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This study described the implementation of STEM-based science learning and performance assessment to the improvement of students' thinking skills in Aceh, Indonesia. The purposive sampling technique was employed in this descriptive research. The respondents were 300 students at grade 11th academic year 2019/2020, representing five public high schools in Aceh, Indonesia. The instruments used to measure the effectiveness of the implementation of STEM-based science learning were the rubric of habits of mind, observation sheets of performance assessments, and questionnaires. The finding presented the implementation of STEM-based science learning was able to habituate and develop students' habits of mind with an average score of 0.71 which included into high category. The average value of the overall STEM-based science learning implementation for the formation of habits of mind is 95.98% which categorized as good. It can be concluded that there is the success of researchers in implementing STEM-based science learning to form students' habits of mind.

The aim of this research is to analyze anxiety, knowledge, and belief toward e-learning acceptance, especially by science teachers in high schools in Aceh, Indonesia. About 117 teachers were randomly selected for this study. A questionnaire was used to collect data, and analyzed using the Likert scale. The results indicate that most teachers view the use of e-learning in teaching science to be positive. Despite the fact that only half of them are knowledgeable in the use of media and have concerns about some negative effects of e-learning on students, they still believed in the usefulness of e-learning in science education. Hence, more related research is recommended to further corroborate the findings of this study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the sense of running qualified teaching and learning, teacher education institutions place their student teachers at schools to experience real teaching practices through the internship program. This study aims to give a comprehensive portrait of problems the student teachers of English have when they develop ELT materials and how the problems vary according to different areas. The present study applied qualitative method. It utilized survey as data collection technique. Twenty-five student teachers are recruited as participants. Having conducted the survey, the results showed that most student teachers have several problems in developing ELT materials during internship program. The biggest problem lies on developing material for practicing grammar elements (2.98 level of difficulty). The participants simply felt it easy to develop material for grading and recycling, and supporting materials with ranging from 3.22 and 3.10 level of difficulty. The following problem lies on how the material promotes the development of language skills and communicative abilities. Overall, the present study indicates that the student teachers are still lacking of grounded concepts on what and how to develop ELT materials that fit to students’ needs.

We investigated serum and saliva concentrations of matrix metalloproteinases, MMP-8, MMP-9, and MMP-13, and their tissue inhibitor TIMP-1, in a group of patients with and without periodontitis from Sweden. The hypothesis was that these biomarkers are higher in the periodontitis patients. Ninety patients participated in this cross-sectional study. Fifty-one patients had periodontitis whereas 39 were periodontally healthy. Saliva and serum samples were analyzed with immunofluorometric, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and western blot. Results were statistically analyzed with independent t test, Mann-Whitney U test, Bonferroni corrections, and regression analyses. MMP-13 was not detected in serum, but in saliva, higher values were found among the periodontally healthy compared with periodontitis subjects (0.32 ± 0.26 vs. 0.21 ± 0.23 ng/ml, p < .05). Female gender and clinical attachment loss were the explanatory factors for higher salivary MMP-13 values with odds ratio 3.08 (95% confidence interval [1.17, 8.11]) and 3.57 (95% confidence interval [1.08, 11.82]), respectively. No statistically significant differences between groups were found in serum and saliva values of MMP-8, MMP-9, and TIMP-1. Contrary to our hypothesis, no statistically significant differences between patients with and without periodontitis were seen in MMP-8, MMP-9, and TIMP-1 values. However, higher MMP-13 concentrations in saliva were associated with female gender and higher clinical attachment loss. Metabolism of MMP-13 may thus have some gender implications in periodontitis.

Purpose: This study evaluated the discriminatory power of salivary transcriptomic and proteomic biomarkers in distinguishing oral squamous cell carcinoma cases from controls and potentially malignant oral disorders (PMOD)., Experimental Design: A total of 180 samples (60 OSCC patients, 60 controls, and 60 PMOD patients) were used in the study. Seven transcriptomic markers (IL8, IL1β, SAT1, OAZ1, DUSP1, S100P, and H3F3A) were measured using qPCR, and two proteomic markers (IL8 and IL1β) were evaluated by ELISA., Results: Among 7 transcriptomic markers, transcript level of DUSP1 was significantly lower in OSCC patients than in controls and PMOD patients. Between the proteomic markers, the protein concentration of IL8 and IL1β was significantly higher in OSCC patients than controls and dysplasia patients. Univariate fractional polynomial (FP) models revealed that salivary IL8 protein (IL8p) has the highest AUC value between OSCC patients and controls (0.74) and between OSCC and PMOD patients (0.72). Applying a 2-marker FP model, salivary IL8p combined with IL1β gave the best AUC value for discrimination between OSCC patients and controls, as well as the IL8p combined with H3F3A mRNA, which gave the best AUC value for discrimination between OSCC and PMOD patients. Multivariate models analysis combining salivary analytes and risk factor exposure related to oral carcinogenesis formed the best combinatory variables for differentiation between OSCC versus PMOL (AUC = 0.80), OSCC versus controls (AUC = 0.87), and PMOD versus controls (AUC = 0.78)., Conclusions: The combination of transcriptomic and proteomic salivary markers is of great value for oral cancer detection and differentiation from PMOD patients and controls. Clin Cancer Res; 22(13); 3340-7. ©2016 AACR., (©2016 American Association for Cancer Research.)

The stabilization and processing of salivary transcriptome and proteome biomarkers is a critical challenge due to the ubiquitous nature of nucleases and proteases as well as the inherent instability of these biomarkers. Furthermore, extension of salivary transcriptome and proteome analysis to point-of-care and remote sites requires the availability of self-administered ambient temperature collection and storage tools. To address these challenges, a self-contained whole saliva collection and extraction system, RNAPro•SAL, has been developed that provides rapid ambient temperature collection along with concurrent processing and stabilization of extracellular RNA (exRNA) and proteins. The system was compared to the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) standard clinical collection process (standard operating procedure, SOP). Both systems measured total RNA and protein, and exRNA IL-8, glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH), β-actin and ribosomal protein S9 (RPS9) by qPCR. Proteome analysis was measured by EIA analysis of interleukin-8 (IL-8), and β-actin, as well as total protein. Over 97% of viable cells were removed by both methods. The system compared favorably to the labor-intensive clinical SOP, which requires low-temperature collection and isolation, yielding samples with similar protein and exRNA recovery and stability.