Atividades experimentais no ensino de biologia em escolas públicas do estado do Rio Grande do Norte, Brasil: caracterização geral e concepção de professores

Recent research has revealed that the majority of Biology teachers believe the practice of experimental activities as a didactical means would be the solution for the improvement of the Biology teaching-learning process. There are, however, studies which signal the lack of efficiency in such practice lessons as far as building scientific knowledge is concerned. It is also said that despite the enthusiasm on the teachers‟ part, such classes are rarely taught in high school. Several studies point pedagogical difficulties as well as nonexistence of a minimal infrastructure needed in laboratories as cause of low frequency in experimental activities. The poor teacher performance in terms of planning and development of classes; the large number of students per class; lack of financial stimulus for teachers are other reasons to be taken into account among others, in which can also be included difficulties of epistemological nature. That means an unfavorable eye of the teacher towards experimental activities. Our study aimed to clarify if such scenario is generalized in high schools throughout the state of Rio Grande do Norte Brazil. During our investigation a sample of twenty teaching institutions were used. They were divided in two groups: in the first group, five IFRN- Instituto Federal de Educação, Ciência e Tecnologia do Rio Grande do Norte schools. Two of those in Natal, and the other three from the country side. The second group is represented by fifteen state schools belonging to the Natal metropolitan area. The objectives of the research were to label schools concerning laboratory facilities; to identify difficulties pointed by teachers when performing experiment classes, and to become familiar with the conceptions of the teachers in regarding biology experiment classes. To perform such task, a questionnaire was used as instrument of data collecting. It contained multiple choice, essay questions and a semi-structured interview with the assistance of a voice recorder. The data analysis and the in loco observation allowed the conclusion that the federal schools do present better facilities for the practice of experimental activities when compared to state schools. Another aspect pointed is the fact that teachers of federal schools have more time available for planning the experiments; they are also better paid and are given access a career development, which leads to better salaries. All those advantages however, do not show a significantly higher frequency regarding the development of experiments when compared to state school teachers. Both teachers of federal and state schools pointed infra-structure problems such as the availability of reactants, equipments and consumption supplies as main obstacle to the practice of experiments in biology classes. Such fact leads us to conclude that maybe there are other problems not covered by the questionnaire such as poor ability to plan and execute experimental activities. As far as conceptions about experimental activities, it was verified in the majority of the interviewees a inductive-empiric point of view of science possibly inherited during their academic formation and such point of view reflected on the way they plan and execute experiments with students

O Planejamento estratégico sem plano: ícones urbanos e dinâmica imobiliária em Natal

The model of strategic city planning is applied to Latin American and Brazilian cities since the 1990s. Notwithstanding, in many cities, the production of space has not followed the international model stricto sensu, but a variation of the model, here called, strategic city planning without a plan or peripheral (or yet incomplete) urban entrepreneurialism . This seeks to build city attributes in order to qualify cities for the competitive international and/or regional markets. This includes the production of iconic buildings and structures, here called urban icons. They rapidly become symbols in the contemporary city landscape, facilitating the promotions of the city for tourism and business. This also helps produce charismatic leaderships. However, what it does best is to promote real estate development. This dissertation seeks to understand the role of iconic buildings in the promotion of real estate business in Natal, especially how it helps to fuel prices in the market. The research is done by use of interviews with civil servants and private entrepreneurs related to real estate business

Políticas públicas e as transformações socioespaciais correlacionadas ao turismo no município de Caicó: uma análise do período 2000 a 2010

The study presents an approach on planning, sociospatial transformations and public touristic policies implemented between 2000 and 2010 in Caicó, encompassing people from the government, private sector and the population of the municipality and informal traders who use the leisure facilities and services arranged in place. As the main goal, the research intends to analyze the performance of public and private sectors correlated to the touristic activity in Caicó city and their reflections in the process changes sociospatial. The dissertation is structured in order to carry out an investigation into the role of public policies to the development of a location with touristic potential, in this case, the municipality of Caicó; to investigate public policies implemented in the touristic industry of Rio Grande do Norte, particularly the actions of PRODETUR-Nordeste focused on the development of the tourism in the countryside, affecting particularly the region of Seridó region and the municipality of Caicó, and, finally, to check the main changes sociospatial verified in Caicó between 2000 and 2010. Cultural issues and certain natural beauties can be seen as attractions that can attract tourist demand, taking into consideration the awakening increasingly more evident quest by the tourist for knowledge of the peculiarities of the region. Several authors have worked in this view, pointing to the cultural aspects of the region as elements that are able to boost the touristic activity. The questions raised in this study was based on a literature, based mainly on authors like Beni, Dias, Cruz, Azevedo and Morais. To obtain the necessary data in the analysis, the methodological procedures used in intensive direct observation, using interviews, applied together with the public representatives who are acting as leaders of the political actions related to tourism in the municipality and members of the private sector related to tourism services such as lodging establishments, food and travel agency and, finally, the local people and informal traders benefited directly or indirectly, with the touristic resources and structure. These research agents were investigated by means of structured forms such as support for analysis. Was detected in the survey that the leisure facilities and services installed in the last decade in the city of Caico has a priority the population of the municipality, is necessary to emphasize that the residents interviewed perceive the importance of these tools for tourist activity. It was also found that the public sector is the main responsible for the observed changes. Therefore, proved to be relevant to study the role public private sector partnerships and population influences, considering that this analysis may contribute to the work of researchers, public administrators and businessmen, may serve as a norteador for planning and development of tourism in the city of Caico

Fatores de sucesso ou insucesso do turismo ambientalmente sustentável : percepção das autoridades públicas no pólo costa das dunas do Rio Grande do Norte

This study aims to compare the thermal performance of tiles made from recycled material (waste packaging cardboard with aluminized film) with the tiles of fiber and bitumen, fiber cement and red ceramic with the aim of verifying the suitability of tile to be used in hot and humid climate of low latitude. The samples were selected according to the availability from Natal RN market, as they are sold to the consumers. The methodology was based on studies that used experimental apparatus composed of thermal chambers heated by banks of incandescent bulbs, to analyze the thermal performance of materials. The tiles in the study were submitted to analysis of thermal performance, thermophysical properties and absorptance, using chambers of thermal performance, measuring the thermophysical properties and portable spectrometer, respectively. Comparative analysis of thermal performance between two samples of the recycled material with dimple sizes and different amounts of aluminum were made, in order to verify, if these characteristics had some interference on the thermal performance of them; the results showed no significant performance differences between the samples. The data obtained in chambers of thermal performance and confirmed by statistical analysis, showed, that the tile of recycled material have similar thermal performance to the tile of fiber cement. In addition to these tests was carried out the automatic monitoring of a building covered with tiles of recycled material, to verify its thermal performance in a real situation. The results showed that recycled shingles must be used with technical criteria similar to those used for fiber cement tiles, with regard to the heat gain into the building. Within these criteria should be taken into account local characteristics, especially in regions with hot and humid climate, and its use must be associated, according to the literature, to elements of thermal insulation and use of passive techniques such as vented attics, ceilings and right foot higher

Planejamento e ordenamento territorial do turismo na região metropolitana de Natal-RN

This work entitled "Planning and Tourism Territorial Management in the Metropolitan Region of Natal-RN" analyzes the tourism and its relationship to (re) production of socio-territorial inequalities in the metropolitan region of Natal (RMNatal) to from the planning and territorial management of the activity. For both, the methodological procedures were undertaken from research held about of literature on tourism, planning and territorial management, surveying and public policy analysis of tourism in national and local as well as the construction of levels of integration and differentiation of metropolitan municipalities in relation to tourism. Besides the shortage of studies on this subject, this research has shown that public policies focused on this sector has come under a great fragility in regard to tourism planning in Brazil and in Rio Grande do Norte, causing the planning activity is a strong array of fragmentation and socio-territorial inequalities in RMNatal

As praças públicas de Natal/RN no âmbito dos problemas socioambientais urbanos

This paper presents the public square as a subsystem of the city for the potential integration of elements 'natural' and built environment. But sometimes the suitability of projects and the social processes involved are not compatible and favorable to their real functions in urban space. The city of Natal, with a population of 803,739 inhabitants has 253 public parks not uniformly distributed in the urban area, but mostly in central areas and their absence in some peripheral neighborhoods. In this sense, the objective of this paper is to analyze the quality and spatiality of the city's public squares within the urban socio-environmental problems. For this, use of simple random sampling to define the sample and the proportional allocation of districts, totaling 168 squares to be raised. We prepared a form to collect data on the field that includes aspects of leisure, infrastructure and environment. For each square sampled was calculated Square Quality Index (PQI), then calculating the average per IQP neighborhood. The rates found were crossed with census data and Municipal Public Administration by neighborhood, using multivariate analysis. We generated maps, charts and tables, considered appropriate to each question format, focused comparison. The public square appears as an indicator of environmental challenges present in intra-urban spaces of the city. Their spatial distribution is not consistent demand population, both by disposition and by how much. In terms of quality are characterized by different levels of inadequacy and degradation aspects of leisure, environmental and infrastructure, often causing disfigurement, abandonment and improper occupation in such spaces. Multivariate analysis point to a central concentration and their problems in certain administrative units, not only as regards the public squares, but also to aspects of education, income, and other violence, perpetuating the problem. The various levels of inadequacy and degradation of public squares have been more blatant in the poorest neighborhoods of the city, pointing to a structural pattern associated with the intrinsic characteristics of the neighborhood and the socioeconomic profile of the local population. These are problems of social and environmental dimensions, threaded in and influenced the political, economic and broader social process of transformation of the city and the urban. Based on an uneven process in which space necessarily reflect the contradictions inherent in the active forces and interests. Thus evidencing the importance of managing the necessary public effectively engaged with the problems that are present there, in order to equate them, without being prioritized certain areas of the city at the expense of others

Políticas públicas, desenvolvimento local e participação social nas instâncias de governança associadas ao turismo no Rio Grande do Norte

In contemporary dynamics, a change is observed in the institutional structure of the state, culminating in several policies for the tourist sector which promote a new management format. The from this view, the Tourism Regionalization Macro Program (TRP), considered a significant program to Ministry of Tourism, arose as an answer to this new reality, having as strategy a joint working of structuring and promotion turned at decentralization of actions, valuing the residents participation in the search of the permanent dialogue between peers and revaluation of places and territories, based in the regionalization process. Based on this bias, this study aims to examine the role of the Tourism State Council of Rio Grande do Norte, with regard to the tourism planning, trying to understand it and solve it as governance Instance, through the Tourism Regionalization Program interventions, given the participation context of its actors and agents. For purposes of this study is delimited as time frame the year 2007 at 2014, understanding that it was this time, there was greater council members accession, as well as different types of sectors representation of civil society, as a result of a tourism public policy based on principles of innovation and participation. In relation to the research problem, this study is conceptualized as a qualitative and the chosen method is the materialist dialectic. Still on the methodological options, utilize the Content Analysis. The results show that the institutionalization of governance instance as the Conetur does not contributes, ideally, in the planning and management process of participatory and integrated tourist activity, facing a fair direction of your space production. The research indicates that there are debates, discussions and guidelines (still in a timely and targeted form), but not reverberates practical effects, by act in a conjuncture that Is strategically designed for political and economic power game, setting the hegemonic actors performance, which uses this arena to instill personal desires and wishes, that are decided in absentia to the council.

Planejamento e déficit habitacional: estudo de caso a partir do cadúnico com beneficiários do programa bolsa família na zona norte de Natal

This research aims to analyze the housing conditions and socioeconomic of beneficiaries of the Bolsa Família Program – PBF of the North side of Natal city. For that, it is necessary a survey of this region's origins and how its expansion has occurred in the context of local urban development, considering demographic evolution, in particular, from the construction of housing complex and formal and informal allotments. From the field research, consisting of a pilot in loco with some households, it became possible to start the analysis of housing conditions that culminated with a detailed study of the Single Register form of the federal Government (CadÚnico), in relation to 100% (one hundred percent) of the beneficiaries of the Bolsa Familia program (PBF) of Natal city, with qualitative and quantitative information. From this general survey, a cut was done, contemplating only beneficiaries residing in the north of the city. To better understand this reality, the survey found the Brazilian housing deficit, considering its origins, historical contexts and concepts used by the following institutions: João Pinheiro Foundation (FJP), Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE), Applied Economics Research Institute (IPEA), and Local Plan Housing of Social Interested (PLHIS) and the United Nations Centre for Human Settlements (UN-HABITAT). Furthermore, were compared the various concepts of city and its respective evolution, considering the importance of planning as an instrument of public policy necessary to governmental actions and permanent policy of State. As a result, there are a detach about the deficit and housing conditions in the city of Natal, mainly North Zone, pointing out the importance of using the Unified Register of the federal government as an effective tool to measure the living conditions of Brazilian municipalities.

Políticas públicas de turismo: análise do desempenho das instâncias de governança turística e seus reflexos no fomento do turismo cultural no município de Manaus/AM (2003-2014)

This study has the main objective to analyze the role of the bodies of state and local governance of tourism, aimed at tourism development process in the city of Manaus / AM , by the public practices of planning, management and development activity in the respective municipality . To the specific objectives were established four aims: 1) To characterize the process of formation of governance entities active in tourism in the city of Manaus. 2) Lift the actions planned and executed by the authorities aimed at cultural tourism in the period 2003-2014. 3) To question through the perception of the actors representing the different classes and entities of the Amazonian society, the actions planned and executed by the authorities aimed at cultural tourism in the period 2003-2014 and 4) Identify key similarities and the differences in decision-making about actions aimed at cultural tourism in Manaus. We adopted a qualitative approach, using the methodological design of descriptive and exploratory, with the help of the use of the techniques of literature search, document, with on-site data collection through interviews with semi-structured script application forms to the representatives of sectorial institutions that make up the locations of governance in tourism. In addition, the treatment of information was used content analysis technique. In response to stated objectives, it can be concluded that the creation of public arenas, through the tourism of governance has enabled incipient discussion in a democratic manner and decision-making in the area of planning and management of tourism in Manaus. It was also observed that obstacles that hinder and undermine the structures of the bodies, which reflect the joint, in the promotion and cultural tourism development in the city of Manaus.

Plano de desenvolvimento sustentável e articulação de políticas públicas: o controle de políticas ambientais pelo poder judiciário

The right to the preservation of a healthy environment is perceived as a Fundamental Right, inserted in the National Constitution and referring to present and future generations. The preservation of the environment is directly connected to the right to Health and Human Dignity and, therefore, must be treated as a personal right, unavailable, claiming for a positive response from the Brazilian State, through the development of related public policies, control of potentially harmful economic activities, with special focus on the principles of precaution and solidarity. The Brazilian judiciary must thus be attentive to the guardianship of the Fundamental Right. The judiciary control over the execution of public policies is based on obeying the principle of the separation, independence and harmony between the Powers, however it should never deviate from the constitutional obligation of caring for the effectivation of the rights and guarantees within the Magna Carta. In the balance between the principle of human dignity, from which springs the right to a healthy environment and the principle of separation of powers, the former should prevail, maintaining the latter to a core minimum.

Planejamento municipal do turismo: diretrizes e perspectivas - o caso da SETURDE

Given the uncertainties of the environment in today's world, strategic planning is again discussed as an important tool to position the organization in future likely. To address this a more dynamic and less linear, trying to adapt the multiple realities, the method of scenarios can be one of the strategies to anticipate future designs. In the public sphere, an efficient implementation of human resources and financial managers require a new approach to the formulation of strategies. Tourism, in turn, presents itself as an important segment of the national economy shaped up as a major source of funds for the formation of the Gross Domestic Product - GDP - of states and municipalities. This study aims to know the guidelines and perspectives of municipal planning of tourism in the city of Natal/RN from the case by the representatives of the sector. The survey was developed based on a qualitative, exploratory, based on the case in the Secretaria Municipal de Turismo e Desenvolvimento Econômico - SETURDE. The results express that the body goes through a time of changes in its organizational structure and in defining its role with the local tourism. The national plan for tourism and the choice of Christmas as the host city for the World Cup in 2014 have stimulated interest in developing a formal strategic planning in the organization. However, when it comes to more complex tools, such as the method of future scenarios, the technical know its definition and importance for future actions. The results presented support the conclusion that the actions are designed intuitively and without complying with the scientific methods developed for this purpose, as the method of strategic scenarios. However, the evidence beginning to emerge from the plans and documents issued by the federal government, as well as the Secretary's own initiative, direct the actions of the body to coordinate and act as a fulcrum for local action to the increase in tourism

Processo de planejamento estratégico em universidade pública: o caso da Universidade Federal do Pará

The goal of this research is to check if the strategic planning developed between 2001 and 2009 into the State University of Para (Universidade Federal do Pará - UFPA) was consolidated into its Academic Centers as a management practice. To this end, we identified the planning formalization degree of the Academic Centers, the conceived tools for the planning, the conception and the methodological process used in the tools elaboration, as also its implementation. The research used a qualitative approach: it is descriptive and it uses the case study technique. The data were gathered from primary and secondary sources, through bibliography, documents, and field researches through semi-structure interviews. The analysis and data interpretation were done by each investigated Academic Center from the analytics categories guided by the specifics goals. We used theoretic fundamental based principles and the university as a study empiric reference based on its structure analysis, organizational processes and institutional strategic plan. We inspected how the strategic planning process was developed throughout the fixed period and how the investigated Academic Centers are from the collected documents and interviews. The theoretical foundation was built from three axis: the Brazilian undergraduate and posgraduate education system; the university itself including its singularity and complexity as an organization; and the planning as a strategic management process. The main results show us that the UFPA has updated regulatory milestones, presenting organizational structure, laws, instructions, manuals and deployed management model that give the strategic planning development conditions beyond its administration, i. e., into its Academic Centers. The centers also present those established milestones and develop the basic planning processes of the institution. Those processes are conceived based on the institutional strategic planning and the managers mainly use the procedural orientation defined by the university management, from where the conceptual foundation is originated and propagated. According to the literature and to the research done in this work, we can conclude that the Academic Centers from the UFPA developed the strategic planning practice. This planning is organized and founded and guided the plans and decisions which avoided the disordered management and, according to the managers, allowed the advances and performance improvement. We can conclude that the UFPA built an important foundation with respect to the management professionalization. On the other hand, we can not conclude that the management practice is consolidated since there are weaknesses into the structuring of the technical teams and there is not any management tool for the implementation of the elaborated plans