DYA participated in the 1st Pedagogical Conference on General Basic Education in Ibarra, contributing with a keynote address and workshops on socio-emotional support in the classroom.

From August 19 to 21, 2026, DYA participated in the 1st Pedagogical Conference on General Basic Education: “Challenges and Strategies to Ensure Successful Educational Pathways,” organized by the Ministry of Education, Sports and Culture in Ibarra.

DYA’s participation brought a central reflection to the discussion: closing educational gaps and ensuring successful learning pathways is not simply about catching up on missed content. Building meaningful relationships between teachers and students is essential.

Closing gaps begins with understanding students

On August 19, Juan Samaniego, Executive Director of DYA, delivered the keynote address “Closing Gaps Is Not About Accelerating Content: Understanding Educational Lag to Transform Learning Pathways.”

During his presentation, he highlighted the need to understand educational lag beyond the content a student has not yet learned. Closing gaps does not simply mean moving faster or trying to make up, in less time, for what was missed.

It means understanding each student’s educational pathway, context, and experiences.

In this process, the relationship between teachers and students plays a fundamental role. The connections built in the classroom can make the difference between an educational experience that pushes students away and one that supports them; between a student losing interest and finding reasons to continue learning.

Students do not simply learn a subject. They also learn from the passion, interest, and sense of purpose that teachers are able to convey through what they teach.

Teachers as a bridge

The keynote address also invited participants to see teachers as a fundamental bridge between public policy, regulations and curricula, and what ultimately happens in the classroom.

Educational policies can establish goals, guidelines and content, but the way these reach each student’s real experience is shaped by educational practices and the relationships built every day at school.

This raises important questions: How is this bridge built? What do teachers need to translate educational policies into meaningful experiences? How can schools create environments that respond to the diverse realities of their students?

Socio-emotional support: an essential part of the educational experience

The “Socio-Emotional Support in the Classroom” workshops were led by Álvaro Muriel, DYA Project Coordinator, and Nancy Torres, DYA Education Specialist, and brought together four different groups of teachers on August 19 and 20.

Through an exchange of experiences, participants reflected on questions such as:

  • What did we discover about managing socio-emotional support in practice?
  • What regulatory, institutional or time-related barriers limit effective support?
  • What concrete practices can be implemented in classrooms and educational institutions to strengthen students’ educational pathways?

The workshops provided an opportunity for teachers to share experiences, challenges and strategies developed through their daily practice.

An education that supports

DYA’s participation in this event reaffirmed a conviction built through its experience: successful educational pathways depend not only on the content that is taught, but also on the ability of schools to support the people who are learning.

Closing gaps requires relevant methodologies and responses adapted to different contexts, but also relationships of trust, spaces for listening, and teachers who can connect learning with their students’ lives and aspirations.

Ultimately, when a student finds a teacher who recognizes them, listens to them and believes in their potential, education can become a genuine opportunity to transform their educational pathway.