doi: 10.62486/agmu2024210

ORIGINAL

International Educational Practices between Argentina and Mexico. Story about an experience of Mirror Classes between the FHAyCS of the UADER and the School of Performing Arts of the UAEM

Prácticas Educativas Internacionales entre Argentina y México. Relato sobre una experiencia de Clases Espejo entre la FHAyCS de la UADER y la Escuela de Artes Escénicas de la UAEM

Victoria Agustina Tommasi¹ *, Karla Eugenia Pineda Mondragón² *

¹UADER, FHAyCS y FCyT, sede Concepción de Uruguay. Argentina.

²Escuela de Artes Escénicas de la UAEM. México

Cite as: Tommasi VA, Pineda Mondragón KE. International Educational Practices between Argentina and Mexico. Story about an experience of Mirror Classes between the FHAyCS of the UADER and the School of Performing Arts of the UAEM. Multidisciplinar (Montevideo). 2024; 2:210. https://doi.org/10.62486/agmu2024210

Submitted: 08-06-2024          Revised: 15-09-2024          Accepted: 19-12-2024          Published: 20-12-2024

Editor: Prof. Dr. Javier Gonzalez-Argote

Corresponding Author: Victoria Agustina Tommasi *

ABSTRACT

The “mirror” practices have proven to be optimal for the development of academic and professional competencies required in the 21st century (IDB; 2019). They also proved to be an excellent vehicle for the development of cooperation and networking between institutions and actors from different spaces and from the geolocation itself. Thanks to digital technologies and emerging connectivity, we can apply Mirror Classes, classes that favor educational innovation and enrich professional pedagogical training. Such was the case of the experiences carried out between UADER and UAEM. During the month of May 2024, international educational practices were carried out under the didactic strategy of Mirror Classes, between the chair Sociology of Education of the Professor of Psychology and the Professor of Music of the Faculty of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences (FHAyCS) of the Autonomous University of Entre Ríos (UADER) of the Argentine Republic and the chair Pedagogy Applied to Music of the Bachelor of Music of the School of Performing Arts of the Autonomous University of the State of Mexico (UAEM).

Keywords: Mirror Classes; 21st Century Competencies; Educational Innovation; International Cooperation; Pedagogical Professional Training.

RESUMEN

Las prácticas “espejo” han demostrado ser óptimas para el desarrollo de competencias académicas y profesionales requeridas en el S.XXI (BID; 2019). Asimismo, manifestaron ser un excelente vehículo para el desarrollo de cooperación y tejido de redes entre instituciones y actores de diferentes espacios y desde la propia geolocalización. Gracias a las tecnologías digitales y la conectividad emergente podemos aplicar Clases Espejo, clases que favorecen la innovación educativa y que enriquecen la formación profesional pedagógica. Tal fue el caso de las experiencias realizadas entre la UADER y la UAEM. Durante el mes de mayo del 2024 se llevaron a cabo prácticas educativas internacionales bajo la estrategia didáctica de Clases Espejo, entre la cátedra Sociología de la Educación del Profesorado en Psicología y el Profesorado en Música de la Facultad de Humanidades, Artes y Ciencias Sociales (FHAyCS) de la Universidad Autónoma de Entre Ríos (UADER) de la República Argentina y la cátedra Pedagogía Aplicada a la Música de la Licenciatura en Música de la Escuela de Artes Escénicas de la Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México (UAEM).

Palabras clave: Clases Espejo; Competencias del Siglo XXI; Innovación Educativa; Cooperación Internacional; Formación Profesional Pedagógica.

INTRODUCTION

This report describes international practices carried out during May 2024 between the Autonomous University of Entre Ríos (UADER) and the Autonomous University of the State of Mexico (Uaméx). The teaching strategy applied was mirror classes between the second-year Sociology of Education course of the Psychology Teacher Training Program and the University Music Teacher Training Program of the Faculty of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences (FHAyCS) of the UADER, Concepción del Uruguay campus, with the Learning Unit of Applied Pedagogy in Music of the Bachelor’s Degree in Music of the School of Performing Arts (EAE) of the UAEMex.

A total of 40 (forty) teaching professionals participated in the international academic experience: 2 (two) university professors, 2 (two) assistant professors who are students of Sociology of Education—students of the Psychology Teaching Degree and participants in the Educational Action Workshop (Teaching Practices)—, 13 (thirteen) students from UAEMex and 23 (twenty-three) students from UADER, of whom 17 (seventeen) were students of psychology and 6 (six) were students of music.

According to UNESCO, education adapts quickly to societal changes, including knowledge, technology, information, new languages, communication, and research, making innovation a key aspect of the latest social landscape. University academic practices are adapting to the demands of the new post-digital era. Thus, the mirror class experience between UADER and Uaméx is a good example of the beginnings of curriculum internationalization in higher education.

Development of mirror classes

Mirror classes, as the name suggests, allow us to look at ourselves and, fundamentally, see ourselves through the eyes of another. Within the Academic Program for International Digital Collaboration, these classes are a teaching and learning tool and strategy for comprehensive training through academic exchange that enables cultural enrichment, content reinforcement, and the acquisition of intercultural, academic, and digital skills by all educational stakeholders involved. They are virtual and can be synchronous or asynchronous, and an educational platform can be established to carry them out.

How they are applied is flexible and can be adapted to different contexts. There are four types: 1) Non-reciprocal or unidirectional, when a teacher presents a topic to another teacher’s class and the students have a space to interact with the teacher through questions and answers; 2) Reciprocal or bidirectional, when the two international teachers share presentations with the students in the mirror group and the students have a space to ask questions to the teachers;  3) Joint, when teachers give a topic that complements their lectures; 4) Synergistic and collaborative, when teachers choose a topic that is common and/or complementary to their subjects, the topic is worked on in the same session, and students from both regions interact with each other. 

DEVELOPMENT

Application of mirror classes

The mirror classes applied between Argentina and Mexico were synergistic and collaborative, given that the planning was based on common and complementary topics, the teachers explained the content, and the students interacted with each other, both with their classmates and their mirror peers, while creating academic digital content. Three virtual classes were designed, which are detailed below.

First class: asynchronous, individual, and with multimodal material. Student activities:

· Watch a television video from the program Caminos de Tiza on Argentina’s Public Television about an interview with Emilio Tenti Fanfani, who holds a degree in Political and Social Sciences, on the Myths of Argentine Education (Part 2 of 2).⁽¹⁾ In this segment, Mr. Tenti Fanfani presents the book he co-authored with Dr. Alejandro Grimson, PhD in Anthropology (2014), Mitomanías de la Educación Argentina (Mythomania in Argentine Education: Critiques of Clichés, Half-Truths, and Magic Solutions).⁽²⁾

· Read some of the myths (or chapters) selected by the teachers from the book mentioned above: myth 1 On educational decline, myth 6 On public and private schools, and myth 8 On magic solutions for education.

· Relate the chosen myth to the video and the guiding questions provided, differentiate between a myth or belief and scientific social analysis, and write a summary.

· Analyze a PowerPoint presentation on statistical data on education in Mexico and discuss your findings in the next synchronous class. 

· Read the UNESCO material on Policies to promote equitable access to higher education in Latin America. Culture in the sustainable development goals: a practical guide for local action.⁽³⁾

· Choose a goal from the UNESCO material and think about how to collaborate with it through community-based educational proposals within the region and/or city where culture plays a determining role in its different manifestations.

Second class: synchronous, socialization about what was done in the previous point and to meet mirror classmates online.

Although this class was scheduled for one hour, due to the students’ interest and technical issues with connectivity and access, the class was split into two sessions:

a) Group: from the classroom of each professor and in international synchrony with the mirror classroom.

b) Individual: each educational actor was present from their home. Not only was the proposed material discussed, but also topics of interest mentioned by the students. These included the meaning of different pedagogical terms and/or vocabulary used in each country, the different organization of educational systems, and curricula in higher music education.

Figure 1. Synchronous session UAEM-Mexico

Figure 2. Synchronous session UADER-Argentina

Third class: closing activity, asynchronous and group work. Students made group videos (uploaded to YouTube) about their academic internationalization experience and the curricular and cross-curricular content they learned. The music department created two songs, and the psychology faculty made conventional audiovisual presentations, i.e., a conceptual presentation on the requested topic.

Examples of videos produced:

Songs:

· Myths of Education. Closing activity. Pedagogy applied to music.⁽⁴⁾

· Magic Solutions: final project Sociology of education, Mirror Classes.⁽⁵⁾

Convencionales:

· Final conclusions of the mirror classes UADER ar - UAEM mx.⁽⁶⁾

· Myths of Argentine education and experience of the mirror class.⁽⁷⁾

· Closing activity, group 2. Bachelor’s Degree in Music. UAEM.⁽⁸⁾

· Teaching Assistants Sociology of Education Students: Reflections on the mirror class experience and what was learned in relation to myths.⁽⁹⁾

RESULTS

Among the lessons learned and benefits derived from the Mirror Class educational practices, we mention the following:

· International and/or national/regional geolocated academic experience for both students and teachers. In other words, democratization of access to intercultural educational practices from one’s residence without geographical relocation.

· Development of the Digital Academic Profession⁽¹⁰⁾ (Raffaghelli, J.E., Constantino, G., 2016) and hybrid teaching practices integrate face-to-face teaching in the classroom with teaching in extra-classroom contexts through digital media.

· Diversification of the use of pedagogical strategies in teaching and learning processes. New ways of teaching and learning in a constantly changing, highly diverse, global, connected, and digital world.

· Strengthen teachers’ teaching strategies through ICT and develop students’ digital skills.

· Interactive use of digital tools for collaborative work, group interaction, and distributed cognition.

· Strengthen critical digital literacy and incorporate new vocabulary—commitment to training digital citizens.

· Developing skills and abilities for 21st-century professionals⁽¹¹⁾ cognitive skills, whether basic, such as reading and writing, or advanced, such as critical thinking; executive skills, such as memory development, flexibility, self-control, and metacognition; and socio-emotional skills, such as motivation, self-esteem, adaptability, commitment, empathy, resilience, and tolerance. 

· Educational innovation with collaborative teaching practices to encourage reflection on educational policies, classroom work, approaches to professionalization in different disciplines, and the creation of representative artistic products.

· Interdisciplinary work between subjects of different disciplines and even between different university degrees with a common theme.

· Updating and reflection on course topics, content, and competencies in line with national and international dynamics.

· Activation of international and/or national/regional networks for contact and academic cooperation. An example of this is the proposal for in-person artistic participation by the group formed by students of the Bachelor’s Degree in Music at the EAE of the UAEM to visit Argentina, Entre Ríos, and the UADER.

· Development of the first training link for teachers interested in the internationalization of the curriculum.

BIBLIOGRAPHIC REFERENCES

1. Televisión Pública. Caminos de Tiza: Entrevista a Emilio Tenti Fanfani. YouTube; 2016. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UwaSTiB7m4w

2. Grimson A, Tenti Fanfani E. Mitomanías de la Educación Argentina. Críticas de las frases hechas, las medias verdades y las soluciones mágicas. Buenos Aires: Editorial Siglo XXI; 2014.

3. García de Fanelli A. Políticas para promover el acceso con equidad en la educación superior latinoamericana. UNESCO; 2011.

4. Coordinación Música EAE. Pedagogía Aplicada a la música. YouTube; 2024. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mMcXTv9Qdng

5. Greatpartty. Soluciones Mágicas: Trabajo final Sociología de la educación, Clases Espejo. YouTube; 2024. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ro2Lg5zs5no

6. Mailen Coto Ordoñez. Conclusiones finales de las clases espejo UADER 🇦🇷 - UAEM 🇲🇽. YouTube; 2024. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SFidJiEWBko

7. Gaspar Fiorotto. Mitomanías de la educación argentina y experiencia de la clase espejo. YouTube; 2024. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k1hIWFIZZkU

8. Valeria Viramontes. Pedagogía Musical - Actividad con Argentina. YouTube; 2024. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DXUTAwxfuQw

9. Alejandro Poerio Val. Reflexión sobre la experiencia de la clase espejo y lo aprendido en relación a los mitos. YouTube; 2024. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=quFN37zCsME

10. Raffaghelli JE, Constantino G. Profesión Académica Digital: Encuadre conceptual e impacto en los escenarios universitarios latinoamericanos [Internet]. 2016. Disponible en: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/Profesión_Académica_Digital_Encuadre_conceptual_e_impacto_en_los_escenarios_universitarios_latinoamericanos

11. Mateo Díaz M, Rucci G. El futuro ya está aquí. Habilidades transversales en América Latina y el Caribe en el S. XXI. Banco Interamericano de Desarrollo; 2019. Editado por Lafuente E.

FINANCING

None.

CONFLICT OF INTEREST

None.

AUTHORSHIP CONTRIBUTION

Conceptualization: Victoria Agustina Tommasi, Karla Eugenia Pineda Mondragón.

Investigation: Victoria Agustina Tommasi, Karla Eugenia Pineda Mondragón.

Drafting - original draft: Victoria Agustina Tommasi, Karla Eugenia Pineda Mondragón.

Writing - proofreading and editing: Victoria Agustina Tommasi, Karla Eugenia Pineda Mondragón.