PhD Dissertations

This research aims to perceive the impact of employing virtual tours on visual thinking and academic achievement. The study scrutinizes three types of virtual tours: virtual tours with images, videos and 3D. The research pursues the quasi-experimental approach, where the study population comprised of educational technology students from Sultan Qaboos University. The research’s sample composed of (180) students who were divided into six experimental groups. Each group includes (30) students. The research’s instruments are represented in designing an interactive electronic program that enclose learning with images for the first group, video for the second group, and 3D for the third group. The experiment period lasted for three months. A test for cognitive achievement and another one for visual thinking were prepared formerly and later for the three groups. The research employed the following statistical processors: repeated measures test, one way Anova test, and independent sample tests. The results of the analysis revealed that there is statistically significant incongruity between the students' scores in the pre and posttests of cognitive achievement. In the first group (image), the effect size shows that 74% of variance is in favor of posttest, 82% in the second group (video) is in favor of posttest, and 90% in the third group (3D) is in favor of posttest. In the visual thinking test, the results also showed that 92% in the first group (image) is in favor of posttest, 70% in the second group (video) is in favor of posttest, and 83% in the third group (3D) is in favor of posttest. This portrays the effectiveness of the virtual tours of images, video and 3D. The results revealed out that the best virtual tours are the 3D tour, since the students who were taught in the 3D approach had a higher level of cognitive achievement (C=24.53) compared to the students who were taught by image approach (C=23.13). In the visual thinking test, the results manifested that there were statistically significant differences between the scores of the first experimental group (image) and the scores of the third experimental group (3D) in the posttest are in favor of the third experimental group (3D) (C=24.70). In the light of results obtained, the research recommends developing the use of virtual tour technology in learning, by virtue of its impact on learning for both scientific and applied aspects.

This study aimed to investigate the internal and external school environment and their relationship to behavioral engagement and academic achievement in schools in Al Batinah North Governorate in the Sultanate of Oman. The study included some sub-aims: to explore the impact of the internal and external environment on the behavior engagement in its three sub-categories (Educational, schooling and perseverance), to investigate the possible relation between the internal and external environment and academic achievement, and to explore the possible differences between the internal and external environment on the behavior engagement attributed to the gender and the age. The researcher used the descriptive analysis method which suits the objectives of this study. The current study population consisted of 8580 students from secondary schools in the governorate distributed over the six states of North Al Batinah (Al-Suwaiq, Al-Khaboura, Saham, Sohar, Liwa, Shinas) which is the second largest governorate after Muscat with a ( 780899 ) population. By using Sample Cluster strategy 437 students were selected to be the sample of this study. The study used a quantitative approach. It used the internal school environment scale, the external school environment scale, and the behavioral engagement scale as tools of the study. The validity and reliability of the study tools were also verified, and it was valid and reliable for the scientific use. The researcher used a set of statistical methods to answer the research questions like exploratory factor analysis (EFA), multiple linear regression and multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA). The results of the study showed that the study tool has psychometric properties that contribute to build the hidden root of the scales and the presence of statistical significance between the internal and external school environment and between learning engagement and achievement in the schools of Al Batinah North Governorate in the Sultanate of Oman. Also, the internal school environment had an effective role on school’s engagement. And there is no relationship between the external school environment and school engagement. On the other hand, the study showed that the external school environment had the greatest role on academic achievement. Moreover, the internal school environment has an inverse relationship in improving academic achievement. The results showed that there was a statistical significance between the internal school environment due to the gender goes to male category. While the academic achievement variable goes to the female category. On the other hand, there were no statistical differences between the external school environment, learning engagement, school achievement, and studying engagement due to the gender variable. The study recommended to facilitate the procedures which motivate students to engage them in the behavioral and academic achievement in the internal school environment and the external school environment according to the future vision of education in the sultanate of Oman.

The motivation of achievement is one of the important and influential aspects in the academic achievement, which made many researchers and practitioners to study the reasons for the difference and disparity between student, Thus, this study aimed to identify the natural differences between the motivation of achievement and demographic variables (gender, academic specialization, educational district, the level of parents’ education and the number of siblings) among post-primary education student in the Sultanate of Oman,reveal the correlation between achievement motivation and academic achievement, and then identify the level of achievement motivation among these students.Using the descriptive and correlative curriculum in his study, whereby the sample of the study consisted of (605) male and female students of Grade 12 students for the academic year (2018/2019) in post-primary school of North Batinah Governorate,South Al Batinah Governorate and Muscat Governorate in the Sultanate of Oman. In order to achieve the objectives, the study applied the questionnaire of achievement motivation, which was prepared by the researcher, and included four axes (superiority and excellence – self-confidence - responsibility – ability to master), as well as the rations and estimates of students for the academic year (2018/2019). The results of the study showed thst the level of motivation of achievement among students was high with a mean of (3.98) and a general standard deviation (0.43). The results also showed a positive correlation between achievement motivation and academic achievenment in general at the significance level (0.01) and the significance level (0.05) where the correlation with the total score (0.101). Moreover,there is a presence of positive correlation between achievement motivation and achievement for the axis of superiority and excellence at Pearson Correlation Coefficient (0.169) and for assuming responsibility at Pearson correlation coefficient (0.092) and a weak correlation between achievement motivation and academic achievement in self-confidence and Pearson correlation coefficient (for the ability to master) at the Pearson correlation coefficient of (0.047).Further,the results of the study showed that is a statistically significant