Educational Activities Research Articles

Gathering and Cooking Seaweeds in Contemporary Ireland: Beyond Plant Foraging and Trendy Gastronomies

Seaweed has historically been essential for coastal communities worldwide. Following a period of decline in the last century, Ireland has seen a recent resurgence in the appreciation and use of seaweed. This research explores the evolution in seaweed foraging practices, with a specific focus on gastronomical uses in two Irish regions: the southwest and the west and midwest. It examines the diversity of seaweed and its present and past uses, comparing abandonment, continuation and revitalisation trajectories. Qualitative data were gathered through semi-structured interviews with 27 individuals who forage seaweed for commercial or personal use. We identified 22 seaweed species across the study areas, predominantly from the Fucaceae, Laminariaceae and Ulvaceae families. There was a fair divergence between the seaweed species used in the two study areas (16 seaweed species in the southwest region and 17 seaweed species in the west and midwest region), with 11 species mentioned in both areas. Different trajectories of resurgence were identified. In the west and midwest region, the revitalisation of local ecological and gastronomic knowledge related to seaweeds seems to be deeply entrenched in the territory’s historical legacy, showing a sort of continuation with the past and having followed a more commercially oriented path. Conversely, in the southwest region, the revival seems to be fostered by new knowledge holders with a contemporary interest in reconnecting with the marine landscape and promoting educational activities centred around seaweed. This research contributes to discussions on sustainable food systems and food heritage promotion, emphasising seaweed’s potential role in Irish coastal communities’ foodscapes.

Development and application of a learning enjoyment scale for pedagogical activities

The impact of learning enjoyment on motivation, enthusiasm, and overall learning experiences is significant. Previous studies, lacking an unbiased tool for measuring enjoyment and confronting various influencing factors, produced conflicting results regarding enjoyment levels in different instructional methods. Hence, we developed a learning enjoyment scale for evaluating both active and passive educational activities. We applied the developed scale to 112 first-year medical and dental students to assess their enjoyment during didactic physiology lectures and explored possible associated factors. Within this data note, we present students’ responses to the developed LES. The LES encompasses six dimensions: knowledge, comprehension, application, analysis, concentration, and enjoyment. Students provided ratings for each dimension on a five-point Likert scale, spanning from 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree). The cumulative scores across the six dimensions range from a minimum of 6 to a maximum of 30. These total scores can be categorized as excellent (> 24), acceptable (18-24), or low (< 18). The second section of the dataset examines specific factors influencing overall enjoyment, such as teacher proficiency, topic difficulty, active student participation, objectives fulfillment, low stress levels, and self-perceived acquisition of skills. In addition to objective measurement of students’ enjoyment level, the LES can be utilized for quantitative cross-comparisons between different teaching activities. By employing this dataset, we will undertake an analysis to determine the internal consistency of the Learning Enjoyment Scale (LES), with the anticipation that the outcomes will be published in another venue.

Enhancing Education: Examining the Relationship Between Teachers’ Job Satisfaction and Teaching Performance

Job satisfaction refers to an individual’s feelings about their job which can be seen in an employee’s attitude towards their job and all aspects of the work environment. This study aimed to examine and explore the relationships between teachers’ job satisfaction and their teaching performance to enhance education. The descriptive-correlational method was used. Ninety-five (95) respondents answered the survey questionnaire regarding their job satisfaction. The teachers’ performance was based on their IPCRF ratings for the school year 2022-2033. Results revealed that teachers’ job satisfaction was satisfactory and teaching performance was outstanding. There was a significant relationship when respondents were taken as a whole in terms of sex and civil status and their teaching performance, thus, the rejection of the hypotheses. Through comprehensive study and analysis, it is evident that job satisfaction among educators has a direct bearing on teaching effectiveness, student engagement, and overall educational outcomes. Thus, fostering a positive work environment and dealing with factors contributing to job satisfaction may lead to Enhanced Education Activities and ultimately improve the quality of education provided.

Adding Machine-Learning Functionality to Real Equipment for Water Preservation: An Evaluation Case Study in Higher Education

Considering that the fusion of education and technology has delivered encouraging outcomes, things are becoming more challenging for higher education as students seek experiences that bridge the gap between theory and their future professional roles. Giving priority to the above issue, this study presents methods and results from activities assisting engineering students to utilize recent machine-learning techniques for tackling the challenge of water resource preservation. Cost-effective, innovative hardware and software components were incorporated for monitoring the proper operation of the corresponding agricultural equipment (such as electric pumps or water taps), and suitable educational activities were developed involving students of agricultural engineering. According to the evaluation part of the study being presented, the implementation of a machine-learning system with sufficient performance is feasible, while the outcomes derived from its educational application are significant, as they acquaint engineering students with emerging technologies entering the scene and improve their capacity for innovation and cooperation. The study demonstrates how emerging technologies, such as IoT, ML, and the newest edge-AI techniques can be utilized in the agricultural industry for the development of sustainable agricultural practices. This aims to preserve natural resources such as water, increase productivity, and create new jobs for technologically efficient personnel.

The impact of using an authentic patient video on health professional students’ attitudes toward interprofessional and person-centered care

ABSTRACT Authentic patient activities in an interprofessional education (IPE) setting can develop collaborative, practice ready health professionals who have the skills to work within and across teams with patients at the center of their care. In this qualitative study, the student experience of a novel interprofessional case study activity, with lived experience content delivered via an authentic patient video was explored. Transcripts were analyzed using reflexive thematic analysis and identified three major themes: (a) from disease-centered to person-centered care, (b) reflecting on roles in interprofessional collaborative practice, and (c) teamwork and lived experience facilitates learning. When considered within the Interprofessional Education Collaborative (IPEC) framework, the student experience suggested positive change in all four core competencies: interprofessional communication, values and ethics, roles and responsibilities and teamwork. In addition, students highly valued the interprofessional learning experience, and the patient video created a more realistic case study by reducing clinical assumptions. In conclusion, a short, single exposure to a written case followed by an authentic patient video in an IPE setting had an immediate positive impact on entry-level student health professionals. This simple methodology is a viable way of bringing the authentic patient voice into the classroom with additional benefit from the interprofessional format.

STEM teacher advocate identity in the United States

AbstractResearch indicates that possession of a robust teacher identity reduces attrition from the classroom and improves retention in the teaching profession, which is nuanced by intersectional angles of gender, race, profession, and one's own perceptions. Emerging research suggests that teacher engagement in advocacy activities is also a vital component of retention, particularly among teachers of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) subjects. To better understand advocacy activities engaged in by U.S. in/formal STEM teachers, the present study surveyed 413 individuals querying how they perceive and engage in advocacy activities for STEM education. Data related to identity were parsed by intersectional facets of gender, race, sector of education (in/formal), and one's own perception as an advocate, which were compared using Mann–Whitney U analyses from Social Issues Advocacy Scales to determine beliefs of what constituted advocacy activities and what they engaged in as an advocate for STEM education. Among identity groupings, results suggest that respondents who identified as “always an active advocate” had the most (n = 13) significant differences regarding perceptions of and participation in advocacy activities regarding STEM education. The present research proposes that a teacher's perceptions of being an advocate is an important part of shaping their STEM teacher advocate identity.

Poczucie własnej skuteczności studentów w rozwijaniu sprawności pisania w języku obcym

Self-efficacy is a well-known and researched concept originating from the social-cognitive theory of Albert Bandura (1977, 1997). However, it still seems to be able to promote interesting reflections that are important for language education in higher education, both in teacher and learner activities. According to a number of studies learners acquire important skills and attitudes that are linked to a high degree of self-efficacy: they are highly motivated to learn, set ambitious goals for themselves, and are more persistent and committed to learning than those with a low degree of self-efficacy. The text analyses the results of a quantitative-qualitative study conducted among students participating in foreign language classes at the University of Warsaw. The collected data is analysed with the aim of answering the following research questions: What is the level of self-efficacy in written expression in a foreign language at B2-C2 levels? How do the students perceive the teacher-lecturer’s actions to strengthen their sense of self-efficacy? Do they see strengthening their involvement in written expression as a key element of self-efficacy? In addition, we are also interested in their opinion towards the possibilities of Chat GPT in this regard. The results are used to propose some teaching activities that will enhance students’ self-efficacy in written expression at B2-C2 levels as an important motivational factor which may result in a sense of agency.

Педагогические приёмы устранения трудностей при решении текстовых задач четвероклассниками

The article examines the current problem of difficulties in solving word problems by fourth grade students, and describes the main types of difficulties. The importance of educational modeling, planning and control activities within the framework of the requirements of the Federal educational program for primary general education in mathematics is described. Two pedagogical techniques are presented: “Model the situation” and “Plan and control”. Examples of mathematical tasks are given, the use of which will allow fourth-graders to successfully overcome difficulties in solving word problems.

<span>Teaching 5<sup>th-</sup>graders Geometry and Measurement content towards developing creative thinking</span>

Developing students’ creative thinking is to incorporating creative-thinking characteristics into teaching activities. That means converting from psychological activities into educational activities. The article clarifies the concept and characteristics of creative thinking, expressions of creative thinking of 5th graders in learning Geometry and Measurement content, thereby proposing procedure of designing teaching activities related to this content towards developing 5th-graders’ creative thinking.

Analysis of University Students' Perspectives on Physical Activity and Mandatory Physical Education

The decline in physical activity levels during the transition from high school to college is evident, despite the known impact of youth and adolescent physical activity on later life. Observable trends reveal a decline in enthusiasm for sports activities and a notable decrease in motivation for engaging in physical activity. The college environment plays a pivotal role in shaping students' engagement with physical activity, presenting an opportunity to significantly enhance their quality of life. This study's primary objective is to analyse university students' attitudes toward physical activity and assess their satisfaction with compulsory physical education at Masaryk University, comparing results spanning nearly two decades. In adherence to contemporary research methodologies, a questionnaire survey combining standard quantitative and qualitative analysis procedures was conducted. The survey questions focused on examining various facets of physical activity, including volume, intensity, sports preferences, and attitudes toward mandatory physical education at Masaryk University in Brno. A total of 1,293 respondents (422 men and 871 women) with an average age of 20.7 years participated in the study. The findings underscore a notable inclination among almost 73% of students to welcome an extension of compulsory physical education to 2 or more semesters (currently set at 2 semesters at MU). Moreover, over 75% of students express contentment with the spectrum of mandatory sports activities offered in physical education. The study reveals a growing interest among students in individual physical activities and a burgeoning enthusiasm for unorganized sports. These outcomes furnish valuable insights into students' perceptions regarding the organization of physical and sports education activities within university settings.

The Student Satisfaction on Education Service Quality: Case Study at Hong Duc University

Education Service Quality is a vital issue of every university to provide training service that aligns with societal demands and strives for learner satisfaction. A great number of research is conducted on this topic to calculate the role and impact of Education Service Quality on student satisfaction. This study analyses Student Satisfaction with Education Service Quality, including lecturer, staff officer, educational program, educational activities, infrastructure, and support activities on student satisfaction. Data from 464 students in the fields of economics and engineering were collected for analysis. The research findings demonstrate that students are satisfied with 3 of 6 proposed factors, with the lecturer exerting the most, followed by educational programs and training activities. This study contributes novel insights to both theoretical understanding and practical application, thereby facilitating the continuous improvement of training management.

Drama in STEAM education: Possible approaches and connections to drama-based activities in STEAM education

AbstractDrama in Education (DiE) has been a well-known teaching technique for an active learning approach for students. It utilizes different forms of conventions to enhance a student's learning experience in the classroom, offering alternatives instead of the traditional teaching approaches. Drama can encourage students to learn and think critically and improve public speaking, communication, and confidence. The article portrays the use of drama activities in STEAM education by depicting the benefits and challenges. This study uses a qualitative approach to collect data, including relevant literature, descriptions of drama activities, and observation. The findings display that drama in STEAM education can improve and stimulate students' learning and knowledge in a particular subject. This study aimed to view 19 higher education students' perspectives of drama activities in STEAM. Two activities were completed during this pilot study and observations were made throughout the process. Furthermore, drama in STEAM stimulated the students, were more enthusiastic about exploring, examining and learning, socializing with their groupmates, and the confidence to perform.

Preparing medical students for their educational task as physicians: important, desirable and unexplored territory

BackgroundPhysicians engage in educational activities in daily practice and take over an important role in providing information and transferring knowledge to patients and medical students. Therefore, it is important to focus on methods to develop teaching skills during medical school. Peer-teaching is a teaching method that is connected to different positive learning outcomes. This study aims to investigate the perspective of medical students regarding teaching as a core competency of physicians and peer-teaching as an opportunity to acquire educational skills. The study also aims to examine to what extent medical students are prepared for their teaching role at medical schools.MethodsThis cross-sectional study was performed by an online survey amongst Dutch medical students from all medical schools across all years of study. In total, 2666 medical students filled out the survey. The survey was part of the annual online survey of the Dutch medical advocacy group (DeGeneeskundestudent) amongst all medical students in the fall of 2017. The data were analysed with descriptive statistics and statistical tests (chi-squared-test and binomial test).ResultsThe results show that 49% of medical students see teaching as one of the core tasks of a physician. However, only 25% feel well prepared by their medical school for this teaching role. Instead, there are many students who gain experiences and teaching skills on their own outside medical schools. 64% of the respondents agrees that senior medical students can educate junior medical students well.ConclusionsImplementing peer-teaching in the curricular of medical schools could be an effective teaching method to prepare medical students for their future teaching role. It is important that medical schools focus on enhancing educational quality and designing learning environments for best learning outcomes to better prepare medical students for professional life.

Human Immunodeficiency Virus / Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome Prevention Behavior among Men Who Have Sex with Men (MSM) in the Gender Sexuality Group Community

Between January-August 2019, Central Sulawesi Province recorded 235 HIV and 94 AIDS cases. Data from the Gender Sexuality Group indicates that their community houses 28 MSM, 18 of whom are living with HIV/AIDS. This research seeks to understand HIV/AIDS prevention behaviors among MSM at the Gender Sexuality Group Community in Palu City. A qualitative case study approach was employed, with data collection through triangulation techniques including in-depth interviews, observation, and documentation using interview guides. Results show that MSM within the Gender Sexuality Group community demonstrate good knowledge of HIV/AIDS prevention. However, four out of seven informants still engage in risky behaviors. To address this, community and healthcare workers need to provide better infrastructure for HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment, especially for MSM living with HIV. Collaborative support from healthcare workers and the community is crucial in strengthening and assisting MSM. It's recommended that the Gender Sexuality Group community continues to conduct Communication, Information, and Education (CIE) activities to enhance MSM knowledge, particularly about HIV transmission and prevention. All MSM should undergo HIV testing at least twice a year. The community could organize seminars featuring disguised MSM PLWHA (People Living with HIV/AIDS) from outside the city as resource persons to increase awareness about HIV/AIDS within the key community

Parkinson's Disease Psychosis and the Marketing of Pimavanserin.

In 2016, Nuplazid (pimavanserin) became the first FDA-approved treatment for Parkinson's Disease Psychosis (PDP). We explored the possibility that PDP was a term created to market Nuplazid. We examined trends in perceptions of psychosis in Parkinson's disease from the 1990s to 2020 through MEDLINE search term frequency, neurology textbooks, guidance from professional societies, Acadia annual reports, sponsored websites, and a sponsored meeting held by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). We analyzed continuing medical education (CME) activities on PDP and analyzed the connection between payments by the manufacturer of pimavanserin and prescriptions. Our analysis of nine sponsored CME activities reveals misleading themes, including: PDP is common, progressive, and not always drug-induced; there is no such thing as a benign hallucination, and psychotic symptoms always worsen; PDP increases mortality; and competing treatments are ineffective or dangerous while pimavanserin is safe and effective for treating PDP. Industry-sponsored CME was used to disseminate inaccurate and misleading marketing messages on psychosis related to Parkinson's disease. Some professional societies and some textbooks also resisted the PDP label. Reframing PDP as a unique condition is a typical example of condition branding. The establishment of PDP expanded the use of pimavanserin and is likely to have resulted in many avoidable deaths.

Implementing the Pancasila Student Profile Strengthening Project to Cultivate Students’ Character at SDN Jombatan 6 Jombang

The persisting issue of lacking empathy and environmental awareness among students at SDN Jombatan 6 Jombang—evident in neglected surroundings and substantial waste accumulation—remains a recurring concern. This study aims to implement the Pancasila Student Profile Strengthening Project (English: Projek Penguatan Profil Pelajar Pancasila [P5]) activities to cultivate students’ character and outline execution strategies. Employing a qualitative descriptive approach, this research examined subjects in light of existing phenomena. Participants include the school principal, fourth-grade teachers, all fourth-grade students, and the school’s gardeners. Data collection includes observation, interviews, and documentation, followed by analysis stages of data reduction, presentation, and conclusion drawing, validated through peer examination. The findings illuminate several key points: (1) Teachers orchestrate the Pancasila Student Profile Strengthening Project (P5) at SDN Jombatan 6 Jombang, crafting tailored learning modules that align with the local environment. These modules are accompanied by practical actions derived from educational activities. (2) Strategies for implementing P5 activities in fourth-grade students are diverse, including material selection and engaging teaching methods to enhance knowledge acquisition. These efforts are supported by advocacy materials like banners or pamphlets. (3) The impact of P5 activities on students’ character at SDN Jombatan 6 Jombang is evident in their daily conduct, such as caring for plants, proper waste disposal, reducing plastic waste, bringing homemade lunches, participating in community service, and adhering to school regulations.

The Socioeconomic Impact of COVID-19 in Sudan: Results from the Sudan High-Frequency Survey on COVID-19, 2020

The coronavirus outbreaks and the measures taken to control their spread negatively impacted the global economy. This study aims to provide insights into the socioeconomic impacts of COVID-19 in Sudan, using data from the Sudan High-Frequency Survey on Covid-19 conducted by phone. The study used descriptive and analytical statistical analysis. The results revealed that about 98% of the population heard about the coronavirus. However, the measures taken to limit the spread of the virus were more practiced in Khartoum than in other regions. An estimate of about 1.7 million households (47%) lost income from any source due to COVID-19. Accordingly, around 25%-30% of households could not access staple foods and medicine. More than 90% of school- children in all regions, except Khartoum (76%), were not engaged in any education activity during school closures. Adopted coping strategies were living on previous savings in 1.3 million households (22%), reducing food consumption in 2.8 million households (48%), reducing non-food consumption in 1.4 million households (23%), relying on credit purchasing in 873,362 households (15%), and engaging in additional income-generating activities in 389,003 households (7%) while 7% received assistance from friends and relatives. These results will enable policymakers to design result-based policies to mitigate the socioeconomic impacts of coronavirus in Sudan and to learn lessons for future precautions. 

On developing language subcompetence in cadets of educational organizations of the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs: Foreign language learning

The development of foreign language professional communicative competence is based on improving the students’ language subcompetence since only with the automated language skills it is possible to move on to the types of speech activity with the concomitant development of communication skills. Given the variety of forms of organizing students’ educational activities, aimed at mastering their lexical and grammatical skills in the formulation of utterances, it is important to solve the problem of a systematic approach to the implementation of tasks. In this regard, the main goal of the article is to develop a consistent model for improving the lexical and grammatical skills in cadets of educational organizations of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia based on a specific type of the task. To this end, the article elicits the possibilities of developing a series of tasks in the format of lexical and grammatical transformations to improve language subcompetence as a constitutive part of foreign language professional communicative competence.The proposed system of tasks for improving lexical and grammatical skills is built on the principle of growing complication: from one-component grammatical transformations, which are aimed at practising one specific skill on the studied lexical material without restrictions of thematic repertoire, to multicomponent lexical grammatical transformations.The range of tasks includes grammatical transformations of the active voice patterns into the passive voice ones, the use of modal verbs and their equivalents to convey the given modal meanings with attention to the use of infinitive forms, the reconstruction of syndetic conditionals into asyndetic ones, the transformation of compound sentences into sentences complicated by predicative constructions and vice versa.Within the framework of the lexical skills development, we illustrate the transformations requiring the use of synonyms or synonymous phrases, antonyms (taking into account phrasal verbs, which represent a separate lexical group), as well as substitutions, taking into account the collocation properties of lexemes and different degrees of idiomaticity inherent in complex nominative units.Consistent and regular use of transformations is one of the effective ways to form a mechanism of equivalent substitutions.

The Concept “Student Experience” from the Point of View of Philosophical Anthropology and Developmental Psychology

An actual topic in higher education research today is the study of student experiences. It is believed that knowledge of educational settings, the degree of student involvement in educational and extracurricular activities, satisfaction with the quality of courses or practices offered, etc. helps to retain the student population, modernize educational programs, university campus services, etc. The study presents a new concept of student experience, corresponding to the key position of the university as an institution for the development of human and society. Research methods are conceptual analysis and conceptual design.Ideas about the “student experience” and the need to study its components are determined by the models of relations between the university and students. Currently, universities widely use the “instruction-based” and “consumer” models, and new models such as the “co-production” or “transformative learning” model are also being tested.The article examines the “anthropic” model of relations between the university and students, which 1) reflects the civilizational mission of the university; 2) is based on philosophical and anthropological ideas about the formation of an individual person as a “path” on which he/she discovers new realities (“horizons”) of personal and professional existence; 3) sets a new direction for research on student experience.A new concept of student experience is proposed, correlated with the “anthropic” model of relations between the university and students. Significant components of such experience are: “discovering others” who are carriers of a new (for the student) self-determination, thinking, worldview, and way of action; “shift of the horizon” – the discovery of new meanings, objects, transformation of consciousness (changing its schematisms and categories); mastering a new life world; overcoming the existing ways and patterns of thinking and action, personal limitations and building a new self; reflection of one’s path and “assembling oneself” through personal history.This concept of student experience will allow us to build educational practices that are adequate to the needs of active students focused on complex educational experiences – the path of discovery and transformation of consciousness and thinking

Implementasi Lembaga Pengendali Mutu Pendidik Di Lembaga Pendidikan Islam

The educator quality assurance institution was established to ensure the quality of educators in educational institutions. The research aims to analyze and explain the planning, implementation, evaluation, and follow-up of the Educator Quality Control Institution at Maktuba Al-Majidiyah Islamic Education Institution in Pamekasan. This research uses a qualitative research approach with a case study research design. Meanwhile, the informants are: the general chairman of the education council, the education council, and personnel management. Data were collected using observation, interviews, and documentation techniques. Data analysis consists of three stages: data reduction, data display, and conclusion drawing. Research findings: (1) educator planning: setting standards, recruitment, selection, and placement of educators. (2) educator implementation: supervisor, motivator, trainer, developer, and compensator. (3) educator evaluation: monitoring educator activities by comparing standards with performance. (4) follow-up: rewards and punishments. Conclusion: the educator quality assurance institution has performed its tasks well because it has managed educators effectively. Research contribution: it can enhance the quality of educator management.