Core Purpose Research Articles

School Leaders’ Crisis Leadership Competencies and their Pandemic Response Strategies

Based on the Meta-Leadership Model of Marcus et al. (2007), as cited by Saltz (2017), this research documented and assessed the crisis leadership competencies and pandemic response strategies of school leaders in the DepEd Division of Northern Samar. Utilizing a sequential exploratory approach, qualitative and quantitative designs were adopted. Thus, in the qualitative component, eight (8) school leaders participated in face-to-face interview sessions, wherein the emerging themes from their responses highlighted the concept that meta-leaders have a higher effect than their real authority because they exert a strong influence on their followers, aiding them in overcoming obstacles and seizing opportunities. They understood the nature and significance of the situation, and in order to keep a diverse group of people on track, they weaved together key themes that highlighted the organization's core purpose and ambitions. In the qualitative aspect, the broader population of 130 respondents answered a questionnaire about school leaders' crisis leadership competencies, which revealed the following results: "Very High" on Team Leadership (AWM =3.25); "High" on Situational Awareness and Integrative Thinking (AWM =3.18); and "High" on Decisiveness and Emotional Effectiveness (AWM =3.24). In addition, respondents completed a questionnaire regarding the extent of the school leader's pandemic response strategies, which revealed the following findings: Promoting Organizational Resilience, "Large Extent" (AWM =3.24); Acting with Integrity, "Very Large Extent" (AWM =3.29); and Exhibiting Learning Orientation, "Large Extent" (AWM =2.96). based on the results, the researcher contends that when establishing a crisis management plan for a successful pandemic response strategy, school leaders must prioritize the following elements: communication, high productivity, technology use, and accessibility. On the basis of these factors, the current researcher proposes the following three focus areas for the crisis management plan: (1) establishing guidelines or policies for remote work for faculty and staff; (2) embracing remote work for department heads, master teachers, and focal persons; and (3) developing inclusive and collaborative virtual meetings. The researcher also suggests that school administrators think about adopting the recommended crisis management plan to make sure that all important aspects of the school system are taken care of.

The transferability of transfer learning model based on ImageNet for medical image classification tasks

Transfer learning with pretrained weights is commonly based on the ImageNet dataset. However, ImageNet does not contain medical images, leaving the transferability of these pretrained weights for medical image classification an open question. The core purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of transfer learning on the accuracy of medical image classification, utilizing ResNet18, VGG11, AlexNet, and MobileNet, which are four of the most widely used neural network models. Specifically, this study aims to determine whether the incorporation of transfer learning techniques leads to significant improvements in the performance of image classification tasks, as compared to traditional methods that do not utilize transfer learning. The dataset consists of approximately 4,000 chest X-ray images with labels of healthy, COVID, or Viral Pneumonia. The final layer's output neurons of the networks architecture were revised to three to accommodate the ternary classification task. Preprocessing techniques include downsampling and normalization of the pixel values. By maintaining the same dataset and preprocessing methods, this study compares the performance of the models with and without pretrained weights. The results demonstrate that, compared to not using transfer learning, all four network models converge more quickly and achieve higher validation accuracy in the initial epochs when transfer learning is employed. Furthermore, the models exhibit higher prediction accuracy in the final test set. This study suggests that using transfer learning with pretrained weights based on ImageNet can boost the efficiency of medical image classification tasks.

The need for innovations in healthcare systems using patient experience and advancing information technology

In the recent past we have observed improvements in information technology and associated computational science advance the healthcare eco system. This advancement is happening in many parts of the healthcare eco system. The aforementioned observed phenomenon is a transdisciplinary and transformative process underway and many of us are positively affected by this transformation. In this special issue the authors have commented on some of the critical regions of this change namely: user-centred postpartum care, communication channels of knowledge, diabetes care, and natural language processing health research. It must be observed that the observed innovations may have many facets such as improving user perception, reduction in time and cost for healthcare delivery, and more importantly providing key decision tools for clinicians; thereby, improving their performance in terms of time and efficiency. It is to be noted that the core purpose of these advancements is to improve patient experience.

Does China improve social welfare after implementing the national volume-based procurement?

Objective: To explore the changes in social welfare before and after the implementation of the national volume-based procurement (NVBP). Explore whether the NVBP promotes the healthy development of manufacturers under the premise of benefiting patients. Then put forward relevant suggestions on how to effectively intervene the government in the pharmaceutical market. Methods: Starting with consumer surplus and producer surplus, social welfare was studied from the three perspectives of price, supply, and demand. Results: Consumer surplus was significantly increased, and the drug welfare of patients was significantly improved. The profits of the whole pharmaceutical industry have decreased but will increase in the future. The welfare of individual pharmaceutical enterprises varies. Overall social welfare has been significantly improved. Conclusion: The core purpose of the NVBP is to improve the medication welfare of patients, and through the increase of consumer surplus, it can affect the increase of producer surplus. Under such a linkage mechanism, the diversified linkage system of "price, demand, and supply" will achieve the effect of "1 + 1+1 > 3".

Everyday ordinariness, neglected but important for mental health nurses' therapeutic relationships: An initial exploration for applying Daniel Kahneman's two systems of thinking.

Mental health nurses undertake difficult and complex roles. Therapeutic relationships and engagement between mental health nurses and people experiencing severe mental ill-health provide the core purpose and rationale for such mental health care. These relationships are influenced by factors outside of frontline mental health nurses control. They are difficult to define or describe with clarity, have limited 'quantitative' evidence of effectiveness and are frequently not experienced as therapeutic. This paper presents some initial ideas regarding 'everyday ordinariness' using psychologist Daniel Kahneman's two systems of thinking as a focus for understanding and potentially improving mental health nurse practice, and therapeutic relationships and engagement.

Purpose of Using e-ShodhSindhu by Indian Institute of Technology Faculty: A Study

ABSTRACT The study is about the purpose of using e-ShodhSindhu e-Resources by Indian Institute of Technology faculty in India. Professors, Associate Professors and Assistant Professors of selected seven Indian Institute of Technology were used as samples for the study. Objectives: To find out the core purpose and augmented purpose of using e-ShodhSindhu e-Resources, to know the advantages of using e-ShodhSindhu e-Resources, to know the importance, to know the satisfaction and to find out IIT faculty will recommend e-ShodhSindhu e-Resources to others. Methodology: The survey and questionnaire methods were used to gather data. Seven hundred and seventy questionnaires were distributed to selected Indian Institute of Technology (seven Indian IITs). Results and discussions: Most of the respondents are from IIT Bombay, the majority of the respondents are male, it is evident that users between the ages of 36 and 45 are the majority, majority of the respondents are Professors, research is the core purpose of using e-ShodhSindhu e-Resources, the highest mean value of 4.42 is for to-be-up-to-date in subject IIT faculty use e-ShodhSindhu e-Resources, the majority of IIT faculty thinks that searchability and convenient to use are the advantages of using e-ShodhSindhu e-Resources, majority of IIT faculty think that information content and coverage by e-ShodhSindhu is useful and IIT faculty members are satisfied with e-ShodhSindhu e-Resources.

Employability: a core role of higher education?

ABSTRACT The topic of employability has been much discussed in higher education policy and research contexts in recent years, as higher education has been re-positioned as a means to an end rather than an end in itself. This article aims to review and synthesise the various arguments that have been made in favour of, or against, the adoption of employability as a core purpose or value of higher education. The article makes use of the techniques of systematic review. It discusses the origins and meaning of the term employability, its application and practice, and the issues and critiques that it has raised.

Rainfall trend and variability analysis of the past 119 (1901-2019) years using statistical techniques: A case study of Kolkata, India

The core purpose of this study is to investigate the spatial variation in monthly, seasonally, and yearly rainfall patterns in the Kolkata district of West Bengal, India, between 1901 and 2019. (Around 119 years). The trend's reliability and intensity were assessed non-parametrically by applying monthly rainfall data series and the Mann–Kendall and Sen's slope estimators. The data showed a considerable increase in pre-monsoon, monsoon, post-monsoon, and also annual rainfall while decreasing in winter rainfall across the district of Kolkata. The positive trend is identified in the data series of pre-monsoon, monsoon, post-monsoon, and annual rainfall, however, winter rainfall exhibited negative trends. The highest increase in rainfall was observed during the post-monsoon season (0.365091 mm year-1), with the smallest increase (0.232591 mm year-1) occurring during the pre-monsoon season. In the winter season, there was a notable rain that has declined substantially(-0.01356 mm year-1). The coefficient CV, %, was used to determine the pattern of rainfall variability. The winter rainfall exhibited the highest CV rating (72.89%), but annual rainfall showed a minimum CV value (17.68%). Generally speaking, a high variance in CV was discovered, indicating that the whole area is very sensitive to droughts and floods. For future forecasts, there is a considerable difference in monthly rainfall data between linear regression and SMOreg, while the annual rainfall is little difference between linear regression, SMOreg, and CA-ANN analysis.

Quantum double structure in cold atom superfluids

The theory of topological quantum computation is underpinned by two important classes of models. One is based on non-abelian Chern–Simons theory, which yields the so-called SU(2)k anyon models that often appear in the context of electrically charged quantum fluids. The physics of the other is captured by symmetry broken Yang–Mills theory in the absence of a Chern–Simons term and results in the so-called quantum double models. Extensive resources have been invested into the search for SU(2)k anyon quasi-particles, in particular, the so-called Ising anyons (k = 2) of which Majorana zero modes are believed to be an incarnation. In contrast to the SU(2)k models, quantum doubles have attracted little attention in experiments despite their pivotal role in the theory of error correction. Beyond topological error correcting codes, the appearance of quantum doubles has been limited to contexts primarily within mathematical physics, and as such, they are of seemingly little relevance for the study of experimentally tangible systems. However, recent works suggest that quantum double anyons may be found in spinor Bose–Einstein condensates. In light of this, the core purpose of this article is to provide a self-contained exposition of the quantum double structure, framed in the context of spinor condensates, by constructing explicitly the quantum doubles for various ground state symmetry groups and discuss their experimental realisability. We also derive analytically an equation for the quantum double Clebsch–Gordan coefficients from which the relevant braid matrices can be worked out. Finally, the existence of a particle-vortex duality is exposed and illuminated upon in this context.

Why teachers leave: It isn’t what you think

With all the talk of turnover and shortages, it would be easy to think that many teachers have simply given up on education. Yet, despite the myriad challenges teachers have faced recently, this is not the case: Teachers care about their work as much as ever. Andrew Pendola, David Marshall, Tim Pressley, and Deja Trammell present a new narrative suggesting that there is no shortage of teacher dedication, even if some are leaving. They provide strategic, school-level changes that can not only help keep our best teachers, but also enrich their core purpose and dedication.

With so many battery electric buses in operation, why are fuel cell electric buses more relevant than ever?

The bus industry has been a frontrunner in the adoption of zero emission vehicles and their operation. In 2022, zero-emission buses accounted for approximately 12.7%1 of new bus registrations in the European Union, with the uptake growing year on year. Fuel Cell Electric buses (FCEB) and Battery Electric buses (BEB) are complementary zero-emission technologies, and while both offer advantages for fleet operators, there are significant differences that can impact the choice of vehicle:• BEBs often require changes to bus depot activities to accommodate charging time and infrastructure, which can result in schedule changes and reduced asset utilisation for the operator. To gain – or improve - the range of a BEB, opportunity charging along longer routes may be required, which can impact scheduling of buses further.• With their longer range and fast refuelling time, FCEBs can be a ‘drop in’ replacement for a diesel bus and does not suffer from the infrastructure and range issues that affect the service and depot operation of BEBs.When transitioning to zero-emission buses, it is important for the operator to choose the correct technology for the specific route characteristics to ensure that the core purpose of the bus - to move passengers safely and on time - is completed without compromise.

Exploring the Effects of Firm - Specific Factors on Capital Structure: An Empirical Investigation of Pakistan’s Engineering and Textile Sector

The core purpose of the study is to estimate the power of firm specific factors (liquidity, size, tangibility, tax rate, profitability etc.) on capital structure of the firms. Furthermore, to compare the capital structure of the engineering and textile industries listed in KSE (Karachi Stock Exchange) Pakistan. Various methods such as fixed effects model and F-Test & Hausman test for the selection between fixed and random effect model. These techniques have been applied on the data to determine the impact of aforesaid variables on capital structure of the firms. For this purpose, annual data of aforesaid variables have been collected and analyzed from 2010 to 2019. The fixed effects model results indicate a significant positive and negative relationship between selected variables. This relationship is of great importance to firms and policy making perspective as these factors reflect information about (optimal) capital structure decisions and can have important implications for the engineering & textile industries.

Syrian Forced Migration and Social Cohesion Process in Türkiye

This article aims to understand the challenges of war-persecuted asylum seekers accommodated in Türkiye. Firstly, the core purpose of the research is to understand the level of social cohesion of Syrian asylum seekers in Turkish society. Secondly, the study investigates ways Syrian culture could be welcomed into Turkish social life. Additionally, it investigates the contributions given by asylum seekers to Turkish society and the major barriers they face when working with the host society. Another major part of the study examines the extent to which the bureaucratic and political institutions of Türkiye support their social cohesion and subsistence. The study consists of a review of the relevant literature concerning Syrian asylum seekers. It is based on the conventions with Syrians living in Türkiye and input from many experts working on the issue. The major findings revolve around the socio-economic, cultural, and ethnic complexities that must be navigated as part of the social cohesion process between the Syrians and the Turkish host society.

Reconceptualising Preservice Teachers’ Subject Knowledge in Climate Change and Sustainability Education: A Framework for Initial Teacher Education from England, UK

Climate Change and Sustainability Education (CCSE) has been gaining prominence with the imminent climate emergency humanity is facing. This paper draws upon a conceptual framework created to support the development of preservice teachers’ subject knowledge of CCSE whilst undertaking Initial Teacher Education (ITE) programs in England. The core aims and learning outcomes within the framework, namely knowledge; attitudes, values and behaviours; and competences and capabilities, are defined to illustrate what subject knowledge looks like, in this area, for preservice teachers in England. This paper highlights data gathered from 71 preservice teachers via an initial presurvey from three ITE institutions across England. The data were gathered from Early Years and Primary and Secondary phase trainees across both postgraduate and undergraduate programmes. The presurvey captured a range of qualitative and quantitative responses from preservice teachers to showcase priority areas, from their perspective, in the teaching of CCSE. The responses were coded and then themed according to the three aims and learning outcomes of the framework (knowledge; attitudes, values and behaviours; and competences and capabilities) to understand preservice teachers’ views on CCSE at the start of their courses. The findings suggest that preservice teachers lack key subject knowledge in CCSE to teach it effectively in schools. Hence, this paper recommends further work needs to be carried out to embed CCSE work in ITE courses across England. It is further suggested that the CCSE framework highlighted in this paper can act as a key national document to support ITE institutions to conceptualise the teaching and learning of CCSE across their ITE programmes.

Different elements, same results: time-resolved temperature determination by oxygen and nitrogen elements

The core purpose of this research is to use optical emission spectroscopy to determine the electron temperature (Te ) of a hydrogen plasma generated in a capillary discharge plasma, with a focus on its temporal variation. The plasma density (ne ) is first determined using the Stark broadening technique, which measures the broadening of spectral lines as a result of the electric field in the plasma. Subsequently, a passive spectroscopic technique is employed to estimate the electron plasma temperature by detecting the emitted light from the plasma. This spectral detection is performed using a visible range spectrometer. In this study, two elements, oxygen and nitrogen, are specifically selected based on the chemical composition of the capillary. The electron plasma temperature is estimated using the line ratio method, which involves comparing the intensities of two specific spectral lines emitted by the selected elements. By analyzing these line ratios, the electron plasma temperature can be inferred. The combination of the Stark broadening technique and line ratio method provides valuable insights into the plasma's physical characteristics, specifically its density and temperature.

V-CarE-A Conceptual Design Model for Providing COVID-19 Pandemic Awareness: Proposal for a Virtual Reality Design Approach to Facilitate People With Persistent Postural-Perceptual Dizziness.

Virtual reality (VR) technology has been solidifying its ground since its existence, where engagement and a sense of presence are key. The contemporary field of development has captured the attention of researchers due to its flexibility and compatibility attributes. During the COVID-19 pandemic, several research outputs have shown promising prospects of continuing research in the field of VR design and development-in health sciences including learning and training. In this paper, we aim to propose a conceptual development model named V-CarE (Virtual Care Experience) that can facilitate the understanding of pandemics when it comes to a crisis, taking precautionary measures where needed, and getting used to certain actions for preventing pandemic spread through habituation. Moreover, this conceptual model is useful to expand the development strategy to incorporate different types of users and technological aid as per need and requirement. For a detailed understanding of the proposed model, we have developed a novel design strategy to bring awareness to the user about the current COVID-19 pandemic. VR research in health sciences has shown that with appropriate management and development, VR technology can efficiently support people with health issues and special needs, which motivated our attempts to explore the possibility of employing our proposed model to treat Persistent Postural-Perceptual Dizziness (PPPD)-a persistent nonvertiginous dizziness that could last for 3 months or more. The purpose of including patients with PPPD is to get them engaged in the learning experience and to make them comfortable with VR. We believe this confidence and habituation would help them get engaged with VR for treatment (dizziness alleviation) while practicing the preventive measures during the pandemic in an interactive environment without actually facing any pandemic directly. Subsequently, for advanced development using the V-CarE model, we have briefly discussed that even contemporary technology like internet of things (IoT) for handling devices, can be incorporated without disrupting the complete 3D-immersive experience. In our discussion, we have shown that the proposed model represents a significant step toward the accessibility of VR technology by creating a pathway toward awareness of pandemics and, also, an effective care strategy for PPPD people. Moreover, by introducing advanced technology, we will only further enhance the development for wider accessibility of VR technology while keeping the core purpose of the development intact. V-CarE-based developed VR projects are designed with all the core elements of health sciences, technology, and training making it accessible and engaging for the users and improving their lifestyle by safely experiencing the unknown. We suggest that with further design-based research, the proposed V-CarE model has the potential to be a valuable tool connecting different fields to wider communities.

‘Early childhood studies is more than a degree; it is an experience’: undergraduate students’ motivations, professional aspirations and attributes

ABSTRACT This mixed methods study sought the views of early childhood studies students from three universities in England. The research explored motivations, professional aspirations and the attributes they believed were required to work in early childhood. Findings highlighted that the holistic study of early childhood is valued by students and placements offered a space where they grew and flourished, as they made sense of where their personal intersected with wider theoretical, practice and political systems embedded in early childhood. Students follow a range of career trajectories, either by choice or because there is no specific practitioner role underpinned by the holistic study of early childhood. This study also revealed factors that led to their choice and place of study, as well as the ways that students’ personal circumstances affected their studies, reinforcing the importance of academic and pastoral support. Very significantly, this research led to discussions about the core purpose of the early childhood studies degree and helped to inform the development of the Graduate Competencies as an addition to ECS degrees that included placements.

Affording Vietnamese EFL Students’ Critical Thinking in Video-Translation Tasks

Critical thinking plays a vital role in human life and is one of the core aims of educational systems worldwide. Thus, the present study explored strategies for providing opportunities for students to utilize and sharpen their critical thinking as much as possible while taking a translation course. To its end, the present study was guided by the significant question: How much do students’ necessary thinking skills appear to evolve over a translation course? Participants were 39 students of English as a foreign language (EFL) registering in a regular translation course. The present study applied reflective essays written individually as post-class assignments once per two weeks, and thus five reflections each participant had to write over the 10-week translation course attached with video-translation tasks. For measuring improvement in critical thinking manifested by participants over the course, the quantitative discrepancy between the first reflection as an outset point and the fifth reflection as the end point of the intervention course was computed. Obtained results are positive regarding students’ critical thinking manifested in wide discrepancies and linguistic acquisition laid out in creative English uses. Thereby, pedagogical implications and further research on relevant issues are addressed.

Digital health and Clinical Patient Management System (CPMS) platform utility for data sharing of neuromuscular patients: the Italian EURO-NMD experience

BackgroundThe development of e-health technologies for teleconsultation and exchange of knowledge is one of the core purposes of European Reference Networks (ERNs), including the ERN EURO-NMD for rare neuromuscular diseases. Within ERNs, the Clinical Patient Management System (CPMS) is a web-based platform that seeks to boost active collaboration within and across the network, implementing data sharing. Through CPMS, it is possible to both discuss patient cases and to make patients’ data available for registries and databases in a secure way. In this view, CPMS may be considered a sort of a temporary storage for patients’ data and an effective tool for data sharing; it facilitates specialists’ consultation since rare diseases (RDs) require multidisciplinary skills, specific, and outstanding clinical experience.Following European Union (EU) recommendation, and to promote the use of CPMS platform among EURO-NMD members, a twelve-month pilot project was set up to train the 15 Italian Health Care Providers (HCPs). In this paper, we report the structure, methods, and results of the teaching course, showing that tailored, ERN-oriented, training can significantly enhance the profitable use of the CPMS.ResultsThroughout the training course, 45 professionals learned how to use the many features of the CPMS, eventually opening 98 panels of discussion—amounting to 82% of the total panels included in the EURO-NMD. Since clinical, genetic, diagnostic, and therapeutic data of patients can be securely stored within the platform, we also highlight the importance of this platform as an effective tool to discuss and share clinical cases, in order to ease both case solving and data storing.ConclusionsIn this paper, we discuss how similar course could help implementing the use of the platform, highlighting strengths and weaknesses of e-health for ERNs. The expected result is the creation of a “map” of neuromuscular patients across Europe that might be improved by a wider use of CPMS.

Examining the Influence of Authentic Leadership on Follower Hope and Organizational Citizenship Behavior: The Mediating Role of Follower Identification.

Authentic leadership's influence on follower outcomes through the mediating roles of identification with the supervisor and social identification forms the core purpose of this research. By studying this less explored relationship within leadership studies, we aim to elucidate how these factors interrelate within the context of follower hope and organizational citizenship behavior (OCB). Using a quantitative methodology, we gathered and analyzed data from a sample of 241 employees across various South Korean businesses. Our main findings reveal that a follower's identification with the supervisor significantly mediates the relationship between perceived authentic leadership and follower outcomes, such as hope and OCB. Concurrently, the study found that strengthening employee identification with their work group positively enhances these outcomes. From these findings, we conclude that authentic leadership can effectively drive follower identification, fostering beneficial outcomes, such as hope and OCB. It also suggests that workplaces that promote authentic leadership and a culture of strong supervisor and social identification can effectively enhance overall employee well-being and organizational performance.