58 research outputs found
English Language Education UKSW Students' Perceptions on the Use of Pronunciation Practice Application
No full textPronunciation is one of the important aspects of being proficient in a certain language, therefore, it is important to master the skills of pronunciation. In a world where technology develops so quickly, humans cannot deny that technology has many roles in helping to levitate the standard of living. In the education field, technology has helped the learning and teaching process a lot. One of them is practicing pronunciation with the help of a pronunciation practice application. This study was aimed to find the perception toward the use of pronunciation practice application. Thus, the research questions that became the focus of this study were: (1) what are the learners' perceptions of mobile-assisted pronunciation practice? and (2) how does a pronunciation practice application help students improve their pronunciation? To answer the research question, the author distributed a questionnaire to 12 participants who are currently taking a Pronunciation Practice Class, which their lecturer asked them to download an application to help them practice. Then, a semi-structured interview was conducted. The finding revealed that students have a positive perception of the application they used. As for the interview, the data proposed that the application they used had several ways of helping them enhance their pronunciation skills
CORPUS-INFORMED AND CRITICAL APPROACHES TO ADDRESSING SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS (SDGS)
No full textThis paper showcases how a do-it-yourself (DIY) corpus on the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) can be used to increase corpus users’ language awareness (at word, phrase, sentence, and discourse levels) and criticality. To this end, the author justifies the close link between corpus linguistics, various critical approaches, and SDGs in the applied linguistics/ELT literature. Subsequently, the author provides an overview of principles for creating a specialized DIY corpus containing around 700,000 words/tokens based on 882 articles of The Jakarta Post from 2012 to mid-2024. In view of critical discourse analysis in corpus linguistics, SDG-related key word(s) in context (KWIC) were analyzed in four stages to examine their (1) frequencies and collocates, (2) concordance lines, (3) larger contexts within or across texts in the corpus (or beyond), and (4) potential to stimulate questions aiming at social transformation. In the findings, the four-stage analyses explore two of the most frequent SDGs in the corpus – “gender” (SDG 5) and “clean water and sanitation” (SDG 6) – to illustrate poststructuralist and Marxist criticality, respectively. The decolonial criticality is demonstrated through a corpus analysis of the word “indigenous” and its collocates. Possible pedagogical applications of the corpus-informed approach are also discussed
Pengintegrasian Critical Spiritual Pedagogy dalam Pembelajaran Bahasa Inggris: Penyuluhan melalui Webinar yang Diselenggarakan oleh UIN Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta: Penyuluhan melalui Webinar yang Diselenggarakan oleh UIN Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta
No full textMotivated by the need to incorporate spirituality into pedagogical practices, Technical Implementation Unit, Language Development Center, State Islamic University Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta invited the author to share his experiences investigating Critical Spiritual Pedagogy (CSP) and its integration into English language learning. Attended by 47 people, some of whom were English school teachers and university lecturers, the author, as a resource person in a webinar, presented concepts of criticality and spirituality before elaborating on CSP and its pedagogical implementations in English language classrooms. Based on pre- and post-presentation questionnaires and a question-and-answer session, it can be concluded that CSP was considered essential. Overall, participants also thought that CSP could be developed further for English language learning.Termotivasi oleh kebutuhan untuk memasukkan spiritualitas ke dalam praktek pedagogis, Unit Pelaksana Teknis (UPT) Pusat Pengembangan Bahasa Universitas Islam Negeri (UIN) Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta mengundang penulis untuk membagikan pengalamannya mengkaji Critical Spiritual Pedagogy (CSP) dan mengintegrasikannya ke dalam pembelajaran Bahasa Inggris. Dihadiri 47 orang, beberapa di antaranya adalah guru dan dosen Bahasa Inggris, penulis, sebagai narasumber webinar, mempresentasikan konsep sikap kritis dan spiritualitas sebelum menjabarkan CSP serta implementasi pedagogisnya dalam kelas Bahasa Inggris. Dari hasil kuesioner di awal dan akhir pemaparan materi serta sesi tanya jawab, dapat disimpulkan bahwa CSP dianggap penting dan oleh para peserta secara umum dinilai berpotensi untuk dikembangkan lebih lanjut dalam pembelajaran Bahasa Inggris
Emerg Infect Dis
No full textLassa fever (LF) causes multisystem disease and has a fatality rate <70%. Severe cases exhibit abnormal coagulation, endothelial barrier disruption, and dysfunctional platelet aggregation but the underlying mechanisms remain poorly understood. In Sierra Leone during 2015-2018, we assessed LF patients' day-of-admission plasma samples for levels of proteins necessary for coagulation, fibrinolysis, and platelet function. P-selectin, soluble endothelial protein C receptor, soluble thrombomodulin, plasminogen activator inhibitor 1, ADAMTS-13, von Willebrand factor, tissue factor, soluble intercellular adhesion molecule 1, and vascular cell adhesion molecule 1 were more elevated in LF patients than in controls. Endothelial protein C receptor, thrombomodulin, intercellular adhesion molecule 1, plasminogen activator inhibitor 1, D-dimer, and hepatocyte growth factor were higher in fatal than nonfatal LF cases. Platelet disaggregation occurred only in samples from fatal LF cases. The impaired homeostasis and platelet dysfunction implicate alterations in the protein C pathway, which might contribute to the loss of endothelial barrier function in fatal infections.K12 HD043451/HD/NICHD NIH HHS/United StatesUL1 TR001114/TR/NCATS NIH HHS/United StatesUL1 TR002550/TR/NCATS NIH HHS/United State
Negotiating the Place of Spirituality in English Language Teaching: A Case Study in an Indonesian EFL Teacher Education Program
No full textabstract: This dissertation delves into some EFL stakeholders' understanding of spiritual identities and power relations associated with these identities as performed in an undergraduate EFL teacher education program at a Christian university in Indonesia. This study is motivated by an ongoing debate over the place of spirituality, especially Christianity, in ELT. In this project, religions are considered to be windows through which one's spirituality is viewed and expressed. Spiritually associated relations of power indicate discrepancies due to positioning of one person committed to a spiritual view in relation to those having similar or different spiritual views. The purpose of exploring spiritually associated identities and power relations is to provide empirical evidence which supports the following arguments. The integration of spirituality in ELT, or lack thereof, can be problematic. More importantly, however, spirituality can be enriching for some EFL teachers and students alike, and be presented together with critical ELT. To explore the complexity of power relations associated with some EFL stakeholders' spiritual identities, I analyzed data from classroom observations, four focus group discussions from February to April 2014, and individual interviews with 23 teachers and students from February to September 2014. Findings showed that Christian and non-Christian English teachers had nuanced views regarding the place of prayer in ELT-related activities, professionalism in ELT, and ways of negotiating spiritually associated power relations in ELT contexts. Students participating in this study performed their spiritual identities in ways that can be perceived as problematic (e.g., by being very dogmatic or evangelical) or self-reflexive. Classroom observations helped me to see more clearly how Christian English teachers interacted with their students from different religious backgrounds. In one class, a stimulating dialogue seemed to emerge when a teacher accommodated both critical and religious views to be discussed. This project culminates in my theorization of the praxis of critical spiritual pedagogy in ELT. Central to this praxis are (a) raising the awareness of productive power and power relations associated with spiritual identities; (b) learning how to use defiant discourses in negotiating spiritually associated power relations; and (c) nurturing self-reflexivity critically and spiritually.Dissertation/ThesisDoctoral Dissertation English 201
Emerging trends in Lassa fever: redefining the role of immunoglobulin M and inflammation in diagnosing acute infection
No full textAbstract
Background
Lassa fever (LF) is a devastating hemorrhagic viral disease that is endemic to West Africa and responsible for thousands of human deaths each year. Analysis of humoral immune responses (IgM and IgG) by antibody-capture ELISA (Ab-capture ELISA) and Lassa virus (LASV) viremia by antigen-capture ELISA (Ag-capture ELISA) in suspected patients admitted to the Kenema Government Hospital (KGH) Lassa Fever Ward (LFW) in Sierra Leone over the past five years is reshaping our understanding of acute LF.
Results
Analyses in LF survivors indicated that LASV-specific IgM persists for months to years after initial infection. Furthermore, exposure to LASV appeared to be more prevalent in historically non-endemic areas of West Africa with significant percentages of reportedly healthy donors IgM and IgG positive in LASV-specific Ab-capture ELISA. We found that LF patients who were Ag positive were more likely to die than suspected cases who were only IgM positive. Analysis of metabolic and immunological parameters in Ag positive LF patients revealed a strong correlation between survival and low levels of IL-6, -8, -10, CD40L, BUN, ALP, ALT, and AST. Despite presenting to the hospital with fever and in some instances other symptoms consistent with LF, the profiles of Ag negative IgM positive individuals were similar to those of normal donors and nonfatal (NF) LF cases, suggesting that IgM status cannot necessarily be considered a diagnostic marker of acute LF in suspected cases living in endemic areas of West Africa.
Conclusion
Only LASV viremia assessed by Ag-capture immunoassay, nucleic acid detection or virus isolation should be used to diagnose acute LASV infection in West Africans. LASV-specific IgM serostatus cannot be considered a diagnostic marker of acute LF in suspected cases living in endemic areas of West Africa. By applying these criteria, we identified a dysregulated metabolic and pro-inflammatory response profile conferring a poor prognosis in acute LF. In addition to suggesting that the current diagnostic paradigm for acute LF should be reconsidered, these studies present new opportunities for therapeutic interventions based on potential prognostic markers in LF.
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Emerging trends in Lassa fever: redefining the role of immunoglobulin M and inflammation in diagnosing acute infection
No full textAbstract Background Lassa fever (LF) is a devastating hemorrhagic viral disease that is endemic to West Africa and responsible for thousands of human deaths each year. Analysis of humoral immune responses (IgM and IgG) by antibody-capture ELISA (Ab-capture ELISA) and Lassa virus (LASV) viremia by antigen-capture ELISA (Ag-capture ELISA) in suspected patients admitted to the Kenema Government Hospital (KGH) Lassa Fever Ward (LFW) in Sierra Leone over the past five years is reshaping our understanding of acute LF. Results Analyses in LF survivors indicated that LASV-specific IgM persists for months to years after initial infection. Furthermore, exposure to LASV appeared to be more prevalent in historically non-endemic areas of West Africa with significant percentages of reportedly healthy donors IgM and IgG positive in LASV-specific Ab-capture ELISA. We found that LF patients who were Ag positive were more likely to die than suspected cases who were only IgM positive. Analysis of metabolic and immunological parameters in Ag positive LF patients revealed a strong correlation between survival and low levels of IL-6, -8, -10, CD40L, BUN, ALP, ALT, and AST. Despite presenting to the hospital with fever and in some instances other symptoms consistent with LF, the profiles of Ag negative IgM positive individuals were similar to those of normal donors and nonfatal (NF) LF cases, suggesting that IgM status cannot necessarily be considered a diagnostic marker of acute LF in suspected cases living in endemic areas of West Africa. Conclusion Only LASV viremia assessed by Ag-capture immunoassay, nucleic acid detection or virus isolation should be used to diagnose acute LASV infection in West Africans. LASV-specific IgM serostatus cannot be considered a diagnostic marker of acute LF in suspected cases living in endemic areas of West Africa. By applying these criteria, we identified a dysregulated metabolic and pro-inflammatory response profile conferring a poor prognosis in acute LF. In addition to suggesting that the current diagnostic paradigm for acute LF should be reconsidered, these studies present new opportunities for therapeutic interventions based on potential prognostic markers in LF.</p
Building diagnostic systems in Sierra Leone:The role of point-of-care devices in laboratory strengthening
No full textPerancangan T-Shirt Perjuangan Pemberontakan PETA Dan Operasi Trisula di Blitar
No full textT-shirt merupakan bentuk fashion yang sangat fleksibel dan memiliki banyak fungsi pada zaman sekarang. Salah satunya adalah fungsi promosi. Sebagai media promosi T-Shirt diperlukan oleh setiap daerah untuk mengenalkan potensi wisatanya. Salah satunya adalah Blitar. Blitar merupakan daerah di Jawa Timur yang mempunyai banyak wisata sejarah. Sayang banyak wisata sejarah ini tidak dibarengi dengan ketersedian souvenir seperti T-Shirt. Souvenir T-Shirt di Blitar didominasi oleh souvenir Bung Karno. Hal ini menyebabkan kurang terexposenya potensi-potensi sejarah lain seperti Pemberontakan PETA dan Operasi Trisula di Blitar. Tujuan dari perancangan ini adalah membuat T-Shirt tentang perjuangan Pemberontakan PETA dan Operasi Trisula sebagai souvenir Blitar.
Metode penelitian yang digunakan diantaranya melalui studi literatur mengenai peristiwa sejarah di Blitar, observasi objek wisata sejarah di Blitar, kuesioner yang, wawancara dengan Bapak Irawan Prasetyo pemilik Mambu Suroboyoan untuk melakukan uji kelayakan desain bersain kaos berdasarkan riset yang telah dilakukan. Hasil dari data yang didapat ini kemudian menjadi acuan dalam proses desain selanjutnya.
Dalam perancangan ini, penulis menggunakan big idea “Lakone”, dimana souvenir kaos ini akan menggunakan cerita peristiwa sejarah, tokoh sejarah dan peninggalan sejarah yang ada di Blitar. Tata letak ilustrasi yang digunakan adalah full front, selain illustrasi juga akan dilengkapi tentang nama peristiwa atau nama pahlawan yang ditampilkan. Kaos ini dirancang untuk menjadi souvenir kaos yang mengangkat peristiwa sejarah Blitar untuk mengingatkan kembali khususnya generasi muda tentang peristiwa perjuangan di Blitar.
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T-shirt is a form of fashion that is very flexible and has many functions in this day and age. One of them is the promotion function. As a promotional media T-Shirt is needed by every region to introduce its tourism potential. One of them is Blitar. Blitar is an area in East Java that has a lot of historical tourism. Unfortunately, many historical tours are not accompanied by the availability of souvenirs such as T-Shirts. T-Shirt souvenirs in Blitar are dominated by Bung Karno souvenirs. This resulted in less exposure of other historical potentials such as the PETA Rebellion and the Trisula Operation in Blitar. The purpose of this design is to make a T-Shirt about the struggle of the PETA Rebellion and the Trisula Operation as a souvenir of Blitar.
The research methods used include literature studies on historical events in Blitar, observation of historical tourism objects in Blitar, questionnaires, interviews with Mr. Irawan Prasetyo, the owner of Mambu Suroboyoan, to conduct a feasibility test for t-shirt designs based on research that has been done. The results of the data obtained are then used as a reference in the next design process.
In this design, the author uses the big idea "Lakone", where this t-shirt souvenir will use stories of historical events, historical figures and historical relics in Blitar. The layout of the illustration used is full front, in addition to the illustration it will also be equipped with the name of the event or the name of the hero displayed. This t-shirt is designed to be a souvenir t-shirt that raises the historical events of Blitar to remind especially the younger generation about the events of the struggle in Blitar
Shedding of soluble glycoprotein 1 detected during acute Lassa virus infection in human subjects
No full textAbstract Background Lassa hemorrhagic fever (LHF) is a neglected tropical disease with significant impact on the health care system, society, and economy of Western and Central African nations where it is endemic. With a high rate of infection that may lead to morbidity and mortality, understanding how the virus interacts with the host's immune system is of great importance for generating vaccines and therapeutics. Previous work by our group identified a soluble isoform of the Lassa virus (LASV) GP1 (sGP1) in vitro resulting from the expression of the glycoprotein complex (GPC) gene 12. Though no work has directly been done to demonstrate the function of this soluble isoform in arenaviral infections, evidence points to immunomodulatory effects against the host's immune system mediated by a secreted glycoprotein component in filoviruses, another class of hemorrhagic fever-causing viruses. A significant fraction of shed glycoprotein isoforms during viral infection and biogenesis may attenuate the host's inflammatory response, thereby enhancing viral replication and tissue damage. Such shed glycoprotein mediated effects were previously reported for Ebola virus (EBOV), a filovirus that also causes hemorrhagic fever with nearly 90% fatality rates 345. The identification of an analogous phenomenon in vivo could establish a new correlate of LHF infection leading to the development of sensitive diagnostics targeting the earliest molecular events of the disease. Additionally, the reversal of potentially untoward immunomodulatory functions mediated by sGP1 could potentiate the development of novel therapeutic intervention. To this end, we investigated the presence of sGP1 in the serum of suspected LASV patients admitted to the Kenema Government Hospital (KGH) Lassa Fever Ward (LFW), in Kenema, Sierra Leone that tested positive for viral antigen or displayed classical signs of Lassa fever. Results It is reasonable to expect that a narrow window exists for detection of sGP1 as the sole protein shed during early arenaviral biogenesis. This phenomenon was clearly distinguishable from virion-associated GP1 only prior to the emergence of de novo viral particles. Despite this restricted time frame, in 2/46 suspected cases in two studies performed in late 2009 and early 2010, soluble glycoprotein component shedding was identified. Differential detection of viral antigens GP1, GP2, and NP by western blot yielded five different scenarios: whole LASV virions (GP1, GP2, NP; i.e. active viremia), different combinations of these three proteins, sGP1 only, NP only, and absence of all three proteins. Four additional samples showed inconclusive evidence for sGP1 shedding due to lack of detection of GP2 and NP by western blot; however, a sensitive LASV NP antigen capture ELISA generated marginally positive signals Conclusions During a narrow window following active infection with LASV, soluble GP1 can be detected in patient sera. This phenomenon parallels other VHF infection profiles, with the actual role of a soluble viral glycoprotein component in vivo remaining largely speculative. The expenditure of energy and cellular resources toward secretion of a critical protein during viral biogenesis without apparent specific function requires further investigation. Future studies will be aimed at systematically identifying the role of LASV sGP1 in the infection process and outcome in vitro and in vivo.</p
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