A relação sujeito-língua de alunos de inglês no ensino secundário

Mestrado em Didática - Línguas para Professores do 3º Ciclo do EB/ SecundárioNa vertente interventiva da Didática das Línguas, debruçamo-nos neste estudo na relação que o sujeito aprendente estabelece com uma língua estrangeira. Centramo-nos, neste trabalho na relação que alunos de Inglês do 10.º ano da Escola Básica e Secundária de Sever do Vouga, distrito de Aveiro, estabelecem na aprendizagem da língua inglesa no início do ensino secundário, Pretendemos, assim, analisar e compreender a relação sujeito-língua num contexto educativo, à luz dos conceitos de plurilinguismo e da diversidade linguística e cultural; bem como levar os alunos a refletir sobre as suas próprias representações e sobre a relação estabelecida. A fim de proceder à aplicação deste estudo, tratando-se de um estudo de caso, seguimos uma investigação de tipo qualitativo, tendo como universo um grupo de 23 alunos do 10.º ano de escolaridade, no ano letivo de 2011-2012, que esteve, em parte, envolvido num projeto Comenius com colegas polacos. Foi aplicado um inquérito por questionário com o objetivo de traçar o perfil linguístico dos alunos e as suas representações face ao mundo das línguas, sendo os dados analisados em termos estatísticos simples e as questões abertas sujeitas a análise de conteúdo. Procedeu-se, então, à implementação de dois planos de intervenção didática junto da turma. A análise dos dados recolhidos levou-nos a concluir que os alunos têm no início, uma visão sobretudo escolarizada da língua inglesa, considerando que a sua aprendizagem se reveste de fulcral importância para o futuro profissional, bem como para o estabelecimento da comunicação com outros povos. Daí acreditarem na prioridade de aprender Inglês em contexto escolar para conseguir estabelecer comunicação internacional. Por outro lado, com este trabalho foi também possível reconfigurar o papel da língua inglesa junto dos alunos, uma vez que eles se tornaram mais atentos e curiosos, questionando o conceito meramente utilitário da língua inglesa, e tornando-se capazes de identificar outros, alargando os seus conhecimentos linguísticos e culturais, modificando as suas representações face à língua inglesa e mostrando-se mais conscientes da importância e da diversidade linguística, não obstante do papel facilitador na comunicação internacional da língua inglesa. Acreditamos, por isso, na importância de refletir com o sujeito aprendente de línguas estrangeiras, numa abordagem mais alargada da educação em línguas, numa perspetiva de didática do plurilinguismo, de forma a abranger diversas vertentes, desde o papel comunicativo e utilitário da língua inglesa ao papel afetivo que esta pode ter, contribuindo desta forma para cidadãos mais interventivos numa sociedade mais global. Pensamos ser igualmente importante chamar a atenção dos professores para a importância de promover a reflexão sobre a aprendizagem das línguas, sublinhando que ensinar línguas não é somente dotar os alunos de proficiência linguística e comunicativa, mas também desenvolver um conjunto de competências no sujeito, tornando-o assim um ser social, consciente, responsável, cultural e plurilingue.Bearing in mind the interventive framework of Language Didactics, our study describes the relationship of the English learner with the foreign language. This research work describes a study done in the classroom with 10th form students of English as a foreign language, in Sever do Vouga Secondary School during the year 2011-2012. One of the main purposes is to study the relationship between individuals and the learning of languages within an educational context, to encourage and develop the language diversity awareness in the secondary school. The guideline behind the tasks of this work was a process of analysing the representations of a class of 23 students towards the English and other foreign languages as well as defining the kind of relationship they establish with the Other. Therefore we divided our study into two didactical intervention plans whose tasks were given and controlled by the research-teacher. These tasks allowed us to collect important data according to different instruments and draw some interesting conclusions on students’ representations towards languages. From the analysis of the data, we verified that the students have certain concepts and sensitivity towards the factors related to language learning and even the interaction with the Other. We were able to observe representations among the students related to languages, to Otherness and even to themselves and the way they learn English and other languages. This research work also helped us to analyse and conclude the impact of learning languages within the school system. On the other hand it helped students to become aware of the circumstances involved in communicating in today´s world and find out ways and benefits of communicating among the linguistic and cultural diversity. It also helped us to conclude the contribution of the reflective work with the students developing on them a wider sense of language learning, with concepts like plurilingual and intercultural education. These results can also suggest that it is possible for students to develop curiosity and receptivity to otherness by using strategies that will help the learner to be a speaker interacting not only through the English language but also in a plurilingual and intercultural perspectives

Awareness and attitudes towards demand response programs - a pilot study

Electricity planning tends to focus on the generation options mix and largely relies on pre-defined assumption on the demand growth. However, energy end-use has a large potential for improvement and adaptation to the new challenges of the electricity system. The demand response (DR) strategies must then be properly considered in electricity decision making, as relevant options to deal with the variability of the system and ensure in balance at an affordable cost. Although this is not a new concept, the popularity of these DR programs is growing, driven by the increasing opportunities that emerged with smart grid appliances and also by their potential to support the integration of variable renewables generation. The consumer has then a key role on the effective implementation of these DR programs. However, the complexity of the DR topic can create barriers to the communication to public in general and consequently can limit the consumers understanding of the overall concepts and related technologies. This work aims to address this gap and presents the results of an exploratory study supported on a questionnaire directed towards an academic sample of students from one university in Portugal. The results demonstrate that DR solutions are well accepted and could be implemented at large scale, although with limited flexibility. Aspects related to cost savings, contribution to environmental protection and reduction of importations at the national level are found to be important motivating factors, to be explored in future communication actions. However, it should be highlighted that these results cannot be dissociated from the population of the study, which target mainly well informed, young people with a high appeal for new technologies.This work is financed by the ERDF - European Regional Development Fund through the Operational Programme for Competitiveness and Internationalisation COMPETE 2020 Programme, and by National Funds through the Portuguese funding agency, FCT Fundacao para a Ciencia e a Tecnologia, within project SAICTPAC/0004/2015 POCI/01/0145/FEDER/016434

Modelling university students perception on demand response programs

The demand response (DR) programs intend to influence the consumers (household, commercial and industry) behaviour, to promote their active participation in the energy market and to improve their load pattern. This research work addresses the issue of public awareness and acceptance for DR programs. The study focused on a methodology supported on survey of an academic sample of students from one university in Portugal. From the collected information a statistical model based on linear regression was proposed. This study suggests that female students are more willing than male students to defer their electricity consumption. Other factors such as knowledge on time of usage (TOU) tariffs, concerns about reduction of imported energy and the acceptance of the automatic control of the heating or cooling system could have a positive effect on the willingness to defer electricity use. The conclusion of this paper presents then important insights for encouraging the students to engage in DR programs. Moreover, and in spite of the homogenous characteristics and reduced size of the sample, the results allowed to demonstrate the relevance of the study and to propose directions for its extension for a larger population

Assessing household electricity consumers’ willingness to load shift

This paper focuses on the acceptance and motivations towards load shifting programs in the household sector. The research is based on a questionnaire addressing the Portuguese population and aiming to better understand the willingness to engage in load shifting, the main motivations for this, and the acceptance of automatic control systems to improve responsiveness to prices changes. The willingness to load shift electricity was then assumed as a proxy for the availability of the respondents to engage in a demand response (DR) program. The results show that most respondents would consider the engagement in DR and that the economic benefits are still the main driver. However, environmental concerns and even contribution towards reducing importations for the country emerge also as important motivations in particular for younger respondents. The study concludes also on the need to improve communication on DR programs and overcome the consumers' inertia that still exists and prevent more effective participation in the electricity market.- (undefined

Recognition of pain and distress in a rat model of mammary cancer

Aims: Mice and rats are the most frequently used animals in experimental protocols performed in the European Union. They have several advantages when compared with other animals, such as their small size, and well-known anatomy, physiology, biochemistry and genetic. This work aimed to define the most adequate humane endpoints to recognize the pain in a rat model of mammary cancer chemically-induced. Material and Methods: Twelve female Sprague-Dawley rat of four weeks of age were obtained from Harlan Interfauna and randomly divided into two groups: MNU (N-methyl-N-nitrosourea) (n=10) and control (n=2). Animals from group MNU received an intraperitoneal injection of the carcinogenic agent MNU, at a dose of 50 mg/Kg. Animals from control group received only the vehicle (saline solution). A list of biological parameters to be evaluated during the experiment was elaborated prior to the study, including: body condition, body weight, food and water intake, posture, coat and grooming, mucosal, eyes, ears and whiskers, mental status, response to external stimuli, hydration status, respiratory rate, heart rate and body temperature. A score from 0 to 3 was attributed for each parameter. Severe alteration in some of these parameters, such as weight loss >20%, severe anemia, moribund or comatous mental status, development of mammary tumors that interfere with animal bodily functions (eat or drink), tumors in contact with cage floor or tumor burden > 10% of the animal body weight (>35 mm in a 250 g rat) were considered indicators of animal sacrifice. The animals were observed twice a day by the same researchers, for 18 weeks. Results: Six out 10 animals (60%) MNU-exposed developed a total of 21 mammary tumors (3.5 tumors/animal). Moderate anemic mucosal (score 2) were observed in one animal from group MNU at the 11th, 12th and 16th week of the experiment. No interference of mammary tumors with animals’ bodily functions or alterations in mammary tumor surface that implied animal sacrifice was observed. At the end of the study, five animals (83.3%) developed at least one mammary tumor > 35 mm. Conclusions: We concluded that the alteration in only tumor dimensions does not imply the animals’ sacrifice. The endpoints should be evaluated together, in order to define the most adequate time for humane animals’ sacrifice

A regression model to assess the social acceptance of demand response programs

Residential demand response has been playing an important role in the low carbon energy system transition. Although this is not a new concept, the popularity of Demand Response (DR) programs is growing, driven by the increasing opportunities that emerged with smart grid appliances as well as by their potential to support the integration of variable renewables generation. The end-user plays a key role in the successful deployment and dissemination of these DR programs. This study aims to assess social awareness and acceptance of DR programs, based on a survey for data collection and complemented with the regression models. The results suggest that the economic determinants, contribution to environmental protection as well as the extent of urbanization are important motivating drivers, to be explored in the future to encourage the residential consumers’ participation in DR programs.This work is financed by the ERDF – European Regional Development Fund through the Operational Programme for Competitiveness and Internationalisation COMPETE 2020 Programme, and by National Funds through the Portuguese funding agency, FCT Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia, within project SAICTPAC/0004/2015-POCI/01/0145/FEDER/016434.as well as by the ALGORITMI research Centre within the R&D Units Project Scope: UIDB/00319/202

Rat prostate: practical tips for ultrasonographic monitoring

Background: Prostate is the largest accessory gland of the male reproductive tract. The prostate of men over 40 years-old is frequently affected by several pathologies, like benign prostate hyperplasia and cancer. Rats have been used as model to study prostate cancer. This study intended to address the usefulness of ultrasonography for rat prostate monitoring. Material and methods: Eight male Wistar Unilever rats were acquired from Charles River Laboratories and maintained under controlled conditions of temperature, humidity, air system filtration and light/dark cycle. The prostate was evaluated by ultrasonography in awake animals. The animals were restrained by a researcher and placed in supine position. The skin of the inguinal region was shaved using a machine clipper (AESCULAP® GT420 Isis, USA). A real-time scanner (Logic P6®, GE, USA) and a 12 MHz linear transducer were used. Acoustic gel (Parker Laboratories Inc., USA) was applied. A complete transverse scan using B mode was performed from the cranial to the caudal region of the prostate, and a sagittal scan was performed moving the probe from the right to the left side. Procedures were approved by the Portuguese Ethics Committee (no.021326). Results: Prostate was easily evaluated by ultrasonography in all animals. In the transverse scan, the urinary bladder presents as a round to oval shape filled with urine (anechoic structure) and the prostate lobes were visible around it. The ventral prostate lobes appear as hypoechoic elongated structures (one right and one left) with a hyperechoic capsule, placed ventrally to the urinary bladder. In this scan, the dorsal prostate was observed close to the urinary bladder neck, as a round hypoechoic structure with a hyperechoic capsule, dorsally to the urinary bladder. In the sagittal scan, the urinary bladder was observed as an elongated structure filled with urine (anechoic content). The ventral prostate lobes were occasionally observed ventrally to the neck of the urinary bladder, as previously described. The dorsal prostate was observed dorsally to the neck of the urinary bladder, presenting as a round to elongated shape, with a hypoechoic appearance and a hyperechoic capsule. Conclusions: The ultrasonography is a non-invasive and accessible tool for prostate monitoring in the rat model

Immunology and mammary cancer development: addressing the role of mast cells

Background: Mammary cancer is one of the most frequent cancers worldwide. Mast cells are among the cells of tumor microenvironment and have been associated with increased angiogenesis and poor prognosis. Despite this, the role of mast cells on mammary cancer is not fully elucidated. In this way, this work studied the role of mast cells in a rat model of mammary cancer chemically-induced. Material and methods: All experiments were performed in accordance with the Portuguese and European legislation on the protection of animals used for scientific purposes. The experiments were approved by the Portuguese (no.008961) and University (CE_12-2013) Ethics Committees. Thirty-four female Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into five experimental groups. At seven weeks of age, mammary tumors’ development was induced in animals from groups I, II, III (n=10+10+10) by a single intraperitoneal injection of the carcinogen N-methyl-N-nitrosourea (MNU). Groups II and IV (n=2) were treated with ketotifen in drinking water (1 mg/kg/day, 7 days/week) immediately after the MNU administration for 18 weeks, while the group III received the ketotifen after the development of the first mammary tumor. Groups I and V (n=2) received only water. Animals were sacrificed at 25 weeks of age by an overdose of ketamine and xylazine, followed by an exsanguination by cardiac puncture. Mammary tumors were collected and immersed in formalin for posterior analysis. Tumors’ vascularization, proliferation and apoptosis were also assessed by immunohistochemistry (Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor (VEGF)-A, Ki-67, and caspases-3 and -9). Results: Animals from groups IV and V did not develop any mammary tumor. Twenty-one animals (six animals from group I, eight animals from group II and seven animals from group III) developed a total of 58 mammary tumors, mainly classified as papillary non-invasive carcinomas. Tumors’ vascularization was similar among groups (p>0.05). Mammary tumors from group II exhibited the lowest proliferation (p<0.05) and apoptotic indexes. Conclusions: The mainly positive effect of the ketotifen administration seems to be the reduction of tumor proliferation when the drug was administered before mammary tumor development

Immunology and mammary cancer development: addressing the role of mast cells

Background: Mammary cancer is one of the most frequent cancers worldwide. Mast cells are among the cells of tumor microenvironment and have been associated with increased angiogenesis and poor prognosis. Despite this, the role of mast cells on mammary cancer is not fully elucidated. In this way, this work studied the role of mast cells in a rat model of mammary cancer chemically-induced. Materials and Methods: All experiments were performed in accordance with the Portuguese and European legislation on the protection of animals used for scientific purposes. The experiments were approved by the Portuguese (no.008961) ABSTRACTS and University (CE_12-2013) Ethics Committees. Thirty- four female Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into five experimental groups. At seven weeks of age, mammary tumors’ development was induced in animals from groups I, II, III (n = 10+10+10) by a single intraperitoneal injection of the carcinogen N-methyl-N-nitrosourea (MNU). Groups II and IV (n = 2) were treated with ketotifen in drinking water (1 mg/kg/day, 7 days/week) immediately after the MNU ad- ministration for 18 weeks, while the group III received the ketotifen after the development of the first mammary tumor. Groups I and V (n = 2) received only water. Animals were sacrificed at 25 weeks of age by an overdose of ketamine and xylazine, followed by an exsanguination by cardiac puncture. Mammary tumors were collected and immersed in formalin for posterior analysis. Tumors’ vascularization, proliferation and apoptosis were also assessed by immunohistochemistry (Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor (VEGF)-A, Ki-67, and caspase-3 and caspase-9). Results: Animals from groups IV and V did not develop any mammary tumor. Twenty-one animals (six animals from group I, eight animals from group II and seven animals from group III) developed a total of 58 mammary tumors, mainly classified as papillary non-invasive carcinomas. Tumors’ vascularization was similar among groups (P > 0.05). Mammary tumors from group II exhibited the lowest prolif- eration (P < 0.05) and apoptotic indexes. Conclusions: The mainly positive effect of the ketotifen administration seems to be the reduction of tumor prolifera- tion when the drug was administered before mammary tumor development

N-methyl-N-nitrosourea as a mammary carcinogen: practical application

Introduction: N-methyl-N-nitrosourea (MNU) is the oldest member of the nitroso compounds. It is considered a complete, potent and direct alkylating compound, able to alkylate the DNA without metabolic activation. The administration of chemical carcinogens is one of the most frequently used methods to induce tumors’ development in laboratory animals. The target organ depends on the animals’ species, strain and age, dose and route of administration (1-3). This work intended to describe the effects of MNU administration in female Sprague-Dawley rats. Material & Methods: Procedures followed the European legislation and were approved by the Portuguese Competent Authority (approval nº008961). Twenty-five female Sprague-Dawley rats were used in two experimental protocols. The first experiment intended to evaluate the effects of exercise training on mammary carcinogenesis (n=15) and the second one intended to evaluate the effect of ketotifen on mammary carcinogenesis (n=10). At seven weeks of age, all animals were intraperitoneally injected with the carcinogen MNU (50 mg/kg). Mammary tumors development was weekly assessed by palpation of both mammary chains. Animals were humanely sacrificed, through the intraperitoneal administration of ketamine and xylazine, 35 and 18 weeks after MNU administration, respectively. Results: All animals from the first experiment and six animals from the second experiment developed mammary tumors (incidence of 100% and 60%, respectively). In the first experiment, the first mammary tumor was identified ten weeks after MNU administration. A shorter latency period was observed in the second experiment, with the development of the first mammary tumors eight weeks after MNU administration. At the end of the experiment, animals from the first experiment developed a total of 28 mammary tumors (28/15; 1.9 tumors/animal), while the animals from the second experiment developed 21 mammary tumors (21/6; 3.5 tumors/animal). At the same time (18 weeks after MNU administration), the animals from the first experiment developed only five mammary tumors. Conclusions: Although the carcinogen was administered to the animals of the same strain at the same age and dose, using the same route, the latency period and incidence were different between the experiments. The different incidence may be related with the duration of the studies and the individual variations