Jozac Publishers [JP] (former JFP Publishers) (E-Journals)
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Facebook and COVID-19 misinformation: Perception of residents of Jos North Local Government Area, Plateau State, Nigeria
Get PDFThe concerns over COVID-19 misinformation on social media platforms, particularly on Facebook have attracted scholarly interrogations worldwide, particularly on the use of its platform to peddle lies and share falsehoods about the pandemic. Hence, the study examined Facebook and COVID-19 misinformation: Perception of residents of Jos North Local Government Area, Plateau State, Nigeria. The work was guided by three research objectives and hinged on conspiracy theory. It employed a survey research design and a questionnaire for data collection. The population of the study was 4,200,400 while the sample size was 385 purposively selected and with 377 returned valid and analysed. Findings show that Facebook has been used to spread misinformation about COVID-19 and to a reasonable extent too. Further findings reveal that false information about COVID-19 on Facebook has compromised preventive actions. It, however, concluded that the menace could be curbed using multiple ways such as sourcing information from reliable Facebook accounts such as from the World Health Organization (WHO) and Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC); monitoring and removing COVID-19 misinformation as well as using verifiable testimonials of survivors on Facebook, including encouraging stakeholders in the health sector to increase their campaigns. Consequently, the paper recommends that Facebook users need always make critical judgments regarding the information they post concerning the virus. It also recommends that there should be intensive campaigns by the World Health Organization (WHO) and other relevant health institutions and governments across the globe on the need to sensitize people to desist from spreading misinformation on COVID-19
Exploring Heaton’s testing score as a diagnostic tool: A language testing study on English language learners
Get PDFThis study investigates the utility of Heaton\u27s Testing Score as a diagnostic instrument for English language learners. Focusing on 20 grade 10 English language learners at Amaano Boarding School in Hargeisa, Somaliland, our research employed a blend of qualitative and quantitative methodologies. Our research arsenal encompassed Heaton\u27s Testing Score, a comprehensive questionnaire, and a rigorous focus group interview. The primary aim was to bridge an existing lacuna in the literature regarding the practical application of Heaton\u27s Testing Score in pinpointing areas of improvement for English language learners. Our findings unearthed distinct challenges that students grapple with, particularly in the domains of reading comprehension, vocabulary, and grammar. These issues were discerned through a meticulous analysis of English test questions. Additionally, our questionnaire and focus group interview unveiled insightful perspectives on the root causes, including the limited exposure to English beyond the classroom setting. This nuanced comprehension of learners\u27 impediments adds substantial value to the field. Our results underscore the pivotal role of Heaton\u27s Testing Score as a valuable diagnostic tool, empowering educators and researchers to identify precise areas requiring focused assistance for English language learners. This emphasizes the significance of tailored interventions in ameliorating the learning experience. The study bears implications for educators, policy-makers, and curriculum developers, advocating for a more effective paradigm in language testing and evaluation. In conclusion, this research firmly underscores Heaton\u27s Testing Score as an indispensable diagnostic instrument for language testing, with far-reaching ramifications for the enhancement of English language learners
Media audience, media contents, and media-use theoretical discourse
Get PDFThe ferment in this theoretical discourse places the audience members at the heart of media effect process by presupposing that they, often thought to be at the receiving end, are self-willed and socially-deterministic individuals who decide their pattern of usage of media contents. The import is that audience-members decide what media content to consume, when, and how to consume them, and by implication, twist the nature of influence the media exert on them. This view finds explanation in the idea that as there are diverse use of divergent communication media, the audience members are hardly divested of their active participation in shaping and deciding what media/contents to turn to in meeting their individualised needs. It is sustained that based on the variations in audience’s demography and psychography, different media contents and media sources would continue to strive in meeting audience members’ different specific needs and not the other way round
YouTube utilization in the Philippine classrooms: A review
Get PDFThe Philippines is considered one of the most significant social media users, particularly YouTube. Filipinos use the platform for many purposes, but one is mainly due to entertainment. However, when the pandemic hit, YouTube videos started to play a vital role in the academe. Despite the majority of its users, it was found that only a few data on its utilization in the Philippine classroom exist. Thus, this review was carried out to examine the variables influencing YouTube usage in Philippine classrooms. Nine papers were qualified and selected using the inclusion and exclusion criteria. The following are the results: 1.) YouTube videos as an enhancement tool, and 2.) YouTube videos utilization as a pandemic effect. Moreover, this review will help the teachers in planning and employing strategies to use YouTube videos for the student’s performance and other skills. Future research may look at different methods and disciplines
Governance approach to policy implementation challenges and sustainable development: Conceptual implications from the Nigerian case of TraderMoni empowerment scheme
Get PDFPolicy processes in developing societies have been challenged by contending political factors. Hence, attainment of intervention schemes and sustainable development of the policy regime in Nigeria is in dares need of a sound governance policy framework. The purpose of this study was to assess the application of sound governance approach in the Implementation of Trader Moni Scheme (TMS) of Nigeria targeted at empowering local traders, to understand the policy processes and ecology, and the results within the framework of sound governance and sustainability indicators. Eight (8) persons were involved in Focus Group Discussions while 15 persons drawn from selected TMS target beneficiaries were interviewed. Findings revealed that the scheme did not adapt to sound governance dimensions—process; structure; management and performance; and ethics, accountability and transparency. Hence, it concluded that it derailed from the core objective of empowerment for sustainable socio-economic development, validating the papers arguments.
African-Christian-Muslim dialogue on hospitality: A Case study of Somali refugees at the Dadaab refugee complex in Kenya
Get PDFThis paper demonstrates that African-Christian-Muslim dialogue, anchored on hospitality offers a suitable framework for restoring the dignity of Somali refugees at the Dadaab Refugee Camp. It highlights the plight of the Somali refugees and explores theological bases for remedying based on African-Christian-Muslim teachings. This study primarily uses Cardinal Cardijn’s “See, Judge, and Act” of Catholic social analysis. The main challenges that the refugees face include poor shelter, inadequate food supply, poor educational standards, and recurrent threats of deportation by the Kenyan government. Above all, it highlights that Christian and Muslim humanitarian organizations play leading roles in caring for the refugees. Ultimately, it shows that theological reflections on the ministries of Jesus and prophet Muhammad provide narratives for rallying Christians and Muslims to be more magnanimous in caring for the Somali refugees
Youth participation in traditional cultural practices in contemporary Tumu: An exposé on the Ceremonial Costume Art of Fuowie Nasolo, a youth cultural iconic figure in Tumu
Get PDFYouth participation in traditional cultural practices in contemporary Africa (Ghana) has been on the decline due to the alarming rate at which African youth assimilate foreign cultures. Many African (Ghanaian) youth nowadays mock African (Ghanaian) ethnic cultures in favour of Western cultures. However, previous research suggests youth cultural activism in Tumu, Ghana. This positive development has the tendency to preserve and promote the cultural identity of Tumu. This study, therefore, sought to establish the motivation behind youth participation in traditional cultural practices in contemporary Tumu with a specific focus on the costume art of Fuowie Nasolo, a youth cultural iconic figure in Tumu. Qualitative descriptive analysis of interview transcripts and photographic data gathered from twenty-five (25) heterogenous-purposively sampled informants reveal that youth cultural activism in contemporary Tumu is engendered by the sustained cultural tutelage provided by the elders of Tumu. Additionally, it was emphasised that youth cultural participation in contemporary Tumu is extrinsically motivated by the admirable cultural activism of Fuowie, the unifying leader of Tumu youth cultural group. A cursory study of the cultural manifestations of Fuowie’s ceremonial costume art, reveals the royal, heroic, and wardress culture of the indigenes of Tumu. Since Fuowie’s cultural activism significantly complements the effort of Tumu elders in promoting youth cultural participation, the study calls for sustained collaboration between Fuowie and the elders of Tumu to massively promote youth participation in traditional cultural activities for cultural preservation, cultural restoration, and the construction of authentic cultural identity of the people of Tumu for posterity
Mental health challenges, suicidality, and prevention among Australian migrants of African descent
Get PDFAcculturation stressors are significant psychosocial elements affecting the mental well-being of migrants globally. Migrants face diverse discriminations resulting in the feeling of despair, affecting the mental health and increase the risk of suicide behaviour. The study aims at exploring and preventing acculturation stressors related to African migrants in Australia, affecting their mental health and increase suicidal ideation. Phenomenological approach was adopted and data were analyzed through a wide range of sources like documented interviews, commentaries, journals, migrants’ records, books from library and relevant websites. The findings show that psychosocial challenges leading to suicide ideation among migrants of African descent in Australia are as results of acculturation stressors. The study thereby recommends that government and non-government agencies should take decisive action for the well-being of African migrants in Australia by adopting proactive measures to build inclusive communities, provide clinical services, enact policies to address discrimination and racism, foster social support networks, destigmatizing mental health, and ensuring culturally sensitive care
African Cinema(s) and Theorizations: Arts, Scholarship & Debates
Get PDFMuch as the beginning of African cinema is about decolonization, one way of approaching its current structure and operations is by investigating the complex web of its new postcolonial realities. If its past can be said to ideologically focus on counteracting stereotypical (mis)presentations of Africa, its present-day scenario is witnessing a hybrid of cinematic practices, digitally engineered to speak about the continent in varied tongues: politically, nationally, commercially and otherwise. The thrust of this article is exploring different trends that have characterized the cinema(s) of Africa in past and present times in terms of artistry, scholarship and theorizations. It uses the historical analytical method to explore how old nationalist celluloid-based film industries seem to have now yielded way to a digitally revolutionized system, bringing about an avalanche of new ancillary film industries after the Nigerian Nollywood model. Thus, it argues that to the extent that cinemas across Africa have become digital and filmless presently, scholarly theorizations and debates around their praxis ought also to change in order to account for nuances shrouding their representations
The university system, social change and sustainable development in Nigeria
Get PDFThe educational system of any nation all over the world remains a strong determinant of the development of such nations. The secret of the high level of development witnessed in many developed nations in the world could be attributed to the success of their educational system, especially their University system. Among the various tertiary institutions, the effectiveness of the University system is essential in achieving national goals and objectives. The major functions of the university are to inculcate sound and practicable knowledge, undertake research and involve in community development. The achievement of these seems to remain a tedious task in Nigeria. The study seeks to examine the role or place of the university system in Nigeria as an agent of social change and sustainable development. The study adopts the system theory as its theoretical framework. The research is a descriptive-analytical one and it draws qualitative data derived from secondary sources. The content analysis was used as a tool for data analysis. Findings from the study reveal that the universities in Nigeria are still lagging, compared to other world-class universities in the world and it has not played the expected role of being a catalyst of social change and sustainable development due to many challenges bedevilling the sector. This includes among others, inadequate funding, inadequate qualified academic staff, and inadequate and dilapidated infrastructure. The paper recommends among others synergy between the university system and other sectors of the economy, including the private sector, merit should be the basis for recruitment, promotion of staff, and appointment of the management staff of the university, a special funding mechanism through taxation of telecoms companies to fund the university. With this, Nigeria will achieve the desired development