Slovenian Students Research Articles

Attitudes of Slovenian students towards whole-body donation, organ donation, and the use of donated bodies in medical education

BackgroundAnatomical dissection of whole bodies donated for teaching and research purposes remains a cornerstone of medical education. However, evolving sociocultural and ethical landscapes have historically influenced this practice, necessitating ongoing research to inform and enhance donation programs. This study examines the Slovenian students’ attitudes and factors influencing their decision-making regarding body and organ donation for medical education.Materials and MethodsAn anonymous cross-sectional cohort study was conducted at the University of Ljubljana using a 28-item questionnaire to assess student attitudes toward post-mortem whole-body and organ donation, as well as their perceptions of anatomical dissection in medical training and research. A five-point Likert scale was employed to evaluate attitudinal responses and identify underlying influencing factors.ResultsAnalysis of 1528 student responses revealed significant differences in attitudes toward body and organ donation based on religious affiliation and anatomy course completion. Catholic students exhibited statistically lower levels of support and registration for donation compared to agnostic and atheist students (p < 0.001). A willingness to donate their bodies for teaching and research purposes was reported by 33.1% of participants. Notably, 26.3% would recommend whole-body donation to a family member, 27.9% to a friend, and 31.8% to a member of the general public. Students who had completed an anatomy course demonstrated a significantly higher likelihood of registering for organ donation (p = 0.003), yet were less inclined to donate their bodies for teaching and research due to concerns regarding the treatment of donated bodies.ConclusionDespite general support for organ and body donation, registration rates among Slovenian students remain low, including among those exposed to anatomy courses. We propose integrating end-of-life education, humanistic perspectives, and donor commemorative ceremonies into medical curricula to foster trust, ethical awareness, and advocacy for donation.

Depression, anxiety, and help-seeking among Slovenian postsecondary students during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The COVID-19 pandemic has faced students with many challenges, contributing to their mental distress. This article explores the role of demographic characteristics, psychological status, year of study, and social support during the COVID-19 pandemic in explaining Slovenian university students' mental health problems and help-seeking behavior. In February and March 2021, data were collected on 5,234 full-time Slovenian postsecondary students who were enrolled in public and concessionary independent higher education institutions. Participants completed a questionnaire, which included The Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), General Anxiety Disorder questionnaire (GAD-7), Oslo Social Support Scale (OSSS-3), and items measuring psychological status, help-seeking behavior and demographics. Data were analyzed using multiple linear regression and hypothesis testing for differences. Factors, such as gender, age, psychological status and social support, contributed to experiencing anxiety and depression among Slovenian students during the COVID-19 pandemic, with year of study additionally contributing to experiencing depression. Similarly, gender, age, psychological status and social support contributed to help-seeking behavior. Higher levels of depression and anxiety were reported by female students, students with prior mental disorders, and students with lower social support levels. Female students and students with lower social support levels reported more frequent help-seeking behaviors. The results provide insight into the mental state of the Slovenian student population in the context of imposed public health measures at the end of the second COVID-19 wave in Slovenia. The findings can help identify vulnerable groups within the student population to whom we must be particularly attentive in times of crisis.

Lesson from the Covid-19 pandemic: do fear and anxiety lower vaccination hesitancy?

Abstract Background The prevalence of vaccination hesitancy has become one of the top ten global health problems. During the Covid-19 pandemic several studies reported negative correlation of vaccination hesitancy with fear of Covid-19 and anxiety. Therefore, the study aimed to explore how fear and anxiety can impact one’s intent to get vaccinated. Methods In 2021, data from 5999 post-secondary Slovenian students was gathered using a cross-sectional online survey. Binary logistic regression and the Sprearman correlation coefficient was used to explore the relation between Fear of Covid-19 Scale (FCOV), Generalized Anxiety Disorder Questionnaire (ANX) and a question regarding participants’ intentions to get vaccinated. Results Results showed that only 39.7% of students expressed intention to get vaccinated as soon as possible and 29.2% exhibited no intentions to do so. Logistic regression indicated that only FCOV had a mild and significant (p &amp;lt; 0.001) impact on students’ intentions to get vaccinated, whereas ANX was found to have only a weak significant (p &amp;lt; 0.01) effect on students’ intentions to do so. Similarly, ANOVA test showed significant differences with small to medium effect of FCOV on intentions to get vaccinated, but no significant differences were found for ANX. Conclusions A low percentage of Slovenian tertiary students expressed intentions to get vaccinated as soon as possible for Covid-19, with only fear having been found to have a small to mild effect on students’ intentions to do so. Anxiety, on the other hand, was found to have a small positively predictive effect on vaccination hesitancy, which could reflect affective forecasting error (i.e. believing that the negative consequences of getting vaccinated would be greater than they really are). Therefore, when considering strategies to address the increasing problem of vaccination hesitancy, one must keep in mind that the loss-framed messages might not be sufficient to prompt people to get vaccinated. Key messages • Fear of Covid-19 had only a small to medium significant positive effect on students’ expressed intentions to get vaccinated as soon as possible. • The loss-framed messages might not be sufficient to prompt people to get vaccinated.

Assessing 15-year-olds’ Understanding of Chemical Concepts in the Context of the Lithosphere and Pedosphere

The aim of this study was to determine the understanding of environmental chemistry content related to lithosphere and pedosphere, such as soil and soil types, soil horizons, rock and rock types, weathering, minerals, coal, and soil erosion, and to investigate misconceptions among 9th grade lower secondary school students. 503 students (254 male and 249 female) from 14 different primary schools and 8 different regions of Slovenia participated in this study. A three-tier achievement test (with 10 three-tier tasks to identify misconceptions) was used to collect the data. The results how that the Slovenian students’ knowledge of the lithosphere and pedosphere is adequate. On average, students achieved 55.6% of all possible points. The lowest level of knowledge was found for the topic of soil formation. The number of misconceptions on this topic is low and does not exceed 30% for any task. The highest number of misconceptions was found for the topic of soil formation and pollution.

Typing Fluencies of 12–13-Year-Old Students with Dyslexia and Peers with Typical Development

Several factors can impede the writing process of students with dyslexia. One recommended adjustment to help them overcome these writing challenges is the use of personal computers for writing. The research underscores the significance of effective keyboarding skills in optimizing the benefits of computer-based writing for these students, with touch-typing being the frequently recommended typing technique. Although research findings point to various reasons that indicate that students with dyslexia may face difficulties in developing fluent touch-typing skills, we found a lack of research in this area. In order to address this gap, in our study we examined and compared 12–13-year-old Slovenian students with dyslexia and their typically developing peers in terms of their existing, self-taught typing technique fluency, the fluency achieved in learning touch-typing and the fluency achieved in learning a simple finger-typing task. We found a significant difference between handwritten and self-taught typing fluency of students with dyslexia, with handwriting being a more fluent form of transcription. The results of students with dyslexia are significantly lower from their peers in handwriting fluency, self-taught typing fluency, touch-typing fluency and simple finger-typing task fluency. However, the learning trends for touch-typing and the simple finger-typing task do not differ between the groups of students. We comment on the differences found and make suggestions when considering typing as an additional or alternative transcription mode.

The Relationship Between the Daily Use of Digital Technologies and the Reading and Information Literacy Skills of 15-Year-Old Students

&lt;p style="text-align:justify"&gt;Digital technologies in all forms have become ubiquitous in our media-rich, modern information society, but the connection between their use and information literacy is not always clear. This paper examines the impact of daily use of digital technologies on the reading and information literacy skills of 15-year-old students in Slovenia, based on data from the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2018 study. The study examines PISA 2018 variables related to Information and Communication Technologies (ICT), as well as a reading task involving the use of ICT. The sample consists of 2612 Slovenian students with a gender distribution of 50.8% girls and 49.2% boys. The study explores students' experiences, enjoyment, self-efficacy, autonomy, and independence in using ICT and learning about its use and identifies two groups of students: one group that is curious and another that is cautious. The results of confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and structural equation modelling (SEM) show that the constructs of enjoyment, self-efficacy, learning, autonomy, and independence are highly/strongly correlated but have a low/insignificant impact on information literacy skills.&lt;/p&gt;

Digital Tools for the Correct Use of the Slovenian Language in Mathematic Classes in Secondary Vocational School

Electronic grammar and spelling-checking tools can be valuable for improving language skills in both spoken and written communication. These tools, such as Language Tool and Editor in Word, offer grammar and spelling suggestions for correction, while applications such as InstaText or Grammarly can analyse word usage and sentence structure in a particular language, such as English. The aim of this article is to explore useful tools available to Slovenian students to improve their writing skills. It examines the tools that students use to improve their writing and the extent to which they use modern technology to do so. The present study is based on triangulation and survey. The research was carried out at the Secondary Vocational and Technical School of Mechanical Engineering, where the author teaches mathematics. A total of 57 students responded to the survey. We found that students know about online portals for text improvement, but they don't use them. A few of them know about and use word editors. The reasons for this vary, including limited awareness of the usefulness of the tool, lack of motivation, or the understanding that these tools are tools rather than substitutes for developing writing skills. To address this issue, it is crucial to raise students' awareness of how electronic tools can help to improve grammar and writing skills. Encouraging their use during the learning process is essential. However, it is equally important to emphasise the importance of regular writing practice and learning from mistakes as essential components of skill development.

Students’ Attitudes toward Immigrants: An Analysis of ICCS Data

Purpose: This study investigates changes in students’ attitudes toward immigrants among 14-year-old students in Slovenia, between the International Civic and Citizenship Education Study (ICCS) cycles of 2009 and 2016. Additionally, it explores the relationship between civic knowledge and attitudes toward immigrants. Study design/methodology/approach: The study performed descriptive statistics and further linear regression analysis to investigate the relationship between civic knowledge and students’ attitudes toward immigrants. Findings: The results show that attitudes toward immigrants have become slightly more positive between the two cycles in Slovenia, but the differences are not statistically significant. Civic knowledge is positively related to attitudes toward immigrants in both cycles. These findings are consistent with previous studies, highlighting the importance of education in promoting positive attitudes toward immigrants and the need for continuous evaluation of educational policies and practices to improve attitudes toward immigrants in Slovenia and beyond. Originality/value: The originality and value of this study lie in its focus on Slovenian students' attitudes toward immigrants and their relationship with civic knowledge, by analyzing data from two ICCS cycles.

Stereotypical Images of Ukrainians and Russians in a HumanitarianCrisis: Multicultural Perspectives

RESEARCH OBJECTIVE: This article aims to map the stereotypical image of Ukrainians and Russians from a cross-cultural perspective in the context of the ongoing armed conflict.&#x0D; RESEARCH PROBLEM AND METHODS: The research problem concerns the cultural differences that are revealed in the perception of representatives of the two nationalities that are involved in the armed conflict. Since stereotypical judgements are most often revealed in language, an adjective check list was used for the study. A sample of 92 Polish and Slovenian students took part in the study. The collected linguistic material was used to analyse and compare cross-cultural stereotypical judgements about Ukrainian and Russian citizens.&#x0D; THE PROCESS OF ARGUMENTATION: The argument begins with theoretical perspectives on the concept of stereotyping and the process of stereotyping. The role of language in the stereotyping process is analysed. An analysis of the results and conclusions is presented.&#x0D; RESEARCHRESULTS: In general, Polish students attribute fewer positive adjectives than Slovenian students to both Ukrainians and Russians. The analysis revealed significant statistical differences as well as similarities between the researched groups of Polish and Slovenian students in terms of the stereotypical image of Ukrainians and Russians.&#x0D; CONCLUSIONS, INNOVATIONS, RECOMMENDATIONS: Empirical evidence shows that Polish and Slovenian students have more in common in their perception of Russians, while they perceive Ukrainians quite differently. The linguistic characteristics obtained in this study provide a general insight into the perceptions of the two nationalities involved in the war. It should also be noted that these characteristics of Ukrainians and Russians may constitute socially important knowledge on the negative stereotypes about these nationalities. This knowledge may be useful in challenging counteracting or disseminating such judgements, which may be harmful and lead to prejudice or discrimination against people from the nationalities studied.&#x0D;

Psychological Well-Being and Resilience of Slovenian Students During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Students' mental health is recognised as an important public health issue, and the strict measures and many changes resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic may have exacerbated this. The aims of the study were thus to explore psychological well-being among university students in Slovenia during the beginning of the second lockdown, and to assess associations among their psychological well-being, demographic characteristics, presence of a chronic health condition, and resilience. The Slovenian online cross-sectional survey was performed as part of a large-scale international survey led by the COVID-HL Consortium, between the 2nd and 23rd November 2020. The study was carried out on a sample of 3,468 university students (70% female) in Slovenia, aged between 18 to 40 (M=22/SD=3). In addition to sociodemographic data and that on the presence of a chronic health condition, data on subjective social status (SSS), psychological well-being (WHO-5) and resilience (CD-RISC 10) was also gathered. In our study 52% of university students reported good psychological well-being. Hierarchical binary logistic regression revealed that male, older students, those with higher perceived subjective social status, students without a chronic health condition, and those with higher score on resilience were more likely to have good psychological well-being. Resilience was the strongest predictor of psychological well-being in our study. Systematic preventive approaches/interventions in the field of mental health should be implemented among students in Slovenia. In this context it is important to develop and deliver programmes for enhancing resilience, which is an important protective factor in times of mental distress.

Global Competencies of Slovenian Students: Relatedness of Knowledge, Skills, Attitudes, and Values

The aim of the article is to explicate, compared to the OECD average, lower perceived global competencies of Slovenian 15-year-olds in PISA 2018. The results demonstrate the relatedness of different domains of global competencies. Based on the results, the article exposes the importance of establishing an appropriate national framework, which would strengthen students’ knowledge as a basis for cultivating all other virtues (skills, attitudes, and values) of modern global citizens.

Cognitive Efficiency of Slovenian, Indian and Gambian Gifted Students in Performing Mental Tasks

In this paper, we present a comparative analysis between registered gifted Slovenian, Gambian, and Indian students in which we sought to find out how they perform in solving selected mental tasks, where we were focused on logical-mathematical and spatial intelligence as a function of the social environment from which the students came. We found that the results for the test groups differed. Out of ten task sets, Slovenian students performed better than their Indian and Gambian peers in as many as seven task sets; in four tasks we found a statistically significant difference between Slovenian and Indian children, and a comparison between Slovenian and Gambian students shows that Slovenian children scored better on mental task sets in all groups.

WORD ORDER PROCESSING IN GERMAN AS A FOREIGN LANGUAGE

In an experiment on processing effort in sentence comprehension, preference hypotheses on word order and relative clause position were tested in German as a second or foreign language. The experiment involved 62 Slovenian students of German studies in Maribor as participants. The linguistic material consisted of 16 utterances, each with a main clause and a relative clause and each of them a subject-initial or object-initial. The relative clause could occur either after the first or second noun phrase. The procedure used was the self-paced reading paradigm. After each test unit, the participants were asked a comprehension question, either about the subject of the main clause or about the subject of the relative clause. The experiment confirmed the hypotheses that response accuracy to a comprehension question was higher when a clause was subject-initial and when the relative clause occurred after the first noun phrase of the main clause. The experiment did not confirm the assumed interaction between word order and position of the relative clause.

Compliance with Preventive Measures and COVID-19 Vaccination Intention among Medical and Other Healthcare Students.

Introduction: The purpose of this study is to evaluate compliance with preventive measures and COVID-19 vaccination acceptance among Slovenian students of healthcare and medicine, identify the predictive socio-demographic factors, establish the possible causes, and propose vaccination strategies and programs in response to the findings. Methods: Data were collected using an online survey as part of a large cross-sectional study of full-time students engaged in higher-level study. The survey took place between 9 February and 8 March 2021. Results: A total of 56.3% of medical and other healthcare students surveyed expressed their intention to receive the vaccine at the earliest opportunity, 22.4% said that they would do so at a later date and 21.3% said that they did not intend to get vaccinated. The medical students surveyed showed a greater readiness to get vaccinated at the earliest opportunity than those studying other healthcare disciplines, men more than women, and single persons more than those in a relationship. Students attending a vocational college, professional higher education or university study program (Bologna first cycle) showed less readiness than other students to get vaccinated as soon as they were able. Conclusion: Our research found that 56.3% of those studying health-related subjects intended to get vaccinated at the earliest opportunity. There were significant differences between medical and other healthcare students, as well as differences resulting from the level of higher education study being undertaken. In addition, the conclusions show that there needs to be a strengthening of communication with students regarding COVID-19 and the importance of vaccination. Lessons that we learned in this pandemic should prepare us for the future. Clearer and more effective communication and education in the future regarding the importance of vaccination is the most effective way of preventing communicable diseases.

Motives for Following Sports Events among Physical Education Students from Bosnia and Hercegovina and Slovenia

A sports result takes on its meaning only when the public reacts to it after attending a sporting event. In order to determine and compare attitudes toward attending such events, students from two different cultural backgrounds were invited to participate in the study: 156 students from the Faculty of Sport in Ljubljana and 82 students from the Pedagogical faculty, Department of Physical Education and Sports in Bihać. They were asked to complete a questionnaire containing 25 variables on the motives for attending sporting events. The respondents rated the importance of the motives with scores from 1 to 5 (1—not the reason at all; 2—not the reason; 3—occasionally true for me; 4—true for me; 5—absolutely true). The obtained results were ranked and compared between the students of different faculties and between genders. The results showed that Bosnian and Slovenian students differed in 11 out of 25 motives. Statistically significant gender differences were found for only two out of 25 motives. Differences between Bosnian and Slovenian students were also found in the ranking of the importance of the motives as well as in their evaluation. The results show that cultural, national, and mentality differences between the two groups are reflected in the motives for following sporting events.

Difficulties in the Close Social Relationships of Slovenian Students during the Covid-19 pandemic

This study examined the difficulties experienced by Slovenian upper-secondary school and university students aged 18 to 25 in their close social relationships during the Covid-19 pandemic. We examined the extent of social difficulties in six domains (relationships with friends, establishing a new relationship with an intimate partner, sexuality, relationship with a current intimate partner, parental control and living with parents, and family conflict) in the pre-pandemic period and in the first two waves of the pandemic. We were also interested in whether demographic variables were related to the students’ perceived social difficulties. The results showed that the severity of reported difficulties increased in all six domains during the government-imposed quarantine periods, with relationships with friends and the opportunity to establish new intimate relationships being the most affected. In addition, we found differences in the extent of perceived difficulties related to educational status, gender, intimate relationship, and change in living situations. The study offers insight into the socio-emotional life of students during a non-normative life event that educators should acknowledge.

Suggestions of Slovenian Students on Ways to Acquire Dementia-Related Knowledge

Objectives: Although the number of people with dementia is growing due to the aging population, knowledge of dementia among adolescents is unknown, as are their suggestions for how to acquire knowledge. Aim: To determine the knowledge of dementia among students and to identify their suggestions on to acquire dementia-related knowledge. Methods: An online cross-sectional study was conducted in order to determine the knowledge of dementia among students of non-medical high schools in Slovenia. The gender comparison of the knowledge and proposals for a way of educating were obtained. Results: A total of 1128 students (770 girls and 348 boys) aged 14 -19 participated in this study. The results indicated that of 20 claims of dementia, participants were on average able to answer 71.5% correctly (M = 14.30; SD = 2.56), girls better than boy (p&lt;0.05), students with relative with dementia better than others (p&lt;0.05). Proposals for ways of future dementia education did not differ between the sexes (p&gt;0.05). Both, girls and boys in the same percentage indicated future priority learning methods namely: use of the Internet, learning in school lessons and from books and textbooks, learning from medical staff. Conclusions: Organizers and providers of dementia education for adolescents should organize as much education as possible via the Internet. Further research on the most appropriate form of dementia education among high school students is recommended.

Associations between Physical Activity and Academic Competence: A Cross-Sectional Study among Slovenian Primary School Students.

Physical activity has beneficial effects on overall academic performance in children. However, there is a lack of evidence regarding how the individual characteristics of physical activity interact with other confounding variables of academic competence. Leisure-time physical activity with potential confounders—such as developmental, behavioral, family, and school factors, predicting overall, mathematical, and reading academic competence—was studied in a random sample of 1520 Slovenian primary school students in grades 4–6 (51.9% female; mean age = 10.4 years; SD = 0.93). A structured self-reported questionnaire was used to gather data on the children’s leisure-time physical activity and social-demographic variables, while academic competence was measured by teachers using the SSRS Academic Competence Evaluation Scale. The findings showed that children engage in physical activity most days a week, with moderate-intensity and unorganized activities. It was predicted that engaging in physical activity would lead to an increase in academic performance by 4.2% in males (p = 0.002) and 3.2% in females (p = 0.024), but after fully adjusting the model for controlling confounding variables, the prediction increased to 81.1% in females and 84.1% in males (p < 0.001). The frequency and intensity of physical activity, the absence of digital games, and attending sports clubs seem to have the most beneficial effects in terms of academic competence in school children, among other relevant confounders mediating in this complex relationship.

Preservice teachers’ beliefs about teaching pupils with special educational needs in visual art education

ABSTRACT A number of researchers in the field of inclusion of pupils with special educational needs have reported on the influence of teachers’ beliefs on their performance in the classroom. Despite this, very few studies have investigated teachers’ beliefs in the subject of visual art education. This paper will focus on the beliefs of preservice teachers who acquire competencies for teaching visual art education. We included Slovenian students of the first or second Bologna level of general education, special education and visual art education (N = 168). For the purposes of the research, a questionnaire with a Likert-type rating scale was designed. Respondents show positive beliefs about the inclusion of pupils with special educational needs and the use of adaptations in the visual art education, while at the same time they do not feel competent enough and ready for such teaching. Results show some differences between preservice teachers’ beliefs according to the study programme and experience with students with special educational needs. Ways of applying the findings and suggestions for further research are presented.

Bralna pismenost v raziskavi PISA 2018 – psihološki vpogled in interpretacije dosežkov slovenskih učencev

Reading literacy in PISA 2018 – psychological insight and interpretation of the results of Slovene students The paper presents an interweaving and analysis of the already published results of the PISA 2018 reading literacy study with our own secondary analysis of the relations between certain factors and achievement in reading literacy in more than 6,000 Slovenian students. The content of the article is divided into three parts. In the first part, we highlight the general achievement in reading literacy amongst Slovenian 15-year-olds in terms of the efforts of the school system (Ministry of Education, Science and Sport) and the National Education Institute Slovenia for the development of this literacy in the last two decades. We also highlight some systemic changes for enhancing the development of reading literacy (e.g., Council Recommendation on Key Competences for Lifelong Learning; the National Strategy for the Development of Reading Literacy for the period 2019-2030). In the second part of the article, we try to explain the substantial differences in reading achievement and motivation in Slovenian students with regard to gender. Using a biopsychosocial model (Halpern, 2012) and research pointing to the origins of gender differences, we point to some critical areas in the development of reading literacy and to possible ways to reduce these differences. Finally, we emphasize some characteristics of a stimulating learning environment in the Slovenian language course for the development of reading literacy, as perceived by students (teacher enthusiasm, perceived learning and emotional support of teachers and providing feedback to students) and compare them with the perceived learning environment of students in other OECD countries. We draw attention to caution in the interpretation of the results, especially in the (direct and causal) relationships between some teacher characteristics and students’ individual variables - reading motivation and achievement in reading literacy. Keywords: reading literacy, Slovenian students, gender differences, reading motivation, stimulating learning environment