Ubuntu as ‘Public Policy’ among the Tonga of Zambia’s Southern Province

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The paper draws its data from a three-year study entitled ‘Archaeology of Ubuntu’ funded by the ‘National Research Foundation’ (NRF) of South Africa. The data utilised in this paper is drawn from interview discussions conducted with purposefully sampled elders from Tonga communities in Zambia’s Southern Province. The data specifically originates from the views of the elders on ‘their understanding of Ubuntu’. The main premise of the paper is the notion that Ubuntu is a widely theorised concept (Letseka, 2012; Mets, 2011; Ramos, 2006) with various conceptions of it as a consequence of this status quo in scholarly circles. However, of special interest to this paper among the various conceptions of Ubuntu is Nkondo’s (2007) conception of it as ‘public policy’. As such, the paper shows how this conception of Ubuntu is actualised among the Tonga of Zambia’s Southern Province. The paper realistically describes and portrays the practical implications of such a conception of Ubuntu among the Tonga. The conception of Ubuntu as ‘public policy’ is done in relation to the four main functions of ‘public policy’ in society.

The Effect of High Performance Work System and Organizational Support on Employee Performance and Job Satisfaction as a Mediation Variable

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Companies are required to increase their assets due to this high competition, one of the biggest assets that affect company performance is the company’s human resource (HR) assets. This study aims to determine the effect of HPWS and organizational support on employee performance which is mediated by job satisfaction. The sample of this research was 200 employees of PDAM Way Rilau, Bandar Lampung City. Data collection through a questionnaire based on purposive sampling technique and processed using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) with the help of AMOS software. The results of the study show that the high performance work system has a positive and significant effect on the performance of PDAM Way Rilau Bandar Lampung employees, organizational support has a positive and significant effect on employee performance, job satisfaction has an effect on employee performance, job satisfaction mediates the effect of high performance work system on employee performance, job satisfaction mediates the effect of organizational support on employee performance. Organizations must pay more attention to employees, which can be in the form of motivation or awards given to employees, and management can also supervise their employees more in completing their work according to the allotted time.

Purpose: This study aims to determine the effect of HPWS and organizational support on employee performance which is mediated by job satisfaction

Patients and methods: The sample of this research was 200 employees of PDAM Way Rilau, Bandar Lampung City. Data collection through a questionnaire based on purposive sampling technique and processed using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) with the help of AMOS software.

Results: The results of the study show that the high performance work system has a positive and significant effect on the performance of PDAM Way Rilau Bandar Lampung employees, organizational support has a positive and significant effect on employee performance, job satisfaction has an effect on employee performance, job satisfaction mediates the effect of high performance work system on employee performance, job satisfaction mediates the effect of organizational support on employee performance.

Conclusion: Organizations must pay more attention to employees, which can be in the form of motivation or awards given to employees, and management can also supervise their employees more in completing their work according to the allotted time.

The Use of Islamic Story for EFL Students’ Essay

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This study explores the use of Islamic stories as a pedagogical tool for enhancing the quality of essays among English as a Foreign Language (EFL) students. The primary objectives of this research are to assess the impact of utilizing Islamic stories techniques on EFL students’ writing skills and to determine if such an approach leads to improve essay composition.

To achieve these objectives, a pre experimental research design was employed. A group of EFL students of the third semester was selected purposively as sample and exposed to Islamic stories intervention grounded in Adab education principles, where pre- and post-intervention writing assessments on opinion essays were given to get data.

The results of this study show that using Islamic stories to integrate Adab education concepts greatly improves EFL students’ abilty to write essays especially in opinion essay that are well-organized and convey complex ideas. The disparity in the pre- and post-test findings serves as evidence for it. Students received 46.4 for content and 40.1 for organization on the pre-test. In the meantime, the students’ post-test results showed improvement; they received a 68 on the content element and a 74 on the organization element.

In conclusion, this research provides insights into the potential use of Islamic stories principles in the context of English as a Foreign Language instruction, specifically in enhancing the teaching of essay writing in terms of opinion essay. These findings have implications for pedagogical practices in writing. Moreover, the findings indicate that implementing this strategy can serve as a beneficial instructional resource for teachers aiming to cultivate enhanced writing abilities.

Motivational Factors in Learning an L2: A Study on Intrinsic/Extrinsic Motivation, Classroom Materials and Teachers’ Behaviors

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The aim of this study was to explore intrinsic and extrinsic motivations toward learning Spanish, French, and Mandarin as foreign languages. Also, this study investigates which are the main factors that influence the learners’ motivation of the L2, focusing on two specific aspects within the classroom: the materials used in this learning process and the teacher’s behaviors. A sample of 173 high school L2 students (9-12) was selected. The results showed that among the top 10 reasons that justified their L2 learning process, 6 were based on intrinsic factors and 4 on extrinsic ones. Also, these results showed that the most preferred materials by the students to learn are those related to audio-visual resources. Lastly, regarding the teachers’ motivational practices, the results showed that learners value as the most important motivational factors some teacher’s personality traits.

Rental Agreements That Do Not Meet the Elements of a Halal Cause

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The aim of the research is to evaluate the validity of rental agreements that do not meet the elements of a halal cause, to find the legal consequences for the parties of rental agreements that do not meet the elements of a halal cause, to evaluate the judge’s legal considerations regarding leases that do not meet the elements of a halal cause. .

The research method is a normative juridical research type using a statutory approach and a conceptual approach.

Based on the research results, it was concluded that the validity of the rental agreement between Plaintiff Karwanto and Defendant Endra was invalid because one of the conditions for the validity of the agreement was not fulfilled in Article 1320 paragraph (4) of the Civil Code or Civil Code. The legal consequence for the parties of a rental agreement that does not fulfill the elements of a halal cause is that the rental agreement between the Plaintiff Karwanto and the Defendant Endra does not fulfill one of the objective elements, namely a halal cause which results in cancellation, namely that the agreement itself is null and void by law. The judge’s legal considerations regarding leases that do not fulfill the elements of a halal cause are inappropriate in the Court of First Instance because the Panel of Judges does not consider the provisions of Article 1320 of the Civil Code relating to a halal cause as one of the conditions for the validity of the agreement.

Augmented Reality with STEAM through Blended Learning for Elementary School

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Purpose: Students in elementary school have difficulty to understand difficult topics because they are still in the concrete operational stage. By visualizing complex concepts as three-dimensional objects,

Augmented Reality (AR) enables interactive and real-time reality. This investigation employs an interdisciplinary approach to Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts, and Mathematics (STEAM) using AR technology.

Patients and methods: The current study employs an interdisciplinary methodology that combines STEAM and AR with blended learning as pedagogical strategies in elementary education. The present study was conducted in Bengkulu, Indonesia, with a sample of forty elementary school students and six sixth-grade instructors.

Results: The results of N-gain indicate an improvement in the experimental class, indicating that the AR method is extremely effective at improving students’ comprehension.

Conclusion:The research shows that AR integrated with STEAM-based blended learning has significantly increase student engagement in the classroom and improve the development of students’ cross-disciplinary knowledge integration, problem-solving, and self-directed learning skills. Moreover, STEAM with AR is required for students to comprehend the course material and has assisted instructors in optimizing the use of media in classroom.

Interrelationships among Parental Career Support, Students Science Self-Efficacy, and Career Decision Making in Muranga County Kenya

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Parents play a significant role in shaping their children’s career choices. However, in Murang’a County, Kenya, there is a lack of research focusing on the specific aspects of parental support, and science self-efficacy, interacting with students’ career decisions. Furthermore, there is a limited understanding of how parental factors, in conjunction with students’ self-efficacy in science subjects, influence the career choices students ultimately make. This research aims to fill this gap by examining how parental career support and students’ self-efficacy in science interact to influence career decision-making among students attending public secondary schools. The study was grounded in the Social Cognitive Career Theory, which prompted the following research inquiries; are there interrelationships between parents’ support, students’ self-efficacy for science, and students’ career decision making. The study involved a sample of 482 students in the third year of public secondary schools. The sample size was determined using Cochran’s formula. The selection of 11 schools, including both single-gender and mixed schools, was based on purposive sampling and proportionate stratified random sampling methods. Participants within these schools were chosen through random sampling.  The data were gathered and analyzed using SPSS software. To test the hypotheses, statistical techniques such as Pearson’s product moment correlation coefficient, analysis of variance, and multiple regression were employed. The study observed parents’ support, self-efficacy in science, and career decision making were interrelated. Recommendations on the inclusion of specific parental attributes in enhancing science self-efficacy to improve students’ choices in sciences were made.

Research Capability and Engagement among Public Elementary Teachers

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One important factor for successful conduct of research is the researcher’s research capability and attitude. This study aimed at determining the research capability, and engagement among public elementary teachers. Moreover, it determined the relationship between the research capability and attitude and the level of research engagement of public elementary teachers of the three districts in the Division of Bukidnon. The study utilizeda descriptive-correlational research design. A total of 85 teachers were surveyed using a modified instrument. Frequencyand percentage distribution, weighted mean, Pearson Moment Correlation, and ANOVA were used for ststitical treatment.

The study revealed thatthe teacherswere highly capable in conducting research.However, the research engagement of the respondents did not have significant difference when grouped according to their profile such asage, sex, length of years in the service, and grade level handled. Further, position, highest educational attainment, research trainings attended, number of research activities done had significant relationship with research engagement. Additionally, lack of time and resources were the most common barriers and challenges they encountered in conducting action research.

Thus, this study concludes that conducting action research requires time, effort and sources. Hence, an action plan is developed to facilitate the teachers’ research capability, attitude, and engagement to be implemented in the Division of Bukidnon.

Enhancing Teacher Professional Development: Insight from Teacher Professional Learning Activities

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This study employs a qualitative approach to investigate the influence of professional learning activities on teacher professional development. The study examines a range of learning activities, including workshops, seminars, and collaborative learning communities, and explores their impact on teacher practices, student engagement, and student outcomes. The researcher combined surveys and interviews to gather data from a sample of 20 EFL teachers at a participating school. The questionnaire, adapted from TALIS (Teaching and Learning International Survey), collected data on teachers’ demographics, teaching experience, and participation in professional development activities.. In-depth interviews were conducted with a purposive sample of 10 teachers to explore their experiences with professional development, their perceptions of teacher professional learning activities, and the impact of professional development on their teaching practice. The study finds that these learning activities have a significant positive impact on teacher professional development, leading to improved teaching practices, increased student engagement, and better student outcomes. These insights have important implications for improving the quality of education and can inform the development of effective policies and programs to support teacher professional development.

Effects of Team Teaching and Lecture Method on the Retention of Physics Students in Secondary Schools in Delta State

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This study investigated the effects of 5E-guided inquiry, team teaching, and lecture methods on physics students’ retention in Delta State. To guide the study, two research questions and two hypotheses were raised and tested at a 0.05 level of significance. The study used the quasi-experimental non-randomized pre-test, post-test, and delayed post-test planned variation group design. The population consisted of all mixed public secondary school (SS2) Physics students in Delta State with a population of 476 secondary schools and 31,711 SS2 students. A sample of six (6) secondary schools and 326 students were used for the study. The six (6) schools used for the study were selected using a stratified random sampling technique. The Physics Achievement Test (PAT) was used for data collection. Mean and Standard Deviation were used in answering all the research questions, and collected data were analyzed using analysis of variance (ANOVA) and analysis of covariance (ANCOVA). The results obtained indicated that students taught with the team-teaching method performed better than those taught using the 5E-guided inquiry and lecture method.  Furthermore, the result showed that there is no significant effect of interaction between sex and method on the retention of physics students. Based on these findings, it was concluded that students taught with the team-teaching method achieved significantly better than students taught with the 5E-guided inquiry method and lecture method. Results from the study led to many recommendations, that teachers should expose physics students to team teaching methods so as to promote effective and active learning among students.