Post-Doc Position Open To work in Azorean Biodiversity Group - Biodiversity Education
- April 16th, 2019
- Positions Open
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A Post-Doc position is open to work in the project “Field Guide: Designing Mobile Interactive Tools for Place-Based Learning”.
Contact Prof. Rosalina Gabriel (rosalina.ma.gabriel@uac.pt) an apply before the 28th April.
AIMS: The Field Guide project aims to establish an improvement in the levels of scientific, conservation and environmental literacies amongst children and youth living in the Azorean archipelago. With one of the lowest school success rates in Portugal, this project will combine place-based learning and mobile technology to foster more active and meaningful learning experiences in the region. Through the design of a digital field guide in the form of a mobile application (app.), the project will offer a younger generation the opportunity to explore, learn about and monitor their immediate environment. Designed to interact with existing biodiversity web portals and their respective databases, the app. will use the power of context-aware technology to shape youth’s understanding of the natural world while raising awareness of one of Portugal’s key oceanic insular ecosystems. Our aim with Field Guide is to demonstrate that technology can support more active and meaningful. experiences for those who participate in educational projects that are contextually situated
Admission requirements: Candidates with a PhD degree in Biology, Psychology, Education, Environmental Sciences, or related fields, with proven knowledge in the organization and analysis of qualitative and quantitative environmental data, as well as in the organization of events ecological and / or environmental, and ability to summarize the main results of research in scientific publications, preferably published in journals of recognized international merit.
The candidate must be organized, responsible for the timetable and assigned tasks and have a good working capacity, creativity, motivation, autonomy in fieldwork and analysis, ease of contact with a wide range of publics (eg students, teachers), ability to work in a team and knowledge of English and Portuguese.
Work plan: The "Field Guide" project to be developed under this grant aims to improve the levels of scientific, conservation and environmental literacy among children and young people living in the Azores archipelago, involving students in the 2nd and 3rd cycles of Basic Education and secondary education in the exploration of their immediate environment. It has as its starting point the importance of developing a scientific curriculum based on pedagogical innovations such as 'local-based learning', 'learning about the phenomenological perspective' and 'project-based learning'. The work to be done with schools will also promote the use of ICT in the context of the public school system in the Azores, as well as contribute to the regionalization of the curriculum. The fellow is expected to be fully committed to the success of the project. The work to be carried out by the fellow to be hired includes: 1. Characterization of values, attitudes and knowledge about biodiversity, nature and conservation of Azorean students about biodiversity; 2. Characterization of the users of the portals for the dissemination of biodiversity in the Azores, their perspectives and experiences; 3. Analysis of the curricula of the natural and digital sciences at regional and national level; 4. Organization and support of "Focus Groups", with representatives from various entities in order to capture current perspectives on biodiversity, nature and conservation; 5. Mapping of localities in the Terceira Natural Park relevant to the project; 6. Participation in the conceptualization of an experimental prototype to simulate the experience of immersion, which is intended to be obtained with the "Field Guide" project; 7. Participation in the design of the evaluation device of the products and results of the project; 8. Writing scientific articles to disseminate project results; 9. Participation in cultural and scientific events, national or international, to disseminate the products and results of the project.
Place of work: The work will be developed in the Azorean Biodiversity Group (cE3c / ABG), in the Faculty of Agrarian Sciences and Environment, under the scientific guidance of Professor Rosalina Gabriel.
Duration: The contract will last for 24 months, non-renewable. The scholarship is due to start on June 2019.
Amount of monthly maintenance allowance: The monthly amount of the research grant corresponds to € 1509.80 (one thousand five hundred and nine euros and eighty cents), according to the table of values of grants awarded directly by FCT, IP in the Country (http://www.fct.pt/apoios/bolsas/valores). The Employee will have a personal accident insurance and, if not covered by any social protection scheme, can ensure the exercise of the right to social security by joining the voluntary social insurance scheme under the terms provided of the Code of Social Security Schemes and the Statute of the Research Grantor. The amount of the scholarship will be paid monthly by bank transfer.
Methods of selection and valuation: Candidates will be evaluated on the basis of the quality of the curriculum vitae (assessing the suitability of the candidate's profile for the purposes for which the scholarship is intended, valuing the experience in the mentioned domains) and an interview can be used to evaluate experience theoretical and practical, in which case the weighting will be 70% for the curriculum and 30% for the interview.
Form of application: The applications must be formalized by means of an application to the President of the Jury and sent together with the rest of the documentation by e-mail to Rosalina Gabriel (rosalina.ma.gabriel@uac.pt) with acknowledgment to fgf@uac.pt, or sent / delivered at the premises of the Azorean Biodiversity Group [Porta E.142], Faculty of Agrarian Sciences and the Environment of the University of the Azores, Rua Capitão João d'Ávila, sn. 9700-042 Angra do Heroísmo, Azores, until April 28, 2019.
The application must be accompanied by the following documents: a letter of motivation indicating the reasons why it is considered appropriate for the position; detailed curriculum vitae, dated and signed; copy of certificate of academic qualifications, with final average and classification of all the disciplines carried out; other documents that the candidate deems relevant for curricular assessment, namely documents attesting to the experiences mentioned in this notice.