The Effectiveness of Integrated Training Programme (ITP) in Decreasing Female Students’ Test Anxiety: Moderating Effect of Mothers’ Perfectionism

This study examined the effectiveness of an integrated training programme (ITP) in reducing female students’ test anxiety with a view to the mothers’ perfectionism as a moderating factor. A total of 60 primary school students (30 mothers with perfectionism trait and 30 mothers without perfectionism) were randomly selected using multi-stage cluster sampling and screening methods. Spielberger’s Test Anxiety Scale and Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale (MPS) were administered to the students and mothers, respectively. The participants were placed into four groups (two experimental and two control groups). The experimental groups received intervention in 14 sessions. The results suggested significant differences between experimental and control groups, but there was no significant difference between the two experimental groups (group 1: students with test anxiety and perfectionist mothers and group 2: students with test anxiety and non-perfectionist mothers). The moderating effect of mothers’ perfectionism was not statistically confirmed. Implications of the study are discussed.     

Tracking policies for a class of dynamic production-inventory systems

In this paper, new results are established for generating tracking policies in aggregated production-inventory systems. A dynamic model is developed to characterize the evolution of targeted production, inventory and demand over time and incorporates the inventory, production and demand tracking errors as additional variables. The control variables are managerial decision variables on rate of production and advertisement. The developed model takes the form of linear system with time-varying delay. Tracking policies are then formulated and determined to ensure that the production-inventory tracking model achieves a desirable performance in terms of H_∞-measure. Numerical simulation is performed to illustrate the theoretical developments.     

Teachers’ perceptions of the concomitance of emotional behavioural difficulties and learning disabilities in children referred for learning disabilities in Oman

Research has documented overlapping and coexisting characteristics of learning disabilities (LD) and emotional and behavioural difficulties (EBD). Such concomitance may impact teacher referrals of children at risk for LD which in turn may influence service delivery. Using the Learning Disabilities Diagnostic Inventory (LDDI) and the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ), we examined teachers’ ratings of EBD and LD symptoms in 439 students referred for LD in elementary schools in Oman. A multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) showed that there were no gender differences in LD symptoms, whereas there were significant gender differences in teachers’ ratings of hyperactivity and conduct problems in referred children. There was an association between teachers’ ratings on the LDDI and SDQ dimensions, reflecting children’s concurrent display of LD and EBD symptoms. Implications are discussed within an Omani context in which there is a need to increase teachers’ awareness of the behavioural and emotional profile of children at risk for LD.     

Comparative analysis of students and faculty level of awareness and knowledge of digital citizenship practices in a distance learning environment: case study

Education and Information Technologies - The COVID-19 pandemic increase the use of distance learning while studies have shown that there is insufficient digital knowledge among students in distance...     

Scaled consensus design for multiagent systems under DoS attacks and communication-delays

This paper aims to solve scaled consensus problem for general linear multiagent systems under denial-of-service (DoS) attacks. Firstly, we propose a new scaled disagreement vector and investigate its properties under switching and undirected graphs. Secondly, we establish sufficient conditions in terms of linear matrix inequalities in order to guarantee that the multiagent system achieves scaled consensus under DoS attacks. Contrary to most existing studies where DoS attacks on all the channels are same, in this note, we formulate the problem such that the adversary compromises each agent independently. Moreover, the distributed consensus protocol is investigated for networks with time-varying delay. Finally, two simulation examples are given to demonstrate effectiveness of the proposed design methodologies.     

Robust H∞ filtering for switched stochastic systems under asynchronous switching

This paper investigates the problem of robust H_∞ filtering for switched stochastic systems under asynchronous switching. The so-called asynchronous switching means that the switching between the filters and system modes is asynchronous. The aim is to design a filter ensuring robust exponential mean square stability and a prescribed H_∞ performance level for the filtering error systems. Based on the average dwell time approach and piecewise Lyapunov functional technique, sufficient conditions for the existence of the robust H_∞ filter are derived, and the proposed filter can be obtained by solving a set of LMIs(linear matrix inequalities). Finally, a numerical example is given to show the effectiveness of the proposed approach.     

Feedback multilevel control for continuous dynamic systems

An iterative technique for the derivation of a nearly optimal feedback control law for continuous dynamic systems with separable cost functions is developed based on the fundamental concepts of multilevel control. The developed technique comprises two major and subsequent stages. In the first stage, a two-level optimization structure is devised using the coordination by control method. An identification processthen follows in order to determine the constant gains of the dynamic controller utilizing the discrete quasilinearization algorithm. A three-level control structure is thus provided for the overall technique which can adaptively compute the unknown gains of the dynamic controller.     

Dissipativity analysis and synthesis of a class of nonlinear systems with time-varying delays

In this paper, new results are established for the delay-independent and delay-dependent problems of dissipative analysis and state-feedback synthesis for a class of nonlinear systems with time-varying delays with polytopic uncertainties. This class consists of linear time-delay systems subject to nonlinear cone-bounded perturbations. Both delay-independent and delay-dependent dissipativity criteria are established as linear matrix inequality-based feasibility tests. The developed results in this paper for the nominal system encompass available results on H_∞ approach, passivity and positive realness for time-delay systems as special cases. All the sufficient stability conditions are cast. Robust dissipativity as well as dissipative state-feedback synthesis results are also derived. Numerical examples are provided to illustrate the theoretical developments.     

Contrasting perceptions of an innovation in engineering education

There has been considerable criticism about the effectiveness and appropriateness of degree courses in engineering over recent years. In part the criticism have related to inadequate preparation for the profession and in part to the traditional methods of teaching. As a reaction to these criticism, attempts were made at one particular technological institution to change the way in which parts of one particular course were taught. The first problem was created by a relatively high failure rate in examinations. In addition, it was felt that problem-solving was an important skill which had been inadequately taught through the conventional lecture course. Previous research had suggested that audiotapes on which students could work and take notes at their own pace might improve the examination results and help with problem-solving skills relevant to the professional engineer. The innovator found evidence for the success of the innovation in terms of a decreased failure rate and his own satisfaction with the changed emphasis in his part of the degree course. However, an independent evaluation based on interviews and observation found that other members of staff, and the students, all held different perceptions of the effectiveness of the innovation. The contrasting perceptions reflected, in part, the extent to which the staff had been involved with the innovation, and the purposes of the students in using the innovative materials and techniques. The study points up difficulties in introducing an innovation into higher education and shows the importance of the very different perceptions held by those who come into contact with the innovation. Implications for understanding the impact of learning environments on student learning, and for the introduction of innovations, are discussed.     

Green management practices in higher education: the status of sustainable leadership

Tertiary Education and Management - The present study investigated the level of sustainable leadership among a random sample of 170 faculty members employed by one public university in Jordan. The...