NIGERIAN OPEN AND DISTANCE LEARNING LECTURERS’ DIFFICULTY IN CONSTRUCTING STUDENTS’ TEST ITEMS

Author(s):  
Johnson Ayodele Opateye

 This paper examines the level of difficulty lecturers experience in constructing test items for various types of tests based on gender and institutional mode of delivery in an Open and Distance Learning higher education context. Descriptive cross-sectional survey research was adopted as the research paradigm, using lecturers from one single mode and one dual mode ODL institution in South West Nigeria as the study population. Stratified simple random sampling techniques were used to select 240 lecturers as the sample. Three research questions and two hypotheses guided the study’s investigation. A questionnaire with a reliability coefficient of 0.78 using Cronbach’s alpha value was used as the research instrument. Frequency, percentages, t-test statistics and charts were utilised to analyse the data. The results showed that ODL lecturers exhibited moderate levels of difficulty in test item construction. Female ODL lecturers found case study, multiple choice, matching, essay, and completion items more difficult to generate than their male counterparts did. There was a significant difference in the difficulty male and female ODL lecturers experienced in constructing test items. Significant differences were also found in the difficulty experienced by single and dual mode ODL lecturers in construct test items. The findings of the study have implications for the capacity development of lecturers, ODL institution management, and test experts in order to improve lecturers’ capacities in test items construction.

Author(s):  
Grace Yeboah ◽  
Eric Nyarko-Sampson ◽  
Linda Dzama Forde

Classroom discipline is one of the most thought-provoking issues in modern education.Studies has it that students’ classroom misconduct interferes with teaching and learning and is believed to be a precursor to later school dropout and similar negative social outcomes. This study aimed at investigating the knowledge of pre-service teachers of Colleges of Education in Ghana on the concept of behaviour modification techniques in the classroom. A cross-sectional survey design was used for the study. Stratified and simple random sampling techniques were used to obtain a sample size of three hundred and sixty participants for the study. Data was collected using behaviour modification questionnaire developed by the researchers and analysed using SPSS data analysis software. The results show that most of the participants have insufficient knowledge on behaviour modification techniques for classroom management even though they exhibited strong knowledge on few of the items. At 5% level of significance, there was virtually no significant difference found to exist in pre-service teachers’ knowledge of behaviour modification practices in terms of gender difference. Furthermore, the study revealed that programme of study never had a significant effect on the pre-service teachers’ knowledge on classroom behaviour modification techniques. It is recommended that training programmes of teacher education should be reviewed to strengthen the knowledge of pre-service teachers on classroom behaviour modification techniques.


Author(s):  
Nathaniel Samuel ◽  
Mudasiru O. Yusuf ◽  
Charles O. Olumorin

This study aimed at determining the perceptions of distance learning students of the availability, accessibility, usefulness and influence of instructional technologies for acquiring pedagogic experience at Ogbomoso, Osogbo and Ilorin, Nigeria. The study was descriptive of cross-sectional survey type and used a researchers-designed questionnaire to collect data. A total of 397 undergraduate students were randomly sampled from six faculties in the sampled study centres. Four research questions were raised, answered and analyzed using frequency counts and percentages. The results showed that instructional technologies were not sufficiently available and accessible to the students at study centres for the acquisition of pedagogic experiences. The findings revealed that students displayed a good level of interest in experiential learning using the available instructional technologies due to a high perception of usefulness of instructional technologies for learning. However, inadequacy of the instructional technologies was a constraint towards access and adequacy of their utilization by the students. It was recommended that government and non-governmental organizations should work to procure adequate instructional technologies that would facilitate easy access to pedagogical experiences.


2017 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 67
Author(s):  
Jani Ramjani ◽  
Fitri Kurnia Rahim ◽  
Icca Stella Amalia ◽  
Wahyu Manggala Putra

Indonesia has the highest prevalence of smoking (50.68%) compared to other ASEAN countries. On January 1st, 2017, the Indonesian government raised cigarette excise taxes. The purpose of this study was to analysis the impact of cigarette excise increase on cigarette consumption among adolescents aged 17 to 25 years. The study design used cross-sectional survey. A total of 153 adolescents were recruited in this study through simple random sampling technique. Questionnaires and observation papers were used in this study. A face-to-face interview was conducted to fulfill the data collection through home visit for each respondent. The data were obtained during May – June 2017. This study used paired t test analysis. The number of cigarettes consumed by adolescent decreased significantly by two cigarettes per day after the increase in cigarette excise tax. There is a significant difference of the average cigarettes price based on the brand after the implementation of cigarette excise tax increase, the difference of cigarette price is IDR 200 per stick of cigarettes after excise tax increase. Increased cigarette excise taxes may affect the increasing of cigarette prices. Threfore, it could reduce the number of cigarette consumption.


2021 ◽  
Vol 25 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Dilek Şenocak ◽  
Köksal Büyük ◽  
Aras Bozkurt

Gamification, which is defined as the use of game design elements in non-game contexts, is put forward as a solution to low motivation and is suggested for the creation of a sustainable learning ecology in open and distance learning (ODL). The overall purpose of the present study was to examine the distribution of the Hexad gamification user types and the correlations of gamification experience, game mode, and gender with the user types’ scores within the context of an ODL system. The researchers adapted quantitative cross-sectional survey design to seek answers in this study. The Hexad user types of distance learners were determined based on the online “Gamification User Types Hexad Scale.” Findings revealed that the most common user types in the ODL environment were Philanthropists, Achievers, and Free Spirits, followed by Socializers and Players with a lower mean, while the least common user type was Disruptors. Women tended to score higher than men on the Disruptor user type. Achievers, Socializers, Philanthropists, and Players preferred multiplayer game modes, while the game mode had little influence on Free Spirits and Disruptors. Regarding the gamification experience, Players and Free Spirits seemed to have more experience of gamified applications. This study provides insights to learning designers in developing gamified ODL systems to engage the different Hexad user types.


2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 80-83
Author(s):  
Nadia Tariq ◽  
Tamkeen Jaffry ◽  
Rahma Fiaz ◽  
Abdul Majid Rajput ◽  
Sadaf Khalid

Background: Indoor air pollutants are increasingly being associated with respiratory illnesses leading to high degree of morbidity and mortality. There are not sufficient epidemiological studies from Pakistan which assess level of awareness of indoor air pollution resulting in respiratory diseases in population. Methods: This cross sectional survey was carried out on general population of Rawalpindi/Islamabad. Sample size was 223 study subjects selected by non-probability convenient sampling. Knowledge of the study subjects was determined with regard to indoor air pollution, its effects on health and different sources of indoor air pollution with the help of a questionnaire. The influence of age, gender, educational status and socio economic status on the level of awareness was also analyzed. Results: Out of total 223 participants, 115 were males and108 females. Participants aware of indoor air pollution were 91.5% and adequate awareness about its sources was 80.7%. Those who knew indoor air pollution is detrimental to health were 95.1%. Awareness about building construction dust as source of indoor air pollution was maximum (84.8%). There was significant difference in awareness among participants with different monthly incomes and educational status and also between males and females. Conclusion: This study concludes that general population of Rawalpindi/Islamabad has fairly good awareness about sources of indoor air pollution. Use of harmful material causing indoor air pollution should be limited or substituted with better ones where possible.


GIS Business ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 14 (6) ◽  
pp. 1070-1096
Author(s):  
Friday Ogbu Edeh ◽  
Joy Nonyelum Ugwu ◽  
Isaac Monday Ikpor ◽  
Anthony Chukwuma Nwali ◽  
Chimeziem C. Gabriela Udeze

This study investigates the effect of organisational culture dimensions on employee performance in Nigerian fast food restaurants using cross-sectional survey. Forty fast food restaurants were selected using simple random sampling. Nine hundred and twenty five employees were surveyed. Sample size of two hundred and seventy two was ascertained with Krejcie and Morgan. Method for data collection is questionnaire. Two hundred and thirty nine copies of questionnaire were retrieved out of two hundred and seventy two copies administered. Simple linear regression was used to analyse the hypotheses with the aid of IBM SPSS 20.0. This study found that organisational culture dimensions predicted with clan culture and market culture has a positive significant effect on employee performance. It concludes that organisational culture dimensions measured in terms of clan culture and market culture engenders employee performance through effectiveness and efficiency. One of the practical implications is that Nigerian fast food restaurant practitioners should clearly define their clan culture for newcomers to imbibe to enable them increase their performance.  


Author(s):  
Dasari Tejaswini ◽  
Suhas Kulkarni ◽  
Dolar Doshi ◽  
Adepu Srilatha

AbstractBackgroundAesthetic alterations in the face can be self-perceived and can affect quality of life in young adults.ObjectiveTo assess the impact of malocclusion on self- perceived oro-facial behaviour among young adults.MethodsA Cross sectional study was conducted among 638 young adults (aged 18–21 years) of Hyderabad city. One college from each of the five zones of the Hyderabad city (five colleges) were selected by simple random sampling procedure. A 21-item Oro-facial investment scale (OFIS) questionnaire assessing self-perceived oral health knowledge, attitude, practice and Dental Aesthetic Index (DAI) assessing the severity of malocclusion was used. Data were analysed with standard statistical software (SPSS, Statistical package for the social sciences, version 20.0). p < 0.05 was considered statistically significant.ResultsMales had higher mean scores for knowledge (2.90 ± 0.49) than females (2.73 ± 0.82) and was statistically significant (p = 0.002*). No statistically significant gender differences were found in relation to attitude and practice. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) showed that there was a significant difference in all the three scores (knowledge, attitude, practice) with respect to age, with significantly high score for knowledge and practice among 18 year old subjects (p = 0.0001*; p = 0.0003* respectively) and attitude among 21 year old subjects (p = 0.0049*). No statistically significant age, gender differences were found in relation to DAI scores. Upon correlation, DAI significantly and positively correlated with knowledge (p = 0.03*) and attitude (p = 0.0001*).ConclusionThis study has shown significant impact of malocclusion on the self-perceived oro-facial behaviour.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Isaac Mbir Bryant ◽  
Abdul-Rahaman Afitiri

Abstract Background Sustainability of energy is key for quality life; thus, the use of clean energy at the household level warrants moving from fossil-based energy to modern forms like biogas. However, the joint interactive effect of household income, biogas usage and willingness to adopt a single-stage solar-supported hyper-thermophilic anaerobic biogas digester (SSHTABD) is not known. Methods A cross-sectional survey was carried out to assess the willingness of residents of Elmina to adopt the SSHTABD. Stratified and simple random sampling techniques were used to select 219 respondents fitted into a complementary log–log regression model. Results Household willingness to adopt the SSHTABD was 86%. Among them are households not willing to use biogas but have high income and households willing to use biogas but have either low or high income are more likely to adopt the technology compared to households not willing to use biogas and have low income. Households not willing to use biogas, but have high income (OR = 1.725, confidence interval [CI] 0.803–3.706) and households willing to use biogas, but have low income (OR = 1.877, CI 1.103–3.188) compared to households willing to use biogas and have high income (OR = 1.725, CI 1.080–3.451) are more likely to adopt the technology as households not willing to use biogas and have low income. Additionally, households employed under the formal government sector, formal and informal private sectors are 40%, 136% and 103%, respectively, more likely to adopt the technology than those unemployed. Conclusion The high willingness of households to adopt the technology calls for government to support households to own biogas digesters thus requires policy interventions and interdisciplinary research.


2021 ◽  
pp. 1-17
Author(s):  
Yunfei Zhang ◽  
Jiahong Sun ◽  
Min Zhao ◽  
Costan G. Magnussen ◽  
Xi Bo

Abstract Objective: To estimate the prevalence of thinness, overweight and obesity among Tibetan adolescents aged 12-17 years. Design: Cross-sectional survey. Setting: Shigatse city of Tibet municipality, with an average altitude of more than 4000 m. Subjects: Study participants included 2,642 adolescents aged 12-17 years selected from 6 schools using a convenient cluster sampling method. Results: The prevalence of thinness/overweight/obesity among Tibetan adolescents was 9.4%/5.4%/1.4% (China definition), 14.7%/4.4%/0.7% (IOTF definition), and 2.8%/5.7%/0.9% (WHO definition). The prevalence of thinness and overweight was significantly different between both sexes based on each of three BMI classification criteria (P <0.001). There was no significant difference in the prevalence of obesity between both sexes according to each of three BMI criteria. There was no clear trend in the prevalence of thinness across ages according to the China or IOTF definition (both P >0.05), whereas an upward trend was observed for thinness in boys according to the IOTF definition (P for trend <0.05). In contrast, the prevalence of thinness tended to decrease with increasing age in girls according to the IOTF definition, and in total sample according to the WHO definition (P for trend <0.05). Conclusions: Among Tibetan adolescents, the prevalence of overweight and obesity is relatively low, while the prevalence of thinness is high, especially in boys. These data suggest urgent attention is needed to control adolescent thinness in Tibet.


2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mariam John Munyogwa ◽  
Kaloli Sayi Ntalima ◽  
Secilia Ng’weshemi Kapalata

Abstract Background Obesity at the workplace has been associated with symptoms of lower self-esteem, increased individual and employer healthcare costs, increased absenteeism and presenteeism and reduced productivity. Therefore, this study was designed to study the prevalence and correlates of central obesity among formal sector employees in Dodoma City. Methods Study design was a cross-sectional survey conducted from March to June, 2019. Participants were employees from formal sector employment defined as those paid regular monthly wage and with either a secured permanent or temporary contract. Simple random sampling was used to select four out of fifteen large buildings hosting various establishments. Respondents were obtained conveniently and interviewed face to face. Central obesity was defined as a waist circumference greater than 102 cm for males and greater than 88 cm for females. Chi-square test was conducted to assess the differences among the groups. Simple and multiple logistic regression models were fitted to identify the correlates of central obesity. Results A total of 392 respondents (98% response rate) agreed and participated in the study. The overall prevalence of central obesity was found to be 41.8% (164/392). The prevalence of central obesity was significantly higher among females (67.4% p < 0.001), respondents aged ≥51 years (60%, p = < 0.001), administrators (55.1% p = < 0.05), respondents with salary of > 1,000,000 Tanzanian Shilling (TSh.) per month (54.4%, p = < 0.05), respondents who eat homemade meals at the workplace (64.2%, p = < 0.05) and respondents with hypertension (62.5%, p = < 0.05). Correlates of central obesity were found to be female sex (AOR = 9.53; 95% CI: 5.49, 16.78), increased age, eating homemade meals at the workplace (AOR = 2.32; 95% CI: 1.04, 4.19) and hypertension (AOR = 3.15; 95% CI: 1.41, 6.91). Conclusions The present study revealed high prevalence of central obesity among formal sector employees in Dodoma City. Scholars and stakeholders are urged to generate more evidences and design appropriate interventions to curb the situation.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document