Browsing by Author | މުސައްނިފުން "Musthafa, Hawwa Shiuna"

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Article
Determinants of socioeconomic experiences during COVID-19 pandemic in the Maldives
(Research Development Office, The Maldives National University, 2020-12) Musthafa, Hawwa Shiuna; Riyaz, Aminath; Moosa, Sheena; Abdul Raheem, Raheema; Naeem, Aishath Zeen
This paper evaluates the individual experiences and perceptions of the public about the COVID-19 pandemic in the Maldives. The data was collected from a probability sample comprising 1026 respondents using an online survey. The results show that less than 1% of the respondents tested positive for COVID-19 at the time. The fear of the pandemic, in terms of probable health and economic impact, was significantly higher than the actual experience of the pandemic with 6.8 percent reporting loss of employment. Participants who considered religion as very important show a higher psychological wellbeing. Over 12% of the participants believed that the pandemic to be a hoax. The findings showed inclination of the people lay more towards solidarity rather than hostility during these trying times, with at least one third of the respondents identifying with complete solidarity. The findings provide suggestions for health practitioners to communicate more effectively with the public during the crisis.
Article
The impact of COVID-19 pandemic on the higher education sector of the Maldives: responses and challenges
(Maldives National University, 2020-12) Maldives National University; Research Team:; Ismail, Aishath Shaheen; Haleem, Hussain; Raheem, Raheema Abdul; Riyaz, Aminath; Nishan, Fathmath; Shakeeb, Shimna; Ali, Sheeza; Naila, Aishath; Rasheed, Mariyam Fizana; Ahmed, Nadhiya; Musthafa, Hawwa Shiuna; Sattar, Asim Abdul; Najeeb, Fazeel
This study was based on the objective of assessing the impact of COVID-19 on all aspects of higher education country-wide, including policy, academic affairs, management and financial responses, and psychological fitness of stakeholders within the higher education sector of the Maldives. The emergency response of the higher education institutions (HEIs) to the COVID-19 pandemic and the impact of their response on students, staff and the institutions were analysed by collecting data both quantitatively (stakeholder survey questionnaires) and qualitatively (stakeholder interviews). In total, 12 stakeholder interviews were conducted with higher education stakeholders, and 1187 survey questionnaires were filled by students and academic & non-academic staff of HEIs. The findings show adjustments that were made by HEIs and the challenges faced by the students, staff, and the institutions in transitioning to remote online teaching and learning. The HEIs in this study responded to the COVID-19 pandemic in three phases which were: 1) evaluating the impact of the pandemic on teaching and learning of the HEIs; 2) planning for continuity of education during the pandemic; and 3) resuming teaching and learning virtually. To facilitate the remote online teaching and learning virtually, HEIs provided various support to their students; namely, technical support, academic support, and psychological support. Further, the COVID-19 pandemic impacted all HEIs and their stakeholders financially. The main challenges faced by stakeholders during the remote online teaching and learning were found to be issues in internet connectivity, unsuitable home environment, and limited preparedness in the use of information communication technologies in teaching and learning. The findings of this study have implications for higher education institutions in continuing their teaching and learning activities during emergency situations and in future educational programs offered. Further, the findings are significant for higher education policy makers in the Maldives, namely the Ministry of Higher Education and the Maldives Qualification Authority, in the need for emergency preparedness and quick responses to ensure quality of higher education even in the face of a pandemic. 1. BACKGROUND Since December 2019, SARS-COV-2 VIRUS (COVID-19), a highly infectious disease caused by a new virus, has become a major disruption to universities around the world including the Maldives, with most institutions suspending in-person classes and moving to online-only instruction in the wake of this deadly virus. One recommendation made by the health authorities of governments across the world to contain the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, was to maintain an appropriate physical distance between individuals. As a result, to minimize exposure of the students and staff to the COVID-19 virus, several educational institutions across 144 countries were temporarily closed impacting almost 68 percent of the world’s enrolled student population (UNESCO, 2020). The disease imposing mobility restrictions has particularly affected the tertiary education sector. The pandemic has significantly altered nearly every aspect of university operation including teaching and learning, admissions and enrolment to student support service, raising concerns over the quality of higher education provision during the emergency teaching period. According to the International Association of Universities, the total number of students and youth affected are more than 1.5 billion (IAU, 2020). In South Asia Region alone, over 42 million students in 50,000 Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) of 8 countries are affected by the pandemic (South Asia: Higher Education, 2020). These concerns further extend to the financial future of higher education institutions in a time of financial instability, both in the form of unforeseen costs and potential drops in revenue. Students attending universities and other higher education institutions create a dense network through which infectious diseases can easily spread (Weeden & Benjamin, 2020). As such several measures were put in place by higher education institutions across the globe to secure the wellbeing of their students and staff and to make the disruption to their functions as minimal as possible. These measures were revised multiple times by many institutions as the situation unfolded, for health and safety of staff and students were their priority. Accordingly, the two main changes suggested by the European Association for International Higher Education include the offering of the courses on an online mode or deferring enrolment or the programme to a later term for student affected by the pandemic (EAIE, 2020). To prevent the spread of COVID-19 through their institutions, several HIEs chose to change the vast majority of their courses from face-to-face teaching to remote teaching mostly done online through digital technology. In the United States alone, more than 200 colleges and universities suspended classes and moved online (EAIE, 2020). Some universities that lacked the necessary Information Communication Technology (ICT) infrastructure had to postpone teaching-learning activities until further notice (Policy Brief, 2020). In other universities, facilities such as libraries that closed initially, were later permitted to open with instructions to operate in a COVID-secure way (Higher Education, 2020). The sudden switch to digital technology was not easy. It also induced a lot of stress for the educators and students and made some feel overloaded with work. To ease them, some institutions suspended exams and strengthened the support services to students. Protocols and guiding documents to steer the students and educators through the process of the change were made (South Asia: Higher Education, 2020). The switch to remote education after closing campuses was to ensure educational and research activities were carried on during the pandemic with minimal disruption. This step exposed not only the “digital inequity” of the community but also the shortcomings of the education systems. While access to digital technology and its devices were an issue to some, access to a reliable internet network was an issue to the others. The digital divide was huge even within communities and HEIs were faced with facilitating the means through which digital equipment for the needy staff and students can be arranged (South Asia: Higher Education, 2020). Training of educators in adapting to the use of technology and getting them acquainted with the new mode of teaching came with hurdles. These challenges required immediate attention so as to successfully conduct the remote learning sessions. HEIs had to formulate and run training modules for the educators on online teaching and assessing (Rashid & Yadav, 2020).
Article
The role of length of parental leave in strengthening mother-child bond and the husband-wife relationship in the Maldives
(Maldives National University, 2021-07) Saleem, Asma; Musthafa, Hawwa Shiuna
This study examines how the extension of the period of parental leave, from 60 days to 180 days that occurred in the Maldives in 2019, affected the family dynamics of mothers and their children. Purposive sampling technique was used to collect data from seven full-time working mothers, who had experienced both shorter and longer parental leave. The data was collected through semi-structured interviews. The most prominent finding was the higher level of involvement of father in taking care of the child with mothers reporting substantial strengthening in mother-child bond and the husband-wife relationship as parents during the longer parental leave. This research adds a new dimension to the discussion of the impact of longer parental leave legislation on family consolidation outcomes. It also has implications for the development of family policies that support the needs of both mothers and fathers during the first months of an infant’s life.
Article
Survey sampling in the time of social distancing experiences from a quantitative research in the wake of COVID 19 pandemic
(The Research Centre, Maldives National University, 2020-08) Riyaz, Aminath; Musthafa, Hawwa Shiuna; Abdul Raheem, Raheema; Moosa, Sheena
This paper explores the practical difficulties of conducting an online quantitative survey across the Maldives during the COVID‑19 pandemic response to study people’s values in the midst of a crisis, and addresses crisis experience and perception, value orientation, personality traits, social cohesion, and trust in relevant authorities. This paper reports on the methodological component and not on the survey findings. A stratified systematic random sampling approach was used, with stratification on urbanrural clusters (cities and other islands), gender, and age of the population to recruit at least 400 from the urban and 600 participants from the rural communities. To overcome the practical difficulty of accessing households due to restrictive measures across the Maldives and lockdown status in the greater Male’ area, the latest voters’ registry was used to select every nth participant as the sample frame. Participants were recruited through phone calls, and survey instrument shared via social media, achieving a response rate of 87%.The practical difficulties with the sampling approach were different in urbanrural clusters, ranging from securing the phone numbers for prospective participants, nonresponse to phone calls, discrepancies in internet access, and the lack of control on whether the intended participant was in fact the person completing the survey. To overcome these challenges, a mix of probability and non-probability sampling was utilised ensuring not more than one participant was recruited from any household, while adhering to the stratification of gender and age. The statistical findings on the validity and reliability of the data show that the recruited sample is representative of the population. This outcome highlights the adaptability and applicability of established quantitative research methods to a geographically dispersed small island developing state, under nonconventional situations.
Technical Report
Values in crisis : values under the imprint of Covid-19 pandemic in the Maldives : values in crisis survey (wave 1) summary report
(ޔުނައިޓެޑް ނޭޝަަންސް ޑިވެލޮޕްމެންޓް ޕްރޮގްރާމް, 2020) Maldives National University; UNDP; Research team:; Riyaz, Aminath; Moosa, Sheena; Raheem, Raheema Abdul; Musthafa, Hawwa Shiuna
Virtual focus group discussions : exploring new frontiers in qualitative methods
(The Maldives National Journal of Research, Maldives National University, 2022-07) Musthafa, Hawwa Shiuna; Moosa, Sheena; Hassan, Aishath
The COVID-19 pandemic triggered reactive innovation using digital technology in research methods. This paper presents experiences from the methodological component of conducting virtual focus group discussions among the highly dispersed island nation of the Maldives during the COVID-19 pandemic. The sample consisted of 99 participants divided among 28 virtual focus groups. The most populated regions of the Maldives i.e., Male’, Addu, Laamu, and Kulhuduffushi were selected. Additionally, two smaller islands with a population less than 400 people, namely, Rasgatheem and Madifushi, were also selected. The focus groups were determined by adopting a life cycle approach representing groups from childhood, youth, working age group, and senior citizens. To ensure inclusivity, three separate groups of men, women, and people with disabilities were also selected. The data collected was then subjected to thematic analysis. The findings indicated that with open discussions and engagement, facilitators were able to draw out shy participants and manage dominant participants in the Virtual Focus Group Discussion (VFGD). The caveat, however, is the need for internet connectivity and digital literacy of participants. The findings provided an in-depth understanding of the research problem. VFGD can become a mainstream data collection technique in the social qualitative inquiry especially with difficult-to-access and remote populations.