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For almost 2 decades South Korea has been 1 of the popular destinations for English teaching. Due to the development of globalisation, a great number of qualified and experienced South African teachers decided to invest their career development and personal goals in 1 of the schools in South Korea. However, due to the social and cultural differences, many teachers decided to leave their position within the first few years of their contract. The frequent departure of teachers may negatively influence the students' achievement and the reputation of the school. The purpose of this study was to understand why South African teachers decided to stay in the same school for more than 10 successive years in South Korea. With the application of the phenomenological analysis, 37 participants were invited. Based on the Social Cognitive Career Theory, the results indicate that both the workplace and the social environment were positive for both career and personal development and growth. Government departments, policymakers, school leaders, non-profit organisational leaders, human resource planners, and researchers should regard the findings from this study as support to reform and improve their current regulations and plans for teachers' professional development and teachers' recruitment, particularly regarding school teachers' recruitment and foreign teachers' plans.

This study aimed to understand the language learning strategies of L3 Chinese university students who were taking a year-long university exchange programme in one of the South Korean universities and who had learning experiences with both the Chinese and English languages. Based on the constructivist learning theory, this qualitative study sought to identify the elements and factors that could influence their language learning strategies based on previous and current experiences from 72 Chinese-as-the-first language international students with interviews, focus group activities, and remarkable-item sharing. Two questions guided this study: 1) what are the major applications and strategies of language learning used by the L3 language learners of the Korean language, and 2) what elements and factors influence the language learning strategies that are based on the L3 language learners' previous and current experiences? The results indicated that interests in Korean popular culture and entertainment, contemporary teaching and learning materials, and bridge my previous knowledge with new ideas were the main themes. The study's results outline the preferred teaching and learning strategies and reveal how the participants absorb their foreign language knowledge based on their previous experiences, current experiences, and contemporary situations.

Study abroad is not an easy decision for international students who cannot manage the local language and academic courses, particularly nursing students who need to communicate with their patients in clinical environments. This study aims to explore international nursing students' experiences of pre-sessional language prerequisite courses in South Korea. Three directions were categorised, including what are the motivations and reasons to come to South Korea, how do the international nursing students describe their Korean language courses as the prerequisite for their nursing programme at one of the South Korean universities, and why did the participants select South Korea as their destination for the nursing programme. Based on the Social Cognitive Career and Motivation Theory and a qualitative design, the researcher invited 12 participants who are taking the pre-sessional language courses before the nursing programme commencement. The results indicated that personal considerations, interest in career development, and financial considerations are three of the key elements. The outcomes of this study allowed the nursing school leaders and government agencies to polish their current curriculum plans, international students' recruitment strategies, and post-study career developments for international nursing students in the East Asian region.

Over the past few decades, South Korea has become a popular education and teaching destination for native English teachers, international school teachers, and university lecturers. However, as the COVID-19 pandemic has changed the requirements, offshore teachers need to complete the self-funded quarantine before they can join the workforce in South Korea. This study aims to understand the motivations, career decisions, and decision-making processes of a group of native English teachers who decided to come to South Korea to develop their English language teaching career, particularly those who came during the COVID-19 pandemic. The phenomenological approach with interview session, focus group activity, and member checking interview were employed. Based on the social cognitive career and motivation theory and qualitative data from 38 participants, three themes were categorized: special life pathways, easy employment, and attractive cultural environment. The results of this study may provide some recommendations to school leaders, employers, and policymakers for native English teachers who would like to provide teaching services in their countries. As the COVID-19 pandemic and traveling restrictions will eventually eliminate, the human resources management and school leaders should continue to reform and improve the management to meet the needs of the long-term human resources shortage.

Although women's rights and career developments have changed over the past decade, only a few updated studies have been conducted to understand the current backgrounds of women in engineering. This study aims to understand and investigate the motivations, career decisions, and decision-making processes of a group of women in the engineering industry, specifically, a group of electrical and electronic engineering students in Taiwan. Based on social cognitive career and motivation theory, the study was guided by two research questions: 1) Why do Taiwanese female electrical and electronic engineering students decide to study this major at university level? 2) Do the participants intend to join the electrical and electronic engineering industry after graduation? Why or why not? The general inductive approach research design with interview, focus group, and member checking interview were used. The results indicated that academic interests, interests in career development, and job security concerns played significant roles in the motivations, career decisions, and decision-making processes of a group of female engineering students in Taiwan. The results of this study filled the gaps in gender discrimination, social stigma, and stereotype toward women in engineering, particularly in Taiwan.

The COVID-19 pandemic changed the curricula and mode of instruction for many postgraduate taught and research programs. Before the pandemic, many MA TESOL programs included on-campus tutorials as requirements, as the curricula were designed based on on-campus activities. However, as the United Kingdom restricted face-to-face teaching due to social distancing, most of the courses were switched to online learning platforms during the pandemic. Although most courses returned to on-campus teaching during the 2021/2022 academic year, a group of East Asian international students decided to continue their MA TESOL program online as an alternative option. The purpose of this study is to understand the experiences and decision-making processes about this group of MA TESOL students and their decisions to finish their degrees via the online completion option. In line with social cognitive career and motivation theory, the results indicated that flexibility, career development through online learning options, and concerns about job security were the main three themes that arose within this group of students. The outcomes provide suggestions to university leaders and program directors in regard to developing additional online courses and programs to meet the needs of adult and postgraduate students who cannot attend on-campus courses, particularly MA TESOL learners.

English language teaching is one of the requirements for many Bachelor of Education programmes in Taiwanese education colleges and universities. In Taiwan, English language is considered one of the general education requirements (usually eight credits) for all undergraduate students. Although additional English language courses are not required for graduation, many universities require final-year students to achieve satisfactory grades on the TOEIC (The Test of English for International Communication) exam for graduation. The purpose of this study is to understand the motivations and reasons for the decision of a group of Bachelor of Education (Primary) students to study additional English courses beyond their curriculum. An online-based semi-structured interview tool was employed to recruit and collect data from 20 participants in the School of Education at a Taiwanese university. In line with the Social Cognitive Career and Motivation Theory, two themes were captured: (1) preparation for the TOEIC exam; and (2) career promotions and opportunities. This study provides ideas for programme managers, department heads, and government departments for English language training beyond university requirements. Also, the outcomes indicate that exams played important roles in learners' motivations, particularly in English language learning.

The application of computer-aided teaching and learning approaches is not uncommon in many school environments. However, due to the traditional practices, most of the practice-based courses have still relied on face-to-face teaching methods. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, most programmes have been moved to the online platform. With the case study design, the scholar interviewed 12 participants who have sent students to one of the distance learning based martial arts education courses. Based on the Social Cognitive Career Theory and Social Cognitive Career and Motivation Theory, this project sought to understand the motivation and reasons why do parents want to send students to an online martial arts afterschool programme? The finding showed that the achievements of education and career goals played roles in the motivation and reasons of these groups of parents, regardless of the outcomes of the programmes and the willingness of students. The results of this study provided a blueprint for government leaders, policymakers, school leaders, parents, students, and researchers to understand the current social problem, such as computer-aided tools.

Based on the guidelines of the Social Cognitive Career Theory, the purpose of this study is to understand the motivations and reasons why foreign language university instructors decide to stay in Korea for their life-long career development. This research was guided by one research question, why would foreign university instructors decide to stay in Korea for more than 15 successive years at the same university? With the Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis, ten participants were invited. The results indicated that personal considerations and financial considerations are the most important factors for the career development of these groups of foreign teachers in Korea. This study has contributed to practices devoted to teachers' professional development and career development of foreign teachers. First, the shortage of teachers and educational staff is significant in all locations, regardless of population. Second, the East Asian region is one of the popular destinations for many international students, teachers, and professionals to develop their career goals and personal achievements.

"Fairminded critical thinking" (FCT) is an alternative to traditional critical thinking conceptions as it places greater emphasis on ethical reasoning. Argumentative writing can provide a means to observe and cultivate such thinking qualities. This study introduces a non-linear instructional model to teach FCT, and through a small-scale intervention, explores its potential for developing four FCT intellectual standards in argumentative writing (intellectual accuracy, depth, breadth, and logic) with a group of Chinese university English (EFL) users. Adopting a one-group, pretest-posttest exploratory design, writing samples were assessed with a locally created rubric tool which was also triangulated through an adapted content analysis. Overall, pretest writing samples showed that some thinking skills had already been developed, yet there was a tendency toward one-sided argumentation and the use of informal evidence to justify claims, frequently culminating in a persuasive defense of one position. On the posttest, logic was the only intellectual standard that showed a more noticeable improvement, potentially attributed to the teaching model, representing development of a more moderated, multi-sided articulation of logic. These findings provide impetus for a discussion of how FCT can be further taught and assessed. Theoretical and methodological implications of FCT as a non-traditional approach to critical thinking and argumentation are discussed.

Teachers' shortage is a challenging problem at the secondary level internationally. Secondary schools recruit and co-ordinate with universities and training agencies to fill up the gaps in teachers' shortage. However, the turnover rate of pre-service and in-service teachers is still high. Based on the self-efficacy approach, the purpose of this study is to understand the relationship between self-efficacy and career decision of pre-service student-teachers at the secondary school setting in California, United States. In addition, this research also captured how pre-service student-teachers describe their stress and career decision from their teaching profession. The finding indicated that a significant number of pre-service teachers decided to leave the teaching profession after the completion of the qualifying programs due to negative self-efficacy, sense of isolation, negative administrative style, and uncertainty of promotion. More importantly, the study pointed out that if the self-efficacy level is low, pre-service teachers are less likely for returning. The results of this research provided recommendations to school leaders, university administrators, professional teachers, and policymakers to reform the current educational system for teachers, particularly in the areas of teachers' professional development, career development, and career decision.

Songs and chants in EFL education are both artistic and pedagogical acts belonging to the same family of musical expressions, whose practical use in the classroom is not unfamiliar among teachers. Nevertheless, little effort has been made to distinguish between each other. In this sense, the popularity of songs in the context of EFL/ESL education is well-manifested in research, especially in the context of young learners' teaching, yet little has been said regarding chants in formal studies. The nature of chants entails a less complex musical composition, which lends itself to favoring language development both receptively and productively. While both singing and chanting as pedagogical resources are found positive in learning a new language in aspects such as phonological awareness, pronunciation, word retrieval, and other linguistic functions; it seems that chanting works exceptionally well for stimulating young learners' vocabulary retention, which is a capacity associated with long-term memory. The ease and novelty of conveying language in an unconventional fashion allowed by chanting, afford for simplified and fun repetitions and production of the target language, which may represent the virtues responsible for its positive impact on the young learners' vocabulary learning. Practical recommendations for composing chants and guiding teaching activities based on them are explained.

Student-teaching internships in a teacher-preparation programme are a significant way for teachers to gain practical skills and transfer their textbook knowledge into classroom practice. One of the outcomes of student-teaching internships is that pre-service teachers can observe experienced teachers' teaching pedagogy and strategies for implementing their skills. The purpose of the research study reported on here was to explore how pre-service teachers acquire and improve their teaching pedagogy through the peer observation training model at the secondary school at which they intern, with a focus on pre-service teachers with an interest in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) teaching. The results indicate that most of the participants could learn and improve their teaching pedagogy through the peer observation professional development programme -- particularly young teachers without significant work experience. More importantly, the research proved how a peer observation cycle programme may apply to different educational systems with similar structures internationally, particularly in former European colonised countries with similar backgrounds.

For-profit, post-secondary institutions significantly increased in numbers within the last two decades. In the United States, many for-profit colleges and universities offer distance-learning-based and self-paced-based academic and vocational programs from certificate to doctoral degree level to non-traditional, returning, evening and adult students who cannot enrol at one of the on-campus, day-time programs for traditionally-aged and full-time students. A large number of for-profit colleges and universities employ different strategies to maintain effective numbers of student enrolment and collect enough budget for financial health. This literature paper explains the overview of for-profit colleges and universities in the United States including donation and income sources, enrolment management, employment management and customer-oriented service with the question of how for-profit colleges and universities can survive in the current, rapidly changing environment containing many different competitors. The literature review also provides a brief section about how nursing programs at the for-profit colleges and universities continue their operation in the current financial and educational environment.

Undergraduate distance learning-based programmes in the field of engineering have become one of the popular educational qualifications internationally. Besides traditional-age university students, non-traditional, returning, evening, and adult (NTREA) students make up groups of large significant enrolments at many distance learning programmes. This study explored how undergraduate NTREA students enrolled at the undergraduate distance learning engineering programme described their learning experience and why they decided to enroll in the distance learning-based programmes. 28 participants with majors in civil engineering, computer engineering, environmental engineering, chemical engineering, and biomedical engineering were invited for a private online Skype interview for data collection. The results of this research provide direction for NTREA students, university administrators, educational professionals, career counsellors, human resource planners, policymakers, and governmental leaders to reform and improve human resource planning, educational programmes, and even international enrolment schemes through the development of instructional technology and applications.

The retention of teachers and school professional staff is a challenge for the development and management of schools, particularly for international schools with difficulties in recruiting qualified teachers and school professional staff from overseas. However, only a few research projects have focused on how administrative styles influence the turnover of international school teachers and school professional staff. The researcher collected data from two semi-structured interview sessions with 51 international school teachers who have taught at an international school for more than a decade in one of two metropolitan districts in mainland China. This project aims, through the lens of Social Cognitive Career Theory, to understand why international school teachers and school professional staff decide to stay in a particular international school for their teaching career development. The participants indicated "acknowledgement from upper leadership", "classroom/workplace authorities", and "well-established facilities" to explain their current occupation as experienced international school teachers. The findings also outline potential solutions which could control the high turnover rate in international schools and local schools in the East Asian regions.

Due to the developments of globalisation, the international reputation, the entertainment industry, and Korean pop culture, a large number of language teachers, international schoolteachers, and professional school staff decided to travel to South Korea for career development and enhancement. However, due to a constant shortage of teachers through high turnover, many South Korean schools and universities are facing recruitment issues. The purpose of this study was to investigate two problems. Why do individuals decide to come to South Korea as foreign language university teachers, and how do individuals describe their teaching experiences as foreign language teachers at one of the university teaching and learning environments in South Korea. From the perspective of the Social Cognitive Career Theory (SCCT), the results indicated that all participants travelled to South Korea for financial and career development goals. Also, all faced negative experiences and discrimination due to their skin colours and nationalities. The researcher hopes the appropriate personnel can take this study as an opportunity to improve and enhance their current workplace and community for a better environment and development.

South Korea is one of the most popular destinations for foreign language teachers wanting to start developing a career. Due to the rapid development and demands of foreign language teachers, the human resources department of the educational system is facing challenges. Many schools, including the private educational academies, always recruit language teachers for their afterschool preparational programs. However, the turnover rates for these teachers is significantly high for various reasons. This study employed the lens of the Model of Retention, Turnover, and Attrition for the exploration of 55 foreign language teachers who decided to leave their teaching position after the completion of their first-year contract. The results indicated that all participants had an unpleasant or negative experience in their social atmosphere and school environment stemming from discriminations, negative managerial styles from school administrators, and impolite practices from parents and students. Researchers, school leaders, parents, students, human resource professionals, policymakers, and government agencies should take this opportunity to reform and improve the educational environment and human resource management in South Korea.

This literature review was undertaken in 2019 with the goal of examining the health effects of screen time exposure on school-aged youth. With the COVID-19 outbreak in early 2020, and the subsequent requirement for many students to learn online, concerns about youth exposure to screens only became more pronounced. Now, more than ever, it is vital that educators--both new and old--consider the effects of screen time exposure. Three databases were accessed for the literature review including EBSCO Education Source, APA (American Psychological Association) PsycNet, and Ovid MEDLINE. The final set of 22 studies were compiled using systematic searches conducted in January 2019 using search terms associated with screen time use among adolescents. The categories of effects that emerged were: (a) physical, (b) behavioural, and (c) psychological. While some of the results of these studies demonstrate small but significant negative correlations between screen time exposure and health effects, and are potentially helpful in understanding screen time associations with the identified factors, in their conclusions authors point out that it is difficult to establish causal connections. Discussion of the results focuses on the potential that familial influences may have in terms of supporting youth in establishing positive screen time behaviours.

This study investigated the sense-making process and career decision and development of male pre-school and elementary school teachers in the New England region in the United States through the perspective of Social Cognitive Career Theory (SCCT). Two research questions guided this study. First, why male teachers decided to join the pre-school and elementary school profession as their life-long career development, and second, how do male teachers describe their position and the sense-making process of their profession. Based on the Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA), the researcher invited and collected rich and in-depth data from ten participants. The results indicated that male pre-school and elementary school teachers believed their gender status and role could provide unique modelling for young children, particularly those from a single-parent family. Also, many believed that human resource professionals and school leaders should pay attention to gender diversity and gender inequality issues in the areas of the pre-school and elementary school environments. Based on the in-depth sharing, the results of this study could become a blueprint for school leaders and human resource professionals to direct their workplace and gender inequality issues toward male professionals in the current K-12 educational environment.

Teaching language with effective theories, directions and ways of instructing is a vital topic in the current fields of teaching and learning. Locating the most appropriate and effective teaching and learning methodologies and strategies for a given situation is important for language learning classrooms. Over the years, many theories have been created to meet the needs of the learners of that time period. However, due to the rapid development of social and cultural environments, a large number of contemporary theories have been developed and employed in a variety of different approaches and applications. This paper is a literature review paper which discusses the Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) approach, together with relevant teaching and learning methodologies and strategies. The purpose of this paper is to outline advantages, disadvantages and applications of CLT. The researcher reviewed some historical and some current papers relating to how a CLT approach can be beneficial in the current classroom environment. The result of this paper was provision of an effective overview which applies to language teachers to assist in locating and establishing appropriate teaching and learning strategies for their students with different social and cultural backgrounds.

Teaching in international schools is challenging for teachers and professional school staff due to language barriers, cultural shocks, teaching and learning expectations, support and even living standards. As a result, international schools often organise recruitment fairs to recruit professionals and prevent them from frequent departures. Such departures always cost resources and reduces the performance and morale of the schools. To understand this issue and provide a solution, the researcher collected data from 28 qualified international school teachers and professional school staff who have provided education services for more than 20 years in Hong Kong. The participants used terms such as "bridging the future leaders", "connecting both local students and international expatriates in a safe environment", "transferring foreign, home and essential knowledge to local and international students" to describe their current positions for lifelong career decisions and career development. The results of this study outlined areas on how to improve the managerial styles and teachers' professional development plans in order to retain staff population and increase the morale of incoming and junior-level teachers.

The purpose of this study is to explore the reasons why parents decide to send their children to privately funded primary schools providing a bilingual English language program (BELP) after completion of native language-oriented kindergarten education (i.e. Chinese language). This study was guided by one research question: Why do parents decide to send their children to a primary school with a BELP after the completion of native language-oriented kindergarten education? In order to engage with the nature of the qualitative inquiry, 35 parents were invited to share their understanding and decision of BELP for their children with a semi-structured, face-to-face, and one-on-one interview. Three themes were emerged for reporting: 1. the expectation of advanced English language skills; 2. preparation for international schools, overseas schools, and university admission; and 3. the satisfaction of parents themselves. The findings indicated that parents tend to select programs, which satisfy their own interests instead of being the most appropriate for children. These findings imply that the decision to study in a school with a BELP after native language-oriented kindergarten education is affected by a combination of factors: globalization, advanced English language skills, preparation for further education, career development, and more importantly, the satisfaction of parents.

Effective teaching and learning strategy is one of the most important topics in the field of teachers' professional development. Teachers' education and pre-service teachers' training programmes provide necessary coursework, field experience, and student teaching internship experience to pre-service, potential, and second career teachers who are seeking initial license status. Due to the rapid developments in Hong Kong, China, school teachers face challenges, difficulties, and social problems due to excess enrolment of teachers from different backgrounds. The regular curriculum and material also fail to cover all these issues. The current study applied the seminar technique as recommended in Polya's "Four-Step Problem-Solving Model" with targeted discussion topics and engaged 12 STEM pre-service teachers at one of the Postgraduate Diploma in Education (PGDE) programmes. The results indicated that beyond regular coursework, field experience, and internship experiences embedded in the curriculum, additional seminars allowed the participants to establish inter-disciplinary teaching strategies and critical thinking skills. The results of this study serve as a blueprint for teachers' education programme leaders and school administrators to establish similar seminars and conduct such sessions for their pre-service and in-service teachers to refresh and advance their teaching and learning strategies.

English language learning is one of the most famous and popular learning destinations and interests for many adults and returning students in the East Asian region, particularly for senior citizens who want to expand their horizon during late adulthood. Although there are many foreign language learning schools, self-learning books, video-oriented materials, and even social media channels for students who want to study an additional language during their leisure time, locating a useful and appropriate textbook or related material is the most important step to increase learner's interests and overall performance. The current study employed a textbook evaluation checklist of a well-known General English textbook material in South Korea. The results of this study indicated the learning behaviours of Korean senior citizens, outlined the application of a textbook evaluation checklist, and evaluated the effectiveness and usefulness of a General English textbook. School leaders, teachers, and department heads can employ this textbook evaluation checklist to evaluate their teaching and learning materials for the appropriateness.