Parilah M. Shah

Cognitive and metacognitive learning strategies among Arabic language students

This study investigates cognitive and metacognitive strategies in learning oral Arabic among students at Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM), Malaysia. The concept of these strategies was derived from the self-regulated learning framework, which consists of five components, namely rehearsal, elaboration, organization, critical thinking, and metacognitive strategies. The purposes of this study are to investigate the level of cognitive and metacognitive strategies used (1) among UiTM students; (2) between students with different prior experiences, namely, some of them had an experience of 5 years in learning Arabic in secondary school (abbreviated by SWE) and some of them did not have any experience at all (abbreviated by SNE); (3) between students of different gender; and (4) between students with the interaction of different gender and prior experience. The sample of this study consists of 183 students and employs a questionnaire adapted from the Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire (MSLQ). The study revealed that (1) all UiTM students used cognitive and metacognitive strategies at a moderate level; (2) SWE scored significantly higher than SNE in all five components of cognitive and metacognitive strategies; (3) females scored significantly higher than males in rehearsal, organization, and metacognitive strategies; and (4) there were no statistically significant differences noted in all components between students with the interaction of prior experience and gender. This study had some classroom implications. It suggested that some improvement and changes in learning oral Arabic should be made in terms of selecting learning materials, implementing oral Arabic activities, and learning tasks, which will stimulate the use of all strategies, as well as conducting proficiency tests instead of achievement tests. Students should also be exposed to the learning techniques which used all these strategies extensively and collaborative activities may be carried out among students with mixed prior experience and gender.

Science Teachers perceptions on the use of computer-based materials.

Malaysia embarked on the use of English as a medium of instruction for the teaching of Science (and also Mathematics) in January 2003. One of the aims was to upgrade the English language proficiency of Malaysian students. Several problems and challenges have been encountered by implementers and educators since then. One of the problems is the use of the existing computer-based science materials. Apart from the obvious and great need for more science materials, new materials need to be designed to fulfill the needs of the science students who are not competent in the English language and also the needs of the science teachers who are also lacking in the knowledge of the English language. This study examined the perceptions of the science teachers in Malaysia concerning the use of computer-based materials provided by the Ministry of Education. The findings were presented in terms of the clarity and suitability of the content, English language used, presentation of content materials, and adequacy of materials and facilities. Based on the results, several suggestions are put forward so that a more systematic approach could be employed in designing better computer-based materials for the teachers and students.

Bilingual Education in Malaysia, Singapore and United States

This paper examines the major challenges encountered in the provision and implementation of bilingual education in Malaysia, Singapore and the United States.