Document is current

Article History

Received: 13 August 2024

Accepted: 18 November 2025

First Online: 6 December 2025

Competing interests

: The authors declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

: This study was conducted as part of the research project “Social representations regarding hegemonic educational theories and models in higher education” (PAPIIT IN402322), approved on October 15, 2021, by the Dirección General de Asuntos del Personal Académico (DGAPA) of the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM). The project approval included academic, regulatory, and ethical oversight in accordance with UNAM’s institutional policies and the principles of the Declaration of Helsinki. Its scope covered the entire project period (2022–2024), encompassing all data collection and analysis procedures, as well as the dissemination of results through academic publications. To further reinforce institutional ethical compliance, an additional endorsement was obtained from the Ethics Commission (Comisión de Ética) of the Faculty of Higher Studies Iztacala (FES Iztacala, UNAM) on October 2, 2025 (Approval ID: CE/FESI/102025/2012). This endorsement formally confirmed that the research procedures and consent processes adhered to all applicable ethical standards.

: Informed consent was obtained from all participants in this study. The process differed between the pedagogical assistants who only completed the questionnaire, those who were also interviewed, and the expert academics. • Consent from Pedagogical Assistants (Questionnaire) - Written consent was obtained in person during a session held at EPITECH’s Paris campus in July 2022, prior to the administration of the questionnaire. The consent process was administered by the principal investigator, Elí Orlando Lozano González, with support from co-investigator Nefeli Paparisteidi. Consent was obtained from all 42 pedagogical assistants who participated in the questionnaire. This initial consent covered: Participation in the questionnaire, use of anonymized data for academic research and publication. Participants were assured of their anonymity and informed about the study’s objectives and data usage. • Consent from Pedagogical Assistants (Interviews) - A second, separate written consent was obtained in person from the 7 pedagogical assistants who participated in the interviews, prior to the start of the interview session in July 2022. The principal investigator obtained this additional consent, with support from co-investigator Nefeli Paparisteidi. Consent was obtained from the subset of 7 assistants who were interviewed. This second consent specifically covered: Participation in a semi-structured interview, audio recording of the interview and the use of the anonymized transcript and anonymous quotations for publication. • Consent from Expert Academics - Initial consent for participation and recording: Oral consent was obtained from the three experts (Muriel Epstein, François Taddei, and Laurent Tessier) immediately before the start of the interviews in July 2022. This approach was chosen to maintain a natural conversational flow while ensuring ethical compliance. Consent for publication: After the interviews were transcribed, the full transcripts were sent to each expert via email in February 2023 for their review. Explicit written consent for the non-anonymous publication of their transcripts and quotations was obtained at this stage. The principal investigator conducted both consent processes, with support from co-investigator Nefeli Paparisteidi. The consent covered: Participation in a recorded interview (oral consent) and non-anonymous publication of their names, affiliations, and direct quotations (written consent). • Non-interventional Nature and Participant Information - All participants, across all groups, were fully informed about the study’s objectives, why the research was being conducted, how their data would be utilized, and that their anonymity (for assistants) or attribution (for experts) was assured. They were informed of the absence of any foreseeable risks and their right to withdraw at any time without consequence. • Vulnerable Populations This study did not involve vulnerable populations or minors. All participants were adults capable of providing informed consent.