The life of man has been influenced greatly by modern Mass Media in the 21st century. Such Media include the radio, television, newspaper, magazines, billboards, internet, cable networks, mobile phones, pamphlets, handbills among others. They have greatly enhanced the instant or rapid transfer of information, opinion and ideas. These have influenced man positively and negatively in all aspects of life, ranging from physical, educational, moral, economic to spiritual and religious. Hence this write up has been conceived to explore and highlight (...) the role of the mass media in church development in the 215 century. The mass media is very influential in human life. This is because it enhances rapid communication of news, information, ideas and opinions which affect and influence human life positively and negatively. This two edged influence is also applicable in the religious life of man. The mass media has been used to communicate and influence the growth and development of religious organizations, such as churches. On the other hand, the media in some cases, has contributed to some problems in the church through its abuse and misuse, such as the communication of false doctrines, propaganda and inciting of members to rebel against church authorities. This paper attempts to highlight both the positive and negative roles of the mass media in church development, in addition to suggesting ways of improvement. (shrink)

Man is a social animal, he needs other human beings in order to survive, develop and achieve anything. The human family is one institution which provides an avenue for man to obtain these benefits from close, relations. It affects every person and influences the society. Many people and organizations have made several efforts to improve and enhance the survival of the family. An example is the advice of Saint Paul, the Apostle to the Christian family in Ephesians 5:22-25 and 6:1-9. (...) This paper examines this advice and its relevance to the society today. (shrink)

Every activity of man is often done in a certain way. This includes the study of religion. Scholars have generally adopted various methods in studying religion. Some of these methods have been classified as unacademic, while some are academic and scientific. It is accepted that the proper way to study religion academically is through the scientific method which is a systemic and objective analysis of religious phenomena (Kirkpatric ed. 1159). Some other methods identified include: the polymethodic approach, descriptive approach, speculative (...) approach, culture area approach. Others are the use of library, interviews, online sources and participant observation. This paper is an attempt to identify and critically evaluate the methods used by three scholars of African traditional religion and culture in presenting selected topics in their works. In the process, the merits and demerits will be highlighted and constructive suggestions will be given. (shrink)

There are some churches in Nigeria that have an African outlook and characteristics. These churches are fully under African leadership, most of them were founded in the 1960s and 1950s. Most of them broke off from the orthodox and white dominated churches as a result of oppression by the whites and a desire for freedom and independence. These churches make up the African church movement. They played an important role in the attainment of Nigeria’s independence. This paper looks at the (...) meaning, the role of the movement in Nigeria’s independence and the place of other factors in Nigeria’s independence. (shrink)

The aim of this study was to investigate the predictive relationship of peer group influence, teacher-student interaction and indiscipline to students' dropout tendency in evening continuing education programmes. The context of this study is the southern senatorial district of Cross River State, Nigeria. The study adopted a predictive correlational research design, and the sample comprised 554 students randomly selected from 11 centres in the district. This represents 20% of the total population of students. The instrument used for data collection was (...) a questionnaire titled: "Social Indicators and Dropout Tendency Scale" (SIDTS). The researchers collected the data that were analysed using Pearson product-moment correlation and multiple linear regression analyses at the .05 level of significance. The results revealed that peer group influence, teacher-student interaction and level of indiscipline collectively and individually predicted dropout tendency among students in evening continuing education programmes. It was recommended, among others, that the teachers discover diverse ways of making their teaching process lively by devising ways of engaging the students in the learning process by forming discussion groups that will promote healthy peer groups, which will increase their eagerness to come to school. (shrink)

A shrine is a building or place that is hallowed, venerated or deeply respected. It is generally associated with divinities or deities where sacrifices or offerings are made to them. Their devotees often meet there, interact with each other and consult with the priests of the divinities. There is an element of mystery and awe associated with every shrine. Non devotees have little or no business at a shrine, while the devotees themselves have to be very careful and observe various (...) laws while a shrine. Shrines are common in Calabar, and its environs in Nigeria. There is virtually none, dedicated to the Supreme Being, rather they are dedicated to local, deities and secret cults, where a lot of social activities are performed. One of such cult is the Ekpe society shrine which has both social and religious aspects and implications. This paper examines the social significance and implications of the Ekpe shrines in Calabar, and suggests ways in which they could be utilized for the benefit of the community today. (shrink)

Death is the end or absence of life; it also refers to the end of a thing or an event It is a common phenomenon, which is unavoidable. Africans, like other people are interested in it, and they view and treat it from their cultural perspectives. However, those Africans who are converted to Christianity face a sort of dilemma in that Christianity came with its own views and teachings on death, along with a mixture of the cultures and backgrounds of (...) the missionaries who brought it, whereas the Africans already had their own views. This paper attempts to examine death both from the Christian and African perspectives with particular emphasis on the Efik people of Nigeria, then it attempts to synthesize both positions in an attempt to formulate an African Christian Theology on Death which is avoid of foreign cultural influence and is not contrary to the Bible. In order to achieve this, constant references are made to the Bible and African views on various aspects of death such as its meaning, causes, types, purposes, and the Afterlife. (shrink)

This study was designed to develop and validate an instrument that can enable researchers and scholars to measure the attitudes of teachers towards learners with disabilities in an inclusive classroom. The study was grounded on the three-components theory of attitude. A series of steps were followed to ascertain the face and content validity of the instrument. Based on the data collected from 532 respondents, preliminary screening was performed, items with weak or high correlation to others were dropped or retained. The (...) construct validity and dimensionality of the instrument was evaluated using Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA), following the Principal Component Analysis (PCA) extraction, with a varimax rotation based on Eigenvalues greater than one. The results yielded a three-factor solution after suppressing loadings less than .40. These factors were labelled carefully based on the statements of the leading items loading. Cronbach alpha was employed in evaluating the reliability of the instrument, with values ranging from .849 to .938, indicating that the instrument is internally consistent. Consequently, the proposed 36 items instrument was reduced to 30 items. The procedures followed, coupled with the removal of dysfunctional items, resulted in an instrument with appropriate psychometric properties and high reliability for measurement. (shrink)

The literature is predominated by studies seeking to clarify the extent of the availability, functionality, accessibility and/or utilisation of library materials in schools at various levels. The extent of principals' management of library resources and their contribution to the lesson preparation activities of teachers seems to have been under-researched. In bridging the gap, the current study was designed to assess the extent and contribution of principals’ management of library resources to teachers’ lesson preparation practices. Six specific objectives were of interest (...) to the researchers. The quantitative research method, following the ex-post facto research design, was adopted. The stratified proportional random sampling technique was used to choose a sample of 743 respondents from a population of 1,857 secondary school teachers in Ikom Education Zone, Cross River State, Nigeria. An instrument named "Management of Library Resources and Teachers' Lesson Preparation Questionnaire" (MLRTLPQ) was used to gather data. The quantitative content validity method was used to assess the degree to which the items in the instrument were clear, relevant, and represented a wide range of the anticipated content based on the views of domain experts. One sample t-test and hierarchical regression analyses were used for data analyses. Four stepwise hierarchical linear models were specified and fitted accordingly. It was found that teachers’ lesson preparation practice is significantly low generally; there is a significantly low extent in principals’ management of textual, auditory, visual and audio-visual library resources; there is a significant composite contribution of principals’ management of library resources on teachers’ lesson preparation practices in public secondary schools in model 3 and model 4. Based on these findings, practical implications are discussed, with recommendations made for a better library management practice in secondary schools for quality lesson preparation practices. (shrink)

Purpose: This study evaluates staff Training and Development Programmes (TDPs) in secondary schools based on the views of administrators and teachers. The research was implemented in public secondary schools in Cross River State, Nigeria. Design/Methodology/Approach: The study adopted the survey research design with 5408 participants (administrators = 542; teachers = 4595). Four research questions guided the study. The Staff Training and Development Programmes Questionnaire (STDPQ) was used for data collection. Findings revealed essential areas of staff training and development. Findings: Various (...) methods are employed for staff training and development. The results further showed various constraints that impeded staff TDPs in secondary schools. Conclusion: Based on the findings, it was concluded that staff in secondary schools have different training and development needs adjudged by both the principals and teachers as crucial for job enhancement. Various staff training and development methods can serve as valuable programmes to improve the current methods adopted. Research Limitations and Implications: There are various limitations in this study such as the small scope which may affect the extent to which generalizations can be made. It is suggested that future studies focus on expanding the scope to other regions and nations. Practical Implications: Despite the limitations, the study has made some advances to human capital and self-determination theories by providing findings. The findings of this study may direct the attention of curriculum planners, the government and school management to offer training and development opportunities based on the needs of teachers. Contribution to Literature: The study has contributed to the literature on staff training and development which can constitute a basis for further research in related areas. (shrink)

This study investigated innovation management and effectiveness of educational research in tertiary institutions in Cross River State. One research question and one null hypothesis were formulated to direct the study. The study adopted factorial research design. Census technique was adopted by the researcher in selecting the entire population of 80 participants from four (4) tertiary institutions in Cross River State. “Innovation Management Questionnaire (IMQ)” and “Effectiveness of Educational Research Rating Scale (EERRS) were used as instruments for data collection. The reliability (...) of the instruments was established through test-retest method and reliability estimates of .89 and .86 were obtained. The null hypothesis was tested at .05 level of significance using multiple regression analysis with the aid of SPSS version 21. Findings from the study established a composite contribution of 70.5% of data management innovations, research ethics management, provision of research grants to effectiveness of educational research (Adj. R2= .705). The findings of this study also established that; data management innovations, research ethics management, and provision of research grants jointly has a significant influence on effectiveness of educational research (F = 64.055, p <.05). Data management innovations was the highest predictor (β = .501, t = 7.778), followed by research ethics management ethics management (β = .311, t = 3.956), and provision of research grants (β = .291, t = 3.707) in that order. Based on the findings, it was recommended, amongst others, that educational research data (including coded data) should be effectively managed by tertiary institutions using both manual and computerized data management devices with corresponding appropriate retrieval systems. (shrink)

This study assessed quality assurance practices and students’ performance evaluation in universities of South-South Nigeria using an SEM approach. Three null hypotheses guided the study. Based on factorial research design, and using a stratified random sampling technique, a sample of 878 academic staff were drawn from a sampling frame of 15 universities in South-South Nigeria. Quality Assurance Practices Students’ Performance Evaluation Scale (QAPSPES) with split-half reliability estimates ranging from .86–.92, was used as the instruments for data collection. Multiple regression and (...) Confirmatory Factor Analyses (CFA) were used for the analysis of data, model building, and testing of the hypotheses at .05 alpha level. Findings showed a significant composite and relative influence (F=48.19, P<.05) of school management, staff, and students’ quality assurance practices on students’ performance evaluation. The results also indicated that there were positive and significant covariances between the four variables of this study, with the CFI, RMSEA, TLI, and SRMR values indicating a good model fit. It was recommended, based on the findings of this study that, each school should organize quality assurance orientation campaigns for new students and set up quality assurance committees at the school, faculty and departmental levels for optimal performance in schools. (shrink)

This study assessed two motivational strategies and their respective ties to the service delivery in public universities in Cross River State. In achieving the central and specific targets of this research, four research questions and two null hypotheses were answered and tested in the study. The entire population of 440 security personnel in two public universities was studied, based on the census approach and following the ex-post facto research design. Three sets of expert-validated questionnaires, with Cronbach reliability estimates of 0.80, (...) 0.79 and 0.83 respectively, were used for data collection. Collected data were analysed using descriptive statistics and inferential statistics such as Pearson Product Moment Correlation and the One-way ANOVA. The level of incentives provision and security service delivery in universities was moderate. There were notable disparities between promotion, provision of incentives and security service delivery in universities. Security personnel discharged, on average, services beyond the extent of promotion and incentives provided to them. Provision of incentives did not relate significantly to security service delivery; however, staff promotion significantly influences security service delivery in universities. It was concluded that there are loopholes in the motivational practices of universities for security personnel. The service delivery of security personnel at universities in Cross River State is yet to be at an acceptable point that can promote institutional safety and goal attainment in the short- and long run. It was recommended, among other things, that security personnel who are due for promotion should not be denied such an opportunity, as it represents one of the strongest motivational factors in universities. (shrink)

The security problems of Nigeria have continued to stare at her very ominously and intermittently harass her, both within and outside her shores. These have lingered on and have created a clog on the wheel of the country's progress, indeed dramatically stagnating, and to say the least, truncating the mainstay of the country's survival. Several interpretations, theories, analyses, syntheses, and jingoistic conceptualization have been propagated, all producing the same result. From scientific to technological approach, religious to ritualist approach, political to (...) social approach, the security situation rather than improving, is static and under some regimes retarded. Academic contributions, especially ideas from the humanities and indeed the discipline of history are jettisoned, in fact, quickly dusted into the waste bin. The concern of this paper is to attempt a historical investigation of the security problems in Nigeria, identifying them to show how information and communication technology can help in curbing these challenges, using the realist paradigm as a theoretical framework. This study identifies Nigerians as the cause of her security problems, who rather than face these seismic challenges head-on, abandon them – a cowardly act, ending in futility and deeper chaos. This study adopts both primary and secondary sources of data collection. It is hoped that if academic exercises are not mere, this input may create a turnaround in the security situation in Nigeria. (shrink)

Researches in education are conducted to address educational problems and provide solutions that will stimulate effectiveness within the educational sector. Like other disciplines, educational researches must be conducted without issues or bottlenecks that will hinder the integrity of the study or the researchers. This chapter identifies various issues that are currently practised which are unethical. The chapter also provides insights to the aspects that researchers and scholars must focus in order to ensure that unethical issues are avoided when conducting researches. (...) Conclusions and recommendations were made in order to improve the current practices towards global best practices in educational research management. Keywords:. (shrink)

We are concerned in this paper to establish the rationality of American legal realism by adopting a theory of reconstruction. American realism is plagued with dichotomies in relating theory and practice; and the need to broach these dichotomies involves transcendence of experience and transference of consciousness. In doing this, we have both to excavate and to justify its philosophy, logic and science. American legal realism has its root in the philosophy of pragmatism and a logic that sets out the essential (...) elements associated with the making and determination of the law through instrumentality of the court. The validity of this category of legal theory tends to lie on the extent of immediate use to which law can be put or the benefits it can afford the American society. Believing in the possibility of a realistic theory of law that is purely American precludes belief in universal understanding of human legal experience distinct from the understanding gained through the cultural lenses of the American people. Although American realists differ remarkably even within a single paradigm, nevertheless three areas of logical unity among them are that: They bear a cross relevance, a complementing and interlocking of results, and a similar faith in attacking legal problems. A completely empirical understanding of American legal realism seems nebulous, because causality presupposes the interaction of American liberal and legalistic political attitudes. Legalism is the life wire of American culture and this makes distribution of rights and legal predictability possible: incidentally language is an important instrument for making this happens. Countries seeking to adopt the American model of legal order or something similar to it should be capable of an equivalent orientation in terms of formulating their philosophy, logic and science of adjudication. (shrink)

Observers inspected normal, high quality color displays of everyday visual scenes while their eye movements were recorded. A large display change occurred each time an eye blink occurred. Display changes could either involve "Central Interest" or "Marginal Interest" locations, as determined from descriptions obtained from independent judges in a prior pilot experiment. Visual salience, as determined by luminance, color, and position of the Central and Marginal interest changes were equalized. -/- The results obtained were very similar to those obtained in (...) prior experiments showing failure to detect changes occurring simultaneously with saccades, flicker, or “mudsplashes” in the visual scene: Many changes were very hard to detect, and Marginal Interest changes were harder to detect than Central Interest changes. -/- Analysis of eye movements showed, as expected, that the probability of detecting a change depended on the eye’s distance from the change location. However a surprising finding was that both for Central and Marginal Interest changes, evenwhen observers were directly fixating the change locations (within 1 degree),more than 40% of the time they still failed to see the changes. It seems that looking at something does not guarantee you “ see” it. (shrink)

Testing is one of the core educational assessment practices in higher education for performance appraisal, placement and decision-making. Testing in education is also used to assess students’ level of understanding, knowledge and skills possessed after completing a course or a programme. Based on significant importance, it is very glaring that different higher institutions of learning and beyond are using this valuable tool for grading students’ performance. It.

Academic publishing refers to the action taken by individuals or organisations to make scholarly materials publicly available. The research process is not complete and relevant until research results are made available to the public through publication (Owan et al., 2021). The essence of any scholarly venture is to create knowledge or modify existing knowledge. Knowledge cannot be said to have been created if the scholarly output is stored on a personal computer accessible only to the author(s). Through publication, other scholars (...) or the general public become aware of the finished product of a scholarly venture. Scientific publications are the lifeblood of science because they serve as fertilisers for other scientists to think (Clapham, 2005). New hypotheses are generated, rebutted, or verified by publishing new information in the scientific community. In academic settings, the number of publications a person has to their name is commonly used as a proxy for their level of career success. (shrink)

umé L’oralité occupe une place significative dans la société traditionnelle africaine. La majorité des informations ou des messages sont transmis par ce moyen d’une génération à une autre. L’oralité est un aspect de la tradition en Afrique qui rassemble dans son sein les genres comme le conte, la fable, la devinette, l’adage, le proverbe, l’épopée, la légende, etc. Ces genres facilitent rapidement la compréhension d’un message, surtout discret, entre les membres d’une communauté. En Afrique, l’oralité a une grande place et (...) une importance considérable dans chaque communauté. Les civilisations africaines sont essentiellement caractérisées par cette culture orale. Aujourd’hui, la société africaine moderne ignore la place de cet héritage, ce patrimoine légué de nos aïeux dès la fondation des communautés humaines. L’effet nocif de la négligence des acquis de cette culture dépasse le cadre de l’enfant pour s’étendre à la société toute entière. Cette culture d’oralité surgit chez l’enfant africain la capacité et la compétence psychologique qui lui aide dans le processus de sa formation, aussi bien que dans sa perception du monde et ses besoins de la communication interpersonnelle. Elle développe aussi en lui la capacité de partager ses réflexions avec les autres. Dans la société africaine, l’exploitation de la littérature orale aide à développer et à encourager la citoyenneté, à travers l’engagement actif ou la participation dans les affaires de la communauté. Contre cette réalité, l’inclusion de la tradition orale dans le programme scolaire des écoles secondaires au Nigeria devient obligatoire. Notre but dans cette communication est d’élaborer les importances indéniables de cette tradition orale et de forger un moyen par lequel cette culture restera dans l’esprit de chaque être humain qui passe par notre système éducatif au Nigeria. Nous essayerons de démontrer comment et pourquoi incorporer l’étude de cette matière dans notre programme scolaire, pour élucider chez les jeunes, les vertus morales qui sont chéries chez nous. (shrink)

There are contradictory results regarding how students' learning outcomes can be predicted by various family and community inputs among previous studies, creating an evidence gap. Furthermore, previous studies have mostly concentrated on the cognitive aspect of students' learning outcomes, ignoring the affective and psychomotor dimensions, creating key knowledge gaps. Bridging these gaps, this predictive correlational study was conducted to understand how cultural capital, parental involvement (family inputs), support for schools, security network and school reforms (community inputs) jointly and partially predict (...) students' overall, cognitive, affective and psychomotor learning outcomes in the context of Calabar Education Zone, Nigeria. A random sample of principals (?? = 78) and students (?? = 915) recruited through a multistage approach, participated in the study. Data were collected through the physical administration of three sets of questionnaires designed by the researchers. The psychometric properties of the questionnaires (such as validity, dimensionality, reliability and goodness of fit) were all analysed and found acceptable based on pilot data. Data analysis was performed using SPSS version 27 and AMOS version 26 software. Results from the main study proved, among others, that family inputs (family social capital and parental involvement) jointly and individually had a significant contribution to students' overall, cognitive, affective and psychomotor learning outcomes. Similarly, community inputs (support for school, security network and school reforms) have significant composite and partial contributions to students' overall, cognitive, affective and psychomotor learning outcomes in public secondary schools. This result implies that parents and host community leaders must strengthen their partnerships with secondary schools and contribute their quota to institutions' curricular and co-curricular activities. (shrink)

An assessment of the extent of the use of electronic platforms by African academic staff in universities to disseminate research was done in this study. The study is informed by the growing importance of online repositories and preprint servers in the scientific communication of scholarly output, especially in an era where the use of metrics for research appraisals and funding decisions is commonly practised. The quantitative research method was adopted, based on the descriptive survey research design. The snowball sampling technique (...) was used for data collection. Data were collected from 1,977 respondents, distributed across 24 African countries, through the use of an electronic survey. There was a high rate of willingness among universities’ academic staff in Africa, to adopt various online platforms for research dissemination; ResearchGate is currently utilized the most for research dissemination, but Google Scholar is the platform respondents are more willing to adopt for research dissemination; the rate at which academic staff research output can be found online as a ratio of their total publication is 64.04% and in the ratio of 2.00:3.12; poor access to Internet facilities at home and workplaces are the major challenges academic staff face in the utilization of digital platforms for RD. It was recommended, amongst others that academic staff in universities should endeavour to explore and utilize at least ten of the online platforms mentioned in this study, to enable them disseminate their scholarly works to a wider audience and for increased visibility Keywords:. (shrink)

This paper canvasses the various dimensions along which theories of truth may disagree about the extent to which truth is minimal.

This study assessed the partial as well as the collaborative impact of age and gender on academic staff preparedness to adopt Internet tools for research sharing in African universities during Covid-19. Although evidence abounds in the literature on gender and age as they affect relatively, scholars’ utilisation of digital tools for research communication, such studies did not examine scholars’ preparedness to adopt from a broad perspective of Africa. This study was conducted based on the argument that the preparedness of scholars (...) may affect their future interest to utilize digital tools for research sharing. A quantitative method, based on the descriptive survey research design, was adopted to provide answers to four prevailing research questions. The examination focused on a populace of 8,591 staff in African universities, nonetheless, information was gathered from 1,977 of them, who deliberately took part from 24 African nations. A validated electronic rating scale, which was mailed/posted to targeted participants, was used as the instrument for data collection. Gender and age significantly affected academic staff preparedness to adopt Internet tools for research sharing partially and interactively in African Universities during Covid-19. Female staff were more prepared than males to adopt internet tools for research sharing during the pandemic. Older lecturers reported a higher rate of preparedness than their younger colleagues to adopt Internet tools for research sharing during Covid-19. In light of these proofs, ramifications and proposals for future exploration are discussed. (shrink)

Proclus and Aquinas envision a plurality of divine beings organized hierarchically under the aegis of a first principle: respectively, the One and the henads, and God and His angels. While the differences rule out a wholescale application of Procline henadology to Thomas’ angelology, Aquinas, nevertheless, incorporates Proclus’ henadology into his angelology in two ways. First, Aquinas borrows from Procline henadology when explaining the differences between angels: these can be known in an approximate way from their observable effects. Second, Aquinas incorporates (...) Proclus’ understanding of henadic hierarchy, which focuses on power and activity over ontology, into his conception of angelic hierarchy. (shrink)

This research assessed certain socio-demographic variables and how they affect students’ satisfaction with the study of ICT in secondary schools. The study adopted a survey research design and was guided by six specific objectives. A total of 4,484 senior secondary school students represented the study’s population, while a simple random sampling technique was adopted in selecting a sample of 2,242 respondents. Secondary school Students’ Satisfaction with the Study of ICT Questionnaire (SSSSSICTQ)” was used primarily as the tool for data collection. (...) Although there are differences in students’ satisfaction levels across various groups, age, gender, parents’ income level, students’ education level and school location do not significantly influence students’ satisfaction with the study of ICT in secondary schools respectively. It was concluded that the socio-demographic factors of students do not influence to a notable extent, students’ satisfaction with the study of ICT in secondary schools. Based on this conclusion, the implication imposes additional responsibilities for future studies to attempt to uncover reasons why socio-demographic factors do not affect the satisfaction of students with the study of ICT at the secondary education level. (shrink)

When brief blank fields are placed between alternating displays of an original and a modified scene, a striking failure of perception is induced: the changes become extremely difficult to notice, even when they are large, presented repeatedly, and the observer expects them to occur (Rensink, O'Regan, & Clark, 1997). To determine the mechanisms behind this induced "change blindness", four experiments examine its dependence on initial preview and on the nature of the interruptions used. Results support the proposal that representations at (...) the early stages of visual processing are highly volatile, and that focused attention is needed to stabilize them sufficiently to support the perception of change. (shrink)

R&D collaborations between industry, government, civil society, and research ) have recently gained attention from R&D theorists and practitioners. In aiming to come to grips with their complexity, past models have generally taken a stakeholder-analytical approach based on stakeholder types. Yet stakeholder types are difficult to operationalise. We therefore argue that a processual model is more suited for studying the interaction in QHCs because it eschews matters of titles and identities. We develop such a model in which the QHC is (...) represented as a process of generating four types of value: research value, market value, political value, and societal value. We then apply this processual model in analysing real-life cases of friction in QHCs. Friction is seen, not as an interpersonal clash, but as a discrepancy between two or more value-creation processes that compete for limited resources. (shrink)

The few people familiar with the pseudo-Platonic dialogue Axiochus generally have a low opinion of it. It's easy to see why: the dialogue is a mish-mash of Platonic, Epicurean and Cynic arguments against the fear of death, seemingly tossed together with no regard whatsoever for their consistency. As Furley notes, the Axiochus appears to be horribly confused. Whereas in the Apology Socrates argues that death is either annihilation or a relocation of the soul, and is a blessing either way, "the (...) Socrates of the Axiochus wants to have it both ways": death is both annihilation and a release of the soul from the body into a better realm. This may be used to construct a valid argument for the conclusion that death is not evil, but at the expense of having a contradiction as one of its premises. But D. S. Hutchinson has recently proposed that these inconsistencies shouldn't surprise us if we view the Axiochus as "an unconventional version of a very conventional genre--the consolation letter." In this paper I expand on Hutchinson's brief suggestion and argue that the Axiochus can be rehabilitated by paying attention to its genre. Although the Axiochus does display many similarities to the consolation letter, the shift from letter to dialogue does--pace Hutchinson--significantly affect what's going on. Within the dialogue, Socrates behaves toward Axiochus in a way similar to the way the author of a consolation letter behaves towards the letter's reader: he is willing to use inconsistent arguments, borrowed from any source, in order to soothe the patient. However, in depicting this type of consolatory relationship between Socrates and Axiochus, the dialogue itself is not aiming at consoling its readers. Instead, it should be seen as displaying for the reader's consideration a certain type of consolatory argumentative practice. -/- Socrates notes that Axiochus is "very much in need of consolation" (365a), and he uses any means necessary to accomplish this task. Socrates exhibits many ways in which he is willing to sacrifice argumentative hygiene for the sake of therapeutic effectiveness. These include: -/- * Use of arguments with inconsistent premises, presented in propria persona. * Appeals to emotion * Tailoring arguments to the audience. * Presenting invalid arguments so as to induce unjustified but comforting beliefs. * Evasion. In these respects, I think that Socrates' argumentative practice is best compared to PH III 280-1, where Sextus Empiricus says that the skeptic will deliberately use logically weak arguments as long as they work. Dorothy Tarrant claims that what links the Socrates of the Axiochus to Socrates as he appears elsewhere in the Platonic corpus is his evident care for the welfare of his interlocutor's psyche. But this concern takes a quite different form in the Axiochus than it usually does. As with Sextus, psychic therapy in the Axiochus involves relief from pain. The primary difference between them is that Socrates, unlike Sextus, is not aiming at producing epochê in his patient. (shrink)

Background: Previous studies assessing students’ learning outcomes and identifying contributing factors have often dwelt on the cognitive domain. Furthermore, school evaluation decisions are often made using scores from cognitive-based tests to rank students. This practice often skews evaluation results, given that education aims to improve the three learning domains. This study addresses this gap by assessing the contributions of four students’ input to their cognitive, affective and psychomotor skills (CAPs). Methods: A cross-section of senior secondary class II students (n = (...) 870), sampled through the multistage procedure, participated in a physical survey. Students’ Inputs Questionnaire (STIQ) and Learning Outcomes Questionnaire (LOQ) were used for data collection. Based on data obtained from a pilot sample (n = 412), principal axis factoring (PAF) was performed to assess the internal structure of the instruments following an oblique rotation. The KMO value of sampling adequacy were 0.88 and 0.94, while the Bartlett’s test of sphericity were significant χ2 (253) = 5,010; p < 0.001 and χ2 (105) = 3693.38, p < 0.001 for the STIQ and LOQ, respectively. Confirmatory factor analysis was used to assess the models’ acceptability based on the maximum likelihood estimation technique. The main study used hierarchical linear regression for data analysis. Results: Findings indicated that innate ability, health, motivation and social capital relatively and cumulatively predicted students’ overall, cognitive, affective and psychomotor learning outcomes. The proportion of variance explained by the predictors increased at different levels of the models with the addition of new variables. Students’ social capital reduced the effect of students’ innate ability regardless of their motivation and health status. Conclusion/implication: This study has provided evidence that the four students’ inputs are crucial predictors of their learning outcomes in the three domains. This result is helpful for school management to provide services aimed at improving the school climate for students’ motivation and social capital. The result can provide policymakers with a proper understanding of the constituents of learning outcomes and how policies can be aligned to secure quality student inputs for maximum productivity in education. (shrink)

It is widely thought that functionalism and the qualia theory are better positioned to accommodate the ‘affective’ aspect of pain phenomenology than representationalism. In this paper, we attempt to overturn this opinion by raising problems for both functionalism and the qualia theory on this score. With regard to functionalism, we argue that it gets the order of explanation wrong: pain experience gives rise to the effects it does because it hurts, and not the other way around. With regard to the (...) qualia theory, we argue that it fails to capture the sense in which pain 's affective phenomenology rationalises various bodily-directed beliefs, desires, and behaviours. Representationalism, in contrast, escapes both of these problems: it gets the order of explanation right and it explains how pain 's affective phenomenology can rationalise bodily-directed beliefs, desires, and behaviours. For this reason, we argue that representationalism has a significant advantage in the debates about pain 's affective phenomenology. We end the paper by examining objections, including the question of what representationalists should say about so-called ‘disassociation cases’, such as pain asymbolia. (shrink)

Background: The attitudes of many undergraduates towards practicum exercise is declining in each passing year, affecting the quality of educational leaders produced from higher education. Studies in the past, have documented that there is no significant difference in the attitudes of students with or without practicum experience towards academic activities in higher education. Little or nothing seems to be known at the moment regarding the reasons why there is an indifference in the attitudes of students after completing a practicum course. (...) In response to this gap, we designed this study to assess principals' leadership variables as the presumed cause of undergraduates' declining attitudes towards practicum exercise in secondary schools. -/- Methods: A census study was carried out in Cross River State, where the entire 667 secondary school administrators (271 principals and 396 vice principals) were studied. “Principals’ Leadership Variables and Undergraduates’ Attitudes Towards Practicum Exercise Questionnaire” (PLVUATPEQ), designed by the researchers, was used in data collection. Data collected were analysed using simple linear regression analysis. Results: We find amongst others, that principals’ leadership styles, communication patterns, decision-making and supervisory approaches significantly predict undergraduates' attitudes towards practicum exercise relatively. Each of these independent variables accounts differently for the variance in the dependent variable based on their unique coefficient of determination. -/- Conclusion: It was concluded generally, that principals’ leadership variables significantly predict undergraduates’ attitudes towards practicum exercise. The attitudes of undergraduates towards practicum exercise increases as the leadership styles, communication patterns, decision-making skills, and supervisory approaches of principals improve. The implications of this study are discussed for policy and educational reforms. (shrink)

When looking at a scene, observers feel that they see its entire structure in great detail and can immediately notice any changes in it. However, when brief blank fields are placed between alternating displays of an original and a modified scene, a striking failure of perception is induced: identification of changes becomes extremely difficult, even when changes are large and made repeatedly. Identification is much faster when a verbal cue is provided, showing that poor visibility is not the cause of (...) this difficulty. Identification is also faster for objects mentioned in brief verbal descriptions of the scene. These results support the idea that observers never form a complete, detailed representation of their surroundings. In addition, results also indicate that attention is required to perceive change, and that in the absence of localized motion signals it is guided on the basis of high-level interest. (shrink)

This study examined the degree to which students indulge in six prominent misconducts in Distance Education Institutions (DEIs). The study also quantified how class size, instructional delivery and institutional policies predict students’ indulgence in sharp practices using a general linear modelling approach. A sample of 871 participants was drawn from 1,742 final-year students across two DEIs in Nigeria. A structured questionnaire was used for data collection. The questionnaire had acceptable psychometric estimates of dimensionality, content and construct validity, as well as (...) reliability. Sharp practices such as cheating, plagiarism, falsification, impersonation, and arm-twisting were more prevalent in large classes, whereas only inducement was higher in small classes. Class size influenced students’ indulgence in sharp practices in DEIs. Instructional delivery and institutional policies negatively predicted students’ indulgence in the six sharp practices. Almost all the six sharp practices correlated positively and significantly, except for impersonation and inducement. Therefore, distance education students who cheat, plagiarize, arm-twist, falsify records, induce lecturers, and promote impersonation are more likely to indulge in other forms of sharp practices. It was concluded that large class sizes, poor instructional delivery, and poorly implemented institutional policies promote sharp practices among distance education students. Based on this conclusion, key policy and research implications are discussed. (shrink)

In an attempt to curtail examination malpractice, the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has been generating different paper types with a different order of test items in the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME). However, the permutation of test items may compromise students’ performance unintentionally because constructive suggestions in theory and practice recommend that test items be sequenced in ascending order of difficulty. This study used data collected from a random sample of 1,226 SSIII students to ascertain whether the permutation (...) of test items has any effect on the performance of students in two different subjects (Use of English and Mathematics). The study adopted the Equivalent Groups Quasi-Experimental Research Design with three independent groups. Findings emerged, amongst others, that there is a significant difference in the performance scores of prospective university students' in use of English and Mathematics examintaions arranged in three different orders (ED, DE, R). There are no significant gender differences in the performance of students in Use of English and Mathematics based on test item permutation. However female students perform better than male students when test items are arranged in ascending order of difficulty while males perform better when test items are arranged in descending order of difficulty. It was concluded that the permutation of test items in UTME examination tends to affect the performance of students in Use of English and Mathematics. This finding has implications for the future conduct of UTME examinations and enrolment into higher education as the randomization of UTME test items changes the difficulty order of different paper types. It was recommended that other measures of curtailing examination malpractices that would not affect students’ academic performance should be adopted. (shrink)

China’s rise to global power status is set to be amongst the primary shapers of politics and life more broadly in the 21st century. Yet despite its immense significance, political philosophers have been surprisingly quiet on the normative implications of China’s rise. This, I will argue, is a mistake. Not only does China’s rise generate interesting normative questions in its own right; it also upends some basic assumptions that many of us have hitherto adopted in our thinking about international distributive (...) justice. In the philosophical literature, the international order is often characterised by two sorts of states – developed and developing – with the former owing demanding duties and the latter having expansive permissions to further their own development. China’s status as both a genuine superpower and a middle-income country facing significant development challenges calls into question the continued functionality of such simplifying assumptions. Against the backdrop of China’s rise – and, to a lesser extent, that of other large emerging economies – this paper develops a more fine-grained account of how to conceive of states’ differential levels of advantage, distinguishing between states that are incapable, precariously capable, and robustly capable of realizing a minimally decent standard of domestic justice. This account reaffirms the assignment of the most onerous international duties to developed states, but also assigns duties and claims to developing states in a scalar fashion, with the upshot that better-off developing states in particular bear positive duties of international justice, owed to least-developed countries (LDCs). (shrink)

To hold an environmental ethic is to hold that non-human beings and states of affairs in the natural world have intrinsic value. This seemingly straightforward claim has been the focus of much recent philosophical discussion of environmental issues. Its clarity is, however, illusory. The term ‘intrinsic value’ has a variety of senses and many arguments on environmental ethics suffer from a conflation of these different senses: specimen hunters for the fallacy of equivocation will find rich pickings in the area. This (...) paper is largely the work of the underlabourer. I distinguish different senses of the concept of intrinsic value, and, relatedly, of the claim that non-human beings in the natural world have intrinsic value; I exhibit the logical relations between these claims and examine the distinct motivations for holding them. The paper is not however merely an exercise in conceptual underlabouring. It also defends one substantive thesis: that while it is the case that natural entities have intrinsic value in the strongest sense of the term, i.e., in the sense of value that exists independently of human valuations, such value does not as such entail any obligations on the part of human beings. The defender of nature’s intrinsic value still needs to show that such value contributes to the well-being of human agents. (shrink)

Socialist republicans advocate public ownership and control of the means of production in order to achieve the republican goal of a society without endemic domination. While civic republicanism is often attacked for its conservatism, the relatively neglected radical history of the tradition shows how a republican form of socialism provides powerful conceptual resources to critique capitalism for leaving workers and citizens dominated. This analysis supports a programme of public ownership and economic democracy intended to reduce domination in the workplace and (...) wider society. I defend this socialist republicanism from both the Marxist objection that it overlooks the impersonal nature of domination under capitalism and the left-liberal objections that property-owning democracy or worker codetermination are sufficient to suppress dominating relationships. The resulting position identifies the need for more ambitious institutional grounds for republican liberty than is often supposed, while offering us a distinctive emancipatory justification for socialism. (shrink)

This chapter examines the possibility of using AI technologies to improve human moral reasoning and decision-making, especially in the context of purchasing and consumer decisions. We characterize such AI technologies as artificial ethics assistants (AEAs). We focus on just one part of the AI-aided moral improvement question: the case of the individual who wants to improve their morality, where what constitutes an improvement is evaluated by the individual’s own values. We distinguish three broad areas in which an individual might think (...) their own moral reasoning and decision-making could be improved: one’s actions, character, or other evaluable attributes fall short of one’s values and moral beliefs; one sometimes misjudges or is uncertain about what the right thing to do is in particular situations, given one’s values; one is uncertain about some fundamental moral questions or recognizes a possibility that some of one’s core moral beliefs and values are mistaken. We sketch why one might think that AI tools could be used to support moral improvement in those areas, and describe two types of assistance: preparatory assistance, including advice and training supplied in advance of moral deliberation; and on-the-spot assistance, including on-the-spot advice and facilitation of moral functioning over the course of moral deliberation. Then, we turn to some of the ethical issues that AEAs might raise, looking in particular at three under-appreciated problems posed by the use of AI for moral self-improvement: namely, reliance on sensitive moral data; the inescapability of outside influences on AEAs; and AEA usage prompting the user to adopt beliefs and make decisions without adequate reasons. (shrink)

The republican ideal of non-domination identifies the capacity for arbitrary interference as a fundamental threat to liberty that can generate fearful uncertainty and servility in those dominated. I argue that republican accounts of domination can provide a powerful analysis of the nature of legal and institutional power that is encountered by people with mental disorders or cognitive disabilities. In doing so, I demonstrate that non-domination is an ideal which is pertinent, distinctive, and desirable in thinking through psychological disability. Finally, I (...) evaluate republican strategies for contesting domination, focusing on the limits of contestatory democracy, and proposing a participatory alternative which better addresses problems of political agency in the mentally disordered and cognitively disabled. (shrink)

This study analyzed the behavioral characteristics of ICT users among postgraduate students leveraging the Latent Class Analysis (LCA). The study, anchored on the Planned Behavior Theory, followed the exploratory research design. It adopted the cluster random sampling technique in selecting 1,023 respondents from a population of 2,923 postgraduate students in four federal universities in South-South Nigeria. “Behavioural Characteristics and Job Creation Questionnaire (BCJCQ),” developed by the researchers, was used for data collection. Upon data collection and LCA analysis, the five-class solution (...) was accepted as the best-fitting model, based on statistical fit indicators (such as AIC, BIC, entropy, Gsq, and Chsq) and theoretical grounds. Consequently, five classes of behavioral ICT users were identified and named based on their item–response probability, conditional on class. The five classes were named Trendy, Outmoded, Pragmatic, Disciplined, and Social users of ICT, with their unique characteristics discussed. The study tested for job creation differences among the classes using a one-way ANOVA and found a significant difference. On average, pragmatic users of ICT created more jobs than social, disciplined, and outmoded users. Trendy users were, on average, the minor job-creating class of ICT users. The study compared the bivariate differences in job creation among the classes using the Tukey HSD test of multiple pairwise comparisons. Based on the results obtained, discussions were made with implications for further research in the evolving area of LCA. (shrink)

This article argues that political injustices can arise from the distribution and character of our sexual desires and that we can be held responsible for correcting these injustices. It draws on a conception of structural injustice to diagnose unjust patterns of sexual attraction, which are taken to arise when socio-structural processes shaping the formation of sexual desire compound systemic domination and capacity-deprivation for the occupants of a social position. Individualistic and structural solutions to the problem of unjust patterns of sexual (...) attraction are assessed in the context of racialised sexual aversion, racial fetishism, and the desexualisation of people with disabilities. While both forms of intervention can help in principle, some of the advantages of structural approaches are laid out. A schema for assigning political responsibilities for addressing this injustice is proposed, with some limits identified to the kinds of state and social responses that are justified. Finally, the status of the merely aesthetically unappealing is considered, with a relational egalitarian approach concluding that they are subject to structurally unjust patterns of sexual desire only when exposed to oppression or second-class citizenship as a result. (shrink)

This article challenges the individualism and neutrality of modern moral conscience. It looks to the history of the concept to excavate an older tradition that takes conscience to be social and morally responsive, while arguing that dominant contemporary justifications of conscience in terms of integrity are inadequate without reintroducing these social and moral traits. This prompts a rethinking of the nature and value of conscience: first, by demonstrating that a morally-responsive conscience is neither a contradiction in terms nor a political (...) absurdity; second, by suggesting how a morally-responsive conscience can be informed by the social world without being a mere proxy for social power or moribund tradition. (shrink)

I develop a socialist republican conception of economic liberty and show how it can be used to understand the domination of workers. It holds that both paid and unpaid workers can be deprived of economic freedom when they are exposed to an arbitrary power to undermine their access to the economic capabilities needed for civic equality. Measures intended to reduce domination are recommended, including public ownership of productive property, workplace democracy, and robust unconditional basic income and services. Finally, I discuss (...) the implications of this approach for platform capitalism, digital surveillance, the rise of automation, and post-work politics. (shrink)