Lots of companies ask «up to 5 minutes video clips» to their candidates, showing their creativity and uniqueness; then the video “must be uploaded to YouTube”. Also short, innovative and awesome essays “up to x words” and of course resume, good grades, languages, a smiley face, and don´t forget the “Aptitude & Attitudes Lot” (to be… efficient-excellent-a good leader-patient-resilient- a cheerleader and so on?). The pressure of time and deadlines are always there; then if they are lucky they get into the next phase – the terrifying interview.
I am conscious of how hard developing a career is and how terrible the labor market is, but really… Are these recruiting processes human and fair? Sigue leyendo →
I met Lena two years ago in Tetovo, Macedonia (Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia); we spent 10 days together collaborating in “a fascinating project”. – Lena speaks perfectly four languages! Serbian, English, Spanish and Italian…
Macedonia- 2014
I remember her as a very good communicator, highly respected and trusted and with an extraordinary ability to build relationships. I was fascinated with her ability to speak Spanish; of course, she is bilingual in Serbian and English. I couldn´t believe during those 10 days that she´d taught herself Spanish (and today I discovered that she also speaks Italian). Speechless!
I enjoyed a lot reading Lena´s opinion; I found the perfect “polyglot example”. She told me once “you have to listen to a language as music”
Today, she mentioned stories, drawings, songs, lyrics, her teacher´s personality, the constructive part of learning as a tool to rediscover oneself and how ditching perfectionism helps on the process.
It was inspiring to read her messages… giving feedback about what she understood, participating, asking questions for clarification and always listening what others want to say or express; I´m bringing back memories – Tetovo!
Each time my inbox gets these reminders; I am flooded with nice memories. It´s very exciting to see how people that one day you met, and with who you spent valuable time are doing great things with their lives. It doesn´t matter how many years have passed by, projects create and an amazing connection between people which is difficult to explain through words.
So, here´s Lena and how she learned four languages …Sigue leyendo →
EFS (Executive Functions) are complex. Complex to assess, to work with and even to write about them; and even so, I chose this topic for my research and PhD dissertation. EFS comprise a diverse range of cognitive processes which underline many disorders and difficulties that children and youngsters present at school and everyday life. Through the understanding of all these cognitive processes – planning, working memory, attention, inhibition, self-monitoring, self-regulation and initiation, we will be able to develop different programs and individual interventions to help them, not only in educational settings but wellbeing in life (emotional and social development). It becomes a challenge.
Students use EF at school, to complete assignments, engage during the lessons, learn concepts, and behave appropriately. There are many studies which prove a direct relation between EF and achievement in math, language skills, reading comprehension and writing (Sluis, de Jong & van der Leij, 2004).
When children experiment delays in the development of different EF, their understanding of academic material and social interactions suffer (they may be unable to establish new friendships or interact socially).
Several common developmental disorders emerge during early childhood (e.g. LD, ADHD, ADD, autism) and are associated with impairment in EF. Many kids show “x” behaviors sometimes, however if these behaviors persist along the time, or increase their intensity or interfere with their everyday life, parents should be aware and ask for help. To present certain troubles in EF during childhood, it doesn’t mean that the kid presents a disorder, but often EF issues co-occur with learning, ADHD or developmental delays. Sigue leyendo →
EDU PSYCH LAB 