Learning strategies using Socio-Scientific Issues (SSI) are approaches that will meet the characteristics of 21 st Century Skills (K-21) and upgrade the Higher Order Thinking Skills (HOTS). One of the reasons of the unfavorable TIMMS and PISA results in Malaysia because students' incompetent to answer science reasoning question based on scientific issues that occur in their daily lives. SSI is a dimension that is used in the assessment of the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMMS) and Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) which consists of the issue of the environment, medicine, health and genetic engineering. The purpose of this study is to assess the scientific reasoning level of Form Four science students in the biology subject based on SSI. Quantitative approaches surveys have been used in this study. The SSI instruments used were adapted. Total of 450 Form Four science students are samples used in this study. Findings revealed the needs of students should be discovered to levels of SSI reasoning approach because the results have shown that students' accomplishment are still low or medium level. In addition, students are incompetent to relate the concepts of science and socio-scientific issues. In conclusion, the potential of SSI approach introduced in the research and development process to enable students to master the concept of science, achieve the objectives of learning in the biology and upgrade the Higher Order Thinking. One of the implication of this research is to facilitate policy makers in implementing Biological Education Excellence in Malaysia through the development of model of Scientific Reasoning Skills.

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The aim of the study was to develop and validate the Early Childcare and Education (ECCE) Curriculum Instrument for Parents (QEC-CECI-P) by examining parents' perspectives on the quality of the ECCE curriculum in the Malaysian context. The items were developed based on the existing literature that examines curriculum programmes for young learners. The instrument was validated by ECCE curriculum experts. More than 350 parents who send their children to government-or non-government-funded preschools were involved in the study. The study shows that two factors are related to parents' perspectives on the quality of the ECCE curriculum: curriculum content and philosophy and core principles. The items in this instrument have factor loading values ranging from 0.479 to 0.84. The items also have high internal consistency with the alpha reliability coefficient values for each factor, which are more than 0.9. The results indicate that the instrument is valid and reliable for measuring parents' perspectives on the quality of the ECCE curriculum in the Malaysian context.

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The present study mainly investigated the impact of the flipped classroom approach (FC) on foreign language classroom anxiety (FLCA) among first-year pre-service teachers at a Chinese university. Additionally, it examined whether the effect of (flipped or traditional) teaching approach on the language anxiety differed based on the participants' (urban or rural) educational background. To achieve these objectives, a quasi-experimental design was employed. Two classes, consisting of 60 pre-service teachers (30 from urban and 30 from rural schools) in each class, were randomly assigned to an experimental group exposed to the FC and a control group using the traditional teaching approach (TT). Both approaches were implemented in an English course over a 12-week semester. Data were collected using a Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale (FLCAS) and analyzed with two-way ANOVA. The results revealed that the FC had a positive impact on the FLCA among the pre-service teachers. Furthermore, the relation between teaching approach and language anxiety of the pre-service teachers was not significantly influenced by their educational backgrounds. Consequently, the study recommended that the FC be utilized to ameliorate the language anxiety of the first-year Chinese urban and rural pre-service English teachers. Accordingly, the study provided suggestions for teacher educators, pre-service teachers, and educational institutions and authorities for potentially more effective use of the FC in the specific context. Lastly, it discussed research limitations and avenues for future studies.