Building a knowledge and learning society in Portugal: adult students in technological schools and higher education institutions

Lifelong learning (LLL) has received increasing attention in recent years. It implies that learning should take place at all stages of the “life cycle and it should be life-wide, that is embedded in all life contexts from the school to the work place, the home and the community” (Green, 2002, p.613). The ‘learning society’, is the vision of a society where there are recognized opportunities for learning for every person, wherever they are and however old they happen to be. Globalization and the rise of new information technologies are some of the driving forces that cause depreciation of specialised competences. This happens very quickly in terms of economic value; consequently, workers of all skills levels, during their working life, must have the opportunity to update “their technical skills and enhance general skills to keep pace with continuous technological change and new job requirements” (Fahr, 2005, p. 75). It is in this context that LLL tops the policy agenda of international bodies, national governments and non-governmental organizations, in the field of education and training, to justify the need for LLL opportunities for the population as they face contemporary employability challenges. It is in this context that the requirement and interest to analyse the behaviour patterns of adult learners has developed over the last few years

Knowledge sharing and learning processes: case study of portuguese technological schools and higher education institutions

Paper to be presented at the ESREA Conference Learning to Change? The Role of Identity and Learning Careers in Adult Education, 7-8 December, 2006, Université Catholique Louvain, Louvain–la-Neuve, Belgium

Lifelong learning: case study of adult students in portuguese technological schools and higher education institutions

Paper to be presented in ESREA 2007 ADC Network Seminar - Changing Relationships between the State, Civil Society and the Citizen: Implications for adult education and adult learning, 14 -16 June 2007 - University of Minho - Campus de Gualtar, Braga (Portugal).

Legal and political regulation of higher education in Portugal: an evolutionary perspective on the current policy issues and the problem of order

The higher education system in Europe is currently under stress and the debates over its reform and future are gaining momentum. Now that, for most countries, we are in a time for change, in the overall society and the whole education system, the legal and political dimensions have gained prominence, which has not been followed by a more integrative approach of the problem of order, its reform and the issue of regulation, beyond the typical static and classical cost-benefit analyses. The two classical approaches for studying (and for designing the policy measures of) the problem of the reform of the higher education system - the cost-benefit analysis and the legal scholarship description - have to be integrated. This is the argument of our paper that the very integration of economic and legal approaches, what Warren Samuels called the legal-economic nexus, is meaningful and necessary, especially if we want to address the problem of order (as formulated by Joseph Spengler) and the overall regulation of the system. On the one hand, and without neglecting the interest and insights gained from the cost-benefit analysis, or other approaches of value for money assessment, we will focus our study on the legal, social and political aspects of the regulation of the higher education system and its reform in Portugal. On the other hand, the economic and financial problems have to be taken into account, but in a more inclusive way with regard to the indirect and other socio-economic costs not contemplated in traditional or standard assessments of policies for the tertiary education sector. In the first section of the paper, we will discuss the theoretical and conceptual underpinning of our analysis, focusing on the evolutionary approach, the role of critical institutions, the legal-economic nexus and the problem of order. All these elements are related to the institutional tradition, from Veblen and Commons to Spengler and Samuels. The second section states the problem of regulation in the higher education system and the issue of policy formulation for tackling the problem. The current situation is clearly one of crisis with the expansion of the cohorts of young students coming to an end and the recurrent scandals in private institutions. In the last decade, after a protracted period of extension or expansion of the system, i. e., the continuous growth of students, universities and other institutions are competing harder to gain students and have seen their financial situation at risk. It seems that we are entering a period of radical uncertainty, higher competition and a new configuration that is slowly building up is the growth in intensity, which means upgrading the quality of the higher learning and getting more involvement in vocational training and life-long learning. With this change, and along with other deep ones in the Portuguese society and economy, the current regulation has shown signs of maladjustment. The third section consists of our conclusions on the current issue of regulation and policy challenge. First, we underline the importance of an evolutionary approach to a process of change that is essentially dynamic. A special attention will be given to the issues related to an evolutionary construe of policy analysis and formulation. Second, the integration of law and economics, through the notion of legal economic nexus, allows us to better define the issues of regulation and the concrete problems that the universities are facing. One aspect is the instability of the political measures regarding the public administration and on which the higher education system depends financially, legally and institutionally, to say the least. A corollary is the lack of clear strategy in the policy reforms. Third, our research criticizes several studies, such as the one made by the OECD in late 2006 for the Ministry of Science, Technology and Higher Education, for being too static and neglecting fundamental aspects of regulation such as the logic of actors, groups and organizations who are major players in the system. Finally, simply changing the legal rules will not necessary per se change the behaviors that the authorities want to change. By this, we mean that it is not only remiss of the policy maker to ignore some of the critical issues of regulation, namely the continuous non-respect by academic management and administrative bodies of universities of the legal rules that were once promulgated. Changing the rules does not change the problem, especially without the necessary debates form the different relevant quarters that make up the higher education system. The issues of social interaction remain as intact. Our treatment of the matter will be organized in the following way. In the first section, the theoretical principles are developed in order to be able to study more adequately the higher education transformation with a modest evolutionary theory and a legal and economic nexus of the interactions of the system and the policy challenges. After describing, in the second section, the recent evolution and current working of the higher education in Portugal, we will analyze the legal framework and the current regulatory practices and problems in light of the theoretical framework adopted. We will end with some conclusions on the current problems of regulation and the policy measures that are discusses in recent years.

Radiation dose rates and exposure associated to Technologically Enhanced Naturally Occurring Radioactive Materials (TENORM) at locations of a Portuguese coal-fired power plant

Coal contains trace quantities of natural radionuclides such as Th-232, U-235, U-238, as well as their radioactive decay products and 40K. These radionuclides can be released as fly ash in atmospheric emissions from coal-fired power plants, dispersed into the environment and deposited on the surrounding top soils. Therefore, the natural radiation background level is enhanced and consequently increase the total dose for the nearby population. A radiation monitoring programme was used to assess the external dose contribution to the natural radiation background, potentially resulting from the dispersion of coal ash in past atmospheric emissions. Radiation measurements were carried out by gamma spectrometry in the vicinity of a Portuguese coal-fired power plant. The radiation monitoring was achieved both on and off site, being the boundary delimited by a 20 km circle centered in the stacks of the coal plant. The measured radionuclides concentrations for the uranium and thorium series ranged from 7.7 to 41.3 Bq/kg for Ra-226 and from 4.7 to 71.6 Bq/kg for Th-232, while K-40 concentrations ranged from 62.3 to 795.1 Bq/kg. The highest values were registered near the power plant and at distances between 6 and 20 km from the stacks, mainly in the prevailing wind direction. The absorbed dose rates were calculated for each sampling location: 13.97-84.00 ηGy/h, while measurements from previous studies carried out in 1993 registered values in the range of 16.6-77.6 ηGy/h. The highest values were registered at locations in the prevailing wind direction (NW-SE). This study has been primarily done to assess the radiation dose rates and exposure to the nearby population in the surroundings of a coal-fired power plant. The results suggest an enhancement or at least an influence in the background radiation due to the coal plant past activities.

LSP communication in a digital age: the outcomes of teaching and learning in tertiary education

This paper discusses the changes brought by the communication revolution in teaching and learning in the scope of LSP. Its aim is to provide an insight on how teaching which was bi-dimensional, turned into a multidimensional system, gathering other complementary resources that have transformed, in a incredibly short time, the ways we receive share and store information, for instance as professionals, and keep in touch with our peers. The increasing rise of electronic publications, the incredible boom of social and professional networks, search engines, blogs, list servs, forums, e-mail blasts, Facebook pages, YouTube contents, Tweets and Apps, have twisted the way information is conveyed. Classes ceased to be predictable and have been empowered by digital platforms, innumerous and different data repositories (TILDE, IATE, LINGUEE, and so many other terminological data banks) that have definitely transformed the academic world in general and tertiary education in particular. There is a bulk of information to be digested by students, who are no longer passive but instead responsible and active for their academic outcomes. The question is whether they possess the tools to select only what is accurate and important for a certain subject or assignment, due to that overflow? Due to the reduction of the number of course years in most degrees, after the implementation of Bologna and the shrinking of the curricula contents, have students the possibility of developing critical thinking? Both teaching and learning rely on digital resources to improve the speed of the spreading of knowledge. But have those changes been effective to promote really communication? Furthermore, with the increasing Apps that have already been developed and will continue to appear for learning foreign languages, for translation among others, will the students feel the need of learning them once they have those Apps. These are some the questions we would like to discuss in our paper.

Radioactivity levels of 238U and 232Th decay series and related dose rates in the surroundings of a coal power plant using high resolution g-spectrometry

Gamma radiations measurements were carried out in the vicinity of a coal-fired power plant located in the southwest coastline of Portugal. Two different gamma detectors were used to assess the environmental radiation within a circular area of 20 km centred in the coal plant: a scintillometer (SPP2 NF, Saphymo) and a high purity germanium detector (HPGe, Canberra). Fifty urban and suburban measurements locations were established within the defined area and two measurements campaigns were carried out. The results of the total gamma radiation ranged from 20.83 to 98.33 counts per second (c.p.s.) for both measurement campaigns and outdoor doses rates ranged from 77.65 to 366.51 Gy/h. Natural emitting nuclides from the U-238 and Th-232 decay series were identified as well as the natural emitting nuclide K-40. The radionuclide concentration from the uranium and thorium series determined by gamma spectrometry ranged from 0.93 to 73.68 Bq/kg, while for K-40 the concentration ranged from 84.14 to 904.38 Bq/kg. The obtained results were used primarily to define the variability in measured environmental radiation and to determine the coal plant’s influence in the measured radiation levels. The highest values were measured at two locations near the power plant and at locations between the distance of 6 and 20 km away from the stacks, mainly in the prevailing wind direction. The results showed an increase or at least an influence from the coal-fired plant operations, both qualitatively and quantitatively.

Web survey system to discover the actual role of experience in learning in higher education: a case study

March 19 - 22, 2006, São Paulo, BRAZIL World Congress on Computer Science, Engineering and Technology Education

Music and drama in primary schools in the Madeira Island - Narratives of ownership and leadership

Este artigo foi uma das publicações resultantes do projeto financiado pela FCT "Música e Drama no 1º ciclo do Ensino básico – o caso da Região Autónoma da Madeira" (PTDC/CED/72112/2006).

Using remote labs in education: two little ducks in remote experimentation

A book about remote labs and engineering education begs to begin with the question, “Why do engineering programs include lab work?” Although this may seem like a given and not worth discussing, whenever we’re faced with innovative ideas, it’s important to “put everything on the table” in order to reassess its value to our program or goals. What is it about lab work that is of value to students? Are there elements of traditional labs that we could let go of? Are there elements that we don’t want to lose? These questions can help us to clarify how and why labs are integrated into an engineering education program.

A mobile robot platform for open learning based on serious games and remote laboratories

Within the pedagogical community, Serious Games have arisen as a viable alternative to traditional course-based learning materials. Until now, they have been based strictly on software solutions. Meanwhile, research into Remote Laboratories has shown that they are a viable, low-cost solution for experimentation in an engineering context, providing uninterrupted access, low-maintenance requirements, and a heightened sense of reality when compared to simulations. This paper will propose a solution where both approaches are combined to deliver a Remote Laboratory-based Serious Game for use in engineering and school education. The platform for this system is the WebLab-Deusto Framework, already well-tested within the remote laboratory context, and based on open standards. The laboratory allows users to control a mobile robot in a labyrinth environment and take part in an interactive game where they must locate and correctly answer several questions, the subject of which can be adapted to educators' needs. It also integrates the Google Blockly graphical programming language, allowing students to learn basic programming and logic principles without needing to understand complex syntax.

Measurements of environmental background radiation in the surrounding area of a coal-fired power plant

Certain materials used and produced in a wide range of non-nuclear industries contain enhanced activity concentrations of natural radionuclides. In particular, electricity production from coal is one of the major sources of increased exposure to man from enhanced naturally occurring materials. Over the past decades there has been some discussion about the elevated natural background radiation in the area near coal-fired power plants due to high uranium and thorium content present in coal. This work describes the methodology developed to assess the radiological impact due to natural radiation background increasing levels, potentially originated by a coal-fired power plant’s operation. Gamma radiation measurements have been done with two different instruments: a scintillometer (SPP2 NF, Saphymo) and a gamma ray spectrometer with energy discrimination (Falcon 5000, Canberra). A total of 40 relevant sampling points were established at locations within 20 km from the power plant: 15 urban and 25 suburban measured stations. The highest values were measured at the sampling points near to the power plant and those located in the area within the 6 and 20 km from the stacks. This may be explained by the presence of a huge coal pile (1.3 million tons) located near the stacks contributing to the dispersion of unburned coal and, on the other hand, the height of the stacks (225 m) which may influence ash’s dispersion up to a distance of 20 km. In situ gamma radiation measurements with energy discrimination identified natural emitting nuclides as well as their decay products (212Pb, 214Pb, 226Ra 232Th, 228Ac, 234Th 234Pa, 235U, etc.). This work has been primarily done to in order to assess the impact of a coal-fired power plant operation on the background radiation level in the surrounding area. According to the results, an increase or at least an influence has been identified both qualitatively and quantitatively.

Immunohistochemical molecular phenotypes of gastric cancer based on SOX2 and CDX2 predict patient outcome

Background Gastric cancer remains a serious health concern worldwide. Patients would greatly benefit from the discovery of new biomarkers that predict outcome more accurately and allow better treatment and follow-up decisions. Here, we used a retrospective, observational study to assess the expression and prognostic value of the transcription factors SOX2 and CDX2 in gastric cancer. Methods SOX2, CDX2, MUC5AC and MUC2 expression were assessed in 201 gastric tumors by immunohistochemistry. SOX2 and CDX2 expression were crossed with clinicopathological and follow-up data to determine their impact on tumor behavior and outcome. Moreover, SOX2 locus copy number status was assessed by FISH (N = 21) and Copy Number Variation Assay (N = 62). Results SOX2 was expressed in 52% of the gastric tumors and was significantly associated with male gender, T stage and N stage. Moreover, SOX2 expression predicted poorer patient survival, and the combination with CDX2 defined two molecular phenotypes, SOX2+CDX2- versus SOX2-CDX2+, that predict the worst and the best long-term patients’ outcome. These profiles combined with clinicopathological parameters stratify the prognosis of patients with intestinal and expanding tumors and in those without signs of venous invasion. Finally, SOX2 locus copy number gains were found in 93% of the samples reaching the amplification threshold in 14% and significantly associating with protein expression. Conclusions We showed, for the first time, that SOX2 combined with CDX2 expression profile in gastric cancer segregate patients into different prognostic groups, complementing the clinicopathological information. We further demonstrate a molecular mechanism for SOX2 expression in a subset of gastric cancer cases.

Developing an aquaponics system to learn sustainability and social compromise skills

The goal of this project, one of the proposals of the EPS@ISEP Spring 2014, was to develop an Aquaponics System. Over recent years Aquaponics systems have received increased attention since they contribute to reduce the strain on resources within 1st and 3rd world countries. Aquaponics is the combination of Hydroponics and Aquaculture, mimicking a natural environment in order to successfully apply and enhance the understanding of natural cycles within an indoor process. Using this knowledge of natural cycles, it was possible to create a system with capabilities similar to that of a natural environment with the support of electronics, enhancing the overall efficiency of the system. The multinational team involved in the development of this system was composed of five students from five countries and fields of study. This paper describes their solution, including the overall design, the technology involved and the benefits it can bring to the current market. The team was able to design and render the Computer Aided Design (CAD) drawings of the prototype, assemble all components, successfully test the electronics and comply with the budget. Furthermore, the designed solution was supported by a product sustainability study and included a specific marketing plan. Last but not least, the students enrolled in this project obtained new multidisciplinary knowledge and increased their team work and cross-cultural communication skills.