Emotional Intelligence and Academic Achievement: A Comparative, Gender-Based Study of Undergraduate English Language Learners in Saudi Arabia

There are divergent evidences regarding general levels and differences of Emotional Intelligence (EI) in males and females. The present study aimed at investigating the effects of EI on academic achievement of male and female English language undergraduates in Saudi Arabia. Data were collected from 100 male and 100 female students through Emotional Quotient Inventory (EQ-I, 125). The responses were compared with their performance in English language tests. It was found that higher EI levels of female undergraduates had positive impact on their performance in English language tests. Females also scored better in EI constructs: intrapersonal, interpersonal, stress management and general good. However, adaptation was not significant in both genders. Results demonstrate a trend of social and educational change in Saudi Arabia as female students are performing better compared to their male counterparts. Accordingly, if EI skills are strengthened and enhanced in students of both genders, they may potentially display better levels of personal and academic achievements. Keywords: Emotional Intelligence, English language, academic achievement, gende

Redefining Pedagogical Priorities: An Investigation of EFL Teachers’ Perceptions towards Teaching English as a Lingua Franca in the Saudi Higher Education Context

The ever expanding influence of English language in the modern world has initiated an unusual era of English language teaching worldwide, and nowadays English as a foreign language (EFL) learners are nearly four times as compared to the native English speakers. This overwhelming use of English language in the expanding circle has developed more complex relationships between the communities using English in this capacity and the dialogue addressing its use as a lingua franca continues to expand. Lots of research has been produced related to English as a Lingua franca (ELF) during the last two decades highlighting the need to understand the potential change that necessitates international, mutual comprehensibility and the concept of accommodation for social and academic interactions in ELF settings. The present study intended to investigate the potential of embracing the concept of ELF in the Saudi Higher Education. This paper builds on recent research in this area and focuses on the language instructors' perceptions of ELF, while placing it up against the widely common EFL concept prominent in the expanding circle. To do this, the study investigated 218 native and non-native EFL instructors at a Saudi university to document the implications of using ELF for the purpose of learning English and the language policies related to English language teaching in the context of higher education in Saudi Arabia. The data reveal that a vast majority of the participants are familiar with the term ELF and they favour the use of ELF in ELT by suggesting exposing their students to non-native verities of English. The results also reveal contradiction in their responses which indicated that as a matter of practice they stick to a native-speaker norm when they teach. Furthermore, they have recommended native varieties of English,i.e. British, American, Canadian and Australian respectively, for pedagogical purposes in Saudi EFL context whereas non-native varieties of English were not favoured especially in written communication. It seems that this issue should be debated and investigated at much larger scale before deciding the role of ELF in English language teaching domain in Saudi higher education. Keywords: English as a lingua franca; EFL; pedagogical implication

A COMPARATIVE DETERMINATION OF BARRIERS OF ORAL ENGLISH LEARNING FACED BY PREPARATORY YEAR STUDENTS

It has been reported that Saudi students are unable to achieve desired English language proficiency in general and oral skills in particular. This study is an attempt to investigate Saudi preparatory year students (SPYS) and English language teachers at English language center, Taif University to identify the barriers that hinder oral proficiency. The participants were 142 Saudi EFL learners and 47 English language teachers who responded to a self-developed Likert-scale questionnaire. The results of this empirical study have revealed that SPYS face issues in oral proficiency though they generally have positive attitudes towards speaking skills. They strongly agree that it is an important skill to continue their studies at tertiary level. There are several factors that contribute towards this situation that need immediate attention by the faculty as well the administration. It has been found out that attitudes of SPYS towards English language, frequent use of their mother tongue not only outside the campus but also inside the classroom with their peers and teachers, their inability to command proper pronunciation, appropriate grammatical structures, necessary vocabulary items, their hesitance to use the target language in front of their class fellows because of their fear of making mistakes etc. are major oral barriers. The results of this study did not reveal any significant oral barriers in relation to the behavior of English language teachers, English textbooks as well as English contact hours. Relevant suggestions have been forwarded that have significant implications not only for SPYS but also for English language teachers and PYD administration

A COMPARATIVE DETERMINATION OF BARRIERS OF ORAL ENGLISH LEARNING FACED BY PREPARATORY YEAR STUDENTS

It has been reported that Saudi students are unable to achieve desired English language proficiency in general and oral skills in particular. This study is an attempt to investigate Saudi preparatory year students (SPYS) and English language teachers at English language center, Taif University to identify the barriers that hinder oral proficiency. The participants were 142 Saudi EFL learners and 47 English language teachers who responded to a self-developed Likert-scale questionnaire. The results of this empirical study have revealed that SPYS face issues in oral proficiency though they generally have positive attitudes towards speaking skills. They strongly agree that it is an important skill to continue their studies at tertiary level. There are several factors that contribute towards this situation that need immediate attention by the faculty as well the administration. It has been found out that attitudes of SPYS towards English language, frequent use of their mother tongue not only outside the campus but also inside the classroom with their peers and teachers, their inability to command proper pronunciation, appropriate grammatical structures, necessary vocabulary items, their hesitance to use the target language in front of their class fellows because of their fear of making mistakes etc. are major oral barriers. The results of this study did not reveal any significant oral barriers in relation to the behavior of English language teachers, English textbooks as well as English contact hours. Relevant suggestions have been forwarded that have significant implications not only for SPYS but also for English language teachers and PYD administration

Informatics Plasma Display News Server Project and Analysis of its Software Development

Thesis (M.Lib.St.) -- Indiana University South Bend, 2006.This project was an attempt to develop the Informatics Plasma Display News Server (IPDNS) used to drive the plasma display operated by the Informatics at Indiana University South Bend. The target software was designed to facilitate the posting of top Informatics and IT news stories from the department, across the campus and around the world. This thesis describes the implementation and testing of the IPDNS, and analyzes the development processes used for this project. IPDNS project development process was divided into two phases: 1) analyzing the requirement and designing the system; 2) implementing and testing the system. In this thesis, the various techniques used for communication and project management are compared and their relative strengths and weaknesses are analyzed in regard to their influence and effect on the software development process

Arab / Islamic concept of intelligence in the case of Fatah paramilitary

This thesis was submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and awarded by Brunel University.This thesis provides a composite picture of the Islamic concept of intelligence traces the historical roots of Islamic intelligence activities and explains the (Ideological) relationship between the Islamic religion and the intelligence concept adhered to by modern Arab and Islamist paramilitary groups. Special reference is made to Fatah movement which has been taken up as a case study. The thesis shows that the two main sources of Islam (the Quran and the Sunnah) provided the regulative codes of practice towards intelligence activities. Prophet Muhammad’s intelligence tradition offers the ideal model that the Arab / Islamic paramilitary groups emulate. Referring to the Islamic roots, the research seeks to point out that the hallmarks of the Islamic intelligence concept which emerged from the Quran and Prophet Mohammed’s tradition, became the framework that accommodated ‘Arab / Islamic modern paramilitary intelligence activities’, such as Fatah’s. The thesis uses the modern concept of the intelligence to identify the ancient activities and compares data process within the intelligence cycle. The range of activities is broad: clandestine collection, counterintelligence, analysis and dissemination, and covert action. It also introduces the Arab intelligence tradecraft such as the uses of safe houses, methods of communication, secrecy and concealments...etc. This thesis also aims to correct the perception that Arab intelligence concept developed after the emergence and expansion of the Islamic Empire

DWT-Based Data Hiding Technique for Videos Ownership Protection

This chapter proposes a wavelet data hiding scheme for video authentication and ownership protection. A watermark in the shape of a logo image will be hidden. In this research, a discrete wavelet transform (DWT) process is implemented using orthonormal filter banks, where the Y components of the YUV color space of the video frames are decomposed using DWT, and a watermark is inserted in one or more of the resulting sub-bands in a way that is fully controlled by the owner. Then, the watermarked video is reconstructed. The filters used for the DWT decompositions are randomly generated to increase the security of the algorithm. An enhanced detection technique is developed to increase the reliability of the system. The overall robustness of this scheme is measured when common attacks are applied to the test videos. Moreover, the proposed algorithm is used with the high-efficiency video coding (HEVC) technique to examine the whole performance. Furthermore, a selective denoising filter is built to eliminate the effect of the noise. The simulation results show that the proposed algorithm achieves well under both the visual and the metric tests. Moreover, it performed well against intentional and unintentional attacks. The average normalized correlation achieved is 97%, while the mean peak signal-to-noise ratio (PSNR) is 45 dB

The Genetic Aspects of Behçet’s Disease: Role of Cytokine Genes Polymorphisms

Behçet’s disease (BD) is a complex, multisystemic inflammatory disorder characterized by recurrent oral aphthous ulcers, ocular symptoms, skin lesions, and genital ulcerations. The etiology of BD is not yet clear though various factors including environmental, genetic and immunological ones have been implicated. Genetic predisposition is a major factor in disease susceptibility and multiple host genetic factors have been suggested to be involved in the development of BD. In addition to the positive association of HLAB*51, recent studies report additional independent associations in the non HLA loci. Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in various genes including cytokines have been implicated in susceptibility to BD. However, the results are inconsistent and variation are found in several ethnic populations. Therefore, further genetic studies on BD patients of different ethnicity and genes associated with immunity are expected to elucidate BD pathogenesis and will contribute to the development of more targeted therapies and biomarkers