267 research outputs found
Transforming “The National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM)” Into a Lighthouse-Project of Sustainability
AbstractUNAM is the oldest and one of the most prestigious universities in the Americas. The main campus of the university is home of about 300 000 students and covers an area of about 4 square-kilometres in the south of Mexico City. UNAM is also one of the biggest electricity consumers in Mexico-City. More than 70 Million kWh electricity are consumed yearly, producing about 49 000 tons of CO2 emission. Within the paper we will show that this could be changed with a high financial and educational profit.As UNAM has no heating and only a few cooling systems, lighting is by far the biggest use of electricity. The existing lighting system is extremely inefficient while providing unsatisfactory illumination in some places. The UNEP Centre on Sustainable Production and Consumption (CSCP) together with Büro Ö-quadrat devised a project which demonstrates how UNAM can benefit from an upgrade to a highly efficient lighting system. What makes the project unique is that the results are not based on theoretical calculations but were corroborated by implementation results of a highly efficient lighting system in four different areas (a foyer, classrooms, a library and a workshop) and the measurement of the electricity savings. Within these four areas the average electricity saving was 84% and the combined pay-back time was 2.7 years. Based on the empirical results and an analysis of 10 UNAM-buildings a master plan was developed for the entire university campus. Here the objective was to establish the broad strategic principles for a successful lighting system upgrade, as well as the necessary budget and savings that could be achieved. The results demonstrate that an initial investment of US 68 million over the 20 year lifetime of the upgraded lighting system. About thirty per cent of the electricity consumed in UNAM today could be saved with a high profit on investment.In a second step we show that most of the remaining electricity consumption could be produced by solar energy. The Feed-in Tariff system in Germany has led to a high capacity of PV-production and lowered the cost for PV-systems: In May 2013 a 40kW PV system, including all parts for the mounting, can be bought in Europe for a price of about 800 Euro/kW. Assuming that on 2% of the UNAM-area PV-systems would be installed, these systems could produce about 23 GWh with lower costs compared to the electricity price UNAM has to pay.Combining the investment for efficient lighting and PV-systems, about 60% (or about 29 000 tons) of the CO2-emissions of UNAM could be saved with a high rate of return.Best of all: What would be a more convincing way to educate 60 000 students every year about sustainability than a practical example of highly efficient lighting system and powered by solar energy? UNAM could be a light house for many other universities and schools
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"It's Like Being in a Labyrinth": Hispanic Immigrants' Perceptions of Depression and Attitudes Toward Treatments
This study aimed to describe Hispanic immigrants' perceptions of depression and attitudes toward treatments and to examine how demographics, acculturation, clinical factors, and past service use were associated with their perceptions and attitudes. A convenience sample of 95 Hispanic immigrant patients was presented a vignette depicting an individual with major depression. Structured interviews that included standardized instruments and open-ended questions were used to query patients about their views of depression and its treatments. Findings showed that Hispanic immigrants perceived depression as a serious condition caused by interpersonal and social factors. Consistent with existing literature, most patients endorsed positive attitudes toward depression treatments yet reported apprehensions toward antidepressants. Demographic factors, acculturation, depressive symptoms, and past mental health service use were related to patients' views of depression and attitudes toward care. This study emphasizes the need to incorporate Hispanic immigrants' perceptions and attitudes into depression treatments
Growing up in the inner city: Exploring the adolescent development and acculturation of urban suicidal Latinas.
This chapter examines how adolescent development and acculturation impact suicidal behavior among Latinas living in the US inner city. After providing an overview of conceptual and empirical premises underlying immigrant youth development, acculturation, and suicidal behaviors, the article discusses cultural influences on Latina adolescents and their families. Drawing on data collected between 2005 and 2009, it then explores the various individual and interpersonal changes that Latina teens go through as a result of developmental and acculturative processes and how these changes relate to risks for suicide attempts. Based on cases that illustrate the developmental and acculturation trajectories of Latina nonattempters and attempters, the chapter suggests that acculturation to street culture shapes the suicidal behavior of Latina teens growing up in urban poverty
Hacia las necesidades de los docentes universitarios AICLE. Aproximaciones a una formación metodológica específica.
Following the launch of the project ‘Analysis and quality assurance of
plurilingual Higher Education programmes in Andalusia’, diverse voices have been warning,
irrespective of specific linguistic problems, about the difficulties university teachers might
have in implementing a CLIL approach in the classroom. This study delves into the nature
of the problem whilst studying the extent to which CLIL lecturers in different Andalusian
public universities are aware of potential hurdles. The observational study intends to
identify lecturers’ perceptions on their teaching skills when delivering CLIL lessons. The
rapid expansion of Integrating Content and Language in Higher Education institutions
requires more research into the key additional teaching skills needed in order to deliver high
quality instruction. The sample consists of 138 lecturers belonging to 66 different fields of
knowledge, distributed across six public universities in the Spanish region of Andalusia. A
15-item survey was designed and implemented online in the academic year of 2016/2017.
The results allow us to identify methodological shortcomings among Andalusian CLIL
lecturers. This analysis contributes to design a specific programme for didactic training
addressed to CLIL university teachers.Desde la puesta en marcha del proyecto ‘Análisis y Garantía de Calidad de la
Educación Plurilingüe en la Educación Superior en Andalucía’ han sido diversas las voces
que, con independencia de los problemas de carácter lingüístico, advierten sobre las dificultades
en la aplicación de la modalidad AICLE para los docentes universitarios. Este estudio
abunda en la naturaleza de dicha problemática y revisa la medida en que el profesorado
AICLE de las diferentes universidades públicas andaluzas es consciente de ello. Este estudio
trata de identificar la percepción de los profesores universitarios sobre sus habilidades en su
docencia AICLE. La expansión de integración de contenido y lengua en las instituciones de
educación superior exige más investigación sobre las habilidades didácticas requeridas para
la docencia AICLE. La muestra consistió en 138 profesores de 66 áreas de conocimiento
diferentes pertenecientes a 6 universidades públicas de la región española de Andalucía. Para ello, se diseñó una encuesta en línea con un total de 15 ítems que lanzó en el curso académico
de 2016/2017. Los resultados nos permiten identificar las carencias metodológicas de los
profesores AICLE en las universidades andaluzas. Este análisis nos ayuda en el diseño de un
programa específico de formación didáctica para docentes AICLE en Educación Superior
Treatment narratives of suicidal Latina teens
In this article, we examine the treatment narratives of Latina adolescent suicide attempters to understand their experiences undergoing care. For this study, we conducted content and thematic analysis of 68 interviews with Latina adolescent suicide attempters. Most teens who described positive experiences undergoing treatment (n = 39, 44.1%) did so when discussing outpatient mental health services (n = 30, 72.9%). Latinas felt that the providers who fostered their autonomy and connectedness helped them become active agents in their recovery. Clinicians serving suicidal Latinas must allow them to exercise agency while feeling emotionally connected to providers. To help Latinas manage their suicidality, treatments need to address the teens’ developmental needs
Dual Training in Language Didactics of Foreign Language/CLIL Pre-Service Primary Education Teachers in Spain
Classroom-based research in second language acquisition (SLA) has focused in the last decade on the pedagogical implications concerning the mental representation of language but has not considered the didactic training of pre-service teachers. Empirical analyses have been concerned almost exclusively with the linguistic development of foreign language learners, who do not receive specific training to become language teachers. Due to the lack of literature regarding simultaneous linguistic and didactic training with pre-service foreign language teachers, this exploratory classroom-based research analyses a case of linguistic and didactic dual training for pre-service primary education teachers of German in Spain, both when being trained to work as foreign language teachers, or as CLIL (Content and Language Integrated Learning) teachers. The objective is to assess the effectiveness of the dual training by measuring the degree of the pre-service teachers' (N=4) willingness to communicate (WTC) before and after each practice session (N=14). This is a mixed-methods research where data were collected through (i) a questionnaire answered by the pre-service teachers and (ii) the lecturer's linguistic and didactic excursuses. The results show a high degree of WTC among the pre-service teachers, mainly as result of the Instructed Foreign Language Acquisition (IFLA)-based teaching practice model implemented, including linguistic training in German and didactic training (e.g., excursuses) in Spanish (L1). Factors like grouping increase the pre-service teachers' WTC, while factors like talking to someone they know little about decrease it. However, personal traits need to be considered when it comes to WTC, even with individuals who share similar language proficiency. The innovation of this teacher training methodology lies in the coordinated combination of linguistic (i.e., IFLA-based teaching model) and didactic training. IFLA-based teaching practices are evaluated positively by the pre-service teachers in terms of linguistic and didactic training and WTC. Final recommendations are suggested about teaching methodology
Can Better Mother-Daughter Relations Reduce the Chance of a Suicide Attempt among Latinas?
National surveys and other research on adolescent Latinas show that adolescent females have higher rates of suicidal ideation, planning, and attempts than other ethnic and racial minority youth. Internalizing behaviors and family conflicts are commonly associated with suicidality in research on adolescents. In the case of Latinas, we explore the connection between adolescent Hispanic cultural involvement, mother-adolescent mutuality, internalizing behaviors, and suicidality. This paper presents data from a study of 232 Latinas, some with a recent history of suicide attempts (n = 122). The results show that higher adolescent Hispanic cultural involvement was associated with greater mother-daughter mutuality and thus led to reduction in the likelihood of suicide attempts. The relationship between mother-daughter mutuality and suicide attempts among Latinas is mediated by specific internalizing behaviors (withdrawn depressive). Our findings highlight the positive effect that Latino cultural values have in the relationship between Latina adolescent and their mothers and confirm the importance that internalizing behaviors and the mother-daughter relationship have for suicide attempters
Growing up in the inner city: Exploring the adolescent development and acculturation of urban suicidal Latinas.
This chapter examines how adolescent development and acculturation impact suicidal behavior among Latinas living in the US inner city. After providing an overview of conceptual and empirical premises underlying immigrant youth development, acculturation, and suicidal behaviors, the article discusses cultural influences on Latina adolescents and their families. Drawing on data collected between 2005 and 2009, it then explores the various individual and interpersonal changes that Latina teens go through as a result of developmental and acculturative processes and how these changes relate to risks for suicide attempts. Based on cases that illustrate the developmental and acculturation trajectories of Latina nonattempters and attempters, the chapter suggests that acculturation to street culture shapes the suicidal behavior of Latina teens growing up in urban poverty
Treatment narratives of suicidal Latina teens
In this article, we examine the treatment narratives of Latina adolescent suicide attempters to understand their experiences undergoing care. For this study, we conducted content and thematic analysis of 68 interviews with Latina adolescent suicide attempters. Most teens who described positive experiences undergoing treatment (n = 39, 44.1%) did so when discussing outpatient mental health services (n = 30, 72.9%). Latinas felt that the providers who fostered their autonomy and connectedness helped them become active agents in their recovery. Clinicians serving suicidal Latinas must allow them to exercise agency while feeling emotionally connected to providers. To help Latinas manage their suicidality, treatments need to address the teens’ developmental needs
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