1ST GLOBAL CONFERENCE ON TECHNOLOGY IN LANGUAGE LEARNING 2015 (GLIT2015) INTRODUCTION

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2 INTRODUCTION The 1st Global Conference on Technology in Language Learning 2015 (GLIT2015) focuses on the application of technology in language learning, particularly computer-assisted language learning (CALL)/technology-enhanced language learning (TELL) and language use in online media. This conference provides a platform for researchers, academicians and students to present, debate and exchange ideas on issues relevant to the conference s focus. GLIT2015 undeniably is also an opportunity for researchers and enthusiasts to build and expand network with their fellow counterparts! GLIT2015 was planned with the following objectives in mind: 1. To provide a platform for researchers, academicians and students to share and exchange ideas on the use of technology in language learning. 2. To advance the scholarship in the application of technology in language learning. Theme: IT in Language Learning and Use in 21st Century Sub-Theme: 2

3 Editors Effendi bin Abdullah Guest Editors/Reviewers Abdul Halim Tamuri National University of Malaysia Siti Hamin Stapa Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Zabidi Abdul Razak University of Malaya Chan Swee Heng Universiti Putra Malaysia Rosmini binti Ismail Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris Organised by WorldConferences.net Koperasi KOKISDAR Kolej Universiti Islam Antarabangsa Selangor Bandar Seri Putra, Kajang, Selangor, MALAYSIA In Collaboration with: Department of English Linguistics and Literature, Faculty of Management and Muamalah, International Islamic University College Selangor Copyright 2015 WorldConferences.net All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form or any means without prior permission from the copyright holder. All articles in this proceeding are openly accessible at WorldConferences.net e-proceeding of GLIT 2015, e-isbn:

4 FOREWORD HEAD, DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH LINGUISTICS AND LITERATURE, INTERNATIONAL ISLAMIC UNIVERSITY COLLEGE SELANGOR (KUIS) On behalf of the Department of English Linguistics and Literature, I would like to welcome all participants to the GLIT 2015, 1st Global Conference on Technology in Language Learning 2015: IT in Language Learning and Use in 21st Century. Thank you for your interest and participation in this conference. GLIT 2015 is our first attempt at co-organising an international conference which provides a platform for participants to get together and discuss issues related to the application of IT in language teaching and learning. The theme is relevant as technology is fast-changing in the 21st century and has revolutionised learning and teaching languages. GLIT 2015 also welcomes presentations on other aspects of language learning and teaching, such as the application of critical and creative thinking and English studies at the tertiary level. We hope that the participants of GLIT 2015 will benefit from the discussions and sharing of ideas at the conference. I would like to express my gratitude and appreciation to all parties involved in making this seminar a success the university college authorities, members of the Department of English Linguistics and Literature and our sponsors. Above all, I would like to thank WCR@KOKISDAR for the opportunity given in co-organising this conference which provides a valuable experience for our future ventures. I wish all participants Good Luck on this journey of sharing and caring. ZAIRIL AZMIR ZAIYADI Head, Department of English Linguistics and Literature, Faculty of Management and Muamalah International Islamic University College Selangor (KUIS) 4

5 FOREWORD CHAIR, 1 st GLOBAL CONFERENCE ON TECHNOLOGY IN LANGUAGE LEARNING 2015 (GLIT 2015) Assalamualaikum wbh and Greetings. Welcome to 1 st Global Conference on Technology in Language Learning 2015 (GLIT 2015). On behalf of the organising committee, I would like to extend our gratitude and appreciation to all individuals and institutions for their support and contribution in making this conference a success. We are delighted by the response received for GLIT My profound gratitude goes to WCR@KOKISDAR for the support given to the organising committee. Also, my appreciation goes to the keynote speaker, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia s Associate Professor Dr Zaini Amir for her willingness to grace this conference with her insights on technology in language learning and teaching. Not forgotten, my gratitude goes to the organising committee and volunteers for the effort given in making this conference a success. I am also grateful to International Islamic University College Selangor (KUIS), sponsors, presenters, paper writers and participants for their positive response to the seminar. GLIT 2015 provides a platform for insightful discussion and knowledge sharing among scholars, language teachers and trainers, and students from around the world. Through the theme IT in Language Learning and Use in 21 st Century, the organising committee hopes to highlight the roles of IT in transforming language education. The organising committee believes that GLIT 2015 will lead to opportunities for future collaborations in research and information sharing across all domains of language education and language studies, including literary studies and language planning. I wish all presenters and participants an interesting journey of learning at GLIT Thank you. EFFENDI BIN ABDULLAH Chair 1 st Global Conference on Technology in Language Learning

6 PROGRAMME 1ST GLOBAL CONFERENCE ON TECHNOLOGY IN LANGUAGE LEARNING 2015 (GLIT2015) 6

7 PARALLEL PRESENTATION SESSION 1 DAY 1 ( 9.00AM-10.30AM ) GLIT 2015 ROOM - ALICANTE SESSION MODERATOR: YEYEN HAMIDAH GL 052 USING SECOND LIFE TO DEVELOP EFL STUDENTS LANGUAGE LEARNING: OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES RIAD F. HASSAN GL 029 THE IMPACT OF EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY ON LANGUAGE LEARNING IN LIBYA KHALD A.H. ALDBEA GL 056 CREATIVE THINKING IN ACADEMIC ESSAY WRITING ZAIRIL AZMIR BIN ZAIYADI GL 043 APPLICATION OF ICT IN ENGLISH LITERATURE CLASSROOMS SITI HAWA MUHAMAD GL 024 IMPROVING WRITING SKILLS OF LANGUAGE LEARNERS THROUGH EXTRACURRICULAR TECH ACTIVITIES MUSTAFA BUYUKCELEBI GL 039 PROMOTING UNIVERSITY WEBSITE BASED ON WEBOMETRICS RANKING OF WORLD UNIVERSITIES DR. SHARAREH SADAT SARSARABI 7

8 PARALLEL PRESENTATION SESSION 2 DAY 1 ( 11.00AM 1.00PM ) GLIT 2015 ROOM - ALICANTE SESSION MODERATOR: RABIATHUL ADHABIYYAH SAYED ABUDHAHIR KEYNOTE SPEAKER ASSOC PROF DR ZAINI AMIR GL059 KEMAHIRAN BERFIKIR SECARA KRITIS MELALUI KAEDAH RODA PENAAKULAN PAUL (PAUL S WHEEL OF REASONING) NADIRA BINTE MOHAMED SEDIK GL058 KESAN PENDIDIKAN POSITIF TERHADAP PENGUASAAN BAHASA MELAYU PELAJAR SEKOLAH RENDAH DARI LATARBELAKANG SOSIO EKONOMI SEDERHANA-RENDAH ZURINA YAHYA GL041 PENGGUNAAN APLIKASI WHATSAPP DALAM PEMBELAJARAN & PENGAJARAN (P&P) DI KUIS NORFAEZAH MOHD HAMIDIN 8

9 PARALLEL PRESENTATION SESSION 3 DAY 1 ( 2.30PM-5.30PM ) GLIT 2015 ROOM - ALICANTE SESSION MODERATOR: SITI HAWA MUHAMAD GL 035 THE EFFECTS OF PERSONALITY TRAIT ON LANGUAGE LEARNING STRATEGIES ASSOC. PROF. AKBAR MOLAEI GL028 PODCAST AND SELF-REFLECTION ACTIVITIES FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF LEARNER AUTONOMY, SELF- CONFIDENCE AND PRACTICE RICHARD LUM GL014 INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY AND THE TEACHING OF ARABIC IN NIGERIA: ISSUES AND CHALLENGES Dr. LAWAL ISIAKA ADEWALE GL021 WHY WE DO WHAT WE DO" MOTIVATIONAL FACTORS INFLUENCING BLOGGERS TO BLOG: A MALAYSIAN PERSPECTIVE NOORAZURA BINTI DURANI GL033 ADAPTATION OF CONSTRUCTIVISM IN A COMPUTER-ASSISTED CLASSROOM AT FPT ENGLISH GEM CENTER, HANOI THANH THANH THI PHAM GL055 FACEBOOK AND COMMUNITY OF PRACTICE IN HIGHER EDUCATION AYU RITA MOHAMAD GL036 ATTITUDE AND MOTIVATION OF MALAYSIAN SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS LEARNING OF ENGLISH WRITING COURSE IN A BLENDED LEARNING ENVIRONMENT. NURAIN BINTI REDZALI GL048 VOCBLAST: A MOBILE APP AS AN ALTERNATIVE WAY TO LEARN VOCABULARY DR. ZURAINA ALI GL017 SPEAKING ACTIVITIES OUTSIDE THE CLASSROOM; A STUDY ON MULTIMEDIA SOFTWARE AS AN EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGICAL TOOL YEYEN HAMIDAH GL 057 GOOGLE CLASSROOM COMBINED WITH GOOGLE DRIVE: COULD IT BE CONSIDERED THAT THE VLE WOULD CONSTITUTE A VIABLE SUBSTITUTE FOR BLACKBOARD (LMS) AT CAS OMAN? RAEDA ZAHRAN ABDULLAH AL HINAI GL 050 UTILIZATION OF STRATEGIC THINKING SKILLS IN SUSTAINING AND MAINTAINING STRATEGIES IN LANGUAGE LEARNING PROCESS DR. NAJAH BINTI OSMAN 9

10 KEY NOTE SPEAKER BIODATA Assoc. Prof. Dr. Zaini Amir Zaini Amir is Associate Professor at the School of Language Studies and Linguistics, Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities at the National University of Malaysia (UKM). She has 20 years of experience in teaching and currently supervises 10 PhD candidates in English Language Studies. Her research interests include Computer Assisted Language Learning (CALL), computer-enhanced teaching and learning; online language learning strategies; technology-based language learning and mobile assisted language learning. Currently, she is a member of AsiaCALL, APACALL, Asia TEFL and Mobile Learning Association of Malaysia and has supported these organizations by presenting at the conferences. Through her involvement in CALL, she has established a network of contacts and has been appointed as a reviewer of Computer Assisted Language Learning which is an ISI indexed journal and 3L:The Southeast Asian Journal of English Language Studies, a UKM online journal which is Scopus indexed. Since 2009, she is the coeditor of GEMA Online Journal of Language Studies, UKM (Scopus indexed). With regard to teaching, she received Outstanding Instructor Award for the Social Science cluster in 2012 and In 2008, she received the Research and Consultancy Award and won Gold medal for Research Poster Competition from the faculty. She has also incorporated the application of Web 2.0 technology in her teaching which has enhanced and encouraged her students to be more motivated and self-directed in the learning process. 10

11 GL 13 THE EFFECT OF COMPUTER GAMES ON VOCABULARY LEARNING OF SECOND GRADE HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS Dr. Azita. Khazaee(PhD in Linguistics) Farhangian University of Mashhad Dr. Sharareh Sadat Sarsarabi Farhangian University of Mashad The use of multimedia has a significant role in learning processes. Results from a number of studies show that appropriately designed multimedia instruction improves students learning performance in science and literacy(gee, 2003).It is argued that use of computer games has a significant role on students vocabulary learning. The main purpose of this study to investigate the impact of computer games on students vocabulary learning. Two groups of male high school students have been taught under different conditions. Before applying different methods of teaching, a vocabulary test was given to the participants as pretest. Twenty students were taught by using traditional language teaching method and twenty students in another class were taught by using computer games. The second group(experimental group) performed better than the first group (control group).in other words computer games enhance and facilitate students vocabulary learning processes. Keywords :learning processes, vocabulary learning,computer games, multimedia 11

12 GL 14 INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY AND TEACHING OF ARABIC IN NIGERIA: ISSUES AND CHALLENGES LAWAL, Isiaka Adewale (Ph.D) School of Languages Osun State College of Education Ilesa. Nigeria Information and Communication Technology (ICT) has become indispensable tool for both teachers and learners in various fields and discipline. The aspiration of many in this age is therefore aided by Internet facilities to the extent that ICT is gradually pushing aside the traditional library from educational scene. This paper is therefore an attempt to examine the effects of ICT and E-learning on the teaching and learning of Arabic in Nigeria. The paper provides answers to the level of preparedness of teachers and learners of Arabic to face the challenges of ICT and its resultant effects on the learning process. The paper is concluded by stressing the fact that the use of Information and Communication Technology will make teaching easier for teachers, and students will become more interested in learning Arabic. Keywords: Information and Communication Technology, Arabic, Library, Teaching, Nigeria 12

13 GL 17 SPEAKING ACTIVITY OUTSIDE THE CLASSROOM; A STUDY ON MULTIMEDIA SOFTWARE AS AN EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGICAL TOOL Yeyen Hamidah English Education Department Indonesia University of Education Yeyenthamrie@gmail.com English speaking skill is needed for global world but has been undervalued. Teaching speaking can be implemented by making speaking as a habit. The use of technology then taking role in motivating students to speak more frequently. This study aims at investigating the response and influence of Speaking activities outside the classroom using multimedia software as an educational technological tool. The investigation covers the technique of using the software, the role of lecturer in giving language instruction in pre, whilst, and post activity, the evaluation of the whole activity based on students point of view, and the influence towards students speaking score. The qualitative descriptive method is used in this study. Observation, Documentation and Interview are the instruments. The data gained from observation is used to describe the technique of the activity and the way lecturer gives language instruction. Meanwhile, the data taken from documentation is used to reveal whether there is any improvement based on students speaking score in pre-test compared to post-test. And the data from interview is used to find students response toward the activity. The data was analyzed using statistical analysis and Triangulation method. Results indicated that 1086 students (56,47%), from 2098 students, are getting higher score in post test. It is expected that the findings will be insights for educators to implement speaking activity not only in the classroom but also outside the classroom. The recommendation for further research is suggested in order to have more beneficial sources for teachers in implementing speaking activity outside the classroom using multimedia software as a tool. Keywords: Speaking Activities, Multimedia Software, Educational Technological Tool. 13

14 GL 20 RESULTS OF GROUP WORKING USING BLENDED LEARNING VIA SOCIAL NETWORK FOR DEVELOPING THE PROCESS OF DOING ENGLISH TEACHING INNOVATION PROJECT OF GRADUATE STUDENTS Dr.Natthapakal Kittisunthonphisarn Faculty of Architecture and Design Rajamangala University of Technology Rattanakosin Dr. Saisawat Kapechart Graduate School Surattahani Rajabhat University Dr. Supanrigar Wathanaboon Graduate School Surattahani Rajabhat University The purpose of this research were 1) to develop the process of teaching projects using blended learning via social network 2) to assess validity and quality of teaching project process using blended learning via social network 3) to assess English teaching innovation using blended learning via social network. There were three steps for developing the process of teaching project using blended learning: process development, process validation and process usage. The main findings of this research were as follows : There were 7 steps in teaching project process through blended learning : preparing project, reviewing thinking skill process, following the plan, presenting and exchanging their learning, improving, and presenting and assessing. The validity result of teaching projects process using blended learning via social network was in good level at 1.00 (IOC=1.00). The quality of teaching projects using blended learning via social network was in good level at s.d.=0.04) and the result of using this process was in good level at s.d.=0.08) Keywords : Blended learning, English teaching innovation, social network 14

15 GL 21 WHY WE DO WHAT WE DO MOTIVATIONAL FACTORS INFLUENCING BLOGGERS TO BLOG: A MALAYSIAN PERSPECTIVE Noorazura Durani Faculty of Communication and Media Studies Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) Melaka, Malaysia azuradurani@melaka.uitm.edu.my Wan Azfarozza Wan Athmar Faculty of Communication and Media Studies Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) Melaka, Malaysia wanrozza@melaka.uitm.edu.my This paper provides an insight to motivational factors that influence Malaysian bloggers to blog. By using purposive sampling this qualitative research paper focuses on four Malaysian bloggers who won the World Bloggers and Social Media Award In-depth interviews were conducted and four main themes were derived from the analysis. These award winning bloggers were driven by intrinsic motivations which are information sharing, passion and interaction with viewers whereas extrinsic motivation is incentives from advertisers. Keywords: Bloggers, blogging, motivational factors 15

16 GL 28 PODCAST AND SELF-REFLECTION ACTIVITIES FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF LEARNER AUTONOMY, SELF-CONFIDENCE AND PRACTICE Richard Lum School of Liberal Arts Mae Fah Luang University This study investigated the use of podcasts to promote positive attitudes toward the use of selfreflection for speaking development. Seventy-five Thai EFL university students completed ten podcast recordings and self-reflections throughout the semester, and a written self-reflection report at the end of the semester. Quantitative data was gathered via an adapted version of Elliot s (1995) Pronunciation Attitude Inventory, and qualitative data was gathered via focus groups and the final written self-reflection report. The quantitative data was analyzed using mean, median, and the Wilcoxon Signed Ranks Test; the effect size was calculated using the Effect Sizes for Non-Parametric Data calculation. The qualitative data was analyzed using the Scissor-and-Sort Technique to identify themes and attitudes the students expressed toward the podcast and self-reflection activities, and any effects on self-awareness, ability to self-monitor, self-esteem and self-confidence when speaking. The results revealed that the podcast and self-reflection activities had a positive impact on the students learner autonomy, language skills and self-confidence, and the participants felt that the podcast and self-reflection activities were useful. Students increased their self-confidence in relation to identifying their own errors and improving their pronunciation, as well as having a more positive attitude toward recording themselves and doing self-reflections. Keywords: podcast, self-reflection, EFL, speaking development 16

17 GL 29 EFFECT OF EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY ON LANGUAGE LEARNING IN LIBYA Khald A.H. Aldbea Polytechnic of Aljufra-Sokna (Libya) This correlation-type study investigates the relationship between educational technology and the difficulties that Libyan students encounter in their language learning process. The theoretical framework includes independent and dependent variables. Educational technology and language learning difficulties are considered the independent variables, whereas language learning is regarded as the dependent variable. This study aims to determine whether a relationship exists between these two variables. In other words, this study attempts to determine the specific independent variables that are positively or negatively correlated with the dependent variable. Forty-five Libyan secondary school students, five of whom are disabled,have participated in this study. A questionnaire and a reading comprehension test are employed as research instruments to accomplish the research objectives. The results are expected to reveal that Libyan students tend to face numerous difficulties in second/foreign language learning. These difficulties include (a) lack of computer competence, (b) weak ability to use computer-assisted language learning (CALL) tools, (c) spending considerable time in translating new words using a hard copy dictionary,(d) inability to take effective notes (computer-aided self-assessment),and (e) lack of language laboratories with CALL tools. Based on these results, Libyan students lack proficiency in second/foreign language and must exert more effort in improving their language competency. Keywords: educational technology, difficulties, language learning 17

18 GL 33 ADAPTATION OF CONSTRUCTIVISM IN A COMPUTER-ASSISTED CLASSROOM AT FPT ENGLISH GEM CENTER, HANOI Pham Thi Thanh Thanh FPT English Gem Center, Training Department thanhptt@fpt.edu.vn This article investigates the adaptation of constructivism in language learning classroom. In that context, teachers are trained about constructivism as a philosophy of learning and the use of digital teaching platform to engage students. This study provides a critical description of technology employment in language class. Constructivism as the core value of the course would also be analyzed. Could the modern technology and teacher s own pedagogy prove to be beneficial to the needs and interests of the next learner generation? Further suggestions to better the quality flexibly in Vietnamese context would be proposed afterwards. Keywords: constructivism, computer-assisted, language learning 18

19 GL 35 THE EFFECTS OF PERSONALITY TRAIT ON LANGUAGE LEARNING STRATEGIES Akbar Molaei, PhD. Professor and Dean Farhangian University Boushehr, Iran This study took ELTIS ( English language teaching institute of symbiosis in India) as a case study, and aimed at exploring the effects of conscientiousness personality trait and its comprising facets including competence, order, dutifulness, achievement striving, self-discipline and deliberation on the usage of learning strategies. The study involved 300 subjects studying English in different courses of ELTIS in Two questionnaires of NEO.PI.R, a personality factor test (McCrae and Costa 2005), and SILL, a Strategy Inventory for Language learning (Oxford 1990) were administered. Pearson product moment correlation and t. test were used to analyze the data. The reliability of SILL was.92 and NEO PI.R was.86. The results showed that there were significant relationships between conscientiousness and memory strategies (p=.000), cognitive strategies (p=.039), Meta cognitive strategies (p=.000), and affective strategies (p=.018). Order as a facet of conscientiousness was in a correlation with memory, meta cognitive and affective strategies. Achievement striving was an effective factor on memory, cognitive, meta cognitive and affective strategies. Self-discipline had a relationship with memory, cognitive, meta cognitive and social strategies. Deliberation was found only to be effective in meta cognitive strategies. Therefore, conscientiousness personality trait and its facets are effective factors in the selection, usage and frequency of using language learning strategies. Keywords: language learning strategies, conscientiousness, personality facets 19

20 GL 36 ATTITUDE AND MOTIVATION OF MALAYSIAN SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS LEARNING OF ESL IN A BLENDED LEARNING ENVIRONMENT. 1 Nurain Redzali, 2 Balakrishnan Muniandy,PhD, & 3 Wan Ahmad Jaafar Wan Yahaya, PhD Centre for Instructional Technology and Multimedia Universiti Sains Malaysia Penang, Malaysia. 1 nurain1986@yahoo.com 2 mbala@usm.my 3 wajwy@usm.my The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects on attitude and motivation in learning ESL in a Blended Learning Environment. The data was collected through a quasi-experimental study involving seventy-two form two students. There were 34 and 38 students in the experimental and control groups respectively. Students in the experimental group learned writing in English Language through 14 hours of online instruction and six hours of traditional face-to-face instruction. Students in the control group learned only through traditional face-to-face instruction. The entire research was conducted in three weeks. A questionnaire instrument used by Ming, Ling & Jaafar (2011) adapted from Gardner s Attitude and Motivation Test Battery (AMTB) (Gardner, 1985) was used to collect the data. The findings show that students in the blended learning group have significantly positive attitude and higher motivation towards learning English Language writing compared to students in the traditional face-to-face instruction. Keywords: Student attitude and motivation, positive attitude, negative attitude, intrinsic motivation, extrinsic motivation, learning ESL, blended learning. 20

21 GL 39 PROMOTING UNIVERSITY WEBSITE BASED ON WEBOMETRICS RANKING OF WORLD UNIVERSITIES Sharareh Sadat Sarsarabi English Department, Hashemi Nezhad campus, Farhangian University Amir Hossein Sarsarabi Medical University of Mashad,MD student Webometrics is the largest academic ranking of Higher Education Institutions. Since 2004 and every six months an independent, objective, free, open scientific exercise is performed for the providing reliable, multidimensional, updated and useful information about the performance of universities from all over the world based on their web presence and impact. Web presence is a trustworthy mirror of the university, as it has a positive and direct relevance to universities ranking criteria. Comparing the QS ranking and that of webometric we conclude that if a university wants to promote its position it is necessary to enrich its site. Because of the importance of Farhangian University as a major teacher training center this study aims to first make known the criteria to enhance the website quality and usability and then to motivate both administers and authorities to have a web presence that reflect accurately their activities in order to promote the position of the university both in university ranking and webometrics ranking as well. Keywords: webometrics, Web Quality, University Web Ranking, usability, academic websites 21

22 GL 43 THE APPLICATION OF ICT IN ENGLISH LITERATURE CLASSROOMS Siti Hawa Muhamad & Effendi Abdullah Faculty of Management and Muamalah International Islamic University College Selangor (KUIS) Maryam Hamzah Pusat Pengajian Bahasa, Literasi dan Terjemahan Universiti Sains Malaysia The penetration of ICT in the Malaysian society today might influence teaching and learning across various disciplines at higher learning institutions, including English literature courses. This paper reports on a study which investigated the use of ICT in English literature classrooms at an Islamic tertiary institution. Selected English literature instructors were interviewed on the use of ICT in their English literature classes. This paper will discuss the findings of the study and recommend suggestions to improve the teaching and learning of English literature through the use of ICT application. Keywords: English literature, English Studies, tertiary education; ICT 22

23 GL 48 VocBlast: A QUALITATIVE EVALUATION ON THE USE VOCABULARY MOBILE APP FROM TEACHERS VIEWS Zuraina Ali, PhD Centre for Modern Languages & Human Sciences, Universiti Malaysia Pahang, Lebuhraya Tun Razak, Gambang, Kuantan, Pahang Darul Makmur, Malaysia zuraina@ump.edu.my Mohd Amir Izuddin Mohamad Ghazali Centre for Modern Languages & Human Sciences, Universiti Malaysia Pahang, Lebuhraya Tun Razak, Gambang, Kuantan, Pahang Darul Makmur, Malaysia amirizuddinghazali@gmail.com Technology brings everything under one roof especially through the development of mobile phones. Previously, everyone was excited about downloading new ringtone for their phones. It got even better through time when mobile phone users can use their preferred mp3 as a ringtone. Today, the iphone and Android users are overwhelmed by the number of applications that can be downloaded to help them in daily lives. There are applications for health, productivity and photo editing. Recently, there has been renewed interest when educators integrate mobile learning (m-learning) in their teaching. VocBlast, for instance, is a newly-developed engineering vocabulary mobile application (app) that is developed to assist engineering students at tertiary level to improve their mastery of English language. The current study, therefore, reviews the content in VocBlast from the language teachers perspectives. interviews were conducted employing four (4) language teachers in Universiti Malaysia Pahang. Based on the result, the participants agreed that the use of VocBlast in teaching and learning process is very helpful and able to benefit both, teachers and students. The app provides an indirect learning experience to the latter. At the same time, the features that are available in the app are appropriate and useful. Although VocBlast is still in the progress of development, the result presented may facilitate improvements of the app itself. Other than that, VocBlast can be considered as a new alternative for students to diversify their vocabulary learning experience. Keywords: app, iphone, m-learning, vocabulary, VocBlast 23

24 GL 50 UTILIZATION OF STRATEGIC THINKING SKILLS IN SUSTAINING AND MAINTAINING STRATEGIES IN LANGUAGE LEARNING PROCESS Dr Najah Osman Centre For Modern Languages And Social Sciences Universiti Malaysia Pahang English as a second language has been learnt by all students in Malaysia throughout their years in schools and higher institutions. The amount of years students learnt English is seen as adequate to enable them to perform the language outside classroom context and to score better grades for their English SPM (Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia), a pre requisite exam for all students before entering matriculation, pre-university or diploma. However, to dismay many are still alienated to learning this language. Hence, this paper draws on research to exploit strategies in strategic thinking skills in order to sustain and maintain learning strategies especially in the process of engaging language learning. A researcher-developed taxonomy was exercised on 61 school students preparing for their SPM exam of a local school in Rompin District, Pahang. The students were facilitated by 6 undergraduates volunteer to assist on students progress. A learning module was developed to engage in learning process via internet and face to face consultation when needed. Motivated Strategies Learning Questionnaire (MSLQ) adapted to current context was used to measure the learning strategies, motivation and learning awareness in the pre and post treatment to seek students interest and motivation in language learning. Result showed that the taxonomy had positive effect on learning performance and self regulation. Both facilitator and students also display better effort in sustaining and maintaining strategies in learning process. The MSLQ result also displayed that apart from motivation, strategies is crucial in enhancing language learning and achievement. Finally, it is hope that this paper can be a guide in improving and increasing learners achievement. Keywords: Strategic Thinking Skills, Metacognition, Language learning 24

25 GL 52 USING SECOND LIFE TO DEVELOP EFL STUDENTS LANGUAGE LEARNING: OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES Riad F. Hassan*, Hisham Dzakiria, & Rozhan M. Idrus College of Arts and Sciences Universiti Utara MalaysiaUUM College of Arts and Sciences Universiti Utara Malaysia UUM Faculty of Science and Technology Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia USIM Within the related language teaching and learning, various terms have been assigned to Virtual Worlds and similar environments. One of these terms is Second Life. Learning English for EFL learners have been always challenging task. Second Life is a phenomenon raising interest many educators around the world, with many educational and institutions experimenting and offering classes in Second Life for enhancing their students language skills due to its immersive and interactive environment. Its interactive interfaces provide students with realistic experiences and simulated everyday situation in 3D virtual worlds for more authentic and physical practice, students awareness of the target culture, knowledge construction and learning. On the other hand, its drawbacks can be categorized as financial, technical and user-related once. This paper offers a broad vision of potential benefits and challenges associated with using Second Life as educational tool develop students language learning. It provides a definition of Second Life as well as demonstrates the affordances that Second Life offers for language learning. Keywords: Second Life; English as a Foreign Language; Virtual Worlds; Computer Assisted Language Learning CALL. 25

26 GL 53 CONDUCTING AND EXAMINING EFFECTIVENESS OF ONLINE ASSESSMENTS USING THE MODULAR OBJECT-ORIENTED DYNAMIC LEARNING ENVIRONMENT (MOODLE) Rosyati Abdul Rashid & Wan Nurhafeza Wan Salam Department of Languages and Communication Center for Foundation and Liberal Education Universiti Malaysia Terengganu (UMT) This paper aims to demonstrate the robustness of Moodle, a type of Learning Management System (LMS) in assisting language instructors to administer and analyze the quality of test items, and the test as a whole. Using Moodle Quiz Module, a public speaking test comprising 40 multiple-choice questions (MCQ) was created, and administered online to 131 students. Descriptive statistics obtained through the statistical analysis procedures performed by Moodle indicated that the test was reliable, and was a difficult one for many students since many of the test items were of high levels of Bloom s taxonomy of educational objectives. The test scores obtained by 58 students who also took the Cornell Critical Thinking Test (CCTT), Level X, were found to be significantly correlated, at a moderate level, with the scores that the students had in the public speaking test. Data generated by Moodle such as the data from the analysis of students responses to each test item, and the data provided by items statistics like item facility (IF), item discrimination (ID), and distractor efficiency (DE) indices, were found to be very useful in helping the test developers to examine the effectiveness of test items and to later improve them so that only good items can be kept in the test bank for future use in assessing a different group of students. Keywords: Moodle, critical thinking, multiple-choice questions, item analysis, IF, DI, and DE indices 26

27 GL 55 FACEBOOK AND COMMUNITY OF PRACTICE IN HIGHER EDUCATION Ayu Rita Mohamad Faculty of Education and Social Sciences Universiti Selangor, Malaysia. This study examines the contribution of Facebook in the teaching and learning of grammar among a group of students in a Higher Institution. It also aims to investigate how this group of students functions as a virtual community of practice. The qualitative method is used in which interviews with the students are used as a mean to gather information from the participants. The results show that a virtual community of practice such as this could bring participants together in sharing common interests and knowledge. They were found to be able to discuss and understand grammar concepts better. The use of Facebook serves as an effective platform in getting feedback for their discussions where individuals can intensely share information via synchronous and asynchronous learning. Keywords: Facebook, Virtual Community, Community of Practice, Community of Practice. 27

28 GL 56 CREATIVE THINKING IN ACADEMIC ESSAY WRITING Zairil Azmir Zaiyadi, Effendi Abdullah & Siti Hawa Muhamad Faculty of Management and Muamalah International Islamic University College Selangor (KUIS) Ghazali Mustapha Faculty of Educational Studies Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) This paper reports on a study which investigated the use of creative thinking skills in academic essay writing at an Islamic higher learning institution. Two (2) groups of undergraduate students were involved in the study whereby one (1) group was given the treatment of Cognitive Research Trust (CoRT) programme while another was taught academic writing conventionally. This paper will discuss the findings of the study and recommend the aspect of academic writing process which could benefit from the use of creative writing skills. Keywords: Creative thinking, academic English composition. 28

29 GL 57 GOOGLE CLASSROOM COMBINED WITH GOOGLE DRIVE: COULD IT BE CONSIDERED THAT THE VLE WOULD CONSTITUTE A VIABLE SUBSTITUTE FOR BLACKBOARD (LMS) AT CAS OMAN? Raeda Zahran Abdullah Al Hinai Nizwa College of Applied Sciences Al Jamea St., Muscat, Oman raeda.al-hinai.niz@cas.edu.om Google Classroom (GC) has been recently launched to work as a hub for all Google Apps and Google Drive management. It is a virtual classroom space where teachers can track students assignments, collect them paperlessly so that they may be easily assessed, and enhance communication with their classes. Its affordances, like simplicity, user-friendly interface, and its having a mobile version, attract academic users, particularly teachers, to be passionate users and regard it as their own LMS. Considering the current learning management system implemented in Oman s Colleges of Applied Sciences, Blackboard (BB) is the main virtual platform where students can download their course materials, submit their projects, collect their grades, and interact with their teachers. Although it comprises many features for enriching learning, it lacks communication, collaboration and organizational tools that are required to prepare students with real world skills. Also, it is of a quite complex design, confusing, and contains more functions than are needed, all of which tend to mislead and frustrate the students. Another issue, the BB system is installed and managed at a central server at the Ministry of Higher Education and is utilised by all Colleges of Applied Sciences where the server downtime instances are faced frequently by various users. Moreover, the proposed case study aims at investigating the possibility of considering GC as an alternative LMS as well as attempting to understand its impact on students performance and attitudes. Content analysis and interview methods are being administered to gather copious amounts of data from Nizwa College of Applied Sciences students. Keywords: Blackboard (BB), Google Classroom (GC), Google Drive (GD), Learning management system (LMS), virtual learning environment (VLE). 29

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31 GL 41 PENGGUNAAN APLIKASI WhatsApp DALAM PEMBELAJARAN & PENGAJARAN (P&P) DI KUIS Norfaezah Mohd Hamidin Jabatan Bahasa, Pusat Pengajian Teras Kolej Universiti Islam Antarabangsa Selangor (KUIS) ABSTRAK Dunia semakin pantas dengan pelbagai teknologi terkini, hardware dan software terkini, media sosial seperti facebook, we chat, skype, twitter, instagram, blog-blog, emel menjadi kegilaan ramai termasuklah fenomena terkini aplikasi whatsapp. Kertas kerja ini bertujuan mengkaji peluang aplikasi whatsapp dalam proses pengajaran dan pembelajaran di KUIS, khususnya Bahasa Arab. Memandangkan penggunaan whatsapp begitu popular di kalangan pengguna telefon pintar termasuk majoriti pelajar KUIS kerana aplikasi ini boleh dimuat turun secara percuma dan penggunaannya untuk berhubung secara percuma berbanding khidmat SMS dan telefon yang berbayar menyebabkan saluran whatsapp menjadi saluran utama untuk menyalurkan maklumat. Kertas kerja ini akan mendedahkan peluang cara mengajar dan belajar Bahasa Arab melalui whatsapp kepada pelajar KUIS secara mudah, berkesan dan menjimatkan masa. Kaedah mengajar dan belajar secara atas talian ini tanpa mengira masa, tempat dan keberadaan pensyarah semasa menyampaikan ilmu Bahasa Arab. Diharap melalui kajian ini, pengajaran Bahasa Arab akan lebih efisyen, sistematik dan menghasilkan kesan yang maksimum kepada pelajar KUIS khususnya dalam memahami Bahasa Arab secara lebih mendalam. Kata Kunci: whatsapp, P&P, Bahasa Arab. 31

32 GL 58 KESAN PENDIDIKAN POSITIF TERHADAP PENGUASAAN BAHASA MELAYU PELAJAR SEKOLAH RENDAH DARI LATARBELAKANG SOSIO EKONOMI SEDERHANA-RENDAH THE IMPACT OF POSITIVE EDUCATION ON THE ACQUISITION OF MALAY LANGUAGE OF STUDENTS FROM MIDDLE-LOW SOCIAL ECONOMIC STATUS Zurina Yahya Sekolah Rendah Da Qiao, Singapura ABSTRAK Sejauh ini Pendidikan Positif atau Positive Education sudah dibuktikan berkesan di konteks luar pembelajaran bahasa Melayu. Pendidikan Positif yang merupakan cabang Psikologi Positif bertujuan memberi pengetahuan dan kemahiran kepada pelajar agar mereka dapat meningkatkan daya kebingkasan dan keteguhan diri serta merangkul rasa kesyukuran. Ini agar mereka dapat menjana kehidupan yang terus berkembang. Kertas ini memberi pengenalan tentang Pendidikan Positif dan menghidangkan laporan mengenai kajian yang dijalankan ke atas pelajar bahasa Melayu sekolah rendah berlatarbelakang sosio ekonomi sederhana-rendah. Para pelajar tersebut diajar beberapa kemahiran Pendidikan Positif yang diharapkan dapat meningkatkan daya kebingkasan pelajar. Kertas ini juga ingin melihat apakah kesan Pendidikan Positif terhadap pembelajaran bahasa Melayu dan sejauh manakah kemahiran yang diajarkan ini dapat meningkatkan penguasaan bahasa Melayu pelajar tersebut. Kata Kunci: nilai, sosio ekonomi, psikologi, positif, melayu 32

33 GL 59 KEMAHIRAN BERFIKIR SECARA KRITIS MELALUI KAEDAH RODA PENAAKULAN PAUL CRITICAL THINKING SKILLS THROUGH PAUL S WHEEL OF REASONING Nadira Binte Mohamed Sedik Sekolah Gan Eng Seng, Singapura nadira_mohamed_sedik@moe.edu.sg ABSTRAK Kajian ini dijalankan bagi menilai keberkesanan kaedah Roda Penaakulan Paul (Paul s Wheel of Reasoning) dalam memupuk kemahiran berfikir secara kritis. Pelajar seringkali gagal menjawab soalan pemahaman berbentuk inferens kerana ketidakupayaan berfikir dengan kritis. Menggunakan empat elemen Roda Penaakulan Paul iaitu inferens (inferential), pandangan (point of view), andaian (assumptions) dan data/bukti (data/evidences) sebagai sandaran, pelajar dilatih untuk berfikir dengan kritis menerusi bahan-bahan bacaan pemahaman yang diketengahkan bagi menjawab soalan-soalan pemahaman berbentuk inferens. Data kajian diperoleh menerusi praujian dan pascaujian yang dijalankan melalui pendekatan Quasi-Experiment. Katakunci: globalisasi, 21CC, pemikiran kritis, pemahaman, kemahiran bahasa 33

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36 INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE & COMPUTER SCIENCE th & 13th October 2015, Bayview Beach Resort Hotel, Penang, Malaysia GLOBAL CONFERENCE ON ECONOMICS AND MANAGEMENT SCIENCE th & 13th October 2015, Bayview Beach Resort Hotel, Penang, Malaysia 36