Abstract:

People retain 10% of what they read, 30% of what they see, 50% of what they hear, 70% of what the write and 90% of what they do. Therefore, teaching based on doing is difficult to compare with regular teaching, which is mainly based on retaining theoretical knowledge.

Learning by Doing is an innovative methodology which focuses teaching in practice instead of theory, consequently, students learn by experimentation. This system is applied through trial and error, which enables the student to participate in actual cases. To do so, it is mandatory to change the roles educational actors are currently playing, which means: students taking a more active role in the learning process and teachers accepting this new methodology and being supportive throughout the process. Learning by Doing helps students increase their capacity to retain and integrate new knowledges because it gives them more motivation, stimulation and adaptative alternatives.

The objective of this project consists in using learning based on Learning by Doing, in order to reach better levels of knowledge acquisition in higher education. It is relevant to analyze the experience from the student's perspective. This innovative methodology contributes to 2030 Agenda, and specifically to SDG 4 Quality Education and Targets 4.4 and 4.7.

The methodological strategy used in this study is: Learning by Doing applied to the redesign and construction of an incubator to carry out the test of coliform content in water. The student must be in the last year of a bachelor's or master's degree, so that he/she already has the theoretical knowledge to carry out the project. The task begins with the process of searching for information and acquiring unknown knowledge, since the project is not restricted to an isolated area of knowledge (in this case Electronics) but also to many more fields such as water quality, insulating materials, photovoltaic energy, etc.., which favors a multidisciplinary and integrated learning.

The results observed by the professor and experienced by the student are: a better management of failure, a more integrative analysis capacity and development of creativity and personal critical reasoning. The most representative result in this work is the feeling of belonging to the project, which is also the main reason why it was never abandoned after the numerous obstacles encountered. The project, carried out as part of the Cooperación de Sistemas de Agua y Saneamiento para el Desarrollo group of the UPM, has been an opportunity to translate the theoretical knowledge acquired in the Industrial Engineering degree into a tangible project and thus bridge the gap between classes and actual projects. In addition, this experience has resulted in several prototypes of incubators for the control of bacteriological contamination of water that are adapted to different contexts, according to the wishes of the community.

In conclusion, Learning by Doing methodology demonstrates that every educational process requires an experimental experience to consolidate it, a situation where the student is asked to apply the theoretical information into and actual problem. Therefore, this methodology is an excellent tool to encourage students to surpass their goals beyond the qualification, making them participants in their own learning process.

Keywords:

Learning by Doing, International Cooperation, Fecal Coliforms Bacteria, Water Quality, Incubator.