This study investigated the attitudes of student teachers towards several dimensions of blended learning to determine their readiness for blended learning. The study also sought to find out if teachers' attitudes towards blended learning were related to age, sex, year group, student specialization, part-time or full-time status and place of residence. The study adopted a survey research methodology to examine students' attitudes towards blended learning. Respondents consisted of 807 student teachers from two campuses of a university in Trinidad. Analyses for the research questions consisted of t-tests, analysis of variance, Pearson Correlation Coefficient using the Statistical Package for Social Scientists (SPSS-V. 17). Exploratory factor analysis with varimax rotation was used to determine the underlying factor structure of the blended learning scale. Exploratory factor analysis supported six factors that explained 56.3% of the variance. Reliability estimates ranged from .731 to .857. Results indicated that teachers viewed learning flexibility and technology as the most important or valued aspect of blended learning. There were also significant differences in students' attitudes based on sex, part-time/full-time status, primary and secondary specialization, age and year group. There was a significant positive correlation between online learning and online interaction and technology. Significant negative correlations were found between online learning and classroom learning and online environment. Implications and recommendations for improvement were suggested for creating an improved survey instrument and providing a more supportive blended learning environment.
The study explored student-teachers' perceptions of the most common indicators of stress. It sought, also, to develop separate stress categories and make comparisons among them.The sample consisted of randomly selected 306 student-teachers from two campuses of the University of Trinidad and Tobago -Valsayn and Corinth. There were thirty six males and 270 females in the study. The study examined the relationship between the student-teacher stress factors as well as the predictive power of each independent factor on overall teachers' stress.The study employed a quantitative method using a cross-sectional design. The data were analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS-V.17). T-tests were used to examine teachers' stress based on location, sex and full or part time status. Correlation and regression analysis were employed to examine the relationship between each of the stress factors as well as their influence on the overall dependent teacher stress.The findings suggested that there were no significant differences in teacher stress based on sex and location. There was a high correlation between professional development and curriculum-related stressors. Also, curriculum, personal/professional and professional development stressors had the greatest influence on overall student-stress.Keywords: student -teacher, academic stress, the University of Trinidad and Tobago Background and ContextTrinidad and Tobago, a twin-island state, is the most southerly of all the Caribbean islands. The island, after five centuries of foreign domination, gained its independence from Britain in 1962. The island possesses a British-oriented model of bureaucracy, which is reflected in the education system. Within the Trinidad and Tobago's education system, there are government schools, which are fully owned and operated by the state; government-assisted or denominational schools, which are managed by a private body( usually a religious denomination) but given financial assistance by the state; private schools, which are maintained and operated by private bodies without the assistance from the state; and special schools, which are designed for educating children with special needs and which provide education mainly at the primary level. Generally speaking the government-assisted schools are regarded as the better schools and there is a great demand for placement in these schools.At the University of Trinidad and Tobago prospective teachers are exposed to a four-year Bachelor of Education Degree Program consisting of a wide range of content, professional and pedagogical courses and the practicum. The content courses over the four year period included Social Studies, Mathematics, Language, Visual and Creative Arts, Science, Agricultural Science, Spanish and Health and Family Life. The professional and pedagogical courses include Classroom Management, Classroom-based Assessment, Curriculum Studies, Contemporary Issues in Education and Instructional Design. The eight Practicum courses over the four years aim to ...
This study examined factors that may influence students' willingness to seek professional psychological help from the counselling services provided at a university. The study further investigated the relationship between sex, age, status of students (part-time, full-time), place of residence (urban, rural) and ethnicity and perceived barriers to seeking psychological help.The study used a sequential explanatory mixed methods research design conducted across two phases. In Phase One, a questionnaire survey was used to measure barriers to seeking professional help from a random sample of 925 students. In the second qualitative phase, focus group interviews were conducted with students to explore in a more in-depth way reasons put forward in the survey for not seeking professional psychological help.Statistical tests for the first phase were means, t-tests, ANOVA and Pearson Moment Product Correlation. Results showed that students viewed privacy, access, and trust issues as the most important barriers to seeking psychological help. There were also significant differences with regard to stigma, privacy and trust issues based on sex, age, year group, full-time/part-time status and ethnicity. Significant high to moderate correlations were found between all four factors. Qualitative findings supported factors examined in the first phase. However, other themes emerged such as lack of time, preference for solving one's own problems and preference for other sources of support.
This action research study used qualitative and quantitative methods to investigate students’ performance in assessments and their perceptions and experiences with the use of a constructivist blended approach to teach secondary school geography. The constructivist blended model which used the 5-E strategy (Engage, Explore, Explain, Elaborate and Evaluate) informed teaching and assessment. Methods of data collection were test scores, an open-ended questionnaire, and a focus group interview.Findings suggest that although students’ performance in the assessment and their perceptions and experiences of the constructivist blended classroom strategy were generally positive, several students felt challenged by its use. Students participated minimally in online discussions, and few read online resources. Furthermore, classroom discussions were still mostly teacher directed as many students experienced a high level of fear and anxiety with in-class presentations. A reliance on educators as the main source of knowledge persisted, with reluctance by some to assume an independent role in their learning. We conclude that although students generally approved of the strategy, and performed better in the assessments, their experiences of schooling in an authoritarian, post-colonial education system challenged its effective use.
AimTo determine if the presence of microalbuminuria can be used as a reliable tool to predict the presence of diabetic retinopathy in a paediatric population, where ready access to diabetic retinal screening is limited.MethodsA cross-sectional study design conducted during the period January 2014–August 2014. 69 patients were included in this study and data was collected in three parts: a questionnaire, assessments for urinary microalbuminuria and diabetic retinopathy. The relationship between retinopathy and proteinuria was analysed by Pearson’s Chi Square (c2) test. Fisher’s Exact Test was used to determine statistical significance. Retinopathy and proteinuria were explored against demographics and diabetic history factors using Pearson’s Chi Square (c2). A p value<0.05 was considered statistically significant.ResultsChi Square (c2) test showed a statistically significant association (p<0.01) between microalbuminuria and retinopathy. A significant relationship was also found between the dependant variables and age (p<0.01), type of diabetes (p<0.01), duration of diabetes (p<0.01) and diabetic control (p=0.043).ConclusionThis cross sectional study showed that there was a significant relationship (p<0.01) between microalbuminuria and the presence of diabetic retinopathy. This data suggests that microalbuminuria can be used as an indicator to identify patients with early stages of retinopathy. The presence of microalbuminuria can be used to stratify ophthalmology referrals within limited resourced settings. This study also showed that among patients with IDDM, longer duration of diabetes and poorly controlled diabetes were at a higher risk of developing diabetic retinopathy. This reiterates the need for proper patient education about their disease and complications.
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