The general director of publishing house Ariel, José Luis Castillejo, believes that there is a lack of a Spanish publishing house that really starts to produce materials in the field of medicine. "There are some that do translations, but there is also a need for their own materials. At the University of Navarra we have found a binomial of recognized prestige between the School of Medicine and the University Clinic, with professionals who carry out great work. We are going to start with them in the field of medical sciences in which we want to make our debut," he announced.

Castillejo, who visited this Pamplona's campus , anticipated the publication of four expert manuals of the University of Navarra for next February. The general director of Ariel insisted on the validity of the textbook as an essential tool in the university teaching . "New technologies and audiovisual supports capture attention, they can explain a phenomenon, but students are then unable to remember it. In other words, they do not teach. It does not mean that Ariel is not with new technologies because, in many of our publications, we include multimedia material. But we conceive it more as a complement to guide, which is still essential", he pointed out.

In this regard, he differentiated between two categories of books: "On the one hand, the guide of the wise, such as the one being prepared by the University of Navarra professor Luis Mª Gonzalo on Gerontology; and on the other, the guide prepared by teams from work in which younger people are generally involved".

Synthetic books for the new curricula

According to José Luis Castillejo, the textbook is not as highly valued in Spain as in other countries. "In the United States there is not a single prestigious professor who does not have his own guide".

Ariel's general director also referred to the evolution of textbooks. "Now they incorporate more graphics, more illustrations.... And as a result of the change in the plans of programs of study, which has led to a multiplicity of subjects, smaller books are being made. They are less comprehensive and more synthetic," he pointed out, adding that "in the end, this has led to a learning of outlines of outlines. The advantage is that, in less time, one seems to know more. I say seems because, in the long run, you have to fill in the university programs of study with training courses in companies. The major disadvantage is that you understand less because there is less time for reflection.