Hanan Al-Khatri

The active learning approach is promising in increasing students’ engagement and providing opportunities for practising higher-order thinking skills. However, its application in higher education is associated with some challenges, including institutional, pedagogical, and technological. The applications of Artificial Intelligence can mitigate some of these challenges. The paper at hand reports a restricted systematic review that aims to revise the current experiences of integrating AI applications into higher education, focusing on ChatGPT. Exploring the Scopus database using the keywords (ChatGPT) AND (Active) AND (Learning) AND (Higher) AND (Education) resulted in 13 publications. The review highlights the advantages of integrating ChatGPT with active learning but points out a lack of knowledge regarding how to quantify the effectiveness of this integration. The findings highlight ChatGPT's potential to enhance active learning by addressing pedagogical challenges and the need for standardised frameworks to measure effectiveness. The study also stresses the importance of ethical governance and interdisciplinary collaboration for the fair integration of AI in higher education.

This work aimed to assess an industrial workspace’ sustainability and employees’ well-being. A comprehensive approach was adopted, including data collection, field audits, and detailed measurements of indoor environmental quality—focusing on thermal, visual, and acoustic comfort, and indoor air quality. Employee feedback was also gathered through surveys to provide subjective assessments of office conditions. The results revealed the need for adjustments to improve thermal comfort, where thermostat settings and airflow required modification. Visual comfort was generally satisfactory, though task lighting was recommended in selected zones. Acoustic discomfort was identified as a major issue across the office, necessitating noise awareness initiatives and using sound-absorbing materials. Furthermore, indoor air quality concerns were raised in several zones, with recommendations including a fresh air ventilator, occupant density reduction, and rigorous maintenance implementation to prevent air contaminants. Energy performance assessments conducted between October and November 2022 identified substantial opportunities for energy conservation. Recommendations included installing timers for air conditioning systems, lighting, and office equipment, along with optimizing chiller and pump operation schedules. Implementing these measures could result in annual energy savings of 152,282 kWh, cost savings of 4240 OMR, and a reduction of 163.8 tons of CO2 emissions. Additional recommendations include establishing a sustainability team, installing separate utility meters for more accurate monitoring, and deploying photovoltaic systems for energy generation. These strategies aim to enhance the office’s sustainability without compromising occupant well-being, aligning with both current and future office design goals.

The intensified indoor living during the spring 2020 lockdown, with enhanced user awareness of the prevailing conditions in their homes, constituted a natural stress test for the housing design in place today. Surveys conducted during this period have yielded lessons for designing better intervention strategies for the residential sector, taking into account the systematic morphological and economic limitations of the buildings concerned. These considerations should inform the development of policies and strategies for improving environmental quality compatible with lower residential energy consumption and higher quality of life. This study explores the effect of occupant behaviour on home ventilation and the perception of the impact of indoor air quality on user health before and during lockdown. The method deployed consisted in monitoring environmental variables and conducting user surveys before and after restrictions came into force. The findings showed that prior to lockdown, occupants were unaware of or paid little heed to changes in indoor air quality, failed to perceive stuffiness, and, as a rule, reported symptoms or discomfort only at night during the summer months. During lockdown, however, users came to attach greater importance to air quality, and a greater sensitivity to odours and a heightened awareness of CO₂ concentration prompted them to ventilate their homes more frequently. In the spring of 2020, occupants also indicated a wider spectrum of indisposition, in particular in connection with sleep patterns.