AMU Journal System (Arba Minch University)
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The Impact of Reading Strategies on Second Language Learners' Reading Comprehension and Motivation
Get PDFThis study aimed to explore the use of reading strategies and reading motivation among second language students in relation to their comprehension of Amharic language reading skills. To achieve this goal, data was collected from 228 9th graders through reading strategies and reading motivation questionnaires, as well as reading comprehension tests. The data was analyzed using Spearman Rho and Regression techniques. The results indicate a low correlation between reading comprehension and reading strategies, as well as reading comprehension and reading motivation. However, there is a significant relationship between the use of reading strategies and reading motivation (p < .05), suggesting their impact on students' reading comprehension. Predictability was found to have the greatest impact on reading comprehension (p < .05). By understanding and utilizing reading strategies in the Amharic reading process, students can improve their reading abilities with healthy motivation. Therefore, it is recommended that providing students and teachers with knowledge and motivation to use both formal and informal reading strategies can greatly benefit students in reading comprehension training.
Keywords: second language students; reading strategies; reading motivation; reading comprehension; Amharic language learnin
Performance Comparison of Multiple Classification Models used for Detection of SQL Injection Attacks
Get PDFIn the interconnected world, SQL injection attacks pose numerous significant threats to web applications as they open doors for unauthorised access to sensitive data and illegal manipulations. Detecting and preventing these attacks is essential for ensuring the security of web applications. While there have been numerous studies on using machine learning to detect SQL injection attacks, there is a lack of comprehensive analysis comparing the performance of different classification models. This research aims to evaluate and compare the effectiveness of various classification models, including KNN, Decision Trees, Support Vector Machines (SVMs), Naïve Bayes, and Neural Networks, in detecting SQL injection attacks. Using a Kaggle dataset with 30919 cases, the study employed an 80%:20% split ratio for training and testing. Data preprocessing was conducted to clean the data by addressing missing values, reducing noise, resolving inconsistencies, and eliminating outliers. The results showed that CNN achieved the highest accuracy (96.55%), with a good balance between precision (98.92%) and recall (91.71%). By evaluating and comparing different classification models’ performances, this paper contributes towards enhancing the security of web applications against SQL injection attacks and advances the research contributions in cybersecurity and machine learning domains. The study's results thus strengthen cybersecurity practices, upgrade defence strategies, and empower organisations to proactively defend their systems against evolving threats by creating a better-secured digital environment for web applications and databases.
Keywords:Machine Learning, Performance Evaluation, SQL Injection Attacks, Cyber Security, Web Applications, Database
Teachers’ Practices And Students’ Preferences Of Reading Instruction: Its Implication On Reading Comprehension and Fluency
Get PDFThe teachers’ practice of effective reading instruction may not be the one that students perceive as useful and effective reading instruction. This qualitative case study research examines the reading instruction practices of teachers and the preferences of students with that of its implication on reading comprehension and fluency. Classroom observations and Semi-structured interviews were used to collect data from 2 experienced teachers and 6 students of a school in Gondar town, Ethiopia. The collected data were analyzed thematically. The findings of the study showed that teachers practice the traditional way of teaching reading whereas students prefer the interactive process to reading. Thus, it was found that there is a discrepancy between teachers’ practices and students’ preferences for reading instructions. It was also found that the teachers and students do not believe that the actual classroom instruction positively impacts students' reading comprehension and fluency. Based on the finding I argue that teachers should tune their way of teaching reading with the present theories as well as the students’ preferences so that students improve their reading comprehension and fluency. Teacher educators also should train pre-service and in-service teachers to use the reading models that are up to date.
Keywords: Reading Comprehension, Reading Fluency, Reading Instruction, Students’ Preference, Teachers’ practice
Analyzing Mechanical Property and the Corresponding Power Output of Bamboo Plant for the Construction of Vertical Axis Wind Turbine Blade
Get PDFEthiopia has the largest bamboo plant coverage in Africa and has the third-largest wind power potential in Africa. These two factors inspired us to conduct this research. Use of Bamboo plant in Ethiopia is limited to a few common utilizations such as for furniture and civil construction. These applications resulted from less understanding of mechanical properties of the plant. Hence, this study aimed to determine the mechanical properties of bamboo, particularly tensile and fatigue strength. Mechanical properties were analyzed on lowland (Oxytenantheria abyssinica) and highland (Yushania alpina) untreated bamboo. Tensile test specimens were prepared from both species, and the test was conducted with calibrated universal testing machines (UTM). The expected outcome was to decide whether or not bamboo plant mechanical properties qualify for the construction of small-scale wind turbine blades. A total of 30 tensile specimens were prepared to conduct the test. Fatigue stress was calculated using the relationship between the tensile stress as various literatures revealed that fatigue strength equals 40 % to 60 % of the tensile stress. Experimental test output shows that lowland bamboo tensile strength is 178.1 Mpa while the corresponding fatigue strength is 71.24 Mpa. For highland bamboo, the tensile and the fatigue stresses are 122 Mpa and 48.8 Mpa respectively. This result confirmed that lowland bamboo has better strength compared to highland bamboo. This is because lowland bamboo is denser in fiber or microstructure than highland bamboo. This ensures that lowland bamboo has a larger load-bearing capacity. Fatigue stress (cyclic load) is the predominant stress for the failure of a structure when an intermittent load is subjected to the specific structure even if the exerted stress is below the yield stress of the component. Findings ensured that the bamboo plant has adequate strength for the construction of small-scale wind turbine blade production. In Ethiopia, the estimated wind power potential is nearly one Gigawatt, and the installed capacity is only 404 MW. Small-scale wind turbine installation was not offered sufficient attention. Integrating these two potential resources (bamboo as raw material and wind resources) will enhance and contribute to small-scale energy production.
Keywords: Fatigue Strength, Highland Bamboo, Lowland Bamboo, Tensile Strength
 
Molecular Investigation of Enterocytozoon bieneusi in Calves in Oromia Special Zone, Central Ethiopia
Get PDFEnterocytozoon bieneusi, the most frequently diagnosed microsporidian species in humans, is also identified in a wide range of animals. The aim of this study, therefore, was to determine the prevalence and genotypes of E. bieneusi in calves and to assess its public health implications in Central Ethiopia. A total of 449 fecal samples were examined by a nested PCR targeting the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) of the rRNA gene. All positive PCR products were sequenced to determine the genotypes. Enterocytozoon bieneusi was found in 7.1% (32/449) of the calves. Difference in the infection rate was statistically significant (P < 0.05) among age groups. Out of the 10 ITS genotypes, nine belonging to the known genotypes BEB8, BEB4, BEB17, I, KIN1, Peru11, PigEBITS5, H and ET-L2; and one novel genotype (named as ET-C1) were identified. Four of the genotypes (KIN-1, Peru11, PigEBITS5, and H) were clustered to a member of a major phylogenetic group with zoonotic potential. This study constituted the first molecular characterization of E. bieneusi in Ethiopia, and it suggested a potential risk of zoonotic transmission. Studies in humans and further studies in animals are necessary to assess the public health significance of E. bieneusi
Ethiopian perspectives and scientific explanations of the sun halo phenomenon on April 7, 2022 : THE SUN HALO PHENOMENON
No full textThe purpose of this study was to analyze the many interpretations and reactions to the sun halo phenomenon reported in Ethiopia on April 7, 2022, with a particular focus on religious perspectives and scientific analysis. The diameter of the sun halo was measured to be 0.092 km, indicating the peculiarity of this atmospheric occurrence. A study among various religious leaders and community members showed that 80% of respondents considered the phenomenon required special prayers or religious rites, suggesting a significant tendency towards spiritual significance. Additionally, 14% of respondents indicated curiosity regarding the event, suggesting a normal human reaction to odd or incomprehensible situations. Meanwhile, 3% of responders mentioned ceremonial offerings or no specific activities to the sun halo. From a technical aspect, picture analysis of the sun halo revealed an initial pixel count of 108,584 with a standard deviation of 43,265 and a noise standard deviation of 0.0962994, resulting in a signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of 33.744. This study underlines the clarity and prominence of the sun halo in the obtained image. Furthermore, the study analyzed the relationship between the sun halo and atmospheric conditions, revealing a correlation coefficient of 0.49 on Day 7, coinciding with occasional cloud cover and atmospheric disturbances. The correlation coefficient slightly reduced to 0.48 on Day 8, when the sky was clear. These findings show a probable relationship between the presence of atmospheric disturbances and the appearance of the sun halo, offering a detailed explanation of this remarkable natural phenomenon. To understand the underlying atmospheric dynamics and probable seasonal trends, future studies should concentrate on a more thorough analysis of sun halos, combining a bigger dataset of occurrences across diverse geographical regions and climatic conditions. Further research could examine the psychological and cultural effects of celestial phenomena, such as sun halos, on different cultures, offering more insight into how these occurrences affect cultural norms and belief systems.
Keywords: Sun, halo, scientific, people thought, imag
Linking Challenges to Academic Leadership Behaviors in Public University Context : Linking Challenges to Academic Leadership Behaviors
No full textThis research aimed to investigate potential root causes of challenges that arise and explain what drives the development of academic leadership behaviors in Ethiopia's public university context. The authors employed a cross-sectional survey design to achieve the research objective. The study established 540 sample units using Cochran's (1977) sample size determination and correction techniques, and further employed a stratified random sampling technique to select the stated sample academic leaders from three bands of six public universities. Among the 540 questionnaire papers distributed to participants, 487 (90.2%) were properly filled out and submitted. The collected data was recorded, organized, and analyzed using Excel and STATA-12. The study employed multivariate regression analysis using STATA-12 to scrutinize if subordinates' developmental challenges were attributed to the development of immediate academic leaders' behaviors. As a result, the study investigated the selected potential challenges that accounted for the highest variation in explaining the deviation in instructional leadership behavior (R2 = 0.16) compared to the variants in transformational (R2 = 0.11), transactional (R2 = 0.09), and laissezfaire (R2 = 0.04) leadership behaviors. This insight argues that the variety of complete academic leadership behaviors in public universities can be explained by one or more developmental challenges, such as members' novelty, staying up-to-date, challenging the status quo, being innovative, questioning immoral acts, and taking risks. The study suggests that reasonable potential sources of developmental challenges in academic governance are useful for the development of academic leadership behaviors in the public university context. Thus, the rational challenge is a developmental tool to advance academic leadership behaviors. The policy makers need to rethink and re-formulate academic governance policy dimensions that provide faculty members legal opportunities to challenge superiors either to stop immoral academic governance or to promote innovative academic governance in the university context.
Keywords: challenge; academic leadership; leadership behaviors; university; contex
Effectiveness of alternative furrow irrigation methods on cabbage yield and water productivity in Angacha District, Central Ethiopia Region
Get PDFThis study aimed at investigating the effectiveness of alternative furrow irrigation methods on the head yield of cabbage and water productivity at Guder Irrigation Scheme in Angacha district Kembata Zone Centeral Ethiopia Region. Three levels of treatment were replicated five times, in Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD). Farmers were used as replication from farmers’ research extension groups. The maximum head yield (52.8t/ha) was obtained from conventional furrow, following the second maximum head yield (49.07t/ha) at alternate furrow irrigation method. The minimum yield (38.112t/ha) was obtained from farmers’ practice of irrigation method. Their yield advantages (26.8%) and (22.3%) were recorded from conventional furrow, and alternate furrow irrigation, respectively. The highest water productivity (22.23kg/m3) was obtained from alternate furrow irrigation, following the second maximum water productivity form conventional furrow irrigation (11.96kg/m3) and minimum water productivity (8.15kg/m3). Farmers obtained a net income of (1,278,300 ETB/ha), (1,190,730 ETB/ha) and (909,903.3ETB/ha) from conventional furrow, alternate furrow, and farmers’ practices, respectively. Highest benefit cost ratio (18.63) was recorded form alternative furrow irrigation method :( 17.83) from every furrow and (14.15) from farmers’ practice. This implies that alternative furrow irrigation saves half of irrigation water when assimilated with conventional furrow and doubles net income on the farm gate. Therefore alternative furrow irrigation method should be recommended as a best agricultural water management technology without limiting fresh head yield of cabbage, and water productivity. The technology should be scaled up in to other irrigation schemes with the same agro ecology.
Key Words: - Alternate Furrow Irrigation, Head Cabbage, Yield, Water Productivity, Farmer Practice, Fertilizer, Gude
Morphodynamic Alterations and Scour Processes around Bridge Openings: A Case Study of Selected Bridges on the Sodo-Konso Highway, Ethiopia
Get PDFNumerous bridges in southern Ethiopia are greatly affected by Morphodynamic changes in the alluvial channel caused by hydraulic flow parameters. These bridges are vital for enabling traffic flows between communities in the region. In this study, Morphodynamic alterations around bridge openings were conducted using the hydraulic flow parameters based on the field and laboratory investigations were conducted in selected bridge sites between the Sodo and Konso highway routes. The Morphodynamic analysis of 1984 to 2021 years 1,276 Landsat images of 5 selected scour susceptible bridge sites have been analyzed using RivMap toolbox in MATLAB after rapid assessment of the channel stability of 15 bridges based on the field observation. The 38 years of channel geomorphological changes show that lateral widening of the alluvial valley is dominant in selected bridge sites. This channel widening also aggravates the contraction, local scour potential, and increased flow velocity induced by narrow bridge opening. The HEC RAS result confirms that the three of the selected bridge sites namely Kulfo, Alge, and Wajifo are low risk whereas Sile and Sego Bridge sites are the most scour critical. Moreover, Sego Bridge is severe for 50, 100, and 500-year return period floods due to the extreme narrowing of the valley at the bridge site and continuous upstream channel lateral widening of the floodplain through time. This indicates that this bridge needs a new relief culvert/countermeasure for safe operation. Thus, the design and analysis of the bridge structure in the lower alluvial reaches of the river requires a thorough understanding of the geomorphology and provision of adequate openings for the potential floodplain widening
A Custom Integrated Knowledge Management System Framework over the Cloud for Arba Minch University Staff
Get PDFEffective knowledge management is crucial for universities like Arba Minch University (AMU) to maintain a competitive edge. However, the efficient management and dissemination of knowledge within university communities pose significant challenges. As one of Ethiopia's eight research universities, AMU must establish robust knowledge management (KM) conditions to facilitate staff knowledge-sharing practices, making existing knowledge accessible, and generating new knowledge. AMU lacks adequate mechanisms for staff to share knowledge and collaborate on various tasks virtually. In response to this, our research introduces a custom integrated KM system deployed over the cloud to enhance collaboration and knowledge sharing among AMU staff. Utilizing a design science approach and a mixed research methodology, we investigated collaboration and knowledge sharing among AMU staff. The analysis revealed that 81% of respondents were dissatisfied with the current environment regarding the accessibility of knowledge sharing, indicating that knowledge within the institution is not easily accessible at any time and from any location. Additionally, 73% of respondents acknowledged the importance of Knowledge Management Systems. Based on these findings and the needs of the staff, we developed a cloud-based integrative KM framework designed to capture, represent, and share knowledge among AMU staff. The study concludes that the implementation of the developed KM framework in the institution can significantly improve the accessibility, sharing, and preservation of knowledge among AMU staff, ultimately enhancing the university's competitiveness and knowledge-sharing capabilities.
Keywords: Cloud-based, Collaboration, Explicit Knowledge, Integrative Knowledge Management System, Knowledge Sharing, Tacit knowledg