Evaluating teaching effectiveness in nursing education:An Iranian perspective

BACKGROUND: The main objective of this study was to determine the perceptions of Iranian nurse educators and students regarding the evaluation of teaching effectiveness in university-based programs. METHODS: An exploratory descriptive design was employed. 143 nurse educators in nursing faculties from the three universities in Tehran, 40 undergraduate, and 30 graduate students from Tehran University composed the study sample. In addition, deans from the three nursing faculties were interviewed. A researcher-developed questionnaire was used to determine the perceptions of both faculty and students about evaluating the teaching effectiveness of nurse educators, and an interview guide was employed to elicit the views of deans of faculties of nursing regarding evaluation policies and procedures. Data were analyzed using parametric and nonparametric statistics to identify similarities and differences in perceptions within the Iranian nurse educator group and the student group, and between these two groups of respondents. RESULTS: While faculty evaluation has always been a major part of university based nursing programs, faculty evaluation must be approached more analytically, objectively, and comprehensively to ensure that all nursing educators receive the fairest treatment possible and that the teaching-learning process is enhanced. CONCLUSION: Educators and students stressed that systematic and continuous evaluation as well as staff development should be the primary goals for the faculty evaluation process. The ultimate goals is the improvement of teaching by nurse educators

Measuring student attitude and knowledge in technology-rich biology classrooms

The use of technology in schools is now ubiquitous, but the effectiveness on the learning environment has mixed results. This paper describes the development and validation of an instrument to measure students’ attitudes toward and knowledge of technology with the aim of investigating any differences based on gender after a course where the science department made use of technology as an integral part of teaching biology. In this study, conducted in one school in the state of New York, in the United States of America, the Students’ Attitudes Toward and Knowledge of Technology Questionnaire was administered to nearly 700 high school science students. A principal component and principal factor analysis resulted in new scales from the validation of the instrument that demonstrated high reliabilities. There were statistically significant gender differences in all the scales of the questionnaire in favor of males

Optimal rate allocation in overlay content distribution

This paper addresses the optimal rate allocation problem in overlay content distribution for efficient utilization of limited bandwidths. We systematically present a series of optimal rate allocation strategies by dividing our discussions into four typical scenarios. Based on application-specific requirements, these scenarios reflect the contrast between elastic and streaming content distribution, with either per-link or per-node capacity constraints. In each scenario, we show that the optimal rate allocation problem can be formulated as a linear optimization problem, which can be solved efficiently in a fully distributed fashion. In simulations, we investigate the convergence of our distributed algorithms in both static and dynamic networks, and demonstrate their efficiency. © IFIP International Federation for Information Processing 2007.link_to_subscribed_fulltex

Turning the tides - 33 Years of Professor Brian Morton

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Particle creation in cosmological models with varying gravitational and cosmological "constants"

Einstein's field equations with variable gravitational coupling G = G(t) and decaying vacuum energy density Λ = Λ(t) are considered as describing matter creation in a cosmological framework. The particle creation rate is determined by the variation rate of both G and Λ. By considering simple phenomenological evolution laws for G and Λ, an exact solution of the gravitational field equations for a flat Friedmann-Robertson-Walker (FRW) space-time is obtained leading to a self-consistent cosmological model describing matter and entropy generation in the very early Universe.link_to_subscribed_fulltex

Effect of different topical fluoride applications on the surface roughness of a colored compomer

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of neutral sodium fluoride (NNaF) gel and acidulated phosphate fluoride (APF) gel on the surface roughness of colored compomer (Twinky Star), conventional compomer (Compoglass F) and resin-modified glass-ionomer cement (RMGIC) (Photac-Fil). MATERIAL AND METHODS: A total of 45 standardized disc-shaped specimens were prepared for each material. After 24 h, finishing and polishing of specimens were done with aluminum oxide disc. Surface treatments with topical fluoride agents or distilled water (control) were performed four times, and interspersed with 8 pH cycles, simulating high cariogenic challenges. After the treatment, the surface roughness (Ra) was determined using a profilometer. In each group, specimens with Ra closest to the mean were examined with a scanning electron microscope (SEM) at ×1,000 and ×3,500 magnifications. Two-way ANOVA was used to evaluate Ra measurements, and the differences in Ra values between subgroups for each material and each topical applications were compared by Tukey's highly significant difference pairwise comparisons. RESULTS: No statistically significant difference in Ra between the Twinky Star and Compoglass F was found. However, Photac Fil showed significantly higher Ra than these materials after all surface treatments. There was a general trend of Ra increase from controls to NNaF and APF gels for all materials. SEM observations revealed that the surface micromorphology of Twinky-Star did not differ significantly from that of Compoglass F. CONCLUSION: Both the compomers and the RMGIC showed significantly higher surface roughness when subjected to APF gel application