Elena Felipe-Castaño

Potencia de equipo y aprendizaje cooperativo en el ámbito universitario

Resumen En esta investigacion se plantean dos objetivos, por un lado construir un “Cuestionario de Potencia de Equipos de Aprendizaje” y analizar sus caracteristicas psicometricas. En un segundo objetivo nos hemos propuesto demostrar como el trabajo en equipo con tecnicas de aprendizaje cooperativo (TAC) influye en la potencia de equipo. En este trabajo participaron 375 estudiantes de edades comprendidas entre los 18 y los 44 anos, seleccionados al azar de un total de 1680 estudiantes de la Facultad de Formacion del Profesorado de Caceres (Espana). El Cuestionario de Potencia de Equipos de Aprendizaje posee unas caracteristicas psicometricas muy aceptables, buena consistencia interna y fiabilidad temporal. El analisis mediante ecuaciones estructurales mostro que las variables latentes en los dos factores estan bien definidas y, por tanto, la forma en que se han evaluado es adecuada, reafirmando las buenas caracteristicas psicometricas de la escala. En cuanto al segundo objetivo, se verifico que el trabajo en equipo con TAC influye en la potencia de equipo, es decir, la confianza en el equipo aumenta cuando los estudiantes trabajan en equipo, utilizando TAC.

Construction and Validation of a Measurement Instrument for Attitudes towards Teamwork

Cooperative, collaborative learning and other forms of group learning methods are increasingly used in classrooms. Knowing students’ attitudes toward teamwork has great value since they influence the students’ learning results as well as their social development. So it is necessary to have robust instruments to provide a better understanding of these attitudes and preferences concerning teamwork. Such instruments also help to identify the factors that promote positive or negative attitudes within the context of group activities. Using a sample of 750 first and second year university students studying a degree in Kindergarten, Primary and Social Education, an instrument measuring attitudes toward team learning has been developed. Two distinct factors were obtained through various factorial analyses and structural equations: Academic attitudes and Social and emotional attitudes. Our study reveals that the instrument is both valid and reliable. Its application is both simple and fast and it has important implications for planning teaching and learning activities that contribute to an improvement in attitudes as well as the practice of teaching in the context of learning through teamwork.

Analysis of Predictive Factors on Minors’ Mental Health According to the Spanish National Health Survey

Research on minors’ mental health is an increasingly developing area. Given the increased prevalence of disorders, it seems necessary to analyze the factors that can affect poor mental health. This study analyzes the influence of occupational class, educational level, age, sex and perceived mental health of Spanish children, which is measured through the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire. The sample consists of 3599 minors between 4 and 14 years old, who were interviewed through the Spanish National Health Survey 2011. Our results indicating the significant (p < 0.05) relationship between mental health, occupational class (OR 0.533) and minors’ health in the last year (OR 0.313) are shown. However, gender (OR 1.187) and educational level of Pre-School Education in relation to Secondary Education (OR 1.174) and Primary Education (OR 0.996) do not generate significant differences. In conclusion, we consider it necessary to design and implement public policies aimed at improving the care system for children who have had poor or regular health in the last year, and whose parents are positioned in the lowest part of the occupational scale.

Cooperative Team Learning and the Development of Social Skills in Higher Education: The Variables Involved

The cooperative methodology provides an opportunity for university students to develop interpersonal, social, and teamwork competences which can be decisive in their professional and social success. The research described here examines the influence of cooperative learning on the social skills necessary for teamwork. Furthermore, it analyses whether the continued use of this type of learning, the type of group, the basic social skills for teamwork, or the academic level of the students, influence their efficacy. To do so, we have designed a research project of a quasi-experimental kind with a pre-test, a post-test, and a control group, in which 346 university undergraduate students studying degrees in Infant and Primary Education completed self-report surveys about behavior patterns in social skills concerning self-assertion and the reception and imparting of information in teamwork situations. The results show that cooperative learning in university classrooms is effective as a method for developing the social skills necessary for teamwork, as well as the relevance of the control over the number of students in a group, the basic social skills, or the academic level of the students, as relevant factors related with efficacy; where continuity over time in the use of the cooperative methodology is what marks the greatest differences in the development of the social skills necessary for teamwork. It is important to stress that when students are asked to work autonomously in teams, with the aim of favoring the development of social skills, they should be given adequate structures that can guarantee the minimum conditions of participation, so as to allow a proper development of the said social skills.

Measuring Responsibility and Cooperation in Learning Teams in the University Setting: Validation of a Questionnaire

Cooperative learning are being used increasingly in the university classroom, in order to promote teamwork among students, improve performance and develop interpersonal competences. Responsibility and cooperation are two fundamental pillars of cooperative learning. Team members’ responsibility is a necessary condition for the team’s success in the assigned tasks. Students must be aware that they depend on each other and should make their maximum effort. On the other hand, in efficient groups, the members cooperate and pool their efforts to achieve the proposed goals. In this research, we propose to create a Questionnaire of Group Responsibility and Cooperation in Learning Teams (CRCG). Participants in this work were 375 students from the Faculty of Teacher Training of the University of Extremadura (Spain). The CRCG has very acceptable psychometric characteristics, good internal consistency, and temporal reliability. Moreover, structural equation analysis allowed us to verify that the latent variables in the two factors found are well defined and, therefore, their assessment is adequate. Besides, we found high significant correlations between the Learning Team Potency Questionnaire (CPEA) and the total score and the factors of the CRCG. This tool will evaluate cooperative skills and offer faculty information in order to prepare students for teamwork and conflict resolution.

Symptom CheckList-90-R: proposed scales in a probability sample of adolescents from the general population.

To provide questionnaires for clinical assessment with scales adapted for adolescents would benefit clinical practice as well as research. The aim of this paper is to report normative data for adolescents on the SCL-90-R using a probability sample from the community. The participants were 1,663 adolescents, 845 girls and 818 boys, with an average age of 14.26 (SD = 1.36). They were selected through stratified cluster sampling with groups randomly selected from schools. Sampling error was estimated at 4% with a 95.5% confidence level. Cohen´s d effect sizes are reported for age-group. We found significant differences across participants according to gender and age on SCL-90-R Global Scores and Symptom Dimensions. Thus, we provide normative data, divided according to age and gender.