Editorial

In conclusion, whatever were our limitations, a wide field has been covered in this Special Number. We should have liked it to have been a hudred times fuller. Indeed, no effort must be spared to win, all over the world, what may still be termed the battle for preschool education.Peer reviewe

Champs d'application de l'investigation educative

Este artículo trata de las contribuciones de los estudios experimentales al conocimiento de la educación. No se desestiman, sin embargo, las importantes contribuciones planeadas cuidadosamente desde las experiencias prácticas. Los métodos de investigación contemporáneos cualitativos y etnográficos permiten renovar el interés de la comunidad científica en esforzarse por este tipo de investigación. Se presentan diez áreas: -Educación preprimaria con una atención especial a la educación de 0-3 años. -Educación primaria (continuidad con la educación preprimaria, tendencias contemporáneas: enseñanza directa versus indirecta, nivel de competencia mínimo, problemas de fracaso escolar, enseñanza para el dominio, formación del profesor), -Educación secundaria (nuevos currícula, consecuencias del cambio de poblaciones, nuevos conceptos de la educación vocacional, cambio de métodos de enseñanza), -Educación superior (carnbios de las características de los estudiantes, necesidad de otros métodos de enseñanza, la teoría de la educación superior como un nuevo cambio de la pedagogía), -Estudio de los procesos de enseñanza (especialmente del nuevo paradigma proceso-producto y del paradigma ecol6gico; teorías y planes implícitos en la investigación de la enseñanza, educación del enseñante basada en la competencia versus humanismo), -Educación y tecnología (con especial atención a la tecnología del computador, desarrollo del software educativo y su irnpacto en el desarrollo del currículum, nuevo acercamiento a las actividades de enseñanza y aprendizaje), -Evaluación de programas (nuevas aproximaciones, revisión de las consecuciones internacionales, monitorización), -Desarrollo y evaluación del curriculum, -.Métodos de investigación, -0tros campos. En su conclusión, la autora enfatiza la importancia de la investigación educativa en este tiempo de crisis cultural. Destaca que, en Europa, la investigación educativa no ha recibido aún el suficiente soporte financiero para estar en posición de contribuir significativamente al progreso de los sistemas educativos y denuncia el punto critico en términos de que el número de investigadores cualificados en este campo es insuficiente.This article deals with contributions to educational knowledge resulting from experimental studies. The contributions from sound, carefully thought out practica1 experiences is, however, not underestimated. Contemporary qualitative, anthropological research methods allow renewed interest of the scientific community for this type of research endeavour. Ten areas are presented: -Preprimary education with special attention devoted to age 0-3 education, -Primary education (continuity with preprimary education, contemporary trends: direct versus indirect teaching, minimun competency testing, problems of school failure, mastery learning, teacher education), --Secondary education (new curricula, consequences of change of populations, new concepts of vocational education, change of teaching methods), --Higher education (changing characteristics of students, need for other teaching methods, higher education theory as a new field of pedagogy), -Study of teaching processes (specially the new process-product paradigm and the ecological paradigm; research on teacher implicit theories and planning; competency based versus humanistic teacher education), -Education and technology (with special attention to computer technology, development of educational software and impact on curriculum development, new look at teaching and learning activities), -Programme evaluation (new approaches, international achievement surveys, monitoring), --Curriculum development and evaluation, -Research methods, -0ther domains In the conclusion, the author emphasizes the importance of educational research at this tirne of cultural crisis. In Europe, educational research has not yet received enough financial support to be in a position to contribute significantly to the progress of the school systems. This will remain the case as long as a critica1 point in terms of number of qualified researches is not reached

Tendances éducatives en Belgique

peer reviewe

Sint-Jansplein Brugge (W.-Vl.). Eindverslag van een toevalsvondst

Bij werkzaamheden in het kader van het vergroenen van de Brugse binnenstad, werd op het Sint-Jansplein, dat zich binnen de oudste kern van Brugge bevindt en binnen de eerste stadsomwalling ligt, op archeologische muurresten gestoten. De aangetroffen archeologische sporen behoren hoofdzakelijk tot de 17de-eeuwse Sint-Janskapel. Het gaat voornamelijk om smal bakstenen muurwerk en ondiepe funderingen. Één muur daarentegen is wel breed en massief. Het gaat waarschijnlijk om een gere-integreerde kettingmuur van de voormalige Sint-Janskerk. In een poging om aanvullende informatie te vergaren over de ligging van de kerk en kapel, werd een bijkomend geofysisch onderzoek uitgevoerd door middel van grondradar. Ondanks de grote hoeveelheid sporen die tijdens het geofysisch onderzoek werden, konden weinig of geen ervan met grote waarschijnlijkheid een archeologische interpretatie worden toegedeeld

Educational Research and Developing Countries; facts, figures and some conceptual approaches for analysing interactions between funding, products and users

SUMMARY Educational research in the development context (ERDC) is the product of various kinds of international interactions and negotiations. These provide a typology of such research: disciplinary, instrumental, action, and policy research. All these are characterised by particular patterns of information flow and are influenced by resource availability and power structures. Suggestions for reforming ERDC are put forward. RESUMEN Investigación en educación y países en desarrollo: hechos, cifras y algunos enfoques conceptuales para analizar las interacciones existentes entre financiamiento, resultados y usuarios La investigación educacional en el contexto del desarrollo es resultado de variadas interacciones y negociaciones internacionales, las que le proporcionan una tipología; disciplina, instrumental, acción y política. Todas estas categorías están caracterizadas por determinados flujos informativos e influenciadas por la disponibilidad de recursos y las estructuras de poder. Se formulan sugerencias para reformarla. SOMMAIRE La recherche sur l'éducation et les pays en voie de développement: faits, chiffres, et quelques approches conceptuelles pour l'analyse des interactions entre le financement, les produits et les utilisateurs La recherche sur l'éducation dans le contexte du développement (RECD) est le résultat de différentes sortes d'interactions et de négotiations internationales. Elles donnent une typologie d'une telle recherche: disciplinaire, instrumentale, action, et politique de recherche. Elles sont toutes caractérisées par des formes particulières de courant d'information et sont influencées par la disponibilité des ressources et les structures de compétence Des suggestions en vue de faire des réformes dans la RECD sont énoncées

Laparoscopic Isthmocele Repair: Efficacy and Benefits before and after Subsequent Cesarean Section.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effect of laparoscopic isthmocele repair on isthmocele-related symptoms and/or fertility-related problems. The residual myometrial thickness before and after subsequent cesarean section was also evaluated. DESIGN: Retrospective, case series. SETTING: Public university hospital. POPULATION: Women with isthmocele (residual myometrium < 5 mm) complaining of abnormal uterine bleeding, chronic pelvic pain or secondary infertility not otherwise specified. METHODS: Women's complaints and the residual myometrium were assessed pre-operatively and at three to six months post-operatively. In patients who conceived after surgery, the latter was measured at least six months after delivery by cesarean section. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Resolution of the main symptom three to six months after surgery and persistence of laparoscopic repair benefits after subsequent cesarean section were considered as primary outcome measures. RESULTS: Overall, 31 women underwent laparoscopic isthmocele repair. The success rates of the surgery as improvement of abnormal uterine bleeding, chronic pelvic pain and secondary infertility were 71.4% (10 of 14), 83.3% (10 of 12) and 83.3% (10 of 12), respectively. Mean residual myometrial thickness increased significantly from 1.77 mm pre-operatively to 6.67 mm, three to six months post-operatively. Mean myometrial thickness in patients who underwent subsequent cesarean section (N = 7) was 4.49 mm. In this sub-group, there was no significant difference between the mean myometrial thickness measured after the laparoscopic isthmocele repair and that measured after the subsequent cesarean section. None of these patients reported recurrence of their symptoms after delivery. CONCLUSION: Our findings suggest that the laparoscopic isthmocele excision and repair is an appropriate approach for the treatment of isthmocele-related symptoms when done by skilled laparoscopic surgeons. The benefit of this new surgical approach seems to persist even after a subsequent cesarean section. Further investigations and prospective studies are required to confirm this finding

Morphological and Functional Changes in the Vagina following Critical Lifespan Events in the Ewe.

peer reviewed[en] BACKGROUND/AIMS: The ewe is increasingly being used as an animal model for pelvic floor disorders. The aim was to further characterize changes in the vaginal properties during its entire lifespan. METHODS: Vaginal tissues were collected at different stages of reproductive life (neonatal, prepubescence, nulliparous, primiparous, multiparous, and menopausal; ≥6 ewes/group). Vaginal size, as well as active and passive biomechanics, was measured. Microscopy included thickness of glycogen, epithelium, lamina propria and muscularis thickness, densities of collagen, elastin, smooth muscle, and nerves. RESULTS: Vaginal dimensions increase during adolescence, peak at reproductive levels, and decrease sharply after ovariectomy. One year after first delivery, the distal vagina gets more compliant, yet this is reversed later in life. The thickness of glycogen staining epithelial layers changed with puberty and menopause. The epithelium was markedly thicker after multiple deliveries. The thickness of lamina propria and muscularis increased in puberty and in nulliparous. Semi-quantitative collagen assessment demonstrated a lower collagen and higher elastin content after first and multiple deliveries. CONCLUSION: The changes in the ovine vaginal wall during representative moments of her lifespan parallel those observed in women

Practice of laparoscopic prolapse surgery in Europe - ESGE Survey.

peer reviewedSacrocolpopexy is considered as the "gold standard" for management of women with apical prolapse. Numerous technical variants are being practiced. The first aim of this survey was to determine the habits of practice of laparoscopic sacrocolpopexy (LSCP) in Europe. The second aim was to determine whether surgeons who perform laparoscopic pelvic organ prolapse (POP) repair are familiar with the practice of alternative techniques and with mesh-less laparoscopic treatment of prolapse. The questionnaire was designed by the Urogynaecology Special Interest Group of the European Society for Gynaecological Endoscopy (ESGE). All ESGE-members were invited by email to respond to this survey consisting of 54 questions divided in different categories. Following review of ESGE member's responses, we have highlighted the great heterogeneity concerning the practice of LSCP and important variability in performance of concomitant surgeries. Alternative techniques are rarely used in practice. Furthermore, the lack of standardisation of the many surgical steps of a laparoscopic sacrocolpopexy is mainly due to the lack of evidence. There is a need for training and teaching in both standard and newer innovative techniques as well as the reporting of medium and long-term outcomes of both standard laparoscopic sacrocolpopexy and any of its alternatives