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.
The development of information systems in recent years has contributed to various methods of gathering information to evaluate IS performance. The most common approach used to collect information is called the survey system. This method, however, suffers one major drawback. The decision makers consume considerable time to transform data from survey sheets to analytical programs. As such, this paper proposes a method called ‘survey algorithm based on R programming language’ or SABR, for data transformation from the survey sheets inside R environments by treating the arrangement of data as a relational format. R and Relational data format provide excellent opportunity to manage and analyse the accumulated data. Moreover, a survey syste
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This paper presents an experimental and theoretical analysis to investigate the two-phase flow boiling heat transfer coefficient and pressure drop of the refrigerant R-134a in the evaporator test section of the refrigeration system under different operating conditions. The test conditions considered are, for heat flux (13.7-36.6) kW/m2, mass flux (52-105) kg/m2.s, vapor quality (0.2-1) and saturation temperature (-15 to -3.7) ˚C. Experiments were carried out using a test rig for a 310W capacity refrigeration system, which is designed and constructed in the current work. Investigating of the experimental results has revealed that, the enhancement in local heat trans
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The two body model of (Core+n) within the radial wave functions of the cosh potential has been used to investigate the ground state features such as the proton, neutron and matter densities, the root mean square (RMS) nuclear proton, neutron, charge and mass radii of unstable neutron-rich 14B, 15C, 19C and 22N nuclei. The calculated results show that the two body model with the radial wave functions of the cosh potential succeeds in reproducing neutron halo in these nuclei.
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Nuclear shell model is adopted to calculate the electric quadrupole moments for some Calcium isotopes 20Ca (N = 21, 23, 25, and 27) in the fp shell. The wave function is generated using a two body effective interaction fpd6 and fp space model. The one body density matrix elements (OBDM) are calculated for these isotopes using the NuShellX@MSU code. The effect of the core-polarizations was taken through the theory microscopic by taking the set of the effective charges. The results for the quadrupole moments by using Bohr-Mottelson (B-M) effective charges are the best. The behavior of the form factors of some Calcium isotopes was studied by using Bohr-Mottelson (B-M) effective charges.
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The aim of this study was to assess the nutritional status for samples at the age of 17-15 years. These samples were taken from secondary schools and universities in Baghdad area, 123 of them were male and 261 were female. Data on weight, height and body mass index (BMI) were determined in each individual. Smaller sample of 215 individuals (male and female) from the original sample was taken in order to record their nutritional behavior and daily food intake during the 24 hours prior to the visit through personal meeting using special questionnaire. The results showed that the weight and the height were within the range of the people of neighboring Arab countries, who are in the same age. Beside 44.4- 55.95% of these samples were within t
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Background: The demand for better esthetic during orthodontic treatment has increased nowadays, so orthodontists starting using esthetic arch wires, brackets and ligatures.Tooth colored brackets were introduced in different types of materials. Sapphire ceramic brackets are one type of esthetic brackets and their color stability remains the main concern for the clinicians and patients at the same time. The present study design to evaluate the effect of three different staining materials (pepsi, black tea and cigarette smoke) on the stainability of sapphire ceramic brackets bonded with three types of light cure orthodontic adhesives which include: Resilience, Enlight and Transbond. Materials and Methods: The sample consisted of three hundre
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The current investigation conducted to examine the anatomical aspects of the Arum colocasia L. cultured in Iraq. The study included the anatomical characteristics of the different plant parts, including the root, stem and leaf, the results of the study on the vegetative parts were shown the important anatomical characteristics in terms of the form of the sections reviewed and vertical in them, and the study of their tissues, as well as the stomata complexities and the thickness of the epidermis, vascular bundles, pith, additionally the dimensions of mesophyll and in blade of the leaf. The research was conducted as it is one of the monocotyledon plants and because of the lack of anatomical studies on it, therefore it was studied to know the
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The current investigation conducted to examine the anatomical aspects of the Arum colocasia L. cultured in Iraq. The study included the anatomical characteristics of the different plant parts, including the root, stem and leaf, the results of the study on the vegetative parts were shown the important anatomical characteristics in terms of the form of the sections reviewed and vertical in them, and the study of their tissues, as well as the stomata complexities and the thickness of the epidermis, vascular bundles, pith, additionally the dimensions of mesophyll and in blade of the leaf. The research was conducted as it is one of the monocotyledon plants and because of the lack of anatomical studies on it, therefore it was studied to know the
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