Abstract:

The use of computer tools has been evolving a great speed in the field of education, especially at university levels. 25 years ago, in university education there were just beginning to be computer practices based mainly on the use of tools such as Excel in experimental university careers. Today, thanks to the advance in technologies, the radiography of universities is very different. Most students come daily with their laptops and tablets to college, they are part of the generations called "digital natives". As teachers of higher education, we cannot be oblivious to this reality and we must rethink the way to adapt teachings to the daily use of computer technologies, it also means being closer to the procedure that these students will follow later when they are professionals in their field. This works deals with the work being done by the teaching unit of Construction Materials of the Escuela Técnica Superior de Ingeniería de Caminos, Canales y Puertos to adapt the dosage of concrete to the use of Excel, work that until this academic year was carried out with manual calculations using a calculator.

Specifically, the use of the Excel spreadsheet was limited to obtaining aggregate granulometric curves from the mixture of several of them, so that they were as similar as possible to a series of theoretical curves through the use of least squares adjustments based on the use of a spreadsheet.

The teacher's challenge in the classroom is twofold. On the one hand, he has the task of making the students understand the factors and limitations to be taken into account when carrying out concrete batching. On the other hand, it is to explain the use of a specific tool of the Microsoft "Excel" software, in order to know how a least squares adjustment can be carried out.

The present work explains in detail the challenges faced by the teachers, as well as the advantages and disadvantages of moving from a manual procedure (slower, more laborious and with more room for thought) to a computerised process (more automatic and faster) more in line with the reality in which future engineers will carry out their professional work. The advantages of using this type of tools and the main problems detected in the students, related to the understanding of the procedure they are carrying out, will be indicated.

Keywords:

Digital native, digital tools, concrete dosage.