The diploma thesis is focused on the development of natural science literacy of pre-school age children and pupils of younger school age. The aim of this thesis is didactic processing of materials which will enable teachers/lecturers/parents to develop natural science literacy of children, without themselves having to have education in chemistry for correct understanding of the experiment, and thanks to which, at the same time, they could pass on the correct information to children in such way that prevents from the occurrence of natural science misconceptions to a maximum possible extent. The theoretical part of the thesis is devoted to child ontogenesis in pre-school and early school age, which is subsequently reflected in the creation of materials for development of natural science literacy of this target age category of children. The theoretical work includes also the characterisation of the term natural science literacy as a possible tool for increasing interest in the study of natural sciences. It states the expected positives, but also possible negatives, especially in the form of resulting misconceptions which can be associated to the introduction of natural science education for younger children. In the subsequent part, an analysis of syllabus of natural science-focused subjects at...

The purpose of this study is to investigate witch knowledge and thoughts children will have about the term of floating and sinking, and witch possibilities there is to make various knowledge visible in preschool physics through playing with water. The study also concern the differences and similarities between two different groups of age who have participated in the study. The study was carried out by an activity with participant observation and feedback interviews afterwards. The result shows that the possibilities to physics are many in preschool. The children expressed new thoughts and ideas who concern other phenomena in physics during the investigation and discussed similar experiments and material to examine. The result shows that the children used previous experience and knowledge to explain and ask hypotheses. They also used their language through interaction with each other to understand, create and recreate knowledge. / Syftet med studien är att undersöka vilka kunskaper och tankar barn har kring begreppen flyta och sjunka, och vilka möjligheter det finns att synliggöra de olika kunskaperna inom fysik i förskolan genom vattenlek. Studien berör även skillnader och likheter mellan två åldersgrupper som deltagit i undersökningen. Studien genomfördes genom en aktivitet med deltagande observation samt återkoppling med intervjuer efter aktivitetstillfället. Resultatet visar på att möjligheterna till fysik i förskolan är många. Under undersökningen gav barnen uttryck för nya tankar och idéer som berör andra fenomen inom fysiken samt diskuterade vidare om liknande experiment och material de ville undersöka. Resultatet visar att barnen använde sig av tidigare erfarenheter och kunskaper för att förklara och ställa hypoteser. De använde sig även av språket genom samspelet med varandra för att förstå, skapa och omskapa kunskap.

The Technology Acceptance Model has been widely applied and has been quite successful at explaining the behavioral intention to use technology in many organizations. One of the most significant variables in the Technology Acceptance Model is perceived ease of use. The Technology Acceptance Model purports that perceived ease of use contributes to the behavioral intention to use technology. Additionally, the model purports that perceived ease of use is an antecedent of perceived usefulness. In the adoption and use of technology by physicians, previous studies show that the Technology Acceptance Model predictions have been incorrect. Specifically, the aforementioned perceived ease of use prediction is not repeatedly supported in health care environments. In order to further investigate and ultimately explain this abnormality in the Technology Acceptance Model's predictive ability in the health care industry, a positivist case study using various coding techniques was conducted to investigate physicians' behavioral intention to use a Personal Digital Assistant in their work environment. The Physicians' Technology Acceptance Model is a major result of this case study. The Physicians' Technology Acceptance Model, which is based on the Extended Technology Acceptance Model (Venkatesh et al. 2000), is absent of the perceived ease of use construct and includes two additional constructs: perceived substitution, which is defined as, "the degree to which an individual perceives that alternate sources are available to deliver the same information or assistance as the technology in question" and facilitating conditions (Venkatesh et al. 2003) , which is defined as, "the degree to which an individual believes that an organizational and technical infrastructure exists to support use of the system" (p. 453). This organizational case study rigorously follows a positivist approach ("natural-science model" of social-science research (Lee 1989b)).

(Abstract) My thesis explores the use of the Studeny dul site for learning purposes, namely biology and fundaments of civic and natural science, on the primary school level. My study aims at examining a field trip on the primary school level, and at attracting students' attention to the marginalized group of bryophytes. To meet these objectives, I have designed four field trips that focus on observation of transformations within natural world depending on the changes specific to the four seasons. While engaging with the natural environment, students perform practical tasks and exercises that aim at deepening of their knowledge acquired previously in the classroom. Students of a primary school in Plzen participated in field trips within a span of one school year. My primary objectives consisted of strengthening students' positive relationship with nature, and of understanding of the relationship between the human and nature.

This dissertation aims to contrast the differences between Montesquieu¡¦s and Quesnay¡¦s thoughts of China Despotism theory, to analyze the methodology and epistemology used by the two scholars to demonstrate and observe traditional China despotism, and, to expound and examine the description of traditional China despotism in Montesquieu¡¦s and Quesnay¡¦s thoughts. Montesquieu was a rare one among Enlightenment philosophers who profoundly discussed China Despotism in the eighteenth century. In the elaboration of Montesquieu¡¦s China Despotism, there were lots of contradictions in De L'espirt Des Lois. Traditional China government was depreciated by him. From the empirical induce methodology, positivism epistemology and ontology¡¦s point of view, this dissertation tries to deeply analyze and research Montesquieu¡¥s China Despotism. At the time, there were also some Enlightenment Philosophers who have a different view of China Despotism. The representative was a Physiocrat ¡V Francois Quesnay. In his Le Despotisme De La Chine, he marked traditional China government positively. Quesnay, who developed his view based on the same empirical facts about traditional China according to the eighteenth century¡¦s Jesuits, travelers and businessmen and with the same natural science methodology, had totally different views and thoughts about China Despotism from Montesquieu. This dissertation has a detailed study and review on these differences. Questions will be explored in this dissertation are as below. Did the natural science methodology and epistemology of Montesquieu¡¦s and Quesnay¡¦s China Despotism strengthen the judgment of how they valued traditional China government? Were there pre-judgments in their so-called neutral and objective denouncement about the way they researched China Despotism in the empirical induce methodology and epistemology? Were Montesquieu¡¦s and Quesnay¡¦s judgments about China Depotism enhanced by the natural science methodology and epistemology a kind of western centralism? Did they, in the name of neutral and objective empirical induce methodology and epistemology that could not reason non-western value, refuse and devaluate other non-western value? This dissertation has a deeply reflection on these from the ¡§paradigm¡¨ and ¡§incommensurable¡¨ methodological concepts of Thomas S. Kuhn¡¦s. If Montesquieu¡¦s China Despotism was the main point of western culture, was the way Quesnay observed traditional China government presenting a different value in the west culture and there were still some admiring this kind of value? Was this kind of evaluation neglected by recent Chinese intellects? This is a serious problem worthy of reconsideration and reflection. Keywords: Montesquieu, François Quesnay, Physiocracy, Despotism, enlightened despotism, China Despotism, natural science methodology, theory laden, Thomas S. Kuhn, paradigm, incommensurable

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Chicago, 2002. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 235-256). Also available on the Internet.

The purpose of this study is to gain understanding of when and how the preschool teacher is working with physics in preschool, and if there is any difference in the work depending on the age of the children. The survey was conducted with qualitative interviews with ten preschool teachers. The result of the survey showed that there are some differences and similarities in the work of physics in preschool depending on the age group you are working in. The activities chosen to make physics visible to the children, and how to help each other in different departments to get tips and advice for work with physics was different. The teachers of toddlers section (1-3) saw physics in everyday situations and tried to take advantage of these situations and they felt lonely in their planning of work with physics. While large children's departments (3-5) had planned activities and took advantage of physics in everyday situations with the work with physics and they had more collaboration between different departments. All teachers see the time they go to the forest as the planned time they have focused on natural sciences and physics. But physics is not usually visible during this time. / Syftet med detta examensarbete är att få en uppfattning om när och hur förskollärare arbetar med fysik i förskolan och om det är någon skillnad i arbetet beroende på vilken ålder det är på barnen i den barngrupp man arbetar. Undersökningen är gjord med kvalitativa intervjuer med 10 förskollärare. Resultatet av undersökningen visar att det finns vissa skillnader och likheter i arbetet med fysik i förskolan beroende på vilken åldersgrupp man arbetar i. Vilka aktiviteter man väljer för att synliggöra fysik för barnen och hur man tar hjälp av varandra på olika avdelningar för att få tips och råd inför arbetet med fysik skilde sig åt. Pedagogerna på småbarnsavdelning(1-3) såg fysik mestadels i vardagen och försökte ta tillvara på dessa situationer och de kände sig ensamma i sin planering kring arbetet med fysik. Storbarnsavdelningarna(3-5) hade däremot planerade aktiviteter men tog också tillvara på fysik i vardagen i arbetet kring fysik och de hade mer samarbete mellan avdelningar. Samtliga pedagoger ser den tid de går till skogen som den planerade tid som de har inriktad mot naturvetenskap och fysik. Men fysik synliggörs vanligtvis inte under denna tid.

A majority of the arid grasslands in the western U.S. have been dramatically altered by anthropogenic influences resulting in degradation and desertification. Within the arid grasslands of North America a guild of burrowing herbivorous rodents that includes kangaroo rats (Dipodomys spp.) and prairie dogs (Cynomys spp.) is often considered integral to arid grassland maintenance. As part of the larger guild of burrowing herbivorous rodents, kangaroo rats are considered to be an important keystone guild whose role as ecosystem engineers and habitat modifiers complements that of prairie dogs. Together these species organize and structure arid grassland ecosystems and the biodiversity therein, by providing a mosaic of microhabitat patches, thus increasing overall heterogeneity. In an area where black-tailed prairie dogs (C. ludovicianus) were reintroduced, I used Giving-up Density (GUD) to assess the indirect effects black-tailed prairie dogs might have on the foraging patterns of resident kangaroo rats (D. spectabilis and D. merriamii). My objective was to compare and contrast kangaroo rat foraging GUD within and along the boundary of a on a recently established black-tailed prairie dog colony with that in the surrounding unmodified native habitat. This enabled assessment of whether black-tailed prairie dogs had an influence on the perceived quality of the habitat by kangaroo rats. Kangaroo rats visited off-colony feeding trays more frequently, and collected a greater mean mass of seed per tray as well. This indicates that the kangaroo rats perceived the area off the prairie dog colony as having a lower foraging cost than on the colony or along the colony edge. I conclude that from the perspective of the seed-eating kangaroo rat, the colony is not viewed as high quality habitat. What impact the reintroduction and management of one keystone species might have on another keystone species deserves additional consideration as we attempt to restore arid grassland ecosystems.

No description available.

No description available.