English Learning Strategy and Proficiency Level of the First Year Students

AbstractThe purpose of the study was to identify whether English language learning strategies commonly used by the first year students at International College, Suan Sunandha Rajabhat University include six direct and indirect strategies. The study served to explore whether there was a difference in these students’ use of six direct and indirect English learning strategies between the different levels of their English proficiency. The questionnaire used as a research instrument was comprised of two parts: General information of participants and the Strategy Inventory for Language Learning (SILL). The researcher employed descriptive statistics and one-way ANOVA (F-test) to analyze the data. The results of the analysis revealed that English learning strategies commonly used by the first year students include six direct and indirect strategies, including differences in strategy use of the students with different levels of English proficiency. Recommendations for future research include the study of language learning strategy use with other research methods focusing on other languages, specific language skills, and/or the relationship of language learning strategy use and other factors in other programs and/or institutions

The rise of the Octobrists: power and conflict among gormer left wing student activists in contemporary Thai politics

Since the early 1990s, the prominent role of 'Octobrists' – former left wing student activists from the 1970s – has become increasingly evident in parliamentary and extra-parliamentary politics. Some Octobrists have played leading or supporting roles in key moments of political transition, such as the 1992 urban middle-class movement for democracy, various social movements throughout the mid-1990s, the political reform process of the late 1990s, and the rise of the Thais Love Thais (Thai Rak Thai) government under Thaksin Shinawatra in 2001. But over the course of the past ten years, these former student activists have become increasingly divided, amidst the protracted conflict between 'Yellow shirt' (anti-Thaksin) and 'Red Shirt' (pro-Thaksin) forces in Thai politics. Octobrists have defended opposing political stances and severely attacked one another across the political divide. This thesis examines why the Octobrists have managed to remain a significant force in Thai politics, despite the collapse of left wing politics in the late 1970s, and why they have experienced deepening internal divisions and a crisis of legitimacy over the course of the past decade. This thesis argues that the Octobrists successfully exploited shifts in the structure of political opportunities over the 1980s and 1990s which allowed them to overcome constraints on their involvement in politics. These former left wing student activists successfully made use of the political skills, social networks, and progressive language which they had developed and refined since the 1970s, in order to gain access to new channels of political influence and power. Above all, they managed to reframe their earlier history as leftist failures and to craft a new political identity as 'Octobrists', as heroic fighters for democracy and against authoritarian rule in the 1970s. In examining the rise and deepening of conflicts among the Octobrists, moreover, this thesis traces the shifts in political environment which accompanied the ascendancy and entrenchment of the Thaksin government and the rise of antiThaksin mobilisation over the past decade, which undermined the loose unity among Octobrists and created new sources of tension and conflict in their midst. The thesis also shows how the notion of 'Octobrists' shifted from an effective rubric for forging a shared identity among former student activists to a rhetorical device for conflict and contestation among former comrades-in-arms

THE DEVELOPMENT OF INTEGRATED ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION ACTIVITIES FOR SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT IN LIBONG ISLAND, TRANG PROVINCE, THAILAND

The purpose of this research, firstly, aimed to develop integrated environmental education activities for solid waste management in Libong Island, Thailand. The activities were built on an integrative research approach which consisted of four elements: inquiry process, participatory process, Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) and Appreciation-Influence-Control (AIC). Secondly, the research aimed to compare achievement of knowledge, attitude, awareness, skill and participation in solid waste management between an experimental group (32 participants) and the control group (32 participants). Participants were selected using voluntary non-random and purposive methods from village representatives, students, teachers, religious leaders, government and local community authorities. The research used the Pretest - Posttest Control Group Design. The research tools were an instructional plan of activities and achievement tests. Data were described in percentages, with normally distributed data described by mean and standard deviation. A t-test was also used to test the research hypothesis. The research results found that the integrated environmental education activities consisted of four learning units and 13 activities. In addition, participants in the experimental group performed significantly better in achievement tests on knowledge, attitude, awareness, skill and participation at 0.05 level. This indicated that the activities succeeded in imparting knowledge, increasing skill and participation as well as creating a positive attitude and raising awareness in solid waste management. The finding can be applied to developing best practices in solid waste management for other municipalities under similar circumstances

Characterization and phylogenetic analysis of biosurfactant-producing bacteria isolated from palm oil contaminated soils

Biosurfactant-producing bacteria were isolated from 89 different soil samples contaminated with palm oil in 35 palm oil industry sites in the south of Thailand. The phylogenetic diversity of the isolates was evaluated by 16S rRNA gene analysis. Among 1,324 colonies obtained, 134 isolates released extracellular biosurfactant when grown on low-cost substrates by a drop collapsing test. Among these, the 53 isolates that showed the highest biosurfactant production on different substrates were found to belong to 42 different bacterial genera. Among these sixteen (Caryophanon; Castellaniella; Filibacter; Geminicoccus; Georgenia; Luteimonas; Mesorhizobium; Mucilaginibacter; Nubsella; Paracoccus; Pedobacter; Psychrobacter; Rahnella; Sphingobium; Sphingopyxis and Sporosarcina) were first reported as biosurfactant-producing strains. By using low-cost, agro-industrial by-products or wastes, Azorhizobium doebereinerae AS54 and Geminicoccus roseus AS73 produced extracellular biosurfactant, which exhibited the lowest surface tension reduction (25.5 mN/m) and highest emulsification activity (69.0%) when palm oil decanter cake and used palm oil was used as a carbon sources, respectively. Overall, this is the first study of a phylogenetic analysis of biosurfactant-producing bacteria from palm oil refinery industry site and their ability to produce biosurfactant on renewable substrates

Body image and weight management: young people, internet advertisements and pharmacists

Media promotion of the ideal body as slimness for women and muscularity for men, has led to increasing numbers of both genders reporting dissatisfaction with their bodies and trying to change using weight control products. It has been suggested that pharmacists can play a key role in promoting healthy lifestyles and weight management. The main aim of the research study was to examine the impact of media on body image perception and to investigate the role of pharmacists in weight management. This thesis consists of three studies: an evaluation of weight control websites, a body image survey of young adults and interviews with pharmacists. The results from the evaluation study showed that the quality of most weight loss (64%) and weight gain product advertisements (80%) was generally poor, principally due to the use of misleading claims and a lack of useful information. These data complement the survey that university students reported rarely being influenced by weight control product adverts and hardly considered using these products as a method for changing weight. The survey also showed that most participants of both genders (71%) felt satisfied with their body image. However, the findings in this study indicated that there was a relationship between a high level of body image concern and self-perception of being overweight and the attempt to lose weight. Interviews with pharmacists showed that they were unlikely to be actively involved in reducing obesity problems and promoting healthy lifestyles in the community. Although the prevalence of body dissatisfaction and the use of weight control products among these young adults may not be as high as has been reported elsewhere, healthcare professionals, including pharmacists, need to be aware of this problem when providing advice or consultations for young adults. Healthcare professionals should promote the benefits of healthy lifestyles as well as providing information about potential problems of harmful weight control strategies. The effect of ethnicity and culture on body image concern warrants further. The availability of weight control products and quality of information provided should also be further examined

Micro-aerobic, anaerobic and two-stage condition for ethanol production by Enterobacter aerogenes from biodiesel-derived crude glycerol

The microbial production of ethanol from biodiesel-derived crude glycerol by Enterobacter aerogenes TISTR1468, under micro-aerobic and anaerobic conditions, was investigated. The experimental results showed that micro-aerobic conditions were more favorable for cellular growth (4.0 g/L DCW), ethanol production (20.7 g/L) as well as the ethanol yield (0.47 g/g glycerol) than anaerobic conditions (1.2 g/L DCW, 6.3 g/L ethanol and 0.72 g/g glycerol, respectively). Crude glycerol (100 g/L) was consumed completely with the rate of 1.80 g/L/h. Two-stage fermentation (combination of micro-aerobic and anaerobic condition) exhibited higher ethanol production (24.5 g/L) than using one-stage fermentation (either micro-aerobic or anaerobic condition. The two-stage configuration, exhibited slightly higher crude glycerol consumption rate (1.81 g/L/h), as well as ethanol yield (0.56 g/g) than the one-stage configuration. Therefore, two-stage process was selected for ethanol production from E. aerogenes TISTR1468 in scale-up studies

Body image and weight management: young people, internet advertisements and pharmacists

Media promotion of the ideal body as slimness for women and muscularity for men, has led to increasing numbers of both genders reporting dissatisfaction with their bodies and trying to change using weight control products. It has been suggested that pharmacists can play a key role in promoting healthy lifestyles and weight management. The main aim of the research study was to examine the impact of media on body image perception and to investigate the role of pharmacists in weight management. This thesis consists of three studies: an evaluation of weight control websites, a body image survey of young adults and interviews with pharmacists. The results from the evaluation study showed that the quality of most weight loss (64%) and weight gain product advertisements (80%) was generally poor, principally due to the use of misleading claims and a lack of useful information. These data complement the survey that university students reported rarely being influenced by weight control product adverts and hardly considered using these products as a method for changing weight. The survey also showed that most participants of both genders (71%) felt satisfied with their body image. However, the findings in this study indicated that there was a relationship between a high level of body image concern and self-perception of being overweight and the attempt to lose weight. Interviews with pharmacists showed that they were unlikely to be actively involved in reducing obesity problems and promoting healthy lifestyles in the community. Although the prevalence of body dissatisfaction and the use of weight control products among these young adults may not be as high as has been reported elsewhere, healthcare professionals, including pharmacists, need to be aware of this problem when providing advice or consultations for young adults. Healthcare professionals should promote the benefits of healthy lifestyles as well as providing information about potential problems of harmful weight control strategies. The effect of ethnicity and culture on body image concern warrants further. The availability of weight control products and quality of information provided should also be further examined