They will investigate socio-emotional variables and effects on students with special needs

As part of an Initiation Fondecyt, an intervention will be proposed to improve skills.

“Academic achievements: Relationship with socio-emotional variables and their differential effect on students with special needs (SEN) from establishments with high vulnerability indices” is the name of the Fondecyt Initiation project led by the academic from the UCSC Faculty of Education, Dr. Angélica Vera, and which aims to determine the role and relationship of socio-emotional variables to academic achievement.

The beneficiaries of the project will be the students of the second cycle of vulnerable establishments, mainly, students with SEN, directors, teachers, parents and guardians. In addition, it is expected to generate an impact at the national level, since one of the products will be a guide for teachers from all over the country to consult regarding the indicated topics.

“The research arises from the importance of socio-emotional variables in students, especially those who are in contexts of high vulnerability. In fact, the literature has described the difficulties that are evident in the educational system in Chile, regarding the unequal access of its students to a quality education, evidenced in their low learning achievements”, explained the Doctor of Education.

The factors that will be analyzed are attributional academic styles, school coexistence, self-esteem, resilience and self-concept regarding the academic achievements of students with typical development, and in particular with those with SEN belonging to the second cycle of basic education of vulnerable establishments in the Region of Biobío.

Intervention proposal for establishments
Among the objectives of the proposal are considered to know the profile presented by the students, identify differential effects, examine the existing correlations between the socio-emotional variables regarding the academic performance of students with typical development and those with special needs. It is also expected to establish a model of the different variables analyzed and generate an intervention proposal that allows improving socio-emotional competencies such as attributional academic styles, coexistence, self-esteem, resilience and academic self-concept.

The Coordinator of the Diploma in Development of Curricular Integration Capacities and Transversal Competences stated that it is expected to develop an intervention proposal that allows improving socio-emotional competencies considering the results of the different variables examined.

The sample will consist of 5 thousand students from the provinces of Arauco, Biobío and Concepción and considers an execution period from 2023 to the end of 2025. On the methodology, a quantitative approach will be applied with a descriptive-correlational design and its design will be cross-sectional to descriptively analyze together with their possible differences with sociodemographic variables such as sex, educational level, age, among others.

“The expectations are to be able to demonstrate the difficulties presented in the examined variables, with the purpose of supporting the teaching staff in the opportune interventions for a better learning achievement of the students”, concluded the academic.