Abstract Despite decades of effort to improve mathematical outcomes, studies examining the integrated roles of affective dimensions such as confidence, perceived value, and motivation in relation to mathematics achievement among Senior High School students in Ghana remain relatively limited. In this study, confidence was operationalised through items reflecting students’ domain-specific mathematics self-efficacy beliefs. This study examines the structural associations of confidence, perceived value, and motivation with self-reported mathematics achievement among final-year students in a selected Senior High School in the Atwima Nwabiagya North Municipal Assembly of Ghana. A quantitative descriptive correlational design was employed, and data were collected from 296 students using a structured questionnaire. Self-reported mathematics achievement was measured using students’ responses to items concerning their perceived achievement in mathematics, rather than standardised test scores or school achievement records. The hypothesised structural relationships among confidence, perceived value, motivation, and self-reported mathematics achievement were examined using structural equation modelling (SEM). Within the participating school, the results showed that confidence, perceived value, and motivation were each positively and significantly associated with self-reported mathematics achievement, with confidence having the largest standardised coefficient, followed by motivation and value. Given these findings, instructional practices that support students’ confidence may be considered in mathematics teaching. Likewise, opportunities to connect mathematics with real-world applications may help students recognise its value, while supportive learning environments may provide conditions conducive to sustained engagement with mathematics learning.
One of the major challenges university students often face before graduating is preparing to transition into the workforce, a task made even more demanding after the Covid-19 pandemic.This phenomenological study explores how final-year students describe their career preparedness experiences in the post-pandemic era. In-depth interviews were conducted with four final-year students at a Malaysian public university. They were selected through a purposive sampling technique. The interview data were analysed using thematic analysis. The findings revealed five themes related to the students’ career preparedness experiences: expectations and realities, exposure to real work settings, promoting positive outcomes via preparation, development of professional identity, and acquisition of critical skills. The study recommends collaboration with selected secondary schools in exposing students to various client issues before practicum and internship training to further develop their counselling competencies and increase their career preparedness level.
This community service activity is motivated by the gap in practical competence among students at SMKS Binong Permai in facing the 2026 Vocational Competency Examination compared to industry standards. The primary objective of this program is to enhance the technical readiness and professionalism of students in Office Automation and Governance (OTKP) as well as Accounting and Institutional Finance (AKL) through the synchronization of academic expertise and practical needs. The activity was conducted on April 25 and 30, 2026, involving all 95 final-year students, consisting of 65 OTKP students and 30 AKL students. The method applied was Vocational Intensive Mentoring, consisting of intensive technical guidance (technical coaching) and independent competency test simulations with service excellence role-play involving lecturers and peer student tutors. Evaluation results demonstrated a significant increase in material comprehension, with average post-test scores exceeding 80. Furthermore, a 100% passing rate was achieved (95 out of 95 students were declared competent), successfully producing systematic executive work agenda drafts and accurate financial reports following junior accounting technician standards. In conclusion, this simulation mentorship not only achieved the 100% passing rate target but also fostered a strategic mindset and digital proficiency relevant to modern workforce requirements.
Final-year engineering students frequently face severe psychological stress driven by demanding capstone projects and rigorous accreditation standards. This research proposes a novel decision-support framework to objectively evaluate, categorize, and systematically manage academic stress among engineering undergraduates. By integrating automated non-parametric machine learning with a multi-criteria network decision model, the research bridges diagnostic psychological profiling and strategic institutional intervention. Data were gathered from six hundred eleven final-year students across four engineering departments using a validated psychometric questionnaire. The automated classification engine utilizes a nearest-neighbor algorithm based on spatial Euclidean proximity to categorize individual distress severity into depression, anxiety, and stress levels without relying on rigid parametric assumptions. Subsequently, a strategic situational assessment and a multi-perspective personal performance framework were established to translate abstract psychological findings into measurable indicators. Clinical experts and academic domain specialists evaluated these indicators using an analytical network process, incorporating complex interdependencies and feedback loops to compute steady-state priority weights. Empirical results revealed that over ninety percent of respondents experienced at least moderate psychological distress. Crucially, the mathematical prioritization demonstrated that the financial perspective holds the paramount priority weight, followed by internal cognitive resilience, continuous knowledge acquisition, and external social relationships. This proves that financial stability serves as a foundational prerequisite for academic recovery and intellectual execution. The primary contribution of this research lies in converting static psychometric evaluations into a dynamic, clinically validated decision-support tool. Higher education institutions and academic counselors can implement this prioritized framework to allocate institutional resources effectively, design targeted financial relief initiatives, and optimize student well-being alongside academic excellence.
Purpose: This study examines the determinants of student satisfaction with graduation art creation courses among senior undergraduate students in public universities in Sichuan, China. Drawing on established service quality and student satisfaction frameworks, the study proposes and tests a structural model incorporating Curriculum, Teaching Quality, Service Quality, Service Innovation, Perceived Value, Student Engagement, and Student Satisfaction. A quantitative cross-sectional survey was conducted with 502 final-year students from three public universities selected through two-stage stratified proportional sampling. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire and analyzed using Confirmatory Factor Analysis and Structural Equation Modeling with maximum likelihood estimation. The findings indicate that Curriculum, Teaching Quality, Perceived Value, Student Engagement, and Service Innovation have significant positive direct effects on Student Satisfaction. Notably, Service Quality exerted a significant indirect effect on Student Satisfaction through Perceived Value, rather than a direct effect, with an indirect effect size of 0.066. Among all predictors, Perceived Value emerged as the strongest determinant of overall satisfaction. The findings highlight Perceived Value as a central mediating mechanism through which institutional and instructional factors influence graduating art students' overall educational experience.
The present study examined the relationship between imposter phenomenon and career anxiety among final-year students in India. A quantitative correlational design was adopted with a sample of 36 final-year students (10 males, 26 females) selected through convenience sampling. Standardized measures included the Clance Imposter Phenomenon Scale and a self-constructed Career Anxiety Scale. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, Pearson?s correlation, and independent-samples t-tests. Results revealed a significant moderate positive correlation between imposter phenomenon and career anxiety (r = .45, p = .006). Female students reported slightly higher scores on both constructs, but gender differences were not statistically significant (p > .05). Findings suggest that imposter feelings contribute to career anxiety and may inform career counselling interventions in college settings.
This study explores the professional identity development of pre-service English teachers through Possible Selves Theory (PST). It examines how they envision their ideal and feared selves while they are reflecting on their current selves during their practicum experience. Despite growing interest in PST in teacher education, previous research has largely relied on cross-sectional designs and has paid limited attention to how pre-service EFL teachers’ current, ideal, and feared selves evolve during the practicum, a critical period of professional identity formation. Using a phenomenological qualitative design, the researchers followed six final-year students of an English language and literature program during a twelve-week compulsory practicum. Because practicum is an important initial stage for preservice teachers to reflect on their professional identity, exploring how they express their current and future selves offers useful insights for teachers’ professional development. Data were gathered through observation tasks, reflection papers, and focus group interviews and analyzed thematically. The two overarching themes identified were fragile instructional self-efficacy and ambivalent professional identity. These themes indicate that ideal selves were associated with aspirations for pedagogical competence, student engagement, and professional recognition, whereas feared selves reflected concerns over classroom management, ineffective teaching, and professional stagnation. These future-oriented self-conceptions functioned both as motivational drivers and preventive safeguards, influencing teaching behaviors and identity formation. These future-oriented self-conceptions served as reference points that should influence teaching behaviors and identity formation. By tracing the dynamic interplay between current, ideal, and feared selves through longitudinal, practicum-embedded qualitative inquiry in a Turkish EFL context, the study provides a process-oriented account of professional identity development that is often overlooked in cross-sectional PST research. The findings suggest that structured reflection and mentor-supported practicum experiences may foster more intentional and adaptive identity construction, offering practical implications for teacher education programs seeking to integrate identity-oriented reflective practices into professional preparation.
این پژوهش به بررسی تحول هویت حرفهای معلمان زبان انگلیسی پیشخدمت از طریق نظریه خودهای ممکن (PST) میپردازد. این مطالعه بررسی میکند که چگونه این معلمان در حین تأمل بر خود کنونیشان در طول تجربه کارورزی، خود آرمانی و خود مورد هراس خود را تصور میکنند. علیرغم افزایش علاقه به نظریه خودهای ممکن در آموزش معلمان، پژوهشهای پیشین عمدتاً بر طرحهای مقطعی تکیه داشته و توجه محدودی به چگونگی تحول خود کنونی، آرمانی و مورد هراس معلمان زبان انگلیسی پیشخدمت در طول دوره کارورزی، که دورهای حیاتی برای شکلگیری هویت حرفهای است، داشتهاند. با استفاده از طرح کیفی پدیدارشناختی، پژوهشگران شش دانشجوی سال آخر رشته زبان و ادبیات انگلیسی را در طول یک دوره کارورزی اجباری دوازده هفتهای دنبال کردند. از آنجا که کارورزی مرحله اولیه مهمی برای تأمل معلمان پیشخدمت بر هویت حرفهایشان است، بررسی نحوه بیان خود کنونی و آینده آنها، بینشهای مفیدی برای توسعه حرفهای معلمان ارائه میدهد. دادهها از طریق تکالیف مشاهدهای، مقالات تأملی و مصاحبههای گروهی متمرکز گردآوری و به صورت تماتیک تحلیل شدند. دو مضمون کلی شناساییشده عبارت بودند از خودکارآمدی آموزشی شکننده و هویت حرفهای دوگانه. این مضامین نشان دادند که خودهای آرمانی با آرمانهایی برای شایستگی آموزشی، درگیرسازی دانشآموزان و شناسایی حرفهای مرتبط بودند، در حالی که خودهای مورد هراس نگرانیهایی درباره مدیریت کلاس، تدریس غیرموثر و رکود حرفهای را منعکس میکردند. این تصورات خودی آیندهمحور هم به عنوان محرکهای انگیزشی و هم به عنوان سازوکارهای پیشگیرانه عمل کرده و بر رفتارهای تدریس و شکلگیری هویت تأثیر میگذاشتند. این تصورات خودی آیندهمحور به عنوان نقاط مرجع عمل میکردند که باید بر رفتارهای تدریس و شکلگیری هویت تأثیرگذار باشند. با ردیابی تعامل پویا میان خود کنونی، آرمانی و مورد هراس از طریق پژوهش کیفی طولی مبتنی بر کارورزی در زمینه آموزش زبان انگلیسی به عنوان زبان خارجی در ترکیه، این مطالعه روایتی فرایندی از تحول هویت حرفهای ارائه میدهد که اغلب در پژوهشهای مقطعی مبتنی بر نظریه خودهای ممکن نادیده گرفته میشود. یافتهها نشان میدهد که تأمل ساختاریافته و تجارب کارورزی با حمایت مربی میتواند به ساخت هویت هدفمندتر و سازگارتر کمک کند و دلالتهای عملی برای برنامههای آموزش معلم که به دنبال ادغام رویکردهای تأملی مبتنی بر هویت در آمادهسازی حرفهای هستند، ارائه میدهد.
This study examined pre-tertiary students’ geometric problem-solving performance, the distribution of their errors across Van Hiele levels of geometric reasoning, and the nature of these errors using Newman's Error Hierarchical Model. A descriptive quantitative research design, complemented by qualitative content analysis of students’ written responses, was adopted. The sample comprised 300 final-year students selected through stratified random sampling. Data were collected using a researcher-designed Geometry Problem-Solving Test consisting of twelve open-ended items aligned with the senior high school geometry curriculum. Students’ responses were analysed using frequency and percentage distributions, while error patterns were classified using Newman's framework and mapped onto Van Hiele levels. The findings showed generally low performance in geometry problem solving, with most students scoring within the lower performance range. Error analysis indicated that students at lower Van Hiele levels, particularly visualisation and analysis, exhibited higher frequencies of comprehension and transformation errors. In contrast, students at higher reasoning levels showed fewer conceptual and representational difficulties but continued to experience process skills and encoding errors. The findings indicate different patterns of problem-solving errors observed among students demonstrating different levels of geometric reasoning. The results demonstrate the value of interpreting students’ geometric problem-solving through both the Van Hiele and Newman frameworks, providing complementary perspectives on students’ reasoning and the errors evident in their solution processes.
این مطالعه به بررسی عملکرد حل مسئله هندسی دانشآموزان پیشدانشگاهی، توزیع خطاهای آنان در سطوح استدلال هندسی ون هیله و ماهیت این خطاها با استفاده از مدل سلسلهمراتبی خطای نیومن پرداخت. طرح پژوهش کمی توصیفی، همراه با تحلیل محتوای کیفی پاسخهای کتبی دانشآموزان، اتخاذ شد. نمونه شامل ۳۰۰ دانشآموز سال آخر بود که به روش نمونهگیری تصادفی طبقهای انتخاب شدند. دادهها با استفاده از آزمون حل مسئله هندسه طراحیشده توسط پژوهشگر، متشکل از دوازده سؤال بازپاسخ منطبق با برنامه درسی هندسه دبیرستان، گردآوری شد. پاسخهای دانشآموزان با استفاده از توزیع فراوانی و درصد تحلیل گردید و الگوهای خطا با چارچوب نیومن طبقهبندی و بر سطوح ون هیله نگاشته شد. یافتهها نشان داد که به طور کلی عملکرد حل مسئله هندسی پایین بوده و اکثر دانشآموزان در دامنه عملکرد پایین قرار گرفتند. تحلیل خطاها نشان داد که دانشآموزان در سطوح پایینتر ون هیله، به ویژه تجسم و تحلیل، فراوانی بیشتری از خطاهای درک مطلب و تبدیل را نشان دادند. در مقابل، دانشآموزان در سطوح بالاتر استدلال، دشواریهای مفهومی و بازنمایی کمتری داشتند اما همچنان با خطاهای مهارت فرایندی و رمزگذاری مواجه بودند. یافتهها نشاندهنده الگوهای متفاوت خطاهای حل مسئله در میان دانشآموزانی است که سطوح مختلفی از استدلال هندسی را نشان میدهند. نتایج ارزش تفسیر حل مسئله هندسی دانشآموزان از طریق چارچوبهای ون هیله و نیومن را نشان میدهد که دیدگاههای مکملی درباره استدلال دانشآموزان و خطاهای آشکار در فرایند حل آنان فراهم میکند.
