integration of social-media-apps into second language learning activities to improve critical...

Insight: Cambodia Journal of Basic and Applied Research, Volume 1 No. 2 (2019) © 2019 The Authors © 2019 Research Office, Royal University of Phnom Penh

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Insight Cambodia Journal of Basic and Applied Research (CJBAR) Volume 1, Number 2, July—December 2019

Access to online publication: www.rupp.edu.kh E-mail: [email protected] Copyright© Cambodia Journal of Basic and Applied Research

No part of this work may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without written permission from the Research Office of the Royal University of Phnom Penh (RUPP), Cambodia with the exception of any material supplied specially for the purpose of being entered and executed on a computer system, for exclusive use by the purchaser of the work. English copy editing: Mr. ROSS Simon Cover design: Mr. SOPHAL Rattanak Photo credit: Dr VONG Sotheara Printed in Phnom Penh, Cambodia

http://www.rupp.edu.kh/

https://www.flickr.com/photos/57787980@N03/


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Insight Cambodia Journal of Basic and Applied Research (CJBAR)

Editors

Dr UN Leang Faculty of Social Science and Humanities Royal University of Phnom Penh

Dr SOK Serey Research Office Royal University of Phnom Penh

Editorial Board

Dr CHET Chealy Rector Royal University of Phnom Penh

Dr SOK Vanny Vice Rector Royal University of Phnom Penh

Dr SOK Soth Faculty of Education Royal University of Phnom Penh

Dr CHEY Chan Oeurn Department of Physics, Faculty of Science Royal University of Phnom Penh

Dr NGUON Phan Pheakdey Faculty of Engineering Royal University of Phnom Penh

Dr KEUK Chan Narith Institute of Foreign Languages Royal University of Phnom Penh

Dr RATH Sethik Faculty of Development Studies Royal University of Phnom Penh

Editorial Office Mr THOU Reno, Manager Research Office, Royal University of Phnom Penh Ms CHENDA Soviphea. Assistant Research Office, Royal University of Phnom Penh


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Insight

Cambodia Journal of Basic and Applied Research (CJBAR)

Volume 1 Number 2 July—December 2019

Editorial: Promotion of Research Culture at Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) in Cambodia by CHET Chealy

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Local Community Engagement as a Pathway toward Sustainable Development through Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) in Cambodia by MAM Socheath, KOVIN Chuenchanok and SINTHUNAWA Chirapol

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Log and bag cultivation of Oyster (Pleurotus ostreatus) and Lingzhi (Ganoderma lucidum) mushrooms in Cambodia by SREY Chanshorphea

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Gender Inequality within Higher Education Institutions: a case study of the Royal University of Phnom Penh by DOUNG Chandy

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Integration of Social-Media-Apps into Second Language Learning Activities to Improve Critical Thinking in Chinese Foreign Language Learning by THAN Chhorn

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The impact of flooding on primary education in Kroch Chmar District, Tbong Khmum Province, Cambodia by HENG Chanla

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A Decade of Communal Land Titling in Cambodia: Achievements and Ways Forward by THOL Dina & OEUR Il

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Book Review: The Discourse of Peer Review: Reviewing Submissions to Academic Journals by HENG Kimkong

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Editorial: Promotion of Research Culture at Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) in Cambodia

CHET Chealy*

Rector, Royal University of Phnom Penh, Russian Federation Boulevard, Toul Kork, Phnom Penh, Cambodia

*Corresponding Author: CHET Chealy ([email protected])

To cite this article: Chet, C. (2019) Promotion of Research Culture at Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) in Cambodia. Cambodia Journal of Basic and Applied Research (CJBAR), 1(2), 05–08.

A well-known saying by Albert Einstein quotes ‘scientific research is based on the idea

that everything that takes place is determined by laws of nature, and therefore this holds for

the actions of people’. In this modern era, research conducted by Higher Education Institutions

(HEIs) is enormously significant (Migosi et al., 2012) and faculty members are obligated to get

involved in research especially academic one (Arimoto, 2014). It is the fact that a product of

academic research helps to predict not only to advance knowledge in differing discipline fields

but also to enhance teaching effectiveness and improve student learning outcomes (Scott,

2004). Moreover, the HEIs learning exist to accomplish functions associated with scholarly

publishing, which circulates research findings and advance new ideas and knowledge leading

into creativity and innovation. The number of journal articles published by faculty members has

been used for university raking, and scholarly publications are also used to consider during hire

or promotion of faculty members.

As the result, research has been significantly highlighted as a compulsory pursuit of

academics at most universities especially research-oriented universities (Altbach, 2014). In the

same time, job opportunity and academic promotion at HEIs are now relying upon the

achievements in scholarly publication. When facility members are publishing in the academic

world; the publication outlet can determine a scholar’s qualification or status both within the

local research community and internationally. In addition, scholarly research and publishing

have become an essential piece of the academic community. At the most universities has

recognized publication and the center of the scholarly communication process is the academic

reward system (Darko-Ampem, 2003).

mailto:[email protected]


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In Cambodia, the Royal University of Phnom Penh (RUPP) is widely considered to be the

nation’s leading HEIs, in terms of research outcomes. The latest search of international peer-

reviewed research publications including an author with an institutional affiliation worked with

facility member at RUPP in Scopus, a worldwide abstract and citation database returned 245

documents and 124 authors. Figure 1 shows that faculty members from RUPP and their

research partners has published in various field ranging from science, engineering, social

science, environment, medicine and business. Out of the total, Social Science was recorded as

high as 21.2% following by Environmental Science (17.2%), Agricultural and Biological Sciences

(9.5%). Faculty members at RUPP have worked with researchers across disciplines around the

worlds for their research activities and publication. The international affiliations have played a

very important role in providing sources of funds and technical support for research and

publication.

Figure 1. Publication by faculty and researcher affiliated with RUPP by field of study.

Source: Elsevier, 20201

While individual faculty members and academics at RUPP currently publish scientific

research, this is driven by individual interests and passions, as well as an ability to mobilize

external resources. However, there are few existing mechanisms capable of promoting the

development of a research culture of scientific research and publication at either the

institutional or national level. In response, RUPP has been selected by relevant government

agencies and international finance institutions such as the World Bank, to showcase best-

1 https://www.scopus.com/affil/profile.uri?afid=60071997

https://www.scopus.com/search/submit/affiliation.uri?affiliationId=60071997&origin=AffiliationProfile

https://www.scopus.com/search/submit/authorlookup.uri?affiliationId=60071997&st1=Royal%20University%20of%20Phnom%20Penh&origin=AffiliationProfile

https://www.scopus.com/affil/profile.uri?afid=60071997


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practice HEIs in Cambodia. This privilege has been granted as a result of the strong effort

demonstrated by RUPP in promoting the publication of scientific research by faculty members.

Up-to-date, RUPP is one of the few public universities in Cambodia that possesses the

capacity to promote quality research and development output due to strong research

background and capacity of faculty members. In promoting a culture of research and

publication, the RUPP has developed the RUPP Strategic Plan (2019−2023) and Policy on

Research Development and Innovation for implementing research-oriented university. In

addition, RUPP now hosts various journals such as the Cambodia Journal of Natural History;

Insight: Cambodia Journal of Basic and Applied Research; and the Cambodia Communication

Review as part of the process of establishing these new scientific communities. These journals

publish academic and applied research from both within Cambodia; and outside of Cambodia

that contributes to the social, economic, and environmental development of Cambodia and the

region.

In early 2020, RUPP will soon lunch the Policy on Research Development and Innovation

and it is an instrumental in stimulating RUPP as a research-intensive university. Within the next

10 years, RUPP is still working to promote research-related activities and publication; the

mission of RUPP is exploring and investigating theories, concepts, ideas and social phenomena

for establishing novel knowledge and scientific evidence in priority fields at RUPP, for both

academic and applied purposes, recognizing and motivating achievements of research

development and innovation produced by RUPP faculty and staff, building the knowledge, skills,

and competencies that enhance the opportunities available to RUPP researchers to conduct

and publish academic and applied research, and creating enhanced national, regional, and

international collaborative research partnerships that support RUPP faculty and staff through

grants and exchange programs.

The newly-established Policy on Research Development and Innovation will illustrate

how RUPP plans to conduct research-related activities such as grant management, publication

and hosting knowledge hubs. It is also very important for the Ministry of Education, Youth and

Sport (MoEYS) and development partners such as the World Bank, Asian Development Bank,

and Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA). Through this document

they can clearly observe to the approach of RUPP to research, development and innovation.


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References

Altbach, P. G. (2014) What counts for academic productivity in research universities? University

World News Global Edition (329). Retrieved from http://www.universityworldnews.com/

ar ticle.php?story= 20140715105656393 on 20 December 2019.

Arimoto, A. (2014) The teaching and research nexus in the third wave age. In J. C. Shin, A.

Arimoto, & U. Teichler (Eds.), Teaching and research in contemporary higher education:

Systems, activities, and rewards (pp. 15–33). London: Springer.

Darko-Ampem, K.O. (2003) Scholarly publishing in Africa: a case study of the policies and

practices of African university presses (PhD Thesis). University of Stirling. Retrieved from

http://hdl.handle.net/1893/71 on 26 December 2019.

Migosi, J. A., Muola, J.M. and Maithya, R. (2012) Perceptions of academic staff on research and

publishing in Kenyan universities. International Journal of Education Administration and

Policy Studies, 4(4): 115−126.

Scott, P. (2004) Knowledge work in a knowledge society: Rethinking the links between university

teaching and research. Paper presented at the higher education academy learning and

teaching conference, University of Hertfordshire.

Local Community Engagement as a Pathway toward Sustainable

Development through Higher Education Institutions (HEIs)

http://www.universityworldnews.com/

http://hdl.handle.net/1893/71%20on%2026%20December%202019


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in Cambodia

MAM Socheath1*, KOVIN Chuenchanok2 & SINTHUNAWA Chirapol3

1Faculty of Education, Royal University of Phnom Penh, Russian Federation Boulevard, Toul Kork, Phnom Penh, Cambodia

2Faculty of Education, Chulalongkorn University, Pathumwan, Bangkok Thailand 3Faculty of Environment and Resource Studies, Mahidol University, Salaya, Phutthamonthon

Nakhon Pathom Thailand *Corresponding Author: MAM Socheath ([email protected])

To cite this article: Mam, S., Kovin, C. & Sinthunawa, C. (2019) Local community engagement as a pathway toward sustainability through higher education institutions in Cambodia. Cambodia Journal of Basic and Applied Research (CJBAR), 1(2), 09–32.

សង្ខិត្តន័យ ក្រៅពីការបក្ររៀនសិសានុសិសសអំពីបញ្ញត្តិនិរនតរភាព រ្ឹឹះស្ថថ នឧត្តមសិក្សាទរំឡាយអាចក្លើក្សក្សមពស់ការអភវិឌឍក្ោយចីរភាពតាមរយៈ ការបំផុសឱ្យនិសសតិ្ចូលរមួជាមយួសហ្មនក៍្សនុររបក្េសក្សមពុជា។ ក្សនុរការសិក្សារស្ថវរជាវក្នឹះ បន្ទទ បពី់បានសិក្សាក្លើឯក្សស្ថរពាក្សព់ន័ធរចួមក្ស អនក្សរស្ថវរជាវបានសម្ភា សថ្នន ក្ស់ដឹក្សន្ទរំ្ឹឹះស្ថថ នឧត្តមសិក្សាចំនួន ១៥ ន្ទក្ស ់ និរក្្វើការសទរម់ត្ិនិសសតិ្ចំនួន ៧២០ ន្ទក្ស ់ ក្សនុររ្ឹឹះស្ថថ នឧត្តមសិក្សាចំនួន ២៤។ ការសម្ភា ស និរការសទរម់តិ្ក្នឹះរត្ូវបានយក្សមក្សក្របើរបាស់ក្សនុរការពិភាក្សារក្សមក្្ោបាយដដលស្ថក្សលវេិោល័យអាចផារភាា បក់ារចូលរមួរបស់និសសតិ្ក្ៅនឹរសក្សមមភាពសរគម និរក្សមមវ ិ្ ីសម័រ្ចិត្តទក្សេ់រនឹរការអភវិឌឍក្ោយចីរភាព។ ការសិក្សារស្ថវរជាវក្នឹះបានរក្សក្ ើញថ្ន រ្ឹឹះស្ថថ នឧត្តមសិក្សាភា្ក្រចើនបានក្រៀបចំឱ្យនិសសតិ្ចូលរមួក្សនុរយុេធន្ទការបក្រកើនការយល់ដឹរសតីពីបរសិ្ថថ ន ដូចជា ការចូលរមួក្សនុរេិវាសម្ភា ត្បរសិ្ថថ នជាក្ដើម។ ប ុដនត ក្ទឹះជាយ រក្នឹះក្សតី និសសតិ្ដដលបានចូលរមួក្សនុរក្សមមវ ិ្ ីរយៈក្ពលយូរន្ទន្ទ ម្ភនចំនួនត្ិចតួ្ចប ុក្ ណ្ ឹះ។ និសសតិ្របម្ភណពី ៤០ ក្ៅ ៧០% បានក្លើក្សក្ឡើរថ្ន ការចូលរមួក្សនុរក្សមមវ ិ្ ីន្ទន្ទរបស់ពួក្សគាត្ក់្ៅម្ភនក្សរមតិ្ទបក្នឹះ មយួដផនក្ស្ំ ្ឺអារស័យក្លើក្សរមតិ្ននការដឹរលឺអំពី ឬការពាក្សព់ន័ធរបស់និសសតិ្ក្ៅនឹររបធានបេសតីពីការអភវិឌឍក្ោយចីរភាព។ ក្សនុរក្ន្ទឹះ និសសតិ្ភា្ក្រចើនចាបអ់ារមមណ៍ក្លើការអភវិឌឍសរគមក្ោយចីរភាពជារក្្ បន្ទទ បម់ក្ស ការអភវិឌឍបរសិ្ថថ នក្ោយ ចីរភាព និរបន្ទទ បម់ក្សក្េៀត្ ការអភវិឌឍក្សដឋកិ្សចចក្ោយចីរភាព។ លេធផលក្នឹះបរកបន់យ័ថ្ន ការចូលរមួរបស់និសសតិ្ក្សនុរសហ្មនម៍ូលោឋ នអាចបក្រកើនដល់ក្សរមតិ្អតិ្បបរម្ភបាន លុឹះរតាដត្ រ្ឹឹះស្ថថ នឧត្តមសិក្សាទរំក្ន្ទឹះម្ភនក្គាលនក្យបាយនិរការផតួចក្ផតើម ក្ដើមបកី្លើក្សក្សមពស់ការងារសម័រ្ចិត្តរបស់និសសតិ្។

ក្ហតុ្ក្នឹះ រ្ឹឹះស្ថថ នឧត្តមសិក្សាទរំឡាយ្ួរពិចារ្ក្លើការបក្រកើត្របពន័ធគារំេចាស់លាស់មយួ ក្ោយបញ្ចូ លការចូលរមួរបស់និសសតិ្ក្សនុរសក្សមមភាពសិក្សា ការក្លើក្សសទួយការអបរ់ជំាមូលោឋ នសតីពីការអភវិឌឍរបក្សបក្ោយនិរនតរភាព និរការផតល់ក្រ្ឿរក្លើក្សេឹក្សចិត្តដល់និសសតិ្សម័រ្ចិត្ត។


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Abstract Beyond teaching students sustainability concepts, HEIs can promote sustainable

development by fostering the engagement of students with local communities in Cambodia. In this study, interviews with fifteen university leaders, and a survey of 720 students from 24 HEIs in Cambodia were conducted after the document analysis. They were used to inform a discussion about how HEIs engaged their students in social activities and local volunteer programs related to sustainability to this end. It was found that many HEIs engage students in sporadic environmental awareness campaigns, such as clean-up days; however, few engage students in long-term programs. Between 40% and 70% of students suggest that the low involvement in these programs is mostly dependent on their level of exposure to sustainability topics. The social development aspect of sustainable development was found to be the most interesting to students, followed by environmental, then economic sustainability. This implies that student involvement in engaging local communities may be maximized through university initiatives and policies designed to promote student volunteerism. Thus, HEIs should consider the development of a clear student supporting framework, which includes student engagement in service learning, the promotion of sustainability literacy, and incentives for students to volunteer.

Keywords: Student engagement, local communities, sustainable development, higher

education institute and Cambodia

Introduction

Education is widely recognized as an effective approach for promoting sustainability

across the globe. Sustainable development aspires to the achievement of a long-term balance

between the economic/employment, environmental/ecological, and socio-cultural/equity

aspects of the development of society (Edwards, 2006; Murray, 2011; Ellit, 2013). For example,

the Intergovernmental Earth Summit held in Rio de Janeiro from the 3rd to the 14th of June in

1992, as part of the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED)

released Agenda 21, which is focused on environmental action. Chapter 36 of this agenda

suggests that education should be used to promote increased public awareness of the

environment to change attitudes towards sustainable development (UNSD, 1992).

In 2012, the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (UNSD), also

known as Rio+20, stressed the key role of Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) to this end when

announcing the “Higher Education Sustainability Initiative (HESI) (UNSD, 2012). This initiative

reinforced the Gothenburg Recommendation on Education for Sustainable Development (ESD).

It was adopted in 2008 following international negotiations between 2001 and 2008 aimed at

providing clear direction on the role of higher education in promoting sustainable development.


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It called for governments, civil society, and educators to work together on ESD. Both Rio+20 and

the Gothenburg recommendation focus on the active engagement of local communities by

HEIs, as well as researchers. Besides teaching and research obligations, ‘community outreach’

activities were identified as a key responsibility of higher education institutions (Bilodeau,

Podger et al., 2014; Holmberg et al., 2013; Müller-Christ et al., 2014). For instance HEIs could

promote sustainability concepts in villages and communes surrounding the university campus

as a way of increase public awareness; as well as building the capacity of local people to

respond to sustainability challenges in their everyday lives. As key stakeholders in these

communities, HEIs have an obligation to make strong efforts to lead action related to the UN

2030 Sustainable Development Agenda.

HEIs may serve as a hub for student activity related to sustainability and dialogue about

social development; as well as an agent for ensuring the quality of these initiatives (Müller-

Christ et al., 2014). Through the role of addressing sustainability issues, HEIs may consider

adapting their curriculum to be more responsive to community needs (Allen‐Gil et al., 2005).

This may be used to develop students with the capacity to respond to local community

expectations, through the creation of knowledge required to solve problems in local

communities. For instance, the Bangkok-based Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) has had

success through the development of a “professional Bachelor degree program for poverty

reduction and agricultural management (PRAM)”. This program engages students in action

research projects (Mochizuki & Fadeeva, 2010) by placing student practitioners in local

communities to develop practice-based knowledge developed through fieldwork. University

faculties and administrators take a leadership role.

The number of HEIs in Cambodia has increased from 14 in 1998, to 97 in 2012 (You,

2012), to 121 in 2017 (MoEYS, 2017) and to 125 in 2019 (MoEYS, 2019). Over 80% of these HEIs

were established less than 15 years ago. Improving the low quality of education programs

within Cambodian Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) has been described as a critical issue

(Chet, 2009; Sam et al., 2012; Sen, 2013). While in practice, sustainability may be considered a

new concept in Cambodian HEIs, the Royal Government of Cambodia (RGC) launched the

Cambodia National Sustainable Development Strategy in 2009. Sustainable development

represents a major agenda within the National Strategic Development Plan of the RGC.


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However, the performance of higher education institutions in developing practical knowledge

of sustainability among students is questionable. The majority of Cambodian university

students enrolled in HEIs are engaged in coursework and most university activities are focused

on teaching, rather than research (Kwok, et al., 2010).

A regular practice for Cambodian HEIs is to have mandatory requirements for students

to attend classes, with optional research activities. Students have a choice of scheduled study

times, which are applied to each academic term, or across the whole academic program. If

students opt to study on weekdays, they can schedule either morning, afternoon, or evening

classes. Alternatively, students can take weekend classes. With both options, students regularly

have at least half a day with no scheduled activities. In general, it is doubtful if this time is used

for off-campus extra-curricular activities for the benefit of society.

While some students are engaged with off-campus volunteer activities, such as study

tours and environmental campaigns, there is no clear picture of how these activities contribute

to education for sustainability outcomes. Knowledge is also lacking about how students may

become actively engaged in promoting sustainable development in local communities. The aim

of this paper is to reveal the diverse ways HEIs act to engage students with these types of extra-

curricular activities in local communities. The study focuses specifically on student engagement

in social activities; short-term university outreach activities; community service learning

programs; and student participation in various dimensions of sustainable development.

Study Area and Research Methods

In 2019, there were 125 HEIs in Cambodia. Only 48 were public HEIs, while 77 were

privately operated (MoEYS, 2017). Of these HEIs 76 were regulated by the Ministry of

Education, Youth, and Sport (MoEYS), while the remaining 49 were under the administration of

one of fifteen different ministries. Most HEIs offer undergraduate programs in English

literature, business administration, accounting, or finance and banking. The national enrolment

of students in these programs increased from 216,053 in the 2010/11 academic year (MoEYS,

2013) to 219,069 in the 2015/16 academic year (MoEYS, 2017) and 211 484 in the academic

year 2017/18, of which 39.9%, 43.7% and 46.6% were female students, respectively. The

present study examines the undergraduate programs of 38 of the 125 HEIs across the country


13

across various disciplines. It focuses on the activities that students engage with in terms of the

environmental, economic, and social aspects of sustainability. A mixed methods approach was

used to inform a response to the research questions from multiple perspectives (Creswell &

Plano Clark, 2007; Greene, 2007). Empirical data was collected using a document study,

interviews, and a survey.

The document study was conducted as an efficient method to access a broad range of

data using an “unobtrusive and non-reactive” approach. Researcher can use a sample frame

within a certain period to fit the study (Bowen, 2009; Platt, 2006). It accessed a range of

published information about university policies and activities, focused on student engagement

in sustainable community development. Data was obtained from university handbooks, annual

reports, and newsletters published between 2011 and 2017 by the 38 HEIs. It was

supplemented with additional documents from the Department of Higher Education and

published literature on service learning in Cambodia. Other data from the official websites of

HEIs on student engagement in local communities was also studied, supported by interviews to

minimize the bias of the author (Bowen, 2009). Then, content analysis of the qualitative data

obtained from the documents was used for analysis.

Key informant interviews with fifteen university leaders were also conducted at local

campuses between August and September 2015 to obtain a more detailed understanding of

student engagement in local communities. These interviews focused on: (1) the local

community engagement activities that students from the higher education institution were

involved with; (2) the thematic aspects of sustainable development in community engagement

activities; (3) how the higher education institution developed these activities; and (4) the

difficulties the higher education institution faced in establishing these activities. Thematic

analysis was applied to the interview data to obtain a comprehensive assessment of the

experiences and perspectives of university leaders with respect to this focus.

To investigate the involvement of students in local sustainable development activities, a

survey was used. The questionnaire used in the survey was based on the findings of the

document study and policies outlined in the Cambodian National Sustainable Development

Strategy. It contained questions about fifteen sustainability-related topics including climate

change, waste and pollution, energy conservation, recycling, biodiversity and natural resources,


14

a culture of peace, gender equality, human rights, poverty reduction, social responsibility,

economic growth, sustainable business development, production and profits, career

development, and modern technology (RGC, UNDP, & ADB, 2009). The questionnaire comprised

fifteen questions, with respondents prompted to indicate an answer on a Likert scale. Five

responses ranging from ‘never’ to ‘always’ were possible based on the students level of

engagement in community activities. The design of the questionnaire was reviewed by three

experts in the fields of research methodology, higher education, and sustainability.

The survey cohort was selected using multi-stage sampling. First, cluster sampling by

location was used to select the HEIs in the sample, with 14 major HEIs out of a total of 88 HEIs

in the capital, Phnom Penh, being randomly chosen. With respect to provincial HEIs, 2 of 3 from

the southeast region, 5 of 8 from the northern region, and 3 of 6 northeast region were

randomly selected. These are listed in order from 15 to 24 in Appendix 1. Then, a sample of 30

undergraduate students in the third of fourth year of their program was randomly selected

from the various disciplines in colleges/faculties of each university/institute. During data

collection, the researchers travelled to 24 HEIs across the country and distributed the

questionnaire to a total of 720 students between August and September 2015. Descriptive

statistics were calculated to determine the frequency and percentage of students involving in

voluntary activities related to each sustainable development topic.

Results and Findings

Student involvement in social activities dealing with environmental issues

Official university websites suggest that HEIs in Cambodia tend to engage their students

in social activities related to waste and pollution. For instance, between 2011 and 2014,

students from several HEIs in Phnom Penh took part in the events focused on the environment

such as “Let’s Do It! Cambodia”, “Clean City Day”, and “Environment Day”. In 2011, university

students from a range of HEIs were among the 2,400 participants in the “Let’s Do It! Cambodia”

event organized by the Junior Chamber International (JCI) and Association Internationale des

Étudiants en Sciences Économiques et Commerciales (AIESEC). Participants from the University

of Cambodia (UC), Royal University of Phnom Penh (RUPP), Royal University of Agriculture

(RUA), National University of Management (NUM), Norton University (NU), Build Bright


15

University (BBU), and University of Puthisastra (UP) were engaged, as well as staff from the

Phnom Penh Municipal Office and the Ministry of Environment. They gathered in central

Phnom Penh and removed rubbish from the seven locations most polluted with solid waste in

the city. HEIs made regular announcements about the event on campus calling for student

participation. Sixty students from UC alone volunteered at the event in 2011. Other HEIs such

as RUPP, RUA, NUM, NU, BBU, and UP reported involvement by their students, however, the

number of students was not specified.

In 2012, the name of the program was changed to “Let’s Do It! Phnom Penh” and was

still focused on garbage collection. In 2014, university students continued to clean several

locations in the city as part of the event, as well as organizing a public debate on environmental

protection and sustainable consumption. Although the number of students participating in

these events is limited, it enabled HEIs to promote sustainability and link this to student

experiences of environmental protection. Increased efforts by HEIs are required to increase the

number of students participating in this type of social activity, as well as other environmental

campaigns. These activities have the potential to assist student in their personal development,

as well as their capacity to promote local sustainable development.

Students from provincial HEIs also participated in annual “Clean City Day” events in their

respective municipalities. For instance, students from the University of Battambang (UBB) and

the University of Management and Economics (UME) collected rubbish from areas around the

Sangkae River in Battambang province. The Provincial Hall organized the event and invited

participation in the initiative as a social activity, which in general, is more likely to attract

student interest. In Preah Sihanouk, a province surrounded by beaches, Life University (LU)

developed community-based activities for students focused on health care and beach clean-

ups. In this case, students participated as the activity organizers and attempted to realize the

most sustainable outcome possible. University leaders revealed that students at most HEIs

participate in activities related to improving the environment. This includes community field

trips (pers. comm. UL01, UL02, UL03, UL05, UL06, UL07, UL10, and UL15), environmental

awareness campaigns in areas near the university campus (pers. comm. UL01, UL03, UL05,

UL14), and fundraising to help orphaned children and poor students (pers. comm. UL05 and

UL09). One university leader stated:


16

‘*…+ in regards to our involvement in community activities, our students participate in campaigns

related to the environment, drug abuse, and humanitarian outcomes. They join community

activities with the Cambodian Red Cross, Battambang Provincial Hall, and other Provincial

Departments. There is no clear plan for these activities. It is flexible. *…+ Once we receive the

requests from the partners, we arrange for students to assist them. The participation of our

students in social activities in the municipality, such as cleaning the city and traffic campaigns is

more active than other HEIs *…+ we organize between 10 and 20 activities per year, with

approximately 100 students attending each activity. However, we are concerned that these

activities may disturb their study time *…+’ (pers. comm. UL14, 23rd September 2015).

Student involvement in environmental activities demonstrates care for the society they

are living in. While campaigns may help to promote environmental concerns to the public,

organizing those activities only once a year seems insufficient. Cambodia lacks waste collection

services and people still have low awareness of the need for waste management (Parizeau, et

al., 2006). The public pays little attention to waste and pollution issues and continues to discard

garbage in public areas. More frequent campaigns are urgently needed. HEIs may play a role in

increasing public awareness that realizes a positive societal impact.

Short-term university outreach activities for community development

Official websites for some HEIs including the International University (IU), University of

Puthisastra (UP), Life University (LU), Build Bright University (BBU), Norton University (NU), and

Panasastra University of Cambodia (PUC) report engaging students in fieldtrips and university

projects focused on health, the environment, and education. For instance, medical students

from UP and IU in cooperation with the National University of Singapore (NUS) to participate in

the “Sabai Project 2014”. This project was aimed at promoting health care, well-being, and the

social welfare of villagers in Cambodia. In addition, UP students participated in a one-day field

trip with the theme, “Youth and Community”, which involved students meeting with villagers to

increase their environmental awareness through planting trees in a village. Moreover, a

fieldtrip organized by NU to Chrakov village engaged students in facilitating health education

activities for 355 families (1,681 villagers). In March 2012, BBU reported that the university

organized and participated in 98 university outreach activities involving 6,493 students.


17

Students were engaged in public awareness campaigns about health care, traffic rules, and HIV-

AIDS; fundraising to assist disaster victims; and in competitions and youth forums on the

environment, gender, human rights, and the prevention of violence against children and

women. In cases such as this, where HEIs have their own outreach programs students have the

potential to lead to process of sharing knowledge with community members.

Thus, university leaders revealed that student were key participants in the involvement

of their institutions in local communities and in some cases responsible for the developing of

these activities (pers. comm. UL01, UL02, UL03, UL04, UL05, UL09, UL13, and UL14).

Specifically, they stated:

‘We have a strategic plan for student community programs and we are considering how to

develop a community service program to build the spirit of students to love local communities.

The more our students love local communities, the greater possibility of sustainability. We want to

engage those who study in business disciplines more knowledgeable about local communities.

What’s more, those who are in the construction engineering discipline may better understand

about negative impacts on the environment’ (pers. comm. UL01).

‘As a principle, our university is considering a vision *…+ a target plan in 2023. In this plan, to

integrate sustainable development concepts into the academic program and extra-curricular

activities, we link students to communities. We promote the role of the current student senate of

building a student structure to be more involved in community activities.’ (Pers. Comm. UL05).

Another leader revealed that their university prepared students before they became involved in

outreach activities with villagers.

‘*…+ our students to share knowledge with people in local communities. We do not determine

the number of people as the target. But we consider targeted places depending on villager

needs. *…+ we train our students first and then put them into teams under the supervision of

faculty members or an advisor. The university can support the project with a small budget, with

the rest of the research expenses shared by the student team. In agriculture fieldwork, students

share technical agricultural knowledge with villagers about growing crops so that they can

promote their livelihood. Students from the law major share knowledge related to rights,

behaviors, and responsibilities in the society *…+’ (pers. comm. UL15).


18

Other HEIs launched community development projects in collaboration with partners.

For instance, the Royal University of Agriculture (RUA) faculty members led students in a

project on community water resource management and community livelihoods. In another

case, the Polytechnic Institute of Battambang offered free community-based training to nearby

farmers on pig raising, natural fertilizer production, rice systems, and enterprise-based training

on motorbike repairing and food processing. After offering these training courses, the faculty

members and students followed up the outcomes within local communities. Likewise, the

National Technical Training Center launched projects related to poverty reduction, involving

faculty members and students. These type of university projects that assisting communities rely

primarily on external donors and students serve as assistants to faculty members in their

implementation.

Community service learning led by Cambodian HEIs

Remarkably, very few HEIs apart from RUPP and PUC engage their students through

“Community Service Learning (CSL)” programs. These programs bring students in close

proximity to villagers. Each semester, approximately 50 students from PUC volunteer as

teachers and social workers working on both education for the poor and environmental

education in nearby orphanages and non-governmental organizations. The university involves

student volunteers in research projects in collaboration with local NGOs. These activities have

clear schedules and are part of a program to assist a large number of villagers in the medium

term. The university introduces the CSL program to new students at the beginning of each

academic year, with faculty members acting as advisors to students in developing smaller

projects.

‘In the community service learning program at our university, we focus our student activities on

contributing to communities. The mission of the program is to provide services to communities

purely as a volunteer, as well as to learn from communities. *…+ Often students in their

foundation year [first year] are encouraged to team up in a group of at least four people to

volunteer in promoting education in a community. Each team is supervised by their lecturer from

a particular course. The themes of the programs can vary from year to year depending on the

interest of the students and partner NGOs. Students are expected to teach Khmer culture, Khmer


19

language, English language, basic computer skills, child rights, personal sanitation, and traffic

rules. *…+ In some cases, students become involved with the community development projects of

NGOs. They work as research assistants in conducting surveys and needs assessments *…+’ (Pers.

Comm. UL03).

Likewise, the CLS program at RUPP emphasizes student involvement in the community

development projects of the university. These projects are funded by international donors and

relate to “community-based conservation; partnership for environmental action and

community empowerment; harmonizing nature and human society for sustainable

development; and urban climate resilience”. For this project-based research, HEIs form

research teams led by faculty members from relevant disciplines, with a few students recruited

to each team as research assistants. Students mainly work on data collection and fieldwork

activities within local communities. This volunteer work helps students to develop grounded

knowledge of community development practices, as well as local sustainable development.

However, many students are not able to access these opportunities, as the number of students

that can be selected is limited.

‘Community service learning is the heart of our university. *…+ the program assists students to

engage in voluntary programs and to build close relationship with villagers. *…+ We’re sure that

our students become attached to social responsibility concepts and can learn how to contribute

to the society appropriately. Although they may not fully understand sustainable development

concepts, they can consider and impacts of doing business. They are taught *…+ to care for the

environment and society’ (pers. comm. UL02).

The CSL program at PUC appears to be more comprehensive than the one at RUPP in

term of student engagement. However, the program at RUPP appears to include a greater

number of research projects related to community development and environmental

conservation. Both HEIs have played important roles in establishing volunteer programs that

enable students to learn about community development. However, these programs struggle

over the long-term, as they depend on short-term project grants. University CSL programs will

continue to struggle if they are not included in university curriculum and designed as part of a

systematic framework that is updated over time. In this context, the program might be set as


20

required extra-curricular work, which may include a range of options. In this way, all students

would be able to form teams and choose activities designed to be implemented within time and

budget constraints.

Student involvement in the various dimensions of sustainable development

A majority of students were found not to regularly participate in local community

activities across their three-year university program. Of the 720 students surveyed, 30.3%

‘sometimes’ engage, 23.5% engage ‘very often’, and 6.5% ‘always’ engage in sustainable

development activities in local communities. Overall, a small number of students actively get

involved. Student participation in activities related to social development appears to be more

popular. The survey indicates that the most attractive aspects of sustainable development for

students include poverty reduction, human rights, gender equality, waste and pollution, and

career development. The environment and economic development aspects of sustainable

development appear to be less popular with students. They indicate lower levels of

involvement with activities related to sustainable business, economic growth, production and

profit, recycling, and climate change. Overall, the involvement of Cambodian university

students in promoting sustainable development in local communities could be considered low

due to a lack of opportunities to become engaged.

The study outlines how student participation in local communities occurs through at

least one of four different forms. First, university students may receive invitations to participate

in social activities/events related to public campaigns. Second, HEIs develop short-term

programs that build links between university students and local communities. Such programs

are usually arranged to be completed in the short term involving field trips focused on the

environment, health care, or education. Third, students may take part in research projects as

assistants, where faculty members manage the projects and HEIs served to cooperate with

partners or donors regarding their development. These joint projects are often associated with

the environment and poverty reduction. Fourth, a few HEIs engage their students in community

outreach activities, through community service learning programs over a regular schedule of at

least one semester. In general, student participation in community activities is noticeably low.


21

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

Climate Change

Waste and Pollution

Recycling

Energy Saving

Biodiversity and Natural Resources

Culture of Peace

Gender Equality

Human Rights

Poverty Reduction

Social Responsibility

Economic Growth

Sustainable Business

Production and Profits

Career Development

Modern Technology

Never Rarely Sometimes Often Always

Activities related to the environmental and economic aspects of sustainable development are

even less attractive to students.

Figure 1. Student involvement in various aspects of sustainable development in communities.

Discussion

This research suggests that student involvement in community development activities

has significant potential to increase the impact of the sustainability-related activities of

Cambodian HEIs. However, HEIs in part need students to be responsible for organizing these

activities, with HEIs having a role of assisting or helping to coordinate activities. Students were

found to most commonly engage with activities such as environmental and road safety

awareness campaigns, fieldtrips focused on environmental awareness and basic health care,

and fundraising to support orphaned children or poor students. The nature of student

engagement in Cambodia appears to be similar to that of a study on a Chinese university that

provides opportunities for students to keep public spaces clean both within and outside of the

campus (Niu et al., 2010). Students may also become involved in university programs or

research projects focused on environmental education and community development. Student

participation in these activities may be classified as part of the “informal curriculum”, which

includes volunteering, internships, and participation in club and societies or campus events


22

(Hopkinson et al., 2008). This type of student engagement appears to be consistent with the

“common experience of sustainability” described by López (2013).

Student participation in informal curriculum activities seems to only be moderately in

Cambodian HEIs. While, these activities have potential to guide the spiritual development and

sense of social responsibility of students outside the classroom, it is an area which receives little

attention. This is unfortunate as these experiences are meaningful and help students to

become global citizens. There is a shortage of university activities that build regular, strong

relationships between students and the community across the entire with academic term. Very

few HEIs appear to have established CSL programs and thus few students are able to participate

in them. This is unfortunate, as CSL has significant benefits in enabling students to learn about

issues relevant to communities through practice-based knowledge (Keen at al., 2015).

CSL at one Cambodian university was shown to help develop the personality of students

and an attitude of “kindness” to people in within society. This kindness was associated with the

Buddhist ethics (brama-vihara) of goodwill/loving-kindness (metta), compassion (karuna),

empathetic joy (Mudita), equanimity (Upekkha), and a common good (Ly, 2013). These qualities

are strongly related to the competency in sustainability (Mochizuki & Fadeeva, 2010), with

individuals requiring these qualities to be able to behave in a sustainable manner (Murray,

2011). Despite these benefits, after spending three years participating in a university program,

around two-thirds of all students indicate a poor level of engagement in activities related to

sustainability, both on-campus and within local communities. A majority of students tend to

miss out on the opportunity to become involved with voluntary activities as learning

opportunities to understand how to behave in fashion that supports the common good in

society.

When participating in voluntary activities, students reveal a higher level of concern for

the social aspects of sustainability, particularly activities related to poverty reduction. The

participation of students in these activities is thus linked to responding to one of the biggest

challenges faced by Cambodia. While the RGC has prioritized poverty alleviation (Ministry of

Environment and UNDP Cambodia, 2011) leading to a reduction in poverty from 53.3% in 2004

to 20.5% in 2011 (WorldBank, 2014) and to 14% in 2017 (ADB, 2019). This reinforces the need


23

for HEIs to pay attention to the level of student engagement in the social aspects of

sustainability.

Contrary to this, student engagement in community development activities related to

climate change was found to be less attractive to students. This is despite many Cambodian

citizens, farmers in particular, being poorly prepared to respond to the impacts this has on the

country (Phorn, 2015). The Ministry of Environment (MoE) has worked on developing climate

change policies since 2002. Moreover, the current Cambodian Climate Change Strategy (2014-

2023), as well as the Cambodia Climate Change Action Plan (2016-2018) emphasizes the need

for “curriculum” and “public awareness raising” about climate change (MoE, 2016). The

Ministry of Health (MoH) has also notified citizens about the increased likelihood of hot

weather, with temperatures predicted to be as high as 40oC in Cambodia by mid-2016. They

have recommend that citizens to pay greater attention to the need to save water to ensure

there is sufficient amounts available for ongoing consumption (Eng, 2016). This suggests that

there is also an urgent needs for university students to be involved in voluntary activities that

increase public awareness about climate change. The same could be said for the aspects of

sustainable development related to green growth and recycling.

HEIs were found to have a strong influence whether students become engaged with

local communities as part of their education. Most student volunteer activities were found to

be inspired by HEIs. For instance, HEIs that had initiated their own voluntary programs showed

higher levels of active participation in the local community by students. To address the

challenge of increasing this level of student engagement in the local community related to the

promotion of sustainability, Cambodian HEIs should consider the development of a engaging

student volunteer programs that incorporate four interventions.

First, HEIs should develop a clear policy framework on community engagement for

sustainability, namely the 6-P framework involving “psychological, physical, personal, public

perception, price, and policy factors” (Too & Bajracharya, 2015). Second, HEIs should establish a

well-integrated student engagement program that promotes sustainability over the long-term

period. For example, CSL programs have been shown to have many ongoing benefits for both

the university and communities. These programs need to be applied in a way that covers the

various aspects of sustainability, that is, be interdisciplinary in nature (Clark & Wallace, 2015).


24

Third, HEIs have an obligation to orient students with what is required of them to successively

engage with local communities and conduct outreach activities related to sustainability (Allen‐

Gil et al., 2005) & Mochizuki and Fadeeva, 2010). HEIs may consider how to develop the

capacity of students in terms of both practical interdisciplinary skills and knowledge of

sustainability. This is central to learning how to be guided by a values-based framework (Sipos

et al, 2008). Finally, HEIs should identify appropriate incentives to motivate the active

involvement of students in voluntary programs, while also attracting a greater level of student

engagement with local communities. HEIs may consider organizing community events to

orientate students with sustainability projects and promote volunteer opportunities both on-

campus and within local communities (McKinne & Halfacre, 2008).

The outcomes of student involvement in voluntary activities have the potential to lead

to personal development outcomes for students, which are difficult to promote in a classroom

setting. These activities provide additional value to the quality of learning experienced by

university students and supports. They also support the policies within the Cambodian

Education Strategic Plan (2014-2018) focused on improving the quality and relevance of higher

education. With respect to quality of education, a university curriculum that focused only on

teaching and learning in the classroom is insufficient. HEIs have an obligation to create more

opportunities for students to engage in extra-curricular activities. Relevant stakeholders such as

the MoEYS, HEIs, civil society, and the private sector should establish a workable mechanism

that encourages students to pursue personal development opportunities outside the classroom

in collaboration with local communities. In particular, HEIs should continue to strive for

innovation in terms of their policy, planning, and curricular programs to ensure that students

have appropriate opportunities to grow physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually.

Students should not engage in only sporting activities, but also social events, with a budget

allocation representative of the significance of the outcomes outlined in this paper.

Beyond these recommendations, this study has some limitations. It had not provided

insightful analysis on the design and implementation of programs that have the capacity to

develop competency in sustainability, such as CSL and other student support. This is required

for HEIs to have the capacity to motivate student interest. The level of financial investment


25

required to sustain these kinds of programs in the long term has also not been addressed. A

further study on a design, implementation and costing these programs is recommended.

Conclusion

This study provides a general overview of the contribution of Cambodian university

students to community development activities within student volunteer programs, as well as

university outreach programs and activities that involve students. Initially students tend to

become involved in one- or two-day volunteer community outreach activities focused on

environment or health campaigns. Many HEIs organize these short-term activities and these

provide limited opportunities for students to learn from local communities. A smaller number

of HEIs have existing CSL program that assists students to develop attitudes that benefit society

and a community spirit. These programs are not able to attract large number of students. Re-

thinking the design of CSL programs should be taken into consideration.

A minority of students were found to actively participate in voluntary activities in the

local community related various sustainability aspects. This is related to the failure of university

initiatives and activities to engaging students in community outreach. Thus, university leaders

should consider increasing the number of planned student activities focused on community

outreach and find ways to improve the awareness, motivation, and participation of students.

HEIs could start with simple social activities before transitions to more comprehensive CSL

programs. HEIs should not wait to be invited, but be driven to perform by drivers oriented

towards sustainability. For HEIs to be successful they need to learn how to generate new local

knowledge to address sustainability issues (Sedlacek, 2013). HEIs have a responsibility to

transforming the orientation of students towards sustainability by learning how to engaging

them in voluntary activities. Should HEIs intend to better understanding the concepts of CSL in

the Cambodian context, they could consider the CSL models of established at RUPP and PUC as

a guide. An even better approach would be to identify ways of contextualizing their own CSL

model that attracts and motivates students within their own institution. Further studies are

recommended aimed at guiding HEIs to enrich their programs orientated towards sustainability.

This study should aim to understand how to inspire and motivate student participation as part

of building strong university-community cooperation.


26

Acknowledgements

This research was funded a Thai Royal Scholarship under the support of the

Chulalongkorn University Scholarship Program for Neighboring Countries and the

Ratchadaphiseksomphot Endowment Fund (2015), which was the 90th Anniversary of

Chulalongkorn University Scholarship. The authors are very thankful for the opportunity to

conduct this study. They are grateful for the support of Associate Professor Dr. Siridej Sujiva,

Assistant Professor Dr. Apipa Prachyapruit, and Assistant Professor Dr. Sittipong Dilowanich in

providing constructive feedback on the questionnaire. They would like to deeply thank the

university leaders and students of the 24 Cambodian HEIs who participated in the research

including those from RUPP, NUM, BBU, PUC, UC, WU, AEU, UP, BIU, IEI, PPI, NTTI, NPIC, RUA,

CSUK, SRU, UBB, AU, USEA, MCU, AKU, KIP, KUTM. We also appreciated the comments and

suggestions from the editorial board and reviewers.

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31

Appendix 1. List of HEIs involving in the Survey Study N. Name of Higher Education Institutions Province Regions

1 Royal University of Phnom Penh (RUPP) Phnom Penh Central 2 National University of Management (NUM) 3 Build Bright University (BBU) 4 Panasastra University of Cambodia (PUC) 5 University of Cambodia (UC) 6 Western University (WU) 7 Asia-Europe University (AEU) 8 University of Puthisastra (UP) 9 BELTI International University (BIU) 10 Intered Institute (IEI) 11 Preah Kossomak Polytechnic Institute (PPI) 12 National Technical Training Institute (NTTI) 13 National Polytechnic Institute of Cambodia (NPIC) 14 Royal University of Agriculture (RUA) 15 Chea Sim University of Kamchaymear (CSUK) Prey Veng Southern 16 Svay Rieng University (SRU) Svay Rieng 17 University of Battambang (UBB) Battambang Northwest 18 University of Management and Economics (UME) 19 Angkor University (AU) 20 University of South-East Asia (USEA) Siem Reap Northern 21 Meanchey University (MCU) Banteay Meanchey 22 University of Angkor Khemara (AKU) Kampot Southwest

23 Regional Decho Sen Polytechnic Institute of Kampot (RSPIK)

24 Khmer University of Technology and Management (KUTM)

Sihanouk


32

Appendix 2. List of University Leaders as Key Informants for Interviews Code Appointment of University

Leaders

Code Appointment of University Leaders)

UL01 Vice-President UL09 Director, Academic Program Office

UL02 Director, Academic Program Office UL10 Dean, Faculty of Agriculture

UL03 Vice-President UL11 Dean, Faculty of Management

UL04 Dean, Faculty of Education UL12 Director, Research Office

UL05 Dean, Faculty Social Science UL13 Vice-Dean, Faculty of Agriculture

UL06 Director, Quality Assurance Unit UL14 Dean, Faculty of Community

Development

UL07 Vice-President UL15 Dean, Faculty of Tourism

UL08 Vice-President


33

Log and bag cultivation of Oyster (Pleurotus ostreatus) and Lingzhi (Ganoderma lucidum) mushrooms in Cambodia

SREY Chanshorphea*

1Department of Biology, Royal University of Phnom Penh, Russian Federation Boulevard, Toul Kork, Phnom Penh, Cambodia

*Corresponding Author: SREY Chanshorphea ([email protected])

To cite this article: Srey C. (2019) Log and bag cultivation of Oyster (Pleurotus ostreatus) and Lingzhi (Ganoderma lucidum) mushrooms. Cambodia Journal of Basic and Applied Research (CJBAR), 1(2), 33–43.

សង្ខិត្តន័យ ការអភវិឌឍឧសាហក្សមមផលិត្ផសតិ្ក្ៅក្សមពុជា ដូចជា ផសតិ្អយសទ័រ (Pleurotus ostreatus) និរផសតិ្ លីរហស ី(Ganoderma lucidum) ត្រមូវឱ្យម្ភនចំក្ណឹះដឹរក្សនុររសុក្សសតីពីការបក្រកើនអរតាននការលូត្លាស់ ការរ្បរ់្រ្ុណភាព ការរ្បរ់្រជំរឺ និរលក្សខណៈជីវស្ថស្រសតក្ផសរក្េៀត្ដដលរតូ្វផលិត្។ ការសិក្សាក្នឹះម្ភនបំណរក្របៀបក្្ៀបអរតាននការលូត្លាស់ និរេិននផលននរបក្ភេផសតិ្ទរំពីរក្នឹះក្ោយបណតុ ឹះក្សនុរមជឈោឋ នថរប់ាល សិច និរ កំ្ស្ត្ក់្ ើ។ ការផលិត្ផសតិ្ដំបូររត្ូវបានក្្វើក្ឡើរក្ោយការបណតុ ឹះក្មផសតិ្ ្ឺោក្សជ់ាលិការននពូជផសតិ្ P. ostreatus និរ G. lucidum ក្ៅក្សនុររបអបស់្ថរធាតុ្ជំនួយការលូត្លាស់

(potato dextrose agar) ក្ៅកាត្ ់ PDA។ បន្ទទ បម់ក្ស បំដបក្សក្មពូជដដលបណតុ ឹះបានក្សនុររបអបក់្នឹះ ក្ោយក្ផទរក្ៅក្សនុរដបរសូវកានដ់ត្ក្រចើន ក្ៅថ្នក្មរសូវ។ ចុរបញ្ចប ់ ក្មរសូវរតូ្វបានក្ផទរក្ៅក្សនុរមជឈោឋ នដំុថរអ់ាចមរ៍្ (ក្ដើមក្ៅស ូ) និរកំ្ស្ត្ក់្ ើ ដដលបានក្រៀបចំរចួជាក្រសច។ ចំក្ពាឹះក្សរណីបណតុ ឹះជាមយួកំ្ស្ត្ក់្ ើ ក្មពូជនន P. ostreatus ចំនួន ១៩ ក្សរណី និរ ក្មពូជ G. lucidum ចំនួន ២២ ក្សរណី បានឆ្លរជំរឺ។ ចំដណក្សក្សរណីបណតុ ឹះក្សនុរដំុថរអ់ាចមរ៍្វញិ ក្មពូជ P. ostreatus ដត្៥ក្សរណី និរ ក្មពូជ G.

lucidum ដត្ ១៣ក្សរណីប ុក្ ណ្ ឹះ បានឆ្លរជំរឺ។ របក្ភេផសតិ្ក្ផសរៗគាន រតូ្វការលក្សខខណឌ លូត្លាស់ខុសគាន ។ ឧទហរណ៍ ពូជផសតិ្ P. ostreatus រត្ូវការលូត្លាស់ក្សនុរសីតុ្ណហ ភាព ២០ ក្ៅ ៣០ អរាក្ស ក្សនុរសំក្ណើ មពី ៧០ ក្ៅ ៩០%។ ចំដណក្ស ពូជផសតិ្ G. lucidum រត្ូវការលូត្លាស់ក្ៅសីតុ្ណហ ភាពពី ១៨ ក្ៅ ២៥ អរាក្ស ក្សនុរសំក្ណើ មពី ៨៥ ក្ៅ ៩០%។ ការក្រជើសក្រ ើសមជឈោឋ នបណតុ ឹះក្សជ៏ឹះឥេធិពលដល់េិននផលផរដដរ។ ចំក្ពាឹះរបក្េសក្សមពុជា ការបណតុ ឹះផសតិ្ពូជ P. ostreatus ក្ោយក្របើដំុថរអ់ាចមរ៍្ រត្ូវបានផសពវផាយ និរក្លើក្សក្សមពស់ដល់របជាក្សសិក្សរ។

Abstract The development of the mushroom industry in Cambodia through the production of oyster (Pleurotus ostreatus) and lingzhi (Ganoderma lucidum) species requires local knowledge about growth rates, quality control, disease management and other biological characteristics to be produced. This study compares the growth rate and yield



34

of these species in both bag and log cultures. Mushrooms were cultivated by transferring tissues from P. ostreatus and G. lucidum strains to potato dextrose agar (PDA) plates. Then, these strains were multiplied through transferring their spawn to successive grain bottles. Finally, the spawn was harvested and transferred to either plastic bags filled with sawdust (rubber tree) or prepared logs. In the case of the strains grown in logs, 19 of the P. ostreatus cultures and 22 of the G. lucidum cultures were contaminated; while this occurred for only 5 and 13 of the bag cultures, respectively. Different mushroom species require different growing conditions. For instance, P. ostreatus strains thrive at a temperature between 20°C and 30°C at 70 to 90% humidity. However, G. lucidum strains thrive at a temperature between 18°C and 25°C, at a humidity of 85 to 90%. The choice of substrate also affects yield. In the Cambodian context, a sawdust substrate was found to produce higher yields, in terms of both biological efficiency and the number of fruiting bodies. It is recommended that the cultivation of P. ostreatus on a sawdust substrate is promoted to rice farmers in Cambodia. Keywords: Mushrooms, oyster mushrooms (P. ostreatus), lingzhi (G. lucidum)

Introduction

Rice accounts for 75% of agricultural production in the wet season in Cambodia—

between May to October. Outside of the wet season, many Cambodian families adopt

livelihood strategies such as small-scale poultry and vegetable farming or migrating to work in

urban centers (Fosbenner et al., 2018). Mushroom farming has significant potential to further

supplement incomes during the dry-season in Cambodia.

Humans have consumed mushrooms as part of a normal human diet and for medicine

for thousands of years throughout the world (Kozarski et al., 2011). Moreover, edible

mushrooms have beneficial effects on health and in the treatment of diseases (Heo et al., 2003;

Wachtel-Galor et al., 2004; Kuo et al., 2006) such as hyper-tension, obesity, diabetes, cancerous

tumors. Active compounds in mushrooms also protect liver function (Heo et al., 2003; Xu et al.,

2016), immunomodulatory actions (Kim et al., 1996), anti-angiogenic and antioxidant activities

(Song et al., 2003). Mushrooms are fat and cholesterol-free (Bellettini et al., 2016) (United

Nations-N.U., 2007), high in potassium; and very low in sodium and carbohydrates. They also

have anti-neoplastic and lipid-reducing properties (Chang and Buswell, 1996; Wasser and Weis,

1999).

Mushrooms grow rapidly as fresh fruiting bodies on agricultural wastes including olive

cake, tomato tuff, pine needles, wheat straw, banana leaves, cotton waste, maize stover, palm


35

oil and other wastes. Their production characteristics are different than those of plants. There

are many kinds of edible mushroom species including oyster mushrooms (Pleurotus sajor-caju),

straw mushrooms (Volvariella volvacea), lingzhi (Ganoderma lucidum), ear mushrooms

(Auricularia auricular) and shiitake (Lentinula edodes). In Cambodia, recently the cultivation of

oyster (Pleurotus ostreatus) and lingzhi mushrooms (Ganoderma lucidum) has become popular

(Obaa and Nshemereirwe, 2004). While Cambodians have cultivated mushrooms many years

and the country has stocks of substrate, mushroom production is dependent on the quality of

this substrate. Effective substrates help to minimize cultivation costs and cultures contaminated

by disease.

The potential of mushroom cultivation as an effective cash crop to compliment rice

production is dependent on the management of risks associated with substrate contamination.

This research compares the cultivation of P. ostreatus and G. lucidum mushrooms strains in bag

and log cultures, with respect to their growth dynamics, productivity, susceptibility to disease,

and other biological characteristics. It aims to provide locally relevant information about

mushroom production to farmers in Cambodia.

Conceptual Framework

All fungi are part of a diverse group of saprophytes (Guillamon et al., 2010), but not all

fungi are mushrooms. Mushrooms are found just about everywhere (Bishop et al., 2015). They

are produced in both tropical and subtropical regions (Ibekwe et al., 2008). The optimal

growing temperature for many mushrooms is between 32oC and 35oC and they fruit more

productively between 28oC and 32oC (Randive, 2012). Mushroom are the fleshy, spore-bearing

fruiting bodies found in grassy meadows and woodland habitats, growing upon lingo-cellulosic

substrates, such as straw and wood (Belewu and Belewu, 2005). Numerous types of

mushrooms grow in nature, however, less than 25 species are widely accepted as a food; and

few have attained commercial importance (Longvah and Deosthale, 1998). In ancient times,

mushrooms were harvested from the wild, with their pleasing texture and aroma making them

attractive as a fresh food (Longvah and Deosthale, 1998). World production of mushrooms

reached 3.4 million tons in 2007 (Guillamon et al., 2010). In this study, the biological

characteristics of two species of mushrooms will be studied in the context of Cambodia:


36

Phellinus ostreatus, which belongs to the fungi kingdom, basidiomycetes class,

Hymenochaetaceae sub-class, Agricals order (Shah et al., 2004; Vetayasuporn, 2006),

Tricholomataceae family (Ha and Chun-Li, 2015), Pleurotus genus (Gibriel et al., 1996) and

Ostreatus species. They grow naturally in the tropics (Vetayasuporn, 2006) on dead and

decaying woody biomass or wooden logs (Randive, 2012). P. ostreatus can grow at

temperatures ranging from 25 to 350 C, at a humidity of 70 to 90% (Bhatti et al., 2007) with

a growing season that may extend to eight months per year (Randive, 2012). Spores need to

be stored at a temperature of between 18 and 250 C (Samuel and Eugene, 2012).

Ganoderma lucidum, which is of the basidiomycetes species, polyporaeae order, and

Ganodermataceae family (Sullivan et al., 2006). This strain produces shiny reishi or

manetake mushrooms, otherwise known as lingzhi in China and Cambodia. Their natural

habitat is on a range of dead or dying trees (Wasser, 2005), with mycelia growth occurring

at temperatures between 15 and 350 C, at a humidity of 60 to 70%. Optimal primordial

initiation occurs between 25 and 300 C. Optimal mycelia growth between 18 and 250 C, at 85

to 90% humidity. The optimal development of fruiting bodies occurs between 24 and 280C,

at 85-95% humidity. When the cultivation temperature drops below 200 C, fruiting bodies

tend to turn yellow and stop growing (Xuan-Wei et al., 2012).

Materials and Method

Mushroom strains were grown on potato dextrose agar (PDA) plates using a procedure

that varied slightly from that outlined in the literature (Oei, 2005; Das and Mukherjee, 2007;

Chang et al., 2016). Potatoes (200 g) were peeled and cut into one-centimeter cubes, before

being placed into one liter of boiling water and left to simmer for 15 to 20 minutes. The broth

was then filtered, before water was added to a total volume of one liter. Then 20 g of sugar,

and 20 g of agar was added and stirred slowly at a constant speed until the materials were

completely dissolved. The PDA was then stored at 4OC in a refrigerator until use. A pure multi-

spore or tissue culture was collected from the middle of fresh fruiting bodies of P. ostreatus and

G. lucidum and transferred to the PDA with a sterilized knife.

Mycelia were grown over a period of about 10 days, before being multiplied via transfer

to grain bottles containing rice, where they being grown for a further 10 to 15 days (Chang et


37

al., 2016). The grain was then transferred to a new bottle. The entire spawn production process

took 2 to 3 weeks to complete (Peng et al., 2000; Moonmoon et al., 2010; and Chang et al.,

2016). A mixture of sawdust (rubber tree) (79%) rice bran (20%), calcium Carbonate (CaCO3)

(1%) and water (65%) was prepared for the final stage of production. Spawn harvested from

each bottle was transferred to both plastic bags filled with sawdust and logs. The substrate was

placed is an autoclave for 20 min at 121OC (Ashraf et al., 2013), before being used to grow

mycelium to fruiting bodies over a period of about four weeks (Hyunjong and Woo, 2004).Logs

were prepared by cutting them at least two weeks prior to inoculation from appropriate species

of trees. Bark damage was avoided to minimize other species of fungi from enter the log. They

were then cut into 24 cm pieces to enable them to fit into the autoclave at a diameter of

between 6 and 8 cm. Small holes (2 to 3 cm deep) were then drilled into the logs at 5 to 6 cm

intervals, into which the spawn was added. The results from each experimental run were

analyzed statistically, using an inferential t-test to determine if there was a significant

difference between the biological characteristics of each mushroom strain. The analysis was

conducted using SPSS 16.0. Values were determined to be significant if the p-value was found

to be less than 0.05.

Results and Discussion

Comparing the presence of contamination in each mushroom culture

After one month, the rate of contamination for the bag cultures was compared (Table

1). Five P. ostreatus cultures had been contaminated compared to 13 G. lucidum cultures. This

result was significantly different. This result for both P. ostreatus G. lucidum strains grown on

logs was also significantly different, with 19 and 22 cultures found to be contaminated,

respectively.

Mycelium growth characteristics for bag and log cultures (P. ostreatus and G. lucidum)

P. ostreatus mycelium grown in bag cultures was observed 1 to 2 days after inoculation.

Mycelium growth ended after 28 to 30 days, with fruiting occurring on 4 to 6 occasions over a

period of 6 months. G. lucidum spawn took 4 to 5 days to start growing, which did not reach

completion until 2 or 3 months later. These cultures had still not produced fruit 6 months after

inoculation. The same was observed for the P. ostreatus spawn grown on logs, where mycelium


38

growth was not completed until 3 to 6 months later. No fruiting was observed within a 6 month

period. The G. lucidum cultures grown on logs took between 7 and 10 days for mycelium

growth to be observed. Again, no fruiting had occurred after a period of 6 months. Different

mushrooms species require different conditions, while the quality of substrate also affects yield

(Sanchez, 2010). In the context of this study, P. ostreatus cultures were found to be more

productive than G. lucidum cultures. Bag cultures also tended to produce better results than log

cultures (Table 2).

Table 1. The presence of contamination of P. ostreatus and G. lucidum cultures.

Strain Contamination present X2 P-value

Yes No

P. ostreatus (bag) 5 (16.7%) 25 (83.3%) 4.995 0.025*

G. lucidum (bag) 13 (43.3%) 17 (56.7%)

P. ostreatus (bag) 5 (16.7%) 25 (83.3%) 13.384 0.000***

P. ostreatus (log) 19 (63.3%) 11 (36.7%)

G. lucidum (bag) 13 (43.3%) 17 (56.6%) 5.462 0.019**

G. lucidum (log) 22 (73.3%) 8 (26.7%)

P. ostreatus (bag) 5 (16.7%) 25 (83.3%) 19.137 0.000***

G. lucidum (log) 22 (73.3%) 8 (26.7%)

P. ostreatus (log) 19 (63.3%) 25 (36.7%) 2.371 0.124

G. lucidum (bag) 13 (43.3%) 17 (56.7%)

P. ostreatus (log) 19 (63.3%) 11 (36.7%) 0.682 0.409

G. lucidum (log) 22 (73.3%) 8 (26.7%)

Conclusion

This research compared the growth characteristics of two mushroom species in

Cambodia. P. ostreatus; and G. lucidum strains were grown on both sawdust bag and log

substrates. P. ostreatus were found to be less susceptible to contamination and grew more

quickly, producing good quality mushrooms. Sawdust bags were found to be the most

productive substrate with the highest yield, biological efficiency, and number of fruiting bodies.


39

It is recommended that oyster mushroom cultivation in bag cultures is recommended to

Cambodian rice farmers as to produce a supplementary income.

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42

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43

Table 2. Growth characteristics for P. ostreatus and G. lucidum bag and log cultures.

Cultivation

medium

Mushroom type Time for

mycelium to

appear

Time to

completemycelium

growth

Number of

harvests

Months to

produce fruit

Months before

harvest

Plastic bag filled

with sawdust

P. ostreatus 1 - 2 days 28 - 30 days 4 - 6 4 – 5 months 5 - 6 months

G. lucidum 4 - 5 days 2 - 3 months n/a n/a n/a

Log P. ostreatus 4-5 days 3 - 6 months n/a n/a n/a

G. lucidum 7-10 days 6 - 12 months n/a n/a n/a


44

Gender Inequality within Higher Education Institutions: a case study of the Royal University of Phnom Penh

DOUNG Chandy*

Graduate School of International Studies, Sogang University, Daeheung-dong, Mapo-gu, Seoul South Korea

Corresponding Author: DOUNG Chandy ([email protected]) To cite this article: Doung, C. (2019) Gender inequality at higher education institutions: a case study of the Royal University of Phnom Penh. Cambodia Journal of Basic and Applied Research (CJBAR), 1(2), 44–62.

សង្ខិត្តន័យ ការសិក្សាថ្នន ក្សឧ់ត្ដមម្ភនស្ថរៈសំខានស់រម្ភបទ់រំបុរសនិរស្រសតីក្សនុរការក្រត្ៀមខលួនចូលេីផារការងារ។

ការេេួលបានការអបរ់កំ្សមើភាពគាន ជាក្សតាត សំខានក់្សនុរការសក្រមចបានសមភាពក្យនឌរ័ក្ៅក្សនុរក្សម្ភល រំពលក្សមម ប ុដនត ក្ៅរបក្េសក្សមពុជា ម្ភនក្សតាត អវជិាម្ភនមយួចំនួនដដលរារារំមនិឱ្យនិសសតិ្រសីបនតការសិក្សាក្ៅថ្នន ក្សក់្រកាយបរញិ្ញញ បរត្បាន។ ការសិក្សាក្នឹះក្តត ត្ការយក្សចិត្តេុក្សោក្សក់្លើផលប ឹះពាល់អវជិាម្ភនននវសិមភាពក្យនឌរ័ក្ដើមបផីតល់អនុស្ថសនម៍យួចំនួន ដដលអាចជួយ ឱ្យម្ភនតុ្លយភាពក្យនឌរ័ក្សនុរក្សមមវ ិ្ ីសិក្សាថ្នន ក្សក់្រកាយបរញិ្ញញ បរត្ក្ៅរបក្េសក្សមពុជា។ ការរស្ថវរជាវក្នឹះម្ភនក្គាលបំណរបងាហ ញស្ថថ បន័ពាក្សព់ន័ធទរំអស់ឱ្យក្ ើញនូវបញ្ញហ ដដលកំ្សពុរដត្ក្ក្សើត្ក្ឡើរ ក្ដើមបចូីលរមួក្ោឹះរស្ថយនិរកាត្ប់នថយវសិមភាពក្យនឌរ័ក្ៅឧត្តមសិក្សា។ តាមរយៈសថិតិ្បានបងាហ ញឲ្យក្ ើញថ្ន របដហលមយួភា្បីននក្បក្សខជន ដដលក្សំពុរសិក្សាថ្នន ក្សប់រញិ្ញញ បរត្ជានខ់ពស់ បានបញ្ចបថ់្នន ក្សប់រញិ្ញញ បរត្ជានខ់ពស់ជំន្ទញក្ផសរមយួរចួក្ហើយ។ និសសតិ្ដដលកំ្សពុរសិក្សាថ្នន ក្សប់រញិ្ញញ បរត្ជានខ់ពស់ភា្ក្រចើន រតូ្វក្រៀនផរ ក្្វើការផរ។ ដូក្ចនឹះ ពួក្សគាត្ម់្ភនអារមមណ៍ថ្ន ម្ភនបនទុក្សការងារក្រចើន ក្ោយស្ថរមនិម្ភនអាហារូបក្សរណ៍រ្បរ់គានក់្ៅស្ថក្សលវេិោល័យភូមនិទភនកំ្ពញ។ របម្ភណ៧៦,៨%នននិសសតិ្ដដលកំ្សពុរដត្សិក្សាថ្នន ក្សឧ់ត្ដម រតូ្វផគត្ផ់គរក់ារសិក្សាក្ោយខលួនឯរ។ ក្ោយដឡក្ស ភា្ក្រចើននននិសសតិ្ដដលសិក្សាថ្នន ក្សប់រញិ្ញញ បរត្ជានខ់ពស់ ដផនក្សអភរិក្សសជីវៈចរមុឹះ េេួលបានអាហារូបក្សរណ៍។ ម្ភនការយល់ក្ ើញខុសៗគាន អំពីការចូលរមួរបស់បុរសនិរស្រសតីក្សនុរវស័ិយឧត្តមសិក្សា។ ឪពុក្សម្ភត យភា្ក្រចើន (៧៤,៤%) េំនរជាចរឱ់្យកូ្សនរបុសបនតការសិក្សាបានខពស់ជារកូ្សនរសី។បដនថមពីក្នឹះ និសសតិ្ភា្ក្រចើនបានក្លើក្សក្ឡើរថ្ន ស្ថថ នភាពរ្ួស្ថរអាចជាឧបស្គដដលរារារំកូ្សនរសីមនិឲ្យេេួលបានការអបរ់ខំពស់។ ក្សរវឹះការក្លើក្សេឹក្សចិត្តពីសរគមក្សជ៏ាក្សតាត សំខានផ់រដដរ។ រក្សសួរអបរ់ ំយុវជននិរកី្សឡា ស្ថក្សលវេិោល័យភូមនិទភនកំ្ពញ ម្ភតាបិតា និសសតិ្ អរគការក្រៅរោឋ ភបិាល រពមទរំភា្ីពាក្សព់ន័ធទរំអស់រតូ្វចូលរមួក្ដើមបលុីបបំបាត្វ់សិមភាពក្យនឌ ័ និរក្លើក្សេឹក្សចិត្តស្រសដីឱ្យេេួលបានការអបរ់ខំពស់ដូចបុរស។



45

Abstract Higher education is important for both men and women in preparing to enter the job market. Equal access to education is a key factor in achieving gender equality in the workforce. Unfortunately, however, there are a range of factors that de-motivate female students from pursuing postgraduate education in Cambodia. In this paper, I investigate these factors, focusing upon the negative impacts of gender inequality to make recommendations that are likely to address the gender imbalance in Masters Programs in the country. This research aims to inform all relevant stakeholders how they can adapt their practices to reduce gender inequality in higher education. An exploratory study using descriptive statistics shows that around one-third of existing Masters Candidates already hold a Masters qualification. Most currently enrolled students work and study at same time and feel constrained by this dual workload. As there are limited scholarship opportunities available at the Royal University of Phnom Penh; 76.8% of students, self-sponsored their higher education. A disproportionately high number of students in the Masters of Science in Biodiversity Conservation receive scholarships. There were significant differences in perceptions about the participation of men and women in the higher education sector. Most parents (74.4%) preferred to support their sons, rather than their daughters in pursuing further education. In contrast, most student respondents suggested that their family situation was a major de-motivating factor acting as an obstacle to women accessing a higher education. A lack of social encouragement was also significant factor. Increased enrolments of female students should be encouraged through cooperation between the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport (MoEYS), RUPP, parents, students and NGOs through to address these issues. Keywords: Gender Inequality, higher education institutions, Master programme

Introduction

Education plays an important role in national socio-economic development by

improving people’s living conditions through access to better employment opportunities.

Access to higher education is necessary if women are to develop their capacity to contribute to

society at all levels. Thus, increasing the proportion of female students in higher education is

an important factor in achieving the vision of the Royal Government of Cambodia (RGC) to

become an upper-middle income country by 2030. Through the Ministry of Education, Youth

and Sport (MoEYS), the RGC has a strong commitment to developing Cambodia’s human

resources to remain competitive in light of the countries recent integration into the Association

of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Economic Community (Ogisu and William, 2016).

Cambodia’s National Strategic Development Plan (NSDP) 2014-2018 focuses on building

capacity without gender discrimination. This focus is in response to an existing gender gap in


46

higher education participation. Based on recent Gender Parity Indices (GPI) for tertiary

education, Cambodia was assessed as the lowest rate in terms of the greatest imbalance in

favor of male enrolment. In contrast, countries, i.e., Thailand, Malaysia and Philippines had

gender imbalance in favoring women (Williams et al., 2014).

In Cambodia, a contemporary higher education system was established in 1947 through

the founding of the National Institute of Law, National Institute of Politics, and National

Institute of Economic Science, under the strong colonial influence of the French higher

education system. The first Western-style local university was the Phnom Penh-based Khmer

Royal University established in 1960. Six other universities were established in 1965, namely

the Royal Technical University, Royal University of Fine Arts, Royal University of Kompong

Cham, the Royal University of Takeo-Kompot, the Royal University of Agricultural Science, and

the People’s University (MoEYS 1971, cited in Pith and Ford 2004). Unfortunately, between

1975 and 1979, Cambodia, under the rule of the Government of Democratic Kampuchea led by

Pol Pot, banned higher education and killed many educated people including professors and

students. Under this regime, the Cambodian educational system was almost completely

destroyed. Most schools were closed. At the beginning of the 1970s, there were said to be

20,000 teachers working in Cambodia; while only 5000 were remaining 10 years later. Others

claim that up to 90% of teachers may have been massacred (MoEYS, 2017). During the Khmer

Rouge period, many men and women became illiterate.

In a study of the expansion of higher education and quality improvement in Cambodia,

Williams et al. (2014) described how after the collapse of Government of Democratic

Kampuchea in 1979, the pro-Vietnam People’s Republic of Kampuchea was established with

the support of Soviet Union. Experts from Russia and Vietnam were sent to Cambodia to re-

establish the higher education system based on the Soviet model. Most universities and other

higher education institutions closed by the Khmer Rouge were re-opened in 1979. By the early

1990s, the prolonged civil war ended as Cambodia slowly transitioned from Vietnamese control

to become a democratic nation. The National University of Management, Royal University of

Law and Economics, and the National Institute of Education were established in contemporary

Cambodia after the signing of the Paris Peace Agreement in 1991 and the national general

election supported by the United National Transitional Authority in Cambodia (UNTAC).


47

In a post-conflict state, the RGC has been acutely aware of the importance of human

resource development to stimulate socio-economic growth. The higher education system in

Cambodia has gone through a transition as access has improved, first being influenced by

socialist countries such as Russia, Vietnam, and in Eastern Europe; before gradually becoming

more influenced by Western education ideals, influenced by countries such as the United

States and Australia. In 1997, the first private higher education institution, Norton University,

was established in Cambodia in another landmark event. This was followed by other private

institutions such as, the Institute of Management Science and the Institute of Technology and

Management in 1998 and the Institute of Cambodia in 1999. By the end of 2007, the higher

education system in Cambodia had grown dramatically, comprising 22 public and 40 private

universities. In 2014, this figure had increased to 39 public and 66 private higher education

institutions (HEIs). From having only one HEI in 1979/80; the higher education sector in

Cambodia expanded to 486 institutions, as well as 111 Technical and Vocational Training

colleges by 2017 (MoEYS, 2017).

In 2016 there were 45 public HEIs (22 universities, 23 institutes) and 103 private HEIs

(61 universities, 42 institutes) in Cambodia; with a total enrolment that had increased from

10,000 students in 1997, to 97,524 students. The rapid growth of private sector HEIs meant

that each of the 14 government ministries was required to work individually to manage

institutions relevant to their portfolio. The lack of a strong overarching higher education policy

impacted the quality of the Cambodian education system, where the rapid growth in the

number of universities and enrolments resulted in a large number of graduates ill-suited to

meet market demands (Cheat, 2009). Rany et al. (2012) suggested that there is a requirement

to expand higher education quality to meet expectations consistent with the global and

regional context. More recently, the RGC has paid much closer attention to the rapid increase

in the number of HEIs and enrolments, leading to policies that better regulate both the private

education sector and the practice of public universities enrolling private (non-scholarship)

students.


49

study. This framework is considered to be valid for use in the case of Cambodia as it determines

obstacles to further study using specific criteria. It is also anchored in an analysis of strengths,

weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT).

Research Methodology

A case study was conducted on the Royal university of Phnom Penh (RUPP). RUPP is the

largest and most-established public university in Cambodia and was selected based on its

characteristics of providing a range of Masters courses across the sciences and social-sciences.

Being a public university in Phnom Penh it also attracts a diversity of students from each of the

provinces in Cambodia from various socio-economic backgrounds.

This exploratory study used descriptive statistics to compare the experiences of Master

of Education (MED) students and other courses (Non-MED students) and identify the factors

that influence gender inequality in HEIs in Cambodia. A survey was used to collect quantitative

data, a survey was conducted. A cohort of students was recruited for the survey, with the aim

of achieving a level of precision with a maximum 6% standard error (Yamane, 1967) (Table 1). In

addition, a stratified sampling approach was applied to select a smaller cohort for face-to-face

interviews using a structured questionnaire.

Table 1. Number of respondents interviewed.

Respondents Population Sample Size

MED students 45 40

Biodiversity 8 8

IT engineering 32 17

Development studies 32 17

Non MED students 72 42

Total 117 82

The structured questionnaire comprised open and closed questions to gather

information about student perceptions on gender inequality, the background of each student,

their degree of satisfaction with their studies, their motivational factors, and the perception of

female students about their working spaces and university in general.


50

An Excel spreadsheet was used to prepare the quantitative data for input into Statistical

Package for Social Science (SPSS) software for analysis. Descriptive statistics such as a weighted

average index (WAI) and a t-test were adopted. The WAI was used to rate the degree of

satisfaction of the students with the university admission process, quality of education, and

university facilities, as well as the perception of the students towards women in higher

education on a five-point scale, where: 1 = very satisfied; 2 = satisfied; 3 = moderately satisfied;

4 = dissatisfied; and 5 = very dissatisfied. An independent t-test was used to compare the mean

scores of two groups for given variables, such as gender. Content analysis was used to

qualitatively analyze the data obtained from the structured questionnaire, which was crucial for

elaborating upon the factors that influence gender inequality.

Findings and Results

Gender inequality of accessing to higher education

When RUPP was established in 1960, it was known as the Royal Khmer University.

Modern buildings were constructed in the New Khmer architectural style, influenced by both

European postmodernism and Angkorean traditions. With the establishment of Khmer Republic

in 1970, its name was changed to the Royal University of Phnom Penh. During the Khmer Rouge

regime between 1975 and 1979, all educational institutions were closed, with majority of the

deans, professors, and teachers arrested or killed. The university were abandoned and

remained deserted for almost five years. It was not until 2001, that RUPP began to offer its first

postgraduate degrees following the civil war, with graduate diploma and masters courses in

Tourism Development. Today, RUPP is a full member of the ASEAN University Network (AUN)

with a motto of ‘education, research and service to society’. As the national public university,

RUPP has been responsible for developing significant human resources, particularly with

respect to the training of teacher candidates for high schools and other public service roles

(Strategic Plan 2014-2018). The university has a largest student population in Cambodia,

hosting about 20,000 undergraduate and postgraduate students in its programs at any one

time. The university has programs in both the sciences, and social sciences and humanities. It

also has a language program through the Institute of Foreign Languages. In total, there are

fourteen master programs at the university including courses in biodiversity conservation,


51

chemistry, climate change, clinical psychology, development studies, education, IT, engineering,

linguistics, philosophy, physics, social work, sociology, TESOL, tourism & resources management

and translation science. The university accepts enrolments from both non-fee paying

(scholarship) students, as well as fee paying (private) students.

Table 2. Gendered participation in the research.

Gender MED Non-MED Overall

(n=40) (n=42) (n=82)

n % n % n %

Male 28 70.0 29 69.0 57 69.51 Female 12 30.0 13 31.0 25 30.49 Total 40 100.0 42 100.0 82 100.00

The field work compared 82 students from of these disciplines including students from

the Masters of Education (MED); as well as non-MED students from the Masters of

Development Studies, Masters Biodiversity Conservation, and IT & Engineering programs, with

69.5% of the participants being male and 30.5% being female. Female participants were fewer

in the cohort due to the low female enrolment rates in these programs (Table 2). On average,

the participants were 28.4 years old, with students from the MED program (29 years) slightly

older than those in the Non-MED programs (28 years), which was not significantly different

based on the t-test. Only 8% of the cohort was over the age of 35, with majority of students in

all programs aged between 26 to 30 years old. Overall 62% of participants were married, with

students from Non-MED programs more likely to have started a family than those from the

MED program. This is considered to be important in Cambodia, where marital status can

indicate greater burdens in terms of work and family life and may affect an individual’s capacity

to study.

Parents behavior towards children’ higher education

The level of higher education reached by the parents of students was believed to have

potential impacts on the performance of students studying masters programs at RUPP. Overall,

only one-third of parents have participated in higher education, which was higher for Non-MED

students. The parents of many MED students lived in rural areas and were either born or lived

through the Khmer Rouge regime and thus did not have much opportunity to access a higher


52

education. Moreover, 74.4% of parents were found to prefer their sons to access higher

education as opposed to their daughters (Table 3), which was significantly higher for Non-MED

students (90.5%) than MED students (57.5%). Most masters level students (87.8 %) work while

they study, which is slightly higher for MED students (90%). MED students generally work at

public or private high schools or at private institutions as teachers.

Table 3. Parental preference for sending their son or daughter to university.

Favour of Parents MED Non-MED Overall

(n=40) (n=42) (n=82)

n % n % n %

Son 23 57.5 38 90.5 61 74.4

Daughter 17 42.5 4 9.5 21 25.6

Total 40 100.0 42 100.0 82 100.0

Respondents to the structured interview, who were teachers at high schools, indicated

that they were motivated to obtain a masters qualification to have a better chance of being

promoted and receiving a higher salary. Non-MED students were found to mostly work with

NGOs either in Phnom Penh or other the provinces. Most students who did not work were

studying a Masters of Biodiversity on a full scholarship from the United States Agency for

International Development (USAID). A condition of this scholarship required them to attend

university full time, which made it difficult to access jobs outside of those provided by their

sponsor or the university.

Table 4 presents the results of the survey outlining the major obstacles limiting access to

higher education by women. The most common response was family attitudes with 73.2% of

respondents suggesting that parents believed that women should not attempt to obtain a

higher education as they will take on a role as housewife in the future. Traditional attitudes that

suggest that if women obtain a higher education that they would be difficult to control were

still shown to be prevalent. Many respondents suggested that their parents still thought of their

daughters and sons unequally. In general, parents were found to prioritize the education of

their sons over their daughters. In particular, many families suggested that daughters were

required to be available for housework, in preference to studying. Another major demotivating

factor influencing gender inequality in higher education was a lack of social encouragement for

women with the inclination to approach further study.


53

Table 4. Barriers to women accessing higher education.

De-motivating factors MED Non-MED Overall

(n=40) (n=42) (n=82)

n % n % n %

Family situation 27 67.5 33 78.6 60 73.2

Lack of scholarship opportunities 13 32.5 19 45.2 32 39.0

University admission 3 7.5 6 14.3 9 10.1

Degree not important for women 3 7.5 4 9.5 7 8.5

Lack of social encouragement 22 55.0 29 69.0 51 62.2

Other 4 10.0 2 4.8 6 7.3

Total 40 100.0 42 100.0 82 100.0

Perception of women about higher education

A WAI was used to assess the satisfaction of women with different aspects of higher

education, as well as differences in the perceptions of MED and non-MED respondents. In

general students had a moderate to high-level of satisfaction with their higher education

program. They were more satisfied with the admissions process, entrance exams, candidate

selection, the quality of teachers, school facilities, the curriculum, master theses, practicums,

and workshops and only moderately satisfied with elements such as scholarships, internships,

exchange programs, public lectures and publications. The t-test demonstrated a significant

difference between MED, and non-MED students, in term of the admissions process,

scholarships and practicums. Students from Non-MED programs were found to be more

satisfied with the admissions process because they were not required to pass a difficult English

language entrance exam, as well as studying all of their subjects in English. Most MED students

were less satisfied with the availability of scholarships. Scholarships are less likely to be

accessed within their program. Non-MED students were also on average more satisfied with

practicums, which were considered to be more practice-oriented with a greater level of field

work than for MED students.

Most students reported receiving encouragement from their family to pursue a higher

qualification (79.3%), which demonstrates that this is an important factor in decisions to pursue

this pathway, especially at Masters Level. Non-MED students were found to be more likely to

receive encouragement from their families (80.9%) than MED students (77.5%). Only 20.7%


54

reported receiving financial support, with 9.8% or respondents suggesting they received neither

encouragement nor financial support. MED students were found to be more likely to receive

financial support from their families (27.5%) than Non-MED students (14.3%), however, this

was mainly due to Non-MED students having greater access to other form of support such as

scholarship from NGOs.

Table 5. Perception of the Students towards Master program.

Attribute MED Non-MED Overall P-value

(n=40) (n=42) (n=82)

WAI OA WAI OA WAI OA

Admission procedures

0.72 H 0.76 H 0.74 H 0.321

Scholarships 0.44 M 0.63 H 0.53 M 0.000**

Entrance exams 0.69 H 0.73 H 0.71 H 0.183

Candidate selection 0.69 H 0.70 H 0.69 H 0.686

Teaching quality 0.74 H 0.79 H 0.76 H 0.246

School facilities 0.60 M 0.66 H 0.63 H 0.148

Curriculum 0.67 H 0.69 H 0.68 H 0.492

Master thesis 0.64 H 0.67 H 0.66 H 0.332

Internships 0.53 M 0.53 M 0.53 M 0.916

Exchange programs 0.52 M 0.52 M 0.52 M 0.920

Practicums 0.61 H 0.68 H 0.64 H 0.042*

Public lectures 0.63 H 0.67 H 0.65 M 0.226

Workshops 0.63 H 0.67 H 0.65 H 0.342

Publications 0.59 M 0.53 M 0.56 M 0.156

Noted: OA = Overall Assessment significance at the 0.05 level. WAI= Weight Average Index measured on five-point scale = Considerably Less (Cl)=0.00-0,20,, Less (L)=0.21-0.40, Moderate (M)=0.41-0.60, High (H)=0.61-0.80, Very High (VH)=0.81-1.00; OA = Overall Assessment; *Significance at the 0.05 level; **Significance at the 0.01 level.

Notably, only 21.1% of students interviewed received financial support from their work

place to study, with Non-MED students (23.8%) more likely to access this support than MED

students (20%). Understanding this is important as a lack of financial support can be an obstacle

impacting gender inequality in higher education. The capacity for students to spend time

studying during their working hours is important for students who are working. More than a

half of all respondents indicated that their work place did not allow this, which caused

workloads which were difficult to manage (76.8%). Notably, MED students were more likely


55

(52.5%) to be able to spend a portions of their working hours studying, as their employers in

public and private schools are more likely to encourage from the increased knowledge of the

students. If they studies, they were deemed more likely to be promoted to higher teaching

grades and benefit from higher salaries. More than half of all MED students study because of a

motivation to increase their salary, which is considered to be a major factor in driving the

pursuit of higher degrees. Despite this, it was found that work places that employ non-MED

students are more likely to increase the salary of their workers on the basis of a Masters

qualification, as many of the private schools that employ teachers do not have a policy to

increase salaries on this basis.

Encouragingly, 56.1% of respondents reported that programs prioritized the recruitment

of female students, with similar results for both MED and Non-MED programs. Moreover,

89.9% or respondents suggested that their efforts were recognized socially, which was a factor

that encouraged them to pursue a higher education, with the efforts of non-MED students

(90.5%) slightly more likely to be recognized than their MED peers (87.5%). Just over half of all

respondents suggested that higher education was very important for women, with 56.1%

eschewing old perceptions that women should not be highly educated over one of equal access

to this opportunity. This was similar for both MED (55%) and Non-MED (57.1%) students.

A WAI was also used to assess the perceived importance higher education for women.

Surprisingly, students in both the MED and non-MED programs rated higher education as very

important (Table 6). A t-test suggested no significant difference between the perceptions of

respondents from each type of program (MED 87% and non-MED 88%). In the structured

interviews, respondents expressed that both men and women have the same right to access

higher education, and suggested that more women accessing higher education is important for

the socio-economic development of the country. Women were perceived as equally capable of

completing higher education programs. Overall 89% of respondents expressed interest in

continuing their studies, with 62.2% wanting to pursue a Ph.D. and 19.5% wishing to advance

their dream careers with a Masters qualification. For instance, some students working at

Ministry of Finance, which to also teach part-time at other institutions and aspired to obtaining

a qualification in both education and finance. Only a small number of students they did not

want to continue with further study (8.5%), while even fewer were not sure (1.2%).


56

Table 6. Perceptions of respondents about higher education. Attribute MED Non-MED Overall P-value

(n=40) (n=42) (n=82)


Importance of women in higher education

0.87 VH 0.88 VH 0.88 VH 796

Note: OA = Overall Assessment significance at the 0.05 level. WAI= Weight Average Index measured on a five-point scale: considerably Less (CL) = 0.00 - 0.20; less (L) = 0.21 - 0.40, about the same (M) = 0.41 - 0.60, higher (H) = 0.61 - 0.80, much higher (VH) = 0.81 - 1.00; OA = Overall Assessment; *Significance at the 0.05 level; **Significance at the 0.01 level.

Discussion

This section considers the factors that de-motivate women from pursuing Masters

qualifications to better understand how to improve gender equality in postgraduate programs.

It has been suggested that gender inequality in the context of Asia-Pacific remains a ‘hot’

development agenda, which is vital for Cambodia to consider if the country is to achieve the

Sustainable Development Goals. The enrolment of female students in higher education still

relatively low (UNESCO, 2010). HEIs in Cambodia are argued to have problems related to

gender inequality based on policies and cultural norms, such as the perceptions of other family

members. These were considered to be unfair and the root causes of women’s inability to

access to education and employment opportunities and (Escalilla, 2011). For instance, the

major de-motivating obstacle limiting women from accessing higher education was found to be

a students family situation, with 73.2% or respondents citing this as a factor. Many Cambodian

parents believe that women should not access higher education as they are likely to end up as

housewives. In some cases, parents maintain the traditional perception that if women access

higher education that they will be difficult to control and understand how to be promiscuous.

Others also perceive that equal opportunities should not be provided to both daughters and

sons. For instance, they prioritize educational opportunities for their sons. By thinking in this

way, parents preferred to invest in their sons, particularly if they are only able to provide

support for one child to study. In Cambodian society, it is believed that sons are more likely to

be able to help parents in their old age and they have an obligation to do this. Parents often

perceive that daughters will care more about their new families after they are married. Many

families would still prefer their daughters to aspire to house work rather than studying. This


57

lack of social encouragement was found to be an important factor influencing gender inequality

in higher education.

The status of women within the structure of Cambodia society is particularly rigid and

unyielding. Female students within Masters Programs at RUPP are often required to manage

both paid and unpaid work, throughout their studies. Upon graduation, women also struggle to

access attractive employment opportunities or high positions within the government.

Meanwhile, other countries in the region, such as the Republic of Korea, Japan, Thailand, China,

the Philippines and some Pacific Islands have achieved a higher level of gender parity in higher

education because gender mainstreaming approaches are well-integrated at all levels of

government . Postgraduate students at Master level in Cambodia are required to balance work

with studying on the weekend, which presents many challenges for married women with

children, with the added burden of housework when they arrive home.

At RUPP, only 30.5% of enrolled Masters student are female. This is related to

inequalities in terms of workloads and societal expectations with respect to paid work and

domestic work. Workloads are a key factors that de-motivates women from studying at the

Masters level. If this situation continues, women will continue to experience low completion

rates women in Masters Programs and inequality in the work place will persist. Women are

often restricted from participation in decision making processes because they lack the

university qualifications required to access good positions in the government, private sector

and NGOs. These roles are dominated by men. When women do not access decision making

positions, many issues relevant to women and children are not considered in laws and

regulations, with a negative impact on wellbeing.

When women marry at a young age, they are often constrained from pursuing further

education, while male students often still freely enroll at the Masters level after they marry.

There are significant difficulties that women face in being able to earn money while studying. At

the same time, women are not encouraged by society to pursue these opportunities. At the

Royal University of Phnom Penh, there are no scholarship programs specific to female

candidates and women are often required self-fund their studies. As 76.8% of respondents

reported the need to work, while studying at the Masters level, balancing their responsibilities

at the workplace, university and home can be a significant burden for female students, which is


58

more challenging than the situation faced by male students. A lack of scholarship opportunities,

particularly for female students from rural provinces de-motivates women from accessing

higher education, in part due to the cost of renting accommodation in the city (Escalilla, 2011).

A lack of female role models higher education able to encourage others to participate is

a factor in the obstacles women in Cambodia face. Fiske (1995) identified that in Cambodia,

women being observed in leadership or management positions act as role models for female

students, which positively affects the motivation of these students. Despite this, women remain

under-represented in leadership and decision-making positions among politicians, the public

service, and the judiciary at all levels. For instance women represent only 23% of total public

sector employment and female representation in the Senate between 1999 and 2012 remained

unchanged at under 15% (UNDP, 2014).

Policy Implications

Ministry of Education Youth and Sport (MoEYS). To increase admission of women to higher

education programs, the MoEYS should consider providing founding for scholarships,

transportation and accommodation costs for women. The cultural perceptions of parent and

society on the higher education of women have meant that they have been excluded from a

range of financial support provided to men. In recognitions of this, the Ministry of Education

should provide greater access to scholarships specifically for women. Many students who

undertake study at the Masters level live away from Phnom Penh. The ministry should provide

transportation and accommodation subsidies to incentivize women from provincial areas to

encourage women to pursue higher education opportunities.

Royal University of Phnom Penh (RUPP). At RUPP, the MED program should focus on providing

financial support for female students, and improving admission procedures and research

activities to promote full time higher education programs. In some programs, students

conducting field work, such as those in the Masters of Biodiversity program receive full

scholarships enabling them to focus completely on their study. These opportunities are less

available to MED students. Thus the MED program may consider using some of the revenue

from university fees to provide more scholarships to women. Admission procedures at RUPP

often limit the participation of teachers from rural areas through having a policy of admitting


59

new students only one time per year. Thus, the program should adapt the admissions

procedure to enable enrolment on two or three occasions each year to increase the

opportunities of students to from rural areas to participate.

Often programs are only available on the weekends to cater for full-time staff at private

institutions, government agencies and NGOs. The MED program should consider full time

options such as those in the Master of Biodiversity program focused more on research and

other part time course work options to enable more flexible options to be offered to students.

Moreover, the MED program should improve its opportunities to participate in research and/or

field work activities, including the development of a thesis or publications to contribute to more

resources being made available in the education sector.

Admission procedure. Admissions procedures should prioritize female applicants, who have

shown high capacity but are constrained by other factors; or to refuse progress to students who

are enrolled but don’t participate in classes to free up more spaces for students who wish to be

there.

Students. Students should follow the school regulations well, work hard to complete

assignments and theses on time and attendee the class regularly so they can complete their

program within two years. Female students face with transportation and accommodation

challenges before should become aware of them before they decide to take a course and

prepare for them.

Workplaces. While Masters Programs are delivered on weekends, most also have a variety of

events and activities aimed at improving academic progress, such as seminars and workshops at

other times during the week. In recognition of employees studying on the weekends, employers

should allow them to attend some extra events during work hours, in line with school

requirements. RUPP attracts speakers from all over the world who come the share knowledge

with students, which may be useful in improving the results of students, as well as benefiting

their roles in the work place.

Parents. In reality, scholarship programs rarely prioritize either female or male candidates,

rather focus on competency and the quality of the applicant. They are decided on the basis of

examinations and the quality of papers produced. There are no current policies held by the

Ministry of Education or RUPP to prioritize female students. Another alternative would be for


60

parent to reconsider their focus on only their sons accessing higher education programs to

recognize their daughter’s aspirations equally. If possible, parents should support their

daughters to access higher education if they wish.

Conclusion

The insights obtained about the overall management of Masters Programs at RUPP are

telling. While majority of students had only bachelor degrees before commencing a master

degree, 29.3% had already obtained a master qualification already. Most students (78.1%)

needed to work for at least one or two years after completing a Bachelor program to be able to

afford to study at the Masters level. They were motivated to study at a higher level to fulfill

their work requirements and improve their performance with a view to obtaining a promotion.

Most of students were worked while studying and felt constrained by their dual workload. Most

students were self-sponsored (76.8%), as RUPP does not have its own scholarship program,

with students who receive scholarship support, being funded mainly by NGOs, as it the case

with the Masters in Biodiversity scholarship holders. These students are fully supported by

USAID and are able to study full time, which is an opportunity that is offered to very few MED

students. A limited number of public school teachers are able to access scholarships from

UNICEF. Students suggested that that the requirements of Masters Programs at RUPP were

often onerous, when trying to balance course requirements with work and family

responsibilities. There is a demand for students for more scholarships to be provided from

within the university. Some programs, such as the MED experienced low student satisfaction in

terms of the number of scholarship and research opportunities available.

There was found to be seriously biased perceptions with respect to male and female

participation in higher education. Majority of parents (74.4%) were found to preference a

higher education for their sons over their daughters; with 56.1% survey respondents believing

that women should be able to access higher level qualifications, while nearly a half (43.9%)

believing that this was not necessary. Most respondents (73.2%) suggested that their family

situation was the major demotivating factor for women intending to access a higher education,

with 62.2% or respondents citing a lack of social encouragement. Around 39% of survey

respondents suggested the availability of scholarships factor was also a significant motivator for


61

women seeking a higher education. Providing more scholarships is one approach believed to

have the capacity to address gender inequality in the Cambodia higher education sector.

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Integration of Social-Media-Apps into Second Language Learning Activities to Improve Critical Thinking in

Chinese Foreign Language Learning

THAN Chhorn*

Institute of Foreign Languages (IFL) at University of Heng Samrin Thbongkhmum (UHST), Tboungkhmum District, Tboukhmum Province, Cambodia

*Corresponding Author: THAN Chhorn ([email protected])

To cite this article: Than, C. (2019) Integration of social-media-apps into second language learning activities to improve critical thinking in Chinese foreign language learning. Cambodia Journal of Basic and Applied Research (CJBAR), 1(2), 63–83.

សង្ខិត្តន័យ ជាក្រឿយៗ ក្សមមវ ិ្ ីប ត្ ញសរគមរតូ្វបានក្្ក្របើជា្នធានសិក្សាឌីជីថល ក្ដើមបកី្លើក្សក្សមពស់ជំន្ទញការ្ិត្

រ្បរ់ជុរក្រជាយ ក្សនុរអំឡុរក្ពលសិក្សាភាស្ថេី២ (L2)។ ការ្ិត្រ្បរ់ជុរក្រជាយជាជំន្ទញចាបំាចក់្ដើមបកី្្វើឱ្យការក្រៀនសូរត្ L2 ម្ភនភាពរបក្សើរក្ឡើរ។ ការសិក្សាក្នឹះ មនិរគានដ់ត្ពិនិត្យការក្្វើសម្ភហរណក្សមមននក្សមមវ ិ្ ីប ត្ ញសរគម ក្ដើមបកី្្វើឱ្យរបក្សើរក្ឡើរនូវការសិក្សាភាស្ថេី ២ ប ុក្ ណ្ ឹះក្េ ប ុដនតវាក្សប៏ងាហ ញផរដដរពីការរបក្សួត្របដជរសមត្ថភាពទក្សេ់រនឹរការយល់ដឹរ។ ការសិក្សាក្នឹះបានក្របើវ ិ្ ីស្ថស្រសតចរមុឹះបញ្ចូ លគាន រវារក្ត្សតបរមិ្ភណវស័ិយនិរពិភាក្សារក្សុម ក្ដើមបរីបមូលេិនននយ័។ លេធផលបងាហ ញថ្ន ក្សមមវ ិ្ ីប ត្ ញសរគម ដដលក្របើក្ៅក្លើកំុ្សពយូេរ័តទ ល់ខលួននិរេូរស័ពទចល័ត្ ម្ភនសកាត នុពលក្សនុរការតល ស់បតូរឥរយិបេរបស់អនក្សសិក្សា L2។ ការតល ស់បតូរក្នឹះរមួម្ភន ការោក្សប់ញ្ចូ លការសិក្សា L2 ក្ៅក្សនុរជីវភាពរបចានំថៃ ការបក្រកើត្រក្បៀបថមីសរម្ភបក់ារសិក្សា L2 រក្បៀបបក្សរស្ថយ L2 និរការបក្រកើត្ឱ្កាសសរម្ភបអ់នក្សសិក្សា L2 ទក្សេ់រគាន ក្ៅវញិក្ៅមក្ស និរបក្រកើត្េំន្ទក្សេំ់នរថមីៗក្ោយក្របើភាស្ថដដលពួក្សក្្បានក្រៀន។ ជារក្នឹះក្ៅក្េៀត្ លេធផល្ូសបញ្ញា ក្សថ់្ន ការោក្សប់ញ្ចូ លក្សមមវ ិ្ ីប ត្ ញសរគមជាមយួ្នធានសិក្សាក្ផសរក្េៀត្ ក្្វើឱ្យម្ភនការខិត្ខំក្ពញេំហឹរក្ដើមបេីេួលបានការយល់ដឹរ L2។ ក្សមមវ ិ្ ីប ត្ ញសរគមដូចជា Wechat, QQ,

LinkedIn, Wiki និរ Weblog អាចជួយ បក្រកើនការយល់ដឹររបស់អនក្សសិក្សា L2 ផរ និរជួយ ឱ្យសិសសម្ភនឥរយិបថលាចំក្ពាឹះការក្រៀនសូរត្។ ជារមួ ក្សមមវ ិ្ ីរបពន័ធផសពវផាយសរគមរតូ្វបានក្របើរបាស់ក្ដើមបជួីយ សរមួលដល់ការសិក្សាភាស្ថេី ២ ក្ផទរចំក្ណឹះដឹរ វាយត្នមលការក្រៀនក្ោយខលួនឯរ បញ្ចូ លបំនិនក្សនុរការ្ិត្សពវរជុរក្រជាយក្សនុរ SLA និរក្្វើឲ្យអនក្សសិក្សាខិត្ខំអស់ពីសមត្ថភាព។

Abstract Social-media-apps are often used as the digital learning resources to promote critical

thinking skills during the acquisition of a second language (L2). Critical thinking is a vital skill to improve L2 learning. This study examines the integration of social-media-apps to improve the acquisition of a second language, but also shows this presents challenges in


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terms of cognition. This mixed-method study uses a combination of quantitative testing and qualitative focus groups to collect data. The results demonstrate that social-media-apps used on personal computers and mobile phones have the potential to change the behavior of L2 learners. This includes integrating L2 learning into their daily life, creating new ways of acquiring a L2, the ways a L2 is interpreted, and creating opportunities for L2 learners to interact and develop new relationships in their acquired language. Moreover, the results highlight that integration of social-media-apps provides challenges in terms of cognition L2. Apps, such as Wechat, QQ, LinkedIn, Wiki, and Weblog enhance the cognition of L2 learners and student attitudes towards learning. Particularly, social-media-apps are used to facilitate second language acquisition, transfer knowledge, assess self-learning, integrate critical thinking skills within SLA, and provide challenges for L2 learners.

Keywords: social media-apps, computer-apps, mobile-apps, web-apps, app-frameworks,

critical thinking

Introduction

Second language acquisition (SLA) is complex for non-native learners to master. The

integration of SLA with the daily challenges that improve cognition requires teaching and

learning pedagogies to be adopted (Beal & Strauss, 2009). Instead of focusing on improving the

delivery of L2 learning, social-media-apps are currently being used as social digital platforms,

which have the potential to change the cognition of L2 learners to improve their performance

(McFarland & Ployhard, 2015). Social-media-apps used on personal computers and mobile

phones have the capacity to present the regular learning challenges required to improve

student cognition and change student attitudes towards SLA (Than, 2018). Social-media-

platforms may be considered as the modern technology that represents a range of new

contexts that are essential for improving the way L2 learners communicate. Traditional

communication pathways are complemented with online-integration through wikis, e-

messages, and translation apps. This communication facilitates knowledge transfer between

learners, improving SLA outcomes (Warner and Chen, 2017).

Social-media-apps, such as Wechat, QQ, LinkedIn, Wiki, and Weblog have revolutionized

SLA via changes the ways L2 learners can connect and communicate (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010;

Lenhart et al., 2010). For instance, Elefant (2011) discusses how social-media-apps facilitate

information sharing, learner-created content, and collaboration among L2 learners. Fernando

(2010) outlines how sharing information between individual profiles on social networking


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platforms improves the L2 cognition of learners (Charalambousa & Ioannou, 2011), as well as

changing their attitudes towards learning. This is more likely to occur when L2 learners are

encouraged to integrate social-media-apps into their L2 learning activities (Ushiioda & Dörnyei,

2017).

Derks and Bakker (2013) conduct a review of literature on social-media integration

within L2 learning. It suggests that L2 learners are successfully using social-media-apps to

improve their critical thinking an thus, improve their SLA outcomes through the use of online

learning platforms, such as professional development websites (Mayer, 2002). The integrative

tools on these websites have a multi-modal capacity and incorporate a wide range of digital

information, including photographs and videos. They provide students with an opportunity to

integrate SLA within their social networks (Beach & Willows, 2017). Furthermore, online

learning modalities enable teachers and researchers to better understand the attitudes of

learners, as cognitive process can be monitored on online platforms. With knowledge of how L2

learners integrate in online environments, teaching practices can be improved (Duncan-Howell,

2010).

Weschke, Barclar, and Barclay (2011) identify both positive and negative aspects of

online learning opportunities with respect how the type of content students can access their

learning outcomes change. Online learning tools are essential for accessing the new type of

content required for this change, provided that situational barriers are removed (Kanunka &

Nocente, 2003). Notably, website content enables students to integrate opportunities for

professional development with the strategies for acquiring a L2. This can also be integrated

with improvements in L2 cognition (Kao, Wu, & Tsai (2011). In the respect, social media

platforms are a technology that facilitates SLA through learning activities, such as knowledge

creation and knowledge sharing in collaborative online learning communities (Bonsón & Flores,

2011; Daghfous & Ahmad (2015). This inspires a level of creativity among individual learners,

their peers, and teachers (Peppler & Solomou, 2011). Personal computers and mobile phones

can be used to access a range of linked apps, such as dictionaries, wikis, and blogs, which can

also be integrated into L2 learning activities. Students can use these apps to produce learning

materials or interpret their target language, which again improves cognition (McNulty, Sonntag,

& Sinacore, 2009). In this way, L2 courses may use mobile apps (Hamakali, 2017), of more


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specifically, integrative mobile-apps (Hannon, 2017) to enhance SLA through improved

knowledge transfer.

Guze (2015) suggests that modern technologies are crucial learning tools, which are

integration into L2 learning activities to present learning challenges. This is linked to ideas

presented in the literature of Internet welfares, which describes social benefits that may be

realized by integrating mobile-apps into L2 learning activities to improve the critical thinking

required for SLA (Than, 2018). For example, smartphones enable access to new learning

materials, which can be integrated into L2 learning activities to improve cognition and language

retrieval (Trelease, 2008). This cognition may be reinforced through integrative self-guided

quizzes and self-learning assessments (Karpicke & Blunt, 2011). Although social-media-apps

incorporate a wide range of tools and technologies, the individual L2 learners are easily able to

embrace them to resolve cognitive challenges (Mangold & Faulds, 2009).

Internet technologies and social media have attracted considerable attention in terms of

SLA (Hanna, Rohm, & Crittenden, 2011). In L2 learning activities, social-media-apps should

shape new challenges and opportunities for individual long-life learning (Kietzmann et al.,

2011). Indeed, the integration of social-media-apps into L2 learning activities is shaped by how

L2 learners interact with the learning materials sourced within them (Colliander & Dahlén,

2011; Cho et al., 2014). Social-media-apps have been shown to enhance the cognitive

relationships between L2 learners, which leads to increased commitment to learning, levels of

satisfaction, and perceived value in acquiring a second language (Gambao & Gonçalves, 2014).

In recognition of this, Akar and Topçu (2011) analyze how L2 learners perceive the changing

role of social-media-apps in their L2 learning activities through the creation of an attitude scale.

The scale is intended to be used to assess how attitudes change into the future as well. It

comprises the indicators that examine user perceptions about their learning attitudes,

acceptance of social-media-apps in the learning, the use of social-media-app, how this

influences their knowledge, their views of being monitored, and fears associated with the use

of social-media-apps.

Likewise, de Valck, van Bruggen, and Wierenga (2009) investigate how the decision-

making processes of L2 learners is impacted by the use of social-media-apps within L2 learning

activities in terms of learner interactions, communication, and information sharing. This forms


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part of a broader conceptual framework used to identify how social-media-apps support SLA in

conjunction with other technologies, based on a set of individual and social behavioral models

(Ngai, Moon, Lam, Chin, & Tao, 2015). Chen, Fay, and Wang (2011) argue that aspects of critical

thinking, such as setting learning expectations, regulation of online behaviors, and the levels of

maturity among social-media users are key factors that influence the successful integrating

social-media-apps into L2 learning activities. Cascio and Aguinis (2008) pose that the integration

of social-media-apps into L2 learning is part of a global phenomenon that requires greater

scientific scrutiny. They suggest that this phenomenon has the potential to devalue some of the

psychological benefits of SLA, such as cognitive creativity or creativity pursuing L2 learning

challenges to improve cognition.

The present study examines the impacts of the integration of social-media-apps into L2

learning activities related to the enhanced cognition of L2 learners. It looks at how social-

media-apps influence L2 learning outcomes. The use of social-media-apps is considered in

terms of a contextual framework outlining of student-centered theory and practice, and it role

in transforming L2 learning behaviors and outcomes. The framework considered factors, such

as social exchange, social contagion, as well as social network theories and practices (Reinhardt

& Ryu, 2013) with a focus on better understanding how social media-apps are integrated into

L2 learning activities and how this influences the critical thinking skills of L2 learners (Than,

2018). The following research questions are asked: (1) To what extent do social-media apps

impact on L2 learners? (2) What are the effects of social-media-apps on the critical thinking

process of L2 learners? (3) What student capacities and attitudes are strengthened through the

integration of social-media-apps into L2 learning activities? (4) How L2 learners can use learning

challenges to improve their L2 cognition through the use of social-media-apps?

Research Methodology

A mixed-method approach was employed for this study, using tests, semi-structured

interviews with individual respondents, and focus-group discussions. Shandong University was

selected as the research site based on it being a well-established university that attracted both

local and international students from a diverse range of countries. The university is well aligned

with the strategy and policy of the Ministry of Education and the Chinese Government. Two


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undergraduate English classes from the School of Foreign Languages and Literature were

selected as the participants. The cohort comprised 65 students (38 females) of varying levels of

English language proficiency. The participants were divided into control group (CG) and

experimental group (EG), with the aim of investigation the effects of integrating social-media-

apps into L2 learning activities, with respect to the development of critical thinking skills.

Participants, selected at random, were asked to sit a pre-test on the 14th of October,

2017, with focus-group discussions and individual interviews conducted one week later. Post-

tests were also conducted at this time. The individual interviews were used to confirm the

validity of the tests. As part of the interviews, the researcher asked the participants to describe

the effects integrating of social-media-apps into L2 learning activities, particularly in terms of

how this had challenged their learning and helped them to think critically.

The tests were designed to assess the L2 proficiency of the students and gain insight

into how the features available within social-media-apps may best be integrated into L2

learning activities in line with the research questions. The test comprised a 45 minutes writing

activity (Padmanaban & Tragoudas, 2003). The researcher used the results of these tests to

understand how the integration of social-media-apps into L2 learning activities had improved

learning outcomes, cognition, and critical thinking capacity. The pre-test was used a baseline to

compare post-test results with during analysis.

A semi-structured questionnaire was used to obtain information from L2 learners about

their perceptions of social-media-apps and their integration into their learning activities, and

how this had changed their way they thought (Masadeh, 2012). The individual interviews were

conducted with 20 participants. The interviewees were requested to express their ideas freely

and in 10 minutes to describe their backgrounds and their perceptions of social-media-apps

within their L2 learning activities, in particular, how this had advanced their critical thinking.

The transcribed interviews were considered as the supplementary source of data (Marczak &

Sewell, 2007).

Mixed-methods-content analysis was used to analyze the data gained from the tests,

using various approaches including practicality analysis (Plonsky &Gass, 2011) and a comparison

of paired-sample t-tests. The quantitative analysis was deductive and intended to test

hypotheses, or questions generated from theories and previous empirical research. The


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qualitative analysis was inductive, grounded in the examination of topics and themes, as well as

drawing inferences.

Data sampling techniques for each type of analysis were different. The quantitative

analysis used random sampling producing numbers that could be manipulated with various

statistical methods. Data gathered from both pre-tests and post-tests were analyzed by using

SPSS 21.0 software to enable a comparison of paired-sample t-tests – focused on the

correlation of different variables. The qualitative analysis used purposively selected data to

inform the research questions by interpreting the interview transcripts in terms of L2 learner

perceptions, as well as their background knowledge of L2 learning activities and the integration

of social-media-apps within them to improve L2 learning outcomes and critical thinking

capacity. To be with, the interview transcripts were checked for accuracy. Responses were

classified based on the questions asked, before being entered into a Microsoft Excel

spreadsheet. This was helpful for the researcher to analyze and interpret the interviews based

on the research questions and was then used to process information about student perceptions

and their background knowledge.


The Impacts of social-media-apps on SLA

An interpretation of interview transcripts was provided in Table 1. Most interviewees

expressed difficulties with respect to SLA. The interviewees, however, responded that social-

media-apps were effective in integrating social-media-apps into their lessons, providing

appropriate challenges for improving cognition and critical thinking. The interviewees described

social-media-apps as a modern technological social platform and claimed that social-media-

apps provided opportunities to integrate L2 learning activities with other means of interacting

and communicating. They described the use of wikis, e-messages, and translation apps in their

L2 learning activities as changing the way they learned.

The focus-group discussions found that most interviewees suggested that they could

improve their L2 cognition and acquired a L2 more quickly if they used social-media-apps on

computers or mobile phones as part of their learning (see Table 1). Social-media-apps were

described as the social digital platforms that integrate L2 learning with L2 cognition. This


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included “the improvement of L2 learning outcomes, self-learning assessment, the use of

critical thinking, the use of learning materials, self-guided quizzes, and a wide range of other

support tools.” Most interview participants used social-media-apps to “integrate and improve

their L2 learning strategies, challenge their L2 learning approaches, improve their cognition,

interpret language, enhance the co-operative relationships, develop loyalty, experience

learning satisfaction, value different perspectives, and increase their commitment.”

Table 1. An interpretation of interviewees-responses.

Factors Control Group Experimental Group

What are the difficulties in your learning?

L2 learning L2 learning, critical thinking

What do you use to solve the difficulties in your L2 learning and critical thinking?

Social-media-apps Computer-apps, web-apps, and mobile-apps

The social-media-apps are defined as …

Social digital platforms, modern technologies

Digital learning resources, web-sites, modern technologies

What do you use social-media-apps for?

Improvement of L2 learning outcomes, self-learning assessment

The use of critical thinking, the use of learning materials, self-guided quizzes, a wide range of other support tools

Why do you use social-media-apps?

To improve L2 learning strategies, challenge my L2 learning, interpret language, improve my cognition, and enhance co-operative relationships

To integrate L2 learning strategies, challenge my critical thinking and L2 learning, develop loyalty, experience learning satisfaction, value different perspectives, and increase my commitment

What apps of computer-apps, web-apps, and mobile-apps do you use to integrate the L2 learning and challenge the critical thinking?

Wechat, QQ, LinkedIn, Wiki, and Weblog

Wechat, QQ, LinkedIn, Wiki, and Weblog

What are the effects of social-media-apps on your L2 learning and critical thinking?

Interpreting the language meanings, integrating L2 learning strategies, changing ways of interacting and communicating, using Internet to access professional L2 learning

Creating new ideas, challenging my L2 learning both inside and outside the class, facilitating SLA and knowledge transfer, enhancing L2 learning cognition, changing the way to connect and communicate,


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opportunities, facilitating information sharing and collaboration with other learners, facilitating SLA and knowledge transfer

enabling cognitive processes to be tracked, enabling student-created content, and facilitating collaborating between learners

Wechat, QQ, LinkedIn, Wiki, and Weblog” were the social-media-apps most used by L2

learners to develop L2 learning challenges that improved their level of critical thinking. Social-

media-apps were found to have provided participants with many benefits with respect to L2

learning challenges. This included challenging the way they interpreted language and identified

new L2 learning strategies and changing the ways they interacted and communicated, used the

Internet to access and find information about professional learning opportunities, and

facilitated information knowledge sharing and collaboration opportunities with other L2

learners. Social-media-apps were also used for knowledge transfer, creating new ideas,

challenging student L2 learning both inside and outside the classes, and enhancing cognition.

Social-media-apps were regarded as the modern technologies that integrated new L2 learning

activities with the development of critical thinking skills to assist with SLA. The effect of social-

media-apps was described as “changing the way students connect and communicate, enabling

cognitive processes to be tracked, enabling student-created content, and facilitating

collaborating between learners.

Table 2. Correlations between experimental group (EG) and control group (CG).

Pair Factors N Correlation P-value

1 Computer-apps 65 .429 .216

2 Web-apps 65 .602 .065

3 Mobile-apps 65 .160 .659

*P-value < 0.005, **P-value < 0.001.

A comparison of the types of social-media-apps used and their significance in terms of

their integration with L2 learning activities for the EG and CG was presented in Table 2. The

computer-apps (P-value = .216) helped cognition for the EG, but the CG demonstrated less

development of critical thinking skills relevant to L2 learning activities.


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Table 3. Comparison of paired sample t-test for the EG and CG.

Factors Pair N Paired Differences

Mean Std. Derivation t P-value

Computer-Apps 1 65 3.470 5.15925 2.127 .062

Web-Apps 2 65 6.450 4.48683 4.546 .001**

Mobile-Apps 3 65 7.410 6.17134 3.797 .004*

*P-value < 0.005, **P-Value < 0.001.

Web-apps (P-value = .065) significantly supported the EG to develop critical thinking

skills within L2 learning activities, while the CG only slightly improved their cognition using

these tools. Mobile-apps (P-value = .659) enabled the EG to greatly improved their cognition,

however they were not well-integrated with the L2 learning activities of the CG (see Table 2).

With respect to correlations between the EG and CG, the SLA was improved through integrating

critical thinking skills into L2 learning activities through the use of computer-apps, web-apps,

and mobile-apps. That is to say, while the correlation varied for each type of L2 learners were

able to improve their level of critical thinking, regardless of the type. Both groups also used

each type of app to facilitate information sharing, create learning content, collaborate with

learners, and transfer knowledge.

The comparison of L2 learning activities for each type of social-media-app for the EG

and CG in Table 3 identified each was significant for L2 learners. The P-value of (.062) for

computer-apps showed that the EG students experienced greater improvement in their

cognition than the CG, when these apps were used to integrate critical thinking into L2 learning

activities. The P-value of (.001**) for web-apps found that both the EG and CG improved

cognition equally by using the internet as the digital platform for L2 learning (see Table 3). The

P-value of (.004*) for mobile-apps sought that there was no difference between the EG and CG

in terms of improving L2 learning activities with mobile phones.

Comparing the paired sample t-tests identified that the EG were able to improve their

SLA more quickly than the CG by using computer-apps to improve cognition. It also showed that

both groups used all three types of apps to improve their critical thinking skills. Both groups

used social-media-apps to create new ideas, facilitate SLA, transfer knowledge, enhance and


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track their cognition processes, change the way they connect and communicate, develop

content, and collaborate with other learners.

Student capacity in using social-media-apps

The capacity of students to integrate social-media-apps into their L2 learning activities to

challenge their level of critical thinking was found to be significantly improved by goal-setting

using social-media-apps on either computers or mobile phones (Tables 4 and 5). Self-motivation

and self-assessment were other factors found to encourage students to improve their L2

learning activities using social-media-apps. This helped L2 learners create learning challenges to

improve their critical thinking by themselves.

Table 4. Correlations of student capacity to use social-media-apps for SLA.

Pair Factor N Correlation P-value

1 Goal-Setting Plan 65 -.596 .069

2 Self-Motivation 65 -.666 .036

3 Self-Assessment 65 -.101 .782

*P-value < 0.005, **P-Value < 0.001.

The correlation value of -.596 and P-value of .069 for comparing the goal-setting plans

for the EG and CG suggested that EG used goal setting to a greater extent than the CG, with

respect to using social-media-apps to improve their L2 cognition. The correlation value of -.666

and P-value of .036 for self-motivation showed that the EG had higher levels of self-motivation

than the CG with respect to the use of social-media-apps to improve their critical thinking (see

Table 4). The correlation value of -.101 and P-value of .782 for self-assessment sought that the

EG self-assessment to a larger extent than the CG in relation to use social-media-apps to

improve SLA cognition. L2 learners were encouraged to use social-media-apps as digital

learning resources to access information on the Internet about professional L2 learning

opportunities through platforms, such as Wechat, QQ, LinkedIn, Wiki, and Weblog. This assisted

to improve their level of critical thinking in terms of SLA, enable them interpret language,

create new ideas, and transfer knowledge more easily.

Table 5 presented the statistical significances of different student strategies to improve

their capacity in using social-media-apps. The P-value of .377 for goal-setting plans of the EG


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and CG realized that when using social-media-apps to improve their use of critical thinking in

SLA, EG students made greater use of these plans. The EG were more self-motivated (P-value =

.015) and used self-assessment to a greater extent (P-value = .013) to identify L2 learning

challenges to improve their critical thinking skills through the use of social-media-apps. In turn

this was shown-improved their SLA. While there was a significant variance in how social media-

apps were used, both groups had opportunities to use the apps in all aspects of their L2

learning activities. That is to say, both groups had the opportunity to integrate critical thinking

skills to facilitate SLA, interpret language, create new ideas, and transfer knowledge.

Table 5. Student capacity in using social-media-apps.

Factors Pair N Paired Differences


Goal-setting Plan 1 65 2.590 8.82313 .928 .377

Self-motivation 2 65 5.530 5.83591 2.997 .015

Self-assessment 3 65 5.910 6.06968 3.079 .013

*P-value < 0.005, **P-Value < 0.001.

The effects of social-media-apps impact on SLA

An analysis comparing the EG and CG through paired sample t-tests using the data

gathered from the pre- and post-tests was presented in Tables 6 and 7. In this instance, social-

media-apps were defined as the digital learning platforms for improving the use of critical

thinking as part of L2 learning activities. The correlation and p-values derived from the test

scores of the EG and CG (Table 6) provided insights into the development of critical thinking

skills through the use of social-media-apps for L2 learning activities. Both the EG and CG had

similar learning challenges and capacities. However, the EG were able to acquire second

language skills more quickly using social-media-apps integrated into their L2 learning activities

to develop critical thinking skills (P-value =.391). In addition, EG learners had developed a

higher level of SLA as well (P-value (p=.391).


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Table 6. The correlation between the use of social-media-apps and their influence on SLA.

Pair Test N Correlation P-value

1 Pre-Test 65 .417 .231

2 Post-Test 65 -.305 .391

*P-value < 0.005, **P-Value < 0.001.

Table 7 presented the results of the paired difference analysis of the pre-tests and post-

tests of the EG and CG. The P-value of .004* for the pre-tests suggested significant differences

in level of improvement and cognition as a result of integrating social-media-apps into L2

learning activities. In contrast, the P-value of .141 for the post-tests showed statistically

significant variance in the development of learners using social-media-apps. Even though these

results were different, each group was able to apply the integration of social-media-apps into

their L2 learning activities for SLA through knowledge transfer, creating learning content, using

the Internet to find information, interpreting language, creating new ideas, and improving

cognition. Thus, by using social-media-apps, L2 learners were able to improve their critical

thinking skills to improve their learning behaviors and attitudes.

Table 7. Paired sample t-tests on the influence of social-media-apps on SLA.

Test

Pair

N

Paired Differences


Pre-test 1 65 5.350 4.41695 3.830 .004*

Post-test 2 65 2.950 5.78613 1.612 .141

*P-value < 0.005, **P-Value < 0.001.

Student attitudes towards social-media-apps

The mean (2.640) and P-value (0.123) for student achievement showed that the EG

realized a greater level of achievement through the use of social-media-apps than the CG (see

Table 8). The EG also displayed better attitudes towards social-media-apps (mean = 2.550; P-

value = 0.224, see table 8). If students integrated social-media-apps with their L2 learning

activities, then they had enough opportunity to improve their abilities and attitudes, such as

creating new ideas and learning content, interpreting language, and transferring knowledge.

Through integrating critical thinking into their L2 learning activities, L2 learners identified that


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using social-media-apps helped them enhance L2 learning aspects, such as self-motivation, self-

reflection, self-guidance, and self-assessment.

Table 8. Comparison of student attitudes towards social media-apps.

Attributes Pair N Paired Differences

Mean Std. D t P-value

Student achievement 1 65 2.640 4.89993 1.704 0.123

Student attitudes towards

social media-apps

2 65 2.550 6.17778 1.305 0.224

Student behaviors and

outcomes in relation to

social-media-apps

4 65 2.560 5.68393 1.424 0.188

Student attitudes toward L2

learning activities

5 65 .870 1.99223 1.381 0.201

*P-value < 0.005, **P-Value < 0.001.

The mean (2.560) and P-value (0.188) for student behaviors and outcomes relevant to

the integration of social media-apps into their L2 learning activities compared this attribute

across the EG and CG. A significant variance in whether improved L2 learning behaviors and

outcomes were improved was observed. This included whether being an active learner changes

L2 learning behaviors such as connection and communication with other learners or whether

students to challenges that improve their cognition. Both the EG and CG had sufficient

opportunities to develop their learning behaviors and outcomes in the study, such as learning

collaboratively and using social-media-apps to interpret language.

The mean (.870) and P-value (0.201) for student attitudes towards L2 learning activities

among the EG and CG for the paired sample t-tests also suggested significant variation in the

improvement of student attitudes toward L2 learning activities through the use of social-media-

apps (see Table 8). The EG were able to quickly develop their SLA due to their attitudes toward

L2 learning activities conducted on social-media-apps whereas the CG were not. Both groups

were encouraged to integrate the apps, such as Wechat, QQ, LinkedIn, Wiki, and Weblog into

their L2 learning activities to improve their cognition, confidence, and awareness of their SLA,

as well as whether they were matching the description of an active learner.


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Discussion

The results of this study show that many L2 learners integrate social-media-apps, such

as Wechat, QQ, LinkedIn, Wiki, and Weblog into their L2 learning activities to realize benefits

such as improving cognition and critical thinking. To be able to continue to adapt these

technologies and innovate further, it is useful to access insights into how L2 learners use social-

media-apps in higher education across both the sciences and social sciences. Social-media-apps

are found to provide L2 learners with significant opportunities to challenge their approaches to

learning and become active learners (see Tables 1, 2, and 3). L2 learners are found to use social-

media-apps to find new ways of communicating, interacting in their target language,

interpreting language, and creating new concepts. Indeed, most L2 learners demonstrate that

social-media-apps can be used as a social digital platform to improve their cognition (see Tables

1, 2, and 3). Moreover, L2 learners use social-media-apps to improve their performance in L2

learning activities. Several L2 learners also use social-media-apps to enhance their L2 learning

behaviors, such as building relationships to communicate with other learners, increase loyalty

and commitment to their studies, and become for satisfied with the perceived value of their

learning.

The present study also shows how the integration of social-media-apps helps L2 learners

improve their capacity (see Tables 4 and 5). Social-media-apps are viewed as the digital learning

resources, which may be assigned to L2 learners to present them with challenging learning

activities that improve their cognition. Indeed, social-media-apps have provided L2 learners

with significant opportunities to set their own L2 learning goal, become self-motivated, and

assess their own performance. This provides new learning challenges that improve critical

thinking. By comparing the EG and CG, significant value was observed in terms of the

integration of social-media-apps, based on the results from the test scores. This is relevant to

L2 learner capacity to use social-media-apps, such as Wechat, QQ, LinkedIn, Wiki, and Weblog

to transfer knowledge, assess self-learning through self-guide quizzes, search for information,

and interpret language to facilitate SLA, as well as improve L2 cognition and learning attitudes.

Social-media-apps serve as digital learning platforms for L2 learners to access challenges

to improve their cognition and critical thinking in the context higher education setting. For

instance, social-media-apps increase the perceived value of learning and promote loyalty,


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satisfaction, and a high commitment to learning. Social-media-apps provide learners with

substantial opportunities to improve their learning outcomes. Benefits included improving

cognition through a capacity to interpret language, transfer knowledge, and create new ideas

with enhanced technology. Similarly, social-media-apps help L2 learners develop useful

perspectives for improving their understanding of their target language through improved

behaviors and attitudes. Additionally, the integration of social-media-apps into L2 learning

activities fits with the contextual framework that shows how learner-centered theories are

applied to enact changes to behaviors. This may be demonstrated through social exchange and

social networking theories, for example, social-media-apps are suggested to be effective within

these frameworks as they promote the essential behaviors of self-motivation and self-

assessment to improve critical thinking. Even though there are differences between the

experiences of the two groups, both are able to demonstrate this behavior through creating

learning content, interpreting language, developing new ideas for L2 learning activities, and

transfer knowledge for SLA.

If students integrate social-media-apps into their L2 learning activities, collaborative L2

learning opportunities are created, where knowledge can share with communities to extend its

effectiveness in creative ways. Most L2 learners use social-media-apps as digital learning

resources to improve their behaviors, attitudes, and L2 cognition. This acts to shape student

interactions and communication. Indeed, the student attitudes improve on the learner-based

attitude scale because L2 learners have changed their learning behaviors and attitudes both

inside and outside the classroom. L2 students are encouraged to be aware of their use of social-

media-apps and to be confident in their own experience of SLA. Consequently, L2 learners are

able to apply social-media-apps to realize outcomes associated with this improved cognition,

such as being more aware and confident with their L2 learning and taking a more active role in

their learning. In fact, learning integrated with social-media-apps assists L2 learners to improve

their language learning through shaping their own advancement led by changed behaviors and

attitudes and improved critical thinking skills.

In conclusion, there is both theoretical and practical basis for integrating social-media-

apps, such as Wechat, QQ, LinkedIn, Wiki, and Weblog into L2 learning activities, as a way of

improving the experience of SLA. Indeed, the relationships between L2 learners through social-


79

media-apps are found to improve levels of critical thinking, which act to evolve the cognition of

L2 learners through new challenges. Social-media-apps are demonstrated to change the ways

L2 learners approach learning through learner-centered approaches. This promotes new

learning behaviors and outcomes. Ultimately, L2 learners use social-media-apps to participate

in learning activities, such as creating learning content, interpreting language, creating new

ideas, self-learning, self-assessing to facilitate SLA, transferring knowledge, and improving their

level of critical thinking. L2 learners also use social-media-apps to search information about

professional development opportunities, to improve L2 cognition and their attitudes to learn

through enhanced relationships. These enhance relationships increasing their level of

satisfaction, commitment, and perceptions of value, with respect to their education.

Conclusion

The study examines the effects of integrating social-media-apps into L2 learning

activities to improve the cognition of learners. Social-media-apps are defined as social digital

platforms used to facilitate the learning activities for the purposes of this study, including

Wechat, QQ, LinkedIn, Wiki, and Weblog. This trend is a global phenomenon and requires

scientific scrutiny in terms of how well it is integrated with psychological concepts, such as

higher critical cognition, cognitive creativity, and challenging learning activities. Social-media-

apps are indented to enhance and develop deeper learning relationships, with increased

loyalty, leading to greater satisfaction with the learning process, increasing the perceived value

of L2 learning and thus, the commitment of learners. Social-media-apps noticeably change the

ways L2 learners approach SLA including the ways they communicate, interact in their target

language, interpret language, and create new concepts. It also promotes self-learning,

knowledge transfer, and self-assessment using quizzes to facilitate SLA. Overall, this examines

how students search relevant information to identify challenging L2 learning activities to

enhance their critical thinking, cognition, and attitudes towards learning.

Descriptive statistics were provided with respect to the most significant attributes of the

integration of social-media-apps into L2 learning activities to promote critical thinking.

However, not enough evidence was gathered to sufficiently understand the most important

attributes. This study did cover a large enough cohort to be of significance. The methodology


80

used was not sufficient to draw strong conclusion about these attributes. This study suggests

that social-media-apps should continue applied to L2 teaching activities guided by higher

education pedagogies in all contexts to improve L2 cognition. L2 learners should be encouraged

to integrate social-media-apps into their L2 learning activities.

Further study on the integration of social-media-apps to improve critical thinking

outcomes is strongly encouraged for researcher across a range of fields. This study illustrates

how social-media-apps challenge traditional ways of L2 learning and looks at the strategies by

which critical thinking skills may be encouraged through the provisions of a stimulating learning

environment. It is believed that further study in this area will unveil promising result for future

generation.

Corresponding Biography

Chhorn Than has a background as a high school English teacher, however more recently,

he has worked as a lecturer at the Cambodian University for Specialties (CUS) and the

University of Heng Samrin Thbongkhmum (UHST). He holds of Bachelor of Teaching English as a

Foreign Language, from Western University in Phnom Penh and Masters of Teaching English to

Speakers of Other Language from the Cambodia University of Specialties. His research interests

include the role of technology in improving language proficiency and critical thinking skills. He is

currently pursuing a doctorate in foreign linguistics and applied linguistics with the School of

Foreign Languages and Literature at Shandong University in China.

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The impact of flooding on primary education in Kroch Chmar District, Tbong Khmum Province, Cambodia

HENG Chanla*

Planning and Finance Office, Heng Samrin Tboung Khmum University, Tboungkhmum District, Tboukhmum Province, Cambodia

*Corresponding Author: HENG Chanla ([email protected]) To cite this article: Heng, C. (2019). The impact of flooding on primary education in Kroch

Chmar District, Tbong Khmum Province, Cambodia. Cambodia Journal of Basic and Applied Research (CJBAR), 1(2), 84–98.

សង្ខិត្តន័យ របក្េសក្សមពុជាជារបក្េសដដលងាយេេួលររនូវក្រគាឹះ្មមជាតិ្ជាក្រចើនរបក្ភេដូចជា ក្រគាឹះេឹក្សជំនន ់ និរ

ពយុឹះរតូ្ពិចជាក្ដើម និរសថិត្ក្សនុរលំោបេី់៩ក្សនុរប ត្ របក្េសដដលងាយររក្រគាឹះបំផុត្ក្សនុរពិភពក្លាក្ស។ ជាពិក្សស េឹក្សជំននប់ានប ឹះពាល់យ រខាល រំដល់ជិវតិ្មនុសស និរការអបរ់រំបស់កុ្សម្ភររ្បអ់ាយុចូលក្រៀនរ្ប់ភូមសិិក្សា ក្ៅតាមត្ំបនដ់ដលងាយររក្រគាឹះថ្នន ក្សក់្ោយស្ថរេឹក្សជំនន។់ ការសិក្សារស្ថវរជាវក្នឹះម្ភនបំណរផតល់នូវការដសវរយល់សីុជក្រៅអំពីផលប ឹះពាល់ន្ទន្ទននេឹក្សជំននក់្ៅក្លើការអបរ់ ំ និរមូលក្ហតុ្ន្ទន្ទ ដដលបរករការររក្រគាឹះដល់សហ្មនផ៍រដដរ។ ការរស្ថវរជាវក្នឹះបានពិនិត្យយ រហមត្ច់ត្ន់ិរលាិត្លានអំ់ពី៖ ផលប ឹះពាល់ននេឹក្សជំននក់្ៅក្លើការសិក្សារបស់សិសស ការយល់ក្ ើញរបស់ឪពុក្សម្ភត យ រ្ូ ន្ទយក្សស្ថលា និរមស្រនតីអបរ់ ំក្លើដំក្ណើ រការសិក្សារបស់សិសស និរ សុវត្ថិភាពសិក្សារបស់សិសសក្ៅស្ថលាក្សនុររគាម្ភនេឹក្សជំនន ់ និរបញ្ញហ រប មន្ទន្ទចំក្ពាឹះសហ្មនដ៍ត្រដត្ក្ក្សើត្ម្ភនេឹក្សជំនន ់ ដូចជា ក្សមមវ ិ្ ីសិក្សា និរក្ហោឋ រចន្ទសមពន័ធស្ថលាក្រៀនជាក្ដើម។ ការសិក្សារស្ថវរជាវបានរក្សក្ ើញថ្ន៖ )១( ស្ថលាក្រៀន ដដលបានចុឹះរស្ថវរជាវ រត្ូវបានបិេទវ រឬពនោរក្ពលការសិក្សា ពីពីរសបាត ហ៍ក្ៅមយួដខ ក្ោយស្ថរការរខំានក្ោយេឹក្សជំនន។់ (២) ក្ក្សមររសីងាយររក្រគាឹះក្ោយស្ថរេឹក្សជំននខ់ាល រំជារក្្ ក្ហើយឪពុក្សម្ភត យដត្រដត្ម្ភនការរពួយបារមមយ រខាល រំអំពីសុវត្ថិភាពកូ្សនៗក្ៅក្ពលម្ភនេឹក្សជំនន។់ )៣ ( ម្ភនេំន្ទក្សេ់ំនរតិ្ចតួ្ចរវារក្រគាឹះថ្នន ក្សក់្ពលម្ភនេឹក្សជំនននិ់រការមក្សក្រៀនរបស់សិសស ប ុដនត ម្ភនេំន្ទក្សេ់ំនរយ រជិត្សនិេធរវារឥេធិពលននេឹក្សជំនននិ់រលេធផលសិក្សារបស់សិសស ជាពិក្សស ការក្រៀនរតួ្ត្ថ្នន ក្ស។់ សិសសម្ភនការក្ពញចិត្តចំក្ពាឹះក្ហោឋ រចន្ទសមពន័ធរូបវនតនិ័រក្សវាសិក្សារបស់ស្ថលា ក្រពាឹះស្ថលាទរំក្ន្ទឹះម្ភនបរយិកាសលាសរម្ភបក់ារសិក្សា។ ក្ៅនថៃអន្ទ្ត្ ផលប ឹះពាល់ននេឹក្សជំននក់្លើការសិក្សាអបរ់អំាចនឹររត្ូវបានកាត្់បនថយ តាមរយៈការក្ក្សៀរ្រ្នធានពីអនក្សពាក្សព់ន័ធន្ទន្ទ និរការពររឹរសមត្ថភាពស្ថលាក្រៀនទរំក្ន្ទឹះក្សនុរការរ្បរ់្រហានិភយ័ទរំឡាយដដលក្ក្សើត្ពីេឹក្សជំនន ់របក្សបក្ោយរបសិេធិ។


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Abstract Cambodia is a vulnerable country to natural disasters such as flood and tropical storms; it

ranked as the world’s 9th worst affected by disaster. In particular, flood has affected to people’s lives and education in the flood-prone areas. Accordingly, the research aimed to provide a thorough understanding of the impact of floods on the education and underlying causes of the community’s vulnerability. The research takes a close look upon: how worst flood has affected children schooling, perception of parents regarding children performance and safety at school during flood, as well as problems and challenges faced from flooding on flood-prone community vis-à-vis curriculum, and infrastructure. The research found that (1) flood interrupted schools because classes were suspended or closed between two weeks and a month. (2) Girls were the most vulnerable to the floods and their parents concerned about their safety during the flood. (3) There was related association between risks happened during flood and coming to schools; but it was significantly associated between impacts of flood and students’ repetition. (4) The students satisfied with physical infrastructures and school services because the schools could create fairly good learning environment. In the future, impacts of flood on education may be improved through resource mobilization and capacity building of the schools to implement flood risk management effectively.

Keywords: basic education, enrolment, drop-out, flooding, vulnerability

Introduction

Cambodia has been ranked ninth most affected country, in terms of natural disasters,

globally (Chea and Sharp, 2015), which highlights the low-level of technical skills within the

country to manage these risk. Many Cambodians are heavily dependent on agriculture; which

means they are highly vulnerable to flood and drought (Chea and Sharp, 2015). The most

prevalent natural disaster risk in Cambodia is floods, followed by drought, occasional

epidemics, and storms (NCDM, 2013). In both 2011 and 2013, a combination of successive

typhoons, brought torrential rains and caused extensive flooding across the country (RGC,

2010). Cambodia’s vast floodplain is one of the country’s most prominent geographical features

and is representative of her natural susceptibility to annual flooding, particularly along the

Tonle Sap and Mekong River. Natural disasters carry risks that can damage economic growth,

contribute to the experience of poverty, and affect the education of children (ADB, 2012). A

2013 flood impact assessment report indicated that natural disasters impact living conditions,

education and the overall economic position of the country (NCDM, 2014).

Cambodia experiences two major seasons—a dry season from November to April, where

rain ceases to be available for agriculture—and a rainy season from May to September, linked


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to high agricultural production. In September each year, rainfall levels are generally higher than

other months and this inundates a large, low-lying agricultural region. The National Committee

for Disaster Management (NCDM, 2014) reported that the 2013 flooding in Cambodia damaged

more than ten thousand households, affecting millions of people across 20 provinces. More

than 100 people died as a result and many were children (HRF, 2013a). Flood waters rose

across the entire country; albeit more slowly than expected, in the most-affected provinces in

the north west of the country. Some of these locations were flooded for long periods. More

than 200,000 houses, 1,000 school facilities, and many health centers, hospitals, and pagodas

were directly affected, resulting in significant levels of infrastructure damage (HRF, 2013b).

Floods and other natural disasters have become a fact-of-life in Cambodia and continue

to present significant challenges. While these disasters are often caused by natural processes of

rainfall and catchment run-off, flood impacts are conditioned by human behavior and affect

vulnerable people disproportionally (MoEYS, 2013). Human-related factors, including land-use

changes like deforestation and the urbanization of river basins play a significant role. For

instance, urbanization transforms of natural permeable surfaces and limits the percolation of

water into the soil. It increases the velocity at which surface water flows over land, leading to a

higher frequency of flash floods, which are associated with increased casualties and property

damage (UNDP, 2014).

Floods cause significant damages to the education sector. Each year, floods disrupt study

programs and damage school infrastructure, especially in flood prone areas (MoEYS, 2013).

Flood-prone schools face challenges such as disrupted learning activities, damage to school

infrastructure, as well as high drop-out rates and student repetition. Drop outs occur when

families are affected by floods. This may occur due to diverse factors such as learning materials

become destroyed, with parents unable to replace them; or the temporary migration of

families in search of work, forcing their children to drop out of school (NCDM, 2014). For

example, during the 2013 flooding, it is estimated that over 100,000 teaching hours were lost,

disrupting the function of schools. Teachers were required to set up temporary learning spaces.

Teachers may also be indirectly affected by floods because of a need to care for their family

outside of school or being evacuated. They may also need to act to protect household

livelihoods (NCDM, 2014).


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Flood events often force children to delay their schooling for a period of weeks or even

months. Many school facilities in Cambodia have been constructed without consideration of

the need for disaster proofing, such as raised plinths. School infrastructure is often constructed

with limited local building materials. Old wooden school buildings that have been partial

structural damage become a hazard for children (NCDM, 2014). There are often no organized

maintenance schedules for school infrastructure due to lack of financial resources or

leadership. Communities are often left with the burden of maintaining safe, usable buildings.

After flood events, students encounter difficulties when travelling to school due to damage

roads and the need to cross rivers without bridges. They are often required to catch a boat to

school, which is more time consuming and results in higher costs to access education. This can

result in higher levels of absenteeism, particularly among poorer students (UNDP, 2014).

During sudden flood events, it can be impossible to relay timely information to isolated

communities, who are then required to depend on their own resources and capacity (Siudak,

1999). The development of disaster risk reduction strategies often does not involve the

provision of education during and after these events. This should be promoted to different

stakeholders in the education sector (Pahl-Wostl, et al., 2013). Disaster risk reduction (DRR)

programs could be integrated into education projects that not only address disaster risks within

the school curriculum, but also provide relevant training to other stakeholders, including

development planners, local authorities, development partners, NGOs and local government

officials (UNESCO, 2010).

Research Methodology and Study Area

This exploratory study applies descriptive statistics to examine the impacts of seasonal

flooding from the Mekong River on schools. At the same time it looks toward solutions based

on answering the research questions. The experiences of three schools from Kroch Chhmar

district in Tbong Khmum province are compared. The focus on the study is on student learning

outcomes, the rate of progression of students from flood-prone areas, parental perceptions of

the importance of education, and schooling strategies during seasonal flood events. Kroch

Chmar district was selected as it is an area along the Mekong River that is regularly affected by

seasonal flooding. Overall, student drop-out and repetition rates of districts in the selected


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research site have historically been higher compared to other districts in the province. This is

also representative of neighboring districts, such as Dabme and Tbong Khmum. These rural

communities are located quite a distance from the urban center and schools often lack of

resources, have inadequate infrastructure, and experience low levels of community cohesion.

Local livelihoods are generally based on rice or vegetable production along the Mekong River,

as well as fishing. The livelihoods of people in these communities are heavily prone to flood

impacts, as is the education of their children, generally at the beginning of the academic year.

Tbong Khmum was officially established as the 25th Province of Cambodia on the 1st of

December 2014 by the Ministry of Interior, and its Provincial Departments, including the

Provincial Department of Education were only established in in August 2014. The province was

formed when Kampong Cham province was divided into two. It comprises 6 districts and 1

municipality, Suong, which is located 175 kilometers from Phnom Penh on the National Road 7.

It has 62 communes, and 2 khans, and 865 villages, with a population of 844,314 people

(426811 females), at a population density of 156 people per km2 (MoP, 2008). The province is

located within the floodplain region to the east of Cambodia and borders Kampong Cham, Prey

Veng, and Kratie provinces; as well as Vietnam, another ASEAN member country. The province

possesses rich soil, which is used for agricultural production, largely focused on rubber, cassava,

pepper, cashew, soy crops, as well as extensive orchards.

Two of the six districts in Tbong Khmum are regularly affected by seasonal flooding.

These are Tbong Khmum and Kroch Chhmar, of which the latter is the most affected. Kroch

Chhmar district covers 558 km2 and is divided into 12 communes and 76 villages. The district

population is 105241 people (53490 female). There are 95 schools in the district, comprising

with 18485 (8992 female). Up to 38 of these schools are regularly flooded in the rainy season

including 32 primary, 4 lower secondary and 2 upper secondary schools. These schools are

situated within three communes—Trea, Koh Pi and Tuol Snuol. Purposive sampling was used to

select one primary school from each of these communes in which to conduct the research. The

selected schools represented a high risk, medium risk and low risk school, in terms of seasonal

flooding. A total sample cohort of 91 students was selected across the three schools on the

basis of a maximum standard statistical error of 7% (Yamane, 1967)2 for a survey. Additional


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students in Grades 4 and in Grade 5 were also randomly sampled to participate in face to face

interviews using structured questionnaires and checklists.

Table 1. Numbers of students interviewed students.

Target School Total Population Sample Size Percentage of total

Trea Pourn Primary school 45 37 83%

Koh Pi Primary school 32 28 87%

Tuol Snuol Primary school 30 26 87%

Total 107 91 85%

A range of quantitative and qualitative data was collected using primary and secondary

sources about the status of the school infrastructure and environment. The research was

designed to collect a significant amount of information, which may be used for follow-up

studies. A questionnaire was formulated to collect information about the impacts of flood

events on education, in terms of progression rates, community perceptions of flood impacts,

proposed solutions, and immediate strategies that may be employed to respond to flood

events. Both close- and open-ended questions were used. Qualitative surveys were also used

for interview key informants including parents, community leaders, NGOS, school principals,

district and provincial officials relevant to these students. These interviews collected additional

information on their roles in supporting students to reduce the risk associated with flood

events during each term. At each school, a focus group comprising five students was invited to

sit and share about information about the difficulties they faced as a result of floods and how

these affected their schooling. Interviews were conducted with primary school students from

either Grade 4 or 5, with the proportion of students from these grades being similar in each

school. Students were classified in terms of who was most vulnerable to flood events; or

whether flood events regularly interrupted their education.

The data collected was entered into an Excel spreadsheet and then SPSS software was

used to analyze the data using various descriptive statistics including Chi-square tests, t-test,

and a weight averaged index. Content analysis was used to analyze the qualitative process data,

which was crucial for elaborating upon the impact of flooding on education and school

infrastructure in the flood-prone district, communes and villages Tbong Khmum.


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Table 2. Number of students from each grade taken participating in the research

Grade Koh Pi Trea Bourn Tuol Snuol Overall

N % N % N % N %

Grade 4 14 50.0 17 45.9 13 50.0 44 48.3

Grade 5 14 50.0 20 54.0 13 50.0 47 51.6

Findings and Results Impacts of flood events on access to education

Each day, these students walk to school, however, during flood events they may need to

travel by boat. Some parents do not allow their children to travel by boat as they are afraid

their children may drown. Usually, children require around 11 minutes to travel to school,

however, during flood events, they require more time. Students from Koh Pi spent more time

on average than students from both Trea Bourn and Toul Snuol schools. Moreover, girls tend to

take longer to travel to school (12 minutes) than boys (9.4 minutes). The location of each school

was found to be an important factor in the decision of parents whether to send their children to

school or not. In flood-prone areas, parents consider safety to be a priority and preference

schools in with a higher elevation (School Principals and Teachers, pers. Comm., November

2016).

The number of members in a household member influences the likelihood of whether

children are supported to study. A household with comprising more people was shown to be

less likely to encourage the children of the household to complete schooling to Grade 9 (District

Office of Education and School Principals, pers. comm., 2016). There between 4 and 10 people

in the households of each student, with an average of 5.8 people. This figure was higher for

Toul Snoul, where there were 7 or more people in the households of 23.1% of the students

interviewed. Female students (6.1 members) tended to be from larger households than male

students (5.5 members).

Almost all respondents (98.9%) suggested that flood events affected their access to

education, which was true for all girls (100%). Within each household, girls were considered by

their parents to be more vulnerable. Results were similar at each school (Figure 1). Closures

during flood events could not be avoid for schools located along the Mekong River. All schools


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in the study area required school infrastructure upgrades (District Office of Education, pers.

comm., November 2016).

Figure 1. Experiences of students from flood on their schooling.

Both female and male students perceived their education to be important and

demonstrated an equal willingness to attend when affected by flood events. However, on

average, students from Toul Snuol demonstrated lower levels of commitment. Some of the

factors identified as affecting school attendance during flood events were the influence of

parents and teachers, as well as the location of the school (Students, pers. comm., November

2016). The availability of a boat was found to be a significant factor in whether a student would

attend school, with 79.1% of students travelling needing the cross water ways during flood

events (Table 22). Around 45% of students still walked to school during lower level of flood but

they could not do when flood levels increased to more dangerous levels, this was not the case.

More than half of all students interviewed reported this problem. Students from Koh Pi

reported a higher level of impact than students form other schools (District Office of Education

and School Principals, pers. comm., November 2016).


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Impacts of flood events on national exams

Students also responded to questions about their results each semester. Female

students (55%) reported better than male students (40.5%), in terms of experiences, living

conditions, learning problems or difficulties, family status, school management, learning during

flooding and learning outcomes. Students from Koh Pi generally performed better than

students from Toul Snuol and Trea Bourn. It was suggested that the level of attention

demonstrated by each teacher and strong school attendance were factors that tended to

improve school performance. Flood events were described as affecting all students in the

community, as opposed causing differential impacts on individual students (District Office of

Education, pers. comm., November 2016). However their schools have been affected by flood;

both female and male students’ similarly rated their high satisfaction of their performance at

school and suggested they were happy with their results (Table 3). Students indicated that they

like to attend school as they could meet friends, use facilities such as playgrounds, and learn

new things (Principals and Teachers, pers. comm., November 2016).

Table 3. Rating school performance of the students.

Indicator Male Female Overall P-value


School performance 0.76 H 0.80 H 0.78 H 0.191

Note: WAI= Weight Average Index measured on a five-point scale [Very low (VL) = 0.00-0.20, Low (L) = 0.21-0.40, Moderate (M) = 0.41-0.60, High (H) = 0.61-0.80, Very High (VH) = 0.81-1.00]; OA= Overall Assessment; *Significance at the 0.05 level; **Significance at the 0.01 level.

Up to 91.0% of students interviewed indicated that flood events had impacted their

performance in the national examination (Figure 2). Classes used to prepare the students for

standard assessment based on the MoEYS curriculum are frequently disrupted due to flood

events in the study area (Principals and Teachers, pers. comm., 2016). When this occurs the

progression rate of students to the next grade is affected and this is worse in rural areas

(Provincial and District Offices of Education, Chief of Primary Education, Principals, pers. comm.,

November 2016).


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become anxious that they will repeat a year and drop out of school completely when flood

events occur.

Table 5. Association between flood events and the repetition of students

Indicator Flood occurrence X2a P-value

N Yes No

Repetition Yes 20 19 1 3.589 0.048

No 71 71 0

Total 91 91 1

Student perceptions of flood Impacts

A weight averaged index was used to understand how the students perceive the impacts

of flood events on school facilities and infrastructure by gender. Table 6 shows that students

are mostly satisfied with the facilities and infrastructure available at each school. At all three

schools, students indicated that a fairly good learning environment has been created. The

school grounds are large enough for students to play football, volleyball and other sports.

Moreover, all classrooms were equipped with chairs, tables and other facilities to enable

students to study. However, damage to school facilities infrastructure during flood events was

perceived to be upsetting, especially when it led to the suspension of classes (District Office of

Education, pers. comm., November 2016). As students believe that study is very important,

they still wished to participate in school, even when affected by flood events. Both girls and

boys were found to demonstrate the same level of commitment. They both continue to go to

school where possible. However, this level of commitment was found to be weaker in Tuol

Snuol. It was found that parent and teacher attitudes the location of the school are factors that

affect the motivation to attend school. The respondents assessed that flooding affect their

annual schooling in term of learning hours, they get to school late in the morning or afternoon,

they cannot arrive on time for the first hour of the lessons, and they miss some important firsts,

also sometimes the teacher themselves summarize or shorten the set lessons for teaching

hours because they have short time as well in flooding time, and also the new academic year

must be delayed till the flood go down or the dry land.


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Table 6. Perceived importance of school facilities of infrastructure to students, in terms of when they are impacted by flood events by gender.

Attribute Male Female Overall P-value


School environment 0.83 VS 0.80 S 0.81 VS 0.361

Learning and teaching materials 0.62 S 0.68 S 0.66 S 0.168

Library books 0.61 S 0.67 S 0.65 S 0.106

Lesson materials 0.66 S 0.71 S 0.69 S 0.269

Playground 0.85 VS 0.80 S 0.82 VS 0.199

Latrines 0.69 S 0.70 S 0.69 S 0.859

School buildings 0.81 VS 0.80 S 0.80 S 0.768

Tables and chairs 0.61 S 0.64 S 0.63 S 0.543

Classroom decorations 0.88 VS 0.85 VS 0.86 VS 0.369

Gardens 0.87 VS 0.83 VS 0.85 VS 0.269

Walkaways 0.92 VS 0.87 VS 0.89 VS 0.139

Note: WAI= Weight Average Index measured on a five-point scale [Very Low (VL) = 0.00-0.20, Low (L) = 0.21-0.40, Moderate (M) = 0.41-0.60, Strong (S) = 0.61-0.80, Very Strong (VS) = 0.81-1.00]; OA= Overall Assessment; *Significance at the 0.05 level; **Significance at the 0.01 level.

Policy Implications The Royal Government of Cambodia. The Integration of DRR into the curriculum is important

for schools in the flood-prone areas, if they are to raise local awareness of flood risks and their

potential impacts. The National Committee for Disaster Management (NCDM) should work

closely with the MoEYS to adapt the existing curriculum in alignment with national standards.

The NCDM should work with school principals and teachers to improve their knowledge about

the needs for DRR in schools. While the NCDM has established branches across the country,

there do not yet possess sufficient resources to conduct the activities required to reduce flood

risks and mitigate their impacts on access the education.

The Provincial and District Offices of Education. As flood events occur regularly in specific

locations in Cambodia, the Provincial and District Offices of Education prepared to support

schools under their jurisdiction. This may include, establishing early warning systems to ensure

that students are safe, when travelling to school. Additionally, these offices should work to

build the capacity of school principals and teacher, equipping them with the resources required


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to manage the impact of floods. Focusing on both physical infrastructure and human capacity is

vital to this role.

School management teams. As there are already internal resources available to manage flood

risks at the school level, there should be greater effort to integrate these activities with the

relevant commune councils and NGOs, as well as the central government to better mobilize

resources and build capacity of the teachers and students to respond to flood events. The

management team of the school can play a vital role in providing on-time information about

flood risks and provide leadership on assisting students to continue accessing an education

National and international NGOs. NGOs are very important sources of funds and human

resources, which assist schools to mitigate the flood risks that have the potential to impact

students. Projects implemented by NGOs can be useful in raising the awareness of local people,

including students of these risks. It is recommended that NGOs establish self-help groups within

student and teacher networks, which may be informed by NGO activities, in terms of reducing

flood risks. In some case, NGOs may be able to help schools by providing mobile libraries or

extra classes at alternative locations in community. The mitigation of flood risks should be

embedded in affected school programs in high risk locations. This way child can access an

education even when flood occur and meet national standards. This study recommends that

mobile schools should be established to reduce the need for students to travel long distances in

the event of a flood.

Conclusion The study concludes that: (1) floods disrupt access to education when classes are

suspended and schools are closed. This may occur for periods of two weeks to a month. The

three schools in the study area were heavily impacts by floods and had to close for safety

reasons. This seriously affects the performance of students at these schools in national

examinations. Students in this context are not able to follow the national curriculum and thus

perform poorly in standardized assessments (2) Girls are most vulnerable to flood events and

their parents are more concerned for their safety than boys. However, both female and male

students demonstrate the same commitment to their education. During flood events, the

availability of boats is important if students are to be able to attend school, although some


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students are still able to access school without them in the early stages. When floods become

more dangerous, students are no longer able to walk to school. (3) There was no association

between flood risks and school attendance, however, a significant relationship between flood

impacts and the repetition of students was observed. Flood impacts negatively impact student

performance in national examinations. (4) In general, students were found to be satisfied with

the physical infrastructure, facilities and services at each school as they created a reasonably

good learning environment. School grounds were generally large enough for students to play

different sports and classrooms were well-equipped for learning.

References

ADB (2012) Preliminary Damage and Loss Assessment. Phnom Penh: Asian Development Bank.

Bubeck, P., Botzen, J., & Aerts, C. (2012) A review of risk perceptions and other factors that

influence flood mitigation behavior. Risk Analysis, 32(9), 1481−1495.

Chea, S. and Sharp, A. (2015) Flood Management in Cambodia: Case Studies in 2009 and 2011.

International Conference on Environment and Civil Engineering.

HRF (2013a). Draft Minute of after-Action Review Workshop on Emergency Response to 2013

flood. Phnom Penh: Humanitarian Response Forum.

HRF (2013b) Flood Humanitarian Response Forum Final Report. No 7, Phnom Penh:

Humanitarian Response Forum.

Menne, B. and Murray, V. (2013) Flood in WHO European Region: health effects and their

prevention. Geneva: World Health Organization.

MoEYS (2013) Flood assessment report on impacts and damage on education Sector. Phnom

Penh: Ministry of Education Youth and Sport.

MoEYS (2013) Flood Assessment Report on Impacts and Damages on Education Sector. Phnom

Penh: Ministry of Education Youth and Sport.

MoP (2008) General Population Census of Cambodia 2008. Phnom Penh: Ministry of Planning.

Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

NCDM (2014) Post-flood early recovery need assessment report. Phnom Penh: the National

Committee for Disaster Management.


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Pahl-Wostl, C., Becker, G., Knieper, C., & Sendzimir, J. (2013) How multilevel societal learning

processes facilitate transformative change: a comparative case study analysis on flood

management. Ecology and Society, 18(4), no−58.

RGC (2010) Ketsana Comprehensive Post Disaster Needs Assessment. Phnom Penh: Royal

Government of Cambodia.

Schelfaut, K. (2012) Risk perception–issues for flood management in Europe. Natural Hazards

and Earth System Science, 12(7), 2299−2309.

UNDP (2014) Cambodia Post-Flood Early Recovery Need Assessment Report. Phnom Penh:

United Nations Development Programme.


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A Decade of Communal Land Titling in Cambodia: Achievements and Ways Forward

THOL Dina1* & OEUR Il2

1 Ministry of Land Management, Urban Planning and Construction, Monivong Blvd, Sangkat Beng Trabek, Khan Chamkar Morn, Phnom Penh, Cambodia

2Analyzing Development Issues Centre (ADIC), Sangkat Kakab 2, Khan Posenchey, Phnom Penh, Cambodia

*Corresponding Author: THOL Dina ([email protected])

To cite this article: Thol, D. & Oeur, I. (2019) A Decade of Communal Land Titling in Cambodia: Achievements and Ways Forwards. Cambodia Journal of Basic and Applied Research (CJBAR), 1(2), 99–107.

សារគន្លឹះ ក្្េេួលស្ថគ ល់ជាេូក្ៅថ្ន ម្ភនរកុ្សមជនជាតិ្ក្ដើមភា្តិ្ចចំនួន ២៤ រកុ្សម ក្ៅក្សមពុជា។ រកុ្សមទរំក្នឹះ ភា្

ក្រចើន ម្ភនរស់ក្ៅរាបជំ់ន្ទនម់ក្សក្ហើយ ក្សនុរក្ខត្តភា្ឦស្ថនននរបក្េសក្សមពុជា ដូចជា ក្ខត្តរត្ន្ិរ ីមណឌ ល្ិរ ីសទឺរដរត្រ រក្សក្ចឹះ រពឹះវហិារ ក្ហើយក្សម៍្ភនក្ៅតំ្បនដ់ន៍េក្េៀត្ននរបក្េសក្សមពុជាដដរ។ សិេធិជនជាតិ្ក្ដើមក្ៅក្សមពុជា ជាពិក្សស សិេធិេេួលបាន្នធានដី្លី រតូ្វបានេេួលស្ថគ ល់ជាផលូវការ ក្ៅក្សនុរចាប់ភូមបិាល ២០០១ (ម្ភរតា ២៣ ដល់ ២៨)។ ក្លើសពីក្នឹះក្េៀត្ អនុរក្សឹត្យក្លខ ៨៣ (២០០៩) សតីពី “នីតិ្វ ិ្ ីននការចុឹះបញ្ា ីដីសមូហភាព” ដដលរសបក្ៅនឹរចាបន់រពក្ ើ (២០០២) និរចាបស់តីពីតំ្បនក់ារពារ្មមជាតិ្ (២០០៩) បងាហ ញនូវក្គាលការណ៍ដណន្ទលំមាតិ្សតីពីវ ិ្ ីដដលជនជាតិ្ក្ដើមអាចចុឹះបញ្ា ីដីសមូហភាពបាន។

ក្សនុរអំឡុរក្ដើមេសវត្សរ២៍០១០ ្ក្រម្ភរផតល់បណ័ណ ក្សមមសិេធិដីសមូហភាព រតូ្វបានក្្វើការស្ថក្សលបរក្ៅក្សនុរសហ្មនជ៍នជាត្ិក្ដើមភា្តិ្ចចំនួន ២ ក្សនុរក្ខត្តរត្ន្ិរ ីនិរមយួក្េៀត្ក្ៅក្ខត្តមណឌ ល្ិរ ីក្ោយម្ភនជំនួយពីេីភាន ក្សង់ារសហរបត្ិបត្តិការបក្ចចក្សក្េសអាលលឺម រ ់ (GTZ ) និរេីភាន ក្សង់ារអភវិឌឍអនតរជាតិ្ោណឺម្ភ ក្ស(Da n i d a )។ សហ្មនទ៍រំពីរក្ន្ទឹះបានេេួលបណ័ណ ក្សមមសិេធិដីសមូហភាព (CL T s ) ក្សនុររយៈក្ពលចក្ន្ទល ឹះពីឆ្ន ំ២០១១ និរ ២០១៣។ ចាបត់ារំពីឆ្ន ំ២០១៣ រាជរោឋ ភបិាលក្សមពុជាបានគារំេហិរញ្ញវត្ថុ សរម្ភបចុ់ឹះបញ្ា ីដីក្សមមសិេិធសមូហភាពសរម្ភបជ់នជាត្ិក្ដើមភា្តិ្ច តាមរយៈរក្សសួរក្រៀបចំដដនដី ន្រូបនីយក្សមម និរសំណរ ់ (ML MUPC)។ ្ិត្មក្សរតឹ្មដខ្នូ ឆ្ន ំ ២០១៩ រក្សសួរក្រៀបចំដដនដី ន្រូបនីយក្សមម និរសំណរ ់បានេេួលពាក្សយក្សនើសំុពីសហ្មនជ៍នជាត្ិក្ដើមភា្តិ្ចចំនួន ៦៨ សរម្ភបចុ់ឹះបញ្ា ីប័ណណ ក្សមមសិេធិដីសមូហភាព។ ក្សនុរចំក្្មសហ្មនជ៍នជាត្ិក្ដើមភា្តិ្ចដដលបានោក្សព់ាក្សយក្សនើសំុទរំក្នឹះ ម្ភន៣០សហ្មន ៍ដដលបានេេួលបណ័ណ ក្សមមសិេធិដីសមូហភាពរចួក្ហើយ ។

បន្ទទ បពី់អនុវត្តការចុឹះបញ្ា ីដីសមូហភាពជនជាត្ិក្ដើមភា្តិ្ច ជិត្មយួេសវត្សមក្សក្នឹះ របក្េសក្សមពុជាក្្វើបានលារបក្សើរ ក្បើក្្ៀបជាមយួរបក្េសក្ផសរក្េៀត្ក្ៅតំ្បនអ់ាសីុអក្្នយ ៍ទក្សេ់រនឹរការេេួលស្ថគ ល់សិេធិ



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របស់ជនជាត្ិក្ដើមភា្តិ្ចក្សនុរការកានក់ាបនិ់រក្របើរបាស់្នធានដី្លី។ ប ុដនតក្ទឹះយ រ្ក្សតី ដំក្ណើ រការចុឹះបញ្ា ីក្សមមសិេធិដីសមូហភាព ចាបំាចរ់ត្ូវដក្សសរមួលឱ្យកានដ់ត្ម្ភនភាពងាយរសួល ក្ដើមបកីាត្ប់នថយរយៈក្ពលននការក្ចញបណ័ណ ក្សមមសិេធ។ រឯីការងារបក្ចចក្សក្េសដដលពាក្សព់ន័ធការក្រៀបចំដផនេីបឋម ដត្រដត្ម្ភនការយតឺ្យ វចំក្ពាឹះការសក្រមចចិត្តក្លើការកំ្សណត្ដ់បរដចក្សដីដដលសថិត្ក្សនុរតំ្បនក់ារពារ ក្ៅឱ្យសហ្មន៍ជនជាតិ្ក្ដើមភា្តិ្ច។

Key Messages It is widely acknowledged that there are 24 indigenous groups (IPs) in Cambodia. These

groups are concentrated in north eastern provinces of Ratanakiri, Mondulkiri, Stung Treng, Kratie and Preah Vihear, where they have lived for many generations. They are also present elsewhere in the country. IPs’ rights in Cambodia, particularly rights to land resources have been legally recognized in the Land Law 2001 (Article 23 to 28). Further, Sub-decree No. 83 (2009) on the ‘Procedure of Communal Land Title Registration’, aligned with the Forestry Law (2002), and the Protected Area Law (2009) provides detailed guidelines on how Indigenous Peoples may register communal land.

During the early 2010s, a communal land titling project was piloted in two Indigenous communities in Ratanakiri and another in Mondulkiri province, with the assistance of the German Technical Cooperation Agency (GTZ) and Danish International Development Agency (Danida). These communities obtained communal land titles (CLTs) over a period between 2011 and 2013. Since 2013, the Royal Government of Cambodia has financially supported the CLTs through the Ministry of Land Management, Urban Planning, and Construction (MLMUPC). By December 2019, the MLMUPC had received 68 applications for the registration of communal land titles by different Indigenous communities. Of these applicants, 30 had received CLTs.

After almost a decade of implementing CLTs registration project, Cambodia has performed relatively well within the Southeast Asian context in terms of recognizing the rights of Indigenous people to land resources. However, the land titling process needs to be simplified, if the time taken to issue CLTs is to be reduced. Technical challenges related to the preliminary mapping process often delay decisions about the allocation of land within protected areas to Indigenous communities.

Keywords: commune land titling, land resources, Indigenous groups, Cambodia

Background

Indigenous Peoples (IPs) have lived in Cambodia for many generations. There are 455

villages comprised primarily of IPs spread across 15 provinces in the northeast and northwest of

the country. However, the Indigenous population is concentrated in provinces in the northeast

such as Ratanakiri, Mondulkiri, Kratie, Stung Treng, Preah Vihear, and Kampong Thom. For

instance, in Ratanakiri, around 50% of the provincial population of 185,000 people is


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indigenous. This proportion is even higher in Mondulkiri, where indigenous communities

represent about 80% of the provincial population of 73,000 people. The most populous

indigenous groups found in these provinces include the Pou Nong, Jarai, Tumpoun, Kreung, and

Kouy. International work group for indigenous affairs (2019) suggests IPs represent 2-3% of the

population of Cambodia, or around 400,000 individuals (IWGIA, 2019) as of now the Cambodia

Census preliminary report in 2019 does not indicate the IPs disaggregated data. In the past,

many IPs in the northeast of Cambodia have practiced shifting cultivation and the collection of

non-timber forest products as one of the livelihood strategies. However, in the late 2000s, a

transition began to sedentary agriculture, focused on crops such as cashew, strategically chosen

on the basis of land availability and market demand (Sovathana, 2004). This has been driven by

external pressures affecting land tenure, such as the provision of economic land concessions,

in-migration from other parts of the country, and illegal land sales. In response, some

indigenous communities, such as La En, La En Kraen, Andong Kraloeng have applied for

communal land title (CLT) registration as part of the pilot.

The Royal Government of Cambodia (RGC) has enabled Indigenous communities to

register collective ownership of land resources through CLTs as part of the national strategy to

recognize indigenous rights to land. Because of the vulnerability of IPs, the RGC has focused on

setting up appropriate regulatory measures to enforce the protection of the rights of IPs to land

(Land Law 2001; Cambodia 2018, Cambodia Sub-decree 83, 2009, Cambodia Policy, 2009). This

approach is intended to significantly contribute to the sustainability of the CLTs. IPs have

registered collective ownership of land in their communities with the intention of securing

tenure over the majority of their traditional areas, enabling long-standing communal

management practices to continue. By December 2019, 30 indigenous communities had

successfully registered CLTs (MLMUPC Annual Report, 2019).

Within Southeast Asia, only the RGC and the Philippines have fully acknowledged

indigenous rights to land resources (FAO & MRLG, 2019). In contrast, Thailand, Lao PDR,

Vietnam, and Myanmar do not legally recognize CLTs registrations for indigenous communities

(Wittayapal & Baird, 2018; FAO & MRLG, 2019). Notwithstanding this, the scope and

characteristics of the process available to indigenous communities to register and manage

communal land in Cambodia and the Philippines differ (Ling & Scurrah, 2017). For instance, in


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Cambodia, the government delegates the right to manage and control land resources to specific

indigenous communities; whereas in the Philippines, the government registers land for

Indigenous communities in the form of large ancestral lots (Anderson, 2011).

The CLT registration process adopted in Cambodia is enabled through the Land Law

(2001). This law officially recognizes the rights of IPs to traditional natural resources through

collective ownership. Articles 23 to 28 legally define IPs, communities, and land management

practices; outlining the conditions of registering traditional lands with a CLTs. Sub-decree No.

83 on the Procedure of Community Land Title Registration (2009) provides detailed guidelines

on IPs may register their communal land. Article 6 of this Sub-decree defines the types of land

eligible for CLTs. This includes State private land for residential and agricultural purposes, as

well as State public land for spiritual forests, burial grounds, and shifting cultivation. The same

Sub-decree also defines the rights of indigenous communities on other State land, such as

forests inside the protected area. In this case, Article 7 states that the indigenous communities

may still harvest forest products and access to water resources upon entering into a legal

contract to follow the rules and regulations of the institution with the mandate over these State

resources.

Sub-decree No. 83 outlines three major steps indigenous communities must follow to

obtain an official CLT. First, they are required to obtain certification from the Ministry of Rural

Development (MoRD) regarding the identity of the members of the community. Following this,

the community must take their application to the Ministry of Interior (MoI) to apply to form as

a legal entity. Next, the indigenous communities must compile a list of required documents and

apply to the Ministry of Land Management, Urban Planning, and Construction (MLMUPC)

through the Provincial Department and Cadastre. However, in practice, there is an additional

stage between the second to the third step, which has been termed Step 2.5 (UN OHCHR,

2019). This step requires indigenous communities to develop a preliminary map to support the

applications. Many Non-governmental Organization (NGOs) working with indigenous

communities have described this step as difficult to comply with due to the absence of any

mandated government agencies to be responsible for this area.

Besides the Land Law (2001) and Sub-decree No. 83, there are other legal mechanisms

that support indigenous communities to access rights to natural resources. For instance, the


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National Policy on the Development of Indigenous People (2009) outlines a target to strengthen

the land tenure of indigenous communities as a means of livelihood improvement.

Furthermore, the Forestry Law (2002) also recognizes the right of indigenous people to forest

resource and the practices of shifting cultivation (MRLG, 2019). More recently, the Protected

Area Law (2009) recognizes the right of forest-dependent IPs to participate in the preparation

and implementation of protected areas (MLRG, 2019).

This policy brief explores what has been achieved, as well as the challenges experienced

in implementing the CLTs registration in Cambodia between 2010 and 2019. In summarizing the

challenges faced by IPs in registering the communal land, we also offer ways forward by which

the CLT registration process may operate more smoothly.

Methodology

This policy brief was informed by two sources of data. The first was the existing

literature on CLTs in the region generally, and Cambodia in particular. This included journal

articles, conference proceedings, as well as reports from NGOs and government agencies. The

second was the results from intensive fieldwork conducted by researchers in Ratanakiri,

Mondulkiri, and Stung Treng, where the IPs have registered CLT claims over the past five years.

The authors conducted key informant interviews with the Director and Deputy Director of Land

Administration Sub-Sector Program (LASSP), the Directors and Deputy Directors of the relevant

Provincial Departments of Land Management, Urban Planning, Construction (PDLMUPC) and

the Cadastre in each province.


The achievements of the communal land titling pilot (2010-2019)

One decade of implementing the communal land titling has seen undeniable progress in

terms of CLTs being granted to indigenous communities in Cambodia. As of 2019, the MLMUPC

had received 68 applications to register CLTs from five different provinces, namely Mondulkiri,

Ratanakiri, Kratie, Stung Treng and Kampong Thom. Table 1 outlines the number of indigenous

communities who had applied for CLTs in each province over this period. Ratanakiri had the


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highest number of Indigenous communities apply (35 CLTs), followed by Mondulkiri (20 CLTs),

Kratie (6 CLTs), Stung Treng (5 CLTs), and Kampong Thom (2 CLTs).

Table 1. Applications for the registration of CLTs in Cambodia (2010-2019).

Province Applied Approved % of approval

Ratanakiri 35 17 48.6

Mondulkiri 20 7 35.0

Kratie 6 4 66.7

Stung Treng 5 2 40.0

Kampong Thom 2 0 0.0

Total 68 30 44.1

Source: MLMUPC, 2019

Of the 68 indigenous communities that applied to the MLMUPC, 30 have already

granted CLTs. In Ratanakiri, a relatively large number of indigenous communities were able to

register CLTs as a high proportion in relative to other provinces and the land in question is not

located within any protected areas or wildlife sanctuaries. In other provinces, 7, 4, and 2 CLTs

were registered in Mondulkiri, Kratie, and Stung Treng, respectively, confirmed by an issuance

ceremony in each community, presided over by high ranking officials from the MLMUPC. Based

on these results, Cambodia can claim more significant progress in terms of registering CLTs for

indigenous communities, compared to neighboring countries, such as Thailand, Lao PDR, and

Vietnam, where only a few indigenous communities have realized these outcomes (Chusak &

Ian, 2018; FAO & MRLG, 2019).

The challenges of commune land titling process (2010-2019)

Despite these achievements, 25 other applications were deemed unable to proceed

(MLMUPC, 2019). In these cases, the process of registering CLTs has been impacted by internal

disagreement within indigenous communities, a misunderstanding of the registration process,

boundary conflicts with neighboring villages, and claims to land that overlap with protected

forests, wildlife sanctuaries, conservation corridors, or mining operations. Of all these

challenges, the major factor hindering the process of applications for CLTs registration was

found to be internal disagreement among members of each indigenous community. For


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instance, a minority Kuoy community in Anlong Chrey commune, Stung Treng province has not

been able to move forward when almost half of the 86 families who applied for the CLT

registration later expressed disagreement upon the PDLMUPC in Stung Treng arrived in the

village to measure the land in 2017. They refused to co-operate further with the process citing

that they wished to have private, individual ownership, rather than a CLTs. This continues to

hinder the process, which will not be finalized, while this disagreement persists.

Recently, there has been an increased tendency amongst indigenous communities

wanting to withdraw from the registration process, following the submission of applications for

CLTs. The examples of this growing trend are reflected in the experience of Peak, Tang Kamal,

and La Ak communities in Ratanakiri Province, and Bos Thom and Srae Preang communities in

Preah Vihear Province, that have withdrawn from the registration process in order to seek

access to private land tenures. This situation requires a considered response by the MLMUPC

with respect to the approaches they may consider when assisting indigenous communities and

various other stakeholders working with IPs to register CLTs.

Policy Implications

There has been undeniable achievement in the land management sector over the past

decade on indigenous land tenure. Of the 68 applications for CLTs received by the MLMUPC as

of 2019, 30 indigenous communities have successfully received CLTs while some others could

not proceed. This was found to be due to internal problems such as low awareness of

procedures for registering CLTs, boundary conflicts with neighboring villages, a failure to meet

the complex requirements of producing a preliminary map, and an increased tendency for

communities to later exclude themselves from CLTs registration after submitting an application.

Therefore, it is recommended that:

The CLTs registration process needs to be simplified, especially with regards to the

preliminary mapping requirement. Previously, local NGOs have worked with IPs to lead the

development of a preliminary map due to complaints about related technical issues. Many

NGOs have used a manual produced with the technical support of the German Technical

Cooperation Agency (GIZ) to guide the preliminary mapping process. However, this manual

is not well aligned with the requirements of Sub-decree No. 83, especially with respect to


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the definition of village boundaries. The production of a village map, using manual’s

definition, often creates significant conflict with neighboring villages due to the concern

over losing access to land. All relevant stakeholders should sit together and develop an

appropriate approach for simplifying the preliminary mapping process through formal

guidance on the sporadic land title registration process that is used for CLTs.

There is a need to improve collaboration between responsible state agencies and relevant

stakeholders working on CLTs registration. Poor communication could hinder the process

and wasted resources.

Greater infrastructure and livelihood support should be made available for indigenous

communities that have been able to register CLTs. This will act as an incentive for IPs to

maintain the titles and discourage the potential illegal sales of communal land in the future.

It is crucial for on-going legal education to be provided to community committees, as the

membership of these groups is often subject to change. Members need to be equipped with

the knowledge of how to protect CLTs from encroachment, as well as information to about

how best to protect communal land resources.

References

Andersen, K. E. (2011) Communal tenure and the governance of common property resources in

Asia: Lessons from experiences in selected countries. Land Tenure, 1-45.

Cambodia Policy (2009) National Policy on the Development of the Indigenous Community.

Cambodia Sub-decree (2009) Sub-decree No 83 on procedures of registration of land of

indigenous communities.

Government of Cambodia (2018) Manual on Indigenous Communities Identification, Legal

Entity Registration and Communal Land Registration Process in Cambodia (December

2018). MRD, MoI and MLMUPC with support from UN-OHCHR.

IWGAA (2019) Indigenous World. Copenhagen: International Work Group for Indigenous Affairs.

Ling, S. & Scurrah, N. (2017) Communal land titling in practice: Lessons from Khammouane.

Province, Lao PDR. MRLG Capitalization Note Series #3. Vientiane: Mekong Region Land

Governance.


107

MLMUPC (2001) Land Law 2001 of the Kingdom of Cambodia. Phnom Penh: Ministry of Land

Management, Urban Planning and Construction.

MLMUPC (2019) Annual Report of Work Progress for Annual Meeting 2019. Phnom Penh:

Ministry of Land Management, Urban Planning and Construction.

MLMUPC (2019) Progress Report 2019. Phnom Penh: Ministry of Land Management, Urban

Planning and Construction.

MRLG & FAO (2019) Challenges and opportunities of recognizing and protecting customary

Province. Chiang Mai University, Thailand.


tenure system in Cambodia. tenure system in Vietnam.


tenure system in Myanmar.

OHCR (2019) Discussion paper: Collective land titling in Cambodia-a case for reform? Phnom

Penh: Office Of The High Commissioner For Human Rights.

Sovathana Seng. (2004) The Transformation of Northeastern Cambodia: The Politics of

Development in an Ethnic Minority Community of Yak Kaol, O’Chum District, Ratanakiri

Wittayapal, C. & Baird, I. G. (2018) Communal land titling in dilemmas in northern Thailand:

From community forestry to beneficiary yet risky and uncertain options. Land Use Policy

71, 320−328.


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Book Review: The Discourse of Peer Review: Reviewing Submissions to Academic Journals, Brian Paltridge. Palgrave Macmillan, London

(2017). xiv + 235 pp. ISBN 978-1-137-48735-3. ISBN 978-1-137-48736-0 (eBook). Hardcover €99.99. E-book €83.29.

HENG Kimkong

School of Education, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, Brisbane, QLD 4072, Australia Corresponding Author: HENG Kimkong ([email protected])

To cite this article: Heng, K. (2019). Review of the book The Discourse of Peer Review: Reviewing Submissions to Academic Journals, by Brian Paltridge. Palgrave Macmillan. Cambodia Journal of Basic and Applied Research (CJBAR), 1(2), 108–114.

Peer review is “the cornerstone of academic publication” and peer-reviewed publication

is regarded as “the gold standard of academic scholarship (Tardy, 2019, p. 272). The genre of

peer review is usually threatening and mysterious, especially to junior scholars. Navigating the

peer review process successfully requires the development of a level of competence in

academic writing. To help beginning authors new to the genre of peer review understand the

peer review process, Brian Paltridge has written a book titled The Discourse of Peer Review:

Reviewing Submissions to Academic Journals.

Paltridge is an established author and former editor of English for Specific Purposes, an

international peer-reviewed journal. He aims to “demystify the somewhat enigmatic world of

manuscript reviewing” (p. 29). The Discourse of Peer Review is based on an examination of 97

reviewers’ reports written in response to submissions to the journal English for Specific

Purposes. It is also informed by questionnaire responses completed by 45 reviewers of the

journal. The audience of the book, although not explicitly stated, appears to be beginning

authors and novice researchers — those not familiar with the process of peer review or how to

respond to reviewers’ reports.

The book consists of eight chapters. Chapter 1 is an introductory chapter, while

Chapters 2–6 report the findings of the study of reviewers’ reports. Chapter 7 discusses

implications of the study, before Chapter 8, the final chapter, summarizes the book and

provides key references for further reading.


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The first chapter explains the different types of peer review in academic settings (e.g.,

reviews of research grant applications, promotion and tenure track applications, academic

books, book proposals, and journal articles). Then, it outlines the scope and aim of the book,

briefly discussing the value of peer review in ensuring the quality and standard of academic

publications, as well as criticisms — the slowness, subjectivity, and bias that come with it (see

also Smith, 2015).

Chapter 2, taking a genre perspective, discusses the style of reviewers’ reports, paying

particular attention to their context and content. This chapter is based on an analysis and

discussion of results derived from the examination of 97 reviewers’ reports, of which nine

accepted the article, 22 required minor revisions, 39 required major revisions, and 27 were

rejected. The author highlights that across all the reviews, the areas frequently commented on

were “the review of the literature, method and research design, presentation and analysis of

results, and discussion and significance of the study” (p. 63). In light of this, it is suggested that

academic authors, experienced and novice, should pay attention to these areas when writing

for publication in peer-reviewed journals.

Chapter 3 looks at the pragmatics (i.e., the relationship between language and context)

of reviewers’ reports. It examines “the way in which reviewers ask authors to make changes to

their submissions and the typical speech acts they use to do this” (p. 87). Reviewers’ requests

for changes may be classified into four categories: directions, suggestions, clarification

requests, and recommendations. However, the data from the reports and questionnaire

responses show that reviewers are very often indirect, with the aim of saving an author’s face.

This causes their suggestions, recommendations, and requests for clarification to become

directions. Thus, authors, particularly inexperienced ones, have to understand how to read and

interpret reviewers’ reports, because what might seem to be a suggestion is most likely a

direction to do something instead (see Paltridge, 2015).

Politeness strategies used in reviewers’ reports are examined in Chapter 4. The chapter

begins with a brief discussion of previous work on politeness, including issues of face and

gender in theories of politeness. It then presents findings from the examination of reviewers’

reports from the lens of politeness strategies. The data shows a range of politeness strategies

used by reviewers. They include: (a) expressing approval of what authors have done, (b) using


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indirectness (i.e., using a suggestion that actually means a direction), (c) using praise/criticism

pairs (or a good news/bad news frame), (d) apologizing, (e) hedging, and (f) taking personal

responsibility for comments. Politeness strategies are used to mitigate the face-threatening

acts of criticism common in reviewers’ reports. Novice academic authors therefore need to

understand the ‘good news/bad news’ nature of reviewers’ reports and be well-prepared for

criticism of their work.

Chapter 5 explores the evaluative language used and roles assumed by reviewers as

they evaluate submissions. The focus of the chapter is on the analysis of stance taken by

reviewers in their reports. Four stance makers, such as attitude markers (unfortunately,

surprisingly), boosters (definitely, clearly), hedges (might, perhaps), and self-mentions (I, we),

are discussed in reference to the four categories of review (i.e., accept, minor revisions, major

revisions, and reject reviews). The most frequent stance markers are attitude markers and self-

mentions, which are used to display the voice of authority and expertise reviewers have on a

particular topic. With regard to reviewer roles, the most prominent taken on by reviewers are

an evaluator, a commentator, a reviewer, and an editor. The many roles reviewers take in

writing reports, Paltridge observes, “can make it difficult for authors, especially less

experienced ones, to know how to proceed with their paper” (p. 144) after they have received a

reviewer report.

Chapter 6 reports on the survey data (n = 45) and follow-up correspondence. It explores

how reviewers learn to write reports and the challenges they face in writing reviews. The data

reveal that almost 70 percent of reviewers (31 of the 45 respondents) have learned to do

reviews by reading reviewers’ reports of their own submissions to academic journals. Others

(28 percent) have learned to write reviews by simply doing them (see also Paltridge, 2013). The

most challenging aspect of writing reviewers’ reports is to ensure that comments are both

constructive and supportive, that is, “being critical without being negative and unfair” (p. 151).

There is however very little agreement on what is the most straightforward about writing

reviewers’ reports. These findings have implications for reviewer training programs, a topic of

discussion in Chapter 7.

Chapter 7, entitled “Implications for reviewer training,” provides suggestions for

reviewer training and development courses for novice researchers. It proposes “an experiential,


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‘learning by doing’ approach to reviewer training, rather than a didactic, information-

transmission-style one” (p. 157). The chapter draws upon findings from the analysis of

reviewers’ reports, questionnaire responses, and follow-up email interviews. It outlines an

example of a workshop and various tasks that aim to help beginning authors understand the

peer review process and reviewers’ reports. This chapter is particularly useful for those who

wish to run reviewer training workshops or courses for research students and early career

academics, who are new to academic publishing.

The volume concludes with an eleven-page concluding chapter that provides an

overview of each of the previous seven chapters. It also offers suggestions for further reading

and research in the area of peer review and scholarly publication. In particular, the author

briefly reviews three books which provide advice on academic publishing such as Curry and

Lillis’s (2013) A Scholar’s Guide to Getting Published in English, Liebowitz’s (2015) A Guide to

Publishing for Academics, and Paltridge and Starfield’s (2016) Getting Published in Academic

Journals. Other similar books co-authored by Swales and Feak (e.g., Swales & Feak, 2000, 2011)

are also mentioned. Toward the end of the book, Paltridge highlights the role of scholarly

publication in contributing to the growth of an academic discipline. He argues that beginning

researchers, regardless of their language backgrounds, need support and guidance to

understand the process of getting published and to succeed in academic publishing (see Hyland,

2016 for a discussion of the myth of linguistic injustice in academic publishing).

The book, taken as a whole, has many strengths and interesting features. One of which,

as the author himself mentions, is the type of data on which the book is based. That is, the data

such as reviewers’ reports and questionnaire, as well as email responses from reviewers, are

“often extremely difficult to obtain” (p. 28). Various aspects including discourse features of

peer review are explored throughout the book. The brief history of editorial peer review and its

process outlined in Chapter 1 is interesting. Readers may also find the “event sequence” (p. 33),

or steps in the peer review process, as well as the types of comments across all of the

reviewers’ reports presented in Chapter 2 engaging and informative.

The findings regarding the use of indirect speech acts and the indirect nature of

reviewers’ reports discussed in Chapter 3 may be very useful for beginning authors. They may

come to understand that reviewers are usually indirect when they ask for changes to be made


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to submissions, that is, their suggestions are in fact directives. Reviewers also employ a number

of politeness strategies to mitigate criticism in their reports, as discussed in Chapter 4. Thus,

beginning and less experienced authors have to bear in mind that disagreement or criticism in

reviewers’ reports should not be read or viewed as criticism, but rather as requests for

improvement.

A point worth highlighting in Chapter 5 is the subdued use of boosters and hedging in

reviewers’ reports. This suggests that reviewers, as “the real arbiters of a manuscript’s success”

(Leki, 2003, p. 105) or gatekeepers of the journal (Starfield & Paltridge, 2019), have a high level

of certainty in their judgements and wish to appear so. This has implications for inexperienced

academic authors. They should take reviewers’ reports seriously and revise their manuscript

thoughtfully in response to reviewers’ comments, if they wish to be published. Chapter 6 and 7

are more practical in that they respectively look at how reviewers learn to write peer review

reports and offer practical recommendations for the development and conduct of peer review

training programs.

Despite its compelling overview and revelation of the occluded high-stakes genre of

peer review (Swales, 1996), the book is, as acknowledged by Paltridge, limited to the analysis of

reviewers’ reports, as well as questionnaire and interview responses from reviewers of a single

English-medium journal. This is a limitation that prevents the generalizability of the findings

presented in the book. There are several typographical errors (see pp. 9, 61, 154) and two

rather confusing paragraphs about the frequency counts of speech acts (p. 76), which should

have been presented in tables for ease of understanding, as has been done effectively in other

chapters. Several extracts from the data are somewhat surprisingly repeated to support the

author’s interpretations, an issue some readers might find less appealing.

These minor shortcomings aside, the book offers a wealth of information, qualitative

data, and practical suggestions for understanding the genre of reviewers’ reports and

conducting reviewer training. Readers will find the book highly readable due in part to its

accessible style and the richness of direct quotations from the multiple data sources. The

empirical findings and pedagogical recommendations presented in the book will appeal to a

range of audiences, particularly research students, early career academics, and researchers

engaging in scholarly publishing. Overall, the author succeeds in presenting his original research


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and achieving his aim in writing the book. That is, to demystify the occluded genre of reviewers’

reports and help beginning authors understand the process and expectations of peer review

and academic publishing.

Having reviewed the book, I wish to briefly comment on the issue of publication in

Cambodia. It is commonly known that many publications of research papers and books in

Cambodia do not go through a rigorous peer review process. The relative lack of peer review

and sound editorial work before a manuscript is published has undermined the quality of work

published locally. This has caused many problems, including the lack of trust in the quality and

value of local publications.

In the academic community, peer-reviewed publications are highly valued because,

through peer review processes, the quality and credibility of scholarship are enhanced. To

regain trust and confidence in locally published work in Cambodia, it is important that each

manuscript is subject to scrutiny and peer review before it is sent to the printing house. The

promotion of peer review practices is crucial and requires concerted efforts from all relevant

stakeholders, particularly the Cambodian Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport, academic

institutions, and authors or researchers themselves. Readers and consumers of published

materials also have an important role to play in promoting refereed publications. They can

question or complain about the quality and credibility of any published work that may not have

undergone rigorous peer review, rather than uncritically accept anything that is released.

In the current context, peer-reviewed publications should be seriously encouraged and

promoted in Cambodian higher education institutions, especially in universities where scholarly

research and publication should receive greater attention and investment. The establishment of

peer-reviewed academic journals, as in the case of Insight: Cambodia Journal of Basic and

Applied Research, is an important first step in promoting research and peer-reviewed

publications. Any major public or private university in Cambodia that does not have a

recognized outlet for peer-reviewed publications should endeavor to establish one. This will

enable the practice of peer review to become a norm and locally published work will receive

greater merit and acceptance. Perhaps at this stage, effective policy and support mechanisms

from the education ministry are needed to promote and institutionalize peer-reviewed

publications in the Cambodian higher education context.


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References

Curry, M. J., & Lillis, T. (2013) A scholar’s guide to getting published in English: Critical choices

and practical strategies. Multilingual Matters.

Habibie, P., & Hyland, K. (Eds.). (2018). Novice writers and scholarly publication: Authors,

mentors, gatekeepers. Palgrave Macmillan.

Hyland, K. (2016) Academic publishing and the myth of linguistic injustice. Journal of Second

Language Writing, 31, 58–69. doi: 10.1016/j.jslw.2016.01.005.

Leki, I. (2003) Tangled webs: Complexities of professional writing. In Writing for scholarly

publication (pp. 143-154). Routledge.

Liebowitz, J. (2015) A guide to publishing for academics: Inside the publish or perish

phenomenon. Auerbach Publications.

Paltridge, B. (2013) Learning to review submissions to peer reviewed journals: How do they do

it? International Journal for Researcher Development, 4(1), 6-18. http://dx.doi.org/10.11

08/IJRD-07-2013-0011.

Paltridge, B. (2015) Referees' comments on submissions to peer-reviewed journals: when is a

suggestion not a suggestion? Studies in Higher Education, 40(1), 106-122. doi:

10.1080/03 075079.2013.818641.

Paltridge, B., & Starfield, S. (2016) Getting published in academic journals: Navigating the

publication process. University of Michigan Press.

Smith, R. (2015) The peer review drugs don’t work. Times Higher Education, 28. https://www.t

imeshighereducation.com/content/the-peer-review-drugs-dont-work.

Swales, J. (1996) Occluded genres in the academy. Academic Writing, 45-58.

Swales, J. M., & Feak, C. A. (2000). English in today's research world: A writing guide. University

of Michigan Press.

Swales, J. M., & Feak, C. B. (2011) Navigating academia: Writing supporting genres. University

of Michigan Press.

Tardy, C. M. (2019) We Are All Reviewer# 2: A Window into the Secret World of Peer Review.

In Novice writers and scholarly publication (pp. 271-289). Palgrave Macmillan.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jslw.2016.01.005

http://dx.doi.org/10.11%2008/IJRD-07-2013-0011

http://dx.doi.org/10.11%2008/IJRD-07-2013-0011

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/03075079.2013.818641

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/03075079.2013.818641


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Instructions for Authors

About the Journal

Insight: Cambodia Journal of Basic and Applied Research was established in 2018 by

the Royal University of Phnom Penh (RUPP). It is an academic, policy and practice-oriented

journal, which covers all aspects of science and engineering, the social sciences and humanities,

education, development studies, and languages. The publisher, RUPP, was founded in 1960 and

is the oldest and one of the largest public universities in Cambodia. It has a full membership of

the ASEAN University Network (AUN) and is considered to be Cambodia’s flagship university in

teaching, research, and community service. Academic or applied research manuscripts from

within Cambodia; or from outside Cambodia but contributing to the social, economic, or

environmental development of Cambodia, ASEAN, or the Greater Mekong Subregion may be

submitted to the journal. The journal welcomes manuscripts from any discipline, where

theories, concepts, innovations, new technologies, or best practices are introduced. However,

the journal reserves the right to prioritize research focused on topics aligned with the courses

offered at RUPP.

Frequency of Issue

Insight: Cambodia Journal of Basic and Applied Research is a bilingual journal, where

manuscripts may be published in either English or Khmer. However, all manuscripts must have

abstracts in both English and Khmer. Two issues of the journal are published each year:

Issue 1: January-June

Issue 2: July- December

Each volume will comprise one editorial, five research papers, one policy paper, and a book

review.

Manuscripts Accepted

Natural Science, Science, and Engineering

Original research paper (3,000 – 5,000 words, including references)

Short policy paper (1,000–2,000 words, including references), and

News (< 500 words)

Arts, Linguistic, Humanities, Social Science, Development Studies and Environment


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Original research paper (6,000 – 8,000 words, including references),

Short policy paper (1,000 – 4,000 words, including references), and

News (< 500 words).

Manuscript Submission and Evaluation

The journal editors warmly welcome your submissions. Papers sent for consideration should be

submitted electronically in Word format to Dr Serey Sok at the Research Office of the Royal

University of Phnom Penh ([email protected]). Submissions should include: (1) a full paper,

(2) a cover page, and (3) supplementary data (if required).

Peer Review Integrity

All manuscripts considered for publication will undergo a process of double-blind peer review

by independent expert referees. An internal evaluation will occur before the peer review

process. The editor will inform the author whether the manuscript has been accepted or

rejected within one month of the completion of the peer-review process. In total, the internal

evaluation and external peer-review process may take up to four months, whereby the result

may be:

Accepted without changes. If a manuscript is evaluated as “Accepted without change”, it is

published in its original form.

Accepted with minor changes. If a manuscript is evaluated as “Accepted with minor

changes”, the editor will accept the submission on revision of some minor aspects of the

paper.

Accepted with major changes. If a manuscript is evaluated as “Accepted with major

changes”, it will require an additional external evaluation by the peer review team.

Rejected. If a manuscript is evaluated as “Rejected”, it will not be accepted for re-

submission, regardless of how it is later revised.

When the author is notified of acceptance to the journal, the editor will forward comments

from the two peer-reviewers for consideration. Where a manuscript requires changes, the

author will be given 30 days to review the manuscript. The author may be offered one or more

rounds of review to change the manuscript meet the minimum standards required for

publication in the journal.



117

An original research paper may vary in structure based on specific requirements of the topic,

or the disciplinary background of the author(s), in terms of experiments, surveys, case studies,

and so on. However, authors will need to collect and analyze new data and conduct an original

study. The paper should be based on analysis and interpretation of this data. The suggested

structure for a paper in this category is as follows:

Introduction,

Conceptual framework/literature review,

Methodology,

Findings and Results,

Discussion,

Conclusion,

References, and

Supplementary Data (if required).

A book review is an analysis of a book, including its contents, style, and merit. A book review

may be written as an opinion piece, summary, or scholarly review. The suggested structure for

a book review is as follows:

Introduction,

Body (a review of the contents of the book),

Analysis and evaluation,

Conclusion, and

References.

A short policy paper is a communication piece focusing on a specific policy issue, which

provides clear recommendations for policymakers. It is generally a preliminary study, which is a

precursor to an original research paper. A manuscript for a short policy paper should use the

following structure:

Abstract,

Introduction,

Research methodology,

Results,


118

Discussion,

References, and

Supplementary Data (if required).

A news item is a brief description of a research project and an outline of some preliminary

results. This provides an opportunity for authors to disseminate important results quickly. A

news item should adhere to the following structure:

Introduction,

Aims and objectives,

Research methodology,

Preliminary results (if relevant),

Discussion, and

References.

Referencing Style

Insight: Cambodia Journal of Basic and Applied Research (CJBAR) has adopted the American

Psychological Association (APA) style as referencing style.

How to cite a book in APA style

Citing a book in print

APA format structure:

Author, A. (Year of Publication). Title of work. Publisher City, State: Publisher.

For example:

Finney, J. (1970). Time and again. New York, NY: Simon and Schuster.

Notes: When citing a book in APA, keep in mind:

Capitalize the first letter of the first word of the title and any subtitles, as well as the

first letter of any proper nouns.

The full title of the book, including any subtitles, should be stated and italicized.

Citing an e-book from an e-reader

E-book is short for “electronic book.” It is a digital version of a book that can be read on a

computer, e-reader (Kindle, Nook, etc.), or other electronic device.



119

Author, A. (Year of Publication). Title of work [E-Reader Version]. Retrieved from http://xxxx or

DOI:xxxx

For example:

Eggers, D. (2008). The circle [Kindle Version], Retrieved from http://www.amazon.com/

Citing a book found in a database


Author, A. (Year of Publication). Title of work. Retrieved from http://xxxx or DOI:xxxx

For example:

Sayre, Rebecca K., Devercelli, A.E., Neuman, M.J., & Wodon, Q. (2015). Investment in early

childhood development: Review of the world bank’s recent experience. DOI: 10.1596/978-1-

4648-0403-8

Note: When citing an online book or e-book in APA, keep in mind:

A DOI (digital object identifier) is an assigned number that helps link content to its

location on the Internet. It is therefore important, if one is provided, to use it when

creating a citation. All DOI numbers begin with a 10 and are separated by a slash.

How to reference a magazine in APA style

Citing a magazine article in print


Author, A. (Year, month of Publication). Article title. Magazine Title, Volume(Issue), pp.-pp.

For example:

Tumulty, K. (2006, April). Should they stay or should they go? Time, 167(15), 3-40.

Notes: When citing a magazine in APA, keep in mind:

You can usually find the volume number with other publication information in the

magazine;

You can usually find page numbers in the bottom corner of a magazine article; and

If you cannot locate an issue number, simply exclude it from the citation.

Citing a magazine article found online


Author, A.A.. (Year, Month of Publication). Article title. Magazine Title, Volume (Issue),

Retrieved from http://xxxx


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For example:

Tumulty, K. (2006, April). Should they stay or should they go? Time, 167(15) Retrieved from

http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1179361,00.html

Notes: When creating an online magazine citation, keep in mind:

The volume and issue number aren’t always on the same page as the article. Check

other sections of the website before excluding these details from the citation.

How to reference a journal article in APA style

Citing a journal article in print


Author, A. (Publication Year). Article title. Periodical Title, Volume (Issue), pp.-pp.

For example:

Nevin, A. (1990). The changing of teacher education special education. Teacher education and

special education: The Journal of the Teacher Education Division of the Council for Exceptional

Children, 13 (3-4), 147-148.

Citing a journal article found online


Author, A. (Publication Year). Article title. Periodical Title, Volume (Issue), pp.-pp. DOI:XX.XXXXX

or Retrieved from journal URL

For example:

Jameson, J. (2013). E-Leadership in higher education: The fifth “age” of educational technology

research. British Journal of Educational Technology, 44 (6), 889-915. DOI: 10.1111/bjet.12103

Notes: When creating an online journal article citation, keep in mind:

APA does NOT require you to include the date of access/retrieval date or database

information for electronic sources.

You can use the URL of the journal homepage if the reference was retrieved online and

there is no DOI assigned.

For example: Retrieved from

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1111/(ISSN)14678535;jsessionid=956132F3DE76EEB1

20577E99EE74CE9C.f04t01

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1111/(ISSN)14678535;jsessionid=956132F3DE76EEB120577E99EE74CE9C.f04t01

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1111/(ISSN)14678535;jsessionid=956132F3DE76EEB120577E99EE74CE9C.f04t01


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A DOI (digital object identifier) is an assigned number that helps link the content to its

location on the Internet. It is important to use it on a citation if one is provided. All DOI

numbers begin with a 10 and are separated by a slash.

How to reference a newspaper in APA style

Citing a newspaper article in print


Author, A. (Year, Month Date of Publication). Article title. Newspaper Title, pp. xx-xx.

For example:

Rosenberg, G. (1997, March 31). Electronic discovery proves an effective legal weapon. The

New York Times, p. D5.

Notes: When creating newspaper citation, keep in mind:

Precede page numbers for newspaper articles with p. (for a single page) or pp. (for

multiple pages).

If an article appears on discontinuous pages, give all page numbers, and separate the

numbers with a comma (e.g., pp. B1, B3, B5-B7).

How to cite a website in APA style

Citing a general website article with an author


Author, A. (Year, Month Date of Publication). Article title. Retrieved from URL

For example:

Simmons, B. (2015, January 9). The tale of two Flaccos. Retrieved from

http://grantland.com/the-triangle/the-tale-of-two-flaccos/

Citing a general website article without an author


Article title. (Year, Month, Date of Publication). Retrieved from URL

For example:

Teen posed as doctor at West Palm Beach hospital: police. (2015, January 16). Retrieved from

http://www.nbcmiami.com/news/local/Teen-Posed-as-Doctor-at-West-Palm-Beach-Hospital-

Police-288810831.html

See details: http://www.bibme.org/citation-guide/apa/

http://www.bibme.org/citation-guide/apa/


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