Literacia ambiental: um desafio à didática e à matética

A educação ambiental tem por objetivo promover a literacia ambiental na sociedade e em cada um dos indivíduos que a compõe, tendo como propósito último a adoção de comportamentos que suportem a melhoria da sustentabilidade ambiental do Planeta. As artes de ensinar e de aprender, mais a primeira que a segunda, têm estado, por um lado, fortemente ancoradas na instituição escola, esquecendo os contextos socioculturais que a envolvem, e, por outro, no conhecimento, esquecendo a importância dos valores e comportamentos. Sendo a literacia ambiental um conceito que inclui não só a componente dos conhecimentos como também, entre outros, das atitudes e dos comportamentos, o paradigma institucionalizado não serve os propósitos da educação ambiental e muito menos o de corrigir os desequilíbrios planetários que estamos a provocar. A partir de resultados recentemente publicados pelo autor sobre a literacia ambiental em alunos da ilha da Madeira, os quais revelam uma forte influência das variáveis demográficas e dos seus contextos socioeconómicos, faz-se uma análise e reflexão sobre os novos desafios que se colocam à didática e à matética no âmbito da educação ambiental.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Environmental literacy in Madeira Island (Portugal): The influence of demographic variables

Demographic factors are among those that influence environmental literacy and, particularly, environmentally responsible behaviours, either directly or due to an aggregation effect dependent on other types of variables. Present study evaluates a set of demographic variables as predictors for environmental literacy among 9th grade students from Madeira Island (Portugal). Through a survey involving 491 students, gender, place of residence (rural and urban), 8th grade Natural Sciences discipline performance, participation in school’s environmental activities and, indirectly, socio-economic status were evaluated in their association to environmental literacy and, particularly, to each of its three main components: knowledge, attitude and behaviour. The results confirm three stronger environmental literacy predictors: rural or urban residence, depending on the components considered, higher marks in 8th grade Natural Sciences discipline and higher socio-economic status; and two weaker: female and participation in school’s environmental activities. Our findings found support in previous studies and underline the need to center socio-demographic factors in environmental education practices. Considering demographic variables as the reflex of environmental, economic and socio-cultural contexts, our results corroborate an environmental literacy’s construction framework on the light of Vygotsky’s socio-cultural theory of human learning, in which real learning contexts play a fundamental role. In fact, also in environmental literacy, learning occurs through the interaction with the social environment and, to be effective, needs real learning contexts. Demographic variables confirmed as being predictors for environmental literacy in Madeira Island students seems to mirror the effects of the above framework and show strong evidences of linkage with socioeconomic status.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Piloting VAKE (Values and Knowledge Education) in the Education for Practice of Nurses.

Imagine the following situation: You are a nurse for elderly people, going to the homes of your patients. A female patient tells you on our first visit after hospital discharge following a hip fracture surgery that she does not want to be at home, because she is not well enough to be alone and she needs therapy with oxygen in permanent basis until she recovers from a respiratory temporary infection situa¬tion. This kind of situations is the starting point for an educational sequence that ad-dresses both values (here: life, human dignity, respect, loneliness) and knowledge (different medical treatments, legal rules, etc.). The example shows how intensely interrelated the values and the facts are. Based on this example we introduce the constructivist didactical tool VaKE (Values and Knowledge Education) that permits to combine both issues, and present a pilot study using this method in the education of nurses.Tempus/LLAF; VAKEinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Sustainable development contributions among University of Madeira (Portugal) students

Sustainable development is highly dependent on the implementation of environmental education programs, which has as its ultimate goal to produce environmentally literate citizens that undertake environmentally friendly actions. Efforts on environmental education along past years are now perceived on the increase of citizens awareness on European countries and, particularly, in Portugal. However, we still have a lack of information on the prevalence of specific behaviors that contributes to sustainability, influenced by a new attitude toward the environment. The determination of pro-environmental behaviors prevalence in higher education students is an important approach to understand to which extend the next leading generation is, in practice, committed with the goals of sustainable development. Therefore, present study evaluates the prevalence of a specific set of behaviors (water savings, energy savings, environmental criteria on shopping, and mobility) on the University of Madeira students and discusses their commitment with sustainable development.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Environmental culture and education: a new conceptual framework

Considering the exacerbation of present ecological crisis and the urgent need to restore natural balance, present paper proposes a new approach for envi ronmental education. Reviewing concepts as “cultures of nature”, “cultural ecology”, “environmental literacy” and “environmental culture”, we recreate the strategies and goals of environmental education and propose a new con ceptual framework to establish environmental educating communities and promote environmental culture. This framework builds on the community itself and is structured in three different sequential stages: driving forces; so ciocultural transformation process; and environmental sustainability. Each stage feeds from its previous, being the first one both an initial trigger but al so the permanent driving forces that feed the all cycle. Driving forces from the first stage are taken from political and social will, which would create mechanism to promote environmental education and best practices. Second stage is a process of sociocultural transformation of the community contexts based on the implementation of environmental best practices and environ mental education programs, which should modulate and be modulated the/by community and its models of organization. Finally, our conceptual frame work advocates that this process will be able to reach the third stage, the en vironmental sustainability, supported by an environmental educating com munity that drives environmental culture, which should also boost the driv ing forces from the first stage, closing the loop. We conclude that, since this is a theoretical approach, it needs now to be validated through its implementa tion and evaluation in a real scenario.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Environmental literacy in 9th grade students from Madeira Island (Portugal)

Has a contribution to evaluate present levels of environmental literacy in Madeira Island (Portugal), we developed a survey involving 491 9th grade students and found a good level of knowledge (71.8%), a strong tendency to agree with the New Ecological Paradigm (58.2%) and an encouraging level of environmentally responsible behaviors (47.9%) in a ‘very often’ and ‘always’ basis. Results from present study should be considered to improve environmental education programs in place, especially in Portugal and Madeira Island, but new surveys were needed to evaluate other age groups as also the relationship between different components of environmental literacy.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

HLA Loci and respiratory allergic diseases

HLA cell-surface glycoprotein molecules act in the very beginning of the allergic sensitization process, making them natural candidates for research on the genetic susceptibility for respiratory allergies. Thus, along past decades, this topic has been subject to some research and, consequently, several HLA alleles have been implicated in respiratory allergic diseases development. Current editorial introduces, revise, summarize, and comment the major advances in the role of HLA genes for the development of, and protection against, respiratory allergic disease. A general picture is drawn and new challenges on the field are relocated, especially those that might enlighten respiratory allergies aetiology and, thus, contribute in advances for diagnosis and treatment.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Cognitive function in healthy aging – A theoretical overview on the effects of cognitive training combined with Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS)

Nas últimas décadas, e como consequência do aumento progressivo da esperança de vida, diversos estudos se têm focado na população idosas e, em específico, no envelhecimento cerebral e respetivas consequências no funcionamento cognitivo. Mesmo no envelhecimento saudável, existe uma série de alterações cognitivas que se podem traduzir em perdas ao nível da funcionalidade. É urgente investigar formas de atenuar os efeitos do envelhecimento na função cognitiva e manter a autonomia da população idosa. O treino cognitivo (TC) consiste numa técnica que visa a restauração, reorganização ou compensação das perdas cognitivas, promovendo a manutenção da funcionalidade e mitigando o declínio cognitivo. Por outro lado, a estimulação elétrica transcraniana (EET) emerge enquanto técnica não-invasiva de neuromodulação, que pode causar um impacto positivo no funcionamento cognitivo, através do envio de corrente elétrica de baixa intensidade para o crânio. Ainda que exista já evidência da eficácia destas técnicas, estão ainda pouco exploradas e aplicadas em Portugal. A presente revisão teórica visa explorar de que forma a aplicação combinada destas duas técnicas pode melhorar o funcionamento cognitivo no envelhecimento saudável.n recent decades, and as a consequence of the progressive increase of lifespan, several studies have been focusing on the elderly population and specifically on brain ageing and its consequences on cognitive functioning. Even in healthy ageing, there is a series of cognitive changes, which may result in functional losses. It is urgent to investigate ways of attenuating the effects of ageing on cognitive function and maintain the autonomy of the elderly population. Cognitive training (CT is a technique aimed at restoring, reorganizing or compensating cognitive losses, promoting the maintenance of functionality and delaying cognitive decline. On the other hand, Transcranial electrical stimulation (TES) emerges as a non-invasive neuromodulation technique that can have a positive impact on cognitive functioning, by sending a low-intensity electrical current to the skull. Although there is already evidence of the effectiveness of these techniques, they are still poorly explored and applied in Portugal. This theoretical overview aims to explore how the combined application of these two techniques can enhance cognitive function in healthy ageing.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Environmental literacy comparison between students taught in eco-schools and ordinary schools in the Madeira Island Region of Portugal

The main goal of environmental education is to improve environmental literacy, including not just more knowledge but also a better attitude toward the environment and a higher prevalence of pro-environmental behaviours. The Eco-School Program is considered the world largest environmental education program for schools, but it keeps growing without proof of its particular effectiveness in improving environmental literacy. This study compares the level of environmental literacy on Madeira Island (Portugal) among 9th grade students from Eco-Schools and ordinary schools. It applies a questionnaire with three components, addressing knowledge, attitude and behaviour toward the environment. Results show that environmental literacy among 9th grade EcoSchool students is not significantly higher than in ordinary schools. However, there are some features of environmental literacy that are slightly better in Eco-Schools, namely in knowledge, attitude and behaviours. Based on our findings, we conclude that the Eco-School Program is not really a better environmental education strategy than others strategies adopted in ordinary schools. Nevertheless, the present study fails to point out reasons for the results obtained since the design research is not adequate for this purpose.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

HLA loci and respiratory infectious diseases

The HLA system harbour a wide set of genes that plays an important role in the regulation and action of the immune system against invading pathogens, making them natural candidates for research on the genetic susceptibility for respiratory infections. Thus, along past decades, this topic has been subject to intense research and, consequently, several alleles of those loci have been implicated in the ability, more or less effective, to tackle and control invading pathogens in the respiratory system. Current editorial introduce, revise, summarize and comment the major advances in the role of HLA genes for the development of, and protection against, respiratory infectious disease. A general picture is drawn and new challenges on the field are relocated, especially those that might enlighten respiratory diseases aetiology and, thus, contribute in advances for diagnosis and treatment.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio