WSEAS Transactions on Advances in Engineering Education
Print ISSN: 1790-1979, E-ISSN: 2224-3410
Volume 9, 2012
Detecting Gender Biasness via Gender Differential Item Functioning Analysis on Integrated Meaningful Hybrid E-Learning Instrument
Authors: , , , , , ,
Abstract: Facilitation of meaningful learning in e-learning curriculum and environments at higher education level is essential to ensure students incorporate concepts and information delivered to them. In ensuring that meaningful learning is disseminated among students, a learner’s level of meaningful e-learning can be measured using a valid and reliable measuring instrument. For this reason, we have developed a measuring instrument to measure meaningful e-learning for students in Malaysian higher educational institutions called the Integrated Meaningful e-Training instrument. The focus of the paper is aimed to determine whether there are differences in meaningful e-learning scores between male and female students in Malaysia as well as identify whether there is gender bias in the items of the meaningful e-learning instrument. This method of study is survey design. SPSS and WINSTEP software were used for data analysis. The findings showed that there was only one item that still has gender differential item functioning and one item that needs attention, which are item 12 and 22 from section B of the instrument. Thus, this instrument is fair to measure meaningful learning either for male or female students.