Nor Habibah Tarmuji

Discovering Small Business Start up Motives, Success Factors and Barriers: A Gender Analysis

Abstract Starting a business can be a mind challenging and mentally torturing. However, understanding common start up problems and key success factors can help entrepreneurs get off the right path. This paper presents an insight into which male and female entrepreneurs differ in terms of motives to start business, key business success factors and the underlying obstacles. A questionnaire was designed to collect information on entrepreneurs’ profile and the respective measurement variables and analyzed using basic descriptive analysis and Chi Square test to capture gender differences in the opinions. Respondents of this study were selected among 150 participants of the Regional Conference on entrepreneurship in Pahang State. Findings indicate women are more likely to engage into business if their family matters are still can be prioritized, which is less likely to be a man issue. Meanwhile, men perceived innovation and risk taking activities are less likely to influence performance of their business than what women thought they should have to be. Further, it seemed more challenging for women to succeed in business without knowledge and skills competency compared to men. However, men found dealing with business malpractice posed a great challenge in business where women are less experienced with it. The findings of this study could serve as baseline information for current and entrepreneurs to be as well as for policy makers for purpose of outlining gender-based entrepreneurship policy and program.

Students perception on the usage of PowerPoint in learning calculus

Mathematics is a core subject in most of the science and technology courses and in some social sciences programs. However, the low achievement of students in the subject especially in topics such as Differentiation and Integration is always an issue. Many factors contribute to the low performance such as motivation, environment, method of learning, academic background and others. The purpose of this paper is to determine the perception of learning mathematics using PowerPoint on Integration concepts at the undergraduate level with respect to mathematics anxiety, learning enjoyment, mobility and learning satisfaction. The main content of the PowerPoint presentation focused on the integration method with historical elements as an added value. The study was conducted on 48 students randomly selected from students in computer and applied sciences program as experimental group. Questionnaires were distributed to students to explore their learning experiences. Another 51 students who were taught using the tradi...

The Effect of Peer-Assisted Learning Strategies (PALS) on Preparatory Students in Mathematics

Peer-Assisted Learning Strategies (PALS) is a kind of cooperative learning where students work in small groups to accomplish shared goals. Students with high ability will work together with students with low ability in solving mathematical problems, thus maximizing their own and each other’s learning. The objective of this research is to study the effect of PALS in selected mathematics groups of students. A total of 162 respondents were selected from the Pre-Commerce Programme. Cluster sampling was used to randomly select six out of ten groups. Three groups were identified as Experimental Group (EG) and the remaining three as Control Group (CG). Research hypothesis were tested using independent sample t-test to compare the mean score between two groups. Coefficient of variation was used to identify the consistency of mean score in EG applying PALS compared to the mean score in CG that used the classical technique. The results showed that there was a significant difference in the mean score of the two tests and final examination between the EG and CG. Besides that, the mean score of students in EG has a more consistent distribution compared to students in CG for quizzes, tests, and final. Overall, the study revealed the effectiveness of PALS on preparatory students in mathematics course.

Perceived Resources and Technology Acceptance Model (PRATAM): Students’ Acceptance of e-Learning in Mathematics

The methods of teaching in class are also affected with the rise of technology used in education. The lecturer or instructor may want to use innovative ways of teaching to capture the students’ attention and to make the learning process become more enjoyable and effective. Therefore, this study was carried out with the objective to identify the factors that influence students’ behaviour of adopting e-learning especially in the subject of mathematics based on Perceived Resources and Technology Acceptance Model (PRATAM). The technology used includes Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) and Learning Management System (LMS). Questionnaires were used to collect data from one hundred and nine precalculus students. Quantitative data were analyzed using structural equation modelling (SEM). Perceived resource has a positive direct effect on perceived ease of use, behavioural intention to use, attitude towards using and behavioural intention to use. Perceived ease of use will have a positive direct effect on perceived usefulness; attitude will have a positive direct effect on behavioural intention to use which will have positive direct effect on actual system use. Perceived resource is the most significant factor for students’ acceptance of e-learning in mathematics.

Students’ Perception on the Use of Code-Switching in Mathematics Classroom: Looking at Gender Differences

Issues involving code-switching have been widely discussed in many studies. To what extend does code-switching usage in the classroom affect students’ learning success in a subject? This study focuses on gender differences in students’ perception on the use of code-switching between English and Malay language in Mathematics classroom. This study took place in a university, where English is regarded as the medium of instruction. It involved 100 students from different faculties as respondents. They were asked to answer a set of questionnaires on students’ attitude, attention and learning success under code-switching practise in Mathematics classroom. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics and t-test. The findings of this research show that there is no gender differences in regards to students’ perception of code-switching practise in Mathematics classroom.

Benchmarking Service Quality in Retail Store Using DEA

One of the main reasons to produce a single set of service quality evaluation across dimension is by involving benchmarking comparison. The quality of the service will only be determined if the assessment on the various dimensions of service quality and the satisfaction of consumer is measured. It is important to measure the efficiency of each dimension to provide the best returns. However, this approach often encounters problems because of the resource demand. The aims of this study are to design a comprehensive input and output frameworks based on SERVQUAL items of retail stores on service quality and to evaluate data using Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) model. Questionnaires are distributed to 132 respondents. The collected data are analyzed by using SPSS and Lingo software. In this study, four input variables (reliability, tangible, assurance, and responsiveness) and one output (empathy) of the dimension of SERVQUAL are analyzed. The findings show only two Decision-Making Units (DMUs) out of eight DMUs that are efficient. Meanwhile, six DMUs are inefficient with the score between 0.914 and 0.996. All DMUs which are efficient show that the company is good in providing the service to the customer.

Mathematical misconception in calculus 1: Identification and gender difference

A few years of experience of teaching mathematics make us notice that the same types of mistakes are done repeatedly by students. This paper presents an insight into categories of mistakes, how male and female students differ in terms of mistakes that are commonly done and the ability of the students to identify the mistakes. Sample of mistakes were taken from Calculus 1 final exam answer scripts, then it was listed and analyzed. Data analysis revealed that students’ misconceptions fall into four categories. The first category is misunderstanding the meaning of brackets, followed by misconception of basic mathematics rules, misconception in notation and misconception in properties of trigonometry. A mistake identification test which consists of ten false mathematical statements was designed based on the mistake done by the previous batch of students that covered topics algebra, trigonometry, index, limit, differentiation and integration. Then, the test was given to students who enrolled in Calculus I cour...

Quality of Life of Dual-Career Commuter Couples: Emotional and Financial Stress of UiTM Pahang Staff and Their Spouse

Dual-career couples who live apart or commuter couples are becoming a phenomenon in Malaysia. Nowadays, there are more opportunities for women to pursue their own career. There are situations where the husband and wife have to live apart in order to manage each one’s career. There are many studies have been conducted by previous researchers to investigate the quality of life among dual-career commuter couples, but no known research has been conducted using quantitative approaches. This study is aimed to investigate the quality of life of dual-career commuter couples measured based on emotional and financial stress using a self-administered questionnaire with five-point Likert Scale range as ‘Strongly Disagree’ through ‘Strongly Agree’. Data were collected from 100 respondents, either the wife or husband or both chosen at random among a list of Universiti Teknologi MARA Pahang’s staffs and their spouse who are categorized as dual-career commuter couples. Research hypotheses were tested using structural equation modelling (SEM) with Analysis of Moment Structures software (AMOS 21). The findings indicated that emotional and financial stress has a significant and direct effect on quality of life where 58 % of the variations in these variables explain the changes in quality of life. Commuter family has a positive impact but in long term, it will affect the quality of life of the couples, including the children.

PALS in mathematics classroom

Peer Asissted Learning Strategies (PALS) is a type of cooperative learning where high and low performing students are gathered into a small group to achieve common goals and improve individual’s understanding. The objectives of this study are to investigate students’ perception about PALS and to identify optional methods to improve the technique for future implementation. The Mengubah Destini Anak Bangsa (MDAB) students selected for this study were from pre diploma level of studies in the Pre-Commerce Program. Cluster sampling was used to randomly select eight out of ten groups. Ninety nine students in the selected group became the respondents. Three groups were identified as Experimental Group (EG) and another five groups as Control Group (CG). A Diagnostic Test was given to all ten groups of students during the first week of class. Students in EG were given instructions using PALS. At the end of the semester, questionnaires were distributed to students in EG and analyzed. This study revealed that studen...