Science Unit Research Articles

Comparison of the Effects of Emergency Distance and Face-to-Face Education Applications on Students' Analytical Thinking Skills in Science Course: Example of Energy Transformations and Environmental Science Unit

The aim of this study was to compare the analytical thinking skills of 8th grade students who received emergency distance and face-to-face education in a science course and to get student ideas concerning emergency distance education. An unequal control group model from the quasi-experimental models was used in the study. The study group consisted of 39 students. 15 students who received energy transformations and environmental science unit as emergency distance education constituted the first group and 24 students who received face-to-face education constituted the second group. The data were collected with ATAT, TATDL, and SOF. In conclusion, it was determined that the cognitive success of the students who received face-to-face education based on analytical thinking improved more. The ability to adapt analytical thinking to daily life developed equally in both groups. While the students who received emergency distance education did not express a negative opinion about the activities carried out in the teaching process, they stated negative opinions about the realization of this process online, such as internet shortage, lack of communication tools, noise, occasional power cuts, inefficiency compared to face-to-face education, difficulty in understanding the lesson, difficulty in speaking in front of the screen, inability of the teacher to be effective in distance education, and inability to experiment together. However, there were also students who expressed a positive opinion that the course was productive, interesting, calm, more comfortable than face-to-face education and safer to protect from the disease. As a result, it is thought that emergency distance education cannot replace face-to-face education; however, it is an effective education process that can be applied to prevent students from being completely disconnected from school and education during periods when lessons cannot be continued due to extraordinary circumstances such as pandemic.

IMPLEMENTATION OF THE TILAWATI METHOD IN LEARNING TAHFIDZ OF THE QURAN TO IMPROVE THE QUALITY OF CHILDREN'S READING

Memorizing the Koran is one form of our efforts to get closer to Allah SWT through His words. The tilawati method is a book of teaching and learning methods to read the Koran with a balanced classical-read-listen approach. The implementation of the Tilawati Method in learning the tahfidz of the Koran to improve the quality of reading the Koran is a process of reading verses that must be memorized perfectly and becomes a good quality reading. This study aims to find out how the tilawati method becomes a method that focuses on how to read the Koran easily and pleasantly, by using this tilawati method students can find out how to recite the Koran so that reading the Koran becomes quality reading at TPA Hidayatul Science Unit 332 Village Paliat. The methodology used in this study was carried out by field observation which is a descriptive qualitative research. Based on the results of this study, the Implementation of the Tilawati Method in Tahfidz Koran at TPA Hidayatul Ilmi Unit 332 in Paliat Village can support learning tahfidz Koran because it makes it easier for teachers and students to teach and learn, and improves the quality of reading and memorizing the Koran, can make it easier for children to read the Koran well and correctly in accordance with applicable rules, making students fluent in reading the Koran and avoiding mistakes in the meaning of the Koran.

Teacher learning through collaborative curriculum design in the midst of a pandemic: A cultural historical activity theory investigation

Collaborative design, or co-design, is an effective form of professional development that promotes teacher learning. In this study, we used cultural-historical activity theory (CHAT) to investigate how teachers attempt to resolve systematic contradictions as they co-designed and enacted a four-week science unit on COVID-19. Our findings indicated that the teachers faced significant challenges in implementing the COVID-19 unit. We also found that tensions among teachers and positioning teachers as the ultimate decision-makers were particularly useful for promoting teacher learning in the midst of a pandemic.

Assessing the Effect of Project-Based Learning on Science Learning in Elementary Schools

This investigation studied the effects of the Multiple Literacies in Project-Based Learning science intervention on third graders’ academic, social, and emotional learning. This intervention includes four science units and materials, professional learning, and post-unit assessments; features of project-based learning; three-dimensional learning (National Research Council, 2012); and the performance expectations from the Next Generation of Science Standards (NGSS Lead States, 2013). The intervention was evaluated with a cluster randomized control trial in 46 Michigan schools with 2,371 students. Results show that students who received the intervention had higher scores on a standardized science test (0.277 standard deviation) and reported higher levels of self-reflection and collaboration when involved in science activities.

Statistical inferences of competing risks generalized half-logistic lifetime populations in presence of generalized type-I hybrid censoring scheme

The reliability analysis is usually concerned with failures in the time domain which show the difference between the quality control and reliability engineering. Also, It is very common in engineering or biological science units are falling under different causes of failure, which is known by competing risks model. In this paper, we have adopted the competing risks model when the lifetime of units distributed with generalized half-logistic (GHL) distribution. This model is formulated under consideration the failure done with two independent causes of failure. Also, to balance in statistical inference between the minimum number of failure and ideal test time, we are using, the type-I generalized hybrid censoring scheme (GHCS). The model parameters are estimated by maximum likelihood (ML) and Bayes approaches. The approximate confidence intervals, bootstrap confidence intervals and credible intervals are constructed. The developed results are discussed and assessed through Monte Carlo simulation study. A real data set is used and analyzed to report and illustrate the developed results.

The Impact of Using Model and Augmented Reality Technology on Students’ Science Achievement, Motivation, and Interest Levels

In this study, it was aimed to investigate the effects of modelling and the material designed with augmented reality technology on the academic success of students, their motivation, and interest levels towards the science course. The study was conducted in 6th grade science units of "Support and Movement System" and "Systems in Our Body". In the study, quasi-experimental design with pre-test post-test control group was applied. The study was carried out with three groups: the control group, the augmented reality experimental group and the modeling experimental group. The research sample consists of a total of 66 students studying at a public middle school in the Küçükçekmece district of Istanbul province, during the 2020-2021 academic year. To collect data, a 30-item Science Achievement Test, a 23-item Science Motivation Scale, and a 27-item Science Interest Scale were applied. Kruskal Wallis test was applied for multiple comparisons, and Mann Whitney U tests were carried out for post-hoc comparasions. Wilcoxon Signed Ranks tests were applied for intragroup comparisons. According to the results of the study, it was concluded that the use of augmented reality and modeling technique in the science course had a statistically significant effect on the academic success, motivation, and interest of the students towards the science course.

The Bathy-Drone: An Autonomous Uncrewed Drone-Tethered Sonar System

A unique drone-based system for underwater mapping (bathymetry) was developed at the University of Florida. The system, called the “Bathy-drone”, comprises a drone that drags, via a tether, a small vessel on the water surface in a raster pattern. The vessel is equipped with a recreational commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) sonar unit that has down-scan, side-scan, and chirp capabilities and logs GPS-referenced sonar data onboard or transmitted in real time with a telemetry link. Data can then be retrieved post mission and plotted in various ways. The system provides both isobaths and contours of bottom hardness. Extensive testing of the system was conducted on a 5 acre pond located at the University of Florida Plant Science and Education Unit in Citra, FL. Prior to performing scans of the pond, ground-truth data were acquired with an RTK GNSS unit on a pole to precisely measure the location of the bottom at over 300 locations. An assessment of the accuracy and resolution of the system was performed by comparison to the ground-truth data. The pond ground truth had an average depth of 2.30 m while the Bathy-drone measured an average 21.6 cm deeper than the ground truth, repeatable to within 2.6 cm. The results justify integration of RTK and IMU corrections. During testing, it was found that there are numerous advantages of the Bathy-drone system compared to conventional methods including ease of implementation and the ability to initiate surveys from the land by flying the system to the water or placing the platform in the water. The system is also inexpensive, lightweight, and low-volume, thus making transport convenient. The Bathy-drone can collect data at speeds of 0–24 km/h (0–15 mph) and, thus, can be used in waters with swift currents. Additionally, there are no propellers or control surfaces underwater; hence, the vessel does not tend to snag on floating vegetation and can be dragged over sandbars. An area of more than 10 acres was surveyed using the Bathy-drone in one battery charge and in less than 25 min.

The impact of species complexes on tree abundance patterns in Amazonia.

The impact of species complexes on tree abundance patterns in Amazonia.

Evaluating clinician-led quality improvement initiatives: A system-wide embedded research partnership at Stanford Medicine.

IntroductionMany healthcare delivery systems have developed clinician‐led quality improvement (QI) initiatives but fewer have also developed in‐house evaluation units. Engagement between the two entities creates unique opportunities. Stanford Medicine funded a collaboration between their Improvement Capability Development Program (ICDP), which coordinates and incentivizes clinician‐led QI efforts, and the Evaluation Sciences Unit (ESU), a multidisciplinary group of embedded researchers with expertise in implementation and evaluation sciences.AimTo describe the ICDP‐ESU partnership and report key learnings from the first 2 y of operation September 2019 to August 2021.MethodsDepartment‐level physician and operational QI leaders were offered an ESU consultation to workshop design, methods, and overall scope of their annual QI projects. A steering committee of high‐level stakeholders from operational, clinical, and research perspectives subsequently selected three projects for in‐depth partnered evaluation with the ESU based on evaluability, importance to the health system, and broader relevance. Selected project teams met regularly with the ESU to develop mixed methods evaluations informed by relevant implementation science frameworks, while aligning the evaluation approach with the clinical teams' QI goals.ResultsSixty and 62 ICDP projects were initiated during the 2 cycles, respectively, across 18 departments, of which ESU consulted with 15 (83%). Within each annual cycle, evaluators made actionable, summative findings rapidly available to partners to inform ongoing improvement. Other reported benefits of the partnership included rapid adaptation to COVID‐19 needs, expanded clinician evaluation skills, external knowledge dissemination through scholarship, and health system‐wide knowledge exchange. Ongoing considerations for improving the collaboration included the need for multi‐year support to enable nimble response to dynamic health system needs and timely data access.ConclusionPresence of embedded evaluation partners in the enterprise‐wide QI program supported identification of analogous endeavors (eg, telemedicine adoption) and cross‐cutting lessons across QI efforts, clinician capacity building, and knowledge dissemination through scholarship.

The Bathy-Drone: An Autonomous Unmanned Drone-Tethered Sonar System

A unique drone-based system for underwater mapping (bathymetry) was developed at the University of Florida. The system, called the “Bathy-drone”, comprises a drone that drags, via a tether, a small vessel on the water surface in a raster pattern. The vessel is equipped with a recreational commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) sonar unit that has down-scan, side-scan, and chirp capabilities and logs GPS-referenced sonar data onboard or transmitted in real time with a telemetry link. Data can then be retrieved post mission and plotted in various ways. The system provides both isobaths and contours of bottom hardness. Extensive testing of the system was conducted on a 5 acre pond located at the University of Florida Plant Science and Education Unit in Citra, FL. Prior to performing scans of the pond, ground-truth data were acquired with an RTK GNSS unit on a pole to precisely measure the location of the bottom at over 300 locations. An assessment of the accuracy and resolution of the system was performed by comparison to the ground-truth data. The pond ground truth had an average depth of 2.30 m while the Bathy-drone measured an average 21.6 cm deeper than the ground truth, repeatable to within 2.6 cm. The results justify integration of RTK and IMU corrections. During testing, it was found that there are numerous advantages of the Bathy-drone system compared to conventional methods including ease of implementation and the ability to initiate surveys from the land by flying the system to the water or placing the platform in the water. The system is also inexpensive, lightweight, and low-volume, thus making transport convenient. The Bathy-drone can collect data at speeds of 0–24 km/h (0–15 mph) and, thus, can be used in waters with swift currents. Additionally, there are no propellers or control surfaces underwater; hence, the vessel does not tend to snag on floating vegetation and can be dragged over sandbars. An area of more than 10 acres was surveyed using the Bathy-drone in one battery charge and in less than 25 min.

Participation (Islamic) Banking in Turkey: A Bibliometric Analysis and Future Research Agenda

Turkey's Muslim heritage is rich and a Muslim majority country. Over time, more Islamic banks have opened around the world, including in Turkey. Turkey calls Islamic banks "participation banks". The study reviews bibliometric and content analysis of Turkish participation banking from Scopus. Scopus data were retrieved on Jan. 20, 2022. The keyword "Islam* or participation and bank* and Turkey or Turkish" was utilized in the title-abs-key. 82 articles and 2 reviews were examined from 1990 to 2021 in Scopus. RStudio, VOSviewer, and Excel analyzed quantitative data. Overall performance, citation (quantitative), and conceptual (qualitative) discussion for further research. The most-cited paper had 73 citations. The most relevant author, countries, institutions, and journals are AYSAN AF with 5 publications, Turkey, Istanbul University, and "International Journal of Islamic and Middle Eastern Finance and Management". The preceding literature evaluation reveals research gaps and study proposals. The analysis includes both mediumand high-quality English papers and reviews from Scopus. It accepts just Turkish participation banking-related papers. Additional research could involve the Web of Science and other units. According to the authors, It's the first bibliometric analysis of participation banking in Turkey. This research may also serve as a model for future Turkish scholars and policymakers.

Participation (Islamic) Banking in Turkey: A Bibliometric Analysis and Future Research Agenda

Turkey's Muslim heritage is rich and a Muslim majority country. Over time, more Islamic banks have opened around the world, including in Turkey. Turkey calls Islamic banks "participation banks". The study reviews bibliometric and content analysis of Turkish participation banking from Scopus. Scopus data were retrieved on Jan. 20, 2022. The keyword "Islam* or participation and bank* and Turkey or Turkish" was utilized in the title-abs-key. 82 articles and 2 reviews were examined from 1990 to 2021 in Scopus. RStudio, VOSviewer, and Excel analyzed quantitative data. Overall performance, citation (quantitative), and conceptual (qualitative) discussion for further research. The most-cited paper had 73 citations. The most relevant author, countries, institutions, and journals are AYSAN AF with 5 publications, Turkey, Istanbul University, and "International Journal of Islamic and Middle Eastern Finance and Management". The preceding literature evaluation reveals research gaps and study proposals. The analysis includes both mediumand high-quality English papers and reviews from Scopus. It accepts just Turkish participation banking-related papers. Additional research could involve the Web of Science and other units. According to the authors, It's the first bibliometric analysis of participation banking in Turkey. This research may also serve as a model for future Turkish scholars and policymakers.

The Effectiveness of Edmodo Educational Platform in Developing Achievement and Attitude towards Science Subject among Ninth-Grade Students in Jordan

The current study aimed to reveal the effectiveness of the educational platform Edmodo in developing achievement and developing the trend toward science among ninth-grade students in Jordan. The study was applied during the second semester of the academic year 2021-2022. The researcher used the experimental method, where she prepared an achievement test to measure the extent to which students attain the topics of a proposed unit in science at the levels of remembering, understanding, application, and higher levels (analysis and synthesis), and a measure of attitudes towards sciences was used. The study sample consisted of (40) female students from Al-Mazar Secondary School for Girls. The results of the research revealed that there were statistically significant differences at the significance level (a < 0.05) in the effectiveness of the Edmodo educational platform in developing science achievement among ninth-grade students in favor of the post application. In addition, there were statistically significant differences at the significance level (a < 0.05) in the effectiveness of the Edmodo educational platform in developing the attitude towards science among ninth-grade students in favor of the post application. In light of the findings of the study, the researcher recommends; Training teachers to use Edmodo e-learning platforms, benefiting from the experiences of developed countries in the field of interactive curricula programming.

Supporting Teachers to Customize Curriculum for Self-Directed Learning

Guiding teachers to customize curriculum has shown to improve science instruction when guided effectively. We explore how teachers use student data to customize a web-based science unit on plate tectonics. We study the implications for teacher learning along with the impact on student self-directed learning. During a professional development workshop, four 7th grade teachers reviewed logs of their students’ explanations and revisions. They used a curriculum visualization tool that revealed the pedagogy behind the unit to plan their customizations. To promote self-directed learning, the teachers decided to customize the guidance for explanation revision by giving students a choice among guidance options. They took advantage of the web-based unit to randomly assign students (N = 479) to either a guidance Choice or a no-choice condition. We analyzed logged student explanation revisions on embedded and pre-test/post-test assessments and teacher and student written reflections and interviews. Students in the guidance Choice condition reported that the guidance was more useful than those in the no-choice condition and made more progress on their revisions. Teachers valued the opportunity to review student work, use the visualization tool to align their customization with the knowledge integration pedagogy, and investigate the choice option empirically. These findings suggest that the teachers’ decision to offer choice among guidance options promoted aspects of self-directed learning.

Developing instructional materials for English learners in the content areas: An illustration of traditional and contemporary materials in science education

Research on TESOL materials development has focused primarily on instructional materials for contexts in which students are learning English separate from academic content (e.g., science, mathematics). This research could benefit from expansion given the increasing number of contexts in which students are learning content and English language simultaneously. In U.S. K–12 education specifically, a fast‐growing population of English learners (ELs) is expected to achieve academically rigorous content standards that reflect new ways of thinking about content, language, and their integration. Thus, developing instructional materials based on the standards has necessitated shifts from traditional to contemporary approaches. The purpose of this article is to illustrate how instructional materials for ELs in the content areas have evolved over time. After describing conceptual shifts in the fields of content area education and language education that underpin the evolution of instructional materials, the researchers present traditional and contemporary elementary science units. Then, they analyze the units in relation to key features of traditional and contemporary materials for ELs in the content areas. Finally, they discuss how materials development in content learning contexts could expand the scope of TESOL materials development by providing a fresh perspective on ongoing debates and tensions in this vibrant research area.

Swapping Carrots for Sticks: Forensic science provider views of the Forensic Regulator Act 2021

In April 2021, the Forensic Science Regulator Act 2021 received Royal Assent, providing new statutory powers for the Forensic Science Regulator (FSR) of England and Wales. These powers are intended to enable the FSR to compel forensic science providers (FSPs) comply with quality standard requirements. The FSR has until now relied upon ‘soft power’ and arguments of benefits to be gained if FSPs achieve accreditation and adhere to the Code of Practice. Reaching the limits of persuasive powers, the FSR Act now introduces powers to penalise FSPs who remain unaccredited or fall below published standards. To gauge the potential impact, forensic scientists were asked to anticipate effects of the Act. Practitioners indicated that the new statutory powers could instil a sense of urgency among police force forensic science units in particular, in prioritising quality and investing in accreditation. However, there are significant capacity limitations which may hamper more widespread and sustainable change, such as financial pressures faced by FSPs, as well as resource constraints within the FSR role. Changing from a regulatory approach focussed upon voluntary cooperation, support and encouraging intrinsic motivations (i.e ‘carrots’), for one reliant upon deterrence in the forms of threats of sanctions and punishment (‘sticks’), could prevent real improvements in quality and undermine the achievement of regulatory aims. The FSR Act is unable to address problems with forensic science provision, that militate against the quality of forensic science services. Thus, benefits accrued from swapping carrots for sticks may be illusory and may ultimately prove counterproductive.

Examining Team-teaching Competencies in a Taiwanese Bilingual Academic Subject Classroom: A Bilingual NEST's Autoethnography

This autoethnographic study reports on a team-teaching experience in a bilingual education class in Taiwan. For decades, governments in East Asia have promoted team teaching between a native English-speaking teacher (NEST) and a local teacher (LT) in English as a foreign language (EFL) classrooms. These programs are now expanding to include bilingual education academic subject classrooms. With this expansion, there is a need for scholarship to inform bilingual education team-teaching professional development (PD). The author, a NEST and teacher educator, collaborated with a science LT for a 4-week bilingual science unit. The purpose of the inquiry was to use the experience to propose a set of competencies to inform team-teaching PD. Data were collected through class video recordings, a reflective journal, and the LT's written reflection, which were analyzed through a lens of seven teacher competences. Despite both teachers’ extensive knowledge and experience, the study revealed the need for skills within each competence unique to bilingual education collaborations. These findings were used to propose a set of ten competencies that may be used to guide PD for team teachers in bilingual education.

P-031 The extent of late paternal effect: does the blastocyst matter? A retrospective analysis of 703 single, frozen-thawed embryo-transfers

Abstract Study question Do the blastocysts derived from severe male infertility show different ongoing pregnancy rates(OPR) compared to blastocysts of couples requiring assisted reproduction techniques(ART) for other indications? Summary answer First, single, frozen-thawed embryo transfers of blastocysts derived from severe male infertility did not affect OPR in-vitro fertilization (IVF)/ intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) cycles. What is known already Several studies reported a negative impact of severe male infertility on fertilization rate, embryo morphology and embryo cleavage speed, due to the so-called early paternal effect, caused by sperm cytoplasm deficiencies. Nuclear sperm defects are responsible for the late paternal effect, causing lower blastocyst formation rates and, theoretically, reducing implantation potential of the obtained blastocysts. However, the effects of male infertility on OPR and live birth rates (LBR) are still debated. Additionally, the heterogeneity in the definition and estimation of male infertility makes the existing data difficult to interpret. Study design, size, duration Retrospective analysis of first IVF/ICSI cycles performed between January 2019 and December 2021 in the Reproductive Sciences Unit of Gynaecology/Obstetrics Department of San Raffaele Hospital in Milan, Italy. Participants/materials, setting, methods First, single, frozen-thawed embryo transfers of infertile couples first IVF/ICSI cycles were included. Embryo transfers obtained by frozen semen were excluded. Couples characteristics, semen parameters and controlled ovarian stimulation (COS) data were collected. Semen quality was assessed using total motile count (TMC) and grouped into quartiles of TMC for the analyses. The effect of severe male factor infertility evaluated through TMC over OPR was the primary outcome of the study. Main results and the role of chance N = 703 transfers were analysed. Performing a logistic regression analysis adjusted for confounding factors (maternal age, COS protocols, number of oocytes retrieved and quality of transferred blastocysts), OPR was not influenced by TMC values [odds ratio (OR) = 0.999; confidence interval (CI) = 0.986-1.013; p = 0.932]. After grouping male infertility population into quartiles of TMC, no significant differences in OPR were found between extreme quartiles (TMC ≤2.55 million and TMC ≥20 million respectively), even when adjusted for confounders [OR = 1.007; CI 0.609-1.663; p = 0.98]. Therefore, the implantation potential of the obtained blastocysts, once formed, seems to be independent from sperm quality. Limitations, reasons for caution The major limitations of the present study are the retrospective design and sample size. Additionally, the estimation of male infertility as well as the routinary use of TMC in clinical practice are not yet standardized. However, having analysed only the first transfers of the included couples makes our results reliable. Wider implications of the findings Further prospective studies with larger sample size are needed to confirm our results and to validate the use TMC as a standard tool to classify male factor and to guide clinical choices. Pregnancy and obstetrical outcomes are also necessary to better understand the role of male infertility in human reproduction. Trial registration number not applicable

"Antibacterial Potentials of Zapoteca Portoricensis (jacq) H. M. Hernandez on Medically Important Strains of Bacterial"

Grace Nneka Onwubiko1, Ejike Celestine Orji2, Eleazar Chukwuemeka Anorue2*, Uzodinma Ikedinuche Onwubiko2 and Henry Amaechi Onwubiko2 Author Affiliations 1Natural Science Unit, School of General Studies, University of Nigeria, Nigeria 2Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Biological Sciences, University of Nigeria, Nigeria Received: June 04, 2022 | Published: June 20, 2022 Corresponding author: Eleazar Chukwuemeka Anorue, Medical Biochemical and Pharmacognosy Research Unit, Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Biological Sciences, University of Nigeria, 410001, Nsukka, Enugu State, Nigeria DOI: 10.26717/BJSTR.2022.44.007079

A pedagogical model for STEAM education

PurposeCertain researchers have expressed concerns about inequitable discipline representations in an integrated STEM/STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics) unit that may limit what students gain in terms of depth of knowledge and understanding. To address this concern, the authors investigate the stages of integrated teaching units to explore the ways in which STEAM programs can provide students with a deeper learning experience in mathematics. This paper addresses the following question: what learning stages promote a deeper understanding and more meaningful learning experience of mathematics in the context of STEAM education?Design/methodology/approachThe authors carried out a qualitative case study and collected the following data: interviews, lesson observations and analyses of curriculum documents. The authors took a sample of four different STEAM programs in Ontario, Canada: two at nonprofit organizations and two at in-school research sites.FindingsThe findings contribute to a curriculum and instructional model which ensures that mathematics curriculum expectations are more explicit and targeted, in both the learning expectations and assessment criteria, and essential to the STEAM learning tasks. The findings have implications for planning and teaching STEAM programs.Originality/valueThe authors derived four stages of the STEAM Maker unit or lesson from the analysis of data collected from the four sites, which the authors present in this paper. These four stages offer a model for a more robust integrated curriculum focusing on a deeper understanding of mathematics curriculum content.