Editorial

This article describes a collaborative action research process in pre-school and primary education in Spain during a four-year period (2006–2010). The aim was the need to promote a level of reflection among the participants as to their teaching practice. The methodology used was a technologically mediated action research process. The results are analysed based on the constructed meanings in the area of practice, innovation strategies used and the degree of collaboration reached in the research. Finally, conclusions are made regarding the essential need to prioritize the research and professional development of teachers in the innovative use of technology. It proved necessary to promote collaboration in action research in order to rethink and negotiate the use of technology in a social learning environment.     

The presence of the British education model in Spain: reception through the Institución Libre de Enseñanza

Spain suffered a severe political and moral crisis in the final years of the nineteenth century and the first third of the twentieth. Pedagogues and politicians belonging to the Institución Libre de Enseñanza (ILE), or those close to it, did not consider it possible to regenerate the country without attending to education and Britain was the model to be followed. Many important figures of the ILE were declared anglophiles and therefore open to incorporating British education in Spain. This research reveals the roots of this preference for Britain on behalf of two of the key figures of the ILE: one of its most relevant founders, Francisco Giner, and his close collaborator, José Castillejo. The article then describes how the educational approach of the ILE found its answers in Britain. The paper ends with some reflections on the scope of the British reference.     

Comparative study of the evaluation of professional competencies by experienced and trainee Spanish primary teachers

Taking as reference the proposals of the European Higher Education Area, the aim of this study is to identify the competencies which a wide sample of teachers in Spanish primary schools (6–12 age group) consider to be important for their professional performance and which they use in their everyday teaching, and to what extent their university training prepared them for their practising professional development. To do this, an ad hoc instrument was devised and applied to experienced practising teachers and to teacher trainees who were on teacher training placements during the last semester of their course. The results of the study show that initial teacher training should deal in depth with the competencies related to the organisation and management of teaching–learning, the use of new technologies in the primary classroom, the involvement of the families, education in values, social skills and skills for working in professional groups. Finally, proposals are made for training based on the articulation between theory and practice, to allow the professional competencies mentioned to be developed and used in practice, as well as encouraging close collaboration between teacher trainers and experienced practising teachers.     

A practical approach to making accurate 3D layouts of interesting cultural heritage sites through digital models

On many occasions, the graphic information handled by people working in the cultural heritage sector is still bidimensional. Layouts showing elevations and cross sections are the most widespread tools. However, there is an increased need for carefully detailing the complexity of valuable sites with an improved accuracy. This implies the measuring and handling of three-dimensional data, using both commercial and turn-key hardware and software solutions. Taking the usual traditional process as a reference, in the present paper a new effective methodology for carrying out computer assisted delineation of layouts from cultural heritage sites, using 3D digital models, is described. The proposed procedure has been tested in five intervention projects on representative churches within the “Merindad de Aguilar de Campoo” medieval area, in the north of Spain.¹ This area has the largest collection of Romanesque art in the world, and is currently under European Heritage Site and World Heritage Site declaration process by the UNESCO.     

Effectiveness of a digital literacy programme for primary education students / Efectividad de un programa de alfabetización digital para estudiantes de educación primaria

This study carried out an assessment of the effectiveness of a digital literacy programme for primary education students. A quasi-experimental design with repeated measures of assessment was used. The sample consisted of 364 students (206 male and 158 female) from the sixth year of primary education. The students were assessed in their own schools and the sample was divided into two groups: experimental group (N = 190) and control group (N = 174). The assessment was carried out in three sessions: pre-intervention, post-intervention and six-month follow-up. The programme was composed of three sessions aimed at improving digital literacy, as a way of developing a safe and responsible use of the internet. The results obtained after the intervention showed statistically significant differences in the comparison between the two groups. Specifically, the experimental group reached a significantly higher degree of digital literacy (conceptual, procedural and attitudinal) than the control group after passing through the programme.     

Foreign Languages in the Engineering Programmes in Spain: The State of the Art

Following a brief introduction, the extension of engineering education in Spain is described. A scheme of the national education system is given. We consider the impact of the current implementation of new university curricula as a way of improving the quality of the programmes. Attention is paid to the fact of including foreign languages in the engineering programmes of the Spanish universities. Throughout the article, the question of the need of communication for engineers both during their undergraduate and postgraduate studies in engineering as well as in their practical training in industry is emphasized. The core of the paper is devoted to the fact of considering English as the lingua franca for new technologies. A programme called English for Engineering Environments is presented as a way of improving not only the training and understanding of students while at university, but also as future professionals for industry.     

罗浮山药用蕨类植物资源调查

通过全面深入的野外调查, 经鉴定查清的罗浮山药用蕨类植物有22 科29属50 种     

Distinctiveness of Public Radio in the Age of Digitization

This article examines the distinctiveness of the public broadcaster offer in the roll-out of digital terrestrial radio across 25 European markets. Distinctiveness was measured through the number of services and the diversity of genres provided by the same broadcaster on analogue-only, simulcast and digital-only stations. The results illustrate which public broadcasters have made an effort to provide exclusive digital services and which genres are being preferred in digital. As a whole, the research provides useful insights into the role of public media as drivers of digital radio and technological innovation.