University Of Aveiro Research Articles

Language learning in higher education: Portuguese student voices

ABSTRACTThis paper begins by reviewing European language education policies in higher education and relating these to the bottom-up language provision practices currently applied in higher education institutions. The paper then focuses on a case study at the University of Aveiro (Portugal) that sets out to identify students’ social representations concerning: (i) the importance of integrating foreign language courses into their degree/master/PhD programmes and (ii) the languages they consider to be more important in their academic training and the reasons for this. The findings indicate that the vast majority of responding students consider the integration of language courses in the curricula to be relevant from a doubly pragmatic perspective. Firstly, English is seen as a pathway to employability, mobility and the accessibility of knowledge, while other foreign languages (Spanish, French and German) are viewed as ‘differentiating assets’ in the professional marketplace.

Edulabs for the Integration of Technologies in Basic Education – Monitoring the AGIRE Project

The AGIRE project is a partnership between the University of Aveiro, a consortium comprising 26 companies related to teaching and learning, and one School Grouping, with the financial support of QREN. The project is embedded into the Edulab concept (school laboratories with technological equipment, as tablets, laptops, whiteboards, and educational materials such as eBooks and learning platforms) to promote the adoption of innovative teaching practices. The project stems from identified contextual needs and aims to monitor the project implementation within an interventional perspective, concerning educational innovation with the use of digital technologies. The goal is to promote teachers’ and students’ digital literacy, by developing Teacher Training Courses (TTC) and taking advantage from the school technology environment on a pedagogical level. After attending a short-term (15 hours) technological TTC, a 64-hour TTC involving 13 teachers of Basic Education during the current school year is being conducted. The TTC, developed in a blended learning environment, follows the flipped classroom methodology comprising autonomous tasks for consulting multimedia resources at a distance and face-to-face sessions for discussion, reflection and collaborative work. This fits into a design-based methodology (Parker, 2011), allowing the analysis of the intervention outcomes and it’s successively refinement towards a solution, following the phases: i) Analyze the problem; ii) Design and develop potential solutions; iii) Implement and evaluate; and iv) Reflect and report. A set of data collection instruments developed under this project allowed its monitoring, as well as the redefinition of the TTC and its previewed activities. For example, the questionnaire on the trainee teachers’ digital literacy, the grid to monitor the strategies implemented in classrooms, as well as the autonomous work tasks allowed each teacher to position its practice at the level of technology integration and to raise his/her expectations towards the educational technologies.

Long-finned pilot whale population diversity and structure in Atlantic waters assessed through biogeochemical and genetic markers

Acknowledgements. Cetacean samples were collected under the auspices of stranding monitoring programs run by the Sociedade Portuguesa de Vida Selvagem, the Coordinadora para o Estudio dos Mamiferos Marinos (supported by the regional government Xunta de Galicia), the UK Cetacean Strandings Investigation Programme and the Scottish Agriculture College Veterinary Science Division (jointly funded by Defra and the Devolved Governments of Scotland and Wales), the Marine Mammals Research Group of the Institute of Marine Research (Norway), the Museum of Natural History of the Faroe Islands and the International Fund for Animal Welfare Marine Mammal Rescue and Research Program (USA). The authors thank all the members of these institutions and organizations for their assistance with data and sample collection. S.S.M., P.M.F. and M.F. were supported by PhD grants from the Fundacao para a Ciencia e Tecnologia (POPH/FSE ref SFRH/BD/ 38735/ 2007, SFRH/BD/36766/2007 and SFRH/BD/30240/ 2006, respectively). A.L. was supported by a postdoctoral grant from the Fundacao para a Ciencia e Tecnologia (ref SFRH/BPD/82407/2011). The work related to strandings and tissue collection in Portugal was partially supported by the SafeSea project EEAGrants PT 0039 (supported by Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway through the EEA Financial Mechanism), the MarPro project Life09 NAT/PT/000038 (funded by the European Union program LIFE+) and the project CetSenti FCT RECI/AAG-GLO/0470/2012 (FCOMP- 01-0124-FEDER-027472) (funded by the program COMPETE and the Fundacao para a Ciencia e Tecnologia). G.J.P. thanks the University of Aveiro and Caixa Geral de Depositos (Portugal) for financial support. The authors acknowledge the assistance of the chemical analysts at Marine Scotland Science with the fatty acid analysis.

Nanostructured MgTiO3 thick films obtained by electrophoretic deposition from nanopowders prepared by solar PVD

A novel combination of solar physical vapor deposition (SPVD) and electrophoretic deposition (EPD) that was developed to grow MgTiO3 nanostructured thick films is presented. Obtaining nanostructured MgTiO3 thick films, which can replace bulk ceramic components, a major trend in electronic industry, is the main objective of this work. The advantage of SPVD is direct synthesis of nanopowders, while EPD is simple, fast and inexpensive technique for preparing thick films. SPVD technique was developed at CNRS-PROMES Laboratory, Odeillo-Font Romeu, France, while the EPD was performed at University of Aveiro – DeMAC/CICECO, Portugal. The nanopowders with an average crystallite size of about 30nm prepared by SPVD were dispersed in 50ml of acetone in basic media with addition of triethanolamine. The obtained well-dispersed and stable suspensions were used for carrying out EPD on 25μm thick platinum foils. After deposition, films with thickness of about 22–25μm were sintered in air for 15min at 800, 900 and 1000°C. The structural and microstructural characterization of the sintered thick films was carried out using XRD and SEM, respectively. The thickness of the sintered samples were about 18–20μm, which was determined by cross-sectional SEM. Films sintered at 900°C exhibit a dielectric constant, ɛr ∼18.3 and dielectric loss, tan δ ∼0.0012 at 1MHz. The effects of processing techniques (SPVD and EPD) on the structure, microstructure and dielectric properties are reported in detail. The obtained results indicate that the thick films obtained in the present study can be promising for low loss materials for microwave and millimeter wave applications.

Three-Term Recurrence Relations for Systems of Clifford Algebra-Valued Orthogonal Polynomials

This work was supported by Portuguese funds through the CIDMA - Center for Research and Development in Mathematics and Applications of the University of Aveiro, the CMAT - Research Centre of Mathematics of the University of Minho and the FCT - Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (“Fundacao para a Ciˆencia e a Tecnologia”), within projects PEst-OE/MAT/UI4106/2014 and PEst-OE/MAT/UI0013/2014.

The use of Web 2.0 tools by students in learning and leisure contexts: a study in a Portuguese institution of higher education

This study analyses and compares the use of Web 2.0 tools by students in both learning and leisure contexts. Data were collected based on a questionnaire applied to 234 students from the University of Aveiro (Portugal) and the results were analysed by using descriptive analysis, paired samples t-tests, cluster analyses and Kruskal–Wallis tests. The results show that the tools most used by students in a learning context are video sharing, social network sites and wikis, and that in a leisure context students use social network sites and video sharing more. The profiles of the groups resulting from the cluster analyses reveal that 42% of the students do not use Web 2.0 tools intensively in either one of the contexts. However, findings from comparing the clusters of both contexts show that students who more frequently use the tools in the leisure context are occasional users in the learning context and vice versa. This study contributes to a better knowledge of the student profiles concerning the use of Web 2.0 tools in learning and leisure contexts which can help teachers direct their strategies to the use of the most appropriate tools, thus improving the success of the teaching-learning process.

Assessing 3 and 5 Degrees of Freedom Toolpath Strategy Influence on Single Point Incremental Forming

Single Point Incremental Forming (SPIF) is a promising manufacturing technology concerning the production of customized products, low batches or prototyping of ready-to-use parts, given its easy implementation and absence of dedicated tooling. The range of application is wide, covering many materials and virtually unlimited geometries. Indeed, nowadays’ boundaries of the process are more related to the machines limitations than to the process itself. The SPIFA machine [1] developed at the University of Aveiro allies high payload capacity to flexibility driven by a kinematics based on a Stewart Platform. In this work, it will discussed the effects of employing five degrees of freedom toolpaths to produce aluminium and high strength steel parts.

A complexidade do tempo geológico e a sua aprendizagem com alunos portugueses (12-13 anos)

Este artigo pretende contribuir para a reflexão sobre o complexo conceito de tempo, nas suas vertentes filosófica e científica, reconhecendo-se a consequente necessidade de proceder ao aprofundamento da investigação no âmbito do ensino e da aprendizagem desta temática. Os resultados encontrados sobre concepções de alunos do 3.º Ciclo do Ensino Básico1 permitem perceber a importante valorização que atribuem ao conceito de Tempo Geológico na aprendizagem da Geologia, apesar de não existir acerca dele uma perspectiva adequada. Entre outros resultados, as dificuldades sentidas recaem no facto deste conceito ser complexo, o que dificulta a compreensão de fenómenos geológicos e da história da Terra, sendo, por isso, considerado pelo alunos dispensável na aprendizagem da Geologia. O trabalho insere-se no Projecto Deep time in schooling: contributions of students’ perceptions for the development of scientifically literate citizens, que se desenvolve no Centro de Investigação Didáctica e Tecnologia na Formação de Formadores, da Universidade de Aveiro (Portugal), envolvendo investigadores em Geologia e em Didáctica das Ciências das universidades portuguesas de Aveiro e de Évora e professores de Biologia e Geologia de várias escolas públicas dos Ensinos Básico e Secundário

An Educational Intervention To Improve Nurses Reporting of Adverse Drug Reactions

AN EduCATioNAl iNTErVENTioN To improVE NurSES rEporTiNg of AdVErSE drug rEACTioNS S. Marquez; M.T. Herdeiro; and I. Ribeiro-Vaz University of Aveiro, Aveiro, Portugal; and Northern Pharmacovigilance Centre, Porto, Portugal Introduction: Adverse drug reactions (ADR) are an important cause of mortality and morbidity leading to additional costs with health. Drug safety data before commercialization is limited and incomplete, which is the reason why pharmacovigilance is important. ADR reporting system is efficient in drug safety monitoring. Nurses can have an important role in ADR reporting due to their daily activities of drugs administration (including vaccines). However, among these professionals, there a high rate of underreporting. Based on the reasons proposed by Inman for underreporting ADR, it was concluded that the main obstacles to ADR reporting among nurses were indifference (the belief that a single case cannot contribute to medical knowledge) and the lack of knowledge about the pharmacovigilance system. The aim of this study is to evaluate the quantitative and qualitative increase of ADR reports by nurses after an educational intervention. Methods: A quasiexperimental study was performed in nurses working in primary care in Braga district, Portugal. One hundred thirteen individuals were placed in the intervention group while the control group included 590 nurses. Two educational interventions were performed to nurses working in primary care in ACES Cavado II (intervention group) that focused on the problem of adverse drug reaction, the impact on public health and spontaneous reporting. Statistical analysis were based on absolute and relative frequencies. Results: Between January 2013 and September 2014 the Northern Pharmacovigilance Centre received 8 reports/100 nurses from the intervention group and 5 reports/100 nurses from control group. Conclusions: The educational intervention increased 1.6 times the number of reports during the study period. The second intervention had more impact than the first one. There was no significant increase in the quality of ADR reports in the intervention group. In the second intervention the number of reports increased only at the intervention day.

Project-based learning in Geotechnics: cooperative versus collaborative teamwork

Since 2007/2008 project-based learning models have been used to deliver two fundamental courses on Geotechnics in University of Aveiro, Portugal. These models have evolved and have encompassed either cooperative or collaborative teamwork. Using data collected in five editions of each course (Soil Mechanics I and Soil Mechanics II), the different characteristics of the models using cooperative or collaborative teamwork are pointed out and analysed, namely in terms of the students’ perceptions. The data collected include informal feedback from students, monitoring of their marks and academic performance, and answers to two sets of questionnaires: developed for these courses, and institutional. The data indicate students have good opinion of the project-based learning model, though collaborative teamwork is the best rated. The overall efficacy of the models was analysed (sum of their effectiveness, efficiency and attractiveness). The collaborative model was found more adequate.

Exploring the Unique Properties of Designed Porphyrins and Phthalocyanines

The design and synthesis of novel porphyrins (Pors) and phthalocyanines (Pcs) for different applications have been an extremely hot area. The possibility of mimic most of the vital functions of the natural porphyrin derivatives, make this type of compounds unique in many scientific and technological areas, especially when combined with light.1 The possibility of decorate the periphery of their cores with different motifs and select their central metals, allow to fine-tune the physico-chemical properties/functionalities of novel molecules/materials to be used in these areas.1 In collaboration with colleagues from complementary areas, we have successfully been designing, synthesizing and evaluate several of these dyes in: i) photomedicine, acting as singlet oxygen generators, especially in cancer photodynamic therapy (PDT)2 and in (multi)resistant pathogenic microorganisms photodynamic inactivation (PDI);3 ii) optical (chemo)sensors, to detect, trap and/or degrade pollutants from contaminated environments, such as anionic4 and nitro aromatic compounds;5 iii) (photo)catalysts, to be used in industrial and environmental applications;6 and iv) the construction of several other functional materials, especially when combined with nanostructures.7In this communication, it will be highlighted some of our recent works, presenting the used synthetic strategies and the obtained results in the indicated applications. Achnowledgements:Thanks are due to the Universities of Aveiro and Ghent, FCT (Portugal) and FEDER for funding the projects PTDC/QUI/65228/2006 and PTDC/CTM/101538/2008; CNPq (Brazil) for funding the program “Ciência sem Fronteiras/2012” (4802069445108663); and to the European Commission for the Marie Curie Initial Training Network FP7-PEOPLE-2012-ITN/316975.

Heuristic for brand artefacts co-design: a computer-mediated proposal

Brands undeniably constitute a significant asset for a company and are usually specified in its organisational strategy. Typically, employees are not invited to participate in debates or decisions about branding since they access brand information in a unidirectional way. Many of them do not even know how to convey appropriate messages and fail to recognise the importance of brand consistency. In this article we propose a heuristic for an interaction structure aimed at brand artefact co-design, through a computer-mediated platform, so that employees may learn about the brand, develop brand knowledge, propose meaningful brand artefacts and manage the evaluation of their peers’ proposals. We prepared a non-functional prototype of a Participatory Brand Centre and tested it in focus group sessions with the University of Aveiro's employees. We found that though our proposal is consistent with employees’ brand-related needs, authorship is a sensitive issue.

Peer-supported badge attribution in a collaborative learning platform: The SAPO Campus case

The development of technology and namely of the Internet changed the way learners and educational institutions see and understand learning, collaboration and knowledge construction. In the educational field, game-based elements such as digital badges have been proposed and used to assess, recognize and validate knowledge construction and are considered as an effective way to improve and structure collaborative peer-based learning communities. This paper introduces the SAPO Campus badging system, a project that is being developed at the University of Aveiro (Portugal), which addresses the potential of a peer-supported badging system in the promotion of a more participatory learning community.

Portraying the self in online contexts: context-driven and user-driven online identity profiles

The emergence of online environments created a space where individuals can work on the construction and reconstruction of the self. Introducing a case study developed at the University of Aveiro – Portugal, this paper discusses the importance and challenges of building a representation the self in online contexts and addresses the main differences between building the self in physical and online environments. Data were collected through the application of questionnaires, direct observation and in-depth interviews, made to the participants of the study, 13 individuals, convenience sample. From the analysis of the collected data, a framework and a model have emerged: the Online Identity Analysis Model. By applying the model to the information shared by each participant in three online spaces (Facebook, Twitter and SAPO Campus, an institutionally supported platform), two main online identity profiles were outlined: the context-driven online identity profile and the user-driven online identity profile. By presenting the main results of a study focused on the construction of the self in online contexts, this paper should be understood as an approach and/or a starting point for a more wider and profound analysis of the online self and therefore contribute to the understanding of the importance of building a presence over the web, advantages and challenges included.

Spatial and temporal variation in fish community of the Ria de Aveiro estuarine lagoon (Portugal).

Event Abstract Back to Event Spatial and temporal variation in fish community of the Ria de Aveiro estuarine lagoon (Portugal). Eva García-Seoane1*, Ana Abreu1, Cátia L. Silva1 and José E. Rebelo1 1 University of Aveiro, Department of Biology, Portugal Fish assemblages of Ria de Aveiro coastal lagoon (Northwest Portugal) were studied from February 2012 and January 2013. Sampling were monthly conducted with a traditional beach-seine net (“chincha”) at 9 sites. Multivariate approach were used in order to analyse the spatial and temporal variation in fish community. A total of 58,201 fishes, weighting 249,540 g, were identified, representing 37 taxa and 21 families. Four taxa (Atherina spp., Dicentrarchus labrax, Liza spp., and Sardina pilchardus) were responsible for 94.7% and 85.4% of the total abundance, in number and weight. There were significant differences in fish community, in terms of fish number and weight, between sites and between months (ANOSIM, p<0.01). A total of 12 species appeared as characteristics of one of more sampling sites either in terms of number and weight. In both cases, D. labrax, Liza spp. and Atherina spp. were typical throughout the study area. Other species, such as Spondyliosoma cantharus appeared as typical only in the part of the lagoon more influenced by marine waters, whereas Anguilla anguilla was typical of the inner area. A total of 11 (in number) or 13 (in weight) species appeared as typical of at least one month of the year. Liza spp. and Atherina spp. were typical all the year round for number and weight data. In both cases, D. labrax, Diplodus spp. and S. pilchardus, appeared as a typical from spring to autumn. The number of typical species varied with the season, being maximum in May and minimum in winter. Finally, results of this work were discussed in comparison to previous studies. Acknowledgements We thank the fishermen’s association APARA, all the local fishermen, and the colleagues who assisted in the field sampling. The authors are grateful V. Quintino for providing access to the PRIMER software. This work was supported by “Grupo de Ação Costeira da Região de Aveiro” (GAC-RA) through the projects “Enguias na Ria de Aveiro, um ex-líbris a preservar: biologia, sanidade e pesca” and “Promoção dos Recursos Endógenos da Ria: Conhecer, Usufruir e Preservar”. Keywords: Coastal lagoon, fish assemblage, Portugal, Ria de Aveiro, spatial variations, Seasonal variations. Conference: XV European Congress of Ichthyology, Porto, Portugal, 7 Sep - 11 Sep, 2015. Presentation Type: Oral Presentation Topic: Ecology, Conservation and Invasive Species Citation: García-Seoane E, Abreu A, Silva CL and Rebelo JE (2015). Spatial and temporal variation in fish community of the Ria de Aveiro estuarine lagoon (Portugal).. Front. Mar. Sci. Conference Abstract: XV European Congress of Ichthyology. doi: 10.3389/conf.fmars.2015.03.00095 Copyright: The abstracts in this collection have not been subject to any Frontiers peer review or checks, and are not endorsed by Frontiers. They are made available through the Frontiers publishing platform as a service to conference organizers and presenters. The copyright in the individual abstracts is owned by the author of each abstract or his/her employer unless otherwise stated. Each abstract, as well as the collection of abstracts, are published under a Creative Commons CC-BY 4.0 (attribution) licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) and may thus be reproduced, translated, adapted and be the subject of derivative works provided the authors and Frontiers are attributed. For Frontiers’ terms and conditions please see https://www.frontiersin.org/legal/terms-and-conditions. Received: 20 Nov 2015; Published Online: 21 Nov 2015. * Correspondence: Dr. Eva García-Seoane, University of Aveiro, Department of Biology, Aveiro, 3810-193, Portugal, eva.garcia.seoane@hi.no Login Required This action requires you to be registered with Frontiers and logged in. To register or login click here. Abstract Info Abstract The Authors in Frontiers Eva García-Seoane Ana Abreu Cátia L Silva José E Rebelo Google Eva García-Seoane Ana Abreu Cátia L Silva José E Rebelo Google Scholar Eva García-Seoane Ana Abreu Cátia L Silva José E Rebelo PubMed Eva García-Seoane Ana Abreu Cátia L Silva José E Rebelo Related Article in Frontiers Google Scholar PubMed Abstract Close Back to top Javascript is disabled. Please enable Javascript in your browser settings in order to see all the content on this page.

DESIGN WORKSHOPS FOR SOCIAL INNOVATION

Objective: This article describes a set of workshops design-driven methodology that has explored the social entrepreneurship and social innovation dimensions to empower local communities. Value: The workshops were organized by a multidisciplinary team from University of Aveiro (Design, Social Sciences and Governance, Management and Economics, among others), and were requested by 11 municipalities of the Aveiro Region in order to promote services based in sustainable lifestyles, active citizenship, social inclusion, cultural diversity and new economic models. The workshops intended to develop services based on social entrepreneurship between local communities and alumni from the University of Aveiro. Design/Methodology: The workshops included a number of phases dedicated to the explanation of concepts, examples and current opportunities for entrepreneurship and social innovation, Design exercises on which participants went through several phases, generating possible solutions in the framework of a service concept for their communities, and also a session with a Management and Economic team, in order to build a sustainable financial scenario. The workshops were organized in 4 themes according to the opportunities previously mapped in the region: Health & Care; Agriculture & Food; Tourism & Sustainable Development; Cultural Heritage Preservation. Results: Each workshop has resulted in 2 or 3 service ideas.

Trophic web structure and ecosystem attributes of a temperate estuarine system (Ria de Aveiro, Portugal)

Trophic web structure and ecosystem attributes of a temperate estuarine system (Ria de Aveiro, Portugal)

Web Platform to Support the Portuguese National Registry of Haemophilia and Other Inherited Blood Disorders

Patient registries are essential tools for identifying and tracking people with a particular disease and for collecting epidemiological information, having a special role in rare and chronic diseases, where haemophilia and other inherited blood disorders (HoIBD) are classified. Web-based technologies represent an excellent solution to support different types of registries, due to the benefits that they can promote in the management of disease data. This work presents the web platform developed in a joint initiative between the Portuguese Association of Congenital Coagulopathies (PACC) and the University of Aveiro (UA), with the purpose of creating the first National Patients Registry (NPR) with HoIBD in Portugal. This application is hosted in the data centre of the UA, and at this moment it is already used by clinicians of the different Haemophilia Treatment Centres (HTC) located in Portugal, with the next challenge being the increase in the number of users.

The Portuguese National Registry for Hemophilia: Developing of a Web-based Technological Solution

The crucial role that patient records have in the management of the rare and chronic diseases greatly increases the need to create mechanisms to facilitate the identification and management of the patient's data. Hemophilia is an X-linked congenital bleeding disorder caused by a deficiency of coagulation factor that affects the population on a ratio of 1 case for 10,000 people born. Currently, there are several countries with technological platforms to support the National Patients’ Registries (NPR) of Hemophilia and other Congenital Coagulopathies (HoCC), due to its benefits in the management of the disease. This work presents the technological platform developed in a joint initiative between the University of Aveiro (UA) and the Portuguese Association of Congenital Coagulopathies (PACC), with the purpose of creating the first NPR with HoCC in Portugal. This web application is hosted in the data center of the University of Aveiro, and is being used by the clinicians of the different Hemophilia Treatment Centers (HTC) across the country.

Evaluación de conocimientos didáctico-matemáticos sobre razonamiento algebraico elemental de futuros maestros

Different studies suggest the need to introduce elementary algebraic reasoning at an early age, which in current curricular proposals is only taught in Secondary Education. In this paper, the responses to a questionnaire evaluating prospective primary school teachers didactic-mathematical knowledge regarding elementary algebraic reasoning are analysed. The aim is to provide a diagnosis of prospective primary school teachers knowledge regarding elementary algebra and its teaching. The results will be used to develop a training programme for teachers, which ultimately ensures an effective study process in primary education. The sample consisted of 597 students from the Universities of Granada, Jaen, Public University of Navarra, Santiago de Compostela in Spain, and the University of Aveiro in Portugal. The questionnaire comprises 25 items that assess algebraic and pedagogical content knowledge in primary education. Taking into account that in these universities the groups are ad extra homogeneous and ad intro heterogeneous, entire groups were intentionally selected at each university. The quantitative analysis of the results enabled the estimation of the instrument psychometric properties (difficulty and discrimination indexes, reliability and validity). The comparison of the training programmes in mathematics and the way in which the subject is taught in the different universities reveals that current curriculum emphasizes on the psycho-pedagogical area. It also reveals an unsatisfactory disciplinary training that does not include algebraic reasoning. Results show significant differences among universities in the participants level of knowledge in the various didactic - mathematical knowledge components. We conclude that it is necessary to improve the teachers education programmes so they can progressively foster their pupils algebraic reasoning. To achieve this goal these programmes should include specific training activities on elementary algebraic reasoning.