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The purpose of this research was to explore gender differences and cultural differences in school motivation among students from eight culturally diverse groups from Western and non-Western societies. The selected groups come from Hong Kong, the Philippines, Singapore, Australia, the Netherlands, and Qatar. More than 10,000 secondary school students reported their mastery, performance, social, and extrinsic motivation. Results showed (very) small to moderately large gender differences, which were largely in line with prior research in Western societies. Moreover, significant differences in school motivation across the eight cultural groups were found, however, only the Qatari sample strongly deviated from the other samples. In all cultural groups, females had slightly higher scores on mastery motivation and social motivation (except for Qatari students), and in several Western and non-Western samples, males had slightly higher scores on performance motivation. Gender differences in extrinsic motivation were less straightforward.

This study investigated the degree to which teacher developed curriculum was aligned with the national standards in Qatar. Three sources of data included teacher response to a questionnaire, teacher interviews and expert rating of the alignment of teacher-developed materials with curriculum standards. A survey and interview questions measured teacher roles and methods in developing the curriculum. Expert ratings measured the degree of alignment of objectives, activities, lesson elements and assessment with the standards. Results indicated that the objectives of units and lessons in each of the four subject areas Arabic, English, mathematics and science, closely aligned with tasks and artifacts. These elements of instruction also showed satisfactory alignment in terms of content, scope, developmental level, and cognitive level with the standards. Assessments, however, showed a serious lack of alignment with the standards in terms of scope and developmental level, especially in the cognitive level alignments in each of the four subject areas. Teachers also reported that developing curriculum, in addition to other school related activities, has generally overloaded teachers. This study has significance in terms of professional development needs and policy decisions in Qatar and similar contexts, especially those engaged in education reform.

This paper evaluates an extracurricular reading activity in Qatari schools. The paper presents a two-month extracurricular reading program designed for fourth grade students. The methodology used triangulation of the data to analyze, in detail, the students' primary perceptions towards reading, teacher self-efficacy, teacher instructional behavior and home literacy measures. The program was implemented in four randomly selected schools. The reading program was announced to each school, and students in the four schools were asked whether they wished to enroll contingent upon receiving parental consent. There were 248 students in the treatment group (students enrolled in the English and Arabic reading program), and 176 students were recruited for the control group (not enrolled in the reading program). The main design was a randomized subjects pretest-posttest control group design and analytical split-plot analysis of variance (ANOVA) design. The findings of this study suggested that students in the reading program demonstrated greater interest in reading than those who did not enroll in the reading program, even when factoring out the effects of parents and home environments. The extracurricular program was significant to the extent that it has improved students' reading habits. An increase in breadth and depth of such programs shall increase language literacy and numeracy in schools and can improve the school culture towards a more student-teacher interactions and engaging activities.

The study focused on the effects of basic counseling skills program, such as listening, understanding, respecting, and empathizing, to elementary school teachers in Qatar. Through a three-hour intervention program, the authors used a self-reported questionnaire, interview questions and classroom observations to examine changes in how preschool teachers' dealt with students' in the classroom. Our findings suggest basic counseling skills had an impact on teachers as it encouraged them to understand terms such as "counseling," which basic counseling skills had allowed teachers to improve the quality of students-teacher relationships and their relationships with others. Teachers became aware of their practices as reflective practitioners to improve their practice.

In an attempt to enhance teacher and student performance in school, a learning management system (LMS) known as Knowledge-Net (K-Net) was introduced in Qatari independent schools. (All public schools in Qatar have transformed to independent schools; the independent schools model is similar to the charter school system in North America.) An LMS is a tool that organizes and regulates classroom administrative tasks, supports teachers and students in the teaching and learning process, and informs parents of their children's progress and school activities. Despite the benefits of the LMS, research studies indicate that its use by students has been limited because of a number of "manipulative" and "non-manipulative factors" that can influence behavior. This study explores the factors that impact student use of the LMS K-Net in Qatari independent schools. Quantitative data were collected through a questionnaire that was administered to students in 37 schools. A total of 1,376 students responded to the questionnaire. Semi-structured interviews were used to collect qualitative data that helped to confirm the results of the quantitative data and to provide additional insight on students' perspectives regarding the use of the LMS. The results point to a strong relation between ICT knowledge and LMS usage. They suggest that the more ICT knowledge students have, the less prone they are to using the LMS. Attitudinal barriers were not predictive of usage. Student usage was strongly correlated to teacher and parent usage. This study is informative in evaluating LMS usage in Qatari schools. (Contains 5 tables.)

Recent scholarship on motherhood has tried to trouble the idea that mothering is a set of instinctive "natural" behaviors that all women are born knowing, positing it rather as a set of fundamentally cultural practices, enacted within social and political contexts and intimately related to thinking about citizenship, responsibility, and human development. In this article, the authors draw from a year-long study of motherhood in the Arabian Gulf nation of Qatar to support those efforts. Approximately, 280 women completed a survey regarding their perceptions of motherhood and follow-up in-depth qualitative interviews were conducted with 30 participants. A large number of respondents indicated that they employed domestic helpers to help with their children. Although domestic help was common, most of the "intimate" tasks involved in raising children, such as bathing, toileting, and putting children to bed were carried out by the mothers themselves. As many participants had large families (about half of the women surveyed had at least four children living with them), mothers often expressed a strong sense of being overwhelmed, but at the same time, welcoming their responsibilities as God-given. The authors suggest that as the nation of Qatar reconstructs itself, notions of families are also being reconstructed; however, women are being disproportionately being charged with the responsibility to create the "perfect" family.

Until the late 1990s, Qatar's educational system used the intrinsic-nationalistic and cultural traditions of Arabic schools. The Qatari leadership and stakeholder was outdated; hence, they approached the RAND Corporation to examine and analyze the existing educational system and recommend options for building a new educational system. The RAND assessment study concluded that the country's education system was rigid and lacked standards and international benchmarks. Consequently, this led to the reform in which a system of Independent Schools was established, new curriculum standards were set, and teacher and leadership professional development were enhanced to find the most effective systems for Qatari students to succeed along international and particularly Western benchmarks. The reform imputed by key principles of autonomy, accountability, variety and choice. Post-reform evaluation suggests that the system is still far from being what it should be. New teacher development initiatives have stressed on improving professional development for teachers through licensing and increased professional development programs. The present schooling is markedly different from what was presented in the reform. This article gives a brief historical preface of the educational system in Qatar and discusses the reform in terms of its future implications on teacher development in the K-12 educational system.

This study investigated the relation between motivational goals and university intentions, school valuing and school achievement. The premise of this study is that motivational goals play a key role in academic values and achievement. Confirmatory factor analysis was conducted to establish the construct validity of the motivational measures drawn from the Inventory of School Motivation (ISM): mastery (effort and task), performance (competition and social power), social solidarity (social concern and affiliation), extrinsic (praise and token). A set of eight regression analyses was conducted to examine the relations among these eight motivational measures, future goals to attend college, the value of school and six school subjects. Eight regression equations revealed that effort and task were the most significant predictors of the dependent variables of university intention, valuing school and school achievement scores. Students in Qatar exhibited "effort and task" in goal motivation in relation to students' beliefs regarding future academic goals and achievement scores in school subjects. As Qatar is a highly gender-segregated society, analyses were also conducted by gender.

Qatar initiated a K-12 national educational reform in 2001. However, there is limited information on the instructional practices of the teachers in the reform schools. This project was an observational study of classrooms with a stratified random sample of the first six cohorts of reform schools. Specifically, 156 classrooms were observed in 29 reform schools. Instructional differences were noted in schools with different gender of students and were moderated by school level. Implications of findings were discussed pertaining to implementation of the Qatar national reform and professional development needs of teachers.

Today, academics are more transient, working outside their home countries, than at any other time in the history of academics especially in the Arab World were there is great demand for faculty members educated in Western' culture and academia. However, many of these professors face considerable social, professional and academic challenges in teaching and research. This paper presents the voices of twenty expatriate professors (EPs) as they describe their experiences and conflicts they face teaching in GCC universities and how this impacts their identities as professors. Various identities and strategies that EPs use in their daily work and lives are described and discussed.

This research examines the considerations of responsible Artificial Intelligence in the deployment of AI-based COVID-19 digital proximity tracking and tracing applications in two countries; the State of Qatar and the United Kingdom. Based on the alignment level analysis with the Good AI Society's framework and sentiment analysis of official tweets, the diagnostic analysis resulted in contrastive findings for the two applications. While the application EHTERAZ (Arabic for precaution) in Qatar has fallen short in adhering to the responsible AI requirements, it has contributed significantly to controlling the pandemic. On the other hand, the UK's NHS COVID-19 application has exhibited limited success in fighting the virus despite relatively abiding by these requirements. This underlines the need for obtaining a practical and contextual view for a comprehensive discourse on responsible AI in healthcare. Thereby offering necessary guidance for striking a balance between responsible AI requirements and managing pressures towards fighting the pandemic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Accountability systems in higher education ensure that academic programs meet learning outcomes and address student cognitive and affective development. The learning outcome assessment is one of the most important elements to enhance and assure the quality of programs. In this paper, we present a "tour" of how an assessment cycle is performed in a national/public university in Qatar. The study draws on "good" practices and how a higher education institution systemizes the process of assessing learning. The approach demonstrates how learning is connected to program objectives and the curriculum through a rational, logical, conceptual, consensual, and interpretable process. Employing specification tables known as curriculum and assessment plan matrices, with tools being assessments and rubrics, learning outcomes measures can be reached. The approach as well as system calls for an institutional structure and organization which place responsibilities on all stakeholders involved in academic programs delivery. The futuristic approach and practice posit a reconceptualization of how students will be assessed, more likely a paradigm shift necessitating a change in practice and trend in which students' success (achievement) can be based on the learning outcomes attained. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 2001, the Government of Qatar began a comprehensive education reform (Education for a New Era) based on RAND's recommendations and options for building an educational system that would meet the country's changing needs. Nine years later, Qatar's educational landscape has significantly changed. Among these changes is the introduction of Professional Standards for teacher and school leaders and Qatar's first system for the registration and licensing of teachers and school leaders that are directly linked to the professional standards. This study seeks to analyze school leaders' perspectives regarding the Qatar National Professional Standards for Teachers and School Leaders and the recently introduced accompanying licensure system. The study reports results from questionnaires addressed to 74 school leaders. These findings illuminate problematic issues and indicate that these policies use ambiguous terminology and procedures, ignore local educators' input, and provide unrealistic expectations of society, lack consistency and created resistance on the part of educators. Discussion is provided that centers on the implications of importing educational products and the need to take into account the local culture in implementing these products.

In light of nationally mandated educational changes in Qatar, this study investigates in-service teachers' perceptions of professional development (PD). The aims are to identify challenges facing teachers' PD. The respondents were 40 in-service teachers from two schools in Doha, Qatar, who had received PD connected with national educational reforms. They supplied data through questionnaires, interviews and concept maps indicating their perceptions of mandated PD. Generally, they expressed a belief in the importance of PD and its role in the improvement of teaching practice, motivation and communication. However, the findings revealed, among other things, that they had only a rudimentary understanding of PD and lacked the awareness that PD evoked any sense of personal growth, collaboration and self-reflection. The implications of the findings are discussed.

This study attempts to address the challenges of students in higher education in Qatar. The study draws on student perceptions, beliefs, outlook, and context; we approach the study through grounded means by posing leading interview questions with the aim of exploring and probing. The approach is grounded in that no specific theory drives the questions; rather, the responses from the interview often require interpretation through theory to justify the findings. The sample comprised 35 students who were interviewed through probing and questioning techniques. The questions led to converging responses, which were segregated into themes. A large majority of students felt advising was absent or mismanaged, while some also were of the view that schools did not prepare them to enjoy the benefits of extracurricular activities; many students further viewed English or the Foundation Program (preparatory year's program) a barrier to their continuation in higher education. The most striking result was the apparent relationship between advising and student preparation in secondary school. Schools in Qatar and particularly independent schools (public schools) assign only a small role to advising and inducing strategies that reflect independence and any future anticipatory approaches to link expectations of higher education with support and guidance systems in secondary school. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: In Qataris, a population characterized by a small size and a high rate of consanguinity, between two-thirds to three-quarters of adults are overweight or obese. We investigated the relevance of 23 obesity-related loci in the Qatari population. Methods: Eight-hundred-four individuals assessed to be third generation Qataris were included in the study and assigned to 3 groups according to their body mass index (BMI): 190 lean (BMI < 25 kg/m²); 131 overweight (25 kg/m² ≤ BMI < 30 kg/m²) and 483 obese (BMI ≥ 30 kg/m²). Genomic DNA was isolated from peripheral blood and genotyped by TaqMan. Results: Two loci significantly associated with obesity in Qataris: the TFAP2B variation (rs987237) (A allele versus G allele: chi-square = 10.3; P = 0.0013) and GNPDA2 variation (rs10938397) (A allele versus G allele: chi-square = 6.15; P = 0.013). The TFAP2B GG genotype negatively associated with obesity (OR = 0.21; P = 0.0031). Conversely, the GNDPA2 GG homozygous genotype associated with higher risk of obesity in subjects of age < 32 years (P = 0.0358). Conclusion: We showed a different genetic profile associated with obesity in the Qatari population compared to Western populations. Studying the genetic background of Qataris is of primary importance as the etiology of a given disease might be population-specific. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many domestic servants live and work in Qatar. The domestic servants are asked to care for children in addition to the house work. The purpose of this study was to understand the relationship between domestic servants and children in Qatari homes and the mediation of this relationship by negative parenting styles. A set of questions was developed along three main themes: the affiliation of children to domestic servants, fear and anxiety and sharing of personal matters. Based on factor analysis, a measure of closeness of children to domestic servants was created. A set of endogenous and exogenous variables was used to predict this measured relation using a stepwise regression equation. The endogenous variables measured the parenting styles as perceived by the children. The exogenous variables measured the background information of the domestic servants. The main predictive variables were parents demeaning of children by their parents and the mother's lack of attention or presence as perceived by the children. The main exogenous variables of knowledge of language and years of employment were also strong predictors because the domestic servants may have worked a number of years in the homes, which made the children more easily attracted to the servants. Further studies must begin to address the impact of parenting on children's behavior. The pressures of home and child care have led to a number of suicides and psychological and traumatic experiences of exploitation and abuse among domestic servants. Policy makers must begin to address family management and family support issues and rights of domestic servants in custodial setting. Any future studies should address the conditions of domestic servants and children, those affected the most. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Today, academics are more transient, working outside their home countries, than at any other time in the history of academics especially in the Arab World were there is great demand for faculty members educated in Western' culture and academia. However, many of these professors face considerable social, professional and academic challenges in teaching and research. This paper presents the voices of twenty expatriate professors (EPs) as they describe their experiences and conflicts they face teaching in GCC universities and how this impacts their identities as professors. Various identities and strategies that EPs use in their daily work and lives are described and discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this essay, the authors use Foucauldian concepts to examine the State of Qatar's unprecedented educational reform, Education For a New Era. One of the key components of this comprehensive reform centers on the development of students' abilities to engage in critical and independent thought. Evoking Foucault's concepts of regime of truth and metanarrative, the article examines the seemingly contradictory relationship between the Qatari Regime of Truth and the development of students' critical thinking skills. The authors discuss the importance of embracing a language of possibility raising important educational issues and offering suggestions as to how educators might address these complex issues to increase the likelihood of the success of Education For a New Era. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to explore empirically the complexities of e-government implementation and diffusion from a developing country perspective. Design/methodology/approach - An empirical case study using an interview-based research agenda is adopted. After reviewing the extant literature on e-government, the paper first proposes a conceptual model, which is consequently used to explore empirically, within the State of Qatar, the key challenges influencing e-government implementation and diffusion from organisational, technological, social and political perspectives. Findings - The conceptual model proposed in this study offers a comprehensive overview of the implementation and diffusion challenges of e-government through identifying various factors associated with organisational, technological, social and political perspectives from the literature. Through adopting an empirical research strategy focusing on developing countries that are not in an advanced state of e-government development, this study offers a holistic view in understanding e-government implementation and diffusion complexities for the benefit of similar countries. Research limitations/implications - This research only focuses on exploring empirically the implementation and diffusion challenges facing e-government in one developing country and does not investigate how these challenges may influence citizens'' adoption of these services in that country or in a wider context. Practical implications - The conceptual model in this study offers practitioners, policy makers and researchers a comprehensive overview of the implementation and diffusion challenges of e-government projects, particularly in developing countries. The key findings of this study show that, irrespective of strong financial support and resources, governments must be prepared to tackle a number of challenges related to the complexity of e-government implementation and diffusion. In addition, the study indicates that better alignment of national ICT strategies with various local level e-government projects, clear legislation, implementation guidelines and standards are imperative for e-government success. Originality/value - The core contribution of this research adds to the growing body of knowledge concerning the implementation and diffusion of e-government in developing countries. In particular, the conceptual model formulated through the synthesis of extant literature offers researchers and practitioners a lens to better appreciate the key challenges that require consideration when implementing and diffusing e-government. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Disparities in the genetic risk of cancer among various ancestry groups and populations remain poorly defined. This challenge is even more acute for Middle Eastern populations, where the paucity of genomic data could affect the clinical potential of cancer genetic risk profiling. We used data from the phase 1 cohort of the Qatar Genome Programme to investigate genetic variation in cancer-susceptibility genes in the Qatari population.Methods: The Qatar Genome Programme generated high-coverage genome sequencing on DNA samples collected from 6142 native Qataris, stratified into six distinct ancestry groups: general Arab, Persian, Arabian Peninsula, Admixture Arab, African, and South Asian. In this population-based, cohort study, we evaluated the performance of polygenic risk scores for the most common cancers in Qatar (breast, prostate, and colorectal cancers). Polygenic risk scores were trained in The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) dataset, and their distributions were subsequently applied to the six different genetic ancestry groups of the Qatari population. Rare deleterious variants within 1218 cancer susceptibility genes were analysed, and their clinical pathogenicity was assessed by ClinVar and the CharGer computational tools.Findings: The cohort included in this study was recruited by the Qatar Biobank between Dec 11, 2012, and June 9, 2016. The initial dataset comprised 6218 cohort participants, and whole genome sequencing quality control filtering led to a final dataset of 6142 samples. Polygenic risk score analyses of the most common cancers in Qatar showed significant differences between the six ancestry groups (p<0·0001). Qataris with Arabian Peninsula ancestry showed the lowest polygenic risk score mean for colorectal cancer (-0·41), and those of African ancestry showed the highest average for prostate cancer (0·85). Cancer-gene rare variant analysis identified 76 Qataris (1·2% of 6142 individuals in the Qatar Genome Programme cohort) carrying ClinVar pathogenic or likely pathogenic variants in clinically actionable cancer genes. Variant analysis using CharGer identified 195 individuals carriers (3·17% of the cohort). Breast cancer pathogenic variants were over-represented in Qataris of Persian origin (22 [56·4%] of 39 BRCA1/BRCA2 variant carriers) and completely absent in those of Arabian Peninsula origin.Interpretation: We observed a high degree of heterogeneity for cancer predisposition genes and polygenic risk scores across ancestries in this population from Qatar. Stratification systems could be considered for the implementation of national cancer preventive medicine programmes.Funding: Qatar Foundation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to evaluate the incidence of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection on kidney transplant, mortality, and risk factors associated with infection acquisition and severe illness in kidney transplant recipients with COVID-19. Of 693 kidney transplant recipients who reported to our center, 249 were tested for COVID-19 by throat and nasal swab reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction. Of these, 43 recipients tested positive and 206 recipients tested negative. Among the 43 positive recipients, 9 were treated within an isolation facility, 25 were admitted to the hospital, and 9 were admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU). Risk factors associated with positive results and ICU admission were evaluated. COVID-19 was found in 6% of transplant recipients. Asian ethnicity (p =.003), history of hypertensive nephropathy (p =.01), AB blood group (P =.04), and higher tacrolimus trough levels (P =.007) were more frequent in the COVID-19 positive than in the COVID-19 negative group. ICU admission was more frequent in recipients presenting with fever, shortness of breath, and acute allograft dysfunction. Renal replacement therapy was required in 3 (7%) of 43 recipients, and mortality was reported in 1 (2.3%) recipient. Acute allograft dysfunction was an independent risk factor for severe COVID-19 (odds ratio, 93.7; 95% confidence interval, 2.37-3710.94; P =.02). Higher tacrolimus targets may be associated with COVID-19 development. Acute kidney injury during the COVID-19 course may be a sign of severe disease. Prognostication of COVID-19 severity in kidney transplant recipients is crucial for early recognition of critical illness and may ensure early intervention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]