The major purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of a science course for prospective elementary teachers on their perceptions of the learning environment, attitudes towards science, and understandings of the nature of science. The sample consisted of 525 female students enrolled in 27 classes of A Process Approach to Science (SCED 401) at a large urban university in Southern California. Also comparisons were made between SCED 401 and the students' previous laboratory course with regard to the learning environment and attitudes. Perceptions of the learning environment were measured using scales from the Science Laboratory Environment Inventory (Open-Endedness and Material Environment) and the What Is Happening In this Class? (Student Cohesiveness, Instructor Support, Cooperation, Investigation). Attitudes towards science were assessed using the Enjoyment of Science Lessons scale from the Test of Science-Related Attitudes (TOSRA). Students completed the Nature of Scientific Knowledge Survey (NSKS) based on their entire science education experience-not just the one laboratory class which they had taken previously. Comparisons were then made with their understandings after having completed SCED 401. Finally, associations between the learning environment and the student outcomes of attitudes and understandings of the nature of science were explored. This study embraced the current trend in classroom learning environments research of combining quantitative and qualitative methods. Qualitative components included items from the open-ended questionnaire, Views of Nature of Science, interviews with students, and an analysis of concept maps. The qualitative findings expanded and complemented the quantitative results and, in several cases, supported the construct validity of scales assessing the learning environment and attitudes. / Another purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of using real research data for growth rates of four species of Antarctic seabirds (i.e., implementing an 'intervention') in six classes of SCED 401. The objective of the intervention was to increase the authenticity and quality of an experimental design project. In addition, the wildlife biologist who collected the data guided the students during the project. Although the intervention did not lead to an appreciable improvement in students' perceptions of the learning environment, differences between intervention and nonintervention classes were statistically significant for Enjoyment of Science Lessons from the TOSRA and for Creative from the NSKS (effect sues were 2.64 and 2.06 standard deviations, respectively). Results of this study indicated that during a factor analysis, the large majority of learning environment items belonged to their a priori scale (43 out of 46 items had factor loadings above 0.40) A valid instrument for use with prospective elementary teachers was produced by combining relevant scales from the Science . Laboratory Environment Inventory and the What Is Happening In this Class? A weaker factor structure was found for the Nature of Scientific Knowledge Survey. However, by moving close to half of the -faulty' items from the NSKS, the internal consistency reliability of scales improved considerably. This study also found large and statistically significant differences between students' previous laboratory class and SCED 401 for all six leaning environment scales. The largest difference was found for the level of Open-Endedness (effect size was 6.74 standard deviations). / A statistically significant difference also was found for Enjoyment of Science Lessons (effect size was 2.98 standard deviations). Differences were not as dramatic with regard to understandings of the nature of science, although differences for two scales (Creative and Unified) from the NSKS were positive and statistically significant. This study replicated past research by finding statistically significant positive correlations between all six learning environment scales and Enjoyment of Science Lessons. However, by far, Instructor Support had the largest independent association with enjoyment, using both the individual and class mean as the units of analysis. A positive link between a favorable leaning environment and the student outcome of understanding nature of science also was found. This research makes a distinctive contribution to the learning environments field because it is the first study to investigate laboratory classroom environments at the university level with prospective elementary teachers. The study is also the first to build a bridge between the classroom learning environment and the student outcome of understanding the nature of science. The study has implications for undergraduate laboratory course instructors, for science teacher educators who develop and instruct in elementary teacher preparation programs, and for future elementary teachers and the science learning of their future students.

No description available.

Studien är en kvalitativ undersökning som bygger på guidade rundvandringar och intervjuer med sex pedagoger från tre olika förskolor, både på småbarnsavdelningar och på syskonavdelningar. Syftet med studien var att undersöka vilken betydelse pedagoger tillmäter inomhusmiljöns utformning i förskolan med avseende på barns tillgångar till material och aktiviteter för sin utveckling och sitt lärande. Kunskapsöversikten redogör för ett historiskt perspektiv om hur förskolans inomhusmiljö har utvecklats och exempel ges på pedagogiska influenser som förskolorna kan ta idéer ifrån. Den belyser även miljöaspekten utifrån olika styrdokument och litteratur. Resultatet visar på att förskolornas inomhusmiljö har en fast objektiv miljö som utformas utifrån de resurser som finns tillgängliga för att få den subjektiva miljön i verksamheten. Pedagogerna skapar rum i rummen och när de utformar miljön utgår de från barnens intressen och tycker att det är av vikt att variera materialet i inomhusmiljön. Diskussionen reder ut resultatet att förskolorna har traditionella miljöer och material och att de till viss del är inspirerade av pedagogiska influenser. Pedagogerna själva har en viktig roll i verksamheten därför att den objektiva miljön begränsar hur tillgänglig miljön är för barnen. De utformar miljön utifrån barnens intressen som träder fram i förskolemiljön och utifrån läroplanens riktlinjer. / The study is a qualitative study based on guided tours and interviews with six pedagogues from three different preschools, both in small children departments and in sibling departments. The purpose of this study was to examine which meaning pedagogues attach the indoor environment design in preschool with regard to children's access to materials and activities for their development and learning.The knowledge review presents a historical perspective on how the preschool indoor environment has developed and examples are given to educational influences that preschools can take ideas from. It also highlights the environmental aspect from various policy documents and literature. The results show that the preschools indoor environment has a fixed objective environment designed according to the resources available to form the subjective environment. The pedagogues create room in the rooms and when designing the environment they proceed from the interests of children and think it is important to vary the materials in the indoor environment. The discussion sorts out the result that the examined preschools have traditional environments and materials and that they partly are inspired by pedagogical influences. The pedagogues themselves have an important role in the indoor environment because the objective environment limits the children's availability in the environment. The pedagogues design the indoor environment from the children's interests that occurs in the preschool environment and from the curriculum guidelines.

No description available.

168 p. / Submitted by Santiago Fabio (fabio.ssantiago@hotmail.com) on 2012-12-18T16:35:21Z No. of bitstreams: 1 dissertacao_mateus_santos_da_silva.pdf: 1410735 bytes, checksum: c1d0091778aaf52f68d4841ee7c638e9 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2012-12-18T16:35:22Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 dissertacao_mateus_santos_da_silva.pdf: 1410735 bytes, checksum: c1d0091778aaf52f68d4841ee7c638e9 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2012 / A partir da consolidação do conceito de desenvolvimento sustentável, enquanto um novo modelo de desenvolvimento do capitalismo, associado ao processo concomitante, de inserção da temática ambiental no cenário político internacional, no contexto da globalização caracterizada pelo aumento dos fluxos financeiros, econômicos, culturais, dentre outros e com reflexo direto na maior porosidade entre nas noções de interno e externo, a partir da maior atuação dos atores não-estatais no cenário internacional e pelo processo de reformulação do Estado frente às novas demandas desencadeadas durante esse processo, o presente trabalho se concentra na análise da atuação do Global Environment Facility, enquanto um fundo internacional criada nos anos 1990, para fornecer suporte financeiro aos países em desenvolvimento dentro de temas ligados ao meio ambiente, no processo de construção da política externa ambiental brasileira, entre os anos de 1994 e 2010. O trabalho apresenta uma abordagem predominantemente qualitativa, assim como se caracteriza enquanto uma pesquisa explicativa quanto aos seus fins, utilizando-se de pesquisa bibliográfica e documental, aliado ao desenvolvimento de entrevistas semi-estruturadas com atores-chave para a realização do trabalho. A cooperação internacional, dentro do contexto apresentado, é construída a partir da teoria dos regimes e também da abordagem da governança, como base para a caracterização tanto da organização estudada quanto das mudanças na política externa brasileira durante a década de 1990, e dos impactos dessas mudanças na política ambiental do Brasil, com atuação direta do Fundo, enquanto principal financiador dos projetos e políticas desenvolvidas pelo país na construção das respostas aos compromissos assumidos pelo governo nas quatro convenções internacionais que o Brasil faz parte e que têm o Fundo como instrumento oficial de financiamento, com ênfase especial, para a Convenção sobre Diversidade Biológica e a Convenção das Nações Unidas sobre Mudanças Climáticas. / Salvador

Submitted by Tatiana Lima (tatianasl@ufba.br) on 2015-04-06T21:19:37Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Silva, Mateus da.pdf: 1410735 bytes, checksum: c1d0091778aaf52f68d4841ee7c638e9 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Tatiana Lima (tatianasl@ufba.br) on 2015-04-06T21:24:38Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 Silva, Mateus da.pdf: 1410735 bytes, checksum: c1d0091778aaf52f68d4841ee7c638e9 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2015-04-06T21:24:38Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Silva, Mateus da.pdf: 1410735 bytes, checksum: c1d0091778aaf52f68d4841ee7c638e9 (MD5) / A partir da consolidação do conceito de desenvolvimento sustentável, enquanto um novo modelo de desenvolvimento do capitalismo, associado ao processo concomitante, de inserção da temática ambiental no cenário político internacional, no contexto da globalização caracterizada pelo aumento dos fluxos financeiros, econômicos, culturais, dentre outros e com reflexo direto na maior porosidade entre nas noções de interno e externo, a partir da maior atuação dos atores não-estatais no cenário internacional e pelo processo de reformulação do Estado frente às novas demandas desencadeadas durante esse processo, o presente trabalho se concentra na análise da atuação do Global Environment Facility, enquanto um fundo internacional criada nos anos 1990, para fornecer suporte financeiro aos países em desenvolvimento dentro de temas ligados ao meio ambiente, no processo de construção da política externa ambiental brasileira, entre os anos de 1994 e 2010. O trabalho apresenta uma abordagem predominantemente qualitativa, assim como se caracteriza enquanto uma pesquisa explicativa quanto aos seus fins, utilizando-se de pesquisa bibliográfica e documental, aliado ao desenvolvimento de entrevistas semi-estruturadas com atores-chave para a realização do trabalho. A cooperação internacional, dentro do contexto apresentado, é construída a partir da teoria dos regimes e também da abordagem da governança, como base para a caracterização tanto da organização estudada quanto das mudanças na política externa brasileira durante a década de 1990, e dos impactos dessas mudanças na política ambiental do Brasil, com atuação direta do Fundo, enquanto principal financiador dos projetos e políticas desenvolvidas pelo país na construção das respostas aos compromissos assumidos pelo governo nas quatro convenções internacionais que o Brasil faz parte e que têm o Fundo como instrumento oficial de financiamento, com ênfase especial, para a Convenção sobre Diversidade Biológica e a Convenção das Nações Unidas sobre Mudanças Climáticas. From the consolidation of the sustainable development’s concept, while a new model of development of capitalism, associated to the concomitant process, the environmental theme’s insertion in the international policy scene, in the globalization context characterized by the increase of financial flow, economic, cultural, among others and with a direct reflection in the biggest porosity between the notions of internal and external, from the higher interaction of the non-estate-owned actors in the international scene and through the Estate reformulation process facing the new demands triggered during this process, this paper focuses in the analyses of the Global Environment Facility acting, as an international fund created in the 90’s, to give financial support to developing countries in themes connected to the environment, in the process of the Brazilian foreign policy’s construction, between the years of 1994 and 2010. The paper presents a quality-like approach, as well as it characterizes itself as an explanatory research about its purposes, using both a bibliographical and a documental research, allied to the development of semi-structured interviews with key-actors to the work’s achievement. The international cooperation, in the presented context, is built from the regimen theory and it also uses the governance approach, as a basis to the characterization thus of the studied organization as to the changes in the Brazilian foreign policy during the 90’s decade, and of the impact of such changes in the Brazilian environmental policies, with the Fund’s direct proceeding, as the main sponsor of projects and policies developed by the country as a built answer to the engagements taken on by the government in the four international conventions in which Brazil takes part and that have the Fund as an official sponsoring instrument, with special emphasis, to the Convention towards Biological Diversity and the United Nation Convention about Weather Changes.

A modern person spends most time closed inside houses, offices, schools and other institutions, and if he feels unwell or experiences accute health and comfort effects, his every day life can be highly influenced both mentally and physically. Most symptoms of illnesses or indispositions appear in people living or working inside buildings for no apparent reason. Having left the building, health problems often diminish or even disappear. The complaints mostly include irritation of eye mucous membranes, upper and lower airways and skin, hypersensitiveness, mental and physical fatique, stomach upset and diziness. It is known as a ``sick building syndrome``. ``Sick building syndrome`` (SBS) results into significant decrease of human performance and frequent absences. However, it can lead to worse interpersonal relations, often connected with lower productivity of labour. ``Sick building syndrome`` has been known for many years. Its occurence is numerous but the cause for it have not yet been revealed. More negative factors seem to coincide. The positive moment is that many people are aware of the problem so many new SBS studies and publications have appeared recently. This diploma thesis consists of two parts. The first one, theoretical, and the other is practical. The practical part is focused on research work. The goal of my thesis was to compare a modern air-conditioned building with an older one, without air-conditioning while observing the SBS symptoms which appeared in office occupants in České Budějovice. I also investigated public awareness of this problem together with other issues related. I consider the findings very contributive to professionals in this field, the National Institute of Public Health and common population interested in the problem.

Digitalisering är något som är allt mer utbrett i samhället, på arbetsplatser och i våra hem. Arbetsmiljöarbetet är idag delvis digitaliserat och hur arbetet genomförs kan se olika ut beroende på vilken typ av arbetsplats det gäller. Även processen kring en skyddsrond, vilken utförs för att bedöma risker i den fysiska arbetsmiljön, varierar mellan liknande arbetsplatser. Dokumentering utförs till stor del manuellt och data som samlas in går ej att överblicka på ett användbart sätt. Riskerna är att viktig information går förlorad och att digitalisering som redan är implementerad inte når sin fulla potential. Mer konkreta konsekvenser utgörs av att organisationer kan gå miste om förtjänster samt leda till bristande arbetsmiljöarbete. Studien genomfördes i form av en kartläggning där elva skyddsombud intervjuades. Data från intervjuerna analyserades sedan genom ett affinitetsdiagram. Analysen resulterade i teman som berörde krångliga processer, avsaknad av information, psykosocial arbetsmiljö och samarbete. Även att digitala verktyg kan skapa mer problem än de löser. Slutsatsen är att arbetsprocesserna kan bli mer tidseffektiva, data som samlas in kan bli mer korrekt och därmed utgöra ett tydligt beslutsunderlag som lättare kan visualiseras och integreras i en organisations verksamhet. Bättre tillgång till data i en organisation kan även leda till bättre förutsättningar för uppföljning av arbetsmiljöarbetet. Kring utmaningar dras slutsatsen om att befintliga arbetsprocesser inte får försvåras. / Digitalisation is widely spread in society, in our workplaces and in our homes. The work environment work is partially digitalized and how the work is carried out differs amongst work places. Even the process with the work environment inspection round, which is performed to assess risks in the physical work environment, is different amongst similar workplaces. The documentation is substantially carried out manually and the collected data lack a useful overview. The risks due to the latter is loss of information as well as that implemented digitalisation does not reach its full potential. In concrete, the consequences are constituted by missed earnings for companies and lacking work environment work. The study was conducted in the form of a survey where eleven work environment representatives were interviewed. The collected data were analyzed through an affinity diagram.The analysis resulted in themes that referred to complicated processes, lack of information, psychosocial work environment and collaboration. As well that digital tools can create more problems than they would solve. The conclusion is that work processes can be more time effective, collected data can be more correct and hence constitute a distinct decision basis that is more easily visualized and integrated into the operations of a company. Better access to data in an organization can also lead to better prerequisites for follow-up on work environment work. The conclusion regarding the challenges of digitalisation is that it should not make existing processes more difficult.

The objective of this project is to challenge the traditional interior design of gynaecologist clinics and develop a fresh and innovative concept that enhances the overall experience for patients. By utilising colour, material, and form, this interior concept aims to transform the perception of healthcare facilities, ultimately improving the well-being and comfort of patients during gynaecological visits. To exemplify a different, more welcoming and safe environment, my experiments have involved using colour, material and form, as well as purpose designed chairs for the waiting room as well as the examination rooms, respectively. Besides this I have explored distractive elements during the patients’ examination. The design process for this project involved conducting qualitative research and studying existing gynaecologist clinic designs, patient experiences, and current trends in healthcare environments. Valuable insights has been gathered through interviews with healthcare professionals and patients, which helped identify areas for potential improvement. Additionally, the project explored the use of innovative design techniques, materials, and spatial configurations that foster a sense of privacy, and well- being. The design process also involves the development of design sketches and digital visualisations to aid in the visualisation and refinement of the interior concept. By utilising all design elements, the concept aims to create a health-promoting experience that ensures a safe, pleasant, and welcoming environment for both patients and staff.

Master of Science / Department of Journalism and Mass Communications / Robert C. Pearce / The present research explored whether consumer reactions to a deceptive environmental ad differs from consumers’ reactions towards a similar true green ad. The deceptive ad used in this study violates all FTC regulations for acceptable environmental claims. The practice of deceptive environmental advertising, known as green washing, is an increasing problem for consumers and advertisers as environmental products and services are offered at an increasing rate in the marketplace. Undergraduate college students participated in the experiment testing four hypotheses. As predicted, consumers were not able to identify a green washed ad as deceptive. Similarly, a measurement of consumers’ perceived overall ethics associated with the ad revealed low ethical concerns towards both green washed and true green ads. Attitudes towards green washing were also measures, and, as hypothesized, consumers have equally positive attitudes towards green washed and true green ads and brands. Additionally, stronger levels of environmental concern decreased the consumers’ ability to detect deception in green washed ads. Implications indicate that consumers cannot perceive differences in green washed ads and true green ads, and the prevalence of green washing has the potential to cause serious damage to the credibility of the advertising industry.