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Open Access
Article
Publication date: 21 January 2022

Muneera Muftah

This research shows how social media has affected learning at present during the COVID-19 pandemic and how it has become the largest and most convenient area of communication. In…

77940

Abstract

Purpose

This research shows how social media has affected learning at present during the COVID-19 pandemic and how it has become the largest and most convenient area of communication. In the current scenario, it seems that social networking sites not only had a profound impact on our social structure and intra-social interaction, but also affected education in general and learning English language in particular. It has been proven that these various social media platforms have created a realm of digital environment in today's new-age learning. Social media platforms are social networking sites through which people interact and communicate with each other easily and conveniently. Undoubtedly and unquestionably, social networking has been proven to be a global phenomenon that has caused a vast paradigm shift in the world of Learning and education during the current pandemic. Therefore, the present study aims to reach the extent of the impact of the various social media platforms on learning English language during the COVID-19 pandemic from the students' point of view.

Design/methodology/approach

The study was conducted at the undergraduate level for English language learners. The sample comprised 166 undergraduate students at Najran University. A survey questionnaire was administered to find out the impact of various social media platforms and social networking sites on learning English language in the academic year of 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and to highlight possible suggestions for improving future virtual language learning.

Findings

The findings of the study contributed to the area of online learning of English language during the COVID-19 pandemic. Final results confirmed that the utilization of social media has been significantly perceived to have positively impacted learning English language in terms of writing style, reading skills, listening and lexical variation, communication skills and grammar usage.

Practical implications

The findings of the study can serve as fundamental indicators to implement prompt pedagogical reformations, for which a number of pedagogical implications can be proposed. Another equally important pedagogical implication is to design and provide professional development and training sessions to both students and educators on the ultimate utilization of social media as instructional technologies in the context of English language teaching and learning.

Originality/value

This research provides insights in developing policies to assist with the integration and utilization of social media platforms as instructional technologies in the context of English language teaching and learning and how institutions can respond to the advent of advancing technology, especially during and after the COVID-19 era. A model to improve online English language learning process is recommended as a guideline for all educators offering online learning.

Details

PSU Research Review, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2399-1747

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 19 August 2022

Muneera Muftah

How closely does the translation match the meaning of the reference has always been a key aspect of any machine translation (MT) service. Therefore, the primary goal of this…

4134

Abstract

Purpose

How closely does the translation match the meaning of the reference has always been a key aspect of any machine translation (MT) service. Therefore, the primary goal of this research is to assess and compare translation adequacy in machine vs human translation (HT) from Arabic to English. The study looks into whether the MT product is adequate and more reliable than the HT. It also seeks to determine whether MT poses a real threat to professional Arabic–English translators.

Design/methodology/approach

Six different texts were chosen and translated from Arabic to English by two nonexpert undergraduate translation students as well as MT services, including Google Translate and Babylon Translation. The first system is free, whereas the second system is a fee-based service. Additionally, two expert translators developed a reference translation (RT) against which human and machine translations were compared and analyzed. Furthermore, the Sketch Engine software was utilized to examine the translations to determine if there is a significant difference between human and machine translations against the RT.

Findings

The findings indicated that when compared to the RT, there was no statistically significant difference between human and machine translations and that MTs were adequate translations. The human–machine relationship is mutually beneficial. However, MT will never be able to completely automated; rather, it will benefit rather than endanger humans. A translator who knows how to use MT will have an opportunity over those who are unfamiliar with the most up-to-date translation technology. As MTs improve, human translators may no longer be accurate translators, but rather editors and editing materials previously translated by machines.

Practical implications

The findings of this study provide valuable and practical implications for research in the field of MTs and for anyone interested in conducting MT research.

Originality/value

In general, this study is significant as it is a serious attempt at getting a better understanding of the efficiency of MT vs HT in translating the Arabic–English texts, and it will be beneficial for translators, students, educators as well as scholars in the field of translation.

Details

PSU Research Review, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2399-1747

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 5 July 2022

Adil Mohammed Qadha and Baleigh Qassem Al-Wasy

This paper aims to examine the impact of using visual grammar on learning participle adjectives by EFL (English as a Foreign Language) learners.

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Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to examine the impact of using visual grammar on learning participle adjectives by EFL (English as a Foreign Language) learners.

Design/methodology/approach

The study follows an experimental design in which two groups participated in the study. The experimental group used visual grammar tools in learning participle adjectives. The control group was taught the participle adjectives in a traditional way. A pre–post test was designed and presented to the participants in the two groups.

Findings

The results showed that the experimental group made statistically significant improvements in their performance in using participle adjectives due to the use of visual grammar tools.

Research limitations/implications

The current study is only limited to the effect of visual images on a particular grammatical issue, that is participle adjectives. Besides, the study does not include the gender variable; there may be variation in the results depending on the variable of gender.

Practical implications

The present study can provide language instructors with some guidelines on how to incorporate visual grammar applications in teaching grammar aspects. Learners can also be encouraged to have a better understanding of English grammar, using the different connotations of visual images.

Social implications

Using visual images in teaching grammar will increase the learners' ability to think beyond their classroom environment. They can use this experience whenever they face visual images in different societal activities.

Originality/value

This paper is one of the initial attempts to investigate the effect of using visual grammar on learning participle adjectives.

Details

PSU Research Review, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2399-1747

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 10 September 2021

Raniya Abdullah Alsehibany

This study aims to examine Saudi female students' attitude toward peer feedback activity in writing classes with a list of questions for the students to follow during the…

2046

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to examine Saudi female students' attitude toward peer feedback activity in writing classes with a list of questions for the students to follow during the activity, and to investigate the challenges that may prevent the use of such activity in Saudi EFL classes.

Design/methodology/approach

This study used a mixed-methods to ensure the credibility of the data and obtain clear descriptions about the topic. The study instruments are (1) Writing Essays, (2) Writing Checklist, (3) Questionnaire and (4) Semi-structured interview. The data were analysis with SPSS and o 10 software.

Findings

The study results indicated that students had a positive attitude toward peer feedback with a checklist in EFL writing class. For instance, their second written essay (post) has improved and has fewer mistakes than the first one. Also, most of the participants stated that peer feedback has improved their writing quality and has enhanced their writing awareness of their weaknesses and mistakes. Moreover, the interview had highlighted the main challenges that could affect using peer feedback in writing class. Finally, the results indicate the efficiency of peer feedback with a checklist in similar teaching contexts.

Research limitations/implications

The study focused on a small number of participants (30 students). Besides, the study dealt with students at university level only and the study focused on female students.

Practical implications

Based on the study finding, it is recommended that peer feedback should be integrated in all EFL writing classes at all levels. Based on the study finding, it is recommended that peer feedback should be incorporated in all EFL writing classes at all levels. Using checklist can help the students to become more independent learners and in time they will be able to correct their own mistakes.

Originality/value

This paper fulfills an identified need to identify how integrating peer feedback activity in writing class can improve the students' writing performance and help them to be independent learners.

Details

PSU Research Review, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2399-1747

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 30 September 2022

Zarin Khan Moon and Md. Mahedi Hasan

This study aims to explore whether the working parents' perception about the necessity of childcare centres for their work efficiency is associated with their anxieties and…

1528

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to explore whether the working parents' perception about the necessity of childcare centres for their work efficiency is associated with their anxieties and concerns related to their dual responsibilities, i.e. providing proper parental childcare and maintaining work efficiency.

Design/methodology/approach

A sample of 100 employed parents, from the Jashore region of Bangladesh, was surveyed, and descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyze the data.

Findings

It was revealed that there is a strong association between the perceived negative impact on job performance, childcare, child development, work efficiency and perceived need for a childcare centre.

Research limitations/implications

The limitation of this study is that it was confined to Jashore University of Science and Technology. The results may differ from those of the study conducted outside this study area and the methodology used here.

Practical implications

This study has significant practical implications for employers, childcare service providers and policy makers, especially in Bangladesh. The employers will be able to understand the demand for childcare services centres among the employed parents in respective organizations. It will draw attention of employers of knowledge intensive industries and grants commission to the issue of conflict of work and childcare-related responsibilities of employed parents. This will also make employers conscious about the dilemma that is undergone by employed parents motivating them to take actions for minimizing such conflicts to ensure better job performance of working parents.

Social implications

Based on this study, childcare providers and other policy makers will be able to ascertain the potential size of the childcare market and determine the requirement for investment in childcare-related human resources development. As the work and childcare responsibilities compete for limited time of working parents, either childcare or job performance suffers. This causes concerns, anxieties or remorse, which again hampers the job performance further. Therefore, this study may motivate the university authority around the world, specifically those in Bangladesh, to provide childcare facilities for its faculties, students and other employees.

Originality/value

This study contributes to the literature on growing demand for centre-based childcare services in an emerging economy context. It provides evidence of high demand for on- and off-site childcare centres to enhance work efficiency of working parents.

Details

South Asian Journal of Marketing, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2719-2377

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 3 May 2024

Ann-Marie Kogan

This research addresses a need in early childhood education for evidence-based teaching strategies that build emotional self-regulation skills in young children. The intervention…

Abstract

Purpose

This research addresses a need in early childhood education for evidence-based teaching strategies that build emotional self-regulation skills in young children. The intervention assessed in this study focused on increasing the emotion vocabulary of preschool-aged students.

Design/methodology/approach

This mixed-methods, quasi-experimental study evaluated the impact a dialogic reading approach combined with direct instruction of emotion words during a shared book-reading activity had on students' emotion vocabulary knowledge. The study was conducted in a licensed daycare center in a suburb of Chicago, Illinois, with ten four- and five-year-old students. Pre- and post-session surveys assessed the intervention's impact on the students' receptive and expressive vocabulary knowledge, and observation notes captured the students' responses to the intervention activities.

Findings

The results showed significant increases with small to medium effect sizes between the students’ pre- and post-session survey scores for both receptive and expressive emotion vocabulary knowledge, a strong positive correlation between the level of student engagement during the intervention and their emotion vocabulary assessment scores, and the impact other variables had on the intervention’s effectiveness.

Practical implications

This research provides information on a culturally adaptable and quickly learned teaching strategy that could be used to build emotional self-regulation skills in the early childhood classroom.

Originality/value

This research uniquely applies this intervention as a universal strategy with preschool-aged children.

Details

Journal of Research in Innovative Teaching & Learning, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2397-7604

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 18 November 2021

Shin'ichiro Ishikawa

Using a newly compiled corpus module consisting of utterances from Asian learners during L2 English interviews, this study examined how Asian EFL learners' L1s (Chinese…

1028

Abstract

Purpose

Using a newly compiled corpus module consisting of utterances from Asian learners during L2 English interviews, this study examined how Asian EFL learners' L1s (Chinese, Indonesian, Japanese, Korean, Taiwanese and Thai), their L2 proficiency levels (A2, B1 low, B1 upper and B2+) and speech task types (picture descriptions, roleplays and QA-based conversations) affected four aspects of vocabulary usage (number of tokens, standardized type/token ratio, mean word length and mean sentence length).

Design/methodology/approach

Four aspects concern speech fluency, lexical richness, lexical complexity and structural complexity, respectively.

Findings

Subsequent corpus-based quantitative data analyses revealed that (1) learner/native speaker differences existed during the conversation and roleplay tasks in terms of the number of tokens, type/token ratio and sentence length; (2) an L1 group effect existed in all three task types in terms of the number of tokens and sentence length; (3) an L2 proficiency effect existed in all three task types in terms of the number of tokens, type-token ratio and sentence length; and (4) the usage of high-frequency vocabulary was influenced more strongly by the task type and it was classified into four types: Type A vocabulary for grammar control, Type B vocabulary for speech maintenance, Type C vocabulary for negotiation and persuasion and Type D vocabulary for novice learners.

Originality/value

These findings provide clues for better understanding L2 English vocabulary usage among Asian learners during speech.

Details

PSU Research Review, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2399-1747

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 24 July 2023

Shadia Salah Salem and Amaal Abdulqader Basaffar

The purpose of this study is to present a training system on smart phones to develop fashion and textile concepts among the female students with severe hearing impairment and then…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to present a training system on smart phones to develop fashion and textile concepts among the female students with severe hearing impairment and then to determine the effectiveness of the training system in developing fashion and textile concepts among the female students with severe hearing impairment.

Design/methodology/approach

The analytical descriptive methodology and experimental methodology were used to examine the training system in developing fashion and textile concepts among the female students with severe hearing impairment.

Findings

The findings of this study indicate that the training system on smart phones was effective in developing fashion and textile concepts among the female students with severe hearing impairment.

Research limitations/implications

This study has some limitations such as limited sample size, lack of control group and lack of long-term.

Practical implications

This study provides practical implications for educators, researchers and practitioners in terms of using smart phone applications in educational processes for people with disabilities.

Social implications

This study has social implications for people with disabilities as it provides them with access to education through smart phone applications which can help them develop their skills in fashion and textile design.

Originality/value

This study presents an original model of a training system on smart phones for developing fashion and textile concepts among the female students with severe hearing impairment, which can be used as a reference for other studies related to this field.

Details

Arab Gulf Journal of Scientific Research, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1985-9899

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 6 September 2021

Intakhab Alam Khan

Many students are found facing difficulties in learning English due to plenty of reasons: known and unknown ones. In order to overcome such an issue, the instructors have to…

2042

Abstract

Purpose

Many students are found facing difficulties in learning English due to plenty of reasons: known and unknown ones. In order to overcome such an issue, the instructors have to explore for effective techniques of teaching English to motivate learners by any means. Technology in general and informatics in particular can be thought of as innovative tool of pedagogy in the current teaching-learning environment. The present proposal of research aims at creating innovative approaches, which attract learners' interest and catch their attention for better outputs.

Design/methodology/approach

Following subsections have been discussed keeping the significance in view. Setting of the study: The present study was conducted at King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah-Saudi Arabia, which is one of the Saudi Arabian universities; however, it has opened up new avenues for the pedagogues, teachers of English and researchers to conduct studies in various allied fields. In order to have a representative sample of students' population, the participants were chosen from the “preparatory year”. Material and tools: This study used a questionnaire (Appendix) and a test to evaluate performances of the two groups: controlled and experimental. In order to further strengthen the findings, semi structured interview was conducted for a few select students from the student-sample. Since the questionnaire was adapted, the statistical validity and reliability was not considered to be essential; however, content/face validity was ensured by consulting 10 experts in the field of education/methods of teaching.

Findings

Based on the analysis of data gathered from the test performances of the two groups of students, it was found that there existed a significant difference in the test scores. The questionnaire responses also proved that infographics can be proved to be an interesting tool of education in general and English language teaching in particular. However, it has been noticed from the gathered data that not many teachers are comfortable using multimedia or infographics for different reasons. The results of the present study are in line with the study by Rezaei and Sayadian (2015) that support the idea of infographics that would help English teachers to develop understanding and insights to design among the learners. They further contend that the infographic instruction offers choices for the utilization of collaborative activities. In addition, the infographics enhance students' performance as a whole as also supported by Alrwele (2017).

Research limitations/implications

The study was conducted on a small sample which might affect the generalization of the outcomes. It was carried out with special reference to teaching of vocabulary and reading.

Practical implications

There can be many recommendations for different stakeholders. For teachers, it is recommended that they should know about the significance of infographs for catching the attention of students. They should know how to design interesting and colorful infographs. The administration/management should facilitate the teachers with the required software or platform to create infographics and integrate in an English language class. In addition, teachers should attend workshops and training courses organized for topics related to the infographs.

Originality/value

The author checked the study for plagiarism (excluding references) and found it to be 93% plagiarism free.

Details

PSU Research Review, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2399-1747

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 28 January 2022

Diego Camara Sales, Leandro Buss Becker and Cristian Koliver

Managing components' resources plays a critical role in the success of systems' architectures designed for cyber–physical systems (CPS). Performing the selection of candidate…

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Abstract

Purpose

Managing components' resources plays a critical role in the success of systems' architectures designed for cyber–physical systems (CPS). Performing the selection of candidate components to pursue a specific application's needs also involves identifying the relationships among architectural components, the network and the physical process, as the system characteristics and properties are related.

Design/methodology/approach

Using a Model-Driven Engineering (MDE) approach is a valuable asset therefore. Within this context, the authors present the so-called Systems Architecture Ontology (SAO), which allows the representation of a system architecture (SA), as well as the relationships, characteristics and properties of a CPS application.

Findings

SAO uses a common vocabulary inspired by the Architecture Analysis and Design Language (AADL) standard. To demonstrate SAO's applicability, this paper presents its use as an MDE approach combined with ontology-based modeling through the Ontology Web Language (OWL). From OWL models based on SAO, the authors propose a model transformation tool to extract data related to architectural modeling in AADL code, allowing the creation of a components' library and a property set model. Besides saving design time by automatically generating many lines of code, such code is less error-prone, that is, without inconsistencies.

Originality/value

To illustrate the proposal, the authors present a case study in the aerospace domain with the application of SAO and its transformation tool. As result, a library containing 74 components and a related set of properties are automatically generated to support architectural design and evaluation.

Details

Applied Computing and Informatics, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2634-1964

Keywords

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