Browsing by Author "Nigatu, Muluken"

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    A Comparative Study on Social Adjustment Ability of Children With and Without Pre-school Education: The Case of Gore Town in IIlubabor Zone
    (Addis Ababa University, 2006) Nigatu, Muluken; Hussein, Abdulaziz (PhD)
    This study ivas basically designed to investigate the difference in social adjustment ability of children with and without preschool education. In addition, the study was aimed to find out the social adjustment problems faced by children without preschool education. For this purpose, mixed research method was employed in which 80 children (40 with and 40 without preschool education) were randomly selected from four governmental primary schools in Gore town in fllubabor zone . . All self-contained teachers and principals of the schools and 52 parents (26 parents of children with preschool education) were also included in the study. In order to collect data from these participants, close ended questionnaire, structured observation checklist, and semi-structured interview were used. Since the data were of two types: qualitative and quantitative, the analysis was made using independent t-test and percentages for quantitative data and interpretative narration was employed for qualitative data. The results provided evidence of statistically significant difference in the social adjustment ability of children with and without preschool education. It was also found out that children without preschool education were facing different social adjustment problems. Furthermore, ·data gathered from parents of children with preschool education and self contained teachers asserted that relatively children with preschool education were manifesting high school adjustment ability than children without preschool education. Finally, the researcher recommended all the concerned bodies like the regional state government and NGOs to gain an insight from. this study that preschool education is the crucial step for the child ren '~ later social adjustment ability in school. Thus, these bodies should pay due attention for the expansion and development of preschool education in the area.
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    The Institutionalization of the University Third Mission: A Comparative Study between Addis Ababa and Jimma Universities, Ethiopia
    (Addis Ababa University, 2020-06) Nigatu, Muluken; Beach, Dennis(Professor); Wirtu, Dessu (Associate Professor)
    Besides the traditional missions of research and teaching, ‘the University Third Mission’ (UTM) has recently become a major policy concern for universities. As a result, universities are increasingly engaged in a broad range of UTM activities and expected to act as a key contributor to the economic and social wellbeing of their countries and regions. However, there are suggestions from recent national and international research that UTM is not given equal value as teaching and research, which are prioritized, with UTM coming in a distant third, almost as an afterthought. Universities are being criticized for this and their lack and improper use of UTM budgets, for the unfavorable attitude of faculty members towards UTM, and for unfavorable conditions of work and poor logistics for faculty to work on the activities of UTM. The assumption behind the present dissertation is that these problems relate to a lack of proper institutionalization of the UTM and the aim of the research is therefore to assess this process of institutionalization. A comparative investigation in two Ethiopian public universities was conducted. The first is the Ethiopian flagship university (Addis Ababa University) and the second is also among the first generation higher education institutions of the country (Jimma University). Two basic questions were posed: (1) How is UTM described in the national policies context? (2) How is UTM institutionalization at Addis Ababa University (AAU) and Jimma University (JU)? The second question has 5 interrelated specific questions: (i) How supportive is the institutional orientation of AAU and JU towards UTM? (ii) How supportive is the institutional support of AAU and JU towards UTM? (iii) How do the community partners view their involvement in UTM? (iv)What is the current status of teachers’ involvement in UTM? (v) What similarities and differences are there in institutionalizing UTM at the two universities?To answer these questions, a mixed research methodology that applies an exploratory sequential method was employed to guide the research process. Institutional theory has been used as a lens to guide this study. Data were mainly collected using semi-structured interviews, document reviews, and questionnaires. An official from the Ministry of Science and Higher Education, officials from the two universities, community partners, and teachers from both universities were participants of this study. The Policy and strategic documents at the national and universities’ levels were also reviewed. While purposive sampling was used to identify the participants of the interview and documents for review, proportionate stratified sampling was used to identify teachers from both universities. The analysis of the study is mainly guided by the study’s analytical framework. While the qualitative data were narrated under the analytical framework of the study, a single sample t-test was used to analyze the quantitative data. After the analysis, the quantitative data were made fit into the analytical framework and discussed together with the qualitative data. Based on the analysis and discussions, it was found that though the national policies recognize the importance of UTM, lack of emphasis for the mission and profound problems on conceptualizing the mission were found. When it comes to the universities, even though they integrated UTM in their mission statement, there are inconsistencies and discrepancies in defining the mission. While both the universities have developed some important policy documents, they fail to create a common understanding on what should be counted as UTM at their universities. Both universities were found to have activities categorized under the three core dimensions of UTM, however, these universities could not put clear distinctions among these dimensions. The leadership and support of the universities were found to lack devotion to: creating a strong partnership with the external community, building common understanding and value on the stakeholders regarding UTM, assigning proper budget, and so on. The community partners’ involvement in UTM was also found to be limited. The xiii communication between the university and the community is more of a one-way (university dominated) communication. Teachers in both universities were also found to have low participation in the activities of UTM in general and technology transfer in particular. Generally, even though there are minor differences in the process of institutionalizing UTM in Addis Ababa and Jimma Universities, the process is immature in both universities. Hence, suggestions are forwarded to further institutionalize UTM in these universities. Among the suggestions is creating a common vocabulary for UTM. It is suggested in this research that starting from the national level to the levels of the universities, clarity, and consistency in conceptualizing the UTM should be given priority. This should also be followed by creating a common understanding and value for all stakeholders. Key words: the University Third Mission, Institutionalization, Institutional Support, Institutional orientation,
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    Myrrh Resin (Commiphora myrrha) As Rate Controlling Excipient In Sustained Release Matrix Tablets of Theophylline: Evaluation, Formulation and Optimization Study
    (Addis Ababa University, 2014-12) Nigatu, Muluken; Belete, Anteneh(PhD); Mary Joseph, Nisha(PhD)
    Myrrh is an oleo-gum resin, obtained from the stem of various species of Commiphora, Family Burseraceae. The chief source is Commiphora myrrha. Myrrh is phytotoxically safe raw material in industries like pharmaceuticals and food industries. The plant based excipients have been studied for their application in different pharmaceutical dosage forms like matrix sustained release system. Theophylline is used as bronchodilator in the management of asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Its narrow therapeutic index (10-20 μg/ml) requires suitable formulation strategies and sustained-release oral formulations have emerged as the most useful approach. The aim of this study was to investigate the myrrh resin from Commiphora myrrha as a rate controlling excipient for sustained release matrix tablets of theophylline. The moisture content and total ash values of myrrh resin was found to be 4.67±0.577% and 0.24±0.047%, respectively. The sustained release matrix tablets of theophylline were prepared by wet granulation technique using myrrh resin as rate controlling excipient. The hardness of different formulations were found to be between 89.8±2.86 and 133.7±3.53N while all tablets have passed the friability test (<1%). Analysis of dissolution data of the formulations indicated that the best fitting is with first order kinetics, whereas the mechanism of drug release pattern follows anomalous or non-fickian diffusion. The myrrh resin amount (A) and compression force (B) were selected as independent variables and drug release at 1 h (rel1 h), 12 h (rel12 h) and time to 50% drug release (t50%) were taken as the response variables. Therefore, the effects of myrrh resin amount (A) and compression force (B) were further studied and optimized for the desired outputs using central composite design statistical approach. Design-Expert 8.0.7.1 software was employed to carry out the experimental design, statistical analysis, numerical and graphical optimization. By comparing several statistical parameters, linear model was selected for both rel1 h and rel12 h whereas quadratic model was found to be the best fit model for t50%. The adequacy of the models was checked by analysis of variance (ANOVA). The ANOVA results revealed that both models II have significant values indicating the terms in the models have significant effect (P < 0.05) on the responses except the interaction effect (AB) of quadratic model which was found to be insignificant. Model simplification was carried out by eliminating this term (AB) in polynomial equations in order to improve the model. Optimization was achieved by simultaneous optimization of rel1 h, rel12 h and t50%. An optimum region of 24.981%, 91.217% and 2.861 h was obtained by the software for rel1 h, rel12 h and t50% , respectively when 17.5% myrrh resin amount (MRA) and 13.9 KN compression force (CF) was used. The kinetic study showed the optimized formulation followed first order kinetics model with anomalous release mechanism. In validation of the optimized formulation, the experimental values were found to be in close agreement with the predicted values confirming the predictability and validity of the model. This demonstrated that the optimization technique was successful in designing the theophylline sustained release matrix tablet formulation by using myrrh resin as rate controlling excipient. The Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) and Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) analysis confirmed the absence of incompatibility between theophylline and the myrrh resin. Therefore, the myrrh resin can be used as a potential alternative rate controlling excipient for sustained release formulation. Keywords: Myrrh resin, theophylline, sustained release, matrix tablet, optimization, central composite design