The Experiences of Higher Education Online Instructors with the Implementation of Digital Learning Materials: A Phenomenological Study

The purpose of this transcendental phenomenological study was to describe the experiences of online instructors at Christian colleges with the implementation of digital learning materials within online learning environments. At this stage of the research, digital learning materials can be generally defined as e-texts, learning materials accessible through tablet technology, interactive textbooks, or any other course materials in digital format. The theory guiding this study is the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT), which explains the factors involved in accepting or rejecting technology use and applies to higher education online instructors’ implementation of digital learning materials. The central research question guiding this phenomenological study was: What are the experiences of online instructors at Christian colleges with the implementation of digital learning materials? This transcendental phenomenological study used purposeful and criterion sampling which aims for maximum variation and saturation in order to select online instructors from three Christian colleges with experiences regarding the implementation of digital learning materials. Data was collected through interviews, focus groups, and journal entries, and analyzed through the processes of epoché, phenomenological reduction, imaginative variation, and synthesis. The four primary themes identified through analysis were: (a) ease of use, (b) learning enrichment, (c) professional community, and (d) initiative to expand knowledge and resources; these themes were used to describe the essence of the phenomenon of the implementation of digital learning materials by online instructors in higher education. Implications for this study were also discussed

PERPETUA: ENSAIO SOBRE UM CORPO EM DEVIR

Este memorial descritivo partiu de reflexões diante do indiví­duo enquanto um ser efêmero e das questões em relação a morte como uma passagem e não como o fim. Além disso, a partir de uma descrição poética a obra pode ser construí­da partindo de sensações e experiências de um corpo em devir. O trabalho tem como objetivo apresentar o processo de criação de uma performance artí­stica delineando as etapas e fundamentações utilizadas durante sua construção. Foram realizadas pesquisas teóricas e imagéticas para o desenvolvimento da performance embasando o conceito da obra e as ações a serem realizadas. Neste memorial foram apresentadas questões que acercam minha poética e demais produções pessoais. A performance abarca tanto o espaço conceitual das artes visuais quanto o mover-se do corpo que dança. Esta pesquisa foi necessária para compreender a importância da estruturação de uma obra performática mostrando que todo trabalho necessita de uma base de conhecimentos e reflexões.PALAVRAS-CHAVE: Performance; Dança; Movimento; Efêmero; Morte

Curso de dança moderna da UFPR : memória e dispositivos (inter)midiáticos aplicados a um contexto educacional extensionista

Orientadora: Prof.ª Dr.ª Cristiane WosniakDissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Federal do Paraná, Setor de Educação, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Educação. Defesa : Curitiba, 09/03/2022Inclui referênciasResumo: A dissertação intitulada: Curso de Dança Moderna da UFPR: Memória e Dispositivos (Inter)Midiáticos Aplicados a um Contexto Educacional Extensionista, tem por objeto de pesquisa o contexto educacional, formativo e artístico do Curso [Permanente] de Dança Moderna (C[P]DM) da Universidade Federal do Paraná. A partir de uma investigação que envolve dispositivos intermidiáticos digitais [smartphones, redes sociais, Google Forms, plataformas de videoconferência e videodança] verificou-se formas e meios possíveis para descrever e refletir sobre as abordagens educacionais adotadas na formação de artistas do corpo. Ainda, propôs-se uma atualização e ressignificação do gesto e da dança, ao analisar a história e memória dos corpos de alunas e alunos que participam/participaram do processo de ensino-aprendizagem em dança neste ambiente institucional. O C[P]DM é vislumbrado como um espaço/ambiente de educação não-formal para as artes do corpo e se caracteriza como um curso de extensão livre no âmbito de uma instituição de ensino superior pública e gratuita: a UFPR. Desde 1992 o C[P]DM colabora na formação de gerações de artistas da dança, arte-educadores, pesquisadores e que têm continuado suas vivências profissionais a partir desta linguagem artística. A relevância de trazer a memória, o discurso e os atos performativos - depoimentos verbais e imagéticos dos participantes da pesquisa acerca de suas passagens nesta estrutura educacional - encontra justificativa no entendimento de uma educação pautada no e pelo acesso ao corpo que se expressa e se comunica por meio da arte da dança. Através da análise dos dados levantados dos depoimentos de integrantes e ex-integrantes do C[P]DM foi possível constatar que a memória do gesto e do ensino-aprendizagem permanecem nesses corpos dançantes ao passar dos tempos, contribuindo e influenciando em suas trajetórias artísticas, profissionais e sociais. Desta forma, destaca-se não só a importância de um curso de formação em dança moderna gratuito em uma universidade pública, mas também da significância do ensino da dança no Brasil. O referencial teórico desta dissertação parte das áreas da Linguagem, Corpo, Estética, Educação, Dança e Tecnologias da Comunicação e se reportam a Maurice Merleau- Ponty (1999), Pérez Gómez (2015), Isabel Marques (2011; 2012), Lucia Santaella (2004; 2013; 2014) e Rudolf von Laban (1978). A partir da abordagem da Análise Temática (AT) proposta por Virgínia Braun e Victoria Clarke (2006) os dados coletados foram cotejados em relação ao percurso teórico da investigação com o propósito de identificar, descrever e interpretar alguns padrões de informação verbo-visual qualitativos recorrentes na amostragem audiovisual.Abstract: The dissertation entitled: UFPR's Modern Dance Course: Memory and (Inter)Media Devices Applied to an Extension Educational Context, has as its research object the educational, formative and artistic context of the [Permanent] Modern Dance Course (C[P]DM) of the Federal University of Paraná. From an investigation that involves digital intermedia devices [smartphones, social networks, Google Forms, videoconference platforms and videodance] it was verified possible ways and means to describe and reflect on the educational approaches adopted in the formation of body artists. Furthermore, an updating and re-signification of gesture and dance was proposed by analyzing the history and memory of the bodies of students who participate/participated in the dance teaching-learning process in this institutional environment. The C[P]DM is envisioned as a space/environment of non-formal education for the arts of the body and is characterized as a free extension course within the framework of a public and free institution of higher education: the UFPR. Since 1992, C[P]DM has collaborated in the formation of generations of dance artists, art educators, researchers and those who have continued their professional experiences with this artistic language. The relevance of bringing the memory, the discourse and the performative acts - verbal and imaginary statements of the participants of the research about their passages in this educational structure - finds justification in the understanding of an education based on and through the access to the body that expresses and communicates itself through the art of dance. Through the analysis of the data collected from the testimonies of members and former members of C[P]DM, it was possible to verify that the memory of gesture and teaching-learning remains in these dancing bodies throughout time, contributing and influencing their artistic, professional and social trajectories. This highlights not only the importance of a free modern dance course at a public university, but also the significance of dance education in Brazil. The theoretical referential of this dissertation departs from the areas of Language, Body, Aesthetics, Education, Dance and Communication Technologies and reports to Maurice Merleau-Ponty (1999), Pérez Gómez (2015), Isabel Marques (2011; 2012), Lucia Santaella (2004; 2013; 2014) and Rudolf von Laban (1978). Following the Thematic Analysis (TA) approach proposed by Virginia Braun and Victoria Clarke (2006), the data collected was compared against the theoretical path of the research in order to identify, describe, and interpret some qualitative verbo-visual information patterns recurrent in audiovisual sampling

HE 0430-2457: a post merger extremely low-mass pre-white dwarf in a wide binary posing as an extreme horizontal branch star

We report the discovery of HE 0430-2457, the first extremely low-mass pre-white dwarf (ELM pre-WD) in a long period binary (P = 771 +- 3 d). The spectroscopic parameters of the primary are determined to be Teff = 26200 +- 1500 K and logg = 5.40 +- 0.35, placing it in the region occupied by core He-burning hot subdwarf B stars. By comparing the spectroscopic parameters of the K-type companion to stellar models, and using the mass ratio, the mass of the hot primary is determined to be 0.23 Msun. Given that this is too low for core He-burning, the primary in HE 0430-2457 is not an EHB star but a pre WD of the ELM type. As the lifetime of ELM pre-WDs in this region of the HR diagram populated by EHBs is thought to be very short, they are not considered to be part of the observed EHBs. However, the discovery of this system indicates that the percentage of ELM pre-WDs in the observed EHB population might be higher than previously thought. Binary evolution models indicate that HE 0430-2457 is likely formed by a merger of the inner binary in a hierarchical triple system.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figures, Accepted for publication in MNRA

Detached cataclysmic variables are crossing the orbital period gap

A central hypothesis in the theory of cataclysmic variable (CV) evolution is the need to explain the observed lack of accreting systems in the ~2-3 h orbital period range, known as the period gap. The standard model, disrupted magnetic braking (DMB), reproduces the gap by postulating that CVs transform into inconspicuous detached white dwarf (WD) plus main sequence (MS) systems, which no longer resemble CVs. However, observational evidence for this standard model is currently indirect and thus this scenario has attracted some criticism throughout the last decades. Here we perform a simple but exceptionally strong test of the existence of detached CVs (dCVs). If the theory is correct dCVs should produce a peak in the orbital period distribution of detached close binaries consisting of a WD and an M4-M6 secondary star. We measured six new periods which brings the sample of such binaries with known periods below 10 h to 52 systems. An increase of systems in the ~2-3 h orbital period range is observed. Comparing this result with binary population models we find that the observed peak can not be reproduced by PCEBs alone and that the existence of dCVs is needed to reproduce the observations. Also, the WD mass distribution in the gap shows evidence of two populations in this period range, i.e. PCEBs and more massive dCVs, which is not observed at longer periods. We therefore conclude that CVs are indeed crossing the gap as detached systems, which provides strong support for the DMB theory.Comment: 12 pages, 6 figures, 2 tables, accepted for publication in MNRA

Population Synthesis of Post-Common Envelope White-Dwarf-Main-Sequence Binaries in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey

Peer ReviewedPostprint (published version