Search

The study aimed to identify the reality of administrative governance and its role in achieving institutional excellence from the point of view of the teaching staff and employees at the Applied College for King Khalid University. The study adopted the descriptive analytical approach. The study sample consisted of 140 respondents. The questionnaire was used as a tool for data collection. The study aims to shed light on the understanding of the practice of rational management or what is termed as "administrative governance". It is of great importance in the world now, and there has been increased talk now about administrative governance and its role in improving performance and reaching institutional excellence. The results of the study indicated that the reality of administrative governance in the applied process for King Khalid University of Saudi Arabia was high, and the dimensions of governance came according to importance, institution foundations and effectiveness / efficiency / fairness, justice and disclosure (transparency). Performing their work in an appropriate manner. The employees of the college also maintain their commitment to the official working hours. They also do their best to perform their work in a correct and distinct manner. It was also found that there is a relationship between administrative governance and achieving institutional excellence from the point of view of the employees of the college, due to the difference in the variables (by gender), (Years of experience) and (type of job). The study came out with several recommendations, including: 1.The necessity of having a system to measure the extent of compliance with the standards necessary to work in the applied college. 2.The college is keen to disclose transparently about the possibility of wrong practices in it.

Objective To examine physical therapy scope of practice and to describe the barriers and facilitators for access to physical therapy services as reported by healthcare professionals in Saudi Arabia. Methods Ninety physical therapists from the 6 hospitals in the cities of Riyadh, Jeddah, and Dammam were surveyed by the cross-sectional questionnaire. The questionnaire was distributed through email invitation or in-person. The questionnaire was developed to determine the perceived barriers to direct access to physical therapy service among healthcare professionals. Results The present study had a response rate of 77.7% (70 out of 90 physical therapists). Majority of the participants were in the age group range of 21–30 years (41.4%) and 68.6% of the respondents’ highest educational qualification is a Baccalaureate degree. The gender distribution showed that the majority of the respondents were female (51.4%). More than a quarter of the participants had a clinical experience that ranges from 6 to 10 years. Majority of the participants were working in the city hospital (88.6%). Most of the participants strongly agreed or -agreed that the factors included in the questionnaire such as geographical accessibility, availability, affordability, and acceptability of services were barriers to provide access to physical therapy services in Saudi Arabia. Conclusions This study documents many of the perceived barriers for access to providing physical therapy services in Saudi Arabia such as geographical accessibility, availability, affordability, and acceptability of services. Furthermore, the identified barriers could be used as a framework by policymaker and the third party payment system in order to further improve access to physical therapy services in Saudi Arabia.

Given that mobile learning does not rely on a specific learning theory, it needs a theoretically established paradigm that can be effectively employed for mobile language learning. This study used a design-based research approach to test, extend, and redefine generic mobile learning design principles for mobile language learning. Current design principles of mobile learning were conceptualized and then employed in natural contexts to test their ecological validity, and a new framework was generated for conceptualizing instructional design principles for mobile language learning. The research design utilized iterative reflections and feedback from language learners to inform two iterations of mobile language learning designs. Throughout the two iterations, students and their teacher experienced the implementation of mobile instructional design principles into their learning task, reflected on their experience of implementation, and provided feedback to make adjustments to the design principles. Both students and the teacher collaborated on the design via face-to-face in-class discussions and outside class using Facebook and mobile phones. Students' reflections and feedback were obtained through pre-task, during-task, and post-task focus-group interviews; stimulated recall sessions; and the analysis of students' Facebook interactions. The study illustrated the benefits of contextualizing language learning using mobile phones and Facebook. In addition, it provided a deeper understanding of mobile instructional design and evidence, feedback, and guidance for both language teachers and mobile instructional designers.

In order to understand the influence of mobile social media vs. formal learning platforms on creating effective student-student and teacher-student communication channels and linguistic outputs, this study was conducted. Using a qualitative approach, a number of 30 English language university teachers were interviewed. Evidence from their mobile and non-mobile interaction with their students was analyzed to support data from the interviews. The study evaluates the potential of both formal and informal communication mediums to maintain student-centered language learning experience. The study concludes that teachers still need to be aware of the potential of mobile technology and social media for language learning, and that there was a tendency among some teachers to implement formal technology tools for their teaching.

The harmonious shade matching of restorations with adjacent natural teeth is a prerequisite for a successful esthetic restoration. Color is a combined effect of the physical properties of an object, the light source, and the perception of the observer. The interpretation of color is influenced by both the physiological and psychological health of an individual. It is critical to understand the influence of an individual's psychological state on the shade selection procedure to achieve better shade matching and post-treatment patient counseling. The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of personality on tooth shade selection capability.Two porcelain fused to metal (PFM) discs were fabricated. A reference shade was determined using a spectrophotometer (Vita Easyshade, Vita). The personalities of volunteers were identified using a Myers- Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) questionnaire. The volunteers visually identified the shade of the two PFM discs under a controlled light source. The mean color difference was determined between the visual and the spectrophotometer values. The data thus obtained was statistically analyzed with Kruskal-Wallis and post-hoc comparison tests to ascertain the difference between the groups.The groups that performed better in tooth shade selection were ENTJ (2.923 ± 2.36), ISTJ (3.086 ± 2.56), ENFJ (3.197 ± 2.936), and ESTJ (3.431± 2.78). The groups INTP (9.383 ± 3.30), ISTP (9.133 ± 3.44), ISFP (8.737 ± 2.81), and INTJ (8.480 ± 3.35) showed poor tooth shade selection ability. The Kruskal- Wallis test showed lower mean rank for group ENTJ (89.75), followed by ISTJ (92.25), and ENFJ (94.80).Within the limitations of this study, it was concluded that there was a statistically significant difference between the different personalities with regard to tooth shade selection ability.

Most Arab countries started their own e-learning and mobile learning initiatives in order to cope with global integration of latest educational technologies. The high mobile phone penetration among Arabs as well as availability of good mobile infrastructure are all important factors that can enhance the shift to mobile learning. Moreover, several studies indicate positive attitudes and perceptions toward mobile learning at different Arab learning institutions. However, specific challenges may act as barriers to mobile learning in the Arab world. This chapter reviews some of the current mobile learning practices in the Arab world and provides an overview of challenges faced by Arab students, educators, and probably researchers. A description of future mobile learning in the Arab countries is then provided.

Social networking media are becoming more widespread as educational learning sites. For this reason, it is important to investigate how concerns about identity management can interfere with or influence the planned learning processes. This chapter engages initially with current research that investigates the use of social media with a particular focus on issues of identity management. It then provides a close analysis of identity management among student users of dedicated Facebook pages in tertiary education settings, as part of a larger study into contextual language learning and the educational potential of mobile technologies and social media. The study concludes that issues around publically sharing information with classmates (whom you might or might not “befriend” on social media sites), and the exposure that comes with sharing one’s background and potentially contentious political views are probably experienced by students worldwide.

Saudi Arabia is witnessing a unique and rapid economic growth as well as beyond-oil comprehensive investments relatively at most sectors including education and ICT. As part of the global pedagogical shift from teacher-centred approaches to more learner-centred approaches, Saudi educational system already started to adopt distance and mobile learning practices to support this shift. Saudi higher education sector, in particular, is investing heavily to promote teaching and learning practices that can cope with students’ needs in the digital age. Moreover, the rapid advancement as well as the enormous penetration of mobile technologies among Saudi youths have increased the interest in mobile learning. In addition, young population in Saudi Arabia are the biggest users of mobile social media in the Arab World. There are several challenges that accompanied this rapid development of economic and educational systems in Saudi Arabia. Special and unique ‘version’ of mobile learning was formed as a response to these challenges. This paper will review some of the challenges found in previous studies, and will highlight other challenges that are believed to have a major impact on mobile learning in Saudi Arabia. A picture of the future of mobile learning in Saudi Arabia will then be drawn.

We aimed to determine the factors that influence organ donation consent and refusal in Saudi Arabia and see if they are different from those reported elsewhere. By determining these, we hope to introduce strategies to enhance donor consent by families of deceased persons.We examined next-of-kin records of Saudi brain dead persons who had been approached for consent for donation during 1998. These same next of kin were approached in 2004 and asked to fill out a questionnaire examining demographics, awareness, and emotions regarding their decision to donate a family member's organ(s). In addition, data related to the deceased persons also were recorded.During 1998, 41 Saudi next of kin had been approached for permission to obtain organs from their deceased relatives. Of these, 16 consented and 25 did not. We obtained responses from all the consenters (group 1) and from 16 of the nonconsenters (group 2). The consenters were more educated; had positive feelings about donation and still do; and had keener knowledge regarding organ donation, religious standpoints about donation, and the results of transplantation.The results demonstrate that consent for donation depends on prior knowledge and awareness of the various aspects of organ donation. Public education methods used to encourage organ donation need review. We found no differences in economic status or age between consenters and nonconsenters. The relationship between the deceased person and the next of kin does not appear to play a role in determining consent or refusal. On the other hand, consent was less likely when death was caused by a motor vehicle accident than it when other factors led to death.