Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-04T18:29:36Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Dalva Alice Rocha Mol.pdf: 3149572 bytes, checksum: f806553a69f59c46eb1df3caf215be1e (MD5) Previous issue date: 2007-05-18 / The assessment of cognitive abilities of children who have learning disabilities (slow learners) is a major topic in psychology research. This doctorate thesis investigates the cognitive abilities of schoolchildren who have difficulty learning. Two different groups of informants were analyzed. The first group comprised 60 7- and 8-year-old schoolchildren of both genders 30 slow learners and 30 fast learners from two state schools in the State of S?o Paulo, Brazil. The second group comprised 8 primary school teachers also from two state schools in the State of S?o Paulo. We used Woodcock-Johnson III Tests of Cognitive Abilities (WJ-III) composed of 10 tests, a questionnaire filled out by the teachers and an analysis of the pupils marks in Portuguese, Math and Science. The results from the Multivariate and Univariate Analysis of Variance showed significant differences between the group of slow learners and the group of fast learners. The Pearson Assessments showed the children s performance improved as they moved to higher grades. The children s marks were consistent with the results from the WJ-III. Therefore we concluded that the cognitive abilities are significantly different between fast and slow learners and that WJ-III can be used to analyze learning disabilities. / A avalia??o das habilidades cognitivas de crian?as que apresentam dificuldades de aprendizagem constitui-se um importante campo de investiga??o psicol?gica. Este estudo objetivou investigar as habilidades cognitivas de crian?as com e sem dificuldades de aprendizagem pela Bateria Woodcock-Johnson. Duas amostras foram compostas: a primeira amostra por 60 crian?as de ambos os sexos, sendo 30 participantes sem indica??o de dificuldades de aprendizagem e 30 com indica??o de dificuldades de aprendizagem, que freq?entavam a primeira e segunda s?rie do Ensino Fundamental de duas escolas p?blicas do interior do estado de S?o Paulo. A segunda amostra foi composta por oito professores de primeira e segunda s?ries de duas escolas p?blicas do interior do estado de S?o Paulo. Utilizou-se a Bateria de habilidades cognitivas Woodcock-Johnson III (WJ III), composta por 10 testes, um question?rio escolar preenchido pelos professores e as notas escolares obtidas em Portugu?s, Matem?tica e Ci?ncias. As An?lises da Vari?ncia Multivariada e Univariada apontaram os efeitos significativos no tipo de grupo e de s?rie escolar das habilidades cognitivas avaliadas pela WJ III. A correla??o de Pearson mostrou a rela??o entre as habilidades cognitivas e os indicadores de dificuldades de aprendizagem, apontados pelo professor, sobre as crian?as com e sem dificuldades de aprendizagem. As notas escolares tamb?m se associaram significativamente aos resultados da WJ III. Desta forma, concluiu-se que existem diferen?as significativas nas habilidades cognitivas entre crian?as com dificuldades e crian?as sem dificuldades de aprendizagem, e que a WJ III ? uma medida v?lida para avaliar tais dificuldades.

<p><strong><p>Children with Reading and Writing Difficulties and Their Language and Cognitive Abilities</p><p>A Comparison with Children with a Cochlear Implant</p><p>Abstract</p><p>The aim of this study was to examine the cognitive abilities that are important for reading in children with reading disabilities, children with a cochlear implantation and typically developed children. 64 children aged 10-12 years participated in the study. To answer the question at issue we used the following tests: Block Design from WISC III, PPVT III, TOWRE, SL 40 and a few chosen tests out of the SIPS battery. On tests of the lexical access children with reading disabilities performed at the same level as hearing children, while the children with a cochlear implant performed significantly lower. Test of the phonological and complex working memory showed that children with reading disabilities performed significantly higher than children with a cochlear implant, but at the same time lower than typically developed children on the test of phonological working memory. Tests of reading ability showed that children with a cochlear implant performed at the same level as typically developed children, while children with reading disabilities showed lower results. The results indicate that the children with a cochlear implant can develop an adequate reading ability in spite of their phonological difficulties. Phonological skills do not seem to be the only factor influencing reading ability of the examined groups.</p><em><p> </p></em></strong></p>

Children with Reading and Writing Difficulties and Their Language and Cognitive Abilities A Comparison with Children with a Cochlear Implant Abstract The aim of this study was to examine the cognitive abilities that are important for reading in children with reading disabilities, children with a cochlear implantation and typically developed children. 64 children aged 10-12 years participated in the study. To answer the question at issue we used the following tests: Block Design from WISC III, PPVT III, TOWRE, SL 40 and a few chosen tests out of the SIPS battery. On tests of the lexical access children with reading disabilities performed at the same level as hearing children, while the children with a cochlear implant performed significantly lower. Test of the phonological and complex working memory showed that children with reading disabilities performed significantly higher than children with a cochlear implant, but at the same time lower than typically developed children on the test of phonological working memory. Tests of reading ability showed that children with a cochlear implant performed at the same level as typically developed children, while children with reading disabilities showed lower results. The results indicate that the children with a cochlear implant can develop an adequate reading ability in spite of their phonological difficulties. Phonological skills do not seem to be the only factor influencing reading ability of the examined groups.

Fysisk aktivitet i undervisningen och dess inverkan på elevers kognitiva förmågor upplever vi som ett väsentligt inslag i grundskolans tidigare år. Syftet med studien har varit att undersöka omfattningen av lärares uppfattningar kring denna inverkan samt deras åsikter kring detta arbetssätt och dess effekter. Metoden som använts har varit kvantitativ med en kvalitativ del och har utgått från en enkät med såväl kvantitativa som kvalitativa frågor. Enkäten delades ut till lärare i nio olika grundskolor i två kommuner i Västra Götalands län. Genom enkäten har vi undersökt utbredningen av lärarnas åsikter kring fysisk aktivitet i undervisningen och även gett dem utrymme att motivera och förklara sina åsikter.Resultatet av studien visar att majoriteten av lärarna anser att fysisk aktivitet i undervisningen har en positiv inverkan på elevers kognitiva förmågor såsom koncentration, minne och lärande. De uttrycker att de upplever arbetssättet som övervägande positivt och ger även uttryck för sina erfarenheter kring vad det är med arbetssättet som resulterar i de effekter det medför. Resultatet visar bland annat att lärarna ser att arbetssättet tillgodoser elevernas behov av att få använda flera sinnen i sitt lärande.Slutligen diskuterar vi resultatet med utgångspunkt i forskning, litteratur och teori.Bland annat diskuterar vi den fysiska aktivitetens placering i undervisningen, om den bör integreras eller fungera som en paus. Vi diskuterar även vikten av ett varierat arbetssätt för att tillgodose elevers olika lärstilar och öppna upp för användande av fler sinnen i undervisningen. / Physical activity in teaching and its impact on students’ cognitive abilities is something we experience as an essential part of primary education. The aim of the study was to examine the extent of teachers’ perceptions of this impact as well as their opinions about this working method and its effects. The method used in the study was quantitative with a qualitative part and was based on a questionnaire with both quantitative and qualitative questions. The questionnaire was handed to teachers in nine different elementary schools in two municipalities in the county of Västra Götaland, Sweden. Through the survey, we investigated the distribution of teachers’ opinions about physical activity in teaching and also gave them space to justify and explain their opinions.The results of the study show that the majority of the teachers think that physical activity in education has a positive impact on students’ cognitive abilities such as concentration, memory and learning. They express that they experience this way of working as mainly positive and also express their experiences concerning what it is about this working method that results in the effects that it brings. The result shows that the teachers perceive that the working method meets pupils’ needs to use multiple senses in learning.Finally, we discuss the results on the basis of research, literature and theory. Among other things, we discuss the physical task's position in teaching, whether it should be integrated or act as a break. We also discuss the importance of a varied approach to meet students' different learning styles, and open up the use of more senses in teaching.

La mention de référents (personnes, objets et évènements) est au coeur du discours. Cette thèse porte sur l’étude de la variation d’emploi des marqueurs de référence, en combinant des indices syntaxiques et prosodiques, produits lors de narrations d’images séquentielles. L’objectif est de déterminer l’effet des paramètres situationnels sur la production des marqueurs syntaxiques et prosodiques. Deux autres objectifs sont également développés, l’un visant à mettre en évidence les compétences (socio)cognitives sous-jacentes et l’autre visant à étudier l’impact du vieillissement. Pour répondre à ces objectifs, une tâche de narration d’images séquentielles a été utilisée pour éliciter la production de marqueurs de référence. Les narrations d’images séquentielles ont été réalisées auprès de deux groupes de participants, l’un constitué de 30 jeunes adultes (19-39 ans) et l’autre de 30 séniors (59-79 ans). L’ensemble des participants a été soumis à des tests (socio)cognitifs afin de caractériser leurs profils.Nos résultats montrent que le marquage référentiel est un processus complexe et influencé par de multiples facteurs situationnels. En effet, les marqueurs syntaxiques et prosodiques varient en fonction des étapes de discours et du contexte référentiel. Selon l’accessibilité cognitive du référent – notamment l’accessibilité cognitive moindre, le marquage référentiel sollicite des compétences (socio)cognitives. Les résultats indiquent également des effets du vieillissement sur le marquage référentiel : l’emploi des marqueurs de référence chez les séniors est différent de l’emploi des jeunes adultes. Compte tenu de l’importance du marquage référentiel lors des conversations, nos résultats pourraient avoir des implications cliniques et théoriques. / Referring to people, objects and events is a cental piece of the Speech. This dissertation studies the variation in the use of referential markers, by combining syntactic and prosodic cues, produced during a storytelling task sequential pictures. The goal is to determine the effect of situational parameters on the production of the syntactic and prosodic markers. Two other goals are also pursued: (i) to highlight the underlying (socio)cognitive abilities and (ii) to study the impact of aging. To meet these objectives, a storytelling task with sequential pictures was used to obtain the production of referential markers. 30 younger (age span:19-39) and 30 older participants (age span : 59-79) undertook this storytelling task. All the participants were submitted to (socio)cognitive tests to characterize their profiles. Our results show that referential marking is a complex process influenced by multiple situational factors. Indeed, the syntactic and prosodic markers vary according to discourse stages and the referential context. Depending on the cognitive accessibility of the referent - in particular the lesser cognitive accessibility, referential marking requires (socio)cognitive abilities. The results also indicate effects of aging on referential marking : the use of referential markers is different in seniors and in younger participants. Given the importance of referential marking during conversations, our results may have some clinical implications.

La question de la réussite des étudiants en première année universitaire est présente dans les préoccupations politiques actuelles au regard de l’échec massif la caractérisant. L’enjeu de cette thèse réside dans la compréhension des mécanismes qui régissent la réussite universitaire, en adoptant une démarche quantitative et intégrative. A cette fin, des données ont été récoltées sur un peu plus de 700 étudiants en première année de Licence de trois filières (AES, Droit et Psychologie) à l’Université de Bourgogne. Les informations recueillies permettent de contrôler un ensemble de facteurs relatifs aux caractéristiques socio-démographiques et scolaires des étudiants. Deux focus plus spécifiques caractérisent cette thèse : une mesure fine des capacités cognitives des étudiants à leur entrée à l’université et une mesure de leur motivation en cours d’année. Il ressort que le passé scolaire des étudiants est un déterminant particulièrement fort dans la prédiction de la réussite universitaire. Ce déterminisme scolaire est cependant nuancé par l’effet indirect de l’origine sociale, établissant la persistance d’inégalités sociales de réussite au niveau universitaire. Les capacités cognitives exercent elles aussi un effet médiatisé par le parcours scolaire, jouant positivement sur la réussite. A ces facteurs déterminés préalablement à l’entrée à l’université, s’ajoute le projet personnel de l’étudiant. Un choix établi par intérêt pour la discipline augure de meilleures chances de réussite. Les capacités motivationnelles de l’étudiant se répercutent quant à elles plus directement sur la réussite. Mesurée dans le cadre de la théorie de l’autodétermination, la motivation intrinsèque exerce une influence positive tandis que l’amotivation se traduit par de moins bonnes performances. Par ailleurs, la motivation est un atout pour les bons étudiants, mais ne joue qu’un rôle plus modéré pour les étudiants moyens et même nul pour les plus faibles. Ce résultat est éclairé par l’effet positif du sentiment de compétence sur la réussite, médiatisé par une motivation intrinsèque plus élevée. / Today, academic failure is closely monitored, especially when first year students are concerned. The aim of this dissertation is the comprehension of the mechanism that builds academic success. The approach is both quantitative and integrative. For this purpose, data have been collected from 700 first year students in social administration, law and psychology areas in the university of Burgundy. Collected information allows to control academic and demographic factors. This dissertation focuses on two aspects : a measure of the student’s cognitive abilities at their entry in the university and a measure of their motivation during the course of the year. The results show that the school background of students plays a crucial role in the prediction of their university success. This school determinism, however, is tempered with the indirect effect of social origin, establishing the persistence of social inequalities in success at the university level. Cognitive abilities also have an effect mediated by the school career, playing positively on success. To these factors determined prior to university entrance, shall be added the personal project of the student. Choices made by interest in the discipline augur better chances of success. Motivational abilities of the student impact most directly on their success. Measured in the context of the self-determination theory, intrinsic motivation has a positive influence while amotivation results in worse performance. Moreover, motivation is an asset for good students, but plays only a moderate role for average students and even none for the weakest. This result is highlighted by the positive effect of perceived competence on achievement, mediated by a higher intrinsic motivation.

This study investigates two questions about anti-predator behaviour of the red-backed shrike. 1) Is the red-backed shrike able to assess the differing dangers represented by various types or species of predators? 2) How does the red-backed shrike recognize the predator? We found, that the red-backed shrike (Lanius collurio) adjusts its anti-predator behaviour by assessing the potential threat to themselves from different predator species and by assessing the chance of a successful attack. Further, we found that the presence of general raptor salient features is absolutely necessary for proper categorisation of the intruder as a predator, whereas the natural species-specific colouration in itself is an insufficient cue.

Submitted by Neusa Fagundes (neusa.fagundes@unioeste.br) on 2018-02-20T13:10:18Z No. of bitstreams: 2 Glessyan_Marques2017.pdf: 1562823 bytes, checksum: 1f697229375867dd7ed1c008c1923be2 (MD5) license_rdf: 0 bytes, checksum: d41d8cd98f00b204e9800998ecf8427e (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2018-02-20T13:10:18Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 2 Glessyan_Marques2017.pdf: 1562823 bytes, checksum: 1f697229375867dd7ed1c008c1923be2 (MD5) license_rdf: 0 bytes, checksum: d41d8cd98f00b204e9800998ecf8427e (MD5) Previous issue date: 2017-03-07 / Considering the school as a socio-cultural locus that favors the development of students' cognitive abilities, and based on Vygotsky's Sociocultural Theory, we analyze the Written Discussion and Problem-Solving of students in the second year of high school, from two schools in Toledo, a city from Paraná. One of the schools is in the countryside (Escola do Campo – Countryside school) and the other is in the city (Escola Urbana- Urban school). This qualitative research was carried out with 25 high-school students and aimed at investigating if the students from both analyzed schools can construct written arguments and solve problems, from socio-scientific ones based on daily problems, respectively. Thus, these students’ performance was analyzed concerning the construction of written arguments and problem solving. The data collection of this research was obtained by a questionnaire and complementary data such as technical visit, analysis of the School's Political Pedagogical Project, field observation and Sociocultural questionnaire. The questionnaire was composed of socio-cultural demands, socio-scientific and daily problems. Sociocultural questions aimed at knowing the studied public, their personal, professional and cultural interests, while additional data allowed us to know the contexts of both surveyed schools. But, this research focused on analyzing the problems (socio-scientific and daily ones) that the students answered when we offered them these questionnaires. Data analysis was obtained by Toulmin (2001) standard and Bardin (2009) content analysis. Our results point out that the studied students present difficulties to build written arguments and low performance in solving everyday problems. Few students were able to construct written arguments containing the basic elements of an argument from the Toulmin standard. Likewise, few of them could solve daily problems. In general, we conclude that the students from both surveyed schools have not developed skills about written argumentation and problem solving, and we stand up for those skills that should be exercised in school. / Considerando a escola como um espaço sociocultural que favorece o desenvolvimento das habilidades cognitivas dos estudantes e, fundamentados na Teoria Sociocultural de Vygotsky, analisamos a Argumentação Escrita e a Resolução de Problemas de estudantes do 2º ano do ensino médio, de duas escolas do município Toledo/PR, uma delas localizada no campo (Escola do Campo) e a outra localizada na cidade (Escola Urbana). Esta pesquisa, de natureza qualitativa, foi realizada com 25 estudantes do ensino médio e teve como objetivo principal investigar se os estudantes de uma Escola do Campo e de uma Escola Urbana conseguem construir argumentos escritos e solucionar problemas, a partir de problemas sociocientíficos e de problemas do cotidiano, respectivamente. A preocupação foi analisar o desempenho desses estudantes na construção de argumentos escritos e na resolução de problemas. A coleta de dados da pesquisa ocorreu por meio de questionário e por meio de dados complementares como visita técnica, análise do Projeto Político Pedagógico, observação ao campo de pesquisa e questionário sociocultural. O questionário foi composto por questões socioculturais, problemas sociocientíficos e problemas do cotidiano. As questões socioculturais buscaram conhecer o público pesquisado, seus interesses pessoais, profissionais e culturais. Os dados complementares permitiram conhecer os contextos pesquisados. Mas o foco da pesquisa esteve na análise dos problemas (sociocientíficos e do cotidiano) respondidos pelos estudantes no questionário. A análise de dados aconteceu por meio do padrão de Toulmin (2001) e da análise de conteúdo de Bardin (2009). Os resultados apontam que os estudantes pesquisados apresentam dificuldade de construir argumentos escritos e apresentam baixo desempenho na resolução de problemas do cotidiano. Poucos estudantes conseguiram construir argumentos escritos contendo os elementos básicos de um argumento do padrão de Toulmin. Do mesmo modo, poucos estudantes conseguiram solucionar problemas do cotidiano. Em geral, a conclusão é a de que os estudantes de ambas as escolas pesquisadas não possuem habilidades desenvolvidas relativas à argumentação escrita e à resolução de problemas, diante disso, defendemos a importância de favorecer o exercício dessas habilidades na escola.

The Woodcock-Johnson 4th Edition Test Battery is the latest version of assessment battery which measures cognitive function in childhood and adulthood. This is a very large test battery and the adaptation of the Czech version of this method is in progress. However, some subtests are closely related to the language and cultural habits of a country. The aim of this diploma thesis is to examine selected verbal tests of the Woodcock-Johnson assessment battery in the Czech environment. Specifically if these subtests do not disadvantage children who are from other language environment than Czech. The theoretical part of the thesis speaks about the concept of bilingualism (definition, categorisation) and how bilingualism is reflected in the results of cognitive tests. It also introduces the theory of CHC, which was the basis for the creation of the Woodcock- Johnson assessment battery. It analyses verbal subtests of the Woodcock-Johnson test battery, fourth edition, in more details. The research study focuses on comparison of the results of two groups of children. The groups are divided according to the language environment from which the tested children come from: either Czech or Russian-Czech. The focus will be put onto (1) the extent to which the dissimilarities in the groups express cultural...

Driverless cars are a hot topic in today’s industry where several vehicle manufacturers try to create a reliable system for automated driving. The advantages of highly automated vehicles are many, safer roads and a lower environmental impact are some of the arguments for this technology. However, the notion of highly automated cars give rise to a large number of human factor issues regarding the safety and reliability of the automated system as well as concern about the driver’s role in the system. The purpose of this study was to explore the effects of systematic variations in traffic complexity and external time pressure on decision-making time in a simulated situation using a web-based testing platform. A secondary focus was to examine whether measures of cognitive performance and driver attitudes have an effect on decision-making time.  The results show that systematic variations in both time pressure and traffic complexity have an effect on decision-making time. This indicates that drivers are able to adapt their decision-making to facilitate the requirements of a certain situation. The results also indicate that intelligence; speed of processing and driver attitudes has an effect on decision-making time.