Sensitization and Disposition to Change Facing the Challenges of the New Educational Circumstances

This article is about the necessity of an up to date vision in teachers’ training. It starts with the latest studies and advances surrounding learning-along-life term. It presents a set of topics inspired in the contributions of new fields of study connected to learning. Such contributions, as neuroscience, should be considered in the decisions related to future teachers’ training, thus favoring the transformation of the pedagogical practice. Awareness and disposition to change are essential requirements for teacher trainers who will drive investigative processes and pedagogical proposals generation; all of this according to the new and dynamic knowledge society.

Skills in the XXI Century Guidance: An Approach to the Costa Rican Reality

During a long time, the term competence has been used in different fields. Among those fields, and one of the most important, we can mention the educational system, from preschool to university levels. The term has to be understood as one person integral behavior, making him/her able to enter the labor force in the most competitive way. Within the university realm, experts have tried to include the model of competences as a transversal axle into the teaching-learning process. In European universities, such model has been implemented in most of them. In Latin America universities, on the other hand, it has been used in a good number of countries. The importance of early detection of competences among target populations in education has been widely discussed. However, it has been highlighted the necessity of considering romantic or subjective competences, which seem to lack of value in this complex and competitive actual world. The term competence has been classified as genetic competence, or common and specific competence. The latter is related to the knowledge scope. Within the counseling field, specifically, the general and specific competences are deemed highly appropriate for good a work performance. This article focuses on the main antecedents of competences and analyzes this approach from counseling field perspective. In regards to this specific aspect, a survey with professionals in counseling was carried out. Such a survey ends up dealing with some of the competences considered unavoidable for an accurate performance of professionals in counseling. It is important to mention that the competences of the survey mainly point out to genetic competences rather than to specific competences.

Quality of Life Profile, Overweight-Obesity and Sedentary Behavior in Elementary and High School Children of Guanacaste

The purpose of this study was to identify the quality of life profile, overweight-obesity and sedentary behavior in a group of elementary and high school children of Guanacaste. 635 students participated in the study. The participants completed a protocol by which they were anthropometrically evaluated, and also filled up a questionnaire related to sedentary behavior and quality of life. In general, the findings reflected a prevalence of overweight and obesity of 13, 9%. The most important sedentary activities were, in descending order, the small screen (watching TV, video games, computer), and certain social and cultural activities. The self-reported quality of life index was within acceptable limits but not exceeding 80 points on a scale of 1-100. There was no significant relationship between the rate of the overall quality of life, overweight, obesity and some sedentary behaviors, although some anthropometric parameters like percentage of body fat and body weight showed significant correlation with sedentary behavior and specific aspects belonging to quality of life. The study provides valuable information to health authorities, directors of educational institutions and parents about key issues related to child development.

Communication in the Seventh Grade Classroom

Reflections on communication in the learning process at the level of the seventh year of secondary education based on the methodological and pedagogical approaches, considered in research of a multidisciplinary team of the CIDE of UNA (National University), with the aim of building the “teaching performance profile for the seventh year of Costa Rican education”. It demonstrates the role of teachers to ensure favorable communication links to the learning process, not only to capture the attention and interest of students through varied and systematic motivations, but also by the honesty, openness, personal example and involvement in the task, problems and aspirations of students.

La concepción de “ser humano” en Pablo Freire

This article analizes how Pablo Freire, one of the main education theoreticians with broad trajectory and world influence and with a big contibution to what it is known as alternative pedagogy, conceives the human been and his participation in and with the world. He has built his conception on this matter through several publications, merged from his teaching practice.

"La lagartija de la panza blanca" de Yolanda Oreamuno: una lectura desde la voz narrativa

This article establishes a dialogue between Yolanda Oreamuno´s short story and three of her essays in order to point out the coherence of the costarrican author´s ethic and aesthetic vision.

Sexual-i-hablando, las representaciones sociales de las estudiantes de Educación Preescolar en relación con la Educación para la Sexualidad

Recibido 22 de noviembre 2006 • Aprobado 14 de marzo 2007  La presente investigación aborda las representaciones que tienen las estudiantes de la carrera de Educación Preescolar de la División de Educación Básica (DEB), sobre el curso Educación para la Sexualidad, impartido en el IV nivel del Bachillerato, a partir de la información que tienen las estudiantes sobre la sexualidad y de las expectativas respecto a su práctica profesional en las aulas preescolares sobre la educación para la sexualidad, con el fin de reflexionar acerca del impacto en los niveles pedagógico y subjetivo de la propuesta metodológica y de contenidos. También, se sugieren estrategias didácticas áulicas y la consecuente incorporación de éstas de parte de las y los estudiantes en su práctica profesional. La metodología utilizada, desde el enfoque cualitativo, consideró adecuada la realización de entrevistas en profundidad, así como de relatos inducidos que dieran cuenta de las vivencias en torno a la educación para la sexualidad las dudas, temores, práctica docente y las estrategias para abordar la temática, entre otros. La investigación obtuvo como resultados una propuesta en contenidos y método para este curso. Además, una Prueba de Oraciones Incompletas (TOI), diseñado para conocer la información general que manejan las y los estudiantes que se matriculan en él, respecto de: la sexualidad, educación para la sexualidad, la sexualidad de las mujeres, la sexualidad de mujeres adolescentes, la sexualidad de las niñas, la sexualidad de los varones, sexualidad de varones adolescentes y la sexualidad de los niños.

Una reflexión necesaria: posibilidad de la construcción de un modelo pedagógico en la educación superior

The current article presents a series of considerations regarding the significance of establishing a pedagogic model in University level education, as well as its main characteristics, this with the purpose of guiding educational processes towards new and critical perspectives. The article is based on the results of an investigation performed by a team of professionals at the Universidad Nacional.

La teoría de las inteligencias múltiples en la práctica docente en educación preescolar

This article presents the results of the application of curricular proposal based on the Multiple Intelligences Theory on Educational practice in Preeschool Education

Modelos de gestión pedagógica, en zonas de atención prioritaria: análisis de una experiencia

The “División de Educación para el Trabajo del CIDE, Universidad Nacional”, started a research project for the benefit of educational administrators. The aim of the project is to devise a methodology for the implementation of pedagogical management models, useful to confront the necessities of each educational center. The results are the product of a series of action-reflection-action analysis. The project is being now developed in nine schools located in zones of prioritized focus. Among the most outstanding achievements was the development of their own pedagogical management models, pertinent to the school according to each context. It is expected that the findings will work as a contribution for management in educational institutions.

Construcción del perfil profesional docente de sétimo año: respuesta a una necesidad actual

In our country, the seventh grade is the level with the highest desertion and failure rate in high school. This was the main reason that motivated this group of researchers to define the teachers’ professional profile at this level. Based on a definition of the teachers’ characteristics, the concept of how a profile should be, the age features of seventh graders and all those aspects that benefit the teaching-learning processes, the optimum and required profile of the seventh graders’ teachers is proposed.

Influencia del cine en la Generación del 27

This article focuses on the influence cinema has had on literature, since as we have seen, the arrival of filmmakers led to a cultural revolution. The world of cinema was joined to other traditional arts, suchs as painting and literature, which man had already used to express his ideas and feelings. Cinema forms part of the new 20th century trends, influencing the poets of creating new imagery and metaphors which so greatly enhanced their work.

Fundamentos teóricos del Pensamiento complejo de Edgar Morin

In face of what he considered as the crisis of the Western paradigm of simplification and disjunction, based on the reduction and separation of knowledge, Edgar Morin posited the emergence of a new paradigm of complexity that would attempt to articulate and contextualize scientific, humanistic, and artistic cultures. To accomplish such purpose, Morin argued for an integration of ideas, concepts and notions drawing on different theoretical sources. Approaching complexity has required a dialectic and creative resignification of the legacy of such theories through a new synthesis that both integrates and surpasses them qualitatively.

Hacia una nueva educación

We point out in this article centered on Education the main principles that shape the educational model of the industrial age. Those principles were explained by Alvin Toffler in his book The Third Wave. They are: standardization, specialization, synchronization, concentration, maximization and centralization. After emphasizing them and showing how each one of them leaves its mark in the formal education in the industrial age, we defend the thesis that the new education is originated and configures itself in a process of dismantling and replacement of the principles of the industrialism by the new principles of the raising post-industrial society, also called Society of the Knowledge.

Freire: vigente e inspirador en la alfabetización de personas adultas

This article presents diverse experiences regarding alphabetization of grown-ups, inspired by Paulo Freire’s ideas. The validity of Freire’s contributions are reconstructed through an integrated academic work, carried out in different contexts, through the coordination between the National University (Universidad Nacional) and the Costa Rica Electricity Board (Instituto Costarricense de Electricidad), with the aid of professionals and students.