Societies are getting more diverse, with social issues increasing, necessitating the need to intensify efforts to promote tolerance and respect for diversity. In this study, we report the approach employed to redesign and evaluate a general education course to enhance students’ knowledge of tolerance and respect for diversity, drawing on Islamic values in the United Arab Emirates. In collecting and analyzing data for the study, we adopted a qualitative approach to explore students’ nuanced and reflective understanding and application of the key concepts taught in the course. We retrieved and thematically analyzed 40 transcripts from sixty-nine students’ reflective assignments. Our results indicate that students see the education process based on Islamic principles as a socialization means for shaping human life, caring for others, demonstrating compassion, and sharing knowledge, as essential to fostering tolerance. Drawing on our findings, we recommend carefully redesigning courses to strengthen students’ knowledge of tolerance and respect for diversity using the authentic learning approach. This includes engaging them in activities to link class tasks to real-life contexts, providing them with safe learning spaces, and encouraging them to learn with peers from different backgrounds.

Social computing software and online tools are gaining credence in teaching and learning spaces, including higher education contexts. However, the adoption of social computing software does not automatically translate into effective teaching and learning if students’ views and needs are not considered along with course learning outcomes. Thus, this study was conducted to explore students’ perspectives and preferences for social computing software and online tools in a university elective course. We employed quantitative and qualitative approaches to understand students’ shared and nuanced thoughts about social computing applications in the study. A questionnaire with quantitative and open-ended qualitative questions was used to collect data. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and an inductive thematic analysis approach. Our findings indicated mixed students’ viewpoints, with some tools reported as highly beneficial while others were less beneficial. For instance, students valued asynchronous sessions, assignment feedback, online discussion, videos, and gamification but reported less interest in phones, journals, icons, and blogs. Students’ specializations also appeared to influence their choice of tools. Those from Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences expressed a slightly different preference than their comparts from Medicine and Health Sciences. Drawing on the findings, we discuss the implications for effective teaching and learning using social computing software, focusing on essential stakeholders. For instance, instructors must regularly conduct diagnostic feedback to determine appropriate tools that can effectively customize students’ learning.

يسعى هذا البحث إلى معرفة مدى تأثير "التميز المؤسسي" على التنمية الاجتماعية في دولة الإمارات العربية المتحدة، ولمعالجة موضوع البحث تم اعتماد "المنهج الوصفي التحليلي"؛ حيث تم استخدام الشق الوصفي من هذا المنهج من أجل الإلمام بمفهوم التميز المؤسسي والتنمية الاجتماعية، وإيجاد العلاقة بينهما، والتأثير المتبادل بينهما، كما تم الاعتماد أيضاً على الشق التحليلي من هذا المنهج، وذلك بتحليل توجهات دولة الإمارات لاكتشاف أبعاد "التميز المؤسسي" ومدى تأثيرها في "التنمية الاجتماعية". وتبين لنا من خلال هذا البحث أن مسيرة التميز في دولة الإمارات انطلقت منذ أكثر من 28 عاماً، بقيادة صاحب السمو الشيخ محمد بن راشد آل مكتوم نائب رئيس الدولة رئيس مجلس الوزراء حاكم دبي "رعاه الله"، بدءاً من جائزة دبي للجودة التي أطلقها سموه عام 1994، لتتوالى بعد ذلك برامج التميز والجودة على المستوى المحلي، بهدف تعزيز تبني ثقافة التميز أساساً للارتقاء بالعمل الحكومي، وصولاً إلى إنشاء برنامج الشيخ خليفة للتميز الحكومي عام 2009، ويعبر "التميز المؤسسي" عن حالة فريدة من الإبداع الإداري، والتطور المؤسسي في المنظمات الحديثة، هذه الحالة تؤدي إلى حالة من مستويات عالية غير عادية من الأداء ووتنفيذ العمليات التسويقية والإنتاجية والمالية وغيرها في المنظمات بوجه عام والمنظمات الحكومية بوجهٍ خاص، بما ينتج عنه العديد من الإنجازات ونتائج المرغوبة، هذا النتائج تفوق كل ما حققه المنافسون في نفس المجال أو التخصص، وهذا يؤدي إلى رضا المتعاملين مع المؤسسة، وتعمل على تفعيل التنمية الاجتماعية بكافة أبعادها في دولة الإمارات. ومن خلال معطيات البحث ونتائجه، أوصت الباحثتان بضرورة مراجعة الخطط وكافة البرامج والحقائب التدريبية التي تم تنفيذها في المؤسسات الحكومية بدولة الإمارات للتأكد من فاعليتها ومدى توافقها مع احتياجات ومتطلبات العمل الحكومي والتنمية الاجتماعية المستدامة في دولة الإمارات.

One of the most important sources of anxiety for students is professional future. A solution to this is career counseling. In most cases, universities offer career-counseling services for prospective students or focus on following their graduates" employability and especially students with disabilities. The aim of this study is to identify the status of people with disabilities, the strategy of integrating them into the academic field and empowerment in the professional life and to identify the problems arising from their inclusion in various aspects such as educational, social and environmental aspects. The sample surveyed in this study was 51 male and female students, reached through the Resource Center for People with disabilities at the University of Sharjah at different colleges. The questionnaire includes 30 questions. After obtaining and analyzing the results, it was reached that students with disabilities suffer from many difficulties during their study at the university, including educational difficulties, which are represented in the difficulty of performing exams and the difficulty of absorbing the academic subjects.As well as social difficulties which are represented in the difficulty of making social relationships and the inability to make friendships with other students and non-participation in various university activities. Also, there are environmental difficulties represented by the library's lack of appropriate halls  

No abstract