Path analytic study of factors affecting students’ attitude towards test-taking in secondary schools in Afikpo Education Zone, Ebonyi State, Nigeria

A structural equation modelling approach was used to analyse 32 factors affecting students’ attitudes towards test-taking in secondary schools. Data for the study were obtained from a sample of 1,276 students using the proportionate stratified random sampling technique. The instrument used for data collection was a Rating Scale on Factors Affecting Students’ Attitudes Towards Test-Taking (RSFASATTT). Findings of the study revealed a total of 21 factors that significantly affect students’ attitudes towards test-taking in secondary schools. Out of these significant factors, 14 had a positive effect while 7 factors negatively affected students’ attitudes towards test-taking. However, 11 factors were not significant predictors of students’ attitudes towards test-taking. Based on these findings, it was concluded that students’ attitudes towards test-taking are affected by several factors. These factors are either traceable to the students’ emotions, their family background, or the school environment. Based on this conclusion, recommendations and policy implications were made

One Purpose, Multiple Realities: A Qualitative Study on Parental Involvement in Two Malawian Private Secondary Schools

Problem Studies of Parental Involvement at the secondary school level have consistently shown to improve student-learning outcomes. Parents who invest money in children’s education want to see their children matriculate to higher education. Unfortunately, many private schools offer poor quality education. Students’ achievement in Malawi secondary schools requires the participation of each stakeholder. The purpose of this study therefore was threefold: to explore the nature of Parental Involvement in children’s education, to determine types of involvement, and to examine parents’ and educators’ attitudes towards Parental Involvement. The study participants came from two Malawian private secondary schools in Africa. Method This study used a descriptive multisite case study design, a qualitative approach for gathering information from 90 participants comprised of three proprietors, six administrators, 19 teachers and 62 parents. Data collection methods included interviews, focus groups, observation, open-ended questionnaires and document analysis. Grounded theory, an inductive methodology that uses constant comparative data analysis process, was used to make generalizations and discover emergent themes from the data. Finally, a cross-case analysis was conducted to explore similarities and differences across the cases. Results The cross-case analysis portrayed a package of contrasting ideologies held by proprietors, educators and parents which formed the bedrock of the type of partnership that existed between parents and educators. These ideological influences resulted in the formation of perspectives and attitudes, which in turn translated into participants’ practices. However, because of their position and ideological dispositions, the proprietors exerted greater influence on the type of Parental Involvement model, policies and practices at the schools. While in one school, the educators held a deficit thinking ideology against parents resulting in implementing an Alienation Parental Involvement model, the other school valued parents’ contributions and sought to collaborate with them, thus it implemented an Alliance Parental Involvement Model. In addition, data analysis indicated that all parents in this study were involved in their children’s education at different levels. Academic socialization (discussions pertaining to children’s schooling experiences and conversations about parents’ aspirations and expectations) was the most significant home-based Parental Involvement strategy. A significant but not surprising finding was the dissimilar influences of education and traditional values on parents’ support of their girls. Notwithstanding, the evidence also suggests that some parents considered their financial investment as the most meaningful involvement in children’s education because secondary education in Malawi is not free. Conclusions From the data analysis, a theory of Ideological Differentiation of Parental Involvement in Malawi was developed. This theory contributes to literature and provides an analytical framework for viewing Parental Involvement in private schools in Malawi. In addition, recommendations have been developed from this study with the intention of improving Parental Involvement in the two private secondary schools. Further studies however, are recommended to determine whether the findings and the theory apply to other environments in Malawi

Postgraduate nursing education in Nigeria: understanding registered and graduated students’ experiences in their journeys to programme completion or withdrawal

Background: Nigerian nursing education has developed from initially limited numbers of missionary schools to a more substantial expansion of urban, hospital-based institutions since 1945. Postcolonial emancipation sparked the University of Ibadan into opening the first Department of Nursing in Nigeria in 1965. This triggered the creation of further university-based undergraduate programmes across Nigeria, though many hospital-based schools offering diploma level training have also been retained. The first postgraduate nursing programme commenced in 1988 at the Obafemi Awolowo University, followed by the University of Ibadan and the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. These three universities are still the main postgraduate nursing education providers in Nigeria today. The Nigerian Government and professional stakeholders including the Nigerian Nursing and Midwifery Council are concerned by the low graduation rate of nursing students in relation to the standard programme duration of one year for masters’ and three years for PhD programmes (10%), and their relatively high rate of attrition (20%). Objectives; The study seeks to understand the experiences of postgraduate nursing students in Nigeria. Research method: The research participants included registered and graduated postgraduate nursing students, lecturers, and the staff of nursing education coordinating bodies. They were recruited to this study purposively and by snowballing. The research employed a qualitative inquiry method using face-to-face interviews, the methodology being informed by a critical realist worldview with regard to agency and structure. Result: The key findings revealed that the students’ experiences of delay in completing their programme were influenced by student factors (allocation of time between full-time work and full-time study, and sponsorship); lecturer factors (workload and workforce development); policy issues (programme structure and implementation); and social structures and mechanisms in Nigeria. Recommendation: The researcher recommends further studies on the impact of gender on nursing education, the relationship between postgraduate nursing students’ experience and their expectations, and the effect of international partnerships on postgraduate nursing education in Nigeria. He further recommends a review of the postgraduate nursing curriculum. Conclusion: Findings from such studies would further help to improve the students’ experiences

Bridging the gap between school and university: a case study of the University of Namibia's Access Programme

Doctor EducationisWithout neglecting the broader scope of the phenomenon of student access, this study focuses mainly on student academic access. An Access Programme, initiated by the University of Namibia, is used as a case study in order to gain a contextual understanding of such programmes, and to identify and critically analyse both those factors which contribute to its success and those which hinder it. Theoretical perspectives on student access are provided in chapter 1. These shed some light on different notions of access, on the multiplicity of entry paths, on the various forms of access, the targets of access initiatives and the factors driving the need for widening access provision. Attention is also given to access barriers whereby alternative approaches and strategies to illuminate such barriers are provided. Personal interviews, questionnaires, observations and statistical data on student enrollments and end-of-year results, contribute to a triangulation of research methods so that the situation can be viewed from more than one viewpoint by using both quantitative and qualitative data. The study reveals that Access Programmes are increasingly recognized as necessary, and the need for them is likely to increase in future. Findings also reveal consensus on the need for epistemological access which places emphasis on learner success and throughput rates rather than access that is limited to admission and entry. While the study is not an evaluation of the particular Access Programme, the study does contribute to understanding of what makes for an effective Access Programme within the Namibian context and beyond

Evaluation of inquiry-based Learning in high school earth science and biology classrooms: learning environment and attitudes

This evaluation of inquiry-based teaching involved 1396 high-school biology and earth science students from Los Angeles County. Inquiry teaching was perceived by students to be more effective than traditional methods in terms of greater teacher support and student involvement. Also inquiry-based instruction was equally effective for male and female student

Defining preparation and preparedness for nursing study abroad trips.

The aim of this study is to explore the preparation nursing students receive prior to undertaking study abroad trips. The researcher's personal context that initiated this project is representative of the findings of the literature - namely that students often feel unprepared during study abroad trips. Evidence-based preparation for study abroad trips is absent in the literature, and the few authors who discuss how preparation is carried out indicate that many students are sent out with little or no preparation, and that there is no uniformity in current practice. Inconsistencies exist between higher education institutions' (HEIs) justifications for study abroad (the attainment of cultural competence) versus the stated reasons students study abroad (personal benefit/growth), raising a myriad of ethical quandaries. No specific cases of malpractice arose in the literature, which suggests events are either purposefully hidden or unknown. The lack of preparation is exacerbated by the potential risks nursing students can cause or incur during study abroad trips. A reflexive interview made the researcher's biases toward nursing study abroad trips explicit. This was undertaken prior to collecting data to bracket assumptions. Using a case study method, this study explores two HEI preparation modules from the perspective of study abroad coordinators and nursing students planning to study abroad. One sending institution in Finland was the context of a pilot case, while another in the Netherlands was the context for a formal case study in order to holistically describe the preparation the two groups of nursing students received before studying abroad. Data is presented from interviews conducted with study abroad coordinators, interviews with students, blogs, diaries and institutional documentation. Findings are categorised according to a description of the preparation programme and the study abroad experiences that shed light as to the students' level of preparedness. Subsequently, a Delphi method is employed to achieve a consensus of experts in the field as to what should be included in a preparation curriculum. The findings suggest no two HEIs have the same study abroad preparation programme for nursing students. Preparation is widely varying both in content and length. The researcher theorises that preparation is so often overlooked or limited because study abroad trips are in and of themselves preparation for students' future nursing careers. A new and validated definition of nursing study abroad preparation is presented, followed by an analytical framework that study abroad coordinators, HEIs and nursing students can utilise to guide preparation

Background Examples of Literature Searches on Topics of Interest

A zip file of various literature searches & some resources related to our work related to exposure after the Chernobyl accident and as we began looking at helping in Semey Kazakhstan----a collection of literature reviews on various topics we were interested in... eg. establishing a registry of those exposed for longterm follow-up, what we knew about certain areas like genetics and some resources like A Guide to Environmental Resources on the Internet by Carol Briggs-Erickson and Toni Murphy which could be found on the Internet and was written to be used by researchers, environmentalists, teachers and any person who is interested in knowing and doing something about the health of our planet. See more at https://archives.library.tmc.edu/dm-ms211-012-0060

Staring down the lion: Uncertainty avoidance and operational risk culture in a tourism organisation

The academic literature is not clear about how uncertainty influences operational risk decision-making. This study, therefore, investigated operational risk-based decision-making in the face of uncertainty in a large African safari tourism organisation by exploring individual and perceived team member approaches to uncertainty. Convenience sampling was used to identify 15 managers across three African countries in three domains of work: safari camp; regional office; and head office. Semi-structured interviews were conducted in which vignettes were incorporated, to which participants responded with their own reactions and decisions to the situations described, as well as with ways they thought other managers would react to these specific operational contexts. The data were transcribed and qualitatively analysed through thematic coding processes. The findings indicated that approaches to uncertainty were influenced by factors including situational context, the availability and communication of information, the level of operational experience, and participants’ roles. Contextual factors alongside diverse individual emotional and cognitive influences were shown to require prudent consideration by safari tourism operators in understanding employee behavioural reactions to uncertain situations. A preliminary model drawn from the findings suggests that, in practice, decision-making in the face of uncertainty is more complex than existing theoretical studies propose. Specifically, the diverse responses anticipated by staff in response to the vignettes could guide safari tourism management towards better handling of risk under uncertainty in remote locations

Patient and Doctor Perceptions of Hypertension and its Treatment: a Qualitative Study in Urban Hospitals of Pakistan

Hypertension (HTN) is a chronic disease that has become a growing public health problem in countries around the world, including Pakistan. Successful HTN control is an essential cornerstone in the prevention of morbidity and mortality associated with uncontrolled HTN. However, patients’ beliefs about their disease, treatment and control are related to the outcome of successful HTN control and management. Likewise, doctors’ understanding of HTN and its treatment is equally important and can affect their practice and HTN management. There is little qualitative research considering patients’ and doctors’ understanding of HTN, its treatment and how it influences HTN management in Pakistan. Therefore, the current study aimed to elicit patients’ and doctors’ perceptions, attitudes and beliefs about HTN and its treatment in urban areas of Pakistan. A qualitative study that drew on grounded theory principles was undertaken in two public hospitals of Pakistan. Thirty in-depth semi-structured interviews with hypertensive patients and thirty interviews with doctors were conducted in two hospitals. Interviews were translated and transcribed from Urdu into English and NVivo was used to organise the data in a systematic way. Data were analysed using a constant comparative approach based on the principles of grounded theory. The study revealed that patients’ (n=30) beliefs were complex, deep-rooted and influenced their attitude towards HTN treatment. Patients’ beliefs were informed by understanding gleaned from the socio-cultural environment (local norms, social relations, religion), individual factors (e.g. income, co-morbidities) and interactions with doctors. In contrast, doctors’ (n=30) own understandings on what constitutes successful HTN management often contradicted patients’ beliefs. Doctors’ reported that time restraints and work burden affected their approach to treatment and the provision of information to patients. Findings also revealed an overlap between patients’ and doctors’ beliefs, however, in relation to adopting lifestyle changes for management of HTN. In general, though doctors paid less consideration to patients’ beliefs in routine clinical practice and evaluated patients through the filter of their own beliefs. The findings suggest that doctors could provide a better service care by aligning with their patients on a common understanding about HTN management and providing culturally appropriate information. Doctors should be aware of the understanding hypertensive patients attach to HTN and avoid providing treatment based on their own beliefs. Doctors must engage with patients’ beliefs and identify their particular healthcare needs in order to achieve control of HTN in Pakistan