Social Sciences

This paper investigates factors contributing to drug abuse among the youth in Kenya; a case of Bamburi Location. The paper also: establishes the nature and extent of drug abuse and related issues among the youths; establishes the level and sources of knowledge and awareness on drug abuse and related issues among the youth; investigates demographic factors contributing to drug abuse; investigates social-cultural factors contributing to drug abuse; investigates economic factors contributing to drug abuse; analyses the effects of drug abuse; interrogates the challenges faced against the fight of drug abuse; and recommends on how to curb and reduce drug abuse. In this paper, the authors use an explanatory study design where a study was conducted in Bamburi Location to establish factors contributing to drug abuse among youths in Kenya. The explanatory study design was adopted as it offers an explanation as to why youths engage in drug abuse in Kenya. A survey was conducted for the reason that it provides the information from the single selected sample whose findings can be used to offer a generalization for the whole country. The sample size for the study was 120 youth across all the sub locations in Bamburi location. The main findings of the study were: Demographic characteristics except gender do contribute to drug abuse in the area. Economic and social cultural factors also play a great role in influencing drug abuse in the area among the youth. Effects of drug abuse are diverse. They range from individual to societal effects such as poor health, poor personal hygiene, homosexuality, high school drop-out rate, high divorce rate, prostitution and increased crime. The main challenge facing the fight against drug abuse is corruption and lack of concern by the community in general. Suggested measures to fight the menace are to end corruption and focus on preventive education among the school-going youth. Though there are various factors leading to drug abuse, this paper focuses on demographic factors, social-cultural, and economic leading to pervasiveness of the menace in the Bamburi community/Location. Basically there are various demographic factors contributing to drug abuse such as age, occupation, religion, and marital status. Demographic factors also work in close relationship with social-cultural factors such as one’s perceived respect by others, the social environment, peer pressure influence, social learning from parents, one’s culture and cultural believes, customs, norms and values. Economic factors also play a great role in determining one’s behavior especially in cases of deviance. One’s economic status may influence one’s indulgence in such activities. This paper is, however, limited to the investigation of these factors and recommends the way forward in reducing or curbing drug abuse in Bamburi Location.

The concept paper discusses the implementation of green skills through co-curricular activities among students of Technical and Vocational Education Training (TVET) in line with a more sustainable industrial development towards sustainable social, economic and environmental. Implementation of green skills is assessed by its importance in education and training through co-curriculum activities as a proactive step towards a more green industrial practices benefit not only to the economy but also to support social and environmental sustainability. According to the literature, there are problems that arise due to the lack of industry awareness of the importance of the adoption of green technologies that will ultimately affect the environment. Accordingly, this article also stated that generic green skills needed by green industries as an effective method to ensure that no conflict or consistency in the implementation of green skills in TVET through co-curriculum activities towards development of green industries.

This study aims to determine the relationships between perceived maternal parenting styles, self-esteem and depression with self-esteem as a mediator among adolescents. Baumrind’s typology parenting theory serves as the foundation concept in the model of the present study. Sample for the study consists of 202 secondary school students from Batu Pahat, Johor. Three instruments were used to measure the key variables in this study: Parental Authority Questionnaire (Buri, 1991), Rosenberg’s Self-Esteem Scale (Rosenberg, 1965), and Beck Depression Inventory-Malay (Mukhtar, 2008). Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) was used to determine the model fit, and also determine the direct and indirect effect of the mediator. Correlation analyses showed that adolescents who perceived their mothers parenting styles as: 1) authoritarian is positively correlated with depression and negative correlated with self-esteem; 2) authoritative negative correlated with depression, and positively correlated with self-esteem; and 3) permissive positively correlated with depression and negative correlated with self-esteem. Additional analyses revealed that adolescents’ with higher levels of self-esteem showed low depression. Using SEM, the study model was found to have an acceptable fit (RMSEA = .059; CFI = .994 & p=.181). Implication, limitations and recommendations of the study were discussed.

Among all researches in the field of learners’ overall achievement, the effect of test anxiety of test takers’ has rarely been explored. And also, this present study is an effort to examine the anxiety of pupils in relation with overall achievement in the English course and the effect of their behavior on their performance on overall achievement test in the English course at the end of term. Data was collected by using the anxiety questionnaire developed by Richard Driscoll. A total of 200 participants were selected for this study. Accordingly, a standardized anxiety questionnaire was administered to 100 female and 100 male pupils in order to discover whether there is a relationship between test anxiety and learners’ overall achievement in the English course in the middle school in different genders. The findings have implications for testing, teaching, and syllabus design.

Issues related to inequality in access to land, compensation and land use administration often become difficult to tackle especially in post conflict situations where settlers and the indigenes live in disharmony breeding further grievances that eventually lead to more conflict. This study examined issues related to settled land for resettlement scheme and compensation to native of a community in Bauchi State of Northern Nigeria. The study used descriptive and inferential statistics to analyse 350 questionnaires administered. The findings of the study revealed that 65.7% of the displaced persons settled on land not officially allocated to them while over 70% of the natives indicted that they were not satisfied with the compensation exercise. The study recommended among other things that land belonging to a community should not be allocated to settlers from other communities for resettlement purposes as this breeds further conflict and where land is compulsorily acquired for overriding public interest it should be adequately compensated.

This study examines Relationship between Emotional Intelligence and Achievement Motivation among Adolescents. Sample of the study consists of 100 adolescents (50 males and 50 females) who were taken from colleges of district Multan and Lodhran. The age range of the sample was between 15 to 18 years. Two different scales were used to measure the level of emotional intelligence and achievement motivation. “Achievement Motivation scale” by Henry Murray (1983) described the need for achievement as desire “to accomplish something difficult; to master, manipulate or organize, to overcome obstacle and attain a high standard; to excel one’s self”. “Emotional Quotient Test” which is valid and reliable scale consisting of 12 items (Saima Cheema, 2005). Results indicated that emotional intelligence influenced the development of achievement motivation in positive manner and female adolescents had higher level of emotional intelligence as compared to male adolescents.

j-QAF system was introduced in 2005. Despite it's aimed at developing characteristics and comprehension of Muslim students in Jawi, Al-Quran, Arabic Language and FardhuAin, there are still some issues and challenges occurred. This article aimed at identifying factors that hurdle j-QAF program in recent years, and suggests possible solution. Secondary data from Six Month Khatam Al-Quran Model and Tasmik (Al- Quran) Model Progress Report of year 2005 to 2009 was comparatively and descriptively analyzed. Problem, suggestions and solutions are further discussed. It is hope that it will contribute to enhance the system and therefore empower Muslim students in Malaysia.

The major aim of current study was to explore the relationship between examination anxiety and academic achievement of students at university level. Nature of study was descriptive, non- contrived, cross sectional and quantitative. Universal sampling technique was exploited to collect data from all students of department of education, university of Gujrat, Pakistan. An adopted questionnaire was used to measure anxiety level of students against thirty statements. Mean , Standard Deviation and Pearson correlation were run for data analysis. No relationship between examination anxiety and academic achievement was found among university students. It was explicated that examination anxiety is not caused of low, average and high achievement of the student.

This article reports a study investigating the existence of any statistically significant correlation between intercultural competence and reading comprehension ability among EAP university students. The participants of the study were about 120 participants (male = 50, female =70, mean age = 26.85). In so doing, first of all, the Persian translation of intercultural sensitivity questionnaire was used. Moreover, to provide evidence for the dependent variable of this study, that is, reading comprehension, specialized readings (Academic Medical standardized readings) which were related to the aspects of medical texts were given to the students. Based on Pearson product moment correlation, it was found that there was a strong positive correlation between Intercultural competence and reading comprehension ability, indicating that individual‘s performance on Academic readings comprehension got better with respect to higher Intercultural competence. It was also found that there was a significant positive correlation between variable-specific IC and performance on Academic reading comprehension.

Motivated by the lack of agreement on the stages of creativity, the researcher endeavours to outline them. Guided by Torrance concept of creativity, this paper extrapolate on a wide array of research to achieve its aim. The paper concludes by discussing its premises. As such, it is hoped that the current research benefits, future investigation.