The work is carried out within the framework of the Applied Pedagogical Research Program (IPA) promoted by the Institutional Improvement Plan for Initial Teacher Training (PMI FIP ULS1501) and managed through the Integrated Management Unit of Pedagogies (UGIP) .

Promoting and strengthening the formation of research teams in the educational area is one of the focuses that the UGIP unit has within the actions developed to improve the work of the pedagogical careers of the university. In this context, since 2016, with the support of the ULS Research and Development Directorate, the Applied Pedagogical Research Competition has been held, which has brought together academics, classroom teachers and undergraduate students to carry out various projects that respond to the educational problems expressed by educational establishments in the region.

“The investigations had to comply with three mandatory components; First, they must be works that seek to solve real classroom problems; second that they are directly linked to educational centers; and, finally, they must have the participation of academics from the University, professors from the educational system and also pedagogy students,” explained the alternate executive director of the UGIP and person in charge of the IPA program, Dr. Fabián Araya.

In this way, in its latest version, there were three projects awarded by academics belonging to the Department of Education, Faculty of Humanities, and Faculty of Social and Economic Sciences. The works were presented at the Annual Design and Implementation Evaluation Conference, on which occasion the preliminary results obtained by the researchers and their respective teams were announced.

One of the works is “Evaluation of the implementation of the ODEAT model for the design of didactic interventions with ICT integration at the San Rafael de Pan de Azúcar School” by the researcher Mg. Rodrigo Castillo and co-investigator Dr. Hugo Tapia, who worked in collaboration with the school's teachers, graduate Alexis Sarzosa and student Rodrigo López.

“Among the preliminary results, a medium knowledge is observed in the evaluation part and in the objectives, and a very low knowledge and integration of the technology. Although the School had a type of technology, when faced with the ODEAT model the teachers realized that there was poor management of it (...). In this sense, the model allows you to adapt your pedagogical practice, favors decision-making around ICT and develops a reflective process for class design. This proposed model is for the teacher to reflect before designing his class,” explained researcher Castillo.

For its part, another of the projects presented was called “Determine Integrated Learning Strategies for the Extraction of Information from Texts and Images” led by the academic Mg. Hernán Cortes and the coordinator Mg. María Carmen Varela, who worked together with teachers from the Eusebio Lillo School in Coquimbo and students from Ped courses. in Biology and Natural Sciences, Ped. in English and Ped. in History and Geography.

"It is estimated that the research determines a model that considers the strategies required for the development of skills and abilities, becoming a vital competence tool to access knowledge and the construction of reality, which is achieved through this position, with the interpretation and extraction of information from texts and images. A successful evaluation of this model in the case study would allow widespread application at all levels and subjects of the establishment and feasible dissemination to other establishments in the local educational network. The greatest expected achievement is that this strategic model constitutes a tool for practicing teachers and for those who are currently in training, allowing them to develop skills in the extraction of information from written texts and images,” said academic Varela.

The last research presented corresponded to the one titled “Evaluative strategies that develop learning of English Language skills in seventh and eighth grade students from two schools in the Coquimbo Region - Chile”, which was developed by Dr. Rodrigo Ruay with the academic Elvis Campos and supported by teachers Karina Vásquez (Arturo Prat Chacón School) and Jorge Carvajal (El Palqui School) and the students of the Ped degree. in English.

“The main focus of the research is evaluation, which is fundamental within the teaching-learning process, since it provides relevant information regarding the performance of the students as well as the teacher, among other elements. From this, and in practical terms, our research aimed to detect flaws, inconsistencies or biases in the evaluation processes carried out in the establishments and from there implement an improvement plan that is in relation to the current national curriculum and the expected objectives in the area of ​​English,” said student Ignacia Medina, project participant,

With these works we hope to contribute to the increase in research focused on the initial training of teachers and the level of scientific productivity, both in its quantity and quality. Therefore, the product of the three awarded works will be the preparation of an article that gives an account of the results obtained in each project carried out.

Source: Integrated Pedagogy Management Unit (UGIP) – PMI FIP ULS1501 | CM ULS1755

The planetarium will benefit students from schools and the ULS, and the guides from the tourist observatories in the area.

During 2019, the mobile planetarium of the University of La Serena will be operational, which was concessioned by CONICYT thanks to the management of the Vice-Rector's Office for Research and Postgraduate Studies (VIPULS) and the support of the Department of Physics and Astronomy.

The Director(s) of the Department of Physics and Astronomy, Dr. Sergio Torres, explained that a program of activities was established that responded to the CONICYT proposal and that aims for the planetarium to benefit students from schools and the University itself. , for example, from the Pedagogy, Journalism and Tourism areas, in addition to including the guides from the tourist observatories in the area.

The base unit of the mobile planetarium will be the aforementioned Department attached to the Faculty of Sciences, where various activities will be carried out, but it will be moved once a month to a nearby location to be used by students of educational establishments.

“As the Department is one of the units that provides a lot of teaching at the University, it also has to be linked to the environment and show its extension, show the research that is done, and the planetarium is a perfect tool to do the above,” said Dr. Torres, who added the planetarium will be operated by astronomers from the unit.

“Inside this mobile planetarium, an infinite number of astronomical themes can be shown. We are not only focused on projecting the stars, but different options can be presented, such as themes related to the Eclipse, positioning in the sky, among other content.” , added the academic and researcher.

Finally, the Director(s) of the Department of Physics and Astronomy highlighted that having a planetarium of this type can open a horizon to think about a future physical planetarium at the University, “which would be an icon and fundamental for astronomical dissemination in the Star Region.”

On the occasion, students from the ULS Law program and other educational institutions, and the general public, attended.

In a strategic alliance between academics from the University of La Serena and the Chilean Academy of Roman Law, Schola Serviana Iuris Romani, the ULS Law program included a visit and presentations by Dr. iur. Alejandro Guzmán Brito and Dr. iur. Carolina Schiele Manzor, professors of Roman Law at the PUCV and UNAB, respectively, who presented theoretical content and generated a space for conversation and discussion around the topic.

Regarding the instance, the Director of the ULS Law program, Germán Solís, commented: “We are very interested in our students listening to people from the first source, therefore, our objective is to collaborate with our students and also to be a reference. in the region with these activities.”

The first presentation was given by Dr. iur. Alejandro Guzmán, who gave the presentation “The main differences between the Roman administrative organization of the Republican era and the Imperial era.” In this regard, Guzmán indicated that “it was an invitation and a conversation that I accepted immediately and with great pleasure, because it is not the first time that I have come to this University, where I have very good friends and they have always treated me very well. And the fact that they teach Roman law seems worthy of all praise and support to me, so for that reason I said I'm going."

The second part of the activity was led by Dr. iur. Carolina Schiele, who gave the presentation “Praetor, jurists and judges: The officium iudicis in the procedural means of compensation for imppensae.” The professional also thanked the invitation to collaborate in this type of training at the University of La Serena.

The appreciation and reception from students and the general public was quite positive. This is what Rafael Debia, a first-year law student at ULS, highlighted: “I think it is excellent that there is enrichment, both culturally and academically, because coming into contact with people of the level and stature of Dr. Guzmán Brito It is truly gratifying for us and gives us the perception that the University is growing every day, is improving and is consolidating itself as an institution worthy of the best recognition, and that benefits us both as professionals and as students, so we are delighted to participate in these instances and happy that the University is doing it.”

Source: DIVEULS press

Students who obtained 850 grade ranking points and the best average on the mandatory PSU tests were also distinguished.

The University of La Serena held the traditional recognition ceremony for students from the Coquimbo Region who obtained the best scores in the University Selection Test, PSU 2018, both nationally and regionally, and for students who achieved academic merit by achieving 850 grade ranking points and the best average of the mandatory PSU tests.

The activity was headed by the Rector of the ULS, Dr. Nibaldo Avilés, and the Seremi of Education, Claudio Oyarzún, who highlighted the achievement of the students and the efforts of their parents and family, who accompanied them in this emotional event.

“It is the occasion to congratulate the young people for this tremendous achievement of obtaining these national, regional and ranking scores, and also to value the effort and support of their families and the establishments. We wish the greatest success to these young people, who are an example and a source of pride for the regional community,” highlighted the Rector of the University of La Serena.

This year the national scores were obtained by Alonso Rojas Reyes, from Colegio Serena; Joaquín Taiba Tapia, from the Amalia Errazuriz School in Ovalle; Martín Pavez Vásquez, from the German School; Andrés Ponce Saavedra, from the German School; Matías Sáez Barraza, from Trinity School, and Emilia Acuña Arcos, from Sagrados Corazones, who reached 850 points in the Mathematics test.

Alonso Rojas, who wants to study Civil Engineering in Mathematics at the University of Chile, commented that he knew he would obtain a good result, considering that “at school I had very good preparation, we did a lot of essays. In addition, I took a pre-university course and did a lot of exercises.”

Matías Sáez experienced a different situation, the result of which he described as unexpected. “I left the test, I answered everything conscientiously, but I didn't think I would get a national score (…). When they gave me the result I couldn't believe it, I thought they were playing a joke on me. Very happy and happy because I realized that all the effort I had made during the year was worth it,” said the student who wants to enter Mechanical Civil Engineering at the Federico Santa María Technical University or at the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile.

During the ceremony, María de los Ángeles Ascuí Carmona, from Colegio Santo Tomás (829 points in Language), was also recognized; Hernán Adaro Aguirre, from Colegio Alemán (839 points in History, Geography and Social Sciences), and Alonso Rojas Reyes, from Colegio Serena (839 points in Sciences), who were regional scores. This last student achieved a regional score (818.5 in Language - Mathematics)
    
In addition, recognitions were given for academic merit for obtaining 850 grade ranking points along with the best average of the mandatory PSU tests, which went to Nataly Torres Carvajal, from Colegio Nuestra Señora de Andacollo (professional technician); Emilia Acuña Arcos, from the Sacred Hearts; Alonso Rojas Reyes, from Serena School; Matías Sáez Barraza, from Trinity; Tamara González Leyton, from the José María Escriva High School in Balaguer, and Bruno Masserano Gómez, from the José Manuel Balmaceda School.

“I always prepared myself aiming to obtain this,” said Bruno Masserano, who highlighted that the pre-university scholarship that his school awarded him and the preparation he had during the year contributed to this achievement.

In this ceremony held at the ULS Headquarters, certificates and gifts were given to all the students present.

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The application was presented at an event that celebrated the 90 years of the Biological Society of Chile and was attended by national and international guests.

In the context of the annual meeting of the Society of Biology of Chile, the Genetics Society of Chile, the Chilean Society of Evolution and the Chilean Society of Neurosciences, the "4ID Congress LXI SOCBIOL-XIV SCN- was held in Puerto Varas. LI SOCHIGEN-XII SOCEVOL 2018".

At the meeting, Mg. Claudio Palma presented the work “3D Meiotic Cell Division: An Learning Experience With Augmented Reality”, which was developed by academics from the Laboratory of Research and Technological Innovation for Education in Sciences (LIITEC-ULS), from the Department of Biology of the Faculty of Sciences of the University of La Serena.

3D Meiotic Cell Division is an application designed for smartphones and tablets with the Android operating system, aimed mainly at third and fourth year high school students, as well as first-year university students who have Biology courses. “The application aims to diversify the educational resources associated with meiotic cell division. This process presents various learning difficulties related to representational and spatial competencies,” explained Professor Palma.

For this reason, the central elements of the application have focused on solving those stages that, in the opinion of academics, present the greatest learning difficulties for students. Currently, six stages of the meiotic process have been completed with their respective visualization markers, and once this work is completed, the application will be accompanied by an “Activity Guide” and a “Teaching and Learning Sequence”, which can be downloaded for free from the Google Play and App Store virtual stores.

It should be noted that the poster session was attended by various foreign guests, who positively evaluated the work developed by the academics. “The reception of the application was quite good, and the exhibition was highly valued by researchers from the State University of Ponta Grossa in Brazil, which could open opportunities to generate agreements to work together,” said the academic.

Source: Integrated Pedagogy Management Unit - PMI FIP ULS1501 - CM ULS 1755

This advisory body will be open until this Friday, December 28 at 17:30 p.m.

This Wednesday, December 26, the results of the University Selection Test, PSU 2018, were published. Therefore, the University of La Serena has two Application Centers available in La Serena and Ovalle, with the aim of supporting with advice and guidance to students who graduated from fourth grade who wish to access higher education.

In La Serena this center was set up in the Pentagon Hall of the Andrés Bello Campus, while the Limarí Campus will host students from the Ovalle commune and its surroundings.

High school graduates have arrived at both centers, accompanied by their families, who seek to make their application and receive guidance from the social workers who guide them on applying for the different benefits available.

In this sense, Sandra Tapia, social assistant of the Student Welfare Department of the University of La Serena, pointed out that "at this moment the most frequent question is to know what socioeconomic level they belong to, if they have free benefits, how long the free benefits last, "What happens if they lose it, what documents they need to present, among other queries, where the idea is to clear up the doubts they have."

In this instance, the Support and Effective Access to Higher Education Program (PACE) of the ULS is also present to support the application. “The objective of the Program is for students who enter higher education to stay in it and thus reduce the dropout rate in higher education,” said team professional Wilson Vilches.

“I found out about this Application Center through the talks they gave at my school and on the Internet, an activity that helped me a lot, because I really didn't know how to do this and so I came here and it made everything easier for me,” said Belén Torres, a recent student. fourth grade graduate attending the activity.

It is expected that a significant number of students will come to the ULS Application Center so that they can receive information and receive support and advice from different professionals to make a correct application.