Problem-solving is an activity that can generate Higher Order Thinking Skills (HOTS) among students. However, only some of the students are capable of solving problems and some are having difficulties. The difficulties have caused students to make various kinds of errors. Hence, this study conducted is to identify and analyze students' errors in solving problems that involve HOTS in the topic of Fraction. The samples consisted of 96 Form One students of a secondary school in Johor. The instrument of the study consisted of a set of test questions that contained four HOTS questions. The errors were analyzed according to Newman's Error Analysis Model consisting of reading, comprehension, transformation, process skills and encoding. The results showed that students frequently made errors in encoding (27.58%), followed by process skills (27.33%), transformation (24.17%) and comprehension (20.92%). The findings showed that students faced problems to correlate the information and implementation of strategies used in solving mathematical problems involving HOTS.

This study aims to identify the level of knowledge and practice on the implementation of higher-order thinking skills (HOTS) among mathematics teachers at a secondary school in the district of Terengganu. The study focused on the aspects of curriculum, pedagogy and assessment and compared them with demographic factors of the respondents. It used the quantitative approach and adopted descriptive survey method involving 196 respondents. Also, inferential analysis was conducted using Pearson correlation and Multivariate Analysis of Variance Test (MANOVA). The findings showed that the level of knowledge and practice of the assessment aspect was the weakest. Also, there was a relationship between the level of knowledge and practice of HOTS in each aspect. Significant differences exist in the level of knowledge and practice in the implementation of HOTS based on demographic factors such as gender, the location of school and exposure in the HOTS course.

Background: Nowadays, the attention to integrate Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) education to the existing curriculum is widely increasing around the world. In the early childhood education settings, many researchers have discussed the importance of early introduction to STEM education for children. However, the initiatives for curriculum development, teacher's preparation and standardisation in the early childhood setting are still limited in Malaysia. Therefore, this study aims to develop mathematics curriculum framework and activities for early childhood education based on STEM specifically for three-to four-year old children. In this study, the mathematics curriculum frameworks and activities based on STEM were developed according to the ADDIE model. A total of eight respondents consisting of experts and teachers participated in this study. The evaluation forms were distributed to the respondents to gather their feedback on the developed mathematics curriculum framework and activities for early childhood education based on STEM Results: From the data obtained, it can be concluded that the respondents give positive feedback on the developed mathematics curriculum framework and activities. However, there are still some rooms for improvement, the comments and recommendations from the respondents that will be used for future improvement of the developed products. Conclusions: Hence, from this study, it is hoped that more efforts and studies could be conducted by many parties to promote STEM in early childhood education.

Purpose Food industry players obtain the advantages of profits growth within the halal industry whereby the market is dynamic to generate profit. Hence, this study aims to analyse the perception of food manufacturers towards the adoption of the halal food supply chain (HFSC). Design/methodology/approach For this study, 103 halal food manufacturers in Malaysia were selected as respondents. Perceptions of respondents towards HFSC were recorded using a five-point questionnaire. The questionnaire was designed by authors and adapted from a previous study. The questionnaire was circulated by two experts with proficiency in this filed. Findings By conducting exploratory factor analysis, the study found the perception of food manufacturers, which is expected business benefits play an important role in the adoption of HFSC. Halal integrity becomes the second factor to lead the company to its adoption. Organizational readiness is the third factor that drives the company to adopt HFSC. Research limitations/implications Majority of the sample was responded by Bumiputera companies. The study suggests focussing the study for non-Bumiputera companies to examine their influence towards HFSC. Furthermore, future studies should explore different sectors of halal, such as pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, travel and tourism, logistics, finance and e-commerce. Moreover, ensuring the status of halal should be more emphasized in food chains; thus, the source of risk in HFSC should be explored to secure the integrity of halal. Practical implications The paper includes implications for the halal food industry, whereby the adoption of HFSC will contribute to the business benefits to create a more competitive advantage to the industry. Moreover, the implications of halal practice can create consumers’ trust on the halal product. Originality/value This paper fulfils an analysed need to study specifically on upstream parties by adopting HFSC.

Metacognitive skills play an important role in solving mathematical problems. However, there is a lack of empirical studies on the role of metacognitive skills in solving mathematical problems, particularly non-routine ones. Therefore, this study was undertaken to identify students' metacognitive skills and the impact of such skills on non-routine mathematical problem solving. By using a quantitative method, a total of 304 students in Johor Bahru district were involved in the study. A Self-Monitoring Questionnaire (SMQ) and a mathematical test were used in data collection. Data were analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics such as frequency, percentage, mean, the Mann-Whitney U test, and the Kruskal-Wallis H test. Results showed that the level of the students' performance in solving non-routine mathematical problems was very low. There was also a significant difference in the metacognitive skills among students with different performance levels in solving non-routine mathematical problems, and we concluded that these metacognitive skills should be emphasised in this process.Keywords: Metacognitive Skills. Non-routine Problems. Mathematical Problem Solving. ResumoAs competências metacognitivas desempenham um papel importante na resolução de problemas matemáticos. No entanto, existe falta de estudos empíricos sobre o papel das competências metacognitivas na resolução de problemas matemáticos, em particular os não rotineiros. Portanto, este estudo foi realizado para identificar competências metacognitivas dos alunos e o impacto de tais competências na resolução de problemas matemáticos não-rotineiros. Usando um método quantitativo, um total de 304 estudantes no distrito de Johor Bahru foram envolvidos no estudo. Questionário de Monitorização Autónomo (SMQ) e teste de matemática foram utilizados na recolha de dados. Os dados obtidos foram analisados por meio de estatística descritiva e inferencial, como a frequência, porcentagem, média, o teste de Mann-Whitney e Kruskal-Wallis H. Os resultados mostraram que o nível de desempenho dos alunos na resolução de problemas matemáticos não-rotineiros era muito baixa. Conclui-se uma diferença significativa nas competências metacognitivas entre estudantes com diferentes níveis de desempenho na resolução de problemas matemáticos não rotineiros. Concluiu-se que as competências metacognitivas devem ser enfatizadas no processo de resolução de problemas matemáticos não rotineiros.

Halal industry in Malaysia provides a great opportunity for food manufacturers to expand their businesses, globally. However, the business has faced with some difficulties to improve performance due to complexity in halal supply chain. This paper studies the adoption of halal food supply chain (HFSC) factors on business performance among halal food manufacturers in Malaysia. Data were collected randomly from Halal Development Council (HDC) directory website. Using regression analysis, 103 responses were analyzed to determine the effects of adoption factors of HFSC on business performance. The results indicate that the context of technological, organizational and environmental can improve business performance of halal manufacturer. Perceived benefits in the context of technological gives the best predictor on business performance. In the context of organizational, readiness provides the best predictor of business performance. Meanwhile, halal market demand in the context of environmental gives the best predictor of business performance. The paper examines business performance in food industry; however other industries in halal are not focused. The results provide some insights into business performance among halal industry in Malaysia.

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