Abstract:

As we all know communication is central to any kind of activity. Within the job context, professional communication is paramount because it has to be carried out in a transparent way able to lead audiences “to take appropriate and safe actions”. [1]

At the ETSIST Engineering School (Escuela Superior de Ingeniería y Sistemas de Telecomunicación) of the Technical University of Madrid (UPM) the course Comunicación profesional aims at preparing students for the use of formal Spanish language in professional contexts and is addressed to the first-year cohort. The students have to adopt the mindset necessary to confront formal communication, that is, communication adapted to a specific audience, articulated with clarity and concision while using the required specific vocabulary.

The aim of this paper is to present the design changes to be incorporated into the course Comunicación profesional positioning it within the framework of Service learning that nowadays universities are promoting. Service learning focuses on the learning that students gain at the time themselves are actually providing some service for society. At the Technical University of Madrid (UPM) the project EELISA shows the interest that Service learning is lately arousing. [2]

This course in professional communication is already structured into two main parts: an interview the students carry out in a team, and a presentation about a technology topic connected to the issue of the interview. In the last two springs 2020 and 2021, the students were required to introduce in their presentation the Sustainable Development Objectives (ODSs) proposed by the United Nations [3]. It might be a first stepping-stone to make the future engineers realize the important consequences of professional work for the planet and this thought is no doubt a first unconscious approach to Service learning.

To transform the course into one that really follows the track of Service learning, the technical sheet proposed by Aramburuzabala y Cerrillo [4] will be followed. The main focus for the transformation is the interaction or conversation between students and people from sectors of society with technology needs: the elderly, disabled people, health providers, education sector, people in need, etc. A direct contact with them or the institutions concerned is expected to bring about a better divulgation of what technology entails for society and an improved notion on how technology could better serve these final users.

As teachers we believe Service learning can contribute to produce a stronger motivation to keep students studying the degree, and to make them see the purpose of communicating effectively in real professional situations in which they are becoming involved to change society.

Keywords:

Communication, technology, Service learning, motivation.