Opportunities

The rapidly growing demand for incorporating the latest technological developments in language pedagogy has contributed to scholars’ devoting more serious attention to web-based assessment (WBA). That being so, this study set out to uncover perceptions of four groups of stakeholders who had been involved in WBA via Moodle since 2018 regarding its challenges and opportunities in the context of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) instruction. To this aim, a convenient sample of nine students, seven parents, eight teachers, and three curriculum designers at an Iranian private language institute was recruited to be interviewed. The results of the study suggested that the perceived challenges were the insufficient provision of technical support, lack of security, low-speed internet connection, the need for teachers’ presence during the exam, lack of provision of intrinsic incentives for learners, lack of detailed feedback, and complexity of online test development. The opportunities, on the other hand, were perceived to be well-suited computer and internet literacy, educators’ competency in the utilization of online educational resources, absence of computer and internet anxiety, provision of immediate feedback, and access to items and responses after the exam.

Based on the importance of virtual classrooms and due to the inevitability of using them in difficult situations such as the Covid-19 pandemic, the current study was an attempt to investigate the perception of high school EFL teachers toward virtual learning systems' experience. Also, probing the perception of high school EFL teachers toward virtual learning systems' opportunities, exploring the perception of high school EFL teachers toward virtual learning systems' challenges and threats, and informing the educational society of the solutions to the barriers of virtual learning systems based on the perception of high school EFL teachers were the other objectives of the current study. To this end, the attitudes of 120 EFL teachers (males=67, females=53) with the age range of 30 to 50 who were teaching at different high schools of West Azerbaijan province, Urmia, Iran, were gathered via a researcher-made questionnaire. The results of the study show that although high school teachers faced some barriers such as low internet access, low interaction, and low concentration by learners, actually they actually have positive attitudes toward the use of digital learning, particularly in virtual classrooms. Furthermore, the findings showed that data retention power and quick and easy access were favored by most of the teachers, and they believed these two items can be regarded as positive opportunities. In addition, teachers presented some comments such as adding visuals to the virtual classrooms, using chat boxes, and planning interaction hints to resolve the virtual classrooms’ existing problems such as poor connection and low concentration. The implications of the study will be discussed.

INTRODUCTION: Helicopter Emergency Medical Services (HEMS) provide medical care to critically ill patients and the injured immediately and provide faster treatment, thereby reducing the length of hospitalization. This study aimed to identify the policy implications of HEMS in Isfahan province. METHODS: This qualitative study was conducted using the thematic analysis method. The study population included the managers, personnel, and flight crews of Isfahan HEMS. The participants were selected using the purposive sampling method, followed by the snowball method. Initially, 14 individuals from the HEMS personnel were interviewed using the interview guide form, and then, the opinions of 15 participants from the flight crews were collected through an open questionnaire. Maxqda10 software was used for data coding. FINDINGS: The research findings were classified into challenges, opportunities, and implications. In terms of challenges, 11 themes and 34 categories were identified in this study. HEMS opportunities were also divided into 8 themes and 11 categories. The policy implications provided by the participants were also categorized into 8 themes and 28 categories. CONCLUSION: Considering that one of the most important known challenges was the lack of specialized helicopters and medicopters, according to the results, it is suggested that the managers of Isfahan HEMS take measures to solve the existing challenges and develop plans to strengthen the capacities and utilize the opportunities.

This study aimed to examine the challenges and opportunities of sports stakeholders in social media use. This study uses thematic analysis to analyze the literature on the research topic. Furthermore, semi-structured interviews were conducted with three groups of sports stakeholders, including players (N=15), teams managers (N=14), and fans (N=26) that were chosen from three professional football teams. The phenomenological method was used to explore the research questions. The study addressed seven categories of sport stakeholders' challenges and opportunities in social media: informing sports stakeholders, sharing information, advertising, shopping, dialogue, and facilitation of communication, which are offering opportunities. Moreover, two challenges, including unpleasant feelings and time consumption, are recognized as dilemmas. The findings showed common challenges and opportunities of all three sports stakeholders in using social media.  

Virtual space and the associated social networks, like many other emerging phenomena, have both positive and negative consequences in various aspects of life. The undeniable impact of this space is particularly significant in the national security of countries, as it can create numerous opportunities for national security along with the changes and developments it brings about. This research aims to identify the opportunities that social networks create for the infrastructure of national security. Data were collected through grounded theory and in-depth interviews with 16 experts in the fields of politics and virtual space. The data were analyzed using open, axial, and selective coding methods, employing the Strauss and Corbin approach. The research results indicate that virtual social networks can provide unique opportunities for national security by strengthening the infrastructures of social, political, cultural, economic, and environmental security. The research results are presented in the form of a paradigm model of opportunities.