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Purpose: Given the research gaps identified in a literature review, this study aims to uncover how the intensity of learners' motivational behavior and its predictors vary with grade level. Methodology: A large-scale survey was conducted to examine motivational behavior and its predictors among EFL learners across three education levels and ten grades in Taiwan: primary school (Grades 3 to 6), junior high school (Grades 7 to 9), and senior high school (Grades 10 to 12). A total of 12,441 valid cases were collected from both rural and urban areas in Taiwan. ANOVA and multiple regression analysis were used to analyze the data. Findings: The results showed a significant effect of grade level on the intensity of motivational behavior. Specifically, learners' intensity of motivational behavior tended to decline with grade level (years of study). The significant predictors of motivational behavior also differed with grade level. Significance: In addition to theoretical and methodological contributions to L2 motivation research, this study can enhance understanding of factors that could enhance learners' motivational behavior and offer implications to assist EFL teachers in developing motivational teaching strategies.

This study aims to explore the impact of dual learning on preschool teachers' thriving at work and creative performance, and whether preschool teachers' thriving at work acts as a mediating factor in the relationship between dual learning and teachers' creative work. The participants were preschool teachers from Taiwan. Convenience sampling was used, resulting in a sample size of 388 people. The study results found that preschool teachers' dual learning, which includes both exploitative and exploratory learning, can improve the novelty and usefulness of their work and creativity. Furthermore, the study found that preschool teachers' thriving at work mediates the relationship between dual learning and creativity. This study also discovered that dual learning should combine and complement both exploitative and exploratory learning to achieve balance and the most significant effect. Therefore, it is essential to first help preschool teachers engage in both exploitative and exploratory learning. Schools and kindergartens can also provide relevant courses to help teachers combine these two learning methods. By integrating and complementing their advantages and disadvantages, a balance in learning can be achieved, thereby promoting teachers' creativity in their work.

Background: Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) education in Asian universities struggles to integrate Knowledge, Skills, and Attitudes (KSA) due to large classes and student reluctance. While ChatGPT offers solutions, its conventional use may hinder independent critical thinking. Objectives: This study introduces PA-GPT, using ChatGPT as a "virtual peer" in peer assessments to promote active learning and enhance knowledge, higher-order thinking skills (HOTS), and attitudes--the core of KSA in STEM. Methods: A randomised controlled trial involved 61 first-year engineering students (43 males, 18 females) from a university in Southern Taiwan enrolled in "Network Embedded Systems and Applications." Participants, all with prior ChatGPT experience but no programming background, were purposively sampled. They were randomly assigned to the experimental group (n = 31) using PA-GPT or the control group (n = 30) using traditional ChatGPT. Over 8 weeks, data were collected using pre- and post-tests: a knowledge construction test (20 items, [alpha] = 0.85); a HOTS scale ([alpha] = 0.78-0.83) measuring critical thinking, problem-solving, and creativity; and the S-STEM questionnaire ([alpha] >0.80) assessing attitudes towards STEM subjects and 21st-century learning. ANCOVA analysed the data, controlling for pre-test scores, and Levene's test checked homogeneity of variances. Results and Conclusions: ANCOVA results showed that PA-GPT significantly outperformed traditional ChatGPT in enhancing knowledge construction (F = 9.89, p = 0.002), critical thinking (F = 37.00, p < 0.001), problem-solving (F = 9.40, p = 0.003), creativity (F = 7.22, p = 0.009), and attitudes towards mathematics (F = 25.52, p < 0.001), engineering/technology (F = 16.06, p < 0.001), and 21st-century learning (F = 26.38, p < 0.001). These findings demonstrate that PA-GPT effectively addresses challenges in student engagement and HOTS development in STEM education by simulating peer interactions. Peer Assessment with ChatGPT (PA-GPT) promotes active learning and self-reflection, potentially revolutionising AI-assisted education in large class settings. This study provides pioneering evidence for the effectiveness of AI-driven peer assessment in enhancing comprehensive STEM competencies, offering a promising direction for future educational technology integration.

This study was conducted to optimize the designs of learning guides embedded in a computer-based simulation environment. The research was based on the Cognitive Theory of Multimedia Learning and Cognitive Load Theory. We investigated computer simulations under four conditions that combined representation and imagination learning strategies. This study recruited 244 fifth-grade Taiwanese students from various backgrounds (indigenous vs. nonindigenous, 98 vs. 146; boys vs. girls, 131 vs. 113) and examined the interactions and main effects of the four experimental conditions on the students' learning of geometric area concepts. The results revealed that the computer-based simulation platform can serve as a cognitive tool to help students to explore graphs and identify formulas. Moreover, the dynamic representations and trace changing imagination strategy embedded in the learning platform as guiding tools were highly beneficial for learners; this tool moderately reduced the learners' extraneous cognitive load and improved their learning performance at the application level. The static representation and concept imagination strategy embedded in the platform as a learning guide was also noted to increase the learners' internal cognitive load, which impaired their learning performance. Notably, boys and girls adopted different learning strategies, and the overall platform appeared to be more beneficial for nonindigenous students and students with middle to high levels of cultural stimulation than for indigenous students and students with low levels of cultural stimulation.

Constraints-led approach (CLA) is widely used in physical education (PE). This four-phased study aimed to develop a self-report measurement of students' perceived constraints support in PE. The relationships among students' perceived constraints support, competence and novelty need satisfaction, motivation, effort, and engagement in PE were also confirmed in the study. Items were developed from focus group interviews, exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, and other analyses. The resulting instrument, the Constraints Support Scale in Physical Education (CSS-PE), demonstrated sound psychometric properties. The scores from CSS-PE were found to reliably and validly reflect students' perceived constraints support. Perceived constraints support positively predicted competence and novelty need satisfaction, and both need satisfaction contribute to autonomous motivation in PE. Perceived constraints support positively predicted effort and engagement in PE. The study provided preliminary evidence of the effectiveness of CSS-PE in generating reliable and valid inferences about students' experiences in PE.

This study investigates the effectiveness of the student-designed games (SDG) model in enhancing effort, cooperation, and enjoyment among 173 preservice teachers in a university-level sports officiating course within a Physical Education Teacher Education (PETE) program. Using a quasiexperimental design, participants were divided into an experimental group, which underwent an 18-week SDG intervention, and a contrast group, which received conventional instruction. ANCOVA results indicated significant improvements in all areas for the SDG group. The findings highlight the potential of the SDG model to create an interactive learning environment and improve learning outcomes in PETE programs. This research extends the application of SDG to higher education and non-western context, highlighting its potential to improve the learning outcomes.

Numerous studies have been conducted to improve students' writing performance through flipped instruction. However, some researchers question its effectiveness due to a lack of systematic design. This study aimed to create a flipped writing environment and investigate the effects of EFL students' writing motivation, metacognitive awareness, and self-efficacy on their flipped writing performance. The results showed that flipped instruction was more effective than non-flipped instruction in improving students' writing. Students in the flipped classroom were more motivated to write, had better self-regulation, and improved their writing performance. Metacognitive awareness had the most significant and positive impact on self-efficacy; writing motivation significantly affected flipped writing outcomes. No significant impacts on metacognitive awareness or self-efficacy were observed on flipped writing performance. Based on the investigation results, pedagogical implications, limitations, and future research directions were discussed and presented.

This study investigated the implementation of culturally responsive teaching (CRT) and the provision of professional growth training for preschool teachers serving at-risk children or children from culturally disadvantaged backgrounds in Taiwan. Related strategies and challenges were analyzed, and teachers' application of CRT practices in the field was assessed. A total of 16 teachers from two nonprofit schools participated in the two phases of this study, namely (1) professional growth training and (2) the application of CRT practices supported through professional consultation. Data collection was performed on the basis of interview transcripts, observation records, meeting minutes, and teacher efficacy evaluation forms. The results indicated that the participants' CRT efficacy positively affected the aspects of curriculum, instruction, and classroom management. However, CRT implementation did not affect any of the other analyzed aspects significantly, and thus other factors affecting CRT practices must be investigated in the future. The implications of this study are discussed in this paper.

This study examined the effectiveness of a career course designed to increase career self-efficacy and exploration among undergraduate students from a university in Taiwan. A quasi-experimental study was conducted to compare a group of students who completed high-intensity action-based assignments (experimental group, n = 74) with another group that was assigned low-intensity action-based assignments (n = 197). Both groups answered the questionnaires in the first and eighteenth weeks of the course. Repeated measure analyses were conducted to examine the differences between the responses of both groups before and after taking the course. The results indicated that the career course could improve the students' career self-efficacy (t = -12.4, p < 0.001) and exploration (t = -15.1, p < 0.001). Although the results confirmed that high-intensity action-based assignments could enhance students' career exploration (t = -2.62, p < 0.01), neither group showed any improvement in terms of career self-efficacy. The control group exhibited higher career self-efficacy after attending the course than did the experimental group (t = 2.74, p < 0.01). The implications and scope for further research are also discussed.

Taiwan, an emerging scientific powerhouse, has systematically upgraded its knowledge production and international academic collaboration. It is imperative to understand such new developments. In addition, according to extant theoretical and empirical perspectives, disciplinary areas and faculty members' characteristics are also critical factors influencing the behaviours of knowledge production and international collaboration. Under this broader context, this research aims to decipher the progress of knowledge production and international co-authorship at the national level. This study will explore three wider disciplinary areas to examine the academic production and international co-authorship in relation to faculty characteristics/factors, including faculty rank, mobility experience, and gender (using data from 2008 to 2018). Our findings indicate that knowledge production and international collaboration have declined in Taiwan since 2013, with lower output seen in recent years. Performance in different disciplinary areas is detectable within the data. In addition, academic rank offers more explanatory power in determining publication behaviour than mobility experiences and gender. Research indicates that young faculty members seem to bear a greater burden of knowledge production and international collaboration than senior professors. Mobility experiences and gender are not influential in terms of knowledge production. These results bring substantial implications to the Taiwanese academic system.

Education in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) is essential to achieving continued technological advancement. The most critical years for instilling knowledge are during childhood, and a strategic way to accomplish this is through playful materials. Therefore, there is a need to develop more inclusive solutions to achieve the good inclusion of visually impaired (VI) learners in this learning area. Despite their importance, specific design guidelines are scarce for developing playful, educational solutions for VI learners in STEM. Qualitative research was conducted through interviews and observations of the interactions between VI Learners playing an audio game and tactile 3D printed blocks, which covered an age range of young participants aged 8-18 years and adults aged 30-40 years in Taiwan. Surprisingly, the results showed that the combination of tangible and audio elements for playful purposes opens the way for students to show interest during educational interactions and, at the same time, allows them to understand the concept, especially when presented in different game missions but repeating the same principle/concept. In conclusion, there is a need for more inclusive strategies and approaches for playful STEM tools for VI learners, and one important aspect of achieving this is design guidelines. This study aims to understand the educational context of VI learners and their interactions when playing with educational materials to learn STEM concepts and develop design guidelines for the future development of playful STEM educational games.

This study based on cognitive and social semiotic theories investigates whether the influence of specific features of instructional representation from adolescent textbook images could last until adulthood in certain cultures. Two cultural groups, Indonesian (n = 61) and Taiwanese (n = 60) college students, were recruited from a public Taiwanese university. Reading an essay about how the biological five kingdoms were classified served as the foundation for student-generated drawings. Semi-structured interviews and verbal data were used to track the origin of influences in their drawings. The initial result of coding drawings revealed that most of the drawing structures were shared between groups while only the design of Evolution, revealing sequential taxa in the evolution history, was Taiwanese-specific. Further statistic testing indicated that only participants' nationality was a significant factor in determining the drawing structure while pedagogical content knowledge is not. A comparison of these results indicated that most Taiwanese representations agreed with that of the non-hierarchical design used in their prior textbook while the Indonesian representations agreed with the hierarchical design of their textbook. The results suggest that there are several competing factors interfering with the decision about image design. Suggestions for teacher education and further study are addressed.

The development of teacher leadership is closely intertwined with the transformation of teacher roles. However, few studies have investigated how this concept, first developed in North America, is affected by teachers' role identities (RIs) in an Asian context. To this end, this study aimed to examine the effects of teachers' perceived role expectations (PREs) and RIs on their leadership behaviour. The sage teacher, professional teacher and labourer teacher framework was used for analysis, and 498 junior high school teachers in Taiwan participated in a survey. Structural equation modelling and bootstrap analysis were employed to analyse the data. The results showed that teachers' PREs as professional and sage teachers were more significant than for labourer teachers. Their RIs also presented the same pattern. Moreover, although teacher leadership is closely related to the development of teacher professionalism, of the three types of teacher roles, only the PRE and RI of the sage teacher can significantly motivate teachers to lead in direct and indirect ways.

Citizen science, a growing domain that allows public participation in scientific research, plays an increasingly significant role in formal education. Its potential to foster scientific literacy, address environmental issues, and promote sustainability is widely acknowledged. Drawing on the concept mapping approach, this study aims to investigate the factors that could motivate students' participation in a university-based citizen science project. This methodology enabled substantive insights, driving focused discussions and yielding rich, consolidated outcomes that reflect a strong consensus. These factors encompass the importance of real-world connections, experiential learning, institutional support, autonomy, and global consciousness, extending existing theoretical frameworks. The results illuminate the transformative potential of school-based citizen science and offer valuable insights for designing engaging educational initiatives and strategically allocating resources. The implications of this study transcend the academic realm, underscoring the role of citizen science in fostering a science-literate society and a sustainable future.

This study investigates the enhancement of spoken English proficiency among students at Taiwan's technological and vocational education (TVE) universities. The focus is on the significant impact of positive learning attitudes and effective methodologies, using questionnaires and in-depth interviews to assess students' confidence and perceptions of spoken English. The research employs the spoken English confidence scale, covering five dimensions: 1) attitude and aptitude for English learning; 2) confidence in English usage within classroom settings; 3) personality in the context of the native language; 4) belief in potential English capabilities; 5) faith in current English proficiency. Key findings reveal gaps in confidence and English-speaking skills, suggesting the need for immersive English-speaking environments, confidence-boosting classroom activities, and personalised feedback. Therefore, the results of this study suggest interventions aim to cultivate a student-centred approach, addressing proficiency gaps and enhancing confidence in English communication.

Curricula have historically overlooked non-heteronormative education for elderly populations. The purpose of this study was to assess attitude changes toward same-sex relationships among Taiwanese older adults before and after taking a curriculum focused on the lived experiences of same-sex partners. Seventy-six older adults from Hualien County, Taiwan voluntarily participated in a six-hour course, split across two 3-hour sessions, on same-sex relationships and non-traditional families. Researchers formulated the class on contact theory and equity education, intended to exhibit new perspectives and gender paradigms to older adults. Participants completed a post-class 5-Likert scale survey regarding (1) their understanding of course material and (2) their opinion on same-sex marriage legislation, then an optional qualitative form interview. Sixty-four respondents completed the form in full. Findings identified that after the course: (1) females were significantly more likely to support same-sex marriage legislation (67.2% of females compared to 33.3% of male participants) (2) there was no significant difference between males and females on empathy (3) those who supported same-sex marriage legislation were significantly more likely to empathize with the challenges same-sex partners face. Free responses collected reflected increased understanding, respect, and empathy toward same-sex partners and non-traditional families. These results suggest older adults do not stick to 'rejecting' new understandings of gender paradigms. The discussion involves implications for future, successful, and equitable elderly education curriculum design on gender issues.

Extant literature has preliminarily confirmed the potential benefits of holographic projections for educational purposes. Yet, students' experiences of learning by holographic projection have rarely been addressed. The main purpose of this study was therefore to explore students' conceptions of and approaches to learning by holographic projection. A holographic projection system was devised to assist students in learning the concept of lunar phases. This study also investigated the relationships between students' conceptions and approaches, and determined if there were any variations based on students' learning gains. Phenomenographic analysis was adopted to analyze 30 university students from Taiwan, and a multiple-choice conceptual test was conducted to assess their learning achievements. The main findings indicated that students with conceptions of learning by holographic projection as increasing the presence of a scene or mapping 2D images to 3D structures tended to adopt surface approaches, such as only observing the changes presented in the holographic projection, repetitively operating the system functions without intended purposes, or simply following the instruction guidelines to meet the minimal requirements. However, this study unexpectedly found that students who utilized surface approaches had significantly higher learning gains on the conceptual test than their counterparts did.

The core purpose of integrating inquiry-based learning strategies into STEM activities is to create a challenging learning environment that stimulates students' active learning, thereby effectively enhancing their interest in learning, thinking skills, and practical application abilities. To achieve these goals, developing more technology-assisted tools and platforms to improve teaching efficiency and enrich the learning experience becomes crucial. Therefore, this research developed InquiryGPT, which guides students through the POEE inquiry process by imposing limitations, facilitating dialogue, and providing feedback, while avoiding over-reliance on ChatGPT. This promotes the cultivation of higher-order thinking skills through interactions with InquiryGPT, thereby enhancing students' knowledge construction and understanding. This study, based on the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), examined the effectiveness of InquiryGPT. The results showed no significant difference between InquiryGPT and ChatGPT in terms of perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use. Additionally, through analysis of covariance (ANCOVA), the study further analyzed the impact of InquiryGPT on students' higher-order thinking skills and learning scores, proving that it significantly enhances students' creativity, problem-solving abilities, critical thinking, and knowledge construction.

Learning in a virtual environment has been found to foster students' affective responses, indicating the importance of exploring the factors which affect students' learning when engaged in a virtual game. This study aimed to explore the relationships among students' epistemic curiosity, situational interest, and learning engagement in an exploratory 3D virtual game environment. A virtual game was designed for elementary school students to learn concepts of evaporation and condensation in real-life situations. Data were collected using questionnaires from a total of 121 sixth-grade elementary school students, and were analyzed using partial least square structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM). The reliability and validity of the instruments employed in this study were verified. The structural relationships showed that I-type epistemic curiosity showed a stronger influence on the design of the virtual game environment compared to D-type epistemic curiosity. Challenge was found to be negatively predicted by I-type epistemic curiosity, but positively predicted by D-type epistemic curiosity. Instant enjoyment was also found to play a significant mediating role between I-type epistemic curiosity and emotional engagement. It is suggested that future research should consider providing students with interesting contexts and challenging tasks as a critical approach to designing virtual game learning environments.

ICAP is a framework that classifies learning processes based on students' explicit behaviors. The framework is developed for testing the hypothesis that interactive exercises are better than constructive exercises, and active exercises are better than the passive exercises for higher cognitive engagement and better learning outcomes. The ICAP Framework is intended to assist researchers, instruction designers and instructors in determining the activities appropriate for the aimed research and teaching. This study aims to evaluate articles based on or supported by the ICAP Framework from various aspects. In the study, employing the descriptive survey method, data collection was conducted through document analysis, while content analysis was utilized to analyze the data. The 71 articles reviewed within the study's scope were examined through the "data collection form" developed by the authors. In this context, the articles' general and methodological characteristics and themes and the findings related to ICAP contexts are presented. As a result of the research, no study regarding the ICAP Framework was conducted in Turkey. It was revealed that most of the studies, which have increased in number since 2017 in various countries, utilize the ICAP framework at the analytical level or create models-modules and develop toolsscales based on the ICAP Framework. Additionally, it was observed that mostly undergraduate and K12 students were studied in face-to-face education, with social sciences as the leading disciplinary field and teaching-learning approaches and design-development-evaluation as the most frequently studied topics, while in studies in which mixed and qualitative methods were the leading methods, exploratory and experimental approaches were more preferred. In line with these results, recommendations are presented to contribute to the field.

This research aimed to analyse the literature regarding Local and Indigenous Knowledge (LIK) in science teaching and learning. This research uses a Systematic Literature Review (SLR) to identify articles focusing on studies regarding LIK in science education. This research explores 52 articles from Scopus and Web of Science published between 2014 and 2023 from various countries. The SLR results show that the number of publications increased yearly. LIK is a recognised research topic in various countries, such as Indonesia, the United States, Canada, Australia, and African countries. The SLR results also show types of LIK consisting of daily lifestyle behaviour, system development in society, and knowledge and practice of investigation by the community. These types related to issues in science issue of climate, ecology, medicinal plants, and astronomy. These issues are studied from the perspective of indigenous knowledge, which is harmonised with modern scientific knowledge. LIK implementation strategies in science learning include community-based and place-based education learning development strategies. Implementation of different strategies is the development of a formal curriculum that accommodates LIK, such as Cross-Curriculum Cultural Priorities, Integration of medicinal plants as important content in K-12 curriculum subjects in the USA, Development of chemistry and physics practicums based on knowledge of indigenous communities and culture, and curriculum development in Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK).

This study examines how listening comprehension difficulties (LCDs) vary among college-level learners of English as a Foreign Language (EFL), with a focus on the roles of gender and language proficiency. Listening comprehension is an essential component of language learning, presenting notable challenges for EFL students. These challenges are influenced by specific learner characteristics, including gender and language proficiency level, which impact both the learning process and comprehension ability. The objective of the study is to understand the interaction between these factors and LCDs, especially in the college student population. The research was conducted at a university in Taiwan, involving 304 students in a survey. The results reveal a subtle but significant influence of both gender and language proficiency level on students' perceptions of LCDs. Although the study did not find gender differences to significantly alter students' perceptions of LCDs overall, it was noted that female students experienced more difficulty in processing listening inputs than their male counterparts. Moreover, students with lower language proficiency levels reported facing more challenges in listening comprehension than those with higher proficiency. Interestingly, more advanced learners indicated slightly more difficulty with contextual aspects of listening. While this study did not find statistically significant differences attributable to gender and English proficiency, it highlights the importance of acknowledging the subtle variations in student perceptions. This understanding allows educators to create suitable instructional strategies to improve listening proficiency across all students, irrespective of their gender or English proficiency level.

This study aimed to develop a Vietnamese word recognition test for Taiwanese undergraduate students and to investigate students' performances at different learning stages. The formal test consists of 100 words as test items. With each word, test takers were asked to select the correct Vietnamese word form corresponding to the pronunciation they heard, and its corresponding Chinese meaning. We compiled a pre-test word list first, then after using ITEMAN to analyze the pre-test results, the inappropriate items were filtered out, and left us the final 100 words. 341 students recruited from 14 universities of Taiwan participated in the final test. The results showed that this test can effectively differentiate Vietnamese word recognition ability of students at different learning stages. Students' performance in word sound discrimination is mainly affected by the following factors: 1. knowledge of the correspondence between form and sound; 2. the complexity of the final structure; 3. word frequency; 4. relation to life experience or learning experience; 5. phoneme confusion. Students' performance in word meaning is generally affected by the knowledge of the form sound-meaning correspondence, word familiarity, and part of speech.

The binge-watching phenomenon on college campuses in Taiwan inspired this study. The researcher often overhears her students chatting about which Mandarin TV series they have been binge-watching recently. Given this drama fever, which may provide an impetus for sustained reading of on-screen text, the researcher is concerned with English vocabulary growth if the viewing habit shifts from Mandarin to English subtitles. A corpus of over 5.6 million English-subtitled words from 37 Mandarin dramas was compiled, totaling 1,238 episodes. The operational measures involved the ranked twenty-five 1000-word-family lists along the British National Corpus and the Corpus of Contemporary American English word-frequency scale. Results show that Mandarin drama English subtitles reached the 2000-3000 word-family levels at 95% text coverage and extended to the 4000-5000 levels at 98% coverage subject to genres. EFL Mandarin drama fans may encounter most words from each of the 1st to 6th 1000-word-family lists twelve times or more for potential learning by continually watching up to 24 English-subtitled Mandarin dramas. Moreover, twenty participants expressed their views on watching English-subtitled Mandarin dramas to a certain level of agreement. For extensive reading practitioners, the results may be a reference concerning what vocabulary level EFL learners may attain if they binge-watch English-subtitled Mandarin dramas in their leisure time.

Digital games are increasingly used in education to boost engagement and reduce stress. Digital game-based learning (DGBL) has improved the learning experience. However, further investigation is needed to determine the specific impact of commercially available, off-the-shelf (COTS) video games on English language skills. This study provides a comprehensive overview of DGBL literature, specifically focusing on how COTS games enhance English language skills in ESL and EFL classrooms. The systematic review methodology, following PRISMA guidelines, involved searches across database like Scopus, Springer, Science Direct, and Web of Science, and other sources, and 16 articles were selected for detailed analysis from 19,201, screened articles. The systematic review examines the positive impact of commercial games on improving English language skills , identifying different game genres, and elements and linking game elements with the four perspectives of game-based learning (GBL): affective, motivational, cognitive, and socio-cultural, highlighting their direct contribution to English language skills development. This study contributes to ongoing discussions on innovative pedagogical methods to meet learners' evolving needs in a technologically advanced educational landscape. The study provides valuable insights for policymakers, educators and researchers by highlighting the potential of commercial video games in enhancing English language learning.

We created an eight-week virtual exchange (VE) programme called the Virtual Culture Trip which enabled 68 students from seven countries to engage in online intercultural interaction under the guidance of educators. This study investigated participants' perceived language skill improvement and intercultural competence (IC) after the programme, the change in their interest in the VE discussion topics, and the relationship between their self-perceived improvement and background factors. Quantitative and qualitative analyses were conducted on data obtained from the pre- and post-surveys of 48 students. Results showed that participants believed that their language skills and the four IC constructs (i.e., knowledge, attitudes, awareness and skills) significantly improved. They also seemed to become more interested in the discussion topics. Some statistically significant differences were observed in the abilities to use the language between males and females and these differences might also be associated with the interaction between gender and prior VE experience. Moreover, the interaction between age and English level led to statistically significant differences in their perceived development of intercultural skills. The study shed light on how VE conducted through English as a Lingua Franca can be an enabling means to facilitate interactions across Global North and Global South countries despite challenges posed by geographical immobility due to resource limitations or a global pandemic.

Open educational resources (OER) are teaching and learning materials that are either in the public domain or published on an open licence which permits various forms of redistribution, reuse and repurposing. Many organisations and higher education institutions around the world are using such resources, and anecdotally many believe this is supporting innovations in practice. However, there is scant research into how such innovations should be understood or evaluated conceptually. In this paper, we present a conceptual framework that can describe and evaluate innovative practice as well as results from a study of 44 cases using this framework in the context of the ENCORE+ (European Network for Catalysing Open Resources in Education) project (2021-2023). This conceptual framework provides a rich qualitative description for instances of innovation which use OER. Our examples cover many countries, including Argentina, Australia, Canada, China, Colombia, UK, Germany, Greece, Hungary, India, Ireland, Kenya, the Netherlands, Norway, Scotland, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Taiwan, USA, and Zanzibar. The sample includes organisations of all sizes and maturities of implementation. This allowed us to differentiate OER value propositions for a range of stakeholders at different levels of maturity of OER use. We explore whether variables such as the size and maturity of an organisation influences innovation strategies and the perception of stakeholder relationships. Our data indicates four elements to the development of OER value propositions as innovation vectors. Firstly, OER value propositions tend to be transformative, and focused on modifying or redefining pedagogical activity. Secondly, they are practical, targeting users/providers and influencing behaviour in direct and achievable ways. Thirdly, OER users and advocates emphasise observability, simplicity and compatibility as key aspects for communicating OER value propositions. Fourthly, OER innovation is aspirational in that greater maturity of organisations using OER sees the OER value proposition widened to include more stakeholder types.

This study aims to explore the impact of STEAM teaching activities that incorporate local environmental awareness on university students' pro-environmental behavior (PEB), and scientific creativity. The teaching activity design of this study was centered on "designing livable housing in Taiwan", and a total of four projects were designed. This research included university students (N=66) who were divided into a control group (n=33) and an experimental group (n=33). The experimental group added videos on local environmental awareness such as "local disasters and local household interview news". The students were required to fill out the "Scientific Creativity Questionnaire" and "PEB Scale" before and after the teaching activities. The results of the study indicate that the experimental group outperformed the control group in the post-test for the sub-dimensions of "Green Behavior," "Global Warming Awareness," "Environmental Social Interaction," "Informal Environmental Education," and "Environmental Attitude." This suggests that incorporating local environmental awareness materials into STEAM teaching activities is more effective in enhancing university students' PEB compared to standard STEAM teaching activities. Additionally, both groups showed improvements in overall scientific creativity after participating in the different activities, particularly in the areas of fluency and flexibility. However, ANCOVA analysis revealed no significant difference in scientific creativity between the two groups in the post-test. The results indicated that the integration of local environmental awareness materials was not the primary factor contributing to improvements in scientific creativity. This study recommends that higher education lectures integrate both environmental awareness and scientific content into curriculum design to strengthen students' overall competencies.

The study investigates perceptions of AI-facilitated creativity in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) digital storytelling (DST). Focusing on language learners, instructors, and audience, the research explores how AI influences creative processes and how such creativity is perceived across different perspectives. Over a six-week period, 32 EFL students used AI tools to create digital stories. The study employed pre- and post-intervention surveys to assess students' perceptions of AI-enhanced creativity, while the resulting digital stories were evaluated by instructors as experts, and peers as audiences to gather multi-perspective insights. Findings reveal that while AI tools significantly enhanced visual and audio elements, aiding in the contextualization of stories, the creative essence, particularly in narrative development, was consistently preferred when human input played a central role. The study uncovered favorable attitudes towards AI-facilitated learning, with noticeable improvements in post-intervention surveys. However, despite these technical enhancements, human-created storylines were valued more highly by the audience than AI-generated components. The results suggest that while AI can augment certain aspects of digital storytelling, such as enhancing multimedia elements, it does not replace the core creative input provided by humans. This has implications for the integration of AI in educational settings, particularly in language learning and creative disciplines. The study advocates for a balanced approach where AI supports, but does not substitute, human creativity.

The generation, use, and analysis of educational data comes with many promises and opportunities, especially where digital materials allow usage of learning analytics (LA) as a tool in data-based decision-making (DBDM). However, there are questions about the interplay between teachers, students, context, and technology. Therefore, this paper presents an exploratory systematic scoping review to investigate findings regarding LA usage in digital materials, teaching, and learning in K-12 mathematics education. In all, 3,654 records were identified, of which 19 studies met all the inclusion criteria. Results show that LA research in mathematics education is an emerging field where applications of LA are used in many contexts across many curricula content and standards of K-12 mathematics education, supporting a wide variety of teacher data use. Teaching with DBDM is mainly focused on supervision and guidance and LA usage had a generally positive effect on student learning with high-performing students benefiting most. We highlight a need for further research to develop knowledge of LA usage in classroom practice that considers both teacher and student perspectives in relation to design and affordances of digital learning systems. Finally, we propose a new class of LA, which we define as guiding analytics for learners, which harnesses the potential of LA for promoting achievement and independent learning.

Many university students in Taiwan have complained that the general English class is not very exciting nor useful for the workplace due to its exam-oriented and teacher-centered instruction focus. Such negative impressions often lead to a low motivation toward learning English and affect students' learning outcomes. This study aimed to establish an innovative work-based teaching approach and to explore whether it can help enhance students' motivation to learn English, positively impacting their overall performances. The work-based teaching approach included job-seeking activities involving self-introduction and resume writing, as well as product introduction tasks, fostering student participation, teacher-student interaction, and balanced summative-and-formative assessments. The study recruited 129 second-year university students in the general English class for an 18-week course where they were required to complete work-based tasks and assessments. A triangulation of research methods was employed to collect both qualitative and quantitative data from questionnaires, student formative and summative assessment, reflection journals, and student interviews. Three major findings arise from this study: 1) students' score gain on TOEIC pre- and post-tests was statistically significant; 2) students offered positive views on the diverse, interactive, and communicative teaching methods that enhanced their understanding and application of workplace English; and 3) performance assessment played a more important role in increasing students' learning interest and motivation than traditional paper-andpencil tests. This study concludes with some pedagogical implications and suggestions for future research.

Most teaching pedagogies in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) classes prioritize linguistic skills development over exploring how cultural factors shape language interpretation. To address the gap, this study developed and evaluated an instructional design project using the attention, relevance, confidence, and satisfaction (ARCS) motivational design model combined with critical pedagogy through computer-mediated communication (CMC) tools. The purpose of this research is to enhance EFL teachers' intercultural competence. Multimedia resources were used to capture participants' attention, and news articles were selected to connect to their lived experiences. Online forums were used to build their confidence, and intercultural activities provided satisfaction through practical engagement. Critical literacy pedagogy guided the design of questions to encourage EFL teachers to explore assumptions, challenge perspectives, and critically analyze language. Data from 16 EFL teachers' questionnaires, online comments, and interviews indicated that task attractiveness and the online environment motivated EFL teachers to develop critical literacy skills. Future studies could explore additional strategies for integrating intercultural competence into EFL teaching and examine how cultural dynamics within groups influence online communication.

Being able to pronounce a language so that a listener can understand (i.e., intelligibly) is critical to achieving communicative competence (Munro & Derwing, 1995), but is Duolingo helpful in this regard? Given Duolingo's status as the world's most widely used language-learning app (Hirschi, 2020), understanding its potential is important to English teachers in Australia, who might wonder whether to incorporate Duolingo into their pronunciation teaching strategy. The present study examines whether Duolingo's implicit pronunciation teaching is as effective as that of a human teacher in a classroom -- a question which has not been well researched to date. In the design of this study, the researchers sought to avoid some of the methodological problems from Jiang et al. (2021). First of all, the participants in the current study shared the same first language (Mandarin); second, Duolingo users' results were compared to a control group, rather than self-set targets; third, all participants were included in the evaluation; and fourth, the study experienced a high completion rate. This greatly reduced the impact of attrition, self-selection, or unsuccessful completion of the test on the data. This report seeks to answer the following research question: To what extent is Duolingo effective at promoting implicit pronunciation learning, especially as compared to human teachers?

This systematic literature review aims to offer an in-depth analysis of the existing research landscape regarding the application of the flipped classroom approach within the domain of language learning. The investigators methodically selected and analyzed 57 papers from 656 documents using a systematic and rigorous approach to literature selection. Our findings demonstrate the significant international impact of this field, with contributions from many countries and districts as well as globally excellent academic institutions. This review examines multiple areas of research, including improving students' perceptions and attitudes in flipped classrooms, language proficiency, motivational factors, etc. In addition, the research methods employed were evaluated, with a particular emphasis on mixed methods which combined the quantitative method with the qualitative method. Even though the application of flipped classrooms in language learning has achieved some achievements, some limitations are obvious. The most notable are the problem of sample size, the difficulty of technology integration, the lack of teacher training, the singularity of language research, etc. The research gaps revealed in this literature review, indicate interesting possibilities for future research. The diversity of research languages, the multiplicity of research methods, the integration of advanced technologies, and intensive teacher training will be significant of the area focus. This systematic literature review not only enriches the existing knowledge system but also has the potential to the direction of the development of flipped classrooms in language learning.

The development of new media technology facilitates interaction between people of different cultures. However, people from different cultures show different cross-cultural communication behaviors that may influence their communication efficiency, perceived communication experiences, and perceived social presence. This study aimed to explore Taiwanese students' communication behaviors and their perceived social presence in online cross-cultural communication. Nineteen English-major students participated in a 10-week online cultural communication exchange with students from Japan and Colombia. The data were collected from their online interaction postings, an after-study survey, and the teacher's observation journal. Content analysis of the postings and the teacher's observation journal were utilized to identify their online communicative behaviors. Moreover, the survey data were analyzed to examine their perceived social presence. Finally, the results of the questionnaire and interaction data were compared to identify the types of communicative behaviors favorable to social presence development. The results suggested that the Taiwanese students in this study had similar communicative behaviors and shared some with the communicators from some low-context cultures. The more types of communicative behaviors they used in online cross-cultural communication, the better they perceived social presence. Some types of communicative behaviors (e.g., using emoticons or expression symbols, using more expression types, self-disclosing more) seemed to benefit their social presence development more than others.

Although Chinese has become one of the most influential second/foreign languages in the world, teaching Chinese as a foreign/second language (CSL/CFL) abroad faces great challenges. M-learning and mobile-assisted language learning (MALL) display great advantages to facilitate second language learning, including CSL/CFL. However, most research was related to English as a second language (ESL) learning. Although mobile-assisted CSL/CFL learning has developed rapidly and steadily, most of these studies were conducted in mainland China and published in Chinese, which was very difficult for non-Chinese speakers to understand. Therefore, researchers should make more efforts to study mobile-assisted CSL/CFL learning abroad. With this in mind, a systematic literature review was conducted to determine the status and trends of this topic. Considering the inclusion and exclusion criteria, 28 articles published between 2010 and 2022 were selected from Scopus and WoS databases. Publication information, research methodology, participant characteristics, mobile technologies, and research findings were summarized and reported accordingly. This review also addressed the limitations of previous research, based on which the related researchers and practitioners could make more efforts to focus on the weaknesses of mobile-assisted CSL/CFL learning.

The use of learner modelling approaches is critical for providing adaptive support in educational computer games, with predictive learner modelling being among the key approaches. While adaptive supports have been shown to improve the effectiveness of educational games, improperly customized support can have negative effects on learning outcomes. To tackle these challenges, we present a novel approach, called DeepLM, that considers a series of time windows representing both sequences of learners' actions during gameplay and estimation of their current competencies (using stealth assessment) to model learners and accordingly predict their future performance. The approach employs a variant of deep neural networks to early predict learners' midterm and final scores simultaneously. The results show that using 20-50% of learners' action sequences can early predict their final scores, with a cross-validated convolutional neural network (CNN) achieving an area under the curve (AUC) and accuracy of 0.879 and 85.3%, respectively. The same model can also achieve high accuracy in predicting midterm and final scores at the same time, with an AUC and accuracy of 0.848 and 77.9%. Overall, the CNN model outperforms recurrent neural network, long short-term memory, and baseline multilayer perceptron (MLP) models in predicting learners' final performance and performs better than the baseline MLP model in predicting learners' midterm and final performance using both cross-validation and independent datasets. These findings show the potential of the proposed approach in accurately early predicting learners' performance, allowing educators and game designers to tailor interventions and support mechanisms that could lead to optimized learning outcomes.

This study investigates Taiwanese English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners' use of strategies in developing job interview skills in English. The participants were 40 EFL learners majoring in English at a private university in Taiwan. The study was part of a four-week job interview training program, during which they prepared for a mock interview test. The students learned about the job interview process, expressions, and related language use, and practiced with their peers inside and outside the class. Throughout the training, they submitted weekly diary entries describing how they developed their job interview skills. Thematic analysis of these entries revealed various learning strategies and their applications. These included cognitive strategies, such as practicing and structuring output; metacognitive strategies, which involved arranging extra time to practice, planning the interview task by doing research on the Internet, and monitoring and evaluating their learning process; and social strategies, where students exchanged feedback collaboratively.

Continuing education (CE) plays a crucial role in workforce development and economic growth across Asia, yet the landscape of CE research in the region has not been comprehensively mapped. A comprehensive bibliometric analysis of continuing education (CE) research in Asia from 1972 to 2023 was carried out, utilizing data from the Scopus database to map the evolving landscape of CE research in the region. Findings revealed a significant surge in research output since the late 1990s, with East Asian countries, particularly China, Hong Kong (China), and Taiwan (ROC), emerging as leaders in the field. The analysis uncovers several key patterns: institutional collaborations tend to cluster regionally, there's a noticeable generational gap in researcher's networks, and the healthcare sector dominates CE research topics. Recent trends indicate a shift towards digital learning approaches and learner-centered methodologies. The study also highlights the need for increased cross-border collaborations and expansion of CE research beyond the healthcare sector. This research contributes to a deeper understanding of CE research trends in Asia and provides insights for future directions in the field.

This study investigates the use of design elements in the advertisement posters on the Facebook pages of ten Thai universities, comprised of five government and five private institutions. Using the Multimodal Corpus Analysis Tool (MCAT), the study systematically analyzed the color characteristics and dominant colors employed in the universities' Facebook advertisement posters. Findings revealed that while color characteristics were similarly employed across the universities, the use of dominant colors varied significantly. Government universities were found to incorporate their theme colors in the designs, reflecting their brand identity. In contrast, private universities predominantly used colors to augment the content of their advertisements, rather than to represent their institutional identities. This study provides valuable insights into how different color and design elements are utilized by Thai universities in their social media communication to enhance their brand identities and content messaging.

This study examines the relationship between EFL students' noticing and three written feedback strategies. The convenience sampling method was adopted and four intact classes were randomly assigned into four groups: the model, the error correction, the reformulation, and the control groups. After the completion of picture-cued writing tasks as pretests, three treatment conditions and a noticing log were employed in the respective comparative activities. Focus group interviews were for triangulating the data collected from the log. There was a two-to-four-week interval between the posttest and the delayed posttest to obtain the feedback strategies' short- and long-term effects. An analytical scale was adopted to measure students' writing performance. Johnson Neyman analyses showed a significant difference among the three experimental groups in both posttests as well as that between the reformulation, the error correction, and the control groups in the posttest. Students in the reformulation and the error correction groups reported noticing grammatical problems. Those in the model group declared noticing their inability to develop ideas and describe details. Further analysis showed that learners' noticing contributed to the enhancement of content, grammar, organization, punctuation, and lexis in the model and the error correction groups.pun

This research explores the innovative integration of OpenAI's GPT-3.5 within a university-level English as a Foreign Language (EFL) writing course, illustrating a novel approach to academic instruction. The course follows the ADDIE instructional design model, encompassing five systematic stages: analysis, design, development, implementation, and evaluation. This model serves as the backbone of the course structure, ensuring a comprehensive educational experience. The incorporation of the Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK) framework in this course facilitates the effective integration of GPT-3.5 by enabling instructors to align advanced AI capabilities with appropriate pedagogical strategies, thereby enhancing the learning experience. TPACK guides educators in applying GPT-3.5's features in a manner that is contextually relevant and pedagogically sound, ensuring the technology's use complements the course content. The findings from this research are significant. They reveal that GPT-3.5 addresses three fundamental challenges often encountered in academic writing courses. Firstly, it enhances efficiency by providing immediate feedback and generating content ideas, accelerating the writing process. Secondly, GPT-3.5 ensures cohesive organization within students' writing, guiding them to structure their thoughts more logically. Lastly, it serves as a reliable substitute for traditional peer reviewers, offering critical and objective feedback that students can use to refine their drafts. As students engage with AI, they enter a dynamic partnership. This collaboration with GPT-3.5 fosters critical thinking and empowers students to develop a distinctive writing voice. Through this interaction, students are not merely passive recipients of knowledge but active participants in a learning process that is augmented by cutting-edge technology. This study not only provides insight into the potential of AI-augmented academic writing but also highlights GPT-3.5's role in promoting writing proficiency. It demonstrates that the application of AI in education can enhance the learning experience without compromising the individuality of student expression.

Virtual reality (VR) is used across the educational spectrum (higher education, high school, primary school, and even pre-school); however, primary school teachers' perceptions of using VR in their classrooms require further research. A brief review of the literature of 100 existing articles related to teaching within the primary school context was conducted. The articles were obtained by performing a word search within Google Scholar, with the keywords 'virtual reality primary school teachers 2018 - 2023'. Teachers indicated both hesitance and enthusiasm for incorporating VR. The findings of this study indicated that only a low number of articles (n = 11) addressed VR and primary school teachers, compared to the total number of articles reviewed (n=100). Researching VR and teaching assists in supporting the wider fringe aspects of e-learning practices, such as VR. It advances the compass of e-learning knowledge by integrating immersive learning tools into the primary school classroom.

This paper reports the findings of a bibliometric analysis using VOSviewer on 392 Scopus database documents published from 2003 to 2022, aiming to understand the global landscape of the e-learning field and to identify the most prominent authors, institutions, countries and reference publications, as well as the research topics that have recently received the most attention in students' readiness for e-learning in Higher Education Institutions (HEIs). The findings indicate that there has been an upward trend in e-learning readiness among students in HEIs over time. Among the countries studied, the United States, Taiwan, Australia, and Malaysia were found to have the most effective approaches to addressing students' readiness for e-learning. The most highly cited author in this field is M-L. Hung. Based on the citations, the most recognised journal in this field was "Computers and Education" and the universities that were most persuasive were two Taiwan universities in the first position. The data also revealed relatively low levels of collaboration among authors, institutions and nations regarding students' readiness for e-learning.

This study explored the integration of neural networks and artificial intelligence in image recognition for object identification. The aim was to enhance students' learning experiences through a "Learning by Teaching" approach, in which students act as instructors to train AI robots in recognizing objects. This research specifically focused on the cell division unit in the first grade of lower-secondary school. This study employed a quasiexperimental research design involving four seventh-grade classes in a rural lower-secondary school. The experimental group (41 students) were taught via an AI robot image recognition technology, whereas the control group (40 students) were taught via a more conventional textbook-centered approach. The research followed a pre-test design, with three classes lasting 45 min each, totaling 135 min of teaching time over two weeks. Evaluation tools include the "Cell Division Two Stage Diagnostic Test" and the "Science Learning Motivation Scale." The results indicate that learning through teaching AI robot image recognition technology is more effective than textbook learning in enhancing students' comprehension of the "cell division" concept and boosting motivation to learn science.

In Taiwan, the education system places a strong emphasis on higher education. Students who perform well in the National High School Entrance Examination are given priority admission to public high schools, while those with lower scores tend to enroll in vocational schools. It's worth noting that students with low scores in this examination often struggle with reading and natural literacy, typically scoring below level 2 in PISA assessments. This study examined the impact of implementing the mobile platform OK4R reading strategy on students' comprehension of popular science reading and their logical thinking abilities. The research was conducted with two classes of first-year vocational school students. The findings indicate that when students used the OK4R mobile platform for popular science reading, it had a positive effect on their popular science reading comprehension and their logical thinking skills. Notably, female students outperformed their male counterparts. The study also revealed that several factors, including gender, basic abilities, and other variables, influenced the effectiveness of the OK4R mobile platform for vocational students. Those with lower science scores appeared to benefit the most from this approach.