Acceptance of mobile technologies and M-learning by university students: An empirical investigation in higher education

Education and Information Technologies - Mobile-learning (M-learning) apps have grown in popularity and demand in recent years and have become a typical occurrence in modern educational systems,...     

Minimization of students’ cognitive load in a virtual chemistry laboratory via contents optimization and arrow-textual aids

Education and Information Technologies - Virtual Chemistry Laboratories (VCLs) are used as an alternative to the physical laboratories, where users can enhance their performance for hands-on...     

Training Transfer and Transfer Motivation: The Influence of Individual,Environmental, Situational,Training Design,and Affective Reaction Factors

The purpose of this study is to examine the effects of individual, environmental, training design, and affective reaction factors on training transfer and transfer motivation. To determine the relationship between these factors and their influence on training transfer and to test the model, the researchers collected data from employees in the Malaysian banking sector. Structural equation modeling with Amos 16 was used to test the model and determine the relationship. The study suggested that training stakeholders should manage the training program effectively. Transfer is maximized when trainees have social support, high performance self‐efficacy, and transfer motivation. Stakeholders (e.g., trainers, trainees, supervisors, and peers) are important to the training transfer process, as are learner readiness, trainee reaction, instrumentality, and training retention. This study revealed that perceived content validity and transfer design work together and influence the trainee's performance self‐efficacy. In other words, if trainers want to improve the performance self‐efficacy level of trainees, they need to explain how the trainee can transfer the learned skills at the workplace and make sure the content of the training is similar to the actual job. The main objective of training programs is to align the employee's expertise with organizational goals. Organizations can achieve their desired objectives only when employees transfer the learned skills on the job. Unfortunately, employees often transfer only a small percentage of skills they have learned in training. To effectively manage their training programs, organizations need to identify and focus on the factors that resist effective training transfer.     

The INSPIRE Project: Using the ‘Unknown’ to Co-construct a Training Course on Humanistic Counselling in Afghanistan

This article details a collaborative project between the University of Strathclyde (UK) and the University of Herat (Afghanistan). The aim was to co-construct a model of training, based on humanistic approaches, in order to enhance counselling services in Afghanistan and to establish counselling training at the University of Herat. Two groups of participants received 120 h training each. In February 2014 a selected group received a further training for trainers. Strengths and limitations of this project are explored as well as its impact on the Afghan community and further developments for counselling in this context.     

The Quality of Pre-service Science Teachers’ Argumentation: Influence of Content Knowledge

Research exploring the possible link between quality of argumentation and content knowledge is not straightforward. Some studies suggest a positive relationship (e.g. Dawson & Schibeci in J Biol Educ 38(1):7–12, 2003) while others do not (e.g. Zohar & Nemet in J Res Sci Teach 39:35–62, 2002). This study examined the possible relationship between pre-service science teachers’ (PSTs) lines of argument regarding genetic cloning issues and their knowledge of the related content. In the research, pre-service teachers were divided into groups according to the results of a conceptual understanding test on genetic cloning, and were categorized as high, middle and low achievers. After introducing three socio-scientific scenarios (relating to genetic cloning) with the intention of prompting lines of argumentation, the PSTs then participated in semi-structured interviews with the research team. It was revealed that there is not a significant relationship between the quality of socio-scientific argumentation among PSTs and their knowledge of content in the domain of cloning. Explanations for these results are discussed in light of the related literature and with reference to the interviews.     

Adult humans’ understanding of support relations: an up-linkage replication

In an up-linkage replication, three experiments examined adult humans’ folk physics, i.e., their naturally occurring and spontaneous understanding of the physical world, using a violation of expectation (VOE) task and stimuli similar to those used to study chimpanzees’, monkeys’, and rooks’ folk physics. Unlike what has been reported with nonhuman primates, adult humans did not look longer at physically impossible than possible events, though they did rate the physically impossible events as more interesting and novel than the possible events. These results underscore that behavior during a VOE experiment has many possible causes, only one of which may be a subject’s folk physics.     

Use of Reference in the Narratives of Kurdish-Persian Bilingual Children

This study investigates some of the differences and similarities between Kurdish-Persian bilinguals and Persian monolinguals with respect to the use of referring expressions in spoken narratives. The narratives were elicited from 36 participants, consisting of 24 bilinguals （Groups l and 2） and 12 monolinguals （Group 3） in the first four grades of primary school using picture narrative book. The results have revealed that Group 1 （bilinguals told the story in Kurdish） used definite noun phrases most frequently followed by zero anaphors, indefinite noun phrases, and pronouns. Group 2 who narrated the story in Persian produced definite nouns most frequently followed by pronouns, zero anaphors, and indefinite noun phrases. Group 3 （Persian monolinguals） employed definite noun phrases most frequently followed by zero anaphors, pronouns, and indefinite noun phrases. The significant difference between Groups 1 and 2 and Groups 2 and 3 has been in indefinite noun phrases and between Groups 1 and 3 in the use of pronouns. One reason is that children universally apply similar strategies regardless of their first language （L l）. The conclusion is that some of the differences are due to the difference in the structure between Persian and the dialects of Kurdish.     

Researching the uses of the english language in the law job market in the sultanate of oman: implications for policy-practice improvement

The Sultanate of Oman is a developing country that has accepted the English language as a significant tool for modernization. This was best interpreted in the opening of Sultan Qaboos University (SQU) in 1986, which has delivered its different academic programmes totally or partially through the English language. One of the colleges of SQU has been the College of Law. It was opened in 1997 to help contribute to effective implementation of nationalisation and national development in the Sultanate of Oman, which English language proficiency is a part and parcel of. However, graduates exiting the College so far have been unable to fulfil this strategic aim due to policy-practice drawbacks. Evident weaknesses in their English language and legal knowledge have provoked repeated complaints from the employers in both sectors. Accordingly, a decision was made to introduce a bilingual programme through which approximately 30 % of the subjects at the College of Law would be taught in English. This study, therefore, researches the uses of English language in the Law job market in the Sultanate of Oman and its implications for policy-practice improvement. A questionnaire was designed and distributed to 182 graduates of the College of Law, SQU. Findings have shown that while the new programme has the potential to serve national development and Omanisation, the College faculties have a pivotal role to play in influencing a positive implementation of the plan.     

Additive Effect of Lipid Lowering Drug (Simvastatin) in Combination with Antidiabetic Drug (Glibenclamide) on Alloxan Induced Diabetic Rats with Long Term Dyslipidemia

High blood glucose level, elevated level of liver enzyme, necrosis and shrinkage of islets of Langerhans has been implicated in the pathogenesis of type 2 diabetes. High blood glucose cause oxidative stress, production of free radical as well as elevated SGPT and SGOT level. Both glibenclamide and simvastatin in fixed dose used as antihyperglycemic antidyslipidemic and antioxidative agents for type 2 diabetes treatment. This study therefore aimed to evaluate the antihyperglycemic, antidyslipidemic and antioxidative effect of fixed dose combination of glibenclamide (0.6 mg/70 kg body weight) and simvastatin (5 mg/70 kg body weight) on long term alloxan induced diabetic rats with cardiovascular disease using various diagnostic kits as a parameter of phamacotherapeutic and pharmacological effect. The study was carried out using 96 Swiss Albino male rats weighing about 200–220 g. Combination therapy induced a significant decrease in blood glucose level in alloxan induced diabetic rats, from 33.75 ± 1.65 to 5.80 ± 0.07 mmol/l 2 h after last dose administration, after 4 weeks treatment. In case of dyslipidemic effect, combination therapy reduced total cholesterol (45 %), triglyceride (36 %) and low density lipoprotein-cholesterol (32 %) levels significantly and increased high density lipoprotein-cholesterol level (57 %) in comparison with their respective diabetic control groups. Results of this study showed that combination therapy effectively decreased SGPT (ALAT) (55 %) and SGOT (ASAT) (51 %) in comparison with diabetic control group. It was also observed that catalase and superoxide dismutase enzyme activity was increased by 58 and 91 % respectively in comparison with diabetic control group after 4 weeks treatment with combination of both drugs. In conclusion, these findings of combination therapy (glibenclamide and simvastatin) on alloxan induced diabetes in rats are significantly better than monotherapy using single drug. The results of the present study suggest that, combination of the fixed dose of glibenclamide and simvastatin might be efficacious in patients with diabetic dyslipidemia and increased oxidative stress. Furthermore, this combination therapy offer dosage convenience to the patients and by virtue of its dual mode of action might be a useful addition to the therapeutic armamentarium for patients with diabetic dyslipidemia and oxidative stress.     

Carbohydrate ingestion and soccer skill performance during prolonged intermittent exercise

Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of ingesting a carbohydrate-electrolyte solution, during the 90-min Loughborough Intermittent Shuttle Test, on soccer skill performance. Seventeen male soccer players ingested either a 6.4% carbohydrate-electrolyte solution or placebo solution equivalent to 8 ml · kg^?1 body mass before exercise and 3 ml · kg^?1 body mass after every 15 min of exercise, in a double-blind randomized cross-over design, with the trials separated by 7 days. The evening before the main trial, the participants performed glycogen-reducing exercise on a cycle ergometer (80 min at 70%[Vdot]O_2max) and were then fed a low-carbohydrate meal. After a 12-h overnight fast, they performed The Loughborough Soccer Passing Test before and after every 15 min of exercise. Analysis of the combined skill test data showed a significant time effect (P = 0.001) with differences between 0–45 and 75–90 min (P < 0.05). There was a 3% reduction in skill performance from before to after exercise in the carbohydrate-electrolyte trial, whereas in the placebo trial the decrease was 14% (P = 0.07). In conclusion, skill performance during the simulated soccer activity appeared to deteriorate in the last 15–30 min of exercise. However, providing 52 g · h^?1 carbohydrate during exercise showed a tendency to better maintain soccer skill performance than a taste-matched placebo.