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The objectives of this research were to: (1) determine mentors? perspectives on their communication skills, teamwork skills, problem solving skills and social responsibility after joining the Mentor-Mentee Programme for STEM Education; (2) identify the differences between the assessment of STEM mentors' perspective on their personal qualities before and after joining the program; and (3) identify the problems or challenges that the mentors experienced in mentoring activities compared to classroom teaching, opinions before and after participating in the program, and the challenges faced in the program. Based on the objectives, a survey research was conducted to collect data from 53 students (mentors) in the targeted population through questionnaire. Paired sample t-test was conducted to compare various skills of mentors before and after joining the program. For Communication Skills, the mean score for pre-test is 5.50, while mean score for post-test is 5.00. There was a significant difference in the scores for communication skills in pretest (M=5.00, SD=0.86) and posttest (M=5.50, SD=0.68); t (58) (=-3.785, p = 0.000). Teamwork skills also show significant difference in the scores in pretest (M=5.59, SD=0.89) and posttest (M=6.06, SD=0.67); t (58) (=-3.325, p = 0.002). Besides, Problem Solving Skills shows significant difference in the scores in pretest (M=5.00, SD=0.99) and posttest (M=5.74, SD=0.68); t (58) (=- 4.897, p = 0.000). However, in the social responsibility skills, there is no significant difference between pretest (M=5.48, SD=1.11) and posttest (M=5.67, SD=0.85), t (58) (=1.086, p = 0.282). These results suggest that the program increases the communication skills, teamwork skills and problem-solving skills of mentors. However, the social responsibility skills do not show a significant difference although the mean score of posttest is higher than the pretest. This can be caused by the high social responsibility skills of mentors prior to the programs they have already been dealing with small kids. The sense of responsibility is higher than handling adults or students in primary or secondary school. In addition to this, some mentors mentioned they are not confident and worried about the STEM program. Nonetheless, positive findings were elicited from the interview. Mentors felt that they gained positive improvement and the program helped them increase their creativity. The mentors also suggested that the quality of module to be improved, competency of mentors to be upgraded, and duration of the intervention be extended. Quality in service instruction over STEM pedagogy best practices is a recommendation for practice.

This study delves into the impact of corrective feedback within a Teacher-Student Collaborative Assessment (TSCA) and Content-Based Instruction (CBI) framework on EFL (English as Foreign Language) students' English writing and grammar learning. A ten-week experiment with one hundred participants explores this question. Divided into three groups, one receives direct corrective feedback, another navigates indirect feedback, and a control group receives none. Evaluating writing performances across these groups, the study aims to assess the combined efficacy of TSCA and CBI in promoting English grammar learning. Preliminary findings suggest that corrective feedback within the TSCA and CBI framework significantly enhances grammar accuracy. This study proposes an innovative methodology, highlighting comprehensive corrective feedback as a transformative catalyst for grammar development. It introduces a unique module for EFL students, fostering proficiency in English grammar and potentially transcending limitations associated with TSCA alone. This approach paves the way for a fresh paradigm within EFL grammar learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The writing process has traditionally been seen "as a lonely journey" to typify the lack of support that students experience for writing outside the classroom. This paper examines an attempt of The Writing Portal (TWP), a supplementary online writing platform, to support students' writing needs throughout the five stages of the writing process, viz., planning, drafting, revising, editing, and publishing. Social constructivist principles underpin TWP, which was designed to engender collaboration amongst its student participants. Not only does TWP provide links to evaluated Internet resources and a writing portfolio, but it also features collaboration tools such as the Group Forum, chat, a writing portfolio, a private messaging system, and a comment function for pages or articles created. Thus, it is very much akin to a "one-stop centre" for academic writing within a flexible and supportive environment. In this qualitative case study, 16 third-year TESL pre-service teachers at a Malaysian Teacher Education Institute embarked on a 12-week writing course using TWP. Qualitative data in the form of students' online discourses, task reflections, log files, and digital artefacts were captured to explore how TWP's affordances supported students' writing needs. In addition, Soller's collaborative learning conversation skills (CLCS) taxonomy was used as an analytical framework to investigate the collaborative learning engendered in the online environment. The findings indicate that TWP served its purpose by addressing students' writing needs at all stages of the writing process as they accomplished multiple writing tasks. Additionally, evidence of collaborative learning is evident in three functions of TWP: the Group Forum, chat, and the comments for pages/articles. However, there are differences between the frequencies of the specific skills used for each function. To conclude, TWP appears to be a successful tool at supporting students at all stages of the writing process.