Other by Mariano Gutierrez Alarcon
Learning Analytics is the collection and analysis of data gathered (and owned) by a given institu... more Learning Analytics is the collection and analysis of data gathered (and owned) by a given institution implicated in knowledge creation and dissemination. The data is generally used and analyzed to inform, enhance or understand the learning experience for pedagogical, research, administrative, user experience and marketing purposes. As we will discuss in this paper, in order to efficiently gather and use the data, it is best to establish a framework of analysis for this objective.
Defining Learning Analytics (LA) in any educational context is a complex task because while the most famous web analytics recommendation systems (like Amazon or Netflix) are driven by the objectives of having better business outcomes, a better web experience or better product recommendations; LA can and has to support, inform and address (“with actionable insights through the application of statistical models and analysis” Cooper, 2012, pp.7) many stakeholders with different concerns including governments, educational institutions, teachers, learners, and other interest groups as well as political concerns (Ferguson, 2012).
As Cooper (2012) argues, for digital learning institutions the multiple stakeholders involved can be viewed in “three overlapping and interacting domains of analytics”: 1) the teacher/learner, 2) the department, the researcher, the institutional and management and support services and the 3) supra institutional concerns (pp.6). In a similar way Buckingham’s (2012) model proposes learning analytics should address three inter-related levels (the macro-, meso- and micro). “Where the macro level relates to region/state/national/international, the meso is institution-wide and the micro is the individual user action related (pp.3).
This report is for the senior management at ‘MX-Learning-Project’, an educational startup focuse... more This report is for the senior management at ‘MX-Learning-Project’, an educational startup focused on the health and safety industry in Mexico aiming to deliver online courses on a variety of risk and safety issues in the work environment. Private surveyors are key clients and stakeholder in this industry as they are the ones given the task to carry out the actual risk analysis for each individual company as well as design and deliver the training needs to comply with legal health and safety regulations. MX-Learning-Project creates online courses to meet companies and surveyors training needs and ultimately reach a wider audience. The current report aims to make recommendations on how to implement some of the lessons learned from the open model in education, and in so doing adjust the startup’s strategy helping the company to develop a sustainable business, while taking advantage of open educational practices.
Openness in education has been a strong force for a very long time, it has challenged conceptions on how we see learning and consequently, how education and training are conceived, accepted and deemed sustainable. As Martin Weller says “Openness has a long history… Its foundations lie in one of altruism and the belief that education is a public good.” (2014, pp13) The ‘Open Movement’ began by allowing students to enroll in higher education programs without previous qualifications in the sixties, to the creation of a vast amount of free educational material for teachers through Open Educational Resources (OER) and finally the creation of free online courses delivered in digital platforms known as MOOC (Massive Open Online Course). The ‘Open Movement’ in education has likewise had a decisive contribution to the notion of copyright in the development of the Creative Commons which started with the Open Source Software Movement.
The purpose of this paper is to provide with background information on the situation of primary s... more The purpose of this paper is to provide with background information on the situation of primary school teachers in Sub Saharan Africa, most specifically in Mozambique, with an specific focus on education, teacher supply and training to provide a general perspective of the issues at stake and to provide a view that may help stakeholders at all levels assess the best course of action in order to improve the situation in the country and help to achieve the universal primary education EFA (Education For All) goal.
The two cases chosen for this comparative analysis, the Bangladesh Ganokendra programme and the M... more The two cases chosen for this comparative analysis, the Bangladesh Ganokendra programme and the Mahila Samakhya Programme in India were set out to address the despairing combination of illiteracy, poverty and gender imbalances, by focalizing on poor women who leave the education system due to all sort of circumstances (for example arranged marriage at a very early age) and in an environment that normally undervalues them, leaves them voiceless and vulnerable to poverty. Both programmes share a high level of success that stems from the implementation of a community participatory process and the implementation of informal education settings with high community involvement. However, the differences from one to another are not small; the involvement of civil society and government actors, the socio-cultural context and the way each project tackled the issues demonstrates how two successful projects can achieve their aims through different strategies and contexts.
In order to develop an effective strategy for Sri Lanka it is key to contemplate the origins of t... more In order to develop an effective strategy for Sri Lanka it is key to contemplate the origins of the conflict in order to assess the most efficient type of intervention required in the future. At first glance, the Sri Lanka civil war is an ethnic-religious conflict between the Sinhalese Buddhist and the Tamils Hindus that can be described as a “clash of civilizations” (Novelli, 2008). In the mid 18th century with the British rule, Tamils considered with better education were introduced into government functions of the island generating further tensions as Sinhalese people see themselves as the original inhabitants of the island and Sri Lanka as a holy Buddhist land. Tamils are seen with suspicion due to the large community of Tamils in India. Another elements in the conflict are the “structural inequalities” (Novelli, 2008) between Tamils and Sinhalese that were added to the conflictive scenario when Tamils of lower caste were brought in as labour for the tea plantations. This understanding of the Sri Lankan conflict helps to articulate and balance the best types of interventions and strategies. For example, while “educational policy intervention” should naturally be “targeted at addressing the cultural obstacles and differences that divide ‘civilizational’ groups” to address cultural unbalances and curricula; an educational policy that brings all the experience and programs used in education and poverty it is also needed to address the consequences of more than 30 years of civil war on the economy and the population in general (Novelli, 2008).
My first job in the international development area was one of the toughest I have done in my prof... more My first job in the international development area was one of the toughest I have done in my professional career and during the process I witnessed in real life many of the contradictions, controversies and debates that I’ve seen during the International Development and Education module. Among the issues seen during the module, the educational programs with a ‘community approach’ seem to me to be the most successful, yet at the same time the most complex and difficult to implement given the amount of locally specific variables and actors found in these types of programs. In this paper I’m interested in exploring the following issue: Is it possible to deliver a ‘one size fit all’ community educational framework geared at solving the big problems in development today such as poverty, gender inequality and conflict? Are there key elements of success that have the possibility of transforming these local/ small-scale approaches to big scale solutions?
There is in our culture and ourselves a high need of freedom, certainty and discernment on what w... more There is in our culture and ourselves a high need of freedom, certainty and discernment on what we do. The own individuals sense of purpose and their own social nature, which seek for love and approval, creates a complex inter-relational web where each individual is formed. But reality is always there, showing us that we are not as free as we think we are. Certainty on what we consider right or wrong more often is challenged up to the point where we are not sure of those values anymore, and the discernment we need to not to fall in this desolated world seems to fall short from our hearts. This self-awareness, that it can be easily track down in the philosophy of Miguel de Unamuno or Søren Kierkegaard, expose the conflict between ourselves and that strive of " do good / avoid evil " (synderesis) and society. Commonly called conscience, in this essay firstly I will outline the most common definitions of conscience, secondly In the light of the knowledge introduce by psychology in the last century I will assess the main challenges to the previous definitions, thirdly I will expand of what Christian tradition understands for conscience To finally draw conclusion on what do we mean today when we say conscience. Definitions " It is that moral faculty which tells people subjectively what is good and evil and which manifests their moral obligation to them. " (Peschke, pp203) From this basic definition we can infer a simple differentiation between the manifestations of moral obligation and the action that fulfils it. For Karl H. Peschke in his book Christian Ethics, conscience can be divided also as moral faculty, which from traditional scholastic theology can be consider " as a particular instance of the operation of reason. " and " process in which the general norms of the moral law are applied to a concrete action. " (pp203) From this point of view, Peschke define conscience as the courier between the law and how to apply it to a concrete individual situation. " Conscience accordingly is considered a judgement of the practical reason. " (Peschke, pp 203) From different traditions in Christianity, the Augustinians and Franciscan understood conscience briefly as " the place of the loving colloquy between God and man, therefore
To understand what it means to be an individual in Kierkegaard’s thought my approach will be very... more To understand what it means to be an individual in Kierkegaard’s thought my approach will be very simple. First of all I will try to define what the irreducible essence and unity in Kierkegaard’s ideas are about, what it mean to be human. Secondly I will expand the understanding of the concept of despair from “Sickness Unto Death”. I will use two examples related to the concept of despair from Albert Camus and Simone Weil. Thirdly I will make a brief comparison between Miguel de Unamuno and Kierkegaard. Fourthly I make a critique of the most popular understanding of Kierkegaard’s stages. And finally I will give a brief evaluation of what I understand from Kierkegaard of the mean of what it is to be an individual.
Choosing the concepts of Necessity and Affliction in a thinker like Simone Weil is only one of ma... more Choosing the concepts of Necessity and Affliction in a thinker like Simone Weil is only one of many entry doors into a very complex system of reflections, experiences and ideas.
The selection of these two, in this essay, will show how Weil’s ideas are a fresh perception on how to understand creation, how we experience this world, the forces and mechanisms which rule over the world, and her understanding of God.
This exercise, at first glance, would seem to be little more than a redefinition and clarification of many words and concepts, but as fruitless as this attempt may sound, if we agree to explore her ideas, we will be facing many challenges on values that society takes for granted: God, the world, suffering and evil among others.
I will argue that through her ideas, one of the most important results will be a different perspective towards how to treat the concepts of moral and ethics, a perspective which separates individual values from social values.
For this essay I will take a close look to the book “Above the Gods: A dialogue about Religion” o... more For this essay I will take a close look to the book “Above the Gods: A dialogue about Religion” of Iris Murdoch and I will follow with some comments from other authors on her ideas of religion and moral philosophy.
I will start with a brief analysis on Murdoch’s book; then I will summarise opinions on Murdoch’s ideas form other authors like Fergus Kerr, Franklin I Gamwell and Stanley Hauerwas; and finally I will argue her views on how morality distinguish itself from religion, that the replacement of Goodness as a from of God as a way forward doesn’t bind together as stand alone idea and it is just a reshuffle of religious sensitivities for non believers.
Teaching Documents by Mariano Gutierrez Alarcon
“MX-Learning-Project” is a small start-up in Mexico City that seeks to provide very simple course... more “MX-Learning-Project” is a small start-up in Mexico City that seeks to provide very simple courses to the Mexican work force on health and safety and civil protection norms and measures. Thought to fulfil and aid the training needs and responsibilities of both private and public sector companies “MX-Learning-Project” has so far produced 5 basic courses and implemented a simple Virtual Learning Environment for the distribution of the courses. The idea of the start-up is to profit from the Mexican regulatory framework that requires companies to train their employees on risks and what to do to mitigate them in the workplace. In order to comply with regulations, after training, companies needs to provide a valid accreditation from an authorized surveyor, to ensure staff has been trained on the risks faced in his work environment.
Drafts by Mariano Gutierrez Alarcon
Lunardog, 2008
Every time I look into art, I look for meaning; I look for the artist who has something to... more Every time I look into art, I look for meaning; I look for the artist who has something to say, a story, a poem a reflection, an experience or anything that it is worthwhile sharing. All the artists that admire have or had a clear message that it is transmitted by their art.
This idea, this feeling, puzzled me for many years, I could not find that in me. I started photography at a very early age in the mid eighties, all the things I could hear was the argument about photography being an art or not, most of my friends at the photo club were obsessed about processes and technique, just to show what’s around.
The few theoretical books I read about Art Photography coincide that in the eighties was an inflexion point, a new batch of art historians turn their eyes to photography as an Art in it’s own right, detached from their pictorial links. I have to confess that at that time I never felt photography as art.
This was maybe because photography in those years in Buenos Aires were purely associated with documental photography, the links between the aesthetical and subjectivity was in my opinion still too intertwined to know the difference. This struggle it was maybe because I was a teenager in those years.
It took me quite a few years working as Photojournalist as well as studying Drama and Theology with a strong interest in philosophy, to forge and discover what I wanted to do, I want to do photos like a painter who choose the subject matter because I don’t find anything particularly special in the world that surrounds me and what I do like other photographers do it so beautifully that any attempt to do something in the same line would feel redundant but also I didn’t want to use text as it would constrain the reach to those who read that language and the universal appeal of photography lost in translation.
To view the book: https://summa-i.lunardog.com
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Other by Mariano Gutierrez Alarcon
Defining Learning Analytics (LA) in any educational context is a complex task because while the most famous web analytics recommendation systems (like Amazon or Netflix) are driven by the objectives of having better business outcomes, a better web experience or better product recommendations; LA can and has to support, inform and address (“with actionable insights through the application of statistical models and analysis” Cooper, 2012, pp.7) many stakeholders with different concerns including governments, educational institutions, teachers, learners, and other interest groups as well as political concerns (Ferguson, 2012).
As Cooper (2012) argues, for digital learning institutions the multiple stakeholders involved can be viewed in “three overlapping and interacting domains of analytics”: 1) the teacher/learner, 2) the department, the researcher, the institutional and management and support services and the 3) supra institutional concerns (pp.6). In a similar way Buckingham’s (2012) model proposes learning analytics should address three inter-related levels (the macro-, meso- and micro). “Where the macro level relates to region/state/national/international, the meso is institution-wide and the micro is the individual user action related (pp.3).
Openness in education has been a strong force for a very long time, it has challenged conceptions on how we see learning and consequently, how education and training are conceived, accepted and deemed sustainable. As Martin Weller says “Openness has a long history… Its foundations lie in one of altruism and the belief that education is a public good.” (2014, pp13) The ‘Open Movement’ began by allowing students to enroll in higher education programs without previous qualifications in the sixties, to the creation of a vast amount of free educational material for teachers through Open Educational Resources (OER) and finally the creation of free online courses delivered in digital platforms known as MOOC (Massive Open Online Course). The ‘Open Movement’ in education has likewise had a decisive contribution to the notion of copyright in the development of the Creative Commons which started with the Open Source Software Movement.
The selection of these two, in this essay, will show how Weil’s ideas are a fresh perception on how to understand creation, how we experience this world, the forces and mechanisms which rule over the world, and her understanding of God.
This exercise, at first glance, would seem to be little more than a redefinition and clarification of many words and concepts, but as fruitless as this attempt may sound, if we agree to explore her ideas, we will be facing many challenges on values that society takes for granted: God, the world, suffering and evil among others.
I will argue that through her ideas, one of the most important results will be a different perspective towards how to treat the concepts of moral and ethics, a perspective which separates individual values from social values.
I will start with a brief analysis on Murdoch’s book; then I will summarise opinions on Murdoch’s ideas form other authors like Fergus Kerr, Franklin I Gamwell and Stanley Hauerwas; and finally I will argue her views on how morality distinguish itself from religion, that the replacement of Goodness as a from of God as a way forward doesn’t bind together as stand alone idea and it is just a reshuffle of religious sensitivities for non believers.
Teaching Documents by Mariano Gutierrez Alarcon
Drafts by Mariano Gutierrez Alarcon
This idea, this feeling, puzzled me for many years, I could not find that in me. I started photography at a very early age in the mid eighties, all the things I could hear was the argument about photography being an art or not, most of my friends at the photo club were obsessed about processes and technique, just to show what’s around.
The few theoretical books I read about Art Photography coincide that in the eighties was an inflexion point, a new batch of art historians turn their eyes to photography as an Art in it’s own right, detached from their pictorial links. I have to confess that at that time I never felt photography as art.
This was maybe because photography in those years in Buenos Aires were purely associated with documental photography, the links between the aesthetical and subjectivity was in my opinion still too intertwined to know the difference. This struggle it was maybe because I was a teenager in those years.
It took me quite a few years working as Photojournalist as well as studying Drama and Theology with a strong interest in philosophy, to forge and discover what I wanted to do, I want to do photos like a painter who choose the subject matter because I don’t find anything particularly special in the world that surrounds me and what I do like other photographers do it so beautifully that any attempt to do something in the same line would feel redundant but also I didn’t want to use text as it would constrain the reach to those who read that language and the universal appeal of photography lost in translation.
To view the book: https://summa-i.lunardog.com
Defining Learning Analytics (LA) in any educational context is a complex task because while the most famous web analytics recommendation systems (like Amazon or Netflix) are driven by the objectives of having better business outcomes, a better web experience or better product recommendations; LA can and has to support, inform and address (“with actionable insights through the application of statistical models and analysis” Cooper, 2012, pp.7) many stakeholders with different concerns including governments, educational institutions, teachers, learners, and other interest groups as well as political concerns (Ferguson, 2012).
As Cooper (2012) argues, for digital learning institutions the multiple stakeholders involved can be viewed in “three overlapping and interacting domains of analytics”: 1) the teacher/learner, 2) the department, the researcher, the institutional and management and support services and the 3) supra institutional concerns (pp.6). In a similar way Buckingham’s (2012) model proposes learning analytics should address three inter-related levels (the macro-, meso- and micro). “Where the macro level relates to region/state/national/international, the meso is institution-wide and the micro is the individual user action related (pp.3).
Openness in education has been a strong force for a very long time, it has challenged conceptions on how we see learning and consequently, how education and training are conceived, accepted and deemed sustainable. As Martin Weller says “Openness has a long history… Its foundations lie in one of altruism and the belief that education is a public good.” (2014, pp13) The ‘Open Movement’ began by allowing students to enroll in higher education programs without previous qualifications in the sixties, to the creation of a vast amount of free educational material for teachers through Open Educational Resources (OER) and finally the creation of free online courses delivered in digital platforms known as MOOC (Massive Open Online Course). The ‘Open Movement’ in education has likewise had a decisive contribution to the notion of copyright in the development of the Creative Commons which started with the Open Source Software Movement.
The selection of these two, in this essay, will show how Weil’s ideas are a fresh perception on how to understand creation, how we experience this world, the forces and mechanisms which rule over the world, and her understanding of God.
This exercise, at first glance, would seem to be little more than a redefinition and clarification of many words and concepts, but as fruitless as this attempt may sound, if we agree to explore her ideas, we will be facing many challenges on values that society takes for granted: God, the world, suffering and evil among others.
I will argue that through her ideas, one of the most important results will be a different perspective towards how to treat the concepts of moral and ethics, a perspective which separates individual values from social values.
I will start with a brief analysis on Murdoch’s book; then I will summarise opinions on Murdoch’s ideas form other authors like Fergus Kerr, Franklin I Gamwell and Stanley Hauerwas; and finally I will argue her views on how morality distinguish itself from religion, that the replacement of Goodness as a from of God as a way forward doesn’t bind together as stand alone idea and it is just a reshuffle of religious sensitivities for non believers.
This idea, this feeling, puzzled me for many years, I could not find that in me. I started photography at a very early age in the mid eighties, all the things I could hear was the argument about photography being an art or not, most of my friends at the photo club were obsessed about processes and technique, just to show what’s around.
The few theoretical books I read about Art Photography coincide that in the eighties was an inflexion point, a new batch of art historians turn their eyes to photography as an Art in it’s own right, detached from their pictorial links. I have to confess that at that time I never felt photography as art.
This was maybe because photography in those years in Buenos Aires were purely associated with documental photography, the links between the aesthetical and subjectivity was in my opinion still too intertwined to know the difference. This struggle it was maybe because I was a teenager in those years.
It took me quite a few years working as Photojournalist as well as studying Drama and Theology with a strong interest in philosophy, to forge and discover what I wanted to do, I want to do photos like a painter who choose the subject matter because I don’t find anything particularly special in the world that surrounds me and what I do like other photographers do it so beautifully that any attempt to do something in the same line would feel redundant but also I didn’t want to use text as it would constrain the reach to those who read that language and the universal appeal of photography lost in translation.
To view the book: https://summa-i.lunardog.com