Towards a comprehensive model of formative assessment for self-regulated learning : a study of practice at Solusi University in Zimbabwe

The main purpose of this study was to explore what the true worth or value of formative assessment was in the context of self-regulated learning. It sought to find out how the quality of formative assessment practices is characterised by the lecturers and students at Solusi University, Zimbabwe. The evidence from this was to be compared with what the course outlines and related documents suggested regarding the quality of formative assessment practices at Solusi University. The study also intended to find out how the self-regulated learning approach could add value to formative assessment practices in this university. This became important on account of the major functions of assessment in general and continuous assessment in particular to act as a barometer of the quality of learning going on in an institution. The qualitative research approach was adopted using interviews and analysis of formative assessment documents such as the course outlines as well as quizzes and tests. It emerged from the findings that formative assessment practices at Solusi University are characterised by performance as the major issue. Performance is the overemphasis of marks and scores whilst ignoring the other major learning aspects of formative assessment. This is so because there is no assessment guide to inform on the criteria and standards to follow. The course objectives were based on the lower-order levels of learning which dwell more on rote learning for the sake of grading or performance. Even though assignments were preferred, more quizzes were being used so as to garner enough marks. This picture could be altered if the theories that underpin this study namely, Self-Regulated Learning, the BEAR Assessment System and Bloom’s Taxonomy of Learning Objectives respectively were applied in the formative assessment practices in the university. This would allow for transparency and collaboration in the formative assessment process with students being active participants. In this case the self-regulated learning approach would have been used to enhance the quality of formative assessment practices.Educational Leadership and ManagementD. Ed. (Education Management

Assessing Higher Education: Relevance of Vision and Mission Statements: A Case Study of USIU

United States International University (USIU) has recently been going through workshops and training about the education effectiveness and learning outcomes of its programs. The article examines whether the learning outcomes of USIU are being instilled in the student's academic and personal lives. Learning outcomes of USIU are very important throughout a student's academic life however, there are no set mechanisms of finding out if the stated learning outcomes are being achieved. The main objective of this study is to find out the level of awareness of the USIU vision and mission outcomes among the university students. It also aims at providing ideas on how best the vision and mission outcomes can be communicated effectively to the university community. This preliminary study is an important step in higher education assessment where visions and missions are stated boldly without due attention to the learning processes among students. For instance, when we talk of higher order thinking, is the student able to collect, analyze and demonstrate data or information to formulate conclusions with a critically and creatively holistic manner? How do we evaluate the assimilation of the mission and vision statements? Journal of Language, Technology & Entrepreneurship in Africa Vol. 1 (2) 2009: pp. 112-11

Assessing the Internship Program in Universities: Case study of United States International University (USIU)

Employers are increasingly supporting programs that equip students with hands-on business skills in an effort to address a gap between theory and practice. This in essence increases the student’s degree of employability after graduating from university. To address this mismatch, companies and universities have initiated the internship program or attachments where final year students pursuing various professions are given an opportunity to work in an effort to gain some experience and beef up other academic credentials that they may not have acquired in their course of study. Key words: Internship, assessment, university, USIU

E-records management in Tanzania public service: determinants, perceived importance and barriers

Despite rigorous efforts by the government to introduce an e-government, most of the records in the public service of Tanzania are not electronically managed. The present study was conducted to assess records staff’s awareness of e-records management determinants, explore the perceived importance of e-records management, and analyse challenges of managing e-records in the Records and Archive Management Department (RAMD) of Tanzania. A descriptive research design alongside qualitative and quantitative approaches was utilized to collect, process, and analyse data in this study in which a 38 respondents were involved. Data for this study were collected using a cross-sectional survey (i.e. questionnaire and interview) and documentary review. The study’s findings reveal that determinant factors for e-records management are not in a state to speed up the take-off of e-records management initiatives of the RAMD. Shortage of competent staff for e-records management, dwindling of budget to support training and maintenance of infrastructure, and weak implementation of policies, circulars, and standards are among the challenges faced by efforts to manage e-records. Despite the slow take-off of e-records management initiatives, the responding staff perceived their management positively. Success in e-records management initiatives evidently requires the presence of reliable supporting environment and readiness tools such as standards, infrastructure, circulars, and policies. Keywords: e-records, e-documents management, e-records readiness, e-records management determinant

Preparation and characterization of spray-dried valsartan-loaded Eudragit® E PO solid dispersion microparticles

AbstractThe purpose of this study was to develop the immediate release stomach-specific spray-dried formulation of valsartan (VAL) using Eudragit® E PO (EPO) as the carrier for enhancing dissolution rate in a gastric environment. Enhanced solubility and dissolution in gastric pH was achieved by formulating the solid dispersion using a spray drying technique. Different combinations of drug–polymer–surfactant were dissolved in 10% ethanol solution and spray-dried in order to obtain solid dispersion microparticles. Use of the VAL–EPO solid dispersion microparticles resulted in significant improvement of the dissolution rate of the drug at pH 1.2 and pH 4.0, compared to the free drug powder and the commercial product. A hard gelatin capsule was filled with the VAL–EPO solid dispersion powder prior to the dissolution test. The increased dissolution of VAL from solid dispersion microparticles in gastric pH was attributed to the effect of EPO and most importantly the transformation of crystalline drugs to amorphous solid dispersion powder, which was clearly shown by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and powder X-ray diffraction (P-XRD) studies. Thus, VAL, a potential antihypertensive drug in the form of a solid dispersion microparticulate powder, can be effectively delivered in the immediate release dosage form for stomach-specific drug delivery

An investigation of the inter-molecular interaction, solid-state properties and dissolution properties of mixed copovidone hot-melt extruded solid dispersions

peer-reviewedPrevious research has focused on spray dried quaternary mixtures which, due to the addition of a surfactant, affected the physical stability and amorphous stability of selected model drugs. Very little research has focused on how inter-molecular interactions play a role in the successful formulation of hot-melt extruded quaternary amorphous blends and how they affect physical stability and solubility of amorphous solid dispersions (ASDs). Therefore the aim of this study was to investigate the role of inter-molecular interactions and their effect on the solid-state and dissolution properties of mixed copovidone amorphous solid dispersions (ASDs). The polymeric copovidone carriers used in this study were Poly (vinylpyrrolidone-vinyl acetate copolymer) and Plasdone S-630 (PL-S630) which in terms of monographs are the same, however they have different solid-state and dissolution properties. The ASDs showed a significantly higher dissolution rate compared to amorphous and pure INM in pH buffer 1.2 with a kinetic solubility of 24 μg/ml. The stability data showed that INM remained amorphous in solid solutions with PVP VA64 and Plasdone S-630, except for the higher drug loads. It was concluded that % drug loading did have a significant effect on the solubility of INM due to recrystallization at higher drug loads.ACCEPTEDpeer-reviewe

Poloxamer-based thermoresponsive ketorolac tromethamine in situ gel preparations : design, characterisation, toxicity and transcorneal permeation studies

This study was aimed at preparing, characterising and evaluating in situ gel formulations based on a blend of two hydrophilic polymers i.e. poloxamer 407 (P407) and poloxamer 188 (P188) for a sustained ocular delivery of ketorolac tromethamine (KT). Drug-polymer interaction studies were performed using {DSC} and FT-IR. The gelation temperature (Tsol-gel), gelation time, rheological behaviour, mucoadhesive characteristics of these gels, transcorneal permeation and ocular irritation as well as toxicity was investigated. {DSC} and FT-IR studies revealed that there may be electrostatic interactions between the drug and the polymers used. {P188} modified the Tsol/gel of {P407} bringing it close to eye temperature (35°C) compared with the formulation containing {P407} alone. Moreover, gels that comprised {P407} and {P188} exhibited a pseudoplastic behaviour at different concentrations. Furthermore, mucoadhesion study using mucin discs showed that in situ gel formulations have good mucoadhesive characteristics upon increasing the concentration of P407. When comparing formulations {PP11} and PP12, the work of adhesion decreased significantly (P < 0.001) from 377.9 ± 7.79 mN.mm to 272.3 ± 6.11 mN.mm. In vitro release and ex vivo permeation experiments indicated that the in situ gels were able to prolong and control {KT} release as only 48 of the {KT} released within 12 h. In addition, the HET-CAM and {BCOP} tests confirmed the non-irritancy of {KT} loaded in situ gels, and HET-CAM test demonstrated the ability of ocular protection against strongly irritant substances. {MTT} assay on primary corneal epithelial cells revealed that in situ gel formulations loaded with {KT} showed reasonable and acceptable percent cell viability compared with control samples

Fizikokemijska karakterizacija čvrstih disperzijskih sustava tadalafila s poloksamerom 407

Dissolution behaviour of a poorly water-soluble drug, tadalafil, from its solid dispersion systems with poloxamer 407 has been investigated. Solid dispersion systems of tadalafil were prepared with poloxamer 407 in 1:0.5, 1:1.5 and 1:2.5 ratios using the melting method. Characterization of binary systems with FTIR and powder XRPD studies demonstrated the presence of strong hydrogen bonding interactions, a significant decrease in crystallinity and the possibility of existence of amorphous entities of the drug. In the binary systems tested, 1:0.5 proportion of tadalafil/poloxamer 407 showed rapid dissolution of tadalafil (DE30 70.9 ± 3.6 %). In contrast, higher proportions of poloxamer 407 (1:1.5 and 1:2.5) offered no advantage towards dissolution enhancement of the drug from corresponding binary systems indicating altered rheological characteristics of the polymer, at its higher concentration, which might have retarded the release rate of tadalafil.U radu je ispitivano oslobađanje u vodi teško topljivog lijeka tadalafila iz čvrstih disperzijskih sustava. Ti sustavi pripravljeni su s poloksamerom 407 u omjeru lijeka i polimera 1:0,5, 1:1,5 i 1:2,5, koristeći metodu taljenja. Karakterizacija binarnih sustava s FTIR i rendgenskom difrakcijom praha XRD ukazuje na prisutnost snažnih vodikovih veza, značajno smanjenje kristaliničnosti i moguću prisutnost amorfnog lijeka. Iz binarnog sustava tadalafil/poloksamer 1:0,5 oslobađanje ljekovite tvari je brzo (DE30 70,9 ± 3,6 %). Nasuprot tome, iz pripravaka s višim omjerima lijeka i polimera (1:1,5 i 1:2,5) oslobađanje ljekovite tvari nije povećano. Usporavanje oslobađanja tadalafila moglo bi biti posljedicom promjene reoloških svojstava polimera pri višim koncentracijama