Reviving the Muslim tradition of dialogue: A look at a rich history of Educational theory and institutions in pre-modern and modern times

This paper aims to generate a debate within Muslim scholarship and comparative educators to engage in analysing both the institutions and the philosophy of education in Islam historically, to understand its present challenges and to create an environment conducive to dialogue between various civilizations and educational systems. At present Muslim parents, teachers and students in contemporary educational systems face a big challenge. On one hand, a modified system of Western education is likely to leave Muslim children exposed to a set of an underlying set of secular values and assumptions which are alien to the spirit of Islam, but on the other hand Muslim schools of the old style seem unable to prepare children adequately for the needs of the modern world or to help them take part in the scientific, technological and economic progress (Halstead, 1995). At the core of this issue lies the lack of knowledge of both Western educators and contemporary Muslim theorists regarding the rich tradition of education and scholarship in Islam that ensured the coexistence of the religious and the secular through dialogue with other traditions

The Impact of Jordanian Health Care Policy on the Maternal and Reproductive Health Care Seeking Behavior of Syrian Refugee Women

On November 20, 2014, the Jordanian government rescinded the free health care it had provided to Syrian refugees living in the host community. Now, Syrians must pay the same amount as uninsured Jordanians when seeking health care in facilities run by the Jordanian Ministry of Health. Identified as a vulnerable and disadvantaged population, most of the Syrian community is not financially secure and has difficulty meeting the cost of living in Jordan. This study surveyed 36 Syrian women and interviewed 2 of them in order to determine the effects this policy has had on their maternal and reproductive health seeking behavior. It hypothesized that the new health care policy will increase the cost of living for Syrian refugees in the host community and therefore cause them to seek health care for maternal and reproductive health care services less frequently. The results showed that there was a decrease in the number of visits these women made for maternal and reproductive health services after the policy change due to financial stress, although the results are statistically insignificant

Curriculum as Planned: Who Is Affected When Difference Is Marginalized?

How does a minority mother explain to her Canadian children the meaning of “exclusion”, “religious stigmatization” and “discrimination” when she sees her children’s identity being shaped by “structured silences” (Greene, 1993) in curriculum? Curriculum, in any time and place, becomes a contested site where debate occurs over whose values and beliefs will achieve legitimation through acceptance in the national discourse (Klieberd, 1995). My children live in liminality, as holders of hybrid identities, multiple languages, beliefs and cultures, juxtaposed against a social story of Canadian classroom teaching. Experiences such as theirs “challenge the conceptualization of curriculum as a prefabricated plan” (Wilson, Ehret, Lewkowich, & Kredl, 2017) and foreground the “blind impresses” (Rorty, 1989), gaps and silences of ideology, perceptions and practices (Rautins & Ibrahim, 2011). What are the implications when difference is censored or marginalized? By using autobiographical narrative inquiry and poetic representation, I interrogate my children’s experiences with the Canadian curriculum from the positioning of a minority parent. I explore “encounters” (Greene, 1967) through my unique lens, and propose positioning parents integrally in curriculum conversations in order to move curriculum conceptualizations from a place of binaries defined by “us” and “them”, by “dominant culture” and “minorities”, to a place of shared hope and responsibility, to a just and democratic society

Regeneration Potential Of Bentonite Based Thin Coated Adsorbent

Adsorption is one of the widely used method for wastewater treatment since it is cost-effective, eco-friendly and highly efficient in nature. Bentonite based adsorbent coating was introduced to overcome the problem associated with the use of adsorbents in pellet, beads, powder, or other particle forms. Its adsorption capacity increases due to increase in surface area/weight ratio. It is important to regenerate adsorbent before it is disposed into environment. Therefore, this study is focused on regeneration of bentonite-based coating using three different methods; chemical regeneration, thermal regeneration and combination of thermal and chemical (thermo-chem) regeneration. Chemical regeneration was not found to be suitable for the regeneration of bentonite adsorbent coating with 22% desorption efficiency of MB using ethanol. Rather, thermal effect can loosen the bonds between adsorbate and adsorbent, but unable to completely break the bond between MB and adsorbent coating at 160oC. The thermo-chem method effectively desorbed MB with desorption efficiency of 74 % using HCl after heating adsorbent coating at 160 oC for initial dye concentration of 50 ppm. Also, regeneration study results confirm successive adsorption/desorption of MB on adsorbent coating even after 7th cycle. The characterization of PaintosorpTM before and after desorption of dye has been performed using TGA/DTA, SEM, EDX, BET, PSD and FTIR analysis. Batch desorption study of MB results Sips and Freundlich isotherm model are best fitting which shows that desorption of MB occurs from multilayer adsorbed MB on adsorbent coating. However, kinetic model best fitting with pseudo second order model and confirms that desorption mechanism is due to concentration gradient, solubility and diffusivity of MB

Filariasis in Pregnancy: Prevalent yet Less‑known Global Health Burden

Parasitic infections affect tens of millions of pregnant women worldwide. Lymphatic filariasis is a vector‑borne disabling parasitic infection and is an endemic disease in many parts of Southeast Asia, especially South India, with most infections caused by Wuchereria bancrofti. The aim of this article is to present a rare case of incidental filariasis in pregnancy with unexpected outcome. We report a normotensive 45‑year‑old multigravida with 7 months gestation, moderate anemia, fever, inguinal lymphadenopathy, and elephantiasis. Her peripheral smears were positive for microfilaria while ultrasound revealed intrauterine fetal death and chronic abruption. She was negative on risk factors for abruption, except for advanced maternal age. This case warrants more global attention to the management of parasitic infection in pregnancy.KEY WORDS: Abruption, elephantiasis, filariasis, fetal death, lymphadenopathy, parasitic infectio

Lectio Divina: A Call for Salah & Poetic Being

I reflect back on the ARTS Pre-Conference 2017 of the Canadian Society for Studies in Education. It was a day full of non-linear knowledge exchanges, conversations, creations, contemplation and arts-based activities. Collaborators dwelled in, engaged, and emerged together spiritually, poetically, and musically to rekindle their learning, coexistence and mystical understandings. I was in my fasting state with dry mouth, hungry stomach, and thirsty soul combined with contemplative sessions, plus my scholarly and poetic inspirations in the flesh. It was purely an epoch of unbridled spirit tenderly wrapped in creative and contemplative ways of being present in the moment, with the flawless beauty of a flute in the backdrop. I stood in a single corner of a square room. I began my Lectio Divina. I entered Salah. I reached contemplation through praying poetically

O CANADA, WHOSE HOME AND NATIVE LAND? AN AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL NARRATIVE INQUIRY INTO THE CRITICAL ROLE OF CURRICULUM IN IDENTITY AFFIRMATION

The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms (1982) guarantees fundamental freedoms of conscience, religion, thought, belief, and opinion. However, the interpretation of such freedoms, and the extent of accommodation within the context of secular public schools, is not always clear (Shariff, 2006). I am a mother of four children who hold multiple identities, languages, nationalities and beliefs as Canadians. In this autobiographical narrative inquiry fused with poetic representation, I explore my ‘mother stories’ of my children’s experiences with curriculum in schools. Through this research, I examine the critical role of curriculum, implementation of curriculum, and shared curriculum making in affirming the identity of ethnically diverse students. The narratives of my experiences from immigration to citizenship, from multiculturalism to eurocentrism, from parent involvement to parent engagement, and from a racialized mother to a researcher are narratives of “gaps, silences, and exclusions shaped in the bumping places children and families experience in schools” (Clandinin, Huber, J., Huber, M., Murphy, Pearce, Murray-Orr, & Steeves, 2006, p. 173). Our lives are lived, and stories of our lives are told, retold, and relived on storied landscapes (Clandinin & Connelly, 2000), landscapes on which larger social, cultural, political, and institutional narratives are simultaneously unfolding (Murphy & Bengezen, 2015). Seeing narrative as a “way of organizing episodes, actions, and accounts of actions” (Sarbin, 1986, p. 9), I engage in constructing “juxtapository narrative” (Bhabha, 2006) and “counter-storytelling” (Solorzano & Yosso, 2002) to challenge dominant stories of curriculum. I aim to sensitize readers – educators, curriculum and policy makers, parents, and community members – to the issues of identity politics and to experiences shrouded in silence in order to deepen individuals’ capacity to respond to the place and voice of people who are different from them (Ellis & Bochner, 2000). Growing up between two cultures and languages, living in in-between spaces, balancing cultural identities and a sense of belonging is a highly complex process for racialized children. Teachers, curriculum makers, and schools all play a fundamental role in shaping students’ identity. Too often, schools are places in which the complex conditions of minority parents’ and children’s lived experiences and their right to be heard are excluded and ignored. Practically, socially and poetically, this inquiry has the potential to positively impact the lives of racialized students, parents, and families by reimagining curriculum in ways that include multiple narratives, identities, realities, perspectives and practices and, thus, a place for their equal rights, voices on this land and in their home, Canada

Socially Believable Robots

Long-term companionship, emotional attachment and realistic interaction with robots have always been the ultimate sign of technological advancement projected by sci-fi literature and entertainment industry. With the advent of artificial intelligence, we have indeed stepped into an era of socially believable robots or humanoids. Affective computing has enabled the deployment of emotional or social robots to a certain level in social settings like informatics, customer services and health care. Nevertheless, social believability of a robot is communicated through its physical embodiment and natural expressiveness. With each passing year, innovations in chemical and mechanical engineering have facilitated life-like embodiments of robotics; however, still much work is required for developing a “social intelligence” in a robot in order to maintain the illusion of dealing with a real human being. This chapter is a collection of research studies on the modeling of complex autonomous systems. It will further shed light on how different social settings require different levels of social intelligence and what are the implications of integrating a socially and emotionally believable machine in a society driven by behaviors and actions

Conventional and contemporary approaches of splinting traumatized teeth: A review article

Trauma moves a tooth from its original position which needs to be repositioned for optimum healing and better outcomes. To stabilize the traumatically displaced teeth, splinting is specified as the gold standard. In this article we have discussed about various old and modern techniques based on the type of material to splint teeth with dentoalveolar trauma. As per recommendation of IADT, providing flexible splint is beneficial for good healing. A biologically favourable splint should not just be user friendly but also should be convenient in terms of removal. Every technique has its merits and demerits. Iatrogenic trauma to the teeth due to forceful removal of material should be avoided as it may result in post-operative sensitivity but sometimes it is inevitable. Metallic or wire based splints either secured with ligature wire or resin based material may show directly or through the cemented material and compromise aesthetics. This worsens the physiological impact which the patient is already facing after trauma. Recent advancement in splinting material with fiber reinforced material has brought a dramatic change in terms of strength and aesthetics, specifically after traumatic dental injuries. There are various other techniques discussed here which can be used for splinting teeth when the dentist has limited time in emergency or limited resources. The type and timing of the splinting span should be in accordance with the type of injury and as per IADT recommendation to follow standard of care