill in using the scanner, printer and social media skills in using mean n std. deviation std. error mean scanner exit 3.3871 31 0.98919 0.17766 entrance 3.0968 31 1.07563 0.19319 printer exit 3.5484 31 0.88840 0.15956 entrance 3.2581 31 1.03175 0.18531 social media exit 3.9677 31 1.01600 0.18248 entrance 3.9355 31 1.03071 0.18512 table 21. paired samples test on skill in using the scanner, printer and social media skills in using paired differences t df sig. (2tailed) mean std. deviation std. error mean 95% confidence interval of the difference lower upper scanner exitentrance 0.29032 1.21638 0.21847 0.15585 0.73649 1.329 30 0.194 printer exitentrance 0.29032 1.07062 0.19229 0.10239 0.68303 1.510 30 0.142 social media exitentrance 0.03226 1.13970 0.20470 0.38579 0.45030 0.158 30 0.876 research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 lau, s. h. et al. effectiveness of online training for rural entrepreneurs during a global pandemic research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 209 the participants had indicated that their frequency and skills of using the electronic devices or applications had generally improved after the training, the increment or improvement was not statistically significant. this indicated that while the participants, to some extent, benefited from the online training provided, it did not have a significant impact on them. this finding was expected due to several constraints faced by the participants to fully engage in the online training. apart from having to manage their businesses and coping with the pandemic situation, they faced problems of inadequate facilities for online learning, particularly lack of good network coverage, internet availability in their respective locations, and difficulty in using smart devices. conclusion almost all respondents of the surveys were affected by the covid-19 pandemic and the movement control orders (mcos) imposed by the government in malaysia since april 2020. among the challenges faced by the rural entrepreneurs during those times were a significant decrease in their income, disruption of normal business activities forcing most of them to engage in alternative businesses. amid the difficulties, the entrepreneurs were more exposed to usage of ict tools as they became necessary for doing business during the pandemic. the online training modules which were tailored to the specific needs of the entrepreneurs were found to be interesting and helpful by the participants. this is partly attributed to the combination of the medium used (online videos, facebook, and whatsapp), which provided participants with flexible learning time. however, there was no significant impact due to the various constraints faced by the entrepreneurs in online learning. in view of these factors, the effectiveness of future online training modules may be improved by extension of the training program in the form of continuous engagement via social media platforms. this will enable trainers to monitor the participants' progress for a further period of 6 12 months and provide advisory services to enrich their knowledge and online business skills. references abdul rashid, s. m. r. 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(2021). equity in distance education during covid-19. research in social sciences and technology, 6(1), 1-24. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.1 xhelili, p., ibrahimi, e., rruci, e., & sheme, k. (2021). adaptation and perception of online learning during covid-19 pandemic by albanian university students. international journal on studies in education (ijonse), 3(2), 103-111. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2018.02.005 https://doi.org/10.1080/08276331.2017.1402154 https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1360-3736.2003.00184.x https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.1 research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 bekteshi, e., & xhaferi, b. (2020). learning about sustainable development goals through english language teaching. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 78 learning about sustainable development goals through english language teaching edita bekteshi* university of mitrovica “isa boletini” brikena xhaferi south east european university *corresponding author: edita.bekteshi@umib.net received : 2020-05-18 rev. req. : 2020-05-30 accepted : 2020-07-18 doi: 10.46303/ressat.05.03.4 how to cite this paper: bekteshi, e., & xhaferi, b. (2020). learning about sustainable development goals through english language teaching. research in social sciences and technology, 5 (3), 78-94. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.05.03.4 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) abstract the purpose of this paper is to introduce the concept of sustainable development (sd) and its goals to the students of the faculty of education, future teachers, in order to become skilled and knowledgeable and then introduce these sustainable development goals (sdgs) to their students. as such, this study tries to link the concept of english language learning (ell), english language teaching (elt), and the sdgs as a type of all-inclusiveness within the “3 ps”: planet, people, and profit. the instrument used for the purpose of this study was an online questionnaire sent to the students of the faculty of education in kosovo. the total number of participants was 89. the students’ responses revealed that 60 percent of the future teachers are aware of the sd concept; however, the results indicate that not all “3 ps” are hit upon by the future teachers. based on the results, the most common areas of interest and societal needs of learning about sdgs are related to education, gender equality, good health and wellbeing, alleviation of poverty, and decent work and economics. these same goals are also hit upon in elt classes. the study concludes that kosovo’s future teachers are more concerned about issues related to social issues—“p-people”—followed by goals related to “p-profit,” while goals related to “p-planet,” the environment, are left behind. future teachers’ knowledge about sdgs is vital, for there is a significant direct impact of learning about specific sdgs in higher education institutions, and the application of sdg topics in english language classes can infuse the sd concepts. keywords: sustainable development, students, education, english https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.05.03.4 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 bekteshi, e., & xhaferi, b. (2020). learning about sustainable development goals through english language teaching. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 79 introduction sustainable development (sd) has become the milestone of the 21st century in which all world stakeholders are trying to fulfill the needs of society. more precisely, the 2030 agenda for sd and its 17 sustainable development goals (sdgs), adopted by the united nations in september 2015, provide the understanding of 21st-century global concerns, specifically: goal 1: no poverty goal 2: zero hunger goal 3: good health and well-being goal 4: quality education goal 5: gender equality goal 6: clean water and sanitation goal 7: affordable and clean energy goal 8: decent work and economic growth goal 9: industry, innovation and infrastructure goal 10: reduced inequality goal 11: sustainable cities and communities goal 12: responsible consumption and production goal 13: climate action goal 14: life below water goal 15: life on land goal 16: peace and justice strong institutions goal 17: partnerships to achieve the goal sd deals with themes that “determine the daily lives of people of all ages living in different living conditions” (rieckmann, 2018, p. 62), which are better represented as the “3 ps”: people, planet, and profit (gil-doménech & berbegal-mirabent, 2018). additionally, the united nations department of economic and social affairs (2018) discusses more detailed “ps,” i.e., the “5 ps”: people, planet, prosperity, peace, and partnership. the sd aim is to train the new generation to make a difference in themselves and about global issues. in fact, based on the global evolution, sd requires education and training of people themselves, so it is a continuous process. if the new generation is given an intercultural perspective, then this generation will be dedicated to the “3 ps” because they will be confident and able to follow the rapid changes around the world (leicht, heiss, & byun, 2018). we may relate to the claim of pope and patterson (2012) that ”citizenship and environmental education are broadly tasked with helping students develop the knowledge, skills, and attitudes needed to shepherd the body politic and natural world, respectively, into the future” (p. 1). https://www.un.org/development/desa/disabilities/?page_id=6226&preview=true http://www.un.org/development/desa/disabilities/envision2030-goal2.html http://www.un.org/development/desa/disabilities/envision2030-goal3.html http://www.un.org/development/desa/disabilities/envision2030-goal4.html http://www.un.org/development/desa/disabilities/envision2030-goal5.html http://www.un.org/development/desa/disabilities/envision2030-goal6.html http://www.un.org/development/desa/disabilities/envision2030-goal7.html http://www.un.org/development/desa/disabilities/envision2030-goal8.html http://www.un.org/development/desa/disabilities/envision2030-goal9.html http://www.un.org/development/desa/disabilities/envision2030-goal10.html http://www.un.org/development/desa/disabilities/envision2030-goal11.html http://www.un.org/development/desa/disabilities/envision2030-goal12.html http://www.un.org/development/desa/disabilities/envision2030-goal13.html http://www.un.org/development/desa/disabilities/envision2030-goal14.html http://www.un.org/development/desa/disabilities/envision2030-goal15.html http://www.un.org/development/desa/disabilities/envision2030-goal16.html http://www.un.org/development/desa/disabilities/envision2030-goal17.html research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 bekteshi, e., & xhaferi, b. (2020). learning about sustainable development goals through english language teaching. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 80 achieving greater sustainability means “fundamentally addressing the way we see ourselves in connection to others, and the world around us” (bowden, 2010, p. 16). let us examine the reasons why should we teach the sdgs: students/future teachers need to learn about the world, must be active participants in the world they live in, should learn empathy and compassion, and must be inspired to take action (bakalar, 2018; weeks, 2018). students need a higher level of knowledge, which can be achieved by the interaction about a specific context (richards & rodgers, 1986). this higher level of knowledge shares new experiences, leading to “real learning,” which is important for the scholars of the 21st century as it enables them to enhance their competency, tenacity, and inquisitiveness (tarman & dev, 2018). since sd deals with experiences that facilitate global changes toward more social development, i.e., sustainable societies (bowden, 2010), there is also a need for education that “will address the growing environmental challenges facing the planet” (leicht, heiss, & byun, 2018, p. 7). education for sustainable development (esd) is a concept that will fulfill society’s need to respond to these challenges, as it goes far beyond environmental education (beka & ciani, 2015) and is considered the most important tool to reshape worldviews (kioupi & voulvoulis, 2019). as such, esd “encourages changes in knowledge, skills, values and attitudes to enable a more sustainable society for all” (leicht, heiss, & byun, 2018, p. 6). given that english is the language of the 21st century, and there are many connections between english and education for sustainability, english can be used to challenge this century’s worldviews (bowden, 2010; zygmunt, 2016). at its core, the english language is multi-functional and plays a constitutive role in human life (bowden, 2010; inceli, 2015; kioupi & voulvoulis, 2019; richards & rodgers, 1986; zygmunt, 2016). its significant role effects the development of the society, which is based on different skill perceptions, critical thinking, creativity, and expression. goal 4 of the sdgs, quality education, “is a means for achieving all the goals, while maintaining sustainability as the target” (kioupi & voulvoulis, 2019, p. 1). as such, the promotion of language education should be given reasonable support (zygmunt, 2016), as it would strengthen the impact of elt on sustainability (bowden, 2010). provided that sd topics encompass important worldwide issues, the question “how and why are english learning and inculcating sdgs linked?” also responds to bowden (2010), who claims that english learning through sd topics is paramount. this connection makes a good case for learning sd via elt (balčiūnaitienė & teresevičienė, 2018; bowden, 2010; parker, 2019; zygmunt, 2016). additionally, in order to create impact sustainability through elt, “elt teachers and learners need to engage with the wider society in exploring, developing and manifesting sustainability values, enabling them to act as agents for change” (bowden, 2010, p. 21). precisely, “differentiated knowledge about different topics from different areas should also be available research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 bekteshi, e., & xhaferi, b. (2020). learning about sustainable development goals through english language teaching. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 81 to learners to allow them to analyze different information from alternative perspectives” (rieckmann, 2018, p. 69). therefore, it is the teachers’ and students’ roles that define the type of interaction and effective teaching strategies (richards & rodgers, 1986) about sd. effective teaching strategies based on esd include a variety of issues and practices. these practices are intertwined with various categories in which the “4 cs” are presented: collaboration, communication, critical thinking, and creativity (bekteshi, 2017). interdisciplinary collaborative learning (kioupi & voulvoulis, 2019) encourages discussion about sd or presentation of sd in various ways. this new academic teaching provides modern glocal (global and local teaching) teaching (bekteshi, 2017) by incorporating different sdg topics, updated information, resources, and technologies. it is the teacher who pulls the trigger on esd, pointed out by the unesco (2017) learning goals for teachers to promote sd (11 goals). these goals focus upon the importance of the teacher in sd promotion: “know about sustainable development and the related topics and challenges” and “understand the discourse on, and the practice of esd in the local, national and global context” (unesco, 2017, p. 52). other goals deal with cultural diversity, gender equality, social justice, environmental protection, and personal development as integral elements of esd and how they can be made part of educational processes (unesco, 2017). purpose of the study: language development via sdg learning being willing and able to adapt in the 21st century is vital. as such, there is an urgent need to change and transform the system of education into more effective education. instructional practices, attitudes, and motivation of teachers are needed to bring this transformation (qablan, 2018; rieckmann, 2018; vural, 2019). accordingly, this transformation means the promotion of sd and the promotion of esd as a leading goal of the 17 sdgs. considering that kosovo is a new country, having declared independence in 2008, it has made progress in developing legislation for sustainable development. although sd is a new concept to kosovar people, it fails to be implemented (beka & ciani, 2015). initially, sd at higher education institutions in kosovo, as in other countries, was presented with topics in the field of agriculture or environment (beka & ciani, 2015; zygmunt, 2016), but sd is not just about these fields; it is about the perception of the “3 ps”: people, planet, and profit (gil-doménech & berbegal-mirabent, 2018), and esd needs to be offered, especially to heis. as such, the present study addresses sdg issues and discusses the effect of elt on sdgs and hei development, specifically at the faculty of education. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 bekteshi, e., & xhaferi, b. (2020). learning about sustainable development goals through english language teaching. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 82 there is a strong reason to present the sdgs, particularly at the faculty of education. since students of this faculty will be future teachers, they should be the first to have some knowledge about sd and introduce sd to the learners (beka & ciani, 2015). adding the fact that “human contacts on the macro scale are only possible via language” (zygmunt, 2016, p. 117) and that english is the global language (bowden, 2010; zygmunt, 2016), then it is important to see the parallel relation between esd and elt. as such, “it is challenging for pedagogues to believe that english as a foreign language (efl) will improve students’ sd competence” (balčiūnaitienė & teresevičienė, 2018, p. 45). naturally, the prominent position of english learning at heis may be used to impact sd, followed by learning about various topics regarding sdgs. in addition, topics that promote sd meet the long-term needs of the students, and valuing sdgs’ diversity can help value the topics to be promoted in el classes. research questions this study tries to answer the following questions:  to what extent are the students in tertiary education (at a public hei in kosovo) aware of sd and its goals?  which sdgs do students/future teachers consider to be important goals that they need to know?  which goals do the students consider as the eminent goals in the country? which goals do the students consider less applicable in their country?  to what extent are topics presented in el classes valued as topics that promote sd? which goals are presented more frequently? the purpose of this study is to investigate appropriate topics for future teachers to teach in classes that would cover the benefits and knowledge of the 17 sdgs. additionally, the study will also investigate the relation of elt and sdgs. although esd currently holds no prominent position in ell and elt, as practicing general english, reading, composing, listening, and speaking are prominent, this study examines the future teachers’ knowledge gaps in sd and suggestions to fill these gaps. we will show the importance of sdgs being instilled at heis, specifically at the faculty of education. these students are future teachers, and they must have some knowledge about global issues and sdgs to pass on to their students. methods research design the study was conducted at a public hei, the university of mitrovica in kosovo, with the students from the faculty of education. the procedure followed the methodology of balčiūnaitienė and teresevičienė (2018) conducted for sustainable development and elt. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 bekteshi, e., & xhaferi, b. (2020). learning about sustainable development goals through english language teaching. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 83 however, it was modified and adapted to fulfill the study aims, i.e., to answer the previously mentioned questions dealing with the future teachers’ general awareness about sd, specific sd goals, and the elt effect in sd learning. participants and instruments for the purpose of the study, the researchers conducted an online questionnaire that was distributed to the students of the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th year of their studies at the faculty of education (future kosovar teachers) in 2019/2020. the questionnaire, comprised of 12 questions regarding sd, sdgs, and elt, was divided into three parts:  the first group of questions dealt with the students’ awareness about sd and sdgs.  the second group dealt with the sdgs and the country’s needs based on students’ perceptions.  the third group of questions dealt with the relation between sd, ell, and elt from the students’ points of view. initially, in order to have more reliable data by considering different topics that were learned during the students’ educational experience, the list of the un’s 17 sdgs was offered to the students. the questionnaire went online in mid-october 2019 and it was active until the end of february 2020. during this time, a group of 89 female students (n=89) responded to the questionnaire survey. these respondents were students who already had 10 years of english prior to continuing bachelor studies in our public heis. in addition, for the purpose of better understanding the study questions, the questionnaire was bilingual: english and the students’ native language, albanian. data collection and data analysis the results were collected and analyzed using spss statistical methods for each group of questions. data analysis comprised of three and/or five sdgs based on the questionnaire requests, then compared them with each other. the top three and/or five goals were taken into consideration, as they were the chosen goals by most of the future teachers. it followed the methodology of balčiūnaitienė and teresevičienė (2018) in finding out students’ knowledge about sd, sdgs, and their correlations with elt. based on our study’s statistical analysis, discussions of findings were linearly incorporated within the study questions, synthesized, and summarized. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 bekteshi, e., & xhaferi, b. (2020). learning about sustainable development goals through english language teaching. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 84 although the participants’ numbers do not represent the overall number of students in the faculty of education, the results are a great help in analyzing the situation of the esd at a hei in kosovo, and the elt role concerning the sd concept. results the collection of data took place in march 2020, and the findings for each question posed are as follows:  research question 1: to what extent are the students in tertiary education (at a public hei in kosovo) aware of sd and its goals? starting with the first question of the questionnaire, “have you heard of sustainable development (sd)? what does sustainable stand for?” the results reveal that 60.7% of students have some understanding of the notion of sd, although sd is a new idea in kosovo (beka & ciani, 2015). however, the other group (39.3%) reveals that there is also a large number of students who do not understand the sd concept. the responses that the students do not understand the sd concept urge the heis, especially the faculty of education, to take immediate steps to promote sd among the future teachers. the responses of these questions unveil straightforward evidence about the first study question regarding the future teachers’ awareness of the sd concept, which is shown in table 1. table 1. awareness about sd questions: goal 1: no poverty goal 2: no hunger goal 3: good health and wellbeing goal 4: quality education goal 5: gender equality goal 6: clean water and sanitation goal 13: climate action united nations sustainable development goals. tick five that you have some knowledge of. 40% 24% 44% 56% 40% 16% 4% which goals have you learned at school? tick five. 30% 23% 58% 77% 54% 4% 20% research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 bekteshi, e., & xhaferi, b. (2020). learning about sustainable development goals through english language teaching. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 85 additionally, when offering the students the list of the sdgs, the results (table 1) reveal that out of the 17 sd goals, the best known goal is goal 4: quality education (56%), which is introduced by different topics, i.e., learned at school (77%), followed by goal 3: good health and well-being (44%). the topics dealing with goal 3 make the students understand this goal, and it is also discussed at school (58%) through different topics. as seen from the results, the students have knowledge of the sdgs when they have learned about them at school. furthermore, goal 4: quality education, goal 3: good health and well-being, and goal 5: gender equality are the leading goals about which the students from the faculty of education have some knowledge.  research question 2: which sdgs do students/future teachers consider to be important goals that they need to know? the template of the responses does not lead to variations in reporting when comparing the students’ responses about the goals of which they have some understanding, as well as those goals that students have mostly learned about at school (table 1). in table 2, we see the preferred goals compared to the goals they think they will need in life. the high percentage of the responses for the same goals confirm that the goals learned are needed in the course of a lifetime. the results shown in table 2 respond to the second study question. as reviewed, goal 4 is considered as the most needed, whereas goal 3 as the most important to know. table 2. the need to learn about sd questions: goal 1: no poverty goal 2: no hunger goal 3: good health and wellbeing goal 4: quality education goal 5: gender equality goal 8: decent work and economics goal 17: partnership to achieve the goal which of these goals do you think you will need in life? 16% 20% 52% 56% 28% 24% 12% which of the goals do you think each person should know about? tick three. 32% 28% 56% 48% 16% 24% 20% research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 bekteshi, e., & xhaferi, b. (2020). learning about sustainable development goals through english language teaching. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 86  research question 3: which goals do the students consider as the eminent goals in the country? which goals do the students consider less applicable in their country? the students’ awareness about the country’s needs for sd are shown in table 3. the results reveal again that the most important goal is goal 4: quality education, as 68% of the students’ responses show that goal 4 is the most important goal within the country. as such, these responses (table 3 and table 4) answer the third study question. table 3. the country’s needs based on sd questions: goal 1: no poverty goal 2: no hunger goal 3: good health and wellbeing goal 4: quality education goal 5: gender equality goal 9: industry, innovation and infrastructure goal 16: peace and justice strong institutions goal 17: partnership to achieve the goal these five goals are important for my country. 40% 36% 44% 68% 44% 36% 32% 40% although not experts in the field of teaching, but still future teachers, their point of view about the application of the sdgs in kosovo is shown in table 4. the results reveal that decent work and economics (goal 8) is the least applicable goal (52%). comparing table 3 and table 4, both tables show that goal 5: gender equality is an important goal for kosovo, yet it is not applied. table 4. goals not applicable in kosovo questions goal 5: gender equality goal 6: clean water and sanitation goal 7: affordable and clean energy goal 8: decent work and economics goal 9: industry, innovation and infrastructure goal 13: climate action goal 16: peace and justice strong institutions goal 17: partnership to achieve the goal these five goals are not applicable in my country 40% 32% 44% 52% 28% 36% 28% 28% the findings reveal that sd teaching and learning requires and urges multidimensional, comprehensive forms and new teaching topics in which students can build their knowledge. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 bekteshi, e., & xhaferi, b. (2020). learning about sustainable development goals through english language teaching. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 87 that is, introduction of innovative topics requires innovative understanding based on 21st century needs and, as such, we may add that this is precisely what the sdgs are about: the understanding of glocal 21st century needs (bekteshi, 2017). that is, learning about the sdgs is learning about discoveries, as pointed out by richards and rodgers (1986), that learning is facilitated when the learner discovers or creates by problem solving and by involving the material to be learned.  research question 4: to what extent are topics presented in el classes valued as topics that promote sd? which goals are presented more frequently? although sdg topics encompass important issues in education, the students’ responses reveal that there is a problem in linking elt and sdgs. of the 17 goals, six goals were mostly chosen as goals that relate elt and sdgs, as presented in table 5. as shown, elt mostly introduces topics dealing with goal 4 and goal 3. table 5. the relation of sd and elt questions: goal 2: no hunger goal 3: good health and wellbeing goal 4: quality education goal 5: gender equality goal 8: decent work and economics goal 17: partnership to achieve the goal these three goals are learned in english classes. 20% 40% 48% 36% 28% 24% these three goals can be easily learned through english language classes 20% 28% 48% 48% 24% 20% these five goals should be definitively learned in english classes. 24% 44% 56% 44% 36% 20% goal 4: quality education is the most preferred goal when discussing the relation of sd and elt. quality education is being discussed in elt classes (48%), and it is the goal that can be easily learned (48%) and should be learned (56%). the second most preferred goal in elt is goal 5: research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 bekteshi, e., & xhaferi, b. (2020). learning about sustainable development goals through english language teaching. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 88 gender equality. the students’ responses reveal that topics about gender equality can be easily learned in elt classes (48%), and the results advise the teachers to teach about gender equality in elt (44%). additionally, on the question about whether different topics about sd presented in elt classes will enhance communicative skills, 92% of the students agree that these kinds of topics can help in communicative skills and can increase the students’ interest in learning (96%). accordingly, it is seen that the results support the idea of innovative education that can be achieved via communication about sdgs as 21st-century knowledge. application of skills, attitudes, and competences that students need to develop (balčiūnaitienė & teresevičienė, 2018; kioupi & voulvoulis, 2019) are all connected when learning about sdgs. discussion the results of this study demonstrate significant information about the kosovar students’ knowledge of sd, sdgs, and the relation of english language classes and sd. most of the future teachers have some understanding of sd; however, there is still a large number of them (39.3%) who do not have any knowledge of sd. students in tertiary education in kosovo (future teachers) consider goal 4: quality education, goal 3: good health and well-being, and goal 5: gender equality as the most important goals that they need to know. if we summarize all the sdg goals and student responses, goal 4 is the most prominent goal, which was pointed out by beka and ciani (2015), kioupi and voulvoulis (2019), and leicht, heiss, and byun (2018). based on the study results, the same goals are considered the most important goals from a global viewpoint as well as in a national/kosovar aspect; students consider goal 4: quality education as the leading, most important goal in kosovo. indeed, the third most eminent goals are goal 1: no poverty and goal 17: partnership to achieve the goal. this confirms the students’ interest in goals related to “p-people.” on the other hand, based on students’ opinions, goal 8: decent work and economics is considered the least applicable goal in kosovo, followed by goal 7: affordable and clean energy, which shows a lack of interest in the other two “ps,” profit and planet. surprisingly, goals regarding “p-planet” are not mentioned by the students, neither as the needed goals to be learned nor applied, although initially sd at the hei in kosovo was presented with topics in the field of agriculture or environment (beka & ciani, 2015). regarding the third group of responses, a variety of interpretations can be observed in the data about students’ knowledge about the sd goals and the connections with elt. the data proves that there are various topics in english classes that promote sdg learning, especially in goal 3, goal 4, and goal 5. as seen from the results, the students’ needs and wishes to learn about sd via english can be (un)limited and (un)predictable. based on future kosovar teachers’ viewpoints, the results reveal facts about the relation of elt and sdgs, especially how and why english and sd are linked. there is a global reference for sd topics that have a valid point toward the 21st century and the “3 ps”: people, planet, and profit (gil-doménech & berbegal research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 bekteshi, e., & xhaferi, b. (2020). learning about sustainable development goals through english language teaching. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 89 mirabent, 2018), and the kosovar students, future teachers, consider english learning as a good opportunity to pursue the sd goals and their usability in an intercultural environment, which is also pointed out by lithuanian students in balčiūnaitienė and teresevičienė´s (2018) study. the results reveal that esd through elt is an opportunity to expose intellectual aspects of future teachers to learn about the sdgs. additionally, the results also reveal that teaching about the sdgs in english classes allows for full-fledged socialization in glocal (global and local) learning for better life-planning, consequently allowing them to make spontaneous brilliant contributions to learning about people and profit, leading to the appeal for more commitment to the “3 ps” in a glocal aspect. in particular, goal 4: quality education, goal 3: good health and well-being, goal 5: gender equality, goal 2: no hunger, goal 8: decent work and economics, and goal 17: partnership to achieve the goal are the leading goals mentioned in english classes. these results for learning sdgs and their roles among the future teachers confirm that there is a significant positive effect in global and local perspectives. however, out of 17 sd goals, kosovar students tackle only a few. and these goals are all related to social aspects, whereas goals related to “p-planet” dealing with water sanitation, climate change, energy, economic growth, infrastructure, and cities are hardly mentioned by the students. due to the absence of the environmental goals, the study is partly in line with pope and patterson (2012), who claim that citizenship and environmental education help students develop the knowledge, skills, and attitudes for the future; in our case, it is the students’ development when learning about sdgs via english language. conclusion kosovo has been enhancing education and introducing global issues and sdg topics at all levels of education. in response to the first research question, we may conclude that higher education students at a public faculty of education in kosovo are knowledgeable about esd and sdgs. different topics dealing with these goals are being taught at all levels of education. the conclusion for the second research question is that the students view goal 3, goal 4, and goal 5 as the most important goals, followed by goal 1 and goal 2. although these goals have already been presented in the students’ previous education, these five are still considered as goals that need more attention. this leads to the conclusion of the third research question. that is, goals dealing with people are considered the most important global goals of the 21st century by these future teachers. similarly, these goals are viewed as nationally needed goals. other goals regarding profit are slightly tackled by the students, whereas goals regarding the planet are not shown in students’ responses. http://www.un.org/development/desa/disabilities/envision2030-goal7.html http://www.un.org/development/desa/disabilities/envision2030-goal8.html http://www.un.org/development/desa/disabilities/envision2030-goal8.html research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 bekteshi, e., & xhaferi, b. (2020). learning about sustainable development goals through english language teaching. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 90 based on the future teachers’ awareness about sdgs, what they already know, what they think is important to know, and what they want to know about these issues depends on students’ development and their awareness of the global issues and their social impact. as such, we may also conclude that the effectiveness of teaching about the sd issues in english classes to higher education (he) students in kosovo is in line with sd-specific topics, and it depends largely on the students’ attitudes toward learning about specific topics. additionally, these future teachers prefer more topics regarding people and profit even in elt classes. therefore, we may also conclude that topics that future teachers prefer to focus upon are topics regarding people and profit in their native/albanian courses and in english language classes. since this study identifies challenges and opportunities for future elt methodology to address the issues of esd and elt, the findings can be considered for drafting future elt curricula. as such, the elt curricula at heis should reflect a global view, and suggestions are as follows:  future teachers should be allowed to choose their own topics for the purpose of learning english and sdgs.  elt and teaching of sd and its overall process should be based on a variety of collaborative teaching techniques designed to help them grow intellectually.  elt and teaching of sd should be organized in a way that challenges the students (and the teachers), encourages them, and brings freshness and creativity in class via preferred topics.  elt and teaching of sd should emphasize the active role of students in the society and their contribution to the “3 ps.”  elt and teaching of sd should include collaborative learning and self-initiated learning about general global knowledge such as gender equality, economy, planet, society, and environment.  elt and teaching of sd should include problem-solving activities designed to discuss glocal issues. in this study, our aim was to discuss sdgs and english language learning through sd topics as an important social issue. we may conclude that the impact of elt on sustainability is definitely based on the balance between what the students are being taught, what they want to be taught, and what they need to be taught (as seen in table 5). it is important for teachers of english (new or experienced) to broaden the vision and design of sustainable education to discussion. el teachers’ empowerment and students’ engagement with sd issues convey an exact definition of societal development through communication of specific fields, i.e., “wider society in exploring, developing and manifesting sustainability values will enable them to act as agents for change” (bowden 2010, p. 21). it is the teachers’ job to teach all these issues by taking step-by-step actions, starting from the involvement of new knowledge about sd, new research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 bekteshi, e., & xhaferi, b. (2020). learning about sustainable development goals through english language teaching. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 91 professional knowledge, the involvement of new teaching material, and new teaching approaches appropriate for modern needs. or, as pointed out by balčiūnaitienė and teresevičienė (2018), “embedding sustainable development content and innovative methods of teaching into foreign language (english) classes, pedagogues are encouraged to update their teaching strategies with innovative approach to sd” (p. 54). like any other study, this study suffered from some limitations. as pointed out, the number of students who participated in the study did not include all students of the faculty of education. a larger sample is needed to have more reliable data in order to increase the validity of the findings. however, the participants’ ability to notice the gaps in sdg awareness and the appeal to learn different topics about sdgs shows a need for further investigation. the needed and specified sd goals should be taught in english classes in order to see the impact of learning about the sdgs. since more time is needed, another well-designed survey that relates parallel learning to sdgs and english is planned for future investigation. references amin, m. a., & greenwood, j. 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(2020). learning about sustainable development goals through english language teaching. research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 94 unesco. (2017). education for sustainable development goals: learning goals. retrieved from http://unesdoc.unesco.org/ images/0024/002474/247444e.pdf vural, h. (2019). the relationship of personality traits with english speaking anxiety. research in educational policy and management, 1(1), 55-74. https://doi.org/10.46303/repam.01.01.5 weeks, c. (2018). 4 reasons to teach the sustainable development goals. global education. retrieved from https://www.participatelearning.com/blog/4-reasons-to-teach-thesustainable-development-goals/ zygmunt, t. (2016). language education for sustainable development. discourse and communication for sustainable education, 7(1), 112-124. doi: 10.1515/dcse-20160008 https://doi.org/10.46303/repam.01.01.5 https://www.participatelearning.com/blog/author/caroline-weeks/ https://www.participatelearning.com/blog/4-reasons-to-teach-the-sustainable-development-goals/ https://www.participatelearning.com/blog/4-reasons-to-teach-the-sustainable-development-goals/ research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 omodan, b. i. & diko, n. editorial: education and the quest for educating in the current and the post-covid-19 era research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org i editorial: education and the quest for educating in the current and the post-covid-19 era bunmi isaiah omodan*1 & nolutho diko2 *corresponding author: bomodan@wsu.ac.za 1. walter sisulu university, faculty of education, south africa. how to cite this paper: omodan, b. i. & diko, n. (2021). editorial: education and the quest for educating in the current and the post-covid19 era. research in social sciences and technology, 6(2), i-iii. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.21 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). abstract this special issue contains quality, well-researched, and well-argued articles towards inter/multi-disciplinary understanding of the current and future state, manner, and disposition of social, educational, environmental, humanitarian, and technological perspectives of covid19 pandemic. readers, academics, practitioners and students are provided with robust knowledge on the state and status of the covid-19 pandemic in the world from its advent in 2020, its present state and future projections. we thank all colleagues involved in the editorial and publishing process for their supports, assistance and exceptional guidance. we are bold to say that the quality involved in the publication process of ressat journal is second to none. to all our authors, your quality products remain part of the historical contribution to knowledge on the covid-19 pandemic. keywords: covid-19; post-covid-19; education; teacher struggle. 10.46303/ressat.2021.21 mailto:bomodan@wsu.ac.za https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.21 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 omodan, b. i. & diko, n. editorial: education and the quest for educating in the current and the post-covid-19 era research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org ii editorial: education and the quest for educating in the current and the post-covid-19 era coronavirus disease (covid-19) has been described as an emergency of the unknown (omodan, 2020), which has interrupted activities worldwide, including education sectors (tarman, 2020). covid-19, identified as a respiratory syndrome, was declared a pandemic on march 12, 2020, by the world health organization (who, 2020). united nations educational, scientific and cultural organization confirmed that schools were closed down/lockdown in over 107 countries to contain the outbreak which affected more than 862 young people, half of which is the student population” (viner et al., 2020). countries shut down various organizations and agencies, including primary, secondary and tertiary institutions; however, education and educating must continue. in this light, numerous strategies were designed by countries, universities, education departments/agencies and different governing bodies to immunize the system against the danger of covid-19 on institutional productivity. among these mitigating remedies are remote learning, virtual management, online engagement, and technology to enhance educational operations beyond the schools (murphy et al., 2020; greenhalgh et al., 2021). even social activities were/are driven by technology cum “internet of things” (singh et al., 2020; mohammed & isa, 2021). it was observed globally that educational institutions had commenced operations, either in full flesh or partially, while the majority are still working and educating from home. therefore, this special issue contains quality, well-researched, and well-argued articles towards inter/multidisciplinary understanding of the current and future state, manner, and disposition of social, educational, environmental, humanitarian, and technological perspectives of covid-19 pandemic. readers, academics, practitioners and students are provided with robust knowledge on the state and status of the covid-19 pandemic in the world from its advent in 2020, its present state and future projections. in conclusion, we thank all colleagues involved in the editorial and publishing process for their supports, assistance and exceptional guidance. we also thank all academics who participated in the review process. your time, selfless and profound academic prowess towards quality production is appreciated. our special appreciation is extended to the editor-in-chief, prof. bulent tarman for your exceptional editorial and administrative endeavors towards actualization of the special issue. we are bold to say that the quality involved in the publication process of ressat journal is second to none. to all our authors, your quality products remain part of the historical contribution to knowledge on the covid-19 pandemic. references greenhalgh, t., knight, m., inda-kim, m., fulop, n. j., leach, j., & vindrola-padros, c. (2021). remote management of covid-19 using home pulse oximetry and virtual ward support. bjm, 372, 1-8. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.n677 mohammed, i. b., & isa, s. m. (2021). the role of internet of things (iot) in the containment and spread of the novel covid-19 pandemic. in computational intelligence methods in covid-19: surveillance, prevention, prediction and diagnosis (pp. 109-119). springer, singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-8534-0_6 https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.n677 https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-8534-0_6 research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 omodan, b. i. & diko, n. editorial: education and the quest for educating in the current and the post-covid-19 era research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org iii murphy, l., eduljee, n. b.,& croteau, k. (2020). college student transition to synchronous virtual classes during the covid-19 pandemic in northeastern united states. pedagogical research, 5(4), em0078. https://doi.org/10.29333/pr/8485 omodan, b. i. (2020). the vindication of decoloniality and the reality of covid-19 as an emergency of unknown in rural universities. international journal of sociology of education. 20, 1-26. http://doi.org/10.17583/rise.2020.5495 singh, r. p., javaid, m., haleem, a., & suman, r. (2020). internet of things (iot) applications to fight against covid-19 pandemic. diabetes & metabolic syndrome: clinical research & reviews, 14(4), 521-524. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dsx.2020.04.041 tarman, b. (2020). editorial: reflecting in the shade of pandemic. research in social sciences and technology, 5(2), i-iv. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.05.02.ed viner, r. m., russell, s. j., croker, h., packer, j., ward, j., stansfield, c., ... & booy, r. (2020). school closure and management practices during coronavirus outbreaks including covid19: a rapid systematic review. the lancet child & adolescent health, 4(5), 397-404. https://doi.org/10.1016/s2352-4642(20)30095-x who (2020). pneumonia of unknown cause – china. https://www.who.int/csr/don/05 january-2020-pneumonia-ofunkown-cause-china/en/ https://doi.org/10.29333/pr/8485 http://doi.org/10.17583/rise.2020.5495 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dsx.2020.04.041 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.05.02.ed https://doi.org/10.1016/s2352-4642(20)30095-x https://www.who.int/csr/don/05-%20january-2020-pneumonia-ofunkown-cause-china/en/ https://www.who.int/csr/don/05-%20january-2020-pneumonia-ofunkown-cause-china/en/ microsoft word 1.tachie&kariyana.1-19 research in social sciences and technology https://ressat.org e-issn: 2468-6891 volume: 7 issue: 1 2022 pp. 1-19 time divested or time invested? freshmen’s perspectives and reflective experiences on interactive school learning simon adjei tachie*a & israel kariyanab * corresponding author email: simon.tachie@gmail.com a. school of mathematics, science and technology education, north-west university, potchefstroom, south africa b. faculty of educational sciences, walter sisulu university, mthatha campus, eastern cape, south africa article info received: december 4, 2021 revised: january 19, 2022 accepted: february 7, 2022 how to cite tachie, s. a. & kariyana, i. (2022). time divested or time invested? freshmen’s perspectives and reflective experiences on interactive school learning. research in social sciences and technology, 7(1), 1-19. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2022.2 copyright license this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 abstract this study sought to research first-year south african university students’ attitudes towards interactive school learning and then to determine their perspectives and reflective experiences regarding interactive learning. data was gathered during the first week of their first university lectures. the sample was 129 freshmen. the study adopted a mixed-method approach that utilized a sequential explanatory research design. data was gathered through questionnaires and interviews. quantitative data was coded and analysed through descriptive statistics using spss version 23, while qualitative data was thematically analysed through content analysis. permission to conduct the study was granted by the lecturers and the participants. it emerged from the study that, though participants were positive about the provision of interactive school learning, their school experiences told different stories about such activities. participants valued interactive school learning as it improves learners’ socialization experiences, communication skills, and thinking skills. interactive school learning also promotes teamwork and personal engagement, which are necessary to improve the quality of education. the study concluded that, while interactive school learning added value to education, most schools did not offer such opportunities to enhance learning experiences. the study recommends that schools offer school-based opportunities and teaching practices that accommodate learners’ varied learning styles across all subjects. keywords freshmen; interactive school learning; schools; learning; teaching. 10.46303/ressat.2022.2 2 ressat 2022, 7(1): 1-19 introduction and background the quality of a country's education is critical to its growth since it serves as the foundation for human capital development and it facilitates citizen socio-economic empowerment (olaleye, 2015). the quality of outcomes and the availability of resources can be ensured through, inter alia, coordinating inter-school activities and programs (catholic education commission of victoria, 2005). recent efforts to rekindle students' interest in, and their love of, science have centered on the teaching method (harlen, 2010). teaching quality in nigeria has comes under the spotlight over the last ten years as a result of poor results of learners graduating from secondary school (uchendu, 2015) and their unpreparedness for tertiary education and training. teachers are considered as the driving force behind the creation of ideal learning environments and have control over many of the factors that contribute to a positive learning environment in the classroom (olaleye, 2011; tarman, 2016). osman (2004) argues that, in order to change institutional culture, institutions need to develop an awareness of themselves and their place in a rapidly changing society. they must comprehend the importance of vision and policy frameworks. bektesh and xhaferi (2020) argue for the pressing need to modify and transform the educational system to make it more effective, particularly in the 21st century. traditional delivery methods that are predicated on the use of textbooks and the teacher taking center stage are no longer effective (khatete et al., 2015). students should be assisted in developing ‘big ideas’ in science and about science that will allow them to comprehend scientific aspects of the world around them and make educated decisions regarding science applications (harlen, 2010). perhaps the teachers' failure to meet these objectives is caused by the poor quality of capacity-development practices to which they are exposed, as capacity-building practices are critical components in the process of altering persons and organizations from where they are to where they should be and where they should operate (uchendu, 2015). teachers who have undergone extensive training are critical to preserving educational standards (olaleye, 2015). each country's progress is dependent on education as it is the foundation of societal progress. the governments thus invest significant resources in education in order to improve socio-political, economic and technological advancements that will position the country to fully compete in the global arena (ajayi, 2011). the growth of all children in schools depends on strong and supportive connections between teachers and students (hamre & pianta, 2001). every country's progress is dependent on education. teachers have been reported to be disinterested in the teaching profession, lacking possibilities for professional progress, and a lack of self-confidence (obanya, 2004). in south africa, schools educating primarily african children do not adequately prepare them for post-secondary education due to persistent socioeconomic disparities. as a result, higher education institutions experience major challenges in addressing the needs of 'under-prepared' students (matabane & matabane, 2021). by the conclusion of their first year of higher education study, a striking challenge that faces universities is that, because of under-preparedness, but not only because of under3 ressat 2022, 7(1): 1-19 preparedness, one out of every three students enrolled at south african universities will have dropped out (van schalkwyk, 2007). “the need for positive relationships with teachers does not diminish as students mature” (myers & pianta, 2008, p.601). a positive student-teacher relationship and students' academic, social-emotional, and mental health results have been highlighted in research on studentteacher interactions (demaray & malecki, 2002; hamre & pianta, 2001; reddy et al., 2003). positive student-teacher interactions support students who are at risk of failing, but conflict or estrangement between students and adults can exacerbate that risk (ladd & burgess, 2001). positive attitudes, which include motivation, success expectations, and interest in school (roeser et al., 1998), as well as improved achievement and self-esteem (martin et al., 2007) and fewer depressive symptoms (pössel et al., 2013), are linked to feelings of relatedness with teachers. a lack of a positive relationship tends to have a significant impact on teacher performance and, as a result, student accomplishment (olaleye, 2015). positive student-teacher interactions can help students who are at risk of failing at school, but conflict or estrangement between students and adults can exacerbate that risk (ladd & burgess, 2001). any setting that aims to improve children or youths’ development and learning outcomes must carefully create the nature of the experience it offers in order to provide participants with a developmentally appropriate sense of control, autonomy, choice, and mastery (pianta et al., 2012). learner autonomy is a feature of current communicative language instruction that encourages students to be active participants and managers of their own education (broady & kenning, 1996). when students are given sufficient direction to manage and take control of their own learning, they can eventually gain autonomy (matsubara & lehtinen, 2007). the demand for connection between school children and adults in the educational context is vital no matter the stage, that is from preschool to 12th grade, despite the type of student-teacher relationships changing as students age (crosnoe et al., 2004). when teaching and learning are defined as the development of knowledge and abilities that enable one to become a more useful member of society, effective teaching is critical. teaching encompasses all types of process behavior and activities that defy explanation by a single theory (olorundare, 2006). dewey (as cited in lutz & huitt, 2004) states that one of the most significant considerations to make in planning teaching from a constructivist perspective is that education and schooling should be done with the goal of educating students to live in a democratic society. according to azi (2006), the purpose is to help the target population attain school preparation and lifelong learning. the university world news (2008), however, reports that many students lack the ability to ‘get up in the morning’. “extant research has tended to focus mainly on class size and student achievement in standardized tests and examinations, without interrogating teachers’ pedagogical practices when teaching…” (chimbi & jita, 2021, p.46). furthermore, even as schools focus more on accountability and standardized testing, the social quality of student-teacher connections is 4 ressat 2022, 7(1): 1-19 important for academic and social-emotional development (gregory & weinstein 2004; hamre & pianta, 2001). teaching, therefore, is a dynamic process in education (olaleye, 2015). an inferior schooling system, a lack of reading and writing skills, a lack of fluency and proficiency in the language of learning and teaching (lolt), and a failure of the curriculum to move beyond or circumvent eurocentric paradigms are all factors that contribute to perceived lack of success in higher education (he) in south africa (chisholm, 2003; cloete, 2002; makoe, 2006). effective classroom practice includes teacher attempts to enhance learners' social and emotional functioning in the classroom through positive facilitation of teacher-student and studentstudent relationships (pianta et al., 2012). learners require learning experiences that are both exciting and engaging, as well as relevant to their life, in order to achieve this comprehension (harlen, 2010). autonomy of learning is defined as a learner's capacity for lifelong learning, which includes the extent to which a student can act independently to learn; the extent to which a learner takes responsibility for his or her own learning; and the extent to which a learner is self-reflective about, and can evaluate, the quality of his or her learning (south african qualifications authority [saqa], 2003). benson (2001, p.47) maintains that it is preferable "to define autonomy as the capacity to take control of one's own learning, largely because the construct of ‘control’ appears to be more open to research than the constructions of ‘charge’ or ‘responsibility’”. this connotation supports our view that passive students are more at risk of failure in every learning opportunity than other students. "providing opportunities for students to meaningfully discuss and listen, write, read, and reflect on the content, ideas, issues, and concerns of an academic subject is what active learning is all about" (meyers & jones, 1993, p.6). active learning has substantial supporters among academics looking for alternatives to standard teaching approaches, while skeptics see it as just another in a long line of educational fads (prince, 2004). similarly, an inquiry-based method is extensively promoted and used in a variety of countries around the world. well-executed inquiry leads to comprehension and allows for regular reflection on what has been learnt, allowing new ideas to emerge from older ones (harlen, 2010). student action and participation in the learning process are also key characteristics of active learning, according to prince (2004). any instructional strategy that involves students in the learning process is referred to as active learning. active learning necessitates students engaging in meaningful learning activities while also reflecting on their actions (bonwell & eison, 1991). “active learning is often contrasted to the traditional lecture where students passively receive information from the instructor” (prince, 2004, p.1). learning communities continue to become popular strategies to foster active and collaborative learning and to add value to the learning enterprise by creating stronger relationships among and between students and faculties (visher et al., 2008). the current study focused on the provision of interactive school learning. the study defines interactive school learning as occasions where two or more schools meet and/or participate in learning of curricula subjects through exchanging ideas. each school prepares questions for 5 ressat 2022, 7(1): 1-19 which they have to have answers, and also must find answers to questions from their counterparts. it is an active teaching-learning process which invites learner engagement, teamwork, cooperation, and so on, through teacher guidance. subject experts may be invited to such sessions. if well handled, such platforms provide exciting and excellent learning opportunities. research has found that students who are compelled to teach their friends anything learn concepts better than students who are taught the content in traditional ways. to put it another way, teaching is a better learning approach than being taught, so it makes sense to apply this principle in the classroom to improve learning (center for teaching and learning, 1998). when delivered by inspiring teachers who are also excellent orators, lecturing can be a masterful experience, but students frequently sit quietly, alienated from the lecture, while actively engaging in facebooking, text messaging, or doing assignments for other classes. despite this, lecturing continues to be popular because it is a convenient and efficient way to impart knowledge to large groups of students, particularly in lecture halls (millis, 2012). the goal is to shift away from a taught curriculum and towards a learning curriculum that incorporates resources from both within and outside the classroom (osman & castle, 2006). in effective learning communities, according to curtis (2004), students are no longer just students; rather they become secondary teachers. amongst other things, students are empowered to contribute to discussions, to lead tutorial group activities, and to provide feedback on their work and that of fellow students. the majority of children continue to be let down by the education system when it comes to the level of learning opportunities available to them (boughey, 2003; jansen, 2005). active learning is a necessary component of good teaching if teachers want their students to learn more (millis, 2012). students must take an active role in expanding their knowledge (hestenes, in hanford, 2012). this transformation necessitates a reconsideration of the traditional classroom, with a mixture of educational approaches that more frequently involve students in the learning process and that replace the traditional lecture. the instructor maintains ‘control’ of the classroom in a learning-centered approach, but regular consideration is given to: (a) how well students will learn the material presented, and (b) the variety of pedagogically sound methods that may be used to help students better understand the core information to be learned (center for faculty excellence, 2009). jansen (2005) asserts that the future of the country's development is dependent on enhancing educational quality in the school system, particularly in the foundation years, which ensures the stability of the higher education system. berry (2008) goes on to say that all active learning systems include four fundamental elements: (1) critical thinking, (2) individual accountability for learning, (3) participation in open-ended activities, and (4) professor-led learning activities. there is currently solid empirical evidence that active participation in the learning process is key in two areas: (a) mastering skills, like critical thinking and problemsolving, and (b) adding to the learner’s likelihood of completing the program (braxton et al., 6 ressat 2022, 7(1): 1-19 2008; prince, 2004). carnes (2011, p.2) goes on to say that teamwork and problem-solving lead to significant pedagogical advances, and that learners “need to attend classes that set their minds on fire”. one principle of vygotsky’s social development theory states that, in terms of what is taught and when and how it is learned, social interaction is crucial in cognitive development (as cited in lutz & huitt, 2004). actively engaging learners in the classroom will encourage them to think more deeply about course topic, to increase classroom energy, and to determine the extent to which they may be suffering with the curriculum (center for faculty excellence, 2009). engagement is a relational process (pianta et al., 2012). it reflects learners’ cognitive, emotional, behavioral, and motivational states and capacities, but it is conditioned, in part, on interpersonal relationships as activators and organizers of these states and capacities in the service of some larger developmental task or aim (allen & allen, 2009; crosnoe, 2000). cooperative learning, unlike less structured forms of collaborative learning, encourages students to be personally responsible for their own learning (millis, 2012). actively involving learners in understanding why a specific approach to pedagogy that underpins a learning experience is one strategy to minimize their resistance in assuming responsibility for their learning. explaining to learners how an interactive teaching method or a course develops the skills needed to apply knowledge in real-world situations, provides a platform for involvement and understanding. in the past, teachers may have avoided talking to learners about the ‘why’, ‘how’, and ‘what’ of learning objectives (moore, fowler & watson, 2007), but this has been indicated in the curriculum assessment policy statement (caps) (dbe, 2011). active learning is a tried-and-true method that teachers who care about their learners’ education should consider implementing. in the same way that purposeful teaching helps teachers to use cooperative learning and other ways that lead to deep learning, intentionality is the key to using active learning effectively (millis, 2012). today, assisting learners in making the shift from being passive to active and fully engaged entails involving them in the discussion from the start (moore et al., 2007). smith et al. (2005) indicates, “…engaging students in learning is principally the responsibility of the teacher, who becomes less an imparter of knowledge and more a designer and facilitator of learning experiences and opportunities” (p.2). active learning, according to braxton et al. (2000), can influence learners’ social integration, commitment to the institution, and desire to stay in school. individual students can participate in active learning by doing activities and reflecting on their experiences, or learners might work jointly in pairs or groups (millis, 2012). from schools, learners enter higher education with significant social, economic, and cultural variations, in addition to differences in academic ability (fraser & killen, 2005). van schalkwyk (2007, p.955) describes the situation as diversity that is “multi-layered and complex”. this means that universities are faced with challenges with their first-year students. in addressing the challenge, universities have put programs in place to support and be responsive to the students’ needs. as an alternative to university entrance, many south african universities 7 ressat 2022, 7(1): 1-19 have launched access programs or foundation courses which bridge knowledge gaps, curriculum extensions to provide some students with additional time to finish their studies, and cocurricular and academic-literacy programmes to create competencies and skills to deal with underprepared students and smoothen their transition to university (macgregor, 2008). statement of the problem the robustness of higher education institutions (heis) is inextricably linked to the quality of high school graduates, and their proficiency is largely dictated by the teaching methods they encounter. jansen (2005) asserts that the quality of school education is the single most critical factor impacting access to higher education. if the foundations of learning are poor, all subsequent learning is undermined, and there is little that higher education can do to rectify this. in the face of widespread literature purporting the under-preparedness of most students entering heis and the emergence of bridging programmes aimed at bringing under-prepared students on board to overcome challenges when entering universities, teachers are called upon to utilize teaching methods that develop learner autonomy and thinking skills. in pursuit of circumventing perpetual dropout tendencies of differing magnitude that are characteristic of heis, the current study sought to ascertain university freshmen’s attitudes towards, and reflective experiences about, interactive school learning, and then determine their perspectives about the existence and significance of interactive school learning sessions. research objectives the study had two objectives:  to ascertain freshmen’s attitudes towards, and reflective experiences about, interactive school learning.  to determine freshmen’s perspectives about the significance of attending interactive school learning sessions. theoretical framework the concept of student access to higher education settings is addressed in chickering's (1969) theory. he emphasizes students' ability to develop the essential academic knowledge and skills for further education, as well as their ability to build the ability to respond effectively to stressful situations and gain a new level of independence. he goes on to say that the “vectors” of competence, emotions, and autonomy are often difficult for first-year students. chickering (1969) characterizes growing competency in each of these ‘vectors’ as a student's ability to acquire the intellectual skills required in a higher education setting. students' self-control and appropriate behavior in challenging situations are crucial to managing emotions. the students’ experimentation with obtaining independence and doing things on their own develops autonomy. chickering and gamson (1987) further argue that when learning is more like a team effort than a solitary race, it is more effective. learning should be collaborative and communal, not competitive and isolated, like successful work. collaborating with others is a great way to get more people interested in what you are learning. sharing one's own thoughts and 8 ressat 2022, 7(1): 1-19 responding to others' responses helps to strengthen one's thinking and understanding. chickering and gamson (1987) also maintain that learning, on the other hand, is not a spectator sport. students do not learn much by simply sitting in class and listening to teachers, memorizing pre-packaged tasks, and spouting replies. they must discuss what they are learning, write about it, connect it to previous experiences, and apply it to their daily life. they must internalize what they have learned. for hei productivity, we endorse this as a theoretical framework for this study. methodology research design the current study adopted a sequential explanatory design, which commenced with data collection and analysis from a quantitative phase, followed by data collection and analysis from a qualitative phase (othman et al., 2021). in this mixed-method approach, the sequential explanatory design was utilized through a quantitative study of student questionnaire responses and a qualitative analysis of one focus group interview, which enabled the researchers to ‘triangulate’ the findings. sample quantitative data was generated from a survey which was administered to 118 randomly sampled freshmen. eleven focus-group interview respondents were conveniently sampled freshmen. interview respondents were sampled on the availability and willingness to participate, and it emerged that they were mostly from the faculties of education and business management sciences. the definition of interactive school learning was provided for clarity to respondents during data collection. instruments the study utilized a survey which was administered to randomly selected freshmen from one campus of the first researcher’s university. the questionnaire included questions that focused on biographic variables, followed by utilizing a 5-point likert-scale to query how much they agreed with numerous assertions about interactive school learning and their experiences in relation to such experiences. for qualitative data, a focus-group interview was held in an environment that was deemed conducive for all, and which lasted for just over an hour. validity and reliability the study utilized separate procedures to assess the reliability and validity of the quantitative data and the trustworthiness of the qualitative data (othman et al., 2021). for this study, these were ensured using freshmen from a different campus of the same university. content validity was established when seven freshmen made slight comments on the instruments for more clarity. a cronbach alpha was utilized to assess internal consistency of the questionnaire. instrument reliability was ensured through obtaining a 0,77 cronbach alpha coefficient. qualitative data trustworthiness was ensured through member checking with respondents after the transcription of the gathered data. 9 ressat 2022, 7(1): 1-19 data collection data were collected during the first week of the commencement of the first semester lectures. quantitative data was gathered first, followed by qualitative data through a single focus group interview. permission to conduct the study was granted by the lecturers and the participants. the procedure of data collection first required confirming that the student was a freshman, after which the questionnaire was distributed to the randomly sampled freshmen who were requested to immediately complete and return. data analysis quantitative data were coded directly using spss and analysed through descriptive statistics using spss version 23. qualitative data was thematically analysed through content analysis. weber (as cited in hsieh & shannon, 2005) argues that in content analysis, the basic coding method is to classify enormous amounts of text into considerably fewer content categories. after transcription in this study, we were interested in ideas or patterns that came up at least twice to corroborate or refute the quantitative findings. since both our research questions generated quantitative and qualitative data, we blended findings from the two data sets as we felt it was improper to separately present qualitative findings due to having utilised only a single focus group interview. results and discussion results were presented under three headings, namely biographic data of participants; views and attitudes on the provision of interactive school learning; and views on the significance of attending interactive school learning sessions. to separate participating quantitative and qualitative “freshmen”, the study respectively used the terms, respondents and participants, in referring to partakers in each category. in this study, the acronyms, qr and ip respectively represent questionnaire respondent and interview participant. biographic data of participants in the quantitative study, 51.7% (n=61) of respondents were male with 66.9% (n=79) at least 21 years of age. respondents were predominantly from the faculty of business and management sciences (83.9%) and 92.4% (n=109) had matriculated at a public school. some 81.3% had remained for an average of two and a half years at the same school and which was the minimum period with the rest attending the same school for a longer period prior to matriculation. thus, data were gathered from respondents who had experience with and background information about their last schools before graduating from high school. in the focus group session, the majority of respondents were females, were predominantly from the faculty of education and had had on average, been in attendance at their last high school for three years. 10 ressat 2022, 7(1): 1-19 attitude towards the provision of interactive school learning figure 1 depicts respondents’ views scaled from 0 to 100 percent. a mean of 75 percent negatively viewed the existence and conduct of interactive school learning. figure 1: attitude towards the provision of interactive school learning the figure indicates that most learners did not benefit from such teaching-learning approaches generally and particularly while in grade 12. such a scenario negates respondents’ support for interactive school learning. these findings align with the recommendation by pianta et al. (2012) that any setting that intends to advance development and learning outcomes for children or youth must carefully craft the nature of experience it provides in order to give participants a developmentally calibrated sense of control, autonomy, choice, and mastery. in the focus group interview, there were strong arguments in favor of interactive school learning: one participant (ip 3) expressed the view that “i wish i was still at school and get a chance to attend such learning opportunities. i think most of us are not good because we lacked real learning.” ip 7 indicated that “anyone serious about learning can see that there are many benefits of sharing ideas as schools because the caps is the same.” [caps: curriculum and assessment policy statement]. the interviewed group pointed out that, if they had the opportunity, they all would have attended interactive school learning sessions. ip 8 responded, "why not, it’s better than sitting in a class and [being] forced to read stuff [which] you cannot understand.” there is currently solid empirical evidence that active participation in the learning process is key in two areas: (a) mastering skills, like critical thinking and problem-solving, and (b) adding to the student's likelihood of completing the program (braxton et al., 2008; prince, 2004). 0 20 40 60 80 100 120 awareness of school/s that conduct ineractive school learning attendance to interactive school learning sessions in a lifetime attendance to interactive school learning while in grade 12 learners should attend interactive school learning sessions interactive school learning is a waste of time in schools would have attended such a session if were given that chance yes no 11 ressat 2022, 7(1): 1-19 the significance of interactive school learning respondents, as indicated in table 1, were of the view that interactive school learning promotes the development of learners’ thinking skills and strengthens their debating skills. in the qualitative phase, participants suggested that: “we benefit (from) learning skills” (ip 2). “you can be able to present a presentation to many people and be not afraid to talk in front of many people and have a proper way of addressing your facts and opinions” (qr 2). “you gain new thinking benefits. it builds more confidence and self-competition with others. it creates opportunities to know each other and teachers’ strategies that they are using while teaching.” (qr 18.) another participant noted, “interactive school learning helps students to have selfconfidence and high self-esteem when they present their points of views. it helps learners to be broad minded.” (qr 7). the common thread established by the views was that interactive learning at schools promotes cognitive development and equips them with the knowledge and skills needed for entry into higher education. children and teenagers are often challenged by difficulties that are within reach and create a sense of self-efficacy and control, according to bandura et al. (1996), if they are offered the relevant scaffolding and support. the center for teaching and learning (1998) argues, according to its research, that students who are compelled to teach their friends anything learn concepts better than students who are taught the content in traditional ways. to put it another way, teaching is a better learning approach than being taught, and, therefore, it makes sense to apply this principle in the classroom to improve learning. the provision of interactive school learning was viewed as a method of boosting socialization experiences among learners. these sessions promote communication skills and positive competition among learners, promote teamwork among the participants, improve academic relationships between teachers and learners and generate healthy competition among participating schools. fgr 9 echoed, “meeting new people and learn more about how others behave.” these sessions also teach how to “work as [a] unity and respect others; adapt and compromise” (qr 16). qp 91 stated that interactive school learning “promotes interaction between different people and it serves as a part of tourism and it improves social development....” this was regarded as the psycho-social development benefit of interactive school learning, which is critical in building the student into a whole human being. this finding is consistent with one principle of vygotsky’s social development theory, which states that, in terms of what is taught and when and how it is learned, social interaction is crucial in cognitive development (as cited in lutz & huitt, 2004). 12 ressat 2022, 7(1): 1-19 table 1. respondents’ perceptions on the significance of interactive school learning sessions statement responses strongly disagree disagree neutral agree strongly agree n % n % n % n % n % interactive school learning 0 0 4 3.4 4 3.4 63 53.4 47 39.8 interactive school learning improves socialization experiences 0 0 4 3.4 11 9.3 63 53.4 40 33.9 interactive school sessions promote communication skills 2 1.7 0 0 4 3.4 53 44.9 59 50 interactive school sessions strengthen debating skills 2 1.7 2 1.7 14 11.9 55 46.6 45 38.1 the sessions promote positive competition among learners 2 1.7 0 0 11 9.3 48 40.7 57 48.3 interactive school learning promotes teamwork among learners 2 1.7 0 0 13 11.0 46 30.0 57 48.3 interactive school learning improves academic relationships between teachers and learners 2 1.7 2 1.7 18 15.3 63 53.4 33 28.0 they generate healthy competition among participating schools 2 1.7 5 4.2 20 16.9 44 37.3 47 39.9 such sessions improve learners’ study habits and self-regulation 2 1.7 2 1.7 18 15.3 67 56.7 29 24.6 interactive schools learning help in confidence building 0 0 2 1.7 7 5.9 57 48.3 52 44.1 attending the sessions encourage collaboration and cooperation 0 0 0 0 3 2.5 65 55.1 50 42.4 learners are exposed to multiple approaches of problem solving 1 0.8 5 4.2 22 18.6 56 47.5 34 28.8 interactive school learning improves self-esteem among learners 0 0 0 0 0 0 45 38.1 73 61.9 13 ressat 2022, 7(1): 1-19 the participants considered that attending seminars was a way to encourage and to achieve collaboration and cooperation among participating learners. if learners could work together, it would generate cooperation, rather than competition. participation helps to build confidence and to improve self-esteem. emotional development is also developed, as learners are exposed to multiple approaches and taught to accept multiple views and multi-dimensional perspectives of problem-solving skills. this is confirmed in interview findings that emotional aspects of learners are established through interactive school learning: ip 1 stated, “it promotes the ability to communicate with different types of people and react with different environments”; qr 22 affirmed: “interactive school learning benefits learners by giving them opportunity to rise up and shine and also be recognised nationally and even worldwide”; and qr 14 said, “such sessions teach students on how to work harmoniously and how to meet great expectations.” prince (2004) points out that action and participation in the learning process are key characteristics of active learning. engagement is a relational process (pianta et al. 2012). it reflects learners’ cognitive, emotional, behavioral, and motivational states and capacities, but it is conditioned, in part, on interpersonal relationships as activators and organizers of these states and capacities in the service of some larger developmental task or aim (allen & allen, 2009; crosnoe, 2000). the study also found that interactive school learning enhances individual autonomy through improving learners’ study habits and through promoting self-regulation. such traits are very important at higher education institutions (heis), where students ought to be autonomous entities functioning in a complex and diverse environment. qr 4’s statement, “to be given the books to study and also given a time where you talk with one another sharing views and opinions” (qr 4), is evidence that “interactive school learning makes learners want to seek for more information so that they could be more participating. it gives them focus and enjoyment” (ip 6). if teachers want their learners to learn more, then active learning is a necessary component of good teaching (millis, 2012) which means that learners must take an active role in expanding their knowledge (hestenes as cited in hanford, 2012). another theme that emerged from qualitative responses was that of networking at school level. there are short and long-term benefits of networking at any level. views, such as “it promotes hardworking towards students and networking between students” (ip 1), and “networking with people and get exposed to opportunities and debates” (qr 15), were testimonies to the importance of networking at school level. another participant also highlighted that “[i am able] to benefit more information and things that i did not have idea about”. according to pianta et al. (2012), effective classroom practice includes teachers’ attempts to enhance learners’ social and emotional functioning in the classroom through positive facilitation of teacher-student and student-student relationships. millis (2012) supports the same view when arguing that cooperative learning, unlike less structured forms of collaborative learning, encourages learners to be personally responsible for their own learning. 14 ressat 2022, 7(1): 1-19 according to respondents’ views, interactive school learning was not a common trend generally, and particularly in different subjects. it emerged that, rather than interactive school learning, schools focused on learners staying in “their classrooms and extending their learning time” by monitoring their studies individually. as one expressed it, “we were not to be associated with other schools, because our school wanted to be the best. so, we were given the last one hour of each day to read on our own” (qr 10). qr 27 stated, “remember schools think, by sharing, other schools will benefit. so, most schools do things their own way. we were told that there is competition out there. the same things are still happening.” ip 3 said, “this thing [interactive school learning] is good, but it is not practiced in schools. you have the same teacher telling you the same way; and most [of the] teachers are boring.” these sentiments contradict smith et al.’s (2005, p.2) indication that “engaging students in learning is principally the responsibility of the teacher, who becomes less an imparter of knowledge and more a designer and facilitator of learning experiences and opportunities”. active learning, according to braxton et al. (2000), can influence learners’ social integration, commitment to the institution, and desire to stay in school. conclusion the study concludes that participants held positive views about schools offering interactive school learning to enhance traditional teaching methods, and they noted that seminars added value to education. however, most schools did not offer such opportunities to enhance learning experiences. in rare cases, some schools offered seminars which largely related to language and content-driven subjects. the study moreover concludes that the widespread benefits that accrue from offering interactive school learning include cognitive, psycho-social, and emotional development of learners thus promoting learner autonomy. lastly, offering interactive school learning goes a long way in addressing student under-preparedness as they enter higher education institutions, consequently advocating for competent heis. recommendations  the study recommends that schools offer school-based opportunities and implement teaching practices that accommodate learners’ varied learning styles across all curricula subjects.  interactive school learning should predominate in schools and should be offered in as many subjects as possible and be open to as many learners as possible.  education stakeholders need to campaign towards offering education for conceptual development and not rote memorization.  education authorities should open and offer training opportunities for teachers to be acquainted with this and other active learning-teaching approaches to enhance the overall quality of education. 15 ressat 2022, 7(1): 1-19 references ajayi, i. a. 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(2008). the learning communities demonstration: an ncpr working paper. national centre for postsecondary research. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 skhephe, m. & mantlana, c., accounting teachers’ voices on factors affecting online teaching during the 4th industrial revolution in the face of covid-19 in selected high schools in the eastern cape, south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 109 accounting teachers’ voices on factors affecting online teaching during the 4th industrial revolution in the face of covid-19 in selected high schools in the eastern cape, south africa melikhaya skhephe*1 & christabel mantlana2 * corresponding author. email: sikepemk@gmail.com 1. north west university, school of commerce and social studies, south africa 2. walter sisulu university, faculty of education, south africa received : 2021-04-05 revised : 2021-05-28 accepted : 2021-07-10 how to cite this paper: skhephe, m., & mantlana, c. (2021). accounting teachers’ voices on factors affecting online teaching during the 4th industrial revolution in the face of covid-19 in selected high schools in the eastern cape, south africa. research in social sciences and technology, 6(3), 109-121. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.32 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) abstract the most prominent debate in south africa is how teachers will provide instruction online. the purposes of this article was to explore accounting teachers’ voices on factors affecting online teaching. to this end, the researchers employed a qualitative approach and a case study research design. interviews were used as a method to collect data from 10 accounting teachers who were purposively selected. thematic data analysis was used. the results revealed that, accounting teachers are lacking required knowledge and skills needed to facilitate technology learning in their classrooms. results further reveal that, online teaching arrived at an awkward moment when teachers were faced with covid-19 pandemic. the study concludes that teachers’ voices play an important role in any proposed changes in the classroom. the eastern cape province where the study was conducted should quickly roll out infrastructure at all schools aiming to support online classrooms. it is recommended in this paper that teachers need to be workshopped in online teaching in order for them to perform effectively. keywords: teachers’ voices; online teaching; teacher’s readiness; 4th industrial revolution; connect policy; covid-19 10.46303/ressat.2021.32 mailto:sikepemk@gmail.com https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.32 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 skhephe, m. & mantlana, c., accounting teachers’ voices on factors affecting online teaching during the 4th industrial revolution in the face of covid-19 in selected high schools in the eastern cape, south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 110 introduction fourth industrial revolution (4ir) is centered on the application of digital technologies so that distinctions between the physical, digital and biological spaces are reduced (mwapwele et al., 2019). eberhard et al. (2019) asserted that among the central manifestations of the 4ir are job automation and an always-connected, converged world. mwapwele et al. (2019) argue that for a country to achieve the benefits of the 4ir, emphasis needs to be placed on building citizens’ optimism through providing access to, and the skills to operate, digital technologies, for instance, emphasis needs to be placed on building citizens’ skills competencies in the use of technology. gibson et al. (2018) confirm that, a country’s technology policies guide the adoption and the use of technology by explicitly setting out what needs to be done to achieve national goals. mwapwele et al. (2019) reveal that educational technology policy development and implementation aim to facilitate the sustainable adoption and application of technology so that it assists the country’s education system through implementation by learners, teachers, parents, school managers and administrators. however, rambe and ngambi (2014) mention that learners and teachers in south african schools can expand their digital skills through the use of technology and social media platforms like facebook, whatsapp, twitter and podcast. mwapwele et al. (2019) reveal that in south africa there are policies aimed at boosting the adoption and use of technology, specifically in education. according to the department of communication (doc) (2013), in south african there is a policy called “south africa connect” sometimes called country’s national broadband policy of 2013 which mandates the introduction of a broadband connection (with a download speed of at least 100mbps) to every primary school and secondary school as part of an initiative to ensure the countrywide availability of broadband internet access by the year 2030. as for doc (2013), the policy positions the enhancement of teachers’ internet connectivity as necessary to support access to, and the use of, e-learning materials that can enhance learning in classrooms and foster the development of learners’ digital skills. botha et al. (2017) reveal that after the adoption of the south africa connect policy, companies have been encouraged to donate technologies in the education sector in order to assist teachers and to increase their technological knowledge and skills. botha et al. (2017) further reveal that in provinces like gauteng, western cape and some parts of the north west province in south africa, teachers’ benefited out of the policy called south africa connect. as a result, adoption of online teaching in the classroom is happening on a daily basis. botha et al. (2017) went further that, in the eastern cape province of south africa, schools have not benefited in the south africa connect policy, since online teaching has not implemented. botha et al. further stated that education officials in the eastern cape made a promise that in 2013 online teaching will start across all schools. however, that promise has not been fulfilled. the researchers investigated the factors affecting online teaching in the province in order to close the gap between eastern cape province and other province. research objectives the article was guided by the following research objectives  to examine strategies that were used to include accounting teachers’ voices in the implementation of online teaching. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 skhephe, m. & mantlana, c., accounting teachers’ voices on factors affecting online teaching during the 4th industrial revolution in the face of covid-19 in selected high schools in the eastern cape, south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 111  to establish how online teaching assist the teaching of accounting to investigate why accounting teachers’ voices are important in the implementation of online teaching. review of literature literature review is a critical, analytical account of the existing research on a part (maree 2015). online teaching can be academically successful and personally, life changing when created fostered, and sustained by all involved (skhephe et al., 2020). in this article literature on teacher’s voices on factors, affecting online teaching during the 4th industrial revolution has been reviewed under the separate sub-headings. external factors affecting online teaching ertmer et al. (2012) reveal that external barriers must be addressed at the school level and changes are typically incremental. ertmer et al. further reveal that the external factors affecting technology adoption and implementation are access, training and support. in addition, in countries like united states, there is growing evidence that, first-order barriers are being tackled. however, when it comes to south africa more effort is needed to entirely overcome these challenges (botha et al., 2017). access early accounts of technology adoption focused much on increasing the availability of computers in schools (fisher et al., 2018). certainly, the most basic step towards effective technology adoption is widespread access to equipment necessary to run educational computer programs. if computer-lab-time is limited to one hour per week, persistent use of educational technology is not viable. while many schools across the country are making the transition to one-to-one (1:1) computing (warschauer et al., 2014), many teachers do not have regular and reliable access to a computer. inconsistent computer access makes it extremely difficult for instructors to adopt technology into existing lesson plans. routine access to hardware, that is, laptops or tablets, software for example, reading and writing software, internet browsers, and internet connection is a fundamental requirement. training ertmer et al. (2012) state that the most commonly cited reason for lack of technology implementation in the classroom is inadequate professional development and training. the national education association (nea) includes expanding professional development in technology as one of their policy recommendations (nea, 2008). according to nea (2008) results, teachers today report increasing confidence using classroom technology, operating software, and searching the internet, but given that technology is constantly changing, it is more important than ever that teachers stay up-to-date with their technological expertise. even if a school district were to hire only teachers who were literate in current classroom technology, countless new technologies will be developed during their teaching careers, and they will need to undergo additional training to keep their skills current. without the necessary resources to provide continuous technological training, schools and districts will continue to cite inadequate professional development as a major barrier to technology implementation. to research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 skhephe, m. & mantlana, c., accounting teachers’ voices on factors affecting online teaching during the 4th industrial revolution in the face of covid-19 in selected high schools in the eastern cape, south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 112 realize effective technology integration, school administrators should seek assistance to identify and provide ongoing training. support although we cannot be certain about how the future will influence professional development, it is clear that the teachers of today do not have optimal access to technological support. according to statistics reported by the u. s. department of education (2010), 68% of school districts reported having adequate support for educational technology. while it is encouraging to see that the majority of responding districts feel that they have access to adequate support, there is room for improvement. with additional technology support, teachers can worry less about technological barriers and instead focus on teaching their students. adopting a new educational technology can be a time-consuming process. if a technology is adopted schoolwide, teachers should have access to extended support from trained professionals, as opposed to a single hour-long meeting before the school day begins. of course, this will most likely require additional funding for schools, but creators of educational technologies should also place increased emphasis on user support. with high quality support from both creators of educational technologies and school employees, teachers will have access to the resources they deserve. internal factors affecting online teaching teachers' attitudes and beliefs are crucial factors in determining the role and effectiveness of technology in classrooms. attitudes and beliefs about both educational technology and pedagogy in general will ultimately influence how teachers implement technology. now that technology is being widely used in schools, perhaps the most important question is how to best implement technology, rather than whether technology will be used (ertmer et al., 2012). given the abundance of available educational technology, it is essential that teachers feel comfortable and confident about their ability to use them effectively. many current teachers grew up without access to technologies like the personal computer and the internet, but students today are raised in an environment saturated by computer technology. these “digital natives” can intimidate teachers, especially those with little technological experience. if teachers feel that they do not have the necessary competencies when using technology, they may feel less in control of the class, use less technology, and be unlikely to explore new possibilities that utilize technology when designing their classes (hughes, 2005). by sticking to traditional teaching methods, teachers who are less fluent with technology maintain a feeling of control in the classroom and will not have to be prepared to face the challenges of instructing digital natives in a digital environment. benefits of online teaching since the world of 4ir is characterized by the rapid processing of information, the domain of education has no choice but to embark on it (sangrà et al., 2012). sangrà et al (2012) further observe that, advantages associated with technology use include the ability to quickly deliver learning, anywhere and at any time. smythe (2012) argue that, when technology is used optimally, it can facilitate blended learning, that is, the use of multiple platforms to convey information. alajmi (2013) opine that, worldwide, all societies are working towards changing to research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 skhephe, m. & mantlana, c., accounting teachers’ voices on factors affecting online teaching during the 4th industrial revolution in the face of covid-19 in selected high schools in the eastern cape, south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 113 become e-learning communities. alajma (2013) further reveal that through technology uses, learners may develop the potential skills, knowledge and expertise to unlock the ever-changing world and become game-changers in society. kiilu and muema (2012) confirmed that through the use of a technology, talent may be developed which will allow learners to access the global economy and improve their lives. kiilu and muema (2012) observe that, once learners learn by means of technology they become more creative, motivated and eager to test their boundaries. kiilu and muema (2012) further reveal that, many learners can even go on to become designers of technology, which allows them to contribute to the production and productivity of their country. keramati et al. (2011) argue that, in many developed countries, many technological gains and advances are associated with the innovative technologies being used and these gains are the result of implementation of e-learning in the education system at an early stage. south africa connect policy and its implication in education the south africa connect policy was published in 2013 by the department of communications (doc) and is currently driven by the newly created in mid-2019 (doc, 2013). the department of communications and digital technologies (dcdt) advocates for a digital society characterized by widespread ict knowledge and use for individuals, communities, organizations, and the society as a whole (doc, 2013). digital education modalities, through innovations such as the internet, tablets, digital academic content embedded in applications on tablets, and mobile services, are positioned as offering hope to the nation towards attaining improved economic and social development though digital education (doc, 2013). operationalizing the policy must include the assessment of both innovations that are currently in use and those that are intended for diffusion and adoption. theoretical framework several models have emerged out of research pertaining to user acceptance and intention to use new technology (liebenberg et al., 2018). this study is guided by unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (utaut) which was propounded by lai in 2017. venkatesh et al. (2003) reveal that utaut has four core constructs which are performance expectancy, effort expectancy, social influence and facilitating conditions. these four are direct determinants of behavioral intention and ultimately behavior, and that these constructs are in turn moderated by gender, age, experience, and voluntariness of use. as for utaut, performance expectancy is when an individual believes that using the system will help him or her to attain gains in job performance. social influence is the degree to which an individual perceives he or she should use the new system. facilitating conditions is when an individual believes that an organizational and technical infrastructure exists to support use of the system. as for effort expectancy, gender and age are expected to moderate the relationship between effort expectancy and intention to use. lai (2017) argues that in order to adopt the use of technology, self-belief and confidence play an important part. lai further argue that when it comes to the use of technology, confidence and positive attitudes lead to informed decisions, and ultimately generate good behavior. with advanced and dynamic growth of technologies, the manner in which the consumers are accepting these technologies depends on factors that include convenience, consumers’ need, security and the like. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 skhephe, m. & mantlana, c., accounting teachers’ voices on factors affecting online teaching during the 4th industrial revolution in the face of covid-19 in selected high schools in the eastern cape, south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 114 data and method research approach in this article, a qualitative research approach was used to define, recognize, and understand the human phenomenon, relationship, and discourse. creswell (2014) contends that qualitative research is most useful in answering questions regarding what, why and how certain events occur. this approach was chosen since it enables deeper understanding of experiences, phenomena, and context and it allows the researcher to ask questions that cannot be easily put into numbers to understand human experience. research design a case study design was applied. according to creswell (2014), exploring the qualitative design in which the in-depth of program, process, activity, and individuals is referred to as a case study. a case study is an in-depth examination of one example of a set phenomenon. it is designed to illustrate a general principle using a specific instance sample the sample consisted of 10 accounting teachers. participants were purposively selected based on being accounting teachers who are expected to make use of online teaching in eastern cape province, south africa. data collection instrument interviews were used as the instrument for collecting data from the participants, and semi structured interviews were preferred to other types of interviews. the participants were interviewed on their opinions about the factors affecting online teaching in the 4ir data analysis the interviews were analyzed using themes drawn from the research questions. as already indicated that the interviews were recorded, the first step in data analysis was to transcribe the data from the recorder. this helped the authors to have a deep connection with the data. written transcriptions were compiled and first-hand information from the participants helped the researcher to interpret the data. data trustworthiness trustworthiness refers to how qualitative data is stable, predictable, dependable, consistent, and reliable, thus producing the same results or out-comes in the future as they had in the past. trust-worthiness refers to findings that are worth paying attention to and the study adhered to the four characteristics of qualitative research which creswell (2013) stated as dependability, confirmability, verification, and transferability. ethical procedures the researchers observed all ethical procedures before and during the study. ethical clearance was received from the researcher’s' institution. the researchers were permitted by the eastern cape education district to assess schools and interview participants. the gatekeepers were research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 skhephe, m. & mantlana, c., accounting teachers’ voices on factors affecting online teaching during the 4th industrial revolution in the face of covid-19 in selected high schools in the eastern cape, south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 115 employed to gain access to the research sites and the participants. the selected participants were assured that the information was only for research purposes. the issues of informed consent and confidentiality were adhered to. results one of the question that was asked to accounting teachers was “what strategies were used to include accounting teachers’ voices in the implementation of online teaching?” when responding to this question, it was clear that no proper consultation was done to bring in teachers’ voices. the sub-theme/category below has been identified in this question accounting teachers’ voices were not considered in the implementation of online teaching the results indicated that despite technologies given to accounting teachers to implement online teaching, lack of consultation has affected online teaching. the following were the responses from the participants. t1: to be honest with you, teacher’s voices were not considered before the implementation of online teaching as result in my case i am still using the old method, despite having a laptop and the learners have tablet provided by the [eastern cape department of] education. i think it was going to be better if there was a workshop first, on how we can make use of the technologies in teaching and learning. t2: as far as i know, there is absolutely nothing was done to include teachers’ voices on how online teaching can be implemented. [due to that extent] the internet that is being loaded into our laptops and even to the tablets that are given to the learners is not being used on educational issues as it is expected. all these things are the results of not being trained on how to use these technologies by the managers. t4: there was absolutely nothing, maybe it is the fact that we are all new in the use of online teaching, at the same time, there is this issue of pandemic that is making things to be very difficult to everyone. t6: there was nothing done to make us voice our own opinions as far as this initiative is concerned and also nothing was done to make us ready for the online teaching even if were are expected to implement online teaching. i am talking about the support structure given to us so that we can be successful in the use of online teaching since it is something new to us. t10: who are we to be consulted when there are changes to be implemented? my friend in the rural province like eastern cape. we always hear about the consultation of teachers in provinces like gauteng and western cape and we get to know through watching news in the television. another question that was asked to accounting teachers was “how can online teaching assist the teaching of accounting?” they indicated that online teaching can assist in various ways, namely but not limited to, independent classroom, enjoyable classroom, self-discovery learning and learner participation can improve. in this question, the following sub-theme/category has been identified. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 skhephe, m. & mantlana, c., accounting teachers’ voices on factors affecting online teaching during the 4th industrial revolution in the face of covid-19 in selected high schools in the eastern cape, south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 116 online teaching changes accounting classroom t1: i am of the view that it can bring changes in the classroom since accounting learners will be motivated to learn without being forced to learn as it is the case at the moment. t3: online teaching takes place anytime anywhere, lesson can be recorded and recording can be shared to the learners in order to listen into the recording later, which means learning can haven even after the classroom. t5: lesson can be videotaped and the video be played in the classroom and questions can be asked into the video. t6: if online teaching is implemented across all schools, teachers can share their lessons so that underperforming school in the subject can be in a position to learn how performing schools in the subject doing. t9: through online teaching teachers can develop teams where they prepare together for their classrooms while they are at their homes or schools, so that learners can learn one lesson across all schools. apart from that learners’ discussion forums can be formed so that learners are able to interact with one another and discuss all issues related to their studies with the use of data and tablets provided to them by the education. t10: i believe that online teaching can assist different ways. e.g. it can promote a self-discovery learning approach and completion in the classroom. remember you cannot separate teaching of accounting with technology since current information about accounting is available in the internet. lastly, in the 4ir learners are more expose in the use of technology. the last question that was asked was “why accounting teacher’s voices are important in the implementation of online teaching? when the teachers were responding to this question it was clear where the starting point should be to implementation online teaching. the subthemes/categories below have been identified in this question. provide teachers with the chance to voice their views about the change to be made in the classroom t2: it is very important since it is how accounting teachers were going to get platform to voice their views on what needs to be done first in preparation for online teaching. t3: if there was a proper consultation, we were going to know why online teaching is important in our life time and how can we facilitate it. again, accounting teachers were going to be trained on time on how to integrate technology to the classroom since it is something new to most of us. t5: proper discussion forum were going to assist all of us in laying a solid foundation on what are the things that needs to be iron out first before we are expected to implement online teaching. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 skhephe, m. & mantlana, c., accounting teachers’ voices on factors affecting online teaching during the 4th industrial revolution in the face of covid-19 in selected high schools in the eastern cape, south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 117 t8: if you want any teacher to support changes in education make sure that you bring teachers when developing those changes or else they will not own the propose change. just like now i don’t think there is a teacher implementation online learning since we have less knowledge on how to implement it. t10: my answer to your question is simple you want to make teachers to be ready for the change, participate in the process of making change and finally to own the change. t7: if accounting teachers were involved, they were going to participate in the discussion of how to implement online teaching. now this was going to make them to own and support the implementation of online teaching t9: it is very crucial and through collaborative engagement teachers, some teachers were going to enroll for computer short courses in an attempt to make us ready for the online teaching. discussion accounting teachers’ voices were not considered in the implementation of online teaching these findings are in line with ertmer et al. (2012) that there are barriers to the successful adoption of online teaching in south african classrooms. ertmer et al. (2012) further observe that these factors are external and internal and they need to be addressed before educational authorities can start rolling out online teaching in the classroom since they negatively hinder the smooth running of the process. furthermore, some of these barriers must be addressed at the leadership level and changes are typically incremental. these findings support carl (2017) that there should be a chance for teachers’ voices to be considered prior to the start of implementing any changes in educational classroom– or else, they should be given a chance to make an input during the initial stage of the proposed change. lai (2017) argues that with the advanced and dynamic growth of technologies, the manner in which the consumers are accepting these technologies depends on factors that include convenience, consumers’ needs, their inclusion when the new technology was introduced, security and the like. furthermore, when the consumers are not prepared enough to make use of the technology they are likely to experience challenges along the way online teaching changes accounting classroom these findings are clearly stating what li and lalani (2020) mentioned that there are benefits in the online classroom if implemented in their correct way such as reaching large audience at the comfort of their home, effective communication with their learners through chat groups, video meetings, voting, and sharing documents and to be at par with advanced countries. the findings corroborate with beetham and sharpe (2017) that online classroom provide learning environments which include a chatroom, an online discussion forum, daily reminders, and online assessments with clear instructions which outline what learners need to do when completing (and subsequently submitting) such assessments. through various platforms, teachers (not only those who teach accounting as a subject) are able to track their learners’ activities in the vle, in addition to being in a position to access and display syllabus-related research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 skhephe, m. & mantlana, c., accounting teachers’ voices on factors affecting online teaching during the 4th industrial revolution in the face of covid-19 in selected high schools in the eastern cape, south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 118 information (beetham & sharpe, 2007). lai (2017) reveal that when utaut is operational and functioning optimally, learning becomes more enjoyable, talents are developed and learners work at their own pace and in their own time, without being forced to learn. lai’s theory further reveal that learning not only happens on an individual basis, but also through peer-to-peer interaction and in groups who make use of the internet. provide teachers with the chance to voice their views about the change to be made in the classroom the findings above supporting carl (2017) that when it comes to the changes to be made in the classroom the most important person to talk to is the teacher. carl further observe that with their knowledge, experiences and competencies, teachers are central to any changes in the classroom. better teachers support better learning because they are most knowledgeable about the practice of teaching and are responsible for introducing innovations in the classroom. handler (2016) also found that there is a need for teacher involvement in the development of curriculum and technologies to be used in the classroom. handler added that, teachers can contribute by collaboratively and effectively working with any educational specialists to arrange and compose online martial, textbooks, and content. fullan (2016) reveal that teacher’s involvement in the process of change development is important to align content of change with learners needs in the classroom. johnson (2017) argue that when the teachers’ voices are considered they will be delegated a task to do while educational specialist are doing another part within the propose changes. johnson (2017) went further that when another party has already developed its own task, the teachers have to make an effort to know and understand it the task developed by another group. therefore, teachers should be involved in any development. ramparsed (2016) states that teacher’s opinions and ideas should be incorporated into the development of classroom change. hence, teacher involvement is important for successful and meaningful classroom changes. teachers being the implementers are part of the last stage of the change development process. implications for policy and practice this article showed that accounting teachers are not obstacles towards implementation of online teaching in south african schools. however, obstacles to online teaching is a lack of proper consultation that led to teacher’s unwilling attitude to incorporate online teaching in their teaching method and the lack of appropriate knowledge and skills of online teaching. therefore, teachers should develop their own operational plans, guidelines, indicators and strategies for online teaching based on the provincial operational plans. in addition, ict directors should work with relevant stakeholders to refine and implement draft policies that are available in the eastern cape province to ensure the availability of discussion forum for teachers to voice their views around online time. conclusion the study explored accounting teachers’ voices on the use of online teaching in selected high schools in the eastern cape in south africa. teachers in the selected high schools where samples were hand-picked are still very far behind when it comes to the implementation of online teaching as some of them are teaching in the poverty stricken areas. there is still a lot research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 skhephe, m. & mantlana, c., accounting teachers’ voices on factors affecting online teaching during the 4th industrial revolution in the face of covid-19 in selected high schools in the eastern cape, south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 119 to be done especially in the schools that are based in rural areas, townships and semi-urban areas. there is absolutely no doubt that the arrival of covid-19 pandemic negatively disturbed teaching and learning since majority of the learners in these schools are from poor backgrounds which makes them not to have access to technologies and internet needed to facilitate online classroom. limitations of the study this article has some limitations that were considered when interpreting its findings. firstly, this study is limited to high school accounting teachers in the eastern cape province, south africa. secondly, this study adopted a qualitative approach that included accounting teachers with interviews to establish a baseline of teachers’ implementation of online teaching. however, the research could have more validity if this article adopted mixed methods of quantitative approach to reveal the online teaching implementation in high schools and teachers in the eastern cape, south africa. recommendations the study recommends that education authorities should not see online teaching as a new normal, and teachers must be workshopped in online teaching so that the new paradigm in education can be implemented successfully. all teachers need to take personal initiative of developing themselves in the technology. the eastern cape department of basic education should quickly roll out infrastructure to all schools aiming to support online learning. learners and parents should demand technology use in the classroom as it is in line with the goals of the south africa connect policy. teachers’ voice s need to be considered by education officials in all areas of proposed changes especially on online teaching as it is something new to all teachers especially those who are in rural areas. 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(2014). balancing the one-to-one equation: equity and access in three laptop programs. equity & excellence in education, 47(1), 46-62. https://doi.org/10.18820/2519593x/pie.v38i1.4 http://www.ed.gov/technology/netp-2010 research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 reyes, a-e. and dueñas, j-m. medicinal gardens as an educational strategy in the teaching of the natural sciences: a pedagogical proposal research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 25 medicinal gardens as an educational strategy in the teaching of the natural sciences: a pedagogical proposal adriana-elizabeth reyes adjunct high school teacher, district education secretary, bogotá (colombia). jorge-manuel dueñas* universitat rovira i virgili, department of psychology, division of developmental and educational psychology, tarragona (spain). *corresponding author: jorgemanuel.duenas@urv.cat received : 2020-06-23 revised : 2021-01-27 accepted : 2021-02-26 how to cite this paper: reyes, a-e. and dueñas, j-m. (2021). medicinal gardens as an educational strategy in the teaching of the natural sciences: a pedagogical proposal. research in social sciences and technology, 6(1), 25-39. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.2 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). abstract the main aim of this paper was to analyze how medicinal gardens in secondary schools can improve teaching-learning processes in rural settings. the sample comprised 179 students (69.3% girls) from a rural public secondary school in the province of huila (colombia). the age of the participants ranged from 15 to 17 years with a mean of 15.86 years (sd = 0.86). seeking school motivation strategies for rural students from a rural institution in the municipality of guadalupe, teachers of the natural sciences designed didactic-pedagogical alternatives employing situated learning that would allow them to contribute to solving school problems and environmental issues affecting rural areas. the environmental phenomena included the loss of fertile soils and the harmful effects of the use of agrochemicals. medicinal gardens together with situated learning activities proved a useful teaching tool in formal rural educational settings. keywords: teaching tools, medicinal plants, situated learning, educational garden introduction the work of teachers in rural contexts can be challenging, and it involves developing innovative teaching strategies tailored to the cultural environment of the students; because in most cases, it implies teaching classes at two or more educational levels and adapting the contents to the context. besides, some rural schools in latin american countries do not have technological tools or the internet. within these strategies, it is essential to build and adapt learning 10.46303/ressat.2021.2 mailto:jorgemanuel.duenas@urv.cat https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.2 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 reyes, a-e. and dueñas, j-m. medicinal gardens as an educational strategy in the teaching of the natural sciences: a pedagogical proposal research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 26 environments that will be accessible to rural students, motivate them, and improve teaching practices (glover et al., 2016; mohan et al., 2017). rural teachers must engage in teaching methods that motivate learning from within the students’ context. this allows for the meaningful construction of knowledge throughout the educational community, improving the quality of the pedagogical process. it also encourages students to become involved in their community and environment, which leads them to participate actively, be purposeful, and become transforming individuals (du plessis & mestry, 2019). among the most common problems in rural schools is the inability of the education system to motivate students and involve families (du plessis & mestry, 2019). in response to this problem, teachers at the nuestra señora del carmen school from the municipality of guadalupe huilacolombia, a rural area, implemented a medicinal school garden. the medicinal school garden and other school gardens were used as an educational tool to foster thinking skills in students. the medicinal garden was a source of meaningful experiences in biology and chemistry revolving around environmental problems in the rural context (e.g. williams & brown, 2013). it is an environmental, pedagogical, and research tool that, in addition to helping to build knowledge, allows young people to create personal care and hygiene products through laboratory practices, with some medicinal applications from botanical extracts (aguiar et al., 2018). as such, the main objective of this study was to design and implement a pedagogical strategy focused on the development of scientific competencies and environmental skills through the recovery of ancestral practices associated with plants. the present pedagogical proposal is founded on social constructivist approaches that establish situated learning from the theoretical perspective of vygotsky (fosnot, 2005). in turn, this perspective is based on the role of culture in the development of people's higher mental processes, giving special importance to the relationships between the individual and society (wright, 2018). in this way, situated learning is based on the belief that skills and knowledge are linked to the situation in which they are learned, that is, to real daily problems or situations. this type of learning refers to the socio-cultural context as a critical element for the acquisition of skills and competencies (woolfolk, 2006; yeoman & wilson, 2019). more specifically, learning, and primarily scientific learning, often contains a social component (levinson & consortium, 2017; mishra, 2014), which is linked to specific contexts and historical periods (o’brien & battista, 2020; sorensen et al., 2005). it is for this reason that acquiring scientific skills involves moving from a scientific problem to a social problem, from an individual interest to a collective interest, from thought to action, from encyclopedic knowledge to the understanding and assimilation of knowledge. because learning, especially in relation to science, has a social component. ávila et al. (2007) suggests that science is part of the daily lives of individuals. however, sometimes the presence of science is not as evident as the presence of technology. in fact, different researchers consider the science, technology, society, and environment education (stse) perspectives as a current approach to developing high-level abstraction skills in students that allow them to access critical thinking. specifically, different studies have proven the effectiveness of this approach; for example, the data reported by avery, 2013, suggests that rural contexts can be rich environments for learning science using traditional and local knowledge for science education. in this sense, a study aimed to investigate the effects on understanding by high school students using an stse approach on chemistry topics by establishing relationships between science, research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 reyes, a-e. and dueñas, j-m. medicinal gardens as an educational strategy in the teaching of the natural sciences: a pedagogical proposal research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 27 technology, society, and environment. the results revealed statistically significant increases in achievement levels compared to traditional types of teaching (yörük et al., 2010). it is undeniable that collective knowledge changes over time (kimmerle et al., 2010), and what is acceptable at one time and place can become wrong at another time and place, or unnecessary to learn due to socio-cultural changes. furthermore, social needs make specific knowledge and skills essential (saini, 2000). that is the case of rural communities, which have specific characteristics that must be taken into account in the teaching-learning processes of educational institutions. therefore, situated learning is ideal in rural populations because it takes into account the needs of the student body based on their context; those students living in the rural areas of guadalupe-huila-colombia may benefit from an explanation focused on the cultivation and farming of grain, as this experience is engrained in their lives; analogies based on this type of farming may be less effective in an urban context where students possibly have less experience with farming in general. situated learning or cognition is understood as a teaching methodology based on specific and real situations within a specific socio-cultural context, where the student must seek theoretical applicability to diverse everyday situations (bloch et al., 1994; silva, 2013). according to this approach, learning must be active and take place in a real environment, which fosters transformation and change both in the students and in the context in which it takes place (wright, 2018). context-sensitive teaching-learning processes are more likely to produce understanding that will become apparent in the competent performance of the learner (mclellan, 1996; o’brien & battista, 2020). this study emanated from the need to develop motivational teaching strategies that would encourage students at a rural school to improve their learning processes and to build scientific knowledge based on environmental problems combined with their prior knowledge of their socio-environmental context. to this end, a medicinal school garden was planted that allowed students to activate their previous knowledge of natural sciences and interact with their communities in relation to plant cultivation. the process of sowing and harvesting medicinal plants from the school garden offered students a pedagogical strategy that helped in the development of curricular topics in the subjects of biology and chemistry at different academic levels. it became an educational tool that enhanced the students’ learning processes and helped to develop their scientific knowledge from within their socio-cultural and environmental context. this rural pedagogical initiative was of great importance for the educational and rural community because it helped reduce the organic waste disposed of in the environment through the production of effective, organic, and environmentally friendly fertilizers. these fertilizers were produced by the students and helped raise awareness among the population of proper environmental management strategies, including avoiding the use of agrochemicals. the implementation of this educational tool also sought to generate life options for the students, given the harsh social and economic conditions experienced by many young people in rural communities, especially women, who do not have a secure place in agricultural work. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 reyes, a-e. and dueñas, j-m. medicinal gardens as an educational strategy in the teaching of the natural sciences: a pedagogical proposal research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 28 the present study the main aim of this research is to analyze, by means of a pedagogical strategy, how medicinal gardens in schools can improve teaching-learning processes in rural secondary schools. this pedagogical strategy had the following two objectives: 1) develop the curricular contents of several subjects (natural sciences, chemistry and social sciences) by implementing, tending and maintaining a school garden, establishing laboratory practices, and ascertaining popular knowledge of plants; 2) raise awareness among the educational community of the importance of caring for and preserving natural resources and cultural wealth as it relates to plant use. this proposal is considered innovative because it focuses on a disadvantaged rural environment. few studies or pedagogical practices have addressed school gardens in poor rural populations. moreover, it provides information on how to implement school gardens that focus on the school curriculum. several studies have shown how school gardens can benefit students, for example by having positive impacts on student health. school gardens can also influence student and teacher perceptions of academic achievement (ohly et al., 2016), which may also increase students’ motivation to actively participate in educational processes. moreover, as green spaces that comprise plants, grass and shrubs are associated with academic achievement (kweon et al., 2017), the level of student absenteeism or dropout is expected to decrease. from the above literature, we expect that students who participate in the pedagogical strategy based on medicinal gardens will obtain higher scores than previous students. we also anticipate that they will become involved in environmental issues and that they will assimilate the knowledge they acquire from the rural community in which their educational institution is located. the relationships between schools, families and communities are essential to the education of students (camarero-figuerola et al., 2020). more in-depth family and community engagement provides an essential opportunity for schools to enhance school curricula (đurišić & bunijevac, 2017) method this research adopted an exploratory-descriptive approach (canales cerón, 2006) to associate the previous knowledge of the students at the school with their families and their social and academic environment. it takes as a starting point various ancestral practices of the poorer communities in the region, which are associated with medicinal plants from these communities in the municipality of guadalupe-huila-colombia. according to bravo et al. (2016), the constructivist didactics of natural sciences in rural educational contexts has a dual theoretical purpose. first, it encourages the acquisition and enhancement of academic knowledge and second, it regulates and guides the practice of teaching-learning by developing proposals for intervening in and transforming the reality of young people from lower-income communities. participants research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 reyes, a-e. and dueñas, j-m. medicinal gardens as an educational strategy in the teaching of the natural sciences: a pedagogical proposal research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 29 the aim of this study was to implement a pedagogical strategy with secondary school students. it was therefore carried out in two academic years (2017 and 2018). the sample comprised 179 students (69.3% girls) from a rural public secondary school in the province of huila (colombia). the age of the participants ranged from 15 to 17 years with a mean of 15.86 years (sd = 0.86). all students studied chemistry and social sciences simultaneously. instruments the pedagogical strategy for action included in this project revolves around several problems in the rural context. the design and execution of these proposals included: 1) creating, maintaining and harvesting the school’s medicinal garden for consumption by the educational community in general, and with input from the chemistry and biology laboratories. 2) developing curricular topics in biology and chemistry, as well as science laboratory practices, all associated with the cultural and environmental context of the students. 3) developing entrepreneurial foundations with the adoption of academic laboratory practices based on resources offered by the environment and the cultural knowledge of the community. 4) promoting the cross-disciplinarily of curricular topics within the subjects of biology, chemistry, and social studies with laboratory practices and entrepreneurial techniques from botanical extracts obtained from medicinal plants for the purpose of developing thinking skills, science skills, and communication skills. in this pedagogical strategy, the plants of the medicinal garden became educational contextual tools that also offered content and natural chemical reagents for the development of organic chemistry laboratory guides since they were used to create natural chemical products with, for example, therapeutic, beauty and personal hygiene applications. in the laboratory practices, students expanded their existing knowledge from experiences nurtured with widespread knowledge from the community on the medicinal plants of the region. to develop the laboratory guides, students obtained various botanical extracts from the medicinal garden, which they used to manufacture all kinds of products with commercial and medicinal use, such as perfumed talc, fruit, floral and citrus soaps, and exfoliates, all of which were based on plants and natural extracts. herbal, floral, and fruit ointments, creams, and tonics were also manufactured (see figure 1). organic chemistry practices, in which natural personal hygiene products were made with botanical extracts, were combined with laboratory experiments by engaging in discussion forums and debates, raising awareness of the ecosystem services of aromatic plants, and addressing maintenance and care techniques for the medicinal garden. these included composting processes, observation of ecological interactions, preparation of organic pesticides from plant extracts (tobacco, chili, and garlic), recovery of infertile soils, and proper use of agrochemicals. table 1 outlines the teaching strategies employed. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 reyes, a-e. and dueñas, j-m. medicinal gardens as an educational strategy in the teaching of the natural sciences: a pedagogical proposal research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 30 table 1 pedagogical strategy activity purpose planting, care, and harvesting of the vegetable gardens 1) to maintain medicinal gardens for the consumption of the educational community and develop academic laboratory practices 2) to develop environmental awareness, knowledge of ecosystem services, agroecology, and biocontrol of pests 3) to develop science and thinking skills waste management of the school restaurant and preparation of organic fertilizers 1) to produce at least 10 kilos of organic fertilizer every two months to strengthen the school medicinal garden and encourage decrease in the use of agrochemicals by the rural community surrounding the educational institution 2) to foster the recovery of infertile soils development of a meaningful pedagogical experience 1) to create strategies for improving the teaching and learning processes in the natural sciences 2) to improve communication between learners and family members 3) to create natural products with beauty and therapeutic applications 4) to develop science and entrepreneurial skills 5) to empower lower-income communities to take advantage of their cultural richness and plant knowledge 6) to solve problems in the rural context 7) to promote pedagogical practices that cross over to other areas of knowledge and to the knowledge of rural communities data collection teacher’s diary reflections. the teacher’s diary refers to the notes taken by a teacher after observing or self-observing a class. it enables the teacher to reflect on the most relevant processes and interactions conducted in a class, including personal reactions. state test scores. we used the students’ scores on “pruebas saber” to compare results obtained by groups that participated in the pedagogical strategy with those obtained by previous groups that did not. these “pruebas saber” are standardized external tests run by the colombian institute for the evaluation of education (icfes, for its acronym in spanish) to evaluate student research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 reyes, a-e. and dueñas, j-m. medicinal gardens as an educational strategy in the teaching of the natural sciences: a pedagogical proposal research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 31 performance at the end of each educational cycle in accordance with the fundamental competencies established by the colombian ministry of education. results results of pedagogical practice students need to learn the importance of caring for the environment, so this project aimed to raise awareness among the community and the educational community about the importance of caring for and preserving natural resources and cultural wealth as it relates to plant use. to that end, the lead teachers of the student social service focused on training these communities with the support of students in the last two years of secondary school. the students held informative talks in the rural communities where they live, where they highlighted the importance of the medicinal garden, ecosystem services and the preparation of insecticides from botanical extracts. another contribution of this process was to reduce the contamination of water bodies by making natural herbal soaps from recycled cooking oil and botanical extracts, which were marketed at local and regional peasant fairs. one of the positive effects included the training given by the student social service to the rural communities of guadalupe on the appropriate management of agrochemicals, the use of controllers, and insecticides based on botanical extracts, as well as on the importance of genotypic and neurotoxic effects from the handling of herbicides (derived from glyphosate). another result that generated an impact was training and awareness-raising in the sustainable use and management of the region’s natural plant resources through workshops and talks given by the students, who fed their learning back to their local communities by instructing them in techniques for the handling, use, conservation, preservation, marketing, and sale of botanical specimens. in the workshops, we worked with various medicinal plants for therapeutic uses and the preparation of several aromatic drinks, including coffee, given that the educational institution is located in a traditional coffee-producing area. each package describes the medicinal and therapeutic properties that the communities report in the area, as well as some properties reported in the scientific literature. developing meaningful experiences inside and outside the classroom during these learning processes positively affected the results of the activities conducted in this educational project. the entrepreneurial action involved in this academic effort is reflected in the development of personal care products, such as soaps and shampoos, fragrances and perfumes made from the essential oils of aromatic plants, and medicinal ointments and other products made from botanical extracts from the school’s medicinal garden. similarly, beverages prepared from aromatic plants were considered alternative treatments for various ailments suffered by members of the community. in general, learning the techniques for drying and storing medicinal plants and extracting natural chemical substances from organic solvents was an important student exercise (see figure 1). the steps taken to create a school garden are described in the appendix. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 reyes, a-e. and dueñas, j-m. medicinal gardens as an educational strategy in the teaching of the natural sciences: a pedagogical proposal research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 32 figure 1 students preparing medicinal products and participating in regional fairs state test scores among the most relevant results of the study is the improvement in state testing results in recent years. a significant increase in test scores seen since 2018 consists of approximately two additional points per year, which is evidence of the success of this experience. we obtained these data from the compulsory state tests carried out in the last year of secondary education for all colombian students. specifically, the overall average for the 2016 academic year was 215; in contrast, the average for the 2017 and 2018 academic years was 227. although in 2018, no improvement was obtained in the overall average, it was maintained, which is a positive result. in addition, the results on the internal tests and exams periodically given to the students showed improvement and demonstrated the empowerment of the students in their learning processes, especially in the experimental and procedural parts. for example, students were able to design experiments to test the theory presented in textbooks based on the rules, procedures, abilities, and skills in natural sciences and chemistry. in the feedback the students research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 reyes, a-e. and dueñas, j-m. medicinal gardens as an educational strategy in the teaching of the natural sciences: a pedagogical proposal research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 33 gave at the end of each syllabus, they expressed feeling more curious and keener to check the theories studied. among their reflections was the perception of greater interest in learning the processes involved in the natural sciences and in building scientific knowledge from the traditional and cultural knowledge associated with medicinal plants. these results were obtained from school surveys administered to the students. specifically, the students were asked about their level of motivation for each subject. in general, over 62.3% of students affirmed that they felt motivated by attending natural sciences and chemistry classes. discussion the results obtained in this research respond to the design of teaching strategies that sought to improve learning processes in the natural sciences in rural students from a rural school in southern huila. the students and the educational community in general showed enthusiasm when engaging, valuing, and recognizing the knowledge of their local communities, giving meaning to what they learn in their academic activities. our results coincide with those of previous works in which pedagogical strategies were used to improve the learning processes for natural sciences content. in contrast to previous studies, our study attempted to generate new tools in which strategies were implemented that sought to strengthen thinking and science skills in the area of chemistry and environmental education while seeking to generate entrepreneurial skills in rural students. according to garcía parrado (2015), it is necessary to encourage entrepreneurship in school practices, because it is a strategy to strengthen capacities in individuals, through selfmanagement and the projection of each subject on their environment. this is possible through the re-creation of environments for the generation of entrepreneurial attitudes from the classroom, also generating significant learning and connections with other areas of knowledge. education in rural contexts poses increasingly demanding challenges due to the continuous changes and globalization undergone by rural communities in developing countries. the colombian rural world is a social, economic, and cultural amalgam where full-time farming households coexist within a complex economic panorama side by side with impoverished families immersed in historical conflicts of violence. this historical situation of the rural environment and its dynamics of abandonment by institutions are juxtaposed with globalization as multiple processes are progressively established through companies, global entities, and private and governmental institutions that determine the capacity to face new challenges. these organizations have created the expectation that educational processes should offer the tools to generate opportunities for young people in a landscape where such opportunities are becoming increasingly scarce. the educational system has not been very effective in presenting these types of tasks due to a limited capacity to motivate the generation of alternative paths toward entrepreneurship (martínez rodríguez & bustos jiménez, 2011). research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 reyes, a-e. and dueñas, j-m. medicinal gardens as an educational strategy in the teaching of the natural sciences: a pedagogical proposal research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 34 on the other hand, the implementation of medicinal school gardens as pedagogical and didactic tools is a trend recognized even by the united nations food and agriculture organization, which maintains that “school gardens are a learning strategy advantageous to improve education and nutrition.” they also promote the conservation of the environment and the well-being of the entire educational community (olcoz izura, 2015). in addition to the above, the school’s medicinal garden provides a platform for meaningful learning, science skills, and thinking skills through classroom activities and laboratory practices, which are mainstream and revolve around the medicinal plants of the region (bernardon et al., 2014; zbynek vacha, 2018). regarding the development of science and thinking skills, our results found that students understood and were able to apply the scientific knowledge learned through the design and construction of natural, medicinal, and personal hygiene products from botanical extracts obtained from the garden. scientific knowledge is understood as a set of verifiable facts supported by evidence collected by scientific theories (persoon et al., 2020). at the procedural level, this shows that students are capable of solving a problematic situation characteristic of their context, as they apply their knowledge to the needs of their community. at the same time, the project encouraged collaborative work similar to that described by vera espitia (2015), the author who designed a pedagogical proposal based on school gardens and evidenced an improvement in the level of knowledge and apprehension of the conceptual, attitudinal, and procedural contents. according to the author, the teaching of ecosystems can be guided from the school garden, a strategy that allows students to improve cognitive skills since it allows them to directly access the concepts. the medicinal garden, in addition to being a teaching tool, provided an approach to understanding environmental problems because it allowed students to be in contact with the ecological variables that can be verified by means of the scientific method, which led them to ask questions about problems that directly affect ecosystem services, insecticide resistance, the loss of fertile soils and climate change, among others. this data was then collected through meetings with teachers; however, more empirical studies are needed to help support these conclusions. the project also provided a framework for meaningful experiences during the learning processes outside and within the classroom. it yielded positive responses of participation for all students in the results obtained during the development of the educational project. this points to the success of the entrepreneurial action applied in this academic effort, represented by the preparation of personal-care products, such as soap and shampoo, medicinal ointments from botanical extracts from the medicinal garden, and fragrances and perfumes based on essential oils from aromatic plants, which were later marketed at fairs (see figure 1). another outstanding achievement within the educational community was the preparation of nutritious beverages from aromatic plants. as an alternative treatment to various ailments in the members of the community, the use of aromatic plants as natural additives was also recognized as a means to improve the operability of food at the school cafeteria. the approach of this educational project has contributed to the interrelation and exchange of knowledge among students, community members, and teachers from the secondary educational research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 reyes, a-e. and dueñas, j-m. medicinal gardens as an educational strategy in the teaching of the natural sciences: a pedagogical proposal research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 35 institution of a school in the municipality of guadalupe. its agro-environmental theme provided a route by means of which solutions to environmental situations could be strengthened, while at the same time generating business alternatives and a vision of conservation and recovery of local natural resources. conclusion this process brought the entrepreneurial action led by an educational institution to the forefront, which united efforts between students, the community, and teachers to develop strategies to improve the quality of life of students and the community of a colombian rural area abandoned by the government. the project gave rise to proposals for the conservation of natural resources and provided a platform for the training of students and the community in situations applicable to the real situations they live in, which aimed to generate positive sociocultural changes. our proposal has some limitations. first, we did not collect objective data on the different steps of the project, and it is necessary that future studies analyze each step to learn more about the benefits of school medicinal gardens in teaching and learning about the natural sciences and chemistry. second, our data has been analyzed as a group, which has not allowed us to carry out robust statistical analyses that would enable us to explain the benefits of this 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(2017). a comparative study of rural and urban teachers’ perceptions of professional development. waikato journal of education, 22(4), 79–87. https://doi.org/10.15663/wje.v22i4.352 o’brien, b. c., & battista, a. (2020). situated learning theory in health professions education research: a scoping review. advances in health sciences education, 25(2), 483–509. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10459-019-09900-w ohly, h., gentry, s., wigglesworth, r., bethel, a., lovell, r., & garside, r. (2016). a systematic review of the health and well-being impacts of school gardening: synthesis of quantitative and qualitative evidence. bmc public health, 16(1), 286. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-016-2941-0 olcoz izura, i. (2015). valoración del huerto escolar como herramienta de enseñanzaaprendizaje. http://uvadoc.uva.es/handle/10324/13434 persoon, p. g. j., bekkers, r. n. a., & alkemade, f. 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(2013). learning gardens and sustainability education: bringing life to schools and schools to life. in learning gardens and sustainability education: bringing life to schools and schools to life. routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203156810 woolfolk, a. (2006). psicología educativa (9th ed.). pearson educación. wright, d. e. (2018). situated learning. in active learning (pp. 70–95). https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315743141-5 yeoman, p., & wilson, s. (2019). designing for situated learning: understanding the relations between material properties, designed form and emergent learning activity. british journal of educational technology, 50(5), 2090–2108. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 reyes, a-e. and dueñas, j-m. medicinal gardens as an educational strategy in the teaching of the natural sciences: a pedagogical proposal research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 38 https://doi.org/10.1111/bjet.12856 yörük, n., morgil, i., & seçken, n. (2010). the effects of science, technology, society, environment (stse) interactions on teaching chemistry. natural science, 02(12), 1417– 1424. https://doi.org/10.4236/ns.2010.212173 zbynek vacha, j. . (2018). inquiry based education at primary schools through school. journal of international scientific publication, 11(2), 219–230. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 reyes, a-e. and dueñas, j-m. medicinal gardens as an educational strategy in the teaching of the natural sciences: a pedagogical proposal research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 39 appendix 1 procedure for the application of the pedagogical proposal step pedagogical activities sowing and maintenance the teachers taught the correct way to prepare the land and prepare compost from organic waste from the kitchen. the students interviewed older adults about ethnobotanical knowledge and the search for botanical specimens with medicinal uses. the students, with the guidance of the teachers, carried out the planting of botanical specimens on the ground prepared with organic fertilizer. harvest and drying under the direction of the teachers, the students identified and socialized the medicinal properties of botanical specimens from the garden, typical of the region where the school is located. the teachers developed biology and chemistry classes around ancestral knowledge of medicinal plants. the students carried out the harvest of plant material intended for laboratory practices in biology and chemistry. laboratory practices in the laboratory classes, the students made handcrafted hygiene, beauty, and medicinal products. the practical classes were carried out employing the construction of scientific knowledge from the school laboratory practices. a seminar was held to socialize the scientific results obtained and to analyze the ethnobotanical knowledge of the community. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 botha, r. j. (nico). & hugo, j.-p. effective mentoring to improve job satisfaction among beginner teachers at south african primary schools research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 64 effective mentoring to improve job satisfaction among beginner teachers at south african primary schools r. j. nico botha*1 & jean-pierre hugo1 *corresponding author: botharj@unisa.ac.za 1. university of south africa, pretoria, south africa received : 2021-05-21 revised : 2021-07-02 accepted : 2021-08-12 how to cite this paper: botha, r. j. n. & hugo, j.-p. (2021). effective mentoring to improve job satisfaction among beginner teachers at south african primary schools. research in social sciences and technology, 6(3), 64-81. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.26 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). abstract teachers leaving the profession before age of retirement is an ongoing problem in schools worldwide. while fewer teachers enter the profession each year, the number of teachers leaving the profession has increased. many teachers listed lack of job satisfaction as a reason for leaving the education profession, while citing the lack of mentoring as a main cause of job dissatisfaction. this study explores the impact of an effective mentoring program at primary schools in the province of mpumalanga, south africa to support and improve job satisfaction among beginner teachers entering the profession. this study follows a quantitative approach, consisting of a likert-scale questionnaire. the sample of the study was a number of 550 teachers (principals, deputy principals, heads of department, teachers and student teachers) from different races and cultures from 50 randomly selected state and private primary schools in mpumalanga. after comparing the literature with the respondents' data, the researchers found that the development and implementation of a mentoring program in the province of mpumalanga would positively impacts beginner teachers' job satisfaction, thus indicating a definite need for such a mentoring program. keywords: beginner teachers; mentoring; job satisfaction; primary schools; south africa introduction according to ali (2015), a country that respects its teachers should have an “education system that performs more effectively” (p. 131). the image of teachers has been under scrutiny by the south african public over the last couple of years because of poor learner performance and the underperforming education system. this has negatively affected teachers’ self-image and confidence, causing them to leave the profession in massive numbers (yemisi, 2013; mirza, 2018; botha, 2020a). lytle (2016), however, asserts that teachers leaving the profession is an 10.46303/ressat.2021.26 mailto:botharj@unisa.ac.za https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.26 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 botha, r. j. (nico). & hugo, j.-p. effective mentoring to improve job satisfaction among beginner teachers at south african primary schools research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 65 ongoing problem worldwide and that the number of teachers leaving the profession are increasing rapidly. in addition, fewer teachers are entering the profession each year. earlier studies conducted by, inter alia, modisaotsile (2012) and shah et al. (2012), found that motivating teachers to stay loyal to the south african education system is not made any easier by the increasing pressure on teachers regarding the poor performance of learners and constant media reports about the incompetence of teachers. furthermore, unethical behavior and disillusionment among teachers cause them to become demotivated and experience low levels of job satisfaction. treputtharat and tayiam (2014) acknowledged furthermore that teachers' job satisfaction is directly link with their learners' achievements, while ngan (2015) established that teaching and learning quality could be enhancing when teachers experience job satisfaction. with this in mind, authors such as lo et al. (2013) believe that beginner teachers who receive mentoring and support will experience greater job satisfaction and will be more committed to the profession. this statement is supported by richter et al. (2013) who found that mentoring improves a mentee's support system by providing them with an experienced person who guides them throughout the beginning stages of their teaching career, which will ultimately promote greater productivity and job satisfaction. in the light of the previous statement, tahir et al. (2014) indicate that the "process of mentoring enables mentees to become equipped with the necessary skills and knowledge which will improve the academic progress of learners" (p. 394). research conducted by hugo (2015) and, more recently, by mullen and klimaitis (2021) found that there was indeed a dire need for a mentoring program to improve job satisfaction among teachers when transitioning from one school to another and when entering the profession for the first time (i.e. so-called beginnerteachers). purpose of the study and research questions it is widely known that the provision of quality teaching at south african schools is one of the greatest challenges facing south africa at present (botha, 2020b). as a result, there is currently a huge demand for quality new beginner teachers to enter the system. with this in mind, quanbaffour and arkon-achemfour (2013) stress the fact that school management teams (smts) in south african schools must focus on the effective mentoring of novice teachers to enhance their job satisfaction to retain them in schools. this study is an attempt to address this shortcoming, as effective mentoring of beginner-teachers to retain them for the profession is currently not taking place effectively in south african schools. with tis in mid, the main research question for this study can now be phrase as follows: how can an effective mentoring program improve job satisfaction among beginner teachers at primary schools in the mpumalanga province of south africa? the following research sub-questions guided the study:  what is the link between job satisfaction and an effective mentoring program?  what are the benefits and characteristics of an effective mentoring program? the next section highlights the conceptual framework for the study. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 botha, r. j. (nico). & hugo, j.-p. effective mentoring to improve job satisfaction among beginner teachers at south african primary schools research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 66 review of the literature the concept of job satisfaction in the education context the concept of `job satisfaction’ is defined as an enjoyable or positive emotional condition that a person has towards their job, which is caused by an emotional response to a job's circumstances (hutabarat, 2015; salehi & taghavi, 2015). treputtharat and tayiam (2014) as well as ali (2015) affirm that teachers who experience job satisfaction within their work environment will work harder and raise their schools' efficiency, thereby enhancing learners’ quality of learning and their achievement of the curriculum objectives. job satisfaction among teachers is essential because of the role that teachers play in developing learners and the future workforce (zaheer et al., 2015). treputtharat and tayiam (2014) support the previous statement by emphasizing that teachers' job satisfaction is an integral indicator of the effectiveness of a school and the learners' academic performance. this means that teachers who are satisfied in their work environment will be more effective in ensuring their learners' academic progression. when teachers are satisfied in their work environment, their work quality – and the resulting quality of learning they facilitate in their learners – will be higher than that of teachers who experience job dissatisfaction. superior-greenstone (2011) found that mentoring support increases teachers’ confidence, promotes job satisfaction, improves classroom management and thus enhances learners’ academic achievement. in this regard salehi and tagavi (2015) state that "attitudes and feelings affect employees' behaviors, which contribute to the organization's success or failure" (p. 16). the concept of mentoring in the education context researchers such as baker-gardner (2014) as well as mullen and klimaitis (2021) defines mentoring as the planned pairing of a more experienced person with a less experienced individual to help with the professional development of the latter to reduce teacher turnover. mukeredzi et al. (2015), in turn, agree with nkomo et al. (2018) when explaining mentoring as a one-on-one relationship between a competent, experienced teacher (mentor) and a novice or trainee (mentee). baker-gardner (2014) indicates that mentoring is a tool used to bridge this training gap at universities and in practice. richter et al. (2013) indicate that first-year teaching is usually described as a highly stressful period for beginner teachers. these beginner teachers report lower teacher efficacy and perceive higher levels of occupational stress and emotional exhaustion. according to mukeredzi et al. (2015), "promoting the acquisition of knowledge, skills and competencies through education is necessary for the performance of chosen roles that contribute to national economic and social development" (p. 3). ekechukwu and horsfall (2015) as well as kutsyuruba and godden (2019) indicate that mentoring can be view as the professional development of younger teachers, which promotes the continuous and lifelong development of teachers. the benefits of an effective mentoring program for beginner teachers the process of mentoring has emerged as a professional development technique in education to improve teachers' professional skills through career development (akhalq et al., 2016). with research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 botha, r. j. (nico). & hugo, j.-p. effective mentoring to improve job satisfaction among beginner teachers at south african primary schools research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 67 this in mind, smit and du toit (2016) state that a mentoring program contributes to beginner teachers' professional development and helps them to develop their full potential. by promoting professional development among newly qualified teachers, mentors enable these beginner teachers to acquire certain skills, which makes them more effective in their new work environment (kutsyuruba & godden, 2019). but what are the benefits of such a mentoring program? firstly, mentoring is important to develop the skills of teachers. authors such as khan et al. (2016) acknowledge that when an organization focuses on developing employees' skills, the organization increases the employees’ performance, which, in turn, enables them to be more productive. this will cause employees to become more satisfied in their work environment and to grow in their commitment towards the organization. according to akhalq et al. (2016), "mentoring is a two-way process and provides a career path growth and enrichment for the advancement of knowledge to each individual of their respective deficient areas” (p. 436) secondly, mentoring increases the productivity of teachers. in their study, mukeredzi et al. (2015) define the concept of productivity concerning teachers as the "possession of pedagogies within the wider domain of knowledge, skills, attitudes and competences" (p. 3). van der weijden et al. (2015) add that "mentors play a significant role in the personal and professional development of academic leaders, as well as on their productivity and performance" (p. 280). this is supported by mundia and iravo (2015) who state that "the ability of mentors to implement the mentoring program activities may lead to psychosocial support and career development, and enhance their overall work productivity" (p. 394) thirdly, coaching, mentoring and support of novice teachers by more experienced teachers will help these novice teachers to become accomplished teachers and will positively influence learners' academic achievements (heiney-smith & denton, 2015). in studies conducted by tahir et al. (2014) as well as kutsyuruba and godden (2019), the authors state that it is imperative to improve the teaching performance of beginner teachers. the support and guidance of a more experienced person (mentor) will have a positive effect on the quality and teaching performance of beginner teachers. furthermore, mukeredzi et al. (2015) indicate that mentees who are supported and guided by competent mentors will adapt more easily to their new workload and complex work environment. this is supported by akhalq et al. (2016) who found in their study that support and assistance are transmitted through observation, discussions, questioning and planning; hence, the assistance of a more experienced person through the process of mentoring will support a less experienced individual with the necessary guidance in their profession. moreover, when newly qualified teachers are supported by a mentor who guides and outlines all the requirements in an educational setting, the new teachers will develop into a confident and committed workforce that experiences a sense of empowerment within their new work environment (mirza, 2018). according to ukil (2016) and onyemaechi (2019), employee empowerment is a relatively new concept that makes staff more proactive and self-sufficient; and when employees are empowered, they feel that they are a core asset to the organization, which creates a sense of belonging, builds trust, promotes communication and increases organizational effectiveness. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 botha, r. j. (nico). & hugo, j.-p. effective mentoring to improve job satisfaction among beginner teachers at south african primary schools research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 68 lastly, renbarger and davis (2019) explain that when communication is listed as an effective tool within any work environment, it has been found to improve job satisfaction, productivity and job performance, as well as binding people together in an organization through the adoption of the values of an organization in order to promote the organizations goals and objectives. asamu (2014) as well as watson (2020), more recently, stress the importance of effective communication on the performance and job satisfaction of workers in any organization. this view of asamu is supported by onjoro et al. (2015) who state that "effective communication to staff and students would go a long way in increasing their efficiency and effectiveness, since it will help them to be clear about what, how and when to perform" (p. 12). mentoring is therefore an effective way to ease the transition for beginner teachers entering the profession. this study sought to investigate how a mentoring program could improve job satisfaction among beginner teachers at primary schools. research methods research design and data collection instrument this empirical study follows a quantitative approach with a likert-scale questionnaire. research sample the study sample consisted of 1000 teachers (male and female and from different races and cultures) from 50 randomly selected and diverse primary schools in the province of mpumalanga, all within a 300km radius from each other. a total of 1 000 questionnaires were handed out at 50 schools, comprising rural primary schools, inter-city primary schools and private primary schools. a number of 20 participants per school were requested to complete the likert-scale questionnaire. it took approximately 20 minutes to complete each questionnaire. out of the 1 000 questionnaires delivered to these schools, 550 (55%) questionnaires were completed and collected by the researchers in person from the principal of each participating school. research ethics the 550 respondents in this study remained anonymous. permission was requested using a covering letter, sent together with the questionnaire, explaining the study's extent and what would be done with the respondents' information. the respondents were assured that none of the information they provided would link them to the study and that no names or any information regarding the respondents would be disclosed to the public or in writing. the respondents were provided with a participant information letter in the form of a cover letter, attached to the questionnaire. the cover letter explained to the respondents the study's purpose, the respondents' role in the study, the expected duration of participation, the guarantee of privacy, anonymity and confidentiality, withdrawal without penalty, the institution giving ethical approval for the research and the researcher's contact details. participation in the study was voluntary and the respondents’ permission was obtained to use the information gathered during the study. the first step towards obtaining informed consent was to apply for ethical clearance from the research institute (university of south africa) to conduct research under the guidance of a research study leader appointed by the university of research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 botha, r. j. (nico). & hugo, j.-p. effective mentoring to improve job satisfaction among beginner teachers at south african primary schools research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 69 south africa. after obtaining clearance to conduct the research, the researchers received written permission from the mpumalanga department of education to enter the selected schools. data analysis and presentation the data analysis process was planned before data were collected. information was gathered from the literature review and was evaluated to obtain ideas and formulate research questions about the research topic by identifying recurring themes and keywords. the empirical data collected were analyzed by means of descriptive statistics, which included frequencies and percentages in order to answer the research questions. according to neuman (2011), descriptive statistics describe numerical data and the easiest way to describe numerical data of one variable is by means of frequency distribution. the descriptive method was consequently used to indicate the spread of a sample across a wide range of variables (de vos et al., 2012). in other words, the likert-scale questionnaire helped the researchers to indicate on which level most respondents felt the same about an assumption of a question. the software used to translate the empirical data from the study were the spss22.0 software package, while the varimax rotation statistical technique, the kaiser-meyer-olkin (kmo) test, bartlett’s test of homogeneity of variances and the cronbach’s alpha coefficient were used as for the statistical analysis of the obtained data . these techniques enabled the researchers to evaluate and translate the data gathered from the respondents in order to investigate how to develop and implement an effective mentoring program at primary schools, and, in addition, how such a mentoring program could support and improve job satisfaction among beginner teachers at primary schools. after the collection of data, the data were analyzed and divided into categories where the different themes that correlated with one another were identified while the relevant data were captured. the frequency distribution method was used, which, according to brink et al. (2007) is “a systematic arrangement of the lowest to the highest score linked with the number of times the score occurs" (p. 37). the likert-scale questionnaire, combined with the frequency distribution method, enabled the researchers to draw up a table illustrating the factors that would most probably have the greatest impact on how mentoring could improve beginner teachers' job satisfaction at schools in mpumalanga province. histograms, bar charts, pie charts and graphs were constructed to present and explain the data in more detail. the data gathered during the empirical investigation were compared with the literature study to allow a proper comparison between the literature and the data gathered. the quantitative data were analyzed to determine findings and recommendations for this study. the descriptive statistics (biographical data) were presented in the form of bar graphs from which explanations of the findings were presented. the analysis of the data obtained from the likert-scale questionnaires were presented, while the data gathered in this section of the study were structured to answer the research questions. comparisons were drawn between male and female principals, deputy principals, heads of departments, teachers and student teachers from rural primary schools, private primary schools and quintile 4 and 5 primary schools (schools are ranked in south africa according quintiles according to the financial situation of the school with quintile 4 and 5 schools being the poorest). in using the data provided by research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 botha, r. j. (nico). & hugo, j.-p. effective mentoring to improve job satisfaction among beginner teachers at south african primary schools research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 70 participants, it was determined whether there is a correlation between their beliefs regarding effective mentoring to improve job satisfaction among beginner teachers at south african primary schools. the analysis of the data gathered from respondents allowed the researchers to identify critical aspects regarding the effect of mentoring on the job satisfaction among beginner teachers. the factors are as follows:  factor 1: aspects in the work environment assisting teacher satisfaction and supporting learner achievement.  factor 2: aspects of how an effective mentoring program can contribute to job satisfaction of beginner teachers. by utilizing the factors, the researchers aimed to investigate how an effective mentoring program can be utilized to improve job satisfaction among beginner teachers at primary schools in the mpumalanga province of south africa. results what is the link between job satisfaction and an effective mentoring program? participants were requested to identify contributing aspects in their work environment that could promote teacher satisfaction and, in the process, improve learner achievement. four items probed teachers' perceptions about their contribution to job satisfaction. the items were mostly about the work environment and, hence, were very broad as such an environment could include a whole host of factors. the varimax rotation statistical technique was used at one level of factor analysis as an attempt to clarify the relationship among factors. in maximizing the variance generally means to increase the squared correlation of items related to one factor, while decreasing the correlation of any other factor (hugo, 2015). principal components (pca) with the varimax rotation resulted in only one factor, which explained 76.66% of the variance present and had a cronbach alpha of 0.895. this factor (factor 1) was named `aspects in the work environment promoting teacher satisfaction and supporting learner achievement’. the items and their mean scores and factor loadings are given in table 1. table 1. items with mean scores and factor loadings in factor 1 factor analysis – aspects in the work environment assisting teacher satisfaction and supporting learner achievement item description: extent of the work environment that contributes to teacher satisfaction and learner achievement mean loading 3 teachers satisfied with the work environment devote more time to help learners to achieve their goals. 5.43 0.912 32 teachers satisfied with the work environment devote more energy to help learners to achieve their goals. 5.49 0.912 4 teachers satisfied with the work environment devote more attention to help learners to achieve their goals. 5.47 0.905 1 enhancement of teaching and learning 5.26 0.764 average 5.41 0.873 research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 botha, r. j. (nico). & hugo, j.-p. effective mentoring to improve job satisfaction among beginner teachers at south african primary schools research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 71 the mean score of 5.41 indicates strong agreement with the items in the factor "aspects in the work environment assisting teacher satisfaction and support learning achievement. as all items fell within the `totally agree’ interval of the likert scale, data distribution is likely to be negatively skewed. this is shown in figure 1. figure 1. histogram and boxplot showing the data distribution of items in factor 1 the data distribution was negatively skewed, which was expected because of the way in which the items were posted. the boxplot shows some outliers (especially respondents 384 and 270), but they were not removed, as non-parametric procedures will be utilized in further testing of this factor. the mean of 5.41 and median of 5.75 shown in table 1 above, confirm the skewness of the data distribution. what are the benefits and characteristics of an effective mentoring program? participants were requested to identify possible benefits and characteristics of an effective mentoring program. these could include aspects of how an effective mentoring program can contribute to job satisfaction among beginner teachers. once again, four items probed teachers' perceptions with regard benefits and characteristics of an effective mentoring program for beginner teachers. the kaiser-meyer-olkin (kmo) test and bartlett’s test of homogeneity of variances were both used at this level of factor analysis. the kmo test is a measure of how suited data is for factor analysis (between 0.8 and 1.0 indicate the sampling is adequate), while bartlett’s test of homogeneity of variances is a test to identify whether there are equal variances of a continuous variable across two or more groups of independent variables. its’ main aim is to test the null hypothesis of no difference in variances between groups. the kmo value of 0.814 and research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 botha, r. j. (nico). & hugo, j.-p. effective mentoring to improve job satisfaction among beginner teachers at south african primary schools research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 72 bartlett's sphericity of p = 0.000 indicate that a pca with varimax rotation would reduce the four items to a more economic number of smaller factors. the resulting one factor explains 72.91% of the variance present and has a cronbach reliability of 0.874. this factor (factor 2) was named `benefits and characteristics of an effective mentoring program’. the items and their mean scores and factor loadings are given in table 2. table 2: items with mean scores and factor loadings in factor 2 factor analysis – aspects of how an effective mentoring programme can contribute to job satisfaction of beginner teachers (α = 0.874) item description: extent of contribution to job satisfaction of beginner teachers mean loading 3 adaptation of beginner teachers to the new work environment 5.29 0.875 2 the possibility of using mentorship as a management tool to enhance job satisfaction among beginner teachers in a new work environment 5.34 0.869 4 need for school management to identify strategies, such as effective mentoring programmes at primary schools, to support the improvement of job satisfaction among beginner teachers 5.32 0.84 1 the possibility of enhancing job satisfaction among beginner teachers at primary schools 5.25 0.831 average 5.30 0.854 the item with the highest mean score, which the respondents strongly agreed with, is item 2, namely the possibility of using mentorship as a management tool to enhance job satisfaction among beginner teachers in a new work environment. the high mean scores for each item suggest that the data will negatively skew distribution (figure 2). figure 2. histogram and boxplot showing the data distribution of items in factor 2 research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 botha, r. j. (nico). & hugo, j.-p. effective mentoring to improve job satisfaction among beginner teachers at south african primary schools research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 73 the mean score of 5.30 and a medium of 5.50 indicate that the respondents strongly agreed with the factor items. the distribution is negatively skewed and non-parametric procedures will be utilized for further analysis. the next section of this article will discuss the findings and will be done according to the research sub-questions phrased earlier. discussion factor 1: what is the link between job satisfaction and an effective mentoring program? the first research sub-question was aimed at determining whether there is a link between mentoring and job satisfaction. the theoretical framework clearly outlined a definite link between job satisfaction and mentoring, as most of the theory found that mentees (beginner teachers) would experience job satisfaction. baker-gardner (2014) confirms that there is a definite link between the mentoring that a mentee receives and the mentee’s job satisfaction. thus there is a clear link between receiving mentoring and the job satisfaction experienced by newly qualified teachers. toropova et al. (2021) state in this regard: "most schools need satisfied and motivated teachers who can work effectively and efficiently for the attainment of school goals and productivity" (p. 72). the findings regarding job satisfaction and mentoring during the literature review allowed the researchers to formulate questions into a likert-scale questionnaire. these questions were aimed at determining whether primary school teachers in the province of mpumalanga would agree in such a way that the findings from the literature review would correlate with the findings from the respondents. the literature review identified different theoretical factors that would affect teachers' job satisfaction negatively, which would cause teachers to become dissatisfied in their work environment. these factors would cause teachers to experience different forms of unpleasant emotional responses to their work environment. after the data had been processed, some correlations were made between the literature reviewed and the respondents' answers. the correlations indicated clearly that when teachers experienced work-related stress, inadequate opportunities for training and development, frustration with learner discipline, a dysfunctional work environment and inadequate leadership support, they experience burnout, low levels of commitment, absenteeism and discouragement, factors which could increase teacher turnover. research conducted by toropova et al. (2021) supports the previously mentioned findings, namely that job satisfaction has a direct and negative relationship with employees' turnover. the likert-scale questionnaire provided respondents with the opportunity to indicate if they agreed with the theoretical framework. the literature portrayed findings of teachers’ experiencing job satisfaction when they were part of a mentoring program. after comparing the theories with the respondents' data, the researchers found that the development and implementation of a mentoring program in the province of mpumalanga would positively influence beginner teachers' job satisfaction, indicating that there is a definite need for such a mentoring program. this type of mentoring program would enhance teaching and learning; teachers would devote more time and energy to helping learners to achieve their academic goals, while program would help beginner teachers to adapt to their new working environment. the respondents indicated research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 botha, r. j. (nico). & hugo, j.-p. effective mentoring to improve job satisfaction among beginner teachers at south african primary schools research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 74 that they agreed to a large extent that such a mentoring program would support and improve job satisfaction among beginner teachers, as indicated in the literature reviewed. the following figure portrays the findings and illustrates the link between job satisfaction and an effective mentoring program. figure 3. the link between job satisfaction and an effective mentoring program factor 2: what are the benefits and characteristics on an effective mentoring program? the second research sub-question was aimed at determining the benefits and characteristics on an effective mentoring program suitable for primary schools in the province of mpumalanga. the conceptual framework presents these benefits and characteristics. the concepts covered indicate that an effective mentoring program should provide structural support, focus on individuals' professional support, provide guidance to mentees and focus on beginner teachers' school-based development. chester (2015) indicates that the intention of a mentoring program "is to provide teachers with a systematic structure of support that helps them be efficacious, become familiar with their school and district, refine their practice, and better understand their professional responsibilities" (p. 12). all the characteristics mentioned above of an effective mentoring program identified in the conceptual framework were also identified in the first research sub-question as factors that would improve job satisfaction among beginner teachers. the findings regarding this factor allowed the researchers to formulate questions to ask the respondents in a likert-scale questionnaire. these questions were aimed at determining whether respondents would agree in such a way that the findings from the conceptual framework would correlate with the findings from the respondents. the conceptual framework research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 botha, r. j. (nico). & hugo, j.-p. effective mentoring to improve job satisfaction among beginner teachers at south african primary schools research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 75 identified different benefits and characteristics of an effective mentoring program, which enabled the researchers to identify which should be considered when developing a mentoring program. questions included in the likert-scale questionnaire provided respondents with the opportunity to indicate if they agree with the literature review. the concepts portrayed findings of these benefits and characteristics. after comparing the literature review with the respondents' data, the researchers found that the development and implementation of a mentoring program in the province of mpumalanga would positively influence beginner teachers' job satisfaction and that there is a definite need for such a mentoring program. research conducted by onyemaechi (2019) supports this study's findings, namely that this type of mentoring program would contribute to professional development, skills development, personal support and emotional support for teachers and create a sense of empowerment and improve their communication skills. the seven items on the questionnaire probed respondents' perceptions regarding these benefits and characteristics. the same six-point interval on the likert scale as used previously was utilized to gather these data. table 3. items with mean scores and factor loadings in factor 2 factor analysis: the benefits and characteristics of an effective mentoring program (α = 0.931) item description: contribution of mentoring to the following: mean loading 1 provide professional development for beginner teachers. 5.40 0.829 2 provide skills development for beginner teachers. 5.35 0.846 3 provide personal support to beginner teachers to cope with the new work environment. 5.40 0.875 4 provide emotional support to beginner teachers to cope with the new work environment. 5.33 0.823 5 create a sense of empowerment among beginner teachers. 5.36 0.842 6 help beginner teachers with problem-solving opportunities to use the knowledge acquired in meaningful activities and to assist them in working at higher levels of thinking. 5.36 0.826 7 provide mentees with appropriate content knowledge to be more effective in the subject that they teach and thereby improve learners' learning. 5.34 0.845 average 5.36 0.841 the mean score of 5.36 shows that respondents largely agreed with the factor items. item 1 (benefits and characteristics of an effective mentoring program regarding beginner teachers' professional development) and item 3 (benefits and characteristics of an effective mentoring program for beginner teachers to cope with the new work environment) have the highest mean scores, namely 5.40. the data distribution of the items in this factor is likely to be negatively skewed. the distribution is negatively skewed, as was expected, with a mean of 5.36; hence, non-parametric procedures will be utilized for further testing. this is shown in table 3 above. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 botha, r. j. (nico). & hugo, j.-p. effective mentoring to improve job satisfaction among beginner teachers at south african primary schools research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 76 figure 4. histogram and boxplot showing the data distribution of items in factor 2 figure 5 consequently illustrates the perceived benefits and characteristics of an effective mentoring program. figure 5. the benefits and characteristics of an effective mentoring program limitations of the study the primary goal of this study was to explore practices that could help to develop a mentoring program to improve job satisfaction among beginner teachers. this quantitative study had some possible limitations during the data gathering process. these include, inter alia:  some of the respondents have ignored the instructions on how to complete the questionnaire provided on the questionnaire cover page. this limitation could have been overcome by briefly highlighting the most important steps in completing the questionnaire. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 botha, r. j. (nico). & hugo, j.-p. effective mentoring to improve job satisfaction among beginner teachers at south african primary schools research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 77  schools might not have wanted to participate in the study. the researchers contacted the 50 participating schools to determine if they would like to participate in the research and to prepare the principals for the likert-scale questionnaires' arrival.  schools could have delayed the data analysis process by not completing the questionnaires in time. when contacting the 50 participating schools, the researchers emphasized the completion date. recommendations from the study the recommendations are made to improve primary school teachers' job satisfaction through the development and implementation of a mentoring program. recommendation concerning research sub-question 1: what is the link between job satisfaction and an effective mentoring program? the following recommendation is based on this study's findings, which could improve beginner teachers' job satisfaction. when considering the development and implementation of a mentoring program to improve job satisfaction, the factors that influence job satisfaction should be considered. school management is usually responsible for implementing a mentoring program and should be knowledgeable regarding factors that might influence their teachers' job satisfaction. factors that should be considered are a dysfunctional work environment, inadequate leadership support, inadequate training opportunities, frustration with student discipline issues and work-related stress. school management can identify teachers who experience job dissatisfaction by monitoring teachers who show signs of burnout, discouragement, low levels of commitment and increased teacher turnover and absenteeism. if all of the aforementioned factors are taken into account and dealt with by school management when implementing the mentoring program, the management would find that teachers would devote more time and energy to help learners to achieve their goals, which, in turn, would enhance teaching and learning. recommendation concerning research sub-question 2: what are the benefits and characteristics of an effective mentoring program? before the process of developing a mentoring program can start, the benefits and characteristics of the program should be identified and evaluated to ensure that it is suitable and viable for the environment in which it will be implemented. therefore, a mentoring program for beginner teachers in an educational setting (school environment) should, inter alia,  ensure the professional development of beginner teachers;  contribute to skills development;  provide personal and emotional support to beginner teachers in their new work environment;  create a sense of empowerment;  provide a work environment where beginner teachers can acquire knowledge to solve problems; and research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 botha, r. j. (nico). & hugo, j.-p. effective mentoring to improve job satisfaction among beginner teachers at south african primary schools research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 78  provide content knowledge regarding a specific subject area to ensure the learners' academic success. in summary, the mentoring program should ensure a beginner teacher's professional development to ensure learners' academic success. conclusion the purpose of this study was to investigate how an effective mentoring program could support and improve job satisfaction among beginner teachers at primary schools in the province of mpumalanga. the study identified a series of factors regarding mentoring that school management teams could consider and implement to help beginner teachers cope in their new work environment, thereby improving teachers’ job satisfaction and retention. from the data gathered, the importance of a mentoring program was evaluated and described. the study also provided key aspects that should be taken into consideration when managing a mentoring program. as seen throughout this study, mentoring has the ability to counter different factors affecting job satisfaction amongst beginner teachers in a negative way. the researchers found that the development of a mentoring program would help teachers manage their classroom in a more effective way and thus improve the academic achievements of learners. school management who implement mentoring programs in order to create a work environment where beginner teachers are provided the opportunity to seek guidance from an experienced teacher who support them in their new profession. throughout this mentoring program, mentors provide knowledge and insight to beginner teachers, which enable them to become more productive and acquire new skills in, for example, classroom management. this can be done when mentors observe their mentees while teaching to identify areas that need improvement and areas in which they excel. mentees are provided with the opportunity to observe their mentors who set an example of how to behave, manage and engage learners and staff in a teaching environment. this will provide beginner teachers with opportunities to gain a theoretical and practical understanding of schools and classroom environment. references akhalq, m., chishti, s.h., & iqbal, m.z. 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(5015). factors affecting job satisfaction at public sector secondary schools of rahim yarkhan. developing country studies, 5(5), 27-31. http://www.ijbssnet.com/journals/vol_3_no_8_special_issue_april_2012/31.pdf http://dx.doi.org/10.3846/btp.2016.651 https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ej1265239.pdf research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 swarts, g.p re/coding global citizenship: how information and communication technologies have altered humanity and created new questions for global citizenship education 70 re/coding global citizenship: how information and communication technologies have altered humanity and created new questions for global citizenship education gabriel p. swarts, phd.* st. bonaventure university *corresponding author: gswarts@sbu.edu received : 2019-08-30 accepted : 2019-11-02 how to cite this paper: swarts, g.p (2020). re/coding global citizenship: how information and communication technologies have altered humanity and created new questions for global citizenship education. research in social sciences and technology, 5(1), 7085. abstract in the broadest sense, the concept of global citizenship education (gce) includes many facets of a rapidly changing world and concepts in education. the information and communication technology (ict) advances of the last few decades have created opportunities for educational connection and interaction through digital spaces at all levels, local and global. in linking technology with global citizenship, neither gce nor icts can be assumed to be mutually progressive and/or mutually beneficial. in recent years, governments have moved to centralize ict technologies exacting more control over their use for surveillance, including the weaponization of icts for strategic gains. this complicates the work of gce scholars and practitioners in unforeseen ways as centralized control limits decentralized interactions. ict concepts and philosophical stances are explored and defined to address how gce scholars and practitioners can reimagine and reframe the tenets of the field within this informational world. key topics discussed include complications of gce in the infosphere, digital citizenship & gce, and teaching gce in the age of “inforgs” & digital identities. keywords: global citizenship education, government control, information and communication technologies guiding question how does the changing nature of human beings more increasingly moving from a physical to digital existence open new spaces for defining and conceptualizing global citizenship education? introduction when looking at the ways in which human beings access information, the technological expansion of what we know and is known has occurred at an explosive pace. the breadth and depth of information/data being produced and consumed through information and communication technologies (icts) has never before happened in human history. human data research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 swarts, g.p re/coding global citizenship: how information and communication technologies have altered humanity and created new questions for global citizenship education 71 output nearly doubles every year; for example, in 2019 alone, humans produced as much data as they did in all of human history up through 2018 (helbing et al., 2017). at the same time, cooperation among social and political groups is becoming more critical each year. worldwide, there is political turmoil, a mounting refugee crisis, and imminent ecological catastrophe, all of which will require the cooperation of humans across borders, national identities, and culture necessitating the deepest levels of communication, respect, global partnership, and commitment. technology corporations and government entities have engaged in unprecedented control of icts and the oceans of data they produce while democratic protestors and individual actors use icts to challenge political structures and practices. through exploding technologies and data, this moment in history is reshuffling longheld social and political relationships, including concepts of community, belonging, and citizenship. in the field of global citizenship education (gce), this radical shift has presented new opportunities and challenges to a field that is of paramount importance in educating students for a world that demands global human coordination, interaction, and problemsolving. recent trends and technological breakthroughs have made it necessary for educational fields and sub-fields to adapt institutional values, theory, and practice immediately. the technological infrastructure needed to place icts in every corner of the globe has arrived and thrived. as of 2019, an average of 57 percent of people in the world are connected to the internet, up from 35 percent in 2013 (statista, 2019). at the same time, challenges to political, environmental, and social well-being have swiftly attained critical levels: there are a record number of displaced persons in the world, climate change scientists are publishing ever more concerning studies and issuing dire warnings for human survival, and political disruption and isolation has made international cooperation more difficult to nurture and achieve. an adapted gce theory and practice is necessary for a long-term, foundational restructuring of individual values, literacies, and perspectives. global citizenship education in the 21st century though a contested field with various meanings and value statements, consistent gce definitions have been adopted by official transnational organizations such as the united nations education, science, and cultural organization (unesco), oxfam, and the organization of economic cooperation and development (oecd). unesco describes gce in the 2030 education agenda framework for action as “aim(ing) to empower learners of all ages to assume active roles, both locally and globally, in building more peaceful, tolerant, inclusive and secure societies” (unesco, 2019). as a framework for learning and reaching into the wider community, gce requires commitment to engage with the world and use skills within the curriculum to champion equality, sustainability, and fairness (oxfam education, 2019). relating gce to technological advancement is sporadic. although unesco and oxfam do not include icts or digital frameworks in their definitions as of 2019, the oecd directly links research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 swarts, g.p re/coding global citizenship: how information and communication technologies have altered humanity and created new questions for global citizenship education 72 technological changes to global citizenship values and practices in their publication on assessing global competencies, saying that: online networks, social media and interactive technologies are giving rise to new types of learning, where young people exercise greater control over what and how they learn. at the same time, young people’s digital lives can cause them to disconnect from themselves and the world, and ignore the impact that their actions may have on others… likewise, access to an unlimited amount of information is often paired with insufficient media literacy, meaning that young people are easily fooled by partisan, biased or fake news. in this context, cultivating students’ global competence can help them to capitalise on digital spaces, better understand the world they live in and responsibly express their voice online. (oecd, 2018, p. 5) this summary identifies a key focus of this paper: the balance between privacy and presence, control and freedom, within increasingly polarized political environments in many nation-states. at the same time, the threats to human existence discussed in the introduction loom large and require unprecedented human cooperation. therefore, a discussion of how icts are changing the landscape, and how gce must open new spaces for conversations and the future of the field, is the key focus of this article. marrying the opportunities and challenges that face global citizenship education in the 21st century truly requires a reassessment of how gce scholars, organizations, and practitioners think about the components of the field within technological change and the realities of pervasive icts. a large-scale technological “disruption” increasingly, humans are becoming more digitized and are more and more constructed of the data they produce. in industries where this has occurred recently, the idea that technology will “disrupt” traditional norms and practices has taken hold in popular culture. music, movies, and automated industries have all experienced disrupting practices in recent decades. understanding human beings as both physical beings and digital constructions, to form a disrupted entity, is a profoundly new idea that has important ramifications for education (floridi, 2010). the “re/coding” of the key elements of education in this disrupted age, specifically gce, can be balanced and partnered with the incorporation of ict theory and research to allow for spaces that enable a dual understanding of the elements and dynamics impacting the digital data and information. expanding and exploring new avenues for gce theory and practice must occur in digital and physical spaces and requires a reexamination of what constitutes a human, a citizen, and what human society could be in the information age. to set the foundation of further discussion, this article explores three influential shifts in how humans use and exist with icts. each one of these trends is explored briefly, followed by a discussion linking these trends to key tenets of gce, and finally, educational spaces are explored in which ict trends and gce tenets can be integrated. as institutions, theories, and practices must adapt in many disrupted fields to the pervasive presence of icts and data, gce research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 swarts, g.p re/coding global citizenship: how information and communication technologies have altered humanity and created new questions for global citizenship education 73 can build upon existing frameworks and epistemologies in global education and technology to reflect upon and address key issues and trends in the field. three technology-driven challenges for global citizenship education this article addresses three key challenges that gce teachers and scholars face to “re/code” the field in the information age. building upon gce literature that has explored the often competing/complementing discourses of the field for decades, there are three areas related to gce being “disrupted” as human beings further shift into the digital realm: 1) how humans engage with global issues and concerns, 2) the role of governments and citizenship status in a “disrupted” age, and 3) the role of technology corporations in the delivery and control of globalized media. the changing digital behaviors and norms of human beings, the roles of government, and the influence of media through icts has presented unique and complex problems that gce practitioners and theorists must begin to address in their work. what tools can aid in rethinking gce? there are three conceptual frameworks that can assist in a re-imagining of gce in the information age and can facilitate new spaces for conversations about how gce can contribute to the needs of human society: 1) the changing nature of humanity as explained through the concept of inforgs, or informational organisms, 2) increased (though not total) government control and presence of icts in the political sphere, and 3) corporate control and the “centralization” of icts facilitating the concretization of the hyperreal. each of these three frameworks is summarized and then linked to gce to explore possibilities and spaces that gce scholars and advocates can use to begin to reassess the role of gce in a technologically disrupted world. becoming inforgs. forget the cyborg of science fiction movies—instead of part human and part machine construction, google searches, facebook posts, and our medical records have been attached to our human existence and represent our informational selves. to understand this perspective, think of all the texts, videos, online purchases, web searches, comments, pictures, and digital records containing your name and information. with millions of data points for each person in a majority of the world, it is not hard to see how the “digital exhaust” we produce has outpaced our physical presence (neff, 2015). for gce, this requires a new perspective on how to define human beings in many arenas, including debates of citizenship and legal status. these ict advances of the last few decades have created opportunities for human connection and interaction through digital spaces at all levels, local and global. this infrastructure and interconnectedness has been built upon unprecedented levels of data creation, control, and access by human, technology, and government actors. according to luciano floridi (2010, 2011a, 2014), digital spaces have become so influential in how we live that an entirely new version of humanity must be conceptualized; informational representations of self and world now constitute so much territory in our daily existence that humans could now be defined and constructed as informational entities through the data they produce and consume. this digital world, floridi’s infosphere, is constructed of the digitization research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 swarts, g.p re/coding global citizenship: how information and communication technologies have altered humanity and created new questions for global citizenship education 74 of human beings as informational organisms, or inforgs. this extends the conceptualization of digital representations of human beings from a mere part of human existence to the way that humans are now defined. due to data production and dissemination, humans now exist more in the digital world than in the physical, which floridi calls the onlife. simply put, who we “are” can be most accurately be defined through the data we produce and consume. icts, artificial intelligence (ai), and virtual reality/augmented reality (vr/ar) are becoming more and more prevalent in our daily lives. logging on to icts for screen time now constitutes a majority of our waking hours (combi, 2015; howard, 2016). as our worlds increasingly become an onlife, our personal information available in macro data sets (i.e., facebook’s data stores), we are beholden to understand and live more in the world of information and data. understanding this shift in how we are “seen” by other human beings and icts makes for new work to be done in addressing human problems like climate change or the refugee crises. 2) government control of information, citizens. the political layers that have impacted gce theory and practice have been heavily investing in social, political, and economic presence in the digital realm for decades. conceptions of citizenship and governmental relations are undergoing titanic changes through further centralized government control and power of data and icts (christensen, 2019; moss, 2018; robbins & henschke, 2017). although this expansion into information and data collection is consistently being challenged in the courts (i.e., the fisa courts in the u.s.), governments all over the world are rapidly increasing information collection and storage capabilities (kayali, 2018; scott & gold, 2018). as part of a wider movement in the last two decades, large-scale data production and control is now part of a broader civic movement of state (and corporate) actors dictating information access, transparency, and utilization (amnesty international, 2018; malcomson, 2016; robbins & henschke, 2017). as inforgs, existence constructed of information which can be traced, replicated, viewed, and transported at the speed of light is more vulnerable to corporate and government surveillance and intervention (draper, 2018). while visions of government as “big brother” leap out of that description, the government/onlife relationship of today is different in many key aspects: first, this system has largely been created through private construction and voluntary participation of individuals (i.e., when we sign up for an instagram account), requiring governments to catch up with their own systems or to latch on to the private sector. for example, chinese officials solicited bids from seven private tech companies to build the social credit system architecture and are already pushing ai agents in classrooms (botsman, 2017; hao, 2019). second, embracing government use of big data and icts is uneven. london officials and citizens, as well as those in china, are much more open to video surveillance and assume its existence, while there is a much more divisive discourse occurring in the u.s. regarding privacy rights and information ownership (leong, 2018; scott & gold, 2018). the same can be said for educational institutions and how they think of and utilize data, as well as how students, teachers, parents, and faculty may utilize, avoid, or understand data usage and possibility. therefore, humans in different parts of the world participate at different levels in icts, and with research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 swarts, g.p re/coding global citizenship: how information and communication technologies have altered humanity and created new questions for global citizenship education 75 different levels of autonomy and critical understanding of how their participation changes their status as inforgs. third, the control of information is uneven and can be countered. various protest movements and transnational social partnerships have facilitated mass organization and popular political mobilization of specific groups, political and social (i.e., the arab spring protests, the hong kong protests, and coordinated teachers’ union protests in various parts of the u.s.). in addition to revolutionary changes in how we think of information, data, and icts, there is one more evolutionary layer influencing how we view the role of gce in the information age: the expansion of government in the collection of data and utilization of icts has occurred within a profound political shift in which historically established liberal democracies trend toward authoritarian control. china, the u.s., and countries in europe and south america are seeing tighter restrictions on civil liberties and free press and increased public protests (chistensen & groshek, 2019). in this political and social metamorphosis, icts are being controlled, manipulated, and utilized by authoritarian regimes in deeper ways to challenge democratic existence and practice while at the same time providing conduits for antigovernment action and protest. this trend requires urgent attention and acknowledgment in a variety of public forums as political and civic communication methods expand for both the public and authoritarian impulses (ai now report, 2017). the infosphere is an expanding space for conceptualizing and imagining what gce could be, and these technological processes should be addressed critically. in linking technology with global citizenship, neither gce theory and practice nor ict theory can be assumed to be progressive and/or mutually beneficial (andreotti & pashby, 2013). in recent years, governments have moved to centralize ict technologies, exacting more control over their use for surveillance, including the weaponization of icts for strategic gains, and citizens have used icts to organize and challenge governments. these emergent conflicts, with multiple political and civic actors utilizing the same technological structures and trends for competing ends, complicates the work of gce scholars and practitioners in unforeseen ways. within this context, gce teachers and scholars must continue to define and construct a space within citizenship education discourse that emphasizes use and practice of icts within the changing landscape of data, communication, and privacy (iste, 2019). building open foundational frameworks of gce—unesco, oecd, and oxfam in this paper—through the conduit of icts opens up the possibilities of connection and communication among gce participants and understanding the role governments play in information and data collection and access; gce organizations must stake their own territory for digital communications and data. regardless of student nationality or geographic location, icts will impact the way they see the world as global citizens and how they interact with and shape multilayered political and civic institutions. 3) corporate dominance and the hyperreal. in studying who has the ability to collect and parse through the pedabytes of data humans produce in a given year, amy webb explores the nine behemoth corporations that control icts throughout the world (webb, 2019). covering tech companies in silicon valley and china, webb explores the two largest poles of tech research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 swarts, g.p re/coding global citizenship: how information and communication technologies have altered humanity and created new questions for global citizenship education 76 development in the world today and the nine corporations that develop and control icts and the data they produce. webb’s thesis maintains that these nine corporations have almost complete control over how our personal data is collected, sorted, and accessed, and the ramifications of that level of power has created entities that rival nation-states in influence and power. while the internal machinations of governments can be somewhat compartmentalized within borders of nation-states, corporate entities have a global influence and reach at a much faster rate. long at the center of gce scholarship, the role of corporations and their interests in education requires critical study and critique to maintain balance and orchestrate challenges when values conflict (mikander, 2016; pais & costa, 2017; torres, 2017b). media corporations, which include social media and tech companies like facebook, amazon, twitter, google, etc., have more access to “who” we are as inforgs than any other entity in history. this new dynamic introduces further hegemonic characteristics into the consumer/producer relationship that has led to a myriad of legislative acts (satariano, 2019), political critiques (romm, 2019), and popular protests (naacp, 2019). corporate-run icts act upon the data they accrue, which is then used and interpreted by corporate and government entities. increasingly, these corporations are becoming further enmeshed in governmental partnerships (i.e., amazon and the u.s. government or ring and local police departments) to advance business plans and/or political agendas (harwell, 2019; haskins, 2019). this ubiquitous access to data allows for icts to have further control of who and what we are, and allows data and the information we see to be open to limitations, the “nudging” of our decision-making, and outright deception (i.e., russian election interference). the manipulatives of media and data and the inextricable symbiosis of the corporate/government partnership has created an environment in which digitized existence has taken place of original interaction. jean baudrillard described this process as the “hyperreal” (baudrillard, 1994/2004). the reorientation of previously known symbols (such as human conversation or global travel, and most importantly in this paper, citizenship) to the simulated (snapchat messaging, instagram photos, video) has allowed for a departure of a grounding to the “knowable” and allows for envisioning a society or an educational approach that is uniquely fantastical and imaginary. society is now “free” from the grounded truth (baudrillard, 2007, p. 25). this “untethering” has ushered in a profound set of problems in which our “selves” are now constituted digitally and are therefore susceptible to information manipulation, as well as the necessity to rethink how information and knowledge is theorized to rethink how we create and experience global citizenship curriculum. as corporate actors continue to control and manipulate our experiences, the access to our data, the ability for hyperreal interpretations of many aspects of our lives, including foundational tenets of gce such as global presence, global competency, intercultural sensitivity, and perspective consciousness, become tainted or skewed (hanvey, 1976). this altered state is happening at exactly the moment that these tenets are needed most to organize around the immediacy of global challenges. this requires faithful, heartfelt dialogue and deliberation, not hyperreality. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 swarts, g.p re/coding global citizenship: how information and communication technologies have altered humanity and created new questions for global citizenship education 77 baudrillard’s work is valuable in reassessing our relationships to icts/ais/educational corporations (like pearson) within a gce setting. this reassessment is important in two distinct ways: as a critical reassessment of the challenges posed to icts in gce, and as a reassessment of the positive and more fruitful impacts that icts have on gce. starting with the arab spring protests and now the hong kong protests against the influence of mainland china, the key tenets of gce that support liberal democratic freedoms and values across national borders can be amplified through icts. the same technologies that allow china to track hong kong protestors and use facial recognition to target uyghur muslims also allow counter-state protests and the proliferation of democratic practices and values. icts have been shown to facilitate transnational social movements and allow for spaces to engage participants in democratic processes across borders (cammaerts, 2017). at once controlling and controlled, humans will be further defined as informational organisms the further we journey into the ict revolution, which raises important questions: will the “objectivity” of humanity and the defining characteristics of global citizenship education, and education at large, continue and thrive through ict conduits? or could these values and practices in gce be broken down into baudrillard’s simulacra, like a sophisticated ai tutor that mimics teaching pedagogy, transitioning into fully virtual spaces and data points that are unable to be pinned down as a physical experience or journey (edwards & usher, 2002, p. 11)? new spaces for global citizenship education in the infosphere as icts become even more prevalent and more deeply embedded in educational settings, their influence on curriculum discourses, teaching practices and theory, and student learning experiences will amplify floridi and baudrillard’s concepts, under the umbrella of corporate and governmental control, and will force schools and the humans within them to adapt. van kessel and kline (2019) believe that schools, as agencies of state (public) and corporate (for profit), are complicit in this “murder” of the real, propping up baudrillard’s hyperreal as a truth of experience and maintaining that “instead of functioning to reveal the world of simulation as a means of defending the real, schools continue to be an accomplice to its murder by simulating at the levels of curriculum, policy, and operations” (p. 18). the tensions among schools and state demands have always been present. muddling through the drastic changes in information, data, privacy, and traditional educational aims continues to be a source of much-needed reflection and research (swarts, 2019). understanding how technology can decouple students from topics or experiences that have benefitted gce programming in the past or research into new approaches allows for a more critical look into technology adoption and usage as well as data privacy and information concerns while using and incorporating icts. the idea of an open, freely connected network of icts that allow for wide-ranging perspectives, sharing of experiences, and human creativity is still the backbone of the onlife. although government and corporate actors have subsumed much of the infrastructure of the infosphere research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 swarts, g.p re/coding global citizenship: how information and communication technologies have altered humanity and created new questions for global citizenship education 78 (malcolmson, 2016), there are many openings and possibilities for students and teachers to explore gce values and curricula. schools have already started to incorporate icts into learning for a variety of reasons, but as adoption of gce curriculum is uneven, so is the adoption of icts and the comprehensive data planning by schools to store and protect the academic, biological, and social data they collect. how are icts already impacting schools? educational institutions have shown a willingness to invest in icts for security and assessment purposes more than specific curriculum aims or within certain school settings; ai and ict-based technologies are furthering the “surveillance” role of schools and teachers. eye monitoring software on district devices to track engagement with an assessment or application (e.g., tobii pro), facial recognition software to track student locations (safr by realnetworks), and rfid chip-enabled student id cards to take attendance (roscorla, 2012) allow schools to monitor and correct behavior in far more invasive ways than ever before. and while each generation of students experiences different mechanisms of control and surveillance in schools, the possibility that this information can be utilized through district applications that rely on student biological, academic, and affective data allows for many more access points for teaching, learning, correction, and coercion. as schools further adopt icts for a variety of reasons, at the core of these technological advances are many questions for gce scholars about new possibilities. emerging discussions in this article and beyond focus on this changing view of information and what it is to be human/information/agent in a disrupted field (and world). these questions could include the following work in curriculum studies and educational scholarship at large: 1. could gce scholars focus on how identity is blurring between the physical and onlife? if more and more of our “self” is curated and maintained online in relation to other “selves,” then so, too, are political and civic expositions and connectivity, especially on a global scale (hart, richardson, & wilkenfeld, 2012; hongladoram, 2011; floridi, 2011b). this focus could allow for continued discussions on how individuals can impact large-scale problems in coordinated efforts through icts that influence and impact traditional political structures. 2. as icts adapt and can translate language in real time while collecting and learning from large data sets of video and photographs, how do cultural elements of language practice and expression translate? how will icts aid in dialogue and understanding as they become more useful and intelligent, building on immense collections of information? could these tools enable even more cohesive communications and value statements? what about building on existing intercultural theories to advance intercultural communication? or, will icts continue to reinforce human biases in educational, legal, and social settings (dellinger, 2019)? gce tenets require communication and understanding of many “others” in order to advance causes important to human society and ecological sustainability. educating research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 swarts, g.p re/coding global citizenship: how information and communication technologies have altered humanity and created new questions for global citizenship education 79 active global citizens with the ability to produce, access, and interpret data within a gce framework changes what information is valued and how it is communicated. 3. today (or even further into the future when ai develops feelings and disposition as well as the ability to express them), what are our educational responsibilities to these agents? do we have a civic and moral duty to educate learning icts/ais within the parameters of sound gce theory and practice to fulfill the highest ideals of the field? how do we attempt this work of including ai into gce? and how will our own education and curriculum knowledge change as we attempt to educate ai agents and work with them to amplify human intelligence (baker, 2016)? as the ethics of ai and related fields are continually debated, the concept of value sensitive design (vsd) has been accepted: things that humans design reflect human values, and designs can include values that reduce harm, maintain the value of the ecosystem, and make decisions to bolster cross-cultural interaction and respect. therefore, any advanced ai can include the best of human values, such as the tenets of gce, and this can be done intentionally. so, how can gce ideals be purposefully included within machine learning and ai design processes, and through what channels can gce scholars and practitioners influence engineers? 4. lastly, what is data, what are the data ethics we should consider, and how should we use data in gce? what limitations must we place on the creation and utilization of our “digital exhaust” (neff, 2015)? some governments have begun the legal and ethical discussions, as have scholars in technologyrelated fields; however, this conversation is severely lacking in education and gce. data is viewed as positive and necessary for the function of teaching and schools, but the new types and approaches to data usage and collection necessitate a vigorous debate about how this data will impact our students and teachers, especially in the most vulnerable school districts. conclusion to look forward, some key ideas from past cosmopolitans can help frame the complications of gce and icts. john dewey’s ideal educational mission was not only a social one but also focused on schools and education addressing societal problems. from his school and society lectures, dewey laid out his vision of the relationship between school and greater human society: we must conceive of [schools] in their social significance, as types of the processes by which society keeps itself going, as agencies for bringing home to the child some of the primal necessities of community life, and as ways in which these needs have been met by the growing insight and ingenuity of man; in short, as instrumentalities through which the school itself shall be made a genuine form of active community life…. (dewey, 1907, p. 26) research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 swarts, g.p re/coding global citizenship: how information and communication technologies have altered humanity and created new questions for global citizenship education 80 in dewey’s words, schools must be instruments of solution. in the present, the challenges of society as well as the information revolution are inherently global and immediate, which necessitates a global concert of actors, governments, corporations, and organizations to solve the incredible challenges ahead. gce is uniquely positioned to contribute to societal needs, and icts are tools that can be bent to the task. in the end, either with human beings or machines, the creation of “communities of difference” (tierney & rhodes, 1993) that allow for diverse human perspectives as well as discourse will continue with the utilization of icts. this community of difference ideal allows for the hope for “team intelligence” among humans and machines with different cultural, educational, and civic backgrounds. this collaborative intelligence is, i believe, our hope going forward for gce and education at large. in recent gce scholarship, some ideas have been posited for the utilization of icts to achieve gce goals: harnessing technology to reframe gce as a transnational social movement (torres, 2017a), fostering global citizenship through online research (harshman & augustine, 2013), videogames (marino & hayes, 2012), and creating personal digital narratives (truong-white & mclean, 2015) to upend traditional learning styles and incorporate dialogues present in gce curricula. icts are powerful tools. whether wielded by an authoritarian regime to target a minority population or by cambridge analytica to farm human behavior to impact a national election far beyond what has happened in the past, or utilizing data and icts to share climate change studies, human rights needs, or disaster relief, these technologies have fundamentally altered human existence and interaction. moving forward in reassessing the role that icts can have on gce, scholars and participants can adapt the tenets of gce to the infosphere. gce voices and perspectives can be amplified, but it must be done in a structured and systematic way that can counter and refute nationalism and political divisiveness. up to this point, division based on the tribal impulses of humanity has eclipsed cooperation and compassion. using the organizations and initiatives such as the sustainable development goals of the un, as well as viral movements based in democratic ideals and freedom of expression, and greta thunberg’s protest and legal challenge to raise awareness of climate change inaction, gce values can be amplified through icts to form communities of difference with value-laden agendas that counter hegemonic power structures and cut through the far removed hyperreality of corporate and government messaging. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 swarts, g.p re/coding global citizenship: how information and communication technologies have altered humanity and created new questions for global citizenship education 81 references ai now report. 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(2018, february 26). supreme court to hear arguments in global digital privacy case. politico. retrieved from https://www.politico.com/story/2018/02/26/supreme-court-digital-privacycase-359711 https://www.naacp.org/logout-facebook/ https://www.oecd.org/education/global-competency-for-an-inclusive-world.pdf https://www.oxfam.org.uk/education/who-we-are/what-is-global-citizenship https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2019/02/18/facebook-intentionally-knowingly-violated-uk-privacy-competition-rules-british-lawmakers-say/?noredirect=on https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2019/02/18/facebook-intentionally-knowingly-violated-uk-privacy-competition-rules-british-lawmakers-say/?noredirect=on https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2019/02/18/facebook-intentionally-knowingly-violated-uk-privacy-competition-rules-british-lawmakers-say/?noredirect=on https://www.govtech.com/education/should-students-be-tracked-with-radio-frequency-id-tags-gt.html https://www.govtech.com/education/should-students-be-tracked-with-radio-frequency-id-tags-gt.html https://www.nytimes.com/2019/05/06/technology/europe-tech-censorship.html https://www.nytimes.com/2019/05/06/technology/europe-tech-censorship.html https://www.politico.com/story/2018/02/26/supreme-court-digital-privacy-case-359711 https://www.politico.com/story/2018/02/26/supreme-court-digital-privacy-case-359711 research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 1, 2020 swarts, g.p re/coding global citizenship: how information and communication technologies have altered humanity and created new questions for global citizenship education 85 statista. (2019). global regional internet penetration rates, 2019. retrieved from https://www.statista.com/statistics/269329/penetration-rate-of-the-internetby-region/ swarts, g. p. (2019). the school of “onlife”: how technology and educational data will force us to rethink teaching and learning. teachers college record, commentary. retrieved from http://www.tcrecord.org/content.asp?contentid=22648 tierney, w. g., & rhoads, r. a. (1993). postmodernism and critical theory in higher education: implications for research and practice. higher education: handbook of theory and research, 9, 308-343. torres, c. a. (2017a). global citizenship education: a new global social movement? in theoretical and empirical foundations of critical global citizenship education (pp. 104-140). new york, ny: routledge. torres, c. a. (2017b). theoretical and empirical foundations of critical global citizenship education (vol. 1). new york, ny: routledge. truong-white, h., & mclean, l. (2015). digital storytelling for transformative global citizenship education. canadian journal of education, 38(2), 1-28. unesco. (2019). what is global citizenship education? education 2030 agenda and framework for action. retrieved from https://en.unesco.org/themes/gced/definition van kessel, c., & kline, k. (2019). “if you can’t tell, does it matter?” westworld, the murder of the real, and 21st century schooling. journal of curriculum and pedagogy, 1-21. webb, a. (2019). the big nine: how the tech titans and their thinking machines could warp humanity. new york, ny: public affairs. https://www.statista.com/statistics/269329/penetration-rate-of-the-internet-by-region/ https://www.statista.com/statistics/269329/penetration-rate-of-the-internet-by-region/ http://www.tcrecord.org/content.asp?contentid=22648 https://en.unesco.org/themes/gced/definition research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 bada, a. a., & jita, l. c. e-learning facilities for teaching secondary school physics: awareness, availability and utilization research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 227 e-learning facilities for teaching secondary school physics: awareness, availability and utilization abiodun a. bada*1 & loyiso c. jita1 *corresponding author: bada.aa@ufs.ac.za 1. faculty of education, university of the free state, south africa received : 2021-10-13 revised : 2021-11-22 accepted : 2021-12-10 how to cite this paper: bada, a. a., & jita, l. c. (2021). e-learning facilities for teaching secondary school physics: awareness, availability and utilization. research in social sciences and technology, 6(3), 227-241. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.40 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). abstract secondary school physics contribute significantly to the technological development of a nation because it lays the foundation for further studies in physics. physics is an abstract science subject that relies greatly on practical, and the crucial role played by the use of instructional materials especially, e-learning facilities in this 21st century cannot be over emphasized. this study investigates the awareness, availability and utilization of e-learning facilities among secondary school physics teachers. we adopt the descriptive survey design which involved 78 physics teachers, randomly selected from all the secondary schools in ondo, nigeria. a researcher designed checklist was used to collect data for this study. three research questions were answered using descriptive statistics (frequency, percentage, mean, standard deviation) and the findings from this investigation revealed that physics teachers are aware of most of the e-learning facilities for teaching secondary school physics but only few of these facilities are readily available for teaching physics. this investigation also revealed that only one of these elearning facilities (desktop computer) was utilized by secondary school physics teachers. this study conclude that e-learning facilities were not used in teaching secondary school physics in ondo. based on these findings, physics teachers are encouraged to use the few e-learning facilities that are available in secondary schools. also, government education agencies and school management team are encouraged to further stress the importance of using the available e-learning facilities for teaching secondary school physics through in-service trainings and workshops. keywords: availability; awareness; e-learning facilities; utilization; secondary school physics 10.46303/ressat.2021.40 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.40 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 bada, a. a., & jita, l. c. e-learning facilities for teaching secondary school physics: awareness, availability and utilization research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 228 introduction the study of physics and its application is crucial to the technological development of any nation. however, the adequate teaching of physics at the secondary school has been threatened by disruptions, such as the covid-19 pandemic, which has forced most nations of the world to observe lock down in order to prevent the continuous spread of the highly deadly virus. the effect of this disruption is capable of frustrating the achievement of the objectives of the secondary school physics curriculum. the adverse effect of these disruptions can be alleviated through the use of technology in education because, technology today has turned the world to a global village (oluwalola & awodiji, 2019). not only is the use of technology effective at alleviating the problems of educational disruptions, but it has also provided instructional materials that assist in achieving these objectives with ease and less stress. instructional materials in education context are materials that assist in passing instructions in the classroom. the use of these instructional materials also eases the stress of having to explain and re-explain, thus, making teachers and students to struggle less in the classroom. technology has provided a range of opportunities to leverage and overcome many of the challenges brought by physical disruption in education (tarman et al., 2019). halim et al (2020) argue that the development of education is inseparable from the development of science and technology. skhephe and matashu (2021) further opine that “technology has provided a lot of information in this 21st century than any one person could ever hope to acquire” (p. 268). akanbi (2020) also argue that “technology has become one of the best means for enhancing teaching and learning with or without school premises” (p. 332). this situation presents an advantage over the traditional lecture method otherwise known as face-to-face teaching method, which can be easily disrupted by incessant strike actions, natural disaster, and pandemics such as the covid-19 pandemic. according to shelly et al (2012), “technology can provide the right channel for teachers to nurture higher level thinking in students, especially in the formation of 21st century skills” (p. 211). the advent and use of computer assisted instruction (cai), which is an integral part of technology in education, further attest to the fact that technology in education paves way for development and better innovations. ramma et al (2018) opined that “technology in education is used as a source of information rather than a process based on knowledge construction” (211). this implies that the dividends brought by technology to teaching and learning can be improved on by leveraging fully on its products. for example, kopish and marques (2020) opine that “increase of technology has further brought to reality the possibility of having collaborative work between institutions in different countries” (p. 1). it also allows learners to take a more active role in their learning through the use of different instructional modes. akubueze (2012) argue that “technology encouraged active learning, support teaching, reduce the isolation of teachers and promotes teachers and students in learning and research” (p. 347). ohlin (2019) opine that “technology has made it possible to view the world through a digital lens, and teachers can access this knowledge at will via interactive smartboards (touch boards), or students’ laptops and touchpads/ipads” (p. 43). an important product that technology and cai has brought with it is the development of e-learning facilities. this can further assist in maximizing the benefits that comes with the use of technology in education. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 bada, a. a., & jita, l. c. e-learning facilities for teaching secondary school physics: awareness, availability and utilization research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 229 electronic learning, otherwise referred to as e-learning was developed by jay cross in 1998 (ja’ashan, 2020) and it has continued to metamorphosed up till date. zhang et al (2004) define “e-learning as technology-based learning in which learning materials are delivered electronically to remote learners via a computer network” (p. 76). according to mayadas et al (2009), “the benefits that come with the use of e-learning is that it widens access to education and offers opportunities for pedagogical improvement by instructors” (p. 86). o’brien (2020) opine that “e-learning may be advantageous for physics teaching especially through the use of smartphone, online systems and social medias” (p. 404). this is so because many of these facilities helps to project the adequate teaching and learning of physics in the classrooms. akanbi (2020) argue that “e-learning is the process of teaching and learning with the use of computer via the internet” (p. 331). in what looks like a support for this assertion, oluwalola and awodeji (2019) opine that “e-learning facilities provide productive teaching and learning experiences aimed at increasing capability in management and business course in tertiary institutions” (p. 347). ja’ashan (2020) therefore argue that “e-learning provides a new paradigm and a modern philosophy in teaching with a mission to serve as a development platform from the present day society based on knowledge” (p. 128). e-learning facilities provide the opportunity to leverage on the breakthrough that comes with using technology in education. alabi et al (2012) define e-learning as a “unifying term used to describe the fields of online learning, web-based training and technology delivered instructions” (p. 70). rosenberg (2001) views e-learning as “the appropriate application of the internet to support the delivery of skills and knowledge in a holistic approach not restricted to a particular course, technology or infrastructure” (p. 1). according to garrison (2011), “e-learning is an electronically mediated asynchronous and synchronous communication to construct and confirm knowledge” (p. 2). in this present study, we define e-learning facilities as all those facilities that are connected one-way or the other to the use of technology, to foster effective teaching and learning either in the school or outside the school. e-learning facilities include all electronically powered devices that can assist in ditching out the curriculum content in bits in order to achieve classroom goals and objectives. previous studies on e-learning and its effects on students’ achievement reveal that there is positive impact of its use in education. in tanzania for example, innocent and masue (2020) investigated the “applicability of e-learning on higher learning institutions” (p. 242) and found out that the strong enforcement of an information communication technology (ict) institution policy, well equipped classroom ict facilities and availability of technical experts are among the strategies to ensure effective application of e-learning in higher learning institutions. o’brien (2020) in the united state of america, investigated how to incorporate e-teaching of physics in a post-covid world, by identifying the benefits, barriers and key factors required for its implementation. the researcher discovered that smartphones, which is an important type of e-learning facility can be successfully converted into a learning tool when allowed by teachers. ja’ashan (2020) in his study in saudi arabia investigated “the challenges and prospects of using e-learning among efl students in bisha university” (p. 124) and found out that despite the benefit that e-learning can be used anywhere and anytime, it is currently being faced with the inability to predict academic achievements by all the domains of teaching staff and students. this suggest that academic staff who are responsible for the use of e-learning facilities lack the research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 bada, a. a., & jita, l. c. e-learning facilities for teaching secondary school physics: awareness, availability and utilization research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 230 necessary awareness regarding the integration of software into teaching. oluwalola and awodiji (2019) also investigated the “availability and utilization of e-learning facilities for management and business courses in universities in kwara state” (p. 346) and discovered that e-learning facilities are moderately available in the sampled universities in nigeria, fayomi et al (2015) examine the “impact of e-learning in facilitating students’ performance among private secondary schools and tertiary institutions in ota” and found out that “e-learning facilitated studies significantly improved students’ academic performance, learning process and self-development” (p. 5). they also argue that “e-learning provide an effective means for self-development and facilitates secondary schools and tertiary institutions academic performance” (fayomi et al, 2015, p. 6). eze et al (2018) investigated the “utilization of e-learning facilities in the education system of a university” (p. 1). their study adopted the qualitative approach which involved 65 participants to investigate the utilization of e-learning facilities and found out that e-learning facilities were adequate, available and well utilized by teachers in the sampled university. in another study, eze et al (2020) investigated the “factors influencing the use of e-learning facilities by students in private universities” (p. 1) and noted the degree of engagement of the use of e-learning facilities. the researchers conclude that the use of e-learning in this institution is still not encouraging. literature reveals that a number of studies have been carried out on the extent of availability and the utilization of e-learning facilities in secondary schools in nigeria. samba et al (2010) investigated “science teachers’ awareness and utilization of teaching strategies in secondary schools” (p. 32) and found out that many innovative strategies including computer assisted instruction (cai) were not utilized for teaching science subjects. sambal et al (2010) adopted the descriptive survey design involving 160 science teachers to obtain information on science teachers’ awareness and utilization for innovative teaching and found out that science teachers have not been using modern teaching methods in the classrooms. in another study, ramma et al (2018) used a qualitative approach to investigate the use of technology to teach and learn physics. they investigated the extent to which technology mediated the interaction among parents, students and teachers. the researchers found out that technology moderated collaboration among physics teachers, students and parents within the context of motivation, interest and values. in a more recent study by akanbi (2020) on the” availability and utilization of e-learning facilities in the teaching of senior secondary school physics in ilorin” (p. 331), the researcher found out that almost all the e-learning facilities identified in the study were inadequate and those available were not effectively utilized by teachers. akanbi (2020) conclude that physics teachers should be trained on how to use and maintain e-learning facilities in the various secondary schools. this perhaps suggest that the challenge facing the use of e-learning facilities is that physics teachers are unable to use these facilities. while the above studies have made contributions on the accessibility and applicability of elearning facilities in the universities (eze et al, 2018; eze et al, 2020; innocent & masue, 2020; ja’ashan, 2020) and secondary schools (samba et al, 2010; ramma et al, 2018; akanbi, 2020), this present investigation is unique in the sense that it first sought to find out the level of research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 bada, a. a., & jita, l. c. e-learning facilities for teaching secondary school physics: awareness, availability and utilization research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 231 awareness of these facilities among secondary school physics teachers in ondo. it later proceeds to investigate its availability and utilization in secondary schools. this present study argues that despite the key role played by e-learning facilities in improving students’ achievement, the problem of inadequate awareness both in research, practice and regards to its availability and utilizations in secondary schools in ondo is still a gap that need to be filled in literature (innocent & masue, 2020; akanbi, 2020). this study therefore has three aims: (i) to determine the level of awareness of e-learning facilities among secondary school physics teachers (ii) to determine the e-learning facilities that are available for teaching secondary school physics (iii) to investigate the e-learning facilities that are utilized for teaching secondary school physics. research questions in line with the aims of this study, we ask the following research questions: • what is the level of awareness of e-learning facilities among secondary school physics teachers? • what e-learning facilities are available for teaching secondary school physics? • what e-learning facilities are utilized for teaching secondary school physics? method this study is a quantitative research which adopt the descriptive survey design. aggarwal and ranganathan (2019) define descriptive study “as one that is designed to describe the distribution of one or more variables, without regard to any causal or other hypothesis” (p. 34). nassaji (2015) and navarro-patón et al (2020) have used this design in their studies and found it appropriate for describing events without any manipulation. the method used in this study is discussed under the following headings: participants, instrument, procedure for data collection, and data analysis. participants all the secondary school physics teachers in ondo, nigeria represent the population for this study. there are 57 (32 schools in ondo west local government area, 12 schools in ondo east local government area, 12 private secondary schools) approved secondary schools in ondo, nigeria. out of this population, only 46 secondary schools participated in this study. the participating schools were selected using simple random sampling technique. the selected sample represent 80.7% of the total population of secondary school physics teachers in ondo. a total of 78 physics teachers gave consent and participated in this investigation. the participants were 64 (82.0%) males and 14 (18.0%) females, and their ages range between 22 and 58 years. instrument a researcher designed checklist was used for this study. the checklist is titled; awareness, availability and utilization of e-learning facilities for teaching physics. the items that make up the checklist were compiled from the available literature on e-learning facilities that can be used for teaching physics. the final draft of the checklist is made up of three sections. the first section deals with awareness of e-learning facilities that can be used to teach physics among research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 bada, a. a., & jita, l. c. e-learning facilities for teaching secondary school physics: awareness, availability and utilization research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 232 secondary school physics teachers. this first section adopt the likert scale designed on two scales, aware (a) and not aware (na). the second section provides statement on how accessible these facilities are, and it was designed on a five-point likert scale comprising highly available (ha), available (a), moderately available (ma), fairly available (fa), not available (na). the third section focus on the application of these facilities during secondary school physics teaching. this section is also structured on a five-point likert scale namely, highly utilized (hu), utilized (u), moderately utilized (mu), fairly utilized (fu). the validity of the instrument was achieved through engagement with three experts in curriculum and instruction, from adeyemi college of education ondo. the experts conducted face and content validation to ensure that the instrument has the capacity to measure what it is designed to measure. the suggestions of the validators were duly accepted and effected before adopting the final draft. the reliability of the checklist was achieved by administering the instrument to five secondary school physics teachers who were not part of the sample used in this study. a reliability coefficient of 0.82 obtained through cronbach alpha confirmed that the instrument is consistent and can be trusted to measure what it is designed to measure. procedure for data collection copies of the checklists were personally administered by the researchers to the participants during 2020 coordination/marking exercise organised by the west african examination council for physics examiners in ondo, nigeria, after their consent were sought to take part in this study. a total of 78 secondary school physics teachers from 46 secondary schools in ondo agreed to be part of this study. the administration of the instrument took place after completing day 2 of the coordination exercise. the coordination/marking exercise brings together secondary school physics teachers in ondo who would serve as examiners for the examination body. the west african examination council (waec) is an international examination body saddled with the responsibility of conducting senior school certificate examinations in the west african countries of ghana, nigeria, sierra leone, gambia and liberia. all the participants who gave consent completed the checklist and the researchers immediately retrieved the completed checklist. data analysis the data collected from this investigation was analysed using descriptive statistics. microsoft excel spread sheet package was used in computing the data obtained from the study. research question one was answered using frequency count and simple percentage while research questions two and three were analysed using mean and standard deviation. participants responded to the checklist by selecting one option from the range of options already provided in the checklist. the responses from the participants were analysed by allocating values to the options. the following grading system was adopted: highly available (ha) = 5, available (a) = 4, moderately available (ma) = 3, fairly available (fa) =2, not available (na =1). in a similar fashion, highly utilized (hu) =5, utilized (u) =4, moderately utilized (mu) =3, fairly utilized (fu) =2, not utilized (nu) =1. the mean and standard deviation value of each of the e-learning facilities were calculated using microsoft excel spreadsheet 365. for the decision rule, a mean value less than 2.50 implies that the e-learning facility is not available while a mean value equal or greater than 2.50 implies that the e-learning facility is available. a similar decision rule was adopted for research question three such that, a mean value less than 2.50 implies that the e research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 bada, a. a., & jita, l. c. e-learning facilities for teaching secondary school physics: awareness, availability and utilization research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 233 learning facility is not utilized in the secondary school while a mean value equal or greater than 2.50 implies that the e-learning facility is utilized for teaching physics at the secondary school. findings and discussion research question 1: what is the level of awareness of e-learning facilities among secondary school physics teachers? table 1 shows the level of awareness of e-learning facilities among physics teachers in secondary schools in ondo, nigeria. table 1 reveals that all the participants were aware of desktop computers, internet facilities/network, laptop computers, local area network, megaphone, memory cards, phones, photocopier machines, printers, scanners, radios, televisions and video tapes, as e-learning facilities that can be used for teaching secondary school physics. more than half of the participants also revealed that they are aware of the following 14 e-learning facilities. this include audio tapes (92.3%), cd writers (97.4%), digital camera (97.4%), e-mails (78.2%), flash drives (83.3%), hard disk drives (53.8%), ipads (88.5%), modems (93.6%), podcasting (53.8%), power point software (74.4%), projection screen (87.2%), projectors (83.3%), video recorders (97.4%) and wifi (98.7%). more than half of the participants were not aware that facilities such as e-book readers (84.6%), flexible learning toolbox (87.2%), ilearn (88.5%), respondus/software (84.6%), virtual classroom (84.6%), virtual library (76.9%) can be used for teaching secondary school physics. the result from this investigation revealed that out of a total number of 36 e-learning facilities that make up the checklist, physics teachers are aware of 27 e-learning facilities (75.0%). this implies that physics teachers are aware of these e-learning facilities for teaching physics. this result agrees with sambal et al (2010) who found out that most science teachers especially physics teachers, are aware of computer assisted instruction (cai) which is an integral part of the use of technology in education. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 bada, a. a., & jita, l. c. e-learning facilities for teaching secondary school physics: awareness, availability and utilization research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 234 table 1. e-learning awareness among secondary school physics teachers s/n e-learning facilities aware (n) aware (%) not aware (n) not aware ( %) 1 audio tapes 72 92.3 6 7.7 2 cd writer 76 97.4 2 2.6 3 desktop computer 78 100.0 4 digital camera 76 97.4 2 2.6 5 emails 61 78.2 17 21.8 6 e-book readers 12 15.4 66 84.6 7 flash drive 65 83.3 13 16.7 8 flexible learning toolbox 10 12.8 68 87.2 9 hard disk drives 42 53.8 36 46.2 10 interactive white board 34 43.6 44 56.4 11 internet facility/network 78 100.0 12 ilearn 9 11.5 69 88.5 13 ipad 69 88.5 9 11.5 14 laptop computer 78 100.0 15 local area network 78 100.0 16 megaphone 78 100.0 17 memory card 78 100.0 18 modem 73 93.6 5 6.4 19 phone 78 100.0 20 photocopier machine 78 100.0 21 printer 78 100.0 22 podcasting 42 53.8 36 46.2 23 power point software 58 74.4 20 25.6 24 projection screen 68 87.2 10 12.8 25 projector 65 83.3 13 16.7 26 radio 78 100.0 27 respondus /software 12 15.4 66 84.6 28 scanners 78 100.0 29 television 78 100.0 30 video conferencing 38 48.7 40 51.3 31 video recorder 76 97.4 2 2.6 32 video tape 78 100.0 33 virtual classroom 12 15.4 66 84.6 34 virtual library 18 23.1 60 76.9 35 voice over internet 34 43.6 44 56.4 36 wifi 77 98.7 1 1.3 research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 bada, a. a., & jita, l. c. e-learning facilities for teaching secondary school physics: awareness, availability and utilization research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 235 research question 2: what e-learning facilities are available for teaching secondary school physics? table 2. e-learning facilities available for teaching secondary school physics s/n e-learning facilities mean std. dev remark 1 audio tapes 1.36 0.64 not available 2 cd writer 2.47 1.11 not available 3 desktop computer 3.82 1.21 available 4 digital camera 2.37 1.32 not available 5 emails 2.32 1.25 not available 6 e-book readers 2.24 1.15 not available 7 flash drive 2.64 1.23 available 8 flexible learning toolbox 1.49 0.64 not available 9 hard disk drives 2.21 1.11 not available 10 interactive white board 2.53 1.20 available 11 internet facility/network 1.74 1.21 not available 12 ilearn 1.83 1.33 not available 13 ipad 1.83 1.12 not available 14 laptop computer 1.78 1.06 not available 15 local area network 1.53 1.09 not available 16 megaphone 1.73 1.26 not available 17 memory card 1.38 0.84 not available 18 modem 2.96 1.17 available 19 phone 2.60 1.39 available 20 photocopier machine 2.51 1.19 available 21 printer 1.71 1.04 not available 22 podcasting 1.47 0.91 not available 23 power point software 1.91 1.24 not available 24 projection screen 2.26 1.17 not available 25 projector 1.88 0.99 not available 26 radio 1.37 0.74 not available 27 respondus /software 1.41 0.65 not available 28 scanners 1.78 0.62 not available 29 television 2.09 1.13 not available 30 video conferencing 1.47 1.02 not available 31 video recorder 1.18 0.39 not available 32 video tape 1.59 1.04 not available 33 virtual classroom 1.13 0.41 not available 34 virtual library 1.21 0.14 not available 35 voice over internet 1.67 0.38 not available 36 wifi 2.05 1.09 not available decision rule: mean value < 2.50 = not available, mean value ≥ 2.50 = available research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 bada, a. a., & jita, l. c. e-learning facilities for teaching secondary school physics: awareness, availability and utilization research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 236 table 2 shows the facilities that are available for use in teaching secondary school physics. table 2 reveals that only six of these e-learning facilities on the checklist (desktop computers, flash drive, interactive white board, modems, phones, photocopier machines) were available for teaching secondary school physics. this translates to 17.0% availability of these e-learning facilities while the remaining facilities (83.0%) were not available for use during the teaching of physics in the sampled secondary schools (figure 1). the finding of this study aligns with atsumbe et al (2012) who found out that e-learning facilities are not available in the universities not to talk of secondary schools. the result from this research is also not different from the findings of aboderin and kumuyi (2013) because they reported shortage in the availability of elearning facilities that can be used to implement the curriculum in secondary schools in ondo state, nigeria. this unavailability or shortage in e-learning can affect the realization of the objectives for teaching physics in the secondary schools. this is because physics is an abstract science that relies greatly on practical for students to understand concepts very well. the use of instructional facilities such as e-learning facilities is crucial to reducing this abstract nature of physics in order to guarantee meaning learning. figure 1. availability of e-learning facilities research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 bada, a. a., & jita, l. c. e-learning facilities for teaching secondary school physics: awareness, availability and utilization research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 237 research question 3: what e-learning facilities are utilized for teaching secondary school physics? table 3. utilization of e-learning facilities for teaching physics s/n e-learning facilities mean std. dev remark 1 audio tapes 1.27 0.62 not utilized 2 cd writer 1.95 0.92 not utilized 3 desktop computer 3.19 1.41 utilized 4 digital camera 1.37 0.79 not utilized 5 emails 1.96 0.95 not utilized 6 e-book readers 1.69 1.06 not utilized 7 flash drive 2.31 1.25 not utilized 8 flexible learning toolbox 1.24 0.49 not utilized 9 hard disk drives 1.92 0.89 not utilized 10 interactive white board 2.05 1.07 not utilized 11 internet facility/network 1.41 0.76 not utilized 12 ilearn 1.28 0.78 not utilized 13 ipad 1.47 0.83 not utilized 14 laptop computer 1.47 0.64 not utilized 15 local area network 1.28 0.51 not utilized 16 megaphone 1.29 0.62 not utilized 17 memory card 1.18 0.38 not utilized 18 modem 2.27 1.05 not utilized 19 phone 2.17 0.97 not utilized 20 photocopier machine 2.10 0.79 not utilized 21 printer 1.42 0.61 not utilized 22 podcasting 1.17 0.44 not utilized 23 power point software 1.33 0.75 not utilized 24 projection screen 1.71 0.76 not utilized 25 projector 1.55 0.59 not utilized 26 radio 1.13 0.34 not utilized 27 respondus /software 1.18 0.45 not utilized 28 scanners 1.56 0.52 not utilized 29 television 1.74 0.91 not utilized 30 video conferencing 1.22 0.57 not utilized 31 video recorder 1.10 0.31 not utilized 32 video tape 1.27 0.59 not utilized 33 virtual classroom 1.00 0.00 not utilized 34 virtual library 1.00 0.00 not utilized 35 voice over internet 1.13 0.34 not utilized 36 wifi 1.67 0.88 not utilized decision rule: mean value < 2.50 = not utilized, mean value ≥ 2.50 = utilized research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 bada, a. a., & jita, l. c. e-learning facilities for teaching secondary school physics: awareness, availability and utilization research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 238 the result on table 3 shows that only desktop computer was used for teaching physics in the sampled secondary schools. the remaining facilities were not utilized by physics teachers to teach secondary school physics. this accounts for only 3.0% utilization of e-learning facilities while 97.0% of the e-learning facilities were not utilized in teaching secondary school physics (figure 2). table 3 reveals that all the e-learning facilities (with the exemption of desktop computer) have a mean value less than 2.50, which is the decision rule for utilization. this finding shows that secondary school physics teachers in ondo do not utilize e-learning facilities to teach physics. the result of this study agrees with the findings of akanbi (2020) who also found out that physics teachers in senior secondary schools in ilorin did not utilize e-learning facilities when teaching physics. this result is also in agreement with atsumbe et al (2012) who reported similar case in the tertiary education level. this implies that the inadequate utilization of e-learning still persists despite the development of technology in education, information communication and technology (ict), and the proliferations of e-learning facilities. the novelty of this study is that it provides empirical evidence for the use of one e-learning facility (desktop computer) in teaching secondary school physics as against the findings of akanbi (2020) who reported the non-utilization of all the e-learning facilities (desktop computer inclusive). the use of e-learning facilities to teach secondary school physics still requires a lot of improvement because the use of only one e-learning facility would probably give a low significance in terms of utilization. this finding further suggest the low utilization of e-learning facilities in secondary school physics teaching irrespective of school location. figure 2. utilization of e-learning facilities research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 bada, a. a., & jita, l. c. e-learning facilities for teaching secondary school physics: awareness, availability and utilization research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 239 conclusion this study investigated the awareness, availability and utilization of e-learning facilities among secondary school physics teachers in ondo. despite the awareness of the e-learning facilities that can be used for teaching physics, the result from this study revealed that many of these facilities are not readily available for teaching physics in the secondary schools. the findings from this study shows that only six facilities were availability for teaching secondary school physics leaving out 30 other facilities that could have been appropriately used for teaching secondary school physics. the results from this study revealed that only one out of these elearning facilities (desktop computer) was utilized by secondary school teachers to teach physics. this finding is considered novel because it provides empirical evidence for the use of desktop computer when teaching secondary school physics because previous studies had reported a total non-utilization of e-learning facilities in physics teaching. the inadequate availability and utilization of these facilities can spell doom for the realization of the objectives for teaching secondary school physics especially in this 21st century. the result of this investigation is an eye opener to the poor integration level of technology into teaching secondary school physics in ondo, despite the proliferation of technology, its devices and its products. based on the findings from this study, the following recommendations were considered appropriate. • physics teachers should be encouraged to update their knowledge on the relevant elearning facilities that can be used for teaching secondary school physics. • physics teachers should be encouraged to adequately utilize the few e-learning facilities that are accessible for teaching senior secondary school physics. • government through its agencies and/or school management team should organise inservice training and workshops for physics teachers on the need to be better aware and to utilize the available e-learning facilities for teaching physics. • more efforts should be made by government through its agency and/or school management team to provide e-learning facilities for teaching secondary school physics. references aboderin, o. s., & kumuyi, g. j. 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(2021). the use of technology in accounting classrooms during covid-19: what do accounting teachers in the eastern cape, south africa, have to say? research in social sciences and technology, 6(2), 267-278. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.30 tarman, b., kilinc, e. & aydin, (2019). barriers to the effective use of technology integration in social studies education, contemporary issues in technology and teacher education, 19(4), retrieved from https://www.citejournal.org/proofing/barriers-to-the-effective-use-of-technologyintegration-in-social-studies-education/ zhang, d., zhao, j. l., zhou, l., & nunamaker, j. f. (2004). can e-learning replace classroom learning? communications of the acm, 47(5), 75-79. https://doi.org/10.1145/986213.986216 https://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1362168815572747 https://doi.org/10.14198/jhse.2022.173.03 https://doi.org/10.1080/20004508.2017.1343606 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.30 https://www.citejournal.org/proofing/barriers-to-the-effective-use-of-technology-integration-in-social-studies-education/ https://www.citejournal.org/proofing/barriers-to-the-effective-use-of-technology-integration-in-social-studies-education/ https://doi.org/10.1145/986213.986216 research in social sciences and technology https://ressat.org e-issn: 2468-6891 volume: 8 issue: 1 2023 pp. 1-15 strategic devises to enhance accounting cash journals content knowledge of economic and management sciences teachers mojakgomo david moloia, habasisa vincent molise*b & malose isaac kolab * corresponding author email: vincent.molise@ul.ac.za a. koos mota intermediate school, phuthaditjhaba, south africa b. faculty of education, university of limpopo, polokwane, south africa article info received: april 5, 2022 accepted: august 9, 2022 published: april 25, 2023 how to cite moloi, m. d., molise, h.v. & kola, m. i. (2023). strategic devises to enhance accounting cash journals content knowledge of economic and management sciences teachers. research in social sciences and technology, 8(1), 1-15. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2023.1 copyright license this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (cc by 4.0). note this article is based on a dissertation written by mojakgomo david moloi, with the title, “enhancing professional curriculum practice in a grade 9 economic and management sciences class”, submitted at the university of the free state. abstract this paper investigated the strategic devices that can be used to enhance the accounting cash journals content knowledge (acjck) of grade 9 economic and management sciences (ems) teachers. the study was qualitative, with three participants selected from one rural school in the thabo-mofutsanyane education district. the interviews were used to gather information regarding the strategic devices that can be used to enhance the acjck of ems teachers. the data were then analysed using thematic analysis. finally, the study revealed the following findings: create professional learning communities to enhance cash journals content knowledge and ensuring collaborative lesson planning and preparation of cash journals. the findings suggest that collaborative team teaching must be used to accommodate novice teachers, and continuous training workshops and cluster workshops should also be used to increase teachers’ level of understanding to address the inherent cash journal content knowledge misconceptions. keywords cash journals; content knowledge; accounting teaching; financial literacy; strategic devices. 10.46303/ressat.2023.1 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2023.1 2 ressat 2023, 8(1): 1-15 introduction the paper aimed to explore the strategic devices that can be used to enhance the accounting cash journals content knowledge (acjck) of grade 9 economic and management sciences (ems) teachers. according to moloi (2018), acjck, “is a specialized knowledge of accounting journals used to record immediate entries of both receipts and expenditures” while acjc “refers to the content based on the cash journals in accounting”. despite efforts in south africa to improve subject content knowledge and collaborative teaching by teachers, “some local ems teachers still resist teaching in collaboration and teach the subject they did not specialize in”, which results in “poor subject content knowledge delivery” (chang et al., 2020; feldman, 2016; mkhize & maistry, 2017; van wyk, 2015a). despite the available strategies, the successful teaching of acjc “is hindered by certain risks, such as some teachers’ resistance to working together” (espey, 2018; myrberg et al., 2018); instead, they prefer individual practice (weidman & deming, 2020; bargate & maistry, 2015). some teachers, “particularly those close to retirement age, excuse themselves from professional development opportunities and see no need to acquire new skills” (chang et al., 2020). in gudmundsdottir and hatlevik’s study, subject advisers claimed that teachers should attend professional development workshops (2018). the successful implementation of acjck in ems necessitates the special skills required for teamwork and collaboration (ainsworth, 2021). therefore, the researchers intended to explore the strategic devices that can be used to enhance the accounting cash journals content knowledge (acjck) of grade 9 economic and management sciences (ems) teachers. research questions the paper aims to investigate the strategic devices that can be used to enhance the acjck of grade 9 ems teachers. this study sought to answer the following research questions: • how can the establishment of professional learning communities enhance the teaching of accounting cash journals content knowledge of grade 9 ems teachers? • what form of collaborative lesson planning and preparation is needed for effective teaching of accounting cash journals content knowledge of grade 9 ems teachers? theoretical framework this section reviews the literature on the strategic devices that can be used to enhance the accounting cash journals content knowledge (acjck) of grade 9 economic and management sciences (ems) teachers. however, some ems teachers remain challenged to address appropriate cash journal content misconceptions when teaching accounting (molise, 2020). the literature contends that if teachers are not self-confident and adequately prepared to teach the accounting cash journals, they will not succeed in making learners motivated to learn accounting (modise & letlhoenyo, 2020; van wyk, 2015a). to address the problem of insufficient content knowledge, ems teachers need to establish professional learning communities (plcs) and work collaboratively when teaching accounting cash journals. however, the lack of teacher 3 ressat 2023, 8(1): 1-15 collaboration leads to mammoth challenges, especially when teachers teach solo instead of in teams to share the best practices in teaching ems (myende & nhlumayo, 2020). professional learning communities according to weidman and deming (2020), through networks of partnership, teachers can discuss and share information, correct misconceptions, and adopt good pedagogical practices. ainsworth also notes that teachers learn better when they learn together (2021). teachers tend to follow and adopt what works during training programs. a study in america found that distance learning is useful for bringing new ideas into practice. it has led to school networks emerging, working together and independently of government (such as the great schools network), and schools working in partnership with universities (carson & mennenga, 2019). furthermore, the government funds teachers who take courses at the national institute of education as part of master’s degrees for curriculum specialists, mentors, and school principals (darling-hammond et al., 2009). in nigeria, the national teachers’ institute was the first institution established by the federal government to specifically provide distance education courses designed to upgrade under-qualified and unqualified teachers (mcklin et al., 2019). the national teachers’ institute and government offer update and upgrade courses for teachers using workshops, seminars, and conferences, as programmes that would improve the quality and content of education in the country (mcklin et al., 2019). universities are involved, to sustain and implement these programs. the programs bring teachers from across the country together and teach them about useful methodologies that could enhance practice (bada & jita, 2022; kuhn et al., 2016). during these programs, experts offer solutions to problems encountered in pedagogical practice. the authors argue that these programs focus on assisting teachers to enhance their practices and improve their qualifications. the department of education in zimbabwe offers scholarships to teachers who seek to further their education (shadreck, 2012). distance education institutions offer teachers professional qualifications. most programs offered at higher institutions of learning, aim to improve teachers’ practices by engaging with changes in pedagogy. during the programs, teachers are given opportunities to make presentations; in so doing they are empowered about ways in which they can improve the delivery of content (chaffer & webb, 2017). in south africa, the doe offers full-time and part-time bursaries to permanent employees who wish to continue their studies. fundza lushaka bursaries are also awarded to matriculants who meet fundza lushaka requirements, who have the required university entry points, and who are willing to take up teaching as a career (mukeredzi, 2016; van der berg et al., 2011). some universities offer bursaries and loans to professionals who wish to acquire an advanced certificate in education (ace) to enhance their content and pedagogical knowledge in ems (assan & lumadi, 2012; modise & letlhoenyo, 2020). these curriculum programs contribute to the existing body of knowledge (subject content knowledge), while training in leadership and management contributes to professional development (dialogue, collaboration) (ainsworth, 2021). research 4 ressat 2023, 8(1): 1-15 programs identify and address challenges encountered in acjck (qhosola, 2015). the researchers contend that international university distance learning programs are similar to those offered in african countries. collaborative lesson planning and preparation teaching through collaboration is important in acjck, as it enables teachers to support and develop each other. it also strengthens teacher subject knowledge and, thereby, improves their practice (bentley & cazaly, 2015). collaborative learning permits teachers to become experts in one lesson’s content and to share it with few colleagues (van wyk, 2015a). teacher collaboration can be encouraged amongst veterans, or between veterans and novice teachers. a novice pre-service teacher is a teacher with less than five years of teaching experience (carson & mennenga, 2019). novice teachers should attend cluster workshops for subject knowledge development (modise, 2016). such workshops will enable teachers to network with colleagues from surrounding schools and to share ideas and discuss common problems (molise, 2020; pillay, 2014; sibanda & marongwe, 2022). subject advisors have a role to develop networks between experienced and novice teachers. we argue that the school seems to be the context for professional learning among teachers in terms of social and psychological growth. molise (2020) also notes that schools can be professional learning communities (feldman, 2016), in which teachers collaboratively learn from one another and develop their knowledge and skills. in the state of tennessee, in the united states, the lincoln department of education facilitates teacher collaboration. also in the united states, the national staff development council recognizes collaboration among teachers as a foundation for teachers’ development and for improving learning (carson & mennenga, 2019). during the collaboration, teams of teachers work together, planning lessons, reviewing learners’ work, comparing learners’ work in different classes, and trying to understand why certain pedagogies seem to be more effective than others (myende & nhlumayo, 2020). three-quarters of teachers in the united states indicated that they have formal opportunities for collaborative planning with others (darlinghammond et al., 2009). the zimbabwe department of education performs continuous workshop training to enhance the quality of teaching and learning at schools (mercy & mabhanda, 2015). upon returning to school, a school delegate is expected to convey information and skills gained to colleagues who were not part of the programs. collaboration provides “a space for learning with and from each other, and creating, reflecting on, and sharing teacher knowledge” (mukeredzi, 2016). it creates “an opportunity for experts and novices to learn together in a supportive environment that promotes collaboration, reflection, and gradual acculturation into the teaching profession” (makoelle, 2014). the focus of these programs is to enable teachers to discuss, share and assist one another to bridge the gap between novice and veteran teachers (myende & bhengu, 2015). novice teachers “get support from more experienced teachers through various forms of professional development. collegial collaboration between new and experienced teachers takes place in the form of collaborative teams” (myende & nhlumayo, 2020). 5 ressat 2023, 8(1): 1-15 in south africa, “cluster workshops are a driving force behind teacher collaboration. clustering schools allow teachers to meet, view, and share their practices and to acquire new knowledge and skills (molise, 2020). collaboration in teaching and learning allows teachers to explore and acquire new skills and use one another’s strengths to complement their knowledge and skills”, with the broader aim of enhancing acjck (volkov & volkov, 2015). teachers also share ideas about pedagogical practices and develop innovative ways to teach the cash journals content (cjc) and facilitate learners’ understanding (ngwenya, 2016). active collaboration by teachers helps to identify problems encountered and to develop strategies to enhance acjck. molise (2015) suggests that “teachers of the same grade level should get together to share ideas, swap materials, and/or team-teach. interaction among teachers at the same level can take place even when they teach at different schools. novice teachers benefit, as they observe and learn from experienced teachers. they also connect and develop friendships with other school teachers – this is one of the purposes of collaboration”. critical pedagogy as a lens this study is underpinned by the critical pedagogy framework. critical pedagogy was “initially propounded by paulo freire and later supported by wolfgang klafki, henry giroux, michael apple, joel kincheloe, peter maclaren, ira shor, and patti lather” (mahlomaholo, 2009). critical pedagogy is an appropriate approach to teaching and learning; it intends to “transform relations of power by liberating the downtrodden, oppressed, and marginalized, and to humanize and empower them to achieve social change” (dube & hlalele, 2018; dube et al., 2023). the critical pedagogy approach was inspired by marxist critical theory, which challenges "domination", and undermines beliefs and practices that dominate (malebese et al., 2019). critical pedagogy “aims to pursue fuller humanity, social emancipation, and transformation, led by the oppressed, such as the ems teachers as they struggle with the acjck” (nkoane, 2012). it also seeks emancipation from any form of oppression; this emancipation leads to social change (myende & bhengu, 2015). critical pedagogy is an appropriate theoretical framework for conceptualizing the acjc, as it focuses on transforming relations of power, marginalization, and oppressive tendencies, to empower social change (qhosola, 2015). this theoretical framework helped the researchers to view challenges associated with acjck, to explore effective strategic devices for transformation. this theory is relevant for this research because it is situated within discourses that struggle against any form of social oppression, and it appeals for consciousness, equality, liberation, and emancipation, as articulated by critical pedagogy (mahlomaholo, 2009; qhosola, 2015). critical pedagogy is relevant to this research, because “it gives voice to the voiceless and power to the powerless, and stimulates change” (nkoane, 2015). dube and hlalele (2018) reveal that emancipatory education “aims to create an atmosphere of open expression; education takes place in a manner that works to create consciousness. therefore, to expedite social change, education liberation calls for race, ethnicity, socio-economic class, religion, and nationality to be respected” (mahlomaholo, 2009). in this research, emancipation enables ems 6 ressat 2023, 8(1): 1-15 teachers to confront any form of oppression in the teaching of accounting, to eliminate dominant power structures that impose strategies that teachers can use in their lessons. emancipatory education “permits people to eliminate dominating conditions that make them responding objects so that they can become active participants” (myende & nhlumayo, 2020). the above-mentioned principles of critical pedagogy strengthen the path of this research, since it allows ems teachers to work through self-initiated strategies to deal with inherent content knowledge misconceptions (modise, 2016). openness and social collaboration create acjck that is conducive to learning, whereby individuals and groups act together to achieve social consciousness about any dominant systems. it also gives voice to collaboration within the pedagogic situation (makoelle, 2014). the absence of social change results in ineffective acjck. therefore, some teachers will work to teach the pace-setter and fail to attend to the needs of vulnerable pupils, which results in an absence of dialogue, and poor curriculum practice. this situation is often associated with the number of activities, instead of the quality of teaching (mkhize & maistry, 2017). critical pedagogy’s emphasis on social change is likely to transform acjck in grade 9 ems. hlalele (2018) advocates for “pedagogies of engagement, life, and hope, which aim to break down barriers of domination. this approach empowers people who struggle to achieve liberation, with a pedagogy of engagement”. methodology design the study adopted a participatory action learning and action research (palar) methodology, since palar equalizes collaboration among the researcher and participants (nkoane, 2012; ainsworth, 2021), to identify the needs, decide on the best course of action, implement the action, evaluate it and then decide what further action to take, based on participants’ critical reflection upon the process (mahlomaholo, 2009). participants identify their problems and propose their solutions, and learn from concrete experience and critical reflection on that experience (dube & hlalele, 2018), as they work to achieve the common good (qhosola, 2015). all the participants in the research were encouraged to examine strategies devised to enhance acjck in a grade 9 ems class critically. participants needed to be aware of each other’s viewpoints in data generation, because palar justifies a feeling of emancipation (nkoane, 2015). when all the angles of a situation are being investigated, a teacher will immediately sense a feeling of fulfilment and emancipation from feelings of fear. palar follows a cycle similar to any other participatory action research, that is, collaborative identification of needs, deciding on the best course of action, implementing the action, evaluating it and then deciding what further action to take, based on participants’ critical reflection upon the process (myende & nhlumayo, 2020). recruitment and selection of participants the participants were 3 grade 9 ems teachers in one rural school at thabo-mofutsanyane education district. the participants were recruited based on “the knowledge, interests, and 7 ressat 2023, 8(1): 1-15 support they have regarding acjck” (myende & bhengu, 2015). therefore, the participants were selected purposively based on the experience they had and the fact that they were teaching ems in the same school. the three participants were profiled as follows: thabo (pseudonym), the hod, is responsible for planning and managing the work of ems teachers. the hod of tlotlo (pseudonym) intermediate school started teaching in kwa-zulu natal in 1997 (grades 4-7); in 2003 he continued teaching (grades 8-9) at another school. in 2004 he moved to another school to teach (grades 4-7), and in 2005 he was appointed at the same post level to teach grades 4-7. in 2012, he was promoted to hod (grades 7-9) where he is still working. he has 20 years of experience in his teaching career. mapule (pseudonym) is the senior teacher who started teaching in1984 at the intermediate phase (grades 7-9). in 1989 she continued teaching at another school, in the primary phase (grades r-6). in 1990 she returned to teaching intermediate phase (grade 7-9), and this is where she was still teaching at the time of the study. she has 34 years of experience in her teaching career. lefa (pseudonym) is the junior teacher who participated in this study. he started teaching in 2004 at senior phase (grades 10-12) as a volunteer teacher. in 2004 he switched to teaching as a temporary teacher at the intermediate phase (grades 7-9). in 2006 he was appointed in a permanent post for the intermediate phase (grades 7-9), where he was still working at the time of the study. he has 16 years of experience in his teaching career. the professional experience of participants ranged from 5 to 25 years in the field of education. this range of experience helped to obtain viewpoints from participants regarding the teaching and learning of cash journals (cj) at their school. data collection the interviews were used to collect data on the strategic devices that the ems teachers can use to enhance the accounting cash journals content knowledge (acjck). the interviews were used to probe the teachers’ experiences (ngwenya, 2016) regarding the strategic devices to enhance the acjck of ems teachers. a video recorder was used to record the participants’ answers. the use of a video recorder enabled the researchers to capture the feelings, emotions and experiences of the participants as they were responding to the interview questions (makoelle, 2014). it was possible for the researchers to play the recordings back and forth using a video recorder which would have been impossible with other data generation techniques. each interview lasted for 55 minutes. the interviews with the participants were done in sesotho and the answers were translated into english by the researchers. data analysis thematic analysis (ta) was used to analyse the generated data (dube & hlalele, 2018). data were then transcribed, coded and categorized into various themes regarding the strategic devices that can be used to enhance the acjck of economic and management sciences teachers. the themes were sent back to the participants to verify the data to ensure validity and member checking (dube & hlalele, 2018) when discussing the strategic devices that can be used to 8 ressat 2023, 8(1): 1-15 enhance the acjck of ems teachers. the ethical clearance (with number: ufs-hsd 2016/1370) was obtained from the university of the free state and permission to conduct the study was sought and granted by the free state department of basic education (fsdobe). informed consent was also obtained from all participants regarding their participation in the research study (ngwenya, 2016). to ensure confidentiality and anonymity (modise & letlhoenyo, 2020), pseudonyms were used in place of the participants’ real names, including the school (van wyk, 2015a). results and discussion this section presents and discusses the results regarding the strategic devices that can be used to enhance the acjck of grade 9 ems teachers. the study sought to answer the following research question: what are the strategic devices that can be used to enhance the acjck of grade 9 ems teachers. data were collected and analysed in accordance with the question and resulted in the following themes, namely creating professional learning communities to enhance cash journals content knowledge and ensuring collaborative lesson planning and preparation of cash journals. these themes and their key-related codes are summarized in table 1 below and described with key-related quotes from the participants. the findings are also discussed in line with the research question of the study. table 1: themes and related codes theme 1: creating professional learning communities to enhance cash journals content knowledge the literature revealed that professional learning communities (plcs) enabled teachers to discuss and share information, correct misconceptions, and adopt good pedagogical practices (van wyk, 2015a). ainsworth (2021) also noted that “teachers learn better when they learn themes key-related codes creating professional learning communities team teaching insufficient subject content-knowledge mismatch of teacher-learner ratio workshops to support teacher development specialization in ems teacher collaboration collaborative lesson planning and preparation collaborative teaching help teachers improve their teaching style class visits immediate feedback opportunities for lesson planning group work lesson demonstration 9 ressat 2023, 8(1): 1-15 together. teachers tend to follow and adopt what works during training programs”. the participants had this to say: thabo said: “team teaching is indeed necessary”. ems teachers are eager to collaborate and to adopt the best teaching strategies that could lead to teachers delivering subject content effectively. sharing knowledge and skills is useful for enhancing the acjck of teachers who are willing to converge in one place to discuss a common cause. grounded in this, mapule said: “i agreed with what has been said, insufficient subject content knowledge is a challenge, as i can teach theory well but the accounting part it is difficult. due to the mismatch of the teacher-learner ratio we are overloaded with subjects and must teach many subjects”. lefa added: “the workshops to support teacher development are held after hours, with limited time, close to one hour”. mapule continued to add that: “the problem of specialization contributes a lot to challenges in ems. teachers’ collaboration is disturbed by challenges, whereby we are always in class teaching, and no one has time to visit and team teach with each other to address individual problems”. from the participants’ words above, it is evident that ems teachers must be supported through professional development workshops, especially on the cash journal content. however, these workshops need to be organized during normal schooling days so that all teachers can be able to attend without being challenged with external factors such as transport and parenting. teachers must not be allowed to teach outside their subject major and appropriate subject allocation should be made dependent on whether teachers have at least accounting, economics, and business studies up to second-year level for them to effectively teach ems. similarly, teachers should be encouraged to establish networks of practice with other teachers teaching the same subject to share best practices in the subject. the literature mentions a few possible issues that are important for the success of this study. firstly, professional learning communities (plcs) can be used to upgrade the quality of teacher knowledge, and scholarships and bursaries can help teachers to further their studies (espey, 2018; makoelle, 2014; feldman, 2016). a distance learning institution was used to enhance accounting cash journal subject content knowledge (espey, 2018; myrberg et al., 2018). secondly, team teaching was used to accommodate novice teachers, and continuous training workshops and cluster workshops (chang, ward & goodway, 2020) were used to increase teachers’ level of understanding and help them to switch to better methods of teaching (paguio & jackling, 2016). on the same note, the data that was collected also provided fruitful 10 ressat 2023, 8(1): 1-15 outcomes. the development support group (dsg) implemented the strategic devices. the role of dsg was to draw up a co-curriculum and an extra-curricular classroom visit plan. theme 2: ensuring collaborative lesson planning and preparation of cash journals the literature revealed that collaboration enabled teachers to support and develop each other. it also strengthened teachers’ subject knowledge (modise, 2016), and thereby, improves their practice in lesson planning and preparation. collaborative learning permits teachers to become experts in one lesson’s content and to share it with few colleagues (bentley & cazaly, 2015). the participants had this to say: thabo said: “collaborative teaching is important. teachers, learners, and parents need to work together. this will enable us to see where we can help other teachers to improve their style of teaching.” therefore, this implies that observation of teaching and learning, and assessment should be supervised. mapule had this to say: “so, the dsg has to conduct the class visit and observe teachers when teaching. most teachers refuse to implement change because we stick to the old way of teaching. dsgs should continuously provide teachers with feedback immediately to update teachers”. it was reassuring to hear teachers talking about the positive aspects of the collaboration. words, such as, “we need to implement changes immediately to be updated with current teaching methods” showed what teachers are willing to strengthen their practice by working together with different stakeholders in education. thabo continued and said: “to show the teaching technique is very important, through small workshops about didactic practice could also be vital. when we evaluate teaching and learning that can teachers an opportunity to plan, assess, teach and can help improve the skills of teachers and recognize skills like learners using methods of continuous assessment and to encourage group work. with regards to feedback, it is important to give teachers feedback every time. that can help to improve on your work and the results will be positive”. then, mapule amplified the words of thabo as follows: “yes, experienced teachers could demonstrate lessons to other inexperienced teachers”. lefa also added to mapule’s viewpoint above and said: “i think we should not say unannounced visits but just class visits. to implement the class visit, we should indicate that we need this and this. this is aimed at making sure that teachers are always prepared.” 11 ressat 2023, 8(1): 1-15 the above quote points to what teachers identified as important benefits of experience, namely, flexibility, innovation, and initiative. if teachers can use their experience to thwart threats that could derail the lesson, through careful manoeuvres, rather than disruption, the lesson would proceed smoothly, flexibly, be innovative and exhibit initiative, among its attributes. these skills can be learned through classroom observation. therefore, subject cluster workshops must be implemented as an effective platform for teachers to share information (carson & mennenga, 2019; myende & bhengu, 2015). cluster workshops are used to enhance classroom subject content knowledge and practice of certain subject topics (weidman & deming, 2020). the participants’ words above show strong awareness of relations, in which the development support group (dsg) will inform the teacher about classroom observation for developmental appraisal and performance. in this case, we saw the dsg (composed of a teacher being appraised, peer and supervisor) planning and implementing some of the plans with teachers. working together is an inviting condition that we trust will promote mutual understanding, and we hope that people will discuss their practice to make the necessary amendments in a friendly manner. the success of teaching by collaboration was confirmed by the literature (ainsworth, 2021; espey, 2018). in terms of enhancing ems accounting cash journal subject content knowledge, the subject advisor uses the workshops and continuous professional development for teacher development. moreover, the school management team (smt), staff meetings, and cluster workshops must be used to initiate collaboration in ems teaching. from the data that was collected, it is clear that the dsg played a vital role in observing, discussing, and supporting acjck needs. the reviewed literature confirmed that ems teachers must be equipped with the cash journals content knowledge (chaffer & webb, 2017; modise & letlhoenyo, 2020; molise, 2020; ngwenya, 2016). similarly, professional development workshops must be organized and the focus of such workshops (chang et al., 2020) should be based on improving the content knowledge of teachers. teachers are also expected to work together (ainsworth, 2021) through the establishment of professional learning communities (plcs) (bargate & maistry, 2015) and collaborate with their peers to share the best practices in the teaching of cash journals (weidman & deming, 2020). conclusion the paper investigated the strategic devises that can be used to enhance the acjck of grade 9 ems teachers, with regards to cj teaching. the results showed a lack of specialization, and preservice practice was a major cause of insufficient cash journal subject content knowledge. moreover, some teachers are just teaching ems subjects to increase their period workload and not knowing ems subject content knowledge, which impacts on learners’ performance. we, therefore, recommend that collaborative team teaching must be used to accommodate novice teachers, and continuous training workshops and cluster workshops should be used to increase 12 ressat 2023, 8(1): 1-15 teachers’ level understanding and address the inherent cash journal content knowledge misconceptions. teachers should also refrain from teaching subjects which they did not specialize in. a limitation of the study was that it was conducted using only one school in the eastern free state. the study’s purpose was to not provide a general outcome but to find and indicate specific outcomes regarding acjck. based on the above limitation, i recommend that the 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(2020). team players: how social skills improve group performance. national bureau of economic research working paper series. https://www.nber.org/papers/w27071 https://doi.org/10.46303/jcve.2022.19 research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 wolhuter, c. & jacobs, l. covid-19, the global education project and technology: disrupting priorities towards rethinking education research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 96 covid-19, the global education project and technology: disrupting priorities towards rethinking education charl wolhuter1 and lynette jacobs*2 *corresponding author: jacobsl@ufs.ac.za 1. north-west university, south africa 2. university of the free state, south africa received : 2021-06-22 revised : 2021-07-11 accepted : 2021-08-19 how to cite this paper: wolhuter, c. & jacobs, l. (2021). covid-19, the global education project and technology: disrupting priorities towards rethinking education. research in social sciences and technology, 6(2), 96-109. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.13 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). abstract this paper argues that the arrival of the covid-19 pandemic created a space to reconceptualise education and rethink priorities. although no one will deny the devastating impact of the pandemic, humans have been able to continue with various projects, including the global education project, largely made possible through unprecedented technology advancement, as well as the uptake of technologies that advanced pre-covid-19. in many ways, the clear distinction between human and technological (being non-human) practices has blurred to a point where the mere nature of human projects such as the global education project has become post-human. while different schools of thought on the nature of “post-human” exist, we use it to refer to what we are becoming together, a comprehension and awareness of the connectedness between humans and their natural and technological environment and the ethical concerns that come with it. covid-19 provides an opportunity to reconsider the connectedness, complexities and dynamics of the world, and what we (humans, nature, earth, technology) are becoming. based on a literature survey and critical refection on the state of the global education expansion project at the time of the onset of the covid-19 pandemic, we suggest the following changes to the ways quantity, quality and equality in education are conceptualised. the employment of technology should be added in the conceptualisation of input quality. flexibility, support and connectedness should be built into the process quality equation. most importantly, ecology should also be added as a product of education, and not merely a contextual influence in education. keywords: covid-19 pandemic; post-human education; post-humanism; education priorities 10.46303/ressat.2021.13 mailto:jacobsl@ufs.ac.za https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.13 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 wolhuter, c. & jacobs, l. covid-19, the global education project and technology: disrupting priorities towards rethinking education research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 97 introduction at the onset of the pandemic, humans have shown resilience, fluidity and innovativeness to persist with various projects, largely made possible by unprecedented technology advancement, as well as the uptake of technologies that advanced pre-covid-19. in many ways, the clear distinction between human and technological (being non-human) activities has blurred, and human projects such as the global education project developed a symbiotic character. at the same time, there is no denying that human activity itself was at the root of the pandemic (o'callaghan-gordo & antó, 2020). such realisation provides a critical moment in time to rethink and reprioritise human activity, its nature and effect with a strong consideration of the connectedness, complexities and dynamics of the world we inhabit, and what we (humans, nature, earth, technology) are becoming. in this paper we thus provide a post-humanist perspective on education using the global education project framework (wolhuter, 2021) as an outline. we first briefly discuss the posthumanism position that we take in this paper, as well as the global education project prior to the pandemic, after which we touch on the pandemic itself. this provides us with scaffolding to review the literature towards making recommendations. based on a critical analysis of priorities put forward by education researchers in publications across the globe since the start of the pandemic, we argue that education priorities need to be disrupted towards rethinking quantity, quality and equality in the post-human global education project. anthropocene, capitalocene and post-humanism the time period since 1945 is increasingly referred to as the anthropocene (haraway, 2016), arguing that humans have become a destructive geological force, characterised by arrogance (le grange, 2018a; le grange, 2018b). humans are overpopulating and destroying the planet, its forests and land, and polluting the atmosphere and oceans, while at the same time, social inequality is escalating (le grange, 2018b). moore (2015, p. 70) considers how this has happened and use, like haraway (2016, p. 119), perhaps a lesser known term, namely “capitalocene”, the destructive force of economy and power. inter alia drawing from marx, he argues that since the rise of capitalism, human activity was transformed into labour power, under a “dictatorship of commodity” and nature was put to work to generate capital (moore, 2015, pp. 70–71). he points out that we consider “nature (environments without humans)” as being separate from “humans”, instead of understanding interwoven “nature (the web of life)” (moore, 2015, p. 98). dualistic modernity thinking permeated throughout modern society – north/south; civilised/non-civilised; knowledge/myth; western/non-western – elevating certain epistemologies, and ways of being and doing while others are devalued, (e-international relations, 2017; le grange, 2018a; moore, 2015; schulz, 2017) disregarding relationships and interdependence and certainly not acknowledging or understanding the “complex mosaic of life” (moore, 2015, p. 75). haraway (2016, p. 119) adds to the discussion pleading for “multispecies ecojustice, which also embrace diverse human people”. furthermore, as a result of technological advances, being human has become so linked with technology, which has its own agency to the extent that it can destroy all life on the planet, causing a “post-human predicament” (le grange, 2018b, p. 882). petitfils (2015, p. 30) points out that the possibilities that came with digitalisation has allowed us to “rethink nearly every research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 wolhuter, c. & jacobs, l. covid-19, the global education project and technology: disrupting priorities towards rethinking education research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 98 aspect of our daily lived experiences” but also to reconsider our “positions in the world, and how our actions and reactions are part of the larger fabric of our complex ecological situatedness”. however, technology and how humans interact with technology, has evolved to a point where humans regard commodities and devices as their identities, creating mostly pretentious digital identities often to the point of being delusional, and this completely decentres their embodied identities. schultz (2017, p. 1) warns against the “modernist paradigms of technological utopianism and economic growth” that are regarded as “the ‘natural order of things’ under global capitalism”. this sets the scene for education as a human activity. education pre-pandemic education systems across the world were (and still are) built to the capitalist world ecology described above. worldwide enrolment figures are increasing (wolhuter, 2020), in productionline fashion but inequalities persist (jacobs, 2016; petitfils, 2015). education has been deintellectualised and is increasingly being commodified (petitfils, 2015) and all boils down to measurement, performativity and competition (coetzee, 2019; jacobs & teise, 2019). education systems are, furthermore according to schultz (2017, p. 1) “inextricably linked to coloniality, defined not only as an unjust economic model, but also as a racialised, androcentric, and class-based hierarchy of knowing and being which still marginalises non-western cultures and histories”. petitfils (2015) likewise criticises modern education as dehumanising, oppressive and uncritical, rooted in neoliberalism, and thus resulting in the lack of agency, and the ability to deal with complexities. rotas (2015) lament that education is not making a discernible ecological impact while the planet is obviously decaying. petitfils (2015, p. 36) urge post-humanist educators to “help students recenter themselves and understand their own primordial essence as these formative years of posthumanity emerge”. one of the questions that young people should confront, the author believes is “who am i trying to become?”. indeed, there is a need for the education to go beyond production, the learning of skills and learning to socialise, but to focus on the self, the self in relation to the mosaic of life (that moore alluded us to earlier) and to self-actualisation (wolhuter, 2020). yet, modern education systems get assessed along three dimensions, namely the quantity dimension (e.g. enrolment ratio, literacy levels, throughput and completion levels), the quality dimension (input-, process-; outputand product quality) and the equality dimension (e.g. access, allocation of resources, realisation of potential, representation) (wolhuter, 2021). most of those concepts relates to production lines, resonating with capitalocene. education remains a tool in the hand of the geo-political and economic powers, to advance their agendas (wolhuter, 2020), and time is ripe for change towards “collective spaces of resistance” (petitfils, 2015, p. 40). perhaps covid-19 was indeed the spark education needed. the covid-19 pandemic while the united nations formulated, and later restated the sustainable development goals (united nations, 2015) to address the 17 wicked problems identified, complexities and challenges within numerous sectors are persisting and even escalating. surpassing modernity, several authors have alluded to the awareness of imminent change and that “something radically new” was beginning (petitfils, 2015, p. 30). something radically new, although some research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 wolhuter, c. & jacobs, l. covid-19, the global education project and technology: disrupting priorities towards rethinking education research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 99 did caution beforehand, caused the biggest upset the world has faced in decades when a deadly virus, causing what was classified as coronavirus disease 2019 (covid-19), rapidly spread through the world since late 2019. the school and the post-school education and training sector rapidly had to embark on what is commonly known as emergency remote teaching (ert) or emergency remote learning (erl) to continue with education using these tools. still, begalinov et al. (2021, pp. 121–122) argue that the pandemic provided an opportunity for change beyond that: it seems that today it is important not only to rethink the problems of new digital, online and pedagogical possibilities of [post]modern education, but also the very essence of education, its main goals and new mission. education that was before the pandemic will never exist [again]. since the outbreak of the pandemic, an abundance of manuscripts on the impact of the pandemic were published, inter alia in special editions of journals. in an unprecedented way, and perhaps unintentionally, priorities were put forward in a bottom-up fashion in terms of the foci of the papers. in this paper we thus provide a post-humanist education, using the global education project framework (wolhuter, 2021) as an outline of what was. the question can be asked, whether priorities remained the same, whilst using new tools and whether the mindset of education researcher indeed moved into new ways of thinking, being and doing (jacobs et al., 2021), to adapt in response to the situation and show post-human agency (rotas, 2015). we specifically analyse priorities put forward by education researchers across the globe since the start of the pandemic, using publications to which we had access. discussion: scholarly thinking in response to covid-19 the pandemic indeed created an opportunity to rethink the purpose and nature of school education. gyuviyska and tsankov (2020, p. 428) quotes gatto who in 2010 wrote [our emphasis]: neither networks nor schools are communities, just as schooling is not education. school networks occupy 50% of children's time, forcing them to share it only with children of the same age, requiring them to start and stop work when an audible signal is given, forcing people to think the same thing at the same time and in the same way, classifying them as if they were vegetables. thus (and in many other insidious and insane ways) network schools steal the vitality of communities, replacing it with ugly automatization. gyuviyska and tsankov (2020, p. 429) thus criticise education’s character as a “full-time form of organization that fully subordinates the child to the institution” and point out that “[i]n a state of pandemic, it is clear that this is not a necessity for children or teachers”. begalinov et al. (2021) argue that in post-covid times radical rethinking of education is required to combine the old and the new in flexible ways in response to the world we live in. we thus briefly look at the priorities put forward in publications to get a sense of how the global education projects might need to adapt. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 wolhuter, c. & jacobs, l. covid-19, the global education project and technology: disrupting priorities towards rethinking education research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 100 early childhood care and education (ecce)/ early childhood development (ecd) early childhood care and education (ecce) is mostly seen as a social issue, and thus outside the formal structure of education. across the world there are disparities in terms of regulation, funding and training and more, and in spite of the importance of the sector, it does not seem to be a priority to all (jalongo, 2020; koen et al., 2021; kruger, 2021). yet it influences the learner throughout their school career. from a neoliberal perspective, ecce is important for the economy. not only is it a way to enable women to remain in the workforce after having children, it also notably influences children’s chances of success once they enter formal schooling (what wolhuter [2021, p. 33] calls “learner bound factors” in “process quality”). from a south african viewpoint, kruger (2021, p. 159) explains that in “communities with high levels of poverty, joblessness, substance abuse, crime and low levels of maternal education” early childhood development (ecd) centres are mostly informal and not registered. yet they are crucial, as not only do they focus on young children’s socialisation and education, but also provide the young children with food, taking care of their health and their welfare in general. this sector was hit hard by the pandemic. during 2020 this sector was completely closed down for months, with devastating effects not only on the children and families, but also the ecd centres who lost their support income (koen et al., 2021; kruger, 2021). jalongo (2020) likewise reports how negatively this impacted on vulnerable families, including those who lost their income as a result of the lockdown regulations, as parents had to leave their small children in order to earn wages (jalongo, 2020). a strength that was reported on from this sector was the value of networks within communities. as an example, even prior to the pandemic, the non-profit organisation (npo) that kruger (2021) reported on, distributed donations (e.g. food) to the informal ecd centres and provided training to its staff. when the pandemic struck, their connectedness to these centres, as well as to the business community resulted in them staying digitally connected, soon providing food parcels for the families of the young children, and later provided training and health safety supplies in preparation of the reopening of the centres. they showed innovativeness and flexibility to address the complexities of the pandemic. jalongo (2020) likewise commended the interconnectedness of her community to families who suffered food insecurity, and who distributed donations to the families. with ecd centres and schools closed, parents working in the informal sector survived and took care of their families with the support from their neighbours, families and friends (jalongo, 2020), again reflecting communal values. also, koen et al. (2021) shares examples of innovativeness and connectedness in the sector. being innovative and finding ways to provide flexible opportunities for ecce to young children, and to include and support parents are essential (jalongo, 2020). providers of ecce, should be supported not only though guidance and training, but also mentorship, psychosocial support and resources (koen et al., 2021; kruger, 2021). teaching young children is highly specialised and should be prioritised globally to develop a resilient and well-resourced sector (jalongo, 2020). considering the above, priorities in this sector moving forward relates to comprehensive and specialised support and involvement by multiple stakeholders. this can only be achieved if the interconnectedness between different entities is understood (locality, society, commerce, research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 wolhuter, c. & jacobs, l. covid-19, the global education project and technology: disrupting priorities towards rethinking education research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 101 education, the environment, family, etc.). the sector must retain and strengthen its flexible and adaptable character, and the agency of the role-players within the sector should be appreciated and celebrated, without being over-regulated. school education across the world, schools also had to send the children home and find ways to continue with education under lockdown circumstances. much of the discussions in the publication thus relates to the situation where schools had to adapt to ert/erl, although they focused on different aspects. scholars mentioned concern regarding quality and the rethinking of what quality means in the online environment (sowiyah, 2021). with technology, tasks would sometimes merely be dumped on learners or their parents, which certainly was not satisfactory (sowiyah, 2021). gyuviyska and tsankov (2020, p. 430) see the pandemic as a “good opportunity to ensure the necessary quality of educational services after the pandemic-related crisis is over” specifically concerning blended learning (combining online and traditional). the authors (ibid) argue that “purposeful and planned integration of electronic platforms” is required. scholars point out that while claims of learner-centred education are being made, practices still lag behind (gyuviyska & tsankov, 2020; wolhuter, 2020). what is thus required is to transform “the educational environment” to be “increasingly student-oriented” (gyuviyska & tsankov, 2020, p. 430). closely linked with issues of quality, is the importance of equality. de klerk and palmer (2021) argue that education should prioritise equity and inclusion. this means that they must make sure that all have access to resources in an equitable manner, and that teachers’ strategies must be adapted to the different needs of learners (kilinc et al., 2018) indeed, williams et al. (2021) found that during the pandemic, inequalities in terms of access to technology was a challenge that teachers had to overcome. technological equality does not only relate to equality and inclusion across racial, gender and class divides, but also requires due consideration in terms of region and locality (urban, peri-urban and rural) (wolhuter, 2021). in post-pandemic times, access to internet and devices for all should be prioritised (karakaya et al., 2021), and unequal connectivity must be focused on (de oliveira et al., 2021). mccorkle’s thinking (2020, p. 15), however transcends the practicalities of technology, and argues for the pandemic not to be an opportunity to fuel social unjust practices, but an opportunity to “combat xenophobic rhetoric” and promote inclusivity. almost every manuscript that we read mentioned the importance of human connectedness and that human interaction is needed (karakaya et al., 2021; de oliveira et al., 2021). it remains important for children to meet and interact with people who are different to them, to advance their social development and to develop their own identity (de oliveira et al., 2021). the pandemic showed how children in urban societies were trapped inside their houses and missed the school playground, as space elsewhere is limited (karakaya et al., 2021). karakaya et al. (2021) reported that learners were bored due to a lack of interaction with others. indeed, not only is digital inclusion important, but there is also a need to provide access to recreational spaces and to social interactions within the confines of health and safety protocols. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 wolhuter, c. & jacobs, l. covid-19, the global education project and technology: disrupting priorities towards rethinking education research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 102 during the pandemic, communication between stakeholders often seem to have been a problem. this included inadequate communication between parents and teachers at times, as well as ineffective communication between teachers and learners (karakaya et al., 2021). furthermore, because of the school psychologist being outside the formal teaching and learning situation, de oliviera (2021) reports that they found it difficult to stay in touch with the teachers and learners, and assist with the relationships. still, while parents are mostly not qualified teachers, and reportedly struggled to assist their children, the pandemic did result in parents being more involved in their children’s learning (günbaş & gözüküçük, 2020), which is a positive spinoff. regarding technology, several authors focused on the software and hardware (kalimullina et al., 2021; tajik & vahedi, 2021) that was used, which included a wide range (zoom, google meet, whatsapp, telegram, facebook messenger, etc.). in the publications that we read, there was no consideration on aspects of safety and security (cyberbullying, privacy, etc.) and these will surely be forthcoming. still, it was mentioned that children are digital natives, and during lockdown, spent more and more time playing online games (karakaya et al., 2021) as a means to relax and to socialise. this is indeed the world of the post-human youth, and thus, de oliviera and others argue, teachers should make more use of gamification when teaching. this stimulates cognitive functioning and gaming activities require greater psycho-emotional engagement (de oliveira et al., 2021) authors reported about the flexibility that came with ert/erl and the digital space. for instance, de oliveira et al. (2021) reported that both teachers and learners were positive about the flexibility and creativity that came with the ert. considering the future, gyuviyska and tsankov (2020) believe that schools should not go back to old ways of doing but should take a blended approach to retain the flexibility. it became clear that support in current times is not only important, but also different. teachers’ responsibilities increased because of the pandemic and ert (karakaya et al., 2021) and they should receive instructional design as well as psychosocial support (de oliveira et al., 2021; sowiyah, 2021). staying at home has overwhelmed learners and parents in terms of doing the work on their own, particularly when connectedness and communication was inefficient (karakaya et al., 2021; sowiyah, 2021; subedi & subedi, 2020). gyuviyska and tsankov (2020) argue that proper risk analyses need to be done as some parents are not able to support their children, including parents from disadvantaged circumstances as well as neglectful parents. learners furthermore reportedly often struggle to stay motivated and to have self-discipline when they only study at home (günbaş & gözüküçük, 2020). clearly, in technology-enhanced learning, psychologists should be involved to assist with the complexities, and to move beyond diagnostic and evaluative functions to focus on individual development of children and assist in relation building (de oliveira et al., 2021; tadeu et al., 2019). there should be specialised assistance and due consideration for special needs children within a more fluid teaching and learning situation (gyuviyska & tsankov, 2020). de klerk and palmer (2021) argue that in this flexible space, special care should be taken to also adapt approaches and tools for learners with special education needs. an important part of support beyond the narrow understanding of education is making sure that children have nutritional meals. various research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 wolhuter, c. & jacobs, l. covid-19, the global education project and technology: disrupting priorities towards rethinking education research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 103 authors confirmed the need to be flexible and show agency to ensure that it continues (jalongo, 2020; kruger, 2021; koen et al., 2021; kwatubana & molaodi, 2021). so, considering the above, the most important priority is to consider how the learner can be centred and supported in a flexible education environment, that appreciates the potential that technology provides. the relationships between different role-players are crucial, and innovative ways to stay in touch with realities of children, parents and teachers, and ensure connectedness needs to be explored. higher education wolhuter and jacobs (2021) refer to a “revolution” in the global higher education sector, linked not only to the economic upswing around the globe and neo-liberal thinking, the democratisation that happens around the world, and the emergence of a knowledges-economy, but also due to technological developments. raza et al. (2021, p. 1991) confirmed the neoliberal nature of higher education as they stated, for instance, that pakistani universities work hard for fear that “their economic contribution could be reduced”. along the same line komleva (2021, p. 154) argues that “governments are trying to keep their educational systems competitive” in the hierarchical higher education landscape, and that large education bodies take collective strategies using digitalisation to retain their position in the global higher education landscape (komleva, 2021) indeed, in these post-covid times, the higher education landscape remains with “profound social, economic, cultural, and political inequalities” (komleva, 2021, p. 151). with the dependence on online learning as a result of the pandemic, komleva (2021, p. 151) warns that inequalities that include technical inequalities “has the potential to destabilize the social and political relations between countries”. such inequalities not only exist between regions, but also within regions, countries and institutions. yet, there is a strong drive within the higher education sector to work together to overcome barriers, and to find innovative ways to create equal opportunities, including inclusive virtual learning across geo-political boundaries (jacobs et al., 2021). regarding the move to online teaching and learning, it seems that students and lecturers in the higher education space were quite satisfied, and li et al. (2021, p. 12) report that both groups “expressed interest in online learning as at least part of the future education style”. yet it warrants specific considerations. digital inequalities, which creates significant barriers to accessibility and quality of learning in a pandemic environment and, in the long term, will lead to an even greater differentiation of the population” (komleva, 2021, pp. 153–154) and must be addressed. it is important to address the competitive and unequal higher education space with a studentcentred focus, specifically also in the fluid learning environment. rayner and webb (2021, p. 51) argue that we need to “[e]stablish learning environments that place the student at the center of blended learning course considerations”. this required of higher education institutions to take trouble to really understand the needs and realities of students in order to be responsive (al-nofaie, 2020; rayner & webb, 2021). this includes an awareness for, and an understanding of the realities of students who are differently abled (ferreira-meyers & pitikoe, 2021). higher education institutions need to actively promote inclusivity (rayner & webb, research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 wolhuter, c. & jacobs, l. covid-19, the global education project and technology: disrupting priorities towards rethinking education research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 104 2021). within the student-centred approach, flexibility and consideration for students, and ways of learning, is key (al-nofaie, 2020). important that lecturers vary teaching styles, also in the online environment, to accommodate diversity (altuwairesh, 2021). instructional design is of utmost importance. the expectation to lecturers to produce online learning material in a very short time without proper support and training negatively affected the academics during the pandemic (li et al., 2021) and future situations should be avoided by equipped academics for online instructional design (al-nofaie, 2020). it must be student oriented, not only in terms of learning styles, and individualised learning, but must also consider the best way of assisting learners, within their realities. for instance, instructional design must take the cost of data into account and must opt for alternatives that use less data (e.g. a short video instead of a full one) (li et al., 2021). it is recommended that academics provide lectures in piece-meal size, make sure that concepts are clear before proceeding with more complex work (rayner & webb, 2021). there needs to be clear guidelines in terms of expectations, timelines and how assessment will happen (rayner & webb, 2021). students appreciate flexible and asynchronous learning, for example to be able to listen to recorded lectures more than once, instead of live-streaming (al-nofaie, 2020; altuwairesh, 2021; rayner & webb, 2021). scaffolding the learning, for instance by providing regular opportunities for self-testing, amplifies individual learning (rayner & webb, 2021). there needs to be technical support for students and staff at all times (al-nofaie, 2020), and special software made available for students who are differently able (e.g. braille software) (ferreira-meyers & pitikoe, 2021). flexible learning puts the responsibility for learning on the students (al-nofaie, 2020), and this promotes agency. this can be strengthened through creating spaces for interaction between students in asynchronous discussion forums (rayner & webb, 2021). during the pandemic, a much-needed change in assessment approaches was accelerated. li et al. (2021, pp. 11–12) report that “online assessment methods have also been adjusted from closed-end questions at fixed examination hours to open-ended questions, clinical case analyses or essays within a more flexible time frame to ensure fairness in case some students suffered from issues related to the network or electronic power”. rayner and webb (2021) suggest that lecturers focus on reasonable expectations, making sure that students will reasonably be able to answer the questions, based on readings. as in the case of ecce/ecd and school education, there was a strong voice in favour of human connectedness. students miss the interaction, miss feeling part of a community (altuwairesh, 2021). real-time interactions are thus important to students and staff (li et al., 2021). as altuwairesh (2021, p. 395) points out, “technology … can never substitute the critical role teachers play in the educational process”. it is thus important to find ways to keep students involved and engaged (li et al., 2021). the digital space appears to be a safe space for students who are often invisible in the face-to-face situation. introvert students are more at ease to participate and interact digitally (altuwairesh, 2021). this is also true for students who come from a teacher-centred culture (ho et al., 2021). it is recommended that lecturers show their faces during lectures to establish that sense of presence (rayner & webb, 2021), even if it is recorded for use during synchronous learning opportunities. furthermore, lecturers must find ways to make themselves accessible to students outside the formal teaching time, for instance research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 wolhuter, c. & jacobs, l. covid-19, the global education project and technology: disrupting priorities towards rethinking education research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 105 by establishing virtual office hours or through a discussion channel for students (al-nofaie, 2020; rayner & webb, 2021). the lockdown regulations in the various countries had some positive spinoffs, in the sense that students and lecturers could be with their families and stay safe (li et al., 2021), yet it also left the students feeling isolated and unmotivated. altuwairesh (2021) reports that students felt overloaded, and it was a challenge to stay motivated without physical contact with lecturers and fellow students. giving group assignments that students can do outside the classroom, to connect with each other, is suggested (rayner & webb, 2021). it is also important to build some element of a social event, which could include a regular coffee hour (jacobs et al., 2021), or games in the form of quizzes (rayner & webb, 2021). in the discussion above it is clear that there is an awareness of the neoliberalist capitalist forces that play into higher education, and some suggestions to counter it was put forward. inequalities were recognised and some suggestions to address it also at an individual level were made. a great emphasis was places on how to design online and blended teaching and learning to be flexible and accommodating, to also allow agency to emerge. this resonates with the recentering of the self as present in the post-humanist discourse. connectedness with the family was focused on. yet the publications were silent on issues relating to the environment, with only altuwairesh (2021) referring to time saved if one does not have to travel, without considering the environmental impact thereof. rayner and webb (2021) recognised the potential that other global disasters are due to happen. reflection in many ways, the clear distinction between human and technological (being non-human) practices has blurred to a point where the mere nature of human projects such as the global education project should be reconsidered. in addition, consideration for the world and its ecology should join in the centre, and thus the non-hierarchical connectedness between the natural and technological, and the agency within these networks, should inform post-pandemic education. moore (2015, p. 111) urges us towards a “different ontology of nature, humanity, and justice – one that asks not merely how to redistribute wealth, but how to remake our place in nature in a way that promises emancipation for all life”. did the covid-19-pandemic, which is a direct result of the exploitation of nature (cf. moore, 2015), move education scholars to a new ontology, or are we focused on using new tools to advance the old education project? consideration in the literature that we reviewed, on the effect of education on the environment, and the positive effect that less commuting has, was found wanting. this might still be forthcoming, but it seems to not be an immediate priority for scholars. while the current global education framework considers how the school environment affects education, certainly one should also include how education systems influence the environment. we did get a sense that the understanding of interdependence and individuality is emerging. technological utopianism was certainly not present, and awareness for human relations as well as human vulnerabilities were present in the discourse. a real concern for inclusivity was put forwards, inequalities were recognised across the education sectors and ways to support those research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 wolhuter, c. & jacobs, l. covid-19, the global education project and technology: disrupting priorities towards rethinking education research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 106 who experience barriers were highlighted. still, there seems to be mainly an unawareness of how ecce and school education supports and promotes inequalities and exploitation. still, in the higher education sector, some voices did position against neoliberalism and consumerism. recommended changes to the global education framework education as a global project will not be cancelled. with the insight that post-human thinking brings and taking into account the priorities put forward in this limited literature study, and the silences recognised, we suggest that technology and equipment be explicitly added under the category of input quality. process quality should be strengthened by adding flexibility, support, innovation and connectedness as elements throughout the aspects. but most importantly, the environment should also be added as a product of education, and not merely a contextual influence in education. prior to the outbreak of the pandemic, moore (2015, p. 75) pointed out that “[h]uman organizations are environment-making processes and projects; human organizations are shaped by manifold environment-making processes in the web of life”. considerations of how education at various levels are environment-making processes should be prioritised. references al-nofaie, h. 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(2021). the covid-19 pandemic: streamlining or capsizing the global higher education revolution. perspectives in education, 39(1), 291-303. http://dx.doi.org/10.18820/2519593x/pie.v39.i1.18 https://doi.org/10.46303/repam.2020.5 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.04.02.ed research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 adu, k. o. & duku, n. learning styles and instructional materials as correlates of grade 6 learners’ mathematics performance in buffalo city, south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 242 learning styles and instructional materials as correlates of grade 6 learners’ mathematics performance in buffalo city, south africa kemi olajumoke adu*1 & ntombozuko duku1 *corresponding author: kemiadu78@yahoo.com 1. faculty of education, university of fort hare, south africa. received : 2021-09-29 revised : 2021-11-07 accepted : 2021-12-13 how to cite this paper: adu, k. o. & duku, n. (2021). learning styles and instructional materials as correlates of grade 6 learners’ mathematics performance in buffalo city, south africa. research in social sciences and technology, 6(3), 242-255. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.41 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). abstract mathematics is a core subject in south africa. studies have shown that the performance of learners on this subject is not encouraging. many factors have been alluded to by scholars as contributing factors to this poor performance. the gap between theory and practice of mathematics teaching can be bridged by the use of appropriate learning styles, availability, and utilization of instructional. this paper finds out the relationship that exists among learning styles, instructional materials, and mathematics performance of grade 6. the choice of grade 6 is important because it is the last grade level of primary school before a learner can enter secondary school level in south africa. the study adopted a correlational research design of a quantitative approach. stratified sampling techniques were used to select 1225 learners from grade 6 schools within buffalo city metropolitan education district. the data revealed among others that in buffalo city, availability and utilization of instructional materials have no significant relationship with the mathematics performance of selected grade 6 learners (b=.023, t=.804, p≥0.05) while students learning styles (visual, auditory, and kinesthetic) have a significant relationship with grade 6 learners mathematics performance (b=-.113, t=-3.886, p<0.05). the study concluded that one of the most fundamental issues to consider in improving mathematics performance is the understanding of the learners’ learning styles and effective use of appropriate instructional materials for teaching mathematics. keywords: learning styles; instructional materials; mathematics; performance. introduction poor academic performance and a bad attitude toward mathematics among students are influenced by more than just teaching methods and instructional resources. individual differences have been revealed as a pointer to the learning style demonstrated by learners during classroom teaching (abdullahi, 2014). according to him, the transformation of 10.46303/ressat.2021.41 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.41 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 adu, k. o. & duku, n. learning styles and instructional materials as correlates of grade 6 learners’ mathematics performance in buffalo city, south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 243 knowledge in a habitual way is defined as learning style. psychological characteristics resulting from individual differences, according to abdullahi (2014), determine the learning processes that a person employs. learning styles, on the other hand, are qualities of the psychological, emotional, and cognitive domains that iyunade (2014) emphasizes as the accomplishment of desired learning outcomes due to proper engagement of learning. furthermore, dunn and dunn (2011) believe that specific learning styles of individuals' emphasis on mental process, retention, and internalization of challenging material result in new and difficult information. concepts and ideas are easily distributed and appealing to the senses of the learners at any time when learners learn and process information in their unique way (munchi, 2008). students learn in different ways since it has been discovered that language structure acquisition has an impact on the brain shape of the students (iyunade, 2014). similarly, the brain's hemispheres possess separate perceptual pathways. the differences in the style in which students perceived things are determined by the types of cells in their brain (iyunade, 2014; munchi, 2008). learning style is characterized as attitudes and certain behaviors that assist learners during learning activities (dunn & dunn, 2011). the personalities of the students are being influenced by the manner of interaction between teachers’ teaching styles and students’ learning styles. according to dunn and dunn (2011), learning styles that will increase the understanding of the subject matter and promote performance and enhance desirable outcomes must be identified by the teachers and the students. learning style is defined as "how individuals begin to concentrate on, process, assimilate and remember new and difficult material" in this context (hawk & shah, 2017, p. 9). although each person is born with natural preferences for certain types, culture, personal experiences, age level, and development all have an impact on these biological or inherited characteristics in an individual (savoury, 2014). not only that, but the students' backgrounds might also play a role in the style they display. style can be referred to as a "contextual" variable or construct since what the student adds to the learning experiences is both a component of the curriculum and a key feature of the learners' experience. each learner perceives, organizes, and remembers information in their own unique and consistent way (dunn & dunn, 2011). the gap between theory and practice of mathematics teaching can be bridged by the use of appropriate learning styles, availability, and utilization of instructional. despite the importance of mathematics and its contribution to the growth and development of a nation, many learners still find it difficult to perform very well. mathematics is designed to help students develop a passion for basic skills in technology and science and to apply what they have learnt to their real-world and meet up with the requirements of society. a firm foundation in mathematics is required to accelerate any society's socioeconomic and technological advancement (azuka, 2014). according to kolawole (2010), a good foundation in mathematics at the elementary school level could help to mitigate the inadequacies of this subject at the university level. according to nwichi (2013), teaching materials include a wide spectrum of visual and auditory media, ranging from simple chalkboard drawings to elaborate overhead projections. despite the importance of instructional resources in the teaching and learning of mathematics, many students continue to perform poorly. this could be due to a shortage of educational materials or teachers' underutilization of them. the teaching of any subject at the primary school level without the use of computers and transparency educational inputs, such as instructional resources will be research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 adu, k. o. & duku, n. learning styles and instructional materials as correlates of grade 6 learners’ mathematics performance in buffalo city, south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 244 difficult wales (2011) and nwichi (2013) argue that the use of instructional materials and positive learning methods will help learners remember newly found data. it is possible to improvise instructional materials (smase project, 2010). mntunjani (2016) stated that teachers need well-designed training on improvisation of instructional materials, such teachers must be creative and adventurous before they can improvise. the criterion for classifying learners, according to felder and henriques (2009), there are two sets of learners, some learners are intuitive while others are sensory, these two categories are referred to as perceptual behavior. sensing learners are systematic and tangible; they excel at learning data and conducting hands-on work, and they are more at ease following norms and processes. 'intuitive' learners are abstract and inventive, preferring novelty over repetition. learners might be visual or verbal learners in terms of how they like to receive information. visual learners prefer to get knowledge in the form of drawings, diagrams, videos, and demonstrations, whereas verbal learners prefer to absorb information through words. the researcher, on the other hand, believes that visual learners are superior to verbal learners since chinese philosophers think that what learners see is remembered more than what they hear (savoury, 2014). aside from visual and verbal learners, there are also active and reflective learners to consider. as the name implies, an active learner enjoys being actively engaged in classroom activities. they participate actively in group discussions and engage with others, assessing and applying knowledge. role-playing, teamwork, and discourse are beneficial to them. reflective learners engage in in-depth thought and self-examination. they are more likely to think about anything they come across. according to mntunjani (2016), what is vital to teachers’ daily activities is the use of appropriate pedagogy and the right instructional materials to discharge their professional duty and promote effective teaching and learning. in the same vein, to achieve the desired learning outcome, the teachers must play a critical role in ensuring that instructional materials (textbooks and other textual resources) are used. textbooks, charts, graphs, workbooks, and illustrations are examples of instructional materials used in the teaching of mathematics (mntunjani, 2016). “instructional materials should arouse students’ interest in learning mathematics, help students to study mathematics actively, develop students’ potential in creativity through the process of learning basic knowledge, improve students’ mathematical thinking when trying to understand the essence of mathematical knowledge, and raise students’ awareness to apply mathematical knowledge in their everyday lives” (lepik, 2015, p. 6). the written curriculum resources such as textbooks, graphs, worksheets, calculators, etc. can be used with the teacher's instruction and support. in addition to these educational tools, computer-assisted tools play an important role in improving mathematics achievement at all levels of schooling (adu, & duku, 2021). textbooks are the most extensively used of all the written curriculum resources described above because they are most relevant and frequently used daily to teach mathematics and any other subject (adu, 2018). most teachers rely on mathematics textbooks to make decisions related to the stated objective or goal of each lesson. another significance of the textbook is that it assists the teachers and students to reach compromise on the difficult tasks and to make resolution of challenges faced by both the teacher and students (adu, 2018). research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 adu, k. o. & duku, n. learning styles and instructional materials as correlates of grade 6 learners’ mathematics performance in buffalo city, south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 245 poor academic performance and a bad attitude toward mathematics are influenced not just by teaching approaches, but also by learning styles. what led to poor performance is the obstructions that happened to effective classroom engagement due to misalignments that occur between learning and teaching styles (mullis et al., 2012). academic performance tends to increase when the teacher uses the right instructional materials that are commensurate with the learners’ learning styles. teachers frequently rely on instructional resources and learners' readiness when making decisions about what classroom activities to do and what assignments to offer students for them to understand mathematical information. when students can see, touch, smell, and even taste what they're learning, it becomes more captivating and interesting. this correlates with the chinese proverb which reads: “what i see, i remember. what i hear, i forget and what i do, i understand.” according to opara (2012), learning materials are information carriers that are particularly created to meet the desired goals of the lesson. according to okeke (2015, p. 289), instructional materials are: all the physical (synthetic and material that are real and spontaneous) resources are meant to be used by the facilitator in the process of teaching and learning. these materials may be used singly or in combination. in some cases, they could be used informally or formally. this demonstrates that during classroom activities, teachers adjust their methods of using learning materials to effect changes in their learners’ behaviors. the efficient use of instructional materials can certainly improve teaching and learning, arouse interest, and improve students' effective replies. according to obara (2012), the development of cognitive, affective, and psychomotor domains in education is being determined by the ability of the teacher to meaningfully disseminate information that will arouse and appeal to the learners. such will make the learners claim ownership of the subject matter and acquire more experiences. learning styles influence effective teaching and learning by determining learning behaviors. the learning environment can influence the learners' preferred learning style and behavior. learners perceive, interact with, and respond to their surroundings in unique ways. the characteristics and personalities presented by their students, as well as the variances in their students' learning styles, must be the priority of the teachers, such characteristics and personalities can go a long way in assisting the teacher and make classroom activities more meaningful and more interactive (adu et al., 2020). in addition, since the needs of the learners are different, the knowledge of learners’ characteristics will assist the teacher to set up the classroom. when we consider a typical classroom setting, we rarely see all three of these learning modes (visual, aural, and kinesthetic) used together. while it may appear difficult, it is doable with careful teacher planning and preparation. what learners see and hear affects their behavior, therefore the efficiency of learning is determined by what they see and hear. the organization and usage of instructional materials are critical for effective teaching and learning as well as concept retention. sequel to the aforementioned point, mkpa (2015, p. 15) believes that “learners remember 20% of what they hear, 30% of what they see, 50% of what they hear and see, 70% of what they hear, see and talk about, and 90% of what they hear, see, talk about and do”. the utilization of instructional materials, according to wales (2011) and nwichi (2013), is what keeps discovered facts securely bonded to the learners' memories. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 adu, k. o. & duku, n. learning styles and instructional materials as correlates of grade 6 learners’ mathematics performance in buffalo city, south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 246 objective of the paper the objective of the paper is to examine how learning styles and the utilization of instructional materials affect grade 6 learners mathematics performance in buffalo city, south africa. research questions the followings are the research questions guiding this paper. • what is the relative effect of learning styles, availability, and utilization of instructional materials on grade 6 learners’ mathematics performance? • what is the composite effect of learning styles, availability, and utilization of instructional materials on grade 6 learners mathematics performance? theoretical framework this paper is anchored on a theory by kolb, an american education theorist who proposed that experiential learning theory, self-initiative, and evaluation are the necessary skills under experiential learning. the availability of instructional materials coupled with appropriate learning styles promotes the two major skills. experiential learning theory advocates for observations and experiments, these will lead to action plans and attainment of the stated goal. this comprehensive method enables students to acquire new skills in a variety of areas, including mathematics, as well as new characters. according to kolb, learning has four stages: "do, observe, think, and plan," these stages encourage students to be active and not passive in their education (akinoso, 2012). according to felder and henriques (2009), learners in the classroom can be broadly divided into two; namely intuitive and sensory. intuitive learners are curious, apt to learn difficult things, they are very inventive, creative, innovative and they prefer novelty regardless of what it entails, while sensory learners are very practical, always eager to carry out experiments, and engaging in empirical research before making any decision. learners might be visual or verbal in terms of how they like to receive information, visual learners prefer to get knowledge from what instructional materials are being displayed before them in class, whereas verbal learners prefer to engross in the information received from the teacher during the teaching. the researcher, on the other hand, believes that visual learners are superior to verbal learners since the learners always remember what they see than what they hear. furthermore, when it comes to the acquisition and processes of knowledge, the learners can be divided into two groups, namely, active and reflective. active learners always like to be engaged in all classroom activities, they participated fully in class, they wanted to be noticed at all times. in any group work, they like to be the group leader. always leading the conversation. on the other hand, the reflective learners are perceived learners waiting for the directives of the teacher before they can do anything. reflective learners are using introspection, they always meditate and regurgitate what they are being taught without adding anything and dwell in perceived information. the learning behavior of the learners was influenced by their learning styles. learners with varied learning style preferences will perceive, engage with, and react in different ways to the environment (ma et al., 2013). therefore, there is a need for teachers to understand and analyze the disparities that are conspicuous in the students’ learning styles, this will allow the teachers to do justice to their differences during the teaching and learning research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 adu, k. o. & duku, n. learning styles and instructional materials as correlates of grade 6 learners’ mathematics performance in buffalo city, south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 247 for better performance. teachers will be able to understand the entry behavior of the students and assist them accordingly (felder & spurlin, 2015). the teaching and learning of mathematics using instructional materials are being described and appreciated by kolb’s learning theory (mcgill & beaty, 2005). the following main ideas support this theory, which has a strong focus on learning, the concepts such as; experimenting, doing, and thinking are the reflective observation that leads to reflective observation, concrete experience, and abstract conceptualization. the use of concrete instructional materials, in line with kolb's rationale, offers learners with practical opportunities to investigate and actively engage in the study of mathematics. the use and the management of instructional materials allow students to experiment and learn via trial and error, allowing them to take charge of their education. furthermore, kolb’s notion of active implementation is in line with learning by doing through the use of instructional materials because learners learn differently. some learners are learning by touching, while others by observation. what is imperative is that instructional materials ignite learners' abstract thinking and interests (reflective observation). literature review teachers should be familiar with how to use the instructional materials to achieve the stated objectives of the lesson and facilitate classroom activities (stein & kim, 2009). during the teaching-learning process, there is the necessity of employing a variety of instructional resources. a teacher has an important role to play in creating a learning experience that will allow students to understand some basic concepts in mathematics (saleh et al., 2018). however, the efficiency of learning is determined by what learners see and hear. effective teaching and learning with the ability to retain what is being taught is a result of the utilization and management of instructional materials. this is in line with iyunade (2014) that opined that designing instruction using a systemic approach will allow students to learn effectively. moreover, other elements can promote effective teaching and learning, these are: (a) identifying instruction outcomes; (b) developing instruction; (c) evaluating instruction to ensure that it is effective. however, it has been found that an insufficient pedagogical approach makes the adaption of perfect school environments and the implementation of activities challenging. as a result, proper utilization of instructional materials is needed for the facilitation of teaching and achievement of learning objectives. in south africa and abroad, the application of learning strategies fosters the achievement of the learning goal. in addition, when a learner plans very well, such learner will be able to develop personality traits that can promote good rapport between the learner and the teacher, this makes an ideal classroom situation (ma & ma, 2014). competitive students frequently regard everyone in the class as working toward the same learning goal. a learner who is referred to as competitive does not only want to be the first to reach the objective but also to achieve it more outstandingly than his or her classmates (ma & ma, 2014). as a result, competitive learners frequently perceive academic success as when there are few achievers and many losers. similarly, there is a competitive learning style that motivates learners to put up a lot of effort in their studies (burguillo, 2010). moreover, competitive learning has been research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 adu, k. o. & duku, n. learning styles and instructional materials as correlates of grade 6 learners’ mathematics performance in buffalo city, south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 248 claimed by some educational psychologists to be undesirable since it causes excessive anxiety (ma & ma, 2014). because of their age, a comprehensive description of a subject may not result in a greater grasp of that subject by primary school students; but, utilization of teaching materials for mathematics fascinates effective teaching and learning and remove ambiguity (iyunade, 2014). the usage of instructional materials at the primary level, according to orhun (2013), has become a recognized fact all across the world. the "modus operandi" of utilizing and managing learning resources, on the other hand, has not been adopted. this means that teachers in primary schools use different methods for implementing and managing instructional materials, which has been noted as one of the problems of teaching and learning. in an ideal world, no effective education program would be possible without the necessary equipment, facilities, and resources. people are not born with a predisposition to learn in a particular way; rather, through interaction with other people in the society and observing the norms of the society. however, certain styles of learning are universal across students worldwide. for example, if students are required to primarily reproduce knowledge on tests, memory will be the dominant learning technique (ma & ma, 2014). another thing that promotes the use of appropriate learning styles is culture. some cultures are very distinctive and are on the premise of different assumptions. if these cultures are thoroughly observed, it promotes acceptable behavior that leads to standard learning styles which produce better performance methodology research approach and design according to adu and duku (2021), a methodology is a process of selecting, reflecting on, analyzing, and justifying how a researcher wants to perform a research project. the research approach chosen for this paper is quantitative. it is quantitative because it looks at the relationship between or among variables. the variables in this paper are, learning styles, instructional materials, and mathematics performance. this paper now investigates how the independent variables affect the dependent variable (olubela, 2015). the research design adopted for this paper is correlational, this design has the habit of investigating the relationship between variables. it gives the direction of a relationship between two or more variables. the direction of the relationship can be positive or negative, likewise significant and not significant. this design is very flexible (adu & duku, 2021). population and sample the samples used for this paper are 1225 grade, 6 learners, across 35 schools in buffalo city. the sampling strategy adopted for this paper is stratified. stratified sampling is a process of dividing the sample frame into strata to obtain relatively homogenous subgroups (sanni, 2011). east london district consists of twelve (12) circuits, out of these; seven (7) circuits were randomly selected. a disproportionate stratified sampling strategy was used to select five (5) schools from each of the circuits. this gave 35 schools selected across all the circuits in the district. from each selected school, one arm of grade 6 was also randomly selected and total enumeration was used to involve all the learners in the selected class. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 adu, k. o. & duku, n. learning styles and instructional materials as correlates of grade 6 learners’ mathematics performance in buffalo city, south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 249 research instruments the students' learning style scale (slss) is a data collection tool with two sections: section a and section b. the biodata information in section a includes name, school, and gender. there are seventeen (17) items in section b, with the following response scales: ge = great extent, se = some extent, le = little extent, na = not at all. the availability and utilization of instructional materials inventory (auimi), which has two components, sections a and b, was also used to collect data for this work. section a contains biographical information; section b has fifteen (15) items with the following response scales: a = available, na = not available if available, u = use, nu = not use if not available. to determine the accuracy, usefulness, and credibility of the instrument, many domains of validity and reliability were used, including construct validity, content validity, and concurrent validity. the last instrument is the mathematics achievement test (mat) which is a multiple-choice objective test made up of 25 items. only one answer is correct among the multiple-choice of four (a, b, c, & d). the test covers some topics in mathematics. the scoring of mat was done on a dichotomous basis. the correct response earned one mark, while an incorrect response earned zero. these instruments were administered to the learners. validity and reliability of instruments the slss was validated by the experts in mathematics education while its reliability was measured using cronbach alpha and a co-efficient value of 0.87 was obtained. the research instrument for (auimi) was originally presented to professionals in the field of mathematics education, who made the necessary adjustment to the instrument. the questionnaire was subjected to pilot testing to further give strong validity. the pilot activities were conducted in another location that is different from where samples were taken for the study. the researcher also used cronbach alpha and it proved its dependability. and a coefficient value of 0.89 was achieved, indicating that the questionnaire was valid and had a good level of consistency. the researcher constructed a pilot test of 25 items and administered it to 35 grade 6 learners to measure its reliability coefficient using kuder richardson 20. this method makes use of psychometric data obtained from one test administration (babbie, 2012). it is assumed that items in the instrument are homogeneous and so possess inter-item consistency. an instrument is reliable when it can produce consistently each time numerical results it is applied; not subject to variations except when there are changes in the variable being measured (babbie, 2012; sanni, 2011). the kuder richardson 20 was computed to determine the internal consistency and reliability of each item and the value was 0.78. the instrument was given to experts in educational research (tests and measurement), and lecturers in mathematics education who offered suggestions, and corrections were affected to improve the instrument. data collection the data were collected using the aforementioned instruments. the researcher with the help of a research assistant administered the instruments to the respondents. the teachers also assisted in administering the mat to their learners. learners did the multiple-choice mathematics achievement test and submitted it after 40 minutes. the teachers also assisted to research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 adu, k. o. & duku, n. learning styles and instructional materials as correlates of grade 6 learners’ mathematics performance in buffalo city, south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 250 mark the question papers and giving the score. the scores were used during data analysis by coding the different scores of the learners and correlating them with auimi data analysis descriptive statistics of (percentage and frequency) and inferential statistics of multiple regression analysis were employed to answer the research questions. the software used for the analysis is statistical package for social sciences (spss). in this paper, the research questions that guided the study are adequately answered. the researcher coded the responses from auimi and the scores from mat instruments before capturing and entering each item using spss. result and discussion demographic characteristics/information of respondents the descriptive nature of this study necessitates the analysis of demographical information provided by the grade 6 learners selected for the fieldwork. the biographical information (i.e. gender) is central to understanding the extent to which the outcome of this study could be generalized, and the learners’ characteristics underlying the data analyzed in this study. table 1 below shows that 1225 grade 6 learners participated in this study. 770 were female grade 6 learners while 455 were males. the female grade 6 learners that took part in the study were more than the male learners. 62.9% of the respondents are female learners while 37.1% were male learners. table 1. information of respondents gender frequency percent valid percent cumulative percent male 455 37.1 37.1 37.1 female 770 62.9 62.9 100.0 total 1225 100.0 100.0 research question 1 what is the relative effect of learning styles, availability, and utilization of instructional materials on grade 6 learners’ mathematics performance? table 2 shows that students learning styles (visual, auditory, and kinesthetic) have a significant relationship with grade 6 learners mathematics performance (b=-.113, t=-3.886, p<0.05). this result corroborates the assertions of dunn, beaudry, and klavas (2009) that succinctly described that when learners were taught with the use of instructional materials with appropriate learning styles, success is inevitable. even the low achievers will improve significantly. on the contrary, bosman and schulze (2018) believed that instructional materials and appropriate learning styles alone could not produce outstanding performance, that the only thing that can produce great achievements in mathematics is the combination of learning styles, teaching styles, and relevant instructional materials. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 adu, k. o. & duku, n. learning styles and instructional materials as correlates of grade 6 learners’ mathematics performance in buffalo city, south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 251 table 2. contributions of independent variables to dependent variable. model unstandardized coefficients b std. error standardized coefficients beta t sig. collinearity statistics tolerance vif 1 (constant) 14.128 .508 27.816 .000 students’ learning style -.814 .209 -.113 -3.886 .000 .957 1.045 auimi .0006 .007 .023 .804 .422 .957 1.045 note. dependent variable: mathematics performance the same table shows that the availability and utilization of instructional materials have no significant relationship with the mathematics performance of selected grade 6 learners (b=.023, t=.804, p≥0.05). this opposed the view of ogundiran (2015), which confirmed in his study; that one of the problems facing or infringing on the academic performance of the pupils in mathematics at public primary schools includes non-use of instructional materials. limitation of available resources especially symbols and graphs etc. will affect the teaching of mathematics and make mathematics curriculum contents abstract (erbilgin, 2017). research question 2 what is the composite effect of learning styles, availability, and utilization of instructional materials on grade 6 learners mathematics performance? table 3 presents the output of the multiple regression analysis computed to answer research question two. the regression outputs presented r2 as .012(1.2%), and r=.110, which implies that the students learning styles, availability, and utilization of instructional materials accounted for 1.2% of the variance in learners’ mathematics performance at schools in buffalo city. this is in line with adu et al. (2020), who opined that the significance of instructional materials cannot be overemphasized. the use of these materials with commensurate learning styles has a great deal in promoting or enhancing academic performance. also, the use of the right learning styles is a key factor to the success of mathematics. these authors also believed that the use of adequate instructional materials always lays a good foundation for mathematics which the learners can build on. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 adu, k. o. & duku, n. learning styles and instructional materials as correlates of grade 6 learners’ mathematics performance in buffalo city, south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 252 table 3. combined effects of independent variables on the dependent variable model sum of squares df mean square vif f sig. remark 1 regression 243.990 2 121.995 7.552 .001 significant residual 145.316 1222 16.153 total 166.000 1224 *r=.110 r square= .011 std. error of **adjusted r estimate square= .012 = 4.01914 note. dependent variable: mathematics performance similarly, according to adler and pillay (2015), students learn more when the teacher does not use only a single approach but uses multiple approaches as a strategy to disseminate information. the researchers strongly believe that approach and learning styles are determined by the availability of instructional materials (adler & pillay, 2015). according to iyunade (2014), learners are actively involved in classroom activities when there is an interplay between instructional materials and appropriate learning styles. he further argued that teaching styles play a fundamental role in ensuring the achievement of learning objectives in mathematics. furthermore, dunn and dunn (2011) reiterated that learners without appropriate learning styles even if the resources are available are underachieving. this is in line with ma et al., (2013) that the learning behaviour of the learners was influenced by their learning styles. learners with varied learning style preferences will perceive, engage with, and react in different ways to the environment (ma et al., 2013). conclusion the study looked into the relationship between learning styles, instructional materials availability, and use, and grade 6 math achievement. auditory, visual, and kinesthetic learners are examples of distinct types of learners. the auditory enjoys listening to the teachers and prefers to sit near them in class. visual learners want to see things in person while learning. they learn through visual aids while kinesthetic learns by doing. the study's findings demonstrated that all the learning styles in this study have a favorable impact on student's academic achievement in mathematics. nonetheless, visual learning approaches were found to be the most effective, because what the learner sees, the learner retains and understands better. this is supported by the philosophers who claim, "i recall what i see, but i forget what i hear." teachers must play an important part in ensuring that students are shown what is relevant and can help them improve their performance. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 adu, k. o. & duku, n. learning styles and instructional materials as correlates of grade 6 learners’ mathematics performance in buffalo city, south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 253 recommendations the study found out that the variables under study are relevant to the academic performance of learners who undertake mathematics. the implication of this is that teachers need to recognize these styles and harmonize their styles with learners; styles to produce desirable results and outcomes. teachers should also make use of appropriate materials and if need be, they can improvise. mathematics is a unique subject that cannot be taught without instructional materials. teachers should be trained by regular workshops to update their knowledge on the use of instructional materials and proper learning styles for effective teaching and learning. effective classroom management is needed during the teaching of mathematics. in addition, teachers should be very flexible and align their teaching with the styles and the needs of the learners. a conducive environment is also needed apart from learning styles and materials. references abdullahi, a. 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(2014). class organization and administration. london: nicholas and coy ltd. smase project (2010). smase training program. unpublished raw data. smase project, nairobi. stein, m. k. & kim, g. (2009). the role of mathematics curriculum materials in large scale urban reform. in j. t. remillard, b. a. herbel-eisenmann, & g. m. lloyd (eds.), mathematics teachers at work: connecting curriculum materials and classroom instruction (pp.37-55). new york: routledge. wales, f. (2011). alternate funding of education. new york: free press. http://timssandpirls.bc.edu/timss2015/encyclopedia/ https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.03.03.3 research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 tahili, m.h., tolla, i., saman, a., ahmad, mohd.a., samad, s. the effect of strategic collaboration approach on the national educational standards achievement and service quality in basic education at local government in indonesia. research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 53 the effect of strategic collaboration approach on the national educational standards achievement and service quality in basic education at local government in indonesia mashuri h. tahili* department of government, faculty of social and political science, muhammadiyah university of luwuk banggai, indonesia ismail tolla department of education administration science, postgraduate school, the state university of makassar, indonesia abdul saman department of education science, the state university of makassar, indonesia mohd. arifin ahmad, department of education science, postgraduate school, the state university of makassar, indonesia sulaiman samad department of education science, postgraduate school, the state university of makassar, indonesia *corresponding author: mashuritahili6@gmail.com received : 2020-10-06 revised : 2021-02-12 accepted : 2021-03-29 how to cite this paper: tahili, m.h., tolla, i., saman, a., ahmad, mohd. a. and samad, s., (2021). the effect of strategic collaboration approach on the national educational standards achievement and service quality in basic education at local government in indonesia. research in social sciences and technology, 6(1), 53-82. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.4 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). abstract this study measures the effect of strategic collaboration approach on the educational national standards (ens) and the basic education service quality at local government in indonesia the research used a quantitative method. we used 489 teachers and 271 school principals in primary and secondary schools. the data were collected through questionnaires for the quantitative data and analyze using a structural model. the research findings confirm strategic collaboration approach has a positive and significant effect on ens and basic education service quality. further, the educational national standards have a positive and significant effect on the basic education service. in this study, we found that the strategic collaboration approach may employ in basic education to perform basic education performance. we argue that to better implementation of strategic collaboration approach, the greater improvement of the achievement of ens and basic education service quality at local government in indonesia. 10.46303/ressat.2021.4 mailto:mashuritahili6@gmail.com https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.4 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 tahili, m.h., tolla, i., saman, a., ahmad, mohd.a., samad, s. the effect of strategic collaboration approach on the national educational standards achievement and service quality in basic education at local government in indonesia. research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 54 keywords: strategic collaboration approach, basic education, national educational standards, basic education service quality introduction the one pivotal duty of the indonesian government especially the ministry of education and culture republic of indonesia is that to ensure the implementation of education policy in providing the educational national standards (ens) achievement and service quality in basic education. however, the achievement of education national standards in indonesia has not been evenly achieved in the interests of the quality of education in basic education (primary and secondary school) in the local government. in fact, it shows that the service quality performance has not available with the demands of education stakeholders, the students’ parents, the school committee, and the board of education at local government. oecd has pointed out that the service quality in basic education in indonesia does not meet the appropriate and fulfil citizen expectations for developing the education quality and performance (oecd, 2015). in turning to answer this gap, the research will focus on analysing the effect of the strategic collaboration approach on the educational national standards and service quality in basic education at local government in indonesia. according to the literature state, the theory of collaboration stated that it has the benefit implication and essential to make better the working completion through teamwork and synergies with others stakeholders for getting the mutual benefits, and concern into collaboration among public organization (vangen & huxham, 2010). in line with that, norristerril & clay stated that collaboration has become the credential strategy to overcome the complex problems in public sectors, hence it should be implemented to solving the shareproblems (norris-tirrell & clay, 2010). this research has proved that strategic collaboration has benefits to the achievement of ens in local government in indonesia. it related to the empirical study that strategic collaboration can improve the sustainable development for school management and leadership (austin, 2000; borg & drange, 2019; budiharso & tarman, 2020; lai, 2011; lingam & lingam, 2020; sergiovanni et al., 1987). besides, the strategic collaboration has also given benefit to enhance the performance and innovation in public service quality (ancarani & capaldo, 2001; borg & drange, 2019; chen et al., 2020; norris-tirrell & schmidt, 2010; perrault et al., 2011; reeves et al., 2018). overall, the strategic collaboration approach has benefits in achieving the educational standards and the service quality in basic education. for future research, we suggest investigating the critical success factors of the strategic collaboration approach in developing the education quality, not only in basic education but also in higher education in indonesia or asean countries. the research in education policy in indonesia has been fully attracted for all policymakers and practitioners to find the best solution to promote the best service quality and performance of basic education. accordingly, there are many problems relating to the reasons why the achievement of ens and service education in basic education have not been fulfilled yet, for research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 tahili, m.h., tolla, i., saman, a., ahmad, mohd.a., samad, s. the effect of strategic collaboration approach on the national educational standards achievement and service quality in basic education at local government in indonesia. research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 55 example, the disparity of the school infrastructure, school leader and teachers' competencies, and the graduates' competencies standards. we argue that to overcome these gaps, there is a relevant perspective to fill up, here in the research, we propose strategic collaboration based on the practice-based approach to overcome share-problems in the public sector (norris-tirrell, 2012; norris-tirrell & clay, 2010). in the case of the strategic collaboration approach, empirically, it can reduce the high cost of managing basic education and provide the resource for the public sector institution or school improvement on education policy in indonesia. the strategic collaboration approach is viewed as a key driver to achieve the quality of basic education. the previous research suggested collaboration in education should be ensured to get better building capacity implementation, and the highest chance of the school-based management, and development of school outcomes (barrera-osorio et al., 2009; harris, 2001; wohlstetter & odden, 2016). other scholars state that to improve the education quality, it should be based on the development of education management, strategic planning, organizational processes standards operations, and school outcomes (hopkins, 1997; hopkins & harris, 1997; meyers & vangronigen, 2019; o’toole & meier, 2004; öztürk, 2020; wohlstetter & odden, 2016). school development consists of two issues, namely; (1) all schools and districts have attempted to make innovation based on the standards-based model, and (2) school administrators should aware of the education standards-based practice (peters & buckmiller, 2014). the importance of management based standards in education can also be developed to find the professional of education management involved curricula, instructional methods were being aligned with standards that should be assessed, grading, and reported students outcomes (peters et al., 2016). the theory of strategic collaboration states to promote the capacity of the public sector to succeed in their performance, it should be given priorities in developing the capacity or the competence of the personal capacity and organization (kapucu & demiroz, 2013). there are several studies have been conducted to measure and analyse the minimum service standards and ens in a variety of approach, for example; the analysis of mms and ens in basic education through discrepancy evaluation model (nababan et al., 2018). there are some factors that determined the effectiveness of policy implementation such as service quality, planning, and budgeting system, budget provision system, and socialization (khairi, 2015). another study concerning the education minimum service standards in the remote or border area in indonesia using the inaccuracies and gaps model (samion & darma, 2018), and the study that focused on the achievement of minimum service standards in basic education (primary and secondary school) in magelang city, central java province, indonesia argued that the local government must be stressing on the 9 years compulsory education, equitable teachers distribution in the level of primary and secondary school (hayati, 2014), and the implementation of the minimum service standards in basic education through balanced scorecard approach (rusli & akadira, 2016). research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 tahili, m.h., tolla, i., saman, a., ahmad, mohd.a., samad, s. the effect of strategic collaboration approach on the national educational standards achievement and service quality in basic education at local government in indonesia. research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 56 accordingly, the main objective of education that is viewed as a system argues that there are no education elements that can walk alone, without any support from another resource. students, teachers, technology, education-based standards, infrastructures, financials, and logistic should be provided as the basic needs of education will strict to get the management of educational effectiveness, and it will give benefits to the economic growth and social capital (bsnp, 2018; coombs & hallack, 1987; shabani, 2016). the concept of education management, collaboration, and school improvement has been studied more extensively to promote accountability and school development (bandur, 2012). the extent review of the literature shows the study is concerning to apply the strategic collaboration perspective in the achievement of ens and service quality in the basic education at local government has not been studied before. therefore, this study will explore the effect of strategic collaboration perspective in public sectors based on the share-problems approach (norris-terril & clay, 2010). the objective of the study in this research, we focus on analyzing the effect of the strategic collaboration on the educational national standards achievement and service quality in basic education in the local government in indonesia. besides, the specific objectives of the study are: 1. to analyze the effect of strategic collaboration approach on the educational national standards in basic education. 2. to analyze the effect strategic collaboration approach on the basic education service quality. 3. to analyze the educational national standards effect on the basic education service quality. research hypotheses in this study, we propose there are three hypotheses that will analyze further, namely: h1: the strategic collaboration approach has a positive and significant effect on the educational national standards in basic education. h2: the strategic collaboration approach has a positive and significant effect on the basic education service quality. h3: the educational national standards have a positive and significant effect on the basic education service quality. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 tahili, m.h., tolla, i., saman, a., ahmad, mohd.a., samad, s. the effect of strategic collaboration approach on the national educational standards achievement and service quality in basic education at local government in indonesia. research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 57 review of relevant literature strategic collaboration approach the strategies collaboration approach is a fundamental view to developing the performance of the public organization in delivering public service, and it has approach is that the practicebased approach to overcome the problems in public sectors (norris-tirrell & clay, 2010). the theory focuses on building the working team synergy and collaboration by involving the actors’ collaboration, the organizational relationship, organizational capacity, and the capacity in making the policy programs. according to ferrier-kerr the strategic collaboration can make an organization environment to be more conducive to building a strong relationship and professionalism in overcoming the problems (ferrier-kerr, 2009). the extant literature on collaboration explains that the term of collaboration is widely used as the best strategy to overcome the wicked problems in the public organization or private sectors and enable to improve the achievement of service quality, intentionality, and innovative strategic solutions (norris-tirrell & clay, 2010; o’donnell, 2012) collaboration can be defined as the process of the involvement of heterogeneous participants in a coordinated and develop mutual engagement and commitment to overcome the problems that will complete in coordination and alliances (lai, 2011). meanwhile, capacity and capacity building has two different terms in a social or public organization. in this article, the concept of capacity is not only referred to human resource development, but also the organization and/or institution development (caldwell, 2005). based on the literature review, we identify that there are six dimensions of strategic collaboration factors that can determine the success of basic education management and the education standard in the local government and the schooling unit. these dimensions can facilitate the education institution as a public organization to get the best of service quality such as; (1) organizational learning and the multiples competencies of actors (kapucu & demiroz, 2013; kim & park, 2020; popova-nowak & cseh, 2015; saadat & saadat, 2016); (2) inter-organizational collaboration capacity (geisler, 1995; kapucu & demiroz, 2013; oliver & ebers, 1998; ritter & gemünden, 2003); (3) intervention strategies (cusack et al., 2018; kapucu et al., 2003; kapucu & demiroz, 2013); (4) collaborative capacity networks (fitzgerald, 2004; kapucu et al., 2003; kapucu & demiroz, 2013); (5) community capacity participation (an et al., 2014; hite & de grauwe, 2009; stoll, 2009). (6) administrative management capacity (barreraosorio et al., 2009; fullan & watson, 2000; kodratillah et al., 2019; komariah & sunaengsih, 2016; wohlstetter & odden, 2016). educational national standards (ens) policy the ens has been interested in some scholars with various approaches. the primary education achievement is still lower if it compares with the capacity of the students at the international level such as in pisa. oecd in pisa report (2019) reveals that the achievement of indonesia students in the performance in science, mathematics, and reading was among the lowest, with research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 tahili, m.h., tolla, i., saman, a., ahmad, mohd.a., samad, s. the effect of strategic collaboration approach on the national educational standards achievement and service quality in basic education at local government in indonesia. research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 58 the average ranking of 36 out of the 41 participating countries in 2018, panama, indonesia, marocco, lebanon, kosovo, dominican, and the philippines in primary and secondary education of the quality of the education provided (oecd, 2019). further, sukasni and effendy stated that the education service in indonesia has not been provided to the hope of the people of indonesia based on the education values and benefits (sukasni & efendy, 2017). the law number 20 of 2003 concerning the national education system, it mandates that achieving education quality requires ens policy effectiveness. further, the government regulation of the republic of indonesia number 32 of 2013 concerning amendments to government regulation number 19 of 2005 concerning ens states that there are eight national education. then, the directorate general of primary and secondary education, ministry of education and culture, republic of indonesia (2017) state that the “education indicators” in the education quality assurance policy include eight standards, namely: (a) graduate competency standards, (b) content standards, (c) process standards, (d) assessment standards, (e) teachers and education staff standards, (f) facilities and infrastructure standards, (g) school management standards, and (h) education financing standards. in the research, we focus on the eight critical success factors for achieving the highest national educational standards. these components view as the critical elements to provide the performance of the primary and secondary education in indonesia, then the local government should ensure that they can be improved comprehensively (ministry of education and culture, republic of indonesia, 2017). basic education service quality basic education is the formal education level that involves primary and secondary school. the service quality will affect service value, students’ satisfaction, students’ behavioral intentions, and word of mouth (prentice et al., 2018). besides that, the service quality is the behavior or attitude of customers to give a positive attitude for a long time assessment and intention (cronin & taylor, 1992). another scholar defined service quality as service performance and creating satisfaction for the customers. the service quality relates to the experience-based quality and service benefits (ancarani & capaldo, 2001). based on the review literature, we define that the basic education service quality means the best service that meets the students and community expectation to enrich the cognitive, skill, and attitude of the students. the education service will provide the change of the students’ behaviour and attitude through the best teaching model and performance. the better service quality performed by teachers, school principals, and school administration and management, the greater competence of students in basic education can be achieved effectively. research frameworks based on the literature review and previous empirical research, we then provide the research model that will be analyzed through on the quantitative approach. there are five primary dimensions of strategic collaboration based on the share-problems approach in the public sectors (norris-tirrell & clay, 2010) and to provide the conceptual model of the research. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 tahili, m.h., tolla, i., saman, a., ahmad, mohd.a., samad, s. the effect of strategic collaboration approach on the national educational standards achievement and service quality in basic education at local government in indonesia. research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 59 according to the empirical research and government regulation of the republic of indonesia no. 32 of 2013, we think that the strategic collaboration approach view as the critical variable in developing the ens the achievement and providing the service quality in basic education. based on that theory, we then formulate five dimensions of the strategic collaboration approach such as; the school actors’ capacity, the inter-organizational collaborative capacity, collaborative decision-making capacity, collaborative networks capacity, the collaborative planning capacity, and the administrative process capacity. furthermore, according to the government regulation of the republic of indonesia no. 32 of 2013 that is concerning to the ens policy stated that the foundation of the ens achievement does not only central government responsibility, but also the school management, group community, school committee, local government, private sector, and political party should involve supporting the basic education development. in line with the service quality of basic education, many indicators have been identified. there are eight indicators of ens use in the research based on the government regulation of the republic of indonesia number 32 of 2013 stipulated that the ens dimensions include eight standards, however, here in the research, we have just to measure the emerge and challenged standards in basic education for local government, namely graduate competency standards, content standards, learning process standards, teachers and education administrators standards, facilities and infrastructure standards, and education financial standards. empirically, those standards have a close relationship with the development of basic education quality achievement (lewis, 2003; ministry of education and culture, republic of indonesia, 2017; rusli & akadira, 2016). the basic education service quality is the capacity of the school unit to improve their service of teaching and learning to meet the quality of education. leblanc & nguyen have identified education service quality such as reputation, administrative personnel, curriculum, responsiveness, physical evidence, access to facilities and technologies (leblanc & nguyen, 1997). teeroovengadum, kamalanabhan, & seebaluck have been identified some factors of service quality in higher education. they stated that there were five dimensions of service quality include administrative quality, physical environment quality, core educational quality, support facilities quality, and transformative quality (teeroovengadum et al., 2016). further, education infrastructures play an important role in developing the students' aptitude, and it should be provided as well because as a whole they become the main discussion in the term of education service quality in the world for the education quality (world bank, 2019). moreover, the national education standard has a basic function that looks as a basis for planning, implementing, and supervising education to realize quality national education. meanwhile, the main objective of the ens is to ensure the quality of national education to educate the nation's life, to form a dignified national character and civilization. ens has a function as a reference or basis in the planning, implementation, and supervision process to realize quality national education. for the research model that will apply for further analysis, based on the theoretical review, the research frameworks can be seen in the following fig.1: research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 tahili, m.h., tolla, i., saman, a., ahmad, mohd.a., samad, s. the effect of strategic collaboration approach on the national educational standards achievement and service quality in basic education at local government in indonesia. research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 60 figure 1. the research frameworks data and method research design the research employed a quantitative research. a quantitative approach is a deductive approach that applies to prove, disprove, and improve the existing theories (leavy, 2017). we use the approach because it can cover a wide range of research samples and available to employ a large number of instruments and hypotheses. the research is focusing on analysing the effect of the strategic collaboration approach on the educational national standards and basic education service quality. there are three variables and dimensions will analyse on the research, namely: (1) the strategic collaboration approach in basic education based on the theory of strategic collaboration approach (norris-terril & clay, 2010). (2) the educational national standards based on the government of indonesia policy education especially in basic education. the educational national standards, and also government of indonesia regulation (pp) number 13 years of 2015 about the minimum service standards in indonesia. (3) basic education service quality involves six dimensions such as responsiveness of teachers and school principals, service value and learning management, school physical environment and infrastructure service, pedagogy service capability of teachers, transformative quality based abundance era, and. quality assurance and quality improvement. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 tahili, m.h., tolla, i., saman, a., ahmad, mohd.a., samad, s. the effect of strategic collaboration approach on the national educational standards achievement and service quality in basic education at local government in indonesia. research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 61 based on the conceptual model of research, we provide the operational variables of each variable and dimensions of the research: 1. the strategic collaboration approach in basic education is the strategic effort or activity of persons in the way of addressing and overcome the wicked problems in the education sector through collective action to make a strategic plan, action, and policy implementation for making a real change and reach the intentional objectives. there several dimensions of strategic collaboration in basic education for the research, such as inter-organizational collaboration strategy, collaboration in decision-making strategy, networks collaboration strategy, collaborative planning strategy, and developing actors competencies in collaboration strategy. 2. the educational national standards (ens) is the national criteria that must be provided and responsibilities of the local and national government through basic education capacity development policy to achieve the high performance in basic education (primary and secondary school). their research identifies five dimensions of ens to have emerged in basic education include graduates’ competency standards, education content standards, school infrastructure, and facilities standards, teachers and school administrators standards, and education financial standards. 3. the basic education service quality (besq) refers to the best service quality of the basic education policy implementation in basic education. these five elements involved for this variable, namely responsiveness of teachers and school principals, service value and learning management, school physical environment and infrastructure service, pedagogy service capability of teachers, transformative quality based abundance era, and quality assurance and quality improvement. samples the locus of research is that the education agency at local government in central sulawesi province which involve 6 districts include banggai island, banggai, morowali, north morowali, tojo una-una, and banggai sea district. we use cluster areas in determining the regions through the benefit consideration to support and improve the achievement of national education standards and service quality in basic education. in this study, the research population has amounted to 11.130 people included teachers and principals of primary and secondary schools that spread in six districts (see table 1). we assign the sum of the research sample consists of 850 respondents by using stratified random sampling because it has given better coverage of the population and to ensure the research samples provide the greater representative sampling. the population have been selected through two criteria of respondents is the sex and age of the research sample from school principals and teachers. in research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 tahili, m.h., tolla, i., saman, a., ahmad, mohd.a., samad, s. the effect of strategic collaboration approach on the national educational standards achievement and service quality in basic education at local government in indonesia. research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 62 determining the respondents of this research, we used the margin of error was α=0.05. the respondents have been selected through two criteria of respondents is that the senior teachers and school principals. the samples characteristics based on demography as follows: table 1. the demography characteristics of respondents criteria sub-scale frequency percent sex male 550 64.7 female 300 35.3 age under 30 93 10.9 3140 379 44.6 41-50 283 33.3 51+ 95 11.2 source: primary data (2020) table 1 shows that the number of respondents based on sex characteristics that males are more than female which are the total amount of males is 550 (64.7%), meanwhile, the female is 300 samples (35.3%). there is a difference in the sum of the research samples that males are more dominant than females, it considers reasonable because we argue that males are more likely to be faster to respond to the survey than females when they remind to fill the questionnaire. it relates to the argumentation that the male participants were actively responding to the survey than females as they have reminded to fill the survey (saleh & bista, 2017). further, in the age criteria, we divide the sample characteristics into five criteria as under 30 93 (10.9%), 31-40 have 379 samples (44.6%), and the ages of the samples are between 41-50-year-old consist of 283 (33.3%), and the age of the sample above 51 years are 95 (11.2%). further, the respondents’ characteristics show that they are clear for the distribution of the research samples, and they have been represented to avoid the bias of the research in taking the conclusion of the research. research instrument we designed the strategic collaboration approach consists of 30 indicators, educational national standards have 25 indicators, and basic education service quality has dimensions and involves 30 items questionnaires. the descriptive statistics are displayed below based on the likert scale through means analysis as follows: (1) 1.00-1.50 (very poor), (2) 1.51 – 2.50 (poor), (3) 2.51-3.50 (fair), (4) 3.51-4.50 (enough), (5) 4.51 – 5.50 (good), and (6) 5.51-6.50 (very good). we have been built from the theory of strategic collaboration approach (norris-terril & clay, 2010) which have five dimensions: (a) inter-organizational collaboration strategy (geisler, 1995; kapucu & demiroz, 2013; oliver & ebers, 1998; ritter & gemünden, 2003), (b) research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 tahili, m.h., tolla, i., saman, a., ahmad, mohd.a., samad, s. the effect of strategic collaboration approach on the national educational standards achievement and service quality in basic education at local government in indonesia. research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 63 collaboration in decision-making strategy (cusack et al., 2018; kapucu et al., 2003; kapucu & demiroz, 2013; kapucu & garayev, 2011). (c) networks collaboration strategy (fitzgerald, 2004; foster-fishman et al., 2001), (d) collaborative planning strategy (an et al., 2014; kapucu & demiroz, 2013; stoll, 2009), and (e) actors’ capacity development strategy (briggs & wohlstetter, 2003; kim & park, 2020; popova-nowak & cseh, 2015; saadat & saadat, 2016; wohlstetter & odden, 2016). the educational national standards instruments used five dimensions based on the government regulation of the republic of indonesia number 32 of 2013 stipulated that the ens dimensions include eight standards, however, here in the research, we are focus on the five dimensions which have priority to be achieve in basic education performance such as the graduate competency standards, content standards, learning process standards, teachers and education administrators standards, facilities and infrastructure standards, and education financial standards. for the basic education service quality variable, there are six dimensions including (a) responsiveness in education (luria & kaufman, 2017; minkos et al., 2017; parasuraman et al., 1998). (b) service value and learning management (cronin. & taylor, 1992; sarkadi & fadhillah, 2020), (c) school physical environment and infrastructures availability (ekpoh, 2018; teeroovengadum et al., 2016; world bank, 2019). (d) pedagogy capabilities) (prentice, brady, & mclaughlin, 2018; teeroovengadum et al., 2016; situmorang & aslam, 2020). (e) transformative quality based abundance era (prentice, brady, & mclaughlin, 2018; solone et al., 2020). (f) quality assurance and quality improvement (prentice, brady, & mclaughlin, 2018; teeroovengadum et al., 2016; allais, 2009). for the we have to analyze the normality test, validity and reliability test, means, and standard deviation (sd). based on the reliability test, the sixteen dimensions found the cronbach alpha value is 0.910. data analysis quantitative research needs validity and reliability items, so that before running sem analysis with amos software, the researchers make a pilot study for five months to distribute the questionnaires for 150 respondents to test the validity and reliability test. after that, there are three dimensions were discarded because it has not achieved the validity value for alpha cronbach is accepted for sufficient that the value of the items is 0.70 (≥ 0.70). after discarding the items that not achieve the alpha cut-off or threshold, then, all valid instruments are distributed to 850 respondents. at least six months for research data collection, and then the normality test, homogeneity test, descriptive statistics results. in testing the hypotheses, we research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 tahili, m.h., tolla, i., saman, a., ahmad, mohd.a., samad, s. the effect of strategic collaboration approach on the national educational standards achievement and service quality in basic education at local government in indonesia. research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 64 employed sem analysis to analyse the effect of the strategic collaboration approach on educational national standards and service quality in basic education. results after analyzed the research data, the cronbach alpha values will analysis and measured for each construct and the results analysis can be seen in table 2 shows that all constructs have accepted with the cut-off values > 0.70 (hair et al., 2009). further, we measure the construct validity by using kmo (kaiser-meyer-olkin), the average variance extracted (ave), and also the construct validity values. the kaiser-meyer-olkin measure of sampling adequacy has found 0.862. moreover, we analyzed the exploratory factor analysis (efa) before running to test the hypotheses by using the structural equation modelling with amos. in structural model, the efa analyzing has benefit to perform data normalization by measuring the data dimension reduction and found the exploratory factor analysis. in this research, we used the analysis of the coefficient display format with absolute value below 0.40 based on the direct oblimin with kaiser normalization of δ = 0.00, with maximum iteration for convergence is 0.40. the results of analyzing efa, we find that there are several indicators must be discarded the value of construct validity based cronbach alpha were below, and the values of loading factors also are below 0.70. in the strategic collaboration approach variable, we have deleted 1 indicator of independent variable. meanwhile, the national educational standards, basically, there are eight standards (see table 2), and they have discarded four indicators, and then the basic education service quality also two indicators were eliminated (see table 3). the results of each construct and indicators based on cronbach alpha and kmo values can be seen in the table 2. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 tahili, m.h., tolla, i., saman, a., ahmad, mohd.a., samad, s. the effect of strategic collaboration approach on the national educational standards achievement and service quality in basic education at local government in indonesia. research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 65 table 2. the cronbach’s alpha coefficient for each construct constructs cronbach alpha (α) kmo values strategic collaboration: practiced-based approach inter-organizational collaboration strategy (ics) 0.877 0.775 collaboration in decision-making strategy (cdms) 0.876 0.812 networks collaboration strategy (cns) 0.880 0.732 collaborative planning strategy (cps) 0.880 0.717 actors’ capacity development strategy (acds) 0.878 0.748 educational national standards policy graduates competency standards(gcs) 0.874 0.717 contents standards (cs) 0.875 0.836 school facilities and infrastructure standards (sfis) 0.873 0.770 teachers and school administrator competence standards (tsas) 0.875 0.781 education financial standards (efs) 0.876 0.782 basic education service quality responsiveness of teachers and school administrators (resp) 0.875 0.706 service value and learning management (svlm) 0.876 0.739 school physical environment and infrastructures (spei) 0.879 0.720 pedagogy capability (pc) 0.880 0.769 transformative quality based abundance era (tq) 0.660 0.786 quality assurance and quality improvement (qaqi) 0.780 0.765 source: primary data analysis (2021) the results findings show on table 2 that is the kmo is above than 0.5 (> 0.5), further the cutoff values of ave and cr are between 0.5 and 0.7 respectively for each construct. following hair et al assumption that the ave value should not below 0.5, or the ave value must be greater than 0.5 that means the variance of each construct measuring the latent construct objectively (hair et al., 2014). the construct values validity were sufficient to proceed the further analysis of structural model by amos software 24 to test the research hypotheses. the ave and cr, and the confirmatory factor analysis (cfa) values can be seen in the table 3. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 tahili, m.h., tolla, i., saman, a., ahmad, mohd.a., samad, s. the effect of strategic collaboration approach on the national educational standards achievement and service quality in basic education at local government in indonesia. research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 66 table 3. cfa measurements, ave, and cr no. constructs standardized loading factors (slf) measurement standardized errors (mse) ave cr strategic collaboration approach 1. inter-organizational collaboration strategy (ics) 0.747 0.049 0.812 0.602 2. collaboration in decision-making strategy (cdms) 0.777 0.050 3. networks collaboration strategy (cns) 0.852 0.054 4. collaborative planning strategy (cps) 0.852 0.054 5. actors’ capacity development strategy (acds) 0.819 0.048 educational national standards 6. graduates competency standards(gcs) 0.937 0.048 0.814 0.636 7. contents standards (cs) 0.664 0.048 8. school facilities and infrastructure standards (sfis) 0.551 0.049 9. teachers and school administrator competence standards (tsas) 0.950 0.049 10. education financial standards (efs) 0.930 0.039 basic education service quality 11. responsiveness of teachers and school administrators (resp) 0.803 0.048 0.758 0.500 12. service value and learning management (svlm) 0.799 0.040 13. school physical environment and infrastructures (spei) 0.710 0.039 14. pedagogy capability (pc) 0.719 0.041 15. transformative quality based abundance era (tq) 0.634 0.038 16. quality assurance and quality improvement (qaqi) 0.634 0.041 source: primary data analysis (2020) table 3 shows that all of the construct values are fitted, for example, the strategic collaboration approach consists of five indicators such as inter-organizational collaboration strategy (ics), collaboration in decision-making strategy (cdms), networks collaboration strategy (cns), collaborative planning strategy (cps), and actors’ capacity development strategy (acds). research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 tahili, m.h., tolla, i., saman, a., ahmad, mohd.a., samad, s. the effect of strategic collaboration approach on the national educational standards achievement and service quality in basic education at local government in indonesia. research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 67 according to structural model analysis shows that the five indicators have loading factors ≥ 0.70, and the ave value is 0.812, then, the composite ratio is 0.602. further, the national educational standards include four indicators such as graduates competency standards (gcs), content standards (cst), school facilities and infrastructure standards (sfis), and teachers and school administrator competence standards (tsas). the measurement results reveal that the loading factors of each indicators are above 0.70, the ave value result is 0.814, and the composite ratio (cr) is 0.636. for the basic education service quality involves five indicators indicate the fitted loading factors above 0.70, for examples; responsiveness of teachers and school administrators (resp), service value and learning management (svlm), school physical environment and infrastructures (spei), pedagogy capability (pc), and transformative quality based abundance era (tq), and quality assurance and quality improvement (qaqi). the ave value of these indicators are 0.738 and composite ratio is 0.459. based on this analysis, it reveals that all of the variance of each construct above 0.5 or it has fitted to measure the variables objectively. furthermore, according to the statistical measurements show that the structural model has feasibility and it can be appropriate with the sem criterion or fit model, for example, the chisquare value, probability, cmin/df, rmsea, gfi, agfi, tli, and cfi that all of them indicate the goodness of fit as expected as the model will estimate in population (hair et al., 2009, 2014, 2016). the goodness of fit for each construct will show in the following table: table 4. the statistical measurement of goodness of fit model goodness of fit indies model cut-off value the results of cut-off value analysis label x2 -chi-square intended small 314.194 fitted probability ≥ 0.05 0.000 fitted cmin/df < 2.00 3.696 fitted gfi ≥ 0.90 0.957 fitted agfi ≥ 0.90 0.930 fitted tli ≥ 0.95 0.971 fitted cfi ≥ 0.95 0.980 fitted rmsea ≥ 0.08 0.056. fitted source: primary data analysis (2020) based on the table 4 reveals that the x2 -chi-square is 314.194, and probability value is also under 0.05, cmin/df is 3.696, p= 0.000 which reveals that there is no significantly difference between the data observed and the data analysis to develop the structural model analysis. the value of goodness of fit index (gfi) is 0.957 or above 0.90 that indicates the objective relation between the variance and covariance of each construct which is using in the research model. hair et al (2009) that the gfi value result of analysis is fitted if it varies from 0 to 1. when it research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 tahili, m.h., tolla, i., saman, a., ahmad, mohd.a., samad, s. the effect of strategic collaboration approach on the national educational standards achievement and service quality in basic education at local government in indonesia. research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 68 gets gfi value is higher values mean the model is good of fit (hair et al., 2009). furthermore, the results of the normality test, means, standard deviation, reliability, and validity test can be seen in the table 5. the research results in table 5 indicate that kaiser normalization values are above 0.5 ( ≥ 0.5), further, the cut-off values of ave and cr are between 0.5 and 0.7 respectively for each construct. following hair et al assumption that the ave value should not below 0.5, or the ave value must be greater than 0.5 which means the variance of each construct measuring the latent construct objectively (hair et al., 2014). in this research, we found that each construct value validity is sufficient to proceed with the further analysis of the structural model by amos software 24 to test the research hypotheses. the sem analysis shows that all of the construct values are fitted, for example, the strategic collaboration approach consists of five indicators such as inter-organizational collaboration strategy (ics), collaboration in decision-making strategy (cdms), networks collaboration strategy (cns), collaborative planning strategy (cps), and actors’ capacity development strategy (acds). according to structural model analysis indicates the indicators have loading factors are ≥ 0.70, and the ave value is 0.812, then, the composite reliability (cr) is 0.602. further, the ens includes five indicators, namely graduates competency standards (gcs), content standards (cst), learning process standards (lps), facilities and infrastructure standards (fist), and education financial standards (efs). the measurement results reveal that the loading factors of each indicator are ≥ 0.70, the ave value result is 0.752, and the composite reliability (cr) is 0.500. the basic education service quality involves five indicators, such as responsiveness (resp) of teachers and school administrators, service value and learning management (svlm), pedagogy capability (pc), transformative quality based abundance era (tq), and quality assurance and quality improvement (qaqi) indicate they have fitted with loading factors are ≥ 0.70. the ave value of indicators is 0.758 and the composite reliability (cr) is 0.500. the result analysis reveals that all of the variances of each construct above 0.5, or in other words, they have fitted to measure the variables objectively. furthermore, according to the statistical measurements show that the structural model has feasibility and it can be appropriate with the sem criterion or fit model, for example, the chi-square value, probability, cmin/df, rmsea, gfi, agfi, tli, and cfi that all of them indicate the goodness of fit as expected as the model will estimate in a population (hair et al., 2009, 2014, 2016). research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 tahili, m.h., tolla, i., saman, a., ahmad, mohd.a., samad, s. the effect of strategic collaboration approach on the national educational standards achievement and service quality in basic education at local government in indonesia. research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 69 table 5. statistic descriptive results: means, standards deviation, reliability and validity test, and normality test (c.r) no. dimensions means standards deviation reliability test validity test critical ratio (c.r) strategic collaboration approach 1 inter-organizational collaboration strategy (ics) 4.06 1.267 0.905 0.768 0.901 2. collaboration in decisionmaking strategy (cdms) 4.08 1.281 0.905 0.774 0.539 3. networks collaboration strategy (cns) 4.05 1.383 0.907 0.750 0.981 4. collaborative planning strategy (cps) 4.28 1.139 0.906 0.731 0.356 5. actors’ capacity development strategy (acds) 4.16 1.213 0.908 0.774 -0.526 educational national standards 6. graduates competency standards (gcs) 3.98 1.289 0.912 0.746 0.862 7. contents standards (cs) 3.79 1.111 0.900 0.742 1.008 8. school facilities and infrastructure standards (sfis) 3.76 1.147 0.901 0.717 1.698 9. teachers and school administrator competence standards (tsas) 3.93 1.249 0.913 0.748 2.025 10. education financial standards (efs) 3.77 1.109 0.901 0.711 1.889 basic education in service quality 11. responsiveness of teachers and school administrators (resp) 3.90 1.147 0.899 0.762 0.214 12. service value and learning management (svlm) 3.88 1.165 0.899 0.759 -0.590 13. school physical environment and infrastructures (spei) 3.90 1.188 0.901 0.701 -0.967 14. pedagogy capability (pc) 3.92 1.167 0.901 0.702 -0.453 15. transformative quality based abundance era (tq) 3.83 1.175 0.904 0.716 -0.253 16. quality assurance and quality improvement (qaqi) 3.67 1.140 0.906 0.714 -0.307 source: primary data analysis (2020) research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 tahili, m.h., tolla, i., saman, a., ahmad, mohd.a., samad, s. the effect of strategic collaboration approach on the national educational standards achievement and service quality in basic education at local government in indonesia. research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 70 the hypothesis testing the result of structural modelling has some benefits to determine the hypotheses have positive and significant effect according to the estimated coefficient and provide the determination of taking a conclusion of each hypothesis will be accepted or rejected. there are three hypotheses have proposed and the findings of the results show that the strategic collaborative approach has a positive and significant effect on the national educational standards. the structural model analysis will be described in the following table: table 6. the structural model results analysis estimate s.e. c.r. p label ens <----- sca 0.306 0.038 7.950 *** accepted besq <------ ens 0.107 0.021 5.056 *** accepted besq <------ sca 0.915 0.025 37.080 *** accepted source: primary data analysis (2020) this study proposes the first hypothesis is that the strategic collaboration approach has a positive and significant effect on the educational national standards in basic education. according the results showed on the table 6 that the hypothesis testing that strategic collaboration has a positive and significant effect on the educational national standards in the basic education at local government of central sulawesi province in indonesia. the result shows that the estimate regression weight coefficient is β = 0.306, ρ = < 0.000, standards of error (se) is 0.038, and the critical ratio (c.r) that is 7.950. the result confirms that the hypothesis 1 is accepted. it means that the strategic collaboration approach has positive and significant effect on the education national standards in basic education in indonesia. further, the second hypothesis of this research is that the strategic collaboration approach has a positive and significant effect on the basic education service quality. according to the result analyse shows that the strategic collaboration has a positive and significant effect on the basic education service quality. according to the analyse that the estimate regression weight coefficient is β = 0.915, ρ = < 0.000, standards of error (se) is 0.025, and the critical ratio (c.r) that is 35.0800. the result confirms that the hypothesis 2 is accepted. it means that the strategic collaboration has positive and significant effect on the basic education service quality in indonesia. finally, the third hypothesis is that the educational national standards have a positive and significant effect on the basic education service quality. the result of research indicates that research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 tahili, m.h., tolla, i., saman, a., ahmad, mohd.a., samad, s. the effect of strategic collaboration approach on the national educational standards achievement and service quality in basic education at local government in indonesia. research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 71 the educational national standards has a positive and significant effect on the basic educations service quality. according to the structural analysis shows that the regression weight coefficient of national education standards approximately β = 0.107, ρ = < 0.000, standards of error (s.e) is 0.021, and the critical ratio (c.r) is 37.080. this result confirms that hypothesis 3 is accepted. this finding reveals that the educational service standards have positive and significant effect on the basic education service quality in indonesia. discussion these findings have benefits information to the central government of indonesia and local government that to achieve the performance of service quality in basic education, the strategic collaboration may become the one strategy to improve the achievement of educational national standards and basic education service quality. meanwhile, the educational national standards achievement may view as the main priority to develop in indonesia, because as empirically research reveals that they have significant effect on the basic education service quality. we argue that there is no better to be done in basic education performance, however, the strategic collaboration and educational national standards as view to be the key drivers in basic education service quality achievement in indonesia. the strategic collaboration approach in basic education consists of five dimensions that have relevance to the focus of research. inter-organizational collaboration strategy (ics) refers to the relationship of collaboration strategic capacity of education institution, schools, and education formal agency formally to address some problems in basic education to achieve the objectives. the variable has involved at least five indicators, such as connectedness of each actor or stakeholders in the collaboration of basic education, coordination, mutual trust, sharing communication, and innovation alliance (geisler, 1995; kapucu & demiroz, 2013; oliver & ebers, 1998; ritter & gemünden, 2003). based on the result findings we argue that the strategic collaboration approach is a pivotal perspective to improve the ens and service quality in basic education in indonesia. this research has the promise to develop the collaboration theory in education for reducing the limitation of resources (peddle, 2016), developing the school collaboration and improvement (armstrong, 2015; bessagnet et al., 2005; borg & drange, 2019; connolly & james, 2006), and collaboration in education for the abundance era and technologies can enhance the successful and sustainable of managing the basic education service performance (syarif, 2020). the strategic collaboration effect on ens in basic education strategic collaboration views as the critical approach to improve the strategic alliance in developing the achievement of sustainable development in basic education. in terms of the competitive and abundance era, the collaborative perspective in education is viewed as the research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 tahili, m.h., tolla, i., saman, a., ahmad, mohd.a., samad, s. the effect of strategic collaboration approach on the national educational standards achievement and service quality in basic education at local government in indonesia. research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 72 core driver to realize education achievement (kopish & marques, 2020; rapoport, 2020). based on the table above shows that the hypothesis testing results show that the estimated regression weight coefficient is β = 0.306, ρ = < 0.000, standards of error (s.e) is 0.038, and the critical ratio (c.r) is 7.950. based on the results finding indicates that hypothesis 1 states that the strategic collaboration effect on the educational national standards is accepted. this result has confirmed that the strategic collaboration may have the benefit to make the achievement of ens will be effective. in line with this, the results find that the strategic collaborative approach has a positive and significant effect on the achievement of ens in basic education. the strategic collaboration involves five dimensions, namely inter-organizational collaboration capacity (icc) (geisler, 1995; kapucu & demiroz, 2013; oliver & ebers, 1998; ritter & gemünden, 2003). the research finds that inter-organizational collaboration in education has the benefit to reduce complexity in education through the development of connectedness among schools, teachers, and school leaders, and also school superintendents. it also enhances the coordination between school actors, building mutual trust, sharing communication to strengthening the achievement of educational national standards, and innovation. besides that, strategic collaboration in basic education can develop the capacity of school leaders in decision making, efficiency, and effectiveness of school management. the collaborative networks capacity among teachers and school leaders will be developed through networks in education. strategic collaboration also has a positive effect on the achievement of planning capacity and all teachers and school leaders' competence in collaboration. the strategic collaboration effect on basic education service quality the extant literature shows collaboration offers an effective commitment of actors’ to achieve missions and synergy values, and establishes the actors’ competency to achieve the best performance (austin, 2000, 2010; perrault et al., 2011). norris-terril & schmidt stated the strategic collaboration can develop the performance in inter-organizational collaboration, citizen participation, and mediating the needs of local government needs and the local community in education (norris-tirrell & schmidt, 2010). this results finding indicates that hypothesis 2 is accepted states that the strategic collaboration approach positive and significant effect on the basic education service quality. besides that, the result analysis also indicates that there is a positive and significant effect of ens on the service quality in basic education. likewise, in this research, we argue that strategic collaboration has a significant effect on the service quality in basic education. the research findings confirm that hypothesis 1 is accepted. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 tahili, m.h., tolla, i., saman, a., ahmad, mohd.a., samad, s. the effect of strategic collaboration approach on the national educational standards achievement and service quality in basic education at local government in indonesia. research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 73 the strategic collaboration approach has a positive and significant effect on the ens achievement at local government in indonesia. it means that strategic collaboration has a significant effect on basic education service quality. the findings imply that the strategic collaboration can develop the responsiveness of teachers and school administrators (luria & kaufman, 2017; minkos et al., 2017; parasuraman et al., 1998), service value, and learning management (sarkadi & fadhillah, 2020; teeroovengadum et al., 2016), availability of school physical environment and infrastructures (ekpoh, 2018; teeroovengadum et al., 2016; world bank, 2019), pedagogy capability (prentice, brady, & mclaughlin, 2018; teeroovengadum et al., 2016; situmorang & aslam, 2020), making a transformative quality based on the abundance era (prentice, brady, & mclaughlin, 2018; teeroovengadum et al., 2016; solone et al., 2020), and the effectiveness of quality assurance and quality improvement in the basic education (prentice, brady, & mclaughlin, 2018; teeroovengadum et al., 2016; allais, 2009). the educational national standards effect on service quality in basic education in the achievement of the service quality in basic educations, it provides the best education policy to make the education performance will be produced and the service quality in the education management system. according to the results confirm that educational the ens should provide better for the local government because it is directly to make the service quality in education more successful. it means that the failure of government or local government preserve the ens can effect negative to the profound the best service quality in education. the national education standards may advocate the teacher and school leader work better, then the achievement of education may achieve more effective and performed better at local government. besides, in the effort of the educational national standards achievement and performing the service quality in basic education more than getting results better than before, the local government and school management must be implemented the strategic collaboration approach in basic education for improving the highest quality education for the local government in indonesia. the model of basic education strategic collaboration is considered to be the best policy at local government to make the basic education performance will achieve more effective and efficient. conclusion as we have elaborated previously that the strategic collaboration approach has multiple functions in making the better achievement of national education standards and service quality in basic education. the strategic collaboration is viewed as the common intentional of the individual or groups in the public sector to make the best service performance in a public research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 tahili, m.h., tolla, i., saman, a., ahmad, mohd.a., samad, s. the effect of strategic collaboration approach on the national educational standards achievement and service quality in basic education at local government in indonesia. research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 74 organization, a collective action of individual or groups to overcome the public issues or problems, formulating the innovation solution, and making a real change in public service. strategic collaboration has a beneficial effect on the achievement of ens and service quality in basic education. besides that, the national educational standards have a significant effect on the achievement of service quality in basic education. the implication of research provides a new model of strategic collaboration in basic education in theory development and practice. for theory, development is that the research implies that it can contribute to making the change of education management and administration through strategic collaboration. for the practice, the research gives a new insight into challenges in education science and management for the development of education management and administration, better improvement for service education in basic education, and education performance sustainability. for future research, we suggest that it is needed to explore more deeply concerning to the emerging of strategic collaboration and capacity development theory in basic education. first, we consider that the strategic collaboration approach will have a strong benefit in the abundance era of digitalization, then it is interesting to explore the role of the strategic collaboration approach in basic education or higher education to achieve the achievement of the educational standards. second, we recommend that the strategic collaboration approach will implement as well by the teachers and school leaders to develop competencies and capacity in school learning and education transformation. third, we ask the local government to provide significant support in policy education and fund resources for school management to ensure that the service quality and learning performance will get successful. although our previous discussion has emerged the strategic collaboration approach a new model in managing national education standards and basic education service quality, however, for the theoretical reflection and methodology should be provided a multiple theoretical to better understanding the strategic collaboration in basic education. also, it needs more exploration concerning the readiness of teachers and school leaders' capacity in collaboration. the capacity development in collaboration is emerged for teachers and school leaders to succeed in the implementation of strategic collaboration in school management. hence, we argue that the better capability of teachers and school leaders to apply the strategic collaborative capacity in basic education, the greater improvement of national educational standards achievement, and service quality in education at local government in indonesia. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 tahili, m.h., tolla, i., saman, a., ahmad, mohd.a., samad, s. the effect of strategic collaboration approach on the national educational standards achievement and service quality in basic education at local government in indonesia. research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 75 in this study, we recommend that the problems of unfulfilled education quality in basic education, actually education management and human resource have not been appropriate to concerning their capacity and competence in managing basic education. accordingly, there is no single public organization or school unit that can achieve the goal successively without any solid agreement to collaborate and share problems to be overcome in teamwork. principally, creating the service quality and performance in education mostly needs a synergy of each actor in education for local government, and also the better coordination and synchronization planning programs between the central government and local government. it is most challenging for managing basic education in truly using strategic collaboration in basic education in indonesia for the future acknowledgment: the authors express thanks to all participants, and the local government at central sulawesi province, the school principals, and teachers of primary and secondary school who have eager to participate in the research. disclosure statement the authors confirm that this research has no conflict of interest and/or political affiliation, however, this research is academic only. references allais, s. m. 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(2021). pathways to mitigate challenges of learner academic performance in a grade 10 economics class in south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 83 pathways to mitigate challenges of learner academic performance in a grade 10 economics class in south africa habasisa v. molise department of human sciences, school of education sol plaatje university, kimberly, south africa habasisa.molise@spu.ac.za received : 2021-03-18 revised : 2021-04-26 accepted : 2021-05-01 how to cite this paper: molise, h. (2021). pathways to mitigate challenges of learner academic performance in a grade 10 economics class in south africa. research in social sciences and technology, 6(1), 83-101. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.5 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). abstract this paper aims to explore the pathways to mitigate challenges of learner academic (lap) performance in a grade 10 economics class in south africa. the challenge of poor lap has ushered a myriad of predicaments in schools globally. these predicaments include lack of teacher inclusion in decision making, inability to work cooperatively together, and lack of professional development opportunities geared towards lap. the study was qualitative, with 15 participants chosen through purposeful sampling from one rural school in the thabomofutsanyane education district. this paper is couched in critical emancipatory research with emphasis on the emancipation of the teachers regarding pathways they can self-develop to mitigate the challenges of lap. the focus group discussions were used to gather information regarding pathways to mitigate the challenges of lap in schools. the study revealed that teachers possess a very equivocal and varying experience regarding the pathways to use to mitigate the challenges of lap. the findings suggest that for successful implementation of pathways to mitigate the challenges of lap, schools need to invest in training teachers for teamteaching and avail the necessary resources (both human and physical) to ensure effective quality teaching and learning exist in the school. the article recommends that schools should develop policy frameworks, together with relevant stakeholders, to guide novice teachers on the strategies they can use to mitigate the challenges of lap in their classes. keywords: academic performance, critical emancipatory research, economics, participatory action research, pathways 10.46303/ressat.2021.5 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.5 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 molise, h. (2021). pathways to mitigate challenges of learner academic performance in a grade 10 economics class in south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 84 introduction this paper aims to explore pathways to mitigate challenges of learner academic performance (lap) in a grade 10 economics class. the challenge of poor lap has ushered a myriad of predicaments in schools globally (asikhia, 2010; trigueros, aguilar-parra, lopez-liria, cangas, gonzález & álvarez, 2020; bojuwoye, 2009). these predicaments include lack of teacher inclusion in decision making, inability to work cooperatively together, and lack of professional development opportunities geared towards lap (warman, 2021; van wyk & alexander, 2010). several studies confirm that most schools experience these predicaments (hauge, 2019; addow, abubakar, & abukar, 2013; molise & hlalele, 2014;). while such rhetoric may be rooted in the truth, other aspects are often forgotten in narratives about existing strategies (risa & pupung, 2019) used to deal with the problem of poor academic performance in economics classes, generally. this is informed by the lack of developing pathways proposed by teachers and learners to mitigate challenges of learner academic performance (tondeur, aesaert, prestridge & consuegra, 2018). this study was conducted at one rural school in thabo-mofutsanyane education district (tmed). the school was purposively selected because the author was working there as an economics teacher. the school had a total number of 390 learners who were schooling at that school. the author realized that the academic performance, especially by grade 10 learners was not satisfactory, since a majority of the learners who were doing economics were not performing well academically. the author became worried about the situation and wanted to find out what could have been the challenges about learners’ high failure rate in economics. what was more troubling, was the fact that parents were not coming to school when they were called to check their children’s work, learners’ absenteeism was very high, and teachers who were teaching economics were not motivated to teach the subject because they were claiming that it is difficult to them since they did not major in it. the workshops which were designed to professionally develop the teachers lacked capacitation about specific content changes which the teachers needed to be knowledgeable about and master. these changes led to teachers’ frustration and burnout and left teachers having to battle with ways in which they can better teach the economics content. these challenges, motivated the author to conduct a study to explore the strategies the economics teachers can adopt to improve learner academic performance in grade 10 economics class. in a study on the benefits of group learning as a collaborative strategy in a diverse higher education context, the majority of the students reported having read wider and engaging deeper with the content as compared to their normal effort (van wyk & haffejee, 2017). another study was conducted based on economic games as strategies to involve learners and make the subject fun to the learners. students indicated that the use of games was the catalyst for creating a dynamic, vibrant learning environment that was conducive to deepening and internalizing their conceptual knowledge (koenane, 2018; soltero lopez & lopez, 2020). from the above studies, it is evident that the authors used teaching strategies in their capacity to enhance learning in economics, but their approach seemed to romanticize it, they did not locate the issue within a theoretical framework (dube & hlalele, 2018). the author acknowledges that there are many ways to conceptualize some suitable pathways to deal with research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 molise, h. (2021). pathways to mitigate challenges of learner academic performance in a grade 10 economics class in south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 85 the problem (tsotetsi & mahlomaholo, 2015). this article focuses on exploring the pathways to mitigate challenges of academic performance, strategies that economics teachers can adapt to overcome the challenges they face in the class. research questions the purpose of this study was to explore the pathways to mitigate the challenges of learner academic performance in a grade 10 economics class. the following research questions were used to guide the research process: • how can the establishment of a coordinating team serve as a pathway to mitigate the challenges of lap? • to what extent do the construction of a common vision through swot serve as a pathway to mitigate the challenges of lap? • why should the drafting and implementation of the strategic plan serve as a pathway to mitigate the challenges of lap? • which form of monitoring and evaluation of the strategic plan serve as a pathway to mitigate the challenges of lap? theoretical framework in this paper, the author drew on literature that focused on the pathways to mitigate the challenges of lap in a grade 10 economics class. according to stone (2017) pathways are strategies that bring key institutions together in effective partnerships grounded in extensive and intensive career development with teachers who are knowledgeable and effective in the delivery of a world-class technical curriculum. similarly, tsotetsi (2013) defines strategy as a plan for achieving something. based on the above definitions, pathways, as used in this paper, refers to the self-initiated strategies that the teachers involved in teaching the same subject use as a collective to solve the challenges that threaten the teaching and learning environment. this includes establishing professional learning communities to share best practices through collaborative team-teaching to address the content knowledge misconceptions experienced. the coordinating team the study conducted by tsotetsi (2013) on the implementation of professional teacher development policies, propounds that, for schools to mitigate challenges of learner academic performance, it is crucial to have in place a team that will work to achieve high standards and ensures that excellent endeavors to achieve high academic performance are a norm (myende & nhlumayo, 2020; risa & pupung, 2019). these teams should propose strategic initiatives to lead the school towards action-oriented goals. several studies show that the establishment of a coordinating team is a cornerstone to mitigate challenges lap initiative by an education institution (myende, 2019; molise, 2015; bojuwoe, 2009; msimanga, 2017). shangase (2013) reports that a ministerial task team in south africa was tasked to identify the challenges and areas that impacted negatively on the quality of teaching at schools and to propose mechanisms that could address these shortcomings. however, koenane (2018) contends that problems related to education in south africa are not simply the result of failures by current research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 molise, h. (2021). pathways to mitigate challenges of learner academic performance in a grade 10 economics class in south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 86 policies, instead, problems are caused by existing strategies, and the way they are developed and implemented (myende & chikoko, 2014; samadi, 2021). common vision and swot analysis another study by msimanga (2018) on the “teach and assess” as a strategy for effective teaching and learning in economic and management sciences (ems). the study revealed that the strategic planning for a school should involve a common vision, which is developed and owned by the principal and all relevant stakeholders, namely, parents, educators, non-teaching staff, learners, and the community in general (sahito & vaisanen, 2018; tsotetsi & mahlomaholo, 2015). all relevant stakeholders should participate constructively in the construction of a common vision. tsotetsi (2013) contends that a vision owned by all relevant stakeholders can help to identify useful pathways and tactics that can be used to mitigate challenges of learners' academic performance (molise & hlalele, 2014; hayat, shateri, amini & shokrpour, 2020). shangase (2013) argues that a vision cannot be realized if the principal fails to convert the vision into policy and practice (david & maistry, 2018; warman, 2021). the author supports the view that the whole school community should be involved in the development of a vision, to ensure collective ownership. msimanga (2017) agrees that a school needs a vision because the principal and governing body will change over time (lane & caldis, 2018)., causing disruption, but the vision will remain (kgari-masondo & ngwenya, 2020; falade, 2018). the strategic plan in yet, another study was conducted by molise (2015) on the use of the case-study approach to improve learner academic performance in economics. the study revealed that economics teachers remain attending workshops that do not cater for professional development on the content knowledge, they teach in subjects outside their specialization and there are few opportunities for collaborative teaching because of costs relating to transportation of teachers from one school to the other. according to msimanga (2017), doing a swot analysis helps the school to move towards its vision, through practical and concrete projects. the swot analysis should indicate priorities chosen by education practitioners (samadi, 2021; nja & obi, 2019; mashego, 2012). tsotetsi (2013) suggests that some modus operandi should be developed to bind together all three factors, namely, vision, swot analysis, and priorities, to formulate an action plan that is in line with the mission of the school. the smt needs to work collaboratively with staff, learners, and parents to ensure the pathways work (nja, cornelius-ukpepi & orim, 2019; akinsolu, 2010). the involvement of relevant stakeholders in setting priorities is an integral part of the success of the strategic plan geared towards challenges to mitigate lap (ntibi & neji, 2018; myende & chikoko, 2014; tsotetsi, 2013). monitoring and evaluation a study aimed to design a strategy to enhance professional curriculum practice (pcp) for a grade 9 economic and management sciences class (ems) at a school in the thabo mofutsanyana district. moloi (2018) asserts that to ensure that the strategy for pcp succeeds, research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 molise, h. (2021). pathways to mitigate challenges of learner academic performance in a grade 10 economics class in south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 87 the team has to establish mechanisms to monitor and evaluate progress (hayat, shateri, amini & shokrpour, 2020; molise & hlalele, 2014; warman, 2021). progress should be monitored by all relevant stakeholders (darling-hammond, flook, cook-harvey, barron & osher, 2020; mahlomaholo, 2014). mlebese et. al, (2019) contend that hard work, patience, a clear purpose for the coordinating team, and open communication among team members (azevedo, 2018) contribute to success. similarly, there must be clear roles and responsibilities, strong relationships among the coordinating team, and a willingness to share information and listen to one another (malebese et. al, 2019; hsu & lin, 2020; egalite & kisida, 2017; samadi, 2021). the next section discusses the theoretical framing in which the study is couched. critical emancipatory research the author positioned this paper by using critical emancipatory research (cer) as the theoretical lens (haigh, kemp & bazeley, 2019), based on its ability to advocate peace, hope, equality, team spirit, and social justice (hutton, 2020; nkoane, 2012). cer, as used in this paper, requires being committed to enabling people to question their status and the injustices prevalent in their communities (duckworth & tett, 2019; esau, 2013; hlalele, 2014), while liberating them, meeting the needs of real-life and raising self-consciousness (adebola, tsotetsi & omodan, 2020; makoelle, 2013). in pursuance, cer served as an emancipatory experience and provided the participants' space to contribute ideas freely through the encouragement of cordial relationships, tolerance of individual ideas, common consensus, love, and hope (andrew& baker, 2020; tshelane, 2013). cer contributed to building relationships and individual consciousness between learners and teachers (dube & molise, 2018; houdyshell & ziegler, 2020). cer enabled participants to provide mainly qualitative data through focus group meetings, which served the purpose of creating space and opportunity to use the participants' home language to create a non-threatening environment and encouraged them to speak freely without fear or intimidation (halliday, kern, garrett &turnbull, 2019). throughout the information sessions we held as part of data generation, my role, as the author, was to facilitate the emancipatory process, through pathways to mitigate challenges of learners' academic performance. all the relevant stakeholders were engaged, and operated under equal power relations (hlalele, 2018) and, therefore, owned the process of research, from identifying the research topic to collecting and analyzing data (mahlomaholo, 2014). the aim of working together with the participants as a team was to create a space for the participants to be empowered as cer advocates (dube & hlalele, 2018; mashego, 2012). thus, cer enabled me to listen to the participants and work with them to determine the pathways we used to mitigate the challenges of learners' academic performance. cer is relevant to this paper in that it exposed and questioned hegemony and traditional power assumptions (msimanga, 2017) held about relationships, groups, communities, societies, and organizations to promote social change' (hutton, 2020). the change, in this case, was to ensure that the participants are not working through imposed strategies instead they developed their pathways to mitigate challenges of learner academic performance in a grade 10 economics class. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 molise, h. (2021). pathways to mitigate challenges of learner academic performance in a grade 10 economics class in south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 88 methods design participatory action research (par) was used as a research design. by nature, the par research design adopted based on the premise that the people who are affected by a particular problem must be active in the research process so that they can determine the solutions to the identified problems (adebola, tsotetsi & omodan, 2020; udvarhelyi, 2020; nkoane, 2012; pillay, 2018). the par process allowed for the participants to work together in teams to brainstorm ideas as a collective to identify problems relating to lap, define the implications of such problems in education, put mechanisms in place to deal with the problems, and ensure that there if effective monitoring and evaluation to circumvent challenges of lap (lane & caldis, 2018; pillay, 2015; mahlomaholo, 2012). it also served as an archetype that created space for the research process which is emancipative, critical, transformative, and valued issues of social justice (adebola, tsotetsi & omodan, 2020) for the participants to brainstorm about self-initiated pathways they can use to mitigate challenges of lap. par enabled the participants to investigate meaningful social topics, especially the challenges of lap and mitigation strategies/pathways (msimanga, 2017), by participating in research to understand the root causes of problems relating to lap (tshelane, 2013), and then took collective action to influence policies through the dissemination of their findings to policymakers and stakeholders about strategies to tackle lap (molise, 2015). par is deemed relevant in this study because the researcher and the participants were equally involved in the process (dube & hlalele, 2018), they took shared responsibility for the outcome of the research endeavor (wright, 2020). in other words, participation, research, and action were of major importance in such a partnership (esau, 2013). this study was undertaken for educational purposes, which is to contribute new knowledge on the pathways to follow to mitigate the challenges of lap. par also helped distill a distinctive feature of participation of those affected by the issue and their involvement in both asking and answering the action research question (wright, 2020). the research was conducted in september 2012 at a rural school in thabo-mofutsanyana education district. participants a total number of 15 participants were purposively selected to participate in a study that sought to explore pathways to mitigate challenges of lap in a grade 10 economics class. through purposive sampling, participants are selected according to what they already know about the field and because they have certain characteristics in common that relate to the topic of the study (moloi, 2018). the reason for choosing purposive sampling is that qualitative research is more concerned with detailed and in-depth analysis than with statistical accuracy. table 1 below presents data on the characteristics of the participants in terms of affiliation, gender, and age. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 molise, h. (2021). pathways to mitigate challenges of learner academic performance in a grade 10 economics class in south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 89 table 1: profile of the participants pseudonym affiliation gender age grade/subject siza (researcher) university of the free state male 30-35 economics pule (teacher) deputy principal male 45-50 physical science lemza (teacher) hod-commercial subjects male 40-45 economics gloria (teacher) senior teacher-economics female 55-60 economics alice (teacher) pl1-economics female 40-45 economics tshepo (lecturer) economics education male 40-45 economics mdu (lf) subject advisor-economics male 55-60 economics boka (facilitator) kagiso-trust female 40-45 accounting hlaps (rcl) rcl president male 17-18 grade 12 mpho (learner) grade 10 economics males 15-16 grade 10 thiza (learner) grade 11 economics female 16-17 grade 11 siza (learner) grade 12 economics female 17-18 grade 12 isaac (learner) grade 10 economics females 15-16 grade 10 jane (learner) grade 11 economics male 16-17 grade 11 thabo (learner) grade 12 economics male 17-18 grade 12 the informed consent was obtained from the participants and they were also advised that they can withdraw their participation at any time. the participants were given an assurance that all the information they share will be kept confidential and it is used solely to make sense of the pathways to mitigate lap. pseudo names are used to protect identities. instruments the data generation instruments used in this study included the teacher observation guide (tog) and teacher interview guide (tig) (makoelle, 2013; koenane, 2018; falade, 2018). the purpose of this study was to explore the pathways to mitigate the challenges of learner academic performance in a grade 10 economics class. data obtained from expert opinions and the results of the literature reviews were taken as a base to prepare the tog and tig (makoelle, 2013; egalite & kisida, 2017). in the context of this study, the use of tog involved two observers who observed three different teachers’ lessons. one of the observers was the researcher and the other observer was the expert on the subject (falade, 2018). both the observers wrote reflective journals of the teachers' lessons about economics content and participated in a focus group discussion setting (adebola, tsotetsi & omodan, 2020). concurrently, the author kept observational and reflective notes during each phase, met weekly (dube & hlalele, 2018) to discuss the pathways to mitigate the challenges of lap, and reviewed recordings of lessons presented by teachers. in operationalizing the tig, the following questions were posed to the participants during the interviews to gather their in-depth understanding of the challenges of lap and pathways they can use to mitigate these challenges: (1) how can the establishment of a coordinating team serve as a pathway to mitigate the challenges of lap? (2) to what extent do the construction of a common vision through swot serve as a pathway to mitigate the challenges of lap? (3) why should the drafting and implementation of the strategic plan serve as a pathway to mitigate the challenges of lap? (4) why should monitoring and evaluation of research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 molise, h. (2021). pathways to mitigate challenges of learner academic performance in a grade 10 economics class in south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 90 the strategic plan serve as an important pathway to mitigate the challenges of lap? the draft form was presented to the one academic who was an expert in the field to analyze the guide objectively. data collection data were collected using observations and interviews. qualitative observation deals with major sensory organs and their functioning-sight, smell, touch, taste, and hearing while a qualitative interview is a more personal form of research compared to questionnaires (braun & clarke, 2006; makoelle, 2013; andrew & barker, 2020). the interviewer can probe or ask follow-up research questions of the interview participant. the observations enabled the researcher to see the participants’ involvement in the par process to make sense of their feelings and emotions regarding the pathways to mitigate lap (wright, 2020; braun & clarke, 2006). the participants’ reactions were recorded in the observation schedule by the researcher with the assistance of another participant to ensure the reliability and validity of the observations (duckworth & tett, 2019). the interviews were used to gather in-depth (braun & clarke, 2006) views of the participants about the pathways to mitigate the challenges of lap. the following challenges emerged from the four research questions anchoring the. research question one included challenges such as teachers working in isolation, lack of content knowledge, and inability to take concrete decisions. research question two included challenges such as teaching without a purpose and the inability to develop and contribute to the school vision. research question three included challenges such as lack of passion, lack of problemsolving skills, and high failure rate. research question four included challenges such as, lack of clear strategies, inability to set clear priorities, lack of commitment, and unwillingness to seek help. the generated data from lesson observations and interviews were recorded using audiorecorder and were later transcribed verbatim. the participants were also given pseudonyms to protect their identity and assured that the generated data will only be utilized for this study with no form of disclosure to the third parties. data analysis thematic analysis (ta) was used to analyze the generated data (braun & clarke, 2006). reflexive thematic analysis theory as used in this study was found to be appropriate to analyzing qualitative data to answer broad or narrow research questions about people's experiences, views and perceptions, and representations of a given phenomena (dube & hlalele, 2018). this process was originally developed for psychology research by virginia braun and victoria clarke (msimanga, 2017; makoelle, 2013; adebola, tsotetsi & omodan, 2020). it is an approach for categorizing, reporting, organizing, defining, and analyzing themes found within a data set (adebola, tsotetsi & omodan, 2020). the thematic analysis made it easy for the author to analyze data because it makes data to be easily understood, it provides a conveniently detailed, especially when summarizing critical concepts of a huge data set (makoelle, 2013). the researcher closely examined the data to identify common themes – topics, ideas, and patterns of meaning that came up repeatedly. the following steps proposed by braun & clarke (2006) were followed. the first step involved data immersion and thorough readings and viewings to create lists of initial ideas about the data. second, a semantic approach (braun & clarke, 2006) research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 molise, h. (2021). pathways to mitigate challenges of learner academic performance in a grade 10 economics class in south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 91 was employed to generate an initial coding scheme related to previous research, research questions of the study, and theoretical frameworks for determining pathways to mitigate the challenges of lap. third, codes were sorted into possible themes, compared and adjusted based on relevant data, and thematic relationships were considered. fourth, themes and examples were reviewed within codes and across the entire data set. fifth, themes and definitions were created using clear descriptive language and illustrative excerpts and organized as findings in this study. results and discussion the following sections present and discuss findings from the focus group discussions on the pathways followed to mitigate the challenges of poor learner academic performance in a grade 10 economics class. the analysis of data from the focus group discussions resulted in four major themes, namely, (1) coordinating team, (2) common vision and swot analysis, (3) strategic plan, and (4) monitoring and evaluation. these themes and their key-related codes are summarized in table 2 below and are hereafter described with a key representative from participant quotations. the results are also interpreted in terms of the research questions of the study. table 2: themes and related key codes themes key related codes theme 1: coordinating team • work is much easier • people work together • remained without knowledge • concrete decisions • benefit learners greatly theme 2: common vision and swot analysis • live for a purpose • developing vision for the school theme 3: strategic plan • realize the strength • defeating challenges in education • solving of problems • clear plan • high failure rate theme 4: monitoring and evaluation of the action plan • checking of issues to address urgently • keep priorities straight • separate play-time from school work • asking for help research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 molise, h. (2021). pathways to mitigate challenges of learner academic performance in a grade 10 economics class in south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 92 4.1 pathway 1: establishment of the coordinating team in this section, i respond to the first research question, that is, how can the establishment of the coordinating team serve as a pathway to mitigate challenges of lap. tsotetsi (2013) that working as a team is a cornerstone for any pathway to mitigate challenges of learner academic performance initiatives within an educational institution (shangase, 2013; myende & nhlumayo, 2020). for schools to enhance lap it is crucial to have in place a team that will work towards high standards and that excellent lap endeavors are a norm (tsotetsi & mahlomaholo, 2015). these teams come up with strategic initiatives that will lead the school towards actionoriented goals. the study found that the establishment of the coordinating team could greatly help mitigate the challenges of lap if teachers realize the importance of working together as a team. teamwork is very important because if teachers work together to assist one another in terms of lesson planning and share best practices on how to approach the content, their work becomes easier, ultimately improving their teaching styles. the participants echoed the suggestion in the following utterances: lemza said: today i realized that the work is much easier if people work together, when we work together we can achieve more. we need to assist one another in planning our lessons though some of us are selfish and want to receive certificates of performance alone. gloria added: this author is compared to messiah who came at the time when his presence is needed, as the school we are very grateful if it was not for this research we could have remained blind and without knowledge. we are left alone in our class to battle with the content without any help from our subject advisor. your suggestion is highly welcome sir! gloria supported the two participants’ views: the department needs to support us as teachers, they must walk out of their comfort zones. our lfs need to come regularly to our schools to support us. some of the workshops we attend are useless because we focus on many files and told about the results. how can our learners perform if we are not supported? the sentiments by the participants above indicate that the support that they receive from their subject advisors should cover training on content knowledge. and that continuous visits by lfs to schools create opportunities for teachers to seek help instead of when they all called in one workshop. to this end, there were suggestions that the subject advisors should frequently visit school and support teachers regarding the content misconceptions they may have and share best practices on how to teach effectively to improve the academic performance of the learners. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 molise, h. (2021). pathways to mitigate challenges of learner academic performance in a grade 10 economics class in south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 93 gloria’s view is enforced in shangase (2013) who attests that a ministerial task team in south africa was constituted to identify the challenges and pressure points that impacted negatively on the quality of teaching in schools and proposed mechanisms that could address these. the task team noted that dealing with educational challenges requires collective efforts from both the school and the society at large. people working as a team can achieve more than those operating as separate entities or in isolation. 4.2 pathway 2: construction of a common vision through swot analysis in this section, i respond to research question number two, which is, how can the construction of a common vision through swot analysis serve as a pathway to mitigate challenges of lap? i begin by acknowledging that the construction of a common vision through swot analysis has played a pivotal role in ensuring that the teachers teach for a purpose and can realize their strength when dealing with the challenges of lap. according to msimanga (2017) that teachers should work together in developing the vision for their school and such a vision must be owned by all and reflected in the daily teaching and learning activities of the school (molise, 2015). the foregoing argument is supported by tsotetsi (2013) who argues that this approach emphasizes that for the school to be successful all its activities must be driven by its values and vision and that a thorough swot analysis must also be conducted to determine if the pertinent issues relating to strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats in the various contexts of political, economic, social, and technological trends are identified, interpreted, and analyzed (shangase, 2013). the study found that the construction of a common vision was not done through swot analysis. while arguing for swot analysis to be done to formulate the vision of the school, i take cognizance of the view by tsotetsi (2013) that teachers find themselves having to implement the school vision that they did not self-develop and difficult to understand. despite that, teachers are expected to perform according to what the vision of the school stipulates, with no guidance provided to them on how they must incorporate the school’s vision in day-to-day school activities. cognizant of this, the participants appreciated the interventions provided by the school management in terms of strategies they can use to improve the academic performance of their learners but these strategies did not incorporate clear identification of their strength and weaknesses, opportunities which the school had and possible threats so that they can know what problems need to be prioritized and addressed. the participants commented as follows: lemza expressed the view that: i agree, if you do not have a vision you are like someone who lives without a purpose. i am happy that we were allowed to give our inputs on the vision we will like to have for our school. through the vision “raising the bar, leaving no child behind”, i see how it is linked to our daily activities at the school. and that when we teach, we should make sure that all the learners benefit from our teaching. emphatically, alice added: ohhh yes! today i am grateful that i had a say in developing the vision of our school. at least, we're able to identify the many opportunities we have as a school and the research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 molise, h. (2021). pathways to mitigate challenges of learner academic performance in a grade 10 economics class in south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 94 strengths that some of the teachers who present the same subject have, and how we could use them to our advantage. the sentiments by the participants above emphasize the importance of involving teachers when formulation the vision of the school. and the vision needs to be unpacked so that the teachers can know how the vision links with day-to-day school activities. the teaching and learning activities should be incorporated into the school vision so that the vision can be realized. the views of lemza above are enforced in shangase (2013) when he argues that the school’s vision should be developed and owned by the principal and all major role-players, namely, parents, educators, non-teaching staff, learners, and the community in general. these roleplayers must participate constructively in the development of the vision of the school. from what the participants are saying, the vision cannot be realized if the school fails to convert the vision into policy and practice (molise, 2015). the whole school community should in some way be involved in the development of a school’s vision. the school has to have a clear direction and everyone has to have an idea about what the school is trying to do. moloi (2018) affirms that for the effective management of the learners, the school vision should be clearly articulated and clarified to all educators and learners so that they can mitigate challenges of their performance using pathways they self-developed. 4.3 pathway 3: drafting and implementing a strategic plan in this section, i respond to the third research question, that is, how can the drafting of the strategic plan serve as a pathway to mitigate the challenges of lap? i acknowledge further that, a mere analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of the school, as well as the opportunities for and threats to the school, is pointless unless the relevant stakeholders (teachers and learners, etc.) come together to develop an action plan. as molise (2017) argues that the coordinating team must be able to identify key priorities which emerge from the strategic plan (molise, 2015), and such priorities should have a specific time frame in which they can be addressed, persons responsible identified, and the resources needed to be allocated (msimanga, 2017). the study found that the drafting of the strategic plan provided opportunities for teachers to be actively involved in decisions regarding the challenges they experience with lap. the participants were able to inform the school management is the urgent challenges they were confronted with and what specific resources they needed for them to ensure that quality teaching and learning exist in the school. though this may present the challenge as to who is best fit to see that all the challenges included in the strategic plan are spearheaded by people with the necessary capacity to solve them, the participants noted that if the teachers are tasked the responsibility to lead some of the activities in the strategic plan, it could be a way of ensuring collective ownership by all instead of these activities having to be led only by the principal and the school management team (smt). traditionally, the activities on the strategic plan of the school were always led by the smt without the involvement of the teachers. the participants had the following suggestions: alice ascertained that: research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 molise, h. (2021). pathways to mitigate challenges of learner academic performance in a grade 10 economics class in south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 95 honestly, am not so sure if we have a plan as the school to address our challenges. if we ever had, the plan is only known to the principal and the smt because they do not communicate it to us. they need to include us when they do planning for the school because we the ones at the core of teaching the learners and we understand the challenges that make it difficult for the learners to perform. while gloria said: in the past, we did not have a way to follow in solving our problems. i think the problem was we were just working without a plan in place. i have just realized that it is important to have a clear plan for us to address the high failure rate in our economics classes. i am happy that we can now achieve some of the things but not all of them at the same time but we going somewhere because we are allowed to lead some of the activities that we have planned for. the words echoed by the participants above indicate that a whole school's strategic planning is necessary where all the teachers are involved. the dates for the strategic planning should be communicated well in advance so that the teachers could plan for the things they would like to be on the plan. both the participants agree that their involvement in informing the drafting of the strategic plan and liberty to lead some activities, served as a tool that enabled them to identify the challenges they had through a comprehensive strategic plan in place, detailing specific learner academic performance challenges to prioritize. the words of alice above are enforced in msimanga (2017) who asserts that teachers should be at the center of leading some of the activities on the strategic plan, especially the activities which relate to daily teaching and learning activities. to this end, it can be suggested that a clear modus of operandi must be formed to bind together all three factors, namely vision, swot analysis, and prioritization to formulate an action plan which is in line with the mission of the school. according to tsotetsi (2013), a school can be said to function adequately, but a conscious action plan to eradicate weaknesses is an important pathway to support the vision for mitigating challenges of learner academic performance. 4.4 pathway 4: monitoring and evaluation of the action plan in this section, i respond to the fourth research question, which is, how can monitoring and evaluation of the strategic plan serve as a pathway to improve lap? i, thus acknowledge that effective and continuous monitoring and evaluation is a key component to the successful implementation of the strategic plan. moloi (2018) alludes to the importance of continuous monitoring and evaluation of the strategic plan and indicates that it provides space to continually review the mechanisms in place to address the identified challenges. similarly, malebese, tlali, and mahlomaholo (2019) concur that frequent monitoring helps to identify the progress made and to check if the resources allocated both human and physical are drawn to sustain good academic performance. the study found that continuous monitoring and evaluation of the planned activities is imperative and the participants acknowledged that not all activities can be solved at once. while this could present effective monitoring and evaluation challenges, the participants noted further the importance of frequently revisiting the action plan to check if the planned activities are being achieved or if they need extra resources and expertise to help improve the solutions research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 molise, h. (2021). pathways to mitigate challenges of learner academic performance in a grade 10 economics class in south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 96 they may have by changing roles in terms of persons responsible. it is also crucial that to keep track of the success of the implementation of planned activities through frequent monitoring and evaluation. the participants commented as follows: lemza had this to say: we have learned that we have so many challenges and we are unable to solve them at the same time. in that way, we have to check those that are urgent, and which make learners fail. gloria added: sometimes learners are unable to keep their priorities straight. they cannot separate between playtime and school work. they always want to be reminded about studying and asking for help when we do not understand. intensive monitoring of the learners’ work needs to be done so we could check if they are progressing in their learning. the participants’ words above indicate that prioritizing the planned activities can go a long way in ensuring that the learners are supported in their academic activities. frequent monitoring and evaluation of these activities need to be in place to check the progress that the people responsible to spearhead a particular activity are making and follow-up if the activities are effectively implemented. lemza and gloria’s views are enforced in moloi (2018) when he stipulates that setting priorities should be about reconciling differences in the process of improving the academic performance of a learner. mahlomaholo (2014) supports further that prioritization is an important component of an effective development program. in the school situation, prioritization helps smts to focus, giving room to maintain strengths and eradicate weaknesses in favor of better academic performance (samadi, 2021). value of the study the study will benefit the existing body of knowledge in economics education. it could be used to help other schools with a similar problem to formulate pathways or strategies to improve lap in grade 10 economics classes. participants in the study will have the opportunity to take pride in and enjoy the outcomes of the research to which they contributed. conclusion the lap presented various challenges throughout the educational class. however, problems related to education in south africa are not simply the result of failures by current policies, although there are certainly instances in which policies need to be modified. instead, problems are caused by existing strategies, and the ways they are developed and implemented. the move towards pathways to mitigate challenges of lap presented various challenges and opportunities which need to be addressed from a scholarly point of view. the author noted that challenges such as lack of teacher inclusion in decision making, inability to work cooperatively together, and lack of professional development affect the effectiveness of pathways geared towards lap. the author further suggested ways in which lap using self research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 molise, h. (2021). pathways to mitigate challenges of learner academic performance in a grade 10 economics class in south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 97 initiated pathways can be improved. the author also argued throughout the paper, informed by cer, that there is a need to emancipate the teachers to help them devise strategies that can be used to tackle the challenges of lap in their class. the author recommends that for successful implementation of pathways to improve lap, that schools need to invest in training teachers for team-teaching and avail the necessary resources (both human and physical). lastly, schools should develop policy frameworks to guide novice teachers on the strategies they can use to mitigate the challenges of lap. the limitation of this study was that it was conducted using only one school in the thabomofutsanyana education district. the study’s purpose was to not provide a general outcome but to find and indicate specific outcomes regarding the pathways the participants' understudy can use to mitigate challenges of lap in their school. to address the above limitation, the study needs to be conducted where more participants are included and more than one school be included. i further propose that a similar study be done using a different design and approach since this study was couched in participatory action research. references addow, a. m., abubakar a. h., & abukar, m. s. 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(2021). the relationship between the performance and the perceived stress of employees. research in social sciences and technology, 6(1), 102-112. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.6 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). abstract the study aimed to determine the relationship between the job performance of individuals working in the sports industry and their perceived stress. the sample of the study consisted of a total of 474 people including 361 males and 113 females that working in a private company operating in the sports industry in istanbul, and they were selected by purposeful sampling method. after the data showed normal distribution; independent t-test, anova and pearson correlation analysis were used to analyze the data. according to the result of the analysis, there was no statistically significant difference found between the job performance and perceived stress levels of the participants according to their marital status and educational status. a significant difference was found in the perceived stress levels and job performances of the individuals according to their gender and working period in the workplace. finally, it was found that there was a negative and low-level relationship between the perceived stress scale and job performance scale. as a result, it was determined that the stress perceived by the individuals and their job performance levels differed according to the socio-demographic characteristics of the individuals, and the higher the stress levels perceived by the individuals, the lower their job performance were. keywords: sports industry, stress, perceived stress, job performance introduction as a result of today's competitive environment and rapid changes, people work in a stressful work environment regardless of the profession. in such an environment, it is not possible to stay away from stress. stress causes many organizational negativities such as psychological and mental problems, dismissal from work, and a decrease in work efficiency (tekin et al., 2019). in other words, stress is a concept that is required to handle in terms of business management. 10.46303/ressat.2021.6 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.6 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 avunduk, y., the relationship between the performance and the perceived stress of employees research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 103 because stress directly affects employees and determines their behaviour, productivity, and relationships with others (luthans, 1994: ceylan & ulutürk, 2006). in general, feelings of fear, anger, depression, inability, hopelessness and guilt in the individual against factors that negatively affect the adaptation process of the environment in which individuals live, disturb and deprive them of their needs are caused by the stress process (lazarus, 1966; yener, 2018). froyen, who made the first studies on stress, defines stress as a physiological reaction of the body and mentions two types of stress. the first one, useful stress (eustress), makes it easier for individuals to adapt to changes and helps increase performance. the second is harmful stress (distress), the stress that can cause loss of efficiency, health deterioration, and collapse as a result of excessive pressure (1988, as cited in şanlı, 2017). in this context, stress sources can be grouped into three groups as physical (originating from the employee's environment), social (interpersonal relationships in working life), and emotional (frustration, anxiety, anger resulting from perception) stress (güney, 2009; kesen & akyüz, 2015). when the results are examined, it is possible to divide stress into two classes as good (positive) and bad (negative). positive stress often produces positive results. it gives people satisfaction and joy of living instead of anxiety. positive stress usually occurs in parallel with the positive events people desire (marriage, promotion, etc.). negative stress primarily decreases the self-confidence level of individual, and the person becomes hopeless and desperate. negative stress usually develops in parallel with negative situations in people's lives (being unemployed, death of a relative, etc.) (canpolat, 2006; şahin, 2018). job performance is the results obtained by an employee by fulfilling the task assigned to her/him within a certain period (özgen et al., 2002; kahya, 2013). according to another definition, job performance gives all the actions employees have taken to fulfil their duties and the degree to which they or their businesses achieve their goals as a result of these actions (tekingündüz et al., 2016). according to viswesvaran and ones, work performance can define as measurable actions, behaviour, and outputs that contribute to the goals of the organization (2000, as cited in şantaş et al., 2016). wu (2011) stated that the essence of job performance is based on the requirements of the job, the goals and objectives of the organization, the behaviour in the organization, and the most valued beliefs (yurttaş et al., 2020). work performance is dividing into two groups as individual and organizational performance. work performance divides into two groups as individual and organizational performance. while the employee's performance of the assigned duties in a timely and correct manner defines the individual job performance; the overall job performance of the employees defines as organizational performance (doğan & bayraktar, 2020). in other words, individual-level performance is the achievement of the desired quality and number of personal results by combining one's knowledge, abilities, and skills with personal efforts and behaviours (aktaş & gürkan, 2015; kızanlıklı & çöp, 2017). job performance in organizations fulfils the defined job by the individual's characteristics and abilities within acceptable limits. the first thing which is important for an individual's performance should be the job description, later the job must match the individual's skills and characteristics; and meet the standards that indicate the level of performance. (falay, 2000: çakır & gözdoğdu, 2019). organizations need the contributions of high-performing individuals to achieve their goals successfully, provide a competitive advantage, and offer superior value to their customers research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 avunduk, y., the relationship between the performance and the perceived stress of employees research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 104 (tabiu et al., 2016). one of the basic requirements for employees to show high performance in the working place has a healthy environment in both physical and psychological terms (yurttaş et al., 2020). in this context, this study aimed to determine the relationship between the job performance of individuals working in the sports industry and their perceived stress, and the answers to the following questions were sought within the scope of the research. does the gender of individuals working in the sports industry have an impact on their job performance and perceived stress? does the marital status of individuals working in the sports industry have an impact on their job performance and perceived stress? does the educational status of individuals working in the sports industry have an impact on their job performance and perceived stress? does the working time of individuals working in the sports industry have an effect on their job performance and perceived stress? method research method this research was conducted with quantitative research methods. the research was designed with a non-experimental scanning model, and a relational model was used according to the scanning method. relational model is a research model that aims to determine the presence or degree of change among two or more variables (karasar, 2020). research group the research group consisted of a total of 474 people, 361 males (meanage=38.327.71), and 113 (meanage= 33.537.42) females, who were working in a private company operating in the sports sector in istanbul, and selected by purposeful sampling method. data collection tools personal information form: the "personal information form" prepared by the researcher was used to determine the gender, age, marital status, financial status, working place working conditions, and working period in the working place of the individuals participating in the study. perceived stress scale: the "perceived stress scale" developed by cohen et al. (1983) to determine the perceived stress levels of individuals and adapted to turkish by eskin et al. (2013) was used. in the turkish adaptation study of the scale, the validity and reliability study of the 10-article and 4-article short forms, as well as the 14-article long version, were also conducted. articles in the scale scored as (0) never, (4) very often. job performance scale: the "job performance scale" developed by kirkman and rosen (1999) to determine the job performance of employees and adapted into turkish by çöl (2008) and akkoç et al., (2012) was used. the scale consisted of one dimension and four items. the scale was 5-likert type and answered as 1 = strongly disagree; 5 = strongly agree. data collection the implementation of the data collection tools used within the scope of the study was carried out with the permission of private companies. data collection tools were filled in voluntarily by research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 avunduk, y., the relationship between the performance and the perceived stress of employees research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 105 individuals on the online platform after they were given permission by the companies. the answers given were checked by the researcher, missing or incorrect ones were excluded from the study, and valid and acceptable ones were included in the study for evaluation. data analysis spss 22.00 package program was used to evaluate the data. percentage and frequency methods were used to determine the distribution of personal information of the participants. for the tests to be used in the analysis of the collected data, the skewness and kurtosis values were examined to determine whether the data showed normal distribution or not. sposito et al. (1983) stated that the data showed a normal distribution of skewness and kurtosis values between -3 and +3. it was determined that the skewness and kurtosis values of the data obtained from the scales used in our study were in the range of -1 to +1 (table 2), therefore the data were assumed to have a normal distribution, and the data were analyzed with parametric tests. findings after the data showed normal distribution, the following hypotheses were tried to be supported by applying the t-test, anova and pearson correlation test in the analyzes. within the scope of the research, below are the distribution of demographic characteristics of individuals, distribution of scale scores and analysis results. research hypotheses within the scope of the research, the hypotheses of the study were formed as follows: h1: there is a significant difference between the job performance of individuals according to their gender. h2: there is a significant difference between the stress perceived by individuals according to their gender. h3: there is a significant difference between individuals' job performance according to their marital status. h4: there is a significant difference between the stress perceived by individuals according to their marital status. h5: there is a significant difference between job performance of individuals according to their educational status. h6: there is a significant difference between the stress perceived by individuals according to their educational status. h7: there is a significant difference between job performances of individuals according to their working hours. h8: there is a significant difference between the stress perceived by individuals according to their working hours. h9: there is a significant relationship between job performance and perceived stress. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 avunduk, y., the relationship between the performance and the perceived stress of employees research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 106 findings related to demographic variables table 1. distribution of participants' personal information variables gender f % gender female 113 23,8 male 361 76,2 total 474 100 marital status married 378 79,7 single 96 20,3 total 474 100 education status high school 42 8,9 undergraduate 374 78,9 graduate 58 12,2 total 474 100 working period less than 1 year 139 29,3 1-3 year 309 65,2 4 or more year 26 5,5 total 474 100 the distribution of personal information of the participants in the study shown in table 1. according to the analysis results, it was found that while 76.2% of the participants were "male"; 79.7% were "married"; 78.9% were "undergraduate”, 65.2% were between "1-3 years" at work. scores obtained from scales table 2. distribution of scale points scale sub-dimensions items n mean sd. skewness kurtosis perceived stress scale perceived stress 4 474 3.42 0.57 -.43 1.12 job performance scale job performance 4 474 3.52 0.97 -1.03 .63 table 2 showed the mean scores of the participants. according to the analysis results, the mean score of the work performance scale was (3.52), while the mean score of the perceived stress scale was (3.42). research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 avunduk, y., the relationship between the performance and the perceived stress of employees research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 107 the effect of gender on individuals' job performance and perceived stress table 3. independent t-test results of scale scores according to the gender variable gender n mean ± sd. t p perceived stress female 113 3.54±0.66 2.553 .011* male 361 3.38±0.53 job performance female 113 3.75±0.85 2.891 .004* male 3.61 3.45±0.99 in table 3, independent t-test results regarding the scale scores of the participants according to their gender given. according to the analysis results, it was determined that there was a statistically significant difference between the perceived stress levels of the participants according to their gender (p <0.05). it was determined that the stress level perceived by females were higher than the stress level perceived by males. moreover, a significant difference was determined between the job performance levels of the individuals according to their gender (p<0.05). females' job performance was higher than males job performance. the effect of marital status on individuals' job performance and perceived stress table 4. independent t-test results of scale scores according to the marital status variable marital status n mean ± sd. t p perceived stress married 378 3.40±0.58 1.691 .092 single 96 3.51±0.50 job performance married 378 3.48±0.99 1.523 .059 single 96 3.69±0.83 in table 4, independent t-test results regarding the scale scores according to the marital status of the participants were given. according to the analysis results, it was determined that there was no statistically significant difference between the perceived stress levels according to the marital status of the individuals (p>0.05). there was no significant difference between the job performance levels of the individuals according to their marital status (p>0.05). the effect of education status on individuals' job performance and perceived stress table 5. anova results on scale scores according to education status education status n mean ± sd. f p perceived stress high school 42 3.28±0.60 1.595 .204 undergraduate 374 3.44±0.53 graduate 58 3.39±0.74 job performance high school 42 3.48±1.11 1.240 .905 undergraduate 374 3.52±0.96 graduate 58 3.56±0.92 research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 avunduk, y., the relationship between the performance and the perceived stress of employees research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 108 in table 5, the results of anova analysis regarding the scale scores according to the educational status of the participants in the research were given. according to the analysis results, there was no statistically significant difference determined between the perceived stress levels of the participants according to their educational status (p> 0.05). besides, there was no significant difference determined between the job performance levels of the individuals according to their educational status (p> 0.05). the effect of working time on individuals' job performance and perceived stress table 6. anova results of scale scores according to the work period in the working place work period n mean ± sd. f p perceived stress less than 1 year 139 3.30±0.62 4.215 .015* 1-3 year 309 3.36±0.53 7 or more year 26 3.47±0.60 job performance less than 1 year 139 3.31±1.11 4.994 .007* 1-3 year 309 3.59±0.90 7 or more year 26 3.77±0.75 in table 6, anova analysis results were given regarding the scale scores of the participants in the study according to their working period in a working place. according to the analysis results, there was a statistically significant difference determined between the perceived stress levels of the participants according to their working period in the working place (p <0.05). it was determined that the perceived stress levels of individuals who worked in a business for 7 years or more were higher. there was a significant difference determined between the work performance levels of the participants according to their working period in the working place (p <0.05). moreover, it was determined that the participants who were working in an enterprise for 7 years or more have higher job performance levels compared to other individuals. the relationship between job performance and perceived stress table 7. correlation analysis results between perceived stress and job performance scores perceived stress job performance perceived stress 1 job performance -.125* 1 in table 7, the analysis results regarding the relationship between the perceived stress scale and the work performance scale were given. according to the research results, there was a negative and low level of relationship determined between the perceived stress scale and job performance scale (p<0.05). in other words, as individuals' perceived stress levels increase, their job performance levels decrease. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 avunduk, y., the relationship between the performance and the perceived stress of employees research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 109 discussion the study aimed to determine the relationship between the job performance of individuals working in the sports industry and their perceived stress. in this context, the result of the research was discussed and interpreted in this section. it was determined that there was a statistically significant difference between the stress levels perceived by individuals according to the gender variable. in other words, the stress levels perceived by females were higher than the stress levels perceived by males. while the results of the study conducted by özgan et al. (2008) and arslan (2018) was not parallel with the results of this study, the stress levels of males were found to be higher than females in the study by kesen and akyüz (2015) and tokgöz and önen (2021). similarly, in their study examining the relationship between individuals' perceived stress levels and their strategies for dealing with stress, savcı and aysan (2014), it was determined that females' stress levels were higher than male's. in this context, the results of this study were parallel with the results of the study conducted by savcı and aysan (2014). when the job performance levels of females and males were examined, it was determined that female's job performance was higher than males. there was no difference determined between individuals' job performances according to their gender in the study by özdemir et al. (2019) that was about the mediating role of person-organization fit in the effect of leader support and organizational justice perception on job performance. in this context, the result of özdemir et al.'s (2019) study and the results of this study was not parallel. according to the marital status variable, there was no statistically significant difference determined between the stress levels perceived in the participants. in other words, although the perceived stress levels of single individuals were higher than married participants, this difference was not significant. in the study conducted by görün et al. (2020), no significant difference determined between the stress levels perceived by the participants according to their marital status. similarly, in the study conducted by yanık (2017), it was found that there was no difference between the stress levels of the participants according to their marital status. the results of the studies conducted by görün et al. (2020) and yanık (2017) were parallel with the results of this study. similarly, no statistically significant difference was found between the job performance levels of the individuals according to their marital status. the result of the özdemir et al.'s (2019) study and the results of this study were parallel. there was no significant difference determined between the stress levels perceived by individuals according to their educational status. in general, although the perceived stress levels of university graduates were higher, this difference was not thought to be significant. arslan (2018) stated, there was no relationship between individuals' educational status and perceived stress in her study about the relationship between individuals 'conscious awareness, depression, and perceived stress. again, in the study conducted by yanık (2017), there was no difference found between the stress levels of the participants and their educational status. as a result, the results of the study conducted by arslan's (2018) and yanık (2017) parallel to the results of this study. when the job performance levels of the participants were examined according to their education levels, there was no statistically significant difference found between the job performance of the individuals and their educational status. in other words, it can be explained that the education level of the individuals did not affect their job performance. it was determined that there was a significant difference between the stress levels perceived by individuals according to their working period in the working place. in other words, individuals research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 avunduk, y., the relationship between the performance and the perceived stress of employees research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 110 who were working in the working place for 7 years or more have higher perceived stress levels than other individuals. in the study conducted by yanık (2017), according to their professional experience, it was determined that individuals with 25 years of professional experience have higher stress levels. similarly, it was determined that individuals who were working for 7 years or more have higher job performance levels than other individuals. in the study by karaman et al. (2020), which examined the effect of organizational exclusion on job performance and intention to quit, it was stated that there was no significant difference between individuals' job performance by years of service. in this context, the results of the study conducted by karaman et al. (2020) and the results of this study were not parallel. conclusion as a result, it was found that there was a negative and low-level relationship between perceived stress and job performance. in other words, as the stress levels perceived by individuals increase, their job performance levels increase. as a result, both the stress the female perceived and their job performances were higher compared to males. even though the stress single individuals perceived and their job performances were higher, this difference was not significant. besides, it can be understood that there was no significant difference between the perceived stress and job performances of graduate education. both the perceived stress of individuals who worked in the business for 7 years or more and their job performances were higher compared to other individuals. finally, it was concluded that the stress perceived by individuals increased, their job performance decreased. therefore, it is recommended that companies should look for solutions to improve their job performance, especially to eliminate the stress situations of employees. references akkoç, i̇., çalışkan, a., & turunç, ö. 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(2008). eğitim fakültesi öğrencileri tarafından sınıfta algılanan stres nedenleri ile kişisel değişkenleri strese olan etkisi. elektronik sosyal bilimler dergisi, 7, 337-350. özgen, h., azim ö. & azmi, y (2002). i̇nsan kaynakları yönetimi. adana, nobel kitabevi. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 1, 2021 avunduk, y., the relationship between the performance and the perceived stress of employees research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 112 şahin, a. (2018). üniversite öğrencilerinin algılanan stres düzeylerinin fakülte türü ve cinsiyet değişkenlerine göre incelenmesi. kilis 7 aralık üniversitesi beden eğitimi ve spor bilimleri dergisi, 2(1), 28-35. şanlı, ö. (2017). öğretmenlerin algılanan stres düzeylerinin çeşitli değişkenler açısından incelenmesi. elektronik sosyal bilimler dergisi, 16(61), 385-396. şantaş, f., uğurluoğlu, ö., kandemir, a. & çelik, y. 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(2019). farklı meslek gruplarında çalışanların algılanan stres düzeyleri ve stresle başa çıkma tarzları üzerine bir araştırma. ordu üniversitesi sosyal bilimler araştırmaları dergisi, 9(1), 79-89. tekingündüz, s., seçkin, m., yaman, k., türk, i. & aslan, s. (2016). performans, iş tatmini ve işaile yaşam çatışması arasındaki ilişkiler. uluslararası sosyal araştırmalar dergisi, 9(42), 1307-9581. tokgöz, a. & önen, ö. (2021). investigation of the relationship between organizational democracy and job stress level perceptions of administrators and teachers. shanlax international journal of education, 9(2), 26-33. wu, y.c. (2011). job stress and job performance among employees in the taiwanese finance sector: the role of emotional intelligence. social behavior and personality, 39(1), 2132. yanık, a. (2017). muhasebe meslek mensuplarının algıladıkları stres düzeyine yönelik bir araştırma. international journal of economics studies, 3(1), 99-107. yener, s. (2018). teknostresin iş performansı üzerindeki etkisi: tükenmişliğin aracı rolü. afyon kocatepe üniversitesi sosyal bilimler dergisi, 20(2), 85-101. yurttaş, y., erat, s. & alnıaçık, e. (2020). etkileme taktiklerinin iş performansı ve iş stresi üzerindeki etkisi: kimya sektöründe bir araştırma. international review of economics and management, 8(2), 176-200. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 nel, c., botha, c. & marais, e. a covid-19 re-envisioned teaching practicum curriculum research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 249 a covid-19 re-envisioned teaching practicum curriculum carisma nel*1, carolina botha1 and elma marais1 *corresponding author: carisma.nel@nwu.ac.za 1. north-west university, potchefstroom, south africa received : 2021-06-11 revised : 2021-07-25 accepted : 2021-08-03 how to cite this paper: nel, c., botha, c. & marais, e. (2021). a covid-19 re-envisioned teaching practicum curriculum, research in social sciences and technology, 6(2), 249-266. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.29 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). abstract the changes taking place in the schooling landscape because of the coronavirus are real and meaningful and have implications for the training of preservice teachers, especially the teaching practicum component of their initial teacher education programs. the havoc caused by covid-19 forced many faculties of education into a state of ‘panic-gogy’ to ensure that student teachers could complete their teaching practicums. in this paper we argue that consideration should be given to core teaching practices and practice-based teacher education pedagogies (i.e., representations and approximations) that can be used in alternative “placement contexts” that will supplement and harness the authenticity of school-based experiences. we provide two conceptual tools, collaboratively developed by teaching practicum educators and mentor teachers, that can be used as heuristic by other universityschool partnerships when considering teaching practicum redesign efforts. keywords: covid-19; preservice teachers; teaching practicum; pedagogies of enactment; work-integrated learning; practice-based introduction the covid-19 pandemic has impacted the daily business of faculties of education and schools in various ways. teacher educators at universities and teachers at schools had to respond rapidly to a ‘forced’ transition from classroom contact teaching to emergency remote teaching (flores & gago, 2020; nel & marais, 2020; 2021). the changes taking place in the south african schooling environment are being experienced as significant and have implications for the training of preservice teachers, especially within the teaching practicum component of initial teacher education programs. the need to ensure that student teachers successfully completed their teaching practicum implied decisions and adaptations by most universities in order to comply with department of higher education and training policy and communiques, university program requirements as well as the conditions in which both faculties of education and 10.46303/ressat.2021.29 research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 nel, c., botha, c. & marais, e. a covid-19 re-envisioned teaching practicum curriculum research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 250 schools, sites of school-based teaching practice, had to operate (department of higher education and training, 2015; mpofu, 2020; robinson & rusznyak, 2020). green (2020, p. 3) states that, “schools are encouraged to work with universities to explore how the range of possibilities described in this document [communiqué on the implementation of teaching practice/work integrated learning in the context of the covid-19 pandemic and national lockdown] can be implemented practically”. claim we argue that covid-19 induced decisions and adaptations to the teaching practicum can be leveraged to address important re-design issues. the purpose of this article is to describe a collaborative effort among teaching practicum educators and mentor teachers to re-envision a teaching practicum curriculum which provides more practice-based opportunities for student teachers that are aligned with the south african council for educators’ professional teaching standards and emphasizes core practices such as, for example, digital competence and socioemotional learning. we anticipate this description will be of use to others interested in moving away from the “panic-gogy” (baker, 2020) brought on by facilitating the teaching practicum in an emergency remote environment to putting a greater emphasis on a more emergency-proof and sustainable practice-based teaching practicum. we provide two conceptual tools that can be used as heuristic by other university-school partnerships when considering teaching practicum redesign efforts. these tools are grounded in the theoretical perspective of situated learning that sees learning as a collective activity that takes place in the same context in which it is applied. the collective activity is mediated by institutional (e.g., university and schools) and individual perspectives (e.g., teacher educators, mentor teachers and student teachers) as well as conceptual and material tools (e.g., the teaching practicum curriculum and the core practices and teacher education pedagogies documents). contextualizing teaching practice in south africa in the revised policy on the minimum requirements for teacher education qualifications (department of higher education and training, 2015, p. 10) practical learning is defined as: learning from practice includes the study of practice, using discursive resources to analyse different practices across a variety of contexts, drawing from case studies, video records, lesson observations, etc., in order to theorise practice and form a basis for learning in practice. learning in practice involves teaching in authentic and simulated classroom environments. work-integrated learning (wil) takes place in the workplace and can include aspects of learning from practice (e.g., observing and reflecting on lessons taught by others), as well as learning in practice (e.g., preparing, teaching and reflecting on lessons presented by oneself). the teaching practicum is regarded as an essential component of initial teacher preparation (anderson & stillman, 2013). research conducted by goldhaber and ronfeldt (2020) indicates how foundational the teaching practicum is for the development of student teachers’ teaching skills. according to the department of higher education and training (2015, p. 18), institutions are responsible for formally arranging school-based placement, in varied and contrasting contexts of schooling, and ensuring that “supervision, mentoring and assessment” takes place. institutions are also required to ensure that newly qualified teachers have research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 nel, c., botha, c. & marais, e. a covid-19 re-envisioned teaching practicum curriculum research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 251 developed a minimum set of competences which includes, amongst others, highly developed literacy, numeracy and information technology skills, and “the ability to reflect critically on their own practice, in theoretically informed ways and in conjunction with their professional community of colleagues to constantly improve and adapt to evolving circumstances” (department of higher education and training, 2015, p. 62). the large-scale initial teacher education research project (iterp) indicated that student teachers experienced the work-integrated learning1 component of their bed programs as being characterized by a lack of time spent on quality learning experiences, less than an hour a day was spent teaching and/or observing experienced teachers, they felt unprepared to manage large classes, very few received feedback from either teacher educators or mentor teachers, and they were “assessed by whoever was available (deacon, 2016, p. 13). similarly, gravett, petersen and ramsaroop (2019, p. 2) state that, “the work-integrated learning (wil) component of initial teacher education qualifications is however riddled with difficulties.” if you have driven a car before you will most probably have experienced it pulling to one side, which usually indicates that a wheel alignment is due; however, the problem is a little more complex and involves the link between the suspension and the steering system. proper alignment is essential to the car’s steering system. the challenges arising as a result of covid19 have played a major part in contributing to the current out-of-alignment between the steering system of initial teacher education programs, namely the coursework and the suspension of these programs, namely the teaching practicum. although the teaching practicum is a non-negotiable component of initial teacher education (ite) programs (clarke et al., 2014), research indicates that many of these programs do not provide practice opportunities where student teachers can learn to enact core practices (ball & forzani, 2009; grossman et al., 2009; mcleskey & brownell, 2015; nel, 2018). to address these concerns, teacher educators are calling for a re-envisioning of ite programs to improve the teaching practicum experience of student teachers (cf. botha & rens, 2019; brownell et al., 2019; ball & forzani, 2010; grossman, 2018; nel, 2018). these scholars are recommending a turn to practice and a focus on a set of core teaching practices as well as pedagogies of enactment that can form a golden thread running through the teaching practicum curriculum while at the same time ensuring that the curriculum is emergency-proof. maheady et al. (2019, p.356) state that “using high leverage practices as a common framework in partnership between schools and universities may help close the research-to-practice gap and improve the quality of candidates entering the field.” although faced with many challenges (e.g., lack of access to devices and data by student teachers) most faculties of education were able to move their coursework components to emergency remote teaching and learning (asma, 2020; robinson & rusznyak, 2020). however, the practical nature of the teaching practicum component makes it one of the more challenging forms of teaching and learning to adapt to an online or emergency remote environment (burns et al., 2020). developing an online teaching practicum experience was not on the radar of most faculties of education before march 2020, as the school-based component has always been 1. in the minimum requirements for teacher qualifications (2015) the term work-integrated learning (wil) is used to refer to school-based learning or teaching practice. we use these terms interchangeably in the article. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 nel, c., botha, c. & marais, e. a covid-19 re-envisioned teaching practicum curriculum research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 252 viewed as a necessary and untouchable aspect as required by the revised policy on the minimum requirements for teacher education qualifications (department of higher education and training, 2015; green, 2020). at the time of writing this article there appears to be very little south african literature that examines the issue of what the teaching practicum can or should look like when faced with emergency or challenging situations (nel & marais, 2020, 2021; reyneke & botha, 2019; robinson & rusznyak, 2020). it became clear to the authors that we needed to learn from decisions and choices made during the covid-19 lockdown period as well as the waves that are following and to make our teaching practicum emergency-proof and to ensure that we included elements that would help not only our student teachers, but also our teaching practicum partners (i.e., the schools and mentor teachers who provide mentoring during the school-based component) to respond to emergencies as well as address needs that arose, such as improving their technology readiness and socio-emotional wellbeing. the challenge for teaching practicum partnerships the teaching practicum relies on a partnership between the school, mentor teacher, student teacher, and university teaching practicum educator, who together provide an opportunity for the student teacher to teach under supervision, observe experienced teachers and be assessed (department of higher education and training, 2015). the covid-19 pandemic and its subsequent waves have called the integrity of this partnership into question. the pandemic served as a catalyst that highlighted the need for a previsioning towards a more practice-based and flexible teaching practicum that would best respond to the complexity and unpredictability of school-based placement options that reflect the fragile interconnectedness of universityschool partnerships. the challenges faculties of education faced during the pandemic involved all aspects of teacher training, including the management of the teaching practicum whilst keeping the best interests of all stakeholders and partnerships in mind. teacher educators were also faced with moving to emergency remote teaching and learning (north-west university, 2020), anxiety about their own personal health and that of the student teachers, staying connected, and not knowing how to ensure that the student teachers would be able to successfully complete the teaching practicum to ensure compliance with department of higher education and training policy (nel & marais, 2020). schools across the broad spectrum of the south african educational landscape experienced similar challenges. the secretary-general of the united nations, antónio guterres, referred to the impact of the covid-19 pandemic on schooling as a “generational catastrophe” (united nations, 2020). teachers within the schooling sector were faced with moving their teaching to an emergency remote, online or blended format, learning new technology skills, re-planning and implementing an adjusted curriculum, facing their own fears and anxieties, and supporting their learners (dube, 2020; liebenberg, 2020; mpofu, 2020; mukuna & aloka, 2020). the challenges they faced lead to panic, exhaustion and virtual meeting fatigue (skylar, 2020). supporting student teachers during this time was, therefore, not seen as a priority (choate et al., 2020). research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 nel, c., botha, c. & marais, e. a covid-19 re-envisioned teaching practicum curriculum research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 253 the authors, as part of the faculty of education work-integrated learning team, were charged with developing teaching practicum opportunities that would not include a school-based placement component to ensure that student teachers could complete their studies successfully. the authors also gave due consideration to the statement made by choate et al. (2020, p. 56) that: when in-person instruction and supervision resume, it seems prudent to continue to look for ways to incorporate online and hybridized models of education and student teaching supervision, both to expand student teachers’ experiences with different forms of instruction and to expand the reach of teacher education programs. during the lockdown, the three work-integrated learning team members got ethical clearance as well as gatekeeper permission from the university as well as from one province in south africa to initiate a professional learning community and more sustainable partnership between the province, the faculty of education, one of the districts, selected schools in the district and mentor teachers in the schools to address the teaching practicum challenges posed by the covid-19 pandemic. we began our conversations with the mentor teachers around how we could support one another during this challenging time and to ensure that we comply with department of higher education and training policy (department of higher education and training, 2015), the communique directive (green, 2020) and the department of basic education (2020) requirements. in our conversations it very soon became apparent that we needed a “common language”. we decided to use the south african council for educators’ (2020) professional teaching standards as a guiding document for our discussions. the professional teaching standards “describe in broad terms what an educator must know and be able to do to provide quality teaching and learning opportunities for all learners they teach in the diverse context of south african schools” (sace, 2020, p. 4). in addition, the purpose is to “provide a common language and a vision of the profession that all teachers can use to define and develop their practice” and to “set standards for the providers of teacher education so that their programs are designed and delivered in a way that enables all pre-service and in-service teachers to meet the standards” (sace, 2020, p. 5). a re-envisioned core practices and practice-based teaching practicum the result of our collaboration is two conceptual tools that guided our work during the covid19 lockdown period and continues to guide and inform the decisions that we must make as the pandemic continues to wreak havoc in the education sector. the first tool is a concise document entitled the teaching practicum curriculum which is currently being implemented within the faculty of education and supported by our partnership schools and mentor teachers (cf. table 1). in the first column we indicate the sace professional standard which guides what student teachers should be able to do during the teaching practicum. columns two to five indicate the teaching practicum activities required from year 1 to year 4 of the bed program. the final column highlights the core practices that student teachers should learn to practice and implement with fidelity. the core practices correspond to the high leverage practices identified in the research literature (ball & forzani, 2009; grossman et al., 2009; mcleskey & brownell, 2015; teachingworks, 2021). according to teachingworks (2021, para 1): research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 nel, c., botha, c. & marais, e. a covid-19 re-envisioned teaching practicum curriculum research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 254 high-leverage practices are the fundamentals of teaching. these practices are used constantly and are critical to helping students learn important content. the highleverage practices are also central to supporting students’ social and emotional development. these high-leverage practices are used across subject areas, grade levels, and contexts. they are “high-leverage” not only because they matter to student learning but because they are basic for advancing skill in teaching. the activities are aligned with the core teaching practices and provide the student teachers the opportunity to receive targeted feedback by both teaching practicum educators and mentor teachers, namely “where am i going? how am i going? where to next?” (hattie & timperley, 2007, p. 87). the design principles used by henning et al. (2016, p. 29) were used to guide the re-design of the teaching practicum curriculum document, “(1) standards-based, (2) organized in a developmental sequence, (3) simple and easily communicable and (4) stated in language universally familiar to practitioners.” the teaching practicum document served as an explicit statement of the expectations of student teachers across their entire teaching practicum program from year 1 to year 4. this ensured that the conversations with the mentor teachers were far more meaningful and that everyone was on the same page in terms of what was expected. in the design of the document, we also tried to ensure that there was a developmental progression in terms of the complexity of the teaching practicum requirements (e.g., teaching small groups to teaching a whole class, planning single lessons to planning sequences of lessons, etc.). we also integrated digital competence and socio-emotional wellbeing components into the curriculum (i.e., lessons learnt during the covid-19 lockdown period) to ensure that they would not be seen as add-ons, but core components of the teaching practicum curriculum. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 nel, c., botha, c. & marais, e. a covid-19 re-envisioned teaching practicum curriculum __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 255 table 1. teaching practice curriculum sace professional teaching standards year 1 year 2 year 3 year 4 core practices teachers collaborate with others to support teaching, learning and their professional development write a reflection on the development of a professional identity (i.e., looking back, looking in and around and looking forward). discuss sace’s code of professional ethics. demonstrate digital competences, (e.g., use excel to capture marks, schedule and join a zoom meeting, save a word document in pdf format, complete a google form, etc.) write a reflection on sace’s code of professional ethics: learners assist with extracurricular activities (where protocol allows). interact with teachers/coaches and learners. discuss demands and challenges of teaching profession with mentor teacher. assist with extracurricular activities (where protocol allows). interact with teachers/coaches and learners in a respectful manner. collaborate with mentor teacher to improve teaching practice. attend phase or grade meetings and ask to take minutes. discuss and reflect on the role that various subject associations, professional learning communities, etc. play in professional development. conduct a practice parent meeting. demonstrate digital communication competence (e.g., use whatsapp, etc. to communicate with groups or parents). communicate with professionals. communicate with parents/caregivers. identify professional development needs (e.g., digital competences) and access learning opportunities. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 nel, c., botha, c. & marais, e. a covid-19 re-envisioned teaching practicum curriculum __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 256 teaching requires that wellmanaged and safe learning environments are created and maintained within reason. teachers make thoughtful choices about their teaching that lead to learning goals for all learners observe and discuss emergency evacuation procedures and covid19 protocols. observe and discuss classroom seating arrangements and the use of space in the classroom. reflect on how diverse community, school & classroom contexts can affect teaching choices. reflect on how technology access or lack thereof can affect teaching choices. reflect on how learning and teaching support materials or lack thereof can affect teaching choices. observe and discuss school as community:  routines  learner behavior  teacher & learner code of conduct observe and discuss the classroom as community:  building relationships  behavior management  classroom rules and expectations  teacher’s action zone ask to manage a small group of learners. develop own management system for small group. work with small group of learners:  positive social interactions practice proactive and reactive management techniques (e.g., proximity control, cues, signals, etc.) give instructions (both verbal and written). explain procedure for classroom routine. plan and execute routines, procedures & transitions. plan and execute a classroom management plan to handle misbehavior. handle learner conflict or misunderstanding. establish an engaged learning environment for a large group that supports individual and collaborative learning. implement organizational routines, procedures and transitions to support a learning environment. set up and manage small group work. build respectful relationships. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 nel, c., botha, c. & marais, e. a covid-19 re-envisioned teaching practicum curriculum __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 257 teaching is based on an ethical commitment to the learning and wellbeing of all learners. teachers support social justice and the redress of inequalities within their educational institutions and society more broadly reflect on learner diversity in south africa. reflect on how socioemotional issues (family and learners) affect behavior and learning. interact and engage with learners. learn their names. observe/note different developmental stages of learners in a classroom (cognitive, linguistic, social, emotional, physical) analyze observed learners’ work. collect data on individual learner behavior classroom and learner profiles) observe mentor teacher interaction with learners:  language development  special learner needs  differentiation of instruction plan appropriate activities for a group of learners within a developmental level. create developmentally appropriate lesson plans. implement instruction that is developmentally appropriate for a large group elicit and interpret individual learners’ thinking and learning. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 nel, c., botha, c. & marais, e. a covid-19 re-envisioned teaching practicum curriculum __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 258 teachers are able to plan coherent sequences of learning experiences analyze mentor teachers’ year, term and weekly/cycle planning. analyze planning templates. analyze the caps curriculum discuss the planning approach with the mentor teacher:  how to integrate caps  factors to consider when planning.  learning and teaching support material to use (e.g., lego six bricks; souns manipulatives, etc.)  timetable for each day  predict how much time learners will need to complete activities create and implement a lesson for a small group. create weekly lesson plans for the phase or specialist subject(s). discuss how planning changes during times of absenteeism or crisis. choose, appraise and modify tools, texts and materials to optimize learning goals. co-plan for five consecutive days (weekly/cycle) use formative assessment data to adjust planning discuss how planning changes during times of absenteeism or crisis. plan for five consecutive days (weekly/daily, etc.) use summative data to adjust planning setting longand shortterm goals. planning single lessons and sequences of lessons. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 nel, c., botha, c. & marais, e. a covid-19 re-envisioned teaching practicum curriculum __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 259 teaching is fundamentally connected to teachers’ understanding of the subject/s they teach. teachers understand how their teaching methodologies are effectively applied become familiar with subject-specific curricula (caps) & resources. observe blackboard work. observe how technology is integrated in lessons. explore subject-specific resources, manipulatives, etc. (e.g., lego six bricks, etc.) teach a small group of learners. model appropriate level content-specific vocabulary co-teach part of a lesson with the mentor teacher. teach a small group of learners. demonstrate digital communication competence (e.g., use whatsapp, etc. as a teaching tool). choose appropriate and accurate representations of the content to share with learners. provide accurate explanations of content to individuals/small groups. observe and coteach for five consecutive days:  content-specific questions  wait time  pacing  content-specific instructional strategies model contentspecific academic language demonstrate subject-specific digital competences (e.g., access and create a powtoon) model the use of technology for accessing content references. demonstrate subjectspecific (content) digital competences (e.g., create a powerpoint with voice over to explain selected content, use active presenter to record your screen, etc.) teach for five consecutive days using explicit instructional sequences. explicit instruction. lead a group discussion. explain and model content. check learner understanding during and after lesson. analyze instruction for purpose of improvement. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 nel, c., botha, c. & marais, e. a covid-19 re-envisioned teaching practicum curriculum __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 260 teaching involves monitoring and assessing learning analyze school-based assessment documents. analyze learner workbooks. discuss assessment with mentor teacher. become familiar and reflect on the school’s, phase and teacher assessment systems. capture and record marks analyze a small group of learners’ written work. analyze correction and assessment techniques. discuss how schoolbased assessment should be implemented. develop assessment activities (informal or formal) (whole class). capture and record marks. write a report on learner performance and indicate how instruction should be adapted. develop assessment tasks for the period of placement for all subjects. implement assessment tasks. do all marking and recording of marks. document decisions that will affect future planning or instruction select and design assessments. interpret the results of learner work. provide oral and written feedback. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 nel, c., botha, c. & marais, e. a covid-19 re-envisioned teaching practicum curriculum __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 261 teachers understand that language plays an important role in teaching and learning. identify and analyze the caps (subject-specific) for language functions. differentiate between two sources of academic language demands, namely texts and tasks. identify a key language function and one learning task within your subject that allows learners to practice the function. use resources (e.g., storybooks) and manipulatives (e.g., lego six bricks) to enhance language learning for coding and robotics. differentiate between discourse, syntax and lexical (vocabulary) demands. identify vocabulary and one additional language demand that relates to a language function and learning task. identify and describe instructional and/or language supports to address language demands. use resources (e.g., storybooks) and manipulatives (e.g., lego six bricks) to enhance language learning for coding and robotics. formulate language objectives. plan for academic language and content integration in lesson planning. teach lessons with an explicit focus on accommodating academic language demands within a specific subject. use resources (e.g., storybooks) and manipulatives (e.g., lego six bricks) to enhance language learning for coding and robotics. teach lessons demonstrating academic language accommodation. use resources (e.g., storybooks) and manipulatives (e.g., lego six bricks) to enhance language learning for coding and robotics. facilitate academic language development for all learners. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 nel, c., botha, c. & marais, e. a covid-19 re-envisioned teaching practicum curriculum research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 262 our second tool was a visual illustration that resembles the net of a square-based pyramid surrounded by a circle representing the diverse contexts in which the teaching practicum can be supervised, mentored and practice-based opportunities provided for student teachers (cf. figure 1). this tool is based on the learning cycle for learning to enact core practices, developed by mcdonald et al. (2013). teacher education pedagogies are the practice-based instructional structures and routines (e.g., case studies, video analysis, etc.) that teaching practicum educators and mentor teachers can routinely use to support and scaffold student teachers’ learning of teaching. student teachers are introduced to representations (e.g., examples of what practice looks like by using modeling), approximations (e.g., opportunities to simulate and practice using mixed reality simulations like teachlive), the enactment of (e.g., practice and get feedback during co-teaching) and the reflection on practices (e.g., video analysis) during the practice-based learning cycle (cf. teachingworks, 2021). the base of the pyramid represents the foundation, namely the core practices that student teachers must learn to teach less rigidly and more thoughtfully. the practice-based opportunities (pedagogies of enactment) are represented in triangles to indicate that initially student teachers should be provided with a variety of practice-based opportunities, that are scaffolded by both teaching practicum educators and mentor teachers. as the student teachers move from being novices to advanced beginners there is a gradual release of responsibility. in the circle we have added the various contexts that can and should be considered, in addition to the traditional school-based placement, when developing teaching practicum practice-based opportunities. the schoolbased teaching practicum can be supplemented with practice-based opportunities presented online via a university’s learning management system, via whatsapp on mobile phones where the mentor teacher can provide feedback as well as participate in dialogic conversations with student teachers (cf. nel & marais, 2020), or via computer on an annotation platform such as perusall where teacher educators, mentor teachers as well as peers can annotate student teachers’ powerpoint presentations with voiceover or videos (cf. nel & marais, 2021). research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 nel, c., botha, c. & marais, e. a covid-19 re-envisioned teaching practicum curriculum research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 263 figure 1. core practices and teacher education pedagogies conclusion as a result of the covid-19 pandemic and actions taken to protect public health, the way teaching and learning happens at schools and universities, as we use to know it, has been changed forever. that the teaching practicum should occur in a school-based setting remains largely unquestioned, but the covid-19 situation has escalated the uptake and need for more practice-based and engaging supplements to the traditional school-based placement that should be seen as providing quality representations, approximations, enactment and reflection opportunities for student teachers. working directly with learners in schools will always be the foundation of the teaching practicum, but it is a foundation that must now be expanded. teaching is a complex job that requires various types of knowledge as well as the application of core teaching practices in highly demanding, challenging and constantly changing contexts. benedict et al. (2016, p. 18) state that, “to reach a level of automaticity such that the practice can be implemented with fidelity takes consistent practice with feedback, reflection, coaching research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 nel, c., botha, c. & marais, e. a covid-19 re-envisioned teaching practicum curriculum research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 264 and more practice”. teaching practicum educators and mentor teachers need to move away from being teaching practicum to ensuring that the teaching practicum steering system and suspension are aligned and that a safe, enjoyable and quality journey will lead to effective teaching and learning for all learners. references anderson, l. m., & stillman, j. a. (2013). student teaching's contribution to preservice teacher development. review of educational research, 83(7), 3-69. asma, a. d. 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(2020) zoom fatigue is taxing the brain: here’s why that happens. national geographic. retrieved from https://www.nationalgeographic.com south african council for educators (sace). (2020). professional teaching standards. https://www.sace.org.za/assets/documents/uploads/sace_31561-2020-10-12professional%20teaching%20standards%20brochure.pdf. teachingworks. (2021). high-leverage practices. https://library.teachingworks.org/curriculumresources/high-leverage-practices/ united nations. (2020). education during covid-19 and beyond. https://www.un.org/sites/un2.un.org/files/sg_policy_brief_covid19_and_education_august_2020.pdf research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 marongwe, n. & garidzirai, r., together but not together: challenges of remote learning for students amid the covid-19 pandemic in rural south african universities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 213 together but not together: challenges of remote learning for students amid the covid-19 pandemic in rural south african universities newlin marongwe1 & rufaro garidzirai*2 *corresponding author: rgaridzirai@wsu.ac.za 1. department of school improvement programmes, walter sisulu university, queenstown campus, south africa 2. department of management, walter sisulu university, butterworth campus, south africa received : 2021-06-15 revised : 2021-08-09 accepted : 2021-10-20 how to cite this paper: marongwe, n., & garidzirai, r. (2021). together but not together: challenges of remote learning for students amid the covid-19 pandemic in rural south african universities. research in social sciences and technology, 6(3), 213-226. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.39 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). abstract the purpose of the study was to examine the challenges of remote learning that were faced by students in four rural institutions of higher learning amid the covid-19 pandemic. it is well documented that in south africa as well as globally, the covid-19 pandemic has disrupted the teaching and learning in higher institutions of education. a call was made by the department of higher education and training that mandated universities to adopt remote learning to save the academic year. that call was a blanket statement that did not consider the context of different universities, given the inequalities that existed prior to the outbreak of covid-19 between the historically disadvantaged universities and the well-established ones. the study adopted a qualitative approach that made use of a desktop research methodology, as well as the media (television, radio and newspapers), and social media as sources of data gathering to document the challenges. one of the key findings was that some students studying at rural institutions of higher learning experienced challenges of limited skills as well as the convenience of and access to technology and other tools of trade. the paper concludes that such students were proposing that, ‘we are together but not together”. the root of such grievance is that they were grossly affected by the geographical and historical position of the universities they were enrolled at and the situation was deepened and exposed by the covid-19 pandemic. the paper recommends the equal redistribution of resources especially to previously disadvantaged black universities. the paper further recommends that the department of education introduce online learning to students from as early as high school so that there will be continuity and ease in remoting learning. keywords: covid-19; challenges; education; remote learning; rural universities 10.46303/ressat.2021.39 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.39 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 marongwe, n. & garidzirai, r., together but not together: challenges of remote learning for students amid the covid-19 pandemic in rural south african universities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 214 introduction and background the outbreak of the covid-19 pandemic in 2020, forced many countries to shut down most of their educational, social and economic activities. the shutdown was accompanied by numerous lockdown restrictions that were put in place by most governments as a way of controlling the rapid spread of the virus. south africa, like other countries, was not exempt from the disastrous effects of covid-19 which impelled the government to declare a nation-wide shutdown, an endeavour that resulted in, among other effects, the closure of institutions of learning. the closure of academic institutions was done to curb the spread of the virus through social distancing (kaisara & bwalya, 2021; toquero, 2020). to save the academic year, universities were compelled to rethink their teaching and learning strategies. in this respect, kaur (2020) avers that remote learning was a reasonable option to fill the classroom void and could therefore reduce the risk of infection for students. remote learning, therefore, not only became the latest buzzword in south africa's academic circles but was also the only ideal measure that could help address the impact of covid-19 on the academic year. in this light, it is well documented that covid-19 has resulted in a negative bearing on educational institutions, students and lecturers across the world (mailizar et al., 2020). hence, the adoption of measures such as remote learning. without digressing from the discussion on remote learning, it should be noted that there are inequalities that exist between the education offered in rural and urban areas. unfortunately, these inequalities have existed prior to the upsurge of covid-19. in his 1998 speech, thabo mbeki, the then president of south africa, described south africa as a nation with two faces because of the inequalities that exist, namely, between the black rural communities and the ‘haves’, largely populated by white communities. thabo mbeki observed that the black rural community was the population most affected by a lack of economic, physical, educational, communication and other infrastructure resources (mbeki, 1998). two decades later, rural poverty and poor education in rural areas have continued to grow (graetz et al., 2018; horner et al., 2018; letseka et al., 2018). the general consensus among the aforementioned authors is that e-learning affects society's poorest in the country where, by virtue of the country`s transition from apartheid to democracy, technology and access to the internet are mistakenly viewed to be available to everyone. literature, media (television, radio and newspapers) and social media posts acknowledge that the covid-19 has deepened, exposed and widened south africa's pre-existing inequalities between rural and urban universities (mhlanga & moloi, 2020; omodan & diko, 2021; pasara, 2020). the inequality became more pronounced when higher education shifted to online learning, thereby exposing the prejudice suffered by those staying in rural and urban areas with regard to internet connectivity, digital access, access to resources and social support. (mohamedbhai, 2020; timmis, 2020). simply put, the rural population had no equal opportunities to resources and their education was at stake. du plessis (2014) posits that given the unique inequality challenges faced by the rural education environment, rural university students were expected to face hiccups in the transition from the traditional way of face-toface education to the online approach. crawford et al. (2020) argue that it was impossible for virtual learning to seamlessly happen overnight, and that the quick transformation was linked to numerous challenges and obstacles. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 marongwe, n. & garidzirai, r., together but not together: challenges of remote learning for students amid the covid-19 pandemic in rural south african universities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 215 thus, the purpose of the paper was to identify the challenges confronting university students in rural communities in the achievement of their educational goal amid the covid-19 pandemic. the current study intends to contribute to the scarce academic literature on education and the quest for educating in the current and post-covid-19 era. furthermore, the study intends to identify unique challenges that beset rural universities during the global covid-19 pandemic. noteworthy is that there are few studies that have focused on challenges of remote learning during covid-19 (evans-amalu & claravall, 2021; montacute, 2020; mukhtar et al., 2020). as far as can be ascertained, this study is unique to the south african rural university context. we further intended to come up with strategies that could be used to address the plight of university students in rural areas. the current study follows this chronological order. section 2 provides a literature review on rurality and remote learning. section 3 provides the methodology of the study while section 4 provides the remote learning facilities in rural areas. section 5 and 6 give the challenges of remote learning faced by rural university students and the intervention strategies. conclusion is provided in section 7. objective of the study to establish the challenges confronting university students in rural communities in the achievement of their educational goal amid the covid-19 pandemic. literature review for the reader to understand the contents of this paper, it is prudent to give the context and definitions of ‘rural’ and ‘remote learning’. this section, therefore, discusses the rural and remote learning context seriatim. rurality according to langa (2015), rural refers to settings where agricultural activities are the chief means of economic gain in areas that are densely populated as per colonial and apartheiddriven land settlements. from langa’s definition, it can be drawn that ‘rural’ has to do with the geographical location and historical discrimination perpetuated by the apartheid government's segregationist settlement policies. langa (2015) maintains that, because of south africa's history, the country is still experiencing the immense effects of socio-economic challenges and inequalities which are rife, predominantly in rural areas. langa further states that conditions such as unemployment, lack of fiscal power, physical paucity of material goods and resources, poor and dysfunctional families, chronic exposure to inadequate infrastructure, etc. are more evident in the rural school set up and negatively impact schooling provision as opposed to the urban school set up. emerging voices (2015) concur with langa and proceed to report that africans that lived in rural areas were deprived of educational opportunities to a larger degree when compared to africans living in urban areas. many rural schools had insufficient resources with poor books and equipment; poor infrastructure defined by overcrowded classrooms, dilapidated buildings and mud schools; under-qualified and unqualified teachers as well as a lack of basic necessities such as decent sanitation, running potable water and electricity, (emerging voices, 2015). it is well-documented that rural areas are distinguished by numerous challenges that adversely research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 marongwe, n. & garidzirai, r., together but not together: challenges of remote learning for students amid the covid-19 pandemic in rural south african universities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 216 affect quality education (ferri et al., 2020). in addition, du plessis (2014) refers to rural areas as underdeveloped and remote with disadvantaged and poor schools that lack basic sanitation, infrastructure, water, electricity, roads and other transport, as well as communication and information technology. langa (2015), emerging voices (2015) and du plessis (2014) agree that the socio-economic conditions of rural areas disadvantages learners in rural schools. writing on south africa's rural areas, dube (2020) describes rural areas as remote locations that can be found in forests, mountains and the countryside. according to dube (2020), rural people are deprived of socio-economic amenities, in particular good health services, quality education, electricity, transport and even marketing facilities. in south africa, rural areas typically lack the economic and social viability that is needed to sustain the improvement of technology (cristobal-fransi et al., 2020). this presents a difficulty for the government in relation to supplying quality education services in rural areas, which in turn deteriorates the quality of teaching and learning in the country's rural areas (du plessis & mestry, 2019). relevant to this paper are the characteristics of rural areas that have been recorded by unesco (2005, as cited in du plessis, 2014). these characteristics are as follows: • topography, (conditions of bridges, roads to school, etc). • distance (remoteness) to towns. • access, by rural inhabitants, to information technology. • transport infrastructure (buses, roads, taxis). • access, by rural inhabitants, to facilities and services (water, electricity, sanitation). • the economic, educational and health, status of the community. • access, by rural inhabitants, to lifelong learning services. • the quality of the community's social conditions. • activities of civil and political society organisation. from the above cited sources, it can be deduced that rural areas are remote places where basic services are neglected. these rural areas were created by the apartheid regime and still exist three decades into democracy. hence, for the purpose of this paper, rural means environments that are found in the outskirts of the country where opportunities, resources, economic activities, etc. are scarce or limited as compared to the affluent communities. it is in such areas that rural education has been neglected and has become a common problem that needs urgent attention. thus, the reason for the voices of the rural university students that “we are together but not together on online learning during the covid-19 pandemic”. remote learning clark and mayer (2016) defined remote learning as teaching and learning activities delivered using digital devices with the objective of achieving outcome-based learning. mhlanga and moloi (2020) also defined remote learning as all the teaching and learning activities that are separated by distance and time and, thus, cannot have a contact session. the aforementioned scholars unanimously agree that remote learning involves the use of platforms such as microsoft teams, blackboard, emails, zoom, moodle and whatsapp. these platforms give both the facilitator and learners an opportunity to take part in teaching and learning whilst in the comfort of their homes. the literature provides several advantages of using remote learning over contact learning. for instance, remote learning during covid19 provides a safer and research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 marongwe, n. & garidzirai, r., together but not together: challenges of remote learning for students amid the covid-19 pandemic in rural south african universities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 217 enabling teaching and learning environment. remote learning is more convenient to those with comorbidities as they have the opportunity to learn without putting their lives at risk (ferri et al., 2020). other advantages include: no transport and residence cost incurred, flexibility and time convenient (bijeesh, 2017). on the other hand, several challenges of using remote learning were identified. these include distraction problems during lectures as some of the students could not mute their mics. brown (2017) posits that remote learning makes use of complicated tools of trade. this includes complicated software’s and functions that are not user friendly to both students and facilitators. furthermore, in remote learning there is a lack of social interaction among peers and instructors (hutt, 2017; kalimullina et al., 2021). ray (2020) further posits that these challenges should be addressed for remote learning to be a success. thus, tools of trade should be availed to both learners and facilitators. accordingly, students should be trained on the use of these tools. there is a plethora of literature addressing the use of remote learning in emergency set ups such as lockdown. this literature points to the widening of the existing inequalities in the education sector (subedi & subedi, 2020; williams et al., 2021). for instance, montacute (2020) observed that the covid-19 restrictions such as the closure of schools have affected students with lower socioeconomic backgrounds. this has widened the gap between the students with and without economic difficulties due to the inadequacy of internet resources, and of basic technological skills. moreover, bijeesh (2017) emphasised that the closure of schools as a result of the pandemic disadvantages students that come from poor backgrounds since they do not have a proper learning environment. a study conducted in nigeria, a developing country, highlighted that most of the university students lacked access to the internet and laptops during the pandemic, thereby affecting teaching and learning activities (owusu-fordjour et al., 2020). a study conducted in holland, found that rural students were affected by the lockdown compared to urban students (bol, 2020). similar findings were also extrapolated in south africa (mhlanga & moloi, 2020; omodan, 2020). the aforementioned scholars unanimously assert that remote learning was a challenge within south african universities. the authors further contend that rural students were more affected as they could not use computers, did not have sufficient skills and other facilitators could not make use of remote learning tools of trade. contrary to south africa, mukhtar et al. (2020) carried out a study on the effectiveness of online learning in the pakistan medical field during the pandemic. the results of the study show that online learning brought flexibility and fostered self-reliance. however, it disadvantaged other students as they could not do their practical’s and there was a lack of feedback from all the stakeholders. methodology the paper used a desktop study approach to explore the experiences and challenges that were faced by students studying at rural universities in south africa and around the globe. this study was prompted by numerous reports and studies that were carried out across the globe and found that students studying at rural institutions of higher learning faced a myriad of challenges that disadvantaged them from acquiring quality education. the desktop method makes use of research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 marongwe, n. & garidzirai, r., together but not together: challenges of remote learning for students amid the covid-19 pandemic in rural south african universities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 218 existing data to understand the phenomenon under study (johnston, 2014). according to johnston (2014, p. 619), secondary data is, “analysis of data that was collected by someone else for another primary purpose”. this method of data collection and analysis assists researchers with ways of collecting, analysing and interpreting data for a study (creswell, 2014). this paper relied on published data and drew examples from other countries, though our focus was on south african rural universities amid covid-19. the paper further made use of media and social media to explore the challenges that beset rural students during pandemic. worth mentioning is that desktop secondary analysis was preferred since it is easy to access covid19 information, put the context and depth to the rural universities and covid-19 findings. this information was available on the internet. table 1 gives a summary of the journal articles, conference papers and reports that were used in moulding this study. table 1. summary of secondary data used in the study source number of items used journal articles 17 conference papers 03 reports 12 results remote learning facilities used in rural universities noteworthy is that the covid-19 pandemic and its effects on universities were unexpected and unprecedented. rural universities were not exempt from this challenge. rather, they were affected immensely compared to urban universities as they had to switch from traditional delivery to remote learning. table 2 illustrates that universities switched to remote learning. of note is that rural universities in the eastern cape, limpopo, and kwazulu natal provinces used different platforms to deliver their respective outcomes. these include whatsapp, blackboard, moodle, microsoft teams, zoom and youtube. surprisingly, each and every platform had its own unique use and challenges. for instance, microsoft teams, blackboard and moodle were mainly used for class discussions and assessments, while zoom and whatsapp were used for consultation purposes. youtube was used to understand challenging concepts that students have failed to understand during classes. remarkably, each and every tool of trade presented its own challenges, thus, the subsequent section discusses the challenges of remote learning in detail. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 marongwe, n. & garidzirai, r., together but not together: challenges of remote learning for students amid the covid-19 pandemic in rural south african universities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 219 table 2. remote learning facilities tool use tools of trade challenges whatsapp groups making announcements and sending of slides cell phone some students did not have cell phones that support whatsapp connectivity problems data challenges microsoft teams conducting discussions and assessments cell phone laptop tablet connectivity problems during discussions and assessment lack of skill to use microsoft teams blackboard conducting classes and assessments cell phone laptop tablet connectivity problems when writing assessments lack of skill to use microsoft teams moodle conducting classes and assessments cell phone laptop tablet complicated to use connectivity challenges when writing assessments zoom conducting classes and assessments cell phone laptop tablet data challenges lak of devices that support zoom youtube revising and understanding difficult concepts cell phone laptop tablet lack of data to go on youtube publishing sites downloading of free textbooks laptops and cell phones some books were not for free challenges of remote learning in south african rural areas as alluded to earlier on, rural education faced challenges even before the upsurge of covid19. these challenges have been aggravated by the advent of covid19. the first challenge identified in the previous section is adjusting from traditional teaching and learning to remote learning. the majority of rural south african universities were accustomed to contact classes and adjusting to remote learning was a daunting task. this finding corresponds with the study done by dube (2020) in south africa. the author posits that the new mode of learning relied heavily on online learning that made use of different learning management systems that individual universities adopted (dube, 2020). the study established that the online mode of learning was excluding rural students from teaching and learning notwithstanding the south african government’s efforts to promote online learning. since rural universities were adjusting to the new normal, they encountered challenges of lowtech software and an inadequacy of resources to learn the management system and connect research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 marongwe, n. & garidzirai, r., together but not together: challenges of remote learning for students amid the covid-19 pandemic in rural south african universities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 220 to the internet. this corresponds mutanana's (2019) findings on the effects of e-learning on students in zimbabwe's remote areas. in his study, mutanana (2019) found that the introduction of the myvista e-learning platform for zimbabwe open university, presented challenges of inadequate access to ict and inflexible practices in their remote areas. the students had poor or no access to technical devices which limited their ability to fully communicate (mutanana, 2019). the views by dube (2020) and mutanana (2019) are supported by basilaia and kvavadze (2020) and zhong (2020) who opine that online learning could be effective in a country that is digitally advanced. universities in some parts of pakistan’s online classes were also ineffective because of social marginalisation of students and the inadequacy of resources in academic institutions (basilaia & kvavadze, 2020). the results in table 2 illustrate that rural students lacked tools of trade such as cell phones, laptops and tablets. the shift to online teaching and learning was plausible but it excluded to a greater extent, students studying in rural contexts. dube (2020), fataar (2020) and mutanana (2019) agree that rural students faced challenges of accessing online resources because of poor infrastructure, the unavailability of electronic gadgets, electricity, data, and a lack of skills to navigate. this move widened the gap between the rich and the poor, instead of unifying the country in the fight against covid-19 (dube, 2020). adnan and anwar (2020) emphasised that because of the challenges aforementioned, it is impossible for online learning to produce the desired results in rural areas. thus, the inadequacy of ict devices to connect to the internet for the purpose of online learning is a serious challenge for rural students that needs to be addressed with the urgency it deserves. failing to address this problem will continue to proliferate the disadvantage faced by poor and discriminated students as a result of the online method of the teaching-learning process (manzoor, 2020). furthermore, some lecturers and a vast number of students in rural areas are not well acquainted with online learning and are, therefore, not technologically orientated. universities that are situated in rural areas usually attract students who come from socially disadvantaged families/backgrounds/environments. such students face challenges of not being tech-savvy, hence useful information is not easily accessible or reachable to them (dube, 2020). competencies and skills are essential for online learning and teaching and this, is a challenge to most students in rural contexts. world bank (2020) comments that students who were able to make the best use of online learning were already proficient and knowledgeable in the use of technological tools that support online learning. langa (2015) further states that students in rural areas lacked educational support from their parents, an important finding in relation to the world bank (2020), which observed that online learning was going to be successful to students who received support from their peers and family. as such, there were growing fears that only students from well-established universities and family backgrounds would benefit from the education offered during the covid-19 season (dube, 2020; njilo, 2020). hence the voices by the rural students that ‘we are together but not together’ in this education offered during the covid-19 pandemic. another challenge that posed as a threat to online learning for rural students during covid-19 was the incompetence of both lecturers and students in navigating the different online applications and learning platforms. this, according to some scholars, was as a result of the abrupt switch (which came when some lecturers and students were not ready for the abrupt research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 marongwe, n. & garidzirai, r., together but not together: challenges of remote learning for students amid the covid-19 pandemic in rural south african universities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 221 transition) from the traditional face-to-face mode of learning to the online mode of learning (dube, 2020; fataar, 2020). the abrupt shift to online learning caused a lot of anxiety, uncertainty, tension and confusion to both students and lecturers for they could not get the help they wanted for the successful implementation of the online mode. world bank (2020) reports that online teaching and learning was going to be challenging to some students and their instructors since they had not received any training in the online instructional tools and approaches (dube, 2020). it was also reported that when institutions of higher learning were to adopt management and e-learning or learning platforms to carry out online classes, some universities delayed or suspended implementation of online classes because of the unobtainability of the learning and management systems (ali, 2020) and lack of skills as discussed above earlier on. this, disadvantaged students studying in rural areas because only well-resourced or established high-ranked universities were able to make a smooth transition to online classes without delays (fataar, 2020; adnan & anwar, 2020). intervention strategies there should be strategies by the department of education to introduce online learning to learners from as early as high school so that there will be continuity and ease in remoting learning. this will allow learners from rural schools in south africa to navigate the conversion from high school to university without encountering many hiccups. when at university students would feel confident to participate meaningfully in the construction of knowledge. furthermore, the department of higher education and training should also ensure that ict infrastructure, gadgets, access to data, internet and other tools of trade are made available to rural university students. this promotes equity, provision of quality education and no student would feel left behind. this will reduce the gap that divides rural and urban students and ultimately address the inequalities that were previously and are currently prevailing. since it was found that some lecturers lacked software skills, rural universities should train their staff members and students to use educational software. this will ensure a smooth teaching and learning process. further to the above, this will help realise deputy minister of higher education and training, buthi manamela's goal as stated in njilo (2020) and on social media that no student should be left behind and be treated as if they were the cause of the covid-19 pandemic. worth emphasising is the rural education policy to improve the country's quality of education. this is attained by accepting and identifying the realities faced by rural students and lecturers for intervention purposes. thus, issues such as scarce resources, lecturer’s workload, lack of funds and lack of infrastructure should be addressed. the department of education should avoid the one-size-fits all approach. this calls for the department to give special attention to disadvantaged universities in terms of financial resources and ict resources. this in turn improves rural universities. furthermore, university's strive for technological advancement at their district centres, and within the students' locations. this can be achieved with the intervention from non-governmental organisations. conclusion research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 marongwe, n. & garidzirai, r., together but not together: challenges of remote learning for students amid the covid-19 pandemic in rural south african universities research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 222 the paper concludes that the covid-19 pandemic has resulted in changes in the manner in which teaching and learning, assessments and how students to students and students to lecturers relate. this change does not favour students studying at rural institutions. students studying at previously disadvantaged rural universities feel alienated, neglected and they feel that yes, we are together in this covid-19 online learning that the south african department of higher education called for, but we are not together. rural university students feel looked down upon and not as equals to the students studying at affluent universities. they feel like these changes to online learning during the pandemic served as cosmetic changes where the government is paying lip service, hence, we are together but not together because they are not taken seriously. this is justified on the 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(2020). multidimensional analysis of the teaching process of the critical thinking skills research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 134 multidimensional analysis of the teaching process of the critical thinking skills1 seyat polat* independent researcher email: seyatpolat@gmail.com **corresponding author: seyatpolat@gmail.com received : 2019.12.01 rev. req. : 2020.02.03 accepted : 2020. 04.04 doi: 10.46303/ressat.05.02.8 how to cite this paper: polat, s. (2020). multidimensional analysis of the teaching process of the critical thinking skills. research in social sciences and technology, 5(2), 134-157. doi.org/10.46303/ressat.05.02.8 abstract this study aims to evaluate critical thinking skills in a multidimensional way. based on this objective, the level of teachers’ critical thinking skills, how they conceptualize critical thinking, their practices of critical thinking in the classroom, and if the critical thinking is referred enough in the curriculum are analyzed in this research. in terms of the research objective, this study is mixed-method: the relational model was used for the quantitative part of the research, and the case study method was used for the qualitative part. the research data was collected in the academic year 2013-2014. the study group from which quantitative data was collected consists of 323 males and 377 females, totaling 700 teachers, and the other study group from which the qualitative data was collected involves 16 teachers working at two primary and two elementary schools. keywords: critical thinking, teaching critical thinking, california critical thinking scale introduction individuals can never remain indifferent to their environment. they follow the environment with great curiosity. they cannot confine themselves and seek better conditions by shaping nature. in the process of creating these conditions, they try to use their thinking abilities, which is the most important factor that separates humans from other living beings. because of its great importance, many definitions were made about thinking and the awareness of what to think, from past to present. according to dewey (1910), thinking is taking steps while realizing what will happen in the future, like sensing the indicators of rain. according to vygotsky and bruner, as an effective and a magic word, thinking is the awareness of one’s cognition and metacognition (lipman, 2003). thinking is the process of solving a problem, 1 * this study was produced from the author’s doctoral dissertation. polat, s. (2014). multidimensional analysis of the teaching process of the critical thinking skills (unpublished doctoral dissertation). university of necmettin erbakan, turkey. mailto:seyatpolat@gmail.com mailto:seyatpolat@gmail.com research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 polat, s. (2020). multidimensional analysis of the teaching process of the critical thinking skills research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 135 building words based on a specific goal, and a logic pattern that extends from univariate simple cause-and-effect relations to multidimensional and multivariate complex cause-effect relations (aydın, 2003; houdyshell & kirk, 2018; kratt, 2018). the modern world requires modern human thinking skills. in teaching, learning how to think takes a much more important place than exchanging knowledge. therefore, students who think, criticize, produce, and know how to obtain information are educated in schools, and curriculums are prepared for them to improve their thinking skills (seferoğlu & akbıyık, 2006). for this reason, the students who have critical thinking skills do not have any difficulty developing a new vision, behavior, or attitude, or changing them from the old ones (şengül & üstündağ, 2007). in turkey in 2005, the national curriculum that originated in the constructivist philosophy was introduced as a result of fundamental changes in the national curricula. in the new curriculum, critical thinking was included as a fundamental skill. for this reason, there was a great increase in critical thinking skills studies after 2005. in literature, many studies about determining the critical thinking skill levels are available (akıllı, 2012; hove, 2011). it is also observed that there are many studies about determining fundamental skills in the curriculum (başoğlu & mutlu, 2012; hall & quinn, 2014; özensoy, 2012). again, many studies about critical thinking skills have been determined (fung & howe, 2012; kutlu & schreglmann, 2011; yang, 2012). most of these studies are conducted for primary, secondary, and undergraduate students. at the same time, some studies about determining the teachers’ critical thinking level are found in the literature (korkmaz, 2009; kutlu & schreglmann, 2011). these studies are researched by the teachers and lecturers. considering the sampling groups of the studies mentioned above, it is seen that these studies are carried out mostly by the teachers. in addition, there are some studies about analyzing curricula. analysis of these studies indicates that the curriculum is suitable to achieve critical thinking skills; however, teachers’ critical thinking skill levels are not sufficient. in this context, this study is significant for analyzing the curricula and elements that direct the teachers in a multidirectional way (ahmed, 2016; bakalar, 2017). by means of this study, it is expected to fill the gap in the literature and contribute to teaching critical thinking skills with the help of teachers who conceptualize critical thinking and apply it to their classrooms. the basic starting point of this study is to identify teachers’ levels of critical thinking skills and the way they conceptualize it, and to reveal the classroom executions of critical thinking skills and to determine how much space is given for critical thinking skills in the curriculum. in this context, the main objective of this study is to analyze the teaching of critical thinking skills in a multidirectional way. research questions answers to the following five questions are analyzed to achieve the research objectives: 1) what is the level of the teachers’ critical thinking skills? research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 polat, s. (2020). multidimensional analysis of the teaching process of the critical thinking skills research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 136 2) do the teachers’ critical thinking skill levels change by subject, gender, and experience? 3) how do the teachers conceptualize critical thinking? 4) what are the classroom applications or activities about critical thinking? methodology research design in this study, a mixed-method research design is used to analyze the teaching critical thinking skills multi-directionally. with the mixed-method research design, the research topic can be explored in-depth (fraenkel, wallen, & hyun, 2012). this type of design is an approach consisting of a mixture of quantitative and qualitative methods and paradigms. this approach predicts the blend of quantitative and qualitative methods and also anticipates that both methods can be used in one (mixed) research (balcı, 2011). according to this study implementing a mixed-method research design, a model is used to determine the level of teachers’ critical thinking skills, and the relational model is used to analyze the level of critical thinking skills through different variables. using these two methods creates the quantitative dimension of the study. in the qualitative part of the research, the case study method is used, which is preferred commonly in the qualitative part of the studies. in addition to the case study’s different patterns (such as a single case and multiple cases), multiple nested cases are also used in this research. in this multiple nested case pattern, each case included in the study is divided into several sub-categories, and they are compared and contrasted with one another (yıldırım & şimşek, 2011). study group the quantitative data of this research was collected in the 2013-2014 academic year with the participation of the study group consisting of 323 males and 377 females, totaling 700 teachers who work in the central districts of konya. in table 1, the demographic characteristics of teachers in the study group are shown. table 1. demographic characteristics of the study group general characteristics of the teachers n % subject turkish 135 19.3 math 137 19.6 social studies 129 18.4 science 136 19.4 primary education 163 23.3 gender male 377 53.9 female 323 46.1 experience 1-5 year(s) 251 35.9 6-10 years 208 29.7 11-15 years 154 22.0 16 years and above 87 12.4 total 700 100.0 research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 polat, s. (2020). multidimensional analysis of the teaching process of the critical thinking skills research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 137 in the collection of the quantitative data for the research, the convenience sampling method is used among the purposeful sampling methods. this sampling method is used for choosing the cases which are suitable to access (glesne, 2013). one of the reasons to prefer the convenience sampling method is to have a long observation process (three months). the qualitative study group consists of two groups of teachers who work in two primary and two elementary schools. observations and interviews were conducted with the teachers in the study group. qualitative study group teachers’ demographic characteristics are shown in table 2. table 2. demographic characteristics of the study group general characteristics of the teachers n subject turkish 2 math 3 social studies 2 science 2 primary education 7 gender male 10 female 6 experience 1-5 year(s) 1 6-10 years 10 11-15 years 3 16 years and above 2 total 16 data collection tools the research data is collected by these tools: personal information form, the california critical thinking disposition inventory (cctdi), teacher interview form, teacher observation form (tof), and document review form (drf). the california critical thinking disposition inventory (cctdi). developed by facione (1990) and adapted into turkish by i̇skifoglu and ağazade (2013), the cctdi was used to determine teachers’ critical thinking disposition levels in this research. the california critical thinking disposition inventory consists of 75 items and seven subcategories. when they are considered as a whole, the scores taken on this inventory are as follows: 70 to 209 is low, 210 to 279 is moderate, and 280 to 420 is high. this study is conducted with the participation of 587 university students. the internal consistency coefficients of the scale’s subcategories are as follows: internal coefficients are in alpha order: truth-seeking is 72, open-mindedness is 73, analyticity is 72, sistematicity is 74, ct self-confidence is 78, inquisitiveness is 80, and maturity of judgment is 75. the scale’s complete internal consistency’s coefficient is calculated as 90 (facione, giancarlo, & facione, 1995). teacher interview form. data obtained from expert opinions and the results of the literature reviews are taken as a base to prepare the teacher interview form (doğanay & sarı, 2012; nosich, 2012; yeşilpınar, 2011). in this context, the research questions are as follows: (i) how do the teachers conceptualize critical thinking? (ii) how should critical thinking be learned and research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 polat, s. (2020). multidimensional analysis of the teaching process of the critical thinking skills research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 138 developed? (iii) what kind of preparations do the teachers make before the lessons, and how do they use the guidebooks? (iv) what are the teachers’ suggestions for teaching critical thinking? the draft form was presented to the five academicians who are experts in the field to analyze the form in an objective way. to increase the reliability and validity of the data, necessary changes were made to the form. in interview-based studies, the interview form must be subjected to a pilot study before starting the research. a pilot study is necessary for the consistency of both the researcher and the interview form (silverman, 1993; türnüklü, 2000). accordingly, a pilot study was conducted by the researcher in december, 2013, with the participation of math and science teachers. after these interviews, necessary arrangements were made, and the form was finalized. according to glesne (2013), for the reliability of the study, the researcher should give real information to the participants. based on this fact, the researcher provided the real information about the objective of the research to the participants before starting the interviews and also informed them that the interview would be recorded by voice recorder. teacher observation form (tof). the fourth research question of this study is: “what are the classroom applications or activities about critical thinking?” data obtained from expert opinions and the results of the literature reviews are taken as a base to prepare the teacher observation form (doğanay & sarı, 2012; nosich, 2012). to ensure the reliability of the teacher observation form (tof), two different studies were conducted. in the first study, each teacher was observed twice systematically (unattended) by the researcher (balcı, 2011). in terms of reliability, observations repeated over time are important (balcı, 2011). for the reliability of the form, the consistency of the observers is also considered. in this case, the kappa statistic is commonly used for reliability (yurdugül, 2013). in this study, two observers observed three different teachers’ lessons. one of the observers is the researcher; the other observer is the expert on the subject. the result of the observation is indicated in the observation form. the data is analyzed with cohen kappa coefficients. it is seen that there is a meaningful relationship between the level of consistency of the two observers (kappa = .772; p<0.001). document review form (drf). document examination is done to answer the research question, “how much space is given to what items on the critical thinking skills in the curriculum?” according to merriam (2013), the documents are described as visual documents, physical materials, artworks, and social records used in qualitative researches as the third main data collection resource. the document review means analyzing the written materials, including the information about the targeted facts (yıldırım & şimşek, 2011). in the process of creating the form, the definition of critical thinking skills in the curriculum is taken into consideration. the critical thinking skill is defined in the curriculum as follows (ministry of national education [mone], 2012): “critical thinking: (i) distinguishing the known and the unknown, (ii) determining the accuracy of the known, (iii) questioning the causes of the facts, (iv) interrelating the event and the facts, (v) determining the integrity and validity of the given information, (vi) describing the irrationality and the misjudgments of the given information, (vii) noticing the differences between facts and convictions (facts and opinions), (viii) diagnosing the reasonable criteria to analyze the conformity or the value of an action or behavior, (ix) expressing the logic behind the opinions and ideas, (x) is the process of reaching logical research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 polat, s. (2020). multidimensional analysis of the teaching process of the critical thinking skills research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 139 conclusions and judgments.” according to these criteria, critical thinking skills activities are assigned in curriculum and teachers’ guidebooks. collecting the data the california critical thinking disposition inventory (cctdi) was distributed between july and september, 2013. it takes around 30 minutes to answer the scale. seventy scale forms among the 770 obtained scale forms were excluded from the research because of various reasons. the data was collected from a total of 700 participants, and all were included in the analysis. the interviews were conducted in december, 2013, to obtain the data about how the teachers conceptualize critical thinking. before starting the interviews, the participants were informed about the objective of the research and voice recording. each interview took approximately 10 minutes. between october and december, 2013, research observations were carried out to obtain data about critical thinking classroom practices. in these observations, the lessons of turkish language, social science, science, math, and life science were observed from the level of 1st to 8th grades. the document analysis was performed to determine how much space was given to critical thinking in the curriculum. data analysis the analysis was conducted by insight assessment; all rights are reserved for the california critical thinking disposition inventory (cctdi). the arithmetic means and the standard deviations of the cctdi’s data were calculated. a t-test was made to prove whether the teachers’ critical thinking skills are affected by gender or not. the anova test, the one-way analysis of variance test, was used to determine whether experience and subject of the teachers show a significant difference in teachers’ critical thinking skills. if there is a difference between the groups, the tukey hsd test was done to understand which group’s mean scores affect the results. in the process of analyzing the subcategory scores of the cctdi’s compatibility with standard distribution, skewness and kurtosis coefficients, and the kolmogorov-smirnov test was conducted. regarding the normal distribution, if the skewness and the kurtosis values are (+,-1), then they are regarded as perfect; if the values are (+,-2), then they are approved as non-objectionable (george & mallery, 2003). when the data is analyzed, it is seen that all the values are perfect regarding normal distribution. the data obtained from the teacher interview form was subjected to content analysis with the help of “qsr nvivo 10” software. according to yıldırım & şimşek (2011), the fundamental purpose of the content analysis is to reach the concepts which explain the obtained data, codes, and relations with one another. the content analysis was named as thematic analysis by glesne (2013). in such an analysis, the researcher focuses on analytical techniques to find out the themes and the patterns among the data. one of the most important characteristics of these kinds of studies is coding the obtained data. during the data analysis of the interviews, 168 minutes of voice recording was transcribed, and a 32-paged raw data file was obtained. this raw data file was transmitted into the nvivo program. five main themes and 40 subthemes were acquired as a result of the analysis. the teacher observation form (tof) was used for research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 polat, s. (2020). multidimensional analysis of the teaching process of the critical thinking skills research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 140 determining the teachers’ critical thinking classroom practices. each item in the form is scored as “observed” (1) and “not observed” (0). the obtained data from the tof were transferred into microsoft excel to calculate the percentage of frequency. the document review form (drf) was used to determine the scales about critical thinking skills placed in the curriculum. to start the analysis, digital records of the guidebooks and curricula were obtained. these digital records were scanned with the keywords identified from the drf, and obtained data were transferred into microsoft excel to calculate the frequency values. reliability and validity studies for the research’s qualitative part in order to increase the validity and reliability of the qualitative dimension of this research, the activities conducted in accordance with the recommendations of merriam (2013), miles and huberman (1994), and yıldırım and şimşek (2011) are described as follows: (i) during the interviews, observation and the document analysis was used to provide the internal validity and the external reliability. thus, the triangulation technique was used; (ii) participant confirmation was obtained by getting feedback from them; (iii) to increase the internal validity, it was referred to expert opinion about research methodology, observation items, and interviews questions; (iv) the data continued to be obtained, analyzed, and spent enough time until it reached a certain saturation to provide the internal validity and the credibility of the research; (v) each teacher was observed twice. thirty-two observations were made during the research. three of all observations were made by two observers. thus, the consistency between the observers is determined by the kappa test; (vi) the processes that were performed in this process were clearly explained to provide external reliability. as a result, the methodology of the research, study group, data collection tools, data collection process, the analysis of the data, and the interpretation were described comprehensively. findings research question 1 the statistical data obtained from the cctdi was analyzed to find an answer to the first question of our research, “what is the level of the teachers’ critical thinking skills?” the standard deviations and the mean scores of the teachers’ critical thinking skill levels are shown in table 3. table 3. the standard deviations and the mean scores of the teachers’ critical thinking skill levels subcategories n x ss truth-seeking 700 35.81 4.91 open-mindedness 31.05 4.42 analyticity 29.72 4.43 systematicity 30.57 4.93 inquisitiveness 30.45 5.20 ct self-confidence 29.54 6.27 maturity of judgment 30.85 5.68 total 217.99 22.28 research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 polat, s. (2020). multidimensional analysis of the teaching process of the critical thinking skills research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 141 table 3 shows that the mean scores of the subcategory of truth-seeking are 38.81, the subcategory of open-mindedness is 31.05, the subcategory of analyticity is 29.72, the subcategory of systematicity is 30.57, the subcategory of inquisitiveness is 30.45, the subcategory of ct self-confidence is 29.54, the subcategory of maturity of judgment is 38.85, and the total scores of the california critical thinking disposition inventory are 217.99. as a result, it can be suggested that teachers’ critical thinking skills are described as medium level both in subcategories and the total scores. research question 2 the results of the california critical thinking disposition inventory are compared and contrasted according to the teachers’ subjects, genders, and experience to answer the second question of the research, “do the teachers’ critical thinking skill levels change by subject, gender, and experience?” t-tests were carried out based on the result of teachers’ california critical thinking disposition inventory by their genders. the result of this t-test is shown in table 4. table 4: teachers critical thinking disposition inventory t-test results by their genders subcategories gender n x ss t truth-seeking male 377 35.95 4.86 .81 female 323 35.64 4.97 open-mindedness male 377 31.38 4.39 2.12* female 323 30.67 4.42 analyticity male 377 29.96 4.45 1.52 female 323 29.45 4.41 sistematicity male 377 30.88 4.77 1.81 female 323 30.20 5.09 inquisitiveness male 377 30.97 5.01 2.88** female 323 29.84 5.35 ct self-confidence male 377 29.74 6.24 .90 female 323 29.31 6.30 maturity of judgment male 377 31.98 5.75 5.82** female 323 29.54 5.31 total male 377 220.85 22.24 3.70** female 323 214.65 21.90 * p<0.05; ** p<0.01 based on the analysis of table 4, the teachers’ critical thinking skill levels show the difference in the subcategories by gender variable. according to these results, male teachers’ ınquisitiveness (= 30.97; p<.01) and open-mindedness (= 31.88; p<.05) scores are significantly higher than those of the female teachers. similarly, male teachers’ mean scores (= 220.85; p<.01) are significantly higher than the female teachers’ mean scores. no significant difference was observed in other subcategories. a one-way anova variance analysis was done to determine if the subjects of the teachers have an effect on their critical thinking skill levels. additionally, the tukey hsd test was done to find out which group’s mean score causes the difference. all results are presented in table 5. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 polat, s. (2020). multidimensional analysis of the teaching process of the critical thinking skills research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 142 table 5. the results of mean, standard deviation, and anova scores regarding teachers’ critical thinking skill levels by their subject subcategories variance source kt sd ko f tukey truth-seeking between-group 26.12 4 6.53 .27 within group 16831.73 695 24.22 open-mindedness between-group 136.26 4 34.07 1.75 within group 13507.20 695 19.43 analyticity between-group 197.36 4 49.34 2.53 1-2 1-5 within group 13541.64 695 19.48 sistematicity between-group 451.37 4 112.84 4.75** 1-2 1-5 within group 16522.54 695 23.77 inquisitiveness between-group 177.13 4 44.28 1.64 within group 18723.91 695 26.94 ct self-confidence between-group 368.93 4 92.23 2.37* 1-2 1-5 within group 27095.10 695 38.99 maturity of judgment between-group 281.69 4 70.42 2.20 within group 22251.44 695 32.02 total between-group 5631.38 4 1407.84 2.87* 1-2 1-5 within group 341497.82 695 491.36 * p<0.05; ** p<0.01 when table 5 is analyzed, significant differences are observed in the analyticity (f (2.53); p<.05), sistematicity (f(4.75); p<.01), and ct self-confidence (f(2.3); p = .05) dimensions. therefore, the total score of teachers’ critical thinking skill levels differs (f (2.87); p<.05). when the results of the tukey hsd test are analyzed, it is observed that the turkish teachers’ mean scores regarding analyticity, systematicity, ct self-confidence, and total score are significantly higher than the mathematic teachers’ mean scores. a one-way anova test was used to determine if there is a significant change in teachers’ critical thinking skill levels in terms of experience. the result of this test is presented in table 6. table 6. the results of mean, standard deviation, and anova test regarding teachers’ critical thinking skill levels by their experience. subcategories variance source kt sd ko f truth-seeking between-group 34.20 3 11.40 .47 within group 16823.66 696 24.17 open-mindedness between-group 50.95 3 16.98 .87 within group 13592.50 696 19.53 analyticity between-group 4.89 3 1.63 .08 within group 13734.11 696 19.73 sistematicity between-group 83.36 3 27.79 1.14 within group 16890.56 696 24.27 inquisitiveness between-group 17.23 3 5.74 .21 within group 18883.82 696 27.13 ct self-confidence between-group 76.12 3 25.37 .64 within group 27387.90 696 39.35 maturity of judgment between-group 191.43 3 63.81 1.99 within group 22341.71 696 32.10 research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 polat, s. (2020). multidimensional analysis of the teaching process of the critical thinking skills research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 143 total between-group 1167.17 3 389.06 .78 within group 345962.02 696 497.07 according to the experience variable, the subcategory scores of teachers’ critical thinking skill levels are as follows: truth-seeking is 36.10, open-mindedness is 31.49, ct self-confidence is 30.09, and maturity of judgment is 31.38. the highest mean score of subcategories is observed in the teachers who have 11-15 years of experience in teaching. the lowest mean score of subcategories is as follows: truth-seeking is 35.32, sistematicity is 30.05, ınquisitiveness is 30.18, and maturity of judgment is 30.26. the lowest mean score of subcategories is observed in the teachers who have 16 or more years of experience. in the total score, the highest mean score is 220.25 for 11-15 years of experience, and the lowest mean score is 216.55 for teachers with 16+ years experience. therefore, it can be indicated that there is no significant difference in the total score of the critical thinking skills level by teachers’ experience variable. research question 3 the third question of this research is: “how do the teachers conceptualize critical thinking?” to answer this question, interviews were conducted. in these interviews, some questions were addressed to the teachers to learn more about their critical thinking classroom practices, precourse preparations, their suggestions about the guidebooks, and teaching critical thinking. the results are presented in the following subheadings. teachers’ opinions about conceptualizing critical thinking. the first question was about how they conceptualize critical thinking. the teachers’ opinions about conceptualizing critical thinking were coded, as shown in figure 1. figure 1. the model formed by the teachers’ opinions about conceptualizing critical thinking research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 polat, s. (2020). multidimensional analysis of the teaching process of the critical thinking skills research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 144 figure 1 shows that teachers mostly expressed their ideas about the concept of “developing different perspectives,” and they rarely mentioned the concept of “inquisitiveness.” the following are the expressions of teachers supporting this finding: “critical thinking is not looking at the events unidirectionally or accepting the events without questioning. critical thinking is being curious and evaluating the events according to the personal perspective and inner world.” (n. küçük) “critical thinking might be making an effort to see things not only from his perspective but also to see them from society’s perspective to make life more livable.” (i̇. ersoy) teachers’ opinions about their preferences on teaching critical thinking. the second question was about teaching critical thinking. this question aims to determine the teachers’ classroom practices about critical thinking. these practices are presented in figure 2. figure 2. the teachers’ approaches to critical thinking classroom practices figure 2 shows that the teachers mostly preferred the “asking and answering the questions” method, and they occasionally preferred the “cause and effect,” “activating the pre-learning,” and “group works” methods to teach critical thinking. the following are statements that reflect teachers’ opinions on the subject of teaching critical thinking: “i have a niggling personality. and this characteristic turns into an advantage for me during the lessons. i ask questions to make the students think in depth. i ask questions to make them think from a different perspective or to let them find the keywords of the topics.” (g. kara) teachers’ opinions about pre-course preparations. the third question was about teachers’ opinions about the pre-course preparations and guidebooks. the figure showing the coding of teachers’ opinions about pre-course preparations is presented in figure 3. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 polat, s. (2020). multidimensional analysis of the teaching process of the critical thinking skills research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 145 figure 3. teachers’ opinions about pre-course preparations figure 3 shows that the teachers mostly preferred “using interactive materials,” and they occasionally preferred “using the secondary sources” and “analyzing the guidebooks” for precourse preparation. however, they do not study guide books enough. teachers’ opinions supporting these findings are as follows: “for the pre-course preparation, technology has the biggest portion and priority. i mean, you need to prepare and order the videos and flash programs about the topic that you are going to discuss before your lesson.” (ö. yeşiltaş) in the context of the third question, teachers’ opinions about using guidebooks were analyzed. the coding of the teachers’ opinions about guidebooks is presented in figure 4. figure 4. teachers’ opinions about guidebooks figure 4 shows that teachers mostly preferred “guiding the teacher” and occasionally “limiting the teachers.” the teachers’ statements supporting these findings are as follows: “i think these guidebooks are like plays and makes the teacher the lead role of the play. the reason is that the pattern is drawn, and all you have to do is follow the pattern. and of course, as a teacher, you can put your ideas into this pattern.” (e. tanç) research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 polat, s. (2020). multidimensional analysis of the teaching process of the critical thinking skills research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 146 teachers’ suggestions about teaching critical thinking. the fourth question was about teachers’ suggestions about teaching critical thinking. in figure 5, the coding formed by teachers’ suggestions about teaching critical thinking is presented. figure 5. the teachers’ suggestions about teaching critical teaching figure 5 shows that “giving self-confidence” is the most recommended suggestion, and “curriculum alleviation” is the least recommended suggestion. according to teachers’ opinions, it can be said that to make the students think critically, they need to have full self-confidence. the teachers’ statements supporting these findings are presented below: “…as teachers, we need to believe our students' opinions and their expression during the lesson. if we praise their opinions next lesson, they are going to come up with a new idea.” (a. atal) research question 4 the fourth question of the research is: “what are the classroom applications or activities about critical thinking?” to answer this question, the teacher observation form (tof) was used to collect the necessary data. the frequency and the percentage distribution values of each item of the tof is presented in table 7. table 7. the percentage and the frequency values of the items of tof items observed not observed total % f % f % f 1. questioning what students know about the subject (prelearning) 91 29 9 3 100 32 2. mentioning the aim of the topic and its sub-objectives and its problems 22 7 78 25 100 32 3. explaining the main concepts of the topic 69 22 31 10 100 32 4. avoiding authoritarian and repressive behaviors and adopting a tolerant approach 100 32 0 0 100 32 5. asking students about the main concepts and enabling them to comment 88 28 13 4 100 32 research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 polat, s. (2020). multidimensional analysis of the teaching process of the critical thinking skills research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 147 table 7 shows that “avoiding authoritarian and repressive behaviors and adopting a tolerant approach” and “encouraging students to ask questions or to participate in the discussion about the topic” are observed throughout the lessons. at the same time, “asking students to make a diagram graphic or concept map about the topic by helping each other” and “questioning the reliability of the resources (teacher visual aids, books, etc.)” are observed in only six percent of the lessons. according to these results, it can be said that teachers are very tolerant and keep the students consistently active during the lesson. 6. asking students for reasons and evidence of answers given 53 17 47 15 100 32 7. asking students to comment on their friends’ different answers (whether they agree with their friends’ answers or have another hypothesis to disprove their answers) 19 6 81 26 100 32 8. asking students to express the concept in detail 56 18 44 14 100 32 9. encouraging students to ask questions or to participate in the discussion about the topic 100 32 0 0 100 32 10. letting students find an answer to their friends’ questions 31 10 69 22 100 32 11. asking students to find other solutions or answers to the questions 63 20 38 12 100 32 12. making students think about events based on real life or hypothesis 19 6 81 26 100 32 13. giving striking examples of the topic 66 21 34 11 100 32 14. asking students to give an everyday example of the topic 63 20 38 12 100 32 15. asking students to express their opinions on given examples 53 17 47 15 100 32 16. encouraging students to compare and evaluate the different ideas 31 10 69 22 100 32 17. ensuring students to establish cause-and-effect relationship 59 19 41 13 100 32 18. allowing students an opportunity to explain their opinions in detail 81 26 19 6 100 32 19. summarizing the topic to revive in the minds of students 94 30 6 2 100 32 20. valuing and praising students 81 26 19 6 100 32 21. using the visual aids related to the topic 78 25 22 7 100 32 22. asking students to tell the liked and disliked aspects of the visual aids 13 4 88 28 100 32 23. asking students to make a diagram graphic or concept map about the topic by helping each other 6 2 94 30 100 32 24. transferring most of the evaluations and determinations to the board regularly and briefly 88 28 13 4 100 32 25. making students question whether the aim given at the beginning of the subject has been achieved 47 15 53 17 100 32 26. asking students if they have another point of view to the topic to achieve the aim given at the beginning of the class 16 5 84 27 100 32 27. letting students question if they can use this information in their daily lives 31 10 69 22 100 32 28. questioning the reliability of the resources (teacher visual aids, books, etc.) 6 2 94 30 100 32 research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 polat, s. (2020). multidimensional analysis of the teaching process of the critical thinking skills research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 148 research question 5 the fifth question of the research is: “how much space is given to what items on the critical thinking skills in the curriculum?” to answer this question, the document review form was used to collect the data based on the ministry of national education’s definition of critical thinking. in this case, the researcher conducted an analysis of the guidebooks. the findings’ frequency distribution is presented in table 8. table 8. the number of critical thinking activities in 1st to 8th grades teacher guidebooks subjects grade number of activities total life science 1st grade 4 35 2nd grade 14 3rd grade 17 turkish 1st grade 12 306 2nd grade 29 3rd grade 40 4th grade 52 5th grade 30 6th grade 39 7th grade 52 8th grade 52 science and technology 4th grade 22 129 5th grade 17 6th grade 35 7th grade 27 8th grade 28 social science 4th grade 19 98 5th grade 9 6th grade 12 7th grade 26 8th grade 32 mathematics 1st grade 30 264 2nd grade 15 3rd grade 42 4th grade 40 5th grade 40 6th grade 39 7th grade 33 8th grade 25 table 8 shows that the number of critical thinking activities in social studies guidebooks is 35. there is an increase in the activities from 1st to 3rd grades. the number of critical thinking activities in turkish guidebooks is 306, and in mathematics guidebooks, it is 264 from 1st to 8th grades. the number of critical thinking activities in science and technology guidebooks is 129, and in social science books, it is 98 from 4th to 8th grades. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 polat, s. (2020). multidimensional analysis of the teaching process of the critical thinking skills research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 149 discussion and conclusion the first question of the research is: “what is the level of the teachers’ critical thinking skills?” to answer this question, the teachers’ scores of the california critical thinking disposition inventory (ccdti) and teachers’ standard deviation values were compared. as a result, it was observed that teachers’ scores for each of the ccdti‘s subcategories are not higher than 40 and not lower than 29. therefore, it can be suggested that teachers’ critical thinking skill levels are at a medium level. when the findings obtained by answering the fifth question of the study were examined, it was observed that the teachers applied 19 of the 28 items in the observation form above 50 percent and the remaining nine items below 50 percent. according to this finding, it can be said that the teachers also have a medium level of critical thinking teaching activities. there are studies in the literature that reveal different results regarding the critical thinking skill levels of the participants. for instance, in the studies of baydar (2012), saçlı and demirhan (2011), and şen (2009), it was observed that the participants’ critical thinking skills were moderate. the second question of the research is: “do the teachers’ critical thinking skill levels change by subject, gender, and experience?” when the teachers’ scores of ccdti subcategories are analyzed, it is observed that the male teachers’ mean score is significantly higher than the female teachers in the subcategories of open-mindedness, ınquisitiveness, and maturity of judgment. consequently, the male teachers’ mean of the total score is significantly higher than the female teachers’ mean of the total score. according to this result, it can be indicated that male teachers’ critical thinking skill levels are more positive than the female teachers’ critical thinking skill levels. on the other dimensions, the significant difference regarding the gender variable is not observed. this finding is also supported by the research of caldwell (2012) and emir (2013). based on their findings, the teachers’ critical thinking skill levels are different in other studies in the literature. when the teachers’ critical skill levels are analyzed based on the teachers’ subjects, turkish language teachers’ mean score of the subcategories of systematicity, analyticity, inquisitiveness, ct self-confidence, and maturity of judgment is the highest. mathematics teachers get the lowest mean score in the subcategories of truth-seeking, analyticity, systematicity, and maturity of judgment. in terms of the total score, turkish language teachers get the highest, and the primary school teachers get the lowest score. any significant difference is not observed in the analysis of the test, which is made to test if there is a meaningful difference. therefore, turkish teachers’ critical thinking skills level is significantly high. the reason for this high score might be the turkish teachers’ effort on students to do analysis synthesis through turkish texts. nosich (2013) defines the importance of analysis synthesis in critical thinking. on the other hand, wood (2002) keeps the analysissynthesis equivalent to critical thinking. when the results of other research about critical thinking (holley & boyle, 2012; mccrae, 2011) are analyzed, the participants’ mean score is high based on their subjects. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 polat, s. (2020). multidimensional analysis of the teaching process of the critical thinking skills research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 150 as a result of the analysis of the teachers’ critical thinking skill levels based on their experience, teachers who have 15 years of experience get the highest mean score in the subcategories of truth-seeking, open-mindedness, ct self-confidence, and maturity of judgment. teachers who have 16 or more years of experience get the lowest mean of the total score. when we look at the total score, teachers with 11-15 years of experience get the highest, and the 16 years and over teachers get the lowest scores. according to the results of the analysis of tests, which are made to understand if the difference is significant, the difference in the experience variable is not significant. therefore, experience difference does not affect the teachers’ critical thinking skill levels. however, the fact that teachers with 16 or more years of experience got the lowest point in total score shows that teachers cannot improve or they disregard the importance of critical thinking skills over the years. on the other side, there are some studies (caldwell, 2012; korkmaz, 2009) that show that experience does not affect critical thinking skills. the third question of the research is: “how do the teachers conceptualize critical thinking?” it was observed that the teachers defined critical thinking under these codes: independent thinking, criticism, looking from different perspectives, interrogating, interpreting, building logic, making inferences, learning to think, evaluating, and inquisitiveness. it was also seen that the participants defined critical thinking mostly with these characteristics: looking at the events from different perspectives, criticism, and independent thinking. teacher participants’ definitions of critical thinking are familiar with the definitions in the literature. the critical thinking definitions in the literature are under these codes: analysis synthesis, building logic, judging, evaluating, and independent thinking (başoğlu & mutlu, 2012; nosich, 2013). in the research conducted by yeşilpınar (2011), which conceptualizes the critical thinking of primary school teachers and prospective teachers, critical thinking is defined mostly under these codes: interrogation, interpreting the information, intellectualizing, and looking from different perspectives and opinions. these results support the findings of this study. however, the study found that teachers never addressed concepts considered important in critical thinking such as problem-solving, adjourning judgment, and intellectual skepticism. some participants expressed “critical thinking” differently from the definitions in the literature. accordingly, the participants expressed “critical thinking” in the form of stating the negative aspects of a situation and being treated with leniency while stating these aspects. this can be cited as proof that teachers have not fully assimilated the concept of critical thinking. in order to describe how teachers conceptualize critical thinking, teachers’ in-class practices for teaching critical thinking were also studied. according to the findings, the approaches preferred by teachers toward the learning and teaching process related to critical thinking skills are limited to four themes: methods and techniques, real-life relevance, classroom environment, and pre-learning. when we consider method and techniques, it is observed that the participants prefer these approaches: six thinking hats, discussing method, cause-and-effect relation, brainstorming, wh questions, question and answer method, and group work. when the literature (fung & howe, 2012; hove, 2011) was analyzed, the adopted approaches in teaching critical thinking were wh questions, discussing, questioning, brainstorming, associating with daily life, six thinking hats, and group work. therefore, it can be said that some of the teachers’ preferences are consistent research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 polat, s. (2020). multidimensional analysis of the teaching process of the critical thinking skills research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 151 with the literature. it was determined that the most preferred approach of teachers in teaching critical thinking skills was the “question-answer” method. this can be explained by the fact that this method is easy, economical, and customary. in the literature (semerci, 2010; yeşilpınar, 2011), it is stated that teachers’ most preferred approach toward critical thinking teaching in the classroom is the question-answer method. in this research, it is observed that the teachers in all subjects preferred the item of “encouraging students to ask and answer and discussing the topic.” it is observed that all these obtained findings support each other. the least preferred items are “cause-and-effect relation,” “activating the pre-learning,” and “group work.” it is thought-provoking that teachers move to a new subject without questioning pre-learning. in the “closeness to real life” theme, the participants preferred these approaches: “making the students discover,” “develop empathy,” and “associating with daily life.” it was determined that the participants were more likely to associate teaching critical thinking with “associating with daily life.” thus, topics become more permanent when they are associated with daily life (göçmençelebi & özkan, 2009). paul and elder (2006) stated the teachers’ mission on teaching critical thinking as follows: “given examples of how the subject is applied to daily life, students will understand that what is acquired are tools for improving the quality of life of education.” this finding of the research is consistent with the other studies’ results (cosgrove, 2013; hove, 2011). in the observations of this research, it was seen that “asking the students to give daily life examples about the topic” is applied by more than half of the teachers. therefore, it can be said that the teachers associate critical thinking with daily life. in the classroom environment theme, the participants’ opinions about critical thinking are coded as “creating a free environment” and “ensuring a sense of self-confidence.” it is observed that teachers’ opinions are concentrated more on the “creating a free environment” theme. this case makes the topic more understandable. therefore, it can be said that teachers’ opinions incline in this direction. as the literature suggests (aktaş, 2013; facione, 1990), the points “removing obstacles,” “providing a free environment,” and “ensuring a sense of selfconfidence” are regarded as important elements. teachers’ pre-lesson preparations were analyzed to describe their process of conceptualizing critical thinking. according to the findings of the analysis, the teachers follow these preparations: using interactive materials, analyzing the guidebooks, using visual aids, analyzing the output, using the secondary resources, and following the agenda. it is observed that the teachers mostly preferred the “using interactive materials” theme, and the least preferred is the theme of “analyzing the guidebooks.” it is observed that all the teachers in the observation have technological facilities in their classrooms; therefore, it can be said that they mentioned “using the technological materials” theme frequently. the reason for asking this question is to find out whether teachers have a preparation process before they deliver their lessons. for this reason, it is assumed that following the agenda, using visual aids, and analyzing the guidebooks will contribute the teaching critical thinking skills. it is also observed that “using visual aids related to the topic” has a score of 78 percent in the research observations. altınçelik (2009) stated that referring to visual aids widely during the understanding process of a complicated topic provides great advantages. these findings support this research’s results. another point research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 polat, s. (2020). multidimensional analysis of the teaching process of the critical thinking skills research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 152 to note here is the limited level of the teachers’ guidebook usage. it can be said that a teacher who does not analyze guidebooks cannot be aware of which learning objective should be adopted in the topic. when we analyze the related literature results (adıgüzel, 2010; yeşilpınar, 2011), it is observed that they do not support the research’s finding. for example, adıgüzel (2010) states that the guidebooks and lesson books are always analyzed by the teachers. studies by cosgrove (2013) and nosich (2013) pointed out that previous negative experiences, showing no renewal efforts, and the belief of having more knowledge than delivered knowledge are the biggest obstacles in teaching critical thinking. these explanations support this research’s findings. thus, the teachers’ answer “…since we have the experience of teaching, we do not concentrate on the preparation process of the lesson as we used to do before” for the third question of this research should be considered. the teachers’ opinions about guidebooks were analyzed to determine teachers’ conceptualizing critical thinking. these opinions about guidebooks are expressed as in these statements: “they need to be improved,” “they are limiting the teachers,” “they are guiding the teachers.” the theme of “they are guiding the teachers” stood out while the theme of “they are limiting the teachers” was expressed least among the opinions. this finding of the research shows a similarity with some other research findings (ayvacı & çoruhlu, 2011; bulut, 2013). for example, ayvacı and çoruhlu (2011) concluded that teachers like the activities in teachers’ guidebooks. teachers who do not analyze the guidebooks but find them useful are interesting. the expressed opinions conflict with one another. the reason for this is the insufficient analysis of guidebooks caused by the usage of interactive materials. teachers’ suggestions on teaching critical thinking skills were also analyzed to determine how the teachers conceptualize critical thinking. the teachers reported these ideas: giving selfconfidence, guidance, curriculum alleviation, preparing the evaluation tools on critical thinking, and enriching the resources. the theme of “giving self-confidence” stood out most, and the theme of “curriculum alleviation” was expressed least among the suggestions. these results coincide with other research results (semerci & yelken, 2010; yeşilpınar, 2011). when we analyze the literature (hove, 2011; nosich, 2013), it is pointed out that it is essential to give self-confidence and guidance to the students to teach them critical thinking. the participants presented the same opinion, “giving self-confidence to the students,” in the classroom environment theme. in the research, the items of “adopting a tolerant environment and avoiding authoritarian and oppressive environment” and “encouraging the students to participate in discussions and to question” were observed in all subjects. these findings are consistent with each other. the fourth question of the research is: “what are the classroom applications or activities about critical thinking?” to answer this question, the teacher observation form was used. the items of “adopting a tolerant environment and avoiding authoritarian and oppressive environment” and “encouraging the students to participate in discussions and to question” are observed in all subjects. also, the items of “mentioning the topic’s main and sub-ideas and also its problems,” “making the students think about event results based on reality and theory,” “encouraging the students to compare and to evaluate the different ideas,” and “interrogating research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 2, 2020 polat, s. (2020). multidimensional analysis of the teaching process of the critical thinking skills research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 153 the reliability of the resources (teacher, visual aids, books, etc.)” are observed not more than 85 percent. when we analyze the observation form as a whole, it is seen that 19 of 28 items were applied more than 50 percent, but the other nine items are not applied more than 50 percent. according to this result, it can be said that teachers included teaching critical thinking in their lessons. the fifth question of our research is: “how much space is given to what items on the critical thinking skills in the curriculum?” to answer this question, turkish language, mathematics, science and technologies, social studies, and life science curricula and guidebooks were analyzed. according to the findings of this analysis, it can be indicated that there are many activities and exercises about critical thinking in the curriculum. there are some previous studies about how much space is given to critical thinking in the curriculum (aktaş, 2013; başoğlu & mutlu, 2012). when the research results are analyzed, it is observed that the curriculum’s objectives are suitable to teach critical thinking skills. the results of the study can be summarized in five items. the first is that the critical thinking skills of teachers are moderate. second, critical thinking skill levels of male teachers are significantly higher than female teachers in open-mindedness, inquisitiveness, maturity dimensions, and in the total score. according to the subject variable, critical thinking skill levels of turkish teachers are significantly higher than math and primary school teachers in analyticity, systematicity, self-confidence dimensions, and in the total score. critical thinking skill levels are not significantly different according to the experience variable. third, it was concluded that teachers define critical thinking terms considerably by the theoretic literature and that the approaches they prefer about the instruction of critical thinking skills are substantially matched with the approaches expressed in the literature. it was also determined that teachers prefer to benefit from contemporary topics, interactive materials, guidebooks, visual materials, secondary sources, and objectives for pre-course preparation. next, teachers included teaching critical thinking in their courses to a great extent. consequently, curriculums’ and teachers’ guidebooks consist of activities for critical thinking skills in an intense way. references adıgüzel, a. 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(2013). ölçme kuramı ve güvenirlik katsayılar. retrieved august 11, 2013, from http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:lus_lyytzcwj:yunus.hacette pe.edu.tr/~yurdugul/3/indir/guvenirlik.pdf+&cd=2&hl=tr&ct=clnk&gl=de https://www.robinwood.com/democracy/generalessays/criticalthinking.pdf https://tez.yok.gov.tr/ulusaltezmerkezi/ http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:lus_lyytzcwj:yunus.hacettepe.edu.tr/~yurdugul/3/indir/guvenirlik.pdf+&cd=2&hl=tr&ct=clnk&gl=de http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:lus_lyytzcwj:yunus.hacettepe.edu.tr/~yurdugul/3/indir/guvenirlik.pdf+&cd=2&hl=tr&ct=clnk&gl=de research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 dube, b. & ndaba, x.p. educating progressed learners in times of covid-19: how can bricolage help? research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 22 educating progressed learners in times of covid-19: how can bricolage help? bekithemba dube*1 and xolisile p. ndaba1 *corresponding author: dubeb@ufs.ac.za 1. university of the free state, qwaqwa, south africa received : 2021-06-06 revised : 2021-08-02 accepted : 2021-08-25 how to cite this paper: dube, b. & ndaba, x.p. (2021). educating progressed learners in times of covid-19: how can bricolage help? research in social sciences and technology, 6(2), 22-36. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.9 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). abstract this paper discusses using bricolage to mitigate the struggles faced by progressed learners in rural kwazulu-natal, south africa, in the context of the global covid-19 pandemic. most progressed learners perform poorly in many subjects, especially sciences. their struggle has stimulated the need to find ways to enhance their performance. reinvented artefacts and processes can be used for emancipation, and to transform agendas for improving the performance of progressed learners. to collect data, we used participatory action research, which uses a thematic approach to make meaning of data. we created a whatsapp group to enable focus group discussions for collecting data, to circumvent covid-19 restrictions. the group had 14 members, among whom teachers and learners from rural schools. the study found that the factors that contributed to poor performance were a lack of teaching and learning materials, too few teachers, less than optimal teaching methods and learners’ attitudes towards science subjects. the main argument of the article is that, in this time characterised by the covid-19 pandemic, embracing bricolage has the impetus to mitigate challenges relating to the education of progressed learners. thus, it is important to emancipate teachers, so that they can bricolise the environment for teaching and learning. keywords: bricolage, progressed learners, participatory action research, teaching approach, academic performance 10.46303/ressat.2021.9 mailto:dubeb@ufs.ac.za https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.9 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 dube, b. & ndaba, x.p. educating progressed learners in times of covid-19: how can bricolage help? research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 23 introduction the covid-19 pandemic brought uncertainty to many major facets of human life, including education. numerous measures were put in place by government authorities to limit the spread of the virus in schools, such as a staggered approach to attendance, social distancing, and the use of online teaching and learning (maphosa & dube, 2021). some researchers, such as mccorkle (2020), describe the covid-19 as chaotic, and as igniting fear in people and bringing about drastic changes and measures. many parents and teachers are concerned that these measures could exacerbate progressed learners’ poor achievement, as progressed learners perform better with face-to-face instruction, which provides them with more attention from their teachers, who can monitor their academic progress closely. the 2020 national senior certificate (nsc) diagnostic report (department of basic education, 2021a), reports a drastic decline in the performance of all south african grade 12 learners in science subjects. for instance, in life sciences, in 2019, 27,7% of learners failed to achieve 30% in life sciences, and this number increased to 29% in 2020; the number failing to achieve 40% increased from 51% in 2019 to 52.1% in 2020. in 2020, learners’ performance in life sciences declined sharply: in 2019, 75.5 had achieved at least 30%, while, in 2020, only 71% achieved at least 30%. in 2019, 51.7% of learners had succeeded at the 40% level, while only 42.4% had achieved 40% in 2020. the minister of education, angie motshekga, stated that: the class of 2020 sat for the national senior certificate (nsc) examinations in a year that the world was held to ransom by the covid-19 pandemic. when this cohort commenced with their exit year of the nsc, no one would have imagined the challenges that they faced (department of basic education, 2021b, p. 1). her statement applies, in particular, to progressed learners in rural areas. a study conducted in namibia found that national grade 12 academic performance in the namibian senior secondary certificate declined between 2019 and 2020, by 35% more in science subjects than in other subjects (shipepe et al., 2020). studies have been conducted on the struggles of both teachers and learners during the covid-19 pandemic. a study conducted by trust and whalen (2020) in the united states, on the lack of adequate preparation for online teaching and learning, found that teachers lacked preparation and support in using technology to design quality instruction during the transition to distance learning. these authors report that it was difficult for teachers to find suitable digital tools to support learning and communication with learners during the distance learning period. about 61% of teachers felt overwhelmed with all the online learning tools and resources available. another study, by kaden (2020) in rural alaska, investigated the wellbeing of students during lockdown. in her findings, kaden reports that rural students struggled to develop new learning skills during distance learning, and often struggled at home with social isolation and loneliness. hyseni duraku and hoxha (2020) explain that requests to shift traditional teaching to online formats has increased the levels of stress and anxiety of rural teachers, as they are not used to this method of teaching. another study, conducted by dube (2020, p. 4) argues that “it appears that online learning favours urban and well-privileged learners, thus, widening the gap between the poor and the rich, instead of uniting the nation in the fight against covid-19”. a study by bacher-hicks et al. (2021) supports dube’s assertion, by reporting that, at the beginning of the research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 dube, b. & ndaba, x.p. educating progressed learners in times of covid-19: how can bricolage help? research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 24 pandemic, the use of google searches increased at a greater rate in urban schools than in rural schools – this is a clear indication of the effort exerted by parents and learners in wealthier areas to substitute for lost in-person instruction. the implication is that the pandemic and the use of online teaching and learning has led to greater educational inequality. while the studies quoted above contribute to knowledge of the struggles faced by progressed learners, none have focused on the struggles of rural progressed learners under covid-19 circumstances in the uthukela district of kwazulu-natal. this study is, thus, unique, because it argues for using locally available knowledge to address the trajectories caused by these struggles. this approach is referred as bricolising the environment (more will be explained as the paper unfolds). thus, the aim of this paper is to discuss bricolage as an approach to mitigating the struggles faced by rural progressed learners, and to suggest ways bricolage can enhance the performance of progressed learners. the paper is arranged as follows: after a discussion of the theoretical framework, the methodology will be presented, and then the findings and a conclusion. theoretical framing: bricolage we used bricolage as a theoretical framework, as a possible way to enhance performance of progressed learners. bricolage as a concept was first considered by the french anthropologist claude lévi-strauss in 1967, as a part of his exploration of the nature of sense-making in society (vanevenhoven et al., 2011, p. 53). it is a theory that uses all available knowledge, whether of immediate interest or outdated, within or outside of people, to solve a given problem (louridas, 1999). we consider the theory to be relevant, because it advocates that people can construct something out of limited available resources or systems, to achieve new goals (aagard, 2009, p. 84). in relation to the struggles faced by progressed learners, bricolage is used to refer to the processes by which people acquire objects from across social divisions, to create new cultural identities (phillimore et al., 2016, p. 8). the bricolage theory allows the combining of resources, and the creation of systems for new purposes, which serve as the mechanism that drives the discovery of innovations in the form of new “services” from existing resources (duymedjian & ruling, 2010, p. 142). in addition to combining resources to address various challenges faced by progressed learners, bricolage facilitates the adaptive design process that is necessary to develop resilience and make solutions to problems more achievable through use of critical resources or social systems (vanevenhoven et al., 2011, p. 53). in short, bricolage is relevant for this study because it evokes resilience, which emerges from locally available resources, and offers an optimistic outlook (masten, 2001, p. 228) in the context of covid-19. the following section will explain the methodology of the paper, which is participatory action research (par). methodology the study is situated within the transformative paradigm; it used a qualitative study design and par. par is a research approach that evokes the “investigation of actual practices and not abstract practices and learning about the real, material, concrete, and particular practices of particular people in particular places” (kemmis & mctaggart, 2007, p. 277). we consider this approach relevant for the study, since its “overriding motivations of activist ‘research’ are to develop practice aimed at social transformation rather than to use a set of tools aimed at the ‘production of knowledge’ and the ‘solving’ of ‘local’ problems” (chatterton et al., 2007, p. 220). research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 dube, b. & ndaba, x.p. educating progressed learners in times of covid-19: how can bricolage help? research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 25 “the research methodology identifies the rights of those concerned by the research, and empowering people to set their own schemas for research and development, thereby giving them tenure over the process” (cornwall & jewkes, 1995, p. 1674). with reference to the struggles faced by progressed learners, par “opens doors for the marginalised people [the progressed learners] to criticise, problematize, and claim their condition, which will eventually enable them to overcome” (glassman & erdem, 2014, p. 213). to address the trajectories faced by progressed learners, research should be conducted into “aspects of popular education, community-oriented research, and action for social change to promote marginalized communities, where the quest is to unearth the causes of social inequality and consequently the solution to alleviate the identified problems” (williams & brydon-miller, 2004, p. 245). in short, par as a research approach is an “action and development of knowledge. it has the potential to address research and wider issues of social justice, inclusion and empowerment of minority and often marginalised communities” (eruera, 2010, p. 1). in light of the foregoing, par enabled us to create a whatsapp groups with participants affected by poor performance, covid-19 and the progression policy in rural schools. assembling such a team is aimed was finding the best solutions emanating from the people experiencing the problem. this approach is important for teasing relevant solutions that address the lived realities of progressed learners and teachers. to implement par and gather data for this research, we created a whatsapp group to collect qualitative data, as this would help us to circumvent covid-19 restrictions. the research took place in uthukela district, 14 participants, both learners and educators, were purposively selected. eight learners included three boys and four girls aged between 16 and 18, years doing grades 11 and 12 respectively. there were seven life sciences teachers – four women and three men. the selected participants were considered relevant for the study, since they encountered progression learning every day, as either teachers or learners. data was gathered over a period of a month through whatsapp focus discussions, which were necessitated by covid regulations. in fact, the whatsapp focus group discussion became the instrument that was used to collect data. the research participants answered two questions: what are the challenges faced by progressed learners in covid-19 contexts, and how can bricolage mitigate these challenges? the study adhered to ethical principles, such as requiring participants to sign consent forms, indicating that they had the right to withdraw from the research, and using pseudonyms to protect the identities of the participants. the data was analysed through the lens provided by laws et al. (2003, p. 395), which involves the following steps: step 1: read and reread the collected data. step 2: draw up a preliminary list of themes arising from the data. step 3: reread the data, to check if the themes that had been identified corresponded with what the participants had said, and with the research questions. step 4: link the themes to quotations, scholarly views and notes. step 5: peruse the categories of themes to interpret them. during interpretation of the data, remain cognisant of the research questions. step 6: design a tool to help discern patterns in the data. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 dube, b. & ndaba, x.p. educating progressed learners in times of covid-19: how can bricolage help? research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 26 step 7: interpret the data and derive meaning: this step mainly involves highlighting the research findings and arranging material according to categories that are premised on or guided by the research questions. the data was returned to the participants for member checking; the participants agreed with the authors that the themes subjected to analysis reflected their ideas on the teaching and learning of progressed learners. the themes that emerged became subheadings in response to the research questions. we considered this as an important step towards ensuring the validity of results. the following section will discuss the findings that responded to the research questions. pseudonyms are used to protect the identities of the participants. results and discussion in the first section, we will present and discuss findings that respond to the first research question, which is, what are the struggles of rural progressed learners and teachers in the context of covid-19? the data will be arranged according to the themes identified. participants’ responses to this question revealed the background challenges faced by progressed learners in the context of covid-19. this information exposed the need to bricolise the environment, in order to address the ambivalence of learning. shortage of technological devices for online learning the first struggle raised by the participants relates to technological challenges. they indicated that many rural schools lack the financial means to purchase any form of technology, thereby affecting progressed learners. covid-19 has reminded us that online learning is the way of the future, and its success depends on the availability of technological devices. during the discussion, msizi, a learner, said: i have never touched or own any form of technology devices, only my eldest brother has a cell phone at home and he’s always away because of signal problem. he has borrowed me to use for these discussions. nsika, a teacher, added: rural learners may belong to the digital generation, but that doesn’t always guarantee them to the full exposure of digital technology and thus make it impossible for learners to participate in online lessons and download course material to help them learn to improve their performances. ndleleni, a teacher, indicated that: the government do not consider us, he acts as if we don’t exist. we are not neither against the covid-19 restrictions and regulations nor online learning but how can we cater for online teaching and learning while our learner doesn’t even have textbooks and study guides at our schools. considering the points raised by participants, the availability of technological devices is a paramount struggle for rural schools in uthukela. the findings confirm a challenge facing online teaching and learning during the covid-19 crisis. for example, a study conducted by van lancker and parolin (2020) reveals that, in rural areas, where electricity is unavailable, teachers https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11159-020-09860-z#ref-cr44 research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 dube, b. & ndaba, x.p. educating progressed learners in times of covid-19: how can bricolage help? research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 27 struggle to contact learners, mainly because of the absence of an internet connection, adequate availability of devices, and inability to afford expensive internet data to engage in distance learning. the combination of technological challenges and the lack of electricity in rural areas makes it difficult for progressed learners to improve their academic performance and for teachers to pay attention and attend to these learners’ special needs (parker et al., 2020). thus, pursuing the transition to the fourth industrial revolution without the basic requirements being in place will leave disadvantaged learners even further behind (black, 2020). it is the context of the shortage of technological devices, which prevents effective teaching in rural schools, that necessitates the need to think in bricolage terms, as a way to redress the situation and afford progressed learners the opportunity to learn in the context of a crisis, such as presented by the covid-19 pandemic. lack of parental involvement the next struggle faced by learners is a lack of parental involvement in teaching and learning. the covid-19 pandemic has reconfigured our way of life, has incapacitated teacher-parent engagement, and forced all participants to adjust to new ways of teaching and learning. the situation is exacerbated by variables such as uncertainty about real online learning, the way learning takes place while students are at home, the role of parents, and whether they are quipped to assist with teaching and learning. unless these questions they are subjected to various facets of thinking, could result in parents being perceived as incompetent and unwilling to assist in teaching and learning. however, it can be argued that parents are the most valuable resources for mitigating trajectories of learning in the context of covid-19. despite the foregoing argument, participants held the view that progressed learners lack support from their parents. during the whatsapp discussion, shaka, a learner, indicated that: during the national lockdown, i have never had an opportunity to do my school work because of the additional household responsibilities, i feel there is no support from my parents. mpilo, a learner, added: my parents lost their jobs because of covid-19 and national lockdown and since then the home environment is so chaotic and it’s directly affecting my learning and because of trying to make ends meet, they fail to assist with school work. nkanyezi, a teacher, said: many rural progressed learners find attending school to be irrelevant to their lives and as they don’t receive enough support from their parents. the findings speak of a dynamic of ambivalence that progressed learners face in a quest to achieve learning in the time of covid-19. however, it is also clear that the failure by parents to be involved is not always by design; in some cases, the circumstances facing parents, such as unemployment, stress and health challenges, incapacitate them and prevent them from actively assisting learners. furthermore, the inability of parents to assist may be exacerbated by ignorance relating to the use of technology. thus, we concur with the observation by du plessis (2014, p. 1115), that: research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 dube, b. & ndaba, x.p. educating progressed learners in times of covid-19: how can bricolage help? research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 28 if parents are not educated themselves, they will have less ability to provide educational support for their children. homes in rural areas are often ill-equipped to meet the educational needs of children and often lack facilities like electricity. children have less parental encouragement to go to school. when learners attend school, they find the curriculum less relevant and attractive to their lives, and learners may receive less support for their learning from home. parental involvement in education has always been a thorny issue, especially in disadvantaged communities, such as rural areas. judging from the comments of the participants, it is, furthermore, clear that there is a strong correlation between a learner’s performance in the learning process and parental background in terms of social class and ethnicity (mora & escardíbul, 2018). in support of the foregoing, burgess and sievertsen (2020) claim that school lockdown is likely to reveal differences in parental involvement and family reactions to the learning opportunities for learners from different types of social background. findings by greenlee (2020) reveal that parental education impacts the frequency of children's involvement in academic activities. in essence, participants in this study reported that lack of parental involvement is a trajectory facing rural learners due to a variety of reasons, as stated in this paragraph. inequality and disparity between schools covid-19 has revealed a divide between rural and town schools. while we are cognisant that the study took place in rural schools, it is important to raise the issue of differential resource allocation for rural and city schools. covid-19 has shown that governments have not invested enough resources in rural areas, thereby undermining equity and equality of educational provision in post-apartheid south africa. during the discussion, phila, a rural learner, said: during a national lock down, i struggled to keep on track with the curriculum. at school we don’t have enough textbooks and study guides, we share everything. my parents can’t afford to build a proper house and how can i expect them to buy me textbooks and let alone a cell phone. jomo, a teacher, indicated that: when the department of basic education announced about the online education programmes that will be also taking place on radio stations and television to ensure education continuity, it was like i’m hearing a greek word that i have never heard before because they know exactly that in rural areas there is poor signal to access radio station and some learners don’t have even that radio or television at their homes. linda, an urban teacher, said: before the lock down instigate, we were called for an urgent workshop where we were trained about the software to use, design of activities that can happen within the digital medium and track our learners’ progress during the lock down. amahle, an urban learner, said: research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 dube, b. & ndaba, x.p. educating progressed learners in times of covid-19: how can bricolage help? research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 29 at school, i reported that, i usually use my parent’s laptop for school work when i’m at home and since they will also be working from home during lock down, i won’t be able to use it so, the school gave us tablets to use and we were all trained how to do activities online. the essence of the participants’ views is that there is a gap between urban and rural schools, as urban teachers and learners receive better treatment from the department of basic education than teachers and learners of rural schools do. because our research took place in a rural context, it is important to raise the issue of resource allocation. we are aware that availability of resources affects the performance of learners. in general, urban schools are equipped with more teaching and learning materials. some urban teachers have opportunities to undergo training for online teaching, which give these teachers and learners an advantage in executing effective learning in the context of the covid-19 crisis. this claim resonates with the argument by du plessis and mestry (2019, p. s2) that: governments find it more difficult to supply quality education services in rural areas, and various factors weaken the quality of learning and teaching in south africa’s rural areas. newly trained teachers prefer to teach in urban areas, and as a result rural schools are left with many vacant positions or experience long delays in the filling of vacancies. this suggestion resonates with vorster (2020, p. 1), who states that “public schools in poorer areas will continue to struggle to deliver high quality education and will also find social distancing all but impossible, with overcrowded classrooms and too few teachers”. in view of the foregoing, we note that the department of basic education is gambling with the lives of rural teachers, as these teachers are at risk of being infected by covid-19. ntaka (2020) argues that: it is mostly marginalised communities and children who bear the brunt of the effects of school closures as they are the most vulnerable. for a country like south africa, already battling demons of socio-economic inequality, disruption of the academic calendar has exacerbated the existing disparities in the education system. in short, the research reveals that rural progressed learners have minimal access to quality learning, as newly trained teachers tend to flock to urban schools to take advantage of opportunities for professional advancement and innovation, and access to facilities. enhancing the academic performance of rural progressed learners in the context of covid-19. how can bricolage help? the paper does not only highlight the problem, but also presents possible solutions that were discussed by the participants in response to the second research question of the paper, which is, how can the academic performance of rural progressed learners be enhanced in the context of covid-19? in making suggestions to improve the performance of progressed learners, we show how bricolage thinking can be used as a mitigation strategy. the first point we discuss is using cell phones to address the lack of technological devices. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 dube, b. & ndaba, x.p. educating progressed learners in times of covid-19: how can bricolage help? research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 30 bricolise cell phones for teaching and learning while most schools in uthukela are situated in a rural context, every household has access to cell phones that can be used for teaching and learning. in the discussion, we noted that processes of rural schools acquiring technologies may take a long time to materialise, thus, schools can think of bricolising cell phones. this approach resonates with research done by maphosa and dube (2021), who argue that, in the context of deprivation, cell phones can be used to address the challenges caused by the lack of devices. they argue that cell phones can house learning software designed to facilitate teaching and learning. thus, the participants concurred on the need to share learning software to bridge the problems caused by a lack of smart technological devices – these devices are commonly found in city schools. in a discussion, thabizolo, a teacher, said: one of the ways to address lack of technologies is to allow learners to use cell phones in school for teaching and learning. with cell phones, students and teachers can use different soft wares to push the learning agenda. in support, thato, a learner added: atleast cell-phones are cheap and available at home. it is easy for my mother to find me a cell than a computer. by enabling people to think and use the available resources to address their lived realities, bricolage makes it possible to use cell phones as one of the ways to bricolage the environment. cell phones, as technological devices for teaching and learning, can, as suggested by welland (2018, p. 13) improve the “quality of education, and reductions in truancy and illiteracy”. with this in mind, schools should tap into the benefits of using cell phones, and purchase learning programs that can be used by learners and educators to mitigate the absence of face-to-face learning. with the foregoing in mind, we agree with unesco (2014, p. 10), that: ict [through use of cell phones] can improve student achievement, improve access to schooling, increase efficiencies and reduce costs, enhance students’ ability to learn and promote their lifelong learning, and prepare them for a globally competitive workforce. we conclude this point by arguing that using cell phones and learning software is one of the simplest and cheapest ways to proceed with learning during times of crisis, such as that caused by the covid-19 pandemic. through bricolage, the community can be emancipated to think about the resources available to address their trajectories. this does not, however, mean that the department of basic education can ignore the plight of progressed learners. in fact, in the spirit of curricular justice, rural learners matter, and their challenges should be addressed in the same way as those of urban leaners (dube, 2020). in the following section, we will discuss continuous teacher development as a bricolising strategy to address challenges related to teaching and learning. investment in continuous professional development covid-19 has, once again, reminded humanity that learning is a lifelong endeavour, and all available opportunities must be used effectively to gain new knowledge. the pandemic forced research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 dube, b. & ndaba, x.p. educating progressed learners in times of covid-19: how can bricolage help? research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 31 humanity to learn new styles of learning. despite the call to move into the fourth industrial revolution, many schools continue using traditional forms of learning, due to various challenges, and resistance by some stakeholders. nevertheless, covid-19 has forced people to engage with the fourth industrial revolution for teaching and learning. we agree with observation by williams et al. (2021, p. 4), that “the pandemic also revealed the skills this teacher was missing, some skills he or she did not know he even needed”. thus, online became the only viable and practicable option for learning. participants reported the need for continuous professional development for teachers, which entails adopting new skills and best practices and bricolising skills and practices to address the challenges caused by the need to engage in online learning. allen (2009) cited by srinivasacharlu (2019, p. 30) defines continuous professional development as “the process of tracking and documenting the skills, knowledge, and experience that teachers gain both formally and informally as they work, beyond any initial training. it’s a record of what they experience, learn, and then applied”. in light of the foregoing, themba, a rural teacher, indicated that: during the first hard lockdown, i had lot of time at home, it made me to explore something to keep my mind bust. it is when i discovered various on line webinars that assisted me to know some teaching and learning programs such as microsoft classroom, blackboard. after being equipped my online teaching improved and was able to share my skills with other colleagues at schools in this research study, which was informed by bricolage, we consider continuous professional development to be a community asset that could be explored to emancipate educators and enable them to teach in the context of covid-19. progressed learners are academically struggling, thus, with educators emancipated with new skills and best practices, teachers can enhance the performance of these learners. we argue, furthermore, that initial teacher education at colleges and universities is no longer sufficient to address the new demands placed on the teaching profession, especially considering ever-changing circumstances that often evoke the need for educators to move to unknown territories in order overcome challenges, such as those experienced in the time of covid-19. cognisant of this, we argue that continuous teacher development through online courses, some of them free, can be used as assets to enable educators to confront challenges brought about by covid-19. in concluding this point, we agree with the observation by srinivasacharlu (2019, p. 30), that “to prepare efficient future teachers in the 21st century, the teacher educators are required to continually update and equip themselves with ever-increasing skills and competencies to always remain top notch in their profession and do justice to society”. continuous professional development emancipates educators through better training, skills and techniques for improved practice in the classroom (burgess & sievertsen, 2020). in the following section, we will discuss parents as local assets for emancipating progressed learners. increasing parental engagement parents who are engaged in bricolage thinking are assets that can be used to enhance the teaching and learning of progressed learners. though parents can be an asset to the school, the issue of ineffective or absent parents who fail to engage in rural progressed learners’ learning, was raised as a challenge. the research reveals that there is a need for parents to be research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 dube, b. & ndaba, x.p. educating progressed learners in times of covid-19: how can bricolage help? research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 32 involved in their children’s schooling. parental engagement, as used in this paper, concerns “home-based involvement” in educating learners (fahey & joseph, 2020, p. 6). parents should “show interest in what they’re learning; talking about educational aspirations” (fahey & joseph, 2020, p. 4). arguing this way, we are cognisant that some parents may not have knowledge of particular subjects, or understanding of online information, however, this does not undermine the role of parents in enhancing the performance of progressed learners through various ways. in a discussion, musa, a learner, indicated that: when schools were closed due to covid-19 pandemic, my parents were so relieved that i could help them with farming and other household chores. sipho, a learner, added that: i asked my father to help me with my mathematics assignment but he told me that he was not trained to be a teacher. teachers must do what they are being paid for. in this line, thabizolo, a teacher, added: apart from the lack of resources in rural schools, learners encounter many challenges also in their homes, we give them homework but it never done, some will tell you that there were no candles to do homework at night. it is also the duty of a parent to assist a learner in the process of learning. the findings make it clear that involving parents in their children’s education is regarded as beneficial for teaching and learning, and for improving the learners’ academic performance. this claim is supported by a study by amani et al. (2020, p. 50), who argue that “the duty of a parent is to make sure that the learner is assisted in the process of learning as much as they possibly can by mentoring, encouraging, leading and inspiring”. in this manner, parents become active participants in decision-making about the future of their children. according to the south african schools act, 84 of 1996 (republic of south africa, 1996), it is a parental responsibility to make the home a suitable environment for learning. this obligation includes ensuring that there is space for the child to study. by doing so, we would have bricolaged parents, and encouraged them to mitigate the poor performance of progressed learners. in short, bricolage can shift people’s thinking and enable them to use resources around them or at their disposal effectively. we agree with alvi and gupta (2020:93), who argue that “along with interventions in the education sector, initiatives are also needed to cushion the economic impact on poor families to discourage the use of child labour along with monitoring mechanisms set up to ensure children remain in school”. when parents are involved in their children’s education, it raises learners’ hopes, motivation and self-esteem, and makes them confident about improving their academic performance. by engaging parents in assisting in teaching and learning through various forms, we bricolise education in order to improve the pass rate. in the context of covid19, the usual ways of enhancing learner performance, such as using resource personnel, is impossible, thus, emancipated parents can help to bridge the gap in the context of crisis. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 dube, b. & ndaba, x.p. educating progressed learners in times of covid-19: how can bricolage help? research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 33 conclusion the findings of this study helped to answer two questions: what are the challenges faced by progressed learners, and how bricolage can help? the study noted that progressed learners have various challenges such as lack of technological devices, lack of parental support, and suffer from the poor-rich divide, which has been worsened by covid-19. in light of these challenges, the study noted that bricolage has the impetus to shift people’s thinking towards effectively using the resources at their disposal to mitigate challenges associated with online learning. in addition, the study noted that the covid-19 crisis has forced societies to reconfigure ways to survive the pandemic and ensure that learning continues, despite the challenges at hand. based on the findings, we make the following recommendations;  the department of basic education should provide technological devices for teaching and learning. in the meantime, educators and learners can pursue using cell phones as teaching and learning devices. cell phones are cheaper than laptops, thus, using phones can help to mitigate challenges faced by teaching and learning.  the department of basic education should provide learning software that can be installed on cell phones to enable learners and educators to explore new online learning approaches, especially in the absence of face-to-face learning.  we also recommend making continuous professional development opportunities available, to enable educators to acquire new online skills. the department of basic education should provide online training courses for educators, to enable them to face the new challenges associated with teaching under pandemic conditions.  finally, parents should be emancipated to assist progressed learners. parents should play an effective role in helping learners to adjust to new ways of learning, giving their children time to learn at home and collaborating with educators to develop strategies to ensure teaching and learning is not disrupted in the context of covid-19. references aagard, m. 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(2021). equity in distance education during covid-19. research in social sciences and technology, 6(1), 1–24. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.1 http://www.uis.unesco.org/communication/documents/ict-asia-en.pdf research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 mutongoza, b.h., olawale, b.e. & mzilikazi, b. chronicling school principals’ experiences on school management in the context of covid-19 stringency research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 146 chronicling school principals’ experiences on school management in the context of covid-19 stringency bonginkosi hardy mutongoza1, babawande emmanuel olawale1* & busiswa mzilikazi1 *corresponding author: bolawale@ufh.ac.za 1. faculty of education, university of fort hare, alice, south africa received : 2021-06-15 revised : 2021-08-18 accepted : 2021-09-24 how to cite this paper: mutongoza, b.h., olawale, b.e. & mzilikazi, b. (2021). chronicling school principals’ experiences on school management in the context of covid-19 stringency. research in social sciences and technology, 6(3), 146-162. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.35 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). abstract the covid-19 pandemic experience has brought to the forefront the importance of leadership as institutions across the world are now trying to emerge from hibernation and rebuild broken academic practices. as such, this study sought to examine school principals’ experiences on school management in the context of covid-19 stringency in four rural schools in the eastern cape province of south africa. underpinned by a qualitative research approach, the study employed a case study design in which semi-structured interviews were used to collect data from four rural school principals who had been purposively sampled. findings of the study revealed that in order to combat challenges associated with teaching and learning, school principals engaged among other things, in mobilization of resources, engendering a technological culture among teachers, ensuring effective delivery of content. we further ascertained that although hamstrung by resource inadequacies, school principals in rural schools promoted school safety by ensuring transparent and effective communication, striving for the provision of safe and adequate facilities, among other things. finally, our study also revealed that rural school principals ensured clear and consistent communication with staff, provided psychosocial assistance to staff members, and adapted performance and workload expectations. keywords: online learning; quality education; covid-19; school leadership; rural schools. introduction and background in order to save lives and contain the transmission of the covid-19 virus, many countries were locked down – this meant that along with other sectors, business activities closed, and most education institutions were closed (gautam & gautam, 2020). accordingly, the teaching and learning process of over 1.5 billion learners and students (about 72% of children and youth in 10.46303/ressat.2021.35 mailto:bolawale@ufh.ac.za https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.35 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 mutongoza, b.h., olawale, b.e. & mzilikazi, b. chronicling school principals’ experiences on school management in the context of covid-19 stringency research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 147 education institutions), were affected as of may 2020 (unesco, 2020). in order to rescue teaching and learning during the covid-19-induced disruptions, education institutions worldwide were forced to abruptly adopt online learning models (muhuro & kang'ethe, 2021). the impact of this abrupt transformation was most acute in the developing world where institutions and communities were underprepared owing to the lack of infrastructure that is essential for online pedagogies and a lack of financing for this transformation (dube, 2020; mncube et al., 2021). according to unesco (2020), more than 13 million learners in schools, and over 1.1 million students in higher education institutions were inordinately affected by the covid-19 pandemic. in fact, mahaye (2020) contended that in africa, south africa ranks fourth in terms of numbers of learners affected by the covid-19 pandemic. this therefore reveals that the covid-19-insprired disruptions have indeed brought to the fore the need for effective education leadership, which is geared towards improving teaching and learning outcomes, especially in the developing world. without a doubt, covid-19 is toppling the world as we know it, by ravaging economies, abruptly transforming societies, and drastically altering educational practices (harris, 2020). the covid-19 quickly became a supernova (azorın, 2020) which created undeniable chaos (hargreaves & fullan, 2020) that abruptly changed education systems globally. the onset of the covid-19 pandemic dramatically refined learning to a remote, screen-based activity which limited the interaction between learners and teacher support (harris & jones, 2020). in many ways, covid-19 heightened a lot of important issues and revealed how inequity in education affects students and those in the society (mncube et al., 2021). a prominent concern was the widening of inequalities in education as ochestrated by the emergency adoption of online learning. rural institutions and schools lamented the lack of adequate resources in coparison with their more urban counterparts (dube, 2020; muhuro & kang'ethe, 2021). crises oftentimes reveal the centrality of leadership in providing guidnce to avert dangers which threaten the continuity of organizations globally (bundy et al., 2017). it is not uncommon for school leaders to receive an increased scrutiny during these challenging times because people expect leaders to assist, guide, comfort, and provide accurate information (northouse, 2016). the covid-19 pandemic has posed adaptive challenges that have reminded all players that collective challenges are best-solved through cooperation and synergies (fernandez & shaw, 2020; williams et al., 2021). leadership practitioners in academic circles are thus tasked with the effective response strategies to the covid-19 crisis (huber & helm, 2020; mncube et al., 2021). studies have shown that school leaders establish this by cultivating a democratic culture which promotes trust, accountability and collaboration (kezar et al., 2018; fernandez & shaw, 2020). the covid-19 pandemic has deeply affected the functionality of education institutions and societies, as seen in the abrupt closures of schools and education instiutions. teachers’ previous ‘control’ over the learning environment and schedule have now been challenged by the new environment which relies heavily on learner autonomy (huber & helm, 2020; kalimullina et al, 2021). this study therefore sought to examine rural school principals’ experiences on school management in the wake of covid-19 in the eastern cape province, south africa. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 mutongoza, b.h., olawale, b.e. & mzilikazi, b. chronicling school principals’ experiences on school management in the context of covid-19 stringency research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 148 statement of the problem the covid-19 pandemic has brought to the forefront inequalities which are extant in communities around the world (czerniewicz et al., 2020; therborn, 2020). the education sector has not been impervious to the menacing effects which continue to plummet prospects of quality education – particularly in poor and rural communities (gunter et al., 2020; hodges et al., 2020; naidu, 2020). while the majority of developing countries around the world have been heavily reliant on traditional methods of classroom-based instruction methods which demand classroom presence in order to satisfy the goal of teaching, the ‘new normal’ has brought to the fore the need for alternative methods of instruction (motala & menon, 2020; roy, 2020; williamson et al., 2020; muhuro & kang'ethe, 2021). the centrality of leadership is thus brought to the fore by the need to rebuild broken academic practices in communities where online learning was inaccessible or indeed accessible to a limited extent (chinembiri, 2020; roy, 2020; wright, 2020). this paper therefore sought to examine principals’ experiences on school management amid the covid-19 pandemic in the eastern cape province, south africa. research questions in order to examine school principals’ experiences on school management amid the covid-19 pandemic, this study was sought to answer the following questions: • how have school principals in rural schools sustained teaching and learning during the covid-19 pandemic? • how have school principals in rural schools promoted safety in schools during the covid-19 pandemic? • how do school principals in rural schools engender a healthy operational environment for staff in their schools during the covid-19 pandemic? literature review although there had already been debates on the possibilities of imparting and sustaining education offline (fajriyah & rodriguez, 2018), these debates have been made more urgent as education institutions explore the effectiveness of digital platforms as a strategy for curbing the challenges posed by the covid-19 pandemic (sinha & basu, 2020). proponents of remote learning contend that remote teaching promotes asynchronous learning and provides learners with the freedom needed to learn at their own pace (barr & miller, 2013; fajriyah & rodriguez, 2018). this thus allows learners the access to course materials and practice their skills at any time, which is mostly possible through online courses (sinha & basu, 2020). as such, the current covid-19 situation demands teachers to be abreast with online technologies, and to be innovative in order to learning requirements (gautam & gautam, 2020; sinha & basu, 2020). however, studies revealed that schools in developing contexts faced significant challenges to transform to an online teaching and learning during the pandemic (basilaia & kvavadze, 2020; lee & you, 2020). according to plitnichenko (2020), although teachers and administrators work hard during the pandemic to keep learners on track, they continue to face challenges with regards to organization of work and time management. it is further contended that the shortage of gadgets, connectivity, computer illiteracy, poor adjustment of delivery methods to include learners with disabilities, data privacy, security, isolation, and social isolation, continue research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 mutongoza, b.h., olawale, b.e. & mzilikazi, b. chronicling school principals’ experiences on school management in the context of covid-19 stringency research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 149 to impede the prospects of online learning (brooks, et al., 2020; lee & you, 2020; plitnichenko, 2020). the covid-19 pandemic has forcibly fast-tracked the transformed academic institutions into digital home-based institutions which rely heavily on virtual interaction, simulation, and collaboration (thamarana, 2016; gautam & gautam, 2020), the psychological impact of this mode of delivery must not be overlooked (brooks, et al., 2020). hence, educators, leadership and school management should be mindful that the protracted confinement of learners to home environments is capable of deterring physical and psychosocial well-being (leite et al, 2020). the impact of the covid-19 pandemic will potentially impact on school principals’ view of their emergent profession’s future prospects (stone-johnson & weiner, 2020). in fact, studies on school management reveal the multi-faceted nature of duties which principals are oftentimes expected to fulfil (davis et al., 2005; lunenburg, 2011; mendels, 2012). tobin (2014) thus argues that principal duties are ever-evolving and require constant upskilling in order to deliver effective leadership. according to lunenburg (2010), this dynamism makes principals’ daily duties inherently multifaceted, and the pressures huge. principals are thus tasked with providing instructional leadership, oversight of the curriculum, refining the teaching programme, working to define the school’s vision and mission, and fostering collaboration with their communities (botha, 2004; mestry, 2017). principals are also expected to oversee management of their schools by managing the budget, maintaining infrastructure, and ensuring compliance with policies and acts (mestry, 2017). thus, as principals lead in the wake of the covid-19 pandemic, the standard of service has been expanded. as a result, school principals are attempting to attend to the vast inequalities and needs of their stakeholders in order to bolster the effectiveness of their work (stonejohnson & weiner, 2020). to this end, habegger (2008), argues that a positive school cultureis the bedrock of successful schools. thus, principals should promote a sense of belonging, make efforts to create relationship between school, parents and various community members, and provide clear directions for both teachers and learners (harris, 2020). thus, for principals to promote posivite school culture during crises, petersoni et al. (2018) argues that attempts should be made by the government and school leaders to help teachers in their instruction practices. this can be achieved by nurturing teachers’ pedagogies which are aimed at affording learners the guidance and motivation required for active learning. in addition, educational administration programmes must provide opportunities for building potential leaders to learn and fulfil the array of daily governance tasks that confront presentday principals (tobin, 2014). theoretical framework fred fiedler’s contingency trait theory developed in the 1960s underpins this study. the basic premise of contingency theory is that there are several ways in which organisations can be led (flinsch-rodriguez, 2010). this means that the best way to lead can only be depends on the constraints (internal and external) in a given situation. studies show that the effectiveness of leadership relies on three contingencies: (i) qualities of the leader (skills, traits, behaviours, etc.), (ii) the followers (maturity, behaviours, skills, etc.) and (iii) the given situation (goals, urgency, nature of work, etc.) (pointer, 2006; deckard, 2011; nyenswah et al., 2016). the most effective leaders therefore morph their responses to challenges based on these contingencies (flinsch research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 mutongoza, b.h., olawale, b.e. & mzilikazi, b. chronicling school principals’ experiences on school management in the context of covid-19 stringency research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 150 rodriguez, 2010). according to fiedler (1971), three dimensions determine the favourableness of the situation to a leadership approach: (i) relations between the leader and members, (ii) the degree of the task structure, and (iii) the position power of the leader. according to fiedler (1971), when a leader is new and unaccepted, leader-member relations are low, while the same are better-placed when a leader is accepted and respected. fiedler (1971) further explains that the degree of task structure is low in instances where tasks are not clearly defined, and high in instances where tasks are well-structured, and routines are predictable. in the same vein, the position power of the leader is often low in cases where less power is attributed to the leader, and high where positional power is attributed formally to a leader (fiedler, 1971). this theory is suitable for the study given the current covid-19 situation because it emphasizes the flexibility of school principals to evaluate situations and make decisions unique to situation at hand. thus, applying contingency theory requires school principals to stay alert on their jobs and avoid over-reliance on rules, policies, and tradition as the only guide for their choices. therefore, to improve school productivity, enhance academic performance and staff’s morale in the wake of covid-19 pandemic, principals must understand the importance of contingency theory and its positive implication at schools. methodology research design underpinned by a qualitative approach, the researchers adopted a multiple case study design for this study. the case study design allowed the researchers to a get a deeper insight into the selected cases for investigation (creswell & creswell, 2018). according to yin (2018), in a case study, ‘the case’ can either be a singular case or a collective of cases which are to be explored in-depth. as such, we employed a case study design in order to ascertain the managerial experiences of school principals at selected schools in nkonkobe municipality in the eastern cape province, south africa. the design allowed us to gain a comprehensive outlook of managing schools in the wake of the covid-19 pandemic. this is in line with yin (2018) who argues that the use of case study allows the researcher to establish mutual understanding amongst research participants. study sample four (4) school principals in nkonkobe municipality in the eastern cape province of south africa were purposively sampled. the judgement used of selecting participants was the length of service as principals in their respective schools, thus of the participants we approached for the study, we ended up with 4 participants who were willing to participate in the study whose length of experience as school principals ranged from nine years to thirteen years. this allowed us to get in-depth perspectives on the changes which have occurred in the leadership demands placed on principals in the wake of the covid-19 pandemic as opposed to the outlook which we could have gathered from recently appointed principal. table 1 below presents the general characteristics of the participants. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 mutongoza, b.h., olawale, b.e. & mzilikazi, b. chronicling school principals’ experiences on school management in the context of covid-19 stringency research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 151 table 1. characteristics of the study participants participant age sex experience (years) principal a 53 f 13 principal b 49 m 10 principal c 58 m 9 principal d 54 f 11 data collection data were collected using semi-structured online interviews whose duration was about 20 – 30 minutes. the questions in the interviews were generated by the researchers based on the research questions. the interviews were conducted in english, although the participants had been encouraged to respond in any language they could best express their views in. semistructured interviews allowed us to keep the interviews focussed, while at the same time ensuring that we could further probe and seek clarity on aspects which may have required clarification. semi-structured interviews were deemed appropriate because we sought to understand the perspectives and experiences of our interviewees. data analysis once the data were collected, we began the process of transcribing the data. in order to reduce mistakes and enhance trustworthiness, we firstly checked the accuracy of the transcribed recordings with two colleagues who served as critical readers, and then subsequently employed member-checks with the participants. afterwards, we employed thematic analysis of the data collected because thematic analysis can be used to analyse almost any kind of qualitative data regardless of the size of datasets. thematic analysis also allowed us to capture complex, messy, and contradictory experiences of the school principals. we were guided by creswell and creswell (2018) who argue that thematic analysis enables the identification of patterns and relationships to meaningfully answer research questions in a study. the first step was to familiarize ourselves with the data individually, and then we compared our perspectives, digging deeper where there were contradictions and concerns. after this, we developed initial codes for the data, then tested these themes for referential adequacy. we went on to generate final themes under which the data were reported. data trustworthiness was ascertained through the triangulation of cases. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 mutongoza, b.h., olawale, b.e. & mzilikazi, b. chronicling school principals’ experiences on school management in the context of covid-19 stringency research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 152 ethical considerations in order to uphold research ethics, we observed the following ethical considerations in this study: • participants were informed of their rights to confidentiality, anonymity, and privacy before the collection of data; and • we provided participants with the information about research aims, process and how their data were to be used prior to seeking consent. • we informed the participants that they were free to withdraw from the research at any point with no costs, and if they withdrew, their data would not be used in the study results and discussion we sought to examine principals’ experiences on school management in the context of covid19 stringency in the eastern cape province of south africa. in accordance with the research questions, our results are organised as follows: • sustaining teaching and learning in rural schools • promoting safety in rural schools • engendering healthy operational environment for staff in rural schools sustaining teaching and learning in rural schools to examine principals’ experiences on school management in the context of covid-19 stringency, participants were asked: “how have you as a school principal in a rural school sustained teaching and learning during the covid-19 pandemic?” research findings revealed that although schools have moved from the traditional method of contact-based learning to a more blended form of learning which involves remote learning, the lack of access to online resources still poses a challenge for rural schools. thus, school principals engaged in mobilization of resources, engendering a technological culture among teachers, ensuring effective delivery of content, and the management of learners’ varying subject needs. principals revealed that the pandemic had forced their schools to adopt online learning despite the challenges faced by schools in rural communities. a case in point can be drawn from a principal who revealed: during the lockdown, we started using it (online learning) because we had to continue with teaching and learning regardless of the situation. after the intense part of the lockdown, we decided to keep this mode of learning…it has been greatly beneficial to us. so now we say maybe it’s another added resource – online learning. it is not the conventional type of online learning which is experienced in other parts of the world, but we are doing the best that we can with the limited resources which we have. we make use of social media and messaging platforms – these are not tailored for learning, but it is what has been helpful. for our practical subjects, we have instead resolved to use online videos and then when students attend classes on the rotational basis which the government has designed, we revise these and make touch-ups. (principal a) research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 mutongoza, b.h., olawale, b.e. & mzilikazi, b. chronicling school principals’ experiences on school management in the context of covid-19 stringency research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 153 this view was corroborated by another participant who noted that owing to the disruptions induced by the covid-19 pandemic, the principal now carries a burden to mobilize resources to ensure that learning continued despite the closures of schools. the participant opined, […] we have had to source for funds, and in some instances, we have had to redirect funds in order to continue with the teaching programme. we quickly realized that if we do not change with the times, we would fall apart, and we would be the ones to pay for the loss of teaching and learning time…the school has managed to source additional support from the sgb which has gone a long way in assisting our blended learning model. (principal b) in addition, principal d also supported the above response with regards to the shift in teaching and learning, however, the participant lamented on the lack of access to online resources. for example, the principal stated that: we are rural schools…there are limited resources, no data to access online materials. even when you try to download and send learner materials or ask them to join an online session, there are several complaints…teachers too – we have had to train them to be flexible enough to adopt a technological culture. with the younger staff complement, it is easy, but the older ones need extra motivation. as the principal, it is my duty to make sure that everyone is on board with this strategy in order for it to be successful. (principal d) similarly, principal c acknowledged the shift from traditional learning to blended learning, but also highlighted the shortcoming of an emergency remote teaching, the participant added that: […] we have moved forcefully into teaching and learning online, but it becomes impossible for some learners who offer science specific subjects such as physical sciences, chemistry etc. this is because the subjects have a practical component and not just theories that can be learnt remotely. in addition, it becomes a bit difficult for teachers, especially the older ones who lack technological skills to effectively deliver teaching and learning contents concurrently with virtual classes in a blended learning approach. so, to ensure that there is effective delivery of content, we have designed a model of oversight. we designed a system of oversight where we constantly work to adapt to the unique needs and resources of our students and staff. from these findings, one could conclude that although school principals and staffs accepted the transition to blended learning which was because of the outbreak of covid-19 pandemic, there remain some underlying challenges in some rural schools such as the lack of technological culture among staffs, access to online resources, and the type of subjects being taught may compromise the delivery of online teaching. this finding substantiates the view of plitnichenko (2020) who posited that although teachers and administrators are working hard to keep learners on track in the face of the covid-19 pandemic, the extant challenges which confront rural institutions threaten the success of this new mode of learning. this buttresses the view that most education institutions in the developing world are not ready for the adoption of new technologies (mncube et al., 2019; waters & hensley, 2020). our study further revealed that the pandemic has abruptly changed the face of teaching and learning and has indeed forced school principals to come up with creative solutions to the covid-19 stringency. although this research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 mutongoza, b.h., olawale, b.e. & mzilikazi, b. chronicling school principals’ experiences on school management in the context of covid-19 stringency research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 154 transformation was abrupt, mahaye (2020) reminds practitioners that the new movement towards an online teaching and learning models is a unique opportunity for learners to access course materials and practice their skills. this however requires teachers to be familiar with technology, as well as being innovative in order to employ technology in their teaching and learning methods to fulfil educational purposes (sinha & basu, 2020; waters & hensley, 2020). as demonstrated by the contingency trait theory which emphasizes the flexibility of leaders to evaluate situations and make decisions unique to situation at hand (fiedler, 1971), principals’ experiences of managing schools in the wake of the pandemic has revealed that principals have had to employ novel strategies which ensure that their schools deliver the academic mandate which they have been tasked with. as institutions adopt online learning, and indeed other forms of blended learning which have ensured that learning can continue away from the traditional school setting, demands arise to consider varying needs which may hinder the home environment from being an effective alternative. promoting safety in rural schools to ascertain the school management experiences of principals in the wake of the covid-19 pandemic, participants were further asked, “how have you as a school principal in a rural school promoted safety during the covid-19 pandemic?” our findings revealed that although hamstrung by resource inadequacies, school principals in rural schools promoted school safety by ensuring transparent and effective communication in cases of risk, enforcing government covid-19 protocols, striving for the provision of safe and adequate facilities for teaching when contact learning resumed, and developing disaster preparedness plans which are aligned to the pandemic. the principals revealed that they had become creative, even in instances where government regulations appeared to be unclear. a case in point can be drawn from a participant who argued: before reopening, the school was fumigated by school support teams. we marked out all our facilities to ensure that we adhere to the social distancing guidelines. in addition, we also have sanitizers almost everywhere in the school for learners and staff to use. the wearing of masks is also compulsory for anyone within the school vicinity. however, we received guidelines from the department of education, which are not clear, but as school leaders, we had to discuss this with staff members in order to restructure some rules to suit out staffs and learners…there is nothing much to keep people safe other than facemask and hand sanitizers. (principal d) in addition to striving to provide safe and adequate facilities for learning in line with government regulations of social distance and sanitizing, principal a revealed that the covid19 pandemic has forced principals to rethink the effectiveness of their communication strategies to improve the safety prospects of staff and students, even in the absence of temporary facilities for isolation. the principal revealed the centrality of clear communication strategies: we do not have an isolation facility of any sorts…so as a result, if any of the staff or learners are showing any of the symptoms, or has a high temperature, we do not allow them access to the school – they will have to go back home. we also do contact tracing and communicate with the individual’s contacts informing them when someone tests research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 mutongoza, b.h., olawale, b.e. & mzilikazi, b. chronicling school principals’ experiences on school management in the context of covid-19 stringency research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 155 positive. however, we try our best to check up on them and we do communicate frequently via the school whatsapp group. also, as the school principal, i move from one staffroom to classes to check the wellbeing of both learners and staff. we also dedicate the early hours of every morning to a brief staff meeting to discuss issues that can enhance staff productivity. (principal a) contingency emergency response planning has also come to the fore as principal b revealed the creation of relations with a nearby clinic to help promote the health and safety of learners and staff in the wake of covid-19 pandemic. the principal attested: some of our learners and staff do not come from close to the school, they have to take transport to come to school. our catchment area goes beyond our immediate vicinity, we cater for even some communities which are far from us, this increases the risk of transmission for both students and staff. some of these regulations are enacted with a limited scope which is removed from the situation obtaining in rural areas. to salvage safety from the ravaging pandemic, we test and isolate learners and staff, we have also stopped outsiders – whether parents or anyone else, from accessing the school. anyone who shows symptoms, we have established a relationship with the clinic close by, we immediately call for assistance…they have been very helpful. (principal b) on the contrary, principal c revealed that the school was unable to guarantee the safety of learners and staff owing to the lack of resources. the principal could not do anything beyond the bare minimum of enforcing government regulations: we do not really have enough to ensure the safety of our staff and learners. when we opened, we had to force matters…we did not have enough resources, no proper guidelines but we had to open anyways. we are just enforcing the mask and sanitizer; beyond that we really do not have much. for us to do anything more will require money but unfortunately our coffers are dry – the pandemic was a huge blow financially for us…even enforcing social distance is practically impossible, we just do not have sufficient space to allow for that. (principal c) research findings revealed that school safety continues to be significantly affected by the lack of resources and the provision of unclear directives, thereby making the role of school principals strenuous, school principals in rural schools still endeavour to enhance school safety by ensuring transparent and effective communication in cases of risk, enforcing government covid-19 protocols, striving for the provision of safe and adequate facilities for teaching, and developing disaster preparedness plans which are aligned to the pandemic. this can find rooting in earlier studies which contended that school principals were increasingly being tasked with multiple roles as their leadership would always be required on an evolving basis (asmawi et al., 2013; tobin, 2014). in addition, the contingency trait theory also argues that leadership is in itself fluid, and not static, thus there can never be one best way to lead (flinsch-rodriguez, 2010), rather, the environment in which a leader operates dictates the specific traits required to grapple with challenges (pointer, 2006; deckard, 2011; nyenswah et al., 2016). the centrality of effective management can therefore be noted in the various efforts by principals as they strove to rebuild broken academic practices in communities which were hamstrung by the extant inequalities in education (chinembiri, 2020; roy, 2020; wright, 2020). it thus becomes research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 mutongoza, b.h., olawale, b.e. & mzilikazi, b. chronicling school principals’ experiences on school management in the context of covid-19 stringency research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 156 clearer that rural school principals are faced with considerably more challenges than those confronting their colleagues in more urban settings, and the covid-19 pandemic has made the role of the school principal in rural south africa more strenous. engendering healthy operational environment in rural schools to examine principals’ experiences on school management in the context of covid-19 stringency, participants were also asked: “how do you as a school principal in a rural school engender a healthy operational environment for staff during the covid-19 pandemic?” our findings in this regard revealed that the rural school principals had an awareness of the psychosocial stresses which staff members were grappling with in the wake of the covid-19 pandemic, and to alleviate these stresses, principals ensured clear and consistent communication with staff, adapted work expectations, provided psychosocial assistance to staff members, and adapted performance and workload expectations. in emphasizing the adaptation of performance expectations and workload management, principal b lamented: the enormity of the workload is drowning our staff. they have very little time to cover a lot of work. even though the curriculum was revised, there is a lot to do. most teachers are experiencing health issues related to workload…the management of the workload is not really going as expected. it’s not easy but we are trying by setting clear expectation and achievable work plan. principal d further revealed that the uncertainties regarding changes in the curriculum had necessitated need for extra motivation for staff. principal d ascertained: although the curriculum has been resized, there is a lot of uncertainty. there is talk that part of the curriculum that was removed this year will be added to next year curriculum. as a result, we sacrifice our time on saturdays to cover as much work as we can. thus, we encourage teachers to come on weekend with added incentives as a way of motivating to resist comparison to what the school used to be before covid-19…we found it necessary to provide extra motivation for our staff in these trying times. the principals also highlighted the psychosocial assistance which is increasingly becoming critical in the wake of the covid-19 pandemic. a case in point can be drawn from principal c who revealed: covid-19 has heavily impacted the wellbeing of almost everyone in society. we are juggling several aspects – deaths, isolation, stigmatization, fear, and many more. as a principal, i have the duty to make sure that there is a semblance of psychosocial wellness among staff. this is because psychosocial wellness has a direct impact on productivity in the workplace. as a result, when a staff member is facing challenges that impact on mental health, we refer them for counselling and also give them time off work. this is how we are promoting a healthy working environment. (principal c) this was corroborated by another principal who further underscored the importance of clear and consistent communication models as a way of improving workplace environment. the principal argued: research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 mutongoza, b.h., olawale, b.e. & mzilikazi, b. chronicling school principals’ experiences on school management in the context of covid-19 stringency research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 157 one of the crucial aspects that has made it possible for us to rebuild workplace wellness has been the use of consistent and clear communication. we have made it clear to staff that it is okay not to be okay. we made it clear that we are in this together and we also communicate coping strategies which make it possible for us all to survive this pandemic which is now taking its toll. (principal a) the findings of this study revealed that although there exist constraints to staff wellbeing during pandemic, principals promote healthy working environment through the establishment of clear and consistent communication patterns, adapting expectations, motivating workers by use of incentives, assisting staff with workload management, and providing psychosocial assistance. this therefore aides the quest by principals to promote the development of human relations, and collaborative action to guarantee school development and effectiveness. this concurs with the views of stone-johnson and weiner (2020) who opine that the impact of the covid-19 pandemic will potentially impact on school principals’ view of their emergent profession’s future prospects. as a result, it becomes a ‘new normal’ for principals to attend to the needs and inequalities which buffet the stakeholders in education owing to the pandemic (stonejohnson & weiner, 2020). thus, principals have a duty to promote a sense of belonging, make efforts to create relationship between school, learners, parents, and various community members, towards the provision of clear directions for both teachers and learners (habegger, 2008). this corroborates the views of botha (2004) and mestry (2017) who stated that principal’s position in governing schools in post-apartheid south africa requires a balance between management and instructional leadership. this is because school leadership focuses on working to identify the school’s vision and mission, and improving instructional programme of the school, while management includes factors such as budget supervision, maintaining infrastructure, and ensuring compliance with policies and acts (botha, 2004; mestry, 2017). as such, the school principals in rural schools have an important role in promoting healthy working environments for staff in their schools. conclusion and recommendations the abrupt shift of schools to remote online learning at the onset of the covid-19 pandemic disrupted teaching and learning across the world and has revealed some deep-seated inequalities which exist in south african education. we set out to investigate examine rural school principals’ experiences on school management in the wake of the covid-19 pandemic. our study revealed that in order to ameliorate challenges associated with teaching and learning, school principals engaged in mobilization of resources, engendering a technological culture among teachers, ensuring effective delivery of content, and the management of learners’ varying subject needs. we further ascertained that although hamstrung by resource inadequacies, school principals in rural schools promoted school safety by ensuring transparent and effective communication in cases of risk, enforcing government covid-19 protocols, striving for the provision of safe and adequate facilities for teaching when contact learning resumed, and developing disaster preparedness plans which are aligned to the pandemic. finally, our study also revealed that the rural school principals had an awareness of the psychosocial stresses which staff members were grappling with in the wake of the covid-19 pandemic, and to alleviate these stresses, principals ensured clear and consistent research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 mutongoza, b.h., olawale, b.e. & mzilikazi, b. chronicling school principals’ experiences on school management in the context of covid-19 stringency research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 158 communication with staff, provided psychosocial assistance to staff members, and adapted performance and workload expectations. based on these findings, we recommend that there should be continuous training for school leaders to equip them with skills to handle their ever-evolving leadership roles. furthermore, while the principals appear to be offering psychosocial assistance to their staff, we recommend the provision of qualified personnel by the department of basic education to assist with mental wellness of both students and staff. we further recommend that the department of basic education must work to provide financial assistance to help rural schools with resources which improve their operational capacities. finally, this study was focused on rural school principals’ experiences on school management in the wake of the covid-19 pandemic, and thus it only relied on school management from the perspective and experiences of school principals. as such, we recommend that further studies be conducted to ascertain the effectiveness of these strategies employed by rural school principals, this could include the views of learners, teachers, school governing bodies, among others. references asmawi, a., zakaria, s. & chin wei, c., (2013). understanding transformational leadership and r&d culture in malaysian universities. innovation, 15(3), 287-304. https://doi.org/10.5172/impp.2013.15.3.287 azorın, c., 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(2018). case study research and applications: design and methods. los angeles: sage publications https://doi.org/10.1108/jpcc-05-2020-0020 https://www.researchgate.net/publication/305913807_role_of_e-learning_and_virtual_learning_environment_in_english_language_learning?channel=doi&linkid=57a5ba4208aefe6167b500f9&showfulltext=true https://www.researchgate.net/publication/305913807_role_of_e-learning_and_virtual_learning_environment_in_english_language_learning?channel=doi&linkid=57a5ba4208aefe6167b500f9&showfulltext=true https://www.researchgate.net/publication/305913807_role_of_e-learning_and_virtual_learning_environment_in_english_language_learning?channel=doi&linkid=57a5ba4208aefe6167b500f9&showfulltext=true https://theconversation.com/howthe-dimensions-of-human-inequality-affect-who-andwhat-we-are-137296 https://theconversation.com/howthe-dimensions-of-human-inequality-affect-who-andwhat-we-are-137296 https://en.unesco.org/covid19/educationresponse/ https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.05.03.2 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.1 https://doi.org/10.1080/17439884.2020.1761641 https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2020/07/20/how-pandemics-wreak-havoc-and-open-minds https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2020/07/20/how-pandemics-wreak-havoc-and-open-minds research in social sciences and technology editorial social sciences and technology have an essential role in formation of society. through social sciences one can understand what society needs and how these needs can be provided. also, social sciences provide knowledge that address social demands, and possible solutions for problems of the society. the use of technology is obvious in all spheres of society and driving changes in daily life. research in social sciences and technology (ressat) journal emerges within this context and provides a scholarly platform to bring together articles related to social sciences and technology. as an international peer-reviewed journal, ressat will seek to publish articles that draws on the anthropology, archaeology, criminology, education, economics, geography, history, information and communications technology (ict), law, linguistics, religion, political science, psychology, and sociology. with great pleasure we welcome all authors involved in improving research in social sciences and technology. ressat can be distinguished from other journals available in social sciences by its inter-disciplinary focus and its priority on the use of technology in social sciences. ressat provides an academic platform for authors to publish empirical studies together with discussion of conceptual and methodological issues of relevance to social sciences and technology. welcome to the first issue of ressat. the first issue provides empirical studies related to education. waters and russell introduces this issue with a paper that understands the experiences of six secondary pre-service teachers that completed a semester long internship with a supervising mentor at a virtual school in the southeastern united states. this study tarman research in social sciences and technology, volume, 1 number1, pages i-ii ii sought to examine why secondary pre-service teachers chose a virtual internship and what their experiences were like as online instructors. demirhan and yücel follow next with a paper that determines the effects of managerial style, teacher burnout and demographics on teacher commitment. korkmaz and avcı investigate pre-service teachers’ experience about playing technology games and their opinions about using contemporary technology to play games as an instructional tool. kılınç, kılınç, kaya, beşer, er türküresin and kesten offer a quantitative study that examines teachers’ attitudes toward the use of technology in social studies teaching. last, the innovations in the area of education throughout the world will be examined and the place of turkey compared to other countries in educational innovations will be analyzed in tarman’s study. thanks to all authors who contributed to the first issue. i also appreciate the work of reviewers who demonstrated their considerable commitment to the journal. i hope that readers will both enjoy and be challenged by the articles in the first issue of ressat. please join us to contribute to the development of ressat in the future. bülent tarman, ph.d editor in chief research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 maria, t., transition to online learning by a teacher education program with limited 4ir affordances research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 129 transition to online learning by a teacher education program with limited 4ir affordances maria tsakeni university of the free state, school of mathematics, south africa e-mail: tsakenim@ufs.ac.za received : 2021-06-18 revised : 2021-07-29 accepted : 2021-08-21 how to cite this paper: maria, t. (2021). transition to online learning by a teacher education program with limited 4ir affordances. research in social sciences and technology, 6(2), 129-147. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.15 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). abstract this study used the community of inquiry (coi) framework and the affordances of internet of things (iot) to explore how the faculty of education of a rural campus of a university transitioned from face-to-face to online modes of instruction. in this qualitative interpretive study, data were collected through open-ended questionnaires from four purposely selected teacher educators and five final-year bachelor of education preservice teachers. thematic content analysis techniques were used to analyze the data collected. the findings indicated the tensions experienced by the teacher educators as they negotiated the limited iot affordances to ensure effective teaching, cognitive, and social presence in the newly formed online classrooms. some of the tensions included the choices that were made on whether to use synchronous or asynchronous modes of instruction and the selection of effective communication modes. the teacher educators used a combination of the official learning management system (lms) tools of the university and a social media platform as way of navigating the limited 4ir environments experienced by the preservice teachers. key words: community of inquiry; covid-19; internet of things; online learning; teacher education introduction although the transformation of learning in educational institutions was inevitable due to the increased pervasiveness of technologies inherent to the fourth industrial revolution (4ir) (denoyelles et al., 2014; mcginnis, 2018; schwab, 2016), the advent of the covid-19 pandemic forced the institutions to abruptly embrace the change. carrillo and flores (2020) confirmed that educators were forced to shift from face-to-face to remote learning, while panergayo and almanza (2020) described the change as a shift from conventional to flexible learning. covid19 came at a time when literature such as saadatmand et al. (2017) had been observing a 10.46303/ressat.2021.15 mailto:tsakenim@ufs.ac.za https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.15 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 maria, t., transition to online learning by a teacher education program with limited 4ir affordances research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 130 growing trend in the use of online learning in higher education institutions. on the onset of the pandemic and the subsequent mitigation lockdown measures, one of the significant changes made by institutions of higher learning was to move from face-to-face to online modes of instruction. this move seemed to be the reasonable option given that 90% of the student population was out of school (commonwealth of learning, 2020). the compelled shift from face-to-face to online instructional modes in institutions of higher education came at a time when there was a notable breakthrough in the development of online learning. the notable development in online learning was based on the use of learning management systems (lmss) by institutions of higher education (mershad & wakim, 2018). aldowah et al. (2017) confirmed that there has been a marked increase in the use of lmss such as blackboard and moodle to facilitate online learning. in addition to the potential of lmss to transform online learning is the use of social media and online tools that provide learners with expanded opportunities to interact, share content, and connect (saadatmand et al. 2017). as scott et al. (2016) explained, the use of web 2.0 tools, which include social media and web-based office tools, expands the teaching and learning opportunities because learners can create, edit, and share content and communicate and view content posted by instructors and other learners. the growth of online learning is made possible by the internet of things (iot), one of the 4ir technologies. the iot is a technology that enables the interaction between real and virtual objects, creating an ecosystem capable of supporting numerous applications, including online learning (abbasy & quesada, 2017). as hernandez et al. (2018) elaborated; the iot is an intersection of people, processes, data, and things, creating connections with more capabilities and enhanced experiences. swarts (2020) reiterated that technologies have enabled educational interaction and connection at local and global levels. the sudden shift from face-to-face to online learning due to the covid-19 pandemic opened opportunities and the need to study the affordances of the iot infrastructure supporting online learning and to explore ways of improving instructional strategies. shea and bidjerano (2012) suggested that studying through online learning should be framed by appropriate models that assist in determining how to improve instructional strategies. the community of inquiry (coi) framework by garrison et al. (2000) is one of the most widely used frameworks to study online learning. the coi framework portrays online learning as a collaborative process defined by three components: teaching presence, cognitive presence, and social presence (thompson et al., 2017). some of the factors influencing online learning stem from how the three forms of presence are facilitated (szeto, 2015). in addition, the affordances of the iot also influence online learning and one of the highlighted issues is that of equitable access by the students (cutri et al., 2020). catalano et al. (2021) observed that students in high-needs schools struggled to complete assignments in online classrooms created due to the covid-19 pandemic. this study explored how one teacher education program transitioned to online learning as prompted by the advent of the covid-19 pandemic at a rural campus of a south african university. the study sought to address the question: how did a teacher education program in rural south africa transition to online learning during the covid-19 pandemic? the study contributes insights on the experiences of online learning during the covid-19 pandemic by teacher education programs. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 maria, t., transition to online learning by a teacher education program with limited 4ir affordances research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 131 research questions the main research question for this study is: how did a teacher education program in rural south africa transition to online learning during the covid-19 pandemic? the main question was addressed using the following subsidiary questions: 1. what iot technology affordances were used by the rural education program to support online learning? 2. how was teaching presence ensured by the rural teacher education program in online classrooms? 3. how was social presence ensured by the rural teacher education program in online classrooms? 4. how was cognitive presence ensured by the rural teacher education program in online classrooms? review of literature the transition to online learning in this study is viewed as the rapid move to build and use online classrooms in place of the traditional face-to-face classrooms as prompted by the covid-19 pandemic. cutri et al. (2020) point out that the transition to online classrooms was done with little or no preparation by the instructors and the learners. cutri et al. (2020) also point out that the transition was conducted under traumatic conditions since there was no indication of how long it would be necessary to continue with online learning. as a result, teachers and teacher educators experienced intensified workloads caused by uncertainties that characterized the sudden shift to online classrooms (allen et al., 2020; subedi & subedi, 2020). a study conducted in nepal by lemay et al. (2021) showed that during the transition to online learning, the instructors lacked experience and received little guidance. the instructors also worked with few resources which was compounded by the economic hardships and threats to their health. due to the challenges experienced by both the learners and the instructors in online classrooms during the covid-19 pandemic, baran and alzoubi (2020) proposed a human-centred approach to facilitate the transition to online learning. the approach is based on three pillars: the building of empathy, pedagogical problem-solving, and the establishment of online communities of inquiry. the building of empathy is important because as williams et al. (2021) observed, there are inequitable access to technology and limited digital efficacy issues experienced by learners in online classrooms. one of the challenges for teacher education is to determine ways in which the preservice teachers can fulfil the work-integrated learning requirements of the teachers’ qualification when face-to-face learning is not possible (mutton, 2020; isidro & teichert, 2021). carrillo and flores (2020) concluded that teacher education needs to adapt by developing new pedagogies in the wake of online learning. online learning is supported by the pervasiveness of the fourth industrial revolution (4ir) environments in the society. the 4ir according to melville and robert (2021, p. 1) refers to the “productivity-enhancing industrial innovations enabled by rapid technological progress and combinations of digital technologies.” online learning relies on the 4ir environments and tools which unfortunately are limited for learners from poor communities. in order to explore research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 maria, t., transition to online learning by a teacher education program with limited 4ir affordances research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 132 transition to online learning this study used the coi framework as lens to explore online learning and the iot as a lens to explore the limitations of the 4ir. community of inquiry and online learning research on online learning started well before the start of the covid-19 pandemic. nonetheless, before the pandemic, there was a notable underutilization of technological tools to facilitate online learning (arroio, 2020). one of the models widely used to study and inform online learning is coi attributed to the work of garrison et al. (2000). denoyelles et al. (2014) pointed out that the coi framework was initially developed to serve as a framework for asynchronous text-based discussions but was later adapted to study online learning. the coi framework is defined by three crucial components that underpin online learning experiences, which are teaching presence, cognitive presence, and social presence. teaching presence is defined by anderson et al. (2001) as what instructors do to design, facilitate, and direct the other two forms of presence (cognitive and social) in order to achieve educational objectives. the teaching presence is further broken down into three components, which are instructional organization, facilitating discourse, and direct instruction. denoyelles et al. (2014) explained that instructional organization entails the structure, process, facilitation, and evaluation of online learning interactions. in facilitating the discourse, the discussions aim to explain the main ideas, seeking clarity, and misconceptions are identified. lastly, through direct instruction, the instructor, tutor, or any participant in the discussion who is more knowledgeable in the subject articulates what is important to learn. cognitive presence refers to the experiences of meaning-making through the interactions in the online classroom. thompson et al. (2017) posited that cognitive presence experiences are where the hard work of knowledge construction happens. cognitive presence is sustained and made possible through four progressive phases, starting with a triggering event, followed by exploration, integration, and, finally, resolution (denoyelles et al., 2014). face-to-face learning by default presents a social setting in which the instructor and the learners are physically present engaging in activities to achieve the educational goals. online classrooms lack dynamic face-to-face interactions (shea & bidjerano, 2012), although social presence can nonetheless be built. social presence is viewed from the sense that the individuals engaged in online learning are part of a group (thompson et al., 2017). through social presence, learners project themselves as real people in environments mediated by online tools by interacting and communicating (denoyelles et al., 2014). from the literature reviewed, it is noted that learners need to demonstrate a certain degree of active participation for learners to be successful in online learning. shea and bidjerano (2012) propounded that learner self-regulation, which they call learner presence, is an important requirement for online learning. consequently, chang et al. (2019a) observed that learners who are active in discussion forums are more likely to be successful in online learning. similarly, chang et al. (2019b) posited that for learners to be successful in large online courses, they need to possess qualities that help them to learn with little assistance from the instructors. these qualities are encapsulated in self-regulated learning, which cho et al. (2017) explained is the process in which learners manage their own learning to achieve set goals using motivational research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 maria, t., transition to online learning by a teacher education program with limited 4ir affordances research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 133 qualities that include personal goal setting, self-confidence, beliefs in ability to learn, and high task value. however, szeto (2015) highlighted the importance of teaching presence for the success of online learning because of the leadership role it plays, but the author quickly pointed out that the experiences of the three components of presence are context specific. hajibayova (2017) confirmed the leadership role of the teaching presence upon concluding that learners appreciate the flexibility of online learning, instructor timely feedback, and frequent engagement through various media. multimedia is also used to enhance social presence in online learning (borup et al., 2012; krutka et al., 2017; lowenthal, 2010). the multimedia used include social media, videos, and digital storytelling. however, krutka et al. (2017) observed that the use of social media pedagogies may result in shortcomings in course structure and facilitation due to mismatches between instructor and learner expectations. internet of things and online learning the iot is an emerging technology that is increasingly having an impact on our everyday lives, including education (kortuem et al., 2013). as such, there have been several attempts to provide a definition of the technology in literature. this includes that the iot is a connection of virtual and physical objects that are able to communicate with each other through sensing and other interactions (abbasy & quesada, 2017; hernandez et al., 2018). one of the areas impacted by the iot technology is higher education, including teacher education. in education, the iot supports the interaction of physical and virtual objects embedded with instructional technologies, mobility applications, and cloud computing (aldowah et al., 2017; kalimullina et al., 2021). the instructional technologies include lmss such as blackboard, sakai, and moodle. iot technologies also enable the integration of mobile learning applications used by learners to manage learning and used by instructors to administer assessments and teach through simulations. an example of where teaching through simulations was achieved was the development of a module with smart features that consisted of a smart backpack, iot school check-in, smart desk, and whiteboard (bayani et al., 2017). the smart module provides a virtual and flexible learning environment supported by the iot. the iot is noted for enriching opportunities and experiences in education. abbasy and quesada (2017) used the concept of iot to explain a model in education coined as internet of education things (ioet). the ioet model comprises several affordances, including the promotion of engaged learning by improving the learners' degree of attention, motivation, interest, and curiosity. the ioet environments allow learners to engage in creativity as they use skills to observe the world in new and diverse ways when interacting with virtual and physical objects. e-learning is possible through the ioet through the use of electronic tools, applications, and web-based tools. among the affordances enabled by the ioet is the capability of self-learning in which learners are motivated to self-educate in informal and flexible environments. furthermore, remote collaborations are enabled among people in different locations. lmss and web 2.0 tools such as social media and web-based office tools such as google and microsoft are some of the iot-enabled technologies used to build online learning ecosystems (scott et al., 2016). makamure and tsakeni (2020) observed that the whatsapp social media platform played a significant role in building online classrooms during the covid-19 pandemic. the advent of online learning has also influenced teacher education. for teacher education, the research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 maria, t., transition to online learning by a teacher education program with limited 4ir affordances research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 134 implications of online learning are far-reaching because the students use online learning for their education and are also being prepared for online classroom practice. methods research design the research design comprised a qualitative study guided by an interpretive paradigm using rural campus of one south african university as a research site. the interpretive paradigm allowed for the understanding of the findings of the study as subjective experiences of the study participants (kivunja & kuyini, 2017). qualitative research gave voice to the participants and the researcher only made meaning of how they (the participants) viewed the phenomenon under study (creswell, 2014). the phenomenon under study entailed the subjective experiences of a transition to online learning by a faculty of education. context the university has two other campuses in urban settings. literature regards rural contexts as non-urban areas that have fewer civic and commercial amenities and are characterized by social justice issues, which includes poor service delivery (manly et al., 2020; nelson et al., 2021). the poor service delivery includes poor access to electricity and the internet. this study was conducted in a context in which a significant number of the students enrolled at the campus lived in rural communities of the eastern free state and kwazulu-natal provinces of south africa. however, the university campus is not affected in the same way as the rural community by the intermittent electricity supply and internet access because it has a backup electricity generator and reliable internet infrastructure. however, the transition to online learning happened at the time both the students and educators were studying and working from home, respectively, due to the covid-19 pandemic. the participants the participants consisted of 4 teacher educators who taught education courses attended by all fourth-year bed students. two of the teacher educators taught a general education course, while the other two taught the teaching practice course, as shown in table 1. table 1. teacher-educator participants teachereducator participant course taught gender home environment t1 general education male rural community t2 general education male rural community t3 teaching practice male rural community t4 teaching practice female rural community five fourth-year preservice teachers from a bed program also formed part of the participants that was purposely selected from different specializations, as shown in table 2. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 maria, t., transition to online learning by a teacher education program with limited 4ir affordances research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 135 table 2. preservice-teacher participants preserviceteacher participant bed specialization gender home environment pst1 primary school social sciences female rural community pst2 primary school science and mathematics female rural community pst3 secondary school science and mathematics male rural community pst4 secondary school history and languages male rural community pst5 secondary school business studies and economics male rural community an invitation was sent to all teacher educators who had participated in the transition to online learning and taught all the preservice teachers in the bed program. purposive sampling was further used to select teacher educators who lived in the rural communities around the university campus. purposive sampling was also used to select five final-year preservice teachers from different bed specializations but attended the mass courses teaching practice and general education taught by the teacher-educator participants. the selected preservice teachers lived in rural communities during the time that the online learning was implemented. the pseudonyms t1–t4 were assigned to the teacher educators, while the preservice teachers were assigned the codes pst1–pst5. t1–t3 were male teacher educators and t4 was a female teacher educator. pst1 and pst2 were female preservice teachers and pst3–pst5 were male preservice teachers. data collection instruments two open-ended questionnaires, one for the teacher educators and another for the preservice teachers, were designed to elicit insights of the transition to online learning. the first section of the teacher educators’ questionnaire elicited biographical data in terms of gender, course taught, and place lived during the online learning. similarly, the first part of the preservice teachers’ questionnaire elicited information on gender, bed specialization and place lived during online learning. the second part of the questionnaire elicited the iot tools that supported the online learning as experienced by the teacher educators and the preservice teachers respectively. the third part of the teacher educators’ questionnaire elicited how they facilitated the three components of coi, teaching presence, social presence, and cognitive presence, in online learning and the iot tools that were used. the third part of the preservice teachers’ questionnaire probed the experiences they had of teaching presence, social presence, research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 maria, t., transition to online learning by a teacher education program with limited 4ir affordances research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 136 cognitive presence, and the iot tools used. therefore, the questions on the questionnaires were under the three headings: biographical data, iot tools used, and the coi experiences. data collection procedures the study was conducted in november 2020. an email with the open-ended questionnaire were sent to the fifteen teacher educators who had participated in the transition to online learning in the faculty of education. ten completed questionnaires were returned. however, four were selected purposefully according the participant selection criteria explained under the description of the participants. similarly, an email with the questionnaire was sent through the blackboard lms of the teaching practice course and general methods course to the fourth-year bed preservice teachers. five questionnaires were selected according to the criteria explained in the section describing the participants. the questionnaires were labelled t1-t4 and pst1 pst5 accordingly. trustworthiness the trustworthiness of the data, which is a measure of credibility and authenticity, was ensured through theory triangulation. the data collection and analysis were based on the coi and iot frameworks. participant triangulation was also used because the questionnaire was applied to the teacher educators and the preservice teachers to elicit the two sides of the story of how transition to online learning occurred. data analysis the textual data collected from the open-ended questionnaires were subjected to thematic content analysis following the steps suggested by nowell et al. (2017). the steps entailed reading completed questionnaires repeatedly in order to be familiar with the data. the read texts were subjected to a coding process. the researcher developed codes to identify the subsidiary research question, participant and the theme into which the data must be classified. for example, as shown in table 3 pieces of data may be labelled as sq1-t1-iot-1 or sq1-t1iot-2 to show that the pieces of data address the subsidiary research question 1 and have been extracted from t1’s completed questionnaire and that the data falls under the iot broad theme but they are different and therefore are labelled 1 or 2 at the end of the code. the following labels were used to build the codes, sq-subsidiary question, iot-internet of things, tp-teaching presence, sp-social presence, cp-cognitive presence, and the t1-t4 for teacher educators and pst1-pst5 for the preservice teachers. table 3 only shows a few examples and not all the data that were analyzed. the coded data was placed into categories that were further grouped in the predetermined themes that addressed the four subsidiary questions. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 maria, t., transition to online learning by a teacher education program with limited 4ir affordances research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 137 table 3. excerpt from the open-ended responses codebook broad theme instructor-learner activities categories iot affordances lms tools social media tools online office tools other multimedia connectivity challenges use of blackboard use of whatsapp example i used online learning, which included blackboard and whatsapp. these assisted me to reach many students, especially those from remote areas without adequate access to resources and internet connectivity. sq1-t2iot-1 use of lms and social media teaching practice instructional organization facilitating discourse direct instruction asynchronous online instructional strategies example i staggered my presentations and assignments in such a way they will keep my students busy when doing entire unit. my students will be studying and doing various parts of the assignments alongside my powerpoint presentation with a voiceover. on weekly basis, i also sent reminders and allowed students to submit for me to give comments. sq2-t1-tp-1 the leadership role of teaching presence social presence discussions interactions communications example i allowed students to form groups in some activities and submit their work as groups. in addition, in one module i also allowed them to give one another a mark that would contribute about 5% of the promotion mark. this was an acknowledgement/penalty of the [non-]contribution of each member of the group from the perspective of members of the same group. sq3-t1-sp-1 learner-learner interactions through groupwork and peer evaluation cognitive presence triggering event exploration integration resolution example recorded lesson and video lesson don’t form that active teaching and learning so much; one self-regulated learning research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 maria, t., transition to online learning by a teacher education program with limited 4ir affordances research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 138 will listen to the lesson at his or her own time, which is one of the advantage to some. sq4pst1-cp-1 findings of the study the findings of the study address the following main question: how did a teacher education program in rural south africa transition to online learning during the covid-19 pandemic? the findings are presented under four themes that correspond to the four subsidiary questions of the study. the four themes are: iot technology affordances to support online learning, strategies to ensure teaching presence, strategies to ensure social presence, and strategies to ensure cognitive presence. the verbatim data excerpts used in this section were selected on the basis that they represented the views of all the participants. internet of things technology affordances to support online learning discussion of this theme provides insights into the technologies used to support online learning, the issues of access to technologies, and the instructional strategies used to teach in online classrooms. the blackboard lms and the whatsapp social media platform were identified as the iot-enabled technologies used to support online learning. t2 explained how he used a combination of the lms and the social media platform. he said: i used online learning, which included blackboard and whatsapp. these assisted me to reach many students, especially those from remote areas without adequate access to resources and internet connectivity. the use of the whatsapp social media platform was confirmed by pst5 when he said: this method of interaction and communication was very effective compared to emails as lecturers responded quickly and were able to attend [to] every student’s problems. it also enabled lecturers to do voice notes, send extra study materials and images to clarify other information. lecturers also used this social media platform to remind students about assessment tasks and due dates. it can be used …easily and does not require lot of training. the lms was the official university platform for the facilitation of online learning, but the teacher educators and the preservice teachers made decisions to include the use of the social media platform. one of the issues raised by pst3 was that some preservice teachers did not have computers, laptops, and other gadgets that would enable them to engage in online learning effectively. he also mentioned that the limited access to data was a hindrance to the use of iot-enabled online learning applications. he said: there was a lack of access to technological devices and data. there was discrimination and an assumption that all students who are not funded by the national student financial aid scheme (a government-funded scheme to provide loans to university students) can afford to purchase their own laptops and data. pst4 mentioned the issue of poor internet connectivity experienced in the rural communities as one of the factors that hindered online learning. he said: research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 maria, t., transition to online learning by a teacher education program with limited 4ir affordances research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 139 the unavailability of network (internet connectivity) due to geographical barriers. in locations (rural communities), there is a huge gap of strong connectivity and no connectivity in some areas situated near mountains, whereas our peers in towns suffer less from connectivity problems. the challenges mentioned above are some of the factors that led to the use of both synchronous and asynchronous modes of online learning. distance learning through the sending of printed materials to preservice teachers who had limited access to the internet was also used as a strategy of making sure no student was left behind. t1 said the following when explaining the strategies that he used: the printed material for the rural campus students, powerpoint presentation with a voice, blackboard collaborate, as well as the low-tech (low technology) teachon (university online learning support for instructors) and learnon (university online support for students) platforms. other platforms included whatsapp groups. among the online strategies were the use of recorded lectures such as powerpoint presentations with voiceovers posted on the lms or the whatsapp platform. in summary, the rural campus used the university lms and a social media platform to facilitate online learning. the limited access to the internet due to the lack of data, suitable devices, and poor connectivity by the preservice teachers led to the use of synchronous and asynchronous online learning strategies. printed material was also sent to some preservice teachers who needed them as one of the distance learning strategies in addition to online learning. strategies to ensure teaching presence although there was a possibility of using synchronous online classrooms through the lms application, there was more evidence that the teaching presence was ensured through the use of asynchronous strategies. the asynchronous strategies included posting content on the lms for the students to download. t3 said: i posted lecture slides (powerpoint presentations) and content on blackboard. i would have loved to use blackboard collaborate (synchronous online learning classroom), but with the large classes it is almost impossible. t4 explained that she made sure to use the lms at least once a week (possibly posting content) and also used emails to explain points that needed to be clarified. she said: i contact my students via blackboard weekly and make sure that i reply to their emails whenever they need some clarity. similarly, t2 ensured teaching presence by posting audio recordings of the content that he needed to teach. he said: “i ensured teaching presence through the use of slides with notes and voiceovers, and whatsapp voice notes.” in addition to the voice recordings and posting of content, t1 sent constant reminders to the preservice teachers to ensure they stayed focused on their tasks, and provided feedback on the submissions made. he said: research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 maria, t., transition to online learning by a teacher education program with limited 4ir affordances research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 140 i staggered my presentations and assignments in such a way that will keep my students busy when doing the entire unit. my students will be studying and doing various parts of the assignments alongside my powerpoint presentations with a voiceover. on weekly basis, i also sent reminders and allowed students to submit their work for me to give comments. pst2 confirmed that clarifications and explanations of concepts were sent through emails to preservice teachers. she said: “the use of emails was effective as the lecturers gave feedback to each student that made enquiries.” pst4 confirmed that the teacher educators used presentations with voiceovers and video attachments that showed demonstrations of practical work activities. he said: a powerpoint-presentation slide with a voice recorded on each slide providing explanations. a powerpoint presentation with a video attached for demonstration of practical work. the teaching was ensured by frequent (weekly) posting of content, which included presentations with voiceovers, voice notes through whatsapp, and texts containing explanations and clarifications sent through emails. strategies to ensure social presence the synchronous online classrooms were considered to present opportunities of enhanced social presence because the preservice teachers could interact with the teacher educators and among themselves. pst1 considered that the synchronous online lessons enabled the preservice teachers to engage with the teacher educators more and that the use of discussion forums and chat boxes enabled the preservice teachers to engage with one another. she said: the effective online learning used was through live sessions because one had a chance to engage with others and the lecturer. during the online session, there was a chat box to communicate with classmates; in this way, we were also learning from each other. discussion forums are also effective because one shares information and it gives one an opportunity of being a creative thinker and be able to help others with problem-solving. this also develops one’s communication skills. t1 encouraged the preservice teachers to interact with peers and participate in the online classrooms through the use of groupwork and peer evaluation. he said: i allowed students to form groups in some activities and submit their work as groups. in addition, in one module i also allowed them to give one another a mark (evaluate each other) that would contribute about 5% of the promotion mark. this was an acknowledgement of the group members’ contribution and penalty for not contributing from the perspective of members of the same group. similarly, t3 gave the preservice teachers groupwork activities and made use of discussion forums. he said: i asked them to do assignments in groups so that they get to discuss the content amongst themselves. i opened discussion groups on blackboard as well. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 maria, t., transition to online learning by a teacher education program with limited 4ir affordances research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 141 groupwork activities, discussion forums, peer evaluation, and interactions in synchronous online classrooms were used where possible to build the social presence in online learning. strategies to ensure cognitive presence pst3 considered the discussion forums to be useful for the construction of meaning through collaboration. he described a situation where the preservice teachers would be required to have a minimum of five posts in the discussion forums. he said: blackboard collaborate discussion rooms were the most effective for student-interaction. here, the lecturer set up four discussion rooms with different topics, then students had to pick one topic and compile a discussion. other students would respond in agreement or disagreement with justifications. there was a submission date for each response and students were expected to respond to a minimum of five posts; we were then graded on each response. this was the most effective and enjoyable tool for me and it should be used for group assignments in the future, as meeting up physically with groups is always a hassle. pst1 agreed with the notion that discussion forums helped the preservice teachers in knowledge construction when she explained that although recorded lessons can be listened to at one’s convenience, they are passive ways of learning. she said: recorded lessons and video lessons are not forms of active teaching and learning. however, one will listen to the lesson at his or her own time, which is one of the advantages to some people. in this section, the evidence showed that the preservice teachers could learn actively through collaboration and knowledge co-construction in online social interactions or they could learn passively by listening to recorded lessons and videos. discussion in this section, the discussion will begin by a summary of the findings in order to address the main question. the summary will be followed by a discussion focused on each of the subsidiary questions. this study set out to explore how a teacher education program at a rural campus of a south african university transitioned to online learning during the covid-19 pandemic. as a contextual assumption, rural communities suffer social justice issues because they are marginalized in terms of limited access to civic and commercial amenities, and suffer poor service delivery, including limited access to education (manly et al., 2020; nelson et al., 2021). the study contributes insights on the online learning experiences in the context of the covid19 pandemic and the experiences of online learning in rural contexts the findings of the study showed that there were limited iot affordances that influenced how the online classrooms were built and the choice of the online tools used. the limited iot affordances were mainly due to the unreliable internet connection. williams et al. (2021) confirm that the different communities in society do not equitably access digital technologies. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 maria, t., transition to online learning by a teacher education program with limited 4ir affordances research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 142 the university lms had to be complemented by a social media platform that was easily available and cheap in the transition to online learning. social media platforms play a significant role in building online classrooms (saadatmand et al. 2017; makamure & tsakeni, 2020). therefore, the teaching presence was established mainly through recorded material posted on the lms and the social media platform for the preservice to download at a convenient time when they connected their devices to the internet from both the lms and whatsapp. in the absence of synchronous online classrooms, the due dates for assessment submission were one way to pace the teaching and learning and help the preservice teachers focus on their tasks. the social presence interactions were mainly between the teacher educator and individual preservice through emails and text messages through whatsapp. discussion forums through the lms were also used, but as mentioned, the students could only participate when they were connected to the internet. the cognitive presence was defined by passive learning in which the preservice teachers interacted with the posted material most of the time to construct meaning. the reduced social interactions limited opportunities for the active coconstruction of meaning. the four findings according to the four subsidiary questions will be discussed next. the first finding was that contextual factors influenced the iot affordances that supported online learning in the rural communities in which the study participants lived. the contextual factors included limited internet connectivity and preservice teachers who lacked appropriate devices and data to engage in online learning successfully. cutri et al. (2020) confirmed that inequitable-access issues characterize online learning. limited access to the internet led to the use of a mix of the university's official lms (formal learning platform), emails, and a social media application (informal platform) to facilitate online learning. the informal platforms built by the use web 2.0 tools expand the opportunities for online learning because they enable the sharing of content and facilitate easy and temporal communication (scott et al. 2016). synchronous online instructional strategies through the lms were not always possible due to the poor internet connectivity and were complemented by the use of asynchronous “low-technology” approaches and social media instructional strategies. the asynchronous approaches included posting recorded lectures and other content on the lms, which the preservice teachers would download in ways that utilized less internet data. the use of multimedia, including social media, support online learning (borup et al., 2012; krutka et al., 2017; lowenthal, 2010). the second finding shows that only in a few instances was the teaching presence facilitated synchronously by teacher educators in the online classrooms. the teacher educators had to find alternative ways to engage the preservice teachers and maintain a teaching presence. therefore, in most cases, the teaching presence was facilitated through a weekly uploading of content on the lms and the whatsapp social media platform, using powerpoint presentations with voiceovers, voice notes, and emails containing clarification and explanation of concepts. the uploaded material consisted of content to be studied by the preservice teachers and the guidance, orientation, and instructions, all of which comprised the learning discourse. szeto (2015) recognized the leadership role played by teaching presence in online classrooms. the three components of teaching presence which are the instructional organization, facilitating discourse, and direct instruction, according to denoyelles et al. (2014), had to be adjusted to align with the asynchronous strategies. the teacher educators conducted the instruction research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 maria, t., transition to online learning by a teacher education program with limited 4ir affordances research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 143 organization by systematically posting materials using pre-recorded multimedia that the preservice teachers could download. the educators facilitated the discourse through the texts, recorded audio, and video presentations which mainly served as direct instruction tools. the third finding showed that the social presence was influenced by the nature of the iot tools used and how the teaching presence directed it. the whatsapp social media platform provided an opportunity for the teacher educators and the preservice teachers to form social groups for communication, discussions, and sharing of content. the whatsapp platform was more accessible, cheap, and temporal, unlike the blackboard lms, which was more expensive for the preservice teachers regarding internet service costs. the whatsapp groups formed an important tool to ensure that the preservice teachers felt that they were part of a social community where they could interact. thompson et al. (2017) explain that social presence is facilitated when individuals feel they are part of a group. groupwork was also facilitated because the preservice teachers could function as real people in the virtual environment because they could communicate and share ideas (denoyelles et al., 2014). the discussion forums on the lms were also useful to enable interaction. the fourth finding showed that although the preservice teachers mainly interacted individually with posted content, the cognitive presence was enhanced by collaboration activities enabled by the virtual groupwork and discussion forums. whenever the social presence was enabled, the preservice teachers could co-construct meanings of what they were learning. after all, denoyelles et al. (2014) indicated that the three forms of presence are interrelated. the preservice teachers considered the recorded materials in the form of pre-recorded audio and videos as passive ways of learning. passive ways of learning may require preservice teachers to employ increased self-regulated learning, which is a premise of success in online learning (cho et al., 2017; shea & bidjerano, 2012). conclusion the participating preservice teachers and teacher educators at the university rural campus lived in communities with limited internet connectivity. the teacher education program transitioned to online learning through the use of a mix of the university lms, emails, and a social media platform due to the limited internet access. asynchronous strategies of building teaching, social, and cognitive presence in the online classrooms were favored and used more than synchronous strategies, which were not supported by the limited iot affordances. the study findings highlight the inequitable access to the teaching presence, social presence, and cognitive presence experiences of learners in rural communities due the limited iot infrastructure. this study has limitations, including that the findings rely on the data from one case and could have been enhanced had a multi-case study design been used. the study recommends further studies to explore how to improve learning experiences of preservice teachers in communities with limited iot affordances. acknowledgements the nrf of south africa supported this research study through the thuthuka funding instrument. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 maria, t., transition to online learning by a teacher education program with limited 4ir affordances research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 144 references abbasy, m. b., & quesada, e. v. 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(2020). practicing self learning of ict for resilience amidst the covid-19 outbreak: experiences from kathmandu valley. research in educational policy and management, 2(2), 78-96. https://doi.org/10.46303/repam.2020.5 szeto, e. (2015). community of inquiry as an instructional approach: what effects of teaching, social and cognitive presences are there in blended synchronous learning and teaching? computers & education, 81, 191-201. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2014.10.015 swarts, g. p (2020). re/coding global citizenship: how information and communication technologies have altered humanity and created new questions for global citizenship education. research in social sciences and technology, 5(1), 70-85. thompson, p., vogler, j. s., & xiu, y. (2017). strategic tooling: technology for constructing a community of inquiry. journal of educators online, 14(2), n2. williams, t. k., mcintosh, r. w., & russell, w. b. (2021). equity in distance education during covid-19. research in social sciences and technology, 6(1), 1-24. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.1 http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2014.10.015 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.1 research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 makwembere, s. et al. lecturer autoethnographies of adjusting to online student interactions during covid-19 research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 148 lecturer autoethnographies of adjusting to online student interactions during covid-19 sandra makwembere*1, obert matarirano1 & nobert r. jere1 *corresponding author: smakwembere@wsu.ac.za 1. walter sisulu university, buffalo city campus, south africa received : 2021-06-15 revised : 2021-08-01 accepted : 2021-08-24 how to cite this paper: makwembere, s., matarirano, o. & jere, n.r. (2021). lecturer autoethnographies of adjusting to online student interactions during covid-19. research in social sciences and technology, 6(2), 148-168. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.16 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). abstract in 2020, the covid-19 pandemic pushed south african historically disadvantaged institutions, that had not yet reached advanced levels of technology use in teaching and learning, to find immediate solutions to salvage the disrupted academic year. interactions with students, which had predominantly been face-to-face, shifted to various online platforms for lecturers to adopt emergency remote teaching approaches. most of the lecturers were unprepared or incapacitated to make the shift to online environment. studies have looked at the online teaching and learning experiences of students and lecturers during the covid-19 pandemic but very few have taken an autoethographic approach to their inquiry and situated experiences in historically disadvantaged institutions. in this article, as lecturers, we use autoethnographies to provide an account of adjusting to interacting with students online during national lockdowns at a historically disadvantaged institution. the social cognitive theory (sct) was applied to guide the study. this reflexive approach is valuable, as it captures professional encounters and reflections needed to understand the effects of rapid changes to teaching and learning in response to the pandemic. given the education disparities that already existed between south african higher education institutions before covid-19, the article contributes to the discourse on how historically disadvantaged institutions can advance higher standards of teaching and learning to serve students better. our reflections point to the personal, technical and structural challenges of maintaining regular online interaction. our findings show that different approaches and techniques were applied to adjust to virtual teaching and learning. as teaching and learning methodologies have the potential to ingrain social inequalities, we made recommendations on how to improve online interactions with students from historically disadvantaged contexts. keywords: autoethnography; covid-19; emergency remote teaching; higher education; historically disadvantaged institutions; lecturers 10.46303/ressat.2021.16 mailto:smakwembere@wsu.ac.za https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.16 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 makwembere, s. et al. lecturer autoethnographies of adjusting to online student interactions during covid-19 research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 149 introduction the global outbreak of the coronavirus (covid-19) has undoubtedly placed significant pressure on higher education institutional capacities across the world to adapt. the contagious nature of the virus resulted in the world health organisation declaring it a pandemic on 11 march 2020. education institutions in different countries had to adjust to the situation by introducing measures such as mandatory social distancing and confinement. according to the united nations educational, scientific and cultural organisation (unesco), by 1 april 2020, schools and universities in 185 countries had closed, which significantly affected academic calendars and continuity of teaching and learning (unesco, 2021). in south africa, online learning and emergency remote teaching were immediately prioritised when the pandemic was declared. at universities, in particular, students and academics were expected to engage fully online from the end of april into early may 2020. resources were redirected to secure laptops and internet data and trainings were conducted to orient academics and students for what would be expected. whether or not academics and students felt sufficiently prepared for what lay ahead, no accurate prediction could have been made on how universities would fare during the global crisis. lessons learnt are still being captured. when they reopened, many nations turned to information and communication technologies to facilitate learning processes at all education levels and some even made online learning compulsory. this covid-19 facilitated a shift in education instruction and has created a range of challenges and opportunities still being uncovered by researchers, institutions and policymakers. for historically disadvantaged institutions (hdis), largely characterised by a series of challenges such as a lack of financial and human resources and infrastructure, emergency remote teaching (ert) exposed many gaps and capacity limits, which brings to light the need to reflect on the adjusted academic year 2020 (andreu & nussbaum, 2009; matarirano et al., 2021a). the label, hdis, refers to a group of universities that catered for the black population under the former apartheid regime (nyoni, 2020). higher education systems were divided along racial lines (deparment of higher education and training, 2014). there were ‘black’ universities for the black majority (racially classified as african, coloured and indian) and ‘white’ universities for the white minority (deparment of higher education and training, 2014). resources for black universities were not prioritised, thus, this band of universities suffered several constraints (chetty & pather, 2015; mekoa, 2018). post-apartheid, the designation ‘historically disadvantaged institution’ was adopted by the government to recognise past higher education injustices and direct redress of the severe disparities between these universities and former ‘white’ universities. the label provides a kind of support such as funding opportunities. for example, the historically disadvantaged institutions development grant is meant to develop public universities classified as historically disadvantaged (matarirano et al., 2021b). six universities have been identified and classified: the university of fort hare, university of limpopo, university of venda, university of zululand, university of western cape and walter sisulu university (deparment of higher education and training, 2014). currently, these universities cater to rural students in particular, who mostly have disadvantaged backgrounds, braced with inequalities even in basic education (matarirano et al., 2021a). because of their results and financial incapacitation, these students face many barriers to entering affluent research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 makwembere, s. et al. lecturer autoethnographies of adjusting to online student interactions during covid-19 research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 150 universities such as the university of stellenbosch and the university of pretoria, which are both expensive and have high entry requirements (chetty & pather, 2015). some universities began online teaching as late as july because of these challenges while other affluent universities had already completed their first semester by then. many students from disadvantaged backgrounds were left confused, anxious, frustrated and unsure about the future (aristovnik et al., 2020). transitioning to online learning was abrupt and unplanned, hence caught many institutions off guard. both students and lecturers were unprepared. lecturers had to rethink their teaching methods so that they could quickly respond to matters such as students struggling with online learning. as lecturers at a hdi during the period, we experienced these challenges first hand. this paper summarises our autoethnographies as three lecturers at a hdi where we had to adjust to interacting with students online in our roles. research into the effects of covid-19 on hdis is still growing. to date, research particularly centred on providing lecturers’ views on how they have responded to changing teaching and learning situations due to the shift to online interactions, is arguably limited. these lecturer perspectives are vital when considering the silences that have historically existed in these institutions. research that gives a voice to the insights and realities of lecturer professional encounters can translate into discoveries of hidden thoughts and feelings knitted into the stories of academic survival. autoethnography brings to the fore opportunities to express unheard or silenced stories, thus fostering inclusion by allowing many voices on the experiences of the effects of covid-19 on teaching and learning. what follows summarises the impact of covid-19 on higher education teaching and learning, then, a description of some challenges faced by south african hdis as a backdrop to the relevance of the study about existing research on the effects of covid-19 on higher education institutions (heis). next, the theoretical framework used is then summarised and this is followed by a summary of the autoethnographic approach. a presentation and analysis of autoethnographic accounts subsequently follow this section. the accounts highlight the ways lecturers experienced adjusting to online student interaction. the paper ends with an appraisal of the autoethnographic experience and recommendations for future inquiries into the effects of covid-19 at hdis considering the accounts. research question and objective the primary objective of the paper was to present the reflections on the activities, actions and adjustments that were taken by the selected lecturers. the study was guided by the social cognitive theory. the following research question was addressed: how did lecturers experience and adjust to online interactions with students from a hdi during lockdown in the 2020 academic year? literature review impact of covid-19 on higher education teaching and learning covid-19 being a highly contagious disease, resulted in high mortalities leading to a series of lockdowns globally. the disease was identified in china at the close of 2019 and by march 2020, the infection had spread to many countries, compelling the world health organisation to declare it a global pandemic on the 11th of march 2020 (rashid & yadav, 2020). due to the research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 makwembere, s. et al. lecturer autoethnographies of adjusting to online student interactions during covid-19 research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 151 serious nature of the infections and the lack of solid aetiology and pathogenesis regarding covid-19, governments responded by adopting ‘social distancing’ as a way of reducing physical contact, which facilitates its spread. heis, as spaces where large proportions of people congregate, became potential hotspots for covid-19. the immediate impact of covid-19 on heis was the disruption of academic programmes. face-to-face learning was halted and examinations were postponed. what followed were swift shifts to digital learning as a mandatory mode of learning, sometimes without proper planning and capacitation (sahu, 2020; ). though there have been discussions on how best to adopt technologies, at the moment with the continuous rise in covid-19 cases, online teaching and learning remain a priority. the use of online media has been embraced by close to 90% of heis globally, as the new normal, to date (aristovnik et al., 2020). while the sudden introduction of e-learning into heis came as a contingency, it has created opportunities for advancements in teaching and learning as well as exposed the weaknesses of traditional methods, particularly face-to-face learning. onlinebased learning amplifies certain roles expected of lecturers, particularly mentorship and encouragement. because of the uncertainties and anxieties, lecturers attempted to encourage their students to embrace online learning so that they were not left out, regardless of limitations (rashid & yadav, 2020). in a global survey on the impact of covid-19 on heis, aristovnik et al. (2020) reported that most lecturers felt an increase in workload with digital learning that required them to use skills which they were not trained for. digital learning has bridged the effect of geography on the dissemination of knowledge. it is now more apparent for heis that used traditional methods before covid-19 induced changes that the learning process is not solely bound by physical space or time. concerning the social well-being of both students and lecturers at heis though, the detachments from campus have negatively affected both, especially regarding mental health (yorguner, bulut & akvardar, 2021; meishar-tal & levenberg, 2021). this has led to heis questioning the psychosocial effects of covid-19 and whether the move from face-to-face learning has been worth it. face-to-face learning has traditionally been the primary mode of learning in heis (gherheș et al., 2021). it involves the use of an enclosed physical environment where the student and instructor can use their five senses in transferring knowledge (bandara & wijekularathna, 2017). the method has been favoured for the ability to allow close interaction between the student and lecturer. the interpersonal student-lecturer relationship allows the students to be more at ease to ask questions and receive clarifications, thereby getting a better understanding of the content as opposed to online means (julien & dookwah, 2020). face-to-face learning promotes social interaction and networking among students, which enlarges learning besides the course content. thus, covid-19 has necessitated a change in the skills development trajectory of students and the need to equip lecturers to appropriately guide students (khogali, 2020; radha et al., 2020; joia & lorenzo, 2021). online learning transfers knowledge through digital means such as a digital learning management system and students are physically isolated from their lecturers or institutions (pozzi et al., 2019; kalimullina et al., 2021). under covid-19, it has emerged as emergency remote teaching and learning (ertl), which is an interim mode until the pandemic has normalised (gherheș et al., 2021). some scholars predicted that online learning as a system might replace traditional face-to-face learning and argued that the growing costs of education research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 makwembere, s. et al. lecturer autoethnographies of adjusting to online student interactions during covid-19 research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 152 and the convenience of working while pursuing education may increase the need for online learning (arias et al., 2018). also, online learning benefits such as flexibility and reduction in the cost of acquiring education by reducing transport and accommodation costs (naveed et al., 2017) would become attractive. it helps address challenges of accessing curricula where there are physical infrastructure limits. in resource-limited institutions, the lack of buildings and physical infrastructure are not the only issues that impede teaching and learning, therefore, online learning is not necessarily an immediate remedy. typically, such institutions also lack skills, software and digital infrastructure necessary to implement online learning. for the students from poor backgrounds, they characteristically lack electricity, computers and have poor internet connectivity, which are necessary for the success of the roll-out of online-based learning (sahu, 2020; baldwin & bekithemba, 2021). these situations cause great anxiety and uncertainty among students trying to learn using this mode and this affects their performance (aristovnik et al., 2020). lecturers must play an important role in mentoring and guiding the students constructively. students from disadvantaged communities require motivation and encouragement to avoid fears and anxiety. for lecturers, anxieties and uncertainties have been cited in studies, however, there are opportunities for further interrogations of online learning as covid-19 persists. many heis have diversified the technologies they use to facilitate the dissemination of knowledge. the technologies vary from digital libraries to online media for lectures (andreu & nussbaum, 2009). open educational resources (oers) have been useful resources as they are available in the public domain with no restrictions (andreu & nussbaum, 2009). examples of oers include open access journals, open textbooks, streaming videos and online tutorials among others. the use of oers by heis has enabled students from all backgrounds and geographic regions to access cost-free information, thereby improving their access to quality education (li et al., 2015). flipped classrooms are another type of technology increasingly used. with flipped classrooms, students access their lectures, course material and assessments online (li et al., 2015). the concept reverses the traditional roles of instructors, allowing students to research a certain topic before coming to class (fulton, 2012). the students have the liberty of accessing the material at their time, hence promoting independence. visio-audio technology including video conferencing platforms such as moodle, zoom, ms teams and bigbluebutton, have also become popular across heis (aristovnik et al., 2020). aristovnik et al. (2020) reported that 60% of students globally were familiar with these platforms. these systems have many benefits such as facilitating real-time meetings to occur. even the use of messaging platforms such as whatsapp, which were mostly used for social reasons, is now encouraged by heis to convey information to students (aristovnik et al., 2020). all these different technologies require many adjustments for students and lecturers. it can be expected that these adjustments will differ depending on the hei context. challenges of south african historically disadvantaged institutions poor academic performance characterises historically disadvantaged universities, with dropout rates being high and throughput rates being low (badat, 2010). this poor academic performance has been linked to a lack of financial resources to improve the quality of education research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 makwembere, s. et al. lecturer autoethnographies of adjusting to online student interactions during covid-19 research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 153 and enrolment (badat, 2010), a lack of infrastructure such as buildings and computers (sonn, 2016) as well as low staff capacities and capabilities. the resource and capacity constraints, thus create a cycle of events where poorly performing students are enrolled in an institution lacking resources and the output continues to be poor as compared to advantaged universities (sonn, 2016). student protests at these heis expose the challenges students still face such as lack of accommodation and funding due to developmental backlogs and delays (matarirano et al., 2021b). online learning is taking place at hdis with limited resources. covid-19 and the subsequent lockdowns have meant that these institutions have been forced to scale up their plans for technology use to enable digital learning (sahu, 2020). with online learning as a priority for hdis, several questions have been raised around how to achieve inclusive learning in the face of the realities of poor resources to optimally achieve online learning objectives. according to matarirano et al. (2021a), various changes such as in attitudes, behaviours and decisions are needed at different levels (institutional, collective and individual). while covid-19 persists, much can be discovered about how hdis are learning to adjust. this is vital for recognising the agencies operating at different levels that need to be activated to support inclusive higher education transformation under the pandemic and beyond it. social cognitive theory social cognitive theory (sct) can help ground an understanding of how individuals adapt to change, in this case, how lecturers adapt to the demands of online learning under covid-19. this article uses some aspects of bandura’s social cognitive theory to understand our adjustment experiences as lecturers from a historically disadvantaged institution. the basic principles of the theory point to human behaviour being learnt by observing others and modelling their behaviour. cognitive, social and behavioural influences all play a role in learning (bandura, 1971, 1977, 1986, 1999, 2001, 2005). during the period under study, our thoughts, behaviours and actions were influenced by our abilities, observations and direct experiences of the events that took place in our learning environment. issues such as limited resources, unstable internet connections and the flexibility of remote teaching affected on how we approached our roles as teachers. the sct provided explanatory lenses to how we adjusted to the changes that were happening. learning, according to sct, occurs in social situations where people interact with one another. human functioning is construed to be a product of the dynamic interplay between personal (experiences, skills, cognitions, beliefs, affect), behavioural (responses to stimuli) and environmental (external social context) influences (bandura, 2005; schunk & usher, 2012). this interplay between these variables is graphically illustrated in figure 1. the environment can impact behaviour but people may also affect the environment by their ideas and actions. individuals learn skills, techniques, beliefs, rules, attitudes and the appropriateness, usefulness and repercussions of behaviours through encounters. individuals act under their perceptions of their skills and the predicted consequences of their actions (schunk & usher, 2012). research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 makwembere, s. et al. lecturer autoethnographies of adjusting to online student interactions during covid-19 research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 154 figure 1. reciprocal interactions. adapted from social cognitive theory and motivation by d.h. schunk and e.l. usher, 2012. copyright 2012 by american psychological association. the concept of agency, where people intentionally influence the functioning and life circumstances of others in development, adaptation and change, underpins sct. intentionality and forethought are key features of human agency. intentionality relates to the action plans and strategies that people use to achieve their goals. as bandura (2005) pointed out, goals and standards guide and motivate people, the expectations to effectively facilitate student learning, complete syllabuses and create lifelong learners guided us in our quest to find ways to achieve these expectations. it was our agentic powers, through our experiences and abilities that enabled us to attain the goals despite the difficult and minimally supportive environment we found ourselves in. self-efficacy, described as a belief in one’s ability to perform a particular task (bandura, 1986), was critical in exercising our agency (bandura, 1999). as fertman & primack (2009) argued, self-efficacy determines how people behave. the beliefs we had as lecturers were key in pursuing and attaining the teaching goals. in exercising our agency, the environment we operated in influenced us but we also influenced it on our own or in our departments and faculties as groups. the platforms we used and the approaches to instruct, assess and interact with students were a product of our individual and group agency. these changes were largely influenced by our high efficacy levels. as bandura (2005) argued, the efficacy of people plays a crucial role in how they organise, create and manage life circumstances that affect what they become in life. contrary to the behaviourist theory which explained learning as occurring with changes of behaviour, bandura (1977) argued that learning is acquired from the social environment and may occur with or without change of behaviour. with this, bandura accounted for the type of learning that direct reinforcement failed to account. in effect, sct helps us to understand how individual lecturers, adapting to interacting with students online, are influenced by and influence their environments as there is constant interaction between themselves and their teaching environments (in this case, hdi environments). research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 makwembere, s. et al. lecturer autoethnographies of adjusting to online student interactions during covid-19 research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 155 methodology research design a qualitative approach was chosen and an autoethnographic research design was used. autoethnography was selected because hdis have a past of exclusion and marginalisation and it was deemed an approach appropriate to capture experiences in this context. retrospective autoethnography, in particular, was chosen because the participants had to recall past events of the 2020 academic year. as schmid (2019, p. 265) argues, autoethnography “facilitates inclusion and allows for multiple voice(s) and knowledge(s) and thus adds to our collective, multifaceted understanding of south africa”. as a “deeply personal research approach...[it links] identity and culture as well as the individual and social and so simultaneously contextualising the research and the researcher” (schmid, 2019, p. 266). it is an approach to research and writing that seeks to describe and thoroughly analyse personal experiences to understand cultural experiences (ethno) (ellis et al., 2011). it involves critical self-introspection and selfevaluation as a way of improving the quality of output (duncan, 2004). the process records assumptions, perspectives and views, which may contribute to how a lecturer views or understands students. further, the process develops ideas and creativity by capturing inner conversations (duncan, 2004). it records the exact incidence points where someone experiences a change of thinking and understanding. the rigorous self-introspection involves experiencing, examining, observing and revealing (wamsted, 2012). some limitations of the approach need to be acknowledged though. the process can be impeded by a failure to recall events, the inability to understand and interpret as well as the inability to convey messages (wamsted, 2012). it focuses on experiences of the researcher (denejkina, 2017), mostly using first-hand notation, which goes against most methodological approaches which separate the researcher from the subject. when not done retrospectively, it can require constant documentation of personal experiences to avoid loss of memory of emotion, ideas and details. while autoethnography is arguably a contested methodology because of such limitations, when conducted appropriately, it can produce transformative teaching in addition to the pedagogy of teaching. the downside is that accounts of personal experiences may be overemphasised or exaggerated, thereby giving a biased version of results and conclusions (duncan, 2004). the approach taken tried to maximise on the strengths of the approach as well as minimise the shortcomings. sample as autoethnography does not separate the researcher from the researched, a sample in autoethnography reflects the population. in this study, the population was three lecturers and the sample consisted of the three lecturers. the focus was on our online interactions at the one particular university where we lectured during the 2020 academic year. the sample suited the purpose of the study which is to uncover how we experienced and adjusted to online interactions with students during the 2020 academic year. as a qualitative approach was used, the sample is not generalisable to other populations. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 makwembere, s. et al. lecturer autoethnographies of adjusting to online student interactions during covid-19 research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 156 data collection we discussed the objectives of our reflections and how to capture these over three weeks. one week was then dedicated to capturing our reflections. we each focused on an initial reflection of all the courses that we taught and then narrowed this to one course. we had to prepare journals to record our accounts (captured electronically), including evidence of encounters and actions, which were the basis for our findings and discussions. we had to stretch our minds and memories and include all we could remember of our thoughts, feelings, decisions and rationale for our decisions. data analysis the recorded accounts were manually analysed using thematic analysis. one lecturer looked for patterns in the data then identified the main emerging themes. two core themes were established and checked against literature. these core themes were discussed and agreed upon by the group. ethical considerations with autoethnography, there are broader ethical considerations that are needed to be considered such as relational ethics where the experiences shared may have consequences for others, thus any sharing of information needs to take this into account. our identities have been anonymised to respect confidentiality, anonymity and relational ethics principles. we are identified as lecturer 1, lecturer 2 and lecturer 3. what follows is the presentation of findings and discussion based on two main themes that emerged from the analysis of what was shared. findings and discussion the following section presents the findings from our reflections and discussions on these. the three of us have between five to thirteen years’ experience lecturing commerce and social science-related subjects in hdi contexts. the reflections capture the periods when we prepared for online interactions with students as well as when we started interacting with them online during the 2020 academic year. the main tools we used for interactions over the period included whatsapp messenger, microsoft teams, google meet and blackboard (the selected institution’s official learning management system). we chose when and how to use these tools guided by institutional policy frameworks. in explaining our experiences in adjusting to online interactions with students, two main themes emanated from the recorded accounts: alienation and accommodation and the use of coping strategies. these themes are the subject of the following discussions. theme 1: alienation and accommodation alienation, which occurred in the teaching environment, was a shared experience. while university students experience alienation in online learning environments (wei et al., 2012), the findings suggest that as lecturers, we also experienced the same alienation. this alienation emanated from decreased opportunities of engagement with students and peers, a lack of data resources to effectively perform our roles and insufficient preparation for the online transition. factors such as isolation, insufficient resources and inadequate time to prepare were also research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 makwembere, s. et al. lecturer autoethnographies of adjusting to online student interactions during covid-19 research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 157 identified by žižanović et al. (2021) as problematic for remote teaching. linked to this, was a theme on accommodation whereby these were made in response to being insufficiently equipped to teach online. the alienation influenced most of our behaviours, responses and adjustments to remote teaching. individuals regulate their behaviours by constantly assessing the manner they do things in comparison with environmental circumstances (bandura, 1986). we identified resource, leadership and information deficiencies over the period, more so, during the early institutional responses to covid-19 with some improvements by the end of the period under observation. this resonates with the study by czerniewicz et al. (2020) who argue that resources were inadequate to enable effective remote learning, especially at the start of remote teaching and learning. whilst our institution attempted to address the resource limitation to enable teaching and learning to continue, the extent for this provision was constrained by budget affordances. leadership vacuum could have been a result of the unpredictable nature of covid-19 which made informed decision-making challenging (czerniewicz et al., 2020). the main resource we lacked was data to undertake research to prepare for courses, offer live classes and interact with students as well as peers regularly. often, the data meant for teaching and learning was used to attend to administrative matters such as attending departmental meetings. these meetings were numerous during the period when lecturers were expected to start online classes. when recalling their experience during the time ert had just been introduced, lecturer 1 stated: after receiving the router, the number of online meetings increased, ranging from departmental meetings, ... group meetings, and training colleagues. the [x] gigs of data i received was depleted in 6 days after attending 2 blackboard collaborate and one ms team meetings. the purchasing of expensive data, in addition to unstable network, compounded the negative experiences i had with online learning. in all meetings i was the presenter and using my own network provider (not provided by institution), i had to drive to another place and attend the meetings in a car or ask a friend for a place to attend the meetings from. lecturer 1 highlighted that the encounters of insufficient data led to personal accommodations of using personal finances. at times, lecturer 1 had to seek various places to access better network coverage. when recalling the same period, lecturer 2 uncovered similar challenges of insufficient data as lecturer 1. they stated: april to june were months of many meetings and trainings. the data i received just wasn’t enough. i only conducted classes after that period because i did not want to incur higher personal costs trying to make sure i was present for meetings (some lasting 5 hours or even rolling over from one day to the next) and delivering classes. as much as i felt happy that online options were being pursued, i was not going to go out of pocket for the cause. i doubted i would ever be able to claim back any excess costs i incurred buying data so i tried to manage costs. in some of the long meetings, i wished i could just log off before they finished because they were on a platform that was not zero rated. also, i found it annoying that the first thirty minutes was wasted with ‘can you hear me’, ‘please switch off your camera’, ‘please mute yourselves’, ‘i’m struggling research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 makwembere, s. et al. lecturer autoethnographies of adjusting to online student interactions during covid-19 research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 158 with connection’, ‘let’s wait for others to connect’. people were not yet used to online meetings. i just wondered how classes would be handled if meetings were handled this way. lecturer 2 expressed an unwillingness to incur additional personal costs because of this. the online teaching environmental circumstances were characterised by the realities of inadequate resources for online interaction. data allocation was inadequate and internet access was mostly poor, something that was not unique to our case only but also identified by other authors who identified inadequate data and unstable network as constraints to remote teaching and learning (kaisara & bwalya, 2020; wilcox & vignal, 2020; songca et al., 2021; williams et al., 2021). as individuals, we incurred additional financial costs of sourcing data, a mechanism claimed by zapata-garibay et al. (2021) in their study. the lack of resources to participate in online activities had an alienating effect. the experiences revealed that the institution had not yet overcome its resource challenges and the impact of this was isolation despite the accommodations they made. the use of personal data seemed to be an accommodation linked to the urgent need to respond to covid-19. the adaptions of incurring additional personal costs in terms of time and money reveal individual agency under the circumstances. however, not being able to freely and fully participate in online interactions due to the lack of resources had an alienating effect. in hdis, alienation is an “embedded legacy of history” (beresford, 2004). another accommodation that had to be made was that of allowing work to encroach more into home life. we had to adjust our home lives to fit in the new way of working. for example, lecturer 3 stated that: balancing working from home and actual class delivery was a bit of a challenge mainly due to the situation just being unusual to the family and myself. i had to set up an office space in one of the rooms and had to always lock myself when having meetings or classes. it was difficult in the beginning especially having some meeting going on during lunch and after hours. there were actually no normal office hours followed. i had to decide and cut on the meetings that i attend and avoid some meetings where i felt i was not needed that much. this statement suggests that for lecturer 3, they had to make adjustments in their daily routines to ensure that the conditions were conducive for online class delivery. work intruded on personal home space. as shareena and shahid (2020) found, at times, working from home was stressful, uncomfortable and disruptive. each of us had partners and children at home. this meant that we had to fulfil our family responsibilities and deal with the expanded responsibilities that came with institutional adjustments to covid-19. our reflections pointed to tensions balancing family and work life during the early period of the year, a finding that was highlighted by kim and asbury (2020). teachers had to put up with extra hours to cope with extra-ordinary workloads which was strenuous (zapata-garibay et al., 2021) and clashed with personal lives (marshall et al., 2020). in addition, these tensions took place while we had our anxieties about the pandemic. lecturer 1 stated: research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 makwembere, s. et al. lecturer autoethnographies of adjusting to online student interactions during covid-19 research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 159 the major fear i had was the loss of lives rather than the teaching and learning of students. i had a sense of panic not sure if i and my family would survive the pandemic, if we will be able to stick to the precautionary measures, if i wouldn’t get the virus from the shops i had to visit now and again. we started buying bread and other things in bulk to minimise the movement and limit catching the virus. how teaching would take place was not a key concern at the beginning. lecturer 1 had early anxieties about family surviving the pandemic than how teaching would take place. family was an immediate priority. personal and professional responsibilities had to be managed alongside managing anxieties about the risks of covid-19. the sudden shift to remote learning was unsettling and led to socio-emotional stress, as argued by schuck and lambert (2020). the discomfort and anxiety we experienced was not an isolated case as other studies such as kim and asbury (2020), johnson et al. (2020), zapata-garibay et al. (2021), smith-hawkins (2021) also identified anxiety as a consequence of adjusting to online interactions. as much as we experienced challenges working from home, we were concerned about students’ lack of resources and the challenges they possibly faced while studying from home. most of our students who resided in remote rural areas, faced challenges ranging from insufficient data (kaisara & bwalya, 2020), unstable network (songca et al., 2021) and unconducive home environment (obuaku-igwe, 2020). these challenges constrained students from effectively engaging in remote learning. we empathised with the students in light of these challenges. lecturer 3 stated: the 2020 academic year was a challenging year for both lecturers and students. i felt for many students who did not have bursaries and reliable access to internet. i had to give students more time for assessment writing in some instances 12 hours while assessment is open. some students were comfortable to write during the day while others preferred night time. so i had to accommodate all of them. making changes to assessment practices was an important accommodation for students. zhang et al. (2021) argue that more fluid and dynamic circumstances of online teaching require adjustments in assessment practices. lecturer 2 recounted: before lockdown, my experience had been that about a quarter of the class would attend face to face classes, even with threats that non-attendance would have repercussions. now we were in a situation where students were at their homes. what a disaster situation. i just imagined students’ situations. many likely wouldn’t choose to not sit in and listen until an assessment on the materials was due but probably just weren’t able to. most lived in rural areas. connectivity is poor in remote areas. i never checked the lms statistics to know whether students were accessing materials. i thought it was unfair to use such statistics and i wanted to avoid being annoyed. ignorance was bliss regarding this. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 makwembere, s. et al. lecturer autoethnographies of adjusting to online student interactions during covid-19 research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 160 lecturer 1 shared: i was staying in an urban area and my network was pretty bad. i could now imagine the frustration a student deep in the remote rural area would feel about online learning. university campuses provided a shield to the social injustices where they had access to the institution’s network, study spaces and discussion areas. now that they were home, the inequalities were exposed. thinking of all these possible challenges students could face made me feel like i was on an impossible mission. these feelings were also noted by kim and asbury (2020) where teachers were concerned about the vulnerability of their pupils. considering the pressure that the students were experiencing during remote learning (benito et al., 2021), lecturers needed to support and encourage their students to enable effective student learning (aristovnik et al., 2020). studies by songca et al. (2021), yuan (2021) and benito et al. (2021) found and reported that lecturers showed compassion, commitment, empathy and understanding towards their interactions with students during remote learning. while we could empathise with students, we sensed that we were encountering a situation, which we had little control over. as people “act on their judgments of what they can do as well as on their beliefs about the likely effects of various actions” (bandura, 1986, p. 231), we executed specific courses of action amidst complex personal, behavioural and contextual factors. we recognised the alienated positions many students faced due to their socioeconomic backgrounds. we made accommodations where this was possible, for example, by overlooking statistics tracking student activity. theme 2: use of coping strategies the need to cope with the stress associated with the shift to ertl was another major theme. coping strategies were employed amidst fears of the new situation, which involved changes in teaching and learning methodologies to interact with students online. the fears exhibited in the reviews were also reported by kim and asbury (2020) who claimed that teachers felt overwhelmed by the changes they were experiencing. the strategies included problemfocused strategies, avoidant strategies as well as emotional support (macintyre et al., 2020). the context in which these coping strategies were applied was characterised by factors (technical and non-technical) such as revisions to the academic year, which affected teaching schedules, pressures to complete all teaching within a limited time; poor network coverage of service providers; delays or absence of comprehensive managerial instructions; persistent data and network access challenges as well as knowledge gaps on how to use certain online platforms. these factors were also highlighted in several other studies (czerniewicz et al., 2020; ferri et al., 2020; kaisara & bwalya, 2020; songca et al., 2021). these strategies seemed to instil a sense of coping self-efficacy to varying degrees. the stronger the instilled sense of coping self-efficacy, the bolder the behaviour (bandura, 1982). we had to alternate between live online classes and other ways such as sharing pre-recorded videos on whatsapp, choosing when to engage with students during the teaching and learning. these coping strategies contributed to our self-efficacy. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 makwembere, s. et al. lecturer autoethnographies of adjusting to online student interactions during covid-19 research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 161 when recalling the way they coped with the new teaching situations, lecturer 1 stated: my first virtual session on ms teams was in early august and since then, started meeting the...students on a weekly basis. this session was very unpleasant and unstable, the network played a huge role in this unpleasantness. students complained that i was inaudible and they could barely follow the class discussions, very few participated. i also noticed that several students were being kicked out of the session which impacted the engagements. to add to the discomfort, i didn’t know which functions were best suited for my students and the students didn’t make the situation any better by not participating. some of the students had their microphones unmuted, which greatly distracted the session. for some, even after muting them, they would unmute themselves for the reasons i am unaware of...the poor network connection meant that i had to have my classes at places where the network was stable. i had to drive somewhere, away from my place of accommodation, most of the time. i had to conduct the classes mostly in the car or a friend’s places. this wasn't a good experience as it didn't offer privacy and i could easily be distracted. it also increased the risk of being robbed of the equipment. lecturer 1 expressed a sense of displeasure. further, lecturer 1 said: whilst wa [whatsapp] enabled a better experience, it was difficult to control and was at times flooded with consultations at the same time, especially closer to the times for assessments. some students also sent enquiries late into the night. i did not mind messages being sent at those times but would normally not respond until morning. ... all these approaches i had to adopt without proper guidance from leadership. many people shared my feelings, my experiences could have been better with timely communication and direction. the feelings of despair were made worse by different stories being said along the corridors, including moving to another learning management system. this did not, however affect me much as i did not mind learning new ways and had already adopted wa [whatsapp] and ms [microsoft teams] as my preferred platforms where i would integrate with google forms and youtube. lack of timely communication from authorities gave me the autonomy to try a number of other ways to interact with students. lecturer 1 was able to use problem-focused coping skills. the absence of clear instructions and direction lead to numerous challenges as was also found by žižanović et al. (2021). it should, however be noted that the lack of guidance could have been caused by the difficulty in making substantive decisions because of the nature of the pandemic, which was unpredictable (czerniewicz et al., 2020). it was therefore, difficult for leaders to make decisions without proper understanding of the behaviour of the virus. also reflecting on the way they coped with the demands of the new online teaching situations lecturer 2 stated: shifts in the academic calendar caused confusion for my plans. september to november was a time i just tried to squeeze as much as possible. assessments were done, in most cases without comprehensive feedback, just general feedback. i was starting to feel research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 makwembere, s. et al. lecturer autoethnographies of adjusting to online student interactions during covid-19 research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 162 overwhelmed with demands. while instruction was received that teaching could end by december, my understanding was that i needed to complete everything before end of november...i was constantly tired and at times ignored my work phone for a few days to pretend that i didn’t have students asking for clarity on assignments, whether or not they would have to write exams. lecturer 2 recalled how they felt overwhelmed with demands and used avoidant coping strategies. obtaining emotional support is an important coping strategy (macintyre et al., 2020). at times, we proactively created collegial support systems which we contributed to and benefited from. our self-efficacy contributed to our agency as well as the collective agency of lecturers as a group. personal factors facilitated opportunities to support colleagues and students. lecturer 3 said: generally, i do not panic and get anxiety especially when caused by the situation beyond my control. so i was always engaging students even when they were pointing that time is going to remain calm. i was also mentoring and engaging other staff members who were beginning to panic as the year progresses. so i somehow played a role in calming both my peers and students and in each of my lectures i always encouraged my students to adhere to covid-19 regulations. lecturer 3 pointed to a personality trait that contributed to not being anxious. this enabled better coping of the pressured situations and provision of support to students and colleagues. using coping mechanisms when going through the challenging period proved to be valuable for all of us as such mechanisms build resilience (subedi & subedi, 2020). recommendations the interaction between personal, behavioural and contextual or environmental factors while adjusting to online interactions with students is revealed in the excerpts of the autoethnographies. what follows are recommendations on ways to enhance lecturer abilities to adjust to online learning in hdi contexts. encourage compassionate agency lecturers are agents of change. lecturer’s thoughts and feelings affect their behaviour and their behaviour can change hdi environments positively or negatively. having concern for not just knowledge on the implications of behaviours could direct decision-making towards more positive outcomes. for example, lecturers can be encouraged to interrogate their actions of unreasonably limiting interactions with students as a reinforcement of student realities of marginalisation and historic social injustices. allow flexibility with guided support allowing flexibility in coping strategies as lecturers cope with making adjustments needed for online learning can improve their self-efficacy. the benefit would be that lecturers who know their abilities and lecturing contexts well can be positioned to respond appropriately to shifting circumstances. this flexibility with guided support could have positive outcomes as rigidity could result in lost opportunities to cater to unique student needs. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 makwembere, s. et al. lecturer autoethnographies of adjusting to online student interactions during covid-19 research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 163 relevance of autoethnography in south african historically disadvantaged institutions autoethnography can facilitate viewpoints and expose misrepresentations of happenings at hdis. these viewpoints can challenge hegemonic discourse that reinforces the labels of hdi as, for example, unchanging or unresponsive to higher education priorities to develop or an absence of resources to an absence of agency to enable positive education outcomes. there needs to be a “validation” (whitinui, 2014) of the importance of the ‘self’ in the bigger picture of transformation at hdis. elevating the voices of individuals at hdi can allow them to share their realities as they see and experience them. while autoethnography would be useful for research on hdis, it would require capacitating people on how to use it. this is pivotal because sharing experiences may cause anxieties about the consequences of sharing reflectively, for example, losing jobs or compromised professional integrity. reflection needs to be understood as an integral part of transformation through individual agency. as the methodology is presently not widely used for research on south african hdis, efforts to enhance its validity within the academic community should be made so that it is accommodated and those that use it for studies are not overlooked by scholarly conventions that already suffer from challenges such as gatekeeping. the intention of autoethnography is never to recall facts and events but to “lift out” and “share” “meaning from (marginalised) experiences” (schmid, 2019, p. 273). the recalling can compromise individuals or even the institutions. therefore, ethics must be thoughtfully handled to minimise any harm to those directly or indirectly affected by the use of the approach. conclusion our adjustments to online instruction during remote learning was not smooth sailing due to a myriad of challenges faced by the selected institution and students we interacted with, where the majority were residing in remote rural areas. through the reflective journals, the major constraints to adjustments to remote teaching included insufficient data, poor internet connection, technical challenges and perceived lack of support. despite the alienations we experienced, mainly due to the aforementioned factors, we banked on our agentic powers to get around these challenges and interact with our students. this, we managed primarily through our self-efficacy which positively influenced teaching and learning. the social support that we provided to students and colleagues also made our online interactions much easier. covid-19 has resulted in a myriad of changes at hdis. the accounts captured in the article point to some of what was encountered for one academic year. we did not capture all experiences and meanings relating to online interactions with students but we shed light on experiences and processes that took place that may have gone unexplored. the contexts of historically disadvantaged heis warrant innovative methodologies that place the researchers as agents that are not far removed from their contexts but recognise their agencies in the structures and cultures produced and reproduced through the research process. thus, autoethnographic approaches can achieve this innovatively, contributing to understanding the factors responsible for transformations at hdis under covid-19 and other situations. disclosure and conflict of interest the authors declare that they have no conflict of interest. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 makwembere, s. et al. lecturer autoethnographies of adjusting to online student interactions during covid-19 research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 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(2021). educational challenges of emergency remote teaching and learning during the coronavirus crisis. proceedings of intcess 2021 8th international conference on education and education of social sciences, 231– 241. https://doi.org/10.51508/intcess.2021168 research in social sciences and technology https://ressat.org e-issn: 2468-6891 volume: 7 issue: 2 2022 pp. 87-107 blended learning challenges during covid-19: a case of cost accounting 2 students at a selected south african higher education institution onke gqokonqana*a, odunayo magret olarewajua & melanie bernice cloetea * corresponding author email: ogqokonqana@wsu.ac.za a. department of cost and management accounting, faculty of accounting and informatics, durban university of technology, durban, south africa. article info received: april 4, 2022 revised: may 21, 2022 accepted: june 22, 2022 how to cite gqokonqana, o., olarewaju, o. m., & cloete, m. b. (2022). blended learning challenges during covid-19: a case of cost accounting 2 students at a selected south african higher education institution. research in social sciences and technology, 7(2), 87-107 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2022.11 copyright license this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 abstract every sector in the twenty-first century makes use of technology for its activities, especially during the covid-19 pandemic and higher education institutions are not exceptional. however, the cohorts enrolled in the selected higher education institution are from technologically challenged backgrounds. this suggests that in their previous schooling, technology was unemployed as a learning aid. as this may present some challenges for such students, this study aims to investigate challenges experienced by cost accounting 2 students who are from a technologically disadvantaged background. to accomplish that, a quantitative approach was used since it permits surveys to be delivered to the entire impacted population while also reducing sampling error. because of the coronavirus, online questionnaires were sent to 400 students, but only 119 (n=119) responded. blended learning was found to be an effective technique for learning cost accounting 2 since the university provided sufficient information on how to use the system. however, there was a lot of discussion about internet access, learning materials access, and library resource access. based on the findings, the blended learning is excellent for studying cost accounting 2 as long as the learning management system is customised such that students can navigate it effortlessly. management must work with internet service providers to try stabilise internet connectivity in the students’ neighbourhoods. the additional study can be done using a variety of research methods and target other groups of students. keywords blended learning; accounting education; student challenges; technological disadvantaged background; covid-19. 10.46303/ressat.2022.11 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2022.11 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ 88 ressat 2022, 7(2): 87-107 introduction and background the fourth industrial revolution (4ir) necessitates that higher education institutions expand their technology systems, implement new teaching and learning modalities, and remove impediments to innovation (gleason, 2018). similarly, boosting education, training, and innovation in this knowledge society is discussed in chapter 9 of the national development plan (national planning commission, 2010). as a result, higher education institutions have no choice but to modify their teaching and learning methods to produce graduates with the requisite 21st century skills, which include critical thinking skills, problem-solving abilities, and the ability to adapt to change as society grows (mahanal et al., 2019). the traditional chalk and talk method have become less effective because of this transition (maycock, 2019). the coronavirus (covid-19) pandemic also enforces higher education institutions (heis) to drastically move from face-to-face to emergency remote teaching and learning (ertl) (hodges et al., 2020; czerniewicz et al., 2020). this move was purely relying on the use of technology devices for teaching and learning activities. as we are embracing the change, we need not to forget about students who are the most important stakeholders. this paper will focus on students who are from a technologically disadvantaged educational background in an attempt to establish the challenges they are facing with the introduced blended learning (bl) mode of learning. the selected hei is still making progress in incorporating technology with conventional instruction, which is referred to as blended learning (hompashe, 2018). according to liu et al., (2016), blended learning is frequently employed in education. research question it is because of this background that the study explores the challenges faced by students from the technologically disadvantaged educational background by answering the following question: • what challenges do students from a technologically disadvantaged background experience with blended learning in learning cost accounting 2? literature review students from technologically disadvantaged backgrounds, blended learning, generation z as well as the impact of covid-19 will be reviewed to understand what the world is saying about the student challenges in the bl mode of learning. the study will pay a specific focus on cost accounting 2 students. students from a technologically disadvantaged background under apartheid, historically disadvantaged institutions (hdis) met the educational needs of the former bantu homelands, which were marked by discrepancies as compared to their affluent equivalents, resulting in social hierarchies (africa & mutizwa-mangiza, 2017). the democratic government adopts a scheme of subsidising basic education schools according to quantile 89 ressat 2022, 7(2): 87-107 categorisation to bridge the gap created by the apartheid regime (ogbonnaya & awuah, 2019). most schools in the selected hei province have been in quintiles one and three since the system’s establishment. these are public schools that are fully sponsored by the government but lack sophisticated resources to carry out their educational operations. because they rely on government financing, the priority is to have basic learning resources. as a result, they are not introduced to technology as a learning tool. these schools eventually became the feeder schools of the selected higher educational institution (hompashe, 2018). this labelling (hdi) impacts on those who can choose which university to attend. labelling has also instilled in the person working in a labelled institution a stereotypical way of thinking (africa & mutizwa-mangiza, 2017). when bl is offered to students with such background, it may have an impact on their learning of cost accounting 2. this technological infusion may excite students since they will respect the university’s efforts in the face of adversity. on the other hand, learners may reject the learning process because they believe it will not work for them and is foreign to their learning because they have not been exposed to technology as a learning tool (parker et al., 2021). hence, this study attempts to understand cost accounting 2 students’ challenges towards bl mode. blended learning bl does not have a single definition. some authors define blended learning as a mix of instructional modalities or delivery mediums (crawford & jenkins, 2017). others define it as a mix of face-to-face and online learning (ruokonen & ruismäki, 2016). blended learning is described as a form of education in which students learn using electronic and online media in addition to traditional face-to-face instruction in this study. blended learning not only allows teachers and students to exchange synchronous and asynchronous feedback, but it also meets educational needs such as increasing learning satisfaction, increasing convenience and flexibility, achieving and improving language learning skills, and developing critical thinking skills. according to ma et al. (2019) and borglum (2016), allowing students to express questions anonymously is critical; after all, they may lack the confidence to do so in a classroom context or on a blended learning discussion board because they believe their queries are foolish. yuerong et al. (2017) claim that students may experience culture and learning shock because of being exposed to a novel learning scenario. phakakat and sovajassatakul (2020) argue that electronic engagement can no longer maintain the characteristics and multi-dimensionality of the tutor-student connection that actual learning appears to necessitate. in contrast, the selected hei is transitioning to blended courses to meet the needs of undergraduate students enrolled in completely traditional faceto-face courses. this infusion of technology may pose some challenges to students from technologically disadvantaged backgrounds. 90 ressat 2022, 7(2): 87-107 generation z (gen.z) generation z is defined as a technologically privileged generation born between 1995 and 2012 (grace-bridges, 2019). because they are known as techno-savvy, it is assumed that they will be interested in using the learning management system (wiseup). according to research, gen.z has an impact on the workplace (seemiller et al., 2019). ninety-one percent believe that the technological sophistication of a company influences their decision to work for it. it is consequently imperative that higher education institutions take considerable care in preparing this generation for the workplace of the 20st century. the study assumes that most registered students at the selected hei belong to gen.z. as a result, the purpose of this study is to determine how students perceive blended learning in cost accounting 2. coronavirus (covid-19) on march 8, 2020, south african officials announced the first coronavirus infection. to prevent the virus from spreading, the south african government stopped all schools, including universities and other educational institutions, until march 26, 2020 (government news agency of south africa, 2020). most countries issued a complete or partial border lockdown to prevent the spread of coronavirus among their nationals (mhlanga & moloi, 2020). various education institutions around the world also made substantial efforts to reduce face-to-face interactions between students and lecturers. they proposed that all academic teaching be executed virtually at higher education institutions. as a result, during the first semester, all face-to-face academic activities were suspended (czerniewicz et al., 2020; dube et al., 2022). this virus necessitated the importance of infusing technology into learning and that poses various connectivity challenges (williams et al., 2021) however, the question remains: where does this infusion of technology place the learners who are from a technologically disadvantaged educational background? methods design the study design is descriptive to describe a population, situation or phenomenon accurately and systematically (mccombes & van den eertwegh, 2019). this design is relevant for this study as it allows the researcher to collect large amounts of data and can evaluate users’ satisfaction with participants’ views. however, its limitation is that the researcher cannot make inferences about causality (mccombes & van den eertwegh, 2019). thus, a cross-sectional design will be employed because it is used to assess the burden of the needs of a population, and the data will be collected at one time. sampling procedure and participants the study took a census approach, that is, (n = 400). the census approach was adopted as it allowed the study to capture the students’ challenges on bl. this approach was effective in 91 ressat 2022, 7(2): 87-107 understanding how the entire population felt about a newly introduced mode of learning in studying cost accounting 2 (charman et al., 2016). therefore, the sample size included all students registered for the second year of cost accounting. the participants were mostly from rural areas, and they were unfamiliar with technologyassisted learning. because of the findings, the selected hei, which is in the eastern part of south africa's eastern cape, made greater use of traditional face-to-face teaching and learning modes in their first year and gradually introduced to bl. prior to covid-19, the department of accounting and finance in the faculty of business sciences planned to make greater use of bl when students were in their second year onwards. when the pandemic struck, we shifted to emergency remote teaching and learning (ertl) (czerniewicz et al., 2020). research instrument the students were given the questionnaires at the end of the semester. the researcher designed an online survey in a likert scale format using the question pro application to gather the data and because it allows standardised and numerical data to be collected; then later it was analysed (sarosa, 2019). the questionnaire was categorised into the following two sections to collect data from the respondents: (1) demographic information, and (2) challenges experienced with bl. a letter of information and informed consent to participate was attached to the online questionnaire. reliability and validity with hayward et al. (2019), internal consistency reliability refers to the consistency with which a test's results are presented, ensuring that the numerous items measuring the various constructs produce consistent results. the focus groups in this study were given identical questionnaires and same timeframes to gather data. cronbach's alpha coefficient was utilised to assess the research instrument's reliability. a reliability of 0.70 or greater was considered suitable. the table below indicates the reliability of the data collected: table 1. analysis of reliability main theoretical variables valid n items used cronbach’s α blended learning challenges 108 16 0.724** **significantly acceptable reliability table 1 shows the results of the data collection instrument’s internal consistency test. the study instrument’s dependability was assessed using cronbach’s alpha coefficient. dependability of 0.70 or more is deemed acceptable. the cronbach’s alpha for the scales, which are blended learning problems (alpha = 0.724), reveals acceptable reliability coefficients for the research instruments. the questionnaire was piloted with ten students from the target population through a preliminary survey to clear and minimise ambiguity and confusion (palmieri, 2020). the study 92 ressat 2022, 7(2): 87-107 revealed that participants were unclear on the term ‘perception’ and a revision was made where necessary to eliminate the confusion. feedback from the pilot participants contributed towards the revision. this was essential to ensure the reliability of the measures and meaningfulness of the data and knowledge unearthed through the study (ariffin et al., 2016). data collection marchalot et al. (2018) stated that online questionnaires have become a popular method of data collection, and considering the covid-19 induced restrictions on movements and lockdowns, this is the most appropriate method. the decision to utilise a questionnaire was also arrived at based on the understanding that the researcher could ask questions that were consistent with the data analysis techniques adopted. overall statistic report indicated a total of 208 responses out of 400 and of this number, only 119 completed the questionnaire. the link was sent out a week before the semester break, which was 05 july 2021 to 08 august 2021. a whatsapp message to the group was sent weekly to remind the participants to respond until the last week. in a descriptive study, the frequency and percentages of how respondents viewed various items were analysed to identify the general perception of participants regarding blended learning issues. on a 4-point likert scale, 1 indicated strong disagreement and 4 indicated strong agreement. before the study, all items were coded and written so that higher ratings (3-agree and 4-strongly agree) indicated that the respondents agreed that the issue was a barrier to blended learning. the following themes for blended learning challenges were discovered: (1) internet access, (2) learning resources access, (3) library resources access, and (4) prior online learning and training. data analysis data were captured on an excel spreadsheet and the statistical package for social science version 25 (spss v:25) package was utilised to analyse the data and assess student challenges on bl. the researcher used descriptive and inferential statistics to analyse the data. the process of data analysis has been defined as the systematic organisation and synthesis of the research data and the testing of research hypotheses (brown et al., 2019). findings descriptive statistics for biographical variables before delving deeper into the data, basic distributions based on the study’s biographical profile were run. the biographical factors in the study were documented using a descriptive method (see table 2 below). the respondents indicated that the sample comprised rural south africans in their responses. 93 ressat 2022, 7(2): 87-107 table 2. descriptive statistics for biographical variables variable levels df f valid % gender male 1 44 40.0 female 66 60.0 race black 1 108 98.2 white 2 1.8 age 18 to 20 years 4 25 22.7 21 to 25 years 66 60.0 26 to 30 years 12 10.9 31 to 35 years 6 5.5 36 years and above 1 0.9 home language xhosa 2 104 95.4 english 1 0.9 zulu 4 3.7 n=110 gender distribution of percentages the descriptive statistics of the biographical data are represented graphically and described below. figure 1 depicts the gender of respondents. many of the respondents (60.0%, n = 66) were female, while male respondents comprised 40.0% of the respondents (n = 44). figure 1: gender distribution of responses race-based percentage distribution male 40.0% female 60.0% gender distribution of responses 94 ressat 2022, 7(2): 87-107 the race-based percentage distribution is depicted in figure 2. according to the graph, the bulk of respondents (98.2 percent; n = 108) are black africans, with only two white respondents (1.8 percent). there were no additional races in the sample. figure 2. race-based percentage distribution age distribution of percentages the distribution of respondents by age is depicted in figure 3. the bulk of respondents (60.0 percent, n = 66) are between the ages of 21 and 25, with 22.7 percent (n = 25) between the ages of 18 and 20. twelve respondents (10.9 percent) are between the ages of 26 and 30, while only one (0.9 percent) is between the ages of 36 and above. this demonstrates that gen.z is the university intake mentioned in the literature. figure 3: age distribution of percentage distribution of percentages by home language black 98% white 2% race-based percentage distribution 18 to 20 years 21 to 25 years 26 to 30 years 31 to 35 years 36 years and above 22.7% 60% 10.9% 5.5% 0.9% age distribution of percentages 95 ressat 2022, 7(2): 87-107 figure 4 shows that most of the respondents (95.4%, n = 104) were isixhosa speaking. on the other hand, 3.7% (n = 4) reported that their home language was isizulu, whilst only one (0.9%) respondent reported english as a home language. figure 4: distribution of percentages by home language the general perception of participants regarding blended learning challenges. the general view of participants about blended learning challenges was determined using a nonparametric chi-square test for equality of proportions. this test analyses how respondents answered several items on the study instrument to see whether there were any significant changes. this was done to investigate the issues that students from underserved technological backgrounds face with blended learning. this section answered the following research question to achieve this goal: • what challenges do students from a technologically disadvantaged background experience with blended learning on learning cost accounting 2? the frequency and percentages of how the respondents regarded various things were assessed in a descriptive analysis to determine the general perception of participants regarding blended learning challenges. the items were graded on a 4-point likert scale, with 1 indicating strong disagreement and 4 indicating strong agreement. data were adjusted before analysis, and all items were coded and written so that higher ratings (3-agree and 4-strongly agree) indicate that respondents agree that the item is difficult to blended learning. we then developed themes for the blended learning challenges, which are (1) access to the internet, (2) access to learning resources, (3) access to library resources, (4) prior online learning and training, and (5) covid-19 restrictions. the descriptive analysis of each challenge is presented below. blended learning challenges: access to the internet the data show that many of the participants disagreed on most of the items, reflecting participants’ overall perceptions of internet availability as a blended learning problem. as a result, most students disagreed with the assertions that they did not have dependable internet xhosa english zulu 95.4% 0.9% 3.7% distribution of percentages by home language 96 ressat 2022, 7(2): 87-107 access or that they did not have access to course materials over the internet. on the other hand, many respondents felt that efficient internet facilities, such as public libraries and internet cafes, were few where they lived. table 3. participants’ general perceptions of internet availability as a blended learning problem are shown by frequencies and percentages. n=110, statements were rated on a 4-point scale from 1 (strongly disagree) to 4 (strongly agree). to check if there was any statistically significant evidence to suggest the general view of the participants with statistical certainty, a non-parametric chi-square test of equal proportions was utilised. to do this, the 4-point likert scale was decreased to a 2-point likert scale. thus, 1strongly disagree (sd) and 2-disagree (d) were combined to become 1-disagree, whereas 4strongly agree (sa) and 3-agree (a) were combined to form 2-agree. to examine if the proportions of the different established categories differed, the chi-square test was utilised table 4.4 and figure 4.5 illustrate the results of the chi-square tests, respectively. most of the participants (n = 84; 76.4 percent) reported having a reliable internet connection, which was statistically significant (chi-square = 30.582; p < 0.0001). the chi-square test revealed statistically significant evidence (chi-square = 76.945; = 0.0001) that many of the participants (n = 101; 91.8 percent) have internet access to course materials (chi-square = 76.945; = 0.0001). the findings also suggested that where most students lived, there was limited access to efficient internet facilities such as public libraries and internet cafes (chi-square = 10.509; p = 0.001). table 4. non-parametric chi-square results on participants' general perceptions of internet access as a blended learning obstacle. do you agree with the remarks below? sd d a sa i do not have reliable access to the internet n = 18 (16.4%) n = 66 (60.0%) n = 17 (15.5%) n = 9 (8.2%) i do not have access to course materials online over the internet n = 27 (24.5%) n = 74 (67.3%) n = 6 (5.5%) n = 3 (2.7%) where i live there is extremely limited access to efficient internet facilities such as public libraries and internet cafes n = 10 (9.1%) n = 28 (25.5%) n = 42 (38.2%) n = 30 (27.3%) item do you agree with the following statements? disagree agree chisquare p-value 1 i do not have reliable access to the internet n = 84 (76.4%) n = 26 (23.6%) 30.582 <0.000 1* 2 i do not have access to course materials online over the internet n = 101 (91.8%) n = 9 (8.2%) 76.945 <0.000 1* 97 ressat 2022, 7(2): 87-107 n=110, (*) statistically significant differences (at alpha = 0.05). statements were rated on a 2point scale from 1 (disagree) and 2 (agree). figure 2. general student’s perception of access to the internet as a blended learning challenge. blended learning challenges: access to learning resources the frequency and percentage distributions reveal that many of the participants disagreed on most items measuring the general perception of participants regarding access to learning resources as a blended learning challenge (see table 5). thus, most students disagreed with the statements that they did not have access to tutors/lecturers. besides, they had in sufficient access to different forms of media such as audio and videos. the data also suggested that most students reported that blended learning gave access to enough resources at my university as well as that blended learning gave access to quality resources to learn at my university. however, there were conflicting results when students were responding to the statement that learning cost accounting 2 through the blended model was inefficient. this could be because the participants were from technologically disadvantaged backgrounds, thus not used to bl mode, hence the resistance. at the same time, others were willing to embrace the move as they paid more attention to its benefits. to check if there was any statistically significant evidence to suggest the general view of the participants with statistical certainty, a non-parametric chi-square test of equal proportions was utilised. as shown in table 6, many students had access to tutors/lecturers (n = 93; 84.5 percent; chi-square = 52.509; p = 0.0001). there was also enough data to demonstrate that most students had ample access to various forms of media such as audio and videos as part of blended learning (n = 99; 90.0 percent; chi-square = 70.400; p = 0.0001). majority of the item 1 item 2 item 3 76.4% 91.8% 34.5% 23.6% 8.2% 65.5% percentage item 1 item 2 item 3 %agree 23.6 8.2 65.5 %disagree 76.4 91.8 34.5 challenges regarding access to internet 3 where i live there is limited access to efficient internet facilities such as public libraries and internet cafes n = 38 (34.5%) n = 72 (65.5%) 10.509 0.001* 98 ressat 2022, 7(2): 87-107 participants also reported that blended learning gives access to enough resources at the university (n = 73; 66.4%; chi-square = 11.782; p = 0.001). in addition, the chi-square test suggests that blended learning givees access to quality resources to learn at the university. (n = 75; 68.8%; chi-square = 15.422; p = <0.0001). however, the respondents neither agreed nor disagreed that learning cost accounting 2 through the blended model was inefficient (chisquare = 1.333; p = 0.248). the findings were summarised in figure 7. cost accounting 2 is practical; therefore, the participants found the additional resources found under this bl mode to be more beneficial to their learning. the study also assumed that the dilemma found was because of the participant’s background. table 5. participants’ general perceptions of access to learning resources as a blended learning problem are represented by frequencies and percentages. n=110, statements were graded on a scale of 1 (strongly disagree) to 4 (strongly agree) (strongly agree). table 6. non-parametric results of the chi-square test on participants’ general perceptions of the availability of learning resources as a blended learning issue. do you agree with the following statements? sd d a sa as part of blended learning, i do not have access to tutors/lecturers n = 27 (24.5%) n = 66 (60.0%) n = 15 (13.6%) n = 2 (1.8%) as part of blended learning, i do not have sufficient access to different forms of media such as audio and videos n = 29 (26.4%) n = 70 (63.6%) n = 9 (8.2%) n = 2 (1.8%) blended learning does not give access to enough resources at my university. n = 15 (13.6%) n = 58 (52.7%) n = 32 (29.1%) n = 5 (4.5%) blended learning does not give access to quality resources to learn at my university. n = 14 (12.8%) n = 61 (56.0%) n = 29 (26.6%) n = 5 (4.6%) learning of cost accounting 2 through the blended model is not efficient n = 16 (14.8%) n = 32 (29.6%) n = 40 (37.0%) n = 20 (18.5%) item do you agree with the following statements? disagree agree chisquare exact p-value 1 as part of blended learning, i do not have access to tutors/lecturers n = 93 (84.5%) n = 17 (15.5%) 52.509 <0.000 1* 2 as part of blended learning, i do not have sufficient access to different forms of media such as audio and videos n = 99 (90.0%) n = 11 (10.0%) 70.400 <0.000 1* 3 blended learning does not give access to enough resources at my university. n = 73 (66.4%) n = 37 (33.6%) 11.782 0.001* 4 blended learning does not give access to quality resources to learn at my university. n = 75 (68.8%) n = 34 (31.2%) 15.422 <0.000 1* 99 ressat 2022, 7(2): 87-107 n=110, (*) differences that are statistically significant (at alpha = 0.05). the statements were graded on a two-point scale of 1 (disagree) to 2 (agree) (agree). figure 3. general student’s perception of access to learning resources as a blended learning challenge. blended learning challenges: access to library resources and prior online learning and training the descriptive analysis revealed that the respondents had mixed perceptions on most items measuring the general perception of participants regarding access to library resources and prior online learning and training (see table 7). thus, an equal number of students disagreed and agreed that there were no sufficient library resources available online for cost accounting 2 students to use. this was also a similar case when asked whether, in their previous learning (school level), they did not make use of technology as a learning tool. many of the participants disagreed that there are no accessible library resources available online for cost accounting students to use. however, the frequencies and percentages suggested that before the use of online platforms for learning, there was enough training provided by the institution. table 7. participants’ perceptions of access to library resources, as well as prior online learning and training, are represented by frequencies and percentages. item 1 item 2 item 3 item 4 item 5 %disagree 84.5 90 66.4 68.8 44.4 %agree 15.5 10 33.6 31.2 55.6 84.5% 90.0% 66.4% 68.8% 44.4% 15.5% 10.0% 33.6% 31.2% 55.6% p e rc e n ta g e challenges regarding access to learning resources 5 learning of cost accounting 2 through the blended model is not efficient n = 48 (44.4%) n = 60 (55.6%) 1.333 0.248 do you agree with the remarks below? sd d a sa there are no sufficient library resources available online for cost accounting 2 students to use. n = 16 (14.8%) n = 39 (36.1%) n = 39 (36.1%) n = 14 (13.0%) there are no accessible library resources available online for cost accounting 2 students to use n = 16 (14.8%) n = 48 (44.4%) n = 32 (29.6%) n = 12 (11.1%) in my previous learning (school level), i did not make use of technology as a learning tool? n = 19 (17.6%) n = 35 (32.4%) n = 32 (29.6%) n = 22 (20.4%) 100 ressat 2022, 7(2): 87-107 n=110, statements were graded on a scale of 1 (strongly disagree) to 4 (strongly agree) (strongly agree). to check if there was any statistically significant evidence to suggest the general view of the participants with statistical certainty, a non-parametric chi-square test of equal proportions was utilised. table 8 shows the results of the chi-square testing. the institution presented statistically significant evidence that proper training was offered prior to the use of online learning platforms (n = 78; 72.2 percent; chi-square = 21.333; p < 0.0001). there was, however, statistically significant evidence that respondents did not agree or disagree that there were insufficient library resources available online for cost accounting 2 students to use (chi-square = 0.037; p = 0.847) or that there were no accessible library resources available online for cost accounting 2 students to use (chi-square = 3.704; p = 0.054). finally, the data revealed significant evidence that an equal number of students agreed and disagreed that they did not use technology as a learning tool in their previous learning (school level) (chi-square = 0.000; p = 1.000). the graphical presentation is shown in figure 8. table 8. non-parametric results of chi-square tests on participants’ general perceptions of library resources and past online learning and training. n=110, (*) differences that are statistically significant (at alpha = 0.05). the statements were graded on a two-point scale of 1 (disagree) to 2 (agree) (agree). before the use of online platforms for learning, there was not enough training provided by the institution. n = 25 (23.1%) n = 53 (49.1%) n = 22 (20.4%) n = 8 (7.4%) item do you agree with the remarks below? disagree agree chisquare p-value 1 there are no sufficient library resources available online for cost accounting 2 students to use. n = 55 (50.9%) n = 53 (49.1%) 0.037 0.847 2 there are no accessible library resources available online for cost accounting 2 students to use n = 64 (59.3%) n = 44 (40.7%) 3.704 0.054 3 in my previous learning (school level), i did not make use of technology as a learning tool? n = 54 (50.0%) n = 54 (50.0%) 0.000 1.000 4 before the use of online platforms for learning, there was not enough training provided by the institution. n = 78 (72.2%) n = 30 (27.8%) 21.333 <0.000 1* 101 ressat 2022, 7(2): 87-107 figure 4. student’s perceptions of library resources, as well as past online learning and training. blended learning challenges: covid-19 restrictions the frequency and percentage distributions showed that most of the participants agreed on most of the items, reflecting participants' general perceptions of covid-19 limits as a blended learning obstacle. as a result, most students felt that there were insufficient library resources available online for cost accounting 2 students to utilise and that there were no accessible library resources available online for cost accounting 2 students to use. according to the findings, most students reported that the covid-19 epidemic had affected their teaching and learning processes. however, according to the descriptive analysis, the respondents claimed that the university was providing enough resources (such as data and laptops) for online learning during the covid-19 epidemic. table 9. participants’ general perceptions of covid-19 limits as a blended learning difficulty are represented by frequencies and percentages. n=110, statements were graded on a scale of 1 (strongly disagree) to 4 (strongly agree) (strongly agree). item 1 item 2 item 3 item 4 %disagree 50.9 59.3 50 72.2 %agree 49.1 40.7 50 27.8 50.9% 59.3% 50.0% 72.2% 49.1% 40.7% 50.0% 27.8% p e rc e n ta g e students perceptions of library resources, as well as past online learning and training do you agree with the remarks below? sd d a sa covid-19 pandemic limited the physical visit to internet café. n = 3 (2.8%) n = 11 (10.2%) n = 50 (46.3%) n = 44 (40.7%) the covid-19 pandemic reduces face to face as a part of blended learning. n = 2 (1.9%) n = 2 (1.9%) n = 48 (44.4%) n = 56 (51.9%) the teaching and learning process changes due to the covid-19 pandemic. n = 4 (3.7%) n = 1 (0.9%) n = 39 (36.1%) n = 64 (59.3%) the school is not providing enough resources (such as data and laptops) for online learning during the covid-19 pandemic. n = 46 (42.6%) n = 47 (43.5%) n = 10 (9.3%) n = 5 (4.6%) 102 ressat 2022, 7(2): 87-107 to check if there was any statistically significant evidence to suggest the general view of the participants with statistical certainty, a non-parametric chi-square test of equal proportions was utilised. in table 10, the results of the chi-square tests are reported. there was statistically substantial evidence that the covid-19 epidemic reduced the number of people visiting an internet café (n = 94; 87.0 percent; chi-square = 59.259; p = 0.0001). the covid-19 epidemic also reduced face-to-face learning as part of blended learning (n = 104; 87.0 percent; chi-square = 92.93; p = 0.0001). the teaching and learning process had also changed because of the covid19 epidemic (n = 103; 95.4 %; chi-square = 88.926; p = 0.0001). finally, the chi-square test indicates that during the covid-19 pandemic, the school was providing sufficient resources (such as data and laptops) for online learning (chi-square = 856.333; p = 0.0001). figure 9 depicts the graphical presentation. table 10. results of a non-parametric chi-square test on participants' general perceptions of covid-19 constraints as a blended learning challenge. n=110, (*) differences that are statistically significant (at alpha = 0.05). the statements were graded on a two-point scale of 1 (disagree) to 2 (agree) (agree). figure 5: general student’s perception of covid-19 restrictions as a blended learning challenge. item 1 item 2 item 3 item 4 %disagree 13 3.7 4.6 86.1 %agree 87 96.3 95.4 13.9 13.0% 3.7% 4.6% 86.1%87.0% 96.3% 95.4% 13.9% p e rc e n ta g e challenges regarding covid-19 restrictions item do you agree with the remarks below? disagree agree chisquare exact p-value 1 covid-19 pandemic limited the physical visit to internet café. n = 14 (13.0%) n = 94 (87.0%) 59.259 <0.000 1* 2 the covid-19 pandemic reduces face to face as a part of blended learning. n = 4 (3.7%) n = 104 (96.3%) 92.593 <0.000 1* 3 the teaching and learning process changes due to the covid-19 pandemic. n = 5 (4.6%) n = 103 (95.4%) 88.926 <0.000 1* 4 the school is not providing enough resources (such as data and laptops) for online learning during the covid-19 pandemic. n = 93 (86.1%) n = 15 (13.9%) 56.333 <0.000 1* 103 ressat 2022, 7(2): 87-107 discussions internet access data on internet access showed that the majority of the participants disagreed on most of the questions reflecting participants’ overall perceptions of internet availability as a blended learning problem. as a result, many students disagreed with the assertions that they did not have dependable internet access or that they did not have access to course materials over the internet. on the other hand, most respondents felt that efficient internet facilities, such as public libraries and internet cafes, were few where they lived. this is consistent with the fact that the cohort in the chosen hei is commonly referred to as gen.z (grace-bridges, 2019). their daily activities are dominated by the use of the internet, implying that they have made plans to have dependable internet. it was no longer a struggle for them to learn through the use of the internet. secondly, during the covid-19 pandemic, the institution provided learners with the necessary budgets and data. those with residences could also return to their residences where wifi was available. learning resources access on most measures indicating the general view of participants regarding access to learning resources as a blended learning problem, the participants disagreed (see table 6). as a result, most students disagreed with comments like “i don’t have access to tutors/lecturers” and “i don’t have enough access to different forms of media like audio and videos.” according to the research, many students believed that blended learning provided sufficient resources at the institution and that blended learning provided great resources to learn. when students were asked to reply to the statement that studying cost accounting 2 using the blended model is inefficient, the answers were mixed. given the participants’ backgrounds, the chosen institution made tools for accessing learning resources available for those students who needed them (parker et al., 2021). knowing that the internet might not be stable in some areas, particularly in rural areas, academics were encouraged to create videos for students to view when they had free time or when they had stable connectivity. the findings also indicated that the participants managed to navigate the adopted learning management system (lms) easily, as they are gen.z and familiar with several technology applications (waters & hensley, 2020). the practicality of cost accounting 2 is assumed to be the course of mixed answers, as some participants preferred a live explanation and solution development. others were content with the videos that were provided. library resources access the descriptive analysis revealed that respondents had mixed feelings about most items assessing participants’ overall perceptions, such as access to library resources and prior learning and training. as a result, a similar percentage of students agreed that there were not enough library resources online for cost accounting 2 students to use, as well as that there were not any accessible library resources online for cost accounting 2 students to use. because this 104 ressat 2022, 7(2): 87-107 learning mode is still in its early stages, some participants may not go the extra mile to make use of the provided links. as a result, they concluded that there were no accessible library resources available. the geographical location of the participants has an impact as well, as some could not have good connectivity to access information through the provided links. the covid19 pandemic posed significant challenges because students could not visit libraries physically. prior online learning and training when asked if they had used technology as a learning tool in their past learning (at the school level), the response was identical. however, the frequencies and percentages showed that the university provided enough instruction before the usage of online learning systems. during the covid-19 pandemic, this included the distribution of laptops and data. this provision bridges the gap to an acceptable level, which the responders had reached as a result of the epidemic. they did not have access to a library or an internet café, but they could continue their studies using the resources available to them. recommendations the study recommends that bl is effective in learning cost accounting 2 as the university provided enough instructions to navigate the system. customising the system minimised some students’ anxieties about how to use it in their learning of cost accounting 2. the initiative of making information available online is highly recommended as many participants indicated that where they live, they do not have access to libraries. that will be of assistance as the students will be able to access additional resources. negotiations need to be held with internet providers so that they can increase their bandwidth to the remote areas where the students reside. alternatively, student accommodation needs to be availed to the learners even under the covid-19 pandemic as the internet is accessible in those venues. brothen and wambach (2016) allude that people’s views are influenced by their prior experience, the mixed answers could be caused by challenges participants encounter on bl. gladly though, those challenges have nothing to do with bl but with elements that support the mode of learning like internet connection. limitations one department’s second-year students was the focus of the investigation. if the survey had been conducted on all second-year students at the selected hei, the results would have been different. students with diverse qualifications are likely to have varied impressions, since their interactions with their qualifications also vary. however, because the study’s goal was to determine the challenges of technologically disadvantaged educational background students on bl in learning cost accounting 2, that limited the study population. conclusion the fundamental purpose of this study was to establish the challenges experienced by the students in learning cost accounting 2 with bl mode. the study found that even though the students are from technologically disadvantaged educational backgrounds. they are willing to 105 ressat 2022, 7(2): 87-107 embrace the change. they appreciate that the lms used is customised in such a way that it is effortless to navigate around it. there are challenges like internet access and an online library where they can have access to further learning resources for cost accounting 2. these are mostly general challenges that are experienced under bl mode and sometimes are unavoidable. further studies can make use of the quantitative method where interviews can be conducted not only through the 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(2017). challenges facing chinese international students studying in the united states. educational research and reviews, 12(8), 473-482. https://doi.org/10.5897/err2016.3106 research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 chimbi, g. t. & jita, l. c. resurgence of large class sizes and pedagogical reform in 21st century secondary school history classrooms research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 45 resurgence of large class sizes and pedagogical reform in 21st century secondary school history classrooms godsend t. chimbi*1 & loyiso c. jita1 *corresponding author: chimbi.gt@ufs.ac.za 1. university of the free state received : 2021-08-04 revised : 2021-09-07 accepted : 2021-09-16 how to cite this paper: chimbi, g. t. & jita, l. c. (2021). resurgence of large class sizes and pedagogical reform in 21st century secondary school history classrooms. research in social sciences and technology, 6(3), 45-63. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.24 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). abstract this paper examines the interaction between class size and teachers’ selection of teaching methods while implementing a new history curriculum in zimbabwean secondary schools. policy makers, parents, teachers, and students are worried about large class sizes because they are associated with higher dropout rates, less teacher-student interaction and rote pedagogy. although class sizes had significantly declined in the latter half of the 20th century, the growth of online learning has witnessed class sizes ballooning in the 21st century, reigniting the class size debate. the large class size challenge has re-emerged in the developed north although the problem has never been resolved in the developing south. using the theoretical lens of symbolic interactionism and a qualitative multiple case-study approach, data were collected over an eight-week period using document analysis, semi-structured interviews and lesson observations. results seem to challenge the conventional view that large classes coerce teachers to use rote pedagogy and small classes encourage learner-centric practices. teachers’ choices of teaching methods were neither linked to class size nor new pedagogical policy. instead, teachers’ personal philosophy to instruction appeared to be the decisive factor to the teaching methods they used, rather than the size of the class. to promote pedagogical change, improving teacher quality appears a more valuable and cheaper investment than constructing new schools and employing more teachers to reduce class sizes. keywords: class size, pedagogical reform, symbolic interactionism, reform implementation, history pedagogy 10.46303/ressat.2021.24 mailto:chimbi.gt@ufs.ac.za https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.24 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 chimbi, g. t. & jita, l. c. resurgence of large class sizes and pedagogical reform in 21st century secondary school history classrooms research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 46 introduction despite concerted efforts to improve the quality of education by cutting down class sizes, it seems large classes are still with us in the 21st century (bold et al. 2018; jepsen, 2015; marais, 2016). jacob et al. (2016) observe that “across the globe, trends in education have reflected significant increase in student enrolment” (p. 8). consequently, class sizes have gone up, eroding some of the gains made in class size reduction in the second half of the 20th century. although class sizes had significantly gone down in the developed world over the past decades, the growth of technologybased online learning has seen class sizes ballooning leading to renewed interest in the class size debate (lowenthal et al., 2019). it appears the large class size problem has re-emerged in the developed north; although the challenge had never been resolved in the developing south (ajayi et al. 2017; duflo et al. 2012; lowenthal et al., 2019). due to natural population growth and increased demand for education “school enrollment has universally increased over the past 25 years in low-income countries” (bold et al. 2018, p. 1). unfortunately, the increasing enrollments have not been matched with corresponding resource allocation to build more schools and employ more teachers, due to declining government expenditure on education, in most developed and developing countries. as a result, large classes have become a new challenge in the 21st century. background and aim of the study the effects of class size on teaching and learning have been studied extensively, but without reaching definite conclusions (beattie & thiele, 2016; ehrenberg et al. 2001; fredriksson et al. 2012; mosteller, 1995; smith & glass, 1980). studies on the relationship between class size and student achievement have tended to yield contradictory results. some studies have come up with findings that support smaller classes. for instance, jepsen (2015), found that smaller classes are associated with increased student achievement and are popular with students, parents, teachers, and policymakers. conversely, large classes are associated with less teacherstudent interaction, rote pedagogy and higher dropout rates. however, hattie (2009) argues that class size has a close-to-zero effect on learner performance and achievement. extant research has tended to focus mainly on class size and student achievement in standardized tests and examinations, without interrogating teachers’ pedagogical practices when teaching classes of different sizes. very few studies (see ajayi et al. 2017; carpenter, 2006; parks-stamm et al. 2016, for example) have explored how class size influences teachers’ choice of teaching methods. this is the gap the current research intends to fill in by widening the scope of the class size debate and add new insights to the rather scanty literature on how class size influences teachers’ selection of teaching methods and the implementation of new pedagogical policy. the aim of this paper, therefore, is to extend the discourse on the currently under-theorized theme of class size and teachers’ implementation of new pedagogical reform policy in history classrooms. to unpack this aim, two key research questions undergird this paper:  how does class size influence teachers’ enactment of new pedagogical policy in secondary school history classrooms? research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 chimbi, g. t. & jita, l. c. resurgence of large class sizes and pedagogical reform in 21st century secondary school history classrooms research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 47  how can teachers’ fidelity to prescribed pedagogical reform policy be enhanced when implementing a new curriculum in secondary schools? theoretical framework this paper is illuminated by the theory of symbolic interactionism. symbolic interactionism is an offshoot of the american philosophical tradition of pragmatism (klenke, 2016; sandstrom et al. 2001). this theory explains the importance of actions between individuals as they create and negotiate definitions, meanings, reality, and knowledge. plummer (2000) points out that; “the very origins and history of the theory are themselves a contested domain” (p. 2). george herbert mead (1863-1931) of the chicago school of sociology is widely credited for developing this theory, but so is his german contemporary marx weber (1864-1920) (ritzer & smart, 2001). but the term ‘symbolic interactionism’ was only coined by herbert blumer in 1937 (klenke, 2016). blumer was a student of mead. he took over mead’s classes after his death in 1931. so blumer popularised symbolic interactionism as the empirical theory of chicago sociology in the 20th century. we found symbolic interactionism to be an appropriate theoretical framework for this paper because it focuses on small-scale interactions between individuals, like those that occur in the classroom. the implementation of new pedagogical policy generated interaction between the teacher, the class and new reform policy. carter and fuller (2015) advise that “symbolic interactionism is fruitful for research in implementing policies by emphasizing multiple interpretations of policy intent and influencing meaning for those who are objects of the policies” (p. 7). the theory illuminated researchers’ perceptions on how teachers and students gave different interpretations of the policy intents, negotiated meanings of the new history curriculum, and interrelated during lessons. review of related literature the complexity of the class size debate some forty years ago, glass and smith (1979) remarked that “the notion is widespread among educators and researchers that class size bears no relationship to achievement. it is a dead issue in the minds of most instructional researchers” (p. 2). however, the class size debate refuses to be buried. copeland (2017), for instance, found that large classes had a positive effect on learners. this empirical study established that, when learning in large classes university students enjoy community service and participation. copeland (2017) concludes that “students did feel more obligated that they participate in community service after the course and had a higher attitude regarding the benefit of community service in their own lives” (p. 87). this finding goes against the grain of most existing literature and conventional wisdom, which assume that huge classes reduce students’ opportunities to learn. all this controversy shows that, despite attempts to bury the class size debate (glass & smith, 1979; hattie, 2009), class size remains an influential determinant of pedagogical practice. hoxby (2000) acknowledges that “class size is difficult to study” (p. 1240). what makes the effects of class size slippery is that, given the same resources different teachers are likely to do different things with them. even if teachers were to teach classes of the same size, with equal resources, what they do in each class is bound to differ because different teachers teach research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 chimbi, g. t. & jita, l. c. resurgence of large class sizes and pedagogical reform in 21st century secondary school history classrooms research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 48 differently. this makes the class size debate a complex spiders-web which is non-linear and, therefore, worth exploring at greater depth. defining class size the term class size is often used to mean the number of learners taught by one teacher or a set of teachers in one class. adeyemi (2008) refers to class size as an educational tool used to describe the average number of students per class in a school. this definition emphasizes that class size exists within school and classroom settings. however, this definition may be obsolete with the coming in of virtual classes, which do not operate within school or classroom settings, due to advances in technology. wadesango et al. (2016) explain that “class size refers to the number of pupils or students at a specific level taught together in the same environment by a single teacher” (p. 176). while the term class size may be relatively easy to define, there is no consensus among scholars on what constitutes a ‘large class’ and a ‘small class.’ dimensions of large and small classes like most concepts in education, a clear-cut definition of a large class is neither feasible nor desirable. while there is no agreement on the numerical size of a large class, there is consensus among scholars that as class size increases, student-teacher interaction decreases resulting in student learning declining (hewitt & brett, 2017, orellana, 2006). large classes are associated with reduced opportunities to learn, thereby negatively affecting student achievement in tests and examinations. in the same vein, maringe and sing (2014) define a large class as “any class where the numbers of students pose both perceived and real challenges in the delivery of quality and equal learning opportunities to all students” (p. 763). researchers, policy makers, parents, teachers and students are worried about large class sizes. this is mainly because “large class sizes lead to higher dropout rates, lower attendance, more cheating, reduced breadth and depth of subject matter, less instructor-student interaction, less instructor feedback, increased reliance on the lecture and less student involvement in class” (lowenthal et al., 2019, p. 153). the actual sizes of ‘large classes’ tend to vary depending on whether schools are in high-income industrialized north or low-income underdeveloped south (duflo et al. 2012). within-country variations in class sizes are also common because of existing socio-economic inequalities in one country. parks-stamm et al. (2016, p. 4) classify classes into three categories: small class – less than 15 students; medium class – 15 to 34 students; and large class – 35 students and above. in the tennessee class size study conducted in the usa from 1985-1992, classes with 13 to 17 pupils (for first grade) and 17 to 22 pupils (for other grades) were considered small classes. any class with more than 22 learners was considered a large class (chetty et al. 2011). the average teacher-pupil ratio in primary schools in the usa between 1984 and 2015 was 14 students per teacher (unesco, 2017). duflo et al. (2012) found that in kenya, “as a result of increased enrolment and decreased teacher numbers, average class size in first grade in 2005 was 83, and some grade 1 classes had more than 100 pupils” (p. 7). but grade 1 classes in schools under the extra teacher program (etp) in kenya had an average of 44 pupils per class in 2005. these within-country variations in class sizes reflect the socio-economic status of the school and, ultimately, the parents who finance it. the lower teacher-pupil ratio of 1:44, compared to the national average of 1:83 in research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 chimbi, g. t. & jita, l. c. resurgence of large class sizes and pedagogical reform in 21st century secondary school history classrooms research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 49 2005, was a result of better resourced schools in kenya recruiting students from high-income families. such schools were able to hire extra teachers under the etp. in south africa, the officially prescribed teacher-pupil ratio for primary schools is 1:40 and 1:35 for secondary schools (marais, 2016). however, ngcukana (2018) reports that there were 86 pupils crammed in a grade 8 class at one senior secondary school in rural mthatha, eastern cape. some seven years earlier, venktess (2011) found that one school in the same province had 150 grade 1 learners packed in one classroom. in the same school, grade 2 had 78 learners and grade 4 had 70. but class sizes in private schools in south africa are much smaller than those in public rural and urban schools. the teacher-pupil ratio in south africa's largest private school operator, curro holdings, is approximately one teacher for every 15 pupils across its network of 110 schools (unesco, 2017). this reflects the gross socio-economic inequalities prevalent in south african society. pioneering research on class size: glass and smith’s thesis seminal research on class size by glass and smith (1979) and smith and glass (1980) showed the positive effects of smaller class sizes on student achievement. manageable workloads, high teacher morale and a positive attitude towards classroom instruction were associated with smaller classes. smaller classes also had favorable effects on students’ self-concept, participation in class and interest in school. glass and smith (1979) established “a clear and strong relationship between class size and achievement” (p. 15). the relationship appeared more pronounced at secondary school than at elementary grades, but was insignificant across different subject areas, gender, race, and other demographic features of the class. the differences in achievement and class size were most noticeable when students were taught in classes of 10, 20 and 40 pupils. students performed better in smaller classes, making glass and smith (1979) conclude that “there is little doubt that, other things equal, more is learned in smaller classes” (p. 15). class size and curriculum fidelity there appears to be a noticeable relationship between class size and teachers’ adherence or compliance with curriculum reform policy. using glass and smith’s (1979) argument that more is learned in smaller classes, it can also be assumed that there is more curriculum fidelity in a smaller class than a larger one. bas and senturk (2019) define curriculum fidelity as; “the extent to which the components of the curriculum are implemented and adhered to as specified in the implementation guidelines, quality of curriculum delivery; and the extent to which the curriculum practitioners are ready to implement the program” (p. 168). so, curriculum fidelity can be viewed as teachers’ faithfulness, loyalty, and compliance to officially prescribed curriculum or reform policy. in most education systems across the world, teachers are expected to implement new policy as given; with curriculum supervisory authorities enforcing compliance. existing studies shed insights into how teachers taught different class sizes across time and space. the tennessee class size study this eight-year (1985-1992) longitudinal experimental research, conducted in the state of tennessee in the usa, is regarded as a classic and “the highest quality study” on class size research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 chimbi, g. t. & jita, l. c. resurgence of large class sizes and pedagogical reform in 21st century secondary school history classrooms research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 50 (jepsen, 2015, p. 3). it involved over 11 000 students and their teachers. the study focused on the effects of class size reduction on learner performance, taking into cognisance the costs associated with constructing additional classrooms, creating new classes, and hiring more teachers (chetty et al. 2011). altogether 80 schools and 330 classes participated in the tennessee study which involved kindergarten, first, second and third grade classes. learners were studied in small classes of 13 to 17, large classes of 22 to 25, and larger classes of more than 25. the results of the first four years of the study showed that, “smaller classes did produce substantial improvement in early learning” (mosteller, 1995, p. 113). these results contradicted glass and smith’s (1979) earlier findings which established that the effects of class size were more noticeable at secondary school than in elementary grades. the tennessee study concluded that: students in smaller classes scored higher on standardized tests than those in larger classes and smaller classes had fewer disciplinary problems (chetty et al., 2011). teachers perceived themselves as more productive and efficient when they taught smaller classes than larger ones. in short, teachers were more motivated and professionally gratified in smaller classes than in larger classes. learners also reported benefiting more when they were taught in smaller than in larger classes. class size problem in the 21st century university class sizes in the usa appear to be much larger than the national class size average of one teacher for every 15 students at primary school (unesco, 2017). in a study conducted in us universities (carpenter, 2006), small classes were classified as classes with less than 50 students, large classes as having between 50 and 100 students, and larger classes as having 100 or more students. beattie and thiele (2016) see increases in class sizes in us universities as inevitable in the 21st century because of the increased demand for university education, shrinking state support for higher education since 2008, and increased enrolment in online courses (lowenthal et al. 2019). a steady increase in university enrolment and declining state and federal funding resulted in class sizes reaching unprecedented levels. students learning in large classes in one usa university were asked to select the teaching methods they preferred their lecturers to use. the largest number of students (38%) indicated that they preferred the lecture/discussion method because: “the approach forces me to be alert”; “allows me to contribute and ask questions”; and “is not as boring as lectures” (carpenter 2006, pp. 17-18). the other methods the students favored were lecture (20%), jigsaw (19%), case study (13%) and team project (10%). although the classes were large, students preferred some discussion rather than a pure lecture. they favored interactive methodologies than rote pedagogy. in zimbabwe’s public universities, classes with up to 400 students in ‘mass lectures’ are a common sight (wadesango et al., 2016). zikhali et al. (2015) established that, “in large classes, lecturers may simply resort to the use of the traditional lecture method which does not ensure student engagement with learning material but reduces them to passive listeners” (p. 244); implying that large class sizes reduce learning opportunities in zimbabwean universities. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 chimbi, g. t. & jita, l. c. resurgence of large class sizes and pedagogical reform in 21st century secondary school history classrooms research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 51 despite the prescribed teacher-pupil ratio of 1:40 for primary schools and 1:35 for secondary schools in zimbabwe, classes have ballooned beyond these recommended sizes since 2000. the daily news (2017) found that the average teacher-pupil ratio in primary and secondary schools stands at 1:50. according to wadesango et al. (2016) overcrowded classes with up to 60 students per class are a common sight in zimbabwe. in some extreme cases one class can have up to 80 learners. the persistence of the large class size challenge in both the developed and developing countries makes it necessary for reform implementation scholars to generate new insights into the dynamics of the class size debate in the technology driven 21st century. this paper explores how class size influenced zimbabwean secondary school history teachers’ selection of teaching methods while implementing a new pedagogical reform policy. research methodology research approach this paper is a qualitative multiple-case study of four secondary school history teachers. minichiello and kottler (2010) advise that “qualitative researchers observe people in their natural setting so that they can learn from them what they are thinking, and more importantly, why they think and act the way they do” (p. 12). we found a qualitative multiple case study to be an appropriate research approach for exploring, examining, and explaining the interaction between the teacher, class size, and the new pedagogical reform policy. each of the four history teachers was studied as an autonomous classroom practitioner with the freedom to select the teaching methods s/he considered appropriate for implementing the new history curriculum. research design this paper adopts grounded theory (wright et al. 2017) as its research design. wright et al. (2017, p. 54) advise that “using a grounded approach themes emerge from the data, rather than a priori themes.” grounded theory was first suggested by glaser and strauss (1967) who argue against the development of theory using logical deduction. they maintain that theory must emerge from the data itself using comparative analysis. the purpose of qualitative research is not to simply verify existing theory but to construct new theory using findings from research data as evidence. grounded theory is an appropriate research design for the current qualitative case study because the researchers did not start by proposing a theory or hypothesis which needed confirmation or rejection. instead, two research questions were used to collect data on class size and teachers’ selection of teaching methods while implementing a new history curriculum in zimbabwean secondary schools. theory construction only occurred after data was collected. the study generated theory from systematically obtained and comparatively analyzed data on how class size influenced four history teachers’ classroom practice and fidelity to a new history curriculum they were implementing. context of the study and sampling procedure this study was conducted in four schools selected out of 13 secondary schools in chitungwiza, a dormitory town 30 kilometers south-east of harare (the capital of zimbabwe). the context research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 chimbi, g. t. & jita, l. c. resurgence of large class sizes and pedagogical reform in 21st century secondary school history classrooms research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 52 within which research is conducted is very important in qualitative research because it influences the meanings constructed by research participants on issues under study (albusaidi, 2019). the four schools were selected because they were relatively well resourced and were, therefore, better prepared to implement the new history curriculum disseminated into schools in january 2017. four history teachers were purposively sampled to participate in this multiple case study out of a target population of 42. purposive sampling was chosen because “qualitative research is more concerned with detailed and in-depth analysis than with statistical accuracy” (molise, 2021, p. 89). one history teacher was selected from each of the four secondary schools. the sampling criteria were a minimum of a degree in history, a diploma in history pedagogy and more than five years’ experience as a history teacher. the other consideration was that the participant was willing to be observed while teaching the new history curriculum to one form 3 class over a period of eight weeks. three of these teachers were female and only one teacher was male. david (the male teachers) had 25 years’ experience, emmy had 11 years’ experience, while bessie and angela had 10 years’ experience each. these teachers were assumed to have adequate pedagogical content knowledge to teach the new history curriculum. the characteristics of the four history teachers are summarized in table 1. table 1: participants profile teacher gender age experience qualifications class class size david male 49 25 years m.ed. administration b.ed. history dip. ed (secondary) form 3d 20 students emmy female 36 11 years b.a. (honours) history grad. d.e. form 3e 49 students bessie female 35 10 years b.ed. history dip. ed. (secondary) form 3b 45 students angela female 34 10 years m.sc. development studies b.a. ed. history & religious studies form 3a 49 students abbreviations: m.ed. = master of education degree; m.sc. = master of science degree; b.ed. = bachelor of education degree; b.a. bachelor of arts degree; b.a. ed. = bachelor of arts with education degree; grad. d.e. = graduate diploma in education; dip. ed = diploma in education. instruments and procedures three instruments were used to collect data: a document analysis protocol, semi-structured interview guides and lesson observation protocol. document analysis protocol a pre-formatted document analysis protocol was used to pick the key guidelines on the teaching methods history teachers were expected to use as they implemented the new history curriculum. documents analyzed included curriculum reform policy frameworks, the old and research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 chimbi, g. t. & jita, l. c. resurgence of large class sizes and pedagogical reform in 21st century secondary school history classrooms research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 53 new history syllabuses, official circulars and textbooks teachers were using with their classes. elements of change and continuity between the new and old syllabuses were also identified and scrutinized in preparation for the lesson observations to check teacher fidelity to new curriculum reform policy. semi-structured interview protocol three-tier semi-structured interviews were held with each teacher at the pre-observation, intermittent and exit stages of the eight-week fieldwork period, giving a grand total of 12 interviews. interviews elicited teachers’ views on how they interpreted and understood reform policy signals and the teaching methods they were expected to use. they opened dialogue on how teachers were closing (or opening) the gap between reform policy and classroom practice. each in-depth interview lasted approximately an hour and was audio-recorded. the recorded interviews were transcribed verbatim into typed text for iterative analysis. non-participatory lesson observations intensive non-participatory lesson observations were carried out by the first researcher in the four selected classes over an eight-week period. the plan was to observe each participant teaching the new history curriculum to the same form 3 class twice a week which would yield a total of 64 lesson observations. however, because of unanticipated events (like staff meetings, examination invigilation, and cultural festivals) 47 lessons were observed. lesson observations were manually recorded by the first researcher on a preformatted lesson observation protocol as each lesson unfolded. of particular interest were the teaching methods the teachers used and how they interacted with learners. the manually recorded lesson observations were later typed in preparation for analysis. data analysis we used the grounded approach (wright et al. 2017) to code the data from the documents, interviews, and lesson observations. open coding was used to identify the traditional teaching methods, constructivist pedagogies and instances in which teachers talked or wrote about class sizes in the interviews, documents, and lesson observations. codes for traditional teaching methods were exposition, narration, lower-order questions, and dictation. codes for constructivist methods were primary sources (map, picture, cartoon, original document), text study, pair work, group work, presentation, class discussion and role playing. axial coding (charmaz, 2006; corbin & strauss, 2008) was used for comparative analysis and connecting common patterns and divergences in the interview transcriptions. the pedagogies teachers used in their lessons were compared with those recommended in the new history syllabus. the coded data were extracted and analyzed using comparative content analysis, intra and cross-case analyses, triangulation, data crystallization and thematic aggregation. themes were identified as they emerged from the data instead of using apriori themes. the themes that emerged from the data analysis are official pedagogical policy, abnormal class size, rote pedagogy, myth of large class size and explaining constructivist pedagogy. these themes guide the presentation and discussion of findings that answer the current study’s research questions. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 chimbi, g. t. & jita, l. c. resurgence of large class sizes and pedagogical reform in 21st century secondary school history classrooms research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 54 ethical considerations this paper is part of a larger qualitative multiple case-study conducted in zimbabwe from 2016 to 2018. permission to collect data was granted by the university of the free state in may 2017 under ethical clearance no. ufs-hsd2017/0523. access to targeted schools was granted by the ministry of primary and secondary education (zimbabwe) in june 2017. to protect the identities of schools and participants, pseudonyms are used in this paper. teachers participated voluntarily and were informed of their right to withdraw from the study with or without giving reasons. findings and discussion this study explores how class size influenced history teachers’ enactment of a new pedagogical reform policy in zimbabwean secondary schools by answering the two research questions that guide the study. the research questions are: how does class size influence teachers’ enactment of new pedagogical policy in secondary school history classrooms; and how can teachers’ fidelity to prescribed pedagogical reform policy be enhanced when implementing a new curriculum in secondary schools? the following sections present and discuss findings which answer these two research questions using the following themes: official pedagogical policy, abnormal class size and rote pedagogy, debunking the myth of large class size and the missing link between class size and teachers’ selection of teaching methods. official pedagogical policy the new history syllabus which form 3 classes were pioneering in 2017 stated that: the teaching of history will be accomplished through the use of the following learner-centered and multi-sensory approaches: games and quizzes, simulation, video and film shows, educational tours, case study, group discussion, discovery, research, debate, role play, projects, folklore and e-learning. (cdts, 2015, p. 2). reform policy stressed the importance of technology-based learning and learner centered pedagogy. but what exactly was happening in the classrooms? large classes and rote pedagogy form 3 classes that participated in this study were overloaded, except form 3d. form 3d had only 20 students because history was optional in this class. form 3a had 49 students, form 3b had 45 and form 3e had 49. these classes were far above the teacher-pupil ratio of 1:35 recommended by the new curriculum (mopse, 2015). in the pre-observation interview, angela (who taught form 3a) complained that: our classes are too big, too many pupils, ranging from 46 to 50. marking is not thorough; you can’t give comments in every book, and you cannot correct every mistake. the students are too many for me to monitor, making me shun group work, fearing that the groups may make noise and pupils may get out of control. a document analysis of angela’s schemes of work for third term 2017 showed that she did not plan to use group work in her lessons. in the 13 lessons observed in form 3a, angela did not research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 chimbi, g. t. & jita, l. c. resurgence of large class sizes and pedagogical reform in 21st century secondary school history classrooms research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 55 use group work for fear that she would not be able to control the 49 learners. rather she often used teacher exposition, text study, teacher explanation and class discussion. the avoidance of group work for fear of disciplinary problems was also echoed by bessie who taught form 3b. she explained that: i try to use a number of methods, but the main one which i use, because of the large numbers of our pupils, is pair work. pair work is the main one because if you put them into larger groups, they give problems of class management and can make noise. in the 10 lessons she was observed teaching, bessie also avoided role play and dramatization. she narrated that: to be honest with you, i did not use these methods [role-playing and dramatization] because of the issue of discipline on the part of the students. for example, if you assign pupils to role play religious leaders of the first chimurenga and you say, ‘you are mbuya nehanda or sekuru kaguvi,’ they become overwhelmed and get out of hand. instead of focusing on the real issues, they will start calling each other names. and even after the lesson, instead of calling those pupils with their original names, they will call them ‘nehanda’ of ‘kaguvi’. there is the problem of discipline among these pupils, and after the role play, de-rolling is a problem. in the interviews and informal discussions, bessie often complained about the large class sizes at bridge high school. she explained the relationship between class size, technology (un)availability and pedagogical reform in the exit interview: the school has tried to source some resources for the new curriculum; but considering the numbers we have – classes of 40 to 50 students each – these textbooks are inadequate. i tried to photocopy some material for the new history curriculum, but they [school administration] said they did not have stationery. this becomes a challenge. as a teacher, i have to find a way out, and then you find me dictating the notes, giving the notes to the pupils, instead of them going out to find the information themselves. angela and bessie’s classroom practices and choice of teaching methods seem to speak to opoku-asare et al.’s (2014) findings in ghana which showed that; when faced with abnormal classes, “teachers cannot practice a variety of methods, such as higher order questioning and active learning approaches. in fact, teachers are effectively confined to the ‘chalk and talk’ instructional method” (p. 128). although they knew that rote pedagogy was against reform policy, it appears angela and bessie could not move away from this practice mainly because their classes were too big and instructional resources for the new curriculum were inadequate. angela and bessie’s classroom practices reflect some relationship between rote pedagogy and large classes. however, emmy appeared to be having completely different experiences with form 3e which had 49 students. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 chimbi, g. t. & jita, l. c. resurgence of large class sizes and pedagogical reform in 21st century secondary school history classrooms research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 56 abnormal class size seems not to matter in the pre-observation interview emmy explained how the abnormal size of form 3e (49 students) influenced her teaching methods: the classes are too big, that’s one major challenge…this form 3 history class i am teaching has 49 students. but in all my classes i have always used progressive methods. even before the new curriculum, i had already moved from that teacher-dominated approach. although emmy acknowledged that her class was overloaded, she argued that she had always used progressive pedagogy, even before the 2017 reforms. she elaborated that: i have always been progressive. i acquired it from university. in the ba (honours) in history, we used to research. and i saw it work – the research approach works, especially in history where students must search for information. my understanding of teaching methods was sharpened by the postgraduate diploma in education [pgde]. understanding children better physically, psychologically – i got that from pgde. it seems emmy’s teaching methods were neither shaped by class size nor the new pedagogical policy, but by the nature of her university training and her personal belief that “the research approach works.” debunking the myth of large class size and rote pedagogy fifteen lesson observations were made in emmy’s form 3e during the third term of 2017. the large class size seemed not to deter emmy from using learner-centered pedagogy, debunking the commonly held myth that large classes make teachers resort to rote pedagogy. despite the abnormal class of 49 students, emmy used picture, map, and text study; individual and group presentations; class discussions and role-playing. in all the 15 lessons observed, emmy did not use rote pedagogy. the 49 students appeared eager to participate in the varied learning activities she engaged them. in the intermittent interview emmy explained why she had changed her teaching methods, even before the inception of the 2017 reforms. this is how she put it: ‘activity-based learning is exciting, children participate, and they understand better; they are motivated; even the results actually show that when children do it, they will understand better and pass.’ it was also interesting that emmy’s classroom practices were ahead of official reform policy. her classroom practice was rather unusual as literature (cohen, 1990; desimone, 2002; fullan & miles, 1992) views schools as conservative institutions and teachers as conformists who cannot easily shed off old habits in pursuit of new practices. emmy’s practice ruffled feathers on existing literature as she appeared to have discarded old teacher-centered methods in favor of progressive practices. we sought to understand and explain emmy’s pursuit for constructivist pedagogical practice despite her large class size. explaining constructivist practice in an overcrowded classroom emmy traced her progressivism to how she was taught history at university. her ba honors degree exposed her to the intellectual benefits of historical research. the pgde further research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 chimbi, g. t. & jita, l. c. resurgence of large class sizes and pedagogical reform in 21st century secondary school history classrooms research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 57 exposed her to the psychology of learning and progressive methodologies long before the reform initiative of 2017. her classroom experience had shown that students benefit cognitively when they do research on their own. bessie’s practice challenged opoku-asare et al. (2014) and wadesango et al.’s (2016) findings which established that: when faced with large classes teachers resort to rote pedagogy. emmy’s teaching methods appeared to be determined by her personal philosophy to history instruction rather than the size of the class or policy prescriptions. her classroom practice seems to speak to garcia-martinez and tadeu (2018, p.1) who found that “secondary education is one of the most complex levels of the educational system” because a secondary school teacher becomes a subject specialist. this increases the tendency to be isolated from other teachers, resulting in the teacher developing unique teaching methods that may not be shared by other teachers, as was the case with emmy. constructivist teachers like emmy who enjoy progressive pedagogy are rare, but they exist. in a study of lead teachers in south africa, jita and mokhele (2013) established that mrs. mafolofolo had included environmental education (ee) in her teaching of natural sciences “even before the changes to include it in the curriculum were drafted” (p. s129). this proactive stance was a result of mafolofolo’s love of nature and her personal philosophy that children understand better when they are “able to see, touch and feel the real-life specimen” (p. s129). emmy seemed to share the same pedagogical philosophy with mafolofolo because she (emmy) also believed that “activity-based learning is exciting, children participate, and they understand better; they are motivated…” it appears that the teacher’s personal philosophy to teaching, rather than the size of the class or pedagogical policy prescriptions, determines the teaching methods. this is the grounded theory emerging from the current study. small class size and progressive pedagogy: the missing link david was observed teaching form 3d which had only 20 students because history was optional in this class. nine lessons (70 minutes long each) were observed in form 3d. david explained that the double lessons allowed him to use interactive learner-centered methods, unlike the 35 minutes lessons. the 20 students participated actively in class discussions and group presentations. in a postobservation conversation david proudly remarked that: “i am teaching students who want to do history, and the class of 20 is an appropriate class size for the new curriculum.” the official teacher-pupil ratio for the new curriculum at secondary school level is 1:35 (mopse, 2015). so, david’s class was below the officially prescribed size, which motivated him. he elaborated that, “with this manageable class i can pay attention to each individual student and mark more closely, giving detailed comments. i am assured of a 100% pass rate.” but how had the small class size changed his teaching methods in the light of the new pedagogical policy he was implementing? david was clear that: this idea of curriculum reform – i cannot say we have reformed our curriculum in history because there is nothing which has completely changed. it’s just a term we are using but nothing has changed. it’s the same john we are today calling thomas because we don’t have new topics. the topics we were studying research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 chimbi, g. t. & jita, l. c. resurgence of large class sizes and pedagogical reform in 21st century secondary school history classrooms research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 58 in the previous syllabus [2167] are the same topics we are studying in the new syllabus [4044]. david saw the ‘new curriculum’ as a myth, more of old wine in new bottles. he saw no real change in the content taught. further probing revealed that david’s understanding of the new reform policy was still evolving. he explained that: this new curriculum thing is a new baby; we are not very clear right from the top to the bottom. we are still learning. but in a nutshell, the new curriculum has two new aspects. it has this idea of coursework and projects which we call continuous assessment... it also includes new subjects like heritage studies, physical education, mass displays, to just mention a few. and agriculture is now compulsory for every student. david admitted that he had not fully understood the new curriculum policy, although he was already implementing it. he saw confusion in the whole hierarchy, from the policymakers at the top (who developed the new curriculum) down to the teachers at classroom level. in the pre-observation interview david did not mention anything about changing teaching methods towards learner-centered pedagogy as one of the requirements of the new curriculum. while this could have been an oversight on his part, it may also be an indicator that he did not prioritize pedagogical reform as an important component of the new curriculum initiative. in the nine lessons observed, david made extensive use of teacher exposition, lecturing and dictation. but he also sprinkled some text study, group presentations, class discussion and debate. in the intermittent interview, david explained the teaching methods he often used: the methods we use when teaching history are different from mathematics. we have key methods like text study; usually we work from the known going to the unknown and we don’t expect our students to be prophets – they must read. so, text study is one of the key methods we use in history because of the nature of historical knowledge. we also have teacher exposition; the teacher must be very knowledgeable. before attacking the topic, the teacher must explain to students what he or she expects to cover and the depth of coverage. so, teacher exposition is very important. although he emphasized the use of text study in the interview, david appeared to place a lot of importance on teacher exposition. a sample from david’s schemes of work for weeks 7 and 8 shows that he tried to balance teacher-centered with learner-centered pedagogies, at least in the documents, although actual classroom practice remained heavily teacher-centric. the teacher-centered methods david planned to use in week 7 and 8 were teacher exposition, question and answer, note-making, and note-taking. but the new history syllabus recommends learner-centered methods only. learner-centered pedagogies he intended to use were text study, class and group discussion, simulation, picture study and map study. interestingly, the lesson observations during week 7 and 8 revealed that his practice was still teacher dominated. david believed that: “the history teacher remains the master of the subject. here and there the teacher must give students notes because it’s not everything which is found in the school textbook.” research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 chimbi, g. t. & jita, l. c. resurgence of large class sizes and pedagogical reform in 21st century secondary school history classrooms research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 59 table 2. the teaching methods david planned to use in week 7 and 8 david found it difficult to use learner-centered methods only, as required by reform policy. although he was aware of the progressive demands of the new history curriculum, he still believed that the teacher remains “the master of the subject.” his personal philosophy to history instruction seemed to be his greatest impediment to instructional reform. the struggle between tradition and change which characterized david’s classroom practice supports desimone’s (2002) observation that: “trying to change teaching practice is one area of schooling which has proved the most resistant to change” (p. 434). david’s pedagogical conservatism resonates with cohen’s (1990) observation that teachers tend to embrace and interpret changes within the context of their old habits and experiences. spillane et al. (2002) and coburn (2006) also emphasize that teachers’ past experiences seem to shape the way they understand and implement (or fail to implement) curriculum changes. conclusion the grounded theory emerging from the current study is that class size seems not to matter much when teachers select teaching methods. teachers’ teaching philosophy determine classroom practice more than the size of the class. this study has shown that class size does not influence teachers a lot when they interpret reform signals and select instructional methods. david had a small class of only 20 students, but he still regarded exposition and note research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 chimbi, g. t. & jita, l. c. resurgence of large class sizes and pedagogical reform in 21st century secondary school history classrooms research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 60 giving as indispensable to history instruction. his personal philosophy made him rely on teacher-centered methods although he was aware that policy required him to use activitybased constructivist pedagogy. conversely, emmy used learner-centered pedagogy in an overloaded class of 49 students. her preference for learner-centric methods was a result of her training as a history teacher and her personal philosophy that learners benefit from activity-based learning. david and emmy’s case studies seem to indicate a missing link between class sizes, teaching methods and teachers’ fidelity (or infidelity) to pedagogical reform policy. even if class sizes are reduced and reform policy recommends learner-centered practice, teachers’ teaching philosophy appear to be the decisive factor in determining the teaching methods they use. jespen (2015) recommends that “replacing the most ineffective teachers, would have significantly large returns much larger than any conceivable class-size reduction program” (p. 7). however, in many countries, discharging incompetent teachers from service is not easy because of the tenure system. once teachers serve probation and become permanent employees it is often difficult to expel them from service on grounds of incompetency, mainly because assessing teacher performativity is a subjective process. while class size reduction is a noble school reform initiative, it is expensive (lowenthal et al. 2019). it may not be the most feasible alternative, especially in low-income countries that face budgetary constraints. teacher professional development appears to be a more pragmatic and affordable strategy than constructing more schools and employing more teachers. exposing teachers to new ideas, improving their pedagogical content knowledge, and engaging them in curriculum reform discourse appears to be a cheaper alternative for most developing countries. if teachers are consulted when new reform policy is crafted, they are more likely to have a sense of ownership of the proposed reforms. empowering teachers with new pedagogical knowledge and skills can nurture fidelity to new pedagogical policy. the major limitation of the current multiple case study is that it involves only four history teachers, limiting the generalizability of the findings. future research can widen the scope of the class size debate by increasing sample sizes and interrogating how teachers of other subjects are implementing new reform policies. involving more teachers and classes in qualitative, quantitative and mixed methods studies may generate novel insights into how class sizes influence classroom practice and promote (or hinder) teacher fidelity to new pedagogical policy. teacher professional development appears more feasible and economic, than building more schools, cutting down class sizes and employing more teachers. policymakers need to invest more in teacher capacity building to improve teacher fidelity to pedagogical reform implementation. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 chimbi, g. t. & jita, l. c. resurgence of large class sizes and pedagogical reform in 21st century secondary school history classrooms research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 61 references adeyemi, t.o. 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(2021). pathways to mitigate challenges of learner academic performance in a grade 10 economics class in south africa. research in social sciences and technology, 6(1), 83-101. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.5 https://ressat.org/index.php/ressat/article/view/373/45 https://doi.org/10.1080/16823206.2014.865998 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.5 research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 chimbi, g. t. & jita, l. c. resurgence of large class sizes and pedagogical reform in 21st century secondary school history classrooms research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 63 mosteller, f. (1995). the tennessee study of class size in the early school grades. critical issues for children and youth, 5(2), 113–127. ngcukana, l. (2018). up to 100 pupils crammed into single classroom, city press, 25 september. opoku-asare n.a., agbenatoe w.g., & degraft-johnson k.g. 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(2001). symbolic interactionism at the end of the century. in ritzer, g. & smart, b. (eds.). handbook of social theory (pp. 217-231). sage. smith, m.l., & glass, g.v. (1980). meta-analysis of research on class size and its relationship to attitudes and instruction. american educational research journal, 17(4), 419–433. the editor, (2017). teacher-pupil ratio cause for concern. daily news, 7 march. unesco, (2017). summary report of the 2015 uis innovation data collection. information paper no. 37 march 2017, unesco institute of statistics. venktess, k. (2011). 150 pupils in one classroom. mercury, 10 march. wadesango, n., hove, j., & kurebwa, m. (2016). effects of a large class size on effective curriculum implementation. international journal of educational sciences, 12(2), 173– 183. wright, m.c., bergom, i., & bartholomew, t. (2017). decreased class size, increased active learning? intended and enacted teaching strategies in smaller classes. active learning in higher education,20(1), 51-62. doi: 10.1177/1469787417735607 journals.sagepub.com/home/alh zikhali j., chauraya e., madzanire d., & maphosa c. (2015). an exploration of factors affecting students’ studies in one selected university in zimbabwe. international journal of educational sciences, 9(2), 243–254. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 maphalala, m. c. et al. online learning as a catalyst for self-directed learning in universities during the covid-19 pandemic research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 233 online learning as a catalyst for self-directed learning in universities during the covid-19 pandemic mncedisi christian maphalala*1, rachel gugu mkhasibe2 & dumisani wilfred mncube2 *corresponding author: 25787810@nwu.ac.za 1. north west university, school of professional studies in education studies, mahikeng, south africa 2. university of zululand, faculty of education, richards bay, south africa received : 2021-06-10 revised : 2021-07-28 accepted : 2021-08-21 how to cite this paper: maphalala, m. c., mkhasibe, r. g. & mncube, d. w. (2021). online learning as a catalyst for self-directed learning in universities during the covid-19 pandemic, research in social sciences and technology, 6(2), 233-248. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.25 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). abstract the covid-19 pandemic accelerated the use of online learning and self-directed learning to motivate and engage students. therefore, this study sought to determine how online learning fostered self-directed learning at a south african university during this period. higher education institutions worldwide had to shut down indefinitely following guidance from health experts to contain the spread of the covid-19 pandemic. since education is regarded as a pillar of development for all countries, some means had to be found to keep teaching and learning going irrespective of the ongoing health crisis. hence, online learning made it possible for university students to continue learning during the emergency university closure. this was a period of reckoning, however, as many students began experiencing challenges related to poor internet connectivity and accessing digital learning devices. despite these challenges, the solution was to reach out to all students to ensure that they were not excluded from the learning process. the sudden transition to online learning meant that students could no longer follow a well-coordinated, structured learning schedule that was guided and supervised on campus; rather, online learning meant they had to become more independent in their learning. independent learning encourages students to be proactive and independent, a philosophy aligned to self-directed learning (sdl). this study explored the experiences of third-year student teachers in navigating sdl through online learning platforms. the study was underpinned by self-directed learning theory and adopted a qualitative case study research design, generating data from ten student teachers using a zoom app focus group discussion. data were analyzed using an inductive thematic analysis framework. the study found that although sdl is appropriate because it promotes learning independently, the majority of student teachers encountered several challenges when adopting online learning, catching them off guard because they were not formally introduced to it. keywords: online learning, self-directed learning, learning management system, independent learning, connectivity, digital divide 10.46303/ressat.2021.25 mailto:25787810@nwu.ac.za https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.25 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 maphalala, m. c. et al. online learning as a catalyst for self-directed learning in universities during the covid-19 pandemic research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 234 introduction south african institutions of higher learning have been in denial with regard to implementing reforms in relation to the mode of teaching and learning. it took the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic (covid-19) to transit indefinitely from a face-to-face (lecture-centered) approach to online learning (e-learning). over the years, almost all south african universities have calibrated their program offerings around face-to-face learning models for the sake of convenience (baez, 2019; mgqwashu, 2017). in times of emergency such as covid-19, the physical classrooms that are available for traditional methods (lecturer-centered) suddenly become inaccessible. this state of play raises serious questions about the future of the face-toface learning approach, hailed for its real-time contact and prompt feedback to the student (baticulon et al. 2021; waghid, 2018). the emergence of e-learning platforms took advantage of the established internet connectivity, better known as online learning, a term widely used to describe an emerging approach to learning through advanced communication technologies (such as blackboard, moodle, youtube, virtual reality) either asynchronously or synchronously (mpungose, 2020; ohlin, 2019). the evolution in online learning platforms (learning management systems) (lms), as khoza (2019) alleges, has led to renewed interest in adapting traditional face-to-face pedagogy to a student-centered approach characterized by selfdirected learning (sdl). waghid (2018) predicts an era dominated by online learning, which will revolutionize and transform the higher education landscape in ways never seen before. in his work, collaborative technologies enable greater opportunities for learners' sdl with open access textbooks, ebooks, learning repositories, social networking technologies, web conferencing, and open education resources (oer). the next section gives a detailed account of a few trends and historical markers, culminating in online learning as a catalyst for the sdl movement, an important shift towards the use of more free and open content. again, this study presents a critical review of a broad range of factors that have an impact on student performance and satisfaction within the online learning environment. research questions this study sought to answer the following main research question: “how has online learning fostered self-directed learning in universities during the covid-19 pandemic?” the following four sub-questions were formulated in line with the main research question:  what strategies were used to integration of self-directed learning in online learning environment?  how has online learning promoted independent learning and empowerment amongst the student teachers  which self-directed learning approaches did the academics adopt to easily navigate online learning?  in what ways did individual students use self-assessment and peer assessment to enhance their own learning. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 maphalala, m. c. et al. online learning as a catalyst for self-directed learning in universities during the covid-19 pandemic research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 235 review of related literature understanding self-directed learning the covid-19 pandemic spared no one as it severely affected many pillars of our society, including institutions of higher education worldwide. march 2020 marked an abrupt end to face-to-face learning within the four walls of lecture halls, and a move towards a transformed sdl mode, a new normal for most institutions in developing countries (crawford et al., 2020; roberson et al., 2021). the pace of the community spread of the covid-19 pandemic resulted in a nationwide lockdown being imposed in south africa, which accelerated the implementation of distance learning underpinned by sdl and digital learning. baez (2019) and morris and rohs (2021) argue that sdl is a process that makes students responsible for planning, undertaking and reviewing aspects of their learning process. this sentiment has also been advanced by voskampa et al. (2020), who call this transition the biggest undertaking of the 21st century. the conclusions drawn from this analysis underscore the much-needed shifts to sdl competency at both the department of higher education and higher education institutions to master digital pedagogy and related technologies (adinda & mohib, 2020). the transition has shown success in western countries, and been proven to enhance academic performance and foster student engagement (rashid & asghar, 2016). morris and rohs (2021, p. 1-2) report that “individuals should be able to identify and set goals, motivate themselves, and develop resilience and confidence to pursue learning throughout their lives” because it allows them to adapt to change easily. huang et al. (2020) stress that this new pedagogical approach inspires students to engage in sdl through the use of online learning. the findings of the study by rashid and asghar (2016) also reveal that the use of digital technology has a direct positive influence on students' engagement and sdl; however, there is no direct correlation between technology use and academic performance. this implies that sdl contributes positively when used with digital technology; individual engagement with technology is therefore paramount in achieving good results. although sdl has played a peripheral role in the formal education systems in south african higher education, to be successful it requires internet connectivity and digital facilities to achieve expected goals (bonk & lee, 2017; tadesse & muluye, 2020). it is common knowledge that the majority of academic institutions were ill-prepared owing to a lack of proper planning, unreliable internet connectivity, lack of educational resources (laptops, desktops, pda etc.). despite this drawback, studies reveal that learning tasks were personally meaningful, interesting and enjoyable, with a sense of control and personal autonomy (tadesse & muluye, 2020). given the alternatives to the face-to-face model, the sdl-imposed principles of selfdiscipline, self-confidence, independence, goal-oriented, persistence and enjoyable learning meant that students were never ready to embrace sdl (bonk & lee, 2017). these students were accustomed to being extrinsically motivated, less likely to look for opportunities, and dependent on others for their learning (li et al., 2020; roberson et al., 2021). they value teacher-driven instructions and are less likely to explore learning experiences which give rise to creativity and participative ways in the world at large. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 maphalala, m. c. et al. online learning as a catalyst for self-directed learning in universities during the covid-19 pandemic research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 236 the transition to online learning the emerging trend in education has seen a high demand for modern physical resources (technological tools) in universities. studies conducted by mpungose (2019, 2020) and khoza (2019) underscore the role of modern physical resources (computers, mobile phones, i.e. smartphones, and others) for effective online teaching and learning. the challenge facing both lecturers and students is to what extent these resources can be useful in providing opportunities to support students’ learning and how to integrate them into the curriculum (baez, 2019). considering the socioeconomic background of students in historically black universities on the one hand, and the weak financial support available from these universities on the other, a large population of students struggle to access the recommended modern physical resources such as ipads, desktop computers, webcams, laptops mobile phones, to name few (khoza, 2019; mpungose, 2020). these cutting-edge resources have opened up more possibilities for students, allowing easy access to study material and assignments, easy storage of information and easy retrieval of assessments, as well as allowing students to upload examination scripts anytime and anywhere (baticulon et al., 2021; mpungose, 2020; waghid, 2018). in essence, for learning to take place, physical and geographical location has no material impact on access to available educational material for both lecturers and students. khoza (2019) demonstrates that online platforms require sophisticated software resources which build education capability to empower physical resources to communicate learning. bates (2019) categorizes software resources to include, but not to be limited to, learning management systems (lmss) (moodle, canvas), software packages (microsoft office 365), internet browsers (firefox, chrome) and social media sites (twitter, facebook). it is fair to conclude that the evolution of various powerful open course ware (moodle, blackboard etc.) and social networking sites (whatsapp, facebook, twitter, linkedin, instagram, snapchat, pinterest, reddit, tiktok) has revolutionized both online learning and sdl. international perspectives on online learning and self-directed learning developed countries like the united states of america and the united kingdom experienced disruptions to academic tuition during covid-19, but their transition to sdl through online teaching was smoother and less demanding (crawford et al., 2020; ohlin, 2019). similar experiences in china, as observed by xue li and xu (2020), resulted in the ministry of education setting up and encouraging the implementation of online education at all levels during the covid-19 pandemic. in essence, educational information, infrastructure, educational resources and human resources, as the essential conditions for online education, were also the main content of the policy formulation and implementation of educational information (baez, 2019; xue et al., 2020). pham and ho (2020) assert that during and after the covid-19 outbreak, the higher education sector in vietnam became a big “laboratory of e-learning hubs” which led the global fight against the spread of covid-19. in the case of vietnam, university lecturers and students personally experienced sdl while using e-learning platforms. pham and ho (2020) reveal that more room for e-learning was provided and current regulations were reviewed regarding university curricula and syllabuses. similarly, private universities in egypt never encountered any challenges when shifting to sdl because the tools used for online classes were well known to both lecturers and students before the covid-19 crisis (mpungose, 2020). these tools included blackboard, moodle, email and zoom (crawford et al., 2020). pham and ho (2020) research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 maphalala, m. c. et al. online learning as a catalyst for self-directed learning in universities during the covid-19 pandemic research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 237 confirm what is highlighted by crawford et al. (2020), when they state that prior to the global outbreak of covid-19, some institutions in well-developed countries were already laying the groundwork for a new approach, namely sdl, to higher education. the short synopsis of the situation in higher education institutions in both developed and developing countries given above has not touched on the situation experienced by student teachers and the use of online teaching amid covid-19. several researchers have indicated that covid-19 accelerated the use of online learning and sdl to motivate and engage students (adinda & mohib, 2020; baticulon et al., 2021). however, most student teachers find it difficult to integrate sdl in their practice (voskampa et al., 2020) because, firstly, most of the learning material (slides) on moodle or any other digital facilities is inaccessible to some students, and those who can access them find them difficult to use. moreover, there is a direct positive relationship between sdl and digital technology (roberson et al., 2021; voskampa et al., 2020). secondly, student teachers are expected to go to schools and do their teaching practice to meet the requirements of their programs. most schools have changed the pattern of attendance of learners to observe social distancing. the question is, how are student teachers going to go to schools if the schools have changed their ways of teaching? some of the schools are practicing sdl, where learners are taught online, whereas the majority of higher education institutions have not yet introduced student teachers to the new pedagogical knowledge required to accommodate online learning. to affirm the above assertion, the findings of ibrahim et al. (2019), in their paper titled “trainee teachers’ readiness towards 21st century teaching practices”, reveal that some student teachers reported that their preparation for practical teaching at university is insufficient because it does not provide them with adequate skills to teach in the 21st century, and they therefore find themselves ill-prepared. this is very difficult for student teachers because teachers are regarded as agents of change. therefore, they are expected to finish their teaching practice program well equipped with all the qualities and values needed to face this challenging era (ibrahim et al., 2019; ohlin, 2019). theoretical orientation this study was underpinned by the self-directed learning theory (sdlt) propounded by knowles in the 1980s. self-guided study aims to promote a spirit of self-reliance and a sense of responsibility for own learning. knowles (1980) had many ideas that would later define sdl: it has been defined as “a process in which individuals take the initiative, with or without the help of others,” to diagnose their learning needs, formulate learning goals, identify resources for learning, select and implement learning strategies, and evaluate learning outcomes. moreover, sdlt identifies specific personal factors that influence learning as the main focus of this study. these personal factors include, among others own intentions and attitudes. in this study, students’ sdl refers to students’ perceptions of their independent learning, their sense of responsibility for their learning, and their initiative in learning. this theory argues that students take an active role in learning tasks such as reading online learning material and completing classroom tasks (baez, 2019; geng, law, & niu, 2019). most studies draw a comparison between features underpinning sdl and those of self-regulated learning. according to broadbent (2017), sdl has been found to have different predictive value among research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 maphalala, m. c. et al. online learning as a catalyst for self-directed learning in universities during the covid-19 pandemic research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 238 online users in times of emergency. in theory, technological readiness concerns individual attitudes towards the introduction of new technology. in essence, students' perceptions at times reflect the learning effectiveness and learning experience of students in a course. broadbent (2017) argues that sdl complements technological readiness and drives students' learning behavior, as well as their learning experience and perceptions, towards online learning. it is worth noting that sdl tends to use online learning platforms as the main resource to search for information (geng et al., 2019). studies on sdl with technology (sdlt) reveal that students’ perceptions of collaborative learning can enhance their sdl. student sdl processes contribute to the use of internet communication technology for collaborative learning (lee et al., 2014). research methodology context the south african university that was used as the research site has been using a learning management system (lms) since 2009 to optimize and support student learning. snowball and mostert (2010) state that lms is an umbrella term for describing the software tools used to manage students’ learning, assessments and interventions. moodle is a popular open-source learning management system that delivers a set of learner-centric tools and collaborative learning environments that empower both teaching and learning at a south african university. moodle builds the tools into an interface that makes the learning task central. it is built on social constructionist pedagogy, including the tools that are required in an online learning environment. the e-learning community is growing at this south african university and hence an e-learning strategy has been formulated aimed at integrating e-learning into teaching and learning through the use of moodle as an e-learning platform. the e-learning strategy has the potential to actualize the south african university’s teaching and learning vision in three areas in order to:  help students to become self-actuated learners who are able to use technology to find information and to solve problems;  assist the teaching staff through the use of technology to handle routine administrative tasks, which are particularly time-consuming, given large student numbers; and  expand access for non-traditional students, through the use of asynchronous course material and blended learning, so that these students can complete degree requirements in their own time. to achieve these ideals, departmental e-learning communities of practice were established through a series of workshops for the purpose of developing academic staff to embed e-learning technologies for effective learning. the outbreak of covid-19 in the year 2020 which led to the closure of universities, immediately forced this south african university into emergency transition to fully online teaching and learning to ensure the continuity of academic activities. the covid-19 pandemic accelerated the use of online learning and self-directed learning to motivate and engage students. research approach for this study, a qualitative research approach was chosen to explore the experiences of thirdyear student teachers in navigating sdl through online learning platforms, as a result of a research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 maphalala, m. c. et al. online learning as a catalyst for self-directed learning in universities during the covid-19 pandemic research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 239 sudden transition to online learning forced upon by covid-19 lockdown at a south african university. according to creswell and plano-clark (2011), a research approach is a decisionmaking process in research that assists the researcher in making informed selection of design, methods, data collection instruments, data analysis and interpretation procedures, and how results will be presented. sample polit and hungler (1999) refer to the population as an aggregate or totality of all the objects, subjects or members that conform to a set of specifications. in this study, the population was made up of third-year student teachers at a south african university. the study made use of the non-probability purposive sampling to select ten of third year student teachers at a south african university, made up of 6 female and four male students ranging between the ages of 22 and 26 years of age. purposive sampling is used when the researcher has to research participants that need to meet very specific criteria; otherwise, their participation might not be useful to the study. purposive sampling was used to identify and select student teachers who held information-rich and practical experiences of generating ideas about sdl activities due to the transition from contact to online learning. students needed to have accessibility to an electronic device and internet and should have attended face-to-face lectures and later transitioned to e-learning due to covid-19 pandemic. these were the main reasons this study took a posture to explore the experiences, meanings, beliefs and perspectives that participants assign to a social phenomenon (nieuwenhuis, 2020). after recruiting participants, they signed consent forms that detailed ethical considerations such as confidentiality, anonymity and beneficence. data collection methods and instruments the ten third-year student teachers participated in a zoom app focus group discussion. student teachers were coded as participants 1-10; wherein student-teacher 1 was represented as participant 1 and student-teacher 2 represented as participant 2, up to student-teacher 10 coded as participant 10. a zoom app focus group discussion (fgd) lasted for a period of 1hour 30 minutes, and the recording feature on the app was activated after consent was granted by the participants. de vos et al. (2011) view fgd as a suitable instrument to collect perceptions on a specific topic of interest in a permissive, non-threatening atmosphere. according to udosen (2014), focus group discussions have the benefit of allowing the researcher to swiftly discover the fundamental concerns about the use of sdl during the covid-19 pandemic. another benefit is that group interviews are inexpensive, provide a lot of information, have a high level of face validity, and are flexible. they create a natural setting in which people can openly express their opinions. one participant's ideas inspire others to participate fully in conversations (babbie, 2010; flick, 2009). the discussion in this study guided by the fgd guide, which probed on the experiences of third-year student teachers about sdl activities as a result of the transition from contact to online learning. the focus group discussion guide used to gather data consisted of twelve questions, each of the four research questions of the study were linked to three questions out of the total. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 maphalala, m. c. et al. online learning as a catalyst for self-directed learning in universities during the covid-19 pandemic research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 240 validity efron and ravid (2013) define validity in research as “the degree to which the study, the data collection tools, and the interpretation of data accurately represent the issue being investigated” (p. 70). the researchers ensured that the data recorded reflected the participants’ views. to ensure the credibility of our results, the raw data in the form of field notes, audio recordings and transcripts were audited for accuracy. furthermore, we also employed member checking as a way of ensuring trustworthiness where participants checked the transcripts for accuracy in their descriptions of their lived experiences. data analysis all relevant data generated were thematically analyzed using braun and clarke (2006) phases of data analysis. this process followed six phases propose by braun and clarke (2006) for categorizing research data according to themes. these phases are: i. familiarization with the data, where the researchers actively engaged with data by firstly transcribing the interactions and then reading (and re-reading) the transcripts and listening to the recordings. ii. generating initial codes, identifying preliminary codes, which were the features of the data that appeared interesting and meaningful. iii. searching for themes, where relevant data extracts were sorted according to overarching themes. iv. reviewing themes, where the themes were checked in relation to the coded extracts. v. defining and naming themes, where the researchers provided theme names and clear working definitions that capture the essence of each theme in a concise manner. after using this detailed and structured process before analysis to form categories, a more streamlined data analysis process gave rise to focused and four themes that answered the main research question and gave rise to the findings section. in the final analysis, the main research question and sub-questions guided the analysis and generated four themes as discussed under the findings section. findings four main themes were therefore generated from data to respond to the research questions namely: theme 1: integration of self-directed learning in online learning successful integration of the sdl process into the existing curricula requires adequate preparation by both academics and students, particularly at the undergraduate level. the findings reveal that students were not ready to play a central role in their learning when the emergency transition to online learning from face-to-face learning was imposed on them. students were thrown into the deep end as they were not prepared for either online learning or sdl. as exemplified by the extract that follows, the participants had difficulty in navigating the sdl activities in online learning environments: research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 maphalala, m. c. et al. online learning as a catalyst for self-directed learning in universities during the covid-19 pandemic research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 241 most of us struggled to study on our own without the lecturer teaching us; lecturers posted the slides and some notes, and we had to study on our own without somebody explaining to us. we realised we're going to fail and started on our own, trying to find answers from all sources and each other as students. (participant 4) sdl requires that students are assisted and guided to learn independently. however, students were not adequately prepared for the sdl process before they moved to online learning. to explain this, one participant said: to tell the truth, our lecturers have never prepared us to take so much responsibility for our studies. they would prepare slides when they come to class, explain everything to us, and we would ask questions where we did not understand. we did receive assignments to do on our own, but when we were on campus lecturers took us through what was expected, so we had clear guidance. (participant 9) sdl is closely associated with the concept of a student-centered approach, which emphasizes a mechanism in which students take charge of their own education. face-to-face or contact learning did not foster sdl among the students as they had regular access to their lecturers. online learning platforms were used for the announcement and uploading of information for the students, and not for meaningful learning. one participant had this to say: this serious online learning thing is new to us. yes, we're using moodle, but it was for accessing learning materials and notices from lecturers. some lecturers did not even use moodle for teaching; they only relied on teaching in class and handouts. i think online learning forced us not to rely more on lecturers, but on ourselves and each other as students. (participant 6) theme 2: independent learning and empowerment online learning has forced students to develop effective independent learning strategies. students are required to formulate their own goals, study independently and reflect upon their learning in an environment where there is less oversight from academics. university is a space in which students should formulate their own goals, study independently and reflect on their learning throughout their studies. this provides the students with the flexibility to schedule and learn whenever and however it is convenient for them to do so. in another example, one student teacher indicated that: […] are required to take control of our studies. in the absence of lecturers in front of us, we have to decide on our own what we need to know and how we are going to study. lately, we are being bombarded with assignments and quizzes without being taught, and when you need help you can’t even find lecturers at their office lines. so, i can say we are on our own. (participant 2) with online learning, students are of the view that there is less guidance from academics than when they are on campus. students have the flexibility to schedule their learning activities at a convenient time and determine what to learn as well. to explain this, one participant said: research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 maphalala, m. c. et al. online learning as a catalyst for self-directed learning in universities during the covid-19 pandemic research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 242 since we moved to online learning, we find ourselves in a situation in which our lecturers cannot hold us by the hand to tell us what we should be doing and when. you are just given activities and submission deadlines; it becomes your responsibility to teach yourself and work hard to meet the deadlines. (participant 5) sdl skills include the ability to manage learning activities without being guided by others, as well as learning at one’s own pace according to one’s needs and preferences. this makes sdl more relevant for the students’ needs. to support this, one participant said: many students find it difficult at first to organize and motivate themselves to work on their own, but as time goes on, they soon realize that there is no other way but to find means to continue learning on your own from home, according to suitable times. i work better at night because i use the night surfer data option and it's always quiet. (participant 7) while students embrace taking responsibility for their learning, they feel that academics must come to the party and provide more guidance than they do. one participant explained: i recognize the importance of studying independently as a university student, but i need my lecturers to guide us and make themselves available when we need them. now that we are learning online some of them are nowhere to be found. (participant 2) another participant added: we have found ways to manage our work daily without someone checking on us and reminding us about the due dates; you just have to develop and maintain the discipline needed for self-learning. (participant 8) sdl empowers students to take charge of their learning, with students making their own decisions regarding their learning paths. theme 3: learning approaches during the emergency transition from face-to-face to online learning, students showed enhanced self-direction, accountability, and motivation. they had to adopt various learning approaches to assist them to navigate online learning. students are aware that they need to collaborate with other students to enhance their learning. one student teacher agreed to this, saying: you cannot completely work independently; from time to time you have to share ideas with others in your class. (participant 10) collaborative learning is an integral part of students’ learning; the students felt they learnt by sharing ideas and knowledge. one participant confirmed: i find it easy to learn when we work in a group. we formed a whatsapp group where we exchange ideas and answer certain assignments either as a chat or a group call. it is enjoyable and we make jokes about the challenges that we have whilst we are learning. (participant 1) research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 maphalala, m. c. et al. online learning as a catalyst for self-directed learning in universities during the covid-19 pandemic research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 243 the material introduced by lecturers is often discussed further in these group discussions. group discussions are used by students to reinforce learning and solve problems as part of sdl. one of the participants had this to say: some lecturers just upload materials online with very little guidance and explanation so we have to work in groups to figure out the new information on our own so that if we get stuck, we can ask the class rep to communicate with the lecturer concerned. (participant 3) students also organized themselves into groups to engage in peer-led learning, where a student who was good in a particular aspect would facilitate learning. another participant said: some students know certain aspects or modules better than us, so we ask those students to assist us with those, so if they are confident to facilitate those areas but lack some information, we have to consult the lecturers. (participant 6) theme 4: self and peer assessment students used self-assessment and peer assessment as strategies to take more control of their learning. these forms of assessment are useful for students to continually assess their learning progress to determine gaps and work towards the improvement of their learning. peer assessment was found to be beneficial for the students’ learning, as students critiqued and provided feedback on each other’s work to find areas that might need improvement and enhance learning. one participant confirmed: i think getting feedback from your fellow students is very useful. before i can submit any activity for assessment, i ask my group members to check my work and give me an honest opinion of what they think about it, and more often than not, they have valuable input to make which assists to improve my work. (participant 1) participant 8 explained: peer assessment can therefore be a valuable way of providing more frequent and relevant formative feedback that students can act upon. (participant 8) self-directed students are self-reliant, and they recognize that reflection is essential for meaningful learning. the students diagnosed their learning through reflection to continually improve in their studies. to support this, one participant said: i don't have to wait for somebody else to tell me that my work is not up to standard, so before i hand in any assignment to my lecturer i go through it to make sure that the answers are correct, and i consult google or my books to verify. (participant 4) self-assessment allows students to take an active role in their learning. students should assess their strengths and weaknesses honestly to enhance learning. this was confirmed by one participant who had the following to say: research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 maphalala, m. c. et al. online learning as a catalyst for self-directed learning in universities during the covid-19 pandemic research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 244 now that we don't constantly interact with lecturers, i have learned to assess my own work. it makes you see where you are weak so that you can focus on those areas that need to improve. where i am not sure, my classmates can assist, or ask in the whatsapp group chat if my thinking is correct. (participant 8) discussion the findings reveal that both students and academics were not adequately prepared for the transition to online learning from face-to-face learning. students particularly encountered difficulties navigating the sdl activities on the learning management system on their own. however, the introduction of online learning empowered students, fostering independent and collaborative learning amongst themselves with minimal assistance from the academics. the discussion of findings placed more emphasis on four themes to answer two main research questions. it is evident that students demonstrated enhanced self-direction, accountability and motivation through adopting various learning approaches to assist them to navigate online learning; these included collaborative learning (group discussions, peer-led learning). to continuously assess and monitor their own learning progress, students used self-assessment and peer assessment as strategies, these forms of assessment were useful for students in determining the gaps and working towards the improvement of their learning. this allowed them to play a central role in their learning. sdl requires students to have the confidence to pursue and engage in learning activities which are all influenced by intrinsic motivation. online learning during the covid-19 pandemic has actually motivated the students to engage in learning that is self-directed (baez, 2019; baticulon et al., 2021). the discussion of findings in the next paragraph focuses on the integration of self-directed learning in the online learning theme. from the findings, it would seem that students were not prepared to play a central role in their learning when the transition from face-to-face to online learning was forced on them, according to the results. the integration of sdl into online learning enhanced students’ independence as they learnt on their own, using the resources on the online learning platform. self-directed learners are more engaged in learning activities such as reading online learning materials, completing classroom assignments, and preparing and reviewing learning achievements (geng et al., 2019). in sdl, high-level self-management is crucial, and students must use a variety of methods to deal with a variety of issues (lee & teo, 2010; ohlin, 2019). it is therefore of critical importance that students are prepared for both online learning and sdl, as this allows students to take care of their own learning, and build successful independent learning strategies. online readiness allows students to leverage the lmss and new technologies for learning. to prepare and foster sdl, students need guides, support and cues to help them navigate self-directed activities in both onand offline environments. sdl empowers students to schedule their learning activities at a convenient time, and determine what to learn as well (ohlin, 2019; roberson et al., 2021). while sdl requires students to take responsibility for their learning, academics should not abdicate their responsibility to provide constant guidance and constructive feedback to students on their learning. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 maphalala, m. c. et al. online learning as a catalyst for self-directed learning in universities during the covid-19 pandemic research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 245 the urgent need to move from face-to-face to online learning saw increased responsibility for self-direction and motivation on the part of the students. they had to adopt various learning approaches to assist them to navigate online learning. collaborative learning was listed as a crucial component of their online learning (kalimullina et al., 2021). peer and self-assessment have been found to be beneficial in encouraging student-centered learning (baticulon et al., 2021; ohlin, 2019) because they enable students to reflect on their own learning and levels of comprehension, as well as recognize areas where they need to develop. this is a transition in learning from teacher-centered to student-centered, in which students identify their own goals and the steps needed to achieve them. peer assessment helps to improve learning outcomes (sanchez, atkinson et al., 2017; li et al., 2020). self-assessment helps students diagnose their learning through reflection to continually improve in their studies (baez, 2019). the covid-19 pandemic disrupted the academic programs of higher education institutions worldwide/ however, with every crisis comes an opportunity to transform. the transition to online learning accelerated self-directed learning to motivate and engage students in their learning more critically and independently. the findings affirm that a student-centered approach is a necessity to empower self-directed learners to be active participants rather than passive recipients of knowledge (roberson jr, 2021; sze-yenga & hussain; 2010). self-directed learning therefore becomes necessary to enhance competency in the new generation of students. online learning has transformed how teaching and learning are facilitated in higher education. in the traditional face to face learning environment, the instructor was regarded as a source of knowledge. the online learning environment has provided a fair share of autonomy and independence amongst students. this is in line with self-directed learning which requires students to operate in an independent and self-regulated manner to achieve meaningful learning. online learning has facilitated a paradigm shift from teacher-centered to more student-centered teaching and learning approaches in which students are assisted and guided to learn independently. therefore, the findings reveal that the overreliance on traditional faceto-face learning has been a limitation to students’ self-initiative, self-reliance, self-reflection, leaner centeredness, autonomy, and independent learning that are all hallmarks of selfdirected learning. this study identities collaborative learning, independent learning, self and peer assessment as critical enforcers of enhanced self-direction amongst the students in an online learning environment. putri et al. (2021) argue that in a world where alternative education environments are possible, online learning is an option that has allowed the teaching and learning process to continue amid the covid-19 pandemic). akhmetshin et al. (2021) concur that transition to online learning was the only option out of the pandemic quagmire. conclusion the unprecedented disruption of face-to-face learning in educational institutions provided many possibilities to foster sdl through online learning. most universities had benefited from the emergency transition to an online learning system during the covid-19 lockdown. confirm that during the lockdown, both students and teachers believed that online learning modalities had aided student-centeredness. the students had evolved into self-directed learners who could learn at any time of day. universities have accordingly adopted lmss to bridge the sdl experiences and the online environment and connect students and lecturers in real-time. this research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 maphalala, m. c. et al. online learning as a catalyst for self-directed learning in universities during the covid-19 pandemic research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 246 finding is consistent with the current studies which that conclude that improvement in the use of lms highlights endless possibilities for students to access much-needed academic information. this, therefore, calls for universities to revise programs to include pedagogies to foster sdl, empower students and enhance their learning capabilities. the findings again acknowledge that much still needs to be done to enhance the quality of internet connectivity and provide free wi-fi in local libraries and hotspots in small towns and cities to foster sdl. most sdl proponents believe that universities that have successfully used online learning prioritized access to data for all their students. issues that remain as “work in progress” for further investigation include exploring more deeply the sdl and students’ performance, and how the support provided automated help speed up communication to students in resolving their daily technical challenges with their devices and academic activities. understanding how and in what contexts such complex epistemological and ontological shifts occur is key for creating the type of sdl that may be needed to navigate online learning during lockdown and any emergency. references adinda, d., & mohib, n. 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(2020). online education action for defeating covid-19 in china: an analysis of the system, mechanism, and mode. educational philosophy and theory, 113. https://doi.org/10.1080/00131857.2020.1821188 research in social sciences and technology https://ressat.org e-issn: 2468-6891 volume: 7 issue: 2 2022 pp. 66-86 platformisation of education: an analysis of south african universities’ learning management systems kazeem ajasa badaru*a & emmanuel o. adua * corresponding author email: badruajasa97@gmail.com a. university of fort hare, east london, south africa. article info received: march 8, 2022 revised: may 14, 2022 accepted: june 24, 2022 how to cite badaru, k. a., & adu, e. o. (2022). platformisation of education: an analysis of south african universities’ learning management systems. research in social sciences and technology, 7(2), 66-86 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2022.10 copyright license this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 abstract several studies have focused attention on the crisis of the covid19 pandemic and the impact on the traditional face-to-face teaching and learning activities across the globe. there is, however, little research regarding the platformisation of education with the aid of the learning management systems (lmss) in the contexts of south african universities. with a thematic content analysis of the extant literature and a systematic review of universities’ websites, this study explored and unearthed various lms platforms which public universities in south africa adopted and utilized before the outbreak of the covid-19 pandemic and during the lockdown period. the findings revealed that the majority (46%) of south africa’s public universities used the blackboard lms while another 34 percent of the 26 universities used the moodle lms. the rest of the public universities in south africa used one of the following lms platforms: the vula, efundi, clickup, ruconnected, sakai, sunlearn, canvas, and d2lbrightspace. furthermore, the study found that a few south african universities had moved from one lms platform to another, especially during the period of lockdown precipitated by the pandemic; beginning from the year 2020. the lms platforms serve the pedagogical needs of the universities in terms of facilitation of online interaction between instructors and students, dissemination of course materials, announcements, submissions, assessments, and grading of student assignments electronically. it is recommended that future studies should investigate the challenging factors responsible for the switch from one lms platform to another across the public universities in south africa. keywords covid-19 pandemic; platformisation of education; learning management systems; south african universities; digital technologies 10.46303/ressat.2022.10 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2022.10 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ 67 ressat 2022, 7(2): 66-86 introduction “the chinese character for crisis is the same character used for an opportunity. this is because within almost every crisis there is an opportunity of some kind if you can find it” (brian, 2010, p. 4). this study was motivated by some assumptions. one is that every university in south africa has adopted one lms platform or another. two, an assumption that there has been no single study that investigated the lms platform each of the 26 public universities has adopted and utilised for teaching and learning in south africa. the covid-19 lockdown measures have presented opportunities to see the technology’s potential for continuity of education through various online platforms. it was more of a tech-savvy progressive educational environment for the learners and their instructors connected through electronic means for delivery of lessons by logging onto available digital devices such as android phones, smartphones, ipad, tablets, and laptops (maity et. al., 2021). the use of technological tools for educational purposes which is popularly referred to as the “edtech or edutech” was not strange in most educational institutions. however, the covid-19 outbreak caused a paradigmatic digital shift in education as swiftly regarded as emergency remote teaching (ert) (angiolini et al., 2020). responses to the unprecedented disruption of education and other critical sectors in different nations across the globe informed the deployment of digital technology to ensure the continuity of the teaching and learning process in the form of a remote learning system. the increased rates at which schools, colleges, and universities shifted and are still shifting to online teaching and learning have become the principal learning portal (foxcroft & bosire, 2020). thus, given the critical role that information and communication technology (ict) has got to play in the enablement of teaching and learning activities as the covid-19 pandemic continues to ravage the entire world, south african schools, colleges and universities saw the need to prioritise elearning technologies considered relevant and useful for a seismic structural shift in higher education (foxcroft & bosire, 2020; mbhiza, 2021). studies have emerged on the digitalisation of education during the covid-19 lockdown and the online platforms which became the alternatives for teaching and learning as the world was forced to temporarily shut down educational institutions (kang, 2021; maske, 2020; perez, 2020). among the diverse platforms engaged to stem the adverse effects of the lockdown on educational systems, are the learning management systems (lmss). this study focuses on the lms software in south africa’s higher institutions as the platform connecting lecturers with their students for teaching, learning, tests, examinations, and research supervision from various locations outside the campuses. hence, the choice of the term platformisation of education in this study was to contextualise how the lms platforms have served the inevitable continuation of educational activities by higher institutions amid the threatening covid-19 pandemic. in south africa, the 2020/2021 academic calendar has begun amid the pandemic as educational institutions were confronted with the urgent need to improve their modes of online curriculums and course navigation, online examinations, increase student inclusion for remote learning and strengthen their capacity for ict solutions in the time of crises (vinas, 2020). the 68 ressat 2022, 7(2): 66-86 deluge of the internet, communication devices, and software have provided educational institutions across the globe with several platforms [for remote interactions between educators and students] (kakasevski et al., 2008). this technological phase has been described as the ‘platform deluge’ (piromalli & viteritti, 2019; tsakeni, 2022). during the pandemic lockdowns, a lot of technologies were deployed through various lmss and other digital platforms to carry on teaching and learning activities over a remote distanced location. lms tools are very efficient and capable of conveying information between students and their teachers. the use of lms tools in higher institutions of learning has witnessed tremendous development in the last decades (weaver et al., 2008). lecturers adopt the lms platform for the creation of spaces for various levels of students, sharing of course content and/or materials, collection of assignments, posting student grades, hosting discussions, and doing a lot more (kumar et al., 2019). the lms is a set of software solutions that serve as a virtual classroom for online teaching and learning activities involving both the teachers and learners. this is essentially required in this socially distanced world where people have been constrained to live under some sets of lockdown protocols for their protection against infectious coronavirus (maske, 2020). the various lms tools, deployed for teaching and learning in this period of social distancing, have not been given sufficient attention in the extant literature. this study conscientiously opens up discourses and uncovers deep insights into the use of various lms platforms such as moodle, blackboard, and others. more specifically, this study aims to identify, analyse, and discuss the lmss which have been adopted as online platforms for teaching and learning before and during the pandemic by each of south africa’s 26 public universities. the objective of the study the objective of this study was to identify and analyse various lms platforms used by the 26 south african public universities before and during the lockdown; precipitated by the covid-19 pandemic. thus, this paper aims to contribute to the ongoing discourses concerning the adoption of technology for education, by identifying, analysing, and discussing the usefulness of the lms tools available for educational use in south africa’s twenty-six public universities. by doing this, further insights are provided into the availability of the lmss that can be beneficial to educators, students, school administrators, researchers, policymakers, and even the lms companies regarding the pedagogical importance and adaptation of these platforms for remote instructional delivery. research questions • what lms platforms have been in use at the public universities before and during the covid-19 lockdown in south africa? • which of these lms platforms has the greatest number of public universities in south africa? • how useful are lms platforms to the pedagogical practices of public universities in south africa? 69 ressat 2022, 7(2): 66-86 review of literature the digital technology, covid-19 pandemic and platformisation of education the use of digital technologies for teaching and learning has also been advanced by scholars in the field of educational technology. dhawan (2020) has, however, argued that most educators and learners in various educational institutions have never been involved in an online mode of learning. he noted further that until the period of the lockdowns that commenced in march 2020, they were only used for the traditional practices of teaching and learning in a face-to-face mode. it, therefore, became a huge challenge to change from offline mode to e-learning mode (dhawan, 2020). some technological tools for educational purposes are video conferencing, virtual tutoring, as well as learning management systems (lms). however, the covid-19 pandemic lockdown has brought to the fore the transformative impact of digital technology on education [in the last year] (mail & guardian, 2020). the number of technological tools available for use today is a marked difference between the previous pandemics and the covid-19 pandemic currently ravaging the world. during the total lockdown that foisted social isolation on the world, people were able to stay connected with their families, friends, and colleagues with the abundant aid of digital technology. the covid-19 pandemic caused the entire world to witness a mind-blowing increase in the use of online digital tools and several social media platforms (perez, 2020; waters & hensley, 2020). these digital tools for communication could function as a social connector and a separator (waytz & gray, 2018). with the aid of digital technologies, education systems have become highly platformised whereby schooling, teaching, and learning activities are platform-based. in light of this, education is repositioned as a form of home-schooling mediated by technology tools, edu-businesses, and other institutions (williamson et al., 2020). platformisation of education is a concept that has been theorised in a book titled ‘the platform society’ authored by van dijck et al. (2018). the concept is used in studies that focus on how core values of educational practices are affected by the process of digitisation (kerssens, n.d). in this study, platformisation of education refers to the provision of education (teaching and learning activities) using various forms of technology platforms such as the learning management systems (lmss), google classroom app, youtube app, facebook app, whatsapp, and many others as experimented during the 2020 school closures owing the threats posed by the covid-19 pandemic. these technology platforms have increasingly mediated how people interact commercially, socially, politically, culturally, professionally, and educationally ((kumar et al., 2019). platformisation has been conceptualized as ‘the penetration of infrastructures, economic processes, and governmental framework of platforms in different economic sectors and spheres of life’ (kerssens & dijck, 2021). platformisation’s emphasis is about, as noted by kerssens and dijck (2021), “how platforms are not just ‘objects’ but the result of socio-technical and political-economic processes of development and implementation; they are technically integrated into the fabric of societal sectors, transforming their economic dynamics”. according 70 ressat 2022, 7(2): 66-86 to williamson et al. (2020), there are three interconnected economic, political, and educational processes involved in platformisation. they are the growth of a profitable edtech global market, the problematisation of traditional classroom-based modes of schooling (which identifies digital technologies as the ‘solution’ to their shortcomings), and the concomitant establishment of educational online platforms as constitutive elements of the contemporary educational experience. the remote learning in a pandemic period linden (2020) described the covid-19 pandemic as a game-changer for compelling all national sectors, including higher education, to adjust to the new normal such as migrating from the traditional face-to-face classroom to the remote modes of teaching and learning. these modes entail the blended modalities of teaching and learning whereby there can be arrangements for contact classes, when possible, online learning in some cases, as well as delivery of printed study materials to learners in their various homes during the pandemic lockdown (linden, 2020). foxcroft and bosire (2020) noted that “puritans with a bias for quality in online learning are grappling with the practical reality of ‘going live’ so quickly” (para. 5). these puritans are persons who strongly believe in strict adherence to rules. they submitted further that “the pressure is being felt even in institutions where blended learning (a hybrid of contact and technologyenhanced learning and teaching) was already rapidly being adopted, long before covid-19” (para. 5). remote learning is an approach adopted by educational institutions across the globe as the response to the covid-19 lockdowns which have grounded socio-economic activities including learning and teaching. it is important to note that the discussion on remote learning is central to the phenomenon of e-learning. while the two are not the same, they are more like consanguine sisters, as remote learning is enhanced by the availability of e-facilities. e-learning is a generic technological term that encompasses a broad range of information and communication technology (ict) based applications and procedures such as computer/web-based learning, virtual or digital classrooms, digital collaboration, and networking (ogbonna et al., 2019). it serves as a means of communication between educators, instructors, and learners; thereby allowing for resource sharing, coordination of work procedures and processes, and identifying who does what, when, how, and why. it also provides a platform for real-world simulations by which theoretical learnings are demonstrated within a practical environment. from april 2020, e-learning became the only feasible solution to the disruption of schooling whereby the teachers and learners were connecting from their various homes by using digital platforms for teaching and learning. it became a victor ludorum in the way the world had to forcefully switch overnight to some pedagogical approaches that are technologically based, for the continuity of education of the young ones, and as a panacea to the global crisis of the debilitating coronavirus pandemic (dhawan, 2020). remote learning, being a victor ludorum, literally means a defeater of the coronavirus’ adverse effects brought upon education which had forced schools and 71 ressat 2022, 7(2): 66-86 colleges to temporarily close down. even when schools were closed, remote learning through various online platforms helped ensure the continuation of teaching and learning without teachers and students meeting face-to-face in the physical classrooms. more importantly, it is common to have e-learning taking place via the learning management systems (lms) platforms. according to ogbonna et al. (2019), lms software facilitates deployment, management, tracking, and reporting interactions between teachers, learning materials, and learners. marongwe and garidzirai’s (2021) study, on challenges of remote learning that students of rural-based universities in south africa faced during the covid19 crisis, identified blackboard and moodle lmss among the online learning platforms used in the provinces of the eastern cape, limpopo, and kwazulu nata. the authors stated further that both blackboard and moodle lms platforms were mainly deployed for discussions and assessments during the remote learning engagements. as shown in figure 1 below, a typical cloud-based lms platform has five main features namely; onboarding, courses, assessments, insights, and learning paths. each of these features has its functionality matrices as presented in table 1 below. figure 1. the cloud-based lms framework onboarding is one of the features of the lms platform which is the action or process of integrating and familiarizing a new user with the software application. other features of an lms are courses, learning paths, insights, and assessments. courses are e-learning programmes that an lms software platform is designed to create, deliver and track by lecturers. the learning paths are a structured guide for learners to follow. they are a combination of courses that learners have to read through to master a particular subject or discipline. the availability of several but different learning paths suggests that there is more than one course in a given lms. 72 ressat 2022, 7(2): 66-86 insights are a game-changing feature with reporting capabilities that give lecturers access to useful information that is needed for constantly improving course materials and content delivery for the benefit of the students. a built-in lms assessment engine enables lecturers to monitor the online teaching and learning objectives and outcomes through the creation of assessments that concentrate on key aspects of students’ academic progress and performances. an lms is made of a server and a user interface (ui). the server enables the creation, delivery, and management of e-courses while the ui enables the users at their end to access and consume the available course materials for learning purposes. the lms and the learning management content systems (lmcs) enhance the provision and storage of curriculum contents, resources, and pedagogical instructions through university intranets, learning portals, and e-libraries. however, research has shown how the less privileged were unable to meet the basic requirements for them to actively participate in remote learning despite the ubiquitous nature of the digital transformation or the ‘internet of things’ (iot) (eder, 2020; hash, 2021). table 1. main features and functionality matrices of a cloud lms features functionality matrices onboarding seamless integration, student access, customisable and flexible, and interactive learning. courses course builder, course syllabus and lesson planning, course evaluation, course/programme mapping, faculty mapping, course planning, and availability management. assessments assessment planning, course assignments, course resources, quizzes and tests, survey, feedback, and polls; weightage-based grading, and transcripts. learning paths learning pathways, personalised learning, social learning, mobile learning, and gamification. insights dashboards and reports, course analytics, leader boards, online notice board, and messaging. source: adapted from sriram (2019) table 1 shows the cloud lms features with their various functionality matrices. by features, we mean those attributes that a typical lms possesses and offers in terms of online affordances for students and lecturers while the functionality matrices are a variety of functions that each of the lms features could be able to perform when accessed online. further, remote learning occurs synchronously or asynchronously and can be equally called remote training, virtual instruction, and distance education (singh & thurman, 2019). synchronous learning, on one hand, involves online (real-time) interaction between teachers 73 ressat 2022, 7(2): 66-86 and their learners specifically via delivery platforms, remote laboratories, and digital technologies for distance learning. it involves the exchange of information, knowledge, and ideas among participants at the same time. it is all about facilitating efficient teaching and learning; providing educators and learners with a variety of methods for information sharing, networking, and real-time collaboration (ogbonna et al., 2019). examples of synchronous modes in e-learning environments include live instructions from teachers and feedback from learners through the zoom meeting application, microsoft team’s application, skype, google classroom, and virtual chat rooms which allow everyone to interact and work collaboratively together online at the same time. on the other hand, asynchronous learning is a design of instructions and methodology of delivery allowing learners to access content and actively participate in the learning activities outside the four walls of the classroom and most importantly at their own pace and convenience independent of their teachers. hence, it is also known as self-paced, on-demand, or e-learning. like synchronous learning, asynchronous learning equally needs a technology such as the learning management system (lms) platform for learners to access instructional content from their various homes or destinations. methodology the methodology section describes the research design, procedure for the search strategy, and criteria for inclusion and exclusion of journal articles and other publications, as well as the data analysis procedure. research design this study leveraged a desktop research design to review relevant publications and information from the government’s database and public universities’ websites as related to the lms platforms in south africa. a desktop research method uses available data in existence to understand the phenomenon under study (johnston as cited in marongwe & garidzirai, 2021). a secondary-level analytical approach was used in reviewing the extant literature and other publications related to the research questions (newman & gough as cited in watson, 2020). in addition, an attempt was made at a systematic review of the website contents regarding the lms platforms which south africa’s public universities effectively used especially during the covid-19 lockdown and school closures. only the public universities in south africa were in focus. the list of public universities, retrieved from the websites of both the department of higher education and training (dhet) and south africa’s national research foundation (nrf), shows that there are 26 public universities in south africa. these public universities were distributed in such a way that each of the nine provinces, at least, has one. in addition to reviewing the extant literature, the websites of the 26 public universities in south africa were then searched through and analysed for data as regards their lms platform types. 74 ressat 2022, 7(2): 66-86 search strategy and selection criteria the literature review strategy was based on webster and watson’s guidelines (amin & soh, 2020) suggesting that it is important to begin a literature search with articles published in the leading journals to ensure the reliability of findings. over 100 journal articles and publications related to the concepts of platformisation of education, remote teaching, and learning, as well as digital technology in education such as the use of lms platforms were identified using the electronic databases such as scopus, google scholar, sage publication, sciencedirect, elsevier, and others. while only those published between 2018 and 2021 were selected for inclusion in the study, however, a few other publications outside the range of the aforementioned years were also considered relevant in the drafting of the literature review section of the study. other selection criteria for inclusion were as follows: empirical studies published by peer-reviewed journals should have been conducted with either primary or secondary data (watson, 2020), and produced results on platformisation of education and the lms tools. the search words such as “platformisation”, “platformisation of education,” “learning management systems in south african universities”, “public universities in south africa", “covid-19 lockdown”, and “digital technologies” were entered separately into the database search engines to unearth those relevant publications. in the end, 28 relevant journal articles were finally selected and included in the findings of the study. data analysis the study used a thematic analysis approach (braun & clarke as cited in watson, 2020) to organise the related literature and findings on the lms platforms used in south africa’s public universities. data on lms platforms were extracted from the universities’ websites and presented in a tabular form for analysis. the excel spreadsheet and chart were also used for analysis to diagrammatically show the identified lms platforms and the number of south africa’s public universities utilising such lms platforms. it is imperative to note that this study never required an ethical clearance since it did not involve human participation. findings what lms platforms have been in use at the public universities before and during the covid19 lockdown in south africa? the findings, in table 2 above, reveal that the majority of south african public universities (46%) utilised the blackboard lms, while the moodle lms was used by 34 percent of the 26 south african public universities that were analysed in this study. the rest of the public universities in south africa used one of the following lms platforms which include vula, efundi, clickup, ruconnected, sakai, sunlearn, canvas, and d2lbrightspace. 75 ressat 2022, 7(2): 66-86 table 2. lms platforms available at the public universities in south africa s/n university lms platform source 1. university of cape town vula https://vula.uct.ac.za/portal 2. the university of fort hare blackboard https://learn.ufh.ac.za/webapps/login 3. university of the free state blackboard https://ufs.blackboard.com 4. university of johannesburg blackboard https://www.uj.ac.za/corporateservices /ads/cat/pages/services.aspx 5. university of kwazulu-natal moodle https://learn2021.ukzn.ac.za/ 6. university of limpopo blackboard https://tmlearn.ul.ac.za/ 7. university of mpumalanga moodle https://www.ump.ac.za/ 8. nelson mandela university moodle https://ltcollab.mandela.ac.za/lt-help/ilearn-moodle 9. north west university efundi http://services.nwu.ac.za/ctl/student-efundisupport 10. university of pretoria clickup and blackboard https://www.up.ac.za/studentaffairs/news/post_2906988-up-shows-strongadaptability-to-online-teaching-and-learningsurvey 11. rhodes university ruconnected https://ruconnected.ru.ac.za/login/index2.php 12. sefako makgatho health sciences university blackboard https://www.smu.ac.za/stss/blackboard 13. sol plaatje university moodle https://www.spu.ac.za/index.php/elearning 14. university of south africa sakai https://mooc.unisa.ac.za/portal 15. university of stellenbosch sunlearn https://africavarsities.com/sunlearn-login learn.sun.ac.za 16. walter sisulu university for technology moodle blackboard https://www.wsu.ac.za/index.php/component https://wiseup2.wsu.ac.za/# https://www.uj.ac.za/corporateservices https://ltcollab.mandela.ac.za/lt-help/i-learn-moodle https://ltcollab.mandela.ac.za/lt-help/i-learn-moodle http://services.nwu.ac.za/ctl/student-efundi-support http://services.nwu.ac.za/ctl/student-efundi-support https://www.up.ac.za/student-affairs/news/post_2906988-up-shows-strong-adaptability-to-online-teaching-and-learning-survey https://www.up.ac.za/student-affairs/news/post_2906988-up-shows-strong-adaptability-to-online-teaching-and-learning-survey https://www.up.ac.za/student-affairs/news/post_2906988-up-shows-strong-adaptability-to-online-teaching-and-learning-survey https://www.up.ac.za/student-affairs/news/post_2906988-up-shows-strong-adaptability-to-online-teaching-and-learning-survey https://africavarsities.com/sunlearn-login 76 ressat 2022, 7(2): 66-86 17. university of venda moodle https://myuniven-moodle.univen.ac.za/ 18. university of the western cape ikamva (sakai) https://ikamva.uwc.ac.za/portal 19. university of the witwatersrand ulwazi (canvas) https://www.wits.ac.za/ulwazi/ 20. university of zululand moodle https://learn.unizulu.ac.za/ 21. cape peninsula university of technology blackboard https://myclassroom.cput.ac.za/ 22. central university of technology, free state ethuto (blackboard) https://ethuto.cut.ac.za/# 23. durban university of technology moodle https://tlzprod.dut.ac.za/login 24. mangosuthu university of technology moodle & blackboard https://moodle.mut.ac.za/login/index.php https://www.mut.ac.za/student-portal/ 25. tshwane university of technology blackboard & d2l brightspace https://mytutor.tut.ac.za/ https://mytutord2l.tut.ac.za 26. vaal university of technology blackboard (vutela) https://blackboard.vut.ac.za/ which of these lms platforms has the greatest number of public universities in south africa? figure 2. lms platforms and number of south african varsities using them 1 12 9 1 1 1 2 1 1 1 a chart showing number of south african varsities on various lms platforms https://tlzprod.dut.ac.za/login https://moodle.mut.ac.za/login/index.php https://mytutor.tut.ac.za/ https://mytutord2l.tut.ac.za/ 77 ressat 2022, 7(2): 66-86 as depicted in figure 2 above, a vast majority of south african universities (12) are running their online teaching and learning platforms on the blackboard lms. moodle lms has nine (9) universities for their online teaching, learning, and digital communication. sakai lms has only two (2) universities while the remaining lmss each have one (1) university on their platforms. the notable finding from figure 2 is that the blackboard lms has the highest number of public universities in south africa. lms platforms’ usefulness to the pedagogical practices of public universities in south africa vula this is the learning management system used for online collaboration and learning system by the university of cape town (uct). the university’s website defines “vula” as “open”, implying several possibilities as provided by vula lms and its open source origins. its primary purpose is to provide support for uct courses as well as ‘promote networking for other uct-related groups and societies’ (university of cape town, 2021). vula lms provides an online space for teaching and learning in a manner that enables lecturers to create responsive and engaging learning experiences for their students. it is an online lms that is available and accessible 7 days per week on a 24-hour basis. it encompasses integrated features for facilitation of open communication, creation of digital courses, additional resources for engagement, and interaction of students with one another as well as with their lecturers as they would do in a physical classroom [offline] (university of cape town, 2021). through the vula lms, uct lecturers and students have defied the obstacle imposed by the covid-19 pandemic by running webinars for teaching and learning, as well as workshops and training during the lockdown period. as the initiative of the university’s centre for innovation in learning and teaching (cilt), vula lms according to the uct website is set up for the following: (i) creation of a course website including administrative, assessment, sharing of communication, and resources; (ii) development of a resource site to cater to the shared interests of faculty members and their students; and (iii) creation of a project or task-related site with a provision for a central place for collection of and reflection on data for collaboration among faculty members and their students. blackboard the university of fort hare’s (ufh) lms is the blackboard. it is a web-based online learning platform for lecturers and instructors to use for the integration of a broad range of pedagogical and course administration tools (university of fort hare, 2021). the blackboard lms is used by the university to keep learning materials for particular courses or programmes which students can access via the internet at their own convenient time everywhere. it further aims to facilitate interaction and communication among students on one hand and between students and their instructors on the other hand. before the pandemic, the institution used the blackboard for the augmentation of face-to-face learning, in the form of supportive learning materials through the 78 ressat 2022, 7(2): 66-86 use of various media. as the pandemic is still very much with us, the blackboard lms provides some sort of blended learning environment for students and faculty staff members. the blackboard lms provided opportunities for the continuation of academic activities at the ufh during the social distancing and lockdown protocols imposed by the covid-19 pandemic on the country in particular and the world at large (linden, 2020). the university of the free state (ufs) also utilises blackboard as its learning management system (lms) or the online environment that complements the face-to-face classroom for the delivery of courses considered to be a blended learning model. before the outbreak of the pandemic, the institution had two approaches to learning which include the blended approach for students based on campus and the distributed approach of learning which is fully an online distance education programme for off-campus students. the university of johannesburg equally adopts blackboard as its learning management system for the provision of a robust teaching and learning experience for both academic staff and students concerning access to materials for lectures and study guides, facilitation of lecturer-student interaction and communication, making announcements, assignment submissions, as well as doing grading and assessments electronically (university of johannesburg, 2020). moodle the university of kwazulu-natal (ukzn) offers moodle as the lms platform since 2016 when the university decided to replace paper-based note-taking by the students with electronic course materials and lecture notes. the decision was to facilitate the acquisition of digital skills by students and demonstrate confidence in the use of electronic media after graduation. the use of moodle lms avails lecturers the opportunities to upload course materials for students to access and make downloads at their convenience (the university of kwazulu-natal, n.d.). as far back as 2002, ukzn authorities had implemented the use of the open learning system (ols) to replace the webct, otherwise known as the proprietary learning management system. the decision to switch from the use of the webct to implementing the ols was due to huge costs (jackson, 2008). also, the university of mpumalanga (ump) has adopted the moodle lms as a supplementary online learning platform with the face-to-face modes of teaching before the outbreak of the covid-19 pandemic. makhaga’s findings corroborate this point of usefulness revealing that lecturers develop learning contents and notes by using powerpoint slides, and audio-visual presentations and deliver all on the moodle lms for students to access and use for learning, assessments, and examinations (makhaga, 2020). one of the ump lecturers buttressed this finding by stating that the use of digital technologies such as moodle was not new to ump. the lecturer argued that remote working was better and safer than manual given the prevalence of the deadly covid-19 pandemic (makhaga, 2020). it is advantageous for its flexibility and employees can work from anywhere and anytime of the day. the nelson mandela university (nmu) also adopts i-learn/moodle as the institution’s learning management system. the nmu’s moodle lms provides some interesting default roles for each of the users: teachers, nonediting teachers (teaching assistants), students, and guests. teachers/instructors’ default role 79 ressat 2022, 7(2): 66-86 allows for them to add resources, course materials, and other activities, perform changing of course settings, and grade student submissions of assignments and other activities. the default role for non-editing teachers/teaching assistants allows such instructors to view course contents and perform grading of student submissions. the default role for students enables them to view course resources or materials, take part in course activities, as well as appear in the grade book. there is also a default role for a guest who can only access the course page, and learning materials but cannot be allowed access to participation in teaching and learning activities, as well as view submissions made by students. however, only the instructor can make the guest's default role accessible (nelson mandela university, 2019). at the nmu, the use of the moodle lms has facilitated a drastic reduction in the classroom use of paper materials as course contents are being provided in electronic forms to students; the installation of a new e-learning platform (lms), called “incoko” meaning “conversion” in isixhosa at the institution’s school of business for a paperless content delivery mode and supervision request form (nelson mandela university, 2019). there is evidence that walter sisulu university (wsu) has adopted moodle either in place or in addition to the blackboard previously used as the electronic platform for teaching and learning. according to a member of the institution’s elearning task team, munienge mbodila: for wsu, moving to moodle is still in the line in enabling the use of new technologies to promote excellence in teaching and learning using technology; moodle, which is the lms we useis going to become central to the blended learning approach at wsu. students and staff must familiarise themselves with the platform (sigodi, n.d.). efundi the north-west university (nwu) adopts ‘efundi’ as its institutional e-learning platform, otherwise known as the learning management system, for connecting registered students with lecturers online. through the efund lms, students can access course resources, and do submission of assignments and tests, and. it further serves as a communication platform through which lecturers release and circulate announcements relating to course materials, test results, and others (north-west university, 2021). clickup: university of pretoria’s (up) transition to remote (online) teaching and learning during the national covid-19 lockdown was seamlessly effective using the institution’s lms called clickup. reports available on the clickup lms showed that up’s academic programmes continued remotely on 4th may 2020. lecturers reportedly, within the first 4 weeks, uploaded “443gb of content to 3, 158 online courses and that 34, 818 out of 35, 939 (96.8%) undergraduate students used the lms actively. students accessed their courses 5, 100, 000 times during may 2020” (university of pretoria, 2020). ruconnected rhodes university’s ‘ruconnected’ is the institutional learning management system where students access course materials to learn remotely. thus, it is the institutionally supported virtual learning space for teaching, learning, and assessment activities and resources (rhodes 80 ressat 2022, 7(2): 66-86 university, 2021). monnapula-mapesela (2020) revealed that ru officially commenced its online teaching and learning on 4th may 2020. before the outbreak of the pandemic, the ‘ruconnected’ has always been used to supplement face-to-face contact classes for both fulltime and part-time students of the institution. the ruconnected online lms allows students to engage in their courses and submit their tasks during the block contact sessions (rhodes university, 2021). sakai the university of south africa’s (unisa) lms is known as sakai which is provided for faculty staff members and students to have access to various online tools for communication, assessment, content delivery, and many more. the major elements of a sakai lms site are accessible using the access keys such as the content, the tools, my sites, and note (the university of south africa, n.d.). sunlearn: the sunlearn is the learning management system that serves as an electronic platform for teaching, learning, and assessment at stellenbosch university. the customised sunlearn lms provides a fit-for-purpose platform for students and their lecturers to be engaged in both academic and extra-curricular materials (elikplim, n.d.). ikamva (sakai): the university of the western cape’s (uwc) institutional lms is known as ikamva. it is understood that this particular lms may be technically supported by sakai, notwithstanding the naming (ikamva). this platform aims to enhance face-to-face teaching and learning activities by providing valuable online resources for self-study, reflection, and assessments (university of the western cape, 2021). ulwazi (canvas): the university of the witwatersrand’s (wits) lms is codenamed ‘ulwazi’. the online teaching and learning platform at the wits uses canvas lms cloud to provide the needed online support for students and lecturers during the difficult period of the covid-19 pandemic school shutdown. this platform empowers faculty staff members to design learning experiences and provide educational materials to ensure that students engage and interact as they access various dedicated course sites (university of the witwatersrand, 2020). discussion from the current analysis of the lms platforms available in south africa’s public universities, it is observed that there are a few south african universities that had to migrate from the blackboard lms to another one especially during the covid-19 crisis of school closures while others had to complement the blackboard lms with an additional type of lms platform, for reasons best known to them, as presented in table 2. however, the compelling factors responsible for the choice of one lms platform over another by the public universities in south africa are not within the purview of this present study. the lms platforms have been meticulously reviewed and found useful for pedagogical practices at the public universities in south africa; among which are the facilitation of online teaching and learning, communications and announcements, creation of course resources and dissemination, submissions of assignments, as well as assessment and grading of student submissions. in a nutshell, the lms platforms provided support for face-to-face teaching and learning before the pandemic; and 81 ressat 2022, 7(2): 66-86 during the pandemic, they provided alternate platforms for the continuation of teaching and learning activities amidst the lockdown. this finding was in tune with the submission of kang (2021), maske (2020), and perez (2020) that online platforms were the alternatives for teaching and learning activities when the world shut down educational institutions in face of the covid19 crisis. our analysis of the lms platforms in the 26 public universities shows that blackboard and moodle are prominently used more than others. this finding is supported by momani’s assertion, in a comparative study of moodle and blackboard lmss, that the two lms platforms are famous and widely used globally, especially among universities as well as other educational institutions (momani, 2010). this is further affirmed by a related study from south africa in which marongwe and garidzirai (2021) found that rural universities, in the provinces of eastern cape, limpopo, and kwazulu natal; mainly used blackboard and moodle lmss for class discussions and assessments as the covid-19 remote learning platforms. this current study also found that some of these universities in south africa had switched from the blackboard to other lms platforms. this observation is buttressed by an empirical study conducted by moonsamy and govender in south africa which indicated that academic staff, who were trained for blackboard lms, had to switch to the moodle lms because the former was not user-friendly and difficult to navigate through use (moonsamy, 2018). in another study conducted on four major lms platforms, including the blackboard, at tulane university in the united states, the officials of the private research institution affirmed blackboard lms as the best of all (squillante, 2014). again, this corroborates the finding of this study that blackboard was the most widely used lms platform in south africa’s public universities. similarly, a study has also confirmed the dominance of blackboard lms over others at the twenty-eight (28) public universities in saudi arabia (aldiab et al., 2019). according to the saudi authors, twenty-five universities representing 89% were using blackboard while others used moodle representing 7%, and d2l representing 4% respectively. most interesting was the global survey on lms usage conducted by kuran et al., (2017) which found that blackboard was most popular with 33% in the us and canada, followed by moodle at 20% while canvas lms was 20%. while in europe, moodle was found to be the most popular with 65%, and blackboard was just 21% (kuran et al., 2017). all of these empirical findings suggest that blackboard mostly serves the educational needs of universities for online engagements of lecturers and students. limitations of the study this paper is not without a few limitations. in our analysis, we were unable to investigate the challenges of the lms platforms used by the universities. another limitation of this study is that we did not investigate the user-friendliness of each of the lms platforms used by the universities and more importantly, investigating the teaching and learning experiences of lecturers and students with the lms platforms was not considered in this study. as it were, the findings of this study cannot be generalised because they resulted from a review of south africa’s public 82 ressat 2022, 7(2): 66-86 universities’ websites and relevant literature on lms platforms adopted for teaching and learning before and during the covid-19 lockdown. conclusion and recommendations in this study, an attempt was made to unearth how the twenty-six (26) public universities in south africa confronted the conundrum of the covid-19 pandemic by providing ‘platformised’ education (digital modes of teaching and learning) via various lms tools. the novelty of this study is the fact that it has identified and discussed the various lms platforms used by the 26 public universities in south africa. each of these universities has adopted at least one lms platform for online engagements and interactions between the faculty members and their students. prominent among the lmss adopted by south african universities are the blackboard, moodle, canvas, and sakai. this study has, therefore, contributed immensely to the body of literature on the platformisation of education and digitalisation of teaching and learning activities with the aid of the lmss. more importantly, this study has contributed to the discursive analysis regarding the platformisation of education vis-à-vis the adoption and utilisation of the learning management systems (lmss) in higher education institutions. in light of the aforementioned findings, it is apposite to recommend that future studies need to investigate the challenging factors responsible for the switch from one lms platform to another, particularly by a 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(2021). making sense of the unknown: a narrative analysis of covid-19 stories as told by wsu research studentsresearch in social sciences and technology, 6(2), 183-198. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.18 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). abstract storytelling is an important tool through which to make sense of life experiences. stories can be classified as personal narratives, historical documentaries and those that inform the viewer about a specific concept or practice. these narratives can be used to promote discussion about current issues in the world. storytelling can thus be seen as an effective learning tool for students by providing a strong foundation in “twenty first century literacy” skills as well as advancing emotional intelligence and social learning. this project used storytelling to gather information regarding people’s encounters with covid-19 and lockdown, with specific focus on the eastern cape of south africa. employing a content analysis methodology, it attempts to analyze responses to narrative inquiry interviews about the covid-19 pandemic as conducted by students, as part of their introduction to the methodology of research. these responses were used to generalize findings, as well as to look at individual reactions that could bring light to, and make sense of the human experience of the pandemic within an educational context. both negative and positive experiences were related by interviewees and students. keywords: content analysis, covid-19, change, narrative inquiry, storytelling introduction the arrival of the covid-19 pandemic on south african shores in march 2020 (national institute for communicable diseases, 2020), and the level 5 lockdown that started on 26 march 2020 (south african news agency, 2020) forced teachers and lecturers alike to rethink the way they were teaching (williams et al., 2021). for centuries, the focus in higher education has been on teaching. jansen (2004, in mpungose, 2020) states that traditional face-to-face learning excludes students’ experiences, as the lecturer deposits knowledge for students in a physical classroom using traditional methods (lecturer-centred) and resources. however, there is no access to these physical classrooms when faced with challenges such as student protests and pandemics. covid-19 and the shift 10.46303/ressat.2021.18 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.18 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 van der spuy, a. & jayakrishnan, l. making sense of the unknown: a narrative analysis of covid-19 stories as told by wsu research students research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 184 to digitalization have turned the spotlight on learning. existing literature (carrillo & flores, 2020; mpungose, 2020; wimpenny et al., 2020) refers to the myriad challenges faced by academic staff who, in the wake of covid-19, have had to shift from the traditional classroom approach to technology-driven methods. the pressure to offer learners customized solutions has reached the higher education arena at great cost to the wellbeing of academic staff who are left floundering in the tsunami-like waters of the pandemic. in fact, as tarman (2020:) stated, academics are in a “permanent state of transformation”. carrillo and flores (2020) point to ‘emergency remote teaching’ or 'emergency elearning’ and to difficulties associated with poor online teaching infrastructure, inexperience of teachers, the information gap with regard to information and resource access for all students, the complex environment at home, lack of mentoring and support and the different nature of the roles and competences required to teach effectively in the online higher education environment (carrillo & flores, 2020; wimpenny et al., 2020). as lecturers attempting to teach students basic research skills, we had to redesign our course to fit the restrictions of the lockdown, whilst instilling the principles of ethical research in our students. the topic of research thus became the covid-19 pandemic lockdown itself, and students were expected to interview members of their household. not only did they have to ask their immediate family members to relate their experiences of the lockdown, but they also had to ask them for the story of their lives, in keeping with the dictates of narrative analysis (clandinin, 2013). what followed from this project was a narrative of personal experiences of the people of the eastern cape province of south africa regarding covid-19 and the lockdown. purpose of the study on the evening of 15 march 2020, south african president cyril ramaphosa announced that all schools would shut with effect from 18 march, which prompted several universities to announce a suspension of their academic programs. a statement by the ministry of higher education, science and technology on 18 march pronounced that all universities and postschool institutions were to close for early recess immediately. university vice-chancellors as well as other stakeholders met to discuss the implications and decided to halt teaching and learning at all higher education institutions. walter sisulu university (wsu) in the eastern cape also announced precautionary measures in an online statement. due to the lockdown, universities found it challenging to offer their course material online. academics had to rework and adapt the curriculum for emergency remote teaching with practically little to no training, in a short timeframe. this came with several challenges for disadvantaged universities like wsu which experienced difficulties in making the transition to emergency remote teaching, leading to a delay in the resumption of academic activities. the covid-19 pandemic unquestionably showed up the inequalities in the higher education institutions in south africa. as lecturers teaching the research project module in the advanced diploma: public relations and the national diploma: journalism program at wsu, modules which required regular contact sessions with students, we were impacted, along with the students, in the sudden shift to the online delivery of programs. it thus became imperative to research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 van der spuy, a. & jayakrishnan, l. making sense of the unknown: a narrative analysis of covid-19 stories as told by wsu research students research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 185 use the module to investigate and make sense of the pandemic experience. the aim was to reveal the lived experiences of the lockdown, with specific focus on the people of the eastern cape. for this purpose, the focus was on the positive and negative impact of the pandemic. as the grounding for this study is narrative inquiry, students were not expected to approach the research with an end goal in mind, but to enter into a relationship with their interviewees in order to find in-depth information. however, as lecturers, we focused on the experiences of eastern cape residents during the so-called “hard” lockdown (levels 5 and 4) whether there were positive as well as negative experiences, and, lastly, how students from mostly disadvantaged backgrounds experienced their online learning. literature review both narrative inquiry and content analysis form the basis of our study: firstly, as the theoretical basis for the students’ work and secondly, as the method of analysis for our research. it is therefore prudent to discuss this as the foundations of the study. humans tell stories about their lives and those of others in order to make sense of their experience of the world (clandinin, cave, & berendonk, 2017). we interpret our experiences through our narratives in order to make them meaningful (clandinin, 2013). we can, therefore, be considered as characters in our own stories and those of others (connelly & clandinin, 1990). narrative inquiry can be seen as “a way of understanding and inquiring into” the experiences of others and yourself (clandinin, 2013); expressly, it is a way to think about human experience. influenced by john dewey’s two criteria of experience, namely interaction and continuity, clandinin and connelly (2000) developed their theory on narrative inquiry as both a phenomenon to be studied and a method that informs the inquiry. according to this understanding, narrative is the experience studied by narrative inquirers (clandinin, 2006) and must therefore not only be understood as a personal experience, but also within a specific context. this context encompasses the time (or ‘continuity’), the place (‘situation’) and the social environment (or ‘interaction’), not only of when the experience took place, but when it is told (clandinin, 2013). clandinin refers to this context as the ‘three-dimensional narrative inquiry space’ (2006, p. 47). the study of narrative, therefore, has to do with examining how humans experience the world (connelly & clandinin, 1990) within a certain framework which may be constantly changing. this implies that the researcher working with narrative inquiry must be flexible in order to cope with the possible changes in the direction of the research (gilstein, 2020). the researcher engaged in narrative inquiry must be aware that the story is continuing even when it is being told (connelly & clandinin, 1990). this was especially true for our research on covid-19 experiences as, at the time of writing, the pandemic and people’s lived experiences of it were still going on. there must also be an awareness of the subjectivity of these narratives (gilstein, 2020), which may be difficult for other researchers to understand. clandinin (2013) postulates that a mere analysis of collected stories is not valid narrative analysis. for narrative analysis to be true, not only must the researcher’s report form part of the narrative, but the researcher has to live the narrative. however, we believe that any research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 van der spuy, a. & jayakrishnan, l. making sense of the unknown: a narrative analysis of covid-19 stories as told by wsu research students research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 186 reporting on stories is adding to the narrative and that the value in this reporting lies in the fact that a voice is given to individuals who may not have been heard before. as gilstein (2020) states, individual experience is important in narrative analysis and this methodology allows the unique voice of individual experience to be heard – something that may not have been heard before. our paper ties in with this sentiment, as the voices of the people of the eastern cape are heard through this study. content analysis was used to analyze the texts produced by the students. krippendorff (1989, p. 403) defines content analysis as “a research technique for making replicable and valid inferences from data to their context”. within a communication context, this methodology can be applied to anything that can provide enough data, whether it is a newspaper publication, literary text or open-ended interviews, such as the ones that we used in this study. we used the texts that the students had produced as their research in order to perform a content analysis on the information provided, with the goal of discovering how people of the eastern cape province experienced the lockdown and its regulations. hsieh and shannon (2005) further described the different techniques used in content analysis as the conventional, directed and summative techniques. according to them, the specific method is dependent on the purpose of the study. if your aim is to describe the phenomenon, as in our study, the conventional approach will be used. the advantage of this method is that information is obtained directly from the participants, and the researchers cannot have any preconceived ideas as to what they will discover (hsieh & shannon, 2005). content analysis can be used to study media content, gather intelligence, or to research social sciences and literature (hsieh & shannon, 2005). in the case of this paper, the information provided by the research students became the text data that could be studied. methodology subsequent to the closure of the university and amid plans to save the academic year, we, as lecturers in charge of the research project module for our respective programs (journalism and public relations) in the department of corporate communication and marketing at wsu, had to think of a way in which the students could still conduct a research study within the limitations of the lockdown. we were forced to think about what model we could use to deliver the module and how the students’ individual projects could best be executed. these deliberations assisted in determining the aim and methodology of the study. the module was offered online, social media student groups were formed and information was disseminated. microsoft teams and whatsapp were used for supervisory meetings and sessions to follow up on progress and give guidance. design the aim of the study was to reveal the lived experiences of the lockdown, with specific focus on the people of the eastern cape. individual stories from the community were collected for this purpose with a narrative inquiry approach. the researcher then became the interpreter of these stories. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 van der spuy, a. & jayakrishnan, l. making sense of the unknown: a narrative analysis of covid-19 stories as told by wsu research students research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 187 students had approximately six months in which to complete their interviews and papers. as already stated, their transcripts were used as texts for our analysis. the approach was, therefore, qualitative. participants the experiences of the people of the eastern cape during the lockdown were explored using interviews. due to lockdown restrictions, convenience sampling (student researchers contacted family, friends, neighbours and people who were accessible to them) was used. a total of 88 students submitted their projects. forty-four of these students were from the national diploma: journalism, and thirty-nine were from the advanced diploma in public relations management. interviews that were not in line with the brief, were discarded. this meant that interviews with interviewees from provinces other than the eastern cape, or interviews that did not refer to covid-19 lockdown experiences, were excluded from this paper. 167 useful interviews were collected, with 100 female respondents and 67 male respondents when using a binary definition of gender. respondents came from many areas of the eastern cape, including but not limited to, mdantsane, east london, gqeberha, mount frere, lusikisiki and mthatha. ages ranged from sixteen to 84, and all participants gave informed consent for their information to be used in a research study. the interviewees were from all walks of life as reflected in their occupations, for example, teachers, nurses, business owners, students and the unemployed. all of the interviewees were given a number to maintain anonymity. out of 167 respondents, we identified 82 who commented on family life, 52 who commented on community life, 92 who remarked on work life and 50 who mentioned student life. instruments open-ended interview questions were asked of the participants by the student researchers to explore their lived experiences of the pandemic. it is worth mentioning that the students were novice researchers and the questions developed were based on the positive and negative impact of covid-19. the students’ interpretations and subsequent reports were used as information, instead of the actual interview transcripts. data collection procedure student researchers were instructed to collect the stories of three people known to them. in some cases, they had face-to-face interviews with family members living at home with them during lockdown; in other cases, they made use of telephonic interviews or social media messengers, such as whatsapp. one student researcher conducted three interviews and held a focus group discussion of six university students to explore their experiences of emergency remote teaching. the interviews were conducted physically where possible, telephonically and through online platforms such as social media and messengers. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 van der spuy, a. & jayakrishnan, l. making sense of the unknown: a narrative analysis of covid-19 stories as told by wsu research students research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 188 data analysis the data was analyzed using a conventional content analysis approach (hsieh & shannon, 2005), a qualitative methodology closely related to narrative inquiry (clandinin, 2013). as such, this study is not a true narrative inquiry study as per clandinin’s definition. instead, we used “narrative as content analysis” (clandinin, 2013) in order to analyze the data. in this process we therefore had used hsieh and shannon’s (2005) five steps of data analysis, namely; converting text into narrative, determining units of analysis and themes, making rules for the coding system, applying the coding system to all narrative data and revise if not proper, and verifying and selecting final data. this meant that the texts produced by the students were used as our data. we organized key thoughts into categories and identified common themes amongst the stories, using thematic coding. the final broad categories were labelled ‘negatives’ and ‘positives’, and each category was divided into sub-categories, namely personal life, community life, work life and student life. these sub-categories appeared in both the main categories. the characteristics of the messages were therefore identified and coded according to themes (stemler, 2000). we have also sought to establish trustworthiness and validity of the study by explaining in detail the method, design, data collection and data analysis processes. findings the findings are presented in terms of themes identified during our analysis, namely the broad categories of positive and negative experiences, family life, community life, work life and student life. family life the financial impact on families due to job losses, not qualifying for the pandemic relief grant, salary deductions and being put on unpaid leave was alarming. respondents also discussed the emotional impact and trauma of losing family members to covid-19, the anxiety of losing family, having to stay away from family and the fear of infecting relatives with the virus. many respondents commented on their fear for their families and children. respondent 2 (female, 50) said that she was fearful for her family and herself. respondent 8 (male, 23) stated that he was worried about his elderly mother, as she was at risk of contracting the virus. this was similar to respondent 97’s (female, 44) concerns, namely that her 73-year old mother would become sick. respondent 9, a nineteen-year-old female, lived with her grandmother and worried that she would infect her. respondent 120 (female, 27) also discussed how she complied with the pandemic rules and regulations and stayed home to protect her grandmother. mothers with young babies, such as respondent 40 (female, nap [no age provided]), had problems taking their children for their vaccinations and this concerned them. those working on the frontline, such as nurses and community workers, were anxious that they would contract the virus and infect their families. a carer in an old age home (respondent 50, female, 53) revealed that she was terrified that she would infect her family at home or that she would infect the elderly at work. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 van der spuy, a. & jayakrishnan, l. making sense of the unknown: a narrative analysis of covid-19 stories as told by wsu research students research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 189 job losses within the family brought insecurity and hardship. respondent 99 (male, 35) said that family members lost their jobs and he was under a lot of pressure to provide for them, too. respondent 22 (male, 34) stated that his aunt lost her job and that he was then responsible for her and his cousins. respondent 12 (female, 63) also said that her son lost his job and that he struggled to find a new one due to the lockdown. respondent 4 (male, 24) told of how his father lost his job. interviewees who did not live at home, found it difficult that they could not visit their loved ones or that their loved ones could not visit them due to the restriction on travel across province borders. respondent 8 (male, 23) was one of those who could not see his loved ones, as he was away from home. this caused “panic”, especially as he was also worried about his mother, a diabetes patient. a 63-year-old woman (respondent 11) found it difficult that her children could not visit, because they did not live in the eastern cape. this was similar to respondent 37’s (male, 72) experience. respondent 105 (male, 36) also found it difficult that he could not visit his family. respondent 121 (male, 42) mentioned how the sudden international travel restrictions separated him and his wife from their children in zimbabwe. whilst the south african government had set up a fund to pay out the special covid-19 social relief of distress (srd) grant (south african government, 2021), many interviewees complained that they did not receive the grant. they did not indicate whether they had applied online, as applications were only accepted via the internet. the beneficiaries of the grant were grateful, as it extended the grants they were already receiving, or as it helped with essentials. respondent 21 (female, 53) divulged how they had previously relied on her daughter’s internship stipend, and currently had to rely on the social relief fund for survival. respondent 39 (female, 40) had four children at home and said that she relied on the child grant. she also indicated that her oldest son dropped out of school; an indication that the cycle of poverty may continue. respondent 49 (female, 55) said that she lived off the social grant of two elderly people, but she was fearful when she had to go to town to withdraw money, as she had to make use of a minibus taxi to get to town. respondent 61 (male, 61) said that the increase in money helped him greatly. previously he had to borrow money from neighbors in order to survive until the next grant pay day, but with the extra money, he did not need to do that. however, people who had to also take care of others, such as respondent 92 (female, 28) found it difficult to survive on the small grant. respondent 122 (male, 29) experienced salary deductions and being unpaid for a few months while having to isolate with his family and take care of his wife who was recovering from covid19. nearly all covid-19 survivors mentioned the trauma of being ill while at the same time being terrified of spreading the virus to close family members. respondent 123 (female, 30) survived covid-19 only to lose her grandparents to the virus. respondents also described the pain of not being able to say goodbye to loved ones due to lockdown regulations and this seemed particularly important to the elderly, like respondent 141 (female, 74). respondents also seemed to find living with family in lockdown, taxing. grandparents like respondent 141 found the grandchildren uncontrollable and noisy, whereas the younger generation found it difficult to attend online lessons in a noisy environment and were expected to do domestic chores thus wasting precious study time (respondents 154 and 159 nap). research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 van der spuy, a. & jayakrishnan, l. making sense of the unknown: a narrative analysis of covid-19 stories as told by wsu research students research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 190 the positive side of the lockdown in terms of family life was, for many, that they had the opportunity to spend time with their families. respondent 111 (female, 50) said that she could spend “bonding time” with her family. this was the same for respondents 1 (female, 39), 22 (female, 21), 54 (female, 50), 67 (female, 17), 70 (male, 31) and 72 (male, 16). respondent 72 explained that he was forced to spend more time with his mother and his niece, as his father and brother both worked in johannesburg. the advantage of this for him was that he got to know and understand them better, and vice versa. respondent 67 said that she spent more time with her family, especially her parents, as they always were at work previously. community life many respondents commented on the fact that they could not attend funerals. this had to do with family duties that could not be performed (respondent 1, female, 39), or the fact that a dignified send-off could not be arranged (respondent 5, female, 39). this was especially painful to respondent 45 (female, 37) who lost her mother during the lockdown. she said that her mother was well-known in the community, but that they could not honor her mother in the way that she deserved. the fact that they could not pay a “final tribute” (respondent 6, female, 62) or pay their last respects (respondent 12, female, 63; respondent 18, female, 54; respondent 19, female, 34; respondent 101, male, 64; respondent 102, female, 25) featured strongly. some of the respondents could not attend the funeral of a close family member due to the travel restrictions that did not allow for travel between provinces without a valid permit. respondent 37 (male, 72) could not attend the funeral of his sister in johannesburg. for some, like respondent 58 (female, 33) it was difficult to bury her mother, as she passed away in another province. she said that she could not get a permit to travel, as, when she went to apply, the people who could authorize the permit were not available, or there were technical issues. respondent 43 discussed not being able to attend the funerals of his colleagues (male, 25). he did not indicate the reason, which might possibly be linked to covid-19 related restrictions. some respondents felt that they could not be there for the community when there was a funeral nor show their support (respondent 54, female, 50; respondent 70, male, 31; respondent 76, female, 61). from the many responses received on this issue – the most of any topic under the category community life – it is clear that the regulations around funeral attendance was deeply felt within the community. another topic that came up under this category, was that of church attendance. although only four respondents brought this up (respondent 6, female, 62; respondent 41, female, nap; respondent 51, female, 61; respondent 54, female, 50). this may be because of the support that they felt they missed, or the sense of community experienced at church. furthermore, some respondents commented on their lack of a social life. respondent 3 (female, 16) said that, although it was good to spend time with family, she was a social person but could not see her friends. number 60 (female, 26) said that her social life was badly affected, while respondent 70 (male, 31) indicated that he loved playing pool and going to swimming pools and the beach, but he could not do any of these activities. respondent 78 (male,22) was a keen football (soccer) player, but could not participate in the sport during the lockdown. they were stopped by the police while attempting to play a match. respondent 80 (male, 79) also said that he could not visit his friends. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 van der spuy, a. & jayakrishnan, l. making sense of the unknown: a narrative analysis of covid-19 stories as told by wsu research students research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 191 traditions and customs were also brought up. respondent 10 (female, 36) said they could not practice tradition, but it was unclear which traditions she referred to. respondent 26 (male, 28) stated that initiation could not continue, as well as other customs and traditions. for respondent 71 (male, 19) the lockdown meant that the rituals around his initiation into manhood could not be completed. the shops were closed and he could not start wearing what he termed “normal” clothes, as the shops where he was supposed to buy new clothes were closed. liquor stores were also closed, which meant that he could not buy the liquor needed to complete the transition. many respondents were fearful to come into contact with others (respondent 11, female, 63; respondent 18, female, 54; respondent 26, male, 28). they commented on a fear of neighbors, of going to town to buy groceries and of long queues. two interviewees (respondent 31, male, 32; respondent 33, male, 35) commented on the lack of enforcement of the lockdown rules. they said the ban on alcohol and the curfew were not effective, as there was nobody to enforce these. respondent 31 (male, 32) worked as a journalist during this time. he was also concerned about people’s behavior and attitudes, as well as the lack of monitoring. respondent 141 (female, 74) mentioned her fear of going out due to her vulnerable age and her forgetfulness to wear a mask. she mentioned how she would always urge other members of the community to wear masks and be safe by following all precautions and drinking certain tonics. she missed going to church where she got to interact socially with others and not being able to attend funerals. one respondent (no. 34, male, 35) mentioned the negative effects of the strict lockdown on the lgbtqi community. he said that those who needed hormone treatment, could not access their hormones. others, who needed pre-exposure prophylaxes or antiretroviral medication, could also not travel to where they could obtain their drugs. respondent 115 (female, 35), though not directly affected, discovered that she wanted to comfort people who’d been distressed by the pandemic and began writing a motivational blog. a number of respondents (117, 118, 119, 135, 136, 137, 138, 141, 152, nap) all urged the importance of exercising caution and following the pandemic rules and regulations. many suggestions were also related to the government’s handling of the pandemic and although many were satisfied with the government’s stance and grateful for the relief grant, they suggested that government focus on improving the vaccine drive and discrediting false information on social media. respondent 117 (female, 27) asserted that seeing public officials getting the vaccine would induce the public into getting them. respondents 118 (female, 26), 119 (male, 17) and 138 (female, nap) suggested free supply of masks and sanitizers to the poor, closing borders to international travelers, closing of churches, which people consider a place of safety thus getting infected; and closing “unhygienic” businesses such as hair salons and vegetable vendors. respondent 138 was of the view that the country should go into lockdown. respondents 121 (male, 42) and 122 (male, 29) made comparisons with other pandemics such as cholera, hiv/aids and listeriosis, claiming that the covid-19 pandemic had a global reach with a higher rate of deaths. respondent 117 (female, 27) referred to the lack of visibility of law enforcement officials during lockdown. people were losing jobs and not qualifying for the relief grant, and lockdown rules were not being enforced in townships where homes did not research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 van der spuy, a. & jayakrishnan, l. making sense of the unknown: a narrative analysis of covid-19 stories as told by wsu research students research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 192 have enough rooms for social distancing. this led to a sense of frustration and lack of trust in the government. according to the respondents, the only positives to come from the lockdown with regards to their community, were fewer drunk people (respondent 92, male, 52), less crime and a decrease in road accidents (respondent 105, female, 58). respondent 30 (female, 55), a police officer, said that patrols and roadblocks helped people, and respondent 105 (female, 58) said that the ban on alcohol was a good thing. work life the responses around the category “work life” were overwhelmingly negative. topics under this sub-category were essential workers, business owners – established and new, so-called “side hustles”, job losses and unemployment. work life was described as a source of stress, fear and anxiety as many respondents suffered job losses (respondents 141, 143, nap), salary deductions (respondents 121, 122, nap), unpaid leave (respondent 122, nap) or worried about their future prospects in getting a job (respondents 120, 161, 165, nap). due to the lockdown, some respondents were unable to go to work (respondent 118, nap), witnessed their company sales decrease or clients withdrawing from contracts and lack of funds (respondents 132, 134, nap), and family members losing jobs (respondents 117, 147, 150, nap). business owners like respondent 158 (male, nap) and respondent 162 (male, 27) suffered from a loss of income and had to send employees home. they acknowledged anxiety about the business and the future. respondent 166 (male, 33), a professional boxer, could not travel to matches due to lockdown restrictions nor could he offer boxing lessons in the community. essential workers commented on a number of issues, for example shift work, training, shift work and personal protective equipment (ppe). respondent 19 (female, 34) worked in a community health care center. she said that “extreme changes” were made in order to ensure the safety of the staff and patients. they also had to work in shifts in order to minimize the number of people at work. respondent 30 (female, 55), a police officer, also said that they had to work shifts. at one stage, the station was closed due to covid-19 and they had to work rotating shifts in order to comply with social distancing rules. respondent 63 (male, 24), a nurse, disclosed that they were not provided with any training on prevention and management of the disease. they also did not get ppe. they lost colleagues, but received no psychological help to cope with the situation. another community health worker, respondent 69 (female, 44), said that the conditions under which they had to work, was extremely stressful. they did not have ppe and had to use cloth masks. this led to anxiety, depression and stress. respondent 64 (female, 27) was a speech therapist. she admitted to being terrified due to the risk of infection, as she was doing her training at a provincial hospital. business owners were negatively affected. respondent 13 (male, 55) was a crop farmer. he could not purchase the necessary seeds to plant and said that it will take a long time to recoup his losses. this was also true for respondent 25 (male, 52), who worked as a builder. he could not continue to work, as he was unable to buy the necessary supplies. respondent 37 (male, 72) used to sell alcohol, but due to the ban on alcohol sales as well as the closure of his providers, he could not continue to do so. respondent 59 (female, 47) said that she was research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 van der spuy, a. & jayakrishnan, l. making sense of the unknown: a narrative analysis of covid-19 stories as told by wsu research students research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 193 tendering for government, but she lost money and had to rely on rental income to survive. similarly, respondent 85 (male, 31) could not purchase the material he needed for his job as a carpenter. new business owners had other issues, as they had been unable to build up a buffer against unforeseen circumstances. respondent 77 (female, 37) had just started a small catering business, but had to close it. she said that even after the initial lockdown restrictions were lifted, there were fewer people around and she had less business. respondent 7 (male, 21) registered a new public relations company in 2020, but the promotion of the company had to be put on hold. she had applied for funding from government, but received nothing. similarly, respondent 56 (female, 24) had wanted to start her own business and applied for funding, but could not continue due to the lockdown. respondent 78 (female, 60) started her own business distributing soap. she said it had started to boom before the lockdown, but that covid-19 had “delayed” her business. many people relied on what they called “side hustles” to make ends meet. this means that they will have a specific job, but they will do other things, such as sell cosmetic products, to get by. respondent 8 (male, 23), a student, said his finances were badly affected, as he could not continue with his side hustles. those looking for “piece jobs”, or day jobs paying a daily wage, were also badly influenced. respondent 28 (male, 55) said that he could not seek piece jobs, which would have involved travel. he often had nothing to eat, but his community helped and he also received food parcels. respondent 109 (male, 40) admitted to an illegal side hustle, in which he gave loans to others in his community and then charged interest. it is unclear whether he knew that this was illegal, as he was not a registered credit provider. interviewees spoke of job losses caused by the lockdown, whether their own jobs (respondent 33, male, 31; respondent 36, female, 24; respondent 39, female, 40; respondent 54, female, 50) or those of others (respondent 89, female, age unknown). some said that they could not look for a job due to the lockdown. companies were retrenching instead of hiring (respondent 16, male, 27). this was of particular concern to students in their final year of study, as they feared that they would not obtain employment despite being qualified (respondent 103, male, nap; respondent 99, female, 23). some interviewees told how their hours were cut and that their income decreased because of this. respondent 36 (female, 24) said she was a temporary worker. she had to work shorter hours and received a lower pay. she then obtained a permanent position at a hospital, but she was afraid of taking it, as she feared she may contract covid-19. she was then unemployed for two months before she was rehired. respondent 48 (male, 55) was a taxi driver, but due to government restrictions, they could initially only load 30% of capacity. this decreased his income, especially as he was also expected to provide passengers with sanitizers. he had a small shop at home, but his customers were fewer than before. respondent 52 (male, 31), another taxi driver, also commented on the fact that he was not allowed to carry a full load. respondent 90 (male, 29), also a taxi driver, said that his job was safe, meaning that he knew he would not lose it, but his income was lower. interviewee 82 (female, 47) explained that her hours and days at the retail shop where she worked, were shortened. she was without an income for two months and the unemployment insurance fund took a long time to pay out. respondent 88 research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 van der spuy, a. & jayakrishnan, l. making sense of the unknown: a narrative analysis of covid-19 stories as told by wsu research students research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 194 worked as a cleaner during the lockdown period. she said that they were not paid their full salaries, but that they could not complain, as nobody was in the office due to lockdown regulations. respondent 58 (female, 33) worked as a receptionist, but received only half her salary. some of the interviewees were teachers. respondent 35 (female, 24) said that they had issues with learners not attending classes, as they were scared of contracting the virus at school. they also had to offer extra classes to the learners. respondent 73 (female, 28) said that the learners were badly affected, as they were basically left alone to cope with the work. a school principal (respondent 107, male, 41) said that the learners were behind on the school syllabus and that they faced a challenging situation. the grade 12 students were lagging behind and this would have an impact on their record exams, which would give them entrance to universities and colleges. other experiences were more singular, as only one or two interviewees referred to this topic. respondent 14 (male,71) was a bishop in a rural area. according to him, covid-19 ruined the plans of the congregation. he did not elaborate on these plans, however. respondent 97 (female, 45) ran a non-governmental organization (ngo) that took care of the elderly in the community. she could not continue with her work, as her funding was stopped. another respondent (respondent 70, male, 31) worked at a garage and had to continue working during the lockdown. public transport was an issue for him, as he worked shifts and transport was not always available when he needed it. he sometimes had to walk to and from work. he said that the police would sometimes give him a lift home, especially when it was late at night. two of the interviewees (respondent 93, female, 28; respondent 94, female, 21) gave birth during the lockdown. respondent 93 said that she was not allowed to take her mask off during labour. respondent 94 said that it was scary to give birth in a hospital during the lockdown, as it was full of sick people. she feared for her baby’s life and did not allow friends to touch her baby. respondent 104 (male, 27) had an internship, but lost it due to the lockdown. however, some respondents overcame adversity by managing to find “piece jobs” (respondent 143, nap), survive on the government relief fund and uif, and start online businesses (respondent 144, nap). business owners obtained assistance from the government relief fund and unemployed individuals like respondents 124 (male, 26) 156 (female, 25) managed to become employed through the public works youth brigade program. essential public workers like respondent 157 (male) did not suffer a financial toll. respondent 162 (male, 27), a business owner uncertain about the future of his business, used the opportunity to study and get a job. respondent 167 (male, 30) was fortunate in that his business was not affected due to his specialization in online retail. respondent 16 (male 27) said that it was good to do shopping online and to do things from home. he also liked that he could do skype interviews. respondent 29 (male, 56) said that he was able to work from home and received his salary as usual, whereas respondent 74 (male, 23), an essential worker, was happy that he could drive freely, as there was not a lot of traffic. respondent 87 (female, nap) even managed to find a position as a security guard during the lockdown. one woman (respondent 111, 50) was part of an organization that teaches women business skills. she did not complete the course due to the lockdown, but she was happy about this, as this meant that she would receive support for longer. she said that, despite the lockdown, people still bought clothes and chickens, which she research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 van der spuy, a. & jayakrishnan, l. making sense of the unknown: a narrative analysis of covid-19 stories as told by wsu research students research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 195 was selling. she also sold in small villages, because she said these were often neglected by sellers. respondent 110 (female, 58) said that they were very busy, as she ran a funeral parlor. she said they had many deaths, but it was bitter, as these people were her friends and family. student life of particular interest to us as lecturers, were the comments in the sub-category “student life”. the common pandemic stressor among students and teachers was the loss of the academic year and the shift in pedagogy to emergency remote teaching. they worried about returning to school and contracting the virus. educators were tasked with monitoring students as they entered school premises, taking their temperature, ensuring social distancing in the classrooms and outside. respondent 155 expounded on how teaching time was increased due to classes being divided into smaller groups. peer learning could not be used, and they had to entrust students with marking their own papers. a constant worry was the lack of training in online learning and misuse of learning instruments by the students who used it as a social media tool. the academic calendar was constantly disrupted due to students or staff contracting covid19, which would necessitate the closing and fumigation of the school and for contact cases to go into quarantine. in the case of school hostels, students would have to be fetched by their parents. the return to schools, therefore, proved to be a costly exercise. many students found the online learning experience challenging. respondent 34 (male, 27) said online classes were difficult, as he needed more data. respondent 40 (female, nap) described her experience as overwhelming, while respondent 41 (female, nap) said that it was unfamiliar. another student (respondent 44, male, 22) indicated that online learning was difficult, due to him being unable to afford enough data. respondent 45 (female, 27) also said that it was challenging, because of a lack of support and a lack of discipline. a nineteen-yearold school learner (respondent 55, male, 19) had no experience with computers and found the learning difficult, as he first had to learn how to use the technology. much of the struggle experienced by students, had to do with the internet reception in the rural areas. respondent 17 (female, 30) explained that the network coverage in her area was bad and that she missed classes and deadline because of this. respondent 38 (female, 22) came from a rural area. she said it was very difficult to study, due to the poor network in their area. respondent 78 (male, 22) also mentioned the network issues in the rural areas of the province, as did respondent 102 (female, 25). some spoke about privacy issues at home, or the noise levels and overcrowding that made studying difficult. respondent 3 (female, 16) lived in a small house with no privacy for studying or online learning. respondent 15 (female, nap) said that she had many siblings at home and were distracted, whereas respondent 38 (female, 22) stated that she was from a big family which created a lot of noise. added to this, they also had to deal with responsibilities at home, such as household chores. respondent 68 (female, 23) said that she had to balance house work and learning, and that her siblings thought she was lazy and hiding behind school work. this all added to the already challenging situation that they were in. another major topic was that they were unable to interact with classmates and lecturers (respondent 3, female, 16). according to the respondents it was difficult to understand the work without a teacher or lecturer physically present to explain (respondent 15, female, nap; research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 van der spuy, a. & jayakrishnan, l. making sense of the unknown: a narrative analysis of covid-19 stories as told by wsu research students research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 196 respondent 44, male, 22; respondent 45, female, 27; respondent 53, female, 21; respondent 91, male, 24). respondent 44 specifically said that he needed one-on-one interaction with the lecturers. respondents 159 and 164 (both female, nap) revealed how much they missed traditional learning, interactions with their classmates and group study sessions where they could obtain academic support from their peers and revisit challenging tasks. final year students explained that they needed to do in-service-training of six months in order to complete their diploma. however, they found it difficult to obtain a trainee position due to the lockdown (respondent 17, female, 30; respondent 66, female, 23). some were on the verge of graduation but found their career plans ruined due to the lengthy academic year with few job prospects, and having to stay at home due to the pandemic. they revealed their worry over repeating the year due to lack of knowledge and digital skills and called the year “the survival of the fittest”. respondent 165 (female, nap), a health sciences student, expounded on her inability to complete the practical component in hospitals as staff were focused on covid-19 patients. most students expressed their inability to cope with online learning due to network connectivity and data issues, the challenge of listening to lectures over electronic devices, not being added onto their course modules on microsoft teams, and their frustrations with the lack of assistance and patience from their lecturers. they referred to online learning as a “nightmare”, especially at wsu, where it made a late advent. since the majority of wsu students come from rural areas, they experienced the challenges of being at home as opposed to the university residences where they could access free wi-fi. due to bad network, they would have to wait till midnight for the signal to be strong so that they could study. another reason for late study sessions would be due to the noisy household as the entire family was together. they found the rural environment not conducive to studying as their parents could not understand the value of education and expected assistance with domestic chores. they also incurred financial costs in purchasing data. three high school learners (respondents 119, 139 and 163, nap) were anxious about adjusting to online learning, the loss of study time during the lockdown, not going to school, how the lockdown took away the elements of school life, how difficult it was to study without meeting teachers regularly and fearing for their future. even when they returned to school during level 3, they worried about contracting the virus and found it difficult to comprehend what the teacher was saying through the mask. they were concerned about studying under pressure with no time to prepare for exams and revealed how they were expected to submit tasks with little preparation. respondent 139 (female, nap) who is a grade 11 learner did not feel prepared for the matric year due to the short academic year and called it a “difficult year”. she found the year traumatic due to the loss of some teachers and just wanted the year to be over. the students were grateful for the time spent with family and especially in being beneficiaries of the nsfas allowance. this enabled them to receive free laptops, use the allowance for the purchase of data and in some cases, even assisted their families in buying groceries and other critical essentials. respondent 23 (female, 21, nap) said that she loved staying at home and that the e-learning assisted her. respondent 80 (male, 21, nap) said the laptops and data that the university had provided, made life easier. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 van der spuy, a. & jayakrishnan, l. making sense of the unknown: a narrative analysis of covid-19 stories as told by wsu research students research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 197 discussion the study was an exploration of the pandemic experience in the eastern cape. the positive and negative impact of the pandemic as well as people’s lived experiences, their challenges, issues faced, coping mechanisms and successes were investigated. the study was conducted during the 2020 academic year during lockdown and adds to current literature by providing the experiences and challenges faced by people in the eastern cape, south africa, during the pandemic. it is clear from the above findings that the lockdown in the eastern cape province of south africa, hit the people of the province very hard. the lockdown affected them mostly negatively, with very few positives coming from the experience. however, it is clear that those with fixed employment were better off than those with part-time work, “side hustles” or “piece jobs”. only two people said that they were entirely unaffected by the lockdown, except for having to wear a mask (respondent 61, male, 61; respondent 83, male, 59). both of them were unemployed and were living off the government social grants. according to them, they did not have to travel, as they were not looking for work. their lives basically stayed the same. conclusion the study found that most participants experienced an elevated level of stress and trauma due to issues and challenges connected with their families, job, and education. of particular importance to us as lecturers was the stress that the pedagogical shift to emergency remote teaching brought. the shift wrought an upheaval to both the staff and students of the historically disadvantaged and poorly resourced schools and universities of the eastern cape. academics and students were in a “sink or swim situation” which some respondents referred to as a “nightmare” and “survival of the fittest.” students had to regulate their own learning in a province where digital transformation and connectivity was poor, and consequently felt isolated in every aspect of their lives. academics had to make the switch from traditional learning to emergency remote teaching with a significant lack of training and tools, in a brief time. these stories present a picture of stress, trauma, and the endurance of the human spirit. references barnouw, e., gerbner, g., schramm, w., worth, t., & gross, l. (1989). international encyclopedia of communication (vol. 1). new york, ny: oxford university press. carrillo, c., & flores, m. a. (2020). covid-19 and teacher education: a literature review of online teaching and learning practices. european journal of teacher education, 43(4), 466–487. https://doi.org/10.1080/02619768.2020.1821184 clandinin, d. j. (2006). narrative inquiry: a methodology for studying lived experience. research studies in music education, 27, 44-54. clandinin, d. j. (2013). engaging in narrative inquiry. london and new york: routledge. clandinin, d. j., & michael, c. f. (2000). narrative inquiry: experience and story in qualitative research . san francisco: jossey-bass. clandinin, d., cave, m., & berendonk, c. (2017). narrative inquiry: a relational research methodology for medical education. medical education, 51(1). retrieved june 10, 2021, from http://0 research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 van der spuy, a. & jayakrishnan, l. making sense of the unknown: a narrative analysis of covid-19 stories as told by wsu research students research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 198 web.b.ebscohost.com.wam.seals.ac.za/ehost/detail/detail?vid=4&sid=4aac6b32e12e-41e6-8604-161f2d1e6c44%40pdc-vsessmgr02&bdata=jnnpdgu9zwhvc3qtbgl2zq%3d%3d#db=a9h&an=120262940 connelly, f. m., & clandinin, d. j. (1990). stories of experience and narrative inquiry. educational researcher, 19(5), 2-14. gilstein, j. (2020). narrative inquiry. retrieved may 16, 2021, from salem press encyclopedia: http://0eds.b.ebscohost.com.wam.seals.ac.za/eds/detail/detail?vid=0&sid=7ee80570-e4d84189-a77a-f101e16ab30f%40pdc-vsessmgr02&bdata=jnnpdgu9zwrzlwxpdmu%3d#an=90558399&db=ers hsieh, h., & shannon, s. (2005). three approaches to qualitative content analysis. qualitative health research, 15(9), 1277-1288. krippendorff, k. (1989). content analysis. in e. barnouw, g. gerbner, w. schramm, t. worth, & l. gross, international encyclopedia of communication (vol. 1, pp. 403-407). new york, ny: oxford university press. retrieved june 10, 2021, from http://repository.edu/asc_papers/226 mpungose, c. b. (2020). emergent transition from face-to-face to online learning in a south african university in the context of the coronavirus pandemic. humanities and social sciences communications, 7(1), 1–9. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-020-00603-x national institute for communicable diseases. (2020, march 5). first case of covid-19 coronavirus reported in south africa. retrieved june 9, 2021, from national institute for communicable diseases: https://www.nicd.ac.za/first-case-of-covid-19coronavirus-reported-in-sa/ south african news agency. (2020, march 23). president ramaphosa announces a nationwide lockdown. retrieved june 9, 2021, from south african news agency: https://www.sanews.gov.za/south-africa/president-ramaphosa-announcesnationwide-lockdown stemler, s. (2000). an overview of content analysis. practical assessment, research and evaluation, 7(article 17), 1-6. retrieved june 10, 2021, from https://scholarworks.umass.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1100&context=pare tarman, b. (2020). editorial: reflecting in the shade of pandemic. research in social sciences and technology, 6(1), i-iv. retrieved july 14, 2021, from https://ressat.org/index.php/ressat/article/view/476/88 williams, t., mcintosh, r., & russell, w. (2021). equity in distance education during covid-19. research in social sciences and technology, 6(1), 1-24. retrieved june 9, 2021, from https://ressat.org/index.php/ressat/article/view/524/94 wimpenny, k., beelen, j., & king, v. (2020). academic development to support the internationalization of the curriculum (ioc): a qualitative research synthesis. international journal for academic development, 25(3), 218–231. https://doi.org/10.1080/1360144x.2019.1691559 https://scholarworks.umass.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1100&context=pare https://ressat.org/index.php/ressat/article/view/476/88 research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 matabane, b. r. & matabane, m. e. black students’ experiences of academic support programs during first year at university: case of extended studies research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 93 black students’ experiences of academic support programs during first year at university: case of extended studies belinda ramathetse matabane1 & mogalatjane edward matabane*1 *corresponding author: edward.matabane@spu.ac.za 1. sol plaatje university, northern cape, south africa received : 2021-06-28 revised : 2021-07-30 accepted : 2021-08-25 how to cite this paper: matabane, b. r. & matabane, m. e. (2021). black students’ experiences of academic support programs during first year at university: case of extended studies. research in social sciences and technology, 6(3), 93-108. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.28 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). abstract in the last three decades, historically white, liberal arts universities began to admit small numbers of black students from rural communities because apartheid policies relaxed. however, those liberal arts universities had doubts about black students’ key skills and knowledge to cope with the demands of higher education. this situation gave birth to extended studies program (esp) whereby the traditional three-year degree program was extended by a year to close this gap. this study seeks to answer the question: what are black students’ experiences and views about academic support offered to them during their first year at university? in this study both qualitative and quantitative research methods were followed, and purposive sampling was deployed. data were generated from different sources for triangulation, namely questionnaires and interviews. participants (n=104) were made of 43 males and 61 females. the results of the study suggest that the need for academic support is not exclusive to first-year students. improved systematic academic support gives rise to improved student academic performance. throughout the study, necessity, and urgency of academic support programs (asps) is recognized. recommendations are made suggesting that asps be administered throughout the undergraduate programs and not just at the first-year level of study. keywords: academic support; academic support programs; extended studies programs; experiences. 10.46303/ressat.2021.28 mailto:edward.matabane@spu.ac.za https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.28 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 matabane, b. r. & matabane, m. e. black students’ experiences of academic support programs during first year at university: case of extended studies research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 94 introduction post-apartheid south africa promised democratization and de-racialization of access to higher education. however, the extent to which the country has lived up to these standards remains questionable. the majority of south africans continue to bear the brunt of apartheid legacy concerning education. despite the notable reforms since 1994, it is evident that access to quality education is still differentiated across racial and class lines. with persisting inequalities, schools that serve mostly black students inadequately prepare them for post-secondary education. as a result, there are major challenges for higher education institutions as they are expected to cater to ‘under-prepared’ students. academic support programs (asps) can bridge this gap. thus, there is an urgent need of these programs. the need for asps in higher education is widely acknowledged (bitzer, 2003; boughey, 2010; council on higher education [che], 2013; jones et al., 2008; junio-sabio, 2012; letseka et al., 2009). academic support is seen as part of the ongoing debate about meeting the students’ varying academic and non-academic needs. however, boughey (2013), contend that “even after apartheid, the ‘revolving door’ syndrome of high drop-out and failure rates continued to be a feature of the higher education system in general, and for africans in particular” (p. 18). despite an increase in the number of students enrolling in higher education, success in terms of throughput and graduation rates has continued to favor certain racial groups, and whites (scott et al., 2007; smolikevych, 2021). although physical access may have improved for those in previously excluded racial groups, epistemological access, and success for many has remained elusive. the provision of access to higher education has been increased by admitting african students in the white liberal arts universities through extended studies programs (esps). the history of esps has been marked by an attempt to ‘fix’ students’ problems. as such, these attempts are not sufficient to better suit the needs of the ‘ill-prepared’ students; this issue has been at the forefront of many institutions. the aim has been to make students fit in the already existing institution as opposed to radically transforming the institutions themselves. in this study, we explore the students’ experiences and views of asps offered during their first year in the extended studies program at a south african university. objective of the study the central goal of this paper is to explore students’ experiences and views of asps in higher education. this study is conducted against the backdrop of the transformation agenda in higher education in post-apartheid south africa. post-apartheid, access to higher education was expanded with little preparedness. as a result, the articulation gap between school and university, institutional culture, unpreparedness of universities and underpreparedness of students widened (bitzer, 2009; boughey, 2010; boughey & mckenna, 2016; maphosa, 2014; nel et al., 2009; ramapela, 2012; spaull, 2013). the arguments, largely, revolve around deficit assumptions “constructing students as lacking skills, experiencing gaps in conceptual knowledge areas, in need of language development and lacking the ability to think critically” (boughey, 2010, p. 5). equally important, the study is informed by the perennial problem of attrition, retention, and throughput (spaull, 2013; weuffen et al., 2021). research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 matabane, b. r. & matabane, m. e. black students’ experiences of academic support programs during first year at university: case of extended studies research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 95 research questions the primary question for the study is: “what are black students’ experiences and views about academic support offered to them during their first year at university?” emanating from the study primary question, the study seeks to respond following subquestions:  what are students’ views on the need for academic support during first year at university?  how do students feel about entering university through esp?  what can be improved in esp to improve success rate of students? literature review this section explains the foundational understanding of the birth of esps in south african higher education and how different institutions in south africa implement esp within their context. understanding extended studies programs (esp) in higher education historically, south african universities designed esps to provide access to higher education for prospective students from previously racially divided and disadvantaged educational backgrounds (boughey & mckenna, 2016; department of education [doe], 2001). department of higher education and training (dhet) in south africa explained that the purpose of the providing extended studies is to create an academic pathway for the under-prepared cohort of students entering higher education (dhet, 2012). thus, the state has funded extended studies programs (esps) since 2004 to “address systemic inequities in the higher education sector in south africa” (bangeni & kapp, 2017, p. 6). the esp is structured in a way that the traditional three-year degree programs are stretched over four years; the focus of the first year is to align courses with the student`s educational backgrounds and needs. the stretching of three-year programs to four years allows slower pacing of teaching, giving students more support as the normal first year in the main is taught over two years for students in the esp. extended studies programs (esps) are said to target students who do not meet the minimum requirements (dhet, 2016), and lack the necessary competencies to succeed in their studies. these programs consist of almost always black students. central line of argument is that successful support programs require a confluence of academic, social, and personal and other non-academic factors (boughey & mckenna, 2016; ntakana, 2011). the commitment to academic support is according to bitzer (che, 2016) “a major contribution of higher education institutions towards benefitting societies, their potential to assist students in their academic progress as well as their progress in other spheres” (p. 60) academic support (as) occurs within the broader field of academic development (ad). ad is defined by the higher education quality committee (heqc) (che, 2007) as: a field of research and practice that aims to enhance the quality and effectiveness of teaching and learning in higher education and to enable institutions and the higher research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 matabane, b. r. & matabane, m. e. black students’ experiences of academic support programs during first year at university: case of extended studies research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 96 education system to meet key educational goals, particularly in relation to equity of access and outcomes. (p.74) academic support definitions vary in emphasis. broadly, as is founded on the principle of fostering the development of students’ competencies, life skills and habits of academic excellence (junio-sabio, 2012). generally, definitions stress the transformational potential of as and the provision of equal learning opportunities in a structured and controlled top-down professional setting (ramapela, 2012). these definitions of as tend to eliminate the active role that students play in their own learning and are viewed as passive recipients. needs-based and target-oriented definitions, especially those grounded in the deficit skills/learning argument, define as, “the purposeful shaping of the instructional process to address the learning needs of students in particular teaching contexts” (warren, 1998, p. 76) and as a “planned response toward an identified need for action” (rhodes university, 2012, p. 5). with this definition, as interventions enable students from disadvantaged socio-economic and educational backgrounds to develop their literacy and study skills (smith, 2009). in contrast, warren (1998) provides a comprehensive definition and views as as an integrated intervention targeting all students. this definition is based on the recognition that “learning in higher education is a complex social and cognitive process of discovering and internalizing which cannot be dealt with in a remedial fashion but constitutes the very means through which academic learning and knowledge construction occurs” (warren, 1998, p. 77). such a conceptualization by warren (1998) underpins this study. it concurs with tanyanyiwa’s (2014) observation that “under-preparedness is not peculiar to extended studies students but is widespread across the student body” (p. 261). this view is echoed by spaull (2013) that “academic difficulties which stem from the impoverished school education are not exclusively experienced by black students” (p. 10). research trends on as in south africa overlap with international scholarship especially on atrisk, under-prepared students or under-represented minorities, first-generation students, retention, and attrition rates, teaching and learning approaches, and study of academic and non-academic factors that influence success or failure (bitzer, 2009; boughey, 2010; jones et al., 2008; letseka et al., 2009; nel et al., 2009; ramapela, 2012). there is consensus that the first year of study is the most critical for student learning, adjustment and overall development and should be targeted to prevent early attrition and non-completion. research highlights increasing participation and diversification of a student body that is ill-prepared for the demands of higher education. it is particularly so for first-generation students. in south africa, the racial discourse, and the articulation gap1 dominates the debates. a study by lowe and cook (2003) of first year students at the university of ulster confirms the findings of van schalkwyk (2007) and nel et al. (2009), that there is a difficulty in bridging the school-university gap. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 matabane, b. r. & matabane, m. e. black students’ experiences of academic support programs during first year at university: case of extended studies research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 97 higher education institutions implementation of esp: a case of four universities in south africa the establishment of asps at university a, in the eastern cape province in 1982, was a result of several years of deliberation “brought about by the plight of academically ‘at risk’ students at the university” (drewett, 1993, p. 72). the aim was to “improve the quality and quantity of graduates who belong to the so-called black, colored and indian groups” (drewet, 1993, p. 75). post-1994, university a expanded their asp by introducing the extended studies program (esp). the esp is considered “a vital part of the university’s goal of widening access to include learners from a more diverse range of educational, cultural and socio-economic backgrounds, whose disadvantaged backgrounds may have hindered their school leaving performance” (boughey, 2013, p. 12). esps are also conceptualized as “initiatives aimed at expanding the institutional culture through inclusive practices that are supportive of a diverse student body” (boughey, 2013, p. 8). the audit report on university a, (heqc, 2007:51), noted that, only about 30% of enrolments at the institution were black south african students. when the extended studies unit (esu) was established, it was understood that its role in the university was related to the need to increase enrolments of black students. at university b, also in the eastern cape, a similar program, extended degree program (edp) was introduced to “assist students with proven potential but without adequate schooling in mastering the skills required to complete their chosen degrees” (van schalkwyk, 2007, p. 14). like university a, edp added a fourth year to a mainstream three-year degree program to form an edp. the students in edp received much support, and the one semester course was taught over a year to devote sufficient time on preparing students for demands in the mainstream. at university c, in free state province, a similar program was developed called extended curriculum/foundational provision. the students are admitted to this extended curriculum by looking at the previous results from schools and classify the students as at risk of failure due to their educational background. what makes university c interesting is that students could be admitted to foundational programs even if they met the minimum admission points to be in the mainstream. thus, the focus here is not to give students access but to “enable success by providing academic foundations for successfully completing their studies” (dhet, 2012). at university d, in the western cape province, their support programs are targeted at students from historically and currently disadvantaged educational backgrounds. their focus is to enable students to adapt to the tertiary education environment and culture that might be foreign to their lived experiences (spaull, 2015, valenzuela et al., 2021). conceptual framework given the complexity of issues which academic support seeks to address, studies on higher education have spanned both conceptual and pragmatic issues. this study adopts a twopronged approach to the conceptual framework. first, the seminal academic and social integration model by tinto (1993, 1997) is instructive. it puts emphasis on the “successful integration into the academic and social structures of the institution” (strauss & volkwein, 2004, p. 24). the model not only explains factors determining students’ early departure but also provides valuable insights into academic success. “the model assists in the interpretation of data gathered on student attributes but also clarifies students’ goals and commitment” (bitzer, research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 matabane, b. r. & matabane, m. e. black students’ experiences of academic support programs during first year at university: case of extended studies research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 98 2009, p. 164). modified by louw (2005), this model has been used as an interpretive and holistic framework for first-year student support and development at institutions of higher learning (bitzer, 2009). louw’s academic risk indicators (study goals, student perceptions of higher education, skills and knowledge gaps, academic adjustment, program choices, language difficulties, course and learning materials and access granted to students who did not meet the required access requirements) provide a useful entry point for this study. secondly, the study draws on the voluminous literature on the nature of learning in higher education (bitzer, 2009; boughey, 2010; boughey & mckenna, 2016; dison & pinto, 2000; maphosa, 2014; mwangi & yao, 2021; spaull, 2013). of importance are the students’ conceptions of learning and teaching. student learning is understood as a complex multivariate phenomenon, with students exhibiting qualitatively different levels of understanding of what they have learned (maphosa, 2014; patimo & lucero, 2021). there is evidence that a correlation between the various approaches to learning and academic success exists, hence it is necessary to understand the nature of academic support that exists to determine what is needed. both conceptual frameworks adopted in this study provide the platform for studying the wider academic context within which students find themselves: socially, institutionally, and academically. methodology research design this study used mixed method research. researchers in this study collected, analyzed and integrated both quantitative and qualitative data into one study to avoid biases inherent in single method of data collection. the study adopted a case study design of one university situated in the eastern cape, south africa. according to creswell (2014), qualitative approach to a case study allows the researcher to focus on one or more cases over time through detailed, in-depth data collection involving multiple sources of information. the use of multiple sources of information results in triangulation which contributes to the validity of an investigators research. in this study, we aimed to provide in-depth understanding through data analysis of multiple sources of information describing all details of the case by identifying themes or issues (creswell, 2014). population and sample according to khan (2014) you cannot study everyone everywhere doing everything. this then makes sampling crucial in research (van rijnsoever, 2017). the participants were former extended studies program students who are now in the second year of studies in the mainstream at a university located in eastern cape. the university was purposefully selected because it is generally believed to have best resources to give great support to esp students. a convenient sampling technique was used to select 126 second year level students who just completed their year in esp and could easily be reached. a sample of 108 students (table 1) participated in the study. descriptive statistics (frequency and percentage) were used to analyze the data from likert scale type of questions while thematic analysis was (rowley, 2014) was used to analyze data from questionnaires. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 matabane, b. r. & matabane, m. e. black students’ experiences of academic support programs during first year at university: case of extended studies research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 99 table 1. demographic profile of students variables frequency percentage gender male 43 39.9 female 61 56.4 not indicated 4 3.7 age 18-25 93 86 26-33 15 14 total 108 100.0 data collection instruments data were collected using questionnaires and interviews. questionnaires questionnaires were of importance to reach several students and gain insight on a given phenomenon (moerdyk, 2009). data collected through questionnaires is also easy to be quantified either by the researcher or the use of software package (rowley, 2014). the questionnaire comprised of 25 items (appendix a). the items were divided into four sections. section a had three items about the demographic data (gender, age, race) of the students. section b consisted of four items that dealt with experiences of coming to university. section c focused on support given at esu and consisted of 13 items and section d dealt with students’ views of academic support and had five items. in section d, the students were expected to express their level of agreement, or otherwise on a four-point likert scale (agree, strongly agree, disagree, strongly disagree). the reliability of the instruments, namely internal consistency, was established using cronbach alpha. a value of 0.912 was obtained, meaning that the instruments could be judged reliable. interview interviews were used to gain insights into participants’ experiences and perceptions as well as interpretations which the researcher would not otherwise obtain through mere questionnaires (moerdyk, 2009). the interviews were scheduled for 45 minutes to one hour for participant. the researchers recorded the interview, using a voice recorder. the recording captured the interview, and they were transcribed verbatim soon after the interview concluded. these transcriptions were returned to interviewees for member checking. in collecting data, participants were told from the beginning that although they agreed to be part of the study, they could withdraw at any stage and were not obliged to answer all the questions. they were also ensured anonymity and confidentiality. to assure participants of research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 matabane, b. r. & matabane, m. e. black students’ experiences of academic support programs during first year at university: case of extended studies research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 100 anonymity and confidentiality, a consent form was issued stipulating what they were entitled to for the duration of the study and after. only pseudonyms are used in reporting the finding if this study. the study received ethics clearance from the university a where the data was collected. data analysis the data was analyzed in a manner that reveals relationships, patterns and trends that could possibly be found within it. we compared our information to other people’s work, in this case the literature review so that conclusions could be drawn. all qualitative data was coded to examine common themes and patterns (creswell, 2014). descriptive statistics and content analysis were used to analyze quantitative and qualitative data respectively. results and discussion the findings of this study are discussed using the order of the research questions. in responding to the question on the need for academic support during first year, eighty-two (76%) of the respondents strongly agree that there is a need for academic support during first year of study, eighteen (17%) agree, six (5.65) disagree, and 2 (1.85%) strongly disagree. thus, the necessity and urgency of asps is recognized. respondents strongly hold the view that the reason they all need academic support is because they come from different backgrounds and different schools in different areas. thus, as put by participant lindokuhle: […] we had different academic experiences so definitely that is very important, and i am assuming that is why the institution had the extended studies program (esp) in the first place, but even with the mainstream undergraduates, there is a dire need of support because there is no lie that one does get overwhelmed by university studies. this view is also shared by esihle when she said, “university is like a complete different world, i felt lost and could not do without support”. students struggle to get the being of academic literacy (ellery, 2016). they have ‘known’ in one way all their lives (typically as recipients of accepted facts). they have been successful knowers in the past and suddenly they start to fail because they must become different kinds of knowers. therefore, certain ways of knowing are being legitimized and different from what students knew as knowledge and support programs can assist in breaking this code (maton, 2014). responding to the second research question, students have varied perceptions about entering university through esp and its relevance. when asking a former extended studies (es) student about her perception of esp and the academic support programs, she noted that during her first year, she felt like she lost a year. however, she asserted that after being in the esp program, she started realizing just how important and beneficial it was: as she puts it: extended studies helped you know, it helped because i was never exposed to library, i did not even know how that works, we did not have a library at school, secondly, just extra support from lecturers in the es classes, knowing that i will go to mainstream class and if do not understand anything, in class again it will be repeated in es that was nice and even that thing of small groups it helps. (siphosenkosi) research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 matabane, b. r. & matabane, m. e. black students’ experiences of academic support programs during first year at university: case of extended studies research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 101 another former extended studies student shared this view by noting that he would have struggled throughout first year without the support provided in es. as he puts it: […] the fact that we were not exposed to computers in my school, es helped me a lot, we had computer literacy, the lecturers and tutors were friendly, approachable supportive […]. (lethabo) this student strongly holds that the kind of school he went to did not offer him many opportunities, so if it were not for the extended studies program, he would not have survived. this student went to a public, under-resourced school which he felt had a negative impact on his high school performance. adding to this, dimpho says: to be honest, i was very sad when i was told i will do a three-year degree in four years while others do it in three years, now i understand why, i think even if i passed matric exam well, given opportunity i will choose es over mainstream, it is worth it, my smart friend failed first year of mainstream although they brag of being smart. studies have shown that successful support programs require a confluence of academic, social, and personal and other non-academic factors (maphosa, 2014; tinto, 1997; ntakana, 2011; wong et al., 2005). this view was shared by the respondents. according to these respondents, support should go beyond studies. they argued that university was not what they expected. apart from being a new experience, they felt left out and thrown into very deep water without a lifejacket of guidance and support in other spheres of life. this ties with tinto’s (1993, 1997, 2003) and yorke and thomas (2003) argument that the transition from secondary to tertiary is a challenging one. in south africa, the racial discourse and the articulation gap dominate the debates. a study by lowe and cook (2003) of first year students at the university of ulster confirms the findings of van schalkwyk (2007) and nel et al. (2009), of the difficulty in bridging the school-university gap. regarding improvement of the academic support offered, respondents generally held the view that academic support should target every student and be offered throughout their undergraduate studies. figure 1 below, shows that from 108 participants, 72 (67%) of the respondents hold the view that academic support should not only target first year students but be offered throughout the undergraduate programs. “[…] though research on student attrition is plentiful and debate over theories of student persistence vigorous, less attention has been paid to the development of a model of institutional action that provides institutions for effective action to increase student persistence and in turn student success” (tinto & pusser 2006, p. 4). although, access to higher education has become an acceptable indicator of a nation’s development, the offering of academic throughout undergraduate might address more than just access but success rates of students. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 matabane, b. r. & matabane, m. e. black students’ experiences of academic support programs during first year at university: case of extended studies research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 102 figure 1. pie chart showing distribution of level of study where academic support is required. thus, as put by bongiwe: […] academic support should be offered to all students, it does not matter which year of study, university is not easy, each year of study has its own challenges, we all need that support. sebutsi noted: […] you know it would have been nice if the university can have some sort of way to assist us in our emotional wellbeing, you know there are things that we struggle with, somewhere where you can have someone to talk to. it can be argued that higher education institutions have a responsibility to look at students holistically, instead of detaching the mind from the whole being. for some students, the challenge is trying to fit in the university culture, which then impacts their studies. relating to tinto’s (1993) student integration model, students can leave school due to lack of integration in the institution they form part of university culture needs to be welcoming and considerate of all students if they are to make the most of their studies. study limitation this study has limitations. firstly, the data was collected from only second year students. therefore, the voices of students who went through esp but are in their third or fourth year are missing. the data is also from only students who were in esp. voices of learners in the research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 matabane, b. r. & matabane, m. e. black students’ experiences of academic support programs during first year at university: case of extended studies research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 103 mainstream are missing. again, since the esp was mainly black students, the voices of other races are missing. conclusion and recommendations the transformation agenda in higher education in post-apartheid south africa in terms of expanding access to education, the promotion of accountability and efficiency in higher education, massification, the articulation gap between school and university, institutional culture, unpreparedness of universities and under preparedness of students comprise the conceptual core of this study. in analyzing the overall findings, respondents hold distinct yet similar views on the need for asps, and its accessibility and availability. it was evident that there is a dire need for academic support and that students benefited immensely by getting to university through esp. in general, students believe that academic support should not be exclusively for first-year students and students who went to public schools. support is for everyone and should be offered throughout the academic journey. research has shown dropout is perhaps the greatest problem facing institutions of higher education. as the number of students enrolling in tertiary education increases, so does the number of students who will be affected by dropout. given the alarming number of dropouts in higher education institutions, it is pivotal that academic support is administered with urgency throughout all undergraduate programs, not just at the first-year level. it is also recommended that when students complete their first year of extended studies, the university can issue a certificate, endorsing the student for preparedness in higher education. we further recommend that other studies be taken from the students who did not come to the university through esp because their school exit exams placed them in the mainstream. references bangeni, a., & kapp, r. 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(2021). evaluating sociocultural influences affecting participation and understanding of academic support services and programs (ssps): impacts on notions of attrition, retention, and success in higher education. journal of college student retention: research, theory & practice, 23(1), 118-138. wong, z. y., & liem, g. a. d. (2021). student engagement: current state of the construct, conceptual refinement, and future research directions. educational psychology review, 2021. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-021-09628-3 yorke, m., & thomas, l. (2003). improving the retention of students from lower socioeconomic groups. journal of higher education policy and management, 25(1), 6374. https://doi.org/10.1080/13600800305737 appendixes appendix a: copy of questionnaire administered to second year students 1. race: black /white/ indian/ colored 2. gender: male/ female 3. age group: 17-25, 26-34, 35-44 4. kind of previous school: private/ public 5. how is your first-year experience? good/ bad/ satisfactory 6. are you getting what you expected? yes/ no 7. do you feel like you coping academically? yes/ no 8. do you think the support given by esp unit is enough? 9. are you aware of various support available? yes/ no 10. i know where i can go when i need help? yes/ no 11. i need academic support: yes/ no 12. my lecturers are a source of support: yes/ no https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-021-09628-3 https://doi.org/10.1080/13600800305737 research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 matabane, b. r. & matabane, m. e. black students’ experiences of academic support programs during first year at university: case of extended studies research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 107 13. my tutors are a source of support: yes/ no 14. tutorials help me with learning: yes/ no 15. i have used the kinds of support offered: yes/ no 16. if your answer for 15 is yes, how will you rate the support: good/ bad/ moderate 17. if answer to 15 is no, why? 18. since the beginning of year, have you felt like you need help in any of these? 1= no, 2= a bit of help, 3= need help a) getting the literature b) taking notes in lectures c) writing assignments d) studying e) understanding lectures f) exam preparation and writing g) managing time h) other (specify) 19. if yes to (18) could you rate its performance? 1=did not help, 2-partly helped, 3=helped a) getting the literature b) taking notes in lectures c) writing assignments d) studying e) understanding lectures f) exam preparation and writing g) managing time h) other (specify) 20. is there anything you with could change concerning the departments’ support programmes? 21. if yes to question 20 please explain 22. the following are opinions which have been expressed about asp. please indicate whether you: 1. strongly agree, 2. agree, 3. disagree, 4. strongly disagree 22.1. by not accounting for the weakness in south african schooling, the university is in effect blaming certain students for problems which are not of their own making research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 3, 2021 matabane, b. r. & matabane, m. e. black students’ experiences of academic support programs during first year at university: case of extended studies research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 108 22.2. the university must maintain a high standard, and therefore is under no obligation to deal with problems which were caused by the school system 22.3. students who experience difficulties with academic skills should deal with these in their own time 22.4. because of the state of school education in south africa, all students are underprepared for the demands of university, and therefore require some assistance with academic skills 22.5. individual departments should build their teaching of relevant academic skills into their first-year course partly through lectures but particularly through the tutorial system, in a way which is not separate to course content. 22.6. course content and academic skills should be combined in a relevant way as far as possible 22.7. i think that i personally would benefit from a system which teaches academic skills along with course content 22.8. i would object to a system which teaches academic skills along with course content 22.9. academic skills should only be taught in asp, separately to departmental courses 22.10. asp should try to change the university rather than change the student. appendix b: interview guide 1. how would you explain your second/ third year experience at university? 2. are you part of support services offered by the university? (department?)  if yes which ones? reason (s)?  if no (why not?) 3. do you think the ersu support you enough in your academics (skills required for the course?) please explain? 4. is there any area that you would like the department to improve or initiate concerning support given to students? 5. would you say is the department’s responsibility to offer academic skills to students? (yes/no explain 6. what academic difficulties have you encountered during your second/third year experience? 7. has the department been of any use in dealing with the above mentioned? 8. would you say you need academic support? 9. have you been in a position where you do not know where to go when you need help with your academics? 10. do you think tutorials aid with your studies? 11. would you rather go to your tutor instead of your lecturer or anyone in the department? 12. are you aware of the various support programs offered by the university? research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 omodan, b.i., tsotetsi, c.t. & ige, o.a. managing the culture of covid-19 "new normal" as a motivation for university students in south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 37 managing the culture of covid-19 "new normal" as a motivation for university students in south africa bunmi isaiah omodan*1, cias t. tsotetsi2 and olugbenga a. ige3 *corresponding author: bomodan@wsu.ac.za 1. walter sisulu university, faculty of education, south africa. 2. university of the free state, school of education studies, south africa. 3. university of the free state, school of social sciences and language education, south africa. received : 2021-06-16 revised : 2021-07-31 accepted : 2021-08-17 how to cite this paper: omodan, b.i., tsotetsi, c.t. & ige, o.a. (2021). managing the culture of covid-19 "new normal" as a motivation for university students in south africa. research in social sciences and technology, 6(2), 37-51. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.10 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). abstract the advent of covid-19 and its implication on university education has been the bone of contention in recent times. the covid-19 emergency has led to a change in knowledge inputs, processes, and outputs. this trajectory has demotivated student approaches to their learning. in response to this revolution, this study provides motivational strategies through students' perspectives to respond to the underside of new normal among south african university students. ubuntu underpins the study within the transformative paradigm lens and participatory research as a research design. ten students of a particular module in a selected university in south africa were chosen to participate in the study. they were selected using the snowballing sampling technique because the participants were under level 3 lockdown with little or no access to campus at the time of the study. online interview via phone calls, email and whatsapp, was conducted with the students, and the data were analysed using thematic analysis. the study revealed a lack of visualised physical engagement between students and their lecturers and unstable internet access and lack of the internet as the major challenges. the study, therefore, recommends solutions that there should be adequate provision of effective online audio-visual sessions with enough space for student-lecturer’s interactions and low-tech online sessions and content deliveries. keywords: students' motivation, covid-19, internet-of-things, online learning, ubuntu. 10.46303/ressat.2021.10 mailto:bomodan@wsu.ac.za https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.10 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 omodan, b.i., tsotetsi, c.t. & ige, o.a. managing the culture of covid-19 "new normal" as a motivation for university students in south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 38 introduction coronavirus, otherwise called covid-19, a very contagious and easy-to-spread pandemic, emanated from the wuhan state of china in late 2019 becomes a global pandemic on march 11, 2020, as declared by world health organization (who, 2020; shereen et al., 2020). the disease could be transmitted through human contact, which is not limited to handshaking, and other characteristics of human relationships (liu et al., 2020), resulting in the change and adjustment into human socialisation and interaction in the quest to control the spread. who (2020) confirmed that the virus has spread to 213 countries globally, among which south africa and other african countries are included. the effect of this covid-19 and its preventive measures have affected many organisations' productivity, including the world's education system. the south africa university system is not an exception. however, weeden and cornwall (2020) confirm that younger students seem to be at low risk compared to adults, but many universities, including south african universities, adhered to the world health organization measures such as social distancing in populated areas such as schools. consequent to the implementation of social distancing, 46 countries, as of march 2020, shut down their schools nationwide, including south africa (huang et al., 2020; jimola & ofodu, 2021; jinadu et al., 2021). the advent of covid-19 and its implications on university education has recently been the bone of contention. this is not limited to its effects on the teaching and learning, management of the system, and the behavioural effect on both the students and their lecturers (ching, 2020; omodan, 2020a). this state has inevitably led to a change in knowledge inputs, processes, and outputs, and this unequivocally has led to a change in the way students’ approach and address their lecturers. students, at times, expect all teaching and learning processes to be made open without deadlines. such behaviours emanating from the effect of covid-19 new normal in our observation and experience, if not measured, could lead to disagreement, differences and disharmony in the university classrooms. in a bid to ameliorate this, there is a need to devise a motivational strategy through students' perspectives to respond to the underside of new normal in universities classrooms. motivation has been found to be significant to students' academic performance (goodman et al., 2011; sivrikaya, 2019), and this is why the place of students' motivation during the covid-19 online teaching and learning could not be underrated. the importance of students' motivation during covid-19 new normal according to tohidi and jabbari (2011), motivation is the driving force that empowers people to overcome high-level performance barriers. merriam-webster (1997) defines motivation as a condition of motivating such as stimulus, driving force, influence, incentives, and drives that instigate action towards achievement. this is what williams and williams (2011) tagged as expenditure of effort to accomplish results. from the foregoing, it could be deduced that motivation is the driving force, instigator and persistence of human change in behaviour. however, student motivation could be viewed as what drives, instigates, influences, and stimulates students' academic performance. this is not far from palmer's (2007) view that students' motivation is the fundamental element that propels quality education. from this definition, students' performance, which is the output of an educational organisation, is synonymous with quality education. motivating students towards success during the research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 omodan, b.i., tsotetsi, c.t. & ige, o.a. managing the culture of covid-19 "new normal" as a motivation for university students in south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 39 implementation of the "new normal" (online learning) is a great concern because the focus of the adjusted teaching-learning during the pandemic is for students to succeed in education. therefore, the challenge here is how to get students motivated to enable them to cope with the new system, learn, and succeed independently. this is very significant to their academic performance and overall achievement (elliot & dweck, 2005). on the importance of students' motivation towards achievement and performance, research has suggested that a highly motivated individual is likely to be committed to the achievement of the organisational goals and objectives (fakunle, 2016). this is to conclude that committed workers, despite all hurdles, are assets to the progress of the organisation. similarly, highly motivated students tend to perform well and succeed in the school system (ohadugha et al., 2020). following the finding of adamma et al. (2018), motivation improves students' academic performance with no variance in gender. daniels et al. (2001) reported that when teachers are supportive, give feedback and caring translates to students' motivation towards their performance outcome. the characteristics of motivation, which include being supportive, giving feedback, and caring for students, are some of the leadership characteristics of a good teacher, which agrees with the finding of adedigba and sulaiman (2020) that there are positive relationships between leadership style and pupils' motivation towards their learning and academic performance. from the foregoing, one could deduce that motivation goes a long way in ensuring students' academic achievement during the covid-19 new normal. this cannot be achieved outside the university management style, the lecturer and the teaching and learning process, and students' involvement in the decision-making concerning their interest in implementing the new normal. this is to say that the process of implementing the new changes of covid-19 must be allinclusive. this corroborated omodan (2016) and omodan (2019) view that students' involvement in making decisions regarding their lives reduces stress and possible conflict in the university system. to ensure that students are motivated and involved in the university decision to implement online learning during covid-19, the place of ubuntu as a philosophy of love, kindness, unity, and human consideration becomes relevant to theorise the study. ubuntu as a theoretical framework ubuntu was adopted as a theoretical framework for this study. ubuntu is an africanised way of life where people see themselves as "us" and not "i". this was described by msengana (2006) as collective personhood of social morality. this was conceptualised in xhosa proverb as "umntu ngumntu ngabantu" which could be interpreted as "i am because we are". that is, individual personhood is valid through others (mbigi, 1997:2). from an etymological point of view, ubuntu was coined from xhosa words "ubu" which mean "being" and "ntu" which means "human" (ramose, 1999). that is, ubuntu simply means humanity (tworeck, et al., 2015). ubuntu involves love, compassion, togetherness, unity and oneness in diversity (khomba, 2011; omodan, 2020a). from these definitions, one could re-affirm that ubuntu is a collective worldview that promotes love, oneness, and unity for collective success. in line with the interpretation of msengana (2006) and jolley (2011), ubuntu preaches an adage of "my success is your success, my pain is your pain", social relatedness and well-being, leading to quality of life towards a common goal. in short, ubuntu is a way of life where people live together as one and in oneness for the purpose of their development. however, ubuntuism seems to be research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 omodan, b.i., tsotetsi, c.t. & ige, o.a. managing the culture of covid-19 "new normal" as a motivation for university students in south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 40 applicable to people who share a common goal and objectives, such as the university community. this is supported by tutu (1999) that ubuntu strengthens people with common goals without separation or discrimination. based on the above exploration, we argue that the ubuntu-like university system during covid-19 will enhance empathy, generosity, love and compassion to emancipate the disadvantaged (students) and help them succeed. this theory is relevant to this study because one could view togetherness, love, compassion, humanism as a means by which students could be motivated to work well and see themselves as a reflection of the university and vis-à-vis. with ubuntu in the wake of covid-19 new normal, students' social and psychological needs are certain through collaboration, interdependence, and inclusivity in the system (bolden, 2014; omodan, 2020a). that is, the spirit of ubuntu, when invoked by the university by ensuring that students get all the necessary supports to help them navigate the stress and huddles of the new normal, will motivate them for academic success. this is because social attachment motivation has been found to enhance students' achievement (omodan & tsotetsi, 2018). since ubuntu is adjudged as a process that could ensure students' motivation in universities during covid-19 new normal, the study, therefore, aimed to explore a motivational strategy to respond to the underside of "new normal" in university classrooms. to achieve this, the question of how universities should ensure that students are motivated was raised and answered. research question the following research question was raised to guide the process of providing solutions to the problem of the study;  how can university students be motivated towards managing the culture of the new normal in south africa? research objectives the study aimed to:  explore students' challenges during the new normal implementation regarding the online teaching and learning.  seek possible solutions from the students to the challenges arising from the implementation of the new normal online teaching and learning. methodology research paradigm and design the study is situated within the transformative paradigm (tp) because of its focus on transforming students' predicament relating to their studies during covid-19 new normal. tp is a form of research umbrella that seek to emancipate disadvantaged people (omodan, 2020b). we considered this paradigm a lens for this study because of its quest for emancipation and post-modernism agitations toward bettering the status quo (gunbayi, 2020). tp is relevant because it also ensures that research must be conducted so that the researched are recognised by making them co-producer of solutions to their problems (mertens, 2010). this was implemented by making the students at the receiving end co-producers of the new knowledge. by doing so, we designed the study under the principles of participatory research (pr). pr is research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 omodan, b.i., tsotetsi, c.t. & ige, o.a. managing the culture of covid-19 "new normal" as a motivation for university students in south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 41 used because it enables the researchers to implement the collaborative assumption of tp by involving the participants in the input, process and production stage of the research work. our intention to involve the participants throughout the research is based on the opinion of ruffa and harrison (2020) that researchers in this design must ensure genuine participation of the people facing the problem as participants in the process of finding solutions their problem. to this end, the participants include the students who face the challenges of teaching and learning as a result of the change of system during the covid-19. the selection and description of the participants are explained below. participants and selection procedure the participants for the study were the students of a selected university in south africa. the students were considered appropriate because they face the challenges coming from the implementation of online learning during covid-19. the selected students were restricted to a particular general module for undergraduate studies with more than 200 students. one of the researchers is the module lecturer, who confirmed that the modules were taught only by using the online teaching-learning mode from the beginning to the end. ten students were selected using the snowballing selection approach. this approach is appropriate to select the participants because, as at the time of the study, students were all working from home as universities in africa, including the selected university, are using the online teaching-learning system. having considered the possibility of getting hold of the students to participate in the study, we decided to adopt the snowballing selection approach. snowballing is appropriate for us when there are difficulties in reaching the subjects that possess the expected characteristics, hence reaching only through referrers (audemard, 2020). this method assists us in getting the needed students of the targeted modules. instrumentation we used an online interview to collect data from the participants. this was adopted because the participants could not be reached face-to-face due to the covid-19 lockdown that has caused all university activities to be done remotely. this was conducted using whatsapp, emails, and telephonic conversations with the participants. the interview with the participant was made to answer questions around what they found challenging during the implementation of the new normal, and secondly, on what they think will be okay to ameliorate the challenges. fifteen students were informed and requested to join the research process, but only ten were willing to participate actively. however, collecting data online was a challenge because the participants mostly did not have data and were unwilling to spend extra time outside their already loaded online academic activities. the data collected were subjected to thematic analysis as discussed below. method of data analysis we adopted a thematic analysis (ta) to make sense of the collected data. ta is an established method of analysing qualitative data (salleha et al., 2017). according to nowell et al. (2017), this method enables researchers to identify, analyse, and report data based on themes. according to braun & clarke (2006), the implementation of thematic analysis involves six steps: familiarisation with data, coding the data, assigning data into themes, reviewing the themes, defining and naming the themes and lastly produce reports thematically. however, we followed research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 omodan, b.i., tsotetsi, c.t. & ige, o.a. managing the culture of covid-19 "new normal" as a motivation for university students in south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 42 the steps by reading and re-reading the data; we coded the data and categorised statements into themes with adequate reviews. the categorised data was defined and named with appropriate themes, and the report was produced below. during this research, we ensured that the issue of ethics was observed to protect both the researchers and the participants from any potential harm. this is important because it enables the researched community to have trust in the research process (vanclay et al., 2013). ethical consideration to this end, we ensure that freedom for the participants to withdraw from the research process should they feel uncomfortable was granted to them. and we also ensured that their identities were protected by ensuring that their names did not surface in any aspect of the research process and the output. during the product stage, that is, analysis, their names were replaced with pseudo names: student 1 was named s1, student 2 was named s2, student 3 was named s3…while student 10 was named s10. in this study, trustworthiness, which is equivalent to reliability and validity in quantitative studies (mohajan, 2017) were ensure. the data collection process and the collected data were handled with an iota of trust and honesty to ensure quality, credibility, dependable and conformability and transferrable research output (korstjens & moser, 2018). however, the study did not seek approval from any entity because the study was designed and conducted on the researchers’ volition. presentation of findings in order to answer the research question of the study, the data was generated through the process of transformative paradigm (tp) with the use of participatory research (pr); we categorised the data in line with the principles of thematic analysis. this was done using the objectives of the study as bases for each theme and the sub-themes. the first objective of understanding the challenges facing students during the implementation of covid-19 new normal generated two sub-themes: lack of visualised physical engagement, unstable internet access, and lack of internet of things. the second objective that seeks to provide solutions that could motivate students during the new normal, also came up with two themes: providing effective online audio-visual sessions and data minimisation in online lecturers. see the below table 1. table 1: thematic representation of data based on the research question and objectives research question: how can university students be motivated towards managing the culture of the new normal in south africa? objectives analysis of sub-themes 1. the study explores students' challenges during the new normal implementation regarding online teaching and learning. 1. lack of visualised physical engagement. 2. unstable internet access and lack internet of things. 2. the study also seeks possible solutions from the students to the challenges arising from the implementation of the new normal online teaching and learning. 3. provision of effective online audio-visual session. 4. provision of low-tech online lecturers. research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 omodan, b.i., tsotetsi, c.t. & ige, o.a. managing the culture of covid-19 "new normal" as a motivation for university students in south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 43 objective 1 theme 1: lack of visualised physical engagement. the changes that have befallen universities due to the covid-19 pandemic have placed physical contact sessions on hold. this is because of the acute work-from-home syndrome that all universities must adhere to, respect and maintain the pandemic measures. this is not limited to implementing social distancing where everyone must stay away from one another and disallow physical contact, among others (liu et al., 2020). this principle is also applicable in universities where all students engaged with their classes via the online teaching-learning system. however, this is not suitable for the students as the absence of physical contact in teaching and learning constitute a threat to their learning. see the below participants' statement: s1: "e-learning tends to be challenging especially if it is not undertaken in conjunction with traditional classroom environment mainly because in faceto-face learning as students we are able to engage more and learn through visual presentations." s4: "the struggle is real, but then i normally split my assignment pages and ask people to type for me with their computers; at the end, one will combine and submit; this would have been easy if we were physically present in the campus to assist ourselves". s4: "the whole transition to digital learning is hard, the information is just too many to comprehend and even with the videos offered i feel like face to face sessions are needed for one to grasp the difficult material we have to get through" s5: "it becomes hectic where i do not understand some concepts or assignment questions because there is no one to consult." s6: "the consultation hours have been badly interrupted. some of the things are better articulated and explain face-to-face." from participant s1, the use of complete online learning is very challenging because it disallows social engagement with peers. according to this participant, even with the lecturers, this is linked to the fact that they are used to blended learning where both online and contact sessions are the process of teaching and learning. in the statement of participant s4, his assignment, which could have been done in collaboration with other students, is no more possible, and he ended up seeking the assistance of other students to complete such a task. the statement of s4 also corroborated that the new normal, that is, the transition from the traditional classroom to online learning and teaching, is hard because they could not comprehend. even with the use of videos, the participant still believes that it could be better in face-to-face engagement. maybe that is why the statement of s5 also suggests that online learning did not allow enough engagement that could allow students to comprehend issues because there is no avenue for a consultation where clarifications could be made. the statement of s6 also supports this that the consultation hours they are used to in the physical sessions has poorly been interrupted and no longer effective during the "new normal". even the use of online learning seems to affect research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 omodan, b.i., tsotetsi, c.t. & ige, o.a. managing the culture of covid-19 "new normal" as a motivation for university students in south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 44 adequate dissemination of information to the students. the bellow statements also shed more light: s8: the online lectures, in my opinion, do not provide adequate information to understand the topic on like the face-to-face classes, in the online classes, we would raise hands to ask for clarity." s9: "the fact that we are given the guidance from our lecturers on face-to-face sessions, the online learning becomes hard to adapt." s10: "the group discussions in between the face to face lectures were really helpful, and really assisting in picking up the pace when lost regarding what was said in class. therefore, online lectures do not create that opportunity" from the above statements, participant s8 lamented that the teaching mode is currently not as productive as the old ways of the face-to-face classroom because the online learning did not allow them to ask questions from the lecturers as they wish to do. from the statement of the s9, the students are used to the old ways where there is physical engagement and thereby do not allow them to adjust to the new normal quickly. from participant s10, the new ways of teaching and learning are not really helpful, like the old ways to get hold of the lecturer for clarification where there is a need to do so. this analysis could confirm that the lack of physical engagement between the students and their lecturers resulted from lockdowns and social distancing a challenge. this is supported by rosa's (2020) finding that students do not engage well with their studies during the covid-19 new normal. the study found out that 45% of the san antonio schools in the united states are less engaged with their studies, with revelations that 64% of parents also confirmed the same about their students during work-from-home teaching styles. this finding is consistent with ali's (2020) finding that the system has subjected the students only to self-studies, which is not enough compared to the curriculum proposition. objective 1 theme 2: unstable internet access and lack of internet of things another challenge that students face during covid-19 online learning is unstable internet access and a lack of internet-enabled devices. this is consistent with the world bank's prediction when considering the possible changes in the education system during the covid19 pandemic. most students have challenges accessing good internet, mostly those staying in the rurally located communities (world bank, 2020). this experience is not far from the happening in the selected university in south africa. the data confirms that inadequate data, low access to the internet and the internet of things are insufficient. see the bellow statements: s2: "what did not work for me was having assessments so close to each other because it is a bit difficult to research the assessment because of lack of data and good internet access." s4: "furthermore, with the closing of internet cafes it was challenging for me to complete the tasks or assignments due to having no personal computer as i used to use the one provided by the school which they collected when we closed." research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 omodan, b.i., tsotetsi, c.t. & ige, o.a. managing the culture of covid-19 "new normal" as a motivation for university students in south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 45 s3: "downloading online video clips from blackboard was not a big issue, the problem is that some of us do not have computers we have to use our phones and only to find that that video needs so much space to be downloaded, and it was a problem." s6: "and the biggest problem for me is with the network coverage in my area. we would go for 5 hours without internet, which is affecting the quality of my work". participant s2 lamented that it was difficult to complete or do research because of the lack of data and uninterrupted internet access from the above participants' statements. this is to say that the internet being the only means to implement online learning, is not equally available to students in the same quantity. participant s4 further reiterates that the lack of a personal computer is an issue, and it does not allow him to come up with his work as and due. the lockdowns and social distancing policy also affect the public internet café, which did not allow him to use such café as an alternative. the lack of a computer also suffixed in the statement of participant s3, which makes them resulted in the use of mobile phones, but unfortunately, phones could not perform like a computer. the issue of devices and the lack of internet to make use of the available devices is also an issue as lamented by participant s6. the problem of slow internet also compounds the challenges as stated in the below statements: s7: "online classes did not really work for me because i live in a small town where sometimes the network is slow, and it takes time to process, so i always missed those online lectures, even though i tried to open the link thirty minutes before i still struggled so that was a huge challenge and it is unfortunate for me to miss out a class". s9: "this is a major problem for me as a student because whenever the electricity goes, there is a problem with an internet connection, and that makes it difficult to finish my work on time." s10: "what did not work for me is the fact that we are only given a single attempt to do online quizzes, and we are currently facing electricity problems, and the network is connected with electricity. it might happen that we are busy with an online quiz, and there is a power-cut-of, and the network is lost". the statement from participant s7 confirms that students living in rural communities are likely to have stable internet issues. this, according to s7, gives her a challenge to attempts her online task, even caused her to miss some classes. the statement from participant s9 also confirms that they faced with the issue of unstable internet. this, according to s9, is when there is no electricity supply automatically leads to cut-off internet and thereby affect whatever academic activities take place at that time. the statement of s10 also reiterates that the problem of unstable electricity is rampant and thereby affect the availability of the internet, which also hinders student most especially when attending to an online quiz. this analysis found that unstable internet access and lack of the internet of things is one of the major challenges that students face during the implementation of online learning in university classrooms. this is consistent with ali (2020) findings that students lack the necessary ict research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 omodan, b.i., tsotetsi, c.t. & ige, o.a. managing the culture of covid-19 "new normal" as a motivation for university students in south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 46 infrastructures with a recommendation that staff and students' need to be in possession of the internet of things, learning applications, and learning platforms. this finding also confirmed world bank's argument that all institutions must be aware that the physical classroom content may not be easy to be reformed into an online platform. therefore, "interaction models, assessment, content, pacing, and instructional approaches may all need to be adapted when transitioning to online learning" (world bank, 2020). objective 2 theme 3: provision of effective online audio-visual session based on objective number two seeks to provide solutions to the students' challenges during covid-19 new normal. among the solutions suggested by the students being researched is that there is a need for an effective online platform that will enhance both audio and visual classes. the postulation of this solution reflected in the participants' statements below; s1: "should it happen that we do not go back to traditional learning soon, then we should continue with powerpoint presentation with voice over, and for engaging purpose, i think the lecturer could assist by creating microsoft teams for video conferencing so that we can interact effectively just like in a traditional classroom." s4: the last session i missed because i got the email late, so prior notice should be made, and a full-on class session should be held whereby one can ask questions they seek clarity on. such sessions should be held to teach and not only to clarify matters." s5: "we can use an online platform such as in this module where a timetable and link has been sent to us of when we will have contact sessions and at what time. this way, we will be able to ask questions while the lecturer is going through the powerpoint slides with us." s6: "i believe if our lecturers can implement a strategy where we can have a link that will allow us to ask questions while the session is continuing. that will allow engagement and interaction." the above statements confirm that if this online learning system continues, the students would be motivated if the system ensures means of passing across to students powerpoint presentation that contain audible voice and visual demonstration of the lecturers. this, according to participant s1, will enhance good interaction between the lecturers and the students. this issue of the interactive session that will allow students to ask a question and engage the lecturers was also mentioned by participant s4. such a session should be organised to teach and not only to clarify issues. the statement of participant s5 also recommends that the way the session in the selected module is conducted is a good example that is needed to happen across all modules. lessons were conducted in the selected module using voice and video over powerpoint slides and share with the students. this enables them to go back to the slides when they choose to study and re-study it again. however, the module also used blackboard video classes where interaction is made possible. that is while s5 recommend that it will be good if the session is made in such a way to allow question and answer sessions. the statement of participants s6 also hopes for a strategy that could allow the student to interact research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 omodan, b.i., tsotetsi, c.t. & ige, o.a. managing the culture of covid-19 "new normal" as a motivation for university students in south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 47 virtually with the lecturer. this confirms that there is a need for online teaching-learning that incorporates audio and video and interactive sessions. the below statements also confirmed that such a strategy would encourage students; s8: lecturers need to encourage active learning, the way in which he/she facilitate discussions and show interest in all answers and redirect and guide the wrong answer towards the correct one will motivate us". s10: "the only suggestion would be that the presentation of that session should be made available on the blackboard so that we can look back at what we did in that session. during the lessons, we discuss the different topics, and i think that helps a lot on reflecting while in the class". from the above statements, participant s8 confirmed that when lecturers conduct their sessions to enable question and answer with a willingness to respond to all queries, it will motivate them to attend their sessions. on the same request, the statement from participant s10 also requested that their sessions be recorded on blackboard to enable them to have access to it at any time of their choice. this will allow them to reflect on their sessions at a later time. this is to confirm that one of the means by which students could be motivated is when online sessions are conducted to enable audio and videos presentations where students will have opportunities to engage and interact meaningfully with their lecturers. this is consistent with the finding of heller, calderon and medrich (2003) that meaningful students' engagement is significant to students' academic success, while students' success is a point of motivation for students to study more (stephens, 2015). objective 2 theme 4: provision of low-tech online lecturers. in order to implement the complete online learning, because all students came from different socio-economic backgrounds, that is, there are not equal when it comes to affordability of the internet of things. students living in rurally located communities lack access and financial recourse to equip themselves with adequate internet of things during covid-19 new normal (seretse, chukwuere, lubbe, and klopper, 2018). thus, the students recommend solutions such as providing devices and other online communication with low consumptions of internet usage. the below statement shed more light on the need; s3: "suggest that lesson delivery be made in the form of notes, slides or any other document. this is because videos consume so much space and some of us struggle to download them, especially if we do not have a personal computer. or at least this can be provided in both ways so that those who cannot download videos at least they can read the provided notes." s5: we need enough data because each uploaded video consumes large amounts of that, and some 'online' sessions are not convenient for everyone due to various socio-economic factors, and as a result, we missed lectures." s10: "for me, there is a need for students to have computers and internet, i had no learning online because i find it hard to transition into this new method of learning because i am used to traditional lectures, but if there are enough resources with devices that will not consume too much data, it will be fine." research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 omodan, b.i., tsotetsi, c.t. & ige, o.a. managing the culture of covid-19 "new normal" as a motivation for university students in south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 48 from the statements above, one could validate the fact that there is a need for the universities to ensure that the mode of lecture delivery should be done to reduce consumption of the internet. participant s3 suggested that lessons should be made via notes, slides, and any other lighter means. this was requested because some of the students do not have the resources to acquire enough data to download heavy teaching materials online. the statement of participant s5 also confirmed that enough data is needed because to download video materials that consume a large amount of internet. and because many of the students come from a poor background with little money to buy enough internet, as a result of this, many students miss their online classes. participant s10 also lamented that he had no computer and internet to engage with his online learning, and a result request that internet and computer should be provided, most especially the ones that will not consume more internet. from this analysis, one could deduce that there is a need for the university to devise a means to conduct its lesion using the low-tech option. this will enable students to spend little or no internet while engaging in academic work online. this could stand as a motivation to attend online sessions since motivation has been proved to be a driving force, hence when students will not have to spend a lot to attend their academic works could enhance their willingness to be punctual (tohidi & jabbari, 2011). conclusion and recommendations the study revealed that lack of visualised physical engagement between students and their lecturers, unstable internet access, and lack of internet of things are significant challenges facing university students during lockdowns that necessitated online teaching and learning. this may be regarded as anti-ubuntu; these challenges among the learners do not depict the principle of love, compassion, unity for organisational success where all stakeholders of the universities see themselves as partners in the road to the road to success. we also found that the better ways to motivate students to take hold of their studies during covid-19 new normal are the adequate provision of effective online audio-visual sessions and the provision of lowtech online sessions. these findings are consistent with the proposition of ubuntu as a compassionate, collaborative and inclusive platform to which the university could ensure students motivation. based on the suggested solutions, we recommend that university students be motivated by providing them with adequate provision of effective online audiovisual sessions with enough space for student-lecturers interactions and provision of low-tech online sessions and content deliveries. references adamma, o. n., ekwutosim, o. p. & unamba, e. c. (2018). influence of extrinsic and intrinsic motivation on pupils academic performance in mathematics. supremum journal of mathematics education, 2(1), 52-59. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.1405857 adedigba, o., & sulaiman, f. r. (2020). influence of teachers' classroom management style on pupils' motivation for learning and academic achievement in kwara state. international journal of educational methodology, 6(2), 471-480. https://doi.org/10.12973/ijem.6.2.471 https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.1405857 https://doi.org/10.12973/ijem.6.2.471 research in social sciences and technology volume 6 issue 2, 2021 omodan, b.i., tsotetsi, c.t. & ige, o.a. managing the culture of covid-19 "new normal" as a motivation for university students in south africa research in social sciences and technology 2021 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 49 ali, w. 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(2020). remote learning and covid-19 the use of educational technologies at scale across an education system as a result of massive school closings in response to the covid-19 pandemic to enable distance education and online learning. retrieved from file:///e:/pc/rapid-response-briefing-note-remote-learning-and-covid-19outbreak.pdf https://www.k12dive.com/news/student-engagement-remains-a-challenge-in-distancelearning/584793/ https://www.k12dive.com/news/student-engagement-remains-a-challenge-in-distancelearning/584793/ https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2019.104608 https://doi.org/10.3303/cet1756220 https://doi.org/10.29086/2519-5476/2018/v25n1a10 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jare.2020.03.005 https://doi.org/10.1080/14615517.2013.850307 https://doi.org/10.15195/v7.a9 https://www.who.int/ file:///e:/pc/rapid-response-briefing-note-remote-learning-and-covid-19-outbreak.pdf file:///e:/pc/rapid-response-briefing-note-remote-learning-and-covid-19-outbreak.pdf research in social sciences and technology https://ressat.org e-issn: 2468-6891 volume: 7 issue: 2 2022 pp. 49-65 the health students’ perception of online education amid the covid-19 pandemic ahmet baytaka a. independent researcher, turkey. email: ahmet_baytak@yahoo.com article info received: april 11, 2022 revised: may 23, 2022 accepted: june 24, 2022 how to cite baytak, a. (2022). the health students’ perception of online education amid the covid-19 pandemic. research in social sciences and technology, 7(2), 49-65 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2022.9 copyright license this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 abstract the recent covid-19 pandemic has changed the lifestyles throughout the world. this study aims to investigate the health students’ perception of online education. the field of health requires practical education. indeed, online education has a different concept. thus, the health students’ perceptions draw attention especially during the hard time of pandemic. this quantitative study was conducted with 581 students studying a field of health in turkey. the data from an online survey was analyzed with kruskal wallis and mann-whitney u tests. the results show that some health students see online learning platform not suitable for their fields, even though some are favor of online education with some points. there was no significant difference between the perception of female and male students. the students’ perception differences were found statistically significant by faculties, classes, watching lessons live, having technology difficulties and using different device to access to online education. these findings confirmed that the sudden shift to online education made a different experience for health students. the research concludes with suggestions to design online education for any unexpected pandemic. keywords online education; pandemic; health education; technology difficulties. 10.46303/ressat.2022.9 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2022.9 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ 50 ressat 2022, 7(2): 49-65 introduction world history has been reshaped with a global change affecting every field. covid-19, which emerged towards the end of 2019, has clearly emerged from the world health organization's determination of it as a global pandemic on march 11, 2020. there have been frequent cases of covid-19 in many countries around the world. it peaked in some countries. vaccination efforts gained momentum. many countries around the world have begun to introduce basic rules such as social distance and the obligation to wear masks. some countries, for example turkey, have banned certain age ranges, mainly individuals over 65, from going out. with the increase in the number of cases, all citizens were banned from going out, except for certain groups, first on weekends and then for a week. this situation, which societies have not been accustomed to in the last 50 years, was received differently by individuals. social activities such as shopping, education and even worship, which were done in classical ways until before the pandemic, were limited with these new pandemic rules. individuals and countries tried to continue their activities with different solutions to these unexpected changes. after the declaration of the pandemic in turkey, it was decided by the higher education center to conduct the remainder of the spring 2020 semester remotely. in the field of education, in addition to face-to-face education, concepts such as education by letter, education by television, online education, distance education, and digital education have been applied in different ways in the last century (simonson, 2016; tadeu et al., 2019). especially with the development of internet technologies, there are many educational institutions that provide online education. since these educational institutions provide optional education, they are presented as an education platform that people prefer according to their situation (baytak, 2010; ofori-kusi & tachie, 2022). although distance education has many advantages such as providing flexibility from time and space, learners learn at their own pace, it has not replaced classical education worldwide (moore et al., 2011). however, with the pandemic, schools were not held face-to-face and online education was compulsory in all educational institutions (adu et al., 2022; al lily et al., 2020; dube et al., 2022). different countries around the world tried to continue education with different distance education solutions (basilaia, 2020; konyana & motalenyane, 2022; moyo et al., 2022; shava, 2022). in primary and secondary education in turkey, the ministry of national education started to give lessons for different classes over the official state television. for universities, each university has designed education systems within the framework of its own possibilities and capabilities. some schools tried to teach their students by using content management systems such as moodle as well as live video conferencing systems such as zoom. however, not every educational institution was so ready for this sudden change. in addition to the lack of technological opportunities in some institutions, it faced problems such as the lack of readiness of academic staff in this field (kilinc et al., 2018). years before this transition, the problem that 51 ressat 2022, 7(2): 49-65 can be experienced in the transition to distance education was mentioned (kalimullina et al., 2021; moore et al., 2011). with the transition to distance education, new problems began to emerge with the transition to the field of education. it has been impossible for students who are economically disadvantaged or lacking technological opportunities such as the internet or even computers to attend online classes (razami & ibrahim, 2021). students, teachers, academics and administrators who were not used to this new educational structure tried to find a solution to the problem (owusu-fordjour et al., 2020). in addition, the use of systems such as technological devices and online learning systems and the lack of knowledge are seen as the most important disadvantages for distance education (grishchenko, 2020; makura, 2022; omodan, 2022). distance education was also used before the pandemic, but its advantages and disadvantages were mentioned in many studies. in the study conducted by kirali and alcı (2016), a significant difference was found in the distance education perceptions of the students according to the variables of owning a personal computer and using the computer in a day. however, these distance education perceptions did not show a significant difference for gender (kirali & alcı, 2016). especially during the pandemic process, research has been done on the systems used in distance education (yıldız et al., 2021). however, only the students' perceptions of content management systems were researched in the study. literature review in a study conducted with pre-pandemic teacher candidates in turkey, it was found that gender, having prior knowledge about distance education, the faculty and the type of website where time was spent had a significant effect on the participants' attitude scores towards distance education (yenilmez et al., 2017). especially during the pandemic period, students' perceptions of distance education have begun to be examined more frequently. in another study conducted in turkey by savaş (2021), it was revealed that students have problems focusing on distance education according to gender, physical activity, type of university and faculty. similarly, in a qualitative study conducted with health students, some problems such as computer and internet connection were mentioned (baykal et al., 2022). however, there is no quantitative research on the perceptions of students studying in the field of health about distance education reaching large masses. in the research conducted in india, especially internet access was seen as the biggest obstacle. according to the researchers, it has been observed that the students lag behind the lessons because the internet required for watching the lessons and uploading the homework is not provided by the students. in addition, in this study, it was claimed that the length of online courses caused students to focus on problems (deshpande & mhatre, 2021). especially after breakout of covid-19, it has become inevitable to conduct health education remotely. for those who do academic studies in the field of health education and 52 ressat 2022, 7(2): 49-65 distance education, the use of distance education in the field of health and the sharing of experiences has accelerated (tzivinikou et al., 2021). almoayad and colleagues (2020), a study in saudi arabia, investigated the learning experiences and anxiety levels of students during the sudden shift to virtual learning in response to covid-19. this study found a significant negative correlation between student anxiety levels and their perceptions of responsibility and independence in learning. student anxiety levels during the sudden shift to online learning moderately influenced student perceptions of independence and responsibility in their learning as well as learning goal achievement (almoayad et al., 2020). in another study in saudi arabia, among 281 health science students, overall 62% of the students expressed their satisfaction with online learning (aziz ansari et al., 2021). a qualitative study in morocco during the pandemic surveyed 3037 students and 231 professors enrolled in different stages of higher education programs. the study aimed to investigate the limitations of e-learning platforms and how these activities take place at public and private moroccan universities during the coronavirus confinement. the results of the study showed that both professors and students expressed that online learning is not more interesting than ordinary learning and professors need to provide at least 50% of their teaching in face-toface mode. this study also showed that students are not satisfied with the distance learning provided by the professors because of technical challenges, internet connection issues, availability of platforms, and lack of digital skills (elfirdoussi et al., 2020). in another study done with undergraduate students in an indian university, the researchers found that the students claimed to learn better in physical classrooms and by than through online education. indeed, they think that online education is stressful and affecting their health and social life. however, the students also think that the professors had improved their online teaching skills and online education was useful for the pandemic. the students appreciated the software and online study materials being used to support online education (chakraborty et al., 2021) baczek et al (2021) evaluated polish medical students’ perception of online learning during the pandemic. the students listed the advantages of the online learning as the ability to stay at home (69%), continuous access to online materials (69%), learning at your own pace (64%), and comfortable surroundings (54%). however, the participants of the study also listed some disadvantages of online learning as lack of interactions with patients (70%) and technical problems with it equipment (54%). this study found no statistical difference between face-toface and online learning in terms of opinions on the ability of the learning method to increase knowledge (baczek et al., 2021). a recent study in malaysia show that the students preferred blended format, a combination of both online instruction and physical instruction as a future learning method. the students listed interaction, concentration and motivation as the most common difficulties they encountered (razami & ibrahim, 2021). 53 ressat 2022, 7(2): 49-65 a similar study conducted with 704 students of health-related higher education in brazil show that most of the students agreed with having the ability to continue education through distance learning, but relatively few of them enjoyed it. the participants of this study were also concerned about learning of clinical material and professional training and fear of failing the year of education (peloso et al., 2020). a study conducted with medical students in jordan investigated students’ attitudes toward online learning based on gender and fields. the study shows that male students had more positive attitudes toward online learning. in addition, the students from pharmacy fields expressed higher attitudes towards online learning compared to students from either pharmd or medical fields (muflih et al., 2021). a study conducted with students in greek department of early years learning & care investigated the factors that influence learners’ perceptions and attitudes during distance learning. the findings show the importance of role of the educator and technical support (vasiliki et al., 2021). similarly, a study conducted in germany showed that among 559 students, there was no correlation between study engagement and pandemicrelated demands. however, the correlation between students’ concerns about their economic stability and study engagement was found significant (koob et al., 2021). a broad study conducted with 1255 participants belonged to 11 countries showed that more than half of the medical students (60%) considered that clinical and practical skills are best learned in clinics and laboratories (abbasia et al., 2020). some of the students preferred classroom teaching and did not feel confident enough to take exit exams after e-learning sessions. this study revealed that the participants’ e-learning satisfaction levels were better among developed countries (7.34) compared to developing countries (5.82). even though most of the students were satisfied with acquiring knowledge, most did not see e-learning as an effective way in acquiring clinical and technical skills. distance education has been used more frequently as a necessity during the pandemic process. since distance education was not a necessity before the pandemic, the perspectives of the participants differed. in some studies conducted in this field, distance education has been accepted as a change and students' perspective or resistance to this change has been examined. resistance to change can take two forms: open or covert resistance. overt resistance manifests itself in unconcealed actions and can be positive if managed correctly. covert resistance includes behaviors that prevent change efforts (caruth & caruth, 2013). in this context, the resistance of university students to the transition to distance education has been examined (genç, 2020). in the study, students' resistance levels to change were determined at a moderate level. according to another finding of the research, although university students think that distance education is instructive, they think that distance education is not very suitable for them and they are not inclined to distance education. in addition, this study showed that attitudes towards distance education differ according to gender. in the study, it was found that male students thought that they were more inclined to distance education than female students. distance education 54 ressat 2022, 7(2): 49-65 susceptibility levels of students show a significant difference according to the department they are studying (genç, 2020). the fact that this study is carried out with students in the field of health, that they are health workers candidates who stand at the forefront of the intervention against covid-19, and that it is one of the fields that require physical application makes this study important. in addition, distance education in risky areas such as health has been a situation that is generally not preferred. however, examining the usage experiences of this student population in the use that emerged after the necessity is important for the future and shaping of distance education. method research design the current study followed a quantitative research design which employed a questionnaire to university students to test whether there were any statistically significant results between the groups based on gender, students’ faculty, having technology difficulties, accessing online lessons. this quantitative study was applied in the spring semester of the 2020-2021 academic years in turkey. population and sampling the sample of this study consists of students in the health education. health education at university level in turkey is given in four different faculties. medical faculties are faculties that train doctors. dentistry faculties are units that train dentists. faculties of health sciences train students in fields such as 4-year nurses and physiotherapy or dietitian. health services vocational schools, on the other hand, are 2-year educational institutions that train auxiliary health personnel such as opticians, audiometry or surgery services. within the scope of this study, students from these four different faculties participated in the study. the determination of the participants consists of the students who voluntarily participated in the research after the announcement of the participation through messaging groups. convenient sampling method was used in this research. in this method, the researchers can easily reach the group and the group is ready for the application. the instrument the instrument applied within the scope of the study consists of two separate parts. in the first part of the questionnaire, demographic information about the participants was analyzed, and in the second part, the participants' perspectives on online education were analyzed. in the demographic part of the survey, gender, class, faculty, technology connectivity, device used for school, access problem and following course videos are listed. the second part of the questionnaire consists of 21 questions developed by gündüz (2013) and the cronbach alpha internal reliability coefficient of the scale was stated as 0.84. these questions consist of likert scale questions and the answers are ranged from “strongly disagree” (1) to “strongly agree” (5). no personally identifiable information was collected. 55 ressat 2022, 7(2): 49-65 data collection an online questionnaire was applied to collect data due to covid-19 constraints, lockdowns, and social distancing applied throughout the country at the time of the study. the questionnaire was administered in turkish. data analysis the data collected online were saved on excel and then transferred to the spss (version 21) program. the demographic characteristics of the participants were reflected with the descriptive analyzes. in this test of normality, the data do not show a normal distribution. thus, kruskal wallis and mann-whitney u tests were implemented for the differences between the groups. mann-whitney u test was used to evaluate the perspectives on distance education according to the gender of the participants and the technical problems experienced. the kruskal wallis test was used to analyze the difference in the perspective of distance education according to the faculty, the device used and the monitoring of the course. the survey test results were analyzed for the factor analysis. the kaiser-meyer-olkin measure of sampling adequacy was found 0,965, and then exploratory factor analysis was preceded. the bartlett’s test of sphericity was also found significant (p < 0.05). findings the data obtained within the scope of this study were examined with statistical analyzes. the findings were categorized according to descriptive and independent variables. the results of these analyzes are presented below. as part of this study, the participants were asked about their genders, university class, and faculty, the device to connect the online courses, technology difficulties and accessing course platform. the data was analyzed as descriptive analysis. according to the findings, female students attending the first year constitute the highest majority. likewise, 2nd year female students come second with 27.5%. then the male students who go to the 1st grade come next. the number of students going to other classes constitutes a small part of the participants. when the distribution of the participants according to the faculties is analyzed, 46.0% female and 15.3% male attended from vocational school of health services. the proportion of students attending the faculty of dentistry is 16.4% (10.5% female and 5.9% male). the proportion of medical school students participating in the study was 16.2% (9.3% female and 6.9% male). the lowest rate of participation in the study was 6.2% for the students of the faculty of health sciences. 56 ressat 2022, 7(2): 49-65 table 1. descriptive analysis of the participants’ demographic information by gender gender female male count total n % count total n % class 1 223 38.4% 79 13.6% 2 160 27.5% 70 12.0% 3 9 1.5% 9 1.5% 4 22 3.8% 9 1.5% faculty vocational school of health services 267 46.0% 89 15.3% faculty of dentistry 61 10.5% 34 5.9% faculty of health sciences 32 5.5% 4 0.7% medical school 54 9.3% 40 6.9% access device computer 105 18.1% 60 10.3% smart phone 288 49.6% 94 16.2% no access 15 2.6% 9 1.5% tablet 6 1.0% 4 0.7% technology difficulty no 85 14.6% 46 7.9% yes 329 56.6% 121 20.8% zoom live live 184 31.7% 79 13.6% recordings 187 32.2% 69 11.9% didn’t watch 40 6.9% 16 2.8% when the participation rates of the participants in the course materials are examined, more than half of the participants (49.6% women and 16.2% men) are connected with smartphones. the rate of participants using their computers was found to be 28.4%. however, it was revealed that some of the students could not reach the course materials (2.6% female and 1.5% male). one of the most important findings in this study was that 77.4% of the participants (56.6% women and 20.8% men) stated that they had technological difficulties in accessing the course materials. while 45.3% of the participants watched the lessons live via zoom, 44.1% watched the lessons from the recordings. however, 9.7% of the participants never watched the lectures. the scale used in this study was examined in detail. the total scores based on gender, class, faculty, technology difficulties and the device used were also analyzed. the following table presents the descriptive statistics of the questionnaire for each item. 57 ressat 2022, 7(2): 49-65 table 2. descriptive statistics of survey items n mi n max mean std. dev 1. online education is more effective than face-to-face education. 581 1 5 1.91 1.218 2. the department i am studying can accept students via online education. 581 1 5 1.85 1.149 if my 3rd department had a online education option, i would prefer it. 581 1 5 1.93 1.273 4. i would like to take some of my lessons through online education before i come to school. 581 1 5 3.10 1.524 5. online education provides equal opportunity. 581 1 5 1.92 1.205 6. online education is not interesting. 581 1 5 3.73 1.306 7. online education provides permanent learning with the flexibility to repeat as much as desired. 581 1 5 2.80 1.402 8. the reliability of exams made through online education is high. 581 1 5 2.19 1.326 9. the absence of time and place restrictions in online education increases the continuity of education. 581 1 5 2.65 1.396 10. face-to-face interaction is necessary for the best training to take place. 581 1 5 4.08 1.213 11. online education enables students to learn from quality teachers. 581 1 5 2.30 1.261 12. online education provides lifelong learning. 581 1 5 2.54 1.405 13. online education is more effective than face-to-face education in preparation for exams such as kpss, tus, dus, dgs. 581 1 5 2.34 1.185 14. online education is more effective in foreign language education than face-to-face education. 581 1 5 2.24 1.071 15. open education faculty (oef) students graduate with sufficient knowledge and skills. 581 1 5 2.35 1.279 16. in the following years, online education will take the place of formal education. 581 1 5 2.58 1.362 17. in turkey, education can be given to larger masses through online education. 581 1 5 3.15 1.336 18. as technology develops, online education will be used more widely. 581 1 5 3.59 1.207 19. students' motivation levels are low in online education. 581 1 5 3.04 1.255 20. my online exam results are higher than my face-to-face exam results. 581 1 5 4.22 1.150 21. face-to-face interaction is necessary for my education to take place in the best way possible. 581 1 5 4.22 1.150 total 581 20 86 54.49 12.05 2 valid n (listwise) 581 58 ressat 2022, 7(2): 49-65 the descriptive statistics show that the second item of the survey ‘the department i am studying can accept students via online education.’ has the lowest score as 1.85. similarly, ‘online education is more effective than face-to-face education.’ item has the second lowest scores as 1.91. however, ‘my online exam results are higher than my face-to-face exam results.’ and ‘face-to-face interaction is necessary for my education to take place in the best way possible.’ items have the highest scores as 4.22 in average. overall, the findings show that the participants' perspective on online education was found to be medium. table 3. differences between perception results based on gender and technology difficulties n mean rank sum of ranks mean mannwhitney u p gender female 414 282.66 117023.00 53.86 31118.0 .059 male 167 311.66 52048.00 56.05 total 581 54.49 technology difficulties no 131 404.96 53049.50 63.24 14546.5 .000 yes 450 257.83 116021.50 51.94 total 581 54.49 the statistical test results indicated that there is no a statistically significant difference between the total test survey score of female and male students, u(nfemale414, nmale167)= 31118.0, z=-1.885, p>0.05. male participants (md=56.05) have higher mean scores than female participants (md=53.86). the online courses require at least some technical skills to access the lessons. a mannwhitney u test was used to find the differences between the students who have technology difficulties and who did not have difficulties. the findings indicated that there is a statistically significant difference between the total test survey score of students who have and who do not have technology difficulties, u(nnotd131, ntd450)= 14546.5, z=-8.83, p<0.05. the participants who have no technology difficulties (md=63.24) have higher mean scores than the other group (md=51.94). there were four health faculties and this research assessed the test scores differences between the faculties. the kruskal-wallis test revealed a statistically significant difference in total test survey score across the four faculties, χ2(3, n=581)= 54.978, p<0.05. the test scores were the highest for the faculty of faculty of dentistry (md=62.39) among other faculties. a kruskal-wallis test revealed a statistically significant difference in total test survey score across the four classes, χ2(3, n=581)=16.134, p<0.05. the test scores were the lower for the sophomore students (md=53.81) comparing to other classes. 59 ressat 2022, 7(2): 49-65 table 4. differences between perception results based on faculty, class, watching lessons and device to access lessons n mean rank mean kruskal wallis test df p faculty vocational school of health services 356 260.78 52.33 54.978 3 .000 faculty of dentistry 95 402.94 62.39 faculty of health sciences 36 317.49 55.69 medical school 94 282.18 54.24 total 581 54.49 class 1 302 283.64 54.00 16.134 3 .001 2 230 281.06 53.81 3 18 385.64 60.39 4 31 381.52 60.94 total 581 54.49 watching lessons live 263 329.84 57.54 44.125 2 .000 recordings 256 268.80 53.01 didn’t watch 56 179.26 46.71 total 575 54.47 device to access lessons computer 165 338.25 58.30 29.595 3 .000 smart phone 382 275.15 53.17 no access 24 181.25 46.75 tablet 10 380.40 60.70 total 581 54.49 because of the pandemic, the students were not able to attend the class physically. the classes were taught through zoom software live and then the recordings were posted online to be accessed anytime. this research also analyzed how the students followed the lessons. a kruskal-wallis test revealed a statistically significant difference in total test survey score across the three groups, χ2(2, n=575) = 44.125, p<0.05. the test scores were the lower for the students who watched the lessons live (md=53.81) comparing to other groups. in order to access the course materials, the students may use computers, smart phones or tablets. this research conducted a kruskal-wallis test to test if there is any difference between test scores of the group based on the access devices. the findings revealed that there is a statistically significant difference in total test survey score across the three groups, χ2(3, 60 ressat 2022, 7(2): 49-65 n=581)= 29.595, p<0.05. the test scores were the lower for the students who do not have access the lessons (md=46.75) comparing to other groups. discussion the aim of this study is to examine the perception of online education of university students studying in the field of health. for this purpose, the data obtained were interpreted with statistical analysis. the findings of this study show that first-year female students constitute the highest majority. within the scope of the study, the fact that the vocational high school of health services, which provides 2-year education, has many participants, the density of the participants in this study is concentrated in the first 2 classes. overall, the findings show that the participants' perspective on online education was found to be medium. participants believe that the faculty they have study is not suitable for online education, but stated that their grades in online education have increased. this could be the sudden shift to online education. this shift was also appeared in study almoayad et al. (2020). this findings of this study is also support the previous studies that students are happy with online education but not finding adequate for their field (abbasia et al, 2020; baczek et al., 2021; chakraborty et al., 2021; elfirdoussi et al., 2020; genç, 2020; peloso et al., 2020). the findings of this study show that there is no a statistically significant difference between the total test survey score of female and male students. this finding is parallel to previous studies (kirali & alcı, 2016; muflih et al., 2021) but different than another study (yenilmez, et al., 2017). similar to a previous study by muflih and colleagues (2021), this study also shows that male students had more positive attitudes toward online learning. the differences between genders could be technology skills between male and female. further studies could also study attitudes toward online learning based on students’ technical skills and gender. this finding also revealed a statistically significant difference in total test survey score across four faculties. the test scores were the highest for faculty of dentistry among other faculties. this finding is similar to previous studies (genç, 2020; muflih et al., 2021; yenilmez et al., 2017). the content of the courses taught in each faculty vary. these differences may affect their attitudes toward online learning. thus, the structure of the online courses should be based on content of the course. the findings show that there is a significant difference in total survey score across the four classes. the test scores were the lower for the sophomore students have the lowest scores. the differences can have several reasons but this student groups started with face-to-face education and then took online courses after the outbreak of the pandemic. the resistance against the change may affect this attitude toward online education as it was found in the previous studies (caruth & caruth, 2013; genç, 2020). the findings show that watching lessons live through video conferencing tool affect students attitudes toward online learning. there was a statistically significant difference 61 ressat 2022, 7(2): 49-65 between groups based on following lessons. the test scores were the lower for the students who watched the lessons live comparing to other groups. this finding was not studied in the previous researches. thus, this results can help educators design their lesson accordingly and the research to investigate the cause of this findings. the findings indicated that there is a statistically significant difference between the survey score of students who have and who do not have technology difficulties. the participants who have no technology difficulties have higher mean scores than the other group. similar to these finding, previous studies highlighted the importance of role technical support and skills (baczek et al., 2021; elfirdoussi et al., 2020; grishchenko, 2020; vasiliki et al., 2021). the findings show that there is a statistically significant difference in the total survey score between the groups of the device usage. as it could be expected, the test scores were the lowest for the students who do not have access the lessons. students with no adequate device to access the course materials may feel lag behind the class and this could affect their attitudes toward online education (armstrong-mensah et al., 2020). as in any research, there are some limitations in this research as well. since this study was conducted during the pandemic period, data collection was developed only online. the social and academic abnormalities experienced by the participants during the pandemic may have been reflected in the answers given to this questionnaire. conclusion in conclusion, this study found that the health students’ perceptions on online education were found to be medium. even though some are favor of online education with some points, some see this type of learning platform suitable for their fields. there was no significant difference between the perception of female and male students but male students had higher perception scores of online learning. this study also shows that there is a significant difference of perceptions between the faculties. the test scores were the highest for faculty of dentistry among other faculties. it also revealed that there is a significant difference of perceptions across the four classes. the test scores were the lower for the sophomore students have the lowest scores. the findings show that watching lessons live through video conferencing tool affect students attitudes toward online learning. there was a statistically significant difference between groups based on following lessons. this study also confirmed that having technology difficulties could a significant effect of their perception of online learning. indeed, using different device to access to online education also has a statistically significant difference on the perception scores. with the covid-19 pandemic, lockdown, which suddenly entered the life of today's society, has made changes in the field of education compulsory. online education, which was only an option before the pandemic, has become a mandatory choice. thanks to the developing technological opportunities, educational institutions had the opportunity to conduct their education online during this pandemic process. the perceptions of students studying in health 62 ressat 2022, 7(2): 49-65 education, which is an applied field, on online education are important. it is expected that the findings obtained in this study will guide future studies and educators. at the time this study was written, the covid-19 pandemic was alleviated around the world and the lessons were started to be held face-to-face again. however, it is possible for different pandemics to emerge throughout the world. thus, the findings of this study are expected to be a guide for what should be done in future pandemics. references abbasia, m. s., ahmeda, n., sajjadb, b., alshahranic, a., saeedd, s., sarfaraze, s., alhamdanf, r. s., vohrac, f., & abduljabbar, t. 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(2021). pandemi sürecinde uzaktan eğitim ortamlarının kullanımına ilişkin tutum ölçeği. opus–uluslararası toplum araştırmaları dergisi, 17(33), 132-153. https://doi.org/10.26466/opus.811510 https://doi.org/10.14569/ijacsa.2021.0120416 https://pesquisa.bvsalud.org/global-literature-on-novel-coronavirus-2019-ncov/resource/pt/covidwho-1413651 https://pesquisa.bvsalud.org/global-literature-on-novel-coronavirus-2019-ncov/resource/pt/covidwho-1413651 https://doi.org/10.46303/jcve.2022.7 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.04.02.ed https://doi.org/10.1007/s10758-020-09483-1 https://doi.org/10.46827/ejoe.v6i1.3529 https://doi.org/10.17556/erziefd.305902 https://doi.org/10.26466/opus.811510 research in social sciences and technology https://ressat.org e-issn: 2468-6891 volume: 8 issue: 1 2023 pp. 63-73 experiences of the geography subject advisors in the implementation of geographic information systems in kwazulu-natal province thulasizwe fredrick mkhize email: mkhizetf@ufs.ac.za university of the free state, south africa article info received: october 6, 2022 accepted: january 9, 2023 published: april 25, 2023 how to cite mkhize, t. f. (2023). experiences of the geography subject advisors in the implementation of geographic information systems in kwazulu-natal province. research in social sciences and technology, 8(1), 63-73 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2023.5 copyright license this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (cc by 4.0). abstract this paper explored the experiences of geography subject advisors (gsas) in the implementation of geographic information systems (gis) in south african schools. this was done to determine how they assist in the implementation of gis. national senior certificate diagnostic reports for matric results indicate every year that learners are performing poorly in the gis section of geography subject. the current literature shows that there is a lack of pedagogical content knowledge in geography teachers in the teaching and learning of gis. several scholars have written about learners and educators in the implementation of gis in schools, but there is a lack of literature on gsas’ experiences in the implementation of gis in schools. this paper is underpinned by instructional leadership theory, which argues for leadership to focus their efforts on implementing of practices that positively impact students’ learning. qualitative research approach, and semi-structured interviews were used to generate data to answer the research questions. two gsas from two selected districts were purposively chosen to participate in this study. the findings showed that gsas organise workshops for educators. however, certain educators do not attend workshops and other workshops which are planned, do not materialise. gsas rely on geography educators that are knowledgeable about gis to assist in workshops by teaching others. gis teaching in schools was alleged to be focused on a theoretical aspect without integrating the practical part. the study proposes that the dbe in collaboration with higher education institutions, should provide gis teacher training opportunities for teachers. keywords department of basic education; geographic information system, geography subject advisors, geography, instructional leadership theory 10.46303/ressat.2023.5 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2023.5 64 ressat 2023, 8(1): 63-73 introduction the potential of geographic information systems (gis) on geography instruction has led to a global movement to include it in school curricula (fleischmann & van der westhuizen, 2020). educational gis was initially available only in the usa, canada, and england, followed by denmark, germany, france, finland, sweden, the netherlands, and other developed countries (fleischmann & westhuizen, 2017). in the 1990s, educational gis in secondary schools was extended to developing countries in asia such as china, malaysia, and india, and in africa, it was extended to nigeria, uganda, rwanda, and south africa (akinyemi, 2015; kerski et al., 2013). however, despite the increased focus on educational gis, many teachers worldwide still struggle to find appropriate means of presenting gis practical lessons or applying gis in their classrooms. in south africa, gis was listed as a skill to be acquired in the national curriculum statement (ncs) in 2003, although its actual inclusion in the curriculum was only phased-in from 2006. in 2006, the department of basic education (dbe) introduced gis as part of the grade 10 geography syllabus for the first time and it extended this to include grades 11 and 12 in 2007 and 2008, respectively (fleischmann & van der westhuizen, 2020). several studies have been conducted on teaching of gis in the southern african secondary schools. fleischmann and van der westhuizen (2019) review the current state of gis application in southern african secondary schools. they argue that there is no gis education in secondary school curricula, shortage of experienced teachers, lack of knowledge and technical expertise, unwillingness of teachers to change their teaching mode, a shortage of funds, and inadequate resources. fleischmann and van der westhuizen (2019) concluded that there should be an infusion of interest and collaboration across borders to exchange knowledge and support. similarly, mkhongi and musakwa (2020) note that there is progress in the teaching of gis in secondary schools. however, the full potential of gis education has been restricted by challenges such as inadequate resources and limited exposure of students to gis’s practicals. this is consistent with a recommendation that gis education in south african schools should be accompanied by appropriate hardware, software, and opportunities for exposing students and educators to practical methods of teaching and learning gis (mkhongi & musakwa, 2020). tarisayi and zondi (2020) in their paper that explored a learner’s perspective on the implementation of gis in selected schools in the kwazulu-natal province argue that the learners lacked fundamental knowledge of gis and that gis was not being properly taught. however, the study did not recommend solutions to the problem to assist learners in obtaining fundamental knowledge of gis. while the above studies have contributed to the study of gis in schools, none of the studies has focused on the experiences of geography subject advisors in implementing gis in schools. therefore, my study is unique in that it argues for geography subject advisors to play their role in implementing gis in schools. in light of this, the aim of the study is to explore geography subject advisors’ experiences in the implementation of gis in schools, determine how they assist in the implementation of gis and suggest how dbe, in collaboration with 65 ressat 2023, 8(1): 63-73 institutions of higher education, should provide gis teacher training opportunities for teachers to advance their knowledge of gis. the paper is arranged as follows: theoretical framework, methodology, findings, and conclusion and recommendations. research questions • what are the experiences of geography subject advisors in the implementation of gis in schools? • how do geography subject advisors assist in the implementation of gis in schools? theoretical framework this paper is framed under weber’s (1996) instructional leadership theory. the early developments of the theory were made by hallinger and murphy (1985) in their model of instructional management by examining the instructional leadership behaviour of 10 elementary school principals and reviewing the literature on school effectiveness. according to hallinger and murphy (1985), instructional leadership is a strong and directive leadership that focuses directly on curriculum and instructional practices. however, with the evolution of transformational leadership in 1990, cuban (1988) and lambert (1998) highlighted the limitation of the hallinger and murphy (1985) model as they believed that instructional leadership only focuses on the principal as the centre of expertise, power, and authority by deliberately ignoring the other facets which ultimately put the burden for any one person. weber’s (1996) instructional leadership theory developed on hallinger and murphy’s theory and added more pillars to the understanding of instructional leadership. the model comprises six interrelated functions. these include setting academic goals, organising the instructional leadership, hiring, supervising, and evaluating teachers, protecting instructional time and programmes, creating a climate for learning, and monitoring achievement and evaluating programmes. to address the findings of the study, the following pillars of the theory framed the study: setting school academic goals, organising the instructional leadership, creating a climate for learning, and monitoring achievement and evaluating programmes. for setting school academic goals: the instructional leader should always give guidance and direction based on the organisation’s objectives and philosophy (adams et al., 2018; weber, 1996). weber (1996) makes a convincing assertion that for any school or education district to have effective leadership, quality teaching and learning and improved learner attainment, there must be well-formulated vision, goals and mission that provide an impetus and direction to all leadership, governance, and curriculum matters. the geography subject advisors as leaders should set, communicate, and work with educators towards achieving those academic goals in the effective implementation of gis in schools. for organising instructional leadership: the principal has a duty to perform instructional organisation and coordination which comprises subject groupings, student groupings, teacher organisation, leadership teams and the structure of the curriculum (mooi, 2018; weber, 1996). i argue that it is the responsibility of the 66 ressat 2023, 8(1): 63-73 geography subject advisor to perform instructional organisation, coordinate, and run programmes such as workshops aimed at effective teaching and learning of gis in schools. for creating a climate for learning: the school climate serves as a motivating factor for both educators and learners in their academic and professional work (alnasser, 2019; weber, 1996). the learning climate is associated with norms, values and attitudes prevailing in a school, which characterise the behaviours of educators and learners (ma’mun, & suryana, 2019; weber, 1996). he further suggests that teacher expectations determine the amount of time dedicated to teaching and learning and the quality of materials and activities. consequently, subject advisors need to improve the learning climate through high expectations. for monitoring achievement and evaluating programmes: monitoring and evaluating the school programme is key to successful instructional leadership. it is an integral part of the teaching and learning process (islam et al., 2019; weber, 1996). the subject advisor has a primary duty to evaluate and revise the instructional programme in an institution (amin, & yasin, 2018; weber, 1996). therefore, this theory is relevant to this study because the geography subject advisor is an instructional leader, in terms of all the pillars of instructional leadership discussed; all of them should be fulfilled by the geography subject advisors for effective teaching and learning of gis to take place in schools. i chose this model because it relates well with the topic of the study as the subject advisor is an instructional leader. methodology this paper is located within the interpretive paradigm to understand the participants’ experiences. the main assumption of this paradigm is that reality is socially constructed and that there are as many intangible realities that people construct (hathcoat et al., 2019; kivunja & kuyini, 2017). as an interpretive researcher, i explored geography subject advisors’ experiences in the implementation of gis in schools; and determined how they assist in the implementation of gis. in this way, different interpretations from geography subject advisors were obtained because their realities were not the same. thus, i was able to engage in geography subject advisors’ experiences subjectively to understand their journeys. this paper adopted the qualitative research design. such an approach is deemed appropriate because qualitative findings are always based on human experiences and stories which cannot be measured, counted, or controlled (allan 2020; silverman, 2020). the qualitative research design was suitable for this paper because it hoped to understand the geography subject advisors’ experiences in the implementation of gis in schools. this paper adopted a case study research design because the case study systematically captured the reality of the geography subject advisors’ lived experiences of supporting geography teachers in implementing gis in schools. these were resource-poor schools in rural communities. the quintile categorisation of the schools is the same and they qualified as no-fee schools (hall & giese, 2009). these schools are under quintile two and learners do not pay fees because the schools are located in poor communities. the quintile of a school is based on the 67 ressat 2023, 8(1): 63-73 relative wealth of the surrounding communities (kern et al., 2018). the participants were two geography subject advisors in two districts in kwazulu-natal province, south africa. this paper adopted non-probability sampling in which the chance or probability of each unit being selected is not known or confirmed (rahi, 2017). this means that participants in the non-probability sample are not given an equal chance to participate; instead, they are selected on the basis of their accessibility or by the purpose and personal judgement of the researcher. therefore, by utilising non-probability sampling, i was enabled to be purposive and make personal judgments in selecting the participants. this paper adopted semi-structured interviews as the data generation tool. the openended questions enabled me to ask follow-up questions such as why or how questions. magaldi and berler (2020) state that the researcher in the semi-structured interview can explore new paths that emerge during the interview that may not have been initially considered. the semistructured interviews enabled me to word questions instinctively and developed a conversational style during the interview that focus on the topic. the paper adopted the thematic data analysis. data analysis is the process of systematically interpreting data using analytical and logical techniques to determine useful information (braun & clark, 2016). the thematic data analysis enabled me to see and make sense of the collective or shared meanings and experiences indicated by the data set. the semi-structured interviews data were analysed utilising a combination of deductive and inductive thematic analysis approaches. department of basic education granted permission to engage geography teachers in the selected districts within the province of kwazulu-natal. permission from the districts managers’ gatekeepers was also obtained. i also approached the ethics committee of the university of kwazulu-natal (ukzn) to apply for ethical clearance to conduct this research to avoid any potential harm against the participants. all participants participated voluntarily and held a right to withdraw at any time (hasan et al., 2021). the consent letter that was provided to the participants also included the following: willingness to participate and consent for the use of audio and video equipment during the engagements. to avoid any kind of identification of individuals, the confidentiality of the participants was guaranteed by using pseudonyms for the districts and participants. according to arifin (2018), this is called nonmaleficence, where harm is avoided to those involved in the research. i motivated participants to share their views about their role in the implementation of gis in schools but did not specify participants’ names or districts’ names in the data presentation to ensure adequate anonymity. findings and discussions this section presents the discussion of findings that emerged in the study. the findings of this study are presented in this section as verbatim narrations in correlation with literature and the theoretical framework. the data generation tool used was semi-structured interviews with two geography subject advisors namely: gsa 1 and gsa 2. the aim was to explore the experiences of geography subject advisors implementing gis in the south african schools; and determine how they assist in the implementation of gis. the findings are presented as themes, that the 68 ressat 2023, 8(1): 63-73 researcher generated using a combination of deductive and inductive approaches. both participants responded to the two research questions of the study. geographic information system workshops the study established that geography subject advisors (gsas) organise content workshops for geography teachers to discuss gis teaching and learning in schools. however, it was apparent that as gsas engaged geography teachers in these workshops, they experienced several challenges. gsa 1 comments that: “there are workshops that i have organised for training teachers on gis. there was one that was done last year virtually, which was supposed to been attended by all teachers in the province, but you find that the issue of network, the issue of cellphone data hindered…teachers from attending that workshop which was virtual last year.” (gsa 1, female, ten years’ experience in advisory services) in a similar way, gsa 2 explained: “we planned training workshops which have not yet materialised because of the challenge of not finding time at the moment to conduct workshops on gis. however, we provided past-year question papers to teachers from the province.” (gsa 2, female, one year experience in advisory services) from the above excerpts, there is evidence that gsas assists teachers in implementing gis through geography content workshops. this is consistent with the findings by fleischmann and westhuizen (2020), who point out that the gis training programmes organised by dbe help teachers learn how to help schools to implement gis. weber’s (1996) pillar of organising instructional leadership corroborate this finding by pointing out that the principal must perform instructional organisation and coordination, which comprises subject groupings, student groupings, teacher organisation, leadership teams and the structure of the curriculum. this means that it is the responsibility of the geography subject advisors as instructional leaders to ensure that they take responsibility for organising gis workshops in which teachers are taught. use of gis knowledgeable educators in workshops the use of knowledgeable geography teachers that are within that district to assist other geography teachers in the implementation of gis was evident. this was because gsa found gis difficult because they were also not taught gis at school or the tertiary level. gsa 1 elucidate: “since the department of education does not have money, we sometimes use geography teachers who understand gis better especially novice teachers because they were taught gis at the university. some of them got it in secondary schools and universities. so, we use those geography teachers so that they can be able to teach all the other teachers that were not exposed to gis during their time.” gsa 2 adds the reason for her to find gis difficult and frustrating to teach to equip geography teachers on how to teach it to learners. gsa 2 explains articulates: 69 ressat 2023, 8(1): 63-73 “application of map work and gis is a challenging section. it is challenging to teach learners or teachers while i was also not exposed to the topics. it is ok to include gis, yet frustrating…” hence, it can be noted from the above-mentioned comments by the participants of the study that they are aware that one of their roles as instructional leaders is to teach educators about how gis must be implemented in schools. however, gsa discovered that they are also unfamiliar with gis, and therefore strategies on utilising some geography educators to teach other geography educators about gis implementation in schools during workshop sessions. the literature is inline with the above-mentioned position by participants. the literature reveals that despite south africa being ahead of other african countries, south africa also experiences a shortage of experienced gis personnel. shortage of technical support and training; lack of inservice training; complicated software and a lack of proper teacher guidelines; poor funding, and inadequate infrastructure in secondary schools have also been mentioned as challenges (breetzke et al., 2011; fleischmann & westhuizen, 2017; musakwa, 2017; rust, 2008). since it is the knowledgeable educators that end up teaching gis to other educators in these workshops. it might be that those who teach others end up not benefiting or growing since they do not learn anything new. gis implementation from a theoretical perspective the findings of the study also indicated that gsas assistance in gis implementation in south african schools is practiced from a theoretical perspective and not done using the actual gis programme to engage learners with gis tools. gsa 1 explains: “i assist teachers to implement the teaching and learning of gis in schools from a theoretical perspective and not practical perspective. gis taught in our schools is the one that teaches only the concepts of gis. so, it becomes a problem for learners when teachers go deeper with gis, because they cannot see the practical part of gis. for example, how maps are made, how data is layered, and so on. so those are the things that are difficult when it comes to gis. so, resources for its implementation at a practical level are not available.” in line with gsa 1, gsa 2 also indicated the lack of resources in the implementation of gis in school that makes it abstract and difficult for learners to understand easily because educators tend to for solely on theory and not on practice. gsa 2 articulates: “the challenge is that we don’t have the necessary resources that we can make our teachers use to make it easy for learners to understand geography.” considering the above responses, the gsas view gis as a topic that is supposed to be taught practically to learners. the belief is that if gis is taught with the integration of the practical aspect, it might become easier for the gsas to explain to educators the ways they can use to make it easier for them when they must use to make learners understand gis in the classroom. similarly, fleischmann & westhuizen (2017) reveal that teachers worldwide still struggle to find appropriate ways to present gis practical lessons or apply gis in their classrooms. the primary reasons for this, as stated by aladag (2014) and bednarz (2004) and many other scholars, are as follows: the need for software, hardware and usable data, as well 70 ressat 2023, 8(1): 63-73 as other technical obstacles; the unwillingness of teachers to spend time and effort learning new technologies unless there is institutional support or advantage to their career; teachers’ insufficient knowledge of how to teach using gis coupled with the lack of curriculum-based material; and the lack of experience using spatial information. conclusion and recommendations this study concludes that geography subject advisors are aware that their role in implementing gis is to assist teachers through organising workshops that will capacitate educators with the teaching and learning of gis in schools. however, the challenge to workshops is that certain educators do not attend workshops organised because of a number of hinderances they face. another issue that emerged from the findings is that a geography subject at times organise a workshop and end up not materialising. the workshop that ends up not taking place compromises the effective teaching and learning of gis in schools as some geography educators are struggling with understanding the topic themselves, yet they are expected to teach it to learners. according to the nsc diagnostic report for matriculants, this might explain why learners are performing poorly in the gis section in mapwork every year. the findings also suggest a lack of gis content knowledge amongst certain geography subject advisors. the lack of gis content knowledge is caused by the fact that they were not taught gis at school and at the tertiary level. the lack of knowledge in the implementation of gis contributes to geography subject advisors not being able to fulfil their role as instructional leaders to facilitate programmes in which they engage educator themselves in the teaching and learning of gis in schools. another issue is that of teaching gis from a theoretical perspective without the integration of the practical perspective. the findings imply that gis teaching and learning will always be difficult as long as it is taught from a theoretical perspective. this is because teaching from a theoretical perspective without incorporating practice not only makes gis difficult for teachers to teach but also makes it abstract and difficult for learners to understand. the study recommends that the department of basic education (dbe), in association with universities, should provide formal training to both geography subject advisors and teachers and provide them with the necessary resources across all schools to ensure the effective teaching of gis in a geography classroom. the provision of resources may assist in addressing the teaching and learning of gis integrating the practical aspect for learners to understand gis better. the training may be rendered in the form of prolonged workshops that focus on gis implementation in schools. the dbe may also allocate funds in schools for resources required for gis implementation. the dbe workshops aiming at supporting teachers with gis implementation should include strategies that would enable geography teachers to simplify the complexity of gis concepts taught to learners in schools. references 71 ressat 2023, 8(1): 63-73 adams, d., devadason, e., periasamy, r., & lee, k. c. s. 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(1996). instructional leadership: a composite working model. synthesis of the literature. eugene, or: eric clearinghouse on educational management, university of oregon. research in social sciences and technology https://ressat.org e-issn: 2468-6891 volume: 7 issue: 2 2022 pp. 108-128 exploring teachers’ lived experiences on the integration of values education in south african high schools joseph lamlani khathia, oluwatoyin ayodele ajani*b & samantha govendera * corresponding author email: oaajani@gmail.com a. department of curriculum and instructional studies, faculty of education, university of zululand, kwadlangezwa, south africa. b. department of social sciences education, faculty of education, university of zululand, kwadlangezwa, south africa. article info received: march 6, 2022 revised: may 24, 2022 accepted: june 15, 2022 how to cite khathi, j. l., ajani, o. a. & govender, s. (2022). exploring teachers’ lived experiences on the integration of values education in south african high schools. research in social sciences and technology, 7(2), 108-128. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2022.12 copyright license this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 abstract values education has become a necessary tool in response to the rise in moral deterioration in an average south african society today. the school is viewed as one of the key players in nurturing children into adulthood. the teaching of values that can give the growing generation, necessary moral development is one of the responsibilities of the schools. hence, this study aims at exploring teachers’ experiences on how they integrate values education into south african learners in various high schools. this qualitative study engaged five schools in its case study, where five teachers from each of the schools were purposively selected for semi-structured focus group interviews, to share their experiences on the integration of moral values in schools. moral development theory was used to underpin the study. findings from the inductive thematic analysis from the participants from both rural and urban schools indicated a misunderstanding of the concept of values education by some teachers, which affects its effective integration. the study established that role modelling of learners by teachers and parents are inevitable to save the society from moral decadence, while some participants indicted overpopulation, single parenthood, social media as some of the challenges to the integration of value education in schools. the study, therefore, recommends capacitation of teachers through various professional development programmes, to integrate values education and adequate parental support as some of the strategies to promote effective integration of values education in schools. keywords values education; teacher experiences; moral deterioration; role modelling; mentoring. 10.46303/ressat.2022.12 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2022.12 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ 109 ressat 2022, 7(2): 108-128 introduction the place of value education in upholding the acceptable moral standards in every society is invaluable. transformation of children into adulthood is a process where integration of values education is significant to the peace, respect and mutual understanding of the community members for peaceful co-existence and cohabitation of the individuals especially in a diverse society like south africa (khuzwayo et al., 2016). the school is a prominent member of a social institution that has a lot of influence on every learner, and the community expects learners’ disposition of right moral standards from the school system (burton & leoschut, 2013). according to harecker (2012), societies today are riddled with several moral decadences among the learners, the learners engage in several acts of violence, bullying, sexual assaults, rapes, robberies and use of dangerous weapons not only in the school premises but also outside the school environments. hence, the schools have lost their loco parentis in the same way most families have failed to nurture and guide their children on moral standards (harecker, 2012). statistics south africa (2013) indicates that women are breadwinners and family heads in 40% of south african families which is noted as one of the contributing factors to moral deterioration. with the alarming increase in the rates of sexual harassment, school violence, killings, drug abuse and teenage pregnancies amongst other social vices in learners in the present south african children, there is an urgent need for integration of right values education in the upcoming generations of learners in schools (kalunta-crumpton, 2016; mchunu et al., 2012; ncontsa & shumba, 2013). the question therefore is how can schools assist in re-orientation or integration of values education that can salvage the society? in a longitudinal study conducted by khuzwayo et al. (2016) in umgungundlovu, kwazulu-natal, they affirm that the integration of values education in learners by the teachers remains a proactive tool of changing the learners’ mentality to acceptable moral standards that can make them responsive to the society. seemingly, burton and leoschut (2013) opine that the school as an agent of socialization can be used as a major vessel to drive values education in learners. therefore, the school has the critical responsibility of inculcating values education into the learners to complement academic experiences (ferreira & schulze, 2014). hence this study aims to promote the integration of values education in south african learners by the teachers. the study is guided by the following research questions: • what are the responsibilities of teachers in teaching values education in schools? • how should values education be integrated into learners? • why is values education significant to the society? review of literature the concept of values education halstead and taylor (1996) suggest that the umbrella term ‘values education’ is most commonly understood as placing particular emphasis on both civic and moral values. in addition, they also 110 khathi, j. l. et al. ressat 2022, 7(2): 108-128 highlight the concept values education is closely aligned to other terms that are currently used in the literature, which include spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. research evidence (munn, 1995; halstead & taylor, 1996) show that academic publications in the united kingdom mostly refer to ‘moral education’, while mclaughlin (2005) argues that in various european literature, ‘civic education’ has been described as values education in practice. thus, values education represents many concepts that seem to teach values or moral to learners in different communities such as citizenship education, human rights education, or even moral education, with the aim of promoting right attitudes and well-manner dispositions in learners (nucci, 2001). this concurs with kohlberg's (1981) interpretation of values education as an effort to improve learners’ decision making for moral and just behaviours. hence, the term values education according to taylor (1994), embraces several concepts like citizenship, ethics, moral and civic education. based on the established explanations of the concept of values education, it is evident that different meanings are attached to values education in different countries. seemingly, chaitanya (2017) posits that the process to inculcate deep sense of humanity, which shows concerns for other is value education. thus, the absence of humanism, is the lack of human wellbeing character. it is further asserted by chaitanya (2017) that values education does not impose or indoctrinate values but encourages learners to understand good and worthwhile values, which their cultures tend to promote or believe. chaitanya (2017) also argues that the values education can capacitate learners with right attitudes and good behaviours that can make them responsive in the societies. clement (2010) defines values education as a learning process that can transform or strengthen ideal behaviours and attitudes that conform to society’s dream. it is argued that this learning process can occur in learners through different and various approaches, with learners’ abilities to understand why and how they need to behave or display certain behaviours or attitudes in the society. a well-grounded values education can transform learners into critical thinkers, who can understand and exhibit sense of humanism, with a deep concern for others well-being in the society. studies indicate that values education embed together many things as moral values to promote cultural or societal norms through educational system, for learners to be responsive citizens (ajaps & obiagu, 2020; aspin & chapman, 2000; clement, 2010; jones, 2009; kaya, 2021; taylor, 1994). the need for integration of values education into learners according to ferreira and schulze (2014), the importance of values in education is illustrated by the fact that the youth, particularly those from emerging economy countries such as south africa, live in societies where violence, crime and racial intolerance are rife. in this context, teachers who endorse different values in accordance with their own cultural and religious identities are responsible for values implementation in education in classroom praxis. extant literature proves that values education that is well embedded in the curriculum and delivered 111 ressat 2022, 7(2): 108-128 through an appropriate strategy will effectively benefit teachers and learners in a value-laden curriculum. in indonesia for instance, a study conducted by sutrop et al.(2013) revealed that with values education in schools, learners should not only recognize values but also habituate life with values. according to pambudi and mardati (2019), the indonesian national education has shown that value education is part of education and that the goal of integrating values into the school curriculum is to guide their learners such that they become citizens who have a sense of responsibility, to educate genuine citizens willing to contribute energy and critical thinking to the country and society. according to iyer (2013), the education system in the 21st century should ensure promotion of values-based education in the school curriculum. this is to promote teaching of values education for quality education and also a positive school environment. iyer (2013) like many other scholars, believes in the holistic development of the learners by applying and delivering value-based education programmes in schools and in the classroom. he affirms that it is somehow not easy and at the same time it is challenging for teachers to master the skill of teaching values as it is different from transmitting knowledge using subjects such as life science, english and others. it is appropriate to say according to the literature reviewed, the emphasis on value education helps learners to develop compassion, adaptability, moral courage, patience, and increased tolerance. these are the qualities both the school and society envisage the youth to acquire from school as well as from the society at large. equally, cavazos (2002) concurs with iyer’s (2013) findings that implementation of values education in school is vital to prepare children for the inevitable challenges and decision making in real-life situations. it is indeed challenging and painful because learners as they realise how society is broken in terms of an absence of values and corruptness will be compelled to use their skills to gradually transform it not only to become a tolerant society but indeed to be a society that is comfortable and pleasing to live in. the education system today is faced with many crises which include drug addiction/peddling, indiscipline, school dropout, rape, abuse of various forms, smoking, drinking of alcohol, and other violent crimes across the globe. the manifestations of various crimes in schools, especially in african schools can be traced to lack of moral values and this threatens the peace and development of the society (omodan & addam, 2022; turker et al., 2016; wachikwu & ibegbunam, 2012). the inclusion of values education in school system is capable of addressing and moulding learners. solomons and fataar (2011) assert that the integration of values education into school system will conceptually contextualise values education that can necessarily enhance citizenship education. this will promote in learners’ broader understanding of values in south african schools. wachikwu and ibegbunam (2012) believe that values education in the school system will promote and strive towards building a shared view, if values education is well-taught to address moral decadence. the school system is believed to drive moral or values education into learners. 112 khathi, j. l. et al. ressat 2022, 7(2): 108-128 nurdin (2015) avows that many obstacles influence implementation of values education in the schools, and these include lack of teaching skills and appropriate methods of transmitting these skills and knowledge to learners. in addition, hadi (2015) emphasises the issue of the failure to implement values education in schools suggests that teachers in schools do not yet have enough skills to integrate values in their classroom learning. significantly, brady (2011) again, states that even though the integration of values education concerns delves on the teacher’s role, one critical factor that is consistently ignored on values education is the effects of personal values of teachers themselves, and how they express these in the classroom which is also rather vital. the pedagogy of values education tiri and husu (2007) assert that schools have the responsibilities to ensure an orderly and safe school environment for learning to be effective and learners to acquire necessary skills. schools nowadays face the challenge of creating pedagogical environments that are sensitive to various and different individual backgrounds to support learners' social and academic success. schools can no longer afford to focus solely on delivering academic curricula; instead, they are also responsible for establishing and maintaining school cultures that empower both learners and teachers alike to negotiate the diverse values and social norms of their communities. the aim is to improve social competence among all pedagogical participants because the social curricula are crucial for mutually productive interactions and durable inter-personal relationships. the integrating values education through teaching and learning process in the school system is driven by teachers’ ability to lead by good examples. thornberg and oguz (2013) agree that moral education or values education is transferred to learners through teaching and learning, exhibited in their interaction within and outside the school environment, using problem-based learning and cooperative learning. values education can be enhanced in schools, to integrate moral and character values in learners, with teachers’ use of diverse teaching techniques, which can be drama, role-playing, simulation, debates, educational games, discussion, group-work, and project (chowdhury, 2016). implementation of values education is further reinforced through religious days and national days, as valued by the society and the parents. teachers must understand and use the appropriate components of the curriculum to execute effectively and to achieve the goals enshrined in the national curriculum. it is a fact that even if the curriculum is excellent with good intentions of moulding and shaping the behaviour of learners if the implementers especially teachers are not ready and prepared to implement it accordingly, its envisaged purpose and outcomes, will be in vain. it is, therefore, essential for teachers to acquaint themselves with these curriculum components which facilitate the understanding of what, how and why teaching a particular subject. these are the curriculum components that teachers must embrace and master for successful and effective teaching in 113 ressat 2022, 7(2): 108-128 class: purpose, content, learning experience (method) and evaluation. of course, these can be represented diagrammatically.: figure 1. successful and effective integration of values education surely, the understanding of the content will facilitate effective and meaningful teaching and learning by teachers and learners respectively (brigas, 2019). accordingly, iyer (2013) argues for new curricula across the globe to accommodate teaching and learning of values education in classroom practices. thus, the policymakers, parents, teachers, politicians and other stakeholders should ensure for urgent necessary educational change. similarly, chowdhury (2013) calls for a change in education systems in the united states of america (usa) and australia, imploring the national government to enact necessary policies and legislation to implement values education in schools. theoretical framework kohlberg’s concern for moral education prompted him in 1969 to propound the theory of moral development, to enhance values education in education system. kohlberg (1969) identifies 6 stages of developing or promoting moral education in his theory of moral development. these stages are grouped according to the pre-conventional, conventional and post-conventional moral phases. the stages are: (a) obedience and punishment driven, (b) self-interest driven, (c) interpersonal accord and conformity, (d) authority and social order obedience driven, (e) social contract-driven, (f) universal ethical principles driven. this emphasis of this theory is on moral growth and development, which need to be emphasised at early life and should be continued throughout all the childhood stages, adolescence stages, and adulthood stages (wilber, 2019). this view is supported by the study conducted by tata (2010) in the kampong naga family in west java, where tata (2010) opines, that parents are expected to inculcate educational values purpose (aims, goals and objectives) content or subject matter methods or learning experiences evaluation 114 khathi, j. l. et al. ressat 2022, 7(2): 108-128 in the family before their children get to know the other values of the wider community. this implies that parents as kohlberg's theory suggests, have the responsibility of instilling values to their children even before they interact with the different members of the society at large. nzama (2017) also reiterates the importance and the role of the family in initiating values to the children while still young and asserts that it plays a critical role in determining the nature and behaviour of a child. according to wilber (2019), there is, however, a common fallacy among people hoping that children can grow up with integrity and high moral standards on their own. seemingly, grieshaber and mcardle, (2014) believes that young children can be morally nurtured by adults, especially teachers using the moral development theories as stipulated by kohlberg’s (1969) six stages of moral development. furthermore, grieshaber and mcardle (2014) assert teachers can devise approaches to drive moral values into children through the stages. piaget (1965); kohlberg (1969); kohlberg (1987) argue that traditional structural-developmental theories enhance moral development through increasing differentiation, which distinguish between non-moral concepts and moral concepts. (pragmatics, convention and prudence). kohlberg’s theory of moral growth emphasises the need for the moral development of a child right from birth till he grows into adolescence to learn the norms of society, these occur through stages which are valid when it comes to the stage of adolescence; as well as where the school takes over the responsibility of value integration in the lives of learners through the teaching of various subjects. grieshaber and mcardle, (2014) argue that teachers have traditional responsibilities to shape learners' moral learning, to transform into social, responsive and responsible citizens. similarly, hashim (1999) supports the above statement of kohlberg's theory on moral development at the adolescent stage, hashim (1999) also posits education is aimed at developing learners for balanced intellectual, spiritual, rational feelings and senses. this idea of a balanced human being is supported by the humanistic theory which advocates for the promotion and development of the whole child (kohlberg, 1969). of course, this theory discourages the concentration on cognitive development only. research methodology this study adopted qualitative design to explore in-depth and rich information of the participants' experiences on the integration of values education in south african schools. the purposive sampling technique was employed to select the participants with information to the research questions (mcmillan & schumacher, 2010) and who were statistical representatives of the entire study population (merriam, 2009). five teachers teaching different subjects in each of the five schools in king cethswayo district, kwazulu-natal province provided primary data information for the study. the teachers included male and female, young and experienced teachers teaching different subjects at high school phase. the use of interpretivistic paradigm for the semi-structured focus group was to gain an in-depth understanding of the participants' lived experiences in the integration of values education in schools, through their description, 115 ressat 2022, 7(2): 108-128 explanation, thoughts, and deeper reflections based on the interview guides drawn from the research questions (nieuwenhuis, 2007; merriam, 2009; mertens, 2014). the use of pseudonyms was engaged in the interviews of 45-60 minutes and transcriptions for confidentiality and privacy of the schools and the participants. all the interviews were audiorecorded with due permission of the participants after which the consent forms were signed. the recorded interviews were systematically transcribed and coded as thematic analysis (braun & clarke, 2006; de vos et al., 2011) for the presentation of findings. participants were made to check the transcripts of the interviews to ascertain their information. thus, the trustworthiness of the data was ensured in data collection process. participants were informed of their voluntary participation in the study and were asked to sign informed consent forms after they had been briefed about the study, and assured of their confidentiality, anonymity and freedom to withdraw their participation at any time (creswell, 2013). the use of semi-structured focus group interviews aimed at collecting high-quality data in a social context and provided a better understanding of the problem from the viewpoint of the participants (patton, 2002). teachers teaching english, isizulu, life orientation, life science and social sciences were purposively selected in a non-probability sampling for each of the focus group interviews. these subject-teachers were the most suitable subject teachers that can use their subjects to convey values to learners (thornberg & oguz, 2013). the study was conducted in the king cetshwayo district in the northern zululand area in kwa-zulu natal, which is one of the nine provinces in south africa. one circuit out of the five was targeted for the study, which is the umfolozi circuit. participants 5 teachers each from 5 schools teaching various subjects at high school phase were engaged in 5 focus group interviews. 25 teachers consisted of 10 male and 15 female teachers from 5 various high schools, aged between 28-55 were included for this study. each of the participants was given an opportunity to express his/her views without any limitation, fear, or intimidation. findings findings have been presented with the use of pseudonyms: 5 schools labeled schools a-e, with teachers from each school labeled as ta (teachers from school a), tb (teachers from school b), tc (teachers from school c); td (teachers from school d) and te (teachers from school e). hence, ta1, ta2-ta5, tb1-tb5, tc1-tc5, td1-td5, te1-te5, ta1 represents teacher from the first school, while ta2 represents the second teacher from the same school, tb1-5 represents 5 teachers from the second school and so forth. thematic analysis was used to generate findings relating to the research questions. theme 1: sense of responsibility in imparting values education sense of responsibility in imparting values education simply implies the understanding of the participants on who should take responsibility in imparting values education into the learners. 116 khathi, j. l. et al. ressat 2022, 7(2): 108-128 the participants expressed various opinions on whose responsibility is to impart necessary value education onto the learners. some participants specifically articulated: i do believe that it is the responsibility of the teacher to input values to learners. because we as teachers we are also the parents, so as a parent you always want the best for the child. so as much as we teach them the subject, we have to teach them values because they are part of the society, the school is part of the community. so, what they come, the information they come with from their homes is not always complete. and the other thing we spend more time with the learners that is why we always have the opportunity to get to know them better than their parents, so knowing them better is means that we can identify the values that are lacking in their lives so that is where we come in and we can instil that there are lacking in their lives (ta4). furthermore, another participant opined that teacher should endeavour to impart values education onto the learners, as they are builders of their lives; especially because some learners do not live with their parents: yes, i also believe that it is the responsibility of a teacher to impart appropriate values to learners to shape their lives in the society. because most of the learners in our days come from child-headed homes whereby there are no parents or any adult who could impart those values, so the teachers being the ones spending most of the time with the learners it is their responsibility (tc1). the school is regarded as a second home for the learners as they spend a greater part of their time there. a participant affirmed this statement as follow: okay, i think that as teachers because we believe that the school is the second home for the child, yeah yes it all begins at home. but what do we say about those children that have no parents? i think we also there is a certain role that as teachers should play in their lives so that we can help them able to live at the societies we can't just leave them like that. i think the little time we get we can share things with them and help them grow and yeah, i think that's that (td1). another participant agreed that as much as teachers have the responsibility to teach learners moral education, the parents have to cooperate or compliment the teachers' effort. the participant declared: i think that it’s not the teacher's responsibility as such, i think it's the parent's responsibility to start to impart the appropriate values to the learners. i think it all begins at home, us as teachers we can only go or can only do, okay only go so far. i think that it's better if these values are instilled back at home, then we as teachers can then add or emphasize those values to the learners because firstly as teachers we are not here just to for values we need to deliver content and there is a lot of time, there is a time that 117 ressat 2022, 7(2): 108-128 is allocated for us to give a content right. so, if we were to start with the values now, just give the values and you run out of time for content right. so, i think that it is better if the teachersthe parents start then us as teachers we can help the parents (td4). further to this, a participant opined that school can only accomplish half of the expectations, while there is a need to compliment the school by other stakeholders in the community providing a helping hand during the process of inculcating values amongst learners. yes, i do believe that the teacher can play a role in shaping the value the learner in terms of values appropriate values but we have to take note that it is just the part of the responsibility 50 per cent of that responsibilities is faced by the parent; the teacher can take another 50. because if a parent is doing nothing at home, then the teacher will have a problem in instilling those values to the learners (tc1). findings on the sense of responsibility for the impartation of values education revealed that participants agreed that values education is necessary for the learners. this education should be provided to the learners for their responsiveness in society. according to amollo and lillian (2017), teachers are critical to successful implementation of value-based curriculum to instil moral education, for effective citizens. similarly, chaitanya (2017) concurs with amollo and lillian (2017) by stating that a positive and remarkable change in society is expected to be brought in by teachers through the integration of values education into the curriculum. theme 2: integration of values education across the curriculum the importance of value education demands its integration into the curriculum. participants were asked how the values education is integrated into the curriculum, across the curriculum, holistically or even through specific subjects. findings indicated that values education is either taught explicitly or implicitly in schools. most of the participants admitted that values education should be taught in all subjects, across all subjects however, they indicated that only specific subjects have been identified for the teaching of the values education. one of the participants expressed: i believe all subjects are relevant. i'm not truly sure about maybe about mathematics but i believe all the other subjects are because you should take at any opportunity that arises in your subject to instil some values in the learners. so, it's not like you need a specific topic but there are always topics that you can integrate into your subject. so, the little bit you can do will go a long way (te3). similarly, another participant believed that integration of value education into the learners should be through all the subjects: i believe all subjects are suitable in integrating values to the learners because when you are teaching you always come across the content that will take you to like to the 118 khathi, j. l. et al. ressat 2022, 7(2): 108-128 environment the learners are coming from. for example, i'm teaching agricultural science so when i'm teaching agricultural science, they always integrate the good values in the learners because they have to know that as much as we are dealing with the production of food, they must also know that as they produce that food, they have to follow certain values in life. like you cannot produce food containing chemicals knowing very well it is going to kill the people, so they must have that understanding that whatever they are producing is going to be used by people and in them they must have those values that these people are important (ta4). the view of another teacher was that the present life orientation subject in high schools is the ideal to teach values education. he clearly stated this: i think the best out of all subjects is the life orientation because that is where most of the time, they are dealing with things that are happening around and things that learners need to be involved in. so that in future there would be a learner that is well built up on top of what you taught them as subject content (tc2). from the above findings, participants indicated that values education could be taught in all subjects, this supports kemendiknas (2010) in his longitudinal study in indonesia, that for values to be developed among learners, it must be realized in the content of each subject through the process of learning in the classroom, the tasks outside the classroom, and also it would need to be manifested in the school rules. furthermore, sutiyono (2013) also concurs with kemendiknas (2010) that values education should not only be in the form of certain subjects but instead, the practice and application of values should be part of the content in every learning activity in school. though, some of the participants believed that it should be subject-specific based as it was presently declared by certain participants. this view relates to a study by hadi (2015) in indonesia wherein he argues that values education should be encouraged in specific subjects as means of imparting values to learners. theme 3: teachers as role models in values education teachers’ implementation of values education is necessary to shape learners; the learners have a lot to learn from their teachers. the responses of some teachers were emphatic in saying that teachers should indeed act as role models for their learners. the study revealed that learners can be influenced positively and negatively by teachers’ behaviours, the way they communicate with them and even among themselves and even the manner they handle themselves in front of the learners has an impact. this is how one of the participants responded to the questions: i think the learners look up to the teachers so the way they behave, the way they speak to them, the way they handle themselves in front of them, so they look up to them. i think the way we behave as teachers can impact a lot in the learner's life of the way they change their lifestyle because some they take us as their role models, and they want to be like you in future, so i think we do play apart in their behaviour (tb2). 119 ressat 2022, 7(2): 108-128 another participant believed that the use of role modelling especially by the teachers has a great impact on the learners. he explained the modelling as thus: i would also say yes because we do spend most of the time with the learners and portraying a big picture to learners help them or it helps us as teachers to earn some respect from them because whatever image you are giving them it's going to impact negatively or positively. if you portray a bad picture the learner will that and they will never respect you, so i think yeah, we do need to portray a good picture on the (td1). similar views were affirmed by another participant who declared this: i think as we are teachers, we are adults, in all situations that we faced among them, but we must show those good values to the young ones so that at a certain stage there will be learners that are good in imitating, and they can at a certain point look at that particular teacher and see that no i like this then i want to behave like this at the end (td2). some participants although agreed that teachers should endeavour to be positive role models, they however had some reservations that external influences exerted on learners by other role models in the society can influence the values and norms of the society. a participant had this to say: as much as we would like to be role models of good behaviour to children the reality is that the children, we teach are independent thinkers in some cases they choose to go the other way and, in some cases, a teacher's behaviour may not be the best so what you do as a teacher as much as society would like us to be rim-road straight it's not always the case because teachers are also human. but as much as possible a teacher should be a moral campus (te5). another teacher believed that learners' backgrounds have an impact on role modelling. his view was: yeah, i think yes, we can be their role models but sometimes it depends that a learner where does that learner come from because even the background of a learner is accountable because other learners hate other teachers because of where they are come from. so, you can become a role model sometimes you cannot become a role model it depends to what the learners where does those learners come from their backgrounds from homes (tb4). teachers' good examples of values education make them role models to their learners. learners are influenced by the behaviour of their teachers; the behaviour can have a negative or positive influence. (halstead & taylor, 2000). conversely, it is important for teachers to be good role models that learners can learn from. this promotes the systematically and deliberately integration of values education into the learners (deveci, 2015). teachers are role 120 khathi, j. l. et al. ressat 2022, 7(2): 108-128 models that learners emulate easily in the education system; this is why teachers need to live by good examples, their examples can also influence their learners either positively or negatively (kemendiknas, 2010; sutiyono, 2013). theme 4: societal deterioration of values it is noticeable today that some learners' behaviour is indicating a lack of appropriate values education in them. some indicators of the deterioration include inappropriate tv programmes for learners, families headed by children, who happen to be breadwinners, absence of parents at some homes or families, a celebration of celebrities with no moral values by the society. these indicators were emphasised as contributory factors towards the decline of values in the society in the findings. one of the participants had this to say: yes, i do believe there is a decline in the values in the society more especially if i look at the like the i don't know whether i can call it like the social influence social media influence because our learners these days or our kids these days they turn to emulate what the celebrities are doing which some of the things are not good. which end up them not having to behave very good for example, if they can just see these big celebrities or these role model theirs having to drink in public and then they will see it means this is the way to do things and at the end of the day it contributes even badly to them, thank you (ta2). another teacher viewed different programmes that learners are exposed to as an influence on deterioration of societal values: yes. when you watch the news, they don't end without having any scandal and some of these scandals are performed by people holding high positions in society. we have cases whereby you find that a learner or mob learners have assaulted a teacher that is not part of our culture. in our culture learners need to submit to the authority but it is now vice versa, and you find that people holding high positions in a society like pastors and staff they are accused of something like rape, and you find that sometimes you hear that an old lady has been raped maybe 87 something lady or an infant has been raped that shows that there is a deterioration of values in our society (tb2). deterioration of values among the learners was a concern to another participant who traced the source mainly to their homes. the participant lamented: yes, there is so much decline in the values in our societies. i think they are so unfortunate that we are raising a confused generation if i may say it like that. once you are like as a teacher am staying here once i get out of that gate it always brings a question to me to say 'am i still allowed to play a role of a parent to these kids because nowadays they just don't care. i think in our times when you even if you are going with a boy but as you see an elder coming through you will separate but of today, we are seeing things, they don't even know if you exist. i'm not sure if it's the rights that they've been given they will just talk to us in anyhow, they will just do things in anyhow really, we are raising a confused 121 ressat 2022, 7(2): 108-128 generation and there is no respect anymore. we are not being respected even our profession is not being respected because they are given rights in such a way that they can't even recognize that we are here. so, there is so much that is going wrong out there in the communities with these kids (td1). discussion according to the extant literature reviewed, it is established that teachers play key roles in creating a value-based teaching and learning (rahmadi et al., 2020; govender & ajani, 2021) to foster in learners, positive relationships, capable of making them responsible and effective citizens (amollo & lillian (2017). similarly, chaitanya (2017) concurs with amollo and lillian (2017) by stating that a positive and remarkable change in society is expected to be brought about by teachers through the impartation of values education into the curriculum. cavazos (2002) argues for implementation of values education that can prepare learners for the inevitable challenges, and also the realities of life. further to this, participants opined that a school can only accomplish half of the expectations in terms of values impartation to learners, while the other half needs to be complemented by other stakeholders in the community such as family members and church to provide a helping hand during the process of inculcating values to learners. findings on the sense of responsibility of teaching values education support steinberg (1990)’s assertion that the society can only function properly when learners’ moral development can regulate learners’ decision making as it relates to their thoughts, emotions and behaviours. steinberg (1990) admits that morals and values should be introduced to learners by their parents at early stage of their life by the family. these values can serve only the purpose of nurturing democratic values as enshrined by the constitution in every young south african, if the school curriculum is rooted in values and is explicitly and implicitly taught in and out of the classrooms. this calls for the deliberate and purposeful integration of all values into the teaching processes and activities in schools. furthermore, sutiyono (2013) also concurs with kemendiknas (2010) that values education should not only be in the form of certain subjects but instead, the practice and application of values should be part of the content in every learning activity in school. in a longitudinal study conducted by halstead and taylor (2000), they opine that teachers can integrate the teaching of values in schools using different subjects as vehicles to convey different values to learners. the study further revealed that different subjects offered at school when intentionally and purposefully implemented in the classroom, can play a major role in conveying values to learners, hence in this regard, it is apparent that different subjects can offer a multiplicity of values to learners. the research shows that there are scholars who still believe and are convinced that all subjects have the potential of being the source of values education to learners (lisman, 1991; lickona, 1991). 122 khathi, j. l. et al. ressat 2022, 7(2): 108-128 on the contrary, extant literature also reveals that although there is relative consensus on using all subjects in conveying values to learners, there different views of whether indeed all national curriculum subjects can have equal contribution in developing values of cultural diversity (king & reiss, 1993). some of the participants in this study expressed different views that some specific subjects should be used to teach and integrate values to learners. they indicated that values education should be subject-specific. they even emphasised life orientation and mathematics as the subjects relevant in conveying values to learners. this view relates to a study conducted by hadi (2015) in indonesia wherein he argued that values education should be encouraged in specific subjects as means of imparting values to learners. all teachers should be role models regardless of what subject they teach. chaitanya (2017) opines that the most important task teachers should do is to be a role model, based on their understanding of what society wants or expects from learners. seemingly, clement (2010) argues that teachers must exhibit values they want learners to adopt and practice. hence, it will make it easy for learners’ emulation of good values exhibited by teachers in and outside the school system. sanville (2003) also posits that teachers are models that learners learn easily from, and to conform with societal norms. the findings reveal that values education can be implicitly instilled into learners as a hidden curriculum, where values are adopted covertly from identified role models within the school activities (halstead & taylor, 1996; thornberg, 2008). it is therefore concluded that teachers should be good role models for the learners. for society to be stable and habitable, morals and values need to be systematically and deliberately socialised in the lives of learners (deveci, 2015). teachers, parents and community leaders should strive to foster positive values that can bring sanity and to ensure safe environment in schools and society (clement, 2010). in these times of moral degradation, it is therefore essential to maximise citizenship education in south african school system. the implementation of values education conceptualises and applies necessary responses to moral decadence and can resuscitate moral behaviours in learners (solomons & fataar, 2011). conclusion the importance of values in education cannot be underestimated especially in developing african countries like south africa, where crimes, violence, strife, racial intolerance, thuggery, gangsterism, stealing and other vices are order of the day in schools/communities. hence, the school system is saddled with a huge responsibility of integrating necessary values education to transform learners' behaviours in societies. values are necessary to learners’ transformation as well as for responsible living in the societies. this study was limited to five schools in king cetshwayo district, where teachers teaching various subjects were used to explore the possibility of using various subjects to convey values to learners. though, the teachers agreed that some subjects were more relevant to teach values education than others. however, learners can be relevantly taught values. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10643-006-0091-1#cr8 123 ressat 2022, 7(2): 108-128 role modelling of values by both teachers and parents is critical to enhance moral development in schools, where learners are taught to emulate honesty, respect, love, caring and ubuntu. learners learn a lot from their schoolteachers, and this hereby requires disposition of good behaviours from the teachers. there is obvious moral decadence in south african schools and the society at large. indicators of various moral deterioration include learners’ access to inappropriate tv programmes, children-headed families (where the children are the breadwinners), celebrations of unmannered celebrities. other forms of moral decadence include violence in schools, teenage pregnancies, disrespect to teachers by learners and carnal knowledge of female learners by male teachers, corruption and other forms of immorality. the study revealed that some teachers did not even understand the concept of values education and did not know how to teach values education. hence, the main purpose of values education in teaching and learning to develop learners’ cognitive domain is difficult. if ever they were teaching values, they were teaching values education implicitly or unconsciously. therefore, it will be difficult for teachers who did not understand the concept of values education, to integrate it effectively into their teaching, especially for subjects that did not specify it. teachers must be involved in the curriculum development and regular training of values education (govender & ajani, 2021). this will enable them to develop insight and understanding of what is contained in the curriculum and how it must be taught and why. recommendations the following recommendations have been drawn from the findings, to assist the concerned school management teams, worried teachers, education policymakers, parents and other stakeholders in south african education system for the integration of values education into learners by the teachers and the parents, alongside other stakeholders for peaceful cohabitation: • existing research studies on values education in south african schools indicate that there is a literature gap, hence there is a need for more research studies to enhance values education in schools. • there is need to review existing educational policies to integrate values education across the curriculum, to enhance values education in all the subjects. • provision of adequate and regular professional training for teachers for the pedagogical content knowledge (pck) of values education by the department of basic education (ajani, 2018;2019;2020;2021). • involvement of teachers in design of curriculum contents for values education in every subject. their involvement will assist in the inclusion of practicable values education into teaching and learning of all subjects. • the school management team (smt) members, parents, teachers and learners must al work together for effective implementation of values education in schools. parents 124 khathi, j. l. et al. ressat 2022, 7(2): 108-128 should be actively involved in the integration of moral values into learners. hence, there is need for parents to be co-opted into school management by the school leaders. • learners who misbehave should be reprimanded by the school disciplinary committees, using the appropriate channels/strategies. while learners who exhibit good morals should be recognised and celebrated as role models or good examples to their fellow learners. various activities to promote these should be designed and encouraged for learners. • learners should be mentored by the teachers to encourage and promote all school learners. mentor-mentee is a good way of nurturing learners in acceptable norms of the society, it can also be used to correct bad habits/behaviours in the learners. mentoring of these learners can also include the use of motivational talks to inspire or promote values education in 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(2020). measuring rural p-12 teachers’ attitudes, perceptions, and utilizations of social media. research in social sciences and technology, 5 (3), 25-54. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.05.03.2 this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) abstract social media continues to evolve and change the way people interact, learn, and communicate. as social media continues to grow in importance within societies, it is critical to better understand how teachers view social media as an educational resource. this quantitative study examines the general attitudes, perceptions, and utilizations of social media among p-12 teachers in a rural school district. findings indicate that most teachers view social media as a high risk proposition for student use in the classroom, but do see social media as potentially useful and relevant to learning in the p-12 classroom. keywords: survey research, social media, teachers, rural education introduction a corpus of literature in the field of education research advocates for the integration of social media platforms, such as twitter, facebook, and instagram in the p-12 classroom to enrich teaching and learning (abe & jordan, 2013; carpenter & krutka, 2014; mao, 2014). publications exploring the domain of social media use for educational purposes are generally divided into two thematic strands. the first focuses on disseminating pedagogically coherent strategies designed to leverage social media to foster 21st century skills that are applicable and transferable beyond the classroom (dunlap & lowenthal, 2009; elavsky, mislen, elavsky, 2011; varier, dumke, abrams, conklin, barnes, & hoover, 2017; kenna & hensley, 2018; hoffman, 2017). the second highlights the opportunity for educators to join informal professional learning communities by actively and passively engaging with other teachers, scholars, and experts (carpenter &krutka, 2014; coleman, rice, & wright, 2018; essary & szecsi, 2018; langhorst, 2015; li & greenhow, 2015; trust, krutka, & carpenter, 2016). https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.05.03.2 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 waters, s. & hensley, m.., mesuring rural p-12 teachers’ attitudes, perceptions, and utilizations of social media research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 26 no doubt that publications in both camps share innovative ideas for leveraging social media’s multimodal functionality to enhance teaching and learning. however, after reviewing a number of refereed education publications (e.g. carpenter &krutka, 2014; coleman, rice, & wright, 2018; dunlap & lowenthal, 2009; elavsky, mislen, elavsky, 2011; kilinc et al., 2018; kenna & hensley, 2018; hoffman, 2017; langhorst, 2015; li & greenhow, 2015;varier, dumke, abrams, conklin, barnes, & hoover, 2017;trust, krutka, & carpenter, 2016; sturm & quaynor, 2020; yigit & tarman, 2013) that advocate for the integration of social media, it is apparent that many draw directly on secondary teachers’ perceptions of social media (johnson, 2014). there is a dearth in extant literature that reports the attitudes and perceptions of social media from p-12 teachers, thus creating a gap in the understanding of k-5 and early middle school teachers’ attitudes and perceptions toward social media. without this foundational knowledge to inform future research and practitioner pieces, scholars may lose focus of keeping their proposed strategies/utilizations relevant and representative of the educators they are writing for by making implicit assumptions regarding teachers’ perceptions of social media in general. as research and scholarship related to teachers use of social media continue to proliferate, progress toward identifying p-12 teachers’, not just secondary teachers’, perceptions and attitudes toward social media is salient. this article seeks to make initial strides toward filling a gap in the literature, specifically by measuring the general attitudes, perceptions, and utilizations of social media by p-12 teachers in a rural school district in the southeast united states. first, we provide readers with parameters of what constitutes social media by drawing form the definition provided by the sage handbook of social media research methods (2016). next, we briefly review relevant literature involving social media for educational purposes, as well as extant literature highlighting the impacts of social media on rural school districts. in doing so, we aim to situate the reader in the context ofwhat is currently happening in the field of educational research that focuses on social media, thus subsequently establishing a salient claim for our descriptive study. our study seeks to extend the understanding of social media use by p-12 educators beyond ‘how’ and even ‘why’ they use social media in their classrooms, but rather exploring ‘what’ general attitudes, perceptions, and concerns toward social media they hold. this knowledge will ideally extend the foundational understanding of social media use in education, while informing future scholarship and ideally making it more relevant and pragmatic to p-12 teachers of diverse disciplines and school contexts. literature review social media has become a blanketed term to encompass a number of online platforms that allow for connectivity and engagement among users. due to this reality, delineating social media from other online applications and interactive websites has become increasingly arduous. sites such as facebook, twitter, instagram, snapchat idiosyncratically blur the lines between communication, entertainment, and news, while others such as pinterest and pocket serve primarily as curation tools that allow for some level of connectivity with other users. broad descriptions of what constitutes a platform as being social media can be problematic in the realm of research, as some individuals may think a certain platform is social media, while others may not and vice versa. according to the sage handbook of social media research research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 waters, s. & hensley, m.., mesuring rural p-12 teachers’ attitudes, perceptions, and utilizations of social media research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 27 methods (2016) the following three characteristics are used to define a platform as being social media: 1. have the capability to support user-generated content in forms such as images, text, videos and statuses (such as geolocation check-ins). 2. provide a means for users to connect with one another (through follows or likes on twitter, friendship connections on facebook, or checking in with foursquare). 3. support various means for members to engage with one another in the form of collaboration, community building, participation, sharing, linking and other means. (sloan & quan-haase, 2016, p. 6) the characteristics presented above are not the end all be all characteristics that should be used to define something as social media, especially as other web platforms and applications are beginning to use similar functionalities. for example, google and microsoft outlook both offer dynamic functionality through their email and cloud services that meet all three of the aforementioned characteristics. users can communicate and interact with other users on the same interface by liking emails, sending instant messages, sharing content, pictures, videos, music, and other documents through their cloud services (i.e. google drive and sharepoint). as technologies continue to update and change, the characteristics mentioned by the sage handbook of social media research methods will be updated as well. however, these characteristics are useful when providing readers a definition of social media for the purposes of this survey research project. education research involving social media as mentioned earlier, education research exploring social media has largely advocated for theory-laden classroom strategies, as well as the use of social media as an informal teacher professional development resource. in regard to the former, some of the strategies highlighted in the research include: fostering communication, collaboration, civic engagement among students (kenna & hensley, 2018; tarman et al., 2019), engaging students in differentiated literacy activities, engaging students to be critical consumers of news, and to mitigate confirmation bias by following multiple news sources. in regard to the latter, literature supports the engagement in the informal professional development opportunities afforded by social media, i.e. twitter chats such as #edchat or #sschat. these serve as 24/7 learning and support resources for those who decide to utilize them. initial strides have been made by researchers to identify the underpinnings of social media use for educational purposes by asking important questions such as why and how p-12 educators are using social media (carpenter & krutka, 2014; krutka& carpenter 2016). albeit these questions are important to this area of research, they may be a bit premature as they adorn implicit assumptions regarding teachers’ general perceptions of social media. despite the abundance of innovative strategies available to leverage social media’s functionality in the classroom, if a teacher does not implicitly view social media as a beneficial learning too klit is unlikely to be implemented in their instruction. identifying teachers’ personal perceptions and assumptions of social media is critical because it will help researchers, research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 waters, s. & hensley, m.., mesuring rural p-12 teachers’ attitudes, perceptions, and utilizations of social media research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 28 administrators, and policy makers understand if teachers’ even view social media as a viable teaching resource. advocating for pedagogical and professional strategies involving social media without first knowing how teachers’ feel about social media seems short sided and potentially redundant. social media & rural school districts social media continues to evolve and increasingly define various aspects of modern culture. as a whole, people are also becoming gradually more dependent on social media platforms’ multimodal functionality to stay connected, informed, entertained, and/or a combination of all three. one of the benefits of social media’s multimodal functionality and connectivity features is that it stands to benefit various school contexts, including rural school districts with limited resources and isolation barriers. despite the rise of technology integration initiatives, such as one-to-one programs which provide individual students in a school or district with a device to use throughout the year, not all schools receive this luxury. as a response to the reality of the school context, some teachers and school districts have established a bring your own device (byod) program (rizzo, 2013; williams, 2014), which permit students to use their personal device for school work. this has shown to be beneficial as utilizations of the students’ personal phones to access the internet and social media platforms in a monitored and constructive learning environment (lee & molbash, 2014; miller & cinnamon, 2013; o'brien, barker,& ellsworth, 2013; white, 2020). byod requires careful planning and facilitation on behalf of the teacher (rizzo, 2013; williams, 2014), specifically setting aside time to teach students how to responsibly and respectfully engage on social media. while barriers of isolation and lack of resources that have historically plagued rural school districts may remain present, social media integration has the potential to create an ease of access. this would allow students in rural districts to practice crucial twentyfirst century skills, such as collaboration, communication, critical thinking, and creation (varier et al., 2017). thus, familiarizing and educating students on how to appropriately use social media may transcend a rural classroom beyond the “four walls” by offering rewarding learning experiences that also employ 21st century skills via a relevant and relatable medium. furthermore, the use of social media in the classroom can create teachable moments for educators to emphasize the increasingly important principles of digital citizenship and the potential perils of cyberbullying or other inappropriate social media postings. as with any new teaching strategy, integrating social media into a classroom takes time and should never be implemented on a whim. however, when implemented with fidelity, the results can lead to students having a better understanding of how to responsibly navigate the complex world of social media despite their school context or other barriers (ertmer, et.al, 2012). on the other hand, social media integration can also be beneficial for rural school district teachers that may sometimes face isolation or are not receiving adequate professional development. thacker (2017) highlights the stark reality that social studies professional development for teachers is marginalized. moreover, some rural teachers may be the only teacher for their content area across multiple grade levels, thus having limited access to a research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 waters, s. & hensley, m.., mesuring rural p-12 teachers’ attitudes, perceptions, and utilizations of social media research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 29 professional learning community (plc) in their school or district. social media presents the opportunity to offer some assistance to this situation through the presence of virtual plcs on platforms like twitter. teachers may engage and contribute to communities of learners made up of education professionals and scholars related to their content areas any time and from anywhere. virtual plcs housed in social media platforms, like twitter, facebook, and instagram may potentially assuage the feeling of isolation that rural teachers can sometimes experience by serving as a virtual space for collaboration with other educators. conceptual framework the conceptual framework employed in this study is concerns-based adoption model (cbam), beginning with the assertion that teacher attitudes and perceptions towards change and innovation are diverse and complex (hall & hord, 1987). hall & hord (1987) define concern as: the composite representation of the feelings, the preoccupation, thought and consideration given to a particular issue or task. depending on our personal makeup, knowledge, and experiences, each person perceives and mentally contends with a given issue differently; thus, there are different kinds of concerns (hall & hord, 1987, p. 61). hall and hord’s (1987) cbam framework includes stages of concern, which include, (1) unconcerned; (2) informational; (3) personal; (4) management; (5) consequence; (6) collaboration; and (7) refocusing (hall & hord, 1987). this framework is germane to our study, which focuses on measuring p-12 educators’ attitudes, perceptions, and utilizations of social media use. it allows the researcher to analyze the data findings through contextual lenses to better understand the personal influences and concerns that may impact p-12 educator perceptions attitudes, and utilizations of social media integration in the classroom. moreover, it allows for informed training programs associated with technology integration, like social media so as to address the diverse concerns of teachers. purpose of the study it’s important to note that the researchers do not refute the notion that social media can and does serve as an enriching tool to support teachers in both their pedagogical practice and professional development. rather, the purpose of this survey instrument is to measure the attitudes, perceptions, and utilizations of social media by p-12 teachers in a rural school district. there are currently no instruments that measure the general attitudes, perceptions, and utilizations of social media (specifically) by p-12 teachers. instruments that have been created to measure attitudes, perceptions, and utilizations of social media by teachers have mainly targeted secondary teachers (johnson, 2014). reasons for this focus on the secondary level could potentially be attributed to the fact that most social media platforms require their users to be at least thirteen years of age before legally signing up for an account (childnet, 2018). despite the age restriction set by social media platforms, that does not necessarily mean that teachers cannot still employ content published and shared on social media to supplement their lessons. thus, this survey research study seeks to better understand the perceptions of social research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 waters, s. & hensley, m.., mesuring rural p-12 teachers’ attitudes, perceptions, and utilizations of social media research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 30 media as an instructional tool by p-12 teachers in a rural school district. this data will provide generalizable results that can be drawn upon to strengthen future studies that advocate for the use of social media, while also supporting school districts in their endeavors to provide meaningful and relevant professional development that involves social media. methods research questions this research study focuses on examining the attitudes, perceptions, and utilizations of rural p12 teachers’ general use of social media. to measure these constructs, the researchers employed a quantitative approach, which included the use of survey research methods (johnson, 2014). the research questions that guided this study were: 1. what opinions toward social media do p-12 teachers hold? 2. what personal concerns toward social media do p-12 teachers hold? 3. what are p-12 teachers’ perceptions of social media in the classroom? 4. what are p-12 teachers’ perceptions of social media on learning and engagement? 5. is there a statistically significant relationship between elementary, middle, and high school teachers and opinions of social media? 6. is there a statistically significant relationship between elementary, middle, and high school teachers and personal concerns toward social media? 7. is there a statistically significant relationship between elementary, middle, and high school teachers and perceptions of social media in the classroom? 8. is there a statistically significant relationship between elementary, middle, and high school teachers and perceptions of social media on learning and engagement? sample this study employed a non-probability voluntary sampling method (taherdoost, 2016). the reason for using this sampling procedure is due to the cost and time effectiveness of the technique. the survey instrument was disseminated by an assistant superintendent to approximately 533p-12 teachers in a classified rural school district in the southeast united states.p-12 teachers in the target population were invited to participate in the survey. sampling participants were informed in the invitation letter that their participation was completely voluntary. the final sample size for this study was n=140. respondents in this study were p-12 teachers that work in a classified rural school district in the southeastern united states. participants completed the survey using google forms on their own time and on their own computing device. therefore, the exact site/location of where participants completed the survey is unknown. research instrument the questionnaire items utilized in this survey research study were constructed by the researchers and were adapted from johnson’s (2014) mobile learning survey for high school teachers, which measured the attitudes, perceptions and utilizations of mobile technology research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 waters, s. & hensley, m.., mesuring rural p-12 teachers’ attitudes, perceptions, and utilizations of social media research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 31 tools. the researchers adapted the survey to measure the attitudes, perceptions, and utilizations of social media as it applies to p-12 teachers in general. the questionnaire items were developed to measure the attitudes, perceptions, and utilizations of social media (specifically) by p-12 teachers, not just teachers in the secondary grades. to do this, the questionnaire items were framed under six demarcated sections: prior knowledge regarding the use of social media; how they think their students use social media; perceptions of social media utilization in the classroom; perceptions of social media usage on students’ learning and engagement in the classroom; faculty opinions on social media use; personal concerns regarding social media (johnson, 2014). the survey items used in this study are appended (appendix a) to the end of this manuscript. in addition to adapting the questions in johnson’s (2014) original survey to be more aligned to social media use specifically and making the survey questions more applicable to p-12 teachers, the response options were also adapted. the original survey used a four-point likert scale from strongly disagree to strongly agree with no neutral option. the researchers employed a fivepoint likert scale in their reconstruction and adaptation of johnson’s (2014) instrument to limit the feeling of forced choice while taking the survey. the scale response items were as follows: 1 = strongly disagree, 2 =disagree, 3 = neutral, 4 = agree, 5 = strongly agree, 0 = prefer not to answer. the items were pre-tested and reviewed by colleagues prior to the launching of a pilot study to check for reliability and validity of the newly modified survey instrument. reliability& validity johnson’s (2014) original mobile learning survey for high school teachers was constructed specifically for the 2014 study as scholarship at the time lacked any reliable, valid, or tested instruments. items in the original instrument underwent reliability and validity screenings before being disseminated to participants. fifty-two items were constructed and divided into seven sections using content validity practices to ensure items were representative of extant research literature (johnson, 2014). moreover, the original instrument was beta-tested using a convenience sample of twenty teachers that were representative of the intended population (johnson, 2014). beta-test participants suggested minor improvements to the instrument, including rewording item sixteen, as well as changing the response options for the question regarding age from reporting exact age to age range options (johnson, 2014). to assess the reliability and validity of the modified survey items used in this study, the researchers utilized a focus group of 14 teachers (one from each grade level p-12) who served as critical peer-reviewers. by employing a constant member checking system for each survey item, the teachers in the focus group provided input and feedback regarding information that should be included or removed from the instrument. this procedure informed and aided in the further development of the instrument (creswell, 2007). finally, experts in the field of survey research and quantitative research methods were consulted for additional input and to strengthen the validity of the instrument items in the study. a measure of scale reliability was calculated by running a cronbach alpha analysis on the modified likert scale survey items research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 waters, s. & hensley, m.., mesuring rural p-12 teachers’ attitudes, perceptions, and utilizations of social media research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 32 disseminated to participants (n=140) in this study. the cronbach alpha (α =.937) indicated a high measure of internal consistency among survey items. procedures the researchers disseminated the instrument to the targeted school district’s assistant superintendent who agreed to forward the instrument to the fifteen principals in the district. the school principals were requested to forward this email with the instrument and informed consent documents to the teachers in their respective schools. the duration of data collection lasted a total of three weeks. there were two follow up reminder emails sent out by the fifteen administrators, one at the end of the first and second weeks to gently remind potential participants to complete the survey. there were no incentives involved with this study due to economic constraints on behalf of the researchers. data analysis data analysis for this project began with a data cleaning process where non-response and erroneous data were removed from the data set to improve accuracy of the overall analysis. the researchers then employed descriptive statistical analyses using spss software to summarize the data collected in this study. variables in this survey were not cross-analyzed using inferential statistical analyses, since the researchers employed a non-probability volunteer sampling method. this is due to the reality that not every teacher who receives an invitation to complete the online survey will do so. moreover, given the structure and limitations of this study, potentially broad generalizations from inferential; statistical analyses would be difficult to make or might be misleading. findings as previously mentioned, 533 certified p-12 teachers in the targeted rural school district were invited to participate in this research study. a total of 146 teachers completed the survey. however, after the data cleaning process, which involved removing incomplete survey responses only 140 valid responses were analyzed. this yielded an approximate 27% rate. table 1 displays a further breakdown of participants by the grade level they taught. of the 140 participant responses analyzed, 41.4% of participants identified as elementary school teachers, 21.4% identifying as middle school teachers, and 37.1% identifying as high school teachers. table 1: demographic characteristics of respondent in percentages variable n= sample percentage grade level pre-k – 5th elementary school 58 41.4% 6th – 8th middle school 30 21.4% 9th -12 high school 52 37.1% research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 waters, s. & hensley, m.., mesuring rural p-12 teachers’ attitudes, perceptions, and utilizations of social media research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 33 faculty opinions of social media research questions: 1. what opinions toward social media do p-12 teachers hold? 5. is there a statistically significant relationship between elementary, middle, and high school teachers and opinions of social media? table 2 displays a distribution of responses to nine items that seek to measure p-12 teachers’ opinions of social media. the mean responses from elementary, middle, and high school teachers for a plurality of these items fell into the neutral or disagree categories. items 34 and 36 were the only items with positive mean responses from all three grade levels. item 35 and 39 received positive mean responses from middle and high school teachers, but not elementary. lastly, a manova statistical analysis was run. it was determined through pillai’s trace that there was no statistically significant difference (p= .635) between elementary school, middle school, and high school teachers in regard to faculty opinions of social media. table 2: distribution of responses to faculty opinion items in percentages faculty opinions of social media items strongly disagree disagree neutral agree strongly agree prefer not to answer. mean sd 33. social media can be a valuable tool for collaborative learning for students. elementary 1.7 6.9 31.0 53.4 5.2 1.7 3.10 1.119 middle 3.3 16.7 30.0 46.7 3.3 0.0 3.07 1.081 high 3.8 11.5 21.2 59.6 3.8 0.7 2.90 .975 34. social media can be a valuable tool for collaborative learning for teachers. elementary 0.0 3.4 10.3 69.0 15.5 1.7 3.91 .823 middle 3.3 10.0 16.7 56.7 13.3 0.0 3.67 .959 high 3.8 5.7 17.3 51.9 21.2 0.7 3.81 .971 35. use of social media in the classroom would lead to increased instances of cyber bullying. elementary 0.0 15.5 34.5 34.5 12.1 3.4 3.33 1.098 middle 3.3 0.0 43.3 36.7 16.7 0.0 3.63 .890 high 3.8 3.8 35.7 44.2 15.4 1.4 3.63 .929 36.videos, podcasts, and blogs shared on social media are valuable tools for teaching. elementary 0.0 1.7 15.5 58.6 20.7 3.4 3.88 .993 middle 3.3 13.3 13.3 56.7 10.0 3.3 3.47 1.167 high 1.9 3.8 15.5 69.2 9.6 0.0 3.81 .742 37. school districts should lift bans and allow schools to use social media in p-12 schools elementary 8.6 19.0 17.2 0.0 3.4 3.4 2.71 .973 middle 16.7 20.0 16.7 6.7 0.0 0.0 2.77 1.135 high 13.5 23.1 17.1 0.0 1.9 1.9 2.62 .993 elementary 3.4 15.5 37.9 37.9 3.4 1.7 3.17 .976 research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 waters, s. & hensley, m.., mesuring rural p-12 teachers’ attitudes, perceptions, and utilizations of social media research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 34 38. the use of social media in the classroom would increase my students’ engagement in learning activities. middle 3.3 30.0 33.3 30.0 3.3 0.0 3.00 .947 high 5.8 19.3 38.5 30.8 5.8 0.0 3.12 .983 39. direct messaging and posting on social media weakens students’ writing and verbal skills. elementary 0.0 13.8 41.4 31.0 12.1 1.7 3.36 .986 middle 6.7 13.3 13.3 46.7 20.0 0.0 3.60 1.163 high 0.0 11.5 21.2 53.8 13.5 0.0 3.69 .853 40. direct messaging is a form of communication that is becoming very effective. elementary 0.0 17.2 27.6 44.8 8.6 1.7 3.40 .990 middle 3.3 30.0 26.7 36.7 3.3 0.0 3.07 .980 high 1.9 19.2 40.4 34.6 3.8 0.0 3.19 .864 41. direct messaging is often substituted for oral conversation. elementary 0.0 1.7 6.9 44.8 44.8 1.7 4.28 .894 middle 0.0 0.0 20.0 46.7 33.3 0.0 4.13 .730 high 0.0 1.9 3.8 51.9 42.3 0.7 4.35 .653 personal concerns research questions: 2. what personal concerns toward social media do p-12 teachers hold? 6. is there a statistically significant relationship between elementary, middle, and high school teachers and personal concerns toward social media? table 3 displays a distribution of responses to five items that seek to measure p-12 teachers’ personal concerns regarding social media. the mean responses from elementary, middle, and high school teachers for items 44 and 46 fell into the agree or strongly agree categories. item 42, which asked whether teachers would be willing to receive pd for social media use receive positive mean responses from elementary and high school teachers, but not middle. the mean responses for the remaining ‘personal concern’ items from elementary, middle, and high school teachers fell into the neutral or disagree categories. lastly, a manova statistical analysis was run. it was determined through pillai’s trace that there was no statistically significant difference (p=.196) between elementary school, middle school, and high school teachers in regard to personal concerns. table 3: distribution of responses to personal concerns items in percentages personal concern items strongly disagree disagree neutral agree strongly agree prefer not to answer. mean sd 42. if the school district allowed students to use social media in the classroom as learning tools, would you be willing to receive elementary 0.0 6.9 12.1 70.7 8.6 1.7 3.76 .844 middle 13.3 6.7 13.3 56.7 10.0 0.0 3.43 1.194 research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 waters, s. & hensley, m.., mesuring rural p-12 teachers’ attitudes, perceptions, and utilizations of social media research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 35 professional development and training in the use of such mobile devices? high 1.9 7.7 21.2 63.5 5.8 0.0 3.63 .793 43. if the school district allowed students to use social media in the classroom as learning tools, would you be willing to use your personal social media account to facilitate student learning? elementary 22.4 39.7 12.1 22.4 1.7 1.7 2.36 1.165 middle 36.7 26.7 13.3 23.3 0.0 0.0 2.23 1.194 high 26.9 28.8 5.8 36.5 1.9 0.0 2.58 1.289 44. if the school district allowed students to use social media in the classroom as learning tools, would you expect your school district to provide both you and your students with mobile learning devices and technical support such as data packages, text messaging, educational apps, etc.? elementary 5.2 10.3 17.2 44.8 19.0 3.4 3.52 1.260 middle 3.3 0.0 13.3 40.0 43.3 0.0 4.20 .925 high 5.8 13.5 11.5 44.2 21.2 3.8 3.50 1.336 45. if the school district allowed students to use social media in the classroom as learning tools, student use of mobile devices in the classroom and outside the classroom would change the way you communicate with students. students would have access to your time beyond the traditional school day. would you be in favor of this? elementary 12.1 17.2 29.3 31.0 6.9 3.4 2.93 1.255 middle 10.0 20.0 33.3 36.7 0.0 0.0 2.97 .999 high 11.5 21.2 23.1 40.4 1.9 1.9 2.94 1.162 46. if the school district allowed students to use social media in the classroom as learning tools, student use of social media in the classroom and outside the classroom would change the way you communicate with students. are you concerned about the possibility of inappropriate communication between teachers and students? elementary 3.4 6.9 20.7 39.7 27.6 1.7 3.76 1.144 middle 0.0 13.3 13.3 40.0 33.3 0.0 3.93 1.015 high 1.9 7.7 19.2 51.9 19.2 0.0 3.79 .915 perceptions of social media in the classroom research questions: 3. what are p-12 teachers’ perceptions of social media in the classroom? 7. is there a statistically significant difference between elementary, middle, and high school teachers and perceptions of social media in the classroom? table 4 displays a distribution of responses to eleven items that seek to measure p-12 teachers’ perceptions of social media in the classroom. the mean responses from elementary, middle, and high school teachers for a plurality of these items fell into the neutral or disagree categories. items 18 and 23 received positive mean responses from elementary teachers only teachers, while item 20 received a positive mean response from high school teachers. lastly, a manova statistical analysis was run. it was determined through pillai’s trace that there was no research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 waters, s. & hensley, m.., mesuring rural p-12 teachers’ attitudes, perceptions, and utilizations of social media research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 36 statistically significant difference (p= .416) between elementary school, middle school, and high school teachers in regard to perceptions of social media in the classroom table 4 distribution of responses to teacher perceptions of social media in the classroom in the classroom items in percentages perceptions of social media in the classroom strongly disagree disagree neutral agree strongly agree prefer not to answer. mean sd 13. my students would be more likely to participate in class activities (excluding class discussions) outside of class time if they could do so by using social media. elementary 1.7 22.4 27.6 32.8 15.5 0.0 3.38 1.057 middle 3.3 26.7 20.0 50.0 0.0 0.0 3.17 .950 high 3.8 21.2 21.2 48.1 5.8 0.0 3.31 1.001 14. my students would be more likely to engage in class discussions inside of class if they could post their thoughts on social media. elementary 1.7 29.3 24.1 37.9 6.9 0.0 3.19 .999 middle 6.7 26.7 26.7 40.0 0.0 0.0 3.00 .983 high 5.8 26.9 25.0 38.5 3.8 0.0 3.08 1.026 15. my students would be more likely to engage in class discussions outside of class if they could post their thoughts on social media. elementary 1.7 31.0 31.0 25.9 10.3 0.0 3.12 1.027 middle 3.3 30.0 23.3 43.3 0.0 0.0 3.07 .944 high 5.8 19.2 30.8 38.5 5.8 0.0 3.19 1.011 16. my students would be more likely to ask for help if they could communicate through their social media. elementary 1.7 24.1 27.6 43.1 3.4 0.0 3.22 .918 middle 6.7 13.3 20.0 56.7 3.3 0.0 3.37 .999 high 5.8 17.3 11.5 59.6 5.8 0.0 3.42 1.036 17. social media should be incorporated into classes. elementary 13.8 17.2 36.2 25.9 6.9 0.0 2.95 1.130 middle 16.7 33.3 26.7 23.3 0.0 0.0 2.57 1.040 high 15.4 19.2 34.6 26.9 3.8 0.0 2.85 1.109 18. students should be able to access course materials (syllabus, notes, assignments links) through social media. elementary 3.4 10.3 17.2 55.2 12.1 1.7 3.57 1.061 middle 3.3 16.7 40.0 33.3 6.7 0.0 3.23 .935 high 9.6 11.5 28.8 44.2 5.8 0.0 3.25 1.064 19. students should be able to participate in discussion forums i.e. backchannel chats, groups etc. through social media. elementary 1.7 19.0 36.2 41.4 0.0 1.7 3.14 .907 middle 6.7 26.7 23.3 33.3 3.3 6.7 2.80 1.270 high 3.8 11.5 40.4 32.7 3.8 3.8 3.02 1.129 20. it would not require a lot of effort for students to learn how to use social media designed for my class. elementary 5.2 13.8 27.6 44.8 8.6 0.0 3.38 1.006 middle 0.0 20.0 23.3 46.7 6.7 3.3 3.30 1.088 high 3.8 13.5 17.3 53.8 11.5 0.0 3.56 .998 21. learning to use social media for class purposes would be easy for students because they are already familiar with all of the social media functions. elementary 1.7 8.6 13.8 53.4 22.4 0.0 3.86 .926 middle 0.0 13.3 23.3 46.7 13.3 3.3 3.50 1.106 high 3.8 1.9 13.5 53.8 26.9 0.0 3.98 .918 22. it would be easy for students to engage in classroom discussions (comment) using social media. elementary 1.7 8.6 25.9 53.4 10.3 0.0 3.62 .855 middle 6.7 10.0 20.0 46.7 16.7 0.0 3.57 1.104 high 5.8 7.7 11.5 63.5 11.5 0.0 3.67 .985 23. social media opportunities would allow both students and teachers to learn and study in anytime and anywhere. elementary 1.7 3.4 34.5 50.0 8.6 1.7 3.55 .902 middle 3.3 16.7 23.3 43.3 10.0 3.3 3.30 1.179 high 7.7 15.4 17.3 53.8 5.8 0.0 3.35 1.064 research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 waters, s. & hensley, m.., mesuring rural p-12 teachers’ attitudes, perceptions, and utilizations of social media research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 37 perceptions of social media on learning and engagement research questions: 4. what are p-12 teachers’ perceptions of social media on learning and engagement? 8. is there a statistically significant difference between elementary, middle, and high school teachers and perceptions of social media on learning and engagement? table 5 displays a distribution of responses to five items that seek to measurep-12 teachers’ perceptions of social media on learning and engagement. the mean responses from elementary, middle, and high school teachers for a plurality of these items fell into the neutral or disagree categories. items 24 and 28 were the only items with positive mean responses from all three grade levels and item 27 received a positive mean from elementary teachers only. lastly, a manova statistical analysis was run. it was determined through pillai’s trace that there was no statistically significant difference (p=.139) between elementary school, middle school, and high school teachers in regard to perceptions of social media on learning and engagement. table 5: distribution of responses to teacher perceptions of social media on learning and engagement perceptions of social media on learning and engagement strongly disagree disagree neutral agree strongly agree prefer not to answer. mean sd 24. i believe students can be taught how to appropriately use social media for learning. elementary 1.7 3.4 20.7 55.2 15.5 3.4 3.69 1.063 middle 0.0 13.3 10.0 73.3 3.3 0.0 3.67 .758 high 7.7 5.8 19.2 63.5 3.8 0.0 3.50 .960 25. i believe students should be able to use social media as learning tools in my classroom to improve comprehension. elementary 0.0 19.0 46.6 25.9 5.3 3.4 3.07 .989 middle 13.3 20.0 26.7 36.7 3.3 0.0 2.97 1.129 high 5.8 23.1 30.8 36.5 3.8 0.0 3.10 .995 26. i believe using social media for learning in my classroom would benefit students’ writing skills. elementary 8.6 34.5 36.2 15.5 5.2 0.0 2.74 1.001 middle 30.0 26.7 16.7 20.0 3.3 3.3 2.30 1.291 high 11.5 51.9 26.9 9.6 0.0 0.0 2.35 .814 27. i think students would be more motivated to learn if they could use social media. elementary 1.7 8.6 25.9 46.6 13.8 3.4 3.52 1.112 middle 6.7 26.7 23.3 40.0 3.3 0.0 3.07 1.048 high 5.8 21.2 21.2 46.2 5.8 0.0 3.25 1.046 28. students would think it’s fun to use social elementary 0.0 8.6 19.0 53.4 17.2 1.7 3.74 .965 middle 3.3 6.7 23.3 63.3 3.3 0.0 3.57 .817 high 1.9 7.7 21.2 65.4 3.8 0.0 3.62 .771 research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 waters, s. & hensley, m.., mesuring rural p-12 teachers’ attitudes, perceptions, and utilizations of social media research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 38 media in my classroom. 29. i believe using social media as learning tools in my classroom would improve student literacy. elementary 3.4 24.1 39.7 25.9 5.2 1.7 3.00 1.009 middle 16.7 30.0 26.7 20.0 6.7 0.0 2.70 1.179 high 5.8 30.8 40.4 23.1 0.0 0.0 2.81 .864 30. i would like my students to be able to use social media to access course content and practice 21st century skills. elementary 5.2 15.5 25.9 44.8 5.2 3.4 3.19 1.146 middle 13.3 16.7 43.3 20.0 6.7 0.0 2.90 1.094 high 5.8 19.2 23.1 40.4 11.5 0.0 3.33 1.098 31. i would like to learn more about social media, so that i can incorporate it in my classroom. elementary 3.4 20.7 29.3 37.9 5.2 3.4 3.10 1.119 middle 10.0 16.7 36.7 30.0 6.7 0.0 3.07 1.081 high 5.8 34.6 23.1 36.5 0.0 0.0 2.90 .975 discussion the purpose of this study was to investigate p-12 teachers’ general attitudes, perceptions, and utilizations of social media. the researchers sought to produce initial descriptive data to extend the foundational understanding of social media use in education and support p-12 school administration and professional development coordinators who advocate for the pedagogical use of social media in the classroom. these findings have several implications for p-12 teachers in a rural school context regarding their perceptions and attitudes toward using social media as an educational tool, as well as an informal professional learning outlet. rural school districts & social media during the data analysis, the researchers discovered rural teachers from all three grade levels (elementary, middle, and high school) had more positively efficacious responses to items focused on professional use of social media, rather than student use in the classroom. for example, teachers reported higher average mean responses to item 34, which asked whether or not they felt social media can be a valuable tool for collaborative learning for teachers. however, for item 33, which asked the same question, but in regard to students, the average mean responses were lower. an interesting finding from the data shows that according to item 24, teachers believe that students can be taught how to appropriately use social media for learning. when asked whether or not they would be willing to receive professional development training on how to integrate social media in their classroom, the average responses fell into the neutral or disagree category. while p-12 teachers in this study regard social media as best suited as a collaborative learning tool for teachers rather than students, they do not negate that social media can, in deed, be research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 waters, s. & hensley, m.., mesuring rural p-12 teachers’ attitudes, perceptions, and utilizations of social media research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 39 positively integrated in the classroom as an education tool. rather they demonstrate other serious reservations and concerns with social media integration. for example, average mean responses were positively efficacious for elementary, middle, and high school teachers on several items that involved students specifically. these included, item 21, which asked if learning to use social media for class purposes would be easy for students because they are already familiar with all of the social media functions; item 24, which asked if they believed their students can be taught how to use social media in the classroom; and item 22, which asked if teachers thought students could use social media to participate in classroom discussions. however, on item 46, which asked if they were concerned about inappropriate communication between teachers and students on social media p-12 teachers three grade levels showed highly positive efficacious mean responses that fell into the agree and strongly agree categories. thus, it was not surprising that on item 37, which asked if school districts should lift bands on social media the plurality of p-12 in all three grade levels reported average means that fell into the neutral to disagree categories. perhaps, the data are showing that these rural teachers see the value and benefit of social media use for their own informal professional learning and acknowledge the potential pedagogical benefits, while remaining cognizant of potential and present barriers associated with social media as an education tool. with the implementation of social media comes a significant amount of responsibility and work on behalf of the teacher to ensure that its use is enriching learning rather than distraction. also, the use of social media by teachers, both personally and professionally, can be extremely problematic when not handled correctly, leading to potential suspensions, and even job termination. the reality is that social media platforms open up a line of communication that is not officially controlled or monitored by schools or school districts. teacher attitudes and perceptions might change if they knew that their school district was in support of its use for educational purposes and exhibited that support by offering professional development opportunities and/or other types of resources. future research could strive to identify and mitigate barriers to social media integration, while specifically taking into consideration teachers’ attitudes, perceptions, and utilizations. this information would enable school districts to provide more support and training regarding the effective and appropriate ways for teachers and students to use social media. moreover, school districts could employ the instrument used in this study to specifically gauge the attitudes of their teachers and plan professional development accordingly. elementary teachers another interesting occurrence during the data analysis was that elementary school teachers had more positively efficacious responses to survey items regarding student and personal social media use than middle and high school teachers. it is not shocking that elementary school teachers would have positive responses towards the personal uses of benefits of using social media. rather, what is attention-grabbing is that they show interest and value in their students using social media despite their students’ age, which typically do not meet the terms and conditions of various social media platforms. as stated earlier, scholarship on social media use in education is largely targeted toward the secondary level. moving forward, research and research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 waters, s. & hensley, m.., mesuring rural p-12 teachers’ attitudes, perceptions, and utilizations of social media research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 40 practitioner literature should explore the professional learning needs of elementary level teachers interested in incorporating social media in their classrooms. by producing scholarship that supports elementary teachers in their integration of social media, perhaps values and principles associated with being a respectful and responsible digital citizen can be instilled at an earlier age. subsequently, education researchers may see a decline in some of the more negative realities of social media use, such as cyberbullying that plagues both middle and high school students. conclusion in this article, the researchers attempted to situate social media attitudes, perceptions, and utilizations in the context of the larger trend of teachers’ technology use in the rural classroom, and the even more complex nature of using social media as an education tool. in a nomological sense, the use of social media and its multimodal functionality to enhance teaching and learning across multiple grade levels, disciplines, and school contexts serves to benefit educators, especially those in rural school districts. however, as can be gleaned from this study, rural teachers were not completely on board with implementing and facilitating social media in their classroom. in fact, during the data analysis, the researchers noticed that a plurality of mean responses for survey items in all sections fell into the neutral category. findings from this study extends the foundational understanding of social media’s presence in education by emphasizing not ‘how’ or “why’ p-12 teachers use social media, but by investigating ‘what’ general attitudes, perceptions, and utilizations of social media are held by p-12 educators in diverse school contexts, such as rural schools. understanding how teachers view social media in general is salient because teacher’s perceptions and attitudes of social media will likely influence whether or not they see it as educationally beneficial or an appropriate tool to integrate in their pedagogical practice or personal professional development. information in this study may provide education researchers and p-12 school administration with considerations to provide relevant, pragmatic, and responsive pedagogical and professional practices involving social media for teachers of diverse school contexts. based off the data collected in this study, these rural teachers recognize the value in social media, but perhaps also perceive its integration to be risky. education researchers and school districts should be aware of these attitudes and perceptions and strive to empower and support teachers that are interested in using social media. maybe in doing so, this will over time change p-12 teacher attitudes and perceptions toward social media from viewing it as risky to viewing it as a positive learning tool that could transcend both their pedagogical and professional practice. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 waters, s. & hensley, m.., mesuring rural p-12 teachers’ attitudes, perceptions, and utilizations of social media research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 41 references abe, p., & jordan, n. 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(2018). examining turkish social studies teachers’ beliefs about barriers totechnology integration. techtrends, 62(3), 221223. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11528-018-0280-y krutka, d., & carpenter, j. (2016). why social media must have a place in schools. kappa delta pi record, 52(1), 6-10. langhorst, e. (2015). social studies teachers’ use of twitter and #edchats for collaboration (doctoral dissertation). retrieved from proquest dissertations & theses full text database. (umi no. 3700962) lee, j. k., &molebash, p. e. (2014). becoming digital: using personal digital histories to engage teachers in contemporary understandings of teaching social studies. journal of social studies research, 38(3), 159-172. li, j., & greenhow, c. (2015). scholars and social media: tweeting in the conference backchannel for professional learning. educational media international, 52(1), 1-14. miller, g., & cinnamon, s. 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(2016). the sage handbook of social media research methods 55 city road, london: sage publications ltd doi: 10.4135/9781473983847 https://www.tandfonline.com/toc/vtss20/current https://doi.org/10.1007/s11528-018-0280-y http://www.rcetj.org/index.php/rcetj/article/download/189/279 research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 waters, s. & hensley, m.., mesuring rural p-12 teachers’ attitudes, perceptions, and utilizations of social media research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 43 sturm, e., & quaynor, l. (2020). a window, mirror, and wall: how educators use twitter for professional learning. research in social sciences and technology, 5(1), 22-44. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.05.01.2 taherdoost, h. (2016), sampling methods in research methodology; how to choose a sampling technique for research. available at ssrn: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3205035 tarman, b., kilinc, e., & aydin, h. (2019). barriers to the effective use of technology integration in social studies education. contemporary issues in technology and teacher education, 19(4). retrieved from https://citejournal.org/volume-19/issue-4-19/socialstudies/barriers-to-the-effective-use-of-technology-integration-in-social-studieseducation thacker, e. (2017). "pd is where teachers are learning!" high school social studies teachers׳ formal and informal professional learning. the journal of social studies research, 41(1), 37-52. trust, t., krutka, d., & carpenter, j. (2016). "together we are better": professional learning networks for teachers. computers & education, 102, 15-34. varier, d., dumke, e. k., abrams, l. m., conklin, s. b., barnes, j. s., & hoover, r. (2017). potential of one-to-one technologies in the classroom: teachers and students weigh in. educational technology research and development,65(4), 967-992 white, c. (2020). wielding social media in the cyber-arena: globalism, nationalism, and civic education. research in social sciences and technology, 5(1), 1-21. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.05.01.1 williams, n. (2014). one-to-one computing and achievement in ohio schools. (doctoral dissertation). retrieved from https://etd.ohiolink.edu/ yigit, m.f. & tarman, b. (2013). the impact of social media on globalization, democratization citizenship, journal of social science education, 12(1), 75-80. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.05.01.2 https://ssrn.com/abstract=3205035 https://citejournal.org/volume-19/issue-4-19/social-studies/barriers-to-the-effective-use-of-technology-integration-in-social-studies-education https://citejournal.org/volume-19/issue-4-19/social-studies/barriers-to-the-effective-use-of-technology-integration-in-social-studies-education https://citejournal.org/volume-19/issue-4-19/social-studies/barriers-to-the-effective-use-of-technology-integration-in-social-studies-education https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.05.01.1 https://etd.ohiolink.edu/ research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 waters, s. & hensley, m.., mesuring rural p-12 teachers’ attitudes, perceptions, and utilizations of social media research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 44 appendix a: survey items (modified/adapted from johnson, 2014 instrument) 1. which of the following best describes your age? o 18-24 o 25-34 o 35-44 o 45-54 o over 54 2. which of the following best describes your ethnicity? o african american/black o asian o hispanic/latinx o white o other o prefer not to answer 3. which of the following best describes your gender? o female o male o transgender o other o prefer not to answer 4. are you a certified teacher? o yes o no 5. what grade levels do you teach? check all that apply. o pre-k-5 o 6-8 o 9-12 6. what is your area of certification? check all that apply. o agriculture o art o business o english research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 waters, s. & hensley, m.., mesuring rural p-12 teachers’ attitudes, perceptions, and utilizations of social media research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 45 o family and consumer science o french o industrial arts o mathematics o music o physical education o school librarian/teacher o science o social studies o spanish o special education o speech 7. how many years have you been in education? o 1-5 o 6-10 o 11-15 o 16-20 o 21-25 o 26-30 o 31-35 o 36-40 o 41 + 8. how many years have you been in your current school? ______ 9. what is your highest educational attainment? o bachelor’s o master’s o master’s plus 30 o specialist o doctorate 10. in which type of school do you teach? o public o private o public charter o public magnet o indicate type: research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 waters, s. & hensley, m.., mesuring rural p-12 teachers’ attitudes, perceptions, and utilizations of social media research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 46 section 1: p-12 teacher prior knowledge: 11. i know how to... please check all that apply. o download a social media application on a mobile device o access social media sites and/or applications on my mobile device/computer o post a comment, picture, or video on a social media application. o like, share/retweet another post, image, and or video that is not my own on social media. o send a direct message through social media on a mobile device/computer section 2: how do you think your students are using their mobile devices? 12. i think my students are... please check all that apply. o downloading and engaging on social media applications on their mobile devices/computers. o using social media to connect with peers and other related experts something they didn’t know or didn’t understand during class o setting alerts/reminders on their social media settings when someone posts something o direct messaging a classmate through social media during class o direct messaging a classmate through social media about the class content o direct messaging a classmate through social media about the teacher’s ability o direct messaging a classmate through social media about the level of engagement in the class (i.e. i’m bored, this is cool, etc.) o taking pictures or videos related to assignments and posting them on their social media accounts (i.e. snapchat, instagram) o using social media as a collaboration tool for course success. o none of the above o i don’t know o other: _________________________ section 3: perception of mobile device utilization in the classroom 13. my students would be more likely to participate in class activities (excluding class discussions) outside of class time if they could do so by using social media. o strongly disagree o disagree o neutral o agree o strongly agree o prefer not to answer research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 waters, s. & hensley, m.., mesuring rural p-12 teachers’ attitudes, perceptions, and utilizations of social media research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 47 14. my students would be more likely to engage in class discussions inside of class if they could post their thoughts on social media. o strongly disagree o disagree o neutral o agree o strongly agree o prefer not to answer 15. my students would be more likely to engage in class discussions outside of class if they could post their thoughts on social media. o strongly disagree o disagree o neutral o agree o strongly agree o prefer not to answer 16. my students would be more likely to ask for help if they could communicate through their social media. o strongly disagree o disagree o neutral o agree o strongly agree o prefer not to answer 17. social media should be incorporated into classes. o strongly disagree o disagree o neutral o agree o strongly agree o prefer not to answer 18. students should be able to access course materials (syllabus, notes, assignments links) through social media. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 waters, s. & hensley, m.., mesuring rural p-12 teachers’ attitudes, perceptions, and utilizations of social media research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 48 o strongly disagree o disagree o neutral o agree o strongly agree o prefer not to answer 19. students should be able to participate in discussion forums i.e. backchannel chats, groups etc. through social media. o strongly disagree o disagree o neutral o agree o strongly agree o prefer not to answer 20. it would not require a lot of effort for students to learn how to use social media designed for my class. o strongly disagree o disagree o neutral o agree o strongly agree o prefer not to answer 21. learning to use social media for class purposes would be easy for students because they are already familiar with all of the social media functions. o strongly disagree o disagree o neutral o agree o strongly agree o prefer not to answer 22. it would be easy for students to engage in classroom discussions (comment) using social media. o strongly disagree o disagree o neutral o agree research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 waters, s. & hensley, m.., mesuring rural p-12 teachers’ attitudes, perceptions, and utilizations of social media research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 49 o strongly agree o prefer not to answer 23. social media opportunities would allow both students and teachers to learn and study in anytime and anywhere. o strongly disagree o disagree o neutral o agree o strongly agree o prefer not to answer section 4 perception of mobile device usage on students’ learning engagement in p-12 classrooms 24. i believe students can be taught how to appropriately use social media for learning. o strongly disagree o disagree o neutral o agree o strongly agree o prefer not to answer 25. i believe students should be able to use social media as learning tools in my classroom to improve comprehension. o strongly disagree o disagree o neutral o agree o strongly agree o prefer not to answer 26. i believe using social media for learning in my classroom would benefit students’ writing skills. o strongly disagree o disagree o neutral o agree o strongly agree o prefer not to answer research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 waters, s. & hensley, m.., mesuring rural p-12 teachers’ attitudes, perceptions, and utilizations of social media research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 50 27. i think students would be more motivated to learn if they could use social media. o strongly disagree o disagree o neutral o agree o strongly agree o prefer not to answer 28. students would think it’s fun to use social media in my classroom. o strongly disagree o disagree o neutral o agree o strongly agree o prefer not to answer 29. i believe using social media as learning tools in my classroom would improve student literacy. o strongly disagree o disagree o neutral o agree o strongly agree o prefer not to answer 30. i would like my students to be able to use social media to access course content and practice 21st century skills. o strongly disagree o disagree o neutral o agree o strongly agree o prefer not to answer 31. i would like to learn more about social media, so that i can incorporate it in my classroom. o strongly disagree o disagree o neutral research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 waters, s. & hensley, m.., mesuring rural p-12 teachers’ attitudes, perceptions, and utilizations of social media research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 51 o agree o strongly agree o prefer not to answer 32. choose the statement that most resembles your attitude toward incorporating social media in your classroom. o strongly disagree o disagree o neutral o agree o strongly agree o prefer not to answer section 5 faculty opinions on social media use 33. social media can be a valuable tool for collaborative learning for students. o strongly disagree o disagree o neutral o agree o strongly agree o prefer not to answer 34. social media can be a valuable tool for collaborative learning for teachers. o strongly disagree o disagree o neutral o agree o strongly agree o prefer not to answer 35. use of social media in the classroom would lead to increased instances of cyber bullying. o strongly disagree o disagree o neutral o agree o strongly agree o prefer not to answer 36. videos, podcasts, and blogs shared on social media are valuable tools for teaching. research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 waters, s. & hensley, m.., mesuring rural p-12 teachers’ attitudes, perceptions, and utilizations of social media research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 52 o strongly disagree o disagree o neutral o agree o strongly agree o prefer not to answer 37. school districts should lift bans and allow schools to use social media in p-12 schools o strongly disagree o disagree o neutral o agree o strongly agree o prefer not to answer 38. the use of social media in the classroom would increase my students’ engagement in learning activities. o strongly disagree o disagree o neutral o agree o strongly agree o prefer not to answer 39. direct messaging and posting on social media weakens students’ writing and verbal skills. o strongly disagree o disagree o neutral o agree o strongly agree o prefer not to answer 40. direct messaging is a form of communication that is becoming very effective. o strongly disagree o disagree o neutral research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 waters, s. & hensley, m.., mesuring rural p-12 teachers’ attitudes, perceptions, and utilizations of social media research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 53 o agree o strongly agree o prefer not to answer 41. direct messaging is often substituted for oral conversation. o strongly disagree o disagree o neutral o agree o strongly agree o prefer not to answer section 6 personal concerns 42. if the school district allowed students to use social media in the classroom as learning tools, would you be willing to receive professional development and training in the use of such mobile devices? o strongly disagree o disagree o neutral o agree o strongly agree o prefer not to answer 43. if the school district allowed students to use social media in the classroom as learning tools, would you be willing to use your personal social media account to facilitate student learning? o strongly disagree o disagree o neutral o agree o strongly agree o prefer not to answer 44. if the school district allowed students to use social media in the classroom as learning tools, would you expect your school district to provide both you and your students with mobile learning devices and technical support such as data packages, text messaging, educational apps, etc.? o strongly disagree o disagree o neutral research in social sciences and technology volume 5 issue 3, 2020 waters, s. & hensley, m.., mesuring rural p-12 teachers’ attitudes, perceptions, and utilizations of social media research in social sciences and technology © copyright 2020 e-issn: 2468-6891 ressat.org 54 o agree o strongly agree o prefer not to answer 45. if the school district allowed students to use social media in the classroom as learning tools, student use of mobile devices in the classroom and outside the classroom would change the way you communicate with students. students would have access to your time beyond the traditional school day. would you be in favor of this? o strongly disagree o disagree o neutral o agree o strongly agree o prefer not to answer 46. if the school district allowed students to use social media in the classroom as learning tools, student use of social media in the classroom and outside the classroom would change the way you communicate with students. are you concerned about the possibility of inappropriate communication between teachers and students? o strongly disagree o disagree o neutral o agree o strongly agree o prefer not to answer research in social sciences and technology https://ressat.org e-issn: 2468-6891 volume: 7 issue: 3 2022 pp. 18-35 teacher educator reflections on preparing first year pre-service teachers for school-based work integrated learning in an online learning environment yolanda mpu*a, irene roya &karin hackmacka * corresponding author email: mpuyolanda@gmail.com a. faculty of education, university, of fort hare, east london campus, south africa article info received: july 8, 2022 revised: august 14, 2022 accepted: september 11, 2022 how to cite mpu, y., roy, i. & hackmack, k., (2022). teacher educator reflections on preparing first year pre-service teachers for school-based work integrated learning in an online learning environment. research in social sciences and technology, 7(3), 1835. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2022.15 copyright license this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. abstract due to the covid 19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021, higher education institutions were forced to embark on online teaching and learning. this came at a point where the entire teacher fraternity was not prepared for this shift from traditional face-toface interaction to virtual learning. this qualitative, exploratory study was undertaken as a comparative analysis of the teaching, learning and facilitation experiences of three teacher educators. the focus was on teacher educators who engaged in a formal online teacher training program with first year pre-service teachers enrolled on the bachelor of education qualification. data was collected from the teacher educators in the form of interviews and reflective reports prepared at the conclusion of the 2021 academic year. the data was thematically analysed to distil common lessons, challenges and points for the 3 teacher educators with the intention of learning from and improving on practice. the paper addressed three research questions, which guided the study and presents the researchers’ findings in the areas of student access to the learning platform, knowledge transfer from online lectures to practical application in the form of portfolio of evidence and the alignment between theory and practice. recommendations include using a hybrid approach to preservice teacher preparation; using formative and summative assessment in making a judgement on competence and mastery and re-focussing student feedback as reflective essays. keywords digital pedagogies; paradigm shift; teacher educators; pre-service teachers; school-based work integrated learning 10.46303/ressat.2022.15 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2022.15 19 ressat 2022, 7(3): 18-35 introduction traditionally, the act of teaching is perceived to be a skills-based activity which requires the teacher to draw from different sources of knowledge. a typical initial teacher preparation curriculum includes both conceptual and contextual knowledge (dreyer, 2015). teachers-intraining are required to develop, first as part of their training, and later as an outcome of practice, subject matter knowledge (smk), pedagogical knowledge (pk), and pedagogical content knowledge (pck). subject matter knowledge, also known as theoretical disciplinary knowledge, is crucial in enabling teachers to be effective in the classroom and school environment. alongside the theoretical disciplinary knowledge, qualified teachers need knowledge of teaching methods referred to as pedagogical knowledge. pedagogical knowledge includes knowledge of general teaching and learning practices in classrooms, which creates a conducive environment for learning to take place (zeidler, 2002). at the intersection of subject content knowledge and pedagogical knowledge lies pedagogical content knowledge. pedagogical content knowledge is the term that describes the process where competent teachers transfer what they know, in their area of specialisation, to the students (rollnick et al., 2008). this requires teachers to engage in constant reasoning, reflecting and assessing the suitability of their selected approaches linked to a specific context. the educational benefit of learning from observation is the rationale for making observational practices mandatory and is a requirement in teacher education and training (weber, 2016). teacher educators enter into pedagogical relationships with pre-service teachers for the purpose of imparting theoretical knowledge and modelling appropriate behaviour and pedagogical practice for the duration of the course. the pedagogical relationship is based on the teacher educator using instructional approaches in imparting knowledge, whilst the pre-service teachers observe an experienced teacher-in-action. pre-service teachers learn as much (if not more) from observing, as they do from engaging in set academic tasks themselves (cuenca, 2010). in addition, as part of the practical component of the work integrated learning process, pre-service teachers are required to spend time in school classrooms observing the behaviour patterns of qualified teachers. background to the study the global covid 19 pandemic brought an abrupt end to face-to-face interaction between teacher educators and pre-service teachers, for at least eighteen months, at institutions of higher learning in south africa. before covid 19, the use of technology in education was regarded as an innovative optional approach attempted by progressive educators (dube et al., 2022; gilakjani, 2013). however, the pandemic forced all educators to online teaching and learning as the only possible safe option to ensure ongoing educational engagement (adu et al., 2022). social distancing was one of the many strategies that were used to curb the spread of the virus; and large gatherings were considered as super spreaders of the virus and were, therefore, discouraged. working from home came as a drastic measure, which brought about a 20 ressat 2022, 7(3): 18-35 fundamental paradigm shift in the mode of teaching and learning. as a result, higher education was forced to transition to remote/ online delivery of teaching and learning. the transition started in march 2020 when the 1st year pre-service teachers had completed registering and had just commenced with face-to-face classes. (1st year pre-service teachers are students who are entering the university for the first time after completing grade12.) in the faculty of education, first year pre-service teachers are required to spend a 3 weeksobservation period in a functioning school, as part of their school-based work integrated learning module. the observation provides the pre-service teachers with an opportunity to develop an understanding of the various components of teaching. this practical experience also assists students to attain specific competencies relating to the skills that will make the preservice teachers ultimately employable and valuable members of the teaching profession. at the institution of higher learning, where the research was conducted, the pandemic forced teacher educators to learn, not only about how to use online technological platforms, but also the most effective instructional approaches for the delivery of content for online learning for students from technologically disadvantaged backgrounds (gqokonqana et al., 2022). this necessitated teacher educators to adapt their existing instructional approaches to accommodate for the absence of a crucial element in the training process i.e. observation of best practices by pre-service teachers, whilst accommodating some students’ gap in the use of technology for online learning. the pre-service teachers were now unable to observe lecturers demonstrating pedagogical methods that they could use, especially for practical undertakings such as school-based work integrated learning. in 2020, when covid-19 restrictions were enforced, online teaching modalities took centre stage in institutions of higher learning. in south africa, some institutions are highly disadvantaged in terms of resources. this meant these institutions were ill-prepared for the mandatory technological shift in the mode of teaching. face-to face lectures were replaced with online learning, which meant that the physical connectedness of students with lecturers and students with other students was not possible. one of the principles of the social learning theory by lev vygotsky (1962) helps us to understand how people learn in social contexts. with the move to on-line learning, the social aspect of learning was disrupted. omrod (2016) found that four principles, namely, competence, excitement, self-determination and connectedness, are fundamental needs in online learning. these principles were not initially fulfilled, in these circumstances, because of the various challenges brought to bear by online learning. during school-based work integrated learning sessions, teacher educators had various experiences whilst preparing first year pre-service teachers for learning, using an online learning environment. their reflections on approaches that they used in their preparation of 1st year pre-service teachers are dealt with in the following segments. some of these challenges include, but are not limited to, lack of technological knowledge and ability, connectivity issues caused by load shedding during online classes and linking theory to practice. 21 ressat 2022, 7(3): 18-35 the critical questions that drove this research were: • what instructional methods did teacher educators use in the preparation of pre-service teachers prior to the shift to online-learning? • how did teacher educators adapt their instructional methods to an online setting? • what successes/challenges teacher did educators experience during the transitioning from face-to-face to online learning platforms? research methods and design this research was qualitative in nature and used a case study design. qualitative research approaches are used for exploring and understanding the meaning that individuals ascribe to a social and human problem (creswell & creswell, 2017). the study’s research design and methodology are in line with creswell (2013), who argued that, before the researcher embarks on the research journey, s/he must consider certain things, such as the research paradigm, research methodology or design and the methods to be employed to answer the research questions. the study followed the interprevist paradigm, which, according to yanow & schwatzshea (2014), holds that reality is subjective, socially constructed and a composite of multiple perspectives. this is deemed relevant, as research is shaped by the researchers who bring their own subjective views of observed phenomena, based on their personal experiences. in this research, the problem under investigation was the transitioning of training pre-service teachers for readiness towards their first school-based work integrated learning sessions at schools, using an online platform. the aim of the research was to investigate the experiences of three higher education/university lecturers in preparing pre-service teachers for using an online method. participant sample in this research, purposive sampling was used. purposive sampling is a selection process where the candidates who are most likely to answer the research question are selected (campbell et al., 2020). for the sake of this study, purposive sampling techniques were convenient as they allowed the researchers to select participants who are readily available to take part in the study (evans, 2014). it is relevant for this study, as it focuses on teacher educators who are already in the university system and who are already teaching the school based work integrated learning at 1st year level. in this research, three lecturers who lecture on the course were purposively selected. the three lecturers were all working with on line courses, preparing the pre-service teachers for their experience of the primary school classroom for the first time during their course. the faculty allocates teacher educators to work in teams in the teaching of different year levels (years 1, 2 &3). the selected three teacher educators are, therefore, relevant for the study, as they have been involved with the training of year 1 pre-service teachers. the participants are between the ages of 45-55 and they are all females. two of them have more 22 ressat 2022, 7(3): 18-35 than 15 years of teaching experience in the university sector. each participant was allocated a pseudonym in order to protect his or her identity. data collection data were collected from individual semi-structured interviews and documentation. semistructured interviews are designed to obtain subjective responses from the participants on the phenomenon under investigation (macintosh & morse, 2015). in this research, individual interviews were conducted with a set of guiding questions, which were used to guide the interview. the interviews were recorded and transcribed. the documents, from which data was collected, included module outlines, student assessment guides and e-mail communication from pre-service teachers. data analysis the transcriptions from the interviews were firstly read in order to get a sense of the responses from all participants. thereafter, the transcripts were re-read and emerging themes were noted. the themes were then coded and grouped according to the relevant research question(s). during document analysis, the documents were scrutinized for information pertinent to the research questions. qualitative data analysis for this case study is grounded on an interpretive philosophy. generally, in research, there are various methods of data analysis and this study employed two, considered the most relevant. these are content and phenomenological data analysis methods, only because they are related to this type of study, which is qualitative in nature. phenomenological data analysis was used to bracket responses that bear similarity to present them together. data collected was, therefore, analyzed, presented and discussed within the themes and subthemes identified to answer the research questions. all the identical responses to questions were bracketed together and presented together according to similarities. analysis of interview transcripts were based on an inductive approach. intrepretive analysis on transcripts was done using content method of analysis. findings and discussion the three research questions and subsequent discussion and findings will be discussed in this section. what instructional methods did teacher educators use in the preparation of pre-service teachers prior to the shift to online-learning? as alluded to earlier in this paper, teacher training curricula is designed to develop a set of competences in pre-service teachers over a set period of time (cuenca, 2010). this process starts in year 1 of the qualification. in 2018, the faculty of education at the institution, where the study was conducted, rolled out a newly re-curriculated bachelor degree in foundation phase studies, in line with the policy on the minimum requirements for teacher education policy ((department of higher education and training, 2015). the introduction of the re-curriculated 23 ressat 2022, 7(3): 18-35 qualification in intermediate phase studies followed in 2019. this necessitates a discussion of practice prior to the move to online learning. it must be noted that, prior to the move to the online platform, more teacher educators were allocated to the course. the preparation of year 1 pre-service teachers prior to covid 19 was the responsibility of 9 teacher educators organised into 3 teams under the leadership of a lead teacher, in 2018. the introduction of the re-curriculated qualification in intermediate phase studies followed in 2019. with the introduction of the intermediate phase qualification in 2019, the team-teaching approach was abandoned and phase groups were taught separately. in the time-period 2020 – 2021, a team of 4 academics taught the module to a combined group of foundation and intermediate phase students with a marked increase in student numbers. the following section will provide a discussion of the teaching and learning practice prior to the move to online learning. instructional approaches – team teaching approach (2018) in 2018, six (6) teacher educators working in three teams were assigned to teach approximately 150 year-1 pre-service student teachers. each team was led by a ‘lead teacher’ or team leader. contact sessions, 90 minutes in duration, were time-tabled to take place on monday afternoons in the second semester. these sessions were conducted over a 6-week period at the start of the second semester. the purpose of these sessions was to introduce and orientate pre-service teachers to school based work integrated learning. the team leader used a variety of instructional approaches depending on their individual teacher’s character and preference. these methods included direct instruction; blended learning; group work; active learning, reading, reflective writing, plenary discussion, journaling, presentations, role-plays, and group tutorials. all members of the team would be present in the venue, with the team leader facilitating the session, whilst the other two team members acted as resource persons in support of the main facilitator. one of the aims of the module was to develop the individual pre-service teachers’ academic and reflective writing skills in the form of journaling. pre-service teachers were required to continuously reflect, in writing, on key learning points, after each of the six sessions and every day during their 3 weeks at the school. the journals were submitted as part of the portfolios. pre-service teachers were required to develop during their practical experience. group interactions were an important aspect of the individual student’s engagement with the content of the modules. in addition to lectures and daily writing activities, students were required to form discussion groups to debate and ‘sound out’ thoughts and ideas. each group was required to submit a group poster reflecting their school-based work integrated learning process after their observation period at the school. these posters formed part of the assessment regime for the module. the assessment regime for this module was aimed at fully supporting the desired attributes in pre-service teachers. every aspect of the pre-service teacher’s experience was 24 ressat 2022, 7(3): 18-35 valued and assessed, as can be seen in the assessment regime extracted from the learner guide below: table 1. 2018 assessment of sbw 121e – extract from learner guide formative assessment tasks attendance at contact sessions attendance of contact sessions of this module are mandatory. a mark reflecting attendance will constitute 10% of the mark toward this course. formative 10% host teacher review: professional conduct your host teacher will complete a 10 item assessment of your professional conduct, indicating whether or not you arrived on time, behaved appropriately, and treated children, teachers and others in the school community kindly and with respect. the mark of this assessment will account for 20% of your mark toward this course. see host teacher assessment in your student guide for this course. formative 20% written assignment / group project there will be one written assignment or group project assigned by your lecturer team formative 10% summative assessment task: portfolio submission organisation and neatness of portfolio 5% evidence of careful notetaking (observation schedule and note book) 10% 6 reflective pieces (180-250 words) (5% each) 30% summative reflection (750 words) 15% instructional approaches – one lecturer – one class (2019) with the introduction of the intermediate phase qualification in 2019, the 6-member staff team assigned to work with the foundation phase group in 2018 were split into 2 groups of 3 staff, one for the foundation phase and one for intermediate phase. only one of the staff members involved with the group the previous year stayed on as part of the teaching team. in 2019, the idea of a 2 -3 member team working on one class with a group was amended due to an increase in student numbers and the lack of staff members. the instructional time remained the same as that of 2018. in 2019, the instructional approaches to developing the desired competences followed more of a lecturing approach, with the lecturer responsible for preparing and presenting material. one of the drawbacks of assigning one teacher educator to a group of pre-service teachers was that there was only one instructional leader present in a session. the content 25 ressat 2022, 7(3): 18-35 stayed the same but the assessment regime changed, as it proved to be over-ambitious and bulky.the following extract, from the assessment rubric for 2019, reflects the shift in assessment focus, in comparison to what was expected from the 2018 cohort. table 2. school-based work integrated learning experience rubric 2019 complete & neat: (compliance with formatting requirements) no yes instructions for structure adhered to: labelled file + contents page + 5 signposted sections overall neat/professional presentation declaration of professional ethics section 1: attendance register with school stamp section 2: daily record with school stamp section 3: host teacher’s summative evaluation section 4: observation essays (9) section 5: summative reflective task observation essays 0 – no evidence; 3poor; 5adequate; 7good; 10excellent the classroom environment 0 3 5 7 10 a well substantiated description and reflection on the organisation of the classroom environment. a well substantiated description and reflection on a typical classroom day. a well substantiated description and reflection on the classroom management strategies used by the host teacher. children and learning 0 3 5 7 10 learning interactions: speaking learning interactions: reading and writing thriving versus struggling learners language teaching and the organisation of lessons 0 3 5 7 10 mathematics lesson home language/first additional language self-reflective task 0 3 5 7 10 an authentic self-reflection report indicative of what was learnt, what gaps were identified and a clear strategy on how the gaps will be addressed. total (100 marks) 26 ressat 2022, 7(3): 18-35 how did teacher educators adapt their instructional methods to an online setting? in 2020, the team involved in the teaching of sbw 121e were faced with taking new entrants into the profession through their first exposure to the practical component of teacher training in an online-setting. the members of the sbw 121e team included two teacher educators, with a foundation phase focus and two teacher educators, with an intermediate phase focus. in 2021, the teaching team membership changed to four members on the team. the instructional time per week stayed at one 90 minute lecture per week. for content, which was more generic in nature, both phase groups were combined into one online session. each member of the team was responsible for teaching one of the 4 generic curriculum themes to the entire first year student cohort, using the online platform. every member of the teaching team attended every session. each session had a lead teacher, with the rest of the team playing a supporting role, which included alerting the presenter to raised hands and issues raised in the chatroom. the fifth theme, which was phase specific, was taught by either the 2-member team, representing the foundation phase, or the two-member team, representing the intermediate phase, on the same platform on different days. for this presentation, the students were split and only attended one of the sessions. the on-line setting required that sessions be created on the e-learning platform and all participants be sent the link in-order to join sessions. the team leader was responsible for creating sessions and uploading all content. the decrease in staff and the increase in the number of first year pre-service teachers resulted in the online environment approach changing to predominantly lecture mode. the lead presenter would present content and only stop if alerted by the team, if there was a hand or a question raised in the ‘chat box’. what were the successes/challenges teacher educators experienced during the transitioning from face-to-face to online learning platforms? the shift to online learning was not without its successes. firstly, the teacher educators worked successfully as a team and all content was uploaded onto the e-learning platform. this included everyone assisting with team teaching and assisting each other with technical issues. the shift to online learning meant that the teacher educators had to quickly improve their technological skills and competence. teacher educator 1(te 1) noted, “wow, if i remember what i knew then [before covid 19] and what i know now there is no comparison. i am so much more competent. i have even become used to teaching ‘faceless’ students.” while some of the teacher educators had limited experience with the online platform, they had to adapt too. teacher educator 2 (te 2) noted: i had used the online platform but mainly for putting up notes and readings. i had never used it for teaching and assessing. fortunately, we had some experts and our institution was able to provide us with some training. i also learned from my colleagues. the ones 27 ressat 2022, 7(3): 18-35 who were more advanced than me. when i had a question, i would ask them and they would help me. furthermore, the on-line learning also meant that the teacher educators were not tied down to a specific venue and teaching slot, which allowed for more flexibility and scheduling of classes during optimal connectivity times. student migration and attendance to the online platform was successfully done, the issue of data was circumvented (but not eliminated) with cell phone providers providing zero rated data and with funded students, each receiving a laptop. furthermore, lectures were recorded and students could go back and ensure that they understood the lecture, a resource that they did not previously have at their disposal. the pandemic, over the past two years that this study covers, caused severe psychosocial stress leading to depression, fear, lack of resources and economic instability (maruta et al., 2021). the resumption of classes meant that the online/e-learning platform provided a distraction, as both the teacher educators and the pre-service teachers could concentrate on online classes with their academic studies resuming, albeit in a new format. however, despite these successes, a number of challenges were encountered. the move to the e-learning platform was successful, but it only worked as long as the teacher educators and pre-service teachers had connectivity and the necessary technological skills. even though they are provided with a laptop, many students had not had the advantage of being exposed to technological skills or sufficient technological skills that they needed to make the shift during their high school career. the majority of the pre-service teachers had come from disadvantaged areas and had never operated a laptop, let alone attended online classes. initially, many students could not log on, were not in the correct course room or logged on late. teacher educator 3 (te 3) noted: “they arrive late and proceed to query matters which was dealt with at the start of the session. this disrupts the flow of session. late arrivals disrupt the flow of the class.” in addition, based on the individual’s access to a stable internet connection, as most participants connected from home, staff and students alike experienced connectivity challenges, as well as intermittent load shedding in 2021. te 2 noted: i was in the middle of my lecture, using the online platform, and had assigned a group task. it was a disaster. i put the students into groups and then had to redo the groups as the pre-service teachers experienced load shedding and one or two groups only had one participant in it. it did not work at all. at other times, student’s connectivity is low and they have to reconnect all the time. this means that sometimes they miss 10% of the lecture. i sometimes find it easier to just lecture. the teacher educators also noted that additional technical issues included pre-service teachers not being able to activate their microphone or not able to hear presenters and losing connectivity. furthermore, the impersonal nature of listening to a lecturer through a computer 28 ressat 2022, 7(3): 18-35 screen is an additional shift that students needed to make. due to issues of bandwidth, everyone, including the presenter, worked ‘invisibly’ with cameras switched off. only the projected presentation could be seen on the online platform. the lack of human interaction can be alienating, for both the pre-service teachers and for the teacher educators, as they are used to being aware of the classroom atmosphere and facial expressions in order to gauge the effectiveness of their lecture. the issue of answering question(s) was an added disadvantage. when the lead presenter posed questions, the support team would identify who needed to answer the question. the pre-service teachers’ reaction, when they were called upon to answer the question or were unwilling to answer, would often be to disconnect; leave the session or use the excuse that their microphone did not work. te 1 noted: i found it frustrating when students ignore questions in the online setting, they just keep quiet. at least when i am in a classroom, i can ask someone, or i can physically move to the student and ask them to answer the question. we do not have this in an online setting. student attendance at these sessions was low. the pre-service teacher would report that they were attending other lectures, or incorrectly logged onto the incorrect lecture not dealing with their teaching phase. this was not desirable, as the attendance numbers reflected incorrectly. in addition, pre-service teachers took advantage of the fact that lecture sessions were recorded and did not always attend classes and sometimes missed information that was dealt with in a previous session. the decrease in staff to student ratio adversely affected the course. in 2020, six staff were allocated to teach on the course. this number decreased in 2021, with only 4 teacher educators being responsible for in excess of 300 students. the decrease in allocated staff members was not an issue during virtual lectures, however, it became a challenge during the assessment of the 300 students’ portfolios. kolb (1984) refers to a cycle of learning as including knowledge internalization, application of knowledge, and analysis and synthesis of knowledge and activity. school based work integrated learning is in essence a cycle of learning. it requires pre-service teachers to actively engage and reflect on their experiences. traditionally, preservice teachers learn theories, pedagogies and practical strategies from lectures and within lectures, prior to their work integrated learning sessions at schools. the lectures provide an opportunity for lecturers to demonstrate good practice that they expect the pre-service teachers to use. the work integrated learning component is, therefore, essential in providing an opportunity for the application of learned knowledge and is a key element that allows for experimentation between knowledge and practice. one of the major challenges of moving to the e-learning platform was the fact that, in 2020, pre-service teachers were unable to do their teaching experience within an authentic school setting. this meant that pre-service teachers could not experience handson teaching, gain experience and develop their professional skills, such as classroom 29 ressat 2022, 7(3): 18-35 management and planning and assessing (ersin et al., 2020) and applying the knowledge from lectures. in 2021, first year students were able complete their school-based work integrated learning component, however, this was during what was known as the “third covid wave”, which meant that covid infections were high at schools, with teachers and learners becoming infected and schools having to close while they were being sanitised. the following communique (figure 1) was received in 2021 from the first-year class representative. figure 1. email from the first-year class representative the figure 2 illustrates the covid infections and subsequent educational disruptions that occurred in a local school during the work integrated learning period. figure 2. covid-19 infections and subsequent educational disruptions in a local school a number of students became infected with covid 19 while they were at schools and this impacted on their school experience too. the following e-mail (figure 3) from a student states that she had to self-isolate, as the host teacher was positive for covid 19. figure 3. e-mail from a student 30 ressat 2022, 7(3): 18-35 an added factor during their first experience at school was the fact that many teachers became infected with covid. this meant that many pre-service teachers did not have a mentor teacher to assist them with the transition into the classroom. in addition, despite having no prior experience, school principals and leaders often placed these students in charge of classes themselves. the school based work integrated learning was, therefore, a period of stress, fraught with a number of disruptions for many pre-service teachers. as a result of this, even though they did manage to attend schools, the period was disrupted and the learning was, therefore, not consistent. the submission of tasks, using the online platform, was an added challenge. pre-service teachers were not used to this platform and often submitted their work in a format that could not be opened on the online platform. furthermore, the online platform did not accept late submissions. this resulted in additional work for the already burdened 4 teacher educators, as they now had to communicate each issue to the pre-service teacher. not all pre-service teachers responded to the communique, which resulted in a number of students receiving a zero mark for the course, which then had to be amended later. in addition, not all teacher educators were comfortable with the shift to marking online nor were they adequately conversant with the e-learning platform and, as a result, downloaded students’ tasks, which resulted in the downloaded work being deleted from the system. figure 1 below shows the increase in student numbers from 2018 to 2021. in addition, the number of pre-service not meeting the 50% pass requirement increased, which meant that the failure rate in 2021 was much higher than in the preceding years. furthermore, the failure rate amongst pre-service teachers tends to be lower among students registered on the bachelor in foundation phase teaching (fpt) than students registered on the bachelor in intermediate phase teaching (ipt). table 3. student numbers from 2018 to 2021 year no. of teacher educators no of student enrolled students who achieved a course mark less than 50 % 2018 6 150 5 2019 6 300 2(fpt) 10 (ipt) 2020 5 352 4(fpt) 5(ipt) 2021 4 402 62 31 ressat 2022, 7(3): 18-35 discussion what instructional methods did teacher educators use in the preparation of pre-service teachers prior to the shift to online-learning? this research revealed that, at the university where the research took place, there has been a significant increase in the number of students enrolled on the course, but the staff compliment was not increased exponentially. the council for higher education (2016, cited in johnson et. al., 2016) notes that this phenomenon is a current trend in south africa as well as globally. this has the added challenge of students who enter university not always being the strongest students academically (taylor, 2021). this means that more and not less staff are required to address the deficit and prepare students for their school-based learning. human resource allocation there was a significant increase in the number of pre-service teachers, but the teacher educators allocated to the course decreased from 2018. the preparation of year 1 pre-service teachers prior to covid 19 was the responsibility of 9 teacher educators organised into 3 teams under the leadership of a lead teacher in 2018. with the introduction of the intermediate phase qualification in 2019, the team-teaching approach was abandoned and phase groups were taught separately. in the time-period 2020 – 2021, a team of 4 academics taught the module to a combined group of foundation and intermediate phase students, with a marked increase in student numbers. instructional changes the move from a face-to-face instructional time approach to the online platform was a necessity, given the covid pandemic. the instructional time for the classes stayed the same, except for online sessions. however, prior to the pandemic, the preparation of the students for the practical experience at schools was face to face instruction. in these sessions, the relevant staff members could model appropriate pedagogical approaches face-to face, with the student observing. modelling appropriate practices has long been seen as an appropriate method for preparing pre-service teachers (couso & garrido, 2017; lunenberg et al., 2007; aleccia, 2011). modelling appropriate teaching practices to preservice teachers provided the teacher educations with the opportunity to demonstrate specific and appropriate teaching practices during lectures. the shift to online learning in 2020 and 2021 meant that the modelling of classroom techniques and teaching was no longer an option and alternative methods had to be implemented. pedagogical strategies used for teaching on an online platform are not always pedagogical strategies appropriate for the face-to-face nature of a school classroom. on-line learning incorporates a different skill set from face-to face learning (okeke et al., 2022). while virtual learning is effective, it lacks the modelling of appropriate classroom strategies for preservice teachers. 32 ressat 2022, 7(3): 18-35 assessment practices the assessment of the module, in 2018, included both formative and summative aspects, with every aspect of the training being valued. the development of reflective practice through daily journaling, during the preparation period and practical school experience, was a crucial aspect of the module. allowing pre-service teachers to be placed in schools for a period of time has been actively promoted, as it provides the opportunity to observe a teacher in action, for the student to teach and reflect on their teaching and translate theoretical ideas into practice (sasaki, 2020). in 2019, there was a shift in assessment practices with less formative assessment and a reduction in the number of summative tasks. the assessment changed in 2020, from pre-service students not undertaking school based work integrated learning experiencing, and, instead, producing four (4) assignments as the means of a summative assessment. this meant that one of the major components of hands-on training in the classroom, which was meant to prepare them to manage their own class in the future, was absent. while simulated learning was used to address the fact that pre-service teachers could not do their school experience, these measures cannot replace the reality of teaching a classroom of children (ersin et al., 2020). furthermore, the 2020 cohort of students have had less practical experience of being in a classroom, which could have implications later on. in 2021, pre-service teachers did attend schools, however, the assessment was in the form of an e-portfolio. the online assessment process was handled differently by individual members of the teacher educator team. the majority of the team opted for online assessment with a rubric, whilst one of the team preferred to have submission printed out. the teachereducator, who had to print out the forms highlighted the fact that they lacked the necessary skills and knowledge to adequately deal with the e-platform. this could adversely affect the effective functioning of the course. lee et al. (2020) found that teacher educators did not always have the necessary technological skills to support the online learning, assessment and engagement of students. many pre-service teachers did not know how to upload the document in an appropriate format, resulting in the assessment process being more complex. this indicated that, a year later, pre-service teachers were still not conversant with the on-line platform. recommendations school based work integrated learning is an integral part of any pre-service teacher’s training and, therefore, an appropriate staff-student compliment is essential. in order to negate the alienating and impersonal nature of the e-learning platform, a hybrid approach should be implemented, with both e-learning and face-to-face lectures being conducted. furthermore, the pairing of a bachelor of education 4th year student with a first-year student as a mentor would assist in, not only humanizing the course, but also providing the student with added guidance. in order to mitigate the problem that students have of submitting their work using the e33 ressat 2022, 7(3): 18-35 learning platform, more detailed guidance and training should be provided to the pre-service teachers. the use of formative as well as summative assessment, as well as the use of reflective essays should be used as part of the assessment process. conclusion no one was prepared for covid 19 and the shift to an e-learning platform, however, teaching pre-service teachers using the online learning platform presented a number of challenges. therefore, in order to not only ensure that we enter and stay abreast of the 4th industrial revolution and potential future pandemics, as well as ensuring that pre-service teachers have sound pedagogical knowledge, a hybrid or blended approach be used for the teaching of courses. references adu, k. o., badaru, k. a., duku, n., & adu, e. o. 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(1962). the development of scientific concepts in childhood. https://doi.org/10.1037/11193-005. havard university press. 35 ressat 2022, 7(3): 18-35 weber, n. d., hersh c., w., brown, d. b., & kelly, l. j. (2016). informing teacher education through the use of multiple classroom observation instruments. teacher education quaterly, 91 106. yanow, d., & schwartz-shea, p. (2014). interpretive analysis and comparative research. in comparative policy studies (pp. 131-159). palgrave macmillan, london. zeidler, d. l. (2002). dancing with maggots and saints: visions for subject matter knowledge, pedagogical knowledge, and pedagogical content. journal of science teachereducation, 13(1), 27-42. microsoft word 2.nwosu&matashu.20-41 research in social sciences and technology https://ressat.org e-issn: 2468-6891 volume: 7 issue: 1 2022 pp. 20-41 exploring perceived human resources factors influencing the performance of grade 12 accounting learners in north west secondary schools in south africa lilian ifunanya nwosu*a & martha matashub * corresponding author email: 23012064@nwu.ac.za a. faculty of economics and management sciences, north west university, mafikeng, south africa b. school of commerce and social studies in education, north west university, mafikeng, south africa article info received: december 29, 2021 revised: january 21, 2022 accepted: february 20, 2022 how to cite nwosu, l. i., & matashu, m. (2022). exploring perceived human resources factors influencing the performance of grade 12 accounting learners in north west secondary schools in south africa. research in social sciences and technology, 7(1), 20-41. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2022.3 copyright license this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 abstract this study explored the perceived human resources factors influencing the performance of accounting learners in north west secondary schools in south africa. despite the significant role that secondary school accounting education is perceived to play in shaping the development of accounting professionals, few studies have focused on investigating the effect of human resources on accounting learners’ performance in secondary school. the study sought to understand the human resource factors influencing the performance of accounting learners in north west secondary schools in south africa. the study’s findings may assist the school management to improve human resource utilisation towards the achievement of a better accounting learners’ performance. to address the gap in the literature, a mixed method sequential explanatory study was conducted in north west districts with 183 school management teams and 61 educators. the sequential explanatory study aimed to explore the perceived human resources factors influencing the performance of grade 12 accounting learners in secondary schools in the north west province, south africa. the findings from the quantitative phase showed that human resource factors such as pedagogical subject content knowledge and skills held by the educator are perceived to influence learner performance. in the second phase, the qualitative approach validated and explained the various human resource factors that influence accounting learners’ performance in north west secondary schools in south africa. school management should ensure that they employ adequate accounting learners to teach accounting in schools. this is so because accounting requires a pedagogical content knowledge and skills in teaching and learning. in conclusion, it is recommended that schools interested in improving learner performance should identify and address context-specific perceived human resources factors that influence learner performance within their schools. keywords accounting; learners’ performance; human resource; secondary schools; south africa. 10.46303/ressat.2022.3 21 ressat 2022, 7(1): 20-41 orientation and research purpose this study aimed to explore perceived human resource factors influencing the performance of grade 12 accounting learners in north west secondary schools in south africa. the importance of the accounting subject in secondary schools is underscored by the fact that throughout the world every sector in the economy depends on accounting knowledge, information, and measurement of financial performance. studies provided evidence of the significant role of accounting in different sectors. for example, vazakidis et al. (2010); kouriati et al. (2021) as well as argilés and slof (2001) discussed the importance of accounting in the farming sector; while wakuła (2020) and pallot (1992) discussed its importance in the public sector. moreover, allan et al. (2011) focused on renewal energy; and putra (2019), and nyathi et al. (2018) studied smallmedium entrepreneurship. accounting is one of the subjects in the national curriculum in south africa and is recognised as significant for measuring, processing, and disseminating financial information about economic sectors in the country (department of basic education, 2012). despite its critical national economic and social important outcomes associated with the subject in all sectors of the economy, a decline in the number of students enrolled for accounting and poor grade 12 accounting learners’ performance in south african schools remains a challenge. omebe (2014) suggested effective human resource management by educational management teams in schools building human capacities that foster improved learner performance. school management teams (smts), which consist of principals, deputy principals, and head of departments (hods), together with the educators, are responsible for the implementation of educational curriculum within schools. there is consensus amongst scholars that the organisational performance of any institution is dependent on human resources (anwar & abdullah, 2021; lloréns et al., 2021). human resources encompass the skills and abilities of people within an organisation that are regarded as a critical asset for the successful attainment of any organisational goals. competencies and performance of the educator have been identified in empirical studies as some of the major determinants of learner performance (magulod 2021; ranjbar & soodmand, 2021; turetsky et al. 2021). regarding the achievement of educational outcomes, romlah and latie (2021) explained that the quality of learner educational attainment is dependent on the educator as a human resource. mupfudze and mapolisa (2021) recognised the importance of exploring factors influencing learner academic performance in exit examination levels, thereby emphasising the importance of such an understanding to evaluate and measure the attainment of educational goals within an economy. evidence from the department of education national examination report (2020) indicates that the number of accounting learners enrolled nationally decreased from 140 474 in 2015 to 128 853 in 2016, and plummeted further to 92 767 in 2020. it is evident that there was a 28% decline in enrolment for accounting between the years 2016 and 2020. the overall performance trends from 2016 to 2020 revealed that students that achieve 40% and above ranged between 42% to 52%, suggesting that the majority of accounting learners only achieved between 30% and less than 40% (department of education national examination 22 ressat 2022, 7(1): 20-41 report, 2020). various provincial departments of education have noted the decline in learner enrolment and underperformance in accounting as a challenge. for instance, in 2018 35 139 learners in the gauteng province were enrolled in accounting; however, in 2019 this number dropped to 14 768 (department of basic education, 2020). similarly, the limpopo department of education subject improvement plan report (2018) indicated that from 2014 to 2018, the number of schools offering the accounting subject declined from 1097 to 882, and learners enrolled for the subject also decreased from 17 320 to 14 188 (news sa, 2019). worth noting, the department of education had and continues to put in place several intervention measures aimed at improving the performance of accounting learners. the department of education national examination report (2020) highlighted the reduction of time management pressure by splitting the grade 12 accounting assessment into two papers (combined with a total of four hours to complete a 300 marks examination in contrast to the previous three hours). the department of education national examination report (2020) explains that the splitting of the examination into two papers allowed the distribution of content during the assessment. moreover, individuals such as educators, subject advisors, and other professional bodies also contributed through intervention strategies. despite interventions from various stakeholders, the performance of accounting learners remains unsatisfactory, suggesting that additional strategies for improving learner performance should be explored. the challenge that arises is the decreased number of previously disadvantaged learners enrolling for accounting at the secondary school level where there are growing concerns about a shortage of chartered accountants in south africa, which is adversely affecting industries (mkhize, 2017; terre blanche, 2019). if the observed challenges are left unresolved, the accounting subject is likely to become extinct, thereby depriving south african learners of an opportunity to pursue a career in accounting or finance related discipline. the following problem question can be posed in terms of the continued observed decline in the enrolment and learner performance; are perceived human resource factors influencing the performance of grade 12 accounting learners? this suggests that differences in learners’ performance may be explained by the differences in the skills, knowledge, expertise, and competences of the teacher with which implementation of the curriculum is done in the classroom. as a profound point of departure from previous research, this study focuses on exploring perceived human resource factors influencing the performance of grade 12 accounting learner’s in north west secondary schools in south africa. this study is guided by three objectives:  to explore the principals’ and deputy principals’ perceived human resource factors influencing the performance of accounting learners.  to investigate the head of departments’ perceived human resource factors influencing the performance of accounting learners. 23 ressat 2022, 7(1): 20-41  to establish the educators’ perceived human resource factors influencing the performance of accounting learners. theoretical framework in this study, the performance theory was adopted to explore the influence of human resource on learner performance. the performance theory recognises individual performance as the main predictor of the attainment of desired organisational goals. sonnentag and frese (2001) point out that organisations require high performing individuals to meet their goals and to deliver the products and services they specialise in despite any stress. schools are organisations that focus on implementing the teaching and learning of a curriculum to achieve the desired national educational outcomes as reflected by learner attainment. interpreted within the context of the performance theory, educators are human resources that are responsible for the implementation of the national curriculum to achieve the desired educational goals. the performance theory distinguishes performance into behavioural and outcome aspects of performance (sonnentag & frese, 2001). the performance theory implies that it establishes an understanding of the human resource factor’s role influencing learner performance in schools, and the effect of the behavioural and outcome aspects of the performance of the teacher. sonnentag and frese (2001) explain that behavioural aspects relate to the actions performed by an individual in the workplace to cope with stress and achieve set organisational goals. behavioural aspects in the context of the educator encompasses the tasks that an educator does in the school, such as facilitating teaching and learning, lesson planning, assessment of learners, management of the classroom, and portraying leadership in instructional activities. behavioural aspects are different from performance aspects which campbell et al. (1993) describe as the tasks that one is employed to perform with an organisation. interpreted from the human resource perspective, employees within the organisation should be in possession of skills and competences that enable them to perform their tasks. gathumbi (2013) maintains that the performance enables the educator to undertake a complex series of actions that integrate skills and knowledge to produce a valuable result. outcomes are the consequences of the individual behaviour, whilst outcome in the performance aspects are dependent on other factors besides the individual behaviour. gathumbi (2013) adds that for effective implementation of performance theory, educators can employ various teaching and learning strategies. the performance theory explained human resource factors that influence performance in an organisation. the following section presents a literature review that primarily focuses on exploring these elements. literature review advances have been in the literature that human resource is a predictor of performance in any organisation and schools as institutions. there is evidence that human resource capacities possessed by the educator determine long-term learner academic achievement (liu & loeb, 2021; romlah & latief, 2021). the literature highlights several practical implications of 24 ressat 2022, 7(1): 20-41 behaviour performance aspects of the teacher, that have an impact on learner performance across subjects, for example, teacher pedagogical knowledge and competences and administrative skills (hashmi, 2014; kleickmann et al., 2011). hashmi (2014) further explained that some schools are struggling to recruit the human resource that has adequate teachers’ competences and capability, arguing that this poses a threat towards the attainment of learners’ performance. eaglesham (2020) and hashmi (2014) raised the importance for schools to ensure efficient teacher recruitment and the need for capability such as knowing the content to teach, an understanding of the teaching materials that will aid in teaching, and creative and critical thinking. kleickmann et al. (2011) underscore that teachers need to have content knowledge and pedagogical content knowledge as it is a key competence that affects learners’ progress. seezink and poel (2011) affirm that teacher’s professional development should be centred on developing their skills and competences. this is because a lack of competency might result in poor teaching and learning of accounting as a subject. sonnentag and frese (2001) identified job performance as influenced by several personal attributes of the employee such as the person’s abilities, personality, education, training, experience, and self-management. this implies that smts and educators should consider these human resources variables when considering learner performance. the curriculum and assessment policy statement (caps) (department of basic education, 2012) describes accounting as a subject that requires learners to be able to record, analyse. and interpret financial and other relevant data to make informed decisions, present and/or communicate financial information effectively. these afore-mentioned learning outcomes highlight the behavioural and outcome performance that educators should be able to achieve in their assigned task of teaching and learning in accounting. terre-blanche (2019) found that the teaching and learning of accounting in secondary schools is a major factor influencing the shortage of talent in the accountancy profession. this finding is consistent with baard et al. (2010) who identified the overall academic performance (in grade 12 results) as a strong predictor of success in first-year accounting at university. the failure to achieve the desired attainment in secondary school accounting education raises a major concern because it reduces and deprives the learners’ prospects of pursuing chartered accountancy or a financerelated professional. fry et al. (2009) observed that most accounting learners were discouraged from pursuing accounting at university if they struggled with grasping the subject in secondary school. van romburgh (2014) suggested that accounting school teachers might be ill-equipped with the relevant teaching and learning methods that may enhance learners’ performance. ngwenya (2014) recommended that educators should develop the ability to construct assessments that enable learners to be creative and also attain the aims outlined in the caps. grieser et al. (2018) confirm that another competency of the teacher is to have a pedagogical understanding of the content of the subject taught. understanding this from the performance theory perspective entails that an educator should have certain behavioural and operational performance competences. stringham (2015) affirms that an educator should be able to 25 ressat 2022, 7(1): 20-41 communicate accurate content, concepts, and explanation of a given curriculum in an assessment. such competences that an educator should possess may include the ability to use different teaching, learning, and assessment strategies to achieve the desired learner academic attainment. research by molise (2017) laments that there are deficiencies relating to teachers' content knowledge and competence of accounting teachers in both rural and urban schools. this may be a result of inadequate human resources employed to teach accounting. generally, accounting as a subject is considered very difficult. this makes for fewer people pursuing accounting as a profession, particularly in the teaching of accounting. as such, there tends to be difficulty in recruiting the appropriate human resource for teaching accounting in secondary schools. additionally, human resource management (hrm) is seen to incorporate specific practices and processes, formal policies, and overarching human resource philosophies where an organisation’s employees are secured, developed, retained, and rewarded (cloete, 2016). omebe (2014) adds that hrm should be considered in schools to ensure that the appropriate educators are appointed in the teaching and learning of a given curriculum. this suggests that smts are expected to ensure that the appropriate educator is recruited to teach accounting to ensure improved performance of learners in accounting. this is as a result of those who venture into the field of accounting who may only do so for the financial gains; hence, only a few personnel are available to teach accounting as a subject. method research design this study followed the explanatory mixed-method sequential design. this design is carried out in two phases. this involves the collection and analysis of quantitative data, followed by the collection and analysis of qualitative data (west, 2012). given the scarcity of empirical evidence on human resource factors affecting accounting learners’ performance in secondary schools, this study will benefit from an explanatory sequential approach. according to boru (2018), explanatory sequential design is useful for gathering a more detailed understanding where little information in the quantitative phase exists. this implies that the use of explanatory sequential design enabled quantitative data to be used to identify constructs or variables that can further be validated, explained, interpreted, or contextualised in detail with the qualitative findings. sample a sample total of 183 smts and 61 educators in ngaka modiri molema district (nmmdm) in the north west province were randomly selected from 61 accounting secondary schools in north west province. the participants are combination of 97 males and 86 females. the accounting educators utilised are educators with three to five years of experience in teaching accounting subject in secondary schools. a structured questionnaire and interview were used to collect data. the emerging constructs/factors in the questionnaire were statistically analysed, presented, and further validated with the themes found in the qualitative analysis through the 26 ressat 2022, 7(1): 20-41 aid of atlas.ti. the appendix shows the reliability and validity test of the factors from data collected from smts and educators. research instrument several measures were taken to ensure the rigour, validity, and reliability of the findings from this study. cronbach’s alpha was used to test the reliability of each factor in the questionnaires to measure the internal consistency among the items/variables associated with a factor. the appendix shows that the cronbach’s alpha for the items under each of the factor in the study is at least 0.6 indicating that variables were valid. according to babbie (2010), a validity test measures the extent to which the study reflects the real meaning of the concept under consideration. a confirmatory factor analysis (cfa) was used to confirm the validity of each factor (dasgupta et al., 2017). the validity test in the appendix also shows that all the estimated paths from cfa for all the items remaining in the instrument are significant at a 5% level of significance (p-values < 0.05); therefore, each of the items in the table significantly belong to their respective factors (garritz, 2013). this implies that all the factors are reliable. ethical considerations for this study were also observed and attained. data collection and data analysis factors f16, f17, and f18 represent the findings from principals, together with deputy principals, hods, and educators respectively. the emerging constructs from the quantitative phase were validated using a qualitative detailed interview. this enabled the researcher to validate and explain the emerging themes from the quantitative phase of the study. according to the principals and deputy principals, the human resource factors that influenced the performance of accounting learners are presented in figure 1 below. these were analysed using factor f16 for smts sub-items f16.3, f16.4, f16.5, and f16.6. where the sub-items represented the following: f16.3 = experienced educators are used for the teaching of accounting; f16.4 = educators that specialise in accounting education; f16.5 = educators in possession of finance or chartered accounting qualifications but have no pedagogical knowledge; and f16.6 = educators that understand the principles and content relating to the didactics of accounting but have inadequate qualifications. results and discussion figure 1 shows that principals and deputy principals strongly agree to agree, whilst others strongly disagree to disagree that some human resource factors influence learners’ performance. this indicates that principals, deputy principals, and hods have some mixed perceptions about the effect of human resources on learner performance. for instance, in item f16.3, 11.7% strongly agree and 57% agree, while 25.7% disagree and 5.6% strongly disagree that the use of experienced educators in the teaching of accounting has an impact on learner performance. this suggests that some principals and deputy principals disregard the basic human resources principles that require employees to be in possession of skills and knowledge 27 ressat 2022, 7(1): 20-41 that enable them to perform their responsibilities. similarly, item f16.1 shows that 18.4% of principals and deputy principals strongly agree and 56.4% agree, while 16.8% disagree and 8.4% strongly disagree that educators that specialise in accounting education are used to teach accounting. this suggests that some schools are using educators who are not qualified to teach accounting. the findings in item f16.5 show that 73.2% disagree and 3.9% strongly disagree that educators that do not have the relevant knowledge of financial accounting and chartered accounting education improve learner performance. the findings in item f16.6 show that 6.7% strongly agree, 18.4% agree, 63.1% disagree, and 11.7% strongly disagree that educators that understand the principles and content relating to the didactics of accounting are used to teach accounting. figure 1. principals and deputy principals’ perceptions on the influence of human resources on the performance of accounting learners in the second phase of the study, qualitative data was collected to validate and provide an explanation to the constructs emerging from factor f16, as presented in items f16.3, f16.4, f16.5, and f16.6. this section presents the responses from the interviews with principals on the perceived influences of human resources on learners’ performance. 28 ressat 2022, 7(1): 20-41 figure 2. principals’ views on human resource factors influencing the performance of accounting learners figure 2 shows that principals hold the view that human resource has a positive effect on learners’ performance through its influence on teaching and learning. it is evident that all the principals have different views; they have a shared common belief that qualified educators with both subject and pedagogical content knowledge in accounting contribute to improved learner performance. p1, p2, and p3 represent peculiar verbatim words from the three principals who were interviewed during the qualitative phase: for human resources, if we have the relevant accounting educator, i believe learners’ performance in accounting can improve… we struggled to get accounting educators with relevant qualifications. from our educators, three have the relevant qualification, while one has a bed in education, majoring in accounting. the rest have qualifications in advanced certificate in education (ace) programmes, and one has a bcom economics and postgraduate certificate in education (pgce) [p1]. based on the above comment, it is evident that p1 believes that learner performance can be attributed to the qualification that an educator has. p2, below, shares similar sentiments that a relevant qualification can equip the individual educator with subject content knowledge and didactics: our department has killed education by closing education colleges, now we are begging for human resources. we took someone with pgce rather than an education degree. that is where we got it wrong because they do not have the full methodology to teach. they cannot come up with strategies to teach difficult topics. if we hire a full educationist in accounting, then the performance would be good. our accounting educators here 29 ressat 2022, 7(1): 20-41 always say that they were trained to be accountants, not to teach. they, unfortunately, couldn’t make it as accountants, and thus settled for teaching. as a result, they enrolled in a one-year pgce programme which does not cater for all teaching and content methodology. [p2] p2 highlights the challenges associated with employing educators who are perceived to have inadequate teacher education training. p2 holds the view that acquiring a pgce qualification does not sufficiently equip educators with training on the methodology of teaching and learning. however, p3’s response asserts and reinforces the idea that good learner performance depends on the skills and knowledge of the educator. the right accounting educator will enhance good performance. i would not encourage schools to employ educators that have basic knowledge on accounting because they do not have grounded knowledge. [p3] these perceptions validate and explain the construct that emerged in f16.5, where respondents strongly agree to agree that employing suitably qualified educators with adequate pedagogical and content knowledge improves learners’ performance. based on the verbatim comments provided, it is evident that all the principals discourage the practice of employing accounting educators who are not suitably qualified because this contributes to poor learner performance. these perceptions are consistent with the views of anwar and abdullah (2021) who expounded that the performance of any organisation is dependent on the effectiveness of its human resources. furthermore, figure 3 depicts the responses of the deputy principals who were interviewed in the qualitative phase of the study in a bid to validate and explain the construct that emerged from the analysis of factor 16 presented in figure 1. the deputy principals (dp) form part of the school management team that is responsible for strategic planning of the human resource need of the school as such they were interviewed in this study. judging by the views depicted in figure 3, it emerged from the interviews conducted with the deputy principals that they all share the common view that the lack of adequately qualified educators can negatively influence the teaching and learning of accounting. it can be concluded that although dp1, dp4, and dp5 recognise the need to employ suitably qualified employees to teach the subject of accounting, they acknowledge that schools are facing challenges of finding such qualified educators. for human resources, we also struggle. our accounting educator only has an ace qualification; however, if the number of learners enrolled in accounting improves, then we will look at hiring a better educator… our accounting educator does not have the relevant skills but we are working on it because this a commercial school. accounting is a commercial subject and we do not want to let it die. [dp1] 30 ressat 2022, 7(1): 20-41 figure 3. views of deputy principals’ on human resource factors influencing the performance of accounting learners the picture painted by [dp1] suggests that the use of unqualified educators to teach accounting is a contributing factor to an observed decline in the enrolment figures. this observation confirms the views of romlah and latief (2021) as well as liu and loeb (2021) who suggested that the decreasing enrolment of accounting learners and poor performance were associated with poor teacher pedagogical content, knowledge, and competences to teach accounting. similar concerns can also be detected from the responses cited below: our accounting educator holds an honours in education degree, majoring in accounting and business studies. we make sure that we get the best accounting educator that will also be good in other ems subjects. she teaches ems and accounting. we are hoping that the learners’ interest in choosing accounting as a subject increase. [dp4] currently, we are struggling with the adequate human resource to teach accounting. we have employed more than four accounting educators in the past two years, but their performance was not great. we are planning to phase out accounting because the students are small in number, unlike in business studies and economics. [dp5] these perceptions indicate that despite an understanding of the importance of hiring qualified educators to teach accounting in school, smts are facing challenges in attracting such human personal. for instance, dp4 reported that his school has a qualified educator to teach accounting. however, it remains a concern that schools such as those of dp5 are struggling to get adequate educators; thus, they are considering discontinuing accounting as a subject. the responsibility of recruiting competent educators lies with the principals and deputy principals, together with other smt members and the department of education district officials. such 31 ressat 2022, 7(1): 20-41 information provides a basis for the smts and department officials to design and implement a human resource strategic development plan to support the offering of accounting in secondary schools. hods as members of the smts views on human resources and its influence in teaching and learning of accounting were captured and depicted in figure 4 below. figure 4. views of hods on human resource factors influencing the performance of accounting learners the importance of finding suitably trained educators to facilitate teaching and learning in secondary schools is reinforced and reflected in the views of the hods (as depicted in figure 4). the hods views are centred on three constructs, namely lack of accounting didactics, key knowledge of the subject matter, and challenges in hiring suitably qualified accounting educators. these are human resource factors that are affecting learner performance across the schools that participated in this study. it is evident from the hods’ responses that they are concerned and thus the challenge in recruiting qualified and competent educators should be addressed. the views of the hods indicate the challenges of a lack of accounting didactics and lack of key knowledge of the subject matter as imminent operational risks that arise from unqualified educators can negatively influence the teaching and learning of accounting. the perceptions of the hods are consistent with cloete (2016) who attests that human resource is an important element that every organisation should consider enhancing performance. verbatim comments of the hods that were interviewed are shared below: some of the accounting educators that we have are from the chartered accounting (ca) and financial accounting (fa) routes with pgce, which is somewhat okay for us even though we would prefer someone with a strong bed background. [hod1] 32 ressat 2022, 7(1): 20-41 for human resource, i think if the knowledge exists, the person can perform well regardless of the qualification”. let me be sincere; i do not have the qualification, but i have the skills. i only completed ace and have accounting secondary school knowledge. my qualification is not in line with the current requirement. by the way, i did mathematics and accounting in grade 12 at this very school but since i was a good accounting student the principal absorbed me. therefore, i have been teaching accounting for 15 years at this school. i have tried to upgrade my qualifications to the minimum level, but this is still not in line with the current qualification. [hod2] hod2 is of the view that qualifications do not matter if the educator has the content knowledge. this is an indication that some hods do not see the need to employ qualified educators to teach the accounting curriculum. these perceptions run parallel to that of the human resource principles which explain that employees should be in possession of skills and knowledge that enhance their performance. human resource needs to be relevant, although at times it is a challenge to get the right candidate. [hod3]. the human resources employed to teach accounting in the school are not all experienced. most of them lack accounting didactics in teaching accounting, hence it is challenging. [hod6] based on these responses, it can be interpreted that whilst most hods perceived the hiring of qualified educators who have accounting content and didactics knowledge as necessary for safeguarding learners’ performance, a few members hold a different view. it appears from the responses of hod1, hod2, hod3, and hod6 that in practice, hods hold different perceptions about the influence of human resources on learner performance. in particular, it appears that whilst some hods believe that competent accountant educators should be in possession of relevant qualifications, others hold the view that qualifications do not matter for an educator to teach learners successfully. advice on the above findings can be inferred from elger (2012) who expounded the theoretical constructs of the performance theory which posits that better performance is obtained when management teams recruit the appropriate educators with both subject and pedagogical content knowledge. the afore-mentioned assertion leads one to conclude that employing educators without the required knowledge, skills, and values poses a risk to the learners’ performance. the educators perceived that human resource factors influence the performance of accounting learners (figure 5). these were analysed using factor f16. factor f16 constructs were further analysed using items f16.1, f16.2, and f16.3. where f16.1 = the use of temporary accounting educators has a positive effect on learner performance; f16.2 = accounting educators that can build strong teaching and learning relationships with learners are used to teach accounting which has a positive influence on learners’ performance; f16.3 = accounting 33 ressat 2022, 7(1): 20-41 educators that are well experienced and are properly selected or recommended by the smts are employed in the schools, which influences accounting learners’ performance. figure 5. the educators perceived human resource factors influencing the performance of accounting learners figure 5 above shows that the majority of the respondents strongly agree to agree, while the minority strongly disagree to disagree those different aspects of human resources influence learners’ performance. the findings in item f16.1 indicate that 16.1% strongly agree and 62.9% agree, whilst 17.7% disagree and 3.2% strongly disagree that the use of qualified educators has a positive influence on learners’ performance. it is a concern that a few educators strongly disagree to disagree with the item. this indicates that in some schools, the accounting educators are unqualified, which may be the reason that there is a decrease in the number of students interested in studying accounting in secondary schools. as a precautionary measure, nwosu (2017) recommended that training and workshops should be offered to keep educators’ knowledge and competences updated with recent developments. it also remains a concern that in some schools, the case is different as some educators strongly disagree to disagree with the item. in the second phase of the study, qualitative data was collected to validate and provide an explanation to the constructs emerging from factor f16. figure 6 shows the type of educators that were currently employed to teach accounting in schools. figure 6 below shows a sample of the qualifications of the 10 accounting educators used in the qualitative phase of the study. the findings above show that of the ten educators interviewed, four have obtained a four-year degree in accounting education, one has a fouryear education degree (with honours), two have a chartered accounting (ca)/financial accounting (fa) degree with a pgce, two have a bcom economics degree, and one has a bcom degree in business management. this portrays why some educators in the quantitative phase for items f16.1 and f16.3 strongly disagree to disagree that the qualifications held by the accounting educators have any significant influence on learners’ performance. the findings 34 ressat 2022, 7(1): 20-41 also show that of the 10 educators interviewed, one had a bcom economics degree while another one had a bcom in business management degree. figure 7 further expands on the educator’s qualifications with frequencies. figure 6. accounting educator’s qualifications figure 7. accounting educator’s qualifications with frequencies 35 ressat 2022, 7(1): 20-41 figure 7 above shows educators qualifications with frequencies, where g = grandness or frequencies of qualifications. for example, g1 for education means one participant reported to have a degree in accounting education or financial accounting with a pgce. also, d represents the number of qualifications noted. in total, participants reported eight different qualifications (d8) here, namely an accounting education degree, advance certificate in education, pgce, an economics degree, a business management degree, a ca degree, a degree in fa, and honours in education. verbatim comments are demonstrated below. i have a degree in accounting education, but i need more training because i graduated a long time ago. my qualification is old, so i may not be exposed to recent concepts. (ae1) i have a ca degree, then enrolled for pgce. i also have methodology in accounting, hence it will help in teaching the right concepts. (ae2) i majored in accounting and business, and did my honours in bed. my qualification is appropriate, but i need training to enhance my skills. (ae3) i did accounting education. (ae4) i did accounting education decades ago, but i know the content has since changed so there are challenges with the content. (ae5) i have a bcom in economics, i teach accounting and economics even though accounting is not my major. the principal requested that i teach the subject. (ae6) i did bcom accounting education, which is four years of training. i obtained the qualification a long time ago”. (ae7). i have a degree in financial accounting with pgce. i know the content in accounting and believe it will help to improve learners’ performance. (ae8) i did ace, bcom economics but the principal requested me to teach accounting due to the lack of an accounting educator. (ae9) i did bcom in business management; i had to fill in to teach accounting, which i find difficult. (a10) based on the verbatim comments provided above, it can be interpreted that some educators have the relevant qualifications to teach accounting. however, there is an indication from ae1, ae3, ae5, and ae7 that they require training to improve their knowledge in accounting as some of the qualifications were obtained decades ago. ae7 also indicated that he has challenges in teaching the content as the accounting curriculum often changes. ae6 and ae10 indicated that they do not have a qualification in accounting but were compelled by the smts to teach accounting. to obtain the organisational goal, the relevant human resource must be utilised. these findings are inconsistent with sikhombo’s (2018) findings, which revealed that accounting subjects in schools are sometimes taught by educators who do not have the necessary expertise in accounting. this shows that there is a challenge in recruiting qualified accounting educators to teach accounting subjects in secondary school. the findings from this study have proven that some schools had to employ educators that do not have the relevant qualification. it was also found in modise’s (2016) study that schools are stuck with unqualified 36 ressat 2022, 7(1): 20-41 or inexperienced educators for a specific subject because their schools did not have access to the relevant human resource. it can be deduced that employing educators without the required skills to teach accounting poses a risk to the performance of learners in secondary schools. conclusions as stated, the main aim of this study was to explore perceived human resources factors influencing grade 12 accounting learner’s performance in secondary schools in the north west province, south africa. based on the findings of the first phase, the study concluded that the majority of smts and educators agree to strongly agree that human resource factors influence the performance of grade 12 accounting learners’ performance, whilst a few disagree to strongly disagree with this perception. these findings lead to the conclusion that human resources determine learner performance through the influence of several factors such as skills, competences, and knowledge that educators possess in the implementation of the educational curriculum. this study stressed that different members of principals, deputy principals, hods, and educators hold different perceptions about the influence of human resources on learner performance. together, these findings highlight the impact of performance, pedagogical competence, and subject content knowledge on learner performance in grade 12 accounting. the schools interested in improving learner performance should prioritise understanding human resource factors that influence learners’ attainment. the significant contribution of this study lies in outlining the real-life experiences, opinions, and perceptions of the influence of human resource factors on learner performance. it is thus recommended that schools interested in improving learner performance should focus on identifying and addressing human resource factors that influence learner performance. disclosure and conflicts of interest this article does not have any financial or other substantive conflicting, or competing, interest that may be construed to influence the results or interpretation of the article. the publication of this study will be financed by the higher institution of the researchers. references allan, g., mcgregor, p., & swales, k. 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(2012). a mixed methods sequential explanatory study of the impact of chronic pain on family resilience [dissertation, john carroll university]. appendix table 1. reliability test (factor f16 – h18) factors/construct cronbach's alpha n of items smts factorf_16 .719 41 factorg_17 .600 22 factorh_18 .600 23 accounting educators factor_f16 .813 34 factor_g17 .852 45 factor_h18 .935 26 table 2. validity test (principals, deputy principals and hods) standardised effects in linear equations items/variables retained predictor factor/construct parameter estimate standard error t value pr > |t| smts f16_3 factorf_16 p23 0.54719 0.06768 8.0851 <.0001 f16_4 factorf_16 p24 0.61406 0.06365 9.6478 <.0001 f16_5 factorf_16 p25 0.68532 0.06001 11.4196 <.0001 f16_6 factorf_16 p26 0.65774 0.06132 10.7265 <.0001 g17_2 factorg_17 p27 0.69642 0.14531 4.7926 <.0001 g17_7 factorg_17 p28 0.61150 0.13166 4.6447 <.0001 1 f16.1 and f16.2 are excluded from further analyses 2 g17.1, g17.5, g17.6, g17.3, and g17.4 are excluded from further analyses 3 h18.4 and h18.3 are excluded from further analyses 4 f16.4, f16.5, f16.6, and f16.7 are excluded from further analyses 5 g17.1 and g17.4 are excluded from further analyses 6 h18.1 and h18.2 are excluded from further analyses 41 ressat 2022, 7(1): 20-41 table 3. validity tests (accounting educators) items/variables retained predictor factor/construct parameter estimate standard error t value pr > |t| f16_3 factorf_16 p23 0.54719 0.06768 8.0851 <.0001 f16_4 factorf_16 p24 0.61406 0.06365 9.6478 <.0001 f16_5 factorf_16 p25 0.68532 0.06001 11.4196 <.0001 f16_6 factorf_16 p26 0.65774 0.06132 10.7265 <.0001 g17_2 fagtorg17 p26 0.85274 0.04739 17.9954 <.0001 g17_3 fagtorg17 p27 0.82692 0.05165 16.0112 <.0001 g17_5 fagtorg17 p28 0.75598 0.06399 11.8146 <.0001 g17_6 fagtorg17 p29 0.70394 0.07297 9.6465 <.0001 h18_2 fagtorh18 p30 0.90525 0.04387 20.6371 <.0001 h18_3 fagtorh18 p31 0.95153 0.04110 23.1493 <.0001 research in social sciences and technology https://ressat.org e-issn: 2468-6891 volume: 7 issue: 2 2022 pp. 129-145 the american effect on physical education and sports in turkey during the early republican period sevda korkmaza a. istanbul major municipality, istanbul, turkey e-mail: sevda.korkmaz@ibb.gov.tr article info received: june 15, 2022 revised: july 12, 2022 accepted: august 25, 2022 how to cite korkmaz, s. (2022). the american effect on physical education and sports in turkey during the early republican period. research in social sciences and technology, 7(2), 129-145. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2022.13 copyright license this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 abstract the establishment of the new turkish state was accompanied by a new governmental system, modernization efforts, and reforms in all fields of life. education, acknowledged as a phenomenon that prepares new generations for the future, became one of the main concerns among the republican reform programs. the lack of specialists to implement new educational programs required inviting professionals of the relevant fields from abroad, and the first to arrive was the american educational scientist john dewey, only 9 months after the establishment of the republic. thus, turkish-american relations, which had begun with commercial and missionary activities during the ottoman period, entered a new era. dewey, who emphasized both mental and physical aspects of education as a whole, fostered the emergence of many new services in physical education and sports thanks to his reports. in addition to dewey’s work, other american reports presented information and suggestions for physical education. the young men’s christian association (ymca), which played an essential role in the spread of recreational sports activities, launched many new sports branches and endeavors. this study addresses the effects of those reports and american experts’ suggestions, observations, and approaches for physical education and sports in turkey. keywords john dewey; sport education; physical education; turkey; early republican period. 10.46303/ressat.2022.13 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2022.13 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ 130 ressat 2022, 7(2): 129-145 introduction during the transition from the ottoman empire to the republic of turkey, foreign experts played an active role in establishing a new system and modernization from the very beginning due to turkey’s loss of trained human resources in long years of war. john dewey, an american philosopher, was the first foreign expert who was invited to reshape the educational system only 9 months after the republic was declared, with education acknowledged as a primary catalyst for change. the initial relations with the united states, which began with missionary activities in the ottoman period, became official with the opening of an american embassy in 1927 as the first diplomatic connection with the republic of turkey and continued with invitations for american experts in various fields (şahin, 1996; ata, 2001; türk, 2006). following the regime change in 1923, as in almost every field, many scholars and experts were invited to improve physical education and sports. those scholars prepared reports that included suggestions for sports and physical education in the new republic. german and swedish influences were prevalent among the early republican studies and attempts to reform sports, while the american impact on sports was not widely observed until the 1950s. however, dewey’s report in 1924 significantly impacted the turkish sports system, and most of his suggestions were implemented during mustafa necati’s service (1925-1929) as minister of national education. with his report, dewey led and guided the american experts who would come after him, such as beryl parker1. physical education and sports were important aspects in dewey’s reports on the whole of the turkish education system and parker’s reports on the primary school education system also impacted future educational planning. in addition to these two individuals, both of whom were commissioned by the turkish government, another important american report written during this period was an informative file containing definitions of the turkish sports system. eugene m. hinkle was the third secretary of the u.s. embassy during the tenure of its first ambassador2 in turkey. the study prepared by hinkle should be evaluated in an effort to better understand turkey in that period as it provides important information in terms of the findings and evaluations it contains. considering the extent of the american influence in subsequent years, his efforts to understand the current situation yielded quite accurate information and conclusions. these experts played active roles in introducing and popularizing various sports in turkey through the activities of the young men’s christian association (ymca), which had begun operating in the ottoman period. şahin (2016) stated that some american experts only gave short talks at conferences, while some conducted studies and some made observations and 1 parker’s thanks to dewey in the preface to this report (parker, 1939) and the fact that the american delegation headed by hines and kemmerer made references to dewey in their report (amerikan heyeti, 1939) are clear indications of this. 2 the political history of turkish-american relations began with commercial activities (türk, 2006), and in 1927 the first formal diplomatic step was taken with the republic of turkey as joseph c. grew took office as the first american ambassador (barkay, 2003). the inauguration of the first turkish ambassador in washington took place on november 29 of the same year (şimşir, 1977). 131 ressat 2022, 7(2): 129-145 participated in conferences and workshops, presenting reports based on their observations and studies. dewey and parker were invited by the republic of turkey and assigned to present reports and suggestions. as the third secretary of the u.s. embassy in ankara, hinkle also conducted a study on sports in turkey and presented his reports to the us government. in this study, the reports of john dewey and beryl parker are discussed in terms of physical education and the report of eugene m. hinkle and the ymca in terms of sports. method research design this study is based on a qualitative research design that allows rich descriptions to be made (büyüköztürk et al., 2016). a historical research model, which makes it possible to conceptualize, theorize, and examine the social factors of social change that cause a certain result, has been used (kaptan, 1991). within the framework of historical research models, the development of events in the past is evaluated by examining the relevant sources and publications in order to learn, understand, and explain what happened in the past (arlı & nazik, 2004). data collection in the design of this qualitative research model, literature review and document review methods were used for data collection. the literature review method allows identifying and limiting a specific problem, taking a historical point of view, and associating the present with past information. in addition to a thorough literature review, expert reports were the primary sources of information. document analysis was also conducted, which made it possible to analyze documents belonging to the same or different periods of the research problem. document review is often necessary to check the authenticity of documents, to examine and understand them, and to properly utilize documents and data in stages of data analysis (yıldırım and şimşek, 2008; patton, 2015). accordingly, document review made it possible for this study to take place within the limits of scientific analysis. data analysis the data collected by literature review and document examination methods were evaluated by descriptive analysis. in descriptive analysis, concepts are summarized and interpreted within the framework of predetermined themes. the descriptive analysis method consists of four stages: creating a framework, processing the data according to that framework, defining the findings, and interpreting the findings (sözbilir, 2009). the descriptive analysis method was used for data analysis of this study. 132 ressat 2022, 7(2): 129-145 findings and discussion the purpose of this study is to investigate the historical american influence during the founding years of the republic of turkey when ideological change was taking place. the research is based on the argument that while german and swedish thoughts about sports were effective in the fields of turkish sports and physical education, american approaches were also very important. however, the study of the research findings from two distinct perspectives, namely physical education in a pedagogical sense and sports in a recreational sense, will make it possible to more fully understand the effects. the american effect on physical education dewey’s visit to turkey and the process of preparing his report dewey, who had an understanding of learning by doing and living, questioned the value of knowledge that dealt with abstractions or neglected the body. dewey was the first expert invited to turkey (ortak, 2004) and he appealed to the expectations of the founding cadres of the republic, who wanted to achieve many innovations in a short time and did not have time to “deal with” theories or philosophy (özsoy, 2009). in july and august 1924, dewey conducted examinations at universities, high schools, professional associations, and teachers’ schools in i̇stanbul (ata, 2001; bal, 1991). he then went to ankara and met with atatürk there (ata, 2001; bal, 1991) and then returned to i̇stanbul again. as a result of all of his assessments, he prepared his first report there, and his main report was completed after returning to the united states (efendioğlu et al., 2010; bal, 1991). physical education in dewey’s report according to dewey, the soul and body complement each other functionally, and behaviors result from both mental and physical participation (yeşiltaş and kaymakçı, 2009; bal, 2010). with this perspective, dewey inevitably made recommendations on physical development and education in terms of human physical development in his report. he also conducted interviews in this direction while preparing the report. john dewey’s work before coming to turkey and during his stay in the country received wide coverage in the turkish press. there were often reports about his investigations and his views in ankara and i̇stanbul. in one such news story, it was reported that he watched a zeybek dance, which was choreographed by selim sırrı tarcan, one of the leading sports officials of the time, and was influenced by the show. dewey said the following (ata, 2001, p. 199): much was said about turkish folk dances in the usa. i have wanted to get to know the oriental music and dances ever since. i hope that these talents of young people will be shown to the field of lore. i would like to thank the alumni association for giving me such a sincere and happy day. it is possible to draw the conclusion that dewey, who also met with tarcan (maarif müşavirimiz, 1924), had learned about the role of physical education in the turkish education system. 133 ressat 2022, 7(2): 129-145 dewey emphasized in his report that examinations should be carried out by traveling to foreign countries, and he also listed physical education, sports, and games among the subjects to be examined (dewey, 1939). looking at the history of turkish education, we can see that by 1926, educational models from around the world had been studied and reports had been prepared on soviet, french, italian, danish, and other schools (ergün, 1990). in dewey’s report, he suggested that students and talented teachers be sent to europe for training (ortak, 2004). with arrangements made in this direction, students have been sent to europe since 1925 in order to learn physical education systems and methods and to train other teachers upon their return (altunya, 2006, 2020). according to dewey, who evaluated physical education and sports in relation to health in his report, physical health and strength are necessary conditions for progress and development in all fields. according to dewey, gardens should be built in schools where students can engage in physical activities, walk around, and enjoy fresh air. stating that the ways in which school buildings are constructed and educational programs are planned affect each other, dewey suggested training experts in the field of school architecture and establishing a directorate for buildings and curricula within the ministry of education (dewey, 1939; ortak, 2004). during mustafa necati’s service as minister of national education3, the school architecture office was established within the ministry in 1927 and schools with prominent sports halls were built. dewey stated that it was important for health to create squares wide enough for boys and girls to benefit from in schools and to engage in sports and games outside of school. such squares should be large enough to allow the public to have fun and engage in sports, not only being used by students to play games and participate in physical training and sports activities. attention should also be paid to the engagement in games and sports and the learning of young people not attending school (dewey, 1939). dewey, who seems to have grasped the priorities of the founders of the republic of turkey correctly, evaluated schools as areas for the dissemination of sports with the aim of spreading games and other sporting practices for physical education in the broader society. dewey thought that the most essential point in professional training was increasing the quality of the teachers. he stated that, in some teachers’ schools, departments should be opened for educating teachers about physical education, sports, and health (dewey, 1939). in 1924, physical education was one of the lessons taught in teachers’ schools for 1 hour a week in all programs (akyüz, 2007). among the commissions established by mustafa necati as soon as he became minister of national education in 1925 was the physical education commission (günay, 2013). in 1926, program changes were made, and 2 hours of physical education per week were included in the curricula of the first four years of primary school, with 1 hour of 3 mustafa necati benefited greatly from dewey’s report during his time as minister and he cited dewey’s report while explaining the innovations he would bring to life in many of his speeches (i̇nan, 1987). 134 ressat 2022, 7(2): 129-145 gymnastics lessons included in the fifth year. in middle school curricula, gymnastics lessons were included for 2 hours per week (dever and i̇slam, 2015). in his report, dewey emphasized that graduates of schools for primary school teachers could be accepted as teachers for physical education, and especially in terms of outdoor games and sports, but those who graduated from primary teacher should have special vocational training for secondary school in this field (dewey, 1939). in 1926, it was decided to establish a school for training physical education teachers in ankara, and a course for teaching physical education was offered until the new school became operational (şinoforoğlu, 2015). in 1932, a department of physical education was added to the gazi middle school teachers’ school and the education institute in ankara (günay, 2017). therefore, dewey’s recommendation for training specialists accelerated the efforts to establish the school of physical education and a department within the gazi education institute. prof. dr. beryl parker’s report on physical education and sports in turkey prof. dr. beryl parker visited turkey thanks to the suggestion4 of john dewey. after working as a consultant at ankara college for two years, parker was assigned to prepare a report on primary school education. that report, based on observations at schools, was completed in 1934 and published in 1939 (binbaşıoğlu, 1999; şahin, 1996). parker, who was active in many cities of turkey (terbiye mütehassısı, 1934), presented the report after visiting both urban and village schools in ankara for a year (amerikalı terbiye, 1934). parker categorized the roles of primary school education in satisfying the needs of the turkish nation within five categories: 1) economic development, 2) health training, 3) citizenship education, 4) the scientific method, and 5) cultural enrichment. she placed physical education and sports within the category of health training and indicated that health training included gymnastics, games, and sports in addition to education on physiology and sanitation (parker, 1939). parker considered and evaluated physical education and sports in terms of health promotion. according to parker, a definite step needed be taken to design more formal approaches to sanitation and physical education. the value of gymnastic exercises and games would lie in the hands of the teachers, being dependent on the leadership of a teacher interested in sports. parker determined that, excluding only a few school buildings, most schools in turkey were problematic in terms of location, design, playground organization, and equipment. she recommended measuring playgrounds to ensure the optimal use of the area by all students or groups during break times. parker observed students’ physical weakness and limited participation in games during break times, which she described as a source of despair. she suggested two reasonable explanations for this situation. first, teachers neither participated in the games nor helped students organize groups or new activities. second, the short breaks between lessons were not long enough for real games. 4 parker thanked dewey in the preface to this report (parker, 1939). 135 ressat 2022, 7(2): 129-145 instead, parker stressed that two long breaks, one in the morning and one in the afternoon, would yield more productive results. she also indicated that in the event of limited space for a playground, it would be better for each class to have recess separately so that the children would have enough space to play. similarly, indoor games should be carefully planned in the event of bad weather conditions. parker stated that the desired results could be achieved if the breaks were longer, teachers or student leaders participated in games, and more physical activities and games that required more strength were preferred. she argued that physical education was among the first lessons that should be improved in the primary school curriculum. she suggested organizing in-service training and courses for school principals, inspectors, and teachers working in primary schools, one of which could be physical training delivered by the gazi education institute (parker, 1939). it should be noted that after the reinvention of the body with the renaissance and reforms in the west, public health became a political concern in the 19th century and the building of a healthy society gained importance (porter, 2005), being considered an issue of national security (mazower, 2003). physical education was addressed with the healthpromoting aspects of sports. similarly, with the idea that the body and soul complement each other, american experts focused on the health-promoting aspects of sports. the challenging conditions in the country, where much human capital had been lost during the war for national independence (toprak, 2019), led the founders of the new republic to appreciate the “healing” effects of physical education and sports. in this sense, the reports of both of these american experts overlapped with the turkish government’s policies. however, the “didactic” approach to sports resulted in disregarding the feelings of satisfaction and enjoyment at the core of sports. in this regard, the report prepared by eugene m. hinkle, secretary of the united states embassy, becomes relevant, together with the activities of the ymca. the american effect on sports report by third secretary of the u.s. embassy, eugene m. hinkle it would be more accurate to describe the report prepared by eugene m. hinkle (bali, 2009a), the third secretary of the u.s. embassy in ankara, as an assessment study rather than a set of recommendations. hinkle explained the goal of the report, which was completed after 8 months of research in 1931, as follows: “to specify how and how much sports and physical education are implemented in turkey.” the important findings in his report were that physical exercises were unpleasant to educated turks, who found physical activity rough and to be avoided if possible; the lower classes of society and even peasants also avoided physical activity and hinkle claimed that the primary entertainment activity in turkey was “sitting.” turks could spend hours sitting in coffee shops. according to hinkle, although most of the population was engaged in agriculture, sports 136 ressat 2022, 7(2): 129-145 and physical education were mainly practiced among the urban population of roughly 3 million. the government took initiatives to educate young people living on the western coast of turkey. however, the government's efforts to improve sports and physical education experiences remained unstable and fragmented, and there was a massive difference between planned and realized projects. hinkle also underlined the lack of coordination, especially between local administrators and agencies of the republican people’s party, the central government, the national sports federation, public schools, the army, the navy, and other institutions. he also reported that the national sports federation did not have a proper organizational structure, and the federation’s executives did nothing about sports reforms; they merely engaged in politics and internal debates. hinkle noted that the government was initially very conservative about doing anything except applying the swedish system, and efforts to develop organized sports such as football and volleyball began later. according to hinkle, the government’s commitment to the swedish system between 1923 and 1927 might have stemmed from the influence of selim sırrı, who was educated in sweden before world war i. hinkle stated that there was a lack of propaganda in sports. he observed that atatürk rarely engaged in sports, and although he visited schools frequently, he did not participate in football or other matches. however, the government attached considerable importance to the representation of turkey in international sporting events. turkey was an active member of an international federation that organized the balkan games and a member of the international olympic committee, sending teams to the 1924 and 1928 olympics. hinkle stated that, with scarce resources, the young republic of turkey was in need of money and especially educated and professional physical education teachers willing to work with students. he also indicated that physical education was not popular in turkey, mainly because of the teaching methods, the inconsistencies in implementing swedish exercises, and the unique systems that each school had. he further stated that physical education classes, which were conducted for 3 hours per week on paper, could only be held depending on the weather conditions in reality, since there was no indoor space to conduct the lessons. he also stressed that sports activities were banned in primary schools and boys under 17 were not allowed to play football in high school. hinkle observed that school officials usually did not organize any sports events, or they left such organizational efforts to students, and due to insufficient budgets, most schools only had a volleyball court, as that required nothing besides a net and a ball. therefore, the second most popular sport in schools was volleyball, after football. basketball was a relatively new sport in turkey. hinkle noted that authorities complained that students did not play games other than football and that inter-school matches were allowed but not encouraged. he drew attention to the fact that, at the university level, sports were abandoned because there were no sports facilities and the environment was different. he emphasized that among the youth of the country, sports were generally limited to those under the age of 19, and only a few young people over the age of 20 continued to participate in sports. 137 ressat 2022, 7(2): 129-145 hinkle also mentioned national gymnastics festivals. he pointed out the unavailability of summer camps, except for military camp, which was compulsory for all high school boys. hinkle reported that scout camps included only hiking and excursion activities, and the scouting movement was not well understood in turkey. he described scouting in high schools as a sloppy organization characterized by show uniforms, very few marches, and excursions. there were no national scouting organizations and the high schools oversaw these events. hinkle indicated that, under the influence of the germans, sports were already common in the army, characterized by an intense training system. he stated that the swedish system was adopted by schools and other institutions in 1926. he reported that there were no competent trainers in the army. the primary party responsible for spreading sports in most small towns was the turkish army, which had a sufficient budget for building football fields and had workers to complete those tasks, namely soldiers. the main headquarters of the gazi guard regiment in ankara was the most active unit in terms of sports; it was used as a model and as propaganda to popularize sports in the army, and the center had an excellent athletics track. hinkle summarized the critical points regarding the situation of sports and physical education in turkey as follows: • the tendency to see only the superficial side of sports: for turks, the only tangible evidence was numbers – the numbers of games, pitches, stadiums, club badges, shiny jerseys, new equipment, sports magazines, athletes, and audiences. being in a club or on a team meant engaging in sports and was often seen as a privilege in society. • reluctance to make efforts to become proficient in sports. turkish youth were impatient with anything that required constant effort and wished to become famous athletes as quickly as possible. despite their limited knowledge of any specific game, they created the image of an intellectual athlete. turks were usually impulsive and did not like waiting or making gradual progress. turkish football teams could withstand harsh treatment, but their endurance over a longer period of time was less than that seen in other countries. • inability to differentiate between competitive sports and fighting. for turks, physical activity meant fighting. • the primary goal in sports was to win. the motivation behind doing and loving sports was to win. a leading administrator in physical education claimed that most turkish people quit doing sports after losing even just a few times. only the successful ones continued doing sports. • the tendency to engage excessively in sports activities among young sportspeople. such individuals put sports at the center of their lives, unlike young americans who considered sports a secondary activity in their daily lives. turks did not accept sports as a part of westernization and dreamed of being professionals since they put the sport at the center of life. there were very few true amateurs. 138 ressat 2022, 7(2): 129-145 • inability to cooperate and act as a community: the organized units in turkish life included only the home, army, and government. the inability to organize and cooperate was a reason for turkey’s low number of competitive sports. according to hinkle, turks did not yet grasp the educational or physical value of sports as game activities. he wondered whether they considered sports as concrete evidence of westernization rather than game activities with educational values. he emphasized that it was not surprising that turks recognized only the superficial aspect of emotional excitement in sports because they were physically and mentally unprepared for sports. he also observed that sports sometimes played an essential role in the daily life of the younger generation, and although many men actively engaged in sports, they often made little progress due to lack of equipment and money.5 hinkle reported that sports had developed more rapidly in the last three years and that the press, which rarely had columns for sporting events until 1928, began to mention important matches and many newspapers introduced sports columns. there were three turkish sports magazines with a yearly circulation of approximately 5,000 to 10,000 copies and 20 foreign sports magazines with a weekly circulation of approximately 300 to 500 copies in turkey. according to hinkle, those numbers proved turks’ so-called interest in sports, which was characterized by discussions of sports rather than active participation. he stated that turks who wore club badges and talked about the games saw themselves as athletes although they never really felt like participating. questioning the roots of sports among turkish people, hinkle concluded that they adopted western forms and techniques and superficially insisted on remaining unchanged. the government imposed sports on citizens, and informal groups embraced sports on their own. he stated that sports had little effect on children in informal groups, so they would become lazy as they grew older. however, the available data suggested that sports, even in simple forms, had beneficial effects in mobilizing young people and overcoming the natural inertia of the turkish people and that they might have a desire to do sports willingly in the future. the ymca’s physical education and sports activities the ymca, initially operated under the umbrella of the american board, began to organize in the ottoman empire in 1881 and gained momentum after the second constitutional period (1908) (toprak, 1994a). after decades of unofficial operation, it was officially established in april 1913 (yüce, 2022). the association offered opportunities for socialization by organizing activities in increasingly anonymized cities. among these socialization tools were sports activities and physical training, which might have been the most common efforts of the association in turkey (toprak, 1994a). the importance of physical education and training was also stressed in the ymca's first turkish regulations as follows: “our society aims to raise young people who are 5 hinkle reported that some athletes in i̇stanbul made a ball out of waste papers and rags (bali, 2009a) 139 ressat 2022, 7(2): 129-145 physically, mentally, and spiritually strong and to encourage them to help themselves and others” (mecdüddin, 1338). the ymca opened the first well-equipped gym with showers and lockers at robert college in 1904. at the college, all students were required to take gymnastics classes regularly after passing a physical examination. the college held a gymnastics show every year on its foundation day. the ymca built recreational and sports facilities and provided training in football, baseball, basketball, and athletics (robert college, 1922). for example, only 12 years after it was introduced in united states, basketball came to turkey in 1904 thanks to the ymca, just like other new branches of sports introduced by the association (atabeyoğlu, 1970). according to the 1905 catalogue of robert college, boarding students were expected to exercise in the gym, but it was optional for day students. competitions and awards were organized for running and jumping to encourage students to engage in sports (acun and gürtunca şencan, 2016). in addition to robert college, the ymca opened several schools for physical education and sports activities in many parts of anatolia. for example, one of the association's first departments was established by the harput office as a sports department (ymca notes, 1910). physical education lessons were included in the curriculum of the american college in tarsus in the 1912-1913 academic year (biçer, 2010). in 1914, a physical education committee was established in the center of i̇stanbul to coordinate all physical education and sports activities (uçar, 2013). the physical education lessons in schools had a role in pedagogic development and a recreational function that introduced different sports and made them widespread. the ymca also opened gyms outside of schools and organized sports activities. the ymca’s i̇stanbul office implemented a sanitary education program under the guidance of expert teachers in those well-equipped gyms, in the conditions of those days, with bathrooms, showers, and changing areas. gym members regularly had health examinations and were informed about efficient nutrition, sleep, fitness, and weight loss. the association provided turkish, english, and french books and magazines on health and physical education in libraries, and health conferences were held (toprak, 1994a). the ymca offices in i̇stanbul involved beyoğlu, the denizciler club, and the russian club (toprak, 1993). according to the busy schedule in the beyoğlu office, the gym provided several opportunities in handball, tennis, gymnastics, sword fighting, fencing, boxing, and body training for businesspeople and senior and junior members (toprak, 1994a). after world war i, the beyoğlu office opened a basketball court in 1920, and the first national race was held in 1920. the first checkers tournament was held in 1920 between the ymca and american sailors. the first first-aid training program was also conducted with the participation of 31 trainees in 1920 (uçar, 2013). the i̇stanbul basketball league began in 1921, and three of the six clubs (ymca beyoğlu, ymca clerks, and robert college teachers) attending the first league matches were teams operating under the ymca (yüce, 2022). a physical education teacher named ahmed robenson 140 ressat 2022, 7(2): 129-145 (winrow, 2020), the manager of the ymca beyoğlu office, organized the first basketball championship in 1924 (san, 1959). instructors in the ottoman empire, who encountered new types of sports such as basketball and volleyball, had used them for practical training and educational tools in their institutions and contacted the association’s managers (uçar, 2013). for example, in 1914, a school principal asked the organization to recruit a physical education teacher to teach games and gymnastics in return for opening a turkish course (davis, 1914). selim sırrı, the principal of i̇stanbul’s darülmuallimin-i âliye (teacher training college), invited dr. diver to a sports festival and he said: “there are some other excellent sports games in addition to swedish gymnastics. i am willing to teach those games to your students if you wish.” soon after those words, he began to provide volleyball and basketball lessons at the teacher training college (atabeyoğlu, 1985). “the first basketball game was held between an american and the first local team with turkish players in the garden of darülmuallimin-i âliye at 4 p.m. on saturday. the american team scored 18 points, and the local team scored 14 points” (memleketteki, 1921). the ymca’s i̇stanbul office had two scouting groups. an american scouting organization was active at robert college and used a scouting book titled american boy scout handbook. every wednesday scouting groups met to walk, jog, play games, or study for exams. the ymca russian office also had a scouting group. ymca physical education teacher ahmed robenson played a leading role in the establishment of scouting in turkey. he prepared handouts and wrote articles to popularize scouting (sönmez, 1999). additionally, the ymca initiated the first camping activities in turkey by building the terbiye-i bedeniyye camp, or camp perry, on the black sea coast. derince camp, built in 1919, was followed by the suadiye summer camp in 1920, where 600 male students participated. basketball, baseball, football, swimming, and hiking were included in the camp’s program (toprak, 1994a). an american girls’ camp was also organized on the caddebostan coast (vassaf, 2000). the ymca and its offices also provided sports opportunities for women to support their engagement in sports. in the summer of 1920, the ywca opened a tennis court in i̇zmir and organized ball sports events three days a week (bali, nd; karabağ, 2021). in addition to camping activities, special competitions, leagues, and tournaments were organized, and sports soirees were scheduled every saturday evening (toprak, 1994a). as can be understood, the ymca was an active institution in all sports branches. its main contribution to turkish sports was its leading role in the formation of federations. organizing leagues, tournaments, and competitions by gathering clubs under one roof profoundly affected turkish sports (yüce, 2022). the 1922 i̇stanbul olympics was also an important event in which ymca was actively involved. the committee of the 1922 i̇stanbul olympics, including the ymca, prepared the program inclusively from athletics, gymnastics, and football to general and sportive games with the motto of “sports for all, games for all, and universal health.” with its four offices in i̇stanbul, the ymca actively participated in the event (toprak, 1994b). the 1922 i̇stanbul olympics was a 141 ressat 2022, 7(2): 129-145 unique opportunity to organize a multi-sport organization and to watch sporting events. it planted the first seeds of ideas for subsequent multi-sport organizations in turkey. indeed, the ymca’s multi-sport organization attempts were the initial attempts to unify turkish sports, as well (fişek, 1983). according to yüce, the works of the ymca accelerated the establishment of the turkish training association (ti̇ci̇) (yüce, 2022), which maintained its role in organizing sports events during the republican period. it appointed american chester m. tobin, the manager of the ymca american marines club office, as the athletics trainer of the turkish olympic team in 1924 (toprak, 1993). despite limited financial aid from the united states and limited events, the ymca’s contacts continued even after the proclamation of the turkish republic. attempts were made to establish turkish-american clubs among the first american-oriented civic activities in the republican period. it might have been the most critical foreign initiative, including sports events for turkish youth’s cultural and social development. jennings, one of the leading representatives of the ymca, had meetings with hamdullah suphi tanrıöver, the minister of national education at the time, who was also the president of the turkish hearths, and received his support (öksüz and köse, 2016). in return for a significant grant received for the construction of the headquarters of the turkish hearths in ankara (bali, 2009b), hamdullah suphi spoke highly of the ymca among other organizations such as the komsomol, oktobrist, and sokol at the opening ceremony of the headquarters in 1931. although the attempts to establish turkishamerican clubs failed, negotiations for improving turkish-american relationships continued (öksüz and köse, 2016). the ymca, which continued its activities until december 1939, when it was closed in turkey, had significant effects on turkish social, cultural, and sporting life. latourette stated that in response to the contributions of the ymca, the government established camps for boys following the ymca model and employed instructors from the association as instructional leaders there (latourette, 1997), which shows the subsequent effects of the ymca in the following years. shortly before the closure of the ymca, the beyoğlu office was purchased by the community centers, which were turkish institutions for public education (latourette, 1997), and the take-over was not limited to the use of office buildings and indoor halls. according to sports historian yüce, the community centers adopted the ymca’s programs, schedules, and organizational approach (yüce, 2022). the ymca became a model for forming federations in the following years and continued to influence mass sporting events. conclusion dewey inevitably addressed physical education and sports in his comprehensive program and report, which were rich sources of inspiration (özsoy, 2009) and led to a comprehensive scientific and philosophical paradigm in the modernization of the turkish education system. 142 ressat 2022, 7(2): 129-145 dewey’s recommendations for training specialized teachers positively influenced the existing attempts to train physical education teachers. in his report, dewey drew attention to the importance of providing adequate sports fields in schools at all levels and providing sports opportunities for individuals outside of schools in order to protect public health. he recommended the establishment of a special unit for school architecture within the ministry of education, and the school architecture office that was accordingly created ensured that specialized and high-quality gymnasiums and fields were built in many schools. the proposals for teacher training and study trips abroad in the field of physical education also positively influenced research on many different countries’ sports systems. like dewey, parker discussed the health-promoting effects of physical education and sports in her report. parker made suggestions regarding the size of playgrounds and recess times and highlighted the necessity of establishing playgrounds in villages. she also stated that inservice training on physical education could be given to school principals, inspectors, and teachers in primary schools. apart from the reports by dewey and parker, eugene m. hinkle’s report findings were also interesting. he suggested that educated turks did not understand the value of physical education and sports and mostly avoided physical activity, and there was a difference between the planned programs and reality. both people and institutions lacked coordination and proper organization. sports were something imposed from the top down as a symbol of the superficial adoption of western modernization. ultimately, the turkish people remained unchanged. the ymca, on the other hand, became a model of a new lifestyle for turkish people with the activities it carried out, and it fulfilled an important function in terms of recreational expansion and the development of sports, apart from the pedagogical dimension. besides physical education, which was identified with gymnastics, the ymca’s effects on the spread of mass sports in a civil movement were extensive. the ymca’s first youth camps, the first initiatives for women to engage in sports, and activities in the field of scouting all left important traces. important impetus was given to the development of individual and team sports, influencing the establishment of sports federations over time. therefore, although the swedish and german influences on turkish physical education and sports life are often discussed, there was actually a significant american influence. this was an era when the masses were not interested in sports, except in school life, and the necessary physical infrastructure and mental transformations were unavailable. although the motto of the era was “new turkish schools will not be places of sitting and listening, but places of doing, working, and searching” (eğitim alanında, 1925), it was not even possible to send teachers to the villages where a significant part of the population lived. due to the scarcity of resources (e.g., capital and educated instructors or experts), equal access to physical activity services was not achieved except on the western coast of turkey. today, physical education practices, imposed from the top down and therefore not internalized, also explain the image of turkish society that watches rather than participating. the steps and 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(2022). i̇stanbul spor kulüpleri tarihi: ilk dönem kulüpleri. i̇stanbul: kültür aş yayınları winrow, g.m. (2020). who was ahmed robenson? journal of anglo-turkish relations, 1(2), 112. research in social sciences and technology https://ressat.org e-issn: 2468-6891 volume: 8 issue: 3 2023 pp. 52-66 mathematics online baseline assessment: senior phase first-year student teachers’ views folake modupe adelabu*a & jogymol kalariparampil alexa * corresponding author email: fadelabu@wsu.ac.za a. department of continuing and adult professional teachers development, faculty of education, walter sisulu university, eastern cape province. south africa article info received: october 20, 2022 accepted: april 24, 2023 published: august 12, 2023 how to cite adelabu, f. m. & alex, j. k. (2023). mathematics online baseline assessment: senior phase first-year student teachers’ views. research in social sciences and technology, 8(3), 5266. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2023.22 copyright license this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (cc by 4.0). abstract problem-solving and enquiry-based learning are integral in the mathematics and science curriculum in south africa through online-based assessment. online assessment has rapidly gained recognition because of technology. in this paper, the authors explored the views of online baseline assessment among senior phase first-year mathematics student teachers. the researchers adopted a qualitative research method. data was collected from the participants using an online google form developed into a questionnaire. the participants in this study were first-year students enrolled for the bachelor of education in mathematics at a university in a rural province of south africa. the first-year student teachers were exposed to the senior phase baseline assessments through the licensed online computer aided mathematics instruction (cami) tool. one hundred and sixteen (116) senior-phase student teachers completed the online questionnaire. this study used convenience sampling since it was the most appropriate method to conveniently invite the participant. the findings revealed that first-year student teachers were enthusiastic and motivated to write the baseline assessment on computers for the first time. the result also showed that several first-year student teachers experienced difficulties solving mathematics problems using computers. this study recommends more intensive research on student teachers' views on online assessment regarding gender and time. keywords online baseline assessment; student teachers’ views; mathematical knowledge; information; communication technology. 10.46303/ ressat.2023.22 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2023.22 53 ressat 2023, 8(3): 52-66 introduction online assessments have become education's most rapidly evolving methods in recent decades. formal summative educational assessment has concentrated chiefly on testing information and has overlooked skills required for the 21st century (molnár & csapó, 2019). the evolution of information and communication technology (ict) has had a significant impact on society. with the advancement of technology and the widespread availability of computers, computer-based assessments are rapidly gaining recognition (brunfaut et al., 2018). as a result, there is a shift from paper-based assessments to computer-aided assessments. computer-based assessments have initiated academics to revisit their assessment strategies. this means that more and more academics are testing and examining students' competencies and skills through computerbased assessments. most organisations started using computer-based assessments to test, examine and evaluate candidate’s performances, competencies and skills in a various field (alek et al., 2020). the flexibility of the computer-based assessment allows the examiner to test lower and higher-order skills. these skills include knowledge, understanding, application, analysis, synthesis, and evaluation. furthermore, these assessments will help students improve their analysis, synthesis, and evaluation skills using more complex application software (olumorin et al., 2013). in the 1990s, e-learning (online learning assisted by network technologies) gained popularity in south africa. post 1994, the department of basic education (dbe) developed a white paper on e-education in 2004 to address the demands for the 'roll-out' of elearning. the policy mandate was that teachers should expressly give opportunities for students to use ict for learning (bagarukayo & kalema, 2015). this resulted in policy documents for higher education recommending a simple continuum of education provision with two imaginary poles, one representing completely online education and the other purely face-to-face education. learning materials and telephone conferencing via ict aided the strictly at-a-distance continuum (department of higher education and training [dhet], 2014). the continuum was developed and improved due to the increased use of ict. as a result, the dhet recognised that a predominantly online course for full and part-time students should be offered in campusbased computer labs. furthermore, there were huge opportunities and advantages to use technology to improve the quality of distance education. the use of technology had a significant impact on improving student involvement and communicating with and supporting students remotely. the dhet (2014) emphasised that higher education institutions must ensure their graduates are prepared to participate meaningfully in the digital world. universities stay competitive by using innovative technology in teaching and learning to increase the quality of activities and attract new students (mlitwa, 2006), as cited by bagarukayo and kalema (2015). as a result, the south african national plan for higher education highlighted the importance of university activities in fostering an information society and advancing knowledge to improve education and promote the new educational system. therefore, ict 54 adelabu, f. m. & alex, j. k. ressat 2023, 8(3): 52-66 integration in sa universities was required for them to be a competitor in the global arena, be innovative and address the learning styles and preferences of digital natives who yearn to learn in a hands-on, realistic learning environment. moreover, in south africa, elearning is an ictenhanced practice in universities. the practice includes everything from the e-mail, online journals, and networked libraries to developing innovative software solutions for information management tasks in teaching, research, and administrative systems. during the covid-19 pandemic in 2020, the nation went into lockdown, forcing heis to revisit strategies of online teaching and learning. this shift from face-to-face teaching and learning has created a new platform for the introduction of ict in teaching and learning in heis. this paper reports on senior phase first-year student teachers' view of online baseline mathematics assessment. literature review online-based assessment online-based assessment is a way of delivering assessments utilising computers rather than pen and paper. it is also called computer-based assessment, computer-based testing, electronic assessment, or online assessment. these names will be used interchangeably in this paper. online-based assessment refers to examinations and assessments on computers using wellorganised systems (alek et al., 2020; olumorin et al., 2013). according to jeong (2014), computer-based assessments have several advantages for students, teachers, and educational systems. the real-time scoring and rapid feedback provided by online-based assessments are one of the advantages. the transition to online-based assessment reduces paper expenses, administration costs, and scoring costs, making it a more cost-effective way to test students’ knowledge, skills and competencies. according to astalini et al. (2019), advances in ict in teaching and learning have significantly impacted assessment methods and opened new opportunities for conducting online-based assessments, including students’ learning through computers and other technological devices. according to molnár and csapó (2019), online-based assessment began with the production of first-generation computer-based examinations, which involved moving items primarily created for paper-and-pencil testing to the computer. the indication denotes that those traditional static tests were performed using a computer, which provided the benefits of automated scoring and feedback. furthermore, to measure 21st-century skills, second-, and third-generation computer-based tests used technology to change item formats and replicate complex, real-life situations, using authentic tasks, interactions, dynamism, virtual worlds, and collaboration that went beyond providing automated feedback (molnár et al., 2017). these factors have resulted in a significant increase in the productivity of assessment procedures. therefore, using technology (online) assessment speeds up data collecting, enables real-time automatic scoring, speeds up data processing, provides quick feedback, and revolutionises the assessment process, including task presentation (molnár & csapó, 2019). 55 ressat 2023, 8(3): 52-66 according to abubakar and adebayo (2014), alek et al., (2020), and olumorin et al. (2013), a computer-based test involves delivering, marking, and analysing all or part of the student’s assessment process utilising computer technology. the use of computer-based tests is beneficial for various reasons, including increasing the frequency of assessment, encouraging students to acquire and practice skills, and broadening the range of knowledge examined. it also expands the number of evaluation methods and provides more feedback to students and teachers. objectivity, consistency, and reducing script and other case marking loads result in administrative efficiency (abubakar & adebayo, 2014; alek et al., 2020; olumorin et al., 2013). according to alruwais et al. (2018), students prefer online baseline assessments because they have greater control, friendly interfaces, and tests that mirror learning environments and leisure activities. the online assessment also allows teachers to increase the quality of feedback they provide to their students. it allows teachers to keep track of their student's progress and analyse data from various assessments. furthermore, direct feedback from online assessments allows teachers to identify and correct misconceptions students have before the final examination. online assessment relieves teachers of the burden of evaluating large groups of students. it also reduces the time and cost of evaluating students for institutions (alruwais et al., 2018; al-hattami, 2020). in terms of education, online assessment helps students develop higher order thinking skills like critical thinking, reflecting on cognitive processes, and facilitating collaborative projects. the new educational goals include comprehending and articulating issues, regulating variables, developing and testing hypotheses, and seeing patterns and linkages, which focus on problem-solving with mathematics and science that are assisted by technology and are reinforced by online assessment. alruwais et al. (2018) state that the capacity to sort questions in an online assessment cannot be done with a paper test. software simulation, for example, can assist in data representation simply and rapidly. furthermore, compared to a paper test, it produces more accurate findings (alruwais et al., 2018; appiah & van tonder, 2019). challenges with online-based assessment when it comes to conducting online baseline assessments, both students and teachers need help with several problems. according to kuzmanovi and baljoevi (2021), evaluating students online is problematic; for example, online quizzes are challenging since mathematical problems are rarely short-answer questions. in solving problems in mathematics, the complete algorithmic work to arrive at the correct answer is significant and must be evaluated during the assessment. according to mcclelland and cuevas (2020), students need help answering differently in an online assessment, mainly when a diagram, such as geometric forms, is provided. furthermore, the above authors discovered that students only preview part of the test to notice question correlations. therefore, in an online-based assessment, students needed help to evaluate and change their answers. according to osuji (2012), students and teachers encounter challenges because of their lack of skills in online assessment. furthermore, the above author explained that students with 56 adelabu, f. m. & alex, j. k. ressat 2023, 8(3): 52-66 low computer literacy might face difficulties in online assessment. in addition, the setting and internet connection can make it difficult for students and teachers to participate fully in the online baseline assessment (wijaya et al., 2020). students needed help with online assessment, according to appiah and van tonder (2019). for example, recently, south africa has experienced load-shedding which has impacted students' ability to work on their computers since they need electricity. students complained vociferously about power outages, compatibility concerns, an unstable network, inability to access online assessment tasks owing to server issues, trouble navigating through online assessment activities, login issues, and the inability to edit answers were all obstacles that students had to deal with about online assessment. first-year student teachers’ mathematical knowledge and online-based assessment for student teachers to meet the demands of a new environment (technology), such as an online baseline assessment, mathematical knowledge, which is individual previously acquired knowledge, abilities, and understanding, is essential (ardiyaningrum & retnowati, 2019). according to ball et al. (2008), teachers' mathematical knowledge must be strengthened to teach mathematics. therefore, it is necessary to identify specific mathematical knowledge that supports the teacher's performance. ball et al. (2008: p399) describe mathematical knowledge for teaching (mkft) as "the mathematical knowledge required to complete the recurrent tasks of teaching mathematics to learners." common content knowledge (cck), specialised content knowledge (sck), knowledge of content and students (kcs), and knowledge of content and teaching (kct) are the four key areas identified by mkft. cck is the mathematical knowledge and skills utilised in settings other than education. sck is the mathematical knowledge and skills specific to teaching. it also has to do with deconstructing mathematical information to make elements of specific topics obvious to learners and learnable. the combination of knowing about students and understanding mathematics is known as kcs. teachers can also use kcs to predict what students will do with an assignment and understand students' incomplete thinking. kct is the mathematical understanding of instructional design. for first-year student teachers to respond to the online baseline assessment, mathematical knowledge and skills are needed. according to nurannisa et al. (2021), understanding the concept of mathematics is an essential skill that new teachers must grasp to expand their knowledge. in this regard, the student teachers must think logically while dealing with online baseline assessment challenges and find appropriate solutions. in addition, the student teachers must determine the relationship between symbols and causal patterns, as well as how to use formulae correctly and come up with answers to the difficulties that arise throughout the assessment. kuzmanović and baljošević (2021) assert that inadequate mathematics knowledge and skills, lack of computer literacy, and inadequate teacher training may contribute to a lower quality of education for learners. the student teachers who participated in this study are the result of these. therefore, the online baseline assessment 57 ressat 2023, 8(3): 52-66 enables the teacher educators to evaluate the student teacher’s performance, competence, and capability in mathematics. table 1 the curriculum for the senior phase (grades 7 to 9) mathematics content area senior phase grades 7 to 9 numbers, operations, and relationships • representation of numbers in a variety of ways and moving flexibly between representations. • recognizing and using properties of operations with different number systems, solving various problems, using an increased range of numbers and the ability to perform multiple operations correctly and fluently. patterns, functions, and algebra • investigation of numerical and geometric patterns to establish the relationships between variables. • analysis of situations in a variety of contexts; representation and description of situations in algebraic language, formulas, expressions, equations, and graphs. space and shape (geometry) • drawing and constructing a range of geometric figures and solids. • descriptions and classification of geometric figures and solids. • solving a variety of geometric problems drawing on known properties of geometric figures and solids. measurement • using formulas for measuring area, perimeter, surface area, and volume of geometric figures and solids. • selecting and converting between appropriate units of measurement. • using the pythagorean theorem to solve problems involving right-angled triangles. data handling • collecting, summarizing, representing, and analysing data to interpret, report, and make predictions. • probability of outcomes including both single and compound events. south african senior phase context the general education and training (get) phase of primary schooling in south africa is compulsory from grades 1 to 9. the get phase is made up of foundation (gr r-3), intermediate (gr 4-6) and senior phases (gr 7-9) (dbe, 2011). 58 adelabu, f. m. & alex, j. k. ressat 2023, 8(3): 52-66 the department of basic education (dbe, 2011) in south africa encourages learners entering school for the first time to undergo a baseline assessment so that teachers can plan accordingly to accommodate all learners’ ability levels. mathematics is one of the subjects examined to determine learners' baseline knowledge and understanding of the subject. the information gathered from the tests enables teachers to fulfill the requirements of individual learners completely, highlighting their strengths and areas for improvement. the senior phase (grades 7–9) mathematics curriculum is used for the online baseline assessment of first-year student teachers. the table below displays the mathematics curriculum for the senior phase (grades 7 to 9). thus, this article explores student teachers' views of online baseline assessments in the senior phase. despite several studies about online or computer-based assessment, more research must explicitly reflect student teachers' views and reflections on online baseline assessment. hence, the first-year student teacher's views on the online baseline assessment in the senior phase are presented in this article. the research question that guided this paper is: • what are the views of senior phase first-year mathematics student teachers towards online baseline assessment? methodology in this study, a qualitative research approach was used to conduct the research, using an interpretivist paradigm. the interpretivist paradigm allows the researchers to gain a deeper understanding of the lived experiences of the participants. data was gathered using an online google form questionnaire. the participants in this study were first-year students enrolled in a mathematics department at a university in a rural province of south africa for a bachelor of education (b.ed.) senior phase mathematics education program. through the licensed online computer aided mathematics instruction (cami) program, the first-year student teachers were introduced to the senior phase baseline assessments. cami mathematics software is a collection of k-12 mathematics topics that can be used to improve learners' mathematics skills. cami is a multi-levelled mathematics application with thousands of activities. the exercises are marked automatically by cami. the first-year mathematics student teachers from a rural higher education institution (hei) specialised in senior-phase mathematics training. this paper included one hundred and sixteen (116) student teachers, which comprised of 52 female and 64 male students. all students completed the questionnaire for all three grades (7, 8, and 9). data was collected using the convenience sampling method. the cami baseline assessments were done as a blocked session in a controlled environment in an invigilated computer lab for two weeks. cami was installed on the lab pcs, and all sp mathematics student teachers were given passwords to log in and complete the senior phase online baseline assessments (grades 7, 8, & 9). after logging in, student teachers select 'do assessment' from the assessment box, which displays baseline and grades 59 ressat 2023, 8(3): 52-66 assessments. following that, the student teachers chose grades 7, 8, and 9 from the baseline assessment and completed each exam item one at a time. after that, the student teachers were asked to complete a google form in which they reflected on each baseline exam. the goal of the reflection was to allow student instructors to comment on computerised writing assessments, online writing mathematics assessments and a general overview of writing tests employing technology. the participants responded to six open-ended questions about their experience of writing tests on a computer based online baseline assessment themes. the survey's results were examined using descriptive data analysis. the student teachers who participated freely satisfied all ethical standards. results the views of the first-year student teachers were descriptively analysed. the responses of the first-year student teachers to the questionnaire were analysed. the findings are categorised into four parts. • first-year student teachers' view on writing mathematical tests and their interest in computers for the first time. • first-year student teachers’ view on presentations of the mathematics questions in cami • first-year student teachers' view on the difficulty in mathematical concepts knowledge and questions in the english language • the general view of first-year student teachers on writing mathematical tests on cami the discussions of the categories are presented below. first-year student teachers in denoted as fyst and some responses (not in any order) are given. first-year student teachers' view on writing mathematical tests and their interest in computer for the first time almost all (95%) of the student teachers responded that they were writing a mathematics test on the computer for the first time. specifically, 95% of the student teachers responded “yes” that they were writing a mathematics test on the computer for the first time. only 5% of the student teachers answered “no” because they were not writing a mathematics test on the computer for the first time. furthermore, more than half of the student (65%) teachers responded that writing tests on the computer could be more interesting, while less than half of the students find writing tests on the computer enjoyable. the student teachers justified their responses with reasons. the sampled responses and reasons are as follows: fyst 1: no, because i couldn't express some numbers in a fractional way fyst 4: no, because you can’t write a sum in your own style, the computer controls you fyst 7: no, because the questions would automatically skip even when i was not yet done with them. fyst 9: no, affected my confidence i was not aware we are going to write in the computer. 60 adelabu, f. m. & alex, j. k. ressat 2023, 8(3): 52-66 fyst 11: no, because it was my first time. fyst 6: yes, i didn't think mathematics can be written like that fyst 8: yes, it doesn't consume a lot of time whereby you have to write down and sometimes you make mistakes. fyst 10: yes, i want to gain more experience in using the computer. fyst 13: yes, i've learnt so much. fyst 15: yes, it was a great experience. sixty-five percent (65%) of the first-year student teachers reacted to both sides by saying that writing mathematics tests on the computer was not interesting because it was their first time. the student teacher also acknowledged that it was a great experience writing tests on the computer for the first time. first-year student teachers’ view on presentations of the mathematics questions in cami most of the student teachers expressed that they liked the presentation of the mathematics questions in cami, while some did not like the presentation. the responses and the reasons are enumerated below: fyst 4: yes, it will also improve our quality of thinking and it will make things easier for us who don't know computer. fyst 8: yes, the questions are clearly stated and not that hard to understand. fyst 19: yes, everything was easy and understandable. fyst 20: yes, they are simple but tricky at the same time. fyst 21: yes, i liked it even though i didn't know how cami fully functioned. fyst 22: no, it automatically goes to the next question without a confirmation. fyst 26: no, i'm not used to a computer. fyst 36: no, because i was unable to go through my answers to check where i made mistakes. many (70%) of the student teachers acknowledge that the questions are not difficult. however, because the student teachers were unfamiliar with the writing test on the computer, it took much work for them to answer the baseline assessment correctly. first-year student teachers’ view on the difficulty in mathematical concepts knowledge and questions in the english language many (75%) of the first-year student teachers responded that they had no difficulty understanding mathematical concepts. the sampled responses and the reasons are as follows: fyst 24: no, mathematics is always taught in english, so the language isn’t a problem. fyst 28: no, i understand mathematical terms clearly. fyst 30: no, all the concept there was straight forward. fyst 32: no, because in maths i just understand the terminology only. fyst 42: no, everything is understandable. fyst 43: no, i been studying maths for the past years so am familiar with its concepts familiar fyst 45: no, because the questions were easier but difficult to write on the computer. fyst 39: yes, understood where i could and other parts it was just vague. 61 ressat 2023, 8(3): 52-66 fyst 40: yes, some concepts are tricky. fyst 41: yes, i’m not good at english. fyst 53: yes, i didn't remember what other concepts mean. in addition, many (75%) of the first-year student teachers expressed that the questions in the english language were not difficult to understand. few (25%) need help understanding the language of the questions in english. a few of their responses and their reasons are given below: fyst 4: no, english is a common language, so there was no difficulty fyst 8: no, there were guidelines on how to answer question on the bottom of the computer fyst 79: no, i did english in my previous school so i'm able to read and understand it fyst 81: no, english is my first additional language. fyst 110: no, it is because i learnt english maths from grade r to grade 12. fyst 111: no, i understand english very well. fyst 114: no, it was easy, and the layout was good. fyst 115: no, that english was not difficult. fyst 33: yes, i'm failing to understand and interpret the questioning style. fyst 35: yes, some questions they have bold english, so it becomes so difficult to answer a question. fyst 69: yes, i am not used to questioning skills that were used. fyst 78: yes, i'm not fluent in english that's why i don't understand some questions. seventy-five percent (75%) of the student teachers understand the language of the baseline assessment questions. the indication is that language (english) was not the problem in writing the baseline assessment test for the student teachers, but using the computer took much work. general view of first-year student teachers on writing mathematical tests on cami the first-year students responded differently in this aspect. some of the first-year students reacted positively to the cami test while some reacted negatively to the test. some of the responses are given below: fyst 3: cami are not good for first year students some of us don't even know how to use computers. fyst 5: it was so interesting and enjoyable. fyst 9: it is not difficult, it is fair, but it wants someone who is open minded. fyst 15: cami test was not difficult that much, but the computer gives me some difficulties by submitting by itself. fyst 36: cami test it good and interesting because it makes me to see where i need assistance and where i to improve. fyst 37: i think i enjoyed the cami test; they boost us and our knowledge. fyst 40: nothing interesting at all fyst 42: it was challenging. 62 adelabu, f. m. & alex, j. k. ressat 2023, 8(3): 52-66 fyst 78: they are enjoyable, but they should alert or give a second chance and also let you confirm your answer what they are doing is not right at all. fyst 79: cami tests are good, but the method that is used to conduct them is not good. fyst 80: i don't know. fyst 93: bit difficult fyst 97: actually, it wasn't difficult at all. fyst 98: trick, but good to attend it often to get used to it. fyst 101: its easy, have enough time to write. fyst 104: impressing fyst 105: exceptional fyst 106: complicated fyst 112: it really helpful a high percentage (98%) of the first-year student teachers were excited about writing the baseline assessment on the computer for the first time. the cami presentation motivated them to write the baseline assessment. however, writing baseline assessment tests on the computer was difficult for many student teachers. the reason being that many of the student teachers were unfamiliar with an online baseline assessment, they considered the experience uninteresting. the expression also revealed that some of the mathematics questions on the baseline assessment test are challenging and that using the computer is challenging for many first-year student teachers. the findings indicated that many first-year student teachers struggle with computerized test writing. many first-year student teachers are from rural areas and have yet to be exposed to computer use in high schools, which could explain the trend. discussions this paper reported on the views of first-year student teachers toward the online baseline assessment. the results revealed that the first-year student teachers were excited and motivated to write the baseline assessment tests on the computer for the first time. this view contrast with wijaya et al. (2020), who found that new experience (online learning) for students could be more effective and exciting. furthermore, the findings revealed that many (95%) firstyear student teachers faced challenges writing baseline assessments on computers. the findings concurred with alruwais et al. (2018), who discovered that students prefer online baseline assessments because of friendly interfaces and leisure activities. on the other hand, the findings also consisted of appiah and van tonder (2019); mcclelland and cuevas (2020); osuji (2012); and wijaya et al. (2020) where all the authors found that students faced challenges in writing online baseline assessment. according to huda et al. (2020), students are uncomfortable with e-assessment, making it difficult to concentrate. it has been a new system since the covid-19 epidemic, even though students in higher education accepted it. 63 ressat 2023, 8(3): 52-66 khan and khan (2019) concluded that students need to appreciate the value of transitioning to online assessments. the above researchers explained that traditional assessment methods were the norm for students. they needed to be convinced of the value of the move to online assessment before the students happily accepted it. khan and khan (2019) said that students needed help finding online assessment approaches to be convenient. on the other hand, students (25%) found the transition inconvenient due to their personal experiences. they felt unprepared and distrusted technology, even though it was crucial to their education. as a result, a gradual shift to online assessments and technical training for both students and educators would boost student acceptance. students must have active, one-on-one interaction with instructors to integrate online assessments into higher education successfully. conclusion online assessments have been shown in the literature to be more trustworthy and objective, with the advantage of being evaluated by an automated system, reducing human error. furthermore, it gives students immediate feedback, allowing them to comprehend their progress immediately after completing the test. in addition, it enhances the learning experience of students. it enables teachers to monitor the progress of their students. it relieves teachers of the stress of evaluating large groups of students while also reducing evaluation time and cost. the online baseline evaluation, however, elicited both positive and negative responses from first-year student instructors in this study. therefore, student teachers must acquire knowledge, abilities, and understanding when exposed to online baseline assessment. as a result, teacher educators at higher education institutions (heis) must educate students about online assessments and prepare them for writing assessments on a computer by exposing them to online assessments regularly. recommendations although studies have shown the benefits of online assessment, there are few studies on students' views on writing online assessments. as a result, this study recommends • that further research be done on student teachers' expression at heis and the use of online-based assessment. • further investigation into the gender variable as a construct to determine student teachers' views on online assessment and • using the time variable to determine the student's ability to complete the online based assessment within a particular timeframe. references abubakar, a. s., & adebayo, f. o. 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(2020). indonesian students learning attitude towards online learning during the coronavirus pandemic. psychology, evaluation, and technology in educational research, 3(1), 17-25. https://petier.org/index.php/petier/article/view/56 https://petier.org/index.php/petier/article/view/56 research in social sciences and technology https://ressat.org e-issn: 2468-6891 volume: 7 issue: 3 2022 pp. 65-85 the effects of emotional intelligence on teachers’ classroom performance: a case of primary schools in southeast region of botswana tshireletso philemon kgosiemanga & samuel dumazi khoza*b * corresponding author email: khozasd@tut.ac.za a. botswana open university, botswana b. tshwane university of technology, soshanguve, south africa article info received: june 6, 2022 revised: october 14, 2022 accepted: november 17, 2022 how to cite kgosiemang, t. p., & khoza, s. d. (2022). the effects of emotional intelligence on teachers’ classroom performance: a case of primary schools in southeast region of botswana. research in social sciences and technology, 7(3), 65-85. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2022.18 copyright license this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (cc by 4.0). abstract the purpose of the study was to examine the effects of emotional intelligence (ei) on teachers’ performance in southeast region primary schools in botswana. the research methodology applied was mixed methods. the target group consisted of 300 teachers from 16 primary schools in botswana's southeast region. the participants were chosen using a simple random sampling procedure. seventy (70) out of 300 teachers comprising both males and females with years of work experience ranging from less than 2 to more than 10 were used as the sample in the study. the 9-layered model of the ei pyramid was used as the theoretical framework for the study. the pragmatism paradigm was used to blend qualitative and quantitative research approaches to arrive at trustworthy conclusions about the effects of ei on teacher performance in primary schools in botswana's southeast region. the findings of the study revealed that primary school teachers in the southeast region of botswana require ei skills to enhance their performance, improve their attitudes towards their instructional practices, and apply appropriate ways of assisting and encouraging struggling learners and colleagues. the findings also indicated a link between teachers' ei and academic performance. keywords emotional intelligence; academic performance; emotional stimuli; self-awareness. 10.46303/ressat.2022.18 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2022. 66 ressat 2022, 7(3): 65-85 introduction according to siddique et al. (2020), teaching is a challenging process, and it is a vast concept in the teaching field. since teaching deals with the interaction between humans, one needs to be emotionally strong to effectively manage the emotions involved in teaching and learning activities. emotional intelligence (ei) is the ability to recognise one’s own and other people's emotions, to distinguish between different feelings and categorise them accordingly, and to use emotional information to influence others’ thinking and behaviour (abraham & scaria, 2017). so far, only one ei-related study was conducted in botswana (machera & machera, 2017) using botho university learners to investigate the need to design and develop an ei curriculum for learners in universities. a study by machera and machera (2017), found that the “generation y” group was emotionally challenged with drug abuse, family abuse, sexual abuse, relationship problems, and other challenges which could be contributing factors leading to failure and dropout. as a result, teachers must have a high degree of ei to deal with emotionally challenged learners, hence the undertaking of the study. a study by malejane and diraditsile (2019), indicated that botswana’s educational policy was predominantly poorly implemented at the primary school level, which forms the groundwork for secondary schooling, and regardless of whether the children excelled in preparation, ground, and secondary school or not, they are automatically enrolled into higher learning institutions, even though most of them are not emotionally stable. the factors which contribute to the emotional instability of these children range from socioeconomic backgrounds, poverty, and social ills, among others (malejane & diraditsile, 2019). this places a huge demand on teachers who find themselves dealing with these children on a day-to-day basis at school. the problems that these children bring to the classroom create a burden for the teacher and consequently affect academic performance. this occurs when teachers fail to recognize the importance of ei in a working environment for the academic programme to prosper. according to botha and hugo (2021), teachers leaving the profession before age of retirement is an ongoing problem in schools worldwide. this is because teachers fail to concentrate on their work because of such factors which in the end affect their ei. the goal of the study was to examine the effects of emotional intelligence on teachers’ classroom performance in the southeast region of botswana's primary schools. the study is significant because it will assist various stakeholders in the education sector in incorporating ei into teaching and learning processes for the smooth running of the teaching and learning activities. in developing countries like botswana, limited research has been conducted on ei and teacher performance in primary schools, which could influence academic accomplishment. research questions the study was guided by the following main research question: • what are the effects of ei on teachers’ classroom performance in the southeast region primary schools in botswana? 67 ressat 2022, 7(3): 65-85 the above main research question was supported by the following secondary research questions: • how does ei contribute to teachers’ attitudes towards their classroom performance in the southeast region primary schools in botswana? • what is the relationship between teachers’ ei and academic performance? • what strategies need to be put in place to contribute to teachers’ ei in primary schools? literature review introduction according to saeidi and nikou (2012), salovey and mayer (1990) were among the earliest to propose the concept of “emotional intelligence” to represent the ability of people to deal with their emotions. the teacher must be aware of ei competencies and skills, promote and encourage interaction in a positive learning environment, and comprehend the learners to support learning and develop the classroom setting (alhashemi, 2018). kanwal et al. (2018) carried out a research study on emotional labour and ei of secondary school teachers in south asia. the findings revealed that emotional support offered by the teachers allows the learners to participate in classroom activities, focus on the lessons attentively, and manage their emotions more effectively. this shows that besides the concept of ei being important to the teacher, the teacher’s recognition of the learner’s emotions in the classroom is of paramount importance. effects of emotional intelligence on teachers’ performance emotional intelligence has numerous effects on teachers’ performance. farhah and ali (2016), add that ei is a significant part of teachers’ training programs because it is related to classroom administration performance and other maintenance factors for teachers. farhah and ali (2016) also found that ei predicted self-efficacy and life satisfaction, and had a positive influence on university teachers. gunu and oladepo (2014) conducted a study to investigate the influence of ei on the commitment of the organisation and employees' performance. their findings proved that employees' ei, organisational dedication, and capabilities had a strong link. this shows that employees’ ei could have dire effects on any organization regarding production or output. arifin (2019) asserts that education, provided by teachers with great character, often results in a generation with good character because learners learn from their teachers. in the process of shaping learners’ characters, teachers need to display commitment and hard work, hence this study aimed to investigate the effects of ei on teachers’ classroom performance in botswana primary schools in the southeast region. the contribution of ei to teachers’ attitudes towards their classroom performance attitudes are how people think and behave. jones et al. (2013) explain that today’s teachers are more stressed out and discontented than ever before and most of them are leaving the profession because of the attitudes they develop while in the school system. therefore, 68 ressat 2022, 7(3): 65-85 teachers who have not acquired ei skills are not able to manage stress effectively. to address teachers' attitudes toward teaching, a thorough examination of the notion of ei and its relation to teacher performance in botswana's primary schools was required, hence this study. emotionally intelligent teachers tend to make better team players and they are more effective at motivating themselves and others (adeyemo & agoke, 2014). emotional intelligence helps teachers improve their social skills, allowing them to collaborate with others more effectively. one of the reasons why teachers with high ei do better than others is that they have the skills and talents to avoid and manage stress throughout the teaching and learning process (sharma, 2015). hence, ei is advantageous for teachers to handle any circumstance in the working environment. when teachers are emotionally stable, they can maximize their potential since there is a link between their ei and their degree of job satisfaction (khan, 2010). the relationship between teachers’ emotional intelligence and academic performance a research study was conducted on ei in both primary and secondary schools by kannaiah and shanthi (2015), to investigate the workplace drivers of ei and to determine the extent to which employees are aware of ei. according to the study, ei has a critical role in boosting workers' organisational commitment, increasing productivity and efficiency, keeping top talent, and encouraging people to give their all. as a result, the study is relevant in determining the link between ei and the academic achievement of teachers in botswana's southeast region primary schools. competencies are key factors in the professional development of teachers, and as such, teachers need to be in a good state of mind all the time for their ei to assist them in pulling off their educational obligation (garcía-martínez, et al. 2019). emotional intelligence is a vital skill that is crucial in teachers’ careers. majoka and khan (2017) conducted a study among 210 female teachers who taught grade 10 learners for 2-10 years. these female teachers were randomly selected from 35 government high schools. the study's goal was to find out whether ei was a predictor of work success among high school female teachers. the study found that ei has a beneficial influence on the teaching and learning process, because teachers with high ei have higher work satisfaction than those with low ei, and their learners do better as shown by higher marks. as a result, there was a need to investigate the link between ei and the academic achievement of teachers in botswana's southeast region primary schools. conceptual framework a conceptual framework explains the path of a research study and grounds it firmly in theoretical constructs (adom et al., 2018). therefore, the theory of ei should represent how a particular conclusion regarding emotions was reached. everyone, regardless of gender, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, or culture, expresses their sentiments through their face and body (darwin & prodger, 1998). emotion can be defined as a mind-boggling feeling, which brings about physical and mental changes influencing thought and behaviour (darwin & 69 ressat 2022, 7(3): 65-85 prodger, 1998). therefore, this study made use of the pyramid of emotional intelligence which has a nine-layer model as its framework. pyramid of emotional intelligence: the nine-layer model drigas and papoutsi (2018) developed an emotional intelligence pyramid, which is also known as “a nine-layer model”. in a hierarchical framework, the model combines characteristics from the ability ei and trait ei models. the ability level includes aspects of self-awareness (both personal and social) and management. the trait level relates to the mood connected with emotions, as well as the inclination to behave in a specific manner in emotional states when other relevant aspects are considered. gardner's concepts of intrapersonal and interpersonal intelligence are also incorporated into the ei pyramid. figure 1. the emotional intelligence pyramid (9-layered model) (drigas and papoutsi, 2018) the framework in figure 1 assisted the study in establishing the effects of ei on teachers’ classroom performance in primary schools in the southeast region of botswana. in making sense of the model, we decided to break it down as discussed below to show its relevance to the study. 70 ressat 2022, 7(3): 65-85 emotional stimuli this layer is the immediate stimulus of emotions as a product of the modification of the neural processes of sensory input (drigas & papoutsi, 2018). an agent receives sensory effects when an event occurs. cognitive processes then interpret these stimuli and generate emotional stimulation for increasing emotions. emotional stimuli are then mediated through a neural system that decides what feelings to experience and, as a result, generates an emotional reaction that may affect the outcome of actions. the outcome of actions could then affect the reaction of the teacher who in this case is the subject of the study and the quality of classroom performance depends on such outcomes and actions. emotion recognition this layer means that to detect emotions, a person requires the ability to interpret the signals of his or her emotions and that of others, typically relayed by non-verbal means (for example, face, body, and voice). detecting the learners’ emotions is truly important for promoting effective learning, because of the inextricable link between cognition and emotions (bouhlal et al., 2020). self-awareness it entails having a clear understanding of one's personality, including strengths, shortcomings, thoughts, beliefs, motives, and emotions. arifin (2019) defines teachers’ self-awareness as teachers’ ability to recognize their boundaries and tasks. as one's self-awareness grows, there is a shift in one's thinking, which leads to changes in emotions and, finally, actions. selfawareness is a psychological state in which a person is aware of his or her characteristics, feelings, and behaviours (crisp & turner, 2014). this would then enact emotional consciousness, proper self-esteem, and self-confidence (goleman, 2001), which every teacher requires for better classroom performance. self-management it is the capacity to regulate one's reactions so as not to be driven by impulsive thoughts and feelings (drigas & papoutsi, 2018). self-management makes one more adaptable, receptive, less judgmental of situations, and less reactive to other people's attitudes. primary school teachers need to possess such traits to accommodate learners of various personalities. self-management skills include the ability to manage emotions, express emotions properly, and listen to the heart to organize actions daily (arifin, 2019). this layer is also important because should a teacher fail to manage his or her emotions and express them properly, teaching could be affected and compromised. 71 ressat 2022, 7(3): 65-85 social awareness this is the level of identifying and understanding the emotions of others. it is an increase in emotional awareness. the way people handle connections and their understanding of others' feelings, needs, and worries is referred to as social awareness (drigas & papoutsi, 2018). this skill is relevant to primary school teachers who receive children from a range of socio-economic backgrounds and who need psychosocial support, which makes this layer one of the most important to teachers. social skills following social awareness, the next stage in the emotional intelligence pyramid that aids in boosting our emotional quotient (eq) is social skills. the phrase "social skills" is used in emotional intelligence to describe the abilities required to effectively handle and affect other people's emotions to successfully manage interactions (drigas & papoutsi, 2018). these qualities include the ability to attune to others’ feelings and comprehend how they feel and think about things, the ability to collaborate and work well with others, and expertise in other people's emotions and negotiations. teachers in primary schools are team players and collaborators who require social skills to create a positive learning environment for learners, hence the need for social skills. self-actualization it is crucial to remember that self-actualization is a lifelong journey, not a destination like "happily ever after”. bar-on (2006) shows how emotional intelligence and self-actualization are linked, concluding that "you may actualize your potential capacity for personal growth only when you are socially and emotionally efficient in meeting your needs and dealing with life in general." primary school teachers’ level of self-actualisation is paramount in the teaching and learning process as part of ei. transcendence maslow (1962) also suggested that those who have achieved self-actualization may occasionally encounter a state he called "transcendence." transcendence refers to far higher and more comprehensive or holistic levels of human consciousness achieved through behaving and associating with ourselves, important others, humanity in general, other species, nature, and the planet as ends rather than means (drigas & papoutsi, 2018). at this level, one assists others in self-actualization, fulfilment, and identification of their potential. the emotional quotient is high, and those who have acquired it try to help others understand and regulate their own and others' emotions as well. emotional unity it is the top tier of the ei pyramid. it is a purposefully positive and dynamic level in the sense that it strives to achieve and maintain emotional dominance, which informs the subject that he or she is in control of the circumstance or setting in an acceptable form (drigas & papoutsi, 2018). emotional rules prescribe what teachers should do to comply with certain expectations about the teacher role – for example, displaying too much affection or too much anger may be 72 ressat 2022, 7(3): 65-85 inappropriate (zembylas, 2003). therefore, teachers in primary schools need to have a reasonable and efficient level of emotional unity for better classroom performance. the above layers are interconnected and as such, teachers need to be fully engaged in them for their classroom performance to be effective. research methodology design the study employed a case study research design. a case study is an in-depth investigation of a person, a group of people, or a unit, to generalize across multiple units (heale & twycross, 2017). this design was suitable for the study because a sample of teachers was derived from various primary schools to represent one population. a case study can either be qualitative or quantitative or contain a combination of both approaches and cover investigation within individual cases (rebolj, 2013). participants the researchers were able to pick a sample from all description levels within the primary school setting using a case study. these types of studies are research methods aimed at holistically analysing a phenomenon in its context and involve detailed consideration of contextual factors leading to higher construct validity (yamashita & moonen (2014). therefore, the botswana primary schools in the southeast region of the country, which took part in the study, e, shared the same classroom performance challenges. in this case, mixed methods research was used in the study. the target population was 300 teachers from 16 primary schools in the southeast region of botswana. the participants were chosen using a simple random sampling procedure. the procedure entailed giving everyone in the population a chance to be selected as a participant (majid, 2018). the research study's sample was selected from four primary schools in botswana's southeast region and 70 out of 300 teachers were used as the study sample. the sample comprised both male and female primary school class teachers across all levels with a range of fewer than 2 years to above 10 years of work experience. research approach and paradigm mixed methods research is an approach involving the collection of both quantitative and qualitative data, integrating the two forms of data, and using distinct designs that may involve philosophical assumptions and theoretical frameworks. the core assumption of this form of inquiry is that the combination of qualitative and quantitative approaches provides a more complete understanding of a research problem than either approach alone (creswell, 2014). in terms of quantitative research methodology, the positivism paradigm was used to guide the research study. this methodology derives its strength from positivism which contends that reality is objective, and that the researcher is an independent observer of such reality (addae, 2015). the paradigm was relevant to account for the closed-ended questionnaire, which was quantitative. the interpretivist paradigm is polarized in the dimension of the sociology of 73 ressat 2022, 7(3): 65-85 regulation by using the subjective approach as an analytical tool (gunbayi & sorm, 2018). because of its qualitative nature, interpretivism also explains and expands on the realm of individual consciousness and subjectivity. therefore, the researchers used open-ended questions to interview participants. the most effective paradigm to adopt in mixed methods is the one that solves problems. mixed approaches, in which reality is constantly renegotiated, contested, and interpreted, are best suited to pragmatism (perera, 2018). the paradigm is concerned with action and change and the interplay between knowledge and action (goldkuhl, 2012). primary school teachers are the driving force of the learning and teaching process, therefore, their reactions to ei concerns as a performance indicator are critical. to a pragmatist, the mandate of science is not to find truth or reality, the existence of which is perpetually in dispute, but to facilitate human problem-solving (parvaiz et al., 2016). therefore, the positivism research paradigm was suitable for the research study, which focused on determining the effects of ei on teachers’ academic performance. instruments items adapted and derived from a test designed by schutte, malouff, and bhullar (2009) referred to as the "schutte self report emotional intelligence test (sseit)" were employed in both the written interview and the questionnaire. the test was designed in 1998 and covered ei dimensions which are: emotion perception, self-emotion management, emotion management of others, and emotion utilisation and has 33 items of which only ten were answered on a 5point likert scale. the questionnaire had the following scale: 1= strongly disagree (sd); 2 = disagree (d); 3 = neither disagree nor agree (ndna); 4 = strongly agree (sa); and 5 = agree (a). the results were evaluated using a variety of statistical methods. quantitative data were analysed using quantitative univariate descriptive analysis expressed in contingency (frequency) tables, bar charts, and graphs to show nominal scores and statistical interpretations. a univariate descriptive analysis uses bar charts, graphs, and tables as inferential statistics to draw conclusions and identify relationships from data collected using absolute frequency (number of cases) and relative frequency (percentage) (cardenas, 2019). the qualitative data were analysed with the help of “verbatim quotes” derived from teachers’ responses. pattorn (2002) argues that verbatim quotations are a basic source of raw data in qualitative research that serve to reveal the informants’ emotions and experiences. luckily, with the decline in covid-19 numbers, we were able to access the respondents and address them in the study. permission for interviewing the primary school teachers in the southeast region was also granted. to validate the instruments, a pilot study was conducted with one primary school from a different region in botswana. piloting is important to establish the content validity of an instrument and to improve questions, format, and scales (creswell, 2009). the teachers from the said primary schools were employed to assess the study instruments' reliability and validity (interview questions and questionnaires). 74 ressat 2022, 7(3): 65-85 results the questionnaire was used to assess respondents on features of emotional intelligence, which include emotion recognition, social awareness, self-management, and self-awareness. further, quantitative data univariate descriptive analysis was expressed using contingency tables, bar charts, and graphs to show nominal scores and statistical interpretations. inferential statistics were used to draw conclusions and identify relationships from data collected using absolute frequency (number of cases) and relative frequency (percentage). the items that were used in the questionnaire were adapted from the schutte self-report emotional intelligence test (sseit): schutte et al., (1998). below are the results: table 1. presentation and analysis of data from the questionnaire: contingency table, emotion recognition, self-awareness, social skills, and social awareness # question 1 (sd) 2 (d) 3 (ndna) 4 (sa) 5 (a) 1 i find it hard to understand the non-verbal messages of other people 11 (16%) 14 (20%) 21 (30%) 9 (13%) 15 (21%) 2 i am aware of my emotions as i experienced them 6 (8%) 9 (13%) 15 (21%) 18 (25%) 24 (33%) 3 i am aware of non-verbal messages i send to others 9 (13%) 10 (14%) 18 (26%) 18 (26%) 15 (21%) 4 by looking at their facial expressions, i recognise the emotions people are experiencing 11 (16%) 12 (17%) 15 (22%) 15 (21%) 17 (24%) 5 i know why my emotions change 9 (13%) 8 (11%) 9 (13%) 16 (23%) 28 (40%) 6 i easily recognise my emotions as i experience them 6 (9%) 8 (11%) 6 (9%) 19 (27%) 31 (44%) 7 i am aware of non-verbal messages other people send 5 (7%) 13(19%) 19 (27%) 14 (20%) 19 (27%) 8 i know what other people are feeling just by looking at them 10 (14%) 18(26%) 16 (23%) 9 (13%) 17(24%) 9 i can tell how people are feeling by listening to the tone of their voice 8 (11%) 20 (29%) 16 (23%) 10 (14%) 16 (23%) 10 it is difficult for me to understand why people feel the way they do 8 (12%) 12 (17%) 15 (21%) 15 (21%) 20 (29%) note: all the items were adopted from the schutte self-report emotional intelligence test (sseit) (schutte et al., 1998). 75 ressat 2022, 7(3): 65-85 in question 1, a total of 36% of those polled disagreed with the statement, while 34% agreed. the respondents who strongly agreed were (13%) and those who agreed were (21%). this indicates that most respondents have difficulty understanding nonverbal messages from others due to a lack of emotional awareness and require assistance. as a result, teachers do not possess qualities that enable them to decipher nonverbal information from others. the positive response by teachers to understand the emotions of other people has been supported by jennings and greenberg (2009) in a study that identified one of the features of socially and emotionally competent teachers as the "ability to recognize and understand the feelings of others". as a result, teachers must possess qualities that enable them to decipher nonverbal information from others. question 2 shows that 21% of respondents disagreed with the statement, while 58% were aware of their emotions as they experience them. this indicates that most of the respondents were aware of their emotions as they experienced them. however, a large percentage (42%) indicated that the respondents' level of emotional awareness was low and that it must be developed for them to be aware of their emotions as they occur. therefore, teachers need high self-awareness to utilize ei traits during teaching and learning. the positive response of teachers being aware of their emotions as they experience them (58%) has been supported by jennings and greenberg (2009), who identified “high self-awareness” as one of the characteristics of socially and emotionally competent teachers. therefore, teachers must have high self-awareness to utilize ei traits during teaching and learning. question 3 indicates that a total of 27% of those polled disagreed with the statement, while 47% agreed. this demonstrates that most of the respondents lacked emotion recognition abilities, as they were unaware of the non-verbal signals they transmitted to others. therefore, teachers need more emotional skills to be aware of the non-verbal messages they send to others. the above response by teachers, about the need to understand non-verbal messages sent to others, has been supported by drigas and papoutsi (2018) in their pyramid of emotional intelligence referred to as “the nine-layer model”. the second layer of the pyramid is “emotion recognition”. it is a stage in which accuracy becomes stronger as emotions are both relayed and remembered. at this level, a person must be able to detect emotions followed by the ability to interpret the signals of his or her emotions and that of others, typically relayed by non-verbal means such as the face and body. therefore, teachers need emotional skills to be aware of the non-verbal messages they send to others. question 4 shows that 33% of respondents disagreed with the statement, while 45% agreed. this demonstrates that most of the respondents lacked emotion detection skills, as they were unable to recognise the emotions that others were experiencing based on their facial expressions. therefore, with the acquisition of emotion recognition and social awareness skills, primary school teachers in the southeast region of botswana will be able to recognise the emotions learners experience by looking at their facial expressions. teachers' responses reveal that they require social awareness, as drigas and papoutsi (2018) argue that "social awareness 76 ressat 2022, 7(3): 65-85 is essential for one to identify and understand the emotions of those around him, including the facial expression". therefore, with the acquisition of emotion recognition and social awareness skills, primary school teachers will be able to recognise the emotions students experience by looking at their facial expressions. the above question 5, shows that 24% of respondents disagreed with the statement, while 63% do. this demonstrates that a substantial portion of the respondents lacked selfawareness, as they had no idea why their feelings changed. therefore, due to a lack of selfawareness skills, teachers could not know why their emotions changed. the response of most respondents concurs with crisp and turner (2014), who describes self-awareness as a psychological state in which an individual knows his or her traits, feelings, and behaviours. therefore, through self-awareness skills, all teachers can learn why their emotions change. question 6 illustrates that 20% of respondents disagreed with the statement, while 71% agreed. this demonstrates that most responders had emotion detection skills, as they could recognise their own emotions as they occurred. therefore, primary school teachers in the southeast region of botswana must not only recognize their emotions as they experience them but also choose among the various negative and positive emotions and apply positive ones in the classroom situation. most of the teachers' comments corroborate gardner's (1989) multiple intelligence theory, which is discussed in this study. he identified 7 aspects of intelligence found in both teachers and learners. among them is “intrapersonal intelligence”. it is found in a teacher who has detailed and accurate self-knowledge. such a teacher must be able to access and differentiate among his or her sentiments, as well as leverage his or her abilities and desires. therefore, primary school teachers must not only recognize their emotions as they experience them but also choose among the various negative and positive emotions and apply positive ones in a classroom situation. question 7 above shows that 26% of respondents disagreed with the statement. the statement was supported by 47% of the respondents. this indicates that most of the respondents lacked emotional recognition and social skills, as they were not aware of the nonverbal messages other people send. drigas and papoutsi (2018) go on to describe social skills as qualities that span from being able to tune into another person's thoughts and comprehend how they feel and think about things, being a great collaborator and team player, and having expertise in other people's emotions and negotiations. additionally, primary school teachers must always be aware of non-verbal messages students send to accord them the necessary assistance during teaching and learning. question 8 above shows that 28 respondents disagreed with the statement, while 37% (26 respondents) agreed. the total number of respondents who strongly disagreed (14%), disagreed (26%), and neither disagreed nor agreed (23%) makes 63%. this demonstrates that most respondents lacked social awareness, as they could not tell how other people were feeling simply by looking at them. one of the characteristics of socially and emotionally competent teachers identified by jennings and greenberg (2009) in their study, which agrees with teacher 77 ressat 2022, 7(3): 65-85 responses in the current study, is that such teachers are socially conscious, fully comprehend that others may have different points of view than they do, and account for this in relationships with learners, parents, and colleagues. this means that teachers would need to improve their ei skills to be able to tell what their learners perceive simply by looking at them. question 9 shows that 40% of respondents disagreed with the statement, while 37% agreed. this demonstrates that most of the respondents lacked social awareness abilities, as they were unable to tell how others were feeling simply by listening to their voice tone. gardner (1989), in his multiple intelligence theory, supports the need for teachers to be able to tell how students are feeling by listening to their voice tone. linguistic intelligence entails sensitivity to the sounds, rhythms, and meanings of words; sensitivity to the different functions of language, including voice. as a result, teachers must have linguistic intelligence and social awareness abilities to assess the tone of students' voices and provide appropriate assistance. question 10 above shows that 29% of the respondents disagreed with the statement, while 50% of the respondents agreed. this demonstrates that most respondents lacked social awareness abilities since they struggled to comprehend why individuals felt the way they did. most of the teachers' responses indicate a lack of self-management abilities, which supports what drigas and papoutsi (2018) stated, that self-management allows one to become more flexible, responsive, less critical of situations, and less reactive to people's attitudes. this means that teachers must understand why learners feel the way they do. arifin (2019) also concurs with drigas and papoutsi (2018) that a socially aware teacher shows empathy for other people and provides good service to the learners at school. most of the responses (50%) by teachers and the supporting literature indicate that the respondents lack ei skills. presentation and analysis of data from open-ended interview questions this section shows how selected interview questions were used to address the ei research questions. the first question sought to find out if teachers do need ei skills and below is how they responded: figure 2. teacher’s need for ei skills 78 ressat 2022, 7(3): 65-85 the above question sought to find out from participants if teachers need ei skills. the figure shows that 68 (97%) of respondents agreed that instructors require emotional intelligence skills, whereas 2 (3%) disagreed. this demonstrates the necessity for elementary school teachers to be equipped with emotional intelligence abilities. the following are some of the most common responses provided by participants: t1: yes, they do. the ability for one to understand and handle their emotions well helps him or her to interact better with learners and colleagues. t2: yes, teachers need emotional intelligence skills because sometimes they just cause conflicts unnecessarily. t8: yes, because it helps them deal with complicated situations in the classroom without affecting students. teachers' comments suggest that they recognise the importance of having ei abilities. the above comments agree with alhashemi (2018) who states that to understand learners and promote learning and progress in the classroom environment, teachers must be aware of ei skills and competencies, as well as promote and encourage interaction in a conducive learning environment. this indicates that teachers must have ei abilities to improve both their performance and that of learners. the second question sought to find out if teachers think emotional intelligence training can help them develop good attitudes towards their profession, and below was the response: figure 3: the ei training towards the development of teachers’ good attitudes towards their profession in figure 3 above, 69 (99%) of the respondents thought that ei training can help teachers develop good attitudes towards their profession whilst 1(1%) disagreed. the following are some of the most frequent answers given by the respondents: t6: yes, it can help one to know how to control feelings and emotions. 79 ressat 2022, 7(3): 65-85 t11: teacher training can aid in the development of positive attitudes toward their career, as they will be able to make the best decisions based on their capacity to critically evaluate circumstances before engaging in them, “thinking before the act”. t21: teachers need emotional intelligence training; it can assist them in constructively managing and controlling their emotions. several authors cited in this study agree with 99% of teachers' comments. they include adeyemo and agoke (2014) who commented that emotionally intelligent teachers tend to make better team players and are more effective at motivating themselves and others. sharma (2015) supported teachers' responses, claiming that one of the reasons why teachers with high ei do better than others is that they have the skills and capacities to avoid and cope with stress during the learning and teaching process. the argument has been cemented by khan (2010) who claimed that when teachers are emotionally stable, they use their potential at an optimum level because there is a relationship between their ei and the level of their job satisfaction this shows that ei training can positively contribute to teachers’ attitudes towards their instructional practices. the next question asked teachers whether they helped others feel better when they were down and below is how they responded: figure 4. do you ever help other people feel better when they are down? figure 4 shows that 68 (97%) of respondents indicated that they assisted others to feel better when they were down, while 2 (3%) claimed that they never helped. the findings show that most teachers can assist others when they are down. the following are some of the most frequent answers given by the respondents: t9: yes, everybody needs support, so i feel it is human to assist whenever another human is in need. t 14: yes, because talking to someone can help him or her to heal or get better. t 33: yes, i always motivate people because you cannot work with someone who is not in a good mood. it automatically transfers to you, so you all need to have the right mindset towards the job to produce good results. 80 ressat 2022, 7(3): 65-85 teachers' replies demonstrate that they had ei skills that needed to be combined with other skills like social awareness for them to show empathy for others and deliver excellent service to students at school during instructional activities (arifin, 2019). the response by teachers also supports the argument advanced by soanes and sungoh (2019), as discussed in this study, that teachers who exhibit ei have a deliberate reflective (rather than reactive) personality, are more flexible (rather than resistant to change), communicate affirmatively (rather than aggressively or passively), are more future-oriented and optimistic (rather than pessimistic and negative), and are creative and practice positive behaviours (non-reactive habits). therefore, teachers need ei skills to apply appropriate ways of assisting learners to make them feel better when they are down. on the question of whether teachers’ ei has any impact on academic performance, the responses are indicated below: figure 5. do you think teachers’ emotional intelligence has any impact on academic performance? figure 5 shows that 69 (99%) of respondents believed that teachers' ei has a major impact on academic success, while 1 (1%) disagreed. most respondents believed that ei has an impact on academic performance, according to the findings. the following are some of the answers given by the respondents: t4: yes, because teachers work with children and must be emotionally intelligent to achieve the best results. t9: yes, because once they are down, they won’t deliver as expected and this may affect their learners’ performance. t16: yes, it does have an impact because emotionally intelligent teachers will grasp people's psychology and behaviour and will approach them in the right manner. the findings of the study conducted by majoka and khan (2017) concur with the responses of teachers as discussed earlier on in this study, where it was revealed that ei had a 81 ressat 2022, 7(3): 65-85 positive impact on the teaching and learning process. this indicated that teachers with high ei have more job satisfaction than teachers with low ei, and their students scored higher. therefore, there is certainly a link between teachers' ei and students' academic success. the question on the strategies needed to improve teachers’ ei in the region where the study was undertaken was responded to as follows: figure 6. what do you think could be done to improve teachers’ level of emotional intelligence? the information above reveals that 30 (43%) of the respondents thought that training could improve teachers’ level of ei whilst 29 (41%) of them thought that workshops could help. 6 (9%) of respondents believed that counselling was necessary, whereas 5 (7%) believed that incentives could help them enhance their ei. according to the data, most respondents believed that formal training could boost teachers' ei levels. the following are some of the most frequent answers given by the respondents: t22: regular training and motivation and appraisal can improve teachers’ level of emotional intelligence. t28: in-service training, followed by encouraging or instilling the spirit of personal development. t29: teachers should be exposed to this emotional intelligence training. the above responses by teachers support what alhashemi (2018) asserted, that to understand students and promote learning and progress in the classroom environment, lecturers must be aware of emotional intelligence (ei) competencies and skills, as well as promote and encourage interaction in a positive learning environment. teachers considered ei training as a contributory factor that has an impact on the advancement of their ei competencies, according to the findings of a study conducted by dolev and leshem (2016) to determine the impact of teacher-centred ei training on teachers' ei in israel. another relevant study by turi, ghani, sorooshian and abbas (2017), which supports the responses by teachers, indicated that socio-emotional intelligence produces better social, socio-emotional, and 82 ressat 2022, 7(3): 65-85 psychological skills in teachers directly, and indirectly develops teacher proficiencies and performance. therefore, ei training can be used as a strategy to improve teachers’ levels of ei. conclusion the findings of the study reveal that primary school teachers in the southeast region of botswana need ei skills to enhance their performance. the study found that lack of ei has an effect in the classroom and affects the performance of the teacher which could overflow to the learners. the study's findings show that ei training can improve teachers' views towards their instructional practices in botswana's southeast region primary schools. furthermore, teachers need ei skills to apply appropriate ways of assisting learners to make them feel better when they are down. the study's findings reveal that there is a link between teachers' ei and academic performance and demonstrate that ei training can be utilised to raise teachers' ei levels. recommendations the main recommendation based on the findings of this study is that emotional intelligence training should be offered as a module during pre-service training of teachers. teachers in the field should attend ei refresher workshops. similar research studies should be conducted among teachers and learners. references abraham, j. & scaria, j. 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(2003). interrogating “teacher identity”: emotion, resistance, and selfformation. educational theory, 53(1), 107-127. http://www.ijonte.org/ https://doi.org/10.4236/psych.2019.1013118 https://www.researchgate.net/publication/269165651 microsoft word 5.adu-et-al.69-89 research in social sciences and technology https://ressat.org e-issn: 2468-6891 volume: 7 issue: 1 2022 pp. 69-89 innovation and technology: a panacea to teaching and learning challenges during the covid-19 lockdown in south africa kemi o. adua, kazeem ajasa badarua, ntombozuko dukua & emmanuel o. adu*a * corresponding author email: eadu@ufh.ac.za a. faculty of education, university of fort hare, east london, south africa article info received: november 2, 2021 revised: february 19, 2022 accepted: march 15, 2022 how to cite adu, k. o., badaru, k. a., duku, n., & adu, e. o. (2022). innovation and technology: a panacea to teaching and learning challenges during the covid-19 lockdown in south africa. research in social sciences and technology, 7(1), 6989 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2022.5 copyright license this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 abstract innovation and technology brought by the 4th industrial revolution (4ir) have become an urgent reality to all teachers because of the need for a virtual classroom. in south africa, over 13 million students in almost 25,000 schools have been affected by the covid-19 lockdown. most school teachers were not trained for online teaching, which was the only safe method of teaching during the lockdown period. this study, therefore, investigated how innovation and technology were utilised to mitigate the virtual classroom problems during the covid-19 lockdown. this study employed a qualitative research approach using interviews to collect data based on the phenomenological research design. the sample for this study consisted of 12 lecturers purposively drawn from one university in the eastern cape province of south africa. thematic content analysis was performed on the data. the findings revealed that a majority of the participants have poor pedagogical skills especially those related to using technologies such as blackboard, microsoft teams, and v-drive on computers for online teaching engagements during the covid-19 lockdown; strategies utilised by the participants for their teaching activities during the lockdown included microsoft teams, whatsapp voice notes, email attachments for sending bulky teaching materials to students, and other computer-instructional resources. thus, this study recommends an urgent need for capacity development workshops to equip lecturers with computer and ict skills, knowledge, and strategies for online teaching delivery and increased provision of adequate learning and teaching facilities in all public educational institutions, including those in the rural areas. keywords covid-19 lockdown; innovation and technology; teaching facilities; training of teachers; virtual classroom 10.46303/ressat.2022.5 70 ressat 2022, 7(1): 69-89 introduction the outbreak of the coronavirus brought a lot of confusion accompanied by anxiety and distress among the global population. the coronavirus, otherwise called covid-19 and declared as a pandemic, unexpectedly created health, economic, social, and education crises (who, 2020a). this perhaps is the reason why omodan (2020) describes the covid-19 infection as an emergency of the unknown and subsequently portends short-term and long-term implications on the world in general, including the education system. the sudden shutdown of many institutions and most businesses negatively affected the economy and the smooth running of teaching and learning in schools. the pandemic has so far created the biggest shock and radical change in education where 1.6 billion young people have had their contact schooling suspended (unesco, 2020). in south africa, over 13 million students attending school in almost 25,000 schools have been affected (department of basic education [dbe], 2020). covid-19 disease was identified as a respiratory syndrome that was declared a pandemic on march 12, 2020, by the world health organisation (who, 2020b). south africa, on the 26th of march, like other countries opted for lockdown intended to manage the spread of the virus which made things more serious as this was the first time of its kind in the present generation. consequently, everything came to a halt, because there was a need for the schools to cease onsite teaching and move to distance learning. in other words, classroom contact sessions had to switch from being traditional face–to–face teaching to adopting digital methods. after the lockdown, this is where challenge was experienced more especially in the public schools in the rural areas (harris & jones, 2020, p.6). teaching and learning stepped into unseen and new territory which saw teaching and learning activities re-arranged, revised, and re-directed from being a teacher-driven process to a primarily learner-parent, technology-supported online process (harris & jones, 2020). innovation and technology which are the hallmark of the 4th industrial revolution (4ir) had overnight come into existence. because of the huge imbalances that exist in south african school contexts, some schools were minimally affected whilst others were severely affected and literarily came to a standstill. in addition, huge inequalities between private and public schools were revealed during this period. this resulted in schools being forced to rethink new ways in which teaching and learning can resume as well as thrive in this dangerous and uncertain time in trying to save the school year as well as the lives of teachers and children. in doing this, the measures put in place by governments of various countries, including south africa, such as the implementation of social distancing to minimize the spread of the infections, hence, lockdown regulations and closure of schools further compound the problem (dbe, 2020). given the aforementioned contexts in south african schools, the short period within which schools had to prepare for the lockdown was a situation that could spell disaster for the majority of schools in the country. covid-19 could have devastating consequences for learning for many years to come in south africa, especially when such learning is already of questionable 71 ressat 2022, 7(1): 69-89 quality (soudien, 2020). many inequalities were exposed and which further worsened students’ inequalities, thereby exposing the south african dichotomy in its society. in south africa, millions of students attend public schools, which offer varying degrees of resources and quality education. for the advantaged schools, moving to online learning was an achievable goal, while for the disadvantaged ones, learning was interrupted and became a difficult task for the duration of the lockdown (davids 2020). those students from disadvantaged schools were at risk of losing a great deal of learning and that would set them up for failure in the future (soudien 2020). because of the majority of schools being disadvantaged and poor as far as resources are concerned, this statement was to expect too much and prove to be problematic considering the challenges faced by these schools. for many students from disadvantaged schools, this was a recipe for disaster, setting them up for failure from the onset, simply because their schools lack resources such as computers, tablets, the internet, skilled teachers, and other digital learning devices. therefore, trying to implement such drastic changes in the mode of teaching and learning would in south africa be an almost impossible feat, especially in under-resourced and struggling schools, in addition, it would put the dbe under enormous pressure and public scrutiny (jansen, 2020). during the covid-19 lockdown, a new status quo with the removal of school routines emanated, which gave assurance, consistency, and predictable outcomes. all these longstanding and familiar routines, in an instance, were gone and teachers and students alike were left with disbelief and uncertainties. it is safe to aver that a lot of confusion and anxiety experienced by all stakeholders, such as the dbe, parents, school principals, teachers, and students alike, marked this period. in a survey conducted by the young minds in the united kingdom, it was found that 74% of teachers and school staff during the school’s unspecified period of school closure harmed the mental health of young people (young minds, 2020). the fact that young students could not attend schools disadvantaged them a lot because of the lack of learning materials as well as the absence of the teacher or facilitator in front of them. likewise, they could not focus on their studies due to the disturbance from members of their households (pastor et al, 2020). the environment, which surrounded the young students, was not conducive to learning, and that affected them negatively (realyvásquez-vargas et al., 2020). in most african countries also, the sudden closure of schools due to the outbreak of the coronavirus obstructed learning and teaching. the countries include, among others, burkina faso, the democratic republic of congo, kenya, south africa, and many others. in research involving ten african countries including the aforementioned, the findings showed that almost all the students struggled to continue learning in the absence of their teachers and most parents could not offer adequate assistance. in addition, parents complained that their children did not get any support from the teachers during the lockdown, and the assignments that were given were difficult for the children to do without their teachers’ guidance. like in the uk, children in african countries experienced stress, anxiety, isolation, and depression during the lockdown. according to garcia and weiss (2020), many factors such as continuous access to the internet, 72 ressat 2022, 7(1): 69-89 availability of learning resources at home had positive outcomes for those students who were fortunate enough to access them during the time of complete shutdown of schools. teaching and learning were affected by many factors during the lockdown, hence the purpose of this paper was to investigate how innovation and technology helped in solving challenges associated with virtual classrooms during the covid-19 lockdown in south africa. thus, the following research questions were raised to guide the study. research questions  what skills do lecturers in the faculty of education possess for handling online teaching at a university in south africa?  what strategies did lecturers in the faculty of education use for remote teaching during the covid-19 lockdown at a university in south africa? theoretical framework and literature review theoretical framework: the diffusion of innovation (doi) theory the doi theory is suitable for this study because it addresses the process through which an innovation or a new way of doing things such as the use of technology spreads among members of a social system. this theory was propounded by rogers in 2003 (nazari et al., 2013). diffusion, according to rogers, involves a process by which innovations are communicated through particular channels over time within a social system. the e-learning implementation, in higher educational institutions, is not only a case of diffusion but also a major innovation in the education industry as a whole (buc et al., 2015). in the case of this study, a university is regarded as a social system whose members are lecturers and students. innovations such as the use of digital technologies are adopted and utilized by faculty as instructional support for an effective teaching and learning process in a university system (hadullo, 2011). during the covid-19 lockdown, the innovative idea of online platforms for teaching and learning spread among the education community across the globe. through research and online engagements, educators at all levels of education shared and communicated innovative ideas, knowledge, and digital skills for e-learning delivery amid threats from the raging pandemic. this study aims at revealing the skills and strategies of education lecturers at a university in south africa. technology and innovation as a necessity for teachers during covid-19 pandemic the advent of covid-19 has led all institutions across the world to juggle various online pedagogical techniques and endeavour to make better use of technology. that is, many institutions all across the world have digitalized their operations, recognizing the critical need in this situation. during the covid-19 lockdown, the virtual classroom is not working well. as a result, improving the quality of virtual classrooms is critical at this point (evansamalu & claravall, 2021; isidro & teichert, 2021; waters et al., 2016) since the covid-19 outbreak, online education in chinese colleges has grown at an exponential rate (dhawan, 2020); not only in china, many countries have recorded an increase and improvement in 73 ressat 2022, 7(1): 69-89 the use of online pedagogy, most especially with the use of the internet of things (alrashidi, 2020; mohammed & isa, 2021). this new development requires that educators have to modify their entire pedagogical approach to navigating through the new market conditions and adapting to the changing scenarios, resulting in an overnight shift from the traditional classrooms to eclassrooms. during this difficult period, the main question is not whether online teaching and learning environments or virtual classrooms can provide high-quality education; but rather how academic institutions will be able to adopt online learning on such a large scale (carey, 2020). any educational institution, anywhere in the world, will be harmed by resistance to change. they will be judged on how quickly they adjust to changes in such a short time and how well they retain quality. educational institutions' reputations are on the line, and they are being scrutinized. their ability to adapt is demonstrated by how effectively they behave and preserve the quality of their education in the face of the crisis. the only option is to switch from face-to-face lectures to online platforms. academic institutions, for example, would not be able to convert all of their college curricula into online resources in a single day (lee et al., 2021). similarly, the teacher can alter course contents to fit the online learning platforms for a virtual classroom purpose. because online teaching differs from face-to-face teaching, a teacher must be well prepared, think outside the box, and be technologically savvy. the teachers should be aware of what should be added to and removed from the course materials. to prevent appearing shallow, they must ensure that the content is appropriately aligned (dhama et al., 2020). problems of virtual teaching and learning the association of african universities (aau) underlined the importance of integrating alternative means of online teaching and learning, as well as other distance learning strategies (lee et al., 2021). other campuses around the united states were affected by the cancellation of the face-to-face contact sessions. according to the conclusions of a poll done by times higher education in china, online higher education will never be able to equal the real-world classroom environment (lau et al., 2020). instead, it would generate unfit graduates, leading to increased interpersonal communication discomfort. “face-to-face interaction will never be matched in quality by other ways of communication,” according to an australian study (lau et al., 2020, p. 2). online courses were shown to be less effective than in-person courses in a study of online vs in-person courses. the reason for this is that in-person classes allow students to socialize with teachers and other students, which encourages them to interact with one another (lau et al., 2020, p. 2). in an australian survey of undergraduate students, it was discovered that they preferred face-to-face discussions because they felt more involved and received more immediate responses than they did during online discussions (adu et al., 2020a). the department of higher education and training (dhet) in south africa had been pressing lecturers to become familiar with the frequent use of modern ict facilities as a result 74 ressat 2022, 7(1): 69-89 of the 4th industrial revolution even before the covid-19 disease broke out in south africa. some are asking if online learning modes will continue after the pandemic, now that most colleges throughout the world have adopted it. due to their preparation for the 4ir, certain colleges were unaffected by the shift during the covid-19 school stoppage. students may have difficulties when learning from home since they may not have a quiet location to study, access to computers for coursework, and internet connection. on the teacher's side, the sudden transition to mandatory online learning during the lockdown period may have caught them offguard in terms of having enough time to plan courses that incorporate digital devices (adu et al., 2020a). children from low and middle-income families faced the most difficulties as a result of the pandemic (adu et al., 2020a). in universities and colleges, the abrupt shift from face-to-face contact classrooms to virtual teaching and learning platforms did not go down well with everyone. to engage in online learning, individuals must have computer literacy, internet wi-fi connectivity, network availability, and workspace. in other words, a favorable environment with all of the necessary online learning and teaching resources is required for effective online learning. according to the united nations educational, scientific, and cultural organisation (unesco), the closure of higher education institutions (heis) has impacted 9,8 million african students, with only 24% having internet access (tamrat & teferra, 2020). however, students from low and middleincome families face extra obstacles due to high costs of data, internet connectivity, and unreliable power supply. because of the socio-economic issues in the country and the state of some colleges, online teaching may not be very efficient in south african universities, as stated before in this study. many students, for example, come from low-income families and so cannot buy data to use the internet unless it is provided by their institutions. there is a significant difference between those heis that have the technology and teaching resources, as well as, most importantly, skilled teachers, and those that do not have (tamrat & tefera, 2020). similarly, there is a problem with the learning styles, which vary from student to student. although some students and instructors remain committed to face-to-face traditional learning, the time is ripe for institutions to catch up with the digital world and provide 4ir breakthroughs to 21st-century students. some lectures, on the other hand, cannot be delivered online, particularly when laboratory experiments, practical lessons, or art performances are required. at some point, the fairness and integrity of online tests may not be ensured unless they are constructed in such a way that students cannot reproduce them. in this scenario, technological advancement on the part of the lecturers must be addressed to discover a technique to supervise online examinations. the institution should think about giving rigorous coaching to students so that they can make the best use of the current technologies for their learning. personal attention is also a huge issue facing online learning. students want a twoway interaction which sometimes becomes difficult to implement. the learning process cannot reach its full potential until students practise what they learn. sometimes, online 75 ressat 2022, 7(1): 69-89 content is all theoretical and does not let students practise and learn effectively. mediocre course content is also a major issue. students feel that lack of community, technical problems, and difficulties in understanding instructional goals are the major barriers to online learning (dhawan, 2020). students were found in a study to be underprepared for managing their career, family, and social lives with their studies in a virtual learning environment. students were also found to be underprepared for a variety of e-learning and academic abilities. how teaching and assessment plans were affected by the pandemic distance learning that the country opted for as a way to occupy students during the lockdown did not work efficiently for some students in the rural areas (dhawan, 2020). however, students from privileged backgrounds were supported by their parents, so they could find a way to learn despite the complete shutdown of schools (schleicher, 2020). learning and teaching through the media, such as listening to the school programmes on radio and watching television channels in which different lessons are taught, was most effective to students with the required resources. the process was good for all those who had access to the television, radios, and cell phones with internet data. in any teaching and learning situation, the outcomes achieved through the process of learning and teaching are measured through assessments. even though, teachers could send assessments through different virtual platforms; they could not reach all the students outside the internet connectivity coverage in rural areas, due to the various challenges mentioned earlier (schleicher, 2020). the new covid-19 protocols observed under the new normal negatively affected teaching and assessment plans in one way or another. the teachers had to develop alternative approaches to monitor the students’ learning which was not an easy task for them. concerning remote teaching, south africa is not the only country that is negatively affected by remote or online learning. in india among others, four categories of barriers that affected teachers during the teaching and assessment process were identified; and these are the home environment, institutional support barriers, teachers’ technical difficulties, as well as teachers’ problems (joshi et al., 2020). these included interruption at home during teaching and conducting of assessments, lack of training for teachers, limited awareness of online platforms, as well as lack of technical knowledge, and negative attitudes. in pakistan, the lack of high-speed internet also affected the smooth running of online teaching and assessment. consequently, this affects the progress in assessment submission because teachers are required to be flexible to accommodate students with challenges of internet connectivity (mahmood, 2020). the abovementioned concerns are also the realities in south africa and this affected education during the lockdown period, especially in rural schools. teachers’ readiness to teach during lockdown online teaching is frustrating and has brought stress to most teachers (mcloughlin & northcote, 2017). teachers had to adopt the online teaching process which was completely new to some. 76 ressat 2022, 7(1): 69-89 conducting online teaching requires a completely different skill from the one for face-to-face teaching as students learn individually, without group assistance. the teacher cannot even read the students’ reactions or facial experiences during online teaching, so the teacher cannot read from their reactions if they understand or not. most teachers struggle to adjust planning for the face-to-face classes with the online classes. therefore, this raises a question on how ready were the teachers to teach and their level of competence in embracing online or distance teaching. kaiser and könig (2019) elucidate on teacher competencies as “the context-specific, cognitive performance dispositions that are functionally responsive to situations and demands in certain domains” (p. 599). the common challenges that were and are still encountered by the teachers and students are: “lack of general and technological infrastructure (electricity, internet connectivity, and devices); lack of effective and user-friendly distance learning platforms; and lack of staff capacity to support distance learning through quality pedagogical resources” (lee et al., 2021, p. 8). during the lockdown, teachers were not capacitated with skills for online teaching or distance learning. there was no training conducted for online teaching either by the schools or the department of education, teachers were all by themselves in their corners. this posed a problem as teachers and students were not prepared to adopt the distance learning modalities. in addition, in countries such as australia, mexico, south korea, and the united states, the common challenge for teachers was the lack of adequate digital skills which affected the quality of online teaching across the schools (lee et al., 2021, p. 8). nevertheless, with the independent and public schools having good infrastructure, and financial resources, and with students from a viable socio-economic background, online learning ran smoothly (ramrathan, 2020). still, without proper training of teachers on how to conduct lessons using digital learning platforms, effective teaching could not take place. furthermore, the inequality in terms of access to education contributed negatively to effective teaching during the lockdown period because most schools had to rely on digital technologies to continue with teaching and learning activities, as well as adequate infrastructure. teaching and learning challenges during the lockdown communication between teachers and the students was most challenging during the lockdown as some students were not available on social media. the purpose of communication during the online learning and teaching period was to engage students in learning and teaching as it is with the face-to-face contact sessions (liberman et al., 2020). the purpose was not served for all students especially those in rural areas and those affected by poor socio-economic factors. to most teachers and students, online teaching and learning during the lockdown did not favour them. even the teachers’ capacity to communicate and understand their students’ challenges during the lockdown was limited. liberman et al. (2020) postulate that the covid-19 crisis affected also all the modalities of learning assessment. 77 ressat 2022, 7(1): 69-89 before the lockdown, teachers were in full control of the measures followed during the assessment, but now they are required to look for alternative approaches which may or may not be trustworthy. mishra et al. (2020) recommend that face-to-face interaction with students is the best for the teaching and learning process to take place effectively. the idea that no teaching method can surpass the traditional formal education that we know where there is teacher and learner interaction in the same space or classroom has been demonstrated during the lockdown period. this is because the lack of communication between the teachers and the students was a major challenge as some students had no data or experienced poor connectivity, especially for those in rural areas. although teaching was also done using the media, not all students had access to television or radio, let alone computers and laptops. learning environment during the lockdown, george (2020) affirmed that the educational institutions had to look for unique ways of teaching and learning to find out whether they would accommodate all the students or not. many students were not in a convenient environment that would be conducive for learning activities. the virtual teaching and learning process needs an environment that promotes effective teaching and learning such as the availability of resources like computer facilities, internet data, and proper space which allows learning to take place uninterrupted. south africa was not left behind and this brought a lot of discomfort and distress to the students, which then required some therapeutic interventions to assist with these psychological difficulties (singh et al., 2020, p. 1). for primary school students in urban areas, there are institutions for this service but for the rural schools, these services are not easily available and even considered by most parents. conceivable solutions to virtual classroom challenges virtual classrooms should be engaging, interactive, and dynamic. teachers should provide pupils with time limitations and reminders to keep them aware and focused. to the greatest extent possible, efforts should be made to humanize the learning process. students should be given individual attention so that they can readily adapt to this new learning environment. to communicate with students, you can use social media and numerous group forums. when it becomes harder to reach out to students via texts, various messaging apps, video chats, and so on, communication is key; content should be such that students may practise and perfect their abilities (dhawan, 2020, p. 5). online programmes should facilitate innovative, interactive, relevant, student-centered, and group-based interactions (dhawan, 2020, p. 5). educators must devote a significant amount of work to developing efficient online instruction methodologies. effective online instructions encourage students to provide comments, encourage them to ask questions, and widen the learner's horizons in terms of course contents. through online instructions, institutions must focus on pedagogical concerns and stress collaborative learning, casestudy learning, and project-based learning (dhawan, 2020, p. 5). the problem for 78 ressat 2022, 7(1): 69-89 educational institutions is not just discovering new technology and implementing it, but also reinventing education to assist students and academic staff seeking digital literacy instruction. methodology research approach and paradigm this study adopted a phenomenological research design because it attempted to understand how lecturers at one university in south africa mitigated the challenges associated with teaching and learning during the covid-19 lockdown using various innovative strategies. phenomenology is a qualitative research approach to studying the commonality of a lived experience of an individual or a given group (neubauer et al 2019). the researcher used the qualitative research approach for this study to define, recognize, and understand the human phenomenon, relationship, and discourse. this study sought to explain the challenges caused by covid-19 lockdown to the teaching and learning environment and explored how they were mitigated using various innovative technologies for teaching and learning in the context of south africa. qualitative research allows researchers to gather, synthesize, and deduce knowledge from people through interviews and observations (adu et al., 2020b). interpretivism is the best research methodology for this paper because it is concerned with subjectivity and various realities, and it prefers to investigate problems through the lens of personal experience (adu et al., 2020b). their results are frequently not generalizable to whole populations, but rather to unique conditions and circumstances. it is often linked to the compilation of qualitative data, which can result in different interpretations (adu et al., 2020b). observations, text and narrative research, interviews, case studies, and audio-visual materials are all used to gather evidence for interpretivism. they describe their findings in great detail. participants and sampling strategy tesch (as cited in ganeson & ehrich, 2009) notes that the kind of phenomenon investigated determines the suitable number of participants technically considered in any phenomenological study. the number can be from 10 to 25 participants; taking cognizance that phenomenological studies have been conducted with as few as 6 and as many as 25 participants (ganeson & ehrich, 2009). alase (2017) suggests a sample size of 2 to 25 for a phenomenological research tradition. in this study, the sample consisted of 12 lecturers drawn from one university in eastern cape, south africa. participants were purposively selected from the faculty of education. they were also full-time lecturers engaged at the university where the study was conducted. table 1 summarises the socio-demographic variables of the participants. 79 ressat 2022, 7(1): 69-89 table 1. socio-demographic variables of participants participant gender specialization number of years in service rank lecturer 1 male mathematics education 13 professor lecturer 2 male early childhood education 6 senior lecturer lecturer 3 female history education 8 senior lecturer lecturer 4 male curriculum studies 5 lecturer lecturer 5 female accounting education 3 lecturer lecturer 6 female early childhood education 11 professor lecturer 7 female mathematics education 9 professor lecturer 8 female language education and curriculum studies 7 professor lecturer 9 female early childhood education 12 professor lecturer 10 male mathematics education 5 senior lecturer lecturer 11 female early childhood 2 professor lecturer 12 male language education and curriculum studies 7 lecturer as shown in table 1 above, 58.3% of the participants were females while the remaining 41.7% were males. the participants’ fields of specialisation cut across mathematics education, early childhood education, history, accounting, curriculum studies, and language education. the minimum number of years spent in service by the participants was 2 while the maximum number was 13. 50% of the participants were in the professorial cadre while the remaining 50% were both senior lecturers and lecturers respectively. data collection techniques primary in-depth interviews were utilised to get information from the participants (alase, 2017), with semi-structured interviews being favoured above other types of interviews. the participants were interviewed on their opinions based on the research questions set for this paper (adu et al., 2020). interviews were conducted mainly via whatsapp calls, phone calls, and 80 ressat 2022, 7(1): 69-89 even in-person amid observation of all the covid-19 protocols. the interviews were also recorded with a tape recorder to supplement the interviewer’s transcript. data trustworthiness the term "trustworthiness" refers to how qualitative data is stable, predictable, dependable, consistent, and accurate in the future, resulting in the same results or outcomes as before. data trustworthiness is concerned with the consideration given to research findings to confirm whether it is worthy of attention or not (badaru & adu, 2021). the study adhered to the four characteristics of qualitative research such as dependability, confirmability, credibility, and transferability (neubauer et al 2019). the dependability of the data is the same as reliability in quantitative research. it is required that participants are allowed to evaluate the findings, conclusion, and recommendation(s) of the study to ascertain whether or not they are generated from the original narratives given by the informants (badaru, 2019). confirmability implies objectivity in a qualitative study. it is a criterion that requires that a researcher’s influence and judgement should be minimal in a research process; data, analysis, and interpretation are not generated from the imagination of a researcher; but are supposed to come from participants during a fieldwork experience. the credibility of data entails the design of the interview guide in tandem with the research questions and/or objectives of the study (badaru, 2019). the draft was subsequently critiqued by another research expert in the faculty. it was then revised considering all the suggestions for an improved version. the final draft of the interview guide was subjected to pilot testing. it was afterward refined before utilising it for data collection during the fieldwork. the participants’ views were tape-recorded with their permission. the researchers listened well to the recordings and conducted verbatim transcriptions of the recordings. to ensure the transferability of data, the transcripts were returned to the participants for confirmation that they represented the narrations obtained from them during the data collection phase of the study (badaru, 2019). data analysis the interviews were analysed with the atlas 6.2 software application. since the interviews were tape-recorded, the first step of data processing was to transcribe verbatim the information from the tape recorder into a hard copy. “credible and trustworthy analysis requires and is driven by displays that are focused enough to permit a viewing of a full dataset in the same location and are arranged systematically to answer the research questions at hand” (miles, huberman, & saldana, 2013, p. 108). this enabled the researchers to form a strong bond with the data. the researchers interpreted the data using written transcriptions and first-hand knowledge from the participants. the textual report produced from the participants’ responses was also shared with them to confirm that it aligned with their original views expressed during the fieldwork for data collection. ethical considerations the research was carried out with due consideration and adherence to ethical practices which 81 ressat 2022, 7(1): 69-89 included doing good and avoiding harm, obtaining informed consent, guaranteeing the absence of risk or harm to participants, ensuring privacy, ensuring anonymity, and maintaining confidentiality (cohen et al., 2013). firstly, there was an ethical clearance secured from the researchers’ institution of affiliation to conduct this study. secondly, we sought the permission of the relevant authorities of the institution where this study was done. lastly, we assured the participants of their voluntary participation and were also encouraged to complete and sign the informed consent forms for the study. according to creswell (2013), the researcher should obtain participants’ written approvals before the commencement of a phenomenological study. results this study investigated how faculty of education lecturers at one university leveraged innovation and technology for mitigating the virtual classroom challenges during the covid-19 lockdown in south africa. in this section, the qualitative data collected from the participants are presented, analysed, and discussed accordingly. lecturers’ skills for handling online teaching engagements at a university in south africa this intended to find out what skills the participants possess for handling online teaching engagements during the covid-19 lockdown at a university in south africa. almost all the participants, 10 out of 12, complained about the lack of skills and knowledge for online learning and teaching. they further mentioned that they did not get any support from the department of higher education and training (dhet) on how to make it possible to connect virtually with their students during the covid-19 lockdown. most of the participants confirmed they only had the traditional face-to-face teaching skills; which implied that they had poor or no skills for online teaching engagements, see table 2. this finding was a pointer to the fact that they were unable to use technologies such as blackboard, v-drive, and microsoft team for their teaching engagements during the covid-19 lockdown. some of these participants had the following to say: l1: the only knowledge and skills we have are for traditional face-to-face contact with our students, we are not used to online teaching. our students do not have the facilities for online learning, and some do not have radios to listen to the lessons that are taught there. for that matter, with the lessons conducted on the radios, students cannot ask questions when they need clarity (a male professor). l2: no skills whatsoever sir. i have put up over two decades in lecturing. i never expected this and i have never tried it because i am not so good at or versatile about computers the little that i know is to use powerpoint slides to teach and at times record my students’ marks. we are short of learning and teaching resources for this purpose which includes computers at school (a male senior lecturer). 82 ressat 2022, 7(1): 69-89 l3: to be honest with you sir, i never thought that one day i will be required to do distance learning, so, i do not have any skill of teaching online, using the technologies like a blackboard, v-drive, microsoft team, etc (a female senior lecturer). l4: the majority of our students are a socio-economically disadvantaged community. most of their parents are illiterate, they cannot assist them academically. so how can we expect them to assist at this time when the schools are closed? yes, i try to send work using whatsapp, v-drive and ask them to share the work with other students, although i know that this may be impossible at some point. yeah, that’s it. that is the only skill i have sir (a male lecturer). lecturers’ strategies for remote teaching engagements at a university in south africa again, a research question was couched to unearth strategies adopted by the participants for online teaching at a university in south africa. a majority of the participants, 9 out of 12, used whatsapp and emails, to send and communicate with their students; with an exception of three of the participants who confirmed that they were able to use microsoft team and v-drive for their teaching engagements, see table 2. the following narratives from the participants succinctly describe the findings: l6: i use microsoft team to teach my students because the blackboard is not userfriendly to my students. the majority of my students prefer this to other means. however, very few said they live where there is no network at all (a female professor). l10: sir, with our students the only strategy is to send work, is using email attachments and voice recorded whatsapp. at times i requested their class representative to meet me physically if i have a big volume of reading materials to give the students. however, quality is compromised and nothing is better compared to the face-to-face (a male senior lecturer). l12: the majority of our students are a socio-economically disadvantaged community. most of their parents are illiterate, they cannot assist them academically. so how can we expect them to assist at this time when the schools are closed? yes, i try to send work using whatsapp, v-drive and ask them to share the work with other students, although i know that this may be impossible at some point. yeah, that’s it. that is the only skill i have sir (a male lecturer). 83 ressat 2022, 7(1): 69-89 table2. a summary of findings research questions themes sub-themes/responses what skills do lecturers in faculty of education possess for handling online teaching activities at a university in south africa? lecturers’ skills for handling online teaching engagements at a university in south africa i. traditional faceto-face teaching skills ii. a few computer skills such as the use of powerpoint slides for lesson presentations. iii. poor online skills for use of blackboard, microsoft teams, v-drive. what strategies did lecturers in the faculty of education use for remote teaching activities during the covid-19 lockdown at a university in south africa? lecturers’ strategies for remote teaching engagements at a university in south africa i. microsoft teams app ii. whatsapp messaging and voice notes iii. email attachments discussion the discussion of results, under this section, is based on the summary provided in table 2. the results reveal that the participants possess traditional face-to-face teaching skills, computer skills such as the use of powerpoint slides, but have poor skills for online teaching engagements. the strategies used by the participants for remote teaching during the covid-19 lockdown include microsoft teams, whatsapp messaging and voice notes; and email attachments. these findings are elaborately discussed as follows. lecturers’ skills for handling online teaching engagements at a university in south africa in response to the first research question regarding the lecturers’ skills for online teaching engagements, most of the participants disclosed that they did not have more than the skills required for traditional face-to-face teaching; they also narrated difficulty experienced with the use of computer tools and other online technologies like blackboard and microsoft teams which 84 ressat 2022, 7(1): 69-89 became the alternative platforms for teaching and learning activities during the covid-19 lockdown. these findings are not in contradiction with what an indian study found to be barriers against teaching and assessment during the lockdown period (joshi et al., 2020). according to this study, teaching and assessment were adversely affected by teachers’ lack of training for online engagements, poor awareness of online platforms for teaching, lack of skills and knowledge, and negative attitudes towards the use of technologies for teaching purposes. lee et al., (2021), in another study, identified a lack of staff capacity that would support the online engagement of teachers and learners as one of the challenges of remote learning. these challenges of lack of adequate digital skills of teachers were noted to have affected the quality of online teaching in schools across australia, mexico, south korea, and the united states (lee et al., 2021). this lack of digital skills, according to van dijk, is caused by inadequacy of education or social support (rambe & chipunza, 2013). lecturers’ strategies for remote teaching engagements at a university in south africa an attempt at understanding various strategies used by faculty of education lecturers at a university in south africa informed the second research question. in response to the question, most of the participants mentioned their strategies which included the use of microsoft team application, whatsapp messaging and voice notes, as well as the email attachments. these findings are in tandem with the suggestion, for overcoming challenges associated with virtual classrooms, by dhawan (2020), that communication with students could be facilitated through the use of social media and other several messaging apps rambe and chipunza (2013) found whatsapp to be effectively used for redressing ‘some information asymmetries that are often seen among students from poor backgrounds’ (p.335). the authors stated further that the creation of a viable technological context is possible through whatsapp for problem-solving and counselling students regarding issues of academics; widening students’ access to a bulk of educational resources irrespective of their locations. the findings also revealed that participants chose the microsoft team because of its flexible features for voice recording, video chats, and text messaging. of course, it is understandable why the participants had to resort to using the email tool for sending bulky documents such as reading materials and class assessments to the students during the covid-19 lockdown. attaching such heavy texts via whatsapp or microsoft team might be a bit difficult to do especially when the internet network is not cooperating well. conclusion this paper examines innovation and technology as the solutions to teaching and learning challenges during the covid-19 lockdown in south africa. there is a lot to be done by the south african government concerning infrastructure to equip students and lecturers during the “new normal” especially universities in the rural areas. 21st-century teaching should involve technological-driven strategies. with the advent of covid-19 lockdown, lecturers should be braced up with diverse innovative and technological skills to remain relevant. students need to 85 ressat 2022, 7(1): 69-89 be given opportunities to learn using highly sophisticated technologies for classroom training. the department of higher education and training (dhet) needs to be more innovative and technologically inclined to provide schools with the digital equipment; and lecturers with the right digital skills and strategies, who can handle the 21st-century technologies for teaching and learning, be appointed at the university levels. all lecturers and students must embrace new technologies and become more innovative and skillful in their thinking and professional practices. it is certain that innovation and technology will continue to drive the teaching and learning activities in the post-pandemic era. recommendations in light of the aforementioned findings, this study would recommend that there is an urgent need for capacity development workshops to equip lecturers with computer and ict skills, knowledge, and strategies for online teaching delivery and increased provision of adequate learning and teaching facilities in all public educational institutions, and including those in the rural areas. it is also important to organise pieces of training on innovation and effective use of digital technologies for students and how to benefit maximally from virtual learning activities. more importantly, lecturers and students should develop the right mindsets and attitudes towards the adoption and use of ict facilities for the attainment and sustainability of the country’s educational goals. references adu, k.o., ngibe, n.p., adu, e.o. & duku, n. 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(2020). complexities of difference and their significance for managing inequality in learning: lessons from the covid‑19 crisis. prospects 49(1-2),59-67. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11125-020-09486-x tamrat, w. & teferra, d. (2020, april 9). covid-19 poses a serious threat to higher education. 89 ressat 2022, 7(1): 69-89 university world news. https://www.universityworldnews.com/post.php?story=20200409103755715 unesco. (2020). covid response website. https://en.unesco.org/covid19/educationresponse waters, s., & russell, w. (2016). virtually ready? pre-service teachers’ perceptions of a virtual internship experience. research in social sciences and technology, 1(1). https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.01.01.1 world health organization. (2020a). mission summary: who field visit to wuhan, china 🇨🇳 [press release]. www.who.int/china/news/detail/22-01-2020-field-visit-wuhan-chinajan-2020. world health organization. (2020b). coronavirus disease 2019 (covid-19) situation report 46. https://www.who.int/docs/default-source/coronaviruse/situationreports/20200306sitrep-46-covid-19.pdf?sfvrsn=96b04adf_2 young minds. (2020). what impact is the covid -19 pandemic having on education? https://youngminds.org.uk/resources/policy-reports/what-impact-is-the-covid-19 pandemic-having-on-education/ research in social sciences and technology teachers’ attitudes toward the use of technology in social studies teaching 1 emin kilinç dumlupınar university, turkey emin.kilinc@dpu.edu.tr seray kilinç dumlupınar university, turkey seraykilinc35@gmail.com mehmet m. kaya dumlupınar university, turkey mehmet.kaya@dpu.edu.tr enis h. başer dumlupınar university, turkey enisharun.baser@dpu.edu.tr hafize er türküresi̇n dumlupınar university, turkey hafize.er@dpu.edu.tr alper kesten ondokuz mayıs university, turkey alperkesten@gmail.com abstract technology integration in education is one of the most popular topics in the last decades. many countries have invested millions of dollars to equip classrooms with technological devices. as well as developed countries, turkey has conducted several projects to provide technological devices and educational materials to classrooms. thus, the purpose of this study is to examine teachers’ attitudes toward the use of technology in social studies teaching. understanding social studies teachers’ attitudes is essential because it is one of the most important constructs of technology integration. the authors applied quantitative survey method and used cluster sampling to choose participants. the sample of the study consisted of 155 social studies teachers who are currently teaching at middle schools. the use of technology in social studies teaching attitude scale was used to collect data. the findings revealed that teachers have positive beliefs and attitudes toward the use of technology. moreover, teachers who took educational technology and teaching material course and attended in-service training have more positive attitudes than others. keywords: technology, social studies, attitude. introduction technology has been part of our daily life and also one of the main components of education (açıkalın & erdinç, 2005; banister, 2010; baytak, tarman & ayas, 2011; cener, acun & demirhan, 2015; evans, kılınç, waxman & houston, 2012; voogt, tilya, & van den 1 part of this paper has been presented at the annual meeting of international society for the social studies conference in 2016. mailto:seraykilinc35@gmail.com mailto:mehmet.kaya@dpu.edu.tr mailto:enisharun.baser@dpu.edu.tr mailto:hafize.er@dpu.edu.tr kılınç, kılınç, kaya, başer, er türküresin, & kesten research in social sciences and technology, 1(1) 59-76 60 akker, 2009; yücel, acun, tarman & mete, 2010). over thirty years, the importance of integrating technology into teaching and learning process has been discussed among educators (armitage, 1993; ayas, 2015; chai & khine, 2006; kesten, 2010; koehler & mishra, 2009; lowther, strahl, inan, & ross, 2008; yiğit, çengelci, & karaduman, 2013). scholars and educators indicated that technology integration improves teaching (williams, linn, ammon, & gearhart, 2004), facilitates students’ learning (enriquez, 2010), advances higher order thinking (fox & henri, 2005), and allows teachers to create more student-centered classroom environment (teo, chai, hung & lee, 2008). because of these expected outcomes, many countries have invested huge amounts of money to increase availability of technology in classrooms (waxman, evans, boriack & kılınç, 2013). as well as other developed countries, the republic of turkey has conducted several projects to equip classroom with new technologies in last decades. for instance, national ministry of education provided computer labs and teaching materials to schools in order to improve the quality of education with a project called basic education project, which was completed between 1998 and 2004 (pouezevara, dinçer, kipp & sarıışık, 2013). next, the republic of turkey designed a project called movement to increase opportunities and improve technology (fatih) to enhance equality of opportunity in education and to improve ict use in teaching and learning processes in schools. fatih intends to set up ict hardware in 40,000 schools and 620,000 classrooms across turkey. as it seen above, technology has been accepted as a powerful tool that can help bring about transformation in education (chigona, 2015). however, there are several barriers in front of technology implementation in the field of education. the lack of professional development is one of the most cited reasons for lack of technology implementation (ertmer, ottenbreit-leftwich, sadık, sendurur & sendurur, 2012). results showed that teachers who attended technology related professional development (in-service training) have positive kılınç, kılınç, kaya, başer, er türküresin, & kesten research in social sciences and technology, 1(1) 59-76 61 attitudes toward the use of technology in their teaching (nea, 2008; gray, thomas & lewis, 2010). also, providing educational technology course for pre-service teachers enables them to learn about technology integration before they start their career (an, wilder & lim, 2011). another reason for lack of technology implementation is teachers’ negative belief and attitudes (anxiety) toward technology. several studies implied that teachers’ beliefs and attitudes are the one of the most important constructs of technology integration (andrew, 2007; kim, kim, lee, spector & demeester, 2013). technology anxiety is defined as an attitude that is applicable to technology in various forms (biggs & moore, 1993). it is also defined as a negative emotional state by an individual when he/she uses technology or technology equipment (bozionelos, 2001). technology anxiety influences the use of technology in social studies teaching. according to pajares (1992), in order to understand teaching practices, one must study on teachers’ beliefs and attitudes because it is considered as an indicator of several behaviors in class. because of technology adoption process are positively correlated with the teacher attitudes (aldunate & nussbaum, 2013), examining social studies teachers’ attitudes toward the use of technology in social studies teaching is crucial. the purpose of this study is to investigate teachers’ attitudes toward the use of technology in social studies teaching. understanding social studies teachers’ attitudes is essential because it is a way to figure out how they integrate technology into their teaching. this paper is a part of project which aims to guide social studies teachers to develop digital teaching materials by training them on how to use technology on the process of teaching and learning and increase the level of educational technology usage in the social studies. in order to achieve these goals, the authors must understand how social studies teachers perceive technology integration into their teaching. thus, this paper focused on the following research questions: kılınç, kılınç, kaya, başer, er türküresin, & kesten research in social sciences and technology, 1(1) 59-76 62 research questions  to what extend are teachers’ attitude levels about the use of technology in social studies teaching?  do social studies teachers’ attitudes show significant difference by considering gender?  do social studies teachers’ attitudes show significant difference by considering taking educational technology and material design course at college?  do social studies teachers’ attitudes show significant difference by considering attending in-service trainings? method the authors applied quantitative survey model in this study. in educational context, survey research is used to collect information to learn population groups’ characteristics, opinions, attitudes, or previous experiences (leedy & ormrod, 2005). it is also used in education to understand current conditions (ebel, 1980). survey research is an eminent method for systematically collecting data from a broad spectrum of individuals and educational settings (fraenkel & wallen, 2003). the authors used survey method to describe current conditions of social studies teachers’ attitudes toward technology integration into their class before they implement their research project about increasing the use of digital teaching materials in social studies teaching. sample to select participants, the authors used cluster random sampling. cluster random sampling is sometimes undertaken as an alternative to simple random sampling because it is not possible to select a sample of individuals from a population (fraenkel & wallen, 2003). also, using cluster random sampling reduces research cost for a given sample size. in addition kılınç, kılınç, kaya, başer, er türküresin, & kesten research in social sciences and technology, 1(1) 59-76 63 cluster random sampling requires less time for listing and implementing the survey. the authors first decided to identification of the geographical areas of interest and chose two cities in the west part of turkey. then they randomly selected middle schools in these two cities during the 2015-2016 academic year. the sample of the study consisted of 155 social studies teachers who are currently teaching at middle schools. table 1 shows some demographic information of the participant. table 1 demographic information of the participants gender frequency percentage female 82 52,9 male 73 47,1 total 155 100 taking educational technology and material design course frequency percentage yes 68 43,9 no 87 56,1 total 155 100 attending in-service training frequency percentage yes 101 65,1 no 54 34,9 total 155 100 the survey the use of technology in social studies teaching attitude scale, which was developed by the authors, was used to collect data. the survey was evaluated on a five point likert scale strongly disagree -1, disagree -2, neither agree nor disagree -3, agree -4, strongly agree -5. the survey consisted of 24 items and three dimensions: beliefs, anxiety, and implementation. the first dimension has 11 items, the second has eight items, and the last one has five items. the general rule of the scale is that the higher score shows more agreement and the lower score shows less agreement with the statement. table 2 shows interpretation of the scores. table 2 kılınç, kılınç, kaya, başer, er türküresin, & kesten research in social sciences and technology, 1(1) 59-76 64 interpretation of the scores dimension lowest score highest score belief 11 55 anxiety 8 40 implementation 5 25 the authors calculated cronbach alpha internal consistency coefficient of the whole scale and it was found .89. also the author calculated internal consistency coefficient for each dimension. according to the test results cronbach alpha internal consistency coefficient was found ,94 for belief dimension, .76 for anxiety dimension, and .85 for implementation dimension. analysis of the data the authors used descriptive analysis and independent sample t test with α = 0.05 significance level in a statistical package program. results the following results appeared from the study in order to obtain social studies teachers’ attitude levels about the use of technology in social studies teaching. findings related to first research question the use of technology in social studies teaching attitude scale was applied to examine teachers’ attitude levels about the use of technology in social studies teaching. participants’ responses mean and standard deviation of each item have shown in table 3. table 3 mean and standard deviation of participant responses for belief items no item m sd 7 knowing how to use technology supports professional development. 4,19 ,94 6 teachers need to be informed about the use of technology. 4,18 ,92 kılınç, kılınç, kaya, başer, er türküresin, & kesten research in social sciences and technology, 1(1) 59-76 65 5 using technology is an effective way to grab students’ attention. 4,15 ,93 1 knowing how to use technology is important 4,14 1,02 2 technology makes easier to realize difficult topic. 4,12 ,92 11 technology provides easiness to implement social studies activities. 4,11 ,91 9 technology enables the creation of alternative teaching techniques 4,11 ,94 8 teaching with computers offers real advantages over traditional method of instruction. 4,09 1,02 10 using technology makes easier to reach social studies acquisitions. 4,04 1,00 4 integrating technology into teaching increases student achievement. 4,03 ,97 3 using technology is waste of time. 1,85 1,01 table 3 shows that participants have positive attitudes toward items in the belief dimension. the most accepted items are “knowing how to use technology supports professional development” ( x =4.19), “teachers need to be informed about the use of technology” ( x =4.18), and “using technology is an effective way to grab students’ attention” ( x =4.15). on the other hand, social studies teachers did not agree with the item “using technology is waste of time” ( x =1.85).it can be concluded from the result that social studies teachers want to learn how to implement technology into their teaching and they want to be updated about the use of technology. also teachers believed that technology is crucial to take students’ attention during teaching-learning process. moreover, through technology social studies teachers can create alternative teaching techniques. table 4 mean and standard deviation of participant responses for anxiety items no item m sd 15 i feel confident in using technology. 3.77 .98 17 i am afraid that i might loss all of my technological data.* 3.02 1.21 19 i am concerned about my knowledge about using technology.* 2.92 1.18 13 i am afraid that i might damage technologic devices.* 2.66 1.22 kılınç, kılınç, kaya, başer, er türküresin, & kesten research in social sciences and technology, 1(1) 59-76 66 18 i am afraid that i cannot communicate with all of my students by using technology.* 2.65 1.17 16 i am afraid that using technology negatively affects the quality of instruction.* 2.60 1.18 14 i hesitate to use technology for fear of making mistakes that i cannot correct.* 2.48 1.12 12 working with technology makes me nervous.* 2.35 1.21 *reverse item table 4 shows participants’ anxiety levels towards using technology while they are teaching. the most agreed items are “i feel confident in using technology” ( x =3.77), “i am afraid that i might loss all of my technological data” ( x =3.02), and “i am concerned about my knowledge about using technology” ( x =2.92). on the other hand, social studies teachers did not agree with the item “working with technology makes me nervous” ( x =2.35). examining social studies teachers’ technology anxiety is crucial because it affects their ability to use technology while they are teaching social studies. it can be concluded from participants’ responses that their anxiety level is moderate. table 5 mean and standard deviation of participant responses for implementation items no item m sd 22 i speak with my colleagues about using technology. 3.95 .87 20 i try to learn new applications related to the use of technology. 3.85 .88 24 i attend workshops related to technology use. 3.85 .90 21 i follow the development related to use technology. 3.81 .93 23 i encourage my colleagues to use technology. 2.80 .91 table 5 shows that teachers have positive attitudes toward technology implementation into their teaching. the most agreed items are “i speak with my colleagues about using technology” ( x =3.95), “i try to learn new applications related to the use of technology” ( x kılınç, kılınç, kaya, başer, er türküresin, & kesten research in social sciences and technology, 1(1) 59-76 67 =3.85), and “i attend workshops related to technology use” ( x =3.85). on the other hand, social studies teachers did not agree with the item “i encourage my colleagues to use technology” ( x =2.80). the results showed that social studies teachers speak with their colleagues about how they use technology in social studies. however, they do not encourage each other to use technology in social studies teaching. findings related to second research question the authors conducted an independent sample t-test to examine the hypothesis that social studies teachers’ attitudes toward the use of technology in social studies teaching differ by considering gender. the test was not significant for belief dimension (t(153) = 943, p = .347), anxiety dimension (t(153) = 817, p = .415), and implementation dimension (t(153) = .718, p = .474). according to this result, it can be concluded that social studies teachers’ attitudes toward the use of technology did not differ by considering their gender. table 6 t-test results about social studies teachers attitudes towards the use of technology by gender dimension gender n x sd df t p belief female 78 46,00 8,98 153 ,943 ,347 male 67 44,66 8,01 anxiety female 78 27,29 4,45 153 ,817 ,415 male 67 26,65 4,72 implementation female 78 19,15 3,68 153 -,718 ,474 male 67 19,57 3,47 findings related to third research question an independent sample t-test was conducted to evaluate the hypothesis that social studies teachers’ attitudes about the use of technology differ by considering taking educational technology and material design course at college while they were student. the test was significant for belief (t(153) = 3.401, p = .001) dimension. social studies teachers kılınç, kılınç, kaya, başer, er türküresin, & kesten research in social sciences and technology, 1(1) 59-76 68 who took educational technology and teaching materials course during their college years ( x = 48.07) have more positive attitudes than other teachers who did not take the course ( x = 43.42) on belief dimension. the effect size was calculated as d=.59 and which can be interpreted as moderate (cohen, 1992). there was no significant difference on anxiety and implementation dimensions. these findings indicated that offering social studies related technology course causes more positive attitudes towards the use of technology in social studies teaching. table 7 t-test results about social studies teachers attitudes towards the use of technology by taking educational technology and teaching materials course on college. dimension course n x sd df t p belief yes 68 48,07 5,20 153 3,401 ,001 no 87 43,42 9,87 anxiety yes 68 27,55 4,73 153 1,138 ,257 no 87 26,66 4,43 implementation yes 68 19,69 3,45 153 1,109 ,269 no 87 19,04 3,66 findings related to fourth research question an independent t-test was conducted to examine whether social studies teachers’ attitudes show significant difference by considering attending in-service training. the test was significant for belief dimensions (t(153) = 2.258, p = .025). social studies teachers who attended in-service training ( x = 47.66) have more positive attitudes than other teachers who did not attend in-service training ( x = 44.33) on belief dimension. the effect size was calculated and found d= .42 which can be interpreted as moderate (cohen, 1992). there was no significant difference on anxiety and implementation dimensions. table 8 kılınç, kılınç, kaya, başer, er türküresin, & kesten research in social sciences and technology, 1(1) 59-76 69 t-test results about social studies teachers attitudes towards the use of technology by attending in-service training. dimension in-service training n x sd df t p belief yes 101 47,66 6,50 153 2,258 ,025 no 54 44,33 9,13 anxiety yes 101 27,21 3,86 153 ,315 ,753 no 54 26,95 4,89 implementation yes 101 19,11 3,42 153 -,523 ,602 no 54 19,44 3,66 conclusion technology integration into teaching and learning process has been discussed among scholars over the past decades. huge amounts of money have been invested to provide technological devices and educational materials to schools. nowadays, almost every middle and high school have interactive white boards. also, many tablets have been distributed to high school students in turkey. through movement to increase opportunities and improve technology (fatih project), national ministry of education have provided interactive white boards tablet computers and internet network infrastructure to all schools in basic education (pouezevara, dinçer, kipp & sarıışık, 2013). examining teachers’ beliefs and attitudes toward technology is an essential component of increasing the use of technology in teaching-learning process. in this paper, the authors analyzed social studies teachers’ beliefs and attitudes toward the use of technology in social studies teaching. the findings revealed that teachers possess positive beliefs and attitudes toward the use of technology and the participant of the study viewed their own attitudes as facilitating technology integration. the findings of the paper supported previous researches (i̇pek & acuner, 2011; mahoney, 2009) which indicated that teachers have positive attitudes toward technology. the result of the study also showed that the acceptance of technology has been achieved by social studies teachers. kılınç, kılınç, kaya, başer, er türküresin, & kesten research in social sciences and technology, 1(1) 59-76 70 another finding of the research showed that teachers’ beliefs and attitudes toward the use of technology did not significantly differ by considering gender. it was found in previous studies that teachers attitudes toward the use of technology do not depend on gender (akkoyunlu & orhan, 2003; arslan, 2008; torkzadeh, pflughoeft & hall, 1999). technology-related professional development is one of the most important component of technology integration (darling-hammond, wei, andree, richardson, & orphanos, 2009). also it is crucial to integrate technology based teaching practice course into teacher education program increase the use of technology. providing teachers and teachers candidate how to use technology such as blogs, map tools, enable teachers to create new teaching practices for their classrooms (ertmer, ottenbreit-leftwich, sadık, sendurur & sendurur, 2012). the result of the study revealed that teachers who took educational technology and teaching material course and attended in-service training possess more positive attitudes than others. these findings supported previous research that indicated similar results (kutluca & ekici, 2010; usluel, mumcu, & demiraslan, 2007). nurturing preservice social studies teachers with technology skills, providing more technology related in service training, and enlarging it for all social studies teachers will increase the use of technology to prepare students to the future. in brief, these results revealed that social studies teachers need several workshops which show them how to integrate technology into social studies teaching. these workshops should be specific and more social studies acquisitions oriented. also, providing more social studies oriented technology workshops will increase teachers’ beliefs and attitudes toward the use of technology in their teaching process and reduce teachers’ technology anxiety 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(2013). pre-service social studies teachers’ views about reflection of technology on values. journal of social studies education research, 4(1), 73-96. research in social sciences and technology https://ressat.org e-issn: 2468-6891 volume: 8 issue: 3 2023 pp. 36-51 effects of emerging technologies on african development: a narrative review on selected african countries kazeem ajasa badaru*a & ramashego shila mphahlelea * corresponding author email: badruajasa97@gmail.com a. institute for open and distance learning, college of education, university of south africa, pretoria, south africa article info received: april 18, 2023 accepted: july 20, 2023 published: august 12, 2023 how to cite badaru, k. a. & mphahlele, r. s. (2023). effects of emerging technologies on african development: a narrative review on selected african countries. research in social sciences and technology, 8(3), 36-51. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2023.19 copyright license this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (cc by 4.0). abstract the rapid onset of the covid-19 pandemic, also known as the sars-cov-2 outbreak, has brought to light how important technology may be to the socio-economic development of a nation, particularly in africa. the study conducted a narrative review of pertinent literature to critically assess the effects of two types of emerging digital technologies: artificial intelligence (ai) and nanotechnologies in africa. the results show that emerging technology-related research, development, and deployment are happening throughout africa. nanotechnology and ai have had a substantial impact in many spheres of african economies. the study, however, acknowledges in its conclusion that not all african nations have derived the same benefits from emerging technologies, including the digitalisation processes. there are still large disparities in the accessibility of technology and digital skills in several rural and underdeveloped areas in africa. thus, recommendations on how to close these gaps are provided for all african countries to profit more consistently from the emerging technologies and the digitalisation processes. keywords african countries; digitalisation process; e-learning; emerging technologies; nanotechnologies. 10.46303/ ressat.2023.19 mailto:badruajasa97@gmail.com https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2023.19 37 ressat 2023, 8(3): 36-51 introduction a combination of technophobia and a lack of real enthusiasm in embracing technology in several african countries characterised the time before the covid-19 outbreak erupted. in uganda, for instance, prior to the covid-19 outbreak, teachers were prohibited from bringing laptops, smartphones, and tablets into the classroom (kyamazima, 2022). it was thought that digital devices would cause students to become distracted and lose focus while working on their academic assignments. the reluctance of seasoned teachers to use the digital technology installed in their various schools and classrooms in uganda is an example of technophobia, which is the fear of the adoption of technology (kyamazima, 2022). due to the coronavirus lockdown which underscored the importance of the fourth industrial revolution (4ir) for developmental purposes, it appeared that technophobia had been conquered in the african education sector, particularly in uganda. the sudden emergence of the covid-19 pandemic has highlighted the crucial role that technology may play in the socioeconomic growth of a country, particularly in africa. during the covid-19 shutdown periods, technological breakthroughs were implemented in several different economic areas around the world, including those related to education, health, defense, and security. the covid-19 lockdown periods have brought attention to how important digitalisation and e-learning are in both developed and underdeveloped nations. the advent of digital technologies has allowed for the operation of educational institutions, research institutions, and commercial enterprises without needing to engage physically. using available digital technology, changes have also been witnessed in how professors, teachers, researchers, and businesses operate. digitalisation became a survival tactic for all economic sectors because of the shutdown of educational institutions as a containment mechanism to reduce the pandemic's impact and spread (said et al., 2020). additionally, even in the post-covid-19 era online service provision acceptance and use, remote employment, and e-learning appear to be the new normal (said et al., 2020). simply put, digitalisation, the replacement of face-to-face (f2f) interactions by digital ones, has gained more momentum (rosak-szyrocka et al., 2022, p. 59782). the argument is that the replacement of face-to-face encounters cannot be accomplished without the use of digital technology enabling online interactions in all spheres of human society, given the straightforward definition of digitalisation. according to tunmibi et al. (2015), who developed a thorough conceptualisation of e-learning, it "involves a wide range of content and instruction methods and has come to signify a new model of education involving revised curriculum, infrastructure, teacher professional development, textbooks, and examinations to give students access to technology and "21st-century skills" like creative problem solving" (p. 54). the implementation of the e-learning system, which took the role of the traditional classroom instruction during the global covid-19 lockdown, depends heavily on technology. since the epidemic drove every sector of every nation, including higher education institutions (heis), to convert from conventional face-to-face interactions to online learning platforms for instructional purposes, 38 badaru, k. a. & mphahlele, r. s. ressat 2023, 8(3): 36-51 the pandemic has undoubtedly been regarded as a paradigm-shifting event (badaru & adu, 2022). as a general technological term, e-learning encompasses a wide range of ict-enabled applications and processes, including computer/web-based learning, virtual or online classrooms, digital collaboration, and networking (badaru & adu, 2022). in order to share resources, coordinate work processes, and determine "who does what, when, how, and why," communications between educators and students are formed through e-learning platforms (badaru & adu, 2022, p. 70).the e-learning platforms, which include learning management systems (lmss), google, amazon, youtube, facebook, microsoft teams, zoom, and many others, have shed light on the potential benefits of icts and the broader digital field for the education sector. education has a crucial role in a country's development, acting as a catalyst for social change, a builder of human capital, and a facilitator of the knowledge transfer between generations and cultures. once more, we make the case that education is a driving force behind the fourth industrial revolution (4ir), also known as the digital transformation, which has had an impact on the growth of every sector in contemporary countries. china and the united states of america have led the 4ir since 2008 during the globalisation era, and since 2014 during the digital globalisation age (see figure 1). the transformation of social and political structures as well as the digitalisation of the economy and industry are all part of this revolution, according to alyoshina (2020). global, regional, national, and local economies, enterprises, educational systems, communities, and politics are all being affected by the fundamental process of digitalisation (alyoshina, 2020). the 4ir has brought with it a plethora of new or emerging technologies that are quickly enhancing the competitiveness of industrial enterprises whose operations currently rely on fundamental ideas like digital interconnection, autonomisation, self-control of systems, and big data analysis (ralph et al., 2020). emerging technologies have been described as radically novel and relatively fast-growing technologies whose deployment and utility may incur disruptive effects in all sectors of the economy or societies (razakamaharavo, 2021). attempts at defining emerging technologies in the extant literature have focused on the potential socio-economic impact which emerging technologies are capable of exerting on the economy and society, the uncertainty associated with the emergence process, as well as the characteristics of novelty and growth (rotolo et al., 2015). while some of these emerging technologies have been developed and deployed, others are still being researched and tested in africa. from the perspective of education, emerging technologies are defined as “those technologies which are likely to have a large impact on teaching, learning, or creative inquiry on college and university campuses within the next five years” (bozalek et al., 2013, p. 421). these technologies are applied in a teaching and learning context for an individualised, flexible, and differentiated approach, with a focus on learning needs and pedagogy which are more learner-centred than a teacher-centred, ‘one-size-fits-all’ method (bozalek et al., 2013). in addition, characteristics of emerging technologies are 39 ressat 2023, 8(3): 36-51 described as follows: “they may or may not be new technologies; they change rapidly so are always in a state of coming into being; they go through cycles of hyped expectations; they are in a continuous state of being understood and researched, and they have potential for transforming social practices” (bozalek et al., 2013, p. 422). technology has both beneficial and harmful effects, as will be explained later. regarding the detrimental effects of emerging technologies on the continent of africa particularly, digitalisation renders nations (developed and developing) susceptible to cybercrimes, cyber espionage, and the sabotage of vital infrastructure (allen, 2021). allen (2021) emphasises that emerging technologies might be exploited as instruments of oppression, division, and conflict, which is another negative effect or harmful role of these technologies. this is supported by razakamaharavo (2021), who provided an example of how ai technologies were applied to the prosecution, surveillance, and monitoring of particular groups during elections and/or in routine policing. a notable example is the employment of ai technology by the chinese government to keep tabs on the uyghur population (razakamaharavo, 2021). the absence of a legal framework to govern artificial intelligence (ai) and other emerging technologies in africa makes it seem as though innovators are free to introduce their technological innovations to the continent without worrying about how their applications will be governed by existing legal frameworks. there is also a lack of digital infrastructure and a lack of consumer protection or national security measures (mueller-kaler, 2020). twitter purportedly removed several of former president buhari's posts, causing the nigerian administration to have problems with the microblogging service. in response, the federal government of nigeria (fgn) prohibited twitter from operating in nigeria. the twitter prohibition persisted for months before the microblogging service consented to further requirements, including obtaining a local license and registering its business with the corporate affairs commission (cac) of nigeria. another significant issue raised by murray (2018) is the continent's regrettably expensive internet bills and subpar coverage and speeds. in addition, africans' limited proficiency in other languages as well as educators' and instructors' lack of digital literacy or pedagogical expertise are problems (murray, 2018). last but not least, there is the propensity for emerging technologies to be used to spread false information, misinformation, or rumours among the populace; such deep fake disinformation has the power to sow unrest or exacerbate already-existing crises, and governance may be in danger of failing if prompt action is not taken. against this background, the following questions would be addressed in the study: (1) what impact have new technologies had on the development of selected african countries? (2) how can emerging technologies aid african development efforts? method and materials this section of the study deals with the research design, search approach, inclusion and exclusion criteria, and data analysis method. 40 badaru, k. a. & mphahlele, r. s. ressat 2023, 8(3): 36-51 research design the researchers conducted a narrative review of extant literature on the emerging technologies and the impact they have had on the development of selected african countries. a narrative review is a method for conducting a literature review that identifies and summarises common themes from a body of knowledge about a certain subject or relevant research issues (ferrari, 2015). the method of conducting a literature review was chosen because it enables a thorough and in-depth analysis and consolidation of the current literature to meet our research concerns (record-lemon & buchanan, 2017). search strategy and selection criteria the narrative literature review approach was adopted to critically analyse empirical studies published in scientific journals and relevant databases. these were contextually searched from the google scholar, ebscohost, researchgate, and others. the process of data collection was guided by prioritising and conducting a search for articles which were considered relevant and categorised into three descriptors: highly relevant, relevant, and not so relevant. to achieve the study’s aim, the researchers further employed the boolean operator (jahan et al., 2016) as the strategy to search for relevant literature, using terms like digital technologies, emerging technologies, e-learning platforms, digitalisation process in africa, african development, african countries, and emerging technologies. the researchers also set out the criteria for inclusion and exclusion of articles. the researchers searched for english-language publications that address how emerging technologies are affecting africa's development. the researchers were cognisant of the fact that there are anglophone and francophone countries in africa and scholarly publications might be in both english and french. the researchers rejected non-english articles and those that were not focused on emerging technologies or were published outside of african nations. even though 159 articles were initially reviewed, only 68 articles were relevant and included in the first draft of this study. articles that did not meet the criteria were categorised as not so relevant and discarded. twenty-five articles were found to be highly relevant and included in the final draft. rumrill and fitzgerald (2001) argue that the narrative literature review methodology has drawbacks, including the inability of studies conducted using this method to be replicated or reproduced. however, it is a superb technique for research synthesis from the extant literature (ferrari, 2015). data analysis the linked literature on the findings was organised by the study using the thematic analysis method (watson, 2020). data on the impacts of emerging technologies on the sectoral development of economies, security, and governance, as well as educational development in a few african nations, were organised and debated around the themes that emerged from the literature analysis. it is important to highlight that because the study was never an empirical study involving human participants, no ethical approval was ever needed for it. 41 ressat 2023, 8(3): 36-51 findings and discussion the findings and discussion revolve around the emerging themes based on the study’s research questions and the literature search conducted to address them. the themes include the effects of emerging technologies on the economy, governance and security architectures, and education in certain african countries such as nigeria, uganda, south africa, ghana, cameroun, and rwanda. in this review, the researchers focused on two categories of emerging technologies: digital technologies: artificial intelligence (ai) and nanotechnologies, as well as their impact on african development. as indicated by razakamaharavo (2021), the emerging technologies include those which have merged the virtual and the real world (mixed reality) such as augmented reality (ar) and virtual reality (vr); artificial intelligence (ai); and blockchains, to mention a few. there is an ongoing engagement in technological research and development as well as deployment across africa. for example, nigeria and ethiopia are two countries on the continent that have established prosperous and growing ai hubs. in addition, an ai hub has been built in ghana by one of the four big tech companies, google (alphabet). as shown in figure 1 below, facebook, amazon, and tencent are the other three giant tech firms advancing global digitalisation during the current 4th industrial revolution. in kampala, the ai centre known as ‘the un global pulse lab’ was built by the united nations organisation (uno). figure 1 the 4th industrial revolution (2000-2010s) source: adapted from alyoshina (2020) another example of the deployment of emerging technology in africa is the use of drones for improving healthcare service delivery in rwanda. this african country deploys drone technology for blood delivery in remote areas of the country, thereby helping in protecting 42 badaru, k. a. & mphahlele, r. s. ressat 2023, 8(3): 36-51 healthcare workers against certain risks associated with their jobs. artificial intelligence has helped enable remote service delivery, increased automation of offices, and improved institutions of learning, homes, and manufacturing companies, as well as streamlined the analysis of mass data at unbelievable speeds (united nations, 2021). a world without ai technologies, such as the internet and software applications, can be better imagined than experienced in this 21st century age. combating the ravaging covid-19 pandemic would not be possible without the effective integration of technological systems with biological, digital, and physical elements to produce effective vaccines. the association for the advancement of ai has defined ai as “the scientific understanding of the mechanisms underlying thought and intelligent behaviour and their embodiment in machines” (alyoshina, 2020, p. 26). artificial intelligence is a collection of software technologies programmed for a computer system or robot to carry out equal to or far better than normal human computational effort in accuracy, capacity, and speed. ai technologies have helped to solve problems associated with recognising and generating objects which include texts, images, sounds, events, and many other stimuli (alyoshina, 2020). for instance, many hospitals are now using ai technologies for the analysis of images (e.g., echocardiography) and prediction by using object recognition software applications; while some house helps have been trained to recognise voice signatures of their house owners for security reasons, such that they can only respond to instructions from the right persons when asked to open doors and/or switch off lights (united nations, 2021). this is the way ai technologies are being utilised and applied. the specific subareas of ai include large-scale machine learning, deep learning, natural language processing, collaborative systems, computer vision (image analytics), algorithmic game theory and computational social choice, soft robotics (robotic process automation), evolutionary computation, and neuroevolutionary systems (united nations, 2021). artificial intelligence technological tools, such as android phones, the internet, search engines, software applications, and other gadgets for home and office use, are today found everywhere in our cities and campuses across africa. educational institutions across the globe took advantage of ai technologies during the covid-19 lockdown for teaching, learning, and research activities (fahimirad & kotamjani, 2018). nanotechnology is a fast-growing, powerful, and emerging medical technology and the control over it has become a source of competition among developed nations. saad and elmahjubi (2018) aver that applications of nanotechnology have diverse impacts on all spheres of life in modern societies. this type of technology includes nanomedicine, nanomagnetics, nanomechanics, nanophononics, nanoelectronics, and nanoelectronics. although its strongest impact has been made in the field of medicine and healthcare services. the organisation for economic cooperation and development (oecd) defines nanotechnology as “the understanding of processes and phenomena and the application of science and technology to organisms, organic and inorganic materials, as well as parts, products, and models thereof, at the nanometre-scale (but not exclusively below 100 nanometres) in one 43 ressat 2023, 8(3): 36-51 or more dimensions, where the onset of size-dependent phenomena usually enables novel applications” (as cited in united nations, 2021, p. 9). nanotechnology is regarded as being pervasive, and as an enabler and key driver of the next industrial revolution (united nations, 2021). this assertion may not be far from the truth because it is almost impossible not to find nanotechnological elements in modern-day products, such as washing machines, cosmetics, detergents, medicines, electronics, food packaging, mobile phones, and computers (united nations, 2021). while the united states is the biggest contributor to investments in research and development (r&d), as well as in the number of patents filed and registered with the united states patent and trademark office (uspto) and the european patent office (epo); a few other developing nations like saudi arabia, china, and iran are on the list of top r&d performing nations in terms of nanotechnology. of course, there are a small number of african countries like tunisia, south africa, and egypt that are also steadily investing in the nanotechnology industry. for instance, south africa has successfully filed 87 patent applications for inventions in nanotechnology with the uspto in 2001; and just seven (7) patent applications have been filed in 2017 with the epo. egypt also filed 40 patent applications with the uspto. according to research on the effects of nanotechnology on nigerian society by ejeta et al. (2017), there are opportunities for nanotechnology to address critical global development priorities, such as in water purification systems, energy systems, medicine, pharmaceuticals, food production, and nutrition, as well as icts. nanotechnology is also advantageous because it "produces with little labour and land use, low cost, and modest requirements for material and energy" (p. 138). figure 2’s data sheds more light on how africa continues to lag behind other regions that engage heavily in nanotechnology r&d and produce ground-breaking nanotechnological products. korea, japan, and germany are the other major contributors after the united states (united nations, 2021). figure 2 patent applications by african countries (sum of 2001-2017) source: statnano database (as cited in united nations, 2021) 44 badaru, k. a. & mphahlele, r. s. ressat 2023, 8(3): 36-51 emerging technologies have the potential for both positive and negative impacts on africa’s development. that is the unfortunate thing about development in the globe, it comes with some challenges or negative impacts. so, this is the case with emerging technologies in africa. economic effects of emerging technologies emerging technologies have a significant impact on certain fields or socio-economic systems by altering the composition of actors involved, the institutions they belong to, the ways in which they interact, and the processes involved in the creation of new knowledge (rotolo et al., 2015). emerging technologies have economic impacts on agriculture, education, security, manufacturing, transport systems, human capital, banking systems, and small and medium enterprises (smes). agricultural productivity and modernisation have received a boost with the application of emerging technologies through the provision of more reliable and tailored information to farmers at the right time; for instance, higher quality satellite data as well as new analysis techniques, such as using learning machines, to advise farmers on inputs and insurance policies suitable for the continent’s highly differentiated microclimates (murray, 2018). in tanzania, olam, a private company, has used a mobile phone-based system to effectively send farming instructions and other information to more than 30,000 small-holder coffee farmers (murray, 2018). south africa and burkina faso have adopted commercial genetically modified (gm) crops using genetic engineering technology to increase yields of maize, cotton, and soybeans. murray (2018) posits that emerging technologies have the potential to enhance africa’s modernisation in terms of agriculture, increase farm outputs, and reduce prices of food, thereby reducing risks of food insecurity and climate change disasters. the economic potential of emerging technologies is believed to be great as 1.7 million jobs have been created through mobile technologies, contributing $144 billion or an estimated 8.5 percent of gdp to the economy of africa (allen, 2021). the emerging technologies have facilitated e-hailing (intermediate business) in the transport sector, providing public transport services through electronic applications across the cities of africa. there are popular e-hailing transport companies such as uber, bolts, yokoo rides, and indriver in south africa; safeboda in uganda; safemotos in rwanda; bolt, gigm, indriver, and bolt in nigeria. e-hailing transport services via apps have brought innovations and economic contributions in terms of employment generation in african countries. similarly, e-payment platforms are innovations brought into the banking sector by various emerging technologies in africa, similar to what others have in other countries outside of the continent. the popularity of mobile and online banking has grown even among rural dwellers in africa. with mobile phones and/or computer system units connected to the internet, people and governments in africa can initiate and execute banking transactions like sending and receiving payments from customers, payments of employees’ salaries, payment of taxes, and even open new bank accounts (murray, 2018). in addition, emerging technologies have bolstered prospects of ecommerce through the 45 ressat 2023, 8(3): 36-51 proliferation of online trading stores and online service sales. in nigeria, there is the famous jumia shopping site accessible to other african online customers in the rest of the world. emerging technologies’ effects on governance and security african governments are now adopting emerging technologies for the governance and security of their citizens. emerging technologies such as ai play dynamic roles in elections in some african countries. for example, nigeria’s independent national electoral commission (inec) has introduced a bimodal voter accreditation system (bvas) machine for reading permanent voter cards (pvcs) and for facial authentication of voters by using their captured fingerprints to establish their eligibility for voting during any election. the bvas machine also serves as a replacement for the z-pad for uploading results from each of the polling units directly to the inec election results viewing portal (irev) in real-time on election day. the inec headquarters has deployed bvas machines as the voter enrolment devices (veds) for the nationwide continuous voter registration exercise. thus, its usage has eliminated the use of incident forms for voter accreditation during any election at state or national levels. these election devices were deployed for use during the governorship elections in anambra state on the 6th of november 2021, in ekiti on the 18th of june 2022, and in osun on the 16th of july 2022. the general perception of the bvas technology is that it has helped improved nigeria’s election credibility by reducing rigging to the barest minimum during the conduct of the 2023 general elections. e-governance has significantly improved africa’s public service delivery through constant engagement with emerging technologies. for context, e-governance service delivery involves the application of emerging technologies to enhance the access and delivery of public services to the citizenry and corporate bodies across all government departments and agencies (dugbazah et al., 2022). emerging technologies have enabled african governments to provide e-services, e-commerce programmes, and access to other vital information services from ministries, departments, and agencies (mdas) through the internet. through various digital platforms, the government’s participation in activities, such as voting, banking, collection of taxes, e-visa, passport application, and applications for marriage, birth, and death certificates, has been boosted and made cost-effective, unlike the inefficient paper-based filing systems (dugbazah et al., 2022). the e-governance system has helped african governments in their reforms of public services by reducing corruption, promoting transparency, and fostering efficiency and inclusion. according to dugbazah et al. (2022), a lot of progress has been made toward e-governance service delivery adoption in no less than thirty countries in africa, such as rwanda, togo, nigeria, lesotho, south africa, cameroun, ghana, and many others. in terms of security and defence, emerging technologies, such as biometric technologies, have been beneficial and useful in the banking and health sectors for identification, border control, crime prevention, and predictive policing (razakamaharavo, 2021). african governments have deployed these technologies for the verification of persons at their borders, and airports, and for online customer data capturing by banks and hospitals. drones have also 46 badaru, k. a. & mphahlele, r. s. ressat 2023, 8(3): 36-51 become incorporated into the arsenals of state and non-state actors on the continent (allen, 2021). the national police and military institutions in some of these african countries have been armed with ai-powered surveillance technologies, such as drones for security surveillance and crime prevention. for instance, the lagos state neighbourhood safety agency in july 2022 reportedly deployed 233 technological devices, which included surveillance drones, body cameras, binoculars, smartphones, and internet facilities to its divisional offices across the state (adegoke & pedro, 2022). there is no gainsaying the fact that african countries, like other developed nations of the world, need modern technologies for the security and protection of lives and property in their respective territories. as posited by razakamaharavo (2021), zimbabwe, south africa, uganda, ghana, and kenya are the leading african countries in the massive deployment of facial recognition technologies (e.g., closed-circuit televisioncctv) for security surveillance. rwanda was the first country in the world to offer commercial drone service delivery in 2016, partnered with the united states-based company zipline, for life-saving medical supplies to the remote parts of the country (allen, 2021). nigeria was also the first african country in 2016 to publicly announce its use of drones in the fight against terrorism in the northern region (allen, 2021). a south african company has, since the 1970s, been manufacturing drones and it recently declared an intention to build drone swarms for the transfer of technology and portable production with its partner countries (allen, 2021). emerging technologies’ effects on education e-learning platforms through tablets, computers, or smartphones with a stable supply of power and internet connectivity provides access to educational resources and information of international standards even at relatively low costs. emerging technologies in africa have facilitated digital learning via google search engines, youtube videos, wikipedia resources, and interactive software apps like facebook and twitter for scripted lesson plans and personalised learning (murray, 2018). the viability of some digital platforms, such as whatsapp, zoom app, telegram channel, and the lmss, has been used and found to be effective for teaching and learning during the covid-19 lockdown periods, not only in africa but also in other parts of the world (badaru & adu, 2022). in nigeria, all the examination bodies, like the joint admissions and matriculation board, the west african examination council (weac), the national examination council (neco), and others, have all introduced online platforms or portals for the registration of candidates and results checking. this is another innovative impact of emerging technologies on the country’s educational system. only jamb has successfully adopted computer-based testing (cbt) for its annual unified tertiary matriculation examination (utme). the use of technologies in the conduct of examinations might have been conceived to cut down the costs of the administration of the examinations and incidences of examination malpractice on the one hand, while on the other hand the online systems for the conduct of exams are not completely shielded from malpractices and other hitches. these are the same reasons why most higher education institutions in nigeria have introduced the cbt system in the conduct of their post47 ressat 2023, 8(3): 36-51 utme; all these online or digital innovations in the education sector have been made possible by the availability of emerging or new technologies. the national teachers' colleges' remote learning programme was developed in conjunction with the belgian development agency, enabel, and the ugandan ministry of education (ntcs). the collaboration resulted in the creation of the tte sandbox internet portal, which at least allowed for the continuation of teacher training and education in uganda during the covid-19 shutdown (kyamazina, 2022). the tte sandbox started off as a collection of communication tools to help ntcs with distance learning. but as time went on, it proved to be a useful tool that accelerated uganda's return to normal educational activity. the teachertrainees' minds were developed using the tte sandbox so that they could use technology as a productive teaching tool in classrooms. the ugandan school teachers were also trained on how to use digital tools such as screencasting, podcasting, video conferencing, ebooks, or padlets for teaching and learning activities. the strategy was also rolled out to prevent the ugandan education sector from becoming extinct or crippled after the prolonged period of school closure (kyamazina, 2022). conclusion african nations, which include nigeria, south africa, ghana, uganda, rwanda, and others, have benefited from digitalisation, e-learning, and emerging technologies by having better access to education, higher chances for employment, better access to high quality healthcare, higher agricultural productivity, and more innovative business practices. these african countries have also benefited from the development of new sectors and business models made possible by emerging technologies such as blockchains and ai. digitalisation helps to advance economic development by opening new business prospects, enabling more efficient operations, and connecting african businesses to the global market. e-learning platforms have helped africa by eliminating the barriers of cost and distance, enhancing access to education for people living in rural and undeveloped areas. this has helped africa's literacy rates increase and the continent's educational gap close. emerging technology has tremendously helped in the provision of accessible healthcare. telemedicine and mobile apps have been implemented to improve access to the healthcare system. africa's farmers now have access to real-time meteorological information, market prices, and other data-driven insights thanks to the digitalisation of agriculture, which also helps to decrease waste and increase crop yields. finally, digitalisation and emerging technologies have tremendously increased innovation in africa, enabling local entrepreneurs to develop whole new products and services that meet regional needs. economic expansion and the emergence of new job opportunities have both been facilitated by technological improvements. nevertheless, it is critical to acknowledge that not all african nations have benefited equally from digitalisation, e-learning, and emerging technologies. there are still significant gaps in the availability of technology and digital skills, particularly in rural and 48 badaru, k. a. & mphahlele, r. s. ressat 2023, 8(3): 36-51 impoverished areas. it will be crucial to close these gaps for all african nations to benefit from the digitalisation processes. recommendations nigeria, south africa, uganda, ghana, and other african nations must now establish a legal framework that is acknowledged on a worldwide scale to regulate the use and operation of emerging technologies. stakeholders in the education and technology sectors must be involved in the process, leading to the making of final decisions in this regard to allay concerns about the abuse of such legislation. legislative frameworks that safeguard consumer rights and privacy should encourage the development and acceptance of cutting-edge technologies. this will promote the beneficial use of digital technologies for all africans and help to increase public confidence in them. as efforts are made to promote capacity building and cooperation in the research and development of goods in the ai and nanotechnology industries, it is important that african nations enhance their investments in the sector. the digital infrastructure of the continent, which includes access to devices, electricity, and internet connectivity, should be improved. this requires investment from both the public and commercial sectors. the usage of and access to digital technologies will, therefore, increase. similarly, public agencies, academic institutions, and businesses should broaden their digital skills-teaching initiatives, particularly in rural and impoverished regions. with more individuals having the skills and knowledge required to take advantage of digital technology the region will be able to guarantee required skills for teaching and learning. the development of cutting-edge digital solutions that meet regional demands should be a joint effort between the public and private sectors. the economy could grow as a result, and more employment could be produced. governments, educational institutions, and businesses should increase their r&d spending to promote innovations in new technology. to make significant progress in this area, tertiary institutions with departments of mathematics, engineering, science, technology, telecommunications, physics, chemistry, and other subjects must encourage and support their students in using their final-year projects as a vehicle to produce tangible goods and file for patents on inventions in the science and technology sector. for african nations to reap the full benefits of new technologies and close the gap between the continent and the rest of the globe, regional and sub-regional levels of international cooperation and partnership are crucial. taking care of neighbourhood problems can encourage economic growth and create new job opportunities. authorities, academic institutions, and commercial stakeholders should promote cooperation and knowledge exchanges to build a strong digital ecosystem in africa. consequently, it might be simpler to share best practices and ensure that local needs are considered when building digital solutions. by implementing these suggestions, africa may receive greater advantages from digitalisation, e-learning, and emerging technologies, and contribute to the continent's economic development. 49 ressat 2023, 8(3): 36-51 references adegoke, a., & pedro, i. 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(2020). education: the potential impact of social media and hashtag ideology on the classroom. research in social sciences and technology, 5(2), 40-56. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.05.02.3 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.05.02.3 research in social sciences and technology https://ressat.org e-issn: 2468-6891 volume: 8 issue: 2 2023 pp. 1-20 teaching democratic humility to improve classroom discussion kason kendall* * utah state university, usa email: kjkendall@graniteschools.org article info received: february 23, 2023 accepted: april 16, 2023 published: may 5, 2023 how to cite kendall, k. (2023). teaching democratic humility to improve classroom discussion. research in social sciences and technology, 8(2), 120 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2023.8 copyright license this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (cc by 4.0). abstract democratic discussion in the classroom has been viewed as a way to increase consensus, however the spread of false and misleading information through social media and influencers can make classroom discussions problematic. this electronic text analysis study highlights the social media site of quora and posts related to the gulf war. posts related to the gulf war is critically analyzed and their potential impacts are examined. this study also analyzes the posts and potential impacts of a conservative influencer named james lindsay. it also analyzes specific polarizing posts that lindsay has made on instagram and highlight the potential impacts on classroom discussions of some of these posts. a purpose of the study is to analyze negative potential impacts of social media on student’s views and on classroom discussions. the study also highlights two potential solutions to overcoming these negative potential impacts. one solution is to use stanford history education group’s civic online reasoning, and another solution is to explicitly teach democratic humility. with democratic humility, individuals learn not to make hyperbolic claims about their beliefs. students could also be taught when learning about democratic humility, the importance of suspending judgement until they have gathered sufficient information on the topic. keywords social media; social media influencers; deliberative discussion; deliberative pedagogy; democratic humility 10.46303/ressat.2023.8 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2023.8 2 ressat 2023, 8(2): 1-20 introduction democratic discussion in the classroom has been viewed as a way to increase consensus. dahlgren (2006) implies that the belief in consensus often comes from an assumption that problems can be solved through deliberation and that communication is the key issue instead of unresolvable antagonisms. hess and mcavoy (2015); parker (2003) note that discussion in the classroom is a kind of shared inquiry, the desired outcomes of which rely on the expression and consideration of diverse views. discussing societal issues in k-12 education can be a way that students are exposed to current events and topics in the past that have been viewed as controversial. hess and mcavoy note that this can be beneficial as students practice giving reasons, listening, considering perspectives, evaluating views, and treating each other as political equals. hess and mcavoy explain that there is a gap between this practice in the classroom and outside of the classroom as in u.s. society many individuals do not experience mutual respect in the public sphere and divisive partisan politics operate on the winner-takeall principle”. hess and mcavoy define polarization as “moments when political discourse and action that bifurcate toward ideological extremes.” elements of polarization from u.s. society can spread in the classroom during discussion of what is often referred to as controversial issues. the term controversial issues should be reframed as controversial to some as the term controversial issues has been used to protect ideals within the dominant culture (camicia & knowles, 2021). disagreement on controversial issues can be amplified through social media platforms and political influencers. camicia and knowles acknowledge that social media has been a powerful new tool for ideological groups that found themselves outside of most popular media. conservative voices in particular have had an outsized voice on social media. one factor that gives conservative views a greater voice online is the class differential. members of the middle and upper classes have greater online access, technological skills, empowerment, and time to use technology platforms (schradie, 2019). this can give oversimplified conservative views more prevalence to the general public including students. at one point, facebook refused to take down a fake video of house speaker nancy pelosi that had been manipulated to make her speech appear stilted and slurred. this was even after their independent fact checking groups had determined the videos were false (harwell, 2019). this indicates the problematic nature of social media companies allowing false or misleading content to spread. camicia and knowles note how alex jones’ youtube channel had roughly 500k views per day at its height. another polarizing conservative figure that is growing in popularity is james lindsay. lindsay will be a key focus of this paper that we will discuss at a later point. ideological polarization is a key defect in deliberative democracy (knowles & castro, 2018; mansbridge, 2018). hess and mcavoy (2015) note that when polarization is high and trust is low people are less willing to accept political losses. polarization and distrust fuel each 3 ressat 2023, 8(2): 1-20 other (hess & mcavoy, 2015). yudkin, hawkins and dixon (2019) carried out a study demonstrating that individuals who consumed a variety of news sources including breitbart, sean hannity, huffington post, facebook, twitter, instagram, snapchat and others believed their political rivals were more radical than they were. this was likely a result of the polarizing nature of these outlets. the study mentioned instagram and this paper will highlight james lindsay, a newer polarizing influencer on instagram that is also spreading ideas on other social media and other technology outlets. prager university is a youtube channel funded by conservative dennis prager who had a net worth of $12 million at the beginning of 2022. the channel currently has 2.95 million subscribers and has videos arguing john f. kennedy would have been a republican in the contemporary era and that the democratic party supported slavery while republicans freed slaves. these arguments ignored partisan ideological realignments that took place in the 1960s under lyndon b. johnson. the function of these videos is to increase loyalty to the republican party (camicia & knowles, 2021). prager university is not an actual university but uses the name to give the organization an air of credibility. other recent video names from prager university include milton friedman: no free lunch, the sexualization of children, ron desantis on where courage comes from, three ways to fix america: presented by dave rubin. quora in addition to polarization increasing through individuals watching prager u videos, polarization can be increased as people read the writing of individuals online. ideological polarization around specific issues can also grow as individuals see memes or videos. one specific information sharing platform is https://www.quora.com/. there are many potential social media sites and platforms. one reason i went with quora in this study is that answers are often in paragraph form and go into detail unlike a platform such as twitter with strict word limits. users can also post their credentials that give them authority to speak on a topic unlike a platform such as reddit. any individual can create a profile and start answering questions regardless of their lack of expertise. the procedures for this study were to first go to https://www.quora.com/. i then searched “highway of death” in the search box. in the gulf war there was an event nicknamed the “highway of death” in which retreating iraqi soldiers were shot by u.s. personnel. i then chose the first six answers listed excluding the answers that had images, which would have caused screenshots of the answer to take up substantially more room in the paper. i then compared the answers concerning the highway of death with the writings of howard zinn and ramsey clark. to obtain the james lindsay screenshots, i followed his account on instagram and used the snipping tool to create screenshots of what in my opinion were his most egregious posts. i then critically break down the potential intent and impact of these posts. in zinn’s 1999 book, a people’s history of the united states he notes concerning the highway of death, “with victory certain and the iraqi army in full flight, u.s. planes kept bombing retreating soldiers who clogged the highway out of kuwait city” (zinn, 1999, p. 598). this has been referred to as a war crime by former attorney general ramsey https://www.quora.com/ https://www.quora.com/ 4 ressat 2023, 8(2): 1-20 clark (clark, 1991). on quora someone asked the question; was the “highway of death” a standard military operation or a war crime? here are responses of some quora users. figure 1. quora question https://www.quora.com/was-the-highway-of-death-a-standardmilitary-operation-or-a-war-crime figure 2. quora answer 1 https://www.quora.com/was-the-highway-of-death-a-standardmilitary-operation-or-a-war-crime https://www.quora.com/was-the-highway-of-death-a-standard-military-operation-or-a-war-crime figure 3. quora answer 2 1 https://www.quora.com/was-the-highway-of-death-a-standardmilitary-operation-or-a-war-crime https://www.quora.com/was-the-highway-of-death-a-standard-military-operation-or-a-war-crime https://www.quora.com/was-the-highway-of-death-a-standard-military-operation-or-a-war-crime https://www.quora.com/was-the-highway-of-death-a-standard-military-operation-or-a-war-crime https://www.quora.com/was-the-highway-of-death-a-standard-military-operation-or-a-war-crime https://www.quora.com/was-the-highway-of-death-a-standard-military-operation-or-a-war-crime file:///c:/users/lenovo/downloads/1%20https:/www.quora.com/was-the-highway-of-death-a-standard-military-operation-or-a-war-crime file:///c:/users/lenovo/downloads/1%20https:/www.quora.com/was-the-highway-of-death-a-standard-military-operation-or-a-war-crime 5 ressat 2023, 8(2): 1-20 figure 4. quora answer 3 1 https://www.quora.com/was-the-highway-of-death-a-standardmilitary-operation-or-a-war-crime figure 5. quora answer 4 1 https://www.quora.com/was-the-highway-of-death-a-standardmilitary-operation-or-a-war-crime file:///c:/users/lenovo/downloads/1%20https:/www.quora.com/was-the-highway-of-death-a-standard-military-operation-or-a-war-crime file:///c:/users/lenovo/downloads/1%20https:/www.quora.com/was-the-highway-of-death-a-standard-military-operation-or-a-war-crime file:///c:/users/lenovo/downloads/1%20https:/www.quora.com/was-the-highway-of-death-a-standard-military-operation-or-a-war-crime file:///c:/users/lenovo/downloads/1%20https:/www.quora.com/was-the-highway-of-death-a-standard-military-operation-or-a-war-crime 6 ressat 2023, 8(2): 1-20 figure 6. quora answer 5 1 https://www.quora.com/was-the-highway-of-death-a-standardmilitary-operation-or-a-war-crime figure 7. quora answer 6 https://www.quora.com/was-the-highway-of-death-a-standardmilitary-operation-or-a-war-crime another user on quora asked the question, “what exactly happened on the “highway of death” in iraq?” there was only one answer given by an individual claiming to be a military officer. this one answer will be analyzed. file:///c:/users/lenovo/downloads/1%20https:/www.quora.com/was-the-highway-of-death-a-standard-military-operation-or-a-war-crime file:///c:/users/lenovo/downloads/1%20https:/www.quora.com/was-the-highway-of-death-a-standard-military-operation-or-a-war-crime https://www.quora.com/was-the-highway-of-death-a-standard-military-operation-or-a-war-crime https://www.quora.com/was-the-highway-of-death-a-standard-military-operation-or-a-war-crime 7 ressat 2023, 8(2): 1-20 figure 8. quora question 2 https://www.quora.com/was-the-highway-of-death-a-standardmilitary-operation-or-a-war-crime figure 9. quora answer 6 https://www.quora.com/was-the-highway-of-death-a-standardmilitary-operation-or-a-war-crime a curious student could stumble across these answers on quora and walk away believing that they did legitimate research and had an informed view on the subject. a student’s parent could also read these answers and then pass these ideas down to the student. mere exposure effect indicates that when an individual hears an idea over and over, they will regard that idea as more likely to be true regardless of the accuracy of this claim (myers, 2011). there is a lot of disturbing context missing from these answers of arm chair experts on quora. an individual reading these answers could point to the fact that many responses were from military officers who must know the answers, but many of these military officers may not have all the pertinent information. former attorney general ramsey clark traveled to kuwait shortly after the gulf war. he filmed and collected testimony. the testimony that he collected indicates that iraqi troops were returning home to iraq under orders given from baghdad. they were following united nations resolution 660 and exiting kuwait. testimony given by kuwaitis affirms that these orders had been given over the radio and that troops started leaving on the afternoon of february 26, 1991. the bush administration had claimed that iraqi troops were retreating, so they could regroup and fight another day, but the testimony provided by kuwaitis does not support this idea. clark explains that the massacre of these withdrawing troops violates the third article of the 1949 geneva convention which bans killing soldiers out of combat. there are also implications that some bombed on the highway of death were palestinians and iraqi civilians, as cars, buses, and trucks that were not military vehicles were also hit. they point out the washington post file:///c:/users/kjkendall/onedrive%20-%20granite%20school%20district/documents/education/1%20https:/www.quora.com/was-the-highway-of-death-a-standard-military-operation-or-a-war-crime file:///c:/users/kjkendall/onedrive%20-%20granite%20school%20district/documents/education/1%20https:/www.quora.com/was-the-highway-of-death-a-standard-military-operation-or-a-war-crime file:///c:/users/kjkendall/onedrive%20-%20granite%20school%20district/documents/education/1%20https:/www.quora.com/was-the-highway-of-death-a-standard-military-operation-or-a-war-crime file:///c:/users/kjkendall/onedrive%20-%20granite%20school%20district/documents/education/1%20https:/www.quora.com/was-the-highway-of-death-a-standard-military-operation-or-a-war-crime 8 ressat 2023, 8(2): 1-20 stating that senior u.s. officers were worried about senior officers within the central u.s. command were becoming nervous of the growing public perception that soldiers were leaving iraq voluntarily, so the u.s. government intentionally downplayed iraqi troops leaving kuwait. this information also becomes more believable upon learning that the “smart” laser guided bombs bush claimed would hit their targets were only seven percent of the total bombs. (clark, 1991). one attack on civilians in a bomb shelter led to between three-hundred and sixteen hundred civilian deaths (mcmanus & gerstenzang, 1991). the answers by military officers also omit the context of the war as bush claimed that saddam was worse than hitler (raum, 1990). the demonization of iraqi civilians and soldiers among u.s. military seems extremely likely given this background information. military officers answering questions online may not be intentionally spreading misinformation, but they may not have relevant facts and background knowledge. spreading misleading information or oversimplifying answers online is as easy as ever. quora is one of many platforms that can be used to spread misleading information and polarization, another popular one is instagram. james lindsay some public intellectuals or influencers are making this polarization worse. one of these specific individuals is james lindsay. james lindsay has a phd in math. he wrote a book called cynical theories that is highly critical of social justice movements. his latest target has been public schools and teachers. he has lately been calling teacher groomers. stuart hall notes that the establishment of hegemony has more to do with the ability to reshape oppositional forces to maintain them in their subordinate places (hall, 2016). lindsay reshapes the arguments of teachers and gay individuals to create a strawman he can defeat. he seeks to keep those with a more liberal message in a subordinate position by intentionally putting them in a negative light. he posts memes on his instagram account titled conceptualjames. as of july 2022, he has 51.5k followers. his youtube channel new discourses has roughly 109k followers as of july 2022. i have included screenshots of some posts he has shared in the last two to three months. 9 ressat 2023, 8(2): 1-20 figure 10. james posted this image shortly after the reversal of roe vs. wade. he is creating a caricature of women desiring reproductive justice. notice the devil horns on the shadow. 10 ressat 2023, 8(2): 1-20 figure 11. james is implying that lgbtq+ individuals are unstable. 11 ressat 2023, 8(2): 1-20 figure 12. james is setting up a caricature of a teacher wanting to teach social and emotional learning. this could have the intended result of discrediting the public school system. 12 ressat 2023, 8(2): 1-20 figure 13. james is implying that many alex jones has legitimate predictions. individuals in the comment section indicated that alex is often right. 13 ressat 2023, 8(2): 1-20 figure 14. james is here implying that biden is purposely creating food and fuel shortages. no context is provided of fuel shortages worldwide. biden is framed as a communist even though his policy has largely been neo-liberal throughout his career. 14 ressat 2023, 8(2): 1-20 figure 15. this post was created shortly after the uvalde shooting. the implication is that those who are calling for widely agreed upon background checks want all guns confiscated, so that a government takeover is more realistic. 15 ressat 2023, 8(2): 1-20 figure 16. james is attempting to make pete buttigieg appear as if he is a communist and that this is the real reason that he got the job of secretary of transportation. this is by extension implying that joe biden who selected buttigieg for his administration is a communist. keep in mind buttigieg worked for mckinsey & company there are multiple layers to the social media activity of james lindsay. one layer is his promoting of conservative views. another layer is the undermining of trust and promotion of hostility toward public educators. influencers such as james lindsay give the portrayal that all democrats or left-leaning individuals are absurd. lindsay sets up straw man arguments in his memes. with his large following, lindsay is providing an echo chamber for individuals who choose to follow him. algorithms recommend lindsay’s accounts to individuals who already tend to lean conservative. most of what james posts are memes. memes can act as a cover for individuals who post misleading content. if an individual posting misleading memes is called 16 ressat 2023, 8(2): 1-20 out on it, then they can say that the person criticizing them does not have a sense of humor since memes are supposed to be funny. this sets up a loaded scenario where the individual must either accept the meme or else, they are the problem, and they lack a sense of humor. for example, if an individual were to critique lindsay’s meme of pete buttigieg and point to evidence contrary to him being a communist then lindsay’s supporters could argue that the person missed the point or doesn’t have a sense of humor. for this reason, it is essential for students to develop critical media literacy. students can benefit from the civic online reasoning lessons that have been put out by the stanford history education group. these lessons help students focus on pertinent questions behind online material such as who is behind the information? what is the evidence? and what do other sources say? in the what do other sources say lesson there is an emphasis on corroborating arguments and verifying information with multiple sources. other questions that students could potentially analyze in addition to the sheg questions are – what is the financial incentive of the person posting? how have they ideologically aligned themselves in the past? there is also a lesson included called lateral reading. in lateral reading individuals leave the website they are getting their information from to see what other digital sources are saying about it. 17 ressat 2023, 8(2): 1-20 figure 16. stanford history education group civic online reasoning lesson https://sheg.stanford.edu/students-civic-online-reasoning democratic humility in addition to students utilizing the resources on civic online reasoning from stanford history education group, students can also be taught about developing democratic humility. thomas spragens (1999) argues that we should seek to instill democratic humility into individuals in the united states. i would argue that promoting democratic humility in the classroom is essential for productive deliberative discourses. spragens notes that in promoting democratic humility, individuals are taught not to make unwarranted claims about status or belief. democratic humility can instill in students the benefit of keeping an open mind and seeking out more information before forming opinions on issues. it can also instill the desire to keep searching and being open to new information even when opinions are formed. there is this individualistic notion among many in the u.s. that individuals need to form their own opinions on subjects. there is less attention given to the social, religious, and cultural factors that play into many individual’s opinions. educators can instead seek to instill in students the idea that it is better to develop an opinion after a lot of study and reflection. promoting a healthy dose of 18 ressat 2023, 8(2): 1-20 skepticism into students and teaching them that it is alright to change our minds as we gather more information is something to be celebrated and a sign of wisdom. button (2005) argues that democratic humility would guard against dangers of complacency and dogmatism. he notes that an emphasis on democratic humility works on the willingness to actively, engage, listen to, and learn from diverse others. conclusion democratic humility demands the recognition that one’s deepest and most cherished convictions have a fiduciary basis. an individual practicing democratic humility will recognize that their beliefs about moral truths and matters of empirical fact are just that: beliefs (spragens, 1999). if students were taught to have this type of mindset and develop guards against dogmatism, they may have a healthy amount of skepticism when they see a meme or hear a political opinion from a parent. camicia and knowles (2021) highlight how deliberation can help students create democratic spaces where power is explicit rather than hidden. democratic humility could lead to better classroom deliberation in which students more skeptically analyze the statements of their classmates and seek evidence both for and against different viewpoints. democratic humility being explicitly taught to students can lead to a more productive deliberation as students drop the dogmatism that is so common in adults in contemporary times. parker (2011) has indicated that through deliberative education young people can develop the ability to exchange ideas and reason with one another. democratic humility can help these exchanges be more fruitful. hess and mcavoy (2015) for example have highlighted how students view themselves as more politically engaged if they had impactful deliberation in classrooms during their high school years, and a focus on democratic humility can aid in making classroom deliberation impactful. hess (2004) also explains how deliberating in classrooms about controversial topics can lead to more tolerance. although there are benefits to classroom discussion, there can be downsides if students spread misinformation and students become polarized. melissa gibson (2020) writes of research concerning deliberative pedagogies in which educators teach with and for classroom discussion. she notes that there are downsides to social media. she writes of the existence of “echo chambers, trolls, memes.” (gibson, 2020). this article provides potential solutions to overcome these specific types of downsides. the quora posts appear to be an echo chamber of individuals who likely have never read zinn’s or ramsey clark’s writings regarding the highway of death. james lindsay appears to be a troll who uses memes as an attempt to make anyone associated with the political left look absurd. using the resource provided by stanford history education group and teaching students democratic humility can be two methods to overcome downfalls of social media and strengthen classroom discussions. further studies could include analyzing other social media posts and analyzing the potential impacts of these specific posts. other studies could also include ways that democratic humility could be implemented in the classroom as well as the results of implementing lessons on democratic humility. 19 ressat 2023, 8(2): 1-20 references button, m. (2005) a monkish kind of virtue: for and against humility. political theory, 33 (6), 840-868. https://doi.org/10.1177/0090591705280525 camicia, s. & knowles r. (2021). education for democracy: a renewed approach to civic inquiries for social justice. charlotte, nc. information age publishing. clark, r. (1991). war crimes: a report on united states war crimes against iraq to the commission of inquiry for the international war crimes tribunal. dahlgren, p. (2006). doing citizenship. european journal of cultural studies, 9(3), 267-286. http://doi.org/10.1177/1367549406066073 hess, d. e. (2004). controversies about controversial issues in democratic education. ps: political science & politics politics, 37(2), 257–262. https://doi.org/10.1017/s1049096504004196 hess, d. & mcavoy, p. (2015). the political classroom: evidence and ethics in democratic education. new york, ny: routledge. harwell, d. (2019). facebook acknowledges pelosi video is faked but declines to delete it. washington post http://www.profmex.org/cronicasinfin/noticias/facebook_acknowledges_pelosi_video _is_faked_but_declines_to_delete_it.pdf gibson, m. (2020). from deliberation to counter-narration: toward a critical pedagogy for democratic citizenship. theory & research in social education, 48 (3). https://doi.org/10.1080/00933104.2020.1747034 knowles, r. t., & castro, a. j. (2019). the implications of ideology on teachers’ beliefs regarding civic education. teaching and teacher education, 77, 226-239. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2018.10.009 mansbridge, j. j. (2018). a deliberative theory of interest representation. in the politics of interests (pp. 32-57). routledge. mcmanus, d., gerstenzang, j. (1991) “structure built to shelter iraqi elite, u.s. says,” los angeles times, february 15, 1991. https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1991-0215-mn-1087-story.html myers, d., (2011) exploring psychology. new york, ny: macmillan parker, w. (2003). teaching democracy: unity and diversity in public life. new york, ny: teacher’s college press. parker, w. c. (2011). feel free to change your mind. a response to “the potential for deliberative democratic civic education” democracy & education, 19(2), 1–4. https://doi.org/10.1.1.922.6057 quora https://www.quora.com/was-the-highway-of-death-a-standard-military-operation-ora-war-crime raum, t. (1990) “bush says saddam even worse than hitler.” ap news, november 1, 1990. https://apnews.com/article/c456d72625fba6c742d17f1699b18a16 https://doi.org/10.1177/0090591705280525 http://doi.org/10.1177/1367549406066073 https://doi.org/10.1017/s1049096504004196 http://www.profmex.org/cronicasinfin/noticias/facebook_acknowledges_pelosi_video_is_faked_but_declines_to_delete_it.pdf http://www.profmex.org/cronicasinfin/noticias/facebook_acknowledges_pelosi_video_is_faked_but_declines_to_delete_it.pdf https://doi.org/10.1080/00933104.2020.1747034 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2018.10.009 https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1991-02-15-mn-1087-story.html https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1991-02-15-mn-1087-story.html https://doi.org/10.1.1.922.6057 https://www.quora.com/was-the-highway-of-death-a-standard-military-operation-or-a-war-crime https://www.quora.com/was-the-highway-of-death-a-standard-military-operation-or-a-war-crime https://apnews.com/article/c456d72625fba6c742d17f1699b18a16 20 ressat 2023, 8(2): 1-20 schradie, j. (2019). the revolution that wasn’t: how digital activism favors conservatives. harvard university press. spragens, t. (1999) civic liberalism: reflections on our democratic ideals. boston, ma: rowman & littlefield. yudkin, d., hawkins, s. & dixon, t. (2019). the perception gap: how false impressions are pulling americans apart. retrieved from https.us/media/zaslaroc/perception-gapreport-1-0-3.pdf zinn, h. (2015). a people’s history of the united states. new york, ny: harper perennial. file:///c:/users/lenovo/downloads/https.us/media/zaslaroc/perception-gap-report-1-0-3.pdf file:///c:/users/lenovo/downloads/https.us/media/zaslaroc/perception-gap-report-1-0-3.pdf research in social sciences and technology https://ressat.org e-issn: 2468-6891 volume: 8 issue: 3 2023 pp. 105-118 augmented reality for teaching storytelling in a rural foundation phase primary school: integrating a place-based approach pretty thandiswa mpiti*a, bulelwa makenab, & motsi qoyia * corresponding author email: pmpiti@wsu.ac.za a. department of curriculum, faculty of education and school development, walter sisulu university, queenstown, south africa b. continuing adult professional teacher, faculty of education, walter sisulu university, butterworth, south africa article info received: december 10, 2022 accepted: april 5, 2023 published: august 12, 2023 how to cite mpiti, p. t. makena, b., & qoyi, m. (2023). augmented reality for teaching storytelling in a rural foundation phase primary school: integrating a placebased approach. research in social sciences and technology, 8(3), 105-118. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2023.24 copyright license this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (cc by 4.0). abstract augmented reality (ar) has recently become a new leading edge in mobile-assisted language learning attributed to the popularity of smartphones. the place-based approach (pba) is a situated, context-rich teaching and learning modality characterized by its relationship to place. ar and pba have proven to be useful in educational settings; however, few studies have observed them being used jointly. this study aims to explore the combination of ar and pba in teaching storytelling in a foundation phase (fp) rural primary school. based on current trends, the study also aims to design learning principles for teaching that will help language teachers integrate this innovative technology and approach into literacy teaching. the study was tested with two fp teachers and 12 fp learners in a real classroom and carried out with qualitative observations and semi-structured interviews. the findings reveal that learners are more motivated and interested in activities that have been enhanced because they encourage problem-solving, discovery, and socialization. the findings also suggest that technological interventions, particularly when learners work as a team, may have a bigger impact than non-technology-integrated instruction. these results offer demonstrable support for technology use and have useful results for future practice. keywords augmented reality; place-based approach; storytelling; foundation phase; rural primary school; literacy teaching 10.46303/ ressat.2023.24 mailto:pmpiti@wsu.ac.za https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2023.24 106 mpiti et al. ressat 2023, 8(3): 105-118 introduction many skills are required in our increasingly connected digital world. these skills include problem-solving, communication, critical thinking, creativity, and teamwork. it is becoming more crucial for learners to develop these skills in school if they are to succeed. digital technologies are a useful tool for fostering the development of these skills. among these digital technologies, augmented reality (ar) is being employed in educational settings. it has gained more interest in the scientific community as a result of studies reporting its benefits and reviews on its effectiveness and advantages when utilized for educational reasons (bacca acosta et al., 2014; bujak et al., 2013; diegmann et al., 2015; liu & tsai, 2013; wang et al., 2018). ar represents the essence of a digital culture-learning tool. the overlay of computer-generated content in an actual environment is made possible by a variety of technologies through mobile games, tv dramas, professional skill training, global positioning systems (gps), and so on. it has been demonstrated to be helpful in promoting engagement, motivation, creativity, imagination, and teamwork, to name a few of its advantages (diegmann et al., 2015; yuen et al., 2011). researchers have carried out empirical studies on mobile-assisted language learning (mall). for example, loewen et al. (2019) promoted the use of mobile tools in language education, as well as in custom educational software (wang et al., 2018). some reviews (bacca acosta et al., 2014; diegmann et al., 2015) show that ar has been used in a number of educational settings where the primary goal is to promote learner-centered learning. the ar in ele falls especially under the purview of mall, which facilitates interaction and maintaining access across all diverse contexts for language teaching and learning (kukulska-hulme & shield, 2008). the education sector offers favorable conditions for the wide acceptance of ar technologies and applications. therefore, incorporating ar in teaching storytelling pushes learners to visualize what they are learning while developing a feeling of belonging that is conceived and acted out in certain areas such as the fundamentals of computer usage, how to use computers to enhance reality, the fundamentals of ar systems, and the fundamentals of a given environment. the place-based approach (pba) is built on the local community’s assets and values and emphasizes the utilization of the local community as a context linked with the school (powers, 2004). it has its origins with john dewey, who criticized education within fortified walls, contending that it was life itself at school rather than a setting that helped students prepare for life (pasiechnyk, 2018). since the mid-1990s, the application of pba has gained special interest. the practice became a hallmark when initiatives to help the resuscitation of rural education were financed by the annenberg foundation, and several of those projects relied on placebased instructional paradigms (smith, 2007). pba research has grown since 2004 (barrentine, 2015; lester, 2012; mpiti et al., 2021; smith, 2007; waller & rodríguez-pose, 2018). the most recent research regards pba as an extraordinary, thought-altering, and successful teaching strategy. researchers have emphasized its benefits, including how it can improve literacy skills (barrentine, 2015; mpiti et al., 2021; waller & rodríguez-pose, 2018), enhance learning 107 ressat 2023, 8(3): 105-118 outcomes and boost the efficiency of learning sessions (semken et al., 2017), as well as encouraging and assisting with failed learning (mpiti et al., 2021). there has not been much exploration of the combination of ar and pba. given that ar makes it possible to create real-time, interactive virtual worlds and play with real-world learning items (maps, books, and tools) in games, combining ar and pba is beneficial. pba gives the ar application a natural environment, transforming the real-world visualization into an actual learning experience. the workings of ar are depicted in figure 1 below: figure 1 adapted from the realism virtuality continuum, ar in a band (milgram & kishino, 1994) the above figure identifies any mixture of actual and virtual items (mixed reality) that exists between the two opposites of virtual reality and reality (milgram & kishino, 1994). one aspect of vr is a world entirely made up of virtual items. the material world is at the opposite end. ar technology overlays digital content in the real environment while operating on the same band. this study, therefore, aims to facilitate the bridging of the learning design community with arpba in teaching storytelling to develop learners’ vocabularies, pronunciation, right intonation, and speaking in front of the class. arpba may enrich storytelling activities because learners concentrate on the speech that is presented in a physical, real-world learning item (such as a book), and their experience is improved when virtual layers with interactive components relevant to the storytelling are included (the ar ingredient). ar applications are more effectively rooted in a learner’s regular learning environment because of the coordinated presentation of both physical and virtual aspects. the goal of this study is to help learners understand key contemporary issues facing their local environment and take responsibility while developing storytelling abilities. the following research questions are examined in the study: • what is the overall effectiveness of the arpba task for foundation phase (fp) learners? • how is the storytelling activity itself enriched? in other words, how is the activity enriched in terms of collaboration, problem-solving skills, argumentation skills, etc.? literature review wang et al. (2018) defined ar as a set of technologies used in combination to overlay computergenerated content over the real world. it is generally characterized as any system that combines the physical and digital worlds, allows for real-time interaction, and appears to be three 108 mpiti et al. ressat 2023, 8(3): 105-118 dimensional (azuma, 1997). instead of the standard learning activities given inside the limitations of a regular classroom, learners can use ar to examine simulated experiences based on the reality of specialists in the area (lee, 2012). the education sector offers favorable conditions for the widespread adoption of augmented reality technologies and applications. benefits of ar in addition to traditional classroom instruction, ar can blend the learner’s perception of the virtualized version of the actual world produced by mobile devices to create a semi-realistic world and increase motivation to learn a foreign language (liu & tsai, 2013). the most wellknown application of ar is as a visualization tool that may improve any physical sense, or even several senses at once, with moving 3d models and images as well as two-dimensional text (wang et al., 2018). ar is more than a simple physical or sensory encounter. bujak et al. (2013) sum up how learning is impacted by ar experiences along three main dimensions: 1) physical, which deals with interacting with and manipulating objects; 2) cognitive, which deals with spatial and temporal proximity; and 3) contextual, which relates personal significance to realworld situations. the significance of ar is how the technologies and applications are implemented, just as other digital advances can support meaningful learning outcomes (wang et al., 2018). in contrast to the normal learning activities provided within the limits of a standard classroom, ar allows students to investigate the simulated, actual-world experiences of specialists in the area. learners today are “digital natives,” having dealt with digital information at an early age. unsurprisingly, they have positive opinions about ar as a teaching tool. place-based language learning is made possible by mobile ar technology (godwin-jones, 2016). ar can encourage learners to actively participate in language learning activities and support their participatory learning process (lee, 2012). an exploratory study conducted by thorne et al. (2015) found that the use of ar technology and the coordination among social, physical, and informational surroundings mediated/facilitated the entire learning process. benefits of pba pba entails direct involvement with the environment and occurs outside of the traditional classroom, whether at school or elsewhere. when adopting pba as a learning strategy, learners placed a strong emphasis on using their bodies to connect with their thoughts (üztemur & dere, 2022). in pba, learners can focus and deepen their learning by using objects outside of the classroom as opposed to only learning in a classroom (glassner & eran-zoran, 2016). as a result, students are urged to find and develop economic possibilities in their local community rather than looking for jobs elsewhere. this approach enables learners to continue living in the neighborhood after graduation and to help their families and neighbors (larty, 2021). pba enhances learners’ self-control, originality of thought, and problem-solving abilities in such a learning environment (smith & sobel, 2010). as a result, learners become more civically responsible and feel more empowered (glassner & eran-zoran, 2016). teachers and learners must take responsibility and work together to become collaborative researchers of regional 109 ressat 2023, 8(3): 105-118 issues and challenges if they are to be in command of their own learning in such a learning environment integrated with the community (smith & sobel, 2010). pba also attracts attention as a crucial method in teacher preparation (dani, 2019), encouraging teachers to use local resources as learning tools, transforming local areas into learning labs (buxton & provenzo, 2012) and offering teachers the opportunity to develop a sense of place (dani, 2019). pba applications assist teachers in comprehending the sociocultural setting of the learning process. teachers’ feeling of location is enhanced by these practices, which also enhance their capacity for creating engaging learning activities. in order to help learners have “strong, transferable, and worthwhile” experiences, teachers might assimilate the sociocultural framework of the local community where their students live (basu & barton, 2007). storytelling according to gunadi and lubis (2021), telling stories to friends, relatives, or other individuals about an event that has taken place or an action that has been taken conveys experiences, impressions, and information about that event or action. it is a technique that anyone can use to communicate a range of messages such as thoughts, opinions, and emotional states. storytelling requires a number of additional psychological skills such as mental fortitude and employing other emotional intelligence skills like using language in a formal manner (gunadi & lubis, 2021). learners encounter experiences and knowledge regarding the subject matter, characters, and methods of storytelling through reading, listening, and watching. on the other hand, storytelling can assist teachers in better understanding their learners, being more proficient in addressing the social and emotional needs of learners and being able to design a curriculum that takes students’ needs and interests into account (wright et al., 2008). more importantly, storytelling provides a rich literacy environment for learners. this study is aimed at developing learners’ knowledge of practical issues and the ability to address them while developing storytelling skills by incorporating ar with pba to improve learners’ storytelling abilities. arpba has the advantages of expanding learning outside of physical spaces, providing chances for collaborative learning, and giving learners contextual knowledge. in this respect, learners have opportunities for autonomous thought, information gathering, analysis, synthesis, critical thought, communal issue solving, and the generation of original ideas. theoretical framework the idea of applying arpba to storytelling activities is set within the theoretical framework of constructivism and learning theory. the basic premise of constructivism is that each person develops their own sense of meaning via experience. this implies that learners discover the major idea before deriving the detail, as opposed to being taught all the details that lead to the main notion. robinson and coltz (2013) describe ar as a “powerful means to constructivist learning” (p. 3353). with ar, learners can actively engage with digital content and incorporate new knowledge into their current body of knowledge while following their own unique path of 110 mpiti et al. ressat 2023, 8(3): 105-118 discovery (wang et al., 2018). as a result, ar learning experiences are consistent with constructivism’s principles. with the use of ar, learners can learn contextualized language and content, absorb it, and create their own understanding before applying it to useful tasks (liu & tsai, 2013). in the same vein, pba emphasizes the idea of the obligation to preserve and restore our shared surroundings as well as the experience of being human in relation to people and the natural world for future generations (gruenewald, 2003). beames and brown (2016) assert that authenticity is a key factor in adventurous learning, in part because it connects these constructivist ideas to the academic work incorporated into outdoor and environmental education. the value of past knowledge, information in context, and meaningful interaction is amplified by genuine learning theory by encouraging research, innovation, and the profound building of concepts in real-world scenarios (hornstra et al., 2015). learners are immersed in the outdoors, and the learning is customized to the setting in which it takes place. ar combined with pba aims for a relevant context because the use of interactive tools and settings is consistent with the vygotskian idea—the foundation of the whole language— that social contact should be a part of the learning process, including speaking. according to godwin-jones (2016), the combination of arpba encourages students to participate in their own education and encourages them to take part in literacy activities. method to evaluate ar combined with pba, the researchers conducted a case study, exploring facts and experiences by collecting information on a small group of foundation phase (fp) teachers and students in a rural primary school setting. in order to describe cases in great depth during this inquiry phase, the researchers used anecdotes (hancock et al., 2021). the nature of this qualitative study enabled the researchers to choose participants who were most knowledgeable about the subject being studied (leedy & ormrod, 2019). teachers and learners who speak isixhosa were chosen by the researchers to explore the integration of ar and pba in teaching storytelling in a rural fp primary school. purposive and convenient sampling techniques were used in this study. purposive sampling involved gathering information via storytelling activities, and convenient sampling involved taking advantage of schools’ accessibility. participants included 12 fp grade 3 isixhosaspeaking students aged 11 to 12, and two classroom teachers. they made four groups of three learners in each group. teachers were labelled as tea1 and tea2 and learners were labelled as lea1 – lea12. the researchers conducted semi-structured interviews to gain an understanding of the depth and complexity of the teachers’ experiences with arpba. a thorough observation of the teaching and learning process was conducted to ascertain how the teacher applied and the student learned using arpba. 111 ressat 2023, 8(3): 105-118 the researchers in this study collaborated with teachers to plan the activity. the researchers created an arpba-based narrative that would promote storytelling with the aid of the teachers. crafting with the teachers. the researchers worked with the teachers to create a storytelling activity that incorporates ar and pba. the fundamental concept of the story, “the outdoors,” taken from the textbooks, was provided by the teachers. due to its simplicity of use, the buildar program was chosen. then, the researchers and teachers designed an activity for determining 3d objects. interactions with learners. we questioned the learners in a way that got them to consider significant places in the schoolyard, their perceptions of those places, and the messages they wanted to convey about those locations. we concentrated more on assisting the four groups in developing the narrative during our brainstorming sessions. in this way, we wrote down all the repeated words (refer to table 1) and we introduced five characters (grass, a playfield, a ball, a boy, and a girl). table 1 the outdoors-themed objects reported by learners _________________________________________ picture words run kick pass ball goal playfield after that, researchers and participants took pictures in the schoolyard that are related to the brainstorming session, and the designs of the 3d and 2d objects were created. figure 2 includes samples of the materials created. next, learners in their groups created stories while using a computer to view their displays (see figure 3). learners were told to think of a story that fits with the pictures. they were given time to think about their ideas. learners took turns sharing their version of the story. 112 mpiti et al. ressat 2023, 8(3): 105-118 figure 2 models background results the current study examines the effects of ar integrated with pba in teaching storytelling on rural fp learners’ stories regarding narrative skill, length, and creativity. for both teachers and learners, this was their first time integrating ar and pba into teaching and learning. the results revealed that learners using an integrated approach of arpba created better stories. teachers were pleased with this strategy and emphasized its benefits in developing learners’ narrative skills as well as expanding their vocabulary repertoire. on the other hand, they mentioned that this exercise helped learners familiarize themselves with the school grounds and attractive spots and learn to take care of their environment. the storytelling skills of the learners improved from the first activity to the final, according to the teachers. they also concurred that using technology in the classroom has a significant, beneficial impact on learning and achievement. teachers expressed gratitude for participating in the project and using this model when it was finished, saying: tea1: i appreciate being part of this innovative project; moreso, i can say combining ar with pba is a useful and complex, technology-enhanced learning experience. but i cannot run from the fact that the technical challenges of creating 3d videos are a daunting task and need gurus of the field. tea2: for me, it was difficult to plan, and i can see it people are needed when it comes to developing the 3d characters. nevertheless, the results yielded fruitfully. also, it made it easy 113 ressat 2023, 8(3): 105-118 for these kids to see their story characters moving. they may have been inspired to describe what they saw and use numerous vivid words as a result. tea1: giving children computer-based lessons and a variety of options gave them the chance to write more powerful stories. nevertheless, by the look of things from this experience, i think working with smaller groups yields good results. to my thinking, a larger number might be a challenge. tea2: from this experience with pba, i noted that it involves children in investigations that call for careful observation and problem-solving, activities that might strengthen their bonds with the social and natural worlds around them. tea1: pba activities encourage children to take on the responsibilities of the place they live at. to add more, it makes them feel confident in themselves and extremely excited about what they are studying. i wish we could accomplish the same thing together. data gathered from interviews indicated that both teachers appreciated the tasks. they added that to create effective ar applications that improve learning outcomes, a collaboration between teachers and learning designers is required. in addition, both teachers noted as the important advantage of integrating the pba with ar in teaching literacy to efal learners. they believed that collaboration was necessary, and it enabled learners to respect their environment and learn using technology while developing storytelling skills. according to observations, all participants cooperated with their teammates. the researchers believe that arpba played a major role in engagement and motivation because new technologies usually motivate and engage young learners. the fact that learners tended to interact with one another after participating in the group work activity was a typical and expected outcome. these connections involved the learners cooperating, imparting knowledge, and engaging in some form of training while guiding one another. noting how the activity emphasis provides a justification for disputing, arguing, and supporting arguments, it is possible to see how these interactions represent opportunities to acquire language-related skills. as an illustration, one learner persuaded a reticent teammate to share her story, which she duly did. one of the most salient observations is that the learners seemed to like narrating the story, and the use of technology motivated them. learners enjoyed the story they created in their groups. most learners believed that the story was not too long or too short, and they did not get tired of hearing each other talk. the duration of the storytelling varied between one and one-and-a-half hours. one learner expressed her embarrassment and desire for more after the task was completed. she further noted arpba as an important factor for engagement and authenticity in the use of the school grounds as the scene of the story. this reveals an advantage of integrating place when teaching. finally, all of them revealed that they would like to learn other subjects integrating arpba, which reveals that learners develop a positive attitude about this approach. 114 mpiti et al. ressat 2023, 8(3): 105-118 discussion of findings researchers believe that because new technologies typically engage and motivate young people, especially learners, this fact has a significant impact on motivation and engagement (gikas & grant, 2013). this is in line with kesim and ozarslan (2012), who indicated that multidisciplinary teams are required to create ar activities and applications for education and training in order to maximize learning outcomes. from data gathered through interviews, it is evident that combining ar and pba created richer experiences by utilizing learners’ imaginations to produce more imaginative stories (cassell & ryokai, 2001; wang et al., 2018). this study shows that allowing learners to use their imaginations to develop original stories boosted their creativity. as revealed by observation, integrating technology into teaching storytelling in efal has a large and positive effect on learners’ learning and achievement. this result is typically consistent with place-based language learning practices and mobile ar technology (godwinjones, 2016), which underscores the beneficial impacts of expanding learning outside of traditional classroom settings and can foster collaborative learning and give learners access to context-relevant information. furthermore, this finding is consistent with thorne et al. (2015) in that the integration of social, physical, and informational environments with ar technology makes the entire learning process easier. observations revealed that the high degree of narrative expertise is because ar storytelling is an alluring, thrilling, and enjoyable activity in and of itself. in line with this, kim et al. (2013) said that when utilized with 3d objects, ar technology is an intriguing application for interactive storytelling. similarly, zhou et al. (2004) found that utilizing 3d items with ar improves the appeal and comprehension of narrative activities. the exercise is made more thrilling and enjoyable in this way. the use of 3d characters could be another factor in this discovery. dünser and hornecker (2007) found that giving learners more control over and interaction with the story’s characters through the use of paddles can increase their interest in it. this is true because observation indicated that the connection with story characters provided a positive contribution when creating a story. it was observed that generated cartoon characters positively affect learners. telling a story with familiar characters facilitates understanding and heightens the experience for children (cassell & ryokai, 2001). conclusion in this study, learners’ narrative skills, length of stories, and creativity in stories were investigated. ar integrated with pba constitutes an effective method of teaching storytelling. this situation makes the arpba method for storytelling more feasible and attractive. to sum up, arpba has attracted teachers’ interest and focus in four areas: (1) encouraging learnercentered literacy learning; (2) developing interactive and collaborative learning environments; (3) boosting learners’ motivation for learning storytelling; and (4) supporting literacy learning outcomes. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10055-016-0300-1#ref-cr50 https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10055-016-0300-1#ref-cr32 115 ressat 2023, 8(3): 105-118 recommendations it will be essential to give guidance and instruction to teachers and learners to effectively use the ar-infused teaching and learning materials. the jigsaw cooperation method will be used in upcoming iterations. jigsaw collaboration is anticipated to boost involvement, which in turn stimulates cooperation, increasing learner engagement and experience authenticity. another direction for future development is the design of games with opponents, which may make the task more challenging. these conclusions might be expanded upon with a larger sample size and a broader range of grade levels. references azuma, r. t. 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(2004). 3d story cube: an interactive tangible user interface for storytelling with 3d graphics and audio. personal and ubiquitous computing, 8(5), 374376. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00779-004-0300-0 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10643-007-0189-0 https://10.0.73.97/jetde.0401.10 https://doi.org/10.1007/s00779-004-0300-0 research in social sciences and technology https://ressat.org e-issn: 2468-6891 volume: 8 issue: 2 2023 pp. 56-67 the association between college students` participation behavior and social media use emin kilinca*, bulent tarmanb & saule yussupovac * corresponding author email: ekilinc@wlu.ca a. wilfrid laurier university, canada b. turan university, almaty, kazakhstan c. turan university, almaty, kazakhstan article info received: march 10, 2023 accepted: april 17, 2023 published: may 5, 2023 how to cite kilinc, e., tarman, b., & yussupova, s. (2023). the association between college students` participation behavior and social media use. research in social sciences and technology, 8(2), 56-67 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2023.11 copyright license this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (cc by 4.0). abstract this paper examines college students` participation behaviors and the use of social media tools. the descriptive survey model was applied to investigate university students` participation behaviors. the data was collected through a “participation questionnaire” from 284 college students in kazakhstan. the result showed that students who spend less time on social media are positively related to participatory citizenship. moreover, students with fewer social media accounts are more likely to engage in political, volunteer, and social events than students with more social media accounts. keywords participation, social media, citizenship, college 10.46303/ ressat.2023.11 mailto:ekilinc@wlu.ca https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2023.11 57 ressat 2023, 8(2): 56-67 introduction encouraging individuals to participate in the decision-making process is one of the main components of democracy. participation is not limited to involving politics and voting. indeed, it is also related to promoting voluntary activities and supporting organizations that provide checks on administrations. participatory democracy holds authorities accountable and promotes the public good (crane et al. 2004; karatzimas, 2020). a participatory citizen is one who "actively participates in the civic affairs and the social life of the community at local, state, and national level," according to westheimer and kahne (2004, p. 5). many western countries included democracy and human rights in the school curricula to prepare new generations for their role in democratic societies. according to several researchers, colleges, and universities must give students the information and abilities necessary for success in democratic societies (doganay et al., 2007; kilinc & korkmaz, 2015; pasek et al., 2008); and should inspire students to be aware of their social and professional responsibilities, communicate with others, act creatively and cooperatively, and assume ownership of problem-solving. theoretical framework civic participation and social media the health and stability of democracy are greatly influenced by the characteristics and attitudes of citizens. this includes "the desire to participate in the political process to advance common interests and hold political authorities to account" (kymlicka & norman, 1994, p. 352, 353). citizens are the most important set of stakeholders (karatzimas, 2020), so fostering civic engagement and democratic citizenship through education is crucial. it entails the process of showing concern, accepting responsibility, and taking action to resolve social issues. (ostrander, 2004; tarman & kilinc, 2022). the term "civic participation" describes individuals’ specific actions to sway group decision-making and problem-solving procedures (nah et al., 2016). individuals are offered a wide range of participation activities such as voting, being a community board member, participating in volunteering activities, etc. these participations can be classified into two groups: community participation and political participation (lee et al. 2019). community participation refers to citizen involvement in a local issue, such as fundraising activities, volunteering, and organizing local groups. political participation, on the other hand, is a more formal process than civic participation and refers to being a member of a political party, voting, protesting, and petitioning (colby et al. 2007; lee et al., 2010). in the existing literature, both types of participation have been discussed to increase the accountability of local/national government, increase its effectiveness, and strengthen democracy (rebori, 2007). in addition, promoting civic participation at the college level fosters the practices of democracy and education (palmer & standerfer, 2004). the spread and activation of civic participation also 58 ressat 2023, 8(2): 56-67 reflect the democratization process of society, as it will create an identity between the political and civil society (cavdar, 2004; doganay, cuhadar, & sari, 2007). participatory democracy, which includes the right to participate in the state administration, has received the support of an important part of democracy theorists and has become one of the most frequently, mentioned issues in democracy discussions (cuhadar, 2006). three conceptions of a "good citizen"; personally responsible, participatory, and justiceoriented are examined by westheimer and kahne (2004). they defined a participatory citizen as “one who actively participates in the civic affairs and the social life of the community at local, state and national level” (westheimer & kahne, 2004, p. 5). participation in civic affairs at the local, national, and global levels is affected by several factors. nowadays, social media has the power to fundamentally alter how people interact with one another and with society. therefore, we still need to understand how social media affect civic participation. in this research, the authors applied teorell et al.`s (2007) theory of participation. according to teorell et al.`s (2007), participation consisted of five main elements; voting, political activities, consumer participation, protesting, and communicating with politicians. voting is defined as the practice of choosing officials. party activities include but are not limited to being a member of a party, attending its events, volunteering for the party, and making financial contributions to support the party. consumer participation includes buying specific products, boycotting others, and making donations to support or oppose a cause. like party activities, protests are aimed at unofficial groups like the media or the public at large. finally contacting politicians aims to influence and make changes in society. using this framework, the authors were able to determine the connection between college students' involvement in social media and their use of it. social media is an inevitable part of many people`s daily life. according to research, ¾ of americans use social media and check their accounts daily (perrin and anderson, 2018). similarly, social media is widely used by kazakhs. in kazakhstan, 13.80 million people used social media in january 2022, which represents 72.3 percent of the total population (datareportal, 2023). about 99% of kazakhstan's youth regularly use social media and the internet (sairambay, 2022b). over the past decades, scholars have discussed how social media facilitates social mobilization. indeed, social media provides individuals and organizations a platform to interact with their followers and the broader public (forde, 2017; stein, 2009), decreases the cost of coordination, makes it easier to carry out transnational actions, and broadens the range of possible actions that social movements can do (lee & chan, 2016). several studies examined how digital media is affecting citizens' civic participation (bimber & copeland, 2013; bond et al., 2012; boulianne, 2018; heiss et al., 2019; kilinc & tarman, 2022). there are different views on how social media affects individuals` participation behaviors. some scholars maintain that individuals who have a higher choice of media and spend more time on social media are more likely to participate (boulianne, 2018; dimitrova et 59 ressat 2023, 8(2): 56-67 al., 2014; ellison & vitak, 2015; strömbäck et al., 2017). others, on the other hand, claim that using social media hardly encourages people to participate. the optimistic view states that the wide usage of social media brings an opportunity to increase democratic participation among young generations. indeed, individuals can reach information from diverse perspectives, articulate opinions, and engage with politicians through social media (bond et al., 2012; heiss & matthes, 2019; weeks et al., 2017). ellison and vitak (2015) proposed that individuals can share their political views, ask/reply to politicians’ posts, and engage in other activities. when college students are using their social media, they probably are exposed to some events or activities that invite them to participate in both non-political and political activities. through social media, they also can learn how to engage in these activities in person or online beyond their physical environment (kim & ellison, 2021). the pessimistic view maintains that social media hardly foster participation (heiss et al., 2019). according to theocharis and lowe (2016), social media use causes a significant drop in reported civic and political involvement. while some studies suggested that social media, particularly among college students, has a positive effect on civic involvement (moeller, kühne, & de vreese 2018; heiss and matthes, 2019), some nations restrict or manipulate access to the internet and social media. several researchers postulated that kazakhstan intended to manipulate and/or control social media (anceschi, 2015; kosnazarov, 2019). indeed, in 2018, kazakhstan spent $4.3 million on an automated surveillance program to track signs of political turmoil on social media (sairambay 2022a). since college students in kazakhstan use social media more than any other politically engaged age group, it is critical to comprehend how college students in kazakhstan use social media for civic engagement because they are the ones who drive political events, especially when calling for political change (sairambay, 2022a) the main aim of this paper is to examine university students` participation behaviors and using social media platforms. the descriptive survey model was applied to investigate university students` participation behaviors. the data was collected through a “participation questionnaire” from 286 college students in kazakhstan. toward these aims, the authors investigate the following research questions: 1. is there any statistically significant difference in participation behaviors between college students based on the number of their social media accounts? 2. is there any statistically significant difference in participation behaviors between college students based on their social media usage time? methodology research design the authors used a quantitative descriptive survey design to examine university students` participation behaviors and their use of social media tools. through descriptive survey design, researchers can assess opinions, attitudes, practices, demographics, and preferences (gay, 60 ressat 2023, 8(2): 56-67 mills, & airisian, 2006;). especially for educational research, survey design is one of the prominent methods for data collection (fraenkel & wallen, 2003). participants the data was collected from 309 college students in kazakhstan in the 2021-2022 education year. some students did not complete the questionnaire. after eliminating these empty questionnaires, we have 284 completed questionnaires. table 1 provides detailed information about the participants. our sample was dominated by female students, 40% of the students have social media accounts and 60% of them have more than three social media accounts. in addition, 72% of the participants spend more than 3 hours per day using their social media accounts. table 1. college students` profile frequency percent gender female 209 72.8 male 77 27.2 total 284 100 social media account (sm) 1-2 116 40.4 3-4 152 53.0 5+ 19 6.6 time spent in sm less than 1 hour 11 3.8 1-2 hours 66 23 3-4 hours 134 46.7 more than 5 hours 74 25.8 instrument the authors used the “participation questionnaire” developed by cuhadar (2006) to collect data from college students in kazakhstan. the questionnaire consists of 10 items there are possible answers for each one based on a 5-point likert scale (never = 1, rare = 2, sometimes = 3, usually = 4, and always = 5). there are so scale reverse-scored items. the lowest and maximum scores are 10 and 50 respectively. a higher overall score indicates higher participation among the participants. analysis of data the spss 20.0 statistical package program was used by the authors to perform descriptive analysis and one-way anova. the significance test between groups was conducted using α = 0.05 significance level. 61 ressat 2023, 8(2): 56-67 findings the authors used participation questionnaire to evaluate college students` participation behaviors. in our study, participation includes both political and civic participation. table 2 presents the participants` responses for each item in the questionnaire. the result showed that college students show lower political participation. indeed, the item “writing on the walls for protest or propaganda” has the lowest mean (m=1.23); and “writing an email/tweet of criticism to government officials for an application that is disliked” (m=1.51); “conveying personal thoughts about the news in the newspaper or the comments of the columnists via email and/or social media” (m=1.74). on the other hand, students have quite a higher mean than political participation items. for instance, the “voluntarily helping others outside of organized campaigns” item has the highest mean (m=2.99); “buying a product for an environmental and ethical reason” has (m=2.86); and “protesting buying a product for an environmental and ethical reason” has (m=2.70). according to this research, college students generally show low both civic and political participation behaviors. table 2. college students` responses to each item items m sd 1. working for a non-governmental organization or organization 1.76 1.13 2. signing the petition 2.57 1.26 3. taking part in legal demonstrations 1.77 1.10 4. protesting buying a product for environmental and ethical reasons 2.70 1.15 5. buying a product for environmental and ethical reasons 2.86 1.21 6. being in close contact with politicians 1.81 0.99 7. voluntarily helping others outside of organized campaigns 2.99 1.17 8. conveying personal thoughts about the newspaper news or columnists’ comments via email and/or social media. 1.74 1.12 9. writing on the walls for protest or propaganda 1.23 0.71 10. writing an email/tweet of criticism to government officials for an application that is disliked 1.51 .84 the number of social media accounts and participation behaviors the authors conducted a one-way anova to examine whether students` participation behaviors differed by the number of social media accounts that participants actively use. based on the one-way anova`s findings, a significant difference was found in the number of social media accounts to students` participation behaviors f(2,274) = 3.042, p = 0.04. students having more than 5 social media accounts (m5+=24.33, sd=5.75) show more participation behaviors than college students with fewer social media accounts (m1-2=20.58, sd=5.31 and m3-4=20.78, sd=6.86). a follow-up test was conducted by the authors to assess pairwise mean differences. the scheffe tests showed that there was no difference between 62 ressat 2023, 8(2): 56-67 students having 1-2 social media accounts and students having 3-4 social media accounts; on the other hand, these categories differed significantly from those who use more than five social media accounts. table 3. one-way analysis of variance of participation behaviors by the number of social media accounts source df ss ms f p between groups 2 190.052 95.026 3.042 .04 within groups 274 8557.912 31.233 total 276 8747.964 spending time on the social media and participation behaviors the authors conducted a one-way anova to examine whether students` participation behaviors differed by their social media hours. based on the one-way anova`s findings, a significant difference was found in the number of social media accounts to students` participation behaviors f(3,274) = 2.994, p = 0.03. students who spend less than an hour on social media accounts (mless1=25.45, sd=11.05) show more participation behaviors than other students who spend more hours on social media (m1-2=20.92, sd=5.11, m3-4=20.35, sd=5.03, and m5+=21.30, sd=5.80). a follow-up test was conducted by the authors to assess pairwise mean differences. the scheffe tests showed that there was no difference between students spending 1-2 hours and students spending 3-4 and more hours on social media; however, these groups had a significant difference with those who spend less than an hour on their social media accounts. table 4. one-way analysis of variance of participation behaviors by the spending hours on social media accounts source df ss ms f p between groups 3 279.799 93.266 2.994 0.31 within groups 274 8536.460 31.155 total 277 8816.259 discussion during the last decade, many researchers and educators have considered the effects of social media on young generations’ participation behaviors. many of them expressed a positive impact that social media usage will foster democratic participation, especially among younger generations (earl & kimport, 2011; heiss and matthes, 2019; weeks et al., 2017) online activism, as oser et al. (oser, hooghe, & marien, 2013) noted, is a unique form of political involvement. cantijoch (2012) indicated that the more frequent use of social media increases the likelihood of participating in political protest. similarly, enjolras et al. (2013) maintained that social media apply a solid and autonomous impact on political mobilization. 63 ressat 2023, 8(2): 56-67 according to an experiment conducted by bond and colleagues (bond et al., 2012), the use of social media fosters information seeking, political self-expression, and voting. in addition, the use of social media is a robust predictor of civic behaviors (kaufhold, valenzuela & gil de zuniga , 2010). however, in this study, we found that students are less interested in political protest. participants rarely shared their appreciation/criticism of government officials and taking part in legal demonstrations. on the other hand, they are likely to protest products or brands for environmental concerns. based on teorell et al.`s (2007) theory, participation consisted of five main elements: voting, political activities, consumer participation, protesting, and communicating with politicians. our research indicated that college students in kazakhstan showed their support or protest mostly on the consumer participation dimension. on contrary, they showed low participation in political activities, protesting, and communicating with politicians. in this study, the authors also found that having more than 5 social media accounts shows more participation behaviors than other students who have fewer social media accounts. furthermore, students who spend less than an hour on social media accounts show more participation behaviors than other students who spend more hours on social media. these results are not surprising because kazakhstan spent $4.3 million on an automated surveillance program to track signs of political turmoil on social media in 2018. (sairambay, 2022a). mackinnon (2011) defines these censorship and online surveillance as “networked authoritarianism”. anceschi (2015) postulated that some examples of networked authoritarianism might be observed on social media in kazakhstan. this can explain why kazakh college students` low level of participation. similarly, theocharis and love (2016) found that social media negatively affect participation and postulated that social media doesn't seem to have a big impact on participation in classic activities like politics and civic life, and they may even make them less effective. our findings are also similar to park and kaye (2020) who stated that participation may be negatively impacted by social media. they discovered that those who used social media more frequently had lower participation rates in a panel study, which involved answering questions about political issues. this result can be explained that participants use social media for recreational use and spend their time on social media to escape their everyday struggles by disconnecting themselves from politics or issues. the results of this study are not surprising because kazakhstan purchased a $4.3 million automated surveillance program to monitor indications of political unrest on social media, in 2018 (sairambay, 2022a). mackinnon (2011) defines these censorship and online surveillance as “networked authoritarianism”. anceschi (2015) postulated that some examples of networked authoritarianism might be observed on social media in kazakhstan. this can explain why kazakh college students` low level of participation. conclusion the main implication of this research is that we need to be more careful when making assumptions about the direction of causality between social media use and participation. this 64 ressat 2023, 8(2): 56-67 study highlights the need for longitudinal and experimental research that examines the connections between participation and digital media as well as the processes by which they interact. this study has a few limitations: first, the number of participants is small, so we can't be sure of the general trends we found. second, the sample would be selected via random sampling. third, the nature of the survey research could be considered another limitation of this research. the veracity of the participants' comments is a constant source of concern. the researchers, therefore, considered that participants were being honest with their answers. references anceschi, l. 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(2004). what kind of citizen? the politics of educating for democracy. american educational research journal, 41(2), 237-269. research in social sciences and technology https://ressat.org e-issn: 2468-6891 volume: 8 issue: 1 2023 pp. 31-50 emerging adults and the use of textual digital communication: a reflection on self-esteem, loneliness, anxiety, and wellbeing georgiana ioana tambaa & ioana iancu*a * corresponding author email: iancu@fspac.ro a. faculty of political, administrative and communication sciences babes-bolyai university, cluj-napoca, romania article info received: september 12, 2022 accepted: january 5, 2023 published: april 25, 2023 how to cite tamba, g. i., & iancu, i. (2023). emerging adults and the use of textual digital communication: a reflection on self-esteem, loneliness, anxiety, and wellbeing. research in social sciences and technology, 8(1), 31-50. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2023.3 copyright license this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (cc by 4.0). abstract digital communication is a great facilitator of human connection, positively contributing to life satisfaction and prosocial behavior. however, the existing findings also insist on the drawbacks of the digital communication, as low levels of wellbeing satisfaction, or happiness. thus, aiming to reconciliate the two sets of assumptions and relying on the reality that textual communication is preferred to voice interaction, the present paper investigates the impact of using messaging apps on the emotional state. more specifically, the study explores if time spent texting, the general affinity towards technology, the perceived ease of use, the perceived usefulness, and the intentional behavior to use messaging applications are correlated with self-esteem, loneliness, anxiety, and wellbeing. an online opinion survey (n=147) with romanian emerging adults is conducted between february and may 2022. the results show that a positive attitude towards technology is negatively correlated with the feelings of loneliness and anxiety. moreover, a positive perception on the ease of use and usefulness of the messaging applications is linked with an increased wellbeing. keywords emerging adults; textual digital communication; self-esteem; loneliness; anxiety; wellbeing. 10.46303/ressat.2023.3 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2023.3 32 ressat 2023, 8(1): 31-50 introduction over the last years, emerging adults have spent more and more time using digital media and electronic devices. research shows that the number of hours teenagers spend online doubled in just ten years, between 2006 and 2016, and the average teenager spends 6 hours a day texting and scrolling during their leisure time (twenge et al., 2018). shortly after smartphones have been introduced to the worldwide market, their ownership skyrocketed (poushter et al., 2018). as smartphones are widespread, they are used in varied context, from work life to personal life (busch & mccarthy, 2021). nowadays, there are more than 6 billion smartphone subscriptions worldwide with a forecast of more than 7 billion for 2027 (statista, 2023). the average time people spent on these devices is over three hours daily (takahashi, 2018). moreover, young adults and working adults spend around 32% to 40% of their waking hours chatting to others (mehl & pennebaker, 2003; milek et al., 2018). based on an estimate from 2022, there are more than 5 million applications available on the google play store and apple app store (statista, 2022). these mobile apps are primarily used by young people. in the united states, people between the ages of 18 and 24 spend the most time using mobile apps (93.5 hours per month on smartphones) (statista, 2016). moreover, 69% of the digital time is used on mobile devices as of the same month (statista, 2016). with a 21% share of total u.s. mobile app time, social networking applications lead the pack, while music apps are placed second, with 16% (statista, 2021). most commonly, individuals use their mobile phones for navigating social platforms, for seeking information, for online shopping, or for watching videos (comscore, 2017). thus, it can be emphasized that these devices provide significant advantages when it comes to maintaining social relationship, to getting informed, educated, and entertained (godwin-jones, 2011; camacho et al., 2014; chan, 2013). digital communication helps people connect more easily and contributes positively to youth’s life satisfaction and prosocial behaviors. however, a third of teenagers (34%) agree that digital communication significantly reduces the time they spend with face-to-face interactions, and 44% agree that social media frequently distracts them from people they are within-person (james et al., 2017). additionally, smartphone use may have other negative implications. excessive smartphone use, also known as problematic smartphone, is associated with negative effects materialized into reduced efficiency, low academic accomplishment and lack of concentration, and poor interaction in social context (duke & montag, 2017; lepp et al., 2014; vanden abeele et al., 2016; gugushvili et al., 2020). however, the paramount negative effect of problematic smartphone use refers to its implications on mental health and emotional wellbeing (elhai et al., 2019; radtke et al. 2022). the covid-19 pandemic has considerably affected young adults’ social and emotional life. findings show that adolescents with high extraversion have experienced an increased level of depression, and one of the reasons behind this is the feeling of loneliness (alt et al., 2021). 33 ressat 2023, 8(1): 31-50 another study emphasizes four major issues in the remote work context: procrastination, ineffective communication, work-home interference, and isolation. these four problems have had a negative effect on individuals’ work effectiveness and wellbeing (wang et al., 2021). equally important, the pandemic situation has led to a change in the digital communication, text messaging method becoming one of the most preferred (nguyen et al., 2020). in this context, the purpose of the present research is to investigate how textual digital communication influences emerging adults. more specifically, the study seeks to evaluate how the use of mobile devices for texting and communicating via messaging apps, correlate with feelings of self-esteem, loneliness, anxiety, and wellbeing. thus, the research questions of the study are the following: rq1. what is the relationship between the time spent on mobile devices for texting and the levels of self-esteem, loneliness, anxiety, and wellbeing? rq2. is there a significant connection between the affinity for technology and the feelings of self-esteem, loneliness, anxiety, and wellbeing? rq3. does the perceived ease of use, the perceived usefulness, and the behavioral intention to further use messaging communication correlate with the feelings of selfesteem, loneliness, anxiety, and wellbeing? the research contains a sample of 147 youngsters from romania. an online opinion survey has been conducted between february and may 2022. the relevance of the paper is twofold. on the one hand, the research completes the existing literature by combining self-esteem, loneliness, anxiety, and wellbeing in the context of mobile devices used for textual digital communication. the literature indicates that these four dimensions have scarcely been observed simultaneously, hence the paper examines them all through validated scales. moreover, the study provides data on a less studied context, namely the romanian one. on the other hand, the results can help the industry, the software development engineers in their endeavor to better understand the nowadays role and effects of technology and textual digital communication on young people. digital communication, self-esteem, loneliness, anxiety, and wellbeing this paper analyses the effects of digital communication on the level of self-esteem, loneliness, anxiety, and wellbeing. global self-esteem is an individual’s subjective assessment of one’s own worth as a person. self-esteem, just like other personality traits, is fairly stable over time and across circumstances (donnellan et al., 2003; robins et al., 2003; trzesniewski et al., 2003). loneliness implies a smaller number of relationships than desired and it is present when the existing relationships lack intimacy (de jong-gierveld & kamphuls, 1985). according to the definition of anxiety, it “elicits uncomfortable or emotional reactions when a behavior is performed” (venkatesh et al., 2003). psychological wellbeing and mental health are two concepts so similar that it is hard to separate one from the other one. a short and clear definition for both constructs would be a state of wellbeing, a positive evaluation of one’s life, based on a sense of purpose, having fruitful relationships with other people and personal 34 ressat 2023, 8(1): 31-50 development (ryff & keyes, 1995). simply put, wellbeing refers to a feeling good state that can determine an improved physical and mental health with resonance in enhanced efficiency (lamers et al., 2012; oswald et al., 2015). there are studies that explain how a certain number of hours spent on devices are beneficial to the general mood, which proves that not any kind of digital media use is detrimental (ferguson, 2017). additionally, other studies (ferguson, 2017) reveal that light users of technology score better in wellbeing than non-users. this conclusion shows the positive effects of digital media on the general state of mind, confirming how beneficial it can be when used for a proper amount of time. earlier findings on the topic are summarized by verbeek (2005), stating that since technology infuses every area of our everyday lives, having technology that is helpful, inclusive, and secure is crucial. digital wellbeing refers to a feeling of pleasantness when using technology and with a sense of balance between the online and offline activities (widdicks et al., 2017) while some researchers reinforce the favorable aspects of digital communication, other studies support the idea that digital natives generally report a lower level of wellbeing, as well as less happiness, stress, lower life satisfaction, and depressive symptoms (rosen et al., 2014). moreover, adolescents who spend five hours or more a day on any electronic device are more likely to commit suicide. emerging adults can also use mobile phones for so-called non-communicative activities, such as passively consuming content, playing games, or conducting information searches (chan, 2013). non-communicative use has been found to have a negative impact on emotional wellbeing because it reduces social integration. however, using the internet for networking purposes makes it positively connected with psychological wellbeing. in other words, the positive or negative impact of internet use is influenced by the motivation of the internet use (stevic & matthes, 2021). studies suggest that emotional wellbeing is connected with and influenced by the use of contemporary technology such as smartphones and social networking sites and that this connection is harmful (verduyn et al., 2015). to explain the unfavorable connections between digital media usage and emotional wellbeing, psychological processes such as negative social comparisons, jealousy, boredom, and sleep disruption have been proposed (gugushvili et al., 2020). moreover, browne and colleagues (2018) have discovered that negative concerns, rejection sensitivity, and high-stress levels are all socio-emotional determinants of fear of missing out. it is defined as the continuous fear that others may be facing gratifying experiences while one is missing (przybylski et al., 2013). the researchers observe the fear of missing out phenomenon mostly in digital environments, where they saw a link with the problematic use of technologies such as smartphones, social networking sites, and the internet in general (chotpitayasunondh & douglas, 2016). 35 ressat 2023, 8(1): 31-50 while the findings are somewhat contradictory regarding emerging adults, the results get increasingly intriguing when the age segment is changed. with the loss of particular talents and capacities, as well as the communication with friends and family members, ageing brings new obstacles. these can have a detrimental impact on one's social capital and, as a result, one's mental wellbeing (simons et al., 2022). digital media and online networks may address some of these issues while also transcending physical distances and providing access to important others. by teaching current generations how to use these technologies in their daily routine and interactions, as well as developing user-friendly interfaces that meet their needs, help preserve one's social capital and wellbeing during the entire lifespan (simons et al., 2022). emerging adults and the use of textual digital communication these days, mobile phones perform more than simply synchronous audio communication; they also give users access to social networking sites like facebook or instagram and messaging apps like whatsapp. research shows that these services are particularly beneficial for maintaining weak ties as they lower the time and financial costs of maintaining connections and interactions with friends (ellison et al., 2007). furthermore, these services can assist people in keeping in touch with others who live far away from them or in time zones where synchronous audio connection is not possible (boase et al., 2006). mediated communication, while losing the emotional expressions usually translated through visual and non-visual clues, induces a less familiar and rewarding interaction (daft & lengel, 1986). text messaging through a mobile phone is less "rich" than voice calling, which should make it less successful at communicating and evoking emotions (sproull & kiesler, 1986). in a study on the american population, jin and park (2013) stress that, in contrast to mobile phone use, face-to-face communication is associated with fewer feelings of loneliness. the same results are highlighted on the uk population (reid & reid, 2007). in addition, turkle (2011) notes that the quality and closeness of face-to-face relationships have decreased as a result of the "always-on culture" that has been infused due to the attractiveness of mobile phones. mobile devices have interfered in the daily routine and erased the boundary between personal and professional life, thus reducing the degree of efficiency. due to less emotional and cognitive responsibility, texting is preferred to voice communication (turkle, 2011). some scientists also say that digital communication has an overall negative impact on social relationships. more specifically, the displacement assumption implies that digital communication steals time from face-to-face communication, deteriorating ties and nurturing superficial interactions (kraut et al., 1998). another instance is lee's study (2009), which shows that digital communication has a major impact on family relationships, rather than friendships. researchers' views about the topic reveal that emerging adults who spend more time using digital media reported lower emotional wellbeing, including more stress, lower life satisfaction, more experiences of loneliness and social isolation, and more diagnoses of anxiety 36 ressat 2023, 8(1): 31-50 and depression (twenge, 2019; harwood et al, 2014; hartanto & yang, 2016). even so, other studies found that people who spend more time on social media are the ones that spend more time on face-to-face interactions (dienlin et al., 2017; twenge et al., 2019). these paradoxical findings emerge into the first hypothesis if this study: h1. the more time young individuals spend on digital media, the lower self-esteem they have (h1a), the lonelier they feel (h1b), the higher is their anxiety level (h1c), and the lower their scores on wellbeing (h1d). technology use and acceptance digital technology is more pervasive in everyday life. as a result, effective technology management is becoming increasingly vital in order to master daily life (franke et al., 2019). in an attempt to define the affinity for technology, some characterize it as a "positive affect towards technology" (edison & geissler, 2003). as a result, franke et al. (2019) create the affinity for technology interaction (ati) scale, a nine-item economic instrument that assesses affinity for technology engagement. the designers of the scale describe affinity for technology engagement as “the tendency to actively engage in intensive technology interaction” (franke et al., 2019). research on intellectual styles has proposed that people diverge in their preferred methods of information managing and problem solving (zhang et al., 2012). the students' scores on their attitudes about instagram and snapchat follow a similar pattern of causal links: attitudes are negatively connected with loneliness and positively correlated with happiness and life satisfaction (pittman & reich, 2016). as a sequel, this paper expects to find a correlation between the attitude towards technology, and self-esteem, loneliness, anxiety, and wellbeing as it follows: h2. the more positive is the young individuals’ attitude towards technology, the lower self-esteem they have (h2a), the lonelier they feel (h2b), the higher is their anxiety level (h2c), and the lower their scores on wellbeing (h2d). an essential piece of information for this research paper comes from a study that shows that 95% of teenagers own a smartphone (anderson & jiang, 2018). whether for texting, social media, playing an electronic game, or surfing the web, their life has slowly shifted online (twenge, 2019). as technology becomes almost ubiquitous in youngsters' lives, they use social media platforms in everyday interactions. a fundamental aspect of involvement in these activities is the adoption and use of new technology. davis (1986) proposes the technology acceptance model (tam). this theory is born out of the theory of reasoned action (fishbein & ajzen, 1975) and the theory of planned behavior and aims to understand the psychological processes of information technology adoption and acceptance (ajzen, 1991). this paper illustrates how tam may be used as a theoretical framework to investigate the impact of digital communication via messaging applications on self-esteem, loneliness, anxiety, and wellbeing in the technology acceptance model, perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, and behavioral intention are the most crucial variables (chen et al., 2013). the degree to which a 37 ressat 2023, 8(1): 31-50 person feels that using a given technology needs no effort is referred to as perceived ease of use (radner & rothschild, 1975). therefore, an application regarded to be more user-friendly than another is more likely to be adopted because it requires less effort. for instance, the literature indicates that users' perceptions of the ease of using e-learning are negatively impacted by computer anxiety (abdullah & ward, 2016). a judgement of one's ability to use a computer has been proven to influence computer use, frequently via influencing the user's emotional state, such as reducing computer anxiety (marakas et al. 1998). based on these studies, the current research anticipates that: h3. the more positive youngsters perceive the ease of use of technology, the lower selfesteem they have (h3a), the lonelier they feel (h3b), the higher is their anxiety level (h3c), and the lower their scores on wellbeing (h3d). perceived usefulness is "the extent to which an individual believes that utilizing a certain system would improve his or her job performance” (davis, 1986). according to franke et al. (2019), technical systems are tools that have the ability to help users solve issues and achieve goals more effectively and efficiently, that is, instruments that promote the elimination of inconsistencies between the user's intended state and the current state of the environment. in the present paper, technical systems are understood as the gadgets used for textual digital communication. a team of researchers chose to analyze tam in relation with e-learning adoption (abdullah & ward, 2016). e-learning uptake can be explained in part by perceived enjoyment. evaluated enjoyment has a big impact on how easy and useful e-learning is perceived. an increase in students' intention to use e-learning is also shown by prior studies when perceived enjoyment is high (abdullah and ward, 2016). another study addresses "the practical paradox of technology" (ter hoeven et al., 2016), or how communication technology use can be both beneficial and harmful to employee wellbeing. thus, messaging applications can help employees to achieve time efficiencies, but it can also cause stress owing to the fear of overload and loss of control. this paper aim to further explore the belief that using technology improves self-esteem, loneliness, anxiety, and wellbeing, so it hypothesizes: h4. the more positive youngsters perceive the usefulness of technology, the lower selfesteem they have (h4a), the lonelier they feel (h4b), the higher is their anxiety level (h4c), and the lower their scores on wellbeing (h4d). behavioral intention is defined as the subjective likelihood to use a certain technology in the future (akram et al., 2021). it is a good predictor for the actual use of that technology and is strongly correlated with the perceived ease of use and the perceived usefulness of that particular device (davis, 1989). in an online shopping context, koufaris (2002) investigates how emotional and cognitive responses can influence online consumer behavior, especially, the intention to return. the findings reveal that customer’s intention to re-use a certain website is influenced by both enjoyment of the online experience (a psychological variable) and the perceived usefulness of the website. the same idea can be applied for mobile texting. 38 ressat 2023, 8(1): 31-50 computer anxiety, being defined as "the tendency of an individual to be anxious, apprehensive, or afraid about the current or future use of computers in general" (igbaria & parasuraman, 1989), can lead to a high level of reluctance in using an online platform (al-alak & alnawas, 2011). based on this context, the present research hypothesizes that: h5. the more likely is for the youngsters to further use technology, the lower self-esteem they have (h5a), the lonelier they feel (h5b), the higher is their anxiety level (h5c), and the lower their scores on wellbeing (h5d). methodology the purpose of the present paper is to investigate the role of textual digital communication on emotional state of emerging adults. thus, the study emphasizes the possible correlations between, on one side, the time spent on digital devices for texting, the affinity for technology, the perceived ease of use, the perceived usefulness, and the behavioral intention to further use textual communication, and, on the other side, the emerging adults’ self-esteem, loneliness, anxiety, and wellbeing. based on the hypotheses presented above, the conceptual model of the research is the following (figure 1): figure 1. conceptual model of the study an online opinion survey has been conducted. the questionnaire has been designed in google forms and the analysis is conducted in ibm spss 22 version. the sociological inquiry lasted from february to may 2022. in the opening part of the questionnaire, the purpose of the investigation has been specified and the respondents have been informed that the data are anonymous and that the results are used exclusively for research purposes. sample the sample (n=147) is composed of emerging adults in romania, aged between 18-25 years old (m=21.18, sd=1.762). the gender distribution is 69.4% women and 30.6% men. the majority (63.3%) are high school graduates, while 32.7% have a bachelor's degree. in terms of 39 ressat 2023, 8(1): 31-50 specialization, 70.4% are studying social sciences (e.g., marketing, psychology etc.), while 29.6% are studying exact sciences (e.g., medicine, mathematics etc.). all the respondents have a smartphone they use several times per day. the convenience sampling technique has been used (parker et al., 2019), thus a lack of control on the socio-demographic distribution of the sample is acknowledged. measurements time spent (ts) on using mobile devices for texting is measured by using the number of hours spent texting. an average variable has been created that includes using text messages, whatsapp messages, instagram messages, and facebook messages (m=2.85; sd=1.081). a 7point scale has been used, where 1 means not at all, 2 means less than half an hour/day, 3 means one hour/day, 4 means between 2 and 3 hours/day, 5 means between 4 and 5 hours/day, 6 means between 6 and 7 hours/day, and 7 means more than 8 hours/day. the internal consistency of the scales measuring the perceptions of digital devices, messaging application, and emotional state is scrutinized using cronbach alpha (α). the results are satisfactory, its values being higher than the accepted threshold of 0.7 (devellis, 1991) in all the cases. affinity for technology interaction (ati) scale is designed to evaluate a person's inclination to engage in intensive technological contact (franke et al. 2019). it is composed on 9 items (α=.775; m=3.68; sd=.942) measured from 1 to 6, where 1 means strongly disagree, and 6 means strongly agree. some examples of items are: “i like to occupy myself in greater detail with messaging applications”; “i like testing the functions of new messaging application”; “i enjoy spending time becoming acquainted with a new messaging application”. perceived ease of use (peou) scale (lewis, 2019), as part of tam model, measures how easy it is for the user to interact with a certain device. the scale is composed of 7 items (α= .920; m=6.54; sd=.853) measured from 1 to 7, where 1 means strongly disagree, and 7 means strongly agree. some examples of items are: “learning to use messaging applications would be easy for me”; “i would find it easy to get messaging applications to do what i want it to do”; “my interaction with messaging applications would be clear and understandable”. perceived usefulness (pu) scale (lewis, 2019) measures how useful the digital devices are considered by the users. the scale is composed of 6 items (α=.965; m=5.23; sd=1.541) measured from 1 to 7, where 1 means strongly disagree, and 7 means strongly agree. some examples of items are: “using the messaging applications in my job would enable me to accomplish tasks more quickly”; “using the messaging applications would improve my job performance”; “using the messaging applications in my job would increase my productivity”. behavioral intention (bi) scale (luo & remus, 2014) measures the willingness of the user to further use a certain technology. the scale is composed of 4 items (α=.716; m=5.733; sd=1.256) measured from 1 to 7, where 1 means strongly disagree, and 7 means strongly agree. some examples of items are: “i plan to use messaging applications in the future”; “i intend to continue to use messaging applications in the future”; “i am not likely to use messaging applications in the future”; “i predict i will use messaging applications in the future”. 40 ressat 2023, 8(1): 31-50 self-esteem (se) is measured using rosenberg self-esteem scale (rosenberg, 1965). the scale has 10 items (α=.752; m=4.81; sd=.890) and it is measured from 1 to 7, where 1 means strongly disagree, and 7 means strongly agree. some examples of items are: “on the whole, i am satisfied with myself”; “at times, i think i am not good at all”; “i feel that i have a number of good qualities”. loneliness (lon) is measured by using ucla loneliness scale (russell et al., 1980). the scale has 20 items (α=.914; m=2.54; sd=.973) and it is measured from 1 to 7, where 1 means strongly disagree, and 7 means strongly agree. some examples of items are: “i feel in tune with the people around me”; “i lack companionship”; “there is no one i can turn to”. anxiety (anx) is measured with the help of hamilton anxiety scale (hamilton, 1959). the scale is composed of 14 items (α=.902; m=2.24; sd=.779) measured from 1 to 5, where 1 means never, and 5 means all the time. some examples of items are: “anxious mood – worries, anticipation of the worst, fearful anticipation, irritability”; “tension – feelings of tension, fatigability, startle response, moved to tears easily, trembling, feelings of restlessness, inability to relax”. wellbeing (wb) is measured with stanford wellbeing scale (ryff & keyes, 1995). the scale focuses more on bodies' instinctive responses under stressful conditions, rather than on people’s thoughts and it is composed of 18 items (α=.788; m=5.22, sd=.758). it is measured on 7-point scale where 1 means strongly disagree, and 7 means strongly agree. some examples of items are: “i like most parts of my personality”; “when i look at the story of my life, i am pleased with how things have turned out so far”; “some people wander aimlessly through life, but i am not one of them”. considering the research context, the scales have been translated in romanian. results most of the respondents claim that they use texting applications several times a day. the figure below (figure 2) offers a comprehensive overview on the data. among these applications, the most used is whatsapp followed by instagram and facebook. moreover, these applications are mostly used several times a day. for a more exact measure on the time spent texting, the number of hours spent on each application is considered. the data (figure 3) show that most of the individuals use texting applications between half an hour and 3 hours per day. as these are approximative estimations and considering that desirable answers might have occurred, further investigation is needed. 41 ressat 2023, 8(1): 31-50 figure 2. the frequency of using texting applications figure 3. time spent texting on each application starting from the actual behavior of the respondents, a correlation matrix between all the analyzed variables has been conducted (table 1). table 1. correlation matrix ts ati peou pu bi se lon anx ati .027 peou .218** .026 pu .194* .002 .394** bi -.099 -.042 .340** .250** se .001 .191* .105 .193* .026 lon -.121 -.221** -.159 -.089 -.071 -.481** anx .083 -.174* .096 -.028 .053 -.593** .464** wb .000 .122 .187* .222** .137 .666** -.575** -.427** *correlation is significant at the 0.05 level **correlation is significant at the 0.01 level 42 ressat 2023, 8(1): 31-50 contrary to expectations, the time spent using textual digital communication is not significantly correlated with none of the emotional variables. however, interestingly, the data show significant, positive, yet light, correlation between the number of hours spent texting and both the perceived ease of use (r=.218, p<.01) and the perceived usefulness (r=.194, p<.05). it means that the more hours emerging adults spent using texting digital communication, the easiest and more useful they perceive that interaction. however, more investigation is needed in order to find stronger correlations. the affinity for technology interaction is significantly correlated with self-esteem (r=.191, p<.05), loneliness (r=-.221, p<.01), and anxiety (r=-.174, p<.05). although the relationships are not strong, one can emphasize that a higher affinity for using technology, in general, is correlated with a higher self-esteem and lower levels of loneliness and anxiety. this information is valuable since, through technological education and skills development, emerging adults can benefit of a better mental state. the perceived ease of use of digital devices used in texting is significantly and positively correlated only with wellbeing (r=.187, p<.05). thus, the easier the technical interaction is, the higher wellbeing level is. however, since the relationship is weak, further investigation is needed. as expected, the perceived ease of use if also significantly and positively correlated with perceived usefulness (r=.394, p<.01) and behavioral intention (r=.340, p<.01), confirming the validity of the technology acceptance model. the perceived usefulness of the texting interaction is significantly and positively correlated with self-esteem (r=.193, p<.05) and wellbeing (r=.222, p<.01). accordingly, the more useful one finds the textual digital communication, the higher self-esteem and wellbeing one has. as predicted by the technological acceptance model, the perceived usefulness is also significantly correlated with intentional behavior. behavioral intention, meaning the willingness to further use the textual digital interaction, is not significantly correlated with none of the emotional state. the data reveals significant and strong relationships between the four emotional variables. while self-esteem is negatively correlated with loneliness (r=-.481, p<.01) and anxiety (r=-.593, p<.01), it is positively correlated with wellbeing (r=.666, p<.01). likewise, loneliness and anxiety are positively correlated (r=.464, p<.01) and loneliness (r=-.575, p<.01) and anxiety (r=-.427, p<.05) are negatively correlated with wellbeing. discussions and conclusion the current study aims to assess the relationship between feelings of self-esteem, loneliness, anxiety, and wellbeing and the use of mobile devices for texting and communicating via messaging apps (in terms of time spent on mobile devices, attitude towards the technology, perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, and behavioral intention). the study uses an online opinion survey to gather data from a sample of 147 emerging adults from romania. after analyzing the results, we could determine if our hypotheses were validated or not. to gain a 43 ressat 2023, 8(1): 31-50 deeper understanding, we will examine one hypothesis at a time and consider all of the probable explanations for its validation or rejection. the data show that there is no significant relationship between the amount of time spent texting and self-esteem, loneliness, anxiety, or wellbeing. thus, the first hypothesis (h1) is not valid. considering that the literature has found evidence that spending time on digital media can both positively (twenge et al., 2019) and negatively (twenge, 2019) influence the overall wellbeing, further study needs to be conducted. the relationship between young individuals’ attitude toward technology and wellbeing is rather significant. after considering the results shown by the affinity for technology scale, it can be stated that a positive attitude toward technology leads to an increase in the self-esteem level. a possible explanation for this can be the fact that enjoying what one does makes her/him feel better about herself/himself, and it can improve self-image. this effect can naturally determine the drop in the level of loneliness and anxiety. this last finding is supported by the existing literature (pittman & reich, 2016) that show that attitudes are positively correlated with happiness and life satisfaction. thus, the second hypothesis (h2) is invalidated. the third hypothesis (h3) states that the more positive youngsters perceive the ease of use of technology, the lower self-esteem they have, the lonelier they feel, and the higher their anxiety level, and the lower their scores on wellbeing. according to the findings, perceived ease of use significantly correlates only with the wellbeing level, although the relationship is weak. this conclusion is somehow in line with marakas et al. (1998) that states that the capability to use a device increases the positive emotional state. the hypothesis is only partially validated. the fourth hypothesis (h4), which states that there is an inversely proportional relationship between the perceived usefulness and the emotional variables, is partially invalidated. even if the association is not necessarily strong, the younger adults see technology as simple to use, the better their rating of wellbeing. one reason for this is that being able to use technology and not get stuck when completing a task by using certain gadgets makes individuals feel good about themselves. likewise, there is the possibility of feeling superior to those who may not use technology as effortlessly as they do, which only adds up to the level of satisfaction. the results also show that the more useful technology is perceived to be, the better the level of self-esteem. this outcome can be attributed to the fact that for someone who spends a significant amount of their time staying connected and using technology, it is critical to perceive it as something practical and valuable. the reason for the fact that the level of selfesteem and wellbeing increases is that when one sees value and usefulness in something, it gives purpose, helps thrive for more, and makes one feel good about oneself. earlier studies also demonstrate that enjoyment is positively correlated with the perceived usefulness (abdullah & ward, 2016). existing literature claims that people who develop computer anxiety are more likely to be hesitant to further use technology (al-alak & alnawas, 2011). however, the results of the resent research show that the behavioral intention is not significantly related to any of the 44 ressat 2023, 8(1): 31-50 emotional variables. as a result, the fifth hypothesis (h5) is invalidated. further investigation is needed in this case as well. based on the results, further investigation on the already used variable, but on bigger samples, should be considered. moreover, relying on the limits of the paper, research perspectives are being born. for instance, the level of extraversion of the respondents might be an important variable that can be linked with technology consumption. some sensations of loneliness may be more profound depending on a person's personality traits extraversion or introversion. introverted internet users report decreased community involvement and increased loneliness, whereas extroverts report greater community involvement and decreased loneliness (kraut et al., 2002). likewise, having unequal cohorts of men and women, the present study could not conduct a comparative gender analysis. the literature shows that females use facebook for social contact more than males (tartaglia, 2016). moreover, depression is characterized by internalizing symptoms, and females are substantially more likely to be affected starting in adolescence (hankin & abramson, 2001). thus, a comparative approach on the way men and women are influenced by textual digital behavior is to be considered. a longitudinal study is another aspect that could improve further research. the context in itself (e.g., pandemic or post-pandemic situation) might alter the results. thus, a follow-up data collection might bring a more comprehensive overview on the studied phenomenon. references abdullah, f. & ward, r., (2016). developing a general extended technology acceptance model for e-learning (getamel) by analysing commonly used external factors. computers in human behavior, 56, 238-256. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2015.11.036 ajzen, i., (1991). the theory of planned behavior. organizational behavior and human decision processes, 50(2), 179-211. https://doi.org/10.1016/0749-5978(91)90020-t al-alak, b. a., & alnawas, i. a. m. 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(2012). handbook of intellectual styles. new york, ny: springer. https://doi.org/10.1080/03637751.2015.1133920 https://psycnet.apa.org/doi/10.1037/0022-3514.84.1.205 https://doi.org/10.1037/ppm0000203 https://doi.org/10.1177/0963721419838244 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2016.04.005 https://doi.org/10.1111/apps.12290 https://doi.org/10.1145/3025453.3025730 research in social sciences and technology https://ressat.org e-issn: 2468-6891 volume: 8 issue: 2 2023 pp. i-iii using social media in schools matt hensley*a & stewart watersb *corresponding author email: hensleyma4@mail.etsu.edu a. assistant professor, department of curriculum and instruction, east tennessee state university, johnson city, tennessee, usa. b. professor, department of theory and practice in teacher education, university of tennessee, knoxville, tennessee, usa. article info received: march 2, 2023 accepted: april 18, 2023 published: may 5, 2023 how to cite hensley, m. & waters, s. (2023). using social media in schools. research in social sciences and technology, 8(2), i-iii https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2023.15 copyright license this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (cc by 4.0). abstract social media is becoming more eminently woven into the sociocultural fabric of global societies in the 21st century. from emerging platforms and ever-evolving multimodal features, to algorithmic changes and privacy concerns, social media is indubitably shaping the frontier of how people communicate, interact, and perceive the world around them. using social media in schools is, of course, not a new phenomenon. however, given unabating advances in digital technology coupled with shifting user demands, social media is constantly in flux. thus, staying abreast of social media trends and uses in the field of education is a critical endeavor and merits on-going conversations. keywords social media; teaching and learning; educational technology; 21st century skills 10.46303/ ressat.2023.15 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2023.15 ii ressat 2023, 8(2): i-iii introduction to special issue: using social media in schools since its inception, education scholars have explored social media’s capacities for augmenting teaching and learning outcomes, as well as identified potential challenges and concerns associated with its use (see aguilar, rosenberg, greenhalgh, fütterer, lishinski, & fischer, 2021; carpenter, morrison, rosenberg, & hawthorne, 2023; greenhow, campbell, galvin, & askari, 2018; and greenhow, galvin, brandon, & askari, 2020). this special issue of research in social sciences and technology (ressat) features a compilation of seven empirical and theoretical research articles that each uniquely touch upon the theme, “using social media in schools.” the scholars who contributed manuscripts to this special issue represent colleges and universities from around the world, including sivas cumhuriyet university, wilfrid laurier university, turan university, university of south africa, utah state university, east tennessee state university, and the university of tennessee knoxville. the first article is a qualitative study in which the author critically examines social media’s potential to influence students’ perceptions of world events, which may lead to problematic inclass discussions. after highlighting potential negative impacts of social media, the author offers considerations for aiding students in becoming more critical consumers of social media content, including leveraging the stanford history education group’s civic online reasoning curriculum and teaching democratic humility. relatedly, the second article is a theoretical piece in which the authors contend that social media has the potential to be instrumental in educating for democracy, particularly when critical media literacy skills are taught in tandem. the third and fourth articles both address classroom teachers’ use of social in relation to the covid-19 pandemic. specifically, the former is a qualitative inquiry study that examines the experiences of twelve educators from three separate schools in south africa who were using whatsapp messenger to supplement their instruction during covid-19 lockdowns. the latter is a quantitative study that offers insight into how k-12 social studies teachers in the state of tennessee were using social media prior to the covid-19 pandemic. the authors endeavor to establish a baseline of data to support more complex understandings of teacher social media use trends post-covid. the fifth article is a quantitative survey research study that describes the relationship between participatory citizenship behaviors and social media use of 284 college students from kazakhstan. the authors make data-driven recommendations for future research studies that aim to examine the connections between civic participation and digital media. in the sixth article, the authors report findings from their quantitative study which examined how demographics and professional identities affect #sschat members’ perceived ‘sense of community’ on twitter. lastly, the special issue concludes with a comprehensive theoretical literature review that addresses both opportunities and challenges associated with using social media in k-12 education. iii ressat 2023, 8(2): i-iii we believe that this special issue of ressat represents a valuable contribution to the ongoing conversation concerning the role(s) of social media in the field of education. it is our hope that teachers and education scholars will read these articles with considerable interest, and that they will inspire new ideas that will help advance our collective understanding of how social media continues to shape teaching and learning across the field. references aguilar, s. j., rosenberg, j. m., greenhalgh, s. p., fütterer, t., lishinski, a., & fischer, c. (2021). a different experience in a different moment? teachers’ social media use before and during the covid-19 pandemic. aera open, 7. https://doi.org/10.1177/23328584211063898 carpenter, j. p., morrison, s. a., rosenberg, j. m., & hawthorne, k. a. (2023). using social media in pre-service teacher education: the case of a program-wide twitter hashtag. teaching and teacher education, 124, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2023.104036. greenhow, c., campbell, d., galvin, s., & askari, e. (2018, march). social media in teacher professional development: a literature review. in society for information technology & teacher education international conference (pp. 2256-2264). association for the advancement of computing in education (aace). greenhow, c., galvin, s. m., brandon, d. l., & askari, e. (2020). a decade of research on k-12 teaching and teacher learning with social media: insights on the state of the field. teachers college record, 122(6), 172. https://doi.org/10.1177/016146812012200602. greenhow, c., sonnevend, j., & agur, c. (eds.). (2016). education and social media: toward a digital future. mit press. https://doi.org/10.1177/23328584211063898 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2023.104036 https://doi.org/10.1177/016146812012200602 research in social sciences and technology https://ressat.org e-issn: 2468-6891 volume: 8 issue: 2 2023 pp. 83-100 considering the advantages and disadvantages of utilizing social media to enhance learning and engagement in k-12 education kaan güney* * sivas cumhuriyet university, sivas, türkiye. email: guney.kaan@gmail.com article info received: february 7, 2023 accepted: april 17, 2023 published: may 5, 2023 how to cite güney, k. (2023). considering the advantages and disadvantages of utilizing social media to enhance learning and engagement in k-12 education. research in social sciences and technology, 8(2), 83-100. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2023.13 copyright license this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (cc by 4.0). abstract this paper intends to explore the various ways in which social media can be used to enhance learning and engagement, as well as the potential challenges and risks that may arise. the study focuses on face-to-face formal k-12 education which is a system that generally covers 12 grades including primary and secondary schools. the manuscript provides a comprehensive theoretical literature review of the existing research on the topic, highlighting the main findings and discussing the implications. social media platforms such as facebook, youtube, and twitter have turned into an increasingly prevalent and influential aspect of modern society, and they have also begun to infiltrate the realm of education. however, during this study it has been noticed that there are few studies examining the effects of social media in k12 education. namely, some research has been conducted on higher or online education. accordingly, while there are certainly benefits to applying social media in education, such as the ability to connect with a global network of learners and access to a vast array of information and resources, there are also challenges that must be considered. thus, the results of this study provide clarification on previous research and lay the foundation for future examinations of the potential advantages and disadvantages of using social media in k-12 education. keywords learning and engagement; k-12; social media; traditional education 10.46303/ ressat.2023.13 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2023.13 84 ressat 2023, 8(2): 83-100 introduction education is considered as the method of adapting facts, techniques, attitudes, ideas, and habits through a variety of activities, including formal and informal instruction, training, and research. its aim is to develop individuals' intellectual, emotional, and social abilities and prepare them for a productive and fulfilling life (bartlett and clemens, 2017). learning, on the other hand, refers to the action of acquiring new information or skills through study, experience, or instruction. thus, learning is “a continuous and lifelong process” (yerliyurt and ersoy, 2021, p.4106) that takes place in various settings and through different modes of acquisition. teaching, meanwhile, is the act of facilitating learning through intentional and deliberate instruction and guidance (hirst, 1971). it involves creating a learning environment that fosters critical thinking, creativity, and independence, and aids people in gaining the expertise and abilities necessary for success. according to maddux (2004) the method of teaching, rather than the specific delivery platform, is the most important component in figuring out the effectiveness of content delivery. in this regard, effective teaching requires a deep understanding of the subject matter, a clear understanding of the learning process, and the capacity to positively interact with and motivate students. teaching and learning are essential elements in traditional education which is the conventional and historical system of education that has been prevalent for many decades. traditional education is characterized by face-to-face formal classroom-based instruction, lecture-style teaching, and a focus on rote learning and memorization. in traditional education, the teacher is the authority of information and the students are passive receivers of knowledge (doyle, 2001). there is a strong emphasis on conformity and standardized testing and the curriculum is typically rigid and set by each country. traditional education also often relies on textbooks and other printed materials as the primary means of instruction, with limited use of technology or other instructional methods. while traditional education has its roots in the past, many schools and institutions still use this approach today even though online or remote education are also used as alternatives. generally, traditional education is provided and administered by an organized and structured system which includes the institutions, policies, curricula, teaching methods, and resources that support and guide the learning process. therefore, the education system is responsible for defining and setting standards for the knowledge and skills that students should acquire as well as for assessing their progress and achievements. even though education systems are “constantly reforming themselves” (scott et al., 2015, p.5), they typically consist of several levels such as early childhood education, primary education, secondary education, and higher education. it may also involve different types of institutions, such as public schools, private schools, colleges, and universities. the education system is an essential component of a society's infrastructure and it plays a crucial role in shaping its future by developing the skills and knowledge of its citizens. actually, education systems vary widely across countries and regions and are influenced by factors such 85 ressat 2023, 8(2): 83-100 as cultural, economic, political, and historical contexts. one of the education system types is k12 that covers kindergarten through the 12th grade, or approximately 5-18 years of age. thus, in the k-12 system, students typically attend school for 12 or 13 years, and during this time they receive a comprehensive education that aims to develop their intellectual, emotional, and social abilities and prepare them for further education or the workforce. for ziskovsky and ziskovsky (2019) k-12 education can be seen as a sequence of 13 stages, with each representing a year of education that builds on the knowledge and skills acquired in the previous stages. k-12 education is conducted in many countries, including but not limited to the usa, canada, finland, singapore, australia, the uk, india, germany, china, and turkey. there is no global standard for k-12 education among countries, as each country has its own education system and curriculum. most of these countries have mandatory k-12 education for children of a specific age range. these may vary in having a lower or higher starting age limit from country to country. besides, most of the schools are state-funded, and the length of school days and holidays may vary in each country. usually, k-12 is divided into three levels; primary school (kindergarten to 5th grade), middle school (6th to 8th grade), and high school (9th to 12th grade). common lessons taught in k-12 education typically include subjects such as reading, writing, foreign languages, language arts, science, arts, social studies, mathematics, physical education, and health. these subjects are often considered fundamental for developing problem-solving, communication skills, critical thinking, and for providing a well-rounded education. k-12 education also aims to develop students' emotional, physical, and social well-being, and to prepare them for responsible citizenship. however, the specific content and emphasis may vary from country to country. the world has undergone numerous social, economic, and technological transformations in the latter part of the 20th century and early 21st century (garvis, 2015). students regularly encounter new technologies and have access to a variety of online platforms both in school and outside of it, but parents may not be as familiar with this technology and may not be able to offer guidance or protect their children from potential negative effects of their online activities (bennett & lin, 2017). while technology has expanded the variety of teaching materials available, traditional materials such as books, workbooks, and overhead projectors are still commonly used in many schools and educational settings. on the other hand, the usage of social media in k-12 education has grown in recent years, with many schools and teachers incorporating it into their curriculum and experiencing several degrees of success (woodward & kimmons, 2018, p.7). nevertheless, whether or not to use social media as a supporting teaching material in k-12 education is still a crucial question. in addition, the social, emotional, and physical health of students should be a priority in schools (plevyak, 2022). 86 ressat 2023, 8(2): 83-100 objective of the study the objective of this study is to consider the advantages and disadvantages of using social media in face-to-face formal schools as a tool to improve learning and engagement in k-12 education. this theoretical study will provide a comprehensive overview of the existing state of research on the use of social media in k-12 education, and offer a nuanced understanding of its potential benefits and drawbacks in the context of improving learning and engagement. the results of this study may contribute to a growing body of literature on this topic, and provide valuable insights for educational practitioners, researchers, and policymakers. research questions • what are the advantages and disadvantages of incorporating social media into k-12 education in public schools to enhance learning and student engagement? • which social media type is beneficial for k-12 education? theoretical framework and method the purpose of this research is to investigate the potential benefits and drawbacks of utilizing social media as a means of enhancing the educational experience for k-12 students. this study aims to conduct a thorough analysis of existing literature on the subject, highlighting key findings and implications for educators and policymakers. additionally, the research will provide an overview of the various social media tools and platforms currently being utilized in k-12 education, and identify the key factors that contribute to their success or failure. the methodology employed in this study is a comprehensive literature review, also known as secondary research. this approach involves the collection and analysis of existing data and information from a variety of sources such as books, journals, online databases, and previous studies and reports. the study does not involve conducting primary research through surveys, interviews, or experiments. the findings of this research will contribute to the growing body of knowledge on the use of social media in k-12 education. by identifying the benefits and drawbacks of social media in the classroom, educators and policymakers can make informed decisions about how to best integrate these tools into the curriculum. the results of this study will also shed light on the most effective types of social media platforms and tools for enhancing learning and engagement among k-12 students. in a literature review, researchers collect and analyze data from existing literature, rather than collecting new data through primary research methods. this involves identifying relevant sources of information, such as books, journal articles, online databases, and reports, and conducting a systematic search to gather the necessary data. to begin the process, researchers should have developed specific search parameters and keywords to guide their search for relevant literature. these parameters may include specific topics, date ranges, or types of sources, depending on the research question and goals of the study. once the relevant literature is identified, researchers may use a coding system to analyze and categorize the information they have gathered. this involves reading through the literature 87 ressat 2023, 8(2): 83-100 and identifying key themes, concepts, or ideas that are relevant to the research question. these themes may then be organized into categories or codes, which can help researchers to identify patterns or trends in the data. overall, the goal of a literature review is to provide a comprehensive overview of the existing literature on a particular topic, and to identify key findings and themes that can inform future research and practice. for literature reviews, researchers often use multiple databases to search for relevant articles and studies. the selection of databases may depend on the research question and the discipline of the study. the choice of databases to use in a research project may vary depending on the specific research question and the discipline under investigation. for those involved in education-related research, some commonly used databases include eric (education resources information center), psycinfo (psychological abstracts), education full text, academic search complete, jstor, scopus, and web of science. these databases offer access to a wealth of information and can be invaluable tools for researchers seeking to uncover insights and support their findings. eric (education resources information center) is a popular database for educationrelated research that provides access to journal articles, reports, and other resources related to all aspects of education. psycinfo (psychological abstracts) is another widely used database that focuses on psychology and related disciplines, including education. education full text offers access to articles from education-related journals, while academic search complete is a general database that covers a wide range of disciplines, including education. jstor is a digital library that offers access to academic journals, books, and primary sources in various disciplines, including education. scopus is a comprehensive database that covers many fields of research, including education, and provides access to scientific literature and research data. finally, web of science is a platform that provides access to scholarly literature in many disciplines, including education, and offers tools for tracking research trends and identifying key authors and publications. overall, choosing the most appropriate databases for a research project is an important consideration for researchers. by selecting databases that are relevant to their research question and discipline, researchers can access a wide range of resources and increase their chances of finding relevant and valuable information to support their work. these databases cover a wide range of academic fields, including education, psychology, sociology, and other social sciences, and they provide access to peer-reviewed articles, dissertations, conference proceedings, and other scholarly resources. in addition to these databases, researchers may also use search engines like google scholar to locate additional sources of information. however, it's important to note that while search engines can be a helpful tool for finding relevant literature, they may not provide access to all of the same resources as academic databases, and the quality of sources may vary. overall, the selection of databases for a literature review will depend on the research question, the scope of the study, and the resources available to the researcher. it's often recommended to use multiple 88 ressat 2023, 8(2): 83-100 databases and search engines to ensure a comprehensive search for relevant literature. in conclusion, this study will provide a comprehensive analysis of the existing research on the use of social media in k-12 education. through a literature review of relevant studies and articles, the research aims to highlight the potential benefits and drawbacks of social media in the classroom, as well as to identify the most effective platforms and tools for enhancing the educational experience for k-12 students. the purpose of literature review research is to maintain a broad understanding of a topic, identify trends, and generate new insights and ideas by using “available data” (badaru & adu, 2022, p.73). this study was performed by searching academic databases such as ebsco, francis & taylor, google scholar, and wiley, but very limited information was found on the topic. when conducting a literature review, researchers typically start by defining their research question or topic of interest. they then identify relevant keywords such as social media, classroom, benefits, drawbacks, k-12 students, educational experience, literature review, academic databases, ebsco, francis & taylor, google scholar, wiley, research questions, keywords and search terms and search terms that are likely to appear in articles and studies related to their topic. these terms may be combined in various ways using boolean operators (such as "and," "or," and "not") to refine the search and identify the most relevant sources. researchers typically use academic databases, such as the ones you mentioned (ebsco, francis & taylor, google scholar, and wiley), to conduct their searches. they may also search other sources, such as reference lists of relevant articles, conference proceedings, or dissertations. after identifying potential sources, the researchers typically screen the articles and studies based on predefined inclusion and exclusion criteria to determine whether they meet the criteria for inclusion in the literature review. once a set of relevant articles has been identified, the researchers then extract data from these articles, such as study design, sample size, key findings, and limitations. overall, the data collection process for a literature review involves a systematic and comprehensive search for relevant sources, followed by a careful screening and extraction process to identify the most relevant and high-quality sources for inclusion in the review. the reasons for the limited number of studies could be due to: • lack of funding and resources: empirical studies require funding and resources to design, execute, and analyze the results. there may not be sufficient funding or resources available for studies specifically focused on social media usage in k-12 education. • relatively new topic: social media has only become widely adopted in recent years, and it is still a relatively new phenomenon in the field of education. it may take time for a significant body of research to emerge. • ethical considerations: conducting research involving minors (i.e. k-12 students) raises ethical concerns, particularly when it comes to privacy and data protection. this may make it more challenging to carry out empirical studies on social media usage in k-12 education. 89 ressat 2023, 8(2): 83-100 • the nature of social media: the constantly changing features of social media make it difficult to study. platforms and trends come and go quickly, making it challenging to design and execute a study that will have lasting relevance. review of literature: on social media information and technologies have had a significant impact on every aspect of society over the past several decades, including education, and when used appropriately, they can enhance teaching and learning in formal school settings (liu et al., 2016). nevertheless, when teachers receive training on using technology, their focus is split between learning how the software works and incorporating it into their lesson plans (baker, 2005). indeed, the advent of the internet has created various forms of communication, and education is one area where the internet is being utilized in order to enhance the process of teaching and learning (stenbom et al., 2017). moreover, the rapid development of technology has transformed the way in which k-12 education is delivered, producing new and innovative opportunities for teachers and students to engage with the material and expand their knowledge and understanding in the 21st century. thus, the integration of smartboards, computers, tablets, and laptops into k-12 education has had a significant impact on the way students learn and teachers teach. social media is a result of the rapid technological development in the field of information and communication. in contrast to traditional printed media like textbooks, social media allows people to post comments or information (wanner et al., 2019). namely, social media platforms are online and typically built on user-generated content to create, share, and comment on (constantinides, 2014). the widespread adoption of the internet, combined with advancements in mobile technology, has established an environment for social media to become common. in the contemporary world, social media is used for a wide variety of purposes including connecting with friends and family, sharing news, videos and information, promoting businesses and products, and building communities around common interests and causes. the first social media platform six degrees emerged in the late 1990s, but the launch of facebook, youtube, instagram, linkedin, and twitter in the first decades of the 21st century truly catalyzed the growth of it. all of these social media platforms made it easier for individuals to connect and share real-time information with one another, and as a result, it has become an integral and pervasive part of many people's lives (alsuraihi et al., 2016; ludington, 2022). however, there are also negative aspects or speculations about using social media. for instance, osatuyi (2015) conducted a study because of the growing interest from both academic and organizational communities in privacy concerns related to social media applications. using a sample of 270 active social media users, osatuyi found that there exists a privacy concern among people due to increasingly sharing personal information online. with this information being accessible to a wide range of people, there are worries over the security and protection of personal data. besides, brunskill’s (2015) study emphasizes the widespread impact of social media on shaping one's identity and youthful aspirations and highlights the various negative 90 ressat 2023, 8(2): 83-100 psychological changes that can result. in this regard, social media has been shown to have a negative impact on psychological well-being, indicating that it can lead to depression, anxiety, low self-esteem, and body image issues. the intersection of these psychological and privacy concerns highlights the need for a more nuanced understanding of the effects of social media on individuals and society as a whole. one major criticism of social media mentioned by bentz et al. (2021) is the proliferation of misinformation on these platforms. thus, with the ease of access and widespread dissemination of information, false or misleading news can spread quickly, causing confusion and harm. additionally, bentz et al. (2021) note that access to social media often requires a device and internet connection, which can present a barrier for people who cannot afford these technologies. this digital divide exacerbates existing inequalities, as those who are less wealthy are less likely to have access to the information and opportunities available through social media (norris, p. (2001). cyberbullying is another growing problem in the era of social media (abaido, 2020, özel et al., 2017). it refers to the use of digital technologies, such as the internet and mobile phones, to harass, humiliate, and threaten others (akrim and sulasmi, 2020). cyberbullying can have severe consequences, including depression, anxiety, and in some cases, suicide. social media platforms, with their broad reach and anonymity, have become a prime venue for cyberbullying. this type of bullying is particularly harmful because it can be persistent and reach a large audience, and victims may feel that there is no escape from their tormentors. the prevalence of cyberbullying highlights the need for increased awareness and education about the responsible use of digital technologies, as well as the development of effective strategies to prevent and respond to cyberbullying. drahošová and balco (2017) conducted a survey among 275 respondents from the european union to examine the effects of social media. the results of the survey revealed several negative aspects associated with social media usage, including internet addiction, lack of security, information overload, loss of social contacts, and increased time spent. these findings highlight the need for further research to understand the full extent of the impact of social media on individuals and society, as well as the development of strategies to mitigate these negative effects. consequently, social media has had a profound impact on our lives by facilitating the exchange of information and communication, as well as connecting people with friends and relatives from around the world. however, social media also has its fair share of disadvantages including cyberbullying, lack of security, internet addiction, information overload, loss of social contacts, increased time spent, privacy concerns, misinformation, and psychological impacts. additionally, social media has also highlighted inequalities for people from lower socioeconomic backgrounds. given the complex nature of social media, it is important to strike a balance between its benefits and drawbacks to ensure that it is used in a responsible and 91 ressat 2023, 8(2): 83-100 sustainable manner. further research is needed to fully understand the implications of social media on society and individuals, and to develop strategies to address its negative effects. studies on social media in k-12 education the literature review found a limited body of research on the topic of using social media to improve learning and engagement in face-to-face formal k-12 education. also, greenhow and askari (2017) have already conducted a review of the existing literature and identified a scarcity of studies examining learners' attitudes and practices within formal learning schools related to k-12 education. however, most of the studies related to social media are about online or higher education discussing the pros and cons of the subject matter. manca and ranieri (2016) noted that facebook was the most widely utilized social network site in their studies. specifically, educators and instructors in higher education have shown a continued interest in exploring the potential of facebook for learning and instructional purposes. as van dijck and poell (2018) remark, the debates surrounding the benefits and drawbacks of using social media in the classroom have become increasingly intense as these platforms have grown in popularity since 2004. studies have shown that social media could be a powerful tool for increasing student engagement and motivation, as well as for promoting collaboration and communication among students. for instance, zakarian's (2013) master's thesis investigates the utilization of social media in k-12 classrooms by educators. the results of the study highlight the prevalence of youtube in curricula, as compared to facebook and twitter. additionally, the study noticed that secondary grade levels (9-12) were willing to incorporate social media technologies in their teaching practices and that such usage was positively correlated with student engagement. furthermore, the findings indicate that educators acknowledge the educational benefits of incorporating social media technologies in their teaching methods. without specifying k-12 or higher schools, faizi et al. (2013) believe that social media platforms like facebook, myspace, and twitter can greatly benefit education by providing a means of communication between students and teachers. in this framework, these platforms can be used for a variety of purposes such as answering student questions, posting homework and lesson plans, facilitating in-class discussions, sending messages and updates, scheduling events, and informing students about upcoming lectures, discussions, or guest speakers. by using social media, teachers can also gain a better understanding of any learning difficulties that students may be facing, allowing them to quickly resolve any issues. based on these benefits, faizi et al. (2013) recommend that social media should be incorporated into the classroom as a valuable tool for enhancing education. a study delivered by celik et al. (2022) has explored the use of social media in k-12 education during the covid-19 pandemic, and proposed that social media could be effective during online teaching. they discovered that both authorities and the general public utilized twitter to disseminate information, offer suggestions for online distance education, express 92 ressat 2023, 8(2): 83-100 gratitude and encouragement to stakeholders, and share information about such activities. the study found that engagement on social media was positively linked with providing technical support or sharing expertise for online distance learning. vollum's (2014) study revealed that social media can improve social interaction in the k12 education system. by evaluating the literature on social interaction in education, social media, and social interaction, as well as the use of social media in health and physical education programs, the study sought to propose a research agenda for employing social media in k–12 physical and health education. the research concluded that social media can have a positive impact on social interaction and education. it also discloses how current health and wellness programs are already utilizing social media outside of the k-12 system. according to irving (2016), the use of social media in k-12 education presents an opportunity for teachers to create interactive and engaging assignments that can aid in formative assessment practices. irving suggests that these platforms provide teachers with a tool to assess student understanding and progress in a dynamic and engaging manner. this notion is supported by the fact that social media platforms offer various multimedia options such as videos, images, and interactive quizzes, which can add an element of excitement to the learning process. additionally, social media platforms can assure real-time feedback, allowing teachers to adjust their instruction and assessment strategies based on student performance. thus, irving believes that social media platforms offer a significant advantage in k-12 education by facilitating formative assessment practices and making them more engaging for students. krutka and carpenter (2016) argue that social media can be utilized in every subject in k12 education and that it is the responsibility of educators to help students understand its positive and negative impacts on their personal, social, and civic lives. these authors suggest that while not all teachers need to employ social media in their instruction, they should educate students on how to use these platforms critically, wisely, and creatively. krutka and carpenter believe that educators should take the current access of social media by k-12 students seriously and encourage them to utilize these platforms in a responsible and informed manner. the authors' position highlights the importance of incorporating social media in k-12 education to ensure that students are equipped with the skills and knowledge to navigate these platforms effectively. accordingly, krutka and carpenter (2016) suggest that social media has the potential to be an advantage in k-12 education, provided that students are taught to apply it critically and responsibly, under the guidance of knowledgeable educators. however, there are also studies that have found negative effects associated with the use of social media in k-12 education. for example, a study by jones (2018) found that the use of social media in a high school classroom led to an increase in the number of students who reported experiencing cyberbullying. additionally, there are concerns about the amount of time that students spend on social media, and the potential impact this may have on their mental health. on the other hand, mawhinney's (2013) findings indicate that school leaders recognize the necessity to embrace modern communication methods, but are worried about the potential 93 ressat 2023, 8(2): 83-100 difficulties that may arise. in the study, the drawbacks are perceived as outweighing the advantages in terms of enhancing student involvement in k-12 education. ahn et al. (2011) conducted a study in the united states and found that the use of social media in k-12 public primary and secondary schools poses numerous challenges and limitations. the researcher's findings highlight that, despite the widespread adoption of social media in daily life, access to these platforms remains a contentious issue in educational settings. this is because different stakeholders have differing views and concerns regarding the operation of social media in the classroom. for example, some schools have prohibited social media due to incidents of cyberbullying among classmates. this study highlights the complexity of implementing social media in k-12 education and underscores the need for schools to carefully consider the challenges and limitations before adopting these platforms. while social media has the potential to enhance student engagement and learning, the findings of ahn et al. (2011) suggest that its handling in k-12 education presents significant disadvantages and limitations that need to be addressed. woodward and kimmons (2018, p.1) present an argument regarding the impact of social media on education. the authors do not differentiate between k-12 or higher education and assert that the widespread utilization of social media has led learners into an informal learning environment, which presents a challenge for formal education. according to woodward and kimmons (2018), this shift towards informality undermines the structured and controlled environment that is critical for effective learning. as such, the authors view the increasing usage of social media as a potential disadvantage for education. while social media may have its benefits in facilitating informal learning and connecting students with each other, it is important to consider the potential negative impacts it may have on the quality and rigor of formal education. santelmann (2018) sheds light on the discourse surrounding the use of social networks in education, specifically in the context of germany. the author reports on a round table discussion that was conducted in 2018, involving a group of experts and researchers in the field. the key finding from the discussion was that digital media, gadgets, and educational software should not entirely replace traditional methods of learning. instead, these technologies should only be utilized as supplementary tools in the classroom. the participants of the round table emphasized the crucial role that teachers play in the learning process and that social media should only be employed for demonstration purposes. this viewpoint highlights the advantage of a balanced approach to incorporating technology in the classroom, where it complements and enhances traditional methods of learning, rather than replacing them entirely. the focus on the teacher's central role in the learning process also reinforces the importance of human interaction and connection in education. potential advantages of social media in k-12 learning and engagement previous studies have demonstrated that facebook, youtube, and twitter can have numerous advantages in k-12 education. these social media platforms offer unique opportunities for 94 ressat 2023, 8(2): 83-100 students and teachers to engage in personalized learning, collaborate, and share information. for example, facebook can be used to create closed groups for classes, where students and teachers can communicate and share assignments, while youtube offers access to a vast collection of educational videos and tutorials. twitter can be applied to quickly and easily share updates and information with students and teachers. however, it is important to consider the potential risks and ensure that privacy and security measures are in place to protect students' personal information. despite these concerns, previous research suggests that these social media platforms have the effect to enhance k-12 education and learning outcomes. the potential advantages of these social media platforms for learning and engagement in k-12 stages may be as follows: facebook: connection and communication social media platform • ability to create a closed group for a class or school where students and teachers can share information, assignments, and resources • easy communication and collaboration between students and teachers • access to a wide network of educational groups and resources youtube: video sharing social media platform • wide variety of educational videos, tutorials, and lessons on almost every subject • ability to create and share educational videos for students • access to subject matter experts and their content twitter: social media platform for real-time updates • quick and easy way to share short updates and information with students and teachers • ability to follow educational organizations, subject matter experts, and hashtags to stay up-to-date on the latest developments in a field • ability to participate in virtual professional development and networking opportunities potential disadvantages of social media in k-12 learning and engagement despite the benefits of facebook, youtube, and twitter, these platforms should be used with caution, and appropriate privacy and security measures in place to protect students' personal information. teachers and administrators should also take steps to ensure that students understand the potential risks associated with social media application in a learning context. the potential disadvantages of these social media platforms for learning and engagement in k12 stages may be as in the following: facebook: • privacy concerns around students' personal information • potential for cyberbullying and other harmful online behavior • distractions and decreased focus in the classroom youtube: • difficulty in filtering and monitoring content for age-appropriateness and educational value • potential for distraction and decreased focus in the classroom 95 ressat 2023, 8(2): 83-100 • possibility of encountering inappropriate or offensive content twitter: • character limit may restrict the depth of information that can be shared • difficulty in filtering and monitoring content for age-appropriateness and educational value • potential for cyberbullying and other harmful online behavior discussion and conclusion this study highlights the need for a nuanced approach to the use of social media to improve learning and engagement in k-12 education. social media has grown in popularity over the last few years and is now used by millions of people worldwide. several platforms of social media also affect the way we communicate, spend our free time, and even conduct business. the usage of social media in k-12 education is a topic that should be evaluated carefully. and one of the known social media platforms is edmodo. edmodo is a social learning platform designed specifically for k-12 students, teachers, and parents. it provides a safe and secure online environment for classroom communication, collaboration, and resource sharing. edmodo allows teachers to create virtual classrooms where they can post assignments, quizzes, and other learning resources, and students can complete and submit their work online. teachers can also use edmodo to facilitate online discussions, share announcements, and provide feedback to students. one of the key features of edmodo is its focus on privacy and security. the platform allows teachers to create closed groups, so that only members of the class can access the content and communicate with one another. students must be invited to join a class by their teacher and can only participate with the permission of their parents or guardians. edmodo also includes a range of tools to support personalized learning, such as the ability to track student progress and provide targeted feedback. it also integrates with a variety of educational apps and tools, allowing teachers to easily add new resources to their classrooms and customize their students' learning experiences. overall, edmodo provides a safe and secure online platform for k-12 students and teachers to connect and collaborate, while also promoting personalized learning and educational innovation. based on a theoretical literature review research, it is clear that social media platforms such as facebook, youtube, and twitter have the potential to offer both advantages and disadvantages for learning and engagement in the traditional face-to-face classroom. one of the key advantages of using social media in education is the increased accessibility to information and resources. this can be particularly beneficial for students who may not have access to traditional learning materials or private tutors. additionally, social media platforms can provide opportunities for collaboration and communication between students, which can foster a more dynamic and engaging learning environment. however, there are also some disadvantages that must be considered, including the effects for distractions and procrastination, as well as the negative impact that excessive use of 96 ressat 2023, 8(2): 83-100 social media can have on students' mental and emotional well-being. the potential for cyberbullying and online harassment is also a significant concern, and it is essential for educators to be aware of these risks and to take steps to mitigate them. it is important to be aware of these potential disadvantages and to take appropriate measures by implementing strict policies to protect student privacy, monitoring their activities and providing a safe environment in the k-12 classroom. moreover, in the utilization of social media in the education system, some inequalities may arise due to social, cultural, and economic opportunities of students. in this regard, not all students may have access to the internet or mobile devices, which can limit participation during classes. these problems can be decisive in affecting academic achievement directly or indirectly. ultimately, the use of social media in k-12 education is a complex issue that requires careful consideration of both the advantages and disadvantages. while there is a need for more research in this area, it is clear that the teacher must remain the center of k-12 education. by using social media in a responsible and effective manner, it is possible to enhance the learning experience for students while also ensuring their safety and well-being. the limited research conducted on k-12 education and social media underscores the importance of further investigation in this area to better understand the potential impact of these platforms on students' learning and engagement. this highlights the need for further research to identify the key factors that contribute to the success or failure of using social media in education. additionally, there is a need for research that looks at the potential long-term effects of social media use on learning and engagement in k-12 education. here are some of the most commonly discussed advantages and disadvantages of social media: advantages: • increased connectivity and communication: social media enables individuals to connect and communicate with each other across geographic and cultural boundaries, fostering a sense of community and promoting socialization. • enhanced learning and education: social media platforms can be used to share educational resources, connect learners with experts, and foster collaborative learning experiences. • increased access to information: social media can serve as a platform for sharing news, current events, and other forms of information, providing individuals with a more diverse range of perspectives and opinions. • business and career opportunities: social media can provide opportunities for networking, job searching, and professional development, enabling individuals to connect with potential employers, customers, or collaborators. 97 ressat 2023, 8(2): 83-100 • promotion of activism and social change: social media can be used to raise awareness about social and political issues, mobilize support for causes, and facilitate social change movements. disadvantages: • addiction and time-wasting: social media can be addictive, leading individuals to spend excessive amounts of time on these platforms at the expense of other activities or responsibilities. • cyberbullying and harassment: social media can be used as a platform for bullying, harassment, and other forms of online abuse, which can have negative impacts on mental health and well-being. • privacy and security concerns: social media platforms may collect and share personal information, leading to concerns about privacy and data security. • spread of misinformation and fake news: social media can be used to spread false or misleading information, which can have harmful consequences for individuals, communities, and society as a whole. • negative impacts on mental health: social media use has been linked to increased levels of anxiety, depression, and other mental health concerns, particularly among vulnerable populations such as children and teenagers. it's worth noting that the advantages and disadvantages of social media are often interconnected, and the impact of social media use can vary depending on individual factors such as age, gender, and socioeconomic status. in conclusion, the use of social media in education has the potential to greatly enhance learning and engagement, but it must be approached with caution and care. by carefully considering the benefits and challenges, and taking proactive steps to mitigate potential risks, k-12 public schools can harness the power of social media to create meaningful and engaging learning experiences for all students. references abaido, g. m. 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(2019). optimizing student learning: a lean systems approach to improving k-12 education. routledge/ productivity press. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2014.02.035 https://doi.org/10.5116/ijme.5c14.ef82 https://doi.org/10.1080/15507394.2018.1510249 https://doi.org/10.26466/opus.866620 research in social sciences and technology https://ressat.org e-issn: 2468-6891 volume: 7 issue: 2 2022 pp. 27-48 academic resilience among deaf learners during e-learning in the covid-19 era olufemi timothy adigun*a & ntokozo dennis ndwandweb * corresponding author email: olufemiadigun@yahoo.com a. department of educational foundation, national university of lesotho, lesotho; department of educational psychology and special education, faculty of education, university of zululand, kwadlangezwa, south africa. b. department of educational foundation, faculty of education, university of south africa, south africa article info received: april 2, 2022 revised: may 16, 2022 accepted: june 5, 2022 how to cite adigun, o. t., & ndwandwe, n. d. (2022). academic resilience among deaf learners during e-learning in the covid19 era. research in social sciences and technology, 7(2), 27-48 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2022.8 copyright license this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 abstract this study aimed to assess the contributory roles of parental involvement (pi), parental acceptance/rejection (par), academic self-efficacy (ase), computer user self-efficacy (cuse) vis-à-vis gender and the onset of deafness on the academic resilience (ar) of deaf learners who participated in e-learning during the pandemic. the bioecological systems theory provided a framework for the study. data was collected using a structured questionnaire from 292 (male: n = 164; female: n = 128; mage = 16.5) deaf learners from 3 provinces in south africa. data generated was analysed with ibm spss 22 and ibm amos 26.0 packages. all the fit measures of the sem fell within the acceptable range (χ2 = 69.15, df = 28, χ2/df = 2.46, ifi = 0.91, cfi = 0.94, gfi = 0.93, nfi = 0.96, and rmsea = 0.062). according to the findings, par, ase and cuse had a directly significant relationship on the ar of deaf learners who participated in elearning during the lockdowns. an indirect significant relationship was observed between the latent variables and academic resilience when observed through the onset of deafness. based on the findings, appropriate recommendations were made. keywords academic resilience; academic self-efficacy; covid-19; elearning; deaf learners; parental involvement 10.46303/ressat.2022.8 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2022.8 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ 28 ressat 2022, 7(2): 27-48 introduction disruptions to the social order due to the coronavirus disease (covid-19) are well documented in literatures. regrettably, while all learners across the globe have been affected by the pandemic, which is unfortunately still ravaging all nations of the world, learners with special needs such as those who are deaf/hard-of-hearing (further herein regarded as deaf) have suffered greater negative effects as a result of the inability to engage and participate in face-toface learning and teaching. prior to covid-19, some past studies note that face-to-face teaching and learning activities are beneficial to learners with special educational needs (adigun & ajayi, 2015; jameel & bibi, 2016; lang, 2002). these studies had based their submissions on observed positive behaviour and social interactions among learners with special needs. other studies (adigun, 2017; long et al., 2007) have advocated for blended learning due to the rapid influx of e-learning apparatus in the educational system. interestingly, in order to contain the spread of covid-19, especially in schools, teaching and learning activities for all learners have been largely conducted via online media since the advent of covid-19; although reactions for and against academic engagements and the online learning participation of learners is gathering momentum in academic discourses (nikou & maslov, 2021). the issues of the academic resilience of learners with special needs during the pandemic are yet to receive the research attention needed; thus this current study was designed to bridge the existing research gaps by assessing the contributory roles of some of the identified factors (parental involvement [pi], parental acceptance/rejection [par], academic self-efficacy [ase], computer user self-efficacy [cuse]) vis-à-vis gender and the onset of deafness on the academic resilience (ar) of deaf learners who participated in e-learning during the pandemic. based on the forgoing, this study hypothesised that no significant relationship existed between gender, the onset of deafness, pi, par, ase, cuse, and ar of deaf learners who participated in e-learning during the lockdowns. additionally, this study hypothesised that there would be no direct or indirect relationship between pi, par, ase, cuse, and ar of deaf learners who participated in e-learning during the lockdowns when examined through gender (male, female) and onset of deafness (pre-lingual or post-lingual) of the participants. literature review deaf learners and academic resilience deafness is a condition that arises from the loss of ones’ ability of the organ of hearing to process sound signals. in other words, individuals with deafness may experience significant challenges in receiving and responding to sound signals (adigun, 2020). adigun et al. (2021) aver that an individuals’ loss of sense of hearing may arise either before or after the acquisition of speech and language (preor post-lingual). according to adigun et al. (2021), individuals with prelingual deafness sustain deafness either from birth or before their acquisition of speech and 29 ressat 2022, 7(2): 27-48 language; thus they may not have the opportunity to access oral information but they largely express themselves through and acquire information via visual-spatial forms such as sign language, written language and lip reading. those with post-lingual deafness have earlier acquired and utilised speech and languages for communication purposes before they sustained deafness. irrespective of the onset (preand post-lingual) of deafness, individuals with deafness have communication challenges significant enough to influence their academic, behavioural, emotional and psycho-social wellbeing. the extent to which deafness contributes to the foregoing may differ significantly based on the degree of hearing loss, gender, social capital and resilience, among others (adigun & nzima, 2021; long et al., 2007; ogundiran & olaosun, 2013). challenges associated with deafness may further aggravate truancy and withdrawal tendencies, elevated psycho-social disorders and incongruous academic performances (adigun, 2017; adigun & nzima 2021; lalley, 2011; marschark & hauser, 2012; oyewumi et al., 2013) and incomparable academic resilience with non-deaf learners. resilience refers to the positive ability to manage, negotiate, persevere or adapt to a considerable source of stress. resilience is a positive adaptation that is capable of restoring ones’ mental health by keeping a balance of physical and psychological functioning despite adversities, level of risk, threats or hardship (wald et al., 2006). in recent times, the concept of ‘resilience’ is gathering momentum, especially in the wake of covid-19, and the concept has been examined in different dimensions (radovanović et al., 2020). in particular, the transition of academic activities from the face-to-face model to online media due to covid-19 has presented some significant creative, rapid and unlimited learning opportunities for teachers and learners, irrespective of the locations and learning competence of the online learning participants. on the other hand, the teaching and learning processes via online learning platforms during this pandemic are not without some potential challenges, such as communication gaps, a lack of physical learner-teacher/learner-learner interaction, technical issues, distraction and time management, among others (bedrossian, 2021; eva et al., 2020). while academic activities being presented via online learning platforms due to covid-19 present both opportunities and challenges, learners (especially those with deafness) may need to exert more effort to adjust to online learning environment; hence, the need for all learners, particularly deaf learners, to develop enhanced resilience towards academic activities via the online media may be inevitable. notably in this study, academic resilience (ar) among the deaf learners portrays their ability to face difficult academic situations through a framework that addresses potential adversities associated with online learning during the pandemic. a plethora of research evidence on ar and its contributory factors among non-deaf learners in the pandemic is available globally (bedrossian, 2021; eva et al., 2020). reports from past studies among nondeaf learners indicated that both personal and environmental factors account for variations in ar while ar among male and female learners is at variance (bedrossian, 2021; mallick & kaur, 2016; nyamburamwangi et al., 2018). among the deaf, the acquisition of literacy skills via e 30 ressat 2022, 7(2): 27-48 learning interfaces can be difficult based on onset of deafness, the linguistic potential of the learners and/or the support received from others (pappas et al., 2018). however, there exists a paucity of research reports on the academic resilience and associated contributory factors such as pi, par, ase and cuse among deaf learners during the pandemic; hence the need for this current study which set out to fill the observed research gap. parental involvement (pi) and academic resilience (ar) among deaf learners in south africa, a large population of deaf learners are born to hearing parents (ngobeni, 2017). the implication of the foregoing is that there is language variation and bias in the homes of deaf learners. in other words, deaf learners and their parents may have communication difficulties between and among one another. thus, parents may limit their involvement in their child’s academic activities when communication challenges exist. describing pi, olaseni (2020) states that pi is the extent to which parents are knowledgeable about, interested in and are willing to take an active role in the various academic activities of their (deaf) children. the involvement of parents in the learning process of a deaf child is germane, not only to the promotion physical and behavioural growth, but also general scholastic activities and the development of resilience. thus, studies have reported that ar among secondary school learners is a function of the interaction between learners and their families (olaseni, 2020; tudor & spray, 2017). some other studies note that intense pi provides support for the improvement of their child’s academic performance and it positively correlates with self-expectations for academic success and resilience (gizir & aydin, 2009; olaseni, 2020). luft (2011) states that an absence of clear and concrete communication between and among parents and their deaf children may aggravate the traumatic experiences and learning difficulties of deaf learners. antia et al. (2009) thus note that pi in child’s education has a significant and direct correlation with student and teacher ratings of students’ social behaviour and resilience capacity. in their studies, calderon (2000) and luckner and velaski (2004) found strong evidence that supported a direct and positive relationship between pi and the outcomes of deaf children over and above factors (such as parental level of education and socioeconomic status) that are traditionally thought to dictate a child’s academic success and resilience. contrary to the evidence provided by antia et al. (2009), antia et al. (2011), calderon (2000), luckner and velaski (2004), jackson and turnbull (2004), a recent study reported no association between pi and academic performance due to resilience of both male and female deaf learners in uganda (akellot & bangirana, 2019). on the other hand, research evidence provided by antia et al. (2009), antia et al. (2011), calderon (2000), luckner and velaski (2004), jackson and turnbull (2004) showed that the onset of deafness has no significant association with the academic resilience of deaf learners; although the onset of deafness may have a relative implication on the academic achievement of deaf learners (ogundiran & olaosun, 2013). while lockdowns due to covid-19 persisted, parents and deaf learners alike had ample opportunity to bond and interact with each other. interestingly, parents had additional 31 ressat 2022, 7(2): 27-48 responsibilities of being a teacher/tutor to their deaf children. until now, the implications of pi on ar towards academic activities among deaf learners, especially during the pandemic, were unknown. desjardin (2005), in a study among some children with pre-lingual deafness, found that pi was a significant determinant of academic tenacity and development. calderon et al. (1998) allude that the involvement of parents in children’s academic activities differs based on the onset of deafness. parents of children with post-lingual deafness spent limited time in intervention programs when compared to parents of children with pre-lingual deafness, and as a result, the resilient potentials of such children remain incomparable (calderon et al., 1998). desjardin (2005) avers that parents’ active participation in early intervention programmes for children with pre-lingual deafness. similarly, yoshinaga-itano (2000) and zolkoski et al. (2018) assert that irrespective of gender, nature or severities of a child’s disabling conditions, the involvement of parents in everyday academic, behaviour and/or social activities of a child serves not only as a significant protective factor but also helps the child to build resilience to several phenomenal challenges. other studies have shown that home-based pi positively influences academic achievement resilience, helps to build self-esteem and it enhances the positive socially acceptable behaviour of school-going children (benner et al., 2016; manz et al., 2014). it is worthy of note that most of the previous studies that have assessed the implications of pi on the ar of school-going children were conducted pre-covid-19. in addition, aside from the fact that most of such studies did not consider deaf learners, they focused their research attention on the ar of learners in the face-to-face traditional mode of learning; hence a great research gap exists, not only in examining the role of pi on the ar of learners who participated in online learning activities during the pandemic but also on how pi influences the ar of deaf learners who participated in e-learning activities during the lockdowns occasioned by covid-19. parental acceptance/rejection (par) and academic resilience (ar) among deaf learners until now, no research evidence has proven immunity against the possibilities of a family having a child with a disability. past studies have reported that the presence of a child with a disability in a family inevitably comes as a shock to every member of the family (adigun, 2017; lalley, 2011) with a resultant perceived negative effect on normal family cohesion and routine, socioeconomic and marital stabilities. in particular, parents of children with deafness may experience psychological dysfunction due to the uncertainties presented by the communication difficulties with their children and thus may have difficulty adjusting to the presence of a deaf child (marschark & hauser, 2012). studies have shown that childhood disabilities are stressors to parents (feizi et al., 2014; scherer et al., 2019) and many parents, especially fathers, mostly tend to shy away from owning up to having a child with a disability (feizi , et al., 2014). in recent times, issues of the acceptance or rejection of children with disabilities by parents and its implications on the child’s academic endeavours and psychosocial adjustment is being reechoed in research studies. for instance, aydın and yamaç (2014) posit that the par of children with disabilities may influence the child’s social and behavioural adjustment. 32 ressat 2022, 7(2): 27-48 described as a form of warmth dimensions of parenting, aktar et al. (2013) further note that par is a continuum which describes the quality of the affection, bond and relationship existing between parents and their children with disabilities. irrespective of gender, the onset of hearing loss or culture, every child needs to enjoy parental acceptance, care, love, and positive reinforcement (rohner et al., 2005). however, when the aforementioned is not met, children tend to grow in hostile home environments, develop impaired self-esteem and may have difficulties attaining an expected academic level. in the last two decades, par has been theorised to inform socialisation and lifespan development (rohner & khaleque, 2006; rohner et al., 2012); although its implication on ar, particularly among deaf learners, is yet to be examined and established in extant literature. other studies have shown, however, that par can predict and explain the major causes and consequences of rational and irrational behaviour among children (rohner & khaleque, 2006; sart et al., 2016). according to dwairy (2010); and mendo-lázaro et al. (2019), unlike parental rejection, parental acceptance is associated with greater psychological adjustment and positive academic achievement. as indicated by rohner (2004), variation existing in the construct of par may be responsible for a child’s preparation towards meeting, dealing with and overcoming life challenges, thereby causing an individual to develop realistic life expectations and goals. it was hypothesised in this study that par may have an association with the development of ar in deaf learners, especially during covid-19. academic self-efficacy (ase) and academic resilience (ar) among deaf learners every individual, irrespective of hearing acuity, gender or race has a level of efficacy, competencies and capacities to achieve a specific task (adigun, 2020; oyewumi et al., 2013). a self-efficacious individual has capacities to endure and persist with a particular task until completion and success is achieved. self-efficacy is a construct embedded in the social learning theory (bandura, 1989) which postulates that success rates and behaviour towards a particular phenomenon is defined by an existing relationship between an individual’s thoughts and an assigned task. the construct of ‘self-efficacy’ has been applied to educational activities as ‘academic self-efficacy’ (adigun & nzima, 2021; zimmerman, 2000; zhu et al., 2011). the term ‘academic self-efficacy’ according to adigun and nzima (2021), as well as zimmerman (2000), is used to describe a learners’ conviction and perception of their capacity and competence to perform excellently in designated face-to-face or digitally facilitated teaching and learning activities. regrettably, learners who are deaf have relatively lower academic successes when compared with their hearing peers (traxler, 2000). lower academic successes and resilience towards attaining high academic successes among deaf learners has been attributed to dwindling or impaired academic self-efficacy (adigun & nzima, 2021) as well as a lack of or a lower level of active and conscious involvement of parents in the education of their deaf children. drawing from the social cognitive theory (bandura et al., 2001) as well as kim (2020) notes that learners’ ar, especially in this pandemic, is largely dependent on an individual’s ase. 33 ressat 2022, 7(2): 27-48 amitay and gumpel (2015) have indicated that the self-efficacy of an individual can change over time. academic failure and impaired ase can have a negative resultant influence on teaching and learning activities and social and emotional beliefs, especially when motivation and support is absent (bandura, 1993). while a higher level of ase may inform motivation and positively impact learners’ perseverance, commitment and resilience to online learning participation, a lower level of ase may negatively impact academic aptitude and may increase the symptoms of depression and anxiety, especially among deaf learners (adigun & iheme, 2020; adigun & nzima, 2021). computer user self-efficacy (cuse) and academic resilience (ar) among deaf learners the usage of computers for communication and interaction, even among the deaf, has increased geometrically in the last decade. interestingly, the pandemic and the resultant lockdowns have significantly influenced the wide usage of computer devices, not only for communication but also for e-learning and teaching. past studies have shown that computer-mediated teaching assists in shaping, refining and integrating deaf learners into various global learning opportunities (adigun, 2020; adigun & nzima, 2020). not only does learning via computerassisted instruction enhance learning opportunities for deaf learners (adigun, 2020), it also makes learning attractive and interactive. using combinations of graphics, sounds, text and videos, deaf learners tend to stay longer with digitalised teaching and learning approaches (adigun, 2020; yenice, 2006). research evidence provided by zazove et al. (2004) has revealed that the resilience of deaf learners towards computer-mediated teaching and learning is associated with the aetiology and onset of deafness as well as language abilities. although zazove et al. (2004) could not provide an explanation for the influential role of the aetiology of deafness on computer usage among their study participants; they noted that the vocabulary gained by deaf learner could increase their resilience towards online learning. irrespective of disabilities, some previous studies have shown that individuals have a sense of self-efficacy for computer use; thus compeau and higgins (1995) note that cuse refers to “a judgment of one’s ability to manipulate and use a computer for a specific or multitude of assigned tasks”. computer user self-efficacy has been identified to have a relationship with anxiety, performance, resilience and satisfaction (compeau & higgins, 1995; sun & rueda, 2012; torkzadeh et al., 2006). findings reported by bates and khasawneh (2007) have established a correlation between learners online academic engagement, their ar and their performance. however, sun and rueda (2012) reported a non-significant direct effect of cuse on students’ academic engagement, resilience and academic stimulation. according to sun and rueda (2012), their findings when compared to those of bates and khasawneh (2007) may be informed by mediation variables and outcome expectancy. in other words, mediation variables may be a central factor that increases the prediction of cuse on academic engagement and resilience towards e-learning. current study 34 ressat 2022, 7(2): 27-48 the outbreak of covid-19 and its associated social distancing measures came as a surprise to many deaf learners, especially in nigeria, south africa and many other sub-saharan african nations (adigun et al., 2021). the aforementioned was largely due to a lack of and/or delay in dissemination of the required covid-19 information available to the deaf communities; hence, covid-19 necessitated the migration of academic activities, engagements and learning participation to a digital space. lamentably, covid-19 did not only aggravate loneliness, seclusion, and many other traumatic psychosocial experiences; the resilient capacities towards digitalised teaching and the learning activities of many learners with disabilities, especially the deaf, were threatened. unfortunately, until now, recent research endeavours since the emergence of covid-19 among the deaf population have focused largely on the challenges of digital learning and academic performance of the deaf learners who participated in online learning (alshawabkeh et al., 2021; lynn et al., 2020), with little or no existing research efforts, especially in south africa, which have assessed the factors that may influence academic resilience among the deaf learners who participated in e-learning during the lockdowns. anchored on bronfenbrenners’ (1979; 2005) bioecological systems theory, which assumes that the capacities and development of an individual are influenced by environmental conditions through five subsystems (microsystem, mesosystem, exosystem, macrosystem, and chronosystem), this study investigated the contributory roles of pi, par, ase, cuse (latent variables) vis-à-vis gender and the onset of deafness (moderator variables) on the ar (dependent variable) of deaf learners who participated in e-learning during the lockdowns. the bioecological systems theory places emphasis on an individual's own biological makeup as a primary environmental factor that is capable of fuelling interactions with external environmental factors that further influence personal development (adigun, 2021; muzata, 2020). hence, we believed that during the lockdowns, deaf learners had ample time to interact within the home environment and parents also had ample opportunities to interact with their children during e-learning processes. this interaction, coupled with learners’ academic and computer user self-efficacies, could have influenced academic resilience towards online learning participation. based on the conceptual model (figure 1), this study hypothesised that no significant relationship existed between gender, the onset of deafness, pi, par, ase, cuse and the ar of the deaf learners who participated in e-learning during the lockdowns. also, this study hypothesised that there would be no direct or indirect relationship between pi, par, ase, cuse and the ar of the deaf learners who participated in e-learning during the lockdowns when examined through the gender (male, female) and onset of deafness (pre-lingual or post-lingual) of the participants. 35 ressat 2022, 7(2): 27-48 figure 1. hypothesized model (source: authors, 2022) note: parental_inv – parental involvement, parents_acc_rejparental acceptance/rejection, ase – academic self-efficacy, cpu – computer user self-efficacy methods and materials design and participants a descriptive quantitative research design was adopted for this study to examine the contributory and predictive roles of pi, par, ase, cuse vis-à-vis gender and the onset of deafness on the ar of deaf learners who participated in e-learning during the lockdowns. a total of 292 deaf learners (male: n = 164; female: n = 128) who participated in e-learning during the lockdowns participated in the study. participants were aged 13 to 20 years (mage = 16.5; sd = 3.5). deaf learners in grades 8, 9 and 10 were purposively selected for the study across three provinces [gauteng, n = 89 (30.5%); kwazulu-natal, n = 147 (50.3%); eastern cape, n = 56 (19.2%)] which were randomly sampled out of the nine south african provinces. a total of 195, which represents about 66.8% of the study participants, were learners with pre-lingual deafness; while 97 (33.2%) others were learners with post-lingual deafness. amongst the study participants, about 129 (44.2%) had intact families, meaning that both parents were living together; 87 (29.8%) lived with their mothers; 31 (10.6%) with their fathers; while 87 (29.8%) lived with their grandparents or foster parents. interestingly, at the time of data collection, all participants had access to internet enabled computers/phones/tablets/ipads which they had been using during their online lessons. research instrument in addition to the above-described demographic information obtained from the participants, other measures employed for data collection in the study were: 36 ressat 2022, 7(2): 27-48 computer user self-efficacy scale (cuse) the 30-item (13 positively and 17 negatively worded) computer user self-efficacy scale (cassidy & eachus, 2002) was adapted for this study. the scale was originally designed in a 6-point likert scale format but was reconstructed in this study to a 4-point likert scale format of 1strongly disagree to 4strongly agree. during data coding, all negatively worded statements such as “i seem to waste a lot of time struggling with computers” and “computers are far too complicated for me” were reversed. although cassidy and eachus (2002) reported a reliability coefficient of 0.94, our revalidation of the cuse among some deaf learners who were not part of the study gave a cronbach’s alpha of 0.89. parental acceptance-rejection/control questionnaire short form (parq/control-sf) the child version of parq/control-sf (rohner, 2005) was adopted for this current study. the child version of parq/control-sf is a self-report questionnaire designed to assess children’s perceptions and retrospective remembrances of the degree to which they experienced parental acceptance or rejection. we used the child version of parq/control-sf to measure the frequency of perceived parenting behaviours towards the online learning participation of deaf learners. participants rated items for their parents on a modified likert scale of 1 never or almost never to 4 every day. the child version of parq/control-sf consists of statements that assess warmth and affection, hostility and aggression, indifference and neglect, as well as undifferentiated rejection. past studies reported reliability coefficients greater than 0.7 (daganzo et al., 2014; rohner, 2005). a revalidation of the child version of parq/control-sf revealed an internal consistency value of 0.71. academic self-efficacy scale (ases) we adapted the jinks and morgans’ (1999) students’ self-efficacy scale for this study. the adapted ases was a 20-item questionnaire which was designed in a 5-point likert scale ranging from 1almost never to 5almost always. some of the items of the scale read as follows: “i work hard in school”, “i could get the best grades in class if i tried enough” and “it does not matter if i do well in school”. a revalidation of the ases was determined using cronbach’s alpha and it was found to be reliable at 0.73. parental involvement rating scale (pirs) the study adapted the pirs developed by naseema and gafoor (2001). the adapted pirs was a 25-item questionnaire which had items such as “my parents do enquire about my academic works” and “my parents/guardians always encourage me to do well in my school assignments”. participants had options of “always true”, “sometimes true” or “never true” against each statement of the adapted pirs. a revalidation of the adapted pirs revealed an internal consistency value of 0.68. the academic resilience scale (ars-30) this study adapted the ars-30 which was developed by cassidy (2016). some statements in the ars-30 were reworded. such statements included: “i would begin to think my chances of success at university were poor” and this was changed to “i would begin to think my chances of 37 ressat 2022, 7(2): 27-48 success at online learning activities were poor”. the ars-30 is a context-specific instrument that assesses the academic resilience of students in times of academic adversity. the ars-30 which was designed in a four-point likert scale of 1strongly agree to 4strongly disagree included both positively and negatively phrased statements to elicit cognitive-affective and behavioural responses from the study participants. a revalidation of the adapted pirs revealed an internal consistency value of 0.78. data collection procedure we used a snowball approach (atkinson & flint, 2001) for data collection after approval for the study was received from the institutional review board. all of the aforementioned instruments (cuse, child version of parq/control-sf, ases, pirs and ars-30) were included in a google form. the link to access the questionnaire was shared among the participants through the teachers, friends and families of the deaf, whatsapp contacts and other relevant social media platforms. the link remained active for a period of eight weeks. the use of online surveys was considered appropriate during covid-19. participants were guaranteed anonymity and confidentiality of their responses. while we understood the dynamics of the south african population and the variance in home languages, the questionnaire was constructed in the english language. participation in the study was voluntary. data analysis data collected was analysed using both descriptive statistics of frequency counts, simple percentages, mean and standard deviation, as well as inferential statistics involving pearson’s product moment correlation coefficient and structural equation modelling. the ibm spss statistical software version 22.0 for windows was used. descriptive statistics were used to analyse the demographic information of the participants, while pearson’s product moment correlation coefficient was employed to determine existing relationships between pi, parental acceptance/rejection, academic self-efficacy, computer self-efficacy vis-à-vis gender and the onset of deafness on the academic resilience of the deaf learners who participated in e-learning. the ibm amos version 26.0 was used to present the direction of the predictive abilities of pi, parental acceptance/rejection, academic self-efficacy, computer self-efficacy vis-à-vis gender and the onset of deafness on the academic resilience of the deaf learners who participated in e-learning. the ibm amos was used to develop the hypothesised model (figure 1) and used to perform the structural equation analysis (figure 2). results hypothesis 1: there would be no significant relationship between gender, the onset of deafness, pi, parental acceptance/rejection, academic self-efficacy, computer self-efficacy and the academic resilience of the deaf learners who participated in e-learning. 38 ressat 2022, 7(2): 27-48 table 1: correlational matrix of variables of the study variables m sd 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 academic resilience 70.91 13.02 1 0.010 0.053 -0.262** 0.126* 0.152** 0.168* * gender 1.43 0.49 1 0.017 0.055 0.099 -0.079 0.071 od 1.54 0.49 1 0.27 0.97 -0.40 -0.016 pi 29.39 6.50 1 0.092 -0.010 -0.017 parc 84.84 10.89 1 0.034 0.217* * ase 54.73 6.63 1 0.096 cpu 36.93 4.35 1 **correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed). *correlation is significant at the 0.05 level (2-tailed). note: od = onset of deafness, pi – pi, parc parental acceptance/rejection, ase – academic self-efficacy, cpu – computer user self-efficacy table 1 shows the relationships between the pairs of variables in the model. as shown on table 1, gender (r= -0.010, p > 0.05) and the onset of deafness (r= 0.053, p > 0.05) had no significant relationship with the ar of the study participants. table 1 also revealed that pi had a negative but significant relationship with the ar of the study participants (r = -0.262, p < 0.01); par (r = 0.126, p < 0.05); se (r = 0.152, p < 0.01) and cuse (r = 0.168, p < 0.01) had a positively significant correlation with the ar of the study participants. this finding implies that a decline in the pi in deaf learners’ participation in online academic activities may have negatively influenced the resilience of learners towards the completion of online academic tasks; whereas an improvement in par, ase and cuse may further enhance the ar of deaf learners towards online learning. hypothesis 2: there will be no direct or indirect relationship between pi, par, ase, cuse on the ar of the study participants when examined through gender and the onset of deafness of the participants. structural equation modelling (sem) using amos 26.0 was conducted to establish the accuracy of the hypothesised model that explained the contributory roles of pi, par, ase and cuse vis-à-vis gender and the onset of deafness on the ar of deaf learners. also, in order to validate the compatibility of the empirical data collected, the fit model was determined. as stated by bentler (1990), large values for the tucker–lewis index (tli), the incremental fit index (ifi) and the comparative fit index (cfi) indicate a good fit model. therefore, values of ≥.90 were denoted as the indication of a fit model. also senol-durak and durak (2011) note that rootmean-square error of approximation (rmsea) values of .06 or lower indicate a close fit, .08 a fair fit, while .10 indicates a marginal fit for a model. a chi-square (χ2) ratio to a degree of freedom (df) less than 3 also shows a good fit model (senol-durak & durak, 2011). 39 ressat 2022, 7(2): 27-48 figure 2: structural equation model. table 2. structural model values relationship between variables estimates s.e. c.r. p gender pi .004 .004 .820 .412 gender cuse .007 .007 1.046 .296 gender par .004 .003 1.400 .161 onset of deafness ase -.003 .004 -.691 .490 onset of deafness cuse -.004 -.007 -.580 .562 onset of deafness pi .001 .004 .276 .783 onset of deafness par .005 .003 1.744 .081 gender ase -.007 .004 1.498 .134 academic resilience gender -.085 1.448 .059 .953 academic resilience onset of deafness 1.468 1.435 1.023 .306 academic resilience par .136 .068 2.001 .045* academic resilience ase .256 .108 2.451 .014* academic resilience cuse .380 .169 2.254 .024* academic resilience pi -.541 .110 4.916 *** *** statistically significant relationship between variables at 0.001 level * statistically significant relationship between variables at 0.05 level 40 ressat 2022, 7(2): 27-48 based on the sem (figure 2), our study found that all fit measures fell within the acceptable range (χ2 = 69.15, df = 28, χ2/df = 2.46, ifi = 0.91, cfi = 0.94, gfi = 0.93, nfi = 0.96, and rmsea = 0.062). the model (figure 2) showed that pi (β = -0.27, p < 0.05), par (β = 0.11, p < 0.05), ase (β = 0.14, p < 0.05), and cuse (β = 0.13, p < 0.05) had a directly significant relationship on the ar of the deaf learners. similarly, the independent variables (pi: β = -0.27, p < 0.01; par: β = 0.11, p < 0.05; ase: β = 0.14, p < 0.05; cuse: β = 0.13, p < 0.05) had a significant indirect relationship through the onset of deafness (β = 0.06, p < 0.05) on the ar of the deaf learners who participated in e-learning activities during the lockdowns. however, no indirect relationship was observed between all of the independent variables on the ar of the deaf learners when examined through gender. the finding further implied that ase had the highest contribution of about 14% to the variance in the ar of the study participants. in other words, participants with higher efficacy for academic activities had a higher potential for ar during elearning. this was followed by cuse and par which contributed about 13% and 11% respectively, while pi had a negative (-27%) influence on the development of the ar of deaf learners. this finding further showed that less involvement of parents in online academic activities of deaf learners may grossly impair their academic resilience potentials. discussion findings of this study revealed that par, ase and cuse had a positively significant correlation; while pi had a negative but significant relationship with the ar of the study participants. this finding implies that a positive and enabling psychosocial environment could further enhance the ar of deaf learners towards online learning activities. the current finding corresponds to research evidence provided by aktar et al. (2013), ali (2011), rohner and khaleque (2006), and sart et al. (2016) who allude that warmth within the home environment and the quality of the affection, bond and cordial family relationship between parent/family members can improve the psychosocial functioning of children with disabilities. aktar et al. (2013) affirm that irrespective of the onset of the disabling condition or gender, children with special educational needs tend to function optimally when shown the care and acceptance needed. in a similar manner rohner et al. (2005), rohner and khaleque (2006) and rohner et al. (2012) established an association between the acceptance/rejection of a child, socialisation and the learning outcomes of children. parental acceptance, unlike rejection, highly contributed to a higher psychological adjustment, resilience and positive learning engagement (dwairy, 2010; mendolázaro et al., 2019). in line with past studies (adigun & nzima, 2021; amitay & gumpel, 2015; kim, 2020; zimmerman, 2000), this current study established a relationship between ase and ar. adigun and nzima (2021) linked ase to the persistence of deaf learning in a biology lesson. however, variations (high or low) in ase have been reported to influence deaf learners’ resilience towards academic tasks and achievements (adigun & nzima, 2021; traxler, 2000). also, our finding on the relationship between cuse and the ar of deaf learners during the lockdowns supports 41 ressat 2022, 7(2): 27-48 previous research on the role of technology in learners’ attention and the development of positive attitude towards the completion of learning tasks (adigun, 2020; adigun & nzima, 2020; bates & khasawneh, 2007; yenice, 2006; zazove et al., 2004). furthermore, our study found an inverse relationship between pi and the ar of deaf learners. while our study agrees with olaseni (2020) and tudor and spray (2017) who posit that the state of learners’ resilience towards academic activities is a function of the interaction between learners and their families, this current finding does not correspond to findings which reported positive or no relationships between pi and learners (akellot & bangirana, 2019; calderon, 2000; gizir & aydin, 2009; luckner & velaski, 2004; jackson & turnbull, 2004). our finding on an inverse relationship between pi and deaf learners’ ar might be due to socio-economic challenges and associated psychological trauma faced by parents during the covid-19 lockdowns. in response to hypothesis 2, this study found a directly significant relationship between latent variables (pi, par, ase, cuse) and the ar of the deaf learners who participated in elearning activities during the lockdowns. the findings further revealed that ase has the highest contribution to deaf learners’ ar towards online academic activities during the covid-19 lockdowns. this was followed by cuse and par. these results imply that good and moderate to high deaf learners’ academic and computer user self-efficacies, as well as positive parental acceptance, will predict a high inclination of resilience for digital learners among the deaf during a challenging time such as the one presented by covid-19. this current finding substantiates the results of past studies such as those by adigun and nzima (2021), aktar et al. (2013), bedrossian (2021), compeau and higgins (1995), merdinger et al. (2005), mwangi, et al. (2017), rohner et al. (2005), rohner (2004), sun and rueda (2012). as indicated by bedrossian (2021), merdinger et al. (2005) and mwangi et al. (2017), the resilience abilities of an individual, irrespective of gender or disabilities, are a function of their immediate environment. the assertions of bedrossian (2021) and mwangi et al. (2017) buttress the bioecological systems theory (bronfenbrenner, 1979; 2005). while learning engagement is conducted within the online learning environment, the immediate home environment of deaf learners during the covid-19 lockdowns can have a potential influence on their resilience capabilities towards online learning engagements. the capacities of and supports (moral and technical) received by deaf learners to effectively use digital devices to access learning tasks can further assist in ensuring the completion of academic tasks. in other words, issues around how well deaf learners are accepted by parents/guardians and family members/siblings can define the type of academic support they receive. such perceived support together with learners’ ase (adigun & nzima, 2021; kim, 2020) and cuse (compeau & higgins, 1995; sun & rueda, 2012) is said to directly influence their ar towards online learning activities. furthermore, our study found a significantly indirect relationship between the latent variables (pi; par; ase; cuse) and deaf learners’ ar towards online learning during the lockdowns when examined through the onset of deafness but not gender. this finding implies that the onset of deafness (pre-lingual or post-lingual) interferes with academic tenacity among 42 ressat 2022, 7(2): 27-48 the deaf. this may perhaps be due to variations and past experiences with languages. in other words, irrespective of gender differences, individuals with post-lingual deafness who had previous privileges with the use of oral-aural communication may further have a better understanding of the digital learning environment which includes texts, videos and animations, among others, than those with pre-lingual deafness (adigun & nzima, 2020). irrespective of individual capabilities or environmental conditions, studies have shown that variations in language exposures influence the learning potentials of deaf students (adigun, 2017; lang, 2002; marschark & hauser, 2012; ogundiran & olaosun, 2013). in other words, individuals with post-lingual deafness will have a better understanding of vocabulary, its usage and applications than their counterparts who are pre-lingually deaf. hence, learners with post-lingual deafness can have higher resilience towards academic activities and performances during face-to-face or e-learning activities when levels of past language ability are considered. conclusion findings of the study have further extended research ideas and understanding of the implications of parental involvement, parental acceptance/rejection, academic self-efficacy and computer user self-efficacy on academic resilience, particularly for online teaching and learning activities. this study concludes that academic and computer user self-efficacies are essential predictors of successful participation in e-learning. in other words, higher levels of academic and computer user self-efficacies can enhance resilience towards e-learning activities among deaf learners. also, our study believes that parental involvement in the education, especially online learning activities, of deaf learners needs urgent attention. the outcome of this study may further assist counselling psychologists, mental health professionals, parents/guardians, teachers and researchers in identifying and ascertaining definite guidelines for managing e-learning activities. such guidelines should be geared towards enhancing the resilience capacities of deaf learners, especially during this challenging time of the pandemic with limited opportunities for face-to-face learning. it is very important for parents/guardians of deaf learners to show interest in the education of their children/wards and to assist them with computer applications/software which can make deaf learners participate seamlessly in e-learning activities. interestingly, deaf learners will develop higher academic selfefficacy, computer user-self efficacy and improved resilience for e-learning when parents and guardians accept them (deaf learners) for who they are based on their language and cognitive abilities. parental acceptance and active involvement in the education of deaf learners can improve their self-confidence for e-learning. the outcome of this study will further assist counselling psychologists and researchers to foster psychotherapeutic interventions to enhance resilience towards digital learning among deaf learners. counselling psychologists must endeavour to promote social acceptance of the deaf while activities and programmes that will foster parent-deaf child bonding must be promoted by counselling psychologists and social workers. 43 ressat 2022, 7(2): 27-48 limitation of the study and suggestion for further research according to theofanidis and fountouki (2018), no research endeavour is exempted from some form of limitation or another. hence, this current study is not exempted from some limitations. for instance, this study used a closed-ended questionnaire for data collection. in other words, participants were not given the opportunities to express themselves beyond the confines of the authors. in addition, the opinions of parents/guardians were not accommodated in this study. it is apparent that variations in the variables examined in this study may have further implications on the academic resilience of deaf learners. regrettably, this current study did not examine the influence of the dichotomised variables on the academic resilience of deaf learners. hence, future studies should endeavour to bridge the research gaps observed of this current study. references adigun, o. t., & iheme, u. m. 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(2018). considerations in promoting parent and family involvement. diversity, social justice, and the educational leader, 1(2), 1-16. research in social sciences and technology https://ressat.org e-issn: 2468-6891 volume: 8 issue: 2 2023 pp. 37-55 whatsapp messenger as a supplementary tool for school curriculum knowledge transfer and acquisition during covid-19 stricter lockdown: educators’ perceptions bongani innocent nkambule* * institute for open and distance learning, university of south africa, south africa. email: nkambbi@unisa.ac.za article info received: march 1, 2023 accepted: april 17, 2023 published: may 5, 2023 how to cite nkambule, b. i. (2023). whatsapp messenger as a supplementary tool for school curriculum knowledge transfer and acquisition during covid-19 stricter lockdown: educators’ perceptions. research in social sciences and technology, 8(2), 37-55 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2023.10 copyright license this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (cc by 4.0). abstract the covid-19 pandemic is unarguably one of the most disastrous events whose detriment to the normalcy of the education and training sectors will never be forgotten. to salvage the academic year, the department of basic education (dbe) encouraged historically disadvantaged schools to explore rotational learning. this was supplemented by mobile learning, with whatsapp messenger as the schools’ most preferred application. however, in the face of the concerns that were raised by education commentators, student bodies and teacher unions about the lack of public schools’ readiness for mobile learning, this social constructivist-oriented qualitative study adopted the technology acceptance model (tam) as a lens to investigate educators’ perceptions of whatsapp messenger as a supplementary tool for curriculum knowledge transfer and acquisition during the stricter covid 19 lockdown at three historically disadvantaged schools in south africa. this study drew on 12 educators’ diverse and convergent views. the participants generally deposited positive feedback regarding the benefit of using whatsapp messenger to engender curriculum knowledge transfer and acquisition. however, they also detailed a few negative aspects of this pursuit, primarily on how the financially needy learners were excluded from participating in this process. also, educators admitted that while going beyond the call of duty was necessary during the pandemic, the adoption of whatsapp-mediated teaching consumed most of their leisure time. according to them, this was compounded by poor internet connectivity due to the country’s power crisis. in some instances, this adversely affected the productivity of whatsapp messenger-mediated curriculum knowledge transfer and acquisition processes during the covid19 stricter lockdown regulations. keywords knowledge transfer; knowledge acquisition; educators; stricter lockdown; whatsapp 10.46303/ ressat.2023.10 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2023.10 38 ressat 2023, 8(2): 37-55 introduction between 2020 and 2021, south africa was brought to its knees by a pandemic whose effects on the livelihoods of the citizenry and the wellbeing of the economy were too dire to cope with. besides causing scores of deaths, unprecedented hospital admissions, massive worker retrenchments and alarmingly high business closures in the country’s recent history, the novel corona virus (covid-19) also affected the normalcy of professional services, social welfare services as well as all forms of socially oriented public gatherings and leisure activities. after recording the highest infection rates in africa, which saw cases skyrocketing from 61 to 402 in just several days, south african president cyril ramaphosa, acting on the advice of the national corona virus command council (ncvcc), imposed a nationwide lockdown effective from 26 march 2020. likewise, all educational institutions were instructed to halt their operations until further notice. however, following a seven-week closure, schooling was finally allowed to resume on the condition that appropriate safety protocols and policies were to be followed. in the main, this included ensuring that the prescribed 1.5 metres of social distancing between learners was plausible by scaling down on the number of learners in attendance and ensuring that the personal protective equipment (ppe) was procured and supplied to every learner and staff member. to maximally salvage what was left of the academic year, but without imposing major risks on the lives of learners and staff, the department of basic education (dbe) proposed using radio, tv educational resources, and online learning (dbe, 2020). however, remote and rotational classes supplemented by mobile learning were touted as the most preferential avenues (mutambara & bayaga, 2021). while most of the affluent schools opted for remote learning, a majority of the historically disadvantaged schools opted for rotational learning supplemented by whatsapp messenger. the dbe deemed a combination of rotational teaching and learning and mobile teaching and learning as equal to the task of sustaining the facilitation of curriculum knowledge transfer and acquisition while ensuring that safety protocols were observed. in addition, through the latter, learning material would be easily dispatched to learners (mutambara & bayaga, 2021). in practical terms, this implied that learners in historically disadvantaged schools were arranged into group formations, with each group guaranteed on-site learning for a specified number of days a week. whatsapp messenger was mostly used to ensure that those not scheduled to attend such classes could access recorded tutelage, acquire learning material, and liaise with educators via whatsapp messenger. this bold move caused consternation among parents, teacher unions, education administrators, learners and student bodies (united nations educational scientific and cultural organization [unesco, 2020]), especially around matters of how educators would be able to facilitate technology-mediated transferral of curriculum knowledge to learners. this is because they were not adequately skilled to do so (skhephe, 2022). the significance of this study is tied to addressing the apparent paucity of scientifically documented feedback detailing the resilience of schools in salvaging the academic year via 39 ressat 2023, 8(2): 37-55 technology applications (engzell et al., 2021). in this spirit, it investigated how educators in three historically disadvantaged south african schools perceived their adoption of whatsapp messenger to supplement the transfer and acquisition processes of curriculum knowledge to learners during the stricter covid-19-induced lockdown period. problem statement it is widely accepted that covid-19 has had a detrimental effect on the world’s schooling systems. it left governments scrambling for solutions to palliate its unprecedented aftermath, which gave credence to a temporary suspension of face-to-face tutelage in schools across the globe. according to the statistics provided by the united nations (un, 2020), it affected no less than 95% of the world’s learner population—and by far, constitutes the largest disruption to education in history. in south africa alone, 400,000 to 500,000 learners had dropped out of school in a space of 16 months at the coalface of the pandemic (united nations children’s fund, [unicef, 2020]). this is demonstrative of the impact of the unexpected pervasion of the pandemic on school operations and learners’ learning agency. for most learners, learning devices were out of reach, while provisions for technological resources and guidance on how to use them were made to the fortunate few. in low-income bracket families/households, learners were confronted by the scarcity of data and skills necessary to access and operate online learning applications (unicef, 2020). in response to the slow “emergence” of research shining a spotlight on how “during the lockdown” period, schools supported learners to navigate the tide of covid 19 (engzell et al., 2021, p. 118), the study elucidates how in south africa, the incurred 54 per cent curriculum knowledge deficit that came about as a result of a rigidly designed rotational school time-table, emergency closure of schools and a temporary suspension of learning activities for specific grades (spaull et al., 2020, p. 1) was addressed. therefore, the paper draws out educators’ perceptions of whatsapp messenger as a supplementary tool for curriculum knowledge transfer and acquisition during the stricter covid 19 lockdown. the significance of this paper is double-edged; not only does it contribute first-hand data on the extent to which schools catered for learners’ learning needs at the height of one of the world’s most recent catastrophic events (engzell et al., 2021), it also contributes a body of knowledge on the pros and cons of mobile learning in a local schooling context, which at this stage is a topic that is far from being exhaustively researched (chibisa & mutambara, 2022). the paper’s overriding objective was to understand educators’ perceptions of the ease of use and usefulness, as well as their overall experiences of the adoption of whatsapp messenger as a supplementary tool for curriculum knowledge transfer and acquisition during covid-19 stricter lockdown at selected historically disadvantaged schools in south africa. the following research questions informed the achievement of the research objectives: • what are the perceptions of educators regarding the ease of use of whatsapp messenger as a supplementary tool for curriculum knowledge transfer and acquisition 40 ressat 2023, 8(2): 37-55 during the stricter covid-19 lockdown at selected historically disadvantaged schools in south africa? • how do educators perceive the usefulness of whatsapp messenger as a supplementary tool for curriculum knowledge transfer and acquisition during the stricter covid-19 lockdown at selected historically disadvantaged schools in south africa? • which factors do educators consider as having negatively affected the selected schools’ adoption of whatsapp messenger as a supplementary tool for curriculum knowledge transfer and acquisition during the stricter covid-19 lockdown? structurally, the paper embodies three sections: literature review, theoretical overview, research methods, ethical issues, findings and discussions, the closing and recommendations. theoretical overview the post-apartheid state of affairs in historically disadvantaged schools historically disadvantaged schools are also referred to as township schools or under-resourced schools. they “are historical settlements designated for blacks and are characterised by poor socio-economic conditions and poor educational infrastructure and resources” (xaba & malindi, 2010, p. 75). they situated in densely populated neighborhoods and can be likened to ghettos in the united states and favelas in brazil. the prevalent infrastructural conditions and productivity trajectories of these schools are a reflection of the legacy of apartheid and are also a depiction of how unequal the south african society is. typically, these schools face an uphill battle in maximising their levels of teaching and operational efficiencies due to a range of challenges. recent statistics paint a gloomy picture of most of these schools. accordingly, the department of basic education and training (equal education [ee], 2018) divulged that for the year 2018 alone, out of 23,471 public schools, 20,071 had no laboratory facilities, while 18,019 were reported to have had no library, whereas 16,897 did not have internet connectivity. furthermore, close to 1,000 schools were without sports facilities, and about 4,358 were still using latrines for ablutions instead of proper flushing toilets. in addition, 1,027 were not fenced to protect educators and learners from criminal and violent elements. meanwhile, 239 were not electrified, and 37 had non-existent ablution facilities (ee, 2019). although these schools receive a subsidy from the government to remain operational, it is often insufficient to enable them to leverage positive academic outcomes and best operational practices fully. this view is in consonance with amnesty international (ai, 2020), whose investigation concluded that learners from the lowest income brackets are prone to performing poorly in the twelfth grade. literature claims that the status quo is exacerbated by these schools’ high concentration of educators deprived of quality training, often passive and pessimistic school communities, low parental involvement, incoherent monitoring evaluation systems, and accountability measures (mouton et al., 2013). instead of the normal 1:35 teacherlearner ratio, in many instances, most schools must contend with a double dosage of that ratio (ai, 2020). also, worth noting is that while it is generally accepted that the middle-class bracket 41 ressat 2023, 8(2): 37-55 has increased exponentially among black south africans (a term used to refer to africans, coloureds and indians), in most of these schools, hunger is still very much the order of the day. most learners come to school on an empty stomach and are reliant on the one meal per day provided to them by the school through a government-funded national nutrition programme (nsnp) while in attendance (nkambule, 2020). much of what has been discussed above, along with the fact that only 4000 (15 per cent) of the country’s many schools utilise the internet to facilitate teaching and learning processes (dbe 2021), as pointed out by chetty (2020), exposes the duality of the country’s public educational service. it is housed under the deceptive guise of an integrated/inclusive education system (p. 245). this was also prevalent at the height of the pandemic; most learners from rural and township schools struggled to keep up with technology-mediated learning due to either not having the devices and access to data or skills required to partake in it; whereas their counterparts in affluent schools had all the necessary technological devices and guidance needed (muhigana, 2020). this situation largely contributed to the schools’ below-average performance (moloi, 2019, cited in mokoena & hlalele, p. 11) at the coalface of the stricter covid-19 lockdown regulations (mokoena & hlalele, 2022). linking knowledge management processes with institutional learning as the world draws closer to the fourth industrial revolution (4ir), knowledge becomes the world’s nations’ strategic wealth. while the importance of knowledge to the prosperity of nations is undebatable and articulated, the same cannot be said about its definition. according to nkambule (2020), knowledge is generally hard to define and is a concept that is fiercely debatable. despite these uncertainties about what constitutes knowledge, nonaka and company (i.e., nonaka, 1994; nonaka & takeuchi, 1995, 2001; nonaka & konno, 1998, nonaka et al., 2000; nonaka & toyama, 2003, 2005) are adamant that knowledge appears in two interrelated forms, namely explicit and tacit. explicit knowledge takes a physical shape and can be drawn from documented materials such as books, computers, files, billboards, chalkboards, newspapers and more. however, tacit knowledge is intangible and is nurtured and safeguarded by people’s minds. nonaka and konno (2003) argue that since tacit knowledge dwells in people’s minds, its externalisation from these minds requires adopting the concept of knowledge management (km). in the context of education, akpan (2015, p. 25) defines km as an activity of creating “an enabling environment in which both staff and students in schools carry out learning activities and share knowledge with one another within the school environment”. it is generally accepted that km is underpinned by four processes: knowledge creation, knowledge transfer, knowledge acquisition and knowledge application (altaher, 2010; intezari et al., 2017). while all four processes have an intermingling relationship, knowledge transfer, also known as knowledge sharing (nkambule, 2020, 2022, 2023; nonaka, 1994; nonaka & takeuchi, 2001; nonaka & konno, 2003; petrides & nordene, 2003) and knowledge acquisition (andreeva et al., 2011; chen et al., 2011; matar & raudeliūnienė, 2021; nishihara, 2018) are 42 ressat 2023, 8(2): 37-55 singled out as more aligned with active learning and knowledge innovation (nguyen & pham, 2020). knowledge acquisition can be characterised as learners’ consumption of tacit and explicit knowledge through various interventions (i.e., teaching, reading, studying, and more) using face-to-face teaching in a classroom or a virtual platform. knowledge transfer can be viewed in light of it being a series of educational experiences during which educators, learners, administrators and schools engage one another “through various channels such as classroom teaching, conferences, staff or board meetings, mentoring, formal and informal interactions and networks, best practices and databases and social media platforms” (akpan, 2015, p. 34). concisely, on the one hand, knowledge processes facilitate access to information/knowledge to the intended recipients so that it can be acquired and explored to derive lessons from it. on the other hand, km is a strategy to support the facilitation of these knowledge processes. much of what is discussed above is in consonance with ground-breaking theoretical perspectives of renowned km scholars, most notably nonaka and konno (1998), who often speak about the concept of “ba”, referring to it as shared spaces for people to explore knowledge processes socially. these authors indicate that such spaces (or ba) are provided to facilitate the conversion of tacit into explicit knowledge or vice versa, either through face-toface (one-on-one and group-based social experiences) or cyber-mediated (one-on-one and group-based social experiences). based on “ba”, it can be deduced that intensified and meticulously planned strategies of transferring knowledge to learners are crucial to acquiring learning outcomes that will endow them with the agency for immersing themselves in selfregulated and collaborative knowledge creation and application processes. little did the world know how in years to come, the utilisation of cyberspace would herald a paradigm shift around matters of exploring alternative teaching and learning methods to salvage the academic year and spark debates about the future outlook of south africa’s education system. as was witnessed in how before the pandemic most historically disadvantaged schools facilitated the transferral and acquisition processes of curriculum knowledge via face-to-face (one-on-one and group-based) type of social experiences, versus how during the pandemic they had to abruptly migrate the facilitation of these (one-on-one and group-based) social experiences to the cyber/digital space—for which they were caught unexpectedly. hence it was of interest for this paper to gain an insight into how educators navigated these uncharted territories of mobile learning, facilitated via whatsapp messenger. theoretical framing: technology acceptance model the paper adopted the technology acceptance model (tam) as a theoretical lens. initially propagated by davis in 1989, who adapted it from ajzen and fishbein’s theory of reasoned action (tra) (venkatesh & bala, 2008). also, over the years, tam went through a series of reinforcements by davis and collaborators (i.e., bagozzi, davis & warshaw 1992; davis 1989 ). essentially, tam was a breakaway from tra’s attitude measures. it instead replaced them with technology acceptance measures—ease of use and usefulness (venkatesh, 2000). wenger and 43 ressat 2023, 8(2): 37-55 collaborators decided on this based on their observation that as technology pervades the world, people often apply their senses before embracing technology. these authors further argue that people might be apprehensive about it due to a lack of information, self-doubt, or fear of the unknown. hence, they hypothesised that by infusing ease-of-use, and usefulness, the model would be reinforced cognitive indicators that would project the need for the management of external dynamics (i.e., social influence, peer pressure and rumours) that can potentially put people’s efforts of adopting technology in harm’s way. to that end, they formularised the model as follows: bi (for behavioural intention) is determined by the wellbeing of a (for attitude) towards technology, as demonstrated by the following attitudinal indicators: perceived usefulness (pu) (davis, 1989): this speaks to the potential user’s conjuring of the benefits that adopting technology stands to yield for their work performance. perceived ease-of-use (peou): this relates to the extent to which they consider the effortlessness of using the application and their inclination towards it over the convenience it can bring to their work performance (venkatesh & davis, 2000). in practically terms, the adoption of this theoretical position enabled the researcher to frame the interview questions around the key components of tam (i.e., bi, a, pu, peou) to generate feedback that would lead to the fulfilment of the study’s objectives. applying an allencompassing approach to investigating participants’ perceptions of the adoption of whatsapp as a supplementary tool for curriculum knowledge transfer and acquisition during the stricter covid 19 lockdown in their respective schools, meant that the researcher had to pay equal attention to documenting data that emerged through participants’ verbal utterance and body language. hence, besides having used a tape recorder the researcher also carried with him an observation instrument (i.e. a notepad) to record participants’ body and facial gestures to ascertain their behavioral aspects and attitudinal characteristics towards the issue in question. in that sense, basing this social inquiry on tam descriptors (i.e., bi, a, pu, peou) facilitated the generation of rich and context specific data, and also drew the investigation and the analysis of the findings closer to addressing the research problems/questions. a practical manifestation of the influence of tam on the proceedings of the investigation and research questions is lucidly demonstrated in the format of the findings. research methods research approach and paradigm this qualitative inquiry was underpinned by social constructivism. the social constructivism paradigm complements qualitative research and makes the researcher a co-constructor of participants’ lived experiences (lincoln & guba, 2013). the symbiosis between qualitative research and social constructivism enabled the researcher to draw data through participants’ verbal (creswell, 2016) and non-verbal impressions (denham & onwuegbuzie, 2013) in a natural setting. the researcher’s stance of paying equal attention to verbal and non-verbal communication thickened data “description and interpretation” (denham & onwuegbuzie, 44 ressat 2023, 8(2): 37-55 2013, p. 670), and drew the researcher closer to gaining participants’ first-hand experiences (silverman, 2016) concerning their perceptions of the usefulness of whatsapp messenger as a supplementary tool for curriculum knowledge transfer and acquisition during the stricter covid-19 lockdown period, at selected historically disadvantaged schools in south africa. sample selection tavakoli (2012) defines a sample as the number of participants selected from the population of items or people for data collection purposes. as a sample, the paper focussed on 12 educators sourced from three participating schools. table 1. interviewed participants participant gender age field experience additional role highest qualification educator 1 male 47 23 head of department honours degree educator 2 male 52 29 head of department postgraduate diploma educator 3 female 34 10 sports co-ordinator bachelor’s degree educator 4 female 33 07 netball coach bachelor’s degree educator 5 female 37 15 sbst member bachelor’s degree educator 6 male 51 24 head of department honours degree educator 7 female 47 23 sgb member postgraduate diploma educator 8 male 46 18 life skills coordinator honours degree educator 9 male 57 37 head of department honours degree educator 10 male 29 03 soccer team coach bachelor’s degree educator 11 female 52 28 sbst member national diploma educator 12 female 34 09 netball coach pgce white (2004) states that the researcher uses purposive sampling to capture the participants of interest to the investigation purposefully. educators were selected to participate in the investigation based on their occupation’s alignment with the topic. also, the researcher purposefully selected educators of different ranks. for example, six participants were ordinary classroom educators who do not perform supervisory duties, while the other six were heads of departments (hods) who doubled as classroom educators and curriculum supervisors. likewise, schools were purposefully selected based on the distance between the researcher’s locality and that of the three schools. data collection literature promotes the employment of more than one data collection method as it effectively increases data credibility through data triangulation (bernard, 2002) or crystallisation (stewart et al., 2017). in keeping with this, data were collected through various means, specifically through semi-structured face-to-face interviews and document analysis. fundamentally, interviews came in handy around bringing the researcher closer to how participants (educators) perceived their engagement with whatsapp messenger to supplement curriculum knowledge transfer and acquisition at the height of the pandemic. also, documents that were analysed either confirmed or contradicted (or, in some instances, substantiated) what participants 45 ressat 2023, 8(2): 37-55 already mentioned during their interview sessions. these documents included circulars directed to schools from the circuit, district and national education offices. in addition to this, the researcher retrieved policy documents from the websites of both national and provincial education department that were of relevance to the investigation (e.g., covid 19 protocols, the covid 19 trimmed curriculum assessment policy statement [caps]). furthermore, educators’ files were inspected by the researcher to get a sense of how lesson planning and rotational timetables were structured. data analysis according to silverman (2016), data analysis accounts for how the researcher interacted with raw data, and subsequently converted it into a useful and context specific body of scientific knowledge that is in tandem with the research questions. the researcher was determined to keep an audit trail of data collected during various stages of the inquiry. an audio tape was used to record all the interviews to capture the discussions held with participants during the interviews. the narratives of participants were transcribed and analysed. subsequently, the researcher listened to the audio-recorded material and began transcribing the data verbatim according to the “expressions of the participants” (chetram, 2017, p. 65), in terms of which he initiated the coding process. according to creswell (2015, p. 156), coding refers to the disintegration of “qualitative data” into various clusters of factors that appear to be aligned to the objectives/questions tabled in the study “before putting the data back together in a meaningful way”. rather than following the contemporary norm of using software applications to fast-track data coding processes (welsh, 2002), the researcher opted for manual coding. accordingly, st john and johnson (2000, p. 393) assert that, in instances where the researcher endeavours to intensely immerse themselves in the experience of exploring “depth and meaning” rather than “the volume and breadth” of qualitative data, software coding should be shirked in favour of manual coding. this is because the latter helps the research to avoid “deterministic processes, privileging of coding and ratification”. therefore, all the transcribed views were inspected “line-by-line” using a highlighter pen to highlight themes of interest (maree et al., 2007, p. 105), and notes were written in the margins of the transcript (nkambule, 2020). this culminated in tentative themes and patterns that were subsequently compared to the research objectives/questions, upon which it was determined that they could be used to catalyse the reporting of the paper’s findings (erlingsson & brysiewicz, 2017). ethical issues research ethics pertain to the expected norms and practices from the researchers as they embark on a research journey to ensure that the rights and wellbeing of participants are not trampled upon (world health organisation [who, n.d]). in research, by setting guidelines on how the researcher is expected to treat the process, as well as by making it mandatory for participants to be oriented on the nature of the investigation, both parties are safeguarded from 46 ressat 2023, 8(2): 37-55 unknowingly engaging in a dubious research process (shamoo & resnik, 2015). hence, one’s research plan needs to be vetted by an impartial body before the researcher commences with it. similarly, all due processes were followed to ensure that the research proceedings moved in tandem with research ethics. prior to engaging in data collection processes, the proposal version of the study was brought to the attention of the ethics review committee and was found to have sufficiently espoused ethical intentions. it detailed how participants were to be informed about the purpose of the study and the implications of their participation in it; and how the researcher would ensure the anonymity of participants and respect their right to withdraw from the investigation should they no longer desire to continue participating in it. the second lap of ethical compliance occurred through the researcher sending the proposal along with the ethical clearance certificate to the relevant provincial education department. the department also assessed the investigation's merits and suitability to the interest of schools under their purview. to show satisfaction with the inquiry's merits, they issued a letter in which the researcher was granted permission to conduct data collection at three selected schools. results and discussion the discussion of results embodies the findings that came to light after the finalisation of the thematic analysis. this thematic discussion is aligned with the paper's objectives (i.e., to understand educators’ perceptions of the ease of use and usefulness of whatsapp messenger as a supplementary tool for curriculum knowledge transfer and acquisition during the stricter covid-19 lockdown at selected historically disadvantaged schools in south africa), as thematically demonstrated below. perceived ease-of-use of whatsapp messenger as a supplementary tool participants generally exhibited positive reaction concerning the ease-of-use of whatsapp messenger during the stricter covid 19 lockdown. this is consistent with munir et al. (2021) who declared whatsapp as one of the most user-friendly applications for the education sector. this was evident in their verbatim responses, as stated below. educator 2 commented: it is very easy to go around the application and does not need special training. educator 6 added: in the beginning, i was scared, but now i can use it anytime. we still use it now after the pandemic. educator 9 concluded: i am comfortable with using whatsapp, and i think i am doing a good job. even my learners are happy with how things are working out. during data analysis, it was evident that even the older generation of educators who admitted that although there were ‘teething’ problems initially, they were thankful for the support and guidance given to them by young people around them; in terms of which, they commented: 47 ressat 2023, 8(2): 37-55 at first, although i had smartphone for years, but i had never been on whatsapp. so, i was very blank, but my 20-year-old son coached me how to do it. although i am still not perfect but at least i am able to perform basic teaching function on whatsapp. in the same breath, educator 11 stated: i don’t know what i would have done had it not been for the assistance i received from assistant teachers. those guys are young and good with these things. they made it seamless to operate whatsapp for learning purposes. participants also mentioned how using whatsapp enabled them to facilitate social communication and educational communication with minimal complications and teething problems (fattah, 2015). based on participants’ responses, it is evident that they perceived the ease-of-use of whatsapp messenger as a supplementary tool for curriculum knowledge transfer and acquisition in a positive light. the perceived usefulness of whatsapp messenger as a supplementary tool equal distribution of curriculum coverage participants described the usefulness of whatsapp messenger within the contours of it having enabled them to dispatch instant text and voice messages, images, video, and audio content to learners, and among themselves as co-workers this was expressed by educator 1 in his capacity as an hod, who said: whatsapp is very useful, and i honestly think it is the way to go. in our school, teachers were able to teach in class after which, (during free periods), had the opportunity to record a summarised version of the same content that was taught in class to groups of learners at home (educator 8). educator 5 added: whatsapp made sure that, between those attending classes and those at home, no learner was left behind. this finding was pre-empted by public sector education strategists who, amidst criticism, called for public schools to blend various modes of mobile learning with rotational learning to augment teachers’ curriculum delivery efficiency to ensure that learners benefited maximally from it (dbe, 2020). this finding was also replicated in a study by chibisa and mutambara (2022), which projected whatsapp as one of the mobile learning applications that have the propensity for sustaining active teaching and learning activities in crises such as covid-19. creation of collaborative learning opportunities collaborative learning occurs when two or more people are engaged in shared learning experiences (asterhan & schwarz, 2016). participants extended their appreciation for the application’s propensity for yielding collaborative learning opportunities among learners. this sentiment was deposited as follows: learners recorded questions which they had to answer during our spare time. the nice thing about it is that it makes it a lot easier to chat with learners and explain what they missed in class. as a result, only a few learners made excuses for not doing their homework due to 48 ressat 2023, 8(2): 37-55 having not understood the content (educator 4). back-and-forth texting was educational to learners because it abled them to find solutions by discussing among themselves via whatsapp (educator 12). this finding demonstrates what has already been recorded in previous studies, most notably alshayeb (2018) and fattah (2015), both of whom underscore that besides it being one of the popular mobile learning platforms, whatsapp has the gravitas for energising student engagement and collaboration in teaching and learning processes. creation of teacher-mediated learners’ self-directed learning opportunities it further emerged that not only did mobile learning provide learners with the agency for exploring and their intake of curriculum knowledge through whatsapp sessions. in that way, learners took charge of their learning (mutambara & bayaga, 2021) but without side-steeping the mediating role of the teacher who guided them every step of the way during these processes. also, one-on-one or individual attention was given to learners earmarked as needy of special attention, as indicated below. i had about six learners who needed extra attention, so i always made sure that on days when they did not attend classes, after sending school work to them, i would whatsapp call them to guide them on how to approach the work. and i can tell you, most of the times after guiding them, they would do better than they did in class. i found that when working with them through whatsapp, they were more active and not afraid to ask questions (educator 9). this was supported by educator 2, who mentioned: i was amazed by how even shy learners were actively participating in group chats about the content. [to which she smilingly added:] whatsapp has really unleashed the beast in them. the above narrative is a sheer display of learning agency, which badura (2003) defines as an individual learner’s self-efficacy and “the power to originate action” (p. 3) to participate in their own learning experience actively. perceived negative factors associated with the adoption of whatsapp messenger research illustrates that while whatsapp benefits teaching, learning and administrative functions of education, it does have some disadvantages (munir et al., 2021). the findings encapsulated in this theme are as follows. deprives learners from low-income families participants conceded that whatsapp ruled out some learners from low-income households who could not participate in mobile learning on days when they were not scheduled to participate in rotational learning. some of the reasons for this are characterised as follows. in four classes that i taught of about 67 learners, 13 learners did not have smartphones. therefore, they were always behind (educator 1). them not having smartphones made them feel vulnerable and their confidence in the process diminished as they felt excluded (gusuringa, 2018). furthermore, educators 6 and 11 shared how: 49 ressat 2023, 8(2): 37-55 some of these learners could not afford to buy data (educator 6), and how parents did not buy data because their parents thought they wanted to chat with friends and not study (educator 11). these findings typify the digital divide that unesco (2020) discussed in their investigation on the state of readiness for south african schools to conduct digital education amidst covid-19. consumes educators’ leisure and family time participants unanimously agreed that while they understood the significance of their role in saving the learners’ academic year, this did not happen without an inconvenience. educator 7 argued: i am not as healthy as i used to be a few years ago. i get tired easily, but i had to stretch myself to try and prevent these learners from not learning anything. although that is what i am paid for, but it should have never happened like it did during the pandemic. educator 2 added: my wife and i were just blessed with our first-born child, and she was very upset with me for not helping her out with the baby. i wanted to help her, but i couldn’t at the time due to me being online after hours trying to help my learners. learners’ irresponsible and posting of inappropriate content participants were generally unhappy with how learners would sometimes upload material that did not relate to the learning outcomes. educator 1 indicated: some learners were out of the way. they would chat about personal things that is why i often scolded them for doing so. in the same breath, educator 4 said: i had to ask parents to monitor if their children were really studying whenever they claimed to be online and studying. poor connectivity issues due to load-shedding and load-reduction townships are usually where municipal services are not rendered to communities appropriately. while most educators understood the logic behind load-shedding, they did not understand how load-reduction, a wave of power cuts that usually lasts for up to five consecutive hours per day, only affected their neighbourhoods and not also the affluent ones. they commented that as a result of the latter, they were often unable to service learners when most of them were likely to be online. educator 2 stated: by the time electricity would come back, i would be in bed already. educator 3 mentioned: load-reduction was very bad for me as i had to post lessons and only hear the buzz of my phone much later when i would be planning to put the day to rest. this finding demonstrates that the country’s ongoing electricity crisis which has escalated into regular power outages, also known as “load shedding, is severally and jointly liable for some challenges confronting the education sector” (matsheta & sefoka, 2023, p. 216). 50 ressat 2023, 8(2): 37-55 conclusion and recommendations the paper investigated educators’ perceptions of whatsapp messenger as a supplementary tool for curriculum knowledge transfer and acquisition during the stricter covid-19 lockdown at three historically disadvantaged schools in south africa. interviews with 12 educators illuminated that whatsapp was easy enough to use overall. participants also deposited positive feedback regarding the benefit of using it to engender curriculum knowledge transfer and acquisition. they further shared how not everything was positive about using whatsapp to facilitate knowledge transfer and acquisition. not all learners could be actively involved in learning via whatsapp, mostly due to socio-economic reasons and lack of parental support. also, educators admitted that while going beyond the call of duty was necessary during the pandemic, the adoption of whatsapp-mediated teaching consumed most of their leisure time. interviews were concluded by their dissatisfaction with poor connectivity caused by loadshedding and load-reduction, adversely disturbing their pattern of facilitating curriculum knowledge transferral and acquisition during the stricter covid-19 lockdown regulations. based on the above findings, the paper recommends that, in case of a similar pandemic, plans be set aside to accommodate learners who do not possess smartphones or do not have the means to purchase data so that they too can actively participate in mobile learning. parents must be urged to monitor their children’s online activities, so they do not post irrelevant material. educators need to be prepared psychologically for the task ahead by orienting them with best practices to emulate and by making them realise the importance of the teaching profession in developing a crop of future ready technocrats, artisans and entrepreneurs who will carry forward the economic development agenda of the country. induction programmes for educators should illustrate how south african teachers can possibly learn from their counterparts in the developing world who work longer hours and go an extra-mile to serve their respective nations. the study further recommends that the government sees how best to normalise the grid, especially during pandemic situations, so that education does not become a casualty. the researcher noted some limitations of the study. interviews were conducted between august and september 2020, shortly after the covid 19 stricter restrictions were relaxed and infection cases were on a gradual decline. even during that period, there was a still a noticeably high semblance of apprehension among participants, which in some instances, made some of them express how they preferred keeping their individual interview sessions short by providing concise responses to questions posed to them by the researcher. two participants shared how they had lost colleagues and how that activated their fear of catching the virus. this can thus be 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(2022). environmental education in south african schools: the role of civil society organizations. research in social sciences and technology, 7(3), 1-17. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2022.14 copyright license this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. abstract environmental education (ee) is an integrated component of the south african curriculum and assessment policy statement (caps) document. pro-ee civil society organisations are actively involved in the implementation of ee policies in schools. the roles played by civil society organisations contribute to the trajectory of practical environmental programmes. this study adopted an interpretive paradigm, a qualitative approach, and a phenomenological design anchored on bronfenbrenner's philosophical view of human development. one pro-ee civil society organisation and two respondents were purposefully sampled. semi-structured interviews and documents were tools employed to collect qualitative data and results were analysed thematically. the study revealed that pro-ee civil society organisations play a pivotal role which includes; equipping learners to live sustainably, teachers’ professional development, and policy formulation. the study recommended that the south school act be amended to make ee policy mandatory. the department of basic education (dbe) should provide sufficient resources to pro-ee civil society organisations to expand ecoschools project-based initiatives in schools regardless of the geographical location. keywords civil society organisation; environmental education; eco-schools programme; teachers’ professional development. 10.46303/ressat.2022.14 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2022.14 2 ressat 2022, 7(3): 1-17 introduction rapid climate change and its socio-economic consequences have recently dominated world debate. the cop26 meeting in glasgow, scotland, gathered world leaders to take a hard stance on climate challenges. resolutions from this world-stage conference include, among other things, the phase-out of coal use, deforestation, and the protection and restoration of ecosystems. by the close of cop26, 151 countries had submitted their nationally determined contributions to curtail emissions by 2030 (mountford et al., 2021). environmental education (ee) actively contributes to environmental preservation by instilling a sense of commitment and responsibility for the environment. additionally, ee emphasises the importance of lifelong learning and the enhancement of appropriate behaviour for environmental stewardship. the school curriculum should be revised regularly to reflect contemporary ee practices and provide students with skills necessary for environmental problem solving (risiro, 2014). civil society organisations (csos) have been involved in every development aspect. their participation in development programmes, notably ee, has been critical to accomplishing development goals. they have consultative status, research, publish policy papers, and organise collective social actions such as protests and boycotts. they promote awareness and assist the public and policymakers in their educational efforts (strange & bayley, 2008). csos are key stakeholders in fostering sustainable development, particularly in emerging nations that are generally democratic. the 1972 stockholm conference and the 1992 rio earth summit were significant in ushering in a new era of cso participation in setting agendas and influencing practices. the un commission on sustainable development (csd), the body responsible for agenda 21, specifically urged governments to recognise that csos have established experience, expertise, and capacity in various cardinal fields for implementing and reviewing environmental and sustainable development policy initiatives (unced, 1992). the csos ecosystem is a diverse range of organisations and individuals engaged in several activities, including human rights, development, education, women's problems, and religious activities. cooperation between all stakeholders, including csos, is vital for the long-term success of the implementation of environmental education school policy (ieesp), and this initiative will require the adoption of proactive, mutually beneficial, environmentally friendly, and sustainable conservation strategies (burgess, 2017). saab (2019) argued that stakeholders, individuals, and communities are becoming increasingly aware of environmental challenges. this increase in understanding and awareness has resulted chiefly from campaigns and educational programmes conducted by prominent environmental public interest groups. these csos include international, regional, and national non-governmental organisations dedicated to advancing the interests of education for sustainable development (esd). 3 ressat 2022, 7(3): 1-17 in the southern african development community (sadc) region, the environmental education association of southern africa (eeasa) is instrumental in the transitional trajectory in the sub-evolution regions from natural studies to ee, education for sustainable development (esd), and its numerous manifestations, such as the green economy. the eeasa draws inspiration from other csos such as the kalahari conservation society in botswana, the wilderness leadership school, the mlilwane trust in swaziland, the wildlife and environment society of south africa (wessa), world wide fund (wwf-sa), birdlife south africa, and the endangered wildlife trust (ewt), which pioneered the practice of ee (downsborough & lotz-sisitka, 2010). these groups have facilitated the development of grassroots initiatives for environmental conservation and preservation. csos play a critical role in ee by serving as a vital source of information. they could assist the government in this quest by serving as advisory bodies to the government. in effect, they act as the government's eyes and ears and educate the public to foster a climate of conservation awareness. they play a critical role in disseminating environmental knowledge and providing various instructional and motivational tools to the general population (saab, 2019). wessa, a pro-ee cso, manages the programme ee extracurricular programmes in schools. the organisation is a vital member of the international environmental community dedicated to ee and esd. pro-ee csos act as a catalyst for the implementation of ee policies in schools. the fundisa for change development network (fcdn) collaborates with environmental sector partners, including wessa. they respond to the need to strengthen teacher education and practice, particularly concerning environmental content and concepts in the curriculum. ee school policy should be effectively coordinated and communicated in the school curriculum to ensure a consistent structure for attaining the caps document's aims and objectives (tiana & lentsoane, 2016). through south africa's political transformation, csos have been critical to the country's development. they provide essential services such as education to the country's less privileged majority, policies, laws, and holding the government accountable for developmental responsibilities. they had a significant antagonistic and active role throughout the apartheid years, aided in their efforts by significant international development funds. as a result of the democratic transition following 1994, their functions and strategy shifted. democratic participatory systems eliminated the need for a confrontational stance. the period was marked by approach and economic shifts that saw many csos assume a delivery role while their advocacy and strategic ability deteriorated (volmink & van der elst, 2017). south africa's adoption of the national development plan (ndp) has changed the political landscape in recent years. the ndp lays out a new strategic path for csos in general. it is planned to engage with the government and share responsibility for accomplishing the plan's social contract with businesses (burgess, 2017). in the current dispensation, pro-ee csos have made their voices heard in the implementation of ee policies in schools through the exposure of learners to project-based environmental co-curricular activities. 4 ressat 2022, 7(3): 1-17 research questions to acquire a better understanding of the issue under consideration, the researcher breaks down the primary research question as follows: • why is there a need for civil society organisations (csos) to be involved in school ee policy implementation? theoretical framework and literature review to objectively assess the role of csos in the development of environmental education, the study is theoretically grounded in bronfenbrenner's ecological human development. the theory is centred on the individual (referred to as the learner). it emphasises the child's biological makeup critical microenvironment that fuels development. the theory examine various environmental components and multiple individuals engaged in diverse interactions, roles, actions, and processes (rosa & tudge, 2013). the idea emphasises the developing individual and the learning environment created and the individuals who inhabit it, with their intricate web of human relationships, roles, actions, and processes (härkönen, 2007, rosa & tudge, 2013). bronfenbrenner’s theory is influenced by five systemic concentric factors; microsystems, mesosystems, exosystems, macrosystems, and chronosystem. the microsystem is the immediate environment, institutions, individuals, and groups interacting and influencing child development. these interactive systemic factors include home, school, friends, parents, teachers and other stakeholders (bronfenbrenner, 1979; morrison, 2018; filander, 2015). the mesosystem involves the interrelationship between the factors that support the microsystem, such as interconnections between individuals' homes and schools and learners. these systems work in harmony to support children’s development (bronfenbrenner, 1979). learners establish links between their school principals, teachers, and parents (gray & macblain, 2015). the microsystem demonstrates how effective and relevant ee policies may be implemented by csos through learners’ engagement in environmental awareness activities in the classroom, extramural activities, and in their communities. volmink and van der elst (2017) argued that, in recent years, the political landscape has shifted even again as a result of south africa's adoption of africa's development plan (ndp). the ndp lays out a new strategic route for csos more broadly. together with businesses, it is envisioned as collaborating with the government and sharing responsibility for achieving the plan's social compact. in response to this backdrop, the national education collaboration trust (nect) sponsored a national education ngo leadership summit in 2016 in response to this backdrop. it gathered together education-related csos to reflect on their respective roles in assisting with the implementation of the national development plan (ndp) and their operational readiness and sustainability to do so. the summit acknowledged the critical role of csos in furthering the national education goal, assessed progress toward implementing the ndp and emphasised the critical role of collaboration among all stakeholders. the 1998 nema 5 ressat 2022, 7(3): 1-17 encourages public participation. csos provide scientific expertise and knowledge to policymakers, as well as in promoting general environmental literacy (burgess, 2017). the roles of csos in the development of environmental education the study reviewed different roles played by csos. adversarial role csos press the government to make policy changes and to remain accountable to the public. in this capacity they educate the public; mobilise and organise citizens; and pressure the government through protests, the media, petitions, and pr stunts. additionally, they use official civic actions to ensure that regulations are followed. csos use these functions to oppose and hold governments responsible for implementing ee school policies (burgess, 2017). advocacy csos and other movements can advocate for their constituents and struggle for change. while criticising activities and programs that are unfriendly to the environment, civil society has tirelessly pushed for the necessity of environmental sustainability (mwije, 2021). csos may advocate for environmental protection and climate change mitigation policies by expressing and pursuing their goals through various methods, including public advocacy, voter education, lobbying lawmakers, research, and public demonstrations. they work to support and promote local and international populations to change policies and practices that damage their ecosystems. cso activism has aided environmental management in most of the world's areas (burgess, 2017) lobbying mwije (2021) argued that csos enable citizens' concerns about environmental management and natural resource conservation to be 'pushed' forward. in most industrialised countries, csos were initially formed to oppose big lobbies and evolved into a counter-power because citizens are educated enough to articulate their issues and defend their interests. saab (2019) asserted that csos have a role in advocating for increased government transparency, specifically in the decision-making processes around natural resource distribution. by advocating for community involvement in agenda formulation and public decision-making, they establish a political space for everyone to advocate for their environmental objectives and needs. empowerment and capacity building csos empower and strengthen local communities to manage their environment sustainably through local conservation programmes that are sometimes aligned with government strategies. csos employ specialists with specialised knowledge and experience to help develop policies and procedures and discover and implement solutions. they also serve as capacity builders by providing education and training which contributes to creating awareness about the importance of environmental sustainability (saab, 2019). 6 ressat 2022, 7(3): 1-17 awareness & dissemination of environmental education the environment may be managed effectively through increasing public awareness and understanding of sustainable development principles, leveraging the media and civil society’s comparative assets (uganda national commission for unesco, 2010). without environmental knowledge, the populace lacks both the motive to act and the ability to spur government action. ee, through sensitisation, should be encouraged to influence indigenous people's perceptions and people's about protected areas. the more easily understandable environmental information civil society organisations broadcast, the more likely their message will be received, and their activities will produce fruit. access to information on environmental management can catalyse residents to adopt more environmentally-conscious behaviours. they can shift their focus away from destroying the environment and toward conservation (mwije, 2021). influencing participation of communities in environmental education csos act as a voice for communities and empowers indigenous people to participate in development initiatives such as sustainable environmental management that incorporate both indigenous and formal knowledge (mwije, 2021). csos' ee programmes are mainly communitybased. these activities influence and create environmental awareness. many people are inspired and motivated to participate in environmental activities due to the involvement of csos. resources mobilisation cso is growingly involved in implementing government ee policies, and their primary benefit is their ability to reach out to the community. csos can quickly mobilise resources such as human and financial resources to implement environmental management programmes promptly and efficiently, whether for the government or locally initiated programmes in communities and schools, as a result of their networking and partnerships with the government, communities, market sectors, and donors (unesco, 2010). method the researcher discussed the research paradigm, research approach, research design, sampling strategies, data collection instruments, data analysis technique, and research ethics, relevant and applicable to the phenomena under study. research approach and paradigm a qualitative technique was used in this research. the research method includes formulating questions and procedures, gathering data in the participant's natural environment, inductively analysing the data by advancing from specifics to general themes, and the researcher forming conclusions about the data's meaning (mcmillan & schumacher, 2010). according to o'leary (2017), the qualitative approach is a method for conducting research that relies significantly on unquantified material such as words, images, experiences, and observations. the adopted qualitative approach is in order to understand the lived 7 ressat 2022, 7(3): 1-17 experiences of the respondents in their natural setting. the study used a phenomenology design to make sense of respondents' actual experiences' and complement the research approach chosen. according to creswell (2013), phenomenology design is a philosophical and psychological investigation in which the researcher explains the participants' lived experiences of phenomena. this design assisted the researcher to shed light on the existing phenomena pertaining to the roles played by csos in the development of ee in schools. the interpretivist paradigm underpins the study. the interpretive paradigm of research aims to comprehend the respondents' lived experiences (cohen et al., 2018). according to mcmillan and schumacher (2010) and creswell and creswell (2018), this paradigm requires the researcher to rely on the respondent's perspectives on their roles in the play development of ee. creswell and poth (2017) argued that interpretive researchers strive to uncover respondents' perspectives, views, opinions, understanding, and meanings of social phenomena. the interpretive paradigm focuses on understanding the individual's perception of the world. thus, the interpretivist paradigm's fundamental assumption is that reality is socially produced. this is why the constructivist paradigm has been referred to at times (kivunja & kuyini, 2017). the paradigm is relevant as the study aims to investigate the roles played by csos. the researcher sought the views of csos on the phenomena as espoused by creswell and poth (2017). this paradigm helped the study unpack the perceptions, views, and understanding of respondents on the investigated phenomenon. participants and sampling strategy according to mcmillan and schumacher (2010), purposeful sampling is a technique in which the researcher selects certain parts of the population that will be valuable in data collection and a representative of the study of interest. a single pro-ee cso was specifically chosen for the study. wessa was purposefully selected because they have contributed immensely to the development with their footprints in over 4500 schools in all nine provinces and 1 036 000 students and 41 400 educators as registered members. two eco-schools project coordinators were sampled purposefully to get the relevant data for the study. table 1. civil society organisation respondents’ characteristics gender no. code age experience position cso qualification female 1 p1 4045 12 eco school facilitator wessa b.ed. male 1 p2 3540 8 project facilitator wessa b.sc. 8 ressat 2022, 7(3): 1-17 table 1 illustrates cso respondents’ characteristics based on categories such as gender and age, among others. two personnel from one cso participated in the interview. due to covid-19 pandemic restrictions, semi-structured interviews were conducted telephonically. data collection and analysis semi-structured interviews and documents were used to gather qualitative data. the qualitative data collected from one cso was analysed using a thematic analysis technique. a set of text from interview transcripts is used (creswell & clark, 2017). thematic analysis is usually regarded as the most basic method for analysing qualitative data (braun & clarke, 2013). the purpose of this instrument was to elicit thoughts from csos on their involvement in the development of ee in schools. the interviews aided the researcher's capacity to investigate and clarify unclear responses. furthermore, in-depth semi-structured allowed respondents to speak freely without being restricted by the interview guide (kabir, 2018). ethical consideration researchers must follow ethics in order to establish trust, accountability, mutual respect, and fairness (resnik, 2020). before starting the study, an ethical clearance certificate (rec-270710028-ra level 01) was obtained from the university of fort hare. the respondents have to sign consent forms. the study followed the principles of voluntary participation, confidentiality, and anonymity. results the study’s question concerns the role of civil society organisations (csos) in implementing ee policies in schools. the purpose of this question was to find out what csos and principals thought about the role of csos in the development and implementation of ee policy in schools. semi-structured interview questions were used to elicit qualitative responses from one cso to learn more about their involvement in implementing ee policy. the study presented and analysed qualitative data that had been obtained concurrently. the study analysed qualitative data obtained from csos on the central theme of the need for their involvement in implementing ee policies in schools. other sub-themes were generated from the central theme. the researcher analysed and interpreted data gathered during a one-on-one telephone interview with two respondents. to facilitate clear and succinct analysis, data are presented in themes and sub-themes from an interview to address the research questions. 9 ressat 2022, 7(3): 1-17 table 2. a summary of findings theme sub-theme issues raised the need for csos to be involved in school ee policy implementation policy formulation and implementation in the promotion of ee. training, skills development & network for teachers. eco-schools programme liaison with state institutions in making environmentally friendly policies in schools aim at shaping the green and blue economy. provide national accredited training and education for teachers. establish of network for continuous professional development. creating environmental awareness, equip learners to live sustainably. preparation of portfolios for provincial and national awards. policy formulation and implementation pro-ee cso like wessa works jointly with the department of environmental affairs and education to strengthen the development of ee in schools. this collaboration supports ee policy formulation and implementation in the school curriculum. the significance of this partnership with stakeholders in education is immeasurable, as discovered in the study. some of the responses obtained, among others, include: yeah! we are an environmentally-based cso with a national character. we operate in all nine provinces, in over 4500 schools, with a clear mandate and support from the department of education. hmmm! our partnership aligns with the government’s commitment to developing environmental education in compliance with the national development plan. we are instrumental in shaping the government's environmental policies in schools and other sectors. this aims to achieve a green and blue economy (p1). this response implies that csos have developed good working relationships with the education and environmental affairs department to create environmental awareness in schools. the partnership between state institutions and csos has shaped school ee policy implementation. training and skill development for teachers civil society organisations interested in ee play an essential role in providing practical training and skill development programmes to the department of education and other government sectors. csos offer a range of accredited professional qualifications designed to address the critical scarcity of the required skills to drive environmental consciousness and awareness. the 10 ressat 2022, 7(3): 1-17 study revealed that besides wessa’s partnership with the government, the cso also provides training to individuals, in this case, teachers. the responses obtained, among others, include: yes, indeed! our collaboration with schools and teachers within the borders of south africa is to improve and support school curricula about environmental learning. to achieve this goal, we have well-structured, accredited professional training programmes open to everyone with a passion for conserving nature and other environmental educators' short courses. seriously, we have some excellent programmes and qualifications: environmental training development practises courses, environmental practises short skills courses, environmental educators in-service training courses, etc. i hope you will take advantage of the opportunity to enrol in one of our programmes in the future…hahaha (laughing out loud). (p1) respondent further added that: yeah! in several provinces, we have also established a teacher network and our formal skill development and qualification programmes. fundisa for change is the name of the teacher-networking group. it was started in 2014, if my memory serves me well, in partnership with the departments of education and environmental affairs. this is a forum or platform for building communities where eco-schools instructors can meet frequently and receive support from one another and eco-schools organisers. yes, the fundisa network assists teachers in exchanging ideas and refreshing their environmental education skills. (p2) csos are engaging with state institutions to increase environmental literacy in schools through their skill development programmes, according to the responses supplied. according to respondents, they provide approved professional training for capacity growth. an appropriate teacher network has been established to aid in teaching and learning environmental education. eco-schools programme csos were interviewed to determine their involvement in the eco-schools programme in schools. among the responses obtained were as follows: in south africa, we implement an eco-schools programme in supported and unsupported schools. the eco-schools programme is open to anyone who wishes to participate. yeah! schools can register and submit an evidence portfolio anytime during the year. (p2) respondent further added that: i am a big fan of the eco-schools concept because we work with schools and teachers all around south africa to promote and improve environmental learning curricula, preparing children to live sustainably in the future. yes, indeed! is a game-changing initiative that provides project-based learning in schools and is revolutionary and unique. (p2) 11 ressat 2022, 7(3): 1-17 on how eco-schools programmes are implemented in schools, respondents had this to say: hmmm! the eco-schools, as previously said, is a project-based learning programme that is integrated into the school curriculum. it is pretty straightforward. the selection and development of eco themes involve seven processes. schools organise an ecocommittee, conduct an environmental audit, monitor and assess, relate the chosen theme to the curriculum, and inform and include teachers and students in the eco-club. finally, every member school is required to draught an eco-code. the most exciting aspect of this programme is that schools create and present a portfolio of evidence for an award within eight to twelve months of registering. around march, we have provincial awards presentations. (p2) the interview responses and extracts from the eco-schools portfolio are undeniable proof that pro-ee csos are making a significant contribution to the development and growth of ee through their hands-on eco-schools project-based learning linked to school curricula. discussion the study analysed qualitative data obtained from csos on the central theme of the need for their involvement in implementing ee policies in schools. other sub-themes were generated from the central theme. the researcher analysed and interpreted data gathered during a oneon-one telephone interview with one cso and documents. the wildlife and environment society of south africa is a pro-environmental civil society organisation. wessa's mission in south africa is to develop high-impact environmental and conservation programmes that encourage public involvement in earth care by adopting ee school policies. wessa, like other pro-csos, conducts environmental research, advocates for environmentally sustainable management strategies, supports and encourages participatory environmental management through the involvement of local communities and schools, and provides resources, particularly financial resources, to support environmental management programmes at all levels. additionally, they build capacity and knowledge within local communities, persuading the public to embrace more effective natural resource management approaches. civil society organisations, movements, and groups act as watchdogs, monitoring and evaluating environmental management's efficacy and efficiency; they also encourage the public to demand government openness and accountability. environmental management policies are crucial for guaranteeing the long-term viability of a country. this is why the cso is highly involved in environmental policy processes to address environmental concerns and set the agenda for policy discussions, which it does through structured forums as a voice of the people. according to the findings, csos play critical roles in the implementation of ee policies in schools. 12 ressat 2022, 7(3): 1-17 equipping learners to live sustainably wessa works with schools and teachers across south africa to promote and develop ee curricula, ensuring that children are prepared for a sustainable future. the eco-schools programme aims to increase environmental sustainability knowledge and action in schools and their communities and augment the national curriculum with education for esd. since 2003, approximately 4500 schools in all nine provinces have participated in the project, reaching 1 036 000 students and 41 400 educators each year. a total of 1,563 environmental change projects were started, 1112 trees were planted, and 393 ee workshops were held. the initiative honours schools dedicated to improving their environmental performance over time. eco-schools is a programme that works in both sponsored and underserved schools. schools can register at any time during the year and submit a portfolio of evidence for an award between eight and twelve months after registering, with the provincial awards ceremonies conducted in march each year. wessa works with schools and teachers across south africa to promote and develop ee curricula, ensuring that children are prepared for a sustainable future (dzerefos, 2020). the eco-schools programme aims to increase environmental sustainability knowledge and action in schools and their communities and complement the national curriculum with education for sustainable development (dzerefos, 2020). wessa is in charge of the south african eco-schools initiative. csos cooperated with schools and educators to promote environmental curricula in schools, according to the study. the curriculum provided projectbased learning to educate learners with the requisite environmental knowledge. schools select ee themes and eco-code that guide environmental activities in schools and link them to the curriculum. teacher professional development the department of basic education(dbe) has highlighted teacher assistance at the local level as a critical component of achieving educational quality. one-time educator training is ineffective, and teacher education programmes should be continuous throughout the teacher's professional life. with its network of coordinators that support schools long-term, eco-schools is well-positioned to meet this need. wessa has organised some 393 workshops for teachers nationwide. these workshops are geared toward training and equipping teachers to implement ee policies in schools (dzerefos, 2020). environmental education teachers network in march 2014, the fundisa for change development network (fcdn) was officially inaugurated at a teacher conference. the network catalyses ee improvement and promotes the eco-schools programme. the fcdn is regarded as one of the most significant professional learning communities in south africa. the fcdn is a collaboration of environmental sector partners, including wessa. teachers who complete fundisa for change training receive continuing support for experimenting with new teaching approaches and increasing their teacher knowledge and access to materials such as the wessa envirokids magazine. eco-schools' 13 ressat 2022, 7(3): 1-17 collaboration with the fundisa for change network enables the programme to distribute materials that have been endorsed by the department of basic education and partner higher education institutions (dzerefos, 2020). policy formulation and implementation civil society organisations contribute immensely to ee policy. environmental policies can thrive if there are a proper engagement of civil society, local communities, and indigenous peoples by allowing them to have a say in choices that affect their livelihoods (nema, 2010). csos' involvement in pulling climate change mitigation policies is critical since they may do so by filling gaps and providing policy services such as policy research, policy guidance, and, in some situations, actual policy formation (saab, 2019). according to the study's findings, csos engaged with state institutions, such as the education and environment departments, in the planning, formulating, and implementing ee policies. it was discovered that pro-ee csos had built a name for themselves by assisting corporate and government organisations in raising environmental awareness. the collaboration of state agencies and csos have influenced the implementation of ee policies in schools. training & skill development for teachers it was established that csos contributes to the training and development of teachers. according to the findings, csos provided qualified and approved professional qualifications in ee and other relevant courses to train teachers on new methods and approaches for implementing ee policy. the investigation discovered that csos, in collaboration with the dbe and environmental affairs, formed the fundisa for change network for teachers. this network serves as a forum for teachers and pro-ee cso coordinators to share ee teaching and learning ideas in schools. it was revealed that this network only runs in five provinces. according to the study’s findings, the network for teachers was inaccessible to the education district where the research was conducted. csos have been involved in every development element, and their engagement in development programmes, particularly ee initiatives, has been critical to achieving development objectives. they are consultative, conduct research, publish policy papers, and organise collective social actions like protests and boycotts. they raise public awareness and support policymakers in their educational efforts (strange & bayley, 2008). according to saab (2019), environmental concerns are becoming more visible to stakeholders, individuals, and communities. campaigns and educational programmes run by notable environmental public interest groups have contributed significantly to this rise in understanding and awareness. csos are significant stakeholders in the policy implementation process in schools and communities. they form an integral part of policy formulation and implementation (fullan, 2015; burns et al., 2016). csos are actively involved in the skill development of teachers and communities. csos hire experts with specific skills and experience 14 ressat 2022, 7(3): 1-17 to develop policies and strategies and discover and implement solutions. by providing education and training, they also help to increase capability (saab, 2019). eco-schools is a nationwide ee flagship programme monitored and organised entirely by wessa. the project aims to increase environmental sustainability knowledge and action in schools and their surrounding communities and promote sustainable development education in the national curriculum (dzerefos, 2020). within the bronfenbrenner ecological theory, which underpins this study, csos have contributed significantly to learners’ environmental literacy development. this impact is informal, such as when events in the cso's activities have a cascade effect at home, affecting learners directly (rosa & tudge, 2013). this system impacts both the micro and mesosystems (kauchak & eggen, 2013). conclusion the study recognised three crucial roles performed by csos in the development of ee school policy: policy formulation and implementation, training and skill development for ee teachers, and the eco-schools programme. in the planning, formulating, and implementing of ee policies, pro-ee csos engage with the departments of education and environmental affairs. this collaboration aims to shape and raise environmental awareness in schools. csos offer training and skill development programmes to teachers and other ee stakeholders. wessa, for example, is a non-profit organisation that provides authorised and approved qualifications for teachers' capacity building. wessa administers the eco-schools programme in all nine south african provinces. environmental learning activities relevant to the school curriculum are introduced to teachers and learners. eco-clubs enable learners to apply their theoretical environmental knowledge in a practical setting. this enhances ee school policy implementation. recommendation the south african school act no. 84, 1996 should be amended to make school environmental policy mandatory, which should mirror the national curriculum framework and policy guidelines for ee. all schools should have environmental policies that align with their code of conduct. the existence of the eco-schools initiative has contributed to the implementation of highimpact environmental project-based co-curricular programmes at several schools. this initiative strives to promote and improve the school curriculum in ecological learning, allowing learners to reach their full potential for a sustainable future by taking environmental action in their community. the departments of basic education and environmental affairs should provide resources to wessa and other stakeholders to expand the eco-schools and other ee-related programmes to all schools. regardless of social-economic or geographical location, schools should offer mandatory environmental co-curricular activities and eco-clubs. 15 ressat 2022, 7(3): 1-17 acknowledgements our heartfelt gratitude goes to govan mbeki research and development centre (gmrdc) in south africa for their enormous support throughout this study. we also appreciate the contributions of respondents who voluntarily participated in this research. references bronfenbrenner, u. 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(2017). the evolving role of 21st-century education ngos in south africa: challenges and opportunities. south africa: national education collaboration trust, 1-8. research in social sciences and technology https://ressat.org e-issn: 2468-6891 volume: 8 issue: 1 2023 pp. 16-30 learning support strategies to overcome the effects of promoting condoned senior phase mathematics learners to the fet phase yudvir bhagwonparsadha & kereng gilbert pule*b * corresponding author email: pulekg@unisa.ac.za a. department of mathematics, natural science and technology education, the university of free state, bloemfontein, south africa. b. department of mathematics education, pretoria, university of south africa, south africa. article info received: october 10, 2022 accepted: february 22, 2023 published: april 25, 2023 how to cite bhagwonparsadh, y., & pule, g. k. (2023). learning support strategies to overcome the effects of promoting condoned senior phase mathematics learners to the fet phase. research in social sciences and technology, 8(1), 16-30. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2023.2 copyright license this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (cc by 4.0). abstract the study investigated the effects of condonation on the promotion of senior phase mathematics learners into the fet phase in a high school in kwazulu-natal. condoned learners were assisted to progress, despite not meeting the pass requirements. the study suggests learning support strategies teachers could use to improve condoned fet mathematics learners' performance. an exploratory case study investigated the condonation policy and its effects thereof. interviews were conducted with two mathematics teachers, and open-ended questions were posed. the data analysis entailed collating the data, followed by a thematic data analysis approach. the literature study was done on pertinent theories, prior studies, and pragmatic research. the findings suggest that condoned learners did not master the foundational knowledge and accumulated knowledge gaps. consequently, learners struggle to achieve good performance in fet mathematics. this may lead to condoned learners failing fet mathematics, dropping mathematics in favour of more uncomplicated mathematical literacy, or dropping out of school rather than completing grade 12. the study recommends that condoned senior phase mathematics learners struggling to perform well in fet mathematics need to undergo an individualised learning support programme. teachers will then employ various academic teaching and learning support strategies to help improve learners' fet mathematics performance. the success of learning support depends on a collaborative relationship between nurturing teachers and parents and positive discipline in group teaching within supplemental classes. keywords condonation; teachers; individual support plan; learning support strategies; improved learner performance, mathematics. 10.46303/ressat.2023.2 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2023.2 17 ressat 2023, 8(1): 16-30 background this study investigates the effects of condonation on the promotion of senior phase mathematics learners to the further education and training (fet) phase. in 2016, the department of basic education (dbe) introduced the special condonation dispensation for learners in the senior phase (grades 7-9) policy for 2016 to 2017 (dbe, 2016). learners who would have failed the senior phase because of not meeting the minimum pass requirements (dbe, 2016) were condoned in senior phase mathematics and promoted to the fet phase. many of these progressed learners achieve below par in various subjects, specifically sciences, including mathematics (dube & ndaba, 2021). condoned learners had not mastered the foundational skills in the senior phase needed to take on fet mathematics (davids & waghid, 2016), but condonation allowed them to be advanced and eventually reach grade 12 without mastering basic skills and knowledge (lumadi, 2014). in other words, these learners' deficits in expertise continued to grow in the fet phase, resulting in many of them performing poorly in mathematics. these learners need to be academically supported to pass fet mathematics (legotlo et al., 2002). an academic support programme involves structured interventions given to learners within specified time frames (dbe, 2014). this would help condoned learners to overcome their gaps in knowledge and catch up with the lost content in the fet phase (dbe, 2020). therefore, there is a need for condoned mathematics learners to be academically supported to overcome their gaps in knowledge and master the content of the subject that they did not pass in the senior phase (dbe, 2014). to assist learners with learning difficulties, the dbe has national guidelines such as education white paper 6: special needs education (dbe, 2001), which contains the national policy on inclusive education, and the screening, identification, assessment, and support (sias) policy (dbe, 2014), which allows for the tracking of learners who are at risk of failing so that an intervention support programme can be provided to overcome their barriers to learning. these policies provide guidelines on using academic learning strategies to support learners who are struggling with the learning content. seemingly, these policies were not adequate. many learners failed or dropped out of school, as the cohort that started school was much larger than the one that finished grade 12 (letshwene, 2019). according to davids and waghid (2016), inadequate academic learning support is provided to underperforming learners. the performance of these learners may improve if they receive assistance from their teachers. problem statement the policy of condoning senior phase mathematics learners and promoting them to the fet phase without having acquired the foundational mathematics skills has resulted in learners struggling to learn fet mathematics. schools now implement the "pass one, pass all" policy, where, in effect, all learners are condoned in mathematics regardless of their competencies in the subject matter (davids & waghid, 2016). this has resulted in learners failing fet mathematics and failing in the phase (dbe, 2020). 18 ressat 2023, 8(1): 16-30 in order to address this problem, condoned learners require academic learner support. letshwene (2019) broadly defines learning support or academic support as a collective action to support learners by using intervention programmes, either by curriculum differentiation or adaptation and referring learners to other stakeholders for approval. in other words, condoned learners need remediation of the foundational content they have not acquired; thus, they require reteaching (oktavianty et al., 2018). however, the literature shows that the learning support provided to underperforming learners by the dbe is minimal or non-existent; therefore, many learners struggle to acquire the new learning content (davids & waghid, 2016). to the researchers' knowledge, very little research has been conducted on learning support strategies that may assist mathematics learners in overcoming the effects of being condoned in the senior phase and then promoted to the fet phase. therefore, this study investigates the effects of condonation on the promotion of senior phase mathematics learners who were promoted to the fet phase and the possible learning support strategies that may be implemented in a selected school in kwazulu-natal. research questions • how does condoning grade 9 learners and promoting them to grade 10 affect their mathematics performance in the fet phase? • how can condoned learners be academically supported to improve their mathematics performance? research objectives the research objectives are: • to explore how condoning grade 9 learners and promoting them to grade 10 affect their mathematics performance; and • to determine the academic support provided to condoned mathematics learners to improve their mathematics performance. theoretical framework the social constructivist theory provided a framework for the researchers to conduct an empirical review of learning support strategies to overcome the effects of condoning and promoting senior phase mathematics learners to the fet phase. vygotsky theorised learning in children as a process to construct new knowledge on existing knowledge. in other words, knowledge is created by learners being actively involved in collaborative social interaction and negotiation with other knowledgeable persons through group dynamics and being influenced by their real-life experiences (bay et al., 2012). furthermore, learners build new knowledge by scaffolding new knowledge based on existing knowledge. condoned senior phase mathematics learners require grade 9 mathematical knowledge to build their fet knowledge because mathematics is hierarchical (dbe, 2001). therefore, condoning learners in the senior phase affects their academic performance levels in fet mathematics. legotlo et al. (2002) postulate that when learners do not perform well in the 19 ressat 2023, 8(1): 16-30 senior phase, it affects their mastery of the subject matter in the fet phase. related to this, the researchers also share the view of other scholars that condoned senior phase mathematics learners lack the foundational knowledge, are pushed into the fet phase, and, consequently, struggle with learning the new content. these learners have acquired learning deficits or gaps in mathematics that affect their performance levels in the grades ahead (letshwene, 2019). to assist condoned learners in the fet phase, they need to gain basic mathematical knowledge to improve their performance levels in fet mathematics to overcome their learning gaps in mathematical knowledge. accordingly, the dbe introduced the sias policy (dbe, 2014), which specifically addressed the need to provide academic learning support to learners to overcome their learning difficulties. a cohort of condoned senior phase mathematics learners can mediate socially, and their language is the medium through which they develop knowledge; hence, meaning is constructed (pritchard & woollard, 2010). in a social constructivist mathematics classroom, teaching a lesson has now changed to facilitating a lesson (bay et al., 2012). the teacher instructing the lesson content in its traditional form is no more. this allows the teacher to create and facilitate learning so that condoned learners can participate in the processing and gaining of knowledge. therefore, learners are not passive receptors but actively interrogate the mathematics content with questions (fritz-stratmann et al., 2014). the teacher's role is now that of a motivator, supporter, and challenger in learning, and no longer a disseminator of knowledge. opponents of social constructivism assert that knowledge is negotiated, mediated, and informed by individual learners' experiences; therefore, the learning outcomes may differ (bay et al., 2012). the constructivist learning theory focuses on actively building new knowledge on previous knowledge and experiences. the researchers postulate that teachers may reveal the effects of condoning senior learners in mathematics and suggest possible academic intervention strategies to support these learners in the fet phase. the deficits in mathematical knowledge accumulated by condoned learners show that they need to be retaught the primary subject matter to learn new content. there is a dire need to overcome the effects of condonation on senior phase mathematics learners who have been promoted to the fet phase. letshwene (2019) insists that learners with learning difficulties should receive learning support, which would benefit them in the classroom. this may improve their mathematics performance and translate into better national senior certificate results. it may also reduce the number of learners failing mathematics, leading, in turn, to fewer learners dropping out of school before they reach grade 12. in addition, learners may leave school with more mathematical knowledge, which should better equip them to study mathematical courses at the tertiary level. moreover, an improvement in the quality of mathematics performance would allow south africa to compete globally with other countries. therefore, there is a need to explore learning support strategies to overcome the effects of condonation on senior phase mathematics learners to improve their academic performance levels in fet mathematics. 20 ressat 2023, 8(1): 16-30 literature review possible challenges faced by condoned senior phase mathematics learners in the fet phase legotlo et al. (2002) point out that learners in the senior phase are promoted without gradeappropriate competencies, which results in shortfalls in their mathematics learning content. subsequently, their poor mathematics performance is noticeable over time, especially from grade 10 to grade 12. if their poor performance is not remedied, dire consequences may be experienced by condoned learners, especially when they enter the fet phase. the dbe (2020) states that due to learners being condoned, there is a high dropout rate, especially from grade 10 to grade 12, due to learners failing because of their incompetence in the subject matter. this can also be attributed to the high rate of passing learners who do not meet the minimum pass requirements to the senior phase, in other words, condoning learners. in 2019, the dbe reported a dropout rate of almost half the number of learners sitting for the national senior certificate in 2018. there is no condonation in grade 10; therefore, many learners underperform and fail the grade (pule, 2020). there is a dire need to overcome the effects of condonation on senior phase mathematics learners who are promoted to the fet phase. if these effects can be rectified, the learners' mathematics performance can be improved, which may translate into better national senior certificate results. also, the number of learners who fail mathematics can be reduced, leading, in turn, to fewer learners dropping out of school before they reach grade 12. moreover, learners may leave school with more mathematical knowledge, which should better equip them to study mathematical courses at the tertiary level. an improvement in the quality of mathematics performance would also allow south africa to compete globally with other countries. condoned senior phase mathematics learners have learning deficits in mathematical knowledge condoned senior phase mathematics learners have acquired gaps in knowledge that contribute to their underperformance in fet mathematics (letshwene, 2019; pule, 2020). these learning difficulties hinder learners from developing basic literacy skills and result in low achievement levels. condoned learners may not be deserving of passing to the fet phase, and if they are progressed, they may be responsible for a poor pass rate in grade 12 (pule, 2020). many eventually drop out of school before reaching grade 12. meanwhile, other learners who struggled to get to grade 12 might have performed poorly in the subject content and, therefore, enrolled for mathematical literacy instead of pure mathematics (letshwene 2019). defining an academic support programme and the contribution it makes to learners' performance level in fet mathematics an academic support programme should consist of different learning support strategies schools may implement to improve the academic performance of learners who are at peril of diminished academic achievement (peterson et al., 2014). learning support programmes comprise additional teaching material, holiday classes, after-school programmes, and differentiated 21 ressat 2023, 8(1): 16-30 teaching strategies to address the specific learner's performance (dbe, 2020). furthermore, a learning support programme consists of additional remediation, curriculum instruction, the academic teaching of learners in groups, and other related psychological, medical, and social support services to prevent learning difficulties in learners. oktavianty et al. (2018) define learning support or academic support as a collective action to support learners by using intervention programmes – either curriculum differentiation and adaptation or referring learners to other stakeholders for support. accordingly, the researchers define academic support programmes as learning support strategies that include additional teaching material, the remediation of learning in smaller groups, a differentiated approach to teaching, extra classes during the holidays, after-school programmes, and academic support provided by other related social structures. supplementary teaching material offers expanded opportunities for struggling learners to work through supplementary mathematical sums such as those they are struggling with to strengthen their involvement and inclusion in the lesson (fritz-stratmann et al., 2014). remediation is needed when learners do not learn the subject content and require reteaching (oktavianty et al., 2018). it should include educational intervention strategies focused on learners who did not master the subject content in the previous grades. learners with similar learning difficulties need to be retaught basic knowledge in small groups (oktavianty et al., 2018). remediation after school hours may bridge learning gaps acquired in learners' previous grades. differentiated teaching strategies refer to the change, modification, or adaptation of teaching and learning methodologies and assessment strategies to improve learners' performance abilities in the classroom (dbe, 2014). the subject teacher may host extra classes after school or during the school holidays. lastly, parents, peers, and teachers may provide academic support to struggling learners. learners' social structures also refer to services received from the departments of social development, health, and the public service administration that should assist learners with social problems that may affect their academic achievement in school (dbe, 2001). individual support plans (isps) for condoned learners learners who have been condoned in mathematics struggle with grasping new mathematical content because they did not master the subject matter in the previous grade and, consequently, perform poorly in the fet phase (lumadi, 2014). therefore, the subject teacher should design an isp for every condoned learner (dbe, 2014). the function of the isp is to provide learning support to condoned learners to help improve their academic performance in mathematics. it involves using various complementary learning support strategies to intervene with learners who perform poorly in the subject. the isp should be developed with the learner's parents and the school-based support team (dbe, 2014) and aims to supplement the learner's opportunities to acquire the subject matter he or she has lost. this educational support is added 22 ressat 2023, 8(1): 16-30 to classroom teaching and learning and can be in the form of intervention strategies such as learning programmes, services, and resources (dbe, 2014). pule (2020) claims that learning support should be given to learners who experience difficulties in learning the subject matter; this forms part of the isp. according to the dbe (2014), learning support provided by mathematics teachers is critical in the learning and development of a learner who experiences learning difficulties. peterson et al. (2014) affirm that providing academic support to learners will help improve underperforming learners' educational achievement. hence, the quality of the isp is critical to providing academic support to condoned learners who struggle to perform well in the fet phase. the following complementary learning support strategies may assist condoned mathematics learners in improving their performance levels as they progress to the fet phase: differentiated learning, remedial teaching on the subject content, peer tutoring, and parental support. differentiated learning to understand learning support, the researchers investigated differentiated learning in an inclusive classroom (dbe, 2001). differentiated learning allows teachers to create different expectations for different learners performing at various academic levels in order to include all learners in teaching and learning. teachers should use multiple methods and support to succeed with differentiated instructions within the curriculum (dbe, 2014). differentiation should be necessary for learners who learn mathematics because they vary in their readiness, interests, and learning preferences in the classroom. all the learners in a classroom will not be at the same level in their knowledge and understanding of mathematical concepts and their use of mathematical skills, such as mental mathematics and estimation (fritzstratmann et al., 2014). moreover, learners differ in their application of solving problems in mathematics. in other words, they differ in their reasoning skills, connecting mathematics to real life, and representing mathematical ideas and relationships. the curriculum can be differentiated to cater to each learner's needs to prevent underperforming learners from failing mathematics in the fet phase. this should help learners to overcome their learning difficulties in learning mathematics and reach the necessary level of knowledge, skill, and competency (dbe, 2014). remedial teaching on the subject content condoned senior phase mathematics learners are advanced to grade 10 without achieving the minimum requirement to pass. they then find learning new subject matter challenging (letshwene, 2019) and should, therefore, receive remedial teaching on the mathematical content they found difficult to grasp in the senior phase to assimilate the new fet content. remedial education can be described as reading, writing, or mathematics courses for learners who are deficient in using the necessary academic skills (lumadi, 2014). consequently, the researchers define remedial teaching as teaching content that condoned learners find challenging to master. the sias policy (dbe, 2014) focuses on remedial teaching to assist learners in increasing their performance levels in the subject matter. subject teachers should 23 ressat 2023, 8(1): 16-30 also be remedial teachers who provide the necessary academic support to condoned learners with learning difficulties to improve learners' performance levels at school (dbe, 2001). peer tutoring a school-based support team should consist of learner representatives at the senior, further education, or higher education levels (dbe, 2014). the support provided by learners' peers can vary from psychological to academic or social support. peer tutoring should be an educational approach that entails learners assisting one another to learn content by repeating key concepts. peer support aims to support learners in a socially participative learning environment (kroflič, 2019). some schools have adopted a "buddy system" as a form of peer support with substantial academic benefits for learners who experience challenges in learning. fritzstratmann et al. (2014) reveal that peer tutoring is effective for elementary and secondary learners. the strategies involved in successful peer tutoring require the repetition of key concepts in the subject content and opportunities for the learners to respond to attain improved levels of performance (lumadi, 2014). parental support letshwene (2019) believes that the most effective strategy to improve learners' mathematics performance is to engage parents in their children's learning process. the parent is one of several essential stakeholders in implementing a support programme. within the school-based support team environment, parents should communicate with the subject teacher on decisions that need to be made about the type of academic support programme offered to their children (dbe, 2014). parents should play an integral role in recognising learning difficulties experienced by condoned learners. once communicated to the subject teachers, it can lead to finding the exact nature of the barrier that a learner experiences (dbe, 2014). parental involvement is beneficial in improving the performance level of mathematics learners (letshwene, 2019; pule, 2020). hence, it should be the responsibility of the parents of condoned learners to inaugurate contact with subject teachers regarding their children's progress and additional support that is needed. this will allow parents to provide academic support to their children who are struggling with the subject content at home while informing the subject teachers of their children's progress in the educational support programme they are following. however, parents who are ill-informed about their supporting role in the academic support programme may increase their children's learning difficulties in the subject content. for this not to happen, the parents and the subject teacher should be in constant communication with each other about the activities of the support programme and the successes and failures thereof (dbe, 2014). parents can positively affect the performance levels of learners in an academic support programme. according to pule (2020), the parent component of providing support to learners with barriers to learning in an inclusive education system is essential. parents should be more actively involved in their children's academics (dbe, 2001). therefore, it is paramount that 24 ressat 2023, 8(1): 16-30 parents and subject teachers forge a two-way communication relationship so that parents can be correctly informed of the learning difficulties their children are experiencing. parents can also support learners at home because they may continue participating in the academic support programme long after leaving the institution. methods this research followed a qualitative approach to a case study and used raw data from the participants. the researchers employed the purposive sampling method to identify mathematics teachers who taught condoned learners up to grade 12 for the 2016 and 2017 cohorts. this single criterion was used to select participants and derive meaning from their responses about the phenomenon under review (see creswell, 2016). semi-structured questions were posed to the two mathematics teachers, audio-recorded, and investigated. two mathematics teachers who taught condoned senior phase mathematics learners in the fet phase were selected to participate in the study. for a thorough investigation, it is imperative to present a short résumé of their biographic attributes of qualification, position held, and type of school. table 1 below shows the teachers' age, sex, years of teaching experience, and highest qualifications. table 1. biographical information participants age sex teaching experience highest qualification position held school teacher 1 48 m 28 years f.ed. dip. department head public teacher 2 42 f 15 years b.ed. pl1 public it is clear from table 1 that the participants in the study were qualified teachers – one had a fet diploma and the other a bachelor's degree in education. one participant was a department head (post-level 2 educator), and the other was a post-level 1 educator. both were taught in the selected public school in a residential suburb. in this study, thematic analysis was employed to make sense of the data gained from the participants. thematic analysis is a procedure used to identify, analyse, and report patterns (themes) within data collected by a researcher in a meaningful way (braun & clarke, 2006). questions were posed to the participants to gain data for each generated code. the data acquired from answering the research sub-questions were used to create codes. the codes identified themes throughout the interviews to reach a repeated pattern of meaning. the themes were categorised according to the information gained from the participants' responses, as suggested by braun and clarke (2006). the categories were obtained from questions coded as "the effects of condonation and promotion on learners' performance", "condoned learners 25 ressat 2023, 8(1): 16-30 require academic support", and "support strategies to assist condoned learners to improve their performance". these codes were used to categorise all the collected data to develop themes. when all the data had been classified, themes were developed. the researchers studied the data extensively, providing detailed narrations to answer the research questions. the interpretation of the participants' feedback to each question is presented below. results the responses given by the mathematics teachers during the interviews are presented with some discussion below. in your experience with the grade 10 learners, how did the learners' condonation in grade 9 mathematics affect their academic performance in grade 10? responses from both teachers to this question asserted that condoned mathematics learners had not met the minimum pass required and, therefore, had been condoned. their responses suggested that condoned mathematics learners lacked some subject content from the previous grade. the participants contended that condoned learners struggled with the basics of the subject matter, as they had been promoted to higher grades. this is in line with findings by the dbe (2020) that condoned learners progressed without meeting the requirements and, therefore, lacked the foundational knowledge in mathematics that they should have mastered in the senior phase. the two participants highlighted the effects of condonation on learners' academic performance in grade 10 as follows: teacher 1: those that [had] been condoned, what you call, they did not get the pass requirement. so, it means some gaps have been left out that have not been filled. teacher 2: these learners lack basic maths; the simple knowledge in maths they don't have. like the simple things in multiplication and the exponents, the difference in multiplication and exponents, those things; if you are talking of multiplication as well as the numbers for exponents. so, they end up not understanding the relationship. they struggle with [the] basics in the subject when they move to grade 11. teacher 1 further argued that condoning senior phase mathematics learners and progressing them to the fet phase negatively affected their performance and changed their mathematical literacy. this trend was also noted by the dbe (2020), as there was a higher enrolment for mathematical literacy than pure mathematics because condoned learners struggled with mathematics and then failed fet mathematics. the following response from teacher 1 demonstrates this. teacher 1: whenever the learner comes to grade 10, so maybe after a quarter, that learner needs to change from mathematics to mathematical literacy because that learner is struggling after being condoned from [sic] grade 9 mathematics. 26 ressat 2023, 8(1): 16-30 how does condoning senior phase learners affect their ability to acquire the new mathematics content in grade 10? the feedback from both teachers suggests that condoning senior phase mathematics learners and progressing them to the fet phase negatively affect the performance of mathematics learners. these learners do not possess the fundamental mathematical knowledge and, therefore, need to be retaught the foundational knowledge in mathematics. according to both participants, condoning and promoting learners result in their struggling with fet mathematics. teacher 1: if they struggle, you need to start afresh, as if you are still teaching them the grade 9 work. teacher 2: we must arrange some time to assist them to fill up those gaps they are lacking in that grade. how can condoned learners in the fet phase be academically supported to improve their mathematics performance? the responses from the participants suggest that they attempted to provide supplementary teaching to condoned mathematics learners on the grade 9 content they had not mastered. both participants conceded that extra classes were given which aimed to reteach the foundational knowledge that learners had not acquired. the dbe (2014) also shares this view, stating that in preparation for learning fet mathematics, condoned learners need extra classes to undergo an academic support programme to receive the foundational knowledge in mathematics they have not acquired. therefore, additional classes are required for condoned senior phase learners to be retaught the foundational knowledge in mathematics, as were related by both teachers. teacher 1: we have tried to support them, by what you call, those that are having problems, although we understand that some learners are to give the extra tuition [sic]. teacher 2: this is where we tried to offer the learners some extra classes … we must arrange some time to assist them to fill up those gaps they are lacking in that grade. discuss an academic support programme you offered that resulted in a positive or negative effect on learners' performance in grade 10 mathematics both teachers seemed to agree that an academic support programme consisting of working out past examination papers and textbooks would positively affect condoned mathematics learners' performance in the fet phase. similarly, the dbe (2020) attributes the success of the 2019 national senior certificate support programme to its use of past question papers. this suggests that academic support consisting of previous years' examination papers will improve condoned learners' performance in fet mathematics, as affirmed by the responses below. teacher 1: the support programme of [sic] which i offered to learners, ay, that one to improve on their performance in other words … i use the textbook as a guideline but in [sic] some stage, i put, what you call, some problems from previous question papers to make them aware that questions are asked in this way whenever they are writing a test. 27 ressat 2023, 8(1): 16-30 teacher 2: the support documents with questions taken from previous question papers must be used throughout schools with their solution so that learners can just revise such similar questions. discussion the findings are discussed under the subheadings below, using the abovementioned data. the negative effects of condonation and promotion on learners' mathematics performance in the fet phase the outcome of the study suggests that condoned mathematics learners lack some primary mathematics content from the previous grade. condoned learners struggle with the basics in the subject matter, as they have been promoted to higher grades. basic mathematical knowledge is the foundation on which new knowledge is built, which is closely aligned with social constructivism. social constructivism is based on the belief that learners gain new meaning from building knowledge on their pre-existing knowledge (pritchard & woollard, 2010). furthermore, the study has revealed that without acquiring foundational knowledge in mathematics, condoned learners struggle to achieve good performance levels. the dbe (2020) acknowledges that the continuous decline in condoned learners' performance as they move to higher grades is a huge concern. the decline in learners' mathematics marks can be attributed to promoting learners with accumulated gaps (legotlo et al., 2002). according to the social constructivist learning theory, condoned learners require prior knowledge as the foundation to build new mathematical knowledge (bay et al., 2012). therefore, meaningful learning in mathematics can only happen by scaffolding new knowledge based on existing knowledge. the study shows that learners may lack important mathematical content when they are progressed to grade 11, as they have not acquired foundational knowledge in grade 10 but are pushed to grade 11. letshwene (2019) believes that assisting learners to progress from grade to grade results in accumulated learning deficits, which are evident from grade 10 to grade 12. these learners may struggle with acquiring new content throughout the year because they lack the grounding knowledge from grade 9. eventually, they may fail the subject, drop out of school, or drop mathematics in favour of mathematical literacy. many support strategies exist to assist condoned learners in improving their performance levels in mathematics the findings suggest that extra tuition was given to condoned mathematics learners and was supplemented with other academic support strategies. an isp provides learning support to learners who struggle with understanding the subject content through additional support strategies or expanded opportunities for classroom learning (dbe, 2014). learners should attend extra classes to undergo an academic support programme for mathematics. the sias policy (dbe, 2014) provides the framework for constructing an educational support programme. this policy advocates that learning support must be given to learners in 28 ressat 2023, 8(1): 16-30 their schools to overcome barriers to learning and development (dbe, 2014). the isp includes differentiation of the subject content, a change in classroom methodologies, and a modification in assessment to accommodate learners with barriers to learning and development (dbe, 2001). extra classes can be conducted by mathematics teachers outside standard teaching time, allowing condoned learners to receive additional learning support on concepts with which they are struggling in mathematics. peterson et al. (2014) postulate that after-school programmes positively affect teaching and learning. condoned learners usually attend these classes and are equipped with knowledge before or after school hours; therefore, extra classes do not infringe on standard teaching time. additional mathematics classes provide social constructivist teachers with the opportunity to place the learners at the centre of knowledge construction by posing questions on challenging mathematical content (kroflič, 2019). the findings suggest that exposing condoned learners to previous examination papers helps them improve their performance level in fet mathematics. similarly, according to the dbe (2020), academic support was provided to grade 12 learners in 2019, including additional teaching material from past examination papers and after-school programmes. these were supplemented with differentiated teaching programmes, lesson adaptations, and differentiated grouping and modification of teaching methodologies during supplemental classes (dbe, 2020). pule (2020) points out that schools provide extra classes so that learners can improve their academic achievement. during additional classes, learners receive supplementary notes and different teaching and learning on mathematical concepts (fritz-stratmann et al., 2014). extra tuition time with the subject teacher can also allow learners added time to complete their mathematics classwork under the teacher's supervision (dbe, 2001). letshwene (2019) mentions that expanded opportunities are related to homework given to learners. homework is an academic support strategy used to teach mathematics to learners who experience difficulties (oktavianty et al., 2018) and allows learners to practice mathematical problems, such as word problems, in past examination papers (letshwene, 2019). therefore, giving learners previous examination papers for homework will enable them to engage with the subject matter independently. after a teacher has identified a learner's weakness, based on the corrections done on homework, the teacher can provide the appropriate academic support, either by reteaching or varying the teaching methodology (oktavianty et al., 2018). this may enable struggling learners to master the mathematical concepts they find challenging. this form of academic support strategy can be used to improve learners' performance. the findings concur that condoned mathematics learners should be retaught their mathematics classroom and foundational knowledge. this finding is aligned with the theory of social constructivism, which advocates that mathematics learners being involved in interactive group work and problem-solving situations constitutes meaningful learning (bay et al., 2012). the learning needs of condoned learners can explicitly be catered to in differentiated classes using varying teaching methodologies and practices. curriculum differentiation includes 29 ressat 2023, 8(1): 16-30 variation in the subject matter, an adaptation of teaching methodologies, and adjustment in assessment regimes (dbe, 2014). differentiation of the school curriculum is another strategy the subject teacher may use on underperforming learners in mathematics to raise their level of performance. conclusion this study supplements the body of knowledge on the effects of the condonation of senior phase mathematics learners and their promotion to the fet phase. the findings suggest that condoning senior phase learners and promoting them to the fet phase result in their not mastering the foundational knowledge required to learn fet mathematics. therefore, condoning senior phase learners in mathematics results in their accumulating gaps in knowledge. the study recommends that condoned mathematics learners undergo an academic support programme in the fet phase. this would enable them to acquire the prior knowledge needed to overcome their accumulated knowledge gaps to perform well in fet mathematics. mathematics teachers should develop an isp for every condoned learner who experiences learning challenges and should include learning support strategies that are supplemental to the ordinary school day in the form of extra classes conducted before or after the regular school day. the school-based support team should be integral in coordinating the learning support programme for every condoned learner who needs academic support. references bay, e., bagceci b., & çetin, b. (2012). the effects of social constructivist approach on the learners' problem-solving and metacognitive levels. journal of social sciences, 8(3), 343-349. https://doi.org/10.3844/jssp.2012.343.349 braun, v. & clarke, v. (2006). using thematic analysis in psychology. qualitative research in psychology, 3(2), 77-101. http://dx.doi.org/10.1191/1478088706qp063oa davids, n. & waghid, y. (2016). educational leadership in becoming: on the potential of leadership in action. routledge. department of basic education (south africa). (2001). education white paper 6 special needs education: building an inclusive education and training system. department of basic education. department of basic education (south africa). (2014). policy on screening, identification, assessment and support. department of basic education. department of basic education (south africa). (2016). national assessment circular no 3 of 2016. department of basic education. department of basic education (south africa). (2020). annual performance report 2020-2021. department of basic education. 30 ressat 2023, 8(1): 16-30 dube, b. & ndaba, x. p. (2021). educating progressed learners in times of covid-19: how can bricolage help? research in social sciences and technology, 6(2), 22-36. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.9 creswell, j. w. (2016). first steps in research (2nd ed.). van schaik. fritz-stratmann, a., ehlert, a., & klusener, g. (2014). learning support pedagogy for children who struggle to develop the concepts underlying the operations of addition and subtraction of numbers: the "calculia" programme. south african journal of childhood education, 4(3), 136-158. https://doi.org/10.4102/sajce.v4i3.232 kroflič, r. 2019. the pedagogical importance of stories and narrative knowledge. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/334084066_robi_kroflic_the_pedagogical_ importance_of_stories_and_narrative_knowledge legotlo, m. w., maaga, m. p., & sebego, m. g. (2002). perceptions of stakeholders on causes of poor performance in grade 12 in a province in south africa. south african journal of education, 22(2), 113-118. https://www.ajol.info/index.php/saje/article/download/24883/20560 letshwene, m. j. (2019). key generic curriculum factors affecting grade 12 learner performance: a multiple case study of south african secondary schools [doctoral dissertation, university of south africa]. https://uir.unisa.ac.za/bitstream/handle/10500/25521/thesis_letshwene_mj.pdf lumadi, m. w. (2014). lacking the learner-centred approach in mathematics: a curricular paradigm. international journal of educational sciences, 7(3), 783-788. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/09751122.2014.11890241 oktavianty, e., haratua, s., & anuru, m. (2018). the effect of remediation on reducing misconception: a meta-analysis of student thesis on physics education. journal of physics conference series, 1013. https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/17426596/1013/1/012039 peterson, r. l., o'connor, a., & strawhun, j. (2014). academic supports & tutoring 1-9. strategy brief. university of nebraska. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/316098272_academic_supports_and_tuto ring_strategy_brief pritchard, a. & woollard, j. (2010). psychology for the classroom: constructivism and social learning. routledge.pule, g. (2020). school effectiveness and effective mathematics teaching: towards a model of improved learner outcomes [doctoral dissertation, northwest university. potchefstroom]. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.9 research in social sciences and technology https://ressat.org e-issn: 2468-6891 volume: 7 issue: 3 2022 pp. 36-48 teachers’ pedagogical content knowledge in technical schools: the case of domestic installation and wiring teaching mqondiso blayi*a, ndlelehle skosanaa & samuel khozaa * corresponding author email: mqondisblayi@gmail.com a. tshwane university of technology, soshanguve, south africa article info received: june 20, 2022 revised: august 29, 2022 accepted: september 24, 2022 how to cite blayi, m., skosana, n., & khoza, s. (2022). teachers’ pedagogical content knowledge in technical schools: the case of domestic installation and wiring teaching. research in social sciences and technology, 7(3), 36-48. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2022.17 copyright license this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. abstract domestic installation and wiring are still a concern among the secondary central district schools of johannesburg. students reach the grades 11 and 12 with signs of inadequate knowledge on the domestic installation and wiring concepts taught in 10. this is a qualitative research study involving six electrical technology teachers from schools within the central district of johannesburg, south africa. the teachers were purposively selected to take part in the study. the pedagogical content knowledge construct was used as a theoretical framework to underpin the study. data were collected using face-to-face interviews with the teachers and by observing the classroom when teachers were teaching domestic installation and wiring concepts. data were analysed using verbatim quotes for face-to-face interviews and descriptively for classroom observations. findings of the study revealed that teachers are being negatively affected by lack of resources and of adequate training. the study recommends that more resources be sought so that teachers can fully teach the practical component with ease and confidence. recurrent refresher training events are also recommended for teachers to keep up with the electrical technology concept. keywords domestic installation and wiring; electrical technology; technical schools; pedagogical content knowledge; practical skills; teachers. 10.46303/ressat.2022.17 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2022.17 37 ressat 2022, 7(3): 36-48 introduction and background domestic installation and wiring are concepts learned in of electrical technology, which grade 10 subject that focuses on the understanding and application of electrical and electronic principles. electrical technology, in turn, is offered from grades 10 to12 at a further education and training (fet) level and focuses on three main areas of specialization, namely power systems, electronics, and digital electronics. electrical power systems are also referred to as electrical applications where heavy currents from a main supply source are used in several applications (department of basic education, dbe, 2011). students are introduced to the subjects direct current (dc) and domestic installations in grade 10. the circuitry as found in a typical south african home, according to requirements of the south african national standard (sans) 10142, form a major part of the student’s curriculum (department of basic education, dbe, 2011), and it begins within the concept of domestic installation and wiring. an electrical technology student chooses to become an electrician and work in the manufacturing industry with a specific focus on maintenance and repair of electrical installations and machinery, where domestic installation and wiring concepts are of utmost importance. students may expand their careers to electrical firms or even to the technical vocational education and training (tvet) college where one becomes specialized in electrical trade theory or industrial electronics. in addition, a student can also pursue a university career related to electrical technology, be it in education courses or electrical engineering fields. therefore, electrical technology is one of the most important subjects for students, building the foundation of a student’s paths. however, the experiences observed from grades 11 and 12 have shown a lack of basic knowledge of domestic installations and wiring. this poses a serious concern because students would be at risk of not choosing a relevant career path or not competing in electrical technology careers should they follow it. teachers are therefore expected to prepare students with the appropriate hands-on skills to enable the development of future skills. to achieve that, a more structured and enabling learning environment, as well as a competent teacher, are required. surprisingly, most teachers in the johannesburg technical schools often struggle with hands-on tasks that we assign in the quarterly workshops and training that our provincial education department arrange. teachers end up not showing up for the entire workshop and when they do, the outcome of the tasks performed is unsatisfactory. teachers often fail to display the knowledge on the subject required to make the lesson appropriate for students to grasp (lam & lidston, 2007). in addition, providing students with opportunities to fully engage in practical work is often a challenge to teachers (ehikhamenor, 2013). similarly, these challenges may be caused by reasons that range from the abundant infrastructural issues present in the educational system, overcrowding of the classes, and poor teacher development and training. another challenge is the many young and recently graduated teachers who had little or no industry experience in the electrical technology field (paryono, 2015). researchers have observed a limited content knowledge (ck) 38 ressat 2022, 7(3): 36-48 of the electrical technology teachers, particularly when it comes to the manual skills of the subject. this could cause the students’ lack of manual skills to accumulate when they reach higher grades within the electrical technology course. the preparation to teach domestic installation and wiring in both theory and practice requires better strategies for the skills to be learned (ehikhamenor, 2013; lam & lidstone, 2007), hence this study. investigating the challenges faced by teachers in domestic installation and wiring is necessary to assist teachers with relevant and better instructional practices, consequently increasing the performance, knowledge, and grades of their students. this would also enable students to make informed decisions concerning their career possibilities, which are aligned with both electrical technology and engineering fields. we, therefore, a grade 10 level because it is the level where the basic concepts of domestic installation and wiring are taught. purpose and rationale for the study the purpose of this study was to investigate the pedagogical content knowledge (pck) of grade 10 teachers of domestic installation and wiring concepts of technical high schools in johannesburg, south africa. the grade 10 teachers have been observed to have deficient ck, which would be detrimental to student’s knowledge as we have noticed by the limited knowledge and manual skills in domestic installation and wiring of the students at higher levels in the fet phase. this then places students in a difficult position to have a better foundation to build their careers and, to some extent, become entrepreneurs. the students’ lack of skills could easily have been consequence of the limited practical skills, which are hardly ever taught at the school due to poor instructional practices from their teachers. we, therefore, outline the potential benefits of this study should teachers’ instructional practice gaps be identified and dealt with. we believed that students would find domestic installation and wiring theory and practice easy in higher grades and be able to make informed career choices even in grade 10. and teachers would be confident in teaching the concept and would actively participate in seminars and refresher training that are often organized. electrical technology, being a vocational subject, must prepare individuals to easily enter the job market after completion (milio, granizova & shkreli, 2014), which does not occur in johannesburg technical schools. problem statement the domestic electrical installation and wiring taught in technical schools have the potential of equipping students with the skills required for them to contribute meaningfully to national economic development, to be self-sufficient, and job creators, potentially reducing unemployment. the need for skilled workers, artisans, and technicians in south africa has been reported many times in national strategies such as the national skills fund (nsf). despite the increased emphasis given to the importance of practical work, teachers are still not confident in teaching domestic installation and wiring concepts. 39 ressat 2022, 7(3): 36-48 domestic installation and wiring can lead students to self-employment or entrepreneurship. it is precisely through the topic of domestic installation and wiring that one can become an entrepreneur. however, and most importantly, the topic itself serves as a benchmark to other topics in electrical technology. however, my colleagues often divert from the domestic installation and wiring activities that may be proposed in the quarterly training for electrical technology teachers in the johannesburg central district, thus further increasing the challenges experienced when teaching. students in grades 11 and 12 seem clueless regarding the domestic installation and wiring concepts. therefore, this study investigated the grade 10 teachers teaching domestic installation and wiring concepts at the selected technical schools in johannesburg central district, south africa. the main research question of this study is disclosed below. research questions the main research question is; • what are the challenges in domestic installation and wiring faced by grade 10 teachers at the selected technical secondary schools in johannesburg central district in south africa? the main research question was assisted by the following sub-research questions: • how can domestic installation and wiring be facilitated in a grade 10 class? • how are teachers assessing students on domestic installation and wiring? theoretical framework the tvet college and the technical school sectors are one of the three main education and training sectors developed to address the shortage of manual skills in the south african education system (mtshali & ramaligela, 2020). the solution to this shortage requires a strong instructional practice that embraces both theory and practice where teachers understand their roles in leading the learning process. practical lessons are a teaching and learning activity that requires students to observe and/or manipulate objects and materials at some point, with learning experiences where students interact with materials to check and observe a given phenomenon in a practical workshop (madimabe & omodan, 2021; vilaythong, 2011). to merge theory and practice in engineering education, instruction should take place in a workshop or laboratory, following relevant methods (rosa & feisel, 2005). more importantly, teachers should be able to display their best instructional practices for learning to be successful. the teaching and learning of practical skills in the electrical technology program in nigeria may be achieved in the formal, and informal settings, but these skills are commonly attained through formal and informal education (samson et al., 2013). according to the federal government of nigeria (fgn, 2004), informal education is the functional education provided to young and adult individuals outside the formal school system such as functional literacy, remedial education, and vocational education. electrical and electronic skills are equally taught 40 ressat 2022, 7(3): 36-48 and learned in the formal education systems, where emphasis is placed not only on cognitive skills but also on psychomotor and affective skills needed by the students (samson et al., 2013). this then shows the important role of resource availability in a laboratory. most teachers in south african schools are not professionally trained to implement technology education (makgato, 2001). educators should be well-trained by higher education institutions (heis) to conduct practical activities with students, equipping students with marketable skills that enable their contribution to a sustainable economy after the 12th grade (maeko & makgato, 2014). technology teacher education and training should include regular exposure and visits to relevant industries for teachers to keep up with the latest technology development, and the supply of equipment to schools should be coupled with routine maintenance (maeko & makgato, 2014). brunette (2006) states that high quality teaching derives from the following components: • well-prepared teachers with professional expertise and skills. • understanding and application of skills. • good citizenship and democracy. • sufficient textbooks and instructional materials • improvement of physical facilities, which include classrooms as well as laboratories and practical workshops. this shows that the quality of teaching goes far beyond standing in front of the class and talking and should also consist of value in addition to facts. the researchers have personal experience in years as electrical technology teachers at a secondary school and teacher trainers at higher education institutions (heis) and have observed that teachers avoid practical lessons. some educators go as far as rejecting electrical technology power system specialization posts, which involve a practical workshop. qualified technology teachers are scarce, and those on the job have unsatisfactorily taught the practical component of technology education subjects (kennedy, 2011). practical classes are not ministered properly in schools internationally (maeko, 2013). teaching practical technology is encumbered by several factors that range from equipment shortage and material availability (key factor). this then drawbacks students from becoming familiarized with using equipment and making things with material (maeko, 2013). accordingly, this study is important to ascertain the grade 10 teachers’ pck in domestic installation and wiring concept in the schools around johannesburg, south africa is suitable. this study was based on the pedagogical content knowledge coined by schulman (1987). the theoretical framework introduced and described the theory explaining the research problem and is defined as a blueprint or guide for a researcher (grant & osanloo, 2014). according to shulman (1987), pck concerns the overlap of information on subject knowledge. pedagogical knowledge (pk), on the other hand, is the knowledge of how to teach. a teacher may deeply understand a subject area but must also be able to facilitate the understanding of the subject or concepts for students. thus, the theoretical framework chosen as the foundation 41 ressat 2022, 7(3): 36-48 of this study is relevant based on the integration of theory and practical knowledge of electrical technology. pck includes the most regularly taught topics in a subject area, the most useful forms of representing the ideas, the most powerful analogies, illustrations, examples, one-word explanations and demonstrations, a comprehensible way to represent the subject, understanding what facilitates or hinders the learning of specific topics, and the conceptions and preconceptions that students of different ages and backgrounds have of what helps them learn (shulman, 1987). the focus of this study was to establish how secondary school electrical technology teachers develop their pck in teaching domestic installation and wiring. our interest was to determine the teachers’ pck in the context of teaching domestic installation and wiring, thus determining how pck is developed and used in teaching the domestic installation and wiring topic. in this study, the teacher’s classroom practice in domestic installation and wiring was investigated through observations of lessons to explore the existing pck and how the participating teachers demonstrate their pck in the context of teaching domestic installation and wiring. the use of pck as a theoretical framework has provided researchers with a way to collect and analyze data on the teachers’ knowledge or understanding (hlatshwayo et al., 2022; jong, 2003; rollick, 2000; toerien, 2011). the use of pck as theoretical framework has allowed the researchers to focus on specific questions concerning the teacher’s knowledge foundations. in this study, the teachers pck in domestic installation and wiring teaching and the way they develop their teaching strategy were conceptualized as comprising content knowledge (ck), pedagogical knowledge (pk), and knowledge of students’ preconceptions and learning difficulties in the context of teaching domestic wiring. the teachers’ strategy to manage and administer assessment was also evaluated. according to kultsum (2017), pk is related to the ability of teachers to deliver an effective teaching and learning atmosphere to all students. this could often be enhanced by the surrounding environment. research methodology the study has adopted a qualitative approach to explore teachers’ pck in domestic wiring and installation. in the qualitative approach, the researcher collects data following a specific set of steps, in so attempting to remain as objective and neutral as possible (bless & achola, 1990). research design and paradigm the study used a case study research design due to difficulties in accessing several schools once the country was on lockdown due to the covid 19 outbreak. yin (1994) defines a case study as a puzzle that must be solved, and states that “a case study is an empirical inquiry that investigates a contemporary phenomenon within its real-life context, especially when the boundaries between phenomenon and context are not clearly evident.” all schools that were part of the study had similar characteristics, their teachers are in the same district, and 42 ressat 2022, 7(3): 36-48 participate in the same seminars, thus making them part of the same case. their students also struggle with the concept of domestic installation and wiring, as shown by their grades. denzin & lincoh (2000) report that the qualitative approach involves an interpretative and naturalistic approach, meaning that “qualitative researchers study things in their natural settings, attempting to make sense or interpret phenomenon in terms of meanings people bring them.” we used an approach where the teachers’ responses were interpreted and the challenges, they faced in their classrooms concerning the domestic installation and wiring concepts were inferred. therefore, we adopted the constructivist paradigm in this study, according to which a constructivist view is adopted to identify challenges faced by teachers teaching domestic wiring and installation in their classrooms. this was done through interviews and classroom observation. the intention was to make sense through interpretation of others’ understanding of the world creswell (2009). population and sample the population of the study comprised twenty-six-grade 10 electrical technology teachers, from six different technical high schools located in townships within a johannesburg district, south africa. goddard & melville (2001), define population as any group that is the subject of research interest. it is often not practical to study an entire population, and, in such cases, it is necessary to make general findings based on a study of only one sample of the population (sharp & howard, 2006). this study employed a purposive sampling method due to the possibility of handpicking information-rich research participants. the purposive sampling technique is a nonprobability sampling strategy that is most effective when one needs to study a given cultural domain and has well-grounded expectations concerning it (ma. dolores, 2007). purposive sampling is also called judgment sampling, which is also a deliberate choice of an informing due to qualities exhibited by the informant (ma. dolores, 2007). purposive sampling was used to select six technical schoolteachers who teach grade 10 electrical technology as means of obtaining rich information from the participants. data collection and analysis data were collected through semi-structured face-to-face interviews with teachers of the subject electrical technology and classroom observation during practical classes addressing domestic installation and wiring. during data collection, the researcher waited for the participants to ring a bell that indicated safe working conditions and the availability of students since they were in a rotation mode due to the covid 19 restrictions. face-to-face interviews with the teachers enabled us to understand the teachers’ pck through questions focused on assisting the teachers with their instructional challenges. the face-to-face interviews lasted 20 minutes per teacher and were conducted under very strict conditions, adhering to the covid 19 control protocol. data were analyzed using verbatim quotes for face-to-face interviews with the teachers and descriptively for classroom observation. pseudonyms were used for teachers and name of the schools to protect their images. teachers were called by teacher a, b, etc. 43 ressat 2022, 7(3): 36-48 findings and discussion four of the six teachers that were sampled were male, and two were females. teachers’ teaching experience ranged from 5 to 35 years, and only two of them were not initially qualified to teach electrical technology but became qualified through short training that they attended. the responses from the participants varied. when asked about the challenges in teaching the topic domestic installation and wiring concept, teacher a responded “the first challenge is that we do not have enough equipment, measuring instruments and material. despite the lack of equipment and material, i can teach the content domestic installation and wiring concept.” a follow-up response from teacher b was: the first challenge that i am having is that there are too many students in the workshop, the ratio according to the department of education should be 1:15, but we end up having 40 students which is not manageable in the workshop. teacher d added by saying: i don’t have a problem with teaching domestic installation and wiring, but the problem starts when i teach practical. my workshop is not designed to accommodate the practical of domestic installation and wiring; we don’t have enough space and my workshop is too small. others agree that issues with reduced resources and lack of expertise are a relevant factor, as supported by brunette (2006), who stated that the availability of textbooks and instructional materials should be sought, in addition to improvements of physical facilities (i.e., classrooms, laboratories, and practical workshops alike). when asked about their knowledge and skills in domestic installation and wiring teacher d said “i had knowledge of domestic installation and wiring before, but now it has just disappeared. i was teaching electronics specialization, and now i am teaching power system specialization, and i have forgotten everything.” a teacher from another school (teacher e) said: like i said earlier, i don’t understand the concept of domestic installation and wiring because, for me, it is very difficult to teach, so my level of content knowledge is too little. the only thing that i know is just to connect the wires to the main supply then to the wall sockets. educators agree that they lack proper training for practical skills as alluded to by maeko and makgato (2014), who also state that educators should be well-trained by higher education institutions (heis) to conduct practical activities with students to prepare them with marketable skills and thus contribute to a sustainable economy after the 12th grade. when teachers were asked about the distinction between theory and practice of domestic wiring and installation teacher c said, “i teach the theory part but with the late arrival of materials and components sometimes i don’t teach the practice.” teacher d added and said: 44 ressat 2022, 7(3): 36-48 i can distinguish by saying theory teaches the students the basics of domestic installation and wiring, safety, and tools then the practical enhances their skills to what they have gained from the theory. i teach theory then later a practice, but i am not too strong. this shows that the pck of the teachers is far from being adequate as the teachers themselves admitted to the weakness of their approach to the domestic installation and wiring concepts (shulman, 1987). their responses to the challenges in the concept, also showed that their ck is also weak. according to shulman (1987), if the teacher presents weak ck, the teacher’s pck would be affected regardless of the content (pk) is taught, once the three concepts are interrelated. therefore, it was clear from some of the teachers’ responses that they are challenged by the concepts being taught due to limited ck and because some teachers are not professionally trained electrical technology teachers but became teachers by attending seminars. data were also collected through classroom observation using shulman’s pck notion. the aim was to ascertain the teachers’ challenges in teaching the concept of domestic installation and wiring to their grade 10 learner s. each teacher was observed once due to the covid 19 restrictions that were imposed in schools. content knowledge (ck) we observed that three of the teachers had the content knowledge (ck) of domestic wiring and installation, particularly the theoretical part, as they displayed similar practices by introducing the concept very well. in turn, some teachers showed gaps in understanding the domestic installation and wiring concept and the issues due to lack of resources kept the morale of the teachers low. teachers resorted to theoretical lessons due to the lack of resources and even those were not ministered at a level required for students to understand, once the teachers taught abstract concepts with which the students had no previous contact. none of the teachers conducted practical lessons on the concept and that was worrisome. this confirms previous observations that practical lessons are not properly conducted in schools internationally (maeko, 2013). he argued that teaching practical technology lessons is hindered by several factors that include shortage of equipment and material as the key factor. this then brings a disadvantage to students who do not become familiarized with using the equipment and making things with the material (maeko, 2013). pedagogical knowledge (pk) the availability of tools and resources was a big problem across all the schools evaluated. teacher c of school c did not conduct practical lessons with his students because they did not have resources and materials. this affected how the topic was taught because they ended up theorizing a concept that needed to have been hands-on. the development of useful skills can be fostered by the appropriate selection and use of learning facilities and resources (anyokoha, 1992). the facilities consist of workshop structure, working materials, teaching material, and workshop tools and equipment, which need better instructional practices that the teachers 45 ressat 2022, 7(3): 36-48 failed to display (anyokoha, 1992). the teachers that are not professionally trained electrical technology teachers could not even display the basic teaching strategies of linking the concepts and extending them to the outside world. this adds to previous reports of a shortage in qualified technology teachers and that those on the job have not been adequately teaching the practical component of technology education subjects in their school days, hence the continued challenges (kennedy, 2011). in addition, vilaythong (2011) concluded that practical lessons enable learning experiences through which students interact with materials to check and observe phenomenon in a practical workshop. however, in the case of johannesburg technical schools, that was not the case because students were not exposed to practical work due to the lack of resources and electrical technology workshops. in contrast, kultsum (2017) stated that pk is related to the ability of teachers to deliver an effective teaching and learning atmospheres for all students, which in this case could not be done once the environment in which the teachers and students found themselves had inadequate resources. pedagogical content knowledge (pck) none of the teachers taught practical lessons. in addition, their pck could not be verified given the gaps observed in their theory teaching, where teachers showed poor ck. the concept of domestic installation and wiring is a practical, and it was worrisome to see teachers deeply lacking in the practical aspect, thus affecting their ck. their pk also left much to be desired because even the introduction to technology was limited. the key concepts that define pck (see shulman, 1987) were not observed among the teachers who confirmed the challenges they face in domestic installation and wiring. shulman (2004) further adds that pck is a combination of subject-specific knowledge and pedagogical knowledge that is important for teachers. however, what we observed was a weak association between the two. conclusion the study aimed to evaluate the pck of grade 10 teachers teaching of domestic installation and wiring. findings of the study revealed that many of the teachers that participated in the study were not qualified to teach electrical technology, and that the lack of resources is a major issue. teachers’ pck was lacking due to poor ck and limited pk. the study then recommends that schools should keep taking teachers to refresher trainings to keep them abreast of the new strategies of domestic installation and wiring. issues of lack of resources especially concerning workshop tools and equipment need to be addressed in all the electrical technology subjects. more importantly, schools need to 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(2011). a case study of the pedagogical content knowledge of in-service science teachers teaching organic chemistry in two south african secondary schools. university of cape town press. vilaythong, v. (2011). the role of practical work in physics education in lao pdr. umea university. yin, r., (1994). case study research: design and methods (2nd ed.). sage. https://doi.org/10.3102%2f0013189x015002004 research in social sciences and technology https://ressat.org e-issn: 2468-6891 volume: 8 issue: 1 2023 pp. 74-91 can experience determine the adoption of industrial revolution 4.0 skills in 21st-century mathematics education? musa adekunle ayanwale email: ayanwalea@uj.ac.za university of johannesburg, south africa article info received: october 6, 2022 accepted: april 15, 2023 published: april 25, 2023 how to cite ayanwale, m. a. (2023). can experience determine the adoption of industrial revolution 4.0 skills in 21stcentury mathematics education?. research in social sciences and technology, 8(1), 74-91 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2023.6 copyright license this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (cc by 4.0). abstract teachers in secondary schools were studied to determine their readiness to adopt fourth industrial revolution (4ir) technologies to enhance their teaching practices and student learning. through industry 4.0, technologies are also becoming available as products for education, transforming the rules and norms of education. secondary school mathematics teachers in nigeria must prepare themselves to embrace digital skills so that they will be ready for new teaching and learning processes that are being introduced by these new digital tools. in this study, a cross-sectional quantitative approach was used. the data were collected using a self-developed instrument with a content validity index of 0.96 and a macdonald omega reliability index of 0.84. a purposive sampling technique was used to select 211 mathematics teachers in three lagos state education districts. analyses of the obtained data were performed using descriptive statistics and anova at a significance level of 0.05. results indicate that mathematics teachers are ready to integrate 4ir skills and emerging technologies into their classrooms. in addition, the willingness of participants to adopt relevant 4ir skills across their years of experience was statistically significant. a new path is charted for school administrators, mathematics teachers, and stakeholders in the education sector to assist in policy design toward 4ir, thereby contributing to the existing literature on adopting emerging technologies to teach mathematics education in sub-saharan africa. keywords education 4.0; mathematics teacher 4.0; mathematics education; industry 4.0; 4ir; teaching and learning 10.46303/ ressat.2023.6 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2023.6 75 ressat 2023, 8(1): 74-91 introduction a society's strengths and weaknesses are reflected locally and internationally by the role played by education (moloi & matabane, 2020). investing in education for self-sustainability is important in every nation. according to kehdinga and fomunyam (2019), economic development, scientific advancements, and industrial know-how contribute to competitiveness. people need an education that will prepare them for creatively solving local and global problems in light of the fourth industrial revolution (fomunyam, 2020). the fourth industrial revolution, also called the 4ir era, is one of the major goals of education. in literature, human civilization has undergone three industrial revolutions, namely; the first industrial revolution (the steam and water revolution dramatically increased human productivity); the second industrial revolution (mass industrialization, electric power as the driving force); the third industrial revolution (information technology; computing in industry and the development of personal computers) (darwish, 2018; schwab, 2019). in recent times, the 3rd industrial revolution morphed into a 4ir. among the new technologies in the 4ir are blockchain, robotics, artificial intelligence (ai), big data, the internet of things (iot), automation, data exchange, cyber-physical systems, cloud computing, semi-autonomous industrial techniques, and 5g networks (see figure 1). smart industry and industrial goals are generally represented by 4ir. business models, management, and human resources are affected by those revolutions (benesova & tupa, 2017). as revolutions come and go, some jobs become obsolete, while others become relevant. in the last few decades, new technological developments have replaced machines with telecommunications and electricity (schwab, 2016; wef & adb, 2017). these technologies and trends blur physical, digital, and biological boundaries in all disciplines, industries, and economies. future workplaces will be revolutionized by these smart technologies (horáková et al., 2017). therefore, ai has the ability to interact and improve performance, but it is emerging as the next disruptive innovation. the 4ir may be triggered by ai, which is considered to be a key driver of this revolution. there is also a growing interest in learning about ai in schools (da, et al., 2020; knox, 2020; zhai, et al., 2021). it is noteworthy to state that mathematics teachers should embrace these revolutionary digital technologies to enhance their teaching pedagogies in sub-saharan africa. 76 ressat 2023, 8(1): 74-91 figure 1. the fourth industrial revolution. in the 4ir, mathematics education is also facing unprecedented changes, in addition to industry and business. with the powerful and clever technologies available in the 4ir, mathematics education will change greatly (nadkarni & prügl, 2021). a key feature of education 4.0 is to align the education system with the emerging 4ir era, which emphasises smart technologies that are part of daily life today (james, 2019; lubinga et al., 2023; seitbatkalova et al., 2023). considering the impact of education 4.0, which is built on big data and advanced digital literacy, on students' cognitive, affective, and psycho-productive learning, it's essential that mathematics teachers embrace digital and data literacy that will improve their teaching and position them to compete globally in the 4ir era. to overcome these challenges, mathematics teachers must be trained and equipped with the necessary skills. essentially, mathematics teacher 4.0 deals with the training of future mathematics teachers to be versatile in implementing technology in their classrooms (abdelrazeq et al., 2016). due to the fact that education is the core of the workforce, the 4ir era calls for new skills to be developed among students, who will be driving and leading the changes. the previously mentioned changes in teaching strategies should be implemented, and the contents taught to students. in the 4ir era, mathematics teachers must acquire necessary and relevant skills through professional development programs. consequently, it requires a new curriculum and the use of appropriate technology in education (ayanwale et al. 2022; junid et al., 2019). developing mathematics teachers, the education sector's human resources, and drivers are key to achieving these processes. moreover, 4ir's impact on mathematics education in nigeria and its readiness to embrace necessary skills are urgently needed. the 4ir requires nigerian mathematics educators to be responsive to students' needs to make sure they are ready and equipped for the future. modern and advanced classrooms require mathematics teachers to change their behavior. as the 4ir era evolves, their roles and responsibilities must adapt. 77 ressat 2023, 8(1): 74-91 4ir implication for education 4ir education is a complex, dialectical, and exciting opportunity that could transform society. a wide range of sectors is affected by 4ir, and education is not exempted. as a result, it presents opportunities as well as challenges for education. education could be completely transformed by the use of iot, 3d printing, quantum computing, and ai by utilizing the 4ir components. a 4ir's impact on education has more to do with curriculum, teaching, and learning than robotic tutors, according to butler-adam (2018). therefore, teaching and learning must be crosssectoral. it is crucial that students and educators learn about the different factors involved in implementing 4ir. according to butler-adam (2018), students in humanities and social sciences ought to know how ai works, at least at its foundations. by bringing humanities and social sciences together, the 4ir drives a multidisciplinary field. digital pedagogy requires new guidelines to provide a theoretical basis for online instruction and ai (penprase, 2018, cited in kayembe & nel, 2019). adaptive skills in digital literacy are essential for students to be successful in the global digital economy, find employment, innovate, express themselves creatively, and integrate into society (brown-martin, 2017). in developing a digital education strategy, you must consider how the system will change. there is a wicked problem here. if students are not well prepared and have insufficient resources, changes could negatively impact graduation quality (marshall, 2016, cited in kayembe & nel, 2019). particularly in terms of quality measures, education is susceptible to wicked problems. an increasing number of challenges exist when it comes to conceptualizing and operationalizing quality measures, performance indicators, and educational outcomes (marshall, 2016). in addition, 4ir implementation requires appropriate skills. it is time for mathematics education to decolonize and integrate artificial intelligence. lifelong learning pathways, digital fluency, and mathematical skills should be incorporated into 21st-century curricula and educational innovations (moloi & matabane, 2020). education and practice in mathematics should be reoriented by this curriculum change. focus research on technologies that have an immediate impact on mathematics education and reflect technological sustainability in the curriculum. additionally, kehdinga and fomunyam (2019) suggest that curriculums should be based on student-centered teaching and learning approaches, such as task-based, projectbased, problem-based, competency-based, and case studies, adapted to market needs. the 4ir must be implemented successfully by teachers from all specializations, including mathematics teachers, according to ayanwale et al. (2022); butler-adam (2018). consequently, implementing, managing, and working with new technologies will require vital skills for the 4ir to succeed (gray, 2016). teaching mathematics in the 21st century mathematics in the 4ir can be equated with 4.0 to 4.0 ir. mathematics teaching changed dramatically with the first industrial revolution, away from conventional methods. thus, mathematics 4.0 fits with teaching 4.0 and 4.0ir needs. in the education sector, some individuals are resistant to using 4ir technology. pedagogical skills can be enhanced by 4ir 78 ressat 2023, 8(1): 74-91 technology (ally & wark, 2020). learning will be enhanced with the use of digital technologies, open-source content, and frameworks. by learning, relearning, and unlearning, teachers can revolutionize how they teach. 4ir's existing tools should be accepted, as teachers' preparedness should not be limited to existing technology (jalil et al., 2022). with technology, they can differentiate instruction and modify information for their student’s learning abilities. learning opportunities could be transformed by 4ir, according to oke and fernandes (2020). due to the remoteness of many african cities and towns, learning materials and teaching are accessible to all. despite changes in the education climate during 4ir, their role will evolve from teacher to mentor to facilitate students' learning. according to the 4ir, education should adapt to help teachers develop the potential of each student and prepare them to become self-learners. teachers have a great responsibility today: to evolve their teaching strategies so that their students can unlock their potential and develop the skills necessary to shape the future with technology-driven innovation. it is, therefore, necessary to evolve teaching strategies to teach in the 4ir. changing the teaching process will allow students to become more adept at applying, analyzing, and creating what they learned in the classroom instead of merely memorizing and understanding it. learning with a personalized approach is not about achieving specific outcomes but rather about achieving those outcomes (michael & maria, 2019). through the use of available technology tools, the goal is to enhance student’s talents and problem-solving skills and enable them to resolve issues in new ways. for example, to define and distinguish between different levels of thinking, learning, and understanding, educators use bloom's taxonomy, which is a hierarchical classification system. there are different levels of cognition associated with different levels of learning. using bloom's taxonomy for teaching students is intended to enhance their ability to reason in higher order. bloom's taxonomy, as well as other technologies that support convergent thinking, can be used by teachers to improve student ingenuity, innovation, and convergent thinking. as a result, there is a need to empower students to think independently and to design their own future in the workplace of tomorrow, not just prepare them to perform functions as future workers. study underpinning theory any information system's life cycle should include understanding why users accept and reject a new technology (silva & dias, 2007; sivathanu & pillai, 2019). a framework for understanding and assessing the acceptance of new technologies has been developed to determine how users understand and accept them, how they use them, and what the effects may be. information systems are used implicitly when an intention to use them exists. however, to continue using the information system, two beliefs are needed: in the first stage, users must accept it. once the system is accepted, users' satisfaction with it determines continuing use. therefore, the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (utaut) is a theoretical framework guiding this study (venkatesh et al., 2003). a major scientific contribution since davis et al.'s technology acceptance model was first proposed in 1989; this model has arguably the highest scientific 79 ressat 2023, 8(1): 74-91 significance. this model suggested four dimensions for exploring the complexity and ascertaining whether mathematics teachers are prepared as the 4ir takes hold in mathematics education. these dimensions are outlined by venkatesh et al. (2003) as performance expectancy, effort expectancy, social influence, and facilitation. technology acceptance theory is appropriate for this study because it integrates eight prominent models from many philosophical perspectives (davison & argyriou, 2016; venkatesh et al., 2003). it explains user intentions when using an information system. despite the focus of education on learners, the 4ir will utilize smart instructional techniques so that learning will become adaptive and more personal (gros, 2016). therefore, if mathematics teachers become familiar with the skills required for mathematics education in the 4ir, then both nations and their students will benefit. for teachers and learners to function effectively in the 4ir era, they must become literate in its different types of technologies. it is not necessary for them to be experts in 4ir, but a basic understanding of the technology will enable them to protect themselves and use the technology responsibly. consequently, this study is poised to determine the influence of mathematics teachers' years of experience on their ability to incorporate 4ir-relevant tools into their instructional practices. teachers' experience and 4ir tools adoption the majority of research indicates that teaching experience influences the successful use of 4ir tools in classroom instruction (giordano, 2017; hernandez-ramos, 2015; wong & li, 2018). there is a significant correlation between teacher experience and technology use (gorder, 2018). additionally, lau and sim (2018) examined the extent to which 250 secondary school teachers in malaysia adopted the technology. the researchers found that teachers with more experience use technology in the classroom more frequently than those with lesser experience. many teachers who have remained in the service for a long time have acquired a wealth of experience in teaching and are competent at using technology to enhance their teaching methods. it was determined by ayanwale et al. (2023); russell et al. (2013) that teachers with less experience but who were highly proficient with technology did not incorporate technology into their lessons. teachers with less experience may focus on how to use technologies rather than how to integrate them into their classes, according to the researchers. additionally, less experienced teachers may have some challenges in their first few years of teaching and will spend most of their time getting acquainted with the school's curriculum and classroom management. according to russell et al. (2017), in a survey of almost 3000 teachers, the quality of technology integration is related to the number of years the teacher has been teaching. conversely, some studies found that teachers' experience in the classroom did not affect their use of emerging technologies (niederhauser & stoddart, 2011). additionally, baek, et al. (2018) found that experienced teachers are less likely to integrate technology into their classrooms. the us national center for education statistics reported in 2000 that teachers with less experience were more likely to integrate technologies into their teaching than teachers with more experience. there may be a reason for this disparity since less experienced teachers are 80 ressat 2023, 8(1): 74-91 more adept at using technology. thus, this study aims to determine how teachers adopt industrial revolution 4.0 skills and tools in 21st-century mathematics education based on how long they have been teaching. with this in mind, the study investigated whether mathematics teachers with varying experience levels are statistically different in terms of their willingness to adopt essential 4ir skills. methodology cross-sectional quantitative research was used for this study. the survey was conducted online among mathematics teachers in government-owned schools. they were assured that their responses would be treated with the utmost confidentiality as they consented to participate in the study. to facilitate seamless distribution of the survey link to mathematics teachers in education districts one, two, and three of lagos state, nigeria, ten research assistants were recruited to collect contact information of mathematics teachers. using a likert response scale, the survey asked teachers whether they were prepared to embrace skills for 4ir that would improve their teaching methods. two sessions were required to complete the survey, which took approximately 10 minutes. a demographic survey was conducted in the first session to gather information about teachers' experiences. in the second session, teachers are questioned about their readiness to embrace the 4ir tools. on a four-point likert scale, respondents indicated their extent level based on statements ranging from '4=very large extent' to '3= large extent' to '2= some extent' and '1=not at all’. based on literature reviews and interactions with mathematics teachers, 25 pools of items were developed. the validity and reliability of these items were assessed based on the content. three experts in computer science selected a total of 20 items after reexamining their suggestions based on relevance, readability, language use, and rendition. the survived items had a content validity index (cvi) proposed by lawshe (1975); baghestani et al. (2019), after rating by five panellists in terms of "essentiality and non-essentiality", returned an index of 0.96, and macdonald omega reliability implemented in "user-friendly" package of r programming language gave an index of 0.84. scale items were developed in a google form, and the link was sent to all contacts. of 302 emails, 211 responses were received (61 females and 150 males). their ages range from 26 to 58 years. in jamovi software version 2.2.3 (jamovi project, 2021), descriptive statistics and one-way analysis of variance (anova) were applied to the collected data. open-source spreadsheet software jamovi is a third-generation statistical spreadsheet built with r (r core team, 2021). a further step was taken to recode negatively worded items before analyzing them. institutional review board statement an ethics committee at the university of johannesburg approved the study according to the declaration of helsinki (protocol code sem 2-2021-160, approval date: 10 november 2021). 81 ressat 2023, 8(1): 74-91 results the statistical tools adopted for the study were subjected to a preliminary analysis to verify a few underlying assumptions. normality and homogeneity of variance assumptions were applied to mathematics teachers' responses. shapiro wilk's test found no statistical significance in the dataset, with kurtosis and skewness values falling within the advanced benchmark established by hair et al. (2010) and bryne (2010) of -2.58 to +2.58. a non-significant value was also obtained (p > 0.05) using levene’s test of homogeneity of variance. hence, the participants in the study are not statistically different, i.e., they have similar characteristics as mathematics teachers, regardless of years of experience. having met the two major assumptions, we can proceed to the next step of the analysis. mathematics teachers' readiness to adopt 4ir-relevant skills was assessed with analysis of variance (anova). based on the years of experience of mathematics teachers, the level of their readiness to acquire relevant skills for math education in the 4ir was assessed using a one-way analysis of variance (anova). this test of anova was conducted on the item level and on the overall scale of mathematics teachers to determine how their adoption of 4ir skills differed based on their years of experience. table 1 shows the results. table 1. one-way anova for item-level on the adoption of 4ir skills by years of experience statement experience mean sd f p-values i am ready to learn about artificial intelligence, one of the technologies of the 4ir, to enhance my pedagogy 1-5 years 3.26 0.98 6-10 years 3.00 0.81 11-15 years 3.29 0.77 1.32 0.27 16-20 years 3.22 0.81 21 years and above 3.23 0.83 my interaction with students would be clear and understandable with relevant 4ir skills 1-5 years 3.31 1.18 6-10 years 3.31 0.99 11-15 years 3.57 0.74 1.29 0.28 16-20 years 3.44 0.92 21 years and above 3.77 0.60 embracing 4ir tools enables me to complete tasks more quickly 1-5 years 3.54 0.95 6-10 years 3.55 0.80 11-15 years 3.54 0.80 0.38 0.82 16-20 years 3.33 0.97 21 years and above 3.69 0.75 i am ready to learn modern pedagogies that will be the norm in the 4ir era 1-5 years 3.66 0.68 6-10 years 3.16 1.18 11-15 years 3.13 1.11 2.31 0.06 16-20 years 3.50 0.79 21 years and above 2.85 1.41 having 4ir relevant skills will improve my productivity 1-5 years 3.34 1.00 6-10 years 3.42 1.04 11-15 years 3.47 0.99 1.00 0.41 16-20 years 3.72 0.75 21 years and above 3.85 0.56 1-5 years 3.00 1.21 82 ressat 2023, 8(1): 74-91 4ir skills would enhance career development 6-10 years 3.57 0.79 11-15 years 3.71 0.52 7.02 0.01 16-20 years 2.89 1.08 21 years and above 3.69 0.63 i am ready to acquire the skills of creativity and complex problem-solving needed by educators of the 4ir 1-5 years 3.03 0.82 6-10 years 3.22 0.75 11-15 years 3.25 0.82 2.11 0.08 16-20 years 3.44 0.62 21 years and above 3.69 0.63 i am ready to upgrade myself to fit into the teaching and learning pedagogies of the 4ir 1-5 years 2.83 0.89 6-10 years 2.96 0.80 11-15 years 3.38 0.75 5.73 0.01 16-20 years 3.67 0.77 21 years and above 3.23 0.93 i am prepared to become the educator of the 4ir due to the many technological innovations involved 1-5 years 1.74 0.98 6-10 years 2.39 0.49 11-15 years 2.82 0.57 4.38 0.01 16-20 years 4.00 0.00 21 years and above 3.00 0.00 the 4ir demands much learning. i am not prepared for the lifelong learning pathways 1-5 years 2.69 0.96 6-10 years 2.97 0.61 11-15 years 2.94 0.57 1.19 0.31 16-20 years 3.00 1.03 21 years and above 2.85 0.38 i am ready to key into the opportunities of the 4ir by taking preparatory steps henceforth 1-5 years 2.60 0.95 6-10 years 3.00 0.73 11-15 years 3.01 0.56 4.81 0.01 16-20 years 3.33 0.69 21 years and above 2.54 0.52 i am ready to key into the transformation emerging digital technologies and innovations would cause in education in the 4ir era 1-5 years 2.63 1.00 6-10 years 3.00 0.69 11-15 years 2.85 0.72 2.05 0.04 16-20 years 3.17 0.86 21 years and above 2.85 0.56 i am ready to join the progressive educators preparing for the 4ir skills 1-5 years 2.26 1.07 6-10 years 2.49 1.01 11-15 years 2.31 1.03 5.33 0.01 16-20 years 3.17 1.04 21 years and above 1.54 0.88 i would find 4ir skills useful in my instructional strategies. 1-5 years 2.97 0.99 6-10 years 2.97 1.17 11-15 years 2.84 1.09 1.64 0.17 16-20 years 3.56 0.62 21 years and above 3.00 0.82 1-5 years 2.31 1.05 6-10 years 2.58 0.85 83 ressat 2023, 8(1): 74-91 the 21st century curricula is too ictoriented. as an educator, i am not prepared for its roles 11-15 years 2.26 0.91 1.97 0.10 16-20 years 2.78 1.22 21 years and above 2.23 0.73 the use of smart boards scares me 1-5 years 2.80 0.87 6-10 years 2.95 0.86 11-15 years 2.90 0.69 2.40 0.05 16-20 years 3.28 1.02 21 years and above 2.38 0.87 i feel apprehensive about acquiring relevant 4ir skills to teach 1-5 years 2.29 1.13 6-10 years 2.26 1.09 11-15 years 2.13 1.17 0.72 0.58 16-20 years 2.61 1.20 21 years and above 2.08 1.12 i am ready to learn the internet of things (iot) in preparation for 4ir 1-5 years 2.34 0.94 6-10 years 2.43 0.82 11-15 years 2.60 0.72 2.83 0.03 16-20 years 2.89 0.96 21 years and above 3.00 0.71 i am ready to key into edutech services and education innovation of the 4ir 1-5 years 3.31 0.99 6-10 years 3.03 1.11 11-15 years 3.40 0.83 1.56 0.19 16-20 years 3.06 1.00 21 years and above 3.00 1.23 i am ready to use every available opportunity to update my knowledge to fit into the roles expected of educators of the 4ir 1-5 years 3.03 1.18 6-10 years 3.09 1.03 11-15 years 3.00 1.17 0.83 0.51 16-20 years 3.50 0.92 21 years and above 2.92 1.12 table 1 depicts the one-way anova statistics for each item on adopting 4ir skills across mathematics teachers' years of experience. table 1 revealed that eight items showed a significant value at α = 0.05 (p < 0.05) among the different years of experience of the teachers. this implies that teachers' years of experience contribute to their readiness to embrace 4ir skills to enhance instructional pedagogy and classroom activities. however, when the means were compared across the years of experience on items such as i am ready to learn about artificial intelligence, one of the technologies of the 4ir, to enhance my pedagogy (f (4,206) = 1.32, p = 0.27>0.05), my interaction with students would be clear and understandable with relevant 4ir skills (f (4,206) = 1.29, p = 0.28>0.05), embracing 4ir tools enables me to complete tasks more quickly (f (4,206) = 0.38, p = 0.82>0.05), i am ready to learn modern pedagogies that will be the norm in the 4ir era (f (4,206)) = 2.31, p= 0.06>0.05), having 4ir relevant skills will improve my productivity (f (4,206) = 1.00, p = 0.41>0.05), i am ready to acquire the skills of creativity and complex problem solving needed by educators of the 4ir (f (4,206) = 2.11, p = 0.08>0.05), the 4ir 84 ressat 2023, 8(1): 74-91 demands much learning. i am not prepared for the lifelong learning pathways (f (4,206) = 1.19, p = 0.31>0.05), i would find 4ir skills useful in my instructional strategies (f (4,206) = 1.64, p = 0.17>0.05), the 21st century curricula is too ict-oriented. as an educator, i am not prepared for its roles (f (4,206) = 1.97, p = 0.10>0.05), i feel apprehensive about acquiring relevant 4ir skills to teach (f (4,206)) = 0.72, p = 0.58>0.05), i am ready to key into edutech services and education innovation of the 4ir (f (4,206) = 1.56, p = 0.19>0.05), and i am ready to use every available opportunity to update my knowledge to fit into the roles expected of educators of the 4ir (f (4,206) = 0.83, p = 0.51>0.05), showed a statistical non-significant difference. as a result, no difference was found in mathematics teachers' scores on these items, irrespective of their years of experience incorporating 4ir skills into their instructional practices. an analysis of anova was performed on mathematics teachers' overall disposition toward adopting 4ir skills to enhance their pedagogy and classroom learning. results are presented in table 2. table 2. one-way anova on the adoption of 4ir skills across teachers' age groups experience mean sd 1-5 years 56.90 7.50 6-10 years 59.60 4.88 4ir relevant skills 11-15 years 60.40 5.20 16-20 years 65.60 5.81 > 21 years 59.40 3.59 f (4, 206) = 7.61 p < 0.05 table 2 presents the estimated means and variances of 4ir skills across teachers of different experience levels. the table revealed that 16-20 years had the highest mean score of ( = 65.60, sd = 5.81), followed by 11-15 years with ( = 60.40, sd = 5.20), next is 59.60 years with a mean score of ( = 59.60, sd = 4.88), 21 years and above had ( = 59.40, sd = 3.59) and 1-5 years had a mean score of ( = 56.90, sd = 7.50) respectively. more experienced teachers can take advantage of the opportunities surrounding the 4ir era and better their teaching and learning processes than their less experienced counterparts. furthermore, a one-way anova was used to analyze the observed mean difference. the use of 4ir skills is statistically significantly different between mathematics teachers with different years of experience (f (4,206) = 7.61, p < 0.05) (table 2). as a result, the hypothesis that "there is no significant difference in the adoption of 4ir skills across the years of experience of mathematics teachers" was rejected. the researcher used a pairwise comparison using the turkey method to assess where the observed significance lies (post hoc test). the results are presented in table 3. 85 ressat 2023, 8(1): 74-91 table 3. pairwise comparison of the adoption of 4ir skills across teachers' years of experience 1-5 years 6-10 years 11-15 years 16-20 years 21 years and above 1-5 years mean difference — -2.41 -3.48 -8.61 *** -2.4418 p-value — 0.207 0.022 < .001 0.652 6-10 years mean difference — -1.08 -6.20 *** -0.0340 p-value — 0.767 < .001 1.000 11-15 years mean difference — -5.13 ** 1.0419 p-value — 0.005 0.971 16-20 years mean difference — 6.1709 p-value — 0.020 21 years and above mean difference — p-value — *the mean difference is significant at the 0.05 level. table 3 shows that the adoption of 4ir skills was significantly different between those with 1-5 years of teaching experience and those with 11-15 years of teaching experience (mean difference = -3.48, p < 0.05) as well as between those with 16-20 years of teaching experience (mean difference = -8.61, p < 0.05). furthermore, there was a significant difference between teachers with 6-10 years of experience and those with 16-20 years (mean difference = -6.20, p < 0.05), 11-15 years, and 16-20 years (mean difference = -5.13, p < 0.05), and 16-20 years and those with 21 years and above (mean difference = 6.17, p < 0.05). as a result, teachers with more teaching experience were more likely to adopt 4ir skills for their instructional strategies. it is possible that these results suggest that teachers with a long teaching experience have received a series of professional training and capacity building on ict compliance, which makes them more likely to be able to effectively use the 4ir tools in comparison to teachers with less teaching experience. discussion and future directions there is already a 4ir underway. 3d printing, 5g networks, robots, and artificial intelligence are just a few technological innovations that have swept the world in recent years. it is no secret that technological advances have changed and will continue to change how organizations operate, including the education sector. it is impossible for teachers who do not know how to use these technological advancements to teach mathematics in a way that will enable learners to understand this concept more deeply. therefore, the fourth industrial revolution requires 86 ressat 2023, 8(1): 74-91 education in sub-saharan africa to be responsive. in this study, we present data from a diverse sample of mathematics teachers on their preparedness to embrace 4ir skills to enhance their pedagogy and learning process. based on the teachers' teaching experience, this study aims to ascertain if there is a statistically significant difference in the willingness of mathematics teachers to develop relevant skills for the 4ir. there was a statistically significant mean difference between teachers' years of teaching experience and their adoption of relevant 4ir skill sets. the results of this study are aligned with those of (giordano, 2017; gorder, 2018; hernandez-ramos, 2015; wong & li, 2018), who argued that teaching experience affects the use of 4ir tools in classroom instruction. furthermore, more experienced teachers tend to embrace 4ir tools to improve their instructional delivery more than their less experienced counterparts. the results of this study corroborate lau and sim (2018); oladele et al. (2023) assertion that teachers with more experience utilize technology in the classroom more frequently than those with less experience. those who have been in the profession for a long time have acquired extensive teaching experience and are proficient in using technology to improve their teaching. the study findings, however, contradict russell et al. (2013)'s contention that teachers with less experience but high technology proficiency did not incorporate technology into their lessons. a teacher who is less experienced may focus on using technology rather than integrating it into the classroom. the researchers asserted that less experienced teachers might experience some challenges in their first few years as they learn the classroom management and curriculum of the school. additionally, baek et al. (2018); niederhauser and stoddart (2011) found that experienced teachers are less likely to integrate technology into their classrooms. the us national center for education statistics reported in 2000 that teachers with less experience were more likely to integrate technologies into their teaching than teachers with more experience. finally, mathematical education's future direction depends on developing appropriate pedagogies to use emerging technologies in light of the 4ir skill sets. conclusion and recommendation as a result of the 4ir, technological advancements such as smart artificial intelligence and 3d printing are certain to improve the efficiency of mathematics classrooms. technology integration that efficiently transforms classrooms, however, also requires innovation to enhance learning in meaningful ways while bringing efficiency into play. as part of the study, the author examined the readiness of mathematics teachers to adopt 4ir skills to improve their teaching strategies and learning outcomes. a conclusion was drawn from this research, which is that mathematics teachers are ready to take advantage of the diverse skills and opportunities offered by the 4ir era. in addition, the degree to which teachers can embrace 4ir skills varies with the years they have been in the classroom. it is hoped that the study findings will be used as a tool to aid policy designers in steering policy toward 4ir by school administrators, mathematics teachers, and stakeholders in the education sector. it is essential that this be accomplished to implement the four-dimensional curriculum in math education, which requires creativity, complex problem solving, social skills, and systems skills (davis, 2016; schwab, 2016) 87 ressat 2023, 8(1): 74-91 as well as individual and collaborative abilities in implementing, managing, and utilizing new and emerging technologies. in addition, the study recommends that new curricula should emphasize 4ir collaborative skills for teachers as well as the need for 4ir literacy. nevertheless, its limitations are due to the fact that it was conducted only in three government-owned schools in lagos state, nigeria. it is important to recognize that the scope of this study was geographically limited, and no consideration was given to mathematics teachers from private schools, which limits the generalizability of the findings. acknowledgments several anonymous teachers participated in this study, and the author would like to thank them for their contributions. funding this work received no funding. declaration of competing interest the author declares that he has no competing financial interests or relationships that may have influenced his work. data availability data will be made available on request. references abdelrazeq, a., janssen, d., tummel, c., richert, a., & jeschke, s. 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(2021). a review of artificial intelligence (ai) in education from 2010 to 2020. complexity, 2021. https://doi.org/10.1155/2021/8812542 https://www.britannica.com/topic/thehttp://dx.doi.org/10.21511/ppm.21(1).2023.43 https://doi.org/10.1080/09243450801896809 https://doi.org/10.1155/2021/8812542 research in social sciences and technology https://ressat.org e-issn: 2468-6891 volume: 8 issue: 3 2023 pp. 1-15 the possible uses of foldscopes as a form of frugal science in the biology classroom as well as in out-of-school science activities jannie pretorius*a, josef de beerb, & cherine jacksonc * corresponding author email: pretoriusjph@ufs.ac.za a. department of mathematics, natural sciences and technology education, faculty of education, university of the free state, bloemfontein, south africa b. science learning centre for africa university of the western cape bellville, cape town, south africa c. school of mathematics, science and technology education, research focus area self-directed learning, north-west university, potchefstroom, south africa article info received: july 27, 2022 accepted: december 10, 2022 published: august 12, 2023 how to cite pretorius, j., de beer, j., & jackson, c. (2023). the possible uses of foldscopes as a form of frugal science in the biology classroom, as well as in out-of-school science activities. research in social sciences and technology, 8(3), 106-120. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2023.17 copyright license this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (cc by 4.0). abstract this article explores the possibilities of a cheap one-dollar microscope, the foldscope, for enhancing out-of-school science education. developed by manu prakash and jim cybulski from stanford university, these origami-type paper microscopes make it possible to provide all students with their own microscopes, due to the low cost. this provides students the opportunity to engage in science outside of the classroom, as amateur sleuths engaged in environmental inquiries, e.g., determining the levels of pollution of local water resources. in this article the authors share two sets of research data: an activity where school students engaged in authentic problem-based learning using the foldscopes, as well as student teachers’ experiences of engaging with foldscope microscopes. the outcomes of the first research project indicate that affective outcomes and cognitive gains were achieved. responses in the second research project included five categories: preparation and presentation; potential of the foldscope; use of slideshow; energy/complements; and limitations. the conclusion reached was that foldscopes hold possibilities for enhancing sts (science-technology-society) approaches inside and outside the classroom. one recommendation is that such frugal-science approaches are emphasized more in both pre-and in-service teacher education. keywords foldscope microscope; scientific sleuths; environmental investigations; frugal science; science-technology-society approaches. 10.46303/ ressat.2023.17 mailto:pretoriusjph@ufs.ac.za https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2023.17 2 pretorius et al ressat 2023, 8(3): 1-15 introduction the science-technology-society (sts) movement was called a mega-trend in science education in the early 2000’s (mansour, 2009). sts as an interdisciplinary approach to science education advocates for a topical curriculum that addresses a broad range of environmental, industrial, technological, social, and political problems (wraga & hlebowitsch, 1991). one may ask, however, how successful the sts movement is in “teaching and learning science in the context of human experience” (nsta, 1993). for many students, science is an activity that is performed in the classroom or laboratory; for many students, out-of-school science mean tedious homework assignments. the sts agenda could be better served if we provide students with opportunities to engage with authentic science outside the classroom. for example, students could investigate the levels of pollution of a nearby river or lake, or determine what type of microbes infect plants in their gardens. such activities would provide students an experience of how real science impacts our daily lives. this is often hampered by the fact that students do not have scientific equipment or apparatus at home. how many students have microscopes at home? to address this problem, manu prakash from stanford university developed a cheap origami-type microscope that could facilitate such microscopy investigations. before describing the foldscope microscope, it is essential to focus on what literature refers to as ‘frugal science.’ rao (2019, p. 1) describes frugal innovations as ‘doing-more-withless’ and shows that such approaches have become popular due to a no-frills nature and lower costs. sarkar and mateus (2022, p. 1) describe frugal approaches as “the way to produce efficacious and affordable products using fewer resources to reach underserved customers.” there is the added advantage that these simple designs or approaches often leave a minimal carbon footprint, thus addressing issues of sustainability and tackling the global climate change problem facing humankind (rao, 2019). the development of the foldscope – a brief history and theoretical analysis the foldscope (see figures 1 and 2) was invented by manu prakash and jim cybulski at stanford university (https://www.foldscope.com; cybulski et al., 2014). their inspiration for the foldscope came from field visits around the world where they continually encountered bulky, broken microscopes or a lack of microscopes entirely. inspired by the idea of cheap field diagnostics, the project blossomed into the invention of the foldscope, a foldable microscope made mostly of paper, with a cost of less than 1 u.s. dollar. the developers were mindful of the concern expressed by rao (2019, p. 1), namely that such frugalscience interventions need the “sound application of design methodologies that are deeply rooted in science”. this ultra-affordable, paper-based microscope can be assembled by the students themselves. it was designed to be inexpensive, durable, and give optical quality equal to conventional research microscopes. it provides the opportunity for in situ examination of specimens in the field (cybulski et al., 2014). https://www.foldscope.com/ 3 ressat 2023, 8(3): 1-15 figures 1 and 2 the unfolded microscope and its packaging (left), and an assembled foldscope microscope (right). cybulski et al. (2014) argue that in situ examination of specimens in the field provides important opportunities for ecological studies, biological research, and medical screening. further, they point out, low-cost diy microscopes provide means for hands-on science education in schools and universities. finally, they say, this platform could empower a worldwide community of amateur microscopists to capture and share images of a broad range of specimens. ganesan et al. (2022) show that foldscope microscopes have been used in various disciplines, such as the health sciences sector, clinical diagnosis, forensic sciences, agriculture, developmental biology, and education. we will briefly reflect on the literature related to the affordances of the foldscope in each of these sectors. a gap in the literature is its use in an educational setting, and very little has been published in the use of the foldscope in the science classroom. banerjee (2018) reported on the affordances of the foldscope in studying the bacterial count in food samples. several authors have worked on the use of the foldscope in medical sciences. hasandka et al. (2012) showed how the foldscope has been used in the diagnosis of urinary infections. ephraim et al. (2015) evaluated the foldscope and the reversed-lens cellscope, using single-ply paper towels as filter paper, for the diagnosis of a schistosoma haematobium infection in ghana, africa. they reported that the mobile phone-mounted foldscope and reversed-lens cellscope had sensitivities of 55.9% and 67.6%, and specificities of 93.3% and 100.0%, respectively, compared with conventional light microscopy for diagnosing s. haematobium infection. their results indicated that, with conventional light microscopy, urine filtration using single-ply paper towels as filter paper showed a sensitivity of 67.6% and specificity of 80.0% compared with centrifugation for the diagnosis of s. haematobium infection. they argued that, with future improvements to diagnostic sensitivity, newer generation handheld and mobile phone microscopes may be valuable tools for global health applications. http://ajtmh.org/search?value1=richard+k.+d.+ephraim&option1=author&noredirect=true 4 pretorius et al ressat 2023, 8(3): 1-15 moya-salazar et al. (2016), on the other hand, monitored and evaluated the implementation of foldscope technology in the screening of cervical cancer in conventional exfoliative cytology. an exploratory, quasi-experimental double-blind research was conducted in the prakash lab, the department of bioengineering at stanford university during may 2016. they selected 10 slides of cervical cytology, four negatives for intraepithelial lesion or malignancy (nlim) and six with cervical uterine abnormalities. the cytological characteristics of the smears were evaluated with both foldscope and optical microscopy, using 10x and 40x magnification lenses. microphotography, an image station tool and image projection were used. the researchers reported that, based on the comparison of images between the optical microscope and foldscope, the same cytological features were found in the cells of both nlim and preneoplastic or neoplastic lesions (p ‹ 0.001). however, they also reported that the foldscope showed a lack of clarity around the focal point as well as constraints in focus, which necessitated the use of the image station and image projection. they concluded that foldscope is an extraordinary tool for the diagnosis of cervical cancer. maithil (2008) showed how the foldscope could be useful in the forensic sciences and in solving crimes. kumar et al. (2019) focused on the agricultural use of the foldscope, e.g., in the identification of phyllosphere microbes in rice. yesudhason et al. (2020) focused on the use of the foldscope in developmental biology, namely the developmental stages of zebrafish. jackson et al. (2020) highlight the affordances of the foldscope in educational contexts with gains for both teachers and students. in the latter authors’ research, teachers indicated that their engagement in classroom action research projects linked to the foldscope, assisted them to develop critical reflective skills. the teachers also emphasized the affective affordances of the foldscope, in so far that students found the activities exciting, and that it stimulated student interest in science. the foldscope could provide a learning space characterized by cognitive dissonance (jackson et al., 2020) to both teachers and students alike. students, who are accustomed to often receiving ready-made answers, have to engage in rather complex activities, in which there are not immediate answers. teachers again are challenged to engage in classroom action research, that they might find challenging. a report about two research projects we would like to shed light on two research projects that we engaged in. first, we should point out that the subject biology is known as life sciences in south africa. the first study focused on grade 10 life science students’ experiences of engaging with foldscopes, while the second study determined the possibilities of the foldscope in the field of higher education, namely for the training of life sciences student teachers in south africa. abdel-khalick et al. (1998) mention that a relationship exists between teachers’ views on certain concepts and how they teach. it is therefore essential in both pre-service and in-service teacher education to focus on sts approaches, and how instruments such as the foldscope could serve such an agenda. 5 ressat 2023, 8(3): 1-15 grade 10 students this study among grade 10 students was guided by two research questions: 1. what are the affordances of utilizing foldscopes in promoting affective outcomes in the life science classroom? 2. what are the grade 10 students’ experiences of engaging with foldscopes, during a water-quality practical? we identified a current issue flagged in the life science curriculum, namely water quality in south africa. the foldscope activity included two parts. in activity 1 (see figures 3 and 4) the students were required to collect a water sample from a nearby water source. while collecting the sample they had to practice their observation skills, i.e., look at the color of the water and identify organisms found in or around the water. students also had to engage in practical tasks such as measuring the ph and the temperature of the water. activity 2 (see table 1) was performed during class time. they were required to assemble the foldscope microscopes and make prepared microscope slides of their water samples to view with their foldscope microscopes. students were asked to complete a water quality project and write reflections with regard to their overall experience of using the foldscope. we also conducted focus group interviews with the grade 10 students after the investigation to establish how they experienced using the foldscopes. the following themes emerged from the data: affective outcomes were achieved some of the students’ comments were: “at first i thought that it would be impossible to be able to see clearly through the foldscope because it seemed to be ‘too simple’. i was presently surprised as i put my water sample on the slide and inserted it into the foldscope. my cellphone camera picked up a clear image of small organisms. i figured out that it was helpful holding the foldscope at an angle against a bright background, such as the classroom whiteboard”. “i found the practical extremely fascinating and exciting. i was amazed at the organisms that exist and how hardly anyone knows about them. the foldscope was lots of fun to assemble but i struggled a little with the instructions”. although the task was perceived as being challenging by the learners, they reported cognitive gains one student remarked: “this practical experiment was a fun learning adventure which taught me many new things. it gave me problem-solving skills when working to build my microscope. the foldscope was a valuable tool as it brings microscopes to everyone at a very cheap price, which will end up exposing more people to life science, and increase knowledge and learning within schools. the overall practical gave me some insight into how people cause pollution; using the foldscope allowed me to really get involved in the investigation and to get us into the hang of biological thinking and experimentation”. 6 pretorius et al ressat 2023, 8(3): 1-15 figures 3 and 4 grade 10 students using the foldscope microscopes to study water quality. the use of foldscopes during simulated teaching the second project was guided by the following research questions: 1. what are the affordances of utilizing foldscopes in promoting teaching and learning in the life science classroom? 2. what are student teachers’ experiences of the methodology of life sciences when engaging with foldscopes during a water quality practical? to develop the skills of the methodology of life sciences student teachers at the university of the free state in bloemfontein, south africa we have introduced a simulated teaching environment in the laboratory. simulated teaching differs from the better-known microteaching in one important aspect. in microteaching, individual teaching skills (like introduction skill, questioning skill, reinforcement skills, and explanation skill) are scaled down or broken down into a micro level and then practiced one at a time (ahmad, 2011, p. 68–9). in simulated teaching, though, all the teaching skills are considered and practiced together rather than individually (ahmad, 2011, p. 172). his definition of simulated teaching is applicable within the context of our study: “a teaching practice by teacher-trainees in a simulated or artificial environment wherein a small group of 5–10 student teachers are taught a minor concept by a pupil-teacher for 5–10 minutes using various skills of teaching to get perfection in these skills and in teaching as a whole.” we handed foldscopes to five of the final-year student teachers in the above-mentioned module and asked them to prepare a simulated lesson during which they would use foldscopes to present any of the topics in the school science curriculum. the group decided that the lesson would be planned and presented by carina (see figure 5). 7 ressat 2023, 8(3): 1-15 table 1 the activity sheet that was given to the grade 10 students. grade 10 investigation water quality using the foldscope core skills: communicating; organisational skills; fine-motor skills; conceptual thinking; analytical thinking and practical skills – equipment use, microscopy, tabulation, and graphing. aims: investigating phenomena in life sciences. appreciating and understanding the history, importance, and applications of life sciences in society. show awareness and sensitivity towards the environment. task overview in this investigation you will complete the following: exercise 1 – at the water site • collect water from a water source near you. • test the water for ph and the temperature of the water. exercise 2 – in the laboratory (class) • test the water for ph, temperature and dissolved oxygen. • view the water sample using the foldscope microscope. identify the microorganisms that occur in the water sample. • do desktop research on which microorganisms are indicators of eutrophication/ pollution. • make a poster, in which you reflect on your investigation. background information for investigation: ways in which the quality of water can be tested 1. testing for ammonia in water (nh3) nh3 is the principal form of toxic ammonia. it has been reported to be toxic to freshwater organisms at concentrations ranging from 0.53 to 22.8 mg/l. toxic levels are both ph and temperature dependent. plants are more tolerant of ammonia than animals, and invertebrates are more tolerant than fish. 2. ph of water ph is one of the most common water quality tests performed. a change in the ph of water can alter the behaviour of chemicals in the water, which is detrimental to aquatic fauna and flora. use the universal ph paper to get an exact ph measurement. 3. microscopic aquatic organisms and the foldscope organisms belonging to the monera and the protista kingdoms could also be an indicator of water quality. use the field guide card from the foldscope microscope to identify the variety of unicellular organisms in the water sample collected. consult articles on the internet, and write a report on the quality of the water, based on the organisms that occur in the water source. task: making a poster, in which you reflect on the data obtained during the investigation be creative when designing your poster. however, the following aspects must be included: 1. procedures followed to determine water quality 2. data obtained (also include photographs or drawings of the organisms that you saw in your water sample) 3. analysis of the data 4. conclusion 5. recommendations 6. references used http://selectech.co.za/?gclid=cj0kcqia5atubrc2arisapopjk-kksqymvnw-s3ewwwh_lzloityl-5gheth6s7qm4lnajcfvtifoyqaaplaealw_wcb 8 pretorius et al ressat 2023, 8(3): 1-15 figure 5 student presenter carina presenting to a group of peers. (photo printed with the permission of the identifiable student teachers.) the lesson presented was on the characteristics of cells. to give the learners maximum time to use the foldscope, the theoretical part of the lesson was quite short. the goal of the lesson was to encourage learner participation and engagement with the topic of the session: how can a foldscope be used to study the differences between plant and animal cells? carina prepared the lesson with meticulous precision. she had the light source of the foldscope and foldscope slide set a-set06 available (see figure 6), and she had taken photos of plant tissue and (her own) blood with her cellular phone’s camera (see figures 7 and 8). she included them in a powerpoint presentation, which turned out to be very handy when she wanted to demonstrate what her group members should be looking for. figure 6 foldscope slide set and light source – adding great value to the foldscope experience. 9 ressat 2023, 8(3): 1-15 figure 7 kelp tissue as seen under the foldscope. figure 8 blood as seen under the foldscope. after an enjoyable lesson, which she presented with passion and enthusiasm (see figures 9 and 10), group members provided qualitative feedback. in table i we have divided the responses into five categories: preparation and presentation; the potential of the foldscope; use of the slideshow; energy/complements; and limitations (see table 2). under each of these categories, we have added the relevant responses of the students. 10 pretorius et al ressat 2023, 8(3): 1-15 figure 9 carina presenting passionately. figure 10 taking pictures of an image with a cellphone. 11 ressat 2023, 8(3): 1-15 table 2 peer feedback on the foldscope lesson presented by carina. preparation and presentation (6 comments) potential of foldscope (5 comments) use of slideshow (6 comments) energy/complements (5 comments) limitations(3 comments) well prepared and confident. i love the portable microscope idea and it has wonderful potential in classrooms. the slides were well prepared. very interesting and enlightening. list plant organelles – could have used pictures. very well prepared and presented. foldscope very interesting – elicits curiosity of learners. back up photos an excellent idea (3x). i liked the practical part best. perhaps more visual powerpoint. it helps a lot when you know exactly what you’re talking about. connects foldscope and plant tissue well. very good bilingual [afrikaans and english] powerpoint. excited, enthusiasm! information at the start of the lesson: perhaps show it later again on a diagram. a lot of preparation went into this lesson. explained very well how to use the foldscope. good use of photos of slides. well done! group participation was enhanced, and every learner is reached. you’ve put a lot of effort into foldscope and slides. creative to use blood in slide. good preparation – knew exactly how and where the foldscope functions. we also had a focus group discussion about the group members’ experiences in using the foldscope, the possible uses of the foldscopes in ‘real’ classrooms or laboratories, the possible challenges in the context of these venues, and the extent to which the foldscopes have enhanced their understanding of the topic. jomari, one of the group members, summarized our discussion: 12 pretorius et al ressat 2023, 8(3): 1-15 with almost every topic explained in the life sciences class, it is possible to use the foldscope. learners can take a topic, go home, and use the foldscope to analyze any part of the content they see as relevant. examples may include different plants, water-testing or even insects. we would make sure that the foldscope is used at least once during the presentation for every main topic – whether with direct instruction and guidelines from the teacher or when it is up to the children to decide for themselves what they see as relevant. it is very affordable since it costs only about 1 dollar. it may not always be possible for schools to give one to every learner, but two learners might share a foldscope. we also think that if learners work together, it makes them more comfortable as they are not as scared of making mistakes; they help one another and share experiences. in addition – most learners have cellphones so it can be practical to make use of the foldscopes when it comes to urban schools; however, one should still consider rural schools when it comes to technology. as fourth-year student teachers, this was the first time we learned about a ‘pocket-sized’ microscope, and it was quite easy to assemble it, especially with the use of youtube videos. presenting and creating lessons with the foldscope is a new, creative, and exciting part of life sciences. it enables the teacher to facilitate lessons where learners are 100% involved in content analysis, problem-solving and discovery. we do not know who would enjoy the foldscopes the most, the teachers or the students. we should also note that it is very effective to teach finalyear education students the uses of the foldscope, as we will then go into schools with the necessary knowledge to implement foldscopes. teachers already in the field should be invited to attend training workshops on the foldscope. learners often lose their sense of discipline with discoveryor problem-based activities, thus it will be extremely important to make sure that the class rules and guidelines are clear before the foldscopes are used. learners may get confused with putting the foldscope together, so we talked about first showing the learners the youtube video and then following (reading out loud) the instructions to assemble the foldscopes step-by-step. it would also be important to teach learners to take care of their foldscopes and, although they may not tear easily, it is still necessary for them to handle the foldscopes with care, and not just to stuff them into their backpacks. learners from all areas can implement the foldscopes wherever they are to investigate their surroundings. this will surely contribute a lot to enabling learners to become scientists. the foldscope will most certainly be a valuable instrument in any natural science, life science or mathematics class. the possibilities of the foldscope are endless. the foldscope can also be implemented in primary school, from grade 6/7 so that learners become equipped. foldscopes should be equipped with the specialized light sources since it enhances their possible applications. 13 ressat 2023, 8(3): 1-15 conclusion foldscopes hold possibilities of enhancing sts approaches inside and outside the classroom. in the literature review section, we have shown how the foldscope has been used in a variety of contexts in health sciences, clinical diagnosis, forensic sciences, agriculture, and developmental biology to address problems through research. we concur with mansour (2009) that teachers’ beliefs about sts approaches are of cardinal importance in promoting this agenda. it is therefore important to sensitize both in-service and pre-service teachers to sts approaches and, in the context of this paper, on the affordances of foldscope microscopes in life science teaching and learning. foldscopes can support the realization of affective outcomes in the life science classroom. the literature review identified a gap, in as far as foldscope research in the science classroom is scant. it is recommended that such frugal-science approaches are emphasized more in both pre-and in-service teacher education. this is especially important in the context of the climate change crisis facing the planet, due to the low carbon footprint of such low-cost science equipment. acknowledgment: the authors acknowledge the funding provided by the national research foundation (nrf) in south africa and the fuchs foundation, which supported this research. opinions expressed this paper is not necessarily those of the nrf or fuchs foundation. textbox 1: resources when using foldscopes to do water quality tests on assembling the foldscope: tutorial video: https://www.foldscope.com/foldscope-instructions/ foldscope home page: https://www.foldscope.com/ manu prakash talking about the foldscope (video): https://www.ted.com/talks/manu_prakash_a_50_cent_microscope_that_folds_like_origa mi on microbial indicators of water quality: ismail, a.h. & adnan, a.m. (2016). zooplankton composition and abundance as indicators of eutrophication in two small man-made lakes. tropical life sciences research 27(1), 31– 38. paerl, h.w., dyble, j., moisander, p.h., noble, r.t., piehler, m.f., pinckney, j.l., steppe, t.f., twomey, l., & valdes, l.m. (2003). microbial indicators of aquatic ecosystem change: current applications to eutrophic studies. fems microbiology ecology 46(2003), 233–246. parmar, t.k., rawtani, d. & agrawal, y.k. (2016). bioindicators: the natural indicator of environmental pollution. frontiers in life science 9(2), 110 – 118. https://www.foldscope.com/foldscope-instructions/ https://www.foldscope.com/ 14 pretorius et al ressat 2023, 8(3): 1-15 references abd-el-khalick, f., bell, r.l., & lederman, n.g. (1998). the nature of science and instructional practice; making the unnatural natural. science education, 82, 417–437. https://doi.org/10.1002/(sici)1098-237x(199807)82:4<417::aid-sce1>3.0.co;2-e ahmad, j. (2011). teaching of biological sciences (2nd ed.) phi learning private limited. banerjee, s. (2018). foldscope, the frugal innovation and its application in food microscopy—a review. acta scientific nutritional health, 2(6), 53–54. cybulski j.s., clements j., & prakash, m. 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(2020). developmental stages of zebrafish (danio rerio) embryos and toxicological studies using foldscope microscope. cell biology international, 44(10), 1968–1980. https://doi.org/10.1002/cbin.11412 http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rsos.180421 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2022.115127 https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1949-8594.1991.tb15571.x research in social sciences and technology https://ressat.org e-issn: 2468-6891 volume: 7 issue: 3 2022 pp. 49-64 a trajectory towards a culture of quality: a phenomenological study of an open distance learning university in south africa and in china kershnee sevnarayana a. department of english studies, university of south africa, pretoria, south africa email: esevark@unisa.ac.za article info received: july 15, 2022 revised: august 23, 2022 accepted: september 30, 2022 how to cite sevnarayan, k. (2022). a trajectory towards a culture of quality: a phenomenological study of an open distance learning university in south africa and in china. research in social sciences and technology, 7(3), 49-64. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2022.16 copyright license this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. abstract over the past few years, we have witnessed immense advancements of technology which challenge conventional teaching methodologies. this paper analyses an open and distance learning university from two culturally distinct continents —africa and asia— through an international staff exchange program that was attended over a two-week period. this essay examines both distance learning institutions and data that was collected through interviews and observations to benefit students through quality assurance. according to the research presented in this paper, it is necessary to create an atmosphere that makes it possible for quality assurance activities to be carried out consistently. distance learning institutions need to move towards a culture of quality and by doing this they need to tailor their student support not just to produce graduates at the end of a cohort but to produce quality graduates needed for the ever evolving and rapidly transforming information and communication technologies. the recommendations made in this paper are intended to help distance education institutions develop a culture of quality. it is argued that to successfully develop a quality culture, a supportive environment should be created for pedagogical activities linked to quality assurance. keywords student support; quality assurance; culture of quality; distance education; community of inquiry; open and distance learning. 10.46303/ressat.2022.16 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2022.16 50 ressat 2022, 7(3): 49-64 introduction over the past few years, transformation in universities has led to the implementation of national and international policies to measure the performance of institutions around the world (dube et al., 2022; koul & kanwar, 2006; williams et al., 2021; zawacki-richter & naidu, 2016). two key issues have emerged from the coronavirus (covid-19) pandemic: quality and equity. quality is significant as open and distance learning (odl) requires systematic planning and delivery and equity because many students are still excluded from online learning. a key notion in this paper is how odl institutions can embed student support in their institutions to enable a culture of quality so that no student is left behind. this paper seeks to understand the status of quality assurance (qa) in two diverse universities with a view of recommending quality management as a move towards a trajectory of a culture of quality in distance education. this study makes a significant contribution by examining the present standards of teaching practices at an odl university in south africa (university a) and china (university b). the researcher, who lectures at university a, received funding to participate in a staff exchange program at university b. the researcher had seen and learned about how university b uses qa as part of their purpose of “no child left behind” during the two weeks of the visiting scholar program. to achieve a level of quality that would be advantageous to all members of a distance learning institution, this article argues that qa should be integrated with student support to build a culture of quality. the two universities being examined are firstly described in this essay. the foreign exchange program's structure is then addressed. a discussion of qa comes next. to establish a culture of quality in remote learning across two distinct continents, this research adopts a qualitative methodology and explores the phenomena of qa and quality culture of learning. this paper compares qa in student support in universities a and b and concludes by providing recommendations on a move towards a culture of quality for distance education institutions. university a one of africa’s biggest and most established odl institutions is university a, with a student enrolment of more than 500,000 and being 150 years old. university a describes itself as a civicminded organization with a distinct social mission. through pedagogy, research, and community participation on a national, continental, and international level, it is focused on quality, development and transformation (unisa, annual report, 2017). the mission of university a is to promote an african perspective that incorporates quality and technological innovation through interactive, open distance learning (unisa, annual report, 2017). the goal of university a is to develop into a comprehensive odl institution that produces outstanding scholarship and research, teaching and learning, and encourages engaged community participation. university a was established on the principles of ethical responsibility, collaborative accountability, quality, innovation, and responsive student-centeredness. these principles include lifelong learning, student-centeredness, innovation, and creativity (unisa, annual report, 2017). 51 ressat 2022, 7(3): 49-64 university b university b is one of the most established and recognized odl institutions in asia. with more than 600,000 registered students, it offers access to both formal and informal learning (shanghai open university, 2019). the institution uses broadcast and digital technologies to reach students in the most diverse social groups, including migrant workers, elderly people, civil servants, and teachers in diverse socio-economic contexts. university b has around 44 branch schools throughout shanghai and more than 4,000 teachers. it offers more than forty formal degree programs. by 2020, it was projected that shanghai should have taken the lead in having finished creating a learning society, working to develop each person to their full potential. this plan also emphasized the need to eliminate educational inequality and promote respect for diversity and the unique requirements of each student. according to shanghai’s 2010-2020 strategic plan, education development means entering an era of quality, equity and individuality (shanghai open university, 2019). the structure of the staff exchange program the 15 participants for the international staff exchange fellowship program were selected from around the world: myanmar, italy, australia, university of south africa, tanzania, united kingdom, germany, philippines, nepal, sri lanka, brazil, vietnam, united states of america, and india. the scholars comprised nine ladies and six gentlemen. three scholars were chosen from africa and two from two different departments at university a; the researcher was one of these scholars. the international staff exchange fellowship program’s goals were to improve the standard of instruction and research in odl and to exchange best practices between university a and university b. it also aimed to foster cooperation between foreign open universities and shanghai open university through academic exchange. the visiting scholars were selected through an academic evaluation process. over two weeks (10-21 june 2019), the researcher was involved in the following activities: an in-depth discussion with the institute of international exchange; the r&d department; teaching affairs office; school of science and engineering; school of public administration, school of humanities and arts. the researcher was further involved in the sharing of best practices and delivered a presentation at a seminar on qa in odl. the researcher has further participated in a workshop on learning design and virtual learning environments and visited various branch schools. the official languages during the program were english and chinese. the research question is thus: what are the quality assurance measures that university a and university b employ to support students? towards a culture of quality in student support student support in odl student support is one of the fundamental services in odl; it is the variety of support services that are offered to students. student support includes academic (cognitive, assessment and feedback support) and non-academic (informing, advising, and counselling students) support (singh, 2020). as there is a geographical division between the students and lecturers, student 52 ressat 2022, 7(3): 49-64 support in odl differs from student support in a contact university. according to the findings of an odl study by sevnarayan (2022), only a small number of lecturers in the studied module utilized elearning tools to support students, while others were not involved at all. this is concerning since, for effective student support to occur, it is argued that student support must include a cognitive, social, and teaching presence between lecturers and students. the framework supporting this study is the ‘community of inquiry’ approach, as coined by garrison et al. (2000). quality assurance the main objective of qa is to guarantee that students have access to high-quality instruction and academic success, which opens doors to employment opportunities. the phenomenon of qa differs amongst different organizations. kanwar (2021) makes a similar point that quality assurance means using pedagogical skills to support students to become employable, in preparation for the future skills and jobs that lie ahead for students. qa is the process of guaranteeing quality in higher education to build trust between all role-players in education and to meet the outcomes as the minimum criteria. it is imperative that odl institutions design a set of quality assurance measures such as a separate section with professional employees, quality policies, strategies, procedures, and pre, mid, post and self-evaluations to form an internal qa system (li & chen, 2019). given the “interconnectedness of institutions nationally, regionally, and worldwide,” it is imperative to ensure course quality (mohee & perris, 2020, 5). during the pandemic, williams et al. (2021) conducted a study, and the student participants in their study noted that planning needs to consider the needs of the most high-risk and vulnerable students. the results of their study showed that although there is still an issue with the digital divide among educators and students, educators have built a community of cooperation and mutual support to foster a culture of quality. a culture of quality one of the biggest issues facing distance education universities is the application of high-quality instruments and quality management systems. higher education institutions operate in a more competitive environment, which raises the bar for teaching, student support, research, and administration excellence. kanwar (2021) asserts that a culture of quality is what we refer to as a culture of caring. it is a culture that supports an internal quality assurance system where each employee is accountable, committed to capacity building, applies qa, and focuses on educational goals (koul & kanwar, 2006). a culture of quality means adapting to new pedagogies. education as it happened before the pandemic, may no longer be compatible in our teaching post the covid-19 pandemic (kalimullina at al., 2021; tarman, 2020). according to mbhiza et al. (2021), lecturers need to be aware of the paradigm shift in education that has compelled the education sector to be receptive to the new paradigm's apparent signs. lecturers should base their expectations for the future of the education sector post the pandemic on their continuous experiences with online teaching and learning. 53 ressat 2022, 7(3): 49-64 creating a culture of quality is pivotal in developing internal quality assurance systems in higher education. however, moodley (2019) contends that academics’ ignorance of their own institutions’ regulations needs mediation to guarantee the alignment and consistency of their courses. this paper argues that for a culture of quality to ensue, there must be a community of inquiry to implement and manage quality practices in student support in odl institutions. the community of inquiry framework, which is discussed next, argues that knowledge building on a quality culture of learning results from collaborative interactions between all stakeholders in an institution. conceptual framework the social constructivist perspective, which contends that learning is social in nature and that social collaboration promotes learning on both an individual and group level, is the conceptual basis for the community of inquiry (coi) framework. the collaborative interactions at the heart of this framework give rise to social, cognitive, and teaching presences, as shown in figure 1 below: figure 1. coi framework (garrison et al., 2000, p. 88) having a social presence refers to lecturers and students’ capacities to show themselves as “actual people” via a communication channel. social presence assists the online learning community to increase interdependence, self-paced learning, and promotes discussion among students and lecturers. the coi approach enables lecturers and students to connect, share, consider and circulate current knowledge and information. students’ cognitive presence suggests that they can create and verify meaning through reflection (anderson et al., 2001). whether or not students will cognitively understand the material will depend on how lecturers present it to them. thus, creating, mediating, and guiding social and cognitive processes constitute teaching presence. this paper further discusses a fourth presence, which is referred to as learner presence. learner presence is the self-efficacy in addition to the cognitive, emotional, social, behavioural constructs that are indicative of an online student. coi is viewed 54 ressat 2022, 7(3): 49-64 as a viable strategy for building an inclusive teaching and learning environment that is beneficial in fostering an engaged, high-quality culture of learning for odl students (zhang, 2020). therefore, this paper investigates the use of coi to understand the qa measures that universities a and b employ to assist their students. to comprehend the phenomenon of qa as we move toward a culture of quality, this study focuses on all aspects of the coi. methodology research approach and design a qualitative, exploratory, and phenomenological approach was compatible with the study’s focus as it enabled the researcher to understand the experiences that took place in two diverse social contexts (ellis, 2018; holloway & galvin, 2016; williams et al., 2021). this exploratory study gathered preliminary information such as the literature and observations as outlined in this study, which helped to define issues about quality assurance and the culture of quality and suggests recommendations. in addition, it generates data that intensifies insight into the phenomenon of quality assurance rather than providing representative information (ellis, 2018; polit & beck, 2017; williams et al., 2021). research participants when the ethics committee gave the project approval, the researcher contacted lecturers/ teachers at both universities to learn about the best practices in their student support. lecturers were informed that they could participate and/or withdraw from the study at any point. at university a, three first year lecturers were interviewed and are referred to as lecturers a, b, and c. at university b, three first year lecturers were interviewed and are referred to as teachers x, y and z (lecturers are called teachers at university b). pseudonyms were provided to protect the identities of the lecturers and institutions (holloway & galvin, 2016). research instruments data were gathered through observations and one-on-one unstructured interviews with lecturers and was qualitative in nature (cresswell & poth, 2018; polit & beck, 2018). to address the research question, unstructured one-on-one interviews with lecturers from both universities were conducted. interview questions • how is quality assurance assured in your modules to cater for all students? • how do you support your students to ensure a culture of quality? • how are you supported by your institution to create a quality culture of learning for students? observations were made to corroborate the research question and make recommendations for the study. observation questions: • how is quality assurance assured in both universities? • what support is given to students in both universities to ensure a culture of quality? 55 ressat 2022, 7(3): 49-64 • how are lecturers/teachers supported in their institutions to create a quality culture of learning for students? data collection the data collection and discussion method employed were the phenomenological approach (cresswell & poth, 2018; ellis, 2018). data were obtained over the course of a month in june and july 2019. during the first two weeks, observations, and one-on-one unstructured interviews (cresswell & poth, 2018) were conducted at university b in shanghai. when the researcher returned to south africa, observations and unstructured interviews were conducted at university b. while the data was being studied, thematic analysis (castleberry & nolen, 2018) was used where the researcher developed themes which were linked to the questions asked and posed in the interview and observation schedules. findings the major discoveries that were categorized into themes are presented in this section. this part explored the quality control procedures used by both institutions for student support. at both universities, lecturers were interviewed, and the responses they provided were supported by data gleaned from observations. through the unstructured one-on-one interviews with lecturers and observations at both institutions, the following three themes emerged: • quality assurance for all citizens • blended learning to support learning • teacher development for quality assurance quality assurance for all citizens according to lecturer a at university a: i try to provide quality teaching to all our students. the problem is that university a is so big. when students fail, they are lost in the system. we have no idea who these students are and how many times they fail or are stuck in the system. with the modules that i teach, i reach out to all of them and the students who do communicate with me are the ones i can help further. from the response above, it is evident that although the student numbers are large at university a, there is an attempt by lecturers to reach out to all their students. lecturer c similarly stated: we put so much attention into our online teaching. if there is a module of 16,000 students, 500 students may attend that live session. where are the other students? we also see that many of them are not accessing our recordings that we post. as lecturers, we try our best for our students, but our students do not engage with and access the material we post. the issue is that some students keep to themselves and refuse to ask lecturers for help. a different finding was recorded when lecturer b interestingly noted “it is sad that in some modules, our resources and assessments are quality assured but, in many modules, this is not 56 ressat 2022, 7(3): 49-64 done well.” when the researcher probed and asked lecturer b what he meant by ‘this is not done well,’ he responded, “well, sometimes we see resources that are uploaded onto module sites that are very sloppily done with errors. sometimes our students pick this up and this can be very embarrassing because it is a poor reflection on us all.” when corroborating the above data with observations at university a, it was found that there are lecturers in modules who do try to offer quality teaching by reaching out to their students, however, students do not reciprocate the lecturers’ student support initiatives. the researcher observed that very few students attended live sessions by lecturers or answered the activities that were uploaded on the moodle learning management system. it was revealed that at university a, lecturers did not meet all the needs of students in terms of the resources they generated. although there were modules which catered for students’ auditory and visual needs in some modules (podcasts and vodcasts), most modules lacked diverse resources which students could relate to. it was also observed that lecturers at university a were workshopped on how to use tools such as marking tools and how to create assessments; however, there was little attempt to workshop lecturers on creating a quality culture of learning. when asked how quality assurance is administered to cater for all students in their modules, teacher y at university b noted: at our open university, we cater for all our students’ needs: the blind, the deaf, and the paralysed. we look at what our students’ strengths are, and we zoom in on those skills, whether it is art, music, pottery, or dance. the aim of individualised attention on students with disabilities is to ensure that they are employable after graduation. teacher z at university b responded to the question on what support they provide for students and the support their institution provides simultaneously: quality means everything so that the focus is on life-long learning. it is about equipping students with skills that would benefit them after university. our lecturers are specialised, and we are trained to support our diverse group of students. our mission is to build a learning city for lifelong learning, this means that we should and we do prioritise every individual to maximise on their potential. the findings of the interviews showed that university b teachers took quality assurance in their courses very seriously and place a strong emphasis on accommodating all students. after a two-week long program, it was observed that university b is committed to their mission of building of learning city through lifelong learning and development of its citizens. this was apparent when we visited the qingpu branch school and observed deaf students in a face-toface class being taught programming skills such as photoshop. this is corroborated when teacher y noted that irrespective of their abilities, university b’s role is “to ensure that they are employable after graduation.” university b goes by the principle “for all learners, all for learners” and this was observed during the program. another observation was that there were 57 ressat 2022, 7(3): 49-64 a diverse range of resources in every module. each concept was taught with various resources to reach a diverse range of students. blended learning to support learning blended learning to support learning was another theme that emerged in the interviews across both universities. at university a, there is no rigid system for qa that is followed like the way university b does. although there are lecturers who are technologically perceptive at university a, there are many lecturers at university a who are reluctant to use the tools that are at their disposal. they do not create visually stimulating and interactive resources such as micro lessons, podcasts, and other interesting resources that are compulsory at university b. for example, lecturer b at university a noted: i love creating various resources to stimulate my students. however, this is not true for all my team members. we have some lecturers who do not know how to record a podcast, for example. this can be frustrating for many of us. we feel alone in the teaching process but we do recognise that we need a range of resources to appeal to our students. the above response was corroborated by the observations where pedagogy is interactive between the lecturers and students with strong social, teaching, and cognitive presences. then, there are instances where there are modules with little to no technology-integrated teaching and learning. for lecturer a: i know that all students are not going to participate on moodle. for this reason, i created a telegram group which was extremely successful with my students in a large module. this group added an element of social cohesion and quality to my teaching even though other lecturers did not want to be a part of it. there are lecturers who are resistant to technology and social media. our students, however, are digital natives and enjoy communicating and learning through social media. it is significant to highlight that university b prioritizes resources that are visually appealing and interactive. university b was observed to have an organised qa system. according to teacher x: all teachers in a module are trained by teaching managers and qa managers on an ongoing basis. for each section of work in a module, there should be print material such as visualised study guides and books, digital material which includes podcasts, video lectures or micro lessons which are about 2.5 minutes each, web links to videos, and presentations created by the teacher. the above response reveals that students have full support from a diverse range of resources. in university b, all courses follow six aspects of qa in each module: educational objectives, quality standards, teaching management, faculty training and evaluation. these aspects were observed to be adhered to in each module. for each module, the objectives or outcomes of the module must be understood. these objectives are then linked to all the activities and assessments that students will receive. every course follows a blended learning approach. there are face-to-face classes offered at the university and the branch schools, and 58 ressat 2022, 7(3): 49-64 there are online classes that are accessible on the distance learning network (dln) and wechat app. as a quality control measure, before these materials are given to students or posted online, they are double-checked by the qa manager to ensure an elevated level of quality. these materials are then quality controlled by third parties (outside the university) to do quality control checks on each resource. evaluations are done before the module starts, while the module is in progress, and when the module has ended. students evaluate each teacher and each resource in the module. the qa manager, responsible for that module, monitors these evaluations and reverts to the teachers and the teachers who created the resources. university b makes use of practical experience where students were expected to engage in continual critical thinking activities while using their abilities on the job. therefore, a strong teaching and cognitive presence is at play. figure 2 shows the observed collaboration amongst university b role-players. the university, with its student affairs department and service delivery, fully supports teaching and learning in all modules across the departments, administration services, the teachers, the call centre, and the students. figure 2. the internal quality assurance system at university b 59 ressat 2022, 7(3): 49-64 university b’s dln integrates teaching, learning, assessment, and management, providing full support such as registration, course selection, tutoring, experiments, evaluations, interactions, and inquiries. this dln is also available on ‘wechat,’ a social media network, where students can access the courses immediately on an app and start participating in discussions, completing, and submitting activities. lecturer/ teacher development for quality assurance when asked how lecturers are supported by their institution to create a culture of quality learning, lecturer a mentioned, “i wish we could share our resources across modules. some lecturers are doing remarkable things in their modules, but it feels as though we should be recreating those resources again using our own voices. there is no need to waste a lot of time for no reason.” at university a, lecturers work in isolation in modules and not across modules. lecturer b mentioned “training is offered to capacitate lecturers’ knowledge on pedagogy, and we do try to respond to students’ needs.” this implies that university a lacks a qualitative focus on lecturer development for student support. university b invites professors from various countries yearly to train teacher on instructional design. teacher y noted that university b “sends 20–25 of their teachers abroad to learn from established universities and professors”. teachers in university b, moreover, have access to a central ‘course resource centre,’ where they are guided on how to create resources. if a student has a complaint about a resource, the teacher will be given support to upgrade the resource to meet the students’ needs. if a teacher is not approachable or not meeting the students’ needs according to the evaluation, teaching managers and qa managers will refer these teachers to the ‘teachers’ training centre’ where training is provided for faculty members to adapt to the students’ needs. university b recognises that there are differences between students and teachers. according to teacher x, teachers are motivated to embrace innovative technologies since the quality of students is evolving every year with technology. teachers who experience difficulties with technology are supported by the information communication and technology department to provide technical solutions to embrace recent technologies. it was interesting to observe that many teachers who are older at university b have an open attitude towards technology; they are quick and eager to learn new ways of teaching with technology. there is a strong emphasis on a qualitative teaching, cognitive and social presence; as well as learning presence at university b. discussion the research question in this paper sought to understand the quality assurance measures that university a and university b employ to support students. two findings emerged under the first theme. lecturers at university a seem not to be supported by their institution as students “are lost in the system” and they fail many times. the lecturers approach student support 60 ressat 2022, 7(3): 49-64 quantitatively and not qualitatively as they do not know their students. one of the lecturers at university a noted that students are not cooperative as they do not attend live sessions and access their recordings. although lecturers may have a presence when teaching (garrison & vaughan, 2008; zhang, 2020), students might not be willing to return the favour due to the lack of social presence by lecturers (moodley, 2019), which could result in a loss in a culture of quality (kanwar, 2021). in relation to this, a lack of teaching presence on social media apps such as whatsapp, telegram or wechat, may reduce learner, social and cognitive presence in a module as learners learn best through technology-enhanced teaching and learning (sevnarayan, 2022; williams et al., 2021). this supports other scholars who contend that for a culture of quality to emerge, lecturers and instructors' pedagogical techniques must be both of high quality and equitable (koul & kanwar, 2006; moodley, 2019; singh, 2020; zawacki-richter & naidu, 2016). another finding was that resources did not cater for students’ diverse needs. in contrast, at university b teachers cater for “all” their students’ diverse needs. regular training is provided to university b's faculty members so they can meet the needs and expectations of every student. the observations confirmed that at university b, the goal is for all students to be employable after graduation. in other words, the institution strives to give students the skills necessary to launch their own business or find employment, therefore preparing them for the unpredictable future/ jobs that lie ahead (kanwar, 2021). the goal of every distance education university should be to provide learning opportunities to anyone, to provide learning service at any time and place and most importantly, to provide universal access to digital learning resources. the teachers and students work closely together so that a quality culture of learning is inculcated. after a two-week long program, it was observed that university b is committed to serving the building of a learning city of lifelong learning and the development of its citizens. this indicates that there is a close connection between the social, teaching, cognitive and learner presences of the coi paradigm (garrison et al. 2000). three findings emerged from the second theme of blended learning and learning support across both odl institutions. it was revealed that university a has no rigid qa system in place for its student support. this results in students who are left on their own with their study guides, prescribed books, and tutorial letters, which includes their assignment questions. as a result, there is a decline in a high-quality learning culture as well as a lack of teaching and social and cognitive presences. this suggests the importance of quality assurance measures that need to be developed by educational institutions to support the unique educational needs of both odl staff and students. in addition to this finding, lecturers were not as eager to use technology to support students like the teachers in university a were. once students are engaged, teaching and social presence through social media networks have a noteworthy influence on facilitating and directing student engagement, which has been shown to be vital in reaching a resolution phase and thus moving towards a culture of quality (garrison & vaughan, 2008; li & chen, 2019; zhang, 2020). another finding was that university b made use of various resources and technologies to support their students; however, at university a there are some lecturers who 61 ressat 2022, 7(3): 49-64 do not know how to create a podcast, for example. the researcher has observed a quality culture of teaching and learning (at university b) when teaching and learning are driven by learner presence, teaching presence and a social presence, as was observed by anderson et al. (2001). what stands out is that the coi framework’s three components are intricately tied together as it supports curriculum creation and upholds qa rigor student support. the coi framework assumes that a system of qa that is actively involved in fostering understanding and critical reflection will encourage higher-order learning, qualitative instruction, and a social presence. a coi inquiry might arise because of specific collaborative contacts that result in “distance presence,” according to the coi's conceptual foundation (garrison et al., 2000; zhang, 2020). a coi is fostered at university b through the face-to-face, online, experimental, practical, and extracurricular qa components of blended learning. the final theme, which dealt with lecturer/ teacher development in quality assurance, found that at university a, lecturers work in isolation and not with each other. there is a stronger need for teaching and social presence (garrison et al. 2000; zhang, 2020), especially post the covid-19 pandemic (kanwar, 2021). in contrast, at university b it was seen that teachers make use of a central course resource centre where all teachers can post, share, and update their resources on a regular basis. teachers at university b are trained by professionals each year on how to create resources to support their students. from this finding it is clear that at university a, there is pedagogical focus on quantity and university b focuses more on building a culture of quality in their student support. the literature states that there is a need for the interconnectedness of universities nationally, regionally, and worldwide to ensure course quality (kanwar, 2021; koul & kanwar, 2006; mohee & perris, 2020). another finding is that at university a, teaching and quality assurance are viewed synonymously while university b views them distinctively as the latter makes use of teaching managers and qa managers. this implies that university b accepts the coi framework. if university a could prioritise on investing in their lecturers to support students, they could enjoy higher throughput and success rates institutionally. investigating the students’ presence in online education institutions post covid19 would be relevant given the shift in emphasis toward how students study remotely. recommendations on a trajectory towards a culture of quality for odl institutions are covered in the concluding section of this paper. conclusion and recommendations this paper lays out the significant presences of a coi as one way of building the phenomenon of a quality culture of learning. the researcher has not given a prolonged rundown of “do’s and don’ts” for a building a quality culture of learning. rather, the paper offers thoughts and directions to strengthen quality assurance measures in online distance learning. the argument is that the emphasis should be on lecturers and teachers’ pedagogical development with a focus on quality assurance in student support due to the evolving educational circumstances that disrupt online pedagogies. a quality culture of learning was defined 16 years ago by koul & 62 ressat 2022, 7(3): 49-64 kanwar (2006) as a culture that promotes an internal qa system and supports capacity building, implements qa, enforces accountability to all stakeholders and places a focus on learning outcomes. in 2022, this definition seems like a fallacy for many institutions. university b, however, is an example of a university that takes pride in its quality assurance procedures; a place where teachers take responsibility and ownership for their instruction; and a place where capacity building is valued, not just for themselves but also for the students. if high-quality learning cultures are to be ensured in odl contexts, an enabling infrastructure that permits continual qa operations is required. to generate quality graduates needed for our constantly changing economy, higher education institutions should personalize their student support efforts. this goes beyond simply producing graduates at the end of a cohort. the qa model from university b should be adopted by university a and other distance learning institutions. it is advised that lecturers in odl universities engage in with their students face to face (either synchronously or asynchronously) and establish a central resource hub to exchange concepts, information and materials. many of our teaching and learning problems would be solved if each module team had an academic who would be both a qa manager and a teaching manager. student evaluations of lecturers and the resources they receive should also become the norm in each module. pre, during, and post evaluations are critical to determine the quality of teaching and learning in modules; this could help lecturers and teachers understand their shortfalls and improvements can be made. resources should be updated according to the needs of the students, and all lecturers should be on the ‘technological train’ of resource creation. additionally, it is suggested that chinese and african institutions work together to enhance global communication, invest in skills development, and promote academic and student exchanges. this would enhance cultural understanding between diverse contexts and extend collaboration opportunities between the two continents. given the amount of emphasis given to facilitation-related concerns, it is appropriate to focus on the practical components of a coi. more research is needed to determine how odl lecturers may use the coi framework to integrate technology into their instruction, thereby empowering them and assisting their students in learning. one could argue that this would aid in fostering and developing a culture of quality. it is advised that odl researchers focus on the transfer of knowledge and skills to the school environment as we move closer to the mainstream of remote pedagogies, particularly post the covid-19 pandemic. we urgently need to improve the abilities of our remote teaching instructors as the pandemic is decentralizing our educational space. the rising diversity of student origins, the growth of learning as a liminal activity, the dispersion of educational resources across online and offline networks, and the evolving nature of the pedagogical environment are all contributing elements to this. consequently, the roles and responsibilities of all the stakeholders in odl need to be redefined and embraced. 63 ressat 2022, 7(3): 49-64 references anderson, t., rourke, l., garrison, d.r. & archer, w. 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(2020). exploring blended learning experiences through the community of inquiry framework. language learning & technology, 24(1), 38–53. https://doi.org/10125/44707 https://doi.org/10.4102/aveh.v78i1.462 https://doi.org/10.1177/20427530221096535 https://global.sou.edu.cn/overview/ https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.05.02.ed https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2021.1 https://doi.org/10.1080/01587919.2016.1185079 https://doi.org/10125/44707 research in social sciences and technology https://ressat.org e-issn: 2468-6891 volume: 8 issue: 1 2023 pp. 51-62 fourth industrial revolution tools to enhance the growth and development of teaching and learning in higher education institutions: a systematic literature review in south africa lilian ifunanya nwosu*a makuena clementina berengb, tlotlo segotsoa & ngozi blessing enebeb * corresponding author email: 23012064@nwu.ac.za a. faculty of economics and management sciences, north west university, mafikeng, south africa b. school of professional studies in education, north west university, mafikeng, south africa article info received: december 08, 2022 accepted: april 08, 2023 published: april 25, 2023 how to cite nwosu,l. i., bereng, m. c., segotso, t., & enebe, n. b. (2023). fourth industrial revolution tools to enhance the growth and development of teaching and learning in higher education institutions: a systematic literature review in south africa. research in social sciences and technology, 8(1), 51-62. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2023.4 copyright license this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (cc by 4.0). abstract the fourth industrial revolution (4ir) has been the subject of discussion, and in most cases, it has been seen as a threat to jobs and conventional methods of performing certain activities. as a result, concerns over the preparation of the south african educational systems for the 4ir have been raised. many industries still lack an advanced understanding of the 4ir, but the concept is already gaining ground in various economic areas. thus, academics, business professionals, and legislators are paying closer attention to 4ir. the researchers were inspired to examine how the 4ir techniques were applied in south african higher education institutions (heis) to advance the growth and development of teaching and learning by this noticeable knowledge gap. to investigate how 4ir technologies improve the growth and development of teaching and learning in south african heis, this study used a systematic literature review (slr) methodology. a search procedure, research keywords, inclusion and exclusion criteria, and quality assessments of chosen literature were used in conjunction with the slr approach. twenty-one documents were retained after selecting them according to their theme and outline objectives. this study found that some south african heis have successfully adopted 4ir virtual and contact instruction technologies. the research further found that academics and support staff utilized various 4ir tools. this is done through a virtual or hybrid classroom, artificial intelligence, and the internet of things (iot), with different devices to send students messages, schedule zoom classes, and provide feedback and educational resources. however, the study presented recommendations that academics can use to ensure that the 4ir is effectively integrated to support the expansion and improvement of teaching and learning in heis. future research directions were suggested, and the study came to the conclusion that south africa could change the direction of the management of the education sector by implementing various 4ir tools in heis. keywords fourth industrial revolution; higher education institutions; growth; development; teaching and learning; academics 10.46303/ressat.2023.4 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2023.4 52 ressat 2023, 8(1): 51-62 introduction and background with the use of the slr, this study seeks to identify how the 4ir technologies can be used to enhance the growth and development of teaching and learning in heis. according to schwab (2016), the 4ir expands on the third industrial revolution by fusing several technologies from the digital, physical, and biological spheres. the steam engine was developed during the first industrial revolution, which preceded the discovery of the internal combustion engine during the second industrial revolution. the first industrial revolution started in the 1780s with steam power, increasing human productivity (erboz, 2017). the second industrial revolution began in the 1870s with the introduction of electrical energy and mass production. the emergence of “cyber-physical systems,” which relate to whole new capacities for humans and robots, might be characterized as the 4ir. however, the 4ir represents new ways technology becomes ingrained inside society and our bodies. these new capabilities depend on the infrastructure and technologies of the third industrial revolution. it integrates numerous physical, digital, and biological technologies (mcginnis, 2018). the first three industrial revolutions laid the groundwork for the 4ir, which is not a novel idea. this has led to the debate about the 4ir being viewed as a threat to jobs and ordinary ways of doing things (davis, 2016). to that effect, concerns about the south african education systems’ readiness for 4ir have been questioned, particularly with the emergence of the coronavirus disease (covid-19) in march 2020. according to mhlanga and moloi (2020), the 4ir infrastructure difficulty caused the lockdown to affect most public schools in south africa, especially those in townships and rural areas. furthermore, no feasible interventions were set up to cater for such circumstances; thus, universities and traditional schools that did not have 4ir instruments had to close down at the commencement of the lockdown required by covid19. according to mhlanga and moloi (2020), this is anticipated to be a typical occurrence across the african continent due to infrastructure issues, broadband availability, and data costs. according to butler-adam (2018), 4ir has many ramifications for many facets of life. as a result, it presents opportunities and difficulties for the educational system. despite the many challenges, the 4ir has presented many exciting opportunities to heis. any education plan for the 4ir must build on the third industrial revolution’s development of inperson instruction and diverse asynchronous educational resources (penprase, 2018). the education industry could completely transform to provide solutions to new difficulties due to using numerous 4ir components (kayembe, 2019). rüßmann et al., (2015) state that having adequate knowledge of the various 4ir components—including autonomous robots, simulation, horizontal and vertical system integration, the internet of things (iot), cyber security, cloud, additive manufacturing, augmented reality, and big data—is the first step in understanding the roles and relevance of the 4ir in the growth and development of teaching and learning in heis. effective teaching and learning will be facilitated in heis by integrating these 4ir components. professors and students from various disciplines should also learn about the elements necessary to implement the 4ir successfully. 53 fourth industrial revolution tools to enhance the growth and development of teaching and learning ressat 2023, 8(1): 51-62 ramukumba (2019) based his observations on this assumption and stressed the importance of a revamped curriculum that covers new topics and courses such as coding, data analysis, and robotics to prepare students for opportunities in 4ir. furthermore, the 4ir is also characterized using information and communication technology (ict), which calls for heis to be competent in ict. in order to improve the growth and development of teaching and learning in heis, the current study attempts to identify the 4ir instruments that can be applied. the study is expected to highlight possibilities and gaps that might be filled to enhance teaching and learning in heis throughout the 4ir era and offer insight into difficulties that must be overcome. problem and objectives many industries still lack an advanced understanding of the 4ir, but the concept is already gaining ground in various economic areas. as a result, academics, business professionals, and legislators are paying closer attention to 4ir (lee et al., 2018; lubinga et al. 2023). heis thus play a crucial part in influencing the societal changes required to adapt to 4ir for better growth and development. this is because higher education was previously created to address the demands of earlier industrial revolutions prioritizing mass production using electricity (gleason, 2018). therefore, it is essential that heis bridge the gap between the first three industrial revolutions and the current 4ir by implementing the usage of 4ir tools to teach successfully. the utilisation of ict is another aspect of 4ir. technology has only been used in a didactic approach to teaching and learning, wherein a personal computer and the availability of electronic teaching resources were used to facilitate instruction (brown, 2015). lee et al., (2018) emphasize that digital technology goes beyond using computers and e-materials to support 4ir. this suggests that educators should be able to integrate ict into educational activities and through curriculum development to produce students who are competent in ict. in agreement, hennessy et al., (2010) assert that over the years, it has become evident that if ict is used appropriately, it may be a valuable tool for assisting instruction. mbodila et al., (2013) observe that lecturers could develop strategies to promote deep learning and change learning into a learner-centred approach through ict implementation in education. despite technological advancements, the south african education sector has slowly embraced technology as a teaching and learning aid (mhlanga & moloi, 2020). educators struggle to integrate ict efficiently into education due to inadequate resources and a lack of training (ramorola, 2013). professional competencies must change as 4ir does to address the opportunities and difficulties of the digital transition (lee et al., 2018). education in the 4ir era calls for teachers and students who have received ict training and are equipped with those skills, as digital transformation is essential to the expansion and improvement of an institution. the 4ir is characterized by a much more pervasive mobile internet, more affordable, smaller, and powerful ai machine-learning-enabled sensors (schwab, 2016). in essence, apart from ict, educators in heis should be able to integrate various strategies to impart knowledge to their students and train them to be competent in using technological platforms such as social 54 ressat 2023, 8(1): 51-62 media in the 4ir era. furthermore, tremendous changes are occurring in a world increasingly reliant on technology, including smart devices, quantum computing, and driverless cars (manyika, 2017). as such, people need to be trained to stay abreast with the new changes, especially in heis, where graduates are prepared for the future world of work. this study’s major goal is to determine which 4ir tools are utilized to advance the growth and development of teaching and learning in heis in south africa, owing to the dire need for quality, relevant, and lifelong education deemed suitable by the 4ir components through slr. material and methods research approach the slr provides updated information on a research focus area and clarifies future research paths (kunisch, 2018). it guided the researchers in identifying the essential gaps and questions in the existing literature. the slr is also identified as the method that assists researchers in answering the research question by creating transparent scientific evidence based on the current literature (lame, 2019). the slr process for this study employed the preferred reporting items for systematic review and meta-analysis (prisma) within the context of 4ir techniques to enhance the growth and development of teaching and learning in south african heis. this approach was also thought to be pertinent for the current study since it enabled the researchers to present a thorough analysis of the body of information regarding the usage of 4ir as a teaching and learning resource in higher education settings. furthermore, the slr is considered the most practical research method in terms of transparency compared to other traditional research methods (aarseth et al., 2017). search strategy, inclusion and exclusion criteria the literature used in this study was sourced from three databases, namely google, sabinet, and ebscohost. the literature includes studies on the 4ir technologies, teaching and learning, and south african heis. the following search terms were used in the literature search: “4ir growth and development in heis”, “4ir and teaching and learning”, and “4ir tools in heis”. the search was sorted by language (english) and document type (article, book chapter, and conference paper). no time limit was applied. these search engines were found to be dominant in the publication of academic research work that focuses on developing and enhancing 4ir in heis. initially, the search produced 85 documents. after the search process was completed, duplicated documents (article, book chapter and conference paper) were eliminated. a total of 31 duplicated documents were eliminated, resulting in 54 documents. to ensure the inclusion of relevant articles relating to the 4ir technology themes, teaching and learning, and south african heis, the researchers read the abstracts of all 54 papers and categorized them as either included or excluded from this study. thirty-three of the 54 research papers were considered unrelated and irrelevant to the current study; as a result, they were excluded. this stage was conducted by two authors and further verified by two authors to 55 fourth industrial revolution tools to enhance the growth and development of teaching and learning ressat 2023, 8(1): 51-62 reinforce the assessment, reducing the number of documents and avoiding excluding relevant and non-related articles. a summary of the search results is presented in table 1 below. table 1: summary of search results search results google sabinet ebscohost total no. of publications total excluded from the current study total included in the current study journals 36 10 11 57 45 12 conferences 7 3 3 13 10 3 book chapters 8 5 2 15 6 9 total 51 18 16 85 64 21 methodological quality assessment the methodological quality of the 21 documents retained was assessed using a six-question checklist developed by pitchforth et al., (2017). the aim was to determine if these documents meet this study’s inclusion or exclusion criteria. a component approaches following prisma was used when applying the checklist. the checklist assesses six study criteria using a ‘yes’ or ‘no’ score. three authors independently conducted the quality assessment and further verified by one author to reinforce the assessment. a consensus was reached amongst the four authors regarding the 21 documents using a checklist developed by pitchforth et al. (2017), as shown in table 2. table 2: methodological quality assessment criteria quality assessment questions consensus q1 are the objectives of the study clearly identified? yes q2 is the context of the study clearly stated? yes q3 do the research methods support the aims of the study? yes q4 does the study have a comprehensive description of the instruments/scales employed? yes q5 is there a clear statement of the findings? yes q6 are the limitations of the study discussed extensively and explicitly? yes results a total of 21 documents relating to the 4ir growth and development tools in heis were analyzed through content analysis and following the guidelines presented by jarvis et al., (2003) and aarseth et al., (2017). the authors read each article, and the inclusion and exclusion criteria were applied on the basis that only articles relating to the 4ir tools in heis were relevant. in contrast, the studies that did not meet the inclusion criteria were deemed irrelevant to the current study and were thus excluded. table 1 below shows the details of all the articles found 56 ressat 2023, 8(1): 51-62 during the search process. they are grouped into the following columns: “inclusion in the current study” and “exclusion from the current study”. articles related to the 4ir tools to enhance the growth and development of teaching and learning in heis were sourced using the slr approach. each article was further categorized according to the authors, title, theme, weaknesses, and strengths to enable the researchers to identify the key themes that address the current study’s research objectives. the themes used to accomplish the research objectives for this current study were identified using the slr approach. consequently, the researcher further reviewed and discussed these themes in more detail. the details of this category are presented in table 2 below. table 3: categorisation of reviewed studies author title challenges of 4ir tools in the teaching and learning in heis opportunities of 4ir tools in the teaching and learning in heis brown, j.p. (2015) the complexity of using digital technology and how function is taught and learned. despite the potential of digital technologies to improve teaching and learning, it is unattainable due to the lack of available technology tools. according to the researcher, using 4ir will enable teachers and students to solve and manage complex tasks. ganiyu, i.o., oyedele, o.o. & derera, e. (2021) disruptions of the fourth industrial revolution: implication for work-life balance strategies the issue of inequality may increase due to the technological revolution, and global labour markets may be disrupted. 4ir is thought to raise the level of living worldwide, improving people’s quality of life worldwide. globally, people’s living standards are alleged to have improved due to 4ir disruptions. gleason, n.w. (2018) higher education in the era of the fourth industrial revolution the difficulty level and employment volatility would increase because of the new frameworks developed in response to the changes. with a curriculum that fosters both technical competence and a keen understanding of ethical duty toward the human condition, these new forms of 4ir education will equip students and faculty for leadership roles in a world of quickly accelerating change. hariharasudan, a. & kot, s. (2018) a scoping review on digital english and education 4.0 for industry 4.0 the researcher mentioned language barriers, a lack of digital culture, and a lack of expertise and training as obstacles to a successful deployment of 4ir. all facets of our life are affected by industry 4.0 and its significance. lee, m., yun, j.j., pyka, a., won, d., kodama, f., schiuma, g., park, h., jeon, j., park, k., jung, k. & yan, m.r. (2018) how to respond to the fourth industrial revolution, or the second information technology revolution? dynamic new combinations between technology and market different authors have different ways of defining 4ir. following this conversation, individuals in academia or business will be able to create their own 4ir concepts, which will open up prospects for them to conduct 4ir-related research or develop a variety of creative commercial agendas. mbodila, m., jones, t. & muhandji, k. (2013) integration of ict in education: key challenges the use of ict in teaching and learning focuses more on technological possibilities than the needs of education has been identified as a significant challenge. however, the use of ict in education enables students to be independent, think critically, and be problem solvers. it also promotes deep learning. mhlanga, d. & moloi, t. (2020) covid-19 and the digital transformation of education: what are we learning on 4ir in south africa? these authors pointed out that during the educational transformation, due to the covid-19 outbreak, students (mostly those from disadvantaged backgrounds) could not fully benefit from online teaching and learning due to a shortage of data or a lack of signal connection. these findings show that south africa typically has several areas of expertise that might potentially push the educational industry into the 4ir and increase access. ramorola, m. z. (2013) challenge of effective technology integration into teaching and learning the results showed that the primary obstacles to the successful adoption of technology at the school level included a lack of a technology policy, inadequate technology resources, a shortage of technology integration needs careful preparation, patience, commitment, and resources. 57 fourth industrial revolution tools to enhance the growth and development of teaching and learning ressat 2023, 8(1): 51-62 teachers skilled in technology integration, and maintenance and technical issues. due to limited technology, a lack of teachers with the necessary skills and the unavailability of technology policies makes it difficult to adopt 4ir tools in teaching and learning. additionally, the researcher also mentioned that students had difficulty accessing the online sessions due to a lack of internet. the teachers also had limited to attain relevant training. roy, a. (2020) the fourth industrial revolution this paper argues that although the introduction of ai has many advantages, not all organizations adopting it reap its benefits. the author further adds that suppliers endure more pain than consumers. according to the researcher, the disruptions illuminated by the introduction of ai will positively and negatively impact organizations. however, on the other hand, ai seems to impact consumers positively. penprase, b.e. (2018) the fourth industrial revolution and higher education heis still need to focus on changing their curricula to incorporate technological systems in their teaching and learning, notwithstanding the benefits of 4ir technology in teaching and learning. the students and the faculty will benefit from the 4ir education in a way that will equip them with the necessary skills to take on leadership roles in a rapidly changing world. mcginnis, d. (2018) what is the fourth industrial revolution? the industry’s consequences similarly impact the workforce. again, there will be job losses or significant job changes. the author concluded that we do not know what the future holds. as a result, we should prepare our students for the future by allowing them to explore these technological systems. discussion of results this paper provides insight into the 4ir tools for advancing the growth and development of instruction in heis whilst identifying themes through the slr of scientific papers (as categorised in table 2). the themes identified address the challenges and opportunities in the 4ir tools in advancing teaching and learning in heis, and ways to combat these challenges. these themes will address the study’s main research objective. the 4ir keys for advancing growth and development of instruction in higher education improving teaching and learning in higher education using the 4ir is a growing concern for most world economies. therefore, it becomes imperative that the education sector and, most importantly, heis, embrace this trend in digital technology to keep abreast with the 21st century’s demands. furthermore, digital technology’s progress aims to impose a uniform style of conducting business throughout society and higher education (yende, 2021). therefore, it has been anticipated that e-learning will replace traditional classroom instruction in higher education (yende & yende, 2019). this makes it clear that as digital technology develops in higher education, physical instruction will eventually give way to digital pedagogy. this study discovered that examinations are written utilising technological advancements due to the growing digitalization of teaching and learning in heis (yende & yende, 2019). heis have seen a more significant increase in digitalized testing. students utilize internet-connected computers to keep up with school activities daily (yende & yende, 2019). hybrid learning is also a critical 4ir tool that fosters 58 ressat 2023, 8(1): 51-62 effective teaching and learning (ganiyu et al., 2021). using these tools promotes the growth and development of teaching and learning at heis. challenges of the 4ir tools in teaching and learning in heis higher education experiences challenges in teaching and learning in line with using 4ir tools. despite its known merits in higher education, there is a need to revisit the curriculum to align contents to technological trends. this is consistent with penprase’s (2018) assertion that, despite the benefits of 4ir technology for teaching and learning, heis must still make changes to their curricula to include technology systems in their teaching and learning. although elearning is a 4ir tool, it is viewed as a cutting-edge global system essential to higher education. however, it is crucial to note that e-learning may jeopardize the viability of higher education at institutions lacking in technology, such as rural colleges (butler-adam, 2018). the official policy for marginalized institutions is one of the core components of the 4ir in higher education (winanti et al., 2019). for a transition towards the 4ir to successfully adopt digital technology, pertinent organizations, such as the department of higher education and training (among other governmental organizations), should provide financing to advance and upgrade the infrastructure of rural-based institutions (butler-adam, 2018; xing & marwala, 2006). furthermore, the lack of digital culture, training, and knowledge impacts the advancement of higher education teaching and learning (hariharasudan & kot, 2018). to address the escalating rate of change, complexity, and instability of employment, new frameworks should be developed per career and technical education (cte) (gleason, 2018). in heis, the advantages of technological possibilities are emphasized more than the gains and impacts of education. the use of ict in teaching and learning focuses more on technical capabilities instead of education needs, which has been identified as a challenge (mbodila et al., 2013). ramorola’s (2013) findings revealed more difficulties in engaging 4ir tools in educational institutions. the authors emphasized that the primary obstacles preventing the efficient integration of technology in educational institutions were a lack of technological policy, inadequate technology equipment, a lack of competent employees in technology integration and maintenance, and technical issues. opportunities of the 4ir tools in instructional activities in heis opportunities in the educational system, particularly in higher education, were made possible by incorporating 4ir instruments in teaching and learning. better technological means of knowledge transmission were made possible by the 4ir tools. however, integrating technology demands preparation, adequate time, commitment, and suitable money (ramorola, 2013). the 4ir, according to schwab (2016), is a vital instrument for enhancing higher education globally and fostering the development of critical skills, including e-learning and innovation, information and media technology, and life and job skills. these abilities increase a person’s ability to compete in the workplace and business. additionally, the world and the markets that require certain vital digital abilities have fundamentally transformed due to the advancement of digital technology (gibbs, 2017). 59 fourth industrial revolution tools to enhance the growth and development of teaching and learning ressat 2023, 8(1): 51-62 butler-adam (2018) asserts that many european schools and american and australian heis have seen success in their educational systems due to embracing digital transformation. serdyukov (2017) contends that nations that have adopted the 4ir in their higher education system are in a better position to have a thriving economy in the future. furthermore, the advantages of integrating 4ir tools into teaching and learning in heis will benefit the students and the teaching staff. finally, penprase (2018) asserts that the students and the faculty will benefit from the 4ir education in a way that will equip them with the necessary skills to take on leadership roles in a rapidly changing world. combating challenges of the 4ir in advancing instruction in heis according to a study by serdyukov (2017), several attempts have been made in south africa to align curricula with the necessary 4ir capabilities since the technological redress concentrates on curricula in higher education. to provide students with the required skills supported by digital technology, industry and the educational sector must collaborate to establish the future of digital technology in higher education (yende, 2021). in combating 4ir challenges faced in higher education, the curriculum should clearly emphasize digital technology, such as ai, automation, and internet technology, to ensure learners understand what 4ir is and its application in today’s world. the expectations and behaviors of the culture of teaching and learning in the classroom, as articulated through digital assets in higher education, will be radically altered by the 4ir (butler-adam, 2018). the analytical, creative, critical, problem-solving, and critical-thinking abilities are part of digital technology, and necessary to exploit digital technology opportunities, which can only be imparted to learners when lecturers are knowledgeable about them (yende, 2012). therefore, this points to the fact that transmitters of learning ought to be technologically compliant to bring about the reality of 4ir in the classrooms. to prepare students for opportunities in the 4ir, hei instructors must learn and demonstrate the necessary tools and abilities. conclusions and recommendations this study aimed to examine how the 4ir can be used to improve the growth and development of teaching and learning in south african heis. this study used the slr methodology because it offers a deeper knowledge of the phenomenon and its effects on teaching and learning in heis; this method was pertinent to this study. academics could incorporate various 4ir in teaching and learning, such as writing tests using technological innovations, digitalized testing, internet-connected computers, and hybrid learning for growth and development in heis. it became apparent from the literature reviewed that 4ir tools impact teaching and learning. without these tools, students could be ill-equipped for work, and teaching and learning may be affected in the long run. as such, these tools foster the growth and development of teaching and learning in heis. this study, therefore, 60 ressat 2023, 8(1): 51-62 recommends that training be provided for academics who struggle to utilize these tools as this will prepare them for the challenges ahead and future services. references aarseth, w., ahola, t., aaltonen, k., økland, a., & andersen, b. 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(2021). transition towards the fourth industrial revolution (4ir) in the south african education sector: a perspective from rural-based higher education. african journal of development studies, 11(2), 55–75. doi: https://doi.org/10.31920/26343649/2021/v11n2a3 research in social sciences and technology https://ressat.org e-issn: 2468-6891 volume: 8 issue: 3 2023 pp. 16-35 framework for numeracy and digital skills attributes in higher education siti fairuz dalima, sharipah ruzaina syed aris*a, teoh sian hoona, fazyudi ahmad nadzria, sayang mohd denib, norasikin yahyac, & ellianawati m.sid * corresponding author email: sruzaina@uitm.edu.my a. faculty of education, universiti teknologi mara, puncak alam, malaysia b. college of computing, informatics and media, universiti teknologi mara, shah alam, malaysia c. quality assurance training centre, malaysian qualification agency, cyberjaya, malaysia d. unnes, indonesia article info received: april 11, 2023 accepted: june 13, 2023 published: august 12, 2023 how to cite dalim, s. f., aris, s. r. s., hoon, t. s., nadzri, f. a., deni, s. m., yahya, n., & si, e. m. (2023). framework for numeracy and digital skills attributes in higher education. research in social sciences and technology, 8(3), 16-35. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2023.18 copyright license this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (cc by 4.0). abstract numeracy and digital skills are among the most crucial skills that any graduate should possess before entering the workforce, regardless of their field of study. therefore, both skills should not be treated as an “add on” skill but viewed as essential graduate attributes needing to be purposefully incorporated into the curriculum instead of mere chance. by understanding the learners’ numeracy and digital skills abilities, educators can create suitable learning outcomes, activities, and assessments, enabling them to acquire the skills. the objective of this study is to create a framework for testing numeracy (nsi) and digital skills (dsi) using a cross-sectional design and quantitative methodology. the research entails generating a questionnaire, verifying it via a rigorous procedure of expert content validation, and focusing on sufficiency, clarity, coherence, and relevance. a pilot study involving 218 students from various disciplines was conducted to measure the reliability of the framework using cronbach alpha. feedback from experts was then used to enhance the questionnaire, resulting in the finalisation of five components for the digital skills instrument (dsi): information literacy, computer and technology literacy, digital communication and collaboration skills, digital identity and well-being, and digital ethics. meanwhile, the five components of the numeracy skills instrument (nsi) encompassed operation and calculation, graphical representation, quantitative reasoning and logical thinking, complex number (advanced concept), spatial visualisation and geometric reasoning. the results indicated a strong internal consistency across all components for both tools, with alpha values ranging from 0.847 to 0.958 for dsi and 0.916 to 0.964 for nsi. corrected item-total correlations also depicted intercorrelation between items for both instruments. to sum up, the findings demonstrate that the dsi and nsi have high reliability and validity. because both tools are reliable and valid for measuring digital and numeracy skills in the malaysian context, they can be confidently used for future research. keywords numeracy skills; digital skills; graduate attributes; framework; higher education. 10.46303/ ressat.2023.18 mailto:sruzaina@uitm.edu.my https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2023.18 17 ressat 2023, 8(3): 16-35 introduction several studies have depicted the positive impact of numeracy and digital literacy. for example, the organization for economic cooperation and development (oecd, 2013) performed research and reported a significant association between numeracy skills and levels of educational achievement, employment, and improved health outcomes and life satisfaction. moreover, many studies have also accentuated the importance of skills for future survival (aris et al., 2022; kee et al., 2023; vodă et al., 2022). similarly, previous european commission (2015) research determined that digital skills are essential for personal and professional development and are in rising demand in the job market. numeracy and digital skills have received increased attention in today's rapidly changing technological world. numeracy encompasses the ability to effectively apply mathematical concepts and methodologies in daily life, including interpreting and using numerical information and data. digital skills entail using digital technologies, such as computers, the internet, and mobile devices, to access, process, and communicate information. these talents’ value and influence on individual and societal well-being have become more visible in recent years. this situation has resulted in greater investment in programs and activities to enhance numeracy and digital literacy at all societal levels. the widespread acceptance of the importance of numeracy and digital skills is reflected in their inclusion in national and international frameworks for education and skills development. for example, the european qualifications framework (eqf) includes both numeracy and digital skills as key competencies (european commission, 2008). similarly, the malaysian qualifications framework (mqf) recognizes the importance of these skills and has implemented them as learning outcomes at all levels of education (ministry of higher education, malaysia, 2018). despite this recognition, a critical gap exists between the supply and demand for numeracy and digital skills, particularly in developing countries. a world bank (2015) study found that despite progress in improving digital skills, substantial disparities still exist between different countries and regions. numeracy and digital abilities are usually considered crucial for personal and professional growth, and their demand in the worldwide job market has risen. because technology immensely impacts our lives, continual investment in programs and activities is vital to enhance these abilities. consequently, this process can assist in bridging the gap between supply and demand and contribute to a more skilled, inventive, and inclusive society. comprehending the importance of both skills, a team of academics initiated the framework of numeracy and digital skills in the malaysian environment. thanks to this research, all curriculum developers in higher education are expected to recognise their students' numeracy and digital abilities and construct curricula that may boost future skill sets. it can only be realized by developing reliable and valid instruments for measuring numeracy (nsi) and digital skills (dsi), based on the conceptual definitions outlined in the malaysian qualifications framework (mqa, 2018). a preliminary study conducted in a malaysian university had students from various fields. 18 dalim et al ressat 2023, 8(3): 16-35 the proposed framework can prove a valuable resource for curriculum developers to support the development of their students’ numeracy and digital skills. ultimately, our findings will stimulate the ongoing efforts to upgrade the quality of higher education in malaysia and enhance the employability of graduates in an increasingly digital and technologically driven competitive world. numeracy and digital attributes as future skill set digital and numeracy skills are crucial for success in today's rapidly evolving technological world. with technological advancements continuously modifying how we live and work, possessing strong digital and numeracy skills is essential. studies have revealed that these skills are positively related to job performance, and their importance has increased in the modern workforce. kim et al. (2016) indicated that numeracy skills are positively associated with job performance and have become an indispensable part of the contemporary workforce owing to technological advances. individuals wishing to compete in an increasingly data-driven industry must possess superb numeracy abilities. numeracy skills can involve an individual's ability to understand, use, and apply mathematical concepts and techniques in real-world situations. the term encompasses various skills: computation, estimation, problem-solving, and data analysis. numeracy skills are considered a critical component of overall literacy and can bring imminent success in many sectors, including education, employment, and financial management. the united nations educational, scientific and cultural organization (unesco) defined numeracy as "the capacity to identify, understand, interpret, create, communicate, and use mathematical concepts and structures to solve problems and make informed decisions." this definition highlights the importance of numeracy skills in solving mathematical problems and making informed decisions in various contexts. in recent years, numeracy skills have been widely acknowledged as a crucial set of abilities for the future. numeracy skills, encompassing mathematical literacy, involve the capacity to comprehend and utilize mathematical concepts in everyday situations. with the advent of technology and the prevalence of data-driven decision-making, numeracy skills have gained heightened importance across various domains, such as finance, engineering, healthcare, and education. as per a report published by the organization for economic cooperation and development (oecd), numeracy skills are deemed crucial for individuals to partake actively in society and capitalize on the opportunities arising from technological advancements (oecd, 2019). yamashita et al. (2023) accentuate the prominence of numeracy skills for stem and nonstem professionals because numeracy plays a vital role in various aspects of daily life, including managing personal finances, accessing health care, and engaging in civic engagement. the study further highlights that numeracy skills are valuable for all workers, regardless of their field. promoting numeracy skills can substantially benefit individuals and society. 19 ressat 2023, 8(3): 16-35 furness et al. (2017) present a compelling argument regarding the relevance of numeracy abilities for educators and students. they assert that a comprehensive understanding of mathematical concepts and critical thinking while solving problems are vital for effective mathematics education. kars-tietema and kars (2018) stress the role of schools in equipping children with robust numeracy skills to prepare them for future occupations. they recommend incorporating real-world challenges and technology into mathematics education to empower students with the necessary skills for success in the twenty-first century. these studies highlight the need to emphasize numeracy skills across all levels of education, including teacher preparation programs and the k-12 curriculum. similarly, digital skills have gained an unprecedented presence in today's workforce, encompassing computer usage, internet proficiency, and software application knowledge. vrana (2006) found that digital literacy skills, including proficiency in word processing, spreadsheets, and other software programs, are positively related to job performance. likewise, liu (2016) reported that digital literacy skills will even be more critical for success in the 21st century and play a critical role in lifelong learning. the study emphasized the need for individuals to possess strong digital skills to adapt to the rapidly changing technological landscape and effectively seize new opportunities. in the contemporary world, digital literacy has emerged as an essential element due to the indispensability of technology for smooth functioning. dewi et al. (2021) define digital literacy as the capacity to access, evaluate, and effectively communicate information through various media platforms. competence in digital skills relies on multiple factors, including technical skills, critical understanding, and communication skills, with a critical understanding of a paramount importance (dewi et al., 2021). vodă et al. (2022) assert that the level of education plays a substantial role in the development of digital abilities (2022). additionally, critical solid thinking enables individuals to perform a more in-depth investigation and assessment of the media material they encounter (dewi et al., 2021). conversely, technical skills are associated with the capacity to access and operate media platforms (dewi et al., 2021). individuals with advanced technical skills excel in computer usage and the internet navigation, especially in complex tasks. proficiency in communication skills empowers individuals to interact with others, engage in online activities, and create media content. the rise of digital skills has facilitated the growth of big data analysis, and given the pervasive adoption of decisions based on big data analysis, an imperative need exists to enhance digital skills (sivarajah et al., 2017) the indonesian study team (i.e., rahmawati et al., 2022) highlights the significance of digital skills in the contemporary world. it examines the digital competence of vocational high school teachers in indonesia. the authors argue that vocational high school teachers must enhance their digital skills via training and that legislators should adopt regulations to facilitate this. they pose that having excellent digital skills is vital in today's employment market because it promotes communication, access to information, problem-solving capabilities, and 20 dalim et al ressat 2023, 8(3): 16-35 convenience. the essay emphasizes the need for prioritizing the development of digital skills for navigating the digital era’s challenges and opportunities. numeracy skills and digital skills are closely related because both are essential for effective functioning in the modern world. in the digital age, numeracy and digital skills often overlap, as many digital tools and technologies require a strong foundation in numeracy for efficient use. bredberg's (2020) article explores the role of mathematics and critical thinking in promoting democracy in digital society. the author contends that in the digital era, individuals must possess both critical thinking skills and mathematical proficiency to navigate the intricate realm of information. bredberg highlights the importance of education in promoting mathematical and critical thinking skills and suggests that individuals can make informed decisions about important social and political issues thanks to these skills. the article also addresses the potential for digital technologies to support the development of these skills through interactive educational tools and online community practices. overall, bredberg's article presents a compelling case for the importance of mathematics and critical thinking in promoting democratic engagement and citizenship in the digital age. in conclusion, digital and numeracy skills have become increasingly relevant in the contemporary technological world. studies have revealed that these skills are positively related to job performance and are essential for success in the modern workforce. therefore, as technology evolves, it is critical for individuals to possess strong digital and numeracy skills to succeed. numeracy and digital skills as graduate attributes in the curriculum framework numeracy and digital skills have become increasingly important in today's digital age, with the technology playing a vital role in our daily lives. accordingly, a growing interest exists to incorporate these skills as graduate attributes in curriculum frameworks. incorporating numeracy and digital skills into curriculum frameworks will allow producing graduates knowledgeable in their field of study and simultaneously having the capability to use digital and numerical technologies effectively. this process will help them better prepare for the current and future workplace demands. many studies have addressed incorporating numeracy and digital skills into curriculum frameworks and discussed the issue thoroughly. kee et al. (2023) reported that acquiring digital skills positively influenced students' perceived employability. additionally, they found that the quality of the courses taken by students mediated the relationship between digital skill acquisition and perceived employability. this condition suggests that high-quality courses are a prerequisite for students to develop the digital skills to enhance their employability. the authors conclude that promoting digital skills among youth can positively impact their employability and that the quality of courses teaching digital skills is crucial to ensuring that students can develop the skills required to succeed in the job market. ismail and hassan (2019) investigated the importance of digital technology technical abilities for the fourth industrial revolution (industry 4.0). industry 4.0, according to the authors, involves 21 ressat 2023, 8(3): 16-35 integrating digital technologies into all facets of the economy, and technical capabilities in digital technology are crucial for people and organisations to survive in this era. it also highlights the need for digital skills such as data analysis, programming, and cybersecurity for labour market competitiveness. the writers also accentuate the vitality of firms creating digital strategies to stay competitive and successful in a continually evolving business environment. the article also addresses the influence of industry 4.0 on institutions of technical and vocational education and training (tvet). the authors suggest that tvet schools must change their curriculum to adapt to the changing requirements of the labour market and equip students with the technical skills demanded by industry 4.0. several considerations must be considered to effectively incorporate numeracy and digital skills into curriculum frameworks. firstly, it is important to recognize that these skills are not static but constantly develop and change as technology advances. therefore, it is imperative to regularly revise the curriculum to incorporate the most recent advancements and trends in digital and numeracy skills. another aspect to consider is the need to provide students with diverse opportunities to develop their numeracy and digital skills. this process can include a combination of formal coursework, project-based learning, and hands-on experience with digital and numerical technologies. providing students with the support and guidance in their skill development is critical and should include access to resources and mentorship from experienced professionals. a need also exists to adopt a flexible and interdisciplinary approach to incorporating numeracy and digital skills into the curriculum. this necessity can involve working with other departments and schools within the university, and with industry partners to ensure that students receive a well-rounded education ready for challenging careers. the malaysian qualifications agency (mqa) revised its 2007 qualifications framework (mqf, 2018) to emphasise more on numeracy and digital qualities responding to changes in the educational landscape and the emergence of new talents. the mqa updated the malaysian qualifications framework to ensure higher-quality academic programs offered by higher education providers in malaysia. this authority established eight domains of learning outcomes in 2007. in the mqf 2nd edition, the learning outcomes are revised and maintained to form five learning outcome clusters with eleven learning outcome attributes. each academic program should satisfy each cluster and the attributes or characteristics of learning outcomes. the five clusters encompass knowledge and understanding, cognitive skills, functional and work skills, personal and entrepreneurial skills, and ethics and professionalism. since april 2019, mqa has mandated that all malaysian universities incorporate this new framework into their curricula. to meet this requirement, educators must assess their students’ numeracy and digital skills and use this information to create materials and assessments to help students develop and improve these skills. thanks to this process, educators can understand their students better, allowing them to create a curriculum meeting their needs and assisting them in achieving their learning outcomes. 22 dalim et al ressat 2023, 8(3): 16-35 the mqf provides an overall definition and a set of characteristics serving as minimal criteria for higher education institutions to construct their curricula. digital skills are defined as the ability to use information and digital technology for work and study. they also comprise acquiring and retaining information, processing data, utilising applications for problem-solving and communication, and ethically and responsibly using digital skills. information literacy, computer and technology literacy, visual literacy, and digital communication and collaboration skills are the four components of this definition. meanwhile, numeracy includes understanding basic mathematics and symbols relating to statistical techniques (mqa, 2017). additionally, according to unesco (2018) and based on quick reference: 5 clusters of learning outcomes mqf2.0 (mohe-2020), the definition of numeracy has been expanded to include five main components: quantitative reasoning and logical thinking, graphical representation, spatial visualization and geomatic reasoning, operation and calculation, and complex number. quantitative reasoning and logical thinking are key components of numeracy, and they are defined as the ability to understand, interpret, and use mathematical information in realworld situations. quantitative reasoning comprises handling information, identifying mathematical information, calculating, estimating, and solving problems using numerical data. this procedure also includes processing data, understanding statistics and probability, interpreting data, drawing conclusions, and determining the reliability and significance of data. graphical representation is another important aspect of numeracy because it involves representing and interpreting data in graphs, tables, and diagrams. this representation allows individuals to understand complex mathematical information and to make sense of data visually and intuitively. spatial visualization and geometric reasoning play an important role in numeracy because they encompass the ability to conceptualise and utilise objects in 2d and 3d spaces and to comprehend angles and positions. it encompasses skills such as mentally representing object arrangements, generating and designing objects, and navigating and orienting oneself. operation and calculation are critical for numeracy because they involve the procedural rules underlying manipulations of whole numbers, decimals, and fractions. the ability to perform basic arithmetic operations such as addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division is crucial in numeracy. complex numbers, including calculus and advanced calculus, form part of numeracy. this operation involves the ability to perform complex mathematical tasks, such as problem-solving and mathematical reasoning. individuals with strong numeracy skills can easily perform routine and non-routine complex numerical tasks. in summary, numeracy skills encompass various mathematical concepts and abilities, including quantitative reasoning and logical thinking, graphical representation, spatial visualization and geometric reasoning, operation and calculation, and complex numbers. these skills are essential for success in many aspects of life: education, employment, and financial management. 23 ressat 2023, 8(3): 16-35 methodology in this study, we employed a cross-sectional design that utilises a quantitative approach to establish a framework for measuring numeracy and digital skills. specifically, the study involved developing questionnaire items, validating the questionnaire through a rigorous process of expert content validation, and assessing the internal reliability of the questionnaire using the cronbach alpha statistical method. eleven lecturers from various backgrounds with a minimum of 15 years of teaching and research experience were chosen as content experts in this study to validate the questionnaire. table 3 depicts the characteristics of the content experts who participated in the study. meanwhile, for the pilot study, 218 students from various academic disciplines, including nonscience, business management, and science and technology fields, voluntarily participated in the pilot study. numeracy skill instrument (nsi) the numeracy skill instrument comprises five distinct components: operation and calculation, graphical representation, quantitative reasoning and logical thinking, complex number (advanced concept), and spatial visualization and spatial reasoning. the numeracy skill instrument includes 27 items distributed among the five components, as table 1 illustrates. table 1 initial component of numeracy skill instrument (nsi) component number of items operation and calculation graphical representation quantitative reasoning and logical thinking complex number (advanced concept) spatial visualization and spatial reasoning total 7 4 6 5 5 27 digital skills instrument (dsi) the digital skills instrument (dsi) comprises four components: information literacy, computer and technology literacy, visual literacy, and digital communication/collaboration skills. the instrument encompasses twenty-two items, categorically distributed among the four components. table 2 presents a detailed breakdown of the number of items assigned to each component. 24 dalim et al ressat 2023, 8(3): 16-35 table 2 initial component of digital skills instrument (dsi) component number of items information literacy computer and technology literacy visual literacy digital communication/collaboration skill total 11 4 3 4 22 expert judgment content validation a validation process was conducted to validate the digital skills instrument (dsi) and numeracy skills instrument (nsi) through expert evaluation. the process involved obtaining opinions and feedback from a panel of experts specialising in measurement and evaluation. initially, two experts from both a comprehensive and research universities were selected to evaluate the instruments. their feedback was then supplemented by an additional nine experts. the experts' evaluations were instrumental in refining the components of the dsi and nsi. table 3 portrays the experts' expertise, research, and teaching experience in the evaluation. table 3 judge and field of expertise expert field of expertise experience (years) 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 language testing (social sciences) measurement and evaluation (social sciences) digital literacy (science and technology) artificial intelligence (science and technology) instructional communication, new media (social sciences) psychometric assessment (social sciences) pharmacy (health science) statistics and operational research law, criminal justice (social sciences) electrical engineering mathematics education 18 20 21 15 16 25 20 >25 21 >25 >25 the selection process for volunteer experts followed a rigorous set of criteria, considering various factors such as their background in curriculum development, academic positions they have held, and a minimum of 10 years of research or teaching experience. the experts in the evaluation process represented various disciplines, including science, technology, and social sciences. their collective expertise and extensive knowledge greatly enriched the evaluation process. it was deemed imperative to measure numeracy and digital skills across a broad spectrum of disciplines and qualification levels, adhering to the standards established by 25 ressat 2023, 8(3): 16-35 the mqf. the inclusion of experts from diverse fields enabled the provision of nuanced and informed perspectives on the appropriate numeracy and digital attributes required for various academic programs and curricula within their respective fields. the items were systematically classified according to several criteria escobar-pérez and cuervo-martínez (2008) recommended, including sufficiency, clarity, coherence, and relevance. sufficiency ensured that the items within each dimension were comprehensive enough to measure that particular dimension effectively. clarity ensured that the items were easily understandable. coherence guaranteed that the items were logically related to the dimension or indicator they were intended to measure. finally, relevance ensured that the items were considered essential for the evaluation. the experts rated each item on a scale of 1 to 4 and were encouraged to comment in an open space on the instrument. the experts evaluated the questionnaire to determine the dependability of each component and item before pilot-testing the final instrument with potential respondents. a survey was conducted online and disseminated randomly to students from various faculties and disciplines. analysis and findings this section presents the results of the data analysis and describes a detailed account of the study’s findings. content validation by expert judgment the reliability of the data was assessed using cronbach's alpha, a statistical method measuring the internal consistency and agreement among experts concerning the content validity of the numeracy and digital skills framework for sufficiency, clarity, coherence, and relevance. the results revealed that cronbach's alpha values for all components and numeracy and digital skills characteristics were above 0.8, considered acceptable. higher values indicated greater internal consistency, reflecting the expert respondents’ consistency and uniformity of opinions and perceptions. further analysis was conducted to enhance the questionnaires by incorporating the feedback and suggestions provided by the expert panel. the refinement process involved restructuring the sequence of items, refining the language and phrasing, and incorporating two additional components while eliminating the visual literacy component. some items were also merged with other components to increase their effectiveness. consequently, the digital skills instrument (dsi) comprised 28 items representing five components: information literacy, computer and technology literacy, digital communication and collaboration skills, digital identity and well-being, and digital ethics. meanwhile, the numeracy skills instrument (nsi) included five components: operation and calculation, graphical representation, quantitative reasoning and logical thinking, complex number (advanced concept), and spatial visualization and geometric reasoning. pilot study figure 1.0 depicts the distribution of respondents based on college and faculties. in total, 218 students from various academic programs responded to the online survey. 26 dalim et al ressat 2023, 8(3): 16-35 distribution of respondents figure 1 distribution of respondents according to college and faculties note: ac = accountancy; fskm = computer and mathematical science; fita = film, theatre and animation; edu= education, coe=engineering; im= information management; ph=pharmacy; business management; fsg=applied science figure 1 illustrates the distribution of respondents across faculties. as can be seen, 96 out of 218 (44.04%) respondents were from accountancy, followed by 58 (26.61%) from computer and mathematical sciences, 28 (12.84%) from film, theatre, and animation, and the remaining respondents were from other faculties. the pilot test data were examined using cronbach's alpha analysis. table 4 presents the results of cronbach’s alpha analysis for digital skills (dsi) with the items categorised according to the dimensions. the cronbach's alpha values for each dimension ranged from 0.847 and 0.958. table 5 displays the cronbach's alpha analysis results for numeracy skills (nsi) items distributed according to dimensions. cronbach's alpha was in the range of 0.916 to 0.964 for each dimension in nsi. these cronbach's alpha values (tables 4 and 5) indicate both outcomes’ strong and persuasive internal consistency. the present results could be retained because cronbach's alpha values of 0.8 or higher are achieved. table 4 shows that the dsi had strong internal consistency across all five components, with cronbach’s alpha values between 0.847 and 0.958. the cronbach's alpha values in dsi were as follows: information literacy (0.958), digital ethics (0.942), digital communication and collaboration skill (0.919), computer and technology literacy (0.895), and digital identity and well-being (0.847). consequently, all the items were retained to measure digital skills. 9 6 5 8 2 8 2 2 4 4 3 2 1 ac fskm fita edu coe im ph fbm fsg 27 ressat 2023, 8(3): 16-35 table 4 item-total statistics: items and values in five components of perceptions on digital skills instrument (dsi) component item scale mean if item deleted scale variance if item deleted corrected item-total correlatio n cronbach’ s alpha if item deleted cronbach’ s alpha overall c1 – information literacy c1.1 110.49 235.726 .687 0.966 0.958 c1.2 110.52 235.264 .738 0.966 c1.3 110.42 235.904 .754 0.966 c1.4 110.60 232.683 .804 0.965 c1.5 110.57 232.689 .794 0.965 c1.6 110.71 234.522 .736 0.966 c1.7 110.76 232.793 .758 0.965 c1.8 110.69 233.006 .790 0.965 c1.9 110.80 231.848 .780 0.965 c1.10 110.59 234.732 .717 0.966 c1.11 110.72 232.590 .749 0.966 c1.12 111.07 235.193 .607 0.967 c2 – computer and technology literacy c2.1 110.51 233.928 .747 0.966 0.895 c2.2 110.99 232.968 .620 0.967 c2.3 110.69 233.790 .741 0.966 c2.4 110.76 233.300 .736 0.966 c2.5 111.13 234.324 .572 0.967 c3 – digital communicatio n / collaboration skill c3.1 110.69 232.702 .746 .966 0.919 c3.2 110.67 232.016 .718 .966 c3.3 110.89 231.938 .692 .966 c3.4 110.61 234.082 .701 .966 c4 – digital identity and well-being c4.1 110.31 236.879 .616 .966 0.847 c4.2 110.63 233.745 .654 .966 c4.3 110.40 235.882 .629 .966 c5 – digital ethics c5.1 110.39 234.846 .688 .966 0.942 c5.2 110.59 233.691 .714 .966 c5.3 110.44 235.408 .674 .966 c5.4 110.43 235.167 .665 .966 28 dalim et al ressat 2023, 8(3): 16-35 table 5 item-total statistics: items and values in five components of perceptions on numeracy skills instrument (nsi) component item scale mean if item deleted scale variance if item deleted corrected item-total correlatio n cronbach’ s alpha if item deleted cronbach’ s alpha overall b1 – operation and calculation b1.1 23.07 1.473 .934 0.920 0.931 b1.2 23.07 1.473 .934 0.917 b1.3 22.96 2.196 .956 0.913 b1.4 23.04 2.238 .334 0.910 b1.5 23.18 1.515 .864 0.913 b1.6 23.18 1.786 .676 0.917 b1.7 23.07 2.307 .214 0.953 b2 – graphical representatio n b2.1 11.75 .188 .255 0.933 0.946 b2.2 11.75 .146 .289 0.930 b2.3 11.82 .157 .859 0.928 b2.4 11.82 .057 .859 0.928 b3 – quantitative reasoning & logical thinking b3.1 17.32 7.286 .397 0.938 0.946 b3.2 17.64 5.122 .630 0.941 b3.3 17.71 5.426 .527 0.936 b3.4 18.04 3.405 .831 0.933 b3.5 17.46 5.217 .765 0.935 b3.6 18.25 4.646 .332 0.935 b4 – complex number (advanced concept) b4.1 15.36 .622 .624 0.922 0.916 b4.2 15.39 .497 .865 0.893 b4.3 15.43 .536 .752 0.878 b4.4 15.36 .539 .959 0.896 b4.5 15.46 .613 .541 0.890 b5 – spatial visualization & geometric reasoning b5.1 15.57 .432 .984 0.955 0.964 b5.2 15.57 .432 .984 0.956 b5.3 15.61 .455 .918 0.952 b5.4 15.50 .604 .989 0.956 b5.5 15.46 .696 .642 0.958 similarly, table 5 illustrates that the nsi has strong internal consistency across all five components, with cronbach’s alpha values between 0.916 and 0.964. the cronbach's alpha 29 ressat 2023, 8(3): 16-35 values in nsi were the following: spatial visualization and geometric reasoning (0.964), graphical representation, quantitative reasoning and logical thinking (0.946), operation and calculation (0.931), and complex number (0.916). therefore, all the items were retained to measure numeracy skills. furthermore, the corrected item-total correlation indicates that the scales for dsi (0.572 to 0.804) and nsi (0.214 to 0.989) contain highly intercorrelated items. it is plausible when measuring the respondents’ opinions regarding their numeracy and digital skills. additionally, the absence of corrected inter-item correlation values below 0.214 suggests that none of the scales represent overly broad constructs. these findings suggest that the dsi and nsi are reliable and valid digital and numeracy skills measures. thus, the instruments can be used confidently in future research. discussion our findings led to the development of a framework for numeracy and digital skills, undergoing two phases of repeated validation. during the initial phase, two subject matter experts provided extensive feedback on the content of four constructs: information literacy, computer and technology literacy, visual literacy, and digital communication and collaboration skills. based on the findings of the first phase of validation, the "visual literacy" component was omitted from the list of components owing to its moderate level of consistency. however, "digital communication and collaboration skills" remained a requirement, because these are the most in-demand talents today. to attain the purpose and benefits of digital technology in the digital world, all learners and consumers must collaborate with others (van laar et al., 2017). these characteristics, particularly communication and collaboration abilities, are viewed as essential in the twenty-first century. in the second phase of validation, nine experts participated, and two crucial components were added depending on the relevant items and the experts' feedback. these components addressed the need for digital integrity and the impact of digital technology use on well-being, especially among adolescents (dienlin & johannes, 2020). consequently, the framework includes five components: information literacy, computer and technology literacy, digital communication and collaboration skills, digital identity and well-being, and digital ethics. figure 2 provides a summary of the digital skill framework. the proposed digital framework is an extension of belshaw’s (2012) framework, which identified eight key elements necessary for a comprehensive understanding of digital literacy. these elements include understanding the social and cultural contexts of digital technologies, critical and creative thinking, content creation and online community participation, effective communication, positive attitude and digital identity management. moreover, they have innovative and imaginative use of technology, evaluation and analysis of digital content and sources, and understanding of digital citizenship and ethical online participation. belshaw has also presented his 5cs framework for developing digital literacies, comprising critical, creative, confident, collaborative, and civic elements essential for thriving in the digital world. belshaw 30 dalim et al ressat 2023, 8(3): 16-35 argues that integrating these elements into all aspects of education and training can yield a comprehensive approach to digital literacy. in a more recent study, bayne and gallagher (2021) focus on exploring and developing new approaches to digital education. the article highlights the need to prioritise studentcentred learning in digital education, including using adaptive learning technologies to tailor learning experiences to individual students' needs and interests. the authors also accentuate the importance of ethical considerations in digital education: issues related to privacy, data security, and online safety. they argue that policies and regulations must be enforced to ensure that digital education is equitable, accessible, and effective. collaboration and community building are also emphasised as important aspects of digital education. digital technologies offer new opportunities for learners to connect with each other and with experts in various fields, leading to enhanced learning outcomes. figure 2 proposed framework for digital skills information literacy find relevant, use, organise, elaborate, and manage digital information from different sources, distinguish different types of digital information and its purpose, process data into a more understandable form, reproduce and form new information, decide what to share, explore, develop new ideas/ project or opportunities, and showcase digital or artefact creation) computer and technology literacy ability to use and apply computer and software, create graphic design, adapt to learning preferences, and needs, organise, plan, and reflect learning, and knowledge on advanced digital digital communication / collaboration skill convey ideas using multiple digital applications, build networking and collaboration using digital tools/platform digital identity and well being impact of technology and digital activities, manage online and real-world interaction, the importance of maintaining physical and mental health digital skills digital ethics acceptable online behavior including how to communicate and treat others, the credibility of the source and proper referencing, compliance with copyright issues, and privacy and security of personal information an individual must first learn how to obtain information and use computers or other digital devices. therefore, a healthy society emphasises the application of digital technology and knowledge, causing information literacy, computer literacy, and technology literacy, and the 31 ressat 2023, 8(3): 16-35 development of new knowledge through communication and collaboration. additionally, engagement and communication bring everyone closer together, as depicted in the "create" component. however, communication becomes more complicated when multiple parties or individuals are involved. therefore, using knowledge exploration and social interaction in communication should be monitored for ethical and well-being reasons. consequently, the "understand" component entails a socialisation process: the responsibilities of individuals in interaction and communication. for the development of digital skills, it is necessary to contemplate a guide on employing digital tools judiciously, including social presence and affective presence in social networks. moreover, a suitable guide can aid individuals in forming their digital identities (bozkurt & tu, 2016). figure 3 proposed framework for numeracy skills numeracy skills operation and calculation basic math calculation, conversion, and answer graphical representation convert numbers into graphs, interpret data in graphical forms, in diagrams, interpret data in tables, solve a wide range of math problems quantitative reasoning & logical thinking apply fundamental mathematical concepts like algebra, convey mathematical information symbolically, visually, numerically, and verbally, interpret data, draw conclusions, apply mathematical/statistical concepts to predict and draw conclusions spatial visualisation & geometric reasoning draw geometric figures in three dimensions, visualise three-dimensional (3d) objects easily, identify three-dimensional (3d) objects in different angles or positions complex number use arithmetic methods, algebra, and geometrical methods to solve problems, solve complex numerical routines, and non-routine, using various means and strategies, describe, and compare geometric figures in two dimensions, can identify, describe, and compare geometric figures in three dimensions for the nsi, all five components spatial visualisation and geometric reasoning, both graphical representation, and quantitative reasoning and logical thinking, operation and calculation, and complex number are retained, demonstrating that each component is necessary for assessing numeracy skills. retaining all five components of numeracy skills highlights the multifaceted nature of this construct, with the components interrelated and complementing one another. mastery in one component can enhance performance in another. for example, strong spatial visualisation and geometric reasoning skills may facilitate more efficient graphical representation and quantitative reasoning (lowrie et al., 2019). additionally, 32 dalim et al ressat 2023, 8(3): 16-35 proficient operation and calculation skills may assist individuals in better understanding and applying complex number concepts (national research council & mathematics learning study committee, 2001). figure 3 illustrates the interconnection of the five components. thus, it is essential to assess numeracy skills holistically, considering all five components to gain a comprehensive understanding of an individual’s numeracy proficiency. conclusion and recommendation we aim to determine both the reliability and validity of the numeracy and digital skills framework using expert opinions and a pilot study. information literacy, computer and technology literacy, digital communication and collaboration skills, digital identity and wellbeing, and digital ethics are the five agreed-upon components of digital skills. before designing courses, learning activities, and assessments during curriculum development, all educators must comprehend the components of digital skills. to generate meaningful digital learning experiences in the classroom, educators must determine their students' digital literacy or ability. the digital skills instrument (dsi) can provide valuable insights into students' digital literacy, serve as a tool for digital requirements analysis, identify students' strengths and weaknesses, and promote the continuous enhancement of curriculum quality. similarly, the five components of numeracy encompass operation and calculation, quantitative reasoning and logical thinking, graphical representation, spatial visualisation and geometrical reasoning, and complex numbers. on top of the digital skills, these components of numeracy should ensure the quality of current and future curriculum development. further investigation is needed to enhance the digital skills instrument by incorporating various numeracy-related issues into the existing curriculum. the suggested digital framework may be utilised in education and training programs promoting student-centred learning in digital education to enhance digital skills among learners. by doing so, we can enhance the learning experience and tailor it to each student's requirements and interests. policies and laws must be in place to guarantee that digital education is egalitarian, accessible, and successful. for the development of digital skills, it is necessary to consider suitable guidance on using digital tools intelligently, including social presence and emotional presence in social networks. moreover, a suitable guide may aid in the development of digital identities. to get a thorough knowledge of an individual's numeracy competence, it is necessary to test numeracy abilities holistically, taking into account all five components. future studies might examine the feasibility of implementing the suggested digital skills framework and studentcentered learning in digital education. additionally, research may be conducted to provide a comprehensive guide on how to utilise digital tools effectively and to determine the relationship between the five components of numeracy skills. 33 ressat 2023, 8(3): 16-35 acknowledgement the researchers would like to express their appreciation to all experts who dedicated their time and expertise during the preparation of the survey in the study. this research was supported by a special research grant from universiti teknologi mara (600-rmc/gpk 5/3 (007/2020) and gained ethical approval from the uitm research ethic committee (rec/08/202) mr/713. availability of data and materials the data supporting the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request. references aris, s.r.s., teoh, 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(2023). first year university students` use of words, symbols and images to convey mathematical ideas: a case definitions. research in social sciences and technology, 8(1), 92-105. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2023.16 copyright license this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (cc by 4.0). abstract this qualitative case study analyzed how first year university mathematics students used words, images, and symbols to convey the same mathematical ideas. the study was located within the interpretivist paradigm and took naturalistic methodology. twenty-six first year students were purposefully selected to participate in the study. data was collected through analyzing students’ assignments scripts followed by semistructured interviews. the study sought to answer the questions: how did the first-year university students` use of words, symbols and images to convey mathematical ideas. the data were analyzed using lave and wenger`s situated learning and seo ` mathematical communication theories. data analysis focused on the structure and usage of symbols, images, and words to communicate mathematical ideas. the result of the study shows that the students experienced difficulties in using words, images, and symbols to communicate the same mathematical idea. there were contradicting meanings between images, words, and symbols usage in attempt to define same concept. it is recommended that encouraging students to wave between words, symbols, and images to communicate mathematical ideas will improve understanding of mathematical concepts. first year university mathematics teachers are encouraged to not only use one method of mathematical communication when defining concepts. moreover, it is recommended that formal mathematics definition be used after students grasped the meaning of concepts using everyday day words and images. the abstractness should only follow the definitions are understood intuitively and can be represented diagrammatically or with natural language. keywords mathematical communication; situated learning; community of practice; university students; transition. 10.46303/ ressat.2023.16 mailto:edward.matabane@spu.ac.za https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2023.16 93 ressat 2023, 8(1): 92-105 introduction transition from school to university mathematics is a huge problem involving quite a few shifts in ways of doing and practicing mathematics. at school level mathematics is mostly about computations and mastering procedures. however, the university mathematics demand much in-depth understanding and focuses on formal definition of concepts and proving mathematical facts (wenger, 2000). it is possible to pass school mathematics solely through the use of factual recall, a skill that require little knowledge of mathematics (collins et al., 2018; weber, 2001). the transition involves revisiting mathematical objects used in school, defining concepts before using them in proofs, and learning how to use formal mathematical language and coherent use of words, images, and symbol to construct mathematical arguments (mamolo, 2010). these shifts are many, and research has shown what students experience various challenges in the transition period. due to conflicting engagement standards in different communities of practice at school and in the university, students' positions imply diverse identity experiences (wenger, 2000). mathematical writing and communication skills, institutional changes, social changes, and changes in the subject's substance are all possible outcomes of the transition from high school to university (alcock & simpson, 2002). the aim of this study is to analyze how first-year university students use words, images, and symbols to convey mathematical ideas. the study was guided by the question: how did students use words, images and symbols to communicate same mathematical ideas? literature review writing can be identified as the single most consequential technology ever invented. the cultural anthropologist jack goody (1987) referred to writing as “the technology of the mind” (p.112). philosopher plato described writing as a form of communication that can travel in time and space away from its author (plato, 360bc). according to plato, the only way a text can answer questions about its meaning is to have the writer interpret it. the writer of the text may also have challenges in recalling the ideas that went into the text during production. thus, a written text being separated in time and space from its author, must do all communication work and the author must consider all possible readings of different interpreters (gee, 2015). the need to consider all possible readers while the author of text is not available to answer questions about possible interpretations, make writing very complex, one reason plato preferred dialogue instead. the possible reading of text is acknowledged in many theories of learning such as discourse theory and semiotics (porter & masingila, 2000). in line with plato`s view about written texts, students` use of words, symbols, and images to convey mathematical ideas was analyzed not only by examining their written responses to mathematical tasks, but students were also interviewed to get the voice that is absent on the written texts. transition from school to university mathematics learning gueudet (2008) classifies the organization of knowledge, thinking mode, definition of concepts, proofs, didactical transpositions, mathematical writing, and mathematical communication while 94 ressat 2023, 8(1): 92-105 examining research that concentrate on the transition between high school and university. in their study, de guzman et al. (1998) found that university mathematics learning activities are more formalized, rigorous, and abstract, and that some concepts are changing status when they move from a school to a university environment. according to de guzman et al. (1998) and gueudet (2008), formal definitions and proofs of mathematical concepts are crucial components of university mathematics and the main transition that students are expected to make during their first year at a university. writing and learning mathematics many publications and journals mention the advantages of combining mathematics and writing (adams, 2003). the improvement of students' knowledge and the opportunity for teachers to gain insight into their students' thinking are two of the most frequently mentioned pedagogical justifications for employing writing in mathematics classes (morgan 2001; martinez & dominguez 2018). martinez and dominguez (2018) claim that when teachers encourage their students to write in mathematics, they can better understand how those students think mathematically, identify any misconceptions they may have, and assess their own teaching methods. writing is a means of communicating and of developing mathematical understanding as well as a means of negotiating mathematical context and language to create mathematical knowledge (kuzzle, 2013; seo, 2009). researchers contend that writing in mathematics results in improved dialogue between students and teachers, which in turn result in students’ omissions and misconceptions communicated more clearly and critical thinking, understanding and problem solving improved (mcmillan, 2017; weinhuber et al., 2019). writing mathematics is complex since mathematical texts are more conceptually dense than other genres of writing (seo, 2009) and are replete with symbolic and linguistic conventions which make navigating the text challenging (adams, 2003). theoretical framework this study used lave and wenger`s (1991) situated learning theory and seo (2009) mathematical communication frameworks. at the heart of lave and wenger`s (1991) theory of situated learning is the notion that learning is fundamentally social and integrally related to an individual`s involving identity in a community of practice. cop constitutes three core dimensions: what is it about (its joint enterprise), how it functions (the relation of mutual engagement that minds members together), and what capacity is produced (the shared repertoire of communal resources that members have developed over time) (lave and wenger, 1991). learning is considered as increasing participation in cop, which concerns the whole person acting in the world (lave & wenger, 1991). mathematics is a human practice, depending crucially on the consensus of the community and is very much a socialization process. as social enterprise, mathematical knowledge is subject to consensual validation and shared meaning by members of the community. this is keeping with the view that mathematics is an ever-changing field that exists not as abstraction but as a piece of linguistic and cultural fabric (martinez & dominguez 2018). the change also includes from one community to another (morgan, 2001). 95 ressat 2023, 8(1): 92-105 studying mathematics at university level means entering a new community where the practice of being a student differs from that of the secondary school community. the need to shift to new ways of being and belonging signifies the need for developing a new identity of practicing mathematics (sfard, 2008). mathematics is a written language as with all languages, it has specific elements to it. seo (2009), conceptualize mathematical writing as thematic condensation of terms, symbols, and images to convey mathematical knowledge and meaning. thus, mathematical writing is comprised of three elements: symbols, normalizations, and images (seo, 2009). the intertwining of these three elements makes mathematical communication possible between the students and their audiences. to be fully mathematically literate, students need to be able to understand and negotiate mathematical ideas using all the three elements of mathematical communication. it is the role of the teacher to assist the students to effectively communicate their using all the three elements. symbols are marks on a surface, and the context of the mark determines its meaning (rotman, 2000). nominalizations are mathematically specific terms. the context in which these words are used will determine their precise meaning (seo, 2009). for example, there is more than one meaning of the word “rational. in english class, it can mean orderly or logical thought, while in mathematics, the meaning is of ratio or of a fraction (stein, 1980). lastly, there are images. images comprise of all mathematical writings that are not symbols or nominalization. images are used to illustrate mathematics knowledge/ situation and /or used as a tool to organize students` mathematical knowledge. depending on the mathematical writing situation, these images may be used either alone or in conjunction with other ones, the beauty of images is that they can convey different kinds of information in one entity (o`halloran, 2008). mostly commonly used images are graphs (seo, 2019). while the school mathematical writing is characterized by excessive use of mathematical symbols without the use of words and images to unpack the ideas and meaning contained in the symbols, the abstractness of university mathematics demand that the students be able to use both words and symbols or images to produce meaning mathematical arguments (kuzzle, 2013). teachers as member of schools cop have consensual validation on the use of symbols to explain mathematical ideas. however, the use of only symbols is no longer sufficient or validated by university mathematics cop as acceptable way to communicate the mathematical ideas. mathematical writing aims to explain to the reader the rationale behind the process used to arrive at the solution. one can only show that they have spent some time making calculations if they have a large quantity of calculations without any context or explanation. the ideas are however missed in a set of calculations without any justifications. the mathematics is the ideas. hence a page of computational symbols without explanations contains no mathematics (kuzzle, 2013). methodology this qualitative case study was located within the interpretivist paradigm and took naturalistic methodology. purposive sampling was used to select twenty-six (26) first year mathematics 96 ressat 2023, 8(1): 92-105 students as participants. the 26 participants consisted of 15 females and 11 males aged between 18 and 32 years. purposive sampling allowed the researcher to select individuals that are likely to yield a better overview of the issues under investigation (leedy & ormrod, 2005). data were collected through analyzing of students’ assignments scripts and semi-structured interviews. firstly, the students` written assignments were examined to see how students use words, images, and symbols to represent mathematical definitions. then the scripts were categorized with focus on scripts that show contradicting meaning between use of symbols, images and words to explain the same mathematical idea. from the 26 students, five students were interviewed guided by the gaps in their written narratives that shows contradicting meaning from different modes of mathematical communication. to validate the reliability of the interview questionnaires, mathematics teachers and researchers reviewed the questions for clarity and specificity. the researcher was the course instructor. ethical considerations were observed when gathering and presenting data. anonymity and confidentiality are assured, and the results of this study are reported using only alpha numeric codes. for example, when referring to mathematics student number one, the code ms1 is used. the students were asked to define an injective and surjective function and provide a sketch to support their definitions (see appendix a). thematic analysis was used to break down the data, and all qualitative data were coded to look for recurring themes and patterns (adu, 2019). results the students were asked to define injective (one to one) and surjective (onto) function using words, symbols and images (see appendix a). a function is injective, or one-to-one, if each element of the codomain is mapped to at most one element of the domain (symbolically: ∀𝑥, 𝑦 ∈ 𝑋, 𝑓(𝑥) = 𝑓(𝑦) → 𝑥 = 𝑦). the function is surjective, or onto, if each element of the codomain is mapped to by at least one element of the domain (symbolically: : ∀𝑦 ∈ 𝑌, ∋ 𝑥 ∈ 𝑋 𝑠. 𝑡 𝑓(𝑥) = 𝑦. the use of multiple representatives was opportunity for students to demonstrate their understanding of the concepts and for the teacher to diagnose the misconceptions (martinez & dominguez 2018). defining routine is new to first year university mathematics students and as such the question serves as an induction to the practices of university mathematics community (gueudet, 2008). while students used words, symbols, and images to define the concepts of injective and surjective functions. however, the students’ responses displayed contracting meaning between words, symbols and images used to define the same concept. the student [ms3] combined words and symbols to define a one-to-one function as “a function whereby for every x value− of the set a there is only one y value− of the set b” (figure a). firstly, the definition presented by [ms3] allows two elements in set a to be mapped to one element in set b (many to one). many to one is of course a function but not an injective function. however, the student`s understanding of a one-to-one function is made clear by the image presented. the images clearly show a one correspondence between elements of set a https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/injective_function https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/surjective_function 97 ressat 2023, 8(1): 92-105 and elements of set b, hence a one-to-one function. moreover, there are contradicting meanings between words used and the image. in defining an onto function, [ ms3] writes “an onto function is a function whereby for every x value− there is only one y value− and can have a complement”. to start with, the definition of onto-ness has nothing to do with concept of “complement”. again, if we remove the lost word “complement” the student defined the onto function the same way he defined a one-to-one function. moreover, the definition of onto-ness pays special attention to the elements in the codomain (set b), namely all elements in the set b need to have at least one element in set a mapped to them. the student said nothing to this extend. on the image used by [ms3] to define onto function, we see that element 14 in set b, is a spectator element (nothing mapped to it from set a), which tells that the function is not onto for an onto function there will be no spectator element in the codomain (set b). when probed during the interview [ms3] said: it is hard for to formally write the definition of one to one an onto, but i know what it means, i just fail to memorize all the words. figure 1 ms3 respond the wording changed slightly for student [ms8] when defining both one to one and an onto function. but [ms8] `s solution in both words and images, share the same commognitive conflicts with [ms3]. the student defined a one-to-one function as “a function when x value− is mapped to at most one y value− ”. this definition does not only allow two elements in the domain to be mapped to same element in the co-domain (many to one) but also allow an element in the domain to be mapped to nothing in the codomain (at most one tells the maximum of one, but no minimum is mentioned). like [ms3], the student [ms8] diagrammatic representation is correct definition of one to one. when defining an onto function, the student writes a function is onto “when one x value− is mapped to at least one y value− ”. this definition is more problematic as it allows one element in the domain to be mapped to many elements in the codomain (one – many), therefore this relationship does not even define a function. once the relation failed to be a function, there is no question about its suitability to even be analyzed to check if it is an onto function. an onto function must first be a function. while the words and symbols do not fit the condition for a function, the image presented is that 98 ressat 2023, 8(1): 92-105 of a function although not an onto as the element 4 in the codomain is a spectator element. we also noticed that the student put an element "𝑒" in the domain as spectator, which is not permissible. during the interview, the student said: “i know that the number 4 must be mapped to something in input set for the function to be onto, i just forgot to connect arrow from e to 4” [ms8]. indeed, if the student put the arrow from e to 4 as he says, the sketch will be that of signaling an onto function. figure 2 ms8 respond. the mis match between the meaning contained on word use and images is also seen when students use quantifying words “at least” and “at most”. when defining onto function, the student [ms12] says “for every x value− there is at most one y value− ”. the student here clearly did not define an onto but a function for his definition allows many to one and beautifully disqualify one to many. the image pretended in attempt to define onto-ness, show that c is spectator and the student labeled it as such “spectator”. but the availability of a spectator element in the codomain is exactly the core factor that makes the function not to be onto, yet the student claims he is defining an onto function and still tells the reader that a spectator element exists. again, in defining a one-to one function, the student [ms12] writes “for every x value− there is at least one y value− . this definition allows one to many and therefore does not even define a function. again, in this case the diagram is very clear on what one-one mean. figure 3 ms12 respond. 99 ressat 2023, 8(1): 92-105 we also notice another pattern of contradicting message conveyed by words and the corresponding image. [ms16] define one-one as function where “every x value relates to only one y value “. it was not clear what the student meant by “relate”. during the interview with [ms16] to get what he meant by “relate” in his definition he says: “by relating i mean a relationship whereby for every element 𝑥 in one set there is only one y value in the other set, the same relationship is also for y, for every y value there is only one x ”. the respond given during interview is acceptable and clear definition of a one-to-one function. during writing, the student confused relate with mapping. by saying that x relates to y , he is not talking about the mapping but allow any form of relationship. so, the student use mathematical words loosely. for example, if one has a number 3 in set a and number 4 in the set b, then two elements relate because one element is one more than the other. that is a relationship between the two elements, but it does not mean 3 is mapped to 4. so, relating cannot be interchange with mapping. the student was further asked, if this is what you meant, why didn`t you write exactly what you just said now, [ms16] responded: “i did no think mathematics lecturer will love and appreciate such a long answer and with so many words, i know they like symbols and maybe images”. [ms16] further says: i have always done well in mathematics, i am good with calculations and solving proper maths problem, but this year was very difficult although i passed. i do not like writing explanations the student [ms16], like many others, did not see explanation of the ideas behind the symbols as mathematics. mathematics was usually presented to the student in an absolutist approach with fixed algorithms, without any attempt to explain the process and provide a road map (moloi & matabane, 2020). to these students, learning mathematics is about equations, formulars and manipulation of symbol. however, a list of calculations without any explanations omits ideas. the ideas are the mathematics. therefore, students must write both, the calculations, and explanations, to show their complete understanding of the mathematical concept (kuzzle, 2013). the image presented by [ms16] demonstrated confusion between how elements in the set and the set themselves are denoted. in mathematics, upper cases are used to denote sets and lower cases to denote elements in the set. however, the students have labelled the sets using lower case ( x and y ) and elements inside the sets by upper cases (a, b, c, d). the interpretation of this is that we have sets inside elements, which is impossible. again, students mapped set a to set a and set b to set b, another impossible relationship as it maps many elements to many elements. “i was not aware that the sets must be labelled by capital letters, i thought what is important is to label them as i did. all i know, is that in class the teacher uses small letter as elements and capital letters, but thought was just his choice’ [ms16] 100 ressat 2023, 8(1): 92-105 figure 4 ms16 respond. the students did not see the use of upper cases as the standard way of denoting sets in mathematics community and how the language of mathematics is used. he thought he has choices about communicating mathematics and not focused on the endorsed and acceptable ways of communicating mathematics and in a way gain membership to the community. like [ms18], the students [ms20] put upper cases in the codomain when defining both onto and one-one functions. in the case of [ms20], the sets of domain and codomain are not labelled, and he used numerals in domain and sets in the codomain. according to the student, we can have a numeral 2 mapped to the whole set a, this is impossible unless a is a singleton (as set consisting of only one element). however, in this case, the student nowhere mentioned that the sets a, b, c, d are singletons. during interview, [ms20] says: “i used a, b.c, d, e as elements and not sets. i did not know that just by using capitals it will be interpreted as sets. this is unfair for alphabets because in the domain i used numbers and with numbers one cannot tell if they are capitals or not. in future, i will use numbers in both sets to avoid trouble”. the student is now trying to find alternatives to defining the concepts and not focusing on the bigger picture of learning the language accepted by mathematics and the meaning that is contained by using capital letter in the context of sets. figure 5 ms20 respond finally, the student [ms22] start by defining one to one function by saying “is when the two equations are equal to each other for example x y= ”. from his definition, the student 101 ressat 2023, 8(1): 92-105 confuse mapping as equality. when x is mapped to y it does not mean that they are equal. when asked about the equality, [ms22] says: “sir, i did not mean equal as the same, but here i mean what one x is gives one y ”. what student wrote, is different to what she says. her verbal explanation has logic and is different from the meaning conveyed by her written text. the written text reads “ x y= ”. the image representation is more aligned to what she said verbally than what she wrote. indeed, her image shows the part she said during interview “but here i mean what one x is gives one y ”. we see this because 1 is mapped to an element ‘a” and 2 is mapped to an element “b”. the part of them being equal as her written text made us conclude is no longer visible. again, the student [ms22] define an onto function as “when there is an x value going through the y value, for every y there is a x ”. the meaning of going through is not clear and if the student could remove the first part (when there is an x value going through y value) and only use latter part (for every y there is a x ) this is correct and precise definition of onto-ness. such a precise definition would align very well with her line graph. according to [ ms22]: “this is how my school taught me, by going through, it means y is the images of x ”. using mathematics language loosely, is common characteristic of school mathematics discourse. figure 6 ms22 respond discussions the ability to explain mathematical ideas using multiple representations is a decisive test of one`s understanding of the topic (friesen, 2017). the result of the study shows that students experienced difficulties in representing the same mathematical ideas using different mathematical communication forms. there is contradicting meanings between images, words and symbols while defining the same mathematical concepts. on one hand, some students were 102 ressat 2023, 8(1): 92-105 able to present formal abstract definitions but unable to put the same definitions in everyday language or using images. the cryptic collections of symbols without attempt to dig meaning behind the symbols is common in schools and hide learning inadequacies and fragility of knowledge (bardini & pierce, 2015; kuzzle, 2013). it is quite possible to memorize the abstract definition having limited understanding of the subject matter, but it will be a challenge to represent the idea in different mathematical writing forms (tall & vinner, 1981; fang & schleppegrell,2010; skovsmose, 2013). even the most capable students were challenged when expected to offer explanation of the ideas behind the symbols. on the other hand, students found great difficulty in constructing formal definitions of injective and surjective function but gave correct diagrammatic representations. the university mathematics discourse value and reward formal definition using symbols and not images. however, at the school level, images are acceptable ways of showing that a function is injective by using vertical line test and other diagrammatic representations (guzman, 2002; romberg & shafer,2020). while traditional university teaching start with formal definitions and then try to explain the concepts using words and sometimes images, students suggest that it will be easier to understand definitions if images and words are used first, and once students have that diagrammatic understanding, the formal definitions can then be introduced. as the student [ms10] says: “ i have learned a lot by trying to define same concept using the three modes of mathematical communication. learning to express math idea without symbols is very interesting and helpful. i found it much easier to move from words and images to symbols, than starting with the formal definition, it is scary and sometimes meaningless forcing us to memorise” the comment made by ms10 resonates with the arguments presented by machaba (2017) when making distinction between mathematics and mathematical literacy (ml). the author argues “ml is also associated with reasoning and problem-solving strategies while mathematics is seen as a discipline that deals primarily with the application of rules” (machaba, 2017: 106). the blind application of rules without deeper understanding of the meaning behind rules is common in school mathematics discourse. conclusion and recommendation the school mathematics community value images and graphs as acceptable ways of demonstrating understanding of mathematics concepts. however, the university mathematics community consider the use formal definitions consisting of symbols and words as acceptable ways to define mathematical concepts. the study showed that the ability to wave between words, symbols and images encourage logical thought, accuracy and attention to structure and economy of thought. the study recommend that the university teachers embrace and encourage multiple representations of mathematical thoughts and ideas when defining mathematical concepts. allowing students to use multiple mathematical communications to support their case teach and help learners to see relevance of mathematics. the skill to communicate mathematical ideas without abstract mathematical symbols is very crucial as it 103 ressat 2023, 8(1): 92-105 allows one to communicate the mathematical ideas even to audiences outside the discipline of mathematics (non-experts). the study also recommends that university first year mathematics teachers introduce mathematical definitions by first starting with the less formal understanding (images and words) before the formal abstract use of symbols can be introduced to define mathematical concept. once the students grasp the concepts in less formal way, they will not only better understand the formal definition, but they will actively be taking part in constructing the formal definitions and be transitions better to the university community and university mathematical writing discourse of waving between words, symbols, and images. limitations of the study. the study was a small-scale study from one first-year module at one university in one country. in this study, the main limitation was the use of one set of students, from one teacher, one module, at one university. therefore, the results of this study cannot be generalizable for all modules or other universities as they are context specific. references adams, t. 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(2000). communities of practice and social learning systems. organization, 7(2), 225246. research in social sciences and technology https://ressat.org e-issn: 2468-6891 volume: 8 issue: 3 2023 pp. 89-104 errors and misconceptions in euclidean geometry problem solving questions: the case of grade 12 learners moeketsi mosiaa, mogalatjane edward matabane*b & tshele john moloic * corresponding author email: edward.matabane@spu.ac.za a. centre for teaching, learning and programme development, sol plaatje university, kimberley, south aftrica b. school of education. sol plaatje university, kimberley, south africa c. school of education, northwest university, potchesfstrooom, south africa article info received: october 2, 2022 accepted: january 12, 2023 published: august 12, 2023 how to cite mosia, m., matabane, m. e., & moloi, t. j. (2023). errors and misconceptions in euclidean geometry problem solving questions: the case of grade 12 learners. research in social sciences and technology, 8(3), 89-104. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2023.23 copyright license this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (cc by 4.0). abstract euclidean geometry provides an opportunity for learners to learn argumentation and develop inductive and deductive reasoning. despite the significance of euclidean geometry for developing these skills, learner performance in mathematics, particularly geometry, remains a concern in many countries. thus, the current study examined the nature of learners’ errors in euclidean geometry problem-solving, particularly regarding the theorem for angle at the centre and its applications. van heile’s theory of geometric thinking and teacher knowledge of error analysis were used as conceptual frameworks to make sense of the nature of learners’ errors and misconceptions. using a participatory action research approach, the study was operationalised by five mathematics teachers from four secondary schools in motheo district in the free state province of south africa and three academics from two local universities. the study analysed 50 sampled midyear examination scripts of grade 12 learners from four schools. the findings of this study revealed that most learner errors resulted from concepts on van heile’s operating levels 0 and 1, while the questions mainly required level 3 thinking. the study recommends that teachers determine their learners’ level of geometric thinking and integrate this knowledge in their lesson preparations and material development. keywords euclidean geometry; geometry; geometric thinking; errors; van heile`s theory. 10.46303/ ressat.2023.23 mailto:edward.matabane@spu.ac.za https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2023.23 90 mosia et al. ressat 2023, 8(3): 89-104 introduction euclidean geometry is regarded as a critical secondary-school mathematics topic that provides an opportunity for learners to acquire argumentation skills and develop inductive and deductive reasoning (fujita et al., 2010). however, learner performance in mathematics, particularly geometry, remains a concern in many countries. the study on learners’ performance in geometry, found that grade 8 and 9 learners in japan experienced challenges when constructing geometry proofs (fujita et al., 2010). part of the problem is the development in learners of an adequate understanding of geometry concepts, and the development of geometric reasoning (ali et al.,2014).whilst there have been attempts to study learners’ errors in mathematics, literature suggests a conceptual shift in attitudes about learner errors and misconceptions, from being considered in a negative light, as difficulties learners face when solving mathematics problems, to being understood as providing opportunities for teachers to understand how learners think and conceptualise mathematics content (ali et al., 2014; borasi, 1986). as van dijk (2006) argues, it is through text and talk that we can gain access to the minds (thinking) of social actors; thus, in the same vein, learners’ errors and misconceptions act as an interface to learners’ thinking in relation to geometry concepts, which teachers could use as resources for understanding learners’ thinking. while agreeing with the forgoing conception of learners’ errors, brodie (2013) argues that learners’ errors should not be seen as problems that should be avoided but, instead, as opportunities for teaching and learning. in her work, which was a data-informed practice improvement project, brodie (2013) focused on ways teachers can learn to work with learners’ errors, and teachers’ views of learners’ errors. the body of knowledge relating to learners’ errors, with a special focus on teacher knowledge, such as the type of error a teacher chooses to deal with, and the way the errors are dealt with have been studied (gardee, 2015; sapire et al., 2016). despite positive evidence that it is possible to enhance teacher knowledge using learners’ errors, including that provided by the studies referred to above, and others, little is known about learners’ geometric thinking when they make errors, or their misconceptions when they attempt to solve euclidean geometry problems (brodie, 2013). this kind of information is important, because it provides insight into learners’ thinking that lead to making errors, and the possible causes of errors, which could, in turn, improve teachers’ knowledge and help them develop appropriate corrective measures for teaching and learning euclidean geometry (gardee, 2015). one critical aspect of teacher knowledge for teaching mathematics is teachers’ ability to analyse learners’ incorrect solutions and determine what could have caused this erroneous thinking, with the intention of developing appropriate corrective measures (ball et al., 2008). the focus of the current paper is on analyse learners ’errors and misconception when solving euclidean geometry problems. the study examined the nature of learners’ errors in euclidean geometry problem-solving, particularly regarding the theorem for angle at the centre and its applications. 91 ressat 2023, 8(3): 89-104 literature review and conceptual framework conceptualisation of learners’ errors and misconceptions the study of learners’ errors is nothing new, and it represents a growing body of knowledge. literature suggests that there are several reasons why learners make errors when they solve mathematics problems. the work of olivier (1989) helps us to understand that different theoretical lenses influence the way we understand learners’ errors. olivier (1989) provides evidence for his contention, by showing how behaviourist and constructivist perspectives, respectively, would conceptualise learners’ errors in different ways. he argues that, from a behaviourist viewpoint, learners’ errors and misconceptions are not important; whilst the constructivist perspective postulates that current understanding influences new learning. thus, teachers’ understanding of learners’ errors and/or misconceptions is important for ensuring better learning in the future. as part of the early work in this body of knowledge, particularly in south africa, olivier (1989) argues that we should distinguish between slips, errors, and misconceptions. herholdt and sapire (2014) who agree with olivier (2010) and who draw on ketterlin-geller and yovanoff (2009), state clearly that, “slips are random errors in declarative or procedural knowledge, which do not indicate systematic misconceptions or conceptual problems” (p. 23). thus, studying slips may be less helpful for pedagogical reasons because olivier (2010) explains that slips are made by both experts and novices, and they are corrected spontaneously. whilst slips are sporadic, errors are more systematic (gardee, 2015) and deterministic, and literature suggests that they are not always context bound. nesher (1987) whilst in agreement with forgoing conception of errors, creates a connection between errors and misconceptions, and claims that errors do not occur randomly, but have their roots in erroneous principles. nesher (1987) argues, further, that these erroneous principles, which the author terms misconceptions, can explain not only one, but a whole cluster of errors. van hiele’s theory of geometric thinking to gain a conceptual understanding of learners’ errors, this paper draws on the work of dina van hiele and her husband, pierre marie van hiele, who, in 1984, proposed a theory of geometric thinking (fuys, 1984). it is generally accepted that the van hieles’ description of geometric thinking provides the best explanation for the way learners think when they solve geometry problems. this theory posits that there are five levels of geometric thinking, which are presented in table 1. level 0, called recognition or visualisation, refers to learners’ reasoning based on pictorial representation of geometric shapes. thus, when their thinking is on level 0, learners disregard geometric properties; their reasoning regarding the differences or similarities between two shapes is based on the shapes’ pictorial representation (howse & howse, 2015). according to van der sandt and nieuwoudt (2005) learners at level 0 judge geometric figures by appearance alone. level 1 of van hiele’s theory of geometric thinking is called analysis or description. at this level, the theory postulates, learners’ reasoning about geometric figures is based on describing 92 mosia et al. ressat 2023, 8(3): 89-104 the figure by its properties (fuys, 1984). for instance, two geometric figures are similar or different based on their properties, however, the properties of each figure are still seen to be independent (van hiele, 1999, vojkuvkova & haviger, 2013). at level 2, ordering or informal deduction, learners recognise relationships between the properties without constraints of pictorial representation. furthermore, the learner applies logical reasoning using properties of a shape, though not carefully and without reference to sufficient conditions (fuys, 1984). the third level is deduction, at which learners’ reason logically by ordering the properties of geometric concepts and using their definitions to determine sufficient and insufficient conditions for the concept to be true (burger & shaughnessy, 1986). it is at deduction level that learners’ reason formally by constructing geometry proofs with a series of logical, deductive mathematical statements (mayberry, 1983). at the fourth level, which signifies rigor, learners are expected to give reasons beyond the deductive series of properties of geometric shapes, and progress to reasoning with deductive axiomatic systematics for geometry, by exploring their similarities, relationships, and differences. table 1 van hiele’s description of geometric thinking level name of level description 0 recognition/visualisation judgement of geometric figure is by appearance only 1 analysis/description properties are recognised but not ordered logically 2 ordering/informal deduction properties are ordered logically 3 deduction properties are used to make assumptions, which can be proved logically to be true 4 rigor deductive axiomatic systems are used to reason logically than just making use of properties of geometric shapes related literature on geometry and van hiele’s theory of geometric thinking that geometry forms part of school curricula is nothing new. it helps learners to develop spatial ability (battista et al., 1982). geometry is, in fact, one of the basic mathematics skills that is applied in other subjects too, such as engineering drawing (abdullah & zakaria, 2013). literature suggests that geometry helps learners develop and improve their logical reasoning and argumentation; thus, to develop learners’ logical and deductive reasoning through geometry problem solving, consideration of the levels of van hiele’s geometric thinking is critical when compiling lessons (battista et al., 1982). 93 ressat 2023, 8(3): 89-104 the critical nature of geometric thinking is corroborated by the results of a study by abdullah and zakaria (2013) on assessment of learners’ levels of geometric thinking in transformation geometry. they found that, before their experiment, both the control and treatment groups of their quasi-experiment exhibited low acquisition of levels of level 2 thinking, and no acquisition of deductive reasoning. low acquisition of geometric thinking skills confirms the argument that part of the problem is that learners have only partial understanding of constructing mathematics proof (imamoglu & togrol, 2015). this partial understanding is, arguably, noticeable at a lower level of competency regarding deductive reasoning, which is van hiele’s level 3. jones (2000) points to evidence that learners operating at the lower levels of van hiele’s geometric thinking (levels 0, 1, 2) is traceable to classroom practices, where learners experience deductive reasoning as being too difficult, particularly in geometry. mejia-ramos et al. (2012) building on the model of yang and lin (2008) argue that, when assessing learners’ comprehension of a proof, another criterium that learners must demonstrate, in addition to meaning making, logical status and logical chaining of its statement, is high-level ideas of the proof, its main components, the methods employed make an argument and ways their proofs can be applied to specific examples. methodology a participatory action research approach this study employed participatory action research (par) as an approach to operationalise the study’s objectives. the origins of par as a research approach can be traced to 1944 and the work of kurt lewin, who is regarded as the father of action research (gillis & jackson, 2002). lewin subscribes to the philosophy that people are more motivated to work if they are involved in decision-making processes (mcniff & whitehead, 2011). central to par is its democratic nature, which means there is space for all participants – all are equally important to and worthy of driving the process of research (macdonald 2012). thus, the current study reports on the engagement of five mathematics teachers and a university mathematics teacher educator, and their analysis of learners’ errors when solving euclidean geometry problems. the goals of par include identifying changes of immediate benefit to research participants, investigating their social problems and finding ways to resolve these problems. thus, par created an opportunity for a dual aim to be pursued through this study. the first aim related to teachers, who were required to develop mandatory subject improvement plans, which would serve as a diagnostic tool to identify the errors learners make on a particular assessment task. once errors had been identified, teachers had to determine a possible cause for each error, to develop intervention mechanisms to improve learner performance. the researcher’s role in the team effort in pursuit of this aim, was to contribute research knowledge and skills, such as drawing on literature to provide a more comprehensive description of learners’ errors, beyond everyday knowledge. however, it was equally important that systematic knowledge of literature contributed to addressing everyday challenges that teachers face in the teaching of euclidean geometry. 94 mosia et al. ressat 2023, 8(3): 89-104 secondly, the researcher’s aim was to contribute to the body of knowledge on learners’ errors. in so doing, the researcher had to elevate the level of analysis, so that it was more rigorous and systematic, and synthesise theory and practice. the likelihood of achieving the goals that had been identified was vested in a unique approach to research, which is democratic in nature and values everyone’s voice. the critical vision of par helps us to understand that power is always with us; thus, what matters is that it is used positively to open spaces for other voices in the process of research. par further enables me, as a researcher, to understand the object of study, not only considering scholarly literature, but equally importantly, from the perspective of those people who are experiencing the problem under investigation. my use of the phrase “equally importantly”’ is carefully delimited to habermas’ theory of communicative action. huttunen and heikkinen (1998) explain that communicative action, “means interpersonal communication which is orientated towards mutual understanding and in which other participants are treated as genuine persons, not as objects of manipulation. actors do not primarily aim at their own success but want to harmonise their action plans with the other participants” (p. 311). thus, by harmonising our action, the most compelling and logical argument explaining possible learner errors is accepted. furthermore, the communicative rationale is reflective and open for dialogue. using par in scholarly work has caught the interest of many scholars over the years; for instance, mhina (2009) used par to find solutions for the problems experienced by women of maruku village in tanzania regarding their inability to access and control agricultural land. udas (1998) helps us to understand that the value of par as an approach lies in its methodology, that is, teachers are not objects of research, but participate in research to understand learners’ errors better, and to determine what they could do to develop corrective mechanisms. participant researchers and reasons for their inclusion the study was operationalised by five mathematics teachers from four secondary schools in motheo education district in the free state province of south africa, and one academic from a local university. two teachers, aged 34 and 45, had 11and 15-years’ experience respectively teaching grade 12 mathematics. the other three teachers were aged 31, 28 and 43 and had three, fourand 10-years’ experience of teaching grade 12 mathematics respectively. lastly, the academic had been a mathematics teacher educator for four years and had taught grade 12 mathematics for six years. when carrying out a par study, the success of its approach to research lies in its quest to work with the participants, who become part of research to improve their lives (mhina, 2009). for instance, the reason for including teachers in this study was to address the problem of learners’ poor performance in grade 12 final examinations. as a result of learners’ poor performance, the department of basic education (dbe) had introduced act 31 of 2007, which requires schools to submit subject improvement plans to the heads of education in the 95 ressat 2023, 8(3): 89-104 respective provinces (dbe, 2011). thus, the participating schools had been classified as underperforming schools by the dbe. the schools invited the local university to help them develop and implement subject improvement plans. the schools’ participation in the research process created an opportunity to examine learners’ errors and misconceptions and their possible causes and developing appropriate corrective mechanisms. data generation and analysis the sources of data were learners’ scripts, a total number of 50 from four schools. the learners’ scripts were selected randomly, and each script was analysed by all co-researchers, who then shared their notes during a discussion. the data were categorised and grouped according to the learners’ high-level ideas (mejia-ramos et al., 2012), which refer to main argument from which all the preceding logical reasoning flowed. for each main argument, percentage frequencies are presented to account for all the data. furthermore, the themes were generated using the conceptual framework of van hiele’s levels of geometric thinking. all participants were informed of the ethical considerations applicable to the study. the study was planned and executed in a manner that would not cause harm to or threaten the lives of the participants. the university’s ethical clearance protocol was observed and permission to conduct the study at the participating schools was sought from and granted by the free state provincial dbe. participants were asked to sign consent forms and they agreed to be part of the study. furthermore, they were made aware that they could withdraw from the research project any time they wished to. findings this section presents the data generated by the study. analysis was done by, first, clustering learners’ errors and formulating the themes as presented in tables 2 and 3. each table focuses on a specific question and presents learners’ thinking during attempts to respond to questions relating to geometry content. interlinked visual and analysis level of geometric thinking table 2 presents a thematic analysis of learners’ errors on the question that assessed learners’ competence in completing the theorem statement exhibited by table 2. a total of 50 learners’ scripts were randomly selected for analysis (𝑛 = 50). a total of 37 scripts (𝑛1 = 37), which is 74% of learners, presented learners’ errors and/or misconceptions, whilst 𝑛2 = 13 learners’ responses to the question were correct. the themes were formulated by grouping similar responses together and presenting the frequencies per error. deciding whether responses or errors were similar was done after the learners’ main ideas had been considered. theme 1 errors, which involved 62% of learners’ errors, relate to learners’ inability to identify the equality relationship between the angle at the centre of a circle and the angle at the circumference of the circle. there is evidence of partial understanding of the relationship between the angle subtended by the arc at the centre and the angle at the circumference. this argument is substantiated by the fact that these learners could identify the angle that is 96 mosia et al. ressat 2023, 8(3): 89-104 subtended by the arc at the centre correctly, that is, “angle at the circumference”. in addition, reference to “equal to” means they used the correct mathematical operational relationship that exits between the two angles. however, what these learners seem to have missed is the proportional relationship between the two angles, which is, one is twice (double) the other, or one is half the other, in magnitude. table 2 summary of learners’ errors on completing the theorem statement on determining the relationship between of the angle subtended by a chord or arc at the centre of a circle question: the angle subtended by a chord or arc at the centre of a circle is … total number of learners: n = 50 total number of errors: 𝑛1 = 37 total number of accurate responses: 𝑛2 = 13 theme 1: angle at the circumference 23 (62%) equal to the angle at the circumference 7 equal to twice the angle at the circumference 11 equal to twice circumference 5 theme 2: angle at the centre 8 (22%) twice the angle at the centre 8 theme 3: equal to ninety degrees 6 (16%) 90 degrees 1 equal to 360 degrees 1 twice 360 degrees 3 180 degrees 1 theme 2 presented with errors similar to those of the first theme; however, they differ in that these learners described the proportional relationship between the two angles by using the word “twice”. despite their competence in recognising the proportional relationship between the two angles, they failed to make their statement completely valid by specifying which angle(s) at the circumference of a circle. for the third theme, learners were able to identify the proportional relationship that exists between the two angles; however, they referred to the same angle twice, that is, the angle at the centre. van hiele’s levels of geometric thinking are helpful for explaining learners’ thinking on the theorem statement in question. stating the theorem in words and not pictorially could have posed a challenge for learners. in response to the question, learners had to apply the analysis level of geometric thinking to identify the properties, or as the caps (dbe, 2011) policy states, “parts of a circle”, such that the theorem statement is true. furthermore, learners had to take a step further, beyond the analysis level of thinking, and apply the informal deduction level of geometric thinking to identify the relationship between the properties. learners’ responses reported in table 2 show that some of them operated at the analysis level of geometry thinking, because they could correctly identify certain properties of the theorem statement. 97 ressat 2023, 8(3): 89-104 furthermore, referring to literature, there is evidence of learners operating at informal deduction level; this happened when learners’ identification of the properties of a geometric concept was not limited to its pictorial representation. even though learners where able to identify the properties of the theorem, operating at level 2 could explain their errors, since most of them showed partial knowledge of sufficient properties that would make the statement true. visualisation and analysis this section reports on the results reported in table 3, which summarises learner errors on proving that pqrn is a cyclic quadrilateral, thematically. data analysis of learners’ errors and/or misconceptions shows that, according to the sampled scripts that were analysed, no learners who operated at level 3 and 4 were found to have made errors. the forgoing finding corroborates the findings of alex and mammen (2016), who found that learners who participated in their study could operate at level 2, and no higher. thus, the focus of the analysis is mainly on the first three levels. table 3 summary of learners’ errors on proving that pqrn is a cyclic quadrilateral total number of learners: n = 50 total number of errors: 𝑛1 = 31 total number of no responses: 𝑛3 = 6 total number of accurate responses: 𝑛2 = 13 visualisation (theme 1) 17 (46%) �̂� = 𝑅,̂ ∠′𝑠 on the same segment these errors were categorised under visualisation because learners based their argument or conclusions on recognition or visualisation, and not properties and/or logic 7 �̂� = 𝐾,̂ ∠′𝑠 sub by the same arc 4 �̂� = ∠knm, ∠′𝑠 sub by the same arc 5 ∠𝐾𝑁𝑃 = ∠𝐾𝐿𝑀, ext ∠′s of quadrilateral are equal. 2 analysis (theme 2) 14(38%) �̂� = �̂�, opposite ∠′𝑠 of a cyclic quad these errors were categorised under analysis because learners based their arguments or conclusions on properties 5 �̂� = �̂�, opposite ∠′𝑠 of a cyclic quad 3 �̂� + �̂� = 180°, 4 sides, 2 sides are parallel 3 all angles in cyclic quad add up to 360° 1 ∠𝐾𝐿𝑀 = ∠𝐾𝑁𝑀, opposite side of parallelogram 1 pq = nr, nq = pr, therefore pqrn is cyclic quad 1 visualisation visualisation refers to geometric reasoning that is limited to the shape(s) or pictorial representation of a geometric concept (luneta, 2015). for instance, one of the errors under visualisation in table 3 is that, when learners attempted to prove that pqrn is a cyclic quad, 41% of them argued that �̂� = �̂�, giving as reason that �̂� and �̂� are angles on the same segment km. similarly, 24% of the learners said that �̂� = �̂�, because the two angles are subtended by 98 mosia et al. ressat 2023, 8(3): 89-104 the same arc km; and 29% of the learners said that �̂� = 𝑁,̂ for the same reason, namely, that the angles are subtended by the same arc km. what is common in all these responses, given by 94% of learners, is that they have a partial understanding, limited by visual reasoning of the theorem (angle subtended by chord, arc or segment are equal). they recognised that all three pairs of angles are subtended by a chord, arc or segment; however, visual reasoning made learners miss an important property, which is that all the angles must be on the circumference of the circle. there was considerable evidence of learners operating at visual reasoning level, which also explains a similar learner error, namely that ∠𝐾𝑁𝑃 = ∠𝐾𝐿𝑀, because the exterior angle is equal to the opposite interior angle of the quadrilateral. visually, ∠𝐾𝑁𝑃 is the exterior opposite angle to interior ∠𝐾𝐿𝑀 of a quadrilateral klmn; however, informal deductive reasoning was needed to make the statement true. this reasoning is that, even though they are exterior and interior angles visually, they will only be equal if, and only if, quadrilateral klmn is a cyclic quad. visual reasoning by learners could be the cause of errors in these themes. abdullah and zakaria (2013) would have us understand that learners at this level (visualisation) reach conclusions based on recognition of the geometric shape as seen from above. figure 1 presents one of the learners’ answers. thabo (pseudonym) is representative of many learners who gave similar responses. figure 1 is a snapshot of how thabo marked and labelled the geometric figure provided in the question about proving that pqrn is a cyclic quadrilateral. figure 1 thabo’s response to the question: prove that qpnr is a cyclic quadrilateral it is evident from thabo’s response that he could operate, at least, at informal deduction level, as he made a substantiated claim that ∠𝐾𝑁𝑀 = ∠𝐾𝐿𝑀, with the reason drawn from the 99 ressat 2023, 8(3): 89-104 properties of klmn, namely, that opposite angles of a parallelogram are congruent. however, some of the errors made by learners such as thabo show that they operate only at the analysis level of geometric thinking. for instance, thabo’s solution, which offers one example of this erroneous thinking, gave evidence of a partial understanding of angles on the same segment or angles subtended by chord/arc km. he claims that ∠𝐾𝑃𝑀 = ∠𝐾𝑅𝑀, giving the reason that these angles are on the same segment. however, what thabo omitted in his geometric thinking, is to provide sufficient conditions for this statement to hold, which is that the angles must lie on the circumference of the circle. analysis this theme relates mainly to learners being able to move beyond merely describing properties of geometric shapes visually. to respond to the question of proving that pqrn is a cyclic quad, the error most learners made was describing or listing one or more properties of a cyclic quad, instead of proving it. table 3 presents evidence of learners’ knowledge of properties of a cyclic quad. literature suggests that, if learners have knowledge of properties of geometric shapes, but cannot demonstrate how the properties are linked or related, then learners are operating at the analysis level of geometric thinking. this was evident in table 3, which shows that learners only cited the properties of a cyclic quadrilateral. figures 2 and 3 present learners’ general responses. figure 2 john’s response to the question: prove that qpnr is a cyclic quadrilateral figure 3 mpho’s response to the question: prove that qpnr is a cyclic quadrilateral the responses in figures 2 and 3 were clearly not slips but were errors. instead of proving that pqrn is a cyclic quad, the learners cited its properties. using van hiele’s theory of geometric thinking, we can infer that these learners were operating at analysis or description 100 mosia et al. ressat 2023, 8(3): 89-104 level. part of the reason for my inference concurs with teppo (1991)’s contention that the reasoning about geometric figures of learners who operate at level 1 is based on the properties of geometric shapes. whilst there is evidence of partial understanding of what a cyclic quad is – as some of the cited properties in both figures 2 and 3 were correct – learners’ reasoning seems to be limited to description level. from figures 2 and 3, and in other learners’ responses, there is little or no evidence of learners making informal deductions and attempting to order the properties of acyclic quad logically to develop an argument that qpnr is indeed a cyclic quad. even more importantly, they do not operate at deduction level either, as there is no evidence of learners presenting logically sufficient condition(s) or properties of a cyclic quad to prove that qprn is a cyclic quad. discussions the aim of this paper was to analyse learners’ errors and misconception during their attempts to solve euclidean geometry problems. the findings of this paper are, thus, focused on learners’ geometric thinking that leads to errors. an analysis of learner errors shows that learners can operate partially at the analysis level of van hiele’s theory of geometric reasoning, particularly when they must complete a theorem statement. this finding confirms the findings of solaiman et al. (2017) who found that every learner in a sample of 406 learners operated at, at most, level 2 of van hiele theory. in addition, the study revealed that many learners operate at the visualisation level of geometric thinking, which caused most of the errors. most errors occurred because of learners reaching conclusions based of visual representation of a geometric concept, without considering sufficient properties for the geometry concept to be true. for alex and mammen (2016) part of the reason why learners perform far below expectation is that they have partial knowledge and skills of geometry. thus, operating at visualisation level when questions require level 3 reasoning, means that learners have partial knowledge and skills for euclidean geometry. this finding suggested an insight into the results of ali et al. (2014) who found that learners in secondary schools in india performed below the average expectation on questions related to geometry. part of their problem, as in the current study, is that most geometry questions require learners to operate mainly at level 3, which is deductive reasoning. however, the current study found no evidence of learners making errors and operating at this level. adolphus (2011) concurs, but suggests that part of the problem is partial understanding and/or acquisition of the foundational knowledge required, while the results of the current study confirm the findings of ali et al. (2014) and adolphus (2011) this study goes further, and provides important specifics about the nature of the errors learners make in response to questions about the theorem, an angle subtended by arc at the centre is equal to twice the angle on the alternating segment subtended by the same arc. learners stated the theorem partially, as they were generally unable to recognise the proportional relationships between the angles. 101 ressat 2023, 8(3): 89-104 not only does the current study confirm learners’ weaknesses as captured in the literature, it also investigated learners’ responses to determine what learners do possess knowledge about. the study found that the majority of learners know that the angle subtended by the arc at the centre relates to the angle at the circumference, and that opposite angles of cyclic quad are supplementary – even learners operating at levels 0, 1 and 2. the significance of this finding lies in its pedagogical value – this finding provides practitioners who participated in this study with information on content-specific errors, and on what learners know, which can be useful for suggesting corrective measures or developing teaching strategies (gardee, 2015). conclusion and recommendations this study was limited to four schools, of which the participants formed a cluster of mathematics teachers. while the results of this study may be extended to other learners and teachers in similar contexts, it is important to generalise with caution, due to epistemological complexities. the findings of this study reveal that most learner errors are caused by their thinking being on levels 0 and 1, while the questions require level 3 thinking. thus, when they teach geometry, teachers need to determine their learners’ level of geometric thinking and integrate it in their lesson preparations and material development. furthermore, the paper recommends a followup study with a larger sample or multiple case studies, which could capture the epistemological variations and complexities and inform pedagogical strategies and knowledge for teaching euclidean geometry in more diverse educational contexts. references abdullah, a. h., & zakaria, e. 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(2013). the van hiele geometry test at czech secondary school. in world data system asia-oceania conference (vol. 13, p. 2013). czech republic: charles university. yang, k. l., & lin, f. l. (2008). a model of reading comprehension of geometry proof. educational studies in mathematics, 67(1), 59-76. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10649-007-9080-6 https://doi.org/10.1080/10288457.2005.10740582 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10649-007-9080-6 research in social sciences and technology https://ressat.org e-issn: 2468-6891 volume: 8 issue: 2 2023 pp. 21-36 education for democracy in the social media century ryan t. knowles*a, steven camiciaa & lorissa nelsona * corresponding author email: ryan.knowles@usu.edu a. utah state university, usa article info received: march 1, 2023 accepted: april 16, 2023 published: may 5, 2023 how to cite knowles, r.t. camicia, s. & nelson, l. (2023). education for democracy in the social media century. research in social sciences and technology, 8(2), 21-36 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2023.9 copyright license this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (cc by 4.0). abstract social media has provided challenges and opportunities for education for democracy. there have always been structural elements of communication that are hidden and perpetuate inequalities. social media has accelerated and empowered these hidden structures through algorithms. in this argumentative essay, we examine how critical media literacy can uncover hidden power structures and support education for democracy. critical media literacy can help students identify exclusionary, inaccurate, missing, and polarizing elements of social media while examining and discussing issues and events. seen through this lens, social media provides opportunities for education for democracy. critical media literacy and education for democracy provide opportunities for increasing civic engagement and renewal. keywords social media; democracy; civic education; critical media literacy 10.46303/ ressat.2023.9 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2023.9 22 ressat 2023, 8(2): 21-36 introduction move fast and break things. unless you are breaking stuff, you are not moving fast enough. mark zuckerberg breaking news – breaking through – breaking bad – breaking point? technological innovations are moving at a breakneck speed, bringing with them social connectivity like we have never seen before. these advances have changed the very foundations of our communications, our politics, and even our civil society. because of this, young people are increasingly engaging in civic life online and, while beneficial, this open access comes with heightened challenges to both their personal relationships and, more generally, to democracy itself. students need to develop opinions, share those opinions with others, and have opportunities for dissent with their peers and with their teachers. these essential components of education for democracy allow students to participate in meaningful conversations on the more salient issues of our times (camicia & knowles, 2021). among other things, it gives students a chance to discuss how power relations can distort discourse from the way inquiries are presented, to the verbal volley of a discussion, and even to their recollection of these discussions. this imbalance often reflects and confirms biases including those about race and gender. the meteoric rise in use of social media platforms such as instagram, youtube, facebook, tiktok, twitter, and snapchat has opened up a powerful avenue to deliver a barrage of political messaging to young people without these discussions of power imbalances without the recognition of biases. in our era of connectivity, students’ everyday lives include discussions about politics and political ideology. young people today have to make political decisions on a daily basis. should they repost that meme with the questionable political messages? should they maintain online friendships with friends and relatives who post content with views contrary to theirs? these are the decisions that previous generations were only faced with on occasion, yet most youth today are bombarded throughout their day as they check their multiple mobile devices. how does the ever-present task of political and social decision-making impact their well-being? we are not suggesting that social and political messaging of previous eras was less serious, less polarizing, or easier to cope with. we do not discount or minimize the bombardment of ads on tv, newspaper, radio, and other community outlets. however, there are striking differences within social media that run deeper than just how often these ads are seen or how lethal the issue might be. the charm of social media is that it is social, meaning that the average person can interact by uploading their original content and connect with a wider circle of people who like the same stuff. less charming, however, is the inherent manipulation of content exposure that social media companies employ in order to make those like-minded connections: specifically, we are talking about algorithms. algorithms are problem-solving operations that follow a step-by-step set of rules; in the case of social media algorithms, these steps connect users to content they will probably like by curating their exposure to new content based on their previous clicks. the election cycle of 2010 and 2012 provides a simple yet 23 ressat 2023, 8(2): 21-36 powerful example of the influence of a social media algorithm. facebook users had the option to indicate whether they had voted. facebook then randomly displayed and i voted post to one group but nothing to the control group (sunstein, 2017). this social pressure of simply seeing that an online friend had voted increased the likelihood of voting, resulting in an estimated increase of 340,000 actual votes. using linguistics identification software, facebook also identified user posts with positive and negative tones (o’neal, 2016). the company was able to influence the tones of user posts by sending either more positive or negative updates to their feed, as expected users seeing more positive posts tended to post more positive updates themselves while negativity followed seeing more negative updates. facebook successfully showed that manipulating their algorithm could impact a user’s emotional state. teachers working toward education for democracy are seeking a model to teach critical media literacy that is based on academic scholarship. critical media literacy is often defined as a response to the shifting forms of mass communication, popular culture, and new technologies that focus on ideology critique and analyzing the politics of representation (goering & thomas, 2018; kellner & snare, 2007). as we incorporate more technology into our everyday lives, scholars such as stoddard (2014) argue that we should also include media education as an integral part of teacher preparation, curriculum and standards, and academic research. this inclusion can become a transformative pedagogy that opens up classrooms to challenge the shifting winds of society and explore misconceptions about biases and neutrality (funk, kellner, & share, 2016). race, class, gender, and identity are projected through the lens of both the media and the individual user. students need to understand how to negotiate these meanings and process competing narratives in this ever-shifting landscape of social media and civic involvement. the sections below review relevant literature to identify the challenges and opportunities provided by social media. instead of vilifying or glorifying social media, we argue that educators must help students navigate the complexities of online platforms. subsequently, we provide a framework for how critical media literacy can be utilized to promote digital citizenship in the classroom. we accomplish this by building on choi’s (2016) framework of ethics, media and information literacy, participation/engagement, and critical resistance. challenges social media is a fast and furious way to spread information to as many people as are willing to see it, regardless of its validity or reliability (jaeger, 2021). in this revolutionary new arena, youth civic engagement is challenging because the process favors the flashy headlines, not the dull truth. in schradie’s (2019) powerful study titled the revolution that wasn’t: how digital activism favors the conservatives we can see how efficient some alt-right conservative groups have become at exploiting the fears of their followers to promote ultra-conservative ideologies. under the banner of digital activism, they created a vast new informational ecosystem that provides an online platform to groups that have typically remained outside the mainstream media. in 2022 the pew research center released a study exploring the most popular alternative 24 ressat 2023, 8(2): 21-36 social media sites including parlor, rumble, telegram, and truth social (stocking et al., 2022). the study found that approximately 6% of americans regularly use sites like these as their source of news. while this is a small percentage of our population, the base is loyal. these new platforms have become a haven for users who either feel unwelcome or have been banned outright from more established social media platforms. over a third of users report contributing money to their causes. top user accounts often promote pro-trump, pro-american, and religious themes, and often use language associated with conspiracy theories. many users report freedom of speech as the reason they prefer alternative platforms and they are broadly opposed to censorship-even when that news is false or offensive. furthermore, about 52% report seeing news they would not have seen on mainstream outlets. the understanding that posts on these platforms could be false does not dissuade users from supporting and reposting this novel information. in a society where the discursive terrain can shift dramatically, education for democracy requires educators to be responsive to new developments like alternative social media platforms in order to guide students in critically consuming that discourse. in theory, a society with access to a platform where anyone can share their views has the potential to strengthen democracy. however, we have seen the repercussions of what happens when people with inherently anti-democratic agendas exploit that platform. by its very nature, social media is available to both these groups. and because of that, within minutes students can find content that depicts their world in dramatically different ways. for example, students may be inclined to trust information that comes from a seemingly reputable source. however, groups like prager university (prageru), which is not an accredited academic institution (georgetown university factsheet, 2020), feign credibility with misleading titles and credentials to imply that their messaging carries some academic legitimacy – it does not. instead of granting credentials and degrees, prageru creates short videos to be shared online. many of these videos carry antimuslim rhetoric and promote conspiracy theories. for example, their videos claim that president kennedy would be a republican today; the democratic party fought against civil rights while supporting the confederacy and the klu klux klan; and the republican party freed the slaves. this reshaping of our country’s historic narrative ignores the realignment of political party ideology that has occurred over the last hundred years. basically, political parties change their platforms over time and power relations shift as well, so the names of our political parties are less important than how their values align with their historical counterparts. this is a wellknown phenomenon taught in most secondary social studies classes. however, with over 3 billion views, prageru content creators do not consider, nor do they present, those basic facts, rather they omit salient context to provide powerful yet misleading information for contemporary political gain. the intent of this channel is to promote loyalty to the republican party through content that seems innocuous but often contains conspiracy theory language, and ignores the news cycle to focus on divisive content aimed at swaying the young swing voter toward the right. context matters. authorship matters. when students are exposed to political information on social media, it is important that they understand the motivation behind that 25 ressat 2023, 8(2): 21-36 content production. who is benefiting from their viewership? it is important for educators to help students ask the important questions for themselves. algorithms make money for advertisers and for content creators. they do this by funneling viewers to content which is related to their previous likes, clicks, and visits. companies buy more ad space on content with more activity, so content creators are incentivized to create something that attracts those views. as viewers, we pay with our time. we watch the ads and enjoy the content that speaks to us. the more content that speaks to us, the more of our viewing time social media gets. through this funneling process, viewers begin to see so much content that aligns with their worldview that it builds a false sense of one-sidedness; they believe that their worldview is the only reasonable one. for example, viewers trust that the results of a google search will yield an unbiased cache of objective information. however, in algorithms of oppression, noble (2018) demonstrates how problematic narratives such as racism can be reinforced when algorithms create a narrow view of reality for users. for example, noble points out that a simple google search for “black girls'' brings up results that reify sexually explicit stereotypes. clearly, content of nefarious intent is attractive to many users, but an equally problematic issue is that of algorithms exposing users to an ideological echo chamber. sunstein’s (2017) #repbulic: divided democracy in the age of social media shows how sites like youtube and facebook harvest personal preferences such as political convictions. they then categorize users into political groups and share this information with other social media companies and even provide it to political candidates. based on your clicks and time spent on viewing political posts, your news feed suggests material designed to engage you even further. this increases your viewing time and therefore increases their ad revenue. sadly, baksh and colleagues (2015) found that facebook users tend to avoid engaging with content from their online friends when it differs from their ideological views. here we can see that users will come back time and time again if the platform gives them what they want, unfortunately too often what users want is to hear and see themselves reflected in online content and they prefer not to be challenged with ideas unlike their own. this leaves individuals without the exposure to the diversity of others’ perspectives and leaves no room for generating real civic understanding. is the other side as extreme as we think? well, what we think depends largely on where we get our online news. an individual’s perception of those with differing political perspectives is greatly influenced by the sources they consume. since news sources reside in a unique discursive plane, the framing and tone of narratives and counternarrative can lead their viewers to have wide gaps in their perception of the other. in their study, yudkin et al. (2019) calculated the perception gap between how radical each side, republican and democrat, perceived the other to be. they found that exposure to certain media sites correlated with respondents believing the other side to be more radical than they actually are. sources such as breitbart, drudge report, rush limbaugh, sean hannity, slate, huffington post, new york times, washington post, facebook, twitter, instagram, snapchat, or fox news were among the news 26 ressat 2023, 8(2): 21-36 sources whose viewers reported higher perception gaps when compared to people who do not get their news from these platforms. put simply, across the political spectrum the news source we consume has a direct relationship on how radical we believe the other side to be. social media’s ability to create echo chambers where extremist positions are fomented has one very dangerous reciprocating effect: the easy dismissal of anything not aligned with your preconceived ideas as fake news or alternative facts. working in concert, an algorithm that only shows you content aligned with your worldview and the encouragement from that content to consider opposing ideas as fake or alternative, grows an ecosystem where extremism flourishes. according to thomas (2018), mainstream media has played a role in extremism by the frequent use of two corrupting norms. first, journalists do not acknowledge their own biases, rather they portray a façade of objectivity and neutrality. secondly, coverage of debates, events, and even panels are frequently framed as including “both sides''. when presented as dualistic and not multifaceted, individuals find themselves needing to choose a side. this false constraint of neutrality and binary constructions limit an individual’s ability to consider the full spectrum of perspectives. communities in a democracy suffer when voices and perspectives are excluded through this binary structure because communities are constrained by a limited number of perspectives. funk et al. (2016) posit that popular media’s way of presenting these corrupting norms actually serves to reinforce preset ideologies and reify the power of the dominant group. for example, a debate about climate change that considers “both sides” might discuss the existence of scientific data, while ignoring the consensus of worldwide scientific research. a more productive and nuanced debate could take the “what should be done to care for our planet?” approach. with the second approach viewers and participants are encouraged to consider a wide range of positions instead of being faced with a false binary. consider how a non-binary approach could change the conversation on gun control. media outlets often present an extreme false dualistic ultimatum when it comes to the second amendment: let everyone have any gun they want or repeal all gun rights for everyone. of course, there is a wide range of possibilities that exist in the in-between. often referred to by politicians as common-sense gun laws, these less click-able discussions allow civic discourse to take place while the more engaging ‘choose a side’ debates paralyze viewers from more deeply understanding the nuances of an issue. opportunities considering the stated challenges, the popular criticism of social media is understandable. however, this same venue provides never-before imagined opportunities for meaningful civic engagement. in fact, political scientists have shown correlations between participating online and political engagement in general, specifically in the online worlds of participatory culture, political consumerism, and civic engagement (kann, berry, gant, & zager, 2011). there are clear opportunities for educators and students to use social media in productive ways. young people are increasingly participating in civic discourse by displaying campaign materials, learning about and engaging in protests, contacting or working for a candidate, boycotting, and even donating 27 ressat 2023, 8(2): 21-36 money (dalton, 2008; 2016). the center for information and research on civic learning and engagement (circle, 2019) found that during the 2018 election cycle, 42 states had increased in political turnout by the youth and in 31 of these states, that increase was in the double digits when compared to the previous midterm election. this shows that students are civic minded and when given the opportunity will participate in politics. educators may consider that, given these findings, we may best help our students by shifting our classroom mindset from “how can i encourage my students to engage civically?” to something that reflects their current participation level, something like “how can i rethink my lessons to support my students’ ongoing civic engagement?” it is clear, social media has become a new arena for young people to navigate their social and political world. we have seen in recent years how social media can be a powerful tool for mobilizing large groups of people in political movements that are important to them. kann and colleagues (2011) posit that social media provides access to participation in these movements with a low threshold for civic engagement. this heightened engagement on both sides has the potential to affect the foundation of national policies and politics. for example, the black girls’ literacies collective created social media content showing authentic black girlhood to build counternarratives that challenge racist, sexist, and classist media narratives, (mcarthur, 2016). hashtag movements such as #blacklivesmatter, #concernedstudent1950, #metoo, and #nodapl provides scaffolded levels of participation for social media users – from tagging a post or applying a temporary profile filter to joining a march or other event. beyond individual participation, online forums provide students with access to civic discourse, students can discuss, deliberate, and act in solidarity with movements they support. as educators we cannot be experts on the evolving landscape of social movements, but this kind of online civic engagement does not require us to be that. by curating a culture of critical civic engagement in our classrooms, we can support our students as they take advantage of the opportunities that interest them. critical media literacy through digital citizenship in the classroom in the wake of recent elections, the global pandemic, and social justice movements, the salience of media literacy-especially social media literacy-is undeniable. educators who want to promote democratic education in the classroom must provide these opportunities as a part of the curriculum in order for their students to develop an understanding of how to best engage in online civic discourse. this has resulted in a proliferation of resources like books, articles, and shareable lesson plans aimed at supporting teachers as they navigate the politically charged issues of “fake news” and “alternative facts” in our politically charged environment. in preparing for writing this, we took a deep dive into these sources and synthesized a few suggestions for in-classroom practices. many of these resources have adopted the four-criteria structure put forth by choi (2016) that includes focusing on ethics, media and information literacy, participation and engagement, and finally critical literacy. by organizing classroom practices into these four criteria, educators who are teaching toward education for democracy can help 28 ressat 2023, 8(2): 21-36 students explore the multifaceted, complex world of online civic engagement. as to be expected, these criteria will most likely not be taught in isolation; it is up to the educator to consider, perhaps even guide students in considering, which of them are most applicable to the activity at hand. this can encourage students to understand these skills as tools to be used as they engage in civic discourse and social media. in addition to the criteria listed below, a variety of tools and suggestions for teachers can be found in two key books: unpacking fake news: an educator’s guide to navigating the media with students (journell, 2019) and critical media literacy and fake news in post-truth america (goering & thomas, 2018). these resources provide a more in-depth look into online civic engagement than can be included in this article. educators who are interested in developing a better understanding of critical media literacy and online civic engagement would benefit from the suggestions in these sources. ethics beginning with a discussion about the ethics of social media can be an effective way to engage students. choi’s model focuses initial discussions by highlighting how social media users can responsibly engage with others online by first considering what is appropriate, safe, and ethical. of course, the discussion itself hinges on evaluating sources and evidence, however this must be done through the lens of the inherent bias of the media platforms themselves. an example pointed out by addison (2018) is how social media includes an array of commodified platforms. these sites exist to generate profit. some sites hide their agenda while others advertise it as their mission. generating income through social media sites is not inherently bad, these funds often further a social cause or create job opportunities. on the other hand, sites may be using nefarious or divisive content as a way to generate income, regardless of negative social impact. the goal for educating for democracy is to help students critically examine how that commerce impacts the civic discourse and social justice on each platform. education for democracy includes an examination of the mechanisms of communication that influence what perspectives are included and what perspectives are excluded. we are not suggesting that issues be restricted, rather we advocate for teaching how to recognize what voices are being marginalized so students can increase the inclusion in the discourse. to foster this inclusion, the commercial intentions of online platforms should be an essential part of our inquiry, discussion, and debates. helping students ask questions like “how do the financial goals of the platform intentionally or unintentionally exclude counternarratives?” or “what kinds of topics are included and excluded based on this platform’s earning potential?” or “who benefits most from the architecture of the platform?” and “how is this platform’s ability to affect social justice influenced by their financial needs?” because identifying truth and facts in online discourse is much harder than we believe it to be, hicks and turner (2018) suggest discussing various types of evidence with students: scientific law, statistical data, expert opinion or opinion of noteworthy people, and anecdotal evidence from a person’s lived experience. including lived experiences connects well to 29 ressat 2023, 8(2): 21-36 education for democracy through the counternarratives that challenge arguments that may be inaccurate or unjust. examining different types of evidence not only gives ample material for students to discuss but it can increase recognition of marginalized voices and support critical inclusion. this ethical dimension focuses upon inclusion and social justice by expanding recognition of marginalized perspectives. analyzing evidence from online content such as videos, memes, reels, infographics, and clickbait headlines can create a tangible way for students to engage in relatable conversations. however, these conversations should include a focus on the common pitfalls of each type of evidence. for example, it is common to see scientific or statistical data used to prove a stance. it makes sense that these data sets are carefully selected–dare we say cherry picked–to support that position. while researchers and statisticians would rarely claim that their work proves something, that does not stop the media and online users from using language that suggests the definitive answer lies within. students should be exposed to ways in which statistics can be presented and manipulated to support a variety of opposing claims. a recommended next step could be to evaluate the substance and counter evidence, keeping in mind the limitations of each source of evidence. hicks and turner (2018) suggest the mindful framework for readers and writers in social media. students are encouraged to monitor what they read and write, identify the claim(s), note the evidence, determine the framework and mindset, focus on the facts, understand the counterargument, and leverage their response. some other ways of discussing ethics in the classroom include using visuals such as graphic organizers and storyboards to map an underlying narrative. students would produce a series of visuals that focus on the emotional context of the author’s message within online discourse and content. through this process, students develop a more objective mindset as they unpack the perspectives, motives and even biases of the content creators. moving from identifying a simple narrative, armendarez (2018) suggests presenting a series of common narratives used by a variety of media sources such as the american hero, the american family, true love, science and technology, coming of age, crime and the trial, success and prosperity, human quality, and diversity. as students practice identifying elements of these narratives, they learn to understand the motives behind their usage. this deeper understanding helps students build the necessary background knowledge needed to make better sense of the information they encounter in the media. media and information literacy as digital citizenship, critical media literacy, and online civic education appear more frequently on the educational radar, it can be tempting for educators to overlook the real gap in access to technology for many of our students. most educators interested in these topics are social media users with decent access to some of the latest technology. it can be easy to overlook the reality that many students today still do not have reliable internet at home, do not have a smartphone, or perhaps have limited data plans. if educators want to provide learning about the online environment, the exposure to that environment needs to happen in class. this narrows the 30 ressat 2023, 8(2): 21-36 digital gap that so often is present along racial and class divisions and reduces the exclusion of students with restricted internet access (choi, 2016; shelley, et. al., 2004). by providing this shared experience in class, more students will be able to fully participate in classroom discussions on the topic, practice social media literacy skills, and engage in civic and political life online. more than just providing all students with the same baseline for discussion topics, teachers should consider how the lack of access may impact students’ online skills and awareness. outside of class, both lack of access and lack of interest can limit what students are exposed to online, thereby limiting their awareness and their ability to process multiple perspectives. within the classroom climate, teachers should help students evaluate content from a variety of sources. for example, teachers could share coverage of a news story from a few different sources (mcgrew et. al., 2018), like cnn, fox news, and npr. careful to avoid presenting a false binary, teachers should present multidimensional views, arguments and counterarguments, and narratives that have rich potential for civic discourse. reviewing the homepage of each source can provide valuable clues that help students identify biases and motivations. purposeful instruction can empower marginalized communities when it acknowledges these digital access gaps. addressing the reasons for and consequences of these gaps affords students the opportunity to consider inclusive and exclusive discourses in democratic communities. promoting students’ media literacy involves education that includes contextualizing information in a relevant, useful, and powerful manner. teachers would be wise to put aside their personal preferences and instead open up opportunities in the classroom for students to explore and critically evaluate materials that are already in their orbit or are useful to them. most students have an abundance of experiences that can serve as a base for exploration. in fact, lewis (2018) recommends starting with students’ offline lived experiences as a base for telling powerful stories about their school, neighborhoods, or teams/clubs. armed with this narrative, students can use existing online resources to enhance their expression and share their stories. this model builds on the assumption that students already are engaged in civic and political activities and turns the classroom into a support center for their pre-existing activities. participation/engagement today’s youth are already political actors and social media can be an effective place for them to develop their civic participation. however, not all online civic engagement is created equal. terms like “slacktivism” (mcclennen, 2018) have developed to describe token online gestures of political participation that are perceived as ineffective or passive – like reposting and article, temporary profile filters, or posting a one-time show of support for flavor-of-the-day global concern: #superficiallyconcerned. however, a one-time act of support does not feel superficial if it is directed at local issues or individuals. simple acts like ‘liking’ a friend’s post can feel very connecting and supportive to the receiver. these acts of support can help users find like-minded peers, understand complex issues, and even challenge their previously held beliefs when the 31 ressat 2023, 8(2): 21-36 conflicting beliefs are held by a valued friend. simply put, engaging in social media discourse can help students understand issues in a deeper way when they seek to understand those in their social networks (boyd & ellison, 2007). civic engagement in young people typically manifests in four main ways (choi, 2016): political engagement associated with voting and opinion polling; education on economics that teaches how to be careful consumers; social community building such as gaming, entertainment, or special interest clubs; and personal empowerment engagement including acts of leadership or ownership. these four themes of participation and engagement take into consideration that the online environment is actually a community within itself wherein students will naturally orient themselves into interest-based groups. with so many nuances to what draws a student to one of these communities, it is unreasonable to think that teachers could predict how students will align themselves. instead, teachers should support students’ learning by finding ways to help them engage in both their natural interest groups and even some outside of their comfort zone. the share is one of the most straightforward ways users can engage in online civic activity. users simply see something they like and with the click of a button it appears on their feed so their circle of friends can see it too. as we discussed previously, the social media algorithms track everything online, including shares. once again we find ourselves needing to critically consider the impact each online act, in this case a share, will have on what else we see on our feed. to help prepare students to make better informed decisions about what they share, endecott and colleagues (2018) provide students with a framework to consider before deciding to share posts. the simple formula is belief + truth = knowledge. this is based on the idea that you can never really know if something is false. on social media, it’s easy to conflate belief with knowledge. however, the facts that we personally are aware of are most likely to omit some context and/or power relations, so things get complicated. instead of focusing on absolute truths, students should concentrate on credibility. by seeking out a broader understanding of topics, students can better assess truth. websites such as snopes.com and other online fact checkers can add important context and help verify the validity of the claims. also, students might look to experts in that field and/or influential people to see if they believe the information to be true. now that they’ve established the validity of their information, students can apply the steps of the college, career and civic life (c3) framework which are to develop compelling questions, apply disciplinary concepts and tools, evaluate sources using evidence, and to communicate questions and take informed action. as with any new skill, going through these steps will take time at first but become more automatic with practice. the benefit students get from putting distance between that initial impulse to share and the actual act is a broader perspective on the topic and a better alignment with their own beliefs. critical resistance critiquing the existing power structure by questioning inequality, power, organization, and ideology is the focus of online civic engagement for critical resistance (choi, 2016; coleman, 32 ressat 2023, 8(2): 21-36 2006). this perspective recognizes that social media platforms are not neutral spaces for users to participate in civic life. rather, as we mention in the introduction, companies like meta (parent company for facebook, instagram, and whatsapp), twitter, snapchat, youtube, and even google rely on algorithms that curate a unique experience for what each user sees on their feed. even subtle changes in these algorithms have been shown to influence a person’s mood and how they feel about certain issues (bucher, 2017). schradie (2019) points out that special interest monies often co-opt services on social media platforms and use that influence to push their preferred agenda. additionally, addison (2018) explains how social media platforms are first and foremost a business. the entertainment and civic discourse within are a means to an end, specifically that ‘end’ is profit. however, these online spaces are woven into the fabric of our everyday lives; they have a great impact on a person’s mood and perspective and have become a primary means for society to pass on values and behaviors that align with neoliberal institutional structure. as a result, active citizens must demand that their push for profit be tempered by an even greater desire for democracy. with the recent addition of paid subscribers to meta’s platforms, it remains to be seen how this further commodification of an open source will impact its users and the civic discourse within. when considered through the filter of historical media manipulation, woodson, king, and kim (2019) draw comparisons between how social media is currently being used to control and coerce to how mainstream media treated african and african-descended people during the emancipation proclamation, as well as to the red scare in the 1950’s, and even the black lives matter movement. in these cases, the media used its reach to reify racial codes and to discredit black intellectuals and activists. furthermore, their research supports that even today social media continues to allow their platforms to be used to demean and discredit people of color in their struggle for recognition. their analysis shows purposeful media disruptions and fake news, while not new, have the potential to be amplified on these far-reaching social media platforms. understanding misinformation and the motivation behind its production is a main focus of critical resistance. rather than focusing on finding credible sources, critical resistance seeks to pull the curtain back on fake news and examine how and why it is successful. segall and colleagues (2019) provide example discussions on topics for students including internet privacy, brown vs. board of education, immigration, as well as a few more abstract examples of misinformation. in this discourse, the researchers noted that the participants employed a notable degree of motivated reasoning and confirmation bias employed as mechanisms to defend and reaffirm previously held beliefs. for example, during these discussions students often defended their original perspective using misinformation, while challenging verified evidence and classifying it as fake news. likewise, journell and clark (2019) found the same pattern of behavior in their analysis of political memes. these memes, they argue, are a nearperfect vehicle for perpetuating our preexisting opinions. memes are images, usually something eye-catching, that are reproduced by users but with a new caption with the intent to make us feel or think something. because users see these images so often, they feel familiar. 33 ressat 2023, 8(2): 21-36 unfortunately, this familiarity gives users a false sense of truthfulness, students believe that because they see something often it must be true. so, a familiar image that carries a biasconfirming message is going to feel very comfortable to the student and is more likely to be accepted into their schema confirming their perspective. funk and colleagues (2016) offer more direction to students by providing a list of questions to help evaluate sources. in the list of questions below we can see many of the same components as those suggested under the ethics heading. however, the last three questions differ in that they focus specifically on the struggles for a seat at the table of power and privilege which is typically only open to the dominant power group. • who are all the possible people who made choices that helped create this text? • how was this text constructed and delivered/accessed? • how could this text be understood differently? • what values, points of view, and ideologies are represented or missing from this text or influenced by this medium? • why was this text created and/or shared? • who does this text advantage and/or disadvantage? it can be a tricky lesson, but an expert teacher could help their students understand how misinformation can be used by a variety of people to push a variety of agendas. teaching how online content, such as political memes, are created and shared helps students see misinformation as part of the human condition rather than labeling it as a one-sided endeavor (segall et al., 2019). the goal of this endeavor might be best focused on how misinformation targets already marginalized communities. one way to help students feel this lesson is to incorporate ethnographies and counternarratives which take students along on the journey of working-class people as they produce knowledge and literacies. an examination of the ways that people and perspectives are marginalized by society and media can help students better understand and create a more equitable social media landscape. morrell and colleagues (2013) suggest a few classroom activities that support literacy and highlight the voices of marginalized communities. for example, one classroom teacher used several novels that explore the urban experience of black and latino people in america. students then compared these stories with the narratives that mass media depicts. this exercise helps students critique the social forces of the dominant narrative and gives them the opportunity to study resistance to oppression and neocolonialism. conclusi̇on social media has great potential. it can serve as a low-threshold resource that provides a robust platform for civic engagement and discourse. but this is all new. the field is still developing so as a society we are still working out the opportunities and challenges. we are approaching 25 years since facebook first came out and in that time it has yet to be determined if social media will act as a support to democratic social movements or if it will simply further entrenched 34 ressat 2023, 8(2): 21-36 ideological divides that support systematic oppression to a new generation. because of this, any model of education for democracy must include, and must be adaptable to, the changes in technology, social media, and other innovative forms of civic engagement. simply put, educators must play a role in helping future generations adapt to the complexities of the day’s civic engagement to promote democracy. this essay hopes to frame social media as a medium for civic engagement. the major limitation of this article is that social media is dynamic. therefore, scholars should continue to develop these ideas within the ever-shifting landscape. a major implication for practice is that teachers do not necessarily have to have superior working knowledge of social media in comparison to their students. indeed, this will be difficult. instead, teachers can work with students to learn new platforms, develop their understanding, and navigate the challenges and opportunities with students. references 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(2019). the perception gap: how false impressions are pulling americans apart. hidden tribes. https://perceptiongap.us/media/zaslaroc/perception-gap-report-1-0-3.pdf research in social sciences and technology https://ressat.org e-issn: 2468-6891 volume: 8 issue: 2 2023 pp. 68-82 examining demographics and perceived ‘sense of community’ of social media-based professional learning communities matt hensley*a, stewart watersb, william russellb & joshua kennac * corresponding author email: hensleyma4@mail.etsu.edu a. east tennessee state university, usa b. university of tennessee, knoxville, usa c. university of central florida, usa article info received: march 13, 2023 accepted: april 17, 2023 published: may 5, 2023 how to cite hensley, m., waters, s., russell, w. & kenna, j. (2023). examining demographics and perceived ‘sense of community’ of social media-based professional learning communities. research in social sciences and technology, 8(2), 68-82. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2023.12 copyright license this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (cc by 4.0). abstract social media has undoubtedly shifted the landscape of educator professional development in the 21st century. the establishment and development of identifiable professional learning communities (plcs) like the #sschat social studies community on twitter enables educators to connect and collaborate with other professionals across the globe from their own mobile device. the purpose of this study was to determine the demographic features of the #sschat members. moreover, we sought to determine if there were any significant differences in #sschat member’s perceived ‘sense of community’ (soc) based on those demographics. no statistically significant findings were discovered. still, the demographic data provide good discussions. keywords social media; professional learning communities; sense of community 10.46303/ ressat.2023.12 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2023.12 69 ressat 2023, 8(2): 68-82 introduction social media has undoubtedly shifted the landscape of educator professional development in the 21st century. the establishment and development of identifiable professional learning communities (plcs) like the #sschat social studies community on twitter enables educators to connect and collaborate with other professionals across the globe from their own mobile device. certainly, the #sschat twitter plc assuages teacher isolation by connecting geographically dispersed professionals with common learning interests and needs (hensley, 2021; waters & hensley, 2020). from asking questions and sharing resources, to contributing to dialogues and following discussion threads on specific social studies related topics, there are a bevy of opportunities to actively and passively engage within the virtual community using the hashtag – #sschat. given the marginalization of social studies-specific professional development opportunities (thacker 2017), examining manifestations of informal and self-directed professional learning – like the #sschat community is salient to the field. research supports that social media-based plcs like the #sschat on twitter are effective and viable mediums for supporting the professional learning needs of its members (staudt willet, 2019; sturm & quaynor, 2020). however, in a quantitative study that assessed the ‘sense of community’ and sustainability of the #sschat community on twitter, hensley (2021) calls for a closer examination of the virtual community’s membership. as education scholars continue investigating social media-based plcs’ capacity to augment professional learning, certainly there is a need to better understand who community members are and how their demographics affects their perceptions of the virtual community. in this study we seek to better understand the #sschat community’s membership by examining the demographics and professional identities of its members. additionally, we explored the potential affect that demographics and professional identities have on members’ perceived ‘sense of community’. examining demographics and professional identities in relation to ‘sense of community’ will hopefully provide further context of the #sschat community members, while also potentially yielding findings that may inform advances to strengthen diversity, equity, and inclusion within the #sschat community. purpose of the study and research questions the purpose of this study was three-fold. first, we sought to better understand who the #sschat twitter community members are by examining their demographics and professional identities. second, we aimed to assess the #sschat community members’ perceived ‘sense of community’ according to their demographics and professional identities. finally, we aimed to investigate the potential relationship between #sschat community members’ demographic characteristics and professional identities and their perceived ‘sense of community.’ the research questions for this study were: • what demographics/professional characteristics describe members of the #sschat professional learning community on twitter? 70 ressat 2023, 8(2): 68-82 • what is the measure of perceived ‘sense of community’ among #sschat members on twitter according to demographics/professional identity? • in what ways do member demographics/professional characteristics impact their perceived ‘sense of community’ of the #sschat professional learning community on twitter? literature review a brief history of the #sschat twitter community education researchers exploring social media have investigated the potential value of twitter as a virtual social network that enables and fosters informal professional learning for p-12 educators, specifically those teaching social studies (catlett, 2018; howard, 2019; langhorst, 2015; lantz-andersson et al., 2018; trust et al., 2016; visser et al., 2014; yoakam, 2019). on july 6, 2010, social studies teachers, and pioneer users of teacher twitter’s #edchat network, ron peck (@ron_peck) and greg kulowiec (@gregkulowiec) established the #sschat out of a dialogue surrounding the need for social studies-specific discussions to support social studies teachers on twitter (krutka, 2017). the following week on july 12, 2010 the #sschat hashtag was born and embedded in tweets for a chat related to technology integration in social studies (krutka, 2017). what began as a synchronous weekly virtual conversation thread by social studies twitter users in 2010 has since evolved into a broader asynchronous forum. while #sschat still hosts its weekly scheduled synchronous chats, the increased follower base and engagement has extended the conversation(s) of social studies education to be ongoing nearly 24/7 by simply embedding the #sschat hashtag in a tweet and posting it on twitter. aside from engaging in the weekly chat that is usually themed and specific to certain areas within social studies, participants may pose questions, share classroom activities or student work, field trips, pictures from visits to significant places, news, and research articles among other items. moreover, they can share these anytime and from nearly anywhere (krutka, 2017). the #sschat is a network operates simultaneously as a virtual plc for social studies educators and other professionals on twitter (krutka, 2017) social media-based plcs at its core, social media-based plcs were established to host virtual collaboration that offers teachers opportunities for self-directed and informal professional learning tied specifically to a content area (howard, 2019; langhorst, 2015; trust et al., 2016; carpenter & krutka, 2014; visser et al., 2014). social media-based learning communities emulate similar features as faceto-face plcs, albeit with the added convenience of being able to participate and access anytime and from virtually anywhere (carpenter & krutka, 2014; staudt willet, 2019; waters & hensley, 2020). in fact, when staudt willet (2019) revisited carpenter & krutka’s (2014) study on ‘how’ and ‘why’ teachers use twitter, they found that 64.66% of #edchat community participants mainly shared scholarly work and resources and information including: blogs, videos, job 71 ressat 2023, 8(2): 68-82 postings, and grant opportunities. these are all similar resources, materials, and information that would be shared in face-to-face plcs. a corpus of scholarship suggests that the observable behaviors and activities that manifest in twitter-based plcs reflect the qualities necessary to support educator professional learning outlined by both darling-hammond et al., (2017) and lave and wenger (1991). namely, sustained duration through mutual relationships (britt & paulus, 2016) and content collaboration (carpenter & krutka, 2014). sturm and quaynor (2020) found that virtual communities on twitter met many of darling-hammond’s et al. (2017) and lave and wenger’s (1991) attributes of an effective and meaningful professional learning community. furthermore, hensley’s (2021) study, which assessed the sustainability and ‘sense of community’ of the #sschat community, yielded findings that concur with britt and paulus (2016) and carpenter and krutka (2014). that is, hensley (2021) found that on average, #sschat community members regularly engaged in behaviors related to sustainability and collaboration (i.e., information contribution and consumption) between two to three times per month. hensley (2021) also reported that a ‘sense of community,’ which is measured by community members’ perceived feeling and recognition of membership, influence, fulfilment of needs, and shared emotional connection, exists among the #sschat community members (m = 1.71, sd = 0.424). clearly there are positive implications for professional learning and development associated with social media-based plcs like the #sschat. however, there is a dearth of research examining the impact of social media-based plcs in relation to other salient factors – like community member demographics. analyzing demographics of social media-based plcs demographic variables including, but not limited to, race, gender, ethnicity, education, profession, and years of experience are all data points that provide valuable context when studying any community. in a systematic review of teacher professional learning communities, vangrieken, meredith, packer, and kyndt (2017) highlight several empirical studies that suggest that demographic factors may influence individuals’ perceptions of professional learning communities (see gerhard, 2010; graham, 2007; jones, gardner, robertson, & robert, 2013; and parker, patton, & tannehill, 2012). analyzing the demographics of social media-based plcs not only discerns who community members are, but also informs efforts to better grasp “how participants understand their experiences and place within the twitter community and beyond” (greenhow & gleason, 2012, p. 473). investigating the influence of salient demographic factors in relation to perceived ‘sense of community’ has potential to offer valuable insights into the potential differential impact that social media-based plcs have on community members. theoretical framework we employed mcmillan and chavis’ (1986) ‘sense of community’ theory (soc) to inform our study. the soc theoretical framework is comprised of the four broad tenets that are considered 72 ressat 2023, 8(2): 68-82 to be reflective of a strong ‘sense of community.’ (mcmillan & chavis, 1986). the four tenets include the following: • membership (i.e., sense of belonging) • influence (i.e., sense of mattering) • reinforcement and fulfilment of needs (i.e., sense that needs are being met within the community) • shared emotional connection (i.e., shared histories and similar experiences) recognizing the four core elements of soc, mcmillan and chavis (1986) defined soc theory as “a feeling that members have of belonging, a feeling that members matter to one another and to the group, and a shared faith that members’ needs will be met through their commitment to be together” (mcmillan & chavis, 1986, p. 9). the soc theoretical framework enabled us to identify and gauge #sschat community members’ ‘sense of community’ as a construct rather than strictly a notion. methods teasing parts of the complexities of social media-based plcs like the #sschat twitter calls for employing diverse research methods (staudt willet, 2019). given the purpose of this study and nature of the research questions, we employed a quantitative research design. we collected data using the sense of community index (sci) – ii survey instrument (chavis, lee, and acosta, 2008). the sci-ii survey instrument is a reliable and validated survey instrument that includes twenty-four items designed to assess participants’ perceptions and recognition of the four tenets (i.e., membership, influence, fulfillment of needs and shared emotional connection) of the soc theoretical framework (chavis, lee, and acosta, 2008). additionally, we assessed scale reliability of the sci-ii survey instrument with the #sschat community using cronbach’s alpha (α=. 910). participants participants in this study were identified using tags (twitter archiving google sheet) as a behavior trace measure (hawksey, 2014; hensley, 2021; staudt willet, 2019). tags allowed us to observe activity and behaviors within the #sschat twitter community by monitoring the #sschat hashtag. we monitored the #sschat hashtag using tags for a year, identifying potential participants who engaged both synchronously and asynchronously within the #sschat community. we traced nearly 5000 unique tweets and identified a total of 1,583 potential participants. potential participants were contacted via twitter and invited to complete the survey. the survey was live for six weeks and weekly reminders were sent each week via twitter. we collected 175 responses to the survey and after data cleaning there were 166 usable responses (10.5% response rate) to analyze. in addition to the sci-ii survey items, participants also completed 16 items that measured their sustainability and answered several demographic questions. for the purposes of this study, we only analyzed the participants’ responses to the sci-ii survey items and the demographic questions. 73 ressat 2023, 8(2): 68-82 data analysis before running any analyses, we first cleaned the data. data cleaning involved removing nonresponse and erroneous survey data from our sample. additionally, we removed surveys from respondents who did not identify as a member of the #sschat community on twitter. both descriptive and inferential statistics were used in this study to analyze the data. descriptive statistics and frequency tables were generated to understand #sschat community members’ demographic characteristics including age, gender, ethnicity, professional identities, geography (if applicable), and education; thus, we were able to answer research question one. to answer research question two, we generated means and standard deviations to analyze #sschat members’ perceived ‘sense of community’ according to their demographics/professional characteristics. means were used to interpret findings on the original four-point scale (not at all = 0, somewhat = 1, mostly = 2, completely = 3) used in the sci-ii survey instrument. from there, we ran anova tests to determine if #sschat members’ demographics/professional characteristics significantly affected their perceived ‘sense of community’. findings demographics of #sschat community members the mean age of respondents was 39 years, with an age range of 22–77 years. the greatest percentage of the sample (39%) was between the ages of 30 and 39. table 1 summarizes the age range of the participants. of the 166 participants, 61 were male (36.7%) and 70 were female (42.2%). table 2 summarizes gender characteristics. the plurality of study participants was white (n = 61, 64.5%), followed by black/african american (n = 21, 12.7%), then hispanic (n = 4, 2.4%), and asian (n = 2, 1.2%). table 3 summarizes ethnicity characteristics. table 1. participant ages age n = sample percentage 22-29 33 17.4% 30-39 65 39% 40-49 37 25% 50-59 26 15.6% 60 + 5 3% table 2. gender gender n= sample percentage male 61 36.7% female 70 42.2% other 2 1.2% prefer not to answer 33 19.9% 74 ressat 2023, 8(2): 68-82 table 3. race/ethnicity ethnicity n= sample percentage black 21 12.7% asian 2 1.2% hispanic 4 2.4% white 107 64.5% other 8 4.8% prefer not to answer 24 14.5% most participants (n = 116, 69.0%) were teachers, followed by teacher educators and higher education faculty (n = 24, 14.5%). table 4 summarizes the professional identities of respondents. these data were particularly important because they allowed us to glean the #sschat community’s core member base. in regard to geography, study participants reported working in the following school settings: urban school districts (n = 55, 33.1%), urban (n = 49, 29.5%), and rural (n = 43, 25.9%). table 5 summarizes the geographical characteristics of the participants’ school setting. table 4. professional identity table 5. geographic characteristics occupation n= sample percentage administrator 1 .6% education consultant 2 1.2% education non-profit representative 3 1.8% educational technology specialist/coach 3 1.8% former teacher 1 .6% museum educator 1 .6% n/a 6 3.6% social studies curriculum specialist/coach 4 2.4% teacher 116 69.9% teacher educator/higher education faculty 24 14.5% teacher leader 5 3.0% geography n= sample percentage rural 43 25.9% urban 49 29.5% suburban 55 33.1% other 19 11.4% 75 ressat 2023, 8(2): 68-82 lastly, in regard to highest level of education, a total of 104 participants (62.7%) reported having a master’s degree. this was followed by 19 participants (12.7%) reported having a doctorate and 17 participants (10.2%) reported having a bachelor’s degree. table 6 summarizes the various educational levels of the #sschat community. table 6. education level after summarizing the demographic data using descriptive statistics, we were able to glean a better understanding of who makes up the #sschat professional learning community on twitter. the information was salient as it provided a necessary contextual lens for how we interpreted the findings for research questions two and three. perceived ‘sense of community’ according to #sschat community demographics we used the following question from the sci-ii survey instrument to interpret #sschat community members’ perceived ‘sense of community’: “how important is it to you to feel a sense of community with other community members?” chavis et. al (2008) posit that this question correlates with overall feeling and recognition of ‘sense of community.’ hence, we generated means to interpret findings on the original four-point scale (not at all = 0, somewhat = 1, mostly = 2, completely = 3) of the sci-ii survey instrument. table 7 presents means and standard deviations summarizing #sschat community members’ perceived feeling and recognition of ‘sense of community’ according to their ethnicity. findings indicated that on average, #sschat community members from each ethnic group fell between somewhat and mostly when asked how important it is for them to feel a sense of community with other community members. hispanic community members and community members identifying with ‘other’ both yielded the highest means (m = 1.76). asian community members yielded the lowest mean (m = 1.49). we then ran an anova test to determine significance in perceived ‘sense of community’ in relation to ethnicity. the results indicated no statistically significant effect, [f(5,160) = .444, p = .817]. table 7. perceived ‘sense of community’ according to ethnicity education n= sample percentage bachelor’s 17 10.2% master’s 104 62.7% education specialist 12 7.2% doctorate 19 12.7% prefer not to answer 12 7.2% ethnicity mean sd african american/black 1.75 .410 asian 1.49 .469 hispanic 1.76 .293 white 1.71 .448 other 1.76 .309 prefer not to answer 1.65 .459 76 ressat 2023, 8(2): 68-82 table 8 presents means and standard deviations summarizing #sschat community members’ perceived feeling and recognition of ‘sense of community’ according to their gender. findings indicated that on average, #sschat community members from each gender group fell between somewhat and mostly when asked how important it is for them to feel a ‘sense of community’ with other community members. male community members, female community members, and community members who preferred not to disclose their gender yielded relatively balanced means. community members identifying with “other” yielded the lowest mean (m = 1.39). we then ran an anova test to determine significance in perceived ‘sense of community’ in relation to gender. the results indicated no statistically significant effect, [f(3,162) = .402, p = .752]. table 8. perceived ‘sense of community’ according to gender table 9 presents means and standard deviations summarizing #sschat community members’ perceived feeling and recognition of ‘sense of community’ according to their age range. findings indicated that on average, #sschat community members from each age range fell between somewhat and mostly when asked how important it is for them to feel a ‘sense of community’ with other community members. community members in the age ranges of 22-29, 40-49, and 60-69 yielded the highest means and they were relatively balanced. community members in the age range of 70-79 yielded the lowest mean (m = 1.47). we ran an anova test to determine significance in perceived ‘sense of community’ in relation to age. the results indicated no statistically significant effect, [f(5,160) = 1.220, p = .302]. table 9. perceived ‘sense of community’ according to age range gender mean sd male 1.71 .437 female 1.70 .450 other 1.39 .913 prefer not to answer 1.73 .312 age range mean sd 22-29 1.74 .391 30-39 1.63 .444 40-49 1.83 .428 50-59 1.68 .405 60-69 1.80 .166 70-77 1.47 .383 77 ressat 2023, 8(2): 68-82 table 10 presents means and standard deviations summarizing #sschat community members’ perceived feeling and recognition of ‘sense of community’ according to their education level. findings indicated that on average, #sschat community members from each education level fell between somewhat and mostly when asked how important it is for them to feel a ‘sense of community’ with other community members. community members who hold a doctoral degree yielded the highest mean (m = 1.83), while community members who hold a bachelor’s degree yielded the lowest mean (m = 1.46). we ran an anova test to determine significance in perceived ‘sense of community’ in relation to education level. the results indicated a marginally significant effect, [f(4,161) = 1.974, p = .101]. table 10. perceived ‘sense of community’ according to education level table 11 presents means and standard deviations summarizing #sschat community members’ perceived feeling and recognition of ‘sense of community’ according to their geographic context. findings indicated that on average, #sschat community members from each geographic context fell between somewhat and mostly when asked how important it is for them to feel a ‘sense of community’ with other community members. community members in all geographic contexts yielded relatively balanced means. we ran an anova test to determine significance in perceived ‘sense of community’ in relation to geography. the results indicated no statistically significant effect, [f(3,162) = .193, p = .901]. table 11. perceived “sense of community” according to geography table 12 presents means and standard deviations summarizing #sschat community members’ perceived feeling and recognition of ‘sense of community’ according to their professional identity. findings indicated that on average, #sschat community members from each professional identity category largely fell between somewhat and mostly when asked how important it is for them to feel a ‘sense of community’ with other community members. education level mean sd bachelor’s 1.46 .439 master’s 1.72 .429 education specialist 1.66 .337 doctorate 1.83 .462 prefer not to answer 1.74 .251 geography mean sd rural 1.72 .382 urban 1.71 .462 suburban 1.68 .447 other 1.76 .363 78 ressat 2023, 8(2): 68-82 community members who identify as teacher leaders, education consultants, former teachers, as well as community members who identify with “other” yield the highest means and they were relatively balanced. we ran an anova test to determine significance in perceived ‘sense of community’ in relation to professional identity. the results indicated no statistically significant effect, [f(10,155) = 1.095, p = .369]. table 12. perceived “sense of community” according to professional identity discussion in this study, we aimed to respond to gaps in the literature concerning the potential differential impact that social media-based plcs like the #sschat have on community members. thus, we explored the #sschat twitter community’s membership by seeking first to understand who community members are, and then how their demographics affect their perceived ‘sense of community.’ though our analysis of the data yielded no statistically significant findings, the descriptive statistics still provided valuable insights that allow us to contribute to a more sophisticated understanding of the #sschat community. according to data collected between 2018-2020 by organization for economic cooperation and development (2022), roughly 14% of secondary teachers in the united states of america were below the age of 30, nearly 28% were between the ages of 30-49, and approximately 31% were above the age of 50. according to data collected in late 2018 by the professional identity mean sd administrator 1.62 .0 education consultant 1.83 .235 education non-profit representative 1.73 .271 educational technology specialist/coach 1.62 .110 former teacher 1.83 .0 museum educator 1.95 .0 social studies curriculum specialist/coach 1.54 .501 teacher 1.73 .417 teacher educator/higher education faculty 1.51 .471 teacher leader 1.98 .543 other 1.95 .291 79 ressat 2023, 8(2): 68-82 pew research center (2019), the percentage of twitter users in the united states by age range was as follows: 29% were between 18-29 years, 44% were between 30-49 years, 19% were between 50-64 years, and 8% were 65 years or older. when compared to the demographic data collected from #sschat members, we find that the age range of #sschat members seems to mirror that of the larger population of twitter users, with perhaps a slight increase for those in the age range of 30-39 years. however, the largest pool of secondary teachers in the u.s. (i.e., 50+ years) are not actively involved in #sschat community. even early career teachers seem to not be involved on twitter very much. of course, this is more indicative of general twitter practices and demographics than social studies teacher demographics, but it does bring about questions related to the long-term viability of #sschat. additionally, what impact might newer social media sources such as instagram and tiktok have on the #sschat community? when it comes to gender, the pew research center (2019) indicated that twitter users were evenly split between males and females at 50%. yet, our data indicated a lower percentage of male members (36.7%) in the #sschat than female members (42.2%); although, we did have a significant percentage prefer not to answer (19.9%). data from organization for economic cooperation and development (2022) suggests that the majority of secondary teachers in the u.s. identify as female (62.5%), which might help explain the findings. data collected from 2017-2018 from the national center for educational statistics shows that the vast majority of teachers in the united states identify as white (79%) as compared to black (7%), hispanic (9%), asian (2%), american indian/alaska native (1%) and two or more races (2%) (irwin et. al, 2021). the data on the #sschat membership indicates that a surprisingly high percentage of social studies teachers who identify as black participate in #sschat (12.7%) compared to the overall demographics found in teachers. on the other hand, there is little participation from social studies teachers who identify as hispanic (2.4%) despite a similar overall demographics found in teachers. as for general twitter users, 60% identify as white, 11% as black, and 17% as hispanic. researchers need to conduct further research to determine what draws the high percentage of black social studies educators to twitter and the #sschat membership. conversely, why are hispanic teachers not involved the #sschat despite a higher percentage of twitter users compared to black americans? according to the pew research center (2019), a large percentage of twitter users indicated that they are a college graduate (42%), which should include every teacher in our data. what is of interest, however, is the high percentage of “teacher educators/higher education faculty” (14.5%) that are part of the #sschat membership. we wonder if we might find similar proportions within more traditional in-person plc groups, such as state or national councils for the social studies. one question this leads to is to what extent is the participation rate of #sschat members tied to advance degrees? additionally, there was a relatively low percentage of curriculum specialists/coaches that participated (2.4%) in the #sschat membership but is this more indicative of a small job pool compared to other identities? that is, many school districts lack having a dedicated social studies specialists/coaches position, finally, geographically, 80 ressat 2023, 8(2): 68-82 teachers who identified as living in rural, suburban, and urban locations participated in the #sschat in about equal proportions. again, it might be beneficial to know what the geographic distribution looks like for traditional in-person plcs. conclusion according to a ‘sense of community’ theory (soc) framework, we were able to determine that social studies teachers who participate in the #sschat have somewhat strong perceived sense of community, despite it being a virtual-plc formed on social media. the findings indicated that there was no statistically significant difference in #sschat members’ perceived soc based on their self-identified ethnicity, gender, age, education level, geography, or professional identify. still, the descriptive statistics based on the demographic data tells us a lot about who utilizes twitter as virtual-plc. we know that the #sschat members are predominately white; however, there is a larger proportion of black social studies educators who participate then there is within the larger proportion of the teaching profession. we find that the majority of the #sschat members are in their mid 30s to late-40s, which is similar to the average age of twitter users. leading to questions about future viability of the twitter as a thriving virtual-plc platform. we also noticed that a larger than normal proportion of #sschat members identify as teacher educators or higher education faculty. perhaps indicating that those with advanced degrees are more inclined to interact on twitter than others. one thing is clear, social media is not going anywhere but understanding the demographics of who uses what virtual-plc service is important. we found that this data not only helps researchers understand who is utilizing social media as a virtual-plc but it has helped generate future research ideas. furthermore, may help resource managers, curriculum developers and educational providers more easily and better target audiences. references britt, v. g., & paulus, t. 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(2019). staff members’ perceptions of the usefulness of their personal learning network on twitter (doctoral dissertation, baker university). https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2019/04/24/sizing-up-twitter-users/ https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jssr.2015.10.001 research in social sciences and technology https://ressat.org e-issn: 2468-6891 volume: 7 issue: 2 2022 pp. 1-26 citizenship education in early republican era in turkey mehmet melik kayaa a. faculty of education, university of anadolu, eskisehir, turkey. e-mail: kymelik@gmail.com article info received: march 13, 2022 revised: may 8, 2022 accepted: june 2, 2022 how to cite kaya, m. m. (2022). citizenship education in early republican era in turkey. research in social sciences and technology, 7(2), 1-26. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2022.7 copyright license this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 abstract in turkey, the republican era, which started in 1923, is a period in which state institutions were rapidly restructured and these institutions were reconstituted within the framework of the ideology of the newly established state. education has taken its share in this reconstruction process as well. one of the important regulations in the field of education was the 1924 curriculum. the 1924 curriculum was quite important in terms of reflecting the republic’s perspective on education and the importance it attaches to education. through this curriculum, it was aimed to raise patriotic individuals who are loyal to the philosophy and values of the republic, have national consciousness, and understand the new state, institutions and organizations. the aim of the research is to examine the first citizenship education course of the republic of turkey, musâhabât-ı ahlâkiyye & malumât-ı vataniye [conversations on morality and civics], which was included in the 1924 educational program. in the study, this curriculum was analyzed by employing the historical research method. keywords history of education; citizenship education; turkey; 1924 curriculum; republican era, historical research. 10.46303/ressat.2022.7 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2022.7 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ 2 ressat 2022, 7(2): 1-26 introduction historical developments are interpreted with facts and events that occur in connection with each other. although the republic of turkey was a new state and a new regime in the 1920s, its system was built on the legacy and institutions of the ottoman empire. therefore, in order to analyze the educational history of the republic of turkey and to understand its educational policies, it is necessary to know the ottoman educational system. in the ottoman empire, education was tried to be carried out through foundations for a long time. as there was no unity in education, it also showed differences according to regions. the basic education institution was madrasahs [muslim seminary], and in time, sıbyan schools at the primary education level, rüşdiye in secondary school status, and i̇dadi as today’s high school were establihed. with the foundation of darülfünun [university], it is now known that the ottoman empire carried out educational activities through all its institutions from primary education to universities (akyüz, 2004). as in other fields, the developments in the field of education had also gone through a long process. the ottoman state did not attach sufficient importance to education until the 19th century. although the madrasahs gradually deteriorated, they managed to maintain their existence until the republic of turkey. however, since this century, the madrasahs continued to exist, but the fact that education was seen as one of the tools to save the state led to the creation of modern educational institutions (ergün, 2005). such practices as bringing expert teachers from europe and assigning them to military and medical schools and sending students to europe to be informed about the developments in the world, were developments in line with this aim (gençoğlu, 2020). during the ottoman empire period, there were various problems in the field of education. the first of these was the increasing emphasis on religious sciences rather than positive sciences in madrasahs. the reasons such as giving the müderrislik [professorship] to unqualified people, the practice of being a beşik [crib] ulema (the son of a scholar becomes a scholar), and not following the scientific developments in europe and the world were among the sources of the problems in education. apart from these, the existence of schools funded by foundations or the wealthy besides public schools, the existence of schools established by minorities of ottoman nationality as well as foreign states such as america and france led to a multi-headed education. the fact that the state did not subject these institutions to adequate supervision caused minority and foreign schools to become one of the centers of activities harmful to the country. all these problems in education were inherited by the republic of turkey. in the 1923 treaty of lausanne, a solution was sought for the issue of foreign schools and a decision was made to comply with the regulations. in addition, tekkes [dervish lodges], zaviyes [small, rural tekkes] and madrasahs providing religious education were also abolished. thus, it was tried to prevent the undesired activities of foreign schools and to provide unity and solidarity in education (somel, 2010). 3 ressat 2022, 7(2): 1-26 on the other hand, some laws and regulations have been prepared in order to make education and training activities more regular. one of them was tedrisat-ı i̇btidaiye kanun-ı muvakkati [primary education transitional law] (1913), which was issued during the second meşrutiyet [constitutional monarchy] period, and with this law, besides eliminating the financing problems, it was tried to make education compulsory and free of charge (maarif vekâleti, 1913). another important development was the 1913 curriculum. with this educational program, primary education was divided into three periods and its duration was extended to six years. the monthly and weekly planning of the courses were clearly stated in this curriculum (maarif vekâleti, 1913). one of the important courses included in the 1913 curriculum was musâhabât-ı ahlâkiyye & malumât-ı vataniye [conversations on morality and civics]. this course is important as it is the first and separately given citizenship education course in turkish educational history; because, in the previous periods, citizenship education was given in history and geography lessons in both seljuks and ottomans. by this course, the administrators of the period aimed to raise citizens who were ethical, respectful to national values, loving their homeland, tolerant, fair, obedient, in addition to being aware of issues such as morality, health, and environment (kaya, 2020). when it came to the republican period, although the country was occupied and a struggle for independence was eventually successful, institutions and practices that were injured, problematic and outdated with all their elements remained. one of them was education. when the turkish republic was founded, even 10% of the society was not literate. the enrollment rate in primary education was around 20%. even looking at these statistics alone, it is seen how problematic the society was in terms of education. in order to solve these problems without wasting any time, the ministry of education was established on may 3, 1920, while the national struggle was still going on. again, in the most difficult period of the national struggle, the education congress convened in ankara in 1921 and solutions were sought for the problems in education. these solutions were arranging the primary school curriculum and the education period of primary schools, training teachers for villages, arranging the curricula and courses of secondary education institutions (cicioğlu, 1985). while the administrators of the republic of turkey were trying to solve such problems inherited from the ottoman empire, on the other hand, they wanted to integrate some innovations into the national education system according to the developments in the world. in this respect, the 1924 curriculum as one of the important turning points in turkish educational history was prepared and put into effect. the program was published under the name of “curriculum of primary schools”. however, this program inspired by the french primary education programs did not last long and was abolished two years later. the reason for this was that it was designed quickly due to the conditions of the period and could not fully respond to the needs of the new regime (maarif vekâleti, 1924). with the 1924 curriculum as the first educational program of the republican era, primary education, which previously consisted of six years and three periods, was reduced to five years. 4 ressat 2022, 7(2): 1-26 since some of the courses in the program only appeal to girls, separate course schedules have been prepared for boys and girls. the course hours are planned as three hours in the morning and two in the afternoon, for a total of five hours a day. it was decided to hold educational trips and meetings on monday afternoon, and to suspend classes on thursday afternoons. lesson times are set for forty minutes, breaks for fifteen minutes, and lunch break for two hours. it was deemed appropriate to provide books for 4th and 5th grade students for the “musâhabat-ı ahlakiyye & malumât-ı vataniye” course, which is one of the courses included in the program, but no books were given to the early grades. as in the 1913 curriculum, citizenship education took place in this educational program again under the name of “musâhabat-ı ahlakiyye & malumât-ı vataniye” (maarif vekâleti, 1924). in the related literature, there are also some other studies that are more critical of this early republication era and the educationals efforts made during this early period such as the ones conducted by salmoni (2004), tütüncü (2007) and yıldırım (2017). since the early republican period was the process of nation-state building, one of the most important issues of the leaders and the republican elite was to give a new identity to the turkish nation (yıldırım, 2017). in this respect, according to yıldırım (2017), official history, which is one of the main transmission tools of the official ideology of the republic, has played an important role in instilling a turkish identity and a common memory into the nation. in this period, it is seen that education and history lessons, especially textbooks, served as the two main tools in having the official ideology adopted by the new generation (yıldırım, 2017). according to yıldırım (2017), 1930s for the turkish republic was a time span when the core principles of the new regime were formulized to ensure that they were publicly comprehended and possessed. correspondingly, she states that formal and informal educational institutions were established for the dissemination of these principles, i.e. official ideology. specifically, for her, the creation of a “new” turkish history played an important role in formulation of “official history” which was one of the major means to install turkish identity and a collective memory to the nation. likewise, tütüncü (2007) argues that these efforts have stimulated the desire for pedagogical intervention in the turkish context that will make it possible to create a strong, civilized and homogeneous nation. for her, the desire to create a homogeneous nation basically means to be connected to the new territorial unit with a new bond; which requires establishing a common turkish identity, a unique national character and a strong love of homeland. yet, this notion also makes it necessary to leave behind the old form of belonging and feeling, which was basically fed by religion and eastern civilization (tütüncü, 2007). similarly, according to salmoni (2004) education is only one mechanism of socialization; yet, in turkey, schools would disseminate this new “mentality” throughout turkey as pupils emerged into adult society. he also states that the pedagogues and the state self-consciously deployed education as a central vehicle to inoculate new citizens with socio-political convictions in turkey from 1923-50. since turkey’s larger socio-political context had influenced approaches 5 ressat 2022, 7(2): 1-26 to democracy in education throughout the 1920s and 1930s, the 1924 curriculum featured an introduction focusing on pedagogical methods and the goal of civics (malumat-ı vataniye) was to introduce youth to the rights and duties which they possess as a citizen of the turkish republic (salmoni, 2004). consequently, in this period, the main purpose of citizenship education was to raise citizens in accordance with the ideology of the republic. after the republic of turkey won the independence struggle, it made an effort to create a common sense of belonging, especially through education. atatürk, who is the founder of the new republic, developed an understanding of citizenship in this respect. accordingly, he based his understanding of citizenship on language, culture and political unity, regardless of religion and race (tanör, 2011). within the framework of this understanding, the definition of citizenship in the 1924 constitution was made as follows: “the people of turkey are called turkish by citizenship, regardless of religion or race” (kili & gözübüyük 1982, p. 62). as a result, citizenship education has been a subject that has been emphasized for the turkish society to gain an identity in the process starting from the last period of the ottoman empire to the republican period. as a citizenship education course in the 1924 curriculum, musâhabât-ı ahlakiyye & malumât-ı vataniye [conversations on morality and civics], which is important for the construction of national citizenship, is examined in this study. research question the purpose of this study was to examine the first citizenship education course of the republic of turkey, musâhabât-ı ahlâkiyye & malumât-ı vataniye [conversations on morality and civics], which was included in the 1924 educational program. therefore, the study historically seeked the answer to the following research question: • how were the effects of the ideological change in 1920s reflected in the course content of the first citizenship education course of the republic in terms of “citizenship education” according to grade level? method research design this study applied historical research as the research design (brundage, 2014), a method for studying historical facts with the stages of heuristics, source criticism, interpretation, and historiography (brundage, 2014; mccaffrey et al., 2012). historical research was carried out through 5 stages, namely: topic selection, heuristics (source collection), verification (source criticism), interpretation, and historiography (writing) (brundage, 2014; gunn & faire, 2016; mccaffrey et al., 2012). qualitative research aims to investigate or describe an unquantifiable event or social manifestation. thus, the current study was qualitative because it has data in the form of words, sentences, arguments, narrative logic and researchers express meaning based on the intent of the source (creswell et al., 2011). 6 ressat 2022, 7(2): 1-26 data were collected from documents in the form of books, journals, papers, theses, dissertations, and research reports that were systematized as references to increase this research’s pool of available data. qualitatively, data were collected in the form of selected themes from historical documents, published articles and dissertations. after that, the data were analyzed using five stages of historical research, namely: choosing a topic, collecting sources (heuristics), verification, interpretation and historical rewriting (historiography) (brundage, 2014; gunn & faire, 2016; mccaffrey et al., 2012). as indicated above, historical research method, one of the qualitative research designs, was used (büyüköztürk et al., 2017) in this study. historical research is a study aimed at revealing a phenomenon and event in the past as explicitly, clearly and accurately as possible. this research method allows to examine the combinations of social factors that cause social change by leading to a certain result and to create theory by reaching general conceptualizations (kaptan, 1991). the data of this research, in which the historical research method was employed, were obtained by using the document analysis technique. document analysis is a technique in which all kinds of written materials containing information about the subject studied are examined and analyzed. these written materials that make up the documents can be various such as diaries, letters, official documents of the states (balcı, 2006; şimşek and yıldırım, 2016). document review has advantages in terms of quality, low cost, sample size, long-term analysis, lack of reactivity, individuality and originality (balcı, 2006; şimşek and yıldırım, 2016). the data of this research were obtained from the ministry of national education ferit ragıp tuncor archive and documentation library. the obtained data were first transcribed from ottoman turkish to modern turkish, and after the transcription process was done, it was checked by those who are experts in ottoman turkish. after the control of the translations was ensured, the data were analyzed accordingly. data analysis document analysis technique was employed in this study. the findings obtained were analyzed by the content analysis method. in content analysis, it is tried to reach the concepts and relations that can explain the obtained data. the themes belonging to the concepts are determined after the conceptualization of the data. content analysis consists of four stages: coding the data, finding the themes, organizing the codes and themes, defining and interpreting the findings (şimşek & yıldırım, 2016). in this direction, in the study, the data of the 1924 curriculum was translated from ottoman turkish to modern turkish and understood. the findings obtained after the translation process were coded according to the objectives thought to belong, and then, the themes belonged the coded data were determined. as a result, the coding made was grouped under five main themes: these are “national and spiritual consciousness”, “moral values”, “rights and responsibilities”, “environmental and health 7 ressat 2022, 7(2): 1-26 awareness”, and “government and state bodies”. at the last stage, the coding and contents under the themes were given in the tables, discussed and interpreted. ensuring validity and reliability in qualitative research, the concept of persuasiveness comes to the fore as opposed to internal validity. in order to increase the credibility of the data in the document review, the obtained data should be presented clearly and consistently and the confirmation of another expert researcher should be obtained during the data analysis process. in this respect, the data to be examined in the data analysis process were presented in a clear and understandable way, and the opinions of experts who knew ottoman turkish were taken. for the reliability of the research, the collected data were compared with each other, interpreted and discussed with a critical point of view. within the scope of the research, it was ensured that the data obtained by reaching people with knowledge on the subject were checked, and finally the reliability of the data was ensured by comparing the results obtained with the raw data (cansız aktaş, 2014). expert opinions were taken into consideration while collecting the data. the originality of the received data was checked together with the expert. it was checked again with the expert during and after the transcription was made. while transferring the data, it was presented with direct quotations without adding comments and keeping the originality of the data, and the comments were added later in the light of the important events of the period. findings the purpose of this study was to historically examine the effects of the ideological change occurred in 1920s as reflected in the course content of the first citizenship education course of the early republican era in terms of “citizenship education” according to grade level. therefore, as a result of the study, research findings were given under two main headings as “citizenship education” and “citizenship education in the course content” according to grade level. the objectives, themes and topics that are aimed to be taught according to grade levels in the musahhabât-ı ahlâkiyye & mâlumât-ı vataniye course, which was decided to be included in the 1924 curriculum about citizenship education, are presented in table 1 below. 8 ressat 2022, 7(2): 1-26 table 1. the learning objectives, themes and codes in the 1924 musâhabât-ı ahlakiyye & mâlumât-ı vataniye course. grade objectives themes codes 4 individual and society; blessings of the individual to the society national and spiritual consciousness solidarity 4 differences between primitive people and today’s people national and spiritual consciousness solidarity 4 the importance of hard work, its social and moral value rights and responsibilities diligence 4 cooperation and solidarity national and spiritual consciousness solidarity 4 right and duty rights and responsibilities sense of duty 4 liability rights and responsibilities sense of duty 4 good and evil moral values beneficence 4 virtue and disgrace moral values beneficence 4 rights and responsibilities (to ourselves, our family, our nation, humanity); citizenship duties rights and responsibilities sense of duty 4 municipalities; duties of municipalities, measures to be taken by the municipality to ensure the health of the people of the city government and state bodies local governments 4 collection and disposal of garbage environmental and health awareness cleanliness 4 sewers environmental and health awareness cleanliness 4 cleaning the streets environmental and health awareness cleanliness 4 clean water system in the city environmental and health awareness cleanliness 4 prohibition of unhealthy things in bazaars and markets environmental and health awareness health 4 sanitary measures in various shops and stores, restaurants, inns and hotels environmental and health awareness health 4 duties of citizens in response to the duties of municipalities regarding the health of the city government and state bodies local governments 4 compliance with hygiene at home environmental and health awareness health 4 body hygiene environmental and health awareness health 4 clean water and fresh air inside the house environmental and health awareness health 4 attention to physical discipline environmental and health awareness health 4 nutritious and healthy food, clean water environmental and health awareness health 9 ressat 2022, 7(2): 1-26 4 moderate striving and working, keeping the body clean environmental and health awareness health 4 sanitary cleaning inside the home environmental and health awareness health 4 utilizing substances that are the opposite of bad odor environmental and health awareness health 4 sanitary storage and disposal of garbage environmental and health awareness health 4 fighting against germs in all aspects environmental and health awareness health 4 measures against mosquitoes entering homes environmental and health awareness health 4 fight against flies, fleas, lice, bedbugs and mosquitoes environmental and health awareness health 4 cooperation with municipalities; strict compliance with the warnings of the municipalities regarding the sanitation environmental and health awareness health 4 not to spit on roads, in places such as cars, trains, trams, tunnels, and ferries environmental and health awareness health 4 in case of jaundice, immediately notifying the concerned officers about it environmental and health awareness health 4 the importance of the fire department; precautions against fires at home and outside rights and responsibilities precaution 4 not playing with matches and lamps rights and responsibilities precaution 4 cleaning the hobs frequently rights and responsibilities precaution 4 not to light a fire in wooded areas rights and responsibilities precaution 4 paying attention to barbecues and stoves rights and responsibilities precaution 4 streets and avenues: construction, repair and maintenance of streets and avenues environmental and health awareness environmental awareness 4 benefit of sidewalks environmental and health awareness environmental awareness 4 illumination, cleaning, irrigation of streets and avenues environmental and health awareness environmental awareness 4 clearing snow and mud in winter environmental and health awareness cleanliness 4 planting trees on the sides of streets and avenues environmental and health awareness environmental awareness 4 giving names to streets and numbers to houses environmental and health awareness environmental awareness 4 duties of children for the good preservation of streets and avenues: not to throw fruit peels, papers and garbage on the street environmental and health awareness environmental awareness 4 not to do things that will spoil the streets and avenues environmental and health awareness environmental awareness 4 not destroying the walls environmental and health awareness environmental awareness 4 not to harm the trees on the streets and avenues environmental and health awareness respect for nature 10 ressat 2022, 7(2): 1-26 4 keeping the front of the house clean environmental and health awareness environmental awareness 4 not playing games in the streets and avenues environmental and health awareness environmental awareness 4 service to public parks: benefit and importance of municipal gardens, public gardens, parks and promenades environmental and health awareness environmental awareness 4 sports fields and playgrounds environmental and health awareness environmental awareness 4 duties of children in public gardens and parks: not to harm trees, flowers, grass environmental and health awareness respect for nature 4 complying with politeness and manners around public places moral values good manners 4 the social organization/institution available to assist the poor and needy: duties of citizens towards this organization rights and responsibilities non-governmental organizations 4 organization that serves the public interest: city waters, city lighting, transport, telegraph and telephone, bazaars, slaughterhouses, wholesale market halls; citizens’ interest in such establishments and affairs of public interest rights and responsibilities welfare state mentality 4 the organization to protect and save the lives of citizens: police rights and responsibilities security forces 4 duties of the police rights and responsibilities sense of duty 4 responsibilities of children to facilitate the duties of the police rights and responsibilities sense of duty 4 not to fight moral values humane relations 4 not destroying other people’s property rights and responsibilities respect for property 4 not wandering off like a vagrant rights and responsibilities sense of duty 4 not to make unnecessary noise moral values good manners 4 not writing on the walls environmental and health awareness environmental awareness 4 not touching other people’s property rights and responsibilities respect for property 4 not to torture animals moral values love of animals 4 not playing with bad kids moral values humane relations 4 not to torture others in order to get a seat in means of transportation such as trams and ferries moral values good manners 4 respect the queue at the ticket offices moral values good manners 5 homeland national and spiritual consciousness patriotism 5 nation national and spiritual consciousness patriotism 5 the state national and spiritual consciousness patriotism 11 ressat 2022, 7(2): 1-26 5 government government and state bodies government 5 various forms of government; national sovereignty government and state bodies forms of government 5 the government of the constitutional monarchy and the republic government and state bodies forms of government 5 why is a republic the best form of government? government and state bodies forms of government 5 benefits provided by the republic to the public government and state bodies forms of government 5 enemies of the people and national independence national and spiritual consciousness patriotism 5 the history of the national liberation and independence struggle national and spiritual consciousness patriotism 5 establishment of the grand national assembly of turkey government and state bodies council 5 proclamation of the republic of turkey: the superiority of the republic of turkey over the previous administrations and the reasons for preference government and state bodies forms of government 5 teşkilat-ı esasiye kanunu [turkish constitution of 1921] and the explanation of its most essential articles rights and responsibilities legal consciousness 5 political rights provided by the republic to the citizens: freedom, equality, protection, conscience, contemplation, theology, publication, travel, contract, labor and deeds, appropriation and savings, association, society, company rights and freedoms, right of choice and its importance. government and state bodies rights brought by the republic 5 voting: municipal elections; general elections government and state bodies election 5 grand national assembly of turkey: legislative and executive duties; how are laws made? government and state bodies council 5 what is the state budget? rights and responsibilities economic consciousness 5 president: mode of selection; duties and authority government and state bodies president 5 council of ministers: duty, authority and responsibility; concise information about various powers of attorney government and state bodies ministries 5 duties of the state to ensure security and order: police, gendarmerie, courthouse; forms of activity; limit of their duties and powers rights and responsibilities security forces 5 crime and punishment: concise information about the various courts of the republic of turkey; how to follow cases in various courts government and state bodies laws 5 duties of states in economic life rights and responsibilities economic consciousness 12 ressat 2022, 7(2): 1-26 5 the life and health of the people; state intervention in economic life on behalf of the general public rights and responsibilities economic consciousness 5 the state’s relations with institutions such as post office, telegraph and telephone, lighting, water, slaughterhouses, roads, canals, ports, mines rights and responsibilities welfare state mentality 5 adoption of measures in favor of the people against the cost of living, the black market, and the housing crisis rights and responsibilities economic consciousness 5 institutions for orphans and widows, children of martyrs, children of the poor and veterans; orphanages; hospitals, nursing homes; kindergartens rights and responsibilities welfare state mentality 5 duties of citizens; obedience to the laws of the republic of turkey rights and responsibilities obedience to the law 5 tax rights and responsibilities economic consciousness 5 military service rights and responsibilities sense of duty 5 national defense, its necessity and importance national and spiritual consciousness patriotism 5 respect for the turkish flag national and spiritual consciousness patriotism 5 patriotism national and spiritual consciousness patriotism 5 self-devotion to the country national and spiritual consciousness patriotism 5 self-sacrifice to defend the republican administration national and spiritual consciousness patriotism 5 compliance with the national economic pact rights and responsibilities economic consciousness 5 administrative organization: province, county, township government and state bodies local governments 5 provincial general assembly government and state bodies local governments 5 duties and powers of governor, district governor, town manager, city trustee, mayor government and state bodies local governments 5 a concise information about the administrative organization of the city where the school is located government and state bodies local governments 5 a brief comparison of the provincial, district and township organizations government and state bodies local governments 13 ressat 2022, 7(2): 1-26 table 1 indicates that, according to the curriculum, musahabât-ı ahlakiye & malumât-ı vataniye course was planned to be taught the for one hour a week. in the program, the topics to be covered in the fourth and fifth grades in the musâhabâtı ahlakiyye & mâlumât-ı vataniye course and what was expected from the students in these grades were specified in more detail. these were included in the program as follows: this discipline system, which started from the first grade, will be expanded more in the upper classes, and children would be more or less actively participating in the public life and disciplinary responsibility of the school. the school, which demands blind obedience and renunciation from children, restricts and binds them with a strict order and discipline that they do not understand the need and wisdom of, does not allow the development of their personalities and characteristics, and does not allow the establishment of feelings of dissent and solidarity, can only manage the individuals of the absolutism it desires. it is necessary to involve children in the discussion and settlement of all issues related to the material and spiritual life of the school, to entrust them with duties according to their understanding and abilities, to use their freedoms and to provide opportunities and facilities that will develop their personalities. in this way, children gain the habit of freely expressing their ideas and thoughts, defending their rights and fulfilling their duties, taking their share of social responsibilities, being interested in public affairs, sacrificing their personal interests against the common interests of the community, and obeying laws and regulations in a conscious manner; and thus, they grow up as free, active entrepreneurs, dutiful and competent citizens of the turkish republic. young people who grow up in this way in our schools will have learned through their own experiences that the most appropriate and perfect form of administration is the republic, and they will not hesitate to make any sacrifices to defend and protect it, if necessary. (maarif vekaleti, 1924, p. 29). although the program aims to raise children as participants in society, issues such as blind obedience, strict discipline and punishment, which will limit the development of their personality and character, are not welcomed. it had been stated that such a situation could only occur in the management of a single person. citizen characteristics targeted by the new administration were also explained. according to this, young people should acquire behaviors such as freely expressing their ideas and thoughts, seeking their rights, doing their duties, taking responsibility in the society, dealing with the affairs of general interest, sacrificing their personal interests against the interests of the society, understanding and obeying the laws and regulations. thus, they grow up as free, hardworking, entrepreneurial, diligent and competent citizens of the turkish republic. young people who grow up in this way would have learned by experience that the best form of government is the republic, and they will not abstain from making any sacrifices in the way of defending and protecting it when necessary. 14 ressat 2022, 7(2): 1-26 in addition to this, some of the topics to be taught in the fourth and fifth grades and what was expected from primary education are expressed as follows: most of the children who will drop out of the primary school will put an end to their education life. these young people need to be able to give a specific direction to their activities when they do not come across them at school or when they are faced with various and diverse events, issues and situations that are out of the question for them in their childhood. it is imperative that young people who start life after a five-year education and training learn the mechanism of social life, the meaning and importance of the moral, political and economic institutions with which they will come into contact with, at the expense of what sacrifices the turkish republic is established and its true friends and enemies, the principles on which the state machine is built and how it works, as thoroughly and comprehensively as possible. it has been deemed appropriate to give this information, which is very educational and at the same time a vital practical value and benefit, only in the last two years. (maarif vekaleti, 1924, p. 29). one of the benefits expected from the five-year primary education in the curriculum was to provide children with the ability to set a direction for themselves when faced with a situation or problem that they had not seen before. the other is to learn in as much detail as possible the functioning of social life, the meaning and importance of cultural, political and economic institutions, the sacrifices in the foundation of the republic of turkey, the true friends and enemies of the state, the foundations of the state system and how it works. however, it has been deemed appropriate to give this information, which is very educational and at the same time vitally valuable and useful, only in the last two years. although it is not given in the unit in the program but in the introduction part of it, the topics that will be covered for the first, second and third grades are stated as follows: in the first, second and third grades, musahabât-ı ahlakiyye lessons will be given in the form of sincere conversations that will keep the moral principles alive in the conscience of the children. during these conversations, the teacher will show examples of high morality and virtue, tell the stories of great national heroes, the life, activities and adventures of great scholars, inventors, explorers, especially child heroes, in the form of attractive stories. children’s spiritual and intellectual life for a few years in such an atmosphere of virtue and sincerity in their school life will have a great impact on their moral and spiritual destiny. the lively adventures of great men and heroes who honor humanity provide an effect that dry and lifeless moral codes cannot provide. it not only opens the minds and hearts of children to higher humane feelings, but also encourages them to be virtuous. (maarif vekaleti, 1924, p. 27). as it can be understood from these statements, musahabât-ı ahlâkiyye lessons will be given to first, second and third grade children in the form of conversations that will keep moral 15 ressat 2022, 7(2): 1-26 principles alive in their conscience. teachers are asked to give examples of virtuous and moral scholars, inventors, explorers and heroes, especially child heroes. in addition, the importance of this environment in the school in the development of children’s morality and spirituality has been pointed out and telling the life stories of great personalities and heroes has been adopted as a more effective method than simply telling moral principles. it is emphasized that by teaching spiritual values, children’s hearts and minds will become open to high humane feelings and will lead them to be virtuous. in summary, it is seen that the aim of this course is to teach moral values, and it is recommended to use the conversation and exemplary method in the lessons. besides, in this period, it was aimed to teach children moral and social habits rather than teaching abstract moral rules, and teaching some awareness such as cooperation and solidarity, cleanliness, courtesy, honesty, and diligence was emphasized. this was included in the program as follows: in this period, it is necessary to teach children moral and social attitudes rather than teaching abstract moral principles. for this reason, the material and spiritual life of the school should be arranged and organized in a way that can establish the habits of cleanliness, order, kindness, honesty, cooperation and solidarity in children, love for good and good things, and dutifulness. involving children in the public life of the school from the very first grade and being assigned small tasks according to their age and level of comprehension, measures such as the joint creation of the collections, the classroom museum, the library, the school garden, the joint execution of some works, the joint manufacture of some goods serve to develop and reinforce the highest moral and social abilities in children such as order and activity, cooperation and solidarity, and the sense of personal and joint responsibility. (maarif vekaleti, 1924, p. 27). one of the important issues emphasized here was to ensure that students could work and generate together through various activities as well as their individual abilities. accordingly, it was aimed that they learn to take individual and social responsibility. here again, they were expected to learn by doing and practicing. during the lecture and conversation hours, which serve to bring the teacher closer to the student, to endear them, and to develop moral feelings in children, the teacher will talk about the student's activities, including those in and out of school, and will attract the attention of children on good and bad actions. the remarkable event of the day can be the subject of lively conversation and discussion. the teacher should always take advantage of such coincidences. (maarif vekaleti, 1924, p. 28). in the curriculum, teachers were suggested to draw attention to good and bad behaviors by talking about the behaviors of students in and out of school during conversation hours; it was 16 ressat 2022, 7(2): 1-26 stated that some important current events could be discussed, and then they were always asked to make use of such current events. in the 1924 curriculum, citizenship education was organized under the name of “musahabat-ı ahlakiye & malumat-ı vataniye”. in today’s turkish, it means moral conversations and civics. musahabat-ı ahlakiye & malumat-ı vataniye lessons are planned as one lesson per week for the first, second, third, fourth, fifth and sixth grades. information on first, secondand third-year topics in the content of the curriculum was discussed in a single text in it. the curriculum had a didactic style. in the introduction part of the curriculum, the objectives were given, besides stating the method and examples of the lessons. there is no separate text stating the philosophy of the educational approach. the concepts, skills and values in the curriculum were not clearly stated, only the titles were included in the table of contents. which topics would be taught under which headings in the fourth and fifth grades were specified (maarif vekâleti, 1924). graph 1 indicates the citizenship topics that were aimed to be taught to students in the musâhabât-ı ahlakiyye & malumât-ı vataniye course. graph 1. citizenship topics in the 1924 curriculum of musâhabât-ı ahlâkiyye & malumât-ı vataniye course when graph 1 is examined, it is seen that the environmental and health awareness issue is mostly covered with 39 codes. rights and responsibilities 30, government and state bodies 19, national and spiritual consciousness 13 and moral values 9 times. 9 39 30 13 19 moral values environmental and health awareness rights and responsibilities national and spiritual consciousness government and state bodies 17 ressat 2022, 7(2): 1-26 moral values the first of the values that were aimed to be taught to students in the musahabât-ı ahlakiyye ve mâlumât-ı vataniye course was the moral values theme and its codes such as beneficence, good manners, love of animals, and humane relations. table 2. codes belonging to the moral values theme codes f beneficence 2 good manners 4 love of animals 1 humane relations 2 total 9 when table 2 is examined, it is seen that the “moral values” theme was included in the program with a total of 9 codes. in this, good manners was the most mentioned value with 4 codes. beneficence and humane relations were mentioned twice, and love of animals once. it is planned to instill a value in students, especially in terms of good manners, with content such as respecting the rights of others and not disturbing them in public transportation, ticket offices and public places. likewise, humane relations such as not fighting and making noise, staying away from bad friends and how children should behave towards each other were stated. it was aimed to teach the love of animals to children as a value from an early age by including how to behave towards animals in the curriculum. environmental and health values the second of the values that were aimed to be taught to the students in the musahabât-ı ahlâkiyye & mâlumât-ı vataniye course was the “environmental and health values” theme and its codes. table 3. codes belonging to environmental and health values theme codes f environmental awareness 15 health 17 cleanliness 5 respect for nature 2 total 39 table 3 indicates that health awareness with 17 codes and environmental awareness with 15 codes were the most coded topics, followed by the topic of cleanliness with 5 codes. atatürk gave importance to health and the protection of health. within the framework of this 18 ressat 2022, 7(2): 1-26 understanding, the ministry of health was established on 2 may 1920. the main reason for giving importance to health-related issues in the first years of the republic is that hunger, poverty and epidemic diseases emerged with the effect of war. the emergence of important diseases such as malaria, tuberculosis, trachoma, syphilis and rabies as a major problem in this period made it necessary for the state to give importance to health. the issues included in the curriculum, such as the use of clean food and water, cleaning the body, house and street, combating mosquitoes, avoiding spitting on the streets and in public transportation, informing the authorities when there is a contagious disease, were all aimed at raising health-conscious citizens. one of the priorities in the curriculum was the environment, and the protection of the natural environment had been given importance, and afforestation studies had been carried out in different regions of the country. atatürk forest farm (1925), founded by atatürk in this period, also supports this argument. works making cities and community life more modern, such as opening and lighting new streets and avenues, giving names to streets and numbers to houses, had also been included in the content of citizenship education. in addition, the construction and protection of public parks and gardens could be seen as examples of this perspective. rights and responsibilities among the values that were aimed to be taught to students in the musahabât-ı ahlâkiyye & mâlumât-ı vataniye course, there were also codes with the theme of “rights and responsibilities”. table 4. codes belonging to rights and responsibilities theme codes f diligence 1 economic consciousness 6 sense of duty 7 security forces 2 obedience to the law 1 legal consciousness 1 respect for property 2 non-governmental organizations 1 welfare state mentality 3 precaution 5 rights brought by the republic 1 total 30 19 ressat 2022, 7(2): 1-26 in table 4, it is seen that the topics of economic consciousness 6, sense of duty and precaution were coded the most with 5 times each. security forces were mentioned 4 times, welfare state mentality 3 times, and respect for property 2 times. it was seen that nongovernmental organizations were added to the programs for the first time in this period. as an exercise of the welfare state mentality, institutions such as darüleytams [orphanage] and hospitals established for widows and orphans, veterans and children of martyrs are included. in addition, irzahanes [nursing homes], which were established to provide the breast milk and shelter for orphans, were also another topic included in this curriculum for the first time. topics related to economy had a large place in the curriculum and there were some reasons for this; for instance, the republic of turkey had taken over the bad economy of the ottoman empire. with the spread of capitulations in the ottoman period and the establishment of the düyun-ı umumiye [general debts] administration, the state, which gradually lost its economic independence, entered a difficult period when the heavy burden brought by the national struggle period was added. atatürk gave importance to this issue because he knew the importance of economic independence as well as national independence. for this purpose, he tried to eliminate the problems in the economy by convening the i̇zmir economy congress between february 17 and march 4, 1923. economic targets were determined with misak-ı i̇ktisadi [pact of economics] published at the end of the congress. it is possible to see the issues related to these objectives in the course content (table-1). in addition to these, topics such as the intervention of the state in economic life for the benefit of the general public and taking measures against the black market are also included. on the other hand, it was understood in the topics of our rights and responsibilities (to ourselves, our family, our nation and humanity) and citizenship duties that individuals with a sense of right and duty and a high sense of responsibility were wished to be raised from an early age. the duties and responsibilities of the police, gendarmerie and courthouse organizations and security forces, and the rights and responsibilities of children towards these institutions were other important issues in the curriculum. because the rebellions that broke out in this period were shaking the authority of the state. the state had tried to strengthen its authority by instilling this consciousness from an early age. it could be said that the topics of obedience to the law and respect for property were included in the curriculum in order to strengthen the authority of the state. in addition, the importance of fire department was also emphasized with measures to prevent house and forest fires. this was undoubtedly one of the rights and responsibilities related to the protection of life and property. national and spiritual values the theme of “national and spiritual values”, which is another value that was aimed to be taught to students in the musahabât-ı ahlâkiyye & mâlumât-ı vataniye course, is shown in table 5 below. 20 ressat 2022, 7(2): 1-26 table 5. codes belonging to national and spiritual values theme codes f solidarity 3 patriotism 10 total 13 it can be seen in table 5 that the subjects of patriotism and solidarity were covered. in particular, the inclusion of patriotism in the course in the form of 10 separate headings shows how important this subject is. in this period, on the one hand, loyalty to the state and state authority were desired to be strengthened, on the other hand, patriotism and self-sacrifice were emphasized. the importance of the republic adopted as a result of the struggle of the newly established state was emphasized, and loyalty and love towards the new regime were tried to be created. while creating national consciousness by using such concepts as nation, homeland and state, it was tried to provide unity and solidarity in all aspects by teaching concepts such as the feeling of teşarik [cooperation] and dayanışma [solidarity], the blessings of the individual to the society. in other words, some of the economic and social problems experienced in the first years of the republic period were desired to be solved by raising individuals with a high sense of national and moral solidarity. the following words of atatürk also support this: the most valuable asset of a homeland is the maturity of the senses and abilities of national unity, getting along and hardworking among its citizens. deciding to put forth the life and everything of all citizens in order to protect the nation’s existence and the maturity of the country is the most invincible weapon and means of protection of a nation. for this reason, in the administration and protection of the turkish nation, national unity, national feeling, national culture is the ideal that we look forward to at the highest. we shall work harder in the coming years to reach a high and revolutionary level of culture. (kocatürk, 1999, p. 205). government and state bodies finally, the codes of “government and state bodies” as one of the values that were aimed to be taught to students in the musâhabât-ı ahlâkiyye & mâlumât-ı vataniye course have been presented in table 6. although the republic of turkey was a state built on the legacy of the ottoman empire, a new governance approach was adopted and new institutions were established in accordance with the criteria required by it. since reforms such as the opening of the grand national assembly of turkey, the way the government was established, the proclamation of the republic, the creation of the prime minister’s office and the presidency were realized, it became a necessity for the state to determine what their duties and powers were and the society to know them in every aspect. for this reason, the topic of “government and state bodies” was given a wide coverage in the course. besides these changes in the central government, this issue has 21 ressat 2022, 7(2): 1-26 been the most mentioned topic with 7 times, since the local governments were also reorganized. in particular, the duties and responsibilities of municipalities and the responsibilities of children and citizens towards the municipality were stated. government forms were the second most repeated topic with 5 times. in this period, introducing a newly established regime and explaining it to the public correctly was among the priorities of the educational program. moreover, although the sultanate was abolished and a republic was declared, it was not easy for the new regime to be adopted and accepted by the society. therefore, by comparing the previous sultanate and meşrutiyet [constitutionalism] regimes with the republic, it was emphasized that the republican regime is the best form of government and its necessity. table 6. codes belonging to government and state bodies theme codes f ministries 1 president 1 government 1 laws 1 council 2 election 1 local governments 7 forms of government 5 total 19 discussion and conclusion although the musâhabât-ı ahlakiyye & malumât-ı vataniye course in the 1924 curriculum was the first citizenship education course of the republic of turkey, the necessary detailed analysis was not made on this course or only the course and course hours in the program were briefly mentioned. there has been no specific research on the topic in the related literature. what the content of the citizenship education course of a newly established state is, what subjects and concepts the state wants to teach to the children who are the citizens of the future are especially important. one of the studies on this topic was dilek’s (2016) research on primary and secondary school programs in the 1924 period. in this research, dilek did not study the content of the school programs and only provided information about the course schedules. likewise, in his research on education in the republican era, alp (2011) talked about the works of atatürk and the national education ministers of the period in the first five years of the republic. musâhabât-ı ahlâkiyye & malumât-ı vataniye course was not mentioned in the 1924 curriculum. 22 ressat 2022, 7(2): 1-26 similarly, özkan (2008) discussed the history textbooks in the curricula of the period in his research on primary education programs from 1924 to 1936. the researcher stated that the focus of the textbooks was the issue of ensuring national unity and solidarity by having children comprehend the republican ideology and did not provide any information about citizenship education. another important study on the subject was done by aslan (2011) on the 1924 primary education curriculum. aslan examined the 1924 curriculum in general terms and provided little information on the contents and aims of the courses. another research on the topic was carried out by arslan (2000). in this investigation, the researcher made a general study on the educational programs of the republican period and discussed the curricula from 1926 to 1968 in general terms. arslan (2000) talked about the preliminary preparations for the curricula, the preparation of the curriculum drafts and the implementation stages but did not cover the 1924 curriculum. therefore, examining this course is important in terms of learning the history of citizenship education in the republic of turkey. in other words, it is very important to reveal what the citizenship perception of a newly established state was, what subjects and concepts were tried to be taught about national unity and solidarity, and what impacts the events of the period had on raising citizens. since the meaning and content of the concept of citizenship from the establishment of the republic of turkey to the present day had been based on the philosophy of the republic, it was thought that examining this first citizenship education course would contribute much to the history of citizenship education and local literature. unlike the studies summarized above, yıldırım (2017) argued that the official history, which is one of the main transmission tools of the official ideology of the republic, has played an important role in instilling a turkish identity and a common memory into the nation. in this respect, she stated that formal and informal educational institutions were established for the dissemination of these principles, i.e. official ideology. similarly, tütüncü (2007) argued that these educational efforts have stimulated the desire for pedagogical intervention in the turkish context that will make it possible to create a strong, civilized and homogeneous nation. for her, the desire to create a homogeneous nation basically means to be connected to the new territorial unit with a new bond; which requires establishing a common turkish identity, a unique national character and a strong love of homeland. likewise, according to salmoni (2004), in turkey, schools would disseminate this new “mentality” throughout turkey as pupils emerged into adult society and the goal of civics was to introduce youth to the rights and duties which they possess as a citizen of the turkish republic. in conclusion, in the present study, both the 1924 curriculum was evaluated and the course of musâhabât-ı ahlakiyye & malumât-ı vataniye related to citizenship education in the educational program was examined. because nations indicate the state model, they desire to build with citizenship education programs and courses. in this respect, the examination of citizenship education in the 1924 curriculum, the first educational program of the republic of 23 ressat 2022, 7(2): 1-26 turkey, showed what kind of a citizen model was intended to be revealed in the early periods of the republic, as well as how the developments brought about by the conditions of the period and their relations and how it was reflected in the contents of the citizenship lesson. with these aspects, it is thought that the current study would make a remarkable contribution to the local literature. also, the musahhabât-ı ahlâkiyye & malumât-ı vataniye course in the 1924 curriculum has been significant in that it was the first citizenship education course of the republican regime. in this period, a five-year system was introduced in primary education, and education was nationalized within the framework of the principle of equality and made free of charge. both this change in the educational system and the establishment of a new regime are vital issues. the new state, which was established as a result of a national struggle under difficult conditions, wished to raise citizens who understand, care, protect and loyal to the republican regime through citizenship education. the objectives of the musahabât-ı ahlâkiyye & mâlumât-ı vataniye course are briefly stated in the introduction as follows: the aim of the musahabât-ı ahlâkiyye & malumât-ı vataniye courses is to introduce young people to the rights and duties they have as a citizen of the republic of turkey, to instill the moral principles that should prevail in all their actions, in short, to enable them to appreciate and perform their national and humanitarian duties. (maarif vekaleti, 1924, p. 27) correspondingly, as can be understood from these statements, the 1924 curriculum of the musahhabât-ı ahlâkiyye & malumât-ı vataniye course aimed at teaching the students citizenship rights and duties. by including this part at the beginning of the educational program, losing importance of the term reaya [people under the rule of a sultan] and gaining importance of the concept of “citizenship”, it was aimed that the new turkish society would be aware of their rights and responsibilities. besides, one of the issues emphasized in the curriculum was that children should be ethical in all their behaviors. for this reason, a crucial mission had been assigned to the school, and it had been determined as the aim to raise individuals who knew their national and humanitarian duties and had the competence to implement them. likewise, raising free individuals who do not obey blindly, do not hesitate to express their opinions, do question and do research were among the aims of the curriculum. in other words, children who have completed five years of education were expected to be individuals who have universal and national values, are aware of their social responsibilities, put the interests of society before their personal interests when necessary, and have developed problem-solving skills. in addition, raising well-nourished and healthy generations was also among the goals of the republican administration. as a matter of fact, atatürk stated this goal in a speech as it follows: “the health, strength and robustness of the nation, its youth and children is a very important health issue that the state should undertake” (tbmm zabıt ceridesi, 1935, p. 25). 24 ressat 2022, 7(2): 1-26 furthermore, since healthy generations could only grow up in a healthy environment, issues related to these matters were included in the curriculum of citizenship education. moreover, one of the areas targeted by the administration of the republic in citizenship education was the field of economy. it is aimed to raise citizens who comply with the economic measures taken, contribute to the development of the country’s economy and have economic consciousness. important developments such as the establishment of i̇şbank in the first years of the republic (1924), the abolition of the aşar [tithe] tax (1925), the establishment of the turkish industry and mining bank (1925) and the enactment of industry encouragement law (1926) were carried out in parallel to these economic goals in citizenship education. additionally, the abolition of the capitulations and the duyun-ı umûmiyye [general debts] administration, which would restore the economic independence of the country, were developments that are directly related to the increase in economic awareness. furthermore, in the first years of the republic, the state aimed to raise obedient/passive citizens. as a matter of fact, in this period, a good citizen is generally defined as a law-abiding, obedient citizen. additionally, the new state struggled both to prevent reactions and to ensure that the people adopted the new regime, and to raise new generations with an understanding of the importance of the republic. for this reason, the form of government and the concepts related to it were included intensively in the citizenship education course. on the other hand, the society gained new rights in many areas during the republican period as well. the rights brought by the republic in the concerned course were freedom, equality, protection, conscience, contemplation, theology, publication, travel, contract, labor and deeds, appropriation and savings, association, society, company rights and freedoms, right of choice and its importance. ultimately, atatürk aimed to transform the society in line with the republican ideology. in this respect, a unitary nation integrated with western civilization, civilized, secular, valuing science, having a positivist perspective had been desired to be built (gioretti and batır, 2008). in fact, the book “contemporary information for citizens”, which atatürk would later have afet i̇nan write in 1931, within the framework of this understanding of citizenship, was also a product of his efforts to build a modern, unitary nation. last but not least, important steps had been taken towards transforming the turkish society into a self-governing citizen community that is free from the status of a servant, whose rights are guaranteed by the constitution. the 1924 primary education curriculum and the musâhabât-ı ahlâkiyye & mâlumât-ı vataniye course made a critical contribution to this perspective as well. 25 ressat 2022, 7(2): 1-26 references akyüz, y. 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(2017). history and education: perceptions, changes and continuities during early turkish republic (1st edition). libra books and publishing: i̇stanbul. research in social sciences and technology https://ressat.org e-issn: 2468-6891 volume: 8 issue: 2 2023 pp. 101-115 social studies and social media: status among k-12 tennessee teachers before covid joshua kenna*a & matthew hensleyb * corresponding author email: jkenna@utk.edu a. university of tennessee, usa b. east tennessee state university, usa article info received: march 2, 2023 accepted: april 18, 2023 published: may 5, 2023 how to cite kenna, j. & hensley, m. (2023). social studies and social media: status among k-12 tennessee teachers before covid. research in social sciences and technology, 8(2), 101-115 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2023.14 copyright license this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (cc by 4.0). abstract technology integration has received a significant amount of money from the budgets of schools in the united states, even prior to covid-19. social media as an instructional tool was also receiving growing attention. however, since covid-19 it seems that there is an even larger shift in the calls to use social media. the purpose of this survey study was to report k-12 tennessee social studies teachers’ self-reported social media use just prior to the covid-19. moreover, we compared teachers’ use of social media based on geography, grade level and teaching experience. findings suggest that teachers rarely used social media in their teaching; however, statistically significant findings were discovered based on teaching experience. keywords social media; social studies; tennessee; web 2.0 10.46303/ ressat.2023.14 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2023.14 102 ressat 2023, 8(2): 101-115 introduction the origins of the term “social media” is often thought to occur sometime in the early or mid1990s, and many who claim to first use the phrase were often part of aol, or america online (bercovici, 2010). the concept of utilizing technology to find and establish social networks; however, has roots dating back to the late 1960s or early 1970s with bulletin board services (shah, 2016). still, the explosion of social media and social networks began in the late 1990s with a shift in how the internet engaged users; that is, it pivoted towards a system that actively encouraged users to provide content rather than simply consume content. in 1999, darci dinucci referred to this shift as web 2.0 in an article titled “fragmented future”. to be clear, web 2.0 does not refer to specific technological upgrades to the internet; though, technological upgrades such as smartphones enhanced web 2.0 capabilities. in 2005, the pew research center (2021) began tracking social media adoption, which equated to 5% of the u.s. adult population, or nearly 11 million individuals. fast forward some two decades and the world of social media and social networks is seemingly inescapable for the average u.s. adult. in fact, according to the pew research center’s most recent data in 2021, 72% of the u.s. adult population, or approximately 186 million adults, utilize at least one social media site. researchers in a plethora of fields, including educational researchers began to study and publish works related to social media and social networks. generally, two camps of publications began to emerge. the first camp focused on sharing practical ways in which to utilize social media as a teaching and learning tool (chapman, 2019; gleason & von gillern, 2018; greenhow & chapman, 2020; greenhow et al., 2020). the second camp began to study how educators can and do use social media for forms of formal and/or informal professional development (carpenter & krutka, 2014; visser et al., 2014; trust et al., 2016). more recently, education scholarship has extended investigations of social media use in education by examining the impacts of social media on pre-service teachers in epp programs (carpenter et al., 2023). today, thanks to a host of technological advancements and application developments, what qualifies as social media has expanded beyond the likes of facebook and twitter — although they are still wildly popular. in fact, many would argue that cloud services such as google drive and sharepoint, have developed into a form of social media. learning management systems such as canvas and blackboard have also adapted social media elements. moreover, as a result of the global pandemic — covid-19 — many technological and social media brands exploded in 2020 including zoom and tiktok, respectively. as with all trends, researchers best understand them when there is a baseline of data, which leads to the purpose of this study. through a serendipitous event, we collected comprehensive data from 169 tennessee k-12 social studies teachers for a larger study in the late fall of 2019, just prior to the word covid-19 joining the worlds’ collective lexicon. a small subset of the data collected relates to teachers' technology and social media instruction. though the data may seem ancient in technology years, it provides a simple snapshot of what social 103 ressat 2023, 8(2): 101-115 media instruction looked like prior to the pandemic thus allowing us to establish a baseline. among the questions the current study sought to examine were: • what percentage of k-12 tennessee social studies teachers utilize social media prior to covid-19? • is there a statistically significant difference in social media instruction based on geography, grade level, or teaching experience. literature review digital technology has certainly transformed the field of education, particularly with the advent of mobile devices and widespread availability of broadband internet access. since its inception, teachers have used the internet to curate materials, find lesson activities, and research content to supplement their teaching (culp et al., 2005). at the turn of the 21st century, web 2.0 ushered in a new era of interactive digital technologies that extended teachers’ use of the internet beyond merely retrieving information, which was typical for most web 1.0 technologies (pan & franklin, 2011). web 2.0 technologies emphasize user-generated content and social networking through web-based tools like blogs, wikis, videos, podcasts, collaborative platforms (e.g., google applications), learning management systems (e.g., canvas), and social media platforms (pan & franklin, 2011). for over two decades, web 2.0 technologies have continued to emerge and evolve, opening up new possibilities for teachers and students, namely by making both teaching and learning more interactive, collaborative, and globally connected. in the years prior to the covid-19 pandemic, technology adoption and integration in public schools across the united states varied; however, there was a general upward trend in access to mobile technology devices (cuban, 2009; leachman & mai, 2014; rizzo, 2013). indeed, this trend can be partly attributed to a combination of both 1:1 (one-to-one) technology programs, as well as and bring your own device (byod) policies in k-12 schools (rizzo, 2013; williams, 2014). though education scholarship supported the integration of mobile technology to promote 21st century skills and prepare students with salient digital competencies to navigate the increasingly digital world, teachers generally struggled with effective and meaningful technology integration. for instance, ertmer et al. (2012) highlight several barriers that stymied teachers technology integration including, school infrastructure and professional development, as well as teacher self-efficacy related to technology integration. further, research from molebash (2004), dawley et al. (2010) and kennedy and archambault (2012) posit that many education preparation programs (epp) programs across the united states insufficiently trained pre-service teachers to have integrated knowledge of content, pedagogy, and technology. furthermore, less than 2% of epps offered virtual clinical experiences that required extensive technology application and integration to support students learning (dawley et al., 2010). in the state of tennessee, technology adoption and integration in k-12 schools prior to the covid-19 pandemic, was thought to largely mirror national trends. many school districts across the state instituted 1:1 technology initiatives, increasing student access to laptops and 104 ressat 2023, 8(2): 101-115 tablets in the classroom (aldrich, 2018). in 2014, the tennessee department of education launched a personalized learning task force that aimed to explore and pilot initiatives to support personalized learning for tennessee students, which included blended and online learning models (tdoe, 2016). however, some school districts faced challenges with effectively integrating technology largely due to a lack of funding and access to broadband internet (tdoe, 2016). in regard to the former, school districts struggled to regularly maintain and update instructional technology hardware and software. as a result, these school districts were likely using outdated technology and/or relied heavily on the teachers and students to provide their own technology for the classroom. in regard to the latter, many school districts, particularly in rural areas suffered from a lack of sufficient internet connectivity. according to a 2019 pew research report, approximately 274,000 tennesseans had no wired internet providers where they lived and approximately 492,000 tennesseans did not have wired internet access capable of 25mbps download speeds (pew research center, 2019). social media integration in schools prior to covid-19 among the bevy of web 2.0 tools used by educators prior to the covid-19 pandemic, the uptake of social media is certainly noteworthy. social media integration in k-12 schools across the united states prior to the covid-19 pandemic varied significantly, depending largely on policies issued by individual schools and districts (greenhow & chapman, 2020; greenhow et al., 2020). education scholarship supports that teachers were using social media for a variety of purposes, supplementing professional learning (carpenter & krutka, 2014; visser et al., 2014; trust et al., 2016) and pedagogical practice (chapman, 2019; greenhow & chapman, 2020; greenhow et al., 2020). in a quantitative study, carpenter & krutka (2014) surveyed 755 k-16 educators in an attempt to better understand the role of twitter in education. findings from their study indicated that teachers largely used the social media platform to assuage the feeling of isolation, and also described their experiences using twitter to be “superior to traditional professional development.” (pg. 414). findings from a mixed methods study by visser et al., (2014) concurred with carpenter & krutka (2014), indicating that teachers highly valued social media as a form of professional development, namely for its interactive and self-directed nature. likewise, teachers also recognized the benefits of integrating social media into their pedagogical repertoires, specifically to promote active learning, community building, and civic participation (greenhow & chapman, 2020). for instance, thibaut (2015) reported findings from a case study of middle schoolers using edmodo, indicating that the platform enabled students to critically evaluate writing. in another study, batsila and tsihouridis (2016) found that using social media for digital storytelling projects had positive impacts on students' reading and writing skills, while also boosting their self-confidence. scholarship by chapman (2019) concurs with gleason and von gillern (2018) and kenna and hensley (2019) that social media has the potential to augment civics education by nurturing student agency to participate in civic life. specifically, chapman’s (2019) phenomenological study indicated that students using social 105 ressat 2023, 8(2): 101-115 media were able to use social media to find, share, and engage with news media, as well as connect and engage with community members and elected officials. current education research on social media the covid-19 pandemic forced schools to abruptly transition to hybrid and fully virtual models of teaching and learning. the shift highlighted the critical role of digital technology and social media in particular. since the pandemic, education scholarship continues to explore the impact of social media on professional learning, pedagogical practice, as well as teacher education. for instance, aguilar et al. (2021) report findings from a longitudinal study that indicate notable shifts in teachers’ social media use after the pandemic, namely that teachers were more likely to connect and share. in a general review, greenhow and chapman (2020) highlighted challenges that teachers should be mindful of when using social media with k-12 students, such as commercialization, privacy, and norms. further, carpenter et al. (2023) investigated preservice teachers’ use of social media by examining nearly 49,000 tweets. findings from this study suggest that the use of social media by pre-service teachers affords several opportunities for pre-service teachers to strengthen their professional learning networks (plns) before entering the field. as education scholars continue examining trends in social media use, it is critical to note that “changes in teachers’ social media use in response to the [covid-19] pandemic lends insight into the needs that they were expressing at that time” (aguilar et al., 2021, p.11). thus, our study aims to contribute a baseline of data related to teachers’ social media use prior to the covid-19 pandemic, which will hopefully support more sophisticated understandings of the trends examined in the future. theoretical framework technological pedagogical content knowledge (tpack) served as the theoretical framework for our study (koehler & mishra, 2009; mishra & koehler, 2006). tpack extends the work of shulman (1986) who posited that effective instruction requires the teacher to have a synergistic understanding of their content knowledge and pedagogical knowledge, with technological knowledge also playing a critical role (koehler & mishra, 2009; mishra & koehler, 2006). tpack was an appropriate framework to guide our study as it enabled us to purposefully examine k12 tennessee social studies teachers’ social media instruction, particularly at the intersections of pedagogical content knowledge, technological content knowledge, and technological pedagogical knowledge that emerged from the data. 106 ressat 2023, 8(2): 101-115 figure 1. tpack theoretical framework http://tpack.org methodology population and sampling in order to gather the necessary quantitative data to answer the research questions above, we utilized a survey research design. the survey was designed for a larger study that sought to understand the status of social studies in the state. therefore, the population of this study included all elementary teachers and secondary social studies teachers in the state of tennessee. according to the national center for educational statistics, tennessee had approximately 58,000 public school teachers in 2018 (national center for educational statistics, 2018). although this number includes teachers outside of our criteria, we ascertained a conservative estimation of about 42,000 teachers, which is a large number for statistical surveys. thus, the sample size needed for this study was calculated to be approximately 150 teachers, given a margin of error of 10% (conroy, 2018). given the parameters around technological infrastructure around the state of tennessee, we also sought to utilize a multistage clustering sample, which involved first selecting clusters (i.e., schools) and then selecting individuals (i.e. teachers) (gall et al., 2003). we clustered schools based on their geographic categorization, as identified by the national center for educational statistics — rural, town, suburban, and urban. then we located teachers within those schools. employing the national center for educational statistic’s common core of data, a proportional total of schools was randomly selected from each cluster, which equated to a total of 227 schools (rural = 57, town = 39, suburban = 47, and urban = 84). then we visited each 107 ressat 2023, 8(2): 101-115 school’s public website to select teachers. in total, 1,443 teachers were invited to participate via email in the fall of 2019, using the tailored-design method (dillman et al., 2009). there were 169 participants who provided usable responses; although it was roughly a 12% response rate, it surpassed the number needed for the sampling requirements. see table 1 for a description of the demographics of the population sample. table 1. demographics of the population sample gender 169 female 85 male 19 choose not to disclose 65 grade level 169 pk-3 71 3-5 37 6-8 31 9-12 30 geographic location 169 rural 25 town 27 suburban 45 urban 72 instrumentation this study utilized fitchett and vanfossen’s (2013) survey of the status of social studies, which they reported to have a high internal consistency reliability estimate across the three-grade level-specific domains based as indicated by cronbach’s alpha (α) coefficients: elementary (α = 0.84), middle (α = 0.81), and high school levels (α = 0.93). the online survey was sent to participants in the fall of 2019. participants were given 8 weeks to complete the survey and received reminders every two weeks. the survey questions are organized into eight sections: 1) school type and organization, 2) instructional practices, 3) technology 4) attitudes, 5) administration, 6) professional development, 7) students, and 8) demographics. the instrument utilized logic-sequencing based on responses. that is, if a respondent indicated they were an elementary teacher it would lead them to a different set of follow up questions than if they indicated that they were a middle or high school teacher. however, every teacher was asked the same amount of questions. this particular study only utilized demographic data and self-reported data from the technology portion of the survey. there were likert-style questions related to technology and internet access. plus, questions that asked teachers to estimate the frequency in which they utilized learning management systems and web 2.0 tools. 108 ressat 2023, 8(2): 101-115 data analysis we utilized descriptive as well as inferential statistics. more specifically, we determined that the data was not evenly distributed. therefore, we ran kruskal wallis tests because it is a nonparametric method for testing two or more independent variables (stevens, 2007). additionally, we ran a spearman rank-order correlation test. findings percentage and correlation of social media use of the 169 participants that responded to the survey, a 100 (59%) self-reported that they utilized learning management systems such as canvas, blackboard, or google classroom in their teaching. fifteen percent of the teachers (n = 26) noted that they used it with regular frequency (1-2 times per day) and nearly 9% of teachers (n = 15) indicated that they used it daily. conversely, 69 (41%) respondents reported that they did not utilize any learning management systems in their teaching. when it came to web 2.0 utilization (e.g., facebook, twitter, blogs, etc.…), only 38 (22%) teachers indicated that they used it at all. unlike with learning management systems, no teachers indicated daily use and only 6 teachers (3%) reported that they used it frequently (1-2 times per week). a whopping 131 teachers (76%) reported that they never used social media as a part of their teaching. figure 2 shows a more detailed report of the findings, and it also reveals that teacher self-reported use of social media was not normally distributed. figure 2. k-12 tennessee social studies teachers’ self-reported social media use given that we are including learning management systems and web 2.0 technologies as social media use, we also ran a spearman rank-order correlation test between teachers’ self-reported use of learning management systems and web 2.0 technologies. the test revealed that there was a positive correlation between the two technologies, which was statistically significant (rs (167) = .301, p = < .001). teaching experience and social media use 109 ressat 2023, 8(2): 101-115 the participants’ teaching experience ranged from 0 to 40 years. the mode was 19 years (n = 8) and 20 years (n= 8), respectively. while the mean teaching experience was16 years and the median years of teaching experience was 20 years. the participants’ responses were categorized into five groups: (a) 0 – 4 years (n = 17), (b) 5 – 10 years (n = 24), (c) 11 – 19 years (n = 37), (d) 20 – 29 years (n = 41), and (e) 30 plus years (n = 9). since teachers’ social media use was not normally distributed and we had five independent variables. the kruskal wallis test. revealed that there was a statistically significant difference in mean rank based on their years of teaching experience (x2 = 10.81, df = 4, p = .029). a pairwise comparison showed that the mean rank of teachers with 5-10 years of teaching experience (mr = 77.9) was significantly higher than three groups: 0-4 years (mr = 59), 11-19 years (mr = 60.64) and 20-29 years (mr = 60.17). surprisingly, there was no statistically significant difference with teachers in the 30 plus years group (mr = 74.78). see table 2 for an overview. table 2. overview of teaching experience teaching experience number mean rank 0-4 years 17 59.0 5-10 years 24 77.9 11-19 years 37 60.64 20-29 years 41 60.17 30 or more years 9 74.78 unknown 41 total 169 66.50 grade level and social media use we asked participants to categorize themselves into four grade level bands: pk-3rd grade (n = 71), 3rd – 5thgrade (n = 37), 6th – 8th grade (n = 31), and 9th -12th grade (n = 30). the kruskal wallis test indicated that there was no statistically significant difference in mean rank based on the grade level (x2 = 2.68, df = 3, p > .05). the mean ranks of the four groups were as follows: pk-3rd grade (mr = 86.8), 3rd 5th grade (mr = 76.77), 6th – 8th grade (mr = 89.5) and 9th – 12th grade (mr = 86.25). see table 3 for an overview. table 3. overview of grade level grade level number mean rank pk-3 grade 71 86.8 3-5 grade 37 76.77 6-8 grade 31 89.5 9-12 grade 30 86.25 total 169 84.83 geography and social media use 110 ressat 2023, 8(2): 101-115 participants were categorized into four geographic regions (i.e., rural, town, suburban, and urban) based on the national center for educational statistics. in total, 25 teachers were labeled as working in rural schools, 27 in town schools, 45 in suburban schools and 72 in urban schools. the kruskal wallis tests signified that there was no statistically significant difference in mean rank based on teachers’ geography (x2 = 3.02, df = 3, p > .05). the mean ranks of the four groups were as followed: rural teachers (mr = 90.3), town teachers (mr = 84.48), suburban teachers (mr = 90.41) and urban teachers (mr = 79.97). additionally, according to teacher’s selfreporting there was no statistically significant difference between their access to computers and internet connectivity based on geography (x2 = 2.68, df = 3, p > .05) or grade level (x2 = 1.81, df = 3, p > .05). see table 4 for an overview. table 4. overview of grade level geographic location number mean rank rural 25 90.3 town 27 84.48 suburban 45 90.41 urban 72 79.97 total 169 86.29 discussion percentage and correlation of social media use the data came from a larger study where we set out to explore the status of social studies in tennessee; however, when combined with the events of 2020, we realized the value this data has in establishing a benchmark of teachers’ social media utilization just prior to covid. the results that 59% of k-12 social studies teachers in tennessee utilized some learning management services and 22% utilized some web 2.0 technologies may not come as a surprise to those who have been entrenched in the field. afterall, learning management systems have been promoted and advertised for years leading up to 2020. additionally, the literature advocating for the use of social media at that time was often sparse and idealistic (waters & hensley, 2020). perhaps the most telling finding was to see that there was a statistically significant positive correlation between teachers' self-reported use of learning management systems and web 2.0 technologies. that is, teachers who utilized learning management systems more frequently also tended to utilize web 2.0 technologies. given the increased utilization of online teaching shortly after the onset of covid, it would be of particular interest to see if this correlation still holds true today after most restrictions have been lifted. if it does not, can we expect it to ever come back? if so, when? finally, what reasons might there be for this positive correlation? is it due to teachers’ comfort level with technology or could there be other reasons? social media use based on teaching experience, grade level, and geography 111 ressat 2023, 8(2): 101-115 the fact that there was no statistically significant difference in k-12 tennessee social studies teachers’ use of social media based on geography or grade level is a bit surprising. afterall, most of the literature leading up to the 2019 year indicated that rural teachers had access to fewer technology resources and slower internet bandwidth. however, the findings are seemingly more indicative to a rather small usage of social media for instructional purposes than it is to teachers’ relative technological resources. for what it's worth, we asked teachers to self-report about their technological resources and access to internet connectivity and there was no statistically significant difference based on geography or grade level. the one area that we did find statistically significant difference was with teachers’ years of experience. we grouped teachers into five groups. it is important to explain the grouping, as this can alter the statistical findings. the first group was organized with teachers who identified as having the 0-4 years of teaching experience. these are beginning teachers. we created it because the first five years are often referred to as the “surviving years”. the next grouping was 5-10 years, and these years are often the proofing years. these individuals begin to perfect their craft but are still malleable enough to adopt new pedagogical practices. the next grouping was 11-19 years; these teachers are often set to complete their entire professional lives as teachers, and they can begin to be labeled as veteran educators. the fourth and fifth groups are teachers with 20-29 and 30-plus years of experience, respectively. both groups are clearly veterans, but they have enough of a difference between them to warrant a separate categorization. the findings indicated that teachers with 5-10 years of experience utilized social media more frequently as part of their instruction than any other group with the exception of teachers with 30 plus years of experience. however, teachers with 30 plus years of experience had no statistically significant difference with any other group. the findings seem to uphold the idea that beginning teachers are still learning the craft and thus are perhaps not comfortable enough to use social media with their students. moreover, teachers with 11-19 and 20-29 are clearly veterans who have developed their way of teaching, which has often not included social media. what was most peculiar is that there was no statistically significant difference between teachers with 5-10 and 30-plus years of experience. the only speculative conclusion we could account for was that older teachers may know they are disconnected from youth and must go out of their way to connect. again, that is merely a speculation, and more research is needed to confirm it. the small sample size may also play a role. limitations of study there were several limitations within this study, as is the case with any research study. the following list of limitations is offered to readers so that they can have a more complete picture of this research study. the data is reflective of k-12 public school teachers from one state. therefore, the results of this study may not be generalizable to teachers outside of that state. all the data used in this study is self-reported. for that reason, all the results were limited by the honesty and reliability of the participants who provided information from this study. conclusions 112 ressat 2023, 8(2): 101-115 according to a tpack framework, teachers ought to have a synergistic understanding of their content knowledge and pedagogical knowledge, with technological knowledge also playing a critical role. while teachers can develop a tpack framework without utilizing social media, the covid-19 pandemic indicated how important social media presence really is within a teachers’ technology knowledge (greenhow & chapman, 2020; greenhow et al., 2020). with this in mind, our study indicated that very few k-12 tennessee social studies teachers had a strong understanding on how to utilize social media within their instruction. however, we did learn that a small subset of relatively young teachers (i.e., 5-10 years) used social media with a higher frequency than their counterparts; albeit, they still had a relatively low mean-rank score (mr = 77.9). further research is needed to determine if there have been any significant changes in k12 tennessee social studies teachers’ use of social media as an instructional tool. moreover, future studies can collect more detailed quantitative and qualitative data about teachers’ social media usage with students. while there are certainly many challenges a teacher 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(2014). one-to-one computing and student achievement in ohio high schools [doctoral dissertation, youngstown state university]. ohiolink electronic theses and dissertations center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ysu1411474599 https://nces.ed.gov/pubs2020/2020009.pdf https://doi.org/10.1080/15391523.2014.925694 https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.05.03.2 http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ysu1411474599 research in social sciences and technology https://ressat.org e-issn: 2468-6891 volume: 8 issue: 3 2023 pp. 67-88 the impact of covid-19 on academic practice: a dilemma-driven selfstudy inquiry at an institution of higher learning tholani tshumaa a. mathematics & natural sciences department, walter sisulu university, mthatha, south africa email: ttshuma@wsu.ac.za article info received: february 23, 2023 accepted: june 11, 2023 published: august 12, 2023 how to cite tshuma, t. (2023). the impact of covid19 on academic practice: a dilemmadriven self-study inquiry at an institution of higher learning. research in social sciences and technology, 8(3), 67-88. https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2023.21 copyright license this is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution 4.0 international license (cc by 4.0). abstract this inquiry was a dilemma-driven, object-inquiry self-study. the study followed visual methodologies in unpacking the impact of covid-19 on the practices of a practitioner at a rural university. during the covid-19 pandemic, i was becoming increasingly dissatisfied with my daily practice as an academic because i struggled to locate my footing in what has been dubbed the ‘new normal’ about online student teaching and assessment. in my bid to investigate the dissatisfactions i faced due to covid-19, i followed the self-study methodology, which entailed my engagement in reflexivity cycles, and feedback from critical friends. my critical friends played a crucial validation role during my data collection, analysis, and drawing of conclusions from multiple data forms that included journal entries and discussions with others. the collected data was thematically and analyzed from deductive to inductive perspective through the process of coding. this inquiry established that the outbreak of covid-19 led to dilemmas of practice that stemmed from my being deskilled, techno and covid-phobic; poor individual adaptability; inadequate tpkc; and the shortcomings of working as an isolated silo. it emerged that these dilemmas of practice escalated into professional traumas through working in isolated silos in virtual platforms. thus, through making our challenges of practice public, we tend to benefit from the pool of probing expertise of others. whilst the advent of covid-19 posed unwelcome professional traumas, it was through the probing power of ‘the second voice’ that the over-shadowed professional growth opportunities in this pandemic induced ‘new normal’ was unveiled. keywords self-study; professional growth; dilemmas; covid-19; professional traumas. 10.46303/ ressat.2023.21 mailto:ttshuma@wsu.ac.za https://doi.org/10.46303/ressat.2023.21 68 tshuma, t. ressat 2023, 8(3): 67-88 introduction empirical evidence supports that as one’s job experience increases, one’s on-the-job knowledge also becomes enriched (e.g. schmidt, et al., 1986; huie, et al., 2020). over the years, i had become progressively satisfied with my daily practice as a university lecturer and research academic. i used to get a standing ovation from my students after a live lecture session as they showed appreciation by clapping their hands. at the end of each academic year, i would also hand out evaluation tools for the students to evaluate my practice anonymously. the positive students’ comments by the majority of my students helped me to consolidate those good practices that maximized learning. over the years, the number of negative comments from students’ anonymous evaluations of my teaching decreased to a minimum. furthermore, during research workshops for upcoming fellow researchers, supervisors, and post-graduate students organized by the university, i also got positive feedback on my live presentations as one of the keynote facilitators. after the advent of covid-19, the job knowing that i had accumulated over the years, seeming changed. in today’s fast-paced changing work environment, the competency of a worker to adjust successfully to a changing work context or the ‘individual adaptability’ is crucial for one to remain functional in a given workspace (van dam, 2005). in my work situation, after the advent of covid-19, i could see that something was wrong but had no idea what it was and why. the students were a) not motivated to attend my classes, b) displayed poor attendance, c) performed poorly in given tests and examinations, and d) their class participation dropped to being mere passive recipients during the course of my online lecturing. in a bid to enhance my ‘individual adaptability’ (van dam, 2005) during the covid-19 era, i envisaged the need to identify the dissatisfactions and problematic issues i was encountering in my practice. thus, to help me probe issues beyond my limitations and biases, i sought to engage in cycles of reflexivity, discussions with, and feedback from critical friends (samaras, 2011). the purpose of this investigation was therefore to identify and understand those shortcomings that led to my dissatisfactions in my practice using the methodology of self-study through the technique of object inquiry (samaras, 2011). two research questions guided this inquiry: a) what are the dilemmas of practice that i face due to covid-19 at an institution of higher learning? b) how has the advent of covid-19 impacted my practice as a practitioner at an institution of higher learning? reviewed literature and the conceptual/theoretical framework whilst the world has experienced many global pandemics such as the h1 n1 and spanish flu, covid-19 has broken all known records because of its highly contagious and deadly nature (ali, 2020; sahu, 2020). the disease was declared a global pandemic in march 2020 by the world health organization (who, 2020) after it was detected in china in 2019 and quickly crossed multiple national boundaries. globally, as of 7 march 2022, 6 021 743 people had died from covid-19 and 446 825 709 people have been infected. as part of the global space, south africa 69 ressat 2023, 8(3): 67-88 has its growing statistics: 99 543 people have died from the pandemic from 3 684 319 infections as of 7 march 2022 (worldometer, 2022). covid-19, because of its highly contagious nature, has imposed various adjustments to our day-in and day-out life experiences (agrawal, 2021). for instance, public gatherings and face-to-face meetings are occasionally banned around the world (agrawal, 2021). furthermore, sporadic institutions of learning and business premises closures by governments around the globe in an attempt to curtail the rapid spread of the disease have been alluded to by various scholars (e.g. drane, vernon, & o’shea, 2020; mandikiana, 2020; sibanda & mathwasa, 2021). the world bank (2020) also raised the alarm that the covid-19 pandemic had led to massive educational systems disruptions at the global level because 1.6 billion students around the world have been negatively affected. furthermore, the covid-19 pandemic has negatively affected the normal operations and functioning of over 94% of the world’s institutions of learning worldwide (unicef, 2021). in their quest to ensure continuity in the daily life operations that entailed public gatherings, many countries globally adopted online means of engagement in everyday life and educational institutions (dube et al., 2022; etane et al., 2020). most institutions of learning across the world have resorted to the use of virtual platforms for administrative work and teaching. this has been dubbed the ‘new normal’ way of doing things because covid-19 is here to stay (emanuel et al., 2022). thus, in educational setups, ‘covid-19 forced to transform the face-to-face mode of teaching to virtual in educational institutions around the globe that not only impact institutional stakeholder but also posed a threat to entire humanity becaus all parties related to education had to change their activities’ (hosen, et al., 2022). furthermore, whilst some scholars argue that real change takes place in a deep crisis (e.g. schleicher, 2012), questions arise about how prepared are we and to what extent can we easily adapt to this inevitable ‘new normal’ as institutions and individuals. theoretical/ conceptual framework for this investigation given the complexity and uniqueness of each social sciences research (abd-el-khalick & akerson, 2007), i could not locate a single existing theoretical framework for use in this inquiry. thus, i had to use a framework that is 'home-grown' or conceptual framework (personal integration of concepts) instead of one that is already there or 'off-the-shelf' (antonenko, 2014) to overcome this complexity. i subscribe to the notion of a conceptual framework: "…as a visual representation of the structure of the study and its alignment with the relevant theoretical foundations. according to this view, a conceptual framework is a figure, typically presented as a concept map that summarizes all key information presented in the literature review of the study" (antoneko, 2014, p. 3). the different constructs that constitute the conceptual framework for this investigation are discussed next and diagrammatically represented in figure 1 below. critical friends self-studies are not individual ventures but include critical friends (samaras, 2011). critical friends are trusted peers who appreciate the value of the self-study inquiry not only to 70 tshuma, t. ressat 2023, 8(3): 67-88 themselves, but also to the individual self-study scholar and the knowledge base for practice (shuck & russell, 2006). in this inquiry, to bring divergent views, my critical friends were drawn from different faculties (i.e. library services, languages, medicine, anthropology, political studies, consumer sciences, natural sciences, and educational sciences). these critical friends played a crucial validation role in this practitioner inquiry. practitioner inquiries according to samaras (2011), teacher inquiry, action research, reflective practice, a self-study constitute what is termed 'practitioner inquiries'. in this inquiry, my understanding of these earlier teacher research works (discussed next) shaped the self-study research methodology i followed. teacher inquiry a paradigm shift in the way research on teachers has been done is evident in the research landscape, with teachers being placed as inactive subjects in the 1970s (borko et. al, 1979), to include the teachers' voice by involving them in the research about their practice (clark & yinger, 1979). thus, by involving the teachers in the research about their practice, "… teacher research gained new standing because of its potential to lessen the divide between theory and practice, on the one hand, and contribute needed insider perspective to the knowledge base about teaching and learning" (cochran-smith & lytle, 2004 p. 603). this inquiry drew insights from the teacher inquiry methodology as it sets aside the use of external 'experts,' to investigate concerns arising from my practice, but it called for me to investigate dissatisfactions arising from my practice. reflective practice loughran and northfield (1998, p. 15) point out that'… reflection is a personal process of thinking, refining, reframing and developing actions. the reflective practice goes beyond mere reflection because practitioners investigate their practice through reflexivity to the extent that reflection takes center stage in steering the direction of professional practice (ciriello, et al., 1992). this self-study drew insights from reflective practice in that cognitive practices such as metacognition or thinking about thinking (flavell, 1979) were crucial in generating insights for understanding my practice. action research action research is a practitioner inquiry that aims to solve problems in workplaces (samaras, 2011) because it is a '… disciplined process of inquiry conducted by and for those taking the action. the primary reason for engaging in action research is to assist the 'actor' in improving and/or refining his or her actions' (sagor, 2000, p. 7). action research is different from self-study in that it does not place any particular focus on the change of the 'self' but it rather emphasizes changes in workplace problems (samaras, 2011). furthermore, whilst action research aims at solving work-related problems through continuous cycles of actions and evaluations, a self-study does not necessarily focus on providing solutions to general work problems, but to generate insights to ‘… understand and improve teachers’ work 71 ressat 2023, 8(3): 67-88 as professionals, impact students' learning, inform education and school programs, influence policy decisions, and reform education" (samaras, 2011p. 11). however, this self-study drew insights from the action research approach in that the practitioner (me in this instance) is the researcher on my practice as opposed to having external experts investigating my dissatisfactions. figure 1 a conceptual framework for the study self-study self-study scholars do not seem to agree on a precise definition of what self-study entails. samaras (2011, p. 9), brings this to light: '... we as a community of self-study scholars have struggled to capture a definition of self-study although there has been more agreement about why self-study is important and what it entails (i.e. its characteristics and methodological components)'. given this complexity, i will briefly discuss what self-study entails in my quest to bring about a clearer view of this self-study. samaras (2011), points out that a self-study entails the following aspects: on my teaching influences my influenced how i conducted content for teaching p ra ct it io n e r in q u ir ie s ideas on reflective practice is essential for understanding ideas on teacher inquiry ideas on action research object inquiry vygotskian approach indicates their acquisition of reflexivity influences my influences how i teach self-directed learning researcher actions my selfstudy shapes the collaborative inquiry during teacher practice collaborative inquiry influences how i teach influences informs t e a ch in g influences my influences pedagogical action and reasoning influences my influences my social constructivism critical friends 72 tshuma, t. ressat 2023, 8(3): 67-88 "personal situated inquiry": a self-study is a personal situated inquiry as it arises directly from the practitioners' experiences in their works’ spaces (samaras, 2011). thus, the ‘… self is intimately involved and entangled in the inquiry’ (pinnegar & hamilton, 2011, p. 346). this inquiry was a personal situated inquiry as it arose from dissatisfactions i experienced in my practice. "critical collaborative inquiry": collaboration occurs when practitioners get engrossed mutually together as researchers on issues related to their practice (kaser & halbert, 2014). the collaborative inquiry becomes critical when it brings about new insights as researchers reflect on their practices in the context of critical feedback from each other (samaras, 2011). this study was a critical collaborative inquiry as it involved the researcher opening up for feedback from critical friends. "improved learning": by engaging in self-studies, practitioners not only improve their professional knowledge (glennie & cosier, 1994), but the new professional knowledge generated enhances student learning, informs and shapes the body of wide teacher education and also influences policy-making (samaras, 2011). this is because publicizing self-study research proceedings and outcomes helps in critiquing individual teacher research by other scholars, which in turn validates and builds on research-based practices (samaras, 2011). "a transparent and systematic research process": samaras (2011, p. 11), points out that a selfstudy "… is a transparent and systematic research process requiring an open, honest, and clear description of the spiral of questioning, framing, a revisiting of data, and reframing of a researcher's interpretations". thus, as the self-study unfolds, there are no hidden secrets because researchers open up their thinking and views for scrutiny and critique by others (pinnegar & hamilton, 2011), in their self-directed learning. self-directed learning this self-study, because it emanated from my inner drive to address professional dissatisfactions arising from my daily practice during covid-19, has aspects of what other scholars term ‘selfdirected learning’ (e.g. knowles, 1975). self-directed learning is a process: … in which individuals take the initiative, with or without the help of others, in diagnosing their learning needs, formulating learning goals, identifying human and material resources for learning, choosing and implementing appropriate learning strategies, and evaluating learning outcomes (knowles, 1975, p. 18). the rationale for engaging in this self-study is that empirical evidence shows that people who take the initiative to learn (proactive learners) learn better and even more things than those who sit passively and wait to be taught by others (reactive learners). furthermore, because proactive people enter into learning spaces with greater motivation and with a sense of purpose, they ‘tend to retain and make use of what they learn better and longer than do the reactive learners.’ (knowles, 1975, p. 14). this explains the rationale for my investigating my practice in the collaborative company of others, rather than waiting for ‘experts’ to do that for me and then to keep me updated with the problematic issues with my practice. 73 ressat 2023, 8(3): 67-88 social constructivism (zptd) self-studies are based on vygotsky's social constructivism of knowledge (samaras, 2011). the sociocultural perspective is rooted in the premise that social interactions are crucial for cognitive growth and effective learning. this is due to the idea that every individual's "… cultural development appears twice: first, on the social level, and later, on the individual level; first, between people (inter-psychological) and then inside … (intra-psychological)" (vygotsky, 1978, p. 57). thus, because every individual is prone to learning as an active participant in the company of the informed others (vygotsky, 1978), this inquiry was conducted in the company of others. the role of the informed others was "… to provide the setting, pose challenges and offer the support that will encourage…. construction" of new knowledge (davis, et al., 1990, p. 3) about issues related to dissatisfactions in my practice. furthermore, the role of others was to help me learn beyond my zone of proximal teacher development [zptd] because during professional learning about teaching, one can learn even more with the help of others (e.g. when engaging in object inquiry research activities) compared to when to one is learning as a sole individual (warford, 2011). object inquiry this inquiry is based on a research technique termed object inquiry in self-study settings. object inquiry is referred to when self-study scholars use visual representations or real objects to generate narratives for deductive and inductive analysis (tidwell & jónsdóttir, 2020). in this inquiry, images of the coronavirus were used as a basis for generating pedagogical reasoning text data. pedagogical action and reasoning pedagogical action and reasoning entail teachers’ use of their professional knowledge to inform their practice (shulman, 1987). i used shulman's (1987) model of pedagogical reasoning and action cycles that include (see figure 2 below) my understanding of content for teaching (comprehension), and converting that content for teaching into different representations that are teachable and easy for students’ comprehension in virtual settings (transformation); effective teaching of that content online (instruction); evaluating the effectiveness of my teaching and my student’s learning progress through an online assessment and the anonymous student evaluation of my teaching (evaluation); reflections on the weaknesses and strengths of my teaching in the context of feedback from others (reflection); and picking up new professional learning from insights that arose from engaging critical friends [new comprehensions] (shulman, 1987). 74 tshuma, t. ressat 2023, 8(3): 67-88 figure 2 a model of pedagogical reasoning and action. adapted from shulman, 1987, p. 15 and salazar, 2005 methodology this inquiry was a dilemma-driven self-study. i followed the self-study methodology to investigate the dissatisfactions i faced during my practice after the outbreak of covid-19. in this inquiry, i was the central focus of this investigation because it is a self-study. my critical friends played a crucial validation role. multiple forms of data that included journal entries of my thoughts, fears, concerns, and reflections; discussion notes with my critical friends, and collected feedback comments from my students. the collected data was thematically analysed from the deductive to inductive approach. the self-study methodology followed involved the steps outlined below. use of visual methodologies object inquiry or visual methodologies involves the use of images such as sculpture, film, photography, video, drawing, painting, artwork, collage, advertising, cartoon, and graffiti, to invoke deep reflections on a given phenomenon through the process of photo-elicitation (glaw et al., 2017). in this inquiry, covid-19 images (figure 3 below) were used as photo-elicitation tools for reflections. we chose these images in another group where we are working on another 75 ressat 2023, 8(3): 67-88 reflexivity research project. the rationale for choosing these images was that they portray the coronavirus and its effects on our daily lives. figure 3 visual images used for reflections. source: google images figure 3: visual images used for reflections. source: google images journal entries journal entries involved capturing of all my thoughts, fears, experiences, observations, and reflections on my practice before and during the covid-19 pandemic. i happen to be a self-study scholar who has been engaging in reflexivity involving making journal entries even before the covid-19 pandemic, and thus after the outbreak of this disease, i found those journal entries useful for this inquiry as they provided a plane for comparing my practice before and after covid-19. the advantage of journaling is that it helped me create a permanent record of an 'audit trail' (samaras, 2011, p. 164) that helped in upholding the rigor of this study. furthermore, i found journaling throughout the entire study as a powerful means of sharing my experiences and thoughts with critical friends for probing me to think beyond my personal bias. provided below is an example of a journal entry i had made before the covid-19 pandemic, a critique by a critical friend, and my response: journal entry 18 november 2018: my daily practice makes me feel confident because i consider myself to have fully mastered how to pull all the strings in my practice as a teacher educator. i can provide a live lecture session with great ease based on how i would have taught the topic in previous years. for me, each lecture is just a slightly modified repeat of what i have been doing a year in and year out. 76 tshuma, t. ressat 2023, 8(3): 67-88 critique (john): how did you master your practice? what are the pieces of evidence? what do you mean by pulling all the strings? my response: i have mastered how to do my practice over years of experience teaching. the piece of evidence to support this is that i no longer spend a lot of time preparing what to do for each day. everything had become just like a simple routine. by pulling the strings, i mean executing my daily duties that involve preparing powerpoint for lectures, delivering live lectures, and setting and conducting face-to-face tests and examinations in the lecture hall. engagement in reflexivity i engaged in reflexivity in two phases: before and after the outbreak of covid-19. this involved 11 steps as depicted in figure 4 below. reflections before covid-19: the first phase entailed two steps: a) journal entries on my daily practice and b) my engagement in a ‘self-talk’ in a timed episode of reflections which involved saying out any details that came into my mind in terms of how i used to work before the covid19 era. what i said was audio-recoded and then transcribed. the journal entries and transcriptions were then given to my six critical friends to go through them before an online session where i replayed the audio recordings from which i had extracted the transcripts. the rationale for handing over the transcripts and the journal entries before sharing the audio was to give my critical friends ample time to go through and probe my reflections and journal entries at their own convenient time. during the critical feedback sessions, the critical friends probed my initial reflections as they posed critical comments for me to rethink and deepen issues i had not engaged in detail. the critiques were captured for later re-engagement within a second round of reflections under the subheading ‘probed reflections’ as depicted in figure 4. in the second round of reflections, i responded to all the critiques raised by my critical friends in the initial feedback session. i then requested a second feedback session where i repeated the same procedure outlined above as depicted on the right side of figure 4. i also captured any further questions rising from the second round of critical feedback from critical friends. after the feedback session, i then engaged in the final session of reflections where i generated a narrative text for coding as depicted in figure 4. reflections after covid-19: the second phase of reflections involved the researcher viewing the covid-19 images for 5 minutes to initiate the process of photo-elicitation. this was followed by a moment of engaging in ‘self-talk’ where i spelled out issues that came into my mind about the impact of covid-19 on my practice. i then audio-recorded all ideas. as was done in the first phase outlined above, these were also transcribed and both the transcript and the journal entries after the outbreak of covid-19 were sent to critical friends. 77 ressat 2023, 8(3): 67-88 figure 4 reflexivity phases engaged in this investigation in the last phase of the reflexivity process, i generated a narrative text on my challenges, fears, and concerns as discussed below. results and discussions this section answers research question 1: 1) what are the dilemmas of practice that i face due to covid-19 at an institution of higher learning? narrative below is a tabulated narrative that captures an understanding of different issues and dissatisfactions before and after the advent of covid-19. the narrative also illustrates the coding that i did as part of the data analysis. table 1 different issues and dissatisfactions experienced by the researcher before and after the advent of covid-19 my reflection issue/dissatisfaction my traditional practice before the advent of covid-19 made me feel confident and satisfied with how i worked because issue: learning from years of job experience cycles of before covid 19 reflections 5.replay of the audio recording to the group for critiquing 2.audio-recording of the talk 3.transcription of the audiorecording 1. engage in ‘self-talk’ cycles of after covid 19 reflections critical feedback session on reflections 4.transcript and journal entries sent to critical friends 6.capturing of critiques for later probed reflections initiate photoelicitation using covid-19 images 7.engage in second round of reflections after probing 8.share the probed reflections and journal entries for further critiques in a second round feedback session 11.narrative text for analysis by coding second phase of reflections photo elicitation first phase of reflections 10.final reflections in the light of all feedback 78 tshuma, t. ressat 2023, 8(3): 67-88 i had mastered how to do my practice over years of practice and experience after years of on-the-job experience, i no longer spent a lot of time preparing what to do for each day which involved e.g. preparing powerpoint for lectures, delivering live lectures, setting and conducting tests and examinations in the lecture hall issue: improved teaching and assessment due to the experience my traditional practice before the advent of covid-19 made me feel confident and satisfied with how i worked because i had mastered how to do my practice over years of practice and experience issue: learning from years of job experience. the students’ anonymous evaluation of my teaching showed that the majority of them enjoyed and understood what i was teaching issue: the power of positive feedback from others). the accumulated experience made me become an expert in my practice as i could also assist other novice lecturers. issue: developed expertise over years i did not wish for any major change in the way i was doing things because the many years of experience had made me create a comfort zone from which i could work without any unnecessary sweat dissatisfaction: resistance to change. furthermore, i was enjoying and looking forward to each day at work issue: user-friendly work environment i had no fears, concerns, or stress about any health issues then issue: user-friendly work environment-health socially, as colleagues, we would mingle without any health fears issue: user-friendly work environment-social i needed not to worry if my temperature was increasing, symptoms of sore throat, or even challenges with breathing. i also did not receive any news that one of my colleagues who was well is now e.g. in the icu unit in hospital fighting for survival issue: user-friendly work environment-no fears for instance: a) i felt challenged by the way i struggled to master how to do my daily practice when i started my career as a lecturer ; dissatisfaction: re-learning online lecturing and assessments b) i struggled with how to lay out my content for online teaching for student understanding; dissatisfaction: inability to prepare power point for online teaching/lack of tpck1 c) i feel afraid and somehow intimidated by the online; dissatisfaction: fear to try out new things online and also faced difficulties with how to teach the content dissatisfaction: lack of expertise to lecture online in virtual platforms for student understanding; dissatisfaction: inability to represent content for student to understand online 1 tpck is defined in this inquiry as the teachers’ understanding of how technology can be infused with pedagogy and content for enhanced student learning (mishra & koehler, 2008) 79 ressat 2023, 8(3): 67-88 d) i disliked to re-learn how to do my daily routine which i had become accustomed to over many years of practice because of the inevitable change posed by the covid-19 dissatisfaction: refusal to adapt to covid-19-induced change shifted me from being an expert to a novice practitioner; dissatisfaction: becoming a novice practitioner e) i felt a lot of work pressure from the imposed and inevitable new daily planning and thorough preparation to keep that image i had set for myself in terms of my performance as an academic before students; dissatisfaction: challenges with adjusting to change f) i had challenges in sifting the content i had to teach so that it is ready for online teaching purposes; dissatisfaction: inability to prepare for online lectures h) lecturing faceless students whom i could not see was very lonely and depressing for me (dissatisfaction: challenges with lecturing to faceless students/computer because i am used to seeing students’ smile back as i teach them and that used to be a powerful motivating factor for me; dissatisfaction: finding online lecturing a lonely journey) g) working at home alone in front of my computer without seeking or sharing ideas on how to best adjust to the new virtual platform with my colleagues made me struggle with many issues in my practice; dissatisfaction: disadvantages of working alone h) the anonymous evaluation of my teaching by my students showed dissatisfaction with how i delivered content online as the majority of them said they struggled to understand my teaching and i had no idea how to address that; dissatisfaction: poor performance due to forced change i) i found the use of microsoft 365 for online teaching and moodle for conducting online student assessment difficult to use despite the training sessions provided; dissatisfaction: lack of expertise in virtual platforms j) i struggled to internalise and implement what i was getting from the training sessions due to limited time dissatisfaction: limited time to internalise new work practices. the struggle to internalize and practice what i was being trained to do was quite emotional for me as it caused frustrations on my part; dissatisfaction: inability to cope with the new work demands in addition, k), i struggle to teach online so that all my students (including the shy ones) can engage with each other and me in an interactive way. dissatisfaction: lack of student engaging online teaching skills furthermore, each time i go to work, i am grabbed with fear, dissatisfaction: fear of the contagious pandemic for there is a 50% chance that i may die during the course of my practice the way some of my colleagues have passed on dissatisfaction: fear of the contagious pandemic my practice is not only devoid of enjoyment but fear after each face-to-face meeting or interaction at work because i have to monitor my health for any covid-19 symptoms thereafter dissatisfaction: fear of the contagious pandemic 80 tshuma, t. ressat 2023, 8(3): 67-88 this has made my work very emotional and stressful. dissatisfaction: work-related stress professional traumas when i remember my colleagues who have passed on, i am filled with fear to say i could be next in line dissatisfaction: fear of the contagious pandemic however, despite these setbacks, the allocation of resources for online usage issue: access to resources and the multiple training opportunities which were inevitable after the outbreak of covid-19 offered me powerful platforms to be exposed to the use of virtual platforms for teaching and assessment issue: access to multiple training sessions. issues and dissatisfactions as evident in the narrative, i teased out 9 issues and 21 dissatisfactions that were emerging from my practice before and after the covid-19 outbreak. arising issues before covid-19 • learning from years of on job experience*$ • improved teaching and assessment due on the job experience*$ • power of positive feedback from others& • developed expertise over years*$ • user-friendly work environment-health@1 • user-friendly work environment-social @2 • user-friendly work environment-no fears@3 i further interrogated these seven issues for themes that ran through all of them by placing the same character at the end of each of them to code for the common theme under which they fell. three themes, some of which overlap (represented by *@&$) emerged from this analysis of the seven issues (see figure 6). figure 5 positive issues arising from my practice before the outbreak of covid-19 &on the job motivation issues before covid-19 @1 @2 @3job satisfaction $*power of on the job experience/ developing pck 81 ressat 2023, 8(3): 67-88 the three themes that emerged before covid-19 (see figure 6) highlight the power of onthe-job experience’ in the development of one’s pck for lecturing different modules. this corroborates findings elsewhere that as one’s job experience increases one’s on-the-job knowledge also improves (huie, et al., 2020). the on-the-job experience enabled me to lecture in ways that enhanced students’ positive views about my lecturing and the positive feedback i received from them contributed to my job satisfaction. this probably explains (as evident in my narrative reflections) why ‘i did not wish for any major change in the way i was doing things because the many years of experience had made me create a comfort zone from which i could work without any unnecessary sweat’. thus, based on the comment, i was experiencing some job satisfactions before covid-19. dissatisfactions and issues after covid-19 below are the 2 issues and 21 dissatisfactions/challenges that i teased from the above covid-19 induced narrative. arising issues and dissatisfactions after the outbreak of covid-19 issues • access to resources@1 • access to multiple training sessions@2 dissatisfactions • struggling with online teaching and assessments% • re-learning lecturing and doing assessments&% • inability to prepare power point for online teaching &% • fear to try out new things online~ • lack of expertise to lecture online% • inability to represent content for student understanding online%& • reluctance to adapt to covid-19-induced change$ • becoming a novice practitioner& • challenges with adjusting to change$ • inability to prepare for online lectures%/ • challenges with lecturing to faceless students/computer# • finding lecturing online a lonely journey# • disadvantages of working alone^ • poor performance due to forced change& • lack of expertise in virtual platforms% • limited time to internalise new work practices # • inability to cope with the new work demands# • lack of student-engaging teaching skills online%& • fear of the contagious pandemic* • work-related stress * 82 tshuma, t. ressat 2023, 8(3): 67-88 i also interrogated these issues and dissatisfaction following the same procedure outlined in the previous section for themes that ran across them by placing the same character at the end of each of them. seven themes or what i termed dilemmas2 of practice, represented by (@&%~$#*) emerged from this analysis of the 21 dissatisfactions/challenges (see figure 6 below). figure 6 covid-19 induced professional developments opportunities and traumas this inquiry revealed that after the advent of covid-19, what i had earlier thought of as mere dissatisfactions, were seven dilemmas from my practice (see figure 6 above). my dilemmas of practice stemmed from fear of the unknown when faced with the use of virtual platforms (technophobic), the experience of getting deskilled, poor individual adaptability, fear of the deadly virus (covid-phobic), resistance to forced change, lack of technological pedagogical knowledge (tpkc) and the shortcomings arising from working as an individual silo. 2) how has the advent of covid-19 impacted my practice as a practitioner at an institution of higher learning? when probed by a critical friend about my take when using online platforms for student lecturing and assessments, the response i gave: i feel afraid and somehow intimidated by the virtual platforms is indicative of fears of the unknown when using virtual platforms (technophobic). this was probably due to the responsibility entrusted on my shoulders to carry out all my mandated duties as expected in what the institution had seemingly embraced as the ‘new normal’ way of doing things as posed by the outbreak of covid-19 (emanuel et al., 2022). as an individual, due to what van dam (2005) terms lack of appropriate individual adaptability 2 the word dilemma, as used in this inquiry, does not mean involve the everyday english meaning of it, but centers around the dissatisfactions i was facing in my practice. *covid-phobic &%getting deskilled %& lack of adequate tpck professional development issues due to covid-19 @2 access to multiple training sessions @1 access to online resources for use ^ disadvantage of working in a silo # poor individual adaptability $resistance to forced change ~ technophobia dilemmas of practice after the advent of covid-19 professional traumas due to covid-19 professional development opportunities due to covid-19 83 ressat 2023, 8(3): 67-88 or competency to adjust to a changing work environment or lack, i was still struggling to find my footing in virtual platforms. as part of my poor individual adaptability, i found lecturing to the ‘computer’ very lonely and depressing as evident in one of my reflections: lecturing to faceless students whom i cannot is very lonely and depressing for me. furthermore, my reflections: my practice is not only devoid of enjoyment but fears after each face-to-face meeting or interaction at work because i have to monitor my health for any covid-19 symptoms thereafter is evidence of deep-seated fear of the pandemic (what i termed covid-phobic). when a critical friend probed if the fears i carried to work made me feel like quitting, my response: because the covid issue is everywhere and not at my workplace only, quitting is not going to help my situation is probably a gradual acceptance and realisation of the ‘new normal’ that covid-19 is here to stay (emanuel, et. al., 2022). whilst some scholars argue that positive change takes place in deep unavoidable crises (e.g. schleicher, 2012), in my practice, the covid-19-induced change turned out to be negative as i struggled to cope with the new virtual workspaces because i became deskilled in terms of content delivery and conducting assessments. this is evident in my reflections: the anonymous evaluation of my teaching by my students showed dissatisfaction with how i delivered content online as the majority of them said they struggled to understand my teaching and i had no idea how to address that. this is an indication that i had become a novice practitioner compared to what i used to be, e.g. when teaching face to face before covid-19. this is because before covid19, from my reflections: the students’ anonymous evaluation of my teaching showed that the majority of them enjoyed and understood what i was teaching, there is evidence that my students did not struggle to grasp what i was teaching. after covid-19, my students struggled to understand what i teach. this is probably because i lacked adequate tpck for effective online teaching as evident in my response and reflections after one critical friend probed me on my virtual platform usage: i found the use of microsoft 365 for online teaching and moodle for conducting online student assessment difficult to use despite the training sessions provided. elsewhere, empirical evidence supports that the teacher’s knowledge of how to infuse technology, pedagogy, and content (tpck) is crucial for enhanced student learning (mishra & koehler, 2008). evidence of resistance to forced change also emerged in this inquiry. the covid-19 induced changes in the way i worked, deskilled me, and thus, this probably explains why i experience some denial that led to my resistance to the imposed change as evident in my reflections: i dislike to re-learn how to do my daily routine which i had become accustomed to over many years of practice …. heathfield (2021) points out that refusal to adopt to changes can bring about personal conflict when one does what one is not comfortable to do. my conflict worsened because i was working mainly from home alone and did not have easy access to colleagues for consultations and sharing of experiences and ideas (what i have termed working in a silo). working as a silo resulted in my dilemmas escalating into what i have termed professional traumas because whilst i knew what should be done, i had no expertise to do it 84 tshuma, t. ressat 2023, 8(3): 67-88 despite the training sessions provided. i was professionally pressured or traumatised because there was limited time to internalise and implement the ideas i got from the training sessions. whilst this study unveiled that covid-19 posed dilemmas of practice that culminated in my professional traumas, the outbreak of the pandemic also offered room for unlimited professional development opportunities. as evident in my reflections, after one critical friend quiz: rose: any positives in all the negatives you say about the pandemic? my response …. the allocation of resources for online usage and the multiple training opportunities, which were inevitable after the outbreak of covid-19 offered me powerful platforms to be exposed to the use of virtual platforms for teaching and assessment, is indicative of the professional growth opportunities, which may not have been offered to me without the world having experienced the pandemic. thus due to a wide range of workshops on the use of virtual platforms and the resources allocation for online usage (e.g. 24-hour internet data connectivity wi-fi) that were unavoidable in response to the ‘new normal,’ i had unlimited chances for professional growth both in the organized workshops and at any time as an individual. furthermore, in relation to my individual adaptability (van dam, 2005), i had to make a concerted effort to adapt to the new normal in my bid to remain relevant to the demands of an institution. this probably corroborates the findings by schleicher (2012), who postulates that real changes, (in my case within me) take place in the wake of a deep crisis. conclusion as practitioners, for us to understand that the challenges we face in our practice are not mere incidental difficulties that we can easily overcome, there is a need to interrogate them beyond our capabilities and biases. in this inquiry, it was only after my engagement in cycles of reflexivity, discussions with, and feedback from others (critical friends) that i came to realize that i was not only facing dilemmas of practice but professional traumas. furthermore, unplanned changes such as those caused by the outbreak of a deadly and contagious pandemic tend to unsettle our everyday and professional lives. this inquiry established that the outbreak of covid-19 led to dilemmas of practice. these dilemmas stemmed from fear of the unknown when faced with the usage of virtual platforms (technophobic); getting deskilled due to new work demands; lack of competency and will to adapt to a new changing situation (resistance to forced change and poor individual adaptability; fear of being infected by the deadly virus (covid-phobic); lack of expertise to use online platforms for lecturing and student assessment or poor tpkc; and the shortcomings arising from working as an isolated silo. such dilemmas of practice, because i handled them as a sole individual working from home without immediate consultation and help from colleagues, led to stressful and traumatic experiences when teaching and assessing students in virtual platforms (professional traumas). thus, as practitioners, we tend to fall into the trap of working in isolated 85 ressat 2023, 8(3): 67-88 silos even though we could be facing the same dilemmas of practice in times of forced change, e.g. after the outbreak of the covid-19 pandemic. this inquiry established the need and advantages of opening up our silos so that we make public our challenges of practice so that we benefit from the pool of probing expertise of others. based on the conventional wisdom that a problem known and shared is a problem half-solved, knowing dilemmas of practice is one-step towards coming up with steps to addressing and solving them as evident this inquiry. furthermore, as practitioners, seeing positives in seemingly all negatives is a unique insight that could easily come from making our work-related worries, concerns, fears, and emotions open for others to critique. it is through others that a ‘second voice’ (tshuma, 2021) probes us into seeing issues beyond the limitations of our capabilities and experiences, which is crucial for self-directed professional 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