Year Of Secondary School Research Articles

Differences in Swedish and Norwegian pre-service teachers’ explanations of solutions of linear equations

Solving linear equations is a cornerstone in the learning of algebra. There are two main strategies for solving a linear equation, ‘swap sides swap signs’ (SSSS) and ‘do the same to both sides’ (DSBS). While SSSS can often be more efficient for solving equations, DSBS has been shown to better promote the learning of algebra. Thus, the preference of SSSS or DSBS might depend on the purpose of solving equations. Since both approaches are common, mathematics teachers, and thus also pre-service teachers (PSTs), must be familiar with both SSSS and DSBS. This study draws on data from 161 Swedish and 146 Norwegian PSTs. They were given a correct but short and unannotated solution to the linear equation x + 5 = 4x − 1. The PSTs were invited to explain the provided solution for a fictive friend. Of the Norwegian PSTs, 2/3 explained the additive steps in the solution by SSSS, while only 1/3 of the Swedish PSTs applied SSSS. Consequently, DSBS was more frequent among the Swedish PSTs regarding the additive steps. However, in the final, multiplicative step, 3/4 of the Norwegian PSTs invoked DSBS. On the contrary, among the Swedish PSTs, the proportion applying DSBS for the multiplicative step decreased, and it was common to provide an incomplete explanation of the final operation. We also analysed how mathematics textbooks for secondary school presented how to solve linear equations. In Sweden, all textbooks utilised DSBS through the whole solution for all years in secondary school. This also applied for Norwegian textbooks for the first two years of lower secondary school. However, in last year of lower secondary school, they changed their approach and promoted an SSSS strategy in additive steps, while DSBS was still suggested for multiplicative steps. This might explain the differences between the two countries regarding the PSTs’ preferences of solution strategies. We suggest that these results can be useful for teacher education, since increased awareness of PSTs’ pre-knowledge is beneficial to support their development of teaching linear equations.

Immunogenicity and safety of Cervarix HPV-16/18 AS04-adjuvant vaccine against HPV induced cervical cancer in women (15+ years)

Background: The incidence of cervical cancer has decreased by over 50% from the mid-1970s to the mid-2000s. This is due in part to an increase in screening, which can identify cervical changes before they turn cancerous. Decreasing incidence rates in young women may be due to the use of the HPV vaccine. There are currently three types of HPV vaccines on the market: bivalent, quadrivalent and nine-valent HPV vaccines. These are administered in three-doses to both sexes from age 15 upwards to prevent HPV infection. Many medical systems support the vaccination of teenage girls and boys with HPV vaccines during their secondary school years in order to reduce the incidence of HPV-related cervical cancer in women. Despite the discovery of the link between HPV and cervical cancer in 1985, the beginning of vaccine production in 2002, and promotion of screening procedures since the 1960’s, cervical cancer is still the fourth most common cancer in women worldwide today. Objective: This review aims to analyse the immunogenicity and safety of Cervarix®, also known as HPV-16/18 AS04-adjuvant vaccine, in women (15+ years) against cervical cancer. Methods: The literature review analysing the effectiveness and immunogenicity of HPV-16/18 AS04-ADJUVANTED Vaccine against cervical cancer, was conducted by using two main databases: EbescoHost (Medline and Academic Search) and PubMed. Advanced searches were conducted using specific key words, various filters and Boolean operators ‘OR’ and ‘AND’ to find the most suitable literature. This process resulted in over 100 results. From this cohort, clinical trials were selected in accordance with the specific inclusion and exclusion criteria determined for the review. After duplicates from both databases were removed, the studies were assessed in order or title, population and objective relevance, and the top 10 most relevant articles to the title of the literature review, were selected for the literature review. Results: The 10 clinical trials selected all obtained a minimum of 10 out of the 11 CASP requirements indicating good study quality. All 10 studies were successful in proving the immunogenicity and safety of the HPV-16/18 AS04-adjuvant vaccine in protecting women 15+ (15-55 years) from developing HPV-induced cervical cancer [15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24]. This confers that vaccination against HPV-16/18 virus proves to be effective in preventing HPV-induced CIN and cervical cancer and is a safe to administer vaccine.

Gender and Lower Economic Status Moderate the Relation between Positive Youth Development and Mental Health.

Adolescent mental health problems account for almost half of overall health problems globally with a risk to mental health in adulthood. Since most mental health problems begin in adolescence, this developmental period should be a focus of strengths-based approach and prevention. The most researched positive youth development framework shown to be associated with youth mental health is The Five C model which distinguishes five indicators: competence, character, confidence, caring, and connection. The aim of the present study is to examine whether sociodemographic differences moderate the association of Five Cs positive youth development indicators and depression and anxiety symptoms in adolescence. The participants of the study were 3,438 students enrolled in the first year of secondary schools in Croatia who completed the Short Measure of the Five Cs, Depression Anxiety and Stress Scales and reported the perception of the socioeconomic status of their family. Gender and socioeconomic status main effects were shown for seven out of ten models with depression and anxiety as criterion variables. Results show that girls with lower levels of competence, confidence, and connection and lower socioeconomic status reported the highest depression and anxiety scores. These results imply that confidence, competence, and connection could be sensitive to equality and distribution of resources for youth. Reducing youth mental health problems should include social justice perspective and more available public services for families. Supportive environments are key for positive development; therefore, promotive and preventive efforts should target factors operating on societal level as well.

Cyber offending in adolescence: The role of knowledge and experiences online on propensity to engage in unauthorised access

Cyber crime is a relatively new but quickly evolving crime type, and there is particular concern about the number of young people becoming involved in cyber crime, who may be at the start of a pathway into more serious and persistent cyber offending. The current study aimed to examine Computer Misuse Act (CMA) experiences and knowledge amongst secondary school pupils. Six-hundred-and-fifty-one pupils in secondary school years 10–13 (ages 14 to 18) took part in one of 29 outreach engagement sessions delivered by police officers. The sessions aimed to deter and divert young people from engaging or persisting in cyber offending and included information about the CMA and the potential consequences of committing CMA offences. Almost a third (30.6%) of pupils who took part reported that they had accessed another person's account without permission, two-thirds (62.5%) reported that they had been booted off a game previously, and 37.6% had experienced a data breech. As predicted, previous experience of online victimisation was associated with a greater likelihood of an individual going onto engage in unauthorised access themselves. Contrary to predictions, there was no association between pupils' online presence (as determined by their use of more than five online services) and engaging in authorised access. Surprisingly, better knowledge of the CMA was associated with an increased likelihood of engagement in unauthorised access. It may be that perceived risk, rather than awareness of illegality, is key, although further research is needed to confirm this. Empirical and policy implications of findings are discussed.

Math and German motivation transitions in early adolescence

BackgroundSome students are more motivated that others in one or multiple academic domains, and more motivated in one domain than another. These inner hierarchies of motivational beliefs are important because they can influence students’ achievement and study or career choices. However, little is known about the heterogeneity in inner hierarchies of motivational beliefs during early secondary school, when motivation typically declines. AimsThe aims of this study were to (1) identify profiles of self-concept and intrinsic value in mathematics and German during the first two years of secondary school, (2) explore stability and change in these profiles, and (3) explore how profile membership relates to student competence and gender, and perceived teacher behaviour. SampleParticipants were 721 secondary school students from Germany. MethodsStudents completed measures of self-concept, intrinsic value, and competence in grades 5 and 6, and measures of perceived teacher behaviour in grade 5. Data were analysed using latent transition analysis. ResultsFive profiles characterised by inter- and intraindividual differences in self-concept and intrinsic value were identified. Membership in these profiles was relatively stable. Inner hierarchies of self-concept and value were related to competence, with students demonstrating higher competence in domains they were more motivated in. Gender and perceived teacher behaviour were related to profile membership, but not profile transitions. ConclusionsWhen supporting the motivational development of students during the first two years of secondary school, teachers may need to adopt a holistic approach that recognises the heterogeneity in students’ inner hierarchies of motivational beliefs.

EFEKTIVITAS MODUL PEMBELAJARAN MATEMATIKA BERBASIS ELEKTRONIK DALAM MENINGKATKAN KEMAMPUAN LITERASI NUMERASI SISWA

This research focuses on examining the level of effectiveness of mathematics learning e-modules in improving students' abilities in the field of numeracy literacy, especially at the initial level in the secondary school years. Based on the quasi-experimental design used and then using the one group pretest-posttest formula, this research is included in the experimental category. The population group for this study were grade 7 students at SMP Negeri 13 Malang, and the sample consisted of 20 grade 7A students. The sampling technique used is purposive non probability type. Quantitative data in this research was collected through tests using pretest and posttest sheets. Data analysis was carried out using a paired t-test using the SPSS program and the gain value formula. Based on the research results, it is known that the t-test significance level is 0.002, which means that the significance value is less than 0.05. As for the calculation of the gain value, the result was 0.4 or equivalent to the medium level effective category. So it is concluded that the e-learning module is effective in improving students' abilities in the numeracy literacy aspect.

Changes in Rates of Special Considerations in Higher Education Applications Pre- and During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Victoria, Australia.

Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, a significant rise in mental ill health has been observed globally in young people, particularly those in their final years of secondary school. Students' negative experiences coincide with a critical transitional period which can disrupt milestones in social and educational development. This study aimed to use innovative population-level data to map the impact of the pandemic on students entering higher education. Pre-pandemic (2019/2020) and pandemic (2020/2021) tertiary education application data were obtained from the Victorian Tertiary Admissions Centre. Prevalence of applications for special consideration related to mental ill health were compared between cohorts across various geographical areas and applicant demographic subgroups. Relative risk regression models were used to understand the role of different risk factors. Rates of mental health-related special consideration applications increased by 38% among all applications (pre-pandemic: 7.8%, n = 56 916; pandemic: 10.8%, n = 58 260). Highest increases were observed among students in areas with both extended and close-quarter lockdown experiences, and areas impacted by 2019/2020 black summer bushfires. The increases were higher among Year 12 students and students with other special consideration needs (e.g., physical condition, learning disability). Slightly higher increases were observed in areas with higher socio-economic status, which may potentially be related to inequality in mental health service access. As consequences of mental health difficulties and academic disruption in youth can be long lasting, it is critical to establish a mental health support framework both in and outside of higher education to facilitate young people's recovery from the pandemic.

Developing critical thinking test for adolescents: A validity and reliability study from the Czech Republic

This article presents a comprehensive validation study of a Critical Thinking Test (CTT) conducted among Czech adolescents in 2023. It offers valuable insights into the psychometric properties, correlations, and predictors associated with analytical, evaluative and inferential abilities of critical thinking. While there are tools available for measuring critical thinking, they tend to be lengthy and inaccessible in the Czech language. Our study seeks to address this gap by developing a concise and effective tool that students can complete within a single class period. Our study is based on a large sample of Czech adolescents in their first year of secondary school (N = 9,495), which allows us to apply Item Response Theory (IRT), which is the best method for validation. The results showed that the abbreviated 33-item version of the CTT is a reliable and valid instrument that measures three distinct abilities (analysis, evaluation, and inference) that are highly correlated. Limitations and implications for the use of the instrument are discussed.

Middle Childhood Sport Participation Predicts Timely Long-Term Chances of Academic Success in Boys and Girls by Late Adolescence.

School age children experience successive academic demands which increase over time. Extracurricular sport develops skills which involve physical movement, social rules, formal practice, and rational competition. This may facilitate success. Using a prospective-longitudinal birth cohort of 746 girls/721 boys, we examined prospective associations between middle childhood sport participation with subsequent indicators of academic success in adolescence. We hypothesized that persistent participation would promote long-term achievement indicators. Mothers reported on whether the child participated in sporting activities with a coach/instructor from ages 6 to 10 years. Developmental trajectories of participation were generated using longitudinal latent class analysis and then used to predict outcomes. From ages 12 to 17 years, youth self-reported on academic indicators of success over the last 6 months. These were linearly regressed on trajectories of participation in sport, while controlling for pre-existing and concurrent child/family confounds. Children's sport participation from kindergarten to fourth grade predicted long-term chances of academic success in boys and girls, above and beyond individual/family confounders. Consistent participation predicted increments indicators of future success and reductions in academic failure and dropout risk through to the senior year of secondary school, ranging from 9.1% to 21.3% for girls and 11.7% to 22.9% for boys. We provide compelling and timely evidence of long-term associations between children's sport participation and subsequent indicators of academic success in typically developing boys and girls by late adolescence. Persistent sport involvement in sport increased educational prospects by late adolescence, potentially improving opportunities for success in emerging adulthood.

Political emotions in a literature classroom

ABSTRACT The democratic potential of literature education has often been accentuated. In this article, we draw on Gert Biesta’s subjectification conception of democratic education, and view democracy as a concept open for (re)negotiation in the classroom. We are informed by Chantal Mouffe’s agonistic democratic theory, and its view of dissent as a foundational aspect of democracy, in that the struggle itself constitutes the identities of the opponents. Agonistic proposals for democratic education also pay attention to political emotions in the classroom. We pair agonism with Sara Ahmed’s view of emotion as performative to explore how power, identity and emotions are entangled in a student group and how this entanglement is integrated in the students’ conceptions of democracy. The students were in their last year of upper secondary school in Sweden. We analysed audio recordings from three group interviews with a total of eleven students. The interviews followed a literary discussion about the short story ‘Farangs’ by Rattawut Lapcharoensap, which was video recorded. The analysis shows that students referred to emotion when constructing the collective identities of themselves and their opponents, and that the power relations between these collective identities influenced what literary interpretations were centred in the discussion.

Academic Profile of Teachers Affected by Poor Performances in Philosophy in the Final Year of Secondary School in Yaounde and Mbalmayo, Cameroon

Objective: The aim of this article is to examine the extent to which the teacher's academic profile can help to improve the performances of students in the final year of literary classes in philosophy. Methodology: This article is part of the field of Education Sciences, specifically in Discipline Didactics. The study is of an experimental type, centred on the reality of the educational facts that surround the practice of teaching philosophy. With the help of measuring instruments such as the questionnaire, test papers and observation guide, this approach made it possible to understand the determinants of performances in philosophy mentioned above. Results: The academic profile of the teacher constitutes a fundamental characteristic in the teaching practice of a discipline. Thus, in organised and structured teaching systems, only those who have the aptitudes to teach can really be admitted to teaching. This presupposes initial training in the subject coupled with appropriate professional training. In this way, we can partly understand the public authorities' demand for a selection process to recruit and train philosophy teachers. Discussion: The teaching of philosophy is based on a requirement of qualification and academic profile for the teacher, although it is more often referred to as a matter of vocation. In any case, a teacher with a vocation, unless he or she is gifted, is first and foremost concerned with training, with a view to practicing the profession of his or her heart with passion. This training predisposes them not only to be masters of their subject, but also to be able to overcome the socio-professional hazards characteristic of the educational environment. Conclusion: Philosophy is the subject in which students in the final year of secondary school perform worst. Consequently, this subject is increasingly feared and considered by learners to be their ‘bête noire’. Consequently, students' performances in philosophy can be improved thanks to ........

Development and validation of Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health- Knowledge, Attitude, and Self-Efficacy Questionnaires (ASRH-KASeQ).

The tools to measure knowledge, attitudes, and self-efficacy related to adolescent sexual and reproductive health have been developed, but with adolescent subjects over 15 years old and with specific topics. The needs and focus of SRH education in adolescents are different from those of young adults. This study aimed to develop a valid and reliable tool to measure adolescents' knowledge, attitude, and self-efficacy regarding SRH. A total of 100 items were developed based on a literature search, focus group discussion, and expert panel encompassing three domains: knowledge, attitude, and self-efficacy. The Adolescent Sexual andReproductive Health- Knowledge, Attitude, and Self-Efficacy Questionnaires (ASRH-KASeQ) then underwent a validation process that included content validity, face validity, and internal consistency reliability. This study was conducted on adolescents aged 12-15 years in secondary school in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. All statistical methods were analyzed using STATA software. The average content validity (S-CVI/Ave) and face validity (S-FVI/Ave) for knowledge, attitude, and self-efficacy demonstrated good validity with scores of 0.93 and 0.94, 0.92 and 0.96, and 0.95 and 0.96, respectively. The internal consistency reliability using Cronbach's alpha for the knowledge, attitude, and self-efficacy domains exceeded 0.6, with results of 0.7, 0.81, and 0.89, which were considered acceptable. The final set of ASRH-KASeQ consisted of 100 items measuring knowledge (40 items), attitude (30 items), and self-efficacy (30 items) of adolescents SRH. ASRH-KASeQ was shown to be a reliable and valid tool for Indonesian adolescents, especially those aged 12-15 years.

A comparative study of status of mood, resilience, and confidence of athlete vs. non-athlete students (between 14-18 years) of higher secondary school, in Delhi NCR

A comparative study of status of mood, resilience, and confidence of athlete vs. non-athlete students (between 14-18 years) of higher secondary school, in Delhi NCR

Effect of an inquiry-based teaching sequence on secondary school students’ understanding of wave optics

Wave optics is a mandatory part of Croatian secondary school physics curriculum for students in the final year of secondary school (age 18–19). Many physics education research studies have shown that it is a difficult physics topic for both university and secondary school students. An inquiry-based teaching sequence on wave optics, designed for eight 45-min teaching periods, was developed by the authors. The sequence included four investigative students’ experiments on the topics of interference, diffraction, and polarization of light, as well as several teacher demonstrations. The experimental group included six classes of students from six different Croatian urban secondary schools, who underwent the teaching intervention with the new inquiry-based sequence on wave optics, whereas the control group consisted of six classes from the same schools, taught in a predominantly lecturing way. Both groups were post-tested with the same instrument, the Conceptual Survey on Wave Optics (CSWO), to evaluate the research hypothesis that the new sequence might improve students’ conceptual understanding better than the traditional teaching. The results of the experimental and control groups were analyzed and compared using the Rasch analysis. The results show that the experimental group outperformed the control group in four out of five conceptual areas probed by the CSWO, suggesting that the new inquiry-based teaching sequence may contribute to stronger development of secondary school students’ conceptual understanding of wave optics, especially concerning typical wave optics patterns, reasoning from experiments, and explaining basic wave optics phenomena. A questionnaire on attitudes toward the teaching intervention was administered to students and it was found that students generally liked the inquiry-based teaching intervention and expressed positive attitudes to interactive, experimental, and collaborative aspects of physics teaching. The results are very promising, but their generalization may be limited by the selection of the students, as well as by the short duration of the teaching intervention and the relatively small breadth of the covered topics. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

العلاقة بين حفظ القرآن الكريم لدى الطالبات للصف الثاني من المتوسطة وقدرتهن على استيعاب المفردات العربية بمعهد عبد الله بن مسعود آساهن

What is meant by vocabulary comprehension is a person's ability to use the vocabulary he possesses to communicate and express ideas with the listener, whether in writing or orally. This ability appears when developing linguistic skills such as speaking skill, listening skill, writing skill, and reading good Arabic. The meaning of memorizing the Qur’an is the attempt to enter the verses of the Qur’an into the chest and preserve it from loss and forgetfulness and to try to read it without fault, that is, without looking at the Holy Qur’an, ensuring it, preparing it, and being upright in it. Preserving what has been memorized, protecting it from loss, preventing it from forgetfulness, mental loss, and loss, and being present must have knowledge of Arabic. From it is impossible for someone who meditates on the Holy Qur’an without knowledge of the Arabic language. Research question: Is there a relationship between memorizing the Holy Qur’an among female students in the second grade of middle school and their ability to comprehend vocabulary at the Abdullah bin Masoud Asahi Institute? What was its strength and direction? The aim of writing this research is to find out the relationship between memorizing the Holy Qur’an among female students in the second year of school. Intermediate level and his ability to comprehend vocabulary at the Abdullah bin Masoud Asahi Institute. The method used in this research is the quantitative relational method and the research method used is the statistical method with a program and the result of this research is that there is a moderate relationship between memorizing the Holy Qur’an among female students in the second year of middle school and their ability to comprehend vocabulary at the Abdullah bin Masoud Asahi Institute. The value of the coefficient. The correlation is 0,476 and its direction is the same.

The Dynamic Relationships between Educational Expectations and Science Learning Performance among Students in Secondary School and Their Later Completion of a STEM Degree.

The educational expectations of students for themselves have been commonly corroborated to directly predict their higher academic performance. Nevertheless, some recent research has reported that the academic performance of students may also contribute to their better development of educational expectations. Moreover, more advanced but limited research has argued that both the educational expectations and academic performance of students are developmental and changeable over time rather than fixed and stable. Due to the importance of students' science learning performance during the years of secondary school in relation to their later STEM development in adulthood, the current study is intended to investigate how the developmental and growth trajectories of students' educational expectations and science learning performance reciprocally affect each other directly and inversely in secondary school and then later contribute to their successful completion of a STEM degree in adulthood. Based on the six-wave panel data containing a nationally representative sample of adolescent students from the Longitudinal Study of American Youth (LSAY), the current study was conducted by parallel-process latent growth curve modeling (PP-LGCM) and found that both the developmental and growth trajectories of students' educational expectations and science learning performance were mutually predictive of each other across the years of secondary school, which then contributed to their later higher likelihood of successful completion of a STEM degree in adulthood. In addition, the conditional direct PP-LGCM model, which is to model the effects of students' educational expectations on their science learning performance, and the conditional inverse PP-LGCM model, which is to model the effects of students' science learning performance on their educational expectations, showed significant within- and cross-domain effects differently. The implications of the study findings related to educational reforms and policy designs are discussed.

Influence of Neglectful Parenting Approaches on Self-esteem of Teenagers Aged 13-19 Years in Selected Day Secondary Schools in Lari Sub County in Kiambu County, Kenya

Purpose: Parents play a critical role in influencing the self-esteem of teenagers. The main aim of the study was to investigate how neglectful parenting approaches influence the self-esteem of teenagers aged 13- 19 years in day secondary schools in Lari Sub County, in Kiambu County, Kenya. Methodology: The researcher used a concurrent correlational research design. In this approach both qualitative and quantitative data collection strategies were used simultaneously to investigate the relationship between the variables. The target population was 4500 students. The sample size was 1280 participants. Questionnaires and structured interviews guides were used for data collection Stratified and Simple random sampling techniques were used to select the accessible study population. The qualitative data was collected using interview guides and presented thematically in narrative form. At the univariate level, the quantitative data was analyzed using (SPSS) software version 27 and presented in tables. At the bivariate level Pearson’s product moment correlation coefficient was used to obtain correlations and significance. Findings: From the descriptive findings 38.7% of the teenagers from neglectful parents are experiencing unhealthy self-esteem.24.0% of teenagers from authoritative parents have a healthy self-esteem. 37.3% of the teenagers had moderate self-esteem. The results also indicate that out of 1200 respondents (371) 30.9% of respondents had good experiences with their parents. 117(9.8%) had moderate experiences with their parents and 712(59.3%) had antagonistic experiences with their parents. From the inferential findings a statistically significant relationship was also found between neglectful parenting approach and teenage self-esteem, (r =0.740, p =.000). From thematic findings presented in narrative mode from school and peer counsellors, it was evident that neglectful parenting dominates the Lari Sub County region since most of the clients had unfavorable experiences with their parents. Few have lovely experiences with their parents. Unique Contribution to Theory, Practice and Policy: The research was guided by the Albert Bandura Social Learning Theory. The theory provides insight that during their initial interaction with their family children observe and learn from the actions and behaviors of caregivers or parents. Therefore, decent actions, words and behaviors from parent’s influence positively the self-esteem of teenagers. The teenagers feel good, secure and loved to be part of a warm and loving family which gives them confidence to explore their world and try new things. However, toxic words, actions and behaviors in parental relationships with teenagers influence negatively the self-esteem of many teenagers. The study recommended that policy makers in the state department of early childhood education in Lari Sub County should embrace programs to educate teenagers on healthy ways to adapt to unfriendly experiences with neglectful parents since they cannot change them but they can only build their individual self-esteem. It also recommends that parents to be educated on the need to embrace authoritative parenting strategies to cultivate health self-esteem of teenagers.

Body image, eating distress and emotional-behavioral difficulties among adolescents in Mbarara, Southwestern Uganda

BackgroundAdolescents frequently have emotional and behavioral difficulties as they struggle with the challenges of transition from childhood to adulthood. Many struggle with issues of body image and eating distress as they deal with the difficult and frequently perplexing changes that occur with puberty. Yet there is surprisingly little research on the emotional and behavioral challenges, as well as body image and eating distress among this sizable population in Uganda. This study sought to assess attitudes and behaviors related to body image and eating distress, as well as emotional and behavioral difficulties among adolescents in Mbarara, Southwestern Uganda.MethodsThis was a cross-sectional study among 788 adolescents aged 13 to 19 years in secondary schools in Mbarara city and Mbarara district in south-western Uganda. The study employed the Body Image and Eating Distress scale to assess attitudes and behaviors about dieting and body shape and the extended version of the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) to assess for perceived emotional and behavioral difficulties. Logistic regression was used to identify the association between body image and eating distress and perceived difficulties.ResultsThe prevalence of high body image and eating distress was 10.8% while that of perceived emotional and behavioral difficulties was 45.8%. Some of the adolescents (16.1%) were dissatisfied with their body shape, 24.6% exercised a lot to avoid gaining weight, 15.0% were terrified to gain even a little weight, and 12.1% could not control their eating. More males reported eating large amounts of food at one time (p = < 0.001). Having emotional and behavioral difficulties (aOR: 1.89; 95% CI: 1.18 – 3.02; p = 0.019) and coming from a two-parent household (aOR: 1.79; 95% CI: 1.10 – 2.92; p = 0.019) increased the odds of high body image and eating distress.ConclusionHigh levels of body image and eating distress are linked to behavioral and emotional problems and adolescent’s family structure. Clinicians who treat adolescents should use a holistic care strategy and be aware of the high prevalence and close association between emotional and behavioral difficulties, concerns about weight, and dieting. It is important to encourage parental involvement and support in providing information about mental health issues among adolescents.

Self-determination across the secondary-school years: how teachers and curriculum policy affect language learners’ motivation

ABSTRACT Motivation is argued to be a critical predictor of language learning success, but it is not clear whether motivation is equally relevant across compulsory and optional language education contexts. This study explored the motivation of adolescent Anglophone students of other languages across secondary school year groups with a particular interest in the impact of choice and curricular structure. Based on Self-Determination Theory, we developed a model that maintains that perceptions of autonomy support predict learners' sense of autonomy, in turn enhancings motivation. Through a survey of 1775 students aged 11-16, we tested whether this model holds for learners from different year groups, and in later years, across those in schools with and without mandatory language education. We found that all learners reported less autonomy frustration and were more likely to report a more autonomous form of language learning motivation if they perceived their language teacher as autonomy-supportive, but that as learners progressed through school perceptions of autonomy support declined. Further, we found that motivation was strongly associated with curriculum policies providing choice. These differences in motivational profiles across year group have implications for how teachers might support students' across different years and for programmatic adaptations that might facilitate students' learning.

Validation of an Arabic version of the short form of the health literacy in dentistry scale: a cross-sectional study

BackgroundThe Arabic version of the short form of the Health Literacy in Dentistry scale (HeLD) had not yet been developed in previously published studies. This study aims to test the reliability and validity of an Arabic version of the short form of the HeLD questionnaire.MethodsThe short version of HeLD was translated into Arabic and the psychometric properties were evaluated in a sample of 1,889 female students in their first year of secondary school. Test–retest reliability was assessed using the intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC), and internal consistency reliability was assessed using Cronbach’s alpha. Content validity was investigated by creating a correlation matrix between the individual items of the HeLD-14, and criterion validity was determined using Pearson’s correlation between the HeLD-14 score and an overall oral health rating. Sensitivity analysis was assessed by testing the associations of the HeLD-14 score with oral health-related behaviours and residential area.ResultsThe Arabic version of HeLD-14 (A-HeLD-14) had acceptable ICC (0.54) and excellent internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha: 0.92). The correlations between the items of the A-HeLD-14 varied from 0.3 to 0.9. The A-HeLD-14 showed a statistically significant correlation with the overall oral health rating (r = 0.37, p < 0.001). The median A-HeLD-14 score was significantly higher in participants who brushed their teeth frequently (51.31), visited the dentist regularly (52.00), consumed fresh fruit frequently (51) and consumed soda or energy drinks infrequently (51.00) than participants who brushed their teeth infrequently (41.50), visited the dentist irregularly (49.00), consumed fresh fruit infrequently (47) and consumed soda or energy drinks frequently (48.00).ConclusionThe A-HeLD-14 instrument demonstrates sufficient validity, reliability, and sensitivity for measuring oral health literacy among the Arabic-speaking population.