Continuous Assessment Perception of Madda Walabu University Instructors, South East Ethiopia

Background: Continuous Assessment is a vital instrument for enhancing teaching and learning in higher educational institutions. Assessment practices of the instructors are likely to be influenced by their perceptions about assessment. The purpose of this study was to assess continuous assessment perception of Madda Walabu University Instructors. Method: A cross-sectional descriptive survey method was employed. The participants of the study were 225Madda Walabu University instructors, were chosen by using a simple random sampling technique. Questionnaire consisting of closed and open ended questions was used as the main data gathering tool. The analysis employed SPSS.21 to calculate frequency and ANOVA. Results: The findings of the study revealed that teachers have positive perception towards continuous assessment. However, the computed one way ANOVA revealed that there was a statistically significant difference in continuous assessment perception, F (2,221), =25.029, P<0.05 among teachers, in relation to educational qualification. First degree holders have little experience of teaching and their perception towards continuous assessment is lower, compared to PhD and Master degree holders. Moreover, different institute/college/school have different levels of perception. Conclusion: Finding of the study showed that teachers have positive attitude towards continuous assessment. However, absence of middle semester level assessment policy, and negligence of assessment were found to be the major problems related to continuous assessment implementation. It is recommended that every action that could be taken to improve the status of continuous assessment in the university must follow the consensus of teachers. Improving perception of teachers towards continuous assessment through workshops, seminars and training programs helps to attain quality of education. Keywords: Continuous Assessment, Teachers’ Perception, Higher Education DOI: 10.7176/JEP/10-4-0

CAUSES AND PSYCHOSOCIAL CONSEQUENCES OF INTIMATE PARTNER VIOLENCE IN AMBO TOWN MARRIED WOMEN

Intimate partner violence is a pattern of coercive tactics that can include physical, psychological, sexual, economic, and emotional abuses against intimate partners, with the goal of establishing and maintaining power and control. The aim of this study is to investigate intimate partner violence and associated factors in Ambo town. The participants of the study were household women between the age15 to 49. Data were collected by using both quantitative and qualitative methods. To collect the quantitative data, 389 household women of Ambo Town were randomly selected for closeended questionnaire. In qualitative method , 12 participants (six women were victims of IPV and six other married women) were purposely selected for semi structured and 10 key informants were also purposely selected for Focus group discussion. The data collected from the questionnaires were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistical tools through SPSS.20 and the qualitative data was analyzed narratively. The results of the study demonstrated that from the total 389 sample, 343 women did not agree with their husband and only 46 women reported that they agree with their husband. This shows that there was a problem of disagreement between wives and their husbands. Besides, causes and psychosocial consequences of IPV were directly related with intimate partner violence

Career Development among Undergraduate Students of Madda Walabu University, South East Ethiopia

Career guidance and counselling is a vaguely implemented concept in most educational institutions, governmental and non-governmental organisations. The severity of the problem and scarcity of relevant information among university students have prompted the undertaking of this study the aim of which was to assess career development among undergraduate students of Madda Walabu University. Crosssectional study design was employed to gather quantitative data through self-administered structured questionnaires. The participants in the study were 605 undergraduate students of Madda Walabu University who were recruited through multi-stage sampling. The analysis employed SPSS‑20.0 to calculate t‑test and ANOVA. The findings suggested that socio-demographic variables were important in determining the factors, levels and variances in career development. The participants’ perceived benefit of career development has shown that there is a statistically significant difference between the expected mean and the observed mean, t (604) =29.11, p<.01. However, they had only some unsatisfactory information on career development and most of them (47.4%) did not have a bright future. The result of this study showed that career development is important in understanding students’ personal values, clarifying their goals, career choice directions and job-searching skills. Because the respondents’ reported information on career development is so poor, lack of future direction and decreased performance are inevitable. It is suggested that career counselling services are seen to be highly recommendable in advancing students’ career development in many aspects

Knowledge and Self- Efficacy on HIV/AIDS among Undergraduate Students of Madda Walabu University, Southeast Ethiopia

Introduction Human Immunodeficiency Virus Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome HIV AIDS has become increasingly public health problem worldwide Particularly in developing countries higher institutions like Ethiopia The victims are youngsters productive age of the population The primary prevention and control of the spread of HIV AIDS infection is through awareness and changing behavior remains at the highest priority However few studies have been conducted among university students of Ethiopia on their self-efficacy of Human Immunodeficiency Virus Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome prevention and control Hence this research was intended to investigate the Knowledge and self-efficacy of Madda Walabu University Undergraduate Students on HIV AIDS Methods An institutional-based cross-sectional the study design was conducted among 605 under graduate students of MaddaWalabu University students were selected using random sampling and data were collected using by structured self-administered questionnaire Descriptive independent sample t-test and ANOVA were computed to analyze the data Result This study result shows that among the total study participants majority of the students 81 3 has ever experienced sexual relationship Nearly half 52 4 of the students use condom during sexual intercourse consistently About half 49 37 of them had moderate level of knowledge regarding Human Immunodeficiency Virus Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome infection and of which only 28 4 of them had regular sexual partner Students level of knowledge regarding Human Immunodeficiency Virus Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome significantly predictor of their level of self-efficacy and condom use R 0 445 and R2 0 198 Conclusion The knowledge students have on human immunodeficiency virus acquired immune deficiency syndrome significantly predicts self-efficacy of protecting oneself from HIV AIDS Most students at the age of adolescence habit sexual intercour

Application of multi-criteria decision analysis integrated with GIS and air pollution model inputs for schools site selection.

Master’s Degree. University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban.Schools site selection is an essential process which needs knowledge of different fields. The process involves scientific justification, judgment and a finding of suitable land, which consider financial, social, ecological and political perspectives, that limit conflicts and supports agreement among the decision makers. Lack of scientific analysis may negatively impact on the economy, health, and safety of the public. However, reports revealed that finding of school location managed without utilization of scientific analysis thus prompted the development of schools in unsuitable areas and caused pupils to face several problems such as long walking distance, heavy traffic, presentation to sound and air pollution (Bukhari et al., 2010). Addis Ababa is the largest city in Ethiopia, and the city needs additional schools to meet the minimum pupil section ratio as per the national standard to improve education excellence (CGAAEB, 2018). Currently, most of the existing schools placed in the central part of the city; thus such scientific analysis is vital to give insight for the decision makers and planners to improve the site selection process for new schools, to provide a fair distribution of education access and utilizing a limited available resource. Nowadays, the application of GIS and Remote sensing datasets widely used to support the site selection process. In this study GIS integrated with MCDA and Remote Sensing, techniques have been used to select suitable school locations. MCDA is a tool that devoted to improving the decision-making process using various qualitative and quantitative criteria goals or objectives of a contradictory nature. This study attempts to use an air pollution model integrated with Remote Sensing, Geographical Information System (GIS) for Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA) to identify optimal sites for new schools. The MCDA was done using Analytical hierarchy process (AHP), which classify criterions in hierarchical level and assigns a relative weight to each criteria using pairwise comparison. The selected criteria in this study decompose into three main groups, namely Economy, Accessibility, and Environmental Safety. Besides, Landsat 8 OLI/TRIS satellite image was used to quantify the annual mean concentration of Particulate matter with diameter 10 μm (PM10) for Environmental safety criteria. Subsequently, using Weight overlay tool, the criteria maps combined based on their relative influence, which is obtained from AHP to produce the final map, and the map reclassified as not suitable, less suitable, suitable and most suitable, using Arc GIS 10.4 reclassify tool. The resulting map of the annual mean concentration of PM10 shows that the concentration amounts on airports, factories, and road structures are high. The criteria weights obtained are 54%, 30% and 16% for Economy, Environmental Safety, and Accessibility respectively. The ultimate suitability map shows that 3.89% of the study area is most suitable, 57.47% is suitable, 38.48% is less suitable, and 0.08% is unsuitable, the most suitable areas laid on the city’s north-east and south-east part, which are away from existing schools. Therefore, this study successfully suitability model has been used to allocate an optimal place for new schools to be built in Addis Ababa capital using GIS integrated MCDA with Air pollution model input

Use of multi-criteria decision analysis integrated with GIS and air pollution model inputs for schools site selection.

Masters Degrees (Civil Engineering). University of KwaZulu-Natal. Durban, 2019.Schools site selection is an essential process which needs knowledge of different fields. The process involves scientific justification, judgment and a finding of suitable land, which consider financial, social, ecological and political perspectives, that limit conflicts and supports agreement among the decision makers. Lack of scientific analysis may negatively impact on the economy, health, and safety of the public. However, reports revealed that finding of school location managed without utilization of scientific analysis thus prompted the development of schools in unsuitable areas and caused pupils to face several problems such as long walking distance, heavy traffic, presentation to sound and air pollution (Bukhari et al., 2010). Addis Ababa is the largest city in Ethiopia, and the city needs additional schools to meet the minimum pupil section ratio as per the national standard to improve education excellence (CGAAEB, 2018). Currently, most of the existing schools placed in the central part of the city; thus such scientific analysis is vital to give insight for the decision makers and planners to improve the site selection process for new schools, to provide a fair distribution of education access and utilizing a limited available resource. Nowadays, the application of GIS and Remote sensing datasets widely used to support the site selection process. In this study GIS integrated with MCDA and Remote Sensing, techniques have been used to select suitable school locations. MCDA is a tool that devoted to improving the decision-making process using various qualitative and quantitative criteria goals or objectives of a contradictory nature. This study attempts to use an air pollution model integrated with Remote Sensing, Geographical Information System (GIS) for Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA) to identify optimal sites for new schools. The MCDA was done using Analytical hierarchy process (AHP), which classify criterions in hierarchical level and assigns a relative weight to each criteria using pairwise comparison. The selected criteria in this study decompose into three main groups, namely Economy, Accessibility, and Environmental Safety. Besides, Landsat 8 OLI/TRIS satellite image was used to quantify the annual mean concentration of Particulate matter with diameter 10 μm (PM10) for Environmental safety criteria. Subsequently, using Weight overlay tool, the criteria maps combined based on their relative influence, which is obtained from AHP to produce the final map, and the map reclassified as not suitable, less suitable, suitable and most suitable, using Arc GIS 10.4 reclassify tool. The resulting map of the annual mean concentration of PM10 shows that the concentration amounts on airports, factories, and road structures are high. The criteria weights obtained are 54%, 30% and 16% for Economy, Environmental Safety, and Accessibility respectively. The ultimate suitability map shows that 3.89% of the study area is most suitable, 57.47% is suitable, 38.48% is less suitable, and 0.08% is unsuitable, the most suitable areas laid on the city’s north-east and south-east part, which are away from existing schools. Therefore, this study successfully suitability model has been used to allocate an optimal place for new schools to be built in Addis Ababa capital using GIS integrated MCDA with Air pollution model input

Factors affecting fertility decisions of married men and women living with HIV in South Wollo Zone, Northeast Ethiopia

Background: In a setting with high HIV prevalence and high fertility rates, addressing fertility issues of People Living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) is crucial. However, understanding of the factors associated with fertility decisions of PLWHA in Ethiopia is remarkably low.Objective: The study was conducted to assess factors associated with fertility decisions of PLWHA in South Wollo Zone, Northeast Ethiopia.Methods: The study was conducted from February 1 to March 30, 2008 using cross-sectional design. Quantitative data were collected from a sample of 458 men and 458 women using structured questionnaire. Qualitative data were also collected from six health care providers. Logistic regression was used to analyze the quantitative data.Results: The study showed that 18.3% of currently married PLWHA have decided to have a child. The factors found to be independently associated with current decision to have a child were higher family income [OR (95% CI) = 2.29 (1.23, 4.26)], partner’s decision to have a child [OR (95% CI) = 36.4 (17.0, 77.5)], having knowledge on PMTCT [OR (95% CI) = 2.26 (1.44, 3.54)] and having partner with negative HIV test result [OR (95% CI) = 0.408 (0.219, 0.759)]. During in-depth interview the health care providers indicated the fertility related counseling service to be low.Conclusion: In spite of the fact that significant proportion of married PLWHA had decided to have a child, the fertility related counseling service is low. Improving fertility related counseling services to enable clients make informed fertility decision is mandatory. The factors identified to be associated with fertility decision could be of major importance and as such should be investigated further

The status of medical laboratory towards of AFRO-WHO accreditation process in government and private health facilities in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Introduction: The World Health Organization Regional Office for Africa (WHO AFRO) introduces a step  wise incremental accreditation approach to improving quality of laboratory and it is a new initiative in Ethiopia and activities are performed for implementation of accreditation program.Methods: Descriptive cross sectional study was conducted in 30 laboratory facilities including 6  laboratory sections to determine their status towards of accreditation using WHO AFRO accreditation checklist and 213 laboratory professionals were interviewed to assess their knowledge on quality system essentials and accreditation in Addis Ababa Ethiopia. Results: Out of 30 laboratory facilities 1 private  laboratory scored 156 (62%) points, which is the minimum required point for WHO accreditation and the  least score was 32 (12.8%) points from government laboratory. The assessment finding from each section indicate that 2 Clinical chemistry (55.2% & 62.8%), 2 Hematology (55.2% & 62.8%), 2 Serology (55.2% & 62.8%), 2 Microbiology (55.2 % & 62.4%), 1 Parasitology (62.8%) & 1 Urinalysis (61.6%) sections scored the minimum required point for WHO accreditation. The average score for government laboratories was 78.2 (31.2%) points, of these 6 laboratories were under accreditation process with 106.2 (42.5%) average score, while the private laboratories had 71.2 (28.5%) average score. Of 213 respondents 197 (92.5%) professionals had a knowledge on quality system essentials whereas 155  (72.8%) respondents on accreditation. Conclusion: Although majority of the laboratory professionals had knowledge on quality system and  accreditation, laboratories professionals were not able to practice the quality system properly and most of the laboratories had poor status towards the WHO accreditation process. Thus government as well as stakeholders should integrate accreditation program into planning and health policy.Key words: Accreditation, laboratory, quality, SLMTA, WHO-AFR

Assessment of Ethiopian Health Facilities Readiness for Implementation of Telemedicine

Ethiopiahas one of the lowest ratios of health professionals to population in the world. The few medical specialists who are available work mainly in the capital city and in a few regional cities. The use of telemedicine in public health facilities can mitigate the shortage of medical personnel. We conducted a survey of selected public health facilities located inAddis Ababa,Ethiopia. The study could be modified and extended to other countries in Sub-SaharanAfrica. In this study, we adapted Bakry’s e-government assessment model, STOPE (Strategy, Technology, Organizational, People, and Environment) to assess telemedicine readiness. Validity and reliability tests were conducted using the Smart PLS software package. The survey data was analyzed using SPSS version 16, and descriptive and analytical statistical reports were generated. The color-coded feature of the McConnell International analysis tool was used to display the results. All factors in STOPE indicated amber color, which implies the need for substantial improvements at the health facilities in order to adopt Telemedicine. The STOPE model results from this study show that the degree of readiness for telemedicine implementation varies from a weak rating for Technology readiness to strong rating for Organization readiness