7 research outputs found
The Interference of Mother Tongue in English Language Grammar Classes: A Case Study on Grade Six EFL Teachers
Full text linkThe major intent of this study was to explore the interference of mother tongue in EFL grammar classes. Felege Abiot Elementary School was chosen via random sampling method (lottery). In this school in particular grade six, there were three EFL teachers. Three of them were selected with comprehensive sampling technique as to be participants. The study was a case study research design in nature. Classroom observation and interview were used to gather data from participants; the data were then analyzed qualitatively. The result of the study revealed that Amharic (L1) could be sparingly utilized in EFL grammar classes. Additionally, it was found that Amharic was used in occasions when the teachers and their learners failed to apply L2 in explaining idea, comparing and contrasting rules of Amharic and English language, offering instructions and confirming students’ comprehension. However, EFL teachers utilized the rules of Amharic to English language words. On the basis of these, it was possible to conclude that EFL teachers believed the use of L1 in L2 classes positively, but they directly employed the rule of L1 to L2 contexts unsystematically
Mobile Assisted Learning: Impact on Students’ Reading Comprehension and Belief
Full text linkThis study made an attempt to examine the effect of teaching students through mobile assisted language learning (MALL) on their reading comprehension performance and belief. In the study, 79 second year English language linear students in Gondar College of Teachers’ Education were taken as participants of the study comprehensively since their size was manageable. Among those, 40 of them were control group and 39 were experimental group. For this effect, the study used quasi-experimental research design. Data were collected via tests (pre and posttests) and questionnaire. The data collected using the pre and posttest were analyzed quantitatively using the independent samples t-test. The questionnaire data were analyzed quantitatively via frequency, percentage, mean and standard deviation. The results of the study divulged that MALL brought difference between the experimental group (EG) and control group (CG). Particularly, with the help of the interventions provided the majority of the EG showed high level of progress in their reading comprehension performance and got affirmative belief towards the use of MALL in reading lessons. However, the CG remained constant. Based on the findings drawn, it was recommended that MALL should be practiced to maximize the students’ reading comprehension performance in EFL reading classrooms
Nursing Students’ English Language Learning Needs and Perceptions
Full text linkNursing students should learn English language courses which focus on a restricted range of skills required by them for their profession. Cognizant of this, the researchers in this study surveyed specific English language needs of undergraduate nursing students. The study used Hutchinson and Waters' (1987) approach to analyze nursing students’ needs of English language skills and sub-skills to study their field effectively, their level of proficiency in English language skills and their perceptions of the relevance of the courses offered to them. To collect data, questionnaire and interview were used. The results showed that students are more proficient in reading and writing about health related issues than speaking and listening. Students reported that they could read and understand medical texts, instruments and reports written by doctors. It was also found out that students could write patient history, prescriptions and medication procedures. The study concluded that the courses which nursing students are taking are irrelevant. There is need to design specific courses which improve their reading and writing skills in their field. Key words: field related courses, needs analysis, profession, read medical articles, writing about health related issues,
Global, regional, and national burden of brain and other CNS cancer, 1990-2016: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2016
No full textBackground Brain and CNS cancers (collectively referred to as CNS cancers) are a source of mortality and morbidity for which diagnosis and treatment require extensive resource allocation and sophisticated diagnostic and therapeutic technology. Previous epidemiological studies are limited to specific geographical regions or time periods, making them difficult to compare on a global scale. In this analysis, we aimed to provide a comparable and comprehensive estimation of the global burden of brain cancer between 1990 and 2016. Methods We report means and 95% uncertainty intervals (UIs) for incidence, mortality, and disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs) estimates for CNS cancers (according to the International Classification of Diseases tenth revision: malignant neoplasm of meninges, malignant neoplasm of brain, and malignant neoplasm of spinal cord, cranial nerves, and other parts of CNS) from the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study 2016. Data sources include vital registration and cancer registry data. Mortality was modelled using an ensemble model approach. Incidence was estimated by dividing the final mortality estimates by mortality to incidence ratios. DALYs were estimated by summing years of life lost and years lived with disability. Locations were grouped into quintiles based on the Socio-demographic Index (SDI), a summary indicator of income per capita, years of schooling, and total fertility rate. Findings In 2016, there were 330 000 (95% UI 299 000 to 349 000) incident cases of CNS cancer and 227 000 (205 000 to 241 000) deaths globally, and age-standardised incidence rates of CNS cancer increased globally by 17 3% (95% UI 11.4 to 26.9) between 1990 and 2016 (2016 age-standardised incidence rate 4.63 per 100 000 person-years [4.17 to 4.90]). The highest age-standardised incidence rate was in the highest quintile of SDI (6.91 [5.71 to 7.53]). Age-standardised incidence rates increased with each SDI quintile. East Asia was the region with the most incident cases of CNS cancer for both sexes in 2016 (108 000 [95% UI 98 000 to 122 000]), followed by western Europe (49 000 [3 7 000 to 54 000]), and south Asia (31000 [29000 to 37 000]). The top three countries with the highest number of incident cases were China, the USA, and India. CNS cancer was responsible for 7.7 million (95% UI 6.9 to 8.3) DALYs globally, a non-significant change in age-standardised DALY rate of -10 .0% (-16.4 to 2.6) between 1990 and 2016. The age-standardised DALY rate decreased in the high SDI quintile (-10.0% [-27.1 to -0.1]) and high-middle SDI quintile (-10.5% [-18.4 to -1.4]) over time but increased in the low SDI quintile (22.5% [11.2 to 50.5]). Interpretation CNS cancer is responsible for substantial morbidity and mortality worldwide, and incidence increased between 1990 and 2016. Significant geographical and regional variation in the incidence of CNS cancer might be reflective of differences in diagnoses and reporting practices or unknown environmental and genetic risk factors. Future efforts are needed to analyse CNS cancer burden by subtype. Copyright (C) 2019 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd.Y
Global, regional, and national burden of brain and other CNS cancer, 1990-2016 : a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2016
No full textAbstract: Background Brain and CNS cancers (collectively referred to as CNS cancers) are a source of mortality and morbidity for which diagnosis and treatment require extensive resource allocation and sophisticated diagnostic and therapeutic technology. Previous epidemiological studies are limited to specific geographical regions or time periods, making them difficult to compare on a global scale. In this analysis, we aimed to provide a comparable and comprehensive estimation of the global burden of brain cancer between 1990 and 2016. Methods We report means and 95% uncertainty intervals (UIs) for incidence, mortality, and disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs) estimates for CNS cancers (according to the International Classification of Diseases tenth revision: malignant neoplasm of meninges, malignant neoplasm of brain, and malignant neoplasm of spinal cord, cranial nerves, and other parts of CNS) from the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study 2016. Data sources include vital registration and cancer registry data. Mortality was modelled using an ensemble model approach. Incidence was estimated by dividing the final mortality estimates by mortality to incidence ratios. DALYs were estimated by summing years of life lost and years lived with disability. Locations were grouped into quintiles based on the Socio-demographic Index (SDI), a summary indicator of income per capita, years of schooling, and total fertility rate. Findings In 2016, there were 330 000 (95% UI 299 000 to 349 000) incident cases of CNS cancer and 227 000 (205 000 to 241 000) deaths globally, and age-standardised incidence rates of CNS cancer increased globally by 17 3% (95% UI 11.4 to 26.9) between 1990 and 2016 (2016 age-standardised incidence rate 4.63 per 100 000 person-years [4.17 to 4.90]). The highest age-standardised incidence rate was in the highest quintile of SDI (6.91 [5.71 to 7.53]). Age-standardised incidence rates increased with each SDI quintile. East Asia was the region with the most incident cases of CNS cancer for both sexes in 2016 (108 000 [95% UI 98 000 to 122 000]), followed by western Europe (49 000 [3 7 000 to 54 000]), and south Asia (31000 [29000 to 37 000]). The top three countries with the highest number of incident cases were China, the USA, and India. CNS cancer was responsible for 7.7 million (95% UI 6.9 to 8.3) DALYs globally, a non-significant change in age-standardised DALY rate of -10 .0% (-16.4 to 2.6) between 1990 and 2016. The age-standardised DALY rate decreased in the high SDI quintile (-10.0% [-27.1 to -0.1]) and high-middle SDI quintile (-10.5% [-18.4 to -1.4]) over time but increased in the low SDI quintile (22.5% [11.2 to 50.5]). Interpretation CNS cancer is responsible for substantial morbidity and mortality worldwide, and incidence increased between 1990 and 2016. Significant geographical and regional variation in the incidence of CNS cancer might be reflective of differences in diagnoses and reporting practices or unknown environmental and genetic risk factors. Future efforts are needed to analyse CNS cancer burden by subtype. Copyright (C) 2019 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd
Global, regional, and national incidence, prevalence, and mortality of HIV, 1980-2017, and forecasts to 2030, for 195 countries and territories: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study 2017
Full text linkBackground Understanding the patterns of HIV/AIDS epidemics is crucial to tracking and monitoring the progress of prevention and control efforts in countries. We provide a comprehensive assessment of the levels and trends of HIV/AIDS incidence, prevalence, mortality, and coverage of antiretroviral therapy (ART) for 1980-2017 and forecast these estimates to 2030 for 195 countries and territories. Methods We determined a modelling strategy for each country on the basis of the availability and quality of data. For countries and territories with data from population-based seroprevalence surveys or antenatal care clinics, we estimated prevalence and incidence using an open-source version of the Estimation and Projection Package-a natural history model originally developed by the UNAIDS Reference Group on Estimates, Modelling, and Projections. For countries with cause-specific vital registration data, we corrected data for garbage coding (ie, deaths coded to an intermediate, immediate, or poorly defined cause) and HIV misclassification. We developed a process of cohort incidence bias adjustment to use information on survival and deaths recorded in vital registration to back-calculate HIV incidence. For countries without any representative data on HIV, we produced incidence estimates by pulling information from observed bias in the geographical region. We used a re-coded version of the Spectrum model (a cohort component model that uses rates of disease progression and HIV mortality on and off ART) to produce age-sex-specific incidence, prevalence, and mortality, and treatment coverage results for all countries, and forecast these measures to 2030 using Spectrum with inputs that were extended on the basis of past trends in treatment scale-up and new infections. Findings Global HIV mortality peaked in 2006 with 1.95 million deaths (95 uncertainty interval 1.87-2.04) and has since decreased to 0.95 million deaths (0.91-1.01) in 2017. New cases of HIV globally peaked in 1999 (3.16 million, 2.79-3.67) and since then have gradually decreased to 1.94 million (1.63-2.29) in 2017. These trends, along with ART scale-up, have globally resulted in increased prevalence, with 36.8 million (34.8-39.2) people living with HIV in 2017. Prevalence of HIV was highest in southern sub-Saharan Africa in 2017, and countries in the region had ART coverage ranging from 65.7 in Lesotho to 85.7 in eSwatini. Our forecasts showed that 54 countries will meet the UNAIDS target of 81 ART coverage by 2020 and 12 countries are on track to meet 90 ART coverage by 2030. Forecasted results estimate that few countries will meet the UNAIDS 2020 and 2030 mortality and incidence targets. Interpretation Despite progress in reducing HIV-related mortality over the past decade, slow decreases in incidence, combined with the current context of stagnated funding for related interventions, mean that many countries are not on track to reach the 2020 and 2030 global targets for reduction in incidence and mortality. With a growing population of people living with HIV, it will continue to be a major threat to public health for years to come. The pace of progress needs to be hastened by continuing to expand access to ART and increasing investments in proven HIV prevention initiatives that can be scaled up to have population-level impact. Copyright (C) 2019 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd
Population and fertility by age and sex for 195 countries and territories, 1950-2017: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2017
Full text link© 2018 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an Open Access article under the CC BY 4.0 license Background: Population estimates underpin demographic and epidemiological research and are used to track progress on numerous international indicators of health and development. To date, internationally available estimates of population and fertility, although useful, have not been produced with transparent and replicable methods and do not use standardised estimates of mortality. We present single-calendar year and single-year of age estimates of fertility and population by sex with standardised and replicable methods. Methods: We estimated population in 195 locations by single year of age and single calendar year from 1950 to 2017 with standardised and replicable methods. We based the estimates on the demographic balancing equation, with inputs of fertility, mortality, population, and migration data. Fertility data came from 7817 location-years of vital registration data, 429 surveys reporting complete birth histories, and 977 surveys and censuses reporting summary birth histories. We estimated age-specific fertility rates (ASFRs; the annual number of livebirths to women of a specified age group per 1000 women in that age group) by use of spatiotemporal Gaussian process regression and used the ASFRs to estimate total fertility rates (TFRs; the average number of children a woman would bear if she survived through the end of the reproductive age span [age 10–54 years] and experienced at each age a particular set of ASFRs observed in the year of interest). Because of sparse data, fertility at ages 10–14 years and 50–54 years was estimated from data on fertility in women aged 15–19 years and 45–49 years, through use of linear regression. Age-specific mortality data came from the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD) 2017 estimates. Data on population came from 1257 censuses and 761 population registry location-years and were adjusted for underenumeration and age misreporting with standard demographic methods. Migration was estimated with the GBD Bayesian demographic balancing model, after incorporating information about refugee migration into the model prior. Final population estimates used the cohort-component method of population projection, with inputs of fertility, mortality, and migration data. Population uncertainty was estimated by use of out-of-sample predictive validity testing. With these data, we estimated the trends in population by age and sex and in fertility by age between 1950 and 2017 in 195 countries and territories. Findings: From 1950 to 2017, TFRs decreased by 49·4% (95% uncertainty interval [UI] 46·4–52·0). The TFR decreased from 4·7 livebirths (4·5–4·9) to 2·4 livebirths (2·2–2·5), and the ASFR of mothers aged 10–19 years decreased from 37 livebirths (34–40) to 22 livebirths (19–24) per 1000 women. Despite reductions in the TFR, the global population has been increasing by an average of 83·8 million people per year since 1985. The global population increased by 197·2% (193·3–200·8) since 1950, from 2·6 billion (2·5–2·6) to 7·6 billion (7·4–7·9) people in 2017; much of this increase was in the proportion of the global population in south Asia and sub-Saharan Africa. The global annual rate of population growth increased between 1950 and 1964, when it peaked at 2·0%; this rate then remained nearly constant until 1970 and then decreased to 1·1% in 2017. Population growth rates in the southeast Asia, east Asia, and Oceania GBD super-region decreased from 2·5% in 1963 to 0·7% in 2017, whereas in sub-Saharan Africa, population growth rates were almost at the highest reported levels ever in 2017, when they were at 2·7%. The global average age increased from 26·6 years in 1950 to 32·1 years in 2017, and the proportion of the population that is of working age (age 15–64 years) increased from 59·9% to 65·3%. At the national level, the TFR decreased in all countries and territories between 1950 and 2017; in 2017, TFRs ranged from a low of 1·0 livebirths (95% UI 0·9–1·2) in Cyprus to a high of 7·1 livebirths (6·8–7·4) in Niger. The TFR under age 25 years (TFU25; number of livebirths expected by age 25 years for a hypothetical woman who survived the age group and was exposed to current ASFRs) in 2017 ranged from 0·08 livebirths (0·07–0·09) in South Korea to 2·4 livebirths (2·2–2·6) in Niger, and the TFR over age 30 years (TFO30; number of livebirths expected for a hypothetical woman ageing from 30 to 54 years who survived the age group and was exposed to current ASFRs) ranged from a low of 0·3 livebirths (0·3–0·4) in Puerto Rico to a high of 3·1 livebirths (3·0–3·2) in Niger. TFO30 was higher than TFU25 in 145 countries and territories in 2017. 33 countries had a negative population growth rate from 2010 to 2017, most of which were located in central, eastern, and western Europe, whereas population growth rates of more than 2·0% were seen in 33 of 46 countries in sub-Saharan Africa. In 2017, less than 65% of the national population was of working age in 12 of 34 high-income countries, and less than 50% of the national population was of working age in Mali, Chad, and Niger. Interpretation: Population trends create demographic dividends and headwinds (ie, economic benefits and detriments) that affect national economies and determine national planning needs. Although TFRs are decreasing, the global population continues to grow as mortality declines, with diverse patterns at the national level and across age groups. To our knowledge, this is the first study to provide transparent and replicable estimates of population and fertility, which can be used to inform decision making and to monitor progress. Funding: Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
