The effective implementation of any educational reform is largely dependent on the preparation of teachers. In the case of the National English Program in Basic Education, (NEPBE) implemented in public schools in Mexico in 2009, teacher preparation options have been designed by both public and private higher education institutions in several states of the country. Most options have been based on the needs of teacher trainers and educational administrators, rather than on teachers' needs. This paper presents the partial results of a professional development needs analysis carried out with secondary English language teachers in northeast Mexico. The study examined the teachers' previous professional development experiences; their views on professional development contents and formats; and disposition to engage in inquiry-based professional development. Results indicated that stand-alone and degree courses were the only professional development activities the participants had experienced. Other practices such as mentoring, peer observation, attending conferences, or networking, were unfamiliar to the majority of them. Although most of the teachers considered that training courses had a high impact on teaching, some of them valued the impact of professional development practices that involve autonomy, reflection and collaboration. A high percentage of teachers reported disposition to learn about and engage in classroom research.

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The aim was to explore social capital in the Totonac ethnic group with the idea of identifying its sources and proposing how social capital is perceived and understood from a different centre of knowledge than the Western one. Methodologically, the study was based on a qualitative approach using the following research techniques: semi-structured interview and ethnographic work from a participant observation perspective. The results allowed us to observe, at least in the Totonac culture, changes in the way of understanding and practicing some relationships, including reciprocity, which in the study were approached from two analytical axes, namely, from the interpersonal relationships of the Totonacs and from the relationships with nature. We can conclude that from the Totonac culture, the perception and operation of social capital responds to a different logic. We can confirm this from the experiences narrated by the Totonac group of the Sierra Norte de Puebla, who from their cosmovision possess a social dynamic where reciprocity unfolds in their different social practices and acquires meaning from their roots, nuanced through their own cultural expressions and manifestations. Finally, a research agenda is proposed to explore social capital in the rest of the native cultures.