Como vão se formando os professores em física e química: embates entre o ser, o ter e o fazer na formação de licenciandos da UFRN sob a perspectiva da teoria das representações sociais

The purpose of this work is to approach and understand the Social Representations (SR) (MOSCOVICI, 2003) about Physics and Chemistry from people who are major in these courses, as well as their Social Representations about teaching . We took as principle that approaching these representations it would be possible to relate their symbolic contents, in order to show how people who are following the first segments of bachelor degree courses in Physics and Chemistry become teachers, taking into account a psychosocial view. Two source of data was used during this research: Free-association Technique FA (ABRIC, 1994); and Multiple Classification Procedure (MCP) (ROAZZI, 1995). The analytical treatment of the collected data from FA was done according to the proposition of Grize, Vergés and Silem (1987 apud ABRIC, 1994, p. 66). MCP data were analyzed through MSA (Multidimensional Scalogram Analysis) and SSA (Singular Spectrum Analysis) methods associated with the Facet Theory (BILSKY, 2003). The discourses of MCP discussing groups at the moment of explanations were studied by Content Analysis as it was proposed by Bardin (1977) and Franco (2005). Indicative of an approach to the relations with knowledge (CHARLOT, 2000), the connections which aroused from the analyses showed that the group of future majors in Physics thought that this scientific field was based on a rationalist conception, influencing the idealization sense of the phenomena to be explained by Physics. Thus, Physics as school content started to require the student of the fundamental and high school to think abstractly as a cognitive skill of learning. The identifying elements observed in the relations between SR about Physics and Teaching aroused from the antagonism between future majors and their teacher, as well as from the speculation between their fundamental and high school students and themselves, mainly when they had to face the act of teaching due to the obstacles imposed by the own educational system, and by the weakness of the initial preparation. The group of future majors in Chemistry, through its discourses, showed these relations when they conceived empiricist Chemistry and said that teaching was the way of transmission of this knowledge, and didactics of Chemistry teaching was the direction to learning through pedagogic methods in order to lead the students to discoveries. The psychosocial contents which were built and showed from the symbolic relations in the studied SR achieved the relation of identity. This relation revealed identifying elements for these people, resulting from the traffic between their condition as students of Chemistry, and as teachers regarding their work, what placed the current relational contents in the teaching space, named as Knowledge changing and Adaptability . In order to study emerging questions in the discussing environment about formation and teaching professionalization, we focused the psychosocial view on this traffic and managed to observe epistemological practical and pedagogic obstacles that limited a configuration of the teaching work as a professional activity, especially from the particular conditions which led the relations of senses to Physics , Chemistry and Teaching ; and Chemistry and Physics as it was seen in this research. Generally speaking, we noted that these obstacles can denounce such obstacles concerning to the pedagogic doings which mainly impair the learning process of fundamental and high school students

História da ciência como estratégia didática no ensino médio: um breve olhar de conteúdos da óptica

From a critique of aspects of the current teaching of physics, we propose in this paper an investigation into the conceptions of Nature of Science (NOS) submitted by students from the high school level, as well as the inclusion of discussions about some elements of NOS, through the History and Philosophy of Science, understanding them as facilitating strategy for more effective learning of Physics and, more specifically, the contents of optics. Based on the historical period corresponding to Greek antiquity to the mid-nineteenth century, built and applied a teaching unit to a high school class at the Federal Institute of Education, Science and Technology of Rio Grande do Norte (IFRN) Ipanguaçu campus. Our teaching unit involved the reading and interpretation of texts with historical content, observation and assembling five experimental activities, among other activities. Data analysis occurred through questionnaires investigative applied before and after the completion of the teaching unit, as well as questionnaires for content present in the texts. Although not significant, the results indicated that the application of the teaching unit allowed the (re) construction of some conceptions about NOS targets students present in our work, and contribute to a better learning content and greater optical science approach and its nature

Produção do mestrado profissional em ensino de ciências naturais e matemática da UFRN (física e química/2005-2012): papel dos documentos oficiais e características dos produtos educacionais

The importance of the Professionals Master in the field of science education is revealed by the recognition that they provide, to practicing teachers, in particular, training spaces for reflection and application of knowledge. This work appears in the context of the project "Research and training in teaching science and mathematics: a cutout of academic production in the northeast and overview of formative action in basic education" on the Centre for Education program, which main objective was to conduct studies description, analysis and evaluation of the academic production of Postgraduate Programs in Science Teaching of UFRPE, UFRN and UEPB and investigate the contribution of continuing education in stricto sensu level, of graduated teachers to improve the quality of basic education . We sought to examine a cut of academic production PPGECNM / UFRN, taking as reference dissertations of Natural Sciences, finished between the years 2005 and 2012, which have developed and applied educational products for high school students. More specifically we sought to conduct a general characterization of the dissertations analyzed for basic descriptors, to understand if and how the official documents governing the Brazilian education, especially science education, subsidized development of dissertations and identify current trends for science teaching are addressed and which ones are used in preparing the product of dissertations. The survey was based on documentary analysis, a type of qualitative approach in which the documents are objects of study in themselves. The results revealed that most of the work was developed in public schools, on subjects of physics and chemistry. During analytical reading of the text of the dissertations was observed that, in its construction, most of them addressed somehow, official documents governing the Brazilian educational system, that the products are basically teaching units and teaching approaches that are more focused on Experimentation and History and Philosophy of Science

A Naturalistic Assessment of the Organization of Children’s Memories Predicts Cognitive Functioning and Reading Ability

To explore the relationship between memory and early school performance, we used graph theory to investigate memory reports from 76 children aged 6–8 years. The reports comprised autobiographical memories of events days to years past, and memories of novel images reported immediately after encoding. We also measured intelligence quotient (IQ) and theory of mind (ToM). Reading and Mathematics were assessed before classes began (December 2013), around the time of report collection (June 2014), and at the end of the academic year (December 2014). IQ and ToM correlated positively with word diversity and word-to-word connectivity, and negatively with word recurrence. Connectivity correlated positively with Reading in June 2014 as well as December 2014, even after adjusting for IQ and ToM. To our knowledge, this is the first study demonstrating a link between the structure of children’s memories and their cognitive or academic performance.

A Naturalistic Assessment of the Organization of Children’s Memories Predicts Cognitive Functioning and Reading Ability

To explore the relationship between memory and early school performance, we used graph theory to investigate memory reports from 76 children aged 6–8 years. The reports comprised autobiographical memories of events days to years past, and memories of novel images reported immediately after encoding. We also measured intelligence quotient (IQ) and theory of mind (ToM). Reading and Mathematics were assessed before classes began (December 2013), around the time of report collection (June 2014), and at the end of the academic year (December 2014). IQ and ToM correlated positively with word diversity and word-to-word connectivity, and negatively with word recurrence. Connectivity correlated positively with Reading in June 2014 as well as December 2014, even after adjusting for IQ and ToM. To our knowledge, this is the first study demonstrating a link between the structure of children’s memories and their cognitive or academic performance.