The field of adult literacy and basic education (ALBE) has undergone dramatic changes in recent years with the advent of labour market programs, accreditation, competency-based assessment and competitive tendering for program funds. Teachers' working conditions have deteriorated and their professional autonomy has been eroded. ALBE has been increasingly instrumentalised to fulfil the requirements of a marketised economy and conform to its norms. The beliefs and value systems which traditionally underpinned the work of ALBE teachers have been reframed according to the principle of 'performativity' and the demands of the 'performative State' (Lyotard, 1984: 46, Yeatman 1994: 110). The destabilisation of teachers' working lives can be understood as a manifestation of the 'postmodern condition' (Lyotard 1984; Harvey 1989): the collapse of the certainties and purposes of the past; the proliferation of technologies; the impermanence and intensification of work; the commodification of knowledge and curricula; and the dissolving of boundaries between disciplines and fields of knowledge. The critiques of the modernist grand narratives which underpin progressivist and critical approaches to adult literacy pedagogy have further undermined the traditional points of reference of ALBE teachers. In this thesis I examine how teachers are teaching, surviving, resisting, and 'living the contradictions' (Seddon 1994) in the context of struggles to comply with and resist the requirements of performativity. Following Foucault and a number of feminist poststructuralist authors, I have applied the notions of 'discursive engagement' and 'the politics of discourse' (Yeatman 1990a) as a way of theorising the interplay between imposed change and teachers' practice. I explore the discursive practices which take place at the interface between the 'new' policy discourses and older, naturalised discourses; how teachers are engaged by and are engaging with discourses of performativity; how teachers are discursively constructing adult literacy pedagogy; what new, hybrid discourses of 'good practice' are emerging; and the micropractices of resistance which teachers are enacting in their speech and in their practice. My purpose was to develop knowledge which would support the reflexivity of teachers; to enrich the theoretical languages that teachers could draw upon in trying to make sense of their situation; and to use those languages in speaking about the dilemmas of practice. I used participatory action research as a means of producing knowledge about teachers' practices, structured around their agency, and reflecting their standpoint (Harding 1993). I describe two separate action research projects in which teachers of ALBE participated. I reflect on both projects in the light of poststructuralist theory and consider them as instances of what Lather calls 'within/against research' (Lather 1989: 27). I analyse written and spoken texts produced in both projects which reflect teachers' responses to competency-based assessment and other features of the changing context. I use a method of discourse mapping to describe the discursive field and the teachers' discursive practices. Three main configurations of discourse are delineated: 'progressivism', 'professional teacher' and 'performativity'. The teachers mainly position themselves within a hybridising 'progressivist /professional teacher' discourse, as a discourse of resistance to 'performative' discourse. In adapting their pedagogies, the teachers are in some degree taking the language and world view of performativity into their own vocabularies and practices. The discursive picture I have mapped is complex and contradictory. On one hand, the 'progressivist /professional teacher' discourse appears to endure and to take strength from the articulation into it of elements of performative discourse, creating new possibilities for discursive transformation. On the other hand, there are signs that performative discourse is colonising and subsuming progressivist /professional teacher discourse. At times, both of these tendencies are apparent in the one text. Six micropractices of resistance are identified within the texts: 'rational critique', 'objectification', 'subversion', 'refusal', 'humour' and 'the affirmation of desire'. These reflect the teachers' agency in making discursive choices on the micro level of their every day practices. Through those micropractices, the teachers are engaging with and resisting the micropractices and meanings of performativity. I apply the same multi-layered method of analysis to an examination of discursive engagement in pedagogy by analysing a transcript of the teachers' discussion of critical incidents in their classrooms. Their classroom pedagogies are revealed as complex, situated and eclectic. They are combining and integrating their 'embodied' and their 'institutional' powers, both 'seducing' (McWilliam 1995) and 'regulating' (Gore 1993) as they teach. A strong ethical project is apparent in the teachers' sense of social responsibility, in their determination to adhere to valued traditions of previous times, and in their critical self-awareness of the ways in which they use their institutional and embodied powers in the classroom. Finally, l look back on the findings, and reflect on the possibilities of discursive engagement and the politics of discourse as a framework for more strategic practice in the current context. This research provides grounds for hope that, by becoming more self-conscious about how we engage discursively, we might become more strategic in our everyday professional practice. Not withstanding the constraints (evident in this study) which limit the strategic potential of the politics of discourse, there is space for teachers to become more reflexive in their professional, pedagogical and political praxis. Development of more deliberate, self-reflexive praxis might lead to a 'postmodern democratic polities' (Yeatman 1994: 112) which would challenge the performative state and the system of globalised capital which it serves. Short abstract Adult literacy and basic education (ALBE) teachers have experienced a period of dramatic policy change in recent years; in particular, the introduction of competency-based assessment and competitive tendering for program funds. 'Discourse politics' provides a way of theorising the interplay between policy-mediated institutional change and teachers' practice. The focus of this study is 'discursive engagement'; how teachers are engaged by and are engaging with discourses of performativity. Through two action research projects, texts were generated of teachers talking and writing about how they were responding to the challenges, and developing their pedagogies in the new policy environment. These texts have been analysed and several patterns of discursive engagement delineated, named and illustrated. The strategic potential of 'discourse polities' is explored in the light of the findings.

This research explores how provincial governments in Canada can foster environmental leadership in business firms, and develops a framework to guide provincial policy and regulatory decisions with respect to environmental leadership. The research question is: How can provincial governments in Canada support environmental leadership in businesses? Environmental leadership is defined as voluntary beyond compliance behaviour. In order to answer the research question, what motivates and challenges environmental leadership must also be explored. Three case studies are used in this research: the electronics extended producer responsibility (EPR), marine and agriculture sectors. Data was collected through surveys and interviews with businesses, officials and organizations in each of the case studies. The focus is on British Columbia, although data was also collected from other Canadian provinces. Results demonstrate that the electronics EPR sector is characterized by compliance and coordination issues: businesses focus on meeting rather than exceeding regulations, and they identified a strong need for improved harmonization and coordination between jurisdictions on EPR regulations. The marine sector is characterized by businesses taking matters into their own hands, due to weak regulations accompanied by strong community pressures. The agriculture sector is characterized as one of contestation and capacity: contestation over what is environmental leadership (whether or not it requires beyond compliance steps such as organic certification), and capacity concerns, due to the high need identified for support, education and training for farmers. Five themes cut across the three case studies. First, environmental leadership is an ongoing process rather than a relatively fixed category in which businesses can be placed. Second, although social licence is important in all three cases, the licence comes from different sectors of society: consumers, community or citizens. In the electronics EPR sector, the social licence pressures come primarily from customers; in the marine sector, from communities; and in the agriculture sector, from citizens as a whole, comprised of both customers of agricultural products and communities that live near farms. Third, corporate culture or visionary leadership is important in driving environmental leadership. Fourth, a need exists for greater leadership by government, by strategic planning, taking advantage of new markets, resolving conflicts, greater harmonization and coordination of regulations. Fifth, continuous learning within a firm is important in environmental leadership, be it through formal training, sharing of expertise and knowledge, or through ongoing reflection on business practices. Key policy implications are that provincial governments use a broader mix of regulatory tools: accompanying stringent standards with training and education; support for transition to greener technologies or processes; and public education on the purpose of regulations, how they work, and the role of all sectors of society in achieving social goals. Cross government cooperation and harmonization of regulations could be improved, especially in the electronics EPR sector. The results of this research should assist in identifying ways for government to foster environmental leadership in businesses, through new approaches to governance and selection of policy instruments. / Graduate

Mémoire numérisé par la Division de la gestion de documents et des archives de l'Université de Montréal

Background and aims: The primary motor cortex (M1) controls voluntary motor behaviours. M1 has been identified to play a major role in the execution of voluntary corticospinal tasks as well as self-initiated corticobulbar tasks. However, the involvement of M1 in more complex corticubulbar tasks, such as swallowing, is not yet fully understood. Swallowing is quite different from other voluntary motor tasks as it has both voluntary and reflexive components. The degree of M1 involvement in the pharyngeal, or more reflexive, component of swallowing is unclear. Studies investigating the role of M1 in swallowing have yielded contradictory findings regarding the specific functional contribution of M1 to swallowing. Therefore, further investigation is warranted to clarify the role of M1 in pharyngeal swallowing. Discrete saliva or water swallowing has been utilized in most studies investigating neurophysiology of swallowing in health and disease. However, individuals most frequently complete multiple, consecutive swallows during the ingestion of liquid. Biomechanical differences between discrete and continuous water swallows have been identified using videofluoroscopic swallowing study (VFSS). However, no studies have investigated the pharyngeal pressure differences between these two swallowing tasks. Additional insights into task differences may be revealed through evaluation of pharyngeal pressure utilizing pharyngeal manometry. This research programme sought to clarify the role of M1 in reflexively and volitionally initiated pharyngeal swallowing. In order to understand M1 involvement in the execution of swallowing, comparative tasks that require known dependence on M1 were also included in this research programme. This research programme addressed the biomechanical changes in motor behaviours as a result of neural disruption during the performance of a number of motor tasks. This neural disruption was intrinsically generated through application of dual task (DT) paradigm and extrinsically generated using single pulse transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS). A secondary aim of this research programme was to identify the differences in pharyngeal pressure generation between discrete and continuous swallowing. Methods: Twenty-four right handed participants (12 males, average age= 24.4, SD= 6.3) were recruited to this research programme. A number of motor tasks that vary in complexity were tested. These tasks included: volitional swallowing, reflexive swallowing, eyebrow movement, jaw movement and finger tapping with right, left, or bilateral index fingers. Participants performed multiple trials of several tasks in each study. Repetitions of tasks during a single session may affect performance due to factors such as fatigue or practice. A baseline study was undertaken to determine within-participant variability of measures across repeated trials. Following the baseline study, the role of M1 in pharyngeal swallowing was investigated in two main studies in counter balanced order. The role of M1 in pharyngeal swallowing was evaluated by investigating swallowing parameters during neural disruption using a DT paradigm. Participants performed tasks in isolation (baseline) and with interference that consisted of pairing swallowing with comparative task that activates M1 (fingers tapping and eyebrow movement tasks). In the other study, single pulse TMS was utilized to create an electrophysiological disruption to the areas of M1 associated with muscular representation of a number of motor behaviours (swallowing tasks, jaw movement and fingers tapping tasks). Stimulation was provided to both hemispheres in random order to evaluate laterality effects. Swallowing parameters and the performance of the other motor tasks were evaluated when performed with and without electrophysiological disruption. Differences in pharyngeal pressure generation between discrete and continuous swallowing were investigated using pharyngeal manometry. Pharyngeal pressures were recorded at three locations: upper pharynx, mid-pharynx and upper esophageal sphincter (UES) during four swallowing types: discrete saliva swallowing, discrete 10 ml swallowing, volitional continuous swallowing, and reflexive continuous swallowing. The research paradigm used in this research programme identified the effect of experimental conditions on the rate and regularity of task performance. In addition, pharyngeal manometry was utilised to measure the effect of experimental conditions on the pattern of the pharyngeal pressure generation during swallowing. Within subject differences from baseline were identified by means of Repeated Measures Analyses of Variance (RM-ANOVA). Results: Initial analysis of the data revealed that repetition of tasks within a session did not affect the rate and regularity of voluntary corticospinal tasks, voluntary corticiobulbar tasks nor swallowing tasks. In addition, repeating the swallowing tasks during a session did not affect pharyngeal pressure as measured by pharyngeal manometry. When motor tasks were performed concurrently in the DT paradigm, rate and regularity of eyebrow movements were significantly decreased when paired with swallowing tasks, whereas rate and regularity of swallowing were significantly decreased when paired with left finger tapping, but not right finger tapping. However, there was no significant effect of any task on the pattern of pharyngeal pressure generation. Extrinsically generated disruption using TMS significantly reduced rate and regularity of finger tapping tasks and regularity of jaw movement and swallowing tasks. In addition, interruption of pharyngeal M1 during the volitional swallowing task produced significant increase in the duration but not the amplitude of the pharyngeal pressure. Pharyngeal pressure generation differed between swallowing types and boluses types, in that saliva swallowing produced longer pharyngeal pressure duration and lower nadir pressure than water swallows. Discrete water bolus swallowing produced longer UES opening compared to both saliva swallowing or continuous water swallowing. Conclusion: The results of this research programme provided valuable methodological information regarding the effect of trials on task performance as well as identifying pharyngeal pressure differences between discrete and continuous swallowing. In addition to the methodological contribution, this research programme expanded on previous knowledge of neural control of swallowing, in that it extended the findings regarding potential role of M1 in pharyngeal swallowing. Given the absent effect of task repetition on the performance of corticospinal and corticobulbar motor tasks, it is speculated that outcomes of research investigating the effect of experimental manipulation on motor tasks performance is due to the experimental tasks, rather than natural variance in the data. The effect of swallowing on the rate and regularity of eyebrow movement, when performed concurrently using DT paradigm, suggest bilateral functional overlapping to a significant degree between neural substrates that control swallowing and orofacial muscles. These results offer partial support of bilateral representation of swallowing in the cortex. In addition, results further revealed potential involvement of right M1 in the regulation of pharyngeal swallowing as evidenced by a disruptive effect of left finger tapping on the rate and regularity of swallowing. The results from the hemispheric TMS disruption study support the active involvement M1 in the execution of voluntary corticospinal and corticobulbar motor tasks. In addition, the current findings extended previous knowledge of neural control of pharyngeal swallowing by documenting the effect of neural disruption on the regularity and pharyngeal pressure measures during volitional and reflexive swallowing. The current programme documented potential role of M1 in the control of pharyngeal swallowing possibly by modulating the motor plan at the swallowing CPG in the brainstem. This project is the first to document pharyngeal pressure differences between discrete and continuous swallowing. These findings contribute valuable information to the swallowing literature as limited number of studies investigated the biomechanical differences between discrete and continuous liquid ingestion. This knowledge will assist clinicians and researchers in identifying the pharyngeal pressure differences between normal and abnormal swallowing in different swallowing types and ultimately guide their rehabilitation decisions. Data from this research programme will add to the existing knowledge of neurophysiology of swallowing, thereby facilitating understanding of swallowing pathophysiology which is crucial for appropriate management of swallowing disorders.

In this Arts-informed Life History I use dialogue and narrative to illustrate “pedagogy in practice” and illuminate the life’s work of Métis adult educator Dave Skene. Skene tells stories of experience working cross-culturally to illustrate how individuals are transformed by learning experiences and how they contribute to transformative learning in others' lives. He recounts experiences of working for social justice and community development in the global context of north-south knowledge exchange. Skene’s life crosses many borders and the research account walks readers through a life growing up in an urban setting, surviving on the street, discovering God, working internationally with indigenous peoples, listening to stories in areas of protracted conflict and war, and co-founding a Non Governmental Organization, Global Youth Network. As researcher I interweave reflexive accounts of cross-cultural experiences in Canada and Latin America to contribute to understanding how to undertake life history research and issues in its representation.

In this Arts-informed Life History I use dialogue and narrative to illustrate “pedagogy in practice” and illuminate the life’s work of Métis adult educator Dave Skene. Skene tells stories of experience working cross-culturally to illustrate how individuals are transformed by learning experiences and how they contribute to transformative learning in others' lives. He recounts experiences of working for social justice and community development in the global context of north-south knowledge exchange. Skene’s life crosses many borders and the research account walks readers through a life growing up in an urban setting, surviving on the street, discovering God, working internationally with indigenous peoples, listening to stories in areas of protracted conflict and war, and co-founding a Non Governmental Organization, Global Youth Network. As researcher I interweave reflexive accounts of cross-cultural experiences in Canada and Latin America to contribute to understanding how to undertake life history research and issues in its representation.

The aim of the study on which this thesis is based was to gain an understanding of the life situation of street children in Kenya and to investigate how caring institutions care for these children.  A reflexive ethnographic approach was used to facilitate entry into the children’s sub-culture and the work contexts of the caregivers to better understand how the children live on the streets and how the caregivers work with the children. A fundamental aim of the research was to develop interventions to care; one of the reasons why we also used the interpretive description approach. Method and data source triangulation was used. Field notes, tape, video, and photography were used to record the data.  Participant observation, group discussions, individual interviews, home visits, key informant interviews, participatory workshops and clinical findings were used for data collection in Studies I and II.  In addition to observation, interviews were conducted with caregivers for study III, while written narratives from learners attending adult education developed and implemented during the research period provided data for study IV.  Study I indicated that food, shelter and education were the main concerns for the children and that they had strong social bonds and used support networks as a survival strategy.  Study II provided a deeper understanding of the street culture, revealing how the boys are organised, patterns of substance use, home spaces in the streets and networks of support. The boys indicated that they wanted to leave the streets but opposed being moved to existing institutions of care. A group home was therefore developed in collaboration with members of the category “begging boys”.  Study III indicated how the caregivers’ interactions with the children were crucial in children’s decisions to leave the streets, to be initiated into residential care, undergo rehabilitation and to be reintegrated into society.  Caregivers who attempted to use participatory approaches and took time to establish rapport were more successful with the children.  Study IV suggested that the composition of learners, course content grounded on research, caregivers’ reflections and discursive role of researchers and facilitators, all contributed to adult learning that transformed the learners’ perspectives and practice.

The process of environmental degradation is increasing, amazingly, and its effects are felt, everyday, in social and work spaces. However, few measures are taken to rein this process. We live in a "Risk Society", where environmental risks are part of human daily life, although these risks are not thought or reflected, but only confronted by individuals supposedly protected by protective cocoons, which are based on continuity of institutionalized routines, in the sense of ontological security and in the elements characteristic of High Modernity. However, when strategies for environmental education are offered to the individuals, becomes feasible for them to reflect about their behavior and be motivated to change. In this context, the objective of this research was to describe as it is developed the environmental education in a hospital, from the individuals directly involved in its planning and formal executing . Methodologically, we adopted a qualitative approach, using the research method of case study, and as collection procedures we use documentary research and semi-structured interview. The study was developed in one hospital of the Grupo Hospitalar Conceição and had as research subject the individuals who joined the Center for Environmental Education of this hospital and other people indicated by them. In this process, based on Content Analysis, we built five thematic axis. The first axis discusses the concepts of the research subjects about environment and environmental education, composing six categories of analysis. The second axis reflects about the experiences of the Hospital Conceição in environmental education, comprising four categories. The third axis describe the consequences of environmental education actions in the context of High Modernity, composing two categories of analysis. The fourth axis refers to discussion about difficulties and challenges of environmental education within the healthcare institution, covering six categories. And finally, the fifth axis of this research shows a possible way to develop environmental education in a hospital. At the end of this study it was concluded that the actions of environmental education in this institution are isolated, fragmented and limited to practices by individuals or groups interested in this theme; therefore it is necessary: an environmental institutional policy that works as a financial, legal, structural and human support to develop environmental actions; a group entirely focused on the discussion and elaboration of environmental activities in the hospital; and, furthermore, it is very important the involvement of managers with environmental cause. Despite these challenges, environmental education developed at the institution represents a small, but important step towards the construction of a complex environmental knowledge necessary in a context of Reflexive Modernity. / O processo de degradação ambiental cresce, assombrosamente, e seus reflexos são sentidos no cotidiano social e nos espaços de trabalho. Contudo, poucas medidas são tomadas no sentido de freá-lo. Vivemos em uma Sociedade de Risco , onde os riscos ambientais são parte do cotidiano humano, ainda que não sejam pensados ou refletidos, apenas autoconfrontados por indivíduos supostamente protegidos por casulos protetores; que se baseiam na continuidade de rotinas institucionalizadas, na noção de segurança ontológica e nos elementos característicos da Alta Modernidade. No entanto, quando são oportunizadas, aos sujeitos, estratégias de educação ambiental torna-se viável que eles reflitam sobre seus comportamentos e se motivem para a mudança. Diante desse contexto, o objetivo desta investigação foi descrever como acontece a educação ambiental (EA) em uma instituição hospitalar, a partir dos indivíduos diretamente envolvidos no seu planejar e executar formal. Metodologicamente, adotou-se a abordagem qualitativa, do tipo estudo de caso, como método de pesquisa; e como procedimentos de coleta, a pesquisa documental e a entrevista semi-estruturada. O estudo foi desenvolvido junto a um dos hospitais do Grupo Hospitalar Conceição, tendo como sujeitos os indivíduos que integraram o Núcleo de Educação Ambiental e informantes por eles indicados. Nesse processo, com base na análise de conteúdo, construíram-se cinco eixos temáticos. O primeiro eixo discute as concepções dos sujeitos da pesquisa acerca de meio ambiente e de educação ambiental, contemplando seis categorias de análise. O segundo eixo reflete sobre as experiências do Hospital Conceição em termos de Educação ambiental, compondo quatro categorias. O terceiro aborda as consequências das ações de EA em um contexto de Alta Modernidade, englobando duas categorias de análise. O quarto eixo remete a discussão das dificuldades e desafios da EA dentro da instituição de saúde, conglomerando seis categorias. E por fim, o quinto eixo desta pesquisa trilha um caminho possível para o desenvolvimento da EA no contexto hospitalar. Ao final desse estudo, concluiu-se que as ações de EA na instituição em questão são pontuais, fragmentadas e limitadas as práticas de dados indivíduos/grupos interessados no tema; carecendo portanto de: uma política ambiental institucional que funcione como um arcabouço financeiro, legal, estrutural e humano para o desenvolver das ações; de um grupo voltado integralmente a discussão e ao efetuar de atividades no aspecto ambiental; e de envolvimento das chefias. Apesar desses desafios, as ações de EA desenvolvidas na instituição representam um pequeno, mas importante passo, em direção a construção de um saber ambiental complexo e necessário em um contexto de Modernidade Reflexiva.

The subject matter of this licentiate thesis concerns the two EU directives on European Works Councils. The analysis is confined to the Swedish implementation of these directives into Swedish law. The thesis defines the term "EWC regulation" to encompass both the Swedish levels of EWC legislation and the regulation of EWCs by EWC agreements themselves. The overall objective is to gain an increased understanding of the function of EWC regulation. This requires a normative analysis of both EU and national law as well as an empirical study of the application. The thesis includes a number of agreements on EWCs based on the Swedish legislation and their application in corporations based in Sweden. Three multinational corporations in the health care sector, financial sector and metal industry have been selected. The focus lies on the regulation's practical significance for worker influence and corporate governance. A distinction is made between rules on worker participation (in law) and worker influence (in practice). As a point of departure the author combines the theory of reflexive law with concepts borrowed from the fields of management studies and economic history. The methods used consist of doctrinal legal interpretation and semi-structured interviews. The key findings run as follows. The EWC regulation generates worker influence by enhancing the knowledge and unity of worker representatives. The regulation facilitate corporate governance by strengthening the legitimacy of management, improving the decision basis and channels of communication. The worker influence is, under proper circumstances, strong in issues such as reorganizations, reassignments, health and safety. The influence is weaker in situations of relocation, outsourcing across national borders and other forms of regime shopping.

Orientador: Roberto Nardi / Banca: Maria José Pereira Monteiro de Almeida / Banca: Washington Luiz Pacheco de Carvalho / Resumo: Descreve-se aqui uma pesquisa com estudantes cursando a disciplina Prática de Ensino no último ano do Curso de Licenciatura em Física na Universidade Estadual Paulista - UNESP - Câmpus de Bauru, São Paulo. A pesquisa procurou avaliar a transformação de postura destes futuros docentes através da reflexão durante o processo, planejamento e aplicação em situações reais de sala de aula de uma sequência de atividades de ensino sobre o tema pressão atmosférica, levando em consideração resultados recentes de investigações na linha construtivista, tais como: respeito às concepções prévias dos estudantes, discussões sobre mudança conceitual e inserção da História e Filosofia da Ciência no ensino. A pesquisa buscou especificamente responder às seguintes questões: a) as atividades desenvolvidas influenciaram diretamente no conhecimento do conteúdo específico sobre o tema abordado? b) como os futuros docentes transformaram o conteúdo específico em conteúdo pedagógico? Após discussões teóricas os planejamentos de ensino foram elaborados por cada um dos três grupos de licenciandos e as sequências de atividades foram aplicadas em turmas de ensino médio, sob supervisão do docente responsável pela disciplina. Nos intervalos entre as aplicações das atividades foram realizadas reuniões de reflexões sobre a prática realizada. Todas atividades foram cuidadosamente gravadas. A coleta de dados incluiu também questionários e entrevistas iniciais e finais. As conclusões mostram que: a) a reflexão sobre a prática apresenta-se como um aspecto positivo a ser considerado na formação iniciail, pois favoreceu a incorporação de elementos essenciais do referencial teórico estudado: b) o processo favoreceu uma melhoria significativa do conhecimento sobre conteúdos específicos de Física dos licenciandos; c) em relação a aspectos pedagógicos, nem sempre os futuros... (Resumo completo, clicar acesso eletrônico abaixo) / Abstract: It is described here a research undertaken among last year students of an undergraduate program designed to form High School Physics teachers (Licenciatura) held at Bauru campus of the Universidade Estadual Paulista - UNESP. The research aimed to evaluate the future teachers posture's change through the reflection made during the process of planning and applying a sequence of classes about atmosphere pressure in real classroom situations, taking into consideration outcomes of recent constructivist research such as: respect to the students' previous conceptions, discussions on conceptual change and insertion of History and Phylosophy of Science into teaching. The research sought specifically to answer to the following questions: a) Do the developed activities induced to improve future teacher's content knowledge on the subject taught? b) How do the future teachers turned the content knowledge into pedagogical knowledge? After theoretical discussions the teaching planning were elaborated for each one of the three groups of future teachers and the activities sequence were applied in High School classrooms, under the advising of the professor responsible for the course. During the intervals between the applications meeting were made in order to reflect on the teaching practice observed. All the activities done were recorded. Data collected include also questionnaires and initial and final interviews. Conclusions show that: a) the reflection on the teaching practice shows as a positive aspect to be considered during the initial formation of teachers since it favoured to incorporate essential elements of theoretical references studied before; b) the process helped to improve future teachers' content knowledge; c) in relation to pedagogical contents, classroom activities show that not always they assumed constructivist posture during the classes; mixing them with other traditional methodologies... (Complete abstract click electronic access below) / Mestre