UC Education commemorated its 82nd anniversary with a seminar on strengthening the teaching profession

The event featured a panel composed of academics and authorities from the Catholic University, the Metropolitan University of Educational Sciences, Elige Educar and the CHIC Center. 

In the framework of its 82nd anniversary, the Faculty of Education of the Catholic University held the seminar “How to re-boost the strengthening of the teaching profession? Almost 10 years after the Presidential message of the Teaching Career Law”.

The meeting focused on strategic measures that should continue to be explored in areas such as access to pedagogies, socio-emotional training of future teachers, practice-based learning, mentoring in practice, and working conditions and prestige that will boost the profession in the country.

The seminar was made up of a panel of different academics and authorities: Elisa Araya, rector of the Metropolitan University of Educational Sciences; Harald Beyer of the UC School of Government; Veronica Cabezas, UC Education academic and executive director of at Elige Educar y Lorraine medina, former dean of UC Education and director of the CHIC Center.

“We always thought it was a good idea to celebrate by discussing what interests and concerns us, and in this case it is building a better teaching profession,” he said at the beginning of the event. Dean of Education UC Alejandro Carrasco, who was in charge of moderating the conversation. 

“We are going to celebrate 10 years since the Presidential message that was the prelude to the entire parliamentary discussion that gave rise to what we call the Teaching Career. Ten years after that, it is important to look back and look to the future at how we are and where we are going. (…) Today we realize that there is still a long way to go,” said Carrasco. 

Elisa Araya, rector of the Metropolitan University of Educational Sciences (UMCE), reflected on the political, social and technological changes that Chilean society has undergone over the last decade, emphasizing that “the entire world enters into the way our students see things,” although “the Chilean school system is still conservative in terms of teaching.” In turn, Harald Beyer, academic at the UC School of Government and Minister of Education of Chile between 2011 and 2013, says that “there is a huge crisis of authority, and this crisis is noticeable in the classroom. It has accelerated over the last decade and it is a response that must be viewed from an interdisciplinary perspective.” 

Verónica Cabezas explains that Elige Educar conducted a study on Generation Z, which reports on changes in the training and profile of students, adding that this change “influences the mental health of both teachers and students.” In response, Lorena Medina, a UC Education professor and director of Centro Chic, said that “the changes in the school system and in society have not gone hand in hand,” because “we are training teachers in collaborative work, but the reports say that we have an individualistic society.”