Sustainable development (SD) is crucial to maintaining and preserving the planet we live on. The new paradigm of circular economy (CE) corresponds to the sustainable development goals and includes environmental, economic, and social dimensions. The United Nations has set quality education and the search for good health and well-being in the long term as tools for achieving SD. This study aims to identify the predictors of connectedness to nature in children and adolescents using knowledge of CE, pro-environmental behavior, beliefs about caring for the environment, and satisfaction with life as possible predictive variables. The exploration of the influence of these predictors on connectedness to nature, taking sex and age as covariates, was performed using a binary logistic regression model. We found that low scores on pro-environmental behavior, satisfaction with life, knowledge of waste management and CE, and beliefs about environmental behavior were related to a low degree of connectedness to nature. Thus, our findings suggest that the educational system must promote not only the assimilation of knowledge and beliefs but also satisfaction with life given its relationship with connectedness to nature.

Science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) outreach programs have been widely studied in recent years considering their possible influence on future STEM career election aiming to counteract the observed decline in enrollment at university. Nonetheless, the presumed effect is not clear due to a lack of comparison with control groups. In order to fill this gap, a quasi-experimental design was adopted to analyze the effect of a STEM experimentation outreach program on 5th and 6th graders. The sample was composed by 453 students, (274 experimental group and 179 control group). The Auzmendi Scale of Attitude towards Mathematics Modified (ASMAm), and the attitude towards school science (ASSci), were used as instruments, and were administered before and after the intervention. The analysis was run with sex, type of school (state and state-funded schools), school environment (rural/urban), and teacher as potential factors. The results show that there is a program effect on the attitude towards mathematics, but not on the attitude towards school science. Regarding the factors, the program effect is associated neither with sex nor with rural/urban schools. However, the program had a more positive effect on the ASSci than on the ASMAm in the state schools, and is mediated by the teacher.

Universities play a pivotal role in knowledge production and in transforming teaching methodologies across various subjects. This research is a case study detailing the pedagogical implementation of a game-based methodological approach in a dual-degree program for primary and early childhood education teachers. The focus is on integrating information and communication technologies (ICT) tools for mathematics, specifically Scratch and GeoGebra, underpinned by principles of neuroscience. Based on a sample of 28 students, this study adopted game-based learning (GBL) in mathematics exercises, aimed at equipping student-teachers with strategies for educating future students (ages 7 to 11) in the 3rd to the 6th grade. Key areas of focus included plane and spatial geometry, requiring student-teachers to design game-like activities, emulating the problem-solving approaches of children. The culmination of this study involved presentations by the student-teachers, demonstrating how neuroscience principles can enhance the creation of educational games for primary school students. The findings highlight a significant divergence between the reality of teaching mathematics and the preconceived notions held by the student-teachers. This study opens avenues for integrating neuroscience into education, particularly through GBL, but also highlights the need for comprehensive understanding and application of neuroscientific principles to maximize learning outcomes.

Este trabajo es un primer estadio de un proyecto más amplio que pretende analizar las actitudes hacia las matemáticas de estudiantes del grado de maestro y maestros en ejercicio de las etapas de educación infantil y primaria en el entorno iberoamericano. Para ello llevamos a cabo una revisión bibliográfica de las herramientas usadas e identificamos el cuestionario más utilizado en el entorno de habla hispana: el cuestionario de Auzmendi. Analizamos su adecuación para nuestra muestra, que estuvo compuesta por 205 estudiantes del grado de maestro de educación infantil y primaria, mediante un análisis factorial exploratorio y confirmatorio realizado con el programa SPSS v22. Los resultados indican que para esta muestra el modelo de cinco factores del cuestionario no es adecuado, siéndolo más un modelo de un factor con siete ítems. Concluimos que el cuestionario modificado de Auzmendi es una buena herramienta para valorar el factor ansiedad en el contexto de este proyecto.

In this work, we explore the presence of stereotypes in pre-university students with respect to gender, science, and scientists. The possible differences between boys and girls, school stage, and rurality are analyzed. For this purpose, a sample of 404 participants between 13 and 18 years old were delivered a form with items from the Questionnaire on Opinions about Science, Technology, and Society. The responses were offered using a five-point Likert scale and agreement percentages were calculated. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used for the analysis, where the effect size was calculated for items associated with any of the three factors. Our findings show that the stereotyped ideas of gender in science were more intense in Compulsory Secondary Education (CSE) students in rural areas than in High School (HS) students from urban areas. In addition, perceptions of science and scientists showed greater agreement for CSE than for HS students. However, no differences were found between girls and boys. Regarding science items, there was a major agreement on the relationship between science and technology with problem solving, regardless of sex or school rurality. Finally, reflections on stereotypes and the presence of girls in STEM careers are provided.

Resumen Los estudios comparativos son interesantes para encontrar similitudes o diferencias entre contextos educativos distintos. En el ámbito Latinoamericano existen algunos sobre las actitudes del profesorado de matemáticas, pero no son muy abundantes. Con este trabajo se pretende contribuir a este cuerpo de estudios comparando dos contextos insertados en los sistemas educativos de España y Colombia. El objetivo es analizar el conjunto de creencias y actitudes hacia las Matemáticas que reportan docentes de educación básica, con especial interés sobre la ansiedad. Se partió de la validación y contextualización del cuestionario sobre creencias y actitudes hacia las matemáticas. Se siguió la metodología de la Teoría Clásica de los Test. Se aplicó una prueba piloto para calibrar el instrumento; luego se administró a una muestra de 232 docentes en ambos países. Con los datos obtenidos se realizó un análisis comparativo para identificar semejanzas y diferencias entre los grupos. Los resultados evidencian similitudes epistemológicas en cuanto a los ítems relacionados con el euclidianismo. Sin embargo, en cuanto al cuasi-empirismo y el constructivismo se presentan marcadas diferencias por país. En relación con la ansiedad, las respuestas de los docentes divergen, dependiendo del contexto geográfico. Destaca el mayor nivel de ansiedad de los docentes españoles en comparación con los colombianos. Se probó que factores como el nivel de estudios y el tipo de contratación determina su nivel de ansiedad y su sistema de creencias. A futuro convendría comprobar si los niveles de ansiedad afectan, también, a la práctica docente durante la enseñanza de las matemáticas.