The elimination of the tutoring group-hour in Secondary Education. An exploratory study about teachers thoughts.

The Tutoring Group-hour in Compulsory Secondary Education and Post-Compulsory Schooling has been eliminated in a number of autonomous communities. Given the importance of the tutorial act as one of the fundamental pillars in students overall development, its disappearance has created considerable disturbance in the educational institutions, sparking a debate regarding the role of the tutor and the impact and effectiveness of their actions. In this survey, teachers from two different schools in the Community of Madrid maintain that they are properly trained to perform the various duties required for a tutor, show strong disagreement to the elimination of the Tutoring Group-hour in secondary schools, advocate incorporating it at a primary school level, and consider one of the main consequences of its disappearance to be less personalized attention for students. In short, an educational response that is less effective.

El razonamiento moral como elemento constitutivo de la competencia ética: dilemas reales e hipotéticos en profesores de educación secundaria en México

El objetivo del presente texto es la indagación del razonamiento moral en los profesores de secundaria como un elemento de la competencia ética. Se realizó con dilemas morales hipotéticos (analizados y probados previamente para su validación y cuya fiabilidad se obtuvo a través del alfa de Cronbach) y con dilemas reales. Se aplicó a 264 profesores, miembros de la comunidad académica de la Escuela Normal Superior de Michoacán, México. Se analizó a través del programa estadístico Aquad 6. Entre los descubrimientos se encuentra una presencia mayoritaria de conflictos entre las normas éticas interpersonales con las normas de conformidad social y con las normas institucionales particulares. También que la justicia y la protección contra daños a los alumnos son valores presentes en los dilemas reales y una prevalencia en el razonamiento convencional de los profesores

Conscientiousness and laboriousness as academic achievement predictors in a Spanish students sample

To understand academic performance of students, the variable of conscientiousness from personality inventory Big Five, has been recognized as an important key. The aim of this paper is to analyze the relationship established between the personality factor conscientiousness itself and two of its facets, laboriousness and planning, with academic performance, and observe if there are genre differences in consciousness personality factor. A total of 456 Spanish students of high school and college participated in the study. They were requested to answer a personality report and a self inform questionnaire. The results show that both conscientiousness as a personality dimension and the consideration of laboriousness facet are able to predict academic performance, especially with regard to student’s exam marks, classroom attendance and dedication to study. The genre variable pointed out that feminine genre is more conscious than male in that personality factor. From a practical perspective, these results indicate that the establishment of a routine of continuous work is suitable for improving student grades and their adaptation to the educational environment.

Analysis of the admissions tests for teacher training in Spain and Finland: knowledge or competences

One of the most decisive factors in the quality of education and academic performance of students is quality, preparation and dedication of the teachers. The exquisite system of selecting candidates for teacher training programs is one of the fundamentals of success of the Finnish Education System. The responsibility of choosing the best students to convert them into teachers is a challenge that involves a significant reform of university admission. Achieving this goal involves the choice of strategies and educational tools in accordance to the complexity of the demands presented by the teaching profession in the digital age. This study describes, analyzes and compares the admission tests in the University of Spain (PAU) and Finland (VAKAVA), for those who wish to become professional educators, in order to understand the possible influence of these tests to select the most suitable candidates to develop into future teaching professionals. The results showed that in Spain, the entrance test to universities is developed in a general way for all the students that aspire to any field of knowledge, while in Finland, the test is specific and particular for students aspiring to the field of education. The results of this study can guide and encourage the necessary changes that have to be done in the admission tests to Spanish university in general and to teacher education faculties in particular.

The in-service teacher trainer: profile, career path and duties

This article is the result of a doctoral thesis that aims to understand the reality of teacher trainers at a given moment, when their professional role changes from being a managing training advisor to a role that is more centred on process counselling. Using in-depth interviews, we defined the personal and professional profile of training counsellors in the Balearic Islands, their career path, the process for their inclusion in Teacher Centres (CEP) and, finally, the duties and skills that they perform as teacher trainers. The data that has been collected shows the coexistence of different professional roles in the group of education advisors. Moreover, it also indicates a lack of definition of the profile needed to access an advisor's position. There are indeed some coincidences determining the access route to such a position when it comes to the teaching profession since their leadership qualities and group dynamics expertise are a common indicator in most cases. The research also shows that they are subjected not only to a wide range of roles and tasks but also to a vast array of competences required to tackle the education advisor's tasks.

Models of initial training of secondary school teachers in Spain from a European perspective

This paper seeks to analyse some key issues related to initial training models for secondary education teachers from an international perspective with more specific references to the Spanish model. First, we briefly mention secondary education and its training needs: purpose, organization, structure, character, duration, etc.. Secondly, the most typical models of initial training of these teachers: consecutive and simultaneous, academic and professional, are adressed. Thirdly, we analyse the structure of initial training containing more general scientific and professional knowledge, (its theoretical and practical components). Lastly, the relationship between initial training and access to the teaching profession will be established, as well as the possibility of academic and / or professional qualifications is analyzed. We then highlight the issue of "professional identity", which is closely linked to the initial training of future teachers and final conclusions are discussed.

Social networks applied to training

In this article, we address the importance and relevance that social networks exhibit in their use as an educational resource.  This relevance relies in the possibility of implementing new learning resources or increasing the level of the participant's connectivity, as well as developing learning communities.  Also, the risk entailed from their use is discussed, especially for the students that have a low technological education or those having excessive confidence on the media.  It is important to highlight that the educational use of social networks is not a simple extension or translation of the student's habitual, recreational use, but that it implies an important change in the roles given to teachers as well as learners; from accommodative learning environments that only encourage memorization to other environments that demand an active, reflective, collaborative and proactive attitude, that require the development/acquisition of technological as well as social abilities, aptitudes and values.  It is also important to highlight that a correct implementation and adequate use will not only foment formal learning, but also informal and non-formal learning.

Rethinking the identity artist-researcher, from the project “Dialogues with women art teachers”

The questioning of identity and the various roles that artists have begun to explore, from the last century, are fundamental aspects in this article. Today it is difficult to speak of the artist as individual isolated innate talent working in his studio, but the various social, political and cultural effects, have moved the artists to become part of the social world and to generate artistic practices that visualize and manifest critically these concerns. To explain these transits deeper, we will share part of the personal artistic practice and reflections, and how it has begun to intertwine with the doctoral research, through the art project “Dialogues with women art teachers”. From the experience as an artist and researcher in training, we will share what this project of artistic inquiry is about and reflect their points with the notion of `artistic practice as research´ developed by Graeme Sullivan (2010, 2011). On the other hand, we will seek to reflect how the identities of `artist´ and `academic´ are in constant dialogue. This art project seeks to show that these identities are not in a fixed position, but rather reflect, from the place of an artist, how through the various shifts in different disciplines, can conceive an identity ‘in-between’. The latter refers to the ability to understand the processes of being a woman, artist and researcher who travels and forms its identity among both disciplines.