Indigenous students in Mexico: Seven hypothesis about the learning gap at the primary level

Se realiza una descomposición de la brecha de aprendizajes entre alumnos indígenas y no indígenas mexicanos de sexto grado, con el objetivo de identificar qué factores tienen mayor incidencia para explicarla. Cuatro grandes grupos de factores se contrastan: socioeconómicos del alumno y su familia, recursos escolares, relevancia cultural del modelo educativo y discriminación a nivel escolar e idioma de la prueba. Se estiman modelos de regresión multinivel y descomposiciones Oaxaca-Blinder para los resultados de español y matemáticas. Se desarrollan hipótesis que permiten estimar, indirectamente, los márgenes de incidencia de los dos últimos. Los resultados muestran un predominio de los factores socioeconómicos por sobre los factores escolares; una reducción significativa de las brechas en ambas áreas de conocimiento (55-70%) como consecuencia de estos factores; una mayor proporción explicada en matemáticas que en español; efectos de interacción prácticamente inexistentes entre la modalidad escolar y la condición étnica del alumno. Las explicaciones que enfatizan la marginación socioeconómica de los indígenas se fortalecen frente a las que destacan el papel de los recursos escolares, la irrelevancia del modelo educativo o la discriminación. Una menor proporción de brechas no explicadas en matemáticas fortalece una hipótesis alternativa, más parsimoniosa: parte importante de la brecha depende del hecho de que los alumnos indígenas no son evaluados en su primera lenguaA decomposition of the learning gap between indigenous and non-indigenous 6th grade Mexican students is carried out, in order to identify which factors, explain it. Four groups of factors are contrasted: socioeconomic (student and his/her family), school resources, cultural relevance of the educational model and discrimination at the school level, and test language. Multi-level regression models and Oaxaca-Blinder decompositions are estimated for Spanish and Mathematics results. Hypotheses are developed in order to allow indirect estimation of the incidence of the last two. The results show greater effects of socioeconomic factors than school factors; a significant reduction of the gaps in both knowledge areas (55-70%) as a consequence of these factors; A greater proportion of the gap explained in mathematics than in Spanish; practically nonexistent interaction effects between school type and the student’s ethnic condition. Explanations that emphasize the relevance of the socioeconomic marginalization of indigenous students are strengthened, against the role of school resources, the irrelevance of the educational model or discrimination mechanisms. A lower proportion of unexplained gaps in mathematics strengthens an alternative, more parsimonious hypothesis: a significant part of the gap derives from the fact that indigenous students are not evaluated in their first languag

Energy teacher: Camilo José Cela in Francisco Umbral

La amistad entre Francisco Umbral (FU) y Camilo José Cela (CJC) se fraguó en torno a 1975 y se mantuvo inquebrantable hasta la muerte de este último en 2002. CJC fue primero un nombre mítico para FU, quien descubrió sus novelas en la adolescencia y valoró siempre su estilo y producción literaria. Más tarde el escritor gallego se convertiría en amigo, confidente y valedor del madrileño ante editoriales, premios y academias. Quizá por ello FU lo convirtió en un habitual de sus textos, como hizo con otros personajes famosos. A través de las innumerables citas del escritor gallego rastreables en las entrevistas y los libros de memorias de FU, es posible trazar una figura doble del Premio Nobel: el retrato personal, mundano, del escritor de fama mundial y el análisis biográfico de las claves de la prosa y la novela del premio Nobel, con un quiebro final que desdice parte importante de lo dicho anteriormenteFrancisco Umbral (FU) and Camilo José Cela (CJC) became friends around 1975, and their friendship remained unbreakable until the demise of the latter in 2002. CJC was at first a mythical name for FU, who discovered his novels during his adolescence and always valued his style and literary production. Later, CJC would become a friend, confidant and defender of FU facing publishing houses, awards and academies. Maybe that is the reason why Umbral made him a regular character in his texts, as he did with other celebrities/ well-known people. Through CJC’s countless quotes, traceable in FU's interviews and memoirs, a double figure of the Noble Prize winner can be outlined: a mundane, personal portrait of the worldwide known writer and a biographical analysis of the essential components of his prose and novels, with a substantial change at the end of his writings, which is out of keeping of the honesty of FU’s former Works sincerit

Financial stability and macroprudential policy: A structural model evaluation of an emerging economy

We build a small structural open economy model, augmented to depict the credit market and interest rate spreads (distinguishing by credit to firms and families); monetary policy with sterilized intervention in the foreign exchange market; and macroprudential policy as capital requirements. We estimate the model using Bayesian techniques with quarterly data for Argentina in 2003-2011; it can be extended to other emerging economies, allowing for comparative empirical analysis. Results indicate that shocks to lending rates and spread weigh on macroeconomic variables; likewise, the credit market is affected by macroeconomic shocks. Capital requirements, beyond their strictly prudential role, appear to have contributed to lower volatility of key variables such as output, prices, credit and interest rates. The interaction of monetary policy, foreign exchange intervention and prudential tools appears to be synergic: counting on a larger set of tools helps dampen volatility of both macroeconomic and financial system variables, taking into account the type of shocks faced during the estimation period

Para las fuentes de Rubén Darío (con una nota sobre «Lo fatal»)

Sin resume

Machabelo y Maquiavelo: la patraña XX de «El patrañuelo» (1567), de Timoneda

This paper examines the possibility that, when it comes to baptise the character of the patraña XX as Machabelo, Timoneda had in mind the Florentine writer Machiavelli. In order to do this, we first review the question about Timoneda and his sources, especially those of the patraña XX. After that, we will focus on the dissemination of Machiavelli’s Works in the Spanish Golden Age, as well as the graphic transcription of his name in other texts of that time, data which will be used to assess the possibility that the patraña Machabelo has something to do with Machiavelli. On the assumption that this relationship exists, we will analyse the consequences for the interpretation of the patraña and El patrañuelo in general, especially in relation to dissimulation and appearance.Este trabajo examina la posibilidad de que, a la hora de bautizar como Machabelo al personaje de la patraña XX, Timoneda tuviera en mente al escritor florentino Maquiavelo. Para ello, repasamos en primer lugar el estado de la cuestión sobre Timoneda y sus fuentes, especialmente las de la patraña XX. Tras ello se recuerda la difusión de la obra de Maquiavelo en la España áurea, así como la transcripción gráfica de su nombre en otros textos del momento, datos que sirven para evaluar la probabilidad de que el Machabelo de la patraña tenga algo que ver con Maquiavelo. Partiendo de la hipótesis de que la relación existe, se examinan las consecuencias para la interpretación de la patraña XX y de El patrañuelo en general, especialmente en lo que atañe a la disimulación y la apariencia