The Challenges of Distance Education

Education is of extreme importance as it is key to equipping the workforce with the skills needed to develop national economies. The importance is exemplified by the Education for All movement, a global commitment to provide quality basic education for all children, youth and adults, which links directly to the UN Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Sustainable development of quality primary education is dependent on complementary development in the secondary and tertiary education sectors. With economies relying more and more on the generation and application of knowledge, productivity is increasingly dependent on the development and spread of technological innovation. Higher education and life-long learning are today more important to development than ever before, due to the role knowledge plays in development - knowledge is power

How Do National Cultures Affect Quality of Life in Europe During the COVID-19 Pandemic?

Objectives: This study aimed to explore the six cultural dimensions of Geert Hofstede that affect perceptions of quality of life in 26 European countries during the COVID-19 pandemic (April 2020–March 2021): (1) Quality of life, (2) Democracy and trust, (3) Working during COVID-19, (4) Financial situation, (5) Support during COVID-19, and (6) Health care during COVID-19. Many studies are not conclusive on which dimensions of national culture affect the spread and death rate of COVID-19. The researchers, therefore, consider that studying the pandemic from the perception of quality can prevent its spread and contribute to the care and security of people affected by COVID-19. This study may be another way of providing information to those stakeholders. Method: To determine which aspects of culture affect the quality of life of Europeans during the COVID-19 pandemic, the researchers analyzed data through stepwise multiple regression analysis to predict the relationship between independent variables (cultural dimensions) and dependent variables (perceptions of the quality of life). Findings: It was found that during the COVID-19 pandemic, countries with higher power distance and higher uncertainty avoidance had a lower quality of life in several dimensions, mainly in Eastern European countries and Latin European countries (France, Italy, Portugal, and Spain). In the Nordic or Scandinavian countries with higher levels of indulgence, people were more satisfied with their quality of life in spite of the COVID-19 epidemic. Novelty/Improvement:The results may inform policy-makers and stakeholders on how national cultures have both positive (i.e., indulgent and long-term) and negative (high power distance and high uncertainty avoidance) effects on the quality of life of Europeans during the COVID-19 pandemic. There should be (1) short-term measures to provide equal economic measures and public health assistance to reduce anxiety (reduce high power distance and high uncertainty avoidance), (2) medium-term measures to promote education and training to prepare people for new modes of working in the future (decrease high uncertainty avoidance), and (3) long-term measures to cultivate cultures to save for the future and to be optimistic and happy, both mentally and physically (increase long term orientation and indulgence). Doi: 10.28991/esj-2022-SPER-02 Full Text: PD

Choice of God/Higher Power, Perceptions of God/Higher Power, Religious Beliefs and Behaviors, and Social Support as Predictors of Length of Sobriety, Satisfaction with Life, and Quality of Life Among People Recovering from Alcohol Addictions in Three Midwestern States

Problem An estimated 12.7% of the US population meet the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Mental Disorders (DSM-IV) (American Psychiatric Association, 1994) criteria for Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD). The annual cost to the society, including emergency room visits, lost days at work, and accidents on the road is in the billions. The impact of this disorder on the family, the community, and the individual is immeasurable. A growing body of literature supports an association between religious and spiritual beliefs and behaviors and recovery from alcohol addiction. This project is an investigation of this association. The goal is to offer some clarity on what works in recovery and what does not. Method Participants\u27 personal data were collected, including information about their religious beliefs and behaviors, and their relationship with AA and a higher power. Participants completed a survey asking about their choice of a higher power, their perceptions of God/higher power, their religious beliefs and behaviors, and their level of social support. They were asked to answer questions about the length of time they had been sober, their satisfaction with life since being sober, and the quality of their lives as a measure of a sense of well-being. MANCOVA was used to analyze the data. This statistical model seemed most appropriate since it allowed the researcher to analyze the impact of the independent variables (types of belief in God or a higher power, perceptions of God/higher power, religious beliefs and behaviors, and social support) on the three dependent variables (length of sobriety, satisfaction with life and quality of life) while controlling for age, gender and level of education. Results MANCOVA was used to analyze the data. The results indicated a mixed picture of what works in recovery. Choice of a higher power was not significantly associated with long-term recovery. Perceptions of God/higher power were not significantly associated with long-term recovery. Religious beliefs and behaviors were significantly associated with length of sobriety, which means that participants who scored higher on the Religious Background and Behavior scale also reported longer periods of sobriety. The data showed a strong association between social support and satisfaction with life, quality of life, and length of sobriety. Participants who scored high on social support also reported longer periods of sobriety, higher quality of life, and satisfaction with life. Conclusions This study helped to clarify the question of what works in recovery. The results from this study indicate clearly that while believing in a higher power as promoted in AA is an important tradition and an important part of the culture, it is social support that stands out as the most significant variable in recovery. Social support was significantly associated with length of sobriety, with satisfaction with life, and with quality of life. This important finding provides the professionals who work with people in recovery with a clear understanding of what works. Thus, treatment programs can focus their recovery programs on building structures of social support around new members to increase their chances of long-term success

Open University Malaysia : way forward in Science and Technology education

One of Malaysia’s national agenda is to move towards a scientific and progressive society. Government strategies for Malaysia described in this paper highlights the importance of life long learning in achieving its national agenda. Open University Malaysia as a pioneer in open and distance education has a role in promoting life long learning in Malaysia. This paper highlights the key features of the university i.e. blended learning mode and e-learning platform which offers various benefits that could provide supports for creating an innovative society. In the context of science and technology, creating an innovative society means creating manpower with good foundation in basic science knowledge and science skills, a sense of appreciation of contributions and innovations in science and technology, positive attitudes and awareness on ethical issues. This paper proposes strategies to invest in the future by retraining man-power, promoting basic science and increasing the quality of technical courses. (Authors' abstract

US Economic Competitiveness At Risk: A Midwest Call to Action on Immigration Reform

For too long the Midwest has waited for Washington to produce meaningful reform of the nation's immigration laws. Bills have come and gone through the years, but often end in political gridlock. The Midwestern economy needs high-skilled, educated workers with long-term visas to create the companies and innovations that will power it in the future. Midwestern businesses need low-skilled immigrants with visas to sustain their industries. Midwestern schools insist that their students get the legal status that will lead to higher education and jobs. Midwestern farms seek a legal way to hire the seasonal help they need. Throughout the Midwest, cities and towns cope imaginatively with the social and economic challenges of immigration. Yet there is only so much the region can do until the federal government acts.That time has come. As economic recovery proceeds and political alignments shift, our region's leaders are thinking strategically about long-term economic competitiveness and the role played by immigrants at all levels. Midwest leaders want to ensure sustainable growth, jobs, population stability, and quality of life. Immigrants are an essential ingredient for this future. America's heartland can wait no longer.A diverse and bipartisan group of civic and business leaders, aware of the urgency of immigration reform and frustrated with delays, began convening in December 2011 to produce this report. Their priority was to state what the region needs from immigration reform to ensure its economic competitiveness. If 53 Republican and Democratic leaders -- drawn from companies, law enforcement, schools, hospitals, nonprofits, foundations, advocacy groups, and communities of faith -- from the 12-state Midwest can support these recommendations, then surely our representatives in Washington can act on them

Learning for Liberation: Critical Black Poetry Pedagogy And Transformative Education

This portfolio examines and employs Black poetry as a powerful strategy for liberation; it is both a sustained discussion of the principles and practices behind the teaching of poetry for emancipatory education and Black liberation, and a toolkit for educators. It specifically addresses Black youth in Toronto. It contains four main offerings addressed to three different audiences: 1. Learning for Liberation: Critical Black Poetry Pedagogy And Transformative Education, "If We Ruled the World": A critical essay which argues that improving the quality of life for marginalized bodies, means highlighting the importance of Arts Education and providing insight into how the black experience may be re-imagined through poetry. 2. Poetry Saved My Life: Winning the Race! A Militant Black Poetry Teacher's Guide for Social Change: is a Popular Education Toolkit intended to aid first generation Black Canadian youth in the successful navigation of culturally-insensitive/hostile learning environments and racist workspaces. 3. Re-Imagining the Black Experience Through Word-Sound-Power: is an audio recording on traumatic/racialized historical violence and memory; intended to disrupt the dominant discourse on race relations. 4. Poetry Saved My Life! A Black PoeTree Experience (Series): A collection of short and long poems intended as social commentary on racial issues, within a North American context

Strategic Plan: 1990-1995

Belief Statements WE BELIEVE THAT: meaning is discovered, not prescribed. all individuals have equal intrinsic worth. all people have an innate desire to learn. the power of the human mind is the world\u27s greatest resource. every individual is capable of both changing and bringing about change. trust is essential for any human relationship to prosper. the survival of global civilization depends primarily upon the quality of the education provided to all citizens. every person is responsible for his/her own choices and actions. belonging to a group implies subordination of self-interests to the common good. excellence is worth the effort, but not always worth the cost. achieving our vision of the future depends upon our willingness to sacrifice in the present. aversion to risk-taking stifles innovation and creativity. learning is an individual, life-long endeavor. valuable learning results from both failure and success. all adults share responsibility for the well-being of all children. the ability to discern and create connections is the essence of knowing. a good life is harmony among the emotions, the body, the intellect, and the spirit. the process of education is more than merely the accumulation of facts

“NGEREMIS” TRADITION IN A PROSPECTIVE TOURISM OBJECTS FOR ECONOMY RESOURCE UPON TIN MINING EXPLORATION MITIGATION IN BELITUNG

Quoting the contents of the first Human Development Report (HDR) in 1990,human development is a process to increase the choices that humans have.Among these many choices, the most important are to live long and healthy, tobe educated, and to have access to the resources needed to live a decent life.Human resource is as a primary capital for development. The HumanDevelopment Index (HDI) measures the achievement of human developmentbased on a number of basic components of quality of life. As a measure of qualityof life, HDI is built through a basic three-dimensional approach. Thesedimensions include longevity and health; knowledge, and a decent life. Thesethree dimensions have a very broad meaning because they are related to manyfactors. To measure the health dimension, life expectancy at birth is used.Furthermore, to measure the knowledge dimension, a combination of literacyrate indicators and average years of schooling is used. As for measuring thedimensions of decent living, indicators of people's purchasing power are usedfor a number of basic needs seen from the average amount of per capitaexpenditure as an income approach that represents development achievementsfor a decent life. Those indicators were as the capital to develop in manydevelopment sectors, including tourism sector. The tourism sector is asreplacement economic resource after tin mining era golden age pass few yearsago. Poverty is a state of inability to meet basic needs such as food, clothing,shelter, education and health. Poverty can be caused by the scarcity of basicnecessities, or the difficulty of accessing education and employment. Poverty isa global problem. Some people understand this term subjectively andcomparatively, while others see it from a moral and evaluative point of view, andstill others understand it from an established scientific point of view, et

The reproduction of privilege: education, jobs and precarity in rural Upper Egypt

In modern imaginaries, social advantage and mobility are rooted in and linked to the educational achievements and the type of jobs acquired by individuals. In fact, these two factors have long been connected, and have been considered as a stepping stone to a stable and secure livelihood (Assaad & Krafft, 2014). However, with neoliberal policies and the ongoing restructuring of the Egyptian economy and society, as well as around the world, the links between acquiring a formal academic certificate and obtaining a job requires new and more nuanced examination. Other factors, such as social networks, now determine the scale and type of the available job opportunities. In fact, the most recent official statistics covering the period 2015-2018 show that the levels of poverty have increased among holders of higher educational degrees while they decreased among the illiterates. (CAPMAS, 2019, P.80). Some would argue that education is no longer a priority or a key element in reaching a fundamental mode of securing a stable life as it once did through enabling a formal permanent job, mainly in the public sector. Actually, education attainment and occupying a stable formal job became a privilege that has the power of creating inequalities and exclusion (Spark, 2018). However, most families still enroll their children in the formal educational system despite the rapid deterioration of the quality of Egyptian education and the erosion of job guarantees previously provided by the state to educated citizens. Has education become a privilege instead of a route to greater privilege and social mobility? Who are the privileged? How do they reproduce their privilege with respect to the education system and the job market? Why do the non-privileged still enroll their children even though education is no longer a pathway to improve their life circumstances? How do these dynamics play out in rural and more marginal areas? How can an exploration reveal the diversity in rural areas and enhance our understanding of understudied regions? These questions, among others, are examined in this thesis with respect to rural Upper Egypt

Corporate social responsibility across Middle East and North Africa

This paper attempts to synthesise the reports prepared by various authors, who live and work in their homeland in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), on the notion of “corporate social responsibility” (“CSR”). The reports are prepared as a prologue for a workshop organised by New Jordanian Research Centre (URJC) on strengthening “CSR” in the businesses of the region. The authors come from different backgrounds. They were invited not to engage in an academic exercise but to capture and reflect upon the “realities” of the debate in their countries on the basis of their role as proactive participants. The objective was to detect common elements and patterns in the issues of and approaches to “CSR” in the MENA region. The authors were asked to use a common format for their reports, but left free in their approach