Impact and perception of the teaching staff in the Research, Promotion, and Social Intervention Program for the Improvement of Reading Comprehension Skills in the Ameca Region, Jalisco, Mexico.

Abstract

The article examines the impact and teachers’ perceptions of the Expresa–Sale y Valee Program, designed to strengthen reading comprehension skills in the Valles Region of Jalisco through a pedagogical approach that conceives reading as a fundamental sociocognitive competence within the framework of new literacies. Using an action-research methodology, the project operates through two components: an internal one (Expresa), focused on training university students as critical readers and social promoters through literary, communicative and knowledge-transposition workshops; and an external one (Sale y Valee), in which these students intervene in basic-education schools through playful reading activities and pedagogical support. The program is grounded in the theoretical contributions of Durkheim, Morin, Maturana and Freire, emphasizing reading as a social practice that enhances critical thinking, interpretation and argumentation. Among its main achievements are the service provided to more than 39,000 students over three academic terms and the participation of more than 260 university students. Surveys administered to teachers and children indicate improvements in collaborative work, ability to explain what they read, increased vocabulary and greater enjoyment of reading, while also strengthening the link between university and community. Overall, the program demonstrates that situated and experiential reading training can transform educational practices and reinforce essential communicative competencies.