Original Research Paper
e-learning
J. Torkzadeh; M. Ahangari; M. Mohammadi; R. Marzooghi; S. Hashemi
Abstract
Background and Objectives: Improving and enhancing the quality and effectiveness of e-learning in the universities require examining and recognizing the internal and external factors affecting it. To this end, certain models and frameworks have been developed to evaluate the effectiveness of the e-learning ...
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Background and Objectives: Improving and enhancing the quality and effectiveness of e-learning in the universities require examining and recognizing the internal and external factors affecting it. To this end, certain models and frameworks have been developed to evaluate the effectiveness of the e-learning system. However, the diversity of the dimensions of the effectiveness system in the literature and the multiplicity of the models not only implies a theoretical gap in this area but also it has challenged the operational and technical scopes of the issues. The purpose of this qualitative study is investigating and analyzing the external effectiveness components of e-learning in order to make a qualitative change in higher education system.Methods: In this study, it was attempted to thoroughly identify the components of evaluating the effectiveness of academic e-courses with a qualitative approach. The research method is qualitative, and in particular "qualitative case study”. Thus, the potential contributors to this study included all faculty members of Virtual Colleges of Shiraz Universities, Payam Noor, and Allameh Tabatabai University virtual education instructors and a number of content development specialists and educational designers (n = 25) who were selected based on purposeful sampling in terms of criteria (expertise and experience) and considering data saturation, In line with the aforementioned purpose, an interview was conducted with 25 experts in this field. Then, the obtained data were analyzed through the content analysis technique.Findings: In order to achieve this, by studying the models of blended and related exploratory learning and interviewing the experts and skillful professors of this field and analyzing the data extracted from such interviews, reviewing the documents, theoretical foundations, and research backgrounds of e-learning in the universities of the developed countries and Iran, the researcher has highlighted the influence that external effective evaluation components have on e-learning as an organizing content including twelve major themes with the following titles to be significant and necessary in the education system: economizing and increasing productivity; the dynamics and flexibility related to the new educational developments and technologies; cultivation of organizational e-learning; competitiveness of the products; training and employment of human resources specialized in e-learning; identifying and responding to environmental needs; lifelong learning; realization of patterns of competence; realizing the goals and excellence of the beneficiary organization; promotion of professional capabilities in the workplace; strengthening technical and vocational education; and success, effectiveness, and competitiveness of the learners. The results were validated using data matching method, the validity, the reliability and reliability of the research data. In the next step, the researcher used content validity index (CVI) to determine the relevance and necessity of themes and the extracted organizing theme. The validity and reliability criteria were used to validate the framework. Four criteria for adaptation, intelligibility, generalizability and control were used to determine the acceptability of the proposed framework. Certainly, knowledge of these components can be necessary and reliable in properly evaluating the overall effectiveness of the e-learning courses.Conclusion: After summing up the findings of this study, it is shown that evaluating the effectiveness of e-learning is a comprehensive cycle that is not just limited to evaluating the effectiveness of what is done within the e-learning system. Rather, it should be seen whether the e-learning system has been able to respond to the needs of the society and to fulfill the mission intended for the organization or not. In this study, 12 components were identified to evaluate the external effectiveness of the university e-learning system, and the study and evaluation of each of these components can indicate different dimensions of the external effectiveness of e-learning. Also, the interaction between external and internal levels of e-learning effectiveness and the interaction between the two levels were investigated and analyzed. The limitations of the present study were that the findings were not collected in the field and in the operational scene, and that there were no similar comprehensive samples to be further compared and studied.
Original Research Paper
e-learning
M. Mohammadi; Z. Khoshneshin; N. Mohammadhasani
Abstract
Background and Objectives: Gamification means the use of elements and mechanics of a game in a non-game environment increasingly used in learning environments as a way to increase student motivation and learning outcomes. While several studies have been conducted to investigate the effectiveness of gamification ...
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Background and Objectives: Gamification means the use of elements and mechanics of a game in a non-game environment increasingly used in learning environments as a way to increase student motivation and learning outcomes. While several studies have been conducted to investigate the effectiveness of gamification in education. But there are blind spots regarding the precise application of gamification elements using new educational tools in various educational fields. In this study, using the educational tools of Kahoot and Mentimeter with focus on the leaderboard, the effect of the elements of competition and has been investigated cooperation on learning and approach motivation of math lesson. Methods: The statistical population of the study included all fourth-grade male students in Divandarreh in the academic year 2020-2021. The study sample was selected using the available sampling method from the classes of the city. consisting of two classes of 20 people and placed in experimental groups. The research method was quasi-experimental with pre-test, post-test design. The research instruments included researcher-made learning tests and Aminifar and SalehSadeghpour motivation questionnaire whose reliability coefficient was calculated with Cronbach's alpha criterion for learning test 0.93 and approach motivation 0.81. The learning environment of the experimental groups was presented simultaneously and separately surveyed for ten sessions using the educational tools of Kahoot and Mentimeter were influenced by gamification’s elements of competition and cooperation. Findings: Mean and standard deviation indexes were used to evaluate descriptive statistics. The difference between the mean pre-test and post-test learning of students who were trained in a gamified environment using Kahoot the competition-based educational tools was 19.45 and in a gamified environment using Mentimeter educational tools based on the cooperation element was 23.9. In the variable of approach motivation, the difference between the mean of pre-test and post-test obtained in the gamified environment using Kahoot educational tools based on the competition element was 4.95 and in the gamified environment using Mentimeter educational tools based on the cooperation element was 8.1. respectively. Based on the results of the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test, the variances were equal and the normality of the data distribution was confirmed. According to the results of the variance homogeneity test, since the significance level is greater than (0.05), the null hypothesis based on variance homogeneity was confirmed and the assumption of variance homogeneity was confirmed at a 95% confidence level. Data analysis by multivariate analysis of covariance (MANOVA) in SPSS statistical package showed that with a significance level of less than 0.05 and a 95% confidence level, there was a significant difference between the use of Kahoot and Mentimeter educational tools based on competition and cooperation gamification’s elements in learning and students' approach motivation. Therefore, the null hypothesis is rejected and the opposite hypothesis is based on the inequality of the average learning rate and approach motivation in a gamified environment with a focus on the leaderboard using the teaching tools of Kahoot and Mentimeter based on the elements of competition and cooperation, was accepted. Conclusion: The results of this study indicated that the application of the Mentimeter educational tool based on cooperation element, compared to Kahoot educational tool based on competition element, has a more significant effect on student's learning and approach motivation in the gamified environment. Therefore, it is better to design gamified learning.
Original Research Paper
e-learning
M. Masoomifard; , M. Mahmodi; M. Parsa Sirat
Abstract
Background and Objectives: Technological teaching methods in today's world, such as flipped teaching, as an important and integral part of the set of teaching-learning activities, have created unique opportunities for teachers to teach better and use different teaching approaches according to the needs ...
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Background and Objectives: Technological teaching methods in today's world, such as flipped teaching, as an important and integral part of the set of teaching-learning activities, have created unique opportunities for teachers to teach better and use different teaching approaches according to the needs of each student to help them learn more. The purpose of this study was to compare the effect of flipped approach and traditional teaching method on the learning rate and the academic self-efficacy of Persian lessons for the second-grade elementary students.Methods: This is applied research in terms of purpose and a quasi-experimental design with pre-test and post-test in terms of nature. The statistical population included all female students in the second grade of elementary school in district 4 of Tehran in the academic year of 2018-2019. Sampling was done randomly in multi-stage clusters. Two classes were selected as the research sample of the study with 25 students in one class and 35 students in the other. All students were pre-tested and then distributed homogeneously in both classes. In one of the classes, the Persian lessons were taught using flipped instruction (an advanced teaching approach based on information and communication technology), and in the other class, the same lessons were taught utilizing the traditional teaching method (a conventional way of teaching including lectures, questions and answers) and then the post-test was taken. It should be noted that all students who received flipped method had at least one electronic device such as a tablet, cell phone, DVD or CD player and computer at home in order to watch the videos and have classroom feedback the next day. Data collection instruments to assess the level of learning Persian lessons included the researcher-made Academic Achievement Questionnaire for the Persian lessons of the second-grade elementary school. Also, the data collection instrument to measure the students' self-efficacy was the Standard Academic Self-Efficacy Questionnaire (MJSES), the content validity of which was confirmed by twelve educational experts while the reliability of both scales was evaluated and confirmed by the statistical tests.Findings: The results of the analysis of covariance showed that the flipped instruction had a positive effect on the learning rate and self-efficacy of the second grade elementary students in the experimental group; that is the rate of learning and self-efficacy of the students who have learned the Persian lessons of second grade elementary school by the flipped approach, has been higher than the students who have learned the Persian lessons by the traditional teaching method including questions and answers.Conclusions: Using the flipped instruction as a new technological teaching method can strengthen individual learning and increase students' sense of self-efficacy more than the traditional teaching method. Since the learner actively learns by engaging with the content of the lessons before attending the classroom, she/he can participate in the class with more readiness. It means that his or her previous preparation leads to deeper learning and a sense of efficiency. Therefore, using this technological teaching method especially during the corona pandemic while attending the classes is limited is recommended and it should be included at the top of the education agenda in order to deepen students' learning experiences in Persian lessons.
Original Research Paper
e-learning
S. Torkashvand; B. Yarigholi; V. Moradiyan Mohammadieh
Abstract
Background and Objectives: With the growth of new information technologies, educational systems have also undergone changes in terms of using new technologies in teaching and learning. New educational technologies have the potential to provide free education around the world and to achieve educational ...
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Background and Objectives: With the growth of new information technologies, educational systems have also undergone changes in terms of using new technologies in teaching and learning. New educational technologies have the potential to provide free education around the world and to achieve educational justice. But in developing and underdeveloped countries, due to their many challenges, a digital divide has been created between the rich and the poor cities which, in itself, has led to educational injustice. Accordingly, the purpose of this study is to explain the challenges of the digital divide on the implementation of educational justice in order to solve the problems leading to the realization of educational justice in the country.Methods: The present study is a descriptive-analytical study. Therefore, it is a qualitative research and philosophical analysis. The research approach is analytical and critical. The method of data collection is library- documentary. The research population includes all the studies that had examined the digital divide and educational justice and by investigating the background, 30 research studies directly related to this context were found. The data analysis method was researcher-oriented. The validity of the data was obtained based on the analysis of experts' views. The reliability of the study was in line with the findings of other studies.Findings: The findings of the study indicate that various challenges have affected the digital divide and educational injustice. The challenges that have caused the digital divide in the country's education systems are as follows: governance-infrastructure challenges, educational, cultural and economic challenges. The governance-infrastructure challenge has been analyzed based on the Communication and Information Technology Development Index and shows inequality in the sub-indicators of access, usage and skills among the provinces of the country. Thus, the central provinces are in the top rank and the deprived and border provinces are in the last rank in all three sub-indicators. The educational challenge is also based on components such as the low level of digital literacy of teachers and families, centralized educational management, educational policy-making and reliance on traditional teaching methods. The cultural challenge is also based on components such as gender, race and language. Economic challenge is also based on components such as: low income of families, poverty, priority of earning a living on learning and expensive educational technology tools. Solutions to overcome each of these challenges can be listed as follows: raising the level of digital literacy in students and parents, strengthening the motivation to compete and strive, emphasizing e-learning methods and using new technology in teaching. Also, some other solutions such as upgrading the bandwidth of using the Internet, investing in human resources and developing the internal Internet such as providing Internet access points in every school and library, providing low-interest loans for public equipment in rural areas and urban slums, measures to reduce equipment prices (tax exemption, subsidies provision) and low-interest loans for low-income families, free web education sessions for the deprived, providing free Internet address for all students.Conclusion: The findings show that the digital divide can be examined at three levels: local, national and global. At all three levels, four elements are involved in the digital divide, namely education, economy, governance, and culture. Therefore, in order to get out of the digital divide and achieve educational justice in the country's educational system, we must first identify the gaps, and then take action to eliminate them. Therefore, the country's education system can achieve its ultimate goal, which is a fair society, when it can eliminate the problems facing justice.
Original Research Paper
e-learning
P. Hessari; F. Chegeni
Abstract
Background and Objectives: E-learning is the newest form of distance learning and is an approach to curriculum planning in which, in addition to using inclusive methods, computer tools and the Internet are used. Today, there is a growing attention paid to the e-learning approach to learning and teaching ...
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Background and Objectives: E-learning is the newest form of distance learning and is an approach to curriculum planning in which, in addition to using inclusive methods, computer tools and the Internet are used. Today, there is a growing attention paid to the e-learning approach to learning and teaching in order to meet the changes and challenges facing higher education. This is an approach that is specifically tailored to the new education and improves education in the higher education environment. Numerous components are effective in learning and teaching in the method of virtual education and also the effect of virtual teaching and learning in the courses having different content is different. These topics have inspired the researchers to study the nature of e-learning in various courses. This study seeks to identify the impact of virtual education in the field of architecture. Architecture education at different levels is an aspect of higher education that has a special method and process due to the role and position of professionals of this field in the country. The nature of this field is different from other fields due to being taken without practical and theoretical courses. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to explain the status of virtual education in the field of architecture and specifically in the practical and theoretical courses of this field which are derived from the practical and theoretical nature.Methods: This research is applied in terms of its purpose and descriptive in nature and of survey type. The data collection instruments in this study are both quantitative and qualitative. The statistical population of this research is 78 undergraduate students of architecture in the University of Torbat Heydarieh. Data collection tools in this study include qualitative and quantitative cases. The software named Statistica and a questionnaire were used to assess the impact of e-learning on practical and theoretical courses in architecture. The questionnaire used in the research was anchored on a five Likert scale. Cronbach's alpha coefficient was used to check the validity or reliability of the questionnaire. In order to analyze the data in this study, the collected information was inserted into SPSS software and then the data were analyzed at both descriptive and inferential levels.Findings: The findings of this study show that the six indicators of interactivity, interpretation, peer support, understanding all aspects of a subject, communication and teacher support are effective in virtual education in the field of architecture and its practical and theoretical courses.Conclusion: The present study focuses on the effect of virtual education on practical and theoretical courses in architecture at the university. The results obtained in this study can be useful for learning environments as well as other courses in general. This study reveals that virtual education has many effects on learning architecture and having more interaction in this field and in practical and theoretical courses, but the effectiveness of the components related to virtual education in both practical and theoretical courses are different from each other. Moreover, in the theoretical courses, the effectiveness of e-learning is far greater than in practical courses.
Original Research Paper
Knowledge Management
R. Movahedi; F. Bakhtiari-Hamedani; H. Saadi
Abstract
Background and Objectives: The agricultural sector is one of the most important economic and social sectors of the country that needs proper management to achieve the goals of agricultural and rural development. Knowledge management (KM) and organizational agility (OA) are two important strategies in ...
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Background and Objectives: The agricultural sector is one of the most important economic and social sectors of the country that needs proper management to achieve the goals of agricultural and rural development. Knowledge management (KM) and organizational agility (OA) are two important strategies in managing organizations. KM refers to resources that are systematically designed to foster the most effective learning and lifelong learning in the organization and includes such components as acquisition, storage, transfer and application of knowledge. OA also includes such components as the ability to create change, flexibility, accountability, collaboration, training and learning in the organization. Therefore, the purpose of the present study was to investigate the relationship between KM and OA is in Agricultural Jihad Organization, Tehran branch.Methods: This research was an applied one in terms of its aims and survey in terms of its data collection procedures. The statistical population includes 450 agricultural Jihad staff. Out of these, 207 were selected and included in the sample using Cochran formula. The research instrument was a standard questionnaire that consisted of three parts: 1) biographical characteristics of the respondents, 2) questions related to organizational agility, 3) questions related to knowledge management. The instrument for assessing knowledge management was used with 23 items and 4 variables including: knowledge acquisition with 4 questions, knowledge transfer with 6 questions, knowledge storage with 6 questions, and application of knowledge with 7 questions; all items were anchored on a five-point Likert scale. The organizational agility questionnaire was used by Zhang (2012), with 27 items and 4 variables including: quickness with 7 questions, responsiveness with 6 questions, flexibility with 7 questions, competency with 7 questions; all items were anchored on a five-point Likert scale. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS software and Smart PLS. The main variables of this study included organizational agility, knowledge management and individual variables.Findings: The results showed that there was a significant relationship between organizational agility and knowledge management, and among the components of organizational agility, the component of "ability to create change", "flexibility" and "ability to respond" were the most important determinants and played an important role in this regard. The results about knowledge management components showed that "knowledge application" by an effect coefficient of 0.902 had the highest impact on dependent variable of KM. The items including "knowledge transfer", "knowledge acquisition", and "knowledge storage" were other important components by coefficients of 0.894, 0.720, and 0.474, respectively. Conclusion: The results of this study showed that there was a positive and significant relationship between organizational agility and knowledge management in Agricultural Jihad Organization, Tehran branch. This means that increasing each component of organizational agility leads to an increase in knowledge management vice versa. Given that the most important dimension of organizational agility in this study was "ability to make a change", an agile organization would be able to identify and make changes in the organizational environment. In this regard, it is recommended to use educational programs to change management techniques in order to achieve organizational mobility.
Original Research Paper
e-learning
M. Ahmadi deh qutbuddini; M. S. Hosseini zaydabad; E. Mahmoodabadi
Abstract
Background and Objectives: Research evidence shows that technology is not being utilized effectively within classrooms and there are many instructors who feel unprepared to implement ICT. This realization is alarming since the use of technology in classrooms has had a muted impact on educational processes ...
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Background and Objectives: Research evidence shows that technology is not being utilized effectively within classrooms and there are many instructors who feel unprepared to implement ICT. This realization is alarming since the use of technology in classrooms has had a muted impact on educational processes and outcomes. This could be interpreted to mean that technology is not positively changing test scores, which have become a major indicator in the accountability movement over the past 30 years. Technology is however positively increasing student engagement which arguably is one of the significant tasks in the education of learners. Instructors are among the key players in any effective integration of technology in the instructional process. The ICT offer instructors an opportunity to provide learners with innovative new virtual environments that can hopefully stimulate and enhance the learning process. Professionally, instructors are expected to harness the affordances of technology to support effective teaching and related activities. As the role of technology in teaching and learning becomes more prominent, so will the demands on instructors to engage technology in carrying out their duties. Integrating technology as combining technology with teaching and learning strategies is done in order to meet the curriculum standards and learning outcomes of each lesson. One of the issues that should be considered is the effect of integration of technology in teaching process by instructors on the acceptance and application of technology in student learning, which can facilitate students' learning. This study aimed to investigate the role of students' perception of ICT integration in teaching by instructors on students' acceptance and use of ICT for learning as well as the mediating role of students' beliefs, attitudes and intention in the relationship between students' perception of ICT integration in the teaching process by instructors and actual usage of ICT for learning.Methods: This research is a correlational research method and a sample of 201 students of Islamic Azad and Payam Noor universities was selected by a multistage cluster sampling method. The required data were collected by the TAM questionnaire and scale of students' perception of ICT integration in the teaching process. The data were analyzed by path analysis methodFindings: The results showed that the direct effect of students' perception of ICT integration in the teaching process by instructors on attitude, perceived ease, and usefulness of ICT for learning is positive and significant and on actual usage of ICT for learning is negative and significant; but this effect on the behavioral intention of ICT use for learning is not significant. The results also showed that the behavioral intention of ICT use for learning, attitude toward ICT use for learning, perceived usefulness and ease of ICT use for learning had a positive and significant mediating role in the relationship between students' perception of ICT integration in the teaching process by the instructors and actual usage of ICT for learning by the student.Conclusion: According to the results, the perceived ease and usefulness of using ICT for learning by the student can facilitate the effect of students' perception of the integration and use of ICT in the teaching process by the instructors on the actual usage of ICT for learning by students.
Original Research Paper
Mobile learning
M.S. Ghoraishi khorasgani
Abstract
role in COVID-19 crisis is mobile learning. Mobile learning has emerged as a powerful tool in teaching and learning which is considered as one of the beneficial and practical solutions to prevent the closure of the universities. Despite the significance of mobile learning as a tool that has changed the ...
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role in COVID-19 crisis is mobile learning. Mobile learning has emerged as a powerful tool in teaching and learning which is considered as one of the beneficial and practical solutions to prevent the closure of the universities. Despite the significance of mobile learning as a tool that has changed the learning strategies by helping the learners to manage their learning with a flexible approach and to provide new horizons in the field of education system, it has its own challenges. Therefore, identifying these challenges can help provide solutions and make the most of technology in the teaching-learning process. Accordingly, the present study has identified the challenges of mobile learning from the perspective of students.Methods: The present study is applied in terms of purpose and phenomenological in terms of qualitative approach. The target population were undergraduate, graduate and doctoral students of Al-Zahra University who had some experiences in using cell phones for e-learning. Accordingly, after utilizing purposive sampling, 32 students were interviewed until the theoretical saturation was reached. To analyze the interviews, the Colaizzi content analysis method was used. To validate the data, peer review method was applied and the reliability was checked through using the two-coder agreement which was equal to 86 between two codes.Findings: The findings showed that out of 315 extracted codes, 68 codes were dedicated to physical challenges, 35 codes to psychological challenges, 31 codes to quality learning challenges, 63 codes to hardware challenges, 52 codes to infrastructure challenges, 39 codes to skill challenges, and 27 codes to supportive challenges. Physical challenges include: headache and dizziness, extreme eye fatigue, exacerbation of neurological diseases and sleep disturbance. Psychological challenges include: stress and anxiety, depression and hopelessness, and lack of concentration and distraction. Hardware challenges include: keyboard problems, battery and charging problems, microphone and audio problems, file download problems, IC problems, and low mobile memory problems. Infrastructure challenges include: poor internet and facilities and equipment. Skills challenges include individual skills. Learning quality challenges include: quality of teaching and research. Supportive challenges included: organizational support, family support, and faculty support.distributional injustices, and that many students in disadvantaged areas have encountered serious challenges in attending virtual classes and conducting educational and research work. Since for most students using a mobile phone is the only option for attending virtual classes, it is recommended to eliminate or reduce physical challenges through scheduling classes at regular intervals, using brightly colored slides, combining text, videos, and using a combination of online and offline techniques. To meet the infrastructure challenges, it is recommended to use free high-speed Internet and also to purchase or rent powerful servers to provide e-learning services. University funding and the purchase of appropriate facilities including computers and mobile phones can help address many of the hardware challenges. To address skill challenges, training skills in working with educational software and academic messengers and holding various introductory and advanced workshops are essential for students. Moreover, to address supportive challenges, it is suggested that the universities seek financial resources from various organizations and charitable support and allocation of appropriate budget; after identifying low-income and underprivileged students, low-interest loans or grants should be allocated to these students for buying computers and mobile phones and by providing underprivileged students with free loans the supportive challenges can be overcome more than before. Also, instructors should understand the students' conditions by identifying the mentioned students in their classes and deal with them with more flexibility and educational aids. The families’ understanding of the educational conditions and providing a convenient environment and facilities to the best of their abilies can minimize psychological challenges to the least. Despite the fact that paying attention to infrastructure and hardware challenges as a prerequisite for the quality of learning is crucial, to meet the challenges of quality learning, solutions such as allocating useful activities to increase students' learning, doing teamwork with a fair division of tasks to avoid the pressure of work on students, appropriate and timely feedback from instructors, and a variety of written and oral assignments are highly recommended. Finally, it can be noted that by overcoming these challenges, the psychological challenges of stress and frustration in students will also be alleviated.
Original Research Paper
Entrepreneurship
S. Rezghi; A. Moghaddam; M. Modarresi
Abstract
Background and Objectives: Training of entrepreneurship skills is considered as one of the key factors to achieve sustainable economic development. In most countries, in addition to entrepreneurship education in college courses, extensive efforts to teach entrepreneurship to children and primary school ...
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Background and Objectives: Training of entrepreneurship skills is considered as one of the key factors to achieve sustainable economic development. In most countries, in addition to entrepreneurship education in college courses, extensive efforts to teach entrepreneurship to children and primary school students are in progress. However, countries with resource-dependent economy have low levels of entrepreneurship education in schools. Design and development of training programs in the field of entrepreneurship in schools can strengthen the entrepreneurial attitudes or the background needed to enter the field of entrepreneurship; and in fact, consider entrepreneurship as a suitable career choice or entrepreneurial job preference. The evidence suggests that formal training cannot create the required entrepreneurial motivation to start a new business. Skills acquired through playing games can be obtained faster and can last longer than what is learned in the classroom. Today, games and game features are used to create innovations in teaching and learning in entrepreneurship and this is probably the most attractive and challenging application of the games. Using games is a good way to experience life and the complex and unknown world of entrepreneurship, especially beacuse this experience takes place in an environment that protects the student from serious risks such as bankruptcy or emotional damage. Therefore, this study investigated the effect of video games by enhancing adolescents' self-efficacy on their career preferences.Method: In this research, a quasi-experimental method was used. For this purpose, some high-school students in Birjand participated in this research. A purposive cluster sampling method was used to select participants. To this end, considering the homogeneity of gender, family characteristics, and income level of the family, the two boys' schools, namely “Sama” and” Darol - Oulum” were considered as the main clusters. In each school, 24 students were selected randomly from 13- to 14-year-old students and were divided into experimental and control groups. Eventually, 20 people participated as the experimental group and 22 people participated as the control group. Pre-test and post-test were taken from all of the four groups and paired samples t-test and Pearson Correlation were used to test the research hypotheses. The data were analyzed using SPSS 26.Findings: The results of the independent samples t-test confirmed the increase in entrepreneurial self-efficacy of adolescents in the experimental group through video games (and not environmental conditions and external factors). Also, the results of independent samples t-test confirmed the effect of video games on adolescent entrepreneurial job preference. Based on the results of Pearson correlation test, a positive and significant relationship between entrepreneurial self-efficacy and adolescent entrepreneurial job preference was also confirmed. Overall, the results showed that playing video games has a positive and significant effect on enhancing entrepreneurial self-efficacy and entrepreneurial job preferences of the participants.Conclusion: The innovative aspect of our research was the smart choice of video games for entrepreneurship education. During the observations, the effect of the game on the improvement of team skills and teamwork was evident. Also, the increase in entrepreneurial job preferences in the test group can be attributed to increasing self-confidence and improving leadership skills. Another interesting result obtained in the study is the importance of the role of planning and coordination in increasing the effectiveness of games for education. Therefore, in order to increase the effectiveness of games in training, satisfaction and support of school officials and parents, it is recommended that the participation of players and playing as a team, creating a competitive environment and facilitating self-assessment and smart choice of video games and game time planning should be considered.
Original Research Paper
Educational Technology
H.R. Ghezelsefloo; S.H. Alavi
Abstract
Background and Objectives: Research on the growing trend of using technology in the sports industry shows that the establishment of various sports technologies as a multifaceted tool has been able to minimize the challenges in organizing sports competitions by developing perceptual skills and reducing ...
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Background and Objectives: Research on the growing trend of using technology in the sports industry shows that the establishment of various sports technologies as a multifaceted tool has been able to minimize the challenges in organizing sports competitions by developing perceptual skills and reducing incorrect and non-efficient decisions. The use of Hawk-Eye technology, the technology of detecting the point of contact of the ball with the court in the sports such as golf and rugby and the assistance video referee in volleyball, tennis and football are the latest applied technologies in the field of refereeing. On the one hand, the growth of this phenomenon is rooted in the limitation of human capabilities and on the other hand, it reflects the ability to determine and predict the stopping point for technology to play a role in performing complex and sensitive tasks. Therefore, one of the most important topics of technological influence is related to the category of refereeing in sports events. The ambiguity of many mistakes and lack of ways to identify them correctly and the confusion of the referees in making the right decision, have always been the headlines of the sports media. Despite considerable human resistance, ball and athletes control and tracking technologies have been widely used in world volleyball competitions during offensive and defensive use through the use of high-tech cameras and Hawk-Eye System. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of event-based sports technologies on the training and career development of referees in the Iran Volleyball Super League.Methods: The present study was a descriptive research and was conducted adopting mixed exploratory method. In the qualitative phase, 10 international referees were present in semi-organized interviews by judgmental sampling method. Due to the limitations of the coronavirus outbreak, this phase of the research was conducted in the form of a telephone interview and the creation of a research group in a social media to achieve theoretical saturation. In the quantitative phase of the research, 130 official referees of the Volleyball Federation were selected through purposive sampling as the statistical sample of the research. The research instrument was a researcher-made questionnaire extracted from the qualitative phase of the research including the variables of judgment quality, opportunity for growth and promotion, teaching and learning, judgment security and media coverage. The internal reliability of the scale was confirmed by Cronbach's alpha method (α≥0.78). In order to analyze the data, after ensuring the good of fit research index based on triple indicators (structural fit, measurement fit and overall research pattern fit), PLS-3 software and SPSS software were used (P≤0.05).Findings: Examining the triple indicators of convergent validity verified the overall validity of the research model; the values of the indicators confirmed the optimal power of the obvious constructs in predicting the final constructs of the research (job efficiency). The results showed a direct and significant effect of technology on five dimensions of referee’s job performance. Also, the results of model path analysis showed that the teaching and learning (LF=0.67, t=11.59, P≤0.05) and judgment quality (LF=0.65,t=8.47, P≤0.05) had the greatest impact on sports technologyConclusion: Restrictions on presence in all scenes as well as inappropriate viewing angles are the sources of many wrong decisions. Despite numerous pauses and video check requests by coaches, it is frequently used as a strategy to interrupt and review their tactical goals, but because of the undeniable consequences of technology in training dimension and error-free judging, 93% of the referees had a pro-technology approach in competitions. Therefore, the managers of the referee committee of the Volleyball Federation can provide the conditions for the growth and presence of more Iranian referees in international tournaments by establishing technologies related to competitions, in addition to reducing refereeing mistakes.
Original Research Paper
e-learning
M. Mohammadian; M. Sedighi; M. Serkani
Abstract
Background and Objectives: Deploying IoT-based education can allow students to explore the environment using embedded sensors. They can access educational materials and other information at any time. Teachers can also use wearable devices and smartphones in the classroom to improve teaching and learning. ...
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Background and Objectives: Deploying IoT-based education can allow students to explore the environment using embedded sensors. They can access educational materials and other information at any time. Teachers can also use wearable devices and smartphones in the classroom to improve teaching and learning. Although new technologies such as smart schools, e-learning, e-learning content and smart classroom equipment have had a positive impact on the process of teaching and conveying concepts to learners, they have not been able to meet the challenges in this area well enough. Since the Internet of Things, in addition to using the mentioned technologies through technology convergence such as cloud computing, massive data, blockchain, smart phones, objects and classroom environment, etc. has a tremendous effect on the education industry by creating new teaching and learning methods, developing the systems of monitoring and control and improving the decisions through data analysis, it is argued that the IoT can empower the education sector to solve the problems and challenges it faces by providing practical solutions.Methods: This research is an applied research in terms of purpose and it is based on mixed methods research (qualitative- quantitative) considering how the data are collected. At the beginning of the research, the Meta-synthesis method was used to identify the applications of the IoT in education. In this method, 4638 articles were found, and after being reviewed, 490 articles were extracted among these 128 articles were used for the final analysis. Also, using the questionnaire as a tool to prioritize the Internet of things applications in education, the best-worst multi-criteria decision-making method was used.Findings: The findings showed that applications such as "Smart Campus" and "Student Health" have the highest priorities, respectively. Applications such as "Education (Teaching) and Learning", "Smart Class" and "Smart Tracking or Intelligent Transportation stsyem" were the next priorities.Conclusion: According to the findings, suggestions can be made to solve the problems of the education industry. In the field of application, with the help of IoT technology, there are problems such as the limitation of education to one place and time, wasting class time due to high density of people, lack of intelligence and high maintenance costs of educational centers, lack of accurate monitoring of students' health and hygiene, and the inadequacy of educational facilities for the physically disabled reducing the lack of smartness of the transportation system. Education industry policymakers can also be advised to pay special attention to these areas, given that the areas of "smart health monitoring", "smart energy" and "security" are more important than other sub-applications and they should also pay attention to these special sections. Also, action should be taken for public education and extensive publicity in familiariing the society with smart products and IoT technology in order to increase user acceptance and create demand. Among the limitations of the research, the limited number of experts familiar with IoT technology in the country's education sector vcan be mentioned. It is suggested to examine the relationships between applications and sub-applications and their priority based on the feasibility and attractiveness of the indicators in the future research.
Review Paper
Machine-translation
V. Mirzaeian
Abstract
Background and Objectives: Although an increasing number of studies have addressed the benefits of using Machine Translation (MT) for language learning, there are other studies pointing out the disadvantages of using this technology in language learning. The general attitude in language teaching societies ...
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Background and Objectives: Although an increasing number of studies have addressed the benefits of using Machine Translation (MT) for language learning, there are other studies pointing out the disadvantages of using this technology in language learning. The general attitude in language teaching societies is the avoidance of translation – traditional form and/or electronic – for language learning. Therefore, the present study examines the application of this technology in language learning to conclude whether the use of this technology is generally useful for language learning or not.Method: One hundred articles on the impact of MT on language learning, published between 2000 and 2020, have been reviewed. To select these articles, important keywords were identified, searched in important databases and then manually by checking important journals in the field of Computer Assisted Language Learning (CALL). In this research, two methods of scientific review and meta-analysis have been used to analyze the data. In the first stage, statistical information such as number of participants, languages taught, language pairs used, variables, and language skills were extracted; and in the second stage, meta-analysis of the impact of this technology on language learning was performed. Twelve studies were selected for meta-analysis and a random model was used to follow the meta-analysis framework. Due to the small size of the samples, the G-hedge coefficient employed was based on Cohen.Findings: The results indicated that most MT studies emphasized that MT was a useful tool for language learning. However, careful examination also revealed that learners had mixed views on the use of MT for language learning. These findings raise a variety of perspectives and concerns, and while MT can increase the results of writing in a foreign language by reducing lexical errors, it may not ultimately lead to language learning. The present study identified the lack of correct educational scenarios for implementing MT in language learning. Since the mere use of tools does not guarantee learning, language teachers must first understand the nature of MT and then try to find appropriate ways to use MT with their learners. Because previous research has shown that various factors affect the quality of MT output, teachers should consider these factors. In addition, diversity among learners is itself an important issue that needs to be addressed. However, instructional design should not be limited to ways to effectively use MT in language assignments, but should look for ways to foster long-term language learning. As there is little research on this topic, more research examining the long-term effects of MT on language learning is also needed. In addition to instructional design, there are other important issues that teachers need to deal with.Conclusion: When MT becomes very accurate, instructors may encounter students' lack of motivation to learn languages. In addition, as MT becomes more prevalent, both in everyday life and in educational settings, learners may not find the use of MT immoral, and MT may become a necessity in the language learning culture in the near future. In this regard, instructors should provide students with clear guidelines on ethical considerations regarding the use of MT.
Original Research Paper
e-learning
H. Deldar; M. R. Razavi; M. A. Faghih Nia
Abstract
Background and Objectives: Adolescence is the transition from childhood to adulthood in which physical, emotional, and social maturity occurs and the adolescent's mental abilities and cognitive and emotional abilities are formed. According to the existing studies, children and adolescents make up the ...
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Background and Objectives: Adolescence is the transition from childhood to adulthood in which physical, emotional, and social maturity occurs and the adolescent's mental abilities and cognitive and emotional abilities are formed. According to the existing studies, children and adolescents make up the largest audience of the media, and therefore the media and social networks play an important role in socializing adolescents. There are two ways to protect adolescents from the cultural and ideological damage of the media: one is to censor information technology and the other is to increase adolescents' knowledge and skills in dealing with the media (media literacy). This study aimed to determine the effect of media literacy training on the use of social media and the improvement of emotional maturity.Methods: The research method was quasi-experimental using a pretest-posttest design with a control group. The statistical population of this study consisted of all high school students in Sangan in the academic year 2018-2019 (N = 705). Based on the inclusion criteria, 30 of these students were purposefully selected and randomly assigned into two groups of experimental and control with 15 students in each. The instruments used to perform the pre-test for both groups were: social network addiction questionnaire and the Emotional Maturity Scale (EMS). Then, the experimental group received media literacy training in 4 months and 8 sessions. The control group received no training in this period. After completing these 4 months, both groups were examined in the post-test. Research data were analyzed using analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) and SPSS 22 software.Findings: The results showed that media literacy training significantly reduced the use of social networks and improved students' emotional maturity in five general factors of emotional immaturity (emotional instability, emotional return, social incompatibility, personality collapse and lack of independence) in the experimental group.Conclusion: In general, the results of this study showed a positive and significant effect of media literacy training in reducing dependence on social networks and increasing students' emotional maturity. In other words, by participating in media literacy training sessions, students were able to reduce their dependence on social networks and it also increased their emotional maturity. Therefore, it can be said that media literacy and its education to adolescents could greatly reduce the incidence of psychological problems and injuries. This study examined the role of media literacy on emotional maturity and the degree of dependence on social networks in a specific population simultaneously. This study further examined the role of media literacy on improving emotional maturity and the use of social networks in a specific population simultaneously. One of the limitations of this study was the time and place limit for conducting a two- to three-month follow-up examination to evaluate the duration of the effect of media literacy skills training.
Original Research Paper
e-learning
M. Badali; M. Dehghani
Abstract
Background and Objectives: The outbreak of the disease in Wuhan, China, called Corona, caused a crisis in regional and global public health, which led to changes in most aspects of life. Due to social distancing and protection from the disease, the method of education changed; it also led to reducing ...
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Background and Objectives: The outbreak of the disease in Wuhan, China, called Corona, caused a crisis in regional and global public health, which led to changes in most aspects of life. Due to social distancing and protection from the disease, the method of education changed; it also led to reducing the learning and academic performance of students. Students in higher education have also been severely affected by the virus due to travel restrictions and social distancing, isolation measures, quarantine, closure of university campuses and closure of borders, which also damaged students' academic motivation. Delaying admission to university was one of the biggest challenges. A review of research has shown during COVID-19 pandemic, the rate of learning and academic motivation declined, so there seemed to be a need for an educational solution to address this issue. The electronic flipped classroom in Corona conditions could be considered. Although research indicated a better effect of the flipped classroom on learners' performance, it is not still clear how the electronic flipped classroom would lead to better performance and more research is needed. Therefore, this study was conducted to determine the effectiveness of the electronic flipped classroom on students' academic performance and motivation.Methods: The research method was quasi-experimental with pre-test and post-test design having experimental and control groups. From the educational students of Tehran University, 38 students were selected as the sample through convenience sampling method and were randomly divided into experimental and control groups. The research instruments were a researcher-made performance test and an academic motivation questionnaire (Walrand et al., 1989). The sessions were held for both groups for three months weekly (a total of 12 sessions). The findings were analyzed using SPSS software version 23 and covariance method. It is noteworthy that before using the covariance method, its assumption was tested using the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test and the Levene's test.Findings: In this study, 38 students participated in two experimental and control groups, aged between 19 and 22 (M = 20.44, SD = 1.33), comparing the two groups with independent t-test (t = 0.651), showed that there was no significant difference between the mean age of the experimental group of 20.14 ± 0.70 and the control group of 20.68 ± 0.49. A total of 82% of the participants were girls. The results showed that the EFC had a significant effect on academic performance and academic motivation (P≤0.001), so that after the experimental intervention, the mean of the experimental group was higher than that of the control group in both variables.Conclusion: The EFC affects students' academic performance and motivation. Therefore, use the EFC improves academic performance and motivation as well as the success of e-learning.
Original Research Paper
Electronic learning- virtual
sh. Molania jolodar; M. Amiri
Abstract
Background and Objectives: Students are the main part and backbone of any educational systems and universities. Due to the outbreak of the Covid-19 in 2019, it is necessary for teachers and students to use electronic tools and the Internet more than before. This has both advantages and disadvantages. ...
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Background and Objectives: Students are the main part and backbone of any educational systems and universities. Due to the outbreak of the Covid-19 in 2019, it is necessary for teachers and students to use electronic tools and the Internet more than before. This has both advantages and disadvantages. As an advantage of these tools, the students can access more resources and literature from the Internet. In addition, they can listen to a lecture more and more and they do not need to go to their colleges or schools. Also, they can save time and money. On the other hand, one disadvantage can be unnecessary usage of the Internet under the pressure of studying and participating in e-learning classes, which makes it more difficult for parents to control their children. The phenomenon of excessive and unnecessary use of the Internet and cyberspace can lead to mental and educational dysfunctions of students, which is known as Internet addiction. Internet addiction was firstly studied by Young in 1988. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between improper use of the Internet and the study program of students of Mazandaran Technical and Vocational University during the Covid-19 pandemic.Methods: The research was a survey. Among about 13,500 undergraduate students of Mazandaran Technical and Vocational University in the academic year 2020-2021, 550 students were selected based on random selection. Yang’ (1998) standard questionnaire was used for eliciting the participants’ information with regard to the Internet use and a researcher-made questionnaire was used to collect the required data for the students’ study programs. The formal validity and reliability of the Internet use and students’ study program were 0.88 and 0.91, respectively. In this study, in order to investigate the relationship between independent and dependent variables, in addition to conventional statistical methods, the information sharing measurement method (Mutual Information) was used. This method not only examined the degree of linear dependence between two random variables but also measured the nonlinear dependence. This method has many applications in information theory.Results: The results showed that the total variable of the Internet use had an inverse and significant relationship with the students' study program (Pearson coefficient = -0.35). All five components of the Internet use (the effect of the Internet on work latency, preference for the Internet over work, the degree of Internet dependence, others protesting against the extreme use of the Internet and taking refuge in the Internet due to circumstances) had an inverse and significant relationship with students who enjoyed a study program. These four components could explain 17% of the variance of the students' study program. In measuring the dependence between the variables of the Internet use and study program, students were close to each other with two methods of measuring information sharing and other methods, despite minor differences.Conclusions: It seems that the dependence on and improper use of the Internet are related to the result of students' conscious or unconscious work. The result shows that among the components of the Internet use, the effect of the Internet on work latency has the strongest relationship with the students' study program. The component of others' protest against the extreme use of the Internet due to the influence of the protest of family and others on the students' study program shows a direct and positive relationship. However, with the indirect impact of other dimensions of the Internet use, the direct and positive effect on the variable of students' study program diminishes.
