A Study of the Teaching Beliefs of GLOBE Teachers

The purpose of this study was to explore the teaching beliefs of GLOBE (Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment) teachers, and to analyze their pedagogical practices. This study contributes to bridging the gap between our understanding of teachers’ beliefs of teaching science with inquiry and practicing science in class with inquiry. A descriptive research approach was used for both quantitative and qualitative analysis. Data was collected from seventy-two trained GLOBE teachers across the U.S. using Qualtrics.com. Quantitatively, the pedagogical beliefs of GLOBE teachers were measured using the Beliefs about Reformed Science Teaching and Learning (BARSTL) questionnaire. Differences between the scores of BARSTL and demographic data were analyzed using the one-way ANOVA with SPSS. Necessary follow-up analysis, including post hoc tests, were done where significance was found. Qualitatively, their teaching experiences were investigated using their responses from an open-ended questionnaire in an instrument referred to as the Teaching after Globe Training Questionnaire (TGTQ). The BARSTL scores from this study revealed that the vast majority (93.06%) of the GLOBE teachers were inclined towards constructivist teaching beliefs. The one-way ANOVA results showed no significance for age and years of teaching experience. The regions showed the significant differences possibly because of small sample size and uneven distribution of the sample in each region. Results from the TGTQ highlighted the struggles and challenges teachers faced during classroom practices. Sixty-one percent of the teachers had changed their teaching strategies after learning GLOBE protocols and incorporated more hands-on inquiry-based activities in their teaching. Eighty-two percent of the teachers planned to continue teaching with GLOBE activities and protocols. Almost all of the teachers believed that teaching with GLOBE had influenced their students’ learning, and they indicated that both accelerated and regular students learned better with GLOBE investigations. The results from this study revealed that GLOBE teachers believed that GLOBE training had influenced their teaching skills and improved their scientific concepts. The results also explained how some GLOBE teachers modified their classroom teaching practices and continued using GLOBE while others discontinued. Thus, we may conclude that GLOBE training positively influences teachers’ teaching beliefs and practices

Knowledge, Adherence, and Quality of Life among Warfarin Therapy Users

Patient knowledge and understanding of the therapy are an important factor in treatment success. Multiple factors were identified to cause a treatment failure such as side effects of the medications, rejection of the diagnosis by patients, lack of patient understanding about their medication, noncompliance, and the cost of medication. In addition, improvements in patient medication counseling and education may help in prevention of many adverse drug interactions, drug-drug or food-drug interactions, in turn enhancing medication adherence which depends basically on a patient’s acceptance of the information about the health threat itself. For these reasons, an evaluation of patients’ knowledge of medicine and its use may help screen for problems in therapy and improve therapeutic outcomes. The results of this evaluation may also be used to educate providers about areas of potential problems in which they may be able to influence change

Assessment Of Medication Adherence, Knowledge, And Health-Related Quality Of Life Among Atrial Fibrillation Patients Using Warfarin In Penang, Malaysia

The use of oral anticoagulant therapy (OAC) has been a standard clinical practice to prevent stroke in patients with atrial fibrillation. In Malaysia, studies evaluating knowledge, non-adherence and quality of life among patients with chronic use of warfarin and their relationship with their anticoagulation control, are still recent and scarce. This PhD study aims to gain insight into the knowledge and adherence of atrial fibrillation patients in Penang state towards oral anticoagulant medication, to assess their pattern of health-related quality of life (HRQoL) as well as to investigate the relationship of the former studied variables with the anticoagulation control as measured by the International Normalized Ratio. This study also aims to explore other predictive factors that could potentially explain variations in INR values. A novel model described predictors of controlled INR values was developed

Characterization of the Mechanisms by Which the Organophosphorus Compound Malathion Induces Apoptosis in L929 Murine Fibroblasts

While acute organophosphorous compound poisoning due to inhibition of acetylcholinesterase is a well-established clinical entity, the existence of chronic poisoning due to exposure to low levels of organophosphorous compounds (below the threshold required for cholinergic clinical symptoms) is a hotly debated issue. In this study, we have evaluated the effects of noncholinergic doses of malathion (0.01-20 µM) on apoptosis of murine L929 fibroblasts. Employing flow cytometric and caspase activation analyses, we demonstrate that malathion induces apoptosis in L929 cells in a dose- and time-dependent manner. The initiator caspases (caspase-8 and caspase-9) as well as the effector caspase (caspase-3) were activated by the treatment of L929 cells with malathion. Exposure of L929 cells to malathion in the presence of a general inhibitor of caspase, z-VAD-FMK, abolished the apoptotic effect of the compound. In addition, malathion induced an increase in the expression of the pro-apoptotic protein p53. However, the induction of p53 expression was subsequent to activation of the caspase cascades. The present findings suggest that the cytotoxicity of malathion at noncholinergic doses is mediated through caspase-dependent apoptosis. By employing caspase specific inhibitors, we extended our observations to elucidate the sequence of events involved in malathion-stimulated apoptosis. Pretreatment of L929 cells with the caspase-9 specific inhibitor zLEHD-fmk attenuated malathion induced apoptosis in a dose-dependent manner, whereas the caspase-8 inhibitor, zIETD-fmk, had no effect. Furthermore, the activation of caspase-9, -8, and -3 in response to malathion treatment was completely inhibited in the presence of zLEHD-fmk, implicating the involvement of caspase 9-dependent mitochondrial pathways in malathion-stimulated apoptosis. Indeed, under both in vitro and in vivo conditions, malathion triggered a dose- and time-dependent translocation of cytochrome c from mitochondria into the cytosol, as assessed by Western blot analysis. Investigation of the mechanism of cytochrome c release revealed that malathion disrupted mitochondrial transmembrane potential, induced formation of reactive oxygen species and caused loss of mitochondrial cardiolipin independent of the activation of caspase cascades. Finally, malathion treatment also resulted in a time-dependent up-regulation and translocation of the pro-apoptotic molecule Bax to mitochondria. Inhibition of this event by zVAD-fmk suggests that the activation and translocation of Bax to mitochondria is subsequent to activation of the caspase cascades. The results indicate that malathion induces apoptosis in L929 cells through direct effects on mitochondrial functions, causing the release of cytochrome c into the cytosol and subsequent activation of caspase-9. Inhibition of this specific pathway might provide a useful strategy to minimize organophosphate-induced poisoning

Implementasi Intrusion Prevention System (IPS) Pada Keamanan Jaringan Dengan Notifikasi Berbasis Telegram di Jurusan Teknik Komputer

Pada keamanan jaringan memiliki beberapa metode yang digunakan untuk mengamankan jaringan tersebut. Pada penelitian ini menggunakan metode Intrusion Prevention System yang merupakan sebuah metode keamanan yang memanfaatkan teknologi firewall pada MikroTik. Intrusion Prevention System (IPS) adalah perangkat lunak yang berkerja untuk mendeteksi aktifitas yang mencurigakan dan melakukan pencegahan terhadap intrusi pada jaringan. Pada  router MikroTik yang menyediakan beberapa fasilitas untuk mendukung keamanan dan akses jaringan dapat diterapkan sebuah sistem untuk mendeteksi jika terjadi penyerangan pada jaringan komputer. Serangan atau penyusupan dapat dicegah dengan menerapkan Intrusion Prevention System dan serangan dapat terdeteksi tergantung pada pola serangan yang ada di dalam rule IPS. Administrator system dapat mengetahui serangan yang terjadi pada server internet melalui pesan notifikasi yang memuat informasi jenis serangan dan kapan terjadinya yang dikirim oleh system yang dibuat melalui Telegra

Manajemen Dan Autentikasi Hotspot Menggunakan Remote Access Dial-In User Service (RADIUS) Server Pada Jurusan Teknik Komputer

Tujuan pembuatan laporan akhir ini yaitu untuk memanjemen dan mengautentikasi hotspot menggunakan remote access dial-in user service (RADIUS) server dengan RADIUS server dan dibantu dengan autentikasi berbasis token para pengguna harus memasukkan username serta token yang didapatkan melaui email pengguna sebelum menggunakan fasilitas hotspot,  dengan begitu dapat menyulitkan user yang tidak terdaftar pada RADIUS server untuk masuk ke dalam jaringan. Administrator atau server jaringan akan dengan mudah melakukan manajemen terhadap siapa saja yang diizinkan untuk mengakses jaringan tersebut dengan menggunakan RADIUS User Manager dimana RADIUS User Manager akan memberikan kebijakan terhadap user

Role of School Administration in Solving Students' Problems among Bedouin Schools within the Green Line in Palestine

The present study aimed to identify the role of the school administration in solving the students' problems and differences according to gender, scientific qualification, years of experience and job title. The sample consisted of (300) staff from those who are working in the Bedouin schools within the Green Line of Palestine. The author used a questionnaire in collecting data after verifying its validity and reliability. The results showed that the school administration in the Bedouin schools within the Green Line plays a moderate role in solving the problems of students. The domain of “the role of school administration in solving academic problems” ranked the first, and the results showed that there are no statistically significant differences due to the variables of gender scientific qualification, years of experience and job title in all domains of the questionnaire and the total questionnaire. The study concluded with some recommendations. Key words: School administration, student problems, Bedouin schools