Notes on Economy and Society Vol. Núm. 2 (2), July - december 2021 ISSN: 2709 - 7005
THE CHALLENGES OF TRAINING IN RESEARCH:
A LOOK FROM UNAN-LEÓN
Editorial
In general terms, focusing on the training and research processes at UNAN León leads to a retrospective look at the
practices of those who have done research. In this sense, it is revealed that research is an element that is being
strengthened especially in the Faculty of Economic and Business Administration in recent years and promoted by the
Dean, with the creation of the Unit of Economic and Social Studies UEES and the Journal "Notes on Economy and
Society”. Based on this experience, this substantive function of education has been strengthened, although some aspects
are still worth highlighting to continue with the permanent process of development:
• Young staff in the process of research training.
• Recent creation of a new institutional regulation at the University, which promotes research. The previous existing
regulations were incomplete.
• Increase of the resources for research.
It is important to mention that over the years, the institution has taken the challenge of dealing mainly with these aspects;
as well as, strengthening all the existing procedure in research, in which we can mention:
• Updating the regulations and developing plans related to research, which suggest precise actions for
improvement to become one of the most important universities in the country. For example, the "Institutional
Development Plan 2020-2024" (UNAN, 2020) includes actions such as training teachers in research
methodologies, developing scientific projects, focusing the research on the society, improving the installed
capacity, creating scientific journals in all faculties, publishing in indexed journals, creating research center,
among others.
• In this year 2021, the "Research Policy of UNAN León" and the "Research Regulation" have been created.
In addition to the aforementioned, the University reaffirms its commitment to strengthening research, accepting firmly
the following challenges:
• Make sure that more teachers are part of the research processes.
• Promote research about Poverty Reduction Strategy in Nicaragua and other regional strategies.
• Promote research about public and private entities and science issues (Double and triple helix projects).
• Strengthen existing research platforms and structures.
• Continuous training to teachers in research topics.
• Increase the scientific production with Teaching-Learning processes.
Prof. Ph.D Benjamín Barón Velandia, Corporación Universitaria Minuto de Dios, Colombia,
bbaron@uniminuto.edu, https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4968-6336
M.Sc. Yader Alberto Avilés Peralta, Facultad de Ciencias Económicas y Empresariales
Universidad Nacional Autónoma de Nicaragua, León, Nicaragua
yader.peralta@ce.unanleon.edu.ni, https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0695-6743
DOI: https://doi.org/10.5377/aes.v2i2.12538.
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Notes on Economy and Society Vol. Núm. 2 (2), July - december 2021 ISSN: 2709 - 7005
On the other hand, continuing with the research training, it can be said that UNAN León from its "Institutional Development
Plan 2020-2024" states that "Research is a process for the generation and transfer of knowledge in the search for solutions to
problems that limit the development of the country and the Central American region through the planning and execution of
activities”. For this reason, it is implemented through the following statutes:
Statutes of UNAN León:
Art. 6. Purposes of the University:
7. Promote research as a learning strategy, for the generation of useful knowledge in the institutional development and the
resolution of social, national and regional problems (UNAN, 2007). With which it is intended to facilitate the relation
systems that the University has with society in favor of a better living condition of the communities with which it is
connected.
Art. 7. Objectives of the University:
2. Contribute to the development of the society, generating knowledge, through the promotion and strengthening of
research in its various forms.
3. Develop an effective communication system that allows permanent connection with civil society, the business sector
and the State.
13. Take advantage of new scenarios and opportunities to innovate and transfer knowledge and technologies at the service
of the country's socio-economic development.
14. Collaborate with state and private institutions in the study and solution of social, national and regional problems
Also, UNAN makes a permanent institutional commitment of mandatory nature and recognizes that research is essential to
achieve the Mission of the University. There are research training programs with an emphasis on research methodologies and
scientific writing processes. The execution is monitored by the Vice-rector for Research, Innovation and Entrepreneurship
(VRIEE). Additionally, there are "Research Committees" in each Faculty made up of professors with experience in research.
This has allowed the University to position itself and enter into dialogues with other universities with long research trajectories.
Research training is a permanent pillar of the University's activities and one of the areas that it has been improving the best.
These research training programs have been strategic aspects in the transformation of the University, and in recent years the
consolidation process has advanced to a great extent, as a result of the great efforts that the directives and authorities have made
in terms of resources, which of course will never be sufficient for scientific production activities (Avilés Peralta, Y., Tercero
Lola, L., Mayorga, D., & Altamirano Centeno, B., 2020).
For the growth of UNAN León, it has been essential to work on research processes from the foundation to understand the
dynamics of knowledge generation in the following way:
Promoting calls for research projects to generate niches for the training of researchers; Production of knowledge for the
elaboration of scientific articles to be proposed to high-impact scientific journals; Prepare presentations to be given in national
and international events; in summary, build a community of interlearning science (Baron, B., Cancino, J., Guativa, A. & Garcia,
D. (2011)).
In addition, the university has been creating institutional spaces for the construction of scenarios of scientific dissemination, so
the advances and results of research can be presented as processes of social appropriation of knowledge, such as:
• The "Congress of Scientific Research" that promotes presentations of research projects organized at the University.
• “The University Day of Scientific Development JUDC", an event in which students and teachers participate with
research conducted at undergraduate level, in the different curricular components.
With these events, the University aims to show the development of the competencies formed both in students, at undergraduate
and postgraduate levels, as in professors, showing the different trajectories of the research practices, so as not to generalize
with asymmetric relations, and lead to diverse understandings of the professional training in research (Velandia, B., Rojas,
C.A., & Alonso, F.Y. (2021).
UNAN León is among the first universities that publish the most at the national level, leading in the field of health. Some
publications in journals of different topics such as:
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- Notes on Economy and Society Journal.
- Iberoamerican Journal of Bioeconomy and Climate Change.
- Journal of the Faculty of Law and Social Sciences
- Universitas Journal
- General Archive Journal of UNAN-León- ARCHIVALÍA
To conclude, it is vitally important to highlight that the University created an incentive policy for researchers to publish
scientific articles in high-impact indexed journals and participate in prestigious scientific events that ensure the positioning of
UNAN in national, regional and international contexts.
Reference
Avilés Peralta, Y., Tercero Lola, L., Mayorga, D., & Altamirano Centeno, B. (2020). Capacidad de innovación sectorial y las
interrelaciones entre los sectores de la economía en el municipio de León. Revista Científica "Apuntes De Economía
Y Sociedad”; 1(2), 1-10. https://doi.org/10.5377/aes.v1i2.11442.
Barón, B., Cancino, J., Guativa, A. & García, D. (2011). La comunicación verbal en la escuela: más allá de las palabras. Una
muestra de la actividad desarrollada por maestros formados en investigación. En Colombia, Actualidades pedagógicas
No. 57, (pp. 87-118). Publicaciones Universidad De La Salle.
UNAN (2007) La Gaceta Universitaria. Diario oficial de la Universidad Nacional Autónoma de Nicaragua, LEÓN
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ZZ143OK8Q-_calGE4cbUsHsqCcz6To9F/view
UNAN (2020) Plan de Desarrollo Institucional 2020-2024
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0Bzn1TxJq1gDFRmx5ZllLcXUtYlk/view?resourcekey=0-
kVhdMSO5otH6Gntfn3ysJQ
Velandia, B., Rojas, C. A., & Alonso, F. Y. (2021). Aplicación del método praxeológico en el proceso de formación
professional. Revista Insignare Scientia - RIS, 4(5), 257-272. https://doi.org/10.36661/2595-4520.2021v4i5.12569
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