Novus projects: innovative ideas to build new opportunities upon technology-based avenues in Higher Education

Abstract

This study describes a funding initiative that promotes educational innovation in a higher education institution in Mexico. This initiative, known as Novus, and carried out at Tecnologico de Monterrey, encourages professors to present educational innovation proposals by funding and monitoring research projects that promote student learning and competencies. These projects are based on digital technologies and pedagogies developed on the 26 campuses distributed throughout the country. This article presents a case study in which the historical data of Novus projects from 2012 to 2021 are reviewed. The results show that using digital technologies in these projects has favored more than 65,000 students on more than 1700 courses and the 1000 professors who teach these formative experiences. In addition, there are similar initiatives, especially in Latin America; however, they are still too few to contribute to improving student learning in an unprecedented time. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the digital transformation of educational institutions has been accelerated, with many challenges and obstacles. Therefore, showing the result of initiatives that favor the professionalization of teachers through technological projects based on evidence will illustrate the possibilities for higher education to develop these experiences. This study aims to communicate the main ideas and findings that originated in the projects created with this initiative and to show how these experiences have impacted the teaching-learning processes of university students through the innovation proposed by teachers. The dissemination of these results can generate interest so that other institutions understand the benefits of this initiative and can continue to generate new opportunities for these contexts.