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In construction technology education (CTE), construction site tours play an essential role for undergraduate students to obtain familiarity with construction environments, combine content knowledge with practice, and develop their competencies to embrace construction innovations before entering the industry. Implementing real construction site visits for education purposes faces challenges in getting access to proper construction sites and ensuring the safety of visiting students. This study combined the application of Project-based learning (PBL), game-based learning (GBL), and deeper learning theories to develop TheProjectLive ePlatform for students to experience virtual site tours. In this platform, 360-degree panoramas were utilized to present the approximate complexity of construction sites and provide an immersive learning environment. The study evaluated the effects of the proposed virtual site tour approach through two years of implementation in a tertiary course: Introductory Construction Technology and Materials. The students' knowledge acquisition and learning experience when applying the ePlatform were well measured through in-class quizzes and questionnaire surveys, respectively. Based on the descriptive and statistical sources of evidence, the developed ePlatform for conducting the virtual construction site tour demonstrated its potential to effectively improve students' transferable knowledge acquisition. The results of two in-class quizzes designed to assess students' comprehension of content knowledge and their competency to solve practical problems showed that the average scores of students who experienced the virtual site tour were higher than students who learned via lecture notes. Specifically, the average scores of the former were 13.3% and 17.8% higher than the latter in the two quizzes, respectively. According to students' feedback, this case study research also provided suggestions to further improve the proposed virtual site tour approach in tertiary CTE, emphasizing the importance of clear content presentation as well as indicating the benefits of perceived helpfulness and well-designed game elements.

Medical personnel need to learn occupational safety knowledge in clinical workplaces, not only to ensure their own safety, but also to further ensure patients safety. Based on Human-centered artificial intelligence (HAI) technology, this study will provide HAI-based occupational safety training system for two training topics, Needle Stick/Sharps Injury (NSSI) prevention and appropriate Clinical Waste Management (CWM). From April 2018 to December 2021, this clinical occupational safety HAI training is used by 342 medical personnel (doctors and non-doctors). This study aims to investigate the learning performance and effectiveness including decreasing anxiety and increasing mastering level of users. This study shows that, for the first-time and feel-friendly users of this HAI training system, not only can they achieve significant learning improvement, but they can also effectively decrease their anxiety and increase their mastery level of clinical work safety knowledge and skill. In terms of learning performance and effectiveness, this study found that doctors are significantly benefited by the HAI training system in contrast to non-doctors.

The aim of this study was to determine the impacts of community service-learning (CSL) on the career adaptability, ethics, and social responsibility of Chinese undergraduate students studying business in Hong Kong. The CSL program was a credit-bearing program lasting two to three months (not less than 80 service hours). In a pre-test-post-test experimental design, students who enrolled in the class were the experimental group (n = 147; 67 male, 80 female) and students who did not enroll in the class were the control group (n = 104; 47 male, 57 female). The students completed the Career Adapt-Abilities Scale (CAAS) China Form and the Perceived Role of Ethics and Social Responsibility Scale (PRESOR) before and after the CSL program. At pre-test there were no significant differences between the two groups in CAAS or PRESOR scores. However, at post-test, mixed Group x Time ANOVAs showed that students in the experimental group had greater increases in career adaptability (including concern, control, curiosity, and confidence) and perceived role of ethics and social responsibility (including stockholder and stakeholder view), than those in the control group. The results show that CSL has positive impacts on students' career adaptability, ethics, and social responsibility.

This study of tertiary students in Hong Kong compared the association between spiritual health and psychological health, and the prevalence of severe symptoms of psychological distress, before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Cross-sectional data were collected in two samples of students aged 17-24 in 2018 (N = 500) and 2020 (N = 568). The participants were asked to complete the Spiritual Health and Life-Orientation Measure (SHALOM) to evaluate their spiritual health and the short form of the Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale-21 (DASS-21) to assess their emotional distress. Structural equation modelling showed that the statistically significant negative relationship between spiritual health and psychological distress in 2018 was still significant but weaker in the 2020 sample. In addition, whereas 0% of students suffered from extremely severe symptoms of depression, anxiety, and stress in 2018, the rates were 14.1%, 25.4%, and 8.8% respectively in 2020. The weakened role of spirituality in protecting psychological health under COVID-19, and the significantly higher rate of psychological health problems, are caused for concern, with implications for government, education systems, and students.

In the current research, we developed and validated a questionnaire to measure Chinese working adults' motivation to study accounting on a path of lifelong learning in Hong Kong, China. We conducted individual in-depth interviews with adult learners (n = 30) and professionals (n = 12) in study 1 and study 2. Qualitative analysis showed six specific common themes for Chinese working adults' motivation to learn accounting. Based on these results and the research literature, we developed a list of 31 provisional items for the questionnaire. In Study 3, we administered the provisional questionnaire to students (N = 426) from sub-degree, undergraduate, and graduate programs. These data were analyzed using quantitative analysis. Exploratory factor analysis showed a six-dimensional structure. Removal of redundant items resulted in a 17-item questionnaire. Confirmatory factor analysis provided evidence of the reliability and validity of this measure, which assesses six domains of adult learners' motivations for pursuing continuing education in accounting: development of knowledge and skills; family cohesion; reinforcement of social networking and communication; career development; enrichment of life; and self-development. This measure in the Chinese cultural context can be used for research purposes and for assessing students' motivation in accounting programs in Hong Kong.

Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is a common pregnancy disorder associated with an increased risk of pre-eclampsia and macrosomia. Recent research has shown that the buildup of excess lipids within the placental trophoblast impairs mitochondrial function. However, the exact lipids that impact the placental trophoblast and the underlying mechanism remain unclear. GDM cases and healthy controls were recruited at Kaohsiung Medical University Hospital. The placenta and cord blood were taken during birth. Confocal and electron microscopy were utilized to examine the morphology of the placenta and mitochondria. We determined the lipid composition using liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry in data-independent analysis mode (LC/MSE). In vitro studies were carried out on choriocarcinoma cells (JEG3) to investigate the mechanism of trophoblast mitochondrial dysfunction. Results showed that the GDM placenta was distinguished by increased syncytial knots, chorangiosis, lectin-like oxidized low-density lipoprotein (LDL) receptor-1 (LOX-1) overexpression, and mitochondrial dysfunction. Lysophosphatidylcholine (LPC) 16:0 was significantly elevated in the cord blood LDL of GDM patients. In vitro, we demonstrated that LPC dose-dependently disrupts mitochondrial function by increasing reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels and HIF-1α signaling. In conclusion, highly elevated LPC in cord blood plays a pivotal role in GDM, contributing to trophoblast impairment and pregnancy complications.

Background: Post-acute sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 infection (PASC) affects patients after recovering from acute coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). This study investigates the impact of SARS-CoV-2 vaccination on PASC symptoms in children in Taiwan during the Omicron pandemic. Methods: We enrolled children under 18 years with PASC symptoms persisting for more than 4 weeks. Data collected included demographics, clinical information, vaccination status, and symptom persistence. We used logistic regression models to compare symptoms in the acute and post-COVID-19 phases and to assess the association between vaccination and these symptoms. Results: Among 500 PASC children, 292 (58.4%) were vaccinated, 282 (52.8%) were male, and the mean (SD) age was 7.6 (4.6) years. Vaccinated individuals exhibited higher odds of experiencing symptoms in the previous acute phase, such as cough (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 1.57; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.02–2.42), rhinorrhea/nasal congestion (AOR = 1.74; 95% CI: 1.13–2.67), sneezing (AOR = 1.68; 95% CI: 1.02–2.76), sputum production (AOR = 1.91; 95% CI: 1.15–3.19), headache/dizziness (AOR = 1.73; 95% CI: 1.04–2.87), and muscle soreness (AOR = 2.33; 95% CI: 1.13–4.80). In contrast, there were lower odds of experiencing abdominal pain (AOR = 0.49; 95% CI: 0.25–0.94) and diarrhea (AOR = 0.37; 95% CI: 0.17–0.78) in children who had received vaccination during the post-COVID-19 phase. Conclusions: This study revealed clinical features and vaccination effects in PASC children in Taiwan. Vaccination may reduce some gastrointestinal symptoms in the post-COVID-19 phase.

This study investigates the perceptions of teaching competency in multicultural classrooms held by 421 teachers at 16 schools in Hong Kong. The aims of the study are (a) to use confirmatory factor analysis to validate a culturally appropriate version of the Multicultural Teaching Competency Scale (MTCS), (b) to assess three types of multicultural-teaching competency, and (c) to provide recommendations for teacher-education institutes and policy makers on developing effective training in multicultural education. The results indicate that a tripartite model assessing skills, knowledge, and relationships, the core features of multicultural-teaching competency as assessed by the MTCS from a Hong Kong sample. The teachers all identified multicultural-teaching relationships as the most important component of multicultural-teaching competency. Future researchers should examine the concurrent validity of the MTCS and the cultural contexts of multicultural-teaching relationships. Recommendations are also made for incorporating the Confucian beliefs of fairness, justice, and equity into multicultural classroom.