published_or_final_version / abstract / Earth Sciences / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

O objetivo deste trabalho foi acompanhar a ação de uma educadora de infância num espaço reorganizado, verificando as alterações que realizou nesse espaço e em sua prática educativa no decorrer do processo de pesquisaação, observando ainda os efeitos dessas alterações nas crianças através do envolvimento nas atividades que realizavam. A pesquisa desenvolveu-se numa Escola Municipal de Educação Infantil (EMEI) que desenvolvia a proposta pedagógica de Reorganização dos Espaços e das Atividades. A escolha justifica-se por três fatores interligados: necessidade de investigação sobre a formação profissional dos educadores de infância; importância de buscar possibilidades de apoio a práticas educativas que se desvinculem de propostas escolarizantes; fragilidade dos processos de formação em serviço desenvolvidos pelos sistemas educacionais na cidade de São Paulo. O trabalho caracteriza-se como um estudo de caso único, na perspectiva da pesquisa-ação e da tutoria entre pares. Foi realizado o acompanhamento da prática pedagógica através de dois eixos complementares: um voltado ao processo formativo da educadora e o segundo relacionado aos efeitos desse processo na prática pedagógica e no envolvimento das crianças na atividade, com base no instrumento criado por Ferre Laevers Escala de Envolvimento da Criança (The Leuven Involvement Scale for Young Children - LIS-YC). Os instrumentos utilizados foram a observação participante, entrevistas semi-estruturadas, gravação e transcrição de áudio, registro e análise de imagens, documentos escritos. A avaliação dos resultados apontou que o processo formativo gerou mudanças efetivas na prática desenvolvida pela educadora, que foi capaz de responsabilizar-se pelos efeitos de sua prática nas ações das crianças, criando uma postura diferenciada da inicial como investigadora de sua própria prática, identificando problemas na ação, criando hipóteses sobre possíveis causas e buscando maneiras de transformar o que observava. Concluiu-se, com o processo de pesquisa-ação / tutoria entre pares, que a educadora pôde distanciar-se de uma pedagogia transmissiva, aproximando-se de uma pedagogia da participação, que valoriza a ação e o protagonismo da criança, ao mesmo tempo em que deixa para a educadora o real papel de mediadora do processo de construção de conhecimento da criança pequena. / The purpose of this work was to follow the actions of a childrens educator in a reorganized space, and to determine the changes created by this educator in that space, as well as in her educational practice during this collaborative research-action process. The effects of such changes on the children through their involvement in the activities were also taken into consideration. The research was conducted in a childrens public school (EMEI) where the Reorganization of Spaces and Activities teaching proposal was developed. This choice was made based on three associated factors: the need to investigate the professional training of childrens educators; the importance of finding potential support for educational practices different from conventional ones; and the weakness of the educational processes currently developed by the educational system in the city of São Paulo. This work is a single case study from the perspective of a collaborative research-action and peer tutoring. The teaching practice was investigated based on two complementary axes: one was aimed at the training process of the educator and the other was related to the effects of such process on both the teaching practice and the childrens involvement in the activities, all according to the tools created by Ferre Laevers - The Leuven Involvement Scale for Young Children - LIS-YC. The tools in hand included participant observation, semi--structured interviews, audio recording and transcript, image recording and analysis, in addition to written documents. The assessment of results showed that the training process brought forth certain effective changes into the practice introduced by the educator, who was then able to hold herself responsible for the effects of her practices on the childrens actions. Through this process, the educator created a different stance as an investigator of her own practices, which enabled her to identify certain issues in the actions, develop hypotheses regarding potential causes, and seek ways to transform what was then observed. The conclusion is that the collaborative research-action and peer tutoring process enabled the educator to get rid of a transmissive teaching approach and become closer to a more participant teaching, thus promoting actions and childrens leadership while assigning the educator the true role of a mediator in the process of building up childrens early knowledge.

O objetivo deste trabalho foi acompanhar a ação de uma educadora de infância num espaço reorganizado, verificando as alterações que realizou nesse espaço e em sua prática educativa no decorrer do processo de pesquisaação, observando ainda os efeitos dessas alterações nas crianças através do envolvimento nas atividades que realizavam. A pesquisa desenvolveu-se numa Escola Municipal de Educação Infantil (EMEI) que desenvolvia a proposta pedagógica de Reorganização dos Espaços e das Atividades. A escolha justifica-se por três fatores interligados: necessidade de investigação sobre a formação profissional dos educadores de infância; importância de buscar possibilidades de apoio a práticas educativas que se desvinculem de propostas escolarizantes; fragilidade dos processos de formação em serviço desenvolvidos pelos sistemas educacionais na cidade de São Paulo. O trabalho caracteriza-se como um estudo de caso único, na perspectiva da pesquisa-ação e da tutoria entre pares. Foi realizado o acompanhamento da prática pedagógica através de dois eixos complementares: um voltado ao processo formativo da educadora e o segundo relacionado aos efeitos desse processo na prática pedagógica e no envolvimento das crianças na atividade, com base no instrumento criado por Ferre Laevers Escala de Envolvimento da Criança (The Leuven Involvement Scale for Young Children - LIS-YC). Os instrumentos utilizados foram a observação participante, entrevistas semi-estruturadas, gravação e transcrição de áudio, registro e análise de imagens, documentos escritos. A avaliação dos resultados apontou que o processo formativo gerou mudanças efetivas na prática desenvolvida pela educadora, que foi capaz de responsabilizar-se pelos efeitos de sua prática nas ações das crianças, criando uma postura diferenciada da inicial como investigadora de sua própria prática, identificando problemas na ação, criando hipóteses sobre possíveis causas e buscando maneiras de transformar o que observava. Concluiu-se, com o processo de pesquisa-ação / tutoria entre pares, que a educadora pôde distanciar-se de uma pedagogia transmissiva, aproximando-se de uma pedagogia da participação, que valoriza a ação e o protagonismo da criança, ao mesmo tempo em que deixa para a educadora o real papel de mediadora do processo de construção de conhecimento da criança pequena. / The purpose of this work was to follow the actions of a childrens educator in a reorganized space, and to determine the changes created by this educator in that space, as well as in her educational practice during this collaborative research-action process. The effects of such changes on the children through their involvement in the activities were also taken into consideration. The research was conducted in a childrens public school (EMEI) where the Reorganization of Spaces and Activities teaching proposal was developed. This choice was made based on three associated factors: the need to investigate the professional training of childrens educators; the importance of finding potential support for educational practices different from conventional ones; and the weakness of the educational processes currently developed by the educational system in the city of São Paulo. This work is a single case study from the perspective of a collaborative research-action and peer tutoring. The teaching practice was investigated based on two complementary axes: one was aimed at the training process of the educator and the other was related to the effects of such process on both the teaching practice and the childrens involvement in the activities, all according to the tools created by Ferre Laevers - The Leuven Involvement Scale for Young Children - LIS-YC. The tools in hand included participant observation, semi--structured interviews, audio recording and transcript, image recording and analysis, in addition to written documents. The assessment of results showed that the training process brought forth certain effective changes into the practice introduced by the educator, who was then able to hold herself responsible for the effects of her practices on the childrens actions. Through this process, the educator created a different stance as an investigator of her own practices, which enabled her to identify certain issues in the actions, develop hypotheses regarding potential causes, and seek ways to transform what was then observed. The conclusion is that the collaborative research-action and peer tutoring process enabled the educator to get rid of a transmissive teaching approach and become closer to a more participant teaching, thus promoting actions and childrens leadership while assigning the educator the true role of a mediator in the process of building up childrens early knowledge.

I describe the natural history and reproductive behaviours of the Emei Moustache Toad (Leptobrachium boringii), testing the hypotheses that the species exhibits resource defense polygyny, and that combat, and paternal care lead to the evolution of male-biased sexual size dimorphism. In this study I document combat behaviour and paternal care for the first time in this species. Between February and March of 2011 and 2012, 26 female and 55 male L. boringii from Mount Emei UNESCO World Heritage Site, Sichuan, China, were observed throughout the breeding season. Prior to the breeding season, males grow 10-16 keratinized maxillary spines, which fall off once the season has ended. Throughout this time, males construct and defend aquatic nests where they produce advertisement calls to attract females. In a natural setting, I documented 14 cases involving a total of 22 males where males used their moustaches for aggressive interaction, and nest take over was observed on seven occasions. Despite my predictions, neither male body size nor body condition significantly affects the outcome of an aggressive interaction, though this may be representative of a low sample size. Males were also observed to possess injuries resulting from combat. Combat trials conducted in artificial nests demonstrated heightened aggression from resident males towards intruders. Genetic analysis using microsatellite markers revealed several cases of multiple paternity, both within nest and within clutch, indicating that some alternative male reproductive strategy, such as satellite behaviour is occurring. Larger males were observed to mate more frequently, and in multiple nests, suggesting that females are selecting for larger males, or that larger males are more capable of defending high quality territories. Males showed evidence of paternal care behaviours by remaining with the nests once females had left, moving throughout the nest cleaning, touching the eggs, and blowing bubbles into the centre of the doughnut-shaped egg masses. From this study I conclude that the male biased sexual size dimorphism in L. boringii is likely the result of both combat and paternal care behaviours creating a selection pressure on male body size.