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The focus of this research was to investigate how school administrators in Turkey managed the crises caused by the COVID-19 outbreak, which was a deadly threat for humanity worldwide. The research questions guiding this study are: (1) Did schools have a crisis plan? (2) If yes, how was the plan implemented in a crisis situation?; (3) What kind of changes were made in the plans?; (4) What should administrators do in such crisis situations?; and (5) What was done in the COVID-19 outbreak? The research was conducted as a qualitative case study which involved 105 school administrators. Due to the pandemic conditions that hindered direct face-to-face interviews and interactions, data collection was carried out online via a Google drive form with open-ended questions. The findings demonstrated that there were two main headings as the basis for the research problems. The first was the existence of crisis planning by school administrators; the other was the status of implementation of these plans. Finally, how school administrators handled crisis management was pointed out.

The present cross-sectional study sought to explore the role of social support and self-esteem in alleviating the Covid-19 burdens among university students in a context characterized by political instability and conflict, such as the one of the Gaza Strip. Three hundred and fifteen university students in the Gaza Strip, 230 (73%) boys and 85 (27%) girls, compiled self-reported questionnaires (FCS-19, RSES, BSSS, ASS-14). We tested throughout stratified regression analysis the role of social support and self-esteem in influencing the relationship between fear of Covid-19 and academic stress. We expected social support and self-esteem to influence the association between the predictor (fear of Covid) and the outcome variable (academic stress). The findings showed that self-esteem was crucial in regulating the association between fear of COVID and academic stress. Social support did not. The more students perceived fear of the infection, the more they were at risk of displaying stress in their studies, while self-esteem might have regulated the sense of overload because of academic demands. The need to support students living in chronic warfare and political violence conditions, the necessity to promote social networks and potentiate their self-esteem during and beyond the pandemic outbreak emerged as urgent in the Gaza Strip.

The study aims at investigating the STEM faculty members' perspectives and challenges towards distance learning and virtual classes during COVID-19 outbreak. The results are compared with those of non-STEM faculty members from the same institution. Data collection was performed at the United Arab Emirates University in view of four demographic independent variables: Faculty Gender, Experience, Academic Rank, and Academic Track. The researchers adopted and implemented a questionnaire where its validity and reliability for collecting data have been verified. Mean, standard deviations, and one-way ANOVA tests were conducted. The results indicate that the overall of faculty members' perspectives towards distance learning and virtual classes and for both tracks (STEM, and humanities and social sciences) are Medium. The results do not show a significant difference at the level ([alpha] = 0.05) for the independent variables: gender, and experience. However, we observe significant differences for the academic track and academic rank. We notice some significant differences in favor of full professors and associate professors as compared to lecturers. We also observe some significant differences between STEM and non-STEM tracks in favor of the former one. The results show that the calculated means for the challenges in using distance learning and virtual classes for the STEM, and humanities and social sciences tracks are Weak. This indicates that there are no apparent challenges that hinder the effort in teaching. The results do not show a significant difference at the level ([alpha] = 0.05) for all independent variables: faculty gender, experience, academic rank, and academic track. The study concluded with few recommendations. The university should continue supporting the current efforts to provide all the requirements of teaching and learning via distance learning and virtual classes such as suitable infrastructure, internet, smart apps, and technical support. There is always a need for continuous updates of the teaching and learning platforms in line with ongoing development and training for instructors and students.

As a result of the advent of the COVID-19 outbreak, online assessments are being implemented in universities and schools worldwide. Nevertheless, regardless of the extensive use of online assessments, many researchers have proposed several barriers to the effective application of this form of examination in different language learning contexts. A combined qualitative and quantitative methodological approach was used to investigate 154 Iranian English language learners' opinions of the relative benefits of online examinations in terms of pedagogy, validity, reliability, affective factors, practicality, and security during the COVID-19 pandemic. To this end, an electronic questionnaire and semi-structured interviews were employed. This study identified online assessment as having significant benefits over traditional, paper-based examinations, comprising accessibility, using cutting-edge technology, providing immediate feedback, automated grading, creating a question bank, and long-term efficiency in terms of time, effort, and costs. Nevertheless, many challenges have been identified by students while successfully implementing online exams regarding validity and reliability, emotional and security issues.

ABSTRACT Aim To investigate the sleep quality and its influencing factors among nurses in hospitals in Zhejiang, China, during the first explosive COVID‐19 outbreak following the relaxation of prevention and control measures. Design A multicentre cross‐sectional study. Methods Between 10 January and 20 January 2023—approximately 1 month after the policy was loosened—a total of 573 nurses from tertiary and community hospitals in Zhejiang participated in an online, self‐administered survey. The participants were recruited using convenience sampling, and the survey was distributed via the WeChat platform. The survey included a general information form; the Self‐Rating Scale of Sleep (SRSS); the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale‐21 (DASS‐21); the Perceived Social Support Scale (PSSS); and the Brief Resilience Scale (BRS). Data analysis was conducted using SPSS version 26.0. Statistical methods employed included t‐tests, one‐way analysis of variance (ANOVA), chi‐square tests and Mann–Whitney U‐tests for comparisons between groups. Pearson correlation coefficients were calculated to analyse the relationship between the SRSS score and the DASS‐21, PSSS and BRS scores. A multiple linear stepwise regression analysis was conducted to determine the independent influencing factors of sleep quality. Results More than 90% of the nurses were infected with COVID‐19, and 60.6% had sleep disorders. The regression analysis revealed that anxiety, the BRS score, comorbidities, hospital grade, clinical front‐line, age and COVID‐19 infection independently predicted sleep quality. The scores for several SRSS items were higher than the Chinese norm, especially for the nurses in tertiary hospitals. Patient and Public Contribution No patient or public contribution.

Students' habits of mind (HoM) and disorienting dilemmas (DD) are challenging to investigate and have rarely been explored. Yet, in the past Covid-19 pandemic, students faced many academic and non-academic problems. For example, in Indonesia, 89 million parents lost their jobs, which influenced students' emotions in their learning process. This paper applied explanatory mixed methods to address students' HoM and DD in agriculture colleges in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. Two hundred and eleven students voluntarily participated in the online closed- and open-ended survey responses. The first quantitative data were analyzed using the Rasch model of application while Nvivo12 was used for the analysis of the latter. The quantitative data were focused on how agricultural English students perceived HoM; meanwhile, the qualitative data explored a catalyst and a life crisis under the students' DD. Then, the two research questions were comparatively discussed: (1) How do Agricultural students perceive their HoM and DD during learning English; and (2) What factors influence them in learning English? As illustrated in the Rasch map, the result showed that students were positively perceived HoM. The Pearson measure value was +1.13 logit, meaning that it showed the tendency of agree. However, some extreme findings were found from the person misfit. In terms of the students' DD during this Covid-19 pandemic, the data showed that most students were frustrated in joining the English online classes. Unclear directions from teachers were one of the problems that stimulate students' DD. From the perspective of HoM and DD, students were grouped into two when learning English in the pandemic: (1) those willing to improve their condition independently; and (2) those who did not care and had no initiative to find the solution.

The aim of this qualitative-case study was to determine the competencies that school administrators have during the COVID-19 process and the competencies they should have in the post-COVID-19 process according to the opinions of teachers. Using maximum diversity sampling method, the researcher selected 10 teachers working in Izmir in the 2021-2022 academic year. The obtained data by using a semi-structured interview form were analyzed through the content analysis method. Research findings show that administrators mainly carry out technical work and operations related to the smooth execution of the distance education during the COVID-19 process. It also reveals that the majority of administrators are successful in technical competencies that include knowledge and skills related to their field of expertise. Based on the research findings, it can be said that both in the COVID-19 process and in the post-COVID-19 process, administrators should improve themselves not only in technical competencies, but also in humane and conceptual competencies and they should have information, technology and emotional literacy skills. Further conclusions and implications were also discussed.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak has forced a sudden transition from face-to-face learning to online learning in higher education. This circumstance challenges university students to be more selfdirected in learning with relatively minimum assistance from their lecturers or peers. Therefore, it is becoming increasingly important to conduct a study on the issue of learner agency which remains little explored. The present study aimed at investigating the agency of first-year university students in online learning of Arabic as a foreign language. In particular, this study examines their intention, motivation, self-regulation and selfefficacy in online learning of Arabic delivered synchronously by using Google Meet and asynchronously by using Edmodo. An exploratory research method was employed in the study with the participation of 76 firstyear university students at an Islamic public university in Jakarta, Indonesia. Results of the study reveal that first-year university students have a relatively high intention, motivation, self-regulation and self-efficacy in Arabic online learning. Looking these findings into more detail, however, the students seem to have limited information and preparation to achieve their goals, are undermotivated to speak with native Arabic speakers, have shallow learning commitments, and are less likely to believe their performance. One of the practical implications that emerge from this study is to introduce first-year university students to a variety of strategies for learning Arabic in more self-directed ways, and this may be supported by lecturers as to not only delivering content but also promoting skills during their teaching practices.

Objective: The study aims to capture the emotional challenges faced by international students due to the changes in U.S. visa regulations during the COVID-19 outbreak. Participants: 165 international students from University of Florida participated in the study. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional online survey using previously validated questionnaire tools (PHQ-9 and GAD-7). The collected data was quantitatively analyzed through different statistical approaches, including ANOVA, Independent Sample t-Test, and Binary Logistic Regression. Results: 18.8% of our study sample had a moderately severe to severe depressive status, and 20.6% of the study sample had severe anxiety. Additionally, there was a statistically significant difference in the depression and anxiety scores based on gender. Conclusions: Our findings addressed the importance of taking serious measures when emotionally impactful political issues arise to prevent the development of mental illnesses among international students at U.S. institutions of higher education.

Since March 2020, Uganda has confirmed cases of COVID-19 and implemented a response to curb the spread, which included over 12 months of school closure for most children. In this study we investigated parents' perspectives of the impact of the COVID-19 response on education of children with disabilities enrolled in primary schools in Central Uganda during the first 12 months of the outbreak. We conducted four rounds of interviews with 27 parents of children with disabilities, which were analysed thematically. Parents described a lack of financial resources, food, learning materials, and teaching skills necessary to provide meaningful home education. Parents were concerned about the long-term impact school closure may have on their child's development, behaviour, and social life. Although parents were happy about the phased school re-opening, they expressed concerns about the financial costs involved in sending children back to school, and wondered how children would cope with prevention measures. School closure has greatly impacted the education of children with disabilities in Uganda. There is a need to consider inequality, poverty, and culture when studying children with disabilities during the COVID-19 outbreak, and prioritise and include this group in designing COVID-19 responses, prolonged home learning and school reopening plans.