The present study aims at examining predictors of high school students' academic achievement from student-level and school-level predictors in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, especially in light of ...policy mandates on educational reform in accordance with Vision 2030. Participants were 528,854 individuals who took on the Standard Achievement Admission Test (SAAT), along with other demographic variables. The mean age of participants was 19.7 years with an
= 1.87. There were 234,813 males and 294,041 females. A Multilevel Random Coefficient Modeling (MRCM) model was engaged to identify predictors of academic achievement. Results indicated the positive roles of being a female, having educational parents, being educated in religious schools or large schools, and having small student-to-teacher ratios and the negative roles of student absences, student age, and being educated in new schools. Results are viewed under the lenses of new policy mandates on educational reform in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
The main thesis of the present study is to use the Bayesian structural equation modeling (BSEM) methodology of establishing approximate measurement invariance (A-MI) using data from a national ...examination in Saudi Arabia as an alternative to not meeting strong invariance criteria. Instead, we illustrate how to account for the absence of measurement invariance using relative compared to exact criteria. A secondary goal was to compare latent means across groups using invariant parameters only and through utilizing exact and relative evaluative-MI protocol suggested equivalence of the thresholds using prior variances equal to 0.10. Subsequent differences between groups were evaluated using effect size criteria and the prior-posterior predictive p-value (PPPP), which proved to be invaluable in attesting for differences that are beyond zero, some meaningless nonzero estimate, and the three commonly used indices of effect sizes described by Cohen in 1988 (i.e., .20, .50, and .80). Results substantiated the use of the PPPP for evaluating mean differences across groups when utilizing nonexact evaluative criteria.
Introduction: External high-volume extraction (HVE) devices may offer a way to reduce any aerosol particulate generated. The aim of this study was to measure the particle count during dental ...aerosol-generating procedures and compare the results with when a HVE device is used. Materials and Methods: Design A comparative clinical study measuring the amount of PM1, PM2.5, and PM10 aerosol particulate with and without the use of an external HVE device was undertaken. Materials and methods in total, ten restorative procedures were monitored with an industrial Trotec PC220 particle counter. The intervention was an external HVE device. Main outcome methods the air sampler was placed at the average working distance of the clinicians involved in the study − 420 mm. Results: In the present study, aerosol particulate was recorded at statistically significantly increased levels during dental procedures without an external HVE device versus with the device. Discussion The null hypothesis was rejected, in that significant differences were found between the results of the amount of aerosol particle count with and without a HVE device. Conclusion: If the results of the present study are repeated in an in vivo setting, an external high-volume suction device may potentially show a lower risk of transmission of viral particulate.
The accuracy of definitive impressions has a significant impact on the quality of the final prosthesis. Elastic impression materials are commonly used in the traditional approach to replicate ...anatomical structures while indirectly fabricating prostheses. Digital impression has gained increasing popularity due to its various advantages, including three-dimensional previsualization, cost-effectiveness, and reduced time consumption. The objective of this study is to evaluate existing studies to provide an overview of the comparative advantages of digital impression techniques over conventional techniques. The review will focus on evaluating the accuracy, patient acceptability, operator preference, and time effectiveness of digital impression techniques in comparison to conventional techniques. The Population, Intervention, Comparison, and Outcome framework served as the basis for this study's search strategy. We conducted a comprehensive literature review by electronically searching articles published between 2000 and 2023 in PubMed, Medline, Cochrane, and the Web of Science. Furthermore, additional manual searches were conducted. The study examined the differences between optical impressions and traditional impressions in terms of accuracy, patient outcomes, and operator outcomes. It included both clinical and preclinical studies as well as randomized controlled trials. In conclusion, this review provides a short summary indicating that digital impressions exhibit comparable accuracy to conventional impressions without any statistically significant difference. This conclusion is based on an evaluation of accuracy, patient preference, and operator preference.
Natural killer (NK) cells and dendritic cells (DCs) are two innate immune cells that are critical in regulating innate and adaptive immunity. Cellular functions and migratory responses of NK or DC ...can be further regulated in NK-DC crosstalk that involves multiple cytokine signals and/or direct cell-cell contacts. Semaphorin-3E (Sema-3E) is a member of a large family of Semaphorin proteins that play diverse regulatory functions in different biological systems upon its binding to the cognate receptors. However, possible role(s) of Sema-3E on the regulation of NK-cell functions has not been elucidated. Here, we first demonstrated that DC and NK cells expressed Sema-3E and its receptors, respectively. To formally address the importance of DC-derived Sema-3E in regulating NK-cell migration, we compared
migratory responses of activated NK cells (aNKs) toward different conditioned media of DCs (immature, lipopolysaccharide- or Poly I:C-stimulated) derived from Sema-3E
or Sema-3E
mice. We observed that aNKs exhibited enhanced migrations toward the conditioned medium of the immature Sema-3E
DC, when compared with that of the immature Sema-3E
DC. Addition of exogenous recombinant Sema-3E to the conditioned medium of the Sema-3E
immature DC (iDC) abrogated such enhanced NK-cell migration. Our current work revealed a novel role of Sema-3E in limiting NK-cell migrations toward iDC in NK-DC crosstalk.
Introduction:
Although diabetes is one of the leading chronic disease in the country, efforts in primary care and patient self-care management could prevent most of the diabetes-related ...hospitalizations and produce cost savings and improvements in quality of life. We used information from Medicaid beneficiaries in 3 states to predict racial differences in diabetes hospitalizations and demonstrate how they vary across states.
Methods:
We conducted a cross-sectional study to examine differences between black and white patients with diabetes hospitalizations. Information was obtained from the Medicaid Analytic eXtract files. We used multiple logistic regression models to assess the significance of the differences.
Results:
Analysis included 10 073 adult Medicaid recipients from the states of Mississippi (51%), Georgia (35%), and Michigan (14%). Blacks were more likely to experience longer hospital stays in Georgia (odds ratio OR = 1.040; 95% confidence interval CI: 1.03-1.06) and Mississippi (OR = 1.048; 95% CI: 1.03-1.07). A majority of patients in both groups were likely to be discharged to their homes for self-care. Black patients had lower odds of repeated stays in Georgia (OR = 0.670; 95% CI: 0.54-0.84), but higher odds in Michigan (OR = 1.580; 95% CI: 1.12-2.24). Similar differences occurred when patients were matched by age and sex. Blacks had lower odds of qualifying for dual Medicare–Medicaid enrollment benefit in Georgia and Mississippi.
Conclusion:
Racial differences in diabetes-related hospitalizations reflect possible inefficiencies in the process of care. Identification of race-specific factors for hospitalizations and implementation of primary care strategies that support effective self-management skills would aid in reducing diabetes hospitalizations and related disparities.
The present study focuses on the experiences of female Muslim students in school sporting activities in Australian public high schools. Specifically, the study examines how the students interpret ...their engagement in relation to their Islamic background. The study aims to provide deeper understanding and greater awareness of female Muslim students' participation in sporting activities within the public high school environment and the challenges they may face. The study employed critical race and social identity theories as an analytical framework. In addition, the study utilized qualitative research methods. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 11 female Muslim students and 4 teachers responsible for sporting activities in school. The findings of the study reveal that despite a variety of sporting activities provided by Australian public high schools, some of these activities were challenging for Muslim girls to participate in. The study also found that there is a strong relationship between students' Islamic background and their participation in schools sporting activities. The study recommends that educators and teachers who work with youth from different background are provided training on equity issues arising from ethnicity, race, culture, religion and other identity categories.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
BFBNIB, DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
Multilevel latent class analysis (MLCA) has been increasingly used to investigate unobserved population heterogeneity while taking into account data dependency. Nonparametric MLCA has gained much ...popularity due to the advantage of classifying both individuals and clusters into latent classes. This study demonstrated the need to relax the assumption in specifying the nonparametric MLCA: item response probabilities varied only across level-1 latent classes, but not level-2 latent classes. An empirical demonstration with data from the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) 2011 showed that item response probabilities could vary across both level-1 and level-2 latent classes. This relaxed MLCA yielded better model fit and provided more nuanced understanding of the heterogeneous response patterns. Monte Carlo simulation was conducted to evaluate class enumeration and assignment accuracy of the relaxed MLCA. Based on the simulation results, we recommended the use of AIC in class enumeration and highlighted the benefits of having larger cluster size.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
BFBNIB, DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
This paper looks at the participation of Muslim female students in sporting activities in Australian public high schools. Specifically, the study examines how Muslim female students interpret their ...participation in school sporting activities and how their Islamic background influences the way they perceive their engagement within the school environment. This paper also argues that Muslim girls' participation in school sporting activities is influenced by the struggle between their identity as Muslims, Islamic dress codes and the sporting requirements. Initially, the paper will examine the importance of sporting activities in the general development of adolescent students, as well as shows how Muslim students view their Islamic identity and what implication this view may have on their engagement in sports. Furthermore, the paper will discuss the struggle between the Islamic identity of female Muslim students and Australian school sporting requirements in light of two important Islamic teachings: (i) dress code and (ii) mixing or interaction with the opposite sex.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
BFBNIB, DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
Measurement invariance (MI) is conducted to ensure that differences found in the results of group comparisons are due to true substantive differences and not methodological artifacts. Previous ...cross-cultural and cross-national studies with large number of groups showed that the advanced measurement invariance level was rarely held when utilizing the traditional (frequentist) MI approach. The Bayesian approximate measurement invariance (BAMI) was introduced to override the traditional MI strict assumption, because trivial non-invariance in parameters across groups is allowed. Although the concept of the BAMI, which has been utilized since 2013, was incorporated into the context of structural equation modeling, there is still a need for clear-cut criteria of BAMI for group comparison because the Bayesian approach can account for uncertainty when appropriately modeled. Given this, the current study demonstrates the usefulness and flexibility of Bayesian approximate measurement invariance and aims to examine the extent to which employing different research settings would affect the behavior of the BAMI across populations. Particularly, a Monte Carlo study was designed to evaluate the sensitivity of the BAMI model fit criteria to varying prior estimates and simulation conditions. The design factors include the group numbers, percent of groups with the non-invariant item intercepts (balanced and unbalanced), and magnitude and directions of DIF item intercepts. The conditions were chosen based on a systematic literature review of the BAMI applied studies conducted between 2013 and 2017 as well as a review of the BAMI published simulation studies. Crossing all the data generation factors for exact models resulted in a total of 2 simulation conditions, whereas approximate models resulted in a total of 24 simulation conditions. Primarily, the analysis procedure included two modeling approaches. a) exact-zero scalar MI against exact-zero metric MI, and b) Bayesian approximate-zero scalar MI with five level of prior precision variances. The generated data were analyzed using maximum likelihood estimator and Bayes estimator with five different prior variances that were addressed in the literature, .001, .005, .01, .05, and .10. All generated data were fitted to each model. Two BAMI model fit criteria were used (PPP and 95% CI) as well as three model comparisons criteria (Bayes factor, BIC, and DIC). In order to assess the sensitivity of the exact and BAMI model fit criteria, three outcome variables were evaluated as a function of design factors: (a) convergence rates, (b) model fit evaluation for models using maximum likelihood and Bayes estimators, and (c) Type I error and noninvariance detection rates for scalar measurement invariance models under exact MI, approximate MI, and noninvariance conditions. Based on the noninvariance detection rates, a reasonable cutoff of the prior variance of Bayes estimation was assessed. The impact of simulation factors on the performance of exact and BAMI tests was also evaluated. Results highlighted that the choice of the prior size affected the BAMI performance, and suggested three pairs of priors for BAMI, (.001 and .05), (.01 and .05), and (.01 and .10), where the first prior in the pair is a representant of approximate-zero invariance while the second prior in the pair is a representant of the substantial non-invariance. In line with the suitable pair of priors, the results also showed that BAMI performed very well if an appropriate fit criterion was used, (e.g., Bayes factor (BF) with 150 as a cutoff and Deviance information criterion (DIC)). Implications for BAMI researchers and future directions are discussed.
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