Research Article
Surachai Pimsalee, Aukkapong Sukkamart, Paitoon Pimdee, Chontawat Meedee
CONT ED TECHNOLOGY, Volume 18, Issue 2, Article No: ep638
ABSTRACT
This study aimed to evaluate the current and desired software development skills within the context of Thai undergraduate teacher education. Specifically, the study investigated pre-service computer technology students’ perceptions of secondary learners’ software skill needs in authentic classroom contexts. Seventy-nine participants, including pre-service students, instructors, and teaching mentors, were selected via simple random sampling in June 2025. Data were collected using a 5-point Likert-scale questionnaire measuring current (D) and ideal (I) skill levels, with internal consistency coefficients of 0.87 and 0.96, respectively. The PNImodified (priority needs index modified) method and paired t-tests were used to analyze the gaps. Results showed that participants perceived actual skill levels as generally ‘competent’, while the desired levels were rated as ‘proficient’. The highest training needs were observed in deployment & maintenance (GSA6), followed by programming (GSA4), requirements analysis (GSA2), testing (GSA5), design (GSA3), and planning (GSA1), respectively. These findings highlight the need to align educational curricula with real-world software development practices, including DevOps, secure coding, and testing frameworks.
Keywords: PNI, pre-service ICT teachers, priority needs assessment, software development life cycle, software development skills, perception gap
Research Article
Oraboot Wuttikamonchai, Paitoon Pimdee, Jaruwan Ployduangrat, Aukkapong Sukkamart
CONT ED TECHNOLOGY, Volume 16, Issue 1, Article No: ep494
ABSTRACT
In this study, we present a comprehensive needs assessment (NA) aimed at identifying key factors that contribute to enhancing instructor skills in mobile website design (MWDS). In the realm of professional development, the significance of NAs for user experience (UX) designers has gained attention, with scholars emphasizing the importance of competency modeling to elucidate the intricate knowledge, skills, and abilities inherent in UX design. This perspective aligns with the essential nature of learning NAs for continuous professional development. Therefore, the objective of our investigation was to evaluate the current state of instructor MWDS and their real-world user experience through a sample of 41 individuals, including information technology (IT) instructors and IT entrepreneurs. Employing a simple random sampling method in August 2023, our study utilized descriptive statistics to analyze the data, revealing a moderate proficiency level (mean [M]=3.40). Interestingly, the highest rankings in our findings were attributed to planning mobile website design from a user experience perspective (M=3.81) and developing or creating a website for mobile devices user experience (M=3.81). These skills demonstrated consistent high perceived importance (M=4.78). Moreover, specific aspects of MWDS stood out in terms of significance, with developing or creating mobile websites’ user experience holding the top priority (M=4.87), followed closely by designing mobile websites’ user experience (M=4.79) and developing or prototyping mobile websites’ user experience (M=4.77). Our findings underscore the urgent need to prioritize the promotion of MWDS, particularly those focused on user experience. Using priority needs index modified (PNImodified) method, we identified that user research holds the highest priority (PNImodified=0.56), followed closely by mobile website design user experience (PNImodified=0.41), and defining website content for mobile devices user experience (PNImodified=0.40). This information provides valuable insights for educational institutions and industry stakeholders, guiding efforts to enhance instructor skills and align curricula with the evolving demands of mobile web design. In summary, our study sheds light on the current state of instructor MWDS, emphasizing the importance of user experience-related competencies. The identified priority needs offer valuable guidance for educational institutions and industry stakeholders, facilitating efforts to enhance instructor skills and align curricula with the dynamic requirements of mobile web design. Notably, our results align with the hypothesis testing, where paired sample t-test statistics found that both overall and individual aspects indicated a statistically significant preference for desired over actual outcomes at the .01 level.
Keywords: mobile web design, needs assessment, priority needs index, Thailand, UX designer