Molecular thermodynamics for cell biology as taught with boxes

Thermodynamic principles are basic to an understanding of the complex fluxes of energy and information required to keep cells alive. These microscopic machines are nonequilibrium systems at the micron scale that are maintained in pseudo-steady-state conditions by very sophisticated processes. Therefore, several nonstandard concepts need to be taught to rationalize why these very ordered systems proliferate actively all over our planet in seeming contradiction to the second law of thermodynamics. We propose a model consisting of boxes with different shapes that contain small balls that are in constant motion due to a stream of air blowing from below. This is a simple macroscopic system that can be easily visualized by students and that can be understood as mimicking the behavior of a set of molecules exchanging energy. With such boxes, the basic concepts of entropy, enthalpy, and free energy can be taught while reinforcing a molecular understanding of the concepts and stressing the stochastic nature of the thermodynamic laws. In addition, time-related concepts, such as reaction rates and activation energy, can be readily visualized. Moreover, the boxes provide an intuitive way to introduce the role in cellular organization of "information" and Maxwell's demons operating under nonequilibrium conditions.     

Inequality of opportunity for educational achievement in Latin America: Evidence from PISA 2006–2009

We evaluate how far away six Latin American countries stand from a normative goal of equality of opportunity for educational achievement in PISA 2006–2009. We work with alternative characterizations of types: gender, school type (public or private), parental education, and their combinations. Following Checchi–Peragine's (2010) non-parametric method, we find that inequality of opportunity for educational achievement in Latin America ranges from less than 1% to up to 25%, depending on the year, the country, the subject and the specification of circumstances. These magnitudes are substantial with respect to what is found in comparator countries. Parental education and school type prove to be important sources of inequality of opportunity, contrary to gender. By means of sensitivity analyses, while most results show small to moderate variation in terms of magnitudes, in ordinal terms (rankings) they remain quite stable. Brazil stands out as the most opportunity-unequal country of the sample.     

Towards a multidimensional model for evaluating electronic government: Proposing a more comprehensive and integrative perspective

The use of information and communication technologies has been a key strategy for government reform. It offers diverse benefits, ranging from efficiency and effectiveness to transparency and greater democratic participation. Governments in many parts of the world have invested vast resources into electronic government projects with the expectation of achieving these and other outcomes. However, the results in many cases are limited and there is no comprehensive way to evaluate these initiatives at the aggregate level. A method for measuring and evaluating electronic government that identifies its advances and problems is needed. Previous efforts to do so are limited in terms of scope and dimensions being considered. Based on a review of current literature and the analysis of international best practices, this paper proposes a multidimensional model for measuring and evaluating electronic government. It also includes examples, a proposal of how to operationalize it, and several recommendations for practical use.     

Understanding risks,benefits, and strategic alternatives of social media applications in the public sector

Social media such as blogs, microblogs or electronic social networks can transform the ways in which we relate to other people and organizations. Government organizations are experimenting with social media to communicate with their constituents, and many analysts see in these media a powerful set of tools to reinvent government–citizen relationships. In this paper, we present the perceptions of risks, benefits and strategic guidelines about social media applications gathered from 250 public servants from Central Mexico, most of them working in information technology, as web masters or responding to Freedom of Information Act requests. The conclusions of the analysis are 1) that governments' participation in social media may result in improved communication and citizen participation, more transparency, and transfer of best practices among government agencies; 2) that a good implementation strategy is necessary to realize these benefits and to avoid risks; and 3) that the implementation of social media highlights the importance of updating laws and regulations, and of promoting changes in government culture and organizational practices.     

The Clientelistic Nature of Television Policies in Democratic Spain

This article uses a case study to contribute to the debate on media-political clientelism and its relation to the theory of media systems. It proposes a cross-disciplinary approach between the fields of communication and political sciences and thus analyzes four dimensions to observe the evolution of these practices in the area of television policies during Spanish democracy: license granting, television ownership regulation, politicization of the public service, and partisan news coverage. The period analyzed includes conservative and social democrat governments, trying to find differences in clientelistic practices among the different political parties. The analysis demonstrates how partisan relationships have evolved and what mechanisms have been put in place to maintain clientelistic ties.     

Relating Gestures and Speech: An analysis of students' conceptions about geological sedimentary processes

Advances in cognitive science and educational research indicate that a significant part of spatial cognition is facilitated by gesture (e.g. giving directions, or describing objects or landscape features). We aligned the analysis of gestures with conceptual metaphor theory to probe the use of mental image schemas as a source of concept representations for students' learning of sedimentary processes. A hermeneutical approach enabled us to access student meaning-making from students' verbal reports and gestures about four core geological ideas that involve sea-level change and sediment deposition. The study included 25 students from three US universities. Participants were enrolled in upper-level undergraduate courses on sedimentology and stratigraphy. We used semi-structured interviews for data collection. Our gesture coding focused on three types of gestures: deictic, iconic, and metaphoric. From analysis of video recorded interviews, we interpreted image schemas in gestures and verbal reports. Results suggested that students attempted to make more iconic and metaphoric gestures when dealing with abstract concepts, such as relative sea level, base level, and unconformities. Based on the analysis of gestures that recreated certain patterns including time, strata, and sea-level fluctuations, we reasoned that proper representational gestures may indicate completeness in conceptual understanding. We concluded that students rely on image schemas to develop ideas about complex sedimentary systems. Our research also supports the hypothesis that gestures provide an independent and non-linguistic indicator of image schemas that shape conceptual development, and also play a role in the construction and communication of complex spatial and temporal concepts in the geosciences.     

“A moving target”: a critical race analysis of Latina/o faculty experiences,perspectives, and reflections on the tenure and promotion process

This article examines how Latina/o professors perceive, experience, and reflect on the tenure and promotion process. Findings for this longitudinal study are drawn from a purposive sample of nine female and seven male, Latina/o tenure-track faculty participants. Using a Critical Race Theory, Latino Critical (LatCrit) Race Theory, and Chicana Feminist framework, this article documents fundamental inequities in the tenure and promotion policies and practices that affected the Latina/o faculty in this study. Using narrative data, educational biographies, in-depth semi-structured interviews, and unstructured ethnographic interviews, this study found four common themes: (1) tenure and promotion processes functioned as a “tool of fear,” (2) the tenure and promotion process was like a “moving target,” (3) tenure provided limited forms of respect but not full membership, and (4) Latina/o supervivencia enabled the professors to thrive despite unsupportive and sometimes hostile campus and departmental climates.     

El enfoque sistemático en Educación Especial

RESUMEN

Se presenta un modelo de educación especial basado en un enfoque sistemático de la enseñanza. La aplicación de este enfoque a la educación normal y a la especial presenta algunas diferencias. Se hace un desarrollo teórico de los principales componente del modelo (identificación de necesidades, definición de objetivos, análisis de tareas, evaluación, secuenciación), así como una descripción del procedimiento y las diversas técnicas relativas a cada uno de ellos (sistemas de incentivos, materiales, sistemas de registro, requisitos de los sujetos, etc.).     

Modificación de los hábitos de estudio a través de técnicas de autorregulación: estudio de un caso

Resumen

El propósito de este estudio fue diseñar un modelo válido para la adquisición de unos adecuados hábitos de estudio, basado en una combinación de estrategias de autorregulación y técnicas de estudio. Se procedió mediante un diseño exploratorio de línea de base múltiple, con un único sujeto que incluía: a) fase de pretest, b) primera fase de intervención, en la que se introdujeron las estrategias de autorregulación, c) segunda fase de intervención o de introducción de las técnicas de estudio, y d) fase de postest. El resultado fue un cambio experimental y terapéuticamente significativo en los hábitos de estudio y en las conductas exponentes de: tiempo de estudio, desatención, y velocidad y comprensión lectoras, las calificaciones experimentaron un ascenso progresivo. Estos cambios se mantuvieron y consolidaron en el seguimiento, las estrategias de autorregulación se han mostrado útiles para aumentar la probabilidad de ocurrencia de la conducta deseada y disminuir la de la no deseada.     

Practical Work in Earth Sciences Education: An experience with students in the context of a National Science Programme in Portugal

The programme Ciencia Viva of the Portuguese Ministry of Science and Technology aims to create a greater understanding of science and science education amongst scientists, teachers, school children and the general public, each of whom is encouraged to cooperate and interact through regular contacts. The purpose is to improve practical, experimental and other forms of investigative work. To accomplish such work in schools, an overview of the state of science education worldwide is presented in terms of old and new traditions of the teaching of the physical and historical sciences the latter including the teaching of fieldwork. Traditional practices are compared with those established recently in various parts of the world in which more carefully considered understanding of the nature of science and science education has been established. In illustration of good practice, an outline is offered of the nature and rationale of two sets of curricular materials. These were designed by a team comprising staff members of the University of Aveiro and secondary school teachers and were trialled in schools. These activities are concerned with the internal rock cycle and the internal energy of the Earth in relation to plate tectonic theory. They are also related to the processes of weathering, erosion, transportation and deposition of sedimentary rocks and structures (like wave and current ripple marks) which were formed as part of the external rock cycle driven by the Sun's energy. The account concludes with an outline of the sub programme 'Geology in Summer', a fieldwork programme which introduces a holistic understanding of the workings of the outer part of the Earth to the general public. Students' perspectives and teachers' views about these experiences are generally very positive and are presented at the end. The whole programme was evaluated by an international team of scientists and science educators.