A Discussion of Artificial Intelligence in Visual Art Education

Since ChatGPT emerged on November 30, 2022, Artificial Intelligence (AI) has been increasingly discussed as a radical force that will change our world. People have become used to AI in which such ubiquitous technologies as Siri, Google, and Netflix deploy AI algorithms to answer questions, impart information, and provide recommendations. However, many individuals including originators and backers of AI have recently expressed grave concerns. In this paper, the authors will assess what is occurring with AI in Visual Arts Education, outline positives and negatives, and provide recommendations addressed specifically for teachers working in the field regarding emerging AI usage from kindergarten to grade twelve levels as well as in higher education.

The Effect of Self-Questioning Strategy on EFL Tenth-Grade Students’ Reading Comprehension

This study investigated the effect of the self-questioning strategy on English as a Foreign Language(EFL)for tenth-grade students’reading comprehension.A quasi-experimental design with two groups was employed.The researcher randomly assigned two whole sections of grade 10 from Al Samtt Secondary school for Boys,a public school,Directorate of Education in Irbid(AL Kora Directorate of Education).First,the experimental group of 25 students selected and second the control group of 25 students was selected.To achieve the purpose of the study,a pre-/post reading comprehension test was designed.In addition,self-questioning strategywas used to teach the experimental group,whereas a control group was taught by the conventional teaching strategies,as suggested in the Teacher’s Book.Results showed that there were significant statistically differences between the control and the experimental groups in favor of the experimental group.Considering the research results,the researcher recommended to use self-questioning strategy on different EFL skills and different levels of students.Teachers also should enroll in in-service training courses that provide more information about the curriculum revisions and programs that focus on improving their questioning abilities.

The Effect of “Think-Talk-Write” Strategy on EFL Tenth-Grade Students’ Writing Performance

This study investigated the effect of“Think-Talk-Write strategy”on English as a Foreign Language(EFL)tenth-grade students'writing performance.A quasi-experimental design with two groups was employed.The researcher randomly assigned two whole sections of grade 10 from Al-Kharaj Secondary School for Boys.The first section was chosen as the experimental group with(20)students,and the second as the control group with(20).To achieve the purpose of the study,a pre/post writing performance test was designed.In addition,Think-Talk-Write(TTW)strategy was used to teach the experimental group,whereas a control group was taught by the conventional teaching strategies,as suggested in the teacher's book.Results revealed that TTW strategy enhanced students’writing performance.In light of the research results,the researcher recommends to use TTW strategy on other genres of writing.

Chemistry teachers narratives as parts of their lives and professionalism

I present some preliminary results on how the classroom narratives in chemistry are interconnected to the teachers life histories and why chemistry teachers use narratives. The results are based on two rounds of interviews with Swedish chemistry teachers in upper secondary school. Tentative results suggested that these teachers used narratives as a tool for teaching and to promote learning, although in different ways. It is suggested that we understand concepts better if we are introduced to them in narrative discourse. Using narratives also seems to promote a plurality of emphases in teaching.

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.

沉思与宽恕关系的性别差异(英文)

为考察沉思与宽恕关系的性别差异,本研究以 128 名大学生为被试,采用中国版《事件影响量表-修订版》(CIES - R;Chinese Impact of Event Scale-Revised) 的侵入性思维分量表(Intrusiveness Subscale) 对被试的一般性沉思水平进行测量,并采用 McCullough 等人于 1998 年编制的《人际冒犯动机量表》(TRIM; Transgression-Related Interpersonal Motivation Inventory) 间接测量被试的宽恕水平。结果表明: 1) 被试的沉思水平与其报复和逃避动机水平显著正相关。2) 被试的沉思水平与宽恕水平均不存在显著的性别差异。3) 性别在沉思与宽恕的关系中起着调节作用: 女性中,沉思水平与宽恕水平显著相关; 而男性中,两者则无显著的相关关系。

高等职业教育与企业之间校企合作的建立

信息时代的到来使得高等教育体系中学习和工作的紧密联系越发显现出来。合作教育体系以及基于工作的学习,是实现工学结合的有效手段,在这个体系中,学校和企业紧密合作,学生将学习和工作有机结合。为了探究合作高等教育的发展动因及其阻碍因素,围绕合作教育的评价体系和有关政策,进行了大量的调研和分析。为了推进合作教育体系观念的认可,对高等职业院校和多家企业参与者的合作进行了调研和督察。这种独特的高等教育理念的推广,需要建立质量保证体系来明确人才培养标准和学生如何达到这些标准,还需要清晰描述所涉及各方的责任和义务。高等教育部门和企业参与合作课程的设计,对于双方持续校企合作的建立和发展是非常有帮助的,但还需要克服两者之间文化的差异。

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.

What Constitutes Quality in Minority Education?A Multiple Embedded Case Study of Stakeholder Perspectives on Minority Linguistic and Cultural Content in School-Based Curriculum in Sunan Yughur Autonomous County,Gansu

While quality in education has long been a significant issue,definitions of quality are often taken for granted rather than argued for,allowing the possibility that the criteria used by researchers and planners to judge quality may differ from local stakeholders’perspectives,particularly regarding the place within quality education of the knowledge,culture and language of non-dominant groups.However,there is an accumulating convergence of research that calls for assessments of quality in education of non-dominant linguistic and cultural groups that engage local stakeholders’understandings.This paper presents a recent study that attempts to do this,investigating the perspectives of students,parents,teachers,and administrators in Sunan Yughur Autonomous County,a multiethnic,multilingual district in rural Gansu,inhabited by several nationalities.Over one hundred participants in three schools were asked what was important for children to learn in school;including what aspects of local(minority)knowledge,culture and language should be taught as part of school-based curriculum.The study found three educational visions in local schools:regular urban education;Chinese-medium,multicultural education;and bilingual,multicultural education.The study also found that stakeholders support the latter vision,which reflects society’s actual cultural and linguistic pluralism,as well as much research on quality education for non-dominant groups.The paper concludes with a call for a comparative approach,both domestic and international,towards the investigation of quality education of non-dominant groups in China.

Non-caseating submental tuberculous lymphadenopathy: A case report

Chronic peripheral lymphadenopathy in adults is an indication of pathology of which tuberculosis is the commonest in the developing countries. Presented is a 36-year-old with a huge chronic Submental lymphadenopathy in a seronegative patient of 7 years duration. Histology revealed non-caseating tuberculosis. Tuberculosis should be considered in Submental lymphadenopathy. Despite the long duration, the absence of cold abscess, and or sinus formation may be an indication of the non-caseating tuberculous lymphadenopathy.

科技手段对中文二语学习者的学习动机、策略及语言能力的影响

本研究旨在考察基于游戏的移动科技应用平台Kahoot对美国高中生学习中文的动机和语言能力的影响,以及在这样一个使用科技手段的课堂教学中学生学习动机、学习策略和语言能力之间的关系。本研究的数据由在某州立大学攻读教师执照的实习教师以问卷调查的形式从所教的18名学生中搜集而来。数据分析的结果表明学生在阅读和会话两个方面有显著进步,在听力、词汇和学习动力方面没有显著变化。此外,学习动机和策略与汉语语言能力呈正相关,唯一例外的是认知和情感类的策略只和汉语会话能力相关。本文对上述研究结果、研究的局限性和未来的研究方向做了讨论。

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.

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.

Strategic Use of Technology for Inclusive Education in Hong Kong:A Content-Level Perspective

Purpose:A growing body of research has focused on the topic of inclusive education for ethnic minorities in Hong Kong.At the same time,few scholars have explored the role technology can play in enhancing inclusivity within the context of quality education.This study examines how the differentiated use of technology that takes into account disparities in prior knowledge can benefit students of different learning backgrounds.Design/Approach/Methods:This study adopted an experimental design to investigate how content-specific and content-neutral technologies can be strategically used to support the classroom discussions of Chinese and ethnic minority students’learning Chinese language and mathematics.One hundred and twenty-one secondary school students participated in the study.Each student was randomly assigned to a condition,in a 2(ethnicity:Chinese vs.ethnic minority)2(content:content-specific first vs.content-neutral first)design.Findings:The study found that(a)for Chinese language lessons,ethnic minority students preferred to learn with content-neutral and content-specific technologies in prediscussion and postdiscussion activities,respectively;whereas the Chinese students’preferences were the opposite and(b)for mathematics lessons,both groups of students performed better when content-specific and content-neutral technologies were used in prediscussion and postdiscussion activities,respectively.Originality/Value:The study presents five practical suggestions for the strategic use of technology in inclusive classrooms in Hong Kong.

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.

Teacher Efficacy and Affective Well-Being in Hong Kong:An Examination of Their Relationships and Individual Differences

Purpose-The aim of this study is to explore the relationships between dimensions of teacher efficacy and affective well-being while focusing on the roles of demographic characteristics(gender,grade level,educational background,and seniority).Design/Approach/Methods-1,115 primary and 541 secondary school teachers in Hong Kong participated in the questionnaire survey.A series of t-tests,ANOVA,correlation analysis,and hierarchical multiple regressions were conducted.Findings-The younger teachers reported lower scores for well-being and efficacy than their senior counterparts,and the female and primary school teachers reported significantly higher levels of teacher efficacy for student engagement than their respective counterparts.Of the dimensions of affective well-being,pleasant affect was more closely related to teacher efficacy than negative affect,and the activated pleasant dimension of enthusiasm had the strongest influence.Of the three dimensions of teacher efficacy,efficacy for student engagement was most strongly associated with affective well-being.Originality/Value-The study revealed that teachers’affective well-being is not only important in itself,but also contributes to classroom teaching.The enthusiasm and passion possessed and maintained by teachers could play important roles in enhancing their self-efficacy.Furthermore,maintaining a good affective well-being status and even a modest level of anxiety contributes to their efficacy for student engagement,a dimension on which teachers reported the least confidence.Suggestions were put forward on how to improve teacher efficacy and well-being.