Power law distribution in education: Effect of economical, teaching, and study conditions in university entrance examination

We studied the statistical distribution of student's performance, which is measured through their marks, in university entrance examination (Vestibular) of UNESP (Universidade Estadual Paulista) with respect to (i) period of study - day versus night period (ii) teaching conditions - private versus public school (iii) economical conditions - high versus low family income. We observed long ubiquitous power law tails in physical and biological sciences in all cases. The mean value increases with better study conditions followed by better teaching and economical conditions. In humanities, the distribution is close to normal distribution with very small tail. This indicates that these power law tails in science subjects axe due to the nature of the subjects themselves. Further and better study, teaching and economical conditions axe more important for physical and biological sciences in comparison to humanities at this level of study. We explain these statistical distributions through Gradually Truncated Power law distributions. We discuss the possible reason for this peculiar behavior.

Power law distribution in education: University entrance examination

We studied the statistical distribution of candidate's performance which is measured through their marks in university entrance examination (Vestibular) of UNESP (Universidade Estadual Paulista) for years 1998, 1999, and 2000. All students are divided in three groups: Physical, Biological and Humanities. We paid special attention to the examination of Portuguese language which is common for all and examinations for the particular area. We observed long ubiquitous power law tails in Physical and Biological sciences. This indicate the presence of strong positive feedback in sciences. We are able to explain completely these statistical distributions through Gradually Truncated Power law distributions which we developed recently to explain statistical behavior of financial market. The statistical distribution in case of Portuguese language and humanities is close to normal distribution. We discuss the possible reason for this peculiar behavior.

Red Light Stimulates Feeding Motivation in Fish but Does Not Improve Growth

Nile tilapia fish were individually reared under similar light levels for 8 weeks under five colored light spectra (maximum wavelength absorbance): white (full light spectrum), blue (~452 nm), green (~516 nm), yellow (~520 nm) or red (~628 nm). The effects of light on feeding, latency to begin feeding, growth and feed conversion were measured during the last 4 weeks of the study (i.e., after acclimation). We found that red light stimulates feeding, as in humans, most likely by affecting central control centers, but the extra feeding is not converted into growth. © 2013 Volpato et al.

A música como recurso didático-pedagógico na aula de língua inglesa da rede pública de ensino

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Attitudes about inclusion by educators and physical educators: Effects of participation in an inclusive adapted physical education program

This study assessed the attitudes about the inclusion of students with disability by professionals in education and health, relative to their experience and training. We compared three groups: 20 teachers and trainees who worked in an adapted physical education program (GI); 75 professionals from the municipal education system of Rio Claro subdivided according to their experience-CGyes e CGno, respectively, with and without experience. We used the inventory adapted by Palla (2001) to assess participants' attitudes and self-concepts. Overall, individuals in the group that participated in the intervention maintained their tendency of being favorable toward inclusion. Teachers in regular school settings in the municipal school system of Rio Claro (Sao Paulo, Brazil), regardless of their experience with inclusive settings, remain mostly indecisive about the benefits of inclusion.

Interdisciplinary project applied to engineering education: construction of a miniature ceramic industry

The greatest challenge of undergraduate engineering courses is to encourage creativity, cooperation with other students, teamwork, and motivation in the first years of their courses. While students have little or no contact with advanced disciplines, it is very difficult to attract their interests and encourage them to develop the skills in their undergraduate courses. This work aims to achieve these objectives through a mini-factory project involving the construction of a production line of ceramic tiles on a laboratory scale, from the ceramic processing using raw materials to the shipping of the final product. Having been given an established monthly demand for ceramic tiles, the students determined the construction requirements of the mini-factory, as they have created the layout, including the processing equipment, the dimensioning of equipment, and its operational structure. This article intends to describe the successful creation of the ceramic tile mini-factory, including the objectives, benefits, and inherent difficulties of the process and the receptivity of the exercise by the students involved.

School activities in health education and their impact on parents

There is little empirical evidence establishing the value of schoolhouse education of children and the repercussions on their families; a quantitative analysis of instructional intervention in health and its reflection on the family permits quantification of its effectiveness outside of the school setting. To this end, we utilized instruction on head lice in schoolchildren was conducted. A randomized sample of those responsible for students enrolled from the third to fifth grade, from two public schools who had taken an instructional module on pediculosis, were invited to respond to a questionnaire that aimed to ascertain their opinions on the instruction and what its impact was on their family. The variables were assessed by univariat analysis. Of 155 total respondents, 89.9% were the parents of the students. The students that had infestation, in turn, had greater capacity to influence the family on measures against lice. The majority of those responsible supported the instruction and reported being satisfied with the school for having addressed the theme. When the subject pertains to the reality of the students, the school-family link is strengthened. Instruction on pediculosis in school helps bridge the gap between the theoretical and the practical, a harmonization required in health education.