Experiential Teaching for Sustainable Development

Abstract

This educational intervention consists in improving the skills of citizenship of students in their Jirst semesters of engineering through participatory management of remote laboratories of air quality in eight different zones of Monterrey, Mexico. With the use of gadgets that can measure the level of pollution in the air, the students were divided into teams of 4 to 5 members and visited their designated area on 3 different days, to measuring the level of pollution in 24 key points within their area: 8 places with a high amount of vehicular trafJic, 8 in small streets with little trafJic and 8 places in green areas, such as parks. Students scored the measurements and prepared a Jinal report on their area, delivering reports to authorities of local communities. Two focus groups took place, one during the activity and one after the students handed in their Jinal reports. The goal behind the focus group was to listen to the student’s thoughts regarding the activity and the knowledge they acquired thanks to it. Interesting suggestions for future implementations were also an important topic during these focus groups. Final reJlections and plans for the future run of this activity are discussed in the conclusions.