The Organization of Public Schools along Religious Lines and the End of the Swiss Confessional States

Cet article s’intéresse à la dimension juridique de l’enseignement confessionnel dans les écoles publiques suisses et, plus précisément, à l’évolution de la réflexion autour de la formation et de la pédagogie. Au début du XIXe siècle, la Suisse se présente comme une confédération d’États confessionnels (cantons). À côté des régions catholiques et protestantes, il existe un petit nombre de lieux paritaires. L’orientation confessionnelle des cantons s’explique par le lien étroit supposé exister entre la prospérité de l’État et l’unité confessionnelle et par le caractère absolu et contraignant de la vérité qui sert de fondement à la morale publique. Dans ce contexte, les écoles publiques occupent une place importante : elles préparent l’individu non seulement en tant que chrétien moralement irréprochable, mais aussi en tant que citoyen. Au XIXe siècle, cette approche est remise en question, ce qui a des répercussions sur la conception de l’éducation publique : l’approche confessionnelle cède la place à un dispositif juridique défenseur de la « neutralité » de l’État et des institutions publiques. Deux thèses sont ici défendues. Historiquement, la neutralité déclarée des institutions étatiques face aux questions de croyance n’est pas simplement l’idée d’un groupe politique précis qui finit par s’imposer. De fait, les divers participants qui défendent leur conception propre de la vérité doivent renoncer au caractère obligatoire de celle-ci face au blocage que constitue pour eux le principe même du droit constitutionnel de la neutralité. Par ailleurs, le caractère confessionnel des écoles publiques, l’orientation idéologique et les conceptions pédagogiques sur lesquelles se fonde l’éducation publique, sont elles-mêmes l’objet de violentes controverses qui font avancer ce processus de déconfessionalisation des institutions étatiques.This contribution addresses the legal and pedagogical aspects of religious confession in Swiss public schools. More precisely, it examines how controversies over legal and pedagogical issues in Switzerland have changed over time. At the beginning of the 19th century Switzerland saw itself as a union of individual confessional states (cantons); a small number of non-denominational villages neighbored the otherwise Catholic and Evangelical-Reform territories. Consequently, confessional organization of individual cantons was based on the principle that national well-being was linked to the unity of a religious confession and public morality was dependent upon an absolute concept of truth to which the people were bound. In this scenario public schools naturally played an important role: a religiously- and morally-directed education was designed to prepare individuals to live not only as Christians and moral human beings, but also as citizens. This self-image as a confessional state, as well as the concept of public education with which it was connected, were called into serious question in the 19th century. Subsequent controversies yielded a legal understanding of the state and public institutions, amongst which were those requiring a “neutral” organization. This paper also puts forward that it is historically demonstrable that the declared neutrality of state institutions regarding the question of faith was not simply an idea imposed by a particular political group. We furthermore argue that the constitutional principle of neutrality more accurately represents a sort of stalemate rather than the result of public discussions. The few participants of the discussions which did take place relied each on his own conception of truth and thereafter came to regret their blindness. The second thesis of this paper is therefore that the de-confessionalization of Swiss public schools not only took place, but also that public education and its confessional character (i.e., its specifically religious organization and basic underlying pedagogical concepts) were themselves objects of fierce controversies which accelerated this process of state institution de-confessionalization.Este artículo trata de la dimensión jurídica de la enseñanza confesional en las escuelas públicas suizas y, más precisamente, de la evolución de la reflexión sobre la formación y de la pedagogía. A principios del siglo XIX, Suiza se presenta como una confederación de Estados confesionales (cantones). Al lado de las regiones católicas y protestantes, existe un pequeño número de comarcas paritarias. La orientación confesional de los cantones se explica por el lazo estrecho que supuestamente existe entre la prosperidad del Estado y la unidad confesional y por el carácter absoluto y vinculante de la verdad que sirve de fundamento a la moral pública. En este contexto, las escuelas públicas ocupan un lugar importante: ellas preparan al individuo no sólo en tanto que cristiano moralmente irreprochable, sino también en tanto que ciudadano. En el siglo XIX, esta perspectiva es cuestionada, lo que tiene repercusiones en la concepción de la educación pública: la perspectiva confesional cede su lugar a un dispositivo jurídico defensor de la « neutralidad » del Estado y de las instituciones públicas. Dos tesis se defienden aquí. Históricamente, la neutralidad declarada de las instituciones estatales frente a las cuestiones de creencias no es simplemente la idea de un grupo político preciso la que termina imponiéndose. De hecho, los distintos participantes que defienden su concepción propia de la verdad tienen que renunciar al carácter obligatorio de ésta frente a la barrera que constituye para ellos el principio mismo del derecho constitucional de la neutralidad. Por otro lado, el carácter confesional de las escuelas públicas, la orientación ideológica y las concepciones pedagógicas sobre las que se funda la educación pública son objeto de violentas controversias que hacen avanzar este proceso de deconfesionalización de las instituciones estatales

Mapping the contribution of β3-containing GABA(A )receptors to volatile and intravenous general anesthetic actions

BACKGROUND: Agents belonging to diverse chemical classes are used clinically as general anesthetics. The molecular targets mediating their actions are however still only poorly defined. Both chemical diversity and substantial differences in the clinical actions of general anesthetics suggest that general anesthetic agents may have distinct pharmacological targets. It was demonstrated previously that the immobilizing action of etomidate and propofol is completely, and the immobilizing action of isoflurane partly mediated, by β3-containing GABA(A )receptors. This was determined by using the β3(N265M) mice, which carry a point mutation known to decrease the actions of general anesthetics at recombinant GABA(A )receptors. In this communication, we analyzed the contribution of β3-containing GABA(A )receptors to the pharmacological actions of isoflurane, etomidate and propofol by means of β3(N265M) mice. RESULTS: Isoflurane decreased core body temperature and heart rate to a smaller degree in β3(N265M) mice than in wild type mice, indicating a minor but significant role of β3-containing GABA(A )receptors in these actions. Prolonged time intervals in the ECG and increased heart rate variability were indistinguishable between genotypes, suggesting no involvement of β3-containing GABA(A )receptors. The anterograde amnesic action of propofol was indistinguishable in β3(N265M) and wild type mice, suggesting that it is independent of β3-containing GABA(A )receptors. The increase of heart rate variability and prolongation of ECG intervals by etomidate and propofol were also less pronounced in β3(N265M) mice than in wild type mice, pointing to a limited involvement of β3-containing GABA(A )receptors in these actions. The lack of etomidate- and propofol-induced immobilization in β3(N265M) mice was also observed in congenic 129X1/SvJ and C57BL/6J backgrounds, indicating that this phenotype is stable across different backgrounds. CONCLUSION: Our results provide evidence for a defined role of β3-containing GABA(A )receptors in mediating some, but not all, of the actions of general anesthetics, and confirm the multisite model of general anesthetic action. This pharmacological separation of anesthetic endpoints also suggests that subtype-selective substances with an improved side-effect profile may be developed

A mouse model of high trait anxiety shows reduced heart rate variability that can be reversed by anxiolytic drug treatment

Increasing evidence suggests that specific physiological measures may serve as biomarkers for successful treatment to alleviate symptoms of pathological anxiety. Studies of autonomic function investigating parameters such as heart rate (HR), HR variability and blood pressure (BP) indicated that HR variability is consistently reduced in anxious patients, whereas HR and BP data show inconsistent results. Therefore, HR and HR variability were measured under various emotionally challenging conditions in a mouse model of high innate anxiety (high anxiety behaviour; HAB) vs. control normal anxiety-like behaviour (NAB) mice. Baseline HR, HR variability and activity did not differ between mouse lines. However, after cued Pavlovian fear conditioning, both elevated tachycardia and increased fear responses were observed in HAB mice compared to NAB mice upon re-exposure to the conditioning stimulus serving as the emotional stressor. When retention of conditioned fear was tested in the home cage, HAB mice again displayed higher fear responses than NAB mice, while the HR responses were similar. Conversely, in both experimental settings HAB mice consistently exhibited reduced HR variability. Repeated administration of the anxiolytic NK1 receptor antagonist L-822429 lowered the conditioned fear response and shifted HR dynamics in HAB mice to a more regular pattern, similar to that in NAB mice. Additional receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) analysis demonstrated the high specificity and sensitivity of HR variability to distinguish between normal and high anxiety trait. These findings indicate that assessment of autonomic response in addition to freezing might be a useful indicator of the efficacy of novel anxiolytic treatments

Visages, gestes et activités dans le Ferlo au Sénégal

International audienc

Visages, gestes et activités dans le Ferlo au Sénégal

International audienc

Higher heart rate of laboratory mice housed individually vs in pairs

Many studies have shown that housing mice individually over a long period significantly alters their physiology, but in most cases measurement has required human interference and restraint for sampling. Using a radio-telemetry system with implantable transmitters, we recorded heart rate (HR), motor activity (ACT) and body temperature (BT) of freely moving male mice (NMRI) housed either individually or in pairs with an ovarectomized female. Data for each parameter were collected at 5 min intervals for two consecutive 24 h periods. Even after several weeks of habituation to the social conditions, HR was increased in mice housed individually compared with mice housed in pairs, although their measured ACT did not differ. Additionally, BT tended to be reduced in individually-housed mice. When the data were analysed according to different ACT levels, HR was increased in individually-housed mice during phases of low and high, but not intermediate, motor activity. Furthermore, individually-housed mice had more, but shorter, resting bouts, indicating disruption of the normal circadian sleep pattern. Enhanced HR in individually-housed mice does not necessarily indicate stress, but might be an important physiological indicator of discomfort. The fact that individual housing alters basic physiological parameters in laboratory mice highlights the need to control for housing-dependent variation, especially in experiments that are sensitive to changes in these parameters

Quality of life after traumatic brain injury: a cross-sectional analysis uncovers age- and sex-related differences over the adult life span

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is the leading cause of disability in the working population and becomes increasingly prevalent in the elderly. Thus, TBI is a major global health burden. However, age- and sex-related long-term outcome regarding patient's health-related quality of life (HRQoL) is yet not clarified. In this cross-sectional study, we present age- and sex-related demographics and HRQoL up to 10 years after TBI using the Quality of Life after Brain Injury (QOLIBRI) instrument. The QOLIBRI total score ranges from zero to 100 indicating good (≥ 60), moderate (40-59) or unfavorable (< 40) HRQoL. Two-thirds of the entire chronic TBI cohort (102 males; 33 females) aged 18-85 years reported good HRQoL up to 10 years after TBI. TBI etiology differed between sexes with females suffering more often from traffic- than fall-related TBI (p = 0.01) with increasing prevalence during aging (p = < 0.001). HRQoL (good/moderate/unfavorable) differed between sexes (p < 0.0001) with 17% more females reporting moderate outcome (p = 0.01). Specifically, older females (54-76-years at TBI) were affected, while males constantly reported good HRQoL (p = 0.017). Cognition (p = 0.014), self-perception (p = 0.009), and emotions (p = 0.016) rather than physical problems (p = 0.1) constrained older females' HRQoL after TBI. Experiencing TBI during aging does not influence HRQoL outcome in males but females suggesting that female brains cope less well with a traumatic injury during aging. Therefore, older females need long-term follow-ups after TBI to detect neuropsychiatric sequels that restrict their quality of life. Further investigations are necessary to uncover the mechanisms of this so far unknown phenomenon