Dinámica grupal e innovación educativa en la escuela secundaria:metodologías y estrategias

El trabajo de investigación que se presenta en las siguientes páginas tiene como objetivo destacar cómo la dinámica de grupo puede cambiar y mejorar cualitativamente sólo a través de la aplicación de métodos de enseñanza experimentales. Se trata de técnicas alternativas que se aplican con el objetivo de ver si el grupo de la clase mejora el rendimiento colectivo y personal para un aprendizaje significativo. El análisis de los grupos se desarrollará en el contexto de la escuela italiana. Esta tesis nació porque el investigador planteó el problema de comprender y desarrollar la dinámica de los grupos aplicando nuevas metodologías de enseñanza, capaces de estimular y facilitar el proceso de aprendizaje en los estudiantes. La tesis doctoral se ha diseñado con una estructura específica para destacar y comparar las diferentes metodologías y ver si pueden influir en los grupos examinados. Se desarrolla en tres partes: 1. La primera parte trata el tema del grupo y las metodologías. 2. En la segunda parte se aborda la investigación, destacando primero las metodologías que ya se utilizan (tradicionales e innovadoras) y luego aplicando nuevas metodologías experimentales. 3. En la tercera parte se analizan y comparan los resultados obtenidos en la investigación doctoral. El objetivo del investigador es involucrar a los niños en los temas escolares. Mediante el uso de métodos de enseñanza innovadores, se espera que los jóvenes queden impresionados por su imaginación y terminen participando en un proyecto mucho más amplio, hasta el punto de cambiar su forma de ser y su relación con los demás. Por lo tanto, el objetivo es involucrar más a los miembros del grupo y ver cómo podría cambiar la dinámica de los grupos ya creados.The research work presented in the following pages aims to highlight how group dynamics can change and improve qualitatively only through the application of experimental teaching methods. These are alternative techniques that are applied with the aim to see if the class group improves collective and personal performance for meaningful learning. The analysis of the groups will be developed in the context of the Italian school. This thesis was born because the researcher raised the problem of understanding and developing group dynamics by applying new teaching methodologies, able to stimulate and facilitate the learning process in students. The doctoral thesis has been designed with a specific structure to highlight and compare the different methodologies and to see if they can influence the groups examined. It is developed in three parts: 1. The first part deals with the topic of the group and the methodologies. 2. The second part deals with the research, first highlighting the methodologies already in use (traditional and innovative) and then applying new experimental methodologies. 3. The third part analyses and compares the results obtained in the doctoral research. The aim of the researcher is to involve children in school subjects. By using innovative teaching methods, it is hoped that young people will be impressed by their imagination and end up participating in a much wider project, to the point of changing their way of being and their relationship with others. Therefore, the aim is to involve the group members more and to see how it could change the dynamics of the groups already created

The nebulae around LBVs: a multiwavelength approach

We present first results of our study of a sample of Galactic LBV, aimed to contribute to a better understanding of the LBV phenomenon, by recovering the mass-loss history of the central object from the analysis of its associated nebula. Mass-loss properties have been derived by a synergistic use of different techniques, at different wavelengths, to obtain high-resolution, multi-wavelength maps, tracing the different emitting components coexisting in the stellar ejecta: the ionized/neutral gas and the dust. Evidence for asymmetric mass-loss and observational evidence of possible mutual interaction between gas and dust components have been observed by the comparison of mid-IR (Spitzer/IRAC, VLT/VISIR) and radio (VLA) images of the nebulae, while important information on the gas and dust composition have been derived from Spitzer/IRS spectra.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures. To appear in proceedings of 39th Liege International Astrophysical Colloquium: The multi-wavelength view of Hot, Massive Star

Identification of three new proto-Planetary Nebulae exhibiting the unidentified feature at 21 um

Among its great findings, the IRAS mission showed the existence of an unidentified mid-IR feature around 21 um. Since its discovery, this feature has been detected in all C-rich proto-PNe of intermediate spectral type (A-G) and - weakly - in a few PNe and AGB stars, but the nature of its carriers remains unknown. In this paper, we show the detection of this feature in the spectra of three new stars transiting from the AGB to the PN stage obtained with the Spitzer Space Telescope. Following a recent suggestion, we try to model the SEDs of our targets with amorphous carbon and FeO, which might be responsible for the unidentified feature. The fit thus obtained is not completely satisfactory, since the shape of the feature is not well matched. In the attempt to relate the unidentified feature to other dust features, we retrieved mid-IR spectra of all the 21-um sources currently known from ISO and Spitzer on-line archives and noticed a correlation between the flux emitted in the 21-um feature and that emitted at 7 and 11 um (PAH bands and HAC broad emission). Such a correlation may point to a common nature of the carriers.Comment: Accepted for publication in Ap

An approach to research-based design of teaching-learning sequences in the context of physics education: Theoretical frameworks, pedagogical methods, and examples of Data Analysis

In this paper we discuss an example of the research approaches practiced at the University of Palermo Physics Education Research Group (UoPPERG). Particularly, we discuss the design and development with groups of high school students of two Teaching-Learning Sequences (TLSs) on surface phenomena in liquids, and the data collection and analysis methods. In the introduction, we briefly discuss the educational reconstruction model, that we use as a theoretical framework for the designing of the TLSs, and a pedagogical methodology that in the last years has gained consensus among educators, i.e., active learning. Some considerations on active learning pedagogical and cognitive psychology foundations are also made. The main aim of the TLSs is to improve students' learning of surface phenomena, a topic that is quite relevant in Physics and other scientific and technical fields. We provide a research-based, conceptual scheme of what we mean by "improvement of students' learning", and present the TLSs phases, that are based on the well-known inquiry-and investigation-based learning approaches, that are science-specific applications of the general idea of active learning. Then, we describe some methods we use in our researches to collect and give an example of the data analysis needed to study the progression of student learning, with respect to the conceptual scheme provided, and of some of the results obtained

Characterisation of Neisseria meningitidis C strains causing two clusters in the north of Italy in 2007 and 2008.

Two clusters of invasive meningococcal disease in the north of Italy both due to serogroup C/ST-11 clonal complex are here described. The objective of the investigation was to analyse the phenotype and the genotype of meningococci involved in the two clusters which were of national relevance due to the fatal outcome of the majority of cases (six of the total of 10 cases). All the strains were C:2a:P1.5 ST-11/ET-37 clonal complex. Two pulsed field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) and variable number tandem repeats (VNTR) profiles were identified, one for each cluster. VNTRs were different from those detected in Italy for C/ST-11 strains isolated from sporadic cases in the same period. This laboratory surveillance report highlights the importance and the crucial role of molecular characterisation to confirm the relatedness among meningococci responsible for clusters of cases

Cluster of invasive Neisseria meningitidis infections on a cruise ship, Italy, October 2012.

We describe a cluster of four cases of invasive meningococcal disease that occurred on a cruise ship sailing along the Italian coast in October 2012. All four cases were hospitalised with severe illness and one of them died. This report illustrates the importance of rapid implementation of emergency control measures such as administration of prophylaxis to all crew members and passengers to prevent the spread of the disease in such a close environment

Spitzer detection of PAH and silicate features in post-AGB stars and young Planetary Nebulae

We have observed a small sample of hot post-AGB stars with the InfraRed Array Camera (IRAC) and the InfraRed Spectrograph (IRS) on-board the Spitzer Space Telescope. The stars were selected from the literature on the basis of their far-Infrared excess (i.e., post-AGB candidates) and B spectral type (i.e., close to the ionization of the envelope). The combination of our IRAC observations with 2MASS and IRAS catalog data, along with previous radio observations in the cm range (where available) allowed us to model the SEDs of our targets and find that in almost all of them at least two shells of dust at different temperatures must be present, the hot dust component ranging up to 1000 K. In several targets grains larger than 1 micron are needed to match the far-IR data points. In particular, in IRAS 17423-1755 grains up to 100 micron must be introduced to match the emission in the mm range. We obtained IRS spectra to identify the chemistry of the envelopes and found that more than 1/3 of the sources in our sample have mixed chemistry, showing both mid-IR bands attributed to Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAH) and silicate features. The analysis of the PAH features indicates that these molecules are located in the outflows, far away from the central stars. We consider the larger than expected percentage of mixed-chemistry targets as a selection bias towards stars with a disk or torus around them. Our results strengthen the current picture of mixed chemistry being due to the spatial segregation of different dust populations in the envelopes.Comment: 20 pages, 18 figures, accepted for publication on Ap

Anionic Methacrylate Copolymer Microparticles for the Delivery of Myo-Inositol Produced by Spray-Drying: In Vitro and In Vivo Bioavailability

: In this study, a new micro delivery system based on an anionic methacrylate copolymer, able to improve the biological response of myo-inositol by daily oral administration, was manufactured by spray-drying. It has an ideal dose form for oral administration, with an experimental drug loading (DL)% of 14% and a regulated particle size of less than 15 μm. The new formulation features an improvement on traditional formulations used as a chronic therapy for the treatment of polycystic ovary syndrome. The microparticles' release profile was studied and ex vivo porcine intestinal mucosa permeation experiments were performed to predict potential improvements in oral absorption. Batch n. 3, with the higher Eudragit/MI weight ratio (ratio = 6), showed the best-modified release profiles of the active ingredient, ensuring the lowest myo-inositol loss in an acidic environment. The in vivo evaluation of the myo-inositol micro delivery system was carried out in a rat animal model to demonstrate that the bioavailability of myo-inositol was increased when compared to the administration of the same dosage of the pure active ingredient. The AUC and Cmax of the loaded active molecule in the micro delivery system was improved by a minimum of 1.5 times when compared with the pure substance, administered with same dosage and route. Finally, the increase of myo-inositol levels in the ovary follicles was assessed to confirm that a daily administration of the new formulation improves myo-inositol concentration at the site of action, resulting in an improvement of about 1.25 times for the single administration and 1.66 times after 7 days of repeated administration when compared to pure MI