THE TEAM
Group members
Dr. Javier Vidal
COORDINATOR
PhD in Philosophy from the University of Salamanca and Full Professor at the University of León in the Department of Psychology, Sociology and Philosophy. His research work focuses on the study of higher education in different fields such as research assessment, institutional evaluation and quality assurance and the relationship between training and employment. He has also held management positions at different institutional and government levels.
Dra. Camino ferreira
Associate Professor in the Department of Psychology, Sociology and Philosophy at University of León. PhD in Psychology and Educational Sciences (2013). She has been awarded three extraordinary achievement awards in Bachelor, Master and Doctorate degrees. Her main topics of research focus on Higher Education and attention to diversity. She is currently the coordinator of the Master's Degree in Research in Psychology and Educational Sciences. She has been Academic Secretary of the Faculty of Education and Coordinator of the Degree in Primary Education. In addition, she has participated in several projects funded by the European Commission and collaborated as a consultant with the World Bank.
Dr. diego gonzález
Doctor in Educational Psychology and Educational Sciences and Lecturer in the area of Research Methods and Diagnosis in Education at the University of León. His research focuses on school dropout and academic performance during the transition from Primary Education to Secondary Education. He has been a Predoctoral Fellow from the Ministry of Education to carry out his thesis within the University Teacher Training Program (FPU). He has collaborated with the Agency for the Quality of the University System of Castilla y León (ACSUCYL), in the evaluation of degree, master and doctorate programs and has participated in different national and international projects. It has an extraordinary end of degree award (2009).
DRA. ALBA GONZÁLEZ-MOREIRA
Assistant Professor of MIDE at the University of León and PhD in the Psychology, Sociology and Philosophy programme at the same university. Her research focuses on the transition from Early Childhood Education to Primary Education, and its influence on initial and in-service teacher training. She is a member of the Education Committee of the Agency for the Quality of the University System of Castilla y León (ACSUCYL), which works on the evaluation of master's and doctoral programmes.
dr. Manuel Lucas
PhD in Human and Social Sciences from UPSA. Associate Professor at ULE in the area of MIDE and Career Civil Servant in the Secondary Education Teaching Corps, specializing in Educational Guidance, and Career Civil Servant in the Teaching Corps. Head of the Educational Guidance Department at IES Ornia (La Bañeza). Co-director of the Research Project EDUCYL2016-INV2 "Evaluation, Training, and Innovation in Digital Competencies in Castilla y León." Recipient of the NOVA 2011 Special Award for the Best Educational Innovation Project "Application of Arithmetic Problem Solving through ICT in Primary Education."
DR. alejandro rodríguez
Career Civil Servant in the Primary Education Teaching Corps, specializing in Primary Education. PhD in Educational Psychology and Educational Sciences from the University of León. His research focuses on the use of didactic-pedagogical methods by teachers at different educational levels. He received the Extraordinary End-of-Master's Award in 2017.
DR. MARIO CORTÉS
PhD in Educational Psychology and Educational Sciences from the University of León. He holds a Master's degree in Educational Research and Innovation. His main research focuses on curriculum flexibility, particularly in universal design for learning. Currently, he works as an Educational Counselor in Early Childhood and Primary Education and teaches higher vocational training courses in Early Childhood Education.
DRA. saray prados bravo
Coordinator of the Area of Didactics of Musical Expression and Deputy Director of the Department of General, Specific Didactics, and Theory of Education at the Faculty of Education, University of León, with full-time dedication. She holds a PhD in History and Sciences of Music, a Professional Title in Singing and Violin, a Master's in Hispanic Music, a Diploma in Music Education, a Bachelor's degree in History and Sciences of Music, and has completed over 550 hours of training in Choral Conducting. Her teaching activities focus on Vocal Training and Choral Conducting on one hand, and innovation in the Didactics of Musical Expression on the other. Her main research line is related to vocal hygiene literacy for pre-service and in-service teachers. She is also interested in researching innovative pedagogical models in Music Education and transversal aspects such as managing large groups or using team-building in the classroom.
Dra. María José Vieira
Full Professor at the University of León in the Department of Psychology, Sociology and Philosophy. She is currently deputy director of the Department of Psychology, Sociology and Philosophy. She has collaborated as an advisor to the Directorate General for Universities and the European Commission on the Strategy for the Modernisation of Higher Education. Her research focuses on higher education, specifically on guidance and support for university students, on the relationship between training and employment, and on the third mission of universities. She has held various academic positions including Academic Secretary, Vice-Dean of Students and Mobility and Coordinator of the Master's Degree in Research in Psychology and Educational Sciences.
DR. agustin rodriguez
Associate Professor in the Department of Psychology, Sociology and Philosophy at University of León. He has a degree in Educational Psychology and in Social Work. In 2013 he obtained his doctorate in Psychology and Educational Sciences. During the last few years, he has worked as lecturer in the School of Social Work and at the Faculty of Education at University of León. His main lines of research focus on higher education employability and quality assurance. He has participated in several projects financed by the European Commission.
Dra. ana rosa arias
Doctor in Psychology and Educational Sciences and Associate Professor at the University of León in the area of Didactics and School Organization. She is currently the Director of the Department of General Didactics, Specific Didactics, and Theory of Education. Her research focuses on inclusive education, teacher training, quality of education, and innovative teaching methodologies. She has participated in several projects funded by the European Commission related to virtual teaching and competency-based learning.
DrA. BEATRIZ MAYO
Doctorate in Pedagogy, awarded Cum Laude, Bachelor's degree in Pedagogy with extraordinary honors, and Diploma in Social Education from UPSA in Salamanca. She is a career civil servant as a Secondary Education Teacher, having held positions such as Director of the Educational and Psychopedagogical Guidance Team, Head of the Guidance Department, and Advisor for Diversity Care at the Provincial Education Directorate of León. Currently, she is an educational counselor at the EOE in León. She is also a guest professor in the Master's program in Educational Guidance at UPSA in Salamanca and an associate professor at ULE.
DR. Héctor González-MAYORGA
PhD in Educational Psychology and Educational Sciences from the University of León. Adjunct professor in the area of Research Methods and Diagnostic in Education at the University of León and primary school teacher. His lines of research focus on the impact of international assessments and on initial and in-service teacher training. He has received an extraordinary achievement award in Master's degree (2013).
DRA. SARA GONZÁLEZ
PhD in Educational Psychology and Educational Sciences from the University of León. She received the Extraordinary End-of-Master's Award in 2016. Her main research areas focus on educational guidance and training in innovation and entrepreneurship in Primary Education. Currently, she is a secondary education teacher specializing in educational guidance.
DRA. carolina blanco fontao
PhD in Sciences who, after teaching in Secondary Education and simultaneously in the Master’s program for Teacher Training in the Physics and Chemistry module, joined the area of Experimental Sciences Didactics full-time, where she currently serves as an Associate Professor. Her main research focuses on determining various levels of scientific literacy across different demographic groups, incorporating the Sustainable Development Goals into curricula at various educational levels, science teacher training, and innovative teaching methodologies for acquiring scientific competencies.
Realizando la tesis
PhD candidates
MARÍA FUERTES
PhD student in the doctoral program on Educational Psychology and Educational Sciences at the University of León. The main topic of her thesis is the study of mediation in educational contexts, through her professional practice as a mediator in conflicts and counselor for educational communities.
YAIZA VIÑUELA
PhD student in the Educational Psychology and Educational Sciences program at the University of León. Her research focuses on the use of support and guidance systems for students to access and improve success in universities. She has enjoyed a predoctoral contract from the Junta de Castilla y León, although she is currently enjoying a predoctoral contract from the Ministry of Education to carry out her thesis within the University Teacher Training Program (FPU). She has been awarded with an extraordinary master's degree prize (2020).
OLGA RUIZ RODRIGUEZ
Doctoral student in the Educational Psychology and Educational Sciences Program at the University of León. Her research focuses on Key Competencies within the framework of guidance and tutoring. She received the Extraordinary End-of-Degree Award in Psychopedagogy (UPSA, 2013) and the Master's Degree in Research in Psychology and Educational Sciences (ULE, 2022). She has worked as a teacher in Early Childhood and Primary Education and is currently a counselor in the León 1 Educational Guidance Team.
DAYSI JEANS GUEVARA
Doctoral student in the Educational Psychology and Educational Sciences Program at the University of León, with a prominent research focus on school bullying. She has played a significant role as a Specialist in School Coexistence, contributing to the educational field and holding management positions in both educational and healthcare institutions.
LIZA CATALINA ARCE
Doctoral student in the Educational Psychology and Educational Sciences Program at the University of León. Her research focuses on student well-being in undergraduate program accreditations in Paraguay. She was included in the Honor Roll for academic merit in the Psychology program (UNE, Paraguay, 2019), was the top graduate in the Specialization in Clinical Psychology (UNE, Paraguay, 2022), and received the Extraordinary End-of-Master's Award in Research in Psychology and Educational Sciences (ULE, 2023).
Lidia Ana Pérez Sánchez
PhD student in the Educational Psychology and Education Sciences program at the University of León. Graduated in Primary Education with a specialization in Inclusive Schooling and Attention to Diversity (2022). Her main research focus is on grade repetition in Compulsory Secondary Education
MARÍA ÁLVAREZ
PhD student of the Educational Psychology and Educational Sciences program at the University of León. Her main lines of research focus on Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and the university guidance. She is enjoying a predoctoral contract from the Junta de Castilla y León.
AINHOA MARTÍNEZ
PhD student in the Educational Psychology and Educational Sciences programme at the University of León. She has an extraordinary end of master's degree award for the 2020-2021 academic year. Her main line of research focuses on emotional intelligence and its relationship with the academic and employment success of university students and graduates. She is currently enjoying a pre-doctoral contract as part of the University of León's own research programme.
LUCIA BAYON RODRIGUEZ
Doctoral student in the Educational Psychology and Educational Sciences program at the University of León. Her primary research focus is on school coexistence in teacher training. She received the Extraordinary End-of-Degree Award for her Bachelor's degree in Early Childhood Education (2016). Currently, she teaches at Camilo José Cela Universit
Maria pia jofre valenzuela
Doctoral student in Educational Psychology and Educational Sciences at the University of León. Her research focuses on the employability of non-traditional students from evening and online programs. She is a Public Accountant and Auditor from the University of Talca, Chile, and holds a Master's degree in Higher Education from the University of Barcelona. Currently, she works at the University of San Sebastián in Chile in the Vice-Rectorate for Quality Assurance, coordinating self-evaluation processes for undergraduate programs for accreditation and certification. She is also a member of the evaluator registry of the National Accreditation Commission of Chile and teaches in the Faculty of Economics and Government at the same university.