Instructional curriculum based on cooperative learning related to the structure of matter and its properties: Learning achievement, motivation and attitude

In this study we aimed to analyse the effects of the Instructional Curriculum based on Cooperative Learning (ICBCL) prepared for the subjects, the orders of electrons and chemical properties, chemical bonds, compounds and their formulas, and mixtures on 7th grade learners’ learning achievements, motivations to learn science, and their attitudes towards learning science. Pre- and post-test quasi experimental design was used in this study in which the participants, 89 7th grade learners were attending a public secondary school in Istanbul, Turkey during the 2013–2014 academic year. The Diagnostic Test for the Structure of Matter and its Properties (DTSMP), developed by the researchers, the Motivation Scale to Learning Science (MSTLS), developed by Dede and Yaman (2008), and the Attitude Scale Towards Science Lesson (ASTSL), developed by Biçer (2011) were used as data collection instruments. SPSS 16 and Lertap 5 were used for data analysis. As a result of the post-tests, learners from the experimental group achieved significantly higher mean scores than learners from the control group. This reflected that ICBCL was highly effective on increasing learners’ achievement levels by preventing possible misconceptions, developing motivation, and positive attitudes compared to the current Science Teaching Curriculum (STC).Keywords: attitudes towards science; cooperative learning; instructional curriculum; motivation to learn science; science educatio

Opinions Of al-Zamakhshari Against the sects on the subject of prayers in his Tafsir Al-Kashshaaf

MakaleArap dili ve belağatının zirve ismi olan ez-Zemahşerî(ö. 538/1144), hem Doğu’da hem Batı’da özellikle tefsir alanında meşhur olmuş bir âlimdir. Ancak onun fakihlik yönü arka planda kalmış ve onun bu özelliğini inceleyen çalışmalara çok az rastlanmaktadır. Mutezilî bir âlim olarak da bilinen Zemahşerî, dirayet tefsiri alanında en iyi örneklerinden biri olarak kabul edilen “Keşşâf Tefsîri”nde inançla ilgili ayetleri, mensup olduğu itikadî ekolün prensiplerine göre yorumlarken, ahkâma dair ayetleri ise mezhep taassubu gütmeden ve Arapça kaidelerinin yardımıyla detaylı fıkhî izahlar yapar. Çünkü o, ayetteki hükümleri sadece mensubu olduğu Hanefî mezhebi esaslı ele almaz aynı zamanda diğer mezhep imamlarının görüşlerine de yer verir. Nitekim Mezhepler üstü/non-confessional bir yaklaşımla gerek mezhep imamları, gerekse sahabe, tâbiîn ya da tebe-i tabiûn âlimlerinin görüşlerine başvurarak rivayet metodunu kullanır. Bununla birlikte bizzat kendisi de hüküm istinbatında bulunur ve şahsî izahlarını kendisine has “فإن قلت/قلت ” "...dersen-derim ki" üslubuyla açıklar ve görüşlerini lügat, sarf, nahiv ve belağat gibi Arap dili unsurlarına ya da Câhiliye şiirlerine dayandırdığı dirayet metodunu kullanarak ifade eder. Her ne kadar Keşşâf tefsiri, kısmen i’tizâlî görüşler içermesi nedeniyle özellikle sünnî kesim tarafından itirazedilmiş ise de onun fıkhî açıklamaları, Razî, Beydâvî, Nesefî, Ebu’s-Suûd ve Elmalılı Hamdi Yazır gibi kendisinden sonra gelen birçok müfessir’in eserlerine kaynaklık etmiştir. Bu çalışmada Zemahşerî'nin hayatı ve ahkâm ayetlerini yorumlama metodu hakkında kısa bilgi verildikten sonra onun ibadetler konusunda mezheplere muhalif olarak kendi dirayetiyle elde ettiği bazı örnekler sunulmaya gayret edilecektir.Abūal-Qāsım Maḥmūd b. ʽUmar al-Zamakhsharī(d. 538/1144), the peak name of Arabic language and eloquence, became famous both in the East and in the West, especially in the field of exegesis, but his jurisprudential (fiqh) perspective remained in the background and no studies were conducted to reveal its characteristics. Al-Zamakhshari, also known as a Muʽtazilī scholar, interprets the verses according to the basic principles of the creed in al-Kashshaaf, which is accepted as one of the best examples in the field of dirayat at-tafsir; however, he makes detailed fiqh explanations on the verses of the ahkām without any sectarian commitment. Because, he does not deal with the provisions of the verse solely on the basis of the Hanafī sect, al-Zamakhshari also includes the views of other sect imams. As a matter of fact, he employs the narrative method with a non-confessional approach by referring to the opinions of both sect imams and aṣ-ṣaḥabah, Tabi‘in or tabi‘ al-tabi‘īn. Moreover, he also produces judgment and explores his personal explanations in his unique style of “فإن قلت / قلت” "if you say-I say". He expresses his views by utilizing the dirayah method which he bases on ancient-Arabic poems or Arabic language elements such as vocabulary, grammar, syntax and rhetoric. In addition, although the exegesis of Al-Kashshaaf has been excommunicated especially by the Sunnī scholars due to involving i’tizālī ideas, his jurisprudential explanations have been a source of books of many successors such al-Rāzī, al-Bayḍāwī, al-Nasafī, Abū al-Suʿūd and Elmalili Hamdi Yazır. In this article, after giving brief information about al-Zamakhsharī's life and method of interpreting the rule verses, it will be tried to present some examples of his worship, which he obtained as opposed to sects

Matematikte Akran Öğretimi Sırasında Öğretici Görevi Üstlenen Öğrencilerde Üstbiliş

ABSTRACT: The aim of this study is to examine metacognitive skills of students who volunteered for teaching mathematical problems to their peers during peer tutoring sessions. In this regard, data were collected through video-recorded peer tutoring sessions of seventh grade students and interviews with them. In data analysis, six metacognitive components are considered: declarative knowledge, procedural knowledge and conditional knowledge under metacognitive knowledge and planning, monitoring and evaluation under metacognitive regulation. According to results it is observed that volunteer tutor students used metacognition during peer tutoring sessions starting from the preparation to the end of the task.  The interviews uncovered metacognitive functioning of the tutors through the strategies they used. Besides, it is seen that metacognitive knowledge and regulation the tutors used are interrelated with and overlapping each other.Keywords: Metacognition, metacognitive knowledge, metacognitive regulation, peer tutoring, teaching mathematicsBu çalışmanın amacı matematik dersindeki akran öğretimi etkinliğinde öğretici olarak görev almak isteyen öğrencilerin üstbilişlerini incelemektir. Bu bağlamda dört yedinci sınıf öğrencisinin akran öğretimi etkinliği video kayıt altına alınarak izlenmiş; aktivite sonunda da performanslarıyla ilgili birebir görüşme yapılmıştır. Öğretici öğrencilerle yapılan görüşmelerden elde edilen veriler üst bilişsel beceri ve üstbilşsel bilgi bileşenlere göre incelenmiştir. Çalışmadan elde edilen sonuçlara göre gönüllü olarak öğretmeyi seçen öğrenciler etkinliklerin planlama aşamasından sonuna kadar üstbilişsel bilgi ve becerilerini ortaya koymuşlardır. Görüşme notları öğretici görevi üstelenen öğrencilerin üstbiliş seviyesindeki etkinlik ve stratejilerini göstermiştir. Bunun yanında üstbilişsel bilgi ve becerilerin birbirini destekleyerek uyumlu bir şekilde bilişsel aktivitelerde rol oynadığı görülmüştür. Anahtar Kelimeler. Üstbilişsel Beceri, Üstbilişsel Bilgi, Üstbiliş, Akran Öğretimi, Matematik Eğitimi

Toplumsal Cinsiyet Eşitliği Ölçeğinin (TCEÖ) Geliştirilmesi

Bu araştırmanın amacı lise öğrencilerinin toplumsal cinsiyet eşitliği konusunda görüşlerini belirleyebilecek geçerli ve güvenilir bir ölçek geliştirmektir. 45 madde olarak hazırlanan deneme formunun uygulaması sonucunda geçerlik ve güvenirlik çalışmaları yapılarak iki faktörlü 13 maddeli Toplumsal Cinsiyet Eşitliği Ölçeği (TCEÖ) son halini almıştır. Faktörlerden biri “erkeği üstün gören anlayışa (EÜGA)” ilişkin bilgi verirken diğer faktör “kadını erkeğe bağımlı kılan anlayışla (KEBKA)” ilgili bilgi sağlamaktadır. Cronbach Alpha iç tutarlılık güvenirlik düzeyi 0,889 olarak belirlenmiştir. Analizler sonucunda TCEÖ’nün alanda yapılacak çalışmalarda veri toplamak amacıyla kullanılabilecek geçerli ve güvenilir bir araç olduğu belirlenmiştir.Anahtar Kelimeler: Toplumsal Cinsiyet Ölçeği, Geçerlik ve Güvenirlik, Toplumsal Cinsiyet Eşitliği, Kadın Erkek Roller

Development of near-infrared region luminescent N-acetyl-L-cysteine-coated Ag2S quantum dots with differential therapeutic effect

Aim: N-acetyl-L-cysteine (NAC) is a free radical scavenger. We developed NAC-coated Ag2S (NAC-Ag2S) quantum dot (QD) as an optical imaging and therapeutic agent. Materials & methods: QDs were synthesized in water. Their optical imaging potential and toxicity were studied in vitro. Results: NAC-Ag2S QDs have strong emission, that is tunable between 748 and 840 nm, and are stable in biologically relevant media. QDs showed significant differences both in cell internalization and toxicity in vitro. QDs were quite toxic to breast and cervical cancer cells but not to lung derived cells despite the higher uptake. NAC-Ag2S reduces reactive oxygen species (ROS) but causes cell death via DNA damage and apoptosis. Conclusion: NAC-Ag2S QDs are stable and strong signal-generating theranostic agents offering selective therapeutic effects

Investigation of Wheat Germ and Oil Characteristics with Regard to Different Stabilization Techniques

Pozadina istraživanja. Upotreba pšeničnih klica i njihovog ulja ograničena je zbog velike aktivnosti enzima u klicama i prisutnosti nezasićenih masnih kiselina u ulju, što zahtijeva primjenu stabilizacijskih tehnika. Eksperimentalni pristup. U ovom su istraživanju procijenjeni učinci metoda stabilizacije (suho zagrijavanje u konvekcijskoj pećnici na 90 i 160 °C, mikrovalno zračenje na 180 i 360 W i uparavanje u autoklavu) na pšenične klice i njihovo ulje. Rezultati i zaključci. Uparavanje je prouzročilo najdramatičnije promjene aktivnosti lipoksigenaze, udjela slobodnih masnih kiselina, aktivnosti uklanjanja radikala DPPH i masenih udjela tokoferola i tokotrienola. Niži peroksidni broj izmjeren je u uzorcima ulja obrađenim konvekcijskim zagrijavanjem (160 °C) i parom na temperaturama iznad 100 °C. Međutim, vrijednosti p-anisidina u uzorcima tretiranim na višim temperaturama bile su znatno veće od onih u uzorcima stabiliziranim pri nižim temperaturama. Zagrijavanje u pećnici na 160 °C je nakon uparavanja bilo jedno od najučinkovitijih postupaka za inaktivaciju lipoksigenaze. Primjena pare bitno je smanjila maseni udjel ukupnih tokoferola, što je izravno povezano s povećanim gubitkom β-tokoferola. Suprotno tome, pronađeno je znatno više γ- i δ-tokoferola te homologa tokotrienola u uparenim uzorcima. Izomeri najotporniji na procese stabilizacije bili su α-tokoferol i γ-tokotrienol. Novina i znanstveni doprinos. Ovo istraživanje pokazuje da metoda zagrijavanja u pećnici na visokoj temperaturi, koja se često koristi u industriji za toplinsku stabilizaciju pšeničnih klica, ne poboljšava njihovu oksidacijsku stabilnost u usporedbi s obradom parom i mikrovalovima. Uparavanje odgađa oksidacijske procese u klici te inhibira aktivnost lipoksigenaze, a osim toga smanjuje gubitak tokotrienola. Za industrijsku se primjenu preporučuje uporaba mikrovalne pećnice male snage (180 umjesto 360 W) i zagrijavanje u pećnici na nižoj temperaturi (90 umjesto 160 °C).Research background. Utilization of wheat germ and wheat germ oil is limited due to high enzymatic activity and the presence of unsaturated fatty acids, which require stabilization techniques to overcome this problem. Experimental approach. In this study, the effects of stabilization methods (dry convective oven heating at 90 and 160 °C, microwave radiation at 180 and 360 W, and autoclave steaming) on both wheat germ and its oil were evaluated. Results and conclusions. Steaming caused the most dramatic changes in lipoxygenase activity, free fatty acid content, DPPH radical scavenging activity, and mass fractions of tocopherols and tocotrienols. Lower peroxide values were measured in the oil samples treated with convectional heating (160 °C) and steaming at temperatures above 100 °C. However, p-anisidine values of samples treated at higher temperatures were considerably greater than those of samples stabilized at lower temperatures. Oven heating at 160 °C was also one of the most effective treatments, after steaming, for the inactivation of lipoxygenase. Steaming significantly reduced mass fraction of total tocopherols, which was directly associated with the greater loss of β-tocopherol content. On the contrary, γ- and δ-tocopherol and tocotrienol homologues were abundant with higher amounts in steamed samples. α-Tocopherol and γ-tocotrienol were the most resistant isomers to stabilization processes. Novelty and scientific contribution. This study shows that the high temperature oven heating method, which is widely used in the industry for thermal stabilization of wheat germ, does not provide an advantage in oxidative stability compared to steaming and microwave applications. Steaming delayed oxidation in the germ, while further inhibiting lipoxygenase activity. Moreover, tocotrienols were more conservable. In industrial application, low-power microwave (180 instead of 360 W) and oven heating at lower temperature (90 instead of 160 °C) would be preferable

Clinicopathological and survival characteristics of mismatch repair status and PD-1 expression in serous ovarian cancer

Objective: To evaluate the clinicopathological characteristics of mismatch repair (MMR) deficiency and its clinical outcomes by performing immunohistochemistry (IHC) for MMR genes in the serous ovarian cancer (SOC) tumour sections.Study Design: A retrospective case-control study. Place and Duration of the Study: Gynecology Department of Kanuni Sultan Suleyman Training and Research Hospital, and Department of Medical Oncology of Medipol University, between March 2001 and January 2020. Methodology: IHC was carried out for MLH1, MSH2, MSH6, and PMS2 on full-section slides from 127 SOCs to evaluate the MMR status. MMR-negative and MMR-low groups together were defined as MMR deficient and called microsatellite instability-high (MSI-H). The MSI status and expression of programmed cell death-1 (PD-1) were compared in SOCs with different MMR statuses. Results: A significantly higher frequency of MMR-deficient SOCs was diagnosed at early stages compared with the patients in the MSS group (38.6% and 20.6%, respectively, p=0.022). The frequency of cases with PD-1 expression was significantly higher in the MSI-H group (76.2%) than in the MSS counterparts (58.8%, p=0.028). Patients in the MSI-H group had significantly longer DFS (25.6 months) and OS (not reached) than those in the MSS group (16 months and 48.9 months, p=0.039 and p=0.026, respectively).Conclusion: MSI-H SOCs were diagnosed at an earlier stage as compared to MMR proficient cases. The presence of PD-1 expres-sion was significantly higher in cases presenting MMR deficiency compared with MMR-proficient cases. MSI status was significantly associated with DFS and OS

Structure-property relationships of novel phosphonate-functionalized networks and gels of poly(β-amino esters)

pH sensitivity, biodegradability and high biocompatibility make poly(β-amino esters) (PBAEs) important biomaterials with many potential applications including drug and gene delivery and tissue engineering, where their degradation should be tuned to match tissue regeneration rates. Therefore, we synthesize novel phosphonate-functionalized PBAE macromers, and copolymerize them with polyethylene glycol diacrylate (PEGDA) to produce PBAE networks and gels. Degradation and mechanical properties of gels can be tuned by the chemical structure of phosphonate-functionalized macromer precursors. By changing the structure of the PBAE macromers, gels with tunable degradations of 5–97% in 2 days are obtained. Swelling of gels before/after degradation is studied, correlating with the PBAE identity. Uniaxial compression tests reveal that the extent of decrease of the gel cross-link density during degradation is much pronounced with increasing amount and hydrophilicity of the PBAE macromers. Degradation products of the gels have no significant cytotoxicity on NIH 3T3 mouse embryonic fibroblast cells