Factors Associated with Type 1 and Type 2 Diabetes in Infants in Kuwait

Purpose: The purpose of the study is to investigate the factors associated with diabetes and its influence on the prevalence of diabetes in Kuwait. Methods: A questionnaire was designed to explore the relationships between various factors and diabetes in children. The survey included 300 mothers of children up to five years of age in Kuwait and the results were subjected to a two-way contingency table analysis. Results: Variables showing at least a medium effect and a linear relationship are herein reported. Increasing maternal age was found to be related to the increasing prevalence of type 1 diabetes. An association between a higher prevalence of both type 1 and type 2 diabetes in the mother and the child was found. Risk of having a child with diabetes increases with the maternal age. The consumption of fried food or fast food by a child was associated with a higher prevalence of both type 1 and type 2 diabetes. Sugar consumption, both by the mother during pregnancy and by the child, was associated with a higher prevalence of type 2 diabetes. Heavy consumption of nuts by the child was associated with a higher prevalence of type 2. Conclusion: Genetics and environmental factors including diet may play important roles in the causation of both type 1 and type 2 diabetes in Kuwait.

Knowledge of, Attitudes toward, and Practices regarding Indoor Pollution at Kuwait University

Despite the increasing recognition of the importance of indoor air pollution, there have been few attempts to delineate the knowledge of and attitudes towards indoor air pollution, as well as the use of said knowledge and the effect of the attitudes on practice. This study sought to measure these attributes in a representative sample of students and teachers at Kuwait University using a self-administered questionnaire. Overall, the mean values for knowledge and attitudes were 7.88/19 and 3.89/5 respectively, indicating low knowledge and sub-optimal attitudes. The mean value for polluting practices was rather high at 1.05/2. Disappointingly, these results are very similar to those obtained in the previous surveys. Newspapers and magazines (65.8%) were the main source of information, followed by radio and television (62.4%). Teachers were significantly (p < 0.001) more knowledgeable and less likely to engage in polluting practices as compared to the students. Females scored significantly higher (p p < 0.001) more likely to engage in polluting practices. Participants in colleges of Education and Sharia scored significantly (p < 0.05) higher in knowledge compared to those in Medicine and Allied Health, as well as Science and Engineering disciplines. However, the latter were also significantly more likely (p < 0.001) to engage in polluting practices than Medicine and Allied Health, and Law and Arts students. Participants in Medicine and Allied Health scored significantly lower (p < 0.001) on the attitude scale than those in Law and Arts, Education and Sharia, Social Science and Business Administration, and Science and Engineering. A significant Pearson correlation (0.314, p < 0.001) was found between knowledge and attitude. Similarly, a significant negative correlation (&#8722;0.067, p < 0.05) was observed between attitudes and engaging in polluting practices. Further research into the dynamics that influences the decision on whether to engage in polluting practices is needed. Also another survey is needed which includes people who are outside the high level education field and make the comparison.

Comparison of ethanolic extracts of phytoestrogenic Dendrolobium lanceolatum and non-phytoestrogenic Raphanus sativus to mediate green syntheses of silver nanoparticles

Green synthesis of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) mediated by plant extracts has drawn many research interests due to its simple, cost-effective, and eco-friendly approach. However, the extracts derived from phytoestrogenic plants that produce high phenolic-based compounds exhibiting the estrogenic activity have not yet investigated. This work reported the comparison of ethanolic extracts derived from phytoestogenic Dendrolobium lanceolatum and non-phytoestrogenic Raphanus sativus to facilitate the green synthesis of AgNPs. The total phenolic content and the reducing activity of D. lanceolatum extract were significantly higher than those of R. sativus extract. In addition, the formation of AgNPs could detect in the reaction using D. lanceolatum extract, but not R. sativus extract, as determined by the characteristic surface plasmon resonance peak of AgNPs at 416 nm. The synthesized AgNPs were spherical with an average diameter of 74.6017.11 nm, which their face-centered cubic structure of silver was confirmed by X-ray diffraction analysis. Moreover, the synthesized AgNPs exhibited the antibacterial activity against both Gram-negative Escherichia coli and Gram-positive Staphylococcus aureus. The results of this work, thus, suggested the potential uses of phytoestrogenic plants as a good source of reducing and stabilizing agents for the production of AgNPs and other metallic nanoparticles.

The Fading away of“Asymmetry”:Electronic Media and the School’s Legitimacy Crisis

The“maturity gap”between generations is an objective fact that can only be narrowed through education.The asymmetry between generations is the anthropological base for education,and thus school education originated when this asymmetry enlarged.The print media protects this asymmetry,whereas the electronic media decrease the asymmetry,causing it to quickly fade away.However,when the asymmetry between generations fades away,the legitimacy and attraction of school education will be reduced,which is the primary reason that modern schools encounter so many crises.In the age of electronic media,schools must search for a new legitimate basis and transform into a“learning community.”

Website Search Engine Optimization: Geographical and Cultural Point of View

The concept of Webpage visibility is usually linked to search engine optimization (SEO), and it is based on global in-link metric [1]. SEO is the process of designing Webpages to optimize its potential to rank high on search engines, preferably on the first page of the results page. The purpose of this research study is to analyze the influence of local geographical area, in terms of cultural values, and the effect of local society keywords in increasing Website visibility. Websites were analyzed by accessing the source code of their homepages through Google Chrome browser. Statistical analysis methods were selected to assess and analyze the results of the SEO and search engine visibility (SEV). The results obtained suggest that the development of Web indicators to be included should consider a local idea of visibility, and consider a certain geographical context. The geographical region that the researchers are considering in this research is the Hashemite kingdom of Jordan (HKJ). The results obtained also suggest that the use of social culture keywords leads to increase the Website visibility in search engines as well as localizes the search area such as google.jo, which localizes the search for HKJ.

Challenges and Factors Affecting the Implementation of E-Government in Jordan

Electronic government (e-Government) in its simplest form can mean using information and communication technology (ICT) tools to provide services to citizens. Still with the huge benefits and synergies that e-Government grants to governments and societies, it faces many obstacles and challenges. Therefore, there are always a number of critical success factors and risks associated with e-Government. This paper highlights some of the key ones;it critically assesses key factors that influence e-Government services adoption and diffusion. Thus, the aim of this study is to examine and identify the factors that influence and affect the utilization of e-Government in the developing countries, specifically in Jordan. Furthermore, this article investigates the challenges and barriers that must be overcome in order to successfully implement e-Government in Jordan. Semi-structured interviews were conducted and used in this study to collect the data. The results of this study show that the most significant challenges and factors influencing the implementation of e-Government services in Jordan are related to budgeting and financial costs, human expertise, social influence, technological issues, lack of awareness, resistance of public employees, data privacy and security, the legal framework, the needed technology, administrative obstacles, and trust or believing in e-Government. Conclusions, recommendations and future work are stated at the end of the paper.

Faculty Members’ Attitudes and Perceptions towards E-Publishing at the University of Jordan

Electronic Publishing offers many opportunities to today’s users and scholars that were not available to their predecessors. Because of the multidimensional features of e-Journals, they are becoming the choice of academic as well as public library users. Technology, and particularly the Internet, has great potential for altering scholarly communication and research inhumanities, sciences, social sciences, and health sciences disciplines. Results of scholarly surveys show that there is a significant interest in e-Publication of research. Thus, this research paper investigates the attitudes and perceptions of faculty members at the University of Jordan (UJ) of current issues associated with the use of electronic publishing and perceived obstacles to their extended use for scholarly communication and publication. Specifically, the primary focus of this study is to examine and perceive how faculty members’ use of electronic publications might affect their interest in publishing their own research in electronic formats;as well as to determine the contribution of scholars towards publishing in e-Journals. In order to achieve the research objectives, a questionnaire method was adopted to elicit the opinions of the faculty members;whereas personal interviews were conducted to fill in the gaps. The results of the study reveal that the majority of the faculty members prefer to publish in electronic formats refereed journals, due to the advantages of publishing in e-Journals. Furthermore, the findings show that faculty members are also concerned about the disadvantages of e-Publishing. On the basis of the findings, some suggestions have been recommended to make publishing in e-Journals more acceptable to those scholars at UJ who still do not use it, as well as to maximize the use of e-Publishing because of the advantages that it may offer.

A Prospective Study on Evaluating the Long-Term Effects of Childhood Vaccination from Birth to 13 Years Old in Kuwait

Background: To prevent infectious diseases and deaths of children, vaccinations play a crucial role in public health strategies in Kuwait. However, it remained uncertain to demonstrate the potential long-term health outcomes of vaccination, including neurodevelopmental disorders (NDD) and autism. This study aimed to evaluate the long-term health outcomes of vaccination among Kuwait children from birth to thirteen years old. Objectives: This study included the significant objectives: (1) to compare long-term health effects, including chronic and acute conditions for unvaccinated, partially vaccinated, and vaccinated children, and (2) to evaluate the association of vaccination with the neurodevelopmental disorders (NDD) and autism, and the preventable illnesses. Methods: This prospective study involved a sample of 976 children from Kuwait based on mothers’ reporting. Data collection about the vaccination status of children and various health outcomes relevant to chronic and acute illnesses was performed based on structured questionnaires through an online survey. However, participants were classified into unvaccinated (n = 40), partially vaccinated (n = 222), and fully vaccinated (n = 714). Statistical analyses, including the chi-square test, Odds Ratios (OR), 95% Confidence Interval (CI), and logistic regression, were performed using SAS (Version 9.4) to determine the associations between vaccination status and health outcomes among children. Results: The study disclosed that vaccinated children showed an increased diagnosis of chronic (allergic rhinitis, allergies, autism spectrum, eczema, neuro-developmental disorders, learning disability, ADHD, and any chronic condition) and acute (whooping cough, pneumonia, rubella, hepatitis A or B, measles, mumps, meningitis, influenza, rotavirus, cancer, chronic fatigue, Crohn’s disease, inflammatory bowel disease, conduct disorder, diabetes type 1 or 2, rheumatoid arthritis, obesity, seizures, hearing loss, polio, diphtheria, tetanus, and depression) illnesses than unvaccinated children. The fully vaccinated children showed an increased prevalence of influenza diagnosis, while partially vaccinated children were more likely to be diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis than unvaccinated children. In contrast, unvaccinated were more likely to have been diagnosed with chickenpox and encephalopathy than fully and partially vaccinated. Males with chronic and acute conditions had a lower incidence of allergies and pneumonia, respectively, whereas females had a reduced prevalence of acute illnesses, such as whooping cough, inflammatory bowel disease, and hepatitis A or B among vaccinated (n = 936;combination of partially vaccinated and fully vaccinated) children. Regarding medication use and health service applications, vaccinated children were more likely to use medications for fever, antibiotics, and allergies. In addition, they showed an increased rate of sick visits and emergency visits in the past twelve months. On the other hand, factors like age (2 - 5 years, 6 - 9 years, and 10 - 13 years), birth type (cesarian), and mother suffering during pregnancy (gestational diabetes) were significantly associated with NDD (learning disability, autism spectrum, and attention deficient hyperactivity disorder) in the adjusted analysis. In the interaction model of age and birth type, age (6 - 9 years;OR 5.3, 95% CI: 1.1, 25.3) and mother suffering (gestational diabetes;OR 2.5, 95% CI: 1.2, 5.2) during pregnancy were associated with NDD. Conclusion: The findings of this study showed that there are some cases where the infection rate is higher among the vaccinated compared to unvaccinated children, or there are no significant differences between the two groups in Kuwait. Upon controlling the factors in the interaction model, the age of 6 to 9 years and gestational diabetic mothers during pregnancy were associated with the synergistic increment of odds with NDD. These data findings are recommended to verify a larger and diverse group of samples to optimize the vaccination on health outcomes in Kuwait children.

文化同化的失败与多元文化的兴起──美国多元文化教育运动分析

美国的多元文化教育运动源于六七十年代的民权运动。它是一场自发的、民间的、全国性的教育改革运动，其目的在于为黑人、亚裔美国人、美国土著人、西班牙语系移民及白人中未被体现或未被充分体现的群体争取平等教育的权利，进而争取社会上享有平等的权利。原来的民权运动主要是以主流文化的价值观来为非主流文化的群体争取平等权利，而多元文化教育运动则试图在文化教育中体现非主流文化群体的价值观，以争取形成一种新的美国文化。这场运动已经取得了很大进展，但距离其目标还很远。

Unpacking the Relationship Between Teachers’Perceptions of Professional Learning Communities and Differentiated Instruction Practice

Purpose:This exploratory study investigates the relationship between teachers’perceptions of professional learning communities(PLCs)and their differentiated instruction(DI)practice in a Hong Kong primary education context.Design/Approach/Methods:Three subsidized primary schools participated in the study.A total of 121 teachers completed surveys regarding their perceptions of PLC engagement and DI practice.Findings:Using principal component analysis,three dimensions of PLC engagement were identified:student learning,reflective dialogue,and shared and supportive leadership.Two distinctive PLC engagement profiles were generated based on cluster analysis:high PLC engagement and low PLC engagement.Teachers’PLC engagement profiles were correlated with their DI practices.Originality/Value:The findings have implications for fostering teacher engagement in PLCs.Increased teacher participation in PLCs has great potential for promoting the use of DI.

课程史,学校教育及其现状

介绍了课程作为理论的系统的一门学科的历史。第一部分的内容为:在美国进步教育时期,清教徒认为教育即传教和计算,将课程看作"转化条例"。第二部分为:跨越大西洋的宗教改革运动为社会教育学和心理教育学奠定了基础。最后探索了数学、文学和音乐教育的形成。这些科目被看作是与社会问题关联的"转化条例"。与社会史和思想史思路不同,本文考察了沉思和行为产生的实践活动。

THE SYSTEMATIC COURSE DEVELOPMENT PROCESS:Building a Course in Sustainable Construction for Students in the U.S.A.

The construction industry actively adopts the concept of sustainability to not only minimize the impact on the environment but also increase social and economic benefits through accepting sustainable design and construction practices.This growing trend in sustainable construction requires both new knowledge and new skills for sustainability,in addition to conventional knowledge,such as scheduling,estimating,contracting,etc.Due to this paradigm change in the construction industry,construction programs in the U.S.A.should offer sustainable construction courses in order to teach sustainable knowledge,technologies and skills to their students before their entrance into industry.The purpose of this study is to develop a sustainable construction course designed for university construction programs using a systematic course development approach divided into three stages including preparation,development,and improvement.The course described in this paper is used to illustrate the systematic development process and can serve as an example for faculty at other universities on how to use such a method.During the preparation stage,a syllabus review is conducted in order to recognize and evaluate current sustainable construction courses offered by construction programs.In addition,in-depth literature review is performed to identify current trends in sustainable construction courses and related research.The development stage consists of:creating the framework for a sustainable construction course,choosing the goals and objectives for this course,choosing the contents of the course,organizing the chosen contents of the course,and planning the course schedule.At the improvement stage,the proposed course is improved,reviewed,and evaluated by experts from both the construction industry and academia through a detailed feedback process.From this systematically developed sustainable construction course,students in construction programs can learn basic knowledge of sustainability and the importance of sustainable design and construction.They will be exposed to different sustainable building rating systems such as Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design(LEED)and Green Globes,collaborative skills among construction participants,and the advantages and pitfalls of sustainable construction.In addition,construction students who become leaders in the industry will change the nature of the construction industry and society to help not only minimize environmental impacts caused by construction activities but also to secure our earth.

Assessing ChatGPT's Educational Capabilities and Application Potential

Purpose:ChatGPT is a generative artificial intelligence(Al)technology that can solve multiple complex tasks.ChatGPT-4 can facilitate educational empowerment in China through technology to understand and generate Chinese text.Although ChatGPT's benefits have been widely discussed,its educational capabilities have not been systematically assessed.This study provides evidence of and insights into the educational applications of Al tools in China.Design/Approach/Methods:This study uses various tests to systematically assess the latest iteration of the Al chatbot ChatGPT-4,including the Watson-Glaser Critical Thinking Appraisal(WGCTA),Five Core Competencies Questionnaire,and written test of China's 2022 National Teacher Certificate Examination(NTCE).Findings:The WGCTA results suggest that ChatGPT requires strong critical thinking.Compared with the other four competencies,the tool showed a lower aptitude for creativity.Regarding its educational applications,ChatGPT performed well on the 2022 NTCE written test.As technology enhances,ChatGPT and similar Al tools have potential applications in China for lesson planning,student self-learning,classroom interaction,and checking assignments.Originality/Nalue:This study systematically tested ChatGPT at a logical level and assessed its core competencies and educational applications.The study innovatively used 2022 NTCE data to test ChatGPT,with results providing support for the application of generative Al in future curricula and instruction in China.

Modes and Trajectories of Shadow Education in Denmark and China:Fieldwork Reflections by a Comparativist

Purpose In the domain of shadow education(private supplementary tutoring),Denmark and China may be placed at opposite ends of a spectrum.Denmark has a recently emerged,small,and high-cost sector that mostly serves low achievers,while China has a more industrialized sector with a long history and economies of scale.The paper juxtaposes the two to shed light on each.Design/Approach/Methods The article is a personal narrative of the author's research experiences.She grew up and had initial education in China before moving to the Nordic realm for 2 years.This provided a set of initial lenses,which were subsequently deployed in research partnership from her current base in China with colleagues in Denmark.Findings The juxtaposition raises questions that might otherwise not have been asked and provides insights that might otherwise not have been gained.Danish families hesitate to use shadow education for advantages in the egalitarian society,in contrast to Chinese patterns that stress competition and achievement.These facets have implications for the modes of shadow education and even the names of tutorial companies.Originality/Value The paper has a methodological value in addition to its substantive insights on the trajectories of shadow education in the two countries.

The Relationship Between Orthographic Awareness and Chinese Reading in Hong Kong’s Young CSL Learners

Purpose:This study investigates young Chinese as a second language(CSL)learners’Chinese character reading performance and its relationship with their orthographic awareness.There is a pressing need to gain a better understanding of Hong Kong’s ethnic minority students’CSL acquisition,so that more effective instruction can be provided.Design/Approach/Methods:A total of 157 Hong Kong ethnic minority CSL students in Grade 4 were evaluated using a range of assessments:orthographic awareness in identifying and utilizing character components,listening comprehension for vocabulary terms and short texts,and reading Chinese character lists with single-and two-character words.Findings:The students performed consistently across the two lists but made fewer errors when reading the two-character word list,most of which were orthographical.Multiple regression analysis showed that the students’orthographic awareness contributed significantly to their character reading.Originality/Value:The findings suggest that orthographic awareness can help ethnic minority CSL learners improve their Chinese character reading skills.Chinese classes provided for such students,and for CSL learners in general,should place greater focus on literacy training.

Implementing the National Curriculum Reform In China:A Review of the Decade

In China,the eighth round of national curriculum reform(NCR)is the most serious,systematic,and ambitious attempt to transform the basic education curriculum system since 1949.Through a review of the contexts,processes and outcomes of the implementation of the NCR from 2001-2011,this paper provides a further discussion on three pairs of apparently conflicting aspects:policy borrowing or policy learning;revolution or evolution;success or failure.It enriches our understanding of the implementation of large-scale reform in a non-western context like China in the following ways:Firstly,the NCR is China’s reaction against as well as response to the requirements of the current era of globalization;secondly,the debates and setbacks during the implementation of the NCR are not necessarily destructive,and a more integrative view should be adopted by the NCR on the balance between tradition and innovation,between localized concerns and global perspectives;thirdly,it is not wise to make a rash judgment on the reform outcomes of the NCR,especially the invisible and profound cultural changes.All those who are concerned about the evaluation of the NCR may need to rethink and clarify their views and positions on the purpose of education.

Career and Life Planning Education:Extending the Self-Concept Theory and Its Multidimensional Model to Assess Career-Related Self-Concept of Students with Diverse Abilities

Purpose:This article aims to(1)systematically examine the development of career guidance practices in Hong Kong over the past 40 years,(2)discuss developmental attention to the careerrelated self-concept of diverse learners,and(3)propose a multidimensional model of self-concept by integrating the career-related domains with recent advances in self-concept research pertaining to students’in-school and post-school outcomes.Design/Approach/Methods:This article charts the developmental trend of career guidance and counseling(CGC)over more than 40 years in Hong Kong.The article also examines key findings relating to self-concept research made in the fields of education and career counseling in the past 50 years.Findings:For 50 years,Hong Kong has progressively recognized the importance of CGC.The government’s continued determination to refine its policies and practices in this domain was succinctly highlighted in the Chief Executive’s 2018 policy address.However,many challenges pertaining the professional competence of career guidance teachers and the ability of school administrators to manage the paradigm shift from informal to formal career guidance and counseling practices(CGCPs)remain.Meanwhile,the effects of these CGCPs on students’gains of career-related abilities and interests directly and indirectly remain under-researched.Originality/Value:This article integrates research into the developmental trend of career guidance practices in secondary schools and the study of academic self-concept.The article builds upon previous self-concept research by proposing an extended self-concept model that includes the career-related domain,setting a theoretical model for further research to explore.Finally,the article demonstrates the importance of tailoring career guidance activities in secondary education to reflect the diverse career-related self-concepts held by today’s students with diverse abilities.

Development and Validation of an Instrument to Measure STEM Undergraduate Students’ Comprehensive Educational Process

This study reports the development and validation of an instrument,“Undergraduate STEM Educational Process Questionnaire”(USEPQ)to assess the learning experiences of STEM(science,technology,engineering and mathematics)-major undergraduates from the perspective of a conceptualized comprehensive STEM educational process framework that consists of key essentials such as course learning and instruction,educational environment,assessment methods,and unique STEM attributes.Exploration Factor Analysis and Confirmatory Factor Analysis performed on independent samples indicate that the finalized 9-factor,41-item USEPQ possesses a stable factor structure and sound psychometric properties.The factors of the validated scale are Classroom Instruction of Courses,Support from Faculty Members,Alternative Assessment Methods,Cooperative Learning,Resources and Service,Academic Competition,Cross-discipline Features of Program Courses,Connectedness of Program Courses,and Examination Difficulty.