Saudi Cultural Missions Theses & Dissertations
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Item Restricted A Simulation Framework for Evaluating the Performance of Blockchain-based IoT Ecosystems(Newcastle University, 2024-09-05) Albshri, Adel; Solaiman, EllisRecently, it has been appealing to integrate Blockchain with IoT in several domains, such as healthcare and smart cities. This integration facilitates the decentralized processing of IoT data, enhancing cybersecurity by ensuring data integrity, preventing tampering, and strengthening privacy through decentralized trust mechanisms and resilient security measures. These features create a secure and reliable environment, mitigating potential cyber threats while ensuring non-repudiation and higher availability. However, Blockchain performance is questionable when handling massive data sets generated by complex and heterogeneous IoT applications. Thus, whether the Blockchain performance meets expectations will significantly influence the overall viability of integration. Therefore, it is crucial to evaluate the feasibility of integrating IoT and Blockchain and examine the technology readiness level before the production stage. This thesis addresses this matter by extensively investigating approaches to the performance evaluation of Blockchain-based IoT solutions. Firstly, it systematically reviews existing Blockchain simulators and identifies their strengths and limitations. Secondly, due to the lack of existing blockchain simulators specifically tailored for IoT, this thesis contributes a novel blockchain-based IoT simulator which enables investigation of blockchain performance based on adaptable design configuration choices of IoT infrastructure. The simulator benefits from lessons learnt about the strengths and limitations of existing works and considers various design requirements and views collected through questioners and focus groups of domain experts. Third, the thesis recognises the shortcomings of blockchain simulators, such as support for smart contracts. Therefore, it contributes a middleware that leverages IoT simulators to benchmark real blockchain platforms' performance, namely Hyperledger Fabric. It resolves challenges related to integrating distinctive environments: simulated IoT models with real Blockchain ecosystems. Lastly, this thesis employs Machine Learning (ML) techniques for predicting blockchain performance based on predetermined configurations. Contrariwise, it also utilises ML techniques to recommend the optimal configurations for achieving the desired level of blockchain performance.49 0Item Restricted Pronunciation assessment: Investigating the role of lexical stress error categories in distinguishing proficiency and comprehensibility levels(Iowa State University of Science and Technology, 2024-06-19) Alnafisah, Mutleb; Levis , John; Ockey, GaryLexical stress has been shown to be a good predictor of proficiency levels and raters’ comprehensibility ratings, as higher levels of proficiency and higher ratings of comprehensibility tend to show fewer lexical stress errors. Yet, there is psycholinguistic evidence to suggest that not all lexical stress error categories are equal insofar as nonstandard shifts inducing a change in vowel quality are more impactful than mis-stress with only suprasegmental alterations, and rightward shifts are more damaging than leftward shifts. To date, however, assessment practices and research have generally treated lexical stress as a static and unitary feature. To address this gap, this dissertation study quantitatively investigates the degree of association between IELTS spoken proficiency levels and comprehensibility ratings with the English Word Stress Error Gravity Hierarchy (Ghosh & Levis, 2021), a predictive model of lexical stress error categories and comprehensibility that considers vowel quality and directionality of misplaced lexical stress. It also compares three groups of raters (native English speakers vs. non-native English speakers from a stress-based language vs. non-native English speakers from a tonal language) to examine if the L1 stress phonological system is a source of variance in compressibility ratings. Qualitatively, the study employed raters’ retrospective written reports to assess the saliency of lexical stress when assigning scores and a think-aloud protocol to examine what categories of lexical stress errors raters perceive as problematic. Fifty-seven L2 speakers completed IELTS-style and summary-argument tasks. Four trained raters rated their performances using the IELTS rubric for spoken proficiency, and 15 experienced raters (5 Chinese, 5 Native, and 5 Saudi) rated their comprehensibility and provided written reports regarding the salient features that affected their comprehensibility scoring. Following the rating sessions, three raters participated in a think-aloud protocol. L2 speakers’ performances were annotated using a hybrid approach incorporating Praat acoustic cues of lexical stress and human visual inspection of these cues to identify which syllable received primary stress. Evidence from correlational analyses revealed that categories of errors encompassing vowel changes were more severely linked to deterioration of proficiency and comprehensibility ratings, and while stress categories encompassing no segmental alterations were not associated with proficiency, they correlated with comprehensibility but with a small magnitude. The importance of directionality was found to be only contingent upon the presence of a vowel change. Subsequent univariate ANOVA analyses showed that the measures significantly correlated with proficiency and comprehensibility differentiated High- from Mid- and Low-level speakers but not Mid- and Low-level speakers, a pattern that held for both constructs. Additionally, results showed that raters, to a good extent, uniformly reacted to measures of lexical stress errors. Qualitatively, raters’ written reports indicated that lexical stress was a salient feature to all rater groups, and the think-aloud protocols generally supported quantitative findings. To this end, a modification of the Hierarchy for assessment purposes is presented.21 0Item Restricted THE REALITY OF STRATEGIC PLANNING IMPLEMENTATION IN ACCORDANCE TO THE SCHOOL ACCREDITATION STANDARDS: AN EVALUATION STUDY OF PUBLICSCHOOL PRINCIPALS IN JEDDAH(Al-Madinah International University, 2024-05-20) Alzahrani, Huda Abdullah; Kareem, Hamed PopoolaThis study aimed to identify the reality of applying the school strategic planning according to the basic stages, and the challenges of applying it from the point of view of school female principals. The researcher adopted the mixed approach. She used the questionnaire and interview tools to collect data from her community, who are the female principals of public schools in Jeddah with (658) school female principals during the academic year 2023 which was represented by a sample of (242) school female principals. The following findings showed: The level of applying the strategic planning from the point of view of school female principals according to the strategic planning stages was low in general, at the forefront is the future vision stage, while the level of challenges was moderate in general, at the forefront are the challenges related to school evaluation and accreditation firstly, followed by those related to strategic planning secondly. It was also shown that there is statistical significance at the significance level (a ≤ 0.05) between the average responses attributed to the variable of training courses and experience years when applying the strategic planning, and differences in favor of the academic qualification, training courses and experience years for the challenges they face. The study presented a proposed model for developing and improving the level of applying the school strategic planning according to school evaluation and accreditation standards, the basis of which is self-management of change based on analysis and explanation of school evaluation and accreditation results. The most prominent recommendations: It is necessary that the educational supervisors and specialists in the field of strategic planning shall participate in developing the school strategic plan, the school employees shall participate in the process of preparing it, and spreading the culture of strategic planning and adopting scientific methodology. Among the proposals: To do more evaluation studies about the reality of schools’ application of school evaluation and accreditation, to create expert teams in the field of school evaluation and accreditation, and to develop the evaluation platform to include a strategic plan to improve institutional performance. Keywords: Strategic Planning, Evaluation, Standards, School Accreditation.25 0Item Restricted Evaluation of Ecotourism Opportunities for Sustainable Development: A Comprehensive Approach and Ecotourism Opportunity Index for Alula, Saudi Arabia(RMIT University, 2024-03-09) Sahahiri, Riyan; Griffin, AmyEcotourism opportunity evaluation is essential for sustainable tourism management. However, the inherent complexity of the tourism system presents considerable challenges. This complexity arises from ecotourism opportunities' continuous adaptation, diversification, and interconnectedness. Furthermore, the system's cascading adaptive behaviour makes it difficult to accurately predict future outcomes, adding another challenge for planners seeking to evaluate these opportunities. The current approaches to evaluating ecotourism opportunities depend primarily on qualitative measures and fail to sufficiently capture the system's dynamics. Furthermore, these methods lack a comprehensive understanding of the relationships between local communities, tourists, and the natural environment. This limits the evaluation of ecotourism opportunities as a sustainable development strategy. A more systematic and comprehensive approach is needed to address this complexity. Considering the development of ecotourism opportunities in a Complex Adaptive System (CAS), this study proposes a systematic method for measuring the extent of ecotourism opportunities and developing an Ecotourism Opportunity Index (EOI). Alula, Saudi Arabia, was selected as a case study due to its rapidly expanding ecotourism opportunities, providing an efficient environment to comprehend the system’s complexity. To develop this method, three research questions were set for this study: 1. What types of ecotourism opportunities coexist in Alula? 2. Will these opportunities contribute to sustainable tourism? 3. How can ecotourism opportunities be evaluated to develop an index for assessing potential destinations? The study's threefold methodology begins by identifying ecotourism opportunities using the SWOT-Ecotourism Opportunity Spectrum (ECOS) framework. In the second stage, Sustainable Ecotourism Opportunities Indicators (SEOIs) are compiled and validated in their relation to the identified ecotourism opportunities using the Delphi method. In the third stage, Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) is applied to test the validity and reliability of the hypothetical relationships developed by the Delphi method. Data is collected and analyzed using several quantitative methods, including the Weight Scoring Method (WSM), Entropy Weight Method (EWM), Delphi method, and Ecotourism Opportunities Gap Analysis (EOGA), resulting in the measurement of the EOI. The findings of the first research question show that the development of ecotourism opportunities as a CAS is shaped by external (opportunities) and internal factors (strengths). The SWOT-ECOS analysis demonstrated that the destination possessed several variables (95 strengths, 15 weaknesses, 25 opportunities and 10 threats) under five ecotourism opportunity dimensions (nature, environmental education/protection, sustainability, socio-cultural benefits, and tourists' satisfaction) and thirteen criteria. More opportunities have led to more strengths across all dimensions, showing that external factors (opportunities) influence internal (strengths) factors. In addition to this interconnection and adaptive behaviour, the destination’s current ecotourism potential also determines its level of adaptation to internal or external influences. In the second research question, by applying the Delphi method, the study used expert consensus to identify 25 interconnected SEOIs and their corresponding 120 sustainable ecotourism opportunities (strengths and opportunities). It also developed a systems diagram to describe how external or internal factors activate adaptations among dimensions, indicators, and variables (ecotourism opportunities), finally influencing the sustainability of Alula's entire ecotourism opportunities system. The findings demonstrate that no single indicator of sustainability works in isolation because impacts in one part of the system can change another. For instance, Saudi Vision 2030 (an external factor) influenced the sustainable indicator “long-term economic growth” strongly by stimulating long-term planning and infrastructure. However, in an indirect link, Saudi Vision 2030 also affected some other variables. Although protecting threatened species and promoting natural heritage are not a part of Saudi Vision 2030, the long-term planning it provoked with the establishment of the Royal Commission for Alula led to actions to produce these outcomes. This underscores the importance of a comprehensive approach to understanding the sustainability of ecotourism, which is needed because a decision to improve one indicator, such as biodiversity conservation, must consider its effects on others, such as local community engagement or tourist satisfaction. In the third research question, the relationships between the dimensions, criteria and variables are explored quantitatively using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). The CFA results validated the hypothetical construct that explains relationships between indicators and variables that was developed in the second research question. From this construct, the EOI was developed. The EOI findings demonstrate that Alula and its districts offer promising ecotourism opportunities, and the correlation between dimensions, indicators, and variables in the ecotourism opportunities system is complex and fluctuates based on internal and external factors. The RCU and other government agencies can monitor the sustainability of each of Alula’s ecotourism districts using the index and the ecotourism indicators, such as the indicator “employment opportunities (N21)”, which can bring economic sustainability to local residents. This indicator can allow the local stakeholders to monitor the percentage of local employment that can enhance economic empowerment in the community. RCU has initiated employment-generating programs such as the Alula Oasis. The RCU’s ambitious aim to create the world’s largest living agricultural museum will necessitate a huge workforce, creating employment opportunities for the local residents. By using an employment opportunities indicator to track how many local people are hired for this project, professionals can see how it helps the local economy. Moreover, measuring these sustainable ecotourism opportunities can optimise resource allocation, help monitor sustainability growth, support risk management, encourage stakeholder engagement, and serve as an effective promotional and marketing tool. The development of the EOI represents an innovative method for evaluating ecotourism opportunities. It introduces a new degree of rigour to ecotourism evaluations, allowing for more accurate comparisons and benchmarking among ecotourism destinations and activities. The application of CAS theory to the interpretation of the results provides a more comprehensive comprehension of the dynamics that shape ecotourism opportunities. It broadens the theoretical landscape of the field and may serve as a crucial step for future research employing this theoretical lens. Given the complexity of ecotourism opportunities, this study contributes by developing comprehensive evaluation approaches, such as the SWOT-ECOS analysis and ECOS-Delphi, that assess ecotourism opportunities qualitatively and quantitatively. These approaches are valuable for ecotourism practitioners, policymakers, and researchers as they provide comprehensive evaluations covering all interconnected ecotourism opportunity dimensions, laying a solid foundation for future sustainable ecotourism initiatives, informed decision-making, practical strategies, and policies. The Ecotourism Opportunity Index (EOI) can be used to identify potential ecotourism destinations and inform sustainable tourism plans. EOI can empower local businesses and community leaders to make informed decisions, fostering cultural collaboration and sustainable practices that benefit local economies while preserving environmental and cultural integrity.32 0Item Restricted Utilizing Delphi Method to Develop a Unified National Assessment Framework in Saudi Arabia(Saudi Digital Library, 2023-11-04) Basfar, Albaraa; Machtmes, KrisannaThe assessment and evaluation process is crucial for building or reforming any educational system. Saudi Arabia, via its different educational entities, has invested heavily in developing assessment and evaluation programs and practices at many levels of the education sector. A national student assessment framework is needed to support coordination between all contributors to assessment and evaluation in the country. The research purpose is to develop a national student assessment framework, which was accomplished by utilizing a Delphi method of assessment and evaluation experts from the education sector in Saudi Arabia. This panel was selected from a committee nominated; The pool contained experts in assessment and evaluation from the ministry of education, Education and Training Evaluation Commission, and Faculty members in Saudi Universities. This Delphi process included sending a questionnaire to the experts for two rounds. Round One revealed the framework's primary sections and the expert's first judgments followed by Round One analysis which comprises adapting the framework to panel remarks and points. Round Two exposed the framework’s main body to the feedback from the panel. Round Two analysis then adapted the panelist’s comments and points on the main body and made the suggested changes.38 0