Digital reality in Compulsary Secondary Education: uses, purposes and profiles in social networks

Daily lives of adolescents have changed significantly with the incorporation of social networks. Therefore, this quantitative study aims to analyze which social networks they use, to find out the predominant type of use they make of them and to explore their connectivity profile. To carry out the study, a sample of 850 Spanish students in Compulsory Secondary Education was analyzed. The results show that adolescents spend an excessive number of hours on social networks, with little parental supervision. They mainly use WhatsApp, Instagram and YouTube for social purposes. It is concluded that adolescents in Compulsory Secondary Education, outside school hours, and with their smartphones, spend a large part of their day on social networks, suppressing other kind of activity

Critical thinking and inclusive practice: A qualitative study of spanish primary school teachers’ perceptions

As one of the most necessary skills of the 21st century for problem solving, critical thinking should be taught and included in the curriculum of those schools in which inclusivity towards all their students is a priority. From this perspective, this study presents the educational implications for the teaching and evaluation of this skill. In addition, teachers' perceptions regarding the teaching methods used, evaluation techniques and limitations that they encounter at the moment of enhancing the critical thinking of their students are analysed. A descriptive-comprehensive research with a qualitative approach was adopted, with data collected from interviews with 10 primary education teachers in the Spanish educational system. The analysis suggests that, although there is some knowledge on the part of teachers about critical thinking skills, most of them are not able to respond to this learning need. They highlight the technique of joint discussion and interactions between teams as among the effective tools for fostering critical thinking skills. Notably, these teachers have referred to the existence of certain relationships between critical thinking and equitable and quality education

Links between ease of use, perceived usefulness and attitudes towards technology in older people in university: A structural equation modelling approach

Technological resources have the potential to improve the quality of life in a context in which social pressure for the use of these tools is increasing. In this sense, the adoption of technological resources by the elderly is a highly complex issue because numerous and varied factors are involved. Precisely for this reason, this study aims to analyze the effects that exist between a series of dimensions related to the perception of older people regarding the ease of use, the perceived usefulness of technological tools, attitudes towards technology and their intention to use them in everyday life. To do this, 415 adults (M = 66.27 years) enrolled in a program at the University of Experience in the Spanish context completed an online questionnaire. The application of a Structural Equations Model for data analysis highlights that the perceived ease of use of the technology has a positive effect on the perceived usefulness of these resources. Similarly, an indirect effect of the perceived usefulness of technology on the intention to use these resources is observed through the manifestation of positive attitudes towards the use of digital tools

The challenges in the selection and recruitment to school headteachers in the Spanish Educational System

Currently, the low number of candidates and the complex formation of the teams are great problems in the occupation of the school leadership position. This qualitative study aims to identify the main difficulties experienced from the perspective of the candidates. Based on the data obtained in various interviews, it should be noted how the headteacher selection process is influenced by different variables, both contextual and personal. The variables that condition this process include complexity of the decision to be a candidate or accept the appointment and the difficulty of forming and a team, among others

Contextualizing gender issues and inclusive education: an analysis of the perceptions of primary education teachers

This study explores the experiences and perceptions of primary education teachers regarding the struggle for gender equality in schools located in an area in northern Spain. In addition, it analyses the measures carried out in classrooms and schools to achieve this objective that are influenced by social and cultural factors, and does so within a scenario consisting of an inclusive school that advocates equality as one of its fundamental ethical principles. The study is included in the paradigm of qualitative research, and eight teachers from three public schools were interviewed. The teachers expressed their broad dissatisfaction with the generally limited involvement of the schools and the educational community in promoting gender equality, which is influenced by different social and cultural dynamics. Lines of action are proposed that motivate teachers to take responsibility for their teaching practice in order to guarantee gender equality in a context of cultural diversity

Digital competence of university teachers of social and legal sciences from a gender perspective

Higher Education institutions must respond to the major challenges posed by the technological transformations of recent years. For this, one of the key aspects is that the teachers working in them are trained to incorporate these technologies in teaching–learning processes, which requires them to be digitally competent. To analyse how gender relates to the level of competence of teachers, the types of ICT tools that they use, and their attitudes towards their implementation in teaching– learning processes, this quantitative research was carried out with the participation of 121 university teachers from the Autonomous Community of Aragon, all of them from the area of Social and Legal Sciences. The results show a differentiated profile between men and women in terms of their attitudes, beliefs, and self-perception regarding their management skills and effectiveness. © 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland

Invisibilidad de la escuela rural en la formación de maestros

Initial teacher training is essential for future job performance in any teaching position. However, rural schools remain frequently overlooked. To address this issue, this research explores content specifically relating to rural schools in initial teacher training. An exhaustive review was carried out of the curricula, verification reports, and teaching guides of teaching degrees in public and private universities in Spain. The results show that rural schools are lacking in the educational skills teachers must acquire in their university education, with few courses specifically dealing with this type of school. In particular, we conclude that rural school training is essential due to the specific nature of these schools and there is a need to include this in teacher training, as some universities are already doing. La formación inicial de los maestros es clave para su posterior desempeño laboral en cualquiera de sus destinos; sin embargo, la escuela rural sigue siendo la gran olvidada. Para atender esa realidad, en esta investigación se analizan los contenidos específicos sobre la escuela rural en la formación inicial. Se realizó una revisión exhaustiva de los planes de estudio, memorias de verificación y guías docentes de los grados de magisterio de universidades españolas, tanto públicas como privadas. Los resultados muestran que la escuela rural está ausente en las competencias educativas que debe adquirir un maestro en su formación universitaria, siendo escasas las asignaturas específicas sobre la temática. En las conclusiones destaca la formación en escuela rural como un elemento esencial por su especificidad y la necesidad de que se incorpore a la formación de maestros –como algunas universidades ya lo hacen

La potencialidad de la tecnología en la medición del desarrollo de habilidades sociales en niños con TEA: un análisis desde parámetros fisiológicos

El uso pedagógico de la tecnología es una realidad y está impulsando un cambio importante en la atención educativa a los niños con necesidades educativas especiales. Sin embargo, pocos son los estudios centrados en cómo verificar el impacto de estas herramientas en las diversas intervenciones que se realizan. En este sentido y con el objeto de evaluar mediante wearables los cambios reales que se producen cuando se interviene en el ámbito de las habilidades sociales en niños con TEA y verificar la potencialidad didáctica de los dispositivos tecnológicos, se plantea una investigación de diseño mixto basada en el método estudio de casos. La muestra ha estado constituida por cuatro alumnos con TEA. La recolección de datos se ha llevado a cabo, por un lado, mediante la observación sistemática de las conductas durante las sesiones de intervención, y por otro, mediante la medición de parámetros fisiológicos (ritmo cardíaco y actividad electrodérmica) a través de un wearable -Empatica E4-, asociándose a estados emocionales de los niños. Los resultados reflejan un aumento del ritmo cardíaco y variaciones en la actividad electrodérmica en situaciones de incomprensión y espera de turnos y un estado más calmado (disminución del ritmo cardíaco) en momentos de fijación de la atención en el dispositivo tecnológico. Asimismo, se observa un descenso en comportamientos no sociales como estereotipias o la mirada perdida y un aumento en conductas sociales. En concreto, aparecen incrementos significativos en la atención conjunta y en el contacto ocular

Recreos Cooperativos e Inclusivos a través de la metodología de Aprendizaje-Servicio

Este artículo presenta una experiencia de aprendizaje-servicio llevada a cabo por la Facultad de Ciencias Humanas y de la Educación de Huesca. Dicha experiencia se ha materializado en un proyecto denominado Recreos cooperativos e inclusivos, cuya repercusión es trascendente puesto que se está implementando en siete centros públicos de la etapa de Educación Infantil y Primaria de la ciudad de Huesca. A partir de la misma hemos podido constatar como los estudiantes de Magisterio desarrollan competencias transversales del Grado, al mismo tiempo que brindan un servicio en el entorno próximo, mejorando las interacciones que se establecen en los recreos entre los niños de primaria y disminuyendo la exclusión social así como las dinámicas segregacionistas y marginadoras que se ponían de manifiesto en los recreos. This paper presents a service-learning experience conducted at the Faculty of Humanities and Education at the University of Zaragoza. This experience has resulted in a project called cooperative and inclusive breaks, whose impact is important because it is being carried out in almost all public schools in the Pre-School and Primary Education of the City of Huesca. In this project we have seen how students of the Teacher Degree have developed cross skills of the Degree, while they have provided a service in the immediate environment by 1) improving the interactions established during breaks between elementary school children and 2) reducing social exclusion and marginalizing dynamics that occur during break

Sistemas de ayuda entre iguales con poblaciones de niños del espectro autista en escuelas inclusivas. Una revisión sistemática

As a result of inclusion-oriented policies, in recent years a growing interest in all children learn together in schools is detected. Concretizing for the population of children with Autism Spectrum Disorders, this approach has led a rejection of more individualized to let emerge an educational inclusive perspective, emphasizing the importance of peer influence with typical development (TD) in their social and communicative skills. The pedagogic use of peer support systems involves teaching a series of strategies and guidelines to children without difficulties in order to facilitate the social interaction of children wits ASD. In this way, in this systematic review it appears the systematic analysis of 11 empirical studies using support and peer assistance with children with ASD in inclusive school settings. After data extraction, certain differences are found in the type of training given to children with TD and in activities implemented with peers with ASD, depending on educational stage where they are and the place where the intervention is implemented. For both educational stages (elementary and primary), role-playing and modeling are the two most commonly adopted procedures to training peers who are going to implement later the peer support system with children with TEA. At the time of implementing these interventions, the type of activity par excellence used in the kindergarten stage, is the game, while more complex activities such as reinforcing communicative attempts and attracting attention, are introduced in primary