Search results for: employees engagement

Authors: Seyed Hamidreza Hejazi Dehghani, Neda Khounsari

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Quick growth of electronic commerce in developed countries means that developing nations must change in their commerce strategies fundamentally. Most organizations are aware of the impact of the Internet and e-Commerce on the future of their firm, and thus, they have to focus on organizational factors that have an effect on the deployment of an e-Commerce strategy. In this situation, it is essential to identify organizational factors such as the organizational culture, human resources, size, structure and product/service that impact an e-commerce strategy. Accordingly, this research specifies the effects of organizational factors on applying an e-commerce strategy in the Namakin food industry. The statistical population of this research is 95 managers and employees. Cochran's formula is used for determination of the sample size that is 77 of the statistical population. Also, SPSS and Smart PLS software were utilized for analyzing the collected data. The results of hypothesis testing show that organizational factors have positive and significant effects of applying an e-Commerce strategy. On the other hand, sub-hypothesizes show that effectiveness of the organizational culture and size criteria were rejected and other sub-hypothesis were accepted.

Keywords: electronic commerce, organizational factors, attitude of managers, organizational readiness

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Authors: Ollie Hall, Salma ElSayed

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Affective adaptation is a novel way for game designers to add an extra layer of engagement to their productions. When player’s emotions factor in game design, endless possibilities for creative gameplay emerge. Whilst gaining popularity, existing affective game research mostly runs controlled experiments carried in restrictive settings and relies on one or more specialist devices for measuring a player’s emotional state. These conditions, albeit effective, are not necessarily realistic. Moreover, the simplified narrative and intrusive wearables may not be suitable for the average player. This exploratory study investigates delivering an immersive affective experience in the wild with minimal requirements in an attempt for the average developer to reach the average player. A puzzle game is created with a rich narrative and creative mechanics. It employs both explicit and implicit adaptation and only requires a web camera. Participants played the game on their own machines in various settings. Whilst it was rated feasible, very engaging, and enjoyable, it remains questionable whether a fully immersive experience was delivered due to the limited sample size.

Keywords: affective games, dynamic adaptation, emotion recognition, game design

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Authors: Atif Mahmood, Mohammad Inayatullah Khan Babar

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Communication infrastructure has been installed, operated, and maintained all over the world according to defined electrical safety standards for separate or joint structures. These safety standards have been set for the safeguard of public, utility workers (employees and contractors), utility facilities, electrical communication equipment’s connected to the utility facilities and other facilities or premise adjacent to utility facilities. Different communication utilities in Pakistan use standards of different countries due to the absence of Common National Electrical Safety Standards of Pakistan. It is really important to devise a framework for implementation of a uniform standard for strict compliance. In this context, it is important to explore the compliance of safety standards for communication conductors and equipment for separate or joint structures for which NESC standards are taken as reference. Specific reference to grounding techniques including grounding AC/DC systems and its frames, leaving Fences, Messenger wires and special circuits used for the protection for lightning etc, ungrounded so recommendations are also given after in-depth analysis of current technical practices for the installation and maintenance of communication infrastructure.

Keywords: utility facilities, grounding electrodes, special circuits, grounding conductor

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Authors: Inezia Aurelia, Soebowo Musa

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Many firms still fail to develop organizational agility. There are more than 40% of organizations think that they are low/not agile in facing market change. Organizational culture plays an important role in developing the organizations to be adaptive in order to manage the VUCA effectively. This study examines the relationships of organizational culture towards participative leadership, employee satisfaction, employee work motivation, organizational learning, and absorptive capacity in developing organizational agility in managing the VUCA environment. 263 employees located from international chemical-based company offices across the globe who have worked for more than three years were the respondents in this study. This study showed that organizational clan culture promotes the development of participative leadership, which it has an empowering effect on people in the organization resulting in employee satisfaction. The study also confirms the role of organizational culture in creating organizational behavior within the organization that fosters organizational learning, absorptive capacity, and organizational agility, while the study also found that the relationship between participative leadership and employee work motivation is not significant.

Keywords: absorptive capacity, employee satisfaction, employee work motivation, organizational agility, organizational culture, organizational learning, participative leadership

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Authors: Eli Maikoto Agison

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The relevance of enhancing human resource development in entrepreneurship for economic growth and development cannot be overemphasized since no country can grow and developed economically above its citizenry. Africa for example and Nigeria in particular is lagging behind in terms of economic growth and development when compared with other developed countries of the world like China, Japan, Singapore, USA etc. The reason is not farfetched from these developed countries efforts in enhancing human resource development in entrepreneurship education. For Nigeria to attain this height of development, this paper discusses the meaning of human resource development in entrepreneurship as the framework for helping employees develop their personal and organizational skills knowledge and abilities as this includes employee training, career development and performance management to enable an organization achieve a set goal. While entrepreneurship education is seen as an aspect of education that is geared towards self-reliance, some of the challenges faced in the enhancement of human resource development in Nigeria include inadequate training and re-training of instructors of entrepreneurship in higher education. Insufficient funding to higher education were discussed and recommendations to include adequate funding, training and re-training of instructors of higher education be enhanced as some of the ways forward.

Keywords: economic development, economic growth, entrepreneurship education, human resource development

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Authors: Sini George

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Active learning pedagogies are valued for their success in increasing 21st-century learners’ engagement, developing transferable skills like critical thinking or quantitative reasoning, and creating deeper and more lasting educational gains. 'Blended learning' is an active learning pedagogical approach in which direct instruction moves from the group learning space to the individual learning space, and the resulting group space is transformed into a dynamic, interactive learning environment where the educator guides students as they apply concepts and engage creatively in the subject matter. This project aimed to develop a blended learning instructional approach to teaching concepts around pharmaceutical calculations to year 1 pharmacy students. The wrong dose, strength or frequency of a medication accounts for almost a third of medication errors in the NHS therefore, progression to year 2 requires a 70% pass in this calculation test, in addition to the standard progression requirements. Many students were struggling to achieve this requirement in the past. It was also challenging to teach these concepts to students of a large class (> 130) with mixed mathematical abilities, especially within a traditional didactic lecture format. Therefore, short screencasts with voice-over of the lecturer were provided in advance of a total of four teaching sessions (two hours/session), incorporating core content of each session and talking through how they approached the calculations to model metacognition. Links to the screencasts were posted on the learning management. Viewership counts were used to determine that the students were indeed accessing and watching the screencasts on schedule. In the classroom, students had to apply the knowledge learned beforehand to a series of increasingly difficult set of questions. Students were then asked to create a question in group settings (two students/group) and to discuss the questions created by their peers in their groups to promote deep conceptual learning. Students were also given time for question-and-answer period to seek clarifications on the concepts covered. Student response to this instructional approach and their test grades were collected. After collecting and organizing the data, statistical analysis was carried out to calculate binomial statistics for the two data sets: the test grade for students who received blended learning instruction and the test grades for students who received instruction in a standard lecture format in class, to compare the effectiveness of each type of instruction. Student response and their performance data on the assessment indicate that the learning of content in the blended learning instructional approach led to higher levels of student engagement, satisfaction, and more substantial learning gains. The blended learning approach enabled each student to learn how to do calculations at their own pace freeing class time for interactive application of this knowledge. Although time-consuming for an instructor to implement, the findings of this research demonstrate that the blended learning instructional approach improves student academic outcomes and represents a valuable method to incorporate active learning methodologies while still maintaining broad content coverage. Satisfaction with this approach was high, and we are currently developing more pharmacy content for delivery in this format.

Keywords: active learning, blended learning, deep conceptual learning, instructional approach, metacognition, pharmaceutical calculations

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Authors: Raeesa Moolla, Ryan S. Johnson

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Air travel, and the use of airports, has experienced proliferative growth in the past few decades, resulting in the concomitant release of air pollutants. Air pollution needs to be monitored because of the known relationship between exposure to air pollutants and increased adverse effects on human health. This study monitored a group of volatile organic compounds (VOCs); specifically BTEX (viz. benzene, toluene, ethyl-benzene and xylenes), as many are detrimental to human health. Through the use of passive sampling methods, the spatial variability of BTEX within an international airport was investigated, in order to determine ‘hotspots’ where occupational exposure to BTEX may be intensified. The passive sampling campaign revealed BTEX_total concentrations ranged between 12.95–124.04 µg m^-3. Furthermore, BTEX concentrations were dispersed heterogeneously within the airport. Due to the slow wind speeds recorded (1.13 m.s^-1); the hotspots were located close to their main BTEX sources. The main hotspot was located over the main apron of the airport. Employees working in this area may be chronically exposed to these emissions, which could be potentially detrimental to their health.

Keywords: air pollution, air quality, hotspot monitoring, volatile organic compounds

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Authors: Hela Ben Maallem

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Applications based on virtual reality offer many benefits to the heritage and tourism sector. Digital heritage mediation is a constantly emerging field that aims to reconstruct the history of heritage items and sites, while at the same time highlighting the identity of a community or region and encouraging public engagement. This research focuses on the analysis of a virtual reality application used in a heritage digital mediation project. The modality introduced is examined through a case study of Djerba View VR application. The aim of this study is to understand the nature and potential uses of this immersive technology and to focus on the study of the possibilities of this medium. The goal of this article is to analyze how 3D reconstruction and immersive storytelling can offer an immersive, interactive and engaging user experience, while meeting the expectations and needs of visitors in a context of technological transition and user-centred design.

Keywords: digital heritage mediation, technological transition, virtual reality, 3D reconstruction, immersive storytelling, user experience, user centered design, interactivity, immersion

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Authors: Yujie Lei

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This article examines the evolving concept of urban living through the lens of co-living spaces, focusing on Liverpool. It explores how co-living can address challenges such as rising urban isolation, housing affordability, and social autism, particularly among younger generations. The research aims to understand how these spaces can mitigate social isolation and maximize urban space use. Using a case study approach, the study examines models like Superloft, co-office spaces, and platforms like Airbnb. Findings reveal that Liverpool’s co-living initiatives have gained popularity, offering flexibility and community engagement. This concept has the potential for expansion, not only for the younger generation but also for elderly communities, fostering intergenerational living. The dissertation concludes that co-living offers a sustainable alternative to traditional housing models, aligning with digital-age lifestyles that prioritize flexibility and community. It presents a promising framework for shaping the future of urban development.

Keywords: co-living, urban design, social isolation, urban development, housing challenges

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Authors: Satya Girish Goparaju, Sushmita Pareek

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This paper examines two sets of pictograms published in Neurath’s books Basic by Isotype and International Pictorial Language in order to investigate the reasons for pictorial language having become an end in itself despite its potential to be relevant, especially in the 21st century digital age of heightened interlingual engagement. ISOTYPE was developed by Otto Neurath to be an ‘international language’ (pictorial) in the late 1920s. It was derived from the philosophy of logical positivism (of the Vienna Circle), which believed that language can be reduced to sets of direct experiences as bare symbols, devoid of the emotive and expressive functions. In his book International Picture Language, Neurath noted that any language is less clear-cut in one or the other way, and hence the pictorial language was justified. However, Isotype, as an ambitious version of logical positivism in practice distanced itself from the semiotic theories of language, and therefore his pictograms were defined as an independent set of signs rather than signs as a part of the language. This paper attempts to investigate intersemiotic translation in the form of Isotypes and trace the effects of logical positivism on Neurath’s concept of isotypes; the ‘international language’.

Keywords: intersemiotic translation, isotype, logical positivism, Otto Neurath, translation studies

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Authors: Talha Sareshwala

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The purpose of this research paper is to revise the skills of an entrepreneur in the making and to guide future Entrepreneurs into a promising future. The study presents a broader review of entrepreneurship, starting from its definition and antecedents. A well-developed original set of guidelines can help budding entrepreneurs and practitioners seeking an answer to being successful as an entrepreneur. It is a journey full of excitement, experiences, rewards, and learning. Dedication, work ethics and a never-say-die attitude will largely contribute to the success as a businessman and an entrepreneur. This paper is sharing an experience of how an entrepreneur can act as a catalyst for young minds while ensuring them that ethics and principles do pay in business when followed in true spirit and action. It is very important for an entrepreneur to enhance his product or services, marketing skills, and market share, along with providing customer satisfaction and opportunities for teams to improve their leadership qualities. To have strong employee loyalty and job satisfaction among its employees. Based on Research objectives, primarily in-depth interviews and focused group interviews were conducted as a qualitative research method. And to support this survey, questionnaires were used as a qualitative research method to explore how Indian Entrepreneurs face the challenge of the changing, volatile socio-political environment in India.

Keywords: entrepreneur, business ethics, sales, marketing

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Authors: Benjamin Morse, Michaela Zint, Jennifer Carman

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This study proposes a behavioral model in which ecotourists’ level of observational learning shapes their subsequent environmentally responsible behavioral intentions through ecotourism participation. Unlike past studies that have focused on individual attributes such as attitudes, locus of control, personal responsibility, knowledge, skills or effect, this present study explores select social attributes as potential antecedents to environmentally responsible behaviors. A total of 207 completed questionnaires were obtained from ecotourists in Korea and path analyses were conducted to explore the degree in which the hypothesized model directly and indirectly explained ecotourists’ environmentally responsible behavioral intentions. Results suggest that observational learning and its associated predictors (i.e., engagement, observation, reproduction and reinforcement) are key determinants of ecotourists environmentally responsible behavioral intentions. The application of observational learning proved to be informative, and has a number of implications for improving ecotourism programs. Our model also lays out a theoretical framework for future research.

Keywords: ecotourism, observational learning, environmentally responsible behavior, social learning theory

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Authors: Sudawan Somjai

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This paper aims to find out level of influences of factors that affected core competency and competitiveness of Thai electricity and electronics, and to indentify factors that affected core competency and competitiveness of Thai electricity and electronics. Using systematic random sampling technique, the samples of this study were 400 employees in the selected 10 medium enterprises in the electricity and electronic industries of Thailand that applied an outsourcing system. All selected companies were located in Bangkok and the eastern part of Thailand. Interviews were also utilized with managing directors. Qualitative and quantitative approaches were both applied. Questionnaires were employed in data collection, whereas in-depth interviews and focus groups were used with key informants in management. The findings unveiled a high level of influence of the outsourcing system on labor flexibility, manpower management efficiency, capability of business processes, cost reduction, business risk elimination and core competency. These factors were found to have a relationship with business core competency for competitiveness in the Thai electricity and electronic industry. Suggestions of this paper were also presented.

Keywords: competitiveness, core competency, outsourcing, Thai electricity and electronic industry

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Authors: Luedech Girdwichai, Ratchasak Sannok, Jeeranan Wueamprakhon

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This research aims to study reasons for study of Evening Class Students, Faculty of Industrial Technology, Suan Sunandha Rajabhat University. Population is special program students of the Faculty of Industrial Technology, Suan Sunandha Rajabhat University enrolled in academic year B.E. 2012. Data were collected in February 2013 from 98 students. Tool used in this research was questionnaire. Data were analyzed by statistics: percentage, mean, and standard deviation, using a computer program. The results revealed that: 1. Most of the special program students have monthly income between 10,001–20,000 Baht. Majority of the students were private company employees, working in operational level. They were mainly single and the commuting distance to the university is between 10-30 kilometers. 2. Reasons for enrolling of special program students of the Faculty of Industrial Technology, namely, career, self advancement, personal reasons and support from others received high scores. 3. Problems identified such as facilities, services, learning media and the content of the course received average scores.

Keywords: reasons, evening class students, Faculty of Industrial Technology, Suan Sunandha Rajabhat University

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Authors: Alkhathlan Mansour

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Current research aims at achieving the organizational development in the educational institutions in the governorate of Al-Kharj through the human performance technology (HPT) model that is named; “The Intellectual Model to improve human performance”. To achieve the goal of this research, it tools -that it is consisting of targeted questionnaires to research sample numbered (120)- have been set up. This sample is represented in; department managers in Prince Sattam Bin Abdulaziz University (50), educational supervisors in the Department of Education (40), school administrators in the governorate (30), and the views of education experts through personal interviews in the proposal to achieve organizational development through the intellectual model to improve human performance. Among the most important research results is that there are many obstacles prevent the organizational development in the educational institutions, so the research suggested a model to achieve organizational development through human performance technologies, as well as the researcher recommended through the results of his research that the administrators have to take into account the justice in the distribution of incentives to employees of educational institutions and training leaders in educational institutions on organizational development strategies and working on the preparation of experts of organizational development in the educational institutions to develop the necessary policies and procedures of each institution.

Keywords: human performance, development, education, organizational

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Authors: Juliet Ramohai

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This paper explores how women departmental heads in higher education experience leadership in a time of the COVID-19 crises. The focus is mostly on their care and coping as they work in virtual spaces. Most scholars have looked at the effects and challenges that different employees face while working from home during a lockdown. However, very few take a dedicated focus on women in leadership and the coping mechanisms and resources that they use for effective leadership during this difficult time. The paper draws on two aspects of Sen’s Capabilities approach, functionings, and agency, to cast a closer understanding of the institutional and individual coping mechanisms that might be at these women's disposal. The qualitative approach used for this paper and a feminist lens provides a critical and in-depth understanding of the real-life stories of the women and how they make sense of their virtual leadership. Data for this paper was collected through semi-structured interviews with 10 women in the positions of head of departments and analysed thematically using capabilities approach concepts as an analytical tool. The findings in this paper indicate that functionings and freedoms are tightly linked to institutional ethnographies. These ethnographies might support or hamper coping for women leaders, especially during times of crisis.

Keywords: capability approach, women leaders, higher education, COVID-19

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Authors: Qingli Lei

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This study investigates the impact of family socioeconomic status and parental involvement on the academic performance of elementary school students, specifically focusing on migrant students in China. The findings reveal that gender has a stronger influence on academic performance compared to local status and parental tutoring time. Female students tend to achieve higher scores than males. Parental education level does not significantly predict academic performance, while parent tutoring time does have a significant impact. Furthermore, there is a significant interaction between local status and parental education level, indicating that migrant students with lower-educated parents perform better than their local counterparts, while local children excel when their parents' education levels are higher. These results emphasize the importance of parental involvement, particularly for immigrant students, and highlight the need for interventions that enhance parental engagement in education to improve academic outcomes.

Keywords: academic performance, family socioeconomic status, migrant students, parental involvement

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Authors: Yu Chen

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In line with existing philosophical approaches, this research proposes a conceptual model with an innovative spatial vision and aesthetic principles for Artificial Intelligence (AI) application in brand advertising. The model first identifies the major constituencies in contemporary advertising on three spatial levels—physical, psychological, and symbolic. The model further incorporates the relationships among AI, aesthetics, branding, and advertising and their interactions with the major actors in all spaces. It illustrates that AI may follow the aesthetic principles-- beauty, elegance, and simplicity-- to reinforce brand identity and consistency in advertising, to collaborate with stakeholders, and to satisfy different advertising objectives on each level. It proposes that, with aesthetic guidelines, AI may assist consumers to emerge into the physical, psychological, and symbolic advertising spaces and helps transcend the tangible advertising messages to meaningful brand symbols. Conceptually, the research illustrates that even though consumers’ engagement with brand mostly begins with physical advertising and later moves to psychological-symbolic, AI-assisted advertising should start with the understanding of brand symbolic-psychological and consumer aesthetic preferences before the physical design to better resonate. Limits of AI and future AI functions in advertising are discussed.

Keywords: AI, spatial, aesthetic, brand advertising

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Authors: Clara Eichberger, Daantje Derks, Hannes Zacher

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Technology-assisted supplemental work (TASW) involves performing job-related tasks after regular working hours with the help of technological devices. Due to emerging information and communication technologies, such behavior becomes increasingly common. Since previous research on the relationship of TASW, psychological detachment and well-being are mixed, this study aimed to examine the moderating roles of appraisal and cognitive coping. A moderated mediation model was tested with daily diary data from 100 employees. As hypothesized, TASW was positively related to negative affect at bedtime. In addition, psychological detachment mediated this relationship. Results did not confirm appraisal and cognitive coping as moderators. However, additional analyses revealed cognitive coping as a mediator of the positive relationship of TASW and positive affect at bedtime. These results suggest that, on the one hand engaging in TASW can be harmful to employee well-being (i.e., more negative affect) and on the other hand, it can also be associated with higher well-being (i.e., more positive affect) in case it is accompanied by cognitive coping.

Keywords: cognitive coping, psychological detachment, technology-assisted supplemental work, well-being

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Authors: Lystra Huggins

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The COVID-19 pandemic affected all facets of life, including pedagogical strategies and perceptual experiences for both instructors and students. While there have also been many challenges and advantages to the online teaching and learning environment, when students’ cameras are on, the daily experiences of students’ lives have been magnified during synchronous online instruction and have served to humanize them in the classroom. This means that students’ everyday experiences, now often on display on ZOOM, allow instructors to see the realities of students. They include children running, spouses walking by parents cooking or sitting on the sofa following the lecture, students at their place of employment or driving from work, or having their classroom engagement interrupted by a delivery. Students’ backgrounds and spaces create unique dynamics during synchronous instruction, which offers a holistic view of them outside academia. This research explores whether witnessing students’ daily experiences leads to empathy from their instructors and whether it results in a greater understanding of students’ challenges and circumstances. Ultimately, it will amplify instructors’ stance on the advantages of students having their cameras on during synchronous online classes to develop a connection with the instructor and a more cohesive classroom environment.

Keywords: instructor’s empathy, synchronous class, asynchronous class, online environment

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Authors: Anan Alssbaiheen, Steve Love

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Given the lack of research into potential opportunities and challenges which are likely to be associated with the implementation of mobile services in developing countries including Saudi Arabia, the research reported here investigated the challenges and opportunities which are associated with the implementation of mobile government services in Saudi Arabia. By collecting data through surveys from 103 Saudi citizens and 46 employees working at the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology Saudi Arabia, this study indicates that the high level of mobile penetration in the country offers an opportunity for Saudi Arabian government to offer mobile government services in the country. The results also suggest that though a large percentage of populations do not have access to mobile technologies, there is still a strong desire among users for the provision of mobile government services. Moreover, the results suggest that effective implementation of mobile government services would help to increase the technological development of Saudi Arabia. However, there are certain challenges which may prevent the effective implementation of such services. First, there does not appear to be a sufficient level of understanding among the Saudi Arabian population about the benefits which are associated with mobile government services. Secondly, the results suggest that the implementation of the services needs to be closely tailored and personalised to the individual needs of target users. Finally, the lack of access to mobile technologies would be a challenge to the successful introduction of these services.

Keywords: challenges, e-government, mobile government, opportunities

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Authors: Rendani Mercy Makhwathana

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This paper intends to explore teachers' encounters when teaching English First Additional Language in rural public schools. Teachers are pillars of any education system around the globe. Educational transformations hinge on them as critical role players in the education system. Thus, teachers' encounters are worth consideration, for they impact learners' learning and the well-being of education in general. An exploratory qualitative approach was used in this paper. The population for this paper comprised all Foundation Phase teachers in the district. A purposive sample of 15 Foundation Phase teachers from five rural-based schools was used. Data were collected through classroom observation and individual face-to-face interviews. Data were categorized, analyzed, and interpreted. Amongst the revealed teachers' encounters are learners' inability to read and write and learners' lack of English language background and learners' lack of the vocabulary to express themselves. This paper recommends the provision of relevant resources and support to effectively teach English First Additional Language to enable learners' engagement and effective use of the English language.

Keywords: first additional language, english second language, medium of instruction, teacher professional development

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Authors: Danielle Guerra, Marden Silva

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The use of active methodologies in the teaching of English has been widely encouraged recently, due to its potential to create propitious conditions for the learners to develop autonomy and studying skills that tend to keep them motivated throughout the learning process. The constant use of technology by the students makes it possible to implement strategies such as blended learning, which blends regular classes with online instruction and practice. (Horn and Staker, 2015) For that reason, the aim of this study was to implement the blended approach in a High School second-grade English class in Brazil, in order to analyze the impacts of this methodology on the students' autonomy. The teacher's role was that of a mediator, being responsible for selecting the best resources for students to study with, and also for helping them with questions when necessary. The results show that taking learner characteristics and learning experiences into account and allowing the students to follow their learning paths at their own pace was crucial to promoting engagement that led to the desired outcomes. In conclusion, the research shows that blended learning is a helpful strategy to foster autonomy and promote motivation in EFL students.

Keywords: active methodologies, autonomy, blended learning, motivation

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Authors: Shujie Liu

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This study aimed to investigate the relationship between teachers’ perceived transformational leadership behaviors and their job satisfaction in China after controlling for teacher self-efficacy. Hierarchical regression analysis (HRA) technique was employed to examine factors’ contributions to teacher job satisfaction with a sample of Chinese high school teachers. The finding of this study provided evidence that teachers’ perceived transformational leadership behaviors accounted for a large percentage (44.9%) of the variance in Chinese teachers’ job satisfaction. Uniquely, school principals’ sense of power was a negative significant predictor of teacher job satisfaction, meaning that the more teachers perceived their principals’ sense of power, the lower of their job satisfaction. Furthermore, this study provided evidence that teacher self-efficacy significantly contributes to teacher job satisfaction. Specifically, teachers’ self-efficacy on student engagement was found to be a significant predictor of teacher job satisfaction. The conclusions were discussed in terms of Chinese cultures. The authors pointed out that how to make teachers involved in school policy making is a challenge for China and that more shared leadership is needed in Chinese schools.

Keywords: Chinese teachers, teacher job satisfaction, teacher self-efficacy, transformational leadership

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Authors: Mensah-Akoto Julius, Kenichi Matsui

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This paper examines the impact of COVID-19 on waste management workers in Ghana. A questionnaire survey was conducted among 60 waste management workers in Accra metropolis, the capital region of Ghana, to understand the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on waste generation, workers’ safety in collecting solid waste, and service delivery. To find out correlations between the pandemic and safety of waste management workers, a regression analysis was used. Regarding waste generation, the results show the pandemic led to the highest annual per capita solid waste generation, or 3,390 tons, in 2020. Regarding the safety of workers, the regression analysis shows a significant and inverse association between COVID-19 and waste management services. This means that contaminated wastes may infect field workers with COVID-19 due to their direct exposure. A rise in new infection cases would have a negative impact on the safety and service delivery of the workers. The result also shows that an increase in economic activities negatively impacts waste management workers. The analysis, however, finds no statistical relationship between workers’ service deliveries and employees’ salaries. The study then discusses how municipal waste management authorities can ensure safe and effective waste collection during the pandemic.

Keywords: Covid-19, waste management worker, waste collection, Ghana

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Authors: Seher Arslankaya, Merve Si̇mge Usuk

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Lean manufacturing, which is based on the Toyota Production System, has focused on increasing the performance in various fields by eliminating the waste. By waste elimination, the lead time is reduced significantly and lean manufacturing provides companies with an important privilege under today's competitive conditions. The initial point of lean thinking is the value. This notion create of a specific product with specific properties for which the customer is ready to pay and which satisfies his needs within a specific time frame and at a specific price. Considering this, the final customer determines the value but the manufacturer creates this value of the product. The value stream is the whole set of activities required for each product. These activities may or may not be essential for the value. Through value stream mapping, all employees can see the sources of waste and develop future cases to eliminate it. This study focused on manufacturing to eliminate the waste which created a cost but did not create any value. The study was carried out at the Department of Assembly/Logistics at Toyota Motor Manufacturing Turkey from the automotive industry with a high product mix and variable demands. As a result of the value stream analysis, improvements are planned for the future cases. The process was improved by applying these suggestions.

Keywords: lead time, lean manufacturing, performance improvement, value stream papping

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Authors: Paul Flynn, Luke O’Donnell

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There is a pressing societal need for educators in formal and non-formal settings to develop pedagogical frameworks, programmes, and interventions that support the development of transversal skills for life beyond the classroom. These skills include communication, collaboration, interpersonal relationship building, problem-solving, and planning, and organizational skills; or lifeworld literacies encountered first hand. This is particularly true for young people aged between 15-18. This demographic represents both the future of society and those best positioned to take advantage of well-designed, structured educational supports within and across formal and non-formal settings. Secondary school history has been identified as an appropriate area of study which deftly develops many of those transversal skills so crucial to positive societal engagement. However, in the formal context, students often challenge history’s relevance to their own lived experience and dismiss it as a study option. In response to such challenges, teachers will often design stimulating lessons which are often well-received. That said, some students continue to question modern-day connections, presenting a persistent and pervasive classroom distraction. The continuing decline in numbers opting to study second-level history indicates an erosion of what should be a critical opportunity to develop all-important lifeworld literacies within formal education. In contrast, students readily acknowledge relevance in non-formal settings where many participants meaningfully engage with history by way of student-focused activities. Furthermore, many do so without predesigned pedagogical aids which support transversal skills development as embodied learning outcomes. As this paper will present, there is a dearth of work pertaining to the circular subject of history and its embodied learning outcomes, including lifeworld literacies, in formal and non-formal settings. While frequently challenging to reconcile formal (often defined by strict curricula and examination processes), and non-formal engagement with history, opportunities do exist. In the Irish context, this is exemplified by a popular university outreach programme: breaking the SEAL. This programme supports second-level history students as they fulfill curriculum requirements in completing a research study report. This report is a student-led research project pulling on communication skills, collaboration with peers and teachers, interpersonal relationships, problem-solving, and planning and organizational skills. Completion of this process has been widely recognized as excellent preparation not only for higher education (third level) but work-life demands as well. Within a formal education setting, the RSR harnesses non-formal learning virtues and exposes students to limited aspects of independent learning that relate to a professional work setting –a lifeworld literacy. Breaking the SEAL provides opportunities for students to enhance their lifeworld literacy by engaging in an independent research and learning process within the protective security of the classroom and its teacher. This paper will highlight the critical role this programme plays in preparing participating students (n=315) for life after compulsory education and presents examples of how lifeworld literacies may be developed through a scaffolded process of historical research and reporting anchored in non-formal contexts.

Keywords: history, education, literacy, transversal skills

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Authors: Scott N. Gerard, Aliza Heching, Susann M. Keohane, Samuel S. Adams

Abstract:

The world-wide population of people over 60 years of age is growing rapidly. The explosion is placing increasingly onerous demands on individual families, multiple industries and entire countries. Current, human-intensive approaches to eldercare are not sustainable, but IoT and AI technologies can help. The Knowledge Reactor (KR) is a contextual, data fusion engine built to address this and other similar problems. It fuses and centralizes IoT and System of Record/Engagement data into a reactive knowledge graph. Cognitive applications and services are constructed with its multiagent architecture. The KR can scale-up and scaledown, because it exploits container-based, horizontally scalable services for graph store (JanusGraph) and pub-sub (Kafka) technologies. While the KR can be applied to many domains that require IoT and AI technologies, this paper describes how the KR specifically supports the challenging domain of cognitive eldercare. Rule- and machine learning-based analytics infer activities of daily living from IoT sensor readings. KR scalability, adaptability, flexibility and usability are demonstrated.

Keywords: ambient sensing, AI, artificial intelligence, eldercare, IoT, internet of things, knowledge graph

Procedia PDF Downloads 175

Authors: Nilki Upathissa, Torin Wirasinghe

Abstract:

This solution addresses the challenges faced by traditional bookstores and the limitations of digital media, striking a balance between the tactile experience of printed books and the convenience of modern technology. The book exchange system offers a sustainable alternative, empowering users to access a diverse range of books while promoting community engagement. The user-friendly interfaces incorporated into the book exchange system ensure a seamless and enjoyable experience for users. Intuitive features for book management, search, and messaging facilitate effortless exchanges and interactions between users. By streamlining the process, the system encourages readers to explore new books aligned with their interests, enhancing the overall reading experience. Central to the system's success is the hybrid recommendation engine, which leverages advanced technologies such as Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) models. By analyzing user input, the engine accurately predicts genre preferences, enabling personalized book recommendations. The hybrid approach integrates multiple technologies, including user interfaces, machine learning models, and recommendation algorithms, to ensure the accuracy and diversity of the recommendations. The evaluation of the book exchange system with the hybrid recommendation engine demonstrated exceptional performance across key metrics. The high accuracy score of 0.97 highlights the system's ability to provide relevant recommendations, enhancing users' chances of discovering books that resonate with their interests. The commendable precision, recall, and F1score scores further validate the system's efficacy in offering appropriate book suggestions. Additionally, the curve classifications substantiate the system's effectiveness in distinguishing positive and negative recommendations. This metric provides confidence in the system's ability to navigate the vast landscape of book choices and deliver recommendations that align with users' preferences. Furthermore, the implementation of this book exchange system with a hybrid recommendation engine has the potential to revolutionize the way readers interact with printed books. By facilitating book exchanges and providing personalized recommendations, the system encourages a sense of community and exploration within the reading community. Moreover, the emphasis on sustainability aligns with the growing global consciousness towards eco-friendly practices. With its robust technical approach and promising evaluation results, this solution paves the way for a more inclusive, accessible, and enjoyable reading experience for book lovers worldwide. In conclusion, the developed book exchange system with a hybrid recommendation engine represents a progressive solution to the challenges faced by traditional bookstores and the limitations of digital media. By promoting sustainability, widening access to printed books, and fostering engagement with reading, this system addresses the evolving needs of book enthusiasts. The integration of user-friendly interfaces, advanced machine learning models, and recommendation algorithms ensure accurate and diverse book recommendations, enriching the reading experience for users.

Keywords: recommendation systems, hybrid recommendation systems, machine learning, data science, long short-term memory, recurrent neural network

Procedia PDF Downloads 96

Authors: Robert McGrath, Zara Qureshi

Abstract:

A innovative leadership philosophy that is proposed herein is distinctly more humane than most leadership approaches Concerned Leadership. The central idea to this approach is to consider the whole person that comes to work; their professional skills and talents, as well as any personal, emotional challenges that could be affecting productivity and effectiveness at work. This paper explores Concerned Leadership as an integration of the two conceptual models areas examined in this paper –(1) leaderful organizations and practices, as well as (2) organizational culture, and defines leadership in the context of Mental Health and Wellness in the workplace. Leaderful organizations calls for organizations to implement leaderful practice. Leaderful practice is when leadership responsibility and decision-making is shared across all team members and levels, versus only delegated to top management as commonly seen. A healthy culture thrives off key aspects such as acceptance, employee pride, equal opportunity, and strong company leadership. Concerned Leadership is characterized by five main components: Self-Concern, Leaderful Practice, Human Touch, Belonging, and Compassion. As scholars and practitioners conceptualize leadership in practice, the present model seeks to uphold the dignity of each organizational member, thereby having the potential to transform workplaces and support all members.

Keywords: leadership, mental health, reflective practice, organizational culture

Procedia PDF Downloads 82