Improving English as a Second Language Learners’ Attitudes to Pronunciation through Motivation

Pronunciation is an important aspect of English learning. It is however one of the most abandoned or half taught. This is usually due to perceived difficulty in its teaching and learning. Hence, unfavorable attitudes set in, especially in English as a second language situation. In most cases, due to poor technique and methodology employed by the teachers of English, the students are not encouraged to learn pronunciation like other aspects of the subject. This attitude goes a very long way in determining their communicative competence as poor pronunciation could lead a breakdown in communication. It is thus the responsibility of the teachers to help the students learn. This paper thus advocates and presents some motivational strategies that could be employed by the teachers of English to improve the learners’ attitude to learning pronunciation in English as a second language classroom

Effect of Web-Based Activities on the Malaysian Students’ Vocabulary Acquisition Performance

Vocabulary acquisition is an important aspect of second language learning. It aids communication and comprehension. Teachers are thus expected to invent very effective means of teaching this vital component to the learners. The purpose of this study was therefore to investigate the possible effect of using web-based activities to teach vocabulary on the vocabulary acquisition performance of the students. Forty pupils were selected for the study and were exposed to web-activities. The study made use of pre and posttests to examine whether there were any changes in the performance of the students. It was found out the used of web-based activities really influenced their performance as all the respondents had scores higher than in the pretest situation. It could then be held that it is imperative that teachers of English harness all creative ways of ensuring that students are assisted to learn effectively and one of such ways is employing technology

Helping engineering students in Malaysia develop positive attitudes towards learning English as a second language

Language, identity and attitudes are importantly interwoven concepts. While the role of language cannot be over emphasised especially in multilingual society like Malaysia thereby giving rise to diglossia, we cannot deny that our attempts to uphold a (our) particular linguistic identity also plays a significant role in the politics of language education. All this invariably tells on our attitudes; towards a linguistic community, towards language in general, towards a particular language and even towards our own (native) language. The consequence of this has been a dismal linguistic as well as academic performance of students. Since language is the vehicle through which they are to convey whatever it is they might have learnt, it thus becomes challenging and difficult due to inherent attitudinal issue. This is particularly worrisome considering the attitudes of engineering and generally science-based students to English who, besides the general attitudes arising from their individual loyalty to their respective mother tongues, usually do not see any nexus between their learning English and their future plans. The desire of this paper therefore was highlighting the role of attitudes in learning English as a second language with reference to the engineering students in Malaysia. Lastly, the paper gave some practical strategies for students, teachers, parents, and the schools at large to help ignite positive attitudes of the students towards learning English with a view to improving their overall performance

Mapping knowledge management resources of maternal, newborn and child health (MNCH) among people living in rural and urban settings of Ilorin, Nigeria

Introduction: Lack of access to information and knowledge about mother and child health was identified as a major contributor to poor maternal and child health in Nigeria. The Partnership for Maternal, Newborn and Child Health (PMNCH) has recognized mapping the knowledge management of Maternal Newborn and Child Health (MNCH) as one of the major strategies to be deployed in improving the health of these vulnerable groups. The main aim of this study is to map the knowledge management resources of  Maternal, Newborn and Child Health (MNCH) in rural and urban settings of Ilorin West LGA of Kwara state Nigeria. Methods: It is a descriptive cross-sectional study with a comparative analysis of findings from urban and rural settings. Epi-mapping was used to carve out the LGA and map responses. The p-value of less than 0.05 was considered significant at 95% confidence level.Results: The study showed that  traditional leader was responsible for more than half of the traditional way of obtaining information by rural (66.7%) and urban (56.2%) respondents while documentation accounts for the main MNCH knowledge preservation for the rural (40.6%) and the urban (50%) dwellers. Traditional leaders (32.2%) and elders (46.7%) were the main people responsible for dissemination of knowledge in rural areas whereas elders (35.9%) and Parents (19.9%) were the main people responsible in urban areas.Conclusion: It was concluded that traditional and family institutions are important in the knowledge management of MNCH in both rural and urban settings of Nigeria.Key words: Maternal, child, newborn, knowledge management, mapping

Mortality of emergency abdominal surgery in high-, middle- and low-income countries

Background: Surgical mortality data are collected routinely in high-income countries, yet virtually no low- or middle-income countries have outcome surveillance in place. The aim was prospectively to collect worldwide mortality data following emergency abdominal surgery, comparing findings across countries with a low, middle or high Human Development Index (HDI). Methods: This was a prospective, multicentre, cohort study. Self-selected hospitals performing emergency surgery submitted prespecified data for consecutive patients from at least one 2-week interval during July to December 2014. Postoperative mortality was analysed by hierarchical multivariable logistic regression. Results: Data were obtained for 10 745 patients from 357 centres in 58 countries; 6538 were from high-, 2889 from middle- and 1318 from low-HDI settings. The overall mortality rate was 1⋅6 per cent at 24 h (high 1⋅1 per cent, middle 1⋅9 per cent, low 3⋅4 per cent; P < 0⋅001), increasing to 5⋅4 per cent by 30 days (high 4⋅5 per cent, middle 6⋅0 per cent, low 8⋅6 per cent; P < 0⋅001). Of the 578 patients who died, 404 (69⋅9 per cent) did so between 24 h and 30 days following surgery (high 74⋅2 per cent, middle 68⋅8 per cent, low 60⋅5 per cent). After adjustment, 30-day mortality remained higher in middle-income (odds ratio (OR) 2⋅78, 95 per cent c.i. 1⋅84 to 4⋅20) and low-income (OR 2⋅97, 1⋅84 to 4⋅81) countries. Surgical safety checklist use was less frequent in low- and middle-income countries, but when used was associated with reduced mortality at 30 days. Conclusion: Mortality is three times higher in low- compared with high-HDI countries even when adjusted for prognostic factors. Patient safety factors may have an important role. Registration number: NCT02179112 (http://www.clinicaltrials.gov)

Reducing the environmental impact of surgery on a global scale: systematic review and co-prioritization with healthcare workers in 132 countries

Abstract Background Healthcare cannot achieve net-zero carbon without addressing operating theatres. The aim of this study was to prioritize feasible interventions to reduce the environmental impact of operating theatres. Methods This study adopted a four-phase Delphi consensus co-prioritization methodology. In phase 1, a systematic review of published interventions and global consultation of perioperative healthcare professionals were used to longlist interventions. In phase 2, iterative thematic analysis consolidated comparable interventions into a shortlist. In phase 3, the shortlist was co-prioritized based on patient and clinician views on acceptability, feasibility, and safety. In phase 4, ranked lists of interventions were presented by their relevance to high-income countries and low–middle-income countries. Results In phase 1, 43 interventions were identified, which had low uptake in practice according to 3042 professionals globally. In phase 2, a shortlist of 15 intervention domains was generated. In phase 3, interventions were deemed acceptable for more than 90 per cent of patients except for reducing general anaesthesia (84 per cent) and re-sterilization of ‘single-use’ consumables (86 per cent). In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for high-income countries were: introducing recycling; reducing use of anaesthetic gases; and appropriate clinical waste processing. In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for low–middle-income countries were: introducing reusable surgical devices; reducing use of consumables; and reducing the use of general anaesthesia. Conclusion This is a step toward environmentally sustainable operating environments with actionable interventions applicable to both high– and low–middle–income countries

Personality traits and second language learning: a systematic literature review

Interests have grown recently in the studies of individual differences in second language learning with particular reference to the role of personality traits or types. However, the studies of personality traits have been approached from different ways using different assessment tools and subjects. The purpose therefore was to explore the various instruments, approaches and subjects used in those studies. To do this, a total of 14 studies were collected and analyzed. Findings revealed that studies in personality traits were yet cover some areas thereby calling for more collaborative studies among scholars from different countries. By this, language teaching and learning would be enhanced. The review, in conclusion, called for extension of personality traits studies to other subjects other than graduate or undergraduate to enhance robust findings

Using web-based activities to teach vocabulary to children in Malaysia

Learners’ vocabulary acquisition is a crucial aspect of their language development. It is vital to communicative skill and to the attainment of a second language as lack of mastery in English vocabulary impedes a successful communication. It is on the on this ground that this paper explored the use of technology in teaching vocabulary items to Malaysian pupils. This paper therefore discussed the general principle and importance of vocabulary teaching. It then examined the unique benefits of using web-based activities in teaching vocabulary. This is on the conviction that teaching our present-day pupils requires more than talk and chalk. Teachers need to be creative and committed to meet the current challenges. This, the paper believes, will make learning interesting and successful

A critical discourse study of July 15th 2019 former President Obasanjos letter to President Buhari

Language is a powerful tool through which users can create identities of themselves and others. The purpose of this paper therefore was to examine the July 15th letter of former president Obasanjo to President Buhari. The paper employed Critical Discourse approach to deconstruct the text with a view to see how the writer used various linguistic devices as persuasive elements. It was found out that the writer employed various ideological modes and linguistic elements to successfully register his opinions. Hence, the paper holds to confirm further that discourse is indeed a social action which is usually influenced by the writer’s affiliation

SARS-CoV-2 vaccination modelling for safe surgery to save lives: data from an international prospective cohort study

Background: Preoperative SARS-CoV-2 vaccination could support safer elective surgery. Vaccine numbers are limited so this study aimed to inform their prioritization by modelling. Methods: The primary outcome was the number needed to vaccinate (NNV) to prevent one COVID-19-related death in 1 year. NNVs were based on postoperative SARS-CoV-2 rates and mortality in an international cohort study (surgical patients), and community SARS-CoV-2 incidence and case fatality data (general population). NNV estimates were stratified by age (18-49, 50-69, 70 or more years) and type of surgery. Best- and worst-case scenarios were used to describe uncertainty. Results: NNVs were more favourable in surgical patients than the general population. The most favourable NNVs were in patients aged 70 years or more needing cancer surgery (351; best case 196, worst case 816) or non-cancer surgery (733; best case 407, worst case 1664). Both exceeded the NNV in the general population (1840; best case 1196, worst case 3066). NNVs for surgical patients remained favourable at a range of SARS-CoV-2 incidence rates in sensitivity analysis modelling. Globally, prioritizing preoperative vaccination of patients needing elective surgery ahead of the general population could prevent an additional 58 687 (best case 115 007, worst case 20 177) COVID-19-related deaths in 1 year. Conclusion: As global roll out of SARS-CoV-2 vaccination proceeds, patients needing elective surgery should be prioritized ahead of the general population