News DidacticApproaches in a Health Care Graduation Class

Nowadays the educator must focus not only on acquiring cognitive knowledge, but also on other matters and competences (social, political, instrumental ones). This work took placein a private college in Recife and  was had as objectiveto verify the efficiency of the application of ne wsdidactic strategies in graduation classes.This study comprised students subscribed in Medical technology (B) andPharmacy (F)/2008. Students were separated in groups regarding their college period and course (B1, B2, F1, F2). The class, divided in two stages, used different didactic strategies to explain its contents: 1st unit: besides the conventionalapproaches (explanatory class, exercises and laboratory classes), new educative activities were included (research practice in the library  and problem solving classes in the laboratory); 2nd unit: conventional approach alone. In the end of each unit, students were evaluated with a theoretical exam (with objective and subjective questions). It was shown that the arithmetic means of the gradesobtained by the 1st unit students  (B1=9,1;  B2=8,8; F1=9,7;  F2=9,5) were greater, in comparison with the 2nd unit ones (B1=7,3; B2=7,6;  F1=7,6;  F2=8,0). The research and the problem solving classes created multiple interactions opportunities among the group subjects, which may have influenced the results. The total of subjects of each group (B1=60;  B2=34;  F1=50;  F2=35) has also been evaluated, and it was seen that there was no influence of such matter on the obtained results. Therefore, it may be concluded t hat, the work towards the whole development of the human being demands new didactic approaches and diversification of educationalactivities.