| Categories |
Features |
Interpretation |
| Daily and contextual knowledge |
Those are defined as experiences and knowledge proper to a community that students handle in the classroom. |
In both institutions, it is possible to observe a very proper and specific knowledge on which teachers sometimes must lean on because it is observed that young people from the Venezuelan school have knowledge on certain aspects such as medicinal plants, while young people from the Colombian institution do not know such subjects. Likewise, it is observed that students have a limited access to technology at school, while the students from a Colombian institution do have a better access to technology. That is translated into quotidian knowledge on which the teacher sometimes must lean on |
| Pedagogical fact |
A moment that starts in the educational process at planning, followed by didactic stages (start, development and closure), and ends with the assessment |
Through a comparison, it was observed that teachers from the Venezuelan institution rarely count on teaching resources, didactic material and technological material (despite the presence of laptops that are currently outdated and have no Internet access). On the other hand, teachers from the Colombian institution do have both materials and resources; for example: teachers benefit of video beams and high-end computers. |
| Curricular models. |
Those are defined as the official framework on which the teacher is guided to administrate daily class activities. |
In this category, it was possible to prove that there is a similarity in the pedagogical models. In both nations, work is carried out by means of project-based planning and constructivism arises as a teaching theory, which indicates that there is similarity in the teaching processes. |
| Cultural heritage |
Every community and institution possess distinct cultures, above all in different countries. |
Considering culture, there is a quite wide distance between beliefs and behaviors. Venezuelan young people are very restricted nowadays; only what they watch on TV can make them culturally change. In addition, those who can be abroad come back and bring new styles, which is occasionally translated into misbehavior, and even promote inappropriate social development conducts, such as: teenage pregnancy, alcoholism, prostitution and drug addiction.On the contrary, Colombian students are linked to many aspects of educative life and the institution is responsible of guiding them to tackle cultural dangers that might emerge. As well, it was stated that these students are less vulnerable than the Venezuelan ones. |
| Lifestyles |
Lifestyles include how people live at home, the way they dress, act and perform in society. |
Considering this category, it was possible to prove that lifestyles also influence the way students behave in society and their academic performance. It was also possible to discover that the older Venezuelan teenage students do not want to study as they are always struggling to survive by working in the informal economy; this has caused classrooms to be empty. Such a situation is also evidenced in Venezuelan universities.On the other hand, Colombian students do not quit and skip classes; they are always thinking of being trained to get a decent job. |
| Expert’s contribution:It is important to indicate that there is currently a strong discrepancy between what one must be and what is currently contemplated. In the case of Venezuela, it is observed with concern that institutions are running out of students, who are seeking to survive and maintain themselves. Consequently, they are never concerned on studying and on having a good academic record. In addition, those students are highly focused on leaving their country. Meanwhile, Colombian students are not thinking of migrating nor surviving. |
