A Bibliometric Analysis of 21st Century Learning Using Scopus Database

The concept of 21st century learning aims to prepare people to live and work in a more advanced environment. Hence, the objective of this paper is to explore the extent of publications on the topic of 21st century learning and COVID-19 in the Scopus database. Keywords used for analysis were TITLE-ABS-KEY-((‘21stcentury*') AND (education* OR learning*) AND (covid*)) with the analysis based on (i) document and source types, (ii) citation trend, (iii) topic of discussion, and (iv) regional distribution. Four steps of research protocol were adopted: (i) topic, scope and eligibility, (ii) identification, (iii) screening. A total of 105 documents were then used for further analysis. ‘Article' and ‘Journal' under the ‘Document' and ‘Resources' Type registered the most citations and were assumed to be of most interest, while the Citation Trend showed an increasing number of citations of these publications. E-learning was the most frequently discussed topic, and the United States was the region most actively conducting research in this area. The high number of annual citations suggests that this area is a promising one for research. Although the most frequently referenced publications were about students' development of 21st century skills, there is still a gap in the field for educators. Further research would speed up the development of the educators' skills and promote the use of 21st century skills. © Authors.

Using social mobile learning to stimulate idea generation for collective intelligence among higher education students

The importance of social networks has increased in recent decades, yet the use of social learning in higher education is nascent. Little is known how to foster high levels of social learning discourse among students in higher education classrooms. To address this gap, the present study analyses the use of a mobile application (Soqqle) for sharing student-generated content and peer to-peer communication. Students from Hong Kong, Malaysia, and Indonesia uploaded videos linked to assessments and received feedback from their instructors and peers through social engagement features (e.g., comments, likes). The majority of students reported that the social learning experience promoted idea generation, increased creativity, and improved attention. These results indicate that integrating online platforms and mobile applications can promote social learning. The findings have important implications for educational practice because many educational institutions have adopted online learning due to the COVID-19 pandemic. © 2022 Hong Kong Bao Long Accounting And Secretarial Limited. All rights reserved.

Surveying and Modelling 21st Century Online Learning Patterns of Medical Students.

Medical education in the 21st century is shifting more toward online learning because of extensive application of information and communication technology (ICT). We surveyed medical students' 21st century online learning experiences and modeled the interrelations among relevant dimensions of 21st century online learning. Based on the general themes proposed by multiple 21st century learning frameworks and current medical education emphases, a seven-factor instrument was developed for surveying 364 medical students' learning process, thinking process, and basic science-related clinical ability. The associations among the seven factors and the structural relationships of how online learning practices and thinking processes affected basic science-related clinical ability were explored. The developed instrument was validated and possessed good reliability. The seven dimensions were interrelated. Specifically, meaningful learning with ICT was positively associated with other learning practices. The learning practices were positively associated with the thinking processes and the thinking processes were positively associated with students' basic science-related clinical ability. Our findings suggested that students engaged in active and collaborative learning with technology would employ higher-order thinking and perceived better basic science-related clinical ability. The findings support engaging medical students with 21st century learning practices to strengthen students' self-perception of clinical ability.

The Impact of Stephen Covey’s 7 Habits on Students’ Academic Performance during the COVID-19 Pandemic

The outbreak of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) has affected many areas of human life. It has brought about massive changes to the educational sector as institutions worldwide are forced to close down and students are required to learn from home via online learning. Students were reported to display reluctance and lack of motivation during the online lessons which led to a negative impact on their academic performance during the pandemic. This paper aims to explore the impact of adopting Stephen R.Covey’s 7 Habits of Highly Effective People on students’ academic performance. The study undertaken consists of a descriptive research whereby questionnaires and average score sheets were used to collect data from fifty- six Junior 1 students of a Chinese Independent Secondary School in Selangor, Malaysia. The findings indicate that adopting the prescribed habits brought about substantial impact on students’ academic performance. It helped to deal with the transitional phase in education sector and students learned to overcome the challenges faced. This in turn helped to improve their attitude towards learning and academic performance. Future researchers will be able to use this paper as a base to assess the effectiveness of adopting Stephen Covey’s 7 Habits in the area of students’ co-curricular activities performance. ©Authors

Connecting the dots: Putting instructional design theory to practice in online courses

Many higher education (HE) institutions struggle to connect their lofty goals for exiting students with their operational decisions around programming, especially when those programs are offered fully online. Scholarship is showing that the root of this disconnect often lies in the instructional designs (ID) of programs and the teaching and assessment approaches these designs support. The study forms part of a larger study whose aim was to apply a macro/meso/micro-driven action research initiative to align ID models being used by instructors with 21st century goals and contemporary learning theories. The aim of the study was to determine the impact of this initiative on learner profiles. The study focussed on working adult students (n=2,300), the majority from socially and academically disadvantaged backgrounds, enrolled in a 2-year full time technical institute in Chile. An action-based research approach was used involving both qualitative and quantitative data collection tools including focus groups, extensive field notes, observations and surveys. The data collection took place over 8 months, between 2020 and 2021, during which time changes to the ID model, teaching approaches and virtual pedagogical resources were mediated. Perceptions of students and teachers of the changes were collected through pre, mid and post questionnaires and in-depth interviews. Results show a salient transition among students from thinking and learning autonomously, i.e alone, in isolation, to self-directed behaviours that involve engaged participation in social collaborative learning opportunities within and beyond the virtual learning program. Importantly, evidence also revealed many students evolving from positions of disadvantage and lacking to ones depicting confident, communicative, involved and aspiring identities. These findings underline the potential that wider application of such ID models in online learning practice could have for educational development. The research could be a contribution to the emerging instances of online learning which are increasing rapidly in the wake of the COVID pandemic both in Chile and abroad. The results not only have theoretical relevance for e-learning research, but also provide empirical evidence for understanding and effective decision-making in a cross-section of institutions that offer programs through this modality. © the authors, 2021. All Rights Reserved.