Bahrain: Cardiovascular Disease

A beautiful island in the Arabian Gulf (Persian Gulf), east of Saudi Arabia, north of Qatar, Bahrain is home to over 1.5 million people. The diverse population consists of Muslims, Hindus, Christians, Asians, Africans, and so much more. Bahrain is a constitutional monarchy. The current commander of the Bahrain defense force is Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa. For the most part, Bahrainis have political freedoms. However, one major problem Bahrainis face, in particular men, is cardiovascular disease. Cardiovascular disease accounted for 34% of deaths in 2002. It is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in Bahrain. Obesity and inactivity are the two greatest risk factors for this condition. While many are aware of the problem, not all people are willing to change their lifestyles. Education about the benefits of an improved lifestyle is vital to reducing cardiovascular disease. The Bahrain government has allocated budgets to help improve care and has raised awareness. It is good to have better health care, but much of the solution lies in the individual. It is up to the individual to decide what is best for him

La enseñanza de la combinatoria orientada bajo la teoría de situaciones didácticas

Esta propuesta es el resultado de la investigación llevada a cabo en el Núcleo de Pensamiento Aleatorio y los objetivos fueron (1) diseñar una unidad didáctica que (a) abordara la enseñanza de la combinatoria con un fuerte énfasis en la comprensión e (b) involucrara a los estudiantes en la construcción colectiva de los significados mediante el trabajo en grupos colaborativos. (2) contrastar la efectividad de la unidad didáctica en el desempeño de los estudiantes en un test de combinatoria. Para responder a estos objetivos seguimos las recomendaciones de la Teoría de situaciones didácticas de Brousseau (1997) y las recomendaciones para el análisis de datos cuantitativos (Hernández- Sampieri, Fernández-Collado, & Baptista-Lucio, 2008)

How in-service language teachers become effective users of CALL for online teaching and learning : a case study of their development processes in a transformative online teacher training and development course

PhD ThesisThe design of courses for training teachers in the use of technology for language learning is a continuing focus of interest in the teacher training community, and standards have been proposed regarding the skills and knowledge that teachers need in order to use technology with their learners. However, the issue is not only what teachers need to know and can do with technology, but how teacher training courses can be created in ways as to help teachers to both implement technology effectively and keep pace with technological advances. Evidence about the process of developing those skills and knowledge is therefore central to the design of teacher training courses which are both effective and sustainable, in the sense of being adaptable to different contexts and changes in the technology. This thesis directly engages with the transformative processes experienced by language educators learning how to use technology for online language teaching. By examining how teachers develop their CALL competence for online language teaching, it is possible to suggest strategies to improve models for teacher professional development in CALL. This investigation is a case study of 8 in-service English language teachers in Chile who participated voluntarily in a guided online training and development course for Computer Assisted Language Learning (CALL) during 8 weeks. This course supported the teachers’ integration of theory, practice and reflection and was delivered via the virtual learning environment Moodle. The design of the course was based upon four main components, namely socio-constructivism, transformative learning, the community of inquiry model and the skills for online language teaching. Evaluative instruments such as pre- and post-course online questionnaires and interviews, the teachers’ log files and discussion forums and blogs posts in Moodle were applied to collect data. These data were analysed using Content analysis and descriptive statistics in order to uncover the teachers’ developmental processes. ii The findings of this study highlight the relevance of both collaborative and individual reflection to developing CALL skills and knowledge in CALL teacher education. The presence of an online tutor was also identified as key to promoting teaching presence in the online course. Additionally, the results suggest that a spiral rather than a linear of pyramid model provides a better representation of how the teachers developed their CALL skills and knowledge for online language teaching. The outcomes show that the teachers improved their understanding of using online resources and gained the confidence they needed to apply that technology effectively in their language courses, a process that the study refers to as the development of ‘digital self-esteem’. Based on an in depth consideration of the developmental processes revealed in this study, proposals are made for further research and recommendations are made for improvements to the design of the online training and development course.the Chilean government, Conicyt and Becas Chile programme for awarding me with a scholarship to study in the U

Possible Dysregulation of Orexin and Dopamine Systems in Anorexia Nervosa

Anorexia nervosa (AN) is a psychiatric illness characterized by a lack of motivation and a taste for rewarding food consumption. Mood disorders such as depression and stress are frequently associated with this condition. Abnormalities in several neural systems have been identified in patients with AN, including serotonin, dopamine (DA), appetite-related neuropeptides, and other neurochemical systems. Moreover, the changes that occur between the mesolimbic dopaminergic pathway and the orexin neurons in the lateral hypothalamus (LH) in response to the reduction in food consumption are key in the development of AN. Several studies suggest a functional relationship between orexin and dopaminergic circuits. LH orexin neurons project dense fibers on dopaminergic neurons, potently activating these neurons. DA and orexin neurons regulate negative and positive motivational states, such as drug and food seeking behavior. For this reason, it is important to extend the study of the functional and emotional interactions that exist between both neuronal systems to design new drugs that act at a behavioral and molecular level to treat AN. This chapter provides an overview of the evidence from literature implicating dopamine-orexin systems in AN and discusses recent advances that have contributed to our current understanding of the mechanisms underlying the molecular bases of AN

Uso de las WebQuest como recurso educativo potencializador del aprendizaje de la trigonometría

El presente trabajo hace una descripción del análisis efectuado en estudio y aplicación de la metodología WebQuest como un recurso didáctico cuya fuente de información es Internet. El propósito de esta estrategia es elaborar una situación didáctica usando el método WebQuest como estrategia de enseñanza enfocada en la investigación que centra su interés en el aprendizaje por descubrimiento guiado. Por lo cual se diseñó una situación didáctica de trigonometría que busca desarrollar y fortalecer el trabajo autónomo, habilidades para la investigación y la toma de decisiones

Affective factors that influence english oral production in the 8th level students of basic general education at Juan Pablo II high school in Ibarra

Apply methodological strategies to manage the affective factors in English oral production, in order to enhance self-esteem and minimize anxiety in 8th level students at Juan Pablo II High school.Los factores afectivos son una parte importante en el aprendizaje del inglés como un idioma extranjero. Este estudio tiene como objetivo diseñar una guía de producción oral con estrategias que ayuden a los estudiantes a minimizar la ansiedad y aumentar la autoestima. Este estudio se llevó a cabo en el colegio Juan Pablo II con estudiantes de 8vo año de Educación General Básica. En esta investigación, 66 estudiantes participaron proporcionando información necesaria sobre como los factores afectivos afectan su desempeño oral en inglés. La información se recopilo a través de diferentes técnicas de investigación como observación científica y una encuesta; las cuales fueron usadas para obtener los datos necesarios para caracterizar los efectos de la ansiedad y la autoestima en los estudiantes. Los resultados obtenidos fueron que los estudiantes de octavo nivel experimentan ansiedad y bajos niveles de confianza mientras realizan presentaciones orales en Inglés en el aula de clase. Consecuentemente se analizaron los resultados para buscar métodos y desarrollar estrategias que ayuden a los estudiantes a sobre llevar la ansiedad durante presentaciones a fin de diseñar y aplicar estrategias para resolver el problema.Licenciatur

El azar y la probabilidad desde el juego

El azar es inherente a nuestras vidas. Se nos presenta de distintas formas en múltiples situaciones cotidianas que exigen ser resueltas, recurriendo generalmente a la intuición. Pero las intuiciones en probabilidad con frecuencia nos engañan y una enseñanza formal es insuficiente para superar los sesgos de razonamiento que pueden llevar a decisiones incorrectas (Batanero, 2006). Este trabajo tiene como propósito abordar el análisis combinatorio y probabilístico a través actividades que involucran el juego y las TIC como mediadores en el fortalecimiento del pensamiento aleatorio. La metodología se ejecuta en dos momentos, en el primero se presentan actividades que introducen el concepto de espacio muestral integrado con tablas de frecuencia llevadas a hojas de cálculo en Excel; en el segundo momento se proponen juegos que desarrollan el concepto intuitivo de probabilidad, su relación con las proporciones, representaciones y aplicaciones; finalmente se visitan páginas web que ofrecen simulaciones de situaciones que retroalimentan los conceptos trabajados en el taller. El objetivo principal de la propuesta es la de compartir una experiencia de enseñanza desarrollada en la Institución Educativa José Miguel de Restrepo y Puerta, Copacabana Antioquia, además de incentivar la búsqueda de alternativas de enseñanza de la Estadística, que cualifique y eleve el nivel de conceptualización en esta disciplina y la creación de redes de trabajo para compartir experiencias pedagógicas

The Ethnic Context and Attitudes Toward 9th Grade Math

The present study examined the relations between ethnic context and attitudes about 9th grade math in youth from different ethnic groups who had recently transitioned to high school. The large sample comprised African American, Latino, White, and Asian youth (n = 2265, 55% girls, Mage = 14.6 yrs.) A new questionnaire was developed assessing four math attitudes (perceived competence, feelings of belonging, perceive importance and anxiety in math) and two ethnic context variables (perceived same-ethnic peers in one’s math class and perceptions of the school ethnic climate). Participants listed the math course they were taking in 9th grade and then completed the questionnaire based on that class. Perceiving more same-ethnic classmates in math was related to more positive attitudes about perceived competence and feelings of belonging in math. Significant interactions between the two ethnic context variables were documented suggesting that a positive ethnic climate buffered some of the negative effects of few same-ethnic peers on perceived competence and belonging. Implications of the findings for understanding the social-motivational underpinnings of high school course-taking among multiethnic youth were discussed