Level of Knowledge of Agricultural Science Graduate Students about Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation Practices of Agriculture

Climate change (CC) is a global environmental problem and source of concern. Effective planning and implementation of CC mitigation and adaptation may arise from knowledge of its causes and effects. Therefore, dissemination of knowledge is highly important for ensuring that the knowledge grows and spreads amongst the various stakeholders and that it is turned into action. The students of today are the leaders and policy makers of tomorrow. They will effectively serve as change agents once their knowledge base has been well established. This study provides analysis of graduate students' level of knowledge of CC, its nature, causes, effects, mitigation, and adaptation. The study population was 57 agricultural science master's students in the Faculty of Agricultural Sciences in Jarash University, Jordan, and the sample consisted of 50 of those students. The study used online test as the knowledge assessment and data collection tool. Frequency distribution analysis uncovered that the sample students possess high level of general knowledge of CC, moderate level of knowledge of mitigation of CC, and high level of knowledge of adaptation to CC. As to the three investigated facets of general knowledge of CC, these students have high levels of knowledge of the nature and the effects of CC and moderate level of knowledge of its causes. These findings contribute to understanding of students' knowledge achievements and gaps and of the need for curricular reform in terms of structure and content that can be shared by agricultural science faculties around the World with similar CC graduate programs.

Differences between Tempos of Step Error and Postural Sway in the Stipulated Tempo Step Test for Children and Their Relationships

Recently, to evaluate dynamic balance ability, a stipulated tempo step test has been developed, and a step error between tempo and contact time of feet has been used as an evaluation variable. The step error, postural sway, and their relationships may differ between the slow tempo (40 bpm) and fast tempo (120 bpm). This study aimed to examine the aforementioned problem with 62 participant children (30 boys and 32 girls). The step error and postural sway variables (X-axis path length, Y-axis path length, total path length, peripheral area, and rectangular area) during stepping while matching both tempos were measured. Means of one minute and three intervals (0–20 sec, 20–40 sec, and 40–60 sec) for each variable were calculated in both tempos. The results of the paired t-test showed that means of all variables were larger in the 40 bpm tempo than in the 120 bpm tempo. In the multiple comparison tests after the results of the two-way repeated measures ANOVA, the means of three intervals in all variables were larger in the 40 bpm tempo than in the 120 bpm tempo; the means of the sway variables, excluding that of the X-axis path length, in the 40 bpm tempo were larger in the 0–20 sec interval than in the 20–40 sec interval or the 40–60 sec interval. Correlations between step errors and those between the step error and sway variables of both tempos were insignificant or under moderation. The correlations between the step error and sway variables in both tempos were insignificant or significant but low, and those among sway variables were high, except between the X- and Y-axis path lengths. The relationship between both axis path lengths differed according to the tempo. In conclusion, in the case of the stipulated tempo step test targeting children, the slow tempo has a greater step error and postural sway than the fast tempo, and the sway in the early step stage is greater in the slow tempo. The relationships between step errors and between the step error and sway variables of both tempos are low; hence, the ability related to the test may differ in both tempos. The relationships among sway variables in both tempos are high, except between the X- and Y-axis path lengths.

Analyzing Existing and Targeted Culture Typologies in the Light of the Strategy Document in Foundation Universities: The Case of A Foundation University

Universities are multi-cultural, complicated, social education organizations. The presence of academic and administrative employees at these organizations might result in cultural differentiation, which is influenced by changing environmental conditions and social change dynamics. The purpose of this research is to determine the foundation university's dominant current and targeted cultural typologies using a foundation university as an example and to compare them to the university's target culture typology based on an analysis of the university strategy document. This comparison will aid in defining the perspectives of the organization's members through the concept of culture to achieve the university's strategic goals. Also, the examination of the strategy document, mission, the vision of the university and at the same time questioning the organization members’ opinions about this topic fills a hole in the literature in terms of observing two sides of the coin; “rulers” and “ruled”. In addition, we need to start to gain knowledge about foundation universities’ organizational culture because we already know that cultural awareness is crucial for an organization lifetime and this knowledge comes from the analyses of it. Among the different approaches used throughout the world to define organizational culture, Cameron and Quinn's "Organizational Culture Assessment Instrument in Competing Values Framework" was employed in the study. This research was conducted with a multi-modal methodological approach by using both quantitative and qualitative methods together with the questionnaire and document analysis. According to the findings, university organization members' current (market-competition) and targeted (clan-collaboration) organizational culture typology interpretations diverge from the university's strategy on the same subject.

Open Access Electronic Resources Use and Research Productivity of Faculty Members: A Case Study of a Selected University in Ghana

Research is one of the key pillars in the teaching and learning situation in any university in the world. However, the approach to research varies from one university to the other. The purpose of this study was to find out how the level of awareness and satisfaction, the challenges and extent of use of open access resources impact research productivity of faculty in *Dartum University. A quantitative survey research method was adopted. A sample size of 62 full-time lecturers and 134 part-time lecturers was selected for the study using a stratified simple random sampling technique. The findings revealed that research productivity is low despite the high level of awareness and satisfaction with open access use. Again, the findings showed that faculty members use open access to a considerable extent and point out some challenges associated with open access use. It was concluded that there is a very weak but significant influence of open access use on research productivity in Dartum University. It is recommended that African universities, and in particular Dartum University, establish or patronise institutional repositories which support open access.

The Effect of Building Closures due to COVID 19 on the Perceptions and Practices of School Counselors

With school buildings shuttering due to COVID-19, school counselors’ work needed to shift to virtual environments. The shift in operations led us to wonder about school counselors’ perceptions and practices in these new and unfamiliar conditions. In our mixed-methods cross-sectional study, we gathered quantitative and qualitative data from 89 school counselors. Our findings include evidence of the counselors feeling disconnected from their students, lack of technology and student access, privacy issues, limited preparation to counsel in virtual environments, and work and life balance. We follow our results with a discussion, related implications, and directions for future research.

The Mediating Role of Adaptive Cognitive Emotion Regulation in the Effect of Deliberate Rumination upon Posttraumatic Growth

In this study, the mediator role of adaptive cognitive emotion regulation in the effect of deliberate rumination upon posttraumatic growth was aimed to be analyzed. A convenience sample of 272 university students including 175 (64,3%) females and 97 (35,7%) males was recruited from a university in Denizli, Turkey. Ages of the participants ranged between 20 and 37 with an average age of 21.94 years (SD=1.69). The Posttraumatic Growth Inventory, Event Related Rumination Inventory and Cognitive Emotion Regulation Questionnaire were used for collecting the data. The data were analyzed using SPSS 23 and Amos 22 software packages. Deliberate rumination was determined to be significantly and positively correlated with posttraumatic growth (r=,28, p<,01) and positive cognitive emotion regulation (r=,25, p<,01). Moreover, positive cognitive emotion regulation was significantly and positively correlated with posttraumatic growth (r=,27, p<,01). The results indicated that adaptive cognitive emotion regulation mediated the effect of deliberate rumination on posttraumatic growth. The results, limitations, and implications of the study were discussed.

Examination of Reading Strategies Metacognitive Awareness Levels of French Foreign Language Students in Terms of Various Variables

The act of reading is a complex process in which learners rush their cognitive and metacognitive skills to fonction. The effective use of metacognitive skills is regarded as an important feature becoming prominent in successful reading. In order to exercise reading strategies effectively, students are required to have developed metacognitive awareness. In this study, the level of metacognitive awareness of reading strategies and whether metacognitive awareness varies according to variables such as gender and reading course success have been examined in the 1st grade students studying at Anadolu University Faculty of Education Program of French Language Teaching Program. 32 students voluntarily participated in the study, 19 of whom were Females and 13 of whom were Males. The data of the study have been collected with the Turkish version of the 30-item 5-point Likert-type Metacognitive Awareness of Reading Strategies Inventory (MARSI) developed by Mokhtari & Reichard (2002) and adapted into Turkish by Öztürk (2012). According to the findings, students' reading strategies were revealed to have high levels of metacognitive awareness. However, it has been further observed that the level of metacognitive awareness of students' reading course success grades and reading strategies did not make a significant difference in terms of gender. Similarly, it has been observed that there was no significant difference between the students' reading strategies and metacognitive awareness levels and their success grades in the reading course.

Barriers to Technology Integration into Teaching Chinese as a Foreign Language: A Case Study of Australian Secondary Schools

This case study examines the barriers to technology integration into teaching Chinese as a foreign language (CFL) in Australian secondary schools. Previous research on technology integration predominantly focused on higher education and English as a second language. This study extends the field by exploring barriers in secondary schools and targeting Chinse instruction. It identified three layers of barriers: The tool (technology), The user (teacher and student), and The tool supporter (school). This study highlights the students as technology users and as significant factors behind the teacher’s technology consideration. Among the identified barriers, most notably were limited and blocked access to technology, a lack of time for class preparation and technology learning, a lack of technology knowledge, a lack of professional development, and students’ distracting behaviours. Suggestions were made accordingly to improve tech-integrated Chinese teaching in Australian secondary schools.

Post Covid-19 Metaphoric Perceptions of Preservice Music Teachers on the Concepts of “Distance Education, Home, Graduation, University and Future”

This study aims to reveal the perceptions of preservice music teachers on the concepts of “Distance Education, Home, Graduation, University and Future” through metaphors. The study group of the research consists of 80 preservice music teachers studying the final year of their undergraduate education at the Department of Music Education in Gazi University, Kastamonu University, Bolu Abant İzzet Baysal University, Uludağ University, Van Yüzüncüyıl University, Necmettin Erbakan University and Muğla Sıtkı Koçman University as of 2020-2021 academic year. Data of the research were collected by participants completing the sentence “The concept reminds me of….because….”. Collected data were analyzed with content analysis method. Participants developed 133 different metaphors; 26 related to distance education, 19 to home, 27 to graduation, 29 to university, and 32 to the concept of the future. While the metaphors they developed on the concept of distance education reflect a negative view, those about home and graduation are considered to be relatively positive. The metaphors developed on the concept of university express a longing rather than representing either a positive or a negative view. Future, on the other hand, was a concept on which preservice music teachers came up with the highest number of metaphors and all found ambiguous. Distribution of the metaphors developed by the participants and the sample sentences selected from the opinions are demonstrated under the relevant headings.

Assessment of the Level of Knowledge of Climate Change of Undergraduate Science and Agriculture Students

Introduction of climate change (CC) courses in universities is critical for helping future generations and leaders in recognizing the global challenges of CC and finding ways for adapting with it. People's knowledge of CC can influence success of any planned CC mitigation and adaptation programs and activities. Thereupon, it is vital for environmental planners and researchers to conduct regular assessments of this knowledge to determine need for curriculum reform, if any. This study was conducted to assess the level of CC knowledge of undergraduate physical science and agricultural science students in Jarash University, Jordan. The study used specifically-designed Climate Change Knowledge Test (CCKT) as the data collection tool. Population of the study was undergraduate science and agriculture students enrolled in the Faculty of Agriculture and Science. The study sample consisted of 285 students, comprising 103 science students and 182 agriculture students. The results indicate that the sample students have high levels of knowledge of the nature, causes, and effects of CC. However, on the average, a higher number of the sample students posses knowledge of effects of CC (n = 223, % = 79.3%) than its nature (209, 73.5%) and causes (190, 66.9%). Additionally, it was found that the female students have higher levels of overall CC knowledge than their male peers and that the agriculture students possess higher levels of CC knowledge than their science peers. These results emphasize the need for curriculum review and reform to ensure equipping the university graduates with comprehensive knowledge of CC.