DOES THE MAGIC OF COOPERATIVE LEARNING STILL WORK?

Abstract: Cooperative learning (CL) has been one of the most widely adopted approaches in language teaching. Many educators jumped into the bandwagon after seeing how it could easily reap results in the classroom and promote a positive condition for language, content and community learning. It provided a stable affective ground that permits English teachers to maneuver group dynamics into creating an environment conducive to learning and meeting instructional goals. However, the peak of CL popularity caused it to plateau and some of its inherent principles to be distorted. The community has overly espoused cooperative learning irrespective of the contexts and structures it requires. This paper aims to realign present-day beliefs and misconceptions in practice to intrinsic cooperative learning fundamentals. Then, based on the theoretical insights, findings in CL researches and first-hand experience in the classroom, a list of recommended structures and strategies is provided to help English language teachers design activities with significant cooperative value. Keywords: cooperative learning, group work, positive interdependence, individual accountability, equal participation, simultaneous interactio

Trends in medically-indicated versus spontaneous preterm birth, 2004-2013

BACKGROUND: Despite decades of research aimed at prevention, preterm birth remains an enormous leading cause of infant mortality in the United States and worldwide. Of concern, racial disparities in preterm birth remain an intractable public health issue. In an effort to reduce preterm birth, organizations such as the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) released policy statements in 2009 aimed at reducing early elective deliveries. Subsequently, the incidence of preterm birth in the United States has decreased, but whether this decrease is due to a reduction in iatrogenic or "medically-indicated" preterm birth is unknown. Further, the effect of the reduction in early elective deliveries on racial disparities is unknown. Our hypotheses were that 1) after 2009, preterm births would be less likely to be medically-indicated than due to spontaneous causes and 2) black-white differences in preterm births would be unchanged. OBJECTIVES: 1) Determine the proportion of preterm deliveries at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) from 2004-2013 that were medically-indicated versus spontaneous. 2) Due to persistent disparities, determine if shifts in type of preterm delivery varied by race/ethnicity. METHODS: We reviewed the first 87 deliveries in 2013 and randomly selected 15% of the records for each year from 2004-2013. Additionally, we reviewed 69 charts to oversample black women's deliveries. We manually abstracted data from BIDMC's online medical record and designated each delivery as either medically-indicated (preeclampsia, poor fetal growth, hypertension, or other fetal/maternal condition) or spontaneous (preterm labor, preterm premature rupture of membranes or cervical incompetence). Two reviewers independently reviewed 18 records for concordance of medically-indicated versus spontaneous preterm birth typing. If the first reviewer could not phenotype the delivery, then a neonatologist and obstetrician were consulted. We reviewed 971 out of the 5,566 preterm deliveries and included 930 that were confirmed preterm and had a clear medically-indicated or spontaneous phenotype. We dichotomized the time period into early (2004-2009) and late (2010-2013). Statistical methods included comparisons of early versus late using Chi-Square tests, logistic regression models to adjust for potential confounding variables, and stratified analyses (singletons and black versus white). RESULTS: There were 46,981 deliveries at our institution during the study period, 5,566 of which were preterm. Among the 930 preterm deliveries sampled from the 10-year period, 45.6% were medically-indicated with a non-significant, subtle difference between the early (48.3%) and late (41.9%) (P=0.05) time periods. The odds ratios of medically-indicated versus spontaneous preterm birth in late versus early were 0.77 (P=0.05) and 0.73 (P=0.03) for all participants, unadjusted and adjusted, respectively. While not statistically significant, a higher proportion of preterm deliveries among black women were medically-indicated in the early (50.4%) versus late (40.6%) periods (P=0.19). There was a similar trend among white women between the early (50.0%) and late (46.9%) periods (P=0.48). The odds ratios of medically-indicated versus spontaneous preterm birth from late versus early were 0.67 (P=0.19) and 0.63 (P=0.14) for black participants, unadjusted and adjusted, respectively. For white participants, the odds ratios were 0.88 (P=0.48) for unadjusted and 0.80 for adjusted (P=0.20). Overall at BIDMC, the preterm delivery rate was significantly higher in the early period (12.3%) compared to the later period (11.2%) (P=0.0003). While we observed a reduction of preterm birth among all women, black women experienced a 20.8% decrease (from 16.2% in the early period to 12.8% in the late) in preterm birth, while white women experienced just a 4.9% decrease (from 12.4% to 11.7%), resulting in a narrowing of the racial disparity of preterm birth in our institution. CONCLUSION: At a Massachusetts birth hospital we found a reduction in the incidence of preterm deliveries over a 10-year period that coincided with policy efforts to reduce early elective deliveries. There was a reduction in the proportion of preterm births that were medically-indicated from 48.3% to 41.9%. The reduction in medically-indicated preterm birth was most evident among black women at BIDMC with concurrent decrease in the overall preterm birth rate among black women resulting in a near elimination of the racial disparity in preterm birth at BIDMC. Future work includes statistical analysis to account for the oversampling of deliveries in 2013 as well as oversampling of black women's deliveries using inverse probability weighting. We also plan to analyze which underlying conditions (preeclampsia, intrauterine growth restriction, fetal distress, etc.) were responsible for the reduction of the medically-indicated deliveries

Observing the relationship between cultural identity and mental health outcomes among Filipino-American young adults across three immigrant generations

The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between bicultural identity and mental health outcomes (i.e., depression and anxiety) among Filipino American young adults, and assess whether these varied between 1st, 1.5, and 2nd generation immigrants. Methods: This study recruited 88 Filipino Americans ages 18-25 to complete a 40-item survey covering demographics, bicultural identity (BI), and mental health. Findings: BI blendedness had negative correlations with immigrant generation and mental health. Positive correlation was found between BI harmony and mental health. Family and community support were both beneficial and detrimental to participant well-being. Discussion: Filipino cultural values and their nuances should be considered when viewing Filipino American mental health. Inclusion of BI blendedness is significant when providing culturally competent care for the Filipino American community

Modeling the influence of character customization with cosmetic microtransaction on purchasing intention in mobile massive multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPGS)

In the evolving landscape of online gaming in the Philippines, the “freemium” business model has gained dominance, particularly in free-to-play games. Despite its prevalence, only a few cases demonstrated significant improvement in converting players to paying customers. This underscores the need for game developers to understand user purchasing intentions, in the online gaming scene. MMORPGs, a widely favored genre in Philippine gaming communities, often feature virtual in-game characters. Recognizing this, this study delves into the complexities of character customization in mobile MMORPGs and its impact on the purchasing intentions of Filipino players. Using an explanatory-sequential research design, the study collected and analyzed 121 survey respondents using PLS-SEM and 4 online interviews using content analysis. Results showed that while the direct influence of character customization on purchasing intentions may seem minimal, a deeper analysis uncovers the crucial mediating role of effort expectancy which is the study’s significant contribution to knowledge. The study highlights that the ease and accessibility of customization significantly influence players\u27 purchasing intentions, in line with broader consumer behavior trends emphasizing usability and convenience. Although conclusive evidence of the mediating roles of performance expectancy and social influence remains elusive, their impact on character customization suggests a nuanced interplay of factors. Players perceive character customization not just as a transactional feature but as a vital aspect influencing engagement and satisfaction

Estrategias de marketing para incrementar la rentabilidad de la empresa agroindustrial campo norte chachapoyas 2022

La presente investigación titulada “Estrategias de marketing para incrementar la rentabilidad de la empresa Agroindustrial Campo Norte Chachapoyas 2022”, cuyo problema central de investigación fue: ¿De qué manera las estrategias de marketing incrementarán la rentabilidad de la empresa Agroindustrial Campo Norte Chachapoyas 2022?, objetivo general: Proponer estrategias de marketing con la finalidad de incrementar la rentabilidad de la empresa Agroindustrial Campo Norte. La metodología utilizada fue de tipo descriptiva de diseño no experimental transversal – propositiva; la población de estudio estuvo conformada por 58 clientes mayoristas de la ciudad de Chachapoyas y 05 trabajadores de la empresa con cargos gerenciales o administrativos, haciendo un total de 63 personas. Para la recolección de datos se utilizó la encuesta, que se aplicó a los 58 clientes y la entrevista a los 05 trabajadores. Proponiendo estrategias de marketing se pretende incrementar la rentabilidad de la empresa en el rubro de licores regionales. En la presente investigación se concluye que la empresa, tiene un nivel de rentabilidad aceptable, casi la totalidad de clientes se mostraron Muy de acuerdo y de acuerdo con las estrategias de marketing que viene aplicando la empresa; las ventas se han reducido en los tres últimos periodos y en cuanto a las estrategias de marketing, éstas influyen de manera considerable en la rentabilidad de la empresa. Sin embargo, es necesario dar mejoras e implementar estrategias de marketing para incrementar las ventas y por ende la rentabilidad de la empresa

Stability of bubbles in wax-based oleofoams: decoupling the effects of bulk oleogel rheology and interfacial rheology

Oleofoams are dispersions of gas bubbles in a continuous oil phase and can be stabilized by crystals of fatty acids or waxes adsorbing at the oil-air interface. Because excess crystals in the continuous phase form an oleogel, an effect of the bulk rheology of the continuous phase is also expected. Here, we evaluate the contributions of bulk and interfacial rheology below and above the melting point of a wax forming an oleogel in sunflower oil. We study the dissolution behaviour of single bubbles using microscopy on a temperature-controlled stage. We compare the behaviour of a bubble embedded in an oleofoam, which owes its stability to both bulk and interfacial rheology, to that of a bubble extracted from the oleofoam and resuspended in oil, for which the interfacial dilatational rheology alone provides stability. We find that below the melting point of the wax, bubbles in the oleofoam are stable whereas bubbles that are only coated with wax crystals dissolve. Both systems dissolve when heated above the melting point of the wax. These findings are rationalized through independent bulk rheological measurements of the oleogel at different temperatures, as well as measurements of the dilatational rheological properties of a wax-coated oil-air interface

Stability of bubbles in wax-based oleofoams: decoupling the effects of bulk oleogel rheology and interfacial rheology

Oleofoams are dispersions of gas bubbles in a continuous oil phase and can be stabilized by crystals of fatty acids or waxes adsorbing at the oil-air interface. Because excess crystals in the continuous phase form an oleogel, an effect of the bulk rheology of the continuous phase is also expected. Here, we evaluate the contributions of bulk and interfacial rheology below and above the melting point of a wax forming an oleogel in sunflower oil. We study the dissolution behaviour of single bubbles using microscopy on a temperature-controlled stage. We compare the behaviour of a bubble embedded in an oleofoam, which owes its stability to both bulk and interfacial rheology, to that of a bubble extracted from the oleofoam and resuspended in oil, for which the interfacial dilatational rheology alone provides stability. We find that below the melting point of the wax, bubbles in the oleofoam are stable whereas bubbles that are only coated with wax crystals dissolve. Both systems dissolve when heated above the melting point of the wax. These findings are rationalized through independent bulk rheological measurements of the oleogel at different temperatures, as well as measurements of the dilatational rheological properties of a wax-coated oil-air interface

Testing the Motor Simulation Account of Source Errors for Actions in Recall

Observing someone else perform an action can lead to false memories of self-performance – the observation inflation effect. One explanation is that action simulation via mirror neuron activation during action observation is responsible for observation inflation by enriching memories of observed actions with motor representations. In three experiments we investigated this account of source memory failures, using a novel paradigm that minimized influences of verbalization and prior object knowledge. Participants worked in pairs to take turns acting out geometric shapes and letters. The next day, participants recalled either actions they had performed or those they had observed. Experiment 1 showed that participants falsely retrieved observed actions as self-performed, but also retrieved self-performed actions as observed. Experiment 2 showed that preventing participants from encoding observed actions motorically by taxing their motor system with a concurrent motor task did not lead to the predicted decrease in false claims of self-performance. Indeed, Experiment 3 showed that this was the case even if participants were asked to carefully monitor their recall. Because our data provide no evidence for a motor activation account, we also discussed our results in light of a source monitoring account