Educational Technology

The present study focused on Chomsky's pr-drop parameter theory (1981). Based on Chomsky's theory, there is a pro-drop parameter which is "true" in Farsi and "false" in English. Such parameters describe all languages world-wide. Knowledge of these parameters can help people understand other languages. To achieve the objectives of this study, first, pro-drop parameter was introduced and its characteristics were discussed. Having presented some examples the researchers compared English and Farsi languages. Findings revealed that some errors committed by Iranian English language learners can be due to this parameter.

The present study aimed at providing a comparison of General English Course Books used at universities in Iran which are designed by different authors (Iranian and foreigner) from critical thinking perspective. To this end, a retrospective evaluation was designed to examine the reading comprehension questions of 2 selected General English Course Books in terms of the degree to which they foster critical thinking. To accomplish the objectives of the study, firstly one of the top universities of Iran (Isfahan University) was selected; next 2 of the most frequent General English Course Books which were taught in the university were chosen, one of the books with foreign author and designer and another one with Iranian author and designer. Then, reading comprehension questions of all units of the CBs were analyzed based on Facione‘s (2011) critical thinking model (consisting of 6 features); then, the data were analyzed and occurrence percentage of each feature was calculated in each CB. The results revealed the representation of critical thinking features of Facion‘s (2011) model and the extent to which the Course Books matched the criteria in fostering critical thinking. The findings of the study seem to suggest that Iranian university students could not be expected to become critical thinkers through the study of such course books. And also the results show the difference between CBs with foreign and Iranian designers in the representation of critical thinking.

Conversion within quantities of same units and between quantities of different units is a thorny subject to Elective and Integrated Science students of Bueman Senior High School and its treatment by tutors sometimes becomes very difficult such that most tutors resort to handling the subject theoretically / abstractly. When this happens most students seemed not to comprehend the subject. In view of this, one aspect of the DTM-Conversion model (i.e. D-Conversion model) was tested on first year Elective Science and Integrated Science students of Bueman Senior High School, Jasikan. The DTM-Conversion Model is a model that has been designed by the researcher to make the teaching of conversion in measurement very easy to tutors and meaningful to students. The D-Conversion Model was tested on forty nine (49) 2011/2012 first year Elective science students and forty nine (49) Integrated Science Students’ all of Bueman Senior High School by teaching the D-Conversion Model for a period of two hours. A five item test was administered, collected and recorded. Comparison of the two test results i.e. Test before the lesson (TBL), and Test with the use of the D-Conversion model (TDC) showed that, Elective and Integrated Science students seemed to comprehend conversion of length in measurement when the D-Conversion model was employed.

This research deals with the effect of teaching by using Interactive Approach on the students' reading ability. The objective of the research is to investigate the effect of applying Interactive Approach on the students' reading ability. The sample of this study was 32 students. This study was conducted with an experimental research. The researcher took 1 class of Grade X Students of Madrasah Aliyah Swasta Gp. Teungoh Langsa Municipality as the sample and the class was divided into two treatments. The first treatment was the control group and the second treatment was the experimental group. The experimental group was taught by applying Interactive Approach, and the control group was taught by applying Conventional Approach. The instrument for collecting the data was objective test and essay test. To obtain the reliability of the test, the researcher used Pearson Product Moment formula. The result of the study showed that the reliability of the test was 0.57. The data were analyzed by using t-test formula. The analysis showed that the scores of the students of the experimental group were significantly higher than the scores of the students in the control group at the level significance 0.05 with the degree of freedom (df) 60 at the level of significance 0.05, it was found out that tobserved value 4.725 > ttable value 3.460. Therefore, the hypothesis that Interactive Approach significantly affects the students' reading ability is accepted. Key Words: Teaching, Interactive Approach, Reading Ability

Schools and more primary schools often use of workbook. They believe students learn better with this activities and workbooks. And some schools don't believe in using these books. Hands on Activities & Manipulative VS. Worksheets & Workbooks for Pre-K and Kindergarten (Love, Yahoo Contributor Network Nov 3, 2010). Workbook is the creative resource for photography and illustration portfolios, a source for memorizing, cutting edge marketing tools, industry news, contacts. Workbook is a leader of students.(WORKBOOK Photography & Illustration Portfolios, Creative Contact ...(www.workbook.com)

This research examines the concept of self-regulation from student’s perspective among gifted students in Jeddah Saudi Arabia. The discussion in the study is based on the theoretical framework of the emotional intelligence Theory Goleman’s (1995). A total of 150 respondents were involved in the quantitative study comprising of male and female gifted students whereby 10 teachers and 30 gifted students were used for qualitative study. During the analysis and interpretation of the responses gathered from gifted students which is the quantitative data, effect size was used to investigate which of the emotional intelligence element (self-awareness, self-regulation, motivation, empathy and social skill) would be the best predictor of academic achievement among gifted students in Saudi Arabia. For the qualitative data thematic analysis was used through manual qualitative style to describe the concept of self-awareness, self-regulation, motivation, empathy and social skills and provide suggestions from the teachers that could be adopted to improve emotional intelligence among gifted students in Saudi Arabia. The findings of the study show the effect of emotional intelligence factors on academic achievement. The study will be significant to teachers of gifted students, educational planners, government, international agencies such as UNESCO, UNICEF, UNDP, e t c and nongovernmental organizations by putting into practice the suggestions and recommendations which will help them improve emotional intelligence among gifted students in Saudi Arabia.

The major objectives of the study were: to find out the different ways and means of using internet among university students; to ascertain the purposes and reasons of internet utilization patterns among university students and to give recommendations for the improvement of situation and for further research. Population of the study comprised of all the students enrolled in BS programs in eight selected universities of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. Total 1000 students were selected as a sample using purposive sampling procedure. A self-developed questionnaire was used as a research tool. Mean scores and Standard Deviation were used as a statistical tool using SPSS 16. It was found that most of the students use internet at university in the company of different peoples, three to five times a week and like to chat with both male and female. Mostly students utilize internet for positive and healthy purposes. Students agreed that they find information according to their need on internet and internet gives them pleasure. It is recommended that proper awareness and guidance may be provided to the university students to utilize internet for positive, creative, constructive and healthy activities.

Web Content is a core component of e-learning and includes issues such as pedagogy and learning and includes issues such as pedagogy and learning object re-use. Pedagogical elements are an attempt to define structures or units of educational material. For example, this could be a lesson, an assignment, a multiple choice question, a quiz, a discussion group or a case study. These units should be format independent, so although it may be in any of the following methods, pedagogical structures would not include a textbook, a web page, a video conference or podcast. When beginning to create e-learning content, the pedagogical approaches need to be evaluated. Simple pedagogical approaches make it easy to create content, but lack flexibility, richness and downstream functionality. On the other hand, complex pedagogical approaches can be difficult to set up and slow to develop, though they have the potential to provide more engaging learning experiences for students, Somewhere between these extremes is an ideal pedagogy that allows a particular educator to effectively create educational materials while simultaneously providing the most engaging educational experiences for students

Culturally responsive teaching is usually advocated for making teaching effective and to let students from diverse background feel comfortable. The study is aimed to explore to what extent in-service teachers observe culturally responsive teaching in their professional practices, to what extent in-service teacher training opportunities are available regarding culturally responsive teaching and to what extent existing teacher education programs address these aspects. The study ravels that, in Pakistan, the element of culturally responsive teaching is missing both from the curriculum of teacher education programs and education systems as a whole. Teachers encounter cultural diversity in their classrooms but lack of knowledge about students’ cultures and culturally responsive teaching cause hindrances to teach children from diverse back ground more appropriately. Non-availability of teacher training opportunities regarding culturally responsive teaching further undermines their professional responsibilities. This study has made some recommendations to prepare prospective teachers ready to teach in culturally responsive classrooms.

Due to the influence of emotional factors on child rearing method and the role of parenting style in Thought, Behavior and their academic success, this study aimed to determine the association between parenting style and academic success in Students in Harsin, Iran. This study is a descriptive study of correlation type. Statistical sample are 284 students in first year of high school (164 boys and 120 girls) in school year 2011-2012 in Harsin, Iran. The data collection instrument for the measurement of emotional intelligence parental is Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire shrink and for Measure parenting style is Parenting styles questionnaire. And Academic success was assessed by the student's end of the semester grade. Data was analyzed by SPSS software and Pearson correlation coefficient and simple regression. Between emotional intelligence and authoritarian parenting style, authoritative parenting practices, there is a significant positive relationship. The relationship between emotional intelligence and permissive parenting style was found to be negative and significant. The results of the analysis of the data shows that between authoritarian parenting practices and children's academic success (48/0 = r) and authoritarian (33/0 = r) there is a significant positive relationship. And there is a significant negative relationship between the academic success of students and permissive parenting style (6/0- = r). In general we conclude that emotional intelligence is related to parents' parenting style, and parenting style, in turn, is related to student's educational success. And forceful approach is more associated with academic success.