From Full Day Learning to 30 Minutes a Day: A Descriptive Study of Early Learning During the First COVID-19 Pandemic School Shutdown in Ontario

When the COVID-19 pandemic was declared in March 2020, the lives of families all over the world were disrupted. Many adults found themselves working from home while their children were unable to go to school. To better understand the potential impact of these educational disruptions, it is important to establish what learning looked like during the first school shutdown in the spring of 2020, particularly for the youngest learners who may feel the longest lasting impacts from this pandemic. Therefore, the purpose of the current descriptive study was to gather information on how kindergarten teaching and learning occurred during this time, what the biggest barriers were, and what concerns educators had regarding returning in person to the classroom setting. The sample for the current study was 2569 kindergarten educators (97.6% female; 74.2% teachers, 25.8% early childhood educators) in Ontario, Canada. Participants completed a questionnaire consisting of both quantitative scales and qualitative open-ended questions. Educators reported that parents most often contacted them regarding technological issues or how to effectively support their child. The largest barrier to learning was the ability of both parents and educators to balance work, home life, and online learning/teaching. With regards to returning to school, educators were most concerned about the lack of ability of kindergarten aged children to do tasks independently and to follow safety protocols. Our findings highlight unique challenges associated with teaching kindergarten during the pandemic, contributing to our understanding of the learning that occurred in Ontario during the first COVID-19 shutdown.

Full Day School Management at SMA As Safi'iyah Medan

This study aims to determine Full Day School Management in SMA As Syafi’iyah Medan, Jl. Karya Wisata Ii No.1,Medan Johor, Medan, North Sumatra Province. This research is a qualitative popoulasi study of the Full Day School teacher and management and students of SMA As Syafi’iyah Medan. In an effort to improve student character education in MAN 2, the terrain model includes stages, namely: planning Full Day School learning, implementing Full Day School learning and evaluating Full Day School learning. Learning planning is adapted to the curriculum adopted by SMA As Syafi’iyah Medan, namely the government curriculum, local curriculum and school curriculum and the formulation of syllabus and plan for implementing learning. The implementation of Full Day School learning consists of habituation activities, exemplary activities, nationalism and patriotism activities and student creativity activities. Evaluation Full Day School learning in general in Medan Model 2 MAN 2 in determining minimal completeness provides an assessment of three domains, namely cognitive, affective and domain psychomotor.

Foraging and nest maintenance activity of the leafcutter ant Acromyrmex lobicornis (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in an organic vineyard in the Monte desert of Mendoza, Argentina

Exclusive to the Neotropical region, leaf cutter ants are considered agricultural pests, although they can also have a positive effect on plants. In Mendoza vineyards, vegetal biodiversity is minimal, therefore they cut off this plant as a feeding resource. Acromyrmex lobicornis Emery it is mostly nocturnal and forages according to temperature. Foraging and maintenance activity was measured monthly in 14 colonies, throughout a full day at fourhour intervals, from October 2019 to March 2020. Acromyrmex lobicornis showed different seasonal patterns of foraging activity. Foraging intensity was highest throughout January and February, intermediate during December, and lowest in October and November. A bimodal feeding pattern was observed, foraging both day and night avoiding the hottest hours. The maximum collection of fragments was observed in the range of 10 and 19 °C, less between 20 - 39 °C, minimum between 40 - 49 °C and null between 0 - 9 °C. The nest - maintenance activity was maximum between 20 - 29 °C, less between 30 - 39 ° C, minimum between 40 - 49 °C and null between 0 - 20 °C.

An experiment on full-day power generation building fabric component for zero-energy buildings

Thermal electricity generation (TEG) is a potential method to utilize energy emitted from the built environment. This work presents a prototype of the low-cost full-day power generation solar building component, which can be integrated as the building fabric or as a part of the solar panels. The size of the prototype is 0.04 m2. The overall cost is less than 25 USD. The prototype is tested in various environments to validate its performance. The first experiment tests its performance under the radiation of a high-temperature source, the prototype can generate the highest voltage of 0.8 V. In onsite experiments, it can reach a maximum value of 10 mW/m2 under sunlight. It can also work at night depending on the thermal radiation of the environment. It can also be used in different weather; the performance is even better than the nighttime. The experiments indicate that radiation heat transfer has a stronger influence on energy conversion than the convective heat transfer. The relative humidity has a certain influence on its performance, but there is no obvious effect of radiation heat transfer. Although the prototype has great potential, there are still limitations, and this article also discusses the problems. Meanwhile, this article also points out possible directions for improving design in the future. The results in this article might be helpful for zero-energy buildings and low-carbon buildings.

Exploring the Effects of Full-Day Kindergarten on School Absenteeism for Children With Disabilities: Evidence From State Policy Mandates in the United States1

Student absenteeism is a barrier to learning and an issue that requires policy intervention. Students with disabilities are of particular concern, as they miss school more often than students in any other demographic group. Affecting a key attribute of school structures, policies promoting full-day kindergarten began as an effort to improve opportunities for students from disadvantaged backgrounds, but no studies have provided causal evidence as to whether full-day kindergarten enrollment relates to school attendance. No studies have examined whether effects exist for students with disabilities in the long term. Using a nationally representative sample of children with disabilities in the United States ( N = 2,120), we employed an instrumental-variable strategy that capitalized on state-level policy shifts of full-day kindergarten offerings as an exogenous source of variation. We found that full-day kindergarten structures related to a sharp increase in absenteeism for children with disabilities in kindergarten and first and second grades. We found no relationship to absenteeism for these children in later years of primary schooling. We discuss policy implications of these findings.

Cytotoxic Effect of Pterocarpus santalinus and stevia-based Mouthwash - A Lab-based Analysis

Introduction: Red sandalwood called as Pterocarpus santalinus is esteemed for the rich red colour of its wood. Pterocarpus santalinus used as astringent, analgesic and anti-inflammatory agent. Also helpful in treating skin illness, fistula, haemorrhage and ulcers. Stevia rebaudina is a food additive with lingering flavor. The wood isn't aromatic. The tree isn't to be mistaken for the fragrant Santalum sandalwood trees that fill locally in South India. In the present study we have prepared Pterocarpus santalinus and stevia-based mouthwash and evaluated its cytotoxic activity. Materials and Methods: 1g of Pterocarpus santalinus and stevia were measured and 50 ml of distilled water were measured. Both were mixed together to make the aqueous extract. To that 10 nauplii were slowly added and the cytotoxic activity is analysed by the number of live nauplii counts. Results: First day, Nauplii were grown in the medium and it hatches out after 24 hours. Second day, Mouthwash was added according to the concentration. Nauplii were collected and for each concentration 10 nauplii were added. After adding the nauplii, cytotoxicity well as undisturbed for one full day to analyze the inhibition of growth. Third day, nauplii were counted and cytotoxicity of mouthwash was evaluated. Statistical analysis showed significant reduction in the nauplii count (P<0.05). Conclusion: Medicinal plants cure many severe diseases. Application of medicinal plants in the field of medicine should be improved. Based on the results recorded in the present study, it is concluded that Pterocarpus santalinus has a potential cytotoxicity activity. Hence the present study findings provide a beautiful base for some of the medicinal uses of Pterocarpus santalinus.

Implementation of Full Day School in Basic Schools in Forming Student’s Character

The importance of implementing full day school in character building in elementary school students makes the writer interested in making a literature review. Character education is important to be developed and internalized immediately, because it has a noble enough purpose for the provision of students’ lives so that they are always ready to respond to all the dynamics of life with full responsibility. The research method used is literature study. The purpose of this literature review is to obtain a theoretical basis that can support problem solving regarding the application of full day school in character building for elementary school students. The results of this research shows that full day school gives positive impact for the children’s growth especially on establishing the character values since the early stage started from the elementary school.

Musculoskeletal pain and sedentary behaviour in occupational and non-occupational settings: a systematic review with meta-analysis

Background Sedentary behaviour (SB; time spent sitting) is associated with musculoskeletal pain (MSP) conditions; however, no prior systematic review has examined these associations according to SB domains. We synthesised evidence on occupational and non-occupational SB and MSP conditions. Methods Guided by a PRISMA protocol, eight databases (MEDLINE, CINAHL, PsycINFO, Web of Science, Scopus, Cochrane Library, SPORTDiscus, and AMED) and three grey literature sources (Google Scholar, WorldChat, and Trove) were searched (January 1, 2000, to March 17, 2021) for original quantitative studies of adults ≥ 18 years. Clinical-condition studies were excluded. Studies’ risk of bias was assessed using the QualSyst checklist. For meta-analyses, random effect inverse-variance pooled effect size was estimated; otherwise, best-evidence synthesis was used for narrative review. Results Of 178 potentially-eligible studies, 79 were included [24 general population; 55 occupational (incuding15 experimental/intervention)]; 56 studies were of high quality, with scores > 0.75. Data for 26 were meta-synthesised. For cross-sectional studies of non-occupational SB, meta-analysis showed full-day SB to be associated with low back pain [LBP – OR = 1.19(1.03 – 1.38)]. Narrative synthesis found full-day SB associations with knee pain, arthritis, and general MSP, but the evidence was insufficient on associations with neck/shoulder pain, hip pain, and upper extremities pain. Evidence of prospective associations of full-day SB with MSP conditions was insufficient. Also, there was insufficient evidence on both cross-sectional and prospective associations between leisure-time SB and MSP conditions. For occupational SB, cross-sectional studies meta-analysed indicated associations of self-reported workplace sitting with LBP [OR = 1.47(1.12 – 1.92)] and neck/shoulder pain [OR = 1.73(1.46 – 2.03)], but not with extremities pain [OR = 1.17(0.65 – 2.11)]. Best-evidence synthesis identified inconsistent findings on cross-sectional association and a probable negative prospective association of device-measured workplace sitting with LBP-intensity in tradespeople. There was cross-sectional evidence on the association of computer time with neck/shoulder pain, but insufficient evidence for LBP and general MSP. Experimental/intervention evidence indicated reduced LBP, neck/shoulder pain, and general MSP with reducing workplace sitting. Conclusions We found cross-sectional associations of occupational and non-occupational SB with MSP conditions, with occupational SB associations being occupation dependent, however, reverse causality bias cannot be ruled out. While prospective evidence was inconclusive, reducing workplace sitting was associated with reduced MSP conditions. Future studies should emphasise prospective analyses and examining potential interactions with chronic diseases. Protocol registration PROSPERO ID #CRD42020166412 (Amended to limit the scope)