Analysis of content and underlying theories in Spanish reference texts on General Didactics Análisis de contenido y teorías subyacentes en los ...
←
→
Page content transcription
If your browser does not render page correctly, please read the page content below
Analysis of content and underlying theories in
Spanish reference texts on General Didactics
Análisis de contenido y teorías subyacentes
en los textos españoles de referencia sobre
Didáctica General
Cristina MORAL SANTAELLA, PhD. Associate Professor. Universidad de Granada (cmoral@ugr.es).
Agustín DE LA HERRÁN GASCÓN, PhD. Associate Professor. Universidad Autónoma de Madrid
(agustin.delaherran@uam.es).
Abstract: help to define the discipline. The aim of the
year 79, n. 280, September-December 2021, 437-455
The results of the 2019 Pisa Reports study is to find out whether these works
confirm that the Spanish education system train and equip prospective teachers with
continues to stagnate after compulsory ed- teaching competences and to verify their
ucation has been completed. This situation educational and professional potential with
calls for self-criticism on the part of all ac- regard to the teaching theory they convey.
tors involved. One of the groups concerned In order to fulfil this aim, a descriptive
are the university professors and lectur- documentary study of 35 reference works
revista española de pedagogía
ers who provide training for prospective on General Didactics was carried out, in-
teachers. Among them are those who teach cluding both textbooks and texts used as
General Didactics. They provide basic and sources of didactic knowledge. The content
multi-purpose training on teaching meth- of the structure and composition of these
ods for prospective teachers. For this pur- texts was analysed. The results show a
pose, they usually consider traditional and tendency to prioritise theoretical aspects
recent textbooks and other reference texts over competences and to order chapters
on teaching theory and practice, which based on a technical and administrative
Revision accepted: 2021-05-10.
This is the English version of an article originally printed in Spanish in issue 280 of the revista española de pedagogía.
For this reason, the abbreviation EV has been added to the page numbers. Please, cite this article as follows: Moral Santaella,
C., & De la Herrán Gascón, A. (2021). Análisis de contenido y teorías subyacentes en los textos españoles de referencia sobre
Didáctica General | Analysis of content and underlying theories in Spanish reference texts on General Didactics. Revista
Española de Pedagogía, 79 (280), 437-455. https://doi.org/10.22550/REP79-3-2021-01
https://revistadepedagogia.org/ ISSN: 0034-9461 (Print), 2174-0909 (Online)
437 EVCristina MORAL SANTAELLA and Agustín DE LA HERRÁN GASCÓN
tradition, rather than a conceptual and a definir la disciplina. El objetivo del estu-
semantic approach focused on designing a dio es conocer si estas obras preparan a los
meaningful learning experience. As an ap- futuros profesores en competencias docen-
plied summary, recommendations are pro- tes y verificar su potencial didáctico y pro-
vided for the development of textbooks on fesionalizador de la teoría de la enseñanza
General Didactics, aimed at initial teacher que transmiten. Para dar respuesta a este
training, from a more competence-based objetivo, se optó por un estudio documental
and less academic approach. de carácter descriptivo, de 35 obras de refe-
rencia de Didáctica General, entre las que
Keywords: General Didactics, reference se incluyeron tanto manuales como textos
work, teacher training, competence, teaching utilizados como fuentes de conocimiento
profession. didáctico. Sobre esos textos se ha realizado
un análisis de contenido de su estructura y
composición. Los resultados muestran una
Resumen: tendencia a valorar los aspectos teóricos
Los resultados de los Informes Pisa sobre los competenciales y a ordenar sus
2019 confirman que el sistema educati- capítulos desde una tradición técnico-ad-
vo español sigue estancado al finalizar la ministrativa, en vez de hacerlo desde una
enseñanza obligatoria. Esta situación re- aproximación conceptual y semántica enfo-
year 79, n. 280, September-December 2021, 437-455
quiere una autocrítica de todos los agentes cada al diseño de una experiencia de apren-
implicados. Uno de los colectivos concerni- dizaje significativa. Como síntesis aplicada,
dos son los profesores universitarios que se aportan recomendaciones para elaborar
preparan a los que serán futuros docentes. manuales de Didáctica General, orientados
Entre ellos, se encuentran los que ense- a la formación inicial del profesorado, des-
ñan Didáctica General, que facilitan una de un enfoque más competencial y menos
formación didáctica básica y polivalente a academicista.
revista española de pedagogía
los futuros docentes. Para ello, suelen te-
ner en cuenta manuales clásicos y recientes Descriptores: Didáctica General, obra de re-
y otros textos de referencia sobre teoría y ferencia, formación de profesores, competen-
práctica de la enseñanza, que contribuyen cia, profesión docente.
1. Introduction if not done very often. This paper is,
Self-criticism is necessary in edu- thus, in relation to this training area.
cation and research. It can provide a
basis for rectifications and improve If teacher training and quality edu-
processes and results. When it comes cation are related (State School Coun-
to those who train prospective teach- cil, 2015), the poor results of the 2020
ers, such action is imperative, even PISA reports, the stagnant mediocrity of
438 EVAnalysis of content and underlying theories in Spanish reference texts on General Didactics
the Spanish education system and those with a weakness in the training instru-
who train prospective teachers could be ments that connect them. This means
too. University professors and lectur- that they are lacking in pedagogical con-
ers who are entrusted with the training sistency which could be improved, if we
of prospective teachers should reflect as are concerned with developing compe-
observers and actors concerned. In a text tences (Egido & López, 2016; Gairín et
on pedagogical self-criticism, Bolívar and al., 2019).
Pérez (2019) addressed “education poli-
cies on teachers”, considering credits, Some variables could be identified as
regulations, legislative reforms, proce- possible causes of this problem. There is
dures, selection, professional competences, one radical or causal variable that stands
ethics, etc. In a field as complex as ed- out: the type of knowledge used by train-
ucation and teaching, the current initial ers to prepare prospective teachers. Shul-
teacher training model in Spain should man (2005) pointed out that one type of
also be analysed. basic teacher knowledge is the so-called
“general pedagogical knowledge”. This
The syllabi are structured around field would fit in with the corpus of Gen-
theoretical subjects, where the basic eral or Multipurpose Didactics. It refers
knowledge of the profession is acquired, to the theory and practice of teaching for
year 79, n. 280, September-December 2021, 437-455
and one or more periods of teacher place- training, providing, among other things,
ment, where part of this knowledge is ob- competences for the design and develop-
served and confirmed. The assumption is ment of meaningful and educational learn-
that in this way — in one year, secondary ing experiences.
school teachers — will acquire the nec-
essary skills and competences to bring The reference works on General Di-
good teaching practice alive. Recent dactics gather and summarise this knowl-
revista española de pedagogía
studies question this model, pointing to edge for teacher training. However, are
the need for change regarding training. they professionally oriented and aimed at
The objection is that there is little con- providing training in basic/key teaching
nection between the theory taught in the competences and practices that are cur-
faculty and the actual practice of teach- rently in demand, or are they approached
ing. The professional potential of these from an academic point of view out of
syllabi in terms of teaching competences touch with practice? And one other essen-
is questioned, since many prospective tial issue: What teaching theory are they
teachers feel that the regular subjects do based upon? The answers to these ques-
not offer them, despite what is promised tions form the basis for these inquiries,
in their teaching guides. Furthermore, complementary to the work of Heredia
they believe that teaching competences (2015), although this researcher studies
are learned during the Practicum, even the internal organisation of textbooks
though a gap is detected between the comparable to the field of General Didac-
Practicum and the other subjects, along tics from a historical and epistemological
439 EVCristina MORAL SANTAELLA and Agustín DE LA HERRÁN GASCÓN
perspective, and, in our case, they are an- In order to be able to plan, it is nec-
alysed by questioning both the teaching essary to understand the meaning of
theory that is used as a model and the “learning”, both as a concept associated
academic or professional approach that with prior thought given to the nature
underpins them. and form of human knowledge, and on
its creation and cognitive organisation.
Neuroscience and cognitive psycholo-
2. Foundations for a theory of gy provide a basis for training, from a
teaching General Didactics approach, regarding
Teachers, like other professionals, human knowledge originating from an
need basic knowledge that can be applied. information processing system, not me-
General Didactics should, on the one chanical or objective, but subjective and
hand, provide the essential knowledge reconstructive and based on the expe-
and competences to carry out education- rience of each individual (Sousa, 2017;
al teaching and, on the other hand, allow Weinstein & Sumeracki, 2019). Knowl-
them to build, from their experience, edge originates in the learning experi-
a professional rationale and their own ence itself, in a process of transforming
well-founded body of knowledge (epis- experience by means of a cycle of action/
teme) in order to design and develop a thought-experience/abstraction and be-
year 79, n. 280, September-December 2021, 437-455
curriculum. coming organised in the mind through
schemas and conceptual structures that
Curriculum design, centred on plan- establish meaningful conceptual rela-
ning educational experiences, requires tionships. This conceptual knowledge
careful thought on the curriculum enables what has been learned to be re-
components and their relationship to tained, recalled and transferred to prob-
learning and training. Thought re- lem solving. Retention and recall-identi-
revista española de pedagogía
garding such is not easy, given that, fication of information is considered an
in an educational and relevant sense, essential step for the transfer of learning;
at least the elements defined by Tyler the downside is when they become the
(1949) — objectives, activity and con- ultimate goals of teaching, rather than a
trol-evaluation —, the “commonplaces” means for transferring what is learned to
of Schwab (1970) — teacher, learners, functional situations and contexts.
subject matter and social matrix — and
the key competences are to be related The search for meaningful and applic-
as the backbone of education (Council able learning, as opposed to retentive
of the European Union, 2018). Thus, in- learning, has not prevailed in the history
novative designs are possible, combin- of teaching. In many contexts, Freire’s
ing or prioritising some elements over observation, which saw school learning
others, to achieve meaningful, deep and as a routine process of storing informa-
relevant learning for students (Dar- tion, in which domestication and mem-
ling-Hammond & Oakes, 2019). orisation without meaning prevailed, is
440 EVAnalysis of content and underlying theories in Spanish reference texts on General Didactics
still valid. Priority is still given to rep- be taught has been discredited to the point
resentational learning, or the acquisi- of disappearing as an essential element in
tion of labels, in order to replicate what learning designs.
is conveyed by the teacher, rather than to
the acquisition of concepts that generate In the Spanish Didactics of the 1960s,
structures and conceptual frameworks content had a certain prominence: it was
for transfer, thus enabling the student to considered the key element of the learn-
reason and get by independently. ing process, since the conceptual struc-
ture was important. This approach was
This traditionalism led to the emer- threatened by the movement in which
gence of the experimentalist approaches content was relegated due to prioritis-
fostered by Dewey (1902), which consid- ing the task or activity. In fact, it became
ered experimentation, activity and discov- detached from the knowledge base that
ery to be the basis of formative learning. defined the teaching professional, disap-
This approach gave rise to methodologies pearing from training programmes and
in which manipulation and activity pre- reference works on General Didactics,
dominated as ways of discovering and becoming diluted in objectives and eval-
learning concepts. Nevertheless, it has uation. Even when the question “why
been demonstrated that the student’s teach?” was asked, the answer was given
year 79, n. 280, September-December 2021, 437-455
experience alone does not guarantee the in terms of educational objectives, not
discovery of concepts and meaningful content (Rodríguez-Diéguez, 1980).
learning. Appropriate circumstances and
consistent teaching are required. For Today, what is important are skills,
Novak (2010), the theory of teaching by activity and learning experience. The
means of action and experimentation has competences proposed by the Europe-
overlooked the learning process and the an Commission (2004) made quite an
revista española de pedagogía
structure on which it is based. For Walter entrance in Spain (Bolívar, 2010) and
and Soltis (2004), this is the cause of the were quickly integrated. In the compe-
clash between progressive and traditional tence-based teaching model, the subjects
curriculum theorists. contribute to their development, they
are conditioned by them, and the rele-
Progressive theorists are opposed to vance, acquisition and use of knowledge
the practice of non-meaningful memori- are seen as traditional.
sation, and produce a wide variety of pro-
posals. For example, alternative curricula Faced with this dual discussion, what
built around the interest and needs of the is the purpose of education? Broadly-
student, activity, experience, task com- speaking, to make citizens happy, put an
pletion, manual work, etc. Some expect end to injustice, inequality, contribute
students to produce their own curriculum to social development, etc. More specifi-
based on their own interests (Walter & cally, the development of the individual
Soltis, 2004). In this clash, the content to through learning (Walter & Soltis, 2004),
441 EVCristina MORAL SANTAELLA and Agustín DE LA HERRÁN GASCÓN
so that every student can think, feel and from recall objectives to evaluation, de-
act autonomously and creatively (Novak, sign and creation objectives. Fourthly,
2010). It is, therefore, a matter of going the monitoring process for the design of
beyond rote learning, without falling objectives must be specified in order to
victim to the inconsistencies of learning assess progression in learning, provid-
based on competence and experience. ing the necessary feedback and forma-
For planning purposes, the components tive evaluation required for personalised
of teaching (students, teacher, content, learning (Hattie & Clarke, 2019). Fifthly,
climate, objectives, activity, evaluation once the outline of the design has taken
and competence) must be combined to shape, we can then identify the system
achieve student education in thinking, of relationships created in class and the
feeling and acting (Novak, 2010), draw- teaching methodology for the action and
ing on the findings of neuroscience and recreation of students’ thinking, feeling
cognitive psychology (Sousa, 2017; Wein- and acting (Ritchart & Church, 2020),
stein & Sumeracki, 2019). which will be enriched by the diversity
of key competences developed from the
The order and organisation of the methodological proposals, tasks and
teaching components may or may not be classroom activities (Bolívar, 2010).
conducive to an educational approach to
year 79, n. 280, September-December 2021, 437-455
learning. One way could be as follows: The above structure is flexible, var-
first, every teacher must start by consid- iable and open to innovation. However,
ering the student and the need to foster including content as the basis of the
personalised learning and education that teaching planning process optimises the
connects and matches their emotions, coordination between General and Spe-
interests, motivations, styles, contexts, cific Didactics. It involves transcending
experiences, etc. Then, what the teach- the exacerbated “pedagogism” of the
revista española de pedagogía
ing or educational content deals with 1980s, which was more interested in
(disciplinary knowledge), reflecting on assessing how teaching was carried out
its selection and organisation, regarding than what was actually taught, to whom
the key questions that make it accessible and when it was taught, and which was
and its transferability and usability (Mc- widely rejected by secondary school
Tighe & Willis, 2019). Thirdly, we may teachers (Bolívar, 2005). From the per-
ask about the meaning of their learning, spective of active and consistent teach-
specifying the objectives of the action, ing, it involves making sense of the stu-
according to the content selected and the dent’s formative learning experience,
conceptual structure identified. For this placing what the teaching and learning
purpose, solvent taxonomies of learning addresses at the centre of formative at-
objectives may be used, such as that by tention.
Anderson and Krathwohl (2001), recent-
ly assessed by Sousa from the perspec- In short, current recommendations
tive of neuroscience (2017). It progresses and imperatives for teacher training em-
442 EVAnalysis of content and underlying theories in Spanish reference texts on General Didactics
phasise a competence-based teaching General Didactics in numerous Spanish
model. The knowledge regarding General universities, or cover the specific content
Didactics that is transferred to prospec- of General Didactics.
tive teachers should fit in with such com-
petences. Otherwise, the knowledge trans- They will be described using the follow-
ferred as a basis for action will be useless ing categories of analysis:
and unlikely to be put into practice or pro-
fessionally oriented. In light of this doubt, • Type of authorship: individual or collab-
the general aim of this study is to find out orative.
whether the reference works for Gener-
al Didactics equip prospective teachers • Subject matter dealt with:
with teaching competences and to verify
to what extent they can, in this sense, be a) Didactic epistemology/curriculum:
considered to have professional potential. Didactics as a scientific discipline,
The specific objectives are threefold: (1) To conceptualisation of Didactics/cur-
verify the teaching theory that underpins riculum, curriculum theories, types,
them, checking the content they address; models, curriculum paradigms, cur-
(2) To ascertain the structure organising riculum theory-practice and curricu-
the content of the texts studied; and, (3) lum reform, curriculum and school,
year 79, n. 280, September-December 2021, 437-455
to deduce whether the content transferred research approaches in didactics.
in these works maintains an internal and
coordinated order. b) Curriculum design: Types of learn-
ing design, curriculum components,
curriculum realisation.
3. Methodology
In order to meet the objectives, the c) Teachers: Professional capital,
revista española de pedagogía
study is based on documentary research, roles, responsibilities, authenticity,
which explores the foundations of the identity, autonomy.
reference texts on General Didactics,
providing answers to the typical ques- d) Learners: Personalisation, motiva-
tions in descriptive research: “what, tion, learning styles, intelligences,
how and who of the phenomenon being autonomy, identity, metacognition,
studied” (Hall, 2020, p. 35). Thirty-five context.
texts were selected according to three
criteria and reviewed. Such criteria are: e) Content: Selection, organisation,
published from the 1980s onwards, when sequencing, disciplinary and global
General Didactics began to be considered approaches
as scientific knowledge associated with
curriculum studies (Bolívar, 2008); were f) Objectives: Types and levels of gen-
or still are a reference in the production eralisation, taxonomies of learning
of Teaching Guides for the subject of objectives, design of objectives.
443 EVCristina MORAL SANTAELLA and Agustín DE LA HERRÁN GASCÓN
g) Competences: Types of competenc- n) Teacher development and edu-
es, function of competences, organ- cational innovation: School im-
isation of learning design around provement and change processes,
competences. teacher professional development.
h) Mix of curriculum Elements — chapter o) Design examples: Case studies and
where curriculum components, examples of learning designs.
objectives, content, competences,
methodology, resources and evalua- • Number of chapters relating to each
tion are combined. subject matter.
i) Teaching methodology: How to • Order of chapters.
teach, types of methodologies (di-
rect, collaborative, inquiry-based, The analysis does not go into detail
etc.), teaching-learning models. regarding the content of each work,
as the information given is considered
j) Teaching resources: Types of re- sufficient to fulfil the objectives. Some
sources with and without ICT, were not designed as textbooks, but be-
usefulness and application of came reference texts generally used as
year 79, n. 280, September-December 2021, 437-455
teaching aids, didactics and me- sources of basic and applied pedagogical
dia. knowledge. This is the case of Gimeno
(1981), Gimeno & Pérez Gómez (1992),
k) Pedagogical evaluation: Types of Escudero (1999) and Bolívar (2008).
evaluation, procedures, instru- Although some are broader and others
ments, evaluation of teaching, more specific, they have provided the
evaluation of learning, evaluation basis for pedagogical knowledge. There-
revista española de pedagogía
of the teaching-learning context, fore, they can be considered reference
implications of evaluation. works for teaching General Didactics
to prospective teachers. Regardless of
l) Techniques: Techniques and their greater or lesser use, they have
strategies to facilitate learning. shaped Didactics and continue to set the
trend in Spain. A total of 35 texts and
m) Classroom climate: Classroom cli- 435 chapters were analysed.
mate management, interaction,
communication, teacher author- The bibliographical data of the texts
ity, conflict resolution, relation- studied are not included in the List of
ship system, management and References, as they are considered to be
organisation of the learning con- data pertaining to the study. They can
text. be found in Table 1:
444 EVAnalysis of content and underlying theories in Spanish reference texts on General Didactics
Table 1. Reference texts on General Didactics reviewed.
No. Year Authors/ Title Place of publica-
Coordinators tion/Publisher
1 1980 Rodríguez-Diéguez, J. L. Didáctica General [General Didactics] Madrid: Cincel
2 1981 Gimeno, J. Teoría de la enseñanza y desarrollo del Madrid: Anaya
currículo [Teaching theory and curriculum
development]
3 1983 Blázquez, F. & Sáenz, Ó. Didáctica General [General Didactics] Madrid: Anaya
4 1987 Zabalza, M. Á. Diseño y desarrollo curricular [Curriculum Madrid: Narcea
1995 design and development]
5 1988 Gimeno, J. El currículo: una reflexión sobre la práctica Madrid: Morata
[The curriculum: A reflection on practice]
6 1989 Gimeno, J. & Pérez Gómez, Á. La enseñanza. Su teoría y su práctica [Tea- Madrid: Akal
ching. Its theory and practice]
7 1992 Gimeno, J. & Pérez Gómez, Á. Comprender y transformar la enseñanza [Un- Madrid: Morata
derstanding and transforming teaching]
8 1993 Torre, S. de la Didáctica y currículo [Didactics and curricu- Madrid: Dykinson
lum]
9 1994 Angulo, J. F. & Blanco, N. Teoría y desarrollo del currículo [Curriculum Málaga: Aljibe
theory and development]
10 1994 Sáenz, Ó. Didáctica General. Un enfoque curricular Alcoy: Marfil
[General Didactics. A curricular approach]
year 79, n. 280, September-December 2021, 437-455
11 1997 Díaz-Barriga, Á. Didáctica y currículum [Didactics and Barcelona: Paidós
curriculum]
12 1997 Rodríguez-Rojo, M. Hacia una Didáctica crítica [Towards critical Madrid: La Mu-
Didactics] ralla
13 1998 Escribano, A. Aprender a enseñar. Fundamentos de Didácti- Cuenca: UCLM
ca General [Learning to teach. Foundations of
General Didactics]
14 1999 Escudero, J. M. Diseño, desarrollo e innovación del currícu- Madrid: Síntesis
lum [Curriculum design, development and
innovation]
revista española de pedagogía
15 1999 Martín-Molero, F. La Didáctica en el tercer milenio [Didactics in Madrid: Síntesis
the third millennium]
16 2000 Marhuenda, F. Didáctica General [General Didactics] Madrid: De la Torre
17 2004 Rodríguez-Rojo, M. Didáctica General: qué y cómo enseñar en la Madrid: Biblioteca
sociedad del conocimiento [General Didactics. Nueva
What and how to teach in the knowledge
society]
18 2004 Sevillano, M. L. La Didáctica del siglo XXI [Didactics in the Madrid: Mc-
21st century] Graw-Hill
19 2004 Heredia-Manrique, A. Curso de Didáctica General [Course on Gene- Zaragoza: Prensa
ral Didactics] Universitaria
20 2005 Tejada, J. Didáctica-Currículum: diseño, desarrollo y Barcelona: Davinci
evaluación curricular [Didactics-Curricu-
lum: Curriculum design, development and
evaluation]
21 2008 de la Herrán, A. & Didáctica General. La práctica de la enseñan- Madrid: Mc-
Paredes, J. za en educación infantil, primaria y secunda- Graw-Hill
ria [General Didactics. Teaching practice in
early years, primary and secondary education]
445 EVCristina MORAL SANTAELLA and Agustín DE LA HERRÁN GASCÓN
22 2008 Bolívar, A. Didáctica y currículum: de la modernidad a Málaga: Aljibe
la postmodernidad [Didactics and curricu-
lum: From modernity to postmodernity]
23 2008 Sánchez-Huete, J. C. Compendio de Didáctica General [A compen- Madrid: CCS
dium of General Didactics]
24 2009 Medina, A. & Mata, F. S. Didáctica General [General Didactics] Madrid: Printi-
ce-Hall
25 2010 Moral, C. Didáctica. Teoría y práctica de la enseñanza Madrid: Pirámide
[Didactics. Theory and practice of teaching]
26 2010 Bolívar, A. Competencias básicas y currículo [Key compe- Madrid: Síntesis
tences and curriculum]
27 2011 Cantón, I. & Pino, M. Diseño y desarrollo del currículum [Curricu- Madrid: Alianza
lum design and development]
28 2011 Navarro, R. Didáctica y currículum para el desarrollo Madrid: Dykinson
profesional docente [Didactics and curriculum
for teacher professional development]
29 2011 Lorenzo Delgado, M. Didáctica para educación infantil, primaria y Madrid:
secundaria [Didactics for early years, primary Universitas
and secondary education
30 2014 Gómez, I. & García, F. J. Manual de Didáctica [Manual on Didactics] Madrid: Pirámide
31 2015 Domingo, J. & Pérez, M. Aprendiendo a enseñar. Manual práctico en Madrid: Pirámide
Didáctica [Learning to teach. A practical
manual on Didactics]
32 2015 Medina, A. & Domínguez, Didáctica. Formación inicial para profesiona- Madrid: UNED
year 79, n. 280, September-December 2021, 437-455
M. C. les de la educación [Didactics. Initial training
for education professionals]
33 2019 Moral, C. Competencias para el diseño y desarrollo de Madrid: Síntesis
experiencias de aprendizaje en la formación
del profesorado [Competences for the design
and development of learning experiences in
teacher training]
34 2019 Paredes, J. Esteban, R. M. & Didáctica inclusiva y transformadora [In- Madrid: Síntesis
Rodrigo, M. P. clusive and transformative didactics]
35 2020 Medina, A. Herrán, A. de la & Hacia una Didáctica humanista [Towards Madrid: UNED–
Domínguez, M. C. humanist Didactics] Red Iberoameri-
revista española de pedagogía
cana de Pedagogía
(REDIPE)
Source: Own elaboration.
4. Results and discussion of the categories analysed. Graph 1 visually
The results are collated in Tables 2 and summarises the results obtained in relation
3, which show the type of authorship and to the number of chapters on each subject
the average and percentage of occurrence matter and their positioning in the texts.
Table 2. Type of authorship.
Authorship Frequency Percentage
Individual 18 51.4%
Collaborative 17 48.6%
Source: Own elaboration.
446 EVAnalysis of content and underlying theories in Spanish reference texts on General Didactics
In relation to the first category consid- chapters with no common thread or sense ap-
ered, and to answer the first research ques- plied. Those coordinated by Cantón and Pino
tion, the analysis shows that 17 texts (48.6%) (2011), Gómez and García (2014) and Domin-
are collaborative works and 18 (51.4%) are go and Pérez (2015) are among the few that
produced individually. Those that are col- include examples of learning designs. In the
laborative include a greater diversity of ap- works of Gómez and García (2014) and Mor-
proaches, vocabulary, concepts and points of al (2019), the chapters on theory are closely
view, but at the same time they can be con- related to the final examples of learning de-
tradictory and hinder conceptual learning. signs. In some, both collaborative and indi-
Some of them present an accumulation of vidual, technical errors were detected.
Table 3. Average and percentage of indicators analysed.
Category of analysis Mean Percentage
No. of chapters per book 12.8
Epistemology 3.2 25.7%
Design 1.4 11.3%
Teachers 0.4 3.4%
Learners 0.1 0.9%
year 79, n. 280, September-December 2021, 437-455
Content 0.3 2.7%
Objectives 0.4 3%
Competences 0.2 1.4%
Mix 0.4 3.4%
Methods 1.4 11.3%
Techniques 0.8 6.4%
Teaching resources 0.8 6.4%
revista española de pedagogía
Evaluation 1.3 10.6%
Innovation-teaching development 0.9 7.3%
Social climate of the classroom 0.2 1.4%
Examples/experiences 0.5 4.8%
Source: Own elaboration.
The subject matter with the largest num- terrelating the curriculum elements from the
ber of chapters is the epistemology of Didac- textbook by Herrán and Paredes (2008), with
tics (25.7%), with an average of 3/4 chapters the analytical approach of the curriculum com-
per book. This is then followed by chapters on ponents and the summaries of teaching-learn-
curriculum design (11.3%) with an average ing components disappearing. The chapters
of 2 chapters per book. Evaluation is also an on the teacher are of little importance (3.4%).
element of interest with a frequency of oc- And there are even fewer devoted to learners
currence of 10.6%, and an average of 1 to 2 (0.9%). The compendium by Sánchez Huete
chapters per text. Competences appear by in- (2008) focuses on attitudes and motivation.
447 EVCristina MORAL SANTAELLA and Agustín DE LA HERRÁN GASCÓN
Those regarding teaching methodology ac- Teaching resources, which can also be compa-
count for 11.3%. The “didactics of creativity” rable to teaching methodology, continue to be
is an innovative topic, comparable to teaching very important (6.4%). The teacher-student
methodology, which appears in two chapters relationship and the classroom climate are
(De la Herrán & Paredes, 2008; Sánchez other elements that receive little attention,
Huete, 2008). Teaching techniques and strat- with a frequency of occurrence of only 1.4%.
egies begin to appear frequently after the Objectives and content show a similar fre-
textbook by Lorenzo-Delgado (2011). They quency of occurrence (3% and 2.7%), similar
are grouped around either teaching meth- to those who mix curriculum components in
odologies and principles (Lorenzo Delgado, accordance with competences (3.4%). Teach-
2011; Navarro, 2011; Gómez & García, 2014; er development (professional and personal)
Domingo & Pérez Ferra, 2015), or around is linked to educational innovation. Sánchez
learning processes (Moral, 2010, 2019), with Huete (2008) and Herrán and Paredes (2008)
a frequency of occurrence of 6.4%. This score include “personal development of the teach-
is higher due to the textbook by Paredes, Este- er” alongside professional development. In-
ban & Rodrigo (2019), which includes 23 chap- novation is important in all texts, with a fre-
ters on teaching competences, to work on dif- quency of occurrence of 7.3% and an average
ferent aspects of professional interest typical of one chapter per book. Examples of learning
of a teacher’s day-to-day — such as emotions, designs, sometimes presented as innovation
year 79, n. 280, September-December 2021, 437-455
motivation, exams, workshops, etc. —, with strategies, are relatively scarce: 82% have no
a methodological approach. Otherwise, 86% examples at all, but Domingo & Pérez (2015)
of the works analysed do not include a spe- give 10 examples/experiences, which increases
cific chapter on practical skills or techniques. the average.
Graph 1. Number of chapters (between 10) and average position by subject matter.
revista española de pedagogía
Source: Own elaboration.
448 EVAnalysis of content and underlying theories in Spanish reference texts on General Didactics
In terms of the position of the chapters, and implications, instead of facilitating its
88% of the chapters begin with background construction, in some cases occupying up
on General Didactics. The second position to 3 or 4 chapters per book, thus shying
is usually occupied by the curriculum de- away from applied competence training.
sign, the teacher or the student. Few start
with the teacher or the student. In almost Unlike other disciplines, most text-
all of them, the content is dealt with after books do not seem to aim for comprehen-
the objectives. In the “mixed” chapters on siveness regarding the basics and, there-
curriculum elements, where curriculum fore, almost all of them leave important
elements are systematised around compe- elements unaddressed, even stating that
tences, content comes after objectives and the area does not deal with them. Oth-
competences. The order of the chapters on ers are biased from the very start due to
curriculum elements, as well as within the the author’s ego and only deal with what
“mixed” chapters, follows the technical- matters most to him or her, without the
administrative tradition (Tyler, 1949): slightest interest in getting into practice.
objectives, content, methodology-resources It follows that many of these works, de-
and evaluation, as Bolívar (2010) states. spite their nature, are not representative
of the discipline, or are only representative
In light of these results, the following of a part or approach of such. Most of them
year 79, n. 280, September-December 2021, 437-455
question arises: What teaching theory are not very innovative in terms of chap-
underlies and is conveyed by these texts? ters on new epistemological developments,
Theory (from the Greek, theōreō, to see) which contradicts the theories set out in
is necessary as, without theory, there is the chapters on teacher development and
no knowledge, no training and no estab- educational innovation.
lished practice. However, that contained
in these texts is, in general, insufficient We ask ourselves today, as we did 30
revista española de pedagogía
to train students in competences. The years ago, if it is necessary for an ear-
non-competence-based theory component ly years, primary and secondary school
in said texts is very high. The chapters teacher to know, with this degree of detail,
on epistemology, origin and foundations epistemology, paradigms, foundations, the
of Didactics and on curriculum theory are didactics-curriculum dialectic, curriculum
the most numerous in relation to the rest, theory, teaching and design model, etc.
and notably misunderstood by prospective Today we question whether such content,
teachers. It would seem that the priority addressed in this way, is really so crucial
is the justification of General Didactics for competence-based exercise of the pro-
and its knowledge and the reason for its fession. Some of the content seems to de-
existence, excessively linked to the cur- velop a discourse that is not focused on the
riculum. In addition, and not infrequent- level of education for which it is intend-
ly, the chapters related to the foundations ed. It would seem to be the remnants of
of learning design go back to its theories, teaching projects with an improper episte-
curriculum design models, complexities mology, which will do nothing to show the
449 EVCristina MORAL SANTAELLA and Agustín DE LA HERRÁN GASCÓN
usefulness of General Didactics. Some of in teaching from content and information
the content includes contradictions, incon- to skills of different kinds”, and added,
sistencies, errors, even educational errors. “we are currently witnessing a revival of
“educational formalism”, a new concern
The curriculum elements emphasised for formal skills rather than content” (p.
and addressed the most are evaluation 77).
and teaching methodology. Objectives and
content are by far the least important is- Gimeno (1981) stated that:
sues. Competence-based teaching has led
to the clustering of isolated curriculum Content-centred education” is the epi-
elements around competences. It would thet of so-called “traditional” pedagogy.
For us, the advantage of separating objec-
seem that the didactic discourse of com-
tives from content ... is that it emphasises
petences overshadows the analysis of the
that content is a means to achieve some-
other elements. Nevertheless, texts such thing and not an end in itself ... In other
as those by Medina and Mata (2009), or words, the role of content is minimised and
Moral (2010, 2019), maintain the analysis it is placed at the service of something. (p.
of these elements, without the functional 170)
clustering. It is noteworthy that, in the
mixed chapters, they are presented one by Subsequently, detractors of the “Ped-
year 79, n. 280, September-December 2021, 437-455
one, linearly, sequentially and with little agogy by Objectives” approach emerged
interconnection with one another. in favour of competences. Bolívar (2010)
abandons planning by objectives and
Regarding the order of the chapters, considers that, although the compe-
and within the aforementioned traditional tence-based approach does not involve re-
(Tylerian) sequence, it is important to note jecting the importance of content, or entail
that content always comes after objectives, a didactic planning process, it does consti-
revista española de pedagogía
and that evaluation closes the series, even tute a basis for the specific development
in most of the mixed chapters. This reflects of curricula: “Competences play an inte-
the continuing existence, whether express grating role, organising content in terms
or latent, of the tradition regarding con-
of what the student is expected to be able
tent in Spain. Few researchers in the area
to do. As such, they reorganise the didac-
defend content, as it is understood that it
tic elements according to what they want
undermines the identity of General Didac-
them to acquire” (Bolívar, 2010, p. 177).
tics, when this discipline is full of its own
content. Traditionally, there has been a
On the contrary, Zabalza (1995) defend-
tendency to devalue content (Angulo and
ed that priority should be given to content
Blanco, 1994; Gimeno, 1981; Gimeno and
in learning design:
Pérez Gómez, 1992). Rodríguez-Diéguez
(1980) believed that the greatest merit of The new primary school, both Spa-
the taxonomies of objectives was “having nish and European, must be built upon
succeeded in shifting the focus of interest a reassessment of learning content (on a
450 EVAnalysis of content and underlying theories in Spanish reference texts on General Didactics
re-dimensionalisation of the importance built at these levels? What is done at these
of “knowledge”) and teaching-learning stages? Activities, play? As González-San-
techniques. I imagine that this statement mamed and Fuentes (2011) highlight,
may be controversial, and that agreement when referring to the most deeply-rooted
on this issue is not widespread. However,
beliefs in the teaching culture, it is under-
it is becoming a common principle across
Europe, and not among conservative edu-
stood that: “Teaching is easy, and being
cation movements, as some would like in trained to teach is about learning how to
order to dismiss it, but rather in progres- do things (organising games, carrying out
sive positions on education. We had reach- activities)” (p. 55). Although, at the same
ed such laxity with regard to content that, time, it is bewildering: “given how easy
for many, what mattered least was what it seemed to teach and how hard it is for
was studied, as long as it was done in a students to learn” (González-Sanmamed,
creative, free and enjoyable way for the 2009. p. 71).
students. (p. 296)
The above comments illustrate, in con- 5. Conclusions
trast, the priority trend in the reference The complaints of prospective teach-
texts on General Didactics: “learning by ers regarding excessive teaching of theory,
doing” (Dewey, 1902). Competences, ac- which does not effectively prepare them
year 79, n. 280, September-December 2021, 437-455
tion and different methodologies are the to be trained in teaching competences,
main themes in the texts reviewed. There seem justified given the current compe-
is barely any emphasis placed on the im- tence-based teaching model. This is con-
portance of content for learning design firmed by the fact that, in the works exam-
(Zabalza, 1995). Only the textbook by ined, the relative weight of epistemological
Moral (2019) recognises the importance content and curriculum theories is unbal-
of such. From his perspective, focusing on anced, with a persistent tendency to place
revista española de pedagogía
objectives, competences and activities as value on theoretical aspects as opposed to
the most important elements is like build- applied aspects. There is a prominent ten-
ing a house starting with the roof. Action, dency to consider, in depth, the curriculum
without the training and conceptual struc- components of teaching methodology and
ture on which to base thinking, feeling evaluation over others, of at least the same
and acting, makes no educational sense importance, such as the figure of the teacher,
(Novak, 2010). to whom little attention is paid, or the stu-
dent, who is almost entirely forgotten.
Secondary school teachers have shown
opposition and resistance to the compe- The chapters are generally ordered
tence-based approach, arguing that it according to the technical-administrative
undervalues content (Bolívar, 2005). And tradition: epistemology and curriculum
what about primary school teachers? They theory, objectives, content, methodology,
do not react in the same way. Is it that a and evaluation. This order reflects the
solid knowledge base for thinking is not real prioritisation of the curriculum com-
451 EVCristina MORAL SANTAELLA and Agustín DE LA HERRÁN GASCÓN
ponents, impacting on the teaching of the help us to understand the learning design
syllabus and, in turn, on the acquisition of process, both at the second level of curricu-
competence-based learning. In this article, lum realisation and in the syllabus or class
another flexible order open to innovation programmes and in the teaching units and
has been proposed for learning design. other methodological proposals.
It places value on semantic memory and
conceptual construction as the basis for For the above reasons, the design of a
meaningful learning, and the development General Didactics textbook must be care-
of creative and autonomous student think- fully considered, in collaboration with
ing (Novak, 2010; Sousa, 2017; Weinstein Spanish education publishers who are
& Sumeracki, 2019). This order begins by well-established with a high level of ac-
firstly considering the student, followed by complishment. To this end, we propose
content, objectives, evaluation, methodol- debatable guidelines to increase how edu-
ogy and competences. Placing content first cative they are and update them in accor-
does not mean going back to the tradition- dance with the competence-based teaching
al content model criticised by Rodríguez- model, in order to foster fruitful formative
Diéguez (1980) or Gimeno (1981), since learning experiences for students:
content is not simply an end in itself. On
the contrary, content retention should be • Effectively connect the textbooks to
year 79, n. 280, September-December 2021, 437-455
considered a means to foster meaningful the list of professional competences,
learning, as it serves as a basis for building thus facilitating the construction of
the conceptual structure that underpins well-founded, practical and professio-
semantic memory (Sousa, 2017). nal pedagogical knowledge.
Although the limited influence of these • Eliminate any ancient, superfluous
texts on the training of university profes- theories that are unrelated to the inte-
revista española de pedagogía
sors and lecturers in the field of General rest and professional practice of pros-
Didactics is acknowledged, they are epis- pective teachers.
temological reference works that are key
and thorough for teacher training and the • Functionally link the chapters on
definition of the area. The need to find theory and those that include examples
and acknowledge a common approach is of learning designs.
important for the scientific discipline un-
derpinning teachers’ basic pedagogical • Aim for a certain comprehensiveness
knowledge (Shulman, 2005). regarding key aspects, balancing top-
ics of interest to the author’s ego with
Knowledge regarding learning design what is necessary for the student’s
is both technical and strategic, and re- practical training, and do not fail to in-
quires elements to be combined har- clude key areas in the field, which may
moniously via teaching innovation. Their give the impression of disciplinary care-
coordination and interdependence would lessness or negligence.
452 EVAnalysis of content and underlying theories in Spanish reference texts on General Didactics
• Seek epistemological harmony between tance between Psychology, Neuroscience,
chapters to avoid conceptual and voca- General Didactics, Specific Didactics and
bulary-related conflicts, especially in the Practicum. The psychological and neu-
multi-authored works. roscientific foundations of learning are
prerequisites for the pedagogical training
• Order the chapters according to a of a prospective teacher. A subject such
well-founded teaching theory, as the as General Didactics cannot be taken be-
order of the factors affects the product. fore or at the same time as them, or in the
same term as Specific Didactics. Quality
• Avoid any potentially manipulative or training in teaching competences requires
indoctrinating ideological bias, in the a special link between General Didactics
interests of maximum pedagogical re- and the Practicum. We propose strength-
spect for students, teacher training and ening this link between the General Di-
the meaning and sense of education or dactics and Practicum subjects by means
training. of valid, reliable and high-quality instru-
ments of observation, action and evalua-
• Dare to innovate, risk including inno- tion, and increased coordination or unifi-
vative areas at the forefront of peda- cation of sections in teaching guides.
gogical knowledge which support the
year 79, n. 280, September-December 2021, 437-455
epistemological development of the The situation described above calls for
area, consistent with the author’s own healthy pedagogical self-criticism, with a
proposals on educational innovation. self-training, radical and causal approach.
Self-criticism, far from being exceptional
• Validate the text with experts and a and a source of conflict for mediocre teach-
suitable pilot project before publica- ers, should be a scientific and professional
tion in order to effectively contribute habit, as it honours those who practise it.
revista española de pedagogía
to competence-based training, aiding, If it is a question of training, the leadership
right from the very start, the construc- of its practice could logically lie with Gen-
tion of scientific, self-critical, critical, eral Didactics teacher and/or researchers.
practical and useful knowledge for the However, it is not easy, for four reasons
teaching profession. related to non-conventional training con-
tent, comparable to General Didactics: the
• Propose authentic and consistent tea- difficulty in self-criticising; the fact that
ching, having previously put into prac- self-criticism only makes sense if it is fol-
tice what is proposed for the prospec- lowed by rectification (practice), which re-
tive teacher. quires a particular professional maturity;
the tendency of human beings to think in
Building General Didactics textbooks dual terms, and the fact that we are faced
according to these conditions could in- with a persistent didactic traditionalism,
crease their professional potential and the historical roots of which end up in our
help to reduce the epistemological dis- training leaving room for improvement.
453 EVCristina MORAL SANTAELLA and Agustín DE LA HERRÁN GASCÓN
tion]. Educación XX1, 22 (2), 17-43. https://doi.
References org/10.5944/educxx1.21311
Anderson, L. W., & Krathwohl, D. R. (Eds.) (2001).
González-Sanmamed, M. (2009). Una nueva opor-
A taxonomy for learning, teaching, and asses-
tunidad para la formación inicial del profesora-
sing. Longman.
do de educación secundaria [A new opportunity
Bolívar, A. (2005). Conocimiento didáctico del con-
for the initial training of secondary school tea-
tenido y didácticas específicas [Pedagogical
chers]. Revista de Educación, 350, 57-78.
content knowledge and specific didactics]. Pro-
González-Sanmamed, M., & Fuentes, E. (2011).
fesorado, 9 (2). 1-39.
El prácticum en el aprendizaje de la profesión
Bolívar, A. (2008). Didáctica y currículum: de la
docente [The practicum in the learning of tea-
modernidad a la postmodernidad [Didactics
ching professionals]. Revista de Educación,
and curriculum: from modernity to postmoder-
354, 47-70.
nity]. Aljibe.
Hall, R. (2020). Mixing methods in social research.
Bolívar, A., & Pérez, P. (2019). Políticas educativas
Quantitative, qualitative and combined me-
sobre el profesorado [Education policies on tea-
thods. Sage.
chers]. In A. de la Herrán, J. M. Valle, & J. L.
Hattie, J., & Clarke, S. (2019). Visible learning fee-
Villena (Coords.), ¿Qué estamos haciendo mal
dback. Routledge.
en la educación? (pp. 25-35). Octaedro.
Heredia, A. (2015). Los manuales de Didáctica en
Consejo Escolar del Estado [State School Council]
español entre 1900-1970 [Manuals on Didac-
(2015). El profesorado del siglo xxi [Teachers in
tics in Spanish between 1900-1970]. revista
the 21st century]. Spanish Ministry of Educa-
española de pedagogía, 73 (260), 121-139.
tion and Science.
https://revistadepedagogia.org/wp-content/
Council of the European Union (2018). Council
uploads/2015/01/260-07.pdf
year 79, n. 280, September-December 2021, 437-455
recommendation of 22 May 2018 on key com-
McTighe, J., & Willis, J. (2019). Understanding by
petences for lifelong learning. https://eur-lex.
design meets neuroscience. ASCD.
europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=-
Novak, J. (2010). Learning, creating and using
CELEX:32018H0604(01)&rid=7
knowledge. Routledge.
Darling-Hammond, L., & Oakes, J. (2019). Prepa-
Ritchart, R., & Church, M. (2020). Making thin-
ring teachers for a deeper learning. HEP.
king visible. Jossey Bass.
Dewey, J. (1902). The child and the curriculum.
Schwab, J. (1970). The practical 3: Translation into
Chicago-Press.
curriculum. School Review, 81 (4), 501-522.
Egido, I., & López, E. (2016). Condicionantes de
Shulman, L. (2005). Conocimiento y enseñan-
revista española de pedagogía
la conexión entre teoría y práctica en el Prác-
za. Fundamentos para una nueva reforma
ticum de Magisterio [Constraints regarding
[Knowledge and teaching. Foundations for a
the connection between theory and practice
new reform]. Profesorado, 9 (2), 1-28.
in the Teacher Training Practicum]. Estu-
Sousa, D. (2017). How the brain learns. Corwin.
dios sobre Educación, 30, 217-237. https://doi.
Tyler, R. (1949). Basic principles of curriculum and
org/10.15581/004.30.217-237
instruction. Chicago-Press.
European Commission (2004). Implementation of
Walter, D., & Soltis, F. (2004). Curriculum and
«Education and Training 2010» Work Program-
aims. College-Press.
me. Key Competencesfor Lifelong Learning. A
Weinstein, Y., & Sumeracki, M. (2019). Understan-
European Reference Framework. https://step4-
ding how we learn. Routledge.
sfc.eu/IMG/pdf/201509_a_integrer_dans_le_site_
basicframe.pdf
Gairín Sallán, J., Díaz-Vicario A., del Arco Bravo, I., Authors’ biographies
& Flores i Alarcia, O. (2019). Efecto e impacto Cristina Moral Santaella works as
de las prácticas curriculares de los grados edu-
cación infantil y primaria [Effect and impact of Associate Professor at the Universidad de
the curricular work placements forming part of Granada. She trains early years, primary
the degrees in early years and primary educa- and secondary school teachers, and con-
454 EVAnalysis of content and underlying theories in Spanish reference texts on General Didactics
ducts research into different areas of study of Pedagogy of the Universidad Autóno-
for educational improvement and change. ma de Madrid. His research interests are
She is a member of the FORCE Research teacher training, pedagogy of creativity,
Group and of the RILME Network, among history of educational innovation, com-
others. Her research interests are teacher plexity and awareness in education or rad-
training didactics and curriculum, educa- ical and inclusive approach to education,
tional leadership, qualitative research. among others. He is a member of the re-
search group PR-005 “Social and labour
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7302-165X inclusion for people with intellectual dis-
abilities”.
Agustín de la Herrán Gascón works
as Associate Professor in the Department https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9156-6971
year 79, n. 280, September-December 2021, 437-455
revista española de pedagogía
455 EVYou can also read
