SciE-Lex Report: Building up a Collocational Database to Assist the Production of Biomedical Texts in L2 English

This paper aims to describe the building-up of SciE-Lex (http://www.ub.edu/grelic/eng/scielex2/scielex.html), a collocational database of non-specialized terms in biomedical English, which was primarily conceived as a response to the lack of reference tools accounting for the lexicogrammatical patterning associated with non-technical terms frequently used in the health science discourse. SciE-Lex thus serves the purpose of assisting L2 English writers from the health science discourse community in their production of biomedical texts in English. This collocational database is the result of a lexicographic project carried out by the GreLiC research group at the University of Barcelona, and as such it has undergone various developmental stages since its inception. In order to evaluate its adequacy as a writing tool addressed to the Spanish biomedical community and confirm the appropriateness of the combinatorial patterning and phraseological information included in each entry, a group of language experts were asked to assess the dictionary by stressing both its weaknesses and strengths. Their feedback has stressed the suitability of SciE-Lex as a lexicographic resource and yielded significant improvement of the tool. Last but not least, SciE-Lex has also been successfully tested with targeted users in a series of "Writing for publication" workshops held at the University of Barcelona, and taught by the author, the results of which have corroborated the usefulness of this lexical database to enhance Spanish users' biomedical English published writing

Onlife selfhood and intrinsic characteristics of digital technologies: an educational approach

[EN] There is no doubt that the development of the ‘self’ in the modern world is a fairly complex process. Hyperconnectivity, overinformation and a whole series of characteristics of our times have a direct influence on the construction of this ’self’. It is for this reason that the field of education needs to address this construction. So far, by viewing information and communication technologies (ICT) as mere means, the dominant pedagogical discourse has concentrated on establishing good practices and limits on their use. This paper, on the other hand, will seek to show that this strategy of pedagogical action is not only insufficient, but also inadequate. To do so, we will first describe the model of ’self’ that, through these good practices and imposed limits, we are trying to protect. We will then show the extent to which this type of ‘self’ does not fit in with today’s world. We will do this by highlighting the importance of understanding ICT as an end in itself, and not merely as a means. Finally, we will conclude by highlighting the need for an educational approach that is based on this teleological focus on technology

Knowledge-building in an environment mediated by digital technology: A case study in higher education

[EN] The advancement of technology in recent years seems to be prompting a re-ontologising of the world. Digital technology is transforming the educational spaces we inhabit, as well as our way of processing information. Although there are already numerous studies that have addressed this technological reality, only a handful have done so from a theoretical perspective. That is why we present research that seeks to reinforce the latest theoretical contributions for understanding how modern technology may be afecting the way in which knowledge is built. Based on the latest research in social constructivism, this is a qualitative study designed to contribute to the creation of a specifc theoretical framework for an onlife world. An ill-structured task and a semi-structured interview were used to observe the use of the think ing skills that enable us to build knowledge and the relationship between them. The results show that the ways of building knowledge are changing, as digital technology fosters the use of higher-order thinking skills that, furthermore, operate in a chaotic, complex, and unpredictable manner. In conclusion, this study upholds the notion that the ways of building knowledge are changing, but we still need more empirical contributions to create a generally accepted theoretical construct for explaining how we build knowledge through digital technology.Publicación en abierto financiada por el Consorcio de Bibliotecas Universitarias de Castilla y León (BUCLE), con cargo al Programa Operativo 2014ES16RFOP009 FEDER 2014-2020 DE CASTILLA Y LEÓN, Actuación:20007-CL - Apoyo Consorcio BUCLE

Invisible and stigmatized: A systematic review of mental health and risk factors among sex workers

Introduction: Sex work is a common phenomenon, but socially invisible and stigmatized. Due to exposure to work-related risks, sex workers (SWs) are vulnerable to developing health problems. However, little attention has been paid to their mental health. The purpose of this systematic review was to synthesize the existing literature on mental health and to explore risk factors related to psychopathology in sex workers. Methods: A systematic review (CRD42021268990) was conducted on the Web of Science, PubMed, Scopus, and PsycInfo for peer reviewer papers published between 2010 and 2022. The Newcastle-Ottawa Scale (NOS) was used to examine the quality of the studies. Of the 527 studies identified, 30 met the inclusion criteria. Results: Mental health problems were prevalent among sex workers. Depression was the most common mental health problem; however, other psychological problems were also high, including anxiety, substance abuse, and suicidal ideation. Sex workers are exposed to numerous work-related risks, including violence and high-risk sexual behaviors. Despite the high prevalence of mental health problems, SWs often encounter significant barriers to accessing healthcare services. Conclusion: These results suggest the need to focus on preventive measures to promote psychological well-being among sex workers

Los artefactos cognitivos en la teoría de la mente extendida

[ES] La teoría de la mente extendida, dada a conocer por Andy Clark y David Chalmers en 1998, sostiene que la mente humana se distribuye a través de los artefactos y sujetos situados en el contexto. Si hasta ahora la mediación de estos artefactos requería siempre de la interacción humano-tecnología (artefactos primarios y secundarios), el desarrollo tecnológico ha supuesto que en la actualidad estas tecnologías puedan llevar a cabo procesos de interacción tecnología-tecnología (artefactos terciarios), dejando fuera de la ecuación al ser humano. Este trabajo pretende reflexionar sobre el potencial transformador de los artefactos digitales en los procesos de enseñanza-aprendizaje

Construcción de conocimiento en entornos virtuales en educación superior

[ES] Vivimos en una sociedad donde pocas cosas permanecen ajenas al alcance de la tecnología; ya sea por su atractivo, por su forma de facilitar las tareas del quehacer diario o simplemente porque resulta difícil escapar de ella, lo cierto es que vivimos en la sociedad más tecnológica que haya habido. Y, si bien es cierto que la tecnología ha estado presente a lo largo de la historia y evolución del ser humano, en los últimos años el desarrollo tecnológico parece estar provocando una (re)ontologización del mundo, asistiendo a una fuerte y amplia oleada de cambios y transformaciones en todos los ámbitos de la vida. Estas transformaciones también han encontrado su correlato en el ámbito educativo; la autonomía, versatilidad y ubicuidad, que ofrece esta tecnología está provocando alteraciones en todos los órdenes del proceso de aprendizaje. Ahora bien, el ingenio que ha permitido desarrollar e integrar artefactos tecnológicos en los escenarios educativos, parece estar ausente de la comprensión de la magnitud de los cambios provocados: ¿estamos siendo capaces de explicar satisfactoriamente cómo aprendemos en esta nueva ecología del aprendizaje?, ¿hasta qué punto tecnologías como internet o las pantallas están modificando nuestra forma de construir conocimiento? En la intención de dar respuesta a estos interrogantes y superar la visión didactista e instrumental que desde la educación venimos otorgando a esta tecnología, surge el trabajo recogido en esta tesis doctoral. Para ello, en primer lugar nos detenemos a comprender el papel que ha desempeñado la tecnología en el desarrollo y evolución del ser humano; en segundo lugar, exploramos la repercusión de la tecnología en la sociedad occidental del siglo XXI; en tercer lugar, acudiendo al corpus pedagógico de las teorías de la rama socioconstructivista, abordamos el andamiaje teórico que debería permitirnos responder a las cuestiones planteadas; en cuarto lugar, identificamos y exploramos el discurso actual en torno al concepto de pensamiento de orden superior y, en quinto lugar, presentamos el diseño e implementación de un estudio empírico en el que apoyar nuestro discurso teórico. La investigación se desarrolló mediante la aplicación de un estudio piloto y un estudio en profundidad, divididos a su vez en dos fases: una primera fase cuantitativa, donde se aplicó el cuestionario de enfoques de aprendizaje R-SPQ-2F de Biggs, Kember y Leung, y una segunda de tipo cualitativo, donde se llevó a cabo el diseño, validación y aplicación de una tarea de tipo ill-structured y una entrevista semi-estructurada. Los resultados de la investigación apuntan a que, efectivamente, nuestras formas de construir conocimiento están cambiando, pues estas tecnologías parecen inducirnos a escenarios de acción mucho más complejos, introduciéndonos en una realidad de múltiples interdependencias donde parece reinar el caos y donde resulta complicado identificar un patrón de comportamiento en el proceso de construcción de conocimiento. Concluyendo, por tanto, en que es momento de abrirse a una reformulación de la teoría pedagógica que atienda a la reconsideración del status cognitivo y técnico que estas tecnologías adquieren en los procesos de aprendizaje