Comparison of social skills of students in in-person training and online system

Background and Objectives:The computer is used as a powerful yet cost-effective tool in people's lives for any work or activity. The use of computers in education has increased dramatically in recent years, and computers and related technologies are now used in many schools around the world. Up to recently people should gather to learn in a specific place and time, but nowadays by the advancement of technological infrastructures and the Internet this need has vanished to a great extent. Soon everyone is able to learn anything, anywhere, at any time. This is accomplished under the umbrella of a new educational system, called e-learning. Social skills include components. Tolerance, how to react in the face of conflict, critical thinking, the decision to accept or reject an opinion and success based on logical reasons and evidence, responsibility, taking on a job or task and being accountable for it, activity Group activities, participation in group activities, duty, self-control, empathy, gaining, enriching and developing new relationships with other people in the community, respecting others, paying attention to relationships that preserve the social status of oneself and others, and finally, cooperation and coordination with the actions of others towards a common goal are components of social skills. Of all the organizations that play a key role in the socialization of individuals, educational systems are the first official place to gain social experience and the most basic element of social development of individuals because the education system of any society. It is the foundation of the social, economic, political and cultural development of that society. The purpose of this research was comparing the social skills of students under conventional training and e-learning education system. Methods:  The research method is quasi-experimental with two experimental groups. The first comparison was done using a “Pre-Test” and second comparison was also done using a “Post-Test”. A total of 48 people were randomly selected as a sample group. These two groups were similar and comparing the dependent variable was done at the same time and under the same condition.  The social skills questionnaire By Garsham & Elliot was used. The Analyze of Covariance (ANCOVA) was used for analyzing data. Findings: The results showed that there are significant differences between the two groups and e-learning environment in terms of social skills and social skills components of users of this environment has shown better performance in comparison to Face-To-Face training. Conclusion: The results of the analysis of research data indicate that the e-learning environment has a positive effect on the level of social skills and its components on students. Students in the e-learning environment scored higher than the other group in the traditional learning environment. This indicates the effectiveness of the environment designed for e-learning in the level of social skills

Short communication. Dietary supplementation effects of zinc acetate and magnesium sulfate on performance and antioxidant status of broilers under continuous heat stress

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of different dietary levels of zinc acetate (Zn; 0, 30 and 60 mg kg-1) and of magnesium sulphate (Mg; 0, 300 and 600 mg kg-1) on performance and blood antioxidant status of broilers under continuous heat stress. For this purpose, four hundred and fifty one-day-old male chicks were used in a 3 × 3 factorial experiment from day 1 to day 42 of age. The inclusion of 30 mg Zn kg-1 increased the body weight gain and the average feed intake and declined the feed conversion ratio (FCR). Although there were no differences between the treatments for FCR, the supplementation with 30 and 60 mg Zn kg-1 decreased the FCR regardless the Mg level. The dietary supplementation with 30 mg Zn kg-1 decreased both blood glutathione peroxidase and superoxide dismutase activities regardless the Mg level. In addition, neither Zn nor Mg influenced the blood total antioxidant capacity content at the end of the experiment. Blood malondialdehyde (MDA) decreased as dietary Zn supplementation increased. The MDA reduction when diet was supplemented with Zn was not obvious at higher Mg level (interaction Zn × Mg, p<0.05). In conclusion, dietary addition of Mg does not significantly influence either the performance or the antioxidant status of broiler at 42 d of age under heat stress but supplementation of 30 mg Zn kg-1 decrease the blood MDA concentration and improves the performance

Effect of Tai Chi Chuan on balance in women with multiple sclerosis

© 2014 The Authors. Objective: To examine the effect of Tai Chi Chuan on balance in women with multiple sclerosis in Iran. Design: 36 women with multiple sclerosis who were members of the Iranian Multiple Sclerosis Society participated in this study. 18 participants were allocated to the intervention group and 18 allocated to the control group. The intervention consisted of Yang style Tai Chi Chuan exercise sessions twice a week for 12 weeks. Main outcome measures: This study used a demographic questionnaire and the Berg Balance Scale (BBS) to collect data. Results: After 12 weeks, the mean score of the BBS in the intervention group demonstrated a statistically significant improvement in comparison with baseline status. Conclusions: The results suggest that Tai Chi Chuan could be used as a safe complementary intervention to increase balance in patients with multiple sclerosis