Lifestyle, Gender and Academic Underachievement in English Language Among Students with Learning Disabilities (Published)
This study investigated the impact of lifestyle and gender on academic under-achievement in English language among students with learning difficulties. A survey-based descriptive research design was utilized. The population for this study comprises all pupils with learning difficulties in the Oyo North Senatorial District of Oyo State, Nigeria. A multi-stage sampling approach was employed to pick five local governments within the senatorial district. Within each local government, a simple random sample technique was utilized to select two secondary schools. This resulted in a total of ten schools included in the study. A purposive sampling strategy was employed to pick a total of two hundred and eighty-seven (287) individuals, with twenty-nine participants chosen from each school. A questionnaire was employed to obtain information about the lifestyle of students with learning disabilities. Additionally, the Mychebust learning disabilities rating scale (with a correlation coefficient of 0.76) and an English language accomplishment exam were utilized to identify students with specific learning difficulties who have not reached their full potential in English language proficiency. Two hypotheses were proposed, with the first one being examined at a significance level of 0.01 and the second one being tested at significance levels of 0.01 and 0.05. The instrument life-style questionnaire (LSQ) demonstrated a reliability coefficient of r=0.86. The study’s findings indicated notable correlations between lifestyle and academic underperformance in students with learning difficulties. Additionally, gender disparities in academic underachievement were observed among the participants. The following recommendations were given: students with learning difficulties should receive appropriate guidance on how to lead a positive and resilient lifestyle. Furthermore, it is crucial for teachers to instruct students in the attentive and accurate repetition and recognition of challenging English vocabulary.
Keywords: Gender, Learning disabilities, Lifestyle, academic-underachievement
Lifestyle Pattern Assessment among Taif University Medical Students (Published)
Introduction: Medical school is stressful throughout all courses of practicing which may contribute to the student’s unhealthy lifestyle patterns. The primary goal of the study is to assess the healthy habits practice among Taif University medical students and its relation to academic level. Methods: A cross-sectional study of the medical students from the second to sixth year at Taif University School of Medicine, Taif, Saudi Arabia that was conducted between December 2015 and January 2016. We used a Lifestyle Assessment Inventory questionnaire to assess the healthy habits. Each positive healthy response from each participant was counted as 1 point with a maximum score of 24 points. Those scored>18 points were considered to have very healthy lifestyle. Result: A total of 204 student with a mean age of 22.1 years, and majority of them were 5th year student. 52.9% reports unhealthy lifestyle patterns. Compared to the junior medical students, senior medical students were more likely to be older (p <0.001), more likely to reports very healthy lifestyle (p <0.011), walk more than junior (p 0.454), play less sport (p 0.856), find it easier to relax (p 0.331), more able to cope with daily stress (p 0.713), less likely to use seat belt (p 0.226), less likely to over speed (p 0.648), more likely to report optimal sleep (p 0.568), reports less family support (p 0.006), less likely to have close friends (p 0.009), less likely to smoke (p <0.001),less likely to reports eating 3 balanced meals per day (p 0.0403) (Table 2). Conclusion: Overall, 52.9% of the screened students reports unhealthy lifestyle patterns. Seniors were significantly less likely to report social support, smoke and to use tobacco products.