Influential predictors of students' academic achievement in online peer learning among undergraduate students

Social media is widely used by students. Previous studies have projected conflicting results regarding the influence of online peer learning via social media on academic achievement. The purpose of this study is to identify the factors that impact on academic achievement. Building on the literature, the study proposed a conceptual model consists of self-efficacy; engagement, performance expectancy, social influence, peer feedback, and collaboration were incorporated as independent variables that influence the academic achievement. Data was collected from 369 undergraduate students. The findings of regression analysis showed that the strongest predictor of academic achievement in online peer learning was performance expectancy followed by collaboration, social influence, and engagement. An online peer learning influences significantly on academic achievement. Decision makers were advised to support the implementation of online peer learning in universities

Influential Predictors of Students’ Academic Achievement in Online Peer Learning Among Undergraduate Students

Social media is widely used by students. Previous studies have projected conflicting results regarding the influence of online peer learning via social media on academic achievement. The purpose of this study is to identify the factors that impact on academic achievement. Building on the literature, the study proposed a conceptual model consists of self-efficacy; engagement, performance expectancy, social influence, peer feedback, and collaboration were incorporated as independent variables that influence the academic achievement. Data was collected from 369 undergraduate students. The findings of regression analysis showed that the strongest predictor of academic achievement in online peer learning was performance expectancy followed by collaboration, social influence, and engagement. An online peer learning influences significantly on academic achievement.  Decision makers were advised to support the implementation of online peer learning in universities. Keywords: Social Media, Online peer learning, Academic achievement, UTAUT

Epidemiology of gunshot injuries in Kano, Nigeria

Background: The incidence of civilian gunshot injuries has been reported to be on the increase globally. This study was undertaken to determine the epidemiology of gunshot injuries in Kano, Northern Nigeria. Patients and Methods: A retrospective analysis of patients with gunshot injuries seen at five major government hospitals in Kano metropolis over a four year period (1999-2002). Results: There were 224 cases, with males out-numbering females by a ratio of 27:1. Eighty -one point three percent of patients were aged between 20 and 44 years. The most commonly injured body regions were the lower limbs (31.6%), chest (15.6%), upper limbs (9.4%) and head (9.0%). A fatal outcome was recorded in 12.5% of cases. Most injuries occurred among traders, students, farmers and security agents, and armed robbery attacks and civil conflicts were the aetiological factors in majority of cases. Conclusion: Gunshot injuries are a major cause of morbidity among adult men in Kano. Addressing the root causes of violence such as poverty, unemployment, and substance abuse will reduce the incidence of gunshot injuries in our society. Keywords: gun-shot injuries, firearms, epidemiology Nigerian Journal of Surgical Research Vol. 7(3&4) 2005: 296-29

Information System Success Framework based on Interpersonal Conflict Factors

Information system success (ISS) has received considerable attention from researchers as it plays an important role in improving the efficiency and productivity of an organization. Several researchers have conducted empirical studies using numerous factors (e.g. organizational, technological, and individual factors) which affect the information system success. However, there are several factors which are related to interpersonal conflict which may affect information system success. The interpersonal conflict is a critical dimension which can greatly influence information system success in a competitive environment such as the financial sector. Therefore, this study introduces a framework to investigate the influence of interpersonal conflict factors on information system success in the Ministry of Finance, Yemen. The study employed a quantitative method which consists of the following steps: survey design, data collection and data analysis. A sample size comprising 130 employees were distributed in the Ministry of Finance, Yemen. Questionnaires were used to collect data from this sample. Data analysis (reliability, validity, correlation and factor analysis) has been carried out using SPSS.  In addition, structural equation modelling (SEM) has been used for evaluation the research model. Based on the experimental results, the findings in this study revealed that the interpersonal factors (interference, disagreement and instability) significantly negatively (at 0.05 level of significance) influence user satisfaction of information system success

The Effect of the Dimensions of Transformational Leadership on the Teachers' Performance in the Yemeni Public Schools

The aim of this study is to determine the dimensions of transformational leadership that influence schools to achieve productivity growth and improve the performance of teaching as well as gaining access to new high-quality education. Although schools have been competing to gain high-quality education, empirical evidence shown that many educational processes with regards to teaching performance were not successful particularly in Yemen. Consequently, the study is often concentrated on identifying the paths to enhance teaching performances. The most important factor to successfully increase high-quality education is providing appropriate transformational leadership during the process of reform, particularly in the important period of the teaching process. In order to accept changes and focus on attaining ambitious goals, it is necessary for leaders of transformational school to provide rewards and support the teachers. This paper aimed to investigate the influence of various dimensions of transformational leadership on performance of teachers in Yemeni public schools. In order to guarantee the sample’s representativeness, the questionnaires have been distributed to Yemeni public schools in Sana'a, Republic of Yemen. A total of 374 respondents were selected which include staff and teachers as the sample. The instrument used was a Likert 5-point scale from the questionnaire which were examined using smartpls3. The results revealed that all the dimensions of transformational leadership have a positive influence on the teachers' performance

Relationship between social media usage and academic achievement among tertiary students in Malaysian public university

The increasing use of social media among tertiary students is one of the highly growing phenomena in the academia. Various studies show students’ high involvement in using social media network to interact with their peers, lecturers and discussing learningmaterials. Full understanding of the social media and how it is being utilized in education is needed, especially in knowing the relationship between social media used and academic achievement among tertiary students as we know the tertiary students are at large used this technologies. The aims of this study is to examine the relationship between social media used (online peer learning) and academic achievement among tertiary students in one of the Malaysian public university. The study was based on quantitative method with a correlational design using questionnaires that was modified from previous study and validated by a panel of experts. The sampling technique was stratified from 17 faculties and 328 respondents involved in this study. There are positivesignificant low correlation between the variables measured. The highest correlation is between collaboration and academic achievement followed by the correlation between performance expectancy and academic achievement, engagement and academic achievement,social influence and academic achievement, peer feedback and academic achievement, and lastly, self-efficacy and academic achievement. Practical implications and recommendations were given to enhance the engagement of students via online peer learning

Physical layer security and energy efficiency over different error correcting codes in wireless sensor networks

Despite the rapid growth in the market demanding for wireless sensor networks (WSNs), they are far from being secured or efficient. WSNs are vulnerable to malicious attacks and utilize too much power. At the same time, there is a significant increment of the security threats due to the growth of the several applications that employ wireless sensor networks. Therefore, introducing physical layer security is considered to be a promising solution to mitigate the threats. This paper evaluates popular coding techniques like Reed solomon (RS) techniques and scrambled error correcting codes specifically in terms of security gap. The difference between the signal to nose ratio (SNR) of the eavesdropper and the legitimate receiver nodes is defined as the security gap. We investigate the security gap, energy efficiency, and bit error rate between RS and scrambled t-error correcting codes for wireless sensor networks. Lastly, energy efficiency in RS and Bose-Chaudhuri-Hocquenghem (BCH) is also studied. The results of the simulation emphasize that RS technique achieves similar security gap as scrambled error correcting codes. However, the analysis concludes that the computational complexities of the RS is less compared to the scrambled error correcting codes. We also found that BCH code is more energy-efficient than RS

Modelling 132 kV substation for surge arrester studies

Insulation coordination models are an essential part of power system studies and are used to determine the performance of a transmission line or substation. This paper generalizes the guidelines and parameters to be used in modelling the substation and in performing the analysis on the prediction of the transformer damage. Modelling parameters and the substation layout design are based and adapted from 132/11 kV Simpang Renggam – Ayer Hitam substation in Johor Baharu, Malaysia, courtesy of the Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB). The model is based on the single phase line model, as was suggested by the IEEE, to be adequate to represent the substation in transient analysis simulation. Extensive analyses on the placement of the surge arresters at the substation and a prediction of the transformer damage are also presented. The results obtained from this analysis are then compared with the suggested Basic Lightning Insulation Level (BIL) by the TNB, according to the standards, for assessing the percentage of transformer damage and optimizing the substation performance in terms of its reliability and cost effectiveness

Surface Roughness Evaluation Of Experimental Dental Nanocomposite After Bleaching

Bleaching or tooth whitening is getting more popular in this world that concerns esthetic [1]