http://commons.colgate.edu/car/vol9/iss1/8. Chua Yan Piaw (2006). ...... science accreditation tennis coaches were interviewed. Their average age and total ...
IEPS2014 International Education Postgraduate Seminar 2014 23-24 December 2014 Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Johor Bahru, Johor Malaysia
PROCEEDINGS VOLUME 2 INNOVATION, ISSUES AND CHALLENGES FOR EDUCATIONAL SUSTAINABILITY
FACULTY OF EDUCATION UNIVERSITI TEKNOLOGI MALAYSIA 2014
Published by: FACULTY OF EDUCATION, UNIVERSITI TEKNOLOGI MALAYSIA Faculty of Education Universiti Teknologi Malaysia 81310 Skudai, Johor, Johor Bahru Malaysia @ Faculty of Education, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia All reserved. None of the publication of this proceeding can be republished or transferred in any means, electronically or mechanically such as copying, recording or storing for reproduction or accessed without the written consent from the holders of the rights. All the papers in this proceeding are presented at the International Education Postgraduate Seminar 2014, 23 - 24 December 2014 at Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Johor Bahru, Johor, Malaysia. Perpustakaan Negara Malaysia
Cataloguing-in – Publication Data
International Education Postgraduate Seminar (2014 : Johor Bahru, Johor) IEPS2014 International Education Postgraduate Seminar 2014: PROCEEDINGS INNOVATION, ISSUES AND CHALLENGES FOR EDUCATIONAL SUSTAINABILITY, VOLUME II, 23 – 24 December 2014, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Johor Bahru, Johor Malaysia / Edited by: Lokman Mohd Tahir, Aede Hatib Musta’amal, Azlina Mohd Kosnin, Halijah Ibrahim, Mohd Safarin Nordin, Sarimah Ismail, Najua Syuhada Ahmad Alhassora, Ana Haziqah A Rashid, Farhana Diana Deris, Mohd Rustam Mohd Rameli, Norhafizah Sulaiman, Nor Farhah Saidin. ISBN 978-967-12174-5-0 1. Education, Higher—Malaysia—Congresses. 2. Educational change—Malaysia—Congresses. I. Lokman Mohd Tahir,. II. Aede Hatib Musta’amal. III. Azlina Mohd Kosnin. IV. Halijah Ibrahim. V. Mohd Safarin Nordin. VI. Sarimah Ismail. VII. Najua Syuhada Ahmad Alhassora. VIII. Ana Haziqah A Rashid. IX. Farhana Diana Deris. X. Mohd Rustam Mohd Rameli. XI. Norhafizah Sulaiman. XII. Nor Farhah Saidin. XIII. Tittle. 378.595
Designed by: Graphic Unit, Faculty of Education, UTM Proofreaders: Najua Syuhada Ahmad Alhassora Ana Haziqah A Rashid Edited by: Lokman Mohd Tahir Aede Hatib Musta’amal Azlina Mohd Kosnin Halijah Ibrahim Mohd Safarin Nordin Sarimah Ismail Najua Syuhada Ahmad Alhassora Ana Haziqah A Rashid Farhana Diana Deris Mohd Rustam Mohd Rameli Norhafizah Sulaiman Nor Farhah Saidin
Message from the Patron
PROF. DR BAHARUDDIN ARIS Assalamualaikum greetings!
Wrt
Wbt
and
warmest
In consonance with Universiti Teknologi Malaysia’s aspiration to be recognised as a world class centre of academic and technological excellence through its commitment in enhancing innovative education and developing cutting-edge research while perfecting the technical and professional workforce of the nation, I am pleased that the Faculty of Education with strong support from its Postgraduate Student Society (PGSSFP) is organising the first International Education Postgraduate Seminar (IEPS2014). One of the basic aims of research is to make human lives better, including the researchers themselves. To achieve this, researchers need to go beyond producing good dissertations. Research findings must be disseminated to become part of international literature to allow a more robust and condensed understanding of different phenomena in theoretical and practical avenues. Sharing research findings and future objectives of exploration via presentations and publications is essential in helping researchers enhance self-development, expand intellectual horizon, and acquaint with the publishing and sharing practices. Research cannot and should not be done in isolation; I hope this seminar will not only provide young and budding researchers a glimpse of the world of research that all academicians need to embrace but also foster connections and collaborations between researchers. Seeing this seminar taking place gives me great pleasure. I applaud the concentrated efforts between lecturers, support staff and postgraduates at the Faculty. I am also very proud of all the presenters and participants who are part of the community of this first IEPS2014. This is indeed a great step forward for everyone! Congratulations!
Message from the General Chair
DR AZLINA MOHD KOSNIN Assalamualaikum Wrt Wbt and warmest greetings! It gives me great pleasure to welcome everyone to the International Education Postgraduate Seminar (IEPS2014). With the aim to transform all of research activities of the education postgraduates into an event of sharing and communication, IEPS2014 provides excellent opportunities for students to share initial findings and research directions and to receive helpful critique that will guide them towards better practices. This event will not only be helpful in informing research practices but will also be a contributor in developing students as future researchers and academicians. The theme of this seminar, “Innovation, Issues and Challenges for Educational Sustainability” is most accurate to be brought forward because this theme signals the important shift in education. Be it in curriculum development, assessment, leadership, science education, vocational education, psychology, counseling, or multimedia education, the aims of research in education must be geared towards achieving educational sustainability. To IEPS2014 Advisory and Organising Committee, I congratulate you for spearheading this FIRST International Education Postgraduate Seminar (IEPS2014). I would also like to express my sincere gratitude to the School of Graduate Studies for the generous grant, support and contribution. This appreciation also goes to everyone who have contributed in one way or another. Thank you for seeing the potentials of our postgraduates, for investing in their future, to inspire and to foster successful community. To all delegates, presenters, and participants, this seminar is now all yours. I hope everyone will find the seminar inspiring and enriching, through discussions and networking with new acquaintances and colleagues.
Message from the Organising Chairperson
FARHANA DIANA DERIS Assalamualaikum Wrt Wbt and warmest greetings! Welcome to the FIRST International Education Postgraduate Seminar! In promoting educational sustainability, we need to take into account the context in which we live in, and the ways in which the world is interrelated; the society today lives in a world that is decisively supported and interconnected by technology. Embracing this monumental advancement, educational institutions need to produce world-class human capital with competent skills and intellectual capacity, commendable traits, values and attributes that are pertinent in the present and future context and necessary in thriving in this social and technological context. This indeed highlights the importance of deliberation and exchange of ideas, experience and opinions in the pursuit of improving the different fields of education. Thus, this seminar, aptly themed, “innovation, issues and challenges for educational sustainability”, is very timely. This seminar also captures the overarching role of multiple perspectives in informing practices, revolutionising the way teaching and learning are conceptualised, and inspiring new methodologies. Therefore, I hope this two-day seminar not only will enrich participants with research-related experiences but will also pave the way for fruitful dialogues and insightful deliberations towards achieving educational sustainability. I would also like to take this opportunity to express my sincerest gratitude and appreciation to everyone who have contributed in one way or another to the success of this seminar, especially to the organising committee, the Postgraduate Student Society, Faculty of Education (PGSSFP). To all invited speakers, presenters and participants, thank you for your participation and support, without which this seminar would not have been possible. See you again at the SECOND International Education Postgraduate Seminar!
IEPS2014 COMMITTEE
Prof. Dr Baharuddin Aris
Patron
Assoc. Prof. Dr Muhammad Sukri Saud
Advisor
Dr Azlina Mohd Kosnin
General Chair
Dr Aede Hatib Musta’amal @ Jamal
Vice Chair
ADVISORY COMMITTEE
Dr Nor Fadila Mohd Amin
Secretary I
Dr Halijah Ibrahim
Secretary II
Dr Nor Hasniza Ibrahim
Treasurer & PGSSFP Advisor
Pn Mulenawati Munawi
Assistant Treasurer
Assoc. Prof. Dr Lokman Tahir
Papers and Publication
Dr Mohd Safarin Nordin
Papers and Publication
Dr Sarimah Ismail
Papers and Publication
Assoc. Prof. Dr Noraffandy Yahaya
Technical, Equipment, and Broadcasting
Dr M Al-Muz-Zamil Yasin
Technical, Equipment, and Broadcasting
Dr Yusri Kamin
Logistics and Venue
Dr Abdul Halim Abdullah
Logistics and Venue
Dr Mahani Mokhtar
Protocol and Event Management
Dr Adibah Abdul Latif
Certificate, Token and Honorariums
Dr Noor Dayana Abdul Halim
Publicity, Graphic and Montage
Pn Siti Noraini Mohd Zali
Publicity, Graphic and Montage
Dr Norazrena Abu Samah
Website and Communication
Dr Hasnah Mohamed
Website and Communication
Dr Megat Aman Zahiri Megat Zakaria Website and Communication Website and Communication Website and Communication
ORGANISING COMMITTEE Farhana Diana Deris Suraiya Haji Muhamad Fatimah Sarah Yaacob Crystal Joan Peter Kho Pui Wun Nur ‘Aqilah Mohd Norain Norhafizah Sulaiman Noor Izzati Ariff
Organising Chairperson Organising Vice Chairperson Secretary III Vice Secretary (Department of Technical and Engineering Education) Vice Secretary (Department of Educational Science, Mathematics and Creative Multimedia) Vice Secretary (Department of Educational Foundation and Social Science) Treasurer II Vice Treasurer
Sponsorship & Exhibition Mohd Rustam Mohd Rameli Nurul Sa’dah Saipuldin Nor Farhah Saidin Papers and Publication Najua Syuhada Ahmad Alhassora Ana Haziqah A. Rashid Mohd Nur Al Sufi Romele Publicity, Graphic and Montage Nur Jannah Jamil Logistics and Venue Uzailun Nafais Zainal Abidin Technical, Equipment, and Broadcasting Sashendran A/L Vanarajan Secretariat Suhaimi Zakaria @ Othman Latifah Abdul Raub Protocol and Event Management Muhammad Umar Khan Norulbiah Ngah Nurul Farhana Jumaat Noor Azaref Naim Rosidah Abdullah Sani Zurina Hamid Samira Nikian Hazlin Haron Miller Yong Norashuha Tajuddin Faridah Mat Nor Siti Rahimah Mohd Yusop Norhayati Ahmad Rafaquat Ali Ahmad Firdaus Abd Hadi Siti Khadijah Lokman Hafzan Ibrahim Noriadah Abdul Karim Diyana Zulaika Abdul Ghani
TABLE OF CONTENTS ID NO.
TITLE
PAGE
3
Accuracy And Consistency Of ESL Learners' Ratings On Oral Proficiency In Rater Training Mardiana Idris & Mohamad Hassan Zakaria
1
6
Analysis Of Shot’s Distribution Area, Winners And Errors In Squash Game: A Pilot Study Diyana Zulaika Abdul Ghani & Zainal Abidin Zainuddin
11
7
Generic Resources In Producing Incident Report In The Oil And Gas Industry: A Case Study Nor Aini Abdul Rahman, Khairi Izwan Abdullah & Masputeriah Hamzah
19
8
Anxiety Level In Malay Rural Children: A Cross Sectional Study Atefeh Ahmadi & Mohamed Sharif Mustaffa
27
9
Pentaksiran Kemahiran Proses Sains (KPS) Dalam Sistem Pentaksiran Berasaskan Sekolah (PBS) Hamimah Abu Naim & Norlly Mohd Isa
37
12
Kemahiran Penaakulan Bagi Matapelajaran Matematik Tambahan Dalam Kalangan Pelajar Tingkatan Empat Mohamad Nizam Arshad, Mohd Salleh Abu, Abdul Halim Abdullah, Noor Azean Atan & Mahani Mokhtar
46
15
Neuro Linguistic Programming: Swish Therapy To Prevent Truancy Among Students In A Public School In Malaysia Aminuddin M. Sanusi, Syed Mohamed Shafeq & Yahya Buntat
62
16
Kemahiran Hayat Sukan (KHS) Bagi Sukan Sekolah (1M1S) Dalam Kalangan Pelajar Sekolah Menengah Di Malaysia Zali A. Rahman & Halijah Ibrahim
75
18
Correlation Between Psychosocial Stressors With Job Performance Among Government Employees Syed Mohamed Shafeq Syed Mansor & Khatereh A Malekian
87
21
Mathematical Problem Posing Difficulties In Calculus Among Undergraduates Zahra Ghasempour, Mdnor Bakar & Golam Reza Jahanshahloo
103
26
English Poetry Stances By English As A Foreign Language Readers Shirin Shafiei Ebrahimi & Zaidah Zainal
116
27
Amalan Pengurusan Pembangunan Profesional Guru Di Sekolah Dan Kompetensi Guru Di Negeri Sabah Roslitah Madon & Lokman Mohd Tahir
132
28
Hubungan Keperluan Pelajar, Iklim Bilik Darjah, Matlamat Sekolah Dengan Pengetahuan Pedagogi Isi Kandungan Guru Tingkatan Enam Mokhtar Pet & Ahmad Johari Sihes
147
31
Neuro Linguistic Programming With Godiva Chocolate Therapy In Addressing The Problem Of Smoking Among The Students Siti Sheahila Abdul Rashid, Syed Mohamed Shafeq Mansor & Yahya Buntat
165
42
NLP Swish Therapy In Addressing the Problem Of Sleep Among Students Hasjazura Hassan, Syed Mohd Shafeq Syed Mansor Alhabshi & Yahya Buntat
178
43
Lecturers’ Professional Development As A Determinant Of Classroom Practices AlGhamdi, Abdulkhaliq Hajjad & Ahmad Johari Sihes
191
49
Pengaruh Penggunaan Alat Menggendong Bayi Terhadap Ketidakselesaan Menggunakan Skala Borg Siti Rabiatul Adawiyah Mahasan, Zainal Abidin Zainuddin, Asha Hasnimy Mohd Hashim & Halijah Ibrahim
202
52
Pelaksanaan Pengajaran Dan Pembelajaran Menggunakan Frog VLE Bagi Mata Pelajaran Bahasa Melayu Di Sekolah Rendah Zurina Hamid & Sanitah Mohd Yusof
216
54
Ke Arah Pengurusan Kurikulum Berkesan Peranan Elemen Perancangan, Pengelolaan, Kepimpinan Dan Pengawalan Rosidah Abdullah Sani & Abdul Rahim Hamdan
229
55
Coaching dan Mentoring Kepimpinan Pengetua Cemerlang Terhadap Prestasi Pengurus Pertengahan Dalam Meningkatkan Prestasi Cemerlang Sekolah Nuinda Alias & Khadijah Daud
241
61
Oral Commuication Apprehension Among Libyan EFL Learners Abdalnaser Alamaria, Abdul Rahim Salam & Tina Abdullah
259
73
The Improving Of Cognitive Visual Spatial Using Google Sketchup In Overcoming Learning Difficulties In Geometry Rohani Abd Wahab, Mohd Salleh Abu, Abdul Halim Abdullah, Noor Azean Atan & Mahani Mokhtar
275
77
Assessing Lecturers’ Beliefs On Teaching Samah Ali Mohsen Mofreh, M. Najib Abdul Ghafar & Abdul Hafiz Omar
286
79
Problem-Based Learning (PBL) In Mathematics: A Meta-Analysis Najihah Mustaffa, Zaleha Ismail, Zaidatun Tasir & Mohd Nihra Haruzuan Mohamad Said
301
82
Co-Curricular Marking System On Measuring Leadership Development Among Secondary School Students Muhazian Md. Noor & Halijah Ibrahim
317
85
Rasch Model Analysis Of Assessment For Learning In Higher Education Erwin Akib & Mohamad Najib Abdul Ghafar
335
88
Model Pembelajaran Sinektik Dalam Meningkatkan Kreativiti Siswa Pada Mata Kuliah Kewirausahaan Di Jurusan Kurikulum Dan Teknologi Pendidikan Zelhendri Zen & Ahmad Johari Sihes
344
90
Impact Of Creative Problem Solving On Mathematics Lim Keng Keh, Zaleha Ismail & Hamidreza Kashefi
361
98
Studi Tentang Tahap Kompetensi Guru Sekolah Menengah Kejuruan Negeri Bidang Bisnis Dan Manajemen Di Kota Padang Nellitawati & Yusof Boon
375
103
A Preliminary Study On Implementation Of Aerobic Fitness Training In Tennis Coaches' Training Program Syahrul Ridhwan Morazuki & Zainal Abidin Zainuddin
389
104
BebanTugas Guru Sekolah Dan PerananPentadbirSekolah Hamdan Hamami & M Al-Muz-ZammilYasin
399
110
Pendidikan Karakter Dalam Mata Pelajaran Budaya Alam Minangkabau Di Sd Kota Padang Sumatera Barat Zuwirna & Ahmad Johari Sihes
414
111
Kompetensi Mata Pelajaran Apresiasi Sastera Kanak-Kanak Elfia Sukma & Ahmad Johari Sihes
431
115
Basic Concept Of Counseling Post Natural Disaster, Issues And Challenges In Indonesia Ifdil & Faizah Abd Ghani
447
116
Barrier Beyond Control Of Secondary School Teachers Chia Lai Lai & Abdul Rahim Hamdan
458
119
Cabaran Penyelidikan Pembinaan Alat Teng Teng Board (TTB) Nurul Rafeeda Saarani, Zainal Abidin Zainuddin, Halijah Ibrahim & Asha Hasnimy Hashim
467
127
Tahap Kecergasan Atlet Judo Selepas Menjalani Latihan Akrobatik Gimnastik Mohd Nazri Azeli & Halijah Ibrahim
476
130
Implementasi Teori Kecerdasan Pelbagai Dalam Pelaksanaan Kurikulum Program Matrikulasi KPM Abdul Rahim Hamdan & Jaafar Jamian
483
134
Sistem Pengujian Automatik Secara Visual Untuk Menganalisis Pergerakan Motor Halus Kanak-Kanak Nurfadilah Darmansah & Halijah Ibrahim
499
138
Perlaksanaan Pendekatan Pengajaran Bersama Dalam Kelas Inklusif Muhamad Khairul Anuar Hussin & Abdul Rahim Hamdan
515
141
Module Construction On The Prevention Of Smoking Habit Among Primary School Students Roslee Ahmad & Norhayati Ahmad
531
143
The Reliability Of Scoring Item For Kemahiran Melakar Task Siti Khadijah Lokman & Halijah Ibrahim
543
144
A Meta-Analysis: Pedagogical Strategies For Teaching Mathematics Among Aboriginal Students Zuriati Sabidin, Zaleha Ismail, Zaidatun Tasir & Mohd Nihra Haruzuan Mohamad Said
552
151
Issues On Students’ Plagiarism: A Review Andi Anto Patak, Hamimah Abu Naim & Rohaya Talib
566
157
Keberkesanan Modul Pencegahan Dadah Berasaskan Pendekatan Kaunseling Choice Theory Bagi Meningkatkan Kesedaran Murid Terhadap Penyalahgunaan Dadah Nur Haslinda Hussin & Roslee Ahmad
576
160
Sifat Personaliti Guru Untuk Kreatif Azhari Mariani, Zaleha Ismail
Pengajaran
593
161
Catatan Awalan Terhadap Kajian Aspek Kebolehpercayaan Instrumen Kemahiran Asas Pergerakan Kanak-Kanak Siti Sri Dalimah Suhaimi & Halijah Ibrahim
603
166
Instruments For Assessing Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPCK) In Teaching Mathematics Zaleha Ismail & Norhafizah Sulaiman
617
167
Struktur Dan Perwakilan Kepimpinan Distributif Di Sekolah Siti Khadadiah M. B. & Khadijah Daud
633
169
Epistemic Modality Markers As Persuasive Elements In Science And Engineering Research Abstracts Maryam Mehrjooseresht & Ummul K. Ahmad
646
172
Penilaian Kursus MPS1843 Menggunakan Model Konteks, Input, Proses Dan Produk Suhaila Abdul Raub & Zaleha Ismail
659
177
Pendekatan Inkuiri dan Teknik Penyoalan Terbuka Guru : Isu dan Pelaksanaannya dalam Proses Pembelajaran dan Pengajaran Kimia Arshad Jais, Noraffandy Yahaya, Nor Hasniza Ibrahim, Mohamed Noor Hassan
672
183
Mathematics Teachers Higher-Order Thinking Najua Syuhada Ahmad Alhassora, Hamidreza Kashefi, Abdul Halim Abdullah
685
187
Validity And Reliability Of Instrument Measuring Culinary Competencies: The Rasch Measurement Model Nornazira Suhairom, Aede Hatib Musta’amal & Nor Fadila Mohd Amin
695
188
Tahap Kemahiran Berfikir Kritis Matematik Pelajar Sekolah Menengah Atas Negeri Di Daerah Bone Sulawesi Selatan Firdaus & Ismail Kailani
710
190
Analisis Pukulan Sudut Penalti Pasukan Hoki Wanita Malaysia Di Peringkat Asia Zurina Md Yusof & Halijah Ibrahim
723
210
Amalan Kaunseling Kesihatan Dalam Kalangan Kaunselor Di Institut Penjagaan Kesihatan Malaysia Merikan Aren, Faizah Abd Ghani & Zainal Abidin Zainuddin
732
211
The Nature Of Mathematical Creativity : A Review Mohd Amirul Azzim Aminuddin, Zaleha Ismail & Hamidreza Kashefi
748
212
Kefahaman Dan Kemahiran Guru Dalam Pentaksiran Kemahiran Berfikir Aras Tinggi (KBAT) Jayeswary Shammugam & Ahmad Johari Sihes
759
220
Pembangunan Gaya Pemikiran Keusahawanan Guru Dan Penerapan Ciri-Ciri Keusahawanan Pelajar Dayang Sinar Igah, Mohd Anuar Abdul Rahman & Khadijah Daud
771
222
Integriti Pentaksiran Dalam Sistem Pendidikan Di Malaysia: Satu Analisis Hazlin Haron, Rohaya Talib & Adibah Abd Latif
792
233
Kompetensi Dimiliki Guru Pelatih Prasekolah Di Institut Pendidikan Guru Miller Yong & Anuar Abd. Rahman
808
240
Pendidikan Swasta Dalam Arus Kemajuan Pendidikan Negara Mohan Sanyasi & Sanitah Mohd Yusof
825
249
Kesan Teknik ‘Hypno Mind Booster’ Ke Atas Motivasi Intrinsik Dan Ekstrinsik Pelajar Saiful Lizan Suparman & Mohd Tajudin Ninggal
841
250
Pembentukan Modul Islah Dalam Menangani Masalah Disiplin Kritikal Dalam Kalangan Pelajar Faizah Abd. Ghani & Mohd Azhar Ab. Rahman
847
251
Interference Of L1 In Pronunciation Teaching And Learning In Malaysian ESL Setting Nur’ Aqilah Mohd Norain & Mohd Hilmi Hamzah
866
253
Developing A Model Of Marital Intimacy For Iranian Couples In Malaysia Zoleikha Kamali & Syed Mohamed Shafeq Syed Mansor
877
254
Perkaitan Kepimpinan Distributif Guru Besar Dengan Kepercayaan Dan Kepimpinan Guru Asmia Ayu Alias & Khadijah Daud
889
255
Concept And Models Of Academic Advising In Higher Education Intitutions: Comparison Between Malaysia And America Nguyen Thuy Van & Hamdan Said
904
256
Alternation Between Walk And Run Kinematic Limitation At Stance And Swing Of The Walk Gait Hafizah Harun & Abd Hafidz Omar
922
257
The Need For Problem Base Learning (PBL) In Teaching And Learning In Technical Vocational Education And Training (TVET): A Concept Paper Sada Adamu Maigari, Mohd Zolkifli Abdul Hamid & Adnan Ahmad
934
258
Identifying Competences Needed By Secondary Schools’ Teacher In Designing Instruction Haidir Arafah & Ahmad Johari Sihes
942
259
The Framework For Determining The Relationship Between Personality Traits and Career Decision Making Among undergraduate Student Monica Obi & Mohd Tajudin Ninggal
956
266
Perbandingan Kesan Motivasi Belajar Ke Atas Model Tgfu Dan Model Inquiry Dalam Kecergasan Fizikal Bagi Pelajar Sekolah Rendah (Sr) Di Kabupaten Padang Pariaman Syamsuar & Zainal Abidin Zainuddin
969
272
Story Telling Techniques In Enhancing The Comprehension Skill In Bahasa Malaysia Meena Ayaoo & Shafeeq Hussain Vazhathodi
981
277
Lesson Study In Malaysia Wong Wai Yoke, Fatin Aliah Phang Abdullah
997
280
A Review On Career Decision-Making And Factor Of Career Pathway In School Mohamed Alfian Harris Omar & Syed Mohamed Shafeq Syed Mansor
1014
282
Reading Habits Among Adolescence Nur Aida Alias & Azlina Mohd Kosnin
1029
283
Positive Outcome With Neurofeedback Treatment In A Case Of Child With Mild Autism Spectrum Disorder Wong Siao Yen & Yeo Kee Jiar
1035
285
Meaningful Diction Through Task Based Approach Pia Munusamy & Abdullah Mohd Nawi
1049
ACCURACY AND CONSISTENCY OF ESL LEARNERS’ RATINGS ON ORAL PROFICIENCY IN RATER TRAINING Mardiana Idris & Mohamad Hassan Zakaria
ABSTRACT Rater training is fundamental in reducing rater variability in selfand peer assessments practice within the paradigm of assessment as learning. Since Malaysian education system is examinationoriented in which assessment of learning (summative) and assessment for learning (formative) dominate, ESL learners are rarely asked to rate themselves or their peers as the system is still sceptical in entrusting learners with the role of assessors. Learners are normally perceived as unable to (1) assess accurately, (2) assess consistently and (3) discriminate oral proficiency components in their performance. Therefore, this study attempts to gauge learners’ perspectives on these three assumptions. Quantitative analysis was conducted using the Rasch model while a short semi-structured interview was used to support the quantitative results obtained. Findings show that learners are generally able and ready for assessment as learning to be implemented in the ESL classroom. They were generally able to rate other speakers and themselves consistently as well as discriminating oral proficiency components. These promising results would possibly launch a platform for selfand peer assessments practice which will consequently promote active learning and effective learner-centred classroom in Malaysia.
1
Keywords: Assessment as learning, Rater training, CEFR
INTRODUCTION In many self- and peer assessments studies on oral proficiency, rater training is fundamental in reducing rater variability as failing to conduct such training results in ‘construct-irrelevant variance’(Kang, 2012). Understandably, reducing rater bias or mitigating rater effects are crucial to ensure fairness of judgments particularly when these assessments are framed within assessment of learning (summative) and assessment for learning (formative) whereby scores determine placement and certification. However, only a few rater training was reported for assessment as learning (Earl, 2013): a new assessment paradigm that advocates learners’ involvement with assessment criteria in order to foster learners’ critical thinking and independent learning. Though this assessment type corroborates with the objectives of successful language learning, it has not been fully embraced in Malaysia, probably due to the educational system that still favours high stakes examinations (Lan Ong, 2010) and possibly from lack of exposure. Furthermore, oral proficiency components entail complex and intertwined features such as grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation and fluency, to name a few, which demand more instructional hours than most schools can offer. Consequently, oral proficiency skills typically receive inadequate attention compared to other language skills in the classroom. Since Malaysian education system is examination-oriented, learners are rarely asked to rate themselves or their peers as the system is sceptical in entrusting learners with the role of assessors. Learners are normally perceived as unable to (1) assess accurately, (2) assess consistently and (3) discriminate oral proficiency components in their performance. Therefore, this study attempts to gauge learners’ perspectives through the following research
2
questions: 1. Do ESL learners apply the scale accurately in rater training? 2. Do ESL learners rate consistently in rater training? 3. To what extend does learner rater training sensitizes ESL learners’ to oral proficiency components, namely overall impression, range, accuracy, fluency and coherence?
DESCRIPTIONS OF THE STUDY Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR) Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR) is an empirically developed measurement for listening, speaking, reading and writing. However, in this study, only speaking scales were used as the instrument to elicit learners’ ratings in assessing speakers, featured in Council of Europe (CoE) videos. The ratings used in this study will be based on the reconstructed CEFR oral assessment criteria (CoE, 2001), consisting of statements that describe the language learners’ performance at six levels: A1, A2, B1, B2, C1, and C2 as the highest level. CEFR was used in this study as it was developed empirically, using the views of practicing teachers. Though it may seem that it suits only European learners, a few studies showed that it operates well in different regions and different learners of the world (Glover, 2011). Since the task excluded pair format, the components adapted were only within five criteria: overall impression, range, accuracy, fluency, and coherence. Interaction was not used in order to eliminate interlocutor effect (Fulcher, 2010). Overall impression refers to holistic ratings of the speakers through descriptive criteria. Range reflects learners’ ability to formulate ideas by using differing linguistic forms. Accuracy reflects on learners’ ability to maintain consistent use of complex grammar while fluency deals with their ability to express ideas spontaneously and speaks in natural flow.
3
Reconstruction activity of CEFR oral assessment criteria grid Participants were grouped into three or four and each group received global and analytic assessment scales of CEFR with missing descriptors. Then, jigsaw activity began in which each group discussed and filled in the missing descriptors (these missing descriptors were on overall impression, range, accuracy, fluency and coherence). Then, the researchers discussed the descriptors with participants, steering them towards placing the descriptors correctly in the grid. After these descriptors were correctly placed, the original scale was given to each participant. The rational for jigsaw activity was to sensitize them to the descriptors before they viewed the videos (Ibberson, 2012)
METHODOLOGY Participants In this study, 10 Band 3 MUET (Malaysian University English Test) learners were purposely selected. MUET is an English proficiency test of the four language skills, administered to tertiary level learners by Malaysian Examination Council. The results are depicted in aggregated score that categorizes the learners into six bands, ranging from Band 1 (extremely limited user) to Band 6 (very good user). Only participants who scored Band 3 (modest user of English) were selected for this study as they could understand the CEFR descriptors as well as provide more responses for the interview. 6 females and 4 male participants volunteered with 5 of them Malays, 4 Chinese and 1 Indian, mirroring the three main races in Malaysia. All of them were 18 years old.
4
DVD of spoken performances illustrating CEFR levels After reconstruction activity of the CEFR oral assessment criteria, the participants viewed three DVDs of levels A1 (Tifaine: T), B2 (Paul:P) and C2 (Xavier: X) of CEFR spoken performance. They were required to rate the speakers by filling in the CEFR rating forms based on the CEFR criteria previously reconstructed. These DVDs were viewed on CoE website (http://www.coe.int/) whereby the calibrated examples were available for training purposes from http://www.ciep.fr/. Ratings, comments and transcriptions of the calibrated examples were also downloaded to guide and assist rater training. Quantitative analyses of ratings Participants’ accuracy and consistency in rating the speakers were computed using Rasch measurement model (Bond & Fox, 2007) by means of Winstep computer programme (Version 3.72.3). Although the sample size was small, it was adequate for analysis in Winstep as it fulfilled the minimum 10 observations per category (Linacre, 2014). Qualitative analysis of interviews A brief semi-structured interview on rater training were conducted to explore participants’ (a) involvement with oral assessment criteria, (b) understanding of CEFR oral assessment descriptors, and (c) general view on rater training practice.
RESULTS & DISCUSSION In Rasch analysis, testing the fit between data and the model is conducted through quality control of fit statistics with z-scores (or Zstd), mean-square (MnSq), Infit and Outfit (Linacre, 2014). The
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value of Zstd was 0.0, indicating that the data fit the model. The MnSq value for infit and outfit were 1.0 and 0.98 respectively which indicate that the measurement is accurate. The subsequent results were reported according to the research questions.
RQ1: 1. Do ESL learners apply the scale accurately in rater training? Accuracy in this study was viewed within the context of how learners’ ratings matched the experts. The third column (Exact Obs%) of Table 1 shows percentage of ratings that matched the experts. Only five learners (L03, L10, L01, L02 and L05) achieved agreement more than the acceptable percentage (70%) while L04 scored less than 50% agreement with the CEFR experts. This could be due to L04 ratings of Xavier (C2 speaker), who rated him as C1 during rater training. However, L04 ratings were only one point lower than expected but were still within proficient speakers’ range (C1 and C2) according to CEFR oral assessment criteria. The last column (Match Exp%) shows the agreement percentage that was expected if the data fit the model perfectly. L03 met the expectation of the model with 100% while L06, L07, L08 and L09 did not meet the expectation by only 2.6%. This indicates that the four learners’ ratings were more random than the model predicts. However, L01, L02 and L05 observed percentages show 10.7% higher than the expected model, an indication that the ratings were predictable.
Table 1 Learners’ rating agreement with CEFR experts
Learner L03 L10 L01
Total Score 15 14 10
Exact Obs% 100.0 93.3 80.0
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Match Exp % 100.0 93.4 69.3
L02 L05 L06 L07 L08 L09 L04
10 10 10 10 10 10 9
80.0 80.0 66.7 66.7 66.7 66.7 46.7
69.3 69.3 69.3 69.3 69.3 69.3 66.1
RQ2: Do ESL learners rate consistently in rater training? Learners’ internal consistency of ratings was gauged through infit and outfit mean square residuals (MSq). Ideally, both should be close to one within the range of 0.5 to 1.5 (Linacre, 2014). Outfit MSq is sensitive to extremely unexpected individual ratings (outliers) while Infit MsQ is less sensitive to outliers but more sensitive to unexpected rating patterns – an indication of internal consistency (Yan, 2014). In Table 2, only L04 appeared to have Infit MsQ higher than 1.5, suggesting a tendency to rate inconsistently and unpredictably. However, Infit and Outfit statistics of nine other learners were within the range, indicating that almost all learners were largely internally consistent. Since L03 scored 100% agreement with the experts, the Infit and Outfit statistics reported ‘maximum measure’ as the learner was behaving like a ‘rating machine’, thus no longer included in the measurement situation. These results suggest that most learners were able to rate consistently and rater training could have contributed to the consistency. This is consistent with many studies which found that rater training may become a mechanism to eliminate rater error and improve consistency (Farrokhi, Esfandiari, & Schaefer, 2012; Carey, Mannell, & Dunn, 2010).
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Table 2 Internal consistency of learners’ ratings Learner L03 L10 L01 L02 L05 L06 L07 L08 L09 L04
Model SE 1.83 1.05 0.58 0.58 0.58 0.58 0.58 0.58 0.58 0.56
Infit MSq Max. measure 1.07 0.82 0.90 0.66 0.82 0.82 1.22 1.22 1.54
Outfit MSq Max. measure 1.03 0.77 0.84 0.59 0.72 0.72 1.20 1.20 1.77
PtBis Corr 0.00 0.07 0.56 0.46 0.77 0.58 0.58 0.03 0.03 -0.46
RQ3: To what extend does learner rater training sensitizes ESL learners’ to oral proficiency components, namely overall impression, range, accuracy, fluency and coherence? In relation to their involvement with rater training, many learners repeatedly used the word ‘helped’ and ‘improve’. L03: I believe my oral skills will improve if I get involved with rater training. L01: With rater training, it helped me to understand oral assessment criteria. Although they acknowledged that rater training was helpful in improving their oral skills, more than half requested for longer training session. In terms of understanding CEFR oral assessment descriptors, majority felt that the descriptors were easily understood and all of them concurred that they were able to categorize the speakers and themselves according to the CEFR levels on overall impression, fluency and coherence. However, only some learners were confident in rating range and accuracy. All learners agreed that the descriptors helped them in identifying their strengths and weaknesses. Generally, learners displayed positive disposition towards rater training practice as evident from the responses below (verbatim):
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L10: This training helps me to understand my oral abilities; I know what I need to improve about my speaking. L04: I think this oral assessment criteria will bring a lot of advantages if me involve in this assessment criteria although it may made me feel difficult because my English level is really low and poor. L05: I think that the oral assessment criteria helped me to know how to differentiate each level according to accuracy, fluency, range and coherence
CONCLUSIONS Findings from this study suggest that ESL learners are generally able and ready for assessment as learning to be implemented in the classroom. They were generally able to rate other speakers and themselves consistently as well as discriminating oral proficiency components. These promising results would possibly launch a platform for self- and peer assessments practice in ESL classrooms. Such assessments will promote active learning and effective learner-centred classroom. In order to improve accuracy of learners’ ratings, better results would have been achieved if videos of A2, B2 and B1 were shown. In fact, future studies might want to use larger sample of ESL learners, longer period of rater training, different oral assessment scales or different oral proficiency components.
REFERENCES Bond, T.G & Fox, C.M (2007), Applying the Rasch Model: Fundamental measurement in the human sciences (Second Edition), Lawrence Erlbaum Associates: London Carey, M. D., Mannell, R. H., & Dunn, P. K. (2010). Does a rater’s familiarity with a candidate's pronunciation affect the rating in
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oral proficiency interviews? Language Testing, 28(2), 201– 219. Council of Europe (2001). Common European Framework of Reference for Languages: learning, teaching, assessment, Language Policy Unit: Strasbourg Earl, L.M. (2013). Assessment as Learning: Using classroom assessment to maximize student learning (Second Edition), Corwin: USA Farrokhi, F., Esfandiari, R., & Schaefer, E. (2012). A Many-Facet Rasch Measurement of Differential Rater Severity / Leniency and Teacher Assessment. Journal of Basic and Applied Scientific Research, 2(9), 8786–8798. Fulcher, G. (2010). The reification of the Common European Framework of Reference(CEFR) and effect-driven testing. Advances in Research on Language Acquisition and Teaching, 15–26. Glover, P. (2011). Using CEFR level descriptors to raise university students’ awareness of their speaking skills. Language Awareness, 20(2), 121–133. Ibberson, H. (2012). An investigation of non-native learners ’ selfassessment of the speaking skill and their attitude towards self-assessment. University of Essex. Kang, O. (2012). Impact of Rater Characteristics and Prosodic Features of Speaker Accentedness on Ratings of International Teaching Assistants’ Oral Performance. Language Assessment Quarterly, 9(3), 249–269. Lan Ong, S. (2010). Assessment profile of Malaysia: high-stakes external examinations dominate. Assessment in Education: Principles, Policy & Practice, 17(1), 91–103. Linacre, J.M. (2014) A User's Guide to Facets:Rasch Model Computer Programs. Retrieved from www.winstep.com Yan, X. (2014). An examination of rater performance on a local oral English proficiency test: A mixed-methods approach. Language Testing, 1–27.
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ANALYSIS OF SHOT’S DISTRIBUTION AREA, WINNERS AND ERRORS IN SQUASH GAME: A PILOT STUDY Diyana Zulaika binti Abdul Ghani & Zainal Abidin bin Zainuddin
ABSTRACT The purpose of this study was to analyze the shot’s distribution area, winner and error shots in squash game. Two matches from two different tournaments, performed by four players divided equally for professional elite and national back-up groups (age 21.27 ± 5.22, height 1.69 ± 0.98 m, weight 64 ± 10 kg), were analyzed via Sportscode software. Results indicated that majority shots played at area 5 with 24% (303 shots of 1,261 total shots) while area 4 was the least shots played with only 11% (139 shots of 1,261 total shots). Further analysis has shown that the winner shots frequently performed at area 1 (26% of 41 winner shots). Similarly, error shots also had recorded area 1 as the highest playing rate together with area 2 (44% and 46% of 41 error shots respectively). This study found that the area of shots distribution, winner and error are related to the player’s strategy and it is depends on player’s ability to direct the outcomes whether it is a winner shots or causing errors. In conclusion, findings of this study will be used to determine other performance indicators that lead to the improvement of player’s performance. Keywords: Shot’s distribution area; Winner; Error; Squash
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INTRODUCTION Performance indicators (performance parameters) are variables that define the features of a performance that will contribute to the results or outcomes of that performance. Performance indicators used in many sports are very much alike. Factors that lead to the performance enhancement during games such as rally length, winners, errors, shot distribution, shot selection, shot execution, defensive and attacking shots, service, passing, tackling, shots, goals and set pieces are involved for the thorough analysis of the match (M. D. Hughes & Bartlett, 2002) and to provide positive feedback to players and coaches for better understanding and to improve performance. Squash court could be divided into three main parts which are front, middle and back court. Players played all around court using all of desirable shots such as drive, cross-court, drop, boast, lob and other shots then generate their own playing pattern. Different players performed different style of playing according to their opponents’ response shots (Vucković et al., 2013). It is important for the players to understand their strengths and weaknesses in order to strategically plan their tactical game. Therefore, the aim of this paper is to analyze shots distribution between professional elite and national back-up players and also winner and error shots during matches.
METHODS Participant and sample of matches The sample involved four Malaysian squash players (age 21.27 ± 5.22, height 1.69 ± 0.98 m, weight 64 ± 10 kg). Matches were recorded at two different tournaments: the Malaysia Open and the National Junior Championship. Two matches were recorded with a total 7 sets of videos.
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Procedure All matches were recorded using Sony Digital Video Camera Recorder, model DCR-PC350E (lens Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonnar T, 720 x 576 pixels, 25 frames per seconds. Prior to testing, squash court was labelled into six areas (Figure 1); front court (area 1 and area 2), middle court (area 3 and area 4) and back court (area 5 and area 6).
Figure 1 Dimensions of the court’s labels
The total games played by the players were recorded. All recorded data were then analyzed and compared between groups. All video recordings were analyzed using Sportscode software.
Data Analysis The analysis was conducted using Sportscode software. Two designated code windows which are 1) area of shot’s distribution and 2) winners and errors were used. The first designated code window, comprises with all 35 forehand and backhand shots including rules of let and stroke shots (Figure 2).
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Figure 2 Code windows for shot’s distribution according to areas. * indicates Area 1, indicates Area 2, indicates Area 3, indicates Area 4, indicates Area 5 and indicates Area 6
Second designated code window is specific for winner and error shots which contains 32 shots for both forehand and backhand (Figure 3).
Figure 3 Code window winner and error shots according to areas * indicates Area 1, indicates Area 2, indicates Area 3, indicates Area 4, indicates Area 5 and indicates Area 6
Video analysis was carried out for two stages. The first stage was for shot’s distribution that landed in particular area in court (first code window). Second stage was for winner and error shots performed throughout the matches (second code window). Outcomes from sportscode video analysis were then analyzed using 14
Microsoft Excel 2010 and SPSS v16.0. Squash’s coaches (n=2) and experts (n=2) were involved in the notational analysis. An Inter-observer analysis was conducted to analyze the reliability of these observers. The coaches and experts (observer) have analyzed the types of shots from two matches, and a kappa coefficient (k) analysis was conducted. The kappa coefficient’s agreement value of the types of shots from the two matches are acceptable (k = 0.78) and the observers were reliable to conduct further notational analysis
RESULTS Total shots distribution Figure 4 below shows the total number of shots during tournament. As observed, majority players played shots at area 5 with 24% (303 shots of 1,261 total shots). Whereas, area 4 had recorded the least shots played with 11% (139 of 1,261 shots) only.
Figure 4 Area of total shots distribution
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Winner and Error shots distribution A total of 81 shots from overall 1,261 shots have been identified as winner and error shots during tournaments. Figure 5a described area of winner shots distribution during rallies. From all 41 winner shots, 26% are at area 1 (14 shots) while area 2 and area 6 both had recorded same percentage of shots played with 23% (12 shots). Area 4 is the lowest with only 4% (2 shots). On the other hand, Figure 5b shown the area of error shots distribution. High percentage of error shots occurred at area 1 and area 2 with 44% (18shots) and 46% (19shots) respectively. However, area 3 and area 4 had recorded none of error shots. This shows that error shots are mainly happened at front court.
Figure 5a)Winner shots distribution b) Error shots distribution
DISCUSSION Most of the shots performed at area 5. According to Vuckovic et al. (2013), 41.76% of 10,062 shots were straight drives shot and predominant in the back of the court at the left side (backhand) with percentage of 70.4%. This are aligned with the findings of this study. By playing at the back of the court, players have time to strategize their playing strategy to win the rally. Furthermore, area 5 is the backhand area thus it gave advantage to the players with
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stronger backhand techniques. Tong & Hong (2000) stated that 51.94% of all returns were played from the backhand area. Winner shots occurred most at area 1 which are at the front court. Mostly, players performed drop shots while playing at the front court and according to Hughes et.al (2006), 62% of winner distribution is drop shots. Murray & Hughes (2001) had revealed that drop shots had highest percentage in winner distributions among players and this shows that players execute the drop shots when there are chances to attack during rally and when they are in comfortable position to do so. Playing at the front of the court could lead to the winner or error as the highest error shots happened also at the front court (area 1 and area 2). Drop shots were included in one of main shots that triggered perturbations in squash game (Hughes et al., 2006). Drop shots often force the players to run hastily towards front area of the court and always cause disturbance to the playing rhythms of the players during game. When the perturbations happens, players are in the instability conditions and leads to the imprudent mistakes. Therefore, it is depends on player’s ability to directed the outcomes whether it is a winner shots or causing errors.
CONCLUSION Playing area is an important indicator that determines players’ playing strategy. Finding of this study found that area 5 is the highest preferable area to play by players compared to the middle and front court. This could suggest that players loved to use shots that contribute at the back of the court. However, the winner shots are happened to be highest at the front court and most likely through drop shots. Moreover, not only winner shots but errors also occur highest at the front court. These indicate that one type of shots could give result in either success or failure. In conclusion, findings of this study will be used to
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determine other performance indicators that lead to the improvement of player’s performance.
REFERENCES Hughes, M. D., & Bartlett, R. M. (2002). The use of performance indicators in performance analysis. Journal of Sports Sciences, 20(10), 739–754. doi:10.1080/026404102320675602 Hughes, M. T., Howells, M., & Hughes, M. (2006). Using perturbations in elite men’s squash to generate performance profiles. In A. Rendimiento (Ed.), IV Congreso Mundial de Ciencia y Deportes de Raqueta (pp. 35–51). Retrieved from www.altorendimiento.net Murray, S and Hughes, M. (2001). Tactical performance profiling in elite level senior squash. In: M.Hughes and I.M Franks (eds.). Cardiff: CPA, UWIC. 185-194. Presented at World Conference of Performance Analysis and Computers in Sport. Tong, Y.-M., & Hong, Y. (2000). The playing pattern of world’s top single badminton players. In International Symposium on Biomechanics in Sports. Vucković, G., James, N., Hughes, M., Murray, S., Sporis, G., & Pers, J. (2013). The effect of court location and available time on the tactical shot selection of elite squash players. Journal of Sports Science & Medicine, 12, 66–73.
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GENERIC RESOURCES IN PRODUCING INCIDENT REPORT IN THE OIL AND GAS INDUSTRY: A CASE STUDY Nor Aini Abdul Rahman, Khairi Izwan Abdullah & Masputeriah Hamzah
ABSTRACT This paper aims to investigate how generic resources (professional practices) influence the production of incident reports in the oil and gas industry. In order to do that, fifteen summary of incident reports were analyzed in terms of their contents. Based on the analysis, interviews were held with engineers in the industry to probe further how professional practices influence the production of the incident report. Keywords: Generic resources, Professional communication, Professional genre, Professional practices, Professional cultures
INTRODUCTION Verbal and written communication is important in the workplace as everyone’s communication skills affect both personal and organizational effectiveness (Kreitner and Kinicki, 2008). The authors further state that communication is not only about sending and receiving messages but requires other important factors: planning, organizing, directing and leading. Studies on workplace
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communication (Lehtonen and Karjalainen, 2008; Crosling and Ward, 2002; AC Nielsen Research Services, 2000) found that a wide range of communicative events take place in the companies in ensuring work effectiveness and efficiency. They include informal work-related discussions, persuading colleagues, giving feedback, networking, and explaining, instructing and demonstrating. The studies show that communication in an important tool to ensure organizational effectiveness. It is undeniable that there is a need for learners who will join the job market to equip themselves with essential communication skills at the workplace. While learning to communicate at the workplace could happen on its own outside the classroom, the process could be made more effective and systematic through formal instruction, as in workplace-oriented English for Specific Purposes (ESP) programmes. However, to effectively prepare learners for communication at the workplace, ESP practitioners need to understand what makes effective communication in an organization. They need to understand the process of information flow and the parties involved in the communication. There is also a need to understand the culture and subcultures that influence communication in specific contexts as has been highlighted by Bhatia (2008) on the need to study the professional context, Swales (1990) on discourse community and Widdowson’s (1998) community and culture. In preparing learners for professional communication, ESP practitioners need to be aware that one communicative act can serve many functions. Communication is not seen as an isolated act; rather, it combines a few functions to achieve one major purpose and this is known as interdiscursivity (Fairclough, 1992). As an illustration, a press release on a product or service can serve many functions: for publicity, promotions, announcements, accomplishments, as marketing tool, or providing financial data. Thus, these various functions of press release are intertwined in one text.
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From the views held on interdiscursivity, it can be concluded that text production is a highly complex process. It is not a simple process of putting and organizing thoughts into words. Rather, it involves a combination of activities to achieve a designated communicative purpose. It also uses a combination of genres in a particular social or professional setting in order to achieve certain communicative purpose. This brings generic resources (Bhatia 2010) into the picture. Generic resources refers to professional practices, professional culture and professional genre. Professional practices refer to using a particular genre to achieve a specific objective and choosing the appropriate mode of communication for that particular genre (Bhatia, 2010). Professional cultures refer to the boundaries of several kinds of constraints, such as generic norms and conventions, professional and disciplinary goals and objectives and the questions of professional, disciplinary and organizational identities (Bhatia, 2010). Professional genre refers to the types of texts that are recognizable to readers and writers, and that meet the needs of the rhetorical situations in which they function (Swales, 1990). With that in mind, this study aims to identify one particular generic resource – professional practices – that influence the production of incident report in the oil and gas industry. Incident report refers to a report produced when accidents such as equipment failure, loss of life, or fire occur at the workplace.
METHODOLOGY Interview data is collected from engineers working with a contracting oil and gas company based in Houston, Texas. It undertakes projects by well-known clients in the oil and gas industry. The list of the company is obtained from a directory – Johor Industry Guide (2005). The current project involves building a turret in Pasir Gudang, Johor. The top management of the company consists of international staff while the middle and
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lower management consist of both international and local staff. The primary responsibilities of the company are to provide a broad range of applications for tanker based floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO / FSO) systems installed in water depths ranging from shallow to ultra-deep. They include: i.Internal Disconnectable Turrets ii. Internal Permanent Turrets iii. External Turrets iv. Spread Mooring Systems v. Tower Yoke Mooring Systems vi. Import / Export CALMs and SALMs There are two departments in the company: Engineering and Operations. Since Operations Department produces incident report, all engineers in the department will be interviewed to get data for generic resources in producing incident report. The department consists of eleven personnel: three personnel (nonengineers) handle Human Resources matters and seven engineers. The Site Supervisor and the engineers will be interviewed to obtain data for the study. HR personnel will not be interviewed as they were not directly involved in reporting incidents. The Site Manager of the company was contacted to explain the purpose of the study. Once verbal consent was obtained, a letter was sent in order to proceed with the research. Questions for the interview were sent through email prior to the interview as the researcher was requested to do so. This is to ensure the questions do not contain any confidential matters. In order to ask questions about the professional practices, fifteen incident reports were analyzed as the first stage of the study. Results obtained from the reports will be used to ask questions about the professional practices in the company. Data will be transcribed and coded in order to arrive at the generic resources involved in producing the reports. The coding process of the interview data will be adopted from Strauss and
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Corbin (1990). The authors divide coding into two types: open coding and axial coding. For open coding, words and phrases found in the transcript or text will be coded or labelled. Axial coding will be performed by grouping codes or labels given to words and phrases determined in the open coding stage in order to create themes or categories. Interview questions asked about one generic resources refer to the process of reporting incidents. The questions include explanation on the entire process of reporting an incident, any guidelines to follow in order to prevent future incidents, any review done on safety procedure when an incident occurs, how is the review done, who does the review and the outcome of the review.
FINDINGS Analysis of the reports which was done prior to the interview showed that the incident reports served four functions: to describe the incident, to describe the causes of the incident, to report the findings based on investigations held and to provide recommendations which can prevent future incidents. Based on the interview data, the following categories were found. Firstly, there were systematic steps taken to report an incident. The steps were notification of incident, investigation and corrective action. The second category was guideline used to follow incident reporting. The guideline refereed to Health, Safety and Environment (HSE) guidelines. The next category referred to availability of review and all interviewees stated that review was available The next category was on how review was done and the interviewees stated it was done in meetings. The following category was on who does the review and the responses showed that it was the responsibility of the safety team. The final category was on outcome of review and the
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interviewees reported that it could result a procedural change that increases training its personnel, changes in work process/procedures and/or increased inspection of safety/protective items. However, non-procedural changes may be implemented also such as increased/improved mechanical/physical safety restraints, guarding, and/or safety railings. Some incidents that occur can be classified as an act of God such as lightning. Table 1 summarizes the coding of the questions.
Table 1 Category of responses
Category 1 Category 2 Category 3 Category 4 Category 5 Category 6
Steps taken to report incident Safety Guideline Availability of Review How the review is done Who does the review Outcome of review
From the data obtained, the following conclusions can be made. Firstly, there are steps taken to report and resolve an incident and employees were made aware of the steps. Secondly, there is a guideline for them to follow in order to prevent future incidents. Thirdly, there is a review on safety procedure every time an incident occurs. Next, the review is done in a meeting. To move on, the outcomes of the review result in areas such as retraining, inspection of equipment and reinforcement of safety policy. Finally, professional practices are bound by their commitment in fulfilling the requirements set by Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) or HSE.
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CONCLUSION This study has shown that there are systematic steps taken in reporting incident. This suggests that employees were aware of the professional practices of reporting incident in the company and abide by them. As for pedagogical implications, it can be concluded that meetings as a professional genre is to be highlighted in ESP curriculum. Secondly, language features of meetings could also be taught to learners. Also, conventions found in meetings could be pointed out to learners. In relation to further studies, studies on other professional genres such as minutes of meetings could be conducted. This could be done through content analysis approach of minutes of meetings. Another study could to address the process of conducting meetings and the language used in a meeting.
REFERENCES AC Nielsen (2000) AC Nielsen Research Services “ Employer satisfaction with graduate skills – Research report”. Department of Education, Training and Youth Affairs, Canberra (2000). Bhatia, V.K. (2008) “Genre Analysis, ESP and Professional Practice” ESP 27:161-174. Bhatia, V.K. (2010) Interdiscursivity in professional communication Discourse & Communication 4: 32-50. Crosling, G and Ward, I (2002) “Oral Communication: The Workplace Needs and Uses of Business Graduate Employees”. English for Specific Purposes 21: 41-57. Fairclough, N., (1992) Discourse and Social Change, Cambridge: Polity Press.
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Kreitner,R. and Kinicki, A. (2008) Organizational Behavior 8th Edition McGraw-Hill Irwin: New YorkCohen, A. M and Hersh, W. R. 2005. A Survey of Current Work in Biomedical Text Mining. Briefings in Bioinformatics, 6(1): 57-71. Lehtonen, T and Karjalainen, S. (2008) “University Graduates’ Workplace Language Needs as Perceived by Employers” System 36: 492-503. Swales, J.M (1990) Genre Analysis: English in Academic and Research Settings. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Widdowson, H.G. (1998) “Communication and Community: The Pragmatics of ESP” . ESP. 17(1): 3-14.
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ANXIETY LEVEL IN MALAY RURAL CHILDREN: A CROSS SECTIONAL STUDY Atefeh Ahmadi & Mohamed Sharif Mustaffa
ABSTRACT Anxiety among children has increasing trend in recent years. Rural children receive less screening programs, assessment and interventions for anxiety. The aim of this study is to describe the level of anxiety in Malay rural children by Malay-Spence Children’s Anxiety Scale. 600 students from 4 schools of Pontian by cluster sampling answered SCAS in a cross sectional study. Cronbach’s alpha for the total SCAS score was 0.85. Girls showed significantly more anxiety than boys, and younger children presented with less anxiety symptoms than older children in some of sub constructs. As a conclusion, high level of anxiety among rural Malay students in primary schools is an alarm for more psychological consideration and also preventive actions. Keywords: Anxiety, SCAS-Malay, Children, Rural
INTRODUCTION Anxiety disorders are among the most common mental health disorders with an increasing trend (Keeton, 2009). Both international (Kessler et al., 2005; Liu, 2011; Merikangas et al., 2010) and Malaysian (Gill, OH, & Pillai, 2010) studies have shown
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that anxiety disorders during childhood have a prevalence rate between 6 to 31.9%. Such disorders tend to interfere with a child’s social and individual functioning and have the tendency to become chronic (Cramer, 2005; Grover, 2007; Reuschel, 2011). Moreover, these disorders are highly comorbid with other mental disorders and thus, may lead to increased prevalence of other parallel and future psychiatric diseases such as depression and substance abuse (Beesdo, 2009) if become chronic or maltreated (Emmelkamp, 2009). Childhood anxiety are usually under recognized by parents and undertreated by clinicians (Fox, 2008). Recent administrative data show that only 2.5% of age-eligible children receive early intervention services. The majority of rural children with mental health problems go under analyzed and untreated. Indeed, the gap between need and service use is assumed to be wider in rural than in urban areas, particularly for children with more severe needs (APA, 2013). 17.1% of students in Malaysia have symptoms suggestive of severe anxiety disorders (Malaysia, 2012). Despite a high prevalence (10 to 20%) and substantial morbidity, anxiety disorders in childhood remain under recognized and undertreated in Malaysia (Gill et al., 2010). Those who lived in rural areas had higher levels of physical symptoms and separation/panic than those who lived in urban areas (Yen et al., 2010). Increasing trend of anxiety among Malaysians with more people believed to be experiencing some sorts of stress and mental distress (Azizan, Razali, & Pillai) is the necessity of more attention to psychological problems in Malaysia. The mental health issue is more alarming because of the lack of community mental health facilities, especially in the rural areas (Chong, Mohamad, & Er, 2013). The aim of this study is to find the level of anxiety among primary school students of Pontian (a rural region in Johor Bahru, Malaysia) for the first time by SCAS-Malay.
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METHOD Procedure and Participants University Technology Malaysia Faculty of Education and Ethics Committee of Ministry of Education approved all steps of this research. University Technology Malaysia, The Ministry of Higher Education, The Ministry of Education and schools’ head principals approved to conduct the present study among children. In this study, primary schools were selected by cluster random sampling in a rural district of Malaysia. 640 questionnaires were distributed to children. The children completed the questionnaires in their classrooms and school counselors were available to help them if necessary. Data of 600 children was used in the final analysis. 50.3% of students were boys and 49.7% were girls. They ranged in age from 9 to 11 years (mean=10.17 years, SD=0.77). Most of the participants have very low socioeconomic status (88% with the income lower than 1000$/month). 93.6% of them are from crowded families (families with 5 or more members) and most of them belong to families with low education (89.2% of fathers and 87.3% of mothers have not university education).
Measure SCAS-child version (Spence, 1998) was used to assess children’s anxiety as a self-report instrument. It is a 44-item instrument measuring child anxiety with 6 subscales. All items are rated on a 4-point scale, from “never” (0) to “always”. There are 6 positive filler items in the child version. Internal consistency and validity of the SCAS-child version has been reported to be excellent (Tsocheva, Sasagawa, Georgiou, & Essau, 2013).
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RESULTS The internal consistencies of total scores and subscales were estimated using Cronbach’s alpha. Cronbach’s alpha for the total SCAS score in this rural population was 0.85. Generalized anxiety disorder, fears of physical injury and obsessive-compulsive disorder subscales showed the lowest alpha with the value of 0.50, 0.53 and 0.51. The subscale with the highest alpha was that of panic, with a value of 0.68. Separation anxiety disorder and social phobia subscales yielded values of 0.63 and 0.61. Table 1 presents the means and standard deviations of the SCAS total scores and all subscales for the total sample, girls and boys, and different ages. The highest score in the total sample was for Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, and the lowest was for the Physical Injuries Fears subscale. Analysis of variance was run to clarify gender and age effects. There was a statistically significant difference between genders as determined for total SCAS score (F (1, 593) = 7.40, p
