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Preparatory School Learners’ Level of Critical Thinking Proficiency and Its Correlation with Their Academic Achievement in Ethiopia: The Missing Ingredient
Issue:
Volume 4, Issue 2, June 2019
Pages:
32-38
Received:
19 March 2019
Accepted:
6 May 2019
Published:
3 June 2019
Abstract: The present study investigated the level of preparatory school learners' critical thinking proficiency and its relation with their academic achievement. To the researchers' best knowledge, there is hardly any documented study exploring the relationship between these constructs among preparatory learners. To attain the purpose of the study, 108 grade 12 preparatory school learners from two sections (53 social science and 55 natural science majors: 56 male and 52 female students) were selected using a simple random sampling technique from Woldia Preparatory School. Data was collected through a critical thinking proficiency test adapted from “Cornell Class-Reasoning Test, Form X” (CCTT) and learners’ previous semester cumulative average. The data was analyzed statistically, employing Descriptive Statistics, Independent-Samples T Test, Pearson product-moment correlation, and linear regression. The results from the descriptive analysis showed that the critical thinking proficiency of preparatory school learners was weak, namely, most students lack critical thinking proficiency at this level. Moreover, the level of critical thinking didn’t vary significantly across majors and gender according to the independent-samples t test analysis. However, results from Pearson product-moment correlation indicated a fairly strong and positive correlation between critical thinking proficiency and academic achievement. The linear regression results also revealed that critical thinking proficiency act as the best predictor of academic achievement. The discussion and implications of the research are further presented with reference to the finding.
Abstract: The present study investigated the level of preparatory school learners' critical thinking proficiency and its relation with their academic achievement. To the researchers' best knowledge, there is hardly any documented study exploring the relationship between these constructs among preparatory learners. To attain the purpose of the study, 108 grad...
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The Effectiveness of Content-Based Language Teaching and Task-Based Language Teaching in Teaching Reading to Learners of Military English
Issue:
Volume 4, Issue 2, June 2019
Pages:
39-43
Received:
22 April 2019
Accepted:
2 June 2019
Published:
24 June 2019
Abstract: This study explored the effectiveness of Task-Based Language Teaching (TBLT) and Content-Based Language Teaching (CBLT) on the reading ability of military English learners. 120 sophomore learners of military English were pretested and then homogenized and evenly assigned to four classes, with two belonging to the control group and the other two the experimental group. The control group received reading instruction based on CBLT, while the experimental group received reading instruction based on TBLT, both two sessions a week for 10 weeks. After the intervention, they were posttested. Then, their pretest scores and posttest scores were analyzed on SPSS 19.0 using paired samples t-test and independent samples t-test. A follow-up interview was also carried out to collect students’ feedback on the teaching method used. The results show that both the TBLT group and the CBLT group improved significantly regarding their reading ability from the pretest to the posttest, with the TBLT group outperformed the CBLT group in the posttest. It can be concluded that both TBLT and CBLT methods are effective in teaching reading comprehension to learners of military English, with TBLT method being more effective. A follow-up interview was carried out to explore the underlying reasons and some pedagogical implications are listed accordingly.
Abstract: This study explored the effectiveness of Task-Based Language Teaching (TBLT) and Content-Based Language Teaching (CBLT) on the reading ability of military English learners. 120 sophomore learners of military English were pretested and then homogenized and evenly assigned to four classes, with two belonging to the control group and the other two the...
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The Notion of the Image in the Teachings of Christian and Muslim Thinkers
Issue:
Volume 4, Issue 2, June 2019
Pages:
44-53
Received:
6 March 2019
Accepted:
20 June 2019
Published:
1 July 2019
Abstract: Notwithstanding the difference in historical periods of creativity, in the treatises of some of the most famous thinkers both in Islamic culture and in the Christian world, ideas and understandings of the image are found as a notion that does not exhaust the perception of God, but is relevant to the pursuit of God's knowledge. The brief historical distance between the emergence of the Pseudo-Dionysian treatises and those of Islamic philosophy allows us to make a comparison between the two religious worldviews. The two monotheistic concepts of the manifestations of God in the visible world have common foundations in the Geek philosophy and the views of the Neoplatonists. The rich and tangled language in the Pseudo-Dionysian treatises reveals the two-sided process of the interrelation between the divine and human realities. In the texts of the Muslim thinker Muhammad al- Ghazālī, the image of the contemplative man's ascension to the Almighty and indescribable God is also revealed. This article attempts to compare the patterns of thought through which these two philosophers, with different religious beliefs, express their understanding of the image of God and the path of contemplative rising to Him. The image of the One, from where the entire immanent world originates, occupies the first place for both wise men. But while for the Muslim philosopher the manifestations of God in the world are a direct realization of His gentle mind, the Christian thinker focuses on the image of the incarnation of God in the person of Christ.
Abstract: Notwithstanding the difference in historical periods of creativity, in the treatises of some of the most famous thinkers both in Islamic culture and in the Christian world, ideas and understandings of the image are found as a notion that does not exhaust the perception of God, but is relevant to the pursuit of God's knowledge. The brief historical ...
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An Investigation into Factors that Affect Students’ Writing Skills: The Case of Sodo Secondary School
Ayele Eyob Kenta,
Tesfaye Buche Bosha
Issue:
Volume 4, Issue 2, June 2019
Pages:
54-60
Received:
22 April 2019
Accepted:
28 May 2019
Published:
4 July 2019
Abstract: The study aimed at investigating grade nine students’ difficulties in using writing skills in EFL classroom. To achieve the intended objective of the study, descriptive research design was employed. To collect the data for the study, three research instruments were employed. They are: interviews, field notes, and questionnaire conducted with Grade Nine English teachers and students learning at the same grade level. Accordingly, the findings indicated that the practice of writing skill was not satisfactory. As it was revealed in the study, the teaching/learning activities using the writing skill in the actual classrooms of Grade Nine were not largely in line with the principles of skills teaching strategies. According to the present researchers’ investigation, the following difficulties were identified as major constraints affecting the use of writing skills, the poor back ground of the students towards the writing skill English, lack of classroom facilities, lack of appropriate teaching materials, lack of understanding about writing skills, and lack of motivation towards writing skill were crucial challenges that impeded the writing skills during the English lessons. According to the information provided by participants, shortage of time become one of the factors that hinders from expressing themselves in writing, were the most outstanding ones. Finally, recommendations were forwarded.
Abstract: The study aimed at investigating grade nine students’ difficulties in using writing skills in EFL classroom. To achieve the intended objective of the study, descriptive research design was employed. To collect the data for the study, three research instruments were employed. They are: interviews, field notes, and questionnaire conducted with Grade ...
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