Sustainable development (SD) is an approach that aims to meet the needs of the present generation without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. Education for sustainable development (ESD) is a key component in achieving this goal, as it equips young people with the knowledge, skills, and values needed to make sustainable decisions. This study investigated how preschool teachers in Saudi Arabia understood (SD) and the state of (ESD) practices. A survey was used to collect data from 230 Saudi preschool teachers. The findings revealed that 90% of teachers lacked awareness regarding SD. The overall evaluation of ESD practices among participants indicated a weak subpar status, with an average score of 2.49 out of 4. Notably, in ascending order, the following three dimensions had weak mean scores: the content aspect (2.38) had the lowest score, followed by the practice aspect (2.54) and the competencies aspect (2.58). Meanwhile, the values aspect (2.63) had an average outcome. Analysing the mean scores of ESD practices based on teachers’ qualifications and school types revealed significant differences, although no variations were observed based on experience. The primary obstacle to ESD implementation in pre-schools was the lack of awareness regarding SD/ESD. The study underscores the significance of expanding teacher training to promote ESD effectively in pre-school settings. The results highlight the need for professional development opportunities to improve ESD implementation in classrooms, educate Saudi preschool teachers about SD, and create instructional materials that align with the principles of ESD.
A comprehensive survey was conducted in 2012 and 2020 to assess the financial culture of Hungarian higher education students. The findings revealed that financial training effectiveness had not improved over time. To address this, a conative examination of financial personality was initiated by the Financial Compass Foundation, which gathered over 40,000 responses from three distinct age groups: Children, high school students, and adults. The study identified key behavioral patterns, such as excessive spending and financial fragility, which were prominent across all age groups. These results informed Hungary’s seven-year strategy to enhance financial literacy and integrate economic education into the National Core Curriculum. The research is now expanding internationally with the aim of building a comparative database. The study’s main findings highlight the widespread need for improved financial education, with more than 80% of adults demonstrating risky financial behaviors. The implications of these findings suggest the importance of early financial education and tailored interventions to foster long-term financial stability. The international expansion of this research will allow for the examination of country-specific financial behaviors and provide data-driven recommendations for policy development.
Recognizing the importance of competition analysis in telecommunications markets is essential to improve conditions for users and companies. Several indices in the literature assess competition in these markets, mainly through company concentration. Artificial Intelligence (AI) emerges as an effective solution to process large volumes of data and manually detect patterns that are difficult to identify. This article presents an AI model based on the LINDA indicator to predict whether oligopolies exist. The objective is to offer a valuable tool for analysts and professionals in the sector. The model uses the traffic produced, the reported revenues, and the number of users as input variables. As output parameters of the model, the LINDA index is obtained according to the information reported by the operators, the prediction using Long-Short Term Memory (LSTM) for the input variables, and finally, the prediction of the LINDA index according to the prediction obtained by the LSTM model. The obtained Mean Absolute Percentage Error (MAPE) levels indicate that the proposed strategy can be an effective tool for forecasting the dynamic fluctuations of the communications market.
This paper investigates the elements affecting dividend yield in developing Southeast Asian countries—more specifically, Thailand, Malaysia, and Singapore. Examined here are the roles of financial information including debt to equity ratio, free cashflows, property, plant, and equipment (PPE) and total sales with controlling factors of size, institutional ownership, and firm age using both short-run and long-run analytical frameworks including the Error Correction Model and Engle and Granger’s approach. The results reveal different trends in the three nations. Higher debt and free cashflows lower dividend yield in Thailand; institutional shareholders benefit from maintaining greater dividend payouts. Aging companies in Malaysia are more likely to pay more dividends while rising revenues are linked to smaller short-term payouts. Leveraged and asset-heavy companies are more likely to keep paying dividends in Singapore. These discoveries have important ramifications for investors and business management trying to maximize dividend policies and improve shareholder value in developing economies.
Political representation is responsible for choices regarding the supply and the management of transport infrastructure, but its decisions are sometimes in conflict with the will and the general interest expressed by citizens. This situation has progressively prompted the use of specific corrective measures in order to obtain socially sustainable decisions, such as the deliberative procedures for the appraisal of public goods. The standard Stated Choice Modelling Technique (SCMT) can be used to estimate the community appreciation for public goods such as transport infrastructure; but the application of the SCMT in its standard form would be inadequate to provide an estimation that expresses the general interest of the affected community. Hence the need to adapt the standard SCMT on the basis of the operational conditions imposed by deliberative appraisal procedures. Therefore, the general aim of the paper is to outline the basic conditions on which a modified SCMT with deliberative procedure can be set up. Firstly, the elements of the standard SCMT on which to make the necessary adjustments are identified; subsequently, modifications and additions to make to the standard technique are indicated; finally, the contents of an extensive program of experimentation are outlined.
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