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Original Articles The Assessment of Information and Communication Technology in Enhancing Researchers’ EfficiencyAli Abbas Falah Alzubi pp. 1 - 16 Abstract The study aimed at investigating the role of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) tools in enhancing the researchers’ efficiency among English as a foreign language (EFL) faculty members. An explanatory mixed methods design was used to collect data from a sample of 43 EFL faculty members through a closed-end online survey and a WhatsApp group. The findings showed that 75% of the participants used ICT tools in the various stages of research. The qualitative data showed that 12 ICT tools including WhatsApp, Internet search engines, Google Forms, Office programs, citation websites and programs, Adobe reader, social networking sites, smart phone cameras, quantitative analysis programs, electronic mail, online word processors and similarity check programs. The findings of this study can be utilized in designing training programs on the employment of ICT in research work in order to empower researchers with more efficiency in using ICT tools for research purposes. Keywords: Assessment; efficiency; faculty members; higher education; information and communication technology; research |
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Does educational games enhance mathematics performance in sixth-grade elementary school students?
Bryan Montero-Herrera, Jorge Aburto-Corona & José Moncada-Jiménez pp. 17 - 28 Abstract This study aimed to determine whether educational games improve mathematics performance in elementary school students. Volunteers were 47 Costa Rican students from a public school, who were assigned to an experimental (EXP: educational games) or a control (CTRL: traditional class) group. Twenty games were created and nine experienced teachers provided expert judge validity assessed by Kendall’s concordance coefficient (W). The EXP group completed 20 sessions (8 weeks) of 10-min games and following every game, students provided feedback. Before and after the treatment, students completed an official sixth-grade mathematics test. Two-way mixed ANOVA (assessments: pre-test, post-test by groups: EXP, CTRL) showed a significant main assessment effect. The W for teachers’ feedback allowed to use the games indoors, and student’s opinion following the games was considered ‘very good’. In conclusion, 20 educational games failed to improve mathematics academic performance in sixth-grade students; however, students enjoyed the games and there was a trend to improve performance compared to a CTRL group. Keywords: educational games; classroom; methods; exercise; mathematics test |
International Association of Educators.