The role of emotions and beliefs in developing language teacher\u27s professional identity

Many studies have investigated different positive and negative emotions that teachers experience in their work place, in addition to their teaching beliefs. However, none of these studies addressed the role of these emotions in formulating teaching beliefs and how both emotions and beliefs shape teacher’s professional identity; particularly in an Egyptian context. The current study addresses this gap. The participants are seven female experienced teachers who work in different private institutions, under different instructional settings. The study uses semi -structured interviews, narratives and focus group discussion as data collection tools. Lazarus psychological theory of emotions (1991) was used to analyze emotions. The beliefs analysis was guided by Borg (2001) and Goodman (1998) frame works and Gee (2001) levels of identity were found to reflect teacher’s professional identity. The results showed that teachers’ emotions affected their beliefs in relation to their students, their own teaching, the institution they work at and their colleagues. The results also implied that emotions and beliefs affected the development of those teachers’ professional identities in three main contexts; student-related, institution-related and their teacher self-related contexts. The study suggests some pedagogical implications if implemented in teachers’ education programs, would help them to develop sense of awareness of their weaknesses and strengths, reconsider their beliefs, whenever urging to do so, and hence the development of their professional identities

Achieving Environmental Sustainability of Sugarcane Industry in Egypt: An Application of Life Cycle Assessment

Sugarcane industry in Egypt goes back to the year 710 AD. Cane plantations are concentrated in the area of Upper Egypt. The total amount of cane cultivated in Upper Egypt is about 16 million tons per year. There are eight sugarcane producing factories in Egypt, most of them located close to the cultivations. The sugarcane industry in Egypt can be currently defined as an open industrial system that consumes material and energy and creates products and wastes. The two main stages of sugarcane production are the agricultural stage and the industrial stage. The agricultural stage involves cane cultivation which involves the use of fertilizers, water and fuel for irrigation, and cane harvesting which results in the production of two main residues which are cane tops and dry leaves. The cane tops are collected and used by the farmers to feed their livestock. The dry leaves, on the other hand, are openly burnt resulting in pollution of the ambient air. The cane is transported from the fields to the mills mainly by the sugarcane train. In the mill, the production process involves the consumption of chemicals, water and fuel to produce a number of by-products in addition to the main two products: raw sugar and molasses. The main residues or by-products are filter mud residing from the juice clarification process, bagasse from the cane squeezing and furnace ash in case the bagasse is burnt in the power house to provide steam and electricity for the mill. The filter mud and furnace ash are used in their raw form as soil additive due to their nutritional value. The bagasse, on the other hand, is either burnt in the mill power house to provide steam and electricity to the mill, or is directed to auxiliary factories to produce paper or fiberboard. The main aspects that have contributed to the research motivation: (1) mismanagement of the considerable amounts of residues generated during sugarcane harvest and its associated negative environmental impacts, (2) lack of tools and data for assessment of waste management alternatives based on environmental criteria rather than economic ones, (3) lack of low cost sustainable waste management options for sugar cane industry to achieve environmental balance. This research aims at assessing the environmental sustainability of the sugar industry in Egypt to achieve an environmentally balanced industry approaching zero waste. This is done by analyzing the current practices of reuse/recycling of by-products/residues generated from the sugarcane industry from its agricultural and industrial stages, as well as propose alternative environmental friendly practices for reuse of residues, such as composting and silage production. To achieve this, the research is divided into stages; identification of main current and potential uses of residues in Egypt, data collection, and data analysis using Life Cycle Analysis approach. Primary data and information was collected through field visits, interviews and questionnaires. The data collected from secondary sources included books, journals, conference papers, governmental reports, international organizations’ statistics and websites. Pilot scale experimental composting and silage making was performed on a combination of agricultural and industrial residues of the sugarcane industry including green tops, dry leaves, filter mud, bagasse and furnace ash. Results of the different treatments were analyzed and recommendations on the best combinations were given in terms of the physical, chemical and biological characteristics of the produced compost or organic fertilizer. Life cycle assessment (LCA) is used to evaluate the environmental performance of the sugarcane industry in Egypt including its agricultural and industrial stages. It is also used to identify the most environmental friendly options for the reuse of the residues generated from the sugarcane industry. Alternatives uses of bagasse, a cane milling residue, in the generation of steam and electricity, or production of paper, fiberboard or compost is investigated. It is also compared to processes that produce the same product but through other raw material. Recommendations and limitations of each option are presented and discussed

The Development and Psychometric Assessment of a Scale to Measure the Severity of Examination Anxiety among Undergraduate University Students

The study reported here aimed to develop and psychometrically assess aninstrument to measure examination anxiety among undergraduate universitystudents. Based on empirical evidence and recent literature review wedeveloped a 1 2 item scale to measure the severity of examination anxiety. Theinstrument was administered to students, two weeks before they wrote theirexaminations. Experts (n=1 0) participated in a validation process of theinstrument before it was administered to students (n= 40). Internal consistencyreliability for the instrument was 0. 82 (Cronbach's alpha) and there was 92 %overall agreement between experts about the relevance of the instruments’items to measure students’ examination anxiety, providing evidence for contentvalidity. Factor analysis resulted in three cohesive and theoretically meaningfulfactors. There is evidence for content and convergent validity. The developedinstrument is a reliable, valid and empirical measure to assess the severity ofexamination anxiety. The scale will take five minutes to complete

L-Carnitine Improves the Asthma Control in Children with Moderate Persistent Asthma

The objective. was to investigate L-Carnitine level and the effects of its supplementation in children with moderate persistent Asthma. Methods. Free and total serum carnitine levels were measured in 50 children having moderate persistent asthma and 50 healthy control children. The patients group was randomly divided into two subgroups. Subgroup A was supplemented with L-carnitine for 6 months while subgroup B was used as a placebo controls. Both subgroups were assessed by pulmonary function tests (PFT) and childhood-asthma control test (C-ACT) before and 6 months after carnitine supplementation. Results. Total and free carnitine levels were significantly lower in patient group than in control group. PFT and C-ACT showed significant improvements in asthmatic children supplemented with L-carnitine than in those who were not supplemented. Conclusion. L-carnitine levels were initially lower in moderate persistent asthmatic children as compared to healthy control children. Asthmatic children who received L-carnitine supplementation showed statistically significant improvement of C-ACT and PFT

Magnetic localization and control of helical robots for clearing superficial blood clots

This work presents an approach for the localization and control of helical robots during removal of superficial blood clots inside in vitro and ex vivo models. The position of the helical robot is estimated using an array of Hall-effect sensors and precalculated magnetic field map of two synchronized rotating dipole fields. The estimated position is used to implement closed-loop motion control of the helical robot using the rotating dipole fields. We validate the localization accuracy by visual feedback and feature tracking inside the in vitro model. The experimental results show that the magnetic localization of a helical robot with diameter of 1 mm can achieve a mean absolute position error of 2.35 ± 0.4 mm (n = 20). The simultaneous localization and motion control of the helical robot enables propulsion toward a blood clot and clearing at an average removal rate of 0.67 ± 0.47 mm3/min. This method is used to localize the helical robot inside a rabbit aorta (ex vivo model), and the localization accuracy is validated using ultrasound feedback with a mean absolute position error of 2.6 mm

ETIOLOGY, INVESTIGATIONS, AND TREATMENT IN CASES OF CONSTRICTIVE PERICARDITIS

The fibroelastic sac that covers the heart is known as the pericardium. It has an effect on cardiac hemodynamics and serves as a protective barrier. Constrictive pericarditis is a condition in which the pericardium grows granulation tissue, causing a loss of pericardial elasticity and ventricular filling limitation. Although it is usually a chronic condition, subacute, transient, and occult variants have been reported. The pathogenesis, symptoms, and diagnosis of constrictive pericarditis, as well as the role of the interprofessional team in its treatment, are covered in this exercise. This review article aims to describe the pathophysiology of constrictive pericarditis, review a patient's presentation with constrictive pericarditis, summarise constrictive pericarditis options for treatment, and discuss the importance of improving care coordination among interprofessional team members to enhance constrictive pericarditis patient outcomes. The 10-year survival rate for patients who get a pericardiectomy is around 50%. Medical treatment alone results in a short lifespan

PATHOPHYSIOLOGY, INVESTIGATIONS, AND TREATMENT OF PATIENTS WITH BICUSPID AORTIC VALVE

Bicuspid aortic valve is a congenital anomaly of the heart in which the aortic valve has two loops instead of the normal three. It causes valve degeneration and is associated with dilation of the aorta. This exercise discusses the role of inter-professional team in improving the management of patients with bicuspid aortic valves and describes the diagnosis and management of this problem. The purpose of this review article is to describe the epidemiology of bicuspid aortic valve, describe the presentation of patients with bicuspid aortic valve, summarize the use of electrocardiogram and echocardiogram in bicuspid aortic valve evaluation, and explain the importance of collaboration and communication. Interprofessional team to improve care coordination for patients with bicuspid aortic valve