E-learning policy in Saudi Arabia: challenges and successes

E-learning is a sector of Saudi Arabian education that is witnessing significant growth, particularly in higher education. This article aims to provide a historical overview of the development and evolution of e-learning in Saudi Arabia. With the Ministry of Higher Education at the core of education and e-learning, the article will explore recent e-learning-related developments in King Saud University, King Faisal University, King Abdulaziz University and the Saudi Electronic University. As part of this analysis, the article will explore the challenges that are being encountered and the strategies that each of these institutions is implementing to support and develop e-learning. It is equally important to evaluate the role played by international partners, particularly the UK and the US, in supporting e-learning financially, socially and technologically. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has obtained significant support from the US and UK, with both countries contributing to the establishment of an integrated model for e-learning curriculums and information management systems in Saudi Arabia. Finally, this analysis explores the growth potential of e-learning and the efforts being made to support Saudi Arabia’s growing university student population. The article includes an exploration of the methods of evaluating, securing and modifying the current systems

The reality of using smartphone applications for learning in higher education of Saudi Arabia

The smartphone has emerged as one of the most important educational tools in today's digital era due to its ability to facilitate access to learning materials without the traditional time and locational limitations. Smartphones and their associated applications also have the potential advantages of enhancing communication between learners and educators as well as simplifying the research process. However, there have been concerns over the extent to which college and university students use smartphone apps for educational rather than non-educational purposes. Moreover, there are concerns over the real usefulness of smartphone devices in the learning process. Therefore, this study focused on the perceptions of students and their faculty staff concerning the reality of smartphone apps usage and their value regarding the learning process and collegiality in the context of higher education in Saudi Arabia. The study also sought to determine the major challenges that students and faculty members face in the use of smartphone apps for educational purposes within a particular e-learning environment that using the Blackboard system and associated resources. In order to study the usage of smartphone apps in Saudi Arabia’s higher education sector, this study adopted a mixed methods research approach within a case study university; the Saudi Electronic University. Quantitative research was conducted involving a survey of 324 students from the Saudi Electronic University (SEU) using self-administered questionnaires that assessed the patterns of smartphone apps usage. In addition, a qualitative study was conducted using semi-structured interviews with 13 faculty members. Survey data was subjected to statistical analysis while interview data was analyzed using thematic content analysis. The findings of this study reveal that smartphone apps are extensively used for learning purposes as part of a wider e-learning environment in the Saudi Electronic University in Saudi Arabia. It emerged that 70% of all learning is delivered through digital platforms while 30% of learning takes place through face-to-face interactions. Most faculty members in the case study agreed on the usefulness of integrating smartphones in the learning process. In this context, faculty members believed that the use of smartphone apps in education is a necessity today. Furthermore, smartphone apps were viewed as being useful in enhancing skills of learners and faculty members as well as promoting communication between educational stakeholders. From the students’ perspectives, the findings of this study revealed a positive engagement with smartphone apps for educational purposes. Most students used smartphone apps to check their emails (73.5%), the students were browsing the internet for learning purposes (59.3%), communicate with other learners and instructors (53.1%, access learning materials (37.3%), and engage in general learning activities (35.5%). The study showed a wide acceptance of mobile learning and positive perceptions on the usefulness of smartphone apps in learning. However, there was variation in students’ views and understanding among students about the role of smartphone apps for certain learning purposes. Factors that were seen to influence the students’ attitudes towards smartphone apps usage for learning included class standing, age, and brand of smartphones, mobile operator (P<0.05). The qualitative findings highlighted that the use of smartphone apps as part of a broader mobile learning environment contributed to online communities of practice involving staff and students. Finally, the findings of this study revealed that students and faculty members experience several major challenges in the use of smartphone apps in learning. These include slow internet connections, incompatibility with certain devices, small screen sizes of the smartphones, low battery life, high costs, technical failures on the university learning app, and distractions on students’ attention, among others. Therefore, the findings of this study suggest a need for Saudi higher education institutions to reflect on the practical and technical challenges affecting mobile learning platforms that can inhibit the use of smartphone apps in the mobile learning environment and students’ awareness of the benefits of mobile learning. In addition to revealing the areas of potential improvement for optimization of mobile learning in Saudi Arabia, the present study also makes important contributions to the theoretical and conceptual understanding of aspects of e-learning using the Saudi context as a focus for the study. The study findings revealed that the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) as well as the situative and cognitive learning theories are useful models to help explain the behavioural intentions and processes of technology use among students and faculty members in the Saudi higher education sector. Based on the study findings, and in line with the TAM theory, it may be concluded that perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use of the technology have a strong influence on the learners’ evaluation of the appropriateness of e-learning systems in Saudi Arabia. While the Technology Acceptance Model highlights the importance of physical aspects of e-learning technology, the Cognitive and Associative theories are also helpful in understanding the social processes involved in this context and the role of online communities, respectively for higher education learners in Saudi Arabia

Cyber-Attack Penetration Test and Vulnerability Analysis

Hacking attempts or cyber-attacks to information systems have recently evolved to be sophisticated and deadly, resulting in such incidents as leakage of personal information and system destruction. While various security solutions to cope with these risks are being developed and deployed, it is still necessary to systematically consider the methods to enhance the existing security system and build more effective defense systems. Under this circumstance, it is necessary to identify the latest types of attacks attempted to the primary security system. This paper analyzes cyber attack techniques as well as the anatomy of penetration test in order to assist security officers to perform appropriate self security assesment on their network systems

Effects of hospital facilities on patient outcomes after cancer surgery: an international, prospective, observational study

Background Early death after cancer surgery is higher in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs) compared with in high-income countries, yet the impact of facility characteristics on early postoperative outcomes is unknown. The aim of this study was to examine the association between hospital infrastructure, resource availability, and processes on early outcomes after cancer surgery worldwide.Methods A multimethods analysis was performed as part of the GlobalSurg 3 study-a multicentre, international, prospective cohort study of patients who had surgery for breast, colorectal, or gastric cancer. The primary outcomes were 30-day mortality and 30-day major complication rates. Potentially beneficial hospital facilities were identified by variable selection to select those associated with 30-day mortality. Adjusted outcomes were determined using generalised estimating equations to account for patient characteristics and country-income group, with population stratification by hospital.Findings Between April 1, 2018, and April 23, 2019, facility-level data were collected for 9685 patients across 238 hospitals in 66 countries (91 hospitals in 20 high-income countries; 57 hospitals in 19 upper-middle-income countries; and 90 hospitals in 27 low-income to lower-middle-income countries). The availability of five hospital facilities was inversely associated with mortality: ultrasound, CT scanner, critical care unit, opioid analgesia, and oncologist. After adjustment for case-mix and country income group, hospitals with three or fewer of these facilities (62 hospitals, 1294 patients) had higher mortality compared with those with four or five (adjusted odds ratio [OR] 3.85 [95% CI 2.58-5.75]; p&lt;0.0001), with excess mortality predominantly explained by a limited capacity to rescue following the development of major complications (63.0% vs 82.7%; OR 0.35 [0.23-0.53]; p&lt;0.0001). Across LMICs, improvements in hospital facilities would prevent one to three deaths for every 100 patients undergoing surgery for cancer.Interpretation Hospitals with higher levels of infrastructure and resources have better outcomes after cancer surgery, independent of country income. Without urgent strengthening of hospital infrastructure and resources, the reductions in cancer-associated mortality associated with improved access will not be realised

Spectrophotometric Study of Charge-Transfer Complexes of Ruxolitinib with Chloranilic Acid and 2,3-Dichloro-5,6-dicyano-1,4-benzoquinone: An Application to the Development of a Green and High-Throughput Microwell Method for Quantification of Ruxolitinib in Its Pharmaceutical Formulations

Ruxolitinib (RUX) is a potent drug that has been approved by the Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of myelofibrosis, polycythemia vera, and graft-versus-host disease. This study describes the formation of colored charge-transfer complexes (CTCs) of RUX, an electron donor, with chloranilic acid (CLA) and 2,3-dichloro-5,6-dicyano-1,4-benzoquinone (DDQ), the π-electron acceptors. The CTCs were characterized using UV-visible spectrophotometry. The formation of CTCs in methanol was confirmed via formation of new absorption bands with maximum absorption at 530 and 470 nm for CTCs with CLA and DDQ, respectively. The molar absorptivity and other physicochemical and electronic properties of CTCs were determined. The molar ratio was found to be 1:1 for both CTCs with CLA and CTCs with DDQ. The site of interaction on RUX molecules was assigned and the mechanisms of the reactions were postulated. The reactions were employed as basis for the development of a novel green and one-step microwell spectrophotometric method (MW-SPM) for high-throughput quantitation of RUX. Reactions of RUX with CLA and DDQ were carried out in 96-well transparent plates, and the absorbances of the colored CTCs were measured by an absorbance microplate reader. The MW-SPM was validated according to the ICH guidelines. The limits of quantitation were 7.5 and 12.6 µg/mL for the methods involving reactions with CLA and DDQ, respectively. The method was applied with great reliability to the quantitation of RUX content in Jakavi® tablets and Opzelura® cream. The greenness of the MW-SPM was assessed by three different metric tools, and the results proved that the method fulfills the requirements of green analytical approaches. In addition, the one-step reactions and simultaneous handling of a large number of samples with micro-volumes using the proposed method enables the high-throughput analysis. In conclusion, this study describes the first MW-SPM, a valuable analytical tool for the quality control of pharmaceutical formulations of RUX

Effect of academic stressors on eating habits among medical students in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Context: Stress can be defined as an integral response of the organism to pressures from the internal or external environment with the aim to maintain homeostasis. Usually, it has a negative impact on human health. Medical students can feel stress during their preclinical studies due to overload of work such as assignments, lectures, and seminars. As a result, their appetite can be affected by skipping meals eating fast food. Aims: The aim of this study was to assess the pattern of eating habits and to define its association with stress among medical students. Settings and Design: This cross-sectional study was conducted among the medical students of Al-Imam Muhammed Ibn Saud Islamic University. Subjects and Methods: The sample consist of 105 Arabian males (100%) with 21-year old being the average. We use questionnaires divided into three sections. Statistical Analysis Used: SPSS. Results: We have confirmed three hypotheses: freshman would have Higher Stress Levels than sophomores and junior, the spread of fast food restaurants increases the chance for students to eat Unhealthy Foods, and the students Who Have High Stress Levels Would Eat More Unhealthy Foods Than Students Who Have Low Stress Levels. Conclusions: Our findings have revealed the importance to develop a specific intervention program with the aim to decrease the stress in medical students. We suggest also the development of accurate university programs with resources well programmed and well established, development of the educational program with the aim to promote healthy eating habits in medical students, the longitudinal courses should be converted to Blocks to decrease the Academic stress on students

Are cardiac patients in Saudi Arabia provided adequate instructions when they should not drive?

Objective: Driving capability can be significantly affected by different heath disorders; cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) should be considered when assessing patients for medical fitness to drive (MFTD). The aim of this study was to evaluate the awareness of Saudi patients about driving recommendations and to assess the incidence of motor vehicle accidents (MVAs) among cardiac patients. Materials and Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional survey-based study. Male patients diagnosed with CVDs and who were visiting outpatient departments were invited to complete a questionnaire regarding their awareness of driving recommendations. Patients’ demographics, clinical diagnosis, echocardiography parameters, and time-to-CVD diagnosis were all obtained from the patients’ medical records. Women were excluded because it was illegal for women to drive in Saudi Arabia during the study period. Results: In total, 800 men were included, with a mean age of 54 ± 12 years. Driving counseling had been provided to 241 participants (30%). Of these, 207 (25%) were advised not to drive for a period of between one week and six months. Five percent of the patients had a history of MVAs during the follow-up period of 6.2 ± 4 years. We found that the presence of a dyspnea ≥2, according to the New York Heart Association (NYHA), and a history of loss of consciousness (syncope/pre-syncope) were significantly associated with accidents (46% vs. 20%, P < 0.0001 and 41% vs. 10%, P < 0.0001, respectively). Conclusion: Patient–physician discussion about MFTD was only performed with 30% of the patients with CVDs in Saudi Arabia. Dyspnea NYHA class ≥2 or a prior history of syncope were significantly associated with the incidence of MVAs

Tailored fabrication of iridium nanoparticle-sensitized titanium oxynitride nanotubes for solar-driven water splitting: Experimental insights on the photocatalytic-activity-defects relationship

Understanding the photocatalytic-activity-defects relationship of titanium oxynitride nanotubes (TiON-NTs) is important for tailoring their photocatalytic performance. Herein, we fabricated highly ordered and vertically aligned nanotube arrays of TiON-NT-functionalized with iridium nanoparticles denoted as (Ir/TiON-NTs) for solar-driven water splitting. Positron annihilation lifetime spectroscopy (PALS) and variable-energy positron annihilation spectroscopy (VEPAS) were performed to quantify the vacancy-type defects of Ir/TiON-NTs relative to TiON-NTs and TiO2-NTs. The results display that the Ir/TiON-NTs exhibit abundant defects such as small nitrogen vacancies, larger size vacancy clusters, and small voids. The obtained photocurrent density of the Ir/TiON-NTs (11.3 mA cm-2) is about 3.97, 5, and 11.89 times higher than that of Ir/TiO2-NTs, TiON-NTs, and TiO2-NTs, respectively. The Mott-Schottky analysis revealed the highest significant negative shift in the band potential and the lowest donor density of Ir/TiON-NTs compared to its counterparts. This result is attributed to the unique structural and compositional merits of Ir/TiON-NTs despite the abundant defects, which delay the charge recombination and improve the photocatalytic activity. The presented study may open new frontiers on engineering the defects of metal oxynitrides with metal-based catalysts for photocatalytic applications.This work is made possible by NPRP Grant no. NPRP 7-485-1-091 from the Qatar National Research Fund (a member of Qatar Foundation). The statements made herein are solely the responsibility of the authors