On the article "Pedagogical training for teaching students: a need indeed in the Dentistry degree"
LETTER TO THE EDITOR

 

On the article "Pedagogical training for teaching students: a need indeed in the Dentistry degree"

A propósito del artículo "Capacitación pedagógica de alumnos ayudantes: una necesidad sentida en la carrera de Estomatología

 

Luis Ernesto Ruiz-Rodríguez1 https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4870-7307
Jesús Ignacio Medina-Morales1* https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8358-7569
Luisdanys Campillo Marrero1 https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2309-1908

 

1 Villa Clara University of Medical Sciences. Dentistry Faculty. Cuba.

 

* Author for correspondence. Email: jesusmm@edu.vcl.sld.cu

 

 

Submitted: 09/07/2019
Accepted: 17/03/2020

 

 

Dear editor:

We read with great interest the article published by Cabrera-Chaviano, Rivas-Corría, Casanova-García in the EDUMECENTRO Journal with the title: "Pedagogical training of teaching students: a need indeed in the dentistry degree".(1) This topic is of singular importance because the training of teaching students require a pedagogical process for knowledge teaching, at the same time it perfects the comprehensive preparation of the future professional who works in the national health system, which is a concern in the contemporary world, since respect for the right to health of every citizen depends on it.(2)

The authors feel motivated towards this subject and wish to make a call to the tutors and tutored of the dentistry of the aforementioned university because the professional experience of highly qualified teachers and the interest of the student are the key for them to make come true The results of the movement of teaching students, whose researching skills sometimes do not correspond to the needs in scientific matters.

The "Frank País García" teaching student movement arose at the time that university students took on the task to face the growing needs of teaching in Cuba, as a consequence of the massive exodus of teachers during the 1960s.(3)

Villa Clara University of Medical Sciences has been characterized by the presence of a solid student scientific movement whose main results have determined that it holds, for the sixth consecutive year, the first place in the scientific emulation of the National Student Scientific Forum (FCEN);(4) however; In the opinion of these authors, the results in the movement of teaching students of the faculty are far from satisfying the current demands since perfection in its direction and organization is required to achieve the established objectives. For this, activities must be carried out that contribute to the interest and motivation of students for their work, specifically in the field of medical education, conceived as one of the fundamental pillars since the beginning of the aforementioned movement.

It is a fact that in the aforementioned institution there is a need to improve the quality and participation of students in scientific research because there is a criterion that places research as: "… the highest expression of the ability that the student must master in any of the types of educational processes...",(5) hence the student scientific activity is a determining factor in the scientific-technical and comprehensive training of students.

It is appropriate to take as a reference the "Arnaldo Milián Castro" University Surgical Provincial Hospital, located in Santa Clara, Villa Clara, the teaching scene of this university. In this institution, a basic course in research methodology is taught annually, aimed at members of the teaching student movement, but with access for all interested parties. It enables the consolidation of the knowledge acquired in the Research Methodology and Biostatistics subject and guarantees that the student begins to investigate with better methodological tools.(6)

The proposal of a space where scientific and pedagogical knowledge is updated is a continuous demand of students in the different spaces where the science production is debated; in them needs have been identified to update student research in scientific matters, emphasizing the important futuristic role of young science.

Although it´s verified at present the existence of various strategies for the formation of researching skills in students, synergistically raising the quality of public health, it is necessary to constantly improve actions in the field of scientific education, taking into account the continuous and complex dynamics of 21st century science, and that the training of our professionals is increasingly inclined towards the purpose of research as a fundamental learning method to be applied in universities;(7) therefore, it is necessary to create spaces for the training of young researchers committed to maintaining the prestige achieved by the national health system.

Currently Villa Clara University of Medical Sciences occupies the fifth position in terms of the distribution of articles with student participation in the universities of medical sciences of Cuba, according to research by González-Argote et al.(8) where it is evidenced that only 65 y students from all over the country appear as collaborators in scientific production, from which it is inferred that the scientific-pedagogical training of teaching students is a need indeed throughout the island, therefore at this time the words of Castro Ruz(9) should be taken as a paradigm when he expressed: "If each one does what is his / her responsibility, the task will be invincible."

 

Acknowledgement

To profesor María Elena Cobas for her professionalism and love for science.

 

BIBLIOGRAPHIC REFERENCES

1. Cabrera-Chaviano L, Rivas-Corría B, Casanova-García C. Capacitación pedagógica de alumnos ayudantes: una necesidad sentida en la carrera de Estomatología. EDUMECENTRO [Internet]. 2018 [citado 25/04/2018];10(4):[aprox. 13 p.]. Disponible en: http://scielo.sld.cu/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S2077-28742018000400010&lng=es&nrm=iso&tlng=es

2. Ruiz Hernández JR. Cuba, Revolución social y salud pública (1958-1989). La Habana: Editorial Ciencias Médicas; 2008.

3. Medina-Morales JI. Alumnos ayudantes: futuros cuadros cientíûcos-pedagógicos y de especialistas en Cuba. Educ Med [Internet]. 2017 [citado 25/04/2018];19(1):[aprox. 3 p.]. Disponible en: https://www.elsevier.es/es-revista-educacion-medica-71-articulo-alumnos -ayudantes-futuros-cuadros-cientificos-pedagogicos-S1575181317300554

4. Medina-Morales JI, Ruiz-Rodríguez LE. Universidad de Ciencias Médicas de Villa Clara: referente nacional en la investigación científica estudiantil. 16 de Abril [Internet]. 2018 [citado 25/04/2018];57(270):[aprox. 3 p.]. Disponible en: http://www.rev16deabril.sld.cu/index.php/16_04/article/view/721/pdf_189

5. Rodríguez TM, Rodríguez A, García M. La investigación y su contribución formativa en estudiantes de las ciencias médicas. EDUMECENTRO [Internet]. 2016 [citado 26/04/2018];8(1):[aprox. 12 p.]. Disponible en: http://scielo.sld.cu/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S2077-28742016000100011

6. Hernández Negrín H, Negrín Jurajuria A, Cabrera Bermúdez Y, Zurbano Fernández J, Martínez Neyra X. Movimiento de alumnos ayudantes: experiencia de una institución cubana. Educ Med [Internet]. 2016 [citado 20/12/ 2017];114:[aprox. 5 p.]. Disponible en: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1575181316301450

7. Garcia-Rivero AA, González Argote J. Formas de hacer ciencia. Educ Med [Internet]. 2016 [citado 26/04/2018];18(3):[aprox. 8 p.]. Disponible en: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1575181316300390

8. Gonzalez-Argote J, Garcia-Rivero AA, Dorta-Contreras AJ. Producción científica estudiantil en revistas médicas cubanas 1995-2014. Primera etapa. Inv Educ Med [Internet]. 2016 [citado 26/04/2018];5(19):[aprox. 9 p.]. Disponible en: http://riem.facmed.unam.mx/sites/all/archivos/A5Num19/04_AO_Produccion.pdf

9. Gonzalez-Argote J, García-Rivero AA. No permitamos que mueran los espacios estudiantiles. 16 de Abril [Internet]. 2017 [citado 26/04/2018];56(263):[aprox. 3 p.]. Disponible en: https://www.medigraphic.com/pdfs/abril/abr-2017/abr17263b.pdf

 

 

Declaration of interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interests

 

 

Contribution of the authors

Luis Ernesto Ruiz-Rodríguez: analyzed the bibliography and wrote the article.
Jesús Ignacio Medina-Morales: carried out a careful review and agreed with the final draft.
Luisdanys Campillo Marrero: carried out the bibliographic searchs and agreed with the final draft.

 

 

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