ARAB STUDENT-TEACHERS’ PROFESSIONAL IDENTITIES BETWEEN THE PERSONAL AND CULTURAL

Everyone not only has a story but also has a right to tell their story” (Bamberg, 2012, p. 79). Grounded in theoretical discourses that underscore the significant role of narrative in teachers’ identity construction and disclosing (Connelly and Clandinin, 1999), this study invites a group of 15 third-year female students from the English department at an Arab teacher-education college in Northern Israel to narrate their stories of meaningful experiences and life events that have contributed to shaping their professional identities. Students-teachers’ narratives are collected in a two-phase process to illuminate the various experiences that have contributed to shaping their identities. Narrative and discourse analyses of students’ narratives shed light into the individual, professional, and socio-cultural factors that have shaped their professional identities as English teachers. The significance of the study lies in contributing to the scarce literature on identity construction of a population often absent from professional-identity research (female and minority Arab EFL student-teachers). Additional contributions are raising students’ awareness of the resources and constraints in their history that have affected their professional development as well as raising my awareness as teacher educator to my students’ experiences and helping me to become more tuned to their voices and struggles

Living Radical Polymerization Catalysts: Synthesis, Application, and Utilization of Polymer Products in the Synthesis of Metal Nanoparticles

Living Radical Polymerization Catalysts: Synthesis, Application, and Utilization of Polymer Products in the Synthesis of Metal Nanoparticles Sara Elizabeth Hayik Supervisor: Professor Bradford B. Wayland Living radical polymerization techniques are powerful tools for prepared specialty polymer products used in applications from biotechnology to electronics. Development of catalysts for the different methods is important for increased versatility. The goals of this research were to develop new radical addition-fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) and cobalt mediated radical polymerization (CMRP) catalysts and utilize polymers produced through controlled radical polymerization techniques for the synthesis of metal nanoparticles. Vanadium complexes were designed to mimic conventional RAFT chain transfer agents and tested in the polymerization of methylacrylate (MA) and styrene. These complexes proved unsuitable for use as RAFT catalysts. Several cobalt complexes, using salen and salen derivative ligands, were prepared and tested as CMRP catalysts for the polymerization of MA and vinyl acetate (VAc). (R,R)-N,N\u27-Bis(3,5-di-tert-butylsalicylidene)-1,2-cyclohexanediamino Cobalt (II) proved to be the most promising candidate for both polymers. MA was prepared with PDIs 1.32 and under while the VAc PDIs were under 1.50. In both cases, observations suggesting a controlled polymerization were reported. PDMAEMA synthesized using a RAFT polymerization was used to stabilize and control the formation of platinum, gold, and palladium nanoparticles. Protonation of the polymer chains using succinic acid or acidic metal complexes allowed for ionic cross-linking by the metal anions, which is observed through DLS analysis. Reduction of the metal complexes was then performed within the nanogel and the rapid stabilization by the polymer results in small well defined particles. Well defined particles were produced for each metal with different size ranges for each. Nanogel formation is critical mechanism for control in each system and was seen only in systems containing dianionic specie

PENGEMBANGAN MEDIA KAPAS (KARTU PASANGAN) PADA MATA PELAJARAN IPS SISWA KELAS IV SEKOLAH DASAR

Penelitian ini merupakan penelitian pengembangan yang bertujuan untuk mengembangkan media pembelajaran, yaitu media KAPAS (Kartu Pasangan) pada mata pelajaran IPS siswa kelas IV. Tujuan peneliti melakukan pengembangan media KAPAS (Kartu Pasangan) yaitu untuk mengetahui tingkat kevalidan, tingkat kepraktisan, dan tingkat keefektifan dari media KAPAS (Kartu Pasangan). Jenis penelitian ini adalah Research and Development (R&D) dengan menggunakan model ADDIE yang terdiri atas 5 (lima) tahap yaitu analyze (analisis), design (perancangan), develop (pengembangan), implement (implementasi), dan evaluate (evaluasi). Teknik analisis data yang digunakan adalah analisis data kevalidan, analisis data kepraktisan, dan analisis data keefektifan. Berdasarkan uji validasi diperoleh hasil bahwa media KAPAS (Kartu Pasangan) yang dikembangkan memiliki kriteria valid untuk digunakan dengan persentase untuk ahli materi 97%, ahli bahasa 80%, dan ahli media 75%. Hasil persentase yang diperoleh dari angket respon guru adalah 80% dan hasil persentase untuk angket respon siswa adalah 83,22% dengan kriteria sangat praktis untuk digunakan dalam pembelajaran. Dan berdasarkan hasil tes siswa yang dilakukan pada uji coba menghasilkan persentase 84,35%. Dengan demikian media KAPAS (Kartu Pasangan) ini dapat dikatakan sangat efektif digunakan sebagai media pembelajaran.   Kata Kunci: Media Kartu Pasangan, Tingkat Kevalidan, Tingkat Kepraktisan, Tingkat Keefektifan &nbsp

Chances of Survival in the Titanic using ANN

Abstract: The sinking of the RMS Titanic in 1912 remains a poignant historical event that continues to captivate our collective imagination. In this research paper, we delve into the realm of data-driven analysis by applying Artificial Neural Networks (ANNs) to predict the chances of survival for passengers aboard the Titanic. Our study leverages a comprehensive dataset encompassing passenger information, demographics, and cabin class, providing a unique opportunity to explore the complex interplay of factors influencing survival outcomes. Our ANN-based predictive model achieved an accuracy rate of 78%, shedding light on the underlying patterns within the data. However, this paper underscores the multifaceted nature of survival prediction and acknowledges several challenges. These include missing data imputation, feature engineering, and the inherent noise within historical datasets. We further discuss the importance of model evaluation metrics, showcasing not only accuracy but also precision, recall, and F1-score as essential indicators of predictive performance. The research paper meticulously outlines the architecture of the ANN model, emphasizing the key hyperparameters, activation functions, and regularization techniques employed in model development. Additionally, we address ethical considerations related to data handling and potential biases within the dataset. While our achieved accuracy is a notable achievement, this study emphasizes the importance of interpreting the results with due caution. It underscores the need for a holistic perspective that considers the practical implications of false positives and false negatives, especially in the context of a disaster scenario. In conclusion, this research contributes to our understanding of survival prediction in historical events like the Titanic disaster using modern machine learning techniques. It calls for further exploration and refinement of predictive models, with a focus on enhancing the interpretability and generalizability of such models to real-world applications

Neural Network-Based Audit Risk Prediction: A Comprehensive Study

Abstract: This research focuses on utilizing Artificial Neural Networks (ANNs) to predict Audit Risk accurately, a critical aspect of ensuring financial system integrity and preventing fraud. Our dataset, gathered from Kaggle, comprises 18 diverse features, including financial and historical parameters, offering a comprehensive view of audit-related factors. These features encompass 'Sector_score,' 'PARA_A,' 'SCORE_A,' 'PARA_B,' 'SCORE_B,' 'TOTAL,' 'numbers,' 'marks,' 'Money_Value,' 'District,' 'Loss,' 'Loss_SCORE,' 'History,' 'History_score,' 'score,' and 'Risk,' with a total of 774 samples. Our proposed neural network architecture, consisting of three layers (1 input, 1 hidden, and 1 output), forms the core of this study. While it may seem simple, the power of ANNs lies not in complexity but in their ability to uncover intricate data patterns. The model underwent rigorous training and validation, resulting in remarkable outcomes—an accuracy of 100% and an average error rate of 0.000015. In addition to performance metrics, our research investigates feature importance, revealing the key contributors to Audit Risk prediction. Notably, 'Sector_score,' 'PARA_A,' 'SCORE_A,' 'PARA_B,' 'SCORE_B,' 'TOTAL,' 'numbers,' 'marks,' 'Money_Value,' 'District,' 'Loss,' 'Loss_SCORE,' 'History,' and 'History_score' emerged as the most influential factors, shedding light on the elements crucial for precise risk assessment. This study advances Audit Risk prediction models and highlights the potential of ANNs in strengthening financial system integrity and fraud prevention. The insights gained from our findings offer practical guidance for stakeholders in the audit and financial sectors

ART-VENA: Retinal Vaseular Caliber Measurement

The size of retinal vascular caliber in eye fundus images is a fundamental diagnosis parameter in the study of systemic vascular pathologies, like arterial hypertension or arteriosclerosis. ART-VENA is a semiautomatic system to measure the retinal vascular caliber. From the medical point of view, its repeatability (coefficients of variation under 1.5%) turns it into a reliable tool to objectify vascular changes which previously depended an the observer’s subjectivity

Critical literacy as a pedagogical goal in English language teaching

In this chapter, the authors provide an overview of the area of critical literacy as it pertains to second language pedagogy (curriculum and instruction). After considering the historical origins of critical literacy (from antiquity, and including in first language education), they consider how it began to penetrate the field of applied linguistics. They note the geographical and institutional spread of critical literacy practice as documented by published accounts. They then sketch the main features of L2 critical literacy practice. To do this, they acknowledge how practitioners have reported on their practices regarding classroom content and process. The authors also draw attention to the outcomes of these practices as well as challenges that practitioners have encountered in incorporating critical literacy into their second language classrooms