Family rearing antecedents of pubertal timing

Two general evolutionary hypotheses were tested on 756 White children (397 girls) studied longitudinally: (1) rearing experiences would predict pubertal timing; and (2) children would prove differentially susceptible to rearing. Analysis of pubertal measurements, including some based on repeated physical assessments, showed that mothering and fathering, earlier and later in childhood, predicted pubertal development, but only for girls, with negative parenting appearing most influential; maternal harsh control predicted earlier menarche. Rearing effects varied by infant negative emotionality, proving stronger (and opposite) for girls who in infancy were lower rather than higher in negativity. Maternal menarche, controlled in all analyses, was a stronger predictor than rearing. Findings are discussed in terms of theory development, genetic and nutritional influences, and sample restrictions.     

A computer science and robotics integration model for primary school: evaluation of a large-scale in-service K-4 teacher-training program

Education and Information Technologies - Integrating computer science (CS) into school curricula has become a worldwide preoccupation. Therefore, we present a CS and Robotics integration model and...     

Seeking balance between the past and the present: Vietnamese refugee parenting practices and adolescent well-being

This qualitative study examines the resources that Vietnamese refugee parents use in raising their adolescent youth in exile and how they, and their adolescents, regard their experiences of different parenting styles. The study is based on 55 semi-structured interviews and several focus groups performed with a small sample of Vietnamese refugee parents and their adolescent children. Three main themes from the interviews were identified: the role of the extended family and siblings in bringing up children; language acquisition and cultural continuity and, finally, religion and social support. Our findings suggest extended kin are involved in the raising of adolescent children, providing additional family ties and support. Parents regarded Vietnamese language acquisition by their youth as facilitating both communication with extended kin and cultural transmission. Several parents stressed the importance of religious community to socialising and creating a sense of belonging for their youth. Vietnamese refugee parents seek a balance between Vietnamese values and their close extended family social networks, and the opportunities in Norway to develop autonomy in pursuit of educational and economic goals. Together these parenting practices constituted a mobilization of resources in support of their youth. These findings may have important implications for future research on resiliency and the role of these strategies as protective factors mediating mental health outcomes. They may also have implications for treatment, in terms of the types of resources treatment can access and for prevention strategies that maximize key cultural resources for Vietnamese refugee youth.     

Analysis of Intrinsic and Extrinsic Coagulation Pathway Factors in OCP Treated PCOS Women

Human polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS)—a cluster of diseases displays various symptoms associated with endocrine and gynecological disorders in childbearing women. Oral contraceptive pills (OCP) being a drug of choice minimizes symptoms and complications associated with the disorder. But, the controversial data available in literature regarding use of OCPs compels us to setup a study design regarding effect of OCP treatment in PCOS subjects and the possible outcomes specifically regarding coagulation pathways. Two PCOS study groups have been selected according to Rotterdam Criteria: one with OCP treatment (n = 50) and other without any drug treatment i.e., drug naive (n = 50). Anthropometry, Biochemistry, Hormones, Insulin and various clotting factors like Factor XI, Factor V, tPA, TAT-III and D-dimer were analyzed in both groups. The results showed worsening of IR, Metabolic parameters and coagulopathy in OCP group comparative to drug naive group indicating adverse effects of the OCP treatment which puts these women at risk for number of future clinical implications especially Cardiovascular and metabolic complications.     

Parental satisfaction with programmes provided for children with learning difficulties in Oman

This study aimed to explore parental satisfaction with programmes provided for children with learning difficulties (LD) in Oman. A sample was collected from 299 parents who filled out an electronic self-reporting questionnaire during the second semester of 2021. The researchers designed a 19-item questionnaire that was distributed over two domains: 14 items on parent satisfaction and five items on parent co-operation. The results revealed that parents' overall satisfaction with the effectiveness of the LD programmes in which their children were enrolled was high. The results also indicated statistically significant differences among the mean scores on parents' satisfaction over the age variable groups, in favor of the younger group, followed by the middle group, and lastly the older group. There were also statistically significant differences among the mean scores on parents' satisfaction according to the province locations, in favor of the capital city of Oman, Muscat, and its peripheral provinces, followed by the western provinces, and lastly, the eastern provinces. The study recommends conducting similar studies to investigate the satisfaction of school principals, specialists, teachers and children with LD to determine the effectiveness of Oman's LD programmes.     

Mining of Egyptian missions data for shaping new paradigms

This paper reviews data mining applications of students’ databases in educational institutions. Data mining techniques that predict and improve students’ retention rates and success is presented. Moreover, the Missions Administration at the Ministry of Higher Education in Egypt and previous analysis done on the missions databases is described. The focus of the paper is to examine how data mining can help in classifying the delayed and succeeded missioners to support the implementation of a missioners model. An investigation of how data mining can help in best or worse destinations for missioners is implemented using the Cross Industry Standard Process for Data Mining (CRISP-DM). The paper further describes the methodology used for analyzing the database for the ministry of higher education in Egypt. The process starts by extracting a subset of data including the missioners and the mission’s data, countries, specialties, departure and arrival dates and finally the extension requests from the missioners. These data were extracted into a data warehouse for the analysis purpose. The used model discovered the best and the worst countries for student mission. A detailed analysis discovered the best and the worst specialties in the previously discovered countries. Moreover, the analysis revealed the effect of the marital status on the mission of students in foreign countries. A visual display using a chart was used to express the information to business users. This model may help in supporting decision making regarding the reallocation of Egypt students to other countries.     

Book and Material Reviews

The time has come for us to shift the dominant paradigm for schoolbased consultation from a behavioral to an ecobehavioral perspective. Although a thorough examination of this issue is precluded by the space limitations of this article, there is sufficient room to initiate the discussion and suggest that we begin a process of transition by adopting this new mind-set to describe and guide our consultation behaviors. Rather than precipitating a radical break with current practice, an ecobehavioral world view should help direct us toward evolutionary changes that move the field forward without having to sacrifice the wisdom gleaned thus far from our collective past.     

What Motivates Librarians to Share Knowledge?

ABSTRACT

This study investigated the effects of social and individual factors of strength of ties, perceived benefits, extrinsic rewards, recognition, reciprocity, and perceived cost on sharability. A survey was sent to 170 librarians at special, public, and academic libraries across Kuwait; 139 responses were received for a response rate of 80%. It was found that the strength of ties and perceived benefits had a positive effect and perceived costs had a negative effect on sharability. The findings can help libraries identify the opportunities and barriers to motivate librarians to share their knowledge. This study is a useful contribution to knowledge management literature, especially concerning the library context.     

Book reviews

What are the possibilities and/or limitations for becoming subjects differenciated from previous categorizations, such as “troublemaker”, to which certain students are subjected? This is the question analyzed in this paper, based on observations of, and narratives and perspectives of, two 15-year-old ethnic minority boys at a school in Denmark. Drawing on the work of Deleuze and Guattari and their concepts of “smooth” and “striated” spaces, I explore spaces where energies are mobilized through ongoing generated and created relations, and how spaces where this does not seem possible, tend to trap and thereby limit the person being categorized. Through the analyses, I will show how repetitive, limiting categorizations in and over time tend to “stick” to the boys being categorized, and how the sticky categorizations obstruct their future possibilities for change and viable lives within the school.