The effect of the Appleton model on the acquisition of syntactic concepts among students of the College of Administration and Economy, Department of Industrial Management

The teaching Arabic language is marred by many deficiencies because teachers are focusing on a purely theoretical method. Therefore, there is an urgent need to employ modern teaching methods.Accordingly, this investigationaimedat identifying the effect of the Appleton model onstudents' acquisition of Arabic syntacticconcepts. The research specimenconsisted of the first-stage students in the Department of Industrial Management,College of Administration and Economy, Baghdad University for the academic year 2019-2020, the first semester. It was concluded thatthe Appleton model had an effect on the acquisition of Arabic syntactic concepts compared to the conventional method.Based on the research findings, the researchers suggested some recommendations.


Introduction Research Problem
The teaching and learning process of Arabic language entails various difficulties.Its teaching is marred by manydeficiencies because universities and schools have focused on a purely theoretical method, impeding its development.Thelow levels of students in the Arabic language demonstratesthe effects of those difficulties.This is attributed to several reasons including its syntactic structure and the various and complex topics with severalunits and details that require further explanation and analysis.In addition, the Arabic language textbook may be a brief book that is not commensurate with the level of mental capacity of the students as well as the absence of exercises that develop theirskill of expression (Al-Khalidi, 1993).Consequently, there is an urgent need to employ modern teaching methods and models.The conventional methods are no longer sufficient to achieve the scientific objectives of teaching the Arabic language, as emphasized by the curriculum in Iraq, represented by the acquisition of basic syntactic concepts and the improvement of their tendencies.Hence,the problem of research lies in finding a teaching model suitable for the educational environment in Iraq and achieve effective learning that makes students participating in the educational process and improves their achievement, as well as increasing their desire to acquire syntactic concepts.Based on the above, the problem of research is formed in the following question: • What is the effect of the Appleton model onstudents' acquisition of syntactic conceptsatCollegeof Administration and Economy, Department of Industrial Management?

Research Objective
This investigationaimed at identifying the effect of the Appleton model on students' acquisition of syntacticconcepts at College of Administration and Economy, Department of Industrial Management.

Research Hypotheses
For achieving research objective, three hypotheses were developedas follows: 1.There is a statistically significant variance between the average scores of the experimental grouping students who were taught utilizing the Appleton method and those of the control grouping who were taught utilizing the conventional method in the post-test at the significance level (0.05). 2. There is a statistically significant variance at the significance level (0.05) in the average variances between the scores of the pre-and post-tests of the acquisition of syntactic concepts among the students of the experimental grouping who were taughtutilizing the Appleton method.3.There is no statistically significant variance at the significance level (0.05) in the average of variances between the scores of the pre-and post-tests of the acquisition of syntactic concepts among www.psychologyandeducation.net the students of the control grouping who were taughtutilizing the conventional method.

Research Significance
Language is one of the most prominent human phenomena and characteristics.It creates thought and culture in man and helps in the expression of inner feelings.Language, human and civilization are elements interacting with every other since the emergence of man on earth.The more the individual's competence oflanguage skills, the more his interactionwith all elements of society with awareness and high skill.Therefore, any society concerned with all methods of language improvement leads its members towards developing levels of creativity and innovation and achieving success in all areas of sophistication and prosperity (an-Naqah, 1995).The Arabic language is the sacred link that binds the people of the Arab nation.It is the language of religion and faith, and hence it has been able to accommodate all civilizations, as well as the Arabic statement is the linguistic manifestation of the divine miracle embodied in the Holy Qur'an (az-Zubay, 2009).
Modern teaching strategies are important in mastering the scientific material or the cognitive structure of the curriculum content and achieving its objectives properly, actively integrating into the learning process, as well as developing multiple affective aspects like curiosity, the positive attitude towards learning and the skills of both teachers and students.This in turn allowsevery learner to practice and master these skills individually (Shaheen, 2010).Appleton is an educational theorist at the Faculty of Education, Central Queensland University, Australia.Through his model, Appleton has tried tohighlight and identifythe overlapping factors and find the cognitivescaffolding between theory and practice, especially between students and teachers and among the students themselves.This would make this model effective in constructive teaching (Al-Assadi &Al-Massoudi, 2015).Scaffolding refers to temporal support for learners to enable them to rely on self-learning.It consists of activities, cues and information provided by the teacher to help and encourage students to reachthe desired solution that they are looking for or intended to reach (Nwosu&Azih, 2011).As Bruner and Vygotsky call it, scaffolding is a process helping the learner to solve a particular problem that is beyond his cognitive abilities, supported by a teacher or a more advanced experienced peers (Zambrano&Noriega, 2011).
Accordingly, the importance of the current research is illustrated as follows: 1.The importance of Arabic language as an essential material in educating the individual and making him a good citizen.2. The importance of the Appleton model and its steps that make the learner the focus of the educational process, motivate learners to think and learn to think and employ effective educational activities, and keep them away from the conventional method that focuses on memorization.3. The importance of concepts as the basic elements of every subject.4. The university stage is an important stage for the formation of the individual's personality who understands his role in society, his rights and duties.Thus, s/he should be properly directed at this stage as it is the stage of preparing the learner.

Research Scope
The current research wasconfined toteaching the Arabic language for thefirst-stage students in Department of Industrial Management, College of Administration and Economy, University of Baghdad, of the academic year 2019-2020, First Semester.

Definition of Terms
The  (Attia, 2015).c.Al-Muhaysin's (2007) conceptual definition is adopted in this investigation.As for the operational definition, it is the model used in all of its stages in order for the students to acquire syntactic concepts.

Acquisition of the Concept
a.It is defined as avisualization of situations, values, attitudesor behaviors associated with the Arabic language and expressed by word, term or phrase (As-Suwaidi, 1992).As for al-Matroudi ( 2009), it refers toa term or phrase that expresses a www.psychologyandeducation.net common characteristic(s) involved in varioussituations, events or syntactic concepts.b.The operationaldefinition of the acquisition of syntacticconcepts refers to a set of meanings, vocabulary and terms expressed bywords, sentences or phrases so that the student can define and apply them in various learning situations.

Theoretical Framework and Literature Review
The Appleton Model: An Overview Ken Appleton has developed this model in 1997.It is based on the constructive theory, particularly Piaget's vision of accommodation and imbalance and the opinions of Klaxton and Howard on the adaptation between past and subsequent experiences within the individual's cognitive system in particular the school experiences in the social context that is emphasized by Vygotsky (Attia, 2015).It is one of the applications of contemporary theories (constructive theory) in learning.This theory is defined as a process of receivingthat includes the reconstruction of learners for new meanings within the context of their current knowledge with their previous experiences and learning environment, representing both reallife experiences and previous information, as well as the atmosphere of learning the basic aspects of constructive theory (Zaytoun, 2007).

Stages of the Appleton Model a. Existing Ideas
This stage represents the starting point in the constructive learning, which considers that new learning is based on previous knowledge through diagnosing and sorting the ideas of learners before starting to display the content (Calik&Pasayas, 2006).At this stage,various methods such as schemata, interviews or exploratory questions are used to sort the learner's ideas.In the light of the learner's answers, experiences are categorized into ideas and cognitive systems that can be recalled when interpreting the events and new experiences presented to them.Then,a comprehensive idea is given on the learner's vision of the world and interpretation ofits events and his/ her behaviorin it (Al-Assadi &Al-Massoudi, 2015).

b. Processing Information
At this stage, the learner attempts to identify the properexplanation forconstructing meaning about the new information.There are three possibilities, either: a new form of information is formed that fits perfectly with the existing idea and satisfies the student,an approximate fit, or cognitive conflict (Qarni, 2011).The cognitive conflict and the lack of accommodation between the learner's existingknowledge and new learning lead the learner to seek informationto find a solution,which stimulates the memory (Attia, 2015).

c. Seeking Information
At this stage, learners who could not provide complete answers about the situation need scaffolding, which is represented bycues and small bits of information that helps them to find the complete answers through research and exploration.Thus, the role of the teacher at this stage represents the supporting promoter who stimulates them to seek the answer by providing learners with the keys to the search.This process is done utilizing various methods including the practical presentations offered by the teacher, or the teacher's ideaslike educational materials available in the learning environment, and the ideas of other learners and peers.These sources are used based on the social context of teaching and learning viewed by the constructivism (Zayer, 2014).

The Concept: An Introduction
The concepts are the basis of knowledge, which become more importantcurrentlydue tothe explosion of knowledge and the expansion of its branches.Consequently, the teacher becomes focusing on helping students understand and realize the conceptual and logical structure of the material while leaving the details (Mara'i & Muhammad, 2009).In the structure of the cognitive system, the concept follows the facts; therefore, they differ in the following characteristics as indicated by Ibrahim (2009): • Discrimination and classification: the concept distinguishes and classifiesthings according to common factors.• Symbolism: the conceptsymbolizes a characteristic or a set of abstract characteristics.• Generalization: the concept iscomprehensiveas it applies to varioussituationsand attitudes.
Accordingly, the concept is a mere mental conception that is named or symbolizedto showspecificphenomena or events, sharing one or several attributes (Ibrahim, 2009).

The Acquisition of Concepts
The process of concept acquisition is amongthe main objectives sought to be achieved byteachers through variouseducational situations for all stages (Al-Jubouri, 2001).It representsa significantpart of the learning process in the classroom.Teachers regularlyteachnew concepts for students utilizing variousmethods of presentation.Thisvariation may occur even when presenting two various concepts for one category (Abu Zeina, 2010)

Previous Studies
Al-Lami and Amir (2017) aimed at identifying the impact of the Appleton model on acquiring syntactic concepts for students in the fourth preparatory grade.To achieve this objective,the researchers conducted an experiment that lasted for two months.Theyrandomly selected Al-Fayhaa High School for Boys to conduct the experiment.The researchspecimenincluded(68) students, distributedto twogroupings, namely, experimental and control witha total of (34) students for each.The two groupings were equal in the variables (age, intelligence quotient, scores of first term exam and qualification of parents).The researchers adopted an experimental design ofthe partial control in the pretest of the two groupings.The extraneous variable was defined to reduce the impact of experimental procedures and applied experience in the second semester of the academic year (2015)(2016).After completing the experiment,its findings were statistically analyzed utilizing a T-test for two independentspecimens.The findings showed that the experimental groupingstudents who were taught according to the Appleton model achieved higher scores compared to the control groupingstudents who were taught utilizing the conventional method in relation to the acquisition of syntactic concepts.
Shnawa and Abdul-Ameer (2018) aimed at finding out the effectiveness of the Appleton model in achievement and deductive thinking among students of the second intermediate grade in the subject of history.They employed theexperimental design ofthe partial controlwith two equal groupings.The research specimenincluded (50) female students randomly selected and divided into (25) students forevery grouping.The two groupings were statistically equal in the variables of (intelligence, age, qualification of parents, previous achievement of history and deductive thinking).As for the research tools, an achievement test was designed consisting of (40) multiple-choice items, a deductive thinking test consisting of (30) items after determining their validity and reliability.The findings of the research showed the superiority of the experimental grouping in achievement and deductive thinking.

Research Method The Experimental Design
The design of the experimental and control groupings was adopted with applying the pre-and post-test,taking into accountthe research objectivesand hypotheses.The presence of the control groupingincreases the accuracy of findings.Hence, the time factor and the teaching methodmay affect the level of accuracy.

The Research Community and Specimen
The research community represented the students selected fromCollege of Administration and Economy at Baghdad University for the academic year 2019-2020.Concerning the specimen,it was selected from thefirst stage, Department of Industrial Management during the first semester.The pre-test (acquisition of syntactic concepts) was applied to all students, who were (77)male and female students, and then they were distributed to two groupings: experimental with (38) students and the control with (39) students after excluding the students who failed.

The Equivalence of Research Groupings
Before conductingthe experiment, the twogroupings were equalized statistically in certainvariables that could have aneffect on the experimentvalidity.These variables were: a. Student'sage determined in months behavioral goals were formed on the basis of objectives and content to be taught in the experiment.They weredistributed to the six levels in Bloom's Taxonomy: evaluation, synthesis, analysis, application, comprehension, and knowledge.Forverifyingtheir validity and adequacy to the content, they were presented to a numberof experts in methods of teaching Arabic language and in psychological sciences.Therefore,some objectives were amended based on the percentage of experts' approval, which was (80%).f.Designing the test of acquiring syntactic concepts: this test was designedto measure the acquisition of syntactic concepts among students anddeterminethe effect of Appleton's strategy on it.Since there is no test related toArabic grammar (syntactic concepts) applicableto this research,a test wasdesignedon the basis of educational content and the three levels of concepts (definition, discrimination and generalization).

Formulation of the Tests Items
The objective itemswere adopted for beingcharacterized by validity, reliabilityand comprehensiveness.They were designed based on scientific criteria.They covered theinvestigation material and its objectives.The researchers selected multiple-choice test because it is commonly usedas well as reducingthe guessing factor.This test measures the three levels of acquisition of the concept through (35) items.

Preparation of the Answer Instructions
The answer instructions were formed toreportthe learners how to answer and the time specifiedfor it.The time taken to answer the test items was (39,567) minutes.

Instructions of the Test Correction
A specimen ofanswer to the test items was made.Every correct answergot (1) mark and the incorrect answer got (0).The unanswered items and those with more comparison withone choice were treated www.psychologyandeducation.net as wrong.The highestscore received by students was (35).

Analysis of the Test Items a. Statistical Analysis of Test Items
The itemswere analyzed to improve the test quality by identifying and rewritingweak items and excluding the invalid ones utilizing the coefficients of difficulty and discrimination.In order to achieve this purpose,these procedures were followed: correct the answers of students;arrange the scoresin descending order;and dividethe students intotwogroupings, one for the highest scores and the other for the lowest scores.The percentage of scores in these twogroupings is preferably to be 27% of the total scores, providing the best possible size and differentiation.The coefficient of difficulty was revealed forselectingthe items with the appropriate difficulty and deleting the itemsthat are very easy/ difficult.The findings showed that the coefficient of Difficultyrangedbetween (0.30-0.80), as shown in table (5).

www.psychologyandeducation.net
Facevalidityrepresents one of the measures necessary for extractingthe coefficient of the test validity.Hence, the test itemswere presented to a grouping of experts withconsideringtheir opinions on the adequacy of items tothe feature to be measured.Inthisresearch, the test itemswere presented to (10) experts and specialists to determine their opinions on the validity of the items.The experts agreed on the entire test items by80-100%.

c. The Reliabilityof Test
The retesttechnique is one of the most important methods employed forcalculating reliabilitydue toprovidinginformation on the findings consistency by having a time interval between the test and retest.It is indicated that time intervalbetween the two tests should not be long so that the students learn new information or forget informationthey havelearnt, nor should be short so that they remember the answers of the first test.Therefore, the duration should range between (10-20) days depending on the student's age and the number of test items.Thus, the researchers retested (35) students within (15) days between the two tests.Utilizing Pearson correlation coefficient,the reliabilityof test was (0.88),representing a high coefficient of reliability.

d. Application of the Experiment
The experiment was conducted based on the following steps: to determineequivalence between the two groupings in variables in addition totest hypotheses.

Findings and Discussion a. The First Hypothesis
By comparing findings of the post-test, the experimental groupinggot an arithmetic mean (32.9474) with a S.D (0.22629), while the control groupinggot(18.0513)with a S.D (0.22346).By employingthe T-Test for two independent specimens for determining the significantvariances between these means, a statistically significant variance was found between the two groupings as shown in table (7).75) at a significance level (0.05).This shows that a statistically significant varianceis found between the meansof the two groupings in favor of the experimental grouping.Therefore, the first hypothesis is accepted.

b. The Second Hypothesis
To provethis hypothesis, the T-Test was applied to two interrelated specimens to determine if there is an acquisition ofsyntactic concepts among students of the experimental groupingwho were taught utilizing the Appleton model.The arithmetic meanof the post-test was (32.9474) with a S.D of (0.22629) and that of the pre-test was (17.8684) with a S.D of (0.34257), as clarified in table (8).

Appleton Model
.There are several factors associated withthe teacher's role in the students' acquisition of concept including:

Table 2 : Findings of the T-test for the average age between the researchgroupings
Standard deviation= S.D, Arithmetic mean= Arith.Mean www.psychologyandeducation.net

Table 6 : The coefficient of discrimination for the items of the acquisition of concepts test
b.

The Validity of Test
The Coefficient of Difficulty: to determinethe difficulty of the test items.• The Coefficient of discrimination: toidentifythe discriminativepower of the test items.• T-Test for Two Independent Specimens: