Projeto colaborativo em ambientes digitais de atividades de aprendizagem e avaliação para aquisição de competências em informação e documentação

The search for international impact and the need to create formal or informal networks of academic cooperation are some of the most common features of the current training offered by many universities. Aware of this difficulty and the desirability of creating synergies to enrich teaching and academic collaboration networks between universities, an experience is presented, in the context of the teaching of Information and Documentation, of inter-university collaboration for the joint design of learning activities and skills assessment, developed by teachers in the public universities of Zaragoza and Salamanca (Spain) and the São Paulo Universidade Estadual Paulista Júlio de Mesquita Filho (São Paulo, Brazil). The experience is developed using models that facilitate the structuring of learning activities aimed at the acquisition of common skills. Each activity that is proposed and developed is recorded in a spreadsheet which collects the information arranged in various fields such as: description, skills, objectives, expected learning outcomes, tools, required resources and materials, evaluation criteria, amongst others, so that the student can see what he is asked to do, how to do it and how useful it will be. This way of designing skills-based learning activities is possible, in geographically diverse academic settings through the use of Information Technology and Communication, enabling both remote cooperation between teachers and also materials offered on the platforms of each of the universities.

Avaliação de um curso de informática para crianças

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

The influence of leukocytospermia on the outcomes of assisted reproductive technology

Background: It is not well established whether the increased number of leukocytes in the seminal fluid impairs the outcomes of assisted reproductive technology (ART). This investigation analysed the outcomes of the intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) and intracytoplasmic morphologically selected sperm injection (IMSI) cycles in couples in which the male partner exhibited leukocytospermia.Methods: A total of 100 cycles in 100 couples were included in this study. For the ICSI or IMSI procedures, the patients were divided into two groups according to the presence or absence of leukocytospermia and then matched by (female) age:- ICSI: Group I (n = 25): Leukocytospermia - semen samples with a leukocyte count of greater than or equal to 1 x 10(6)/mL; and Group II (n = 25): Non-leukocytospermia - semen samples with a leukocyte count < 1 x 10(6)/mL.- IMSI: Group I (n = 25): Leukocytospermia; and Group II (n = 25): Non-leukocytospermia.The endpoints included the rates of fertilisation, implantation, clinical pregnancy, miscarriage, ongoing pregnancy and live birth. Student's t-tests, Mann-Whitney tests and Chi-square tests were performed, and P < 0.05 was considered significant.Results: The data from the ICSI groups showed that leukocytospermia did not have a negative influence on the rates of fertilisation (Group I: 57.9+/-30.2%, Group II: 61.9+/-27.7%; P = 0.74), implantation (Group I: 12.3%; Group II: 13.5%; P = 0.93), clinical pregnancy (Group I: 24%; Group II: 24%; P = 1.0), miscarriage ( Group I: 0, Group II: 0), ongoing pregnancy (Group I: 24%; Group II: 24%; P = 1.0), or live births (Group I: 24%; Group II: 24%; P = 1.0). Similarly, the data from the IMSI groups also showed that the leukocytospermia did not have a negative influence on the rates of fertilisation (Group I: 67.6+/-24.6%, Group II: 59.5+/-28.1%; P = 0.36), implantation (Group I: 17.5%; Group II: 16.7%; P = 0.90), clinical pregnancy (Group I: 28%; Group II: 24%; P = 1.0), miscarriage (Group I: 14.3%; Group II: 0; P = 0.33), ongoing pregnancy (Group I: 24%; Group II: 24%; P = 1.0), or live births (Group I: 24%, 6/25; Group II: 24%, 6/25; P = 1.0).Conclusions: The results indicate that the leukocytospermia may not have a negative effect on the outcomes of ICSI or IMSI cycles. Nevertheless, it seems that it is necessary to more precisely determine the effects, if any, of seminal leukocytes on fertilisation and implantation processes. Such efforts will help to establish a more reliable leukocyte threshold, which could eventually demonstrate whether there is a negative influence on the ART procedures.

Relational learning in children with deafness and cochlear implants

This four-experiment series sought to evaluate the potential of children with neurosensory deafness and cochlear implants to exhibit auditory-visual and visual-visual stimulus equivalence relations within a matching-to-sample format. Twelve children who became deaf prior to acquiring language (prelingual) and four who became deaf afterwards (postlingual) were studied. All children learned auditory-visual conditional discriminations and nearly all showed emergent equivalence relations. Naming tests, conducted with a subset of the: children, showed no consistent relationship to the equivalence-test outcomes.. This study makes several contributions: to the literature on stimulus equivalence. First; it demonstrates that both pre- and postlingually deaf children-can: acquire auditory-visual equivalence-relations after cochlear implantation, thus demonstrating symbolic functioning. Second, it directs attention to a population that may be especially interesting for researchers seeking to analyze the relationship. between speaker and listener repertoires. Third, it demonstrates the feasibility of conducting experimental studies of stimulus control processes within the limitations of a hospital, which these children must visit routinely for the maintenance of their cochlear implants.

Operant measurement of auditory threshold in prelingually deaf users of cochlear implants: II

Two experiments evaluated an operant procedure for establishing stimulus control using auditory and electrical stimuli as a baseline for measuring the electrical current threshold of electrodes implanted in the cochlea. Twenty-one prelingually deaf children, users of cochlear implants, learned a Go/No Go auditory discrimination task (i.e., pressing a button in the presence of the stimulus but not in its absence). When the simple discrimination baseline became stable, the electrical current was manipulated in descending and ascending series according to an adapted staircase method. Thresholds were determined for three electrodes, one in each location in the cochlea (basal, medial, and apical). Stimulus control was maintained within a certain range of decreasing electrical current but was eventually disrupted. Increasing the current recovered stimulus control, thus allowing the determination of a range of electrical currents that could be defined as the threshold. The present study demonstrated the feasibility of the operant procedure combined with a psychophysical method for threshold assessment, thus contributing to the routine fitting and maintenance of cochlear implants within the limitations of a hospital setting.

Experiencing Manipulative Material for the Teaching and Learning of Mathematics

This paper presents some outcomes from research based on classroom experiences. The main themes are the use of mirrors, kaleidoscopes, dynamic geometry software, and manipulative material considering their possibilities for the teaching and learning of Euclidean and non-Euclidean geometries.