The Effectiveness of Teaching and Evaluating A written Expression Using A package of Modern Digital Applications in Developing the Written Expression Skills of Tenth-Grade Students

ملخص: هدفت الدراسة إلى التحقق من فاعلية تدريس التعبير الكتابي وتقويمه باستخدام حزمة من التطبيقات الرقمية الحديثة الداعمة لمنصة جوجل كلاس روم (Google Classroom) في تنمية مهارات التعبير الكتابي لدى طلبة الصف العاشر، وقد شمل مجتمع الدراسة جميع طلبة الصف العاشر الأساسي في المدارس الحكومية بسلطنة عمان خلال العام الدراسي 2020/2021، البالغ عددهم (49042) طالبًا وطالبةً موزعين على مدارس السلطنة؛ حيث تكونت العينة من (124) طالبًا وطالبةً ( 62 من الذكور و62 من الإناث)، اختيروا من  أربع (4) مدارس بطريقة قصدية (مدرستين للذكور ومدرستين للإناث)، واعتمدت الدراسة الحالية على المنهج التجريبي ذي التصميم شبه التجريبي ذي المجموعتين التجريبية والضابطة؛ إذ اتُّبعت في المجموعة التجريبية الاستراتيجية المقترحة لتدريس التعبير وتقويمه، وأما المجموعة الضابطة فقد سار تدريس وتقويم التعبير الكتابي فيها وفق الطريقة التقليدية. وتوصلت نتائج الدراسة إلى ارتفاع متوسط درجات المجموعة التجريبية مقارنة بمتوسط المجموعة الضابطة في التطبيق للاختبار البعدي لمهارات التعبير الكتابي في المهارات الرئيسة الثلاث (المضمون، واللغة والأسلوب، والشكل والتنظيم)، وأظهرت النتائج وجود فروق ذات دلالة إحصائية عند مستوى(0.05≥α) بين متوسطي درجات المجموعتين التجريبية والضابطة في التطبيق للاختبار البعدي لمهارات التعبير الكتابي يعزى إلى طريقة التدريس. كما أوضحت نتائج الدراسة عدم وجود فروق ذات دلالة إحصائية بين طلبة الصف العاشر الأساسي في مستوى كل من مهارتي المضمون واللغة والأسلوب تعزى إلى الجنس، كذلك أظهرت النتائج وجود فروق ذات دلالة إحصائية بين طلبة الصف العاشر الأساسي في مستوى مهارة الشكل والتنظيم تعزى إلى الجنس ولصالح الإناث. وكشفت النتائج عن عدم وجود فروق ذات دلالة إحصائية بين طلبة الصف العاشر الأساسي في مستوى مهارات التعبير الكتابي مجتمعة معا يعزى إلى التفاعل بين طريقة التدريس والجنس. وأوضحت نتائج تحليل التباين الثنائي وجود فرق ذي دلالة إحصائية بين طلبة الصف العاشر الأساسي في مستوى مهارات التعبير الكتابي مجتمعة يعزى إلى طريقة التدريس والجنس.Abstract: The study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of teaching and evaluating written expression using a package of modern digital applications that support the Google Classroom platform to develop the writing skills of students in tenth grade.The study included all tenth-grade students in government schools in the Sultanate of Oman during the academic year 2020/2021, totaling 49,042 male and female students distributed among schools in the country. The sample consisted of 124 male and female students, 62 males and 62 females selected purposively from four schools (two schools for males and two for females). The current study followed the experimental method with a quasi-experimental design consisting of two experimental and control groups. The experimental group was taught and evaluated using the proposed strategy for teaching and evaluating written expression, while the control group was taught and evaluated using the traditional method. The results of the study showed a statistically significant increase in the average scores of the experimental group compared to the control group in the post-application test of the written expression skills in the three primary skills (content, language and style, and form and organization), and the results showed that there are statistically significant differences at the level of (0.05≥α) between the average scores of the experimental and control groups in the application of the post-test of written expression skills attributed to the teaching method. The results of the study also showed that there were no statistically significant differences between tenth grade students in the level of "content and language & style" skills attributed to gender, while the results showed that there were statistically significant differences among tenth grade students in the level of "form and organization" skill attributed to gender and in favor of females. Furthermore, the results revealed no statistically significant differences among tenth-grade students in the overall level of writing expression skills, attributed to the interaction between the teaching method and gender. However, the results of the Two-way analysis of variance indicated statistically significant differences in the performance of tenth-grade students in overall skills, attributed to both gender and teaching method

A mutation of EPT1 (SELENOI) underlies a new disorder of Kennedy pathway phospholipid biosynthesis.

Mutations in genes involved in lipid metabolism have increasingly been associated with various subtypes of hereditary spastic paraplegia, a highly heterogeneous group of neurodegenerative motor neuron disorders characterized by spastic paraparesis. Here, we report an unusual autosomal recessive neurodegenerative condition, best classified as a complicated form of hereditary spastic paraplegia, associated with mutation in the ethanolaminephosphotransferase 1 (EPT1) gene (now known as SELENOI), responsible for the final step in Kennedy pathway forming phosphatidylethanolamine from CDP-ethanolamine. Phosphatidylethanolamine is a glycerophospholipid that, together with phosphatidylcholine, constitutes more than half of the total phospholipids in eukaryotic cell membranes. We determined that the mutation defined dramatically reduces the enzymatic activity of EPT1, thereby hindering the final step in phosphatidylethanolamine synthesis. Additionally, due to central nervous system inaccessibility we undertook quantification of phosphatidylethanolamine levels and species in patient and control blood samples as an indication of liver phosphatidylethanolamine biosynthesis. Although this revealed alteration to levels of specific phosphatidylethanolamine fatty acyl species in patients, overall phosphatidylethanolamine levels were broadly unaffected indicating that in blood EPT1 inactivity may be compensated for, in part, via alternate biochemical pathways. These studies define the first human disorder arising due to defective CDP-ethanolamine biosynthesis and provide new insight into the role of Kennedy pathway components in human neurological function

Guillain-Barre Syndrome Associated with SARS-CoV-2 in Two Pediatric Patients

Guillain-Barre syndrome (GBS) is a recognized complication of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). We report two children with GBS associated with SARS-CoV-2 presented to a tertiary center in Muscat, Oman in 2021: The first patient was a 3-month-old female infant who presented with bradypnea, encephalopathy, and generalized weakness that required mechanical ventilation. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing of the nasopharyngeal swabs (NPS) was positive for SARS-CoV-2. She had axonal variant GBS based on a nerve conduction study, cerebrospinal fluid analysis, and neuroimaging findings. The second patient was a 6-year-old girl with fever, vomiting, and diarrhea followed by ascending weakness who presented with quadriplegia and facial weakness. Subsequently, she developed respiratory muscle weakness and required mechanical ventilation. PCR testing of NPS was negative for SARS-Cov-2, however IgG serology analysis was positive. The clinical course of these two patients was rapidly progressive and both of them required mechanical ventilation. The patient with axonal variant GBS made an incomplete recovery. Keywords: Acute Inflammatory Demyelinating Polyradiculoneuropathy, SARS-CoV-2, Oma

Characterization of OXA-181, a Carbapenem-Hydrolyzing Class D β-Lactamase from Klebsiella pneumoniae▿

Klebsiella pneumoniae KP3 was isolated from a patient transferred from India to the Sultanate of Oman. K. pneumoniae KP3 was resistant to all β-lactams, including carbapenems, and expressed the carbapenem-hydrolyzing β-lactamase OXA-181, which differs from OXA-48 by four amino acid substitutions. Compared to OXA-48, OXA-181 possessed a very similar hydrolytic profile. The blaOXA-181 gene was located on a 7.6-kb ColE-type plasmid and was linked to the insertion sequence ISEcp1. The ISEcp1-mediated one-ended transposition of blaOXA-181 was also demonstrated

Epidemiology of Multi-Drug Resistant Organisms in a Teaching Hospital in Oman: A One-Year Hospital-Based Study

Background. Antimicrobial resistance is increasingly recognized as a global challenge. A few studies have emerged on epidemiology of multidrug resistant organisms in tertiary care settings in the Arabian Gulf. Aim. To describe the epidemiology of multi-drug resistant organisms (MDRO) at Sultan Qaboos University Hospital, a tertiary hospital in Oman. Methods. A retrospective review of MDRO records has been conducted throughout the period from January 2012 till December 2012. Organisms were identified and tested by an automated identification and susceptibility system, and the antibiotic susceptibility testing was confirmed by the disk diffusion method. Results. Out of the total of 29,245 admissions, there have been 315 patients registered as MDRO patients giving an overall prevalence rate of 10.8 (95% CI 9.3, 12.4) MDRO cases per 1000 admissions. In addition, the prevalence rate of MDRO isolates was 11.2 (95% CI 9.7, 12.9) per 1000 admissions. Overall, increasing trends in prevalence rates of MDRO patients and MDRO isolates were observed throughout the study period. Conclusion. Antimicrobial resistance is an emerging challenge in Oman. Continuous monitoring of antimicrobial susceptibility and strict adherence to infection prevention guidelines are essential to prevent proliferation of MDRO. Along such quest, stringent antibiotic prescription guidelines are needed in the country