Language, Literature and Education: Research Updates Vol. 9

Examining the Influence of Headmasters’ Sustainable Leadership Practices on Teachers’ Learning Organisation Practices in Malaysia

K. Saraswathy — 2025-11-20

The profound global realignments across economic, social, and technological domains have necessitated a collective response from all stakeholders in education. Headmasters and teachers, as pivotal agents of change, are called to work in unison to reimagine, restore, and fortify the education system for future resilience so that continuous learning opportunities are provided to all students. Amidst this period of constant transformation, teachers are pressured to continue learn new skills to adapt and master technology-assisted teaching practices and be more creative to ensure students remain engaged in learning. Thus, this study investigated the influence of headmasters’ sustainable leadership practices towards teachers’ learning organisation practices at primary schools within Indigenous communities in Malaysia.

A survey-based quantitative research methodology was utilised in this study. A total of 518 teachers were sampled using the Sustainable Leadership Questionnaire (SLQ) and Dimensions of Learning Organisation Questionnaire (DLOQ) instruments. Consequently, SPSS 25.0 was utilised to investigate the reliability, descriptive and inferential statistics for data analysis.

The reliability of the instruments was proved by the Cronbach's alpha value achieved for the headmasters’ sustainable leadership practices, is 0.975, and for learning organisation practices, with a value of 0.951. The value of R Square (R²) = 0.664 proved that the sustainable leadership practices by headmasters influenced the teacher’s learning organisation practices at a high level of 66.4 per cent. This finding indicated that 66.4% of learning organisation practices by teachers at primary schools within Indigenous communities in Malaysia were influenced by the headmasters’ sustainable leadership practices. This study revealed that headmasters' sustainable leadership practices have a significant and strong positive influence on learning organisation practices in these schools.

The consequence of this study will help schools head, especially headmasters, to reflect on their own leadership practices in this volatile and ever-changing educational ecosystem, where there is a need for educators, especially teachers, to acquire knowledge to adopt new skills and proficiency so that they can survive and offer excellent educational services. Implications and recommendations for future research are discussed.

Enhancing Vocabulary Acquisition in Second Language Learners through Self-Regulation, Spaced Repetition, and Cognitive Load Management Strategies

Shamsi Samavi Aghdam — 2025-11-20

Second language learners face a significant challenge in acquiring, retention and retrieving vocabulary. Building a strong vocabulary is essential for becoming fluent in a second language. Traditional methods like memorisation often prove ineffective. Recent breakthroughs in the understanding of memory and learning offer promising alternatives, such as Spaced Repetition (SR) and spaced retrieval (SpR), believed to work even better together.SR strategically schedules reviews of learned vocabulary at optimal intervals, leveraging the well-established spacing effect to enhance memory consolidation. SpR, on the other hand, emphasises active recall, where learners reconstruct information from memory without prompts, fostering deeper understanding and retrieval fluency. Effectively managing cognitive load, the amount of information learners can process at once, is crucial for the successful implementation of SR and SpR techniques. This study aims to investigate not only how learners perceive the effectiveness of this approach for long-term retention and practical application, but also how they experience the learning process in terms of cognitive load. This study incorporates a qualitative research approach to report the lived experiences of L2 learners utilising a combined SR and SpR method for vocabulary acquisition. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews. The data analysis involved coding and interpreting data to identify key themes and patterns in learners' experiences. The integration of SR and SpR positively influences the overall learning experience by promoting deeper cognitive engagement and better retention. Research shows that combining different instructional strategies, such as top-down and bottom-up processes, enhances vocabulary learning and retention. Cognitive load refers to the amount of information that learners can process at one time. While spaced learning offers advantages, it can be overwhelming if learners are presented with excessive vocabulary or complex retrieval tasks. As research on this combined approach continues to evolve, educators can utilise these findings to create inclusive and effective learning environments that empower L2 learners to achieve fluency and confidence in their vocabulary usage.

A Comparative Study of Word Learning Strategies in L1 and L2 Acquisition through the Emergentist Coalition Model (ECM)

Shamsi Samavi Aghdam — 2025-11-20

The acquisition of vocabulary is a fundamental aspect of language development, with distinct trajectories for first (L1) and second language (L2) learners. While children effortlessly absorb new words, adults often encounter challenges in expanding their L2 lexicon. This qualitative study compared the word learning strategies of children acquiring their first language (L1) and adults acquiring a second language (L2) using the Emergentist Coalition Model (ECM) as a framework. Participants included children aged 4–7 and adults aged 18–65, selected through purposive sampling. Semi-structured interviews were conducted to explore their learning strategies. This study's findings suggest that the ECM framework operates in both L1 and L2 acquisition, but with some key variations. Thematic analysis revealed that children relied more on implicit learning through social cues and phonological awareness, while adults adopted a more explicit and strategic approach, emphasising semantic knowledge. These findings highlighted the influence of developmental stage and learning context on word learning strategies. By demonstrating the importance of both implicit and explicit learning for L1 and L2 learners, this study contributed to a more holistic understanding of word acquisition.

Theoretical and Procedural Knowledge in Philippine Folk Dance: Implications for Dance Pedagogy among BPEd Students

Irinco, Rudy T. — 2025-11-20

Folk dancing is an expression of art through movement and action. It symbolises culture and an expression of feeling. Philippine Traditional Dances is a core subject in the Bachelor of Physical Education (BPEd) curriculum, providing historical and cultural insights through theoretical and practical instruction. BPEd students are expected to possess fundamental knowledge of folk dance, interpret its context, and execute basic steps with precision. While there are BPED students who possess strong knowledge and skills in folk dances, some still have difficulty understanding the theories and concepts behind them. This study examines the theoretical and procedural knowledge in Philippine folk dances among BPEd students of the University of Eastern Philippines System as a basis for enhancing dance pedagogy. Using a descriptive-correlational design, 103 randomly selected students participated, with data gathered through a questionnaire and performance evaluation and analysed using SPSS. Findings indicate that respondents possess good general knowledge of folk dance history, classification, and terminology, while their ability to identify dance types and use props was rated very good; knowledge of folk-dance costumes was good. However, their theoretical knowledge of dance step patterns and procedural knowledge, assessed through the execution of dance movements, was rated fair. Overall, the respondents demonstrate a strong theoretical understanding of the cultural and contextual aspects of Philippine folk dances but exhibit varying levels of proficiency in the intricate details of dance step patterns and their practical execution. These results underscore the need to enhance curricular programs to improve both theoretical and procedural knowledge, ensuring the academic excellence of BPEd students in physical education and dance instruction. The study recommended that Physical Education teachers should devote more effort to teaching specific folk dances, step patterns, characteristics, and other essential details in folk dances, utilise performance-based assessments to evaluate practical mastery. Use visual aids like videos and live demonstrations to enhance students’ learning.

Sociocultural Triggers in the Appreciation of Art and Literature

Savio James V. — 2025-11-20

The sociocultural triggers that affect and regulate the working of art and literature in contemporary society have undergone rapid changes over the years. Today, the acceptance and appreciation of literature or any other art form defy common perceptions, parameters, and theoretical interpretations put forth by literary or art critics through their ways of analysis. The self-styled interpreters and value judges of literature or art who have their own theories to hold onto believe that literary appreciation is equivalent to extracting aesthetic lessons from texts or art forms based on established practices. Thus, the recognition and understanding of the content-bearing media, literary devices, critical commentaries, and value judgements by the art critics are believed to precede literary appreciation. However, with poststructuralism and postmodernism slowly drifting away, a wilful rejection of grand narratives has assertively brought in pluralist, reflexive, and pastiche cultures of literary and art appreciation modes. All this has led to a kind of cultural sensibility that oscillates between, synthesises, and transcends the logics of modernism and postmodernism.

Thus, the objective of this study is to analyse how technological advances and cultural shifts have altered the way people look upon and appreciate literature and art. The technological advances have recast the nature and scope of life on this planet in a surprisingly brief period of time. Alongside developed a new culture of literary or art appreciation was developed that was more vicarious than participatory. An array of new possibilities offered by the virtual world has also added to this visible shift in the contemporary approaches to the appreciation of art and literature.

The common assumption is that literature springs from spontaneous, imaginative streaks of genius that demand reflection and analysis to extract its essence, leading to delight. However, the sights and sounds emanating from the sites of performances and the scenes of entertainment make us think otherwise. There are instances that reiterate the role of the epidemic frenzy chiefly perpetuated by the visual media and internet social network groups. When entertainment becomes visualised and vicarious, frenzy develops from the impulsive outbursts of the mind submerged in virtual reality. There is entertainment even in those events and emotions that are capable of generating crude excitement. There used to be a time when art and literature offered soothing tranquillity to troubled minds, but now it is the frenzied mind that sets the norms of excellence in addition to its blatant indulgence in meanness and crudity. The study, therefore, tries to establish that the virtual media-driven frenzy is systematically displacing traditional reflective and critical analysis as the dominant mode of literary appreciation, raising questions about the future of critical engagement with art and literature.

People these days move on rapidly, leaving behind the objects that entertain them. They never pause to have a closer look, nor do they reflect on the objects that captured their attention or imagination. How can, then, their appreciation and ways of entertainment exhibit deep levels of thinking solidly backed up by theories and ideologies? Thus, appreciation becomes highly relative to individual sensitivity and impulsive, attitudinal responses that abruptly erupt with the assistance of viral marketing or by the manipulation of public sentiments in social media circles. Literary or art appreciation, therefore, shows the impact of impulsive impressions rather than a premeditated or aesthetically fine-tuned sensibility obtained from works of art. The post-modern reader or spectator keeps contemporary literature away from its formative function of helping man to perfect his rational essence by refining or reforming his sensibilities. On the other hand, his mode of appreciation inverts its stature to bury its intrinsic value under the floating façade of vicarious entertainment. Hence, the observable form of the exposition on the nature of appreciation is the absence of any stable formative basis.

Importance of Culturally Relevant Teaching in the Digital Age: Approaches to Student-centered and Personalized Learning in Emerging Countries

Matthieu W Yangambi — 2025-11-20

The significance of digital technology and personalisation in educating digitally underrepresented students is nowadays paramount. To survive, learners must manage to update their skills, the skills of the 21st-century world. Various documents from developed countries, which aim to transform teaching and learning practices in developing nations, emphasise the importance of aligning education in underdeveloped countries with that in developed countries.

Culturally responsive teaching is an evidence-based method that acknowledges the essential role of culture in the learning process. It facilitates the integration of students’ cultural backgrounds and life experiences into the educational process. The purpose of this study was to investigate the importance of culturally relevant teaching (CRT) and personalised learning in developing countries in the digital age. It aims to contribute to the achievement of quality education in these communities worldwide and promote effective teaching and learning of concepts. This review study synthesises previous research and theoretical frameworks to explore how culturally relevant teaching (CRT), personalised learning, and student-centred approaches can be effectively implemented in developing countries within the digital age.

Research on these specific topics has indicated that digital technology associated with CRT and personalised learning positively impacts the lives of digitally underrepresented communities. Teaching strategies, such as Adaptive Learning Technologies (ALT) and Universal Design for Learning (UDL), enhance teaching and learning in digitally marginalised communities, equipping technologically marginalised students with the necessary skills to thrive in the digital age.

Adapting school systems' curricula and instruction to these unique educational environments, while considering the importance of culture, individualised teaching, and learning, and emphasising digital era applications, is indispensable.

The results of this work may inform and encourage educators, policymakers, and Government officials about instructional strategies to implement in the classroom to meet the learning needs of every student. This calls for adopting personalised learning and culturally responsive teaching practices for the overall performance of all students. Recommendations are included. This study is limited by its reliance on secondary data from existing literature, particularly research conducted in developed countries. Future studies should incorporate empirical investigations within developing contexts to validate these findings and design culturally responsive digital education models tailored to local needs and infrastructures.

A New Exploration of the Relationship between Daoist Texts and Literary Studies: Take Lu Xiujing as an Example

Mianheng Liu — 2025-11-20

The study of Chinese culture has increasingly benefited from the cross-genre and interdisciplinary exchanges that arise from this diversity. Daoist and literary studies, in particular, frequently intersect, encouraging a harmonious exploration of diversity. Over the past century, scholars have made significant contributions to these two fields, advancing an understanding of both. The interdisciplinary study of Daoism and literature can be broadly categorised into three main approaches: analysing literary works as sources of Daoist material, examining Daoist scriptures as literary texts, and exploring the influence of Daoist beliefs on writers. This paper proposes a new perspective that complements these existing frameworks: by examining Daoist scriptures, we can better assess whether certain literary expressions or rhetorical devices were innovative or simply widespread conventions among writers of a particular period. Using the works of Lu Xiujing 陸修靜 (406–477 CE) as a case study, this paper builds on Haun Saussy’s argument that the use of “fragrance” as a rhetorical device to modify virtue—often surprising to modern scholars—was, in fact, a familiar trope for ancient Chinese writers. However, the paper critiques Saussy’s reliance on the works of the famous poet Qu Yuan屈原 (c. 342–278 BCE) as evidence. Unlike Qu Yuan, who was primarily a literary figure, Lu Xiujing, as a Daoist scholar, frequently employed metaphors related to smell and taste to express abstract moral or doctrinal concepts. For Lu and his contemporaries, such expressions were not regarded as remarkable literary techniques but rather as conventional modes of discourse. This suggests that, at least in early medieval China, such rhetorical usage among writers was not seen as novel but as commonplace. Lu Xiujing's example demonstrates that practical religious literature from the pre-modern era can be used to support the fact that some rhetorical devices that seem astonishing to modern researchers might not have been novel but rather common in a certain historical period. From this, this study can contribute to the comparative literature and interdisciplinary methodology of literature and religious studies.

Engaging Family in the Early Childhood Curriculum: The Role of Pedagogical Documentation in Greece

Domna- Mika Kakana — 2025-11-20

Aims: Pedagogical documentation is used in many countries, and its importance and effects are recognised in multiple levels. However, it is not a legislated requirement in the Greek formal curriculum for early childhood education. Our research program aimed to help educators use pedagogical documentation in the educational process, and to bring parents closer to the early childhood curriculum, in an active and participatory way, through the documentation process. The main research question referred to the way in which the systematic use of pedagogical documentation can help parents understand the kindergarten’s daily curriculum and participate in it in a new way, in a country where pedagogical documentation is not mandatory.

Place and Duration of the Study: The study took place in Thessaloniki, Greece, and the duration was seven months. The sample was ten educators from five kindergartens and one hundred and ninety-two children, aged four to six years. Methodology: We used collaborative action research, between ten educators and two researchers from the same university department, to intervene in the educational process and advance it through the flexible use of space and the use of pedagogical documentation from children, educators and parents. The methodological tools were a researcher’s diary, two digital questionnaires for the educators (pre-/post-implementation) and a post-implementation digital questionnaire for the parents.

Results: The results showed that the pedagogical documentation helped the educators to bring the parents closer to the kindergarten’s daily program and made them feel as if they could participate in it creatively. The need for more active participation of parents led to the improvised use of digital documentation through Padlet. Space proved to be a crucial factor in the development of the program. It functioned as a living system of people, perspectives and practices.

Conclusion: Collaboration and the sharing of knowledge among the educators and between the educators and parents, using different educational strategies, helped parents to become involved more systematically and substantially in the kindergarten’s curriculum, constructing a community of relations, participation, trust, shared values and learning among them.

Influence of Internet Usage on Academic Achievement of the Students of Dibrugarh University

Ratna Das — 2025-11-20

Internet use has become an integral part of life for the majority of students in higher education all around the world. Students frequently use the internet for various academic purposes, such as preparing course assignments, studying notes, and conducting research projects. While the use of the internet has a great impact on the academic life of the student, excessive usage may negatively affect their academic achievement. The present study was conducted to study the influence of internet usage on the academic achievement of the students of Dibrugarh University. Ex-post-facto research method was used to study the influence of Internet Usage on the Academic Achievement of the students of Dibrugarh University. The study adopted both purposive and incidental sampling techniques to select the sample for the study. In the present study, the descriptive survey method was used. The data were collected from the students of both liberal and professional programmes of study through a self-constructed Internet Usage Questionnaire. The collected data were analysed and interpreted using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences. Findings of the study indicated that there is an influence of Internet Usage on the Academic Achievement of the students of Dibrugarh University. A significant difference in Academic Achievement was found between the students who had been using the internet daily for less than 3 hours and more than 7 hours; therefore, it was concluded that there was an influence of frequency of Internet Usage (per day) on Academic Achievement of the students of Dibrugarh University. Additionally, the frequency of internet use specifically for academic purposes was also found to influence students’ academic achievement. Therefore, the study concluded that there is an influence of Internet Usage on the Academic Achievement of the students of Dibrugarh University.

Rewriting History from the Margins: A Subaltern Historicist Reading of Mahasweta Devi’s Selected Fiction

P.R. Amutha Arockia Mary — 2025-11-24

Ever since the dawn of critical enquiry, the claims of history and writers of history(ies) had been held under suspension, in favor of alternative truth(s). In the poststructuralist milieu, one barely zeroes in on one truth or the absolute truth, but writers like Mahasweta Devi, continually ascertain the claim to ‘unwrite’ the existing history(es), and rewrite one. Mahasweta Devi defines literature as a ‘responsible’ act that originates from the historical commitments of the writer. These commitments necessitate literature to be written to achieve the transformation of the unjust social system. She attempts to write the history of those individuals whose existence itself was a hearsay for writers at large and the writers of history(ies) in particular. When Devi took to writing, writing by individuals from the marginal lot was a rare phenomenon. National narratives were held in glory. It took her indomitable spirit and a fighter’s instinct to write for the tribals. All of her narratives are directed towards the most important claim and right of the tribals – to be in history, to have history and to write history. Devi’s literary intervention can also be read through the lens of subaltern historiography, which recollects the voices and experiences of the marginalized that are systematically silenced by the dominant historical narratives. By reinforcing the lives of tribals and other oppressed groups, she challenges the hegemony of mainstream history. Her work exemplifies how literature can act as a counter-discourse, destabilizing established power structures and asserting the presence of those who have historically been rendered invisible.