Conversa a Utopia

Joan Manuel del Pozo acaba de publicar la primera traducció catalana directa d’Utopia. Apareguda per primer cop en llatí el 1516, és l’obra més destacable de l’humanista anglès Tomas More, decapitat per protestar contra la pretensió d’Enric VIII d’envair un espai de poder que fins aleshores li havia estat aliè: l’espiritual. Utopia és una illa, i More la va imaginar com un paradís de tolerància religiosa, on no faltava la feina ni els recursos per a tothom. Amb el pretext de l’edició del llibre, Engega ha convidat el filòsof Joan Manuel del Pozo, el químic Miquel Costas i la doctora en Medicina Marta Aymerich, a mantenir una conversa gens utòpica, que us presentem a continuació

Experiència d'implementació de l'Aprenentatge Basat en Problemes (ABP) al primer curs dels estudis de medicina en una facultat de nova creació

La implementació de l’Espai Europeu d’Educació Superior a les facultats comporta canvis importants, especialment dirigits cap a uns estudis més centrats en l’estudiant. Un puntal en aquest nou mètode docent és l'Aprenentatge Basat en Problemes (ABP) o Problem Based Learning (PBL), una metodologia didàctica en la qual l'alumne aprèn els conceptes de cada mòdul mitjançant la resolució de problemes o casos clínics adequadament dissenyats i formulats per l’equip docent. La implementació de l’ABP exigeix, doncs, una planificació de la docència organitzada en grups petits (10-12 alumnes per sessió) amb un tutor que només guia i resol dubtes. No fa exposició de coneixements que els estudiants necessàriament han d’obtenir mitjançant el seu treball. L’objectiu d’aquest treball és descriure l’experiència portada a terme a la Facultat de Medicina de la UdG durant el curs 2008-09 aplicant la metodologia docent de l’ABP, així com els resultats obtinguts en l’avaluació de l’alumnat i del professorat. Aquesta metodologia ha requerit una sèrie d’estratègies de planificació i gestió per part dels diferents agents implicats que condicionaran l’èxit de l’aprenentatge de l’estudiant. Ha calgut tenir presents una sèrie de recursos que s’han de gestionar convenientment per a garantir la viabilitat del mètode: professorat motivat, figura d’un coordinador de mòdul, material docent i disseny d’horaris específics, reconversió dels espais de l’aulari, constitució d’una Unitat d’Educació Mèdica i vincles d’assessorament pedagògic específics, entre d’altres. Del total d’alumnes matriculats a primer de medicina (n=89) els resultats disponibles són els següents: 86,2% d’aprovats amb una nota mitjana de 7,2. L’índex d’abandonament ha estat de l’1,25%. Pel que fa als tutors, la proporció amb una valoració per sota del 6 és d’un 3,7%. Conclosa aquesta primera experiència d’implementació de la metodologia ABP cal plantejar els propers passos. Actualment està tenint lloc la planificació de segon curs en la qual es pretén aprofundir en les millores possibles. Els esforços de primer es van centrar a iniciar el camí, a determinar un projecte adequat, a planificar els mòduls i recursos, a dotar-ho d’eines adequades, a desenvolupar nous materials i, sobretot, a adaptar la mentalitat d’alumnes i professors. Cal incidir en la difusió dels resultats

La destreza escrita.

Resumen tomado parcialmente de la publicación

Autogestión en el proceso de aprendizaje: el viaje a itaca

En el nuevo paradigma del concepto del aprendizaje se abandonan los viejos escenarios en los que el estudiante era un elemento pasivo, limitándose a "recibir" contenidos relacionados con la materia. El profesor era el constructor y transmisor de éstos, que generalmente respondían a un antiguo modelaje curricular. Actualmente asistimos a un cambio conceptual, el estudiante es el protagonista, en tanto el docente se centra en buscar caminos que despierten el desarrollo de cada potencial individual, generando aprendizaje y habilidades, no sólo a nivel cognitivo, si no que en los estudios en los que los valores inherentes a la profesión tienen su peso, también en actitudes

O significado das UPPs, seus limites e possibilidades: a Santa Marta na cidade do Rio de Janeiro

Esta dissertação analisa o significado das Unidades de Polícia Pacificadora (UPP) enquanto técnica de controle incorporada ao espaço, usando como pano de fundo a fragmentação do tecido sociopolítico-espacial em curso na cidade do Rio de Janeiro que, junto com o biopoder Foucaultiano, propicia a formação das UPPs como novos dispositivos de segurança protetores da Raça Pura e assim, possam legitimar o poder do Estado. Além disso, a presente dissertação observa o significado da favela para a cidade do Rio de Janeiro e a regulação de poder dentro dela no período Pós-UPP, em especial, a forma de atuação dos principais agentes reguladores desse poder: traficantes de drogas armados; moradores e policiais. Finalmente, mede o grau de violência na Santa Marta antes e depois da UPP, usando os dados do Instituto de Segurança Pública (ISP) e entrevistas realizadas durante a pesquisa além de estabelecer alguns limites e possibilidades dessa nova política no que tange a prevenção da violência, usando três categorias de análise: redistributiva; institucionalista e culturalista.

O mercado sobe a favela: um estudo sobre o Santa Marta pós-UPP

O presente estudo de caso teve por objetivo identificar como a implantação da Unidade de Polícia Pacificadora na favela Santa Marta, na Zona Sul do Rio de Janeiro, alterou a interação do mercado com esta comunidade e como isso afetou as relações sociais na favela a partir da percepção dos moradores. O intuito era perceber como o mercado interno, seja ele formal ou informal, tem respondido à nova conjuntura e como atores do mercado externo, como Firjan, Light, entre outros, vêm atuando no local. Ademais, buscou-se analisar como essa nova dinâmica do mercado, viabilizada pela maior presença do estado no Santa Marta, influenciou a sociabilidade local. Para tal, por meio de pesquisa de campo, foram realizadas observações participantes e entrevistas semi-abertas com representantes de empresas que atuam na comunidade, empreendedores locais, moradores e lideranças. Concluiu-se que a expansão do mercado interno e da atuação do mercado externo na comunidade, permite que alguns benefícios cheguem; contudo, essa nova conjuntura tem gerado inseguranças nos moradores que sentem que tiveram espaços de lazer restringidos com o aumento do turismo e eventos festivos para o público externo, receiam não ter condições de arcar com o aumento do custo de vida e conseqüente empobrecimento e temem que venham a sofrer um processo de remoção branca causada pela pressão do mercado. Assim, alguns terão condições de aproveitar e até se desenvolver com as oportunidades que têm surgido com a expansão do mercado, enquanto outros, provavelmente, não terão capacidade e sofrerão uma nova exclusão.

A structured return to the 'Fourth Estate': interviews and inquiry that challenge entrenched authorities' 'knowledge'

Contemporary debates on the role of journalism in society are continuing the tradition of downplaying the role of proactive journalism - generally situated under the catchphrase of the Fourth Estate - in public policy making. This paper puts the case for the retention of a notion of a proactive form of journalism which can be broadly described as "investigative ", because it is important to the public policy process in modern democracies. It argues that critiques that downplay the potential of this form of journalism are flawed and overly deterministic. Finally. it seeks to illustrate how journalists can proactively inquire in ways that are relevant to the lives ofpeople in a range of settings, and that question elite sources in the interests ofthose people.

The ontological deficiencies of process modeling in practice

Business process modeling is widely regarded as one of the most popular forms of conceptual modeling. However, little is known about the capabilities and deficiencies of process modeling grammars and how existing deficiencies impact actual process modeling practice. This paper is a first contribution towards a theory-driven, exploratory empirical investigation of the ontological deficiencies of process modeling with the industry standard Business Process Modeling Notation (BPMN). We perform an analysis of BPMN using a theory of ontological expressiveness. Through a series of semi-structured interviews with BPMN adopters we explore empirically the actual use of this grammar. Nine ontological deficiencies related to the practice of modeling with BPMN are identified, for example, the capture of business rules and the specification of process decompositions. We also uncover five contextual factors that impact on the use of process modeling grammars, such as tool support and modeling conventions. We discuss implications for research and practice, highlighting the need for consideration of representational issues and contextual factors in decisions relating to BPMN adoption in organizations.

What do IPAQ questions mean to older adults? Lessons from cognitive interviews

Background Most questionnaires used for physical activity (PA) surveillance have been developed for adults aged ≤65 years. Given the health benefits of PA for older adults and the aging of the population, it is important to include adults aged 65+ years in PA surveillance. However, few studies have examined how well older adults understand PA surveillance questionnaires. This study aimed to document older adults’ understanding of questions from the International PA Questionnaire (IPAQ), which is used worldwide for PA surveillance. Methods Participants were 41 community-dwelling adults aged 65-89 years. They each completed IPAQ in a face-to-face semi-structured interview, using the “think-aloud” method, in which they expressed their thoughts out loud as they answered IPAQ questions. Interviews were transcribed and coded according to a three-stage model: understanding the intent of the question; performing the primary task (conducting the mental operations required to formulate a response); and response formatting (mapping the response into pre-specified response options). Results Most difficulties occurred during the understanding and performing the primary task stages. Errors included recalling PA in an “average” week, not in the previous 7 days; including PA lasting ≤10 minutes/session; reporting the same PA twice or thrice; and including the total time of an activity for which only a part of that time was at the intensity specified in the question. Participants were unclear what activities fitted within a question’s scope and used a variety of strategies for determining the frequency and duration of their activities. Participants experienced more difficulties with the moderate-intensity PA and walking questions than with the vigorous-intensity PA questions. The sitting time question, particularly difficult for many participants, required the use of an answer strategy different from that used to answer questions about PA. Conclusions These findings indicate a need for caution in administering IPAQ to adults aged ≥65 years. Most errors resulted in over-reporting, although errors resulting in under-reporting were also noted. Given the nature of the errors made by participants, it is possible that similar errors occur when IPAQ is used in younger populations and that the errors identified could be minimized with small modifications to IPAQ.

Resurrecting the notion of journalistic objectivity : a discussion of journalistic objectivity in one-on-one interviews

A number of recent books on ethics (Hirst and Patching 2005, Tanner et al, 2005, Ward, 2006)have indicated that traditional understandings of journalism "objectivity" are in need of renovation if they are to sustain the claim as a guide to ethical action. Ward argues for the recasting of the notions of traditional objectivity to offer a "pragmatic objectivity" as an alternative and plausible underpinning to ethical journalism practice. He argues that a recast or "pragmatic objectivity" should respond to the changing rhetorical relationship between journalists and their audiences; and, in so doing, should take inspiration from attempts to be objective in other domains---professions such as law and public relations in seeking models. This paper seeks to take a step in that direction through illustrating how journalism interviews do "objectivity" through an adaptation of the principles of the "Fourth Estate" to political interviews. It turns such analysis to the ends of establishing the particular "pragmatic ethic" underpinning such practices and how journalism interviewing techniques has allowed for proactive journalists to strike a workable balance between pursuing the public interest and observing the restraining protocols of modern journalistic practice.

An obsession with storytelling : conducting oral history interviews for creative writing

Anna Hirsch and Clare Dixon (2008, 190) state that creative writers’ ‘obsession with storytelling…might serve as an interdisciplinary tool for evaluating oral histories.’ This paper enters a dialogue with Hirsch and Dixon’s statement by documenting an interview methodology for a practice-led PhD project, The Artful Life Story: Oral History and Fiction, which investigates the fictionalising of oral history. ----- ----- Alistair Thomson (2007, 62) notes the interdisciplinary nature of oral history scholarship from the 1980s onwards. As a result, oral histories are being used and understood in a variety of arts-based settings. In such contexts, oral histories are not valued so much for their factual content but as sources that are at once dynamic, emotionally authentic and open to a multiplicity of interpretations. How can creative writers design and conduct interviews that reflect this emphasis? ----- ----- The paper briefly maps the growing trend of using oral histories in fiction and ethnographic novels, in order to establish the need to design interviews for arts-based contexts. I describe how I initially designed the interviews to suit the aims of my practice. Once in the field, however, I found that my original methods did not account for my experiences. I conclude with the resulting reflection and understanding that emerged from these problematic encounters, focusing on the technique of steered monologue (Scagliola 2010), sometimes referred to as the Biographic Narrative Interpretative Method (Wengraf 2001, Jones 2006).

Complementary use of modeling grammars

Conceptual modeling continues to be an important means for graphically capturing the requirements of an information system. Observations of modeling practice suggest that modelers often use multiple modeling grammars in combination to articulate various aspects of real-world domains. We extend an ontological theory of representation to suggest why and how users employ multiple conceptual modeling grammars in combination. We provide an empirical test of the extended theory using survey data and structured interviews about the use of traditional and structured analysis grammars within an automated tool environment. We find that users of the analyzed tool combine grammars to overcome the ontological incompleteness that exists in each grammar. Users further selected their starting grammar from a predicted subset of grammars only. The qualitative data provides insights as to why some of the predicted deficiencies manifest in practice differently than predicted.

Developing a framework for Six Sigma in financial service institutions : empirical evidence from expert interviews

Six Sigma is considered to be an important management philosophy to obtain satisfied customers. But financial service organisations have been slow to adopt Six Sigma issues so far. Despite the extensive effort that has been invested and benefits that can be obtained, the systematic implementation of Six Sigma in financial service organisations is limited. As a company wide implementation framework is missing so far, this paper tries to fill this gap. Based on theory, a conceptual framework is developed and evaluated by experts from financial institutions. The results show that it is very important to link Six Sigma with the strategic as well as the operations level. Furthermore, although Six Sigma is a very important method for improving quality of processes others such as Lean Management are also used This requires a superior project portfolio management to coordinate resources and projects of Six Sigma with the other methods used. Beside the theoretical contribution, the framework can be used by financial service companies to evaluate their Six Sigma activities. Thus, the framework grounded through literature and empirical data will be a useful guide for sustainable and successful implementation of a Six Sigma initiative in financial service organisations.