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The global discourse on sustainable development has surged in the past several years, prompting governments and corporations to reevaluate their strategies and plans in the context of the most pressing environmental, social, and governance (ESG) concerns. India, a significant player in the world economy, must decide whether to embrace sustainability as a strategic advantage or as a moral obligation. India's journey towards sustainable development is characterized by a unique combination of challenges and opportunities. The country's population diversity, entrepreneurial spirit, and growing interest in innovation, on the one hand, provide a conducive atmosphere for sustainable companies to take root and expand. The country faces many obstacles, including a lack of resources, inadequate infrastructure, and complex legal frameworks, which could make it challenging to successfully integrate sustainable concepts into its economic framework. Sustainable investing makes sure that companies are evaluated not just on their financial performance but also on their social benefits. It is crucial for investors to consider a variety of concerns, including social, political, and environmental ones. This study examines the current situation, challenges, opportunities, and potential outcomes of India's evolving sustainable investment environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Campus can be stressful. The transition away from home, the financial and academic pressure, conflicts with peers, and post-graduation planning can all contribute to stress among college students. When managing an increase in responsibilities and changes, many students might forget to contribute intentionally to their own self-care and well-being. Health and happiness go hand in hand. Since the body and mind are so connected, taking care of physical health is helpful for mental health. Making intentional healthy changes to our lifestyle can boost our wellness in meaningful ways. Good friends bring fun in the good times and support in the bad times. They share in your joys, celebrations, hardships, and sorrows, and help keep your happiness quotient and spirits high. Having meaningful connections with others significantly reduces stress, boosts self-confidence and a sense of belonging, and can even improve the immune system and physical health. Friends see, understand, and accept us for who we are. College is a time of immense personal growth. It's also a time where you can make genuine best friends. We all know that the obligations that come with being a college student can be difficult, so it's good to have a helping hand when you're dealing with that exhausting research paper or are having a bad day. We all need someone to lean on from time to time. And, students who make an effort to form relationships in college are more likely to succeed academically and graduate on time. This paper highlights what makes a campus a happy campus and what the universities and Higher Education Institutes should do to make it a better place to study and work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on assessing Covid-19 public health communication's effectiveness in rural India using mixed methodology, revealing limited awareness of symptoms and prevention measures. Topics include analyzing awareness changes over time, disparities across education and media access, and advocating for improved messaging strategies in rural areas.

Seaport inefficiencies have caused barriers to maritime operations especially operational disruption which ultimately adds to high-cost expenses, redundant waste, environmental pollution, and financial losses. As a result, operations, economical and environmental sustainability cannot be attained which will impact the complete maritime supply chain-related aspects. Therefore, a lean, agile, resilience, and green (LARG) performance model is proposed as a method to control these issues and improve the competitiveness and efficiency of seaports in the Indian marine context. LARG criteria in the seaport supply chain have been identified and analyzed using extensive literature reviews and expert assessments based on the Indian seaport supply chain perspective. This paper aims to identify and select the relative importance of each LARG performance model on basis of operational. economical. and environmental related performance of seaport supply chain using the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) technique by forty-three experts from various maritime domain experts in India. The research results indicate that operational performance has the highest contribution to seaport supply chain performance in Indian seaports followed by economical performance and environmental performance. This research study can also assist on related dimensions in seaport performance to enhance trade capabilities, operational efficiencies, and competitive advantages of the seaports in the maritime supply chain area. Furthermore, this LARG management tool can be applied in the global maritime context considering adaptability aspects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research seeks to explain shared challenges and opportunities in ending the high rate of child marriage in two South Asian countries, namely India and Bangladesh. Both countries are listed with the highest absolute numbers of child marriage in the world with 15.6 million and 4.4 million cases respectively recorded in 2019. By analyzing 20 papers published in the last 10 years, this study identifies a couple of similarities in factors that drive the prevalence of child marriage in India and Bangladesh. Studies pointing to the importance of government and non-government interventions as well as the efforts in improving education as strategies to combat the trend of underage marriage. The findings offer generalizability to the wider region and beyond. It is also important to note that some policy recommendations can be applicable to be implemented in countries with similar socioeconomic status. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Various internal and external determinants influence an education system. External determinants include language, demographics, geography, technology, politics, and financial and economic trends. Religion is also one of these external determinants that can influence an education system, as well as the education systems of the. The BRICS member countries consist of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. The BRICS member countries are one of the most organized and supportive international cooperation organizations that currently exist. Religion is considered a controversial and sensitive topic. This research aimed to determine how religion as an external determinant influences the education systems of the BRICS member countries. The study focused on the differences and similarities that can be identified based on religion as an external determinant of the various education systems in the BRICS member countries. The BRICS member countries were deliberately chosen for this study because each member state is considered a secular country in terms of religion, yet each member state treats religion differently in their country. The comparative method was used during this study to identify the best practices from the BRICS member countries. The interpretive research paradigm was used during this study using the qualitative research approach. The document analysis was used during the study to analyse the content of policies, legislation, articles, and government publications using content analysis to be able to identify themes to be able to perform the comparison between the different education systems of the BRICS member countries. The findings from this study are as follows: Religion as an external determinant of an education system does have a significant influence on the education systems of the various BRICS member countries. It is very important to observe and describe these findings from the context of the various member states. [For the complete Volume 20 proceedings, see ED622631.]

This research focused on the structure for teaching as a component of the education systems of South Africa and India. India and South Africa form part of the BRICS grouping, and BRICS have set out certain development goals about quality education. This qualitative interpretive study utilised relevant documents from India and South Africa that focused on the structure of teaching. The relevant documents were analysed by employing content analysis. The structure for teaching in the national education system organises and formulates the framework for education in the applicable countries. The study aimed to identify differences and similarities regarding the following elements of the structure for teaching. The elements foci were educational levels and the medium of instruction. One of the aims was to enhance the structure for teaching and learning in the BRICS countries. This research forms part of a larger BRICS project that compares the four components of the education systems and its elements as well as the internal and external determinates of the BRICS member states. It will contribute to a BRICS Education Encyclopaedia. [For the complete Volume 20 proceedings, see ED622631.]

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) were developed by the United Nations in 2015 to encompass universal respect for equality and non-discrimination regardless of race, gender, ethnicity, and cultural diversity. Since 2000, Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa (BRICS) have aligned with SDG 4.3 by developing higher education institutions (HEIs) which aims to "By 2030, ensure equal access for all women and men to affordable and quality technical, vocational and tertiary education, including university". This was intended to create equal opportunities and permit full realisation and prosperity of human rights and human dignity. This paper explores the effectiveness of managing racial integration in BRICS HEIs and illustrates remarkable progress in research and policy enactment. Particular attention is devoted to the period from the mid-2000s when evidence around the globe exposed the presence of many forms of violence, which inhibit management of effective racial integration. Based on case studies from selected BRICS countries (South Africa, Russia, and Brazil), this paper explores how the management of racial integration is being addressed within these contexts. [For the complete Volume 20 proceedings, see ED622631.]

Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) have become a prominent alternative source of learning for engineering and science students. This rising proclivity for MOOCs among students is based on multiple factors. Several studies have focused on factors that affect MOOCs usage, and most of them have used the Motivation theory. These studies have primarily focused on intrinsic motivations and tangible benefits of MOOCs. However, they have rarely examined why students spend on MOOCs. This paper examines why students are paying only for a certain courses on MOOCs. Our analysis uses the theory of consumption value (TCV) to explain this phenomenon. This study uses a survey method to investigate the students' pursuit of various courses on different MOOC platforms. The survey questionnaire elicited students to share information about MOOCs they have pursued, either free or paid. Our analysis reveals that personal motivations, negative classroom experiences and different learning reasons influence Indian students to pursue MOOCs. The expenditure analysis of students on MOOCs shows that students find Computer Science and Engineering (CSE) courses are more valuable than courses from any other discipline. Finally, we discuss the findings and interpret its implications with respect to future of learning in higher education. [For the full proceedings, see ED630948.]

This volume includes three sections of the 2022 NORDSCI international conference proceedings: (1) Education and Educational Research; (2) Language and Linguistics; and (3) Sociology and Healthcare. Education and Educational Research includes 7 papers covering a full spectrum of education, including history, sociology and economy of education, educational policy, strategy and technologies. The category covers also pedagogy and special education. Language and Linguistics includes 3 papers related to theoretical, literary and historical linguistics as well as stylistics and philology. Sociology and Healthcare includes 11 papers related to human society, social structures, and social change, healthcare systems and healthcare services. [Individual papers from the Education and Educational Research section of these proceedings are indexed in ERIC.]

Higher education equips people to inculcate the knowledge and skills they need to succeed in today's world. In India, National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 focuses on key reforms in higher education that make ready the next generation to flourish and succeed in the new digital age. So the higher education system should ensure the quality meets the same. In this regard, the system needs to instill in students the hope for their success. Despite this, some students are lacking it because of the prevailing educational practices. The pass percentage of undergraduate students is not so high. This means that higher education is lacking something. The present paper reports on a qualitative exploration study using sequential semi-structured interviews on the perceptions and attributions of academically failed undergraduate students from the Malappuram District of Kerala (N=10). Reasons for their academic failure attributed to the Teacher, Curricular, Transactional, Learner and Institutional related practices in their undergraduate programme were identified and suggestions there for improvement of higher education practices were derived. The recommendations by the young learners can be implemented to make the higher education system more learner-friendly and the findings here will help to enhance the curricular reforms and improve the excellence of higher education.

Timely analysis of trends and issues in TVE can help TVE stakeholders cope with rather than oppose them. Educating in the direction of the trend and resolving the important issues can maximize TVE's chance of success. The purpose of this paper was to identify trends and issues in the TVE in 10 Indo-Pacific countries. To achieve this purpose, a cross-country analysis with a word cloud analysis was employed. Consequently, the following nine trends were identified: (1) Accelerated adaptation to emerging technologies and the evolution of industry; (2) Improving or diversifying TVE accessibility and increasing the enrollment rate; (3) Enhancing alignment between the TVE and higher education sectors; (4) Promoting employment-based, work-based, or competency-based learning models; (5) Strengthening TVE educators'/trainers' practical skills, industrial working experience, or qualification requirements; (6) Gearing TVE with lifelong learning; (7) Encouraging employer or industry involvement in TVE; (8) Enhancing quality assurance and autonomy in the TVE system; and (9) Providing more career counseling or career exploration. In addition, the following six issues were identified: (1) TVE does not have the same positive public image as academic education; (2) Insufficiency of qualified TVE trainers/teachers; (3) Extreme challenges to teach hands-on skills online; (4) Weak involvement of social partners; (5) Fragmentation of TVET management; and (6) The continued lack of a well-constructed qualification framework and quality assurance system.

Assistive navigational technologies offer considerable promise to people who are blind. However, uptake of these technologies has traditionally been lower in low and middle income countries (LMICs), where levels of investment and maintenance in infrastructure differ from upper middle (UMICs) and high income countries (HICs). In this paper, we describe a qualitative study undertaken with 14 people who identify as legally-blind in an LMIC (India) to understand their experiences and strategies used when navigating within a metropolitan area. We highlight a set of scenarios impacting people who are blind within the context studied. These include crossing busy highways, navigating in the rainy season, collaborating with others to navigate at night, and using older public transportation. Our work brings attention to areas where the latest successful and well-publicized innovations in blind navigation may fall short when used in an Indian metropolitan area. We suggest that designers should be cognizant of the role that infrastructure (particularly its shortcomings) and environmental factors may play when navigating in LMICs such as India, with a view to designing assistive navigational technologies to better match the needs of users within these contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The framework of the education system can be defined as an effective educational environment where learners are prepared for different roles in society. It also contributes to providing for the learners' existing needs in society (Steyn et al., 2017, p. 15). The functioning of the education system can be influenced by different internal and external determinants (Steyn et al., 2017, p. 23). External determinants are external contextual factors that influence the education system such as geography, demography, and technology. In this research study, the emphasis was placed on technology as an external determinant of the education system. Technology is a very important external determinant because it influences the nature, content, and delivery of the educational programs and the curriculum. This research aimed to compare technology as an external determinant on the education systems of South Africa and India. [For the complete Volume 19 proceedings, see ED613922.]

Many discussions have taken place around the issue of the special needs of learners, special schools and inclusivity. UNESCO argues that inclusive education will accommodate all children, regardless of their physical, intellectual, social, emotional, linguistic or other conditions. This would include disabled and gifted children, street and working children, children from remote or nomadic populations, children from linguistic, ethnic or cultural minorities and children from other disadvantaged areas or groups. In inclusive education, the diverse needs of students would be recognised and responded to, accommodating different styles and rates of learning and ensuring quality education to all. However, globally, the views of countries on inclusivity differ, and setting up schools for learners with special needs is often preferred. The overall aim of this study is to give an overview of the perspectives of the BRICS countries regarding learners with special needs, special schools and inclusivity. A document analysis was done of both printed and electronic (computer-based and Internet-transmitted) material. The views of the BRICS countries on learners with special needs, special schools and inclusivity differ. [For the complete Volume 19 proceedings, see ED613922.]

The purpose of this paper is to present a comparative analysis on retail atmospherics - a case study of few selected branded retailers in India. Here the researcher has applied descriptive research design by constructing the structured questionnaire and subjected the questionnaire to 15 branded retail outlets at India, by visiting the outlets and inter-viewing the store manager for data collection. The collected data has been analysed using simple tools such as aver-ages, percentages and measurement scales and SPSS software were used to arrive at desired results. After the analy-sis it is found that due to the increase in disposable income of consumers, higher living standards and lifestyles, in-crease in double income families and dynamic change in likes and preferences of Indian consumers it has created a huge demand in the market for organised branded outlets and people are showing positive response towards their shopping experience but there is a huge scope of improvement in terms of retail atmospherics in near future. Also the originality/value was In today's world retail industry is booming to a greater extent there is a tough competition among competitors in the market and due to change in customers lifestyles, preferences, needs and wants retailers are finding it really challenging to attract customers hence they majorly look for ambient improvement which will help customers better shopping experience and made a analysis about how retail atmospherics may work or why it is important and how atmospherics can be implemented and what are its impact. Limitation of the study is that the study is restricted to 15 retail outlet in India. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An English teacher uses Skype to connect his high school students in an Indian village with international teachers to help them interact and converse with them in English. Each international teacher interacts with the students in English once for 40 minutes. The teacher does that daily, and each day an international guest teacher is from a different country. The aims of this study are to report the effects of this kind of intercultural exchange on students' English language skill development and cultural and global awareness. Results showed many benefits for the students: Listening and speaking skill enhancement, getting used to different native and non-native accents, improved pronunciation, and learning new vocabulary and grammatical structures. The students also learn names of countries, their location, flags, currency, cities, people, and exchange information and pictures about the local and target cultures. They learn about the foreign country's educational system, history, antiquities, food, art, traditions, and costumes. They are taken on virtual field trips to some historical places and museums. They learn about natural phenomena such as the northern lights. Sometimes they receive books, T-shirts and pens as gifts from foreign teachers. Shortcomings of such intercultural exchange and suggestions for improvement are given.

Homeschooling is an alternative method of teaching where parents take the responsibility of education and teach their children at home. This method of education is increasing worldwide. Various authorities around the world have taken note of this trend and recognized homeschooling as an alternative method of education in their legislation. The paper examines the educational policy and practice of homeschooling in the BRICS countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) through a literature study, with the aim of comparing the five countries to hit. It also looks at what the BRICS countries can learn from each other regarding homeschooling. Most of the BRICS countries have education law that does not provide for homeschooling. In the countries where homeownership is legal, there are strict requirements that must be met. These requirements place a heavy burden on home school parents. However, it is clear from the investigation that homeschooling is increasing in the BRICS countries legally and illegally. There are also other similarities arising from the study.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the relationship between the percentage of expenditure on public education of a country and the effect that each percentage mark has on the economic growth, and therefore Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of a country. The goal of this paper is to explore how investment in education impacts the economic growth of a country through the production of more skilled workers in the workforce. This paper aims to draw a comparison between the BRICS countries, and a representative number of the countries in the European Union to compare the investment, process and product delivered through these groupings. By looking at the production function from a Marxist perspective it is inevitable to notice that the error coefficient is significantly higher within the BRICS countries than in the European Union, which is reflected in the rate of economic growth. This paper would be of interest to economists, education policy makers, researchers, and scholars.

Research on special education has showed that the use of digital technology for the special need children can help to simplify their educational process. Intellectual disability (ID) is a kind of developmental disorder. ID children need some kind of scaffolding during their learning process. Hence, as part of our ongoing research to design and develop an AR-based educational technology (ET) tool for ID children, we have conducted 3 studies. This paper describes our findings from these studies. Initially we have conducted a pilot study to investigate how Augmented Reality (AR) based educational application would help the mild and moderate ID children in learning English alphabets. Then we have conducted a survey to know the concern of special teachers about technology tools for ID children. In the third study, we have visited some of the special schools in Kerala to know more about the issues pertaining to the ID children. The results of these 3 studies warrant the need to design and develop some kind of AR/VR application for educating ID children.

With a whole new array of technological developments in and around the world -- "The Technology means" are the strongest way to communicate and create long lasting impact on peoples' minds. As far as teachers are concerned technology enabled teaching environment can positively reinforce their teaching methodology. The internet which is an internetwork of networks and integrates Information and communication technologies, can be used as an effective means for communicating with the students. This study assesses the internet usage by teachers of high schools and higher secondary schools along thirteen different categories of uses of the internet for various teaching learning processes. The data was collected from three zones constituted by 14 districts in the Indian state named Kerala. The data was analysed using Friedman's two-way analysis of variance test to gauge the teachers ranking of thirteen popular uses of the Internet. The rankings revealed that the most popular use of the internet was accessing course content, followed by teaching of subjects, performance evaluations and communicating with subject experts. The least ranked categories of use were gaining computer skill, presentation, searching information and communicating with stakeholders like students, parents and teachers. These rankings are indicative of teacher preferences relating to the usage of Internet resources for various teaching learning activities. The results raise several concerns regarding the areas where there is potential for better use of the internet in the future. [For full proceedings, see ED621941.]

There is growing concern regarding the slower advancement of women in workplace across the globe. As per the recent reports, the percentage of women at leadership level in Fortune 500 companies is only 4.8% (Fortune 500 report, 2019) and 5.4% in S&P Companies (Catalyst, 2019). India which is one of the emerging economies of the world scores one of the lowest in terms of proportion of women leaders. The female labour participation in India is only 24% (World Bank Report, 2019). As per the ILO Report (2018), the percentage of women at entry level in India is 24% of which 19% reach the senior management level and only 2.7% hold the top leadership positions. The statistics clearly depicts that the problem is not only at the top where the percentage is low but the sudden decline once women reach the mid-career stage. A report by Mckinsey (2018) terms this as 'hollow middle' where significantly fewer women are left in the pipeline to gain the positions at the top. Thus, it becomes imperative to focus on the women at this stage as they are closer to taking up leadership roles however are unable to reach there as they hit the so-called 'glass ceiling7 which creates a barrier for further advancement. Using a qualitative study, the authors conducted in-depth interview of 30 mid-career women professionals across various sectors such as banking, financial services and information technology. Analysis of interviews revealed set of organisational barriers such as covert discriminatory practices, masculine work culture, lack of workplace flexibility, and the individual barriers like balancing work life responsibilities, lack of confidence. The paper includes recommendations to improve the percentage of women, overcome organizational and individual barriers in the workforce so that women leadership can be promoted at workplace. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Inclusive growth ensures that economic growth directly serves the welfare of lower income and excluded groups of society while focusing on profitability and financial success. Inclusive growth research in management and innovation studies has been supported by the UN, WEF, OECD and World Bank. Digital technologies, digital innovation, and digital entrepreneurship can be critical drivers of growth, productivity, and ultimately, poverty alleviation among marginalized and excluded communities. Yet, there are very few IS studies that utilize an inclusive growth lens and examine the role that digital platforms can play. This paper addresses this gap and adopts a single, revelatory case study approach to explain the process of creation and management of a platform-driven ecosystem and development of capabilities for inclusion of a community of waste collectors in India. The paper presents a process framework and contributes to both inclusive growth and platforms literature while also providing practitioner insights. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

India has the second highest percentage of mobile wallet adoption driven by availability of affordable smartphones and internet connectivity in the region. While there is interest, scarce work is done to study adoption of emerging technologies such as mobile wallets among the young adults. This research assumes that user segments exist, each with their own level of maturity and comfort and addresses the question “Are there segments which can be profiled?”. Data from a sample of 744 young adults (Millennials and Gen Z) was analyzed through cluster analysis and profiled using an analysis of variance (ANOVA). The results show that the three segments viz., Technology Enthusiasts (TE), Technology Skeptics (TS) and Technology Pragmatist (TP) were found to differ in terms of perception, attitude and intention behaviours as well as marital status, education, occupation and income levels. This study will help mobile wallet providers understand the user segments and customize their service offerings. Include your abstract here followed by the keywords as indicated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Commercial carsharing service using apps is a new paradigm shift in mobility sector and also emerging as an effective sustainable solution in reducing number of vehicles on roads. Of lately, carsharing has been promoted by Petroleum Conservation and Research Association (PCRA) through advertisements, but these energy-saving efforts are not proving to be much effective. Further, it has been found that these agencies have been able to communicate the benefits of shared mobility through various awareness programmes, but this awareness is yet to be converted in pro-carsharing behavior (Malodia & Singla, 2016). Under this backdrop, there is a need to understand the perception of the commuters towards using commercial carsharing service to predict their intention to use it in near future. Hence, the objective of the present study is to identify the important factors influencing intention to use commercial carsharing system in India. A total of 291 commuters from India participated in survey for the current study. Finding of the study established that social influence and perceived usefulness are the prime factors influencing attitude, which further influence commuters’ intention to use commercial carsharing. The research also suggests that perceived ease of use has weak positive relationship with attitude towards intention to use commercial carsharing service. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hospital related risk factors viewed as extreme difficulties signify critical risk to a hospitalized patient’s safety. Risk factors related to an orthopedic hospital are high in contrast to other hospitals. Here, we aim to level the key risk factors related to patients undergoing surgery. It will be helpful to hospital managers to enhance tactics to manage the efficiency of the hospital’s surgical process. Dissimilar factors related to patients undergoing surgery are recognized based on a literature survey as well as deliberations with experts in the hospital. We build a replica of risk factors influencing patient’s undergoing surgery using the Interpretive Structural Modeling (ISM) method. This method aids to determine the priority of the recognized risk factors. Also, a case empirical study in an orthopedic hospital in India is exhibited to show the proposed method and to reveal its consequences. Research discoveries signify that patient-clinical circumstances, surgical treatment time and use of imbeds get top priority in improving the efficiency of the hospital’s surgical process. The replica proposed is deliberated as being extremely valuable for hospital managers to realize and discriminate against critical risk factors for systematic judgments to improve the effectiveness of the hospital surgical processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Economic empowerment of women is one of the key policy objectives for most of countries worldwide. Increasingly, development institutions support self-employment as a manifestation of economic empowerment. While governments promote women entrepreneurship by providing financial assistance, skill development, vocational training, etc., they have not paid enough attention to entrepreneurship education in the early stages of curriculum. We address this critical gap in research and policy. Using Indian Human Development Survey (IHDS) Data, we find that women's self-employment peaks at moderate levels of education (grade 9th-12th) suggesting that policy intervention in terms of entrepreneurship education and awareness at that level can have significant returns in terms of women self-employment. Implications of our results on policy are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research on social determinants of health in India has focused largely on the independent influence of education, gender and region. This study advances knowledge on this topic by using an intersectionality framework to examine the combined effects of these three key social locators on the critical, as yet underexamined outcome of functional health of older adults. We use data from Wave 1 (2007-2010) of the Study of Global Ageing and Adult Health (SAGE) (N=7,150) to examine whether the effects of education on functional limitations differ by gender in six highly heterogenous regions of the country. Overall, the effects of education on functional limitations were substantially greater for men than women. Consistent with well-documented regional differences in economic development, cultural norms and practices, and political context, this relationship varied across locales. Our findings highlight the need to move beyond independent sources of heterogeneity in examining late life functional health in the global south. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, India has experienced heightened, yet locally variant, rates of social unrest. In light of this trend, shared with surrounding countries, we seek to answer the following question: Under what conditions do localities experience heightened protest counts? Specifically, to what extent is gender inequality related to the number of district-level protests? Our analysis examines the relationship between protests in India (2010-2012) and various gendered quality-of- life indicators related to employment, education, and mortality. Using district-level data (n=540) from multiple sources, we employ a series of negative-binomial regressions. Findings indicate the presence of strong linear and nonlinear dynamics: For example, districts reporting high female illiteracy, high female unemployment, and high child mortality experience exponentially higher protest counts. We link these findings to classic relative deprivation and contemporary grievance-based approaches used in social movements research and outline the implications of our findings for (non)governmental entities seeking to mitigate social unrest. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines changes in women's status in the household over the life course. Using nationally representative longitudinal data from the India Human Development Survey (IHDS), the study focuses on two key life course transitions: entry into childbearing and the cessation of childbearing through the adoption of permanent contraceptive methods (female sterilization). Becoming a mother was associated with increased spousal communication and physical mobility but had no effect on household financial decision-making. The cessation of childbearing was associated with a decline in restrictions on physical mobility, expanded control over household resources, and increased spousal communication. The findings illustrate the need for demographers to consider life cycle dimensions of women's social status and complicate our understanding of the direction of causality between women's status in the household and fertility behaviours. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The formation of cohesive political elite networks plays a crucial role in stabilizing democracy. Once formed, how and why do these networks evolve, and how do changes within them affect democratization processes? In this article, I synthesize Bourdieu's and network scholars' insights on networking practices along with qualitative and quantitative network data to study how and why the Indian political elite network changed during the 1971-75 period, eventually leading to the only period of authoritarianism in India, the Emergency period (1975-77). The general lesson to be learned from this study is that the political elite's authority reproduction strategies deeply influence their networks and, under certain circumstances, can have a seriously destabilizing effect on democracy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: We assess the feasibility of measuring awareness, knowledge and use of medical abortion in a general-interest mobile phone survey in India. Study Design: In 2018, we conducted a general-interest mobile phone survey with 3,455 married men and women in Bihar and Maharashtra, two of India's most populous states. We asked respondents about their knowledge of medical abortion, appropriate timing of the use of pills, and whether they (or their wife) had ever had a medical abortion. Results: Among men and women in Bihar and Maharashtra, one fifth to one third of respondents said that they had heard of medical abortion pills. In Bihar, men were more likely to report having heard of medical abortion. Of those who reported awareness, only about 10% knew the appropriate gestational age for medical abortion. Awareness of medical abortion was positively associated with education and with women's status within the household. Consistent with results from representative face-to-face surveys, reported use of abortion medication was low. Conclusion: Our findings demonstrate the acceptability of abortion-related questions in a general-interest mobile phone survey. Although medical abortion is likely widespread in India, reporting remains low. Experimentation with question wording or interviewer training could be a way to address the problem of underreporting of use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Household PV markets are expanding at a rapid pace in developing nations due to significant technology cost reductions achieved during the last decade as well as supporting governmental policies. However, the regulatory context of each country and the emergence of business models inside each market also play a significant role in this diffusion. This paper compares how Indian and Brazilian business models for residential PV market are being structured, either in the gridconnected or in the stand-alone PV markets. The upfront capital investment to purchase and install a PV system is still an obstacle for an average household in the two nations, and this affects business models. We compare features such as type of service, value proposition, revenue model, communication channels, costs and technologies, and discuss how the emerging business models are contributing to enhance access to electricity. Finally, we identify the main barriers for innovative models in each context, including third-party ownership, utility-owned and crowd-funding. We discuss how the current regulatory frameworks support or prevent such models to emerge in both household PV markets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Willful Default is a problem faced by lenders across the world. The willful default issue is broadly a part of Moral Hazard issue. Willful default issues originated in academic literatures a few decades ago, specifically referring to the Moral Hazards, however there are very few literatures specifically to measure the same at the level of lenders as well as receivers. The authors main objective of this paper is to study and analyze certain aspects related to willful default within the broad realm of moral hazard. Within the moral hazard and specifically within the willful default aspects the authors are focused on Non-Performing Assets (NPA) management and NPA related to willful default. There are many dimensions within Non-Performing Assets (NPA) management; one of the important and relevant aspects is willful defaulter aspect in the current situation in India. Some of the largest cheating/loan frauds across the globe have been detected through willful default mechanism. Despite the global recognition and importance given to the willful default mechanism India has had very little success stories. Given the prevalence of NPA management as well as the willful default related specifically to NPA management it has become an important aspect for Indian banks to develop and implement mechanisms that will not only identify but also enhance the operations and deny further access. The motivation for the authors to perform this study is to specifically focus on willful default by the Indian banks and also the Indian companies and compare these banks and companies to the corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities that these banks and companies are spending and focusing their social responsibility activities. The researchers performed a thorough study of literature reviews and found the gap specifically in the area of willful default and related these to Social Responsibility (CSR) within the Indian banks and the Indian companies. The researchers also found that there have been limited studies that have been investigated across the globe and compared to the Indian context with respect to the relationship of willful default and CSR. The authors performed an exhaustive overview and review of more than 100 research papers on the broad areas of willful default and found that there are limited studies that specifically analyze the banks and companies in India and compared them to their CSR activities. The authors sample comprises a total of 162 banks and 4000 companies. The 162 banks are both private and government owned from India. The total 162 banks are both listed and private banks that are across various industries and sectors and sub-sectors. The authors use the year 2014 to 2018 for the study. The authors have resorted to secondary sources of information for data. The secondary sources of data are from various reliable sources such as CMIE Prowess, RBI, CIBIL Websites, research papers, books, websites, annual reports and articles. The authors used analytical techniques. The paper contributes to the willful default literature as well as in CSR as it presents evidence with how willful defaulters are ethically irresponsible and trying to showcase their social responsibility in a developing country like India. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the dynamics of teamwork in a team-based Massive Open Online Course. The purpose of the study is to discover patterns and characteristics of the students in teams that completed the course. Many studies have revealed that a very small percentage of students complete Massive Open Online Courses. The percentage is even smaller in MOOCs that involve peer-assessment. This study aims to give conscious advice for future MOOC students on how to complete a team-based peer-assessed MOOC by studying the dynamics of successful teams. A qualitative research method was utilized in the study. Data were collected from observing the MOOC platform and conducting interviews with successful team members and team leaders. [For the full proceedings, see ED621557.]

This paper investigates learning related device usage of German and Indian students. For that purpose, an exploratory survey of students at the University of Hildesheim and the Symbiosis College of Arts and Commerce in Pune is executed. The aim of the research is to uncover basic patterns of overall device usage, studying behavior, employment of learning tools and assessment of e-learning. Collected data deliver a broad picture on students' needs with regard to e-learning support. Results show, students from Pune are engaged in e-learning more frequently than students from Hildesheim. For students from India, smartphones are the most important learning devices. For German students, laptops are more important. Although both groups are experienced in e-learning, the Indian students employ a wider range of resources. In addition, Indian students communicate more often with their peers and instructors via computer mediated communication channels than the Germans. Whereas German students talk about content related and organizational aspects of learning, Indians focus on content related topics when communicating with peers and instructors. [For the full proceedings, see ED621557.]

These proceedings contain the papers and posters of the International Conference on e-Learning (EL) 2019, which was organised by the International Association for Development of the Information Society and co-organised by the Instituto Superior de Engenharia do Porto, in Porto, Portugal, July 17-19, 2019. The EL 2019 conference aims to address the main issues of concern within e-Learning. This conference covers both technical as well as the non-technical aspects of e-Learning. The conference accepted submissions in the following seven main areas: (1) Organisational Strategy and Management Issues; (2) Technological Issues; (3) e-Learning Curriculum Development Issues; (4) Instructional Design Issues; (5) e-Learning Delivery Issues; (6) e-Learning Research Methods and Approaches; and (7) e-Skills and Information Literacy for Learning. [Individual papers are indexed in ERIC.]

A company, no matter its size if enters another country, it's bound to face few problems in the process of doing so. Nestles' road to India was not an easy one. Keeping in mind that till the early 1990's a very limited amount of goods were allowed to be imported into the country. This was due to the fact that the government had attempted to keep a closed economy. Nestle were present across different categories of most of which, it was unable to bring to the country. Since its revenue comes mainly from FMCG industry, it was also required to fulfill further formalities relating to testing and safety of the products. Whereas now in the new economy, it still isn't growing as expected. Nestle India provides less than 2% of the overall business. But with investments upwards of $500 million over the past few years, we can expect the earnings to increase. Also given the relaxed "EXIM LAWS" we can expect expansion into various other categories in the market. Also when a company looks to enter into other countries, It also faces a lot of infrastructural and cultural problems. India being a developing country, Nestle had a lot of infrastructural and cultural problems due to which it couldn't introduce all its goods in the country. Eg: Ice creams, Pet food (contains beef). The main objective of the present study was to assess the problems faced by Nestle while entering India. This paper gives an in-depth analysis of the same. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this paper is to analyze the use of online social networks as a medium for Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) disclosures. To this end, an analysis was performed of the messages posted by the top 200 public listed companies in the National Stock Exchange (NSE) in India. In addition, analysis was performed on the responses that they received on two of the most popular online social networks Instagram and Youtube. The results of the analysis of these data are explored to see which of the Indian listed companies are using social media networks and which of the social media networks are most frequently used. In addition, the goal of this paper is to investigate which corporates adopted the online social media more effective and communicated the same to the stakeholders. The study also explored how Indian companies communicate more frequently the non-CSR tasks and activities more than CSR activities using social media platforms like Instagram and Youtube. The study explored to find how rudimentary the adoption is. The study also shows how the Indian companies are transitioning and adopting these social media platforms is used for CSR disclosures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this paper is to analyze how luxury fashion brands are using social media network platforms. To this end, an analysis was performed of the messages, pictures and videos posted by the top 50 luxury brands in India and the responses that they received on one of the most popular online social networks, Instagram. The aim of the paper is to explore the results of the analysis of these data show how luxury fashion brands in India are using social media networks, which of the social media networks are most frequently used and if the social media usage differs based on brands country of origin. The findings show how this industry is still in its rudimentary phase of using digital technologies like social media networks and equally chaotic and unpredictable. The study also shows how the global luxury brands are transitioning and expanding into Indian markets and how these social media platforms are used for adoption. The study also explores to see which of the luxury brands use photos, posts and videos. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this paper is to analyze the use of online social networks as a medium for Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) disclosures. To this end, an analysis was performed of the messages posted by the top 500 public listed companies in the National Stock Exchange (NSE) in India. In addition, analysis was performed on the responses that they received on two of the most popular online social networks Facebook and Twitter. The results of the analysis of these data are explored to see which of the Indian listed companies are using social media networks and which of the social media networks are most frequently used. In addition, the goal of this paper is to investigate which corporates adopted the online social media more effective and communicated the same to the stakeholders. The study also explored how Indian companies communicate more frequently the non-CSR messages more than CSR messages. The study also explored if the companies are employing an informing strategy or an interacting strategy towards external publics. The findings show how this industry is chaotic and unpredictable. The study also shows how the Indian companies are transitioning and adopting these social media platforms is used for CSR disclosures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper focuses on the emergence of Citizen Journalism in a country like India where media is considered as the fourth pillar of democracy. It also explores how citizen journalism has contributed largely to the collection and dissemination of news by the mainstream media. Not only from urban areas, but even people from rural India have come forward to participate in this ongoing media revolution, in spite of facing issues like low or no internet connectivity, language barrier and many more. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education (AACE) is an international, non-profit educational organization. The Association's purpose is to advance the knowledge, theory, and quality of teaching and learning at all levels with information technology. "EdMedia + Innovate Learning: World Conference on Educational Media and Technology" took place in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, June 25-29, 2018. These proceedings contain 308 papers, including 14 award papers. The award papers cover topics such as Open Education Resources (OER) certification for higher education; a cooperative approach to the challenges of implementing e-assessments; developing an e-learning system for English conversation practice using speech recognition and artificial intelligence; the Learning Experience Technology Usability Design Framework; developing strategies for digital transformation in higher education; pre-service teachers' readiness to use Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in education; teacher development through technology in a short-term study abroad program; Austria's higher education e-learning landscape; a digitised educational application focused on the water cycle in nature carried out in a secondary school in Ireland; evaluative research on virtual and augmented reality for children; how children use computational thinking skills when they solve a problem using the Ozobot; a strategy to connect curricula with the digital world; the learning portfolio in higher education; and adult playfulness in simulation-based healthcare education. [For the 2017 proceedings, see ED605571.]