«We are equal to any other family… we believe in our true parenthood and the authenticity of our families». Adoptive families in the new family structure models

En este artículo abordamos el significado de la familia adoptiva a partir del análisis del discurso de los relatos autobiográficos de madres y padres adoptivos españoles. En un contexto de vacío de cultura adoptiva, las familias adoptivas publican narraciones para ser valoradas como «normales» al tiempo que, en ausencia de modelos de referencia, definen su modelo de familia desdibujando el arquetipo familiar instituido. A partir del método biográfico, aplicamos un doble ejercicio sociológico de (1) deconstrucción ideológica del modelo de familia hegemónico a partir de la (2) construcción del significado que padres y madres adoptivas otorgan a su familia. Las teorías de la familia postmoderna y las teorías feministas postestructuralistas enmarcan el análisis crítico del discurso con perspectiva de género con el que es abordado el estudio de estos singulares documentos personales.In this article we tackle the meaning of the adoptive family from the analysis of the adoptive Spanish mothers and fathers’ speech. In a context empty of adoptive culture, adoptive families publish narrations to be valued as «normal», while as the same time, due to an absence of reference models, they define their family model, blurring the lines of the familiar archetype established. Starting from the biographical method, we apply a double sociological exercise of (1) ideological deconstruction of the hegemonic family model, from the (2) construction of the meaning that adoptive parents bestow upon their family. The postmodern family theories and the poststructuralist feminist ones demarcate the critical analysis of the speech with a gender perspective.Este artículo se ha realizado en el contexto de los proyectos de investigación I+D+I «El (baby) boom de las adopciones internacionales en España. Una investigación sociológica sobre las familias adoptivas y sus estilos de vida» (CS02009-14763-C03-03) y «Adopciones y acogimientos en España: desafíos, oportunidades y dificultades familiares y sociales durante la infancia y la adolescencia» (CSO2012-39593-C02-01) financiados por el Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad de España

Employability skills developed by non-traditional students along their undergraduate program

This paper was developed in the context of the European project EMPLOY (Enhancing the employability of non-traditional students in higher education, Erasmus Plus Program 2015-2017), a qualitative, interdisciplinary and biographical research focusing on nontraditional university students and graduates from six European countries (Sweden, Poland, United Kingdom, Ireland, Portugal and Spain). The project aims are, among others: a) to understand the employability from the perspective of students and graduates; b) to increase knowledge and understanding of the factors that promote or hinder employability; c) to explore the impact of age, gender, social class, ethnicity and disability in employment prospects of students; etc. In spite of the fact that university graduates are in better conditions when accessing to the labor market, non-traditional students might experience special difficulties related to their specific characteristics. We lack of disaggregated information related to employment rates for higher education graduates and there is not specific research which deepens in the transition process of non-traditional groups. Our study is concerned with identifying which employability skills have been developed by non-traditional students during their stay at the University of Seville. For this purpose we consider the formal learning associated to their syllabuses, the extracurricular training they have been involved in, as well as the previous work experiences. We have carried out seven biographical in-depth interviews with students of the University of Seville (4 females, 3 males), all of them studying degrees in different areas of knowledge: Pedagogy, Philosophy, Mechanical Engineering, Pharmacy, Biology and Business Management. All participants were in the final year of their undergraduate program. In addition, all of them represented different characteristics of non-traditional students: adult and mature students (3), immigrants (2) and learners with low economic and cultural capital (2). As for the results and following the classification of professional competences raised by Bunk (1994), we note that through the university syllabuses students developed the methodological competence, that is the reaction from previous experiences and problem solving skills. However, work experience and extracurricular activities promoted social competence, one that enables them to collaborate with others in a communicative and constructive way, showing interpersonal understanding. In addition, in the three training fields, the specific skills or qualifications of the job, technical competence, were also developed. Finally, it can be noted that in the three areas considered in our analysis, there is a lack in the development of the participatory competence, which refers to coordination and organisational skills, leadership and ability to make decisions and take responsibility.Unión Europea 2014-1-UK01-KA203-00184

Efficiently Storing Well-Composed Polyhedral Complexes Computed Over 3D Binary Images

A 3D binary image I can be naturally represented by a combinatorial-algebraic structure called cubical complex and denoted by Q(I ), whose basic building blocks are vertices, edges, square faces and cubes. In Gonzalez-Diaz et al. (Discret Appl Math 183:59–77, 2015), we presented a method to “locally repair” Q(I ) to obtain a polyhedral complex P(I ) (whose basic building blocks are vertices, edges, specific polygons and polyhedra), homotopy equivalent to Q(I ), satisfying that its boundary surface is a 2D manifold. P(I ) is called a well-composed polyhedral complex over the picture I . Besides, we developed a new codification system for P(I ), encoding geometric information of the cells of P(I ) under the form of a 3D grayscale image, and the boundary face relations of the cells of P(I ) under the form of a set of structuring elements. In this paper, we build upon (Gonzalez-Diaz et al. 2015) and prove that, to retrieve topological and geometric information of P(I ), it is enough to store just one 3D point per polyhedron and hence neither grayscale image nor set of structuring elements are needed. From this “minimal” codification of P(I ), we finally present a method to compute the 2-cells in the boundary surface of P(I ).Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad MTM2015-67072-

Encoding Specific 3D Polyhedral Complexes Using 3D Binary Images

We build upon the work developed in [4] in which we presented a method to “locally repair” the cubical complex Q(I) associated to a 3D binary image I, to obtain a “well-composed” polyhedral complex P(I), homotopy equivalent to Q(I). There, we developed a new codification system for P(I), called ExtendedCubeMap (ECM) representation, that encodes: (1) the (geometric) information of the cells of P(I) (i.e., which cells are presented and where), under the form of a 3D grayscale image gP ; (2) the boundary face relations between the cells of P(I), under the form of a set BP of structuring elements. In this paper, we simplify ECM representations, proving that geometric and topological information of cells can be encoded using just a 3D binary image, without the need of using colors or sets of structuring elements. We also outline a possible application in which well-composed polyhedral complexes can be useful.Junta de Andalucía FQM-369Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad MTM2012-32706Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad MTM2015-67072-

Spatiotemporal Barcodes for Image Sequence Analysis

Taking as input a time-varying sequence of two-dimensional (2D) binary images, we develop an algorithm for computing a spatiotemporal 0–barcode encoding lifetime of connected components on the image sequence over time. This information may not coincide with the one provided by the 0–barcode encoding the 0–persistent homology, since the latter does not respect the principle that it is not possible to move backwards in time. A cell complex K is computed from the given sequence, being the cells of K classified as spatial or temporal depending on whether they connect two consecutive frames or not. A spatiotemporal path is defined as a sequence of edges of K forming a path such that two edges of the path cannot connect the same two consecutive frames. In our algorithm, for each vertex v ∈ K, a spatiotemporal path from v to the “oldest” spatiotemporally-connected vertex is computed and the corresponding spatiotemporal 0–bar is added to the spatiotemporal 0–barcode.Junta de Andalucía FQM-369Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad MTM2012-3270

Enseñanza de segundas lenguas a alumnado inmigrante: evaluación de las estrategias y aprendizajes conseguidos

El presente estudio tiene su origen en una investigación realizada sobre el aprendizaje de segundas lenguas por alumnado inmigrante. En particular nos centramos nuestro estudio en las estrategias de aprendizaje y en los procesos particulares que se ponen en marcha en las aulas de acogida a las que asisten en el momento en que llegan a nuestro país. Hemos estudiado las aulas ALISO de Castilla y León. Como estrategia principal de indagación hemos empleado la entrevista, con una muestra de los distintos agentes implicados en el funcionamiento y organización de estas aulas (profesorado, administración educativa, alumnado y familias). En este artículo analizaremos los aspectos más significativos que favorecen o dificultan los procesos de enseñanzaaprendizaje del español como segunda lengua con este alumnado, en particular: las estrategias de aprendizaje, la metodología utilizada (enfoque comunicativo y aprendizaje por contenidos), la evaluación educativa, la lengua de instrucción y, por último, el posterior acceso a las áreas curricularesThe present study has its origin in an investigation based on the learning of second languages for immigrant students. In particular we focus our study on learning strategies and individual processes that are launched in the reception classes they attend when they reach our country. We have studied the classrooms ALISO of Castilla y León. The main research strategy that we have used was the interview, with a sample of the different agents involved in the operation and organization of these classrooms (teaching staff, educational administration, students and families). This article will discuss the most significant aspects that favor or hinder the processes of teaching and learning Spanish as a second language with the students, in particular: learning strategies, teaching methodology, educational assessment, instruction language and, finally, subsequent access to curricular area

La pobreza de las fuentes en la cobertura de sucesos de impacto por los diarios de referencia en España

Uno de los indicadores fundamentales para la medición de la calidad de un diario se halla en las fuentes informativas que utiliza, tanto en el aspecto cuantitativo como en el cualitativo. El presente artículo analiza ambos parámetros en la cobertura de los sucesos de impacto (hechos trágicos que generan conmoción social) de los principales diarios de referencia en España (El País, El Mundo, Abc, La Vanguardia, El Periódico de Catalunya, El Correo y Diario 16) entre 1977 y 2000. Para ello, se ha establecido una comparación entre las cabeceras y se han observado su posible evolución y las tendencias más relevantes.One of the key indicators for measuring the quality of a journal is in the information sources used, both quantitatively and qualitatively. This article analyzes both parameters in the coverage of accident and crime reports of the leading reference newspapers in Spain (El País, El Mundo, ABC, La Vanguardia, El Periódico de Catalunya, El Correo and Diario 16) between 1977 and 2000. To do so, this article includes a comparison among the various papers and the research of the evolution and possible trends

Determinantes del tipo impositivo efectivo en el sector turístico: un modelo dinámico con datos de panel

This paper presents a dynamic model of the Effective Tax Rate (ETR) in the tourism sector. A dynamic model where the lagged endogenous variable ETR has been included as a regressor to identify the dynamic structure of the variable due to the existence of temporal adjustments between the short and long run in ETR payments has been estimated. The empirical analysis based on a panel data set over the 2008-2013 period explores the determinants of the ETR variable by using a Generalised Method of Moments (GMM) estimator controlling for heterogeneity in the tourism sector. The Arellano-Bond system GMM estimator has been used to estimate the model. The study seeks to shed light on the determinants of tax burden in the tourism sector covering the lack of studies on this topic. The findings obtained suggest that the ETR borne is determined by size, financing structure and type of entity. We deem the finding of the existence of non-linear relationships between ETR and size and financing structure relevant.Este artículo presenta un modelo dinámico para el Tipo Impositivo Efectivo (TIE) en el sector turístico. Este modelo dinámico ha sido estimado usando la variable endógena retardada TIE como regresor para identificar la estructura dinámica de dicha variable, debido a la existencia de ajustes entre el corto y largo plazo en los pagos del TIE. El análisis empírico basado en datos de panel en el periodo 2008-2013 explora los determinantes de la variable TIE utilizándose el estimador del Método Generalizado de Momentos (GMM) controlando la heterogeneidad en el sector turístico. El estimador de Arellano-Bond ha sido utilizado para estimar el modelo. Este estudio busca arrojar luz sobre los determinantes de las cargas impositivas en el sector turístico debido a la escasez de estudios en esta materia. Los resultados obtenidos sugieren que el TIE se encuentra determinado por el tamaño, la estructura financiera y el tipo de empresa. Igualmente consideramos relevante el hallazgo de relaciones no lineales entre el TIE y el tamaño y la estructura de financiación