Evaluation of the learning process of informational competencies in university students

This article aims to present the results of a study on the learning process of informational competence in the Universidad José Vasconcelos, Oaxaca, Mexico. From a qualitative research approach, semi-structured interviews, and requests for drawings were applied, and non-participant observation of six students’ information search practices was carried out. The findings made it possible to identify quantitative and qualitative changes in the declarative, procedural and attitudinal components of the competence, which differentiate three levels of performance: low, medium, and high. The critical element to understand the competence learning process is in its attitudinal component since this determines the amount and type of declarative knowledge, as well as the procedures that the student is willing to deploy in a coordinated way to search, evaluate and use the information to achieve your academic goals.

An instrumental orchestration for online course at the university level

In this article, we present a proposal for instrumental orchestration that organizes the use of technological environments in online mathematics education, in the synchronous mode for the concepts of eigenvalue and eigenvector of a first linear algebra course with engineering students. We used the instrumental orchestration approach as a theoretical framework to plan and organize the artefacts involved in the environment (didactic configuration) and the ways in which they are implemented (exploitation modes). The activities were designed using interactive virtual didactic scenarios, in a dynamic geometry environment, guided exploration worksheets with video and audio recordings of the work of the students, individually or in pairs. The results obtained are presented and the orchestrations of a pedagogical sequence to introduce the concepts of eigenvalue and eigenvector are briefly discussed. This work allowed us to identify new instrumental orchestrations for online mathematics education.

School society and pandemic in Mexico; online education: from temporary to permanent shelter

As a result of the global pandemic of covid-19, distance education went from being a little considered training option to the status of the main operating alternative for the school system. Educational institutions by adapting their work to the use of digital platforms have managed to keep their programs active despite reducing their training expectations. School activities at home face complex social situations that contravene the teaching precepts, cause poor learning and many cases of school dropout. Educational systems in the medium term will promote remote teaching modalities in digital and telematic versions, whose didactics will dominate the 21st century.

A digital Gesell chamber: adjustments for professional practices in social isolation

The aim of this study was to show the migration process, due to the covid-19 pandemic, of the psychotherapist training program provided by a psychological care center from a real Gesell chamber to a digital version. The method used was action-research with self-study from the practitioners and supervisor whom reported their experiences with this new mode of working. An informed consent was given to students and participants explaining the implications of the process and its limitations, as well as the intention to publish findings. As results: the digital Gesell chamber presented some technical difficulties; however, it was a useful and ethical response to continue with the training program, with broad benefit for users. What is more, it presented communication advantages that allowed the reflective group to intervene without interruption. In conclusion: the use of the digital chamber was an alternative that eased the supervision of practitioners as well as the optimal performance of psychological care during social isolation.

Google Workspace as a b-learning platform. Analysis of the perceptions of the Degrees in Communication

This article has investigated the perceptions about the educational use of the Google Workspace (formerly Google Suite) of a group of 131 students who are studying Communication Sciences and Digital Communication degrees at a University Center in the province of Seville, Spain. The main objective of the research was to collect and analyse the educational experience and the competences developed by these students with this software suite in university education. To do so, a descriptive research was designed based on a quantitative and qualitative analysis using an online questionnaire. The results showed that these university students value favourably the interface and services provided by this platform, especially Meet, Documents, Gmail, Classroom and Presentations. However, they perceive that other applications, such as Keep, Jamboard or Tasks, are not very useful. In short, blended learning models proposed by Google Workplace have proven useful in the university field, and that students have adapted adequately to the new learning environment.

Good practices in the self-evaluation of graduate distance learning programs

The purpose of this essay is to share the good practices installed in the virtual postgraduate programs of the Universidad Arturo Prat (UNAP), Chile associated with the continuous evaluation of quality processes. Our focus is on the continuous improvement of good practices through the accreditation process with the Latin American and Caribbean Institute for Quality in Distance Education (CALED) and the self-evaluation that the institution carries out to deliver quality service. The methodology used in this work is the documentary review and description of experiences under a qualitative approach. The results reveal that the UNAP has promoted the self-evaluation and international certification of its programs, in a context of normative change in Chile, which establishes new criteria and standards under the new Law of Higher Education Nº v 21.091, in wich are recognized as good practices: the institutional policies, the planning of the self-evaluation process, the updates of the technological platform, the virtual education enviroment, the virtualization adequate to the context, the active-participative academic actions, the rol of the teacher and the student, the academic training, as well as the components of the self-evaluation process, that must be constantly monitored and evaluated, in order to deliver quality services in the training of people participating in graduate programs under the virtual learning modality.

WhatsApp Web for academic purposes in times of covid-19

One of the most used communication tools is WhatsApp, which increased its use due to covid-19, along with other social networks. In the educational field, students are also increasingly adopting this application for academic purposes from their computers called WhatsApp Web. However, more knowledge is needed about the factors that influence the acceptance and use of this social network. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to understand from the perspective of students the factors of acceptance and use of WhatsApp Web for academic purposes during the covid-19 pandemic. A qualitative methodology was used to achieve this objective, through fourteen semistructural interviews with students from various disciplines and universities. The findings of this study were analyzed with the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT). Where a fifth factor teamworkwas incorporated, being additional to the factors already existing in this theory (the expectation of performance, the expectation of effort, the social influence and the facilitating conditions). This study provides new insights as it is a pioneering research that UTAUT uses to interpret the acceptance and use of WhatsApp Web for academic purposes.

Studying in Virtual University: an approach to students’ technopedagogical profiles

This article presents some findings of ongoing investigation on preferences and activities of university students in an emergency remote education context. A qualitative research was developed through the application of two controlled instruments (questionnaires), and a more productive one (recordings of testimonies). The main contribution of this work is the identification of three student profiles based on the strategies they develop to study with technologies in their personal environments. They are known as Gutenberg, Amphibian, and Maker profiles, and some of the main characteristics of their techno-pedagogical practices are described here. The Gutenberg profile defines a group of students whose study practices and preferences are fundamentally linked to analog technologies; the Amphibian profile is defined by the combination of analogical and digital strategies, however, there is an emphasis on the emulation of analog practices. Finally, Maker profiles prefer digital technologies and they are able to recreate teaching resources into new digital objects. The results indicate that students appropriate technologies in a particular and flexible way, which puts in tension the categories native digital and millennial, since preferences and activities seem to show the presence of analogical practices along with other emerging ones.

Design and validation of an electronic teaching case on critical thinking

Based on the teaching case methodology, a case was designed and validated in an electronic format (e-case), about critical thinking in relation to violence in the teenage couples. The design considers a situation-problem in the form of narrative, exposed to the high school students, who through a series of questions and activities proceed to the analysis, take a position and propose solutions. The e-case was carried out on HTML5 using WIX.com, and contains the following entries: introduction, characters, story, questions, activities, evaluation and contact. This article reports the techno-pedagogical design and the validation by experts and with the target population. The results were favorable and coincident regarding the content, didactic treatment and design of the website. Likewise, guidelines are provided for the design of an e-case and validation model for those who wish to get involved in this strategy.

Teaching skills, an innovation in virtual learning environments in higher education

The emergency closure of educational institutions, in the face of the health contingency due to Covid-19, has prompted the rethinking of the models of teaching competencies to adapt to virtual learning environments (VLE). The objective of this study is to design and validate a model of teaching competencies in VLE, with the support of virtual laboratories, to ensure the quality of higher education during the covid-19 pandemic. A quantitative and correlational methodology was used in a case study. The research is divided into two methodological moments: the design of the model and its validation. The instruments used were a comparative analysis matrix and a Likert-type scale. 5 650 students and 41 teachers participated in the validation cap. The results highlight the need for teacher development, mainly in digital and research skills. One weakness of the study is the lack of weighting of the quality indicators. The proposed model represents an innovation in the definition of indicators, in the form of competencies, for the assurance of educational quality in VLE. It is concluded that the proposed model is pertinent for the assurance of educational quality in VLE.