���To be or not to be retained��� Thats' the question!��� Retention, self-esteem, self-concept, achievement goals, and grades

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Does social���behavioral adjustment mediate the relation between executive function and academic readiness?

Research shows that executive function and social���behavioral adjustment during the preschool years are both associated with the successful acquisition of academic readiness abilities. However, studies bringing these constructs together in one investigation are lacking. This study addresses this gap by testing the extent to which social and behavioral adjustment mediated the association between executive function and academic readiness. Sixty-nine 63���76month old children, enrolled in the last semester of the preschool year, participated in the present study. Tasks were administered to measure executive function and preacademic abilities, and teachers rated preschoolers' social���behavioral adjustment. Hierarchical regression analyses revealed that social���behavioral adaptation was a significant mediator of the effect of executive function on academic readiness, even after controlling for maternal education and child verbal ability. These findings extend prior research and suggest that executive function contributes to early academic achievement by influencing preschoolers' opportunities to be engaged in optimal social learning activities.

Motiva����o para a l��ngua portuguesa em alunos do 3�� ciclo

Disserta����o de Mestrado apresentada ao Instituto Superior de Psicologia Aplicada para obten����o de grau de Mestre na especialidade de Psicologia Educacional.

University students' engagement: Development of the university student engagement inventory (USEI)

Student engagement is a key factor in academic achievement and degree completion, though there is much debate about the operationalization and dimensionality of this construct. The goal of this paper is to describe the development of an psycho-educational oriented measure ��� the University Student Engagement Inventory (USEI). This measure draws on the conceptualization of engagement as a multidimensional construct, including cognitive, behavioural and emotional engagement. Participants were 609 Portuguese University students (67 % female) majoring in Social Sciences, Biological Sciences or Engineering and Exact Sciences. The content, construct and predictive validity, and reliability of the USEI were tested. The validated USEI was composed of 15 items, and supported the tri-factorial structure of student engagement. We documented evidence of adequate reliability, factorial, convergent and discriminant validities. USEI���s concurrent validity, with the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale-Student Survey, and the predictive validity for self-reported academic achievement and intention to dropout from school were also observed.

O curso de literacia da informa����o da NOVA Escola Doutoral: The road to information literacy

Descrevem-se as diversas fases do ���Projeto para uma Estrat��gia de Literacia Informacional na NOVA��� com vista �� implementa����o de uma estrat��gia transversal de literacia da informa����o que abrangesse todas as Unidades Org��nicas da NOVA e o modo como a sua orienta����o de topo, din��mica, metodologia e objetivos conduziram, posteriormente, �� inclus��o de um curso de Literacia Informacional no programa da NOVA Escola Doutoral. Real��ando que a implementa����o do curso de Literacia Informacional nesse projeto passou a constituir um dos poucos exemplos de oferta formativa e de efetiva concretiza����o de um projeto de interven����o curricular e pedag��gica ao n��vel da literacia da informa����o no ensino superior em Portugal, promovendo a colabora����o entre colegas e indo ao encontro de uma transfer��ncia de saberes e de uma partilha de compet��ncias abertas �� colabora����o de doutorandos e orientadores, enunciamse os objetivos do curso de Literacia Informacional e de cada m��dulo que o constitui e os resultados esperados ao n��vel do ensino e da aprendizagem. Conclui-se que a diversifica����o dos percursos formativos em contexto universit��rio, em estreita converg��ncia com outras aprendizagens ao n��vel sociocultural, confere aos bibliotec��rios a responsabilidade de desempenhar um papel ativo no ensino e na promo����o e consolida����o das compet��ncias transversais dos estudantes, contribuindo a literacia da informa����o para o sucesso acad��mico tamb��m ao n��vel do ensino superior.

A multidimensionalidade da adapta����o escolar na pr��-adolesc��ncia

A presente investiga����o procura fomentar a reflex��o e a compreens��o do fen��meno da adapta����o escolar. Partindo da explora����o da literatura e de um conjunto de pressupostos te��ricos de ordem desenvolvimental e ecol��gica, foi concetualmente delineado e testado um modelo multidimensional de adapta����o escolar na pr��-adolesc��ncia. O modelo examina principalmente dimens��es sociais, mas tamb��m a dimens��o acad��mica e o n��vel socioecon��mico familiar, propondo uma vis��o integrada da adapta����o escolar. O estudo emp��rico desenvolveu-se junto de 706 estudantes pr��-adolescentes e avaliou as perce����es do pr��prio estudante e as perce����es dos professores e pares acerca da compet��ncia social dos estudantes. O teste emp��rico ao Modelo de Adapta����o Escolar evidencia um ajustamento global razo��vel, suportando as associa����es preconizadas entre as componentes da compet��ncia social e entre estas componentes sociais e a realiza����o acad��mica e o n��vel socioecon��mico e cultural da fam��lia. Estes resultados sublinham a necessidade de considerar m��ltiplas facetas na avalia����o e promo����o da adapta����o escolar, reconhecendo-se que esta engloba especialmente conex��es entre a compet��ncia social e realiza����o acad��mica do estudante. Estes resultados ser��o ainda alvo de reflex��o e discuss��o, sendo extra��das implica����es para a investiga����o, teoria e interven����o.