SCiP Alliance Thriving Lives Toolkit: Implementation and Impact Evaluation

Primary and secondary schools responded positively to the Thriving Lives Toolkit, finding it to be a valuable resource which promoted auditing, action planning and development. All schools made progress on the principles, even when they had only been using it for a short time frame. Senior leadership support was important for facilitating this. The progress made by schools started with appointing a named contact and typically involved making use of local and national support groups and evidence based resources to increase staff awareness and implement a range of interventions. Most often these were focused on making transition more effective but schools also spent time on improving wellbeing and attainment. Schools perceived several outcomes as a consequence of this activity. School staff were more confident in supporting Service children and this had become a key activity in schools. Service children were perceived to have improved wellbeing and to be more engaged in school. Schools had improved relationships with Service families. The findings suggest that the self-assessment process enabled schools to improve their provision - engaging with the Toolkit has facilitated activity, progress and positive outcomes for Service children

Peer-reviewed physical education journals from Arabic-speaking countries: a regional assessment

Purpose: Non-communicable diseases (NCD) such as heart disease, diabetes and overweight and obesity are associated with physical inactivity and represent the leading cause of death globally. In the Arabic-speaking region, NCD is associated with more than 2.3 million deaths annually with rates expected to increase. Professional physical education (PE) journals are important resources in the dissemination of knowledge from evidence to practice. With the growing physical inactivity problem among Arabic-speaking countries, the purpose of this paper is to assess the availability culturally relevant peer-reviewed physical education journals in this region. Design/methodology/approach: An assessment of professional PE journals within this region was conducted using four academic databases and journal directories. The electronic search generated 14 PE-affiliated journals in Arabic-speaking countries with a publication status of active, interrupted or ceased; search parameters were limited to English, Arabic and French languages. Findings: Results indicated that no professional publications identified in this review predates to 2005 within the Arabic-speaking region. Although all 14 journals within the sample offer both electronic and open access, only one provided both print and electronic versions. Iraq was over-represented with 12 PE journals; no other country offered more than one. Originality/value: Systematic analyses of PE prevalence among Arabic-speaking countries are scarce, and there are no current evaluations of peer-reviewed publications addressing PE within the Arabic-speaking region. PE capacity building and collaboration can be fostered, improved and maintained when supported by regionally and culturally congruent research

Local DC electricity generated by photovoltaics (PV): Transforming the electricity infrastructure of the 21st Century

United States aging electricity infrastructure of generation, transmission and distribution facilities was built over the course of a century and is dominated by alternating current (AC). Most of the loads around us are direct current (DC) load. Commercial buildings have more than 80% DC loads. DC has many advantages over AC. Due to the advancements in power electronics today, DC infrastructure can be implemented with all the advantages of saving energy and improved reliability of the grid. By doing measurements of cell phones we will demonstrate the advantages of DC source over AC. We expect energy saving of about 25-30% by using DC in place of AC. At Edison\u27s time there was no local source of DC electricity. Today solar panels are available and the installed PV system cost is as low as $1.50 per peak watt. Due to growth of electric vehicles and grid storage, battery cost is also decreasing every day. Tesla (an electric car manufacturer) is going to build a Giga watt battery manufacturing plant in US. The combination of PV and battery storage will transform the electricity infrastructure of the 21st century

Dietary transition and obesity in selected Arabic-speaking countries: a review of the current evidence

Escalating obesity rates have become a significant public health problem in the Middle East and North Africa [‎MENA]‎ region and have been associated with shifts towards a westernized diet. This integrative review aimed to examine the current dietary trends and transitions and their association with obesity in Arabic-speaking countries of the MENA region. Relevant databases were searched for studies in MENA countries between 1998 and 2014 that investigated obesity trends and changes in dietary patterns at the regional level in all age groups. A total of 39 articles fulfilled the inclusion criteria. All the articles noted that obesity was increasingly prevalent and that there was a significant dietary shift away from traditional dietary patterns; 51% reported a shift towards a westernized diet and half found that the western diet was correlated with increased obesity. Culturally relevant dietary health education and health promotion strategies are warranted to address both the dietary shifts towards the westernized diet and the increasing obesit

International Centre for Guidance Studies (iCeGS) Annual Review 2022

This publication offers a brief insight into the wide range of activities the iCeGS team are involved with over the year. It explores our contribution to policy, research and practice within the career development sector both in the UK and wider afield. iCeGS Annual Review also gives the team an opportunity to reflect on our many achievements over the last year. This year, like other years, we feel particularly proud of several activities

International Centre for Guidance Studies (iCeGS) Annual Review 2023 - 25th Anniversary

This publication offers a brief insight into the wide range of activities the iCeGS team has been involved with over the year and the last 25 years. It explores our contribution to policy, research and practice within the career development sector both in the UK and wider afield. iCeGS Annual Review also allows the team to reflect on our many achievements over the last year. Like other years, we feel particularly proud of several activities this year