Limited Internet Connectivity Research Articles

Assessing the Role of Internal Motivation and Extrinsic Factors on Online Undergraduate Medical Teaching in a Resource-Poor Setting During Covid-19 Pandemic in North India: An Observational Study.

PurposeThe unprecedented academic environment brought by the COVID-19 pandemic led to the evolution of online teaching as an ineluctable tool for education and training. To ensure that the undergraduate teaching curriculum does not become another victim of the virus, online teaching was started in most medical schools. The undergraduate students enrolled in our institution hail mostly from rural areas and small townships with limited internet connectivity and accessibility due to poor socioeconomic status. This study highlights the students’ perception of and motivation towards online classes in respect to internet connectivity and accessibility during COVID-19 pandemic. Since online teaching is essentially a student-centered learning approach, the motivational level of students plays an important role in making teaching protocols effective.MethodsA prospective qualitative and quantitative assessment of perceptions of 498 medical undergraduate students from 1st, 2nd and 3rd year of Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia Institute of Medical Sciences, Vibhuti Khand, Gomti Nagar, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India was done using validated online questionnaires and anonymous voluntary feedback during the government-imposed lockdown from March 2020 to November 2020.ResultsOn evaluation of 260 responses received, it was found that the majority of students were motivated to attend the online classes but external factors like internet connectivity and household environment were affecting their motivation on a daily basis and thus decreasing the motivation levels. Validity of feedback by Cronbach’s alpha was 0.907 and Pearson coefficient between internet connectivity and motivation factors was 0.419 (p-value <0.001).ConclusionThe extrinsic factors of internet connectivity and household environment hamper the motivation of students to attend online classes; this should be considered as an important factor to enable the desired student-led learning as mandated by competency-based medical education.

Transformation Practices of Multiliteracy in English Classroom

Today's students are digital native generations that heavily rely on the use of technology and social media in their personal, interpersonal and social interaction. Their way of living indeed shapes the way they interact, learn and perform in English learning class. In accordance with that, multiliteracy which is recognized by the use of technology and social media is seen as a ‘bridge' to fill the gap between teachers and the digital native students. The objective of the present research, therefore, is to investigate the implementation of multiliteracy in teaching speaking at SMPN 2 Batu. To answer the research question, the research employs a qualitative research design which uses observation and interviews as the research instruments. The result of the present research revealed that seven practices indicated the integration of multiliteracy in teaching speaking at SMPN 2 Batu. The practices involve the use of pictures and video to support the lesson, the creation of video and poster as the student project, students' exploration of digital tools to edit pictures, the use of online platform to submit the work, the exploration of the internet to facilitate their learning, the exposure of conventional as well as digital text, and lastly, reflection. In addition, there are four challenges experienced by the teaching in multiliteracy at SMPN 2 Batu namely time constraint, limited internet connection or access, passive students and diverse digital skills.

Demographic, gadget and internet profiles as determinants of disease and consequence related COVID-19 anxiety among Filipino college students.

In the context of the nationwide shift to online learning due to the COVID-19 pandemic and its possible effect on mental health, this study investigated the relationship between demographic, gadget and Internet profiles, and disease and consequence related COVID-19 anxiety among Filipino college students. This is a quantitative cross-sectional study. A total of 952 students participated in the online survey. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to draw insights from the data. Findings suggest that majority of the student respondents had high levels of disease and consequence related COVID-19 anxiety. Students from poorer households, who do not own laptops and desktop computers, and those with limited Internet connection exhibited higher levels of disease-related COVID-19 anxiety. Younger, poorer, female students who were enrolled in lower year levels, do not own laptops or tablets, and have limited or borrowed Internet connectivity demonstrated higher levels of consequence-related COVID-19 anxiety.

Online Learning during COVID-19 Pandemic in Rwanda: Experience of Postgraduate Students on Language of Instruction, Mathematics and Science Education

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected human life at different levels and is still a tremendous challenge for all sectors of life without exception to education. To cope with those COVID-19 effects in education, online teaching and learning was adopted. This study throws light on online learning situation in higher education in Rwanda. The study is geared by interpretivist approach. Data were collected in a series of online individual interviews and focus group discussions with twenty master students from different subjects offered by the African Centre of Excellence for Innovative Teaching and Learning Mathematics and Science (ACEITLMS). The gathered data were analysed thematically. The study revealed communication platforms, ICT infrastructures and software, and online resources as opportunities for online learning. Despite learners’ willingness to play their part in online learning, the study further brought to light numerous challenges of learning mathematics and science such as absence of practical activities, inadequate support for structured exercises, few open resources and inadequate access to online resources. Limited internet connectivity, English proficiency coupled with insufficient collaboration among students and with facilitators were reported as limitation too. Since online mode of instruction was adopted for effective blended learning, its adjustment and adaptation are needed to grab the identified opportunities and cautiously address the identified challenges.

New Normal in Nursing Education: Sophomore Students’ Expectations of and Readiness for Online Learning in the Era of COVID-19 Pandemic

Background: The global disruption of the COVID-19 outbreak in education has resulted in a new normal in how education is delivered. Traditional face-to-face nursing education has suddenly transitioned into a remote and online learning environment to help mitigate virus transmission. Students’ anticipations and how set they are in this new learning platform should be investigated. Objective: This study determined the expectations of and readiness for online learning of sophomore nursing students in one nursing school in a developing country. Methods: This study employed a cross-sectional research design. The Student Expectations of Online Learning Survey (SEOLS) and Online Learning Readiness Scale (OLRS) were the instruments used to gather data administered online. Descriptive statistics and non-parametric statistical tests were used in the data analysis. Results: Nursing students had high proficiency with technology but more than one-fourth had an unstable Internet connection. Nursing students generally had high expectations of and readiness for online learning. Although high, expectations about social interactions in the online learning environment obtained the lowest mean score among the five subscales of the SEOLS. Readiness for online learning significantly differed based on family income status and Internet stability. Bivariate analysis indicated a significant positive correlation between students’ expectations and readiness for online learning. Conclusions: Students’ expectations may play a role in students’ readiness for online learning. This study suggests that while students appear ready to take on online learning, the different students’ circumstances along with the challenges associated with online learning such as limited internet connectivity must be properly addressed. It may be necessary for nursing schools to meet students’ expectations in the new learning environment to fully maximize learning and facilitate success and learner readiness in the new normal in nursing education.

WHATSAPP TO TEACH ENGLISH REMOTELY IN A LOW-TECH CLASS: TEACHER’S PERSPECTIVE

This study aims at addressing English teacher’s perspective about integrating WhatsApp (WA) into a university-level English class in STAIN Mandailing Natal. The data includes interviews with the teacher and observation on class postings in WA group and student-teacher timeline for four meetings. The data were analyzed qualitatively, and interpretively, resulting in three emerging themes about the WA to teach English remotely in low-tech classroom: the implementation of WA for online teaching, managing online learning activities in WA group and teacher’s constrains in applying WA in teaching online. The result of analysis indicates that WA is considered effective to teach English remotely in a limited internet connection classroom. With some adjustments to the instructional design, teaching and learning process could run well. However, due to the lack of students-teacher direct interaction, virtual class could not go as engaging as face-to-face learning in the classroom.

Student’s perceptions of Arabic online learning during COVID-19 emergency

The Coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) creates challenges for Arabic learning at Indonesian Islamic Colleges. The limitations of the language learning process during the pandemic caused various problems. In addition, using learning strategies requires special planning related to differences in face-to-face learning processes into learning with online systems. Arabic is a compulsory subject that helps students acquire communication skills in a foreign language. This research describes students' perceptions of Arabic online learning at a public Islamic college in Malang. It also examines the strategies for learning during the COVID-19 emergency. The study uses a qualitative approach for data collection through observation, interviews, and documentation. Research samples were taken from students in semester 2nd to semester 6th with varying abilities. The data analysis is carried out using triangulation techniques in several steps, and involves collection, reduction, and conclusion. The results showed that students perceive Arabic online learning to be less effective. Some factors that do not support online learning such as the lack of instructions given by lecturers, limited internet connection, lack of internal motivation of students, lack of discussion hours. Several strategies are used, including discussions, lectures, singing, presentations, studying literature, and writing. The use of Arabic learning resources in online media illustrates the process of independent learning for students. The results provide input for integrating all components of learning holistically and variedly for students to remain motivated irrespective of the condition. This study recommends other researchers to examine and improve what skills teachers need to have when learning online and efforts to increase student interest in the language learning process with an online system.

Opportunity for eHealth due to COVID-19 Outbreak: Case of Peru

The COVID-19 pandemic has generated the consolidation of eHealth in the world and it is expected that it will remain even after the pandemic ceases. This will especially be true for chronic patients, who have greater needs for remote health services. This perspective paper presents the various regulatory documents that support the provision of telemedicine in Peru. The time and money savings achieved through eHealth services are presented. However, Peru is a country with multiple rural areas and limited internet connectivity. Thus, to achieve optimal connection for medical appointments, infrastructure must be improved before high quality remote health services can be provided in Peru.

Reshaping Assessment Practices in a Philippine Teacher Education Institution during the Coronavirus Disease 2019 Crisis

This case study analyzes the assessment practices in a Teacher Education Institution (TEI) in the Philippines during the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) crisis. The results showed that assessment practices were contextually reshaped as classes were suspended at the time when assessment evidence cannot be computed; limited internet connectivity posed logistical issues to move to online assessment; and institutional tradition of maintaining quality draws a major concern. As a consequence, changes were evident in the grading component solely focusing on student attendance; grading system shifting to descriptive binary; requirements for laboratory and research works significantly modified; and exclusion of grades earned in the current semester from the computation of grade point average. Drawing lessons from this case study, it is recommended that in reshaping assessment practices in this time, different contexts must be cogently considered, so that reasonable changes will be better understood.

Analyzing biological models and data sets using Jupyter notebooks as an alternate to laboratory-based exercises during COVID-19.

Jupyter notebooks are widely used for data analysis across a large number of scientific disciplines. As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, I developed a series of computational exercises using the Jupyter notebook to replace the laboratory exercises usually undertaken in my course. My students had no prior coding knowledge and therefore these exercises were structured in a "cookbook" format using the susceptible-infected-resistant model for disease, data from the Lenski long-term evolutionary experiment, and a fission yeast transcriptomic data set. Despite limited internet connectivity and on-line instruction, my students completed these computational exercises and then tested their own hypotheses. Because Jupyter notebooks can be annotated with text and images, student notebooks were submitted for assessment in the form of a structured scientific report. An advantage of this approach was that all the computational analyses presented in these reports could be easily replicated. The notebook and complete instructions used in my course are provided for others who want to adopt this approach.

The Mental Health Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic: Implications for Sub-Saharan Africa.

The COVID-19 pandemic is leading to mental health problems due to disease experience, physical distancing, stigma and discrimination, and job losses in many of the settings hardest hit by the pandemic. Health care workers, patients with COVID-19 and other illnesses, children, women, youth, and the elderly are experiencing post-traumatic stress disorders, anxiety, depression, and insomnia. Virtual mental health services have been established in many settings and social media is being used to impart mental health education and communication resources. This rapid review highlights mental health services across countries hardest hit by the COVID-19 pandemic. More needs to be done to take these services to scale and ensure equity and efficiency. The impact of COVID-19 on mental health in sub-Saharan Africa could be immense, given the weak health care systems. Similar to the Ebola epidemic of 2014–2016, COVID-19 is expected to cause anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorders. Uptake of mental health care services is generally low, and communities rely on social resources. Hence, efforts to control the disease transmission should be contextualized. Low digital literacy, low smartphone penetration and limited internet connection make online mental health services a limited option for service delivery. Safeguarding social and cultural resilience factors and coping mechanisms is critical in the sub-Saharan African context. Mass media is a feasible way of providing social resources. Community health workers can be trained quickly to provide mental health education, screening and counselling services. Toll-free mental health helplines can be used to provide services to health care workers and those needing customized care. Mental health and psychosocial support services need to be integrated into the pandemic response and coordinated nationally. It is critical for these services to continue during and after the epidemic.

Asynchronous Online Assessment of Physical Chemistry Concepts in the Time of COVID-19

The COVID-19 pandemic caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has disrupted normal activities all over the world. Education at all levels has been particularly hard hit, and this has resulted in the suspension of face-to-face discourse, instruction, and student assessment worldwide, with the necessity of social distancing preventing the social gatherings common to all learning environments. This has prompted a shift to online modes of teaching and assessment, with varying degrees of success and possibly much discomfort. In this communication, reflections and comments on the results of asynchronous online assessment of physical chemistry courses at the Cave Hill campus of the University of the West Indies are presented. We hope this paper will be useful in delineating some of the challenges faced in the delivery of unsupervised online assessments, especially in situations where limited internet connectivity may disadvantage some students.

Plant diseases detection with low resolution data using nested skip connections

At the moment, there are increasing trends of using deep learning for plant diseases detection. However, their implementations may be difficult in developing countries due to several reasons. First, existing deep learning models are usually trained with images with adequate resolutions. In developing countries however, with limited internet connection, models that would perform well even when data with low resolution are used are needed. Secondly, the generated models are large. Hence, most deep learning based applications are available on-line. Unfortunately, the trend for new deep learning architectures are either have larger models or require a heavy memory usage. So, models with smaller size would be preferred. In this paper, we evaluate various existing deep learning models for plant diseases detection when low resolution data are used. They are: VGGNet, AlexNet, Resnet, Xception, and MobileNet. Our focus is deep convolutional neural network (DCNN) which is commonly applied for image data. We also propose a new DCNN architecture with two branches of concatenated residual networks. It is well known that the deeper the networks the better performance of DCNN. However, DCNN with very deep networks and large number of training parameters is prone to vanishing gradient problems. One solutions for that is to apply residual networks as branches to DCNN. While it is found that increasing the branch of the networks benefit the performance, larger memory are required to train the networks. So, we apply two concatenated residual networks only. We called it Compact Networks (ComNet). We compare our method other with six popular CNN architectures. We evaluate the performance on the PlantVillage dataset and our own dataset. We collected images of tea leaves which consist of 6 classes: 5 classes of diseases that are commonly found in Indonesia and a healthy class. Our experiments show that our method is generally better than referenced DCNN networks.

1622WQ: A web-based application to increase farmer awareness of the impact of agriculture on water quality

Intensive agricultural practices represent a major threat to aquatic ecosystems because they impair water quality. However, this can be ameliorated by farmers improving crop management provided they are aware of their contribution to declining water quality. Water quality information systems can increase farmer awareness, but most were developed to assess water quality targets set in regulations rather than inform farmers. We developed the 1622WQ application using user-centred design principles to provide farmers with real-time information on nitrate and other contextual variables in their local creeks and rivers. The design process identified barriers to uptake of the application such as: (a) limited internet connection; (b) poor data quality; and (c) operational issues. Once these barriers were addressed, there was substantial uptake. Nevertheless, providing real-time information to farmers is only part of the solution due to legacy issues caused by a digital divide between traditional industries and those that are digitally enabled.

Pembelajaran Matematika dengan Media Obrolan Kelompok Multi-Arah sebagai Alternatif Kelas Jarak Jauh

The sudden change caused by the global pandemics of COVID-19 leads to the classroom transformation from classical face-to-face meetings into virtual. The development of technology enables classroom variation by providing various applications that can be employed to facilitate learning activities. Nonetheless, not all situations suitable to use advanced technology during distance learning. Some students are living in remote areas with limited internet connection. This study aims to offer an alternative if most of the students were having difficulties with the internet and minimum devices to download heavy applications. The alternative is by using a chat group with an emphasis on the students’ interaction during the lesson. This descriptive study was conducted at a university in Mataram, Indonesia. The subject was 17 students in the Mathematics Education Study Program who follow the course of Abstract Algebra. The data were gathered from students’ observation during the lessons and students’ written work in the middle semester test. The data were analyzed by using descriptive qualitative method. From the analysis, it was found that the students’ activity during distance learning was 83.5%. Furthermore, 88.23% of students achieved the minimum score for the middle semester test (more than 56). The study showed that mathematics teaching and learning could be done with a secure and straightforward access application to gain good results.

SIMOMI : Online Guidance and Consultation Based Mobile Application as Independent Learning Media on Lactation

Lactation management is an effort to support lactation success starting from pregnancy, childbirth, and breastfeeding. Parents learn about lactation management directly from counseling or independently from articles and books. Website and social media become favorite learning media because both media can be accessed anytime and anywhere. Considering the large number of smart phone users and the limited internet connection in Indonesia, we developed a mobile based lactation management application named SIMOMI. The development of SIMOMI application aims to enable the community (parents, prospective parents, and everyone who needs understanding of lactation) to learn independently about lactation whenever and wherever, whether offline or online. The method used in this research is design system. Features available on Simomi applications include online calculators, articles, and consultations. The product have been tested using black box method and User Experience Test by involving experts to know the readiness and response to the technology before publishing for general audience. The test results concluded that Simomi application has been able to run as the goal and the initial design especially on the features of the calculator. Through this SIMOMI application, the wider community especially LP3A which is concerned with the growth of children and the role of women, can be more active in supporting the government program, especially in the awareness movement of exclusive breastfeeding for the community. It is expected to support the fulfillment of nutrition and development of the baby to the maximum.

Characterizing Data Ecosystems to Support Official Statistics with Open Mapping Data for Reporting on Sustainable Development Goals

Reporting on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is complex given the wide variety of governmental and NGO actors involved in development projects as well as the increased number of targets and indicators. However, data on the wide variety of indicators must be collected regularly, in a robust manner, comparable across but also within countries and at different administrative and disaggregated levels for adequate decision making to take place. Traditional census and household survey data is not enough. The increase in Small and Big Data streams have the potential to complement official statistics. The purpose of this research is to develop and evaluate a framework to characterize a data ecosystem in a developing country in its totality and to show how this can be used to identify data, outside the official statistics realm, that enriches the reporting on SDG indicators. Our method consisted of a literature study and an interpretative case study (two workshops with 60 and 35 participants and including two questionnaires, over 20 consultations and desk research). We focused on SDG 6.1.1. (Proportion of population using safely managed drinking water services) in rural Malawi. We propose a framework with five dimensions (actors, data supply, data infrastructure, data demand and data ecosystem governance). Results showed that many governmental and NGO actors are involved in water supply projects with different funding sources and little overall governance. There is a large variety of geospatial data sharing platforms and online accessible information management systems with however a low adoption due to limited internet connectivity and low data literacy. Lots of data is still not open. All this results in an immature data ecosystem. The characterization of the data ecosystem using the framework proves useful as it unveils gaps in data at geographical level and in terms of dimensionality (attributes per water point) as well as collaboration gaps. The data supply dimension of the framework allows identification of those datasets that have the right quality and lowest cost of data extraction to enrich official statistics. Overall, our analysis of the Malawian case study illustrated the complexities involved in achieving self-regulation through interaction, feedback and networked relationships. Additional complexities, typical for developing countries, include fragmentation, divide between governmental and non-governmental data activities, complex funding relationships and a data poor context.

Augmented Reality Farm MAPPER Development: Lessons Learned from an App Designed to Improve Rural Emergency Response

ABSTRACTFire departments have right-of-entry to most commercial industrial sites and preemptively map them to identify the onsite resources and hazards they need to promptly and safely respond to an emergency event. This is not the case for private farms. Emergency responders are blind to resources and hazards prior to arrival and must spend critical minutes locating them during an emergency response at a farm location. The original 2013 Farm Mapping to Assist, Protect and Prepare Emergency Responders (Farm MAPPER) project was undertaken to develop a method to give emergency responders an up-to-date view of on-farm hazard information to safely and efficiently conduct emergency response activities on private agricultural operations. In 2017, an augmented reality version of Farm MAPPER was developed to combine the technological advantages of geographic information system-based data points with a heads-up display and graphical overlay of superimposed hazard imagery and informative icons. The development and testing of this iOS- and Android-ready prototype uncovered lessons learned applicable to other mobile-based apps targeting farmers, ranchers, and rural populations faced with limited or inconsistent mobile internet connectivity.

PENERAPAN METODE BLENDED LEARNING BERBASIS TIK UNTUK MENINGKATKAN PEMAHAMAN KONSEP PADA MATAKULIAH LISTRIK MAGNET II

Blended learning is the integration traditional classroom, e-learning, and selflearning methods using ICT based learning. One of them is through Edmodo supported by sufficient internet facilities. The aim of the research was to know the design of learning methods and the utilization of ICT based of blended learning in order to improve the understanding of the concepts in the 2nd Electromagnetic course. The reaserch was a descriptive class action by using qualitative and quantitative approach. All students of Physics Education in FKIP UST who take the 2nd Electromagnetic course were the subject of research. The sample was 28 students as respondents. The sample taking technique in the research used total sampling technique. The results showed that the utilization of Edmodo as the elearning tools in blended learning method was still at a moderate level. It was beacuse for students who took 2nd Electromagnetic course in 2015/2016 academic year were the first experience were not accustomed to active. Furthermore, it was beacuse of the limited internet connection facility. ICT-based of blended learning method as an appropriate educational technology effectively enough to help the learning process so that the lecturers and students could communicate interactively without place restrictions in anytime and anywhere.Keywords : Blended learning, Edmodo

DISTANCE LEARNING APPLICATION FOR POST GRADUATE STUDIES OF SEAFARING OFFICERS [en

Abstract The seafaring officers require further studies for their future roles related with their professions such as positions at shipping companies, shipyards, ports and terminals. However, the working environment of the seafarers is totally different from the surroundings of other occupations. They work on a mobile work place and mostly have no or very limited internet connection which is essential for distance learning today. The education and training of the seafarers is regulated with the international. This situation makes us to consider the application of different type of education and training methods in particular distance education of seafaring officers. This study starts with the investigation of available distance learning methods and continues with analysis of application of these methods to the post graduate studies for seafaring officers performing their duties on board the ships. The standards established by the European Qualification Framework (EQF) and European Union Lifelong Learning (LLL) programme will also be considered. The final aim of this study is to propose composite learning methods for postgraduate studies of seafaring officers mainly based on the distance learning and as well as possible supporting elements for distance learning.