Developing Students’ Intercultural Communicative Competence Through Threads of Personal Experiences: A Reflective Approach

With the development of world globalization, English works as a lingua franca for intercultural communication among different cultures in the world. This shift implies that introducing solely English native speaking cultures to students is not sufficient for their needs. This paper depicts the reflective teaching process of my ten years of experience of teaching intercultural communication.The paper describes how the teacher systematically reflects on the practice of teaching,continuously revises the curriculum, and finally formulates an efficient model of integrating students’ personal experiences into developing students’ intercultural communicative competence and awareness. This reflective study attempts to provide some pedagogical implications for intercultural communication education.

What Is the Personal Experience of IBD Patients about Their Anti-TNF-Alpha Therapy?

AIM: To evaluate and compare the patients opinion on the two types of anti- TNF-α therapies in a Hungarian cohort of IBD patients. METHODS: This was a prospective, multicentre, questionnaire-based observational study carried out in three Hungarian tertiary centres. From April to September 2014, an anonymous questionnaire was distributed to patients diagnosed with ulcerative colitis (UC) or Crohn’s disease (CD), who have received infliximab (IFX) and/or adalimumab (ADA). The survey focused on the preferences of the two anti-TNF-α therapies on the basis of the efficacy, the administration routes and the side effects. RESULTS: 292 IBD patients, 216 CD, 75 UC and 1 indeterminate colitis patient completed the questionnaire. The mean duration of biological therapy was 1.7 (1 - 7) years. IFX treated patients noticed improvement of symptoms at 4 - 5 weeks while ADA treated patients noticed at 5 - 6 weeks. There was no difference between the patients’ satisfaction regarding the types of anti-TNF-α therapy if they received both. However, subcutaneous administration was preferred by ADA-treated patients previously receiving IFX (p = 0.007) compared to intravenous route and they did not intend to change the mode of therapy (p = 0.040). 90% of the patients, receiving only IFX or ADA were satisfied with their present therapy. The majority of patients (186/292, 63.7%) would not switch therapy. 63 of 291, 22% of the patients reported to have some concern with biological therapy—the majority (32/63, 50.8%) due to fear from side effects. CONCLUSION: Generally, patients preferred and would not change the present anti-TNF-α therapy, however, subcutaneous administration was preferred among those patients who had have experience with both.

Lebanese Student’s Experience of Benefits of High Fidelity Simulation in Nursing Education: A Qualitative Approach

Background: Simulation is perceived as an important part to the nursing clinical educational experience since it can offer a safe learning environment for the students’ clinical practice. Objective: The purpose of this study was to explore the Lebanese student’s experience of benefits of high fidelity simulation in nursing education. Design: A qualitative study using open-ended questionnaire. Setting: This study was implemented at private university in Lebanon between January and April 2015. Participants: A purposive sample was sought from those who have a simulated experience. Methods: Qualitative data were collected via interviews and analysed using a thematic approach. Findings: Four major themes were identified: “Bridging Theory to Clinical Practice”, “Developing Critical Thinking and Decision-making”, “Practicing Safely Leads to Enhancing Confidence”, “Teamwork Spirit and students’ motivation to earn and practice more”. Conclusion: Simulation was found to be an acceptable learning strategy for novice nursing students. The use of simulations is a useful and effective learning strategy. Students with a higher positive attitude towards the simulation experience displayed better learning outcomes. Thus, the integration of simulation into the learning experience of nursing students will bridge the gap between theory and practice;enhance their critical thinking and motivation aptitudes along with traditional clinical practice by sparing them a safe milieu.

The Symbiotic Relationship Unraveling the Interplay between Technology and Artificial Intelligence(An Intelligent Dynamic Relationship)

This article investigates the dynamic relationship between technology and AI(artificial intelligence)and the role that societal requirements play in pushing AI research and adoption.Technology has advanced dramatically throughout the years,providing the groundwork for the rise of AI.AI systems have achieved incredible feats in various disciplines thanks to advancements in computer power,data availability,and complex algorithms.On the other hand,society’s needs for efficiency,enhanced healthcare,environmental sustainability,and personalized experiences have worked as powerful accelerators for AI’s progress.This article digs into how technology empowers AI and how societal needs dictate its progress,emphasizing their symbiotic relationship.The findings underline the significance of responsible AI research,which considers both technological prowess and ethical issues,to ensure that AI continues to serve the greater good.

A Stigmatized Wedding Custom Versus A Positive Representation in Folk Legends: Chinese Naodongfang and Its Gender Troubles

Folk legends depict Naodongfang as an auspicious and positive custom,in contrast to the intellectuals’negative comments found in historical manuscripts concerning Naodongfang.The three types(stories of auspicious and mythical figures who were incarnated as respected emperors and initiated Naodongfang;tales of folk heroes who were brave and courageous enough to fight villains such as bad emperors or demons;and urban legends of everyday people’s experiences),affirm Naodongfang as an essential component of a Chinese wedding.The beliefs and legends underlie the practice of lively and noisy weddings and led to the pervasiveness of Naodongfang that continues until today.Folk legends and their related beliefs speak to the longevity of Naodongfang and suggest its historical and present importance.

A Semi-automatic Method Based on Statistic for Mandarin Semantic Structures Extraction in Specific Domains

This paper proposed a new method of semi-automatic extraction for semantic structures from unlabelled corpora in specific domains. The approach is statistical in nature. The extracted structures can be used for shallow parsing and semantic labeling. By iteratively extracting new words and clustering words, we get an inital semantic lexicon that groups words of the same semantic meaning together as a class. After that, a bootstrapping algorithm is adopted to extract semantic structures. Then the semantic structures are used to extract new