Isolating Factors Which Hamper the Practice of Group Work Assignment in Foreign Language Classroom: SodoBer Secondary School Grade Nine in Focus

The purpose of the study was to isolate factors that hamper the practice of group work assignment in foreign language classroom. The study was conducted in SodoBer Secondary School in the case of grade nine. To attain this objective, Mixed Method Research Design was used. Both quantitative and qualitative analysis methods were used. The participants of the study were seven purposively selected English language teachers from grade nine. In addition, one hundred forty four grade eleven students were randomly selected for the study. The required data for the study were collected using questionnaire, semi-structured interview and focus group discussion. The result indicated that teachers’ and students’ did not realize the practice of group work assignment because there were various factors that hampered the practice of group work assignment in foreign Language classroom in SodoBer Secondary School. These include: students’ poor background experience, students’ poor participation, reliance of low achievers on high achievers, unpunctuality and lack of sufficient materials. Moreover, the findings pointed toward that many English language teachers did not check the participation of the students properly because the students have lack of interest and motivation; large numbers of the students in the classroom, students are less effective in language ability and teachers overloaded work. Based on the findings suitable recommendations were made. Keywords: Group work, factors, assignment, assessment, Isolatio

Exploring Teachers’ and Students’ Attitude Towards Group Work Assignment in English Language Classroom: The Case of Grade 11 at Wolayta Sodo Preparatory Schools in Ethiopia

The purpose of the study was to assess the attitude of English teachers’ and students’ towards group work assignment in English language classroom. The study was conducted in Wolaita Sodo Preparatory School in the case of grade eleven. To attain this objective, Mixed Method Research Design was used. Both quantitative and qualitative analysis methods were used. The participants of the study were seven purposively selected English language teachers from grade eleven. In addition, one hundred forty four grade eleven students were randomly selected for the study. The required data for the study were collected using questionnaire, semi-structured interviews and focus group discussion. Accordingly, the findings of the study indicated that most of the teachers’ and students’ had negative attitude towards group work assignment in English language classroom. Therefore, they did not act according to their attitudes due to students’ lack of interest, students’ lack of motivation and students’ lack of awareness. The results of the study, hence, revealed that a few of teachers gave constructive feedback and grade for students in group work assignment. Based on the findings suitable recommendations were made. Keywords: Group work, attitude, motivation, assignment, awarenes

Examining Factors That Obstruct the Practice of Learner-Centered Approach in Teaching Speaking Skill in English Language Classroom: The Case of Five Government Primary Schools in Wolaita Sodo City

This study was to examine factors that obstruct the practice of learner-centered approach in teaching speaking skill in English Language classroom in grade seven and eight of Wolaita Sodo City. It also aimed to explore the restraints that inhibit the practice of this approach. The study was conducted in five government primary schools. Seven English language teachers who are currently teaching at grade seven and eight level participated in the study. The instruments used were interview, written reflection and classroom observation. The qualitative data generated through these instruments were analyzed and categorized thematically and presented in a narrative form. The results of the study indicated that teachers were not practicing learner-centered approach to the level that the policy advocates because there were various factors that encumbered the practice of learner-centered approach in teaching speaking skill in English Language classroom. The first factor was students’ background such as mother tongue interference, lack of vocabulary, lack of self-confidence, and low level of motivation. The other factors include time constraints, large class size, seating arrangement and lack of adequate teaching materials. The findings also suggest that the teachers in the study lack sufficient trainings on how to apply the learner-centered approach. Therefore, it was recommended that teachers should be provided with communicative activities on how to apply the learner-centered approach. Keywords: Communicative Language Teaching, obstruct, Learner-Centered Approach, Speaking skill DOI: 10.7176/JLLL/62-01 Publication date: November 30th 201

Care and Management for Older Adults in Prison and those Transitioning to Community

In most developed countries, the rapid increase in the number of older incarcerated adults along with their complex health and social service needs has become a challenge for both correctional and health systems. Existing evidence consists of largely secondary data and addresses single issues such as mental health. The purpose of this body of work was to explore current practices in the care and management of older people in prison and those transitioning to community and provide recommendations for policy, practice, and future research in the field. The body of work employed a combination of exploratory sequential and concurrent mixed methods study design. The work started with a scoping review to identify international best practices in the care and management of older incarcerated adults. This review further informed two subsequent qualitative studies and a collective mixed methods case study in New South Wales, Australia. The two qualitative studies used focus group discussions with Corrective Services New South Wales (CSNSW) staff and applied thematic analysis to analyse the data. The collective mixed methods case study used interviews and online survey with CSNSW and Justice Health and Forensic Mental Health Network staff and older incarcerated adults. A constant comparative analysis was applied to analyse interviews using NVivo version 12. Qualtrics and SPSS version 26.0 were used to administer and analyse the quantitative data. The series of studies in this thesis have resulted to key empirical and conceptual contributions including: i) best practices to optimise the care and management of older incarcerated adults in mainstream prisons, ii) barriers and enablers to in-prison care and the transition to community, iii) attributes of competing logics (e.g. differing power and priorities) between health and custody in the care and management of older incarcerated adults, iv) sub-optimal application of the principles of equivalence of care, v) weak communication and relationships among prison staff (Relational Coordination index of 2.9 (SD = 0.7), and vi) ad hoc approaches to the care and management of the older incarcerated adult population. In a summary, the evidence from this body of work revealed that the care and management of older incarcerated adults operates through an intersecting triad of correctional safety and security requirements, prison health services ethos and older incarcerated adults’ needs where safety and security considerations take precedence over health services, limiting older incarcerated adults’ involvement and preferences and compromising equivalence of care. More collaborative work between health and custody can improve the organisation and provision of care to older incarcerated adults and achieve equivalence of care in correctional centres

A comparison between dissection techniques for the assessment of parity in Anopheles arabiensis and determination of sac stage in mosquitoes alive or dead on collection

BACKGROUND: The determination of parous rates in mosquitoes, despite numerous shortcomings, remains a tool to evaluate the effectiveness of control programs and to determine vectorial capacity in malaria vectors. Two dissection techniques are used for this. For one, the tracheoles of dried ovaries are examined with a compound microscope and in the other the follicular stalk of ovaries is examined, wet, with a stereomicroscope. The second method also enables the sac stage of parous insects (which provides information on the duration of the oviposition cycle) and the mated status of insects to be determined. Despite widespread use the two techniques have not previously been compared. METHODS: We compared the two dissection techniques using Anopheles arabiensis, collected with a tent-trap in Eritrea. The paired ovaries were removed in water and one was examined by each method. From a separate set of dissections from Tanzania, we also determined if the sac stages of Anopheles gambiae s.l. (83% of 183 identified by PCR being Anopheles arabiensis the remainder being A. gambiae) that were alive on collection were different to those that died on collection and what the implications for vectorial capacity estimation might be. RESULTS: Seven per cent of the dry ovaries could not be classified due to granulation (yolk) in the ovariole that obscured the tracheoles. The sensitivity of the dry dissection was 88.51% (CI [79.88-94.35%]) and the specificity was 93.55% (CI [87.68-97.17%]) among the 211 ovaries that could be classified by the dry technique and compared to the ovaries dissected wet. 1,823 live and 1,416 dead from Furvela tent-traps, CDC light-trap and window-trap collections were dissected 'wet' from Tanzania. In these collections parous insects were more likely to die compared to nulliparous ones. The proportion of parous mosquitoes with 'a' sacs (indicative of recent oviposition) was significantly greater in insects that were dead (0.36) on collection in the morning compared to those that were alive (0.12) (Chi square 138.93, p < 0.001). There was a preponderance of newly emerged virgin insects in the outdoor collection (Chi sq = 8.84, p = 0.003). CONCLUSIONS: In anophelines the examination of mosquito ovaries using transmitted light in a 'wet' dissection is a more useful and informative technique than examination of dry ovaries. In order to correctly estimate the duration of the oviposition cycle mosquitoes should be dissected as soon as possible after collection. Younger insects were more likely to attempt to feed outdoors rather than indoors.publishersversionpublishe

Knowledge, attitude, and practice of breast Cancer among nurses in hospitals in Asmara, Eritrea

Abstract Background Breast cancer accounted for 1.03% of all deaths in 2014 in Eritrea. Yet the knowledge, attitude, and practice (KAP) of the population in general or the health personnel in the country in relation to the disease, remains unknown. Hence, this study was designed to assess the KAP regarding breast cancer among female nurses working in ten hospital wards in Asmara, Eritrea. Methods This was a cross-sectional study conducted among 414 nurses. Descriptive statistics, t-test, and ANOVA were used to evaluate the KAP of the nurses. Results Nurses’ knowledge about the possible risk factors of breast cancer was low but the nurses knew the signs and symptoms of breast cancer since each sign or symptom was mentioned by > 50% of them. The practice of breast cancer screening, however, was low (only 30 and 11.3% practiced clinical breast examination and mammography respectively). Respondents’ family history of breast cancer, having breast problems, their professional level and unit where they worked were associated with the KAP of nurses about breast cancer. Conclusion Training programs could help to increase the nurses’ knowledge about the risk factors of breast cancer and practice of breast cancer screening. This could also help to increase the knowledge of the public about breast cancer

Malaria Risk Stratification and Modeling the Effect of Rainfall on Malaria Incidence in Eritrea

Background. Malaria risk stratification is essential to differentiate areas with distinct malaria intensity and seasonality patterns. The development of a simple prediction model to forecast malaria incidence by rainfall offers an opportunity for early detection of malaria epidemics. Objectives. To construct a national malaria stratification map, develop prediction models and forecast monthly malaria incidences based on rainfall data. Methods. Using monthly malaria incidence data from 2012 to 2016, the district level malaria stratification was constructed by nonhierarchical clustering. Cluster validity was examined by the maximum absolute coordinate change and analysis of variance (ANOVA) with a conservative post hoc test (Bonferroni) as the multiple comparison test. Autocorrelation and cross-correlation analyses were performed to detect the autocorrelation of malaria incidence and the lagged effect of rainfall on malaria incidence. The effect of rainfall on malaria incidence was assessed using seasonal autoregressive integrated moving average (SARIMA) models. Ljung–Box statistics for model diagnosis and stationary R-squared and Normalized Bayesian Information Criteria for model fit were used. Model validity was assessed by analyzing the observed and predicted incidences using the spearman correlation coefficient and paired samples t-test. Results. A four cluster map (high risk, moderate risk, low risk, and very low risk) was the most valid stratification system for the reported malaria incidence in Eritrea. Monthly incidences were influenced by incidence rates in the previous months. Monthly incidence of malaria in the constructed clusters was associated with 1, 2, 3, and 4 lagged months of rainfall. The constructed models had acceptable accuracy as 73.1%, 46.3%, 53.4%, and 50.7% of the variance in malaria transmission were explained by rainfall in the high-risk, moderate-risk, low-risk, and very low-risk clusters, respectively. Conclusion. Change in rainfall patterns affect malaria incidence in Eritrea. Using routine malaria case reports and rainfall data, malaria incidences can be forecasted with acceptable accuracy. Further research should consider a village or health facility level modeling of malaria incidence by including other climatic factors like temperature and relative humidity

Patients’ perception of the outpatient pharmaceutical service quality in hospital pharmacies with auditable pharmaceutical transactions and services in Ethiopia: a cross-sectional study

Objective To ensure the availability of quality pharmaceutical products and effective pharmaceutical services, a package of interventions named auditable pharmaceutical transactions and services (APTS), was implemented in the tertiary and secondary hospitals across Ethiopia since 2014. This study aimed to evaluate outpatients’ perception of pharmaceutical service quality in hospitals with APTS in Ethiopia.Design Cross-sectional study.Setting Seven hospitals of Tigray, Ethiopia.Participants 794 patients coming for pharmaceutical services.Main outcome measures SERVQUAL instrument was employed to collect the patient’s perception of pharmaceutical services. The mean perception score of pharmaceutical service quality was the main outcome measurement.Results Out of 810 patients approached, 794 participated in the study (response rate of 98.02%). Overall, the mean perception score of the service quality was 3.1 of 5. Among the five dimensions of SERVQUAL, dimension of empathy achieved the highest result with a mean score of 3.71, and tangibility was the second (3.19), followed by responsiveness (3.08), assurance (2.87) and reliability (2.81). The perception of patients in tertiary hospitals of service quality was more positive compared with patients in secondary hospitals (3.265&gt;3.011, p=0.04). However, the difference was only significant in the dimension of assurance when considering the five dimensions separately. Respondents who were older, widowed, illiterate, farmer, retired or Orthodox were found to have better quality service experience compared with others (p=0.001).Conclusion Generally, outpatients’ perception of pharmaceutical service quality was positive. However, two dimensions of the service quality (assurance and reliability) were negatively perceived. To improve the service quality, we recommended the following: (1) managers should provide more training for pharmacists to strengthen their professional knowledge and encourage them to cooperate with other professionals; (2) the government needs to develop guidelines on information provided to patients and train the pharmacists to follow them; (3) hospitals can apply various procurement methods and efficient inventory management methods

Assessment of sanitary status of food and drinks catering establishments: A descriptive observational study in south East Asmara, Eritrea, 2019

Objective: Lack of basic infrastructure, poor practices of hygiene in food service establishments can contribute to outbreaks of foodborne illnesses. The aims of this study was to explore the sanitary conditions of food and drink catering establishment services in South East Asmara, Eritrea.&nbsp;Methods: A descriptive observational study was conducted among 139 food and drinks catering establishments in South East Asmara from June to September 2019. Data were collected using semi-structured questionnaire for obtaining socio-demographic information of the manager or owner and observation checklist was used to assess the overall physical sanitary status of the establishment. Factors influencing vermin infestation, kitchen and latrine cleanliness were further investigated. Data analysis was done using SPSS version 22. The descriptive results were summarized using frequencies and percentages in tables and graphs. Dining premises, kitchens and stores were categorized as clean, if the floor, wall, and ceiling of the premises were found clean. Moreover, bivariate and multivariate logistic regression analysis were done to find out the main factors influencing vermin infestation, kitchen and latrine cleanliness.&nbsp;Results: Out of the total 139 food and drink catering establishments assessed, about one-tenth (8.6%) of the establishments’ dining room, a third (33.3%) of the stores and 31.5% of the kitchens were in a poor and unclean sanitary conditions. Good premise floor status (AOR=18.03; 95%CI (2.09-155.1), P&lt;0.05), availability of adequate light (AOR=5.02; 95%CI (1.01, 24.99), P&lt;0.05), running water (AOR=0.26; 95%CI (0.09, 0.72), P&lt;0.05) and dustbin availability (AOR=4.32; 95%CI (1.06, 21.6), P&lt;0.05) were found having significant association with overall cleanliness of the kitchen. Two-third (65%) of the establishments’ latrines were clean. Availability of separate latrine for male and female (AOR=2.34; 95%CI (1.06, 5.18), P&lt;0.05), and separate latrine for clients and workers (AOR=3.41; 95%CI (1.10, 10.57) were the main factors potentiating latrine cleanliness. More than a third (37.4%) of the establishments were found to be infested by vermin. Nearer kitchen distance from latrine (AOR=3.65; 95%CI (1.60, 8.35), p&lt;0.05), presence of pets (AOR=4.1; 95%CI (1.17, 14.40), and breeding of insects in the liquid waste disposal (AOR=4.08; 95%CI (3.37, 12.17), p&lt;0.01) had significantly increased the presence of vermin infestation.&nbsp;Conclusion: The sanitary condition of the food and drinks catering establishments in the study area was found to be poor.&nbsp; There is a need to impose regulations and guidelines governing the basic sanitary requirement of the food and drinks catering establishments.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p