Project-based learning - area of improving the quality of school

U traženju najboljih načina za ostvarivanje ciljeva nastave, jedno od mogućih didaktičkih rješenja pronalazimo u projektnoj nastavi. Ravitz i sur. (2012) opisuju projektnu nastavu kao koncept stvaranja uvjeta u kojima učenici mogu učiti složenija znanja i vještine koja su im nepohodna za život u 21. stoljeću. Ona predstavlja brojne izazove za učitelje i škole, a poteškoće na koje nailaze pri njezinoj implementaciji su brojne. Za učinkovito rješavanje problema implementacije projektne nastave u radu škole, neophodno je omogućiti učiteljima samovrednovanje nastavnog procesa. Samovrednovanje je proces koji sustavno prati, analizira i procjenjuje uspješnost rada kako bi se trajno unaprijedila kvaliteta i stvorilo poticajno radno okruženje. U ovom je radu prikazan primjer Školskog razvojnog plana, kao sastavnog dijela procesa samovrednovanja, kojim je projektna nastava definirana kao prioritetno područje unaprjeđenja rada škole i razvojnih ciljeva koji proizlaze iz njih.In finding the best ways to accomplish learning goals one of the possible didactic solutions would be project-based learning. Ravitz et al. (2012) describe project-based learning as a concept that involves creating conditions which would help students learn more complex knowledge and skills vital for the life in the 21st century. This concept holds many challenges for both teachers and schools, and many issues arise in its implementation. The effective solution for the implementation problems of project-based learning in schools necessary involves self-evaluation of the teaching process. Self-evaluation is a process that systematically monitors, analyses and assesses the work performance in order to permanently achieve better quality and create a more productive working surroundings. This paper shows an example of a school development plan, as an integral part of the self-evaluation process, that defines the project-based learning as a priority area in improving the school processes and development goals which derive from them

Road avoidance and its energetic consequences for reptiles

Roads are one of the most widespread human-caused habitat modifications that can increase wildlife mortality rates and alter behavior. Roads can act as barriers with variable permeability to movement and can increase distances wildlife travel to access habitats. Movement is energetically costly, and avoidance of roads could therefore impact an animal's energy budget. We tested whether reptiles avoid roads or road crossings and explored whether the energetic consequences of road avoidance decreased individual fitness. Using telemetry data from Blanding's turtles (Emydoidea blandingii; 11,658 locations of 286 turtles from 15 sites) and eastern massasaugas (Sistrurus catenatus; 1,868 locations of 49 snakes from 3 sites), we compared frequency of observed road crossings and use of road-adjacent habitat by reptiles to expected frequencies based on simulated correlated random walks. Turtles and snakes did not avoid habitats near roads, but both species avoided road crossings. Compared with simulations, turtles made fewer crossings of paved roads with low speed limits and more crossings of paved roads with high speed limits. Snakes made fewer crossings of all road types than expected based on simulated paths. Turtles traveled longer daily distances when their home range contained roads, but the predicted energetic cost was negligible: substantially less than the cost of producing one egg. Snakes with roads in their home range did not travel further per day than snakes without roads in their home range. We found that turtles and snakes avoided crossing roads, but road avoidance is unlikely to impact fitness through energetic expenditures. Therefore, mortality from vehicle strikes remains the most significant impact of roads on reptile populations

Does the foveal shape influence the image formation in human eyes?

In human eyes, the maximum visual acuity correlates locally with the fovea, a shallow depression in the retina. Previous examinations have been reduced to simple geometrical fovea models derived from postmortem preparations and considering only a few superficial ray propagation aspects. In the current study, an extended and realistic analysis of ray-optical simulations for a comprehensive anatomical realistic eye model for the anterior part and realistic aspherical human foveal topographical profiles deduced from in vivo optical coherence tomography (OCT) are presented, and the refractive index step at the transition from vitreous to retinal tissue is taken into account. The optical effect of a commonly shaped (averaged) and an extraordinarily shaped foveal pit were both compared to the analysis of an assumed pure spherical boundary layer. The influence of the aperture size, wavelength, and incident angle on the spot size and shape, as well as the axial focal and latera l centroid position is investigated, and a lateral displacement of about 2 μm and an axial shift of the best focal position of less than 4 μm are found. These findings indicate only small optical effects that are laterally in the range of inter-receptor distances and axially less than the photoreceptor outer segment dimension

Quasinormal mode solvers for resonators with dispersive materials

Optical resonators are widely used in modern photonics. Their spectral response and temporal dynamics are fundamentally driven by their natural resonances, the so-called quasinormal modes (QNMs), with complex frequencies. For optical resonators made of dispersive materials, the QNM computation requires solving a nonlinear eigenvalue problem. This raises a difficulty that is only scarcely documented in the literature. We review our recent efforts for implementing efficient and accurate QNM solvers for computing and normalizing the QNMs of micro- and nanoresonators made of highly dispersive materials. We benchmark several methods for three geometries, a two-dimensional plasmonic crystal, a two-dimensional metal grating, and a three-dimensional nanopatch antenna on a metal substrate, with the perspective to elaborate standards for the computation of resonance modes.Théorie et modélisation numérique des résonances optique