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The progress of the nation is based on the competencies of the citizens, and the overall development of the person depends on the effectiveness of the educational system implemented in the country. The teacher is a key factor in the implementation of educational programs. Without a favorable attitude toward the teaching profession, teachers cannot do well in the teaching profession. Regarding this context, this study was conducted to construct an attitude scale to measure the attitude of schoolteachers towards the teaching profession. Steps of standardization of the test were adopted to construct a reliable and valid tool. Piloting was made in the Indo-Nepalese context. A quantitative research design was used in this study. A draft of 50 statements was designed, and 40 were selected on the basis of expert judgment. A sample of 374 schoolteachers from five districts of Nepal and India was selected using a random sampling technique. Eight statements were rejected based on item analysis and respondents' suggestions. A standardized attitude scale was developed comprising 32 statements, which were again categorized into eight factors on the basis of factor analysis. Various reliability coefficients ranging from .80 to .87 were found. For interpretation of the results, z-score and percentile norms were developed. This test will be beneficial to researchers who are interested in identifying the attitudes of schoolteachers in the Indo-Nepalese context.

Emotional intelligence (EI) has a positive correlation with the academic performance of medical students. However, why there is a positive correlation needs further exploration. We hypothesized that the capability of answering higher-order knowledge questions (HOQs) is higher in students with higher EI. Hence, we assessed the correlation between EI and the capability of medical students to answer HOQs in physiology. First-year undergraduate medical students (n = 124) from an Indian medical college were recruited as a convenient sample. EI was assessed by the Schutte Self-Report Emotional Intelligence Test (SSEIT), a 33-item self-administered validated questionnaire. A specially designed objective examination with 15 lower-order and 15 higher-order multiple-choice questions was conducted. The correlation between the examination score and the EI score was tested by Pearson's correlation coefficient. Data from 92 students (33 females and 59 males) with a mean age of 20.14±1.87 yr were analyzed. Overall, students got a percentage of 53.37±14.07 in the examination, with 24.46±9.1 in HOQs and 28.91±6.58 in lower-order knowledge questions (LOQs). They had a mean score of 109.58±46.2 in SSEIT. The correlation coefficient of SSEIT score with total marks was r ¼ 0.29 (P ¼ 0.0037), with HOQs was r ¼ 0.41 (P < 0.0001), and with LOQs was r = 0.14 (P = 0.19). Hence, there is a positive correlation between EI and the capability of medical students to answer HOQs in physiology. This study may be the foundation for further exploration of the capability of answering HOQs in other subjects.

In the neoliberal economic policies adopted by nations, services for social welfare including education are rendered commodities to be purchased by citizens, and the employees' (teachers') skills too get commodified. The pedagogical skills of teachers may often be judged predominantly in terms of their contribution towards ease of profit-making by the private schools rather than facilitating students' learning and growth. Through qualitative autoethnographic analysis of my experiences within private schools as an employee in a major city of Uttar Pradesh state of India, I explore the ways in which commodification of private school education, including teachers' skills and roles, could be potentially dehumanising (being treated as persons unworthy of humanness or care) for teachers. The findings of my autoethnographic analysis point to aspects of such dehumanisation and the challenges ahead for the teachers to work towards making school spaces a growth-inducing experience for students and themselves.

Purpose: The study was aimed at measuring farmers' helpline services quality in India using a standardized multi-factor scale (HELPQUAL) developed as part of this study. Design/methodology/approach: The present study is based on 360 farmers' and 45 experts' responses gathered using telephonic interviews and mailed questionnaires during the year 2021-22. The principal axis exploratory factor analysis, parallel analysis and Likert scaling were utilized to assess the scalability of items and identify underlying factors. Findings: The 19 item HELPQUAL consisting of four factors, namely dependability, accessibility, understandability and communication effectiveness, was developed. The reliability of the overall scale was excellent ([alpha] = 0.908), whereas the factor-wise reliability was excellent to acceptable (i.e. [alpha] = 0.918 to 0.72). The convergent validity of the scale was also excellent (0.819). Practical implications: The HELPQUAL scale developed is the first to measure the quality of agricultural helpline services. There are several farmers' helpline services across the globe, however, no standardized scale has been developed to date for measuring their quality. Moreover, HELPQUAL is highly sector-specific, and factors like accessibility and understandability are different from the dimensions of generic SERVQUAL and SERVPERF scales. Therefore, it is advantageous and appropriate in the quality evaluation of agricultural extension services. Originality/value: This study provides the first standardized scale for measuring the quality of farmers' helpline services. Theoretical implications This study supports the argument that widely used SERVEQUAL and SERVPERF scales and their dimensions lack universal applicability in service quality measurement.

Prompted by the challenges faced by teachers in balancing grammar and content in English classes, coupled with the poor English proficiency of rural Odia medium school students, the study aimed to devise an intervention that could balance content and grammar, thereby enhancing the grammar competency and content comprehension of eighth-grade students. Based on quasi-experimental research with a pretest-posttest nonequivalent group design, two groups were assigned treatment conditions: the 5E Model with Planned-Incidental Grammar Teaching Approach (experimental group) and the traditional Grammar Translation Method (control group) during class instructions. Data were collected from 100 school students, with 52 in the experimental group and 48 in the control group, using pretest and posttest assessments. The mixed ANOVA test results revealed significantly higher posttest scores in the experimental group compared to the control group, highlighting the positive impact of the intervention on students' grammar proficiency. The t-test for the comprehension test suggested comparable levels of comprehension in both groups, indicating the efficiency of the new pedagogical strategy in seamlessly integrating grammar instruction into regular classroom teaching, optimizing instructional time and ensuring balance between content and grammar, making it particularly valuable for educators facing time constraints. This study underscores the need for professional development opportunities to enhance teachers' pedagogical skills and knowledge. Further research is warranted to explore the intervention's impact on various language skills and assess its applicability in diverse contexts, contributing to a broader understanding of its implications.

The United States continues to be a top destination for international students pursuing an advanced degree. Some information about the characteristics of international students applying to graduate programs in the United States is available, but little is known about how these characteristics are related to test taker performance on graduate admissions tests and how performance may be related to graduate program characteristics. The purpose of this study was to investigate different patterns of performance of international test takers from four cultural regions and two large countries (China and India) on both the "GRE"® test and the "TOEFL"® test and the relationship with demographic and graduate program characteristics. Using finite mixture modeling, we investigated the most common score profiles using GRE and TOEFL for international students intending to pursue a graduate program within the United States; evaluated the demographic and college-level factors related to the profiles; and evaluated whether the profiles were differentially associated with gender, intended field of study, and intended degree level. Results showed the following broad patterns of results: (a) Most countries and cultural regions, except for the Middle East, had three or four latent profiles representing low, medium, and high scores on the GRE and TOEFL sections; (b) two high-performing profiles were found in Confucian Asia, one with higher GRE Quantitative Reasoning scores and the other with higher scores on GRE Verbal and TOEFL; (c) regardless of profile, test takers from China performed highest on the GRE Quantitative Reasoning section as compared to other GRE and TOEFL section scores; (d) in general, there was a relationship with students in the lower performing profiles taking the TOEFL and GRE multiple times; (e) regardless of country or cultural region, men were represented more than women overall and across most of the profiles; and (f) test takers showed a preference for science-, technology-, engineering-, and mathematics-based fields and master's degrees, but this varied across country and cultural region. Implications for future research are discussed.

Minimal research exists investigating the effect short-term international allied health internships have on subsequent higher-level internships. In occupational therapy, these internships are called fieldwork. Researchers completed a retrospective data analysis of the Level II Fieldwork evaluation scores of 274 occupational therapy students attending a Master of Science program. Final Level II Fieldwork performance evaluation scores were compared between one group of 212 students who completed a domestic Level I Fieldwork and 62 students who completed a faculty-led international Level I Fieldwork. An independent t-test comparing all areas of Level II Fieldwork performance revealed that students who attended an international Level I experience scored statistically higher in the Fieldwork II evaluation sections of basic tenets and intervention skills on their second Level II Fieldwork. The corresponding p-value for the basic tenets section was 0.020. Similarly, the average score for intervention skills was significantly higher in the international cohort with a p-value of 0.012. Results show statistical significance in two of the seven evaluation sections for students who completed a faculty-led international Level I Fieldwork supporting the active learning pedagogy that was applied during Level I Fieldwork. Findings provide evidence to support the hypothesis that international fieldwork experiences have a positive effect on student outcomes. Study results can be considered across professional disciplines.

The scores obtained by students in examinations where internet access was allowed during the examination were compared with the scores obtained in traditional examinations where no assistance was allowed. These scores were then compared with those obtained in a standardised school examination on the same topic or subject, taken by the same students a year before. We observed that scores dropped by over 70% within a year of taking a traditional examination but could be significantly improved if internet access is allowed in the later examination. We further observed that scores in examinations where internet access was allowed were consistently higher than where internet access was not allowed. Finally, we report an analysis by rank and observe that student rankings change both over time and whether internet access was allowed or not. This leads us to suggest that use of the internet during examinations measures abilities that are different and more meaningful to our times than those that are measured by traditional examinations based on memorisation and unassisted recall.

Environmental ethics is the code of behavior for guiding and controlling human actions towards environment. This code of behavior does not depend on the presence or absence of environmental laws for the understanding, protection and improvement of the environment. It was found that the mean scores of Tribal Boys and Tribal Girls were 141.24 and 151.43 with Standard Deviations 42.13 and 44.37 respectively. The obtained 't' value between the two groups came out to be 2.02 which is more than the table value i.e., 1.646 at 0.05 level and less than 2.581 at 0.01 level of significance. It revealed that there is significant difference in both the groups. It also revealed that tribal girls secondary school students have more dispositions about the environment than the tribal boys secondary school students. Hence, the null hypothesis of the present study "There is no significant difference between secondary school boys and girls students with respect to environmental disposition" is rejected. It means that the girls at secondary school level have more environmental disposition than the boys.

The study attempted to answer two basic questions of classroom teaching: a. what were the most common teaching practices at the elementary school level? And b. did teachers foster curiosity in children during teaching? Classroom proceedings enfolded various teaching activities that might lead to a knowledge gap in students. 137 primary and middle schools (altogether 411 classes) were randomly selected to measure a pattern of questioning and answering during classroom teaching. Findings revealed that a large number of teachers adopted lecturing followed by writing on the board, dictating, and ignored some important teaching techniques such as explaining, demonstrating, and experimentation; though they were familiar with all these. Hardly any student asked questions to the teachers. Teachers missed to generate a gap of knowledge in them, showing hardly any use of curiosity-led instructional teaching design. Throwing any question to class or a group of students was an unplanned teaching behaviour. It was a limitation of an in-built education system that prioritised rote learning, exam scores, and grades that measured more static knowledge rather than understanding knowledge. The findings discussed limitations of the in-built education system and mindset of teachers that discouraged epistemic curiosity in children.

The lack of research exploring the influence of dynamic visual narratives on inference skills prompted the present study with an aim to profile the inference skills in school children between the ages of 6 years and 9 years 11 months using dynamic visual narratives. A total of 80 participants were considered for the study. An animated story was designed as the dynamic visual narrative stimuli based on which an "inference task" was formulated, which included forced-choice questions and free-response questions. The responses of the forced-choice questions were analyzed quantitatively using one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), while the responses from the free-response questions were analyzed qualitatively. The results revealed an increase in inference skills with age, with children using less seductive details, beginning to display inductive inference, and providing multiple inferences. The inference profiles obtained from the study can serve as evidence for the development of bridging inference skills from dynamic visual narratives in children.

Emotional intelligence plays a vital role in accomplishing the determined objectives of mankind and promoting learning outcomes. For the first time psychologists, Mayer and Salovey coined and used the term "Emotional Intelligence" and defined it as the capacity or ability of an individual for perceiving, processing, knowing and regulating emotional information accurately in an effective manner involving Intra and inter abilities to guide one's thinking to make certain changes in others. The objectives of the study were to investigate the emotional intelligence scores of four-year integrated B.Ed. Trainees, to compare the emotional intelligence scores of four-year integrated B.Ed. Trainees, in terms of their sex, to compare the academic performance scores of students having high and low emotional intelligence scores and to investigate the relationship between the emotional intelligence scores and academic performance scores of students. To accomplish the objectives of the present study, descriptive survey cum comparative cum correlational methods were used to accomplish the objectives. In the present study, 50 four-year integrated B.Ed. trainees were taken randomly, so the study sample consisted of 150 four-year integrated trainees of Gangadhar Meher University as a whole. To collect data from the sample groups Emotional Intelligence Scale developed by Nicola S. Schutte, John M. Malouff and Navjot Bhullar in 2008 was used, which consists of 33 items in a five-point scale having Cronbach's alpha reliability of 0.90 and the test-retest reliability of 0.78. Along with that, academic performance scores of the last semester of students were taken. The findings of the study revealed that about 6% of students had high emotional intelligence scores and 94% had above-average emotional intelligence scores. The study revealed no significant difference between the emotional intelligence scores of boys and girls. It was also found that the academic achievement scores of students having high emotional intelligence scores were more as compared to the students having low emotional intelligence scores. The study also reported a significant positive correlation between emotional intelligence and the academic performance of students.

Participation in a study abroad program to Zambia with intentional intercultural activities embedded in the course curriculum has been shown to enhance cultural competence as measured by the Intercultural Development Inventory (IDI®) (Krishnan, Masters, Holgate, Wang & Calahan, 2017). The purpose of this study was to assess whether a new program to India, developed using a. similar model, was effective in increasing student intercultural competence and to compare student outcomes with the previous program to evaluate possible differences in outcomes related to the destination country. Participants included 21 students who participated in the SLHS in India study abroad program, and 20 students who have not travelled abroad. Quantitative data included a pre- and post-program administration of the IDI® for both groups. Qualitative data included pre-departure and final reflection papers completed by participants in the intervention group. Results indicated a significant increase in intercultural competence in the intervention group and no change in score in the control group participants. The increase in group score is similar to increases seen in students who had travelled to Zambia. Results indicate that an intensive, service learning study abroad program can be a mechanism for students to enhance intercultural competence, possibly regardless of destination country.

Outbreak of COVID-19, online examination, and e-proctoring have caused more exam anxiety and affected exam performance among students' studying in International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Programme (DP). Therefore, the present research aimed to find effect of online test anxiety on academic performance of IBDP students in the subjects related to science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). Study employed quantitative descriptive survey research design and administered survey questionnaire to 200 IB DP students who took online test during COVID-19 through convenient sampling technique. Sample included both first and final year DP students with due representation to boys and girls. Results of the study revealed a moderate negative correlation between online test anxiety and academic performance of IBDP students in STEM subjects. Regression analysis explained 14.1% variation in the STEM subject performance because of online exam anxiety under e-proctored condition. There exists a statistically significant difference between first and final year students' online exam anxiety and STEM subject average grades. Future research may focus on conducting comfortable online examination methods with no additional exam anxieties.

Previous studies have shown that motivation and interpersonal communication between teacher and student contribute to the learning of language. Till date, there is no quantitative study to assess the impact of prosocial and positive emotional contents that influence English learning and modulate the habits of students. This paper examines the effect of prosocial and emotional languages on the habits, attitudes and behaviours of students. Nine habits that are proposed by Covey (2013) related to emotional, productive and proactive were evaluated using an assessment sheet. Comparative analysis of the response scores collected before and after the lectures were carried out (control group, N=14 and experimental group, N=14). Our results showed that prosocial and positive emotional words accelerated the language-learning environment and also brought a positive change in the behavioural habits of students of the experimental group. The reactive behaviours of the experimental group were controlled by using prosocial and positive words. Prosocial and positive emotional languages have a profound effect on the proactive behaviours of students that reinforce greater self-efficacy and facilitate the learning environment. We interpreted these results within the socio-cognitive theory of human behaviour, learning and language processing.

Purpose: To continue to stay relevant in the era of Industry Revolution 4.0 (IR4.0) alongside the unprecedented disruption of COVID-19, the importance of lifelong learning is indisputable though this concept has existed for decades. In this context, open and distance learning (ODL) institutions are urged to re-think and re-design their online learning support systems that inculcate self-regulated lifelong learning (SR3Ls) in their learners to be adaptable and resilient for the post-pandemic economy. The purpose of this paper is to develop a SR3Ls model, namely SR3Ls model by utilising the collective opinions of a panel of experts to determine the key domains and attributes. Design/methodology/approach: A 2-round Delphi consensus study was conducted with 39 experts from five countries. The mean, standard deviation (SD), inter-quartile range (IQR) and the ratio of experts assigned score of 4 or greater were used as the basis of consensus assessment with criteria set at mean = 3.0, SD = 1.5, IQR = 1, ratio on score 4 or greater at = 75%. The questionnaire consisted of 5-point Likert-type scale rating the importance level of each attribute combined with open-ended questions. Findings: This paper presented the findings of the first round of Delphi consensus study. For the first round, the experts were asked to evaluate 31 key attributes of SR3Ls model under five domains. The findings revealed that there were five key attributes to be eliminated from the list, while there were seven attributes identified as the key attributes with highest consensus. There were additional attributes suggested by the Delphi panel to be added in the second round of evaluation. Originality/value: This international consensus-based SR3Ls model serves as an important benchmark for ODL institutions across the regions in developing meaningful and relevant online learning support systems for their learners to adopt SR3Ls attributes in order to meet the dynamic market demands.

Nearly all college students require some academic assistance throughout their learning experiences. Rather than a dependent act, help-seeking is a self-regulated and motivated strategy; however, there are mixed findings regarding the relationship between academic help-seeking and academic achievement. Thus, the current study used meta-analytic techniques to assess the relationship between academic help-seeking variables and achievement (GPA, grades, test scores) among postsecondary students in 108 studies (119 samples, N = 37,941). Findings revealed a positive association between self-reported, need-contingent help-seeking behaviors and student achievement; the average weighted correlation was very small but potentially meaningful in the long run. Furthermore, the quality of help-seeking mattered, revealing small to moderate associations of greater consequence. Specifically, and executive help-seeking were negatively correlated to achievement; instrumental help-seeking along with formal help-seeking was positively correlated with academic performance. Moreover, a few factors significantly moderated the relationship between help-seeking and achievement. Implications for research and practice will be discussed.

Communication skills are fundamental in healthcare, but assessing them among medical students presents challenges. In the Indian context, the lack of a specific assessment tool further compounds the issue. Thus this study aimed to develop and validate an observation-based communication skills checklist tailored to Phase I Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) students. The checklist was developed using both inductive and deductive approaches and underwent rigorous testing to ensure its reliability and validity. After piloting, the finalized version was administered to 84 Phase I MBBS students. Results indicated a critical content validity ratio of 0.78, face validity of 0.80, and an impressive Cronbach's alpha of 0.91, indicating good internal consistency and reliability of the checklist. The students scored over 80% in all checklist domains, except for empathy (73%) and support (74%), highlighting areas for potential improvement. Nonetheless, about 75% of students expressed satisfaction with the checklist's communication skills assessment. The feedback from faculty members was positive, as they found the checklist was easy to use, quick, and effective for evaluating communication skills. Consequently, the checklist's introduction has been well received by both students and faculty. In conclusion, the developed checklist proves to be an effective and valid instrument for assessing communication skills in Phase I MBBS students. By integrating this tool into observed station clinical examinations, medical educators can comprehensively evaluate students' communication behaviors. Moreover, the checklist serves as a valuable resource for bridging the gap between theoretical knowledge and practical application, enabling future physicians to excel in doctor-patient interactions, a crucial aspect of patient-centered care.

Due to the increased shifts in recent technologies, the education sector has also started to reshape itself to face the future. Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) are among the few recent trends that drive this shift forward. This study was set to study the impact of pairing a video lecture course with an AR presentation. A class of multimedia students (N=33) from Vellore Institute of Technology, Vellore, India; underwent an experiment of watching a video lecture module and attending a quiz. The same class again went through a similar test where they had to watch video lectures, get to experience what they learned in Augmented Reality for 10 minutes, and then appeared for the quiz. The paired t-test conducted on the two sets of scores obtained by the class indicates a statistically significant increase in the average final scores when AR experience is paired with the video lectures. The feedback from the students was also positive on the AR experience.

The present research attempts to study the relationship between the organizational commitment and job burnout of secondary school teachers. The sample for the present study consisted of 200 secondary school teachers selected randomly. Two questionnaires were chosen to collect the data. The collected data were analyzed through SPSS software, and proper statistical methods like mean, t-test and Pearson Correlation coefficient were used. The findings of the study revealed that there is no significant difference in the organizational commitment mean scores of male and female secondary school teachers, i.e., both the groups measure similar to organizational commitment. It was also announced that there is a significant correlation between the organizational commitment and job burnout of secondary school teachers, which means that higher the organizational commitment, the higher will be the job burnout and vice versa.

This study used the five dimensions of practice identified by Carey, Fan, He, and Jin (2020) to describe the preferred mode of practice of US school-based counselors and compare this mode of practice with nine other countries. A total of 380 US school counselors completed the International Survey of School Counselor Activities-United States. Mean item ratings and mean BART scores were used for both descriptions and comparisons. US counselors indicated that Counseling Services; Advocacy and Systemic Improvement; Prevention Programs; and, Educational and Career Planning were all important aspects of their role. In comparison to international counterparts, US counselors placed greater emphasis on Advocacy and Systemic Improvement and Prevention Programs. Results confirmed previous scholarship suggesting that counselors in the US have a very broad role. Any reformulation of this role would benefit from comparative international research on the strengths and limitations of different modes of practice.

The study assessed the effect of concept map on achievement and classroom management of 7th grade students. Three elementary schools were purposively selected in Silchar town of Assam, India. The 7th grade students (n = 36), of 'School I' was assigned to lecture cum discussion approach, 34, students (n = 34) of 'School II' was assigned to Spider Concept Map Approach (SCMA) and the 30 participants (n=30) of 'School III' was assigned to Hierarchical Concept Map Approach (HCMA). Pretest-posttest quasi-experimental design used to assess the effect of concept map on the achievement and classroom management of students. Pre map test was assigned to both the experimental and comparison group and after three weeks instruction post map test was administered. In addition to these, Concept Map Classroom Management Scale was assigned among all the participants of both experimental and comparison groups to response. The individual pre and post spider concept map and hierarchical concept map, and Concept Map Classroom Management Scale (CMCMS) scores were analyzed through ANCOVA and post hoc Tukey-Kramer Multiple Comparisons. It was resulted that both spider concept map & hierarchical concept map training students in association with those in the comparison group demonstrated significantly better in the performance of photosynthesis and respiration concepts as well as self-classroom management.

The study was carried out with a sample of 180 students from Standard XII using environmental awareness scale for assessing the significance difference in the mean scores of environmental awareness. The results indicated that there was a significant difference in the mean scores of Environmental awareness between the students belonging to science group and arts group, there existed significant difference in the mean scores of Environmental awareness between the students belonging to science group and vocational group, there existed no significant difference in the mean scores of Environmental awareness between the students belonging to vocational group and arts group. There existed no significant difference in the mean scores of Environmental awareness between the students in terms of gender and in terms of types of institution.

Notable mean score differences for the "e-rater"® automated scoring engine and for humans for essays from certain demographic groups were observed for the "GRE"® General Test in use before the major revision of 2012, called rGRE. The use of e-rater as a check-score model with discrepancy thresholds prevented an adverse impact on the examinee score at the item or test level. Despite this control, there remains a need to understand the root causes of these demographically based score differences and to identify potential mechanisms for avoiding future instances of discrepancy. In this study, we used a combination of statistical methods and human review to propose hypotheses about the root cause of score differences and whether such discrepancies reflect inadequacies of e-rater, human scoring, or both. The human rating process was found to be influenced strongly by the scale structure and did not fully correspond to the e-rater scoring mechanism. The human raters appeared to be using conditional logic and a rule-based approach to their scoring, while e-rater uses linear weighting of all the features. These analyses have implications for future research and operational policies for the scoring of the rGRE.

This is the first study to investigate the effects of test methods (while-listening performance and post-listening performance) and gender on measured listening ability and brain activation under test conditions. Functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) was used to examine three brain regions associated with listening comprehension: the inferior frontal gyrus and posterior middle temporal gyrus, which subserve bottom-up processing in comprehension, and the dorsomedial prefrontal cortex, which mediates top-down processing. A Rasch model reliability analysis showed that listeners were homogeneous in their listening ability. Additionally, there were no significant differences in test scores across test methods and genders. The fNIRS data, however, revealed significantly different activation of the investigated brain regions across test methods, genders, and listening abilities. Together, these findings indicated that the listening test was not sensitive to differences in the neurocognitive processes underlying listening comprehension under test conditions. The implications of these findings for assessing listening and suggestions for future research are discussed.

Assessment of progress toward UN Sustainable Development Goal 4 requires measurement of the proportion of children aged 24 to 59 months developmentally on track in health, learning, and psychosocial well-being (Indicator 4.2.1). UNICEF's methodological work culminated with the development of the Early Childhood Development Index 2030 (ECDI2030) to measure on track status. To compare direct assessment and caregiver report of early child development, a measure aligned to ECDI2030 -- the Early Childhood Development Assessment Scale-Direct Assessment (ECDAS-DA) -- was developed and administered to 510 preschoolers aged 36- to 59-months from Bangladesh, China, India, and Myanmar. Their caregivers completed the Early Childhood Development Assessment Scale-Caregiver Survey (ECDAS-CS) containing items based on the ECDI2030. Research Findings: The two measures correlated with each other and were associated with child age, maternal education, and family wealth. ECDAS-DA showed more variability by child age and provided more fine-grained analyses of emerging developmental competencies than ECDAS-CS. Practice or Policy: Given the dearth of pan-culturally appropriate tools, ECDAS-DA can be deployed in longitudinal studies and impact evaluations in low- and middle-income countries.

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to evaluate the sustenance of quality over the long run by higher education institutions (HEIs) as measured by the accreditation scores in two consecutive five-year cycles of accreditation, which is a global quality practice. It also aimed to uncover the causes of the decline in the quality performance of the majority of HEIs. Design/methodology/approach: The authors analyzed 481 Indian HEIs based on their accreditation scores for the second and third cycles of assessment by the apex agency, the National Assessment and Accreditation Council. Given the alarming results, the authors investigated the matter further. Possible causes for the lack of quality sustenance on the part of Indian HEIs were ascertained. Findings: While 161 HEIs showed improvement, 320 showed a decline in the accreditation scores. Indian HEIs are on a slippery slope in dealing with quality. This survey of a sample of 248 out of 481 institutions showed that much remains to be done by the Internal Quality Assurance Cells. The lack of institutionalization of quality is a major concern. Findings of this study have implications for HEIs across the globe who want to be assured of quality on a sustained basis. Originality/value: This study is the first of its kind to look into drops in quality among HEIs that have been in a quality environment for more than 10 years. It warns institutions to guard against quality complacency to sustain quality in the long run.

Scholars have suggested that student non-cognitive factors, such as attitudes, have contributed to the gender gap in STEM. Gender has been under investigation for students' attitudes towards science/physics, but student scientific attitudes (SA) have meagre exploration. This study examined the relationships between gender, SA (in terms of rationality, open-mindedness, confidence in the scientific method, curiosity, and aversion to superstition), physics scores (PS), and students who chose to study college physics. The study involved 641 K12 pre-college STEM students in India. The results revealed that girls have lower PS and SA scores than boys. The PS and SA have a strong correlation for girls compared to boys. SA accounts for 34.8% of the variation in PS for girls and 18.1% for boys, including a further higher contribution from students' aversion to superstitions than other SA under study. We consider that the students' socio-cultural dynamics might have influenced these results. SA also impact students' choice to study physics after K12, though gender is not a factor. Our study supports SA as another important aspect towards achieving gender parity in STEM learning.

A majority of Indian schoolchildren are biliterate in that they acquire literacy in at least two language systems, necessitating dyslexia assessment in both. The DALI-DAB assesses risk for dyslexia by evaluating reading ability and literacy-learning potential through a battery including literacy tests (letter and word reading, spelling, nonword reading, reading comprehension), and mediator skills (phonological awareness, processing automaticity and executive fluency, oral language) in multiple languages. DALI-DAB was developed in three languages -- English, Hindi, and Marathi -- and standardized on a sample of 1013 children. Reliability analyses revealed high internal consistency ([alpha] > 0.8) in most tests in all three languages. Low standard error of measurement values supported DALI-DAB score stability over repeated testing. Construct validity was variously reinforced through, (i) selection of culture-referenced, research-based tests, (ii) approval of test materials by schoolteachers (face validity) and (iii) grade-correlated performance increases on all DALI-DAB tests, besides robust correlations between (iv) literacy and mediator skill test scores (p < 0.001, concurrent validity), (v) equivalent tests across languages (p < 0.01, convergent validity), and (vi) DALI-DAB and WJ III ACH literacy scores (p < 0.01, criterion validity), in contrast to (vii) low correlation between DALI-DAB and WJ III ACH math scores (p > 0.05, discriminant validity). Overall, the DALI-DAB represents the first standardized dyslexia assessment tool for bilingual-biliterate children.

This study aims to find out whether there is any positive relationship among locus of control and academic achievement of High school students in Puducherry region from a study on 380 school students. Locus of control scale developed by Levenson (1973) was used to collect the data. Results revealed significant difference was not observed in internal, external, and chance locus of control among male and female students, female students received higher mean scores for the internal, external, and chance locus of control than the male students. The students on the subjects of English, mathematics, and sciences showed significant difference on the internal locus of control with (F = 6.358, P<0.05) and significant difference was not observed on the external and chance locus of control. Chance locus of control with r = 0.138 on the meaningful level of P<0.01 and internal locus of control with r = 0.112 on the meaningful level of P<0.05 had a significant and positive relationship with the academic achievement of school students.

In the conventional system of education, a student can regularly interact with teachers and peers and effectively and smoothly carry on with the learning process. However, in the Open and Distance Learning (ODL) system, students have to learn by themselves with the self-instructional materials and with the minimum guidance received from counselors, making the system more demanding. In other words, although opportunities are created in an ODL system for student interaction with faculty and peers, these are less frequent as compared to the conventional system, making effective learning challenging. Besides the facts placed above, this paper is also based on the premise that the admission process in conventional institutions/universities are highly selective where decisions at the entry level is influenced by the academic performance of the students and/or scores at assessment/screening examinations; therefore, the students so selected are relatively academically stronger students capable of better academic performance. Due to its inherent constraints of providing space and infrastructural facilities, conventional higher education is more selective and consequently more merit and excellence based in its approach. At the other end of the spectrum are the institutions of open learning which are primarily addressing the issues of access and equity in education and therefore have more open and flexible admissions. While following basic eligibility criteria and/or standardized test scores, it is seen that students would not have to be outstanding or even necessarily academically strong students to be admitted to the various programmes of study. As a result, a major chunk of the students who enter the ODL system are those who are filtered and are unable to get admission into the traditional and conventional system of education. It becomes very difficult for these students to manage with the demanding ODL system contributing to low pass out rates. On this premise, the paper tries to discuss the possible mechanism/s for student screening for all programmes run in the ODL mode too so that justice is ensured to students. The authors also try to reason that use of ODL would be successful only for those learners who have a certain level of intelligence, competence and capability and are self-motivated to put in more effort. Further, the authors attempt to highlight that democratization of education is actually being misinterpreted and is targeting mass enrolment. If self-learning is achieved in its true sense, which can be attained just by competent, self-motivated and select students, only then can we say that ODL system is effectively contributing to educational development of the country.

Sensory integration takes place in the central nervous system where complex interactions such as co-ordination, attention, arousal levels, autonomic functioning, emotions, memory and higher level cognitive functions are carried out. Sensory integration gets information through the senses, puts it together with prior knowledge, information and memories already stored in the brain to make a meaningful response. Multi-sensory learning, as the name implies, is the process of learning a new subject matter through the use of two or more senses. This may include combining visual, auditory, tactile or kinaesthetic, olfactory and gustatory sensation. By activating brain regions associated with touch, flavour, audition and vision, they indicate a direct relationship between perceptual knowledge and sensory brain mechanisms. The investigator developed content based working memory test and pre assessment of the working memory of the students. Then researcher has developed multisensory integration model and taught though this model of science subject and find out post assessment of working memory in science. Finally investigator evaluated multisensory integration model on enhancing working memory in Science among the students.

This study examined student teachers' perceptions about Technology Integration (Blended Learning in this study) before and after their exposure to a Blended Learning Experimental Programme designed for the study for eight weeks. EDMODO (an open access Learning Management System) was used as the teaching learning platform for the implementation of Blended Learning Programme. Data were collected from 29 student teachers from a college of teacher education located in Puducherry state of India. The scale for assessing their perception was constructed and validated. The overall results indicated that student teachers changed their perceptions of Blended Learning in terms of their general perception, interactivity in classroom, knowledge creation, content knowledge, technology benefits, and overall satisfaction, positively, after undergoing the experiment. The factor perceptions of technology benefit turned out to be the predictor of the overall satisfaction of respondents on Technology Integration. From these results, the authors recommend that stakeholders of education work closely with teachers to address their perceptions about using technology in classrooms and then helping them to change it positively so as to improve quality of teaching and learning process. Student teachers need to be trained to integrate technology in teaching. Improving their perception is the first step towards it. The teacher education administration may provide personal support and resources required for such a change. This study also offers recommendations for involving teacher educators in educational software designing for strengthening the pedagogical components in such programmes keeping the teacher perceptions and expectations in mind, not focusing solely on the technology benefits as the results of the study shows.

The purpose of the present study was to compare the Internet-user and Internet Non-user post-graduate students on their attitude towards research. The sample comprised 600 post graduate students (300 Internet-users and 300 Internet-Non-users) drawn from different faculties of University of Kashmir (J&K), India. Random sampling technique was used. Attitude towards Research Scale by Vishal Sood and Y. K. Sharma used to collect the data. Besides, Information Blank developed by the investigators to find the Internet-users and Non-users. The data was subjected to statistical analysis by computing Mean, S.D. and test of significance. The results concluded that Internet-users and Internet non-users differ significantly on all the four dimensions and on composite score of Attitude towards Research. Internet-users were found to have favourable Attitude towards Research. Gender differences on attitude towords research between the groups under the investigation were also found significantly different.

The aim of this study is to determine the effect of simulation methods in teaching Science on education students' academic achievement. 70 students (35 control, 35 experimental) who studied at Srinivasa College of education, SV University in the Department of Education. 2015-2016 academic year students were participated in this simulation based instructional strategic research. Mixed methods approach, which included both qualitative and quantitative methods, were used. Instructional strategic methods were included from the biological science subject of DNA replication and transcription. Statistical results of the data obtained after the application showed that students of the experimental group who were taught using simulations were more successful than the students of the control group who were taught by the traditional approach. Also, it was determined that education students of the experimental group were satisfied by simulation-based education specially in science domain.

The study aimed to know how does mind-map software assess the representation of learners' knowledge and how brain tester software assess the performance of left, right, auditory, and visual lobes of the brain to represent information. It also aimed to study the differential effectiveness of audio, visual, and audio-visual information to represent knowledge. Mind map tool used to know the students' knowledge representation in science, and for that purpose, different audio, visual, and audio-visual tools used to know how learners process cognitive information; those were experienced in the study. There was no hypothesis to draw inferences but three working hypotheses or the research questions framed to find out the result. Every individual has an independent information processor in left, right, auditory, and visual lobe of brain to represent information. It was also resulted that audio-visual information was more effective to process and represent knowledge than audio and visual information.

The study is an attempt to compare Gujjar and Non-Gujjar students of Kashmir valley on Scientific Temper and Academic Achievement. Four objectives were formulated for the present study with three hypotheses. 240 sample subjects (120 Gujjar and 120 Non-Gujjar students were selected randomly for the sample. To measure the Scientific Temper, Scientific Temper Potentiality Scale was used and for Academic Achievement previous Board examination marks of sample subjects were considered. For the analysis, mean, SD and t-test were used. The study shows a significant mean difference between Gujjar and non-Gujjar students on Scientific Temper and on Academic Achievement. The study also found that there is a significant positive correlation between Scientific Temper and Academic Achievement.

It is argued that corporal punishment produces bad outcomes in both the short run and the long run. Instead of making students more attentive or motivated, corporal punishment leads to more delinquent behavior. In most developed countries, corporal punishment is banned in schools. However, in many developing countries, even if corporal punishment in schools is banned, the law may not be adequately enforced. Using a dataset from India, we show that corporal punishment in schools has a significantly negative impact on children's academic performance. To tackle the problem of endogeneity, we use the instrumental variables method and introduce a novel instrument.

Educational interventions with the intellectually gifted are increasingly focusing on social-emotional learning and techniques. Spiritual education programs are gaining prominence in working with gifted children. This article reports a study examining the effect of a spiritual education program (SEP) in managing emotions of intellectually gifted children. Post-SEP scores of the intervention group on the Frustration Discomfort Scale (FDS) were lower than the control group. Intervention group children from African and South American cities as compared to those from Asian cities and the control group, intervention group gifted boys, Christians, and whose mothers were their primary caregivers, reported lower frustration discomfort posttest. Attendance at the SEP lessons and self-practice mediated the association between participants' socio-demographic characteristics and outcomes. The principal component analyses supported the four-factor structure of the FDS and mean scores on emotional intolerance and achievement frustration subscales were lower. Results support the SEP as a social-emotional learning tool for gifted children.

Journal club (JC) is an integral part of postgraduate medical education. Although several innovations have been attempted to improve its effectiveness, the influence of the number of sessions remains unexplored. The current study investigated the effect of the number of sessions (one vs. four) of conduction of journal club on critical appraisal skills of postgraduate students at two institutions. A quasi-experimental study was conducted comparing the effectiveness of JC in a one- versus four-session JC format using two objective tests: Critical Appraisal Skills Test (CAST) and Population, Intervention, Comparison, Outcome (PICO) score. The degree of changes (pre-JC vs. post-JC session) after each format exposure, association of prescores to postscores, and correlation between the CAST and PICO scores were discerned. CAST score was higher in the four-session format (P = 0.03), whereas PICO score increased in the single-session format of JC (P = 0.03). Also, the change in CAST score was higher in the four-session versus single-session JC format (P = 0.04). We conclude that a four-session format of JC is more effective in augmenting critical appraisal skills of postgraduate students, whereas a single session is sufficient for improving factual knowledge.

We use data from the Young Lives longitudinal survey to analyse the effect of socioeconomic conditions and gender on the educational performance of young children in India. In particular, we use data for standardised scores on two cognitive tests: the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test (PPVT) and a maths test. Our results show that there are significant gender differences in the way that household wealth affects the educational performance of children. Specifically, boys born into wealthier households perform significantly better in maths than those from worse-off economic backgrounds. The effect of wealth on the PPVT is stronger for girls than it is for boys. The results are robust across a range of specifications. The effect of household wealth on performance differed between the genders, even when we focused our analysis on the bottom 10% and top 10% of the performance distribution. One possible explanation for these differences is parental aspirations. We tested this hypothesis and found that boys from wealthier households with higher parental educational aspirations are positively and significantly associated with higher maths scores. Further analysis showed that the moderating role of parents' educational aspirations was more pronounced at the top of the test score distribution, an indication that more able children are associated with wealthier and more ambitious parents.

Various speech metrics have been developed to assess and monitor phonological development in young children. Process Density Index (PDI) is one such measure employed to determine the severity of phonological errors and speech intelligibility. The present study explored the utility of PDI as a measure of phonological development in 756 Tulu-speaking children between 3;0-7;0 years, across age and gender groups. Results revealed that the youngest group of children exhibited a higher number of phonological processes and a higher PDI score as compared to the oldest group. Children with higher PDI scores exhibited poorer speech intelligibility than those with lower PDI Scores. Further, a statistically significant gender difference with boys exhibiting higher PDI scores than girls with no interaction between age and gender was noted. The study finding provides an insight into the phonological aspects specific to Tulu language and suggests the utility of PDI as a potential clinical measure while assessing phonological issues.

Purpose: The study aimed to compare auditory processing and cognitive test scores measured in a clinical setting with that measured in a school setting using a repeated-measures design. This was done on typically developing children and children with auditory processing disorder (APD). Method: Thirty-two children (16 typically developing and 16 with APD), aged 7 years, were evaluated using three diagnostic auditory processing tests and a cognitive test. The tests included the Speech Perception in Noise Test in Kannada, the Gap Detection Threshold Test, the Dichotic Consonant-Vowel Test, and the Auditory Memory and Sequencing Test in Kannada. All the children were evaluated in an audiological diagnostic setting, as well as in their school. Results: No significant difference in scores was obtained in the two settings for all the four tests that were administered. This was seen in the typically developing children and the children with APD. Additionally, the pass/fail decision for each test did not alter in the two settings. Moderate to almost perfect agreement was seen between the tests carried out in the two settings in both groups, on a Kappa test of agreement. In both settings, the children with APD performed significantly poorer than the typically developing children on the four diagnostic tests. Conclusions: The findings of the study indicate that the diagnostic auditory processing tests and the cognitive test can be carried out in school settings as effectively as tests carried out in an audiological diagnostic clinical setting. This will enable carrying out diagnostic tests on children in schools soon after they are referred on screening auditory processing tools, administered in the educational setting. This will prevent missing diagnosis of children who fail to report to a diagnostic audiological center for detailed auditory processing evaluation.

Critical thinking ability is one among the life skills enlisted by the World Health Organisation. Citizens who can think critically are the need of the nation. The new era warrants persons who can think and evaluate the information correctly. It is the duty of education to inculcate the skill of critical thinking in the students, the future citizens. The study was conducted using the normative survey method. The sample for the present study consisted of 640 secondary school students from different schools of Palakkad district. A tool, namely Critical Thinking Ability Test for Higher Secondary School Students was constructed and standardized by the investigators for the study. The study investigated the influence, the effect of gender, type of management and the optional subject on the critical thinking ability of higher school students. Statistical measures such as t-test and ANOVA were used to analyze the data. The result of the analysis shows that a significant difference exists in the mean scores of critical thinking ability with respect to gender, type of management and optional subjects of students.