It is important for science students to develop higher order thinking (HOT) so that they can reason like scientists in the field. In this study, a HOT instructional model for secondary school science was developed with experts. The model would focus on reflective thinking (RT) and science process skills (SPS) among Grade 7 students. The Fuzzy Delphi Method (FDM) was employed to determine consensus among a panel of 20 experts. First, semi-structured interviews were conducted among the experts to generate the elements required for the model. Then, a questionnaire was developed using a seven-point linguistic scale based on these elements. The defuzzification value was calculated for each item, and a threshold value (d) of 0.75 was used to determine consensus for the items in the questionnaire. The alpha-cut value of >0.5 was used to select the phases and sub-phases in the model. The elements in the model were ranked to identify the sub-phases which had to be emphasised for implementation in instruction. Consensus was achieved on the phases of the HOT instructional model: engagement, investigation, explanation, conclusion and reflection. An additional 24 learning activities to encourage RT skills and SPS among students were also identified to develop HOT skills in science.

A quasi-experimental research design was used to investigate the effectiveness of synthetic phonics in the development of early reading skills among struggling young English as a second language (ESL) readers in a rural school. The pretest and posttest, adapted from the Phonological Awareness Literacy Screening (PALS) for Preschool Students and Grades 1 to 3 tests, assessed children’s early reading skills. A semi-structured interview was used to gather information. The findings indicated that the performance of students in the experimental group in decoding was significantly higher in the posttest, where t(39) = 31.441, p < .00005. Likewise, in comprehension, the experimental group achieved significantly higher scores in the posttest, where t(39) = 15.322, p < .00005. There was a significant difference in the achievement between the two groups, where t(78) = 31.010, p < .00005. This indicates that synthetic phonics could be effective in developing early reading skills for struggling readers.

Concepts related to molecular structure are often challenging for students to visualize and comprehend. Augmented reality has emerged as a promising solution to this problem, providing students with opportunities to manipulate and visualize chemical molecular structures to improve their understanding. Furthermore, collaborative learning environments have the potential to enhance student learning by fostering knowledge sharing and collaborative authoring. However, there is a dearth of research exploring students' acceptance of augmented reality in a collaborative learning context. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the technology acceptance of a wearable collaborative augmented reality system in chemistry education among junior high school students. Specifically, 124 students used Microsoft® HoloLens 2 device to learn about chemical molecular structure. Data was collected using the Extended Technology Acceptance Questionnaire after participants used the system and analyzed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling. The extended model takes knowledge sharing, collaborating learning, and collaborative authoring as exogenous variables with perceived ease of use and perceived usability and finally produces a structural model that leads to behavioral usage intentions. The hypotheses tested in this study were accepted as the relationships were significant. Knowledge sharing, collaborative learning, and collaborative authoring have a positive impact on perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use respectively; and perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use have significant effects on behavioral intention to use respectively. This study conclusively demonstrated the hypothesized relationships. Evidence from these results provides comprehensive insights that can help policymakers and educators better understand the factors influencing the adoption of wearable collaborative augmented reality.

Sustainable environmental education (SEE) can develop global citizens. However, environmental education in schools does not develop environmental citizenship (EC). Virtual reality (VR) could provide authentic immersive experiences to evoke emotions for positive action for EC. A SEE module, designed to include VR experiences, was evaluated at a secondary school to determine if it could improve students’ EC. A quasi-experimental single-group pre-test post-test design was conducted with 30 students, followed by focus group interviews with the students. The findings indicated the module was effective in improving EC scores. Analysis of interview transcripts indicated students were engaged and motivated to learn with VR and improved in EC competences. However, the future actions for EC were limited to individual actions and not community-based actions. Although there was some potential in the SEE module, some improvements are needed. Future studies could investigate strategies for making students agents of change in the community.