Reflections on Educational Issues among Modern Language Students

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Published: Mar 19, 2019
DOI: https://doi.org/10.19183/how.26.1.500
Keywords:
reflections, reflective thinking, educational issues, artwork and murals

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Anna Carolina Peñaloza
Universidad Pedagógica y Tecnológica de Colombia
Jhonatan Vasquez Guarnizo
Universidad Pedagógica y Tecnológica de Colombia

Abstract

The following pedagogical proposal seeks to understand what types of reflections Modern Languages students reveal about educational issues when analyzing artwork within their context. We worked with twelve Modern Languages students in their fifth and sixth semester at a public university in Colombia. The students began by analyzing four murals located within the university. Then, they created their own artwork and provided reflections on each other’s pieces of art. The findings showed that the students first began analyzing visual aspects of the murals and artwork, followed by the educational issues represented in each piece. As a common theme, the students reflected on the idea that working together yields a diversity of solutions. Finally, the students demonstrated that they could benefit from reflective practices despite not having started their teaching practicum.

Article Details

How to Cite
Peñaloza, A. C., & Vasquez Guarnizo, J. (2019). Reflections on Educational Issues among Modern Language Students. HOW, 26(1), 129–151. https://doi.org/10.19183/how.26.1.500
Issue
Vol. 26 No. 1: (January/June 2019)
Section
Reports on Pedagogical Experiences

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The authors of the manuscripts accepted for publication in HOW journal are required to sign a nonexclusive license agreement allowing ASOCOPI to reproduce the full text on the Internet or in any other available source. Authors retain copyright of their manuscripts with the following restrictions: first publication is granted to ASOCOPI; nonexclusive agreements with third parties can be established as long as the original publication in the HOW journal is properly acknowledged.

Author Biographies

Anna Carolina Peñaloza, Universidad Pedagógica y Tecnológica de Colombia

She holds a B.A. in Environmental Science from the University of Arizona in Tucson and is currently a student of the Master’s in Language Teaching program at the Universidad Pedagógica y Tecnológica de Colombia (UPTC). She teaches the Academic Writing Course at the UPTC, as well as spearheading several community service efforts to help underprivileged youth.

Jhonatan Vasquez Guarnizo, Universidad Pedagógica y Tecnológica de Colombia

He holds a B.A in English Language Teaching from Universidad de la Amazonia and he is also a student of the Master’s in Language Teaching program at the Universidad Pedagógica y Tecnológica de Colombia (UPTC). Currently, he is a full-time professor in the school of Modern/Foreign Languages at UPTC, as well as being a brand ambassador by promoting summer camps as cultural exchanges in the USA to language students in Colombia.

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