Do the images of neuronal pathways in the human central nervous system show or not feed-back ? : a comparative study in 15 countries

In the human brain, the neuronal pathways are networks (which support learning) and work with permanent regulations (feedbacks). However, less than ¼ of illustrations in the analysed school textbooks of 15 countries is showing such regulations. Half of them are concerning the neuro-hormonal control of the reproduction; some are related to the control of the heart rhythm or breathing. Only in some countries the double innervations (gamma and alpha) of striated muscle is taught, and only a few countries are illustrating the neuronal networks in the brain. Most of these teachings are strongly under the influence of behaviourism.European project FP6 Biohead-Citizen CIT2-CT-2004-506015.Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (FCT) - LIBEC/CIFPEC - Unidade de investigação (16/644)

Les déterminismes biologiques. Analyse des conceptions et des changements conceptuels consécutifs à un enseignement sur l'épigenèse cérébrale chez des enseignants et des apprenants tunisiens.

DEA 2000 Doctorat 2007Initially, we analyzed the conception of 275 Tunisian teachers and identified in what some of the conceptions that could be obstacles to the training process. An analysing conception of the brain could be opposed to its conception in terms of neural networks. To put the brain at the orders of all the body, with relent of the body-spirit dualism, prevents from thinking its epigenesis and its building according to its own activity; and it is the same for a conception of a purely genetic or purely environmental determinism of our behaviours. To what extent do these obstacles depend on one's lack of knowledge, in particular the neural network and the cerebral epigenesis? To answer this question, we analyzed the conception of pupils (1 year before the school-leaving certificate) and of teachers (registered in DEA didactic or not) before and after teaching on the epigenesis (three teaching situations, among which one in videoconference). The results of this second part of the thesis confirm strong interactions that these two dimensions of the conception can improve following a teaching process.Dans un premier temps, nous avons analysé les conceptions de 275 enseignants tunisiens et identifié en quoi certaines de ces conceptions pourraient être des obstacles aux apprentissages. Une conception anatomisante du cerveau pourrait s'opposer à sa conception en termes de réseaux neuronaux. Mettre le cerveau aux commandes de tout le corps, avec un relent de dualisme corps esprit, empêche de penser son épigenèse et sa construction en fonction de son activité propre ; il en est de même pour une conception d'un déterminisme purement génétique ou purement environnementale de nos comportements. Jusqu'à quel point ces obstacles ne dépendent-ils que d'un manque de connaissances, en particulier sur les réseaux neuronaux et l'épigenèse cérébrale ? Pour répondre à cette question, nous avons analysé les conceptions d'élèves (1an avant le bac) et d'enseignants (inscrits en DEA didactique ou autres) avant et après un enseignement sur l'épigenèse (trois situations d'enseignement, dont une en visioconférence). Les résultats de cette seconde partie de la thèse confirment que ces conceptions peuvent évoluer à la suite d'un enseignement

LE CULTE DE PAVLOV ET DE SKINNER DANS L'ENSEIGNEMENT SECONDAIRE TUNISIEN

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Do the images of neuronal pathways in the human central nervous system show feed-back ? a comparative study in fifteen countries

In the human brain, the neuronal pathways are networks which support our learning, memory and thought, and which work with permanent feedbacks. However, only 19 % of illustrations of these neuronal pathways, in the 55 analysed school textbooks coming from 15 countries, were showing feedbacks. The neuronal pathways related to movements were generally introduced by linear spinal cord reflexes, and sometimes mostly reduced to reflexes. In consequence, in most countries, the scientific knowledge taught with these images of neuronal pathways was linked with an implicit ideology: a clear behaviourism associated with reductionism, and even sometimes with innatism or spiritualism. Two thirds of the few images with feedbacks were related to vegetative functions: the neuro-hormonal control of female and male reproduction, and of heart and breathing rhythms. Nevertheless, even for these vegetative controls there was not any feedback in several of the 55 analysed textbooks. Only in three countries, the double innervation (gamma and alpha) of striated muscles, with the regulatory function of the neuro-muscular spindle, was illustrated, with only one image in each of the three corresponding textbooks. Few images illustrated neuronal pathways in the brain, and only exceptionally as the neuronal networks (with feedbacks) which are the supports of our memory and of our thought. The persistence of the same kind of images in school textbooks of these contrasted countries suggest that the conceptions of human brain are less linked to national socio-cultural contexts rather than to international dominant ideologies.LIBEC/CIFPEC - unidade de investigação 16/644 da FCTEuropean project FP6 Biohead-Citizen CIT2-CT-2004-506015Projecto da FCT “Análise de manuais escolares” (PTDC/CED/65224/2006