Critical Thinking and Motivation in Vocational Training and Baccalaureate: A Comparison Study of Students of Spanish Nationality, Unaccompanied Foreign Minors and Young Care Leavers.

The present study analyzed academic motivation and its relationship with dispositions towards critical thinking in a sample of 131 students of Spanish nationality and 131 students of foreign nationality (unaccompanied foreign minors and foreign adolescents who had previously experienced the Andalusian care system). For this, an ex-post-facto study was conducted which was descriptive, comparative, and cross-sectional in nature. The main analyses carried out are of a descriptive and inferential nature, the latter to analyze the differences and associations between the variables of critical thinking and motivation (ANOVA test and an structural equations models) in both groups. Main outcomes included the lack of significant differences in dispositions towards critical thinking between Spanish and foreign students, alongside the existence of significant differences in academic motivation between both of these groups. In addition to this, significant differences were found within the group of Spanish nationality students in the dimensions of critical thinking as a function of intrinsic motivation, whilst such differences emerged in the foreign nationality group as a function of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation and amotivation. Finally, within the group of Spanish students, a significant and positive relationship was found between motivation and critical thinking, being positive and non-significant in the foreign national group. In conclusion, it is necessary to improve dispositions towards critical thinking and educational motivation from the educational system for the inclusion of minors and youths in today's society.

Adaptation of the Educational Motivation Scale Into a Short Form With Multigroup Analysis in a Vocational Training and Baccalaureate Setting.

The aim of the present study was to adapt the educational motivation scale into an abbreviated version (EMS-SF), in addition to analyzing its psychometric properties for use with vocational training (VT) and baccalaureate students using structural equations. A cross-sectional and ex post facto study was conducted with a sample of 1,159 students from the autonomous community of Andalusia (Spain). IBM SPSS® and IBM AMOS® software programs were used for data analysis. With regard to the main outcomes, the scale reflected good fit indices in its short form, presenting a more parsimonious and easily understood questionnaire. The questionnaire was reduced from a total of 28-19 items. In the same way, the number of dimensions was reduced from seven to four, facilitating scale understanding and interpretation according to self-determination theory. As a main finding, it was observed that the most relevant items for baccalaureate students pertained to the pleasure derived from discovering things and to overcoming challenges, whereas in VT students, items pertaining to the satisfaction generated from exerting effort, achieving one's best and being well paid were more relevant. In conclusion, findings urge the need to strengthen intrinsic motivation in VT students with the aim of avoiding demotivation and poor academic performance.

Tutorial Action and Emotional Development of Students as Elements of Improved Development and Preventing Problems Related with Coexistence and Social Aspects.

Integral development of students is promoted through tutorial action. Tutorial action is understood as the personal development of students, their learning, and their capabilities for social and labour integration. A descriptive, nonexperimental and ex post facto design was used. The sample consisted of 569 primary school students. The importance of emotional education and student tutoring was highlighted by the results produced. A relationship was established between working on emotions and emotional regulation, cognitive re-evaluation, and capacity to respond in an emotionally appropriate way when faced with different situations.

The Relationship between Emotional Regulation and School Burnout: Structural Equation Model According to Dedication to Tutoring.

School burnout constitutes a current phenomenon which generates diverse negative consequences in the personal and academic lives of students. Given this situation, it is necessary to develop actions that permit us to regulate this harmful mental state and that are administered from within the school context. A descriptive and cross-sectional study is presented that pursues the objective of examining a structural equation model which brings together burnout and emotional regulation. The model assumes that students receive tutoring at school in order to tackle these types of problems. For this, the sample constituted a total of 569 students from the province of Granada (men = 52.3% (n = 298); women = 47.7% (n = 271)). Mean age was reported as 10.39 ± 0.95 years and the School Burnout Inventory (BMI) and the Emotional Regulation Scale were utilized as the principal instruments. As main findings it was observed that students who received one hour of weekly tutoring showed a positive relationship between expressive suppression as a strategy of emotional regulation, cynicism, and exhaustion as consequences of school burnout. In the same way, a direct association existed between burnout-related exhaustion and cognitive repair. Given that significant relationships could not be observed between these variables in students who do not receive tutoring, higher use of emotional regulation was confirmed amongst tutored students when faced with this negative mental state.

Relationship between Leadership and Emotional Intelligence in Teachers in Universities and Other Educational Centres: A Structural Equation Model.

This study uses an explanatory model of the dimensions of leadership and emotional intelligence according to the methods used in particular teaching environments (universities and other educational institutions). The effect of different kinds of leadership on emotional intelligence dimensions is also established using an explanatory model. A total of 954 teachers participated in this cross-sectional study, teaching in 137 different schools/universities. The instruments used for the data collection were the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ-5) and the Trait Meta Mood Scale (TMMS-24). Data analysis was performed with the software IBM AMOS 23.0. (International Business Machines Corporation, Armonk, NY, USA) using multi-group analysis and structural equations. Results showed that the structural equation model had a good fit. Transformational leadership depends mainly on intellectual stimulation in university teachers, whereas intrinsic motivation is more relevant at the lower educational levels. In relation to transactional leadership, contingency reward has a greater regression weight in non-university education, whereas passive leadership is governed more by passive exception in university teachers. There was a positive and direct relationship between levels of emotional intelligence and transformational leadership in non-university teachers, which reveals the need for effective understanding and management of both one's own and students' emotions in order to act effectively as a leader. Transactional leadership was negatively related to some emotional intelligence dimensions, given the relevance of obtaining power in this dimension.

Structural Equations Model (SEM) of a questionnaire on the evaluation of intercultural secondary education classrooms / Modelo de ecuaciones estructurales (SEM) de un cuestionario sobre la evaluación de clases interculturales de educación secundaria

This research includes the design of a questionnaire for evaluating cultural coexistence in secondary education classrooms (Berrocal, Olmedo & Olmos, 2014; Olmedo et al., 2014), as well as the comparison of its psychometric properties in a multicultural population of schools in southern Spain. An attempt is made to create a valid, reliable and useful tool for teachers to measure conflict situations in the classroom, as well as understanding the nature of the conflict from the point of view of all those involved. The metric aspects show a maximized content and construct validity (Muñiz, 2010) using a Structural Equation Model (SEM) and Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) analysis, checking and modifying its model by Wald and Lagrange indicators (Bentler, 2007), to obtain the most adjusted model to the theoretical and goodness criteria.

Esta investigación incluye el diseño de un cuestionario para la evaluación de la coexistencia en las clases de educación secundaria (Berrocal, Olmedo & Olmos, 2014; Olmedo et al., 2014) y la comparación de sus propiedades psicométricas en una población multicultural de centros educativos en el sur de España. Se busca crear un instrumento válido, fiable como instrumento, útil al profesorado para evaluar las situaciones de conflicto en el aula, pero entendiendo la naturaleza del conflicto desde el punto de vista de aquellos que están involucrados en él. Los aspectos métricos muestran una alta validez de contenido y constructo (Muñiz, 2010) empleando un modelo de ecuaciones estructurales (SEM) y un análisis factorial confirmatorio (CFA), para comprobar y modificar su modelo de acuerdo con los indicadores de Wald y Lagrange (Bentler, 2007), para obtener el modelo más ajustado a la teoría y los criterios de bondad.