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This study aims to identify the literacy skills of individuals whose highest level of education was in the field 'teacher training and educational sciences'. The study sample comprised 10,618 individuals in the field of teacher training and educational sciences, selected from 31 countries (participating in the International Adult Skills Assessment Programme during the 2014-2015 survey) using a multi-stage sampling method. The study employed multi-level latent class analysis and three-step analysis in order to determine both the number of multi-level latent classes of educators' literacy scores as well as the selected independent variables' success in predicting those latent classes. The analysis revealed that educators in Germany constituted the group with the highest literacy skills while educators from Singapore comprised the group with the lowest literacy skills. [This study was presented at the 9th International Congress of Educational Research. Ordu University, Ordu, Turkey.]

This paper describes the first measurements of lightning currents from upward lightning events to a tall tower – the Sentech Tower – in Johannesburg, South Africa. The lightning activity in Johannesburg is described in context of other such sites around the world along with the high-speed camera setup and direct current measurement installation at the Sentech Tower, making up the project termed The Johannesburg Lightning Research Laboratory (JLRL). Measurements from the 2020–2021 lightning season are analysed in accordance with similar definitions used in other studies in Austria and Japan and the results are compared with the studies in these regions. A total of 42 lightning events to the tall tower are analysed. This resulted in 175 return strokes, 30 ICC fast pulses and 9 ICC Only events. The return stroke median current and median ICC fast pulse peak currents are comparable to the values seen in Austria and Japan at 7.51 kA and 3.75 kA, respectively. The median charge transfer is 41.36 C (35.51C for ICC Pulse events and 26.08C for ICC Only events) and is also similar to these studies. The return stroke multiplicity however, is higher for the Sentech Tower than elsewhere, with an average value of 6.41. Overall, the peak current distribution, charge transfer and inter-stroke time distribution showed agreement with the measurements made in Austria and Japan. However, the multiplicity of the events measured at the Sentech Tower appear to be twice as much as those seen in Austria and Japan. • The flash density is one of the highest of all locations where lightning studies have been conducted. • The first measurements of lightning currents in South Africa since Eriksson et al.'s work on the CSIR Tower. • The average peak current values of the subsequent return strokes and the average charge transfer appear to be similar to other upward lightning current measurements studies in Austria and Japan. • The multiplicity per event seems to be almost double that of Austria and Japan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and purpose: Social engagement is an important active aging strategy to promote older adults' mental health. The purposes of this study were to compare social engagement in older populations around the world and explore associations with mental health outcomes. Materials and methods: An international cross‐sectional survey was conducted from 2017 to 2019. Data were retrieved from The International Social Survey Programme for a secondary data analysis across 30 countries. This study applied the Taxonomy of Social Activities and its six levels as operational definitions for a consistent concept of social engagement for international comparisons. Results: In total, 9403 older adults with a mean age of 72.85 ± 6.40 years responded. The highest levels of older adults' social engagement were found in Switzerland, Thailand, and New Zealand. Older adults of a higher age, with a lower educational level, who were permanently sick or disabled, who had no partner, who were widowed or whose civil partner had died, who lived alone, and who had lower self‐placement in society had significantly lower social engagement than did their counterparts. In the regression model, older adults' social engagement positively predicted general health, self‐accomplishment, and life satisfaction, but negatively predicted loneliness and depression. Conclusions: In aging societies worldwide, encouraging older adults' social engagement would be beneficial to promote mental health. Implications for nursing practice and health policies: Community professional nurses can develop strategies of social engagement based on the needs and sociodemographic factors of older adults to improve their mental health. Developing efficient strategies and local policies by learning from successful experiences in other countries is important to promote social engagement in aging societies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Domestic wood production in Japan is low, and more than 60% of the wood consumed is imported. This is surprising because two-thirds of Japan's land area is covered by forests. The dominant explanations for this low wood self-sufficiency rate are the lack of forest road infrastructure and the small-scale forest ownership structure. Austria is a country that is similar in topography and ownership structure but has a high wood self-sufficiency rate. Therefore, previous research has compared Japan to Austria. However, these studies did not address basic forest properties in much detail. This study uses national forest inventory data from both countries to assess the forest structures and utilization percentages of the annual wood increment. In contrast to the hypothesis, the results show that the two countries have similar increment rates. In contrast to former studies, the findings indicate that Japanese plantation forests have a higher timber stocking volume than Austrian forests. In Japan, the proportion of the standing volume in the 40–60-year-old age class is much higher compared to the other age classes, indicating an unbalanced growing stock. The results show that the utilization percentage is much higher in Austria (88%) than in Japan (53%). Therefore, the Japanese forest sector has a high potential to increase the harvest of wood. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]