María Ximena is currently working with Aprendiendo a Aprender, a project aimed at transforming pedagogical practices across Panama’s public schools. For over 25 years, she has implemented Project Zero ideas in Latin America and Spain, focusing specifically on the Teaching for Understanding and Cultures of Thinking frameworks to foster deep, meaningful learning.
PZ Work
María Ximena currently serves as the project manager of Aprendiendo a Aprender | Learning to Learn, an initiative dedicated to transforming teaching and learning in public schools. Together with her team, she explores effective strategies for fostering collaboration and inquiry-based practices in schools and classrooms. In addition, she is a co-instructor for PZ’s online course, Teaching and Learning for Understanding, and participates in the annual Project Zero Classroom conference by facilitating a mini-course and a study group.
She is the author of "Transforming Pedagogy with Thinking Routines" and has translated multiple seminal PZ works into Spanish: Looking Together at Student Work, Making Thinking Visible: How to Promote Engagement, Understanding, and Independence for All Learners, and Creating Cultures of Thinking: The 8 Forces We Must Master to Truly Transform Our Schools.
Additional Experience
María Ximena is a founding member of FUNDACIES, an organization dedicated to professional development. She holds a Master’s degree in Education with an emphasis on curricular processes, and currently serves as an adjunct lecturer at Florida International University, where she teaches early childhood curriculum.
María Ximena's PZ Pick
María Ximena's favorite thinking routine is "Connect, Extend, Challenge" as it sparks meaningful reflection and dialogue while encouraging the transfer of ideas to new contexts in both collaborative and individual learning settings.