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Month: July 2023

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Posted on by Gauri Kohli

For anyone working in the international education sector, its value as an export and cultural benefit is clear. Those outside, particularly local communities, however, aren’t as aware. Gauri Kohli looks at how countries are promoting the benefits of international education to the wider population.

International education is thriving as an export industry in countries such as Australia, the UK, the US, and Canada, going beyond being just a catalyst for economic success. As top destinations for international students, these nations are understanding that the true value of international education lies in the positive impact on people, communities, businesses and the knowledge sector.

Some have launched campaigns to educate the general public about these benefits of international education. For instance, recently, the International Education Association of Australia (IEAA) launched a unique campaign to showcase that in addition to economic contributions, the advantages that international education and students bring to the country include cultural and societal development. Sharing inspiring stories of international students collaborating with Australian businesses and communities, the campaign focuses on how such partnerships contribute to the country.

Taking the lead, state promotional bodies, Study NSW and Study Queensland, jointly invested in the campaign. Its focus is on three outstanding international students – Patti from Bangkok, Ralph from Dubai, and Jerry from Jakarta – who showcase the ways international students contribute to their societies.

Patti, for instance, excels as a mental health counsellor and dedicates her time to teaching dance classes, creating a positive effect on mental well-being within the community. Ralph’s valuable work in old-age care shows the meaningful roles international graduates play in key sectors. Meanwhile, Jerry’s efforts in organising fellow students to assist with fruit picking during labour shortages demonstrate the active involvement of international students in coping with national challenges.

The campaign promotes that international education is essential to Australia’s success. (Photo: IEAA official website)

Similarly in New Zealand, Education New Zealand (ENZ) took the positive step in 2019 of educating small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) about the unique benefits of hiring international graduates. A joint report by ENZ and insights agency TRA revealed that employers’ perceptions of international graduates vary significantly depending on whether they have prior experience in hiring migrant workers.

Employers who had previously hired international graduates viewed them as valuable assets, while those who had not, perceived them as a risk. It suggests that employers share their positive experiences and normalise hiring of international graduates to promote wider acceptance and understanding.

The COVID-19 pandemic prompted shifts in attitudes toward international students among Australian and New Zealand citizens, according to a 2021 survey by IEAA and ENZ. There is increased sensitivity towards the practical hardship international students face, such as living away from home and experiencing social isolation.

To bridge the gap, the report recommended implementing more structured peer-to-peer support within educational institutions. Such support systems would enable domestic students to gain insights into the experiences of international students through shared studies and interactions, fostering a more inclusive and supportive campus environment.

Addressing the challenge of international students being perceived as taking opportunities away from domestic students, ongoing campaigns aim to dismiss these misconceptions and highlight the genuine benefits that international education brings to host countries and their communities.

Another example is that of a campaign in May 2023 by Universities UK International (UUKi), a sector body representing more than 140 UK universities. It relaunched a 10-year-old campaign called #WeAreInternational, which aims to improve how welcoming the UK is as a study destination as perceived by international students. It also aims to improve the levels of positive sentiment towards international students and international education in the UK media and with UK politicians, through communicating how valuable the contributions of international students are to the country.

UUKi recently released a report on the costs and benefits of international higher education students to the UK. The report includes a breakdown of economic value by constituency, and received significant and sustained media coverage across local, national and sector press. It has also been shared extensively across the UK government. It demonstrates the immense economic contribution internationals students make – almost £42 billion for a single cohort – and the distribution of this across every region of the UK. Further, UK public polling undertaken by UUKi earlier this year demonstrated that public perceptions are already positive, where only 9 percent of respondents thought international students and researchers should be discouraged from coming to the UK.

According to Andrew Howells, assistant director, UUKi, who has lead numerous national level, sector-wide campaigns, “Whether it’s a doctor or nurse from another country, trained in a UK university and working in the NHS; an international graduate developing the tech to detect breast cancer early; international students volunteering in university towns and cities during COVID-19; UK universities twinning with Ukrainian counterparts; or the thousands of other examples of how international students, alumni and staff enrich our society and culture… The campaign is telling this story, empowering the voices of international students and bringing the sector together, to communicate how international students make the UK, society and the world a better place.”

It is a surprise to most people not within the sector to learn that education is usually a top 10 export. There is often some pushback claiming that international students are taking domestic students’ places or jobs.. However, Dr Allan E Goodman, chief executive officer, Institute of International Education, US, has a different view.

“We believe access to international education provides a gateway to opportunity, builds economies, and fosters a more secure and equitable world. One of the industries that define American prosperity, goodwill and strength on the world stage is education,” he says.

“The US has plenty of space to welcome more students from abroad. The capacity at US higher education institutions exceeds that of the rest of the top 10 hosting nations combined, offering an unparalleled variety of fields of study and majors. International students are important contributors to the communities they join.”

According to the US Department of State, international students, whose volume crossed the one million mark for the fifth straight year in 2019-20, added over $39 billion to the country’s economy in 2020, and supported 415,000 jobs.

Elaborating on the impact these campaigns have in terms of promoting international education, the industry, to the general population, Dr Goodman says national campaigns illustrate the many opportunities that are available to students worldwide. For the US, such initiatives highlight the diversity of the country’s higher education system and students’ ability to connect with each other on different ideas and perspectives.

Governments, too, are aware of the importance of international education. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken highlighted the value of international education to the country’s economic prosperity, national security and diplomacy, besides and its leadership in research and innovation at an EducationUSA Forum a few years ago.

Blinken told the US international education sector, comprising 4,000 colleges and universities, that they can “count on” the Biden-Harris administration to do everything “to make your work easier”.
Universities Australia, the peak body for the sector in Australia, believes that international students are back and the focus should be on keeping them in the country.

“We expect that export income data will soon show an improvement in response to students returning, edging us closer to the pre-Covid $40.3 billion economic contribution,” says Catriona Jackson, Chief Executive of Universities Australia.

The income international students bring to Australia supports thousands of jobs, boosts wages and lifts living standards right across the country, besides the important university research it helps fund, so international education as a sector must be well-accepted by the general public.

“Despite the strong numbers, we are not maximising the longer term returns our comparative advantage offers,” Jackson says. “Very few of the international students we educate remain here after they graduate – only 28 percent use their poststudy work rights in Australia and just 16% go on to become permanent residents. COVID-19 has underscored the urgent need to stop the talent exodus and ignite our economy with more skilled workers.”

In Canada, due to the aging of the country’s population, in the next decade, immigration is expected to account for 100 percent of net growth in the workforce. As per the country’s International Education Strategy 2024, international students make excellent candidates for permanent residency as “they are relatively young, proficient in at least one official language, have Canadian educational qualifications, and can help address this country’s current and pending labour market needs, particularly for highly skilled workers.” As many as 53,700 international students became permanent residents of Canada in 2018, contributing as productive and valued members of Canadian society.

This article was from the QS Insights Magazine, Issue 6. Read the full edition.

How AI can deliver personalised learning and transform academic assessment

Posted on by Editorial Team

The rise of AI-powered tools has sparked alarm among educators, and triggered conversations about its possible detriment to teaching and learning. Researchers from the University of South Australia (UniSA) are proving how artificial intelligence (AI) can enhance learning outcomes for students, equip teachers with advanced education tools, and overhaul the education sector for good.

Professor George Siemens is a renowned education technologist from UniSA. His research in learning analytics, personalised learning and human-machine augmentation reveals the transformative potential of AI in education.“Through learning analytics and AI-powered systems, we can unlock valuable, data-driven insights that help us understand how students learn,” Prof Siemens says.
“Advanced insights into student progress will enable us to design more effective and personalised educational experiences.”

Prof Siemens is also the Director of the Centre for Change and Complexity in Learning (C3L) at UniSA. “We look at how humans can work with – not against – AI to enhance learning, sensemaking and productivity,” he says.

World-first research from UniSA’s C3L has led to the creation of ‘learner profiles’, technology that is being trialled in several Australian schools. The learner profiles provide real-time analysis of a student’s learning, study behaviours, and emotional wellbeing.The project’s lead researchers, Dr Vitomir Kovanović and Dr Rebecca Marrone, say the technology has the potential to “significantly improve” the quality of teaching and learning in Australia.

“These profiles, accessible via an online dashboard, will show how a student is learning at any point in time, which will help teachers quickly identify which children need support,” Dr Kovanović says. Dr Marrone says that this means “teachers can respond to each child’s needs in a timely and appropriate manner”.

AI also has the capacity to improve teacher-student engagement in other ways. Prof Siemens says course development, lesson plans and attendance records are tasks that “distract from classroom teaching”, but AI has the capability to take on such tasks. “The role of AI is not to replace teachers but to augment their capabilities,” he says. “By automating administrative tasks, we free up time to foster critical thinking, creativity and social-emotional skills that are uniquely human.”

AI is already shifting the goalposts on how people learn. So, how can the education sector respond, and how can teachers work effectively with it? UniSA Professor in Augmented and Networked Learning Maarten de Laat has addressed this issue with AI Playground – an AI learning environment created in collaboration with Intel and meldCX.

“AI Playground teaches students to solve problems with AI, like building a rover that explores Mars. “By gamifying AI in this way, teachers can spark conversations in the classroom about what we can achieve with AI, and what’s ethical.”

The integration of AI in education holds immense potential for transforming teaching and learning practices. The research at UniSA highlights AI’s capability to enhance personalised education, unlock learner insights, and equip educators with the tools to transform classrooms.

Lingnan’s big plan to advance data literacy

Posted on by Editorial Team

In his role as the new President of Lingnan University in Hong Kong, Professor Joe Qin intends to advance digital learning and integrate the use of data science tools in the curriculum and around the campus.

He believes that higher education must embrace the latest technology since artificial intelligence (AI) and applications like ChatGPT are inevitably going to shake up academia, the workplace and everyday life.

Therefore, Lingnan faculty and students must be AI literate, pioneering new dimensions in liberal arts education, so that graduates are multifaceted and future-ready.

“There has been a huge acceleration in generative AI and what large language models can do,” says Qin, adding that recent tech breakthroughs are driving an intellectual revolution. “It is a hot topic for everyone in higher education.”

He notes how quickly OpenAI’s ChatGPT signed up over a hundred million users after its release last November and how universities, which initially expressed strong reservations, have now decided to embrace it.

“Lingnan has already purchased the licence for version 3.5 of ChatGPT, and we will be training faculty and students to use it,” Qin says. “One challenge is to redesign exams and testing instruments to assess each student’s real progress.”

In the coming semester, the Faculty of Business will offer AI generated content (AIGC) in a general education course, so new users can familiarise themselves with the possibilities and hone their skills.

Other faculties will follow suit, with professors specifying when GPT can be used for written assignments. Students would be expected to submit a list of the “prompts” given to get content used in coursework and essays, and to summarise their own thinking and conclusions.

“I’ve been using ChatGPT for almost six months now,” Qin says. “I find it makes me think more critically and I’ve become more vigilant in seeing it gives the content I want.”

Before redesigning courses, faculty staff will receive guidelines and training via a series of in-house workshops similar to those organised to facilitate the switch to online classes during Covid-19. However, they must also commit to teaching themselves.

“It’s a really good example for everyone at Lingnan to show that innovation and research are part of our lives, and that the dissemination of knowledge is no longer a static thing,” Qin says.
Significantly, he adds, more academic journals are now willing to accept submissions prepared with the help of AIGC. Authors may rephrase sections or improve the style, but their ownership of the article is recognised if it accurately reflects their viewpoints.

Looking ahead, Qin wants to see data literacy incorporated in all Lingnan programmes, which goes hand in hand with the plan for a new School of Data Science. The Hong Kong government’s University Grants Committee (UGC) has already earmarked support for such developments through its Fund for Innovative Technology in Education, a key area of focus.

“We will invest our own resources as well,” Qin says. “I think of AI as a tool, an assistant, and that’s the way it should be.”

Dr Andy Chin receives Hong Kong Publishing Biennial Award

Posted on by eduhk

Dr Andy Chin, Head and Associate Professor at the Department of Linguistics and Modern Language Studies, and Director of the Centre for Research in Linguistics and Language Studies, has been awarded a Publication Award in Language Learning at the Hong Kong Publishing Biennial Awards 2023.

Co-authored by Dr Chin and Professor Benjamin Tsou Ka-yin, Emeritus Professor at City University of Hong Kong, the award-winning publication Latin Terms in Hong Kong Legal Language features 105 of the most commonly used Latin words and phrases found in a corpus of Hong Kong’s legal judgments and laws which totals some 22 million words.

The bilingual examples illustrated in the book were meticulously collected from statutory and judicial sources to help readers better understand their meanings and their actual usage in the context of Hong Kong. The provision of usage frequency for each Chinese term also shows how these Latin terms and their interpretation have evolved over time. Mastering and understanding these legal terms and their equivalents in Chinese and English are both challenging and rewarding.

Learn more: https://www.eduhk.hk/en/recognition/dr-andy-chin-receives-hong-kong-publishing-biennial-award

60% of people with dementia in Singapore feel treated as less competent: Survey

Posted on by Rosie Ching

Of people with dementia in Singapore, 6 in 10 say they are treated as less competent than usual, with one in two feeling incompetent and embarrassed about their condition, citing stigma as the main reason.

Singapore’s new national survey on dementia also revealed that more than 75 per cent think the country is markedly less than dementia-friendly and that stigma around dementia is as prevalent as it was in 2019, with more than half still rating their inclusion level in everyday life at less than 30%. This is even as the rejection, loneliness and shame they face have dropped significantly from 72 per cent to 31 per cent across these four years.

SMU’s Principal Lecturer of Statistics Rosie Ching created and carried out the 2019 and 2023 running nationwide study she named “Remember.For.Me.” which revealed these perceptions of dementia, a burgeoning health problem in the fast-ageing country where more than 1 in 10 over the age of 60 has dementia.

Overall, an excess of 80 per cent, almost 30 per cent higher than in 2019, are confident that more needs to be done to improve the quality of life of people with dementia, citing their frustration at their lack of knowledge about dementia support, demonstrating the need for more education and outreach. The average knowledge level about dementia among the citizens surveyed remains below 50 per cent.

With Dementia Singapore as her supporting partner, Ms. Ching and her students interviewed 3,226 people across Singapore, probing into changes in knowledge levels, beliefs, attitudes, awareness of support available and their efficacy.

“Remember.For.Me.” has drawn media attention for the national need for even greater dementia awareness, support and dementia-friendliness.

Beijing Jiaotong University holds Editors-in-Chief face-to-face conference on Economics

Posted on by Anya Lin GU

The 2023 Editors-in-Chief Face-to-Face Conference on Economics was successfully held at Beijing Jiaotong University from June 20 to 28, 2023. The conference was organized by the School of Economics and Management of Beijing Jiaotong University, and co-organized by Elsevier Group and Economics and Management Community. The conference invited the editors of the seven top journals in the field of economics and academics and scholars in China to gather online to discuss journal publication issues and the latest research in various sub-fields of economics.

It was divided into two modules, the plenary meeting and the thematic lecture series；and it was conducted via ZOOM, simultaneously livestreamed by two platforms, Elsevier Live, and Economics and Management Community Live. With its high-level positioning, cutting-edge themes, rich content, multi-dimensional interactions, the conference attracted more than 80,000 participants and received widespread attention and follow-up from many academic groups and media. Registered scholars came from 545 universities and research institutions such as University of California, Berkeley, University of Chicago, Peking University and Tsinghua University, etc.

The Plenary Meeting Gathering of the Editors of Seven Top Economics Journals
The conference kicked off with the first module of the plenary meeting held on June 20, 2023. It was moderated by Professor Yacan Wang from Beijing Jiaotong University, the opening speech by Associate Professor Xiaopu Shang, Vice Dean of School of Economics and Management, Beijing Jiaotong University and the opening address by Ms. Bethan Keall, Publishing Director of Elsevier Journal of Economics and Marketing.

The seven invited editors were: Erzo F.P. Luttmer, editor of the American Economic Review, one of the “Top Five” journals in economics; John List, editor of the Journal of Political Economy, one of the “Top Five” journals in economics, editor-in-chief of the Journal of Political Economy Microeconomics; Faruk Gul, lead editor of the Journal of Economic Theory, the top journal in economic theory; Toni Whited, editor-in-chief of the Journal of Financial Economics, one of the top three journals in finance; Gilles Duranton, co-editor of the Journal of Urban Economics, the top journal in urban economics; Shing-Yi Wang, co-editor of the Journal of Development Economics, the top journal in development economics; Ginger Jin, managing editor of the International Journal of Industrial Organization, a top journal in industrial organization studies. The seven editors introduced the positioning, characteristics, and reviewing process of their respective journals, and talked about the considerations for submitting manuscripts. The meeting provided precise help for the audience to grasp the research orientation of top economics journals, the latest topics of interest, the submission and review process, and the considerations for research and writing.

Editors Share Experience and the Latest Research in the Thematic Lecture
The second module of the thematic lecture series was held from June 21 to 28, 2023, in each of which one editor was invited to deliver a speech, followed by the comments given by two invited renowned scholars in the same field. The 7 thematic lectures were moderated by Professor Hongchang Li, Associate Professor Di Xiao, Professor Yacan Wang, Associate Professor Huiyu Zhou, Professor Daisheng Tang, Assistant Professor Tingting Fu and Assistant Professor Kunbo Shi at the School of Economics and Management, Beijing Jiaotong University in turn. Seven editors of top economics journals gave lectures on “How to Successfully Navigate the Peer Review Process”, “Will Central Bank Digital Currency Disintermediate Banks”, “Field Experiments in Firms”, “Lorenz Expected Utility Theory”, “The Benefits and Costs of Guest Worker Programs: Experimental Evidence from the India-UAE Migration Corridor”, “Safety Review on Airbnb: An Information Tale”, and “The Fast, the Slow, and the Congested: Urban Transportation in Rich and Poor Countries”.

The invited discussants were: Jiaqi Li, Senior Economist, Bank of Canada; Chao Zi, Assistant Professor, Shanghai Jiaotong University; Junjian Yi, Professor, Peking University; Juanjuan Meng, Professor, Peking University; Rui Tang, Assistant Professor, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology; Chen Zhao, Assistant Professor, the University of Hong Kong; Yaohui Zhao, Professor, Peking University; Fangwen Lu, Professor, Peking University; Zhe Yuan, Assistant Professor, Zhejiang University; Jisu Cao, Assistant Professor, University of Connecticut; Yizhen Gu, Associate Professor, Peking University; Ben Zou, Assistant Professor, Purdue University. The presentations and view exchanges on experiences and advice of peer reviewing, and on the latest theoretical and empirical research in financial economics, behavioral economics, theoretical economics, development economics, industrial economics and urban economics, have brought profound economic insights to the participants.

The conference was highly praised and affirmed by the special guests and attendees. The editors praised the meticulous and efficient organization of the conference, and appreciated the in-depth comments of the discussants and the interactive communication of the participants. The discussants agreed with the cutting-edge research of the lectures and said that it was not only an academic feast, but also a high ground for the exchange of ideas and new sparks. The participants, economics researchers, teachers and students from domestic and foreign universities, gave feedback that they not only benefited a lot from how to successfully write and submit manuscripts, but also learned and experienced cutting-edge theoretical models and research methods. In addition, participants highly appreciated the cutting-edge, rich and inspiring nature of the conference, and expressed a deeper understanding of the active use of Chinese data to verify frontier theories and the dialectical application of frontier theories to study Chinese problems.

This year’s Editors-in-Chief Face-to-Face Conference on Economics builds on the successful experience of the previous two conferences to take a new step forward by further expanding the lineup of invited editors of top economics journals. The conference is more open, flexible and effective in promoting the construction of an international exchange mechanism for high-level academic research, communication and publication. In the future, we will continue make due efforts to promote the localization of academic research, diversification of communication channels, broadening of communication space, and internationalization of academic influence of disciplines.

Learning Thai: A guide for foreigners interested in studying the local language in Thailand

Posted on by Chulalongkorn University

Thailand has a lot of charms to indulge in, but one of the appeals one cannot deny is the “Thai language” which, in any shape or form, is so melodious and pleasing to the ear.

“Lately, we are seeing more and more people from many countries around the world become interested in learning the Thai language. With this booming interest comes the advent of many things: the digital world, the end of language barriers, easier travel, the export of goods and drama series, and various soft power trends,” said Assistant Professor Dr. Kiat Thepchuaysuk, Director of the Center for Thai as a Foreign Language (CTFL), Chulalongkorn University.

Whether you are studying for a career, doing business, learning to communicate with favorite stars, or even learning the language just for fun, most foreigners say the same thing: “The Thai language is hard.”

But for Dr. Kiat, a specialist in linguistics and teaching Thai language to foreigners, “Thai is easier to understand than you think, and can actually be a lot of fun if we know the basics, tricks, and tips.”

In this article, Dr. Kiat will give advice and easy-to-understand language tips for those who are thinking seriously about learning Thai. Native speakers will also learn fun facts about the language that will show that Thai is not as complicated as you think. It is actually a charming language that reflects the fun and creativity of the Thai people.

Mastering Thai Language Grammar: Key Rules and Concepts
Thai language of today is influenced by a combination of many languages such as Bali, Sanskrit, Khmer, Chinese, Javanese, Burmese, Malay, Persian, and some European languages such as Portuguese and English, etc. The vocabulary and grammar of Thai language, therefore, have certain traces of those languages as well. According to Dr. Kiat, a few grammatical points of Thai language that foreigners should know before starting their study to learn faster and understand the Thai language more easily are:

Arrangement of words in declarative sentences
Normally, when we learn different languages, we have to look at the basic sentence form of how the subject, verb, and object are arranged. Thai language uses the same structure as English or Chinese, i.e. subject > verb > object, for example, I eat rice. This is different from some languages which have the structure of subject > object > verb, such as Japanese or Korean, making it “I rice eat.”

Although two languages may share similar basic sentence structures, the grammar of both languages is not necessarily identical. This is only one way to easily understand a simple basic sentence in speech. Although Thai and Chinese speak in the same pattern of subject, verb, and object, Chinese language has a different structure of noun phrases from Thai language. Therefore, instead of saying “I eat two plates of rice,” a native Chinese speaker may misspeak and say “I eat two rice plates, for example.”

Therefore, if you want to speak Thai like a native speaker using more complex sentences, you need to learn more grammar.

“Many Thai language grammatical features are quite easy to understand and straightforward compared to many other languages because we have no tense, no verb conjugation, no complicated grammar rules. In Thai language, you just memorize the vocabulary and string the words together, and you’ll be able to communicate in Thai without difficulty,” Dr. Kiat explained.

Forming simple negative sentences and questions.
Now that you know how to write a simple sentence, if you want to use different forms of sentence, such as negative sentences, all you have to do is add the word “no (mai)” to the front of the verb, or for a question, add the word “mai (different tone)” to the end of the sentence. It’s very simple.

Describing a noun – put the noun first, then the adjective
Describing nouns in Thai language is different from some other languages. In other words, in Thai, we usually say the main noun first and then the descriptive or complementary words. Let’s look at the words “hot tea” in English, Japanese, Chinese, or Korean. The word “hot” is said first, then the main noun “tea”. Therefore, if a foreigner who speaks these languages come to learn the Thai language and does not understand this grammar, they can easily make mistakes in the word order.

In addition, there are many fascinating aspects of the Thai language that foreigners can learn about, including the writing system, grammar, pronunciation, sentences, consonants, vowels, and tones, which Thai people might not have thought about. Those interested can read the full article at https://www.chula.ac.th/en/highlight/123363/.

Sweat it out: Monitoring sweat electrolytes for healthcare and sports

Posted on by Tokyo University of Science

Wearable sensors are becoming a promising tool in personalized healthcare and exercise monitoring. In a recent study, researchers from Japan develop a novel wearable chemical sensor capable of measuring the concentration of chloride ions in sweat. By using a heat-transfer printing technique, the proposed sensor can be applied to the outer surface of common textiles to prevent skin irritation and allergies, and could also be useful in the early detection of heat stroke and dehydration.

The remarkable level of miniaturization possible in modern electronics has paved the way for realizing healthcare devices previously confined to the realm of science fiction. Wearable sensors are a prominent example of this. As the name suggests, these devices are worn on the body, usually directly on the skin. They can monitor important bodily parameters, including heart rate, blood pressure, and muscle activity.

Some wearable sensors can also detect chemicals in bodily fluids. For instance, sweat biosensors can measure the concentration of ions in sweat, providing information on their levels in blood. However, designing such chemical sensors is more complex than physical sensors. Direct contact between a wearable chemical sensor and skin can cause irritation and allergies. In contrast, if the sensor is fabricated directly on a wearable textile, its accuracy decreases due to surface irregularities.

In a recent study, a research team, led by Associate Professor Isao Shitanda of the Tokyo University of Science (TUS) in Japan, has developed an innovative sweat biosensor that addresses the aforementioned problems. Their work, published online in ACS Sensors on June 15, 2023, describes the use of a technique called “heat-transfer printing” to fix a thin, flexible chloride ion sensor onto a textile substrate. The study was co-authored by Dr. Masahiro Motosuke, Dr. Tatsunori Suzuki, Dr. Shinya Yanagita, and Dr. Takahiro Mukaimoto of TUS.

“The proposed sensor can be transferred to fiber substrates, and thus can be incorporated into textiles such as T-shirts, wristbands, and insoles,” explains Dr. Shitanda. “Further, health indicators such as chloride ion concentration in sweat can be measured by simply wearing them.”

The proposed wearable sensor for measuring chloride ion levels in sweat can be easily applied to textiles using the heat-transfer printing technique, preventing skin irritation and allergies.

 

The heat-transfer printing approach offers several advantages. For one thing, the sensor is transferred outside of the piece of clothing, which prevents skin irritation. In addition, the wicking effect of the textile helps spread the sweat evenly between the electrodes of the sensor, creating a stable electrical contact. Moreover, printing the sensor on a flat surface and then transferring it prevents the formation of blurred edges that commonly occur when printing directly onto a textile.

The researchers carefully selected the materials and electrochemical mechanisms of the sensor to avoid risking an allergic reaction for the wearer. After developing the sensor, they conducted various experiments using artificial sweat to verify its accuracy in measuring chloride ion concentration. The change in the electromotive force of the sensor was −59.5 mTV/log CCl−. Additionally, it displayed a Nernst response and a linear relationship with the concentration range of chloride ions in human sweat. Moreover, no other ions or substances typically present in sweat were found to interfere with the measurements.

Lastly, the team tested the sensor on a volunteer who exercised on a static bicycle for 30 minutes, by measuring their perspiration rate, chloride ion levels in blood, and saliva osmolality every five minutes to compare with the data previously gathered by the sensor. The proposed wearable sensor could reliably measure the concentration of chloride ions in sweat.

The sensor can also transmit data wirelessly, making it useful for real-time health monitoring. “Since chloride is the most abundant electrolyte in human sweat, measuring its concentration provides an excellent indicator of the body’s electrolyte balance and a useful tool for the diagnosis and prevention of heat stroke,” remarks Dr. Shitanda.

This research thus demonstrates the potential of using wearable ion sensors for the real-time monitoring of sweat biomarkers, facilitating personalized healthcare development and athlete training management.

Thammasat student wins first place in Thai silk pattern design

Posted on by Thammasat University

Atthaphon Meephan, a 3rd year student majoring in textiles design, Faculty of Fine and Applied Arts, Thammasat University received the first prize in the silk pattern design contest with the work “Thong Rai, Thong Na (Paddy Fields)” from The 4th Next Big Silk Designer Contest organized by the Association of Thai Silk and Culture Promotion that presents creative aesthetic through practical design, extending into business and as well encourage people to wear more Thai fabrics. It also promotes Thai fabric entrepreneurs to remain and grow sustainably. The submitted works must have a blend of applied design harmoniously and beautifully, and with contemporary Thai identity. This contest is opened to students from both public and private institutions nationwide, and is honoured by a panel of experts and famous designers of Thailand as judges.

Atthaphon Meephan revealed that the process of designing the fabric pattern of the work “Paddy Fields” started from searching for photos that match his main inspiration. After that, he began sketching the shape that he was interested in from all the information gathered, then reduce the shapes into a graphic pattern and bring each part of the shapes to create a pattern template. After obtaining the pattern template, the pattern template was then stitched together by aligning, reversing, alternating, or constantly rotating, etc., then choose to use local varieties of Thai silk from Sisaket Province that is, a thin silk thread. This type of silk is selected because the thread is smooth and glossy, making the fabric weaved out light and shiny.

Atthaphon said that this work was inspired by the agricultural work of the farmers, namely terrace rice planting in the northern region. Therefore, the rectangular shape of the rice fields is stacked in layers, blended with the curving mountain paths which then refined to become a new pattern that is more contemporary. The yellow colour of the paddy grains is used as a reminiscence of abundance. Then bolden up using brown and black colour of minerals in the soil on the mountains which give a sense of strength and durability, therefore becoming a fabric that reflects the power of the strength of agriculture that continues to create fertility at all time.

In the future, this fabric pattern will be used in production by the local communities in order to generate and distribute income to the local people and use the fabrics to various design products such as bags which may matched together with other materials such as leather, canvas, or making costumes, etc.

“The reason behind the judges’ preference and decision for us to be the winning team is probably the use of contrasting shades which make the canvas more dimensional, and that the shape of the pattern has been refined to be more contemporary and not overly complicated. By winning the prize, I feel happy as it is one of the opportunities that allow us to create works and present to everyone. It makes us learn more things such as task planning, time allocation and errors that occur during the progress, and further use it to develop other works to be better in the future.”Atthaphon concluded.

In addition, other students from the Faculty of Fine and Applied Arts, Thammasat University namely, Punyawee Chantorn, 3rd year student majoring in fashion design with the work title: “Mother’ Forest” won the second runner-up award for Thai Silk Dress Design Contest, named and Panuwat Chansiri, 3rd year student majoring in fashion design with the work title: ‘Thai Fighting Fish’ won the honorable mention award for Thai Silk Dress Design Contest from the same project as well.

Jewel in the crown

Posted on by Prisha Dandwani

This year, we celebrate the release of the 20th edition of QS’ World University Rankings (WUR). To mark this milestone, Prisha Dandwani looks back on the QS journey with a few of the key figures who helped build the WUR and witnessed its transformation over the past two decades.

We go back in time to the inception of QS.

Founder and President of Quacquarelli Symonds (QS), Nunzio Quacquarelli, first started thinking of providing comparative data about universities for prospective students while he was studying for his MBA at the Wharton School of University of Pennsylvania.

It was the ‘90s and the world was about to experience vibrant shifts in globalisation.

“QS originated at Wharton and the mission we have today is the mission we formulated in the 1990s,” Quacquarelli tells QS Insights Magazine. “We didn’t embark on rankings in the start, we did research and indicated which business schools employers would favour.”

At this point, QS was producing global employer surveys to provide information about MBAs for students. International student mobility looked dramatically different back then, with less students crossing borders for various stages of their education. The MBA was the most popular international student option.

By the 2000s however, it was clear the tide was turning and more students were looking at undergraduate and masters programs.

Getting down to business

“It became absolutely mission-led to develop a ranking that compared universities so students could understand their choices across a broad portfolio of programs,” says Quacquarelli.

This particular success story has a familiar ring to it: he saw a significant gap in the industry and eventually found a way to fill it, alongside like-minded people.

As fate would have it, Higher Education Writer and Editor, John O’Leary, was Editor at The Times when he met Quacquarelli in 2000. O’Leary had been working on UK university rankings since 1993.

“It became obvious that rankings needed an international dimension to it, there were so many people studying abroad, or doing research projects,” says O’Leary.

He had been speaking with Quacquarelli and Ben Sowter, now Senior Vice President at QS, about creating an international ranking for some time. They conducted field research, reviewed metrics and travelled around the world, speaking to heads of universities to understand the best methodologies for putting rankings together, with Times Higher Education as their initial publishing partner.

“We were quite nervous about it, it hadn’t been done before, and we expected there would be resistance and skepticism from universities,” O’Leary recollects.

Universities were used to domestic reports for universities and while this would be a game-changer, it was risky. According to O’Leary, QS became successful largely because they were the pioneers in the field.

“We developed the six indicators (academic reputation, faculty/student ration, citations per faculty and international student and faculty ratio) and it’s still not so different from 2004,” he tells QS Insights Magazine.

QS started with just 200 institutions for the WUR’s first release in 2004, and now, more than 1,000 universities are included in the rankings.

Growth and adaptability

Many individuals who saw the creation of WUR highlighted significant shifts in the rankings over time and how it has had a growing positive impact on higher education and students.

“The rankings really transformed more than once and the surveys for them have grown,” says Martin Ince, QS Advisor Board Member and former Deputy Editor at Times Higher Education.

As another key figure who was there at the very beginning, Ince saw QS adapt to growing interconnectivity in the higher education industry and new student demands.

“The growth of WUR is due to the simple fact that to become an international student is an increasingly serious and popular decision.

“The growth of regional rankings, such as Asia in 2009, was propelled by students and universities wanting more information. There was also a need for data that reflected the number of exchange students and programs, which would make way for greater cross border collaboration,” explains Ince.

For O’Leary, the introduction of QS WUR by Subject in 2011 was another major transformation. With 26 subjects, the rankings attracted greater student attention than before. The following year, three more disciplines were added.

Simona Bizzozero, Communications Director at QS, reflects on an encounter she had with a student in Beijing that speaks to its impact:

“He was an only child and wanted to study marine biology. He had a set of parents, two sets of grandparents, all projecting their hopes and dreams onto him. He did not want to go to Harvard or MIT. He wanted to be a marine biologist and through the WUR, he was able to choose a world class institution in a subject that interested him.”

Last year alone, more than 17,000 media clippings were recorded about QS, points out Bizzozero. With the majority of them referencing the rankings, it punctuates how the WUR has grown in its international reputation throughout the years.

Shifts in the balance of power

Growth has also occurred because the dynamic between universities and students changed considerably, explains Leigh Kamolins, Director of Analytics and Evaluation at QS.

“What has fuelled the need for adaptive rankings is the growing emphasis of how students are treated by universities, especially considering the large investments taken out by them and their families for an education.”

Students have certain expectations and want to see how they will receive a return on their investments, which in turn expands the scope for ranking methodologies.

“Universities need to be able to tell their story against these critical factors, such as what learning and employment opportunities are going to be like,” Kamolins adds.

Strong roots

Throughout the journey, QS’ north star has always been the needs of international students. The rankings align with QS’ mission to empower motivated students across the globe to fulfil their potential, explains Quacquarelli.

“Within each region of the world, there are differing priorities, like regional employment outcomes, regional collaboration and student mobility, knowledge transfer to local industry or quality teaching staff, which enable us to produce adaptive regional rankings in the world.”

Quacquarelli refers to the QS Best Student Cities ranking launched in 2012, as an example which does not directly compare universities. “Rather, it looks at the affordability and quality concentration of universities around the world, specifically to respond to the needs of students who are limited by budget, rather than ability,” he notes.

A student-centric focus has arguably contributed to an environment of greater inclusion and equality. Going to university is not solely about gaining a flawless academic transcript – it is also about the invaluable experience one can gain learning how to build a foundation for themselves. Now, students have more options to explore when considering higher education.

As QS continues to survey its student audience, new interests are identified. In 2022, QS’ Sustainability ranking was launched as a direct response to findings that revealed 72 percent of international students believed universities should be making a contribution to the environment.

This year, QS is introducing new metrics in response to shifting student demands and in 2024, there will be new rankings in the employability space.

While the world encounters numerous changes, QS’s surveys and rankings remain steadfast as it seeks to integrate the voice of students and the higher education sector.

This article was from the QS Insights Magazine, Issue 5. Read the full edition.