Background: Occupational Balance [OB] is a core concept with deep historical roots within Western occupational science. The concept is abstract and evolving with multidimensional perspectives shaped by socio-cultural contexts Purpose: The study’s purpose is to explore how Thai Occupational Therapy [OT] students experience their OB Method: An explorative, qualitative interview method was used on ten(10) Thai OT students and a qualitative content analysis was done on the collected data. Convenient- and snowball-sampling was used to recruit participants Results: The results revealed two categories on how the students’ experienced OB: Academic phases and students experience of occupational balance and Contextual factors and occupational balance Conclusions: Thai OT students experience imbalance due to the complex interplay between various external and internal factors such as academic demands, environmental factors, culture, and role expectations. Air pollution, in combination with being a student with certain expectations has impacted the experience of OB Implications: The results can be used for further research on OB, from both students and cultural perspectives. Educators can use the results to support their students who are experiencing imbalance due to academic demands. / Bakgrund: Aktivitetsbalans är ett kärnbegrepp med historiska rötter inom västerländsk arbetsterapipraxis. Begreppet är abstrakt med multi-dimetionella perspektiv som formats av sociokulturella sammanhang Syfte: Studiens syfte är att utforska hur thailändska arbetsterapeutstudenters upplevelse av aktivitetsbalans Metod: En utforskande, kvalitativ intervjustudie användes på tio(10) thailändska arbetsterapeutstudenter och en kvalitativ innehållsanalys gjordes på den insamlade data. Bekvämlighet- och snöbolls-urval användes för att hitta deltagare Resultat: Resultaten visade två kategorier på hur thailändska arbetsterapeutstudenter upplever aktivitetsbalans: De akademiska faserna och elevernas erfarenhet av aktivitetsbalans och kontextuella faktorer och aktivitetsbalans. Slutsats: Thailändska arbetsterapeutstudenter upplever obalans på grund av det komplexa samspelet mellan olika externa och interna faktorer så som akademiska krav, miljöfaktorer, kultur och rollförväntningar. Luftföroreningar i kombination med att vara student påverkar deras upplevelse av aktivitetsbalans Implikationer: Resultaten är relevanta för vidare forskning om aktivitetsbalans, både ur studenters och kulturella perspektiv. Lärare kan använda resultaten för att stödja sina studenter som upplever obalans i samband med akademiska krav.

The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of parental support on social work students’ well-being. This study assessed social work students’ perspectives on perceived social support, financial support and the relationship between student stress levels and depression levels. The data was collected using quantitative surveys and was analyzed using Statistical Package for the Social Science (SPSS). A total of 64 students participated in the study. Results concluded that there was no relationship between parental financial support, parental social support, depression levels, and stress levels were not statistically significant. The study also revealed that parents did not contribute financially to social work students. It was also found that friends played a bigger role in social work students life compared to family. The study recommends increases educational materials on stress and depressive symptoms, training, support from staff, and a one-time mandatory mental health counseling session.

Quality and effective student support service (SSS) is a critical demand in the ever-changing landscape of distance education. It is common knowledge that distance education students need continuous support during their studies in order to cope with academic demands while attending to other key activities. This study set out to evaluate the implementation of SSS at the Namibia University of Science and Technology Centre for Open and Lifelong Learning (NUST COLL) at different regional centres across Namibia. The objectives of the study were to: identify problems and challenges experienced with the current implementation of SSS, determine the needs of the distance students and propose recommendations for the improvement of SSS at the regional centres. In an attempt to realise the objectives of the study, the study incorporated both quantitative and qualitative research design to collect data, by making use of questionnaires, open-ended questions and interviews. The participants included 8 regional coordinators (RC) who were purposively selected and 109 distance students who were selected through stratified and convenience sampling techniques from seven COLL regional centres. It was evident from the findings that most students opted for distance education as it allows them to work and study. Furthermore, many students have been studying for many years without getting any qualification. While NUST was providing different SSS, the findings brought to light some challenges such as the shortage of technological tools, understaffed regional centres, and unavailability of support services on weekends and public holidays and lack of collaboration between marker-tutors, lecturers and regional face-to-face tutors. It is proposed that the current model of SSS should be redesigned to respond to challenges facing distance education students at the regional centres. A model for implementation of SSS was developed to pave the way for effective implementation geared towards reducing the dropout rates and increase success rates. Key terms: Implementation of student support services, technological tools, model for implementation, regional coordinators, academic demands, increase success rates, regional centres, distance education, regional centres, and dropout rates. / Educational Leadership and Management / D. Ed. (Education Management)