Search results for: healthcare professional education

Authors: Sandra Smart-Akande, Chaminda Hewage, Imtiaz Khan, Thanuja Mallikarachchi

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According to UK police-recorded data, there has been a substantial increase in knife-related crime and youth violence in the UK since 2014 particularly in the London boroughs. These crime rates are disproportionally distributed across London with the majority of these crimes occurring in the highly deprived areas of London and among young people aged 11 to 24 with large discrepancies across ethnicity, age, gender and borough of residence. Comprehensive studies and literature have identified risk factors associated with a knife carrying among youth to be Adverse Childhood Experience (ACEs), poor mental health, school or social exclusion, drug dealing, drug using, victim of violent crime, bullying, peer pressure or gang involvement, just to mention a few. ACEs are potentially traumatic events that occur in childhood, this can be experiences or stressful events in the early life of a child and can lead to an increased risk of damaging health or social outcomes in the latter life of the individual. Research has shown that children or youths involved in youth violence have had childhood experience characterised by disproportionate adverse childhood experiences and substantial literature link ACEs to be associated with criminal or delinquent behavior. ACEs are commonly grouped by researchers into: Abuse (Physical, Verbal, Sexual), Neglect (Physical, Emotional) and Household adversities (Mental Illness, Incarcerated relative, Domestic violence, Parental Separation or Bereavement). To the author's best knowledge, no study to date has investigated how household mental health (mental health of a parent or mental health of a child) and domestic violence (domestic violence on a parent or domestic violence on a child) is related to knife homicides across the local authorities areas of London. This study seeks to address the gap by examining a large sample of data from the London Metropolitan Police Force and Characteristics of Children in Need data from the UK Department for Education. The aim of this review is to identify and synthesise evidence from data and a range of literature to identify the relationship between adverse childhood experiences and youth violence in the UK. Understanding the link between ACEs and future outcomes can support preventative action.

Keywords: adverse childhood experiences, domestic violence, mental health, youth violence, prediction analysis, London knife crime

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Authors: Mohd Hassan Abdullah, Mohd Azam Sulong, Mohd Nizam Nasrifan, Nor Azman Mohd Ramli, Suflan Faidzal Arshad

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The Bajau Samah is a maritime ethnic community that inhabits the west coast of Sabah, Malaysia. The majority of these ethnicities embrace Islam and practice their own culture. Bertitik music ensemble is one of the musical practices performed in various social events, especially weddings. The ensemble, which combines several musical instruments including gongs, drums and kulintangan is played by six musicians to accompany various social events in the community. The position of the Bajau Samah in a multi-ethnic community such as Kadazandusun, Rungus, Suluk, Malay, Iranun and others exposes to the cultural activities with various artistic elements of the surrounding community. Western influences have also played an important role in the process of hybridity and acculturation in this society. Cultural change and the influx of foreign cultures have threatened the sustainability of this musical practice. This study aims to musicologically analyze the elements of bertitik ensemble that form the uniqueness of the cultural identity of the Bajau Samah Ethnic group. An ethnomusicological approach has been used to parse the essence of the bertitik music repertoire in depth. Ethnographic study design which comprises fieldwork, interviews, observations and document analysis as the main methods were utilized to collect data. Music recordings were transcribed in the form of musical notation and then analyzed based on the theory of "the norms of musical styles". This study reveals that musical elements featured in the ensemble represent the symbol and cultural identity to this ethnic group. The findings of the study were documented in the form of musicological analysis, audio and video as well as transcriptions of the musical notation of the repertoire of the music ensemble. This study is in line with the National cultural policy gazetted by the government, which is "Conservation, preservation and development of culture towards strengthening the foundations of National Culture through joint research, development, education, expansion and cultural relations" It will benefit various parties including students, teachers, academics, cultural arts activists and so on towards preserving the nation's cultural heritage as well as strengthening the spirit of nationhood among the people of various races and ethnic group in Malaysia.

Keywords: ethnomusicology, ethnic music, Malaysian music, cultural identity

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Authors: B. M. M. D. Mendis, L. I. Rajapaksa, P. S. K. Gunathunga, R. C. Fernando, M. Jayalath

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Background / introduction: During the year 2011, 8511 males received services from the sexual health clinics island wide. At present there is only limited information on the risk behaviours of male attendees. Information on risk behaviours related to STI /HIV transmission is helpful in planning suitable prevention interventions. Aim(s)/objectives: The objectives were to determines the sexual partners (other than the marital partner and regular partners) responsible for transmitting STI( Sexually transmitted infections)/ HIV and to understand the practice of safer sex. Methods: Study was a clinic based prospective study conducted for a one year period using an interviewer administered questionnaire. Results: 983 attendees were interviewed. . Mean age was 34.02 years. 75% of the sample had completed GCE O/L (ordinary level examination). Skilled labourers, drivers and forces/police comprised 40% of the sample. 50% admitted sex with a casual female, 12% with a casual male, and 13% with CSW (commercial sex workers) while MSW (male sex workers) exposures were minimal. It was identified that younger males had more contacts with males, and regular female partners while more older males with CSW. Anal sex among males was reported by 11.5%. 20.5% used alcohol frequently and 5.9% used drugs and 1.4% injected. Common STI were genital herpes (7.9%), Non gonococcal urethritis (6.2%) and gonorrhoea (6.2%). Among those who had contacts with FSW 6.7% gonorrhoea (GC), 8.2% non gonococcal urethritis (NGU), 7.5% genital herpes and 0.7% HIV. Non regular partner exposures 3.7% had gonorrhoea, 8.3% NGU, 6.6% genital herpes and 0.8% HIV. Among MSM contacts 10.6% had GC, 4.5% NGU, 5.3% genital herpes, 5.3% secondary syphilis and 0.8% HIV. Only 9.0% used condoms correctly. Friends, doctors, newspapers, internet, and forces were important sources of information on condoms. Non use of condoms were due to worry about satisfaction (24.6%) and faith in the partner (25.6%). Discussion/conclusion: Casual partners for unsafe sex is a concern. MSM and CSW are remained as an important source of infection. Early Syphilis and gonorrhoea infections were mostly seen among MSM exposures. The findings indicate that the male population in the sample had satisfactory education. However, still the unsafe sexual contacts are common. . Newspapers, internet were more important sources of information on condoms. Low condom use remains another concern.. More males contracted STI through casual partners. Therefore strategies used for prevention need to be revisited also emphasizing on general population where casual partners represent. . Increasing awareness of men and women through mass media and primary health care teams may be important strategies that can be used to keep the HIV epidemic in a low level.

Keywords: STI, HIV, Males, safe sex practices

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Authors: Natasha Perez

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This autobiographical narrative inquiry explores the relationship between religious practice, identity, language and literacy in the author’s life experience as a second-generation Cuban-American growing up in the bilingual spaces of South Florida. The author describes how the social practices around language, including the flexibility to communicate in English and Spanish simultaneously, known as translanguaging, were instrumental to developing a biliterate cosmopolitan identity, along with a greater sense of Latinidad through interactions with diverse Latinx church members. This narrative study involved cycles of writing, reading, and reflection within a three-dimensional narrative inquiry space in order to discover the ways in which language and literacy development in the relationship between the personal and the social, across time and space, as historically situated phenomena. The findings show that Catholic faith practices have always been a source and expression of Cuban-ness, a means of sustaining Cuban identity, as well as a medium for bilingual language and literacy practice in the author’s life. Despite lacking formal literacy education in Spanish, she benefitted from the Catholic Church’s response to the surge of Spanish-speaking immigrants in South Florida in the 1980s and the subsequent flexibility of language practice in church-sponsored youth groups. The faith-sharing practices of the youth group created a space to use Spanish in more sophisticated ways that served to build confidence as a bilingual speaker and expand bilingual competence. These experiences also helped the author develop a more salient identity as Cuban-American and a deeper connection to her Cuban-ness in relation to the Nicaraguan, Venezuelan, and first-generation Cuban identities of my peers. The youth group also fostered cosmopolitan identity building through interactions with pan-ethnic Spanish speakers, with Catholicism as a common language and culture that served as a uniting force. Interaction with these peers also fostered cosmopolitan understandings that deepened the author’s knowledge of the geographical boundaries, political realities, and socio-historical differences between these groups of immigrants. This narrative study opens a window onto the micro-processes and socio-cultural dynamics of language and identity development in the second generation, with the potential to deepen our understanding of the impact of religious practice on these.

Keywords: literacy, religion, identity, comopolitanism, culture, language, translanguaging

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Authors: Sarah Atalla, Shubham Gupta, Kim Alipio, Tanya Maric

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Background: Chelsea and Westminster Hospital have introduced the Birmingham Symptom Specific Obstetric Triage System (BSOTS) for patients who present acutely to the Maternity Assessment Suite (MAS) to prioritise care by urgency. The primary objective was to evaluate whether BSOTS was used appropriately to assess patients (defined as a 90% threshold). The secondary objective was to assess whether patients were seen within their designated triaged timeframe (defined as a 90% threshold). Methodology: MAS records were retrospectively reviewed for a randomly selected one-week period of data from 2020 (21/09/2020 - 27/09/2020). 189 patients presented to MAS during this time. Data were collected on the presenting complaint, time of attendance (divided into four time categories), and triage colour code for the urgency of a review by a doctor (red: immediately, orange: within 15 minutes, yellow: within 1 hour, green: within 4 hours). The number of triage waiting times that were breached and the outcome of the attendance was noted. Results: 49% of patients presenting to MAS during this time period were triaged, which therefore did not meet the 90% target. 67% of patients who were triaged were seen within their allocated timeframe as designated by their triage colour code, which therefore did not meet the 90% target. The most frequent reason for patient attendance was reduced fetal movements (30.5% of attendances). The busiest time of day (when most patients presented) was between 06:01-12:00, and this was also when the highest number of patients were not triaged (26 patients or 54% of patients presenting in this time category). The most used triage category (59%) was the green colour code (to be seen by a doctor within 4 hours), followed by orange (24%), yellow (14%), and red (3%). 45% of triaged patients were admitted, whilst 55% were discharged. 62% of patients allocated to the green triage category were discharged, as compared to 56% of yellow category patients, 27% of orange category patients, and 50% of red category patients. The time of patient presentation to the hospital was also associated with the level of urgency and outcome. Patients presenting from 12:01 to 18:00 were more likely to be discharged (72% discharged) compared to 00:01-06:00 where only 12.5% of patients were discharged. Conclusion: The triage system for assessing the urgency of acutely presenting obstetric patients is only being effectively utilised for 49% of patients. There is potential for enhancing the employment of the triage system to enable further efficiency and boost the promotion of patient safety. It is noted that MAS was busiest at 06:01 - 12:00 when there was also the highest number of non-triaged patients – this highlights some areas where we can improve, including higher levels of staffing, better use of BSOTS to triage patients, and patient education.

Keywords: birmingham, BSOTS, maternal, obstetric, pregnancy, specific, symptom, triage

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Authors: Cita Ayeni

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Following countless violations of Human Rights in Nigeria by the various arms and agencies of government; from the Military to the Federal Police and other law enforcement agencies, Nigeria has been riddled with several reports of acts by these agencies against the citizens, ranging from illegal arrest and imprisonment, torture, disappearing, and extrajudicial killings, just to mention a few. This paper, focuses on SARS (Special Anti-Robbery Squad), a division of the Nigeria Police Force, and its reported threats to the people’s security, particularly the Nigerian youths, with continuous violence, extortion, illegal arrest and imprisonment, terror, and extrajudicial activities resulting in maiming and in most cases death, thus infringing on the human rights of the people it’s sworn to protect. This research further analyses how the activities of SARS has over the years instigated fear on the average Nigerian youth, preventing the free participation in daily life, education, job, and individual development, in turn impeding the realization of their full potentials for growth and participation in collective national development. This research analyzes the executive order by the then Acting President (Vice-President) of Nigeria, directing the overhauling of SARS, and its implementation by the Federal Police Force in determining if it’s enough to prevent or put a stop to the continuous Human Rights abuse and threat to the security of the individual citizen. Concluding that although the order by the Acting President was given with an intent to halt the various violations by SARS, and the Inspector General of Police’s (IGP) subsequent action by releasing a statement following the order, the bureaucracy in Nigeria, with a history of incompetency and a return to 'business as usual' after a reduced public outcry, it’s most likely that there will not be adequate follow up put in place and these violations would be slowly 'swept under the rug' with SARS officials not held accountable. It is recommended therefore that the Federal Government through the NPF, following the reforms made, in collaboration with the mentioned Independent Human Rights and civil societies organizations should periodically produce unbiased and publicly accessible reports on the implementation of these reforms and progress made. This will go a long way in assuring the public of actual fulfillment of the restructuring, reduce fear by the youths and restore some public faith in the government.

Keywords: special anti-robbery squad, youths in Nigeria, overhaul, insecurities, human rights violations

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Authors: Katarzyna Wyka, Dana Sylvan, JoAnn Difede

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Background and significance: The following disaster, population-based screening programs are routinely established to assess physical and psychological consequences of exposure. These data sets are highly skewed as only a small percentage of trauma-exposed individuals develop health issues. Commonly used statistical methodology in post-disaster mental health generally involves population-averaged models. Such models aim to capture the overall response to the disaster and its aftermath; however, they may not be sensitive enough to accommodate population heterogeneity in symptomatology, such as post-traumatic stress or depressive symptoms. Methods: We use an archival longitudinal data set from Weill-Cornell 9/11 Mental Health Screening Program established following the World Trade Center (WTC) terrorist attacks in New York in 2001. Participants are rescue and recovery workers who participated in the site cleanup and restoration (n=2960). The main outcome is the post-traumatic stress symptoms (PTSD) severity score assessed via clinician interviews (CAPS). For a detailed understanding of response to the disaster and its aftermath, we are adapting quantile regression methodology with particular focus on predictors of extreme distress and resilience to trauma. Results: The response variable was defined as the quantile of the CAPS score for each individual under two different scenarios specifying the unconditional quantiles based on: 1) clinically meaningful CAPS cutoff values and 2) CAPS distribution in the population. We present graphical summaries of the differential effects. For instance, we found that the effect of the WTC exposures, namely seeing bodies and feeling that life was in danger during rescue/recovery work was associated with very high PTSD symptoms. A similar effect was apparent in individuals with prior psychiatric history. Differential effects were also present for age and education level of the individuals. Conclusion: We evaluate the utility of quantile regression in disaster research in contrast to the commonly used population-averaged models. We focused on assessing the distribution of risk factors for post-traumatic stress symptoms across quantiles. This innovative approach provides a comprehensive understanding of the relationship between dependent and independent variables and could be used for developing tailored training programs and response plans for different vulnerability groups.

Keywords: disaster workers, post traumatic stress, PTSD, quantile regression

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Authors: Chao Li, Lei Zhou, Ruiqi Ren, Dan Li, Yali Wang, Daxin Ni, Zijian Feng, Qun Li

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Background: In 2016, yellow fever had been first ever discovered in China, soon after the yellow fever epidemic occurred in Angola. After the discovery, China had promptly made the national protocol of control and prevention and strengthened the surveillance on passenger and vector. In this study, a descriptive analysis was conducted to summarize China’s experiences of response towards this import epidemic, in the hope of providing experiences on prevention and control of yellow fever and other similar imported infectious diseases in the future. Methods: The imported cases were discovered and reported by General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine (AQSIQ) and several hospitals. Each clinically diagnosed yellow fever case was confirmed by real-time reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT–PCR). The data of the imported yellow fever cases were collected by local Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) through field investigations soon after they received the reports. Results: A total of 11 imported cases from Angola were reported in China, during Angola’s yellow fever outbreak. Six cases were discovered by the AQSIQ, among which two with mild symptom were initiative declarations at the time of entry. Except for one death, the remaining 10 cases all had recovered after timely and proper treatment. All cases are Chinese, and lived in Luanda, the capital of Angola. 73% were retailers (8/11) from Fuqing city in Fujian province, and the other three were labors send by companies. 10 cases had experiences of medical treatment in Luanda after onset, among which 8 cases visited the same local Chinese medicine hospital (China Railway four Bureau Hospital). Among the 11 cases, only one case had an effective vaccination. The result of emergency surveillance for mosquito density showed that only 14 containers of water were found positive around places of three cases, and the Breteau Index is 15. Conclusions: Effective response was taken to control and prevent the outbreak of yellow fever in China after discovering the imported cases. However, though the similar origin of Chinese in Angola has provided an easy access for disease detection, information sharing, health education and vaccination on yellow fever; these conveniences were overlooked during previous disease prevention methods. Besides, only one case having effective vaccination revealed the inadequate capacity of immunization service in China. These findings will provide suggestions to improve China’s capacity to deal with not only yellow fever but also other similar imported diseases in China.

Keywords: yellow fever, first import, China, suggestion

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Authors: Kollie B. Dogba, Willis Oluoch-Kosura, Chepchumba Chumo

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In Liberia, many of the agricultural households cultivate cassava for either sustenance purposes, or to generate farm income. Many of the concentrated cassava farmers reside in Nimba, a north-eastern County that borders two other economies: the Republics of Cote D’Ivoire and Guinea. With a high demand for cassava output and products in emerging Asian markets coupled with an objective of the Liberia agriculture policies to increase the competitiveness of valued agriculture crops; there is a need to examine the level of resource-use efficiency for many agriculture crops. However, there is a scarcity of information on the efficiency of many agriculture crops, including cassava. Hence the study applying an output-oriented method seeks to assess the economic efficiency of cassava farmers in Nimba County, Liberia. A multi-stage sampling technique was employed to generate a sample for the study. From 216 cassava farmers, data related to on-farm attributes, socio-economic and institutional factors were collected. The stochastic frontier models, using the Translog functional forms, of production and revenue, were used to determine the level of revenue efficiency and its determinants. The result showed that most of the cassava farmers are male (60%). Many of the farmers are either married, engaged or living together with a spouse (83%), with a mean household size of nine persons. Farmland is prevalently obtained by inheritance (95%), average farm size is 1.34 hectares, and most cassava farmers did not access agriculture credits (76%) and extension services (91%). The mean cassava output per hectare is 1,506.02 kg, which estimates average revenue of L$23,551.16 (Liberian dollars). Empirical results showed that the revenue efficiency of cassava farmers varies from 0.1% to 73.5%; with the mean revenue efficiency of 12.9%. This indicates that on average, there is a vast potential of 87.1% to increase the economic efficiency of cassava farmers in Nimba by improving technical and allocative efficiencies. For the significant determinants of revenue efficiency, age and group membership had negative effects on revenue efficiency of cassava production; while farming experience, access to extension, formal education, and average wage rate have positive effects. The study recommends the setting-up and incentivizing of farmer field schools for cassava farmers to primarily share their farming experiences with others and to learn robust cultivation techniques of sustainable agriculture. Also, farm managers and farmers should consider a fix wage rate in labor contracts for all stages of cassava farming.

Keywords: economic efficiency, frontier production and revenue functions, Nimba County, Liberia, output-oriented approach, revenue efficiency, sustainable agriculture

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Authors: Ruwandika Perera

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Even though the Sri Lankan government provides a reasonable level of support for students at all levels of the school system, for example, free education, textbooks, school uniforms, subsidized public transportation, and school meals, low participation in learning among secondary students is an issue warranting investigation, particularly in low socio-economic districts. This study attempted to determine the levels of motivation and engagement amongst students in a number of schools in two low socio-economic districts of Sri Lanka. This study employed quantitative research design in an attempt to determine levels of motivation and engagement amongst Sri Lankan secondary school students. Motivation and Engagement Scale-Junior School (MES-JS) was administered among 100 Sinhala-medium and 100 Tamil-medium eighth-grade students (50 students from each gender). The mean age of the students was 12.8 years. Schools were represented by type 2 government schools located in Monaragala and Nuwara Eliya districts in Sri Lanka. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was conducted to measure the construct validity of the scale. Since this did not provide a robust solution, exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was conducted. Four factors were identified; Failure Avoidance and Anxiety (FAA), Positive Motivation (PM), Uncertain Control (UC), and Positive Engagement (PE). An independent-samples t-test was conducted to compare PM, PE, FAA, and UC in gender and ethnic groups. There was no significant difference identified for PE, FAA, and UC scales based upon gender. These results indicate that for the participants in this study, there were no significant differences based on gender in the levels of failure avoidance and anxiety, uncertain control, and positive engagement in the school experience. But, the result for the PM scale was close to significant, indicating there may be differences based on gender for positive motivation. A significant difference exists for all scales based on ethnicity, with the mean result for the Tamil students being significantly higher than that for the Sinhala students. These results indicate those Sinhala-medium students’ levels of positive motivation and positive engagement in learning was lower than Tamil-medium students. Also, these results indicate those Tamil-medium students’ levels of failure avoidance, anxiety, and uncertain control was higher than Sinhala-medium students. It could be concluded that male students levels of PM were significantly lower than female students. Also, Sinhala-medium students’ levels of PM and PE was lower than Tamil-medium students, and Tamil-medium students levels of FAA and UC was significantly higher than Sinhala-medium students. Thus, there might be particular school-related conditions affecting this situation, which are related to early adolescents’ motivation and engagement in learning.

Keywords: early adolescents, engagement, low socio-economic districts, motivation

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Authors: Katya E. Manalastas

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This thesis is a dialogue with Freud about vulnerability and any forms of transience we encounter in life. This study argues that Freud’s Ethics of Finitude, which is framed within the psychoanalytic context, is a critical theory about how human beings fail to become what they are because of their attachment to their illusions—to their visions of perfection and immortality. Freud’s Ethics of Finitude positions itself between our detachment to ideals and recognition of our own death through our loved one. His texts portray the predicament of the finite individual who suffers from feelings of guilt and anxiety because of his failure to live up to the demands of his idealistic civilized society. The civilized society has overestimated men’s susceptibility to culture. It imposes excessive sublimation, conformity to rigid moral ideals, and instinctive repression to manage human aggression. However, by doing this, civilization becomes a main source of men’s suffering. The lack of instinctive freedom will result in a community of tamed but unhappy people. Civilization has also constructed theories and measures to rule out death and pain from the realities of life. Therefore, a man lives his life repressing his instincts and ignorant of his own mortality. For Freud, war and neurosis are just few of the consequences of a civilization that imprisons the individual from cultural hypocrisy instead of giving more play to truthfulness. The occurrence of Great War destroyed our pride in the attainments of civilization and let loose the hostile impulses within us which we thought had been totally eradicated by means of instinctive repression and sublimation. War destroyed most of the things that we had loved and showed us the impermanence of all the things that we had deemed perfect and everlasting. This chaotic event also revealed the damaging impact of our attachment to past values that no longer bind us; our futile attempts to escape suffering; and our refusal to confront the painfulness of loss and mourning. With this given backdrop, this study launches Freud’s Ethics of Finitude—which culminates not in the submission of an individual to the unquestioned authority nor in the blind optimism and love for illusory happiness but in the pedagogy of mourning which brings forth the authentic education of man towards the truth about himself. His Ethics of Finitude is a form of labor in and through which the individual steps out of the realm of illusions and ideals that hinder him to confront his imperfections and accept the difficulties of existence. Through his analysis of the Great War, Freud seeks to awaken in us our ability to evaluate the way we see ourselves and to live our lives with death in mind. His Ethics of Finitude leads us to the fulfillment of our first duty as a living being, which is to endure life. We can only endure life if we are prepared to die and let go.

Keywords: critical theory, ethics of finitude, psychoanalysis, Sigmund Freud

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Authors: Charles St. Geste, Michael Neumann, Catherine Twohig

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Our primary aim is to examine farmer-centered participatory action learning as a tool to improve agricultural production, build resilience to climate shocks and, more broadly, advance community-driven solutions for sustainable development in rural communities across Haiti. For over six years, sixty plus farmers from Deslandes, Haiti, organized in three traditional work groups called konbits, have designed and tested low-input agroecology techniques as part of the Konbit Vanyan Kapab Pwoje Agroekoloji. The project utilizes a participatory action learning approach, emphasizing social inclusion, building on local knowledge, experiential learning, active farmer participation in trial design and evaluation, and cross-community sharing. Mixed methods were used to evaluate changes in knowledge and adoption of agroecology techniques, confidence in advancing agroecology locally, and innovation among Konbit Vanyan Kapab farmers. While skill and knowledge in application of agroecology techniques varied among individual farmers, a majority of farmers successfully adopted techniques outside of the trial farms. The use of agroecology techniques on trial and individual farms has doubled crop production in many cases. Farm income has also increased, and farmers report less damage to crops and property caused by extreme weather events. Furthermore, participatory action strategies have led to greater local self-determination and greater capacity for sustainable community development. With increased self-confidence and the knowledge and skills acquired from participating in the project, farmers prioritized sharing their successful techniques with other farmers and have developed a farmer-to-farmer training program that incorporates participatory action learning. Using adult education methods, farmers, trained as agroecology educators, are currently providing training in sustainable farming practices to farmers from five villages in three departments across Haiti. Konbit Vanyan Kapab farmers have also begun testing production of value-added food products, including a dried soup mix and tea. Key factors for success include: opportunities for farmers to actively participate in all phases of the project, group diversity, resources for application of agroecology techniques, focus on group processes and overcoming local barriers to inclusive decision-making.

Keywords: agroecology, participatory action learning, rural Haiti, sustainable community development

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Authors: Kajal Attri

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Introduction: Transgender people are considered third gender in India, although they still face identification issues and alienated from society. Furthermore, they face several challenges, including discrimination in employment, resources, education, and property as a result, most transgender people make a living through begging at traffic lights, trains, and buses; attending auspicious occasions such as childbirth and weddings; and engaging in sex work, which includes both home-based and street-based sex work. During COVID-19, maintaining social distance exacerbates transgender people's circumstances and prevents them from accessing health care services, sexual reassignment surgery, identity-based resources, government security, and financial stability. Nonetheless, the pandemic raised unfavorable attitudes about transgender persons, such as unsupportive family members and trouble forming emotional relationships. This study focuses on how we missed transgender people during COVID-19 to provide better facilities to cope with this situation when they are already the most vulnerable segment of the society. Methodology: The research was conducted using secondary data from published publications and grey literature obtained from four databases: Pubmed, Psychinfo, Science direct, and Google scholar. The literature included total 25 articles that met the inclusion criteria for a review. Result and Discussion: Transgender people, who are considered the most vulnerable sector of society, have already faced several obstacles as a result of the outbreak. The analysis underscores the difficulties that transgender persons faced during COVID-19, such as, They had trouble accessing the government's social security programmes during the lockdown, which provide rations and pensions since they lack the necessary identifying cards. The impact of COVID-19 leaves transgender people at heightened risk of poverty and ill health because they exist on the margins of society, those livelihood base on sex work, begging, and participation on auspicious occasions. They had a significant risk of contracting SARS-CoV2 because they lived in congested areas or did not have permanent shelter, and they were predominantly infected with HIV, cancer, and other non-communicable illnesses. The pandemic raised unfavorable attitudes about transgender persons, such as unsupportive family members and trouble forming emotional relationships. Conclusion: The study comes forward with useful suggestions based on content analysis and information to reduce the existing woes of transgenders during any pandemic like COVID-19.

Keywords: COVID-19, transgender, lockdown, transwomen, stigmatization

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Authors: Jay Raval

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Sports and physical fitness have been a vital component of our civilization. It is such a power which, motivates and inspires every individual, communities and even countries to be aware of the physical and mental health. All though, sports play vital role in the overall development of the nation, but in the developing countries such as India, this culture of sports is yet to be motivated. However, in India lack of sporting culture has held back the growth of a similar industry in the past, despite the growing awareness and interest in various different sports besides cricket. Hence, due to a lack of sporting culture, corporate investments in India’s sports have traditionally been limited to only non-profit corporate social responsibility activities and initiatives. From past couple of years, India has come up with new initiatives such as Indian Premier League (Cricket), Hockey India League, Indian Badminton League, Pro Kabaddi League, and Indian Super League (Football) which help to boost Indian sports culture and thereby increase economy of the country. Out of 29 states of India, among all of those competitive states, Gujarat is showing very rapid increase in sports participation. Khel Mahakumbh, the competition conducted for the last six years has been a giant step in this direction and covers rural and urban areas of Gujarat. The objective of the research is to address the overall development of the sports system. Sports system includes infrastructure, coaches, resources, and participants. The current existing system is not disabled friendly. This research paper highlights adequate steps in order to improve and sort out pressing issues in the sports system. Education system is highly academic-centric with a definite trend towards reducing school sports and extra-curricular sports in the Gujarat state. Constituents of this research work make an attempt to evaluate the framework of the Olympic Charter, the Sports Authority of India, the Indian Olympics Association and the National Sports Federations. It explores the areas that need to be revamped, rejuvenated and reoriented to function in an open, democratic, equitable, transparent and accountable manner. Research is based on mixed method approach. It is used for the data collection which includes the personal interviews, document analysis and the use of news article. Quality assurance is also tested by conducting the trustworthiness of the paper. Mixed method helps to strengthen the analysis part and give strong base for the discussion during the analysis.

Keywords: physical development, sports authority of India, sports policy, women empowerment

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Authors: Juan Li, Hui Tian, Min Wang

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In China, under the considerable pressure of 'Gaokao' –the highly competitive college entrance examination, high school teachers and parents often worry that doing physical activity would take away the students’ precious study time and may have a negative impact on the academic grades. There was a tendency to achieve high academic scores at the cost of physical exercise. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between the physical fitness and academic achievement of Chinese high school students. The participants were 968 grade one (N=457) and grade two students (N=511) with an average age of 16 years from three high schools of different levels in Beijing, China. 479 were boys, and 489 were girls. One of the schools is a top high school in China, another is a key high school in Beijing, and the other is an ordinary high school. All analyses were weighted using SAS 9.4 to ensure the representatives of the sample. The weights were based on 12 strata of schools, sex, and grades. Physical fitness data were collected using the scores of the National Physical Fitness Test, which is an annual official test administered by the Ministry of Education in China. It includes 50m run, sits and reach test, standing long jump, 1000m run (for boys), 800m run (for girls), pull-ups for 1 minute (for boys), and bent-knee sit-ups for 1 minute (for girls). The test is an overall evaluation of the students’ physical health on the major indexes of strength, endurance, flexibility, and cardiorespiratory function. Academic scores were obtained from the three schools with the students’ consent. The statistical analysis was conducted with SPSS 24. Independent-Samples T-test was used to examine the gender group differences. Spearman’s Rho bivariate correlation was adopted to test for associations between physical test results and academic performance. Statistical significance was set at p<.05. The study found that girls obtained higher fitness scores than boys (p=.000). The girls’ physical fitness test scores were positively associated with the total academic grades (rs=.103, p=.029), English (rs=.096, p=.042), physics (rs=.202, p=.000) and chemistry scores (rs=.131, p=.009). No significant relationship was observed in boys. Cardiorespiratory fitness had a positive association with physics (rs=.196, p=.000) and biology scores (rs=.168, p=.023) in girls, and with English score in boys (rs=.104, p=.029). A possible explanation for the greater association between physical fitness and academic achievement in girls rather than boys was that girls showed stronger motivation in achieving high scores in whether academic tests or fitness tests. More driven by the test results, girls probably tended to invest more time and energy in training for the fitness test. Higher fitness levels were associated with an academic benefit among girls generally in Chinese high schools. Therefore, physical fitness needs to be given greater emphasis among Chinese adolescents and gender differences need to be taken into consideration.

Keywords: physical fitness; adolescents; academic achievement; high school

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Authors: Pongthep Bunrueng

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This action research accentuates the outcome of a development in English pronunciation, using principles of phonetics for English major students at Loei Rajabhat University. The research is split into 5 separate modules: 1) Organs of Speech and How to Produce Sounds, 2) Monopthongs, 3) Diphthongs, 4) Consonant sounds, and 5) Suprasegmental Features. Each module followed a 4 step action research process, 1) Planning, 2) Acting, 3) Observing, and 4) Reflecting. The research targeted 2nd year students who were majoring in English Education at Loei Rajabhat University during the academic year of 2011. A mixed methodology employing both quantitative and qualitative research was used, which put theory into action, taking segmental features up to suprasegmental features. Multiple tools were employed which included the following documents: pre-test and post-test papers, evaluation and assessment papers, group work assessment forms, a presentation grading form, an observation of participants form and a participant self-reflection form. All 5 modules for the target group showed that results from the post-tests were higher than those of the pre-tests, with 0.01 statistical significance. All target groups attained results ranging from low to moderate and from moderate to high performance. The participants who attained low to moderate results had to re-sit the second round. During the first development stage, participants attended classes with group participation, in which they addressed planning through mutual co-operation and sharing of responsibility. Analytic induction of strong points for this operation illustrated that learner cognition, comprehension, application, and group practices were all present whereas the participants with weak results could be attributed to biological differences, differences in life and learning, or individual differences in responsiveness and self-discipline. Participants who were required to be re-treated in Spiral 2 received the same treatment again. Results of tests from the 5 modules after the 2nd treatment were that the participants attained higher scores than those attained in the pre-test. Their assessment and development stages also showed improved results. They showed greater confidence at participating in activities, produced higher quality work, and correctly followed instructions for each activity. Analytic induction of strong and weak points for this operation remains the same as for Spiral 1, though there were improvements to problems which existed prior to undertaking the second treatment.

Keywords: action research, English pronunciation, phonetics, segmental features, suprasegmental features

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Authors: David Sinfield, Thomas Cochrane, Marcos Steagall

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While there is much hype around the potential and development of mobile virtual reality (VR), the two key critical success factors are the ease of user experience and the development of a simple user-generated content ecosystem. Educational technology history is littered with the debris of over-hyped revolutionary new technologies that failed to gain mainstream adoption or were quickly superseded. Examples include 3D television, interactive CDROMs, Second Life, and Google Glasses. However, we argue that this is the result of curriculum design that substitutes new technologies into pre-existing pedagogical strategies that are focused upon teacher-delivered content rather than exploring new pedagogical strategies that enable student-determined learning or heutagogy. Visual Communication design based learning such as Graphic Design, Illustration, Photography and Design process is heavily based on the traditional forms of the classroom environment whereby student interaction takes place both at peer level and indeed teacher based feedback. In doing so, this makes for a healthy creative learning environment, but does raise other issue in terms of student to teacher learning ratios and reduced contact time. Such issues arise when students are away from the classroom and cannot interact with their peers and teachers and thus we see a decline in creative work from the student. Using AR and VR as a means of stimulating the students and to think beyond the limitation of the studio based classroom this paper will discuss the outcomes of a student project considering the virtual classroom and the techniques involved. The Atelier learning environment is especially suited to the Visual Communication model as it deals with the creative processing of ideas that needs to be shared in a collaborative manner. This has proven to have been a successful model over the years, in the traditional form of design education, but has more recently seen a shift in thinking as we move into a more digital model of learning and indeed away from the classical classroom structure. This study focuses on the outcomes of a student design project that employed Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality technologies in order to expand the dimensions of the classroom beyond its physical limits. Augmented Reality when integrated into the learning experience can improve the learning motivation and engagement of students. This paper will outline some of the processes used and the findings from the semester-long project that took place.

Keywords: augmented reality, blogging, design in community, enhanced learning and teaching, graphic design, new technologies, virtual reality, visual communications

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Authors: Dijiang Lyu, Shaoying Li, Zhangzhi Tan, Zhifeng Wu, Feng Gao

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Nowadays, China is experiencing rapidly urban rail transit expansions in the world. The purpose of this study is to finely model factors influencing transit ridership at multi-time dimensions within transit stations’ pedestrian catchment area (PCA) in Guangzhou, China. This study was based on multi-sources spatial data, including smart card data, high spatial resolution images, points of interest (POIs), real-estate online data and building height data. Eight multiple linear regression models using backward stepwise method and Geographic Information System (GIS) were created at station-level. According to Chinese code for classification of urban land use and planning standards of development land, residential land-use were divided into three categories: first-level (e.g. villa), second-level (e.g. community) and third-level (e.g. urban villages). Finally, it concluded that: (1) four factors (CBD dummy, number of feeder bus route, number of entrance or exit and the years of station operation) were proved to be positively correlated with transit ridership, but the area of green land-use and water land-use negative correlated instead. (2) The area of education land-use, the second-level and third-level residential land-use were found to be highly connected to the average value of morning peak boarding and evening peak alighting ridership. But the area of commercial land-use and the average height of buildings, were significantly positive associated with the average value of morning peak alighting and evening peak boarding ridership. (3) The area of the second-level residential land-use was rarely correlated with ridership in other regression models. Because private car ownership is still large in Guangzhou now, and some residents living in the community around the stations go to work by transit at peak time, but others are much more willing to drive their own car at non-peak time. The area of the third-level residential land-use, like urban villages, was highly positive correlated with ridership in all models, indicating that residents who live in the third-level residential land-use are the main passenger source of the Guangzhou Metro. (4) The diversity of land-use was found to have a significant impact on the passenger flow on the weekend, but was non-related to weekday. The findings can be useful for station planning, management and policymaking.

Keywords: fine-scale modeling, Guangzhou city, multi-time dimensions, multi-sources spatial data, transit ridership

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Authors: Fizza Saghir

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Rohingyas are an ethnic minority of predominantly Buddhist-Myanmar. Living in ghettos in Rakhine, one of the poorest states of Myanmar, for decades, they have been marginalized, discriminated, deprived of the basic amenities and have faced ghastly violations of their rights- politically, socially, economically and culturally. In 2012, in violence that, erupted between ethnic Rakhine Buddhists and Rohingya Muslims, hundreds of Rohingyas were slayed and many more displaced. The state does not recognize them as ‘citizens’ and the military and police have constantly persecuted and pushed them to either migrate to other countries like India, Bangladesh or else die of deprivation. Amidst the deadly violence, Rohingya women are the most vulnerable. Many of them have faced sexual abuse and gender-based violence. Minimalistic to insignificant studies have been done on the plight of Rohingya women refugees in context of India. Thus, this paper focuses on psycho-social status of Rohingya women refugees settled in Delhi, India. The research study used both quantitative and qualitative methods. It was explorative in nature and used non-probability sampling, purposive sampling, in particular. A sample size of 30 Rohingya women refugees was interviewed out of the universe of 45 Rohingya refugee families living in Kalindi Kunj Refugee Camp of Delhi. Case studies were developed. The paper explores the psychological and social status of the respondents along with a deep understanding of their issues and concerns. Moreover, it assesses the impact of violence and migration on respondents. It was found that Rohingya women refugees are deeply and severely affected by a violent past, an insecure present and an uncertain future. Major problems they face in Delhi, India are finding employment, lack of identity cards to avail government services, language barrier, lack of health and education facilities. All they desire is peace and shelter in India. Besides, recommendations and suggestions have been given to various stakeholders of the forced mass migration of Rohingya refugees which includes, Government of Myanmar, Government of India, other bordering nations of Myanmar, international NGOs and media and the Rohingya community, itself. Only an immediate, peaceful and continuous dialogue process can help resolve the issue of exodus of Rohingyas. Countries, including India, must come together to help the Rohingyas who are in need of urgent humanitarian aid and assistance.

Keywords: dialogue process, ethnic minority, forced mass migration, impact of violence and migration, psycho-social status, Rohingya women refugees, sexual abuse

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Authors: Ishan Kumar Garg

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Urban Fringes have been witnessing unforeseeable, haphazard, and ineffective spatial planning systems for many decades. It invades peripheral villages in the zest of the land as an abundant resource. The process, popularly known as "Urban Sprawl", is commonly seen in many fast-growing cities, especially in developing countries like India. The research for this paper reveals significant neglect in rural development policies, which are not recognized as crucial in current town and country planning regulations. This promotes urban-centric development in the fringe areas that are subjected to real-estate speculation. Therefore, being surrounded by arbitrary urban functions, these villages compromise with necessary strategies to retain the rural cultural identities, traditional ways of living, and villages’ interconnections while remaining deprived of urban amenities such as adequate water supply, education, sanitation, etc. Such socio-spatial separation makes us wonder about their right to development. The possibilities of a sustainable and socially inclusive city expansion are also explored through direct consumer–manufacturer media to bring positive socio-financial transformation. The paper aims to identify a rational playground for both the rural and urban population, which creates possibilities for economic and knowledge transactions beyond their local boundaries. This is achieved by empowering the intact community of villages with economic sufficiency and developing skills to pass on to future generations. In the above context, revolving around unregulated urban sprawl, the northeast region of Bareilly city in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh is also discussed, i.e., currently under the influence of such development pressures. As we see, exclusive developments like residential, hospitality, industries, etc., over the unplanned landscapes are emerging with the development aligned to only urban means, not the rural. The paper ultimately re-envisions urban-rural associations through appropriate design combinations with economic growth. It integrates broken linkages by revising methodologies and encourages local entrepreneurship that taps the possibility of a gradual social transformation. Concurrently, the addition of required urban amenities leads to rural life strengthening and fulfilling aspirations. Since the proposed thesis carries through an inclusive fringe development, the study caters to cities of similar scales and situations that bolster such coexistence.

Keywords: smart growth framework, empowering rural economy, socio spatial separation, urban fringe development, urban sprawl consequences

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Authors: Leticia Lengler, Jefferson Oliveira, Vania Estivalete, Jordana Marques Kneipp

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The context of social, economic and environmental transformations has driven innumerable changes in the organizational environment, influencing the social interactions that occur in this scenario. In this sense, social entrepreneurship emerges as a unique opportunity to challenge, question, rethink certain concepts and traditional theories widely discussed in relation to entrepreneurship. Therefore, the interest in studying personal values has been based on the idea that they might be predictors of the behavior of individuals. As an attempt to relate personal values with the characteristics of social entrepreneurs, this study aims to investigate the salient values and the social entrepreneurship perceptions that occur in two social projects responsible for developing sports skills among the students. For purposes of analysis, it is intended to consider: (i) a description of both Social Projects and their respective institutions, considering their history and relevance in the context; (ii) analysis of the personal values of the idealizers and teachers responsible for the projects, (iii) identification of the characteristics of social entrepreneurship manifested in the two projects, and (iv) discussion of similarities and disparities of the categories identified among the participants of the projects. Therefore, this study will carry a qualitative analysis from the interviews with 10 participants of each social project (named Projeto Remar/ASENA and Projeto Mãos Dadas/JUDÔ SANTA MARIA): 2 projects coordinators, 2 students, 2 parents of students, 2 physical education internships and 2 businessmen who stablished a partnership with each project. The data collection will be done through semi-structured interviews that are going to last around 30 minutes each, being recorded, transcribed and later analyzed, through the categorical analysis. The option for categorical analysis is supported by the fact that it is the best alternative when one wants to study values, opinions, attitudes and beliefs, through qualitative ones. In the present research, the pre-analysis phase consisted of an organization of the material collected during the research with Remar and Mãos Dadas Project, and a dynamic reading of this material, seeking to identify the characteristics of social entrepreneurship and values addressed in the study. In the analytical description phase, a more in-depth analysis of the material collected in the research will be carried out. The third phase, referred to as referential interpretation or treatment of results obtained will allow to verify the homogeneity and the heterogeneity among the participants' perceptions of the projects. Some preliminary results coming from the first interviews revealed the projects are guided by values such as cooperation, respect, well-being and nature preservation. These values are linked to the social entrepreneurship perception of the projects managers, who established their activities in behalf of the local community.

Keywords: personal values, social entrepreneurship, social projects, sports participants

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Authors: Yun-Hsiang Lee

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Cancer is the main cause of death worldwide. With advances in medical technology, immunotherapy, which is a newly developed advanced treatment, is currently a crucial cancer treatment option. For better quality cancer care, the ability to communicate and critical thinking plays a central role in clinical oncology settings. However, few studies have explored the impact of communication skills on immunotherapy-related issues and their related factors. This study was to (i) explore the current status of communication skill ability for immunotherapy-related issues, self-efficacy for immunotherapy-related care, and critical thinking ability; and (ii) identify factors related to communication skill ability. This is a cross-sectional study. Oncology nurses were recruited from the Taiwan Oncology Nursing Society, in which nurses came from different hospitals distributed across four major geographic regions (North, Center, South, East) of Taiwan. A total of 123 oncology nurses participated in this study. A set of questionnaires were used for collecting data. Communication skill ability for immunotherapy issues, self-efficacy for immunotherapy-related care, critical thinking ability, and background information were assessed in this survey. Independent T-test and one-way ANOVA were used to examine different levels of communication skill ability based on nurses having done oncology courses (yes vs. no) and education years (< 1 year, 1-3 years, and > 3 years), respectively. Spearman correlation was conducted to understand the relationships between communication skill ability and other variables. Among the 123 oncology nurses in the current study, the majority of them were female (98.4%), and most of them were employed at a hospital in the North (46.8%) of Taiwan. Most of them possessed a university degree (78.9%) and had at least 3 years of prior work experience (71.7%). Forty-three of the oncology nurses indicated in the survey that they had not received oncology nurses-related training. Those oncology nurses reported moderate to high levels of communication skill ability for immunotherapy issues (mean=4.24, SD=0.7, range 1-5). Nurses reported moderate levels of self-efficacy for immunotherapy-related care (mean=5.20, SD=1.98, range 0-10) and also had high levels of critical thinking ability (mean=4.76, SD=0.60, range 1-6). Oncology nurses who had received oncology training courses had significantly better communication skill ability than those who had not received oncology training. Oncology nurses who had higher work experience (1-3 years, or > 3 years) had significantly higher levels of communication skill ability for immunotherapy-related issues than those with lower work experience (<1 year). When those nurses reported better communication skill ability, they also had significantly better self-efficacy (r=.42, p<.01) and better critical thinking ability (r=.47, p<.01). Taken altogether, courses designed to improve communication skill ability for immunotherapy-related issues can make a significant impact in clinical settings. Communication skill ability for oncology nurses is the major factor associated with self-efficacy and critical thinking, especially for those with lower work experience (< 1 year).

Keywords: communication skills, critical thinking, immunotherapy, oncology nurses, self-efficacy

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Authors: Temmuz Gönç Şavran

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Migration is a multidimensional and health-related concept that has important consequences for both migrants and the host society. Due to past conflicts and poor living conditions that lead to migration, the dangerous and difficult journey, and the problems they face upon arrival in the destination country, migrants are at higher risk for poor health. Health is a human right, and all societies and communities, including migrant groups, must receive adequate health care. In addition, the health of migrants must be improved to protect the health of the host society and ensure social integration. The main determinants of health are employment, income, education, good housing, and adequate nutrition. It can be said that migrants are among the most vulnerable groups in society in these respects, and migrant health is negatively affected by this situation. Rigid immigration policies or financial constraints in destination countries, the complexity and bureaucracy of health systems, the low health literacy of migrant groups, and the inadequate provision of translation services in health facilities are among the other main factors affecting migrant health. Migrants are also at risk of stigma, exclusion, detection, and deportation when seeking medical care. Based on data from a qualitative study with a descriptive case study design, this paper aims to highlight and sociologically assess the health-related problems of international migrants in Eskisehir, Turkey. The sample consists of 30 international migrants living in Eskisehir, two-thirds of whom are from Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. Those who are citizens of the Republic of Turkey are excluded from the study; otherwise, the legal status of the participants is not considered in the selection of the sample. This makes it possible to distinguish the different needs and problems of subgroups and to consider migrant health as a comprehensive concept. The research is supported by Anadolu University in Eskisehir, and data will be collected through semi-structured interviews between November 2022 and February 2023. With holistic sociology of health approach, this study considers migrant health as a comprehensive sociological concept. It aims to reveal the health-related resources and needs of the international migrant groups living in the center of Eskisehir, the problems they encounter in meeting these needs, and the strategies they use to solve these problems. The results are expected to show that the health of migrants is not only influenced by legislation but is shaped by many processes, from housing conditions to cultural habits. It is expected that the results will also raise awareness of discrimination, exclusion, marginalization, and hate speech in migrants’ access to health services.

Keywords: migrant health, sociology of health, sociology of migration, Turkey, refugees

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Authors: Uyanga Jadamba

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Globalisation of the world economy has necessitated the development and implementation of a comparable and understandable reporting language suitable for use by all reporting entities. The International Accounting Standard Board (IASB) provides an international reporting language that lets all users understand the financial information of their business and potentially allows them to have access to finance at an international level. The study is based on logistic regression analysis to investigate the factors for the adoption of theInternational Financial Reporting Standard for Small and Medium sized Entities (IFRS for SMEs). The study started with a list of 217 countries from World Bank data. Due to the lack of availability of data, the final sample consisted of 136 countries, including 60 countries that have adopted the IFRS for SMEs and 76 countries that have not adopted it yet. As a result, the study included a period from 2010 to 2020 and obtained 1360 observations. The findings confirm that the adoption of the IFRS for SMEs is significantly related to the existence of national reporting standards, law enforcement quality, common law (legal system), and extent of disclosure. It means that the likelihood of adoption of the IFRS for SMEs decreases if the country already has a national reporting standard for SMEs, which suggests that implementation and transitional costs are relatively high in order to change the reporting standards. The result further suggests that the new standard adoption is easier in countries with constructive law enforcement and effective application of laws. The finding also shows that the adoption increases if countries have a common law system which suggests that efficient reportingregulations are more widespread in these countries. Countries with a high extent of disclosing their financial information are more likely to adopt the standard than others. The findings lastly show that the audit qualityand primary education levelhave no significant impact on the adoption.One possible explanation for this could be that accounting professionalsfrom in developing countries lacked complete knowledge of the international reporting standards even though there was a requirement to comply with them. The study contributes to the literature by providing factors that impact the adoption of the IFRS for SMEs. It helps policymakers to better understand and apply the standard to improve the transparency of financial statements. The benefit of adopting the IFRS for SMEs is significant due to the relaxed and tailored reporting requirements for SMEs, reduced burden on professionals to comply with the standard, and provided transparent financial information to gain access to finance.The results of the study are useful toemerging economies where SMEs are dominant in the economy in informing its evaluation of the adoption of the IFRS for SMEs.

Keywords: IFRS for SMEs, international financial reporting standard, adoption, institutional factors

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Authors: Jutta Ransmayr

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The digital age has long arrived at Austrian schools, so both society and educationalists demand that digital means should be integrated accordingly to day-to-day school routines. Therefore, the Austrian school-leaving exam (A-levels) can now be written either by hand or by using a computer. However, the choice of writing medium (pen and paper or computer) for written examination papers, which are considered 'high-stakes' exams, raises a number of questions that have not yet been adequately investigated and answered until recently, such as: What effects do the different conditions of text production in the written German A-levels have on the component of normative linguistic accuracy? How do the spelling skills of German A-level papers written with a pen differ from those that the students wrote on the computer? And how is the teacher's assessment related to this? Which practical desiderata for German didactics can be derived from this? In a trilateral pilot project of the Austrian Center for Digital Humanities (ACDH) of the Austrian Academy of Sciences and the University of Vienna in cooperation with the Austrian Ministry of Education and the Council for German Orthography, these questions were investigated. A representative Austrian learner corpus, consisting of around 530 German A-level papers from all over Austria (pen and computer written), was set up in order to subject it to a quantitative (corpus-linguistic and statistical) and qualitative investigation with regard to the spelling and punctuation performance of the high school graduates and the differences between pen- and computer-written papers and their assessments. Relevant studies are currently available mainly from the Anglophone world. These have shown that writing on the computer increases the motivation to write, has positive effects on the length of the text, and, in some cases, also on the quality of the text. Depending on the writing situation and other technical aids, better results in terms of spelling and punctuation could also be found in the computer-written texts as compared to the handwritten ones. Studies also point towards a tendency among teachers to rate handwritten texts better than computer-written texts. In this paper, the first comparable results from the German-speaking area are to be presented. Research results have shown that, on the one hand, there are significant differences between handwritten and computer-written work with regard to performance in orthography and punctuation. On the other hand, the corpus linguistic investigation and the subsequent statistical analysis made it clear that not only the teachers' assessments of the students’ spelling performance vary enormously but also the overall assessments of the exam papers – the factor of the production medium (pen and paper or computer) also seems to play a decisive role.

Keywords: exam paper assessment, pen and paper or computer, learner corpora, linguistics

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Authors: Cristina Fernandez, Felix Amparano, John Tumberger, Stephani Stancil, Sarah Hampl, Brooke Sweeney, Amy R. Beck, Helena H Laroche, Jared Tucker, Eileen Chaves, Sara Gould, Matthew Lindquist, Lora Edwards, Renee Arensberg, Meredith Dreyer, Jazmine Cedeno, Alleen Cummins, Jennifer Lisondra, Katie Cox, Kelsey Dean, Rachel Perera, Nicholas A. Clark

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Background: Adolescents with obesity are at higher risk of disordered eating than the general population. Detection of eating disorders (ED) is difficult. Screening questionnaires may aid in early detection of ED. Our team’s prior efforts focused on increasing ED screening rates to ≥90% using a validated 10-question adolescent binge eating disorder screening questionnaire (ADO-BED). This aim was achieved. We then aimed to improve treatment plan initiation of patients ≥12 years of age who screen positive for BED within our WMC from 33% to 70% within 12 months. Methods: Our WMC is within a tertiary-care, free-standing children’s hospital. A3, an improvement framework, was used. A multidisciplinary team (physicians, nurses, registered dietitians, psychologists, and exercise physiologists) was created. The outcome measure was documentation of treatment plan initiation of those who screen positive (goal 70%). The process measure was ADO-BED screening rate of WMC patients (goal ≥90%). Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) cycle 1 included provider education on current literature and treatment plan initiation based upon ADO-BED responses. PDSA 2 involved increasing documentation of treatment plan and retrain process to providers. Pre-defined treatment plans were: 1) repeat screen in 3-6 months, 2) resources provided only, or 3) comprehensive multidisciplinary weight management team evaluation. Run charts monitored impact over time. Results: Within 9 months, 166 patients were seen in WMC. Process measure showed sustained performance above goal (mean 98%). Outcome measure showed special cause improvement from mean of 33% to 100% (n=31). Of treatment plans provided, 45% received Plan 1, 4% Plan 2, and 46% Plan 3. Conclusion: Through a multidisciplinary improvement team approach, we maintained sustained ADO-BED screening performance, and, prior to our 12-month timeline, achieved our project aim. Our efforts may serve as a model for other multidisciplinary WMCs. Next steps may include expanding project scope to other WM programs.

Keywords: obesity, pediatrics, clinic, eating disorder

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Authors: Carmen Rocio Fernandez Diaz

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This paper focuses on the relevance of information and communication technologies (hereinafter referred as ‘ICTs’) as an essential part of the day-to-day life of all societies nowadays, as they offer the scenario where an immense number of behaviors are performed that previously took place in the physical world. In this context, areas of reality that have remained outside the so-called ‘information society’ are hardly imaginable. Nevertheless, it is possible to identify a means that continue to be behind this reality, and it is the penitentiary area regarding inmates rights, as security aspects in prison have already be improved by new technologies. Introducing ICTs in prisons is still a matter subject to great rejections. The study of comparative penitentiary systems worldwide shows that most of them use ICTs only regarding educational aspects of life in prison and that communications with the outside world are generally based on traditional ways. These are only two examples of the huge range of activities where ICTs can carry positive results within the prison. Those positive results have to do with the social reintegration of persons serving a prison sentence. Deprivation of liberty entails contact with the prison subculture and the harmful effects of it, causing in cases of long-term sentences the so-called phenomenon of ‘prisonization’. This negative effect of imprisonment could be reduced if ICTs were used inside prisons in the different areas where they can have an impact, and which are treated in this research, as (1) access to information and culture, (2) basic and advanced training, (3) employment, (4) communication with the outside world, (5) treatment or (6) leisure and entertainment. The content of all of these areas could be improved if ICTs were introduced in prison, as it is shown by the experience of some prisons of Belgium, United Kingdom or The United States. However, rejections to introducing ICTs in prisons obey to the fact that it could carry also risks concerning security and the commission of new offences. Considering these risks, the scope of this paper is to offer a real proposal to introduce ICTs in prison, trying to avoid those risks. This enterprise would be done to take advantage of the possibilities that ICTs offer to all inmates in order to start to build a life outside which is far from delinquency, but mainly to those inmates who are close to release. Reforming prisons in this sense is considered by the author of this paper an opportunity to offer inmates a progressive resettlement to live in freedom with a higher possibility to obey the law and to escape from recidivism. The value that new technologies would add to education, employment, communications or treatment to a person deprived of liberty constitutes a way of humanization of prisons in the 21st century.

Keywords: deprivation of freedom, information and communication technologies, imprisonment, social reintegration

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Authors: Shangjun Zou, Zhiyuan Wang, Songhui You

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Introduction In recent years, the Chinese government has issued several policies to promote the institutional reform and innovation of the development of campus football, but many problems have been exposed in the process of policy implementation. Therefore, this paper attempts to conduct an empirical analysis of the campus football policy texts to reveal the dynamic development of the microsystem in the process of policy evolution. Methods The selected policy contents are coded by constructing a two-dimensional analysis framework of campus football policy tool-policy objective. Specifically, the X dimension consists of three oriented policy tools: environment, supply and demand, while the Y dimension is divided into six aspects of policy objectives, including institution, competition, player teaching, coach training, resource guarantee and popularization. And the distribution differences of textual analysis units on X and Y dimensions are tested by using SPSS22.0 so as to evaluate the characteristics and development trend of campus football policy on respective subjects. Results 1) In the policy evolution process of campus football stepping into the 2.0 Era, there were no significant differences in the frequency distribution of policy tools(p=0.582) and policy objectives(p=0.603). The collaborative governance of multiple participants has become the primary trend, and the guiding role of Chinese Football Association has gradually become prominent. 2) There were significant differences in the distribution of policy tools before the evolution at a 95% confidence level(p=0.041). With environmental tools always maintaining the dominant position, the overall synergy of policy tools increased slightly. 3) There were significant differences in the distribution of policy objectives after the evolution at a 90% confidence level(p=0.069). The competition system of policy objective has not received enough attention while the construction of institution and resource guarantee system has been strengthened. Conclusion The upgraded version of campus football should adhere to the education concept of health first, promote the coordinated development of youth cultural learning and football skills, and strive to achieve more solid popularization, more scientific institution, more comprehensive resource guarantee and adequate integration. At the same time, it is necessary to strengthen the collaborative allocation of policy tools and reasonable planning of policy objectives so as to promote the high quality and sustainable development of campus football in the New Era. Endnote The policy texts selected in this paper are “Implementation Opinions on Accelerating the Development of Youth Campus Football” and “Action Plans for the Construction of Eight Systems of National Youth Campus Football”, which were promulgated on August 13, 2015 and September 25, 2020 respectively.

Keywords: campus football, content analysis, evolution characteristics, policy objective, policy tool

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Authors: Mona Alyedreessy

Abstract:

This study, which is based on a qualitative study sample of thirty-four British converts from different ages, ethnicities, social classes, areas and religious backgrounds in London, investigates the common challenges, problems and abuse in the name of Islam that many British female Muslim converts experienced during their time as Muslims, which caused them to leave the faith. It is an important study, as it creates an awareness of the weaknesses found in western Muslim societies and in various Islamic educational programs that causes people to leave Islam and contribute towards its negative reputation in the media. The women in this study shared common problems regarding gender and racial discrimination, identity development, feminism, marriage, parenting, Muslim culture, isolation, extremism, belonging and practising Islam in both Muslim and non-Muslim societies with differing sacrifices and consequences that caused them to de-convert. The study argues that many of the personal, religious and social problems female Muslim converts experience are due to a lack of knowledge about Islam and their rights as Muslim women, which often results in them being vulnerable and influenced by the opinions, attitudes and actions of uneducated, abusive, non-practising and extremist Muslims. For example, it was found that young female converts in particular were often taken advantage of and manipulated into believing that many negative actions displayed by patriarchal Muslim husbands were a part of Islam. This created much confusion, especially when their husbands used specific Quran texts and Hadiths to justify their abuse, authority and attitudes that made them miserable. As a result and based on the positive experiences of some converts, the study found that obtaining a broad Islamic education that started with an intimate study of the Prophet Muhammad’s biography alongside being guided by the teachings of western Muslim scholars contributed greatly towards a more enjoyable conversion journey, as women were able to identify and avoid problematic Muslims and abuse in the name of Islam. This in turn helped to create a healthier family unit and Muslim society. Those who enjoyed being Muslims were able to create a balanced western Muslim identity by negotiating and applying their own morals and western values to their understanding of The Prophet’s biography and The Quran and integrated Islamic values into their own secular western environments that were free from foreign cultural practices. The outcomes of the study also highlight some effective modern approaches to da’wah based on the teachings of The Prophet Mohammad and other prophets for young Arab and Asian Muslims who marry, study and live among non-Muslims and converts.

Keywords: abuse, apostasy, converts, Muslims

Procedia PDF Downloads 206

Authors: Asikhia Olubusayo Aduke

Abstract:

Students’ inability to set data-based (specific, measurable, attainable, reliable, and time-bound) personal improvement goals threatens their academic success. Hence, the study aimed to investigate year-one students’ academic goal-setting practices at Lagos State University of Education, Nigeria. Descriptive survey research was used in carrying out this study. The study population consisted of 3,101 year-one students of the University. A sample size of five hundred (501) participants was selected through a proportional and simple random sampling technique. The Formative Goal Setting Questionnaire (FGSQ) developed by Research Collaboration (2015) was adapted and used as an instrument for the study. Two main research questions were answered, while two null hypotheses were formulated and tested for the study. The study revealed higher data-based goals for all students than personal improvement goals. Nevertheless, data-based and personal improvement goal-setting for female students was higher than for male students. One sample test statistic and Anova used to analyse data for the two hypotheses also revealed that the mean difference between male and female year one students’ data-based and personal improvement goal-setting formation was statistically significant (p < 0.05). This means year one students’ data-based and personal improvement goals showed significant gender differences. Based on the findings of this study, it was recommended, among others, that therapeutic techniques that can help to change students’ faulty thinking and challenge their lack of desire for personal improvement should be sought to treat students who have problems with setting high personal improvement goals. Counsellors also need to advocate continued research into how to increase the goal-setting ability of male students and should focus more on counselling male students’ goal-setting ability. The main contributions of the study are higher institutions must prioritize early intervention in first-year students' academic goal setting. Researching gender differences in this practice reveals a crucial insight: male students often lag behind in setting meaningful goals, impacting their motivation and performance. Focusing on this demographic with data-driven personal improvement goals can be transformative. By promoting goal setting that is specific, measurable, and focused on self-growth (rather than competition), male students can unlock their full potential. Researchers and counselors play a vital role in detecting and supporting students with lower goal-setting tendencies. By prioritizing this intervention, we can empower all students to set ambitious, personalized goals that ignite their passion for learning and pave the way for academic success.

Keywords: academic goal setting, counselling, practice, university, year one students

Procedia PDF Downloads 36