DOCTORAL WRITERS’ RESILIENCY IN THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC

Aim/Purpose The COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdown required doctoral writers to demonstrate resiliency to continue their culminating projects. This study examines the socioecological factors that fostered that resiliency. Background Resiliency is a key factor in determining whether doctoral writers continue with their culminating projects. Thus far, studies on doctoral student experiences during the pandemic have yet to investigate doctoral students’ adaptive strategies to continue with their projects. Methodology The qualitative study uses in-depth interviews to document the narrative journeys of four research participants pre-pandemic and in-pandemic. Those narratives are analyzed using an infectious disease resilience framework as a metaphor to highlight the resilience within each participant’s writing ecology. Contribution The study seeks to reframe the approach to doctoral writing beyond the individual student toward a broader ecological system to better serve those students and the knowledge produced, regardless of a disruptive crisis. Findings The disruptions that the four participants experienced are documented through their narratives. The participants described their coping strategies related to their workspace, technology, loss of connection, and their breaking point. Recommendations The resilience shown by the four participants demonstrates areas where institufor Practitioners tions can provide assistance to alleviate the pressures placed on doctoral writers. Reframing the dissertation writing process as a socioecological system rather than a cognitive one allows for solutions to problems that are not limited to individual writers. Recommendations Extending the socioecological systems metaphor, further research should invesfor Researchers tigate other stakeholders in a writer’s ecology to obtain different perspectives on a particular system. Impact on Society The pandemic has presented an opportunity for educational institutions to reassess how they can cultivate students’ resilience to positively impact their socioecological balance. Future Research It would be worthwhile to document the post-pandemic experiences of doctoral writers to find out how they seek balance in their ecology as they continue to deal with the post-pandemic fallout. © 2022 Informing Science Institute. All rights reserved.

Phase 2, randomized, double-blind trial of EC-18 versus placebo to mitigate the development and time course of oral mucositis from concomitant chemoradiation for head and neck cancer

Background: Oral mucositis (OM) is a debilitating side effect of concomitant chemoradiotherapy (CRT) for head and neck cancer (HNC). EC-18 may effectively mitigate OM by minimizing the CRT-induced innate immune response. This Phase II, 2-stage trial evaluated safety, tolerability, and efficacy of EC- 18 in reducing the duration, incidence, and trajectory of severe OM (SOM) in HNC patients. Methods: Patients (n = 105) with pathologically confirmed oral cavity, oropharynx, hypopharynx, or nasopharynx squamous cell cancers who received intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT;with ≥ 55 Gy on ≥ 2 oral sites) and weekly or tri-weekly cisplatin were studied. In Stage 1, 24 patients were randomized (n = 6 per arm) to receive 500, 1000, or 2000 mg of EC-18, or placebo. Following independent Data Safety Monitoring Board review, 81 patients in Stage 2 received EC-18 2000 mg (n = 41) or placebo (n = 40) throughout CRT. WHO OM grade was assessed twice weekly during IMRT and then once weekly for up to 6 weeks post-IMRT. The primary efficacy endpoint was duration of SOM during the active and short-term follow-up (STFU) periods in the compliant per-protocol population (PP). Much of Stage 2 was conducted during peak periods of the COVID-19 pandemic which measurably impacted patient compliance relative to test medication dosing and planned radiation. Consequently, to assess efficacy most accurately, the PP population was analyzed (with at least 4 weeks of study drug dosing, minimum cumulative radiation of 55 Gy, 80% study drug compliance in the first 28 days of dosing, and without using not-allowed-therapy). Results: Patient demographics and baseline characteristics were balanced between groups. Adverse events (AEs) were comparable amongst cohorts without drug-related severe AEs. In the PP, the median duration of SOM from baseline through STFU was 0 day in the EC-18 group (n = 22) v 13.5 days in the placebo group (n = 20). SOM incidence through STFU (45.5% v 70%) and opioid use (time to onset: 32.3 v 26.0 days;and duration: 32.8 v 37.5 days) favored EC-18 v placebo. Results of the covariates analyses suggested that EC-18 favorably impacted SOM incidence in patients who experienced SOM treated with weekly low-dose cisplatin (n = 26;37.5% v placebo 70.0%) and HPV+ tumors (n = 29;35.3% v placebo 66.7%;Table). One-year long-term follow-up for tumor outcomes is ongoing. Conclusions: EC-18 safely mitigated the development and the time course of SOM in CRT-treated HNC patients. In addition, EC-18 may provide substantial benefits to subpopulations of HPV+ HNC patients treated with low dose cisplatin.

Covid-19 Effect On Undergraduate Computing Students' Performance At Higher Education : Pilot Study

The Covid-19 pandemic has driven the educational sector to transform the traditional face to face learning to an online education platform. Given the global impact of the pandemic on the educational sector, this study utilizes a quantitative research method that attempts to find out the effect of Covid-19 on undergraduate computing students' performance at higher education in Malaysia and Pakistan. This paper proposed a research model that focus on the accessibility, proficiency, financial circumstance, assessment, self-concern, and student-support in affecting students' performance during Covid-19 confinement. A pilot-test was conducted to test on the research model and to validate the instrument. The findings showed that all composite reliability values in Malaysia and Pakistan were found to meet the threshold value of 0.70, suggesting strong indicator reliability of the constructs.

Online Learning and COVID-19 in Higher Education: The Value of IT Models in Assessing Students’ Satisfaction

In online learning, students’ 'fit' (or satisfaction) with necessary technologies has become a vital component in assessing their learning efficacy,especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. While current studies have notedthe impact of the curriculum, the instructor, and the learner, there is insufficientunderstanding of factors that predict students’ satisfaction with online learningduring the crisis [38]. Existing studies focus on pre-pandemic circumstances,where online learning was a minor part of the higher education (HE) paradigm.This study assesses HE students’ use (i.e. 'fit') with online learning via theirperception, behavioral intention, and satisfaction. By utilizing the InformationTechnology (IT) models of Task-Technology Fit (TTF) and Unified Theory ofAcceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT), the study investigates if, fromstudents’ perspective, pedagogical theories are aligned with the IT models, using the quantitative survey method to gather input from students across variousdisciplines in a Singaporean university. Standard descriptive and correlationanalyses studied the link between factors and their influence on online learningsatisfaction. Significantly, the IT models are found to be valuable in assessingonline learning satisfaction. Recommendations arising from the study providehelpful strategic guidelines for future online learning, which apply to Singaporeand online learning design in general, particularly in this time of paradigmchange. © 2022,International Journal of Emerging Technologies in Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Internet Usage Among Senior Citizens During Covid - 19

Senior citizens are an emerging population and with the recent spike of Covid-19, there is a need to minimize the digital divide among senior citizens to enable them to fully utilize the Internet for their needs. The Malay Mail Online on 24 September 2021 claimed senior citizens who are not fully equipped to conduct their lives online may be left behind when life in Malaysia has turned digital due to COVID-19 as education and support for the elderly is truly lacking. This research aims to identify senior citizens' Internet usage and perspective on their use of the Internet during the pandemic in Malaysia, to provide effective strategies to educate them in better use the Internet. The data are collected through interview with 10 participants. The questions were designed to collect data regarding participant's demographic profiles and information on Internet usage among senior citizens during Covid-19 pandemic in Malaysia. Thematic analysis was used to analyze the interview data to answer the research question and achieve the objective of this research. The findings of a high frequency of Internet usage through mobile devices for work and personal purposes have contributed to the knowledge on Internet usage among senior citizens and further educates senior citizens to enjoy the benefits of using the Internet during these trying times. © 2021 IEEE.

Impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on doctoral students’ thesis/dissertation progress

Aim/Purpose The purpose of this study was to document the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic for doctoral students who were proposing, conducting, or writing up their doctoral thesis, dissertation, or other culminating project. Background For doctoral students, the process of designing, implementing, and writing a culminating project is a key part of the learning experience. These projects typically require students to direct their own learning and to manage setbacks, obstacles, and challenges as they arise. During the COVID-19 pandemic, doctoral students around the globe had to undertake this key learning experience in the context of a global crisis. Methodology During August and September 2020, 235 doctoral students from around the world completed an online questionnaire consisting of demographic questions and three open-ended questions about their experience during the COVID-19 pandemic. Analysis involved several cycles of In Vivo Coding of the data, which yielded codes, categories, and eventually themes. At each stage, the researchers collaborated to generate the codes, and the categories and themes arose through several rounds of discussion. Contribution Our study adds to the small body of knowledge on doctoral students’ experiences from around the world during the COVID-19 pandemic by identifying categories of experience through qualitative, open-ended survey questions. The study highlights doctoral students’ challenges and how these were either exacerbated or mitigated by pandemic-induced changes. Findings Our survey respondents described impacts on their culminating projects’ progress in five major categories: research design, access to resources, workload, mental health, and finances. Recommendations The five categories of impacts emerging from our participants’ responses may for Practitioners be useful for faculty and administrators of doctoral programs to consider in reviewing their programs’ responses to the pandemic and making future plans for providing academic continuity in crisis situations as well as re-evaluating the priorities and structures of doctoral program to better support students overall moving forward. Recommendations Further research is needed to better understand how the pandemic impacted in-for Researchers dividual students’ research and writing processes, including adaptive strategies. Impact on Society Institutions need to be aware of systemic strain on doctoral students under the best of conditions and be especially aware of the impacts of a crisis and plan contingencies to assist students with a focus on the areas of research design, access to resources, workload, mental health, and finances. Future Research Future research should seek out additional perspectives of male doctoral students. Additionally, data capturing perspectives from students at other points in time are needed as the pandemic continued to unfold after this study’s data collection period. © 2021 Informing Science Institute. All rights reserved.

Impact of COVID-19 pandemic on the presentation, management and outcome of testicular torsion in the pediatric population - an analysis of a large pediatric center

INTRODUCTION To examine the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on the presentation, management and outcome of testicular torsion at our institution. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A retrospective review of a prospectively maintained testicular torsion database was performed. Patients <= 18 years of age evaluated in our emergency room between 3/11/2020 to 10/1/2020 (during-COVID-19) and the same period in 2018 and 2019 (pre-COVID-19) with US diagnosed and OR confirmed testicular torsion were included. Basic demographics, timing of presentation, referral rate, time to OR and orchiectomy rate were extracted and compared. P < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. RESULTS: A total of 82 torsions were included in the study;55 pre-COVID-19 and 27 during-COVID-19. The incidence of testicular torsion remained the same;3.93 cases/month pre-COVID-19 versus 3.86 cases/month during-COVID-19 (p = 0.791). However, there were significantly fewer delayed (> 24 hours) presentations (11.1% versus 45.5% , p = 0.003), shorter time from onset of symptoms to presentation (median 15.5 hours versus 8 hours, p = 0.001), and a lower but not statistically significant overall orchiectomy rate (33.3% versus 50.9% p = 0.1608) during-COVID-19. Among those presenting acutely with torsion (< 24 hours from onset), no statistical differences were found in the median time from US diagnosis to OR, from ED to OR, referral rate, or orchiectomy rate between the two groups. Lastly, SARS-CoV2 testing did not delay median time from ED to OR. CONCLUSIONS: There was a notably less delayed presentation of testicular torsion and shorter ischemia time on presentation during-COVID, however, no significant change of time to OR or orchiectomy rate in those with acute testicular torsion were observed.