Publications

While teachers’ conservative attitude toward technology has been identified as a barrier to effective technology integration in classrooms, it is often optimistically assumed that this issue will resolve when the digital generation enters the teaching profession (Morris, 2012). Using a mixed methodology approach, this study aimed to examine the current technology usage of digital generation student teachers and the impact of possible internal and external barriers (such as self-efficacy, risk taking, and technology access and support) on their use of technology. Seventy-one student teachers first responded to an online survey regarding their technology use in classrooms. Afterwards, six participants were purposefully selected, based on their survey responses, to participate in follow-up interviews about their attitudes toward technology and challenges of integrating technology to teaching. Findings of the study suggested that digital generation student teachers’ use of technology in the classroom was significantly correlated with their self-efficacy, perceived computer skills, and technology access and support. However, the participants’ perceived level of risk taking was not related to their use of technology in the classroom. Findings of the study suggest that digital native student teachers have not necessarily become more comfortable keeping pace with the fast rate of change in technology. Implications of findings are discussed.

Since mixed methods research began as an Anglo-American movement (Creswell & Plano Clark, 2011), there is little information about how it has emerged in non-Western cultural contexts such as East Asia and China. Without this knowledge, a gap in understanding occurs about the diffusion and expansion of mixed methods in some of the most populous cultures in the world. The objective of this qualitative case study is to present a detailed analysis of how mixed methods is being used by Chinese scholars in the region of East China. Five themes emerged from the inductive coding. These were the need for using mixed methods, the designs, the current status of the use, the ways to improve the use, and the contextual factors influence the expansion of mixed methods in China. With mixed methods research increasingly attracting worldwide attention, this discussion makes a unique contribution by exploring its expansion into Mainland China.

Longitudinal research is well suited for investigating phenomena that change over time. With the growing acceptance of mixed methods, researchers are combining qualitative and quantitative approaches within longitudinal research. However, little attention has been paid to how researchers integrate longitudinal mixed methods databases. The purpose of this methodological review was to describe how researchers combine mixed methods and longitudinal approaches in practice and delineate dimensions and issues inherent within these complex designs. We examined published empirical studies from the health sciences that self-identified as longitudinal and mixed methods. Our results identify major dimensions, variations, and issues for designing longitudinal mixed methods research and suggest recommendations for researchers interested in using this complex approach.

This study investigates the relationship between wisdom and ego-identity among university students in China. Using Marcia's ego-identity statuses and Ardelt's wisdom dimensions as the theoretical and conceptual framework, the study investigates 356 university students in China. After exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses, four factors from wisdom and five factors from ego-identity were retrieved. A structural equation model was then conducted to analyse the relationships. The findings were: (1) among wisdom dimensions, cognitive, and reflective wisdom, especially perspective-taking best predicted achievement, (2) all three dimensions of wisdom predicted moratorium, but reflective wisdom was the most pronounced predictor, (3) all three dimensions of wisdom predicted diffusion, but resentment items from reflective wisdom were the most pronounced predictors, and (4) gender was a significant predictor of ego-identity achievement and diffusion. These findings suggest that efforts to build reflective wisdom might contribute to healthier ego-identity formation.

The study examined how playing two roles as assessors and assessees in technology-assisted peer assessment contributes to students' performance. Data from a previous study was recoded and analysed to understand peer assessment processes from a different angle. Findings of our previous study supported the importance of the assessor's role, but not the assessee's role. In the present study, the assessee's role was re-examined based on the assessee's ability to critically judge and act upon peer feedback, instead of quality of peer feedback that they received. Regression analysis was conducted, and results suggested that how students responded to peer feedback, as indicated by the number of good versus misleading suggestions incorporated, significantly predicted their final project scores. The findings support the importance of both assessor and assessee's roles in peer assessment and provide valuable implications for effective implementation of peer assessment.

When moving to a new environment, international graduate students faced a series of transitional difficulties which impact their behaviors and psychological well-being in learning. However, few studies have specifically addressed their experiences with academic adaptation. To understand these students' academic needs, this study explored the academic experiences of ten international graduate students, using individual interviews. The findings revealed three main themes: adjustment to academic interactions with others, development of individual strategies for adjustment, and acquisition of graduate experiences at U.S. graduate school. Specifically, academic interactions included communication with professors, colleagues, school staff, and family members. Individual acculturative strategies referred to both language skills and cultural knowledge. Graduate experiences indicated research concerns and assistantship work. With better understanding of these students' academic adaptation, school administrators and faculty may accurately recognize these students' academic need and then effectively offer supportive campus services. The results of this study may be used to help international students better prepare for U.S. graduate education. (Contains 1 table and 1 figure.)