Globalisation and rapid environmental change have created many challenges for public and private organisations across Iraq as a developing country, particularly in the higher education sector. This includes, for example, decreases in government funding; increased demand for higher education; a need for economic transformation, and related competitiveness of organizations. Such challenges require exceptional leaders and strategic planning in order to take action to improve. In Iraq, the higher education sector is still one of the main foundations in progressing the knowledge economy. Studies into leadership style, strategic planning processes, and the importance of leadership and organisational culture to an organisation’s success have been used to assist both public and private Iraqi colleges in responding to the challenges they face. Although, some studies have examined the interaction between leadership and strategic planning, and leadership and organisational success, there has been no empirical study that has investigated how these three variables interact together. Thus, this study aimed, firstly, to identify the current leadership styles and strategic planning processes in the colleges and the challenges they faced, and to gain an understanding from the perspective of the senior leaders themselves as to how they might best respond to the current situation. Secondly, based on the participants’ experiences, knowledge and perceptions, the study aimed to identify implications for both practice and policy to help improve the colleges’ outcomes. The study involved a mixed-methods approach and was conducted in two stages. During the first stage, the researcher gathered quantitative data by administering a survey package to 129 leaders (deans, associate deans, and heads of departments) across both public and private colleges in the capital city of Baghdad. During the second stage, the researcher gathered qualitative data to more deeply explore the survey results by conducting individual interviews with a sub-sample of 21 leaders from both college types (ten public and 11 private). In the data analyses stages, both descriptive statistics and inferential statistics were applied to compiling tables and charts, and to test hypotheses, by employing the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS), Microsoft Excel, and NVivo. The results of study showed that both transformational and transactional leadership styles played a varied and vital role in the colleges’ strategic planning processes, and in turn their success. The fact that private colleges were ‘for profit’ and public colleges were ‘not for profit’, as well as their contrasting funding models, highlighted key differences between the two college types’ leadership and general modus operandi. While it was found that both transformative leadership and transactional leadership styles were necessary to address the challenges colleges faced in the Iraqi educational context, the impetus for change extended far beyond the need for professional development of leaders. The embracing of information communication technologies, and reliable Internet was seen as necessary in all aspects of the colleges’ work and provision for teaching and learning, and students’ success. This applied to both college types along with the need for closer adherence to government regulations and more focused government coordination of colleges’ administrative functions. Furthermore, implications for making successful improvements to practice also identified the need to manage the challenge of sociocultural influences on the appointments and promotions of leaders. It was concluded that a greater emphasis on teamwork and provision of incentives for staff, along with a ‘boost’ to pedagogy and practice, which could be provided through the adoption of information communication technologies and appropriate professional development strategies, would enhance the colleges’ ranks and the status of their qualifications. Also, theoretically, the study offers a value-add to leadership, strategic planning process, and organisational success literature in the form of a conceptual model that links these variables in the context of Iraqi higher education sector.
This study aimed to reveal the degree possession of secondary teachers for effective teaching skills from the perspective of the teachers themselves in the Mafraq governorate .To achieve the objective of the study(45) teachers were chosen randomly, also a questionnaire composed of 17 was prepared spread over three skill areas (planning, implementation, evaluation).
After application of the tool on the sample results of the study showed that the degree of ownership ranged between medium and high.
The results showed no differences in the degree of ownership due to the variables of sex in favor of females and variable qualification for the benefit of people with qualified Master higher, while differences are attributed to the experien
Pulsed liquid laser ablation is considered a green method for the synthesis of nanostructures because there are no byproducts formed after the ablation. In this paper, a fiber laser of wavelength 1.064 µm, peak power of 1 mJ, pulse duration of 120 ns, and repetition rate of 20 kHz, was used to produce carbon nanostructures including carbon nanospheres and carbon nanorods from the ablation of asphalt in ethanol at ablation speeds of (100, 75, 50, 10 mm/s). The morphology, composition and optical properties of the synthesized samples were studied experimentally using FESEM, HRTEM, EDS, and UV-vis spectrophotometer. Results showed that the band gap energy decreased with decreasing the ablation speed (increasing the ablation time), the mi
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The work of this paper is an investigation to improve the condenser performance of the automobile air conditioning system by enhancing the air-side heat transfer from the condenser through the use of an air guide net installed in front of the condenser face which is basically an aluminum plate having a circular entrance shape for the air passage. The A/C system was examined under two types of test. The first test was conducted the air guide net, while the second was done with the air guide net. The performances of the A/C system under these tests were compared. For the second type of test, the experiment was carried out with three different size of air guide net, three different circular diameters (2, 3 and 3.5 cm) a
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The research aimed to prepare a measure to evaluate the academic achievement of graduates working in the field of physical education from their point of view, to identify the extent to which graduating students benefit from the curriculum of the College of Physical Education and Sports Sciences, University of Baghdad/Al-Jadriya, and to identify the impact of academic subjects in the practical and theoretical fields. The researchers used the descriptive approach in the research procedures as it is an appropriate approach in achieving the research objectives. The following questions are: What are the academic subjects that have the most impact on graduating students? What are the academic subjects that have the least impact on the are
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The research aims to identify the level of educational supervisors' practices of their supervisory duties according to the requirements of comprehensive quality from the viewpoint of teachers in Oman. Moreover, identify the differences between the responses of the sample about these practices, which are attributed to gender, and years of experience. Thus, a questionnaire was administered to teachers, consisting of (48) items distributed on (5) main fields related to the educational supervisor's practices. The sample consisted of (220) teachers who were randomly chosen from the schools in Dhofar region. Data were analyzed using means, standard divisions, T-test, and One Way ANOVA. The research concluded that the level of educational super
... Show MoreThe research aimed to prepare a measure to evaluate the academic achievement of graduates working in the field of physical education from their point of view, to identify the extent to which graduating students benefit from the curriculum of the College of Physical Education and Sports Sciences, University of Baghdad/Al-Jadriya, and to identify the impact of academic subjects in the practical and theoretical fields. The researchers used the descriptive approach in the research procedures as it is an appropriate approach in achieving the research objectives. The following questions are: What are the academic subjects that have the most impact on graduating students? What are the academic subjects that have the least impact on the are
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The subject of the information technology system ( ITS ) of the important issues And contemporary thought in management, and various types of organizations seeking to apply and try to
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Metabolic dysregulation and obesity are associated with many metabolic alterations, including impairment of insulin sensitivity and dyslipidemia. Recent studies highlight the key role of phosphatidylinositol 3,4,5-triphosphate-dependent Rac exchange proteins (PREX proteins) in the pathogenesis of obesity, advocating further elucidation of their potential therapeutic implications. The present study aimed to estimate the serum level of PREX proteins and its potential association with insulin resistance markers and plasma lipids level in obese and overweight non-diabetic patients. The study included 30 persons classified as obese, 30 as overweight, and 30 healthy individuals of similar age and gender. The levels of PREX1 and PREX2 were
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Abstract The results showed that after treating <italic>C. albicans</italic> with Artemisinin (0.104 mg/ml) for 3 hours the number of <italic>C. albicans</italic> decreased and affected the morphology hyphae and growth of <italic>Candida</italic> compared with Fluconazole (150 mg/ml) and control (infected mice). The biomarker levels in the tongue showed high levels of MDA and TGFβ (623±1.5pg/ml, 586.1±0.13pg/ml respectively) in (infected mice with fungi). IL-37 was recorded high level (49.21±0.21pg/ml) in (Neoral +Fungi + artemisinin + fluconazole) compared with negative control. The finding biomarker levels in stomach showed high levels of MDA and IL-37 (533.8±1.9, 69.76±0.39pg/ml) in (Neor
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In this study, structures damage identification method based on changes in the dynamic characteristics
(frequencies) of the structure are examined, stiffness as well as mass matrices of the curved
(in and out-of-plane vibration) beam elements is formulated using Hamilton's principle. Each node
of both of them possesses seven degrees of freedom including the warping degree of freedom. The
curved beam element had been derived based on the Kang and Yoo’s thin-walled curved beam theory
in 1994. A computer program was developing to carry out free vibration analyses of the curved
beam as well as straight beam. Comparing with the frequencies for other researchers using the general
purpose program MATLAB. Fuzzy logic syste
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