O jogo de RPG como ferramenta auxiliar de aprendizagem na disciplina de Ciências

ON reflecting the traditional teaching approach, characterized by non-dynamic and descriptive methods that still persists in schools at the present time, associated to social living enrichment has motivated the search for new techniques to stimulate students in the process of teaching, such as roleplaying games, known as RPG, already being used in various school disciplines. Considering the amount of themes in general sciences and in biology, in particular that could be explored through RPG our purpose was to develop a game to be used as a learning complementary tool. PANGÉIA, the game we developed, was based on the GURPS system and to be placed at the geological Eras of the earth. The objective of the game was playing a character that represented an animal belonging to a Class of Vertebrates, and making it surviving and reproducing during risky situations presented in the game. These situations were narratives by the Master about challenges that the character would face, which should be solved using the dices. Along the narrative, the Master introduced concepts and informations about the subject being studied. To evaluating how the game worked out, we solicited 11 volunteers, from two different schools in Natal, to play PANGÉIA. Before starting the game, and without knowing the final objectives of our project, the volunteers answered a general questionnaire to let us know their level of knowledge, which was also answered after playing the game. The comparison of the volunteers answers before and after playing the game suggests that this activity influenced them. Also, based on this test, we identified critical aspects to be modified in PANGÉIA, specially a stronger relation between both the questionnaire and the game placement with the narrative of the master. In order to have PANGÉIA used as a complementary learning tool, a teachers handbook has to be written, including rules concerning the format of game application. Nonetheless, based on this pilot study, we conclude that topics on sciences and biology can be easily adjusted to RPG format, and its flexibility provides multiple combinations that can be used to help learning the more difficult topics to be taught in a class

Estilos de aprendizagem sob a ótica da Psicologia Evolucionista

Among a variety of learning conceptions, David Kolb´s Experiential Learning Theory proposes four different learning styles: diverging, characterized by orientation towards people and multi-perspective vision; assimilating, concerned with ideas and abstract concepts as well as theory formulation; converging, expert in dealing with technical tasks and problem solving; and accommodating, risk taker and good at getting things done. Interesting correlations have been pointed out between Kolb s learning styles, professional careers and genders. With respect to behaviors, specific cognitive skills and interests, sex differences are widely known, and explained by Evolutionary Psychology as the result of distinct selective pressures acting on each gender. The aim of this research was to assess adolescents learning styles and their relation with interests on school and career choices, analyzing possible gender differences. We distributed questionnaires to 221 senior high school students to research their preferences for school disciplines, professional activities and career choices. The Learning Style Inventory specified the learning style of each individual. Our results showed a high frequency of reflective styles, with predominance of females as diverging and males as assimilating. Concerning school and professional interests, there were correlations between styles oriented towards the abstract and technical interests. Moreover, females preferred disciplines related to languages and interpersonal activities while males preferred disciplines related to science and technical activities. There were more males in exact science and engineering careers, and more females in social science and applied social science. Correlations found between learning styles, school and professional interests corroborate Kolb´s propositions, and the findings about gender differences are supported by Evolutionary Psychology theories

A educação como instrumento na construção do imaginário republicano: Grupo Escolar Barão de Mipibu (1909-1920)

The purpose of this study is to search the school group Barão de Mipibú/RN, which is located in a city called São José de Mipibú. The aim of this work is to discuss about the use of education as a tool for the formation of the republican imaginary society norte-riograndense. We defined a period from 1909 through 1920. The choice of this work is about how this could be important to the Brazilian History of Education and local, as well as for Cultural History and extends to studies of everyday school life and history of school disciplines. Their achievement was through bibliography search and document analysis. The first was through a review of bibliography on the national and local historiography about the School Groups and productions of the Brazilian Republic. The last one, through the following sources, namely, just the same building of the school group Barão de Mipibú, furniture inventories, class daily, terms of visits of Education Directors and reports of the Directors, book Our History by Rocha Pombo, Educational Legislation, Legislative Congress posts, the decree of creation of School Groups, in particular Barão de Mipibú and the Group Model Augusto Severo, as well as the internal statute and finally, interviews with Alumni of the 50s. The study is inserted in the history of education and as the theoretical to assist in the analysis of sources on the imagination of the study, we looked for support in Jacques Le Goff (1994), Bronislaw Bazcko (1985), Cornelius Castoriadis (1982). At the end of this work it was possible to get the understanding that the Republican government found in the educational Field, one way to spread their ideals and collaboration in building the social Imaginary of the republic, which was constituted in the early twentieth century.