Tajularipin Sulaiman

Relationship between critical thinking disposition and teaching efficacy among special education integration program teachers in Malaysia

This study aims to assess the level of critical thinking disposition and teaching efficacy among the Special Education Integration Programme (SEIP) teachers in Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia. The level of critical thinking dispositions and teaching efficacy in the SEIP were compared based on teaching experience and gender. The study also examined the relationship between critical thinking disposition and teaching efficacy at SEIP. The research adopted a quantitative survey approach. A total of 190 primary school teachers from the SEIP in Negeri Sembilan were selected using proportional sampling method. The instrument used in this study comprised of three sections; demography, critical thinking disposition and teaching efficacy. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used in the analysis. Analysis shows that the respondents have a moderate level of critical thinking disposition (M = 2.99, S.D = 0.160) and teaching efficacy (M = 3.01 S.D. = 0.128) was at a high level. For teaching experience, the analysis s...

Differences in students’ mathematics engagement between gender and between rural and urban schools

The purpose of this study was to explore secondary school students’ mathematics engagement focusing on the cognitive, affective and behavioural engagement domains. A total of 387 students (186 male and 201 female) from the urban and rural secondary schools in Pahang, Malaysia, were randomly selected. There were 158 students from the urban schools and 229 students from the rural schools. Descriptive analyses for mathematics engagement domains revealed behavioural engagement had the highest mean (M = 3.74, SD = .63), followed by cognitive engagement (M = 3.56, SD = .43) and affective engagement (M = 3.48, SD = .47). The mean for students’ overall mathematics engagement was 3.56 (SD = .46). Further analyses showed there were significant differences in each of the engagement domains in mathematics learning (affective, cognitive and behavioural), where students in the urban schools showed significantly better in the mean scores for affective, cognitive, behavioural domains and the overall mathematics engagemen...

Effectiveness of Cognitive-behavioral Therapy in the Treatment of Iranian Male Drug Addicts at a State Rehabilitation Center

INTRODUCTION The present study aimed at examining the effectiveness of cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) group intervention on measures of self-efficacy and level of relapse for abstinence among Iranian male drug addicts. METHODS An experimental research design was adopted in the current study in which the participants consisted of 75 male drug addicts who were consecutively admitted as outpatients at a state rehabilitation center. They were randomly allocated to experimental (N=37) and control (N=38) groups. They completed the Iranian version of Drug Taking Confidence Questionnaire (DTCQ-IV) and took urine test as pre-test and post-test. The CBT group intervention was conducted at 12 sessions, one session per week. It was hypothesized that there were significant differences between the experimental and control groups regarding self-efficacy and level of relapse. RESULT The results of ANCOVA showed there were significant differences in pleasant emotion and testing control between the two groups on measures of self-efficacy. The results of McNemar test indicated level of relapse in the experimental group significantly declined from pre-test to post-test. Furthermore, using Chi-square analysis, a significant difference (with a moderate effect size) was found in the levels of relapse. CONCLUSION The present study provides strong support for CBT group intervention as an effective treatment for Iranian male drug addicts. Therefore, CBT group intervention can be considered as a practical approach in the treatment of people with SUDs.

Teacher Professional Development Through Lesson Study in Secondary Schools

Lesson Study (LS) is a professional learning strategy which originated from Japan and practiced extensively throughout Japan. It has captured the attention of the professional learning communities in Malaysia and is seen as an innovative strategy for teacher professional development (TPD). The purpose of this study was to explore secondary school English Language (EL) teachers’ learning experiences as they engaged in LS as well as to explore LS as a strategy for teacher professional development at secondary schools. The research methodology adopted was a qualitative case study of a single site and involved four participants. Each participant completed two LS cycles in three months. Data was collected through classroom observations and document analysis. Analytic induction was used to analyze the data. The findings of the study affirmed the literature on the importance of peer collaboration and feedback, and improving instructional practices particularly teachers’ professional knowledge. However, time-constraints, extra workload, and minimal school management support were some constraints noted during the implementation of LS in schools. Lesson study provides an alternative strategy for the in-service teachers to enhance their professional development as well as encourages the teachers to solve their students’ learning problems in actual classrooms collaboratively.

The Difference between Montessori Curriculum and Malaysia National Preschool Curriculum on Developmental Skills of Preschool Children in Kuala Lumpur

The concern of this study is to find out if Montessori curriculum for early childhood education has any difference with National Preschool curriculum in Malaysia, in terms of growth skills of preschool children. Research methodology was comparative research design. There were two groups; the first group was preschoolers who were trained with Montessori and second group who were trained using Malaysia National curriculum. In this study, independent variable was the curriculum type in each kindergarten and dependent variable was the developmental skills that divided into four major domains of cognitive, language, social and physical development, evaluated by a rating scale for testing developmental skills. The population of the study was all kindergartens in Kuala Lumpur, which were using Montessori approach and National preschool curriculum. The participants were five to six years old children, purposely chosen from the sample. The results indicated that preschool children in Montessori kindergarten performs better in their cognitive, social, and language skills while there is no significant difference on their physical development. Therefore, general conclusion of the results obtained is that Montessori curriculum makes positive effects on cognitive, language and social skills of preschool children and is more efficient than current preschool education curriculum.