Pacific Universities’ Leadership during the COVID-19 Pandemic- a Case Study of Fiji and New Zealand

Goundar, Prashneel Ravisan; Sharma, Sherita

doi:10.5539/par.v11n1p1

Cited by 4 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 2 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Medium of instruction (MOI) is the language that is used in delivering lessons in the classrooms or the educational institution. English is the MOI in universities in Fiji (Goundar & Sharma, 2021;Mangubhai, 2002;Mangubhai & Mugler, 2006;Shameem, 2002), therefore having adequate knowledge of academic English will equip students to progress and complete their program of study with ease (Goundar, 2023b). This categorically reaffirms that the aim of testing students is to ultimately help them and not to inadvertently contribute to discrimination based on language proficiency (Goundar, 2023b).…”

Section: Language Testing In Applied Linguistics-the Multilingual Fij...mentioning

confidence: 84%

Examining Fijian first-year university students’ English proficiency on CEFR levels

Goundar

2023

AJAL

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

English is the main lingua franca among the various ethnolinguistic groups in Fiji. This results in a sociocultural problem when students enter universities from different high school backgrounds. To this end, this study analysed the level of difference in writing abilities at the beginning of the first year of study and at the end of the first-year program of undergraduate students. The goal was to generate new insights that could inform ongoing efforts towards ameliorating academic English language proficiency in Fiji. The study took place at a university in Fiji where 120 students were sampled at the beginning of the first year and at the end of their first year of university program. This study used the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) to evaluate student writing skills and for the development of curricula to meet students’ needs. The study employed quantitative research design to a longitudinal language testing research context. The CEFR was successful in gauging the student’s preparedness for university study and work life. Out of the 120 students, it was observed that from the 62 students who were at the A1 level at the end beginning of the year progressed to levels B1 and B2. Out of 62, 21 moved to B1 where 41 moved to B2. Further, 49 students from A2 level also progressed as 44 of these students had B2 and another 5 made substantial improvement by moving up to C1 level. The findings of this study can be used in improving support systems to enhance the smooth transition of multilingual students from high school through university and into the workforce. The analyses have the potential to provide insights into how Fijian undergraduate students are performing compared to students in other countries and how the EFL curriculum might be adapted to students’ needs.

show abstract

Section: Language Testing In Applied Linguistics-the Multilingual Fij...mentioning

confidence: 84%

Examining Fijian first-year university students’ English proficiency on CEFR levels

Goundar

2023

AJAL

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…A research can lead to new contributions to the existing knowledge. The research method is the actual data collection and data analysis method is described (Goundar. 2012).…”

Section: Methods and Theorymentioning

confidence: 99%

Balinese Food Menu in Translation

Pratama

2023

JKB

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Translation plays an important role in transferring the data among languages. Thus, translation is not just about translating languages, but also exploring cultures. This can be seen from the translation of traditional Balinese food menus which used to present various names of special dishes as part of Balinese local wisdom. The translation of traditional Balinese food menus is interesting to study since there are no professional translators involved in making it and the emergence of various technical terms are not easy to translate. This research was conducted with a qualitative descriptive method to analyze data and determine the translation strategy by considering the aspects of ingredients, taste, size, process, and shape. The theoretical framework by Newmark (1988) was applied to examine the data. The results of the analysis show that the food menu translation strategy which includes expansion and descriptive equivalent are based on several aspects of food menu translation.

show abstract

“…Due to the colonial history of Fiji, English has emerged as the main lingua franca amongst the various ethnolinguistic groups in the country (Goundar, 2019b). English is also the sole medium of instruction at all three universities in the country (Goundar and Sharma, 2021). The dominance of English in the context of tertiary education results in a sociocultural problem when students enter universities from a variety of high school backgrounds.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Language, educational inequalities and epistemic access: crafting alternative pathways for Fiji

Goundar

2023

QRJ

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

PurposeThe goal of this article is two-fold. The first is to contribute new insights to inform education policies for addressing the underlying educational inequalities and injustices that are caused by lack of epistemic access in the context of Fiji higher education. The second is to explore how the Grounded Theory Methodology can be applied to longitudinal language testing research that seeks to reverse epistemic injustices and educational inequalities in Fiji and other comparable multilingual countries.Design/methodology/approachTo explore how the Grounded Theory Methodology can be applied to longitudinal language testing research that seeks to reverse epistemic injustices and educational inequalities in Fiji and other comparable multilingual countries. The study was conducted at a university in Fiji where 120 students were sampled at the beginning of the first year and at the end of their first year of university programme. The same cohort was tracked throughout the project, out of which 30 students were interviewed at the end of the first year.FindingsThe four indicators include: (1) lack of teaching and learning resources, (2) language barriers, (3) problems with the medium of instruction and (4) shortage of experienced teachers.Originality/valueAlthough widely acknowledged in previous studies from elsewhere, the indicators of educational inequalities identified in this study are worth reporting on due to the unique socio-cultural and linguistic context of Fiji.

show abstract

Pacific Universities’ Leadership during the COVID-19 Pandemic- a Case Study of Fiji and New Zealand

Cited by 4 publications

References 2 publications

Examining Fijian first-year university students’ English proficiency on CEFR levels

Examining Fijian first-year university students’ English proficiency on CEFR levels

Balinese Food Menu in Translation

Language, educational inequalities and epistemic access: crafting alternative pathways for Fiji

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About