Who inspired you to become a teacher?

Since my last year of my degree program , it was clear to me that I wanted to do my doctoral thesis . I talked to my professor of Deontology and Pharmaceutical Law because I wanted to specialize in Bioethics. But that year he was diagnosed with cancer and died shortly after. 

I then approached Professor Miguel Ángel Martínez, who was moving to the University, and asked him if he saw the possibility of doing my doctoral thesis with him. And that is how I came to Pamplona and started my academic life in the department of Preventive Medicine.

What do you like most about being a teacher?

When you have contact with a student who thanks you for a class, who is interested in the subject you are teaching, who comes to your office or writes you an email, this stimulates you a lot to continue teaching. Perhaps, in master classes you lose the direct contact with the student, it can be difficult to encourage discussion, you have little time and you have to stick to the subject. 

But what excites me the most is the direct interaction with students, at Degree, Master's Degree and doctorate level. The advice, solving a specific question, involving students in a project or directing TFGs is what motivates me the most. The good thing about this work is that you get what you give. 

After more than 25 years of class, I still feel some nervousness in every class, because I think it is a great responsibility to use well the time of so many students. But that nervousness passes when you have given the class and the students approach. That's when you feel comforted.

What message would you give to the teachers of the future?

The academic degree program has phases. At the beginning, you train and learn from others, but there comes a time when you have to become the leader; you can no longer be the wagon of another senior professor, but you have to become the locomotive. The responsibility falls on you to generate new ideas, new projects and to pull new people. 

Therein lies the illusion, in thinking that this profession has to be based on the desire to generate a social good, to find answers to questions that we do not know today. Therefore, it is also a responsibility that needs to be assumed. On a day-to-day basis, one does very small things, but one can always remember the broader view and transmit it to those who are closest to us.

Do not be afraid of mistakes, as they are part of the process to succeed. We learn from our mistakes and they help us to improve. We must learn to ask for forgiveness, be grateful for the work of others and know how to work as a team.

How do you try to inspire your students?

I try to convey that they are the protagonists of the future. The Genetics and Engineering Genetics courses I teach allow me to talk about wonder. I always say to them: "Do you realize how well we are made? How incredible our genome is? That sense of wonder, so necessary in the society we live in, seems essential to me and is a way to inspire them.

What are the attractions of teaching and research that you transmit to your students?

I like both facets. Since I was a child, I have been interested in knowing why things happen. And as scientists, I think we have to tell what we are discovering. In the academic degree program , teaching and research come together and complement each other.

What does research contribute to your teaching? Is research necessary to be a good teacher?

teaching brings to my research the possibility of teaching new discoveries that, even if you have not necessarily researched them yourself, acquire new points of view when you have to present them in the classroom. 

From the teaching point of view, research brings me many things. On the one hand, I know how hard it is to get to the results, to the finding that we have to explain. It also makes me keep up to date with what is necessary to research and current topics, because these are tasks that help students understand the importance of what I teach them and what they are learning.

What do you think the academic degree program should look like in the coming years?

teaching and research must continue to go hand in hand: one cannot be understood without the other. That is the goal of a true university. Academic life is changing a lot, as it already did with the arrival of the internet and, now with AI, it is going to be an equal revolution. 

One of the aspects that I believe must be present is calmness. Both in teaching and in research we need calm to be able to think, research well and teach better. Today's society, characterized by extreme speed, does not fit in with this. A university student is a calm person.

Who inspired you in the academic degree program ?

When I started my Degree program, it never crossed my mind to dedicate myself to this. During the degree program I had several professors who took the time to spend time with me and raised this possibility, and they were the ones who inspired me. The first was my advisor, Antonio Pelaez. Javier Irastorza also had a great influence on me, who suggested the possibility of dedicating myself to academic life. And the person who materialized this was the then Dean, Luis Ravina. He drew up a concrete plan for me to do my thesis , carry out an overseas study period and join the School to reinforce my research and teaching in English.  

What do you like most about teaching?

If you have an intellectual concern, the academic degree program allows you to solve it. Part of this profession is to study, to ask yourself some questions that, if you were entrance, you might not have asked yourself, and to review the work of other colleagues. All this is reflected in research, but also in teaching. 

I have taught a wide variety of subjects at the School. Many are close to my research interests and my field of study, but there are others that are not. This is a challenge, because you have to prepare yourself, research and study how certain problems arise in other fields. Everything enriches, and I enjoy this restlessness. 

How do you try to inspire your students?

Doing things with passion and conviction. I like what I do and teaching with passion is my financial aid. I think the students feel it.

What are the attractions of teaching and research that you transmit to your students?

Each subject has its own thing. I guess it's not the same explaining Administrative Law as Algebra, so I think it has a lot to do with the subject you teach. 

In the case of Law, it is a science that talks about people and society, and the way in which we relate to each other and resolve conflicts. Administrative Law, in particular, speaks of power, of organized power and of who governs, decides, commands and provides services and functions.

This subject is in direct connection with what happens around us every day. It is a challenge for me that students discover how this power can and must function in a context of submission to the law and respect for democratic rules. I would like to think that I collaborate in the training of professionals and responsible citizens for the future. 

What does research contribute to your teaching? Is research necessary to be a good teacher?

teaching and research are inextricably linked and feed each other. A well-founded teaching requires a wealth of knowledge of your subject that can only be accumulated with serious and deep research , maintained throughout your academic life. It makes you wise, although in no subject can you give up. If we do not nourish our knowledge permanently, we cannot offer a teaching at the level of what is required of us.

And, in turn, by re-explaining lessons you know from report, you suddenly discover a new aspect you might not have thought of before; or, even better, a student asks you a question and leads you to see that question with new eyes. This has happened to me at times and it's awesome, because you realize that we are learning together.

Who inspired you to become a teacher?

When I started my diploma program in Nursing, I was assigned María Jesús Narvaiza, an extraordinary professor , as my advisor. Her example inspired me little by little, although at that time my main interest was in the clinical setting: it was very clear to me that I wanted to work as a nurse in the Clinic.

In 1996, the director of the School of Nursing, Rosario Serrano, proposed me to do my thesis . At that time, nurses could not access the doctorate, since our degree program was a diploma program, but I had previously studied Philosophy and Letters at the University of Oviedo. This circumstance, together with Charo's encouragement, opened the door to the academic world for me.

I remember that it was not easy to find a professor who would agree to supervise the thesis of a nurse. Charo accompanied me on that path and told me about Miguel Ángel Martínez-González, who had just arrived from Granada, and who took on the challenge. He, María Jesús and Charo have been my teachers and I will never stop thanking them for their inspiration.

What do you like most about being a teacher?

It may sound cliché, but what I like most is to see students participating in class, asking questions and connecting with what I teach them. I am especially excited when, over time, someone writes to thank me for what they learned in my subject, or tells me that one of my classes helped them decide on a specialization program or reorient their degree program.

Being a teacher allows me to keep learning from everything and everyone: I consider myself an eternal learner. This work constantly challenges me to keep up to date, to improve. And, above all, it gives me the opportunity to bring the love of care not only to the students, but also, in a way, to the whole society.

What message would you give to the teachers of the future?

The first thing I would tell them is to be humble and authentic, and not to be afraid to be human, vulnerable and approachable. They should always be eager to learn and teach new things, and never lose the link between their discipline and society. I would encourage them not to distance themselves from the internship or from reality, to listen to their students, to be attentive to changes in society, and to let experience, community and links nurture their teaching and research. 

Also, they should not lose sight of the deep meaning of what we do: we are training people who will one day take care of others. We do not only teach content, but we also teach a way of looking, of being present, of accompanying. I always tell my students that the role of the teacher with a student is very similar to that of the nurse with the caregiver: to accompany, to be present, to listen, to make them grow. And when that happens, the relationship that is created is an intangible asset of great value.

How do you inspire your students?

I try to transmit what I think is essential for their training. The mission statement of a teacher is to transmit knowledge: this cannot change, but the way to do it, starting from one's own experience, linking it to the internship and to current events, although it is not always easy to achieve. 

On the other hand, I try to help my students. Only if they have or acquire the necessary skills will they be able to understand a subject and enjoy learning it. When the student is motivated with a subject it is because they have the tools that the teacher has given them to be able to study and enjoy it. During the first course I meet at least twice with everyone to discuss the assignments and the midterm examination, and to try to explain to them how to improve. This is what my teacher, Professor Emilio Redondo, did with me. And, in the fifth year, I discover that many come on their own.

What should the academic degree program of the future look like?

The identity of the professor in today's university is in crisis because many tasks are required of them: teaching, research and management have been joined by bureaucracy and promotion. We have to find a balance: if success and recognition depend on publications and accreditations, we will think less of the students and will find it harder to serve the university.

What does research contribute to your teaching? Is research necessary to be a good teacher?

I believe that, in today's university, research has little to do with teaching, because it is highly specialized. It is not enough to know a lot to teach. Teaching those who do not know and correcting those who make mistakes is another matter. However, knowing your discipline in depth is essential to give good classes. With all this background, you can organize your classes well. 

It is necessary to teach the fundamentals of each subject and, therefore, to have a broad knowledge of it, which is acquired by studying. It seems to me that this is even more important in the humanistic disciplines. Also because the main thing is to help students to think, to initiate them in the habits and intellectual skills of knowledge, which one must practice regularly.

However, she has always been interested in languages and is now fluent in Spanish, English, Italian and German. When he finished his Degree , he went to the United States to learn English. He also trained in computer science and even traveled to Germany to perfect his language skills. There he spent two years working in the automotive industry, but soon realized that in "this stressful world, where the slightest mistake can mean millions of dollars in losses for the business", there was no place for him. 

"I rethought about where I wanted to direct my professional life and thought about teaching, which I had enjoyed since I was 14, when I started teaching a high school classmate to pay for my camps," Martín explains. He soon decided to study for a Master's Degree to qualify as a faculty and deposited his résumé at the institute of modern languages. "They told me that a colleague of mine was on maternity leave and they needed a replacement. Since then, 20 years have passed.

What or who inspired you to go into academia?

My first contact with the University was in some philosophical conference I attended when I was a COU student. I remember that the lecture was given by Professor Rafael Alvira and had as a degree scroll "Between boredom or death by philosophical insufficiency". That made me reflect on the idea that whoever is bored is because he has nothing in his head, and it is something I always keep in mind. 

That committee has persistently resonated in me and inspired me. When I started class at the Institute, I reaffirmed my vocation and decided to continue my education. I studied a Master's Degree in Language Education at a university in England, which made me learn more about my profession and the discipline I am dedicated to. 

After finishing my Master's Degree I decided to do my thesis to continue my research in the field of Education and the most efficient way of teaching. I defended it in 2021, at Sheffield Hallam University and, since then, I combine teaching English with research at the School Education and Psychology and at the Institute for Culture and Society.

What do you think the professor profession of the future should look like?

I think we have to go back to the essence: what is the point of Education and the figure of the teacher, if there are already applications that allow you to talk to a person in Chinese while you speak Spanish? What is the point of learning a language? I think it's the same as asking: What's the point of practicing good calligraphy if I write on a computer?

I believe that the future does not lie in deciding which technologies to incorporate, but in going back to basics: someone who wants to know and someone who knows how to teach. We must try to make classes attractive so that the student learns, but remembering the essence of this profession.

What do teaching and research bring to your students?

I see them as so connected that it would be impossible for me to understand them separately. I am very lucky because I teaching on subjects that I find very fulfilling and that are closely related to my research topics, which financial aid makes that connection even more powerful.

I think that, when I do research, I nurture my teaching and connect aspects, as well as get tools to enrich my classes with examples. In fact, my way of teaching has changed a lot over the years, and I owe that to research. 

It also allows you to be up to date, to be on the cutting edge, and that has a lot to do with being contact with young university students. You understand their desires, concerns and what's on their minds and in their hearts, and that's the best way to project your teaching into the future. 

What do you like most about being a teacher?

The desire to inspire students, to give them a highway for them to walk and think for themselves. We teachers give them guidelines and the space to walk, but they do it freely. This seems to me very important to keep in mind for today's generations.

I really like it when, in class, I see that they connect with what I am explaining. That space of closeness, in which the line between teacher and students is blurred, and which allows for an enriching relationship (but in which the roles of each one are still clear), is what I enjoy the most. I learn from my students every day and I really don't know what I would do without them. Creating that space is part of my academic vocation. 

How do you inspire your students?

I believe that at this time it is very important for the teacher to be a channel that offers each student the confidence they need for their critical development . I try to inspire them by telling them: "What a good question you asked in class", "you have a gift, you write very well", or "in the previous discussion you gave such and such a classmate a helping hand, thank you very much". We are living in very uncertain times, with a lot of mistrust, and I believe that a university professor should be a mentor and help foster confidence in each student. 

With students who I perceive that they connect with the academic environment, I try to encourage them to be interns, ask them to help me in small research projects and even ask them to do their thesis . Audiovisual Communication is a degree program very much derived from the internship and it is difficult to bet on academia, but we must encourage those who have this interest.