Une recherche collaborative favorisant l’intégration de l’oral lors de la formation initiale en mode virtuel

The health protocols generated by the COVID-19 pandemic have limited opportunities for exchange and discussion in the classroom (Carpentier & Sauvageau, 2021) and among colleagues. Yet oral communication is an essential component in the learning process (Hattie, 2017). In the spring of 2021, as professors in the Faculty of Education at the Université de Saint-Boniface, we began a collaborative autoethnographic research project (Taylor & Coia, 2020) to showcase our professional evolution in the context of teaching in virtual mode. Our specific aim was to analyze our pedagogical choices in fostering oral skills in our students. Our vignettes thus focus on our objectives and questions regarding the use of oral expression in initial training activities, our successive pedagogical adaptations and our avenues for improvement. We believe that an emphasis on the oral in teacher education offers opportunities for the co-construction of knowledge, language, cognitive and pedagogical development, as well as contributing to the linguistic vitality of a minority group (Plessis-Bélair et al., 2017; Swain & Watanabe, 2013). We sought to improve our pedagogical practices, and thus better train future teachers, by influencing their role in the teaching of oral language, regardless of their future teaching contexts.Les protocoles sanitaires engendrés par la pandémie de la COVID-19 ont limité les possibilités d’échanges et de discussions en salles de classe (Carpentier et Sauvageau, 2021) et entre collègues. Pourtant, la communication orale est une composante incontournable dans le processus d’apprentissage (Hattie, 2017). Au printemps 2021, en tant que professeures à la Faculté d’éducation à l’Université de Saint-Boniface, nous avons entamé une recherche autoethnographique collaborative (Taylor et Coia, 2020) pour faire valoir notre évolution professionnelle dans le contexte d’enseignement en mode virtuel. Plus spécifiquement, le but était d’analyser nos choix pédagogiques favorisant les compétences de l’oral chez nos étudiants. Nos vignettes se portent ainsi sur nos objectifs et questions quant à l’utilisation de l’oral dans les activités de formation initiale, nos adaptations pédagogiques successives et nos pistes d’amélioration. Nous croyons qu’une importance accordée à l'oral dans la formation initiale offre des opportunités de co-construction du savoir, de développement langagier, cognitif et pédagogique et contribue à la vitalité linguistique du groupe minoritaire (Plessis-Bélair et al., 2017; Swain et Watanabe, 2013). Nous cherchions à bonifier nos pratiques pédagogiques et ainsi mieux former les futurs pédagogues

Extension of 3DVAR to 4DVAR: Implementation of 4DVAR at the Meteorological Service of Canada

On 15 March 2005, the Meteorological Service of Canada (MSC) proceeded to the implementation of a four-dimensional variational data assimilation (4DVAR) system, which led to significant improvements in the quality of global forecasts. This paper describes the different elements of MSC’s 4DVAR assimilation system, discusses some issues encountered during the development, and reports on the overall results from the 4DVAR implementation tests. The 4DVAR system adopted an incremental approach with two outer iterations. The simplified model used in the minimization has a horizontal resolution of 170 km and its simplified physics includes vertical diffusion, surface drag, orographic blocking, stratiform condensation, and convection. One important element of the design is its modularity, which has permitted continued progress on the three-dimensional variational data assimilation (3DVAR) component (e.g., addition of new observation types) and the model (e.g., computational and numerical changes). This paper discusses some numerical problems that occur in the vicinity of the Poles where the semi-Lagrangian scheme becomes unstable when there is a simultaneous occurrence of converging meridians and strong wind gradients. These could be removed by filtering the winds in the zonal direction before they are used to estimate the upstream position in the semi-Lagrangian scheme. The results show improvements in all aspects of the forecasts over all regions. The impact is particularly significant in the Southern Hemisphere where 4DVAR is able to extract more information from satellite data. In the Northern Hemisphere, 4DVAR accepts more asynoptic data, in particular coming from profilers and aircrafts. The impact noted is also positive and the short-term forecasts are particularly improved over the west coast of North America. Finally, the dynamical consistency of the 4DVAR global analyses leads to a significant impact on regional forecasts. Experimentation has shown that regional forecasts initiated directly from a 4DVAR global analysis are improved with respect to the regional forecasts resulting from the regional 3DVAR analysis

Les effets d’une approche littératiée sur la communication orale en classe de mathématiques de 7e/8e année dans un programme d’immersion française

Cet article traite des principaux résultats d’une étude ayant comme objectif de mesurer les effets d’une approche littératiée sur les habiletés de communication orale en langue seconde lors d’un cours de mathématique dans une classe de 7e/8e année dans un programme d’immersion française précoce au Manitoba, Canada.  Certains tests paramétriques ont démontré un effet positif sur la structure syntaxique à l’oral, ce qui suggère que l’approche littératiée peut jouer un rôle clé dans la facilitation du raisonnement mathématique en contexte immersif.This article reports the primary results of a study exploring the effects of a literacy-based approach on oral accuracy in second language during a Grade 7/8 mathematics class in a French Immersion program in Manitoba, Canada. Some of the parametric tests showed a positive effect on sentence structure in oral communication, which suggests that a literacy-based approach can play a key role in the facilitation of oral communication in mathematics in an immersion setting

Influence of Hoxa5 on p53 Tumorigenic Outcome in Mice

Hox genes encode transcription factors of crucial importance in the pattern formation of a large spectrum of species. Several studies have now proposed a role for these developmental genes in cancer biology. It has been suggested that HOXA5 possesses growth-suppressive properties through activation of p53 expression in human breast tissue. To assess the genetic cooperation that may exist between Hoxa5 and p53 in tumorigenesis, we generated Hoxa5/p53 compound mutant mice. The presence of Hoxa5 null alleles increased the susceptibility of p53−/− mice to develop tumors with a high prevalence for thymic lymphoma, suggesting that the loss of function of the two genes collaborate in tumor formation. To extend our analysis to mammary tumorigenesis, we performed Hoxa5/p53 whole mammary gland transplantations into wild-type hosts. In the p53−/− background, the presence of one Hoxa5 mutant allele had no impact on mammary tumor formation. In contrast, the complete loss of Hoxa5 function influenced the tumorigenic outcome of p53+/− mammary glands. However, the collaborative nature of this interaction did not depend on the transcriptional regulation of p53 by Hoxa5. Altogether, our data establish that Hoxa5 and p53 cooperate in mammary tumorigenesis in vivo