Using E-Portfolio to Enhance Students’Motivation Towards Learning English at University College of Applied Sciences, Palestine

In the era of globalization and technological revolution, the widely spread usage of e-portfolio inside and outside classrooms has encouraged educators and policymakers to look for new methods of assessment that suit the new digital generation.The purpose of this study is to examine the outcome of using e-portfolio on University College of Applied Sciences (UCAS) students' motivation towards English language learning. The total number of students in English Language social work classes under the humanitarian department at UCAS is 60 (30 males and 30 females). Those are officially enrolling in English Language course (DIPL 1303) at first semester of 2014/2015 academic year. A Sequential Exploratory Design was used to collect qualitative and quantitative data for one semester. The results of this study showed that instrumental and integrative motivation levels of UCAS students improved towards learning English after utilizing e-portfolio. But the integrative motivation was found to be a bit higher than instrumental motivation. This has generated several theoretical, pedagogical and policy implications for instructors, universities and researchers. Therefore, it can be concluded that integrating e-portfolio at the tertiary level would improve the potentialities of researchers and policy makers to create a real change in the learning process

Using E-Portfolio to Enhance Student’s Attitudes Towards Learning English at University College of Applied Sciences.

Attitude is considered to be an essential element of the English language learning process at tertiary level. The present study investigates the outcome of using e-portfolio to enhance students’ attitude towards English language learning at UCAS (University College of Applied Sciences) in Palestine. 60 students (30 males and 30 females) who are enrolled in English Language course (DIPL 1303) at first semester of 2014/2015 academic year were selected as a sample of this study. A Sequential Exploratory Design was used to collect qualitative and quantitative data for one semester. The findings of this study revealed that students’ attitude towards learning English changed positively after utilizing e-portfolio. This has generated several theoretical, pedagogical and policy implications for instructors, universities and researchers. Therefore, it can be concluded that integrating e-portfolio at the tertiary level would enhance students’ attitude towards English language learning and release their potentialities towards the learning process

Current challenges and implications for dengue, chikungunya and Zika seroprevalence studies worldwide: A scoping review.

BACKGROUND:Arboviral infections are a public health concern and an escalating problem worldwide. Estimating the burden of these diseases represents a major challenge that is complicated by the large number of unapparent infections, especially those of dengue fever. Serological surveys are thus required to identify the distribution of these diseases and measure their impact. Therefore, we undertook a scoping review of the literature to describe and summarize epidemiological practices, findings and insights related to seroprevalence studies of dengue, chikungunya and Zika virus, which have rapidly expanded across the globe in recent years. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS:Relevant studies were retrieved through a literature search of MEDLINE, WHOLIS, Lilacs, SciELO and Scopus (2000 to 2018). In total, 1389 publications were identified. Studies addressing the seroprevalence of dengue, chikungunya and/or Zika written in English or French and meeting the inclusion and exclusion criteria were included. In total, 147 studies were included, from which 185 data points were retrieved, as some studies used several different samples. Most of the studies were exclusively conducted on dengue (66.5%), but 16% were exclusively conducted on chikungunya, and 7 were exclusively conducted on Zika; the remainder were conducted on multiple arboviruses. A wide range of designs were applied, but most studies were conducted in the general population (39%) and in households (41%). Although several assays were used, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs) were the predominant test used (77%). The temporal distribution of chikungunya studies followed the virus during its rapid expansion since 2004. The results revealed heterogeneity of arboviruses seroprevalence between continents and within a given country for dengue, chikungunya and Zika viruses, ranging from 0 to 100%, 76% and 73% respectively. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE:Serological surveys provide the most direct measurement for defining the immunity landscape for infectious diseases, but the methodology remains difficult to implement. Overall, dengue, chikungunya and Zika serosurveys followed the expansion of these arboviruses, but there remain gaps in their geographic distribution. This review addresses the challenges for researchers regarding study design biases. Moreover, the development of reliable, rapid and affordable diagnosis tools represents a significant issue concerning the ability of seroprevalence surveys to differentiate infections when multiple viruses co-circulate