Understanding Of Meaning Research Articles

Assessment of knowledge integration in student learning of galvanic cell: An interdisciplinary approach connecting physics and chemistry

The galvanic cell is a typical interdisciplinary topic, which is primarily taught in chemistry but its underpinning is closely related to physics. Student learning in galvanic cell has been extensively studied in chemistry education, which has revealed a large number of misconceptions that are difficult to change through traditional instruction. A source of the learning difficulties is that most students lack an explanatory framework to integrate the many complex phenomena and processes into a coherent knowledge system. As a result, students often rely on memorization of terms, laws, and equations in solving problems but without a meaningful understanding of their reasoning. To address the deficit in learning, this study aims to help students develop an explanatory framework for supporting an integrated knowledge structure. Specifically, a conceptual framework model for galvanic cell is developed based on the central idea from physics, which is used as the core concept for mechanistic explanations of the related chemistry concepts. Guided by the conceptual framework, an instrument is developed to assess the knowledge integration in student learning of galvanic cell. A combination of qualitative and quantitative measures was used to assess the levels of knowledge integration in learning galvanic cell with a large number of Chinese high school and college students. The assessment results show that the conceptual framework model can effectively represent the knowledge structures of students at different levels of knowledge integration. The galvanic cell conceptual framework and assessment results can provide useful resources for teachers to develop instruction for promoting knowledge integration. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

Acehnese Ethnoscience as an Interdisciplinary Approach in Physics Education: Innovating in the Era of Merdeka Belajar

Various efforts have been made to improve students’ understanding of basic physics concepts, but their mindset in constructing knowledge remains problematic. The learning process has yet to engage long-term memory, preventing meaningful analysis-level understanding. This research aimed to activate students’ thinking patterns based on ethnoscience through learning tools such as modules, semester learning plans (RPS), and student worksheets (LKM) that are valid, practical, and efficient. The research used the R&D method with the ADDIE approach, involving 2 expert validators and all Physics Education students at FKIP USK enrolled in basic physics courses in 2022. The results indicated that the ethnoscience-based basic physics learning tools of the Acehnese community, which include modules, RPS, and LKM, effectively supported Merdeka Belajar and have been validated for their validity, practicality, and efficiency. Students were highly motivated and impressed by the concept of measurement in physics, which has long been practiced by the Acehnese community, such as in paying zakat fitrah during Ramadan. The scientifically understood volume-measuring tools used by students were not significantly different from the ethnoscience tools used by the Acehnese community. Ethnoscience facilitates meaningful learning by analyzing context, content, and literacy.

МЕТОДИЧЕСКИЕ РЕКОМЕНДАЦИИ И СИСТЕМА УПРАЖНЕНИЙ ПО ФОРМИРОВАНИЮ СОЦИОКУЛЬТУРНОЙ КОМПЕТЕНЦИИ РУССКОЯЗЫЧНЫХ ОБУЧАЮЩИХСЯ НА УРОКАХ КАЗАХСКОГО ЯЗЫКА

The article is devoted to the urgent problem of the formation of socio-cultural competence of students in the lessons of Russian as a non-native language, the key aspect of the study of which was the theoretical justification and practical development of a methodology for the formation of socio-cultural competence of students. The problem of the formation of socio-cultural competence became especially relevant at the beginning of the XXI century, which was due to significant social transformations in the modern world. Currently, it is socio-cultural competence that can become a moral and spiritual guideline for the development and strengthening of the integrity and diversity of the entire human community. Today, the main goal of studying the Kazakh language as a state language in a secondary school is to provide pedagogical conditions for a deeper and meaningful understanding of the world, its real, concrete historical essence, and the relationship between different peoples and cultures. That is why close attention is currently being paid to teaching Russian-speaking schoolchildren the Kazakh language as the state language of the Republic of Kazakhstan, providing intercultural communication, "dialogue of languages and cultures" The author analyzed the theoretical literature, models of scientists on the formation of socio-cultural competence are given. The article asserts the assumption that the use of new technologies, techniques, techniques, tools (collaborative learning, comparative analysis, role-playing games, the use of linguistic and cultural units, etc. They contribute to the successful formation of socio-cultural competence of students in the process of teaching the language as an official language of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

P PAI HISTORY LEARNING INNOVATIONS:

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of educational films as a learning medium in deepening students' understanding of Islamic Cultural History and improving their critical thinking. This research method uses a qualitative approach with descriptive analysis. Data was collected through observations and interviews. Constructivism theory is used as a theoretical foundation to understand how educational films can help students relate new knowledge to their everyday experiences. The results of the study show that the use of educational films significantly increases students' interest in learning, critical thinking and involvement in the learning process. Students showed an increased understanding of PAI's history and stated that the film made the material more engaging and easier to understand. The recommendation of this study is that the PAI curriculum in elementary schools should make more use of educational film media as a learning aid. In addition, educators need to be trained in the use of new technologies and media to create a more engaging and interactive learning environment. Thus, the use of educational films can be an innovative strategy in improving the quality of PAI history learning, and facilitating a deeper and more meaningful understanding of the material taught.

Enhancing sustainability education through critical reading: a qualitative study in a Spanish primary school

This research explores how picturebooks can enhance ecocritical awareness and sustainable attitudes among 97 primary school children aged 8–9 in a Spanish school. The study includes 24 reading sessions in three formats: individual, small group, and adult-mediated. The selection of the corpus for children’s readings aligns with theoretical studies focusing on an ecocritical approach to children’s literature, a scholarly perspective that has gained prominence in recent decades. Results indicate that adult-mediated sessions are more effective than individual or small-group readings, fostering greater emotional and cognitive engagement. While students generally showed an ecocentric perspective, an anthropocentric view of sustainability persisted. The study highlights that, although guided reading is beneficial, a more integrated and multidimensional educational approach is needed to cultivate a regenerative consciousness. The educator’s role is crucial for guiding students toward deeper, more meaningful ecocritical understanding.

Corporate purpose research: Streams and promises

In this editorial, we identify three approaches to corporate purpose that shed light on distinctive aspects of corporate purpose and organizational life. The statement-centric approach focuses on how purpose can send (or not) credible signals to specific audiences. The experience-based approach highlights the heterogeneity in firm members’ perceptions and understandings of corporate purpose. The decision-making approach proposes that corporate purpose alters decision-making within firms in predictable ways. This editorial contributes ideas for future empirical research. We believe current approaches to corporate purpose should both acknowledge their unique contributions and build on their methodological strengths in order to develop a meaningful understanding of organizations and provide concrete evidence of the impact of corporate purpose on organizational outcomes.

A portrait of white progressivism: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s Americanah

ABSTRACT This article explores Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s novel Americanah (2013) as a work that intentionally engages “whiteness”. Specifically, it argues that Adichie’s novel trains its attention on white progressives in the USA – those segments of the white American community who are not overtly racist and who might even see themselves as empathetic allies and partners to the Black community. In doing so, it claims that Americanah surveys the range of practices, behaviours, and discourses of white progressives that quite often reproduce harmful (though perhaps unintended) effects like race evasion, racial defensiveness, paternalism and saviorism – habits that are deeply rooted in the way white Americans see themselves and others in society and that are difficult to address and dislodge. The article concludes that the novel is pessimistic about the possibility of any sustained and meaningful understanding and unity of social and political purpose between Black and African people and white progressives.

Using Indirect Speech Acts and Their Impacts on Creating a Conducive Workplace Environment

Communication at the workplace requires meaningful understanding because it affects the work relationship as well as the work atmosphere. Hence, expressions used to generate such conditions are supposed to embody a conducive environment. This research aimed to determine the types of indirect speech acts and their language functions. This study used a qualitative research with a descriptive design to depict the phenomenon. The subjects were three employees at PT. Bosowa Berlian Motor Makassar, who were chosen purposively considering their availability and their readiness during the data collection. The data were collected by using observation with audio recordings and the researchers themselves as the non-participant observers. The results of this study showed that there were five types of indirect speech acts and there were certain language functions practiced by the employees, they are: emphasizing and instructing (assertive type), telling a condition and commanding what to do (directive type), directing and checking for the appropriate work (commissive type), complaining and giving subtle offense (expressive type), and responding, telling information and encouraging (declarative type). All types and their functions revealed and occurred to meet the need of creating a conducive environment in the workplace. The five types represent the traits of being assertive, directive, trusted, expressive, and declarative along with their use of language functions. These traits bear positive and good atmosphere in the workplace. Thus, with the conducive working environment, the employees can undertake their tasks well and focus on reaching the target in the workplace.

Levelling Up, affective governance and tensions within ‘pride in place’

The ‘pride in place’ mission of the UK Government’s Levelling Up agenda has foregrounded the importance of feelings in local and national development strategies. While pride in place gestures to the emotional symptoms of geographical inequality and the so-called left behind, it does not address their structural causes. This article explores how the lens of pride, and the affective governance it demands, has been used to reimagine place in UK policy. We argue that governance has taken a therapeutic and palliative turn, and that the pride in place mission obscures ideological inconsistencies in policymaking. The article explains how the government’s narrow conception of pride as a mechanism of affective governance illustrates tensions in places at different scales: between national and local issues; between public and private spheres; and between individual and collective identities. It claims that a more meaningful understanding of pride must be predicated on people’s collective capacity for felt and emotional responses. Crucially, any metrics for pride must capture that complexity to help restore social infrastructure in places.

A Plea for (In)Human-centred AI

In this article, we use the account of the “inhuman” that is developed in the work of the French philosopher Jean-François Lyotard to develop a critique of human-centred AI. We argue that Lyotard’s philosophy not only provides resources for a negative critique of human-centred AI discourse, but also contains inspiration for a more constructive account of how the discourse around human-centred AI can take a broader view of the human that includes key dimensions of Lyotard’s inhuman, namely performativity, vulnerability, and novelty. We link these dimensions to questions of epistemic injustice and social recognition. In this way, we hope to develop a proposal for what a richer and more meaningful understanding of human-centred AI might look like.

Faitatala as a Teaching Tool in Science: Contextualizing the Teaching of Science in Samoa

International literature states that the emphasis of science education should be on inquiry learning, where students are encouraged to construct meaningful understanding of scientific concepts through the use of contextualised instructional strategies. In this paper, the author reports on the findings about the use of faitatala as a contextualised instructional tool in the teaching and learning of science in Samoa. Faitatala in this paper specifically highlights two fundamental processes that are relevant to science education in Samoa. The first explores the processes of faitatala (including active listening and speaking) while the second emphasizes the presentation of information. This paper evolved from recent studies in Year 12 chemistry classrooms which formulated the foundation for this study. Learning is an active participation in class activities, active listening and reflective practices supported by constructive and contextualised instructional strategies (Suaalii & Bhattacharya, 2007; Suaalii, 2013) and positive learning environments (Suaalii, 2021). Therefore, this study explored the implementation of a science course (HTE580) at the Faculty of Education, National University of Samoa. Through interviews and talanoa sessions, the research participants shared their perspectives about the use of the faitatala method in the teaching and learning of science. The findings identified constructive and reflective perceptions about the faitatala method as a teaching tool for science.

Engagement with art and meaning in life: the predictive roles of awe, interest, supernatural attributions

ABSTRACT Drawing from Aesthetic Cognitivism, the position that art can lead to meaningful understandings, we predicted that people with more interest in art, experiences of awe around art, and supernatural attributions for art experiences would have higher levels of meaning in life. In Study 1, we tested these hypotheses in three samples (n = 100 in each sample) with varying art expertise. Results showed the strongest support for hypotheses in samples with varying levels of art training. In Study 2, in an online sample with wide variation in art training (N = 1,862), we found strong support for hypotheses. In both studies, multiple regressions including covariates (aesthetic fluency, religious belief salience) showed unique associations mainly for awe around art. Overall, our results were consistent with Aesthetic Cognitivism, providing a rare empirical test of this theory, and pointed to psychological experiences with art as potentially relevant to life meaning.

Moving from the Business Case Towards an Equity-Based Approach: Theorizing Diversity and Inclusion in Open Strategy

A growing number of organizations open their strategy processes by including a more diverse set of actors. This has drawn scholarly interest and led to a field of research known as open strategy. In this paper, we problematize how open strategy research deploys diversity and inclusion without engaging with the diversity and inclusion literature that offers a more differentiated understanding of these concepts. We build on this literature to elucidate how most open strategy studies follow a business case approach wherein inclusion, and implicitly also diversity, are theorized based on their impact on strategy outcomes. We show how engaging with the diversity and inclusion literature allows open strategy scholars to move from the business case towards an alternative, equity-based approach. Adopting an equity-based approach widens the themes addressed in open strategy research to the reproduction of power relations and sustained inequalities in strategy making and thus contributes to a more societally meaningful and relevant understanding of diversity and inclusion in the strategy field.

High‐Throughput Screening of Low‐Bandgap Organic Semiconductors for Photovoltaic Applications: In the Search of Correlations

Low‐bandgap nonfullerene acceptors (NFAs) offer a unique potential for photovoltaic (PV) applications, such as transparent PV and agrivoltaics. Evaluating each new PV system to achieve the optimum thickness, microstructure, and device performance is, however, a complex multiparametric challenge with large time and resource requirements. Herein, the PV potential of low‐bandgap donor and NFA materials by combining high‐throughput screening and statistical methods is evaluated. The use of thickness gradients (20–600 nm) facilitates the fabrication of more than 2000 doctor‐bladed devices from 24 different low‐bandgap blend combinations. The corresponding power conversion efficiencies varies significantly, from 0.06% to 10.45% across materials and thicknesses. The self‐consistency of the large dataset allows to perform a parameter sensitivity study as well as parameter correlation analysis. These reveal that the choice of materials and energy alignment‐related features (i.e., electron affinity offset, ionization energy offset, bandgap, and energy loss) has the largest influence on final device performance, while processing conditions appear less important for the final efficiencies. Our study demonstrates that high‐throughput experimentation is a perfect match for correlation analyses in order to gain a statistically meaningful understanding of these systems, potentially accelerating the discovery of new materials.

The Use of Photo-Biological Parameters to Assess the Establishment Success of Posidonia oceanica Cuttings after Transplantation

Seagrass meadows are increasingly threatened by anthropogenic activities and climate change, necessitating restoration efforts such as cutting transplantation. Understanding the complex interactions between plant morphology and physiology is crucial for designing robust restoration strategies and assessing the success of transplantation and recovery processes. A pilot transplantation experiment with the Mediterranean seagrass Posidonia oceanica (L.) Delile was conducted in Northwestern Corsica (Calvi, France) to evaluate the feasibility of meadows degraded due to boat anchoring. The effects of the cuttings’ origin and transplanting depth were investigated. The establishment success of transplanted fragments was assessed by investigating the photo-physiological parameters, carbohydrate content, and biometric parameters of both transplanted and control plants one year after transplantation at depths of 20 and 28 m. After one year, there was a high survival rate (90%) of the transplants, but their leaf surface area and biomass were significantly reduced compared to the control plants. Photosynthetic activity remained consistent between both depths, emphasizing the ability of P. oceanica cuttings to acclimate to a new light environment in a relatively short period of time (<3 months). Furthermore, light-harvesting pigments, photoprotective pigments, and carbohydrate concentration were greater at the deeper sites. This implies that transplantation at greater depths might be more effective. Furthermore, additional research is necessary to enhance our understanding of the relationship between photosynthesis and the overall health of the plant. This study emphasizes the essential integration of morphological and physiological investigations to offer an ecologically meaningful understanding of how marine ecosystems respond to various restoration methods.

IF YOU COULD READ MY MIND: ON THE HISTORY OF MIND AND OTHER MATTERS

ABSTRACTIn The Primacy of Method in Historical Research: Philosophy of History and the Perspective of Meaning, Jonas Ahlskog presents a critical and lucid engagement with contemporary philosophies of history and makes a sustained case for a return to the ideas of history and social science as developed by R. G. Collingwood and Peter Winch. What philosophy needs again is, first, a recognition of the “primacy of method”—that is, the insight that what one knows about reality depends on how one knows it. Second, philosophers need to take “the duality of method” seriously again and to recognize that the modes of explanation in the human sciences and the natural sciences are categorically different from each other—especially now that this difference has been blurred in recent debates about the Anthropocene. Ahlskog's book is thus also a contribution to the classical debate about causal explanation versus meaningful understanding. On closer analysis, however, Ahlskog's “untimely meditations” on “historical method” suffer from an insufficient engagement with counterarguments. A first line of critique challenges the idea that human action cannot be explained causally. A second line of critique challenges the idea that all aspects of human action can be “understood,” because the unintended aspects and consequences of individual actions cannot. These require causal explanation. A third line of critique concerns Ahlskog's denial of the fundamental plurality of ideas of history and the social sciences. Squeezing this plurality into one philosophical mold comes at a price. Unintentionally, Ahlskog's “untimely meditations” also show that much.

Boolean Network Models of Human Preimplantation Development.

Single-cell transcriptomic studies of differentiating systems allow meaningful understanding, especially in human embryonic development and cell fate determination. We present an innovative method aimed at modeling these intricate processes by leveraging scRNAseq data from various human developmental stages. Our implemented method identifies pseudo-perturbations, since actual perturbations are unavailable due to ethical and technical constraints. By integrating these pseudo-perturbations with prior knowledge of gene interactions, our framework generates stage-specific Boolean networks (BNs). We apply our method to medium and late trophectoderm developmental stages and identify 20 pseudo-perturbations required to infer BNs. The resulting BN families delineate distinct regulatory mechanisms, enabling the differentiation between these developmental stages. We show that our program outperforms existing pseudo-perturbation identification tool. Our framework contributes to comprehending human developmental processes and holds potential applicability to diverse developmental stages and other research scenarios.

Periodontal Disease in Patients with Ischemic Stroke - an Exploratory Study.

The aim of this study was to assess the periodontal disease parameters in patients with ischemic stroke. The study included 21 patients with ischemic brain stroke and a control group that was matched in number, age, and gender. All participants underwent a standard periodontal examination. The inclusion criterion of this study was the presence of at least 15 teeth. Periodontal epithelial surface area, periodontal inflamed surface area (PISA), and periodontal disease stage were determined. All participants were given a questionnaire to determine oral health-related quality of life (OHQL). Stroke risk factors were assessed. Stroke patients had a significantly higher OHQL score than the control group (20.81 vs. 12.57) and a full-mouth plaque score (FMPS, 27.57 vs. 16.83), while full-mouth bleeding score (FMBS) was significantly higher in the control group than in the hospital group (10.17 vs. 6.42). For PISA, statistically significant negative correlations were found for smoking, cholesterol levels, and LDL levels, while significant positive correlations were found for FMBS, clinical attachment level and probing depth. Although PISA does represent the amount of periodontal tissue that is inflamed, tooth loss due to advanced periodontal disease combined with oral hygiene limitations imposed by the hospital setting and the stroke recovery process remain the most significant obstacles for a more meaningful understanding of the data represented by specific clinical, laboratory and various demographic parameters that characterize the two diseases.

Tongue feature recognition to monitor rehabilitation: deep neural network with visual attention mechanism.

We endeavor to develop a novel deep learning architecture tailored specifically for the analysis and classification of tongue features, including color, shape, and coating. Unlike conventional methods based on architectures like VGG or ResNet, our proposed method aims to address the challenges arising from their extensive size, thereby mitigating the overfitting problem. Through this research, we aim to contribute to the advancement of techniques in tongue feature recognition, ultimately leading to more precise diagnoses and better patient rehabilitation in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). In this study, we introduce TGANet (Tongue Feature Attention Network) to enhance model performance. TGANet utilizes the initial five convolutional blocks of pre-trained VGG16 as the backbone and integrates an attention mechanism into this backbone. The integration of the attention mechanism aims to mimic human cognitive attention, emphasizing model weights on pivotal regions of the image. During the learning process, the allocation of attention weights facilitates the interpretation of causal relationships in the model's decision-making. Experimental results demonstrate that TGANet outperforms baseline models, including VGG16, ResNet18, and TSC-WNet, in terms of accuracy, precision, F1 score, and AUC metrics. Additionally, TGANet provides a more intuitive and meaningful understanding of tongue feature classification models through the visualization of attention weights. In conclusion, TGANet presents an effective approach to tongue feature classification, addressing challenges associated with model size and overfitting. By leveraging the attention mechanism and pre-trained VGG16 backbone, TGANet achieves superior performance metrics and enhances the interpretability of the model's decision-making process. The visualization of attention weights contributes to a more intuitive understanding of the classification process, making TGANet a promising tool in tongue diagnosis and rehabilitation.

HUGPONG: Teaching as a Team in the Social Sciences (A Collaborative Strategy for Virtual Classroom Innovation)

The global pandemic inevitably changed the landscape of learning from the physical to the virtual classroom setup. The challenges for both academics and learners alike went beyond the technological aspect in navigating remote learning. It implied a need for pedagogical innovation to promote meaningful understanding among the learners and effective teaching delivery among practitioners. Using Braun and Clarke’s (2006) Thematic Analysis, this study zeroed in on Team Teaching as a Social Science Collaborative Strategy in the new normal. Best practices of academics across Cebu City's higher education institutions that utilize varied forms of team teaching were described and categorized. Results manifested varied forms of team teaching as virtual learning strategies came with a few challenges. As such, a teaching model, HUGPONG, aimed at facilitating collaborative teaching in the Social Sciences, was crafted.