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The Malaysian government's pursuit of the Movement Control Order (MCO) had a severe impact on the performance of the construction project, which was hampered as a result of their actions. It becomes even more difficult when the region around construction projects is defined as a "red zone". This situation affects the performance of construction projects, which is related to project delays, increase in construction costs, waste of construction materials, labourers who have not received any salary, lack of labour, and etc. This paper attempts to investigate the relationship between MCO impact factors and the performance of construction projects in Malaysia. The quantitative technique was applied in this study. The contractors registered under the Construction Development Board (CIDB) in the state of Selangor were chosen as the respondents. In total, 100 respondents participated and gave full support for this study. This relationship was investigated using a correlation analysis technique. The highest impact is the construction cost. The construction costs increased due to the increase in the prices of construction materials and machinery, lack of labours, and additional expenses for COVID-19 precautions. The findings found that the larger the negative impact of MCO's actions during the COVID-19 outbreak on time, cost, and resources, the worse the performance of Malaysian projects will be in general. These factors should be considered by the government before a decision is made. For future research, it is suggested to look at how the regulation can assist the construction stakeholders to ensure the MCO does not have a big impact on the construction projects.
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Goal. The goal of the paper is to show the implementation of library services in the homes for older adults in the city of Zagreb during the COVID-19 pandemic from March 2020 to June 2022. Approach/methodology/design. Library services in homes for the older adults in the city of Zagreb are implemented within the Books at your door programme of the 65 plus project at the Zagreb City Libraries. The COVID-19 pandemic and related restrictions have made it difficult to design and implement library services for older people in libraries. Due to the protection of health, particularly large restrictions have been placed on contacts with elderly people in homes for the older adults. As a result of this challenge, the librarians have devised ways to stay in touch and provide library services to the home users during periods of greater and lesser restrictions on access to the homes. Results. The paper describes in detail the implementation and the results of the Books at your door programme from March 2020 to June 2022. Library services and various cultural programs that were carried out during the pandemic in homes for the older adults, organized by the Zagreb City Libraries, are presented and described. The results are based on and supported by the statistical data from the annual reports of the 65 plus project. Originality/value. The cultural activities that are carried out for the older adults by the libraries, sometimes in difficult business circumstances, are examples of good practice aimed at sensitizing the public and increasing care for the well-being of the elderly people. The experiences gained during the implementation of the Books at your door programme in difficult conditions during the pandemic can help experts and practitioners in designing library services in times of crisis. The data recorded in this paper also represent a kind of public archive on the cooperation between libraries and homes for the older adults in the Zagreb area during the COVID-19 pandemic. © 2023, Hrvatsko Knjiznicarsko Drustvo. All rights reserved.
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This concluding chapter highlights the efforts put into reducing tax crimes. It starts with the socio-economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on budget deficits and optimisation of tax collection and reducing the tax gap. The Anti-Money Laundering (AML) framework and anti-tax fraud framework in the EU laid the foundation for future legislation and policy to counter tax crimes across Europe. Case studies, focus groups, and workshops found that interagency and international cooperation in fighting tax crimes fronted significant constraints, such as data exchange, joint investigations, collaborative asset confiscations, and sanctions. The chapter then discusses the findings from the PROTAX project to expound its point on legal regimes being made across Europe. It suggests that developing a holistic tax enforcement eco-system is needed instead of just tinkering with legal provisions. © U Turksen, D Vozza, R Kreissl, and F Rasmouki 2023.
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The emergence of online learning has become important during the COVID-19 pandemic due to the advent of internet technology. The unpreparedness of planning and implementing online learning has caused many problems during the pandemic such as limited or monotonous academic materials as well as difficulty in organizing activities and student involvement. Online learning is also more stressful because students are stuck in private academic processes in the absence of challenging and fun activities leading to knowledge development difficulties. Therefore, this study aims to develop and analyze the feasibility of a gamification model for case and project-based online learning in universities. This analysis used the research and development (R&D) method with the experimental procedure containing model development as well as product validation and testing. In the validation process, two learning design and media experts as well as 76 students participated with a descriptive statistical analysis used to analyze the data. The results of the learning design experts' assessment showed a score of 4.35, learning media experts' assessment showed a score of 4.90 and the average score of the students' assessment was 4.33. Based on the results, the developed learning model was feasible to use in university academic processes. © 2023 by the authors.
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Paper aims: We analyze in this study the management and governance structure of technology transfer in megaprojects under an emergency context. Originality: We analyze an emergency health megaproject's management and governance structure. There is a dearth of studies that explore the management and governance structure of combination megaprojects in emergencies. We focus on analyzing the literature and the management and governance structure in the technology transfer, production, and supply of the Covid-19 vaccine. We then develop a reference model for building the management and governance structure of megaprojects in emergencies. Research method: We conducted a case study in Bio-Manguinhos/Fiocruz. From the case study, we can analyze real situations that contribute to the development of theories. For this, we systematically reviewed the literature to identify how the megaproject management structure has been used. We interviewed stakeholders of the Oxford/AstraZeneca/Fiocruz vaccine megaproject against Covid-19 and triangulated these data by collecting corresponding documents. Main findings: We conclude that the management and governance structure of the Oxford/AstraZeneca/Fiocruz vaccine technology transfer, production, and supply megaproject was appropriate. Since this structure should not be reproduced faithfully due to its specific characteristics, we developed a reference model for structure building in emergencies. This model can support institutions and governments in structuring management and governance in critical situations. Implications for theory and practice: The knowledge obtained from this study will contribute to determining management and governance structures for future megaprojects, especially in emergencies © This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited
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The aim of this study was to examine the perceptions of different professionals who are working in the construction industry about construction accounting, within the context of construction project management and development. A primarily quantitative research approach was used in this study. The researcher developed a bespoke survey questionnaire as the research instrument. This research instrument was then used in the collection of the data from the respondents. Considering that this study was implemented at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, the data gathering procedures had to be conducted virtually. The sample population used in the present study was composed of 100 individuals (N = 100). These 100 individuals have already been working as accountants in a company that is operating in the construction industry for at least 1 year at the time of the study's implementation. The participants' responses to the survey questionnaire were collected and then sorted using Microsoft Excel. The corresponding scores were then analyzed using descriptive statistical analysis. This was done by determining the frequency (percentage) of the participants who chose a specific answer to every question in the survey. In conclusion, if quality, efficiency, and profitability are a construction firm's main focus, then there is a good chance that the use of construction accounting or its integration in the construction project management and sustainable development process would be of great help. However, if the goal is to shorten the project delivery timeframe, or to improve the project completion rates (i.e., productivity), then chances are the construction firms should stay away from construction accounting, at least at the moment. Copyright © FrancoAngeli.
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Contribution: This article provides a teaching methodology which combines project-based learning, self-regulated learning (SRL), and design projects (DPs) to improve the preparedness of students for computing science-related internships. The methodology is supported by the implementation of the educational technology that transforms the way teaching and learning is transformed to benefit on-campus and off-campus students equitably, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Background: Success in the workspace is governed by the ability of an individual to learn on-the-job and independently. Online learning has led to a shift from instructor-led learning to SRL. This requires individuals to discipline themselves, and be in control of their learning and education. Outcome: The success of internships is improved with skills learnt in class through hands-on real-world projects. Both on/off-campus students gain equitable relevant experience. The teaching methodology developed over several years combines project-based learning, SRL, and DPs. Application Design: The methodology was applied using a flipped classroom approach. The educational technology was used to enhance SRL before in-class learning. This way, in-class rote learning was replaced with hands-on projects. Exam assessments were replaced with DPs where soft skills and technical skills are applied. Findings: The effectiveness of the developed methodology is measured through quantitative and qualitative evaluation tools. The evaluation demonstrates that combining well-designed education technology for SRL, with in-class project-based learning and DPs, can improve students' chances in getting high-impact internships.
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School closures and society's retooling to social distancing brought by the COVID-19 pandemic have left teachers and workplace trainers scrambling to adapt to a new reality while facing the possibility that both distance and distributed learning may be here to stay. Many are unprepared to deal with their student bodies studying from home and the necessary revamping of the curriculum to an online format. The COVID-19 crisis called to us, a group of doctoral students in distance education, with decades of combined experience, to serve in creating a scalable general blueprint for an online course, informed by our own praxis and that of seminal educator-researchers. The blueprint can be easily understood through the schematic and five-minute audio yet is enhanced with links to provide a deeper understanding of the why behind its application. We used project-based learning (PBL) theory to guide the educator in weaving the right kind, sequence, and quantity of learning interaction into their digital modules. Unintentionally, this project modeled swarm leadership, a collaborative networked effort that adapts and self-organizes in the moment, swarming in on a task of challenge and collectively innovating, organizing, and sharing responsibility. The end result was a useful public open educational resource (OER) and lifelong friendships. © Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021. All rights reserved.
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This paper reports on a study conducted to examine the development of cadets' soft skills by implementing project-based learning in Moodle LMS during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study was classroom action research following the Kemmis & McTaggart's model. It was conducted in three cycles, each consisting of plan, action, observation, and reflection. The participants of this study were the cadets from four different study programs at Sekolah Tinggi Maritim Yogyakarta currently enrolled in online classes. The data were collected through observations and focused-group discussions. The results showed that the implementation of project-based learning in Moodle LMS contributed effectively to the development of the cadets' soft skills including responsibility, discipline, creativity, and problem-solving. After implementing the project-based learning for about 16 week-meetings, the researchers recorded the gradual improvement in the soft skills performed by the cadets as follows: 39.42% (low) in Pre-cycle, 52.71% (average) in Cycle I, 69.91% (high) in Cycle II, and 83.71% (very high) in Cycle III. The aforementioned skills were perceived as key fundamental skills required by the cadets to perform their jobs successfully in the 21st century workplace, particularly in the maritime industry. © 2023, Rajarambapu Institute Of Technology. All rights reserved.
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This paper describes a hybrid (virtual and online) workshop held as part of the EU STAMINA project that aimed to engage project partners to explore ethics and simulation modelling in the context of pandemic preparedness and response. The purpose of the workshop was to consider how the model's design and use in specific pandemic decision-making contexts could have broader implications for issues like transparency, explainability, representativeness, bias, trust, equality, and social injustices. Its outputs will be used as evidence to produce a series of measures that could help mitigate ethical harms and support the greater possible benefit from the use of the models. These include recommendations for policy, data-gathering, training, potential protocols to support end-user engagement, as well as guidelines for designing and using simulation models for pandemic decision-making. This paper presents the methodological approaches taken when designing the workshop, practical concerns raised, initial insights gained, and considers future steps. © SW 2023.All rights reserved
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PurposeThe COVID-19 health crisis has brought about a set of extra health and safety regulations, and procedures to the construction industry which could influence projects' economic performance (EP). The aim of this paper is to examine the effect of adopting COVID-19 safety protocols on construction sites on the economic performance (EP) of construction projects.Design/methodology/approachEmploying the survey method using a structured questionnaire, data were collected from small- and large-sized construction projects in Nigeria and analysed using partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) technique.FindingsThe findings reveal that job re-organization and sanitization have negative significant effects on EP, while social distancing and specific training have no effect on EP. Furthermore, project size moderates the relationship between job re-organization, sanitization, specific training and EP with the stronger effect on the relationships observed in big projects, except for the relationship between sanitization and EP where the moderating relationship is stronger in small projects. However, there is no significant moderating effect of project size on the relationship between social distancing and EP.Practical implicationsAs construction project sites continue to operate amidst strict safety protocols, this study offers theoretical and practical insights on how construction projects can adhere to the safety protocols while performing economically.Originality/valueThe originality of this study's findings stems from the fact that it is among the first to provide greater insight on how construction projects have fared economically considering the impact of the various COVID-19 protocols.
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The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the need for modular designs to rapidly expand vaccine production capacity. Speed to market An established benefit of modular facilities is that they are constructed off-site and then delivered to the site where they will be put into use. CRB's SlateXpace was introduced in September 2020 as a "suitebased" modular facility design for cell and gene therapy. Modular systems enable the manufacturer to produce regionally on the required scale and thus to react flexibly to the current situation and local requirements," says Kappeler.
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The commercial strategies of the small businesses of Alajuela Street in the Portoviejo Canton of Manabí in Ecuador in times of COVID-19 have had different impacts. This article seeks to explore and disseminate the main business strategies of SMEs in Latin America and their impacts of these business strategies on small business sales. A case study is proposed from one of the cantons of Ecuador. To carry out the research, the consultation of specialized bibliography, the survey, direct observation and statistical processing are used. As main re-sults, it is obtained that in 99% of the cases, the merchants who applied online marketing strategies in periods of Covid-19 had a positive impact on their income, a behavior similar to that of studies in the Latin American field. 74% of those surveyed decided to keep offering the same kind of item or product during the pandemic and 18% decided to switch products to food. 94.1% of businesses were affected by COVID-19. © 2023, University of Cienfuegos, Carlos Rafael Rodriguez. All rights reserved.
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The application and effects of the project-based learning (PBL) model have been carried out in various majors and courses, and the results analysed in several studies. This study was focused on the Covid-19 pandemic period from 2020 to 2022 to discuss lessons and effects of applying an on-line and off-line PBL model to engineering economics courses for engineering students in 2021 and 2022 compared with a simple on-line course in 2020 without PBL. Project teams consisting of three-four students carried out on-line collaborative learning to solve open-ended problems through a four-step PBL procedure including presentation of the final result. Except for this PBL application in 2021 and 2022, textbooks, lecture contents, assignments and tests were implemented in the same way for each semester over these three years. Through lecture evaluation and a simple survey for students, the semesters with PBL showed higher effects in inducing student-led learning and lecture satisfaction compared to the semesters without it. Further, it was established that the PBL application to the course and the evaluation method were more appropriate than the approach in other semesters. It is expected that the PBL method and operation procedure outlined in this article could be utilised as a best practice for various on-line and mixed courses in student-led collaborative learning activities to achieve better educational effects and satisfaction. © WIETE 2023.
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COVID-19 has negatively affected business operations and drastically threatened different ongoing organizational changes. Digital transformation has been considered a unique way of improving performance and business operations in the new digital world. However, the immediate shutdown caused by the pandemic and the lack of preparation for implementing digital transformation influenced most industries. This chapter outlines the negative implications of COVID-19 on transferring to digital solutions as well as revealed prospects. In this regard, the outcomes of implementing digital transformation in several sectors are reviewed. Assessing these impacts addresses the benefits and drawbacks associated with digitalized solutions. We highlight the beginning of the year 2020, the announcement of the global pandemic, as an important timeline for evaluating the contributions of published papers. Furthermore, we emphasize that papers published following the epidemic in addition to considering the impacts should be included in future research studies in this field. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.
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Background: The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the constant transformation of the SARS-COV-2 virus form, exposure to substantial psychosocial stress, environmental change, and isolation have led to the inference that the overall population's mental health could be affected, resulting in an increase in cases of psychosis. Objective(s): We initiated a systematic review to determine the impact of the SARS-COV-2 virus and its long-term effects-in both symptomatic and asymptomatic cases-on people with or without psychosis. We envisioned that this would give us an insight into effective clinical intervention methods for patients with psychosis during and after the pandemic. Method(s): We selected fifteen papers that met our inclusion criteria, i.e., those that considered participants with or without psychiatric illness and exposed to SARS-COV-2 infection, for this review and were retrieved via Google, Google Scholar, MEDLINE, PubMed, and PsychINFO Database. Key Gap: There is a dearth of research in understanding how COVID-19 affects people with or without a prior personal history of psychosis. Result(s): The systematic review summary provides insight into the state of knowledge. Insights from the systematic review have also been reviewed from the salutogenesis model's perspec-tive. There is moderate evidence of new-onset psychosis during the COVID-19 pandemic in which some antipsychotics treated the psychotic symptoms of patients while treating for COVID-19. Suggestions and recommendations are made for preventive and promotive public health strategies. Conclusion(s): The Salutogenesis model and Positive Psychology Interventions (PPI) provide another preventive and promotive public health management approach.Copyright © 2023 Bentham Science Publishers.
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The objective of this research paper is to investigate the impact of COVID-19 on the factors influencing on-time software project delivery in different Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC) models such as Agile, Incremental, Waterfall, and Prototype models. Also to identify the change of crucial factors with respect to different demographic information that influences on-time software project delivery. This study has been conducted using a quantitative approach. We surveyed Software Developers, Project Managers, Software Architect, QA Engineer and other roles using a Google form. Python has been used for data analysis purposes. We received 72 responses from 11 different software companies of Bangladesh, based on that we find that Attentional Focus, Team Stability, Communication, Team Maturity, and User Involvement are the most important factors for on-time software project delivery in different SDLC models during COVID-19. On the contrary, before COVID-19 Team Capabilities, Infrastructure, Team Commitment, Team Stability and Team Maturity are found as the most crucial factors. Team Maturity and Team Stability are found as common important factors for both before and during the COVID-19 scenario. We also identified the change in the impact level of factors with respect to demographic information such as experience, company size, and different SDLC models used by participants. Attentional focus is the most important factor for experienced developers while for freshers all factors are almost equally important. This study finds that there is a significant change among factors for on-time software project delivery before and during the COVID-19 scenario. Copyright © 2023 by SCITEPRESS - Science and Technology Publications, Lda. Under CC license (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)
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During the pandemic, virtual Transnational higher education (TNHE) became one of the solutions to support researchers and students in continuing academic research collaborations, intercultural competence, and global awareness acquisition via a virtual platform. This case study explores the implementation of the MOST-NSF Partnership for International Research and Education (PIRE) research project between Taiwan and the USA in terms of governance modes and research productivity according to Knight's Functional, Organizational, a Political approaches (FOPA) model. The study finds that the political and functional models are somehow consistent with the national needs of scientific development. Second, the COVID-19 crisis intensified international collaboration and justified the supremacy of global sciences, which has overridden national and individual interests. The case study provides feasible management modes and research collaboration experiences for the researchers who would like to implement transnational higher education with other foreign partners in the post-pandemic era. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.
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O artigo desenvolve a hipótese de que há uma íntima relação entre os interesses do capital e educação como estratégia na construção dos sujeitos que vão disputar um mercado de trabalho escasso, precário e instável. Analisa alguns documentos dos organismos multilaterais, seus mecanismos ideológicos e estratégias acionadas na direção de construir consensos sobre a necessidade de um "novo” projeto educacional, no qual há a substituição lenta e gradual do ensino presencial, via sistemas híbridos. Está em curso a mudança mais concreta, completa e complexa do ensino/educação: sua virtualização ou digitalização, que foi projetada desde a reforma de Bolonha (1999). Concluímos que o capital, em sua busca de valorização, encontrou na pandemia as estratégias e táticas para a continuidade e intensificação do uso de tecnologias digitais na educação, transformando-a em ensino à distância e impondo um novo projeto educacional. Este projeto encontrou uma oportunidade e uma justificativa sem precedentes: a Covid-19.Alternate :The article develops the hypothesis that there's an intimate relationship between the interests of capital and education, as a strategy in the construction of individuals who will compete in a scarce, precarious and unstable labor market. It analyzes documents from multilateral organizations, their ideological mechanisms and strategies used with the intention of building consensus on the need for a "new” educational project, in which there is a slow and gradual replacement of classroom teaching, via hybrid systems. The most concrete, complete and complex change in teaching/education is underway: it's virtualization or digitalization, which has been projected since the Bologna reform (1999). We conclude that capital, in it's search for valorization, found strategies and tactics in the pandemic for the continuity and intensification of the use of digital technologies in education, transforming it into distance learning and imposing a new educational project. This project found an unprecedented opportunity and justification: Covid-19.
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O artigo desenvolve a hipótese de que há uma íntima relação entre os interesses do capital e educação como estratégia na construção dos sujeitos que vão disputar um mercado de trabalho escasso, precário e instável. Analisa alguns documentos dos organismos multilaterais, seus mecanismos ideológicos e estratégias acionadas na direção de construir consensos sobre a necessidade de um "novo” projeto educacional, no qual há a substituição lenta e gradual do ensino presencial, via sistemas híbridos. Está em curso a mudança mais concreta, completa e complexa do ensino/educação: sua virtualização ou digitalização, que foi projetada desde a reforma de Bolonha (1999). Concluímos que o capital, em sua busca de valorização, encontrou na pandemia as estratégias e táticas para a continuidade e intensificação do uso de tecnologias digitais na educação, transformando-a em ensino à distância e impondo um novo projeto educacional. Este projeto encontrou uma oportunidade e uma justificativa sem precedentes: a Covid-19.Alternate :The article develops the hypothesis that there's an intimate relationship between the interests of capital and education, as a strategy in the construction of individuals who will compete in a scarce, precarious and unstable labor market. It analyzes documents from multilateral organizations, their ideological mechanisms and strategies used with the intention of building consensus on the need for a "new” educational project, in which there is a slow and gradual replacement of classroom teaching, via hybrid systems. The most concrete, complete and complex change in teaching/education is underway: it's virtualization or digitalization, which has been projected since the Bologna reform (1999). We conclude that capital, in it's search for valorization, found strategies and tactics in the pandemic for the continuity and intensification of the use of digital technologies in education, transforming it into distance learning and imposing a new educational project. This project found an unprecedented opportunity and justification: Covid-19.